THE +1245G/T POLYMORPHISMS IN THE COLLAGEN TYPE I ALPHA 1 (COL1A1) GENE IN POLISH SKIERS WITH ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT INJURY

Objectives

The aim of this study was to examine the association of +1245G/T polymorphisms in the COL1A1 gene with ACL ruptures in Polish male recreational skiers in a case-control study.

Methods

A total of 138 male recreational skiers with surgically diagnosed primary ACL ruptures, all of whom qualified for ligament reconstruction, were recruited for this study. The control group comprised 183 apparently healthy male skiers with a comparable level of exposure to ACL injury, none of whom had any self-reported history of ligament or tendon injury. DNA samples extracted from the oral epithelial cells were genotyped for the +1245G/T polymorphisms using real-time PCR method.

Results

Genotype distributions among cases and controls conformed to Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (p = 0.2469 and p = 0.33, respectively). There was a significant difference in the genotype distribution between skiers and controls (p = 0.045, Fisher''s exact test). There was no statistical difference in allele distribution: OR 1.43 (0.91-2.25), p = 0.101 (two-sided Fisher''s exact test).

Conclusions

The risk of ACL ruptures was around 1.43 times lower in carriers of a minor allele G as compared to carriers of the allele T.     

Isovitexin Exerts Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Oxidant Activities on Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Lung Injury by Inhibiting MAPK and NF-κB and Activating HO-1/Nrf2 Pathways

Oxidative damage and inflammation are closely associated with the pathogenesis of acute lung injury (ALI). Thus, we explored the protective effect of isovitexin (IV), a glycosylflavonoid, in the context of ALI. To accomplish this, we created in vitro and in vivo models by respectively exposing macrophages to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and using LPS to induce ALI in mice. In vitro, our results showed that IV treatment reduced LPS-induced pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion, iNOS and COX-2 expression and decreased the generation of ROS. Consistent findings were obtained in vivo. Additionally, IV inhibited H₂O₂-induced cytotoxicity and apoptosis. However, these effects were partially reversed following the use of an HO-1 inhibitor in vitro. Further studies revealed that IV significantly inhibited MAPK phosphorylation, reduced NF-κB nuclear translocation, and upregulated nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) expression in RAW 264.7 cells. In vivo, pretreatment with IV attenuated histopathological changes, infiltration of polymorphonuclear granulocytes and endothelial activation, decreased the expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1, reduced the levels of MPO and MDA, and increased the content of GSH and SOD in ALI. Furthermore, IV treatment effectively increased Nrf2 and HO-1 expression in lung tissues. Therefore, IV may offer a protective role against LPS-induced ALI by inhibiting MAPK and NF-κB and activating HO-1/Nrf2 pathways.     

Catechol-oxide-methyltransferase (<Emphasis Type="Italic">COMT</Emphasis> rs4680:G&gt;A) gene polymorphism does not affect analgesics’ demand after elective hip replacement

Pain in patients with hip osteoarthritis appears long before surgery, and requires effective management as it affects patient comfort and daily activities. Therefore, the search for factors influencing response rate to analgesics is mandatory. In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to genetic factors underlying pain threshold and treatment efficacy. Polymorphic gene of catechol-oxide-methyltransferase (COMT) is a candidate gene associated with pain pathology and treatment response. The aim of the study was to evaluate association between the COMT rs4680:G>A polymorphism and demand for analgesics in patients subjected to elective hip replacement. The study included 196 patients after hip replacement surgery. Opioid demand was recorded and analgesic efficacy was scored using a four-level verbal pain intensity scale. COMT rs4680:G>A polymorphism was analysed by PCR-RFLP method. The studied COMT genotypes did not influence opioid administration in the studied patients from the day of surgery till day 6 afterwards. The distribution of the COMT rs4680:G>A in the studied subjects was as follows: GA—52.04%, AA—23.98% and GG—23.98%. It can be concluded that the COMT rs4680:G>A polymorphism is not associated with opioid demand in patients after elective hip replacement.     

