Lactoferrin Alleviates the Progression of Atherosclerosis in ApoE−/− Mice Fed with High-Fat/Cholesterol Diet Through Cholesterol Homeostasis

Chen-Jie Ling,Qing-Qing Min,Jin-Rong Yang,Zheng Zhang,Huan-Huan Yang,Jia-Ying Xu,Li-qiang Qin 한국식품영양과학회 2019 Journal of medicinal food Vol.22 No.10

Lactoferrin (LF) is a multifunctional glycoprotein and has beneficial effects on the regulation of lipid metabolism. However, whether LF supplementation alleviates the development of atherosclerosis (AS) remains unclear. In the present study, all of 48 male Apolipoprotein E−/− mice were fed with high-fat diet with 1.25% added cholesterol and divided to four treatment groups with either distilled water (HFCD), LF solutions at 2 mg/mL (low LF), 10 mg/mL (middle LF or MLF), or 20 mg/mL (high LF or HLF) for 12 weeks. Oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) were performed at weeks 0, 4, 8, and 12. At the end of the experiment, lipids in serum, liver, and feces were determined. The livers, whole aortas, and aortic sinuses were pathologically examined. The protein expression of factors related to cholesterol synthesis, absorption, and excretion were detected through western blot. No significant difference in body weight, food intake, and OGTT was observed among the four groups. Compared with the HFCD group, the MLF and HLF groups had significantly decreased serum and hepatic cholesterol levels and significantly increased fecal cholesterol contents. LF alleviated the hepatic steatosis and lipid droplet, especially in the MLF group. LF also significantly decreased the average lesion areas in the whole aorta, especially in the MLF group. On the other hand, LF downregulated hepatic protein expression of HMG-CoA reductase (the rate-limiting enzyme in cholesterol synthesis) and upregulated cholesterol 7-alpha hydroxylase (the rate-limiting enzyme in bile acid synthesis from cholesterol). LF also downregulated the intestinal expression of Niemann-Pick C1-like 1 protein, which is known to bind to a critical mediator of cholesterol absorption. In conclusion, LF supplementation alleviates the AS in mice on HFCD likely by reducing the synthesis and absorption of cholesterol and increasing cholesterol excretion.

Folate Deficiency and FHIT Hypermethylation and HPV 16 Infection Promote Cervical Cancerization

Bai, Li-Xia,Wang, Jin-Tao,Ding, Ling,Jiang, Shi-Wen,Kang, Hui-Jie,Gao, Chen-Fei,Chen, Xiao,Chen, Chen,Zhou, Qin Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.21

Fragile histidine triad (FHIT) is a suppressor gene related to cervical cancer through CpG island hypermethylation. Folate is a water-soluble B-vitamin and an important cofactor in one-carbon metabolism. It may play an essential role in cervical lesions through effects on DNA methylation. The purpose of this study was to observe effects of folate and FHIT methylation and HPV 16 on cervical cancer progression. In this study, DNA methylation of FHIT, serum folate level and HPV16 status were measured using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP), radioimmunoassay (RIA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), respectively, in 310 women with a diagnosis of normal cervix (NC, n=109), cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN, n=101) and squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix (SCC, n=101). There were significant differences in HPV16 status (${\chi}^2=36.64$, P<0.001), CpG island methylation of FHIT (${\chi}^2=71.31$, P<0.001) and serum folate level (F=4.57, P=0.011) across the cervical histologic groups. Interaction analysis showed that the ORs only with FHIT methylation (OR=11.47) or only with HPV 16 positive (OR=4.63) or with serum folate level lower than 3.19ng/ml (OR=1.68) in SCC group were all higher than the control status of HPV 16 negative and FHIT unmethylation and serum folate level more than 3.19ng/ml (OR=1). The ORs only with HPV 16 positive (OR=2.58) or with serum folate level lower than 3.19ng/ml (OR=1.28) in CIN group were all higher than the control status, but the OR only with FHIT methylation (OR=0.53) in CIN group was lower than the control status. HPV 16 positivity was associated with a 7.60-fold increased risk of SCC with folate deficiency and with a 1.84-fold increased risk of CIN. The patients with FHIT methylation and folate deficiency or with FHIT methylation and HPV 16 positive were SCC or CIN, and the patients with HPV 16 positive and FHIT methylation and folate deficiency were all SCC. In conclusion, HPV 16 infection, FHIT methylation and folate deficiency might promote cervical cancer progression. This suggests that FHIT may be an effective target for prevention and treatment of cervical cancer.

