Role of extracellular vesicles in insulin resistance: Signaling pathways, bioactive substances, miRNAs, and therapeutic potential.

Extracellular vesicles are small lipid bilayer particles that resemble the structure of cells and range in size from 30 to 1000 nm. They transport a variety of physiologically active molecules, such as proteins, lipids, and miRNAs. Insulin resistance (IR) is a pathological disease in which insulin-responsive organs or components become less sensitive to insulin's physiological effects, resulting in decreased glucose metabolism in target organs such as the liver, muscle, and adipose tissue. Extracellular vesicles have received a lot of attention as essential intercellular communication mediators in the setting of IR. This review looks at extracellular vesicles' role in IR from three angles: signaling pathways, bioactive compounds, and miRNAs. Relevant publications are gathered to investigate the induction, inhibition, and bidirectional regulation of extracellular vesicles in IR, as well as their role in insulin-related illnesses. Furthermore, considering the critical function of extracellular vesicles in regulating IR, the study analyzes the practicality of employing extracellular vesicles for medication delivery and the promise of combination therapy for IR.

Structure Analysis and Anti-Inflammatory Effect of a Polysaccharide from Hippocampus mohnikei.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the structure of a polysaccharide (HMP-1) from Hippocampus mohnikei, and to explore its anti-inflammatory effect. HMP-1 was obtained from Hippocampus mohnikei by ethanol sedimentation and secondary column chromatography purification. Its structural characteristics were analyzed by gel permeation chromatography (GPC), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and scanning electron micrograph (SEM). Results showed its molecular weight (Mw) was 7296 Da, and it mainly consisted of six residues: 1,3-ß-Glcp, 1,4-α-Manp, 1,4-α-GalpA, 1,4-ß-GlcpA2S, 1,4-α-Galp3S, and 1,4-ß-GlcNAc. HMP-1 could protect RAW246.7 cells from the cytotoxic effect induced by LPS. HMP-1 also could reduce the levels of nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species produced by LPS stimulation, suggesting that HMP-1 has anti-inflammatory activities within a certain concentration range.

Isolation, Structural Analysis and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of a Polysaccharide from Ilex cornuta Fruits.

In the present study, a polysaccharide from Ilex cornuta fruits (LCFP-3) was obtained by hot water extraction, Diethyaminoethyl cellulose-52 (DEAE-52) chromatography column and Sephadex G-100 gel column purification. Its structural characteristics were further explored using high performance anion exchange chromatography (HPAEC), gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC/MS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Monosaccharide composition analysis revealed LCFP-3 contained mainly Galactose (31.92 %), Arabinose (25.87 %) and Galacturonic acid (23.35 %) while small percentage of Rhamnose, Glucose, Mannose and Xylose. Chemical composition analysis showed that the total sugar content of LCFP-3 was 90.31 % and the protein content was 0.246 %. Gel permeation chromatography (GPC) analysis showed that its average molecular weight was 41.199 kDa. Structural analysis showed that LCFP-3 may be composed of residues, T-α-Arap, T-α-Rhap, 1,3-α-Arap, 1,4-α-Arap, T-ß-Galp, 1,4-α-GalpA(OMe), 1,4-ß-Glcp, 1,3-ß-Galp, 1,3,6-ß-Manp, 1,6-ß-Galp, 1,3,4-ß-GalpA, 1,4,6-ß-Manp, 1,3,6-ß-Glcp, 1,2,3,4-α-Xylp. The anti-inflammatory activity of LCFP-3 was evaluated using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW246.7 macrophages. The results showed that 1-200 µg/mL LCFP-3 could dose-dependently protect against LPS-induced toxicity and 1 µg/mL LCFP-3 could significantly inhibit LPS-induced NO production. Therefore, LCFP-3 exerted an anti-inflammatory activity and has great potential as a functional ingredient.

Multi-Mode Ultrasonic Guided Waves Based Damage Detection in L-Bars with Asymmetric Cross-Section with Sum of Multiple Signals Method.

