[Correlations of Melatonin and Glutathione Levels with Oxidative Stress Mechanism in Parkinson's Disease].

Objective To investigate the changes of serum melatonin(MLT)and glutathione(GSH)levels in patients with Parkinson's disease(PD)and explore their relationships with disease severity,cognitive dysfunction,and sleep disorders. Methods Totally 50 PD patients treated in our center from September 2017 to February 2018 were enrolled as the PD group,and 50 healthy controls matched with age and sex as the control group.The improved Hoehn and Yahr scale was used to assess the severity of PD.The Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale was used to assess the cognitive function and Pittsburgh's Sleep Quality Index was used to detect the patient's sleep.The serum levels of MLT and GSH were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the results were compared. Results Serum MLT level in the PD group was significantly higher than that in the control group [(84.12±6.58)pg/ml vs.(46.29±9.73)pg/ml,P=0.000],and serum GSH level was significantly lower than that in the control group [(21.07±12.05)µmol/L vs.(77.73±39.90)µmol/L,P=0.000].There was a positive correlation between serum MLT level and H-Y grade(r=0.537,P=0.000),and there was a negative correlation between serum GSH level and H-Y grade(r=-0.596,P=0.000).Serum MLT was negatively correlated with GSH level in PD patients(r=-0.842,P=0.000).The MLT level in PD patients with sleep disorders was significantly higher than in those without sleep disorders [(85.79±6.45)pg/ml vs.(78.84±3.54)pg/ml,P=0.001];the level of GSH in PD patients with cognitive dysfunction was significant lower than in the non-cognitive dysfunction group [(17.47±10.67)µmol/L vs.(26.09±12.23)µmol/L,P=0.011]. Conclusions Serum MLT level increases and GSH level decreases in PD patients.Both MLT and GSH are correlated with PD severity,and there is a negative correlation between MLT and GSH.In addition,PD patients with sleep disorders have higher MLT level and those with cognitive impairment tend to have lower GSH level.

Landscape pattern change and its response to anthropogenic disturbance in the Qinling Mountains during 1980 to 2015.

Understanding landscape pattern change and its response to anthropogenic disturbance is of great significance for ecosystem conservation and management. Based on high-precision land use data from 1980 to 2015, we studied the spatial and temporal changes of landscape patterns in the Qinling Mountains and its response to anthropogenic disturbance by using the landscape pattern vulnerability index and human disturbance degree constructed by the landscape pattern index and the surface coverage classification system. The results showed that the degree of landscape fragmentation gradually increased in the Qinling Mountains. The landscape shape became more complex, the degree of landscape aggregation and connectivity decreased, and the spatial distribution of the landscape pattern index showed distinct features of topographic differentiation from 1980 to 2015. The fragility of the landscape pattern in the Qinling Mountains was on a downward trend as a whole. The spatial pattern of the low-vulnerable region had changed significantly, which mainly expanded from Xi'an and Hanzhong to the surrounding areas. The degree of anthropogenic disturbance in the landscape pattern of Qinling Mountains gradually increased. The spatial distribution was "high in the east, low in the west, high in the north-slope, low in the south-slope, high on the periphery, low in the middle". The fragility of landscape pattern, patch density and Shannon diversity index increased with the increases of anthropogenic disturbance, while the aggregation index and maximum patch index decreased. In the past 35 years, the impacts of anthropogenic disturbance, which gradually weakened the vulnerability of landscape pattern, also increased Shannon diversity index and the largest patch index gradually, while it had not significantly changed the patch density and the aggregation index.

[Reconstruction of July NDVI over 172 years based on tree-ring width of Larix chinensis in Taibai Mountain Nature Reserve, China.] / åŸºäºŽå¤ªç™½çº¢æ‰æ ‘è½®å®½åº¦é‡å»ºè¿‘172年太白山自然保护区7月NDVI.

We used the correlation analysis of Larix chinensis tree-ring width chronologies, meteorological data as well as regional NDVI data to reconstruct the NDVI sequence variation of the north and south aspects of Taibai Mountain Nature Reserve in the recent 172 years. The results showed that the NDVI variation of Taibai Mountain Nature Reserve was consistent with plant growth dyna-mics. Hydrothermal condition in growing season was the dominant factor controlling NDVI changes. Tree-ring width was significantly positively correlated with NDVI in growing season. The strongest correlation occurred in July. Thus, we used the long time series of tree ring width index in July to reconstruct the regional historical period variation of NDVI sequence. The results demonstrated that historical changes of July NDVI sequence existed five dense periods and five sparse periods. Further analysis indicated that these periods corresponded with the climate change trends and drought events. The reconstructed July NDVI sequence of both northern and southern slopes of Taibai Mountain Nature Reserve highlighted the existence of quasi periodic variation of 60 years.

