OBJECTIVEto explore whether 6 tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within SMAD4 gene were involved in the genetic susceptibility of coal worker's pneumoconiosis (CWP) by case-control study.

METHODSthis study consisted of 438 CWP patients and 448 controls. All study subjects were Han Chinese, underground coal miners and recruited from coal mines of Xuzhou Mining Business Group Co Ltd. The 5 ml venous blood sample was obtained from all studied subjects and extracted genome DNA from the isolated leucocytes. Six SNPs were selected from the HapMap and detected by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP).

RESULTSthe single SNP analyses showed that the genotype frequencies of SMAD4 (rs10502913) was significantly different from those in controls (P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analyses revealed that SMAD4 (rs10502913) AA genotype was associated with increased risk of CWP (adjusted OR = 1.63, 95%CI = 1.00 - 2.69, P = 0.05) and this was evident among subgroups of those smoker (adjusted OR = 2.28, 95%CI = 1.09 ∼ 4.80, P < 0.05) and cases with stage I (adjusted OR = 2.42, 95%CI = 1.41 ∼ 4.14, P < 0.01). The SMAD4 (rs9304407) GG genotype was associated with an decreased risk of CWP (adjusted OR = 0.65, 95%CI = 0.43 ∼ 0.98, P < 0.05) and the further stratification analysis showed that the risk of CWP was decreased in nonsmoking groups.

CONCLUSIONSour results suggest that individuals with the SMAD4 (rs10502913) AA genotype was associated with an increased risk of CWP. However, carriers of SMAD4 (rs9304407) GG genotype have a protective effect on the developing CWP.

Aged ; Anthracosis ; genetics ; Case-Control Studies ; Coal Mining ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Smad4 Protein ; genetics

OBJECTIVEThe main purpose of this work was to give the evidence of reasonable and feasible dust control measures which will be taken in the future by analyzing the trend of dust concentration from 1991 to 2010 and identifying working faces with the severe dust contamination in one underground iron mine.

METHODSThe data was from routine monitoring between the years 1991 and 2010, which enclosed the total dust concentrations and silica contents. China National Standard of Occupational exposure limits for hazardous agents in the workplace used to judge whether the dust concentration exceeded the National Standard.

RESULTSThe general trend of total dust concentration from 1991 to 2010 was decreased, especially maximum and average levels. The highest exceeding rate was 43.16% in 1993 and the best years were 2009 and 2010, but the exceeding rates were still over 30%. The dust exposure levels varied with different work faces. The mining and supporting were the most severe dust pollution faces which the highest ultra exceeding rates were 51.61% and 51.48% and the maximum exceeding times were 64.6 and 16.4 respectively. The next was constructing face with 40.23% exceeding rate and 24.6 times more than standard.

CONCLUSIONThe trend of total dust concentration from 1991 to 2010 was decreased, but the dust exceeding rate was still high. The strong measures should be taken to control the dust pollution in this iron mine, especially mining and supporting faces.

Air Pollutants, Occupational ; analysis ; Dust ; analysis ; Environmental Monitoring ; Iron ; analysis ; Mining ; Occupational Exposure ; analysis

OBJECTIVETo observe the role of tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in endothelial-mesenchymal transition (EnMT), and to explore the mechanism of fibrosis disease.

METHODSHuman umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) from umbilical cord of healthy fetus were isolated by enzymatic digestion and identified by immunofluorescence assay. The third to fifth generations of cultured HUVEC in logarithmic phase were harvested and seeded in 12-well plates and 6-well plates, and they were divided into control group (ordinary culture without any stimulation), 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 ng/mL TNF-α groups (5, 10, 25, 50, 100 ng/mL of TNF-α was respectively added into the nutrient solution) according to the random number table, with three samples in each group. After being cultured for 72 hours, the cell morphology was observed under inverted phase-contrast microscope; the expression levels of coagulation factor VIII and α smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) were detected by immunofluorescence assay, and the ratios of numbers (absorbance values) of cells with expression of both factors were calculated. The mRNA expression levels of cadherin, α-SMA, and type I collagen were detected by RT-PCR (denoted as gray value ratio). Data were processed with one-way analysis of variance and LSD test.

