OBJECTIVE:To study the effects of nimesulide combined with oxaliplatin on transplanted tumor growth and im-mune function of rats with esophageal cancer. METHODS:Rats were randomly divided into model group(intragastrically given So-dium carboxymethyl cellulose solution+intravenously given 5% Glucose injection in tail),nimesulide group(intragastrically given 20 mg/kg),oxaliplatin group(intravenously given 13.6 mg/kg in tail)and combination group,10 in each group. Esophageal can-cer Eca109 cells were subcutaneously injected to develop transplanted tumor model. After modeling,rats in each group received rel-evant medicines by corresponding ways,once a day for ig,once every 4 d for iv in tail. Rats were sacrificed after 8 weeks,tumor volume and quality of rats were measured,tumor inhibition rate was calculated,and contents of tumor markers(CEA,CYFRA21-1,SCCAg),percentages of immune cells(CD3+,CD4+,CD8+T cells and NK cell)in peripheral blood were detected. RESULTS:Compared with model group,tumor volume and quality in other 3 groups were decreased (P<0.05);contents of tumor markers were decreased (P<0.05). Percentages of CD3+,CD4+ T cells and NK cell in nimesulide group were increased,percentages of CD8+T cell was decreased(P<0.05). Percentages of CD3+,CD4+T cells and NK cell in oxaliplatin group and combination group were decreased,percentages of CD8+ T cell was increased(P<0.05). Compared with nimesulide group and oxaliplatin group,tu-mor inhibition rate in combination group was increased(P<0.05);contents of tumor markers were decreased(P<0.05);percent-ages of immune cells were lower than nimesulide group and higher than oxaliplatin group(P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS:Nimesulide can enhance the oxaliplatin's antitumor effect on esophageal cancer,and decrease its inhibition degree on immune functions.

Xanthine oxidase (XOD), catalyzing purine metabolism, is the key enzyme in uric acid (UA) biosynthesis, and becomes an important target for hyperuricemia treatment. The inhibition on XOD plays an important role in the treatment of hyperuricemia-related diseases, such as gout, as well as oxidative stress-induced tissue injury. Here, studies on the natural products with XOD inhibition are reviewed.

Taxol is one of the most potent anti-cancer agents, which is extracted from the plants of Taxus species. Isopentenyl diphosphate isomerase (IPI) catalyzes the reversible transformation between IPP and DMAPP, both of which are the general 5-carbon precursors for taxol biosynthesis. In the present study, a new gene encoding IPI was cloned from Taxus media (namely TmIPI with the GenBank Accession Number KP970677) for the first time. The full-length cDNA of TmIPI was 1 232 bps encoding a polypeptide with 233 amino acids, in which the conserved domain Nudix was found. Bioinformatic analysis indicated that the sequence of TmIPI was highly similar to those of other plant IPI proteins, and the phylogenetic analysis showed that there were two clades of plant IPI proteins, including IPIs of angiosperm plants and IPIs of gymnosperm plants. TmIPI belonged to the clade of gymnosperm plant IPIs, and this was consistent with the fact that Taxus media is a plant species of gymnosperm. Southern blotting analysis demonstrated that there was a gene family of IPI in Taxus media. Finally, functional verification was applied to identify the function of TmIPI. The results showed that biosynthesis of β-carotenoid was enhanced by overexpressing TmIPI in the engineered E. coli strain, and this suggested that TmIPI might be a key gene involved in isoprenoid/terpenoid biosynthesis.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Carbon-Carbon Double Bond Isomerases ; genetics ; Cloning, Molecular ; DNA, Complementary ; genetics ; Escherichia coli ; Paclitaxel ; biosynthesis ; Phylogeny ; Plant Proteins ; genetics ; Taxus ; enzymology ; genetics

Protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP) 1B is a potential target for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. Phosphotyrosine (pTyr) is the substrate for PTP1B dephosphorylation. Malonic acid moiety was used herein as a mimic of the phosphate group in pTyr, and novel malonic acid derivatives 1-7 were designed, synthesized and evaluated as PTP1B inhibitors. Results from enzymatic assays indicated that compounds 3 and 4 exhibited potent inhibition against human recombinant PTP1B with IC50 values of 7.66 and 1.88 micromol x L(-1), respectively.

Protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP) 1B is a potential target for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. We have previously identified the benzoyl sulfathiazole derivative II as a non-competitive PTP1B inhibitor with in vivo insulin sensitizing effects. Preliminary SAR study on this compound series has been carried out herein, and thirteen new compounds have been designed and synthesized. Among them, compound 10 exhibited potent inhibition against human recombinant PTP1B with the IC50 value of 3.97 micromol x L(-1), and is comparable to that of compound II.
Humans ; Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase, Non-Receptor Type 1 ; antagonists & inhibitors ; Structure-Activity Relationship ; Sulfathiazoles ; chemistry ; pharmacology

Protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP) 1B is a potential target for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. We have previously identified the benzoyl sulfathiazole derivative II as a non-competitive PTP1B inhibitor with in vivo insulin sensitizing effects. Preliminary SAR study on this compound series has been carried out herein, and thirteen new compounds have been designed and synthesized. Among them, compound 10 exhibited potent inhibition against human recombinant PTP1B with the IC50 value of 3.97 micromol x L(-1), and is comparable to that of compound II.

BACKGROUND: Intravenous transplantation has been regarded as a most safe method in stem cell therapies. There is evidence showing the homing of bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) into the injured sites, and thus these cells can be used in the treatment of acute myocardial infarction (MI). This study aimed to investigate the effect of intravenous and epicardial transplantion of BMSCs on myocardial infarction size in a rabbit model. METHODS: A total of 60 New Zealand rabbits were randomly divided into three groups: control group, epicardium group (group I) and ear vein group (group II). The BMSCs were collected from the tibial plateau in group I and group II, cultured and labeled. In the three groups, rabbits underwent thoracotomy and ligation of the middle left anterior descending artery. The elevation of ST segment>0.2 mV lasting for 30 minutes on the lead II and III of electrocardiogram suggested successful introduction of myocardial infarction. Two weeks after myocardial infarction, rabbits in group I were treated with autogenous BMSCs at the infarct region and those in group II received intravenous transplantation of BMSCs. In the control group, rabbits were treated with PBS following thoracotomy. Four weeks after myocardial infarction, the heart was collected from all rabbits and the infarct size was calculated. The heart was cut into sections followed by HE staining and calculation of infarct size with an image system. RESULTS: In groups I and II, the infarct size was significantly reduced after transplantation with BMSCs when compared with the control group (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference in the infarct size between groups I and II (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: Transplantation of BMSCs has therapeutic effect on MI. Moreover, epicardial and intravenous transplantation of BMSCs has comparable therapeutic efficacy on myocardial infarction.

Objective To investigate the regularity of intrapulnonary lobar and segmental lymph nodes metastasis in patients with cT1N0M0 stage lung adenocarcinoma.To provide a basis for more accurate determination of N stage and indication for pulmonary segmental resection.Methods A prospective study was performed from March 2014 to December 2015.103 cases of cT1 N0M0 stage lung adenocarcinoma received lobectomy and mediastinal lymph node dissection in the thoracic surgery department of China-Japan Friendship Hospital.Intrapulmonary lobar and segmental lymph nodes were dissected and sorted carefully then sent to the pathological department with the corresponding lung specimen and other lymph nodes.Statistical analysis was carried out considering size of the lesion,imaging features,serum CEA levels,pathological subtypes and so on.Results In total 103 cases,pN0 was confirmed in 82 cases,pN1 in 15 cases,pN1 + N2 in 5 cases,and skipping-pN2 in 1 case.14 cases(93.3％) in pN1 group were detected with station 12-14 lymph node metastasis,while only 5 cases (33.3％) were detected with station 12-14 LSNs metastasis.4 cases(66.7％) in pN2 group were detected with station 12-14 lymph node metastasis,while only 1 case(16.7％) with station 13 and station 7 lymph node metastasis.If LSNs were not detected,the false negative rate of N staging could be as high as 6.1％ (5/82),The rate of missed diagnosis of lymph node metastasis might be 30％ (6/20) to N1 stations alone.41.2％ (7/17)cases with metastasis to the adjacent LSNs had been proved with metastasis to the isolated LSNs.The metastasis rate of the isolated LSNs was significantly lower(P =0.049) in pure GGNs compared with those part-solid/solid nodules.Invasive adenocarcinoma had higher metastasis rate of isolated LSNs,compared with preinvasive lesions or minimally invasive adenocarcinomas,with no statistical difference between groups (P =0.055).No significant difference in isolated LSNs metastasis rate was found between groups with different serum CEA levels(P =0.251) or tumor size(P =0.197).Conclusion Dissection of intrapulmonary lobar and segmental lymph nodes might facilitate a more accurate N stage,reduce the false negative rate of lymph node metastasis,and provide basis for more accurate assessment of prognosis and postoperative adjuvant treatment.The sampling area of lymph nodes during segmental resection should include the adjacent LSNs of the target segment.The isolated LSNs metastasis rate of cT1N0M0 stage lung adenocarcinoma with pureGGN as imaging feature is relative low,which might be suitable for segmentectomy when meeting other criteria.

