Search

The anti-apoptotic and pro-survival effects of exercise training were evaluated on the early aged hypertensive rat cerebral cortex. The brain tissues were analysed from ten sedentary male Wistar Kyoto normotensive rats (WKY), ten sedentary spontaneously 12 month early aged hypertensive rats (SHR), and ten hypertensive rats undergoing treadmill exercise training (60 min/day, 5 days/week) for 12 weeks (SHR-EX). TUNEL-positive apoptotic cells, the expression levels of endonuclease G (EndoG) and apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) (caspase-independent apoptotic pathway), Fas ligand, Fas death receptor, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, TNF receptor 1, Fas-associated death domain, active caspase-8 and active caspase-3 (Fas-mediated apoptotic pathways) as well as t-Bid, Bax, Bak, Bad, cytochrome c, active caspase 9 and active caspase-3 (mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathways) were reduced in SHR-EX compared with SHR. Pro-survival Bcl2, Bcl-xL, p-Bad, 14-3-3, insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1, pPI3K/PI3K, and pAKT/AKT were significantly increased in SHR-EX compared to those in SHR. Exercise training suppressed neural EndoG/AIF-related caspase-independent, Fas/FasL-mediated caspase-dependent, mitochondria-mediated caspase-dependent apoptotic pathways as well as enhanced Bcl-2 family-related and IGF-1-related pro-survival pathways in the early aged hypertensive cerebral cortex. These findings indicated new therapeutic effects of exercise training on preventing early aged hypertension-induced neural apoptosis in cerebral cortex.

Objectives : To explore the associations of FKBP4 and FKBP5 gene polymorphisms with disease susceptibility, glucocorticoid (GC) efficacy, anxiety, depression, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. Methods : All subjects were collected from the First and the Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University in Hefei, China, during 2011 to 2015. In the case–control study, 541 SLE patients and 543 controls were recruited. In the follow-up study, 466 patients completed the 12-week follow-up and then were divided into GC-sensitive and GC-insensitive groups. Genotyping was determined using Multiplex SNaPshot technique. Data were analyzed using chi-square test and univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Results : rs4713904, rs9368878, and rs7757037 of FKBP5 were associated with depression in SLE patients (rs4713904, PBH = 0.037; rs9368878, PBH = 0.001; rs7757037, PBH = 0.003). Moreover, rs4713904 was associated with GC efficacy in males with SLE (PBH = 0.011). The rs755658 of FKBP5 was associated with improvement in social function (PBH = 0.022) and mental component summary (PBH = 0.028). The rs4713907 of FKBP5 was related to improvement in total score of SF-36, bodily pain, and mental component summary score (all PBH = 0.018). Furthermore, the rs12582595 of FKBP4 was correlated with general health improvement (PBH = 0.033). No associations were seen between FKBP4/FKBP5 gene polymorphisms and SLE susceptibility and anxiety. Conclusions : FKBP5 gene polymorphisms may be associated with depression and GC efficacy of SLE patients. Meanwhile, the genetic polymorphisms of FKBP4 and FKBP5 genes may be associated with HRQOL improvement in SLE patients.Key Points• FKBP5 gene polymorphisms were associated with depression of SLE patients.• FKBP5 gene polymorphisms were associated with GC efficacy of SLE patients.• FKBP5 gene polymorphisms were associated with HRQOL improvement in SLE patients.• FKBP4 gene polymorphisms were associated with HRQOL improvement in SLE patients.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of diosgenin on the D-galactose-induced cerebral cortical widely dispersed apoptosis. Male 12-week-old Wistar rats were divided into four groups: Control (1[Formula: see text]mg/kg/day of saline, i.p.), DD0 (150[Formula: see text]mg/kg/day of D-galactose, i.p.), DD10, and DD50 (D-galactose[Formula: see text] or 50[Formula: see text]mg/kg/day of diosgenin orally). After eight weeks, histopathological analysis, positive TUNEL and Western blotting assays were performed on the excised cerebral cortex from all four groups. The TUNEL-positive apoptotic cells, the components of Fas pathway (Fas, FADD, active caspase-8 and active caspase-3), and mitochondria pathway (t-Bid, Bax, cytochrome [Formula: see text], active caspase-9 and active caspase-3) were increased in the DD0 group compared with the control group, whereas they were decreased in the DD50 group. The components of survival pathway (p-Bad, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, IGF-1, p-PI3K and p-AKT) were increased in the DD50 group compared to the control group, whereas the levels of Bcl-xL, p-PI3K, and p-AKT were also compensatorily increased in the DD0 group compared to the control group. Taken together, diosgenin suppressed D-galactose-induced neuronal Fas-dependent and mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathways and enhanced the Bcl-2 family associated pro-survival and IGF-1-PI3K-AKT survival pathways, which might provide neuroprotective effects of diosgenin for prevention of the D-galactose-induced aging brain.

