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Biomedical subjects

Min Wu

Publications and source records attributed to Min Wu.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

[A field trial for evaluating the safety of recombinant human interferon alpha-2b for nasal spray].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety of recombinant human interferon alpha-2b for nasal spray for the prevention of SARS and other upper respiratory viral infections. METHODS: Field epidemiologic evaluation was conducted, the design was randomized and had a synchronously parallel control group. In the study, the drugs were given for five days and all subjects were followed up for ten days. RESULTS: During the period of using interferon, body temperature of the experimental group was normal compared to the control group. Experimental group had more influenza-like symptoms than the control group (P < 0.05), such as headache (4.83%-7.09%), dizziness (7.17%-11.63%), lassitude (8.55%-15.06%), muscular soreness (4.43%-7.09%), pharynx dryness (12.10%-17.85%), angina (6.25%-8.72%), abdominal pain (2.30%-5.50%) and diarrhea (2.45%-5.66%). Most of side effects reached their peak with in the first 3 days. Except for pharynx dryness, the incidences of all other side effects declined after completion of the use of the trial drug, and incidences of some symptoms in experimental group were lower than those of the control group. There were no significant differences in the symptoms of cough and expectoration between the experimental group and the control group. The incidence of exanthem in the control group was significantly higher than that in the experimental group. The side effect of bloody nasal mucus was not observed in experimental group, which had been reported by other authors in several volunteer studies. CONCLUSION: Using recombinant human interferon alpha-2b for nasal spray could lead to some influenza-like symptoms, however, all those symptoms were mild , reversible, and relieved after completion of the use of the trial drug. No serious side effects were found during the period of following up. The authors conclude that the drug is safe.

Abdominal Pain↗
PubMed2005

[Effects of different ground clearance on soil fertility of Chinese fir stands].

The study on the soil physical properties, nutrient contents, microbial amounts and enzyme activities of clear cutting and controlled burning Chinese fir stands showed that in comparing with the control, soil non-capillary porosity of clear cutting stand increased by 23%, whereas soil natural water capacity and capillary moisture capacity decreased by 25%. In controlled burning stand, soil bulk density increased by 10%, while soil non-capillary porosity, natural water capacity and capillary moisture capacity decreased by 61%, 48% and 26%, respectively. The contents of soil organic matter, total N, total P and total K in clear cutting stand decreased by 14%, 14%, 35% and 22%, and in controlled burning stand, they decreased by 37%, 37%, 47% and 7%, respectively. Soil alkalized N and available K in clear cutting stand increased by 24% and 31%, respectively, but soil available P decreased by 15%. The contents of soil alkalized N, available P and available K in controlled burning stand decreased by 25%, 43% and 40%, respectively. In clear cutting stand, the amounts of soil bacteria, fungi and actinomyces increased by 1.4, 11.3 and 0.8 times, respectively, but in controlled burning stand, the amounts of soil bacteria decreased by 24%, while those of soil fungi and actinomyces increased by 5.0 and 0.5 times, respectively. The activities of soil urease, catalase and cellulase in clear cutting stand increased by 1.9, 1.6 and 2.1 times, and in controlled burning land, they were 35%, 90% and 106% of the control, respectively. Damp soil had higher contents of organic matter, total N and total P, whereas porous soil was favorable for the accumulation of alkalized N, available P and available K and for the increase of soil urease activity. The amount of soil fungi decreased with increasing soil capillary porosity. Aerated soil was favorable for the increase of soil catalase activity.