Combined Assessment of Serum Alpha-Synuclein and Rab35 is a Better Biomarker for Parkinson’s Disease

Hung-Li Wang,Chin-Song Lu,Tu-Hsueh Yeh,Yu-Ming Shen,Yi-Hsin Weng,Ying-Zu Huang,Rou-Shayn Chen,Yu-Chuan Liu,Yi-Chuan Cheng,Hsiu-Chen Chang,Ying-Ling Chen,Yu-Jie Chen,Yan-Wei Lin,Chia Chen Hsu,Huang-Li 대한신경과학회 2019 Journal of Clinical Neurology Vol.15 No.4

Background and Purpose It is essential to develop a reliable predictive serum biomarker for Parkinson’s disease (PD). Te accumulation of alpha-synuclein (αSyn) and up-regulated expression of Rab35 participate in the etiology of PD. Te purpose of this investigation was to determine whether the combined assessment of serum αSyn and Rab35 is a useful predictive biomarker for PD. Methods Serum levels of αSyn or Rab35 were determined in serum samples from 59 sporadic PD patients, 19 progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) patients, 20 multiple system atrophy (MSA) patients, and 60 normal controls (NC). Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves were calculated to determine the diagnostic accuracy of αSyn or/and Rab35 in discriminating PD patients from NC or atypical parkinsonian patients. Results The levels of αSyn and Rab35 were increased in PD patients. The serum level of Rab35 was positively correlated with that of αSyn in PD patients. Compared to analyzing αSyn or Rab35 alone, the combined analysis of αSyn and Rab35 produced a larger area under the ROC curve and performed better in discriminating PD patients from NC, MSA patients, or PSP patients. When age was dichotomized at 55, 60, 65, or 70 years, the combined assessment of αSyn and Rab35 for classifying PD was better in the group below the cutof age than in the group above the cutof age. Conclusions Combined assessment of serum αSyn and Rab35 is a better biomarker for discriminating PD patients from NC or atypical parkinsonian patients, and is a useful predictive biomarker for younger sporadic PD patients.

Clinical Study of Thalidomide Combined with Dexamethasone for the Treatment of Elderly Patients with Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma

Chen, Hai-Fei,Li, Zheng-Yang,Tang, Jie-Qing,Shen, Hong-Shi,Cui, Qing-Ya,Ren, Yong-Ya,Qin, Long-Mei,Jin, Ling-Juan,Zhu, Jing-Jing,Wang, Jing,Ding, Jie,Wang, Ke-Yuan,Yu, Zi-Qiang,Wang, Zhao-Yue,Wu, Tian Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.9

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the efficacy and safety of different doses of thalidomide (Thal) plus dexamethasone (Dex) as the initial therapy in elderly patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM). Methods: Clinical data of 28 elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM who underwent the TD regimen as the initial therapy were analyzed retrospectively. The patients were divided into two groups according to the maximal sustained dose of Thal: lower dose (group A) and higher dose (group B). The overall response rate (ORR), progression free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events (AES) were compared between the two groups. Results: A total of 28 patients were followed up with a median of 18 months. The ORR was 60.1%. The median response time and PFS were 2.0 and 17.0 months, respectively. The mean sustained dose of Thal in group B was significantly higher than group A (292.9 mg v 180.4 mg, P=0.01). There was no significantly difference in ORR (57.1% v 64.3%, P=1.00) and PFS (9.63months v 17.66 months, P=0.73) between groups A and B. During the follow up, only five patients died (<40%) and, therefore, median OS values were not available. It is estimated, however, that the mean survival time in the two groups was 35.6 and 33.4 months (P>0.05), respectively. All of the patients tolerated the treatment well. The incidence of AES in patients with a grading above 3 in group B was significantly higher than in group A (P=0.033). Conclusions: The TD regimen results in a high response rate and manageable AES as the initial therapy in elderly patients with MM. TD should be considered as the front line regimen for the treatment of elderly patients with MM in areas with financial constraints. The clinical response can be achieved at a low dose Thal with minimal toxicity.

