Research progress of Wallis dynamic stabilization system for lumbar degenerative diseases / 中国骨伤

Wallis dynamic stabilization system is a surgical approach in the non-fusion technique of lumbar spine, consisting of interspinous blockers and dacron artificial ligaments that provide stability to the spine while maintaining a degree of motion in the affected segment. Recent studies have demonstrated the significant benefits of Wallis dynamic stabilization system in treating lumbar degenerative diseases. It not only improves clinical symptoms, but also effectively delays complications such as adjacent segmental degeneration. This paper aims to review the literature related to the Wallis dynamic stabilization system and degenerative diseases of the lumbar spine to describe the long-term prognostic effect of this system in the treatment of such diseases. This review provides a theoretical basis and reference for selecting surgical methods to treat degenerative diseases of the lumbar spine.

Ethylene Enhances Cd Tolerance through Promoting Lignin Synthesis and Reducing Cadmium Absorption and Accumulation in Tomato / 中国生物化学与分子生物学报

Cadmium(Cd) stress seriously inhibits the growth and development of plants, and Cd is enriched in the human body along the food chain, causing major risks to human health. Ethylene(ETH) is known for its role as a traditional plant hormone that plays a crucial part in various stress responses. However, the precise mechanisms by which ETH regulates plant tolerance to Cd remain unclear. In this study, we observed that treatment with 3 mg L

Clinical observation on warm needling moxibustion plus acupoint sticking therapy for cervical radiculopathy / 针灸推拿医学（英文版）

Objective:To observe the clinical effect of warm needling moxibustion plus acupoint sticking therapy for cervical radiculopathy.Methods:A total of 120 cases were allocated into an observation group,a warm needling group and an acupoint sticking group according to the random number table,with 40 cases in each group.Cases in the observation group received warm needling moxibustion plus acupoint sticking therapy;cases in the warm needling group received the same warm needling moxibustion in the observation group;cases in the acupoint sticking group received the same acupoint sticking therapy in the observation group.The scores of Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) and visual analog scale (VAS) were recorded before and after treatment.Results:The total effective rate was 95.0％ in the observation group,versus 77.5％ in the warm needling group and 75.0％ in the acupoint sticking group (both P＜0.05).Inter-group differences in JOA and VAS between the observation group and the other two groups were statistically significant (all P＜0.05).Conclusion:Warm needling moxibustion plus acupoint sticking therapy is effective in treating cervical radiculopathy,and it can significantly alleviate pain and enhance clinical efficacy,and thus is worth clinical popularization.

Promoter methylation of tumor suppressor genes in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma / 癌症

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a prevalent and fatal cancer in China and other Asian countries. Epigenetic silencing of key tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) is critical to ESCC initiation and progression. Recently, many novel TSGs silenced by promoter methylation have been identified in ESCC, and these genes further serve as potential tumor markers for high-risk group stratification, early detection, and prognosis prediction. This review summarizes recent discoveries on aberrant promoter methylation of TSGs in ESCC, providing better understanding of the role of disrupted epigenetic regulation in tumorigenesis and insight into diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for this malignancy.

Antagonistic effects of ultra-low-molecular-weight heparin on Aß25-35-induced apoptosis in cultured rat cortical neurons.

Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) and ultra-low-molecular-weight heparin (ULMWH) are heparin's derivatives, having various pharmacological effects. The present study aims to investigate the effect of ULMWH on amyloid ß peptide (Aß25-35)-induced neurotoxicity in cultured rat cortical neurons, and LMWH was employed as a positive control agent. The neurons were incubated with Aß25-35 (35µM), Aß25-35 plus ULMWH (2, 10, 50 µg/ml) or LMWH (10 µg/ml) for 24h. The cell viability was assessed by MTT and LDH release. FITC-Annexin V/PI double staining, Hoechst 33258 staining, TUNEL and Western blotting for bcl-2 and caspase-3 were employed to measure the neuron apoptosis. Furthermore, the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration was measured by a fluorescent dye, Fura-2/AM. The results showed that ULMWH significantly increased cell viability and the protein expression levels of bcl-2 and decreased the LDH release, the number of apoptotic cells, the concentration of intracellular Ca(2+) and the protein expression levels of caspase-3 in cortical neurons, suggesting that ULMWH can obviously reduce Aß25-35-induced neurotoxic effects and might act as a potential agent for Alzheimer's disease.

