Effect of Multicomponent Intervention on Functional Decline in Chinese Older Adults: A Multicenter Randomized Clinical Trial

OBJECTIVES

To confirm whether multicomponent exercise following vivifrail recommendations was an effective method for improving physical ability, cognitive function, gait, balance, and muscle strength in Chinese older adults.

METHODS

This was a multicenter and randomized clinical trial conducted in Jiangsu, China, from April 2021 to April 2022. Intervention lasted for 12 weeks and 104 older adults with functional declines were enrolled. All participants were randomly assigned to a control (usual care plus health education) or exercise group (usual care plus health education plus exercise). Primary outcomes were the change score of Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) and activities of daily living (ADL). The secondary outcomes included instrumental activities of daily living, Tinetti scores, Frailty score, short-form Mini Nutritional Assessment, Mini-Mental State Examination, Geriatric Depression Scale-15, the 12-item Short Form Survey, 4-meter gait speed test, 6-min walking distance, grip strength, and body composition analysis.

RESULTS

Among the participants, the average age was 85 (82, 88) years. After 12 weeks of follow-up, the exercise group showed a significant improvement in SPPB, with a change of 2 points (95% confidence interval [0, 3.5], P<0.001) compared to control. In contrast, SPPB remained stable in the control group. Compared to the control group, ADL improved in the exercise group, as did instrumental activities of daily living, Tinetti, Frailty, Short Form Survey, 4-meter gait speed test, and 6-min walking distance. Although there was no significant difference between groups in body composition analysis after post-intervention, the exercise group still improved in soft lean mass (P=0.002), fat-free mass (P=0.002), skeletal muscle mass index (P<0.001), fat-free mass index (P=0.004), appendicular skeletal muscle mass (P<0.001), and leg muscle mass (P<0.001), while the control group had no significant increase. No difference was observed in adverse events during trial period.

CONCLUSIONS

The multicomponent exercise intervention following vivifrail recommendations is an effective method for older adults with functional decline and can reverse the functional decline and improve gait, balance, and muscle strength. Additionally, the 12-week multicomponent exercise method provides guidance for Chinese medical professionals working in the field of geriatrics and is a promising method to improve physical function in the general population.

Pharmacological inhibition of eIF2alpha phosphorylation by integrated stress response inhibitor (ISRIB) ameliorates vascular calcification in rats

Vascular calcification (VC) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality with the absence of current treatment. This study aimed to investigate whether eIF2alpha phosphorylation inhibition could ameliorate VC. VC in rats was induced by administration of vitamin D3 (3×10(5) IU/kg, intramuscularly) plus nicotine (25 mg/kg, intragastrically). ISRIB (0.25 mg/kg·week), an inhibitor of eIF2alpha phosphorylation, ameliorated the elevation of calcium deposition and ALP activity in calcified rat aortas, accompanied by amelioration of increased SBP, PP, and PWV. The decreased protein levels of calponin and SM22alpha, and the increased levels of RUNX2 and BMP2 in calcified aorta were all rescued by ISRIB, while the increased levels of the GRP78, GRP94, and C/EBP homologous proteins in rats with VC were also attenuated. Moreover, ISRIB could prevent the elevation of eIF2alpha phosphorylation and ATF4, and partially inhibit PERK phosphorylation in the calcified aorta. These results suggested that an eIF2alpha phosphorylation inhibitor could ameliorate VC pathogenesis by blocking eIF2alpha/ATF4 signaling, which may provide a new target for VC prevention and treatment.

THE INCREASED PLASMA LEVELS OF INTERMEDIN IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS

Context

Intermedin (IMD) is the member of calcitonin gene-related peptide family, and tightly associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The change of plasma IMD levels in T2DM is still unknown.

Objective

We aimed to investigate the plasma levels of IMD in patients with T2DM.

Design

Fortyone patients with T2DM who were hospitalized in the endocrinology department of Civil Aviation General Hospital from January 2012 to June 2015 were enrolled, and 44 volunteers were selected as the control group.

Subjects and Methods

Plasma level of IMD was detected by ELISA. Diagnostic value of IMD was analyzed by area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC).

Results

The plasma level of IMD in T2DM group was higher than that in the healthy control group, whereas smoking or cardiovascular complications did no influence the IMD levels. IMD levels were correlated with BMI, DBP, triglyceride, uric acid, urea nitrogen, fasting and 2 hours postprandial blood glucose, and HbA1C. The greatest value of AUC for IMD was only 58.73%.

Conclusions

Although plasma levels of IMD were increased in patients with T2DM, the very low diagnostic value of IMD for T2DM might not be used for the disease diagnosis.

Expression of PD-L1 for predicting response to immune checkpoint inhibitors in metastatic urothelial carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

We conducted this meta-analysis and systematic literature review to study the ability of PD-L1 to predict objective response in patients with urothelial cancer treated with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors.

Methods

Relevant studies of PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitors in urothelial cancer that reported objective response rate (orr) based on PD-L1 expression status in PubMed, embase, and the Cochrane Library were retrieved. Efficacy of PD-L1 expression status in predicting orr and the efficacy, safety of PD-1 and PD-L1 drugs were analyzed.

Results

Studies were divided into ≥1%, ≥5%, and ≥25% based on PD-L1 positivity threshold, and the patients were grouped into PD-L1 positive and negative. In all 3 expression thresholds, patients with positive PD-L1 expression were more likely to experience an objective response [≥1% threshold odds ratio (or): 1.74; 95% confidence interval (ci): 1.20 to 2.53; ≥5% threshold or: 2.74; 95% ci: 2.01 to 3.724; ≥25% threshold or: 7.13; 95% ci: 2.38 to 21.40] in comparison with patients with negative PD-L1 expression. Of the 3 thresholds, the ≥25% threshold was better in predicting orr (1.74 vs. 2.93 vs. 7.13; p < 0.0001). The ≥1% PD-L1 threshold had a relatively high sensitivity in predicting orr; the ≥5% PD-L1 threshold was better for specificity. Sensitivity was higher at the ≥25% threshold than at the other two thresholds, but specificity was lower. Further, we found that there is no statistically significant difference in efficacy between PD-1 and PD-L1 drugs.

Conclusions

Urothelial cancer patients with PD-L1 positive expression responded better than PD-L1 negative patients did, and a threshold of ≥5% or greater for PD-L1 expression might predict positive clinical response.