The aim of this paper was to investigate the effect of Banxia Xiexin Decoction(BXD) on inflammatory factors and intestinal flora in a dextran sulfate sodium induced ulcerative colitis(DSS-UC) mouse model, and to explore the mechanism of BXD in treating ulcerative colitis from the perspective of flora disorder. Forty C57 BL/6 J mice were randomly divided into control group, model group and BXD group. A 2.5% DSS-induced ulcerative colitis model was established. On the 8 th day, normal saline, normal saline, and BXD were given daily for 14 days. After 14 days, HE staining was used to observe histopathological changes of the colon. Serum inflammatory factor content was detected by ELISA, and the change of intestinal flora in mice feces was detected by 16 S rRNA sequencing technology. Compared with control group, the colonic tissue of mice in model group was damaged seriously, and the contents of IL-6 and TNF-α in serum were significantly increased(Plt;0.05). Compared with model group, mice in BXD group had less colonic damage, and the contents of IL-6, TNF-α in serum were decreased significantly(Plt;0.05). After creation, the richness of Patescibacteria was increased significantly at the phylum level(Plt;0.05). At the same time, the richness of Faecalibaculum(Plt;0.01), norank_f_Muribaculaceae(Plt;0.01) were decreased significantly at the genus level, while the richness of Turicibacter(Plt;0.01), Romboutsia(Plt;0.01), Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1(Plt;0.01) were increased significantly. After the intervention with BXD, the content of Patescibacteria was significantly reduced at the phylum level(Plt;0.05), and the contents of Lactobacillus(Plt;0.01), Clostri-dium_sensu_stricto_1(Plt;0.01), Enterorhabdus(Plt;0.01), Candidatus_Saccharimonas(Plt;0.05), Eubacterium_fissicatena_group(Plt;0.05) were decreased significantly at the genus level, while the contents of Dubosiella, Bacteroides and Allobaculum were increased significantly. Therefore, BXD could significantly improve the symptoms of DSS-UC mice. It not only could reduce the contents of IL-6 and TNF-α, but also could reduce the richness of Patescibacteria at the phylum level, and those of Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, Candidatus_Saccharimonas, Eubacterium_fissicatena_group at the genus level. Inaddition, BXD could increase the richness of Bacteroides and Bifidobacterium. It suggested that BXD could play a role in the treatment of ulcerative colitis partially through reducing inflammatory factors and regulating the structure of the gut microbiota.

