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Quantitative structure-activity relationship analysis for recently synthesized aryl alkanol piperazine derivatives was studied for their antidepressant activities. The statistically significant 2D-QSAR models (r(2)>0.924, r(-CV)(2)>0.870, r(-pred)(2)>0.890) were developed using genetic function approximation (GFA) when the number of descriptors in equation was set to four, indicating the descriptors of Atype_C_6, Dipole-mag, S_sssCH and Jurs-PNSA-3 mainly influence the 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) reuptake inhibition activity while the descriptors of HOMO, PMI-mag, S_sssN and Shadow-XZ may chiefly control the noradrenaline (NA) reuptake inhibition activity. The results of the 2D-QSAR models were further compared with 3D-QSAR models generated by molecular field analysis (MFA), investigating the substitutional requirements for the favorable receptor-drug interaction and providing useful information in the characterization and differentiation of their binding sites. The results derived may be useful in further designing novel antidepressants prior to synthesis.

Uptake of apoptotic cells by antigen-presenting cells (APC) may be involved in tolerance maintenance with an immunoregulatory role. The aim of this study was to evaluate the consequences of preoperative transfusion of donor apoptotic lymphocytes on survival of orthotopic liver transplantations (OLT). OLT was performed between Lewis (donor) and Brown Norway (BN recipient) inbred rats using a double-cuff technique. Apoptotic splenic lymphocytes induced by ultraviolet-C (UVC) irradiation were infused intravenously at 7 days before OLT. Changes in regulatory T cells in blood were determined using flow cytometry. UVC irradiated lymphocytes were sensitive and effective, as evidenced by increased peripheral blood CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells compared with recipients that received infusion of untreated donor lymphocytes or a control. Apoptotic lymphocyte transfusion prolonged hepatic allograft survival, with significantly lower histological stages of inflammation and cellular infiltration than in untreated allografts. Our results demonstrated that donor apoptotic cells promoted allograft acceptance and up-regulated CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells (Treg) in blood.

Objective: To investigate whether there is an association between the expression of B7-H1 in HBV transgenic mice and the immune tolerance to HBV., Methods: T cells stimulatory capacity of DC was analyzed using mixed lymphocyte reaction. Expression of MHC-II, CD80, CD86, B7-H1 on DC was detected by Flow Cytometry. IL-2, IFNgamma, IL-10 production of T cells were determined by using ELISA. B7-H1 mRNA and protein expression in liver tissue were detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting respectively., Results: The ability of DC cells from HBV transgenic mice to stimulate T cell proliferation was significantly impaired compared with DC cells from control mice (t = 16.674, 19.674, 21.712, P less than 0.01). Expression of MHC-II, CD80 on DC was markedly decreased in transgenic mice (t = 7.910, 6.413, P less than 0.05). Meanwhile, the expression of CD86 and B7-H1 on DC cells in HBV transgenic mice were not significantly different from that in control mice. The levels of IL-2, IFNgamma, IL-10 in supernatant of T cells was significantly lower compared with controls (t = 18.712, 18.712 and 11.683, P less than 0.05). There was no significant difference in B7-H1 expression at mRNA and protein levels in liver tissue compared with controls., Conclusions: Functional defect of DC, partly due to decreased expression of MHC-II, CD80, but not related to B7-H1 expression, is the cause for immune tolerance to HBV in HBV transgenic mice.

Background: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), an important regulator of angiogenesis and vascular permeability, is involved in various steps of many malignancies. Gene polymorphisms within the gene encoding VEGF have been shown to be independently associated with an adverse outcome in various malignancies including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with resection. However, no data are available for HCC treated with liver transplantation (LT). Therefore, we investigated association of VEGF genomic polymorphisms with risk for developing HCC and tumor recurrence after LT., Methods: Seven polymorphisms in the VEGF gene (rs699947, rs1570360, rs2010963, rs3024997, rs3025010, rs3025035, rs3025039) were examined in 93 HCC patients treated with LT and 99 controls using Applied Biosystems SNaP-Shot and TaqMan technology. Cox proportional hazard model was used to estimate the hazard ratios associated with polymorphisms., Results: The association between rs3025035 and recurrence was significant (p=0.003). However, no other SNP in VEGF was associated with recurrence. Interestingly, we found that patients with rs3025035 CT heterozygous was independently associated with a shortened recurrence-free survival (odds ratio: 3.3; 95% confidence interval: 1.8-6.0; p<0.001)., Conclusions: Our data suggest that polymorphism rs3025035 in the VEGF gene may be a potential genetic marker for HCC recurrence in LT patients., (2009 IMSS. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Objective: To explore the feasible age limits in Chinese elderly patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL)., Methods: The clinical data of 507 patients with NHL who were admitted to Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) from January 1990 to December 2007 were retrospectively analyzed. They were further followed up by reviewing medical records or by phone. The deadline of follow-up was October 2008., Results: The 5-year/8-year overall survival (OS) rates were 64.6%/45.7%, 53.0%/ 44.1%, 32.8%/17.5%, 40.0%/22.8%, and 19.8%/0, respectively, in patients aged < 60 years, 60-64 years, 65-69 years, 70-74 years, and > or = 75 years. The OS rate was significantly different between patients aged > or = 75 years and other age groups, and between patients aged 65-70 years and patients younger than 60 years (P < 0.05). Only age, serum albumin, and hemoglobin affected the survival status in elderly NHL patients., Conclusion: Sixty-five years can be regarded as the age limit in Chinese NHL patients.

We have developed a convenient strategy for preparing color-tunable fluorescent-magnetic core/shell multifunctional nanocrystals, which exhibit excellent photoluminescence (PL) properties (fluorescing tunably from 550 nm to 630 nm by modifying the shell thickness) and ferromagnetic material properties (a magnetization of 4.4 emu g(-1) and a coercivity of 95 Oe).

The feasibility of a microcolumn electrophoresis technique was investigated with a 100mm length, 2mm I.D. fused-silica microcolumn packed with uniform quartz microncrystals prepared by hydrothermal synthesis. To evaluate the separation technique, tryptophan, phenylalanine and tyrosine were primarily separated by the microcolumn electrophoresis and detected at 216 nm without derivatization by an ordinary spectrophotometer. The separation conditions of the amino acids were optimized. With 1.5 mmol/L disodium phosphate buffer solution (pH 11.5) containing 25% (v/v) methanol and 10% (v/v) acetonitrile, the three amino acids were separated and the separation efficiency of tryptophan was 4.5x10(4)plates/m. The limits of detection were 0.035, 0.22 and 0.20 micromol/L, respectively. The sample capacity of the electrophoretic microcolumn achieved 35 microL. The proposed method was used to determine these amino acids in compound amino acid injection samples without derivatization. For the simplicity and portability of the microcolumn electrophoresis, it is studied as one of the high-performance separation techniques for an in situ and real-time electrokinetic flow analysis system. For its high detection sensitivity and large sample capacity, it can be developed for preparative electrophoresis.

Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) has been gradually introduced into clinical liver transplantation in recent years. However, the effects of MMF on hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury and the potential mechanisms involved are not totally understood. We aimed to evaluate whether MMF could attenuate hepatic I/R injury. MMF (20 mg/kg) or vehicle was administered to Wistar rats by gavage. The rats were then subjected to hepatic ischemia. Liver cell apoptosis and the levels of aspartate aminotransferase, myeloperoxidase (MPO), xanthine oxidase (XOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were determined. Expression of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) were also investigated. Furthermore, the hepatic microcirculation was observed by intravital fluorescence microscopy. Rats pretreated with MMF exhibited significant alleviation of their postischemic liver function. Liver cell apoptosis and the tissue MPO, XOD and MDA levels were decreased by MMF pretreatment. MMF also improved I/R-induced hemodynamic turbulence, as evidenced by reduced hepatic perfusion failure and decreased numbers of rolling and adherent leukocytes. I/R injury induced activation of the MAPKs pathway while expression of VCAM-1 was downregulated by MMF pretreatment. In summary, MMF attenuates hepatic I/R injury through suppression of the production of reactive oxygen species and amelioration of postischemic microcirculatory disturbances.

Jasmonates and related compounds, including amino acid conjugates of jasmonic acid, have regulatory functions in the signaling pathway for plant developmental processes and responses to the complex equilibrium of biotic and abiotic stress. But the molecular details of the signaling mechanism are still poorly understood. Statistically significant quantitative structure-property relationship models (r(2) > 0.990) constructed by genetic function approximation and molecular field analysis were generated for the purpose of deriving structural requirements for lipophilicity of amino acid conjugates of jasmonic acid. The best models derived in the present study provide some valuable academic information in terms of the 2/3D-descriptors influencing the lipophilicity, which may contribute to further understanding the mechanism of exogenous application of jasmonates in their signaling pathway and designing novel analogs of jasmonic acid as ecological pesticides.

A wall-free detection method based on liquid junction in a capillary gap was proposed for laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) of capillary electrophoresis (CE). The capillary gap of the wall-free cell was fabricated by etching a 10-mm x 50-microm I.D. fused-silica capillary to obtain a polyimide coating sleeve, decoating about 6mm at one end of both 50 microm I.D. separation and liquid junction capillary, inserting the treated capillary ends into the coating sleeve oppositely, fixing the capillaries with a gap distance of 140 microm by epoxy glue and removing the coating sleeve by burning. The theoretical model, experimental results and wall-free cell images indicated that the gap distance and applied voltage were main influence factors on the wall-free detection. Since the wall-free cell increased the absorption light path and avoided the stray light from the capillary wall, it improved the ratio of signal to noise and limit of detection (LOD) of CE-LIF. Three flavin compounds of riboflavin (RF), flavin mononucleotide sodium (FMN) and flavin adenine dinucleotide disodium (FAD) were used to evaluate the wall-free detection method. Compared with on-column cell, the LODs of the wall-free cell were improved 15-, 6- and 9-fold for RF, FMN and FAD, respectively. The linear calibration concentrations of the flavins ranged from 0.005 to 5.0 micromol/L. The column efficiency was in the range from 1.0 x 10(5) to 2.5 x 10(5) plates. The wall-free detection of CE-LIF was applied to the analysis of the flavins in spinach and lettuce leaves.

In the mol-ecule of the title compound, C(14)H(8)Cl(2)N(4)S, all the ring atoms in the pyrazolopyrimidine system are almost coplanar, the largest deviation from the mean plane being 0.027 (2) Å for a C atom. The conformation of the methyl-sulfanyl group is anti-periplanar, with a torsion angle of -176.7 (2)°. A weak inter-molecular C-H⋯N hydrogen bond and a Cl⋯N halogen bond [Cl⋯N = 3.196 (5) Å] with a nearly linear N⋯Cl-C angle [174.2 (1)°] link the mol-ecules into a two-dimensional assembly. Face-to-face π-π stacking, with a centroid-centroid separation of 3.557 (2) Å and an angle of 7.1 (1)° between the two planes, completes the inter-molecular inter-actions in the solid state.

A simple and efficient dual preconcentration method of on-column liquid-liquid-liquid microextraction (LLLME) coupled with base stacking was developed for capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) in this paper. Four N-methyl carbamates were used as target compounds to evaluate the enrichment means. The carbamates in sample solutions (donor phase) were extracted into a dodecanol phase immobilized on a porous hollow fiber, hydrolyzed and back extracted into 0.20 microL running buffer (acceptor phase) of 30 mmol/L methylamine hydrochloride (pH 11.6) containing 0.5 mmol/L tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide inside the hollow fiber, stacked further with 0.5 mol/L NaOH injected at -10 kV for 60s, and separated by CZE. Analytical parameters affecting the LLLME, base stacking and CZE were investigated, including sample solution volume, pH and temperature, extraction time, stirring rate, buffer component, buffer pH, NaOH concentration, stacking time, etc. The enrichment factors of the carbamates were higher than 1100. The relative standard deviation (RSD) of peak height and limits of detection (LODs) were 4.5-5.5% (n=6) and 2-4 ng/mL (S/N=3) for standard solutions, respectively. The proposed method was applied to the analysis of vegetable and fruit samples with the RSD less than 6.0% (n=3) and LODs of 6-10 ng/g (S/N=3). The calibration solutions were prepared by diluting the stock solutions with blank sample solutions, and the calibration concentrations ranged from 0.012 to 1.0 microg/mL (r>0.9951). The analytical results demonstrated that the LLLME coupled with base stacking was a simple, convenient and reliable on-column sample pretreatment method for the analysis of anionic analytes in CZE.

Objective: To study the association of integrin alpha-2 (ITGA2) gene C807T, integrin beta-3 (ITGB3) gene T176C polymorphisms with ischemic stroke and the effect of the polymorphisms on plasma lipid and lipoprotein levels., Methods: Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and DNA sequencing were used to detect the integrin genotypes in 265 patients with ischemic stroke and 280 healthy controls. The plasma lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured by routine method., Results: Plasma total cholesterol (TC), triacylglycerol (TG) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) in the patients with ischemic stroke were significantly higher than those in the controls (P< 0.05). The distributions of the ITGB3 gene T176C polymorphism were not different between the ischemic stroke group and control group, but the ITGA2 gene C807T polymorphism was significantly different. The relative risk suffering from ischemic stroke of the T allele carrier was 1.455 times as that of the C allele carrier (OR=1.455, 95%CI: 1.134-1.866). The level of plasma lipid in the T allele carriers was significantly higher than that in the C allele carriers (P< 0.05)., Conclusion: The ITGA2 gene C807T polymorphism was associated with ischemic stroke, the 807 T allele may be a genetic risk factor for ischemic stroke. The ITGA2 gene C807T polymorphism may affect ischemic stroke through plasma lipid and lipoprotein levels.

