Self-assembled core-shell nanoparticles with embedded internal standards for SERS quantitative detection and identification of nicotine released from snus products.

Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a unique analytical technique with excellent performance in terms of sensitivity, non-destructive detection and resolution. However, due to the randomness and poor repeatability of hot spot distribution, SERS quantitative analysis is still challenging. Meanwhile, snus is a type of tobacco product that can release nicotine and other components in the mouth without burning, and the rapid detection technique based on SERS can reliably evaluate the amount of nicotine released from snus, which is of great significance for understanding its characteristics and regulating its components. Herein, the strategy was proposed to solve the feasibility of SERS quantitative detection based on self-assembled core-shell nanoparticles with embedded internal standards (EIS) due to EIS signal can effectively correct SERS signal fluctuations caused by different aggregation states and measurement conditions, thus allowing reliable quantitative SERS analysis of targets with different surface affinity. By means of process control, after the Au nanoparticles (Au NPs) were modified with 4-Mercaptobenzonitrile (4-MBN) as internal standard molecules, Ag shell with a certain thickness was grown on the surface of the AuNP@4-MBN, and then the Au@4-MBN@Ag NPs were used to regulate and control the assembly of liquid-liquid interface. The high-density nano-arrays assembled at the liquid-liquid interface ensure high reproducibility as SERS substrates, and which could be used for SERS detection of nicotine released from snus products. In addition, time-mapping research shows that this method can also be used to dynamically monitor the release of nicotine. Moreover, such destruction-free evaluation of the release of nicotine from snus products opens up new perspectives for further research about the impact of nicotinoids-related health programs.

Efficacy and safety of different Janus kinase inhibitors combined with methotrexate for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis: a single-center randomized trial.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy and safety between baricitinib (BARI) and tofacitinib (TOFA) for the treatment of the rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients receiving methotrexate (MTX) in clinical practice. METHODS: This retrospective study recruited 179 RA patients treated with BARI (2-4 mg/d) or TOFA (10 mg/d) at The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University from September 2019 to January 2022. The rate of low disease activity (LDA) was used as the primary end point. Secondary end points included the Disease Activity Scale-28 (DAS-28)-C-reactive protein (CRP); the rate of DAS28-CRP remission; visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, swollen joint, and tender joint counts; and adverse events at the 6-month follow-up. Several factors affecting LDA achievement were also analyzed. RESULTS: Seventy-four patients were treated with BARI and 105 were treated with TOFA, including 83.24% females, with a median (IQR) age of 56.0 (53.0-56.0) years old and disease duration of 12.0 (6.0-12.0) months. There was no difference of the rate of LDA between the BARI and TOFA treatment groups. All disease indices in the two groups were significantly improved, including a significantly lower VAS in the BARI group (P < 0.05), reflecting the drug efficacy after 1 and 6 months of treatment. The incidence of adverse reactions was similar in these two groups. CONCLUSION: The treatment efficacy and safety of BARI and TOFA in the RA patients were similar, but BARI was more effective in pain relief than TOFA. An older baseline age was more likely to achieve LDA in the BARI group, while a low baseline erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) was more likely to achieve LDA in the TOFA group.

Efficacy and safety of different Janus kinase inhibitors combined with methotrexate for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis: a single-center randomized trial

Abstract Objective To compare the efficacy and safety between baricitinib (BARI) and tofacitinib (TOFA) for the treatment of the rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients receiving methotrexate (MTX) in clinical practice. Methods This retrospective study recruited 179 RA patients treated with BARI (2-4 mg/d) or TOFA (10 mg/d) at The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University from September 2019 to January 2022. The rate of low disease activity (LDA) was used as the primary end point. Secondary end points included the Disease Activity Scale-28 (DAS-28)-C-reactive protein (CRP); the rate of DAS28-CRP remission; visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, swollen joint, and tender joint counts; and adverse events at the 6-month follow-up. Several factors affecting LDA achievement were also analyzed. Results Seventy-four patients were treated with BARI and 105 were treated with TOFA, including 83.24% females, with a median (IQR) age of 56.0 (53.0-56.0) years old and disease duration of 12.0 (6.0-12.0) months. There was no difference of the rate of LDA between the BARI and TOFA treatment groups. All disease indices in the two groups were significantly improved, including a significantly lower VAS in the BARI group (P < 0.05), reflecting the drug efficacy after 1 and 6 months of treatment. The incidence of adverse reactions was similar in these two groups. Conclusion The treatment efficacy and safety of BARI and TOFA in the RA patients were similar, but BARI was more effective in pain relief than TOFA. An older baseline age was more likely to achieve LDA in the BARI group, while a low baseline erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) was more likely to achieve LDA in the TOFA group.

