神经节苷脂联合α-硫辛酸治疗糖尿病神经源性膀胱临床观察

目的:观察α-硫辛酸、神经节苷脂联合治疗糖尿病神经源性膀胱的临床疗效。方法:60例2型糖尿病神经源性膀胱患者,随机分为α-硫辛酸治疗对照组、神经节苷脂治疗对照组,联合治疗组,疗程30d,观察症状体征及治疗前后B超膀胱残余尿量症状的变化,比较不同方案的疗效。结果:α-硫辛酸治疗对照组有效率90%,神经节苷脂治疗对照组有效率90%,联合治疗组有效率95%两组间无统计学差异(P>0.05),但3组的治愈率分别为90.0%、50.0%、60.0%,治疗组的治愈率高于两个对照组,有统计学差异(P<0.05)。结论:α-硫辛酸和神经节苷脂联合治疗糖尿病神经源性膀胱有较好的临床疗效,值得临床推广。     

薏米黄酒的急性毒性研究

目的:研究薏米黄酒的急性毒性,评价该酒的食用安全性。方法:以ICR小鼠为受试对象,一次性给予最大剂量,观察薏米黄酒对小鼠的急性毒性反应,测定薏米黄酒的LD50和最大耐受剂量。结果:小鼠无一只死亡,无法测出LD50,最大耐受量大于20400 mg/kg。结论:实验检测表明,该黄酒无毒,为薏米黄酒的应用提供了毒理学依据。     

超微七味白术散对菌群失调小鼠的疗效研究

目的:研究超微七味白术散对抗生素引起的菌群失调小鼠的疗效。方法:将70只小鼠随机分为7组,以灌胃生理盐水建立对照组,以灌胃氨苄西林、头孢拉定、盐酸林可霉素复合抗生素构建菌群失调小鼠模型,以七味白术散传统汤剂及超微全量、1/2量、1/4量、1/8量治疗,通过粪便判断疗效。结果:七味白术散超微药剂与传统汤剂均能治疗抗生素引起的小鼠菌群失调,且超微七味白术散1/2量对小鼠的治疗效果已能达到传统汤剂水平。结论:超微七味白术散对菌群失调小鼠具有良好的治疗效果,与传统药物相比具有节约药材的价值。     

Cardiovascular Disease Risk of Abdominal Obesity vs. Metabolic Abnormalities

It remains unclear whether abdominal obesity increases cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk independent of the metabolic abnormalities that often accompany it. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the independent effects of abdominal obesity vs. metabolic syndrome and diabetes on the risk for incident coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke. The Framingham Offspring, Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities, and Cardiovascular Health studies were pooled to assess the independent effects of abdominal obesity (waist circumference >102 cm for men and >88 cm for women) vs. metabolic syndrome (excluding the waist circumference criterion) and diabetes on risk for incident CHD and stroke in 20,298 men and women aged ≥45 years. The average follow‐up was 8.3 (s.d. 1.9) years. There were 1,766 CVD events. After adjustment for demographic factors, smoking, alcohol intake, number of metabolic syndrome components, and diabetes, abdominal obesity was not significantly associated with an increased risk of CVD (hazard ratio (HR) (95% confidence interval): 1.09 (0.98, 1.20)). However, after adjustment for demographics, smoking, alcohol intake, and abdominal obesity, having 1–2 metabolic syndrome components, the metabolic syndrome and diabetes were each associated with a significantly increased risk of CVD (2.12 (1.80, 2.50), 2.82 (1.92, 4.12), and 5.33 (3.37, 8.41), respectively). Although abdominal obesity is an important clinical tool for identification of individuals likely to possess metabolic abnormalities, these data suggest that the metabolic syndrome and diabetes are considerably more important prognostic indicators of CVD risk.     

Smart phone, smart science: how the use of smartphones can revolutionize research in cognitive science

Investigating human cognitive faculties such as language, attention, and memory most often relies on testing small and homogeneous groups of volunteers coming to research facilities where they are asked to participate in behavioral experiments. We show that this limitation and sampling bias can be overcome by using smartphone technology to collect data in cognitive science experiments from thousands of subjects from all over the world. This mass coordinated use of smartphones creates a novel and powerful scientific "instrument" that yields the data necessary to test universal theories of cognition. This increase in power represents a potential revolution in cognitive science.     

