[Phenotype and Genotype Analysis in Two Pedigrees with Hereditary Coagulation Factor â ª Deficiency].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the phenotype and genotype in two pedigrees with hereditary coagulation factor Ⅺ (FⅪ) deficiency, and investigate the molecular mechanisms of FⅪ deficiency. METHODS: Two patients with hereditary coagulation FⅪ deficiency were admitted to Chaozhou Central Hospital in Nov 2014 and Jan 2018. The prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), FⅪ activity (FⅪ∶C) and FⅪ antigen (FⅪ∶Ag) were tested for phenotypic diagnosis. All the exons and exon-intron boundaries of FⅪ gene of proband were analyzed by PCR and sequencing. The family members were tested for the mutant site of proband. Then the mRNA of FⅪ in the proband was analyzed with RT-PCR. RESULTS: The proband-1 was a 7-year-old boy, PT was 10.7 s and APTT was 97.4 s (reference range: 9-12.8 s; 24-40 s), FⅪ∶C (0.6%) and FⅪ∶Ag<1% (reference range: 65%-150%; 72.1%-122.3%). The proband-2 was a 30-year-old female, and showed the PT (11.7 s), APTT (71.3 s), FⅪ∶C (0.7%) and FⅪ∶Ag<1%. FⅧ∶C, FⅨ∶C and FⅫ∶C of two proband were within the normal range. DNA sequencing showed that the proband-1 had a combined mutation of c.326-1G>A and c.1107C>A (p.Tyr351X) in exon 10. His grandmother, mother and brother had a heterozygous splicing mutation of c.326-1G>A, his grandmother and father had a homozygous mutation of c.1107C>A. FXI mRNA was undetected in the proband-1. The proband-2 had a homozygous mutation of c.841C>T (p.Gln263X) in exon 8, and this mutation was also found in her father, mother, daughter and son. CONCLUSION: The c.326-1G>A, c.1107C>A(p.Tyr351X) and c.841C>T (p.Gln263X) might be the molecular pathogenesis for two probands with hereditary coagulation factor Ⅺ deficiency.

Subcritical water extraction of antioxidant phenolic compounds from XiLan olive fruit dreg.

Olive fruit dreg (OFD), waste from olive softdrink processing, has caused disposal problems. Nevertheless, OFD is a good source of functional ingredients, such as phenolic compounds. This study investigated the extraction conditions of phenolic compounds from OFD by using subcritical water (SCW) extraction method, antioxidant activity of SCW extracts, and components of phenolic compounds by LC-MS. SCW extraction experiments were performed in a batch stainless steel reactor at temperatures ranging from 100 to 180 °C at residence time of 5 to 60 min, and at solid-to-liquid ratio of 1:20 to 1:60. Higher recoveries of phenolic compounds [37.52 ± 0.87 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g, dry weight (DW)] were obtained at 160 °C, solid-to-liquid ratio of 1:50, and extract time of 30 min than at 2 h extraction with methanol (1.21 ± 0.16 mg GAE/g DW), ethanol (0.24 ± 0.07 mg GAE/g DW), and acetone (0.34 ± 0.01 mg GAE/g DW). The antioxidant activities of the SCW extracts were significantly stronger than those in methanol extracts at the same concentration of total phenolic contents. LC-MS analysis results indicated that SCW extracts contained higher amounts of phenolic compounds, such as chlorogenic acid, homovanillic acid, gallic acid, hydroxytyrosol, quercetin, and syringic acid. SCW at 160 °C, 30 min, and solid-to-liquid ratio of 1:50 may be a good substitute of organic solvents, such as methanol, ethanol, and acetone to recover phenolic compounds from OFD.

Bronchopulmonary infection of Lophomonas blattarum: a case and literature review.

