CHST6 mutation screening and endoplasmatic reticulum stress in macular corneal dystrophy.

Macular corneal dystrophy (MCD) is an autosomal recessive disorder mainly caused by gene mutations of carbohydrate sulfotransferase (CHST6) leading to bilateral visual impairment. Because the mechanism underlying this degeneration remains poorly understood, we investigated molecular alterations and pathways that may be involved in MCD in this issue. Different mutation sites were screened by direct sequencing of the coding region of CHST6. In addition, we described morphological changes in MCD keratocytes by light microscopy and electron microscopy and determined the relationship between the development of this disease and the occurrence of apoptosis through flow cytometry, cell counting kit-8, colony formation assay and other experiments. Western blotting and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction were used to determine if endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress was activated. We found 10 kinds of mutations among these families with 3 novel mutations included. The percentage of apoptotic keratocytes increased in MCD patients; furthermore, the expression of apoptosis related protein B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) was down-regulated while Bcl-2 associated X protein was upregulated. Finally, ER stress was activated with the upregulation of glucose-regulated protein 78 and CCAAT-enhancer-binding protein homologous protein. Our clinical and in vitro results suggest that the CHST6 mutation associated with MCD is associated with apoptosis, and ER stress is probably involved in this apoptosis pathway.

Decreased expression of miR­9 due to E50K OPTN mutation causes disruption of the expression of BDNF leading to RGC­5 cell apoptosis.

The aims of the present study were to investigate the effect of E50K optineurin (OPTN) mutation on RGC­5 cells and to define the role of microRNA­9 (miR­9) in this system. Transfected RGC­5 cells were used to evaluate the effects of E50K OPTN on the expression of miR­9 and subsequent disruption of RGC­5 cell apoptosis was analyzed using western blotting. The results showed that the expression of E50K OPTN was associated with a marked reduction in the levels of miR­9 in the E50K OPTN­transfected RGC­5 cells. The E50K OPTN­dependent reductions in miR­9 led to increased expression of the transcriptional repressor, RE1­silencing transcription factor and decreased the expression of brain­derived neurotrophic factor. Thus, E50K OPTN may disrupt the expression of miR­9, suggesting a potential mechanism by which E50K OPTN mutation may lead to RGC­5 cell apoptosis.

Newcastle disease virus-vectored West Nile fever vaccine is immunogenic in mammals and poultry.

BACKGROUND: West Nile virus (WNV) is an emerging zoonotic pathogen which is harmful to human and animal health. Effective vaccination in susceptible hosts should protect against WNV infection and significantly reduce viral transmission between animals and from animals to humans. A versatile vaccine suitable for different species that can be delivered via flexible routes remains an essential unmet medical need. In this study, we developed a recombinant avirulent Newcastle disease virus (NDV) LaSota strain expressing WNV premembrane/envelope (PrM/E) proteins (designated rLa-WNV-PrM/E) and evaluated its immunogenicity in mice, horses, chickens, ducks and geese. RESULTS: Mouse immunization experiments disclosed that rLa-WNV-PrM/E induces significant levels of WNV-neutralizing antibodies and E protein-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses. Moreover, recombinant rLa-WNV-PrM/E elicited significant levels of WNV-specific IgG in horses upon delivery via intramuscular immunization, and in chickens, ducks and geese via intramuscular, oral or intranasal immunization. CONCLUSIONS: Our results collectively support the utility of rLa-WNV-PrM/E as a promising WNV veterinary vaccine candidate for mammals and poultry.

Dissection and integration of the autophagy signaling network initiated by bluetongue virus infection: crucial candidates ERK1/2, Akt and AMPK.

Bluetongue virus (BTV), a complex double-stranded segmented RNA virus, has been found to initiate cellular autophagy for its own benefit. Here, with a view to understanding the underlying mechanisms, we first systematically dissected the exact signaling network in BTV-induced autophagy. We found that the activity of mTOR, a crucial pivot, was inhibited by BTV1 infection, subsequently leading to downstream p70S6K suppression and autophagy initiation. We then explored the upstream regulators of mTOR and analyzed their activities via a series of assays. We found BTV1-induced autophagy to be independent of the ERK1/2 signaling pathway. However, the BTV1-induced inhibition of PI3K/Akt was found to be partially responsible for mTOR inactivation and subsequent autophagy initiation. Furthermore, we found unexpectedly that AMPK seemed to play a more important role in BTV1-induced autophagy. Elevated [Ca(2+)]cyto-mediated activation of CaMKKß exactly managed the activation of AMPK, which then positively regulated autophagy through suppressing mTOR. We must emphasize that TSC2 is a fatal mediator between upstream Akt or AMPK and downstream mTOR through its phosphorylation. Taken together, our data suggested that the BTV1-induced inhibition of the Akt-TSC2-mTOR pathway and the upregulation of the AMPK-TSC2-mTOR pathway both contributed to autophagy initiation and further favored virus replication.

