AIM:To provide evidence for the molecular mechanism of homocysteine (Hcy) as an independent risk factor in atherosclerosis (AS) by investigating the effect of Hcy on phenotype transformation and proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells(VSMCs) in rats.METHODS:After treated with different concentrations of Hcy for 24 h,the cultured VSMCs were assayed for cell proliferation rate by MTT method,cell cycle by flow cytometry,the expression of SM22-? mRNA by semi-quantitative RT-PCR and the observation of morphological characteristics and the phenotype transformation by transmission electron microscopy.RESULTS:Hcy increased the cell proliferation rate and gradually reduced the proportion of the cells in G0 /G1 phase.Hcy down-regulated the expression of SM22? mRNA and the most significant effect was observed at concentration of 1 000 ?mol/L.The observations of transmission electron microscopy revealed an abundant endoplasmic reticulum,Golgi's complex,loose nucleus and puffy chromatin in VSMCs treated with high concentration of Hcy.CONCLUSION:Hcy promotes the proliferation and phenotype transformation of VSMCs simultaneously.

In order to adapt to the demand of culturing high quality talents and to strengthen student's comprehensive quality,pathophysiology department of medical college of Qinghai University carried on the reform on the pathophysiological experiment examination system.After researches and practices in recent years,we established a set of relatively sound examination system including experiment operating and experiment report in normal study,report for designable experiment and experiment skill and theory exam.Investigation results demonstrated that examination system after reform functioned well in training the students' operation ability,observation ability and ability to analyze and solve questions.

In order to investigate the relation of serum immunoglobulin (Ig) level to age, sex, disease stages and prognosis in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients, the levels of serum IgG, IgA and IgM in 83 CLL patients were detected by immune rate turbidimetry. the expressions of CD38 and ZAP-70 in CLL cells were determined by multi-parameter flow cytometry (FCM). The results showed that among the 83 CLL patients, the IgG, IgA and IgM levels were reduced in 12 (14.5%), 26 (31.3%) and 34 cases (41.0%) respectively. The incidence of Ig reduction was higher in Binet C stage than that in Binet A and B (p=0.011). There was higher incidence of Ig reduction in high-risk group of Rai stage than that in low-risk group (p=0.011). The positive rate of CD38 or ZAP-70 was significantly higher in Ig reduction group than that in normal Ig level group (p=0.033 and p=0.038 respectively). The positive rate of CD38 and ZAP-70 was also higer in advanced disease, and among them the positive rate of ZAP-70 expression in Binet C stage was obviously higer than Binet A and B (p=0.047). Nonetheless, there was no significant relationship of Ig level with gender and age (p>0.05). It is concluded that the function of humoral immunity in CLL patient is closely related to the disease stages. The serum Ig detection seems important for evaluating immunologic state and prognosis of CLL patients.
ADP-ribosyl Cyclase 1 ; metabolism ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Humans ; Immunity, Humoral ; Immunoglobulin A ; blood ; Immunoglobulin G ; blood ; Immunoglobulin M ; blood ; Immunoglobulins ; blood ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; blood ; immunology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; ZAP-70 Protein-Tyrosine Kinase ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo analyze the prognostic factors for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with typical and atypical immunophenotype. The parameters analyzed included sex, age, Binet stages, absolute lymphocyte count (ALC), immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable region (IgVH) gene mutation status, ZAP-70 protein, CD38 expression and cytogenetic aberrations.

METHODSAccording to the clinical guideline and scoring system for CLL in Britain, among 77 patients, 61 patients with score 5 called typical immunophenotype CLL, 16 with score 4 or 3 were atypical immunophenotype CLL. Multiparameter flow cytometry was employed for immunophenotypic analysis in 77 CLL patients for CD5, CD19, CD23, FMC7, sIg, CD20, CD79b expression and ZAP-70 protein and CD38. IgVH mutation status was detected by multiplex RT-PCR and sequencing of the purified PCR amplification products. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and a panel of probes were used to detect cytogenetic aberrations.

RESULTSThere was no significant difference between the two groups in sex, age, ZAP-70 and IgVH mutation status (P=0.398, P=0.189, P=0.268 and P=0.131, respectively). The incidence of ALC> or =50 x 10(9)/L, Binet B + C, CD38> or =30% in atypical CLL patients (43.8%, 87.5% and 43.8%, respectively) were higher than that in typical group (16.4%, 36.1% and 16.4%, respectively) (P=0.026, P<0.01 and P=0.026, respectively). The proportion of typical patients (26.8%) with a 13q14 deletion as sole abnormality was higher than that of atypical patients (7.6%), and that with deletion of 11q22 or 17p13 was lower than that of atypical patients (12.2% vs 46.2%) (P=0.022).

CONCLUSIONThere were obvious differences between the typical immunophenotype CLL and atypical CLL in ALC, Binet stages, CD38 expression level and cytogenetic aberrations.

