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Background: Rosmarinic acid (RA), a polyphenol from edible-medical Lamiaceae herbs, is known to possess a variety of pharmacological activity, like anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective and immunoregulation activities. Methods and results: Hereon, we investigated the anti-allergic activity of RA on immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated anaphylaxis responses in rat basophilic leukemia (RBL)-2H3 mast cell. RA hindered the morphological changes of IgE-induced degranulated RBL-2H3 cells. The release of two key biomarkers (β-hexosaminidase (β-HEX) and histamine) of IgE-induced degranulated mast cells was also remarkably down-regulated by RA intervention in a dose dependent manner. Moreover, RA inhibited IgE-induced ROS overproduction and flux of intracellular Ca2+ in IgE-mediated degranulated mast cells. The q-PCR analysis showed that the expressions of genes (COX 2, PGD 2, LTC 4, HDC, Nrf2, HO-1 and NQO1) involved in MAPK and oxidative stress signaling pathways were significantly regulated by RA intervention. Moreover, the degranulation inhibitory effect of rosmarinic acid was investigated on the anti-DNP IgE/DNP-HSA induced passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA) mice model in vivo. It showed that RA significantly inhibited the PCA reaction and allergic edema of ears in anti-DNP IgE/DNP-HSA stimulated mice. Conclusion: These findings suggest that RA has the potential to be used as a therapeutic candidate for allergic diseases by inhibiting mast cell degranulation. This indicates a possible role for RA in managing allergic reactions and related conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trace elements within the brain are important for proper neurological function, but their imbalance has been rarely investigated in glioblastoma. This study enrolled a total of 14 patients with glioblastoma, and the tumor and peritumoral brain tissues were collected while undergoing surgery. The concentrations of Mg, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, Zn, Se, As, Cd, Tl and Pb were determined using a well-evaluated ICP-MS method. The Cu- and Cd-binding proteomes were further analyzed using the anatomic transcriptional atlas from Ivy GAP. Histological evaluation was based on rubeanic acid staining and immunohistochemistry, respectively. The 13 trace element concentrations were obtained, and the highest were Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn and Cu, ranging from a few to dozens of ug/g. Correlation analysis suggested the existence of two intra-correlated clusters: essential metals (Cu–Ca–Zn–Mg) and heavy metals (Pb–As–Cd–Tl–Co–Cr–Mn). Compared to the tumor samples, significantly higher levels of Cu and Cd were observed in the peritumoral region. Further analysis of the Cu- and Cd-binding proteins from the anatomic view suggested that DBH and NOS1 were obviously increased in the leading edge than the central tumor region. Consistent with the above findings, histological evaluation of Cu and DBH further confirmed more copper and DBH expressions in the peritumoral area compared to the tumor core. Trace elements differ in tumor and peritumoral brain zone in glioblastoma, which may associate with tumor angiogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adrenal tumors, including benign cortical adenoma (BCA) and pheochromocytoma (PCC) or paraganglioma (PGL), have been more frequently detected during imaging examinations in recent years. However, the associated clinical or laboratory characteristics, especially on the Chinese population, still need to be investigated. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 491 patients pathologically diagnosed with adrenal tumors, from Jan 19, 2018 to Dec 17, 2019, at a tertiary referral hospital in Wuhan of China. Our findings including 247 (50.3%) BCA cases, and 92 (18.7) PCC/PGL cases and other cases. Both the clinical and laboratory parameters were reviewed and analyzed. Results: Compared with other adrenal tumors, PCC/PGL showed larger tumor diameters and more frequently located on the right side, and were with higher levels of urinary catecholoamines and plasma metanephrines, especially for the 24 h urinary vanilmandelic acid (VMA) and plasma normetanephrine (NMN). The optimal diagnostic thresholds were 29.40 ug/24 h for VMA (sensitivity, 85%; specificity, 91%) and 0.63 nmol/L for NMN (sensitivity, 91%; specificity, 92%). The 24 h urinary VMA and plasma NMN also shared abilities to differentiate between different tumor laterality and different tumor size in PCC/PGL cases. In addition, compared with the other benign tumors, BCA were smaller in diameters (20 vs 35 mm, p < 0.001), and seemed to be lower in levels of plasma epinephrine, dopamine and serum ACTH. Conclusion: 24 h Urinary catecholoamines and plasma metanephrines, especially for the 24 h urinary VMA and plasma MNM, showed higher diagnostic efficacies for PCC/PGL, and were tightly associated with the tumor laterality and tumor size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposures to toxic trace elements and deficiencies of essential elements during pregnancy are associated to various birth complications. Assessment of the trace elements in pregnant women living in specific areas is important for biomonitoring. A total of 196 healthy pregnant women absent of pregnancy complications living in Wuhan of China and 210 healthy non-pregnant women were enrolled. The whole blood were collected. The toxic element chromium (Cr), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), thallium (Tl), and lead (Pb) and essential elements magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) were