Ginsenoside Rg1 protects mice against 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin-induced liver injury by inhibiting CYP1A1 through the aryl hydrocarbon receptor.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer (ginseng) is a widely used traditional Chinese medicine that has played a beneficial role in the treatment of various diseases, including liver diseases. Ginsenoside Rg1 is a saponin isolated and purified from ginseng that exerts protective effects on the liver in some liver injury models. 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is a ubiquitous dioxin found mostly in food products that causes liver injury and other human diseases. Although significant efforts have been made to reduce the burden of liver disease, there is still a lack of effective treatment methods. AIM OF THE STUDY: Although ginsenoside Rg1 was reported to inhibit TCDD-mediated cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) induction in HepG2 cells, we sought to verify its hepatoprotective effects and elucidate its mechanism in a TCDD-induced liver injury model in mice. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The mouse liver injury model was established by intraperitoneal TCDD injection, followed by treatment with various doses of ginsenoside Rg1 (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg). Clinical indicators of liver injury, such as an increase in serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase levels, as well as histopathological changes were evaluated. RESULTS: The common clinical indicators of liver injury were detected following TCDD injection, including an increase in serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels, increased relative liver weight, and histopathological changes. Following treatment with ginsenoside Rg1, the levels of aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase decreased significantly, and the liver histology was improved. In addition, ginsenoside Rg1 competitively inhibited TCDD-induced Cyp1a1 mRNA transcription through the modulation of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) nuclear translocation. CONCLUSION: Ginsenoside Rg1 is a potent partial AhR agonist that has potential as an effective medication for protecting against TCDD-associated liver injury.

[Study on regulation of CYP450 enzyme system to reduce liver toxicity through compatibility of Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta with Chebulae Fructus and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma].

Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta is one of the most commonly used medicinal materials in Mongolian medicine. Due to the strong toxicity of Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta, Mongolian medicine often uses Chebulae Fructus, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma to reduce the toxicity, so as to ensure the curative effect of Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta while ensuring its clinical curative effect, but the mechanism is not clear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Chebulae Fructus, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma and Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta on the mRNA transcription and protein translation of cytochrome P450(CYP450) in the liver of normal rats. Male SD rats were randomly divided into negative control(NC) group, phenobarbital(PB) group(0.08 g·kg~(-1)·d~(-1)), Chebulae Fructus group(0.254 2 g·kg~(-1)·d~(-1)), Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma group(0.254 2 g·kg~(-1)·d~(-1)), Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta group(0.254 2 g·kg~(-1)·d~(-1))and compatibility group(0.254 2 g·kg~(-1)·d~(-1),taking Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta as the standard). After continuous administration for 8 days, the activities of total bile acid(TBA), alkaline phosphatase(ALP), amino-transferase(ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase(AST)in serum were detected, the pathological changes of liver tissue were observed, and the mRNA and protein expression levels of CYP1 A2, CYP2 C11 and CYP3 A1 were observed. Compared with the NC group, the serum ALP, ALT and AST activities in the Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta group were significantly increased, and the ALP, ALT and AST activities were decreased after compatibility. At the same time, compatibility could reduce the liver injury caused by Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta. The results showed that Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta could inhibit the expression of CYP1 A2, CYP2 C11 and CYP3 A1, and could up-regulate the expression of CYP1 A2, CYP2 C11 and CYP3 A1 when combined with Chebulae Fructus and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma. The level of translation was consistent with that of transcription. The compatibility of Chebulae Fructus and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma with Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta could up-regulate the expression of CYP450 enzyme, reduce the accumulation time of aconitine in vivo, and play a role in reducing toxicity, and this effect may start from gene transcription.

Knockdown of lncRNA ANRIL suppresses the production of inflammatory cytokines and mucin 5AC in nasal epithelial cells via the miR-15a-5p/JAK2 axis.

