ABSTRACT
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is considered to be a manifestation of hepatic metabolic syndrome. Some studies on the pathogenesis of NAFLD by targeting gut microbiota have attracted wide attention. Previous studies have demonstrated the positive effects of berberine and evodiamine on metabolic diseases and gut microbiota dysbiosis. However, it is not known whether the combination of berberine and evodiamine (BE) can prevent the development of high-fat diet (HFD)-induced NAFLD. Therefore, we aimed to explore the protective effects of BE on the development of HFD-induced NAFLD from the perspective of the gut microbiota. Gut microbiota profiles were established by high throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA gene. The effects of BE on liver and intestinal tissue, intestinal barrier integrity, and hepatic inflammation were also investigated. The results showed that the abundance and diversity of gut microbiota were enriched by BE treatment, with an increase in beneficial bacteria, such as Lactobacillus, Ruminococcus, and Prevotella, and a decrease in pathogenic bacteria such as Fusobacterium and Lachnospira. In addition, BE effectively improved liver fat accumulation and tissue damage, inhibited the apoptosis of intestinal epithelial cells, increased the contents of intestinal tight junction proteins, and decreased the expression of pro-inflammatory factors. Consequently, BE treatment could be an effective and alternative strategy for alleviating NAFLD by modulating gut microbiota and safeguarding the intestinal barrier.
ABSTRACT
Objective@#To understand the characteristics of rapid naming in exotropia children, and to analyze the influence of clinical indicators related to exotropia on the rapid naming.@*Methods@#A total of 45 exotropia children were recruited according to the diagnostic criteria of consensus of strabismus classification experts (2015) from the Zhongshan ophthalmic center as the case group, and 45 children of the same age, gender and parental educational status were recruited as the control group without any ocular diseases. All children were evaluated the ability of the rapid naming by classical rapid naming test.@*Results@#The letter rapid naming time of children with exotropia was longer than that in control group [(26.87±10.18)(21.98±7.29)s], and the difference was statistically significant (t=2.73, P=0.01), however there was no significant correlation between strabismus degree, symptom duration, AC/A ratio, disease classification, simultaneous vision, the near stereopsis, the far stereopsis and the letter rapid naming in the clinical indicators of exotropia (r=-0.16, 0.23, 0.20, 0.06, 0.09, 0.05, 0.20, P>0.05).@*Conclusion@#Rapid naming might be impaired among children with exotropia, with no significant correlation between this defect and its clinical indicators.
ABSTRACT
Objective@#To explore the visuospatial memory characteristics of school-age children with exotropia and to analyze associated factors.@*Methods@#Based on a case-control study,45 exotropia children aged 8-12 years and 45 normal control children were recruited from 2017-2019. The "tapping test" was used to evaluate the visuospatial short-term and working memory of children.@*Results@#There was no significant differences in the scores of visuospatial short-term memory between the exotropia group and the control group [(7.64±1.69)(8.00±1.66)，t=-1.00，P=0.32)]. The scores of visuospatial working memory in the control group were higher than those in the exotropia group [(5.98±1.23)(6.80±1.53)，t=-2.81，P=0.01)]. In the reverse tapping test,the better the near stereopsis was,the higher the score was (B=0.78,95%CI=0.23-1.33,P=0.01),and the constant exotropia children performed better than the intermittent exotropia children(B=1.25,95%CI=0.16-2.24,P=0.03).@*Conclusion@#Visuospatial working memory is impaired in school-age children with exotropia,and the visuospatial working memory of exotropia children is affected by the near stereopsis and exotropia constancy.
