The effect of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) overexpression on matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells in vitro and the possible mechanism involved were investigated, and the correlation between the expression of VEGF and MMP-2 in NPC evaluated. The NPC cells were transfected with PAd-trackVEGF165 plasmid. The expression levels of VEGF and MMP-2 mRNA and protein in NPC cells were detected by semi-quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot respectively. It was found that the expression of VEGF and MMP-2 mRNA and protein was significantly increased in NPC cells after transfection of VEGF165. It was concluded that the expression of VEGF was correlated to the in vitro invasion of NPC cells, and the induction of MMP-2 by VEGF was a key process of NPC cell invasion.

In this paper, several methods of character analysis and classification for pulse condition are studied with the use of statistics theory. Five methods are applied to character abstraction. Pulse condition is analyzed in time, frequency and wavelet domain. The abstraction methods include wavelet analysis, AR modeling, and template match. On the other hand, four classification methods are used, namely BP, RBF, CGA and FMMNN.
Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Pulse ; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted

Objective To investigate the relationship between cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and high-risk (HR)HPV infection among late pregnant women.Methods From Aug.2007 to Feb.2010,168 women at 13 to 32 gestational weeks undergoing prenatal examination in Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital went through three stage cervical disease screening,including 21 women with cervicitis and 147 women with C1N (42 women with CIN Ⅲ,37 women with CIN Ⅱ and 68 women with CIN Ⅰ ).Hybrid capture assay version Ⅱ ( HC- Ⅱ ) test was used to measure HR-HPV DNA load,and the logarithmic transtormation (log10) was performed.All 168 women were followed up to postpartum 3 -6 months.HR-HPV infections rates of cervicitis and different CIN,the rate of HR-HPV infection turned naturally negative at postpartum of 3 to 6 months,and HR-HPV load at pregnancy and 3 -6 months postpartum were observed.Results ( 1 ) HR-HPV infection rate:CIN Ⅲ,Ⅱ,Ⅰ and cervicitis pregnant women's HR-HPV positive infection rates were 98％ (41/42),86％ ( 32/37 ),76％ ( 52/68 ) and 62％( 13/21 ) respectively,which reached statistical difference (P =0.002).(2) HR-HPV naturally negative:the rate of pregnant women with different levels of CIN who turned HR-HPV naturally negative within 3 -6 months of postpartum were CIN Ⅲ 5％ (2/41),CIN Ⅱ 47％ (15/32),CIN Ⅰ 52 ％ (27/52) and cervicitis 10/13,which also reached statistical difference among those four groups (P =0.000).(3) HR-HPV load:pregnant women with different grade of CIN and cervicitis HR-HPV DNA load were CIN Ⅲ 2.02 ng/L(1.53,2.67 ng/L),CIN Ⅱ 1.94 ng/L ( 0.75,2.75 ng/L),CIN Ⅰ 2.04 ng/L (0.08,2.95 ng/L) and cervicitis 1.98 ng/L( -0.07,2.47 ng/L).There was no significantly different HPV load in women with cervicitis and different CIN (P =0.719).At 3 -6 months postpartum,HR-HPV load was CIN Ⅲ1.55 ng/L(0.90,2.10 ng/L),which was significantly higher than the amount of CIN Ⅱ 0.09 ng/L(-0.69,1.74 ng/L),CIN Ⅰ 0.48 ng/L( -0.56,2.2 ng/L) and cervicitis -0.46 ng/L ( -0.78,1.40 ng/L,P =0.036).Conclusions With the increasing of CIN grade,the rate of HR-HPV infection in pregnant women was increased,however,the rate of HR-HPV turning negative naturally at 3 -6 months postpartum decreased.With different CIN grade during pregnancy,HR-HPV DNA load did not change significantly,but HR-HPV DNA load increased at 3 -6 months of postpartum.HR-HPV DNA loads with the same grade of CIN and cervicitis during pregnancy higher than that of postpartum among pregnant women.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression of cytotoxic T lymphocyte associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4) in patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDC) and to explore genetic susceptibility to IDC caused possibly by single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of CTLA-4 gene promoter.

METHODSPCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism techniques were used to analyze the SNPs of CTLA-4 gene at position -1772, -1661 and -318 in the promoter region. Serum sCTLA-4, IFN-gamma and IL-4 were tested by ELISA.

RESULTSsCTLA-4 levels of IDC patients were associated with the haplotype and genotype. Patients with -1772 TC genotype or -1772 TC -1661 AA, -1772 TC -1661 AG haplotypes had higher sCTLA-4 levels than patients with other haplotypes did. The frequency of -1772 TC genotype was significantly high in patients with low ejection factor(EF) values. Whereas the frequencies of -1661 G allele and -1661 GG genotype were lower in IDC patients. Levels of IL-4 were increased in IDC group.

CONCLUSIONPatients with IDC have an aberrant expression of the CTLA-4 products, and the -1772 C/T and -1661 A/G polymorphisms. The two SNPs may function as genetic markers for disease susceptibility.

