OBJECTIVETo compare the differences in the therapeutic effect on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) between acupuncture at Tianshu (ST 25) and Dachangshu (BL 25) and western medication with Trimebutine Maleate.

METHODSForty cases were divided randomly into an acupuncture group and a western medication group, 20 cases in each one. In acupuncture group, acupuncture was applied to Tianshu (ST 25) and Dachangshu (BL 25). Ziwu Daojiu needling technique was adopted, once daily. In western medication group, Trimebutine Maleate capsule was administered, 2 capsules in each time, 3 times per day. The assessment on the therapeutic effect was performed in 4 weeks of treatment in two groups.

RESULTSAs compared with those before treatment, the time of abdominal pain, the frequency of abdominal pain, the morbidity of abnormal stool appearance, the morbidity of defecation abnormality, the morbidity of mucus stool and the score of bloating or abdominal pain on bowel movement were all reduced after treatment in two groups (all P < 0.01). The results in acupuncture group were much more significant than those in western medication group (the total score: 16.70 +/- 2.40 vs 15.70 +/- 3.01, P < 0.01). The total effective rate in acupuncture group was 95.0% (19/20), which was superior to that of 70.0% (14/20) in western medication group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONAcupuncture at Tianshu (ST 25) and Dachangshu (BL 25) may remarkably relieve the clinical symptoms of IBS and its efficacy is superior to that of oral medication with Trimebutine Maleate.

Acupuncture Therapy ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome ; drug therapy ; therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Trimebutine ; therapeutic use ; Young Adult

Objective To establish guinea pig model of type Ⅰ anaphylaxis, isolate the anaphy-lactic antibody(IgE and IgG) preliminarily from sera of sensitized guinea pigs, and investigate its functional characteristics. Methods Animal model was established by sensitizing guinea pigs with OVA and Al(OH)_3, level of antibody was determined by ELISA, IgE and IgG in sera were preliminarily isolated through saturated ammonium sulphate precipitate and affinity chromatograph of Protein A. A continuous passive cutaneous ana-phylaxis test (PCA) was performed by sensitizing guinea pigs individually with IgE and IgG and then challenging at different time , and the variation of blue spots in skin were observed after challenge . Results Concentration of IgE in model group and control group were 719.3750 ng/ml and 2.5250 ng/ml, the optical density of IgG in model group and control group were 0.9921 and 0.0174, the level of two antibodies in model group were significantly higher than that of control group (P<0.05). In 9 d continuous PCA test, the blue spot induced by IgE in skin lasted for 9 days and appeared the largest when challenged at day 5. The diameter of blue spot induced by IgG was the largest when challenged at day 2 and then decreased fast. Con-clusion Anaphylactic antibodies were successfully preliminarily isolated from sera of sensitizing guinea pig, both IgE and IgG play roles in type Ⅰ anaphylaxis of guinea pig, the hypersensitive reaction induced by IgG is fast and short than that induced by IgE, and IgG may become an important surrogate marker in immunotoxic-ity evaluation(type Ⅰ anaphylaxis)of vaccine.

OBJECTIVETo synthesize two antigens-Ag85b and HspX of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv with molecular biological methods and to observe their biologic activity after co-administration of adjuvants (aluminum and/or CpG) in mice.

METHODSRecombinant expression plasmids pET30a-Ag85b and pET30a-HspX were constructed. The objective DNA fragments was characterized with restriction enzyme. Then the recombinant plasmids were transformed into E. coli BL-21, and two proteins were expressed by induction of isopropyl beta-D-1-thiogalactopyranoside. After purification with anion exchange column Source30, QHP, and hydrophobic chromatography column, two proteins were identified by amino acid sequencing. After the successful preparation of these two antigens, they were co-administered in mice with adjuvants of aluminum and/or CpG (Ag85b, Ag85b + Al, Ag85b + CpG, Ag85b + Al + CpG; HspX, HspX + Al, HspX + CpG, HspX + Al + CpG); one group received normal saline and served as the control. Splenic lymphocytes were isolated for enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot assay to detect the secreted specific interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma); in addition, lymphocytes proliferation test was performed to observe lymphocytes proliferation after in vitro stimulated with two antigens.

RESULTSThe purity of two proteins reached 95% after purification. The N-terminal amino acid sequence (15 aa) of the purified proteins was same as the target sequence. For Ag85b, the secreted specific IFN-gamma from isolated splenic lymphocytes after having been stimulated in vitro with Ag85b (80 microg/ml) remarkably increased in Ag85b + CpG group, Ag85b + Al group, and Ag85b + CpG + Al group; the changes were significantly different between these three groups and control group (P < 0.05). For HspX, the changes were significantly different between HspX + Al + CpG group and normal sodium group, although remarked increase of IFN-gamma was also observed in HspX group, HspX + Al group, and HspX + CpG group.

CONCLUSIONSAg85b and HspX were successfully expressed and purified. A cell-mediated immunity may be induced when the antigens are co-administered with adjuvants of aluminum and/or CpG in mice, indicating that the recombinant proteins are bioactive.

