Objective:To explore the neuroprotective effect of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR) on rat models of Parkinson's disease (PD) and its underlying mechanism.Methods:Forty-eight 8-week-old SPF-grade SD rats were randomly divided into a normal control group, a PD model group, an α7nAChR empty vector group and an α7nAChR overexpression group, with 12 rats in each group. PD models in the latter 3 groups of rats were established by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). Four weeks after modeling, rats in the latter 2 groups were injected with 2 μL α7nAChR overexpression lentivirus or empty vector lentivirus through stereotactic intracerebral injection, while rats in the normal control group did not receive any treatment. Two weeks after injection, the behavioral changes of these rats were detected by apomorphine-induced rotation test; the right substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) was prepared and performed the following experiments: hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining and Nissl staining were used to detect the neuron morphological changes, TUNEL was used to detect the neuron apoptosis, fluorescent double labeling was used to detect the expressions of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and α-synuclein (α-Syn), ELISA was used to detect the expressions of 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) and malondialdehyde (MDA), and Western blotting was used to detect the expressions of ferroptosis-related proteins (ferritin heavy chain 1 [FTH1], Sigma receptor 1 [S1R], glutathione peroxidase 4 [GPX4], long chain acyl-coa synthetase 4 [ACSL4], solute carrier family 7 member11 [SLC7A11]), and the expressions of proteins related to CAMKII/ERK pathway (phosphorylated calmodulin kinase Ⅱ [p-CAMK Ⅱ], phosphorylated extracellular signal regulated kinase [p-ERK], and phosphorylated Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog [p-KRAS]).Results:(1) Compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly larger number of rotations ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly smaller number of rotations ( P<0.05). (2) HE staining and Nissl staining showed that the PD model group had decreased number of dopaminergic neurons and Nissl bodies, accompanied by neuronal distribution disorder, nuclear condensation or swelling; the α7nAChR-overexpression group had obviously improved appearance of dopaminergic neurons, with normal morphology and less cell degeneration. (3) TUNEL results showed that compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group, and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly higher apoptosis rate ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had statistically lower apoptosis rate ( P<0.05). (4) Double immunofluorescent staining results showed that compared with the normal control group (303.61±48.40, 13 985.80±1 956.06), the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly increased α-Syn expression (4 310.40±518.43, 3 846.60±524.47 and 1 033.55±59.98) and statistically decreased TH expression (760.97±57.26, 842.55±113.41 and 8 101.82±1 171.85) in the right SNc ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly decreased α-Syn expression and increased TH expression in the right SNc ( P<0.05). (5) ELISA results showed that the 4-HNE and MDA expressions in the right SNc of the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group were significantly higher than those in the normal control group ( P<0.05); the 4-HNE and MDA expressions in the α7nAChR overexpression group were significantly lower than those in the PD model group ( P<0.05). (6) Western blotting results showed that compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly decreased FTH1, S1R, GPX4, and SLC7A11 protein expressions, and statistically increased ACSL4 protein expression in the right SNc ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly increased FTH1, S1R, GPX4, and SLC7A11 protein expressions and decreased ACSL4 protein expression in the right SNc ( P<0.05). Compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly increased p-KRAS, p-CAMKII, and p-ERK protein expressions in the right SNc ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly decreased p-KRAS, p-CAMKII, and p-ERK protein expressions in the right SNc ( P<0.05). Conclusion:The α7nAChR may exert neuroprotective effect on PD rat models by regulating the CAMKII/ERK pathway and ferroptosis-related proteins.

ObjectiveTo explore the typical syndromes and their characteristic of symptoms and signs with high diagnostic value in patients with metabolic syndrome （MS）. MethodsTraditional Chinese medicine （TCM） diagnostic information was collected from 135 MS patients. Syndrome element differentiation and latent class analysis （LCA） were applied to identify the major TCM syndromes in MS patients. Symptoms were analyzed based on the differentiated syndromes， and a binary logistic regression model was constructed to determine symptoms and signs with high diagnostic value. ResultsA total of 135 MS patients were included， involving 163 symptoms and signs with a total frequency of 1749； twenty-three syndrome elements were extracted， 367 times frequency in total， among which 8 syndrome elements occurred ≥10 times with 323 frequencies （88.01% of the total）. These included location-related elements such as kidney （48 times）， spleen （14 times）， and stomach （14 times）， and nature-related elements such as phlegm （71 times）， yin deficiency （64 times）， dampness （57 times）， heat （42 times）， and qi deficiency （13 times）. Based on LCA， the 135 patients were categorized into two groups distinguished by the syndrome elements of dampness and phlegm， forming the "phlegm-dampness syndrome" as the major syndrome type. Nine high-frequency symptoms and signs associated with the phlegm-dampness syndrome were identified，i.e. obesity （39 times）， greasy coating （38 times）， slippery pulse （33 times）， white coating （31 times）， preference for fatty and heavy foods （30 times）， excessive urination （30 times）， fatigue and lack of strength （29 times）， wiry pulse （25 times）， and dark red tongue （25 times）. A binary logistic regression model was constructed combining these nine symptoms and signs with the LCA classification results， ultimately identifying obesity， greasy coating， fatigue and lack of strength， and white coating as independent factors associated with the phlegm-dampness syndrome in MS patients （P＜0.05）. ConclusionThe major TCM syndrome in MS patients is phlegm-dampness syndrome， and obesity， greasy coating， fatigue and lack of strength， and white coating are the typical symptoms and signs for diagnosing phlegm-dampness syndrome in MS patients.