MiR-7a ameliorates spinal cord injury by inhibiting neuronal apoptosis and oxidative stress

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate the therapeutic effect of microRNA-7a (miR-7a) on spinal cord injured rats and to explore its underlying mechanism in vivo.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The spinal cord injury (SCI) model was first established in adult rats. The epicenter of the lesion was treated with miR-7a mimics via intrathecal injection. The Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale was used to evaluate the functional recovery of hindlimbs in rats within 4 weeks following SCI. Western blotting and qPCR were utilized to detect the apoptosis and oxidative stress in rats treated with or without miR-7a. In addition, the neuron survival and neuro-filament amount were determined using immunofluorescence.

RESULTS

After SCI and miR-7a treatment, the locomotor recovery of treated rats was significantly improved when compared with rats without treatment. The mitochondrial disorder and cell death were significantly reduced in miR-7a treated rats. Meanwhile, the nuclear transcription factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway was significantly reduced as well. Contrarily, the expression of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 and NF-κB inhibitor I-κB was remarkably elevated in miR-7a treated rats. In addition, up-regulation of miR-7a rescued neurons and maintained the neural structure.

CONCLUSIONS

The up-regulation of miR-7a alleviated the injury-induced oxidative stress and inhibited apoptosis by down-regulating NF-κB pathway in SCI rats.

Molecular Epidemiology and Risk Factors of Blastocystis sp. Infections Among General Populations in Yunnan Province, Southwestern China

BACKGROUND

Blastocystis is a common enteric parasite of controversial pathogenic roles in human diseases. Although the prevalence of Blastocystis infections has been investigated in a diverse range of populations, there is little knowledge on the molecular epidemiology and risk factors of Blastocystis infections among general populations in southeastern China.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 507 individuals were randomly selected in Yunnan province, China from July 2016 to March 2017. Stool specimens were sampled for detection of Blastocystis sp. using PCR assay, and the risk factors of Blastocystis infections were identified. Blastocystis isolates were subtyped, and the associations of Blastocystis infections and subtypes with clinical manifestations were examined.

RESULTS

The overall detection rate of Blastocystis sp. was 9.47% (95% CI: 7.13-12.44%). Toilet type (OR = 3.248, 95% CI: 1.245-8.473), anemia (OR = 2.601, 95% CI: 1.245-8.473) and type of daily drinking water (OR = 3.11, 95% CI: 1.557-6.213) were identified as risk factors of Blastocystis infections; however, Blastocystis infections showed no associations with clinical symptoms. Four subtypes (ST1 to ST4) were characterized in Blastocystis isolates, in which ST3 was predominant (4.73%, 95% CI: 3.2-6.94%), followed by ST1 (3.16%, 95% CI: 1.95-5.07%), ST4 (1.38%, 95% CI: 0.07-2.82%) and ST2 (0.2%, 95% CI: 0-1.11%). In addition, ST1 subtype infection was found to correlate with anemia (OR = 4.66, 95% CI: 1.631-14.314).

CONCLUSIONS

There is a high prevalence of Blastocystis infections among general populations in Yunnan province, southwestern China, and toilet type, anemia and type of daily drinking water are risk factors of Blastocystis infections. ST3 is the dominant subtype of Blastocystis sp. characterized, and ST1 correlates with anemia. Improving hygiene conditions, developing healthy lifestyles and intensifying health education programs are strongly recommended to reduce the prevalence and transmission potential of Blastocystis infections.

Improved quantitative assessment of HBV-associated liver fibrosis using second-harmonic generation microscopy with feature selection

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Quantitative assessments of liver fibrosis using second-harmonic generation/two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy provide greater sensitivity and accuracy than collagen proportionate area while eliminating operator-dependent variation in the staining process. In conjunction with sophisticated image analysis algorithms and feature selection, we might reduce the computation cost in future and narrow down the candidates for further clinical studies.

METHODS

We sampled a total of 244 liver specimens from patients with hepatitis B viral infections who underwent liver biopsy or liver resection at the National Taiwan University Hospital. The samples were then imaged using a Genesis (HistoIndex Pte. Ltd, Singapore) system, wherein second-harmonic generation microscopy was used to visualize collagen, and two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy was used to visualize other cell structures. We used 100 morphological features extracted from the images to assess correlations with METAVIR fibrosis scores.

RESULTS

Out of 100 quantitative measurements, 76 showed significant correlation with METAVIR scoring, thereby enabling the statistical discrimination of patients in various stages of the disease. These 76 features were also narrowed down by the nonlinear test to 10 candidate measurements, which can be further investigated in detail.

CONCLUSIONS

Our experimental results showed that the model with 10 selected features can beat the one with second-harmonic generation only, and performed equivalently well compared the model with 76 features, especially for early-stage discrimination. Features presenting significant correlation were used to fit a single combined index in order to predict pathological staging, thereby making it possible to reveal incremental progress during treatment.

Immune cell metabolism in autoimmunity

Immune metabolism is a rapidly moving field. While most of the research has been conducted to define the metabolism of healthy immune cells in the mouse, it is recognized that the overactive immune system that drives autoimmune diseases presents metabolic abnormalities that provide therapeutic opportunities, as well as a means to understand the fundamental mechanisms of autoimmune activation more clearly. Here, we review recent publications that have reported how the major metabolic pathways are affected in autoimmune diseases, with a focus on rheumatic diseases.

Abstract P4-02-12: Comparison of RT-qPCR with consensus immunohistochemistry by three pathologists for ER, PR, HER2 and Ki-67 in Chinese breast cancer patients

Background

During the diagnostic work-up of breast carcinomas, immunohistochemistry (IHC) is the currently used method for assessing the expression of estrogen- (ER) and progesterone-receptors (PR), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) as well as of Ki-67 as a marker of tumor cell proliferation. In this study, we analyzed the concordance of these four breast cancer biomarkers between the RT-qPCR- and IHC-based (evaluated by three independent pathologists) determinations.

Methods

The expression of ER/ESR1, PR/PGR, HER2/ERBB2 and Ki-67/MKI67 was determined in 269 FFPE breast cancer samples with tumor content &gt;20% from Chinese patients. For IHC, the samples were freshly cut, stained and assessed by three independent pathologists using the same scoring methods in a blinded fashion (positivity defined as: ER/PR ≥1%, HER2 &gt;2+ and Ki-67 ≥20%). Measurement of the markers on the mRNA level was done on total RNA extracts prepared from whole tissue sections from the same FFPE blocks using the CE-marked RT-qPCR based IVD MammaTyper® on a Cobas® z480 qPCR cycler. IHC assessments of the three pathologists were compared to each other with regard to concordance of positive/negative results. Subsequently, agreement of RT-qPCR and IHC results for each marker and in samples in which the three pathologists had a consensus positive/negative IHC result was determined. Furthermore, we compared the MammaTyper® assessments from a subset of whole FFPE sections to data obtained from paired samples enriched for invasive carcinoma via macrodissection.

