1.Fasudil and bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell transplantation for the treatment of spinal cord injury: Is there a synergistic effect
Jianjun ZHANG ; Dong WANG ; Zepeng LIU ; Jingjian MA
Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research 2009;13(45):8901-8905
BACKGROUND:Research has been proved that Fasudil,a Rho kinase inhibitor,can effectively inhibit the onset of secondary spinal cord injury.OBJECTIVE:To investigate the synergistic effect of bone marrow masenchymal stem cell (BMSC) transplantion and Fasudil on motor functional recovery following spinal cord injury.DESIGN,TIME AND SETTING:A randomized controlled animal experimant was performed at institute of Endocrinology,Tianjin Medical University from November 2008 to March 2009.MATERIALS:A 1-month-old SD rat was obtained to extract BMSCs.Another 30 healthy female SD rats were used to establish spinal cord injury models,and they were then randomly divided into single injury group,cell transplantation group,and cell transplantation + Fasudil group,with 10 rats for each group.Fasudil was provided by Tianjin Hongri Pharmaceutical Co.,Ltd.METHODS:One week after modeling,spinal cord injury was exposed in the cell transplantation group and cell transplantation+Fasudil group,and 10 μL BMSC suspension was inserted into the injured region.Otherwise,6 hours later rats in the cell transplantation +Fasudil group were treated with an intraperitoneal injection of 10 mg/kg Fasudil,twice a day for one successive week.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:Hindlimb motor function was detected using inclined plane test.The Phosphorylated-ERM protein expression was detected by hernatoxylin-eosin staining,pathology and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) nerve trace,and Western blot.RESULTS:Eight weeks after modeling,degree of inclined plane was significantly increased in cell transplantation group and cell transplantation + Fasudil group compared with single injury group (P < 0.05,P < 0.01);while the increased value in the cell transplantation group was significantly greater than cell transplantation + Fasudil group (P < 0.05).Broken myeloid tissue and cavitation were observed in the single injury group;a few of neuraxis-like structures were observed in the cell transplantation group and cell transplantation + Fasudil group,but the cavity in the cell transplantation group was larger than cell transplantation + Fasudil group.HRP-pesitive nerve fibers were detected at T_8 segment or even above in the single injury group and increased in cell transplantation group,in particular in cell transplantation + Fasudil group.Phospho-ERM protein expression in the single injury group and cell transplantation group was significantly greater than cell transplantation + Fasudil group (P < 0.05).CONCLUSION:BMSC transplantation can promote hindlimb motor functional recovery following spinal cord injury,while the combined application of cell transplantation and Fasudil may cause a synergistic effect.
2.Osteoblast differentiation and mature gene regulation inside femoral head with steroid-induced osteonecrosis in response to mechanical stress stimulation
Zepeng LIU ; Xinlong MA ; Huafeng ZHANG ; Jianxiong MA ; Zhigang WANG ; Yuan ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Trauma 2010;26(2):172-178
Objective To study dynamic changes of gene expressions and protein synthesis of Runx2 (runt-related transcription factor-2), Osterix, osteocalcin and AJ18 inside the femoral head with steroid-induced osteonecrosis after mechanical stress stimulation in rats. Methods A total of 50 Wistar rats (half male in sex) weighing 250-270 g (mean 260 g) were involved in this study and randomly divided into experimental group (40 rats) and normal group (10 rats). The rats in experimental group were injected with dexamethasone (20 mg/kg) via bilateral gluteus maximus alternatively once a week and then trained on laboratory animal treadmill twice weekly to make rat model of femoral head necrosis. After identifying the successfully induced model by Hematoxylin and eosin stain, glucocorticoid injection was ceased and the experimental group was randomly divided into model control group, 4 weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks groups after hormone training stopped. Then, total RNA and total protein were extracted from femoral head for detecting dynamic changes of genes expressions and proteins synthesis of Runx2, Osterix, osteocalcin and A J18 after mechanical stress stimulation inside the femoral head with steroid-induced osteonecrosis by means of real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot assay. Results In 4 weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks groups after hormone training stopped, the gene expressions and proteins synthesis of Runx2, Osterix and osteocalein were reduced more significantly compared with model control group, mBNA expression values of Runx2, Osterix and osteoealcin were 0. 1809, 0. 1639, 0. 1374 and 0. 4219, 0. 3026, 0.2652 and 0. 2857, 0.2027, 0. 1583 times of those in model control group. The expressions of Runx2, Osterix and osteocalcin showed a downward trend with time. The mBNA expression and protein synthesis of AJ18 at 4th, 6th and 8th weeks after hormone training stopped were 2.6391,4. 2718 and 5. 3165 times of model control group. Conclusions In addition to hormonal factors, inappropriate mechanical stress inhibits expressions and proteins synthesis of Runx2, Osterix and osteocalcin, while the expression and protein synthesis of AJ18 are upgraded in early steroid-induced femoral head necrosis in rats.
