ABSTRACT
HCMV is a common pathogen for human with relatively high prevalence, which could be life-threatened in immunodeficient patients and lead to significant birth defects in newborns. In this study, we firstly report that HCMV infection significantly enhances the expression of microRNA-221 (miR-221) in Neural Precursor Cells (NPCs). We found that miR-221 directly targets at the 3'-UTR of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) and suppresses SOCS1 expression at the both mRNA and protein levels. MiR-221 overexpression restrained HCMV replication by promoting type I interferon (IFN) and interferon stimulating genes (ISGs) production, whereas reintroduction of SOCS1 abrogated the miR-221-induced effects on HCMV replication. Importantly, miR-221 positively regulated the phosphorylation and activation of NF-κB by suppressing SOCS1. What's more, miR-221 agomir alleviated MCMV-induced tissue injury by promoting type I IFN antiviral activities in vivo. Thus, miR-221 modulates the infection and replication of HCMV as an intrinsic antiviral factor, and could be developed as a treatment target for anti-HCMV treatment.
Subject(s)
Cytomegalovirus Infections/metabolism , Cytomegalovirus/physiology , Interferon Type I/metabolism , MicroRNAs/metabolism , NF-kappa B/metabolism , Neural Stem Cells/metabolism , Neural Stem Cells/virology , Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling 1 Protein/metabolism , 3' Untranslated Regions , Animals , Cytomegalovirus Infections/genetics , Host-Pathogen Interactions/genetics , Humans , Mice , Mice, Inbred BALB C , MicroRNAs/genetics , Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling 1 Protein/genetics , Virus ReplicationABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effects of a psychological nursing intervention on personality characteristics and quality of life of esophageal cancer patients. METHODOLOGY: Esophageal cancer patients (n=86) were randomized into either an intervention group (n=45) or a control group (n=41). Patients in the control group were given routine nursing care, and those in the intervention group were provided with psychological nursing interventions in addition to routine nursing care. Personality characteristics, assessed through Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, and quality of life, assessed through EORTC QLQ-C30, were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The results showed that personality characteristics were closely related to quality of life. After the psychological nursing intervention, the main factors were neurosis, psychosis or mood instability, and personality stability. However, introverted and extroverted personality characteristics were not associated with quality of life. The psychological nursing intervention was associated with decreased P-scale and E-scale scores of personality characteristics and improved quality of life in each dimension scored. CONCLUSIONS: A psychological nursing intervention can affect the personality characteristics of esophageal cancer patients and improve their quality of life; this approach is worthy of further study and clinical application.
Subject(s)
Esophageal Neoplasms/nursing , Esophageal Neoplasms/psychology , Personality , Quality of Life , Adult , Aged , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Personality Assessment , Psychiatric NursingABSTRACT
The immunoglobulin E (IgE) high-affinity receptor FcεRI expressed on mast cells and basophils plays a critical role in triggering allergic disease. The co-aggregation of the FcεRI and FcγRIIb receptors is inhibitory to FcεRI signaling and holds great potential for the treatment of IgE-mediated allergies. In China, Dermatophagoides farinae is a common anaphylaxis trigger. Therefore, in this study, the FcγRIIb-mediated immunomodulating activity of recombinant Fcγ-Der f2 fusion protein was tested in a Der f2-allergic murine model. Following the treatment, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was collected to measure the expression of several Th1/Th2-type cytokines (IL-5, TNF-α, IL-12p70, IL-4, IL-10, IFN-γ and IL-18) and histamine, while blood was used to detect the specific IgE and IgG-types anti-Der f2 antibodies, for measurement. In contrast to the saline-treated allergic mice, the levels of Der f2-specific IgE, cytokines and histamine were lowered in the Fcγ-Der f2-treated allergic mice, in addition to the rare inflammatory cell infiltration in the airways and blood vessels revealed by histopathological examination. The recombinant Fcγ-Der f2 protein was demonstrated to function as an effective immunotherapeutic agent, suggesting that chimeric human Fcγ-allergen proteins could be used in the development of antigen-specific immunotherapy for human allergic diseases.
