Search

Objective: To investigate the expression and significance of follistatin, activin A and bone morphogenetic protein-4 (BMP-4) in normal brain tissues of rats and the brain tissues with hypoxic and ischemicgin., Methods: Sixty conception SD rats were divided into normal and model group (with 30 for each). According to the development of fetal rats in each group, they were randomly divided into six subgroups (embryonic stage 8. 5 d, 13 d, 18 d (E8.5,E13,E18), and after the birth 3 d, 7 d and 30 d (P3,P7,P30), five fetal or young rats in each subgroup. Hypoxic-ischemic brain model was established. Expressions and origins of follistatin, activin A and BMP-4 with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage were determined by immunohistochemical and RT-PCR methods., Results: In normal group, follistatin and activin A protein expressed at a very low level and gradually decreased with the period of fetal development when evaluated with immunohistochemical and RT-PCR methods; almost no expression of BMP-4 was detected in embryonic but a little bit of expression at 30 d after the birth. In hypoxic-ischemic brain damage group, the expression of follistatin, activin A and BMP-4 was significantly higher than those in normal group (P < 0.01)., Conclusion: The expression of Follistatin, activin A and BMP-4 are related to developmental time, the expression of follistatin, activin A and BMP-4 is highly increased after cerebral ischemia and hypoxia injury. This implies that the main function of follistatin is as the inhibitor of activin A instead of the ligland of BMP-4 to regulate neural development.

Objective: To explore the effects of tripterygium wilfordii polyglucoside (TWP) on expression of Activin A (Act-A) and influence of transdifferentiation in renal tubulointerstitium of rats with diabetes nephropathy (DN)., Methods: A total of 40 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into normal control, DN model, irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups (n = 10 each). The animal model of DN was established by an injection of streptozotocin. After modeling, irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups received an intragastric injection of corresponding drugs. The body weights were recorded and the 24 h Pro quantitative levels detected at Weeks 4, 8, 12 and 16 respectively. After sacrificing at Week 16, serum creatinine (Scr) was detected. The renal tissues were excised and examined after HE and PAS staining. The expressions of Act-A, alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), collagen type IV (Co-IV) and E-cad in renal tubulointerstitium were detected by immunohistochemistry. And the expressions of Act-A, α-SMA, Co-IV and mRNA of E-cad in renal tissue were detected by real-time quantitative fluorescent polymerase chain reaction (PCR)., Results: Compared with DN model group, 24 hPro ((67.1 ± 9.6), (61.8 ± 8.0) vs (158.3 ± 13.3) mg), quantitative Scr ((31.7 ± 4.1), (32.6 ± 6.2) vs (55.3 ± 8.9) µmol/L) and renal hypertrophic index ((9.14 ± 0.65), (7.50 ± 0.34) vs (11.28 ± 0.70) mg/g) of irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups decreased obviously at Week 16 (all P < 0.05). However, no statistical significance existed between irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups. The body weights of irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups increased versus DN model group. Pathological sections showed that lesion degree of renal tubulointerstitium became alleviated in each group. Yet no statistical significance existed between irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups. Both immunohistochemistry and real-time quantitative fluorescent PCR showed that the expressions of Act-A, α-SMA and Co-IV significantly decreased in renal tubulointerstitium (P < 0.01) while the expression E-cad significantly increased (P < 0.01) in inirbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups versus DN model group. And no statistical significance existed between irbesartan treatment and TWP treatment groups., Conclusion: TWP may down-regulate the expression of Act-A and inhibit the transdifferentiation of renal tubulointerstitial so as to delay renal fibrosis.

Objective: To study the effect of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) on the expressions activin A, follistatin, and cripto in cultured human endometrial stromal cells (HESCs) form patients with endometriosis., Methods: Cultured HESCs were stimulated with 250, 500, and 750pg/ml IL-1β, and the mRNA and protein expressions of activin A, follistatin, and cripto were assayed using real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay., Results: IL-1β treatment caused significant dose-dependent increments of the mRNA and protein expressions of activin A and follistatin and of the mRNA expression of cripto in cultured HESCs., Conclusion: IL-1β can affect the expressions of activin A, follistatin and cripto in HESCs from patients with endometriosis.

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the expression of activin A in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and its clinical significance., Methods: Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining was used for detecting the expression of tissue activin A in sixty-four patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used for detecting the serum activin A in the patients before and after surgery. The relationship between expression of activin A in the esophageal cancer tissue with clinicopathological features and its influence on prognosis were analyzed., Results: The positive expression rate of activin A in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma was 82.8% (53/64), and that of normal esophageal epithelium was 6.7% (2/30), showing a very significant difference between them (P < 0.001). Expression of activin A was correlated with both lymph node metastasis and invasion depth of the tumor (all P < 0.05), and the expression of activin A was positively correlated with lymph node metastasis (r = 0.321, P < 0.05) and invasion depth of the tumor (r = 0.417, P < 0.05). The serum activin A of the patients before and after surgery was (911 ± 276) pg/ml and (667 ± 236) pg/ml, respectively, showing a significant difference (P = 0.005). Univariate and multivariate analyses indicated that expression of activin A and lymph node metastasis were independent influencing factors for prognosis in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (all P < 0.05)., Conclusions: Activin A may play an important role in the pathogenesis and development of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, and it has an important reference value in the estimation of diagnosis and prognosis for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

To study the relationship between the concentrations of INH B (Inhibin B), ACT A (Activin A), and FSH (Follicle stimulating hormone) in blood plasma and fecundity, Dazu black goat with high productivity and Sannen dairy goat with low productivity were used as experiment objects in this research. The concentrations of INH B, ACT A, and FSH in blood plasma were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in order to study the secretion rule of INH B, ACT A, and FSH during an estrus cycle of two goat breeds. The results indicated that the secretion of FSH showed a positive correlation with ACT A and a negative correlation with INH B. The mean concentration of FSH in Dazu black goat was higher than that in Sanen dairy goat during a estrous cycle. However, during the time from obviously estrus to ovulation, the mean concentration of FSH in Dazu black goat was significantly higher than that in Sannen dairy goat (0.01