The association between serum fetuin A and diabetic nephropathy (DN) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM) was investigated.Serum levels of fetuin-A and adiponectin were measured by ELISA and the clinical data were collected in 101 T2DM patients with normal albuminuria (NA group),87 patients with microalbuminuria (MA group),44 patients with overt albuminuria (OA group),and 130 normal control subjects (NC group).Fetuin-A levels increased progressively from NC,NA,MA,to OA groups,and there were significant differences among groups(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).Fetuin-A level in patients was positively associated with duration of illness,urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR),fasting blood glucose,2-hour postprandial blood glucose,and C-reactive protein(CRP,P＜0.05 or P＜0.01),but was negatively associated with age and adiponectin (all P＜ 0.01).Multiple stepwise regression analysis indicated that duration of diabetes,fetuin-A,CRP,and adiponectin were independent determinants for ACR (all P ＜ 0.01).Fetuin-A may be involved in the development and pathogenesis of DN by proinflammatory effects and repressing adiponectin production.

Objective To investigate serum alpha2-Heremans-Schmid glycoprotein ( AHSG ) level and its relationship with associated clinical parameters in subjects with simple overweight and obesity. Methods Forty-nine subjects with obesity ( OB group) , 176 subjects with overweight ( OW group) , and 327 individuals with normal weight ( NW group) were randomly enrolled. The clinical data were collected and serum levels of AHSG and adiponectin ( APN) were determined by ELISA. The associations of serum AHSG level with other clinical parameters were assessed by Pearson correlation analysis and multiple linear regressive model. Results Serum AHSG levels were higher in OW and OB groups than that in NW group[(276. 30 and 302. 10 vs 241. 60)μg/ml], being especially higher in OB group (P<0. 05 or P<0. 01). Serum AHSG level in NW group was positively associated with fasting plasma glucose, homoeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index, C-reactive protein (CRP), triglycerides, and free fatty acids ( FFA ) , but negatively associated with age and APN. In OW and OB groups, AHSG was also positively associated with body mass index, waist hip ratio(WHR), and low density lipoprotein cholesterol(P<0. 05 or P<0. 01) except the aforementioned clinical parameters. In multiple linear regression model, AHSG was positively associated with WHR, CRP, and FFA, and was negatively associated with APN ( P<0. 05 or P<0. 01). Conclusion The raised AHSG level in overweight and obese subjects may be a risk factor for obesity-related diseases.

Objective To investigate the role of monocyte subsets in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM), the expression was detected on lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2(LP-PLA2) mRNA in peripheral blood monocytes subsets of type 2 diabetic patients. Methods After the peripheral blood of 32 type 2 diabetic patients and 22 healthy controls were collected,the percentages of the monocytes subsets were detected by flow cytometry. The expression of LP-PLA2 mRNA in monocytes subsets were detected by PCR. After monocyte subsets of healthy subjects were induced into macrophages and stimulated by the serum of type 2 diabetic patients for 24h,LP-PLA2 mRNA expression was detected. Results Compared with the control group, the percentage of classical monocytes in T2DM group was decreased, while the LP-PLA2 mRNA expression and percentage of nonclassical,intermediate monocytes were significantly increased(all P<0.05). In addition,the homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance index was positively correlated with LP-PLA2 mRNA expression in non-classical(P<0.05)and intermediate monocytes(P<0.01)of type 2 diabetic patients. Compared with type 2 diabetic patients without carotid atherosclerosis, the levels of LP-PLA2 mRNA in intermediate and nonclassical monocytes were significantly higher than those in type 2 diabetic patients with carotid atherosclerosis(P<0.05). The level of LP-PLA2 mRNA in non-classical monocytes-derived macrophages stimulated with the serum of type 2 diabetic patients was significantly higher than that in the control group(P<0.05). Conclusion Monocytes subsets from type 2 diabetic patients are abnormally skewed toward to intermediate and non-classical monocytes with high expression of LP-PLA2 mRNA,which may play an important role in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus and atherosclerosis.

Objective To investigate tumor cell killing effect of superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles with cubic phase through magneto-mechanical force under a low-frequency vibrating magnetic field ( VMF). Methods A kind of strong magnetic and irregular-shaped Fe3O4 nanoparticles with cubic phase was synthesized by coprecipitation method. The Fe3O4 nanoparticles were exposed to a self-developed VMF and cell killing efficiency of the Fe3O4-mediated magneto-mechanical force was investigated. Results VMF alone had no effects on cell viability. After Fe3O4 nanoparticles were added, the cell viability significantly decreased with prolonging the VMF treatment time and increasing the Fe3O4 nanoparticle concentration. Lactate dehydrogenase released by damaged cells also increased with prolonging the VMF exposure time. Conclusions The irregular-shaped Fe3O4 nanoparticles can transfer magneto-mechanical force to tumor cells under VMF, cause structural damage of cells and result in cell death. The VMF generator developed in this study has simple structure and it is safe for use and convenient for operation. The developed magnetic nanoparticles and the corresponding cancer cell killing technique have the potential for clinical transformation.