Therapeutic effects of menstrual blood-derived endometrial stem cells on mouse models of streptozotocin-induced type 1 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Type 1 diabetes (T1D), a chronic metabolic and autoimmune disease, seriously endangers human health. In recent years, mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation has become an effective treatment for diabetes. Menstrual blood-derived endometrial stem cells (MenSC), a novel MSC type derived from the decidual endometrium during menstruation, are expected to become promising seeding cells for diabetes treatment because of their noninvasive collection procedure, high proliferation rate and high immunomodulation capacity. AIM: To comprehensively compare the effects of MenSC and umbilical cord-derived MSC (UcMSC) transplantation on T1D treatment, to further explore the potential mechanism of MSC-based therapies in T1D, and to provide support for the clinical application of MSC in diabetes treatment. METHODS: A conventional streptozotocin-induced T1D mouse model was established, and the effects of MenSC and UcMSC transplantation on their blood glucose and serum insulin levels were detected. The morphological and functional changes in the pancreas, liver, kidney, and spleen were analyzed by routine histological and immunohistochemical examinations. Changes in the serum cytokine levels in the model mice were assessed by protein arrays. The expression of target proteins related to pancreatic regeneration and apoptosis was examined by western blot. RESULTS: MenSC and UcMSC transplantation significantly improved the blood glucose and serum insulin levels in T1D model mice. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed that the numbers of insulin+ and CD31+ cells in the pancreas were significantly increased in MSC-treated mice compared with control mice. Subsequent western blot analysis also showed that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), Bcl2, Bcl-xL and Proliferating cell nuclear antigen in pancreatic tissue was significantly upregulated in MSC-treated mice compared with control mice. Additionally, protein arrays indicated that MenSC and UcMSC transplantation significantly downregulated the serum levels of interferon γ and tumor necrosis factor α and upregulated the serum levels of interleukin-6 and VEGF in the model mice. Additionally, histological and immunohistochemical analyses revealed that MSC transplantation systematically improved the morphologies and functions of the liver, kidney, and spleen in T1D model mice. CONCLUSION: MenSC transplantation significantly improves the symptoms in T1D model mice and exerts protective effects on their main organs. Moreover, MSC-mediated angiogenesis, antiapoptotic effects and immunomodulation likely contribute to the above improvements. Thus, MenSC are expected to become promising seeding cells for clinical diabetes treatment due to their advantages mentioned above.

Anatomical mechanism of spontaneous recovery in regions caudal to thoracic spinal cord injury lesions in rats.

BACKGROUND: The nerve fibre circuits around a lesion play a major role in the spontaneous recovery process after spinal cord hemisection in rats. The aim of the present study was to answer the following question: in the re-control process, do all spinal cord nerves below the lesion site participate, or do the spinal cord nerves of only one vertebral segment have a role in repair? METHODS: First we made a T7 spinal cord hemisection in 50 rats. Eight weeks later, they were divided into three groups based on distinct second operations at T7: ipsilateral hemisection operation, contralateral hemisection, or transection. We then tested recovery of hindlimbs for another eight weeks. The first step was to confirm the lesion had role or not in the spontaneous recovery process. Secondly, we performed T7 spinal cord hemisections in 125 rats. Eight weeks later, we performed a second single hemisection on the ipsilateral side at T8-T12 and then tested hindlimb recovery for another six weeks. RESULTS: In the first part, the Basso, Beattie, Bresnahan (BBB) scores and the electrophysiology tests of both hindlimbs weren't significantly different after the second hemisection of the ipsilateral side. In the second part, the closer the second hemisection was to T12, the more substantial the resulting impairment in BBB score tests and prolonged latency periods. CONCLUSIONS: The nerve regeneration from the lesion area after hemisection has no effect on spontaneous recovery of the spinal cord. Repair is carried out by all vertebrae caudal and ipsilateral to the lesion, with T12 being most important.

[Impact of premature rupture of membranes on neonatal complications in preterm infants with gestational age <37 weeks].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of premature rupture of the membrane (PROM) on neonatal complications in premature infants. METHODS: The registration information of 7684 preterm infants with gestational age <37 weeks were collected from the cooperative units in the task group between January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. Specially trained personnel from each cooperative units filled in the unified form in a standardized format to record the gender, gestational age, birth weight, PROM, placental abruption, antenatal corticosteroid, Apgar score, amniotic fluid pollution, and complications of the infants. The data were analyzed comparatively between the cases with PROM and those without (control). RESULTS: The preterm mortality rate was significantly lower but the incidences of ICH, NEC, ROP and BPD were significantly higher in PROM group than in the control group (P<0.05). The 95% confidence interval of the OR value was <1 for mortality, and was >1 for ICH, NEC, ROP and BPD. After adjustment for gestational age, birth weight, gender, mode of delivery, placental abruption, placenta previa, prenatal hormones, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), gestational period hypertension and 5-min Apgar score <7, the incidences of NEC, ROP and BPD were significantly different between the two groups (P<0.05) with 95% confidence interval of OR value >1, but the mortality rate and incidence of ICH were not significantly different between the two groups (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: PROM is a risk factor for NEC, ROP and BPD in preterm infants, and adequate intervention of PROM can reduce the incidences of such complications as NEC, ROP and BPD in the infants.

