Pubescenosides Q-R, two new phenolic glycosides from Ilex pubescens.

Two new phenolic glycosides (1-2), along with six existing compounds (3-8), were isolated from the ethanolic extract of Ilex pubescens roots, a traditional folk medicine. These structures were determined using HR-ESI-MS, IR, UV, and NMR (including 1 D, 2 D-NMR). The anti-inflammatory activities of three phenolic glycosides (1-3) were evaluated in the human HepG2 cell lines. The results showed that compound 3 could induce P-gp and BCRP expression through the Nrf2-mediated pathway.[Formula: see text].

Advances in the Detection of Pancreatic Cancer Through Liquid Biopsy.

Pancreatic cancer refers to the development of malignant tumors in the pancreas: it is associated with high mortality rates and mostly goes undetected in its early stages for lack of symptoms. Currently, surgical treatment is the only effective way to improve the survival of pancreatic cancer patients. Therefore, it is crucial to diagnose the disease as early as possible in order to improve the survival rate of patients with pancreatic cancer. Liquid biopsy is a unique in vitro diagnostic technique offering the advantage of earlier detection of tumors. Although liquid biopsies have shown promise for screening for certain cancers, whether they are effective for early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is unclear. Therefore, we reviewed relevant literature indexed in PubMed and collated updates and information on advances in the field of liquid biopsy with respect to the early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.

Intrapartum Results on Differing Degrees of Ketonuria in Nulliparous Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus during Spontaneous Labor.

To compare intrapartum results associated with differing degrees of ketonuria in nulliparous women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), we implemented a retrospective cohort study comparing clinical characteristics among differing degrees of ketonuria and the duration and distribution of ketonuria at different stages of labor. We also analyzed adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes for each group. A total of 570 GDM deliveries were included; of these, 238 had negative ketonuria (41.8%), 180 had moderate ketonuria (31.6%), and 152 had ketosis (26.6%). The proportion of patients with a family history of diabetes significantly increased as the degree of ketonuria increased (P < 0.001). Moreover, a significantly lower level of HOMA-IR (the insulin resistance index) was observed for the Negative group (P < 0.001). The triglyceride (TG) level was significantly higher in the Ketosis group (P < 0.001), and the total cholesterol (TC) levels significantly increased as the degree of ketonuria progressed (P < 0.001). There were also higher maternal blood sugar levels and a significantly higher proportion of oxytocin augmentation in ketonuria cases (P < 0.001). Over three-fourths of patients (75.6%) had a ketonuria duration of ≤2 hours in the Moderate group, 61.2% had a ketonuria duration of between 3 and 4 h in the Ketosis group, and most of the ketonuria cases resolved in the first stage of labor. As the degree of ketonuria progressed, we observed a significantly higher number of cases with fetal heart rate pattern III (FHR pattern III), meconium-stained amniotic fluid III (MSAF III), postpartum hemorrhages, prolonged labor, neonatal hypoglycemia, an umbilical cord arterial pH of <7.2, low Apgar scores, increased neonatal intensive care admissions, augmented forceps-assisted deliveries, and conversions to cesarean sections. The results showed that ketonuria is common during the intrapartum period and that the risk of adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes may increase when complicated with ketonuria.

Early-life exposure to air pollutants and adverse pregnancy outcomes: protocol for a prospective cohort study in Beijing.

INTRODUCTION: The association between early exposure to ambient air pollution and adverse pregnancy outcomes in China is unclear. This study will assess the risk of early-life exposure to air pollutants in Beijing and explore the viability of 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) as a biological indicator to assess oxidative stress induced by early-life exposure to air pollution. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Here, 2500 women with singleton pregnancies and their infants will be recruited from the Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital. We will collect nine types of biological samples, including maternal serum, urine, placental tissue, umbilical cord tissue and umbilical cord blood during all three trimesters. The air pollution data (particulate matter (PM)2.5, PM10 and similar factors) will be recorded at official fixed-site monitoring stations closest to where the pregnant women live. We plan to assess the effect of air pollutants on adverse pregnancy outcomes and infant respiratory and circulatory disease using Cox regression and competitive risk analysis and explore possible critical windows of exposure during pregnancy using daily pollutant concentrations averaged over various periods of pregnancy combined with individual activity and physiological parameters. Maternal and umbilical cord blood samples (1000 samples) will be randomly selected for 8-OHdG assays to assess the correlation between exposures to air pollutants and oxidative stress. We will determine whether air pollutant exposure or 8-OHdG levels are associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. SPSS and SAS statistical software will be used for data analysis. Cox regression and competing risk analysis will be used to compute the HR and population attributable risk. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This research protocol has already been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital. Written informed consent will be obtained from all study participants prior to enrolment. The results will be published in peer-reviewed journals or disseminated through conference presentations. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: This study has been registered in WHO International Clinical Trial Register-Chinese Clinical Trial Registry under registrationnumber ChiCTR-ROC-16010181 (http :// www.chictr.org.cn / showproj.aspx ?proj=17328).