Results

From the 269 samples, 256 were available for final analysis. When excluding cases with discordant IHC callings between the three pathologists (6.0% for ER; 7.4% PR; 4.1% Her2; 17.1% Ki-67)) the concordance to the RT-qPCR determination and consensus IHC-based analysis displayed an excellent agreement for ER (OPA: 95.4%, PPA: 97.5%, NPA: 91.5%, Kappa: 0.897), PR (OPA: 91.1%, PPA: 89.6%, NPA: 93.1%, Kappa: 0.820) and HER2 (OPA: 97.1%, PPA: 91.9%, NPA: 100.0%, Kappa: 0.936). For cancer MKI67 mRNA and Ki-67 protein expression, a lower but still good concordance was found (OPA: 90.1%, PPA: 91.8%, NPA: 83.3%, Kappa: 0.707). In addition, we could demonstrate an excellent agreement of quantitative RT-qPCR measurements between whole surface and paired tumor-enriched samples in 99 Chinese breast cancer patients with R2 of 0.927 for ER, 0.926 for PR, 0.923 for HER2 and 0.908 for KI67. Even under highly standardized IHC scoring conditions, the discordance rates in the RT-qPCR marker callings with 0.0% for ESR1, 5.0% for PGR, 3.0% for ERBB2, 13.1% for MKI67 were lower than disagreements by three pathologists on the identical slide.

Conclusion

Standardized determination of the breast cancer biomarkers ER, PR, HER2 and Ki-67 on the mRNA level shows high concordance to a consensus IHC determined by three experienced pathologists indicating that RT-qPCR may be a valid alternative for determining the four breast cancer biomarkers. In line with previous research we could show on a large set of samples that macrodissection is not required for reliable assessment of the four breast cancer markers in clinical FFPE samples.

Citation Format: Teng X, Li X, Xu S, Zhang J, Hartmann K, Laible M, Hipfel R, Bai Y, Ba X, Wu Z, Wirtz RM, Liu S, Ugur S. Comparison of RT-qPCR with consensus immunohistochemistry by three pathologists for ER, PR, HER2 and Ki-67 in Chinese breast cancer patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2018 Dec 4-8; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P4-02-12.

[The multicenter study on the registration and follow-up of low anticoagulation therapy for the heart valve operation in China]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the optimal anticoagulation methods and monitoring strategy for Chinese patients undergoing heart valve replacement, which is potentially quite different from western populations.

METHODS

In this multicenter prospective cohort study, the anticoagulation and monitoring strategy data was acquired from 25 773 in-hospital patients in 35 medical centers and 20 519 patients in outpatient clinic in 11 medical centers from January 1st, 2011 to December 31th, 2015.

RESULTS

As for in-hospital patients, mean age of study population was (48.6±11.2) years old; main etiology of valve pathology was rheumatic (87.5%) origin among study cohort; 94.8% of study population received mechanical valve implantation; international normalized ratio (INR) monitoring (in all the study centers) and low-intensity anticoagulation strategy (31 hospitals chose target INR range of 1.5-2.5, and actual values of INR among 89.2% of 100 069 in-hospital monitoring samples were 1.5-2.5), with mean actual INR values of 1.84±0.53, and warfarin dosage of (2.82±0.93) mg/d were widely adopted among the study centers; strategies of in-hospital warfarin administration were similar in all the study centers; complication rates of low-intensity anticoagulation strategy were low in severe hemorrhage (0.02%), thrombosis (0.05%), and thromboembolism (0.05%) events, without anticoagulation-related death.As for 18 974 outpatient clinic patients, the follow-up rate was 92.47%, with a total of 30 012 patient-years (Pty). Anticoagulation-related morbidity and mortality rates were 0.67% and 0.15% Pty; major hemorrhage morbidity and mortality rates were 0.25% and 0.13% Pty; thromboembolism morbidity and mortality rates were 0.45% and 0.03% Pty.The mean dosage of warfarin daily dosage was (2.85±1.23) mg/d and INR value was 1.82±0.57.No significant regional difference in the intensity of anticoagulation therapy was noted during the study.

CONCLUSIONS

INR can be used as a normalized indicator for intensity of anticoagulation therapy in China.The optimal anticoagulation intensity with INR range from 1.5 to 2.5 is safe and effective for Chinese patients with heart valve replacement, and there is no significant regional difference in the intensity of anticoagulation therapy.

[Management of valgus or varus knee deformity with fixator assist nailing technique and distal femur osteotomy]

OBJECTIVE

To discuss the result of treating valgus or varus knee deformity with fixator assist nailing (FAN) technique and distal femur osteotomy(DFO).

METHODS

In this retrospective study, 14 patients with 17 limbs, 12 valgus and 5 varus knee deformity were treated with DFO and FAN. The average age of the patients was 23 (17-44) years . The unilateral external fixator was mounted on the lateral side of femur, the minimal invasive distal femoral osteotomy was performed. After the deformity was corrected, the intramedully nail was inserted to fix the femur. None of the patients need bone autograft. The preoperation and postoperation lateral distal femur angle (LDFA), mechanical axis deviation (MAD) and range of motion (ROM) were measured and analyzed.

RESULTS

All the 14 patients were followed-up for 12-72 months (average 34 months). The osteotomy site united in 3-5 months (average 3.5 months) postoperatively. According to Paley's functional scores, 12 patients were excellent, 2 patients were good. We achieved desired postoperative MAD ( from medial 15 mm to lateral 10 mm) in 15 limbs of 12 patients. The LDFA in 11 limbs was corrected to normal (84°-90°). The ROM was not significantly changed before and after operation in the both groups. No infection or neuro-vascular injury occurred.

CONCLUSION

The FAN technique is an effective method to treat valgus knee or varus knee deformity in young patients with DFO.