Objective:To explore the neuroprotective effect of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR) on rat models of Parkinson's disease (PD) and its underlying mechanism.Methods:Forty-eight 8-week-old SPF-grade SD rats were randomly divided into a normal control group, a PD model group, an α7nAChR empty vector group and an α7nAChR overexpression group, with 12 rats in each group. PD models in the latter 3 groups of rats were established by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). Four weeks after modeling, rats in the latter 2 groups were injected with 2 μL α7nAChR overexpression lentivirus or empty vector lentivirus through stereotactic intracerebral injection, while rats in the normal control group did not receive any treatment. Two weeks after injection, the behavioral changes of these rats were detected by apomorphine-induced rotation test; the right substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) was prepared and performed the following experiments: hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining and Nissl staining were used to detect the neuron morphological changes, TUNEL was used to detect the neuron apoptosis, fluorescent double labeling was used to detect the expressions of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and α-synuclein (α-Syn), ELISA was used to detect the expressions of 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) and malondialdehyde (MDA), and Western blotting was used to detect the expressions of ferroptosis-related proteins (ferritin heavy chain 1 [FTH1], Sigma receptor 1 [S1R], glutathione peroxidase 4 [GPX4], long chain acyl-coa synthetase 4 [ACSL4], solute carrier family 7 member11 [SLC7A11]), and the expressions of proteins related to CAMKII/ERK pathway (phosphorylated calmodulin kinase Ⅱ [p-CAMK Ⅱ], phosphorylated extracellular signal regulated kinase [p-ERK], and phosphorylated Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog [p-KRAS]).Results:(1) Compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly larger number of rotations ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly smaller number of rotations ( P<0.05). (2) HE staining and Nissl staining showed that the PD model group had decreased number of dopaminergic neurons and Nissl bodies, accompanied by neuronal distribution disorder, nuclear condensation or swelling; the α7nAChR-overexpression group had obviously improved appearance of dopaminergic neurons, with normal morphology and less cell degeneration. (3) TUNEL results showed that compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group, and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly higher apoptosis rate ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had statistically lower apoptosis rate ( P<0.05). (4) Double immunofluorescent staining results showed that compared with the normal control group (303.61±48.40, 13 985.80±1 956.06), the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly increased α-Syn expression (4 310.40±518.43, 3 846.60±524.47 and 1 033.55±59.98) and statistically decreased TH expression (760.97±57.26, 842.55±113.41 and 8 101.82±1 171.85) in the right SNc ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly decreased α-Syn expression and increased TH expression in the right SNc ( P<0.05). (5) ELISA results showed that the 4-HNE and MDA expressions in the right SNc of the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group were significantly higher than those in the normal control group ( P<0.05); the 4-HNE and MDA expressions in the α7nAChR overexpression group were significantly lower than those in the PD model group ( P<0.05). (6) Western blotting results showed that compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly decreased FTH1, S1R, GPX4, and SLC7A11 protein expressions, and statistically increased ACSL4 protein expression in the right SNc ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly increased FTH1, S1R, GPX4, and SLC7A11 protein expressions and decreased ACSL4 protein expression in the right SNc ( P<0.05). Compared with the normal control group, the PD model group, α7nAChR empty vector group and α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly increased p-KRAS, p-CAMKII, and p-ERK protein expressions in the right SNc ( P<0.05); compared with the PD model group, the α7nAChR overexpression group had significantly decreased p-KRAS, p-CAMKII, and p-ERK protein expressions in the right SNc ( P<0.05). Conclusion:The α7nAChR may exert neuroprotective effect on PD rat models by regulating the CAMKII/ERK pathway and ferroptosis-related proteins.

Objective To investigate the expression of platelet derived growth factor(PDGF) in small bowel transplantation of rats.Methods Isogeneic and allogeneic small bowel transplantation were performed in rats by microsurgical technology.All rats were divided into two groups:isogeneic control group and allogeneic test group.Transplanted tissues were test on 7th,28th and 90th after surgery.Positioning using immunohistochemical method the expression of PDGF.Real time PCR and immunohistochemical staining were also performed to detect the expression of PDGF.Results The unique feature including intestinal graft fibrosis was showed in tissues.Immunohistochemistry results showed PDGF expression was higher in intestinal glands.PDGF mRNA levels in transplanted tissues showed a gradual upward trend,and the top levels is in POD90.Conclusion PDGF expression was significantly higher in the late of intestinal transplantation,which showed an guideline for chronic rejection of intestinal transplantation.

The embryo development technique in Zebrafish, Brachydanio rerio, is a toxicity testing method making use of the high sensitivity of fish embryo development in early stage to study and evaluate the specific effecting mechanism, the most sensitive effecting time, embryo toxicity and teratogenicity of chemicals through observing the development process of zebrafish embryo after chemical exposure to fertilized ova. This technique has been widely used to test toxicity of chemicals with the advantages of low cost, high sensitivity, simple to operate and simultaneous to detect multi-endpoints. The main methodology, technical characteristics and the status of world-wide application of this technique are reviewed in this paper. Based on the urgent environmental problems in China, the prospects to use this method for monitoring toxicity of mixed pollutants in wastewater are put forward.