Heat Shock Protein 70 Acts as a Potential Biomarker for Early Diagnosis of Heart Failure

Early identification for heart failure (HF) may be useful for disease modifying treatment in order to reduce heart disease progression or even to reverse it. In our previous studies, we have revealed a group of heat shock proteins (HSPs) which might be related to neonatal rat cardiomyocyte hypertrophy by proteomic approach. Here, we confirm that HSPs, including HSP27 and HSP70, altered in the early stage of cardiac remodeling in vivo animal model. Furthermore, plasma concentrations of those HSPs and their potential screening value were evaluated at different stages in 222 patient subjects. Plasma HSP27, HSP70 and HSP90 were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results indicate that HSP70 was positively correlated to the severity (progression) of HF (r = 0.456, p<0.001). The area under the rate of change (ROC) curve was 0.601 (p = 0.017) in patients with stage B HF and 0.835 (p<0.001) in those with stage C HF. However, HSP27 and HSP90 did not display significant changes in any stage of HF in this study. Taken together, plasma concentrations of HSP70 elevated with the progression of HF and might act as a potential screening biomarker for early diagnosis of HF.     

Carbamate-linked cationic lipids for gene delivery

Series of cationic lipids 1a-p, with variable length of hydrocarbon chains, alternative quaternary ammonium heads, carbamate linkages between hydrocarbon chains and quaternary ammonium heads, as well as different anion combined with them, were synthesized for liposome-mediated gene delivery. Two plasmid DNAs, pGL3-control and pGFP-N2, were transferred by cationic liposomes formed from the above cationic lipids into five mammalian cell lines, and the transfection efficiency of some of the cationic liposomes was superior or parallel to that of two commercial transfection agents, Lipofectamine2000 and Sofast.     

森林土壤呼吸研究进展

各种测量森林土壤呼吸的方法都存在不足,红外CO₂分析仪法是目前最理想的方法;土壤CO₂通量模型的优点是考虑了土壤呼吸生物和物理学过程;一般情况下,温度和湿度与森林土壤呼吸呈正相关关系,火烧、采伐和施肥等营林活动对土壤呼吸的影响有很大的不确定性;森林土壤呼吸与植被、微生物生物量的关系,以及土壤呼吸的空间变异规律已成为近年来的研究热点.最后提出了森林土壤呼吸研究中存在的一些问题及今后的发展方向.