Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease remarkably characterized by synovitis of joints, whose pathogenesis is complicated and not yet fully elucidated. A variety of cells, cytokines and intercellular signaling pathways are involved in the occurrence and development of RA. The mitogen activation protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway is closely related to the pathogenesis of RA, and plays an important role in the formation of pannus, synovitis, and bone destruction. This paper reviews the research progress of MAPK signaling pathway in RA from the aspects of the interaction of MAPK signaling pathway with a variety of key cells and cytokines in the pathogenesis of RA, in order to provide a direction and theoretical basis for anti-RA drug therapy research.
The cleft lip and palate (CLP) is one of the most common craniofacial malformations in humans. We collected functional magnetic resonance data of 23 CLP patients before rehabilitation training (Bclp) and 23 CLP patients after rehabilitation training (Aclp), who were performing Chinese character pronunciation tasks, and performed brain activation analysis to explore the changes of brain mechanism in CLP patients after articulation disorder rehabilitation training. The study found that Aclp group had significant activation in the motor cortex, Broca area, Wernicke area and cerebellum. While the Bclp group had weak activation in the motor cortex with a small activation range. By comparing the differences and co-activated brain regions between the two groups, we found that rehabilitation training increased the activity level of negatively activated brain areas (cerebellum, left motor area, Wernicke area, etc.) to a positive level. At the same time, the activity level of weakly activated brain areas (right motor area, Broca area, etc.) was also increased. Rehabilitation training promoted the activity level of articulation-related brain regions. So that the activation intensity of articulation-related brain regions can be used as a quantifiable objective evaluation index to evaluate the effect of rehabilitation training, which is of great significance for the formulation of rehabilitation training programs.
【Abstract】Objective To investigate the production and possible significance of plasma trypsinogen activation peptides (TAP) in rat experimental acute pancreatitis. Methods Ninety SD rats were randomly allocated to five groups: group EP with retrograde ductal infusion of 3%sodium taurocholate; group NP with retrograde ductal infusion of 5%sodium taurocholate; group TP with retrograde ductal infusion of 3%sodium taurocholate and ulinastatin(UTI) intravenous infusion half an hour later; group CP with 0.9% NS retrograde ductal infusion; group OP with sham operation. Animals in each group were killed 3h,6h and 24h after infusion. Plasma TAP was determined by EIA.The histological severity of the pancreas were assessed by Schmidt method. Results The pancreatic pathological changes in group NP was significantly severe than in group EP. At 3h and 6h after infusion, plasma TAP concentration of group NP (4.798±0.169)nmol/L and (3.999±0.299)nmol/L were significant higher than that of group EP(2.416±0.148)nmol/L and (3.356±0.211)nmol/L. At 6h after infusion plasma TAP concentration of group TP 〔(1.611±0.113)nmol/L〕 was significant lower than that of group EP(3.356±0.211)nmol/L. The difference of plasma TAP concentration between group EP and group NP appeared prior to the difference of the histopathological changes of pancreas between two groups. Conclusion Plasma TAP concentration is connected with the severity of sodium taurocholate-induced rat pancreatitis. Plasma TAP concentration may be used as a marker for early assessment of the severity of this experimental acute pancreatitis.
