Objective To investigate the effects of granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) combined with interleukin-12 (IL-12) genes on apoptosis of hepatoma cells.Methods The hepatoma cell lines were cultured in vitro and were divided into four groups: GM-CSF transfection group,IL-12 transfection group,GM-CSF and IL-12 co-transfection group,negative control group (empty load group),respectively.The PIB-CMV3-GM-CSF and PIB-CMV3-IL-12 eukayotic expression vector was built,and 36 h after transfection,fluorescence microscope was used to detect the transfection effect;the expression level of IL-12,GM-CSF,p53,p38 and C-JUN mRNA were detected by RT-PCR,and Western blot was used to examine the expression level of IL-12,GM-CSF,p53,p38 and C-JUN protein.In addition,the flow cytometry was applied to detect cell apoptosis.Results Through fluorescence microscope,green fluorescence was observed in cells of GM-CSF transfection group,IL-12 transfection group,GM-CSF and IL-12 co-transfection group,indicating that the plasmid has successfully transferred into cells.In addition,the expression of p53mRNA in empty load group,GM-CSF transfection group,IL-12 transfection group,GM-CSF and IL-12 co-transfection group were 1.2±0.10,4.3±0.98,4.2±0.34,9.2±0.87,and the protein expression were 1.0±0.10,3.6±0.34,3.8±0.30,5.0±0.60.Compared with the empty load group,the expression level of p53 mRNA and protein were significantly increased in the three plasmid transfection groups (P<0.01).The expression of p53 mRNA and protein were significantly increased in co-transfection group than GM-CSF group and IL-12 group (P<0.01),while in the comparison with GM-CSF transfection group and IL-12 transfection group,the expression level of p53mRNA and protein in the co-transfection group could be improved to a higher degree(P<0.01).Meanwhile,p38 C-JUN mRNA expression levels in empty load group,GM-CSF transfection group,IL-12 transfection group,GM-CSF and IL-12 co-transfection group were as follows: 7.5± 0.9,3.5±0.45,3.7±0.25,1.0±0.11,while p38protein expression levels were 10.1±1.03,6.1± 0.67,7.1 ± 0.61,1.0 ± 0.12,respectively,C-JUN mRNA expression levels were 11.2 ± 1.20,4.1 ± 0.19,3.3 ± 0.30,1.0 ± 0.01,separately,C-JUN protein expression levels were 2.25 ± 0.2,1.8 ± 0.13,1.4 ± 0.12,1.0 ± 0.09.P38, C-JUN mRNA and protein levels were significantly reduced in the three plasmid transfection groups compared with the empty load group (P<0.01).The expression of p38,C-JUN mRNA and protein were reduced to a lower degree in co-transfection group than in GM-CSF transfection group and IL-12 transfection group (P<0.01).Flow cytometer showed that the hepatoma cell apoptosis rate of the empty load group,GM-CSF transfection group,IL-12 transfection group,co-transfection group were (3.43±0.9)%,(5.87±1.02)%,(7.32±1.1)%,(17.47±2.11)%,the rates of the three plasmid transfection groups were significantly higher than that of the empty load group (P<0.01).And the apoptosis rate was significantly increased in the co-transfected group compared with other plasmid groups (P<0.01). Conclusion The combination of GM-CSF and IL-12 could significantly accelerate the apoptosis of hepatoma cells by up-regulating the expression of p53,and down-regulating the expression of p38 and C-JUN.

Objective:To get norovirus (NoV) GII.6 P protein through prokaryotic expression and prepare the polyclonal antibody.Methods:NoV GII.6 P region gene was amplified and cloned into prokaryotic expression vector pET28a, and the recombinant plasmid was transformed into E. coli BL21 (DE3) competent cell. The recombinant protein GII.6 P was expressed by induced Isopropyl β-D-Thiogalactoside (IPTG) and then purified with Ni-NTA Affinity Column. The binding ability of recombinant GII.6 P was determined by oligosaccharide binding assay and the polyclonal antibody serum was prepared by immunizing BALB/c mice. The titer of GII.6 P polyclonal antibody was determined by ELISA, and the specificity of the antibody was detected by western blot (WB). The effectiveness of GII.6 P polyclonal antibody was assessed. Results:The recombinant GII.6P-pET28a plasmid was constructed successfully and the recombinant GII.6 P protein was expressed with relative molecular mass of 40 ×10 3. The purity of GII.6P protein was more than 90% after purification. The oligosaccharide binding showed that the GII.6 P protein binds to B, le b and H2, but does not bind to A, H1, and le a type; the titer of GII.6 P polyclonal antibody was 1∶160 000. WB indicated that the antibody had high specificity and the cross experiments did not show affinity to GII.4. Conclusions:The GII.6P protein has been expressed successfully and the GII.6 P polyclonal antibody with high titer was prepared, which provides an effective tool for detection and vaccine development for NoV GII.6.

