Quantitative anatomical analysis of lumbar interspaces based on 3D CT imaging: optimized segment selection for lumbar puncture in different age groups.

BACKGROUND: Optimal lumbar puncture segment selection remains controversial. This study aims to analyze anatomical differences among L3-4, L4-5, and L5-S1 segments across age groups and provide quantitative evidence for optimized selection. METHODS: 80 cases of CT images were collected with patients aged 10-80 years old. Threedimensional models containing L3-S1 vertebrae, dural sac, and nerve roots were reconstructed. Computer simulation determined the optimal puncture angles for the L3-4, L4-5, and L5-S1 segments. The effective dural sac area (ALDS), traversing nerve root area (ATNR), and area of the lumbar inter-laminar space (ALILS) were measured. Puncture efficacy ratio (ALDS/ALILS) and nerve injury risk ratio (ATNR/ALILS) were calculated. Cases were divided into four groups: A (10-20 years), B (21-40 years), C (41-60 years), and D (61-80 years). Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS. RESULTS: 1) ALDS was similar among segments; 2) ATNR was greatest at L5-S1; 3) ALILS was greatest at L5-S1; 4) Puncture efficacy ratio was highest at L3-4 and lowest at L5-S1; 5) Nerve injury risk was highest at L5-S1. In group D, L5-S1 ALDS was larger than L3-4 and L4-5. ALDS decreased after age 40. Age variations were minimal across parameters. CONCLUSION: The comprehensive analysis demonstrated L3-4 as the optimal first-choice segment for ages 10-60 years, conferring maximal efficacy and safety. L5-S1 can serve as an alternative option for ages 61-80 years when upper interspaces narrow. This study provides quantitative imaging evidence supporting age-specific, optimized lumbar puncture segment selection.

Protective Effects and Mechanism of Polysaccharides from Edible Medicinal Plants in Alcoholic Liver Injury: A Review.

Alcohol use accounts for a large variety of diseases, among which alcoholic liver injury (ALI) poses a serious threat to human health. In order to overcome the limitations of chemotherapeutic agents, some natural constituents, especially polysaccharides from edible medicinal plants (PEMPs), have been applied for the prevention and treatment of ALI. In this review, the protective effects of PEMPs on acute, subacute, subchronic, and chronic ALI are summarized. The pathogenesis of alcoholic liver injury is analyzed. The structure-activity relationship (SAR) and safety of PEMPs are discussed. In addition, the mechanism underlying the hepatoprotective activity of polysaccharides from edible medicinal plants is explored. PEMPs with hepatoprotective activities mainly belong to the families Orchidaceae, Solanaceae, and Liliaceae. The possible mechanisms of PEMPs include activating enzymes related to alcohol metabolism, attenuating damage from oxidative stress, regulating cytokines, inhibiting the apoptosis of hepatocytes, improving mitochondrial function, and regulating the gut microbiota. Strategies for further research into the practical application of PEMPs for ALI are proposed. Future studies on the mechanism of action of PEMPs will need to focus more on the utilization of multi-omics approaches, such as proteomics, epigenomics, and lipidomics.

[Mechanism of pregnancy-induced thymus involution and regeneration and medication rules of postpartum prescriptions].

