Oral sulfate solution versus polyethylene glycol for colonoscopy bowel preparation: a randomized controlled study in phase Ⅲ / 中华消化内镜杂志

Objective:To compare the efficacy of oral sulfate solution (OSS) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) electrolyte powder for colonoscopy bowel preparation.Methods:A total of 283 randomized patients from 9 centers in China taking OSS ( n=143) or PEG ( n=140) using two-day split bowel preparation regimen received colonoscopy and assessment. The primary index was the bowel preparation success rate [global Boston bowel preparation scale (BBPS)≥ 6 by independent assessment center]. Secondary indices included BBPS global and segmental scores, investigator satisfaction (5-point Likert scale) with the quality of bowel preparation, patient satisfaction assessed by questionnaires, and patient tolerance assessed by Sharma scale. Compliance and safety were compared between the two groups. Results:The bowel preparation success rates were 100.0% for OSS and 99.3% for PEG [adjusted difference 0.7% (95% CI: -5.3% - 6.7%), P<0.001 for non-inferiority]. The BBPS global score in OSS group was significantly higher than that in PEG group (8.1 VS 7.7, P<0.001). The segment BBPS scores were also higher in OSS group than those in PEG group for all 3 segments (right colon: 2.4 VS 2.3, P=0.002; transverse colon: 2.8 VS 2.7, P=0.018; left colon: 2.8 VS 2.7, P=0.007). Investigator Likert score in the OSS group was significantly higher than that in the PEG group (2.6 VS 2.3, P<0.001). There was no significant difference in compliance between OSS and PEG, except for the second dose (90.9% VS 82.6%, P=0.039). There was no significant difference in patient satisfaction, Sharma score or proportion of patients with tolerance-related symptoms between the two groups. Safety was comparable between the two groups, and all adverse events were mild to moderate. Conclusion:OSS has comparable efficacy with PEG, with higher BBPS scores in all segments, better investigator satisfaction, better compliance in split dose, and comparable patient tolerance and safety.

Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Affect Efficacy of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors for Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Manifestations and Mechanisms / 肿瘤防治研究

The number of patients with the combination of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is gradually increasing. In recent years, the immunotherapy has become a new effective way to treat unresectable HCC. The clinical research revealed that the NAFLD could affect the efficacy of immunotherapy treating the HCC. But the mechanism is complicated. The major routes are CD8+PD-1+T cells increasing in NAFLD cause the deficiency in cell proliferation ability; Zn64 activates the anti-tumor immune response of the CSF1; PCSK9 downregulates the LDLR level to suppress the immune response of the CD8+T cells in tumor microenvironment; loss of the immune response induces the liver damage. Researches had indicated that the combination of lenvatinib, PKCa inhibitor, PCSK9 protein inhibition, ferroptosis inducer, and HIF2a small molecule inhibitor can improve the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors for NAFLD-associated hepatocellular carcinoma. This review focuses on the impact of NAFLD on tumor microenvironment and how the NAFLD affect the immune check-point inhibitor effect and to discover the exact mechanism.

A preliminary study on the teaching mode of constructivism in physical diagnostics teaching / 中华医学教育探索杂志

The efficacy of constructivism teaching mode in physical diagnostics teaching was evaluated in this study. We built up the constructivism teaching mode in diagnostics teaching taking the clinical symptoms as the theme, and through such aspects as courseware design, teaching plan preparation, SP playing and inquiry, SimMan simulated physical examination, condition analysis, etc. Then questionnaires were conducted to analyze the role of the constructivism teaching mode in diagnostics teaching. The diagnostics constructivism teaching mode can provide students with a platform for self-construction of diagnostics and integrated application of knowledge. Meanwhile, students' sense of participation can be improved and multiple learning skills are enhanced during the course.

Gene chip technology used in the detection of HPV infection in esophageal cancer of Kazakh Chinese in Xinjiang Province / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

This study was aimed to screen human papillomavirus (HPV) types associated with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma of Kazakh in Xinjiang using the gene chip technique and study the clinical significance of this application. The DNAs were collected from esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissues and healthy esophageal mucosa of Kazakh adults in Xinjiang, and amplified firstly using HPV MY09/11 and then using HPV G5+/6+ to screen positive HPV specimens. These positive specimens were further detected by the gene chip technique to screen highly pathogenic HPV types. After determination with nested PCR amplification with HPV MY09/11 and G5+/6+, the infection rate of HPV was 66.67% in the esophageal squamous cell carcinoma group and 12.12% in the healthy control group. By testing the positive HPV specimens from the esophageal squamous cell carcinoma group, the infection rate of HPV16 was 97.72% and the co-infection rate of HPV16 and HPV18 was 2.27%. HPV16 infection may be involved in the development of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in Xinjiang Hazakh adults.