Bars are significant load-carrying components in engineering structures. In particular, L-bars are typical structural components commonly used in truss structures and have typical irregular asymmetric cross-sections. To ensure the safety of load-carrying bars, much research has been done for non-destructive testing (NDT). Ultrasonic guided waves have been widely applied in various NDT techniques for bars as a result of the long-range propagation, low attenuation, and high sensitivity to damages. Though good for inspection of ultrasonic guided waves in symmetric cross-section bar-like structures, the application in asymmetric ones lacks further research. Moreover, traditional damage detection in bars using ultrasonic guided waves usually depends on a single-mode at a lower frequency with lower sensitivity and accuracy. To make full use of all frequencies and modes, a multi-mode characteristic-based damage detection method is presented with the sum of multiple signals (SoM) strategy for L-bars with asymmetric cross-section. To control the desired mode in multi-mode ultrasonic guided waves, excitation optimization and weighted gathering are carried out by the analysis of the semi-analytical finite element (SAFE) method and the normal mode expansion (NME) method. An L-bar example with the asymmetric cross-section of 35 mm × 20 mm × 3 mm is used to specialize the proposed method, and some finite element (FE) models have been simulated to validate the mode control. In addition, one PZT is applied as a contrast in order to validate the multielement mode control. Then, more FE simulations experiments for damage detection have been performed to validate the damage detection method and verify the improvement in detection accuracy and damage sensitivity.

Molecular dynamics simulation on the formation and development of interlayer dislocations in bilayer graphene.

Molecular dynamics simulations are used to study the formation and development of interlayer dislocations in bilayer graphene (BLG) subjected to uniaxial tension. Two different BLGs are employed for the simulation: armchair (AC-BLG) and zigzag (ZZ-BLG). The atomic-level strains are calculated and the parameter 'dislocation intensity' is introduced to identify the dislocations. The interlayer dislocation is found to start at the edge and propagate to the center. For AC-BLG, the dislocations arise successively with the increase of applied strain, and all dislocations have the same width. For ZZ-BLG, the first dislocation arises alone. After that, two dislocations with different widths appear together every time. The simulated dislocation widths are in good agreement with existing experimental results. Across every dislocation, there is a transition from AB stacking to AC stacking, or vice versa. When temperature is taken into account, the dislocation boundaries become indistinct and the formation of dislocations is postponed due to the existence of dispersive small slippages. Due to the disturbance of temperature, dislocations present reciprocating movement. These findings contribute to the understanding of interlayer dislocations in two-dimensional materials, and will enable the exploration of many more strain related fundamental science problems and application challenges.

A Co-Delivery System of Curcumin and p53 for Enhancing the Sensitivity of Drug-Resistant Ovarian Cancer Cells to Cisplatin.

In order to enhance the sensitivity of drug-resistant ovarian cancer cells to cisplatin (DDP), a co-delivery system was designed for simultaneous delivery of curcumin (CUR) and p53 DNA. Firstly, the bifunctional peptide K14 composed of tumor targeting peptide (tLyP-1) and nuclear localization signal (NLS) was synthesized. A nonviral carrier (PEI-K14) was synthesized by cross-linking low molecular weight polyethyleneimine (PEI) with K14. Then, CUR was coupled to PEI-K14 by matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9)-cleavable peptide to prepare CUR-PEI-K14. A co-delivery system, named CUR-PEI-K14/p53, was obtained by CUR-PEI-K14 and p53 self-assembly. Furthermore, the physicochemical properties and gene transfection efficiency were evaluated. Finally, ovarian cancer cisplatin-resistant (SKOV3-DDP) cells were selected to evaluate the effect of CUR-PEI-K14/p53 on enhancing the sensitivity of drug-resistant cells to DDP. The CUR-PEI-K14/DNA complexes appeared uniformly dispersed and spherical. The particle size was around 20-150 nm and the zeta potential was around 18-37 mV. It had good stability, high transfection efficiency, and low cytotoxicity. CUR-PEI-K14/p53 could significantly increase the sensitivity of SKOV3-DDP cells to DDP, and this effect was better as combined with DDP. The sensitizing effect might be related to the upregulation of p53 messenger RNA (mRNA), the downregulation of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) mRNA, and the upregulation of BCL2-Associated X (bax) mRNA. CUR-PEI-K14/p53 can be used as an effective strategy to enhance the sensitivity of drug-resistant ovarian cancer cells to DDP.