RESULTS(1) The shape of primary HUVEC was round, short-spindle, or flat, and cells grew vigorously in cobblestone appearance after passages. After being subcultured for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 passage (s), the positive rate of coagulation factor VIII of HUVEC was respectively (85.5 ± 1.8)%, (88.1 ± 5.0)%, (93.6 ± 3.7)%, (92.9 ± 4.8)%, (89.5 ± 1.1)%, and they were significantly higher than that of primary HUVEC [(81.4 ± 3.8)%, with F values all equal to 7.481, P values all below 0.05]. (2) As compared with that in control group, the appearance of cells in 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 ng/mL TNF-α groups was gradually transformed from round, short-spindle, or flat shape to long-spindle shape with reduced intercellular junction and larger intercellular gap along with the increase in the concentration of TNF-α. (3) The ratios of numbers and the absorbance values of coagulation factor VIII and α-SMA double positive cells in control group (0.055 ± 0.015, 0.078 ± 0.017) were significantly lower than those in 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 ng/mL TNF-α groups (0.257 ± 0.106, 0.280 ± 0.129, 0.505 ± 0.059, 0.817 ± 0.035, 0.929 ± 0.101 and 0.437 ± 0.040, 0.456 ± 0.097, 0.496 ± 0.082, 0.787 ± 0.131, 0.885 ± 0.087, with F value respectively 45.009, 50.099, P values all below 0.01). (4) The expression levels of cadherin mRNA in 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 ng/mL TNF-α groups were 0.70 ± 0.05, 0.63 ± 0.06, 0.60 ± 0.10, 0.45 ± 0.16, and 0.26 ± 0.14, and it was significantly lower in the latter four groups than in control group (0.83 ± 0.03, with F values all equal to 11.593, P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). The mRNA expression levels of α-SMA and collagen I in 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 ng/mL TNF-α groups were 0.45 ± 0.10, 0.51 ± 0.16, 0.49 ± 0.12, 0.60 ± 0.09, 0.76 ± 0.03 and 0.38 ± 0.18, 0.45 ± 0.15, 0.52 ± 0.12, 0.66 ± 0.17, 0.76 ± 0.20, and they were significantly higher in the latter three groups than in control group (0.37 ± 0.14, 0.31 ± 0.12, with F value respectively 7.839, 2.898, P < 0.05 or P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSTNF-α can obviously promote EnMT in a dose-dependent manner. EnMT may be another significant source of myofibroblasts that contributes to fibrotic tissue in scar formation.

Cell Differentiation ; Cells, Cultured ; Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition ; drug effects ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; cytology ; Humans ; Stromal Cells ; cytology ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; pharmacology

Objective To study the polymorphism of glucocerebrosidase ( GBA) gene of N370S, V394L, L444P, R120W, R359X, R496H, R353W and RecNcil in the patients with Parkinson's disease ( PD) in Han, Uygur and Kazak in Xinjiang and to investigate the relationship between GBA gene polymorphism and Parkinson's disease.Methods GBA gene polymorphism was analyzed by improved multiplex ligation detection reaction technique in 294 sporadic PD patients (100 cases of Uygur, 134 cases of Han, 60 cases of Kazak) and 305 healthy controls (109 cases of Uygur, 122 cases of Han, 74 cases of Kazak) in Xinjiang area.Results There were two L444P loci polymorphisms that were heterozygous mutations in 294 cases of PD patients and the mutation frequency was 0.7%.Three hundred and five cases of control group did not show L 444P polymorphism.There were no significant differences in L 444P genotype and allele frequency distribution between PD group and control group ( AA:99.3%vs 100.0%, GA:0.7%vs 0, P>0.05;G:0.3%vs 0, A:99.7%vs 100.0%, P>0.05);L444P genotype and allele frequency distribution in Han and Uygur patients with PD showed no significant differences ( AA:99.3% vs 99.0%, GA:0.7%vs 1.0%, P>0.05;G:0.4%vs 0.5%, A:99.6%vs 99.5%,P>0.05);N370S, V394L, R120W, R359X, R496H, R353W, RecNcil loci polymorphisms were not found in the PD and control groups.Conclusion The GBA gene of N370S, V394L, R120W, R359X, R496H, R353W, RecNcil showed no polymorphism in Xinjiang Han and Uygur population and there was no association of L 444P polymorphism with Parkinson's disease in Han and Uygur populations in Xinjiang .

