Preconditioning of stem cells for the treatment of myocardial infarction / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>Poor stem cell survival is one of the obstacles for cell regeneration therapy post myocardial infarction (MI) and responsible for unsatisfactory therapeutic effectiveness. Various approaches to improve the status of these cells and increase cell survival have become research foci. The following article is a mini-review on the utilization of cell preconditioning for stem cell survival.</p><p><b>DATA SOURCES</b>The data used in this review were mainly from the articles in Medline and PubMed published from 1990 to 2010. The search terms included "preconditioning, stem cell and myocardial infarction".</p><p><b>STUDY SELECTION</b>Original articles and critical reviews selected were relevant to the review's theme.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The harsh ischemic and inflammatory microenvironment in the infarcted myocardium offers a significant challenge to the transplanted donor stem cells. Survival of stem cells following transplantation is affected by many factors, such as limited blood supply, nutritional deficiency, hypoxia, oxidative stress, and inflammation. Preconditioning methods have potent cytoprotective effects, which enables cells to maintain a "standby state" through programmed initiation of cell survival pathways.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The findings suggest that cell preconditioning can be used as an effective anti-apoptotic strategy and enable cells to withstand and survive the harsh environment after transplantation.</p>

Levels of soluble adhesion molecules in patients with various clinical presentations of coronary atherosclerosis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Adhesion molecules play an important role in the development and progression of coronary atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to compare concentrations of soluble forms of adhesion molecules in patients with different clinical presentations of coronary artery disease (CAD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and twenty-eight patients with CAD were divided into three groups; the first group was acute myocardial infarction group (AMI group, n = 45), the second group was unstable angina pectoris group (UAP group, n = 48), the third group was stable angina pectoris group (SAP group, n = 35). We compared them with patients with normal coronary arteries (control group, n = 31). The serum levels of vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), E-selectin and P-selectin were measured in all subjects.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The serum level of VCAM-1 in the AMI group was significantly higher than in the UAP, SAP and control groups (P < 0.01). The level in the UAP group was significantly higher than the SAP group and control group (P < 0.01) and the level in the SAP group was significantly higher than in the control group (P < 0.01). The serum ICAM-1 level was significantly elevated in the AMI, UAP and SAP groups as compared to the control group (P < 0.01). The levels of serum E-selectin and P-selectin in the AMI and UAP groups were significantly higher than in the SAP and control groups (P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Increased levels of VCAM-1 and ICAM-1, E-selectin and P-selectin, as markers of inflammation, showed the importance of inflammatory processes in the development of atherosclerosis and clinical expression of CAD. Soluble ICAM-1, VCAM-1, E-selectin and P-selectin concentrations are useful indicators of the presence of atherosclerosis and the severity of CAD clinical presentation.</p>

Effect of valsartan on neointimal proliferation and expression of CD34 after angioplasty in rabbits / 中华急诊医学杂志

Objective To investigate the effect of valsartan (angiotensinⅡtypeⅠreceptor antagonists) on neointimal proliferation and expression of CD34 after angioplasty in rabbits.Method Twenty-four male New Zealand White rabbits were randomly divided into three groups:the control group,fed up with common diet;the model group and the valsartan group,fed up with hypercholesterolemic diet for 4 weeks,f then and ballon angioplasty.At 4 weeks after operation,the model group was fed up with common diet,whereas the valsartan group was fed up with the admixture of valsartan 10 mg?kg~(-1)?d~(-1) and common diet.All the rabbits were killed at the end of the 12th weeks.The abdominal aorta was performed with pathologic and morphologic analysis,and expression of CD34 in endothelial cells was analyzed with immunohistochemical method.Results Compared with the model group,the neointimal thickness and area of the valsartan group decreased by 56.58%and 66.81%, respectively.The expression of CD34 of the valsartan group was significantly higher (P