Protein‐based nanoformulations for α‐tocopherol encapsulation

Nanoparticles of BSA and silk fibroin (SF) with entrapped α‐tocopherol were produced via ultrasonic emulsification. Populations with particle size of 200–300 nm and highly negatively charged were obtained for all the tested formulations. Entrapment efficiencies of around 99% revealed the effective encapsulation of α‐tocopherol into the produced nanoformulations. Generally, these nanodevices did not induce significant cytotoxicity to human skin keratinocytes for all the concentrations tested. The developed formulations showed free radical scavenging of ABTS.⁺ ability resulting from the synergistic effect between the proteins in formulation and the entrapped tocopherol. Overall, the results contribute for the establishment of BSA:VO and BSA:SF:VO as biodegradable and non‐toxic nanoformulations for the functionalization of textile devices and controlled delivery of tocopherol into the skin.     

成纤维细胞生长因子22(FGF22)的研究进展

成纤维细胞生长因子22(fibroblast growth factor 22)是成纤维细胞生长因子家族(FGFs)的成员之一。研究发现,FGF22主要在大脑和皮肤中表达并且能够影响大脑发育和神经突触的形成。由于FGF22在难治性癫痫发生机制中所发挥的特殊作用,有可能作为研究癫痫疾病的新的切入点。此外FGF22与脊髓损伤修复、神经系统疾病、皮肤癌、抑郁等疾病有着重要的联系。特别是在神经突出的形成过程中FGF22起着调节因子的作用。尽管作为重组蛋白药物的开发其功能和机制仍有待进一步研究,但相信FGF22所具备的生物学特性具有非常广阔的研究领域和应用价值。     

African and European perception of African female attractiveness

Majority of research on attractiveness is restricted to faces of European origin. The perception of attractiveness may, however, vary across communities due to variations in both facial morphology and local standards of beauty. We investigated the relative contribution of four facial markers of attractiveness based on 101 female facial portraits (standardized, non-manipulated) from Cameroon and Namibia, which were assessed by local male raters and by raters from a distant European population, the Czech Republic. Images from Cameroon include only women of Bantu origin, while Namibians are represented by women of both Bantu (Owambo/Herero) and Nama origin. While controlling for age and BMI, we explored the relationship between female attractiveness and a set of facial traits: fluctuating asymmetry, averageness, shape sexual dimorphism, and skin color (rated and measured in CIELab color space).In the Cameroonian sample, local male raters favored lighter-skinned female faces with morphology closer to average. The attractiveness of Nama women as rated by Nama men positively correlated with lighter complexion, but this did not extend to rating by Cameroonian men. The attractiveness of Namibian Owambo/Herero women was positively associated with facial femininity and lighter complexion when judged by both Cameroonian and Nama male raters. In all samples, the attractiveness as rated by Czech men was predicted by age and BMI, but not by skin color. We found no significant association between attractiveness and fluctuating asymmetry in any of the tested samples. When controlling for age, the effect of skin color on attractiveness turned to be non-significant in the Owambo/Herrero and Nama sample, but remained significant in the Cameroonian sample. Variations in skin color thus represent an important factor of African female attractiveness within the African context, but they do not seem to affect judgements made by European raters. Sensitivity to some facial markers of female attractiveness thus seems to be restricted to regional populations and/or constrained by shared ethnicity.     

Chromosomal aberrations in irradiated Down's syndrome fibroblasts

We have compared the frequencies of chromosomal aberrations in skin fibroblasts from persons with Down's syndrome (trisomy 21) with those from normal diploid controls exposed to ⁶⁰Co γ-radiation in vitro. No difference between the chromosomal radiosensitivities of the two groups was observed, nor did the two groups differ in the background frequency of spontaneous aberrations. These data support the hypothesis that the increased in vitro chromosomal radiosensitivity of lymphocytes reported to be associated with trisomy 21 is not typical of all tissues.     

Elevated levels of polyamines alter chromatin in murine skin and tumors without global changes in nucleosome acetylation

Polyamines affect nucleosome oligomerization and DNA conformation in vitro, yet little information exists regarding the influence of naturally synthesized polyamines on mammalian chromatin. Capitalizing on the relative inefficiency of a moderate ionic strength extraction buffer to dissociate histones, we obtained evidence of altered chromatin in transgenic mice that overexpress ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), which catalyzes polyamine synthesis. Dissociation of histones from chromatin in ODC transgenic mouse skin, as well as in tumors that develop spontaneously in ODC/Ras bigenic mice, is dramatically reduced relative to normal littermate skin. This could reflect tighter tethering of nucleosomes to DNA or a more compacted chromatin structure due to elevated intracellular concentrations of polyamines since this effect is reversible upon treatment with alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), a specific inhibitor of ODC enzymatic activity. Impeded release of nonhistone chromatin proteins HP-1beta and nucleophosmin, but not Lamin B, HDAC-1, HMGB, HMGN2, or HMGA1, suggests that polyamines exert selective effects on specific chromatin protein complexes. Moreover, overall acetylation, as well as specific methylation, of nucleosomes in ODC mice is unaffected, implying that access by histone modifying enzymes is not generally restricted. The abnormal chromatin environment fostered by elevated levels of polyamines may be a necessary prerequisite for epithelial tumor growth and maintenance.     