Antigens, CD ; genetics ; CTLA-4 Antigen ; Cardiomyopathy, Dilated ; genetics ; Female ; Haplotypes ; Humans ; Male ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Xueyou Mixture (, XYM) on blood coagulation factors and its safety in treating hemophilia.

METHODSTo the randomly selected 65 inpatients of hemophilia, XYM was administered accompanied with intravenous dripping of liver cell growth factor 60-100 mg once a day to protect the liver, with no blood products like concentrated VIII and FIX factors or blood plasma given. The treatment lasted for 3 weeks. The short-term efficacy and adverse reactions were observed. The long-term efficacy in patients was observed in a follow-up study of 6-12 months after they were discharged from the hospital but continuously took XYM orally.

RESULTSThe short-term markedly effective rate in the patients was 95.38% (62/65). After they were treated for 3 weeks, the level of FVIII factor activity increased in 56 patients of type A from (3.32+/-2.21) % to (4.18+/-2.23) %, and in 9 of type B from (4.92+/-1.81) % to (5.64+/-1.96) %. Compared with that before treatment, the difference was significant in both of them (P<0.01). No obvious adverse reaction was found in the treatment period. The follow-up study showed that in 22 patients of type A, the FVIII factor activity ratio increased from (3.25+/-2.11) % to (6.31+/-2.16) %, (8.36+/-1.05) %, and (16.38+/-2.71) % in the 2nd, 3rd and 6th month after discharge respectively, all showing significant difference to that before treatment (P<0.01); and in 4 patients of type B, it increased from (4.15+/-2.26) % to 7.8% and 11.6% (mean value) in the 2nd and 6th month respectively.

CONCLUSIONXYM could raise the activity of factors VIII and IX in patients with hemophilia, and the degree of the rise is related with the duration of the therapy, with no obvious adverse reaction, which strikes out a new path and new train of thinking for the treatment of the disease by nonblood preparation.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Blood Coagulation Factors ; analysis ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemoglobins ; analysis ; Hemophilia A ; blood ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Middle Aged

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of Bushen Shuji Granule (BSG) in treating ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients.

METHODSA prospective randomized controlled clinical trial was carried out in 62 active stage AS patients with Shen deficiency Du-channel cold syndrome (SDDCS), who were randomly assigned to the BSG group (treated with BSG) and the control group (treated with Celecoxib Capsule). Twelve weeks consisted of one therapeutic course. Therapeutic effects were evaluated by ASAS20 and ASAS40 (set by Assessments in Ankylosing Spondylitis working group) , BASDA150, Chinese medical (CM) syndrome efficacy evaluation standards. BASDAI, the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), the Bath AS Metrology Index (BASMI), scores for spine pain, scores for pain at night, patient global assessment (PGA) , erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) , and C reactive protein (CRP) were observed before and after treatment.

RESULTSAfter three-month treatment by BSG, ASAS20 standard rate was 63. 33% (19/30 cases) in the BSG group and 66.67% (20/30 cases) in the control group with no significant difference between the two groups (χ2 = 0.073, P > 0.05). The efficacy for CM syndromes was 70.00% (21/30 cases) in the BSG group, higher than that in the control group [40.00% (12/30 cases), χ2 = 5.455, P < 0.05]. Scores for CM syndromes, BASDAI, night pain index, spinal pain index, PGA, CRP were improved in the BSG group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). The incidence of adverse events in the BSG group was lower than that of the control group.

CONCLUSIONBSG based on Shen supplementing, Du-channel strengthening, blood activating, and channels dredging method had good short-term clinical efficacy and safety in treating AS.

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Biomedical Research ; Blood Sedimentation ; C-Reactive Protein ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Pain ; Prospective Studies ; Safety ; Spondylitis, Ankylosing ; drug therapy

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of early allergen exposure on later development of allergic rhinitis in mouse.

METHODSTwenty-four BALB/c neonates were randomly divided into 4 groups (low-dose group, high-dose group, negative control group and positive control group), each group had 6 mice. The mice were administered ovalbumin (OVA) by subcutaneous injection on day 1, 5, 12 after birth (10 μg OVA in 0.05 ml saline for low-dose group, 1000 μg OVA in 0.05 ml saline for high-dose group, only saline for negative and positive control group). Then the mice were sensitized and intranasally challenged with OVA (saline without OVA was used in negative control group) after 6 weeks. Symptoms, histopathological changes of nasal mucosa were observed, OVA-IgE in serum was examined, cytokines IL-4, IL-5 and IFN-gamma were detected in the supernatant of cultured splenic mononuclear cells.

RESULTSCompared to the positive control group, symptoms and nasal mucosa histological changes of high-dose group was indistinctive. The level of OVA-IgE and cytokines IL-4, IL-5 (x(-) +/- s) in high-dose group [(265.11 +/- 26.29), (446.39 +/- 72.83) and (171.24 +/- 15.66) pg/ml, respectively] were significantly lower than those in positive control group [(665.85 +/- 43.15), (1113.45 +/- 30.47), (255.36 +/- 30.96) pg/ml, respectively, t value were 0.000, 0.000 and 0.009, respectively, all P < 0.05]. The level of IFN-γ in high-dose group [(319.74 +/- 56.30) pg/ml] was significantly higher than those in positive control group [(170.02 +/- 14.50) pg/ml, t = 0.000, P < 0.05]. There was no significant difference of the results between the low-dose group and positive control group.