Protective effect of ultra low molecular weight heparin on glutamate-induced apoptosis in cortical cells.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of ultra low molecular weight heparin (ULMWH) on glutamate induced apoptosis in rat cortical cells and to explore the possible mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cell viability was measured using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. Apoptosis was first analyzed with Hoechst 33258 and then confirmed by DNA fragmentation. The concentration of free intracellular calcium ([Ca(2+)](i)) was determined with fura-2/AM fluorometry. The expression of Bcl-2 family protein and caspase-3 were evaluated with Western blot. RESULTS: Typical apoptotic morphological change in rat cortical cells treated with 100 micromol/L glutamate for 24h was detected by Hoechst 33258 staining, which was then confirmed by the DNA ladder of agarose gel electrophoresis. The apoptotic rate of the glutamate treated cells was up to 33.21%, and 24 h of treatment with glutamate increased [Ca(2+)](i), down-regulated Bcl-2 expression, up-regulated Bax expression, and increased caspase-3 activation in rat cortical cells. Our research demonstrated that ULMWH pretreatment can prevent the glutamate-induced apoptosis, attenuate the increase of [Ca(2+)](i) not only in medium containing Ca(2+) but also in Ca(2+)-free medium, up-regulate the expression of Bcl-2, down-regulate the expression of Bax, and decrease caspase-3 activation. CONCLUSION: ULMWH has neuroprotective capacity to antagonize glutamate-induced apoptosis in cortical cells, through decrease of Ca(2+) release and modulation of apoptotic processes.

Antagonistic effects of ultra-low-molecular-weight heparin against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats.

Heparin and low-molecular-weight heparin have long been proposed for stroke treatment. This study was conducted to demonstrate the antagonistic effects of ultra-low-molecular-weight heparin (ULMWH) on cerebral ischemic injury in rats and the mechanisms underlying the effects. Male Wistar rats were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 2h followed by reperfusion for 24h. ULMWH (0.5, 1 mg kg(-1), i.v.) was administered after the MCAO and reperfusion. Twenty-four hours after the reperfusion, neurological deficit scores, body weight and infarct volume were assessed. Spectrophotometric assay was used to determine the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and content of malondialdehyde (MDA) of the brain. Furthermore, the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)]i) was measured. The results showed that vein injection of ULMWH at doses of 0.5 and 1.0 mg kg(-1) exerted significant neuroprotective effects on rats with focal cerebral ischemic injury via significantly decreasing neurological deficit scores, increasing body weight, reducing the infarct volume. At the same time, ULMWH significantly decreased MDA content, and increased SOD activity in ischemic brain. Compared with model group, ULMWH decreased the intracellular calcium concentration remarkably. All these findings suggest that ultra-low-molecular-weight heparin might act as a neuroprotective agent useful in the treatment in focal cerebral ischemia.

The relationship between the structure of dermatan sulfate derivatives and their antithrombotic activities.

