Protective effects of functional Nano-Selenium supplementation on spleen injury through regulation of p38 MAPK and NF-κB protein expression.

Selenium (Se) is a trace element necessary for humans to maintain normal physiological activities, and Se deficiency may lead to splenic injury, while Se supplementation can alleviate splenic injury. However, the mechanism is unclear. In this study, we constructed a Se deficiency animal model by feeding Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats with low Se feed. Meanwhile, we observed the repairing effect of Se supplementation on splenic injury with two doses of novel nano-selenium (Nano-Se) supplement by gavage. We measured the Se content in the spleens of the rats by atomic fluorescence spectroscopy (AFS) method and combined the results of hematoxylin-eosin (HE) and Masson staining to observe the splenic injury, comprehensively evaluating the construction of the animal model of low selenium-induced splenic injury. We measured the mRNA and protein expression levels of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the spleen by Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), western blot (WB), and immunohistochemistry (IHC). We found that the Se deficiency group exhibited lower Se content, splenic fibrosis, and high expression of p38 MAPK, NF-κB, and IL-6 compared to the normal group. The Se supplement groups exhibited higher Se content, attenuated splenic injury, and down-regulated expression of p38 MAPK, NF-κB, and IL-6 relative to the Se deficiency group. This study suggests that Se deficiency leads to splenic injury in rats, and Se supplementation may attenuate splenic injury by inhibiting the expression of p38 MAPK, NF-κB and IL-6.

Effective treatment for hypertrophic scar with dual-wave-length PDL and Nd:YAG in Chinese patients.

There are several ways to prevent and treat hypertrophic scars. In recent years, lasers have been quite extensively used in treating scars. For example, Pulsed Dye Laser (PDL) and Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) can accelerate mutation of scar, whereas non-ablative and ablative fractional laser can improvescar texture. Dual-wave-length laser treatment is extensively used for blood vessel diseases but is rarely used and less reported for treatment of hypertrophic scars. Our study focuses on the efficacy and safety of dual-wave-length PDL and Nd:YAG in treatment of hypertrophic scars. Twenty-five patients in our study complaining of hypertrophic scars were treated with combined PDL/Nd:YAG laser at 4-6 weeks intervals. Following this, the patients and observers assessed these scars by using Patient Scar Assessment Scale (PSAS) and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (OSAS). The resultsshowed that hypertrophic scar was significantly improved after several laser treatments, and no severe adverse effects were observed. Considering the safety and satisfactory effects of dual-wave-length laser treatment, it can be regarded as a good method for treating hypertrophic scars. This study clearly demonstrates that combined PDL/Nd:YAG laser treatment is an effective, safe and well-tolerated treatment option for hypertrophic scars.