Objective To analyze the changes in peripheral blood monocyte subpopulations in patients with primary, secondary and latent syphilis. Methods Flow cytometry was used to detect CD14highCD16- and CD14+CD16+ monocyte subpopulations in peripheral blood from 58 patients with untreated syphilis, including 36 cases of latent syphilis,8 cases of primary syphilis and 14 cases of secondary syphilis, as well as from 65 normal human controls. Restflts Compared with the normal controls, the proportion of CD14+CD16+ monocytes among total monocytes was significantly elevated (12.0% ± 5.0% vs 6.0% ± 3.3%, t = 7.25, P < 0.01), while that of CD14highCD16- monocytes was down-regulated (88.0% ± 5.1% vs 94.0% ± 3.5%, t = -7.20, P < 0.01). No statistical difference was observed in the proportion of CD14+CD16+ or CD14hhighCD16- monocytes among the patients with primary syphilis, secondary syphilis and those with latent syphilis (all P > 0.05). Conclusions The changes in peripheral blood monocyte subpopulation in patients with untreated syphilis may be associated with the permanent infection of Treponema pallidum, but have no obvious correlation with clinical stage of syphilis.

Objective The objective of this study was to investigate the course of certain common gamma cytokines ( IL-2 and IL-7 ) and their role on the control of the viral infection in a short term antiviral therapy.Methods A total of 35 adults with chronic HIV infection,responding to combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) guideline criteria were enrolled in this one year follow-up study.After signing an informed consent,20 ml blood were collected from each patient at base line,week 0,week 24 and week 48.1 ml serum collected from each patient was kept at -80 * C until use.Serum concentration of IL-2 and IL-7 was determined using ELISA kit from ebioscience Beijing.CD4 and CD8 cells were counted and quantified using flux cytometry,and serum HIV RNA was quantified using real time PCR.Results All patients had a mean baseline IL-2 level [ (9.67 ± 2.6 ) pg/ml ]lower than the controls [ ( 27.36 ± 5.05 ) pg/ml ].After treatment for 48 weeks,IL-2 increased[ ( 19.8 ± 3.3 ) pg/ml ].However,the mean baseline 1L-7 [ ( 81.74± 20.47 ) pg/ml ]in patients was higher than controls [ ( 2.06 ± 1.52 ) pg/ml ].After treatment for 48 weeks,IL-7 decreased [ (8.36 ± 2.16)pg/ml ].IL-2 showed a significant increase and positive correlation with CD4 cells after HAART initiation (0week:R =0.21,P =0.063,24week:R =0.24,P =0.033,48week:R =0.19,P =0.103; IL-7 showed a significant decrease after HAART initiation but it did not show correlation with CD4 cells.We noted there was a negative correlation between IL-2 and CD4 count in HAART baseline (R =0.28,P =0.012 ),but no correlation between IL-7 and CD4 count from 6 month after HAART.IL-2 showed negative correlation with HIV RNA ( R =- 0.17,P =0.032),but IL-7 showed a relationship with the HIV RNA Conclusions The increase of IL-2 coupled with the decrease of IL-7 revealed a partial restoration of immune response during HAART.However,the absence of relationship with HIV RNA suggested that these cytokines might not be directly involved in the reduction of viral load.

The effect of triptolide on proliferation and apoptosis of human multiple myeloma RPMI-8226 cells in vitro,as well as the roles of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and IκBα was investigated.The effect of tritptolide on the growth of RPMI-8226 cells was studied by MTT assay.Apoptosis was detected by Hoechest 33258 staining and Annexin V/PI double staining assay.The expression of NF-κB and IκBα was observed by Western blot and confocal microscopy.The results showed that triptolide inactivated NF-κB apoptotic pathway in human multiple myeloma RPMI-8226 cells.Triptolide at nM range induced proliferation inhibition in a dose- and time-dependent manner and apoptosis in a dose-dependent fashion in RPMI-8226 cells.Besides,we observed the inhibition of NF-κB/p65 in the nuclear fraction was correlated with the increase in the protein expression of IκBα in the cytosol.These results suggested that triptolide might exhibit its strong anti-tumor effects via inactivation of NF-κB/p65 and IκBα.

We reported a women with omithine carbamoyltransferase deficiency who delivered a healthy boy after two pregnancies with adverse outcome with the help of a multidiscipline team.The woman was admitted to Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine with an acute prenatal hyperammonemic episode at 28 gestational weeks of her first pregnancy in 2013 and was diagnosed with ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency.Her hyperammonemic complications were controlled under a well-planned multidisciplinary management including a low-protein diet and appropriate medications assisting nitrogen removal.A boy was delivered by cesarean section at 32 weeks of gestation but died three days later.Mutation analysis revealed a hemizygous c.583G＞A (G195R) mutation in the neonatal omithine carbamyltransferase gene and his mother was a heterozygous carrier with the same mutation.Two years later in 2015,the patient was pregnant spontaneously.However,she received an induced abortion at 21 weeks of gestation because amniocentesis and DNA analysis showed that the male fetus had the same omithine transcarbamylase gene mutation.The index pregnancy was assisted by in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer and preimplantation genetic diagnosis in 2017 and the woman delivered a healthy boy with the management ofa multidisciplinary team.