To study the relationship between the structure of dermatan sulfate (DS) derivatives and their anti-thrombotic activities, DS-derived oligosaccharides (with different structures and relative molecular weight (M(r))) were prepared, and the effects of the DS-derived oligosaccharides on the activities of heparin cofactor II (HCII), activated protein C (APC), blood platelet, and vascular endothelial cells were studied. The major disaccharides of DS and polysulfated dermatan sulfate (PSDS) were IdoA-1-->3-GalNAc-4-OSO(3) and IdoA-2OSO(3)-1-->3-GalNAc4, 6-diOSO(3), respectively. The results showed that the consequence of the thrombotic inhibitory effects of DS and its derivatives were as follows: PSDS>low molecular weight polysulfated dermatan sulfate (LPSDS)>DS. Both DS and PSDS inhibited platelet aggregation in the concentration-dependent manner, and the IC(50) value of DS and PSDS is 12.7+/-1.3 and 28.6+/-0.9 mg/mL, respectively. DS oligosaccharides (DSOSs) and PSDS oligosaccharides (PSDSOSs) both significantly inhibited P-selectin expression on platelet surface (P<0.01), while DSOSs have no different effect compared with PSDSOSs. DSOSs and PSDSOSs significantly enhanced the activity of HCII in inhibiting thrombin in the plasma. The most active PSDSOS was PSDSOS(1) with M(r) of 4959, which enhanced the HCII activity by 91% (P<0.01). The experiments on APC activity showed that DS and its derivatives enhanced APC activity. The most active PSDSOS was PSDSOS(3) with M(r) of 2749, which enhanced the APC activity to 331+/-27% (P<0.01). DSOSs and PSDSOSs enhanced tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) activity and reduced the plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI) activity from cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), resulting in the ratio of t-PA/PAI going up. PSDSOSs which have the same M(r) as DSOSs produced more active effects in above assays, except for platelet aggregation.

Effects of zinc on activity of NOS and expression of nNOS in hippocampus of acute hypoxic mice / 中国应用生理学杂志

<p><b>AIM</b>To explore the effect of zinc on vigor of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and the expression level of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) in the hippocampus of acute hypoxic mice and the protective effects of zinc.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Model of acute hypoxic mice was duplicated, NADPH-d histochemistry and nNOS immunohistochemistry were used to investigate the changes of NOS in different groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the NS group, the hypoxia endurance of the zinc group was significantly increased; the number of NOS positive neurons and nNOS positive neurons in hippocampus and CA1 were significantly decreased.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Zinc might play an important role in decreasing the level of NOS in hippocampus to protect the brain against hypoxic damage.</p>

Protection of lithium on hippocampal cholecystokinin and nitric oxide synthase neuron in lead exposed rats / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of lithium on hippocampal cholecystokinin (CCK) and neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) positive neurons and its relationship to the learning and memory ability of lead exposed rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Wistar rats were randomly divided into the control group, the lead group, four lead + LiCl (3, 30, 300, 3,000 mg/kg) groups. Four lead + LiCl groups were fed with food containing 3, 30, 300, 3,000 mg/kg LiCl respectively. The lead + LiCl groups and the lead group were administered with distilled water containing 0.2% PbAc. The body weight was measured and the difference of body development was observed. Y-maze test was used for studying the effects of lead on the learning and the memory ability in rats. ABC immunohistochemistry was used for investigating the changes of CCK positive neurons in hippocampus of lead-exposed rats.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the control group and the lead + LiCl groups, the learning and memory ability of lead exposed rats was significantly higher (P < 0.05). The number of CCK positive neurons in hippocampus lead exposed rats fed with lithium (3, 30, 300 mg/kg) was significantly higher than that in the lead exposed rats (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The lead may damage the learning-memory ability of the rats. It might be related to the changes of CCK positive neurons in hippocampus in lead exposed rats. The lithium of the low dose might play an important role in preventing lead-induced damages.</p>

