间充质干细胞在治疗癫痫所致炎症反应中的作用研究进展

间充质干细胞(MSCs)的免疫调节功能成为近年来的研究热点之一。癫痫是一种以反复发作为特征的复杂性神经系统疾病,而炎症反应是癫痫发生和反复发作的一个重要因素。研究表明,MSCs能够有效治疗多种退行性疾病造成的炎性反应,且发现MSCs可以通过炎症微环境发挥免疫调节功能。简要综述了MSCs在治疗癫痫所致炎症中的作用,旨在为临床应用MSCs防治癫痫提供理论依据。     

人特异性CHRFAM7A基因抑制小鼠肾缺血再灌注损伤炎症反应

本研究探讨人特异性CHRFAM7A基因抑制小鼠肾缺血再灌注损伤早期炎症作用及其机制。 12只野生型（wild type, WT）C57BL/6成年雄性小鼠随机分为2组：野生型假手术组（WT Sham）和野生型肾缺血再灌注损伤（WT RIRI）组。12只性别、年龄匹配的 CHRFAM7A转基因（transgenic mice, GT）小鼠也随机分组为：转基因型假手术组（GT Sham）和转基因型肾缺血再灌注损伤（GT RIRI）组,每组各6只。除WT 和GT假手术组仅行剖腹手术外,所有小鼠均夹闭双侧肾蒂40 min,再灌注24 h后,留取各组小鼠血清及肾组织标本。生化分析仪检测血清中的尿素氮（BUN）和肌酐（Scr）水平;ELISA法检测白介素-8（IL-8）、肿瘤坏死因子（TNF-α）和胱天蛋白酶7水平;免疫组织化学染色法检测高迁移率族蛋白1（HMGB1）表达水平;苏木-伊红（HE）染色和原位末端标记法（TUNEL）染色观察肾组织病理损伤;流式检测HK-2细胞凋亡率。结果显示,与WT Sham组对比,WT RIRI组血清中,BUN、Scr、IL-8和TNF-α含量增加（P<0.0001）;肾组织中,胱天蛋白酶7水平增高（P＜0.001）,HMGB1平均光密度值增加(P<0.0001),肾组织细胞凋亡指数（AI%）增高(P<0.0001)。与GT Sham组对比, GT RIRI组血清BUN、Scr、IL-8和TNF-α含量增加（P<0.05,P<0.0001, P<0.01, P<0.01）;肾组织中,胱天蛋白酶7水平明显增高（P＜0.01）,HMGB1平均光密度值增加(P<0.0001),肾组织细胞AI%增高(P=0.0005)。与WT RIRI组对比,GT RIRI组血清中的BUN、Scr水平降低（P<0.0001）,IL-8、TNF-α、HMGB1和胱天蛋白酶7的水平明显下降（P<0.01, P<0.0001, P<0.0001, P<0.01）,肾组织细胞凋亡指数（AI%）下降（P=0.0003）.与pLVX空载质粒+氯化钴组相比,pLVX-CHRFAM7A+氯化钴组的凋亡率(19.31%±1.45 vs 34.92%±4.21, P<0.001)明显下降。上述结果表明,人特异性CHRFAM7A基因在小鼠肾缺血再灌注损伤中,通过抑制早期的炎症反应,对肾组织发挥保护作用。     

哺乳动物肠上皮屏障中非编码RNAs的调控作用

哺乳动物肠上皮是一种拥有快速自我更新能力的组织,在维持机体免疫稳态与肠道应激后的损伤修复中发挥重要作用。源于隐窝底部的多能肠干细胞不断进行增殖、迁移与分化,并沿隐窝 绒毛轴向上移动,从而维持肠上皮完整性。该过程受严格而复杂的基因调控网络参与。越来越多的数据表明,肠上皮完整性受到广泛的非编码RNA的调控,主要包括肠黏膜再生、保护与上皮屏障功能等方面。本文重点讨论了两类非编码RNA(包括microRNAs和lncRNAs)转录后调控肠上皮屏障功能的研究进展。其中,miR-503、miR-146和lnc-uc.173、lnc-SPRY4-IT1、lnc-plncRNA1、lnc-Gata6等,能够促进肠黏膜的更新,增强上皮屏障功能;相反,miR-222、miR-29b、miR-195和lnc-H19与lnc-BC012900等,抑制肠上皮再生并破坏肠上皮屏障功能。miRNAs、mRNAs与lncRNAs间构成复杂的分子网络,共同调控肠上皮稳态。深入研究与肠上皮相关的miRNAs和IncRNAs分子及其作用机制,探寻引起肠黏膜炎症的关键分子靶标,为肠道炎症临床诊治提供新方向与新方法。     

Evaluation of the therapeutic potential effect of Fas receptor gene knockdown in experimental model of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis

Aim: Stimulation of Fas death receptor is introduced as a major cause of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) progression through suppression of cell viability. Therefore, the blocking of death pathways is hypothesised to be express new approaches to NASH therapy. For this purpose, current experiment applied synthetic small interference RNA (SiRNA) to trigger Fas death receptor and to show its potential therapeutic role in designed NASH model.