Inhalation of recombinant adenovirus expressing granulysin protects mice infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Granulysin is a cytolytic molecule with perforin and granzymes that is expressed by activated human CTLs, NK and γδ T cells, and it has broad antimicrobial activity, including to drug-sensitive and drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We hypothesized that approaches facilitating the expression of granulysin in M. tuberculosis-infected host cells in the lung may provide a novel treatment strategy for pulmonary TB. In this study, a recombinant replication-deficient adenovirus serotype 5-based rAdhGLi was constructed that expressed human granulysin in the cytosol of the U937 and RAW264.7 macrophage-like cell lines as confirmed by western blotting and co-localization technology using indirect immunofluorescence staining. Ninety-six hours after both cell lines were infected with M. tuberculosis, acid-fast staining and enumeration demonstrated that rAdhGLi-treated cells had a lower colony-forming units (CFU) of intracellular bacteria than culture medium or AdNull controls. Granulysin was only expressed in the lung and not in other organs following inhalation of rAdhGLi. In particular, immunocompetent BALB/c mice or SCID mice intranasally infected with ~200 CFU of virulent M. tuberculosis H37Rv intranasally were treated with rAdhGLi, and they showed decreased bacterial loads in the lung when compared with phosphate-buffered saline or AdNull controls. Importantly, a clear dose-dependent rAdhGLi treatment efficacy was found in infected BALB/c mice, with the most significant reduction in lung bacteria obtained in BALB/c mice treated with 10(9) plaque-forming units of rAdhGLi without any pathological changes. Our study indicates that rAdhGLi may be used as a novel and efficient treatment strategy with the capability to directly kill intracellular M. tuberculosis.

Secretory clusterin is upregulated in rats with pulmonary arterial hypertension induced by systemic-to-pulmonary shunts and exerts important roles in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells

AIM

Phenotype modification of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) (excessive proliferation, migration and impaired apoptosis) plays central roles in pulmonary vascular remodelling of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH); however, the potential mechanism and contributing factors involved in the phenotype alteration in PASMCs are still not completely elucidated. This study attempted to investigate the expression pattern of secretory clusterin (sCLU), a prosurvival protein, in systemic-to-pulmonary shunt-induced PAH rats and the potential roles of sCLU in pulmonary vascular remodelling.

METHODS

An original rat model of systemic-to-pulmonary shunt-induced PAH was established by combined surgery as we previously reported. Lung tissues were harvested at specific time points for real-time polymerase chain reaction, Western blot and immunohistochemisty analysis; meanwhile, plasma was collected for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cell culture experiments were performed using cultured human PASMCs (HPASMCs).

RESULTS

Expression of sCLU was significantly increased in lungs exposed to systemic-to-pulmonary shunt. Moreover, plasma sCLU levels were markedly elevated with the progression of PAH in rats and also presented a positive correlation with pulmonary hemodynamic indices. In vitro cell culture assay indicated that sCLU expression and secretion increased with the phenotype modification of HPASMCs; furthermore, sCLU promoted HPASMCs proliferation, migration and apoptosis resistance, at least in part, via Erk1/2 and Akt signalling pathways.

CONCLUSION

These results demonstrate that sCLU is functionally an important phenotype modulator of PASMCs, and its upregulation in lung tissues may exert a deteriorative role in pulmonary vascular remodelling.

Correlation analysis of the progesterone-induced sperm acrosome reaction rate and the fertilisation rate in vitro

In this study, we aimed to investigate whether progesterone-induced acrosome reaction (AR) rate could be an indicator for fertilisation rate in vitro. Twenty-six couples with unexplained infertility and undergoing in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment were involved. On the oocytes retrieval day after routine IVF, residual sperm samples were collected to receive progesterone induction (progesterone group) or not (control group). AR rate was calculated and fertilisation rate was recorded. The correlation between progesterone-induced AR and fertilisation rate and between sperm normal morphology and 3PN (tripronuclear) were analysed using the Spearman correlation analysis. The AR rate of progesterone group was statistically higher than that of the control group (15.6 ± 5.88% versus 9.66 ± 5.771%, P < 0.05), but not significantly correlated with fertilisation rate (r = -0.053, P > 0.01) or rate of high-quality embryo development (r = -0.055, P > 0.01). Normal sperm morphology also showed no significant correlation with the amount of 3PN zygotes (r = 0.029, P > 0.01), rate of 3PN zygotes production (r = 0.20, P > 0.01), rate of 3PN embryo development (r = -0.406, P > 0.01), fertilisation rate (r = -0.148, P > 0.01) or progesterone-induced AR rate (r = 0.214, P > 0.01). Progesterone can induce AR in vitro significantly; however, the progesterone-induced AR may not be used to indicate fertilisation rate.

Proteomic pattern changes associated with obesity-induced asthenozoospermia

Obesity, an increasingly frequent societal disease can also be accompanied by declines in spermatozoa quality and male subfecundity. To determine if there are obesity-associated proteomic changes potentially affecting sperm quality and motility, differential proteomic analysis was performed on spermatozoa from both obesity-associated asthenozoospermia and clinically healthy individuals, using a label-free quantitative LC-MS/MS approach. We resolved 1975 proteins in the human sperm proteome, amongst which, 105 proteins were less abundant, whereas 22 other proteins increased in obesity-associated asthenozoospermia. Functional category analyses indicated that the differentially expressed proteins are mainly related to cytoskeletal regulation, vesicle biogenesis, metabolism, and protein degradation involved in spermiogenesis and sperm motility. Furthermore, declines in endoplasmic reticulum protein 57 (ERp57) and actin-binding-related protein T2 (ACTRT2) expression were verified by immunofluorescence, Western blot, and flow cytometry analyses. It is evident that ERp57 is localized in the acrosome region, neck and principal piece of human spermatozoa, whereas ACTRT2 is localized in the post-acrosomal region and middle piece. Thus, these differences in protein expression in asthenozoospermia may contribute to the underlying sperm quality defects afflicting these individuals. Notably, declines in ERp57 and ACTRT2 expression in obesity-associated asthenozoospermia may play critical roles in reducing sperm motility.

Modulation of RTK by sEcad: a putative mechanism for oncogenicity in oropharyngeal SCCs

OBJECTIVE

Heightened levels of sEcad are found in the serum of patients with cancer and correlate with an unfavorable prognosis and later-stages of disease. In this study, we explored whether sEcad is elevated in human OPSCC specimens and FaDu cells. Additionally, we investigated sEcad-EGFR and sEcad-IGF-1R interactions and performed a functional analysis of sEcad in OPSCC cancers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

sEcad, EGFR, and IGF-1R levels were examined in human OPSCC specimens and cells by immunoblotting. sEcad-EGFR and sEcad-IGF-1R interactions were examined by immunoprecipitation and immunoblot assays. Levels of sEcad on EGFR and IGF-1R pathway components were evaluated by IB. The effects of sEcad on OPSCC proliferation, migration, and invasion were assessed using standard cellular assays.