Inflammation, characterized by the recruitment and adhesion of circulating leukocytes by cellular adhesion molecules, plays an important role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Genetic analyses of platelet-endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (PECAM-1), a key adhesion molecule in the progression of atherosclerosis, have provided conflicting results regarding the role of variation within the PECAM-1 gene and risk for coronary heart disease. No studies have examined the association of this polymorphism with ischemic stroke. Therefore, we investigated that PECAM-1 gene polymorphism and its soluble level are associated with ischemic stroke in Chinese population. We analyzed single-nucleotide polymorphisms of PECAM-1 gene Leu125Val, Asn563Ser, and Gly670Arg in 265 patients with ischemic stroke and 280 age- and sex-matched controls, using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism and DNA sequencing method, while soluble PECAM-1 (sPECAM-1) levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. There were significant differences in the genotype and allele frequencies of PECAM-1 gene Leu125Val polymorphism between the group of patients with ischemic stroke and the control group (p < 0.05). sPECAM-1 levels were increased in patients with ischemic stroke compared with controls (p < 0.01). Moreover, genotypes carrying the PECAM-1 125Val variant allele were associated with increased PECAM-1 levels compared to the homozygous wild-type genotype in patients with ischemic stroke. The Leu125Val polymorphism of PECAM-1 and its sPECAM-1 levels are associated with ischemic stroke in Chinese population. Our data suggest that the PECAM-1 gene may play a role in the development of ischemic stroke.

Background: The discrepancy between available livers and requests for transplantation has forced many centers to use marginal donors in order to expand the donor pool. Many previous studies have demonstrated controversial results of the application of steatotic liver grafts. The aim of the present study was to summarize our experience and evaluate the value of steatotic liver grafts., Methods: The clinical and follow-up data of 24 adult patients receiving moderately steatotic liver grafts (30%-60%) from May 2003 to June 2005 (group 1) were analyzed. After matching for age, gender, model for end-stage liver diseases score and cold ischemia time, another 24 patients receiving liver grafts with steatosis less than 30% were chosen as the control group (group 2). The patient and graft outcomes were compared between the two groups., Results: No difference of liver and kidney functions in the first post-transplant week was found between the two groups (P>0.05). Neither the incidence of early allograft dysfunction and acute kidney injury nor the patient survival rates (3 months, 6 months and 1 year) showed differences between groups 1 and 2 (P>0.05)., Conclusion: Moderately steatotic liver grafts provide adequate function in the first phase after transplantation and can be used for transplantation.

Background: Urinary trypsin inhibitor (UTI) inhibits the inflammatory response and protects against ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. The inflammatory response is mediated by nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappaB) and its related target genes and products such as vascular endothelial cell adhesion molecule and CXC chemokines. We aimed to assess the roles of those mediators in a UTI-treated mouse model of hepatic I/R injury., Methods: Treatment group 1 (UTI given 5 minutes prior to liver ischemia), treatment group 2 (UTI given 5 minutes after the anhepatic phase) and a control group were investigated. Blood and liver samples were obtained and compared at 1, 3, 6 and 24 hours after reperfusion., Results: Attenuation of pathological hepatocellular damage was greater in the treatment groups than in the control group (P<0.05). Compared with the control group, the UTI treatment groups showed significantly lower serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels, decreased myeloperoxidase activity, and reduced NF-kappaB activation. Also downregulated was the expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant, and macrophage inflammatory protein-2 at the mRNA level. P-selectin protein and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 protein expression were also downregulated. In addition, the treatment group 1 showed a better protective effect against I/R injury than the treatment group 2., Conclusions: UTI reduces NF-kappaB activation and downregulates the expression of its related mediators, followed by the inhibition of neutrophil aggregation and infiltration in hepatic I/R injury. The protective role of UTI is more effective in prevention than in treatment.

An analytical method for kanamycin A, amikacin and tobramycin of aminoglycoside (AG) antibiotics in milk samples was proposed using capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) with post-column derivatization and laser-induced fluorescence detection. A simple and convenient homemade coaxial-gap reactor was adopted in the post-column derivatization of the AGs with 1.0 mmol/L naphthalene-2,3-dicarboxaldehyde and 8.0 mmol/L 2-mercaptoethanol in 35 mmol/L sodium tetraborate buffer (pH 10.0) of 30% (v/v) methanol. 50 mmol/L sodium acetate (pH 5.0) containing 0.5 mmol/L cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide was used as the separation buffer. The linear calibration concentrations and detection limits were from 2.1 x 10(-5) to 5.0 x 10(-2)g/L and in the range of 7 x 10(-6) to 2 x 10(-5)g/L, respectively. The recoveries of the AGs in milk samples were from 81.6 to 93.1% (n=3).

We aimed to assess the effects of traditional Chinese medicine; marine (MT) and kuhuang (KH), either alone or in combination, on the early graft function of the recipients and overall patient survival rate after liver transplantation (LT) by using diammonium glycyrrhizinate (DG) as a positive control. A total of 151 subjects undergoing LT were included in this prospective study. According to the different regimens given in the first two post-transplant weeks, they were divided into DG group (n = 49), DG + KH group (n = 36), MT group (n = 42) and MT + KH group (n = 24). The graft function in the early post-transplant period and patient survival rate were examined. During the first two post-transplant weeks, there was no significant difference in total bilirubin, alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, serum creatinine, and prothrombin time between MT group and DG group. Patient survivals in these two groups were also similar. Compared to DG group, DG + KH group showed a significantly lower total bilirubin value on post-transplant day 5 (3.2 +/- 2.1 mg/dL vs. 5.7 +/- 5.6 mg/dL, p < 0.01) and day 7 (2.8 +/- 1.8 mg/dL vs. 5.8 +/- 6.1 mg/dL, p < 0.01), and higher patient survival. There was no significant difference between DG + KH group and MT + KH group. In conclusion, MT provides an alternative to DG after LT. The combination of MT and KH is highly effective in decreasing the total blirubin in the early post-transplant period and improving patient survival.

Nanomaterial-based nanobiosensors (nanobiodevices or nanobioprobes) are increasingly emphasized. Here, quantum dots and gamma-Fe(2)O(3) magnetic nanoparticles were co-embedded into single swelling poly(styrene/acrylamide) copolymer nanospheres to fabricate fluorescent-magnetic bifunctional nanospheres. Subsequently, fluorescent-magnetic-biotargeting trifunctional nanobiosensors (TFNS) modified with wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), peanut agglutinin (PNA) or Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA) were conveniently produced so as to bind with A549 cells which are surface-expressed with N-acetylglucosamine, d-galactosamine and N-acetylgalactosamine residues. The values of WGA, PNA and DBA on each nanobiosensor were calculated to be 40, 14 and 60, respectively. These three kinds of lectin-modified trifunctional nanobiosensors (lectin-TFNS) can be used for qualitative and quantitative analysis of the glycoconjugates on A549 cell surface. The fluorescence intensity of WGA-modified nanobiosensors related to N-acetylglucosamine on A549 cell surface was much higher than that of PNA-modified nanobiosensors corresponding to d-galactosamine and that of N-acetylgalactosamine-related DBA-modified nanobiosensors, which is consistent with the results detected by flow cytometry. Lectin-modified trifunctional nanobiosensors not only can quantify the different glycoconjugates on A549 cell surface, but also can recognize and isolate A549 cells. 0.5mg of WGA-modified fluorescent-magnetic trifunctional nanobiosensors could capture 7.0 x 10(4) A549 cells. Therefore, the lectin-modified trifunctional nanobiosensors may be applied in mapping the glycoconjugates on cell surfaces and for recognition and isolation of targeted cells.

