[Adverse cardiovascular effects of antiretrovirals in female mice during gestation].

Objective: To evaluate the effects of antiretrovirals on cardiovascular function and some biochemical indexes in gestational female rats. Methods: Nineteen 9-week-old female and six 10-week-old male SD rats were divided into normal control group (CON) and highly active antiretroviral therapy group (HARRT), 9/10 female rats and 3 male rats were combined into one cage, totally 2 cages. Female rats in CON group were intragastrically given with normal saline (NS, 10 ml/kg) every morning and evening, while female rats in HARRT group were treated with equal volume antiretrovirals (AZT 31.25 mg/kg + 3TC 15.63 mg/kg + LPV/r (41.67/10.42) mg/kg) for 3 months. The body weight and survival rate of female rats were recorded. Echocardiography and multichannel physiological recorder were used to detect arterial blood pressure and cardiac hemodynamic parameters. The levels of blood glucose, blood lipids, myocardial enzymes and liver enzymes were detected by corresponding kits. Myocardial collagen fibers were observed by Masson staining and the ultrastructure of myocardial cells were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Results: All female rats in CON group survived (9/9), while only 6 rats in HARRT group survived (6/10). Compared with CON group, the body weight of female rats in HAART group was decreased significantly(P＜0.01); the levels of left ventricular end diastolic diameter (LVDd), interventricular septal thickness (IVST), thickness of left ventricular posterior wall (LVPWT) , left atrial diameter (LAD) and arterial diastolic pressure were increased significantly (P＜0.05); the level of LVP+dP/dtmax was decreased (P＜0.01). The levels of triglyceride, creatine kinase, and glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase were decreased (P＜0.05 or P＜0.01), while the level of glucose was increased (P＜0.05). The collagen fibers were increased in myocardial tissue, and ultrastructure of myocardial cells was abnormal. Conclusion: Antiretrovirals during gestation can cause cardiovascular diseases in female rats.

Complete plastid genome of Dendrobium naungmungense (Orchidaceae).

Dendrobium is one of the most important genera in Orchidaceae. In this study, we used the next-generation sequencing technology and assembled a complete plastid genome of a recently published new species of Dendrobium, D. naungmungense. The plastome was 151,883 bp in length, containing a large single-copy region (LSC) of 87,189 bp, and a small single-copy region (SSC) of 12,150 bp, and two inverted repeat regions (IR) of 26,272 bp. A total of 123 genes were predicted, including 38 tRNA genes, 8 rRNA genes, and 77 protein-coding genes. Phylogenetic analysis of 44 representative plastome of the genus Dendrobium and outgroup suggested D. naungmungense to be sister to Dendrobium wardianum.

Au nanoparticle monolayers: preparation, structural conversion and their surface-enhanced Raman scattering effects.

An environment-friendly method is developed to fabricate close-packed Au nanoparticle (AuNP) monolayers with sub-10 nm interparticle spacing simply by covering n-butanol on the surface of an Au aqueous colloid. The close-packed nanostructure can further transform into two-dimensional (2D) aggregates with different aggregation degrees upon aging for several days. This structural evolution process was disclosed by transition electron microscopy (TEM) and UV-vis spectroscopy and its influence on the ensemble optical properties was further demonstrated by surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). It was revealed that creating sub-10 nm interparticle spacing and particle dimers are highly desirable for engendering strong SERS activity under a 632.8 nm excitation. Further aging the film leads to the formation of larger aggregates, which moves the surface plasmon resonance of the aggregates gradually 'off-resonance' from the 632.8 nm excitation line and costs some numbers of sub-10 nm interparticle spacings. The two parameters together decrease the SERS activity of the close-packed AuNP monolayers. The present strategy thus provides an easy way to finely tune the SERS properties of thin nanoparticle films and other ensemble properties, which can easily be realized by creating sub-10 interparticle spacing, controlling the particle aggregation degree and by adopting suitable particle sizes and shapes.