ADP-ribosyl Cyclase 1 ; metabolism ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains ; genetics ; Immunoglobulin Variable Region ; genetics ; Immunophenotyping ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; genetics ; immunology ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; Neoplasm Staging ; Prognosis ; ZAP-70 Protein-Tyrosine Kinase ; metabolism

Adolescent ; Adult ; Bone Marrow ; pathology ; Bone Marrow Examination ; methods ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Humans ; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVETo investigate the incidence of trisomy 8 in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and its significance in prognosis.

METHODSA panel of probes and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) were used to detect trisomy 8 in 151 CLL patients combined with chromosome karyotype analysis.

RESULTSThere were 2 patients (1.3%) with trisomy 8 in the 151 CLL patients, and the number of trisomy 8 cells was 8% and 10% respectively. The karyotypes were 47,XY,+8[2]/49,XY,+14,+20,+21[2]/ 46,XY[16], and 47,XX,+8[2]/46,XX[18], respectively.

CONCLUSIONTrisomy 8 was rare in CLL, and its significance in prognosis of CLL still remains unknown.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 8 ; genetics ; Humans ; Karyotyping ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; Trisomy

Objective:Lung ultrasound (LUS) has been used in the diagnosis of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome(RDS) successfully, but there have been no multicenter prospective studies to verify its reliability or determine how to grade RDS with LUS findings.This study aimed to discuss the necessity and feasibility of using LUS findings to determine RDS grades through a multicenter prospective study.Methods:Every researcher participated in the National Neonatal Lung Ultrasound Training Course and receiving 3-6 months of lung ultrasound system training at the National Neonatal Lung Ultrasound Training Center.Patients between June 2018 and May 2020 who met the RDS ultrasound diagnostic criteria and had full available clinical data were included in this study.The LUS examination was completed immediately after the patients were admitted to the hospital.Some of them also underwent chest X-ray examination.Arterial blood gas analysis was completed immediately before or after the LUS ultrasound examination.RDS grading was performed according to the LUS findings and whether the patient had serious complications.Results:A total of 275 qualifying cases were included in this study, which included 220 premature infants and 55 full-term infants, and the primary RDS occurred in 117 cases (42.5%), and secondary RDS occurred in 158 cases (57.5%). LUS manifestations of RDS patients can be divided into three categories: (1)A ground-glass opacity sign: which could be found among 50 infants when they were admitted to the hospital (that was, at their first LUS examination). Twenty-eight of these infants were considered to have wet lungs and were not sent for special management on admission, but LUS showed typical snowflake-like lung consolidation within 0.5 to 4 hours.Twenty-two of them were given mechanical ventilation with exogenous pulmonary surfactant; Eighteen cases were controlled within 6-12 hours, but the lung lesions became more severe in the other 4 infants (due to severe intrauterine infection). (2)Snowflake-like lung consolidations: the first LUS on admission showed typical snowflake-like lung consolidation involving areas ranging from 1-2 intercostal spaces to 12 lung divisions in 204 cases.Thirty-eight infants among them the lung consolidation only had involvement of 1-2 intercostal spaces at the time of admission; Fifteen of them received invasive respiratory support and recovered within 4-12 hours.Twelve patients received noninvasive respiratory support; Seven of them recovered, while five cases developed severe lung illness.The remaining 11 patients who were not given any form of ventilator support developed severe conditions within 1-4 hours.Thirty of them showed snowflake signs involving 12 lung regions at admission.The remaining 136 patients had lung consolidation degree between the two degree above condition.(3)Snowflake-like sign with complications: Twenty-one patients had severe complications such as pneumothorax, pulmonary hemorrhage or/and persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn or large area atelectasis, etc, although snowflake lung consolidation did not involve all lung regions.Conclusion:(1) LUS is reliable and accurate for diagnosing RDS.RDS has the same characteristics on ultrasound for both preterm and full-term infants, both primary and secondary RDS.(2) To facilitate the management of RDS, it is necessary to classify RDS according to the ultrasound findings and the presence of severe complications.(3) Based on the results of this study, it is recommended that RDS can be divided into mild, moderate and severe degrees.The exact standards for grading are as follows: Mild RDS: the early stage of RDS, in which lung consolidation shows as a ground-glass opacity sign on ultrasound; Moderate RDS: lung consolidation shows a snowflake sign on ultrasound, not all of the lung fields are involved; Severe RDS meets one or more of the following criteria: lung consolidation shows as a snowflake sign on ultrasound and all lung regions are involved, or regardless of its degree and extent, lung consolidation has caused serious complications, such as pulmonary hemorrhage, pneumothorax, persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn, or/and a large area of pulmonary atelectasis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of myeloid differentiation-2 (MD2) gene silencing on high glucose-induced proliferation inhibition, apoptosis and inflammation in rat cardiomyocytes. METHODS: The immortalized rat cardiomyocyte cell line H9C2 were transfected with MD2 small interfering RNA (si-MD2) and negative control for 24 h, then stimulated with high glucose (HG) for 48 h. RT-qPCR was performed to detect the mRNA levels of MD2 and inflammatory factors TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6. MTS and flow cytometry were used to evaluate cell proliferation, cell cycle and apoptosis rate. Western blot was used to detect protein expression levels and phosphorylation levels. RESULTS: The mRNA and protein levels of MD2 in H9C2 cells were dramatically decreased after transfected with si-MD2 (P＜0.01). After stimulation of high glucose, the mRNA levels of inflammatory factors, the cells in G0/G1 phase , the cell apoptosis rate and the protein level of cleaved Caspase-3 were significantly increased, while the cell proliferation ability was decreased (P＜0.01). MD2 gene silencing antagonized the effects of high glucose on cell proliferation, cell cycle, cell apoptosis and the mRNA levels of TNF-α, IL-1β , IL-6(P＜0.05). Western blot analysis showed that the phosphorylation levels of extracellular signal-regulated kinase(ERK1/2), P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase(P38 MAPK) and C-Jun N-terminal kinase(JNK) protein were increased significantly in H9C2 cells treated with high glucose, which could be reversed by silencing of MD2 (P＜0.01). CONCLUSION This study demonstrates that MD2 gene silencing reverses high glucose-induced myocardial inflammation, apoptosis and proliferation inhibition via the mechanisms involving suppression of ERK, P38 MAPK, JNK signaling pathway.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; Cell Proliferation ; Cells, Cultured ; Cytokines ; metabolism ; Gene Silencing ; Glucose ; Inflammation ; JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; metabolism ; Lymphocyte Antigen 96 ; genetics ; Myocytes, Cardiac ; cytology ; Rats ; p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; metabolism

