Identification of circular RNA circVPS33A as a modulator in house dust mite-induced injury in human bronchial epithelial cells.

BACKGROUND: House dust mite has been well documented as a major source of allergen in asthma. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) vacuolar protein sorting 33A (circVPS33A, circ_0000455) is overexpressed in a murine asthma model. Herein, we sought to identify its critical action in Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus peptidase 1 (Der p1)-induced dysfunction of BEAS-2B cells. METHODS: The levels of circVPS33A, microRNA (miR)-192-5p, and high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) were assessed by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) or western blot. Actinomycin D treatment and Ribonuclease R (RNase R) assay were used to characterize circVPS33A. Cell viability, proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion were evaluated by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8), 5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine (EdU), flow cytometry, and transwell assays, respectively. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to quantify interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and IL-6. Direct relationship between miR-192-5p and circVPS33A or HMGB1 was verified by dual-luciferase reporter and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay. RESULTS: CircVPS33A was highly expressed in asthma plasma and Der p1-treated BEAS-2B cells. Knocking down circVPS33A suppressed Der p1-induced injury in BEAS-2B cells. CircVPS33A targeted miR-192-5p. MiR-192-5p directly targeted HMGB1, and miR-192-5p-mediated repression of HMGB1 alleviated Der p1-driven cell injury. Furthermore, circVPS33A modulated HMGB1 expression through miR-192-5p. CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrated that circVPS33A regulated house dust mite-induced injury in human bronchial epithelial cells at least partially depending on the modulation of the miR-192-5p/HMGB1 axis.

Retrospective study of Rougan Tongdu Tuina combined with point-pressing massage therapy on neurodevelopment in children with delayed motor development at very early stage.

BACKGROUND: Particular factors before and after delivery can cause neurological damage to the fetus or newborn. Rougan Tongdu Tuina combined with point-pressing massage therapy (RTPM) can effectively stimulate the meridians and acupoints, and achieve the therapeutic effects of refreshing, resuscitating, and strengthening the brain and improving cognition. In this study, RTPM was used in the neonatal period, and quality evaluation results of general movements (GMs) were used to monitor the effect of this method on neurodevelopmental outcomes of children. METHODS: Children who were born in the First Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from 1 March 2017 to 29 February 2020 were retrospectively enrolled. All newborns were assessed for the quality of GMs. Children in the RTPM group received RTPM, and the control group received conventional massage and point-pressing. A 20-day period constituted a round of treatment, each round was 20 days apart, and there were 3 rounds in total. The study participants received regular outpatient follow-ups, and clinical neurological examinations and Gesell development scales (GDS) assessment results were used to determine the outcome of motor development. RESULTS: A total of 96 newborns with abnormal GMs were retrospectively included, including 57 (59.4%) males and 39 (40.6%) females. There were 83 cases (86.5%) of premature infants and 85 cases (88.5%) of low birthweight infants, respectively. The Apgar score at 1 min after birth was rated 3-10 points, with an average of 7.4 points. The evaluation of GMs revealed that the indicators in the RTPM group were significantly better than those in the control group, and the number of children with abnormal GMs after each round of treatment was significantly reduced compared with the control group. At 6 months, the GDS score of the RTPM group was better than that in the control group. After the intervention, the total effective rate of the RTPM group was 92.2%, which was significantly higher than the 75.6% of the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The application of RTPM in the neonatal period can significantly improve the neurodevelopment of children.

Clinical effect of Rougan Tongdu combined with point-pressing massage therapy on children at high risk of delayed motor development.

BACKGROUND: Delayed motor development (DMD) is an extremely common development disorder in children. Multiple factors, including mother's influence, diseases, physical or chemical factors and trauma, are strongly associated with DMD. Infancy is a key period in the development of neuromotor function. For children who are at high risk of DMD, early clinical intervention can, to a certain extent, reverse and repair the damaged function of the brain, improving the child's prognosis and their quality of life. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of Rougan Tongdu combined with point-pressing massage therapy (RT-PMT) in children at high risk of DMD. METHODS: Between March 2017 and March 2019, a total of 63 children at high risk of DMD were admitted and treated with RT-PMT in our hospital. These children were divided into three intervention groups (IGs) based on their age in months: IG I (22, 0-3 months), IG II (25, 4-6 months), and IG III (16, 7-12 months). An additional 63 healthy age-matched children were enrolled as a control group (CG) and split into the CG I (0-3 months), CG II (4-6 months), and CG III (7-12 months). All of the children underwent Gesell Infant Development Scale (GESELL) examination both before and three months after intervention and the motor function was scored. RESULTS: After 3 months of RT-PMT, the gross motor function scores in the three IGs were 88.55±8.56, 81.83±7.95, and 78.89±7.52, respectively. Fine motor function scores in the three IGs were 89.12±6.45, 82.32±6.78, and 78.18±6.69, respectively. Total motor function scores in the three IGs were 89.85±7.20, 82.65±7.05, and 79.52±7.16, respectively. The differences between the scores before and after intervention were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The improvements in the gross, fine, and total motor function scores in IG I were better than those in the other two IGs (P<0.05), and the clinical curative effect in IG I, II, and III was 95.5%, 80.0% and 62.6%, respectively. The clinical curative effect in IG I was better than those in the other groups (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: RT-PMT is beneficial for children at high risk of DMD.

Effects of an early intervention using human amniotic epithelial cells in a COPD rat model.

The study aimed to investigate the effect of an early intervention using human amniotic epithelial cell (hAEC) in a rat model of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Twenty-four specific pathogen-free Wistar rats were randomized to the control, COPD, and COPD+hAEC groups. COPD was established by intratracheal LPS injection combined with smoke fumigation over 30days. On the first day of model establishment rats in the AEC group also received intratracheal instillation of 500,000 hAECs isolated from the placenta of healthy donors. The mean linear intercept (MLI) and mean alveolar number (MAN) were used to assess the degree of lung emphysema. IL-8 was measured using a radioimmunoassay, surfactant protein D (SP-D) was measured by ELISA, and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)2 and MMP8 expression was assessed by PCR. Smoke fumigation combined to LPS injection successfully established a COPD rat model with significant emphysema and airway inflammation, elevated MLI and MAN, elevated systemic and lung tissue levels of IL-8 and SP-D (P<0.05), and high expression of MMP2 and MMP8. Rats in the COPD+hAEC group exhibited alleviated lung damage, MLI and MAN (P<0.05), reduced systemic and lung tissue levels of IL-8 and SP-D (P<0.05) and MMP2 and MMP8 expression (P<0.05). Early intervention using hAECs could delay disease progression in rats with COPD.