In order to prevent the maternal immune defenses to the semi-allogeneic fetus, the maternal body will present a special adaptive immune system change represented by acute thymic involution(ATI) during pregnancy, which can be quickly regenerated after delivery. The ATI during pregnancy is related to the level of sex hormones, which is mainly caused by progesterone. Pregnancy-induced ATI is manifested as the continuous shrinkage of thymus volume, especially the cortex, and the wrinkle and phagocytosis of the subcapsular cortical thymic epithelial cells(cTECs), while other thymic epithelial cells(TECs) remain unchanged. The postpartum thymus is regenerated by the co-mediation of forkhead box N1(FOXN1) as well as its target genes chemokine(C-C motif) ligand 25(CCL25), chemokine(C-X-C motif) ligand 12(CXCL12), δ-like ligand 4(DLL4), cathepsin L(CTSL), and serine protease 16(PRSS16). Once the postpartum thymus is poorly repaired, immune dysfunction of the maternal body and several puerperal diseases will be induced, seriously endangering the survival of the mother and the newborn. In traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), Qi and blood are the cornerstone of pregnancy, and the thymus plays a key role in regulating Qi and blood. The deficiency of Qi and blood during pregnancy and childbirth is closely related to the abnormal ATI during pregnancy and the poor regeneration of the postpartum thymus. Based on this theory, TCM has profound academic ideas and rich clinical experience in postpartum recuperation. Based on the systematic description of the mechanism of ATI regeneration during pregnancy, as well as data mining and analysis of two classic gynecological works of TCM, Wan's Gynecology and Fu Qing-zhu's Treatise on Gynecology, this study found that the commonly used TCM for postpartum included Angelicae Sinensis Radix, Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, and Chuanxiong Rhizoma. Among them, Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma, Angelicae Sinensis Radix, and Chuanxiong Rhizoma are high-frequency TCMs with positive effects on postpartum recovery.However, the mechanism of these TCMs in promoting postpartum thymus regeneration needs further investigation.

Influence of diabetes on mortality and ICD therapies in ICD recipients: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 162,780 patients.

BACKGROUND: The influence of diabetes on the mortality and risk of implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) therapies is still controversial, and a comprehensive assessment is lacking. We performed this systematic review and meta-analysis to address this controversy. METHODS: We systematically searched the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Cochrane Library databases to collect relevant literature. Fixed and random effects models were used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) with 95% CIs. RESULTS: Thirty-six articles reporting on 162,780 ICD recipients were included in this analysis. Compared with nondiabetic ICD recipients, diabetic ICD recipients had higher all-cause mortality (HR = 1.45, 95% CI 1.36-1.55). The subgroup analysis showed that secondary prevention patients with diabetes may suffer a higher risk of all-cause mortality (HR = 1.89, 95% CI 1.56-2.28) (for subgroup analysis, P = 0.03). Cardiac mortality was also higher in ICD recipients with diabetes (HR = 1.68, 95% CI 1.35-2.08). However, diabetes had no significant effect on the risks of ICD therapies, including appropriate or inappropriate therapy, appropriate or inappropriate shock and appropriate anti-tachycardia pacing (ATP). Diabetes was associated with a decreased risk of inappropriate ATP (HR = 0.56, 95% CI 0.39-0.79). CONCLUSION: Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of mortality in ICD recipients, especially in the secondary prevention patients, but does not significantly influence the risks of ICD therapies, indicating that the increased mortality of ICD recipients with diabetes may not be caused by arrhythmias. The survival benefits of ICD treatment in diabetes patients are limited.

Nickel-Catalyzed Direct Cross-Coupling of Diaryl Sulfoxide with Aryl Bromide.

The direct cross-couplings of diaryl sulfoxides with aryl bromides via C-S bond cleavage could be readily accomplished using nickel(II) as the catalyst, 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane (dppe) as the ligand, and magnesium turnings as the reducing metal in THF, leading to the corresponding biaryls in moderate to good yields. The reaction exhibited a broad substrate scope and could be applied to a gram-scale synthesis. The "one-pot" reaction, which avoids the utility of presynthesized and moisture-labile organometallic compounds, is operationally simple and step-economic.

The effect of estrogen in coronavirus disease 2019.

The outcomes of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vary between men and women. Some statistical reports have shown that men have a higher risk of developing COVID-19 and suffer from worse outcomes than females. Although there are many factors that can explain the high prevalence of COVID-19 in men, such as lifestyle habits and the different profile of comorbidities among sexes, the distinctions between male and female immune systems cannot be ignored. It has been sufficiently shown that sex differences have a critical influence on the shaping of immune response, which then leads to different pathogenesis in infectious diseases. Compared with males, females typically have a more effective innate and adaptive immune response to viral infections in COVID-19. What's more, there is a growing body of evidence showing that estrogen exerts an effect on the regulation of immune response. This article examines the effect and mechanism of estrogen on COVID-19.