Acyltransferases ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; therapeutic use ; Adjuvants, Immunologic ; therapeutic use ; Animals ; Antigens, Bacterial ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; therapeutic use ; Bacterial Proteins ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; therapeutic use ; Escherichia coli ; Immunity, Cellular ; Interferon-gamma ; Mice ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; immunology ; metabolism ; Recombinant Proteins ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; therapeutic use

OBJECTIVETo study the clinicopathologic features of clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma (CCPRCC).

METHODSThe clinical, morphologic and immunohistochemical characteristics of 6 cases of CCPRCC were reviewed, with analysis of follow-up data.

RESULTSThere were altogether 3 men and 3 women. The mean age of patients was 56 years. The size of tumors ranged from 1.0 to 4.5 cm in greatest dimension. They had solid or solid-cystic cut surface. Histologically, the tumors were encapsulated and showed several morphologic patterns, with tubules, papillae, acini, interconnecting ribbons and macro/microcysts lined by single layer of cells with clear or small amount of eosinophilic cytoplasm and low-grade nuclei (corresponding to Fuhrman grade 1 or 2). Mitotic figures were rarely seen. Characteristically, there was linear arrangement of the nuclei away from the basement membrane, conferring an appearance similar to that of endometrial glands in early secretory phase. Tubules and cysts contained serosanguineous fluid or colloid-like secretion were identified. No foamy histiocytes, psammomatous calcifications or hemosiderin was present in the papillary areas. Two of the tumors showed focal or extensive angioleiomyoma/leiomyoma-like components. No coagulative necrosis, sarcomatoid dedifferentiation, nor microscopic vascular invasion was observed. Immunohistochemically, all tumors showed strong co-expression of CK7 and CA9 (with characteristic "goblet" staining pattern). The staining for EMA, CK (AE1/AE3), vimentin, CK8, CK18, CK19 and PAX-8 were also positive in all cases. Ki-67 was expressed in less than or about 5% of the tumor cell nuclei. The staining for CD10, P504S, CD117, TFE3 and TFEB was negative. Follow-up data were available in all patients, with mean duration of 14 months (range = 7 to 27 months). All of the patients were disease-free after operation.

CONCLUSIONCCPRCC is a special type of low-grade renal neoplasm with characteristic histopathologic and immunohistochemical features. It needs to be distinguished from clear cell renal cell carcinoma or papillary renal cell carcinoma.

Objective To study the clinicopathologic features of clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma ( CCPRCC ) .Methods The clinical, morphologic and immunohistochemical characteristics of 6 cases of CCPRCC were reviewed, with analysis of follow-up data.Results There were altogether 3 men and 3 women.The mean age of patients was 56 years.The size of tumors ranged from 1.0 to 4.5 cm in greatest dimension.They had solid or solid-cystic cut surface.Histologically, the tumors were encapsulated and showed several morphologic patterns, with tubules, papillae, acini, interconnecting ribbons and macro/microcysts lined by single layer of cells with clear or small amount of eosinophilic cytoplasm and low-grade nuclei (corresponding to Fuhrman grade 1 or 2).Mitotic figures were rarely seen.Characteristically, there was linear arrangement of the nuclei away from the basement membrane, conferring an appearance similar to that of endometrial glands in early secretory phase.Tubules and cysts contained serosanguineous fluid or colloid-like secretion were identified.No foamy histiocytes, psammomatous calcifications or hemosiderin was present in the papillary areas.Two of the tumors showed focal or extensive angioleiomyoma/leiomyoma-like components.No coagulative necrosis, sarcomatoid dedifferentiation, nor microscopic vascular invasion was observed. Immunohistochemically, all tumors showed strong co-expression of CK7 and CA9 ( with characteristic“goblet” staining pattern).The staining for EMA, CK (AE1/AE3), vimentin, CK8, CK18, CK19 and PAX-8 were also positive in all cases.Ki-67 was expressed in less than or about 5%of the tumor cell nuclei.The staining for CD10, P504S, CD117, TFE3 and TFEB was negative.Follow-up data were available in all patients, with mean duration of 14 months ( range=7 to 27 months) .All of the patients were disease-free after operation.Conclusion CCPRCC is a special type of low-grade renal neoplasm with characteristic histopathologic and immunohistochemical features.It needs to be distinguished from clear cell renal cell carcinoma or papillary renal cell carcinoma.

Objective Effects of RIDASCREEN Norovirus (C 1401) 3rd Generation kit (R-biopham AG, darmstadt, Germany)and IDEIA NLV kit (DAKOCytomation., Ely, UK)were compared for detecting human norovirus(HuNV) in fecal sample. Methods The performance of the ELISA was compared with that of the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) by testing a panel of 308 fecal samples collected from patients involved in outbreaks of gastroenteritis in Chang Chun and Gnang Zhou. Gene sequencing was performed, to positive samples tested by RT-PCR to determine genotype compared with standard sequences. Results RT-PCR is gold standard, RIDASCREEN Norovims (C 1401)3rd Generation kit had a high sensitivity of 96.10% but a specificity of 93.51%, and Dako kit had a low sensitivity of 95.83% but a high specificity of 95.76%. Conclusion RIDASCREEN Norovirus(C 1401)3rd Generation kit is more Satisfactory for a preliminary screening.