改良皮片4℃低温保存方法在创面二次植皮治疗中的应用研究

目的:探讨改良皮片4℃低温保存方法在创面二次植皮治疗中的应用效果。方法:①动物实验:健康成年豚鼠3只,处死后,取背部皮肤做成32个1 cm×1 cm小皮样,随机分为新鲜皮组、庆大盐水保存组、RPMI保存组,改良RPMI保存组进行4℃保存;1周后测定皮肤活力;②临床实验:观察自2018年10月至2018年12月,二期植皮患者33例,应用改良RPMI 4℃低温保存皮肤二期回植的患者16例,与重新取皮植皮患者17例比较其皮片成活率。结果:动物实验证实:改良RPMI保存组4℃保存组在皮肤储存1周时皮肤平均活力较庆大盐水保存组、RPMI保存组高(P0.05);临床实验证实:改良RPMI保存组与重新植皮的皮片平均成活率没有显著性差别(P0.05)。结论:改良4℃断层皮片低温保存方法可短期内保存皮肤较高的活力,是皮片再利用的一种有效方法。     

三维联合培养牙髓细胞和血管内皮祖细胞促进成牙本质向/成骨向分化

目的:探讨三维联合培养牙髓细胞(dental pulp cells, DPCs)和血管内皮祖细胞(endothelial progenitor cells, EPCs)对成牙本质向/成骨向分化的影响。方法:取单独培养DPCs及联合培养的DPCs和EPCs进行三维培养后成牙本质向/成骨向诱导,使用茜素红染色及半定量分析、RT-PCR和细胞免疫荧光检测成牙本质向/成骨向分化能力。采用SPSS 23.0统计软件对数据进行统计学分析。结果:茜素红染色显示联合培养组和单独培养组之间未见显著差异。RT-PCR和细胞免疫荧光显示成牙本质向/成骨向相关基因m RNAs和蛋白表达水平联合培养组显著高于单独培养组。结论:三维联合培养的DPCs和EPCs促进成牙本质向/成骨向分化,为牙髓再生提供可能实验依据。     

Identification of Salt Stress Response Genes in Rosa chinensis Leaves by Comparative RNA-seq Analysis of Transcriptome Dynamics

Russian Journal of Plant Physiology - Rosa chinensis Jacq., originating from China, occupied a pivotal position in the floral industry all over the world. Drought and soil salinization is a major...     

Exclusion effects on vegetation characteristics and their correlation to soil factors in the semi-arid rangeland of Mu Us Sandland, China

Exclusion has been applied as a main measure for re-vegetation all over the world. This paper, by comparing the results of year-round exclusion, seasonal exclusion, and non-exclusion, quantified the vegetation variations under three different exclusion measures and their correlation to soil factors. The analysis results for community species component and plant diversity using multi-response permutation procedures (MRPPs) showed that exclusion did change the species component and increase plant diversity remarkably, while the period of exclusion had no significant influence on these two community features. The indicator species analysis and calculation of similarity indices indicated that community for year-round exclusion were becoming xerophytization and unpalatability, and showed highly spatial heterogeneity of plant species distribution, whereas community for seasonal exclusion was under stable non-equilibrium condition. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) and detrend canonical correspondence analysis (DCCA) results of relationship between plant species and soil variables demonstrated that soil moisture was a controlling factor for plant species component, microbiotic soil crust cover, soil organic matter, and soil bulk density had significant effects on soil moisture, among which microbiotic soil crust was a leading factor owing to its limitation to rainfall infiltration on the one hand, and its constraints to entrance of herbaceous seeds into soil or to germination of soil seeds on the other hand. As a result of long-term removal of animal grazing, crust kept intact in year-round exclusion community, which was a main reason of community xerophytization. It was also obvious from ordination results that some important environmental factors, such as tempo-spatial change of rainfall and corresponding tempo-spatial change of soil moisture, were neglected during direct gradient analysis. In addition, biodiversity was close related to soil nutrients as well as to soil moisture condition (soil water content and crust cover), and it had positive relation to available N, and negative relation to available P. Higher soil N had advantage to non-leguminous plants growth on nutrition-poor sand land definitely. The impact of P to community component was unclear and should be studied from plant physiology. Further researches on non-equilibrium theory in semi-arid rangeland will provide a scientific and flexible animal development paradigm for being implementing livestock fen-raising and grazing-forbidden policies in China. __________ Translated from Acta Ecologica Sinica, 2005, 25(12): 3212–3219 [译自: 生态学报]