Furanonyl amino acid derivatives as hemostatic drugs: design, synthesis and hemostasis performance.

Using 3,4-dihalo-2(5H)-furanones and easily available hemostatic drugs, such as tranexamic acid (TA), 4-aminomethylbenzoic acid (ABA), aminocaproic acid (AA) as starting materials, serial multi-functional molecules 2(5H)-furanonyl amino acids are designed by the combination of different pharmacophores, and successfully synthesized by a transition metal-free Michael addition-elimination reaction. The reaction is carried out under mild conditions with ethanol-dichloromethane as solvent and only stirring at room temperature for 24 h, and the yield can be up to 91%. All products are well characterized by infrared spectroscopy (IR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), high-resolution mass spectra (HRMS). Ten typical target compounds among them are selected out for the experiments of hemostasis performance by the evaluation of in vitro clot formation model and liver hemorrhage model. The test results show that, their hemostasis effect is better than the original drugs. Especially the target compound G, a TA derivative from 5-borneoloxy-3,4-dibromo-2(5H)-furanone, has the best hemostasis effect among all the tested compounds. These obtained target molecules are expected to be used as multi-functional hemostatic drugs.

Hydrogen sulphide may be a novel downstream signal molecule in nitric oxide-induced heat tolerance of maize (Zea mays L.) seedlings.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a second messenger with multifunction that is involved in plant growth, development and the acquisition of stress tolerance. In recent years, hydrogen sulphide (H(2)S) has been found to have similar functions, but crosstalk between NO and H(2)S in the acquisition of heat tolerance is not clear. In this study, pretreatment with the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP) improved the survival percentage of maize seedlings and alleviated an increase in electrolyte leakage and a decrease in tissue vitality as well as accumulation of malondialdehyde, indicating that pretreatment with SNP improved the heat tolerance of maize seedlings. In addition, pretreatment with SNP enhanced the activity of L-cystine desulfhydrase, which, in turn, induced accumulation of endogenous H(2)S, while application of H(2)S donors, NaHS and GYY4137, increased endogenous H(2)S content, followed by mitigating increase in electrolyte leakage and enhanced survival percentage of seedlings under heat stress. Interestingly, SNP-induced heat tolerance was enhanced by application of NaHS and GYY4137, but was eliminated by inhibitors of H(2)S synthesis DL-propargylglycine, aminooxyacetic acid, potassium pyruvate and hydroxylamine, and the H(2)S scavenger hypotaurine. All of the above-mentioned results suggest that SNP pretreatment could improve heat tolerance, and H(2)S may be a downstream signal molecule in NO-induced heat tolerance of maize seedlings.

Diagnostic value of combination of HPV testing and cytology as compared to isolated cytology in screening cervical cancer: A meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to assess the diagnostic value of combination of human papillomavirus (HPV) testing and cytology as compared to isolated cytology in screening cervical cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We searched public databases including PubMed and Embase before September 30, 2014. Sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (LR), negative LR, and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of the two methods from included studies were meta-analyzed. The summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve was constructed, and the area under curve (AUC) and an index Q* were summarized. Besides, a two-sample Z-test was conducted to evaluate the differences of the two diagnostic modalities. RESULTS: Totally eight studies were involved. The included studies showed significant heterogeneity in estimating sensitivity, specificity, positive LR, negative LR, and DOR in both methods. The results of the above indexes in combination method were 0.937 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.925-0.948), 0.858 (95% CI: 0.855-0.860), 3.924 (95% CI: 2.037-7.559), 0.083 (95% CI: 0.033-0.210), and 51.563 (95% CI: 14.682-181.09), respectively. The AUC and Q* index were 0.8841 and 0.8763, respectively. The results for isolated method were 0.743 (95% CI: 0.716-0.768), 0.951 (95% CI: 0.949-0.953), 6.408 (95% CI: 2.322-17.683), 0.226 (95% CI: 0.112-0.460), and 30.897 (95% CI: 7.170-133.15), respectively. The AUC and Q* index were 0.8550 and 0.7859, respectively. Combination method was superior to isolated method (Z = 13.375, P < 0.01) in sensitivity, while was inferior to isolated method (Z = 56.935, P < 0.01) in specificity. CONCLUSION: Combination of HPV testing and cytology may be appropriate for screening cervical cancer if conditions allow.