Gene chip technology used in the detection of HPV infection in esophageal cancer of Kazakh Chinese in Xinjiang Province / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

This study was aimed to screen human papillomavirus (HPV) types associated with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma of Kazakh in Xinjiang using the gene chip technique and study the clinical significance of this application. The DNAs were collected from esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissues and healthy esophageal mucosa of Kazakh adults in Xinjiang, and amplified firstly using HPV MY09/11 and then using HPV G5+/6+ to screen positive HPV specimens. These positive specimens were further detected by the gene chip technique to screen highly pathogenic HPV types. After determination with nested PCR amplification with HPV MY09/11 and G5+/6+, the infection rate of HPV was 66.67% in the esophageal squamous cell carcinoma group and 12.12% in the healthy control group. By testing the positive HPV specimens from the esophageal squamous cell carcinoma group, the infection rate of HPV16 was 97.72% and the co-infection rate of HPV16 and HPV18 was 2.27%. HPV16 infection may be involved in the development of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in Xinjiang Hazakh adults.

Expression and clinical significance of nerve growth factor in primary liver cancer / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To determine the expression of nerve growth factor (NGF) in hepatic tissues and serum of patients with primary liver cancer (PLC), and to investigate the relationship of serum NGF levels with clinicopathological features of PLC.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) samples and patient-matched tumor-adjacent liver samples were collected from 26 PLC patients to assess the mRNA and protein expressions of NGF by reverse transcription-PCR, western blotting (b-actin normalized), and immunohistochemistry. In addition, serum samples were collected from 40 PLC patients, 40 liver cirrhosis patients, 40 chronic hepatitis patients (including hepatitis B or C virus infections), and 30 healthy (normal) controls. The serum levels of NGF were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Intergroup differences were assessed by the t-test, and correlation with sex, age, presence of cirrhosis, tumor size, and TNM classification were assessed by the Kruskal-Wallis H test followed the Mann-Whitney U test.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>HCC tissues showed higher mRNA and protein expressions of NGF than the corresponding tumor-adjacent non-HCC tissues. Hepatic NGF expression was mainly localized to the tumor cell cytoplasm. Serum NGF expression was significantly higher in PLC patients (33.86+/-16.11 pg/ml) and cirrhosis patients (20.57+/-9.73 pg/ml) than in normal controls (11.13+/-6.12 pg/ml) and chronic hepatitis patients (13.20+/-6.23 pg/ml) (P less than 0.01). Furthermore, when the PLC patients were stratified according to tumor size and TNM stage, the serum NGF level was found to be significantly higher in patients with tumors more than 5 cm (vs. less than 5 cm; U=83.000, P=0.002) or of TNM stage III/IV (vs. stage I/II; U=103.500, P=0.009).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Elevated expression of NGF in liver cancer tissues and serum of PLC patients is related with tumor size and TNM staging. These findings suggest that NGF may play a role in HCC tumorigenesis and/or that serum NGF may represent a prognostic marker of PLC.</p>

New candidate tumor-suppressor gene KLF6 and its splice variant KLF6 SV2 counterbalancing expression in primary hepatocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: This study aimed to detect the expression of newly discovered zinc finger transcriptional factor KLF6 and its splice variant KLF6 SV2 in primary hepatocarcinoma (PHC) tissues and hepatoma cell strains, and to evaluate their clinicopathologic relationship with PHC. METHODOLOGY: Wild-type KLF6 and KLF6 SV2 mRNA expression was determined by RTPCR in 27 cases of PHC tissues and cell strains of HepG2, SMMC7721 and LO2. Western blotting and immunohistochemical staining were adopted to detect KLF6 protein expression. Positive area ratio of wild-type KLF6 protein expression and its relationship with clinicopathological parameters of PHC was analyzed. RESULTS: Wild-type KLF6 expression in PHC tissues was lower than that in paracancerous tissues. In contrast, KLF6 SV2 mRNA expression was higher in PHC tissues and hepatoma cell strains (p<0.05). Positive area ratio of wild-type KLF6 protein expression was positively correlated with cellular differentiation degree of PHC (p<0.01), but negatively correlated not only with liver cirrhosis, tumor size and extrahepatic metastases (p<0.01), but also with portal vein thrombus and the number of lymph nodes with metastasis (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Wild-type KLF6 deletion and inactivation was involved in the growth, cell differentiation and other physiological processes of PHC. The upregulation of KLF6 splice variant might counterbalance the wildtype KLF6 and contribute to the occurrence and development of PHC.