A novel self-cleavage system for production of soluble recombinant protein in Escherichia coli.

Many approaches for generating large quantities of recombinant protein in Escherichia coli fuse the protein of interest to a protein tag to enhance solubility and improve recovery. However, the fusion tags can confound downstream applications, as the fusion partner can alter the structure and biological activity of the recombinant protein and proteolytic removal of the fusion tags can be expensive. Here we describe a new system for production of native proteins in E. coli that allows for removal of the fusion tag via intracellular self-cleavage by the human rhinovirus 3C (HRV3C) protease. This system allows for parallel cloning of target protein coding sequences into six different expression vectors, each with a different fusion partner tag to enhance solubility during induction. Temperature-regulated expression of the HRV3C protease allows for intracellular removal of the fusion tag following induction, and the liberated recombinant protein can be purified by affinity chromatography by virtue of a short six-histidine tag. This system will be an attractive approach for the expression and purification of recombinant proteins free of solubility-enhancing fusion tags, and should be amenable to high-throughput applications.

Comprehensive mapping of common immunodominant epitopes in the eastern equine encephalitis virus E2 protein recognized by avian antibody responses.

Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV) is a mosquito-borne virus that can cause both human and equine encephalitis with high case fatality rates. EEEV can also be widespread among birds, including pheasants, ostriches, emu, turkeys, whooping cranes and chickens. The E2 protein of EEEV and other Alphaviruses is an important immunogenic protein that elicits antibodies of diagnostic value. While many therapeutic and diagnostic applications of E2 protein-specific antibodies have been reported, the specific epitopes on E2 protein recognized by the antibody responses of different susceptible hosts, including avian species, remain poorly defined. In the present study, the avian E2-reactive polyclonal antibody (PAb) response was mapped to linear peptide epitopes using PAbs elicited in chickens and ducks following immunization with recombinant EEEV E2 protein and a series of 42 partially overlapping peptides covering the entire EEEV E2 protein. We identified 12 and 13 peptides recognized by the chicken and duck PAb response, respectively. Six of these linear peptides were commonly recognized by PAbs elicited in both avian species. Among them five epitopes recognized by both avian, the epitopes located at amino acids 211-226 and 331-352 were conserved among the EEEV antigenic complex, but not other associated alphaviruses, whereas the epitopes at amino acids 11-26, 30-45 and 151-166 were specific to EEEV subtype I. The five common peptide epitopes were not recognized by avian PAbs against Avian Influenza Virus (AIV) and Duck Plague Virus (DPV). The identification and characterization of EEEV E2 antibody epitopes may be aid the development of diagnostic tools and facilitate the design of epitope-based vaccines for EEEV. These results also offer information with which to study the structure of EEEV E2 protein.

Identification of three novel linear B-cell epitopes on the VP5 protein of BTV16.

Bluetongue virus (BTV) VP5 protein is an important antigenic protein which is centrally involved in serotype determination and the virus entry process. Very little is known about the B-cell epitopes on the BTV VP5 protein recognized by humoral immune responses. In this study, we generated five BTV16 VP5 protein-specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs), named 3B11, 2B10, 1H7, 4A6 and 3G9, and defined the linear epitopes recognized by MAbs using a series of peptides expressed as maltose-binding protein (MBP)-fusion polypeptides. Three novel linear B-cell epitopes were identified: 3B11 and 3G9 recognized the motif ITANTREIQHIKEE; 2B10 recognized the motif LSGID; and 4A6 recognized the motif STMVKEYRQKIDALKA. Exact sequences corresponding to the three motifs identified were found in the BTV16 VP5 protein ((310)ITANTREIQHIKEE(323), (265)LSGID(269) and (188)STMVKEYRQKIDALKA(203)). These motifs represent the minimal linear peptide sequence required for MAb reactivity, as binding of each MAb was abolished when additional amino acids were removed from the amino and carboxy termini of the peptide. Amino acid sequence alignment indicated that three epitopes were totally conserved among different BTV16 strains. The MAbs generated along with identified epitopes will be useful for examining VP5 protein function and the development of epitope-based marker vaccines against BTV.