The incidence of allergic rhinitis (AR) is increasing worldwide. Human nasal epithelial cells (HNECs) are the key cells in the occurrence of AR. Antisense non-coding RNA in the INK4 locus (ANRIL) was discovered to be involved in the progression of AR. However, the mechanism by which ANRIL mediates the progression of AR remains to be determined. The present study aimed to further explore the mechanism by which ANRIL regulates AR. Thereby, HNECs were treated with IL-13 to mimic AR in vitro. The mRNA expression levels of ANRIL, microRNA (miR)-15a-5p, JAK2, mucin 5AC (MUC5AC), granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and eotaxin-1, and protein expression levels of JAK2, STAT3 and phosphorylated-STAT3 in HNECs were analyzed using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR and western blotting, respectively. ELISAs were used to detect the secretory levels of inflammatory cytokines and mucin in cell supernatants. In addition, a dual luciferase reporter assay was used to confirm the downstream target of ANRIL and the target gene of miR-15a-5p. The results revealed that the secretory levels of eotaxin-1, GM-CSF and MUC5AC were significantly upregulated by IL-13 in the supernatant of HNECs. The expression levels of ANRIL and JAK2 were also upregulated in IL-13-induced HNECs, while the expression levels of miR-15a-5p were downregulated. In addition, ANRIL was identified to bind to miR-15a-5p. The IL-13-induced upregulation of eotaxin-1, GM-CSF and MUC5AC mRNA expression and secretory levels was significantly inhibited by the genetic knockdown of ANRIL, while the miR-15a-5p inhibitor effectively reversed this effect. JAK2 was also discovered to be directly targeted by miR-15a-5p. The overexpression of JAK2 significantly suppressed the therapeutic effect of miR-15a-5p mimics on IL-13-induced inflammation in vitro. In conclusion, the findings of the present study suggested that the genetic knockdown of ANRIL may suppress the production of inflammatory cytokines and mucin in IL-13-treated HNECs via regulation of the miR-15a-5p/JAK2 axis. Thus, ANRIL may serve as a novel target for AR treatment.

LINC00669 insulates the JAK/STAT suppressor SOCS1 to promote nasopharyngeal cancer cell proliferation and invasion.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is an epithelial cancer emerging from the lining of nasopharyngeal mucosa, with extremely frequent occurrence in east and southeast Asia. For the purpose of exploring roles of the dysregulated long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in NPC, we identified a novel lncRNA LINC00669 with an apparent negative correlation to the overall survival from human NPC mRNA expression profiling databases. We further performed RNA pulldown coupled with mass spectrum to find out its target protein, and applied a series of in vitro and in vivo loss-and-gain-of function assays to investigate its oncogenic roles in NPC tumor development and progression. Our results demonstrated that LINC00669 competitively binds to the key JAK/STAT signaling pathway suppressor SOCS1, and insulates it from imposing ubiquitination modification on the pathway component of STAT1, which leads to its abnormal stabilization and activation. The activated STAT1 is then transferred into the nucleus and initiates the transcription of genes related to proliferation and invasion. In summary, our study reveals that the cytoplasmic resident lncRNA LINC00669 confers malignant properties on NPC cancer cells by facilitating a persistent activation of the JAK/STAT signaling pathway. Findings in the current study shed lights on prospects for treating NPC using strategies targeting the novel regulator of the JAK/STAT signaling.

Human cells are permissive for the productive infection of porcine circovirus type 2 in vitro.

Porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2) is the main pathogen of porcine circovirus diseases and porcine circovirus-associated diseases, which are widespread in swine-producing countries. However, there is controversy regarding the susceptibility of human cells to PCV2 infection. In this study, human cell lines were infected with PCV2 and blind passaged several times. PCV2 entered and replicated in human cells, and infectious virions were generated, indicating that human cell lines were permissive to PCV2 replication. Furthermore, PCV2 replication in human cell lines was enhanced by D-glucosamine or concanavalin A (ConA). However, the infection efficiency of PCV2 was lower in human cells than in PK-15 cells, suggesting that PCV2 infection was limited in human cells. Our study reveals that human cells are permissive for the productive infection of porcine circovirus type 2 in vitro.

Engineering hydrogenated manganese dioxide nanostructures for high-performance supercapacitors.

Improving the rate capability of transition metal oxides is of great important for the development of high-performance electrodes for supercapacitors. Here, a novel strategy of hydrogenation to enhance the electron transfer rate of manganese dioxide (MnO2) is proposed. Detailed preparative parameters (i.e. hydrogenation temperature and time) are systematically investigated. The hydrogenated MnO2 (H-MnOx) exhibits modified crystal phase/surface structures and increased electrical conductivity. The prepared H-MnOx exhibits high specific capacitance (640 mF cm-2 at current density of 1 mA cm-2), good rate capability (89.6% of capacitance retained from 1 to 10 mA cm-2), and good cycling stability (84.6% retention after 1000 cycles). The high specific capacitance is ascribed to the unique interconnected ultrathin nanosheets structure, which could not only provide porous channels for electrolyte infiltration to offer sufficient electrode/electrolyte interface, but also shorten the ions diffusion distance inside the active material. The good rate capability could be attributed to the good conductivity of the H-MnOx nanosheets, which was confirmed by the DFT calculation. These results highlight the importance of hydrogenation as a facile yet effective strategy to improve the rate capability of transition metal oxides for supercapacitors.