Pterostilbene and 4'-Methoxyresveratrol Inhibited Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Inflammatory Response in RAW264.7 Macrophages.

Pterostilbene (Pte) and 4'-Methoxyresveratrol (4MR) are methylated derivatives of resveratrol. We investigated the anti-inflammatory effect of Pte and 4MR in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 murine macrophages. Both Pte and 4MR significantly reduced LPS-induced nitric oxide release by inhibiting the inducible nitric oxide synthase mRNA expression. Moreover, both of them inhibited LPS-induced mRNA expression of inflammatory cytokines including monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1, interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-1ß, and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and attenuated LPS-induced nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation by decreasing p65 phosphorylation. In addition, 4MR but not Pte inhibited LPS-induced the activator protein (AP)-1 pathway in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Further study suggested that Pte had an inhibitory effect on extracellular regulated protein kinases (ERK) and p38 activation, but not on c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), while 4MR had an inhibitory effect on JNK and p38 activation, but not on ERK. Taken together, our data suggested that Pte induced anti-inflammatory activity by blocking mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and NF-κB signaling pathways, while 4MR showed anti-inflammatory activity through suppression of MAPK, AP-1, and NF-κB signaling pathways in LPS-treated RAW 264.7 macrophages.

Cereus sinensis Polysaccharide and Its Immunomodulatory Properties in Human Monocytic Cells.

In this study, the extraction conditions of the crude polysaccharide from Cereus sinensis were optimized by response surface methodology. The optimum extraction conditions were: a ratio of raw material to water volume of 1:80 (g/mL); an extraction temperature of 72 °C; and an extraction time of 3 h. Then, a purified polysaccharide named Cereus sinensis polysaccharide-1 (CSP-1) was obtained from the crude polysaccharide by the Diethylaminoethyl cellulose-52 (DEAE-52) cellulose chromatography column and Sephadex G-100 column. The molecular weight and monosaccharide composition of CSP-1 was determined through Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (GS-MS), respectively. The results showed that CSP-1 with an average molecular weight of 56,335 Da was composed of l-(-)-Fucose, d-(+)-Mannose, d-Glucose and mainly possessed 1→2, 1→2, 6, 1→4, and 1→4, 6 of glycosyl linkages. The immunomodulatory activities of CSP-1 were also evaluated using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced human monocytic (THP-1) cells. The results demonstrated that CSP-1 dose-dependently protected against LPS-induced toxicity, and CSP-1 significantly inhibited the Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) mRNA, myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) mRNA and tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated factor-6 (TRAF-6) mRNA expression of the LPS-induced THP-1 cells, as well as suppressing reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation.

Low-Molecular Weight Polyethylenimine Modified with Pluronic 123 and RGD- or Chimeric RGD-NLS Peptide: Characteristics and Transfection Efficacy of Their Complexes with Plasmid DNA.

To solve the problem of transfection efficiency vs. cytotoxicity and tumor-targeting ability when polyethylenimine (PEI) was used as a nonviral gene delivery vector, new degradable PEI polymers were synthesized via cross-linking low-molecular-weight PEI with Pluronic P123 and then further coupled with a targeting peptide R4 (RGD) and a bifunctional R11 (RGD-NLS), which were termed as P123-PEI-R4 and P123-PEI-R11, respectively. Agarose gel electrophoresis showed that both P123-PEI-R4 and P123-PEI-R11 efficaciously condense plasmid DNA at a polymer-to-pDNA w/w ratio of 3.0 and 0.4, respectively. The polyplexes were stable in the presence of serum and could protect plasmid DNA against DNaseI. They had uniform spherical nanoparticles with appropriate sizes around 100-280 nm and zeta-potentials about +40 mV. Furthermore, in vitro experiments showed that these polyplexes had lower cytotoxicity at any concentration compared with PEI 25 kDa, thus giving promise to high transfection efficiency as compared with another P123-PEI derivate conjugated with trifunctional peptide RGD-TAT-NLS (P123-PEI-R18). More importantly, compared with the other polymers, P123-PEI-R11 showed the highest transfection efficiency with relatively lower cytotoxicity at any concentration, indicating that the new synthetic polymer P123-PEI-R11 could be used as a safe and efficient gene deliver vector.

