Depletion of activated hepatic stellate cell correlates with severe liver damage and abnormal liver regeneration in acetaminophen-induced liver injury

Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are important part of the local 'stem cell niche' for hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs) and hepatocytes. However, it is unclear as to whether the products of activated HSCs are required to attenuate hepatocyte injury, enhance liver regeneration, or both. In this study, we performed 'loss of function' studies by depleting activated HSCs with gliotoxin. It was demonstrated that a significantly severe liver damage and declined survival rate were correlated with depletion of activated HSCs. Furthermore, diminishing HSC activation resulted in a 3-fold increase in hepatocyte apoptosis and a 66% decrease in the number of proliferating hepatocytes. This was accompanied by a dramatic decrease in the expression levels of five genes known to be up-regulated during hepatocyte replication. In particular, it was found that depletion of activated HSCs inhibited oval cell reaction that was confirmed by decreased numbers of Pank-positive cells around the portal tracts and lowered gene expression level of cytokeratin 19 (CK19) in gliotoxin-treated liver. These data provide clear evidence that the activated HSCs are involved in both hepatocyte death and proliferation of hepatocytes and HPCs in acetaminophen (APAP)-induced acute liver injury.     

绝经后女性心血管危险因素与骨密度的相关关系

目的:本研究的目的是评估绝经后女性冠心病患者心血管危险因素与骨密度的相关关系。方法:评估216例拟行冠脉造影的绝经后女性冠心病患者的危险因素,并于冠脉造影检查前日或次日行骨密度检测,依据T值将受试者分为2组:骨量正常组(T值大于-1SD)、低骨量组(T值小于-1SD)。结果:2组患者在BMI、糖尿病、高血压及吸烟等均无显著性差异。低骨量组冠心病的发生率及年龄显著高于骨量正常组。Logistic回归分析显示绝经后女性冠心病患者年龄与骨密度独立相关(OR=1.072 CI:1.036～1.11p=0.001)。结论:年龄与绝经后女性冠心病患者骨密度负相关,心血管病危险因素或冠心病与骨量不相关。     

PIK3CA 基因突变的MassARRAY 分子量阵列分析

目的:利用MassARRAY分子量阵列分析系统检测胃癌组织PIK3CA基因突变。方法:从胃癌石蜡包埋组织中提取基因组,PCR反应扩增目的基因片段,MassARRAY分子量阵列分析系统检测PIK3CA基因突变;焦磷酸测序验证检测结果。结果:中国西部地区144例胃癌组织样本中PIK3CA_E542K(1624G>A)突变携带率为77.6%,PIK3CA_E545K(1633G>A)突变携带率为84%。MassARRAY分子量阵列分析系统检测结果与焦磷酸测序结果达到100%吻合。结论:建立了MassARRAY分子量阵列分析系统检测基因突变的方法,初步建立了中国西北地区汉族人群胃癌组织PIK3CA基因PIK3CA_E542K(1624G>A)和PIK3CA_E545K(1633G>A)位点突变频数。     

MicroRNA-141 在上皮性卵巢癌患者组织和血清中的表达 及临床意义的探讨

目的:探讨微小RNA-141(miR-141)在卵巢癌患者组织和血清中的表达情况并初步探讨其作为肿瘤标记物早期诊断上皮性卵巢癌的可行性。方法:采用实时荧光定量逆转录聚合酶链反应(real-time RT-PCR)检测16例上皮性卵巢癌患者和4例正常人卵巢组织及血清标本中miR-141的表达;检测4例良性卵巢肿瘤血清中miR-141的表达。结果:miR-141在卵巢癌患者组织中相对表达量分别为(72.846±76.671)显著高于正常人(2.869±3.201)(P<0.05);miR-141在卵巢癌患者血清中相对表达量(31.581±52.885)显著高于良性卵巢肿瘤患者(0.668±1.196)和正常人(1.690±1.697)(P<0.05),后两组间表达无差异(P>0.05);miR-141表达随卵巢癌临床分期的进展呈上升趋势(P<0.01),在无淋巴结转移组明显高于有淋巴结转移组(P<0.05),与组织分级和CA125的升高无关(P>0.05)。在组织中miR-141表达水平与上皮性卵巢癌临床病理特征均未见明显差异(P>0.05)。结论:miR-141可能在上皮性卵巢癌的发生发展中发挥癌基因的作用;miR-141用于检测上皮性卵巢癌敏感性和特异度较高,有望成为上皮性卵巢癌早期诊断的新指标。     

上皮性卵巢癌中Maspin蛋白与血管内皮生长因子-C的表达及其相关性

目的:探讨上皮性卵巢癌组织中maspin蛋白与血管内皮生长因子-C(VEGF-C)表达的临床意义及其相关性。方法:采用免疫组化技术检测75例上皮性卵巢癌中maspin蛋白与VEGF-C的表达情况,以卵巢良性肿瘤及正常卵巢作为对照。结果:maspin和VEGF-C在上皮性卵巢癌中的阳性表达率分别为61.3%、82.7%,均明显高于卵巢良性肿瘤(13.3%、20%)和正常卵巢组织(0%、0%),maspin蛋白在上皮性卵巢癌中的表达与FIGO分期高、组织学分级高、腹水形成和淋巴结转移有关;VEGF-C与FIGO分期高、淋巴结转移和腹水形成有关;上皮性卵巢癌中maspin蛋白与VEGF-C的表达成正相关。结论:maspin和VEGF-C在上皮性卵巢癌中表达上调,在卵巢上皮性癌的浸润、转移中起重要作用。     

