Rate and irregularity of electrical activation during atrial fibrillation affect myocardial NGF expression via different signalling routes

An irregular ventricular response during atrial fibrillation (AF) has been shown to mediate an increase in sympathetic nerve activity in human subjects. The molecular mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the impact of rate and irregularity on nerve growth factor (NGF) expression in cardiomyocytes, since NGF is known to be the main contributor to cardiac sympathetic innervation density. Cell cultures of neonatal rat ventricular myocytes were electrically stimulated for 48 h with increasing rates (0, 5 and 50 Hz) and irregularity (standard deviation (SD) = 5%, 25% and 50% of mean cycle length). Furthermore, we analyzed the calcineurin-NFAT and the endothelin-1 signalling pathways as possible contributors to NGF regulation during arrhythmic stimulation. We found that the increase of NGF expression reached its maximum at the irregularity of 25% SD by 5 Hz (NGF: 5 Hz 0% SD = 1 vs. 5 Hz 25% SD = 1.57, P < 0.05). Specific blockade of the ET-A receptor by BQ123 could abolish this NGF increase (NGF: 5 Hz 25% SD + BQ123 = 0.66, P < 0.05). High frequency electrical field stimulation (HFES) with 50 Hz decreased the NGF expression in a significant manner (NGF: 50 Hz = 0.55, P < 0.05). Inhibition of calcineurin-NFAT signalling with cyclosporine-A or 11R-VIVIT abolished the HFES induced NGF down-regulation (NGF: 50 Hz + CsA = 1.14, P < 0.05). In summary, this study reveals different signalling routes of NGF expression in cardiomyocytes exposed to increasing rates and irregularity. Whether this translates into different degrees of NGF expression and possibly neural sympathetic growth in various forms of ventricular rate control during AF remains to be elucidated in further studies.     

Cofactor‐binding sites in proteins of deviating sequence: Comparative analysis and clustering in torsion angle,cavity, and fold space

Small molecules are recognized in protein‐binding pockets through surface‐exposed physicochemical properties. To optimize binding, they have to adopt a conformation corresponding to a local energy minimum within the formed protein–ligand complex. However, their conformational flexibility makes them competent to bind not only to homologous proteins of the same family but also to proteins of remote similarity with respect to the shape of the binding pockets and folding pattern. Considering drug action, such observations can give rise tounexpected and undesired cross reactivity. In this study, datasets of six different cofactors (ADP, ATP, NAD(P)(H), FAD, and acetyl CoA, sharing an adenosine diphosphate moiety as common substructure), observed in multiple crystal structures of protein–cofactor complexes exhibiting sequence identity below 25%, have been analyzed for the conformational properties of the bound ligands, the distribution of physicochemical properties in the accommodating protein‐binding pockets, and the local folding patterns next to the cofactor‐binding site. State‐of‐the‐art clustering techniques have been applied to group the different protein–cofactor complexes in the different spaces. Interestingly, clustering in cavity (Cavbase) and fold space (DALI) reveals virtually the same data structuring. Remarkable relationships can be found among the different spaces. They provide information on how conformations are conserved across the host proteins and which distinct local cavity and fold motifs recognize the different portions of the cofactors. In those cases, where different cofactors are found to be accommodated in a similar fashion to the same fold motifs, only a commonly shared substructure of the cofactors is used for the recognition process. Proteins 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Global DNA promoter methylation in frontal cortex of alcoholics and controls

LOX-1 (Lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1) is the primary endothelial receptor of oxidized LDL (oxLDL). Both in vitro and in vivo experiments have shown this protein to be important in the initiation of atherosclerosis and to be up-regulated by pro-atherogenic factors. Recently, it has been demonstrated that Olr1, the gene encoding Lox-1, is important for tumor growth and for maintaining the transformed state in different cancer cell lines, suggesting that it acts in a molecular pathway connecting cancer and atherosclerosis. Both diseases in humans are characterized by uncontrolled regulation of cellular growth and differentiation.We present evidence that Olr1 is expressed during mouse embryogenesis in developmental stages (from 7.5 to 9.5 dpc) in which cardiogenesis occurs. In addition, we identify two novel Olr1 isoform (hereafter referred to as D3D5Olr1 and D2D5Olr1) whose spatio-temporal expression pattern overlaps with Olr1 in vivo. In vitro, D3D5Olr1 localizes to the cell surface membrane as Olr1, in contrast with D2D5Olr1; these data suggest that D2D5Olr1 isoform translates a receptor that does not reach the plasma membrane. Accordingly, in silico transmembrane protein topology prediction analyses, show that D2D5Olr1 does not contain any transmembrane region. Finally, both isoforms can activate the same genetic pathways underlying Olr1 expression, such as, hypoxia and inflammation, even if with a different efficiency.All these data suggest a new functional involvement of Olr1, and probably of its spliceforms, in murine cardiogenesis and angiogenesis.     