Cerebral infarction, with high incidence, high mortality, high disability and high recurrence rates, can impose a serious burden on families and society. After cerebral infarction occurrence, neurons, as the fundamental structures of the central nervous system, are unable to renew or multiply after death; hence, full recovery from neurological impairments following cerebral infarction is challenging. With stem cell and genetic recombination advancements, cellular replacement therapy after cerebral infarction progresses, which helps clinical transformation and application. In this paper, the basic researches of cellular replacement therapy after cerebral infarction are reviewed from 3 aspects: endogenous nerve regeneration, exogenous stem cell transplantation, and in situ somatic cell trans-differentiation into neurons, in order to provide references for cerebral infarction treatment

Objective:Synchronous mucinous metaplasia and neoplasia of the female genital tract (SMMN-FGT) occurring at multiple sites during the same period of time is extremely rare, and the aim of this study was to investigate the clinicopathologic features of SMMN-FGT and its relationship with prognosis.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed the clinicopathological features and follow-up records of 25 cases of SMMN-FGT diagnosed from January 2012 to October 2022 in the case database of Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University.Results:The median age at onset was 46 years old, respectively. Clinical manifestations included irregular vaginal bleeding or drainage, pelvic pain, and ovarian cysts, etc. Germline genetic test confirmed Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (P-J syndrome) in two patients. All patients underwent surgery, and 13 patients had postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy. The most frequent site of lesion was the cervix (21 cases), with 11, 10 and 16 cases occurring in the endometrium, fallopian tubes and ovaries, respectively. Six cases involved three sites simultaneously, and only one case had all four sites involved at the same time. Among the 9 cases with P53 mutation phenotype, 6 cases had gastric-type mucinous adenocarcinoma, 2 cases had lobular endocervical glandular hyperplasia, and 1 case had mucinous adenocarcinoma, whereas all the minimally deviated adenocarcinomas had wild phenotype of P53. The median follow-up time was 59 months, during which 3 cases died and 6 cases developed local recurrence or distant metastasis. According to our analysis, postoperative recurrence or metastasis was correlated with the FIGO stage of the disease, the number of lesion sites and the severe degree of the uterine lesions ( P＜0.05). Conclusions:SMMN-FGT has a relatively good clinical prognosis, and even advanced patients can benefit from surgery and adjuvant therapy. In young patients, the ovaries may be preserved if no evidence of lesions are seen after adequate evaluation. In SMMN-FGT, gastric-type mucinous adenocarcinoma occurring in the cervix may have a better prognosis than gastric-type mucinous adenocarcinoma of the cervix alone, so the accurate diagnosis of SMMN-FGT is critical for clinical management.

Objective:Synchronous mucinous metaplasia and neoplasia of the female genital tract (SMMN-FGT) occurring at multiple sites during the same period of time is extremely rare, and the aim of this study was to investigate the clinicopathologic features of SMMN-FGT and its relationship with prognosis.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed the clinicopathological features and follow-up records of 25 cases of SMMN-FGT diagnosed from January 2012 to October 2022 in the case database of Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University.Results:The median age at onset was 46 years old, respectively. Clinical manifestations included irregular vaginal bleeding or drainage, pelvic pain, and ovarian cysts, etc. Germline genetic test confirmed Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (P-J syndrome) in two patients. All patients underwent surgery, and 13 patients had postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy. The most frequent site of lesion was the cervix (21 cases), with 11, 10 and 16 cases occurring in the endometrium, fallopian tubes and ovaries, respectively. Six cases involved three sites simultaneously, and only one case had all four sites involved at the same time. Among the 9 cases with P53 mutation phenotype, 6 cases had gastric-type mucinous adenocarcinoma, 2 cases had lobular endocervical glandular hyperplasia, and 1 case had mucinous adenocarcinoma, whereas all the minimally deviated adenocarcinomas had wild phenotype of P53. The median follow-up time was 59 months, during which 3 cases died and 6 cases developed local recurrence or distant metastasis. According to our analysis, postoperative recurrence or metastasis was correlated with the FIGO stage of the disease, the number of lesion sites and the severe degree of the uterine lesions ( P＜0.05). Conclusions:SMMN-FGT has a relatively good clinical prognosis, and even advanced patients can benefit from surgery and adjuvant therapy. In young patients, the ovaries may be preserved if no evidence of lesions are seen after adequate evaluation. In SMMN-FGT, gastric-type mucinous adenocarcinoma occurring in the cervix may have a better prognosis than gastric-type mucinous adenocarcinoma of the cervix alone, so the accurate diagnosis of SMMN-FGT is critical for clinical management.