Approaches of Collaborative Cloud Process Service : Constructing Service-Oriented Architecture

Chen Wang,Wu Zhao,Jie Wang,Ling Chen 보안공학연구지원센터 2015 International Journal of Security and Its Applicat Vol.9 No.11

Process service is an important segment of cloud manufacturing ecosystem, in which virtualized process resources are furnished as consumable services. In this paper, a service-oriented approach cloud process service is proposed to achieve a collaborative processing environment for distributed participants. In order to implement the cloud process service, it’s important to identify the existing process resources and capabilities, then virtualize them as processing services. In the first place, basic features of process service are summarized, and a standardized business model and process knowledge base are built to describe concept, cloud service and relevant features. Besides, a seven layer structure of cloud platform is proposed with a virtualization methodology to describe process service, source provider and process service requests. In the end, a case is presented to demonstrate the ability of integrating cloud process services.

Finite Element Analysis and Test Study on Restraint of High-energy Pipe Whip in Conventional Island

Ling-yun Peng,Yu-ke Deng,Hua-ting Chen,Ying-jie Kang,Xiang-xiu Li 대한토목학회 2019 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.23 No.4

The effects of high-energy pipe whipping after rupturing are very important in an AP1000 nuclear power plant's conventional island and restraints of pipe whipping should be considered in the design. It is the first time in the country when reinforced concrete shear walls are used as restraint services. In this paper, the behaviors of walls and restraint services subjected to pipe whipping are analyzed through static and dynamic methods in the finite element software (ABAQUS), in which all kinds of nonlinearities are considered. In addition, a test study on the restraint of pipe whipping is conducted. The results show that the wall and the restraint service can prevent pipe whipping effectively under the design load, and anchor plates arranged around the wall opening can improve the local concrete compression performance of concrete to reduce the damage of concrete. Meanwhile, the study also provides the valuable reference for wall designing to prevent from pipe whipping.

BMB Reports : Over-expression of OsHsfA7 enhanced salt and drought tolerance in transgenic rice

( Ai Ling Liu ),( Jie Zou ),( Cui Fang Liu ),( Xiao Yun Zhou ),( Xian Wen Zhang ),( Guang Yu Luo ),( Xin Bo Chen ) 생화학분자생물학회(구 한국생화학분자생물학회) 2013 BMB Reports Vol.46 No.1

Heat shock proteins play an important role in plant stress tolerance and are mainly regulated by heat shock transcription factors (Hsfs). In this study, we generated transgenic rice over-expressing OsHsfA7 and carried out morphological observation and stress tolerance assays. Transgenic plants exhibited less, shorter lateral roots and root hair. Under salt treatment, over-expressing OsHsfA7 rice showed alleviative appearance of damage symptoms and higher survival rate, leaf electrical conductivity and malondialdehyde content of transgenic plants were lower than those of wild type plants. Meanwhile, transgenic rice seedlings restored normal growth but wild type plants could not be rescued after drought and re-watering treatment. These findings indicate that over-expression of OsHsfA7 gene can increase tolerance to salt and drought stresses in rice seedlings. [BMB Reports 2013; 46(1): 31-36]

New method for dependence assessment in human reliability analysis based on linguistic hesitant fuzzy information

Zhang, Ling,Zhu, Yu-Jie,Hou, Lin-Xiu,Liu, Hu-Chen Korean Nuclear Society 2021 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.53 No.11