Angiopoietin-2 induces angiogenesis via exosomes in human hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer and is a highly vascularized solid tumor. Angiopoietin-2 (ANGPT2) has been described as an attractive target for antiangiogenic therapy. Exosomes are small extracellular vesicles secreted by most cell types and contribute to cell-to-cell communication by delivering functional cargo to recipient cells. The expression of ANGPT2 in tumor-derived exosomes remains unknown. METHODS: We detected the ANGPT2 expression in HCC-derived exosomes by immunoblotting, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunogold labeling, then observed exosomal ANGPT2 internalization and recycling by confocal laser scanning microscopy, co-immunoprecipitation and immunoblotting. We used two HCC cell lines (Hep3B and MHCC97H) to overexpress ANGPT2 by lentivirus infection or knockdown ANGPT2 by the CRISPR/Cas system, then isolated exosomes to coculture with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and observed the angiogenesis by Matrigel microtubule formation assay, transwell migration assay, wound healing assay, cell counting kit-8 assay, immunoblotting and in vivo tumorigenesis assay. RESULTS: We found that HCC-derived exosomes carried ANGPT2 and delivered it into HUVECs by exosome endocytosis, this delivery led to a notable increase in angiogenesis by a Tie2-independent pathway. Concomitantly, we observed that HCC cell-secreted exosomal ANGPT2 was recycled by recipient HUVECs and might be reused. In addition, the CRISPR-Cas systems to knock down ANGPT2 significantly inhibited the angiogenesis induced by HCC cell-secreted exosomal ANGPT2, and obviously suppressed the epithelial-mesenchymal transition activation in HCC. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these results reveal a novel pathway of tumor angiogenesis induced by HCC cell-secreted exosomal ANGPT2 that is different from the classic ANGPT2/Tie2 pathway. This way may be a potential therapeutic target for antiangiogenic therapy. Video Abstract.

Noninvasive model for predicting future ischemic strokes in patients with silent lacunar infarction using radiomics.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate integrating radiomics with clinical factors in cranial computed tomography (CT) to predict ischemic strokes in patients with silent lacunar infarction (SLI). METHODS: Radiomic features were extracted from baseline cranial CT images of patients with SLI. A least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO)-Cox regression analysis was used to select significant prognostic factors based on ModelC with clinical factors, ModelR with radiomic features, and ModelCR with both factors. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to compare stroke-free survival probabilities. A nomogram and a calibration curve were used for further evaluation. RESULTS: Radiomic signature (p < 0.01), age (p = 0.09), dyslipidemia (p = 0.03), and multiple infarctions (p = 0.02) were independently associated with future ischemic strokes. ModelCR had the best accuracy with 6-, 12-, and 18-month areas under the curve of 0.84, 0.81, and 0.79 for the training cohort and 0.79, 0.88, and 0.75 for the validation cohort, respectively. Patients with a ModelCR score < 0.17 had higher probabilities of stroke-free survival. The prognostic nomogram and calibration curves of the training and validation cohorts showed acceptable discrimination and calibration capabilities (concordance index [95% confidence interval]: 0.7864 [0.70-0.86]; 0.7140 [0.59-0.83], respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Radiomic analysis based on baseline CT images may provide a novel approach for predicting future ischemic strokes in patients with SLI. Older patients and those with dyslipidemia or multiple infarctions are at higher risk for ischemic stroke and require close monitoring and intensive intervention.

[Rapid detection of trace Hg~(2+) in animal matrix by specific DNA electrochemical sensor].

