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Based on the expert consensus on parenteral and enteral nutrition support for geriatric patients in China in 2013, domestic multidisciplinary experts were gathered to summarize the new evidence in the field of elderly nutritional support at home and abroad. The 2013 consensus was comprehensively updated and upgraded to a guideline by referring to the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation system for grading evidence. These guidelines were divided into two parts: general conditions and common diseases. After discussion by all members of the academic group and consultation with relevant experts, 60 recommendations were ultimately established as standardized nutritional support in the field of geriatrics in China.

We conducted a case-control study to assess the relation- ship between rs35767, rs2288377, and rs5742612 insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and osteoporosis risk in a Chinese female population. The genotypes of rs35767, rs2288377, and rs5742612 of IGF-1 were determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Patients with osteoporosis were more likely to have drinking and smoking habits and have lower bone mineral density in the L 2 -L 4 vertebrae, femoral neck, and total hip. According to conditional regression analysis, individuals carrying the TT genotype of rs35767 had an increased risk of osteoporosis, with an adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of 2.29 (1.35-4.97). In conclusion, our results sug - gest that the TT genotype of IGF-I rs35767 was associated with an in- creased risk of osteoporosis, suggesting that this polymorphism can be used as a predictive factor for osteoporosis risk.

The aim of this study was to clone, express the gene of Hgp44 in adhesin domains of gingipains from Porphyromonas gingivalis and purify the protein. Furthermore, the effect of Hgp44 from P. gingivalis on inducing HUVECs to secrete IL-6 and IL-8 was evaluated. The Hgp44 gene fragment was amplified by polymerase chain reaction, and then inserted into the cloning vector pMD18-T and linked with a prokaryotic expression vector pET22b to construct the recombinant expression plasmid pET22b-Hgp44. Fusion protein expression was induced by IPTG, and it was purified by immobilized metal-chelating affinity chromatography (IMAC) using an Ni(2+) matrix column. HUVECs were cultured in vitro and different concentrations of Hgp44 were added to confluent HUVEC monolayers and incubated for 2, 8 and 24 h. We extracted the supernatants and then used ELISA kits to test the changes in IL-6 and IL-8 levels. Finally, a 1100-bp fragment was successfully amplified, and the expression of the fusion protein was examined by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis, and the data showed that the protein was 44 kDa in size and expressed mostly in the form of inclusion bodies. The purification of the fusion protein was achieved using Ni(2+) affinity chromatography. About 3.5 mg/L fusion protein was obtained. Hgp44 could induce HUVECs to secrete IL-6 and IL-8 levels, which were remarkably increased. In a word, Hgp44 was successfully expressed in a prokaryotic expression system and purified by IMAC using the Ni(2+) matrix column. The effect of Hgp44 in inducing HUVECs to secrete IL-6 and IL-8 was demonstrated.

The aim of current study is to investigate the molecular mechanism that caloric restriction (CR) suppresses endothelial cells senescence. Human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) were divided into 5 groups: control group, high caloric group (about 1.5 times caloric intake of control group), low caloric group (about 0.5 times caloric intake of control group), siRNA plus low caloric group (low caloric treatment pretreated with special siRNA targeting hepatocyte nuclear factor 3γ (HNF3γ)), and siRNA plus high caloric group (high caloric treatment pretreated with special siRNA targeting HNF3γ). The gene and protein expressions of HNF3γ and NADPH oxidase 4 (NOX4) were quantified by real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blotting, respectively. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production was measured by flow cytometry. Endothelial cells senescence was assayed by senescence associated β-galactosidase staining. After verifying the binding of HNF3γ to NOX4 promoter region by chromatin immunoprecipitation assay (ChIP), NOX4 promoter activity was assayed by dual-luciferase reporter system. Compared with the control group, the mRNA and protein expression levels of HNF3γ,and the ratio of phosphorylated HNF3γ protein increased significantly (P

Background The effects of brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) on the risk of cardiovascular disease and atherosclerosis have been studied. However, little information is available regarding peripheral arterial disease (PAD), particularly among subjects with type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The aim of our study was to assess the potential relationship between BNP levels and PAD among T2DM patients. Methods The study cohort was 507 T2DM outpatients in which BNP levels were measured. Cross-sectional associations between BNP levels (in tertiles) and PAD were examined. Results Compared withT2DM patients without PAD, BNP levels were markedly higher in patients with PAD (p = 0.001). Correlation analyses showed that the BNP level was negatively correlated with the ankle–brachial index (r = −0.453, p = 0.033). At a cutoff value of 78.2 pg/ml, the BNP level showed a sensitivity of 71.9%, a specificity of 68.1%, and a positive predictive value of 84.3% for a diagnosis of PAD. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve increased significantly if BNP levels were incorporated into a predictive model of the potential risk factors for PAD (0.85 vs 0.81, p = 0.029). Conclusions BNP is a potential and promising biomarker for PAD screening in T2DM patients.