Inducible nitric oxide synthase gene expression in the testis of rats instilled with depleted uranium particles / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore genital toxicity of depleted uranium (DU) by studying the changes of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in the testis of rats instilled with DU particles.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Wistar rats were exposed to DU by means of different dosages of DU particles intratracheal instillation. The samples of the testis were collected 3 months later, and iNOS mRNA was determined by reverse-transcription PCR (RT-PCR). Semiquantitative analysis of the RT-PCR products was made with a transilluminator.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>iNOS mRNA was not observed in the control group. Compared with the control, there were significant increases of OD in the PCR products of all the DU groups (P < 0. 05 ); OD rose gradually from the DU 1 mg group to the DU 3 mg group, peaked in the latter, and subsided significantly in the DU 5 mg group (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Intratracheal instilled DU particles play a key role in iNOS mRNA expression of the rat testis. The iNOS mRNA expression will weaken when the DU dosage reaches a certain level, which may attribute to the complex of DU's chemical toxicity and radiation effects.</p>

Effects of dermatan sulfate derivatives on platelet surface P-selectin expression and protein C activity in blood of inflammatory bowel disease patients.

AIM: To investigate the effect of dermatan sulfate (DS) derivatives on platelet surface P-selectin expression and blood activated protein C (APC) activity in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and to clarity the anti-inflammatory mechanism of DS derivatives. METHODS: Dermatan sulfate (DS) was sulfated with chlorosulfonic acid to prepare polysulfated dermatan sulfate (PSDS). The major disaccharides of DS and PSDS were determined by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-NMR) and 13C-NMR. Both DS and PSDS were depolymerized with hydrogen peroxide. The fragments were separated by gel filtration chromatography. The effects of DS derivatives on P-selectin expression were assayed by ELISA method, and blood APC activity was assayed by the synthetic chromogenic substrate method. RESULTS: The major disaccharides of DS and PSDS were IdoA-1-3-GalNAc-4-SO3 and IdoA-2SO3-1-3-GalNAc4, 6-diSO3, respectively. Compared with the adenosine diphosphate stimulated group and IBD control group, DS and its derivatives all had significant inhibitory effects on P-selectin expression (P<0.01), but there was no difference between DS-derived oligosaccharides (DSOSs) and PSDS-derived oligosaccharides (PSDSOSs). The experiments on APC activity showed that DS and its derivatives all enhanced APC activity. The most active DSOS was the one with a relative molecular weight (Mr) of 4,825, which enhanced the APC activity from 106.5+/-11.5% to 181.8+/-22.3% (P<0.01). With the decrease of Mr, the activity of DSOSs decreased gradually. The effect of PSDS on APC activity enhancement was more significant than that of DS, and the APC activity was raised to 205.2+/-22.1% (P<0.01). All the PSDSOSs were more active than DSOSs on the basis of comparable Mr. With the decrease of Mr, the activity of PSDSOSs increased gradually, and the most active PSDSOS was PSDSOS3 with Mr of 2,749, which enhanced the APC activity to 331.2+/-27.8% (P<0.01), then the activity of PSDSOSs decreased gradually. CONCLUSION: DS and its derivatives can significantly inhibit P-selectin expression on platelet surface, but the effect has no correlation with DS molecular mass and sulfation. The effect of DS or its derivatives on APC activity at molecular level involves complex mechanisms that depend on the molecular mass, the degree of sulfation, and the heterogeneous composition of DS. On the same molecular size, the higher the degree of DS sulfation, the more significant the effect on enhancing APC activity.

Inhibitory effect of heparin-derived oligosaccharides on secretion of interleukin-4 and interleukin-5 from human peripheral blood T lymphocytes.