Expression of metadherin/AEG-1 gene is positively related to orientation chemotaxis and adhesion of human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines of different metastatic potentials / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

Metastasis contributes to the poor prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the mechanism through which a primary HCC cell develops into a metastatic phenotype is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlation between metadherin (MTDH)/astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) expression in HCC cell lines of different metastatic potentials and such metastatic phenotypes as orientation chemotaxis and adhesion. MTDH/AEG-1 expression was detected by RT-PCR and western blotting in HCC cell lines (HepG2, Huh7, Sk-HEP-1, MHCC-97H). Distribution of MTDH/AEG-1 was observed by immunofluorescence staining and confocal laser scanning microscopy. The abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion and the index of interaction between HCC cell lines and microvascular endothelial cell lines (MVECs, including HUVECs and HPMECs) were measured by chemotaxis assay and adhesion assay, respectively. The results showed that MTDH/AEG-1 protein expression was significantly higher in high metastatic potential cancer cell lines (Sk-HEP-1, MHCC-97H) than in low metastatic potential cell lines (HepG2, Huh7) (P<0.05). The MTDH/AEG-1 protein was localized in the perinuclear region of HCC cells. Furthermore, the abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion of HCC cells to HPMECs were increased as compared with those of HCC cells to HUVECs (P<0.05). The abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion were much stronger in Sk-HEP-1 and MHCC-97H cells with MTDH/AEG-1 highly expressed than in HepG2 and Huh7 cells with MTDH/AEG-1 lowly expressed (P<0.05). These results suggested that the expression of MTDH/AEG-1 gene in HCC cell lines of different metastatic potentials was closely positively related to the abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion of HCC cells. It was deduced that MTDH/AEG-1 might play a pivotal role in the lung-specific metastasis of HCC, which may be mediated through orientation chemotaxis and adhesion abilities of HCC cells. MTDH/AEG-1 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for HCC.

Expression of metadherin/AEG-1 gene is positively related to orientation chemotaxis and adhesion of human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines of different metastatic potentials / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

Metastasis contributes to the poor prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the mechanism through which a primary HCC cell develops into a metastatic phenotype is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlation between metadherin (MTDH)/astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) expression in HCC cell lines of different metastatic potentials and such metastatic phenotypes as orientation chemotaxis and adhesion. MTDH/AEG-1 expression was detected by RT-PCR and western blotting in HCC cell lines (HepG2, Huh7, Sk-HEP-1, MHCC-97H). Distribution of MTDH/AEG-1 was observed by immunofluorescence staining and confocal laser scanning microscopy. The abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion and the index of interaction between HCC cell lines and microvascular endothelial cell lines (MVECs, including HUVECs and HPMECs) were measured by chemotaxis assay and adhesion assay, respectively. The results showed that MTDH/AEG-1 protein expression was significantly higher in high metastatic potential cancer cell lines (Sk-HEP-1, MHCC-97H) than in low metastatic potential cell lines (HepG2, Huh7) (P<0.05). The MTDH/AEG-1 protein was localized in the perinuclear region of HCC cells. Furthermore, the abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion of HCC cells to HPMECs were increased as compared with those of HCC cells to HUVECs (P<0.05). The abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion were much stronger in Sk-HEP-1 and MHCC-97H cells with MTDH/AEG-1 highly expressed than in HepG2 and Huh7 cells with MTDH/AEG-1 lowly expressed (P<0.05). These results suggested that the expression of MTDH/AEG-1 gene in HCC cell lines of different metastatic potentials was closely positively related to the abilities of orientation chemotaxis and adhesion of HCC cells. It was deduced that MTDH/AEG-1 might play a pivotal role in the lung-specific metastasis of HCC, which may be mediated through orientation chemotaxis and adhesion abilities of HCC cells. MTDH/AEG-1 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for HCC.

