Effect of Olea europaea leaves extract on streptozotocin induced diabetes in male albino rats

The present study was aimed to evaluate the effect of olive (Olea europaea) leaves extract on streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic male rats. The experimental rats were divided into six groups. Rats of the first group were served as normal controls. Rats of the second group were diabetic control. The third and fourth groups were diabetic rats, treated with olive leaves extract at low and high doses respectively. The fifth and sixth groups were non diabetic rats, subjected to olive leaves extract at the same doses given to the third and fourth groups respectively. The minimum of body weigh gain was noted in diabetic rats of the second group. the levels of serum glucose, insulin, total protein, albumin, triglycerides, cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C), creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were significantly increased, while the levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), superoxide dismutase, (SOD) glutathione (GSH) and catalase (CAT) were statistically decreased in diabetic rats of the second group. The levels of liver insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1) and insulin receptor A (IRA) were significantly declined in diabetic rats of the second group. The diabetic pancreatic sections from diabetic rats of the second group showed several histopathological changes. Administration of low and high doses of olive leaves extract improved the observed physiological, molecular and histopathological alterations. Collectively, the obtained results confirmed that the protective effects of olive leaves extract are attributed to the antioxidant activities of olive leaves extract and its active constituents.     

肠道菌群失衡对乙型肝炎相关慢加急性肝衰竭患者 血浆降钙素原升高的影响

目的探讨肠道菌群失衡对乙型肝炎相关慢加急性肝衰竭(hepatitis B virus-related acute-on-chronic liver failure,HBV-ACLF)患者血浆降钙素原(procalcitonin,PCT)水平升高的影响。方法检测29例HBV-ACLF(肝衰组)、14例慢性乙型肝炎(乙肝组)患者入院时的血浆PCT、内毒素(endotoxin,LPS)水平,收集患者新鲜尾便并通过高通量测序检测肠道菌群状况,统计分析两组患者间肠道菌群、B/E值、PCT和LPS水平的差异,以及肝衰组患者PCT、LPS、B/E值三者间的相关性。结果与乙肝组患者比较,肝衰组厚壁菌门、放线菌门、双歧杆菌属、乳杆菌属等肠道细菌显著减少,而拟杆菌门、变形菌门、埃希菌属等肠道细菌过度生长,两组患者间各菌群比较差异均具有统计学意义(t=-4.84,Z=-2.84,Z=-2.57,Z=-4.39,t=3.59,t=2.64,t=2.19,P0.01、0.01、=0.01、0.01、0.01、=0.01、=0.04);肝衰组PCT[0.50(0.96)]ng/mL、LPS(0.46±0.10)EU/mL、B/E值(0.04±0.01),乙肝组PCT(0.08±0.02)ng/mL、LPS(0.05±0.02)EU/mL、B/E值(1.62±0.31),各指标两组间比较差异均具有统计学意义(Z=-3.17,t=5.88,t=16.18,P0.01、0.01、0.01);肝衰组B/E值与LPS水平呈负相关关系(r=-0.81,P0.01),B/E值与PCT水平呈负相关关系(r=-0.79,P0.01),且PCT水平与LPS呈正相关关系(r=0.76,P0.01)。结论 HBV-ACLF患者肠道菌群失衡导致肠源性LPS生成增多,而肠源性LPS促使PCT产生增多。     

A methodology for numerically analysing the hepatic artery haemodynamics during B-TACE: a proof of concept

Balloon-occluded transarterial chemoembolisation (B-TACE) is an intraarterial transcatheter treatment for liver cancer. In B-TACE, an artery-occluding microballoon catheter occludes an artery and promotes collateral circulation for drug delivery to tumours. This paper presents a methodology for analysing the haemodynamics during B-TACE, by combining zero-dimensional and three-dimensional modelling tools. As a proof of concept, we apply the methodology to a patient-specific hepatic artery geometry and analyse two catheter locations. Results show that the blood flow redistribution can be predicted in this proof-of-concept study, suggesting that this approach could potentially be used to optimise catheter location.     

Neurturin-GFRalpha2 signaling controls liver bud migration along the ductus venosus in the chick embryo

During chick liver development, the liver bud arises from the foregut, invaginates into the septum transversum, and elongates along and envelops the ductus venosus. However, the mechanism of liver bud migration is only poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that a GDNF family ligand involved in neuronal outgrowth and migration, neurturin (NRTN), and its receptor, GFRalpha2, are essential for liver bud migration. In the chick embryo, we found that GFRalpha2 was expressed in the liver bud and that NRTN was expressed in the endothelial cells of the ductus venosus. Inhibition of GFRalpha2 signaling suppressed liver bud elongation along the ductus venous without affecting cell proliferation and apoptosis. Moreover, ectopic expression of NRTN perturbed the directional migration along the ductus venosus, leading to splitting or ectopic branching of the liver. We showed that liver buds selectively migrated toward an NRTN-soaked bead in vitro. These data represent a new model for liver bud migration: NRTN secreted from endothelial cells functions as a chemoattractant to direct the migration of the GFRalpha2-expressing liver bud in early liver development.     