Objective: To investigate the potential mechanism of Guishao Pingchan Recipe (GPR) against Parkinson's disease (PD) based on network pharmacology and molecular docking. Methods: The main components of GPR were collected based on TCMSP database, Batman-TCM database, Chinese Pharmacopoeia, and Literatures. The potential therapeutic targets of PD were predicted by Drug Bank Database and Gene Cards database. Cytoscape 3.8.2 software was used to construct herb–component–target network. Then, String database was used to construct a PPI network, and DAVID database was used for gene ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway annotation of targets function. Core components of GPR and hub targets were imported into AutoDock Vina for molecular docking verification and results were visualized by Pymol. Results: 13 candidate components were selected and 288 corresponding targets of GPR for treating PD were obtained. The GO enrichment analysis mainly involved 135 cell components, 187 molecular functions, and 1753 biological processes. Moreover, KEGG pathway enrichment analysis mainly involved 200 signaling pathways. Molecular docking simulation indicated a good binding ability of components and targets. Conclusion: Based on network pharmacology and molecular docking, we found that sitosterol, 4-Cholesten-3-one and stigmasterol in GPR could combine with MAPK3, APP, VEGFA, and CXCR4 and involved in the cAMP, PI3K/Akt, Rap1 signaling pathways. It is suggested that GPR may have therapeutic effects on PD through multi-component, multi-target, and multi-pathway and predict the relevant mechanism of the anti-PD effect of GPR.

To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of Shugan Jieyu Capsules,Jieyu Pills and Xiaoyao Pills in the treatment of liver-stagnation and spleen-deficiency depression by the network Meta-analysis( NMA),so as to provide evidence-based clinical practice. Chinese databases,including CNKI,VIP,Wan Fang Data,CBM as well as English databases including the Cochrane Library,PubMed,EMbase and Web of Science were retrieved from inception to October 30,2018,to collect randomized controlled trials( RCTs) about clinical study of the three kinds of Chinese patent medicines. The quality and bias risk of the included studies were assessed by 5. 1 standard in Cochrane Handbook,ADDIS software was applied in the statistical analysis,and the result were compared by NMA. A total of 37 studies involving 3 105 patients were included. The results of NMA showed that the adjuvant therapy with the three kinds of traditional Chinese patent medicines could improve the clinical efficacy. Jieyu Pills had the most significant effect( OR = 4. 59,95%CI[1. 94,12. 71],Plt;0. 05). In HAMD,Shugan Jieyu Capsules( MD = 3. 22,95%CI[2. 07,4. 39],Plt; 0. 05) and Xiaoyao Pills( MD= 2. 23,95%CI[0. 41,4. 03],Plt;0. 05) can effectively reduce the depression scale indicators. In the incidence of adverse reactions,the three kinds of Chinese patent medicines can reduce the incidence of adverse reactions. The three kinds of Chinese patent medicines can be combined with auxiliary Western medicine to treat liver-stagnation and spleen-deficiency depression,with complementary advantages in action mechanisms. In the clinical efficacy and safety,the Chinese patent medicines had good clinical manifestations. Although this study showed that Jieyu Pills may be the referred medicine for depression,this conclusion is still immature and needs to be further verified by high-quality RCTs studies,and the application shall be selective based on specific characteristics in clinic.

This study investigated the effects of exercise training on cardiac inflammatory and cardiac fibrotic pathways in female spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), which were divided into a sham-operated sedentary hypertensive group (SHR-S), a sedentary hypertensive ovariectomized group (SHR-O), or a hypertensive ovariectomized group with treadmill exercise training (SHR-OT; 60 min/day, 5 days/wk) for 8 wk. Normotensive female Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY) served as controls. SOD and catalase (CAT) activities were significantly increased in the SHR-OT group, when compared with the SHR-S or SHR-O groups. The protein levels of estrogen receptor (ER)-α and ER-β became decreased in the SHR-O group, when compared with the WKY or SHR-S groups, but were not changed in the SHR-OT group. The protein level of the angiotensin II type I receptor (AT1R) was increased in the SHR-S group but did not further change in the SHR-O group, whereas it was decreased in the SHR-OT group. The inflammatory-related protein levels of TNF-α, p-NF-κB, cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and IL-6, as well as the fibrotic-related protein levels of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), p-Smad2/3, connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, and collagen I were increased in the SHR-S group and increased further in the SHR-O group, whereas they were decreased in the SHR-OT group. The coexistence of hypertension and ovariectomy additively increased cardiac inflammatory and fibrotic pathways partially through hypertension-enhanced AT1R and ovariectomy-depressed estrogen receptors. Exercise training appeared to suppress hypertensive ovariectomized heart-induced inflammatory and fibrotic pathways possibly through decreasing AT1R but not through estrogen receptors.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The coexistence of hypertension and ovariectomy appeared to increase cardiac inflammatory and fibrotic pathways likely through hypertension-enhanced angiotensin II type I receptor and ovariectomy-depressed estrogen receptors. Exercise training on a treadmill could prevent hypertensive ovariectomized heart-induced cardiac inflammation and fibrosis via an inflammatory pathway [TNF-α, p-IKK-α/β, p-NF-κB, cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), iNOS, and IL-6] and fibrotic pathway [transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), p-Smad2/3, connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, and collagen I] possibly through decreasing angiotensin II type I receptor but not through estrogen receptors.