两个对浓核病毒(镇江株)具感性差异的家蚕品种的血液和围食膜蛋白的比较

家蚕品种间对浓核病毒(镇江株)具有不同的感染性,为了进一步探明家蚕对浓核病毒(镇江株)感性差异的分子机制,本文运用蛋白质电泳和质谱技术比较分析了两个对家蚕浓核病毒(镇江株)感性和抗性的近等基因系家蚕品种JS和NIL的血液和围食膜组织蛋白.结果表明:这两个家蚕品种的血液和围食膜组织蛋白组成差异很小.在血液组织蛋白中发现5个差异蛋白点,其中家蚕品种JS血液中有两个差异蛋白,可能分别为酪蛋白激酶和新型组织蛋白;在NIL血液组织中发现3个差异蛋白点,其中两个可能分别为线粒体延伸因子和类丝氨酸蛋白酶,另外1个的含量极显著高于JS,为血淋巴蛋白.在围食膜蛋白中共发现4个差异蛋白点,其中JS围食膜中有1个差异蛋白可能为新型组织蛋白;其余3个蛋白点在含量上相互间存在显著差异.本研究根据组织差异蛋白的功能初步推测家蚕对浓核病毒(镇江株)感性差异与血液蛋白差异无显著相关,与围食膜蛋白差异可能有关.     

芥子气暴露的确证：家兔皮肤染毒后血红蛋白N端缬氨酸加合物的同位素稀释-NCI-GC/MS溯源性检测

素有＂毒剂之王＂之称的芥子气（HD）是目前危害最大的化学战剂之一,染毒后在体内可产生不同类型的特征性生物标志物,其对中毒诊断、溯源性分析以及毒理机制等研究有着重要的意义.本文首先采用同位素稀释-NCI-GC/MS分析方法监测和鉴定了HD体外全血染毒后产生的血红蛋白N端缬氨酸加合物（HETE-Val）;其次,研究了不同剂量HD（0.02～0.15LD50）经皮染毒家兔体内HETE-Val的时效、量效关系.结果表明,HETE-Val与家兔中毒剂量间有良好的量效关系,而时效关系表明染毒后15min内即可产生并检测到HETE-Val,一周内达到最大,随后逐渐下降,但至染毒后第103天仍可监测到该加合物.与血红蛋白N端缬氨酸加合反应的HD仅占HD染毒总量的～0.15‰,与家兔血液反应的HD约占HD染毒总量的～1%.表明HETE-Val是一种重要的生物标志物,并可应用于HD暴露的确证和化学武器核查的溯源性检测.     

A novel single-nucleotide polymorphism in the 5' upstream region of the prolactin receptor gene is associated with fiber traits in Liaoning cashmere goats

The most important traits of Chinese Liaoning cashmere goat fiber are fiber diameter, weight, and length. We looked for polymorphisms and their possible association with cashmere fiber traits in the 5' upstream region (5' UTR) of the prolactin receptor gene (PRLR), which encodes an anterior pituitary peptide hormone involved in different physiological activities; it is the principal endocrine regulator in pelage replacement in mammals. A novel single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) was found in the 5' UTR of PRLR by PCR-RFLP in an analysis of 590 goats. Two genotypes (CC and CT) were observed. The frequencies of allele C and T were 0.93 and 0.07, respectively. Association analysis revealed that the PRLR 5' UTR polymorphism (SNP5) was significantly associated with cashmere fiber weight and diameter. This novel SNP in hircine PRLR has potential as a molecular marker for cashmere fiber weight and diameter in Liaoning cashmere goats.     

Discovery of peptidylarginine deiminase-4 substrates by protein array: antagonistic citrullination and methylation of human ribosomal protein S2

Peptidylarginine deiminase (PAD) catalyzes the posttranslational citrullination of selected proteins in a calcium dependent manner. The PAD4 isoform has been implicated in multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, some types of cancer, and plays a role in gene regulation. However, the substrate selectivity of PAD4 is not well defined, nor is the impact of citrullination on many other pathways. Here, a high-density protein array is used as a primary screen to identify 40 previously unreported PAD4 substrates, 10 of which are selected and verified in a cell lysate-based secondary assay. One of the most prominent hits, human 40S ribosomal protein S2 (RPS2), is characterized in detail. PAD4 citrullinates the Arg-Gly repeat region of RPS2, which is also an established site for Arg methylation by protein arginine methyltransferase 3 (PRMT3). As in other systems, crosstalk is observed; citrullination and methylation modifications are found to be antagonistic to each other, suggesting a conserved posttranslational regulatory strategy. Both PAD4 and PRMT3 are found to co-sediment with the free 40S ribosomal subunit fraction from cell extracts. These findings are consistent with participation of citrullination in the regulation of RPS2 and ribosome assembly. This application of protein arrays to reveal new PAD4 substrates suggests a role for citrullination in a number of different cellular pathways.     

Furanofuran lignans from Vitex negundo seeds

A new furanofuran lignan, vitelignin A (1), together with eight known lignan derivatives, were isolated from the seeds of Vitex negundo. Their structures were identified as (+)-4-oxo-8-hydroxy-2,6-di(3,4-methylenedioxy)phenyl-3,7-dioxabicyclo[3.3.0]octane (1), 4-oxosesamin (2), (+)-sesamin (3), (+)-paulownin (4), 4-hydroxysesamin (5), 4,8-dihydroxysesamin (6), 4-oxopaulownin (7), (+)-2-(3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenyl)-6-(3,4-methylenedioxy)phenyl-3,7-dioxabicyclo[3.3.0]octane (8), and (+)-pinoresinol (9), respectively, based on extensive NMR and MS spectroscopic studies. Compounds 1, 2, and 7 showed moderate antifungal activity in vitro.