Long-Acting Strategies for Antibody Drugs: Structural Modification, Controlling Release, and Changing the Administration Route.

Because of their high specificity, high affinity, and targeting, antibody drugs have been widely used in the treatment of many diseases and have become the most favored new drugs for research in the world. However, some antibody drugs (such as small-molecule antibody fragments) have a short half-life and need to be administered frequently, and are often associated with injection-site reactions and local toxicities during use. Increasing attention has been paid to the development of antibody drugs that are long-acting and have fewer side effects. This paper reviews existing strategies to achieve long-acting antibody drugs, including modification of the drug structure, the application of drug delivery systems, and changing their administration route. Among these, microspheres have been studied extensively regarding their excellent tolerance at the injection site, controllable loading and release of drugs, and good material safety. Subcutaneous injection is favored by most patients because it can be quickly self-administered. Subcutaneous injection of microspheres is expected to become the focus of developing long-lasting antibody drug strategies in the near future.

Nano-composite hydrogels of Cu-Apa micelles for anti-vasculogenic mimicry.

Vasculogenic mimicry (VM) describes the phenomenon whereby fluid-conducting vessels are formed by highly invasive tumour cells, which supply blood to tumours during their early growth stages. Single antiangiogenic agents have limited inhibitory effects on VM, therefore, a multi-pathway anti-VM strategy is required. In this study, Apatinib (Apa) was coordinated with Cu2+ to form a Cu-Apa copper complex. The latter was loaded into oligo-hyaluronic acid (HA) polymeric micelles (HA-Chol) and subsequently embedded in Astragalus polysaccharide-based in situ hydrogels (APsGels) to generate Cu-Apa/HA-Chol@APsGels. In this system, Cu-Apa exerts the combined effects of Cu2+ and Apa to inhibit VM; HA-Chol micelles achieve targeted drug delivery and enhance endocytosis efficiency; APsGels realise sustained release of the drugs to ensure an anti-VM effect. This system demonstrated improved VM inhibition with low cytotoxicity and high biocompatibility, wound healing, and transwell invasion in three-dimensional cell cultured VM. Moreover, this system significantly inhibited VM formation and melanoma growth in a mouse tumour transplantation model. This study provides an effective strategy for inhibiting VM.

A nano-targeted co-delivery system based on gene regulation and molecular blocking strategy for synergistic enhancement of platinum chemotherapy sensitivity in ovarian cancer.

Ovarian cancer (OC) has a low five-year survival rate, mainly because of its drug resistance to chemotherapy. It is the key to reverse drug resistance to combine multiple sensitization pathways to play a synergistic role. A nano scaled targeted co-delivery system (P123-PEI-G12, PPG) modified by bifunctional peptide tLyP-1-NLS (G12) was fabricated by using Pluronic P123 conjugated with low molecular weight polyethyleneimine (PEI). This delivery system can co-delivery Olaparib (Ola) and p53 plasmids to synergistically enhance the sensitivity of OC to platinum-based chemotherapy. P53@P123-PEI-G2/Ola (Co-PPGs) can achieve efficient tumor accumulation and cellular internalization through G12-mediated targeting. Co-PPGs then break down in the tumor cells, releasing the drug. Co-PPGs significantly enhanced the sensitivity of cisplatin (DDP) in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer (PROC) and synergistically inhibited the proliferation of PROC in vitro and in vivo. The sensitizing and synergistic effects of Co-PPGs were related to the activation of p53, inhibition of poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and p-glycoprotein (P-gp) expression. This work provides a promising strategy for the effective treatment of PROC.