Although the current glucocorticoids (GCs) treatment for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is effective to a certain extent, the difference in therapeutic effect between patients is still a widespread problem. Some patients can have repeated attacks that greatly diminish their quality of life. This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between HSP90AA2 polymorphisms and disease susceptibility, GCs efficacy and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Chinese SLE patients. A case-control study was performed in 470 SLE patients and 470 normal controls. Then, 444 patients in the case group were followed up for 12 weeks to observe efficacy of GCs and improvement of HRQoL. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of HSP90AA2 were selected for genotyping: rs1826330 and rs6484340. HRQoL was assessed using the SF-36 questionnaire. The minor T allele of rs1826330 and the TT haplotype formed by rs1826330 and rs6484340 showed associations with decreased SLE risk (T allele: PBH = 0.022; TT haplotype: PBH = 0.033). A significant association between rs6484340 and improvement of HRQoL was revealed in the follow-up study. Five subscales of SF-36 were appeared to be influenced by rs6484340: total score of SF-36 (additive model: PBH = 0.026), physical function (additive model: PBH = 0.026), role-physical (recessive model: PBH = 0.041), mental health (dominant model: PBH = 0.047), and physical component summary (additive model: PBH = 0.026). No statistical significance was found between HSP90AA2 gene polymorphisms and GCs efficacy. These results revealed a genetic association between HSP90AA2 and SLE. Remarkably, HSP90AA2 has an impact on the improvement of HRQoL in Chinese population with SLE.

// Dong-Xue Li 1, 2 , Xiao-Rui Fei 2 , Yong-Fei Dong 2 , Chuan-Dong Cheng 2 , Yang Yang 2 , Xue-Fei Deng 3 , Hai-Liang Huang 3 , Wan-Xiang Niu 2 , Chen-Xu Zhou 2 , Cheng-Yu Xia 2 and Chao-Shi Niu 2 1 Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, China 2 Department of Neurosurgery, Anhui Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, China 3 School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, China Correspondence to: Chao-Shi Niu, email: niuchaoshi@126.com Keywords: CRNDE, glioma, miR-136-5p, Bcl-2, Wnt2 Received: June 16, 2017 Accepted: September 08, 2017 Published: October 04, 2017 ABSTRACT The colorectal neoplasia differentially expressed (CRNDE) gene encodes a long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) that is the most unregulated among 129 lncRNAs differentially expressed in gliomas. In this study, we confirmed high CRNDE expression in clinical glioma specimens and observed through experiments in human glioma cell lines a novel molecular mechanism by which CRNDE may contribute to glioma pathogenesis. By inducing or silencing CRNDE expression, we detected a positive correlation between CRNDE levels and the proliferative, migratory, and invasive capacities of glioma cells, which were concomitant with a decreased apoptosis rate. Our experiments also suggest that these effects are mediated by downregulation of miR-136-5p, which correlated with the glioma WHO grade. Based on predicted CRNDE/miR-136-5p/mRNA interactions, both the mRNA and protein expression analyses suggested that miR-136-5p-mediated repression of Bcl-2 and Wnt2 underlies the pro-tumoral actions of CRNDE. We therefore propose that CRNDE functions as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) that binds to and negatively regulates miR-136-5p, thereby protecting Bcl-2 and Wnt2 from miR-136-5p-mediated inhibition in glioma.