Human infections with Lophomonas blattarum are rare. However, the majority of the infections occurred in China, 94.4% (136 cases) of all cases in the world. This infection is difficult to differentiate from other pulmonary infections with similar symptoms. Here we reported a case of L. blattarum infection confirmed by bronchoalveolar lavage fluid smear on the microscopic observations. The patient was a 21-year-old female college student. The previous case which occurred in Chongqing was 20 years ago. We briefly reviewed on this infection reported in the world during the recent 20 years. The epidemiological characteristics, possible diagnostic basis, and treatment of this disease is discussed in order to provide a better understanding of recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of L. blattarum infection.

Resveratrol Protects Müller Cells Against Ferroptosis in the Early Stage of Diabetic Retinopathy by Regulating the Nrf2/GPx4/PTGS2 Pathway.

The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-ferroptotic effect of resveratrol (RSV) on retinal Müller cells (RMCs) in the early stages of diabetic retinopathy (DR) via the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)/glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPx4)/prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2). The retina was obtained from normal and diabetic Sprague-Dawley rats or wild-type and Nrf2 knockout (KO) diabetic mice, with or without RSV (10 mg/kg/d) treatment for 12 weeks. RMCs transfected with or without SiNrf2 were cultured with high glucose and RSV (20 mM). The retinal neurofunctional changes were measured by electroretinogram (ERG). The retinal inner nuclear layer cell mitochondrial morphological changes were detected by transmission electron microscopy. The cell viabilities were measured by cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. The levels of Fe2+, malonic dialdehyde (MDA), and glutathione (GSH) were measured by colorimetric method. The expression of Nrf2, GPx4, and PTGS2 was detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), western blotting, and immunocytochemistry. In vivo, RSV inhibited retinal neurofunctional changes and mitochondrial morphological changes; decreased Fe2+, MDA, and PTGS2; and increased GSH, Nrf2, and GPx4 in retina of DM rats. In vitro, RSV decreased MDA and PTGS2 and increased cell viability, GSH, Nrf2, and GPx4. In vivo and vitro, the role of Nrf2-regulated signaling pathway in anti-ferroptosis by RSV was further confirmed using Nrf2 KO mice and pre-transfected SiNrf2 in RMCs. These findings indicated that RSV is a potential therapeutic option for DR and that Nrf2/GPx4/PTGS2 plays a role in the anti-ferroptosis mechanism of RSV on RMCs.

Chryseobacterium lacus sp. nov. Isolated From the Surface Water of Two Lakes With Light-Induced Carotenoid Production.

Two Gram-stain-negative, rod-shaped, gliding, catalase-positive, and facultative anaerobic strains, YLOS41T and XH07, were isolated from surface water of Yilong Lake and West Lake of Dali in Yunnan Province, respectively. Both strains were yellow-colored under light conditions and white-colored under dark conditions. The results of physiological and chemotaxonomic characterization, sequencing and phylogenetic analysis, and draft genome sequence comparison demonstrated that the two strains represented a single novel species within the genus Chryseobacterium, for which the name Chryseobacterium lacus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YLOS41T (= KCTC 62352T = MCCC 1H00300T), and the second strain is XH07 (= KCTC 62993). During the cultivation process, we found that the colony color of the two strains changed from white to yellow with illumination. The study investigated the effects of light irradiation on the strain YLOS41T. Results showed that light irradiation did not affect the growth of cells but significantly increased carotenoid synthesis, which caused the change of colony color. In-depth metabolic analysis was conducted by transcriptome. The predominant changes were found for genes involved in carotenoid synthesis as protection from light damage. Based on the genome and transcriptome, we proved that strain YLOS41T possessed a complete synthetic pathway of carotenoid and speculated that the production was zeaxanthin. This was the first report of Chryseobacterium species with light-induced carotenoid synthesis. This study enhances our present knowledge on how Chryseobacterium species isolated from surface water responds to light damage.

Effect of smoking on high-grade cervical cancer in women on the basis of human papillomavirus infection studies.

