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In the present study, we evaluated the curative effect of dipeptidyl peptidase-IV (DPP-IV) inhibitor alogliptin combined with motor imagery under hyperbaric oxygen in diabetic nephropathy (DN) with silent cerebral infarction (SCI). Two-hundred newly diagnosed DN patients with and without SCI were included. The SCI patients were divided into two treatment groups: Alogliptin (A group, n=50) and alogliptin combined with motor imagery under hyperbaric oxygen (B group, n=50). The degrees of neurocognitive dysfunction were evaluated at baseline and after 6 months of treatment. Thromboelastograms (TEGs) mapping were conducted. Serum glycoprotein VI (GPVI) mRNA expression and urine 11-DH-TXB2 levels were determined. Compared to group A patients, the severity of neurofunctional defects, GPVI mRNA expression and 11-DH-TXB2 levels were significantly lower in group B (P<0.05), while comprehensive, MoCA scores were higher in group B. The MoCA subscores of visuospatial/executive function, attention and concentration were significantly higher compared to group A (P<0.05). The sub-scores of computation, abstract thinking, language competence, memory and orientation were also higher in group B but the differences were not significant (P>0.05). TEG indexes were improved in both groups after treatment as manifested by increased R and K values, but there was significant improvement in group B. Intra-group comparisons revealed a time-dependent effect of treatment. In conclusion, the treatment of alogliptin combined with motor imagery under hyperbaric oxygen can better promote thrombolysis absorption, restore brain damage and improve neurocognitive function in DN with silent cerebral infarction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim To investigate the RBP4/Lp-PLA2/Netrin-1 signal regulation of cognitive function impairment in diabetic nephropathy patients with silent cerebral infarction (SCI). Methods One-hundred patients newly diagnosed with diabetic nephropathy patients were included. The patients were divided into SCI group and NSCI group according to the radiological data. The degrees of cognitive dysfunction were evaluated. Serum RBP4 concentrations were determined by ELISA and protein expressions of Lp-PLA2 and Netrin-1 were determined by Western Blot. Results Compared with NSCI group, the cognitive function of patients in SCI group was impaired, the concentrations of RBP4 and the expressions of Lp-PLA2 and Netrin-1 increased (P < 0.05). RBP4 concentrations were positively correlated with the cognitive dysfunction of SCI patients. Moreover, there existed a regression correlation between them. Conclusion RBP4 may be used as a predictive factor of diabetic nephropathy patients complicated with SCI and is positively correlated with cognitive dysfunction. RBP4/Lp-PLA2/Netrin-1 pathway activation may be one of the occurrence mechanisms in diabetic nephropathy complicated with SCI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to confirm that atherosclerosis (AS) is a systemic immune-mediated chronic inflammatory disease and to investigate the anti-atherosclerotic effect of demethylzeylasteral by testing the immunocompetent cells and inflammatory mediators in the blood and atherosclerotic plaques of the rabbit model of AS. For this purpose, 60 male New Zealand white rabbits were given 150 g high-fat diet (1% cholesterol, 5% lard, and 15% egg yolk powder) daily for a total of 90 days. On day 61, the rabbits were randomly divided into the saline group (n=15), the rosuvastatin group (n=15), the low-dose demethylzeylasteral group (n=15), and the high-dose demethylzeylasteral group (n=15). The CD3+ T lymphocytes and the subsets CD4+, CD8+, and CD4+/CD8+, as well as the soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) were measured before and after the treatment. The contents of immunoglobulins IgG, IgA and IgM and the levels of complements C3 and C4 were also monitored. In addition, the level of anti-oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) antibody, the inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a), IL-6 and metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), the blood lipids triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured, and the severity of plaque lesions was also evaluated. Our results showed that the saline group, the rosuvastatin group and the low-dose demethylzeylasteral group had significantly lower activated T lymphocyte parameters CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ and CD4+/CD8+ (P<0.05), and significantly higher levels of sIL-2R, immunoglobulins IgG, IgA and IgM, complements C3 and C4, anti-ox-LDL antibody, TNF-a, IL-6 and MMP-9 (P<0.01) when compared with the high-dose demethylzeylasteral group. Moreover, TG, TC, LDL-C contents were found significantly lower and their HDL-C contents were significantly higher in high-dose demethylzeylasteral group (P<0.01) as compared to the other three groups. Furthermore, Sudan staining and haematoxylin and eosin staining of the thoracic aorta showed that, after 30-day treatment, the high-dose demethylzeylasteral group had the smoothest intima and the lightest plaque lesions among the four groups. Based on these results, we concluded