Prognostic Significance of Peritumoral Lymphatic Vessel Density and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor 3 in Invasive Squamous Cell Cervical Cancer

Cervical cancer is known to metastasize primarily by the lymphatic system. Dissemination through lymphatic vessels represents an early step in regional tumor progression, and the presence of lymphatic metastasis is associated with a poor prognosis. In patients who have undergone a radical hysterectomy, lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI), assessed on hematoxylin and eosin-stained slides, is a major factor for adjuvant therapy in patients with cervical cancer. With the advent of a lymphatic endothelial cell-specific marker, such as D2-40, it is now possible to distinguish between blood and lymphatic space invasion (LSI). In this study, the utility of D2-40 was assessed for the detection of lymphatic vessel density (LVD) and identification of LSI. The expressions of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-3 (VEGFR-3), VEGF-C, tyrosine receptor kinase-2, and angiopoietin-1 were assessed by immunohistochemical methods on 50 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix. Clinicopathologic characteristics, including pelvic lymph node metastasis, were correlated with the above histochemical findings. We found that lymphangiogenesis, measured by an increase in peritumoral LVD, was significantly associated with positive lymph node status (P < .005). VEGFR-3 expression was significantly associated with LVD (P < .05). D2-40 staining verified LSI (P = .03) and surpassed that of hematoxylin and eosin-identified LVSI (P = .54). In conclusion, lymphangiogenic markers, specifically LVD quantified by D2-40 and VEGFR-3, are independently associated with LSI and lymph node metastasis in patients with early squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix treated with radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy.     

Estimating specific inherent optical properties of tropical coastal waters using bio-optical model inversion and in situ measurements: case of the Berau estuary,East Kalimantan,Indonesia

Specific inherent optical properties (SIOP) of the Berau coastal waters were derived from in situ measurements and inversion of an ocean color model. Field measurements of water-leaving reflectance, total suspended matter (TSM), and chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations were carried out during the 2007 dry season. The highest values for SIOP were found in the turbid waters, decreasing in value when moving toward offshore waters. The specific backscattering coefficient of TSM varied by an order of magnitude and ranged from 0.003 m² g⁻¹, for clear open ocean waters, to 0.020 m² g⁻¹, for turbid waters. On the other hand, the specific absorption coefficient of Chl a was relatively constant over the whole study area and ranged from 0.022 m² mg⁻¹, for the turbid shallow estuary waters, to 0.027 m² mg⁻¹, for deeper shelf edge ocean waters. The spectral slope of colored dissolved organic matter light absorption was also derived with values ranging from 0.015 to 0.011 nm⁻¹. These original derived values of SIOP in the Berau estuary form a corner stone for future estimation of TSM and Chl a concentration from remote sensing data in tropical equatorial waters.     

The effect of RA on the chick Ebf1-3 genes expression in somites and pharyngeal arches

Expression of chick early B cell factor 1-3 (cEbf1-3) genes in regions of high retinoic acid (RA) activity, such as somites and pharyngeal arches (PAs), and regulation of other EBF members by RA raise the possibility that the internal cue RA may regulate cEbf1-3 expression in these tissues. To check this possibility, RA gain and loss of function experiments were conducted. Ectopic expression of RA led to up-regulation of cEbf2, 3 but did not change cEbf1 expression in somites. Expectedly, inhibition of RA by disulfiram resulted in downregulation of cEbf2, 3, but did not change cEbf1 expression in somites. The same RA gain and loss of function experiments did not change cEbf1-3 expression in PAs. However, ectopic expression of RA in the cranial neural tube before migration of neural crest cells downregulated cEbf1, 3 and up-regulated cEbf2 expression in the PAs. The same experiment, but with application of disulfiram, resulted in downregulation of cEbf2, but did not alter the expression of the other two genes. We conclude that the three cEbf genes act differently in response to RA signals in somitic mesoderm. cEbf1 may be not RA dependant in somites; however, the other two cEbf genes positively respond to RA signalling in somites. Additionally, only the migratory cEbf-expressing cells into the PAs are affected by RA signals.     