Objective To investigate the role and mechanism of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1α (PGC-1α) in the activation of aortic valve interstitial cells (AVICs) in aortic stenosis. Methods Isolating primary AVICs and stimulating their activation with transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1, 30 ng/mL), the expression of PGC-1α was detected. The activation of AVICs induced by TGF-β1 was observed after overexpression of PGC-1α by adenovirus or inhibition of PGC-1α function by GW9662. The possible downstream molecular mechanism of PGC-1α in AVICs activation was screened. Finally, the phenotype was further verified in primary human AVICs. Results The expression of PGC-1α decreased after the activation of AVICs induced by TGF-β1 (control group: 1.00±0.18; 24 h: 0.31±0.10; 48 h: 0.32±0.06; 72 h: 0.20±0.07; P<0.05). Specific overexpression of PGC-1α by adenovirus inhibited the activation of AVICs induced by TGF-β1 stimulation (periostin: 3.17±0.64 vs. 1.45±0.54, P<0.05; α-smooth muscle actin: 0.77±0.11 vs. 0.28±0.06, P<0.05). On the contrary, inhibition of PGC-1α function by GW9662 promoted the activation of AVICs (periostin: 2.20±0.68 vs. 7.99±2.50, P<0.05). Subsequently, it was found that PGC-1α might inhibit the activation of AVICs through downregulating the expression of calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase (CAMK1δ) (0.97±0.04 vs. 0.74±0.11, P<0.05), and downregulating the expression of CAMK1δ alleviated the activation of AVICs (periostin: 1.76±0.11 vs. 0.99±0.20, P<0.05). The possible mechanism was that the activation of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway was inhibited by reducing the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) (778.3±139.4 vs. 159.3±43.2, P<0.05). Finally, the protective effect of PGC-1α overexpression was verified in the activated phenotype of human AVICs (periostin: 2.73±0.53 vs. 1.63±0.14, P<0.05; connective tissue growth factor: 1.27±0.04 vs. 0.48±0.09, P<0.05). Conclusions The expression of PGC-1α significantly decreases during the activation of AVICs induced by TGF-β1. The overexpression of PGC-1α significantly inhibites the activation of AVICs, suggesting that PGC-1α plays a protective role in the activation of AVICs. The possible mechanism is that PGC-1α can inhibit the activation of CAMK1δ-ROS-mTOR pathway. In conclusion, interventions based on PGC-1α expression levels are new potential therapeutic targets for aortic stenosis.
Objective To verify the technics of inactivating/removing pathogens in medical chitosan derived from shrimp shell. Methods Possible pathogen species were included according to the raw material of shrimp shell used in production, then bacillus cereus, porcine parvovirus (PPV) and pseudorabies virus (PRV) were selected as indicator pathogens.Pathogen solution was prepared in accordance with Technical Standard for Disinfection. The processing procedure of medical chitosan was analyzed to determine whether the alkal ization of chitin and the filter steril ization of chitosan were capable of inactivating/removing pathogens and their efficiencies were tested. Results Bacillus cereus was removed by 8 184 cfu/ mL after alkal ization and 30 818 cfu/mL after filter steril ization. The average logarithm inactivation value (LIV) of PPV and PRV after alkal ization were equal to or above 4.76 logTCID50/0.1 mL and 6.67 logTCID50/0.1 mL, respectively, and their average LIV after filter steril ization were 2.25 logTCID50/0.1 mL and 3.04 logTCID50/0.1 mL. The alkal ization of chitin inactivated/removed indicator pathogens effectively, while the filter steril ization of chitosan removed bacterial effectually but could not inactivate viruses completely. Conclusion The alkal ization of chitin can be used as the technics of inactivating/removing pathogens during the preparation process of medical chitosan to guarantee the safety of the product.
