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The type IV IFN (IFN-υ) is reported in vertebrates from fish to primary mammals with IFN-υR1 and IL-10R2 as receptor subunits. In this study, the proximal promoter of IFN-υ was identified in the amphibian model, Xenopus laevis, with functional IFN-sensitive responsive element and NF-κB sites, which can be transcriptionally activated by transcription factors, such as IFN regulatory factor (IRF)1, IRF3, IRF7, and p65. It was further found that IFN-υ signals through the classical IFN-stimulated gene (ISG) factor 3 (ISGF3) to induce the expression of ISGs. It seems likely that the promoter elements of the IFN-υ gene in amphibians is similar to type III IFN genes, and that the mechanism involved in IFN-υ induction is very much similar to type I and III IFNs. Using recombinant IFN-υ protein and the X. laevis A6 cell line, >400 ISGs were identified in the transcriptome, including ISGs homologous to humans. However, as many as 268 genes were unrelated to human or zebrafish ISGs, and some of these ISGs were expanded families such as the amphibian novel TRIM protein (AMNTR) family. AMNTR50, a member in the family, was found to be induced by type I, III, and IV IFNs through IFN-sensitive responsive element sites of the proximal promoter, and this molecule has a negative role in regulating the expression of type I, III, and IV IFNs. It is considered that the current study contributes to the understanding of transcription, signaling, and functional aspects of type IV IFN at least in amphibians.

Amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) aggregation is the hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The imbalance between the production and clearance of Aβ results in the accumulation and aggregation of Aβ in the brain. Thus far, few drugs are available for AD treatment, but exercise has been recognized for its cognition-enhancing properties in AD patients. The underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Our recent study showed that long-term running exercise could activate the lysosomal function in the brains of mice. In this study, we investigated whether exercise could reduce Aβ accumulation by activating lysosomal function in APP/PSEN1 transgenic mice. Started at the age of 5 months, the mice were trained with a running wheel at the speed of 18 r/min, 40 min/d, 6 d/week for 5 months, and were killed at the end of the 10th month, then brain tissue was collected for biochemical analyses. The cognitive ability was assessed in the 9th month. We showed that long-term exercise significantly mitigated cognitive dysfunction in AD mice, accompanied by the enhanced lysosomal function and the clearance of Aβ in the brain. Exercise significantly promoted the nuclear translocation of transcription factor EB (TFEB), and increased the interaction between nuclear TFEB with AMPK-mediated acetyl-CoA synthetase 2, thus enhancing transcription of the genes associated with the biogenesis of lysosomes. Exercise also raised the levels of mature cathepsin D and cathepsin L, suggesting that more Aβ peptides could be degraded in the activated lysosomes. This study demonstrates that exercise may improve the cognitive dysfunction of AD by enhancing lysosomal function.

Background:. Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a malignant hematological disease, originating from hematopoiesis stem cell differentiation obstruction and clonal proliferation. New reagents or biologicals for the treatment of AML are urgently needed, and exosomes have been identified as candidate biomarkers for disease diagnosis and prognosis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of exosomes from bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) on AML cells as well as the underlying microRNA (miRNA)-mediated mechanisms. Methods:. Exosomes were isolated using a precipitation method, followed by validation using marker protein expression and nanoparticle tracking analysis. Differentially expressed miRNAs were identified by deep RNA sequencing and confirmed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Cell proliferation was assessed by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium inner salt method, and cell cycle progression and apoptosis were detected by flow cytometry. Functional gene expression was analyzed by qPCR and Western blotting (WB). Significant differences were determined using Student's t test or analysis of variance. Results:. BMSCs-derived exosomes effectively suppressed cell proliferation (both P

In this study, we report a novel Gram-negative bacterium, designated as strain CS412T, isolated from deep-sea sediment collected in a cold seep area of the South China Sea. Growth of strain CS412T occurred at 4–40 °C (optimum, 28 °C), pH 5.0–11.0 (optimum, pH 6.0) and with 0–19 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 1–2 %). Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence data indicated that strain CS412T belonged to the genus Marinobacter . The closest phylogenetic neighbours of strain CS412T were Marinobacter pelagius HS225T (96.9 %), Marinobacter szutsaonensis NTU-104T (96.8%), Marinobacter santoriniensis NKSG1T (96.4%) and Marinobacter koreensis dd-M3T (96.3 %). The genomic DNA G+C content of strain CS412T was 58.0 mol%. The principal respiratory quinone was ubiquinone-9 (Q-9). The polar lipids of CS412T contained diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, aminophospholipidand and four glycolipids. The major fatty acids of CS412T contained cyclo-C19 : 0ω8c, C16 : 0, C18 : 1ω7c and C18 : 1ω7c 11-methyl. The results of phylogenetic, physiological, biochemical and morphological analyses suggested that strain CS412T represents a novel species of the genus Marinobacter , and the name Marinobacter fonticola sp. nov. is proposed with the type species CS412T (=CCTCC AB 2019197T=KCTC 72475T).

The Genome Sequence Archive for Human (GSA-Human) is a data repository specialized for human genetic related data derived from biomedical researches, and also supports the data collection and management of National Key Research and Development Projects. GSA-Human has a data security management strategy according to the national regulations of human genetic resources. It provides two different models of data access: Open-access and Controlled-access. Open-access data are universally and freely accessible for global researchers, while Controlled-access ensures that data are accessed only by authorized users with the permission of the Data Access Committee (DAC). Till July 2021, GSA-Human has housed more than 5.27 PB of data from 750 datasets.GSA-Human是人类遗传资源数据汇交、存储、管理与共享的数据库系统,可提供人类遗传资源数据的上传、下载、浏览、检索等公共服务,并有效支撑了国家重点研发计划科技项目数据的汇交与管理工作。系统具有符合《中华人民共和国人类遗传资源管理条例》数据安全管理策略,提供公开访问和受控访问相结合的数据使用模式。公开访问数据允许用户自由下载与获取;受控访问数据采用申请-审核的模式,即需要通过数据管理委员会(Data Access Committee, DAC)的授权方可获得下载和使用权限。系统自上线以来,截至2021年7月,汇集数据总量已超5.27 PB。.

Extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffness has profound effects on the regulation of cell functions. DNA methylation is an important epigenetic modification governing gene expression. However, the effects of ECM stiffness on DNA methylation remain elusive. Here, it is reported that DNA methylation is sensitive to ECM stiffness, with a global hypermethylation under stiff ECM condition in mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) and embryonic fibroblasts compared with soft ECM. Stiff ECM enhances DNA methylation of both promoters and gene bodies, especially the 5' promoter regions of pluripotent genes. The enhanced DNA methylation is functionally required for the loss of pluripotent gene expression in mESCs grown on stiff ECM. Further experiments reveal that the nuclear transport of DNA methyltransferase 3-like (DNMT3L) is promoted by stiff ECM in a protein kinase C α (PKCα)-dependent manner and DNMT3L can be binding to Nanog promoter regions during cell-ECM interactions. These findings unveil DNA methylation as a novel target for the mechanical sensing mechanism of ECM stiffness, which provides a conserved mechanism for gene expression regulation during cell-ECM interactions.

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical features of children with recurrent medulloblastoma (MB) and treatment regimens. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on 101 children with recurrent MB who were admitted to the hospital from August 1, 2011 to July 31, 2017. The children were followed up to July 31, 2020. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. The Cox regression model was used for multivariate regression analysis. RESULTS: Of the 101 children, 95 underwent remission induction therapy, among whom 51 had response, resulting in a response rate of 54%. The median overall survival (OS) time after recurrence was 13 months, and the 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS rates were 50.5%±5.0%, 19.8%±4.0%, and 10%±3.3% respectively. There was no significant difference in the 5-year OS rate between the children with different ages (< 3 years or 3-18 years), sexes, pathological types, or Change stages, between the children with or without radiotherapy before recurrence or re-irradiation after recurrence, and between the children with different times to recurrence (< 12 months or ≥ 12 months after surgery) (P > 0.05). There were significant differences in the 5-year OS rate between the children with or without reoperation after recurrence and between the children with different recurrence sites (P < 0.05). The children with reoperation after recurrence had a significantly longer survival time than those without reoperation (P=0.007), and the risk of death in children undergoing reoperation after recurrence was 0.389 times (95% confidence interval:0.196-0.774) that in children who did not undergo such reoperation. CONCLUSIONS: As for the recurrence of MB, although remission induction therapy again can achieve remission, such children still have a short survival time. Only reoperation can significantly prolong survival time, and therefore, early reoperation can be considered to improve the outcome of children with recurrent MB.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a malignant hematological disease, originating from hematopoiesis stem cell differentiation obstruction and clonal proliferation. New reagents or biologicals for the treatment of AML are urgently needed, and exosomes have been identified as candidate biomarkers for disease diagnosis and prognosis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of exosomes from bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) on AML cells as well as the underlying microRNA (miRNA)-mediated mechanisms.Exosomes were isolated using a precipitation method, followed by validation using marker protein expression and nanoparticle tracking analysis. Differentially expressed miRNAs were identified by deep RNA sequencing and confirmed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Cell proliferation was assessed by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium inner salt method, and cell cycle progression and apoptosis were detected by flow cytometry. Functional gene expression was analyzed by qPCR and Western blotting (WB). Significant differences were determined using Student's t test or analysis of variance.BMSCs-derived exosomes effectively suppressed cell proliferation (both P 0.0001 at 10 and 20 μg/mL) and cell cycle progression (P 0.01 at G0-G1 stage), and also significantly enhanced cell apoptosis (P 0.001) in KG-1a cells. There were 1167 differentially expressed miRNAs obtained from BMSCs-derived exosomes compared with KG-1a cell-derived exosomes (P 0.05). Knockdown of hsa-miR-124-5p in BMSCs abrogated the effects of BMSCs-derived exosomes in regulating KG-1a such as the change in cell proliferation (both P 0.0001 vs. normal KG-1a cell [NC] at 48 and 72 h). KG-1a cells treated with BMSCs-derived exosomes suppressed expression of structural maintenance of chromosomes 4 (P 0.001 vs. NC by qPCR and P 0.0001 vs. NC by WB), which is associated with the progression of various cancers. This BMSCs-derived exosomes effect was significantly reversed with knockdown of hsa-miR-124-5p (P 0.0001 vs. NC by WB).BMSCs-derived exosomes suppress cell proliferation and cycle progression and promote cell apoptosis in KG-1a cells, likely acting through hsa-miR-124-5p. Our study establishes a basis for a BMSCs-derived exosomes-based AML treatment.

The epigenetic treatment by 3-Deazaneplanocin A (DZNep), a histone methyltransferase inhibitor, shows great potential to treat acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, the variant sensitivity and incomplete response to DZNep are very common in different AML cell lines as well as primary leukemia cells from AML patients. Here, we reveal that vitamin C (Vc) dramatically promotes DZNep response in leukemia cells from different AML cell lines and primary AML patient. Vc enhances apoptosis and differentiation induced by DZNep in different AML cell lines in vitro and reduces leukemia progression in vivo. At the molecular level, Vc promotes downregulation of D-3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH), an enzyme for serine synthesis, and other anti-apoptotic genes, such as BCL2. Over-expression of PHGDH reverses the enhancing effect of Vc on the anti-leukemia effect of DZNep in AML cells. Together, our findings provide an effective approach to reduce the epigenetic treatment resistance by Vc and would be valuable in potential applications. Funding Information: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81700149), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (No. 2020A1515010199), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. 20ykpy30). Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests. Ethics Approval Statement: All samples were collected after obtaining informed consent in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The study was approved by the ethics committees of the Institutional Review Boards. All animal experiments were performed according to protocols approved by the institutional animal care and use committee.

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical effect of surgery combined with chemotherapy and radiotherapy in children with central primitive neuroectodermal tumor (cPNET), as well as the risks factors for poor prognosis. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 42 children who were diagnosed with cPNET from June 2012 to September 2018. RESULTS: The 42 children had a median overall survival (OS) time of 2.0 years and a median event-free survival (EFS) time of 1.3 years; the 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS rates were 76.2%±6.6%, 41.4%±8.7%, 37.3%±8.8% respectively, and the 1-, 3-, and 5-year EFS rates were 64.3%±7.4%, 32.7%±8.0%, 28.0%±8.1% respectively. The univariate analysis showed that there were significant differences in the OS and EFS rates among the children with different patterns of surgical resection, chemotherapy cycles, and risk grades (P < 0.05), and there was also a significant difference in the OS rate between the children receiving radiotherapy and those not receiving radiotherapy (P < 0.05). The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that chemotherapy cycles and risk grade were independent influencing factors for EFS and OS rates (P < 0.05). The EFS and OS rates increased with the increase in chemotherapy cycles and the reduction in risk grade. CONCLUSIONS: Multimodality therapy with surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy is an effective method for the treatment of cPNET in children. Early diagnosis and treatment and adherence to chemotherapy for as long as possible may improve EFS and OS rates.