Functional architecture of the inner pore of a voltage-gated Ca2+ channel

The inner pore of voltage-gated Ca2+ channels (VGCCs) is functionally important, but little is known about the architecture of this region. In K+ channels, this part of the pore is formed by the S6/M2 transmembrane segments from four symmetrically arranged subunits. The Ca2+ channel pore, however, is formed by four asymmetric domains of the same (alpha1) subunit. Here we investigated the architecture of the inner pore of P/Q-type Ca2+ channels using the substituted-cysteine accessibility method. Many positions in the S6 segments of all four repeats of the alpha1 subunit (Ca(v)2.1) were modified by internal methanethiosulfonate ethyltrimethylammonium (MTSET). However, the pattern of modification does not fit any known sequence alignment with K+ channels. In IIS6, five consecutive positions showed clear modification, suggesting a likely aqueous crevice and a loose packing between S6 and S5 segments, a notion further supported by the observation that some S5 positions were also accessible to internal MTSET. These results indicate that the inner pore of VGCCs is indeed formed by the S6 segments but is different from that of K+ channels. Interestingly some residues in IIIS6 and IVS6 whose mutations in L-type Ca2+ channels affect the binding of dihydropyridines and phenylalkylamines and are thought to face the pore appeared not to react with internal MTSET. Probing with qBBr, a rigid thiol-reactive agent with a dimension of 12 angstroms x 10 angstroms x 6 angstroms suggests that the inner pore can open to >10 angstroms. This work provides an impetus for future studies on ion permeation, gating, and drug binding of VGCCs.     

Heme oxidation in a chimeric protein of the alpha-selective Neisseriae meningitidis heme oxygenase with the distal helix of the delta-selective Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Heme oxygenases from the bacterial pathogens Neisseriae meningitidis (nm-HO) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (pa-HO) share significant sequence identity (37%). In nm-HO, biliverdin IXalpha is the sole product of the reaction, whereas pa-HO yields predominantly biliverdin IXdelta. We have previously shown by NMR that the in-plane conformation of the heme in pa-HO is significantly different from that of nm-HO as a result of distinct interactions of the heme propionates with the protein scaffold [Caignan, G. A., Deshmukh, R., Wilks, A., Zeng, Y., Huang, H. W., Moenne-Loccoz, P., Bunce, R. A., Eastman, M. A., and Rivera, M. (2002) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 124, 14879-14892]. In the report presented here, we have extended these studies to investigate the role of the distal helix by preparing a chimera of nm-HO (nm-HOch), in which distal helix residues 107-142 of nm-HO have been replaced with the corresponding residues of the delta-regioselective pa-HO (112-147). Electronic absorption spectra, resonance Raman and FTIR spectroscopic studies confirm that the orientation and hydrogen bonding properties of the proximal His ligand are not significantly altered in the chimera relative those of the wild-type proteins. The catalytic turnover of the nm-HOch-heme complex yields almost exclusively alpha-biliverdin and a small but reproducible amount of delta-biliverdin. NMR spectroscopic studies reveal that the altered regioselectivity in the chimeric protein likely stems from a dynamic equilibrium between two alternate in-plane conformations of the heme (in-plane heme disorder). Replacement of K16 with Ala and Met31 with Lys in the chimeric protein in an effort to tune key polypeptide-heme propionate contacts largely stabilizes the in-plane conformer conducive to delta-meso hydroxylation.     

Efficient, pH-dependent RNA ligation by the VS ribozyme in trans

The VS ribozyme acts as a very efficient ligase in trans when the 5' cleavage product is prevented from dissociation by an extended helix Ia in the substrate. Provided that the length of this helix is >or=10 bp, the substrate becomes approximately 80% ligated by the ribozyme acting in trans. Most of the nucleotides that have been shown to be important for cleavage are similarly important for ligation, including the critical A756 of the active site. The exception to this is C755. The variant ribozyme C755A has almost normal cleavage activity, whereas the rate of ligation is reduced 70-fold. It is therefore likely that this nucleotide plays a specific role in the organization of the termini of the ligation substrates. We have found that the rate of the trans ligation reaction depends on pH, corresponding to the protonation/deprotonation of a group with a pK(A) of 5.6. A model is suggested whereby the approach to equilibrium is catalyzed by the ribozyme catalyzing the ligation reaction in its deprotonated state (rate 1.05 min(-1)) and the cleavage reaction in its protonated state (rate 0.18 min(-1)). A756 is a candidate for the nucleobase undergoing protonation/deprotonation.     

羊松果体细胞原代培养及其生物学特性的研究

体外培养山羊及绵羊的松果体细胞,观察其增殖情况和功能状态的变化.结果显示:山羊、绵羊的松果体细胞体外形态及生长情况相似.细胞多呈圆形或多角形,细胞体积有增大趋势.采用MTT法检测细胞生长状态,发现细胞有明显的增殖现象,大约于11d达到高峰.用免疫组织化学对培养细胞进行染色,发现5-HT阳性细胞数量随细胞的增殖而增加.表明山羊和绵羊松果体细胞在体外均增殖旺盛,并能保持体内的分泌功能.