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Biomedical subjects

Q Fan

Publications and source records attributed to Q Fan.

79 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

[The influence of acupuncture on interleukin 2 interferon-natural killer cell regulatory network of kidney-deficiency mice].

The influence of acupuncture on IL2-IFN-NKC regulatory network was investigated, experiments were performed on kidney-deficiency mice received the treatments of acupuncture of "Zusanli" point. The results showed that the interleukin: (IL:), natural killer cell (NKC) activity and interferon (IFN) from the kidney-deficiency mice were lower than that from the normal mice. Acupuncture increased the levels of all the IL2 and NKC activity, acupuncture promoted Newcastle disease virus (NDV) inducing the IFN of kidney-deficiency mice, but also induced the IFN directly. The results suggests that acupuncture could make positive adjustment to IL2-IFN-NKC regulatory network. It provided new theoretical basis for the principles of acupuncture theory on IL2-IFN-NKC regulatory network put forward in recent years.

Acupuncture Therapy↗

[Mutagenesis study of ethylmethane sulfonate with shuttle vector plasmid pZ189].

Shuttle vector plasmid pZ189 was used as a molecular tool and the SupF inserted in the plasmid was worked as a target gene for mutagenesis study. The host cells (E. coli MBM 7070) with pZ189 were treated with ethylmethane sulfonate (EMS) and plated on the selective media containing X-gal (5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-beta-D-galactoside) and IPTG (isopropyl-beta-D-thiogalactoside). The SupF and the LacZ amber mutant carried by the host cells complemented each other and thus made the colonies blue on the selective media. However the colonies derived from the SupF mutants changed the colour from blue to white. The mutant frequencies in a series of experiments with different concentrations of EMS were estimated. Furthermore, the DNA isolated from 5 SupF mutants was digested with restruiction enzyme Hha I. It suggests that the 214 bp Hha I fragments containing mutant SupF could be distinguished from their wild type counterparts by temperature-gradient gel electrophoresis under optimal conditions.

Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel↗

Gossypol-induced alterations of aminophospholipid composition in human sperm.

Gossypol-induced alterations of aminophospholipid composition in human sperm were observed and the effects of some factors on these alterations were investigated. The alterations of aminophospholipid composition of human sperm induced by gossypol included a progressive decrease in the levels of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) and phosphatidylserine (PS) when gossypol concentrations ranged from 5-500 mumol/L, and a progressive increase in the level of (LPE) at lower gossypol concentrations (5-50 mumol/L). The conversion of PE into lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE) was strongly enhanced by Ca2+ and inhibited by 0.5 mmol/L EDTA, while PMSF, NEM, iodoacetamide and Zn2+ had no effect. This conversion was weaker in sperm with stripped surface proteins than in normal sperm. In addition, three surface proteins (MW 80, 60 and 40 kD) were fixed on the plasma membrane by gossypol treatment. The significance of gossypol action and the possibility that sperm PLA2, PE and some surface proteins might play an important role in the physiological acrosome reaction of human sperm, as well as in oocyte penetration, are discussed.

Gossypol↗

Effects of hydrocortisone on carbohydrase concentrations, de novo synthesis and turnover patterns in immature rat intestine.

Hydrocortisone administration to infant rats enhanced cellobiase and maltase activities and induced precocious expression of sucrase and trehalase activities along the length of the small intestine. These activity changes reflected proportional concentration increases in the enzymes lactase (EC 3.2.1.23), maltase/glucoamylase (EC 3.2.1.20) and sucrase-isomaltase (EC 3.2.1.48/10). Administration of an equivalent tracer dose of [3H]leucine (by body weight) to control and hydrocortisone-treated infant rats resulted in greater accumulation of label in the carbohydrase pools of the treated rats, suggesting their increased de novo synthesis. The increased concentrations of lactase and maltase/glucoamylase induced by exogenous hydrocortisone were matched by the presence of corresponding greater amounts of label in their brush border pools. Accumulation of label in each of the lactase, maltase/glucoamylase and sucrase-isomaltase pools was generally similar in the hydrocortisone-treated rats, suggesting equivalent stimulation of their synthesis as a group by the humoral agent. The turnover rates of the carbohydrases as a group were found to be similar and did not appear to differ in control and hydrocortisone-treated rats. Total protein synthesis rates were slightly greater in the intestine of the hydrocortisone-treated group of rats.

Aging↗

Maturation antigens present in epididymis of cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis).

PROBLEM: The present study was carried out to evaluate the changes in morphology and motility of spermatozoa retrieved from different regions of the epididymis of the cynomolgus monkey. The role of the epididymis in sperm maturation is assessed by assaying protein synthesis within different regions of the epididymis and by correlating these with changes in spermatozoal membrane surface components. METHOD: Spermatozoa retrieved from proximal caput (CP), midcorpus (CO), and distal cauda (CD) were assessed by morphological evaluation and computerized motion analysis. Membrane surface proteins of spermatozoa of different epididymal regions were extracted and separated on SDS-PAGE. Protein synthesis of different regions of the epididymis were assayed in vitro by [35S]-methionine incorporation. RESULTS: Spermatozoa obtained from different regions of the epididymis differed morphologically only in the location of the cytoplasmic droplet. Specifically, from caput to corpus to cauda, sperm steadily exhibited a more distal cytoplasmic droplet. When the motion parameters of velocity and amplitude of the lateral head were examined, CP spermatozoa were not progressively motile, and poor duration of movement was most noticeable for CO spermatozoa compared with CD spermatozoa. Membrane extracts from CP, CO, and CD epididymal monkey spermatozoa differed in only several protein bands. Three major polypeptide bands (19, 30, and 60 kD) that were absent from CP sperm were present in CO and CD sperm, with the latter showing increased intensity. Several polypeptides were lost from the sperm during epididymal transit: a 25-kD band was lost in CD sperm; and bands at 27 kD, 50-52 kD, and 90 kD were only present for CP sperm. Additionally, regional differences exist for proteins secreted by the cynomolgus monkey epididymis. Proteins (15, 25 kD) were only secreted in the CP region; a 38-kD protein increased in intensity from the CP to CD regions, whereas a 21-kD protein was absent from CD-secreted medium. CONCLUSION: These preliminary findings permitted the identification of several "maturational antigens" for cynomolgus monkey spermatozoa. Further characterization of these antigens that are modified during epididymal transit is warranted to determine their significance in the acquisition of progressive motility and fertilizing ability by epididymal spermatozoa.

Animals↗

Study of C4A mRNA in mononuclear blood cells from a patient with SLE and C4A homozygous deficiency without C4A gene deletion.

C4A null alleles (C4AQ0) have an increased frequency in SLE patients. Surprisingly some of them have no detectable gene deletion. In order to characterize the level of the defect in such patients, we used a RT-PCR/nested PCR technique and detected the presence of C4A mRNA in normal amounts. Since maturation abnormalities are almost always accompanied by a decrease in mRNA concentration, this result suggests that the defect may be located at the translational level.

Base Sequence↗