A highly specific electrochemical biosensor based on T-Hg~(2+)-T structure for fast screening trace Hg~(2+) in complex animal drug matrix was constructed by cyclic voltammetry(CV) and differential pulse voltammetry(DPV). In the presence of Hg~(2+), it can be specifically binded to the T base of DNA sequence on the surface of modified gold electrode, which changes the conformation of DNA molecule and the electrochemical signal. The concentration ratio of EDC/NHS, the concentration ratio of FC-DNA and the reaction time of the biosensor were optimized by the index of sensitivity and reproducibility in CV. The results showed that the stability of the biosensor was good within 3 days(RSD≤1.3%), the difference between batches was low(RSD=4.7%), and the specificity of the biosensor was high in the presence of interfering ions(As~(3+), Cd~(2+), Cu~(2+), Pb~(2+), Zn~(2+) and Fe~(3+)). DPV results showed that the peak current signal value has a linear relationship with the lgC_((Hg)) over a concentration range from 0.1 nmol·L~(-1) to 1.0 µmol·L~(-1) with a detection limit of 0.066 nmol·L~(-1). Finally, the recovery rate tested in the matrix of animal medicine was satisfactory as 99.17%-101.3%, which can meet the needs of the determination of trace Hg~(2+) in the matrix of Bombyx Batryticatus, and provide a new idea for the rapid screening of trace heavy metals in the matrix of other types of complex traditional Chinese medicine.

[Pollution level and health risk assessment of heavy metals and hazardous elements in Bombyx Batryticatus].

In order to comprehensively analyze the pollution level and bioaccessibility of different types of heavy metals and hazardous elements in animal medicine,this paper selected Bombyx Batryticatus as the research object,and used inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry( ICP-MS) to detect As,Cu,Hg,Pb,Ni,Cr,Zn and Cd. Based on the artificial gastrointestinal digestion model and the health risk assessment model of Chinese medicinal materials,the pollution level,in vivo and in vitro transfer rate and health risk grade of eight harmful elements in the above-mentioned medicinal materials of Bombyx Batryticatus were obtained respectively. The test result was found that under the ISO international standard of Chinese medicine-Chinese herbal medicine heavy metals,the unqualified rate was 50% for Bombyx Batryticatus,which including 2 batches of As and 4 batches of Cr exceeded the MRL. In artificial gastrointestinal digestion solution,the transfer rates of heavy metals As,Cu,Hg,Pb,Ni,Cr,Zn and Cd were 36. 849%,72. 372%,41. 152%,75. 354%,46. 603%,27. 981%,19. 707% and 76. 282%,respectively. The data of risk assessment model showed that the total THQ values of the most polluted batches for adults and children was 0. 021 548 and 0. 018 418,respectively. After digestion,the THQ values decreased to 0. 012 599 for adults and 0. 010 769 for children,which were still higher than the THQ standard values of animal medicine Bombyx Batryticatus. However,the CR value of carcinogenic risk is less than 1×10-6,so the potential non-carcinogenic risk caused by taking this batch of Bombyx Batryticatus medicines is higher and the carcinogenic risk can be ignored. To sum up,heavy metals and hazardous elements in Bombyx Batryticatus still exceed the standard,but the health risk level caused by heavy metals still needs to be investigated according to different medicinal materials,in order to provide data support for further improving the quality and safety of animal medicine.

[Determination of arsenic speciation in 17 commonly used traditional Chinese herbal medicines by HPLC-ICP-MS].

The element speciation analysis for heavy metals in herbal medicines is still in the beginning stage. In this study,the total amount of arsenic( As) in 103 batches of 17 commonly used Chinese medicines( including 16 plant medicines and 1 medicinal fungus) was detected by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry( ICP-MS). Furthermore,based on HPLC-ICP-MS,the simultaneous detection methods of six As speciation kinds in traditional Chinese medicines were established. An AS7 anion exchange column was selected and the As forms in 17 traditional Chinese medicines was systematically analyzed. The results showed that the method of pretreatment of medicinal materials by microwave digestion and the detection of total amount of As by ICP-MS was stable and reliable. As for the speciation analysis of As,the high-speed ultrasonic extraction method was adopted,and it showed that the linear relationship of the six As speciation was satisfied with the correlation coefficient R2>0. 999 9. The LOQ of six kinds of As speciation were 0. 20,0. 10,0. 15,0. 10,0. 25,0. 10 µg·L~(-1) for arsenic betaine( As B),arsenious acid [As( Ⅲ) ],dimethyl arsenic( DMA),arsenic choline( As C),monomethyl arsenic( MMA),arsenic acid[As( Ⅴ) ],respectively. The recoveries were between 84. 24% and 121. 5%,and the relative standard deviations were 2. 7% to 11%. Among the 103 batches of medicinal materials,only one batch of sample As exceeded the Chinese Pharmacopoeia limit standard; As( Ⅲ) and As( Ⅴ) had high detection rate in 103 batches of Chinese herbal medicines,within which As( Ⅴ) was the main detected form,and inorganic As accounted for the ratio reached 80. 90%-98. 73%; some samples detected DMA,MMA and As B,As C was not detected in any batch. This study established an analytical method suitable for the speciation of As in Chinese herbal medicines,and provided basic data for As residual residue in Chinese herbal medicines,which can provide important reference for the risk assessment and quality standards.