that AS is a systemic immune-mediated chronic inflammatory disease and the relatively high dose of demethylzeylasteral used in the treatment of atherosclerotic rabbits could significantly alleviate AS. This implies that demethylzeylasteral may be considered as a suitable drug for anti-immunization therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present report, we investigated changes in oxidative stress parameters, photosynthetic properties and the chloroplast ultrastructure of Taxiphyllum taxirameum during short-term Cu and Cr exposure. The results showed that treatment of Cu and Cr for 72h (100 pM concentration) significantly increased the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and lipid peroxidation, while total chlorophyll (Chi) content decreased and a decline in peroxidase (POD) activities. However, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities exposed different patters after short-term exposure to different concentrations of Cu and Cr. Changes in chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm, qP and NPQ) indicated that heavy metal treatment decreased photosystem II functions. The ultrastructural studies showed no significant ultrastructural changes at the high concentrations (100 μM) of Cu and Cr in treatment solutions. These experiments suggest that oxidative stress parameters and chlorophyll fluorescence could be used as an effective indicator in moss biomonitoring and T. taxirameum might have a potential tolerance to heavy metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current vaccines for influenza do not fully protect the aged against influenza infection. Although wolfberry (goji berry) has been shown to improve immune response, including enhanced antibody production, after vaccination in the aged, it is not known if this effect would translate to better protection after influenza infection, nor is its underlying mechanism well understood. To address these issues, we conducted a study using a 2 x 2 design in which aged male mice (20-22 mo) were fed a control or a 5%wolfberry diet for 30 d, then immunized with an influenza vaccine or saline (control) on days 31 and 52 of the dietary intervention, and finally challenged with influenza A/Puerto Rico/8/34 virus. Mice fed wolfberry had higher influenza antibody titers and improved symptoms (less postinfection weight loss) compared with the mice treated by vaccine alone. Furthermore, an in vitro mechanistic study showed that wolfberry supplementation enhanced maturation and activity of antigen-presenting dendritic cells (DCs) in aged mice, as indicated by phenotypic change in expression of DC activation markers major histocompatibility complex class II, cluster of differentiation (CD) 40, CD80, and CD86, and functional change in DC production of cytokines interleukin-12 and tumor necrosis factor-α as well as DC endocytosis. Also, adoptive transfer of wolfberry-treated bone marrow DCs (loaded with ovalbumin323-339-peptide) promoted antigen-specific T cell proliferation as well as interleukin-4 and interferon- production in CD4+ g T cells. In summary, our data indicate that dietary wolfberry enhances the efficacy of influenza vaccination, resulting in better host protection to prevent subsequent influenza infection; this effect may be partly attributed to improved DC function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both Pax1 and Pax9 belong to the important paired box gene family (PAX), which mainly participates in animal development and sclerotome differentiation. To date, the precise molecular mechanism and related signaling pathway of Pax1 remain unclear. In our study, microinjection of morpholino- (MO-) modified antisense oligonucleotides against pax1b induced pectoral fin bud defects. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the phenotypes caused by the knockdown of Pax1b in zebrafish could not be phenocopied by pax9 MO and could not be rescued by either Pax1a or Pax9 overexpression. We further find that Pax1b affects the expression of col2a1, Uncx4.1, Noggin3, and aggrecan, confirming the role of Pax1b in chondrocyte differentiation and bonematuration. Moreover, we identify an interaction between PAX1 and FOXO1 and find that the interaction was enhanced under hypoxia stress. Together, this evidence for cell death caused by pax1b knockdown provides new insight into the role of the Pax protein family in cell fate determination and tissue specification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We previously showed that dietary white button mushrooms (WBMs) enhanced natural killer cell activity and that in vitro WBM supplementation promotes maturation and function of dendritic cells (DCs). The current study investigated whether WBM consumption would enhance pathogen-specific immune response using a Salmonella vaccination and infection animal model. C57BL/6 mice were fed diets containing 0%, 2%, or 5% WBM for 4 wk before oral vaccination with live attenuated Salmonella typhimurium SL1479. Four weeks after immunization, mice were orally infected with virulent Salmonella typhimurium SL1344. Immunization increased animal survival and, among immunized mice, the 2% WBM group had a higher survival rate than the other groups. Next, we fed mice 2% WBMs to determine the