Background: Recent studies show that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have immunomodulatory properties. They suppress the immune response to alloantigen and modify the proliferation of T cells. CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells have strong immunomodulatory potential. However, little is known about the effects of rat MSCs (rMSCs) on the development of regulatory T cells., Methods: MSCs were obtained from bone marrow of male Sprague-Dawley rats, and co-cultured with CD3+ T cells from allogeneic spleen cells. The proportion of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells was analyzed by flow cytometry. To further confirm the immunosuppressive activity of rMSCs, we used MTT assay and flow cytometry of CD3+ T cells to investigate the proliferative responses of CD3+ T cells to mitogenic stimuli. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed to detect alterations of the cytokines TNF-alpha, TGF-beta and IL-10., Results: The proliferation of CD3+ T cells decreased when co-cultured with rMSCs, and the degree of inhibition was concentration-dependent. The percentage of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells increased when CD3+ T cells were co-cultured with different concentrations of rMSCs. The levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-alpha) decreased while anti-inflammatory (TGF-beta, IL-10) cytokines increased in mixed lymphocyte reaction., Conclusions: rMSCs inhibit allogeneic T cell proliferation in mixed cell cultures. This immunosuppressive effect seems to be mediated by inducing the generation of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells and soluble factors.

Background: Transcriptional regulation of the putative tumor suppressor gene X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein-associated factor 1 (XAF1) by promoter methylation has been related to tumor progression in gastric and bladder cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate the methylation status and expression level of XAF1 in human hepatitis B virus (HBV)-associated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated with liver transplantation (LT), and to evaluate potential predictive value for tumor recurrence., Methods: The expression level and methylation status of XAF1 in three liver cancer cell lines (SMMC-7721, HepG2, and Hep3B) and 65 cases of HBV-associated HCC following LT were analyzed by RT-PCR (RT, reverse-transcriptase), immunohistochemistry, and methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR)., Results: XAF1 transcripts were not observed or present at low levels in liver cancer cell lines and were restored by treatment with demethylating agent 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza-dC). In vivo, methylation status was associated with protein level of XAF1 (P < 0.001) and serum level of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) (P = 0.009). The expression pattern of XAF1 was associated with portal vein tumor thrombi (PVTT), preoperative AFP level, tumor size, and recurrence. Multivariate analysis revealed that expression level of XAF1 was an independent factor for predicting recurrence-free survival [hazard ratio 0.237, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.095-0.592, P = 0.002]. However, no significant association was found between methylation status and the risk of tumor recurrence., Conclusion: Promoter hypermethylation is a critical, but not the sole, mechanism for gene silencing of XAF1 in HCC. Protein level of XAF1 may serve as a potential biomarker for tumor recurrence after LT.

Background: Liver transplantation is an effective treatment for end-stage liver disease, but a huge gap remains between the number of people who need a liver transplant and the number of organs available. In order to maximize donor organ access for adult and pediatric recipients, novel surgical and liver replacement procedures have evolved. Newer surgical techniques include split cadaveric liver transplantation and living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). With marginal and abnormal donor livers, despite tremendous advances in surgical technology, individual surgical procedure can not be completely brought into play unless effective measurements and basal studies are undertaken., Data Sources: A literature search of MEDLINE and the Web of Science database using "liver transplantation" and "expanding donor pool" was conducted and research articles were reviewed., Results: Therapies directed toward scavenging O2-, inhibiting nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase, and/or immuno-neutralizing tumor necrosis factor-alpha may prove useful in limiting the liver injury induced by surgical procedures such as split liver transplantation or LDLT. Improved donor organ perfusion and preservation methods, modulation of inflammatory cytokines, energy status enhancement, microcirculation amelioration, and antioxidant usage can improve non-heart beating donor liver transplantation. Effective measures have been taken to improve the local conditions of donor cells with steatosis, including usage of fat-derived hormone and inflammatory mediators, ischemic preconditioning, depletion of Kupffer cells, and cytokine antibody and gene therapy. Double-filtration plasmapheresis can effectively reduce HCV viremia and prevent HCV recurrence in patient with high HCV RNA levels after LDLT., Conclusions: Shortage of grafts and poor function of marginal and abnormal donor grafts put many patients at risk of death in waiting for liver transplantation. Advances in surgical technology, combined with improvement and breakthroughs in basic studies hold a promise in expanding the liver donor pool.

Aim: To study the expression of human insulin gene wrapped with chitosan nanoparticles in NIH3T3 cells and diabetic rats., Methods: pCMV.Ins, an expression plasmid of the human insulin gene, was constructed. In total, 100 microg pCMV.Ins wrapped with chitosan nanoparticles (chitosan-pCMV.Ins) was transfected to NIH3T3 cells and diabetes rats through lavage and coloclysis, respectively. The transfected cells were grown in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium, containing G418, for 72 h after transfection. The clones were selected and continued to grow in G418 medium for 24 d. The expression of human insulin was detected by immunohistochemistry. Human insulin in the culture medium of transfected cells was measured. Fasting blood glucose and plasma human insulin of diabetic rats were measured for 5 d after transfection. RT-PCR and Western blotting were performed to confirm the expression of the human insulin gene in diabetic rats., Results: Approximately 10% of NIH3T3 cells transfected by chitosan-pCMV.Ins expressed human insulin. Human insulin in the culture medium of NIH3T3 cells transfected by chitosan-pCMV.Ins significantly increased compared with that of the control group (P<0.01). Fasting blood glucose levels of the lavage group and the coloclysis group decreased significantly in 5 d (P<0.01) in comparison, while plasma insulin levels were much higher (P<0.01). The human insulin gene mRNA and human insulin were only detected in the lavage and the coloclysis groups., Conclusion: The human insulin gene can be transfected and expressed successfully by chitosan- pCMV.Ins in NIH3T3 cells and diabetes rats, which indicates that chitosan is a promising, non-viral vector for gene expression.

Predictive quantitative structure-activity relationship analysis was developed for a diverse series of recently synthesized 1-aryl-tetrahydroisoquinoline analogs with anti-HIV activities in this study. The conventional 2D-QSAR models were developed by genetic function approximation (GFA) and stepwise multiple linear regression (MLR) with acceptable explanation of 94.9% and 95.5% and good predicted power of 91.7% and 91.7%, respectively. The results of the 2D-QSAR models were further compared with 3D-QSAR model generated by molecular field analysis (MFA), investigating the substitutional requirements for the favorable receptor-drug interaction and quantitatively indicating the important regions of molecules for their activities. The results obtained by combining these methodologies give insights into the key features for designing more potent analogs against HIV.

