Bone protective effect of sinomenine against monosodium iodoacetate induced knee and hip injury in rat model: an inflammatory pathway

Purpose: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease which is categorized via destruction of joint cartilage and it also affects the various joints, especially knees and hips. Sinomenine active phytoconstituents isolated from the stem of Sinomenium acutum and already proof anti-inflammatory effect against the arthritis model of rodent. In this experimental protocol, we scrutinized the anti-osteoarthritis effect of sinomenine against monosodium iodoacetate (MIA) induced OA in rats. Methods: MIA (3 mg/50 µL) was used for inducing the OA in the rats, and rats received the oral administration of sinomenine (2.5, 5 and 7.5 mg/kg body weight) up to the end of the experimental study (four weeks). The body and organs weight were estimated. Aggrecan, C-terminal cross-linked telopeptide of type II collagen (CTX-II), glycosaminoglycans (GCGs), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), Interferon gamma (IFN-γ), antioxidant, inflammatory cytokines, inflammatory mediators and matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) were analyzed. Results: Sinomenine significantly (P < 0.001) boosted the body weight and reduced the heart weight, but the weight of spleen and kidney remain unchanged. Sinomenine significantly (P < 0.001) reduced the level of nitric oxide, MCP-1 and improved the level of aggrecan, IFN-γ and GCGs. Sinomenine remarkably upregulated the level of glutathione, superoxide dismutase and suppressed the level of malonaldehyde. It effectually modulated the level of inflammatory cytokines and inflammatory mediators and significantly (P < 0.001) reduced the level of MMPs, like MMP-1, 2, 3, 9 and 13. Conclusions: Sinomenine is a beneficial active agent for the treatment of OA disease.

Fast saccharide mapping method for quality consistency evaluation of commercial xylooligosaccharides collected in China / 药物分析学报

Due to the extensive use of xylooligosaccharides (XOS) as functional food ingredients,many inferior goods and even adulterants are generally found in the market,which may pose a health hazard to certain populations.Chromatography method such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) is traditionally applied for the quality analysis of XOS.However,it is time consuming due to the prolonged separation and pre-or post-derivatization procedure.In this study,a fast saccharide mapping method based on matrix-assisted laser desorption/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) was developed for the quality consistency analysis of 22 batches of XOS collected from different manufacturers in China.The time needed for saccharides analysis using MALDI-MS was less than 30 min for one plate,at least 6 times faster than that by the traditional HPTLC chromatography method.In addition,MALDI-MS possessed higher resolution for XOS with DP4-DP7 based on the difference of m/z,which is hardly separated using HPTLC.The results showed that XOS were present only in samples XY01-XY11,samples XY12-XY14 only consisted of hex oligo-saccharides,and samples XY15-XY22 were free of oligosaccharides.These indicate that the quality consistency of XOS products in the China market was poor,which should be carefully investigated.