Monoclonal antibodies against VP7 of bluetongue virus.

VP7 is a major group-specific protein of the bluetongue virus (BTV), and is therefore a candidate for use as a diagnostic reagent. In this study, BALB/c mice were immunized with BTV16, and the lymphocyte hybridoma technique and indirect ELISA screening method were employed to obtain two strains of hybridoma cells secreting specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) to BTV16. Eukaryotic recombinant plasmids coding for 10 segments of BTV16 separately were transfected into BHK-21 cells, respectively, followed by immunofluorescence, showing that two MAbs only reacted with BTV-VP7. Western blot analysis showed the same result. Indirect immunofluorescence results indicated that two of the MAbs present different response spectrums with BTV1~24 serotypes. These results indicate that these MAbs may be good candidates for a specific diagnostic method and functional exploration of the VP7 protein.

Comprehensive mapping of common immunodominant epitopes in the West Nile virus nonstructural protein 1 recognized by avian antibody responses.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne flavivirus that primarily infects birds but occasionally infects humans and horses. Certain species of birds, including crows, house sparrows, geese, blue jays and ravens, are considered highly susceptible hosts to WNV. The nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of WNV can elicit protective immune responses, including NS1-reactive antibodies, during infection of animals. The antigenicity of NS1 suggests that NS1-reactive antibodies could provide a basis for serological diagnostic reagents. To further define serological reagents for diagnostic use, the antigenic sites in NS1 that are targeted by host immune responses need to be identified and the potential diagnostic value of individual antigenic sites also needs to be defined. The present study describes comprehensive mapping of common immunodominant linear B-cell epitopes in the WNV NS1 using avian WNV NS1 antisera. We screened antisera from chickens, ducks and geese immunized with purified NS1 for reactivity against 35 partially overlapping peptides covering the entire WNV NS1. This study identified twelve, nine and six peptide epitopes recognized by chicken, duck and goose antibody responses, respectively. Three epitopes (NS1-3, 14 and 24) were recognized by antibodies elicited by immunization in all three avian species tested. We also found that NS1-3 and 24 were WNV-specific epitopes, whereas the NS1-14 epitope was conserved among the Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) serocomplex viruses based on the reactivity of avian WNV NS1 antisera against polypeptides derived from the NS1 sequences of viruses of the JEV serocomplex. Further analysis showed that the three common polypeptide epitopes were not recognized by antibodies in Avian Influenza Virus (AIV), Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV), Duck Plague Virus (DPV) and Goose Parvovirus (GPV) antisera. The knowledge and reagents generated in this study have potential applications in differential diagnostic approaches and subunit vaccines development for WNV and other viruses of the JEV serocomplex.

Annexin 1 protects against apoptosis induced by serum deprivation in transformed rat retinal ganglion cells.

To investigate whether Annexin 1 can protect a retinal ganglion cells line (RGC-5) from apoptosis as induced by serum deprivation. Annexin 1 location in RGC-5 cells was determined using an indirect immunofluorescent assay. Expression of Annexin 1 in RGC-5 cultures deprived of serum for 0, 2 days was semi-quantified by western blot and RT-PCR. Effects of varying concentrations of the Annexin 1 peptide fragment, Ac2-26, on the survival of the RGC-5 cells was determined, and apoptotic cells were quantified by flow cytometry. Immunoblot and RT-PCR analysis was preformed to identify caspase 3, bax and bcl-2 in RGC extracts. Annexin 1 was localized in the cytoplasm of RGC-5 cells and the expression of Annexin 1, caspase 3 and bax was upregulated in serum-deprived RGC-5 cells. Ac2-26 attenuated the apoptosis resulting from serum deprivation of RGC-5 in a concentration-dependent manner, decreased caspase 3 and bax levels and produced an increase of bcl-2 in cell lysates. Annexin 1, in specific the peptide fragment Ac2-26, may play an important role in decreasing apoptosis in serum-deprived RGC-5 cells.

Identification of two linear B-cell epitopes from West Nile virus NS1 by screening a phage-displayed random peptide library.