MiR-150 is a microRNA (miRNA) present in a number of teleost species, but its target and regulation mechanism are unknown. Similarly, lysosome membrane protein 2-like (LMP2L) is a gene identified in fish but with unknown function. In this study, we examined the regulation mechanism and function of flounder miR-150 (named pol-miR-150) and its target gene LMP2L (named PoLMP2L) in association with bacterial and viral infection. We found that pol-miR-150 expression was not only modulated by the bacterial pathogen Streptococcus iniae but also by the viral pathogen megalocytivirus. Pol-miR-150 targeted PoLMP2L by binding to the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) of PoLMP2L and inhibited PoLMP2L expression in vitro and in vivo. PoLMP2L is a member of the CD36 superfamily of scavenger receptors and homologous to but phylogenetically distinct from lysosomal integral membrane protein type 2 (LIMP2). PoLMP2L was localized mainly in the lysosomes and expressed in multiple organs of flounder. In vivo knockdown and overexpression of PoLMP2L enhanced and suppressed, respectively, S. iniae dissemination in flounder tissues, whereas in vivo knockdown and overexpression of pol-miR-150 produced the opposite effects on S. iniae dissemination. In addition, pol-miR-150 knockdown also significantly inhibited the replication of megalocytivirus. The results of this study revealed the regulation mechanism and immune functions of fish miR-150 and LMP2L, and indicated that LMP2L and miR-150 play an important role in the antimicrobial immunity of fish.

Acute allograft rejection remains common after liver transplantation despite modern immunosuppressive agents. In addition, the long-term side effects of these regimens, including opportunistic infections, are challenging. This study evaluated the safety and clinical feasibility of umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cell (UC-MSC) therapy in liver transplant patients with acute graft rejection. Twenty-seven liver allograft recipients with acute rejection were randomly assigned into the UC-MSC infusion group or the control group. Thirteen patients received one infusion of UC-MSCs (1 × 106/kg body weight); one patient received multiple UC-MSC infusions; 13 patients were used as controls. All enrolled patients received conventional immunosuppressive agents with follow-up for 12 weeks after UC-MSC infusions. No side effects occurred in treated patients. Four weeks after UC-MSC infusions, alanine aminotransferase levels had decreased markedly and remained lower throughout the 12-week follow-up period. Importantly, allograft histology was improved after administration of UC-MSCs. The percentage of regulatory T cells (Tregs) and the Treg/T helper 17 (Th17) cell ratio were significantly increased 4 weeks after infusions; in contrast, the percentage of Th17 cells showed a decreasing trend. In controls, the percentages of Tregs and Th17 cells and the Treg/Th17 ratio were statistically unchanged from the baseline measurements. Transforming growth factor beta 1 and prostaglandin E2 were increased significantly after UC-MSC infusions; by contrast, there were no significant changes in controls. Our data suggest that UC-MSC infusion for acute graft rejection following liver transplantation is feasible and may mediate a therapeutic immunosuppressive effect.

Objective: To observe the clinical application of dexmedetomidine combined with sufentanil anesthesia in patients undergoing laparoscopic repair of gastrointestinal perforation, and the changes of hemodynamics, stress response and inflammatory factors were analyzed before and after operation. Methods: A total of 102 patients with laparoscopic gastrointestinal perforation were randomly divided into control group (n=51) and observation group (n=51) according to the lottery method. The control group was given anesthesia with sufentanil, and the observation group was given dexmedetomidine combined with sufentanil anesthesia, and the other anesthesia drugs were the same. The hemodynamics before anesthesia induction (T1), 10 min after medication (T2), pneumoperitoneum (T3), and tube drawing (T4), serum stress response and inflammatory factor levels before operation and after 24 h of operation were measured in all subjects. Results: At T1 and T2, there was no significant difference in hemodynamics between the two groups. At T3and T4, HR, SBP, and DBP in observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group at corresponding period, and compared with the observation group at T, there were no significant difference. At T3, and T4, the HR, SBP and DBP of the control group were significantly higher than those of T1. There was no significant difference in serum stress hormone between the two groups before surgery. After surgery 24 h, two groups of serum ACTH, Cor and ALD levels were higher than those of preoperative, and the observation group was significantly lower than those of the control group. There was no significant difference in serum inflammatory cytokines between the two groups before surgery. After surgery 24 h, the levels of serum IL-10 and TNF- 毩 in the two groups were higher than those before operation, and the observation group was significantly lower than those of the control group. Conclusion: The combination of dexmedetomidine and sufentanil anesthesia can maintain hemodynamic stability of patients reduce the stress response and serum inflammatory factor concentration, which is one of the potential effective anesthesia method.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the risk factors for recurrence of medulloblastoma (MB) within 2 years and their influence on progression-free survival (PFS). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 123 children with MB who were admitted from January to December, 2017. According to the presence or absence of recurrence, they were divided into recurrence group with 30 children and non-recurrence group with 93 children. The risk factors for recurrence within 2 years were analyzed, and PFS was compared between the children with different risk factors. RESULTS: Large-cell/anaplastic type and M stage were risk factors for MB recurrence within 2 years. The risk of recurrence in the children with M+ MB was 3.525 times that in those with M0 MB, and the risk of recurrence in the children with large-cell/anaplastic MB was 3.358 times that in those with classic MB (P < 0.05). The survival analysis showed that the median PFS time was 20 months in the children with M+ MB, and the 20-month PFS rate was 50% ±11% in the children with M+ MB and 81% ±5% in those with M0 MB (P < 0.05). The 20-month PFS rate was 80% ±5% in the children with classic MB, 65% ±10% in those with desmoplastic/nodular MB, 86% ±13% in those with MB with extensible nodularity, and 36% ±20% in those with large-cell/anaplastic MB (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Recurrence is an important influencing factor for the prognosis of MB, and M+ stage and large-cell/anaplastic MB are risk factors for recurrence. Children with such risk factors tend to have a low PFS rate.