Follistatin Like 5 (FSTL5) inhibits epithelial to mesenchymal transition in hepatocellular carcinoma / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a key process in determining distant metastasis and intra-hepatic dissemination of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Follistatin (FST) family members are considered to be an attractive therapeutic targets and prognostic indicators in cancers. As a derivative of FST, Follistatin Like 5 (FSTL5) may play a similar role in HCC cells. This study aimed to investigate the expression and function of FSTL5 in HCC and its role in EMT.@*METHODS@#FSTL5, E-cadherin and vimentin in HCC, and paracancerous tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry. Correlation of FSTL5 expression with overall survival was assessed. The proliferation and invasion of HCC cell lines SK-Hep1 and MHCC-LM3 were analyzed by cell counting kit-8 and Transwell assays. The expression of FSTL5, E-cadherin, and vimentin in HCC cells was examined by polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis. T-test was used to analyze the difference in proliferation and invasion ability between groups. The Spearman rank correlation test was used to detect the correlation between the expression of FSTL5 and E-cadherin or vimentin.@*RESULTS@#The expression of FSTL5 in HCC was lower than that in paracancerous tissues (9.97% vs. 82.55%, χ = 340.15, P < 0.001). Patients with high FSTL5 expression had a better prognosis (χ = 8.22, P = 0.004) and smaller tumor diameter (χ = 45.52, P < 0.001), less lymph node metastasis (χ = 5.58, P = 0.02), earlier tumor node metastasis stage (χ = 11.29, P = 0.001), a reduced number of tumors (χ = 5.05, P = 0.02), lower alpha-fetoprotein value (χ = 24.36, P < 0.001), more probability of hepatitis carrying (χ = 40.9, P < 0.001), and better liver function grade (χ = 5.21, P = 0.02). Immunohistochemistry showed that FSTL5 expression in HCC tissues was positively correlated with E-cadherin expression (r = 0.38, P < 0.001) and negatively correlated with vimentin expression (r = -0.385, P < 0.001). Furthermore, over-expression of FSTL5 up-regulated the expression of E-cadherin and down-regulated the expression of vimentin in SK-Hep1 (negative control [NC] vs. FSTL5-interfering group [Lv-FSTL5]: E-cadherin [t = 45.03, P < 0.001], vimentin [t = 67, P < 0.001]) and MHCC-LM3 (NC vs. Lv-FSTL5: E-cadherin [t = 50, P < 0.001], vimentin [t = 72.75, P < 0.001]) cells at mRNA level. The same as protein level. In addition, the over-expression of FSTL5 inhibited the proliferation (NC vs. Lv-FSTL5: SK-Hep1, 3 d [t = 7.324, P = 0.018], 4 d [t = 6.23, P = 0.021], 5 d [t = 10.21, P = 0.003]; MHCC-LM3, 3 d [t = 4.32, P = 0.037], 4 d [t = 7.49, P = 0.012], 5 d [t = 9.3661, P = 0.009]) and invasion (NC vs. Lv-FSTL5: SK-Hep1, t = 21.57, P < 0.001; MHCC-LM3, t = 18.04, P < 0.001) of HCC cells.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Down-regulation of FSTL5 may contribute to EMT of HCC, and FSTL5 is a potential target in the treatment of HCC.

Preparation of decontaminant for skin radioactive isotopes contamination of Co2+ and Mn2+ / 解放军医学杂志

Objective To develop a detergent for decontamination of Co2+ and Mn2+ on skin.Methods Single-factor experimental and orthogonal experimental designs were performed to study the formula composition of the decontaminant.The skin irritation experiment was performed and assessed according to the standard method.The detergent was prepared according the conventional process of showering gel.The pH,ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) level,total active substances of the detergent,and its stability were evaluated according to the chemical method recommended in the national standard GB/T 13173-2008.The decontamination efficiency on stable isotopes of Co2+ and Mn2+ contamination was measured on the back of hand skin of volunteers.Results The formula composition of the decontaminant was obtained through the orthogonal experiment.The pH value of the detergent was 6.99,total active substance was 20.49％ and the content of EDTA was 5.99％.After being kept at-5 ℃ and 40℃℃ for 24h,the decontaminant showed no strange smell,no precipitation,no discoloration and still kept transparent.The decontamination effects on Co2+ and Mn2+ contaminated on hand skin were 103.13％ ± 0.05％ and 100.62％ ± 0.09％,respectively,which was significantly higher than that of distilled water (81.77％ ± 0.23％ and 79.63％ ± 0.23％,P＜0.01,respectively).Conclusion The decontaminant has a high effect on decontamination of Co2+ and Mn2+ polluted on skin,and is hopeful to be developed as an effective detergent on radioactive isotopes contamination.

GPo1 alkB gene expression for improvement of the degradation of diesel oil by a bacterial consortium

To facilitate the biodegradation of diesel oil, an oil biodegradation bacterial consortium was constructed. The alkane hydroxylase (alkB) gene of Pseudomonas putida GPo1 was constructed in a pCom8 expression vector, and the pCom8-GPo1 alkB plasmid was transformed into Escherichia coli DH5α. The AlkB protein was expressed by diesel oil induction and detected through SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The culture of the recombinant (pCom8-GPo1 alkB/E. coli DH5α) with the oil biodegradation bacterial consortium increased the degradation ratio of diesel oil at 24 h from 31% to 50%, and the facilitation rates were increased as the proportion of pCom8-GPo1 alkB/E. coli DH5α to the consortium increased. The results suggested that the expression of the GPo1 gene in E. coli DH5α could enhance the function of diesel oil degradation by the bacterial consortium.