OBJECTIVETo study and improve the tissue culture technology of Panax notoginseng.

METHODUsing the callus of leaf blade and leafstalk of P. notogingseng as explants, MS + 2, 4-D 1.5 mg x L(-1) as basal medium, the formation of asexual embryos was induced by added LFS, BA, KT or ZT 0.5 mg x L(-1), and cultured in dark. It cultured then in 2000 lx of illumination for 10-12 h x d(-1) to induce the asexual embryos germinating and developing to be the regenerated-plantlet.

RESULT AND CONCLUSIONOnly the medium added with LFS could induce the formation of asexual embryos, and made it developed to be regenerated-plantlet. The inducing ratio of asexual embryos reached about 85%, and 30% of asexual embryos could grow and develop as robust regenerated-plantlets.

Culture Media ; pharmacology ; Panax notoginseng ; embryology ; physiology ; Plant Growth Regulators ; pharmacology ; Plant Leaves ; embryology ; physiology ; Plants, Medicinal ; embryology ; physiology ; Regeneration ; drug effects ; physiology ; Tissue Culture Techniques

Ketamine (KTM), a N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, was found to has an anti-inflammatory effect, but some patients suffered from exacerbated pro-inflammatory reactions after anesthesia with KTM. The present study was aimed to examine the underlying mechanism of pro-inflammatory effects of KTM. In this study, RAW264.7 cells were exposed to KTM and NMDA alone or combined for 30 min before lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation. The expression levels of IL-6 and TNF-α were detected by RT-PCR and ELISA, and those of NMDA receptors by RT-PCR in RAW264.7 cells. Additionally, the TLR4 expression was determined by RT-PCR and flow cytometry, respectively. The results showed that in RAW264.7 cells, KTM alone promoted the TLR4 expression, but did not increase the expression of IL-6 or TNF-α. In the presence of LPS, KTM caused a significantly higher expression of IL-6 and TNF-α than LPS alone. NMDA could neither alter the IL-6 and TNF-α mRNA expression, nor reverse the enhanced expression of IL-6 and TNF-α mRNA by KTM in LPS-challenged cells. After TLR4-siRNA transfection, RAW264.7 cells pretreated with KTM no longer promoted the IL-6 and TNF-α expression in the presence of LPS. In conclusion, KTM accelerated LPS-induced inflammation in RAW264.7 cells by promoting TLR4 expression, independent of NMDA receptor.
Anesthetics, Dissociative ; pharmacology ; Animals ; Cell Survival ; drug effects ; Gene Expression Regulation ; Inflammation Mediators ; pharmacology ; Interleukin-6 ; genetics ; Ketamine ; pharmacology ; Lipopolysaccharides ; pharmacology ; Macrophages ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; N-Methylaspartate ; pharmacology ; RAW 264.7 Cells ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects ; Toll-Like Receptor 4 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; genetics