Pokemon reduces Bcl-2 expression through NF-κ Bp65: A possible mechanism of hepatocellular carcinoma

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the relationship among Pokemon, NF-κ B p65 and Bcl-2 in hepatoma cells.@*METHODS@#HCC cell HepG2, SMMC7721 and human fetal liver cell line LO2 cells were used, and expression of Pokemon, NF-κ B p65 and Bcl-2 in three cells were detected by real-time PCR and western blot. Then siRNA of Pokemon was applied to inhibit the expression of Pokemon and NF-κ B p65 and apoptotic rate was determined by flow cytometric analysis.@*RESULTS@#Expressions of Pokemon, NF-κ B p65 and Bcl-2 in human hepatoma cell HepG2, SMMC7721 expression were significantly higher than those in human embryonic stem cells LO2. siRNA of Pokemon inhibited the expression of Pokemon, NF-κ B p65 and Bcl-2 in liver cancer cells, and significantly increased apoptosis of liver cells. While siRNA of NF-κ B p65 inhibited the expression of NF-κ B p65 and Bcl-2, but Pokemon expression in hepatoma cells had no significant change.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The proto-oncogene Pokemon can inhibit P14ARF by specific transcription regulation of cell cycle and can induce tumors. In addition, Pokemon can regulate NF-κ B p65 through the expression of apoptosis repressor, and promote the development of liver cancer. It suggests signal network in the liver include the regulation of new non-classical NF-κ B regulatory pathway.

Expression of aquaporin 8 and its relationship with melanosis coli / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The relationship between melanosis coli (MC) and aquaporin 8 (AQP8) has not yet been elucidated. The aim of this research was to investigate the relationship between the expression of AQP8 and the pathological mechanism of MC.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Expression of AQP8 was detected by immunohistochemistry and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 37 MC colon tissues and 13 control colon tissues. Global gene expression analysis was also used to identify differently expressed genes. Its relationship with MC was analyzed by SPSS 11.5 statistical software.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The positive rate of AQP8 expression detected by immunohistochemistry in the MC group was 24.3% (9/37), significantly lower than the 69.2% (9/13) in the control group (P < 0.05). The relative expression level of AQP8 in MC group was 0.639 ± 0.160, lower than 0.921 ± 0.148 of controls (P < 0.05). Global gene expression analysis showed that AQP8 mRNA expression was downregulated in MC patients.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The decreased AQP8 expression in MC patients indicates that chronic use of laxatives containing anthraquinone may cause reduced water absorption. The expression of AQP8 may be related to MC.</p>

Effect of pre-electroacupuncture on p38 and c-Fos expression in the spinal dorsal horn of rats suffering from visceral pain / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Acupuncture is an effective way to relieve pain, but the mechanism by which electroacupuncture (EA) decreases the visceral pain state still remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of pre-electroacupuncture on pain behaviors, p38 phosphorylation, and c-Fos protein and mRNA expression in both the colonic wall and spinal dorsal horn of rats suffering from visceral pain. This study also investigated the probable signaling regulatory mechanism of the analgesic effect induced by electroacupuncture.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>All rats were randomized into the control (Con) group, the Con + EA group, the visceral pain (VP) group, and VP + EA group (n = 8 for all groups). The visceral pain model was established using 40 microl of 5% formalin solution injected into the colon of rats. EA was applied to the bilateral Jiaji acupoints for 20 minutes before application of visceral pain. Parameters for EA were set at a continuous wave (20 Hz) and intensity where the rats shook their whiskers but did not scrabble (< or = 1 mA). The visceral pain score was recorded and the expressions of p38 and c-Fos protein were detected using Western blotting. Real-time quantitative PCR was also used to determine the expression of c-Fos mRNA.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Rats in the VP group immediately presented with obvious visceral pain behaviors after being injected with formalin. p38 activity and c-Fos protein and mRNA expression in both the colonic wall and spinal dorsal horn were higher in the VP group than in the Con group (P < 0.05). By contrast, visceral pain behaviors were delayed in rats from the VP + EA group. p38 activity and c-Fos protein and mRNA expression were lower in the VP + EA group than that in the VP group (P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Pre-electroacupuncture of the Jiaji acupoint has prophylactic analgesic effects on rats suffering from visceral pain. The p38 signal transduction pathway may be partly involved in the regulatory mechanism of this analgesic effect.</p>

