Objective To investigate the effect of ambient temperature on body mass, thermogenic activity and un-coupling protein-1 ( UCP1) content of brown adipose tissue ( BAT) in tree shrews ( Tupaia belangeri) , and to provide the-oretical basis for establishing tree shrews model of obesity.Methods Forty healthy adult tree shrews with similar body mass were uesd in our experiment.The tree shrews were divided into five groups (n=8):control group (0 d), the ani-mals were maintained under 25 ±1℃ and 12L:12D ( light : dark, lights on 08:00) photoperiod; and the animals were maintained under 5 ±1℃and 12L:12D photoperiod for 7 d, 14 d, 21 d and 28 d groups, respectively.At the end of ex-periment, the changes of body mass, nonshivering thermogenesis (NST), BAT mass and uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) con-tent were determined.Results Compared with the control group (0 d), the body mass, NST, BAT mass and UCP1 con-tent of the cold acclimation groups were improved significantly, the BAT color also obviously deepened, and after cold accli-mation for 28 d, the body mass, NST, BAT mass and UCP1 content were increased by 26.32%, 20.65, 53.85%and 43%, respectively.Apparently, the UCP1 content was significantly positively correlated with BAT mass and NST.Conclusions BAT proliferation may be induced and UCP1 expression upregulated by cold acclimation in Tupaia belangeri, therefore, en-hancing the thermogenic activity of brown adipose tissue to increase energy expenditure.We would speculate that BAT might be used as a target organ for treatment of obesity by energetic approach in the future.

Objective Our retrospective study is aimed to analyze the correlative clinical features of be-tween expressions of miR -135b and miR-141 in colorectal cancer.Methods Clinical data and specimens of patients with colorectal carcinoma at our hospital from 2013 to 2014 were retrospectively collected .The expres-sions of miR-135 b and miR-141 between colon cancer and matched normal colonic tissues were compared .The correlation between the expressions of miR -135 b and miR-141 in colorectal carcinoma and the clinical charac-teristics were discussed .Results A total of 42 patients was retrospective analyzed .The expressions of miR -135b,miR-141 in the colon cancer tissues were obviously higher than that in the normal colonic tissues .The differences of the expression of miR -141 in the colon cancer tissues of different Dukes stages ,degree of differen-tiation,lymph node metastasis and infiltration depth were all significant .The expressions of miR -135 b and miR-141 displayed a positive linear correlation .Conclusion The expressions of miR-135b,miR-141 in colorec-tal cancer are significantly increased ,and the expressions display a remarkable correlation with the Dukes stages , degree of differentiation ,lymph node metastasis and infiltration depth of tumor .The expressions of miR-135 b and miR-141 demonstrate a positive correlation .

OBJECTIVETo develop a novel vaccine by immobilizing interleukin-21 (IL-21) on the surface of MB49 cells and evaluate its effect in inducing specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and antitumor immunity in a mouse model of subcutaneous metastatic bladder cancer.

METHODSSA-IL-21 was immobilized on the surface of 30% ethanol-fixed MB49 cells to prepare the cell vaccine. C57BL/6 mice with subcutaneous implantation of MB49 bladder cancer cells were randomized into 5 groups to receive treatments with IL-21/MB49 vaccine, soluble IL-21, GFP surface-modified MB49 cells, ethanol-fixed MB49 cells, or PBS. The tumor growth and CTL were examined to assess the antitumor efficacy of the vaccine.

RESULTSIL-21 surface-modified MB49 cell vaccine significantly inhibited the tumor growth and generated a long-lasting memory response (P<0.05). At the same effector-target (E:T) ratio, the specific CTLs induced by IL-21/MB49 vaccine showed the most potent cytotoxicity against MB49 cells (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONWith the protein-anchor technique, IL-21 can be efficiently immobilized on the surface of MB49 cells to prepare IL-21/MB49 cells vaccine. The novel vaccine can maintain its biological activity and significantly enhance the cytotoxicity of CTLs against bladder cancer cells.

Amino Acid Motifs ; Animals ; Cancer Vaccines ; therapeutic use ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Female ; Immunotherapy ; Interleukins ; immunology ; Lymphocyte Activation ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasms, Experimental ; therapy ; T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic ; immunology ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; therapy