Prognostic evaluation of P53 and BCL2 proteins in MYC/BCL2 double expression DLBCL / 中华血液学杂志

Objective: To investigate the strong expression (S+) of P53 and BCL2 proteins in MYC/BCL2 double-expression DLBCL (DEL) and whether they can be used for the prognostic evaluation and stratified diagnosis of DELs. Methods: Tissue microarray were made by filed FFPE blocks of 174 DLBCL cases. The translocation of MYC, BCL2 and BCL6 genes were detected by FISH, and the proteins were detected by IHC. Data of clinicopathologic features and follow up of patients were collected and OS (overall survival) and PFS (progression free survival) were analyzed by statistics. Results: Eight double-hit lymphomas (DHLs) were identified in all cases, and 45 DELs were selected from 166 remaining cases, which have no significant difference in OS and PFS compared with non-DEL cases (P=0.668 and P=0.790) . Of 42 DEL-cases with follow up data, 24 cases with P53+ or/and BCL2 (S+) are significantly shorter OS and PFS than others (P=0.003 and P=0.000) , in which the cases with P53+/BCL2 (S+) co-expression were the worst prognosis, and P53/BCL2 co-weaker positive DEL cases even have superior OS and PFS than those non-DELs. Although statistics showed that the cases of P53+ or/and BCL2 (S+) have a lower OS and PFS in total cases (P=0.063 and P=0.024) , it is not the case when the DEL-cases take out from total cases, that is the cases with P53+ or/and BCL2 (S+) are as similar OS and PFS as others in non-DEL group (P=0.590 and P=0.550) . Conclusion: The strong expression of P53 and BCL2 proteins can be used as indicators of stratified diagnosis and poor prognosis of DEL.

Facile Synthesis of Manganese Cobalt Oxide/Nickel Cobalt Oxide Composites for High-Performance Supercapacitors.

Transition metal oxides (TMOs) with spinel structures have a promising potential as the electrode materials for supercapacitors application owning to its outstanding theoretical capacity, good redox activity, and eco-friendly feature. In this work, MnCo2O4.5@NiCo2O4 nanowire composites for supercapacitors has been successfully fabricated by using a mild hydrothermal approach without any surfactant. The morphology and physicochemical properties of the prepared products can be well-controlled by adjusting experimental parameters of preparation. The double spinel composite exhibits a high specific capacitance of 325 F g-1 (146 C g-1) and 70.5% capacitance retention after 3,000 cycling tests at 1 A g-1.

Identification of Winter-Responsive Proteins in Bread Wheat Using Proteomics Analysis and Virus-Induced Gene Silencing (VIGS).

Proteomic approaches were applied to identify protein spots involved in cold responses in wheat. By comparing the differentially accumulated proteins from two cultivars (UC1110 and PI 610750) and their derivatives, as well as the F10 recombinant inbred line population differing in cold-tolerance, a total of 20 common protein spots representing 16 unique proteins were successfully identified using 2-DE method. Of these, 14 spots had significantly enhanced abundance in the cold-sensitive parental cultivar UC1110 and its 20 descendant lines when compared with the cold-tolerant parental cultivar PI 610750 and its 20 descendant lines. Six protein spots with reduced abundance were also detected. The identified protein spots are involved in stress/defense, carbohydrate metabolism, protein metabolism, nitrogen metabolism, energy metabolism, and photosynthesis. The 20 differentially expressed protein spots were chosen for quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) to investigate expression changes at the RNA level. The results indicated that the transcriptional expression patterns of 11 genes were consistent with their protein expression models. Among the three unknown proteins, Spot 20 (PAP6-like) showed high sequence similarities with PAP6. qRT-PCR results implied that cold and salt stresses increased the expression of PAP6-like in wheat leaves. Furthermore, VIGS (virus-induced gene silencing)-treated plants generated for PAP6-like were subjected to freezing stress, these plants had more serious droop and wilt, an increased rate of relative electrolyte leakage, reduced relative water content (RWC) and decreased tocopherol levels when compared with viral control plants. However, the plants that were silenced for the other two unknown proteins had no significant differences in comparison to the BSMV0-inoculated plants under freezing conditions. These results indicate that PAP6-like possibly plays an important role in conferring cold tolerance in wheat.