Objective:To observe the anti-inflammatory and glycometabolic effects of glutathione(GSH)on macrophages in collagen induced arthritis(CIA)mice.Methods:①CIA model establishment and groups:A total of 14 female DBA/1J mice were ran-domly divided into:CIA+PBS group and CIA+GSH group.The mice were sacrificed on the 50th day,collecting serum and isolating bone marrow derived macrophages(BMDM),which were marked as BMDM1.②Trained immunity model establishment and groups:BMDM were isolated from normal DBA/1J mice,and were pretreated with histone H3K27 demethylases inhibitor(GSKJ1)or PBS for 2 h.Then,serum from CIA model mice in vivo was incubated for 24 h,and the samples were grouped as follows:(CIA+GSH)+PBS group,(CIA+GSH)+GSKJ1 group,(CIA+PBS)+PBS group,(CIA+PBS)+GSKJ1 group.Lipopolysaccharide(LPS)was adopted to stimulated cells on the 6th day,which were marked as BMDM2.③RNA sequencing was used to detect differentially expressed genes(DEGs)and their function in BMDM1 and BMDM2.q-PCR was adopted to estimate the mRNA levels of PFK and Idh3g.The culture supernatants were used to measure the protein levels of TNF-α and IL-6 by ELISA.Results:①Compared with CIA+PBS group,the mice in CIA+GSH group showed lighter of joint swelling(P<0.05),less arthritis index(P<0.05),HE staining suggested less inflam-matory cell infiltration,Safranin O-fast green staining showed more chondrocytes,TRAP staining indicated reduced osteoclasts.②In BMDM1,GO analysis showed that DEGs were mainly involved in glutathione derivative metabolic process,IL-6 production,inflammatory response,innate immune response,regulation of primary metabolic process and glycolipid binding,compared with CIA+GSH and CIA+PBS group.In CIA+GSH group,the mRNA level of PFK was significantly decreased(P<0.05),while Idh3g was also significantly up-regulated(P<0.05),and the expression of TNF-α,IL-6 were both reduced(P<0.05)compared with CIA+PBS group.③In BMDM2,GO analysis showed that DEGs were also involved in inflammatory response,activation of innate immune response,regulation of tumor necrosis factor production,positive regulation of IL-6 production,regulation of glycolytic process and 1,3-β-D-glucan binding between CIA+GSH and CIA+PBS group.Furthermore,in(CIA+GSH)+PBS group,PFK was decreased(P<0.05),Idh3g was up-regulated(P<0.05),and IL-6 was also significantly down-regulated(P<0.05)compared with(CIA+PBS)+PBS group.However,there was no significant difference in the expression of Idh3g and PFK,moreover,TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly up-regulated compared with(CIA+GSH)+GSKJ1 group and(CIA+GSH)+PBS group.Conclusion:GSH can regulate glycometabolism and inflammatory response of macrophages via demethylation of histone H3K27,and it can also alleviate CIA in mice.

Objective:To explore the clinical and genetic characteristics of patients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) and gastrointestinal involvement.Methods:We retrospectively collected the clinical data of patients with EDS and gastrointestinal involvement from the electronic medical records at Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) from January 2003 to September 2023. Additionally, we conducted a systematic review by searching cases with EDS and gastrointestinal involvement in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library databases from January 2000 to September 2023.Results:Ninety-four patients with EDS and gastrointestinal involvement were retrieved, including five patients from PUMCH and 89 patients from 80 published articles. The average age of patients was (29±14) years. The most common manifestation of gastrointestinal involvement was gastrointestinal perforation ( n=46, 48.9%), followed by functional gastrointestinal symptoms ( n=33, 35.1%), and digestive arterial disorders ( n=10, 10.6%). The most common clinical subtype was vascular-EDS (vEDS) ( n=50, 53.2%) followed by hypermobile-EDS (hEDS) ( n=20, 21.3%). The most frequent genetic mutation occurred in the COL3A1 gene ( n=30, 31.9%). Among patients with vEDS, gastrointestinal manifestations included gastrointestinal perforation ( n=33, 66.0%), arterial lesions ( n=9, 18.0%), and functional gastrointestinal symptoms ( n=7, 14.0%). Among patients with hEDS, gastrointestinal manifestations included functional gastrointestinal symptoms ( n=18, 90.0%), visceral prolapse ( n=3, 15.0%) and intestinal volvulus ( n=1, 5.0%). Conclusions:The most common subtypes of gastrointestinal involvement in EDS were vEDS and hEDS. Patients with hEDS mainly presented with functional gastrointestinal symptoms, whereas those with vEDS primarily showed gastrointestinal perforation and digestive arterial disorders.