[Safety evaluation of heavy metals contaminated Astragalus membranaceus using health risk assessment model].

To evaluate the safety of heavy metals contaminated Astragalus membranaceus,an appropriate protocol was established to study the heavy metals pollution level by health risk assessment. This study provided a detailed procedure to assess the medicinal herbs in quality control and safety evaluation,and expected to create awareness among the public on the safety of consuming of A. membranaceus or any other kinds of medicinal herbs. The heavy metals content of Cu,As,Cd,Pb and Hg in a total of 45 batches of A. membranaceus were carefully analyzed with a developed inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry( ICP-MS). Besides,the heavy metal contamination level was further evaluated through 4 main assessment parameters,including maximum residue limit( MRL) set by International Standard Organization,estimated daily intake( EDI) set by IUPAC,target hazard quotients( THQ) and Total THQ set by USEPA and total THQs in raw herbs of A. membranaceus. In addition,the recommended MRLs of 5 main heavy metals aimed to A. membranaceus were calculated based on the regulated consumption quantity. The result showed that,under the ISO international standard of Chinese medicine-Chinese herbal medicine heavy metals,the unqualified rate was 8. 89% for A. membranaceus,which including 4 batches of A. membranaceus exceeded the MRL of As. Here,the standard THQ value of A. membranaceus was firstly proposed as 0. 02 and 0. 011 25 for adults and children,respectively,which were calculated with the recommended consumption quantity of 30 g and 9 g for adults and children. Furthermore,the values of THQ for As and total THQs in adults and children were exceeded the standard THQ in A. membranaceus,and the recommended MRLs of Pb,Cd,Hg and Cu in above medicinal materials that calculated based on health risk assessment model were higher than the regulated MRLs that set by ISO and Chinese Pharmacopeia. The research showed that the contents of heavy metals in A. membranaceus were not in the safe range and the certain non-carcinogenic risks to human body cannot be neglected. Based on above investigation result,it is easily known that the common evaluation method for raw herbs based on the comparison of MRL of heavy metals was not precise enough,and the international model of health risk assessment should be built for each medicinal herb. Above all,this study provided a more realistic research approach for safety evaluation of any other kinds of heavy metals contaminated medicinal herbs,including the establishment of heavy metals standard limit in a specified medicinal herb under recommended consumption quantity,and it is expected to create awareness among the public on the safety of consuming any other medicinal herbs.

Effects of fundamental nutrient stresses on the lipid accumulation profiles in two diatom species Thalassiosira weissflogii and Chaetoceros muelleri.

Microalgae are considered as attractive feedstocks for biofuel production nowadays because of their high lipid contents and easy cultivation. In the present study, two diatoms, Thalassiosira weissflogii and Chaetoceros muelleri, were cultured under various nutrient-limitation conditions to explore their comprehensive lipid accumulation profiles for further commercialization. In T. weissflogii, the highest neutral lipid accumulation and highest lipid productivity (14.28 mg L-1 day-1) were both recorded under P-limitation. In C. muelleri, the highest lipid content (35.03% of dry cell weight), highest neutral lipid accumulation, and highest lipid productivity (29.07 mg L-1 day-1) were all recorded under N-limitation. Besides, the predominant fatty acids of T. weissflogii and C. muelleri were myristic acid (C14:0), palmitic acid (C16:0), and palmitoleic acid (C16:1), with the amounts of 58.4-74.4 and 74.1-87.7% of the total fatty acids, respectively. Moreover, nutrient limitations led to a lower proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) than that of saturated fatty acid (SFA) and monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) in both species. The ratios of (SFA + MUFA) to PUFA were from 1.65 to 3.01 in T. weissflogii, and up to 3.61 to 8.59 in C. muelleri. Our results suggested the feasibility of C. muelleri as biodiesel feedstock due to its more suitable fatty acid composition and higher lipid productivity compared to T. weissflogii.