Protection of Schisandra chinensis extract in paraquat-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice / 天津医药

Objective To explore the protective effcets of Schisandra chinensis extract (SCE) in paraquat (PQ)-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice ,and its intrinsic molecular mechanisms thereof. Methods A total of 108 mice were randomly allocated into six groups (n=18):control group, model group, low concentration of SCE group (200 mg/kg), medium concentration of SCE group (400 mg/kg), high concentration of SCE group (800 mg/kg) and vitamin C group (100 mg/kg). Except control group, mice were given by intragastric administration with PQ (100 mg/kg) and administered with SCE and Vitamin C once per 24 h after PQ modeling. Mice were sacrificed at 7, 14 and 21 d after modeling. Six mice were executed at different time points. The degree of lung tissue inflammation and fibrosis were observed by HE staining and Masson staining. The mRNA and protein expression levels of transforming growth (TGF)-β1, interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-17 in lung tissue were determined by RT-PCR and ELISA respectively. Results (1) Compared with control group, the lung tissue of model group showed a large number of inflammatory cell infiltration, space congestion, and its inflammation scores increased at 7 and 14 days after modeling (P<0.05). At the same time, compared with model group and vitamin C group, inflammation scores were significantly decreased in medium concentration of SCE group and high concentration of SCE group (P<0.05). (2) Compared with control group, collagen fibers and the degree of fibrosis were significantly increased in model group ,while pulmonary fibrosis were decreased in medium concentration of SCE group and high concentration of SCE group at 14 and 21 days after modeling (P<0.05). (3) With the extension of modeling time, both mRNA and protein expressions of TGF-β1 were obviously elevated, IL-6 decreased and IL-17 reduced after the first increase in PQ group. Compared with PQ group, levels of three cytokines mRNA and protein expression in medium concentration of SCE group and high concentration of SCE group changed as follows:IL-6 level was markedly decreased at 7 and 14 days after modeling;TGF-β1 level was markedly increased at 14 and 21 days after modeling. However, IL-17 level was markedly decrease at three time points(P<0.05). Conclusion SCE can relieve PQ-induced lung inflammation and fibrosis by suppressing TGF-β1, IL-6, and IL-17 expressions.

Proteomic analysis of middle and late stages of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain development.

Proteomic approaches were applied in four grain developmental stages of the Chinese bread wheat Yunong 201 and its ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) mutant line Yunong 3114. 2-DE and tandem MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS analyzed proteome characteristics during middle and late grain development of the Chinese bread wheat Yunong 201 and its EMS mutant line Yunong 3114 with larger grain sizes. We identified 130 differentially accumulated protein spots representing 88 unique proteins, and four main expression patterns displayed a dynamic description of middle and late grain formation. Those identified protein species participated in eight biochemical processes: stress/defense, carbohydrate metabolism, protein synthesis/assembly/degradation, storage proteins, energy production and transportation, photosynthesis, transcription/translation, signal transduction. Comparative proteomic characterization demonstrated 12 protein spots that co-accumulated in the two wheat cultivars with different expression patterns, and six cultivar-specific protein spots including serpin, small heat shock protein, ß-amylase, α-amylase inhibitor, dimeric α-amylase inhibitor precursor, and cold regulated protein. These cultivar-specific protein spots possibly resulted in differential yield-related traits of the two wheat cultivars. Our results provide valuable information for dissection of molecular and genetics basis of yield-related traits in bread wheat and the proteomic characterization in this study could also provide insights in the biology of middle and late grain development.

Expression and prognostic value of regulatory T cells and M2 macrophages in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma tissues / 中华肿瘤杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the prognostic value of regulatory T cells (Tregs) and M2 macrophages in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) tissues.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The expression of CD163 and Foxp3 was detected by immunohistochemistry in 92 cases of DLBCL, and it was statistically analyzed whether their expressions correlate with clinical data and prognosis in patients with DLBCL.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The density of M2 macrophage and regulatory T cells in DLBCL tumor tissues was significantly higher than that in the adjacent tissues (P = 0.02, P = 0.04). The expression of M2 macrophages was significantly positively correlated with regulatory T cells expression (r = 2.012, P < 0.05). High density of M2 or Tregs had a relationship with extranodal involvement (P < 0.05). Cox regression analysis showed that the expressions of CD163 and Foxp3 were independent prognostic factors of DLBCL (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Combined detection of the expression of CD163 and Foxp3 proteins and then evaluation of the amount of M2 macrophages and Tregs can be used to more closely predict the prognosis for DLBCL patients.</p>