immunological mechanism underlying the WBM-potentiated protective effect. We found that WBM supplementation increased Salmonella-specific blood immunoglobulin (Ig) G and fecal IgA concentrations. WBM-fed mice also had a higher IgG2a and unchanged IgG1 production, leading to an elevated IgG2a:IgG1 ratio and indicating an enhanced T helper 1 response. Consistent with these results, WBM-fed mice had higher interferon-γ, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and interleukin (IL)-17A production and unchanged IL-4 production in their splenocytes after polyclonal (anti-CD3/CD28) or antigen-specific stimulation. Furthermore, WBM-fed mice had more DCs in the spleen, and these DCs expressed higher levels of activation markers CD40 and major histocompatibility complex-II. These mice also produced more IL-12 and TNF-α postimmunization. Together, these results suggest that WBMs may improve Salmonella vaccine efficacy through an enhanced adaptive immune response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to solve the problem that the snake model isn't convergent to the concave edges of object region during image segmentation; a snake image segmentation algorithm based on the firefly algorithm is put forward in this paper. Firstly, the traditional snake model is improved by adding the centripetal force, and it has the characteristics of convergence to the concave edges of object region; Secondly, the initial contour of object is converged coarsely using the improved Snake model; Finally, the firefly algorithm which has the good ability of finding the global best value is adopted for the imprecise convergence contour to search the real edges of the object region and complete the process of image segmentation. The experimental results show that this algorithm can overcome the shortcoming that the snake model is easy to fall into local extremes and not convergent to the concave edges of object region and the accuracy of the segmentation results is also improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heavy ion dose distribution is sensitive to anatomic changes and tissue motion due to high dose concentrated on Bragg peak with high relative biological effectiveness (RBE). During treating target sites especially in lung cancer cases, breathing motion may result unintended variations in the dose distribution. Based on image registration, segmentation and pseudo-color algorithm, the work conducts a study on the calculation and visualization of the heavy dose distribution for 3D superimposed conformal irradiation and dose evaluation. Then the paper investigates the respiratory motion effects on the dosimetric redistribution on target and critical tissues during heavy ion radiotherapy. In our experiments, ten patients have been undergone routine free breathing CT scan, two additional CT scans at the end of inspiration and the end of expiration. The results have showed that clinical target volume (CTV) coverage is compromised markedly due to respiration. The paper suggests a real-time respiratory gating system and adjustable dramatic multi-leaf collimator should be adopted in lung cancer cases for heavy ion radiotherapy with small CTV-to-PTV margin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bluetongue virus (BTV) infection of ruminants is endemic throughout tropical and subtropical regions of the world. However, the molecular epidemiology of BTV infection in China has not yet been reported. In this study, the S10 gene segments from 30 BTV isolates, one attenuated BTV strain, one vaccine BTV strain, and one South Africa BTV prototype strain, were sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis of the S10 genes showed that Chinese BTV isolates could be classified into two phyletic subgroups, and the clustering of Chinese BTV viruses was dependent on their geographical origin and the number of generations for which they had been propagated, rather than their host species or year of isolation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Thelper/Treg imbalance was identified in uremic patients and was associated with the development of acute cardiovascular events, myocardial injury, and micro-inflammation. Aim: Adverse cardiovascular events resulting from accelerated atherosclerosis are the leading cause of mortality in uraemic patients on maintenance haemodialysis (MHD). Chronic inflammation due to antigen-specific responses is an important factor in the acceleration of atherosclerosis. The balance between CD4+ CD25+ forkhead/winged helix transcription factor (Foxp3)+ regulatory T cells (Treg) and T helper (Th)17 cells has been reported to play an important role in the development of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. The aim of the present study was to assess the Treg/Th17 pattern in uraemic patients on MHD and to explore the significance of Treg/Th17 imbalance in the development and outcome of acute cardiovascular events. Methods: A total of 42 uraemic patients on MHD were evaluated. Of the 42, 22 patients with a history of acute cardiovascular events served as the MHD1 group and 20 patients without acute cardiovascular events served as the MHD2 group. Thirty patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) without acute cardiovascular events just