Leishmania infantum: mixed T-helper-1/T-helper-2 immune response in experimentally infected BALB/c mice

The main goal of the present study was to characterise the course of infection and immunological responses developed by Leishmania infantum infected BALB/c mice. Parasite load was determined by Real-time TaqMan PCR while cytokine and Immunoglobulin G (IgG) production were assessed by ELISA. Leishmania DNA was detected in spleen and liver as soon as day 1 post-inoculation (pi) and the parasitism was sustained until the end of the experiment. The cytokine kinetics in spleen and liver was generally associated with the oscillations of parasite load. Overall, it was not observed a distinct Th1 or Th2 pattern of cytokine production during the time of experiment. The infected mice developed a mixed immune response, with concomitant production of IFN-gamma, IL-4 and IL-10, both in spleen and liver, and both IgG isotypes. However, our results suggest that, compared to liver, the spleen is more susceptible to L. infantum infection.     

Testing transgenic regulatory elements through live mouse imaging

To overcome positional and methylation effects on transgene expression, we developed a universal cloning cassette for in vivo assessment of regulatory elements using the luciferase reporter gene and the CCCD camera. Monitoring luciferase expression pattern in live mice enables screening of large numbers of transgenic founders quickly and inexpensively. We demonstrate that in the engineered transgenic mice, the chicken beta-globin 5'HS4 insulator did not always provide the desirable expression pattern, and the Island Element, responsible for the demethylation of the surrounding DNA region, was not beneficial. Both tested liver-specific and developmentally regulated promoters exhibited the expected expression pattern in most transgenic founders.     

沙漠干热环境下猪腹部肠管火器伤后肝脏功能和形态的变化

目的:观察沙漠干热环境下猪腹部火器伤肠管穿透后肝脏功能和形态的变化。方法:沙漠干热环境组和常温环境组各健康长白仔猪42头随机等分为对照组和伤后1h、2h、4h、8h、12h和24h组,实验组建立腹部火器伤肠管穿透模型后,分别测定各组动物血清中AST水平,并与对照组比较。在光镜下观察各组肝脏组织学变化,电镜下观察肝脏超微结构改变。结果:伤后各组血清AST水平均高于对照组,并于伤后2h出现第1个高峰,沙漠干热环境组和常温环境组分别于伤后8h和12h出现第2个高峰。沙漠干热组和常温组分别于伤后4h和8h开始出现肝细胞的坏死和超微结构的明显变化。结论:沙漠干热环境下腹部肠管火器伤后肝脏结构和功能损伤的发生均较常温组提前,提示在沙漠干热环境下腹部火器伤更要及早对肝损伤采取相应的保护措施。     

An in vivo study of common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.) liver during prolonged hypoxia

Hypoxia induced apoptosis has been studied extensively in many mammalian cell lines but there are only a few studies using whole animal models. We investigated the response of the intact liver to hypoxia in a hypoxia tolerant fish, the carp (Cyprinus carpio, L). We exposed carp to hypoxia for up to 42 days, using oxygen level (0.5 mgO₂/L) that were slightly higher than the critical oxygen level of carp. There was extensive DNA damage in liver cells, especially during the first week of exposure, indicated by a massive TUNEL signal. However there was no change in cell proliferation, cell number or size, no increase in caspase-3 activity, no increase in single stranded DNA and this, combined with a number of other observations, led us to conclude there was no increase in apoptosis in the liver during hypoxia. There was up-regulation of some anti-apoptotic genes and proteins (Bcl-2, HSP70, p27) and down-regulation of some pro-apoptotic genes (Tetraspanin 5 and Cell death activator). The cells appeared to enter cell cycle arrest, presumably to allow repair of damaged DNA. As there was no change in cell proliferation and cell number, the damaged cells were not entering apoptosis and must have recovered during prolonged hypoxia.     

CD39 and control of cellular immune responses

CD39 is the cell surface-located prototypic member of the ecto-nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (E-NTPDase) family. Biological actions of CD39 are a consequence (at least in part) of the regulated phosphohydrolytic activity on extracellular nucleotides. This ecto-enzymatic cascade in tandem with CD73 (ecto-5–nucleotidase) also generates adenosine and has major effects on both P2 and adenosine receptor signalling. Despite the early recognition of CD39 as a B lymphocyte activation marker, little is known of the role of CD39 in humoral or cellular immune responses. There is preliminary evidence to suggest that CD39 may impact upon antibody affinity maturation. Pericellular nucleotide/nucleoside fluxes caused by dendritic cell expressed CD39 are also involved in the recruitment, activation and polarization of naïve T cells. We have recently explored the patterns of CD39 expression and the functional role of this ecto-nucleotidase within quiescent and activated T cell subsets. Our data indicate that CD39, together with CD73, efficiently distinguishes T regulatory cells (Treg) from other resting or activated T cells in mice (and humans). Furthermore, CD39 serves as an integral component of the suppressive machinery of Treg, acting, at least in part, through the modulation of pericellular levels of adenosine. We have also shown that the coordinated regulation of CD39/CD73 expression and of the adenosine receptor A2A activates an immunoinhibitory loop that differentially regulates Th1 and Th2 responses. The in vivo relevance of this network is manifest in the phenotype of Cd39-null mice that spontaneously develop features of autoimmune diseases associated with Th1 immune deviation. These data indicate the potential of CD39 and modulated purinergic signalling in the co-ordination of immunoregulatory functions of dendritic and Treg cells. Our findings also suggest novel therapeutic strategies for immune-mediated diseases.