A Role of sFlt-1 in Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Human and Mouse Pre-Eclamptic Trophoblasts.

Pre-eclampsia (PE) is a hypertensive disorder that occurs during pregnancy, and is a multifactorial disease. The antiangiogenic factor, soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1), has been reported to be important in the pathogenesis of PE, but the mechanism of its involvement remains unknown. To test the effects of sFlt-1 on pregnancy, we injected pregnant mice with exogenous mouse sFlt-1. After 18 days of gestation, higher blood pressure, proteinuria, and histological differences were observed compared with controls. Mitochondrial swelling inside the trophoblast cells in the placenta of sFlt-1-treated pregnant mice was observed by electron microscopy, which suggested a role of sFlt-1 in oxidative stress in trophoblasts in PE. Furthermore, apoptosis markers were upregulated in sFlt-1-treated mice. In conclusion, sFlt-1 appears to play a role in oxidative stress, which promotes apoptosis of trophoblasts. This may be an important mechanism in the development of PE.

Characterization of the subsets of human NKT-like cells and the expression of Th1/Th2 cytokines in patients with unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion.

The objective was to investigate the subsets of natural killer T (NKT)-like cells and the expression of Th1/Th2 cytokines in the peripheral blood (PB) and/or decidual tissue of patients with unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion (URSA). The percentages of NKT-like cells in the PB and deciduas of URSA patients in early pregnancy and in the PB of nonpregnant women were analyzed by flow cytometry. The expression of interferon (IFN)-γ (Th1 cytokine) and Th2 cytokines, interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-10, in the PB and decidual tissue was measured by quantitative RT-PCR and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Most percentages of subsets of NKT-like cells (CD3(+)CD56(+), CD3(+)CD56(+)CD16(+)) in the PB and deciduas were significantly greater in URSA patients than in normal pregnant and nonpregnant women. A cut-off value of 3.75% for the increased percentage of CD3(+)CD56(+)CD16(+) NKT-like cells in the PB appeared to be predictive of pregnancy failure. Moreover, we found that in the decidua, IFN-γ expression was significantly higher, while IL-4 and IL-10 expression was significantly lower in URSA patients compared with those with a normal pregnancy. The ratio of decidual Th1/Th2 cytokines in URSA patients was significantly increased compared with that in normal pregnant women. Decidual IL-4 expression correlated negatively with the percentages of blood CD3(+)CD56(+)CD16(+) NKT-like cells and the decidual CD3(+)CD56(+) and CD3(+)CD56(+)CD16(+) NKT-like cells. NKT-like cells may play an important role in maintaining normal pregnancy. Measurement of CD3(+)CD56(+)CD16(+) NKT-like cells in the PB may provide a potential tool for assessing patients' risk of spontaneous abortion.

Quick recovery and characterization of cell-free DNA in seminal plasma of normozoospermia and azoospermia: implications for non-invasive genetic utilities.

We established a quick and reliable method for recovering cell-free seminal DNA (cfsDNA), by using the binding-washing-elution procedure on the DNA purification column. Low variations (below 15%) among the triplicate values of cfsDNA quantity verified the reproducibility of our cfsDNA recovery method. Similar cfsDNA yield and size distribution between seminal plasma acquired by filtration and centrifugation confirmed the presence of cfsDNA. To investigate the general characterization of cfsDNA, the quantitation and size distribution of cfsDNA from normozoospermic and azoospermic semen were analyzed by real-time PCR and electrophoresis, respectively. CfsDNA concentration in semen with normozoospermia (n = 11) was 1.34 +/- 0.65 microg mL(-1), whereas a higher cfsDNA concentration was observed in azoospermia (2.56 +/- 1.43 microg mL(-1), n = 9). The continuous distribution of DNA fragments ranging from approximately 1 kb to 15 kb and a spectrum of multiples of 180-bp fragments were observed in each normozoospermic and azoospermic sample. Distinct characteristic DNA ladder fragmentations in some azoospermic samples implicated that cfsDNA originate partly from apoptotic cells. CfsDNAs of 36 selected azoospermic patients with known information of Y chromosome microdeletion were subjected to the same microdeletion analysis by multiplex PCR and PCR amplification of sY114 (1450 bp). All multiplex PCR reactions with cfsDNA amplified successfully and provided the same result as leukocyte DNA. PCR amplification of sY114 gave a 1450-bp amplicon as expected. Our data suggested the potential use of cfsDNA in search of biomarker or diagnostic procedures.