Human reliability analysis (HRA) is a proactive approach to model and evaluate human systematic errors, and has been extensively applied in various complicated systems. Dependence assessment among human errors plays a key role in the HRA, which relies heavily on the knowledge and experience of experts in real-world cases. Moreover, there are ofthen different types of uncertainty when experts use linguistic labels to evaluate the dependencies between human failure events. In this context, this paper aims to develop a new method based on linguistic hesitant fuzzy sets and the technique for human error rate prediction (THERP) technique to manage the dependence in HRA. This method handles the linguistic assessments given by experts according to the linguistic hesitant fuzzy sets, determines the weights of influential factors by an extended best-worst method, and confirms the degree of dependence between successive actions based on the THERP method. Finally, the effectiveness and practicality of the presented linguistic hesitant fuzzy THERP method are demonstrated through an empirical healthcare dependence analysis.

Whole Cell-mediated Biocatalytic Synthesis of Helicid Cinnamylate and Its Biological Evaluation as a Novel Tyrosinase Inhibitor

Rong-ling Yang,Xi Chen,Yu-ye Song,Qian-lin Zhu,Muhammad Bilal,Yu Wang,Zheng Tong,Ting-ting Wu,Zhao-Yu Wang,Hong-zhen Luo,Xiang-jie Zhao,Ting-ting He 한국생물공학회 2022 Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering Vol.27 No.3

Tyrosinase inhibitors are clinically effective for treating some dermatological disorders related to melanin hyperpigmentation. Accordingly, the discovery and development of tyrosinase inhibitors have great value in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry. Here, a novel tyrosinase inhibitor, 6′-O-cinnamoyl-helicid (helicid cinnamylate) was successfully synthesized by a simple and effective biocatalytic approach with Aspergillus oryzae cells. Investigation of the effects of several key variables on helicid cinnamylate synthesis found that the reaction conversion, reaction rate and regioselectivity reached 99%, 9.40 mM/h and > 99%, respectively, at the optimal conditions with anhydrous acetone as the solvent, whole-cell concentration of 40 mg/mL, and the molar ratio of vinyl cinnamate to helicid of 10 at 45°C. The whole-cells retained 68.87% of its initial activity after reusing for seven batches, indicating a potent application potential in non-aqueous biocatalytic systems. It was worth noting that helicid cinnamylate demonstrated a more potent tyrosinase inhibitory activity with an IC50 value of 3.55 mM than helicid (IC50 = 4.48 mM) and arbutin (IC50 = 5.48 mM), which suggest that helicid cinnamylate could be developed as a more potential tyrosinase inhibitor. In conclusion, this study provides a novel whole-cell catalytic approach for the synthesis of helicid cinnamylate and insight into its application as a tyrosinase inhibitor.

Expression Profiles of Class A Rice Heat Shock Transcription Factor Genes Under Abiotic Stresses

Ai-Ling Liu,Jie Zou,Xian-Wen Zhang,Xiao-Yun Zhou,Wen-Fang Wang,Xing-Yao Xiong,Li-Yun Chen,Xin-Bo Chen 한국식물학회 2010 Journal of Plant Biology Vol.53 No.2

Expression profiles of 12 class A rice heat shock transcription factor genes (OsHsfAs) were analyzed by semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. The OsHsfA genes exhibited tissue-specific expressions under normal condition. OsHsfA1a, A2d, and A9 were predominantly expressed in young spike. Expression responses of the 12 OsHsfAs under abiotic stresses were analyzed in the shoots of rice seedling. Most OsHsfA genes responded quickly to heat stress except for OsHsfA1a, A3,and A9 which were almost unaffected. In particular,OsHsfA2a expression in response to heat stress was highest among the heat shock factors examined. However, the majority of the increased OsHsfAs expression responses to salt, polyethylene glycol (PEG), and cold treatments primarily occurred during the later stages (3 to 24 h) of stress exposure. Furthermore, most of OsHsfA gene expressions were little affected and only a few (OsHsfA3, A4d, A7,and A9) genes had slow responses to cold treatment. The results indicate that the transcript levels of OsHsfAs during heat stress exposure were distinct from those of plants subjected to salt, PEG, and cold stresses, suggesting that there might be different regulatory networks between heat and non-heat stress.