The Role of Small Interfering RNAs in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a primary liver cancer with high mortality, is the most common malignant tumor in the world. Currently, the effect of routine treatment is poor, especially for this kind of cancer with strong heterogeneity and late detection. In the past decades, the researches of gene therapy for HCC based on small interfering RNA have blossomed everywhere. This is a promising therapeutic strategy, but the application of siRNA is limited by the discovery of effective molecular targets and the delivery system targeting HCC. As the deepening of research, scientists have developed many effective delivery systems and found more new therapeutic targets. CONCLUSIONS: This paper mainly reviews the research on HCC treatment based on siRNA in recent years, and summarizes and classifies the HCC treatment targets and siRNA delivery systems.

Applications and challenges of ultra-small particle size nanoparticles in tumor therapy.

With the development of nanotechnology, nanomedicines are widely used in tumor therapy. However, biological barriers in the delivery of nanoparticles still limit their application in tumor therapy. As one of the most fundamental properties of nanoparticles, particle size plays a crucial role in the process of the nanoparticles delivery process. It is difficult for large size nanoparticles with fixed size to achieve satisfactory outcomes in every process. In order to overcome the poor penetration of larger size, nanoparticles with ultra-small particle size are proposed, which are more conducive to deep tumor penetration and uniform drug distribution. In this review, the latest progresses and advantages of ultra-small nanoparticles are systematically summarized, the perspectives and challenges of ultra-small nanoparticles strategy for cancer treatment are also discussed.

Kiwi-derived extracellular vesicles for oral delivery of sorafenib.

Sorafenib is an oral treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, poor water solubility, harsh gastrointestinal environment and off-target effects contribute to the low bioavailability of oral sorafenib. Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) are biological nanovesicles with various bioactive functions that offer significant advantages in the field of oral drug delivery: protection from degradation by gastrointestinal fluids; crossing the intestinal epithelial barrier; specific targeting; safety; and abundant yield. However, there are fewer studies applying PDEVs for anti-tumor drug delivery to extra-digestive tissues. In this study, kiwifruit-derived extracellular vesicles (KEVs) were isolated and purified from kiwifruit, and their natural hepatic accumulation properties were exploited for targeted delivery of sorafenib (KEVs-SFB). Evidence showed that encapsulation of KEVs reduced the leakage of sorafenib in the gastrointestinal environment and enhanced the ability to cross the intestinal epithelium; KEVs-SFB was able to achieve liver accumulation and was predominantly taken up by HepG2 cells; KEVs-SFB was effective in inhibiting 4T1 cell proliferation; in the orthotopic liver cancer model, oral administration of KEVs-SFB inhibited tumor growth and improved the side effects of SFB. This PDEVs-based oral drug delivery platform is important for improving oral bioavailability and reducing drug side effects.

Stamped production of single-crystal hexagonal boron nitride monolayers on various insulating substrates.

Controllable growth of two-dimensional (2D) single crystals on insulating substrates is the ultimate pursuit for realizing high-end applications in electronics and optoelectronics. However, for the most typical 2D insulator, hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), the production of a single-crystal monolayer on insulating substrates remains challenging. Here, we propose a methodology to realize the facile production of inch-sized single-crystal hBN monolayers on various insulating substrates by an atomic-scale stamp-like technique. The single-crystal Cu foils grown with hBN films can stick tightly (within 0.35 nm) to the insulating substrate at sub-melting temperature of Cu and extrude the hBN grown on the metallic surface onto the insulating substrate. Single-crystal hBN films can then be obtained by removing the Cu foil similar to the stamp process, regardless of the type or crystallinity of the insulating substrates. Our work will likely promote the manufacturing process of fully single-crystal 2D material-based devices and their applications.

Plant-derived extracellular vesicles as oral drug delivery carriers.

Oral administration is one of the most convenient and widely utilized methods of drug administration. However, many drugs were difficult to be administered orally due to their poor oral bioavailability. Designing a safe and effective oral drug delivery system is one of the basic strategies to overcome the poor oral bioavailability. Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) were found in a variety of plants and have similar physical and chemical properties to mammalian EVs. It has been proved that PDEVs can effectively encapsulate hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs, remain stable in harsh gastrointestinal environments, and cross biological barriers to reach target tissues. Furthermore, the biological activity of PDEVs enables it to play a synergistic therapeutic role with drugs. In addition, the safety and high yield of PDEVs indicate their potential as oral drug carriers. In this review, we introduce the biogenesis, isolation, characterization and drug delivery methods of PDEVs, describe their stability, transport, delivery and therapeutic applications. Finally, the potential and challenges of PDEVs as drug carriers are discussed.