determined by using a inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)–based method. All the metal(loid)s, except for Cd, Hg, and Tl, showed different levels in whole blood of the pregnant women compared with the non-pregnant women (p < 0.05), among which Mg, Fe, As, and Pb were lower while Ca, Cr, Mn, Cu, and Zn were higher. Moreover, whole blood levels of Mg, Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn showed significant variations among different gestational ages, while As and Cd showed significant variations among different maternal ages. In addition, Fe-Mg, Fe-Zn, Cu-Ca, and Hg-As were found to be correlated positively in whole blood of the pregnant women, while Fe-Ca, Zn-Ca, and Fe-Cu were correlated negatively. The systematic information of toxic and essential elements in whole blood of pregnant women living in Wuhan of China can provide important guidance for the supplementation of essential elements during pregnancy and for biomonitoring of environmental overexposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trace element distribution in the human body varies across regions and countries due to their different living environment and lifestyle. Thus, it is of great significance to investigate the reference level of trace element in a specific population. Wuhan is the largest metropolitan area in central China with highly developed heavy industries. This study aimed at determining the reference urinary distribution in general populations of Wuhan for nine trace elements (Cr, Mn, Cu, As, Se, Cd, Hg, Tl, Pb), and analyzed their associations with age, sex, and the kidney function. In total, 226 healthy adults not exposed to these trace elements were recruited, and the first-morning urine specimens were analyzed by using ICP-MS-based method. Our results showed higher urinary levels for As and Cd in Wuhan population when compared with other countries, while other element levels were almost equivalent. Sex difference existed for urinary Cu, Mn, As, Tl, and Pb. And urinary Cd, Tl, and Pb levels were associated with the glomerular filtration rate. Almost all these urinary elements showed significant inter-correlations, especially for Cu but except for Mn. This study provides systematic information regarding urinary trace element levels in residents of Wuhan in central China, and shall be of importance for future environmental and occupational biomonitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of trace element levels in general population from the specific area is of importance for nutritional and occupational monitoring. In the current study, baseline blood levels of 12 toxic and/or essential metals and metalloids, including arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), chromium (Cr), thallium (Tl), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), and magnesium (Mg), in general populations (n = 477) of Wuhan in central China were investigated by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The geometric means for As, Cd, Pb, Hg, Cr, Tl, Mn, and Cu were measured as 2.25, 0.70, 17.84, 1.90, 0.36, < 0.05, 12.40, and 783.76 μg/L, respectively. The geometric means for Zn, Ca, Fe, and Mg were 5.85, 56.66, 488.98, and 39.44 mg/L, respectively. We found the men had higher blood As, Pb, Hg, Zn, Fe, and Mg levels but had lower blood Cu and Ca levels than the women (p < 0.05). Age-related difference were found for blood Cu, Zn, Ca, Mg, Pb, Mn, As, Cd, and Hg levels (p < 0.05). Moreover, many metal concentrations were found correlated, with the strongest correlations between the pairs Fe–Mg (r = 0.57), Fe–Zn (r = 0.42), As–Hg (r = 0.46), Ca–Cu (r = 0.34), Pb–Hg (r = 0.36), Pb–Cd (r = 0.31), Pb–As (r = 0.25), and Ca–Fe (r = − 0.23). Compared with reports from other countries, most of our results were consistent, except that As Pb, Hg, Mn, and Cu showed different blood levels with European, Korea, or Beijing areas. Our study would be of importance for nutritional, environmental, and/or occupational monitoring of these metals in human. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is ample evidence indicating that epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) volume and thickness is positively associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). However, the exact pathological changes in the human EAT after myocardial ischemia remains largely unclear. In the current study, we applied a comparative quantitative proteomics to elucidate the altered biological processes in the EAT of ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) patients. A total of 1649 proteins were successfully quantified in our study, among which 165 proteins were significantly changed (ratio <0.8 or >1.2 fold and p < 0.05 in both repetitions) in EAT of ICM individuals. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis revealed that cardiac structure and cellular metabolism were over-represented among these regulated proteins. The hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, adrenergic signaling in cardiomyocytes, extracellular matrix (ECM)-receptor interaction, phagosome, Glycolysis/Gluconeogenesis, and PPAR signaling pathway were highlighted by the KEGG PATHWAY analysis. More importantly, we found that the proteins responsible for extracellular matrix organization were dramatically increased in EAT of ICM patients. In addition, the picrosirius red (PSR) staining results showed that the collagen fiber content was prominently increased, which indicated the EAT of ICM individuals underwent extracellular matrix remodeling and ERK1/2 activation maybe responsible for these pathological changes partially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]