OBJECTIVE To explore the role of P38MAPK inhibitor on the soft palate reconstruction of the rats with chronic intermittent hypoxia. METHODS The animals were divided into normal control group, hypoxia control group and SB203580+hypoxia group (every group 20 rats). After 5 weeks, the expressions of p38MAPK and p-p38MAPK protein on the soft palate of the rats were detected with immunohistochemical techniques and western blot. RESULTS Compared with the normal control group, the soft palate tissue thickness of the hypoxia group were increased most obviously; Levels of p38MAPK were increased in hypoxia control group; Compared with the hypoxia control group, the levels of p-p38MAPK group were decreased in SB203580+hypoxia group. CONCLUSION p38MAPK may play important roles in the soft palate reconstruction of the rats with chronic intermittent hypoxia.

Objective To explore the role of chemokines and ehemokine receptors in the etiopathog-enesis of diffuse proliferative lupus nephritis (LN). Methods ① Total RNA from the kidney tissues and peripheral blood cells of 12 patients with diffuse proliferative LN and 10 normal controls were prepared simultaneously and reverse transcribed into complementary DNA. Sybr green dye based real-time quantitative PCR method was used to compare the expression levels (indicated as-AACt value) of MCP-1, CCL19,CXCLg, CXCL10 and CCR2, CCR7, CXCR3. ② Immunofluoresceee labeling and immunohistochemical staining technique were used to observe the distribution of chemokines MCP-1, CCL19, CXCL9 and CXCL10 in normal and patients kidney tissues. Results The 4 chemokines genes (MCP-1, CCL19, CXCL9 and CXCL10) were consistently highly expressed in kidney tissues and peripheral blood ceils of diffuse proliferative LN patients compared with normal controls. The 2 chemokine receptors, CCR2 and CXCR3 were also overexpressed in peripheral blood cells of diffuse proliferative LN patients. There was nearly no expression of these 4 chemokine proteins in normal kidneys. But they were found in glomeruli of diffuse proliferative LN patients. Conclusion The expression of chemokines in the peripheral blood cells may be used as biomarkers for LN. Further study maybe lead to the development of specific drugs targeting at them for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

This study is to explore whether the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway is involved in the process of tripchlorolide (T4) protecting against oligomeric Abeta(1-42)-induced neuronal apoptosis. Primary cultured cortical neurons were used for the experiments on day 6 or 7. The oligomeric Abeta(1-42) (5 micromol x L(-1) for 24 h) was applied to induce neuronal apoptosis. Prior to treatment with Abeta(1-42) for 24 h, the cultured neurons were pre-incubated with T4 (2.5, 10, and 40 nmol x L(-1)), Wnt3a (Wnt signaling agonists) and Dkk1 (inhibitors) for indicated time. Then the cell viability, neuronal apoptosis, and protein levels of Wnt, glycogen synthase kinase 3beta (GSK3beta), beta-catenin and phospho-beta-catenin were measured by MTT assay, TUNEL staining and Western blotting, respectively. The result demonstrated that oligomeric Abeta(1-42) induced apoptotic neuronal cell death in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Pretreatment with T4 significantly increased the neuronal cell survival and attenuated neuronal apoptosis. Moreover, oligomeric Abeta(1-42)-induced phosphorylation of beta-catenin and GSK3beta was markedly inhibited by T4. Additionally, T4 stabilized cytoplasmic beta-catenin. These results indicate that tripchlorolide protects against the neurotoxicity of Abeta by regulating Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway. This may provide insight into the clinical application of tripchlorolide to Alzheimer's disease.

Small interfering RNA (siRNA) is the initiator of RNA interference and inhibits gene expression by targeted degradation of specific messenger RNA. siRNA-mediated gene regulation has high efficiency and specificity and exhibits great significance in the treatment of diseases. However, the naked or unmodified siRNA has poor stability, easy to degrade by nuclease, short half-life, and low intracellular delivery. As an emerging non-viral nucleic acid delivery system, ionizable lipid nanoparticles play an important role in improving the druggability of siRNA. At present, one siRNA drug based on ionizable lipid nanoparticles has been approved for the treatment of rare disease. This review introduces the research progress in ionizable lipid nanoparticles for siRNA delivery, focusing on the effect of each component of lipid nanoparticles on the efficiency of siRNA-mediated gene silencing, which provides new references for the studies on ionizable lipid nanocarriers for siRNA delivery.

AIMTo describe an unusual symptom of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

METHODSA patient presented to our urology clinic having experienced post-coital gross hematuria for 2 years. He had not experienced lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). A series of examinations were performed to determine the source of bleeding.

RESULTSThe prostate was defined as the active bleeding source responsible for the patient's post-coital hematuria. Endoscopic fulguration did not alleviate the symptom. The use of dutasteride, a dual inhibitor of 5alpha-reductase, solved the problem.

CONCLUSIONThis study reports for the first time that post-coital gross hematuria is one of the clinical presentations of BPH, which can be successfully treated with 5alpha-reductase inhibitor.

5-alpha Reductase Inhibitors ; Azasteroids ; therapeutic use ; Coitus ; physiology ; Dutasteride ; Enzyme Inhibitors ; therapeutic use ; Hematuria ; drug therapy ; etiology ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; complications ; diagnosis ; physiopathology ; Urinary Tract

Objective To investigate transcriptional expression and promoter CpG methylation status of A-kinase anchoring protein 12 (AKAP12) gene and analyze their correlation with clinical pathological stage in bladder transitional cell carcinoma. Methods AKAP12 mRNA expression level and promoter CpG metbylation status was measured by fluorescent quantitative RT-PCR (FQ-RT-PCR) and methylation specific PCR (MSP) in 30 bladder transitional cell carcinoma and adjacent normal tissues. The products of PCR were cloned and bisulfite sequenced. Results Decreased AKAP12 mRNA expression was demonstrated in 22 carcinomas (73. 3% ) and was significantly associated with turnout grade (P =0. 02).The frequency of promoter methylation of AKAP12 gene was 53. 3 % (16/30) and correlated with the tumor stage(r =0.52,Pn =0.03)and grade(r =0.61,Pn =0.01). Conclusion Aberrant promoter methylation of AKAP12 can result in the loss of gene expression and may association with bladder transitional cell carcinoma.