Research progress in the preparation, structural characterization, bioactivities, and potential applications of sulfated agarans from the genus Gracilaria.

The genus Gracilaria produces 80% of the world's industrial agar. Agar of this genus is a promising biologically active polymer, which has been used in the human diet and folk medicine, alternative for weight loss, treatment of diarrhea, etc. With more attention paid to the genus Gracilaria-sulfated agarans (GSAs), they exhibited multitudinous health benefits in antioxidant, antiviral, antibacterial, prebiotics, anti-tumor, anticoagulant, and antidiabetic. Various preparation procedures of GSAs making the diversities of structure and biological activity. Therefore, this review summarized the isolation, identification, bioactivity potentials, and applications of GSAs, providing a reference to the development of GSAs in functional food and pharmaceutical industry. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The genus Gracilaria is known as a raw material for agar extraction. GSAs are food-grade agaran with the properties of thermoreversible gels at low concentrations, which are commonly used as an additive for making candies as well as raw material for making soup and snacks. They are used in folk medicine to treat diarrhea and other diseases. As an important bioactive macromolecule, GSAs have various biological activities (such as antioxidant, antiviral, antibacterial, probiotic, anti-tumor, anticoagulant, and antidiabetic activities), and have the potential to be developed as functional food and medicine. They could also be used to create innovative agar-based products such as antibacterial films and drug carriers.

Therapeutic strategies to overcome cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer.

Ovarian cancer (OC) is one of the most common gynecologic tumors worldwide and one with the highest mortality. Cisplatin (DDP) is the first platinum-based complex approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat patients with OC. Despite a good initial response rate, most patients receiving DDP treatment will ultimately develop resistance via various complicated mechanisms, leading to therapeutic failure and increased mortality. Multiple resistance pathways have been identified as potentially key areas of intervention. In this review, chemotherapeutic drugs and phytochemicals developed to overcome cisplatin-resistance ovarian cancer (CROC) were discussed. Targeted inhibition or specific drugs are effective against the DDP-resistance phenotype by inhibiting resistance or increasing cytotoxic efficacy. Phytochemicals as chemosensitizers offer novel treatment strategies for CROC patients by reducing chemoresistance and increasing drug efficacy. Due to the complexity of the DDP-resistance mechanism, the treatment of OC needs to improve specificity and effectiveness, and multi-path cooperative therapy is undoubtedly one of the best options. We discuss extensively the role of combination therapy in reversing DDP-resistance in OC and the significance of using a nanoparticle delivery system in this context. Suggestions for potential therapeutic strategies for CROC treatment will help discover more effective and specific regimens to overcome DDP-resistance.

Chemical characterization of a new sulfated polysaccharide from Gracilaria chouae and its activation effects on RAW264.7 macrophages.

This study aimed to characterize the chemical composition of a new sulfated polysaccharide from the red alga Gracilaria chouae and evaluate its activation effects on RAW264.7 macrophages. It showed that the obtained G. chouae polysaccharide (GCP-3A) was a sulfated acidic polysaccharide with a molecular weight of 11.87 kDa. GCP-3A was composed of xylose, galactose, glucose, and mannose with a molar ratio of 3.00:29.28:0.63:0.45, and it contained α,ß|-glycosidic linkages. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and a Congo red test showed that it was a heterogeneous polysaccharide with irregular interwoven sheets and rods, and did not have a triple-helix conform|ation. Furthermore, GCP-3A significantly promoted the proliferation of RAW264.7 macrophages and the secretion of nitric oxide (NO) in tests of 3-|(4,|5-dimethylthiahiazo-2-yl)|-2,|5-diphenytetrazoliumromide(MTT) and NO.