Evaluation of the efficacy and safety of hydroxychloroquine in comparison with chloroquine in moderate and severe patients with COVID-19

Science China Life Sciences -     

Therapeutic efficacy of novel memantine nitrate MN‐08 in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer''s disease (AD) is a leading cause of dementia in elderly individuals and therapeutic options for AD are very limited. Over‐activation of N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) receptors, amyloid β (Aβ) aggregation, a decrease in cerebral blood flow (CBF), and downstream pathological events play important roles in the disease progression of AD. In the present study, MN‐08, a novel memantine nitrate, was found to inhibit Aβ accumulation, prevent neuronal and dendritic spine loss, and consequently attenuate cognitive deficits in 2‐month‐old APP/PS1 transgenic mice (for a 6‐month preventative course) and in the 8‐month‐old triple‐transgenic (3×Tg‐AD) mice (for a 4‐month therapeutic course). In vitro, MN‐08 could bind to and antagonize NMDA receptors, inhibit the calcium influx, and reverse the dysregulations of ERK and PI3K/Akt/GSK3β pathway, subsequently preventing glutamate‐induced neuronal loss. In addition, MN‐08 had favorable pharmacokinetics, blood‐brain barrier penetration, and safety profiles in rats and beagle dogs. These findings suggest that the novel memantine nitrate MN‐08 may be a useful therapeutic agent for AD.     

Sustained expression of MCP-1 induced low wall shear stress loading in conjunction with turbulent flow on endothelial cells of intracranial aneurysm

Shear stress was reported to regulate the expression of AC007362, but its underlying mechanisms remain to be explored. In this study, to isolate endothelial cells of blood vessels, unruptured and ruptured intracranial aneurysm (IA) tissues were collected from IA patients. Subsequently, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), Western blot and luciferase assay were performed to investigate the relationships between AC007362, miRNAs-493 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) exposed to shear stress. Reduced representation bisulphite sequencing (RRBS) was performed to assess the level of DNA methylation in AC007362 promoter. Accordingly, AC007362 and MCP-1 were significantly up-regulated while miR-493 was significantly down-regulated in HUVECs exposed to shear stress. AC007362 could suppress the miR-493 expression and elevate the MCP-1 expression, and miR-493 was shown to respectively target AC007362 and MCP-1. Moreover, shear stress in HUVECs led to the down-regulated DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1), as well as the decreased DNA methylation level of AC007362 promoter. Similar results were also observed in ruptured IA tissues when compared with unruptured IA tissues. In conclusion, this study presented a deep insight into the operation of the regulatory network of AC007362, miR-493 and MCP-1 upon shear stress. Under shear stress, the expression of AC007362 was enhanced by the inhibited promoter DNA methylation, while the expression of MCP-1 was enhanced by sponging the expression of miR-493.     

PLCγ1 inhibition-driven autophagy of IL-1β-treated chondrocyte confers cartilage protection against osteoarthritis,involving AMPK,Erk and Akt

Previous studies identified the involvement of phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PLC) γ1 in some events of chondrocytes. This study aims to investigate whether and how PLCγ1 modulates autophagy to execute its role in osteoarthritis (OA) progression. Rat normal or human OA chondrocytes were pretreated with IL-1β for mimicking or sustaining OA pathological condition. Using Western blotting, immunoprecipitation, qPCR, immunofluorescence and Dimethylmethylene blue assays, and ELISA and transmission electron microscope techniques, we found that PLCγ1 inhibitor U73122 enhanced Collagen II, Aggrecan and GAG levels, accompanied with increased LC3B-II/I ratio and decreased P62 expression level, whereas autophagy inhibitor Chloroquine partially diminished its effect. Meanwhile, U73122 dissociated Beclin1 from Beclin1-IP3R-Bcl-2 complex and blocked mTOR/ULK1 axis, in which the crosstalk between PLCγ1, AMPK, Erk and Akt were involved. Additionally, by haematoxylin and eosin, Safranin O/Fast green, and immunohistochemistry staining, we observed that intra-articular injection of Ad-shPLCγ1-1/2 significantly enhanced Collagen and Aggrecan levels, accompanied with increased LC3B and decreased P62 levels in a rat OA model induced by anterior cruciate ligament transection and medial meniscus resection. Consequently, PLCγ1 inhibition-driven autophagy conferred cartilage protection against OA through promoting ECM synthesis in OA chondrocytes in vivo and in vitro, involving the crosstalk between PLCγ1, AMPK, Erk and Akt.     

ARL4C might serve as a prognostic factor and a novel therapeutic target for gastric cancer: bioinformatics analyses and biological experiments

The ADP-ribosylation factor-like proteins (ARLs) have been proved to regulate the malignant phenotypes of several cancers. However, the exact role of ARLs in gastric cancer (GC) remains elusive. In this study, we systematically investigate the expression status, interactive relations, potential pathways, genetic variations and clinical values of ARLs in GC. We find that ARLs are significantly dysregulated in GC and involved in various cancer-related pathways. Subsequently, machine learning models identify ARL4C as one of the two most significant clinical indicators among ARLs for GC. Furthermore, ARL4C silencing remarkably inhibits the growth and metastasis of GC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, enrichment analysis indicates that ARL4C is highly correlated with TGF-β1 signalling. Correspondingly, TGF-β1 treatment dramatically increases ARL4C expression and ARL4C knockdown inhibits the phosphorylation level of Smads, downstream factors of TGF-β1. Meanwhile, the coexpression of ARL4C and TGF-β1 worsens the prognosis of GC patients. Our work comprehensively demonstrates the crucial role of ARLs in the carcinogenesis of GC and the specific mechanisms underlying the GC-promoting effects of TGF-β1. More importantly, we uncover the great promise of ARL4C-targeted therapy in improving the efficacy of TGF-β1 inhibitors for GC patients.     