Objective To investigate the expression of follicular helper T (Tfh) cell subsets in peripheral blood of patients with liver transplantation (LT) and relevance to the prognosis. Methods Eleven liver transplant patients with stable liver function were enrolled in this study. The frequencies of Tfh subsets were examined by flow cytometry. The frequencies and the level of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST) and total bilirubin (TBIL) were monitored dynamically within one month after LT. Results The frequency of CD4+CXCR5+CXCR3–CCR6– Tfh2 subset in peripheral blood increased significantly after LT as compared with those before transplantation (P

Rationale Hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) is a rare and potentially fatal complications after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Most severe SOS result in multi-organ dysfunction and are associated with a high mortality rate (>80%). Patient concerns A 31-year-old man was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia blast crisis. He presented with severe thrombocytopenia on day 42 post-HSCT (on days +42), gradually developed with painful hepatomegaly, ascites, and weight gain. Diagnoses The abdominal computerized tomography showed hepatomegaly, hepatic congestion, periportal edema, narrow hepatic vein, and ascites suggestive of SOS/hepatic vein occlusion. According to the EBMT revised diagnostic criteria, the patient was diagnosed as late-onset severe SOS. Interventions Comprehensive treatment including low molecular weight heparin was initiated. Outcomes The patient had good response with resolution of his hepatomegaly, increase of platelet, weight and transaminase loss after 4 weeks treatment. Lessons In SOS patients with nonspecific clinical and biochemical findings, computerized tomography scans can be useful in differentiating SOS from other complications after HSCT. low molecular weight heparin is effective for the treatment of SOS.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, non-coding endogenous RNAs that play critical roles in diverse cellular processes through regulating target gene expression. In the present study, we identified two Japanese flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) miRNAs, i.e., pol-miR-7133 and pol-miR-3p-9227, and examined the functions of the miRNAs and their target gene in association with the infection of Streptococcus iniae. pol-miR-7133 and pol-miR-3p-9227 were identified as miRNAs downregulated during S. iniae infection. Both miRNAs targeted the gene of lysosome-associated membrane protein 2 (LAMP2) isoform 3 of flounder (named PoLAMP23) by interaction with the 3′-untranslated region (3’-UTR) of PoLAMP2–3. Both in vivo and in vitro studies showed that PoLAMP2–3 expression negatively correlated with pol-miR-7133 and pol-miR-3p-9227 expression. Since to date no study on fish LAMP2 had been documented, we investigated the biological property of PoLAMP2–3. We found that PoLAMP2–3 expression occurred in multiple tissues and was most abundant in liver. PoLAMP2–3 is a highly acidic transmembrane protein and was observed to localize in both lysosome and cellular membrane. In vitro studies showed that overexpression of pol-miR-7133 and pol-miR-3p-9227 or interference with PoLAMP2-3 expression significantly enhanced S. iniae infection in flounder cells. Consistently, in vivo studies showed that knockdown of pol-miR-7133 and pol-miR-3p-9227, or overexpression of PoLAMP2-3, inhibited S. iniae infection in flounder, whereas knockdown of PoLAMP2-3 in flounder facilitated S. iniae infection. Together these results revealed for the first time an important immune function of fish LAMP2 and indicated that pol-miR-7133 and pol-miR-3p-9227, via LAMP2, play a vital role in anti-bacterial immunity in fish.

Circulating T follicular helper (cTFH) cells have been demonstrated to be involved in B-cell-mediated alloreactive responses in kidney and liver transplantation; however, whether these cells are involved in acute liver allograft rejection after liver transplantation, and which subsets are involved, remains to be clarified. The present study aimed to investigate the profiles of cTFH cells in acute liver allograft rejection, including the CXC motif receptor 3 (CXCR3)

With the advancement of credit system in higher vocational education, there are some problems of credit accumulation and transformation in higher vocational colleges of China, such as the lack of management and technology platform, the imperfect policies, systems and the dilemma of redistributing educational interests. In order to solve these problems, it is necessary to reform the credit systems and achieve credit accumulation and transformation, establish the third-party credit accumulation with public confidence. Credit System would develop reasonably by perfect the relevant policy and system in Higher Vocational Colleges.

It is well‑established that steroid‑resistant nephrotic syndrome commonly involves podocytic injury, however, the underlying mechanism remains to be elucidated. Previous studies have demonstrated that glucocorticoids enhance podocytic recovery predominantly through the functional isoform, glucocorticoid receptor (GR)α. Our previous study demonstrated the reduced expression of GRα in podocytes from patients with steroid‑resistant nephrotic syndrome compared with those with steroid‑sensitive syndromes, which suggested that microRNAs (miRNAs) may be a potential therapeutic target in the modulation of steroid sensitivity. The present study screened miRNAs in murine injured podocytes by microarray and identified 10 miRNAs significantly upregulated, including miR‑30a, miR‑30d, miR‑100, miR181c, miR‑5099, miR‑3535, miR‑140‑3p, miR‑148‑3p and miR‑103‑3p. Bioinformatic target prediction indicated that the GR was a candidate target gene of miR‑30a. The data also indicated that miR‑30a negatively regulated GRα in normal and injured podocytes induced by puromycin aminonucleoside (PAN). In addition, the inhibition of miR‑30a prevented podocytic apoptosis induced by PAN. However, luciferase reporter assay data suggested an indirect effect on the transcriptional activity of GRα. The present study indicated that silencing of miR‑30a may improve steroid sensitivity in injured podocytes, although the mechanism cannot be explained by conventional means and remains to be elucidated.

Objective To determine the expression characteristics of peripheral blood follicular helper T cells (Tfh) and their molecules during pre- and post-transplantation period in liver transplant patients to explore the role of Tfh in alloreactive response after liver transplantation. Methods Twenty liver transplant (LT) patients and 20 healthy individuals as control were enrolled in this study. Thirteen LT patients with stable liver function were included for cross-sectional study. Another seven LT patients with complete clinical data were included for follow-up study. The frequencies of Tfh cells were examined by flow cytometry. For the seven patients, Tfh cells and level of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were monitored dynamically for one month after LT. Results The frequencies of CD4+CXCR5+Tfh and CD4+CXCR5+PD-1+ cells in peripheral blood increased significantly after liver transplantation as compared with those before liver transplantation (P

The paper constructs the planar dynamic systems with truncated Fourier series. We propose a method to generate planar tiling images of the iterative mapping with truncated Fourier series. It constructed the planar tessellations of planar dynamic systems with cyclic windows. The iterative mapping is constructed. Then we generate cyclic windows of the dynamic plane with these mappings. Filled-in Julia sets are created by generating the coordinates of any cyclic windows. The images in different windows are continuous. We can choose any cyclic windows as the basic computing region and stretch it into a square, which is transferred to the plane to compose the new form chaos attractor and filled-in Julia sets images in the Euclidian plane. Experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