RESULTS

Statistical analysis demonstrated that sEcad levels were significantly higher in OPSCC primary tumors and cells compared with normal controls. IP studies indicated that sEcad associated with EGFR and IGF-1R, and addition of sEcad resulted in a statistically significant increase in downstream signaling. Finally, cell-based assays demonstrated enhanced sEcad-induced proliferation, migration, and invasion, which was blocked by EGFR and IGF-1R inhibitors.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest that sEcad may play an important role in OPSCC oncogenicity via its interaction and activation of EGFR and IGF-1R.

Downregulation of endogenous intermedin augmented myocardial injury in rats with ischemia/reperfusion

Intermedin (IMD) plays an important regulatory role in cardiovascular function. We aimed to explore the protein expression of IMD and its receptors, calcitonin receptor-like receptor (CRLR) and receptor activity-modifying proteins (RAMPs), and the role of endogenous IMD in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in rats. The rat model of I/R was created by ligating cardiac left anterior descending artery. Western blot was used to determine protein expression of CRLR and RAMPs, and radioimmunoassay was used to detect IMD content. Compared with control, protein levels of CRLR and RAMPs in both ischemic and nonischemic region were upregulated at different stages of reperfusion. IMD protein content in nonischemic area myocardium also increased. However, IMD protein content in ischemic area downregulated at 3-, 6-, and 12-h reperfusion. In hypoxia/reoxygenation model of neonatal cardiomyocytes, IMD attenuated myocyte injury, and IMD receptor antagonist IMD17-47 aggravated myocyte impairment by blocking endogenous IMD. In conclusion, the downregulation of IMD at early stage of reperfusion might augment myocardium injury.

Pseudoangiosarcomatous squamous cell carcinoma of the lung

Pulmonary pseudoangiosarcomatous squamous cell carcinoma (PSCC) is a rare aggressive variant of squamous cell carcinoma. Histopathologically, PSCC is characterized by interanastomosing cords and channels, lined by atypical cells, with spaces containing erythrocytes or floating tumour cells. PSCC mimics angiosarcoma, so careful attention should be paid to immunohistochemical differences. Two PSCC cases are described here: in a 79-year-old male, bronchoscopy revealed mucosal swelling and hypertrophy and an adrenal mass was found 1 month later; in a 76-year-old male, computed tomography revealed rib destruction due to a non-calcified soft-tissue tumour and, although the tumour resembled an angiosarcoma, endothelial markers were negative and cytokeratin and p63 markers were positive. Immunohistochemical analyses may be helpful in establishing an accurate diagnosis. PSCC had a progressive course in both patients, who died ≤ 3 months postdiagnosis.

Immunoregulation effect by overexpression of heme oxygenase-1 on cardiac xenotransplantation

OBJECTIVE

This study was designed to investigate the effect of the overexpression of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) on the immunoregulation in the model of abdominal cardiac xenotransplantation from the guinea pig to the rat.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

To increase the expression of HO-1, both donors and recipients were injected with heme through the abdomen before the operation. The donors (guniea pigs) and the recipients (Sprague-Dawley [SD] rats) were divided randomly into three groups: group A, the heart from a guinea pig transplanted into the abdomen of an SD rat; group B, the recipients were injected with Chinese cobra venom factor (CVF) into the abdomen (40 μg/kg and 60 μg/kg 24 hours later) prior to transplantation; group C, CVF + HO-1 high-expression group: donors and recipients were abdominally injected with heme (75 μmol/kg for 2 days before transplantation). The mean survival time (MST), pathological changes, the positive area of HO-1 in the grafted hearts, as well as the expressions of C-C chemokine receptor 5 (CCR5), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and natural killer (NK) cell activity in recipients.

RESULTS

1. The MST was longest in group C treated with heme. 2. The pathologic changes of hyperacute rejection were showed on the donor heart in group A, while delayed xenograft rejection changes took place on donor heart in other groups. 3. Compared with group B, The HO-1 positive area in the donor hearts of group C was significantly higher. (P < .05). 4. The lever of ICAM-1 and CCR5 in the peripheral blood of recipients (pg/mL) was attenuated in group C injected with heme. 5. Compared with group B, the activity of NK cell in the peripheral blood of recipients was much lower in group C (P < .05).

CONCLUSION

The MST was prolonged by increasing expressions of HO-1, but acute vascular rejection was not completely overcome. Activation of vascular endothelial cells could be decreased by strengthening the expression of HO-1. NK cell activity was weakened by reinforced expression of HO-1.

Application of allele-specific RNAi in hepatitis B virus lamivudine resistance

Understanding the consequences of mutation in the tyrosine-methionine-aspartate-aspartate (YMDD) motif of hepatitis B virus (HBV) genome on replication is critical for treating chronic hepatitis B with lamivudine. Allele-specific gene silencing by RNAi (allele-specific RNAi: ASP-RNAi) is an advanced application of RNAi techniques. Use of this strategy as a means for specifically inhibiting an allele expression of interest suggested that it can specifically suppress the expression of alleles causing disease without inhibiting the expression of corresponding wild-type alleles. However, no studies have used ASP-RNAi to address the issue of HBV lamivudine resistance. In this study, we applied ASP-RNAi into two long-term eukaryotic cell lines of full-length HBV containing either lamivudine-resistant mutants (HBV-YIDD) or wild type (HBV-WT) which we generated in previously. The designed siRNAs were also used in this eukaryotic expression system together with lamivudine. ELISA and real-time PCR were performed to monitor virus-specific protein synthesis and viral DNA replication. The results showed that the base substitutions conferring marked ASP-RNAi appeared to be largely present in positions 1, 3, 6, 11, 12, 15 and 19 of the sense strand of siRNAs which were different from the most sensitive positions of this application in eukaryotes. In addition, siRNA-lamivudine combinations did not possess the prominent anti-HBV activity we expected because of some unknown mechanisms. These findings recapitulated many of the features of ASP-RNAi in hepadnaviruses which provided a new insight into the development of a potent strategy against HBV drug resistance.

