Research progress and analysis on mechanism of polysaccharides against type 2 diabetes mellitus / 中国中药杂志

Polysaccharides are macromolecular compounds formed by more than 10 monosaccharide molecules linked by glycosidic bonds. Polysaccharides have a wide range of sources, high safety and low toxicity, with a variety of biological activities, such as anti-tumor, anti-virus, immune regulation, lowering blood glucose, and lowering blood lipids. Type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2 DM) is a chronic metabolic disorder characterized by hyperglycemia, insulin resistance and low inflammation. In recent years, the treatment of T2 DM with polysaccharide has become a research hotspot. Polysaccharides can not only make up for the side effects such as hypoglycemia, weight gain, gastrointestinal injury caused by long-term treatment of acarbose, biguanidine and sulfonylurea, but also play an effective role in reducing glucose by regulating glucose metabolism, oxidative stress, inflammatory response, intestinal flora, etc. In this paper, the research progress of polysaccharides in the treatment of T2 DM was reviewed. In addition, the hot spots such as the hypoglycemic activity of polysaccharides with structural modifications were summarized, providing theoretical guidance for the development of active polysaccharide hypoglycemic medicines and the further study of action mechanism.

The study on cytokines of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in children with mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia / 天津医药

Objective To study the cytokine levels of TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-10 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in children with mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MPP). Methods Clinical data of 90 patients with MPP (MPP group), who were admitted to Tianjin Children's Hospital from January to December 2017, were collected in this study. The 90 cases were divided into group A1 (<7 days), group A2 (7-14 d) and group A3 (15-30 d) according to the course of disease on admission, with 30 cases in each group. Children who were without MPP and needed bronchoscopy examination or treatment at the same time were used as the control group (B group). The expression levels of cytokines (TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-10) were detected by enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA). Results The serum and BALF levels of TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-10 increased significantly in A group compared with those in B group (P<0.05). The highest levels of cytokines (TNF-α, IFN-γ and IL-2) were found in Group A1. The highest levels of cytokines (IL-4 and IL-6) were found in Group A2. Conclusion The levels of TNF-α, IFN-γ and IL-2 are increased significantly in the disease course of < 7 days. In the disease course of 7 to 14 days, the IL-4 and IL-6 are elevated significantly. Our data suggest that these cytokines may be involved in the pathogenesis of MPP.

Characteristics, Management, and Outcomes of Acute Heart Failure in the Emergency Department: A Multicenter Registry Study with 1-year Follow-up in a Chinese Cohort in Beijing / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The emergency department (ED) has a pivotal influence on the management of acute heart failure (AHF), but data concerning current ED management are scarce. This Beijing AHF Registry Study investigated the characteristics, ED management, and short- and long-term clinical outcomes of AHF.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This prospective, multicenter, observational study consecutively enrolled 3335 AHF patients who visited 14 EDs in Beijing from January 1, 2011, to September 23, 2012. Baseline data on characteristics and management were collected in the EDs. Follow-up data on death and readmissions were collected until November 31, 2013, with a response rate of 92.80%. The data were reported as median (interquartile range) for the continuous variables, or as number (percentage) for the categorical variables.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The median age of the enrolled patients was 71 (58-79) years, and 46.84% were women. In patients with AHF, coronary heart disease (43.27%) was the most common etiology, and myocardium ischemia (30.22%) was the main precipitant. Most of the patients in the ED received intravenous treatments, including diuretics (79.28%) and vasodilators (74.90%). Fewer patients in the ED received neurohormonal antagonists, and 25.94%, 31.12%, and 33.73% of patients received angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers, beta-blockers, and spironolactone, respectively. The proportions of patients who were admitted, discharged, left against medical advice, and died were 55.53%, 33.58%, 7.08%, and 3.81%, respectively. All-cause mortalities at 30 days and 1 year were 15.30% and 32.27%, respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Substantial details on characteristics and ED management of AHF were investigated. The clinical outcomes of AHF patients were dismal. Thus, further investigations of ED-based therapeutic approaches for AHF are needed.</p>

Differential proteomic analysis of pathway biomarkers in human breast cancer by integrated bioinformatics.

The aim of this study was to better understand the altered functional modules in breast cancer at pathway and network levels. An integrated bioinformatics analysis of differentially expressed proteins in human breast cancer was performed. Breast cancer protein profiles were constructed by data mining proteins in literature and public databases, including 1031 proteins with 153 secretory and 69 cell surface proteins. An experimental investigation was performed by two-dimensional electrophoresis, and 4 proteins were further validated by western blotting. Enriched bioinformatics functions were clustered. This study may be used as a reference in further studies to help identify the underlying biological interactions associated with breast cancer and discover potential cancer targets.

Comparative analysis of human reproductive proteomes identifies candidate proteins of sperm maturation.

Male reproductive proteomes provide basis for studying gene products and its involvement or regulation in sperm physiology. Here, a comparative study between these proteomes was performed to find potential proteins and functions associated with human sperm maturation. Seven reproductive proteomes associated with human sperm physiology were integrated. Gene ontology analysis were performed using DAVID and Panther tools to determine enriched functions. Total of 270 proteins overlapped between epididymal, prostatic milieu and sperm proteome were thought to be candidate proteins involved in sperm maturation, and they showed enriched functions of proteasomal protein catabolic process and protein folding. 34 epididymal milieu proteins and 274 prostatic milieu proteins were contributed to the composition of seminal fluids proteome. Literatures have confirmed the involvements in sperm maturation of many of these proteins The spatial expressions of 24 epididymal milieu proteins involved in chaperone and antioxidant activity were authenticated by real-time RT-PCR. These proteins may serve as candidate molecules for future studies of sperm maturation and male infertility.

A new analysis of testicular proteins through integrative bioinformatics.

The testis is the male gonad responsible for spermatogenesis and steroidogenesis. Much remains to be known about the control of these events. In this study, we performed a new bioinformatic enrichment analysis of human testicular proteins selected from a protein database. Integrated function and pathway analyses were performed by Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis programmes, and significant features were found to be clustered. Protein membrane organization and gene density on chromosomes were analyzed and discussed. The analysis could provide a basis for the understanding of testicular physiology and function, and facilitating biological interpretation of testicular functions in a network context.