Plant cells response to water deficit through a variety of physiological processes. In this work, we studied the function of microtubule cytoskeleton during dehydration/rehydration cycle in moss (Atrichum undulatum) protonemal cells as a model system. The morphological and cytological change of protonemal cells during dehydration and rehydration cycle were first investigated. Under normal conditions, protonemal cells showed bright green colour and appeared wet and fresh. Numerous chloroplasts distributed regularly throughout the cytoplasm in each cell. After dehydration treatment, protonemal cells lost most of their chlorophylls and turned to look yellow and dry. In addition, dehydration caused plasmolysis in these cells. Upon rehydration, the cells could recover completely from the dehydrated state. These results indicated that moss had a remarkable intrinsic ability to survive from the extreme drought stress. Microtubule, an important component of cytoskeleton, is considered to play crucial roles in the responses to some environmental stresses such as cold and light. To see if it is also involved in the drought tolerance, dynamic organization of microtubules in protonemal cells of Atrichum undulatum subjected to drought and rehydration were examined by indirect immunofluorescence combined with confocal lasersharp scanning microscopy. The cortical microtubules were arranged into a fine structure with a predominant orientation parallel to the long axis of the cells in the control cells. After dehydration, the microtubule organization was remarkablly altered and the fine microtubule structure disappeared whereas some thicker cables formed. When the cells were grown under rehydration conditions, the fine microtubule arrays reappeared. These results provided a piece of evidence that microtubules play a role in the cellular responses to drought stress in moss. Furthermore, we analyzed the effects of the microtubule-disrupting agent colchicine on the morphology recovery of the protonemal cells during rehydration process. The cells were incubated with colchicine, followed by drought stress treatment and rehydration in the presence of colchicine to prevent recovery of microtubule organization. Results from immunofluorescence showed that microtubule arrays were broken down into smaller fragments. Compared to the cells treated with drought stress alone, the cells treated with drought stress in the presence of colchicine could not recover after rehydration treatment. The morphology resembled those of the drought treated cells, with obvious plasmolysis phenomena and loss of chlorophyll content. These results support the notion that microtubules were involved in the deccication tolerance mechanism in Atrichum undulatum.
Bryophyta ; metabolism ; physiology ; Droughts ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; physiology ; Microscopy ; Microtubules ; metabolism

Case-Control Studies ; Creatine ; urine ; Female ; Humans ; Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain ; diagnosis ; urine ; Infant, Newborn ; Lactic Acid ; urine ; Male ; Predictive Value of Tests

To observe influence of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) mobilized by rosuvastatin on ven‐tricular remodeling in patients with myocardial infarction (MI).Methods : A total of 128 MI patients received PCI treated in our department from Jan 2017 to Jan 2018 were selected , randomly and equally divided into routine treat‐ment group and rosuvastatin group (received rosuvastatin based on routine treatment group ) , both groups were con‐tinuously treated for 28d .Peripheral blood percentage of EPCs before and 28d after treatment , LVEF , LVESd and LVEDd before and six months after treatment , and incidence rate of adverse reactions were measured and compared between two groups .Results : Compared with before treatment , there was significant rise in peripheral blood per‐centage of EPCs [ (0. 64 ± 0. 15)% vs.(1. 08 ± 0.23)%] in only rosuvastatin group on 28d after treatment , P＝0.001 ;and was significantly higher than that of routine treatment group [(1.08 ± 0.23)% vs.(0.58 ± 0.12)%] , P＝ 0. 001. Compared with before treatment , there was significant rise in LVEF , and significant reductions in LVEDd and LVESd in two groups on six months after treatment , P＝0.001 all ;compared with routine treatment group , there was significant rise in LVEF [ (52.24 ± 7.18)% vs.(58. 36 ± 8.62)%] , and significant reductions in LVESd [ (33.46 ± 5. 04) mm vs.(30. 26 ± 4. 15) mm] and LVEDd [ (56.17 ± 8. 24) mm vs.(51. 38 ± 7.62) mm] in rosuvastatin group , P＝0. 001 all .There was no significant difference in incidence rate of adverse reactions be‐tween two groups , P＝0. 752. Conclusion : Rosuvastatin can mobilize EPCs to inhibit ventricular remodeling , sig‐nificantly improve cardiac function with good safety in patients with myocardial infarction , which is worth exten‐ding .

