Role and regulation of calcineurin in angiotensin Ⅱ-stimulated cardiac myocyte hypertrophy of rats

AIM: To study the role and regulation of calcineurin(CaN) in angiotensin II(AngⅡ)-stimulated cardiacmyocyte hypertrophy of rats. METHODS: Using AngⅡ to induce the cultured cardiac myocyte hypertrophy of rats, and investigating the effect of CaN inhibitor on [³H]-leucine incorporation of AngⅡ-stimulated cardiomyocytes and the regulation of various factors on CaN activity in cardiomyocytes.RESULTS: AngⅡ can stimulate the CaN activity in cultured neonatal rat cardiomyocytes in a dose- and time-dependent manner. In cardiac myocytes incubated with 10, 100, 1000 nmol·L^-1 of AngⅡ for 12h, the CaN activities increased respectively by 13%,57%(P＜0.05) and 228%(P＜0.01) compared with that in non-stimulated cardiomyocytes. The CaN activities in AngⅡ-stimulated cardiomyocytes were significantly inhibited by losartan(50 μmol·L^-1), H₇(50 μmol·L^-1)and Fura-2/AM(4 μmol·L^-1),while no effect was observed with PD98059(50 μmol·L^-1).The [³H]-leucine incorporation in AngⅡ-stimulated cardiomyocytes increased by 46%(P＜0.01) compared with that in control group, which was dramatically inhibited by cyclosporin A(0.5~5μg/mL). CONCLUSIONS: Calcineurin, a Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein phosphatase, may play an important role in AngⅡ-induced cardiac myocyte hypertrophy. The activation of CaN may dependent on the sustained increases of [Ca²⁺]i and be regulated by some protein kinases (such as PKC,etc.).     

Regulation of‘Tiao Gan Fang Yao’on neuroendocrine-immuno-function of bandage-stressed rats

AIM: To investigate the regulation of ‘Tiao Gan Fang Yao’(TGFY) on neuroendocrine-immuno-function of bandage-stressed rat . METHODS:The stressed rat model was made by bandage. RIA was adopted to measure the function of hypothalamus-pitutary-adrenal gland axis (HPAA) of stressed rat. Meanwhile, the immunity of stressed rat and the regulation of TGFY were observed.RESULTS:Bandage stress increased the contents of serum corticosterone(CORT), and ACTH, and hypothalamus corticotropin releasing hormone (P＜0.01 or 0.05), which suggested that the excitability of HPAA was enhanced. In addition, bandage stress reduced spleen lymphocyte proliferation (P＜0.01) and decreased H₂O₂ releasing from the macrophages significantly (P＜0.01). While TGFY could decrease HPAA excitability of bandage-stressed rat and strengthen its immunity. CONCLUSION:TGFY could regulate disorder of neuroendocrine-immuno-function of bandage-stressed rat.     

Effects of oxidized high-density lipoprotein on membrane fluidity and the expression of lymphocyte function associated antigen-1 of monocyte

AIM: To investigate the effects of oxidized high-density lipoprotein (oxHDL) on membrane fluidity and the expression of lymphocyte function associated antigen(LFA-1) of monocyte. METHODS: The membrane fluidity of THP-1 cells was assayed by fluorescence anisotropy with DPH (1,6-dipheny-1,3,5-hexatriene), a fluorescent probe; The LFA-1 expression on THP-1 cells were assayed by flow cytometry with indirect immunofluorescence.RESULTS: The membrane fluidity of THP-1 cells was reduced by 45% and 52% respectively (P＜0.01) after incubation with 100 μg protein/mL oxHDL and oxLDL for 20 h; oxHDL could stimulated the expression of LFA-1 on THP-1 cells, the positive cell rate and mean fluoresence intensity (MFI) increased by 39% and 45% respectively versus control group (P＜0.01) after incubation with cells for 24 h. CONCLUSIONS: By increasing the expression of LFA-1 on monocyte, oxHDL can promote the monocyte-endothelium adhesion; oxHDL also can reduce the membrane fluidity of monocyte, that will limit the returning of monocytes from subendothelium back to the circulation. This suggested that oxHDL may play an important role in atherogenesis.     

Experimental research on cardiac fibrosis induced by recombinant mouse interleukin-11 in mice

AIM To observe the effect of recombinant mouse interleukin-11 （rmIL-11）injected subcutaneously into mice on heart structure and function and to determine its pro-fibrotic effect. METHODS C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into experimental group and control group.The mice in experimental group were injected subcutaneously with recombinant mouse IL-11 at the dose of 100 μg·kg^-1·d^-1 for 3 consecutive weeks, while the control group were given equal volume of normal saline in the same way. After the experiment was finished, the parameters of heart function were measured by echocardiography.The heart weight was weighed and the cardiac weight index (CWI) was calculated. HE staining and Masson's trichrome staining were performed to observe the pathological changes and the extent of myocardial fibrosis in mouse myocardia respectively, and the cardiac collagen volume fraction (CVF) was calculated. The expression levels of extracellular matrix proteins in the myocardial tissues of mice, including type Ⅰ collagen, type Ⅲ collagen and fibronectin, were determined by Western blot. RESULTS Left ventricular ejection fraction and left ventricular fraction shortening in experimental group were obviously lower than those in control group (P<0.01), however left ventricular end-diastolic diamension and left ventricular end systolic dimension were significantly higher than those in control group (P<0.05).Compared with control group, the CWI was increased (P<0.01), the myocardial arrangement was disorder, the necrosis of cardiac myocytes was increased, and excessive deposition of collagen was observed in the myocardial tissues in experimental group. Correspondingly, the CVF and protein levels of type Ⅰ collagen, type Ⅲ collagen and fibronectin in the left ventricle in experimental group were increased significantly (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Injection of rmIL-11 into the mice subcutaneously induces fibrogenesis in the heart, which implies that IL-11 is likely a novel pro-fibrotic factor.     

Progress in roles of MNX1 antisense RNA 1 in malignant tumor

MNX1 antisense RNA 1 （MNX1-AS1） is a newly discovered long non-coding RNA （lncRNA）, which is highly dysregulated in various carcinomas and its expression level is closely related to the overall survival and prognosis of patients. MNX1-AS1 regulates the occurrence and development of carcinomas by endogenous competitive adsorption of miRNA, regulating cell cycle, inducing epithelial mesenchymal transformation and activating multiple signaling pathways. The in-depth study of the carcinogenesis of MNX1-AS1 is useful for the early diagnosis, targeted therapy and prognostic assessment of relevant carcinomas. This article reviews the roles of MNX1-AS1 in malignant tumor.     

全子叶生物活性豆腐凝胶特性的研究

通过因子筛选实验,确定了接种量、微生物转谷氨酰胺酶(MTG)用量和水豆比是影响全子叶生物活性豆腐凝胶特性的关键因子。在此基础上,采用响应曲面法(Response SurfaceMethodology,RSM)分别建立了豆腐硬度和持水率的二次多项数学模型,验证了模型的有效性并探讨了上述3个因子的交互作用。从产品成本和凝胶特性综合考虑,选择出最佳配比,即乳酸菌接种量为105cfu/mL,MTG用量为347 U/L,水豆比为8.5,其硬度和持水率实测值分别为44.8g和89.2%,可生产出富含乳酸菌和几乎全部大豆营养的健康豆腐。     

水稻免耕栽培的优化效应与调控技术

水稻免耕栽培主要包括水稻免耕抛秧、免耕直播和免耕插秧等技术。试验示范结果表明:该项技术能提高水稻产量0.9%~5.1%,节省工本,提高纯收入达19.2%~37.0%,并省水节电,增加土壤表层孔隙度,增加土壤速效养分含量。介绍了水稻免耕栽培的调控技术。     

超级杂交稻国稻1号农艺性状研究

对超级杂交稻国稻1号和杂交稻汕优63的株型特征以及农艺性状进行了比较分析,结果表明:国稻1号的单产之所以显著高于汕优63的,主要因为前者分蘖多且分蘖快,单位面积有效穗数和每穗总粒数多,而且结实率高。     

微波辅助提取亚麻木脂素工艺及快速检测方法的研究

采用微波辅助提取法从亚麻籽饼粕中提取开环异落叶松树脂酚二葡萄糖苷(Secoisolariciresinol Diglucoside,SDG),确定了微波辅助最佳提取条件为70%乙醇,固液比为1∶8(g/mL),预浸搅拌30 min,辐照时间5 min,微波功率700 W。并建立了直接定性分析亚麻籽饼粕中SDG的TLC方法。经HPLC检测,亚麻籽饼粕中SDG含量为1.64%,微波辅助提取SDG粗提物产率为6.89%,纯化后SDG含量可达20.23%。结果表明:微波辅助提取制备SDG的方法与传统分离方法相比,得率高、工艺操作简单且安全无毒。     

武夷山国家级自然保护区土壤的现状与保护

通过对福建武夷山国家级自然保护区土壤资源的调查,分析保护区土壤资源现状,探讨不同毛竹经营方式及人为活动对保护区土壤造成的影响,提出保护对策和措施。