5-HT_(1A)受体参与学习记忆的分子机制研究进展

5-HT(五羟色胺)能神经元是起源最早的神经元之一,在传统的神经元形成前,成长中的轴突就可释放5-HT,并且通过5-HT的各种亚型受体来实现不同的功能。近年来,随着5-HT、5-HTRs(五羟色胺受体)的基因克隆及5-HT受体选择性激动剂和拮抗剂的研究发展,5-HT系统在学习记忆中的作用越发明确,许多研究结果表明:5-HT系统在记忆的巩固、短时程记忆(STM)及长时程记忆(LTM)中起重要作用,5-HT1A受体更是在非脊椎动物及哺乳动物的脑中都高度表达,并通过相似的信号转导途径参与学习与记忆的形成和巩固。本文将介绍5-HT1A受体、5-HT1A受体激动剂、5-HT1A受体拮抗剂及其与学习记忆的联系,重点综述5-HT1A受体参与学习记忆的信号转导途径研究进展,讨论5-HT1A受体参与学习记忆的可能性分子神经生物学机制。     

Piericidin A Aggravates Tau Pathology in P301S Transgenic Mice

ObjectiveThe P301S mutation in exon 10 of the tau gene causes a hereditary tauopathy. While mitochondrial complex I inhibition has been linked to sporadic tauopathies. Piericidin A is a prototypical member of the group of the piericidins, a class of biologically active natural complex I inhibitors, isolated from streptomyces spp. with global distribution in marine and agricultural habitats. The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a pathogenic interaction of the environmental toxin piericidin A and the P301S mutation.MethodsTransgenic mice expressing human tau with the P301S-mutation (P301S^+/+) and wild-type mice at 12 weeks of age were treated subcutaneously with vehicle (N = 10 P301S^+/+, N = 7 wild-type) or piericidin A (N = 9 P301S^+/+, N = 9 wild-type mice) at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg/d for a period of 28 days via osmotic minipumps. Tau pathology was measured by stereological counts of cells immunoreative with antibodies against phosphorylated tau (AD2, AT8, AT180, and AT100) and corresponding Western blot analysis.ResultsPiericidin A significantly increased the number of phospho-tau immunoreactive cells in the cerebral cortex in P301S^+/+ mice, but only to a variable and mild extent in wild-type mice. Furthermore, piericidin A led to increased levels of pathologically phosphorylated tau only in P301S^+/+ mice. While we observed no apparent cell loss in the frontal cortex, the synaptic density was reduced by piericidin A treatment in P301S^+/+ mice.DiscussionThis study shows that exposure to piericidin A aggravates the course of genetically determined tau pathology, providing experimental support for the concept of gene-environment interaction in the etiology of tauopathies.     

Anti-Ulcerogenic Effect of Methanolic Extracts from Enicosanthellum pulchrum (King) Heusden against Ethanol-Induced Acute Gastric Lesion in Animal Models

A natural source of medicine, Enicosanthellum pulchrum is a tropical plant which belongs to the family Annonaceae. In this study, methanol extract from the leaves and stems of this species was evaluated for its gastroprotective potential against mucosal lesions induced by ethanol in rats. Seven groups of rats were assigned, groups 1 and 2 were given Tween 20 (10% v/v) orally. Group 3 was administered omeprazole 20 mg/kg (10% Tween 20) whilst the remaining groups received the leaf and stem extracts at doses of 150 and 300 mg/kg, respectively. After an additional hour, the rats in groups 2–7 received ethanol (95% v/v; 8 mL/kg) orally while group 1 received Tween 20 (10% v/v) instead. Rats were sacrificed after 1 h and their stomachs subjected to further studies. Macroscopically and histologically, group 2 rats showed extremely severe disruption of the gastric mucosa compared to rats pre-treated with the E. pulchrum extracts based on the ulcer index, where remarkable protection was noticed. Meanwhile, a significant percentage of inhibition was shown with the stem extract at 62% (150 mg/kg) and 65% (300 mg/kg), whilst the percentage with the leaf extract at doses of 150 and 300 mg/kg was 63% and 75%, respectively. An increase in mucus content, nitric oxide, glutathione, prostaglandin E2, superoxide dismutase, protein and catalase, and a decrease in malondialdehyde level compared to group 2 were also obtained. Furthermore, immunohistochemical staining of groups 4–7 exhibited down-regulation of Bax and up-regulation of Hsp70 proteins. The methanol extract from the leaves and the stems showed notable gastroprotective potential against ethanol.     

