OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of letrozole combined with traditional Chinese medicine for ovulation dysfunction induced by polycystic ovarian syndrome(PCOS). METHODS: 300 PCOS outpatients were randomized to 3 groups of 100 each: clomiphene citrate (CC) group (188 cycles);urinary gonadotropin (HMG) group (104 cycles) and letrozole (LE) group (155 cycles). The occurrence rate of mature follicle,ovulation rate,pregnancy rate,abortion rate,superfoetation-terata rate,cancellation rate,incidence of no dominant follicle forming and OHSS etc were compared between the two groups after treatment. RESULTS: 30 babies were born in CC group,34 in HMG group and 43 in LE group were born. The occurrence rate of mature follicles,ovulation rate and pregnancy rate in the LE group were higher than in either CC group or HMG group(P0.05);the superfoetation rate in HMG group was higher than in CC group or LE group(P

Objective To evaluate the role of silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1) signaling pathway in endotoxin-induced acute lung injury (ALI) in rats.Methods Ninety-six clean-grade healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats,aged 4 weeks,weighing 160-180 g,were divided into 4 groups (n=24 each) using a random number table method:control group (group C),ALI group,ALI + SIRT1 agonist SRT1720 group (group SRT),and ALI + SIRT1 inhibitor EX527 group (group EX).ALI was induced by injecting lipopolysaccharide (LPS) 5 mg/kg (diluted to 0.5 ml with 0.9％ normal saline) in ALI,SRT and EX groups.SRT1720 10 mg/kg was injected via the tail vein,and 30 min later ALI model was established in group SRT.EX527 1 μg/kg was injected via the tail vein,and 30 min later ALI model was established in group EX.Blood samples were collected from the abdominal aorta at 6,24 and 48 h after LPS injection for blood gas analysis,rats were then sacrificed and lungs were removed for determination of wet to dry weight ratio (W/D ratio) and expression of SIRT1,nuclear factor kappa B p65 (NF-κB p65),interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IL-1β protein and mRNA (by Western blot or real-time polymerase chain reaction) and for examination of pathological changes of lung tissues (with a light microscope).Results Compared with groups C,PaO2 was significantly decreased,and PaCO2 and W/D ratio were increased at each time point after LPS injection in ALI,SRT and EX groups,the expression of SIRT1 protein and mRNA was significantly down-regulated,and the expression of NF-κB p65,IL-6 and IL-1β protein and mRNA was upregulated at each time point after LPS injection in ALI and EX groups,and the expression of SIRT1,NFκB p65,IL-6 and IL-1β was significantly up-regulated at each time point after LPS injection in group SRT (P＜0.05).Compared with group ALI,PaO2 was significantly increased,PaCO2 and W/D ratio were decreased,the expression of SIRT1 protein and mRNA was up-regulated,the expression of NF-κB p65,IL-6 and IL-1β protein and mRNA was down-regulated at each time point after LPS injection (P＜0.05),and the pathological changes were significantly attenuated in group SRT,and no significant change was found in the parameters mentioned above at each time point after LPS injection in group EX (P＞0.05).Conclusion Inhibited SIRT1/NF-κB signaling pathway is involved in endotoxin-induced ALI in rats.

Objective To construct a RNA interference lentiviral vector aimed at human ARK5 (AMPK-related protein kinase 5) gene and explore its effect on the biologic behavior of human gastric cancer SGC7901 cells.Metho ds Targeting human ARK5 mRNA coding sequence, we designed three specific short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) and constructed the lentiviral vector,then infected human gastric cancer SGC7901 cells with this vector.Afterwards, we used qPCR and Western blot for detecting the silencing effect on ARK5 gene,MTT colorimetric assay to measure the cell proliferation , cell scratch test for cell migration and Transwell for cell invasion, and flow cytometry analysis for apoptosis in cells treated with glucose starvation and TNF-α.Results Sequencing proved that the recombinant lentiviral vector containing ARK5-shRNA-3 was constructed successfully.Real time fluorescent quantitative PCR assay showed that the expression abundance of ARK5 gene in the normal control group, negative control group and ARK5-shRNA-3 infected group were 1.002+0.082, 1.001+0.050 and 0.140+0.003, respectively, showing a statistically significant difference (P<0 .01).Cell scratch test showed that the cell migration rate of ARK5-shRNA-3 infected group was (38.5+4.3 )%, significantly lower than that of the normal control group [(72.4+6.4)%] and negative control group [(75.1+7.1)%, P<0.01].The results of Transwell test showed that the number of penetrating cells in the normal control group, negative control group and ARK5-shRNA-3 transfection group were 257.4±12.3, 245.7±11.6, 112.5±7.8, with a significant difference (P<0.01).After glucose starvation and TNF-α-treatment for 24 h, the cell death rate of the normal control group, negative control group and ARK5-shRNA-3 group were (11.7±3.2)%, (12.3±2.6)% and (30.8±4.3)%, respectively, showing that the cell apoptosis rate of ARK5-shRNA-3 transfected group was significantly higher than that of the normal control and negative control groups (P<0.01).Conclusions We have successfully constructed a recombinant lentiviral vector which can efficiently silence ARK5 gene.Using it we can inhibit the proliferation, migration, invasion of tumor cells, and promote cell apoptosis under the condition of TNF-αtreatment and glucose starvation.

Objective To construct a RNA interference lentiviral vector aimed at human ARK5 (AMPK-related protein kinase 5) gene and explore its effect on the biologic behavior of human gastric cancer SGC7901 cells.Metho ds Targeting human ARK5 mRNA coding sequence, we designed three specific short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) and constructed the lentiviral vector,then infected human gastric cancer SGC7901 cells with this vector.Afterwards, we used qPCR and Western blot for detecting the silencing effect on ARK5 gene,MTT colorimetric assay to measure the cell proliferation , cell scratch test for cell migration and Transwell for cell invasion, and flow cytometry analysis for apoptosis in cells treated with glucose starvation and TNF-α.Results Sequencing proved that the recombinant lentiviral vector containing ARK5-shRNA-3 was constructed successfully.Real time fluorescent quantitative PCR assay showed that the expression abundance of ARK5 gene in the normal control group, negative control group and ARK5-shRNA-3 infected group were 1.002+0.082, 1.001+0.050 and 0.140+0.003, respectively, showing a statistically significant difference (P<0 .01).Cell scratch test showed that the cell migration rate of ARK5-shRNA-3 infected group was (38.5+4.3 )%, significantly lower than that of the normal control group [(72.4+6.4)%] and negative control group [(75.1+7.1)%, P<0.01].The results of Transwell test showed that the number of penetrating cells in the normal control group, negative control group and ARK5-shRNA-3 transfection group were 257.4±12.3, 245.7±11.6, 112.5±7.8, with a significant difference (P<0.01).After glucose starvation and TNF-α-treatment for 24 h, the cell death rate of the normal control group, negative control group and ARK5-shRNA-3 group were (11.7±3.2)%, (12.3±2.6)% and (30.8±4.3)%, respectively, showing that the cell apoptosis rate of ARK5-shRNA-3 transfected group was significantly higher than that of the normal control and negative control groups (P<0.01).Conclusions We have successfully constructed a recombinant lentiviral vector which can efficiently silence ARK5 gene.Using it we can inhibit the proliferation, migration, invasion of tumor cells, and promote cell apoptosis under the condition of TNF-αtreatment and glucose starvation.