Evaluation of biological safety of silicon membrane embedded permanent magnets implanted in canine / 第二军医大学学报

Objective To investigate the biological safety of silicon membrane embedded permanent magnets implanted into canine, so as to evaluate the safety of a micturition alert device designed on the principle of compass. Methods Twelve adult male dogs (weighing 11-12 kg) were divided into experimental group (8 dogs) and control group (4 dogs ). The experimental group was implanted with a silicon membrane embedded NdFeB magnet, which was 10 mm in diameter and 3 mm in thickness and with a magnetic induction intensity of 0. 3 Tesla at the center of the pole face surface. The control group was implanted with a silicon membrane embedded NdFeB alloy with the same dimensions. The grafts were sutured onto the anterior surface of the bladder wall. The dogs were then allowed to live for one year. Both the survival and local pathology around the grafts were observed after implantation. And the pre-operation urine and post-operation urine were compared between the two groups. Results One dog in the experimental group died from operation complications 10 hours after operation, another dog had intestinal obstruction 3 weeks after operation because iron wires in the intestinal tract was caught up by the permanent magnet. The rest 6 dogs in the experimental group and 4 dogs in the control group had no abnormalities in spirit, appetite, urine or stool, and there were no infections. The animals were sacrificed one year after operation. Adhension was found between the epiploon and the bladder wall around permanent magnets in these 10 dogs; the fibrous capsule around the permanent magnets was thin, and the local bladder wall below permanent magnets was thickened, with normal bladder mucosa. Grade 2 inflammatory reaction and fibrous capsule of the local tissue were noted around the grafts. The findings of urine routine were normal before and after operation. Conclusion NdFeB permanent magnets embedded with silicon membrane are biologically safe for clinical application, which warrante further investigations.

Handling gene redundancy in microarray data using Grey Relational Analysis.

Gene selection is one of the important and frequently used techniques for microarray data classification. In this paper, we introduce a new metric to measure gene-class relevance and gene-gene redundancy. The new metric is based on Grey Relational Analysis (GRA), called Grey Relational Grade (GRG), and never used in gene selection before. Based on the GRG, we develop a new gene selection method, which uses GRG to group similar genes to clusters, and then select informative genes from each cluster to avoid redundancy. Experiments on public data sets demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

[Expression and significance of human beta-defensin in recurrent nasal polyps].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the expression of human beta-defensin-1 (hBD-1) and human beta-defensin-2 (hBD-2) in recurrent nasal polyps, and to investigate the role of beta-defensin in the recurrent nasal polyps. METHODS: Tissues of nasal polyps was obtained from 10 patients with nasal polyps undergoing endoscopic sinus surgery, recurrent nasal polyps from 10 patients 6 months after surgery, nasal mucosa from 10 recovered patients with nasal polyps postoperatively and,10 control subjects. hBD-1 mRNA and hBD-2 mRNA levels of tissue specimens in all groups were detected by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: There was no significant difference in hBD-1 mRNA level between the 4 groups (P>0.05). Expression of hBD-2 mRNA was detected in patients with nasal polyps and recurrent nasal polyps, but rare in the recovered patients and the control subjects. CONCLUSION: hBD-1 is a constitutive expression and hBD-2 is an induced expression. beta-Defensin may play an important role in forming the nasal polyps.

Expression and significance of human beta-defensin in recurrent nasal polyps / 中南大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To observe the expression of human beta-defensin-1 (hBD-1) and human beta-defensin-2 (hBD-2) in recurrent nasal polyps, and to investigate the role of beta-defensin in the recurrent nasal polyps.@*METHODS@#Tissues of nasal polyps was obtained from 10 patients with nasal polyps undergoing endoscopic sinus surgery, recurrent nasal polyps from 10 patients 6 months after surgery, nasal mucosa from 10 recovered patients with nasal polyps postoperatively and,10 control subjects. hBD-1 mRNA and hBD-2 mRNA levels of tissue specimens in all groups were detected by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).@*RESULTS@#There was no significant difference in hBD-1 mRNA level between the 4 groups (P>0.05). Expression of hBD-2 mRNA was detected in patients with nasal polyps and recurrent nasal polyps, but rare in the recovered patients and the control subjects.@*CONCLUSION@#hBD-1 is a constitutive expression and hBD-2 is an induced expression. beta-Defensin may play an important role in forming the nasal polyps.