Impact factors for microinvasion in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: possible application to the definition of clinical tumor volume.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the degree of invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) microscopically that will provide a potential application for gross tumor volume to clinical tumor volume (GTV-to-CTV) expansion. METHODS AND MATERIALS: From January 2002 to January 2006, 149 HCC patients were selected from those who had undergone surgical resection. Pathology slides and clinical data of all patients were reviewed, including platelet counts, serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels, degree of liver cirrhosis, tumor size, capsular status, portal vein invasion, TNM stage, and histologic tumor grade. The distance between the tumor margin (or fibrous capsule) and the invasive lesions was measured by senior pathologists. RESULTS: Of these 149 patients, 79 (53.0%) patients presented with tumor microinvasion between 0.5 and 4 mm. This degree of microinvasion was inversely correlated with lower platelet counts and positively correlated with higher AFP levels, larger tumor sizes, portal vein invasion, and advanced TNM stage. Microinvasion distances less than or equal to 2 mm were found in 96.1% of patients (74/77) with tumor dimensions less than or equal to 5 cm and in 94.5% of patients (85/90) with AFP levels less than 400 microg/l. CONCLUSIONS: Based on our study findings, GTV-to-CTV expansions of 4 mm for HCC are required to conceal the gross tumor and any microscopic disease with 100% accuracy. Tumor size and AFP levels are the simplest indicators for determining the GTV-to-CTV distance for HCC.

Rapid fabrication of large-area nanoparticle monolayer films via water-induced interfacial assembly.

Close-packed nanoparticle monolayer films have been assembled at the water/toluene interface, and they can be transferred onto various hydrophilic solid substrates. The method involves adding alcohol and then toluene (when the dispersant is itself alcohol, only toluene was added) into a hydrophilic nanoparticle dispersion, and then a large quantity of distilled water was rapidly poured into the mixed system. Simultaneously, nanoparticles in the dispersion were extracted to the water/toluene interface, forming a thin film with a metallic sheen. The close-packed structures of these thin films were verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterizations. This method can work well for those hydrophilic nanoparticles without strongly bonded stabilizers, such as citrate-stabilized Au nanoparticles, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-stabilized Pt or Ag nanoparticles, and SiO(2) microspheres. Large-area nanoparticle monolayer films (e.g., more than 200 cm(2)) could be prepared in less than 10 s. Due to its inherent simplicity and speed, the method should be of significance for the nanofilm industry.

Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells detect light with a vitamin A-based photopigment, melanopsin.

In mammals, intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) mediate non-image-forming visual functions such as pupillary light reflex (PLR) and circadian photoentrainment. This photosensitivity requires melanopsin, an invertebrate opsin-like protein expressed by the ipRGCs. The precise role of melanopsin remains uncertain. One suggestion has been that melanopsin may be a photoisomerase, serving to regenerate an unidentified pigment in ipRGCs. This possibility was echoed by a recent report that melanopsin is expressed also in the mouse retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a key center for regeneration of rod and cone pigments. To address this question, we studied mice lacking RPE65, a protein essential for the regeneration of rod and cone pigments. Rpe65-/- ipRGCs were approximately 20- to 40-fold less photosensitive than normal at both single-cell and behavioral (PLR) levels but were rescued by exogenous 9-cis-retinal (an 11-cis-retinal analog), indicating the requirement of a vitamin A-based chromophore for ipRGC photosensitivity. In contrast, 9-cis-retinal was unable to restore intrinsic photosensitivity to melanopsin-ablated ipRGCs, arguing against melanopsin functioning merely in photopigment regeneration. Interestingly, exogenous all-trans-retinal was also able to rescue the low sensitivity of rpe65-/- ipRGCs, suggesting that melanopsin could be a bistable pigment. Finally, we detected no melanopsin in the RPE and no changes in rod and cone sensitivities due to melanopsin ablation. Together, these results strongly suggest that melanopsin is the photopigment in the ipRGCs.