Effect of intrahippocampal injection of anti-cellular prion protein monoclonal antibody on cognitive deficits in APPswe/PSEN1 transgenic mice / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effects of intrahippocampal injection of cellular prion protein (PrP) antibody on cognitive deficits of APPswe/PSEN1 transgenic mice.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Eight-month-old male APPswe/PSEN1 transgenic mice were subjected to bilateral intrahippocampal injection of a single dose (2 µL) of anti-PrP monoclonal antibody (EP1802Y) or PBS, with wild-type C57Bl/6J mice serving as the control group. After two months, the mice were tested for cognitive behaviors using open filed (OF) test, Morris water maze (MWM) test, fear conditioning (FC) test, and novel object recognition (NOR) test, and immunohistochemistry was used to examine the changes in hippocampal expression of Aβ.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The EP1802Y-treated and PBS-treated mice showed no significantly differences in the performance in OF test in terms of central activity time or total distance of activity (P>0.05), nor in NOR test in terms of novel object recognition index (P>0.05). In MWM test, the EP1802Y-treated and PBS-treated mice showed significantly reduced crossings of the hidden platform as compared with the wild-type mice (P<0.05), but EP1802Y-treated mice had a significantly shorter swimming distance to find the platform than PBS-treated mice (P<0.05). No significant differences were found in the results of FC test among the 3 groups. Immunohistochemistry revealed a significantly reduced expression of Aβ in the hippocampus of EP1802Y-treated mice.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Intrahippocampal injection of PrP antibody can improve cognitive deficits of APPswe/PSEN1 transgenic mice, which sheds light on a novel therapeutic approach for Alzheimer's disease that targets PrP to lower the toxicity of Aβ oligomer.</p>

Reactive astrocytes and nestin expression in adult rats following spinal cord compression injury / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the expressions of nestin and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and their association with reactive astrocytes following spinal cord injury in adult rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Adult rats with compression injury of the spinal cord were divided into 7 groups (n=6) and examined at 1, 3, and 5 days and at 1, 2, 4 and 8 weeks after the injury. The recovery of the locomotor function after the injury was evaluated with Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) scale, and the degree and scope of the spinal injury were assessed using toluidine blue staining. Immunohistochemistry, double immunofluorescent labeling and an image analysis system were employed to observe nestin and GFAP expression and cell proliferation in different regions of the spinal cord.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The bilateral hind limb locomotor function of the rats declined severely 24 h after the spinal cord injury and underwent substantial recovery in 1 or 2 weeks after the injury, but followed by rather slow recovery afterwards. Toluidine blue staining of the spinal cord 24 h after the injury showed significant pathological changes in the neurons. The extension of the tissue injury increased with time till 1 week after the spinal cord injury. The site of injury and the adjacent tissues presented with markedly increased nestin and GFAP expressions 24 h after the injury, and nestin+/GFAP(-) cells dominated in the ependymal region around the central canal, whereas nestin+/GFAP+ dominated in the in other regions, showing significant difference from the control group. Nestin and GFAP expression reached the peak level 3 to 7 days after the injury and declined gradually till reaching nearly the control level at 2 weeks.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Compression injury of the spinal cord induces up-regulated expressions of nestin and GFAP, and nestin expression is positively correlated to the reactive astrocytes, which, along with the neural stem cells, respond to spinal nerve injury and possibly play a role in repair of the central nervous system injury.</p>

Effect of Xianlong granules on immunological function in rats of adjuvant arthritis / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of Xianlong granules (XLG) on immunological function in the rat of adjuvant arthritis (AA).</p><p><b>METHOD</b>Rats were randomly divided into normal group, AA model group, prednisone group and low, middle and high dose XLG groups, 10 rats in each group. All rats were treated by intragastric administration from the 18 days after arthritis was induced by the complete Freud's adjuvant and the effect of XLG on toes swelling was observed. On the 30th days after modeling, proliferation of the splenic and thymic lymphocytes, and IgG secreted by splenocytes were detected respectively by MTT assay and ELISA.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>Compared with the model group, both the high and middle dose XLG groups had significant therapeutic effects on toes dwelling in the rat of AA (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); The low, middle and high dose XLG groups strengthened the PHAM-inhibited proliferation of splenic lymphocytes (P < 0.05), and inhibited the PHAM-augmented proliferation of thymic lymphocytes (P < 0.05); XLG did not significantly effect on IgG level secreted by splenocytes in rats of AA.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>XLG can cure toes swelling in rats of AA, which is related with regulation of the abnormal immunlological function.</p>

Effect of Herba Epimedii flavone on the osteoblasts metabolism in vitro / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the effect of Herba Epimedii flavone (HEF) on the osteoblast metabolism in vitro.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>Osteoblast were obtained from new born rat calvaria by digestive enzymes. MTF, PNPP and RT-PCR were used to observe the proliferation, activity of ALP and mRNA expression of OPG and RANKL of cultured osteoblasts in vitro.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>It was found that HEF had the effect on stimulating cell proliferation, activity of ALP and the mRNA expression of OPG of cultured osteoblasts (P < 0.01, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>HEF can promote the proliferation, the differentiation and the expression of OPG mRNA of the osteoblasts cultured in vitro.</p>

Effects of bushen huoxue recipe on proliferation, differentiation and mineralization of osteoblasts in rats / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effects of bushen huoxue recipe (BHR) on cell proliferation, differentiation, maturation and mineralization in osteoblasts of rats cultured in vitro.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Osteoblasts from cranium of newborn SD rats were cultured by collagenase method. MTT, PNPP and ARS were used to observe the proliferation, activity of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and the formation of mineral node of cultured osteoblasts effected by different concentrations of BHR at different time points (24, 48, 72 hrs after medication).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Different concentrations of BHR could enhance the cell proliferation rate and ALP activity, the effects of BHR in high and moderate concentration were more significant in enhancing the cell proliferation rate (P < 0.01). And the number of mineral node of cultured osteoblasts treated by high and moderate concentration BHR was much more than that of the untreated osteoblasts (P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>BHR could promote the proliferation, differentiation, and mineralization of the osteoblasts.</p>

Experimental study of the effects of puerarin on biological characters of osteoblasts in vitro / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effect of puerarin on cell proliferation, differentiation, maturation and mineralization in cultured rat osteoblasts.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>Osteoblasts from craniums of newly born SD rats were cultured in vitro. MTT, PNPP and ARS were used to observe the proliferation, activity of ALP and the number of mineral node of cultured osteoblasts in vitro.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>It was found that puerarin had the effect on stimulating cell proliferation, activity of ALP and the number of mineral node of cultured osteoblasts (P < 0.01 or P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Puerarin can promote proliferation, differentiation, maturation and mineralization of the osteoblasts in vitro.</p>