Methods: Male mice were placed on a western diet (WD) for 8 weeks and exposed to cigarette smoke during the last 4 weeks of feeding to induce NASH model. In the next step, Fas SiRNA was injected to mice aiming to examine specific Fas gene silencing, after 8 weeks. As a control, mice received scrambled SiRNA. Reversible possibility of disease was examined by 3 weeks of recovery.

Results: Analysis of data is accompanied with the significant histopathological changes (steatosis, ballooning and inflammation), increased lipid profile and hepatic enzyme activities (AST, ALT, ALP) plus TBARS as well as decreased antioxidants levels in NASH model. Upon Fas-SiRNA injection, almost all measured parameters of NASH such as overexpression of Fas receptor, caspase3, NF-kB genes and marked increase of hepatic TNF-α were significantly restored and were remained nearly unchanged following recovery liking as scrambled groups.

Conclusions: The suppression of Fas receptor signalling subsequent RNAi therapy may represent an applicable strategy to decline hepatocyte damages and so NASH progression in mice.     

IgG4 autoantibodies induce dermal-epidermal separation

Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is a sub-epidermal autoimmune blistering disease associated with autoantibodies to the dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ). Patients' autoantibodies induce dermal-epidermal separation when co-incubated with cryosections of human skin and leucocytes from healthy volunteers. IgG autoantibodies trigger complement and/or leucocyte activation resulting in specific pathology in several autoimmune conditions. In these diseases, IgG1 and IgG3 isotypes, but not the IgG4 subclass, are thought to trigger inflammatory pathways resulting in tissue damage. The capacity of IgG4 autoantibodies to mediate tissue damage has not yet been demonstrated. In this study, we isolated IgG1 and IgG4 autoantibodies from bullous pemhigoid patients'serum and analysed their blister-inducing potential in our cryosection assay. As expected, complement-fixing IgG1 autoantibodies induced sub-epidermal splits in this experimental model. Purified IgG4 did not fix complement, but, interestingly, like IgG1, activated leucocytes and induced dermal-epidermal separation. The potential of IgG4 autoantibodies to induce Fc-dependent dermal-epidermal separation was significantly lower compared to IgG1. Our results demonstrate that IgG4 autoantibodies are able to activate leucocytes and point to a hitherto less recognized function of IgG4. Moreover, for the first time, we clearly demonstrate that BP IgG4 autoantibodies have the capacity to induce leucocyte-dependent tissue damage.     

Shaping immune responses through the activation of dendritic cells–P2 receptors

Dendritic cells (DCs) activate and shape the adaptive immune response by capturing antigens, migrating to peripheral lymphoid organs where naïve T cells reside, expressing high levels of MHC and costimulatory molecules and secreting cytokines and chemokines. DCs are endowed with a high degree of functional plasticity and their functions are tightly regulated. Besides initiating adaptive immune responses, DCs play a key role in maintaining peripheral tolerance toward self-antigens. On the basis of the information gathered from the tissue where they reside, DCs adjust their functional activity to ensure that protective immunity is favoured while unwanted or exaggerated immune responses are prevented. A wide variety of signals from neighbouring cells affecting DC functional activity have been described. Here we will discuss the complex role of extracellular nucleotides in the regulation of DC function and the role of P2 receptors as possible tools to manipulate immune responses.     

The role of P2 receptors in controlling infections by intracellular pathogens

A growing number of studies have demonstrated the importance of ATP_e-signalling via P2 receptors as an important component of the inflammatory response to infection. More recent studies have shown that ATP_e can also have a direct effect on infection by intracellular pathogens, by modulating membrane trafficking in cells that contain vacuoles that harbour intracellular pathogens, such as mycobacteria and chlamydiae. A conserved mechanism appears to be involved in controlling infection by both of these pathogens, as a role for phospholipase D in inducing fusion between lysosomes and the vacuoles has been demonstrated. Other P2-dependent mechanisms are most likely operative in the cases of pathogens, such as Leishmania, which survive in an acidic phagolysosomal-like compartment. ATP_e may function as a “danger signal” that alerts the immune system to the presence of intracellular pathogens that damage the host cell, while different intracellular pathogens have evolved enzymes or other mechanisms to inhibit ATP_e-mediated signalling, which should, thus, be viewed as virulence factors for these pathogens.