BACKGROUND: The West Nile virus (WNV) nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) is an important antigenic protein that elicits protective antibody responses in animals and can be used for the serological diagnosis of WNV infection. Although previous work has demonstrated the vital role of WNV NS1-specific antibody responses, the specific epitopes in the NS1 have not been identified. RESULTS: The present study describes the identification of two linear B-cell epitopes in WNV NS1 through screening a phage-displayed random 12-mer peptide library with two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) 3C7 and 4D1 that directed against the NS1. The mAbs 3C7 and 4D1 recognized phages displaying peptides with the consensus motifs LTATTEK and VVDGPETKEC, respectively. Exact sequences of both motifs were found in the NS1 ((895)LTATTEK(901) and (925)VVDGPETKEC(934)). Further identification of the displayed B cell epitopes were conducted using a set of truncated peptides expressed as MBP fusion proteins. The data indicated that (896)TATTEK(901) and (925)VVDGPETKEC(934) are minimal determinants of the linear B cell epitopes recognized by the mAbs 3C7 and 4D1, respectively. Antibodies present in the serum of WNV-positive horses recognized the minimal linear epitopes in Western blot analysis, indicating that the two peptides are antigenic in horses during infection. Furthermore, we found that the epitope recognized by 3C7 is conserved only among WNV strains, whereas the epitope recognized by 4D1 is a common motif shared among WNV and other members of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) serocomplex. CONCLUSIONS: We identified TATTEK and VVDGPETKEC as NS1-specific linear B-cell epitopes recognized by the mAbs 3C7 and 4D1, respectively. The knowledge and reagents generated in this study may have potential applications in differential diagnosis and the development of epitope-based marker vaccines against WNV and other viruses of JEV serocomplex.

Wnt5a as a predictor in poor clinical outcome of patients and a mediator in chemoresistance of ovarian cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Wnt5a regulates numerous signaling pathways controlling a wide range of cellular processes, including cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. However, it is still unclear whether Wnt5a is involved in mediating chemoresistance in cancer. We studied the correlation of Wnt5a expression with clinicopathologic parameters and survival in epithelial ovarian cancer and the effect of Wnt5a expression on chemoresistance of ovarian cancer cells. METHODS: Wnt5a expression was immunohistochemically examined in ovarian cancer, benign tumor, and normal ovarian tissues. Two stable cell lines were established, namely, SKOV3/Wnt5a, which overexpressed Wnt5a, and SKOV3/miRNA, which downregulated Wnt5a expression using microRNA (miRNA). Wnt5a expression level was evaluated by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, Western blot analysis, and immunofluorescence assay. The sensitivity of all transfected and untransfected cell lines to chemotherapeutic drugs (paclitaxel, oxaliplatin, 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin, and etoposide) was detected by 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide assay. RESULTS: Wnt5a was found to be significantly higher in ovarian cancer compared with benign tumors and normal ovaries. High levels of Wnt5a expression were associated with the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage and significantly predicted a poorer overall survival and progression-free survival compared with low Wnt5a expression. In addition, Wnt5a overexpression in SKOV3/Wnt5a cells decreased chemosensitivity compared with normal and empty vector controls (P < 0.05). Alternatively, Wnt5a down-regulation in SKOV3/miRNA cells led to a significant increase in chemosensitivity (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Wnt5a immunoreactivity may be a useful prognostic indicator in patients with ovarian cancer. These results clarified for the first time the possibility that Wnt5a plays an important role in regulating chemosensitivity to anticancer drugs in ovarian cancer cells.

Galantamine inhibits calpain-calcineurin signaling activated by beta-amyloid in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells.

Galantamine, which is currently used in the treatment of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), has been shown to have a neuroprotective effect against beta-amyloid (Abeta) peptide-induced toxicity, which is involved in the pathogenesis of AD. In this study, we investigated the mechanism underlying the protective effect of galantamine on Abeta-induced toxicity in human neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y). Using MTT and LDH leakage assays, we observed that galantamine pretreatment significantly prevented Abeta1-40-induced cell death. Abeta1-40-induced overexpression and increased cleavage of both calpain and calcineurin were observed by Western blotting and double immunofluorescent staining. Increased calcineurin phosphatase activity and decreased level of pSer112 BAD were also observed in Abeta1-40-damaged cells. However, all these alterations were found to be reversed by galantamine pretreatment. We also found that the neuroprotection of galantamine can be blocked by an alpha7 nAChR antagonist. Overall, our results suggest that galantamine may prevent the neuronal damage induced by Abeta1-40 through a mechanism related to the regulation of calpain-calcineurin activation and BAD phosphorylation, which may involve the participation of alpha7 nAChR.

Effects of galantamine on ß-amyloid release and beta-site cleaving enzyme 1 expression in differentiated human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells.