Objective To investigate the molecular epidemiologic characteristics and genotypes of norovirus in children less than 5 years of age in Lulong area from 2008 to 2009.Methods 325 stool specimens and epidemiological data from hospitalized children with diarrhea less than 5 years of age were collected.Rotavirus was detected by using the ELISA kit.Norovirus,adenovirus and astrovirus were detected by multiple reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).Partial norovirus strains were sequenced and the tree was conducted by using the phylogenetic analyses.Results Norovirus was detected in 37out of 325 (11.3％ ) specimens,ranked only second to rotavirus (48.6％),and higher than adenovirus (6.5 ％ ) and astrovirus (4.3％).Norovirus predominantly infected children less than 2 years of age and the season peak of norovirus occurred in November.Phylogenetic analysis showed that the predominant strain was the GⅡ.4/2006b variant.Interestingly,a novel unreported GⅡ-4 variant was found in this study.Conclusion Norovirus was one of the most important pathogens causing acute gastroenteritis from 2008 to 2009 in Lulong area.The GⅡ.4/2006b vairant was still the predominant strain.It is important to keep on monitoring the novel GⅡ.4 variant.

Objective To investigate the situation of the natural infection of hantaviruses (HV) in small mammals and to provide evidence for the control and prevention of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) in Longquan area,Zhejiang province. Methods Small mammals were captured by night trap, and lung tissue samples were collected and stored in liquid nitrogen. HV antigens were detected by indirect immuno-fluorescence assay (IFA). The partial S genome segment sequences were amplified by RT-PCR. DNAStar program was used for editing and comparing the sequences. Phylogeny was analyzed through PAUP*4.0 software. Results 319 small animals were collected in Longquan, and 9 hantavirus antigen-positive samples were identified. The positive rate of hantavirus in Apodemus agrarius was 4.97% . Phylogenetic tree constructed by partial S segment (620-999 nt) showed that the 9 strains carried by A agrarius from Longquan all belonged to HTNV,and had a closer evolutionary relationship with isolate Z251 from Zhejiang province. Conclusion Our results indicated that the main host was A. agrarius and the infection rate of HTNV was high in Longquan area.

Objective To investigate the effects of GO-CoA-Tat,an inhibitor of ghrelin O-acyltransferase(GOAT),on lipid metabolism and oxidative stress in mice with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD)induced by high-fat diet(HFD).Methods Twenty-four C57BL/6 male mice were selected and divided into control group,HFD group and GO-CoA-Tat group,with 8 mice in each group.The mice in control group was given standard diet,the mice in HFD group and GO-CoA-Tat group were given HFD,and the mice in GO-CoA-Tat group was given daily intraperitoneal injection of GO-CoA-Tat from 3rd week of feeding.Food intake and body mass of mice were measured weekly.After 8 weeks,serum and liver samples were collected,liver weight was measured,and fat droplets were detected by hepatocyte oil red O staining;biochemical indexes such as serum triglyceride(TG),total cholesterol(TC),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),aspartate aminotransferase(AST)and oxidative stress indexes of liver such as glutathione(GSH),superoxide dismutase(SOD)and malondialdehyde(MDA)were measured.Results Hepatic steatosis was observed after feeding with HFD for 8 weeks,which was significantly relieved in GO-CoA-Tat group compared with HFD group.Compared with HFD group,the food intake,body weight and liver weight of mice in GO-CoA-Tat group decreased(P＜0.05).Compared with HFD group,the content of TG in liver of mice in GO-CoA-Tat group decreased,the concentrations of serum TG and TC decreased(P＜0.05),and the concentrations of liver GSH and SOD increased(P＜0.01),liver MDA decreased(P=0.005),and the serum ALT and AST decreased(P＜0.05).Conclusion GO-CoA-Tat can improve lipid metabolism and oxidative stress in the liver of NAFLD mice,thus play a protective role in the liver.

