OBJECTIVETo observe the therapeutic efficacy of dietary boron supplement on retinoic acid-induced osteoporosis in rats, so as to provide experimental evidence for clinical management of osteoporosis with boron.

METHODSThirty-two SD rats were randomized into normal control group (8 rats) and osteoporotic group (24 rats), and osteoporosis was induced in rats of the latter group by intragastric retinoic acid administration at the daily dose of 80 mg/kg for 15 consecutive days. The osteoporotic rats were subdivided into control group (8 rats) without treatment, boron treatment group (8 rats) and estradiol treatment group (8 rats). After 30 days of treatment, the serum contents of Ca, P, boron and the activities of alkaline phosphatase (AKP) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) in the rats were assayed, the bone mineral density (BMD) of the whole body, lumbar vertebrae and tibia were determined, and the morphological changes of the femurs were observed.

RESULTSThe serum contents of Ca and P in the rats of the 4 groups differed scarcely, but the content of boron in boron treatment group was markedly higher than that in the other three groups. In the osteoporotic control group, the activities of serum AKP and TRAP, the masses of spongy bone and cortical bone of the femurs, and the quantity of the osteoclasts were increased, with the BMD of the lumbar vertebrae and tibia decreased, suggesting osteoporotic conditions. The mean trabecular plate density and thickness, trabecular bone volume and cortical bone volume of the femurs in the osteoporotic rats treated with boron or estradiol were significantly increased, but the active osteoclast quantity in the spongy bone and serum TRAP activities were obviously decreased, and the bone quality was comparable with that of the normal group. In addition, the serum AKP activity and the active osteoblast quantity in the spongy bone were obviously increased in boron treatment group.

CONCLUSIONThe dietary boron supplement can increase the serum content of boron of osteoporotic rats to stimulate bone formation and inhibit bone resorption, producing therefore obvious therapeutical effect against osteoporosis.

Acid Phosphatase ; blood ; Alkaline Phosphatase ; blood ; Animals ; Bone Density ; drug effects ; Boron ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Dietary Supplements ; Female ; Femur ; drug effects ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Isoenzymes ; blood ; Osteoporosis ; blood ; chemically induced ; drug therapy ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Tartrate-Resistant Acid Phosphatase ; Time Factors ; Tretinoin

We have studied the proteomic changes of the serum of the Smad3 targeted deficient mice using 2-DE and PMF approaches. 7 proteins expressed at different level in wild type mice and the Smad3 deficient mice were identified. These results would benefit the research on diagnosis and therapy of osteoarthritis and provided clues to studying the important function of Smad3 mediated TGF-beta signals during the skeletal development.
Animals ; DNA-Binding Proteins ; blood ; deficiency ; genetics ; Electrophoresis, Gel, Two-Dimensional ; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel ; Genotype ; Mice ; Mice, Knockout ; Peptide Mapping ; Proteome ; analysis ; Smad3 Protein ; Trans-Activators ; blood ; deficiency ; genetics

To study the effect of Yinghua Pinggan granule (YHPG) against influenza A/H1N1 virus in vivo and on the immunologic function of infected mice. The intranasal influenza virus infection was adopted in ICR mouse to establish the influenza virus pneumonia model. At the 3rd and 7th day after the infection, the lung index and pathologic changes in lung tissues of mice were detected. Realtime PCR and flow cytometry were employed to observe the virus load in lung tissues and the levels of CD4+, CD8+, and CD4+/CD8+ in peripheral blood. The result showed that at the 3rd and 7th day after the infection, YHPG (15, 30 g x kg(-1)) can significant decrease in the lung index and virus load in lung tissues of mice infected with influenza virus, alleviate the pathologic changes in lung tissues, significantly increase the levels of CD4+ and CD4+/CD8+ ratio and reduce the levels of CD8+ in whole blood. This indicated that YHPG can inhibit the influenza virus replication, alleviate pulmonary damage and adjust the weak immunologic function of infected mice, with a certain therapeutic effect on mice infected by H1N1 virus in vivo.
Animals ; Antiviral Agents ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype ; drug effects ; genetics ; physiology ; Influenza, Human ; drug therapy ; pathology ; virology ; Lung ; pathology ; virology ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred ICR ; Virus Replication ; drug effects