With the eigenfunctional theory, we study a general interacting electron system, and give a rigorous expression of its ground state energy, which is composed of two parts: one part is contributed by the non-interacting electrons, and the other one is represented by the correlation functions that are controlled by the electron correlation. Moreover, according to the rigorous expression of the ground state energy, an effective scheme beyond the local density approximation of the density functional theory is proposed. As a simple example for a spin-1/2 XXZ chain, under the linear approximation in solving the equation of the phase field, the ground state energy obtained by the present scheme is quite close to that of the Bethe ansatz.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential efficacy of therapy with thymosin alpha(1) and ulinastatin for patients with sepsis due to carbapenem-resistant bacteria., Design: Prospective, randomized, parallel controlled clinical study., Methods: A total of 120 patients received a diagnosis of sepsis caused by infection with carbapenem-resistant bacteria and satisfied the study enrollment criteria. Sixty patients received carbapenems combined with thymosin alpha(1) and ulinastatin (the CTU group), and the other 60 patients were treated with carbapenems and placebo (the CP group). For both groups, flow cytometry was used to enumerate lymphocyte subsets, and ELISA was used to determine cytokine concentrations., Results: When the 2 groups were compared, the CTU group exhibited a better performance with respect to organ failure scores such as the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, the Multiple Organ Failure Score, and the Glasgow Coma Scale. The CTU group also showed significant improvements in CD4(+)CD8(+) count after initiation of treatment. In addition, compared with the CP group, in the CTU group the balance between proinflammatory mediators (such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin [IL]-1beta, IL-6, and IL-8) and anti-inflammatory cytokines (including IL-4 and IL-10) was better modulated, and the cumulative survival rate of the CTU group exceeded that of the CP group by 17.8% at day 28, 25.9% at day 60, and 27.4% at day 90., Conclusion: Immunomodulatory therapy that combines thymosin alpha(1) and ulinastatin appears to improve the survival rate for patients infected with carbapenem-resistant bacteria. The number of patients in this study was relatively small, and although the same number of patients was initially enrolled in each study group, the groups were not the same size at the end of the study. Therefore, a larger clinical trial should be conducted to validate this conclusion., Trial Registration: The trial was registered with the Chinese State Food and Drug Administration (Peking Science and Technology Development Plan, 2002[641]), (registration number 2007Y0211).

Background and Aim: Recent investigations demonstrate that adult stem cells may be targets for malignant transformation and that the stem-like cells in diseased livers possess the capacity of tumorigenicity in animal models. The aim of this study is to examine expression patterns of stem-cell markers in hepatitis B virus-associated cirrhotic livers and hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC), and to investigate the stem-like cell capacity of tumorigenicity in these tissues., Methods: Twenty surgically resected HCCs and corresponding adjacent tissues as well as 10 cirrhotic liver tissues were collected and immunohistochemical staining were performed to detect the expression of CD34, Thy-1, CD133, and c-kit. Then the non-cancerous tissues were transplanted into immunodeficient mice and the characteristics of the cells from primary tissue cultures were explored in vitro., Results: Immunohistochemical analysis characterized different expression patterns of stem-cell markers among these tissues. First, CD34 and Thy-1 expression was identified in proliferating bile ductules and it represented hepatic progenitor cells; CD133 and c-kit-positive cells were observed in the parenchyma of these tissues, and some of them were characterized as intermediate hepatocytes morphologically and spatially. Second, in two groups including three mice transplanted with tissues adjacent to HCC-initiated tumors, CD133 and c-kit expression was detected. Finally, our study also indicated that stem-like cells from tissue could express hepatic-lineage markers and possessed great capacities to proliferate, self-renew, and form clones in vitro., Conclusion: Our results suggest that the stem-like cells in cirrhotic livers possess the capacity of tumorigenicity and may contain candidates for HCC cancer stem cells.

An electrokinetic flow analysis system (EFA), consisting of one electroosmotic pump, five solenoid valves and one on-line homemade solid phase extraction (SPE) unit, combined with capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) was proposed to determine benzoic acid and sorbic acid in food products. Tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) was adopted as an ion pair reagent to improve the retention of the preservatives on C(8)-bonded silica sorbent, which was also used to remove sample matrices. By using the SPE unit, the EFA-SPE-CZE system was able to perform the SPE operation and CZE separation simultaneously. With a modified interface of EFA and CZE, the buffer consumption was reduced to 130 microL for each running. The preservatives were separated and determined under optimized conditions with p-hydroxybenzoic acid as an internal standard. The relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) of peak area for each analyte was less than 3.1% (n=5) and the limits of detection (LODs) ranged from 10 to 20 ngmL(-1) (K=3, n=11).

Two new techniques, aptamer-based specific recognition and quantum dot (QD)-based fluorescence labeling, are becoming increasingly important in biosensing. In this study, these two techniques have been coupled together to construct a new kind of fluorescent QD-labeled aptamer (QD-Apt) nanoprobe by conjugating GBI-10 aptamer to the QD surface. GBI-10 is a single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) aptamer for tenascin-C, which distributes on the surface of glioma cells as a dominant extracellular matrix protein. The QD-Apt nanoprobe can recognize the tenascin-C on the human glioma cell surface, which will be helpful for the development of new convenient and sensitive in vitro diagnostic assays for glioma. The QD-Apt nanoprobe has particular features such as strong fluorescence, stability, monodispersity and uniformity. In addition, this probe preparation method is universal, so it is expected to provide a new type of stable nanoprobe for high-throughput and fast biosensing detection and bioimaging. New methods for real-time and dynamic tracking and imaging can be accordingly developed.

Objective: To investigate the effect of Cedemex on cAMP and cGMP contents in different brain regions in morphine withdrawal rats precipitated by naloxone., Method: A physical morphine dependent model of rats was established by subcutaneous injection of morphine in gradually increasing dosage within 7 days. cAMP and cGMP contents of VTA, cortex and hippocampus of the rat brains were determined by radioimmunoassay., Result: The morphine withdrawal symptoms of rats were relieved significantly by ig Cedemex. Compared with the controls, cAMP content in the region of VTA, cortex and hippocampus of the morphine dependent rats were significantly higher (P < 0.05), while cGMP contents in those regions were significantly lower (P < 0.05). cAMP contents in the area of VTA, cortex and hippocampus of the morphine dependent rats were significantly reduced, while cGMP contents were significantly increased by ig Cedemex., Conclusion: Cedemex may significantly attenuate the morphine withdrawal symptoms in rats. The mechanism of this effect may be related to adjusting the contents of cAMP and cGMP in some brain regions.

