Objective To study the relationship between the changes of ten elemental contents in serum and schizophrenia.Methods Calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), aluminum (Al), arsenic (As), selenium (Se), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn) in serum in the of schizophrenic patients and normal subjects are measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer and inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometer, compared the content of elements between the schizophrenia and normal.Results There were significant differences ( P<0.05) in other elements between two groups except lead.The contents of Ca,Fe,Mg,Zn,As,Se,Cu in the patients with schizophrenia were significantly lower than those in control, while Al, Mn were significantly higher than those in control.Most of elements in serum between case and control groups were correlated (P<0.05).Some of element ratios which have physiological significance were significant statistically (P<0.05), such as: Ca/Mg, Ca/Fe and so on.Conclusion These findings suggest that the patients with schizophrenia might have an abnormal elemental metabolism.Given the relationship among the elements, the element ratios are more valuable in reflecting the relationship between schizophrenia and elements.

Objective To investigate the effects of mild hypothermia ( MH ) on the expression of my- eloperoxidase(MPO) and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX 2) in rats after cerebral ischemia and reperfusion (CIR). Methods Forty-eight Wistar rats were randomly divided into four control groups (n=6 in each) and four MH groups (n=6 in each).CIR models were established by suture occlusion of the left middle cerebral artery.The rats in the MH groups,but not in the control groups,were treated with MH.Rats were killed at 4 h,8 h,12 h and 16 h after CIR.MPO expression was measured,along with the expression of COX 2 as measured by Western blot- ting and immunohistochemical methods.Results Compared with the control groups,MPO activity and the COX 2 expression in the cortex and striatum were significantly lower in all the MH groups at 4 h,8 h,12 h and 16 h after CIR.Conclusion MH treatment can protect neurons by decreasing MPO activity and COX 2 expression,allevia- ting inflammation and reducing secondary injuries after CIR.

Single cell "omics" technology enables the capture of genome, transcriptome, proteome and other omics information in a high-throughput and unbiased manner at single-cell resolution, allowing the characterization of the functional state of individual cells to reveal their heterogeneity and differential responses to drug treatment. This technology has wide application in pharmacological research, facilitating drug screening, efficacy evaluation, and mechanistic studies. We envision that, in the field of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), single cell omics technology can be applied in the identification of active ingredients and drug targets, and elucidation of drug mechanism of action. In this article, we briefly introduce the single cell omics technology - particularly single cell transcriptome sequencing, and review its application in the field of modern drug research. Based on that, we propose the concept of "single cell pharmacology" and articulate how it can be applied to transform the pharmacological research of TCM and promote TCM modernization.

OBJECTIVETo compare the efficacy of different expression vectors, target genes, and immunization procedures in transfecting mice via liposome to construct murine model of Graves disease.

METHODSWe linked pCDNA3.1(+) and pUBC to full-length human TSHR and TSHR A subunit cDNA to yield four plasmids, which were later injected intramascularly or subcutaneously into female Balb/c mice via liposome. The blood anti-TSHR antibody (TRAb) were determined and the body weight were measured after each immunization. Serum thyroid hormone levels were measured after the animals were sacrificed.

RESULTSIn mice immunized with pUBC, no significant variance with control in weight nor serum TRAb concentration was observed. Weight gain in pCDNA3.1(+) group was significantlyly slower than controls (p<0.05), and serum TRAb concentration was also significantly elevated. In pCDNA group, animals immunized with TSHR A subunit (TSHRA subgroup) as the target gene revealed even significantly slower weight gain (p<0.001) and even faster TRAb elevation than those immunized with full length TSHR. Significantly higher FT4 (p=0.023) was observed in TSHRA and TSHR subgroups, which was reversely correlated to weight gain, but no significant difference (p>0.05) in FT3 was observed. Weight gain and TRAb concentration mainly varied in the later period of immunization.

CONCLUSIONSImmunization with pCDNA3.1(+) and TSHR A subunit gene together with higher immunization frequency increases the chance of model induction. Furthermore, FT4 is a better indicator for assessing the thyroid function in this model.

Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Graves Disease ; genetics ; Liposomes ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Receptors, Thyrotropin ; genetics ; Transfection

To describe the unique miRNA profiles for HIV seropositive individuals and identify significantly differently expressed miRNAs, we determined the expression level of 754 miRNAs of 10 HIV seropositive individuals and 10 HIV seronegative individuals by using the Taqman low density microRNA array. BRB-Array Tool was used to conduct the significance analysis, and the DIANA online tool was used to perform the miRNA target prediction and pathway analysis. A total of 56 significantly differentially expressed miRNAs were identified by microarray between HIV seropositive and seronegative individuals. Among them, 49 miRNAs were down-regulated and 7 were up-regulated, partially overlapped with reported data. Predicted target genes were mainly involved in MAPK, TGF-beta and Wnt pathways. The results shows that miRNA profile changes in HIV-1 seropositive individuals, and the 56 differentially expressed miRNAs may play important role during HIV infection. Further studies on these miRNAs may be helpful for identify key molecules involved in HIV infection and potential diagnostic markers.
Adult ; Female ; Gene Expression Profiling ; HIV Infections ; blood ; genetics ; virology ; HIV-1 ; genetics ; physiology ; Humans ; Male ; MicroRNAs ; blood ; genetics ; Young Adult

The change in plasma ghrelin level after 4-and 12-week adjunctive therapy of rosiglitazones in type 2 diabetic patients inadequately controlled by sulphonylurea alone was observed and the relation between ghrelin and insulin resistance was analysed.The results showed that rosiglitazones significantly increased circulating ghrelin level and obviously decreased insulin resistance index after therapy for 4 and 12 weeks in type 2 diabetic patients.

Objective To investigate the relation between expression of JARID1B/KDM5B in invasive breast cancer tissue and circulating tumor cells of invasive breast patients. Methods The S-P immunohistochemical method was used to observe the expression of JARID1B/KDM5B in lesions.imFISH method was used to detect circulation tumor cells. Results Twenty-seven cases of patients showed CTC positive(the number of CTC was more than or equal to 2) in 35 invasive breast cancer cases,The results of JARID1B/KDM5B expression were as follows:(-) (n=0) and (+) in 1 case,(++) in 3 cases,(+++) in 23 cases,8 cases of negative cases (the number of CTC < 2), JARID1B/KDM5B immune group of results:(-) (n=2),(+) in 2 cases,(++) in 1 case,(+++) in 3 cases, The positive relation was found in expression of JARID1B/KDM5B and circulating tumor cells(P<0.05). Conclu-sions JARID1B/KDM5B positive expression in tumor tissues has a certain significance in predicting the recurrence and metastasis of tumor.

BACKGROUNDDeveloping an effective vaccine against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) remains a grand challenge after more than two decades of intensive effort. It is partially due to the lack of suitable animal models for screening and prioritizing vaccine candidates. In this study, we aim to develop a mice model to test HIV-1 vaccine efficacy.

METHODSWe constructed a recombinant vaccinia expressing firefly luciferase and HIV-1 Gag fusion protein based on Tiantan strain, an attenuated but replication-competent poxvirus (rTTV-lucgag). By quantifying the luciferase activity as its read out, we defined the biodistribution of Tiantan strain poxvirus in mice inoculated intraperitoneally and attempted to apply this model to evaluate the HIV-1 vaccine efficacy.

RESULTSOur data demonstrated that the rTTV-lucgag was able to express high level of luciferase (< or = 10(6) relative luciferase units (RLU)/mg protein) and HIV-1 Gag (> 3 folds increase comparing to the control). After intraperitoneal inoculation, this virus had dominant replication in the ovary, uterus, and cervix of mice and the luciferase activities in those organs are significantly correlated with viral titers (r(2) = 0.71, P < 0.01). Pre-immunization with an HIV gag DNA vaccine reduced the luciferase activity in ovary from (6006 +/- 3141) RLU/mg protein in control group to (1538 +/- 463) RLU/mg protein in vaccine group (P = 0.1969).