Gene-dependent cell death in yeast

Caspase-dependent apoptotic cell death has been extensively studied in cultured cells and during embryonic development, but the existence of analogous molecular pathways in single-cell species is uncertain. This has reduced enthusiasm for applying the advanced genetic tools available for yeast to study cell death regulation. However, partial characterization in mammals of additional genetically encoded cell death mechanisms, which lead to a range of dying cell morphologies and necrosis, suggests potential applications for yeast genetics. In this light, we revisited the topic of gene-dependent cell death in yeast to determine the prevalence of yeast genes with the capacity to contribute to cell-autonomous death. We developed a rigorous strategy by allowing sufficient time for gene-dependent events to occur, but insufficient time to evolve new populations, and applied this strategy to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene knockout collection. Unlike sudden heat shock, a ramped heat stimulus delivered over several minutes with a thermocycler, coupled with assessment of viability by automated counting of microscopic colonies revealed highly reproducible gene-specific survival phenotypes, which typically persist under alternative conditions. Unexpectedly, we identified over 800 yeast knockout strains that exhibit significantly increased survival following insult, implying that these genes can contribute to cell death. Although these death mechanisms are yet uncharacterized, this study facilitates further exploration.

Central mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the maxilla: a case report

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Primary mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the jaw is a rare lesion, comprising 2-3% of all mucoepidermoid carcinomas reported in literature. Central mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the maxilla is rarer, comprising only 8% of the mucoepidermoid carcinomas found in the jaw.

METHODOLOGY

A 52-year-old man suffered from central mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the right maxilla with cervical metastasis, and underwent partial maxillectomy and neck dissection in our hospital. The diagnosis was confirmed by histopathology, dental orthopantomography, CT, and PET/CT scans.

RESULT

The man was followed-up regularly and was disease free after 21 months.

CONCLUSION

Primary central mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the jaw is a rare lesion and radical surgical resection is the preferred treatment.

Isolated intracranial Rosai-Dorfman disease mimicking suprasellar meningioma: case report with review of the literature

Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD) is an idiopathic histiocytic proliferation affecting the lymph nodes. Isolated intracranial RDD is rare and usually appears as a well-defined, dural-based lesion without lymphadenopathy. The clinical and radiological features of intracranial RDD are similar to meningioma. Histopathology and immunohistochemistry are essential for a definitive diagnosis. This is a report of a 43-year old male with isolated intracranial RDD, which manifested as a suprasellar meningioma. The clinical, radiological and pathological aspects of the disease are discussed within the context of a review of previously reported cases.

A five-year follow-up study of goiter and thyroid nodules in three regions with different iodine intakes in China

OBJECTIVE

The association between iodine status and the prevalence of goiter and thyroid nodules has been well established but the extent to which different iodine intake levels influence the incidence of goiter and thyroid nodules is unclear. The aim of the study was to determine the incidence of goiter and thyroid nodules in 3 regions with different iodine intake levels: mildly deficient, more than adequate, and excessive.

DESIGN, PATIENTS AND MEASUREMENTS

Of the 3385 unselected subjects enrolled in 1999 in Panshan, Zhangwu, and Huanghua where median urinary iodine excretion (UIE) was 83.5 microg/l, 242.9 microg/l, and 650.9 microg/l, respectively, 2708 (80.0%) participated in the follow-up study in 2004. The examinations of thyroid ultrasonography, thyroid function, thyroid autoantibodies and UIE were performed at baseline and follow-up.

RESULTS

The cumulative incidence of diffuse goiter was 7.1%, 4.4%, and 6.9%, respectively, higher in Panshan and Huanghua than in Zhangwu (p=0.013 and p=0.015) and that of nodular goiter was 5.0%, 2.4%, and 0.8%, respectively, declining with increasing iodine intake levels (p<0.001). Mild iodine deficiency, chronic iodine excess as well as positive thyroid autoantibodies were associated with the occurrence of goiter [Logistic regression: odds ratio (OR)=1.83 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.26-2.65), OR=1.46 (95% CI 1.01-2.11) and OR=1.68 (95% CI 1.14-2.48), respectively]. The cumulative incidence of single nodule was 4.0%, 5.7%, and 5.6%, respectively and that of multiple nodules was 0.4%, 1.2%, and 1.0%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The relationship between iodine and the risk for the occurrence of diffuse goiter shows a U-shaped curve. Nodular goiters are more prevalent in iodine-deficient areas.

Randomized controlled comparative clinical pharmacokinetic study of nab-paclitaxel and solvent-based paclitaxel in Chinese patients (pts) with metastatic breast cancer (MBC)

11505

Background: nab-paclitaxel is a novel solvent-free, 130-nM albumin-bound (nab™) formulation of paclitaxel. In previous studies, nab-paclitaxel demonstrated higher volume of distribution and clearance than that of paclitaxel formulated with Cremophor (Cr-PAC) in Caucasian patients (Sparreboom, Clin Cancer Res 2005;11:4136) and had greater response rate and favorable safety profile in pts with MBC (Gradishar et al., JCO, 2005;23:7794) . The aim of this study was to evaluate nab-paclitaxel blood pharmacokinetics (PK) and compare it with that of Cr-PAC in Chinese MBC patients.Methods: In this randomized controlled, open-label study, patients were assigned to either nab-paclitaxel 260 mg/m2 intravenously (iv) over 30 minutes q3w or Cr-PAC 175 mg/m2 iv over 3 hours q3w. At cycle 1, 12 patients in each treatment group participated in the PK study and then continued treatment until PD or unacceptable toxicity. Plasma samples from pts were analyzed for PK parameters. The primary clinical endpoints were ORR and toxicity (Guan et al; submitted, ASCO, 2007). Results: 24 female pts (median age 44.5 years) participated. No statistically significant between group differences were noted in age, height, weight, or baseline liver function. Paclitaxel blood PK parameters in 2 treatment groups are summarized in the Table. ORR: nab-paclitaxel, 75%; Cr-PAC, 25% (P = 0.018). The maximum grade (G) of neutropenia and neuropathy in the nab-paclitaxel and Cr-PAC groups were G3 and G2, respectively, with no significant between-group difference. Conclusion: nab-Paclitaxel had a greater distribution volume, clearance, and smaller dose adjusted AUC0-inf compared with that of Cr-PAC. There was no significant difference in T1/2 in the 2 groups. PK results in Chinese pts are identical to data reported in Caucasian pts. The lower CL and Vz for Cr-PAC are probably related to sequestration of paclitaxel in the blood by Cremophor. * dose adjusted AUC0-inf