The present study was to investigate whether endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) was involved in oxidized low density lipoprotein (ox-LDL)-induced scavenger receptor A1 (SR-A1) upregulation in macrophages. RAW264.7 cells were pretreated with 20 mmol/L of 4-phenylbutyric acid (PBA) for 30 min and then treated with ox-LDL (50 mg/L) for 12 h or stimulated with 2 mg/L tunicamycin (TM) or 2 μmol/L thapsigagin (TG) for 4 h. In addition, RAW264.7 cells were incubated with 0.5, 1 and 2 mg/L TM for 4 h or treated with 2 mg/L TM for 1, 2 and 4 h, respectively. The intracellular total cholesterol (TC) content was measured using a tissue/cell total cholesterol assay kit. The protein and mRNA expressions of SR-A1 and glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) were analyzed by Western blot and real-time PCR, respectively. Dil-ox-LDL uptake was detected using a microplate reader. The results showed that ox-LDL-induced cholesterol accumulation in macrophages was attenuated by PBA, an ERS inhibitor. Ox-LDL caused significant SR-A1 upregulation with concomitant activation of ERS as assessed by upregulation of GRP78, whereas PBA significantly inhibited the ox-LDL-induced SR-A1 upregulation (P < 0.05) and slightly decreased GRP78 expression by 39.3% (P = 0.057). TM, an ERS inducer, upregulated SR-A1 protein expression and ox-LDL uptake in dose- and time-dependent manner, but had no significant effect on SR-A1 mRNA level. However, the TM- or TG-induced SR-A1 upregulation and ox-LDL uptake were significantly mitigated by PBA. These data indicate that ERS plays a critical role in ox-LDL-induced SR-A1 upregulation, which in turn enhances the foam cell formation by uptaking more ox-LDL.
Animals ; Cell Line ; Cholesterol ; metabolism ; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress ; Heat-Shock Proteins ; metabolism ; Lipoproteins, LDL ; pharmacology ; Macrophages ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Mice ; Scavenger Receptors, Class A ; metabolism ; Up-Regulation

Objective: To explore the effect of okra extract on gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) rats and its probable molecular mechanism. Methods: A total of 30 female SD rats were caged with male rats for pregnancy, 27 pregnant rats were obtained and weighed. The pregnant rats were equally randomized into the control group, GDM group and intervention group. Once the pregnancy was verified, GDM group and intervention group were given 45 mg/kg streptozotocin by peritoneal injection for inducing GDM, control group was given equal volume of citrate buffer. Once the model was established successfully, intervention group was administered orally the solution containing 200 mg/kg/d okra extract, the other groups were given the diet and water only. On the 19th day of pregnancy, the blood samples and fetal rats of all groups were collected, fetal rats weight and placental weight was recorded and the serum glucose, lipids, serum insulin and C-peptide of pregnant rats before the delivery were determined. Results: The pregnant rats weight before the delivery, fetal rats weight and placental weight of GDM group were lower than control group and intervention group (P < 0.05). After the treatment of okra extract, serum glucose and lipids levels of intervention group were both improved significantly (P < 0.05), especially, the FBG, HDL, FINS, serum m insulin and hepatic glycogen levels were equivalent to control group (P > 0.05). Antioxidant enzymes levels of GDM group in liver and pancreas tissues were lower than the other groups, and after treatment of okra extract, antioxidant enzymes levels in liver and pancreas tissues were equivalent to control group (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Okra extract, rich in antioxidant substances, could avoid the excessive consuming of antioxidant enzymes, then, suppresses the oxidative stress and insulin resistance, thereby improving blood glucose level of GDM rats.

Humans ; Kidney/pathology* ; Kidney Neoplasms/surgery* ; Soft Tissue Neoplasms

In ischemic stroke, increased level of neuronal complex of nitric oxide synthase (nNOS)-postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD-95) plays an important role in neuronal damage. We aimed to establish a screening model to identify compounds capable of uncoupling nNOS interaction with PSD-95. In this model, human embryonic kidney-293T (HEK-293T) cells were transfected with either pCDH-Flag-nNOS or pcDNA3.1-PSD-95 plasmid to obtain the protein of Flag-nNOS or PSD-95. Incubating Flag-nNOS with PSD-95 causes formation of the nNOS-PSD-95 complex. ZL006, a known uncoupler of nNOS-PSD-95 interaction, can disturb the interaction between Flag-nNOS and PSD-95, serving as a positive control. The method coupling antibodies to magnetic beads with glutaraldehyde was used to decrease the cost and increase the efficiency. To establish that our model is suitable for selecting nNOS-PSD-95 uncouplers, we evaluated the ability of IC87201, another reported uncoupler of nNOS-PSD-95 interaction, and structural analogs of ZL006. IC87201 and one structure analog of ZL006 showed uncoupling effect, supporting that our model can be used to select different types uncoupler blocking nNOS-PSD-95 interaction.