Objective To investigate the effects of ERα36 (a novel subtype of estrogen receptor alpha) on growth and proliferation in PC12 cells via examining the expression of growth-associated protein in differentiated PC12 cells after ERα36 gene silencing.Methods Transfection of ERα36-shRNA plasmid into PC12 cells was performed to establish the ERoα36 gene silencing cells model (PC12-36L1,PC12-36L2).Immunocytofluorescence was used to examine the expression of ERα36,and Western blot was used to analyze the expression of PCNA,cyclinD1 and MAPK in the PC12 cells.Results ① ERα36 was expressed in both cell types(PC12-36C1,PC12-36L1 and PC12-36L2).Compared with PC12-36C1,PC12-36L2 cells(OD value were respectively 0.95±0.05,0.78±0.10),PC12-36L1 cells significantly decreased expression of ERα36(OD value 0.47±0.12,P＜0.01).② Compared with PC12 and PC12-36C1 cells,PC12-36L1 cells were significantly higher expression of PCNA,CyclinD1 and p-MAPK(P＜0.01)(OD value of PCNA,CyclinD1 and p-MAPK:PC12 cells were respectively 1.00±0.05,1.00± ±0.11,1.00±0.05,PC12-36C1 cells were respectively 1.09±0.15,0.92±0.23,1.12± 0.08,PC12-36L1 cells were respectively 1.74±0.12,2.20±0.25,1.77±0.06).Conclusion ERα36 gene silencing can promote the growth and proliferation in PC12 cells.It suggests that the lower expression of ERα36 may be related to the diseases in nervous system such as brain tumor.

Biological therapy for cancer has became a highpoint in recent years.It has been widely applied in clinical field.Management of their unique toxicities becomes more and more important.Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) is a potentially life-threatening toxicity.This review discusses the mechanisms that cause CRS,and new developments in the prevention and treatment of CRS.

Caveolins are a family of plasmalemmal vesicles caveolae-associated integral membrane proteins and a marker protein of caveolae involved in the formation and localization that associated with vesicular transport, cellular cholesterol homeostasis and signal transduction. Recent years, strong experimental evidences indicated that caveolins play a pivotal role in the brain function such as neural development, synaptic plasticity and neurodegenerative diseases. Recent progress on studies of the structure and functions of caveolins was simply summarized. The regulatory role of caveolins in the brain functions has been reviewed and expected.

Objective To study the effect of cervical disc replacement in the treatment of cervical spondylotic myelopathy(CSM).Methods 21 patients with CSM(17 cases of spondylotic myelopathy,2 cases of radiculopathy and 2 cases of acute soft disc herniation)were treated by anterior decompression and replaced by the Bryan cervical disc prosthesis. Results All cases were: followed for 4～12 months, average 8 months. The pre-operative JOA score was 8.5 and post-operative score was 15.5 on average. There were no prosthesis, curve was good. Replaced segment achieved stability and restored partial of normal ROM. There was no subsidence of implant and no worsening of pre-operative symptoms, post-operative 21 cases remained flexion/extension movement at replaced segments at latest follow up. There was no neck stiffness and restriction of movement complained by the patients. Conclusion The Bryan cervical disc replacement for the treatment of CSM has offered an excellent early clinical outcome.

AIM:To investigate the effect of trichostatin A(TSA)on p27kip1 gene expression in vascular smooth muscle cells.METHODS:Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR)was used to measure the level of p27kip1 mRNA.The protein levels of p27kip1 and S-phase kinase-associated protein-2(skp2)were determined by Western blotting.20S proteasome activity was quantified by using a fluorogenic proteasome-specific substrate.RESULTS:TSA did not affect mRNA level of p27kip1 in VSMCs,but attenuated serum-induced downregulation of p27kip1 through stabilizing p27kip1 turnover.In addition,TSA decreased the expression of skp2,an F-box protein that targets p27kip1 for degradation,but had no effect on proteasome activity.CONCLUSION:TSA regulates p27kip1 expression at the post-translational level in VSMCs.

Aim To study the effect of TSA on vascular smooth muscle cells(VSMC)proliferation and apoptosis in vitro.Methods VSMC proliferation was analyzed by MTT assay and BrdU incorporation assay.Cell cycle phase distributions were determined by flow cytometer.The expressions of cyclin D1 and cyclin A were assessed by western blot.Cell apoptosis was quantified by detecting cytoplasmic histone-associated DNA-fragments and the level of cleaved caspase-3.Results TSA at a low concentration was adequate to inhibit serum-induced VSMC proliferation without significant cytotoxity.High concentration of TSA activated caspase-3 and induced VSMC apoptosis.TSA treatment reduced expressions of cyclin D1 and cyclin A,and blocked VSMC entry into S phase.Conclusions TSA inhibits serum-induced VSMC proliferation and G1→S phase progression of cell cycle.Histone deacetylase(HADC)inhibitors may constitute a novel therapy for vascular proliferative diseases.