Complement C4 induces regulatory T cells differentiation through dendritic cell in systemic lupus erythematosus.

BACKGROUND: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a prototypic systemic autoimmune disease. Complement component 4 (C4) has be proved to play a role in pathogenesis of SLE. In the present study, we investigated the effect of C4 on T cells differentiation. METHODS: Thirty SLE patients were included in this study. CD4+ T cells were isolated from healthy subjects, and dendritic cells (DCs) were isolated from healthy subjects or SLE patients. C4 was supplemented to co-incubate with T cells and DCs. RESULTS: Serum C4 concentration was positively correlated with regulatory T cell (Treg) percentage (R(2) = 0.5907, p < 0.001) and TGFß concentration (R(2) = 0.5641, p < 0.001) in SLE patients. Different concentrations of C4 had no effect on T cells differentiation. Co-incubated T cells with DCs and C4 for 7 days, the Treg percentage and TGF-ß concentration were significantly elevated. In addition, pre-treated DCs (from healthy subjects or SLE patients) with C4 and then co-incubated with T cells, the increases of Treg percentage and TGF-ß concentration were also observed. CONCLUSION: C4 takes part in T cells differentiation to Treg cells via DCs.

Xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group f polymorphisms influence risk of glioma.

We conducted an exploratory investigation of whether variation in six common SNPs of xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group F (XPF) is associated with risk of glioma in a Chinese population. Six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped in 207 glioma cases and 236 cancer-free controls by a 384-well plate format on the Sequenom MassARRAY platform (Sequenom, San Diego, USA). The rs1800067 G and rs2276466 G allele frequencies were significantly higher in the glioma group than controls. Individuals with the rs1800067 GG genotype were at greater risk of glioma when compared with the A/A genotype in the codominant model, with an OR (95% CI) of 2.63 (1.04-7.25). The rs2276466 polymorphism was significantly associated with moderate increased risk of glioma in codominant and dominant models, with ORs (95% CI) of 1.90 (1.05-3.44) and 1.55 (1.07-2.47), respectively. The combination genotype of rs1800067 G and rs2276466 G alleles was associated with a reduced risk of glioma (OR=0.44, 95% CI=0.19-0.98). These findings indicate that genetic variants of the XPF gene have critical functions in the development of glioma.

IDH1 mutation is associated with improved overall survival in patients with glioblastoma: a meta-analysis.

Previous studies proposed that isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutation was associated with improved survival in patients with glioblastoma, but those studies reported varying estimates and yielded inconclusive results. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effect of IDH1 mutation on the prognosis of patients with glioblastoma by performing a meta-analysis. Pubmed and Embase databases were searched for eligible studies. Studies reporting overall survival by IDH1 mutation in patients with glioblastoma were considered potentially eligible for the meta-analysis. For the quantitative aggregation of the survival results, the IDH mutation effect was measured by the pooled hazard ratio (HR) with its 95% confidence interval (95%CI). Nine studies with a total of 1,669 patients with glioblastoma were finally included into this meta-analysis. Overall, the IDH1 mutation was associated with improved survival in patients with glioblastoma (random effects model HR = 0.45, 95%CI 0.29-0.69, P < 0.001). Sensitivity analysis further showed that the pooled estimates were stable in this meta-analysis. Therefore, the findings from this meta-analysis suggest that IDH1 mutation is associated with improved overall survival in patients with glioblastoma.