Objective To detect human parechovirus (HPeV) from stool samples of hospitalized children for acute gastroonteritis of undetectable etiology. Methods We conducted a real-time PCR to detect HPeV. Result The results showed that 24 of 99 (24%) children with gastroenteritis of undetectable etiology were detected with HPeV. Four known HPeV types (HPeV1,3,4,6) were detected in the present study. HPeV1 (50%) was frequently identified as the predominant strain and follow by HPeV3 (25 % ), HPeV 4 (8.3 % ) and HPeV 6 (4.2 % ). We were unable to type 3 samples. Conclusion HPeV was prevalent in hospitalized children for acute gastreenteritis of undetectable etiology in China. Further study is needed for clarifying the role of HPeV in gastroenteritis.

Objective To investigate the status quo of pain catastrophizing(PC)in the patients with di-abetic peripheral neuropathic pain(DPNP),and to analyze the influencing factors to provide reference for for-mulating clinical preventive intervention strategies.Methods A total of 206 patients with DPNP admitted and treated in the People's Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region were selected as the research sub-jects by convenience sampling method.The general data questionnaire,Numerical Rating Scale(NRS),Pain Catastrophizing scale(PCS),Perceived Social Support Scale(PSSS)and diabetes distress scale(DDS)were used to conduct the investigation.Results The incidence rate of PC in 206 cases of DPNP patients was 44.66％(92/206),and the total score of PCS was(30.10±5.16)points.The results of multiple linear regres-sion analysis showed that the gender,duration of diabetes(≥10 years),multiple drug use,number of compli-cations(＞5),NRS score,PSSS score and scores of DDS dimensions were the main influencing factors of PC(all P＜0.05),which could explain 92.3％of the total variation of PC.Conclusion The PC incidence rate in the patients with DPNP is high.Clinical healthcare workers should pay attention to the evaluation of PC in these patients,and formulate the scientific and effective targeted intervention measures according to the main influen-cing factors to help the patients to reduce the pain burden in order to reduce the level of PC.

OBJECTIVETo explore the effects of Dangua Recipe (DGR) on glycolipid metabolism, serum reactive oxygen species (ROS) level, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB) positive expression and its mRNA expression level in the thoracic aorta of diabetic rats with atherosclerosis, thus revealing its partial mechanisms for intervening chronic diabetic complications.

METHODSRecruited 40 Goto-Kakisaki (GK) Wistar rats were fed with high fat forage containing metabolic inhibition Propylthiouracil, and peritoneally injected with endothelial NOS inhibitor N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester to establish a high fat diabetes model with atherosclerosis. The modeled GK rats were stratified by body weight, and then, by blood glucose level from high to low, randomly divided into the DGR group (at the daily dose of 8 mL/kg), the metformin group (MET, at the daily dose of 150 mg/kg), the simvastatin group (SIM, at the daily dose of 2 mg/kg), and the model group (MOD, fed with pure water, at the daily dose of 8 mL/kg) according to the random number table, 10 in each group. Another 10 Wistar rats of the same ages and comparable body weight level were recruited as the normal control group. All the interventions lasted for 24 weeks by gastrogavage. The fasting blood glucose (FBG) and body weight were monitored. The HbA1c, TC, LDL-C, HDL-C, TG, serum ROS were determined. The aortic NF-kappaB level was analyzed with immunohistochemical assay. The expression of NF-kappaB (P65) mRNA in the aorta was detected with Real-time PCR.

RESULTSThe body weight in the normal control group was eventually heavier than others (P < 0.01). There was no difference among the four groups of GK modeled rats (P > 0.05). The FBG in the four GK modeled groups were higher than that in the normal control group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference in the blood glucose level at the first visit and at the baseline among the GK modeled groups (P > 0.05). The last FBG level was obviously lower in the MET and DGR groups than in the MOD group (P < 0.01) and the SIM group (P < 0.05). Twenty-four weeks after intervention, the level of FBG, HbA1c, TC, LDL-C, HDL-C, and NF-kappaB positive expression rate of the thoracic aorta of the four groups of GK modeled rats, and NF-kappaB mRNA expression in the thoracic aorta in the MOD group, the MET group, and the DGR group were significantly higher than those in the normal control group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). The TG level, serum ROS in the MET, DGR, and SIM groups, and the NF-kappaB mRNA expression level in the thoracic aorta in the SIM group were significantly lower than those in the normal control group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). The levels of FBG, TC, LDL-C, serum ROS, NF-kappaB mRNA expression level in the thoracic aorta in three drug intervention groups, and NF-kappaB positive expression rate in the DGR and MET groups, and the levels of HbA1c, TG in the DGR group were significantly lower than those in the MOD group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). The level of FBG in the MET and DGR groups were lower than that in the SIM group (P < 0.05). The level of NF-kappaB mRNA expression in the thoracic aorta of the SIM and DGR groups, and the levels of TC and LDL-C in the DGR group were significantly lower than those in the MET group (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONDGR played a role in preventing and treating chronic diabetic complications by comprehensively regulating blood glucose and serum lipids, as well as down-regulating oxidative stress.