Galantamine (Gal) is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor and used to treat the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recent studies show that Gal may affect amyloid precursor protein (APP) metabolism and increase release of secretory APPα (sAPPα). However the effect of Gal on amyloid-ß peptide (Aß) release and ß-site cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1) expression is still unknown. Consequently, we investigated the effect of Gal on the level of Aß and BACE1. In a differentiated human neuroblastoma cell line (SH-SY5Y), Gal (0.3 µM) was found to significantly decrease Aß release and BACE1 expression following treatment for 6, 12, and 24h. Increasing Gal to 0.9 µM or 10 µM had no further effect. The effect of Gal (0.3 µM for 18h) was maximal on BACE1 expression but not on Aß secretion. At higher concentration (0.9 µM and 10 µM), Gal had no effect on the level of full-length APP but could still stimulate further decrease in Aß secretion and release of sAPPα. These observations suggested that 0.3 µM Gal exerts its effect on Aß production by inhibiting BACE1 expression, while 0.9 µM or 10 µM Gal mainly reduces Aß production by stimulating the non-amyloidogenic pathway to decrease the amount of APP substrate available for ß-secretase cleavage. In addition, α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR) and multiple second messengers (including PKC, MEK, and p38MAPK) were found to be involved in the regulation of Gal-inhibited Aß release and BACE1 expression.

Antiviral effect of recombinant equine interferon-gamma on several equine viruses.

Recombinant equine interferon-gamma (reIFN-gamma) was prepared using a baculovirus expression system and its antiviral activity was investigated using several equine viruses. The reIFN-gamma suppressed the replication of all equine viruses used in the present experiment in horse cell cultures, but did not affect the growth of host cells at concentrations of less than 1000 u/ml. A strong antiviral effect was observed, especially against RNA viruses. Equine picornavirus, equine rhinovirus and equine arteritis virus could not be propagated at all in 100 u/ml reIFN-gamma when 100 TCID(50) of infective viruses was inoculated to cultivated horse cells. DNA viruses, equine herpesvirus types 1, 2, 3 and 4 and equine adenovirus, were less sensitive to reIFN-gamma but their growth became less than 1/100 in the cells treated with 100 u/ml reIFN-gamma compared to untreated cells. The antiviral effects were decreased in the cells of heterologous species and more than 1000 u/ml reIFN-gamma was required to induce an antiviral effect.

A rat model for studying neural stem cell transplantation.

AIM: The goal of this project was to develop a rat model for neural stem cell (NSC) transplantation studies in which NSCs were modified with brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) genes that may permit extensive and reliable analysis of the transplants. METHODS: NSCs were cultured and purified by limiting dilution assay in vitro and infected with recombinant retrovirus pLXSN-BDNF (BDNF-NSCs) and retrovirus pLXSN (p-NSCs). The expression of BDNF genes in transgenic and control NSC groups was measured by FQ-PCR and ELISA assays. NSCs were then transplanted into the subretinal space of normal rat retinas in four groups, which included NSCs alone, BDNF-NSCs, phosphate buffered saline (PBS) control, and normal control. Survival, migration, and differentiation of donor cells in host retinas were observed with optical coherence tomography (OCT), Heidelberg retina angiograph (HRA), and immunohistochemistry, respectively. RESULTS: The results obtained by FQ-PCR demonstrated that the copy numbers of BDNF gene templates from BDNF-NSCs were the highest among the four groups (P<0.05). Consistent with the results of FQ-PCR, BDNF protein level from the supernatant of the BDNF-NSCs group was much higher than that of the other two groups (P<0.05) as suggested by the ELISA assays. HRA and OCT showed that graft cells could successfully survive. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that transplanted BDNF-NSCs could migrate in the host retinas and differentiate into glial cells and neurons three months after transplantation. CONCLUSION: BDNF promotes NSCs to migrate and differentiate into neural cells in the normal host retinas.

[Expression of human Id-2 gene in Escherichia coli and preparation of the antisera against human Id-2].

OBJECTIVE: To express the fusion protein of glutathione S-transferase (GST) and human Id-2 in E. coli and prepare the polyclonal antibodies against Id-2. METHODS: The coding sequence of Id-2 gene was amplified by RT-PCR from the total RNA of breast cancer tissue. The recombinant plasmid was identified by PCR, restriction endonuclease digestion analysis and sequencing. The fusion protein GST-Id-2 expressed in E. coli following IPTG induction was purified by glutathione-agarose affinity chromatography and used to immunize rabbits to prepare the polyclonal antibodies against GST-Id-2. RESULTS: PCR, restriction endonuclease digestion and sequence analyses showed that the Id-2 gene had been correctly inserted into pGEX-6P-1 vector, and the GST-Id-2 fusion protein expressed had a relative molecular mass of approximately 40,000 as shown by SDS-PAGE. The polyclonal antibodies obtained from the rabbit sera were found to specifically react with purified Id-2 by Western blotting, ELISA and agar gel immunodiffusion (AGP). CONCLUSION: The prepared polyclonal antibodies against Id-2 allow effective Id-2 detection and facilitate further investigation of the structure and antigen epitope of Id-2.