PURPOSE: We aimed, in the present study, to measure the risk related to the high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 (CIN3) or worse (CIN3+) or worse/high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions with respect to changes in human papillomavirus (HPV) and smoking status. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A structured interview underwent for 7129 women. Then, we obtained their cervical cells and subjected to HPV testing. High-risk HPV infected and "no prevalent" cervical disease infected women were followed for cervical lesions up to 12 years (at baseline; n = 1531). Hazard ratios (HRs) for diagnosis of CIN3 (or worse) or worse/high-grade intraepithelial lesions were calculated along with the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: Among high-risk HPV-positive women, the conditions of long-term (more than 8 years) smokers and heavy (18 or more cigarettes/day) smokers are highly responsible for the increased risk for CIN3 or CIN3+. In the cases of persistent HPV-infected women, heavy smoking led to a higher risk for CIN3+ than those women who never smoked (HR, 2.31; 95% CI, 1.12-4.16). CONCLUSION: We concluded here that smoking leads to an enhanced risk of high-grade cervical lesions in persistent high-risk HPV-infected women. This makes a good understanding of smoking's role in cervical cancer.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) inhibit vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation via differential effects on the cell cycle.

Abnormal vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of both atherosclerosis and restenosis. Recent studies suggest that high-dose salicylates, in addition to inhibiting cyclooxygenase activity, exert an antiproliferative effect on VSMC growth both in-vitro and in-vivo. However, whether all non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) exert similar antiproliferative effects on VSMCs, and do so via a common mechanism of action, remains to be shown. In this study, we demonstrate that the NSAIDs aspirin, sodium salicylate, diclofenac, ibuprofen, indometacin and sulindac induce a dose-dependent inhibition of proliferation in rat A10 VSMCs in the absence of significant cytotoxicity. Flow cytometric analyses showed that exposure of A10 cells to diclofenac, indometacin, ibuprofen and sulindac, in the presence of the mitotic inhibitor, nocodazole, led to a significant G0/G1 arrest. In contrast, the salicylates failed to induce a significant G1 arrest since flow cytometry profiles were not significantly different from control cells. Cyclin A levels were elevated, and hyperphosphorylated p107 was present at significant levels, in salicylate-treated A10 cells, consistent with a post-G1/S block, whereas cyclin A levels were low, and hypophosphorylated p107 was the dominant form, in cells treated with other NSAIDs consistent with a G1 arrest. The ubiquitously expressed cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors, p21 and p27, were increased in all NSAID-treated cells. Our results suggest that diclofenac, indometacin, ibuprofen and sulindac inhibit VSMC proliferation by arresting the cell cycle in the G1 phase, whereas the growth inhibitory effect of salicylates probably affects the late S and/or G2/M phases. Irrespective of mechanism, our results suggest that NSAIDs might be of benefit in the treatment of certain vasculoproliferative disorders.

[Effects of interleukin 13 on the differentiation and expression of transcription factor c-fos of HEL cells].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of IL-13 on the differentiation and expression of transcription factor c-fos of human erythroleukemia cell line (HEL) cells. METHODS: Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to observe the mRNA expression of IL-13 receptor a 1, GP i b, vWF and c-fos, and Western blot and cytometry were used to analyse their protein expression. RESULTS: IL-13 receptor a 1 was expressed on HEL cells. IL-13 (100 ng/ml ) up-regulated the mRNA expression of GP II b and vWF. The ratio of luminous absorption (LA) of GP I b to p-actin bands ( AB) was 1. 303 in control group, whereas was 2. 912 in experiment group; being 2. 23-fold higher than that in control group (P < 0. 05). The ratio of LA to AB for vWF was 0.217 in control group, and 0. 506 in experiment group; indicating a 2. 33-fold increase in experiment group (P <0. 05). The protein expression of GP I b and vWF was significantly increased in experiment group, compared with that in control group. IL-13 inducing the increased expression of c-fos mRNA and protein of HEL cells peaked at 30 min and 60 min, respectively. The ratio of LA to AB for c-fos was also increased at 30 min and 60 min (P <0. 05). CONCLUSION: IL-13 prompts the differentiation of HEL cells and up-regulates the expression of c-fos.