Objective To investigate the effect of astragaloside A (AS-A) on the photoreceptor degeneration induced by sodium iodate (NaIO3) and its related mechanism. MethodsSixty healthy male C57BL/6J mice, aged 6-8 weeks, were randomly divided into normal control (NC) group, NaIO3 group, and AS-A group, with twenty mice in each group. 30 min before modeling, AS-A group mice were intraperitoneally injected with 100 μl AS-A at a dose of 100 mg/kg body weight. 30 min later, mice in NaIO3 group and AS-A group were intraperitoneally injected with 100 μl NaIO3 at a dose of 30 mg/kg body weight. Subsequently, AS-A group mice were administered AS-A twice daily at 12 h intervals until the end of the experiment. On day 1 post-modeling, zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) immunohistochemistry was performed to observe the structure of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells; real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was conducted to detect the mRNA expression of various retinal chemokine ligand-2 (Ccl2), interleukin-1 beta (Il-1β), mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein (Mlkl), receptor-interacting protein kinase 3 (Ripk3), and tumor necrosis factor (Tnf). On day 3 post-modeling, immunohistochemistry was performed to observe the expression of ionized calcium binding adaptor molecule 1 (Iba1) and glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP) in the retina; TdT-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay was used to detect photoreceptor cell death in each group. On day 4 post-modeling, fundus morphology of mice in each group was observed by fundus color photography and optical coherence tomography (OCT). Hematoxylin-eosin staining (HE) was used to observe the morphological structure of the retina in each group. Inter-group comparisons between two groups were conducted using independent samples t-test, while comparisons among three groups were performed using one-way ANOVA. ResultsFundus color photography and OCT examination showed that a large number of scattered yellow-white subretinal nodular structures in the fundus of NaIO3 group mice, and a large number of strong reflection areas in the RPE layer. The number of strong reflection areas in the RPE layer was reduced in the AS-A group. Immunohistochemical analysis of ZO-1 showed that ZO-1 was largely lost on the RPE cell membrane in that NaIO3 group; whereas in the AS-A group, ZO-1 was evenly distributed on the RPE cell membrane. HE staining results showed circular black deposits were visible in the RPE layer of the NaIO3 group, and the inner and outer segments of photoreceptors were severely damaged, with a significant decrease in the number of outer nuclear layer (ONL) cell nuclei; whereas in the AS-A group, the RPE layer pigments were orderly, the inner and outer segments of photoreceptors were intact, and the number of ONL cell nuclei significantly increased. The results of TUNEL staining show that numerous TUNEL-positive cell nuclei were observed in the ONL of the retina in the NaIO3 group, while the number of TUNEL-positive cell nuclei in the ONL of the retina was significantly reduced in the AS-A group, with statistically significant differences (t=2.66, P＜0.05). The analysis of qPCR data showed that compared with the AS-A group, the relative expression levels of Mlkl, Ripk3, Ccl2, Il-1β and Tnf mRNA in the retina were significantly increased in the NaIO3 group, with statistically significant differences (F=39.18, 10.66, 53.51, 41.40, 24.13; P＜0.001). Immunohistochemical staining results showed that compared with NC group and AS-A group, the positive expression of GFAP in retina of NaIO3 group was significantly increased, and the difference was statistically significant (F=9.62, P＜0.05). ConclusionAS-A antagonizes NaIO3-induced photoreceptor degeneration in part by inhibiting photoreceptor cell death and neuroinflammation. Meanwhile, AS-A treatment protects against NaIO3-triggered perturbation of retinal homeostasis.
It has been found that in biological studies, the simple linear superposition mathematical model cannot be used to express the feature mapping relationship from multiple activated grid cells' grid fields to a single place cell's place field output in the hippocampus of the cerebral cortex of rodents. To solve this problem, people introduced the Gauss distribution activation function into the area. We in this paper use the localization properties of the function to deal with the linear superposition output of grid cells' input and the connection weights between grid cells and place cells, which filters out the low activation rate place fields. We then obtained a single place cell field which is consistent with biological studies. Compared to the existing competitive learning algorithm place cell model, independent component analysis method place cell model, Bayesian positon reconstruction method place cell model, our experimental results showed that the model on the neurophysiological basis can not only express the feature mapping relationship between multiple activated grid cells grid fields and a single place cell's place field output in the hippocampus of the cerebral cortex of rodents, but also make the algorithm simpler, the required grid cells input less and the accuracy rate of the output of a single place field higher.