Study of brain-derived neurotrophic factor gene transgenic neural stem cells in the rat retina.

BACKGROUND: Neural stem cells (NSCs) transplantation and gene therapy have been widely investigated for treating the cerebullar and myelonic injuries, however, studies on the ophthalmology are rare. The aim of this study was to investigate the migration and differentiation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene transgenic NSCs transplanted into the normal rat retinas. METHODS: NSCs were cultured and purified in vitro and infected with recombinant retrovirus pLXSN-BDNF and pLXSN respectively, to obtain the BDNF overexpressed NSCs (BDNF-NSCs) and control cells (p-NSCs). The expression of BDNF genes in two transgenic NSCs and untreated NSCs were measured by fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). BDNF-NSCs and NSCs were infected with adeno-associated viruses-enhanced green fluorescent protein (AAV-EGFP) to track them in vivo and served as donor cells for transplantation into the subretinal space of normal rat retinas, phosphated buffer solution (PBS) served as pseudo transplantation for a negative control. Survival, migration, and differentiation of donor cells in host retinas were observed and analyzed with Heidelberg retina angiograph (HRA) and immunohistochemistry, respectively. RESULTS: NSCs were purified successfully by limiting dilution assay. The expression of BDNF gene in BDNF-NSCs was the highest among three groups both at mRNA level tested by FQ-PCR (P < 0.05) and at protein level measured by ELISA (P < 0.05), which showed that BDNF was overexpressed in BDNF-NSCs. The results of HRA demonstrated that graft cells could survive well and migrate into the host retinas, while the immunohistochemical analysis revealed that transplanted BDNF-NSCs differentiated into neuron more efficiently compared with the control NSCs 2 months after transplantation. CONCLUSIONS: The seed cells of NSCs highly secreting BDNF were established. BDNF can promote NSCs to migrate and differentiate into neural cells in the normal host retinas.

Vitamin B6 points PC6 injection during acupuncture can relieve nausea and vomiting in patients with ovarian cancer.

The impact of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting on the quality of life of ovarian cancer patients is well known. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of acupuncture plus vitamin B6 PC6 points injection with acupuncture or vitamin B6 alone in controlling emesis of 142 patients undergoing a highly emetogenic chemotherapy regimen between March 1, 2006, and June 30, 2008. The patients were divided into 3 groups randomly and were given different antiemesis treatments accordingly. All patients received the same concurrent antiemetic pharmacotherapy and high-dose chemotherapy. We compared the total number of emesis episodes and the proportion of emesis-free days among the 3 groups during the study period. The acupuncture plus vitamin B6 PC6 points injection group had significantly fewer emesis episodes and a greater proportion of emesis-free days than the acupuncture group or the vitamin B6 alone group. We conclude that acupuncture plus vitamin B6 PC6 point injection is a quite useful method against emesis in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Long terminal repeat sequences from virulent and attenuated equine infectious anemia virus demonstrate distinct promoter activities.

In the early 1970s, the Chinese Equine Infectious Anemia Virus (EIAV) vaccine, EIAV(DLA), was developed through successive passages of a wild-type virulent virus (EIAV(L)) in donkeys in vivo and then in donkey macrophages in vitro. EIAV attenuation and cell tropism adaptation are associated with changes in both envelope and long terminal repeat (LTR). However, specific LTR changes during Chinese EIAV attenuation have not been demonstrated. In this study, we compared LTR sequences from both virulent and attenuated EIAV strains and documented the diversities of LTR sequence from in vivo and in vitro infections. We found that EIAV LTRs of virulent strains were homologous, while EIAV vaccine have variable LTRs. Interestingly, experimental inoculation of EIAV(DLA) into a horse resulted in a restriction of the LTR variation. Furthermore, LTRs from EIAV(DLA) showed higher Tat transactivated activity than LTRs from virulent strains. By using chimeric clones of wild-type LTR and vaccine LTR, the main difference of activity was mapped to the changes of R region, rather than U3 region.