Catalase↗
PubMed2005

A novel region of deletion on 13q33-q34 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Chromosome 13 presents frequent allelic loss in esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCC). However, no ESCC suppressor gene has been identified from this chromosome. To define common deletion regions that possibly contain the ESCC suppressor gene(s), we performed a mapping of allelic loss in 50 esophageal squamous cell carcinomas using a panel of 25 microsatellite markers on chromosome 13q21-qter, which has rarely been studied for allelic loss. Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) with high frequencies (> or = 50%) was observed at markers D13S1494, D13S1323, D13S248, D13S1315, D13S285, and D13S1295, in which the peak LOH (69.2%) was at locus D13S248. Seven cases presented LOH at three consecutive markers D13S248, D13S1315 and D13S285, 4 of which also displayed LOH at another adjacent marker D13S1295. This overlapping region of deletion covers an interval of 6.36 Mb at 13q33.1-q34, whose deletion has not previously been reported in ESCC. Tumors of grade II showed significantly more frequent LOH at D13S248 than those of grade I. A significantly higher frequency of allelic loss at D13S152 was also found in tumors with lymph node metastasis compared to those without lymph node metastasis. The present study defined a novel region of allelic loss in 13q33-q34. LOH at D13S248 and D13S152 are associated with higher tumor grade and metastasis, respectively.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

A novel approach to restore lung immunity during systemic immunosuppression.

Systemic immunosuppression accounts for significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Pulmonary infections represent the most common cause of death in these patients. The resident inflammatory cell in the lung is the alveolar macrophage (AM) and its function is markedly diminished by immunosuppression. We hypothesized that AMs from normal mice with or without gene transfer of the gamma interferon gene inside the macrophages, can restore alveolar immunity in immunosuppressed mice with severe combined immunodeficiency syndrome (SCID). To test this hypothesis we intratracheally instilled normal and IFN-gamma activated macrophages to the lungs of SCID mice. We demonstrated that airway delivery of macrophages results in widespread alveolar distribution, improved phagocytic function and ability to clear opportunistic infections such as Pneumocystis carinii. Airway delivery of IFN-gamma expressing macrophages further increased the function of alveolar macrophages. Reconstitution of the lungs of immunosuppressed mice with normal or activated AMs can restore alveolar immunity despite ongoing systemic immunosuppression.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Design of a system for vision screening and follow-up eye care for children in Milwaukee Public Schools.

Vision problems affect many school age children, while only few of children are adequately screened for vision problems. The design of an information system supporting vision screening and follow-up eye care for Milwaukee Public Schools is discussed in this paper, which includes wireless data collection and web-based data management. The implementation of the system is ongoing. The information system will provide service to approximately 5,000 students annually in 30 urban elementary schools.

Child↗
PubMed2005

Design of a system for combined analysis of microarray-based gene expression and FlyBase-derived annotation in Drosophila.

In recent years, researchers began to utilize both the experimental microarray data and the annotation data from FlyBase to identify Drosophila genes that might encode certain functions. So far, they have to manually combine data from both the microarray experiment and the FlyBase, which is a slow and tedious process. The goal of this research is to construct a flexible relational database system that integrates the microarray data with annotation information from FlyBase.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Online annotation tool for dental radiology.

Dental imaging plays a significant role in the process of diagnoses of oral cancer. In this project, an online annotation tool for dental radiology is developed to support systematic annotation, which includes image findings, descriptive information on the lesion, patient characteristics and pathology data. This tool will be available for the dental schools in US who are interested in the creation of dental image archives for teaching and research.

Humans↗
PubMed2005

Design of an integrated system for Milwaukee children with developmental disabilities.

Currently, data on children with developmental delays are collected on an as-needed basis and in general are created and maintained locally. In this paper, a comprehensive, user-friendly integrated system design for children age birth to three years with disabilities in Milwaukee County is proposed. After the prototype system is developed and tested as a "proof-of-concept" the product system will be migrated into the Wisconsin Public Health Information Network (WI-PHIN) as a Program Area Module (PAM).

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed2004

Histamine innervation and activation of septohippocampal GABAergic neurones: involvement of local ACh release.