[Research progress of chromium and its speciation analysis].

Chromium has been discovered for more than two hundred years, and it has advantages of wear-resisting, high temperature, corrosion resistance and so on. Chromium has been widely used in industrial production and received extensive attention in China and abroad. Detailed limit standards have been set for chromium in food and fishery product, and chromium can also be enriched in many traditional Chinese medicines. Besides, the toxicities of different chromium speciation are quite different, and thus morphological analysis is necessary. However, the transformation or migration is easily happened among different speciation which brings difficulties to research and analysis. This article summarizes the research status of chromium and its aims to provide reference for scientific research and pollution prevention of chromium.

[Research progresses and formulation development of natural anti-mildew agents based on Chinese herbal medicines].

Owing to the intrinsic factors and some extrinsic environmental conditions, many foods, agricultural products and Chinese materia medicas (CMMs), if not handled properly in the processes of growth, harvesting, processing and storage, can be easily contaminated by all kinds of molds to produce mycotoxins of serious toxicity, which will not only affect the quality, safety and effectiveness of CMMs, but also result in potential threatens to human and animal's health and life. Therefore, in recent decades, it has become the focus on how to prevent and control the foods, agricultural products and CMMs from being moldy and producing toxicity for scientific preservation. Many Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) especially those with high content of volatile oils with strong antifungal activities have been applied for the scientific preservation of foods, agricultural products and CMMs. Based on these situations, natural anti-mildew agents have been further developed and made into some useful dosage forms, such as tablets, aerosol, liposomes and inclusion, which will not only greatly expand the application scope of CHMs to make the use of anti-mildew agents more convenient, but also achieve the sustained or controlled release of the antifungal effect for scientific preservation of foods, agricultural products and CMMs.

[Advances on nanoparticles-tagged visual test strips for the rapid detection of pesticides].

The residue of the pesticides affects seriously the quality and safety of traditional Chinese medicine. Pesticide residue has caused ever-growing attention of people at home and abroad. Rapid detection techniques used for rapid screening of pesticide residues have expanded in a fast progress. As one of the fast development methods of rapid detection, visualization test strip based on nanoparticle has received much concern in recent years. This article focused on the classification of detection test strips and key factors on the fabrication of nanoparticle-based visualization test strips used in small molecule pesticides. Moreover, a wide application of nanoparticles-tagged test strips on pesticide residue was reviewed including single residue detection, multi residue detection, as well as quantitative analysis. Finally, the future application of visual test strip for detecting of pesticide residues in traditional Chinese medicine was forecasted, intending to provide the reference for rapid detection techniques on pesticide residues screening in herbal medicine industry.

[In vitro effect and mechanistic study of compound E23869 on lipid metabolism].

This study was designed to identify inducers of ATP-binding cassette transporter A1(ABCA1) and CD36 and lysosomal integral membrane protein-II analogous-1(CLA-1) and to evaluate the in vitro effect of the active compound on lipid metabolism. Among 20 000 compounds screened, E23869 was found as a positive hit using cell-based high throughput screening models. The up-regulating activities of E23869 in ABCA1p-LUC and CLA-1p-LUC Hep G2 cells were 196% and 198%, respectively. The EC(50) values of E23869 in ABCA1p- LUC and CLA-1p-LUC Hep G2 cells were 0.25 µmol·L(-1) and 0.66 µmol·L(-1), respectively. E23869 significantly upregulated the protein levels of ABCA1, scavenger receptor class B type I(SR-BI)/CLA-1 and ATP-binding cassette transporter G1(ABCG1) in both macrophages RAW264.7 and L02 cells by Western blotting analysis. Foam cell assay showed that E23869 inhibited lipids accumulations in macrophages RAW264.7. Cholesterol efflux assay showed that E23869 induced HDL-mediated cholesterol efflux in macrophages RAW264.7. Moreover, E23869 up-regulated ABCA1, SR-BI/CLA-1 and ABCG1 expressions through activation of PPARα and PPARγ. In addition, E23869 weakly promoted in vitro differentiation of mouse preadipocytes 3T3-L1. In conclusion, E23869 up-regulated ABCA1, SR-BI/CLA-1 and ABCG1 expressions to promote cholesterol efflux, which is a good leading compound for regulation of lipid metabolism.