重症监护病房医院感染菌分布与耐药性分析

了解哈尔滨医科大学附属第一医院重症监护病房(ICU)病原菌的分布特点及耐药性,为临床治疗提供理论依据。对2003年1月至2010年12月ICU患者送检的标本进行培养,用API鉴定系统或VITEK 2 Com-pact全自动细菌鉴定仪进行菌种鉴定及药敏分析,对检出菌株的构成、标本的分布及药敏结果进行分析。共分离出4 197株病原菌,其中革兰阴性杆菌52.1%、革兰阳性球菌22.3%、真菌25.6%;革兰阴性杆菌中非发酵菌占主要地位(37.5%),以鲍曼不动杆菌为主(13.1%);而肠杆菌科细菌则以肺炎克雷伯菌(9.5%)及大肠埃希菌(5.1%)为主;革兰阳性球菌以金黄色葡萄球菌(14.6%)为主,真菌以白假丝酵母菌(11.8%)为主;在检出所有病原菌的标本中,前3位依次为痰液(79.1%)、血液(8.4%)、无菌体液(8.1%);细菌耐药性结果表明,大肠埃希菌及肺炎克雷伯菌产超广谱β-内酰胺酶(ESBLs)阳性率分别为66.4%、56.3%。几种主要病原菌对各类抗菌药物的耐药程度各不相同,但大部分菌株均呈现多重耐药的现象。产酶菌的耐药率普遍高于非产酶菌,哌拉西林/他唑巴坦对产酶菌及非产酶菌的抑菌效果都很明显;美罗培南、亚胺培南和头孢替坦对肠杆菌科细菌耐药率最低均在40%以下,可作为产酶菌的首选药;鲍曼不动杆菌耐药性严重耐药率均在50%以上。耐甲氧西林葡萄球菌(MRS)检出率为70.1%,其中耐甲氧西林金黄色葡萄球菌(MRSA)75.8%,耐甲氧西林凝固酶阴性葡萄球菌(MRCNS)38.7%。万古霉素、替考拉宁和利奈唑烷可作为革兰阳性球菌严重感染的首选药物。ICU患者以呼吸道感染为主,病原菌以鲍曼不动杆菌和金黄色葡萄球菌为主,且多为多重耐药菌。真菌感染率增加且真菌对药物的敏感性好。应动态监测ICU病原菌的流行和耐药情况,从而控制医院内感染,减少耐药菌株的产生。     

miR-93通过靶定PTEN基因增加肝癌细胞对奥沙利铂的耐药性

微小RNA（miRNA）参与了肿瘤的耐药过程.本研究通过建立对奥沙利铂 (oxaliplatin,Oxa)耐药的肝癌细胞系BEL-7402/Oxa和Hep-3B/Oxa,利用miRNA芯片结合实时荧光定量PCR的方法,筛选得到数个参与肝癌细胞对奥沙利铂耐药的miRNA 分子,其中miR-93表达增加最为明显.MTT实验发现,增加肝癌细胞株中miR-93的表达可以增强其对奥沙利铂的耐药性.进一步结合生物信息学、荧光报告载体及免疫印迹实验,证实miR-93通过靶定抑癌基因PTEN增加肝癌细胞对奥沙利铂的耐药性.总之,肝癌耐药细胞系的建立及其miRNA差异表达谱的分析,以及miRNA分子对肝癌细胞发生奥沙利铂耐药的具体作用及其分子机制的研究,不仅有助于理解肝癌细胞发生耐药的分子机制,而且为探索克服肝癌对奥沙利铂耐药性的有效途径提供可靠依据.     

Molecular and functional determinants of local anesthetic inhibition of NaChBac

In our recent publication, we describe the local anesthetic (LA) inhibition of the prokaryotic voltage gated sodium channel NaChBac. Despite the numerous functional and putative structural differences with the mammalian sodium channels, the data show that LA compounds effectively and reversibly inhibit NaChBac channels in a concentration range similar to resting blockade on eukaryotic Navs. In addition to current reduction, LA application accelerated channel inactivation kinetics of NaChBac which could be accounted for in a simple state-model whereby local anesthetics increase the probability of entering the inactivated state. We have further explored what state (or states) local anesthetic blockade of NaChBac could pertain to eukaryotic sodium channels, and what molecular similarities exist between these disparate channel families. Here we show that the rate of recovery from inactivation remains unaffected in the presence of local anesthetics. Further, we show that two sites that support use-dependent inhibition in eukaryotic channels, do not affect block to the same extent when mutated in NaChBac channels. The data indicate that the molecular determinants and the inherent mechanisms for LA block are likely to be divergent between bacterial and eukaryotic Navs, but future experiments will help define possible similarities.     