Comparative evaluation of CD8+CTL responses following gene gun immunization targeting the skin with intracutaneous injection of antigen-transduced dendritic cells

The skin is an attractive target for antigen-specific vaccination. Particle bombardment of the epidermis with plasmid DNA using the gene gun results in antigen expression in keratinocytes of the epidermis leading to antigen presentation in the draining lymph nodes by migratory dendritic cells (DC). In order to better understand the role of the skin in stimulating antigen-specific CD8+cytotoxic T cells (CTL), we compared gene gun immunization with intracutaneous injections of antigen-transduced DC. A single intracutaneous injection of antigen-transduced DC was able to induce in vivo expansion of CD8+CTL specific for the model antigen chicken ovalbumin while four simultaneous shots with the gene gun were not effective. Antigen-transduced DC were much more efficient than particle bombardment of the epidermis in stimulating adoptively transferred TCR-transgenic CD8+CTL in the draining lymph nodes. Employing the novel technique of in vivo bioluminescence imaging, we demonstrated efficient gene transfer to the skin following gene gun bombardment and confirmed that a similar amount of antigen reached the lymph node when compared with injection of antigen-transduced DC. Our results suggest that direct transfection of the skin does not optimally reach and activate appropriate antigen-presenting DC. We believe that this reflects the immunological function of the epidermis which must balance immunity and tolerance to foreign antigens. Further investigations will have to address the role of Langerhans cells for the activation of cellular immunity in the skin.     

似鲇高原鳅皮肤与鳍的组织学观察

采用石蜡切片技术及H.E和AB-PAS染色方法,对似鲇高原鳅(Triplophysa siluroides)头部、腹部、背部、侧线部和尾部皮肤结构及胸鳍、腹鳍、背鳍、臀鳍和尾鳍的组织结构进行观察。各部位皮肤均由表皮和真皮构成,真皮包括疏松层和致密层,不同部位皮肤厚度不同。表皮层腹部最厚,为(84.62±10.82)μm,侧线部最薄,为(14.97±3.95)μm,各部位表皮厚度差异显著。表皮层分布着黏液细胞、棒状细胞及味蕾。疏松层头部最厚,为(282.71±70.56)μm,尾部最薄,为(29.07±4.88)μm,该层分布有黑色素细胞、空泡状细胞和颗粒腺,而黏液腺分布于致密层。各部位的鳍均由表皮层、胶原纤维层、胶原下层及鳍条构成,表皮层与皮肤表皮层组成相似,鳍条是矿化的结缔组织。     

Mesenchymal stem cells and skin wound repair and regeneration: possibilities and questions

Adult mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have the capacity for self-renewal and for differentiating into a variety of cells and tissues. They may leave their niche to migrate to remote tissues and play a critical role in wound repair and tissue regeneration. Because of their multipotency, easy isolation and culture, highly expansive potential, and immunosuppression properties, these cells may be an attractive therapeutic tool for regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Several studies have indicated a contribution of MSCs to reconstituting skin in cutaneous wounds, but problems still need resolution before MSCs can be widely used clinically. This review focuses mainly on the benefits of MSCs in skin wound healing and tissue regeneration and on the questions that remain to be answered before MSCs can be used in clinical practice. This study was supported in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30730090, 30672176, 30500194) and by State Key Development Program of Basic Research of China (973 Program, 2005CB522603).     

基于联邦深度学习的皮肤病智能诊断研究

近年来,基于人工智能的皮肤病智能诊断已经成为智慧医疗领域的热门课题。然而由于单一机构的数据有限,局部训练的神经网络难以满足医疗诊断服务的性能需求,从分散机构中收集数据的集中式学习又存在隐私泄漏的风险。基于上述挑战,本文提出一种基于联邦深度学习的皮肤病智能诊断算法。具体地,对比主流的集中式学习,为了在整合多方数据时防止隐私泄漏,本文引入了联邦学习。各客户端将本地模型发送到中心服务器进行聚合,中心服务器再将聚合得到的全局模型同步到各客户端,实现神经网络模型的训练。进一步,为了解决联邦学习中数据异构性的问题,本文在交叉熵损失的基础上增加了修正项,通过修正项限制本地模型和全局模型间的差异,增加模型对异构数据的关注度,从而减小数据异构对诊断结果的影响。实验结果表明,本文所提的皮肤病智能诊断算法与现有相关方案相比,诊断准确度提高了3%~4%,达到75.9%。     

帕米尔漠蟾蜍皮肤、肾和肝的组织结构

为探究帕米尔漠蟾蜍(Bufotes taxkorensis)对高原环境的适应特征,观察了其皮肤、肾和肝的组织结构,并对躯干和胫部的皮肤总厚度、表皮层厚度、真皮层厚度和相对腺体数量,肾的肾小球密度、肾相对总滤过面积、远端小管和近端小管的相对管径在SPSS 25.0中做了独立样本t检验分析.结果显示:(1)帕米尔漠蟾蜍皮肤...