Prevalence of adjacent segment degeneration after spine surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review of published prevalence of adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) after spine surgery. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of ASD in patients after cervical and lumbar spine surgery. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: ASD is a common complication after spine surgery in long-term follow-up. A large body of literature has been reported on the topic, but no meta-analysis of the epidemiological data on ASD has been published METHODS: We searched the MEDLINE until March 2012 published in English language that reported the prevalence of ASD after spine surgery. We determined the ASD rates by calculating proportions and 95% confidence interval (CI) for each study and then pooled the data to derive a pooled proportion and 95% CI. RESULTS: A total of 94 studies with 34,716 patients from 19 countries were included. The occurrence of radiograph ASD ranged from 4.8% to 92.2%, and the pooled prevalence was 29.3% (95% CI, 22.7%-35.8%) by the random-effects model. The occurrence of symptoms ASD ranged from 0.0% to 30.3%, and the pooled prevalence was 7.4% (95% CI, 6.4%-8.5%). In cervical position, the occurrence of radiograph ASD and symptoms ASD was 32.8% (95% CI, 17.8%-47.9%) and 6.3% (95% CI, 4.8%-7.8%); in lumbar position, the occurrence of radiograph ASD and symptoms ASD was 26.6% (95% CI, 21.3%-31.9%) and 8.5% (95% CI, 6.4%-10.7%). In the 0.5- to 2- or less, more than 2- to 5- or less, and more than 5- to 20- or less year diagnosis time, the radiograph ASD prevalence was 21.8% (16.0%-27.6%), 33.6% (21.8%-45.4%), and 37.4% (10.7%-64.1%), respectively; and the symptoms ASD prevalence was 6.5% (4.8%-8.1%), 12.1% (8.2%-16.0%), and 3.2% (2.5%-4.0%), respectively. CONCLUSION: Spine surgery is associated with significant risk of ASD. These figures may be useful in the estimation of the burden of the ASD after spine surgery.

Synthesis of benzimidazoles containing pyrazole group and quantum chemistry calculation of their spectroscopic properties and electronic structure.

Five benzimidazole compounds containing pyrazole group were synthesized via one-step reaction of o-phenylenediamine and 1-arylpyrazole-4-carbaldehyde in ethanol under mild conditions. The composition and structure of resultant benzimidazole compounds were analyzed by means of elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, (1)H-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and X-ray single crystal diffraction. The ultraviolet-visible light spectra and fluorescent spectra of the products were measured. Their ground-state (S(0)) equilibrium geometries and vibrational frequencies were determined based on B3LYP method, and their first excited-state (S(1)) geometries were fully optimized based on 6-31G (d, p) basis set of TD-B3LYP method. Besides, the spectroscopic properties of the products were computed based on cc-pVTZ basis set of TD-B3LYP method and compared with corresponding experimental data. It has been found that benzimidazole compounds containing pyrazole group can be readily synthesized in a high yield via one-step reaction of o-phenylenediamine and 1-arylpyrazole-4-carbaldehyde in ethanol solvent. The fluorescence properties of the five synthesized compounds are closely related to their molecular structure; and their computed fluorescence spectra well correspond to their experimental values. Moreover, they have stable structure and strong fluorescence, showing potential application in time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay and DNA probe.

Effects of photodynamic therapy on the ultrastructure of glioma cells.

OBJECTIVE: To study the change in ultrastructure of C6 glioma cells after photodynamic therapy (PDT), to compare morphological differences in necrosis and apoptosis before and after PDT treatment, and to evaluate the effect of photodynamic therapy on the blood brain tumor barrier (BTB) of C6 glioma. METHODS: The model was produced by transplanting C6 glioma cells cultured in vitro using Peterson method into the caudate nuclei of Wister rats. The experiment group received PDT for two weeks after the operation. The sub-cellular structure, blood-brain-barrier (BBB) and BTB in both groups were observed under electron microscope. RESULTS: Apoptosis in different phases and necrosis could be observed in some C6 glioma cells. Swelling occurred on the ultrastructure of cellular organs such as mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum in most of the cells. Damage to the BTB, reduction of the number of cellular organs in endothelial cells of the capillary blood vessels, stretch of the tight junction, and enlargement of the gaps between endothelial cells were also seen in the experiment group. Meanwhile, limited impact on the normal sub-cellular structures and BBB was observed. CONCLUSION: PDT could induce apoptosis and necrosis of C6 glioma cells due to the damage to the ultrastructure of mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum. The weakened function of C6 glioma BTB initiated by PDT makes it possible to perform a combined therapy of PDT and chemotherapy for glioma.

[Application of reversed digital artery cross-finger flap with a compound skin pedicle].

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the application of reversed digital artery cross-finger flap with a compound skin pedicle in soft tissue defect of hand. METHODS: From October 1997, 35 fingers of 30 cases, with soft tissue defect at the dorsal side of digital interphalangeal joint and at the fingertips, were repaired by the reversed artery cross-finger flap with a compound skin pedicle, 1.5 cm x 1.0 cm to 2.0 cm x 2.0 cm in size. All of the cases were followed up for 1-6 months and evaluated clinically. RESULTS: All of the flaps survived, with a good texture and no swelling; and there was no adverse side effect on the donor site. CONCLUSION: Reversed digital artery cross-finger flap with a compound skin pedicle is a good option to repair the soft tissue defect of hand.