Adjuvant dendritic cells vaccine combined with cytokine-induced-killer cell therapy after renal cell carcinoma surgery.

PURPOSE: To observe the efficacy and side effects of adjuvant dendritic cells' (DCs) vaccine combined with cytokine-induced killer cell (CIK) therapy after renal cell carcinoma (RCC) surgery (RCCS). METHODS: DCs vaccine and CIK that loaded the autologous tumor cell lysate were prepared in vitro. Four hundred and ten RCC patients were recruited, and the study group was given DCs-CIK immunotherapy, while the control group was given IFN-α therapy. RESULTS: Disease progression (recurrence, metastasis or death) showed significant differences between the two groups in clinical stage I and II patients, as well as in highly and moderately differentiated disease (p<0.05), while there was no significant difference between the two groups in patients with poorly differentiated disease (p>0.05). The 3- and 5-year overall survival rates of the DCs-CIK group (96% and 96%, respectively) exhibited significant difference compared to the IFN-α group (83% and 74%, respectively (p<0.01). Progression-free survival (PFS) between the two groups was significantly different (p<0.01). Tumor stage and DCs-CIK treatment were independent factors concerning prognosis of RCC (p<0.05). There was no severe toxicity observed in the DCs-CIK treatment group. CONCLUSIONS: Adjuvant post-RCCS DCs-CIK treatment prolonged PFS and reduced mortality, showing better overall activity compared to interferon treatment.

iTRAQ-based proteomic analysis of the metabolism mechanism associated with silicon response in the marine diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana.

Silicon is a critical element for diatom growth; however our understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in intracellular silicon responses are limited. In this study, an iTRAQ-LC-MS/MS quantitative proteomic approach was coupled with an established synchrony technique to reveal the global metabolic silicon-response in the model diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana subject to silicon starvation and readdition. Four samples, which corresponded to the time of silicon starvation, girdle band synthesis, valve formation, and right after daughter cell separation (0, 1, 5, 7 h), were collected for the proteomic analysis. The results indicated that a total of 1,831 proteins, representing 16% of the predicted proteins encoded by the T. pseudonana genome, could be identified. Of the identified proteins, 165 were defined as being differentially expressed proteins, and these proteins could be linked to multiple biochemical pathways. In particular, a number of proteins related to silicon transport, cell wall synthesis, and cell-cycle progress could be identified. In addition, other proteins that are potentially involved in amino acid synthesis, protein metabolism, and energy generation may have roles in the cellular response to silicon. Our findings provide a range of valuable information that will be of use for further studies of this important physiological response that is unique to diatoms.

Advancements in understanding substantia nigra hyperechogenicity via transcranial sonography in Parkinson's disease and its clinical implications.

Amidst rising Parkinson's disease (PD) incidence in an aging global population, the need for non-invasive and reliable diagnostic methods is increasingly critical. This review evaluates the strategic role of transcranial sonography (TCS) in the early detection and monitoring of PD. TCS's ability to detect substantia nigra hyperechogenicity offers profound insights into its correlation with essential neuropathological alterations-namely, iron accumulation, neuromelanin depletion, and glial proliferation-fundamental to PD's pathophysiology. Our analysis highlights TCS's advantages, including its non-invasiveness, cost-effectiveness, and ease of use, positioning it as an invaluable tool for early diagnosis and continual disease progression monitoring. Moreover, TCS assists in identifying potential risk and protective factors, facilitating tailored therapeutic strategies to enhance clinical outcomes. This review advocates expanding TCS utilization and further research to maximize its diagnostic and prognostic potential in PD management, contributing to a more nuanced understanding of the disease.