Objective To study the effects of photodynamic therapy (PDT) combined with torasemide on rat glioma by detecting the protein expression of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2),matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9),sodium-potassium-chloride co-transporter 1 (NKCC1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF).Methods Male Wistar rats with glioma were randomly divided into four groups,includes control group (sham group,n=15),photodynamic therapy group (PDT group,n=15),torasemide group (T group,n=15) and PDT+T group (n=15).The rats were normally fed in the sham group,were received PDT (80 J/cm2) for 10 min in the PDT group,were received intraperitoneal torasemide 5 mg/kg for 3 days in the T group,and received PDT and torasemide treatment in the PDT+T group.After 2 weeks,5 rats were sacrificed from each group.Peritumoral edema tissues were harvested for the detection of wet-dry-weight ratio (W/D),and the protein expression of MMP2,MMP9,NKCC 1 and VEGF by Western Blot,immunohistochemistry and qRT-PCR.The remaining rats were used for survival time assessment.Results Compared with the sham group,the PDT group showed an increase in W/D (5.17±0.42 vs 4.83±0.38),the expression of NKCC1 (0.54±0.21 vs 0.35±0.12) and VEGF (0.68±0.20 vs 0.42±0.15),and survival time ((32.2±2.9) d vs (25.3±2.6) d) (all P＜0.05),and showed an decrease in the expression of MMP2 (2.76±0.42 vs 1.88±0.17) and MMP9 (2.55±0.38 vs 1.46±0.21) (all P＜0.05).Compared with the PDT group,the T group showed decrease in W/D (3.68±1.04),the expression of NKCC1 (0.22±0.10) and VEGF (0.33±0.14),and survival time ((28.7±2.2) d) (all P＜0.05),and showed increase in the expression of MMP2 (2.71 ±0.35) and MMP9 (2.42±0.36) (all P＜0.05).Compared with the PDT group,the PDT+T group showed decrease in W/D (4.52±0.46),and the expression of NKCC1 (0.30±0.16),VEGF (0.44±0.21),MMP2 (1.84±0.23) and MMP9 (1.53±0.24) (all P＜0.05),and showed increase in survival time ((44.5±2.8) d)(P＜0.05).Conclusion PDT combined with torasemide can reduce PDT induced edema,reduce tumor invasiveness,and prolonged the average survival time of rats.

Objective: To compare the incidence of adjacent segment degeneration (ASDeg) and clinical outcomes of minimally invasive versus traditional transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) in the treatment of L _4,5 single-segment lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) and explore the risk factors of ASDeg. Methods: All of 115 patients with LSS who were treated by the same group of doctors from 2009 to 2013, with a minimum follow-up of 5 years. Thirty-eight patients underwent minimally invasive trans-foraminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) and 77 patients underwent traditional TLIF. Standing radiographs at the preopera-tive period and the final follow-up were assessed. Radiological parameters included lumbar lordosis (LL), fused segment angle (FSA), disc height (DH) and range of motion (ROM). Babu classification was used to identify facet joint violation (FJV) in patients at 5-year follow-up. Clinical outcomes were assessed according to visual analog scale (VAS) score, Japanese Orthopaedic Associa-tion (JOA) score and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). Student's t-test, Chi-square test, and non-parametric test were used as the main statistical methods. Results: The mean age of MIS-TLIF group was 58.2±8.8 years, and that of TLIF group was 54.7±11.2 years, and there was no significant difference between the two groups. The mean follow-up time was 64.5±3.8 months in the MIS-TLIF group and 63.9±3.3 months in the TLIF group, and there was no significant difference between the two groups. There were 17 cases of degenerative spondylolisthesis in MIS-TLIF group (44.7%) and 35 cases of degenerative spondylolisthesis in TLIF group (45.5%), and there was no significant difference between the two groups. There was no significant difference in DH and ROM of L_3,4, L_4,5, L₅S₁ between the two groups before operation. There was no significant difference in VAS, JOA and ODI scores between the two groups before operation. The VAS, JOA and ODI scores were significantly improved at the last follow-up compared with those before operation. After 5-year follow-up, 56 cases (48.7%) had ASDeg. The incidence of ASDeg was 31.6% in MIS-TLIF group and 57.1% in TLIF group, and there was statistical differences between the two groups (χ²=6.656, P <0.01). Among them, 32 cases only had upper segment ASDeg (6 cases in MIS-TLIF group, 26 cases in TLIF group), 19 cases only had lower segment ASDeg (6 cases in MIS-TLIF group, 13 cases in TLIF group), and 5 cases had both upper and lower ASDeg (5 cases in the TLIF group). The DH of adjacent segments decreased after operation, but the loss of DH in MIS-TLIF group was smaller than that in TLIF group, including L_3,4 segments (-4.9%±6.4% vs-8.7%±7.2%, t=-2.761, P <0.01), L5S1 segment (-4.7%±9.8% vs-10.5%±11.7%, t=-2.623, P <0.01). The ROM of adjacent segments increased in both groups, but the increase of ROM in MIS-TLIF group was smaller than that in TLIF group, including L _3,4 segments (1.1°±1.8° vs 2.3°±2.5°, t=-3.122, P <0.01), L₅S₁ segment (0.9°± 1.9 ° vs 1.8°±1.9 °, t=-2.353, P <0.01). The incidence of FJV was 54.2% in patients with ASDeg in MIS-TLIF group and 47.7% in patients with ASDeg in TLIF group. Chi-square analysis showed that FJV was related to ASDeg in both groups (χ²=3.869, P < 0.05). Conclusion Both of the two surgical methods have good clinical effects on L _4,5 single-segment LSS. The incidence of AS-Deg after MIS-TLIF is lower than that of TLIF. FJV is a risk factor for ASDeg.