Protective Effect of Tetrandrine on Sodium Taurocholate-Induced Severe Acute Pancreatitis.

Tet is a type of alkaloid extracted from Stephania tetrandra, and it has recently been demonstrated that Tet can protect against inflammation and free radical injury and inhibit the release of inflammatory mediators. The present study was designed to observe the protective effect of Tet on sodium taurocholate-induced severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). The rat model of SAP was induced by retrograde bile duct injection of sodium taurocholate and then treated with Verapamil and Tet. The results showed that Tet can reduce NF-κB activation in pancreas issue, inhibit the SAP cascade, and improve SAP through inducing pancreas acinar cell apoptosis and stabilizing intracellular calcium in the pancreas, thus mitigating the damage to the pancreas. Our study revealed that Tet may reduce systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and multiple organ dysfunction syndromes (MODS) to protect against damage, and these roles may be mediated through the NF-κB pathway to improve the proinflammatory/anti-inflammatory imbalance.

Hygrothermal environment may cause influenza pandemics through immune suppression.

Over the past few decades, climate warming has caused profound changes in our living environment, and human diseases, including infectious diseases, have also been influenced by these changes. However, it remains unclear if a warm-wet climate can influence the infectivity of influenza and result in influenza pandemics. This study focused on observations of how the hydrothermal environment influences the infectivity of the influenza virus and the resulting immunoreactions of the infected mice. We used a manual climatic box to establish the following 3 environments with different temperatures and humidity: normal environment (T: 24 ± 1°C, RH: 50% ± 4%), wet environment (T: 24 ± 1 °C, RH: 95% ± 4%) and warm-wet environment (T: 33 ± 1 °C, RH: 95% ± 4%), and the mice were fed and maintained in these 3 different environments. After 14 days, half of the mice were infected with H1N1 (A/FM1/1/47, a lung adapted strain of the flu virus specific for the mouse lung) virus for 4 d After establishing the animal model, we observed the microstructure of the lung tissue, the Th1/Th2 T cell subsets, the Th17/Treg balance, the expression of cytokines in the peripheral blood serum and the expression of the immune recognition RLH signal pathway. The results showed that mice in different environments have different reaction. Results showed that after infection, the proportion of Th1/Th2 and Th17/Treg cells in the spleen was significantly increased, and these proportions were increased the most in the infected group kept in wet-hot conditions. After infection, the mRNA levels and protein expression of the RLH (RIG-1-like helicases) signal pathway components were up-regulated while the uninfected animals in the 3 diverse environments showed no significant change. The infected mice kept in the wet and warm-wet environments showed a slight elevation in the expression of RLH pathway components compared to infected mice maintained in the normal environment. Our study suggested that the warm-wet environment may have interfered with the immune response and balance. The mice kept in the warm-wet environment displayed immune tolerance when they were exposed to the influenza virus, and the body was not able to effectively clear the virus, leading to a persistent infection. A warm-wet climate may thus be a factor that contributes to influenza pandemics, people should focus on the warm-wet climate coming and advance prepare to vaccine manufacture.

Clinical efficacy and safety of chemoimmunotherapy with rituximab,fludarabine and cyclophosphamide for chronic lymphocytic leukemia / 中华血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the efficacy and safety of a chemoimmunotherapy regimen of rituximab, fludarabine and cyclophosphamide (FCR) for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia(CLL).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinical data of 26 CLL patients receiving FCR regimen in our hospital from April 2003 to January 2012 were analyzed retrospectively. Patients were grouped according to indicators including Rai risk stratification, β(2)-MG, LDH, ZAP-70, CD38, cytogenetics and immunoglobulin heavy chain variable region gene (IgVH) mutation status. Therapy efficacy and survival were evaluated and the safety of FCR regimen was assessed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among 26 patients, the overall response rate ( ORR ) was 76.9%, 10 patients (38.5%) achieved complete remission(CR) and 10(38.5%) partial remission(PR). With a median follow-up time of 30 ( 3-98 ) months, the median estimated progression-free survival(PFS) for all patients was 42(16-68) months and median overall survival(OS) was 63(41-85)months. Clinical parameters associated with higher CR rates were ＜2 courses of prior treatment regimens, proportions of bone marrow lymphocytes declining ≥ 50% after 2 courses of FCR, low LDH, low β(2)-MG and ZAP-70 negative (P = 0.014, 0.008, 0.027, 0.035 and 0.013, retrospectively). PFS and OS time in minimal residual disease(MRD)-negative, normal LDH and proportions of bone marrow lymphocytes declining ≥ 50% after 2 courses of FCR patients were significantly better than that of the control group (P＜0.05), PFS in the non-high-risk genetics group was significantly better than that in the high-risk genetics group (P = 0.005), while OS between two groups showed no statistically significant difference. The most common toxicities were gastrointestinal reactions (88.5%), followed by bone marrow suppression (80.8%): including neutropenia, anemia and thrombocytopenia. Infections accounted for 30.8%, mainly lung infection.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>FCR is an effective and well-tolerated therapy for patients with CLL. Patients with MRD-positive, elevated LDH, proportions of bone marrow lymphocytes declining＜50% after 2 courses of FCR and high risk genetics patients are suitable for more effective treatment after achieving treatment response.</p>

