Luschka and the carotid body / Luschka e o corpo carotídeo

The 'carotid body' is a small structure sited at the bifurcation of the common carotid artery. The macroscopic features of the carotid body, and items of the extrinsic nervous, and vascular supplies, were initially described by Taube (1743), complemented by a number of authors that followed, proceeding until Luschka (1962), who added the first microscopic study. The macroscopic features of the carotid body, including location, extrinsic innervation, and vascular supply, then provided, were described in a relatively satisfactory manner. However, despite Luschka's great and admirable effort, the microscopic findings seem to be flawed, what can be ascribed to the technical limitations at the time, and the artifacts due to the used procedures. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that Luschka and his forerunners provided an important step for forthcoming research on the carotid body, and its innervation.

O 'corpo carotídeo' é uma pequena estrutura situada na bifurcação da artéria carótida comum. Os aspectos macroscópicos do corpo carotídeo e itens sobre o suprimento nervoso e vascular extrínsecos foram descritos inicialmente por Taube (1743), complementados por um certo número de autores que seguiram, prosseguindo até Luschka (1962), que acrescentou o primeiro estudo microscópico. Os aspectos macroscópicos do corpo carotídeo, incluindo localização, inervação extrínseca e suprimento vascular, então providos, foram descritos de modo relativamente satisfatório. Entretanto, apesar do grande e admirável esforço de Luschka, os achados microscópicos aparecem falhos, o que pode ser atribuído às limitações técnicas daquele tempo e a artefatos devidos aos procedimentos utilizados. Todavia, não há dúvida que Luschka e seus precursores proveram um importante passo para pesquisas que vieram sobre o corpo carotídeo e da sua inervação.

Characterization of air-liquid interface culture of A549 alveolar epithelial cells

Alveolar epithelia play an essential role in maintaining the integrity and homeostasis of lungs, in which alveolar epithelial type II cells (AECII) are a cell type with stem cell potential for epithelial injury repair and regeneration. However, mechanisms behind the physiological and pathological roles of alveolar epithelia in human lungs remain largely unknown, partially owing to the difficulty of isolation and culture of primary human AECII cells. In the present study, we aimed to characterize alveolar epithelia generated from A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells that were cultured in an air-liquid interface (ALI) state. Morphological analysis demonstrated that A549 cells could reconstitute epithelial layers in ALI cultures as evaluated by histochemistry staining and electronic microscopy. Immunofluorescent staining further revealed an expression of alveolar epithelial type I cell (AECI) markers aquaporin-5 protein (AQP-5), and AECII cell marker surfactant protein C (SPC) in subpopulations of ALI cultured cells. Importantly, molecular analysis further revealed the expression of AQP-5, SPC, thyroid transcription factor-1, zonula occludens-1 and Mucin 5B in A549 ALI cultures as determined by both immunoblotting and quantitative RT-PCR assay. These results suggest that the ALI culture of A549 cells can partially mimic the property of alveolar epithelia, which may be a feasible and alternative model for investigating roles and mechanisms of alveolar epithelia in vitro.

Influence of Yiwei Huayu Powder on immune drift in patients with precancerous lesions of gastric cancer / 中草药

Objective: To observe the curative effect of Yiwei Huayu Powder (YHP) and the expression of Th1/Th2 cytokines in patients with precancerous lesions of gastric cancer (PLGC). Methods: There were 100 diagnosed chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) with gastric mucous membrane dysplasia (Dys) and/or intestinal metaplasia (IM) patients who were randomly divided into treatment group (50 cases) and control group (50 cases). The patients in the treatment group were administrated with YHP for three months, while the other one with Teprenone Capsules and folic acid. Results: Compared with the control group, the symptom scores of the patients in the treatment group decreased more obviously (P < 0.05). Compared with the control group, the pathological scores of the patients in the treatment group decreased more obviously (P < 0.05). After the treatment, the expression of the Th1 (IL-2, INF-γ) level escalated and the Th2 (IL-4, IL-6) level decreased in the treatment group, which existed an obvious difference compared to the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusion: YHP has played a therapeutic effect in patients with PLGC through intervening immune drift and inducing tumor cell apoptosis, thereby blocking or reversing the development of PLGC.