CONCLUSIONSThe luciferase activity in ovary could represent viral replication in vivo; this rTTV-lucgag/mice model may be suitable to assess the protective efficacy of cytotoxic T-cell responses to HIV Gag with less tedious work and high through-put.

AIDS Vaccines ; genetics ; Animals ; Female ; HIV Infections ; immunology ; prevention & control ; HIV-1 ; genetics ; Humans ; Kinetics ; Luciferases ; genetics ; metabolism ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Poxviridae ; genetics ; Recombinant Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Virus Replication ; genetics ; gag Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo compare the clinical efficacy in the treatment of allergic rhinitis (AR) of lung qi deficiency and cold syndrome between Jin's three-needle therapy and western medication.

METHODSSixty-six patients were randomized into an acupuncture group and a western medication group, 33 cases in each one. In the acupuncture group, acupuncture was applied at three-nose points [Yingxiang (LI 20), Shangyingxiang (EX-HN 8) and Yintang (GV 29); Cuanzhu (BL 2) was added for frontal headache] and three-back points [Dazhu (BL 11), Fengmen (BL 12) and Feishu (BL 13)], once every day. Ten treatments made one session. Two sessions of treatment were required. In the western medication group, desloratadine oral suspension was prescribed, 5 mg each time, once a day, for 20 days. The scores of the symptoms and physical signs in AR patients as well as the clinical efficacy were observed between the two groups.

RESULTSThe total effective rate was 93.9% (31/33) in the acupuncture group, which was better than 72.7% (24/33) in the western medication group (P < 0.05). After treatment, the scores of AR symptoms and physical signs as well as the total score were all reduced compared with those before treatment in the two groups (all P < 0.01). The score of every item in the acupuncture group was lower than that in the western medication group after treatment (score of symptoms: 4.70 +/- 2.07 vs 6.55 +/- 2. 69, score of physical signs: 0.85 +/- 0.67 vs 1.45 +/- +0.62, total score: 5.36 +/- 2.70 vs 8.00 +/- 2.91, all P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONJin's three-needle therapy achieves superior efficacy on AR of lung-qi deficiency and cold syndrome, which is better than desloratadine oral suspension.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; instrumentation ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Lung ; physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Needles ; Qi ; Rhinitis, Allergic ; Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDStreptococcus mutans (S. mutans) is the prime pathogen of dental caries. There are few reports that studied the relationship between S. mutans, bacteria and dental caries in permanent teeth when compared to those in primary teeth. This study aimed to detect S. mutans and bacteria of dental caries and non-caries groups in permanent teeth from a north China population by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and compare the relationship between the number of these bacteria and the prevalence of dental caries in permanent teeth.

METHODSHuman saliva samples were collected from 142 subjects with permanent teeth. According to their dental tooth (DT), 142 subjects were divided into a dental caries group (DT ≥ 1) and a non-caries group (DT = 0). With specific primers for S. mutans and 16S rRNA, the total number of S. mutans and total bacteria of 142 saliva samples were detected by real-time PCR and statistically analyzed.

RESULTSThere was no significant difference between the detection rates of S. mutans (P = 0.118) and medians of S. mutans (P = 0.115). The ratio of S. mutans to total bacteria in people with dental caries was significantly higher than in those without caries (P < 0.001), but the total number of bacteria in people with dental caries was significantly lower than in those without caries (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONSS. mutans had different effects on caries in the permanent teeth of several individuals from a north China population. The ratios of S. mutans to total bacteria in saliva detected by real-time PCR with Sm479F/R and 16S RNA primers were closely associated with the prevalence of dental caries in the same population. These assays may be useful for the assessment of an individual's risk of dental caries.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Bacteria ; isolation & purification ; Dental Caries ; microbiology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Saliva ; microbiology ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Streptococcus mutans ; isolation & purification ; Tooth ; microbiology