Hypoxia induces heat shock protein HSP70-2 expression in a HIF-1 dependent manner / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVES</b>To investigate role of hypoxia inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) in the transcriptional activation of heat shock protein 70-2 (HSP70-2) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells under hypoxic conditions.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>HCC cells were exposed to reduced oxygen atmosphere (1% O2), or treated with YC-1 or HIF-1 alpha siRNA, the expression of HIF-1 alpha and HSP70-2 were detected by Western blot analysis. Serial deletions of the HSPA2 promoter were cloned in the reporter pGL3-Basic plasmid. These reporter plasmids were co-transfected with HIF-1 alpha siRNA, and the promoter activities were detected with the dual luciferase assay.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Western blot analysis showed that both HIF-1 alpha and HSP70-2 proteins were strongly increased after HCC cells were exposed to hypoxic conditions (1% O2) for 6 h, and the expression level of HSP70-2 was increased in a time-dependent manner. Treatment of HepG2 cells with YC-1 or HIF-1 alpha siRNA significantly inhibited the expression of HIF-1 alpha and HSP70-2. In silico analysis of the HSP70-2 promoter using the Gene2 Promoter software revealed the presence of two putative hypoxic response element (HRE) consensus at -446bp (HRE1) and -238bp (HRE2). Depletion of promoter sequence between -653 and -385 led to a dramatic reduction of promoter activity, whereas further deletion to position -201 did not reduce the activity further. These data suggested that HRE1 plays an important role in hypoxia-induced activation of the HSPA2 promoter. Site-directed mutagenesis further confirmed these results. Mutation of HRE1 but not of HRE2 abrogated the sensitivity of the HSP70-2 promoter to hypoxia.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>HSP70-2 expression is up-regulated in response to hypoxia and a HIF-1 binding site (HRE1) in the HSP70-2 promoter is involved in this response.</p>

Role of focal adhesion kinase in the hypoxia-induced invasion of SMMC-7721 cells / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study focal adhesion kinase (FAK) expression in hypoxia-stressed SMMC-7721 cells and the role of FAK expression in the hypoxia-induced invasion of SMMC-7721 cells.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>SMMC-7721 cells were cultured in 21% O2 or 1% O2. FAK expression was determined by Western blot. The siRNA expression vector pshRNA-FAK targeting to FAK and the control vector pGensil-2 were transfected into SMMC-7721 cells. The hypoxia-induced migration and invasion ability of SMMC-7721 cells transfected with pshRNA-FAK were analyzed. In normoxia, invasion of SMMC-7721 cells transfected with pcDNA3-FAK was analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The expression of FAK was increased significantly in SMMC-7721 cells 24 h after hypoxia stress (P<0.01). The level of FAK protein was decreased by 74.6%+/-5.1% after the pshRNA-FAK transfection in normoxia and hypoxia. The migration and invasion of SMMC-7721 cells was increased in 1% O2 (P<0.01). However, the migration and invasion of SMMC-7721 cells transfected with pshRNA-FAK was decreased in 1% O2 (P<0.05). Overexpression of FAK significantly stimulated the invasion of SMMC-7721 cells.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Up-regulation of FAK may play an important role in the invasion of SMMC-7721 cells induced by hypoxia.</p>

Inhibition of HSP70-2 expression by RNA interference induces apoptosis of human hepatocellular carcinoma cells / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVES</b>To determine the effect of short hairpin RNA targeting HSP70-2 on the growth and apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells, and to elucidate its possible mechanisms in mitochondria apoptotic pathway.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Western blot and immunocytochemistry were used to determine the expression of HSP70-2 in HCC cells and normal hepatocytes. HepG2 and Huh-7 cells were cultured and transfected with HSP70-2 shRNA1 and shRNA2. Cell proliferation was examined by MTT. Cell apoptosis and mitochondria membrane potential were determined by flow cytometry. Western blot was used to analyze the expressions of apoptosis related proteins including Bax, Bcl-2, PARP, caspase-9 and caspase-3.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>HSP70-2 was expressed at high levels in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells (SNU-449, HepG2, Huh-7, Hep3B) whereas there were very low levels in normal hepatocytes (L02). Using DNA vector-based RNA interference, we found that knockdown of HSP70-2 inhibited the growth of HCC cells through induction of mitochondria-dependent apoptosis. The mitochondria-dependent apoptosis induced by HSP70-2 knockdown was indicated by cytochrome c release from mitochondria, activation of caspase-9 and caspase-3, and loss of mitochondrial potential. Furthermore, knockdown of HSP70-2 resulted in up-regulation of the pro-apoptotic factor Bax and down-regulation of the pro-survival factor Bcl-2.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Our results indicated that HSP70-2 down-regulation induces apoptosis of HCC cells through the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, highlighting the importance of HSP70-2 in survival of HCC cells and maintenance of liver function.</p>