Objective To explore the secretion law of high mobility group box 1（HMGB1）in rat pancreatic acinar cells induced by trypsin activation peptide（TAP）and release of HMGB1 affected by ethyl pyruvate（EP）. Methods The experiment was performed in 12 SD rats. The pancreatic acinar cells of rats were taken out and then separated into three groups：control group， TAP group， and EP group. TAP was added into TAP group and EP group（keep TAP at a final concentration of 3 nmol/L）， respectively， but EP was added into EP group only （keep EP at a final concentration of 28 mmol/L）. The expressions of HMGB1 mRNA and protein were detected by using real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction（RT-PCR）or Western blot at 3 h， 6 h， 12 h， and 24 h time point， respectively. The relationship between HMGB1 and TAP action time was explored by rank correlation. Results Compared with control group， the expressions of HMGB1 mRNA and protein were increased with prolongation of the TAP action in TAP group and EP group（P＜0.05）. Compared with TAP group， the expressions of HMGB1 mRNA and protein were decreased in EP group（P＜0.05）. The expressions of HMGB1 mRNA and protein were increased with prolongation of the TAP action（P＜0.05）， and were highest at 12 h time point（P＜0.01）in TAP group. There were positive correlation between the expressions of HMGB1 mRNA and protein and TAP action time（rs=0.971， P＜0.01；rs=0.966， P＜0.01）.Conclusions TAP can induce the release of HMGB1 in pancreatic acinar cells. There is positive relationship between TAP in early stage and HMGB1 in later period of acute pancreatitis. EP can inhibit the release of HMGB1.
ObjectiveTo observe the clinical characteristics and therapeutic effect of reactivation of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) patients after intravitreal injection of ranibizumab (IVR). MethodsA retrospective case series study. Eleven children with ROP (21 eyes) who were reactivated after IVR in Shenzhen Eye Hospital from January 2019 to October 2021 were included in the study. Among them, there were 6 males (11 eyes) and 5 females (10 eyes), with the gestational age of (27.6±2.2) weeks and birth weight of (1 034.6±306.5) g. At the first IVR treatment, 14 eyes (63.7%, 14/22) had acute ROP (AROP), 8 eyes (36.3%, 8/22) had threshold lesions. Post-reactivation treatments include IVR, retinal laser photocoagulation (LP), or minimally invasive vitrectomy (MIVS). The follow-up time after treatment was 12 to 18 months. Birth gestational age, birth weight, treatment method, corrected gestational age at treatment, lesion stage before and after treatment, lesion reactivation and regression time were recorded. The clinical characteristics and efficacy were observed and analyzed. ResultsThe time from initial IVR treatment to reactivation was (8.2±3.5) weeks. The corrected gestational age of the child was (43.62±4.08) weeks. In 21 eyes, AROP, threshold lesion, pre-threshold lesion, and stage 4 lesion were in 2, 4, 12, and 3 eyes, respectively. The patients were treated with IVR, LP, IVR+LP, IVR+MIVS in 2, 13, 4 and 2 eyes, respectively. After the first reactivation treatment, the time of regression and stability was (8.4±4.9) weeks after treatment. There were 5 eyes with secondary reactivation of the lesion, and the lesion stages were stage 3, stage 4a and stage 5 in 2, 1 and 2 eyes, respectively. The mean reactivation time was (19.3±6.0) weeks after the last treatment. The patients in stage 3, stage 4a and stage 5 were treated with LP, LP+MIVS and IVR, respecitively, and the lesions subsided steadily during follow-up. At the last follow-up, 19 out of 21 eyes showed complete regression of the lesions, stable photocoagulation, regression of crista-like lesions, no additional lesions, and retinal leveling. All retinal detachment was "funnel-shaped" in 2 eyes. ConclusionsThe lesion reactivation of AROP after IVR treatment is more common. The early reactivation rate is higher after treatment. There is a possibility of reactivation twice after re-treatment.
Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) is a disease caused by the accumulation of atherosclerotic plaques that leads to arterial hardening and impairment of contractility. Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) can increase low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in plasma, which accelerates the development and progression of ASCVD. This article intends to review the biological characteristics and functional mechanisms of PCSK9, elucidate its impact on the development and progression of ASCVD, provide research literature support for the diagnosis and treatment of such diseases and improving the prognosis of patients.