In the visualization of nonlinear dynamic systems with computer, we construct the planar symmetry dynamic systems with truncated trigonometric series by Clifford A.Reiters method of constructing crystallographic groups. To analyze the characteristics of the iteration mapping with truncated trigonometric series. It used the operation of matrix product as tool. To construct dynamic systems of the nonlinear function with truncated trigonometric series. We construct two planar dynamic systems with truncated trigonometric series. Monte Carlo method is used to search the parameter vectors in the parameter space. The Lyapunov exponent is used to judge the characteristics of dynamical systems. We construct chaotic graphics in the cyclic windows. We present a method to construct symmetry dynamical systems which can be used to generate square plane tiling. A great of chaotic attractors in the fundamental regions can be continuously tiled without gaps in the plane. Furthermore, we can provide a plenty of material with a novel and unique structure for the decorative patterns of the buildings.

the landfill leachate was disposed by Catalytic Wet Air Oxidation (CWAO) method, and the monitoring indexes include CODCr, decolorization and pH. The results showed that the CODCr removal rate and the decolorization rate of landfill leachate increased with the increase of reaction temperature and reaction pressure. However, they first rose then reduced with the increase of catalyst dosage. Under the condition of the catalyst concentration 300 mg/L of Co (NO3)2, at the reaction pressure of 3.5 MPa and the reaction temperature of 180 °C, the CODCr removal rate and the decolorization rate reached 56.8% and 83.7%, respectively, and pH was 8.45 at the reaction time of 90 min.

Symbolic dynamics is an iterative system that is generated by a shift on a finite symbolic space. It is a special kind of dynamics. Symbolic dynamics has a lot of theoretical and practical applications in many fields such as physics, computer and so on, so it is important to study its dynamical behavior.Sturmian system that is generated by Sturmian sequences is the least complex kind of symbolic dynamics. In the present paper Sturmian sequences are expanded which make them generality. In fact expanded Sturmian sequences share many of properties of Sturmian sequences, but they cannot completely take place of Sturmian sequences. It appears to make a difference between them. It is of value to study expanded Sturmian sequences.

In order to improve the control accuracy of the coiling temperature of strip in the laminar cooling process when working condition is varying, an intelligent setting method of the cooling water volume is researched in this paper. The strip coiling temperature mechanism model is built firstly. Secondly, the key model parameters are identified with case-based reasoning (CBR) technology to improve the model accuracy. Lastly, the cooling water volume setting method based the model is proposed where disturbance input method is applied. The simulation result showed that the proposed method can improve the strip coiling temperature accuracy when the operation condition is changing. The strip coiling temperature accuracy can be improved due to the CBR technology which can adjust the key model parameters according to the varying operation condition. So, the setting values based the improved model are adjusted with the changing working condition, with self-adaptive ability.

Objective To explore epidemiological, serological and histopathological (by liver biopsy) features of liver diseases, and clinical manifestations in patients of the Chinese armed forces. Methods The clinical data of 231 cases of military patients with liver diseases in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed in terms of their age, gender, location of enlistment, services, official rank, clinical manifestation, and laboratory examination, and also pathological characteristics of liver biopsy. Results Among the 231 hospitalized military patients, 202 were male and 29 were female. The age at onset of the disease ranged from 18 to 73 years (mean age 29.7±9.1). Higher morbidity (48.1%) was found in the 18-25 year age bracket, while lower (only about 7.4%) in above 55-year-old age bracket. Virus infection accounted for 68.0% and non-virus infection accounted for 32.0%. About 64.9% of the patients suffered from chronic liver disease, while 35.1% from acute liver disease. In addition, the prevalence of liver disease was as high as 47.2% in the soldiers, slightly higher than that in the officers (about 38.1%). Transmission of the disease between comrades in arms accounted approximately for 14.0%. Conclusions The mean age of onset of liver disease in military personnel is younger, ranging from 18 to 25 years old predominantly, and the incidence is gradually decreased along with the age. The prevalence of liver disease may be higher in soldiers than in officers. There is a higher percentage of virus infection-associated liver ailment and chronic liver ailment. For acute liver ailment, pathological diagnosis by liver biopsy should be made, and timely therapeutic measures should be taken to prevent transformation of acute to chronic stage.

This paper constructs the planar dynamic systems with non-equidistant cyclic windows. To generate planar tiling images with different visual effects by the same iterative mapping, we propose a method that allows the planar tessellations to be constructed by a planar dynamic system with non-equidistant cyclic windows. A family of iterative mappings are constructed which generate cyclic windows of variant size in the dynamic plane by incorporating cosine functions and non-linear angle variables with the same parameters. Filled-in Julia sets in different cyclic windows are created by generating the coordinates of any cyclic windows. The images in different windows are continuous but with individual structures. We can choose any cyclic windows as the basic computing region and stretch or compress it into a square, which is transferred to the plane to compose the planar tilling. Experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

In this paper, an effective and innovative thermal flow meter is presented. It is based on TDC-GP1 chip and the principle of time difference type ultrasonic flow measurement. Ultrasonic flow meter is applied widely and has some advantages such as non-contact, easily installed and maintained. But it is necessary to make the meter work more stable. The method of time difference can improve the stabilization and measured precision of the ultrasonic flow meter. TDC-GP1 is a chip which can transform time intervals into digital values with high precision. The design of the ultrasonic thermal flow meter is given details in the paper. Results of the experiments show that the innovative meter has low power consumption and high measured precision.

