[Effects of Organic Pollutants on the Bacterioplankton Community in Hangzhou Bay].

Hangzhou Bay suffers from intensive anthropogenic disturbances and a huge amount of terrestrial inputs, and thus has become one of the most seriously contaminated coastal zones in China. There is evidence that microbes play a dominant role in pollutant biodegradation and serve as biomarkers for pollution levels. However, it remains unclear how the bacterioplankton communities respond to organic contaminants. To fill this knowledge gap, we collected surface water samples (0.5 m below the surface layer) from 13 sites across Hangzhou Bay and 8 control sites across its adjacent offshore areas. Using Illumina sequencing based on analysis of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene, we explored the effects of increasing organic pollution levels on the bacterioplankton community compositions (BCCs). The results revealed that the organic pollution level (A) in Hangzhou Bay (13.2±1.6) was significantly (P<0.001) higher than in the control zone (5.4±3.0). The distribution and diversity of bacterioplankton communities were significantly distinct between the two zones. The dominant bacterioplankton lineages in Hangzhou Bay were γ-Proteobacteria (24.4%±5.5%), α-Proteobacteria (16.5%±7.7%), and Planctomycetes (13.9%±8.6%), whereas those in the adjacent zones were Cyanobacteria (20.1%±7.5%), Bacteroidetes (18.4%±1.5%), Actinobacteria (17.5%±4.2%), γ-Proteobacteria (16.6%±1.2%), and α-Proteobacteria (14.3%±1.7%). Multivariate regression tree (MRT) analysis showed that the bacterioplankton community diversity was primarily affected by suspended particulates (SP), nitrite, oil, and organic pollutants, which respectively explained 22.0%, 6.5%, 6.0%, and 5.5% of the variance in diversity. Redundancy analysis (RDA) illustrated that the bacterioplankton community distribution was controlled by organic pollutants, COD, Chla, TN, nitrate, and salinity, which cumulatively governed 71.0% of the variation in BCCs. Organic pollutants alone controlled 6.5% variance, which was higher than any other single factor. Additionally, 35 sensitive species were identified via the indicator value method and their relative abundances were significantly associated (P<0.05 in each case) with the organic pollution level, thereby indicating their potential for evaluating coastal pollution. Collectively, our work demonstrates that BCCs are sensitive to coastal pollution and provides biomarkers for elevated pollution levels.

Study of recombinant human interleukin-12 for treatment of complications after radiotherapy for tumor patients.

AIM: To evaluate the treatment effects of recombinant human interleukin-12 (rhIL-12) on radiotherapy complications, such as severe myelosuppression or pancytopenia, the decline or imbalance of immune function, etc. METHODS: The patients received high-dose and short-course precise radiotherapy, such as Cyber knife and image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT), which can cause myelosuppression or pancytopenia and immune function decline within a short time. One-hundred subjects were enrolled in the study, and 50 were randomized to a treatment group which used rhIL-12 and 50 were randomized to a control group which used symptomatic and supportive therapy after radiotherapy. The 50 subjects in the treatment group were further divided into five subgroups and intervened with rhIL-12 at a dose of 50, 100, 150, 200 or 250 ng/kg respectively. The dose-effect relationship was observed. RESULTS: RhIL-12 significantly attenuated the decrease of peripheral blood cells in the treatment group, and immune function was improved after treatment. Due to the different radiation doses, there was a fluctuation within 12 h after treatment but mostly showing an increasing trend. As to the clinical manifestations, 2 patients in the 250 ng/kg subgroup showed low fever after administration, 1 patient in the 200 ng/kg subgroup and 2 patients in the 250 ng/kg subgroup showed mild impairment of liver function during the observation period. CONCLUSION: RhIL-12 has effective therapeutic and protective effects on complications following radiotherapy, such as the decline of blood cells, myelosuppression and the decline or imbalance of immune function, which indicated good prospects for development and application.

[Effects of Coastal Organic Pollution on Bacterioplankton Community in Sanmen Bay].

Coastal organic pollution has become a serious problem, thus it is imperative to assess the potential effects on the marine environment. The microbes are generally the first responders to environmental perturbation, which may serve as biological indicators for pollution levels. In this study, we collected surface seawater samples from Sanmen Bay and adjacent Yushan Reserve. Using an Illumina sequencing based analysis of bacterial 16S rRNA gene, we explored the effect of organic pollution on the bacterioplankton community compositions (BCCs). The results showed that the organic pollution (A) was 4.57±2.41 at Sanmen Bay, which was significantly higher (P<0.001) than that in Yushan Reserve (0.43±0.74). The bacterial diversity and community compositions differed significantly between the two locations. Specifically, the relative abundance of Actinobacteria, α-Proteobacteria, ß-Proteobacteria, SAR406 in Sanmen Bay was significantly higher than that in Yushan Reserve, while Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria, Planctomycetes exhibited an opposite change pattern. A multivariate regression tree analysis showed that the bacterial diversity was primarily affected by water pH, organic pollution and chlorophyll a levels, which respectively explained 27.7%, 15.6% and 6.7% variance in bacterial diversity. A redundancy analysis (RDA) revealed that the bacterioplankton community was significantly controlled by pH, salinity and organic pollution, which cumulatively explained 14.8% of the variation in BCCs. In addition, the geographic distance was significantly (P <0.001) correlated with BCCs, accounting for 4.42% variance, which suggested that the spatial distribution of bacterioplankton community was non-random. Moreover, this study screened 23 sensitive bacterial families, whose relative abundances were significantly associated the organic pollution. For a given bacterial family, the change pattern of relative abundance was consistent with its known function, thus holding the potential for indicating organic pollution levels. To conclude, this study showed that the increasing coastal organic pollution had altered BCCs, and enriched the relative abundances of potential pathogens. Furthermore, the sensitive bio-indicators were screened for evaluating the increasing organic pollution level.