[Table: see text]

[Table: see text]

Recoverability trend of blood pressure and pulse transit time after treadmill exercise

This study examines the recoverability trend of blood pressure (BP) and pulse transit time (PTT) during the 60 minutes immediately following a treadmill exercise. Experiments were conducted on 12 healthy and normotensive subjects, including 8 males and 4 females. All subjects were directed to run on a treadmill at 10 kph for 4 minutes. BP was measured at the finger by the Finometer and also at brachial arteries by a sphygmomanometer. PTT was determined as the time interval between the peak of the R wave of electrocardiogram and the foot of photoplethysmogram. Immediate post exercise PTT is significantly lower than its preexercise baseline level (p < 0.001). During the recovery period, PTT initially increases to the original level at 9 minutes after exercise and then increases continuously, peaks at 20 minutes after exercise, and returns to the baseline at 60 minutes. Although PTT is temporarily higher than the baseline during the recovery period, the changes are not significant (p = 0.37). Immediately after exercise, both finger BP and brachial BP are significantly different from pre-exercise baseline. There is no significant difference in brachial BP by 5 minutes after exercise and in finger BP, by 9 minutes.

RNA polymerase II transcription is required for human papillomavirus type 16 E7- and hydroxyurea-induced centriole overduplication

Aberrant centrosome numbers are detected in virtually all human cancers where they can contribute to chromosomal instability by promoting mitotic spindle abnormalities. Despite their widespread occurrence, the molecular mechanisms that underlie centrosome amplification are only beginning to emerge. Here, we present evidence for a novel regulatory circuit involved in centrosome overduplication that centers on RNA polymerase II (pol II). We found that human papillomavirus type 16 E7 (HPV-16 E7)- and hydroxyurea (HU)-induced centriole overduplication are abrogated by alpha-amanitin, a potent and specific RNA pol II inhibitor. In contrast, normal centriole duplication proceeded undisturbed in alpha-amanitin-treated cells. Centriole overduplication was significantly reduced by siRNA-mediated knock down of CREB-binding protein (CBP), a transcriptional co-activator. We identified cyclin A2 as a key transcriptional target of RNA pol II during HU-induced centriole overduplication. Collectively, our results show that ongoing RNA pol II transcription is required for centriole overduplication whereas it may be dispensable for normal centriole duplication. Given that many chemotherapeutic agents function through inhibition of transcription, our results may help to develop strategies to target centrosome-mediated chromosomal instability for cancer therapy and prevention.

[Mutations of mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene in type 2 diabetes]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate mutations at points 1310, 1438 and 1442 of mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene in Chinese type 2 diabetes and screen for new mutations associated with type 2 diabetes in this area.

METHODS

The mitochondrial DNAs (mtDNAs) of 86 patients with type 2 diabetes and those of 70 normal controls were analyzed using PCR-SSCP and PCR product direct sequencing technique.

RESULTS

One patient was found with the mitochondrial DNA G --> A mutation at point 1438, and one with the G two head right arrow A mutation at point 1442, whereas none of the normal controls was found to have mutation at these two points. No C --> T mutation at nucleotide pair 1310 of the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene was identified.

CONCLUSION

The G --> A mutation at points 1438 and 1442 is likely to be associated with the development of type 2 diabetes; the occurrence of the C -->T mutation at point 1310 is probably rare in the blood cells, and the development of type 2 diabetes may be related to heterogeneity in mitochondrial genetic changes.

Quantitative assay of telomerase activity in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and other tissues

OBJECTIVES

To confirm the applicability and use of a new technique to detect and quantify telomerase activity of specimens from head and neck malignant neoplasms and to explore whether the levels of telomerase activity can be a useful marker for cancer risk assessment in head and neck malignant neoplasms.

DESIGN

Ninety-six specimens from 39 patients with head and neck malignant neoplasms were obtained. The specimens included 39 from patients with primary tumors (25 with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and 14 with others), 10 from patients with neck metastases, 10 from patients with dysplasias, and 37 from patients with normal tissue. HeLa cell lines were used as positive control samples.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

The levels of telomerase activity were determined using a liquid scintillation counter.

RESULTS

The new method has a high rate of outcome reproducibility. The intrabatch and extrabatch variations were 15.6% and 16.4%, respectively. The linear relationship was good between the telomerase activity and the value within 700 radioactive cpm (rcpm) to approximately 7000 rcpm. The levels of telomerase activity determined by radioactive count were more than 1000 rcpm in 42 of the 49 malignant specimens and much more than that in the normal tissues, with the exception of 3 specimens. The levels of telomerase activity in normal tissues were less than 1000 rcpm in every sample and less than that in the malignant neoplasm samples, with the exception of 1 specimen (P < .000). Higher levels of telomerase activity in 2 of 10 tissues from patients who had dysplasias were detected (2 specimens from patients who had severe dysplasia). The differences in the levels of telomerase activity between the head and neck squamous cell carcinomas and the other tumors were not statistically significant (P > .05).

CONCLUSIONS

Detection of telomerase activity in head and neck malignant neoplasms can be a useful marker for the assessment of cancer. Telomerase reactivation may play an important role in tumorigenesis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. The quantification of telomerase activity may have clinical diagnostic value for head and neck malignant neoplasms.

An allyltitanium derived from acrolein 1,2-dicyclohexylethylene acetal and (eta(2)-propene)Ti(O-i-Pr)(2) as a chiral propionaldehyde homoenolate equivalent that reacts with imines with excellent stereoselectivity. An efficient and practical access to optically active gamma-amino carbonyl compounds

A chiral allyltitanium compound 2, prepared in situ by the reaction of optically active acrolein 1,2-dicyclohexylethylene acetal (3) with (eta(2)-propene)Ti(O-i-Pr)(2) (1), reacts with a variety of acyclic and cyclic imines 4 in a regiospecific way to afford alpha-addition products 5 as a mixture of the E- and Z-isomers in good combined yield, where the former is predominant in a ratio of 92:8 to >95:5. The mixture of (E)- and (Z)-5 and pure (E)-5 which could be isolated in several cases were respectively converted to the corresponding beta-amino ester 6 to confirm the absolute configuration and enantiomeric purity. The ee of the newly formed asymmetric center of 5 is more than 78% for the mixture of (E)- and (Z)-5 and more than 96% for pure (E)-5. By taking advantage of the versatility of the vinyl ether moiety in 5, optically active gamma-amino aldehydes 8, gamma-amino aldehyde acetals 7 and 10, gamma-amino acids 9, beta-amino esters 6, and pyrrolidinoisoquinolines 12 were readily prepared. In the reaction of 2 with optically active alpha-silyloxyimine 4n, remarkable double stereodifferentiation was observed; thus, the reaction of 2 derived from (S,S)- or (R,R)-3 provided syn- and anti-5n in a ratio of 55:45 or 0:100, respectively. Meanwhile, the stereochemistry of the product in the reaction of 2 with beta-silyloxyimine 4o was controlled mainly by 2. Thus, the reaction of beta-silyloxyimine 14 with 2 derived from 1 and (R,R)-3 afforded gamma-silyloxyimine 15 with 92% diastereoselectivity, from which 4-amino-6-hydroxypentadecanal dimethyl acetal (13), a key intermediate for the synthesis of batzelladine D, was synthesized.