The microstructure evolution laws of ultrafine grained metastable automobile steels was studied in this paper by laser confocal scanning microscope, EBSD, XRD and TEM. Results showed that, the matrix organizations of hot-rolled steel were lath martensite and deformation ferrite, and there were a little of retained austenite film and lath between the lath martensite. After heat treatment, the matrix organizations of steel were ultrafine ferrite and retained austenite. The retained austenite transformed into martensite and ε-martensitic in the deformation process, and the strength and plasticity of steel were improved. A lot of retained austenite were obtained in the annealing process. The TRIP effects by the large fraction of metastable austenite and the ultrafine grain size add to the test steel with high strength and high plasticity.

Boron doped diamond (BDD) films were deposited on porous Ti substrates by direct current plasma chemical vapor deposition (DC-PCVD) system. For improve adhesion between diamond and porous Ti, and shorten diamond nucleation period, appropriate pretreatments were carried out. Micro diamond particles were mechanical embedded in the holes of porous Ti substrates and then nanodiamond powders were seeded on substrates by ultrasound sonication prior to deposition. The samples were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), micro-Raman spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. It was found that BDD films covered the whole porous Ti substrate surface, and exhibited the good electrochemical property.

In this study we report on the synthesis and characterization of thermally stable polycrystalline diamond (PCD) using Ni-based alloys catalyst as a sintering aid and the B-doped diamond powder in the infiltrating way. The samples were treated at 5.6 GPa and 1200–1480 °C for 10 min in China-type cubic high pressure apparatus. Scanning electron microscopy showed significant intergrowth of the diamond particles sintered in the presence of Ni-based alloy. X-ray diffraction showed the phase change of the samples sintered at the different temperature. Differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermogravimetric analysis (TG) showed the sample was significantly more heat-resisting compared to conventional PCD. The results showed that the appropriate conditions of thermally stable PCD sintered were 5.6GPa and 1200–1480 °C.

In this paper, industrial diamonds using FeNi powder catalyst with additive La2O3 has been synthesized by HPHT method. Optical microscope, XRD and SEM were utilized for observation and detection. The influences of additive La2O3 on the synthesis have been investigated from several aspects such as the diamond-forming conditions, the composition of synthesized sample and inclusions in diamond, and the morphology character of diamonds etc. The results indicate that There is a new compound LaO, LaFeO3, Fe3C and Fe3O4 in the sample., and related phenomena were given in detail in this paper.

Synthesis of Ⅱa industrial diamond with high quality at high temperature and high pressure (HTHP) was examined in this paper and Ⅱa industrial diamonds were synthesized successfully. The experimental results show that the lowest synthesis pressure of diamond changed significantly which goes down firstly, and then up with the increasing of Ti content. It is discovered by optical microscopy that the color of synthesizing diamond in nitrogen getter system is lighter than that in raw catalyst power system and most crystals are hexahedrons & octahedrons. The experiment results measured by IR analysis shows that nitrogen content in synthesizing diamond in nitrogen getter system is significantly lower than that in the raw catalyst power system. Surface morphology of diamond synthesized in two different systems is investigated by the aid of SEM.

In this paper, industrial diamonds using pure Fe powder catalyst with additive Si has been synthesized by HPHT method. Optical microscope, XRD and SEM were utilized for observation and detection. The influences of additive Si on the synthesis have been investigated from several aspects such as the diamond-forming conditions, the composition of synthesized sample and inclusions in diamond, and the morphology character of diamonds etc. The results indicate that the formation of SiC, which should have been in a solid state during the synthesis.