Objective To investigate the characteristics of changes and clinical significance of Th17 cells and CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells (Treg) in peripheral blood in liver transplant patients suffering from acute transplant rejection. Methods A total of 25 liver transplant patients admitted in 302 Hospital of People's Liberation Army from January to September 2011 underwent needle biopsy for the transplanted hepatic tissue. The patients were divided into two groups: acute rejection group (12 cases) and stable-graft group (13 cases). In addition, 13 healthy people were enlisted in the study and regarded as control. Flow cytometric analysis was used to measure the proportion of Th17 cells and Treg cells in peripheral blood among CD4+ T cells, and to observe the relationship between change in Th17/Treg ratio and liver injury. Results The proportion of Th17/CD4+T in acute rejection group (3.50%±0.86%) after transplantation was higher than that in the stable-graft group (2.10%±0.52%) and control group (1.79%±0.42%, P < 0.01). There was no statistical difference in cell ratio between the stable-graft group and control group (P > 0.05). The Treg/CD4+T cell ratio in the peripheral blood of the patients from acute rejection and stable-graft group (0.90%±0.25% and 1.51%±0.23%, respectively) were significantly lower than that of control group (2.57%±0.79%, P < 0.01), and that of acute rejection group was notably lower than that of stable-graft group (P < 0.05). The Th17/Treg ratio in acute rejection group (4.20±1.69) was significantly higher than that of stable-graft group (1.43±0.47) and control group (0.75±0.28, P < 0.01), and that of stable-graft group was higher than that of control group (P < 0.01). The ratio of Th17/Treg was positively correlated with alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and glutamate transaminase (GGT) levels (r=0.5023, P=0.0105; r=0.4561, P=0.0219; r=0.4393, P=0.0280; and r=0.5516, P=0.0043, respectively). Conclusions Th17/ Treg imbalance exists in liver transplant patients suffering from acute rejection, which may be related to liver injury to a certain degree. Furthermore, Th17/Treg imbalance may be involved at the onset and development of acute rejection after liver transplantation.

We construct a simple complex variable polynomial mapping family f n ( z ) = z n + c n z which can make the origin not only be the center of an image but the boundary point of the image in the dynamic plane. We ascertain the arrangement rule of the period parameter regions in the M sets in the parameter space and determine the relationship between the image structures of the filled-in Julia sets and the parameters located in different positions in M sets. We discover that the images of the classic filled-in Julia sets from the f ( z ) = z 2 + c are infinitely inlaid in the filled-in Julia sets from our new mapping family.

Hyperlipidemia is not unusual in liver transplant recipients, but refractory severe hyperlipidemia is unusual. We treated a 39-year-old man who had severe dyslipidemia after liver transplant. The levels of blood lipids, liver enzymes, and essential indicators of liver pathology were monitored. The first serum sample was collected from the liver recipient 56 days after transplant surgery because samples could not be obtained sooner after the transplant. The levels of liver enzymes and blood lipids were improved with symptomatic treatment but had recurrent fluctuations. Tacrolimus and cyclosporine, even at low doses, may have been the dominant factor affecting the blood lipid levels in the recipient.

Carnosol has been proved to have anti-breast cancer effect in previous research. But its ER subtype's specific regulation and mediation mechanisms remain unclear. The aim of this study is to observe the effect of carnosol on cell proliferation and its estrogen receptor α and β's specific regulation and mediation mechanisms with ER positive breast cancer T47D cell. With estrogen receptor α and β antagonists MPP and PHTPP as tools, the MTT cell proliferation assay was performed to observe the effect of carnosol on T47D cell proliferation. The changes in the T47D cell proliferation cycle were detected by flow cytometry. The effect of carnosol on ERα and ERβ expressions of T47D cells was measured by Western blot. The findings showed that 1 x 10(-5)-1 x 10(-7) mol x L(-1) carnosol could significantly inhibit the T47D cell proliferation, which could be enhanced by MPP or weakened by PHTPP. Meanwhile, 1 x 10(-5) mol x L(-1) or 1 x 10(-6) mol x L(-1) carnosol could significantly increase ERα and ERβ expressions of T47D cells, and remarkably increase ERα/ERβ ratio. The results showed that carnosol showed the inhibitory effect on the proliferation of ER positive breast cancer cells through target cell ER, especially ERβ pathway. In the meantime, carnosol could regulate expressions and proportions of target cell ER subtype ERα and ERβ.

To summarize the pathological features of nonalcoholic liver disease (NAFLD) in China based on a histological scoring system for NAFLD designed by the Pathology Committee of NASH Clinical Research Network (NASH-CRN), the specimens of liver needle biopsies from 130 patients with NAFLD were histopathologically analyzed by haematoxylin eosin, reticular fiber and Masson trichrome stain. Immunohistochemistry staining was used to exclude non-NAFLD cases combined with clinical data. Hepatic steatosis, lobular inflammation, hepatocytic ballooning and fibrosis were presented widespread in NAFLD liver tissues. Furthermore, macrovesicular steatosis predominantly located in acinar zone 3 was the main histologic feature of NAFLD and lobular inflammation was usually presented mildly. Hepatocyte ballooning was observed in 94.6% of all 130 cases. Mild perisinusoidal fibrosis and periportal fibrosis were often observed in stage 1 cases. According to the statistic analysis, hepatic steatosis was positively correlated with lobular inflammation, hepatocytic ballooning and fibrosis (r = 0.587, 0.488, 0.374, respectively, all P value < 0.01). The number of microgranulomas, lipogranulomas and apoptotic bodies increased following severity of steatosis, lobular inflammation and fibrosis. Meanwhile, the number of megamitochondria and glycogen nuclei was paralleveled to the degree of hepatocytic ballooning (P value all < 0.01). We suggest that the role of portal inflammation should be emphasized besides hepatic steatosis, lobular inflammation, hepatocyte ballooning and fibrosis in diagnosis and evaluation of NAFLD. It needs to be further verified whether microgranulomas, lipogranulomas and apoptosis bodies could be used as histopathological markers of development of NAFLD. The number of megamitochondria is more frequently be found in NAFLD, while in alcoholic liver diseases was Mallory bodies.

To characterize the clinical, laboratory, imaging and pathological features of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and investigate the impact of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapy on patient prognosis.The medical records of 22 patients diagnosed with PSC between 2002 and 2011 were retrospectively reviewed. The PSC diagnosis had been made in patients with suspect biochemical abnormalities following evaluation by magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) and/or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC). Fibrosis and inflammation were assessed by immunohistochemical analyses of tissue biopsies. Outcome of patients treated with UDCA (13-15 mg/kg/day, oral) were compared to that of patients without UDCA treatment by the X2 or corrected X2 tests.Among the 22 PSC patients, the majority was male (n=15) and presented with fatigue, dark urine, and body weight loss (n=15). Four cases had ulcerative colitis. At admission, all 22 cases showed elevated levels of alkaline phosphatase[ALP: (348+/-184) U/L], 19 cases showed elevated alanine aminotransferase [ALT: (94.0+/-67.0) U/L] and aspartate aminotransferase [AST: (98.0+/-67.0) U/L], and 15 cases showed elevated levels of total bilirubin (99.0+/-115.0) mumol/L and direct bilirubin (74.4+/-92.4 mumol/L. ERCP examination showed segmental intrahepatic bile duct stenosis with expansion, and stiff and enlarged gallbladder bile ducts, but unclear findings for the common bile ducts and pancreatic ducts. MRCP showed beading of the intrahepatic bile duct, stiffness of the bile duct wall, and dilation of the common bile duct. Fibrosis and inflammation were observed in the bile ducts, along with hyperplasia and the typical features of "onion skin" fibrosis and fibrous obliterative cholangitis. Five of the 10 patients treated with UDCA improved, and seven of the 12 patients in the non-UDCA treatment group improved. There was no statistically significant difference in outcome between the groups (paired X2=0.333, corrected X2=0.083, P more than 0.05).PSC patients were predominantly male and the common clinical manifestations were fatigue, dark urine, and body weight loss. At admission, serum biochemical indicators of cholangitis were increased significantly and subsequent imaging studies confirmed the suspected diagnosis by showing obvious characteristic changes. UDCA treatment did not significantly improve patient prognosis.