AMP-activated protein kinase: an emerging drug target to regulate imbalances in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism to treat cardio-metabolic diseases: Thematic Review Series: New Lipid and Lipoprotein Targets for the Treatment of Cardiometabolic Diseases

The adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a metabolic sensor of energy metabolism at the cellular as well as whole-body level. It is activated by low energy status that triggers a switch from ATP-consuming anabolic pathways to ATP-producing catabolic pathways. AMPK is involved in a wide range of biological activities that normalizes lipid, glucose, and energy imbalances. These pathways are dysregulated in patients with metabolic syndrome (MetS), which represents a clustering of major cardiovascular risk factors including diabetes, lipid abnormalities, and energy imbalances. Clearly, there is an unmet medical need to find a molecule to treat alarming number of patients with MetS. AMPK, with multifaceted activities in various tissues, has emerged as an attractive drug target to manage lipid and glucose abnormalities and maintain energy homeostasis. A number of AMPK activators have been tested in preclinical models, but many of them have yet to reach to the clinic. This review focuses on the structure-function and role of AMPK in lipid, carbohydrate, and energy metabolism. The mode of action of AMPK activators, mechanism of anti-inflammatory activities, and preclinical and clinical findings as well as future prospects of AMPK as a drug target in treating cardio-metabolic disease are discussed.     

Cholesteryl ester transfer protein inhibition as a strategy to reduce cardiovascular risk

Human and rabbit plasma contain a cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) that promotes net mass transfers of cholesteryl esters from high density lipoproteins (HDL) to other plasma lipoprotein fractions. As predicted, inhibition of CETP in both humans and rabbits increases the concentration of cholesterol in the potentially protective HDL fraction, while decreasing it in potentially proatherogenic non-HDL fractions. Inhibition of CETP in rabbits also inhibits the development of diet-induced atherosclerosis. However, use of the CETP inhibitor torcetrapib in humans did not reduce atheroma in three imaging trials and caused an excess of deaths and cardiovascular events in a large clinical outcome trial. The precise explanation for the harm caused by torcetrapib is unknown but may relate to documented, potentially harmful effects unrelated to inhibition of CETP. More recently, a trial using the weak CETP inhibitor dalcetrapib, which raises HDL levels less effectively than torcetrapib and does not lower non-HDL lipoprotein levels, was terminated early for reasons of futility. There was no evidence that dalcetrapib caused harm in that trial. Despite these setbacks, the hypothesis that CETP inhibitors will be antiatherogenic in humans is still being tested in studies with anacetrapib and evacetrapib, two CETP inhibitors that are much more potent than dalcetrapib and that do not share the off-target adverse effects of torcetrapib.     

Purification of recombinant protein by cold‐coacervation of fusion constructs incorporating resilin‐inspired polypeptides

Polypeptides containing between 4 and 32 repeats of a resilin‐inspired sequence AQTPSSYGAP, derived from the mosquito Anopheles gambiae, have been used as tags on recombinant fusion proteins. These repeating polypeptides were inspired by the repeating structures that are found in resilins and sequence‐related proteins from various insects. Unexpectedly, an aqueous solution of a recombinant resilin protein displays an upper critical solution temperature (cold‐coacervation) when held on ice, leading to a separation into a protein rich phase, typically exceeding 200 mg/mL, and a protein‐poor phase. We show that purification of recombinant proteins by cold‐coacervation can be performed when engineered as a fusion partner to a resilin‐inspired repeat sequence. In this study, we demonstrate the process by the recombinant expression and purification of enhanced Green fluorescent protein (EGFP) in E. coli. This facile purification system can produce high purity, concentrated protein solutions without the need for affinity chromatography or other time‐consuming or expensive purification steps, and that it can be used with other bulk purification steps such as low concentration ammonium sulfate precipitation. Protein purification by cold‐coacervation also minimizes the exposure of the target protein to enhanced proteolysis at higher temperature. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2012; 109: 2947–2954. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

药物经皮转运通道的网络热力学模型

阐述药物在经皮转运过程中皮肤通道导纳特性,为经皮给药技术提供理论和方法。用药物经皮转运通道的网络热力学模型建立药物浓度与渗透通量的定量关系,提出皮肤通道导纳由激活因子和失活因子控制的理论。以替硝唑为模式药物,进行被动扩散(对照组)和电脉冲增强扩散(实验组)的离体漏槽实验,结果显示皮肤通道导纳的理论线与实验值拟合较好。理论线计算的激活因子初值m0、激活因子时间常数Tm、失活因子初值‰、失活因子时间常数Th对分析皮肤通道特性有重要价值。