ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of an allogeneic bone cage (Biocage; Beijing Datsing Bio-Tech Co., Ltd., Beijing, China) for treatment of single-segment lumbar degenerative disease in patients with a high risk of non-fusion. METHODS: From January 2013 to December 2016, 67 patients who underwent lumbar fusion were divided into the Biocage group (n = 33) and polyether ether ketone (PEEK) group (n = 34). The patients were followed up for 24 to 48 months. The mean intervertebral height of the fusion level, fusion rate, height of the intervertebral foramen, visual analog scale score, and Oswestry disability index were compared. RESULTS: The PEEK group had a lower fusion rate than the Biocage group (88.24% vs. 90.91%), although the difference was not statistically significant. During follow-up, the height of the intervertebral space was similar between the Biocage and PEEK groups (12.88 ± 0.45 and 12.84 ± 1.01 mm, respectively). The height of the intervertebral foramen was larger in the Biocage than PEEK group (20.67 ± 1.34 vs. 20.00 ± 2.05 mm). Good clinical efficacy was achieved in both groups. CONCLUSION: The Biocage is efficient and safe for treatment of single-segment lumbar degenerative disease in patients with a high risk of non-fusion.
Subject(s)
Intervertebral Disc Degeneration , Spinal Fusion , Beijing , China , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Intervertebral Disc Degeneration/diagnostic imaging , Intervertebral Disc Degeneration/surgery , Lumbar Vertebrae/diagnostic imaging , Lumbar Vertebrae/surgery , Prospective Studies , Retrospective Studies , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The role of vitamin D (VD) in innate and adaptive immune responses to tuberculosis is still unclear. Our research was aimed to uncover the effect of VD on Th17 cells and elucidate potential molecular mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: VDR-deficient and wild-type mice were used to obtain CD4 T cells. Th17 cells were induced and activated by Bacillus Calmette Guerin. Flow cytometry was used to analyse the apoptosis rate and degree of differentiation of Th17 cells in the treatment of 1,25(OH)2 D3 . The interaction between P65 and Rorc was determined by immunofluorescence assay, luciferase reporter assay, EMSA-Super-shelf assay and ChIP assay. Co-IP assay was carried out to test the interaction between VDR and NF-κB family proteins. qRT-PCR and Western blot were also performed to detect the levels of P65, RORγt and IL-17. RESULTS: The Th17 cells differentiation was suppressed by 1,25(OH)2 D3 in vitro. We confirmed that Rorc was a downstream gene of the transcription factor P65. VDR interacts with P105/P50, P100/P52 and P65 NF-κB family proteins. 1,25(OH)2 D3 inhibited the expression of RORγt/IL-17 by suppressing p65 transcription factor translocating to nucleus. In vivo experiments, the expression of IL-17 and RANKL was suppressed by 1,25(OH)2 D3 by VD receptor. Moreover, 1,25(OH)2 D3 suppressed the inflammatory infiltrates and inhibited the expression of P65, RORγt and IL-17 in the spleen tissues of model mice. CONCLUSIONS: Together, 1,25(OH)2 D3 suppressed the differentiation of Th17 cells via regulating the NF-κB activity.
Subject(s)
Calcitriol/pharmacology , Cell Differentiation/drug effects , Interleukin-17/metabolism , NF-kappa B/metabolism , Th17 Cells/drug effects , Animals , Apoptosis/drug effects , CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/drug effects , Gene Expression Regulation/drug effects , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Nuclear Receptor Subfamily 1, Group F, Member 3/metabolism , Receptors, Calcitriol/metabolism , Signal Transduction/drug effects , Th17 Cells/metabolism , Transcription Factor RelA/metabolismABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are required for proper maintenance of immunological self-tolerance and immune homeostasis. Folate receptor 4 (FR4) is expressed at high levels in transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß)-induced Tregs and natural Tregs. Moreover, antibody-mediated targeting of FR4 is sufficient to mediate Treg depletion. RESULTS: In this study, we describe a novel FR4 transcript variant, FR4D3, in which exon 3 is deleted. The mRNA of FR4D3 encodes a FR4 variant truncated by 189 bp. FR4D3 was found to be predominantly expressed in CD4(+)CD25(+) Treg cells. Overexpression of FR4D3 in CD4(+)CD25(+) Treg cells in vitro stimulated proliferation, which may modulate the ability of these cells to bind and incorporate folic acid. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggested that high levels of FR4D3 may be critical to support the substantial proliferative capacity of Treg cells.