CONCLUSIONSNeonatal immunization with high-dose OVA inhibited the future allergic rhinitis symptoms, nasal histological changes, serum OVA-IgE levels and Th1/Th2 cytokine imbalance, resulting in the protective effect.

Allergens ; immunology ; Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Dose-Response Relationship, Immunologic ; Immunoglobulin E ; blood ; Interferon-gamma ; analysis ; Interleukin-4 ; analysis ; Interleukin-5 ; analysis ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Nasal Mucosa ; immunology ; Nasal Provocation Tests ; Ovalbumin ; immunology ; Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial ; immunology ; prevention & control

BACKGROUNDZhongfei Mixture (ZM), a traditional Chinese medicine, exploited from the clinical experience, has mainly been used for the treatment of advanced lung cancer since it was produced in 1983. However, little research has been conducted on its anti-tumor mechanism. In this study, we aimed to investigate the anti-tumor and apoptotic effects of ZM in vitro and in vivo.

METHODSThe growth inhibition effect of ZM on A549 cells was evaluated by MTT assay. Morphological observation and clone forming tests were performed to determine the effect of ZM on cell viability. Cell cycle distribution and apoptosis were analyzed by flow cytometry. In addition, the in vivo anti-proliferation activity of ZM was evaluated using mice bearing Lewis lung carcinoma. Further, the apoptosis of cells in tumor tissue was determined by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay, and the expression of Ki-67 protein in tumor tissues was analyzed by En-Vision immuno-histochemistry staining.

RESULTSZM exerted an obvious inhibitory effect on proliferation of A549 cells. It arrested A549 cells in G(2)-M phase and induced apoptosis. Compared with 3.02% and 5.32% in control group, the percentages of cells arrested in G(2)-M phase were 19.20% and 19.58% in 7.94 mg/ml ZM treated A549 cells at 24 hours and 48 hours. Moreover, the apoptosis rate increased from 0.18% to 18.01% after ZM treatment for 48 hours. ZM also significantly inhibited tumor growth in the tumor-implanted mice. Compared with saline control group, the effects of ZM showed significant tumor growth inhibition (P < 0.05). Furthermore, ZM could down-regulate the expression of Ki-67 in tumor tissue in mice bearing Lewis lung carcinoma.

CONCLUSIONSOur results indicated that ZM has notable anti-tumor effect and the effects of ZM in moderate dose groups were superlative both in vitro and in vivo. The possible mechanism of ZM might be associated with arresting cell cycle in G(2)-M phase as well as down-regulating Ki-67 expression in tumor tissues.

Animals ; Antineoplastic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Mice ; Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Objective:Autoimmune mechanisms, including cellular and humoral immune, are likely to participate in the pathogenesis of at least a subgroup of idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy(IDC), in which cellular immune-mediated one plays a more important role. Cytotoxic T lymphocyte associated antigen-4(CTLA-4) is the major negative regulatory factor of cellular immunity. This study was conducted to investigate the association of CTLA-4 gene promoter -318C/T polymorphism, exon 1 A/G polymorphism and 3′ untranslated region microsatellite polymorphism with susceptibility to IDC in Han Chinese.Methods:Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphisms(PCR-RFLP) techniques were used to analyze the polymorphisms of CTLA-4 promoter -318, exon 1 A/G and 3′ untranslated region in the unrelated Han ethnic population in Heilongjiang Province(including 72 IDC patients and 100 normal controls). Serum sCTLA-4 was tested by ELISA. The relationship of CTLA-4 genotype and alleles frequencies with sCTLA-4 was evaluated by linear regression analysis.Results:Compared with controls, the frequencies of GG genotype(0.604 2 and 0.739 6, P=0.012) and the G allele(0.360 0 and 0.560 0, P=0.008) were significantly increased in patients with IDC. Increased serum sCTLA-4 was found in the IDC group compared with the controls[(1.87?1.06)?g/L vs (0.54?0.19)?g/L, P

The interplay between host cell genetics and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection contributes to the development of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Understanding the host genetic and epigenetic alterations and the influence of EBV on cell signaling and host gene regulation will aid in understanding the molecular pathogenesis of NPC and provide useful biomarkers and targets for diagnosis and therapy. In this review, we provide an update of the oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes associated with NPC, as well as genes associated with NPC risk including those involved in carcinogen detoxification and DNA repair. We also describe the importance of host genetics that govern the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) complex and immune responses, and we describe the impact of EBV infection on host cell signaling changes and epigenetic regulation of gene expression. High-power genomic sequencing approaches are needed to elucidate the genetic basis for inherited susceptibility to NPC and to identify the genes and pathways driving its molecular pathogenesis.
Carcinoma ; Epigenesis, Genetic ; Epstein-Barr Virus Infections ; Genes, Tumor Suppressor ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Herpesvirus 4, Human ; genetics ; Humans ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; etiology ; Oncogenes ; Signal Transduction