To explore whether the cellular apoptosis susceptibility (CAS) protein could serve as a pathologic marker for HCC diagnosis and the roles of CAS expression in HBV infection associated HCC.The expression of CAS protein in HCC and its paracarcinoma tissues, non-tumor liver cirrhosis and hepatitis tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry. Meanwhile, HBsAg, HBcAg and HBV DNA in HCC tissues with HBV infection were examined by immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization respectively.The expression of CAS protein was significantly higher in HCC than in its paracarcinomas tissues (P0.01), and higher in paracarcinomas tissues than in non-tumor liver cirrhosis and hepatitis tissues (P0.01). Poorly differentiated tumors immunochemically stained stronger than moderately or well differentiated (P0.01). CAS protein expression was significantly higher in HBV-infected HCC tissues than that of in non-HBV infection (P0.01). Meanwhile, in HBV-infected HCC tissues, the staining intensity score of CAS protein in HBV DNA positive HCC tissues was significantly higher than HBV DNA negative tissues (P0.05).Higher expression of CAS protein is found in HCC tissues,and the intensity of CAS protein expression is related closely to tumor differentiation. We suggested that CAS protein might serve as a marker for HCC diagnosis and differentiation estimation, and deduced that CAS might play an important role in the initiation of HBV infection associated HCC through upregulating expression of CAS.

Increasing function of mobile phone, with availability of traffic information publishing, has created a demand for techniques and methodologies that assist in the automated generation of traffic maps specifically tailored to mobile phone. This paper concerns itself with the problem of automatic generation of schematic maps for traffic information. Schematic maps are effective tools for representation information about the physical environment; they depict specific information in an abstract way. In the context of mobile mapping, schematic maps are seen as being particularly useful means of displaying transportation networks. This paper presents a method that automates the production of schematic maps of traffic information. The method takes into account road type, interesting area of user, current location of user and topologic of the road network, et.al. An implementation of the method is also presented, together with experimental results.

Seed germination, root elongation, shoot elongation and ratio of shoot to root of wheat in soils polluted by lead (Pb) and benzo (a)pyrene (B[a] P) with medium-low concentrations were studied to reveal the ecological effects of combined pollution and screen the indicative markers. Results indicated that seed germination was not sensitive to single or combined pollution of Pb or B[a] P. Root elongation was inhibited by single pollution of Pb or B[a]P to different extents. Extensive interactions between Pb and B[a]P occurred to root elongation of wheat, including synergistic-stimulatory effect and antagonistic-inhibitory effect. The joint action was mainly antagonistic. Single pollution of B [a] P had an inhibitory effect on shoot elongation. Under combined pollution conditions, the shoot elongation of wheat correlated well with Pb contents (p0.01). B[a] P or the interactions between pollutants had little effect on shoot elongation of wheat. The joint action on shoot elongation was consistently antagonistic. The response pattern of the ratio of shoot to root was similar to the response pattern of shoot elongation. However, the former had better correlation than the latter, indicating it as a more suitable indicative marker for Pb pollution. If lead acetate was employed instead of lead nitrate, longer root elongation, shorter shoot elongation and no effect on ratio of shoot to root were found. Therefore, the forms of Pb salt had significant influence on seed growth of wheat in soils.

Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) images are potential data source of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). However, these images sequence's interval is from 2s to 300s, so it is difficult to extract background from these images sequences by conventional methods, let alone to directly estimated traffic information. In order to make use of such online low updated-rate CCTV image sequences, a background extract algorithm is proposed to subtract background from CCTV image sequence. The proposed method has been examined with data collected at one selected locations in Hong Kong under different traffic conditions. It is shown that the proposed algorithm can obtain satisfactory result.

To study the clinical and pathological features of drug-induced liver injury (DILI).Liver specimens were obtained through needle biopsies from 100 patients with DILI. The histological preparations of the specimens were stained with haematoxylin eosin, several histochemistry methods, and immunohistochemistry stains. The pathological changes of the livers were analyzed together with the patients's clinical data. The patients were divided into two groups, an acute DILI group (n=39) and a chronic DILI group (n=61), based on their clinical courses and histological changes in their livers. In the chronic DILI group, the clinical courses were longer than 6 months and/or fibrosis or cirrhosis occurred in their liver tissues.Among our cases the leading cause of DILI was Chinese herb medicine, accounting for 21% of the 100 cases; steroids induced cases were 11% of the total. 78% of the patients presented elevated serum transaminases and/or jaundice. The degree of transaminases elevation and the frequency of jaundice happening in the acute group were significantly higher than those in the chronic group (P less than 0.05). The histopathological liver changes in these DILI cases included: (1) necrosis commonly occurred in acinar zone 3, (2) abundant neutrophil and/or eosinophil infiltrations, (3) hepatocytic and/or canalicular cholestasis with little or no inflammation, (4) microvesicular steatosis mixed with macrovesicular steatosis, and (5) presentation of epitheloid cell granuloma. There were no significant differences in liver histopathology between the acute and the chronic DILI groups, except that the fibrosis and the ductular proliferation were different.DILI has become a notable liver disease in mainland China, and the use of Chinese herbal medicine must be improved, standardized and regulated more closely.

It is feasible that the ANAMMOX bacteria can be enriched and cultivated to red granular in plug flow immobilized floc bioreactor. Average ammonium and nitrite removal rate are more than 98 %, and average total nitrogen removal rate is 86% combined with 14% nitrate production; the removal volumetric total nitrogen load is 2.56kg/(m3 x d). The influence of the influent substrate ratio of ammonium to nitrite on reactor's performance has been studied. The granule structure has been observed by the scan electro-microscope.