Wu-tou decoction (WTD) was originally recorded in the synopsis of the golden chamber and it had been widely used for the treatment of neuropathic pain (NP) with exact therapeutic efficacy. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms still remain unclarified. Thus, in this research, we aimed at clarifying the underlying molecular mechanisms of WTD against NP by combining network analysis and experimental validation based on the spinal nerve ligation (SNL) model. Firstly, the network analysis indicated that key targets of WTD were significantly involved in the MAPK signaling pathway (P = 4.04E-12) and four important components of the above pathway, AKT kinase (AKT), MAP kinase kinase 4 (MKK4), c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and transcription factor AP-1 (JUN) had been reported to play a vital role in neuroinflammation during the disease process of NP. Then, experimental validation results proved that WTD markedly reduce the severity of mechanical allodynia (P<0.01) and cold hypersensitivity (P<0.05) of SNL rats. In addition, Western blot results provided evidence that the phosphorylated protein expression levels of AKT, MKK4, JNK and JUN in the superficial lamina of spinal cord of SNL rats were markedly increased (P<0.001), and WTD could improve the phosphorylated protein expression level of AKT (P<0.001) which was reported to be nerve protective and attenuate the phosphorylated protein expression levels of MKK4, JNK and JUN (P<0.01) which were closely involved into neuroinflammation. In conclusion, this study indicated that WTD might exert anti-hyperalgesia action through the inhibition of neuroinflammation mediated by AKT-MKK4-JNK-JUN which belong to the MAPK signaling pathway. These findings also provided scientific evidences that WTD might be a promising candidate for NP. Animal experiments in this study were approved by the Ethics Committee of Experimental Animals of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences.

Ulcerative colitis (UC), a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the colon, has a rising incidence worldwide. The known pathogenesis is multifactorial and involves genetic predisposition, epithelial barrier defects, dysregulated immune responses, and environmental factors. Nowadays, the drugs for UC include 5-aminosalicylic acid, steroids, and immunosuppressants. Long-term use of these drugs, however, may cause several side effects, such as hepatic and renal toxicity, drug resistance and allergic reactions. Moreover, the use of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the treatment of UC shows significantly positive effects, low recurrence rate, few side effects and other obvious advantages. This paper summarizes several kinds of active compounds used in the experimental research of anti-UC effects extracted from TCM, mainly including flavonoids, acids, terpenoids, phenols, alkaloids, quinones, and bile acids from some animal medicines. It is found that the anti-UC activities are mainly focused on targeting inflammation or oxidative stress, which is associated with increasing the levels of anti-inflammatory cytokine (IL-4, IL-10, SOD), suppressing the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-23, NF-κB, NO), reducing the activity of MPO, MDA, IFN-γ, and iNOS. This review may offer valuable reference for UC-related studies on the compounds from natural medicines.
Animals ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Cytokines ; metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Inflammation ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Oxidative Stress ; drug effects ; Phytochemicals ; pharmacology