Inhibitory Effects of Astragaloside IV on Bleomycin-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis in Rats Via Attenuation of Oxidative Stress and Inflammation.

In this study, we investigated the effects of astragaloside IV (As-IV) on pulmonary fibrosis and its mechanisms of action. Sprague-Dawley rats were used in a model of pulmonary fibrosis induced by an intratracheal instillation of bleomycin (BLM). Rats were intraperitoneally injected with As-IV (10, 20, 50 mg/kg) daily for 28 days, while the rats in control and BLM groups were injected with a saline solution. The effects of As-IV treatment on pulmonary injury were evaluated with the lung wet/dry weight ratios, cell counts, and histopathologic. Oxidative stress was evaluated by detecting the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), and reactive oxygen species (ROS) in lung tissue. Inflammation was assessed by measuring the levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1ß, and IL-6 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). The results indicated that As-IV treatment remarkably ameliorated BLM-induced pulmonary fibrosis and attenuated BLM-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. Our findings indicate that As-IV-mediated suppression of fibroproliferation may contribute to the anti-fibrotic effect against BLM-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Its mechanisms of action are associated with inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammatory response. In summary, our study suggests a therapeutic potential of As-IV in the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis.

Structure and function of Gab2 and its role in cancer (Review).

The docking proteins of the Grb-associated binder (Gab) family transduce cellular signals between receptors and intracellular downstream effectors, and provide a platform for protein­protein interactions. Gab2, a key member of the Gab family of proteins, is involved in the amplification and integration of signal transduction, evoked by a variety of extracellular stimuli, including growth factors, cytokines and antigen receptors. Gab2 protein lacks intrinsic catalytic activity; however, when phosphorylated by protein­tyrosine kinases (PTKs), Gab2 recruits several Src homology­2 (SH2) domain­containing proteins, including the SH2­containing protein tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP2), the p85 subunit of phosphoinositide­3 kinase (PI3K), phospholipase C­Î³ (PLCγ)1, Crk, and GC­GAP. Through these interactions, the Gab2 protein triggers various downstream signal effectors, including SHP2/rat sarcoma viral oncogene/RAF/mitogen­activated protein kinase kinase/extracellular signal­regulated kinase and PI3K/AKT, involved in cell growth, differentiation, migration and apoptosis. It has been previously reported that aberrant Gab2 and/or Gab2 signaling is closely associated with human tumorigenesis, particularly in breast cancer, leukemia and melanoma. The present review aimed to focus on the structure and effector function of Gab2, its role in cancer and its potential for use as an effective therapeutic target.

[Efficacy comparison of interventional thrombectomy versus thrombolysis in the treatment of acute mixed-type lower extremity deep venous thrombosis].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy of interventional thrombectomy versus thrombolytic treatment for acute mixed-type lower extremity deep venous thrombosis (LEDVT). METHODS: The clinical data of 458 patients with acute mixed type LEDVT were analyzed retrospectively.Group A: 327 patients underwent mechanical aspiration thrombectomy; Group B: 131 patients received systematic thrombolysis and anticoagulation with urokinase and heparin. RESULTS: Complete thrombus removal (Grade I): Group A was was better than group B (65.44% vs 37.4%) (P = 0.000). The circumference differences of healthy and affected limbs of knee-joints' below and above 15 cm at discharge were (1.34 ± 0.57) and (0.93 ± 0.32) cm in group A were better than (1.72 ± 0.69) and (1.29 ± 0.43) cm in group B (both P = 0.000). Among them, 411 patients had a median follow-up period of 35 (16-70) and the follow-up rate was 89.83%. At 36 months postoperation, the circumference difference of affected limbs of knee-joints' below 15 cm for group A (0.53 ± 0.22) cm was better than that for group B (1.42 ± 0.65) cm (P = 0.000) . And the sequelae occurrence rates of edema, pigmentation and ulceration of group A (29.64%, 14.01%,0%) were lower than those of group B (55.77%, 83.65%, 9.62%) (both P = 0.000). Color Doppler flow imaging revealed that the vein patency rate of group A was 90.23% and normal valve function rate 71.34%. And both were better than group B (37.50%, 15.38%) (P = 0.000; P = 0.000). The total effective rate of group A (100%) was better than that of group B (71.15%) (P = 0.000). Excellency rate: group A (88.93%) was higher than group B (29.81%) (P = 0.000). CONCLUSION: Interventional thrombectomy is better than simple thrombolysis in the treatment of acute mixed-type lower extremity deep venous thrombosis. And the former offers better protection of normal valve function.