Recent studies indicate that the histaminergic system, which is critical for wakefulness, also influences learning and memory by interacting with cholinergic systems in the brain. Histamine-containing neurones of the tuberomammillary nucleus densely innervate the cholinergic and GABAergic nucleus of the medial septum/diagonal band of Broca (MSDB) which projects to the hippocampus and sustains hippocampal theta rhythm and associated learning and memory functions. Here we demonstrate that histamine, acting via H(1) and/or H(2) receptor subtypes, utilizes direct and indirect mechanisms to excite septohippocampal GABA-type neurones in a reversible, reproducible and concentration-dependent manner. The indirect mechanism involves local ACh release, is potentiated by acetylcholinesterase inhibitors and blocked by atropine methylbromide and 4-DAMP mustard, an M(3) muscarinic receptor selective antagonist. This indirect effect, presumably, results from a direct histamine-induced activation of septohippocampal cholinergic neurones and a subsequent indirect activation of the septohippocampal GABAergic neurones. In double-immunolabelling studies, histamine fibres were found in the vicinity of both septohippocampal cholinergic and GABAergic cell types. These findings have significance for Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders involving a loss of septohippocampal cholinergic neurones as such a loss would also obtund histamine effects on septohippocampal cholinergic and GABAergic functions and further compromise hippocampal arousal and associated cognitive functions.

Acetylcholine↗
PubMed2004

Visualization of plasma membrane compartmentalization with patterned lipid bilayers.

Micrometer-size patterned lipid bilayers containing liganded lipids are used to control the location and size of receptor clusters and enable direct visualization of structural reorganization of cellular components. Subsequent to concentration of Fcepsilon receptor I, the mast cell receptor for IgE, and colocalized tyrosine phosphorylation activity, Lyn kinase and other proteins anchored to the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane redistribute selectively with the receptor clusters in a process that depends on actin polymerization. Surprisingly, outer leaflet components characteristically associated with lipid rafts do not detectably coredistribute with these inner leaflet components. Cell activation using patterned surfaces provides unique insights into cell membrane structural organization, revealing dynamic, large-scale uncoupling of inner and outer leaflet components of lipid rafts.

Actins↗
PubMed2004

AMID is a p53-inducible gene downregulated in tumors.

AMID, also called PRG3, is an AIF-homologous and mitochondria-associated protein that has been implicated in caspase-independent apoptosis. In this report, we demonstrated that human AMID gene promoter was activated by p53 in reporter gene assays. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments indicated that p53 could bind to human AMID promoter. Deletion mutagenesis indicated that human AMID promoter contains two p53-responsive elements. Furthermore, expression array analysis indicated that human AMID mRNA expression was downregulated in a majority of human tumors. Our findings point to the possibility that AMID is a p53-downstream gene involved in tumorigenesis.

Apoptosis↗
PubMed2004

Conformational searches elucidate effects of stereochemistry on structures of deoxyadenosine covalently bound to tumorigenic metabolites of benzo[C] phenanthrene.

Remarkably different conformations can result when DNA binds with stereoisomeric compounds containing differing absolute configurations of substituents about chiral carbon atoms. Furthermore, the biochemical functions of covalent adducts with DNA are strongly affected by the stereochemistry of the ligands. Such stereochemical effects are manifested by DNA covalent adducts derived from metabolites of the non-planar fjord region environmental chemical carcinogen benzo[c]phenanthrene. To analyze these phenomena, an extensive conformational investigation for R and S stereoisomeric adducts to deoxyadenosine, derived from trans addition of enantiomeric anti diol epoxide metabolites of benzo[c]phenanthrene, has been carried out. We have surveyed the potential energy surface of the two adducts by varying systematically at 5 degree intervals in combination, the three important torsion angles that govern conformational flexibility of the carcinogen bulk with respect to the linked nucleoside. We carried out a grid search by creating 373, 248 structures for each isomer, and evaluated their molecular mechanical energies. This has permitted us to map the potential energy surface of each adduct in these three variables, and to delineate their low energy regions. The maps have a symmetric relationship which stems from the near mirror-image stereochemistry in the R and S isomers. This produces near mirror-image low energy structures in the nucleoside adducts. The limited sets of stereoisomer-dependent conformational domains delineated are determined by steric effects. Moreover, these features have been experimentally demonstrated to play governing structural roles in such carcinogen-damaged DNA duplexes: opposite orientations in the stereoisomer pairs computed for the nucleosides are observed by high-resolution NMR in the similarly modified DNA double helices, and are likely to play important roles in their interactions with enzymes involved in DNA transactions, and hence their biological activities.

Carcinogens↗
PubMed2004

Altering DNA polymerase incorporation fidelity by distorting the dNTP binding pocket with a bulky carcinogen-damaged template.