Animals ; Aorta, Thoracic ; metabolism ; Atherosclerosis ; complications ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Blood Glucose ; analysis ; Diabetic Angiopathies ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Lipid Metabolism ; Male ; NF-kappa B ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; Phytotherapy ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; blood

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of Dangua Recipe (DGR) on glycolipid metabolism, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and its mRNA expression level of transgenic Apo E(-/-) mouse with spontaneous atherosclerosis, thus revealing its partial mechanism for curing diabetes mellitus (DM) with angiopathy.

METHODSDiabetic model was prepared by peritoneally injecting streptozotocin (STZ) to Apo E(-/-) mouse. Totally 32 modeled mice were stratified by body weight, and then divided into 4 groups referring to blood glucose levels from low to high by random digit table, i.e., the model group (MOD, fed with sterile water, at the daily dose of 15 mL/kg), the DGR group (fed with DGR at the daily dose of 15 mL/kg), the combination group (COM, fed with DGR at the daily dose of 15 mL/kg and pioglitazone at the daily dose of 4.3 mg/kg), and the pioglitazone group (PIO, at the daily dose of 4.3 mg/kg), 8 in each group. Another 8 normal glucose C57 mouse of the same age and strain were recruited as the control group. All interventions lasted for 12 weeks by gastrogavage. The fasting blood glucose (FBG), body weight, food intake, water intake, skin temperature, the length of tail, and the degree of fatty liver were monitored. The hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), total cholesterol (TC), and LDL-C were determined. Endothelin-1 (ET-1) was determined by radioimmunoassay. Nitrogen monoxidum (NO) was determined by nitrate reductase. The kidney tissue VCAM-1 level was analyzed with ELISA. The expression of VCAM-1 mRNA in the kidney tissue was detected with real time quantitative PCR.

RESULTSCompared with the control group, the body weight and food intake decreased, water intake increased in all the other model groups (P < 0.05). Besides, the curve of blood glucose was higher in all the other model groups than in the control group (P < 0.01). Compared with the model group, the body weight increased; levels of HbAlc, TC, LDL-C, ET-1, and VCAM-1 were significantly lower; and skin temperature was higher in the DGR group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). Compared with the PIO group, body weight, the increment of body weight, FBG, TC, and LDL-C were lower (P < 0.05, P < 0.01); food intake and water intake increased more and the tail length was longer in the DRG group (P < 0.01). There was no statistical difference in the level of NO among groups. The degree of fatty liver in the model group was significantly severer than that in the control group (P < 0.05). It was obviously alleviated in the DGR group (P < 0.05) when compared with the model group and the PIO group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). But it was severer in the PIO group than in the model group (P < 0.01). The degree of fatty liver in the combination group ranged between that of the DGR group and the PIO group (P < 0.05). The level of VCAM-1 mRNA expression was significantly lower in the DGR group than in the model group, the PIO group, and the combination group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSDGR had effect in lowering blood glucose and blood lipids, and fighting against fatty liver of transgenic Apo E(-/-) mouse with spontaneous atherosclerosis. DGR played an effective role in preventing and treating DM with angiopathy by comprehensively regulating glycolipid metabolism and promoting the vascular function.

Animals ; Apolipoproteins E ; genetics ; Blood Glucose ; metabolism ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; blood ; drug therapy ; Diabetic Angiopathies ; drug therapy ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Lipids ; blood ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Knockout ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; Random Allocation ; Thiazolidinediones ; pharmacology ; Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 ; genetics ; metabolism