Prognostic value of serum IL-6 in patients with multiple myeloma / 中国实验血液学杂志

This study was aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of serum IL-6 (sIL-6) in patients with multiple myeloma (MM). The sIL-6 level in 288 patients with MM was retrospectively analyzed, and the clinical characteristics and prognosis in patients with different IL-6 level were compared. The newly diagnosed patients with MM were divided into two groups: the low sIL-6 group (sIL-6 < 100 pg/ml) and the high sIL-6 group (sIL-6 ≥ 100 pg/ml). The results showed that high sIL-6 level was more common in patients with ECOG score>3, myeloma bone disease (MBD) between grade 2 to 4, and high creatinine level. There was no significant differences in age, abnormal karyotype percentage, chromosome 13q14 abnormality percentage, CD138(+)/CD38(+) cells percentage and the level of calcium, phosphorus, albumin, C-reactive protein, β2-MG, lactate dehydrogenase, hemoglobin, platelet between the two groups at diagnosis, and also no significant difference in response to initial induction chemotherapy among the two groups. The overall survival was significantly different between the low and high IL-6 groups (P = 0.04, 35 m vs 29 m), but no difference in time to progress between the two groups (P = 1.93, 23 m vs 14 m). It is concluded that the sIL-6 level correlates with the clinical characteristics and prognosis. Radioimmunoassay is an appropriate measurement for human IL-6 in serum, and suitable for clinical application.

Cytogenetic abnormality of chromosome 13q14 in 112 patients with multiple myeloma detected by using LSI-RB1 and LSI-D13S319 probes / 中国实验血液学杂志

Chromosome 13q14 deletion is one of the most common cytogenetic abnormalities in multiple myeloma (MM). LSI (locus-specific identification)-RB1 (13q14.1-14.2 region) and LSI-D13S319 (13q14.3 region) probes are usually used to detect 13q14 deletion. The aims of this study was to compare the incidence of chromosome 13q14.1-14.2 and 13q14.3 deletion and to detect 13q14 deletion size and number of involved cells in MM patients. The chromosome 13q14 region was detected by fluorescence in situ hybridization using probes LSI-RB1 and LSI-D13S319 in plasma cells of 112 MM patients. The results showed that 47.3% (53 out of 112) MM patients had both LSI-RB1 and LSI-D13S319 13q14 deletion (cut-off value: 7%), and the deletion rates detected by probes LSI-RB1 and LSI-D13S319 were accordant. The positive rates of 13q14 deletion were 46.4% and 47.3% respectively when the cut-off level was increased to 20%, and the corresponding rate was 98%. MM patients carrying 13q14 deletion showed 18% - 98% (median value: 72.5%) and 22% - 98.5% (median value: 76.5%) of deleted nuclei involving the RB1 and the D13S319 locus (P = 0.38). There were 67.9% (36 out of 53) and 66% (35 out of 53) cases carrying > 65% of 13q14.1-14.2 and 13q14.3 deleted nuclei as high proportion deletion patients, respectively (P = 0.188). The positive rate of the high proportion deletion patients had still no difference between LSI-RB1 and LSI-D13S319 groups when the cut-off value was defined as 85% (P = 0.439). In conclusion, in this cohort of 112 MM patients, there was no significant difference between the LSI-RB1and LSI-D13S319 probes to detect 13q14 deletion. Both LSI-RB1 and LSI-D13S319 probes can be selected to detect 13q14 deletion in MM patients. All the 53 MM patients with 13q14 deletion had deletions of 13q14.1-14.2 and 13q14.3 regions, which is a large deletion as one of the important characters in MM patients with 13q14 deletion.