神经生长因子治疗急性颅脑损伤的效果及对患者神经功能的影响

目的:研究神经生长因子在急性颅脑损伤中的治疗效果及对神经功能的影响。方法:选取2014年8月至2015年7月本院收治的82例急性颅脑损伤患者,随机分为观察组和对照组,每组41例。对照组采取常规对症治疗,观察组在对照组基础上采用神经生长因子治疗。观察并比较两组患者治疗前后血清S100β,白介素-6(IL-6),髓鞘碱性蛋白(MBP)及神经元特异性烯醇化酶(NSE)水平的变化情况以及临床疗效。结果:观察组总有效率高于对照组,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05)。与治疗前比较,两组患者治疗后血清S100β及IL-6水平均降低,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05);与对照组比较,观察组患者治疗后血清S100β及IL-6水平较低,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05);与治疗前比较,两组患者治疗后血清MBP及NSE水平均降低,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05);与对照组比较,观察组患者治疗后血清MBP及NSE水平较低,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05)。结论:神经生长因子治疗急性颅脑损伤的效果显著,能够改善患者免疫功能和神经功能,值得临床推广应用。     

Modulation of the immune response by Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus

Coronavirus (CoV) infections are commonly associated with respiratory and enteric disease in humans and animals. In 2012, a new human disease called Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) emerged in the Middle East. MERS was caused by a virus that was originally called human coronavirus-Erasmus Medical Center/2012 but was later renamed as Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). MERS-CoV causes high fever, cough, acute respiratory tract infection, and multiorgan dysfunction that may eventually lead to the death of the infected individuals. The exact origin of MERS-CoV remains unknown, but the transmission pattern and evidence from virological studies suggest that dromedary camels are the major reservoir host, from which human infections may sporadically occur through the zoonotic transmission. Human to human transmission also occurs in healthcare facilities and communities. Recent studies on Middle Eastern respiratory continue to highlight the need for further understanding the virus-host interactions that govern disease severity and infection outcome. In this review, we have highlighted the major mechanisms of immune evasion strategies of MERS-CoV. We have demonstrated that M, 4a, 4b proteins and Plppro of MERS-CoV inhibit the type I interferon (IFN) and nuclear factor-κB signaling pathways and therefore facilitate innate immune evasion. In addition, nonstructural protein 4a (NSP4a), NSP4b, and NSP15 inhibit double-stranded RNA sensors. Therefore, the mentioned proteins limit early induction of IFN and cause rapid apoptosis of macrophages. MERS-CoV strongly inhibits the activation of T cells with downregulation of antigen presentation. In addition, uncontrolled secretion of interferon ɣ-induced protein 10 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 can suppress proliferation of human myeloid progenitor cells.     

Evolutionary relationships and sequence-structure determinants in human SARS coronavirus-2 spike proteins for host receptor recognition

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic infectious disease caused by novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS CoV-2). The SARS CoV-2 is transmitted more rapidly and readily than SARS CoV. Both, SARS CoV and SARS CoV-2 via their glycosylated spike proteins recognize the human angiotensin converting enzyme-2 (ACE-2) receptor. We generated multiple sequence alignments and phylogenetic trees for representative spike proteins of SARS CoV and SARS CoV-2 from various host sources in order to analyze the specificity in SARS CoV-2 spike proteins required for causing infection in humans. Our results show that among the genomes analyzed, two sequence regions in the N-terminal domain “MESEFR” and “SYLTPG” are specific to human SARS CoV-2. In the receptor-binding domain, two sequence regions “VGGNY“ and ”EIYQAGSTPCNGV” and a disulfide bridge connecting 480C and 488C in the extended loop are structural determinants for the recognition of human ACE-2 receptor. The complete genome analysis of representative SARS CoVs from bat, civet, human host sources, and human SARS CoV-2 identified the bat genome (GenBank code: MN996532.1) as closest to the recent novel human SARS CoV-2 genomes. The bat SARS CoV genomes (GenBank codes: MG772933 and MG772934) are evolutionary intermediates in the mutagenesis progression toward becoming human SARS CoV-2.     