脂肪细胞因子 CTRP4转基因鼠的构建与鉴定

目的：建立人CTRP4基因的转基因小鼠,为脂肪细胞因子CTRP4的体内功能研究奠定基础。方法首先构建人CTRP4的转基因小鼠线性化表达载体,再利用显微注射的方法将载体注射入小鼠受精卵,从而构建人CTRP4的首建鼠（ Founder ）并与野生型小鼠交配繁殖得到F1代阳性小鼠,再通过近亲繁殖与测交的方法,得到CTRP4转基因纯合子小鼠,并通过PCR和western blot 的方法对纯合子小鼠进行鉴定。结果得到人CTRP4转基因小鼠纯合子小鼠两个品系,western blot鉴定该转基因小鼠心脏,肝脏,脑,肾脏等多种组织中均呈现CTRP4高表达。结论成功构建了人CTRP4转基因小鼠纯合子小鼠。     

Molecular characterization of the alpha subunit of multicomponent phenol hydroxylase from 4-chlorophenol-degrading Pseudomonas sp. strain PT3

Multicomponent phenol hydroxylases (mPHs) are diiron enzymes that use molecular oxygen to hydroxylate a variety of phenolic compounds. The DNA sequence of the alpha subunit (large subunit) of mPH from 4-chlorophenol (4-CP)-degrading bacterial strain PT3 was determined. Strain PT3 was isolated from oil-contaminated soil samples adjacent to automobile workshops and oil stations after enrichment and establishment of a chlorophenol-degrading consortium. Strain PT3 was identified as a member of Pseudomonas sp. based on sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA gene fragment. The 4-CP catabolic pathway by strain PT3 was tentatively proposed to proceed via a meta-cleavage pathway after hydroxylation to the corresponding chlorocatechol. This hypothesis was supported by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection of the LmPH encoding sequence and UV/VIS spectrophotometric analysis of the culture filtrate showing accumulation of 5-chloro-2-hydroxymuconic semialdehyde (5-CHMS) with λ_max 380. The detection of catabolic genes involved in 4-CP degradation by PCR showed the presence of both mPH and catechol 2,3-dioxygenase (C23DO). Nucleotide sequence analysis of the alpha subunit of mPH from strain PT3 revealed specific phylogenetic grouping to known mPH. The metal coordination encoding regions from strain PT3 were found to be conserved with those from the homologous dinuclear oxo-iron bacterial monooxygenases. Two DE(D)XRH motifs was detected in LmPH of strain PT3 within an approximate 100 amino acid interval, a typical arrangement characteristic of most known PHs.     

A heparin-binding growth factor, midkine, binds to a chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan, PG-M/versican.

Midkine is a heparin-binding growth factor with survival-promoting and migration-enhancing activities. In order to understand the regulation of midkine signaling, we isolated midkine-binding proteoglycans from day 13 mouse embryos, when midkine is intensely expressed. Deglycosylation followed by SDS/PAGE revealed various protein bands; one of these was identified as PG-M/versican by in gel trypsin digestion and sequencing the resulting peptides. PG-M/versican isolated from day 13 mouse embryos bound midkine with a Kd of 1.0 nM. Pleiotrophin/heparin-binding growth-associated molecule, which has a structure related to midkine, was also bound similarly. Digestion with chondroitinase ABC, AC-I or B abolished the binding to midkine. Heparin as well as chondroitin sulfate D and E inhibited the binding. After chondroitinase ABC digestion, the midkine-binding PG-M/versican released 4-sulfated, 6-sulfated, 2, 6-disulfated and 4,6-disulfated unsaturated disaccharides. These results suggest that midkine binds to a polysulfated domain in the chondroitin sulfate chain with a region of dermatan sulfate structure. This proteoglycan may modulate the midkine activity, as binding to midkine can enhance midkine action by concentrating it to the cell periphery or inhibit the action by competing with the binding to a signaling receptor.