Objective · To investigate the impacts of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection on the metabolomic phenotype of HepG2 human hepatoma cells.Methods · With gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), metabolite composition of HepG2 and HepG2.2.15 cells (derived from HepG2 cells transfected with a plasmid containing HBV) were analysed. Results · GC-MS analysis mainly found 34 metabolites in both HepG2 and HepG2.2.15 cells,including glycine (Gly), alanine (Ala), valine (Val), leucine (Leu), isoleucine (Ile), proline (Pro), serine (Ser), threonine (Thr), methionine (Met), cysteine (Cys), cystine, aspartic acid (Asp), glutamic acid (Glu), pyroglutamic acid, phenylalanine (Phe), tyrosine (Tyr), tryptophan (Trp), hypoxanthine, uracil,myo-inositol, lactic acid, succinic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, urea, cholesterol, etc. These metabolites were involved in multiple metabolic pathways including glycolysis and metabolism of fatty acids, amino acids, purines and pyrimidines. Compared with HepG2 cells,HepG2.2.15 cells had significantly higher levels in lactic acid, linolenic acid, Ala and Cys, but lower levels in Leu, Ile, Val, Phe, Met, Trp, Pro, Tyr, myoinositol and uracil. Conclusion · HBV infection dysregulates the metabolism of amino acids and fatty acids in hepatocytes. GC-MS analysis provides complimentary information about HBV-induced metabolic changes of host cells.

BACKGROUNDIt is widely accepted that tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of emphysema. This study aimed at investigating the protective effects of anti-TNF-α antibody, infliximab, in the development of emphysema induced by passive smoking in rats.

METHODSThirty-nine rats were randomly divided into a normal control group (group 1), an emphysema group (group 2), and an infliximab-intervention group (group 3). Rat models of emphysema were established by exposure to cigarette smoking daily for 74 days. After 1 month, the infliximab intervention group was treated with infliximab via subcutaneous injection. The levels of TNF-α, IL-8 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were measured with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The number and classification of cells in the BALF were measured. Lung tissue sections stained by hematoxylin and eosin (HE) were observed, and mean linear intercept (MLI) and mean alveolar numbers (MAN) were measured. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) methods were used to examine the percentage of positive cells and distribution of apoptotic cells.

RESULTSThe levels of TNF-α and IL-8 in BALF were higher in group 2 than in group 1 and group 3. The MLI was greater in group 2 than that in group 1 and group 3 while MAN was decreased. The concentration of VEGF in BALF of group 2 was significantly decreased as compared with group 1. The total cells and neutrophils number was significantly increased in group 2 as compared with group 1 and group 3, so was the percentage of neutrophils. The number of TUNEL positive cells in the alveolar septa was significantly increased in group 2 as compared with group 1 and group 3.

CONCLUSIONInfliximab protects against cigarette smoking-induced emphysema by reducing airway inflammation, attenuating alveolar septa cell apoptosis and improving pathological changes.

Animals ; Antibodies, Monoclonal ; therapeutic use ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid ; chemistry ; cytology ; Infliximab ; Interleukin-8 ; metabolism ; Male ; Pulmonary Alveoli ; cytology ; drug effects ; Pulmonary Emphysema ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; prevention & control ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Tobacco Smoke Pollution ; adverse effects ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; metabolism