Non-NF-kappaB elements are required for full induction of the rat type II nitric oxide synthase in vascular smooth muscle cells

We have investigated the role of the NF-kappaB binding sites and other promoter elements beyond NF-kappaB in iNOS induction in rat vascular smooth muscle cells (SMC). Rat aortic SMC transfected with iNOS promoter constructs with either mutation or deletion of the downstream NF-kappaB site exhibited about 50% reduction in promoter activity in response to a cytokine mixture, whereas either mutation or deletion of the upstream NF-kappaB site reduced promoter activity by 90%, suggesting that the latter site is the most important, and that co-existence of two NF-kappaB sites is necessary for iNOS induction. Nuclear NF-kappaB activity was robustly induced by TNF-alpha. However, TNF-alpha alone did not induce iNOS promoter activity, protein expression, or nitrite production, indicating that NF-kappaB activation alone is not sufficient for iNOS induction. The construct up to -890 bp, containing the downstream NF-kappaB site, exhibited little response to cytokines. The construct up to -1.0 kb, containing the two NF-kappaB sites exhibited only 22% of full promoter activity. The regions -1001 to -1368 bp and -2 to -2.5 kb contributed an additional 43 and 22% promoter activity, respectively. Internal deletion or reversal of the orientation of -1001 to -1368 bp in the full promoter resulted in 40% reduction in promoter activity. These data suggest that the co-existence of two NF-kappaB sites is essential for core promoter activity, but that full induction of the rat SMC iNOS gene requires other elements located between -1.0 to -1.37 and -2.0 to -2.5 kb of the promoter.

A reverse nuclear factor-kappaB element in the rat type II nitric oxide synthase promoter mediates the induction by interleukin-1beta and interferon-gamma in rat aortic smooth muscle cells

The rat type II nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) promoter contains two nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB)-binding sites, one upstream (-965 to -956 bp) and one downstream (-107 to -98 bp), which are important for iNOS induction. We have identified a third NF-kappaB site located at -901 to -892 bp whose sequence is identical to that of the upstream site but with the opposite orientation ("the reverse NF-kappaB site"). We hypothesized that the reverse NF-kappaB site, like the other two sites, is important for iNOS induction. With the use of a rat iNOS promoter fragment of -906 to -887 bp as probe, electrophoretic mobility shift assays were performed on nuclear proteins extracted from rat aortic smooth muscle cells (RASMCs) treated with interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta, 100 U/ml) +/- interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma, 250 U/ml) for 30 min. IL-1beta, but not IFN-gamma, induced a DNA-protein complex that was supershifted by either anti-NF-kappaB p50 or anti-NF-kappaB p65 antibody. The functionality of the reverse NF-kappaB site was evaluated by mutation experiments and transfection assays. The wild-type and mutated -1.4 kb rat iNOS promoter-luciferase constructs were transfected into RASMCs. Compared with the wild type, reverse-NF-kappaB site (-901 to -892 bp) deletion, substitution of T for C at -894 bp, and substitution TTT for CCC at -896 to -894 bp decreased the IL-1beta-induced promoter activity by 67% (p < 0.001), 45% (p < 0.001), and 56% (p < 0.001), respectively. These deletion/substitutions also decreased the IL-1beta- and IFN-gamma-induced promoter activity by 74% (p < 0.001), 53%(p < 0. 001), and 63% (p < 0.001), respectively. In conclusion, a p50 and p65 NF-kappaB heterodimer binds to a reverse-NF-kappaB site on the rat iNOS promoter and contributes to iNOS induction by IL-1beta and IFN-gamma in RASMCs.

[Effect of testosterone on spermatogenesis: dynamics of testosterone secretion in adult rat testis]

OBJECTIVE

To study the effect of testosterone on spermatogenesis.

METHODS

Testosterone concentrations were measured in testicular interstitial fluid (IF), and serum sample from the testicular artery, testicular veins on the surface of the testis, and the peripheral venous, inferior vena cave and proximal spermatic veins in adult SD rats. The left and bilateral veins at the proximal end of the spermatic cord were ligated respectively. Testosterone concentrations and weight of the testis were measured, and the changes of the testicular morphology were studied 3 days and 21 days after ligation respectively.

RESULTS

The testosterone concentrations were highest in IF. The serum testosterone concentrations were highest in the testicular veins on the surface of the testis. The serum testosterone concentrations in the proximal spermatic veins, the testicular artery, the peripheral venous and inferior vena cave were (42.503 +/- 12.749), (42.503 +/- 12.749), (5.598 +/- 3.649), (2.533 +/- 1.719) and (2.418 +/- 1.495) mg/L respectively. Three days after the proximal spermatic veins were ligated bilaterally, the weights of the testis and the serum testosterone concentrations declined markedly. The epithelium of the seminiferous tubules degenerated slightly and part of the structure was indistinct. Three days after the left proximal spermatic veins were ligated, the weights of the left testis, the testosterone concentrations in the left IF and in the serum of the left testicular artery declined distinctly except the serum testosterone concentration of the peripheral venous, inferior vena cave and those of the right testis. The epithelium of the seminiferous tubules in the left testis degenerated slightly and part of the structure was indistinct. It was restored 21 days after ligation.

CONCLUSIONS

A "small circulation" (testis-the testicular veins-the spermatic veins-the spermatic artery-the testicular artery-testis) may exist. The results indicate that after ligation of the proximal spermatic veins, the reduction of the testosterone concentrations and changes of testicular morphology is temporary and may be recovered.