氨氮对中华小长臂虾的急性毒性及非特异性免疫指标的影响

采用生物毒性实验方法研究了氨氮对中华小长臂虾的急性毒性作用, 结果表明: 在温度为(18±1)℃, pH为7.3±0.1条件下, 氨氮对中华小长臂虾24h、48h、72h、96h 的半致死浓度(LC₅₀)分别为565.47、371.16、291.16和272.50 mg/L, 安全浓度为 27.25 mg/L。转化为非离子氨的LC₅₀分别为3.74、2.45、1.93 和1.80 mg/L, 安全浓度为0.18 mg/L。根据96h 的LC₅₀和安全浓度按照等差数列设置5个氨氮浓度梯度, 分别60、100、140、180和220 mg/L, 研究氨氮胁迫对中华小长臂虾非特异性免疫指标的影响。结果显示: 在24h时, 除了220 mg/L的肌肉组织, 中华小长臂虾肝胰腺和肌肉中的超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)活性显著性高于对照组, 并具有明显的剂量效应, 在48—96h均回落到正常水平; 在24h时, 中华小长臂虾氨氮处理组中肝胰腺的酸性磷酸酶(ACP)与对照组未发生显著变化, 而碱性磷酸酶(AKP)则显著高于对照组, 在48—96h两者的140、180和220 mg/L处理组均显著低于对照组; 除了140 mg/L 处理组的ACP活性外, 肌肉中的ACP和AKP活性从24h开始就出现了显著性下降, 始终低于对照组。研究获得了氨氮对中华小长臂虾的急性毒性结果和在高氨氮胁迫下非特异性免疫指标的变化规律, 发现中华小长臂虾对氨氮具有较强的耐受性, 但高浓度的氨氮会对中华小长臂虾的免疫酶活性产生抑制作用, 研究结果可为中华小长臂虾健康养殖发展提供科学依据。     

Synthesis of (1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-acrylamide derivatives as potential antitumor agents against acute leukemia cells

A lead compound with the (1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-acrylamide scaffold was discovered to have significant cytotoxicity on several tumor cell lines in an in-house cell-based screening. A total of 60 derivative compounds were then synthesized and tested in a CCK-8 cell viability assay. Some of them exhibited improved cytotoxic activities. The most potent compounds had IC₅₀ values of 1–5 μM on two acute leukemia tumor cell lines, i.e. RS4;11 and HL-60. Flow cytometry analysis of several active compounds and detection of caspase activation indicated that they induced caspase-dependent apoptosis. It was also encouraging to observe that these compounds did not have obvious cytotoxicity on normal cells, i.e. IC₅₀ > 50 μM on HEK-293T cells. Although the molecular targets of this class of compound are yet to be revealed, our current results suggest that this class of compound represents a new possibility for developing drug candidates against acute leukemia.     

Pulmonary Toxocariasis Mimicking Invasive Aspergillosis in a Patient with Ulcerative Colitis

A 45-year-old-male who had underlying ulcerative colitis and presented with fever and dry cough. Initially, the patient was considered to have invasive aspergillosis due to a positive galactomannan assay. He was treated with amphotericin B followed by voriconazole. Nevertheless, the patient deteriorated clinically and radiographically. The lung biopsy revealed eosinophilic pneumonia, and ELISA for Toxocara antigen was positive, leading to a diagnosis of pulmonary toxocariasis. After a 10-day treatment course with albendazole and adjunctive steroids, the patient recovered completely without any sequelae. Pulmonary toxocariasis may be considered in patients with subacute or chronic pneumonia unresponsive to antibiotic agents, particularly in cases with eosinophilia.     

急性早幼粒细胞白血病巩固治疗现状及进展

急性早幼粒细胞白血病(APL)曾被认为是最迅速的致命白血病,特点为临床表现凶险,早期死亡率高,治愈率低。药物全反式维甲酸及亚砷酸的应用,使APL的治疗取得了很大成功,其完全缓解率可达90%。然而APL的复发率仍然较高,约15%-30%。降低复发率和提高长期生存已成为研究重点,如何选择合理的缓解后治疗策略至关重要。缓解后治疗一般包括巩固治疗和维持治疗,而最佳治疗方案的确定仍然有待商榷。因此,本文就APL缓解后巩固治疗回顾相关文献进行整合分析,综述APL巩固治疗的研究进展。     

Bacterial xenophagy and its possible role in cancer: A potential antimicrobial strategy for cancer prevention and treatment

Macroautophagy/autophagy is a conserved catabolic process through which cellular excessive or dysfunctional proteins and organelles are transported to the lysosome for terminal degradation and recycling. Over the past few years increasing evidence has suggested that autophagy is not only a simple metabolite recycling mechanism, but also plays a critical role in the removal of intracellular pathogens such as bacteria and viruses. When autophagy engulfs intracellular pathogens, the pathway is called ‘xenophagy’ because it leads to the elimination of foreign microbes. Recent studies support the idea that xenophagy can be modulated by bacterial infection. Meanwhile, convincing evidence indicates that xenophagy may be involved in malignant transformation and cancer therapy. Xenophagy can suppress tumorigenesis, particularly during the early stages of tumor initiation. However, in established tumors, xenophagy may also function as a prosurvival pathway in response to microenvironment stresses including bacterial infection. Therefore, bacterial infection-related xenophagy may have an effect on tumor initiation and cancer treatment. However, the role and machinery of bacterial infection-related xenophagy in cancer remain elusive. Here we will discuss recent developments in our understanding of xenophagic mechanisms targeting bacteria, and how they contribute to tumor initiation and anticancer therapy. A better understanding of the role of xenophagy in bacterial infection and cancer will hopefully provide insight into the design of novel and effective therapies for cancer prevention and treatment.