Objective To investigate whether the protective effects of leonurine (SCM-198) against endotoxin induced uveitis (EIU) of SD rats caused by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was existing,and discuss the underlying mechanisms.Methods Thirty-six normal healthy male SD rats were divided into 3 groups randomly with the same baseline bodyweight and feeding conditions.All rats received intragastric administration every day.The experimental group was devided into 4 subgroups,rats in these subgroups received SCM-198 intragastric administration by as the dose of 10,20,40 and 80 mg/kg bodyweight per day,rats in the negative control group received intragastric administration of normal saline 10 mL/kg per day,rats in the positive control group received intragastric administration ofdexamethasone (DEX) 0.5 mg/kg bodyweight per day.All rats received a 21-day-intragastric administration.The body weight of all rats was monitored every 7 days.The electroretinogram (ERG) examination was taken in the 18th day.All rats received a 100 mg S.typhi LPS intraperitoneal injection after the 21st intragastric administration.Twenty-four hours later,following anaesthesia,all rats received another ERG examination,and inflammation was scoring under microscope by 2 experienced ophthalmologists,after that the aqueous humor of all rats was collected from the left eye.The aqueous humor was kept in-80 ℃ immediately.Then the rats were sacrificed and the right eyes were immediately enucleated to finish the HE staining and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining examination of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1).The total amount of protein in aqueous humor was detected by BCA test.Western blot was used to examine the expression of TNF-α,interleukin-1β (IL-1β),IL-6 and ICAM-1.All data was analyzed by SPSS 19.0,and differences were considered significant at P＜0.05.Results The body weight of the rats in positive control group was significantly lower (P＜0.05) than the experimental group and the negative control group after the 21-day-intragastric administration.The inflammatory score of experimental group was lower than that of the negative control group,but higher than the score of positive control group.The HE staining sections showed the similar results.The a wave of ERG in 0.01 cd of rats received 20 mg/kg SCM-198 daily intragastric administration after LPS injection was significantly lower than that before the LPS injection (P＜0.05),also lower than other groups after LPS injection.The expression of TNF-α,IL-6 and IL-1β in the aqueous humor of the rats in the subgroup of SCM-198 10 mg/kg daily intragastric administration was lower than other groups.Conclusions Intragastric administration of SCM-198 has protective effect against endotoxin induced uveitis in SD rats without obvious adverse reaction,which could alleviate the imflammatory reaction and the damage to the uvea construction.NF-κB plays an important role in the reaction.Thus,SCM-198 is a candidate potent compound with potential therapeutic applications in inflammation associated eye diseases.While the best mode and dose of administration should be further investigated.

BACKGROUNDElevated fibrinogen (Fg) level is a known risk factor for ischemic stroke. There are few clinical trials on oral fibrinogen-depleting therapies for secondary ischemic stroke prevention. We aimed to assess the effects of one-year therapy with oral lumbrokinase enteric-coated capsules on secondary ischemic stroke prevention.

METHODSThis is a multicenter, randomized, parallel group and controlled study that began treatment in hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke and continued for 12 months. Patients were randomized to either the control group that received the standard stroke treatment or the fibrinogen-depleting group that received the standard stroke treatment plus enteric-coated lumbrokinase capsules. The NIH Stroke Scale scores (NIHSSs) and plasma Fg level were recorded. The carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) and status of plaques were examined through carotid ultrasound examination. Primary outcomes included all-cause mortality, any event of recurrent ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA), hemorrhagic stroke, myocardial infarction and angina, and other noncerebral ischemia or hemorrhage. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and the Long-rank test were used to compare total vascular end point incidence between the two groups. Comparison of median values between two groups was done by the Student t test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), or non-parametric rank sum test.

RESULTSA total of 310 patients were enrolled, 192 patients in the treatment group and 118 patients in the control group. Compared to the control group, the treatment group showed favorable outcomes in the Fg level, carotid IMT, the detection rate of vulnerable plaques, the volume of carotid plaques, NIHSS scores, and incidence of total vascular (6.78% and 2.08%, respectively) and cerebral vascular events (5.93% and 1.04%, respectively) (P < 0.05). In the treatment group, the volume of carotid plaques was significantly related to the carotid IMT, the plaque diameter, width and number (P = 0.000, 0.000, 0.000, 0.022; F = 13.51, 2.52, 11.33, -3.29, but there was a weak correlation with the Fg level (P = 0.056). After 1-year therapy, the incidence of overall vascular end points was reduced by 4.7%.

CONCLUSIONLong-term oral fibrinogen-depleting therapy may be beneficial for secondary ischemic stroke prevention.

Administration, Oral ; Aged ; Carotid Intima-Media Thickness ; Endopeptidases ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Fibrinogen ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Secondary Prevention ; Stroke ; prevention & control