Association of the Serotonin Receptor 3E Gene as a Functional Variant in the MicroRNA-510 Target Site with Diarrhea Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Chinese Women

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The functional variant (rs56109847) in the 3'-untranslated regions (3'-UTR) of the serotonin receptor 3E (HTR3E) gene is associated with female diarrhea predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) in British populations. However, the relationship of the polymorphism both to HTR3E expression in the intestine and to the occurrence of Chinese functional gastrointestinal disorders has yet to be examined. METHODS: Polymerase chain reaction amplification and restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses were employed to detect polymorphisms among Chinese Han women, particularly 107 patients with IBS-D, 99 patients with functional dyspepsia (FD), 115 patients with mixed IBS and 69 patients with IBS-D + FD. We also assessed microRNA-510 (miR-510) and HTR3E expression in human colonic mucosal tissues with immunohistochemistry and other methods. Dual-luciferase reporter assays were conducted to examine the binding ability of miR-510 and HTR3E 3'-UTR. RESULTS: Genotyping data showed the variant rs56109847 was significantly associated with IBS-D, but not with FD, mixed-IBS, or FD + IBS-D. HTR3E was abundantly expressed around the colonic mucosal glands but less expressed in the stroma. miR-510 expression decreased, whereas HTR3E expression increased in the colonic mucosal tissue of patients with IBS-D compared with those in controls. HTR3E expression was significantly higher in patients with the GA genotype than that in patients with the GG genotype. The single-nucleotide polymorphisms disrupted the binding site of miR-510 and significantly upregulated luciferase expression in HEK293 and HT-29 cells. CONCLUSIONS: The single-nucleotide polymorphisms rs56109847 led to reduced microRNA binding and overexpression of the target gene in intestinal cells, thereby increasing IBS-D risk in the Chinese Han population. The decreased expression of miR-510 might contribute to IBS-D.

Clinical study on fumigation therapy combined with knee-release massage for knee osteoarthritis / 国际中医中药杂志

Objective To observe effectiveness of Chinese herbal fumigation therapy combined with six-step knee-release massage on patients with knee osteoarthritis. Methods 80 cases with knee osteoarthritis were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group, 40 in each. The treatment group was given Chinese herbal fumigation therapy combined with six-step knee-release massage, while the control group was treated only by six-step knee-release massage. 20 days of treatment was considered as 1 course, after which major symptoms and signs were observed and X-ray examination was applied to determine the curative effect. Results① As for clinical effectiveness, the total effective rate was 92.5%in the treatment group and 70%in the control group. There was statistical difference between two groups(χ2=11.087, P0.05),there was statistical difference in terms of pain, functionality, motion, fixed deformity, stability, subtractions and total score between two groups(t values were 8.081, 10.977, 3.846, 9.450, 9.611, 9.450, 15.984 respectively, P<0.01). Conclusion Chinese herbal fumigation therapy combined with six-step knee-release massage could effectively relieve clinical symptoms like joint pain, morning stiffness and inflexibility. It is worth popularizing in clinical treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

Study on Disseminated Trichosporonosis Caused by Trichosporon asahii in Murine Model / 中华皮肤科杂志

Objective To investigate the pathogenic factors and the visceral involvement in murine disseminated trichosporonosis caused by Trichosporon asahii. Methods Forty-five mice were immunosuppressed with cyclophospamide 3 days hefore and 7 days after inoculation of T. asahii, and were divided into intravenously inoculated group (n = 15), intradermal inoculated group (n = 7), gastrointestinal infusion group (n = 8), intravenously inoculated + treatment group (n = 15). In the control groups the mice were not immunosuppressed, and were also divided into intravenous, intradermal, and G.I. infusion groups with the same number of mice respectively. In the treatment group the mice were given both liposomal amphotericin B and fluconazole. The main viscera of the mice were examined by mycologic culture and pathologic sections. Results In the intravenous inoculation group of immunized mice, Trichosporon asahii were isolated from at least one organ in 10/12 mice, while T. asahii were only isolated in 2/14 mice in the control group; in 2/7 mice of the intradermal group of immunosuppressed mice, skin lesion appeared at the inoculation site, but no visceral infection was observed. No visceral infection was found in the groups that T. asahii was inoculated by non-intravenous injection in both immunosuppressed and non-immunosuppressed mice. The number of mice died, the number of visceral organs involved and the incidence of systemic infection were significantly less in the treatment group than those in the non-treatment groups (P

Expression and regulation of DC-SIGN gene in cutaneous Trichosporon asahii infection in mice / 解放军医学杂志

Objective Dentritic cell-specific ICAM-3 grabbing nonintegrin (DC-SIGN) is an important receptor for pathogenic microbes, and it acts as pathogen-recognition receptor (PAMP) and provides a bridge between the innate immunity and acquired immunity. It is meaningful to clarify whether DC-SIGN takes part in the course of cutaneous Trichosporon asahii infection and how it manages the other cytokines. Methods Twenty-five male mice were hypodermically injected with 3.2?107 CFU/ml of Trichosporon asahii suspension on one side of the back, the other side of the back received no injection to serve as control. Another five mice were treated with 0.9% saline solution as control. The cutaneous specimens were obtained on the 1st, 3rd, 7th and 14th day after inoculation. The expression of DC-SIGN gene and the other genes related to cutaneous immunity after cutaneous infection of Trichosporon asahii were investigated by RT-PCR and microarray. Results The DC-SIGN products containing 242 bp of nucleic acid from the skin specimens of the inoculated sites were amplified with RT-PCR on the 3rd, 7th and 14th day after inoculation. The results of microarray showed that a series of genes were down-regulated, including complement component 2, TNF-inducible protein cg12-1 (CG12-1), interferon-induced protein with tetratricopeptide repeats 3 (Ifit3), CD53 antigen, CD22 antigen, and prostaglandin E receptor 4. Conclusions The results suggest that DC-SIGN takes part in the course of Trichosporon asahii infection. DC-SIGN not only inhibits Th1 type of cell-mediated immunity, but also inhibits some of complement factors, prostaglandin E receptor and immunoglobulin binding protein 1b, thus resulting in chronic and intractable infection of Trichosporon asahii. The detailed roles of DC-SIGN in the course need to be further studied.