We describe an unusual complication of coital trauma in a 29-year-old man who presented with a 3-year history of hematospermia and post-coital gross hematuria. Using urethroscopy under a semi-tumescent penis, an isolated urethral injury with active bleeding was detected at the prostatic urethra. The patient was successfully treated with transurethral fulguration. We suggest that isolated posterior urethral injury is one of the causes of male coital trauma, which might be asymptomatic when the penis is flaccid but show symptomatic bleeding when the penis is erect.
Adult ; Coitus ; Ejaculation ; Female ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Male ; Urethra ; injuries ; Urethral Diseases ; etiology

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Cellulitis is a common infectious disease. However, the risk of cellulitis in cirrhotic patients is not well established, and whether liver cirrhosis is a risk factor for cellulitis remains unknown. This study evaluated the relationship between cellulitis and liver cirrhosis. METHODS: The National Health Insurance Database, which was derived from the Taiwan National Health Insurance program, was used to identify patients. The study group consisted of 39,966 patients with liver cirrhosis, and the comparison group consisted of 39,701 randomly selected age- and sex-matched patients. RESULTS: During the 3-year follow-up period, 2,674 (6.7%) patients with liver cirrhosis developed cellulitis, and 1,587 (4.0%) patients without liver cirrhosis developed cellulitis (p<0.001). Following a Cox's regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, and underlying medical disorders, the cirrhotic patients demonstrated a greater risk for the occurrence of cellulitis than the non-cirrhotic patients during the 3-year period (hazard ratio [HR], 1.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.55 to 1.77; p<0.001). Additionally, cirrhotic patients with complications also had a greater risk for the occurrence of cellulitis than those patients without complications (HR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.14 to 1.33; p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that cirrhotic patients have a greater risk of cellulitis than non-cirrhotic patients.
Cellulitis ; Communicable Diseases ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Liver ; Liver Cirrhosis ; National Health Programs ; Risk Factors ; Taiwan

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVEChemotherapy is the main treatment for colon cancer, while multidrug-resistance is the main reason for chemotherapy failure and tumor relapse. This study was to establish two oxaliplatin-resistant colon cancer cell lines and evaluate their biological characteristics.

METHODSOxaliplatin-resistant colon cancer cell lines SW620/L-OHP and lovo/L-OHP were established in vitro by continuous exposure to oxaliplatin (L-OHP) of low and gradually increased concentration. Growth curve, cross-resistance and resistance index of the oxaliplatin-resistant cell lines to various anti-cancer agents were determined by CCK8 assay. The expressions of P-glycoprotein (P-gp), multidrug-resistance protein 1 (MRP1) and MRP2 were detected by Western blot. Cell cycle distribution as well as the expression of CD133 and CD44 were measured by flow cytometry.

RESULTSIt took 10 months to establish the SW620/L-OHP and LoVo/L-OHP cell lines with stable resistance to oxaliplatin. Cross-resistance to 5-fluorouracil, etoposide, cisplatin, vincristine and epirubicin but not to paclitaxel was observed. Longer doubling time, higher proportion of cells in G(0)/G(1) phase and lower proportion in G(2)/M phase were observed in the two oxaliplatin-resistant cell lines compared with their parental cell lines. The expression of MRP2 in the oxaliplatin-resistant cells was up-regulated, while those of P-gp and MRP1 had no significant change. CD133 was overexpressed while CD44 level remained unchanged in SW620/L-OHP and LoVo/L-OHP cells.

CONCLUSIONSSW620/L-OHP and LoVo/L-OHP cell lines show a typical and stably resistant phenotype and may be used as research models.

AC133 Antigen ; ATP-Binding Cassette, Sub-Family B, Member 1 ; metabolism ; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic ; pharmacology ; Antigens, CD ; metabolism ; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic ; pharmacology ; Antineoplastic Agents ; pharmacology ; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic ; pharmacology ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cisplatin ; pharmacology ; Colonic Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Drug Resistance, Multiple ; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm ; Epirubicin ; pharmacology ; Etoposide ; pharmacology ; Fluorouracil ; pharmacology ; Glycoproteins ; metabolism ; Humans ; Hyaluronan Receptors ; metabolism ; Multidrug Resistance-Associated Proteins ; metabolism ; Organoplatinum Compounds ; pharmacology ; Peptides ; metabolism ; Vincristine ; pharmacology

A new aporphine alkaloid (1), together with five known analogues (2-6), has been isolated from the branch of Litsea greenmaniana by using various chromatographic techniques. Their structures were identified by spectroscopic data analysis ( MS, IR, 1D and 2D NMR) as 2,9-dihydroxy-1,10-dimethoxy-4,5-dihydro-7-oxoaporphine (1), laurotetanine (2), N-methyllaurotetanine (3), isodomesticine (4), isocorydine (5), and norisocorydine (6). Compound 1 was a new compound, and compounds 2-6 were obtained from this plant for the first time.
Alkaloids ; chemistry ; Aporphines ; chemistry ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; Litsea ; chemistry ; Molecular Structure ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization