Tissue plasminogen activator and chromaffin cell function.
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Animals↗
Biomedical subjects
Q Jiang
Publications and source records attributed to Q Jiang.
The reconstitution of CD45RBhiCD4+ naive T cells is inversely correlated with donor age in murine allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
A high incidence of opportunistic infections after unrelated bone marrow transplantation has been reported. Delayed lymphocyte recovery may be associated with opportunistic infections. Immune reconstitution is influenced by recipient age and graft-vs-host disease (GVHD). In fact, children develop GVHD less frequently than adults. However, the role of donor age is largely unknown. We examined the effect of donor age on lymphocyte reconstitution after transplant. Three-month-old BALB/c recipient mice were lethally irradiated and transplanted with allogeneic haematopoietic stem cells from A/J donor mice of different ages, ranging from 0 d to 12 months. The recovery of absolute lymphocyte counts and those of CD3+ T cells, CD4+ T cells and CD45RBhi CD4+ naive T cells in the early post-transplant period correlated inversely with donor age. Recipient mice transplanted with haematopoietic stem cells from younger donors showed significantly higher survival rates and mitogenic responses than adult donors. As T cells, especially CD4+ naive T cells, play an important role in host defence, faster recovery of CD4+ naive T cells in younger donors may contribute to reduced mortality in the early post-transplant period. The results suggest that it could be better to choose a younger donor if sufficient cell dose is available.
Aging↗
Short root mutant of Lotus japonicus with a dramatically altered symbiotic phenotype.
Legume plants carefully control the extent of nodulation in response to rhizobial infection. To examine the mechanism underlying this process we conducted a detailed analysis of the Lotus japonicus hypernodulating mutants, har1-1, 2 and 3 that define a new locus, HYPERNODULATION ABERRANT ROOT FORMATION (Har1), involved in root and symbiotic development. Mutations in the Har1 locus alter root architecture by inhibiting root elongation, diminishing root diameter and stimulating lateral root initiation. At the cellular level these developmental alterations are associated with changes in the position and duration of root cell growth and result in a premature differentiation of har1-1 mutant root. No significant differences between har1-1 mutant and wild-type plants were detected with respect to root growth responses to 1-aminocyclopropane1-carboxylic acid, the immediate precursor of ethylene, and auxin; however, cytokinin in the presence of AVG (aminoetoxyvinylglycine) was found to stimulate root elongation of the har1-1 mutant but not the wild-type. After inoculation with Mesorhizobium loti, the har1 mutant lines display an unusual hypernodulation (HNR) response, characterized by unrestricted nodulation (hypernodulation), and a concomitant drastic inhibition of root and shoot growth. These observations implicate a role for the Har1 locus in both symbiotic and non-symbiotic development of L. japonicus, and suggest that regulatory processes controlling nodule organogenesis and nodule number are integrated in an overall mechanism governing root growth and development.
Mutation↗
Arabidopsis DNA ligase IV is induced by gamma-irradiation and interacts with an Arabidopsis homologue of the double strand break repair protein XRCC4.
Rejoining of single- and double-strand breaks (DSBs) introduced in DNA during replication, recombination, and DNA damage is catalysed by DNA ligase enzymes. Eukaryotes possess multiple DNA ligase enzymes, each having distinct roles in cellular metabolism. Double-strand breaks in DNA, which can occur spontaneously in the cell or be induced experimentally by gamma-irradiation, represent one of the most serious threats to genomic integrity. Non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) rather than homologous recombination is the major pathway for repair of DSBs in organisms with complex genomes, including humans and plants. DNA ligase IV in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and humans catalyses the final step in the NHEJ pathway of DSB repair. In this study we identify an Arabidopsis thaliana homologue (AtLIG4) of human and S. cerevisiae DNA ligase IV which is shown to encode an ATP-dependent DNA ligase with a theoretical molecular mass of 138 kDa and 48% similarity in amino-acid sequence to the human DNA ligase IV. Yeast two-hybrid analysis demonstrated a strong interaction between A. thaliana DNA ligase IV and the A. thaliana homologue of the human DNA ligase IV-binding protein XRCC4. This interaction is shown to be mediated via the tandem BRCA C-terminal domains of A. thaliana DNA ligase IV protein. Expression of AtLIG4 is induced by gamma-irradiation but not by UVB irradiation, consistent with an in vivo role for the A. thaliana DNA ligase IV in DSB repair.
Amino Acid Sequence↗
Calpain inhibitors confer biochemical, but not electrophysiological, protection against anoxia in rat optic nerves.
Calpains are ubiquitous Ca(2+)-activated neutral proteases that have been implicated in ischemic and traumatic CNS injury. Ischemia and trauma of central white matter are dependent on Ca2+ accumulation, and calpain overactivation likely plays a significant role in the pathogenesis. Adult rat optic nerves, representative central white matter tracts, were studied in an in vitro anoxic model. Functional recovery following 60 min of anoxia and reoxygenation was measured electrophysiologically. Calpain activation was assessed using western blots with antibodies against calpain-cleaved spectrin breakdown products. Sixty minutes of in vitro anoxia increased the amount of spectrin breakdown approximately 20-fold over control, with a further increase after reoxygenation to >70 times control, almost as much as 2 h of continuous anoxia. Blocking voltage-gated Na+ channels with tetrodotoxin or removing bath Ca2+ was highly neuroprotective electrophysiologically and resulted in a marked reduction of spectrin degradation. The membrane-permeable calpain inhibitors MDL 28,170 and calpain inhibitor-I (10-100 microM) were effective at reducing spectrin breakdown in anoxic and reoxygenated optic nerves, but no electrophysiological improvement was observed. We conclude that calpain activation is an important step in anoxic white matter injury, but inhibition of this Ca(2+)-dependent process in isolation does not improve functional outcome, probably because other deleterious Ca(2+)-activated pathways proceed unchecked.
Animals↗
Magnetic resonance imaging indexes of therapeutic efficacy of recombinant tissue plasminogen activator treatment of rat at 1 and 4 hours after embolic stroke.
With use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the effects of early and delayed treatment of embolic stroke in rat with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) were investigated. Rats with embolic stroke were treated with rt-PA at 1 (n = 9) or 4 (n = 7) hours after stroke onset or were untreated (n = 15). Diffusion-weighted imaging, perfusion-weighted imaging, and T2-weighted imaging were performed before and after embolization from 1 hour to 7 days. No significant differences were detected in the relative areas with low cerebral blood flow (CBF), apparent diffusion coefficient of water (ADCw), and T2 between the 4-hour treated group and the untreated group. Significant decreases in the average relative areas with low CBF were detected in the 1-hour treated group from 4 to 48 hours after embolization as compared with the untreated group. The increase in T2 in the 1-hour treated group was significantly lower than in the untreated and 4-hour treated groups. A significant increase in ADCw was detected in the 1-hour treated group at 3 and 24 hours after embolization as compared with the untreated and 4-hour treated groups. Secondary embolization was detected by both MRI and laser scanning confocal microscopy. The data suggest that MRI can detect the efficacy of rt-PA treatment and secondary ischemic damage.
Animals↗
Febrile core temperature is essential for optimal host defense in bacterial peritonitis.
Fever, a nonspecific acute-phase response, has been associated with improved survival and shortened disease duration in infections, but the mechanisms of these beneficial responses are poorly understood. We previously reported that increasing core temperature of bacterial endotoxin (LPS)-challenged mice to the normal febrile range modified expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin 1beta (IL-1beta), and IL-6, three cytokines critical to mounting an initial defense against microbial pathogens, but survival was not improved in the warmer animals. We speculated that our inability to show a survival benefit of optimized cytokine expression in the warmer animals reflected our use of LPS, a nonreplicating agonist, rather than an infection with viable pathogens. The objective of this study was to determine if increasing murine core temperature altered cytokine expression and improved survival in an experimental bacterial peritonitis model. We showed that housing mice at 35.5 degrees C rather than 23 degrees C increased core temperature from 36.5 to 37.5 degrees C to 39.2 to 39.7 degrees C, suppressed plasma TNF-alpha expression for the initial 48 h, delayed gamma interferon expression, improved survival, and reduced the bacterial load in mice infected with Klebsiella pneumoniae peritonitis. We showed that the reduced bacterial load was not caused by a direct effect on bacterial proliferation and probably reflected enhanced host defense. These data suggest that the increase in core temperature that occurs during bacterial infections is essential for optimal antimicrobial host defense.
Animals↗
Aminopeptidase-A. II. Genomic cloning and characterization of the rat promoter.
Aminopeptidase-A (APA) has a widespread tissue distribution consistent with a role in the metabolism of circulating or locally produced ANG II or CCK-8. APA is also highly expressed in pre-B lymphocytes, but its role in lymphoid cell development is unknown. To begin to understand the basis for cell-specific regulation of APA expression, we sought to clone and characterize the rat gene promoter. Screening of a rat genomic library with a partial rat APA cDNA resulted in isolation of a 12-kb clone found to contain the first exon and >3 kb of 5'-flanking sequence. Primer extension of rat kidney mRNA indicated that the major transcription start site was 312 bp upstream of the translation start codon and 22 bp downstream from a TATA box. Constructs containing portions of the 5'-flanking region placed upstream of a chloramphenicol acetyltransferase reporter gene indicated that expression was cell specific and that high activity could be obtained with constructs containing as little as 110 bp of 5'-flanking region sequence. We further identified an upstream regulatory element between -1063 and -348 that suppressed transcription in a cell-specific manner. This element (termed upstream suppressor of APA, or USA) also suppressed transcription of a heterologous promoter. These results indicate that the organization and regulation of the rat APA is not consistent with it being a housekeeping gene and further suggest that rat APA gene transcription might be regulated through the presence of a novel strong upstream suppressor element.
Aminopeptidases↗
Important role of reverse Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange in spinal cord white matter injury at physiological temperature.
Spinal cord injury is a devastating condition in which most of the clinical disability results from dysfunction of white matter tracts. Excessive cellular Ca(2+) accumulation is a common phenomenon after anoxia/ischemia or mechanical trauma to white matter, leading to irreversible injury because of overactivation of multiple Ca(2+)-dependent biochemical pathways. In the present study, we examined the role of Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange, a ubiquitous Ca(2+) transport mechanism, in anoxic and traumatic injury to rat spinal dorsal columns in vitro. Excised tissue was maintained in a recording chamber at 37 degrees C and injured by exposure to an anoxic atmosphere for 60 min or locally compressed with a force of 2 g for 15 s. Mean compound action potential amplitude recovered to approximately 25% of control after anoxia and to approximately 30% after trauma. Inhibitors of Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange (50 microM bepridil or 10 microM KB-R7943) improved functional recovery to approximately 60% after anoxia and approximately 70% after traumatic compression. These inhibitors also prevented the increase in calpain-mediated spectrin breakdown products induced by anoxia. We conclude that, at physiological temperature, reverse Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange plays an important role in cellular Ca(2+) overload and irreversible damage after anoxic and traumatic injury to dorsal column white matter tracts.
Animals↗
Bimodal expression of CYP2D16 in the guinea pig adrenal cortex.
Prior studies revealed an apparent bimodal distribution of adrenal xenobiotic-metabolizing activities in outbred guinea pigs. High activities were characteristic of most animals but a minority had very low rates of metabolism. The present studies were done to determine the basis for this distribution. Among the enzymatic activities abundant in guinea pig adrenal microsomes is bufuralol 1'-hydroxylation, a marker for CYP2D isozymes. Western blot analyses revealed that adrenal expression of CYP2D16, the guinea pig CYP2D analogue, was highly correlated with xenobiotic-metabolizing activities. Of 12 animals studied, 4 had low levels of adrenal CYP2D16 expression and correspondingly low bufuralol 1'-hydroxylase and benzphetamine N-demethylase activities. In contrast, adrenal expression of steroidogenic P450 isozymes (CYP17 and CYP21) and the corresponding steroid hydroxylase activities were similar in all animals. There was also no evidence of polymorphism in hepatic xenobiotic metabolism. The results suggest that the bimodal expression of adrenal CYP2D16 is at least partly responsible for the variability in adrenal xenobiotic metabolism, and that this pattern of expression is not applicable to other adrenal P450 isozymes or to hepatic CYP2D16. Further studies are needed to determine if genetic polymorphism is responsible for the mode of adrenal CYP2D16 expression.
Adrenal Cortex↗
Processing of chromogranin A by plasmin provides a novel mechanism for regulating catecholamine secretion.
Chromogranin A (CgA) is the major soluble protein in the core of catecholamine-storage vesicles and is also distributed widely in secretory vesicles throughout the neuroendocrine system. CgA contains the sequences for peptides that modulate catecholamine release, but the proteases responsible for the release of these bioactive peptides from CgA have not been established. We show here that the major fibrinolytic enzyme, plasmin, can cleave CgA to form a series of large fragments as well as small trichloroacetic acid-soluble peptides. Peptides generated by plasmin-mediated cleavage of CgA significantly inhibited nicotinic cholinergic stimulation of catecholamine release from PC12 cells and primary bovine adrenal chromaffin cells. We also show that the zymogen, plasminogen, as well as tissue plasminogen activator bind saturably and with high capacity to catecholaminergic (PC12) cells. Occupancy of cell surface binding sites promoted the cleavage of CgA by plasmin. Positive and negative modulation of the local cellular fibrinolytic system resulted in substantial alterations in catecholamine release. These results suggest that catecholaminergic cells express binding sites that localize fibrinolytic molecules on their surfaces to promote plasminogen activation and proteolytic processing of CgA in the environment into which CgA is secreted to generate peptides which may regulate neuroendocrine secretion. Interactions between CgA and plasmin(ogen) define a previously unrecognized autocrine/paracrine system that may have a dramatic impact upon catecholamine secretion.
Adrenal Glands↗
VEGF enhances angiogenesis and promotes blood-brain barrier leakage in the ischemic brain.
VEGF is a secreted mitogen associated with angiogenesis and is also a potent vascular permeability factor. The biological role of VEGF in the ischemic brain remains unknown. This study was undertaken to investigate whether VEGF enhances cerebral microvascular perfusion and increases blood-brain barrier (BBB) leakage in the ischemic brain. Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), three-dimensional laser-scanning confocal microscope, and functional neurological tests, we measured the effects of administrating recombinant human VEGF(165) (rhVEGF(165)) on angiogenesis, functional neurological outcome, and BBB leakage in a rat model of focal cerebral embolic ischemia. Late (48 hours) administration of rhVEGF(165) to the ischemic rats enhanced angiogenesis in the ischemic penumbra and significantly improved neurological recovery. However, early postischemic (1 hour) administration of rhVEGF(165) to ischemic rats significantly increased BBB leakage, hemorrhagic transformation, and ischemic lesions. Administration of rhVEGF(165) to ischemic rats did not change BBB leakage and cerebral plasma perfusion in the contralateral hemisphere. Our results indicate that VEGF can markedly enhance angiogenesis in the ischemic brain and reduce neurological deficits during stroke recovery and that inhibition of VEGF at the acute stage of stroke may reduce the BBB permeability and the risk of hemorrhagic transformation after focal cerebral ischemia.
Animals↗
A clinical study of yi zhi capsules in prevention of vascular dementia.
The raised score in the revised Hasegawa dementia scales (HDS) demonstrated that the effect of Yi Zhi Capsules (YZC) in treating loss of intellectual function after cerebrovascular diseases was significantly better than that of the western drug Piracetam [symbol: see text] (P < 0.01). The morbidity of vascular dementia was much lower in the treatment group than that of the control group (P < 0.05) after a one-year follow-up; and the blood lipid level and some indexes in rheological examinations were also improved significantly (P < 0.05, or < 0.01). The data indicate that YZC is a relatively good preparation for prevention of vascular dementia.
Aged↗
[Study on unsupervised classification in marshland of endemic area of Schistosomiasis Japonica using satellite TM image data].
OBJECTIVE: To categorize the vegetation of marshland in the endemic areas of Schistosomiasis Japonica using satellite thematic mapper (TM)data in Liupo Village, Anhui Province. METHODS: Data of three satellite TM hands, namely TM3, TM4 and TM5, were selected to be used in classification with principal component analysis. Then, satellite TM images were applied to false color composite and unsupervised classification with computer software to manage the images. Finally, the resulting clusters were identified and reclassified by site visits to categorize the land coverage and vegetation. RESULTS: Five classifications of land coverage were generated, including poplar forest, bulrush and marshland, all with snail habitants. Based on the survey in the spring of 1998, the overall live snail density and infested snail density in the study areas were 0.510/0.11 m2 and 0.007/0.11 m2, respectively. CONCLUSION: Unsupervised classification, which is a technique for the interpretation of remotely sensed imagery, can contribute to the classification of environment with snail habitants and ecological diseases and become a new method in epidemiological studies.
Animals↗
[Expression of epidermal growth factor receptor in human preimplantation embroys].
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in human preimplantation embryos and to explore the effect of EGFR on human embryos growth, development and implantation. METHODS: To detect the localization and expression of EGFR in human preimplantation embryos with indirect immunofluorescence assays(IIF). RESULTS: There was EGFR expression in human preimplantation embryos from unfertilized oocyts, 2-cell, 4-cell, 6-8 cell to 10-cell stages embryos. EGFR protein located on the cell membrance surface, and had no obvious variation in intensity of staining from whole stages embryos. CONCLUSION: The expression of EGFR was present in human preimplantation embryos, heparin-binding EGF-like epidermal growth factor (HB-EGF), one of the EGF superfamily members act through the EGFR, EGFR expression may have an important role in human embryos growth, development and implantation.
Blastocyst↗
[Protective effect of extract of folium ginkgo on repeated cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury].
OBJECTIVE: To study the protective effect of extract of Folium Ginkgo (FGE) on repeated cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. METHODS: The model in waking mice induced by repeated cerebral ischemia-reperfusion were used in the experiment to observe the effect of FGE on behavior, oxygen free radical metabolism and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) content by step-through experiment, diving stand and colorimetric method. RESULTS: FGE could obviously improve the learning ability and memory of model animals, and could lower obviously the content of malonyldialdehyde, nitric oxide and PGE2, restore the lowered activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase in cerebral tissue. CONCLUSION: FGE has highly protective effect against repeated ischemia-reperfusion injury, the mechanism might be related with its action on anti-lipid oxidatin, improve the activity of antioxidase and inhibit the producing of PGE2.
Animals↗
[Portal anticoagulation in preventing thrombosis after porta-azygous devascularization for portal hypertension].
OBJECTIVE: To study the prevention method for thrombosis after porta-azygous devascularization for portal hypertension. METHODS: 71 patients with portal hypertension due to cirrhosis were divided into group A (36 patients) and group B (35 patients). In group A, a anticoagulation tube was inserted via splenic vein branch during shunt and anticoagulation therapy was given after operation. RESULTS: All the patients received color Doppler examination 3 months after operation. No thrombosis occurred in the group A and thrombosis occurred in 13 patients (37.14%) in the group B. CONCLUSION: Portal anticoagulation therapy is the effective in preventing portal thrombosis after porta-azygous devascularization for portal hypertension.
Administration, Oral↗
[Geographic information systems spatial analysis on transmission of schistosomiasis in China].
OBJECTIVE: To understand the epidemiologic status and geographical distribution of schistosomiasis in China. METHODS: Relevant detabases were set up after collection of data from two National Sampling Surveys on Schistosomiasis, in 1989 and 1995. Spatial analysis was undertaken after the database linked to the GIS software which was supported by Arc View 3.0a. Correlation analysis was performed to understand the relationship between rates of human infection and cattle infection. RESULTS: The epidemic areas of schistosomiasis with high risk are mainly distributed in the marshland along the Yangtze River and can be identified as five spatial distribution regions based on the results of spatial analysis. Both epidemic areas and positive rates of stool examination in cattle and water buffalo are much wider and higher than that in humans. The positive correlation was seen between infection rate in human and in cattle from data of both sampling surveys. CONCLUSION: The relevant strategy for schistosomiasis control in different spatial regions should be performed accordingly and the measures of control for cattle and water buffalo should be strengthened in the endemic areas.
Adolescent↗