Background: Acute rejection (AR) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) recurrence after liver transplantation (LT) are the two major complications leading to chronic graft dysfunction. Genomic polymorphisms in interleukin (IL)-10, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)alpha and transforming growth factor (TGF)beta1 genes have been found to affect the susceptibility to certain diseases. However, the relationship between cytokine gene polymorphisms and risk of AR as well as HBV recurrence after LT in Han Chinese has not been reported. The objective of the present study was to investigate the association of polymorphisms within these cytokine genes with the risk of AR as well as HBV recurrence., Methods: One hundred eighty six Chinese LT recipients in which 41 patients developed AR and 29 patients experienced HBV recurrence were enrolled; 151 age- and gender-matched healthy individuals were selected as controls. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at loci of IL-10 -1082, -819, -592, and TNFalpha -308, -238, as well as TGFbeta1 -988, -800, -509, +869, and +915 were determined by using DNA sequencing and then confirmed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Analyses of linkage disequilibrium and haplotype frequency were performed using Haploview program., Results: The -819 and -592 polymorphisms in the IL-10 gene were in complete linkage (r(2) = 1). Another linkage was found at -509 and +869 in the TGFbeta1 gene (r(2) = 0.66). A significant difference was observed in the distribution of allelic frequencies at position -819 and -592 in the IL-10 gene between ARs and non-ARs (p = 0.036, OR = 1.134, 95% CI 0.999-1.287 and p = 0.036, OR = 1.134, 95% CI 0.999-1.287, respectively). After adjustment for a Bonferroni correction, there was no significant difference between the polymorphism and AR (p >0.05). Furthermore, the overall genotype distribution between HBV recurrence patients and non-HBV recurrence patients was also not significantly different (p >0.05)., Conclusions: Our study suggests that gene polymorphisms of IL10, TNFalpha, and TGFbeta1 do not have a major independent role in AR and HBV recurrence after LT and may not be risk factors of AR and HBV recurrence after LT in Chinese liver transplant recipients.

Background: Invasive fungal infections are an important cause of posttransplant mortality in solid-organ recipients. The current trend is that the incidence of invasive candidiasis decreases significantly and invasive aspergillosis occurs later in the liver posttransplant recipients. The understanding of epidemiology and its evolving trends in the particular locality is beneficial to prophylactic and empiric treatment for transplant recipients., Methods: A retrospective analysis was made of recorded data on the epidemiology, risk factors, and mortality of invasive fungal infections in 352 liver transplant recipients., Results: Forty-two (11.9%) patients suffered from invasive fungal infection. Candida species infections (53.3%) were the most common, followed by Aspergillus species (40.0%). There were 21 patients with a superficial fungal infection. The median time to onset of first invasive fungal infection was 13 days, first invasive Candida infection 9 days, and first invasive Aspergillus infection 21 days. Fifteen deaths were related to invasive fungal infection, 10 to Aspergillus infection, and 5 to Candida infection. Invasive Candida species infections were associated with encephalopathy (P = 0.009) and postoperative bacterial infection (P = 0.0003) as demonstrated by multivariate analysis. Three independent risk factors of invasive Aspergillus infection were posttransplant laparotomy (P = 0.004), renal dysfunction (P = 0.005) and hemodialysis (P = 0.001)., Conclusions: The leading etiologic species of invasive fungal infections are Candida and Aspergillus, which frequently occur in the first posttransplant month. Encephalopathy and postoperative bacterial infection predispose to invasive Candida infection. Posttransplant laparotomy and poor perioperative clinical status contribute to invasive Aspergillus infection. More studies are needed to determine the effect of prophylactic antifungal therapy in high risk patients.

In the crystal structure of the title compound, C(24)H(14)Cl(3)NO(2)S, the tetra-hydro-pyridine ring adopts a half-chair conformation and both pendant benzene rings are oriented nearly perpendicular to the thio-chromeno[2,3-b]pyridine system.

Genetic variants in matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) gene may influence the biological function of these enzymes and change their role in carcinogenesis and progression. The effect of MMP2 C-1306T and MMP9 C-1562T polymorphisms on genetic susceptibility has been investigated in various kinds of cancer. However, the relationship between these polymorphisms and risk of recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after liver transplantation (LT) has not been reported. The present study was designed to investigate the association of these two loci with the risk of HCC recurrence in 93 HCC patients treated with LT. Genotyping was performed using direct DNA sequencing. For MMP2 C-1306T variant, patients with CT heterozygous conferred a 58% reduction in recurrence risk (risk ratio: 0.419; 95% confidence interval: 0.177-0.994). The mean recurrence-free survival for CT genotype was significantly longer than that for homozygous CC patients (30.4 vs 19.3 months, p = 0.019). However, no association was found between MMP9 C-1562T polymorphisms and recurrence of HCC (p = 0.259). These findings suggest that MMP2 promoter polymorphisms may provide some predictive value for HCC recurrence after LT.

Aim: To investigate the possibilities and advantages of laparoscopic hepatic left lateral lobectomy combined with fiber choledochoscopic exploration of the common bile duct compaired with traditional open operation., Methods: Laparoscopic hepatic left lateral lobectomy combined with fiber choledochoscopic exploration of the common bile duct and traditional open operation were performed in two groups of patients who had gallstones in the left lobe of liver and in the common bile duct. The hospitalization time, hospitalization costs, operation time, operative complications and post-operative liver functions of the two groups of patients were studied., Results: The operation time and post-operative liver functions of the two groups of patients had no significant differences, while the hospitalization time, hospitalization costs and operative complications of the laparoscopic hepatic left lateral lobectomy combined with fiber choledochoscopic exploration in the common bile duct group were significantly lower than those in the traditional open operation group., Conclusion: For patients with gallstones in the left lobe of liver and in the common bile duct, laparoscopic hepatic left lateral lobectomy combined with fiber choledochoscopic exploration of the common bile duct can significantly shorten the hospitalization time, reduce the hospitalization costs and the post-operative complications, without prolonging the operation time and bringing about more liver function damages compared with traditional open operation. This kind of operation has more advantages than traditional open operation.

The title compound, [CuI(C(11)H(10)N(2)S(2))](n), is built around centrosymmetric dinuclear Cu(2)I(2) cores, each of which is linked to four neighboring Cu(2)I(2) units via flexible dithioether ligands, viz. 4,4'-(methylenedithio)dipyridine, to form a two-dimensional grid containing rhombus-shaped cavities with diagonal distances of ca 15 and 22 A. Two of these networks interpenetrate in a woven fashion, and the resulting structure does not possess any open channels or cavities. Each Cu atom is in a distorted tetrahedral coordination environment.

The title compound, C(30)H(25)Cl(2)NO(3), was prepared by the reaction of 3-oxo-N,3-diphenyl-propane-thio-amide, 2,5-dichloro-benzaldehyde and 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclo-hexa-nedione (1:1:1) in ethanol. The cyclohexene ring adopts a half-chair conformation. The crystal structure exhibits intra-molecular N-H⋯O and C-H⋯O, and inter-molecular C-H⋯O inter-actions.

Biomacromolecules/Nanomaterials bioconjugate complexes have many applications in the interdisciplinary research fields. Accessible and easy synthesis methods of these complexes are the key roles for these applications. High quality water-soluble surface-charged quantum dots (QDs) were successfully prepared via surface modification by amphiphilic surfactants. The positively charged QDs can interact with deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) molecules to form QDs/DNA bioconjugates via self-targeting electrostatic force. The stability of these QDs/DNA bioconjugates is influenced by ionic strength and concentration of negative or neutral surfactants in the solution. High ionic concentration or ca. 10(-3) mol/L surfactants can break the interaction between the QDs and DNA molecules (Lambda DNA/Hind III Marker segments) and controllably release DNA molecules from these bioconjugates. The conformation of DNA molecules has little change during the binding and releasing process. The condensation of lambda DNA molecules can be induced by positively charged QDs. High resolution transmission electron microscopy experiments have revealed the different stages of DNA condensation process, showing the fine structures of QDs/DNA bioconjugates at biomolecular scale. A long chain DNA molecule starts to self-enwind and condense to a porous globule when it is exposing to positively charged QDs but there is no direct interaction between QDs and DNA at early stages of condensation. After the DNA molecule becomes a compact globule, QDs stick onto its surface via electrostatic force. The coil conformation of the DNA molecules can be recovered from globule structure after DNA molecules are controllably released from bioconjugate complexes. These QDs/DNA bioconjugates have great potential applications for gene delivery and at the same time the fluorescence of QDs can be utilized to monitor the DNA releasing process.