The nucleocapsid protein (N protein) has been found to be an antigenic protein in a number of coronaviruses. Whether the N protein in severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) is antigenic remains to be elucidated. Using Western blot and Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA), the recombinant N proteins and the synthesized peptides derived from the N protein were screened in sera from SARS patients. All patient sera in this study displayed strong positive immunoreactivities against the recombinant N proteins, whereas normal sera gave negative immunoresponses to these proteins, indicating that the N protein of SARS-CoV is an antigenic protein. Furthermore, the epitope sites in the N protein were determined by competition experiments, in which the recombinant proteins or the synthesized peptides competed against the SARS-CoV proteins to bind to the antibodies raised in SARS sera. One epitope site located at the C-terminus was confirmed as the most antigenic region in this protein. A detailed screening of peptide with ELISA demonstrated that the amino sequence from Codons 371 to 407 was the epitope site at the C-terminus of the N protein. Understanding of the epitope sites could be very significant for developing an effective diagnostic approach to SARS.
Blotting, Western ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Epitopes ; chemistry ; immunology ; Humans ; Nucleocapsid Proteins ; chemistry ; immunology ; Peptide Fragments ; chemical synthesis ; Plasmids ; Recombinant Proteins ; immunology ; isolation & purification ; metabolism ; SARS Virus ; genetics ; immunology ; metabolism

Objective:To investigate clinicopathological features and prognosis of transformed mycosis fungoides (TMF) .Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed on clinicopathological data collected from 24 patients with TMF, as well as on flow cytometry results of 16 peripheral blood samples obtained from 11 of the 24 patients, who visited Hospital of Dermatology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences between 2014 and 2020.Results:Among the 24 patients, 11 were males and 13 were females. Their average age at diagnosis of TMF was 50.0 years (range: 18 - 77 years), and patients with early-stage TMF (9 cases) and tumor-stage TMF (15 cases) were aged 44.8 and 52.6 years on average, respectively. The average time interval from diagnosis of MF to large cell transformation was 3.7 years, and 8 patients were diagnosed with TMF at the initial visit. Histopathologically, large cells infiltrated in a diffuse pattern in 20 cases, as well as in a multifocal pattern in 4, and the proportion of large cells in 7 cases was greater than 75%. Immunohistochemically, 18 patients showed positive staining for CD30, and the proportion of CD30-positive large cells was greater than 75% in 9; negative staining for CD30 was observed in 6. Flow cytometry of 16 peripheral blood samples showed the presence of cell subsets expressing clonal T cell receptor (TCR) -vβ in 2 of 4 patients with early-stage TMF and 10 of 12 with tumor-stage TMF, and tumor cells with higher forward scatter than normal lymphocytes were detected in 16 samples. During the follow-up, among the patients with early-stage TMF, 3 progressed to tumor-stage TMF 3.3 years on average after large cell transformation, 1 progressed to erythrodermic MF in stage IIIA, and the other 4 still showed an indolent course; among the patients with tumor-stage TMF, 1 progressed to stage-IV TMF, and 5 died 3.3 (1.5 - 6) years after large cell transformation.Conclusion:Large cell transformation may occur in patients with MF in any stage, some patients have poor prognosis, so close follow-up is needed for patients with TMF.

Objective To investigate the mechanism of enhancer of zeste homolog 2(EZH2),a histone methyltransferase,in regula-ting the biological behavior of ovarian cancer(OC)and provide the experimental support for finding new therapeutic targets in the treat-ment of OC.Methods The small interfered RNAs(siRNAs)of EZH2 were used to knock down EZH2 in different OC cell lines,and the interfering efficiency of siEZH2 mRNAs and protein were evaluated by qRT-PCR and Western blot.The cell proliferation,migra-tion,invasion ability and apoptosis of OC cells before and after EZH2 interference were evaluated by the CCK-8,wound healing,Tran-swell and flow cytometry.The expression levels of early growth response 1(EGR1)and H3K27me3 proteins after EZH2 interference were determined by Western blot.Meanwhile,the mechanism of EZH2 regulating the biological behavior of OC cells was explored.Re-sults The expression levels of EZH2 mRNA in OC cells transfected with siEZH2 were significantly lower than that in the negative con-trol group(P＜0.05)and the expression levels of EZH2 protein in A2780 cells were also significantly downregulated(P＜0.05).The results of Western blot showed that the expression levels of EGR1 and H3K27me3 proteins were reduced to varying degrees.After trans-fection with siEZH2-1,the proliferation ability of A2780 cells in the transfected group was significantly lower than that in the negative control group(P＜0.05).The results of the cell scratch test and Transwell test showed that the migration and invasion ability of OC cells transfected with siEZH2-1 were significantly weakened(P＜0.05).The results of flow cytometry showed that the apoptosis of OC cells transfected with siEZH2-1 was significantly enhanced(P＜0.05).Conclusion EZH2 is highly expressed in OC cells and can promote the proliferation,migration,invasion and anti-apoptosis of A2780 cells.However,EZH2 affects the biological behavior of ovar-ian cancer not by regulating the expression of EGR1 through its H3K27me3 transferase activity.