before haemodialysis therapy served as the CKD control group and 30 healthy volunteers as the normal control group. The Treg and Th17 frequencies were measured by flow cytometry. The retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptor γt (RORγt) and Foxp3 expressions were measured by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Serum cytokines and C-reactive protein were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunoturbidimetry. Results: Patients with uraemia exhibited an obvious imbalance of Treg/Th17 function when compared to the normal control group, displaying increased peripheral Th17 frequency, Th17-related cytokines (interleukin [IL]-17, IL-6 and IL-23) and RORγt mRNA levels. These patients also displayed decreased Treg frequency, Treg-related cytokines (IL-10, transforming growth factor-β1) and Foxp3 mRNA levels. This imbalance was more pronounced in the MHD2 group, while there was no significant difference between the MHD1 and CKD control group ( P < 0.01 between normal control and uraemic patients; P > 0.05 between CKD control and MHD1; and P < 0.05 between MHD1 and MHD2). It was also observed that the imbalance of Treg/Th17 was not only consistent with the cardiovascular disease but also correlated with a microinflammatory state. Conclusion: The Treg/Th17 balance was disturbed by uraemia, especially in patients with adverse cardiovascular events. This Th17/Treg imbalance might act synergistically with microinflammation on immune-mediated atherosclerosis and contribute to the high incidence of adverse cardiovascular events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Naturally occurring CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Treg) exert an important role in mediating maternal tolerance to the fetus during pregnancy, and this effect might be regulated via maternal estrogen secretion. Although estrogen concentration in the pharmaceutical range has been shown to drive expansion of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells, little is known about how and through what mechanisms E2 within the physiological concentration range of pregnancy affects this expansion. Using in vivo and in vitro mouse models in these experiments, we observed that E2 at physiological doses not only expanded Treg cell in different tissues but also increased expression of the Foxp3 gene, a hallmark for CD4+CD25+ Treg cell function, and the IL-10 gene as well. Importantly, our results demonstrate that E2, at physiological doses, stimulated the conversion of CD4+CD25- T cells into CD4+CD25+ T cells which exhibited enhanced Foxp3 and IL-10 expression in vitro. Such converted CD4+CD25+ T cells had similar regulatory function as naturally occurring Treg cells, as demonstrated by their ability to suppress naïve T cell proliferation in a mixed lymphocyte reaction. We also found that the estrogen receptor (ER) exist in the CD4+CD25- T cells and the conversion of CD4+CD25- T cells into CD4+CD25+ T cells stimulated by E2 could be inhibited by ICI182,780, a specific inhibitor of ER(s). This supports that E2 may directly act on CD4+CD25- T cells via ER(s). We conclude that E2 is a potential physiological regulatory factor for the peripheral development of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells during the implantation period in mice. J. Cell. Physiol. 214: 456–464, 2008. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Streptococcus pneumoniae infections are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in older patients. Uncontrolled neutrophildriven pulmonary inflammation exacerbates this disease. To test whether the a-tocopherol (a-Toc) form of vitamin E, a regulator of immunity, can modulate neutrophil responses as a preventive strategy to mitigate the age-associated decline in resistance to S. pneumoniae, young (4 mo) and old (22-24 mo) C57BL/6 mice were fed a diet containing 30-PPM (control) or 500-PPM (supplemented) a-Toc for 4 wk and intratraeheally infected with S. pneumoniae. Aged mice fed a control diet were exquisitely more susceptible to S. pneumoniae than young mice. At 2 d postinfection, aged mice suffered 1000-fold higher pulmonary bacterial burden, 2.2-fold higher levels of neutrophil recruitment to the lung, and a 2.25-fold higher rate of lethal septicemia. Strikingly, a-Toc supplementation of aged mice resulted in a 1000-fold lower bacterial lung burden and full control of infection. This a-Tocinduced resistance to pneumococcal challenge was associated with a 2-fold fewer pulmonary neutrophils, a level comparable to S. pneumoniae-challenged, conventionally fed young mice. a-Toc directly inhibited neutrophil egress across epithelial cell monolayers in vitro in response to pneumococci or hepoxilin-A3, an eicosanoid required for pneumococcus-elicited neutrophil transepithelial migration. a-Toc altered expression of multiple epithelial and neutrophil adhesion molecules involved in migration, including CD55, CD47, CD18/CDllb, and 1CAM-1. These findings suggest that a-Toc enhances resistance of aged mice to bacterial pneumonia by modulating the innate immune response, a finding that has potential clinical significance in combating infection in aged individuals through nutritional intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]