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Celecoxib on the proliferation of the FLT3-ITD positive and negative acute myeloid leukemia cells and its mechanism. The proliferation inhibition effect of Celecoxib with different doses on the FLT3-ITD positive cells MV4-11 and the FLT3-ITD negative K562 cells was detected by CCK-8 method, the cell apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry, and the MEK, Mcl-1, pAKT expression was tested by Western blot. The results showed that Celecoxib inhibited the proliferation of both MV4-11 and K562 cells, but the IC50 for MV4-11 was (29.14 ± 2.4) µmol/L, which was significantly lower than that of K562 cells (39.84 ± 1.0) µmol/L (P < 0.05); The induced apoptosis rate of Celecoxib at 20-80 µmol/L on MV4-11 was not observed, but there was apparent influence on K562 at the same concentration. Western blot showed that Celecoxib down-regulated the expression of MEK and Mcl-1 but did not change the expression of pAKT obviously on MV4-11 cells, while the expression of Mcl-1 was reduced a little, but no obvious change were found in the expression of MEK and pAKT on K562 cells. It is concluded that the Celecoxib can inhibit the proliferation of FLT3-ITD positive AML cells distinctly, and the potential mechanism may be related to the inhibition of the MEK/Mcl-1 signaling pathway.
Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Celecoxib ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cyclooxygenase 2 Inhibitors ; pharmacology ; Gene Expression Regulation, Leukemic ; Humans ; K562 Cells ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; pathology ; MAP Kinase Kinase 1 ; genetics ; Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein ; genetics ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt ; genetics ; Pyrazoles ; pharmacology ; Signal Transduction ; Sulfonamides ; pharmacology ; fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3 ; genetics

With the rising detection rate of strains with extensive drug resistance clinically, there is an increasingly urgent need of novel anti-microbial agents. More and more researchers put emphasis on bacteriophage therapy and have made great progress in this field. A large number of studies showed that some bacteriophages could produce enzymes which killed the host bacteria by degrading polysaccharides in their extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). This review introduces the classification of phage polysaccharide depolymerases and their action mode, the methods to determine whether the phage produces depolymerases, and their applications in anti-bacterial treatment, biofilm degradation and bacterial capsule typing.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the behavioral responses of pregnant women during the early stage of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Methods: We recruited 1,099 women to complete an online questionnaire survey from February 10 to February 25, 2020. The subjects were divided into two groups (the pregnant women group and the control group). Results: Concerns about infection: most of the participants watched the COVID-19 news at least once a day. Protective behaviors: the utilization rate of pregnant women (often using various measures) was higher than that of nonpregnant women. Exercise: 30.6% of the pregnant women continued to exercise at home, whereas in the control group, this percentage was 8.4%. Spouse relationship: 38.8% of the subjects’ relationship improved, whereas only 2.3% thought the relationship was getting worse. Conclusion Pregnant women had some unique behavioral responses different from that of nonpregnant women. It is important to understand the behavioral responses of pregnant women in this network era.

Objective:To investigate the effectiveness of a modified upper lip lifting technique with retaining the nasal columellar base incision.Methods:From Jun. 2019 to Jun. 2020, 24 cosmetic patients (aged from 18 to 36 years, with mean 26.5 years) underwent upper lip lifting with skin flap resection of bilateral upper lip flaps and retained the nasal columellar base in Chengdu High-Tech Zone Xinyuerong Medical Aesthetic Clinic. These factors were analyzed, including postoperative complications, improvement of nasolabial angle, effectiveness of upper lip lifting and overall satisfaction.Results:In the 24 patients, 2 patients had numbness in the upper lip after surgery, and returned to normal after 4 months. The concealed scar was effective to improve the linear scar and scar contracture of traditional upper lip lifting. All patients were followed up for 3 months to 1 year. The satisfactory lifting effectiveness was obtained in 24 cases. As for overall satisfaction, 22 cases were very satisfied (91.7%) and 2 cases were satisfied (8.3%).Conclusions:This upper lip lifting surgical procedure of upper lip flaps with retaining the nasal columellar base incision has changed the traditional method to avoid the upper lip horizontal line scar, nasolabial angle contracture, while ensuring the columellar base blood supply is not damaged, with minimized and concealed scar. This surgical procedure is a safe and effective method and worth clinical application.