17B~estradiol. Displacement experiments showed that when RU38486 concentration reached 100~280-fold that of [3H]corticosterone, it began to inhibit [3H]corticosterone binding, while low concentration of RU38486 had no inhibitory effect.

Effects of microiontophoretically applied transmitter receptor antagonists on the evoked response of “pain” units of PVN in rats by sciatic stimulation were observed. The results showed: (l)The evoked response of 7 out of 38 PVN “pain” units could be blocked by atropine (7/38); 5 out of 27 by hexamethonium; 6 out of 31 by phentolamine (6/31); and 4 out of 25 by propranolol (4/25). Seventeen out of 52 were blocked by cyproheptadine (17/52), but 3 out of 52 were augmented by cyproheptadine (3/52). (2) The evoked response of the same “pain” unit could be blocked by two antagonists: the evoked response of 2 out of 27 PVN “pain” units could be blocked by atropine and cyprohepadine; 3 out of 20 by hexamethonium and cyproheptadine; 2 out of 25 by prepamolol and cyproheptadine. These results suggest that the noxious somatic input to PVN involves 5-HT, cholinergic and adrenergic transmitter receptor mechanisms and that the convergence of various transmitter systems on PVN “pain” unit is indicated.

Objective To explore the effect of indoxyl sulfate (IS) on the differentiation, maturation and immunological function of human monocyte derived dendritic cells (mDCs), in order to provides evidence for mechanism of IS in atherosclerosis. Methods Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells isolated by double gradient centrifugation were cultured for immature mDCs by rhGM?CSF and rhIL?4 in vitro. All cases were randomly divided into PBS group, LPS group(1 μg/mL), IS.1 group(30 μmol/L), IS.2 group(300 μmol/L)and IS.3 group (600 μmol/L). The phenotypic maturation of mDCs was evaluated by flow cytometry (FCM) and functional maturation of mDCs was analyzed by measuring FITC?dextran uptake and ELISA. Results IS significantly upregulated the expression of CD80, CD83, CD86 and MHC II key membrane molecules on mDCs, while downregulating phagocytosis and increasing the secretion of IL?12p70 by mDCs (P<0.05). And the LPS and IS showed typical morphology with rough surface, long protrusions and fusiform. 300 μmol/L IS is the most appropriate stimulus concentration. Conclusion Stuctural, phenotypic and functional maturation of dendritic cells derived from human monocytes can be induced by indoxal sulphate at defined concentrations, which may be one of the mechanisms involved in the process of atherosclerosis.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression and significance of CCL5 in patients with esophageal carcinoma.

METHODSUsing reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), the expressions of CCL5/CD8/granzyme B/perforin in tumor and corresponding adjacent tissues from esophageal carcinoma patients were examined. Flow cytometry (FACS) was used to detect the percentages of CD8(+) T cells and CCR5(+)CD8(+) T cells in TIL and PBMC from the patients. Transwell assay was performed to study the effect of CCL5 on the migration of T cells in vitro. T test and Spearman correlation analysis were performed.

RESULTSThe mRNA expressions of CCL5 and perforin were 0.348 2 ± 0.300 1 and 0.181 9 ± 0.118 6, respectively, in the tumor samples, while their expressions in adjacent samples were 0.279 6 ± 0.138 0 and 0.118 0 ± 0.109 8, respectively, with no statistically significant differences between them (P > 0.05 for both). The mRNA expressions of CD8 and granzyme B were significantly higher in the tumor tissues than in adjacent tissues (0.464 9 ± 0.300 8 vs. 0.279 0 ± 0.173 4, 0.648 7 ± 0.516 0 vs. 0.469 7 ± 0.259 1; P < 0.05 for both). The relative expression of CCL5 was positively correlated with that of CD8, perforin and granzyme B (r(CD8) = 0.272, P = 0.034; r(perforin) = 0.305, P = 0.026; r(granzymeB) = 0.108, P = 0.012) in the tumor sites. FACS data revealed that the proportions of CD8(+) T cells in TIL and PBMC were (45.86 ± 16.09)% and (34.05 ± 15.07)%, respectively, showing a significant difference (P = 0.022). Similarly, CCR5(+)CD8(+) T cells fraction in TIL (48.12 ± 26.75)% was much higher than that in PBMC (19.53 ± 13.67) % (P < 0.001). Transwell assay showed that CCL5 protein enhanced the migration of T cells, supporting that CCL5 is crucial for CD8(+) T cells recruitment in vivo. Intriguingly, CCL5 expression was down-regulated in advanced patients (stage IIb-IV). The accumulation of CD8(+) T cells and CCR5(+)CD8(+) T cells was strongly reduced in advanced patients, suggesting that CCL5 expression may be involved in the local control of the disease and its reduction may be involved in disease progression.