3.Blood Glucose Levels and Severity of Coronary Stenosis in Hypertensive Patients
Xiaoling PENG ; Zepeng LIN ; Zhiwei ZHANG ; Guanglin JIN ; Changnong PENG ; Wen WANG
Chinese Journal of Hypertension 2006;0(12):-
Objective To investigate the relationship between blood glucose levels and severity of coronary stenosis in hypertensive patients. Methods Blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose, 2 h plasma glucose, clinical features and coronary angiographic findings were analyzed retrospectively in 540 patients with essential hypertension. Acoording 2 h plasma glucose, patients were stratified into three group: group 1: 2h plasma glucose
4.Preparation and clinical application of the monoclonal antibodies against the human O6 -methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase
Huiming, REN ; Shouping JI ; Subo, LI ; Qian, WANG ; Zepeng, LIU ; Jun, YANG ; Baomin, ZHANG ; XiaoBing LI ; YingLin, LU ; Yangpei, ZHANG
Bulletin of The Academy of Military Medical Sciences 2001;25(2):81-84
Objectives:To establish hybridomas secreting monoclonal antibodies(McAbs) against O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase(MGMT) and to observe the relationship between MGMT expression and clinical responses to ACNU and BCNU in human brain tumors.Methods:The hybridomas were established by cell fusion.MGMT expression in 60 glioma specimens was detected by means of immunohistochemical assay.Results: Seven hybridomas secreting McAbs against MGMT were obtained.Thirty tumor specimens had no detectable or low level of MGMT expression(Mer-), while 30 specimens had high level of MGMT expression(Mer+). The Mer- patients showed more sensitive to ACNU and BCNU than the Mer+ patients.Conclusions: The high specific hybridomas secreting monoclonal antibodies(McAbs) against MGMT were established.The preliminary study indicated that MGMT negative tumors were sensitive to ACNU and BCNU, whereas MGMT positive ones were more resistant to nitrosourea drugs.
5.Exploration on the mechanism of Wenjing Decoction in the treatment of liver fibrosis based on network pharmacology and experimental verification
Dongqi SUN ; Teng WU ; Xiaoling ZHOU ; Yueming WANG ; Zepeng LI ; Yiling MO
International Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2024;46(10):1323-1329
Objective:To investigate the mechanism of Wenjing Decoction in the treatment of hepatic fibrosis through network pharmacological methods, and conducting animal experiments to verify the core targets.Methods:The TCMSP database platform was used to screen the active components and related targets of Wenjing Decoction, and the Uniprot database was used to obtain the target genes corresponding to the active components of Wenjing Decoction. The network diagram of "Chinese materia medica-compound-target" was constructed in Cytoscape 3.7.2, and the GeneCards database was used to search liver fibrosis related targets. String database was used to construct a protein interaction network (PPI) to screen the core components and key targets of liver fibrosis, and GO analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment were performed. Animal experiments were conducted to verify the results of the analysis. 10 mice were selected as the blank group, and the remaining 45 rats were induced with carbon tetrachloride induced liver fibrosis model. After modeling, 40 successfully modeled rats were divided into model group and Wenjing Decoction high, medium-, and low-dosage groups using a random number table method, with 10 rats in each group. Wenjing Decoction high, medium-, and low-dosage groups were orally administered with 1.5×3.18, 3.18, and 0.5×3.18 g/kg Wenjing Decoction, respectively. The blank group was orally administered with equal volume distilled water once a day for 8 consecutive weeks. HE staining was used to observe the histopathological and morphological changes in the liver of rats. The serum GPT and GOT levels of rats were detected using a fully automated biochemical analyzer, and the expressions of TNF, AKT, and IL-6 proteins in rat liver tissue was detected using Western Blot.Results:A total of 188 active components of Wenjing Decoction were obtained, and the active components with higher degree values were β-sitosterol, quercetin, naringenin, etc. 799 liver fibrosis gene targets were collected, and the core target