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@# Objective: To investigate the molecular mechanism of chemokine CCL20/CCR6 in promoting invasion and migration of colon cancer SW480 cells. Methods: Colorectal cancer SW480 cells with high expression of CCR6 receptor were screened by immunochemistry (IHC). After co-culture with recombinant human CCL20, the invasion and migration of SW480 cells were detected by Transwell assay and Wound-Healing assay, respectively. Expressions of EMT markers, AKT signal protein and target protein MMP3 were detected by immunofluorescence (IF) and WB. AKT signaling pathway as the key mechanism was confirmed by MK2206 blocking assay. The expressions of CCL20 and MMP3 in colorectal cancer tissues as well as their correlation were analyzed by TCGAdatabase resources (https://portal.gdc.cancer.gov/). Results: CCL20 promoted the invasion and migration ability of SW480 cells significantly (all P <0.01), and this was induced by activation of AKT signaling and up-regulation of downstream target protein MMP3, instead of EMT. Blocking AKT signaling could significantly inhibit the invasion and migration of SW480 cells, and down-regulate MMP3 expression (P<0.05). TCGA platform data showed that the expressions of CCL20 and MMP3 in colorectal cancer tissues were significantly higher than those in normal mucosa tissues (P<0.05 or P<0.01), and an evidently positive correlation was found between CCL20 and MMP3 (r =0.051, P<0.01). Conclusion: The chemokine CCL20 promotes the invasion and migration of SW480 cells throughAKT/MMP3 signal axis, but not the EMT.
ABSTRACT
<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Donor organ rejection continues to be a significant problem for patients receiving transplants. We therefore tested whether transferring a donor's major histocompatibility complex (MHC) gene to the recipient would mitigate the rejection of transplanted hearts in mice.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>H-2K(k) gene from donor mice was amplified using nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and ligated into a mammalian expression vector, which was then transfected into thymus ground mass cells collected from the recipients. Clones stably expressing the transgene were then injected into the recipients' thymus visualized using ultrasound. Control mice were administered cells previously transfected with empty vector. Following heart transplantation, cardiac activity was monitored electrocardiographically. Recipient thymus cells were tested for MHC antigenicity using flow cytometry and spleen cells were subjected to mixed lymphocyte culture tests. Finally, the transplanted hearts were sectioned, stained and examined under light microscopy.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Southern analysis following nested PCR revealed clear expression of H-2K(k) gene. Following transplantation, electrocardiosignals were detectable highly significantly longer in recipients administered thymal cells expressing donor H-2K(k) than in those receiving control cells. Flow cytometric analysis using an anti-H-2K(k) antibody confirmed its expression in H-2K(k) treated recipients but not in control mice. Mixed lymphocyte cultures containing H-2K(k) treated cells showed significantly less proliferation than those containing control cells. Hearts from control mice showed substantially greater lymphocyte infiltration than those from H-2K(k) treated mice and large areas of necrosis.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Rejection of transplanted hearts can be mitigated substantially by introducing the donor's MHC into the recipient.</p>
Subject(s)
Animals , Female , Male , Mice , Blotting, Southern , Electrocardiography , Flow Cytometry , Graft Rejection , Genetics , Allergy and Immunology , Heart Transplantation , Allergy and Immunology , Methods , Major Histocompatibility Complex , Genetics , Allergy and Immunology , Polymerase Chain ReactionABSTRACT
A fused functional gene of human OPG and Mhsp65 was amplified by PCR,and cloned into the prokaryotic expression vector pET-28a.The BL21(DE3) strain of E.coli was transformed using the recombinant plasmid pET-28a-OPG-HSP65 and the expected protein was expressed by induction with IPTG.Result of SDS-PAGE indicated that the expected recombinant protein of 23 kDa was expressed with high yield as inclusion body.The fusion protein could be specifically recognized by both the anti-His antibody and anti-human OPG monoclonal antibody in Western blot analysis.The purified and refolded fusion protein could inhibit osteoclast proliferation and bone absorption in vitro.The results of mouse ear swelling assay and expressions of TNF-?,IFN-? and IL-17 mRNAs detected by real-time quantitative PCR demonstrated that the fusion protein had an anti-inflammation activity.The results suggest that the fusion protein of human OPG and Mhsp65 may act as a potential therapeutics for rheumatoid arthritis.