SPK1-transfected UCMSC has better therapeutic activity than UCMSC in the treatment of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis model of Multiple sclerosis.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS), is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder of the central nervous system that leads to chronic demyelination with axonal damage and neuronal loss. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent a promising therapeutic approach for MS. In the current study, we investigated the effects of MSCs derived from the human umbilical cord (UCMSC) transfected by sphingosine kinase 1 (SPK1) gene. All the results showed that transplantation of UCMSCs gene modified by SPK1 (UCMSC-SPK1) dramatically reduce the severity of neurological deficits of the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) mice, paralleling by reductions in demyelination, axonal loss, and astrogliosis. UCMSC-SPK1 transplantation also could inhibit the development of natural killer (NK) responses in the spleen of EAE mice, and increase the ratio of CD4+ CD25+ FoxP3+ (Treg) T cells. Furthermore, we described that a shift in the cytokine response from Th1/Th17 to Th2 was an underlying mechanism that suppressed CNS autoimmunity. UCMSCs transfected by SPK1 gene potentially offer a novel mode for the treatment of MS, and the specific mechanism of SPK1 in treating MS/EAE.

Early application of citicoline in the treatment of acute stroke: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

This study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of early application of citicoline in the treatment of patients with acute stroke by meta-analysis. Randomized controlled trials published until May 2015 were electronically searched in MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, WHO International Clinical Trial Registration Platform, Clinical Trial.gov, and China Biology Medicine disc. Two reviewers independently screened the articles and extracted the data based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality of included articles was evaluated by using Revman5.0, and meta-analysis was performed. The results showed that 1027 articles were obtained in initial retrieval, and finally 7 articles, involving a total of 4039 cases, were included for analysis. The meta-analysis showed that no significant differences were found in the long-term mortality (OR=0.91, 95% CI 0.07 to 1.09, P=0.30), the rate of dependency (OR=1.02, 95% CI 0.87 to 1.24, P=0.85), and the effective rate (OR=0.98, 95% CI 0.84 to 1.14, P=0.82) between citicoline group and control group. The overall rate of adverse events in citicoline group was not significantly different from that in control group (P=0.30). The quality of included articles reached moderate-low level. In conclusion, citicolne cannot reduce long-term mortality and dependence rate in the treatment of acute stroke, and the effective rate of citivoline may be not better than that of controls but with reliable safety.

Protective effect of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on PC12 cells apoptosis mediated by TAG1.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore the protection effect of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) on PC12 cells apoptosis mediated by transient axonal glycoprotein 1 (TAG1). METHODS: PC12 cells were divided into control group, Aß25-35 group and BMSCs + Aß25-35 group. The effects of BMSCs on PC12 cells treated by Aß25-35 were detected using MTT, Hoechst 33258 and Annexin V-FITC/PI staining methods. The expression levels of TAG1, ß-amyloid precursor protein (APP), AICD and p53 were determined by RT-PCR and Western blotting methods. The expression levels of Bax and Bcl-2 were determined by Western blotting method. The activity of Caspase 3 was detected by spectrophotometric method. RESULTS: MTT results showed that cell activity decreased after the treatment of 20 µM Aß25-35 for 48 h (P<0.01) while it increased in BMSCs + Aß25-35 group (P<0.01). Hoechst 33258 and Annexin V-FITC/PI staining results showed that Aß25-35 could induce the apoptosis of PC12 cells while the apoptosis of PC12 cells was inhibited in BMSCs + Aß25-35 group. RT-PCR and Western blotting methods showed that 20 µM Aß25-35 could increase the expression levels of TAG1, APP, AICD and p53 (P<0.01) while they decreased in BMSCs + Aß25-35 group (P<0.01). 20 µM Aß25-35 could increase the expression levels of Bax and decrease the expression levels of Bcl-2 (P<0.01), while the expression levels of Bax decreased and the expression levels of Bcl-2 increase in BMSCs + Aß25-35 group (P<0.01). 20 µM Aß25-35 could enhance Caspase 3 activity while it decreased in BMSCs + Aß25-35 group (P<0.01). Conclusions BMSCs with Aß25-35 could inhibit the apoptosis of PC12 cells, which maybe related with TAG1/APP/AICD signal pathway.

[Study on the relation between peripheral arterial disease and renal insufficiency in high risk cardiovascular patients].

OBJECTIVE: This study was to examine the relation of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and renal insufficiency in cardiovascular patients with high risk. METHODS: PAD, defined as an ankle brachial index (ABI) ≤ 0.9 in either leg and renal insufficiency, defined as an estimated creatinine clearance (CRCL) < 60 ml×min(-1)×1.73 m(-1) were evaluated in 5270 Chinese patients at high risk of CV. RESULTS: 2648 (50.2%) patients had an estimated CRCL < 60 ml×min(-1)×1.73 m(-1), while 746 (14.2%) patients having PAD defined ABI ≤ 0.9. ABI and CRCL were positively correlated (r = 0.217, P < 0.001). The prevalence of PAD in patients with renal dysfunction was significantly higher than those with normal renal function (19.9% vs. 8.3%, P < 0.001). The association of ABI ≤ 0.9 with CRCL was independent from potential confounders such as age, diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, smoking, coronary artery disease and stroke history (OR = 0.98, 95%CI: 0.98 - 0.99, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Results from the present study demonstrated a remarkably high prevalence of PAD (defined as an ABI ≤ 0.9) among patients with renal dysfunction and at high risk. Even after adjustment for important confounders such as age, diabetes, and coronary artery and cerebro-vascular diseases etc., persons with lower CRCL were still more likely to have an ABI ≤ 0.9.