Medical whole-body positron emission tomography (PET), one of the most successful molecular imaging technologies, has been widely used in the fields of cancer diagnosis, cardiovascular disease diagnosis and cranial nerve study. But, on the other hand, the sensitivity, spatial resolution and signal-noise-ratio of the commercial medical whole-body PET systems still have some shortcomings and a great room for improvement. The sensitivity, spatial resolution and signal-noise-ratio of PET system are largely affected by the performances of the scintillators and the photo detectors. The design of a PET system is usually a trade-off in cost and performance. A better image quality can be achieved by optimizing and balancing the key components which affect the system performance the most without dramatically increases in cost. With the development of the scintillator, photo-detector and high speed electronic system, the performance of medical whole-body PET system would be dramatically improved. In this paper, we report current progresses and discuss future directions of the developments of technologies in medical whole-body PET system.
Humans ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; trends

Objective To explore the possible relationship between alteration of cell cycle and JAK/STAT3 signal transduction pathway inhibition induced by arsenic trioxide (As_2O_3,) in myeloma cell lines U266 and RPMI8226 in vitro. Methods Multiple myeloma cell lines U266 and RPMI8226 were used as in vitro models. The influence of AS_2O_3 on myeloma cells were evaluated by MTT assay and flow cytometry. Meanwhile, methylation specific PCR and Western blotting were employed to detect the methylation status of gene SOCS-1 and protein expression level of P-STAT3 in these cells after AS_2O_3 treatment. Results AS_2O_3 significantly inhibited the growth of U266 and RPMI8226 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, cell cycle was arrested at G0/G1 phase with inhibition of protein expression level of P-STAT3 and SOCS-1 gene demethylation after exposure to As_2O_3 for 72 h( r = 0. 85, P < 0.05). Conclusion AS_2O_3 could induce the alteration of cell cycle which might be related to JAK/STAT3 signal transduction pathway inhibition and SOCS-1 demethylation in myeloma cell lines. The study puts forward a new idea of AS_2 O_3 treatment in multiple myeloma.

Objective To investigate the effects and mechanisms of Alpinia oxyphylla fructus (AOF) on learning and memory in D-galactose induced brain aging mice. Methods The brain aging model was induced by s. c D-galactose. Learning-memory ability was tested by passive avoidance test and Morris water maze test, and the expression of synapsin ( Syn), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and protein kinase ( PKC ) in hippocampus were examined by Western blot. Results ① Passive avoidance test:the latency in brain aging group( ( 119.80 ±101.80)s) significantly decreased,and the number of errors (4.4 ± 1.3 ) significantly increased compared with the control group( latency: (279.30 ± 31.64) s; number of errors: ( 1. 8 ±0.9), P＜0. 01 ) ). The latency in low dose, middle dose and high dose AOF group( ( 170.25 ± 68.31 ) s, (226.31 ± 73.25 ) s, (263.20 ± 70.55 ) s) significantly increased, and the number of errors in middle dose and high dose AOF group ( ( 2.8 ± 1.2 ), ( 2.3 ±0. 9 ) ) significantly decreased compared with brain aging group (P ＜ 0. 05, P ＜ 0. 0 1 ). ② Morris water maze test:the escape latency in brain aging group was significantly longer, and the time spent in the original quadrant that previously contained the platform was significantly shorter compared with the control group (P＜0. 01 ). The escape latency in 3 AOF groups was significantly shorter (P＜ 0. 05 ), and the time spent in the original quadrant that previously contained the platform in middle and high dose AOF groups was significantly longer compared with brain aging group (P＜0. 05, P＜0. 01 ). ③ Western blot test:the expression of Syn,MAPK and PKC in hippocampus of brain aging group was significantly weakened than that of the control group. In contrast, the expression of Syn,MAPK, PKC were significantly enhanced in all AOF groups. Conclusion AOF could significantly improve the ability of learning and memory in brain aging mice. Its effects might be related to the increase of the expression of Syn, MAPK and PKC in hippocampus.

Development of medical groups in Yicheng city is referred to as the ‘Yicheng Pattern’ of the health reform in Hubei province.Analyzed in the paper are the background,progress,the specific practices and achievement of the formation of the Yicheng City Medical Group.And the discussions focused on the contradictions and present dilemma during the construction of county-wide medical groups.Based on discussions on the functionality of county general public hospitals,separation of management and operation functions,and advocating advantages of medical groups,the authors raised their recommendations.