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Objective: We aimed to examine whether heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor (HB-EGF) affects the lung fibrosis process through the activation of p38 protein in mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) signaling pathway, as well as the expression of downstream inflammatory factors. Methods: The expression levels of HB-EGF, collagen type I (COL-I), and hexokinase 2 (HK2) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with connective tissue disease-related interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD) were examined by qPCR, Western blotting and ELISA. Results: In vitro experiments showed that HB-EGF was increased in almost all subtypes [rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic sclerosis (SSc) and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs)] as well as in all groups (P

Objective To summarize clinical and pathological features, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, as well as treatment and prognosis through analyzing one case of collision tumor in the sellar region (pituitary adenoma combined with malignant triton tumor). Methods and Results A 59-year-old male was admitted to hospital with decreased vision, vision field defect and dizziness. Head MRI demonstrated space-occupying lesion in the sellar region. Therefore, the patient underwent a transsphenoidal surgery with subtotal tumor resection. Three months later, the patient was admitted to hospital again with vision loss and headache. Head CT demonstrated space-occupying lesions in sellar/ suprasellar region, therefore, the patient underwent saddle tumor resection. Histological findings revealed that the tumor was composed of two different types of tumors, one was pituitary adenoma with epithelial cells arranged in nest-like and trabecular pattern, and the other was diffused spindle cell tumor. The two tumors were distributed separately or mixed togenther. The morphology of spindle cell tumor was bland with scarce mitosis in the first surgery, whereas additional features including increased cell density, dark nuclei, frequent mitosis and scattering distributed rhabdomyoblasts were found in the second surgery. Immunohistochemically, the pituitary adenoma (epithelial cell region) cells were positive for cytokeratin 8 (CK8), chromogranin A (CgA), synaptophysin (Syn) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), while the malignant triton tumor cells (spindle cell region) were positive for CD56, CD57, calretinin (CR) and focally positive for S-100 protein (S-100), desmin (Des) and myogenin. Ultrastructural findings revealed abundant rough endoplasmic reticules and secretary granules in the cytoplasm of pituitary adenoma cells, and discontinuous basal lamina located outside the spindle cell membrane. The final pathological diagnosis was sellar collision tumor (non-functional TSH adenoma combined with malignant triton tumor). The patient died 6 months after the second surgery. Conclusions Collision tumor of the sellar region with pituitary adenoma and malignant triton tumor is a rare tumor which can hardly be diagnosed by clinical and neuroimaging examination. The diagnosis relies on morphological characteristics, immunophenotype and ultrastructural features. The prognosis of collision tumor with malignant triton tumor component is poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought is a major environmental factor limiting the production of crops. Drought tolerance of sugar beet (Beta vulgarisL.) cultivars in terms of growth and inorganic and organic solute accumulation was analyzed in this study. Four-week-old seedlings of three cultivars, “Gantang7”, “SD13829” and “ST21916”, differing in drought tolerance, were treated with different degrees of drought stress. Plant shoots and roots were harvested at 5 d after stress and subjected to analysis. Drought significantly reduced shoot fresh weight and water content in the three cultivars, though the least reduction was found in “ST21916”. Either decrease or no change in sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+) concentrations was observed in the three cultivars as an effect of drought, whereas a higher root Na+and a lower root K+concentration was noted in “Gantang7”. Root calcium (Ca2+) concentration significantly increased in “Gantang7” exposed to moderate and severe drought. Severe drought also caused a significant increase in the proline level in “SD13829” but not in “Gantang7” and “ST21916”. Under drought stress, soluble sugar concentrations significantly increased in both “Gantang7” and “SD13829” whilst remaining unchanged in “ST21916”. It is clear that Na+, K+and soluble sugars are major contributors to osmotic adjustment (OA), while Ca2+and proline have minor contributions to OA in all three cultivars. According to our comprehensive assessment of drought tolerance, it is shown that “ST21916” is more tolerant to drought than the other two cultivars. Therefore, our results suggest that “ST21916” may be more suitable for planting in arid and semi-arid regions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The decolorization rate of azo dyes under anaerobic conditions can be improved by the addition of water-soluble redox mediators. However, the continuous dosing and discharge of water- soluble redox mediators, such as biologically recalcitrant compounds, will result in the secondary contamination. The accelerating effect of co-immobilization of quinone-reducing consortium and insoluble anthraquinone in the biodecolorization of azo dyes was investigated for the first time. The cloning and sequencing analysis of ribosomal intergenic spacer (RIS) genes show that quinone-reducing community is predominate by LactobaciUaceae, Enterobacteriaceae and Bacteroidaceae; the decolorization rates of a broad, range of azo dyes are greatly improved by co-immobilized beads as 1. 3-2. 1-fold increases; after ten repeated experiments, the decolorization rate of Active Red KE-3B by co-immobilized beads retains over 85%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The medial geniculate body (MGB) receives ascending inputs from the inferior colliculus and descending inputs from the auditory cortex. In the present study, we intended to determine whether activation of presynaptic GABAB receptors modulates GABAergic and glutamatergic inputs to the MGB with whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in brain slices of the rat. To evoke a synaptic response, we electrically stimulated the ascending and descending inputs to MGB neurons with bipolar electrodes placed on the brachium of the inferior colliculus and the superior thalamic radiation. To isolate presynaptic mechanisms, we blocked the effects of postsynaptic GABAB receptors by filling recording electrodes with the internal solution containing cesium and QX-314. The activation of presynaptic GABAB receptors by exogenous agonist was shown to modulate synaptic inputs to the MGB as demonstrated by that (1) baclofen, a GABAB receptor agonist, reversibly suppressed both inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) and excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) and this suppressive effect could be blocked by CGP35348, a GABAB receptor antagonist, (2) baclofen significantly increased the ratio of IPSCs or EPSCs elicited by paired-pulse stimulation, and (3) baclofen depressed EPSCs and IPSCs in response to repetitive stimulation. The activation of presynaptic GABAB receptors by endogenously released GABA was shown to modulate the synaptic transmission as demonstrated by that CGP55845, another GABAB receptor antagonist, increased the ratio of IPSCs to paired-pulse stimulation in young (P8-10) rats, although not in juvenile (P15-18) rats. Our study provides electrophysiological evidence for the presence of functional presynaptic GABAB receptors in the MGB and suggests an age-dependent role of these receptors in the synaptic transmission in this central auditory region. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Colorectal cancer syndrome has been one of the greatest concerns in the world, particularly in developed countries. Several epidemiological studies have shown that dyslipidemia may be associated with the progression of intestinal cachexia, but there is little research on the function of the small intestine, which is involved in blood lipid metabolism, in dyslipidemia. In the present study, we aimed to explore the function of intestinal cholesterol absorption in the Apc Min/+ mouse model using an intestinal lipid absorption test. We found that both triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) uptake were inhibited in the intestine of Apc Min/+ mice with age and the intestinal peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) downregulated the processes of β-oxidation, oxidative stress response, and cholesterol absorption in APC-deficient mice. In addition, reduced expression levels of farnesoid X receptor (FXR) and apical sodium-dependent bile acid transporter (ASBT) indicated that bile acid metabolism might be associated with intestinal cholesterol absorption in Apc Min/+ mice. Thus, our data suggested that the intestine plays an essential role in cholesterol uptake and that bile acid metabolism seems to cause a decrease in intestinal cholesterol uptake in Apc Min/+ mice., Competing Interests: None., (IJCEP Copyright © 2019.)