genes of the PPI network were TNF, AKT, IL6, etc. The key anti-hepatic fibrosis related pathways were obtained by GO function and KEGG analysis, including pathway in cancer, TNF, PI3K-Akt and other signalling pathways. Results of animal experiments showed that there were obvious inflammatory infiltration, collagen fibre and pseudo lobe generation in the liver tissue of rats in the model group, and the levels of inflammation and fibrosis in the liver tissue of rats in the Wenjing Decoction high, medium-, and low-dosage groups were improved to different degrees compared with that of the model group; compared with the model group, the levels of serum GPT and GOT decreased ( P<0.05); the protein expressions of TNF, AKT and IL6 in the Wenjing Decoction high, medium-, and low-dosage groups decreased ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Wenjing Decoction may exert anti-liver fibrosis effects by intervening in TNF, AKT, IL6 targets, regulating cancer pathways, TNF, PI3K Akt and other signaling pathways.
6.Key gene screening and prediction model construction of gastric cancer based on machine learning
Zepeng WANG ; Kunpeng LI ; Yu ZHOU ; Sihai LI
Chinese Journal of Medical Physics 2024;41(1):115-124
Objective To verify the genetic characteristics associated with gastric cancer,and to propose a hybrid feature selection method for identifying target genes,further analyzing their significance and establishing a new diagnostic prediction model.Methods Analysis of variance in bioinformatics was performed on the original gastric cancer data,and then machine learning methods such as random forest,recursive feature elimination of support vector machine,and LASSO algorithm were used to screen gastric cancer associated genes,and the intersection of results was taken as the key gene set.The key genes were identified and verified through enrichment analysis.The diagnosis and prediction models based on 8 kinds of machine learning classification algorithms such as multi-layer perceptron,logistic regression and decision tree,were constructed using the key genes.Results The key genes selected by the hybrid feature selection method were closely related to the tumorigenesis and development.Eight key genes(TXNDC5,BMP8A,ONECUT2,COL10A1,JCHAIN,INHBA,LCTL and TRIM59)were identified as potential markers of good diagnostic efficacy in gastric cancer.The ROC curve and accuracy results demonstrated that among the 8 classification models,MLP is the best gastric cancer prediction model,with an accuracy of 97.77%,which was 3.83%higher than that of Xgboost gastric cancer prediction model.Conclusion The study identifies 8 key genes for the diagnosis and prevention of gastric cancer,and establishes the optimal prognosis model.
7.Review on application of artificial intelligence in tumor gene expression data analysis
Kunpeng LI ; Zepeng WANG ; Yu ZHOU ; Sihai LI
Chinese Journal of Medical Physics 2024;41(3):389-396
Tumors are serious diseases threatening human health,and the early diagnosis is essential to improve treatment success and patient survival.The study of tumor gene expression data has become a major tool for revealing tumor disease mechanisms,in which artificial intelligence plays an important role.The potential advantages of supervised learning,unsupervised learning and deep learning in tumor prediction and classification are explored from the perspective of machine learning methods.Special attention is paid to the impact of feature selection algorithms on gene screening and their importance in high-dimensional gene expression data.By providing a comprehensive overview of the application and development of artificial intelligence in the analysis of tumor gene expression data,the study aims to provide an outlook for future research directions and promote further development.
8.Letter 2 regarding “Assessing the performance of ChatGPT in answering questions regarding cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma”
Yiwen ZHANG ; Liwei WU ; Zepeng MU ; Linlin REN ; Ying CHEN ; Hanyun LIU ; Lili XU ; Yangang WANG ; Yaxing WANG ; Susan CHENG ; Yih Chung THAM ; Bin SHENG ; Tien Yin WONG ; Hongwei JI
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology 2024;30(1):113-117
9.Prenatal diagnosis of a tetrasomy 18p case using BACs-on-Beads technology and single nucleotide polymorphism array.