CONCLUSIONSThe current data indicate the involvement of CCL5 in the regulation of CD8(+) T cell entry into tumor lesions in esophageal carcinoma patients. This process may affect the disease status and potentially as a prognostic factor for cancer patients. Enhancing local CCL5 expression in tumor lesions may represent a novel strategy in esophageal cancer therapy.

CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes ; Chemokine CCL5 ; metabolism ; Disease Progression ; Esophageal Neoplasms ; metabolism ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Leukocytes, Mononuclear ; Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating

BACKGROUND: There are few multi-city studies on the association between temperature and mortality in basin climates. This study was based on the Sichuan Basin in southwest China to assess the association of basin temperature with non-accidental mortality in the population and with the temperature-related mortality burden. METHODS: Daily mortality data, meteorological and air pollution data were collected for four cities in the Sichuan Basin of southwest China. We used a two-stage time-series analysis to quantify the association between temperature and non-accidental mortality in each city, and a multivariate meta-analysis was performed to obtain the overall cumulative risk. The attributable fractions (AFs) were calculated to access the mortality burden attributable to non-optimal temperature. Additionally, we performed a stratified analyses by gender, age group, education level, and marital status. RESULTS: A total of 751,930 non-accidental deaths were collected in our study. Overall, 10.16% of non-accidental deaths could be attributed to non-optimal temperatures. A majority of temperature-related non-accidental deaths were caused by low temperature, accounting for 9.10% (95% eCI: 5.50%, 12.19%), and heat effects accounted for only 1.06% (95% eCI: 0.76%, 1.33%). The mortality burden attributable to non-optimal temperatures was higher among those under 65 years old, females, those with a low education level, and those with an alternative marriage status. CONCLUSIONS Our study suggested that a significant association between non-optimal temperature and non-accidental mortality. Those under 65 years old, females, and those with a low educational level or alternative marriage status had the highest attributable burden.
Female ; Humans ; China/epidemiology* ; Cities ; Cold Temperature ; Hot Temperature ; Mortality ; Temperature ; Time Factors ; Middle Aged ; Male

Objective     To explore the timing and safety of limited-period lung cancer surgery in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Methods     Clinical data of of patients infected with COVID-19 undergoing lung cancer surgery (an observation group) in the Department of Thoracic Surgery of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, the Department of Thoracic Surgery of General Hospital of Southern Theater Command of PLA, and the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Pharmaceutical University from December 2022 to January 2023 were retrospectively analyzed and compared with patients who underwent surgery during the same period but were not infected with COVID-19 (a control group), to explore the impact of COVID-19 infection on lung cancer surgery. Results     We finally included 110 patients with 73 patients in the observation group (28 males and 45 females at age of 52.62±12.80 years) and 37 patients in the control group (22 males and 15 females at age of 56.84±11.14 years). The average operation time of the observation group was longer than that of the control group, and the incidence of anhelation was higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). There were no statistcal differences in blood loss, length of hospital stay, moderate or above fever rate, degree of cough and chest pain, or blood routine between the two groups. Conclusion    It is safe and feasible to perform lung cancer surgery early after recovery for COVID-19 patients with lung cancer.

Humans ; COVID-19 ; Quarantine ; Renal Dialysis ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Hospitals