Background The incidence of dry eye is gradually increased,and researches showed that inflammation participated in the pathogenesis and development of dry eye.The current therapy for dry eye can only relieve symptom but not achieve final cure.Stem cell therapy has been used in the treatment of limbal stem cell deficiency.However,whether it is feasible for the stem cell treating dry eye is still unclear.Objective This study attempted to investigate a new approach to treat dry eye syndrom by using human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (HUCMSCs).Methods The use and care of experimental animals complied with the Tsinghua University School of Medicine Laboratory Animal Care Details.HUCMSCs were cultured and cell suspension was prepared with the cell density of 5×105/ml.Twenty 24-week-old male NOD/Ltj mice were randomized into 4 groups.0.1 ml PBSHUCMSCs suspension was injected via tail vein or lacrimal respectively in the caudal vein injection group and lacrimal injection group,and 10 μ1 PBS-HUCMSCs suspension was topically administed in the eye drops group.The NOD/Ltj mice without any treatment served as the model group.Five male ICR mice were used as the normal control group.Tear secretion was quantitatively detected with phenol red cotton thread in 1,2,3 weeks after injection,and corneal epithelial defect was scored by fluorescein staining.The serum levels of interleukin (IL)-6,IL-17a,tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-αt) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) were assayed by ELISA.The relative expression levels of p65,Stat3,Stat5 and extracellular signal-regulated kinases (Erk)-1 in lacrimal gland were detected by Western blot.Results The tear secretion amount was significantly different among the model group,caudal vein injection group,lacrimal injection group and eye drops group in various time points (1 week:F =3.700,P =0.040;2 weeks:F =5.150,P =0.008;3 weeks:F=10.130,P＜0.001).The tear secretion amount was increased in the caudal vein injection group and lacrimal injection group compared with the model group in different time points (all at P＜0.05),and no significant difference was seen in tear secretion amount between eye drops group and model group among various time points (all at P＞0.05).The fluorescein staining score was 3.00±0.63,9.40±1.62,5.20±1.17,4.20±1.17 and 7.20±0.98 in the ICR mouse control group,model group,caudal vein injection group,lacrimal injection group and eye drops group 1 week after injection respectively,and the scores were significantly lower in the caudal vein injection group,lacrimal injection group and eye drops group than those in the model group (P =0.001,0.000,0.033).The serum levels of IL-6,IL-17a and TNF-α in the caudal vein injection group were evidently lower than those in the model group (t =4.70,3.46,11.0,all at P＜0.01),but no significant difference was displayed in the serum IFN-γ level among the five groups (F=1.740,P=0.170).The expressions of STAT5 were significantly decreased in the mice treated with tail vein injection and lacrimal injection compared with mice without treatment (both at P＜0.05).Conclusions Administration of HUCMSCs via intravenous and lacrimal injection can alleviate the inflammatory response during progression of dry eye syndrome by down-regulating the serum level and expression of inflammation-related factors in NOD/Ltj mice.The topical administration of HUCMSCs eye drops can attenuate the symptom of dry eyes by lubricating the cornea and suppling nutrition.

Objective To investigate the impact of prescribed adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction V (Pre-ASiR-V) on imaging quality and radiation dosage of pure ground glass nodules (pGGN) in chest phantom,in order to obtain the optimal level of Pre-ASiR-V.Methods CT scanning for a chest phantom containing 4 artificial pGGNs was performed with Revolution CT,and the Pre-ASiR-V level was set as 0,20％,40％,60％,80％ and 100％ group,respectively.The mean noise,effective dose (ED) and the subjective scores of pGGN imaging were recorded and compared.Results The mean noise of groups (Pre-ASiR-V 0,20％,40％,60％,80％ and 100％) was (17.93±2.20)HU,(17.30±3.68)HU,(18.20± 3.44)HU,(18.80±0.20)HU,(19.87±2.56)HU and (15.90±4.56)HU,respectively (F=0.568,P=0.723).ED of these groups was 7.40 mSv,5.16 mSv,3.36 mSv,1.97 mSv,0.97 mSv and 0.33 mSv,respectively.Compared with imaging of PreASiR-V 0,the reduction percentage of ED was 30.27％,54.59％,73.38％,86.89％ and 95.54％,respectively.The subjective score of the image quality evaluated by the 2 observers had high agreement (Kappa=0.778,P=0.003),and all the scores were greater than 3.The subjective score of Pre-ASiR-V 80％ and 100％ group was slightly lower than those in other groups.Conclusion Different Pre-ASiR-V level slightly impacts the noise of high-resolution CT images of chest phantom,while reduces radiation dosage significantly.Pre-ASiR-V level of 60％ is the optimal protocol.

Objective To observe the effects of Daizong Prescription on glycogen metabolism in adipose tissue of obese mice;To explore its regulatory mechanism in activating browning in the white adipose tissue.Methods A obesity model was established by feeding high-fat diet to C57BL/6J mice.The obese mice were divided into model group,metformin group(0.15 g/kg),and Daizong Prescription low-(0.20 g/kg)and high-dosage(0.40 g/kg)groups.Mice fed a standard diet were set as the normal group,with 12 mice in each group.Each medication group was given corresponding drugs by gavage for 6 consecutive weeks.Body mass and fasting blood glucose were monitored,serum triglycerides(TG),total cholesterol(TC),high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C)contents were measured.Brown adipose tissue from the interscapular region and white adipose tissue from the inguinal,perirenal and epididymal region were collected,the adipose tissue mass was measured,and the body fat coefficient was calculated.HE staining was performed to observe morphological changes in adipose tissue,PAS staining was used to observe glycogen distribution in adipose tissue,immunohistochemistry staining was performed to detect the expressions of Gys2,Ppp1r3c,and GSK-3β in inguinal white adipose tissue.Results Compared with the normal group,the body mass and fasting blood glucose in different time points of the model group significant increase(P<0.05,P<0.01),and serum TC and HDL-C contents significantly increased(P<0.01);the mass and body fat coefficient of white adipose tissue in inguinal,perirenal,and epididymis significantly increased(P<0.01),the cells in white adipose tissue in inguinal were hypertrophic and appeared as large vacuoles,with less glycogen accumulation,the expressions of Gys2 and Ppp1r3c significantly decreased(P<0.01).Compared with the model group,the mice in Daizong Prescription high-dosage group showed a significant decrease in body mass and fasting blood glucose at 4 and 6 weeks of administration(P<0.05,P<0.01),and the contents of serum TG,TC,HDL-C,and LDL-C were significantly decreased(P<0.01);the mass and body fat coefficient in white adipose tissue of perirenal and epididymal significantly decreased(P<0.05,P<0.01),and the mass of inguinal white adipose tissue significantly decreased(P<0.05),multiple irregularly shaped small vacuoles could be seen in inguinal white adipose tissue,accompanied by nuclear aggregation and increased glycogen accumulation,the expressions of Gys2 and Ppp1r3c significantly increased(P<0.01).There was no significant difference in the expression of GSK-3β inguinal white adipose tissue of mice among the groups.Conclusion Daizong Prescription can increase the activity of Gys2 by upregulating the expression of Ppp1r3c,promote glycogen synthesis,induce browning of adipose tissue,increase fat heat production,and improve obesity and related disorders of glycolipid metabolism.