Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by polyarthritis.Numerous agents with varying mechanisms are used in the treatment of RA,but there is no radical cure.Interleukin-6 (IL-6) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of RA.Agents targeting IL-6 such as tocilizumab (TCZ) attracted significant attention as a promising agent in RA treatment.This article reviewed the key efficacy and safety data from clinical trials of TCZ,as well as six candidate IL-6 blockers including sarilumab,ALX-0061,sirukumab,MEDI5117,clazakizumab,and olokizumab,and their future perspectives in the treatment of RA.

Objective To study the effect of baicalin on the expression of receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) and osteoprotegerin (OPG) in cultured human periodontal ligament (HPDL) cells. Methods Small interfering RNA (siRNA) eukaryotic expression vector targeted transforming growth factor βⅡ receptor (TGF-β RⅡ) was constructed and transfected into T cells. HPDL cells with T cells transfected with siRNA or not were placed in the culture medium that had been added with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and baicalin. The obtained solution was divided into six groups according to the components (group Ⅰ: HPDL cells+LPS+T cells transfected with siRNA1+baicalin;group Ⅱ: HPDL cells+LPS+T cells transfected with siRNA1; group Ⅲ: HPDL cells+LPS+T cells+baicalin; group Ⅳ: HPDL cells+LPS+T cells; group Ⅴ: HPDL cells+baicalin; group Ⅵ: HPDL cells) and was cultured for 48 hours. RT-PCR was used to observe the effect of baicalin on the expression of OPG-RANKL in HPDL cells. Results The ratio of RANKL/OPG in group Ⅰ was lower than that in group Ⅱ (P<0.01) and higher than that in group Ⅲ (P<0.01); The ratio of RANKL/OPG in gronp Ⅲ was lower than that in group Ⅳ (P<0.01); the ratio of RANKL/ OPG in group Ⅳ was higher than that in group Ⅵ (P<0.01); the ratio of RANKL/OPG in group Ⅴ was lower than TGF-β signaling transduction plays an important role in the effect of baicalin on the RANKL/OPG ratio in HPDL cells.

To investigate the changes of cardiac myosin ATPase and its isoenzyme in early stage of cardiac hypertrophy following myocardial infarction(MI), we studied myosin ATPase activitzy, isoenyme distriibution and myocardial fiber diameter of uninfarcted ventricu lar sfptum, 9 aed 21 days after operation in MI rats. The results showed that coincident with the increases in myocardial fiber diameter on 9 days after MI, both myosin ATPase activity and V_1 isoenzyme amount were depressed. These changes were more pronounced on 21 after MI. It is suggested that with the development of myocardial hypertrophy in early stage of MI, adaptive changes in myosin ATPase activity and isoenzyme distribution occur.

Objective To discuss the present situation of nearly five years of traditional Chinese medicine for the diagnosis and treatment of children with bronchial asthma,confirmed that the curative effect of traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of the disease is reliable,thus to provide certain theoretical basis for further research in the future.

ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship of ovarian cancer and the ascites levels of TNF-α,and to determine the value of elevated TNF-α ascites level on discriminating the feature of ascites.MethodsAscites levels of TNF-α of 59 specimens of epithelial ovarian tumor,9 specimens of peritoneal primary serous papillary carcinoma (PPSPC) and 6 specimens of endometriosis cyst were detected via ELISA.ResultsAscites levels of TNF-α of patients with EOC,PPSPC,BOT were significantly higher than those with BET and EM,and they were related to the clinical stage,tissue differentiation,lymph node metastasis and volume of ascites.ConclusionAscites levels of TNF-α have the high sensitivity and specificity for diagnosis of ovarian cancer.It might be the tumor marker of ovarian cancer.

Recent clinical studies have shown that collagen peptides may reduce joint pain and the dependence on analgesics,and enhance sport ability in athletes.Therefore,collagen peptides may be a safe nutrient supplement for prevention and mitigation of joint pain in athletes.

Regulatory T cells play an important role in regulating immune responses.Recently,a novel immune Treg cell with phenotype TCRαβ + CD3 + CD4-CD8-NK1.1-was known as the Double-negative T cells (DNT).DNT cells are able to suppress CD4 + and CD8 + T cells,B cells as well as NK cells and dendritic cells(DCs) and play an important role in regulating immune responses in models of autoimmunity,infection,inflammatory disease,transplantation and tumor immunity.Now DNT cells have already become a hot point in the research of the immunotherapy.This article mainly introduces the possible sources of DNT cells and the mechanisms of their functions.

The correlation between vegetarian diets and cardiovascular health is always one of the hotspots. Many scholars have performed so many clinical researches all over the world, providing evidence-based medicine (EBM) reference for clarifying their correlation. In this paper, we raise ideas and expectation on the basis of a Meta-analysis about vegetarian diets and blood pressure (published on JAMA Internal Medicine in Feb 2014) in combination of main clinical research literature in this field in recent 20 years.
Cardiovascular System ; Diet, Vegetarian ; Evidence-Based Medicine ; Humans ; Meta-Analysis as Topic

Objective To investigate the distribution and the characteristics of HBV genotype in Kunming City,China.Methods The HBV genotypes and HBV-DNA levels of 360 patients in Kunming were detected by real-time quantitative PCR using type-specific primers,the serum-types were also detected in ELISA at the same time.Results Of the 360 specimens,346(96.11%) could be detected directly,among them 196 were genotype C(56.65%),91 were genotype B(26.30%),91 were genotype B(26.30%),37 were in B-C mix-type (10.69%),21 were genotype D(6.07%),1 were genotype A(0.29%).Among them,the genotype C was higer than the others (P<0.01);HBV-DNA levels of the patients with genotype C and B-C mix-type were higer than the genotype B and the others(P<0.01,P<0.05) (beside the positive proportions of genotype B was lower in the serum with"HB-sAg( + ),HBeAg( + ),anti-HBc( + )"(P<0.01),the other genotypes were no relation with their serum-types (P>0.05);the 360 specimens,14(3.89%)could not be detected directly,the average level of them was 4.136X 103IU/ml,it was lower than that of others(P<0.05).Conclusion The HBV-genotypes in Kunming area are abundant,including genotype C,B,D,A and B/C mix-type.The dominant genotype of HBV are C and B,and the HBV-DNA level of genotypes B/C mix-type and C were singnificantly higher than that of others ;The negative relation existed between the genotype B's frequency and the positive proportions of HBeAg;The genotype D frequency of this region is higher than that of lower-altitude inland areas and lower than that of plateau areas around Lahsa,which probably stands for its epidemiologic feature.Meanwhile,those samples without direct identification contain relatively lower level of HBV-DNA,which probably suggests that HBV genotype should be conducted on a basis of a certain HBV-DNA quantity.

Factors that may influence vitamin D nutritional status include latitude,season,age,sex,race,skin color,clothing,cultural practices,dietary nutrition,and living conditions.This article reviews the effects of these factors on vitamin D status and recommends that any high-risk people of vitamin D deficiency should take vitamin D supplementation.