ABSTRACT
Objective: To compare the effect of galectin-3 (Gal-3), NT-proBNP and echocardiography paramerters on assessing cardiac function in patients with chronic heart failure (HF). Methods: A total of 144 patients treated in our hospital from 2016-03 to 2016-11 were enrolled. According to the NYHA classification, the patients were divided into 2 groups: HF group and Normal cardiac function group. n=72 in each group. Basic clinical information was collected, blood levels of Gal-3 and NT-proBNP were examined, echocardiography was conducted to measure left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and left ventricular end diastolic diameter (LVEDD). Correlations between Gal-3, NT-proBNP and echocardiography parameters were studied, the abilities of Gal-3, NT-proBNP and echocardiography for estimating HF were compared. Results: Compared with Normal cardiac function group, HF group had increased blood levels of NT-proBNP [3499.5 (1431.3-9088.0) ng/L] vs [384.1 (122.1-1540.5) ng/L] and Gal-3 [3.0 (1.71-5.8) pg/ml] vs [1.9 (1.4-2.6) pg/ml], decreased LVEF [49.5% (42%-58%)] vs [62.5% (59%-67%)], enlarged LVEDD [52.0 (46.3-57.8) mm] vs [46.0 (42.0-49.0) mm] and elevated serum creatinine [113.6 (90.5-152.7) umol/L] vs 82.4 (69.1-97.4) umol/L], all P<0.05. Correlation analysis showed that NT-proBNP and Galectin-3 were positively related to LVEF and LVEDD; Gal-3 and NT-ProBNP had the strongest correlation (r=0.57, P<0.01). The AUC of ROC for Gal-3 was 0.674 (0.584-0.763), for NT-proBNP was 0.837 (0.771-0.902) and for LVEF was 0.806, (0.735-0.878) which implied that NT-proBNP was the most powerful parameter for estimating HF. Conclusion: Gal-3 had the ability to estimate HF and could be used as a biomarker, while its ability was lower than NT-proBNP in clinical practice.
ABSTRACT
The aims of this study were to prepare Cu(2+)-loaded montmorillonite (Cu-MMT) and investigate its bactericidal activity and mechanism. Cu-MMT was prepared by the method of ion exchange reaction. The structure and surface characteristic of Cu-MMT were determined. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of Cu-MMT against the strain of Escherichia coli were determined. The activities of intracellular enzyme in bacterial solution were measured, and the morphology of E. coli was observed during the interaction between Cu-MMT and bacteria. The results showed that treatment with Cu2+ increased cation exchange capacity of montmorillonite, but specific surface area and surface negative charge density were decreased. The MIC and MBC of Cu-MMT against the tested E. coli were 0.16 and 0.64 mg x m(L(-1), respectively. Cu-MMT could destroy bacterial cellular membrane and then resulted in leakage of intracellular enzymes such as asparate aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase and alanine aminotransferase. These suggest that Cu-MMT has a strong bactericidal activity. The bactericidal mechanism of Cu-MMT may be that bacteria are adsorbed by Cu-MMT, and then morphology and permeability of cellular membrane are changed. This leads to an efflux of intracellular contents and the death of bacteria.