Heavy Hymenolepis nana Infection Possibly Through Organic Foods: Report of a Case

We encountered a patient with heavy Hymenolepis nana infection. The patient was a 44-year-old Korean man who had suffered from chronic hepatitis (type B) for 15 years. A large number of H. nana adult worms were found during colonoscopy that was performed as a part of routine health screening. The parasites were scattered throughout the colon, as well as in the terminal ileum, although the patient was immunocompetent. Based on this study, colonoscopy may be helpful for diagnosis of asymptomatic H. nana infections.     

非小细胞肺癌术后并发乳糜胸对患者生活质量影响的研究

目的:探讨非小细胞肺癌术后并发乳糜胸对患者生活质量的影响。方法:采用生活质量测定量表(QLQ-C30)回顾性分析第四军医大学唐都医院胸外科自2013年至2016年中收治的1015例肺癌手术患者的生活质量,发生乳糜胸组记为A组,未发生乳糜胸组记为B组。对比术前和术后1、3、6和12个月的生活质量有无统计学差异。结果:(1)术后1月时,除了社会功能、便秘、腹泻以外,两组生活质量指标评分均显著低于术前,且B组均显著低于A组,有统计学差异(表3,P0.05)。在手术后3月及以后逐渐恢复,至12月时,各组指标与术前基本相同(表3,P0.05);(2)两组术后生活质量相比较,术后1、3月,除社会功能、便秘、腹泻以外,其余生活质量功能指标B组均显著优于A组,有统计学差异(表3,P0.05)。在手术后6月及以后,B组所有指标与A组无统计学差异(表3,P0.05)。结论:肺癌根治术后发生乳糜胸患者生活质量显著低于未发生乳糜胸患者,因此应合理选择手术方式,注意术中操作,降低乳糜胸发生率,提高肺癌患者术后的生活质量。     

Interleukin-1α Activity in Necrotic Endothelial Cells Is Controlled by Caspase-1 Cleavage of Interleukin-1 Receptor-2: IMPLICATIONS FOR ALLOGRAFT REJECTION*

Inflammation is a key instigator of the immune responses that drive atherosclerosis and allograft rejection. IL-1α, a powerful cytokine that activates both innate and adaptive immunity, induces vessel inflammation after release from necrotic vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Similarly, IL-1α released from endothelial cells (ECs) damaged during transplant drives allograft rejection. However, IL-1α requires cleavage for full cytokine activity, and what controls cleavage in necrotic ECs is currently unknown. We find that ECs have very low levels of IL-1α activity upon necrosis. However, TNFα or IL-1 induces significant levels of active IL-1α in EC necrotic lysates without alteration in protein levels. Increased activity requires cleavage of IL-1α by calpain to the more active mature form. Immunofluorescence and proximity ligation assays show that IL-1α associates with interleukin-1 receptor-2, and this association is decreased by TNFα or IL-1 and requires caspase activity. Thus, TNFα or IL-1 treatment of ECs leads to caspase proteolytic activity that cleaves interleukin-1 receptor-2, allowing IL-1α dissociation and subsequent processing by calpain. Importantly, ECs could be primed by IL-1α from adjacent damaged VSMCs, and necrotic ECs could activate neighboring normal ECs and VSMCs, causing them to release inflammatory cytokines and up-regulate adhesion molecules, thus amplifying inflammation. These data unravel the molecular mechanisms and interplay between damaged ECs and VSMCs that lead to activation of IL-1α and, thus, initiation of adaptive responses that cause graft rejection.     

Lipid Binding Defects and Perturbed Synaptogenic Activity of a Collybistin R290H Mutant That Causes Epilepsy and Intellectual Disability

Signaling at nerve cell synapses is a key determinant of proper brain function, and synaptic defects—or synaptopathies—are at the basis of many neurological and psychiatric disorders. In key areas of the mammalian brain, such as the hippocampus or the basolateral amygdala, the clustering of the scaffolding protein Gephyrin and of γ-aminobutyric acid type A receptors at inhibitory neuronal synapses is critically dependent upon the brain-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor Collybistin (Cb). Accordingly, it was discovered recently that an R290H missense mutation in the diffuse B-cell lymphoma homology domain of Cb, which carries the guanine nucleotide exchange factor activity, leads to epilepsy and intellectual disability in human patients. In the present study, we determined the mechanism by which the Cb^R290H mutation perturbs inhibitory synapse formation and causes brain dysfunction. Based on a combination of biochemical, cell biological, and molecular dynamics simulation approaches, we demonstrate that the R290H mutation alters the strength of intramolecular interactions between the diffuse B-cell lymphoma homology domain and the pleckstrin homology domain of Cb. This defect reduces the phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate binding affinity of Cb, which limits its normal synaptogenic activity. Our data indicate that impairment of the membrane lipid binding activity of Cb and a consequent defect in inhibitory synapse maturation represent a likely molecular pathomechanism of epilepsy and mental retardation in humans.     

Immunopathological Changes in the Brain of Immunosuppressed Mice Experimentally Infected with Toxocara canis

Toxocariasis is a soil-transmitted helminthozoonosis due to infection of humans by larvae of Toxocara canis. The disease could produce cognitive and behavioral disturbances especially in children. Meanwhile, in our modern era, the incidence of immunosuppression has been progressively increasing due to increased incidence of malignancy as well as increased use of immunosuppressive agents. The present study aimed at comparing some of the pathological and immunological alterations in the brain of normal and immunosuppressed mice experimentally infected with T. canis. Therefore, 180 Swiss albino mice were divided into 4 groups including normal (control) group, immunocompetent T. canis-infected group, immunosuppressed group (control), and immunosuppressed infected group. Infected mice were subjected to larval counts in the brain, and the brains from all mice were assessed for histopathological changes, astrogliosis, and IL-5 mRNA expression levels in brain tissues. The results showed that under immunosuppression, there were significant increase in brain larval counts, significant enhancement of reactive gliosis, and significant reduction in IL-5 mRNA expression. All these changes were maximal in the chronic stage of infection. In conclusion, the immunopathological alterations in the brains of infected animals were progressive over time, and were exaggerated under the effect of immunosuppression as did the intensity of cerebral infection.