AIM: To investigate the inhibitory effect of heparin-derived oligosaccharides (Oligs) on secretion of interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-5 (IL-5) from human peripheral blood T lymphocytes (PBTLs). METHODS: Oligs were prepared by three different heparin depolymerization methods and separated by gel filtration chromatography. PBTLs from ten adult patients with allergic eosinophilic gastroenteritis were treated with phytahematoagglutinin (PHA) and Oligs. The supernatants from the cell culture of PBTLs were harvested and subjected to the determination of IL-4 and IL-5 contents by ELISA method. RESULTS: At the concentration of 5 microg/mL, Oligs with different Mr had different effects on the secretion of IL-4 and IL-5. The tetrasaccharide with Mr of 1,142, produced by depolymerizing heparin with hydrogen peroxide, had the strongest inhibitory effect on the secretion of IL-4. It decreased the IL-4 content from 375.6+/-39.2 ng/L (PHA group) to 12.5+/-5.7 ng/L (P<0.01). The hexasaccharide with Mr of 1,806, produced by depolymerizing heparin with beta-elimination method, had the strongest inhibitory effect on the secretion of IL-5. It decreased the IL-5 content from 289.2+/-33.4 ng/L (PHA group) to 22.0+/-5.2 ng/L (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: The inhibitory activity of Oligs on the secretion of IL-4 and IL-5 from human PBTLs closely depends on their molecular structure, and there may be an essential structure to act as an inhibitor. The most effective inhibitors of IL-4 and IL-5 secretion are tetrasaccharides and hexasaccharides, respectively.

Protection of zinc on hippocampal cholecystokinin of lead-exposed rat / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the relationship between the effects of zinc on hippocampal cholecystokinin (CCK) positive neurons and learning and memory ability of lead-exposed rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Thirty-six Wistar rats were divided into control group, lead-exposed group (drunk 6.15 mmol/L of lead solution) and lead-zinc group (drunk 6.15 mmol/L of lead + 3.10 mmol/L of ZnSO(4) solution) randomly. Y-maze test was used to study learning and memory ability in rats; Atomic absorption method was used to determine serum and hippocampal lead content; ABC immunohistochemistry and quantitative graphic analysis were used to investigate the changes of CCK positive neurons in different hippocampal subfields in lead-exposed rats.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The learning and memory ability in lead-exposed rats were significantly lower (P < 0.05) while the serum and hippocampal lead content in lead-exposed rat were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than those in control and lead-zinc group. The number and optical density of CCK positive neurons in CA(1) and CA(3) areas of lead-exposed rats were significantly lower (P < 0.05) than those in control and lead-zinc group. No differences in these indexes between the control and lead-zinc group were found (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Lead may damage the learning and memory ability and affect the number of CCK positive neurons in lead-exposed rats. Zinc might play an important role in preventing lead-induced damages.</p>

Effects of lithium on primary cultured cerebrocortical neurons of rat / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the neuroprotection and the impact on brain development of lithium, the effects of lithium salt on the growth and survival of primary cultured cerebrocortical neurons were studied.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The technique of primary cultured cerebrocortical neurons of newborn rats with serum-free medium was established, and the growth and survival of neurons treated with different doses of lithium chloride (0.625, 1.250, 2.500, 5.000, 10.000 mmol/L) were observed. The length of neuronal synapse, cell viability by MTT reduction assay were also measured.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The neurons were brighter, germinated rapidly, the neuronal synapse lengthened markedly, and the neurons viability was also better after treated with lithium chloride. Among the five doses, 5.000 mmol/L had the best effect [(53.80 +/- 5.84) micro m, P < 0.01].</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Lithium chloride can promote the growth and survival of neurons.</p>

Effect of taurine on NOS activity in hippocampus of rat exposed lead / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of taurine on lead-induced damage to the ability of learning and memory.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Using NADPH-d histochemistry method to study the change of rat NOS positive neurons in hippocampus. Rats in experimental groups were fed with different doses of lead in drinking water (0.011, 0.110 g/L), and different doses of taurine (5, 10 g/kg).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Taurine (10 g/kg) could increase the number of NOS positive neurons in CA1 and dentate gyrus subregion in hippocampus of rats exposed to lead. The number of NADPH-d positive neurons in CA1 and dentate gyrus subregion for low lead (0.011 g/L) and high taurine (10 g/kg) group (51.80 +/- 4.68, 47.40 +/- 4.20, respectively) were higher than those in the low lead (0.011 g/L) group (41.20 +/- 5.32, 39.87 +/- 3.81, respectively, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Taurine may antagonize lead-induced damage to the ability of learning and memory.</p>