Objective: To explore the protective effect of leptin against rats intestinal ischemia/reperfusion injury and the related mechanism. Methods: Ninety-nine rats were randomly divided into 11 groups (n=9), namely the sham-operation group, ischemia/reperfusion groups (45 min ischemia plus 15 reperfusion [I45R15,I45R30,I45R60,I45R180,I45R360)and the 5 corresponding leptin-treated ischemia-reperfusion groups. The serum levels of TNF-α and IL-10 were determined in all groups and the histopathological changes were observed in the small intestine. Results: Compared with the sham-operation group, the serum levels of TNF-α and IL-10 were significantly increased in the ischemia/ reperfusion groups (both P<0.05), with obvious pathological damage observed in the ischemia/reperfusion groups. Leptin treatment significantly decreased TNF-α level, increased IL-10 level, and alleviated the damage of the small intestine (all P<0.05) of animals after ischemia/reperfusion injury. Conclusion: Leptin can alleviate the intestinal damage in rats after intestinal ischemia/reperfusion through down-regulating TNF-α level and up-regulating IL-10 levels.

Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins ; therapeutic use

Antiphospholipid Syndrome ; diagnosis ; etiology ; therapy ; Child ; Humans ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; complications ; Male

Objective To investigate the hypothesis that food allergy in infants may be associated with variation in their intestinal microflora. The formation of intestinal microflora in healthy infants and changes in food allergic infants were detected.Methods 16S rRNA gene sequences specific for bifidobacterium, lactobacillus and escherichia coli in fecal were quantitatively detected by real-time PCR. The three fecal floras were assessed in 71 healthy infants and 100 infants with food allergy. Results After birth,there were bifidobacteria colonized in infantile intestine,then the number increased rapidly up to 5 times at the sixth month, which was always the preponderant flora. Lactobacilli was also presented in infantile intestine 1 month after birth and augment gradually. The number of Escherichia coli was less than bifidobacteria and lactobacilli and appeared to decline during the early infants. The number of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli in the infants with food allergy were markedly less than that in the healthy infants, but escherichia coli was significantly more than that in the healthy infants.Conclusions During the first year of life,the intestinal microflora in infants is in a developing process. Compared with the healthy infants,bifidobacteria and lactobacilli decrease, but escherichia coli increase in the food allergic infants.These results indicate that the probiotics may be benefit to the prevention and treatment of food allergy.

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of melatonin on the gastrointestinal motility and plasma levels of the stress hormone in overtraining rats.

METHODThirty adult SD rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 10): control group, over-training group, melatonin intervention group. 30 min before each training, rats in the control and over-training groups were fed with normal saline (15 mg/kg) once a day and 5 times per week, while rats in the melatonin intervention group were administrated with melatonin, perfusion in the intervention group (15 mg/kg). Excessive training group and melatonin intervention group rats were subjected to excessive training at 5 times a week for 6 weeks. After 6 weeks, the gastric emptying rate, small intestinal propulsion ratio and levels of plasma motilin (MTL) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), cortisol (CORT) and catecholamines (CA) were observed in all groups.

RESULTSCompared with the control group, the gastric emptying rate, small intestinal propulsion ratio and levels of plasma MTL, CORT and CA were increased significantly (P < 0.01) while the content of CGRP was reduced (P < 0.01) in over-training group. After treated with melatonin, this trend was reversed, that was, the gastric emptying rate, small intestinal propulsion ratio and levels of plasma MTL, CORT and CA were surpressed significantly (P < 0.01) while the content of CGRP was improved obviously (P < 0.01) in over-training group.

CONCLUSIONMelatonin plays an important role in protecting gastrointestinal tract from dysfunction, in which MTL, CGRP, CORT and CA are all involved.

Animals ; Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide ; blood ; Catecholamines ; blood ; Fatigue ; Gastrointestinal Motility ; Hydrocortisone ; blood ; Melatonin ; pharmacology ; Motilin ; blood ; Physical Conditioning, Animal ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Stress, Physiological

Adolescent ; Heart Valve Diseases ; etiology ; Heart Valves ; pathology ; Humans ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; complications ; pathology ; Male

Animals ; Blood Glucose ; Diet, High-Fat ; Ghrelin ; blood ; Lipids ; blood ; Physical Conditioning, Animal ; Rats

To introduce the prophylaxis methods and dealing experiences of the common malfunctions of electronic gastroscopy. To summarize the prophylaxis methods and dealing experiences of the common malfunctions of electronic gastroscopy in recent years. To do everything carefully in the prophylaxis of the common malfunctions could ensure the high definition and resolution of the electronic gastroscopy. To manipulate properly with effective methods of preventing and dealing common malfunctions in use of electronic gastroscopy can not only lower the cost of repair but also prolong the service life of the machine.

The major goal of microbial ecology is to study the structure and function of complex micro-bial communities. New molecular biological techniques have been successfully applied to analyze mi-crobial community structure. However they do not provide information on the physiologic properties of the detected microorganisms. A new tool for structure-function analyses in microbial ecology, micro-autoradiography combined with fluorescence in situ hybridization (MAR-FISH) can be used to simul-taneously examine the phylogenetic identity and the specific activity of microorganisms within a com-plex microbial community at a single-cell level. This article reviews the principle, experimental steps of MAR-FISH technique. The application of this technique in study of the environmental microbial com-munity and function is also summarized.

Objective:To explicit phenylephrine (PE), α1-adrenergic receptor (α1-AR) on myocardial fibrosis regulation and interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) expressions in pressure overloaded mice.
Methods:A total of 49 KM mice were randomly divided into 3 groups: Blank control group, n=7, Sham operation group, n=7, Transverse abdominal aortic constriction (TAC) group, n=35, and 8 weeks later, the mice in TAC group were further divided into 5 sub-groups as TAC control, TAC+PE, TAC+Praz, TAC+Prop, TAC+Carv sub-groups, n=5 in each sub-group, and the animals were respectively treated for 3 weeks. Left ventricular collagen volume fraction (CVE), hydroxyproline content and IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α expressions were examined respectively.
Results: By 8 weeks treatment, compared with Blank control group, TAC group had obvious myocardial fibrosis, increased hydroxyproline content and IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α expressions,P<0.001. Compared with TAC control sub-group, TAC+PE, AC+Prop, TAC+Carv sub-groups showed decreased CVF, hydroxyproline content and IL-1, IL-6, TNF-αexpressions,P<0.001, while the above changes were not obvious in TAC+Praz sub-group,P>0.05; CVE and hydroxyproline content were similar between TAC+PE and TAC+Prop sub-groups, while the expressions of IL-1, IL-6 and TNF-α were obviously decreased in TAC+Prop sub-group,P<0.05. Conclusion: PE may improve myocardial ifbrosis and IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α expressions by activating α1-AR in pressure overloaded mice, α1-AR might be a defending factor for myocardial ifbrosis.