The title complex, [Cu(4)I(4)(C(21)H(15)N(3))(2)], lies on an inversion centre located at the centroid of a four-membered ring formed by one of the crystallographically independent Cu(I) ions and a triply bridging iodide ligand. The 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine (phterpy) ligand chelates each of the independent Cu(I) centres in a bidentate fashion, with the N atom of the central pyridyl ring bridging the two Cu(I) centres and those of the outer pyridyl rings binding the two independent Cu(I) ions individually to form a dinuclear system. These are further linked by triply-bridging I(-) anions to form the centrosymmetric tetra-nuclear units. One independent Cu atom binds to each of the inversion-related I(-) anions while the other coordinates to one bridging and one terminal monodentate iodide ligand. The outer pyridyl rings are twisted relative to the central pyridyl ring of the phterpy ligand with dihedral angles of 18.7 (1) and 35.6 (1)°, respectively.

Background: Fluorescent-magnetic-biotargeting multifunctional nanospheres are likely to find important applications in bioanalysis, biomedicine, and clinical diagnosis. We have been developing such multifunctional nanospheres for biomedical applications., Methods: We covalently coupled avidin onto the surfaces of fluorescent-magnetic bifunctional nanospheres to construct fluorescent-magnetic-biotargeting trifunctional nanospheres and analyzed the functionality and specificity of these trifunctional nanospheres for their ability to recognize and isolate apoptotic cells labeled with biotinylated annexin V, which recognizes phosphatidylserine exposed on the surfaces of apoptotic cells., Results: The multifunctional nanospheres can be used in combination with propidium iodide staining of nuclear DNA to identify cells at different phases of the apoptotic process. Furthermore, we demonstrate that apoptotic cells induced by exposure to ultraviolet light can be isolated simply with a magnet from living cells at an efficiency of at least 80%; these cells can then be easily visualized with a fluorescence microscope., Conclusions: Our results show that fluorescent-magnetic-biotargeting trifunctional nanospheres can be a powerful tool for rapidly recognizing, magnetically enriching and sorting, and simultaneously identifying different kinds of cells.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are germline-encoded receptors expressed on antigen-presenting cells (APCs) that identify a variety of microbial and endogenous ligands and activate the innate immune responses to the presence of danger. However, their role in the development of allograft rejection after liver transplantation remains unknown. In this study, we used flow cytometry to assess TLR-4 and TLR-2 expression among circulating CD14+ monocytes in 64 liver transplant patients and 24 healthy volunteers. We demonstrated significantly higher TLR-2 and TLR-4 expression on circulating monocytes among conditioned liver transplantation recipients with acute rejection compared with those in clinically stable with normal liver function. Steroid pulse therapy significantly reduced the expression of TLR-4 and TLR-2 on the monocytes of recipients with acute rejection. Based on these data, we have suggested that activation of innate immunity in liver transplant recipients through TLR-4 and TLR-2 contributes to the development of acute allograft rejection after liver transplantation. The reduced expression of TLR-4 and TLR-2 may be one of the mechanisms by which steroid pulse therapy inhibits the development of acute rejection. Estimation of TLR expression on APCs may be predictive of in acute rejection after liver transplantation.

A simple and convenient strategy has been put forward to fabricate smart fluorescent magnetic wheat germ agglutinin-modified trifunctional nanospheres (WGA-TFNS) for recognition of human prostate carcinoma DU-145 cells which are surface-expressed with sialic acid and N-acetylglucosamine. These TFNS can be easily manipulated, tracked, and conveniently used to capture and separate target cells. The presence of wheat germ agglutinin on the surface of WGA-TFNS was confirmed by FTIR, biorecognition of carboxymethyl chitin-modified quantum dots (CM-CT-QDs), and bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. The success in recognizing DU-145 cells by the WGA-TFNS indicates that WGA-TFNS could be applicable.

Objective: To detect the effect of gossypol, praziquantel and artemether on activity of the recombinant lactate dehydrogenase of Schistosoma japonicum (rSjLDH)., Methods: Effect of gossypol (0-0.10 mmol/L), praziquantel (0-0.20mmol/L) and artemether (0-0.10 mmol/L) on the enzymatic activity of rSjLDH was detected by spectrophotometric method in standard reaction system established before, same solvent of each reagent was used as control. Results were analyzed by SPSS13.0 software., Results: Compared with the control, considerable inhibition for both reduction and oxidation reactions catalyzed by rSjLDH was observed at 0.04 mmol/L of gossypol (P < 0.01). The enzyme activities of rSjLDH for reduction and oxidation reactions were inhibited by 91.3% and 89.1% respectively at 0.1 mmol/L of gossypol, com-pared with the control (P < 0.01). To praziquantel, enzymatic activity inhibition was observed at 0.02 mmol/L for oxidation reaction and at 0.06 mmol/L for reduction reaction (P < 0.05). At 0.2 mmol/L of praziquantel, enzymatic activities were inhibited by 83.8% for reduction reaction and 72.2% for oxidation reaction respectively, than that of the control (P < 0.01). No inhibition for both reduction and oxidation reactions was observed at 0.1 mmol/L of artemether, compared with that of the control (P > 0.05)., Conclusion: Gossypol and praziquantel show a high inhibition on rSjLDH. SiLDH may be one of the molecular targets of praziquantel.

Objectives: To study the expression of Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) and E-cadherin in the tissues of hepatocellular carcinoma, and to discuss the relationship between them and clinical-pathological features, and to evaluate their prognostic value of hepatocellular carcinoma after liver transplantation., Methods: mRNA and protein expression of PLK1, E-cadherin were detected by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry method respectively, the correlations of them with clinical-pathological data, tumor free time, recurrence rate were compared and analyzed., Results: The mRNA expression was observed in 90.0% for PLK1 and 96.0% for E-cadherin, and higher in cancerous' tissues than paracancerous' of all cases for PLK1 but no trend for E-cadherin. The positive and decreased expression rate for PLK1 and E-cadherin was observed in 60.0% and 50.0% respectively, the positive PLK1 expression was correlated with preoperative serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) only (chi2 = 4.433, P = 0.035), while E-cadherin expression was associated with none of the clinical-pathological features. There was a correlation between the positive PLK1 and decreased E-cadherin expression (chi2 = 5.333, P = 0.021). PLK1 (P = 0.006), E-cadherin (P = 0.019) and larger tumor (P = 0.019), portal vein tumor thrombi (P = 0.030), Edmondson grading (P = 0.019), preoperative serum AFP (P = 0.020) were all correlated with recurrence rate under Kaplan-Meier analysis, while only PLK1 (RR = 3.104, P = 0.009) had significant difference under Cox regression analysis., Conclusions: The positive PLK1 expression and the decreased E-cadherin expression indicate higher recurrence rate of HCC after liver transplantation, and PLK1 is a independent risk factor.