Huling JIANG ; Zepeng PING ; Luming WANG ; Yuxia JIN ; Suping LI ; Xiaodan LIU ; Zhengyou MIAO
Chinese Journal of Medical Genetics 2017;34(6):857-860
OBJECTIVETo determine the origin of a supernumerary small marker chromosome found in a fetus using prenatal BACs-on-Beads (BoBs) and single nucleotide polymorphism array (SNP-array) assays.
METHODSThe fetal sample was subjected to chromosomal karyotyping and BoBs analysis, and the results were validated with genome-wide scanning using a SNP microarray.
RESULTSThe fetus was found to have a 47,XX,+mar karyotype. BoBs analysis indicated that there was an amplification between 18p11.32 and 18p11.21, which was verified by the SNP-array assay as a 18.3 Mb duplication occurring at 18p11.32q11.1.
CONCLUSIONThe karyotype of the fetus was determined as 47,XX,+der18(18p11.32?18q11.1::18q11.1?18p11.32). The duplication has involved important genes including SMCHD1, LPIN2 and TGIF1, which may result in severe malformations in the fetus.
Adult ; Aneuploidy ; Chromosomes, Artificial, Bacterial ; genetics ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 18 ; genetics ; Female ; Humans ; Karyotyping ; Microarray Analysis ; methods ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; methods
10.Role of striatal HCN4 channels in striatum in paclitaxel-induced neuropathic pain in rats: its relationship with GABA B receptors
Zepeng GOU ; Xiaolin TIAN ; Weifan YU ; Shuang ZHAO ; Peng LIU ; Huizhou LI ; Xin LIU ; Xiuli WANG
Chinese Journal of Anesthesiology 2020;40(7):859-862
Objective:To evaluate the role of hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels in striatum in paclitaxel-induced neuropathic pain and the relationship with GABA B receptors in rats. Methods:Healthy clean-grade male Sprague-Dawley rats, aged 6-9 weeks, weighing 180-220 g, were used in this study.The neuropathic pain model was established by intraperitoneal injection of paclitaxel 2 mg/kg once every 2 days for 7 consecutive days in anesthetized rats, and then intrathecal catheterization was performed.Fifty rats in which intrathecal catheters were successfully implanted were divided into 5 groups ( n=10 each) using a random number table method: paclitaxel group (P group), paclitaxel plus normal saline group(N group), paclitaxel plus lentivirus empty vector group (BV group), paclitaxel plus HCN4 channel lentivirus group (H group), and paclitaxel plus HCN channel inhibitor ZD7288 group (I group). Ten rats of the same age were selected as the blank control group (C group). At 15 days after intraperitoneal injection of paclitaxel, normal saline 20 μl was intrathecally injected in group N, group BV received intrathecal injection of HCN4 channel lentivirus empty vector 1×10 8 TU/ml, 20 μl, group H received intrathecal injection of HCN4 channel lentivirus 1×10 8 TU/ml, 20 μl, and group I received intrathecal injection of ZD728830 μg, 20 μl.The mechanical paw withdrawal threshold (MWT) was measured at 1 day before paclitaxel injection and 14 and 21 days after injection.The cerebral striatum tissues were obtained at T 2, and the expression of HCN4 channel and GABA B receptors was determined by immunohistochemistry and Western blot. Results:Compared with group C, the MWT was significantly decreased, HCN4 channel expression was up-regulated, and GABA B receptor expression was down-regulated in group P ( P<0.05). Compared with group P, the MWT was significantly increased, HCN4 channel expression was down-regulated, and GABA B receptor expression was up-regulated in group H and group I ( P<0.05), and no significant change was found in the parameters mentioned above in group N and group BV ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Up-regulation of expression of HCN4 channels in striatum can induce down-regulation of GABA B receptor expression, which is involved in the pathophysiological mechanism of paclitaxel-induced neuropathic pain in rats.