ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to study the mechanism of the anti-rejection effect of Asarinin in rats that underwent cardiac allograft implantation. METHODS: Hearts from Wistar rats were transplanted into the abdominal cavity of Sprague Dawley rats (SD rats) 64 SD rats received either cyclosporin A (CsA), Asarinin, or demi-dose of cyclosporine A and Asarinin through oral administration. On the seventh day post-transplantation, the expression of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), chemokine (C-X-C motif) receptor 3 (CXCR3) in myocardium, and the level of interleukin (IL)-12 in the peripheral blood were analyzed 7 days after transplantation. RESULTS: The survival time in 3 groups (CsA group, Asarinin group, and semi-dose CsA group) prolonged (P < .01), the microscope myocardial histopathology in 3 groups (CsA group, Asarinin group and semi-dose CsA group) relieved, the expression of TLR4 and CXCR3 in 3 groups was significantly decreased (P < .01) when compared with the control group. The level of IL-12 decreased remarkably (P < .05) in the 3 groups when compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS: The combined data suggested that Asarinin decreased peripheral blood concentration of IL-12 and inhibited the expression of TLR4 and CXCR3, which means Asarinin may have a role on TLR4 pathway and produced prolongation of allograft heart survival.
Subject(s)
Antioxidants/therapeutic use , Dioxoles/therapeutic use , Graft Rejection/metabolism , Graft Rejection/prevention & control , Heart Transplantation , Lignans/therapeutic use , Toll-Like Receptor 4/metabolism , Allografts/metabolism , Allografts/pathology , Animals , Cyclosporine/therapeutic use , Graft Survival/drug effects , Immunosuppressive Agents/therapeutic use , Interleukin-12/blood , Male , Models, Animal , Myocardium/metabolism , Myocardium/pathology , Rats , Rats, Sprague-Dawley , Rats, Wistar , Receptors, CXCR3/metabolism , Transplantation, HomologousABSTRACT
Between April and June of 1998, the prevalence and intensity of geohelminth infections caused by hookworm, Ascaris and Trichuris were investigated in two rural Yunnan villages. In Liuku, a village of Lisu indigenous people in Lushui County, there was an overall geohelminth prevalence of 72% (48%, 43% and 16% for hookworm infection, ascariasis, and trichuriasis, respectively). The prevalence of ascariasis was greatest among preschool and school aged children, whereas the prevalence of trichuriasis was greatest among teenagers and the prevalence of hookworm increased until the age of 10-15 and then remained high throughout adulthood. In Linger, a village of Han Chinese, located in Puer County, there was an overall geohelminth prevalence of 77% (30%, 60% and 36% for hookworm infection, ascariasis, and trichuriasis, respectively). The differences in prevalence for hookworm and ascariasis were statistically significant. The prevalence of hookworm in Linger increased steadily with age and did not plateau, but there were no discernible patterns of prevalence versus age for either ascariasis or trichuriasis. Heavy trichuriasis infections were noted to occur in Linger. In both villages, more than 98% of the hookworm infections were of light and moderate intensity. Both by morphologic identification of third-stage infective larvae (L3) from eggs as well as identification of adult hookworms recovered from adult residents after treatment with quantrel, Necator americanus was identified as the exclusive hookworm in each village. Geohelminth infections caused by Ascaris, Trichuris and hookworm remain highly endemic to the rural areas of Yunnan Province in southwestern China.