Interleukin (IL)-15 is an important inflammatory cytokine and plays a key role in autoimmune disease. At present, IL-15 gene expression and regulation related to many innate immunity trigger signals have been clarified in some specific cell types, but the relationship of IL-6 and IL-15 in the human keratinocyte cell line (HaCaT) is unknown. In this study, we investigated the effect of IL-6 on the expression of IL-15 and selected signaling pathways in HaCaT cells. Results demonstrated that IL-6 up-regulated the expression of IL-15 both at the mRNA and protein levels. Meanwhile, IL-6 was able to activate MAPKs-ERK1/2 and PI3K-AKT signaling pathways. Furthermore, the high expression of IL-15 induced by IL-6 was down-regulated while MAPKs-ERK1/2 and PI3K-AKT signaling pathways were, respectively, blocked by PD98059 and LY294002. These findings indicate that the expression of IL-15 up-regulated by IL-6 is associated with MAPKs-ERK1/2 and PI3K-AKT signaling pathways in HaCaT cells.

A number of studies have shown that TiN film is correlated with corrosion resistance. In this study, we used a reactive direct current magnetron sputtering system to prepare TiN coating on Mg-Li alloys at low temperature. The intermediate TiN layer of thickness was about 1.6 μm from Ti target (99.99% purity). The structures of the resulting nanocatalysts were investigated, using X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD). The surface morphology of the coating was observed by Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). In the corrosive compare experiment the samples of Mg-Li alloys with and without titanium nitride film were put in solution with 5% NaCl respectively. We fund that the Mg-Li alloys with TiN coating has a lower rate of liberation of hydrogen, and the eroded surface morphology was examined by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), it prove that the TiN deposition on the surface of Mg-Li alloys has improved the corrosion resistance performance.

Background Supraglottic jet ventilation (SJV) via the "jet endotracheal tube" (JET) designed by Wei (WEI JET; Wei Medical LLC, Cherry Hill, NJ) provides adequate oxygenation and ventilation during direct laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation in animals. It has facilitated intubation in apneic pigs with a simulated difficult airway. Objective To report on the first clinical study to examine the efficacy of using SJV via the WEI JET, in combination with end-tidal CO 2 pressure (PetCO 2 ) monitoring during SJV, in maintaining oxygenation during direct laryngoscopy, and in facilitating placement of the WEI JET, and comparing it to the standard intubation technique using a conventional endotracheal tube. The relative safety of using SJV via the WEI JET in airway management was also addressed to provide the foundation for a larger-scale clinical study using the WEI JET, to be carried out in the future. Methods Patients in the control group were intubated with a conventional endotracheal tube, and patients in the experimental group were intubated with a WEI JET. The effectiveness of SJV through a WEI JET in maintaining proper oxygenation, and the use of PetCO 2 monitoring to facilitate intubation, were studied and compared to the control group. Complications such as sore throat, laryngospasm, and barotrauma were recorded during the study and 24 h after extubation. Results In the WEI JET group, pulse oxygen saturation (SpO 2 ) was 100% in all patients during intubation. No serious complications were detected, and the incidence of minor complications was comparable to the control group. Under PetCO 2 guidance, 100% of patients in the WEI JET group were intubated on the first attempt, compared to 30% of Grade III view patients in the control group, who required two attempts. Conclusion Using the WEI JET with SJV provides adequate oxygenation during tracheal intubation in apneic patients for a prolonged period of time, with no difference in complications compared to the standard intubation technique. PetCO 2 monitoring facilitated intubation in patients with a Grade III glottis view.

Poverty is a vital influence factor on households' health and insurance decision-making. This paper, under a structure of poverty-health and poverty-insurance decision, through a experiential analysis, is to study the effect of household' poverty on rural household' health and insurance decision. According to the outcome of the analysis, this paper indicates that household' poverty affects households' health and insurance decision significantly, the more poor, the more likeliness to have bad health situation and negative will to join in the rural basic social insurance, such as rural endowment insurance and New-type Rural Cooperative Medical System. This paper, also, analyses the richest group of rural households, which demonstrate some particularity. This paper, according to the outcome, brings forward some ideas such as to raise peasants' income, enhance the level of rural social insurance, and to develop a variety of insurance in rural China.