To explore the cut-off period of subclassification and pathological features of severe hepatitis (SH).Based on combined clinical and pathological analyses, the complete clinical and biopsy or autopsy liver tissues data from 196 cases of patients with severe hepatitis were investigated. Meanwhile, proliferative hepatocytes, cholangioepithelia and collagens were identified by a panel of monoclonal antibodies such as those against albumin, cytokeratin 18,19 and collagen I, III with immunohistochemical method.The clinical and pathological analyses indicated the cut-off periods of acute, subacute and chronic SH (ASH,SSH and CSH) were (13.4+/-7.2) d, (77.4+/-69.3) d and (80.5+/-63.2) d, respectively. Among all SH cases, one case of ASH patient presented clinical manifestation and pathological changes of ASH for 21 days, however, one patient with SSH was demonstrated 12 day course by histological examination. The time of cut-off period between ASH and SSH in child cases was shorter than that in adult cases. Histologically, ASH liver tissues showed massive and/or submassive necrosis caused by one attack, with congestive sinusoid frameworks and proliferative cholangioepithelium-like hepatocytes, while SSH liver tissues presented combined fresh and old submassive or massive necrosis caused by multiple attacks, accompanied by obviously proliferative bile ducts and sinusoid framework collapse.However, the pathological changes of CSH showed ASH- or SSH-like lesions on the background of chronic liver injury.Our data indicated that the cut-off period between ASH and SSH is in accordance with the Scheme of Viral Hepatitis Prevention and Therapy, China, published in 2000, but excluded a part of child SH cases. In our study, the authors found a few pathological features in ASH and SSH.

To explore the pathological features and pathogenesis of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) to provide evidence for the clinical treatment and prevention of SARS.Pathological features of 2 cases of full autopsy and 4 cases of needle biopsy tissue samples from the patients who died from SARS were studied by light and electron microscopy. The distribution and quantity of lymphocyte subpopulations in the lungs and immune organs from SARS patients were analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The location and semi-quantitative analysis of SARS coronavirus in the tissue specimens were studied by electron microscopy, in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry.In total of 6 cases, diffuse alveolar damage and alveolar cell proliferation were common. The major pathological changes of 2 autopsy cases of SARS in lung tissues were acute pulmonary interstitial and alveolar exudative inflammation, and 2 autopsy and one biopsy lung tissues showed alveolar hyaline membrane formation. Terminal bronchiolar and alveolar desquamation of lung tissues in one autopsy and 2 biopsy cases were noted. Among 6 cases, 2 biopsy cases presented early pulmonary fibrosis and alveolar organization. Meanwhile, the immune organs, including lymph nodes and spleens from 2 autopsy cases of SARS whose disease courses were less than 12 days showed extensive hemorrhagic necrosis, reactive macrophage/histocyte proliferation, with relative depression of mononuclear and granulocytic clones in the bone marrows. However, spleen and bone marrow biopsy tissue samples from 4 dead SARS cases whose clinical course lasted from 21 to 40 days presented repairing changes. SARS coronaviruses were mainly identified in type I and II alveolar epithelia, macrophages, and endothelia; meanwhile, some renal tubular epithelial cells, cardiomyocytes, mucosal and crypt epithelial cells of gastrointestinal tracts, parenchymal cells in adrenal glands, lymphocytes, testicular epithelial cells and Leydig's cells were also detected by electron microscopy combined with in situ hybridization. The semi-quantitative analysis of lymphocyte subpopulations revealed that the proportion of CD8+ T lymphocytes were about 80% of the total infiltrative inflammatory cells in the pulmonary interstitium, with a few CD4+ lymphocytes CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ or CD20+ lymphocyte subpopulations were obviously decreased and there was imbalance in number and proportion, while CD57+, CD68+, S-100+ and HLA-DR+ cells were relatively increased in lymph nodes and spleens.Histologically, the pulmonary changes could be divided into acute inflammatory exudative, terminal bronchiolar and alveolar desquamative and proliferative repair stages or types during the pathological process of SARS. SARS coronavirus was found in multi-target cells in vivo, which means that SARS coronavirus might cause multi-organ damages which were predominant in lungs. There were varying degrees of decrease and imbalance in number and proportion of lymphocyte subpopulations in the immune organs of the patients with SARS. However, these changes may be reversible. It was found that cellular immune responses were predominant in the lungs of SARS cases, which might play an important role in getting rid of coronaviruses in infected cells and inducing immune mediated injury.

To explore the clinical and pathological features and the pathogenesis of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) in Chinese Mainland.30 PBC patients were divided into the early group (Scheuer stage I and II, 19 patients) and the late group (Scheuer stage III and IV, 11 patients). The data of clinics and serology were analyzed, and the pathological features of the liver tissues were characterized. The changes of dendritic cells (DCs) and hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) were studied by immunohistochemistry.In all the PBC patients, the rate of the male to the female was 1 to 5, and the average age was 40.6 years. The mean levels of TBiL, ALP and GGT in the sera were (95.9+-88.5) micromol/L, (537.2+-339.2) U/L, and (582.0+-351.2) U/L, respectively. 73.3% patients showed AMA positive, and the level of GGT was positively correlated with the AMA level according to the result of statistical analysis (r=0.778, P=0.000). The symptoms of jaundice and hepatomegaly were presented more commonly in the late group than those in the early group (chi2=5.182, P0.05; chi2=13.659, P0.01, respectively). The main changes of morphology of PBC located in portal tracts. The liver tissues in the early stage of PBC showed the damage of bile ducts and obvious proliferation of small bile ducts. The granulomas, the lymphoid follicles and the foamy cells were found in the liver tissues of PBC (2/19 patients, 12/19 patients, and 10/19 patients in the early stage respectively, while 0/11 patients, 4/11 patients, and 3/11 patients in the late stage respectively). There was significant difference between the early stage and the late stage in presence of the lymphoid follicles and the foamy cells (t=4.489, P0.05; t=4.019, P0.05, respectively). The biliary pigmentary particles were mainly accumulated in the liver cells around the portal tracts in 90.0% PBC patients, and the accumulation of copper and iron increased, compared with that in normal specimens. The DCs and HSCs located mainly in the portal tracts, especially around the damaged bile ducts.There are some clinical and pathological characteristics in the patients with PBC. The level of AMA has no direct relationship with the level of transaminase or bilirubin. The proliferated bile ductules may express the antigens which maybe the target of immune attack. As an antigen-presenting cell, DCs may play an important role in the pathogenesis of PBC.