PRPF6 promotes androgen receptor/androgen receptor-variant 7 actions in castration-resistant prostate cancer cells

Androgen receptor (AR) and its variants play vital roles in development and progression of prostate cancer. To clarify the mechanisms involved in the enhancement of their actions would be crucial for understanding the process in prostate cancer and castration-resistant prostate cancer transformation. Here, we provided the evidence to show that pre-mRNA processing factor 6 (PRPF6) acts as a key regulator for action of both AR full length (AR-FL) and AR variant 7 (AR-V7), thereby participating in the enhancement of AR-FL and AR-V7-induced transactivation in prostate cancer. In addition, PRPF6 is recruited to cis-regulatory elements in AR target genes and associates with JMJD1A to enhance AR-induced transactivation. PRPF6 also promotes expression of AR-FL and AR-V7. Moreover, PRPF6 depletion reduces tumor growth in prostate cancer-derived cell lines and results in significant suppression of xenograft tumors even under castration condition in mouse model. Furthermore, PRPF6 is obviously highly expressed in human prostate cancer samples. Collectively, our results suggest PRPF6 is involved in enhancement of oncogenic AR signaling, which support a previously unknown role of PRPF6 during progression of prostate cancer and castration-resistant prostate cancers.     

芽胞杆菌治疗幽门螺杆菌感染疗效的Meta分析

目的评价芽胞杆菌(Bacillus)联合根除标准疗法治疗幽门螺杆菌(H.pylori)感染的有效性。方法收集关于芽胞杆菌联合治疗H.pylori感染的随机对照试验(RCT),检索时限为建库至2020年5月;对符合纳入标准的研究进行偏倚风险评价及Meta分析。结果最终纳入14个RCT。Meta分析结果显示芽胞杆菌联合治疗能提高H.pylori根除率(ITT分析:RR=1.13,95%CI:1.08~1.18,P0.001;PP分析:RR=1.13,95%CI:1.09~1.17,P0.001),降低不良反应发生率(RR=0.42,95%CI:0.35~0.50,P0.001)。根据亚组分析结果,芽胞杆菌联合H.pylori两种常规治疗方案[三联疗法(RR=1.22,95%CI:1.10~1.36,P=0.003),铋剂四联疗法(RR=1.11,95%CI:1.07~1.15,P0.001)]以及芽胞杆菌联合H.pylori常规治疗的两种疗程[10 d(RR=1.14,95%CI:1.04~1.24,P=0.006),14 d(RR=1.14,95%CI:1.07~1.21,P0.001)]均提高H.pylori根除率;而亚组分析芽胞杆菌种类中,地衣芽胞杆菌差异有统计学意义(RR=1.14,95%CI:1.10~1.19,P0.001),凝结芽胞杆菌与蜡样芽胞杆菌需扩大样本量进一步统计分析。结论芽胞杆菌联合疗法能有利于提高H.pylori根除率,并降低总不良反应的发生,相对于标准疗法有一定的意义。     

环境因子对海南岛野生兰科植物物种组成与分布格局的影响

海南岛是中国兰科植物物种丰富度较高的地区, 了解环境因子对海南岛野生兰科植物物种组成和分布格局的影响, 对于该地区野生兰科植物的保护管理和相关研究具有重要指导意义。基于海南岛野生兰科植物调查分布样方的植被类型、海拔、坡向、坡度、年平均气温、年降水量的数据, 采用典范相关分析探索了环境因子对物种组成的影响, 并计算各个环境因子对物种组成的总效应与净效应, 同时分析了6个环境因子对野生兰科植物分布格局的影响。结果表明, 所选的6个环境因子共解释了海南岛野生兰科植物组成变异的3.7%; 植被类型、海拔、年平均气温、年降水量、坡向、坡度这6个环境因子的总效应与净效应均达显著水平, 但其解释率依次减小。所选的6个环境因子对海南岛野生兰科植物的分布均有影响, 野生兰科植物在海南岛主要分布在中海拔段、5°-35°的坡度范围、阴坡与半阴坡、年平均气温较低且年降水量较高的环境, 并且于原生植被中分布最多。     

The mechanism and prevention of mitochondrial injury after exercise

Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry - With the development of society, physical activity has come to be an effective means by which people pursue good health to improve the quality of life....     

隐匿性胫骨平台骨折MRI、CT检查的影像学表现及其诊断价值对比的回顾性研究

目的:研究对比隐匿性胫骨平台骨折(TPOF)磁共振成像(MRI)、电子计算机断层扫描(CT)检查的影像学表现及其诊断价值。方法:回顾性分析我院自2016年1月至2019年12月拟诊断为TPOF且X线检查表现为阴性的89例患者的临床资料,分别对所有受试者进行MRI、CT检查,且以手术检查为金标准,比较上述两种影像学检查手段诊断TPOF的效能。此外,比较MRI、CT检查诊断TPOF的表观扩散系数以及节段各向异性值以及对TPOF类型的检出率。结果:MRI检查诊断TPOF的灵敏度、特异度及准确度分别为98.61%、94.12%、97.75%,均高于CT检查的79.17%、64.71%、76.40%(均P<0.05)。MRI检查诊断TPOF的表观扩散系数高于CT检查,而节段各向异性值低于CT检查(均P<0.05)。MRI检查对骨皮质骨折的检出率低于CT检查,而对骨小梁骨折的检出率高于CT检查(均P<0.05)。结论:MRI检查诊断TPOF的价值高于CT检查,且在骨小梁骨折的检出率方面优于CT检查,但CT检查应用于骨皮质骨折的诊断价值更高。临床工作中可能通过联合MRI以及CT检查,继而达到提高TPOF检出率的目的。