Expression of Twist gene in human hepatocellular carcinoma cell strains of different metastatic potential / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

In order to investigate the role of Twist gene in the metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), total RNA was respectively extracted from three HCC cell strains with different metastatic potentials, HepG2, MHCC-97L and MHCC-97H. The first strand cDNA was synthesized by reverse transcription, which was then used as template to perform fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR). The quantity of Twist gene expression was normalized by that of the housekeeping gene, GAPDH for each sample. ANOVA was used to estimate the relationship between Twist gene and metastasis potential of HCC. The results showed that the normalized initial cDNA concentrations of Twist gene in HepG2, MHCC-97L and MHCC-97H were (9.45+/-0.25)x10(-4), (1.82+/-0.41)x10(-3), (3.06+/-0.62)x10(-3), respectively. FQ-PCR revealed significant differences in the expression level of Twist among HCC cell strains with different metastatic potentials. It was concluded that high expression level of Twist was closely associated with more aggressive behaviors of HCC. Twist provides a novel indicator for HCC metastasis.

Hammerhead ribozyme-mediated cleavage of transforming growth factor beta1 RNA in a cell-free system and in hepatic stellate cells / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To identify the activity of hammerhead ribozyme against transforming growth factor beta1 (TGFbeta1) in a cell-free system and in activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The ribozyme against TGFb1 was designed with computer software. The transcripts of ribozyme, disabled ribozyme and target RNAs were prepared using the RiboMAX large scale RNA production system. The in vitro cleavage reactions were performed through incubation of 32P-labeled target RNAs with ribozyme or disabled ribozyme in different conditions. The eukaryotic expression vector encoding ribozyme and disabled ribozyme were constructed, and then transfected into HSC-T6 cells which exhibited characteristics of activated HSCs. The intracellular activity of the ribozyme was determined by detecting the ribozyme, disabled ribozyme and the TGFbeta1 expression.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The ribozyme cleaved target RNAs into anticipated products effectively. As expected, the disabled ribozyme possessed no cleavage activity in vitro. Further study demonstrated that the ribozyme expressed efficiently and inhibited TGFbeta1 expression in activated HSCs, while the disabled ribozyme displayed only a slight effect on TGFbeta1 expression.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The ribozyme with perfect cleavage activity in the cell-free system used inhibited TGFbeta1 expression effectively in activated HSCs. This ribozyme can provide a potential therapeutic approach for liver fibrosis.</p>

Expression and location of heme oxygenase in the lung of experimental cirrhotic rats / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVES</b>To observe the function of heme oxygenase (HO) in the lung damage in hepatic cirrhosis rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Liver cirrhosis model rats were made by CCl4. Lung samples taken from normal and cirrhotic rats were examined for HO-1 and HO-2 protein and expression distribution with immunohistochemical staining and western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Liver cirrhosis model rats were successfully constructed. There was a notable increase of HO-1 staining (0.062+/-0.021 vs 0.185+/-0.044, t=11.24, P<0.01) and protein expression (0 vs 5294.92+/-46.02, t=11.45, P<0.01) in both vascular and bronchial smooth muscle cells and endothelium in cirrhotic rats, however, no statistical difference of HO-2 between cirrhotic and normal rats was observed.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The HO-CO pathway is probably involved in the pathogenesis of lung damage in hepatic cirrhosis rats.</p>

Relationship between mucosal surface patterns under enhanced magnification endoscopy and pathological epithelial types of Barrett esophagus / 中华消化内镜杂志

Objective To evaluate the enhanced magnification endoscopy in the diagnosis of Barrett esophagus,and to explore the relationship between mucosal surface patterns and pathological epithelial types of Barrett esophagus.Methods Enhanced magnification endoscopy was performed 'after spraying 2%-3% acetic acid on the surface of distal esophagus in 40 Barrett esophagus patients.Mucosal specimen were biop- syed.Results According to the mucosal types of Toyoda in 2003,there were three mucosal types:Ⅰ dot pat- tern 7(17.5%),5 of 7(71.4%)fundie type,Ⅱ reticular pattern 24(60.0%),16 of 24(66.7%)fundic type,Ⅲ cerebroid/villous 9(22.5%),intestinal metaplasia or dysplasia.Conclusion Enhanced magnifi- cation endoscopy helps to identify areas with intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia,and is useful in the diagno- sis of Barrett esophagus.