To explore the effect of N-acetylcysteine(NAC)on the interleukin(IL)18-induced expression of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha and interleukin(IL) 6 in mouse vascular smooth muscle cells(VSMC).VSMC was stimulated with various concentrations of IL-18 for different times after addition of NAC(5 mmol/L) for 1 h. The messenger ribonucleic acid(mRNA) expression of TNF-alpha and IL-6 was measured by RT-PCR and the protein secretion of the two cytokines was determined by ELISA method. Western blot was used to analyze the activation of NF-kappaB in VSMC.IL-18 significantly increased the mRNA expression and protein secretion of TNF-alpha and IL-6 (P0.01) in a dose-dependent and a time-dependent ways. NAC inhibited the mRNA expression and protein secretion of TNF-alpha and IL-6 induced by IL-18(P0.01). Western blot results showed the NAC inhibited the IL-18-induced activation of NF-kappaB in VSMC.N-acetylcysteine antagonizes the production of TNF-alpha and IL-6 induced by IL-18 in VSMC.

Interferons (IFNs) can activate the PI3K-AKT and Raf-MEK-ERK signal pathways and induce antiviral proteins (MxA, 2′,5′-OAS and PKR) expression in specific cell lines. However, the relationship between those antiviral proteins expression and signal pathways remains unknown at present. Thus our experiments were designed to determine the exact relationship in HepG2.2.15 cell line. The results demonstrated that IFN-α and IL-29 were both able to activate PI3K-AKT and Raf-MEK-ERK signal pathways, and IFN-α up-regulated the expression of MxA, 2′,5′-OAS and PKR whereas IL-29 increased mRNA expression of MxA and 2′,5′-OAS and had no influence on PKR. Furthermore, MxA, 2′,5′-OAS and PKR expression were down-regulated while PI3K-AKT signal pathway was blocked by LY294002. And MxA was up-regulated after Raf-MEK-ERK signal pathway being blocked by PD98059. These findings indicate that the expression of MxA, 2′,5′-OAS and PKR are up-regulate by PI3K-AKT signal pathway, and Raf-MEK-ERK signal pathway has a negative regulatory effect on the expression of MxA and no significant effect on 2′,5′-OAS and PKR.

Interleukin 29 (IL-29) is a class II cytokine and displays numerous immune functions other than its anti-viral and antiproliferation activities. This study is focused on the effect of IL-29 on human keratinocytes (KCs). Primary KCs were stimulated by various concentrations of IL-29 for different time periods, and antiviral proteins and TLR3 gene expression were then analyzed by real-time PCR. The signal pathways activated by IL-29 in KCs were detected by western blot. The antiviral activity of IL-29 was determined by methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide, and small interfering RNA knockdown was used to analyze the role of toll receptor 3 (TLR3) in the antiviral activity of IL-29. IL-29 was able to induce expression of antiviral proteins and TLR3 gene expression in KCs. IL-29 pretreatment strongly enhanced herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-induced expression of the interferon β (IFN-β) gene and protected the KCs from HSV-1 challenge. The IL-29 antiviral activity was partially dependent on TLR3 expression induced by this cytokine, and mechanistic studies demonstrated that the regulation of TLR3 expression by IL-29 might be partially dependent on Janus kinase /signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK–STATs) activation. IL-29-induced TLR3 expression is involved in antiviral activity of IL-29 in KCs, which suggests a feasible method to cure certain viral infections of the skin.

A diamond film was intermittently prepared by direct-current (DC) hot-cathode plasma chemical vapor deposition (PCVD). The intermittent growth was carried out by alternating deposition under methane flow for 20 min and etching for 10 min without methane flow. For comparison, a diamond film was continuously prepared under the same growth conditions without etching. Scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy and XRD were used to characterize surface morphology, texture and purity of the two diamond films. Results indicated that the diamond film produced by the intermittent growth had smaller amounts of non-diamond phase and its grains were more uniform than that produced by the continuous growth without etching. Amorphous carbon and graphite formed during deposition on the surface of the diamond film can be reduced by etching.