In order to gain comprehensive understanding of status, properties and sources of PCBs pollution at an industrial area in Shanghai, PM10 were collected during the period November 2004-September 2005. The results showed that the mean value of total PCBs in the industrial area was 2,017.22 pg m(-3). Three dioxin-like PCB congeners had a mean value of TEQ of 0.24 pg-TEQ m(-3). The concentrations of PCBs at all sites were higher in colder months than in warmer months. SigmaPCB concentrations were correlated positively with SO2, NO2 and OCPs, while negatively with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), ambient temperature, rainfall and wind speed. It could be concluded that the area had been contaminated by PCBs from a local source.

Background: Although the use of hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG) may lead to a significant reduction in recurrent hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and improve the survival of patients who have undergone liver transplantation (LT) for hepatitis B-related diseases, the recurrence of the disease still remains at a lower level. Different clinical curative effects were observed in patients with the same HBV-related diseases and the same therapy. This study was undertaken to investigate whether the efficacy of HBIG is associated with FCGR3A gene polymorphisms in Chinese liver transplant patients., Methods: Altogether 77 patients who had received liver transplantation for hepatitis B-related diseases with more than one-year survival after surgery were studied. The recurrence of HBV was characterized by the appearance of HBsAg in serum after the operation. The FCGR3A genotyping was performed using genomic DNA sequencing (ABI 3037). Single nucleotide polymorphism at nucleotide 559 was detected by Polyphred., Results: Of the 77 patients, 14 were complicated with HBV recurrence post-transplant. The FCGR3A at nucleotide 559 TT was observed in 35 (45.5%) subjects, whereas TG in 31 (40.3%) and GG in 11 (14.3%). In the 559G carrier group (n = 42, 54.5%), the risk of HBV recurrence was 9.5%, and 1- and 2-year recurrence-free survival rates were 95.2% and 88.7%, respectively. In the 559G noncarrier group (n = 35, 45.5%), the risk of HBV recurrence was 28.6%, and 1- and 2-year recurrence-free survival rates were 74.3% and 69.3%, respectively. The risk of HBV recurrence and the recurrence-free survival rate were both statistically different between the 559G carrier and noncarrier groups (P < 0.05)., Conclusions: A single nucleotide polymorphism (T/G) at position 559 of the FCGR3A gene was found in Chinese patients. The efficacy of HBIG in prophylaxis of HBV recurrence after LT is associated with the gene polymorphism, so detecting FCGR3A genotypes can be a clinical reference of the HBIG administration.

In order to study the distributions characteristics, sources and relationship of PAHs in PM10- phoenix tree leaves-soil system of a coking & chemical factory in Shanghai, the samples of PM10, phoenix tree leaves and soil around the factory were collected for a year. The concentration of PAHs were analyzed according to the USEPA method 8 000 series. The results showed that the average concentration of PAHs in PM10, phoenix tree leaves and soil were 101.11 ng/m3, 79.45 ng/g and 121.53 microg/g, respectively. Particulate phase (PM10) contained mainly carcinogenic and mutagenic PAHs, among which BaA, BghiP, Flu and BaP were found at significant concentrations. In phoenix tree leaves, Nap,Chy, BaP and BghiP presented a higher level of concentration. In soil, 3 and 4-ring PAHs presented a higher level. PAHs concentrations of phoenix tree leaves were very lower in May. Only Ace (0.16 ng/g) and Pyr (0.63 ng/g) were detected. In July and August the concentrations (39.19 ng/g and 150.94 ng/g, respectively) were uplifted significantly. It could be concluded PAHs was from petroleum and coal-fired compound source. There were very strong positive relationships of 16 PAHs level among phoenix tree leaves, soil and PM10 (p < 0.01).

Aim: The effect of cyclosporine A (CsA) on hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication was investigated, and proteomics expression differentiation after CsA treatment was studied in order to provide clues to explore the effect of CsA on HBV replication., Methods: Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay was used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of CsA. The HBV replication level in the HBV genomic DNA transfected HepG2.2.15 cell line was determined by an ELISA analysis of hepatitis B surface antigens (HBsAg) and Hepatitis B e antigens (HBeAg) in culture supernatant, while the intracellular HBV DNA replication level was analyzed by slot blot hybridization. Two-dimensional electrophoresis was used to investigate the alteration of protein expression in HepG2.2.15 after CsA treatment in vitro. The differentially-expressed proteins were identified by Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry combined with an online database search., Results: CsA was able to inhibit the expression of HBsAg, HBeAg, and HBV DNA replication in vitro in a dose-dependent manner. A proteomics analysis indicated that the expression of 17 proteins changed significantly in the CsA treatment group compared to the control group. Eleven of the 17 proteins were identified, including the overexpression of eukaryotic translation initiation factors (eIF) 3k, otubain 1, 14.3.3 protein, eIF2-1 alpha, eIF5A, and the tyrosine 3/tryptophan 5-mono-oxygenase activation protein in CsA-treated HepG2.2.15 cells. The downregulation of the ferritin light subunit, erythrocyte cytosolic protein of 51 kDa (ECP-51), stathmin 1/oncoprotein, adenine phosphoribosyl-transferase, and the position of a tumor protein, translationally controlled 1, was shifted, suggesting it had undergone posttranslational modifications., Conclusion: Our study identified the inhibitory effect of CsA on HBV replication, and found that a group of proteins may be responsible for this inhibitory effect.

Background and Aim: Rejection remains a problem in the transplantation field. The aim of this study was to establish acute and chronic rejection models in rats and to investigate the roles of non-interleukin (IL)-2 T cell growth factors such as IL-15, IL-7 and IL-13 during rejection., Methods: A liver transplant model was established using Dark Agouti and Brown Norway rats. The rats were divided into group A, left without treatment; group B, received cyclosporinee (1 mg/kg/day); and group C, cyclosporinee (4 mg/kg/day). Histopathological, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and western blot were performed in liver specimens obtained from different time-points after transplantation in the three groups., Results: In group A, the livers showed irreversible acute cellular rejection with cell infiltration. In group B, chronic liver rejection was found, with graft infiltration, ductular damage or proliferation, obliterative arteriopathy and liver fibrosis. No apparent histological alterations were observed in group C. IL-15, IL-7 and IL-13 messenger RNA and their protein were all highly expressed in the liver specimens of groups A and B. Upregulated expression was found in IL-15 since the first day after transplantation and in IL-7 and IL-13 since day 6. The extent of IL-15 upregulation was more than that of IL-7 and IL-13., Conclusions: Liver transplantation in Dark Agouti to Brown Norway rats with low-dose immunosuppression can induce chronic rejection. In the process of acute and chronic allograft rejections, non-IL-2 T cell growth factors such as IL-15, IL-7 and IL-13 play roles. Strategies should pay more attention to regulating these cytokines after liver transplantation.