Objective To establish a post?treatment prognostic score model for newly diagnosed metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and to investigate the feasibility of stratified therapy. Methods A total of 263 eligible patients with newly diagnosed metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma from 2002 to 2010 were enrolled as subjects. The primary tumor was treated with conventional radiotherapy, three?dimensional conformal radiotherapy, or intensity?modulated radiotherapy, and radiation areas included nasopharyngeal tumor and cervical lymphatic drainage region. The metastatic bone tumor was mainly treated with conventional external radiotherapy, while the metastatic liver or lung tumor was mainly treated with surgical resection, radiotherapy, or radiofrequency ablation. The first?line therapy for most of patients was cisplatin?based combination chemotherapy. Factors including the general characteristics, tumor status, and therapy for patients were involved in multivariate analysis, and a prognostic model was established based on the n value (HR=en ) of the prognostic factors. Results The factors influencing the overall survival (OS) in patients were a Karnofsky performance score (KPS) not higher than 70(P= 0?? 00), multiple organ metastases (P=0?? 00), combination with liver metastasis (P= 0?? 00), a number of metastases not less than 2(P= 0?? 00), a level of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) higher than 245 IU/ L (P= 0?? 00), a number of chemotherapy cycles ranging between 1 and 3( P= 0?? 00), a poor response for metastatic tumor ( stable disease or progressive disease)(P= 0?? 00), and primary tumor not treated with radiotherapy (P= 0?? 01). Based on the prognostic score, patients were divided into low?risk group (0?1?? 5 points), intermediate?risk group (2?? 0?6?? 5 points), and high?risk group (≥7?? 0 points), and the 5?year OS rates in the three groups were 59?? 0%, 25?? 1%, and 0%, respectively. Conclusions The prognostic score model based on the KPS, serum level of LDH, multiple organ metastases, combination with liver metastasis, and number of metastases can effectively predict the survival in patients. Active treatment including at least 4 chemotherapy cycles and radiotherapy for primary tumor can prolong the survival time of patients in the low?and intermediate?risk groups. However, patients in the high?risk group were mainly treated with palliative radiotherapy due to no improvement in the survival by radiotherapy for primary tumor.

A high-throughput three-dimensional (3D) hepatocyte culture model is constructed in this study. It is capable of replicating the 3D in vivo environment and offers the advantages of high throughput, enhanced reproducibility, low cost, and simplified operation, rendering a valuable tool for hepatotoxicity screening of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). First, we constructed the 3D high throughput liver chip model using collagen hydrogel. The precision and its difference with traditional cell culture plates were assessed using acetaminophen, Tripterygium hypoglaucum, and Qili San as the references. The feasibility of this model was also investigated by comparing the hepatotoxicity among four batches of T. hypoglaucum and Qili San. The methodology verification shows that the 3D hepatocyte model is better than traditional two-dimensional (2D) cell culture model in precision and feasibility. Subsequently, we compared the hepatotoxicity of different samples over a period of three or seven days and found that the hepatotoxicity of TCM extracts increased over time. Finally, we compared the hepatotoxicity of T. hypoglaucum and its compound formula Kunxian capsule under equivalent concentration. The results showed that the compound Kunxian capsule could significantly reduce hepatotoxicity of T. hypoglaucum. Generally, we constructed a high-throughput, robust 3D liver-on-a-chip model with the potential of rapid assessing TCM-induced liver toxicity.