Gekko gecko (Tokay Gecko) is a valuable traditional Chinese medicine. In this study, the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique was introduced for visual rapid identification of G. gecko from adulterants. A total of sixty-five 12S rRNA sequences of fourteen species of G. gecko and its adulterants were obtained. The results showed that G. gecko could be identified from its adulterants through BLAST analysis based on 12S rRNA regions. The 12S rRNA sequences of ten batches of G. gecko were conserved. There were only two haplotypes and three variation sites in the available regions for primers design. Six specific LAMP primers were successfully designed online based on 12S rRNA sequences. The visual rapid detection of G. gecko could be achieved with the optimized conditions (64 °C for 1 h and 80 °C for 5 min). And the required minimal template concentration was 5 μg·L⁻¹ while conventional PCR with 0.5 mg·L⁻¹. Consequently, the LAMP method established from this study was rapid, specific, highly sensitive, and simple. It could be applied to detect G. gecko from its adulterants efficiently., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

Acute kidney injury (AKI) often occurs as a result of ischemia-reperfusion (IR). Previous studies have demonstrated that inflammation is an important contributor to AKI. Atorvastatin (ATO) possesses anti‑inflammatory properties and has been demonstrated to exert protective effects against renal IR injury (IRI). However, the underlying mechanism requires further study. In the present study, a rat model of renal IRI was successfully established. Consistent with the results of a previous study, ATO significantly attenuated IRI, which was supported by a decrease in serum creatinine and an increase in creatinine clearance rate, as well as alleviated pathological alterations in renal tubular cells. There are two types of activated macrophages: Proinflammatory M1 and anti‑inflammatory M2 macrophages, which have been demonstrated to exert contributory and protective effects on IRI, respectively. The present study demonstrated that treatment with ATO significantly decreased M1 macrophage density and increased M2 macrophage density, as compared with the IR group. In addition, it is well known that M1 macrophages can be induced by T helper 1 cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‑α and interferon (IFN)‑γ, whereas M2 macrophages can be induced by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)‑γ. The present study indicated that ATO treatment significantly decreased the expression levels of TNF‑α and IFN‑γ, and increased PPAR‑γ expression. In conclusion, ATO may ameliorate renal IRI by promoting M1‑M2 transition. Furthermore, ATO‑mediated macrophage polarization in rats with renal IRI may be associated with the downregulation of TNF‑α and IFN‑γ, and the upregulation of PPAR-γ.

Enhanced biodecolourization of azo dyes by suspended and immobilized quinone-reducing community using kinds of anthraquinone dyes intermediators as redox mediators was investigated. The suspended bacterium community could enhance the biodecolourization of many kinds of azo dyes using bromoamine acid (BAA) as a redox mediator, the optimum conditions for Acid Red 3R were as follows: pH 6-9, glucose, BAA and initial dye concentrations 400-600 mg/L, 19-34.2 mg/L and < or = 900 mg/L, respectively. Under these conditions, the maximal decolourization rate was about 95%, which is reached within 7 h for suspended cells and 14 h for immobilized cells. However, the latter needed 38-57 mg/L BAA as a redox mediator. In addition, after 7 cycles without BAA addition, the decolourization rate of Acid Red 3R by immobilized cells retained over 85%.