Fidelity of DNA polymerases is predominantly governed by an induced fit mechanism in which the incoming dNTP in the ternary complex fits tightly into a binding pocket whose geometry is determined by the nature of the templating base. However, modification of the template with a bulky carcinogen may alter the dNTP binding pocket and thereby the polymerase incorporation fidelity. High fidelity DNA polymerases, such as bacteriophage T7 DNA polymerase, are predominantly blocked by bulky chemical lesions on the template strand during DNA replication. However, some mutagenic bypass can occur, which may lead to carcinogenesis. Experimental studies have shown that a DNA covalent adduct derived from (+)-anti-BPDE [(+)-(7R,8S,9S,10R)-7,8-dihydroxy-9,10-epoxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydrobenzo[a]pyrene], a carcinogenic metabolite of benzo[a]pyrene (BP), primarily blocks Sequenase 2.0, an exo(-) T7 DNA polymerase; however, a mismatched dATP can be preferentially inserted opposite the damaged adenine templating base within the active site of the polymerase [Chary, P., and Lloyd, R. S. (1995) Nucleic Acids Res. 23, 1398-1405]. The goal of this work is to elucidate structural features that contribute to DNA polymerase incorporation fidelity in the presence of this bulky covalent adduct and to interpret the experimental findings on a molecular level. We have carried out molecular modeling and molecular dynamics simulations with AMBER 6.0, investigating a T7 DNA polymerase primer-template closed ternary complex containing this 10S (+)-trans-anti-[BP]-N(6)-dA adduct in the templating position within the polymerase active site. All four incoming dNTPs were studied. The simulations show that the BP ring system fits well into an open pocket on the major groove side of the modified template adenine with anti glycosidic bond conformation, without disturbing critical polymerase-DNA interactions. However, steric hindrance between the BP ring system and the primer-template DNA causes displacement of the modified template adenine, so that the dNTP base binding pocket is enlarged. This alteration can explain the experimentally observed preference for incorporation of dATP opposite this lesion. These studies also rationalize the observed lower probabilities of incorporation of the other three nucleotides. Our results suggest that the differences in incorporation of dGTP, dCTP, and dTTP are due to the effects of imperfect geometric complementarity. Thus, the simulations suggest that altered DNA polymerase incorporation fidelity can result from adduct-induced changes in the dNTP base binding pocket geometry. Furthermore, plausible structural explanations for the observed effects of [BP]-N(6)-dA adduct stereochemistry on the observed stalling patterns are proposed.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed2004

Differential expression of S100 gene family in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

PURPOSE: To study the differential expression of the S100 gene family at the RNA level in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), and to find the relationship of the S100 gene family with ESCC. METHODS: Firstly, the specific primers were designed for the different S100 genes with Software Primer 3, which required that both primer sequences of each S100 gene were from two different exons respectively. Then, the differential expression of 16 S100 genes was examined by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 62 cases of ESCC versus the corresponding normal esophageal mucosa. All RT-PCR products were analyzed by 1.5% agarose gel. With Fluor-S MultiImager and Multi-Analyst software, the electrophoresis images were evaluated with statistics analysis using SAS 8.1 software. RESULTS: Eleven out of 16 S100 genes were significantly downregulated ( p<0.05) in ESCC versus the normal counterparts such as S100A1, S100A2, S100A4, S100A8, S100A9, S100A10, S100A11, S100A12, S100A14, S100B, and S100P genes. Only the S100A7 gene in the S100 family was markedly upregulated ( p<0.05). Moreover, the S100B gene was significantly correlated with histological differentiation of ESCC ( p=0.0247), and the deregulation of some S100 genes was closely correlated ( p<0.05), such as S100A10/S100A11, S100A2/S100A8, S100A2/S100A14, S100A8/S100A14, and S100A2/S100P etc. CONCLUSIONS: The S100 gene family is closely associated with ESCC.

Carcinoma, Squamous Cell↗
PubMed2004

Alterations in expression, proteolysis and intracellular localizations of clusterin in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

AIM: To investigate biogenesis and intracellular localizations of clusterin to elucidate the potential molecular mechanisms implicated in tumorigenesis of esophageal mucosa. METHODS: Semi-quantitative RT-PCR for multi-region alteration analysis, Western blot for different transcriptional forms and immunohistochemical staining for intracellular localizations of clusterin were carried out in both tissues and cell lines of ESCC. RESULTS: The N-terminal deletions of the clusterin gene and the appearance of a 50-53 ku nuclear clusterin, an uncleaved, nonglycosylated, and disulfide-linked isoform, were the major alterations in cancer cells of esophagus. Naturally the 40 ku clusterin was located in the connective tissue of the lamina propria of epithelial mucosa and right under the basal membrane of epithelia, but it was disappeared in stromal mucosa of esophagus and the pre-matured clusterin was found positive in cancerous epithelia. CONCLUSION: The N-terminal deletion of clusterin may be essential for its alterations of biogenesis in ESCC.

Carcinoma, Squamous Cell↗
PubMed2004

Expression patterns of esophageal cancer deregulated genes in C57BL/6J mouse embryogenesis.

AIM: To investigate the expression patterns of esophageal squamous cell cancer deregulated genes in mid to late stages of C57BL/6J mouse embryogenesis, and the correlation between these genes in embryonic development and tumorigenesis of esophageal squamous cell cancer. METHODS: Reverse northern screening was performed to examine the expression patterns of esophageal cancer deregulated genes in C57BL/6J mouse embryogenesis. To confirm the gene expression patterns, semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was carried out for 3 of the randomly picked differentially expressed genes. RESULTS: Within these esophageal cancer deregulated genes, 4 patterns of expression were observed at 3 stages embryonic d 11.5 (E11.5), embryonic d 13.5 (E13.5) and postnatal d1 (P1). (1) Up-regulation during the E11.5 period, down- regulation during the E13.5 and P1 period (up-down-down), the 10 up-regulated genes during the E11.5 period could be classified into 6 known genes and 4 unknown genes. The known genes included differentiation related genes (S100A8), immunity related gene (IGL), translation and transcription regulation genes (RPL15, EEF1A1), cytoskeletal protein (TUBA1), cysteine protease inhibitor (cystatin B). (2) Up-regulation during the E13.5 and P1 period (down-up-up), such as the SPRR2A which was down-regulated at E11.5. (3) Down-regulation during the E11.5 and E13.5 period (down-down-up), such as RHCG and keratin 4. (4) Fluctuating expression, down initially, up at E13.5, and then down again (down-up-down). EMP1 belonged to such a gene, which was highly expressed at E13.5. CONCLUSION: The results will be helpful for understanding the function of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) deregulated genes in embryonic development and tumorigenesis. S100A8 and S100A9 may play different roles in early embryonic development. IGL may be an oncofetal protein, and EMP1 relates with neurogenesis at E13.5. The genes identified pertinent to embryonic development may serve as candidate susceptibility genes for inherited esophageal cancer disorders as well as for various heritable disorders of embryonic development.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Loss of myeloid-related proteins 8 and myeloid-related proteins 14 expression in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma correlates with poor differentiation.

AIM: To study the expression of myeloid-related proteins(MRP)8 and myeloid-related proteins(MRP)14 in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and to investigate if there was any correlation between MRP8 and MRP14 expression level and histopathological grade in these tumors. METHODS: In this study, 65 cases of advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were assessed for MRP8 and MRP14 expression using immunohistochemistry. Statistical analysis was performed for the comparison of MRP8 and MRP14 expression in normal and tumor tissues, and their relationship with clinicopathological features. RESULTS: Reduced or absent expression of MRP8 and MRP14 was observed in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, with a significant difference between tumor tissues and normal tissues (P<0.01 and P<0.01 for MRP8 and MRP14, respectively). Poorly differentiated tumors presented a greater decrease than well and moderately differentiated tumors, with a correlation between their protein level and histopathological grading (P<0.001 and P<0.001, respectively). However, no significant association was found between MRP8 and MRP14 expression and age or gender (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that the decreased expression of MRP8 and MRP14 might play an important role in the pathogenesis of human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, being particularly associated with poor differentiation of tumor cells.

Adult↗