D-Psicose intake exacerbates dextran sulfate sodium-induced colitis in mice through alteration in the gut microbiota and dysfunction of mucosal barrier

D-Psicose,as a low-calorie rare sugar,has attracted a lot of attention in recent years for alternating to sucrose.The anti-obesity effect of D-psicose has been extensively confirmed in previous studies,however,the impact of D-psicose on colitis remains vague.Here,we firstly evaluated the effect of the D-psicose prophylactic intervention on dextran sulfate sodium-induced colitis in C57BL/6 mice.The pathological symptoms,inflammatory cytokines levels,gut microbiota composition,short chain fatty acids(SCFAs)production and colonic barrier integrity were comprehensively evaluated.The results confirmed that D-psicose intervention aggravated colitis,characterized by the exacerbation of colon shortening,increase of colonic inflammatory infiltration,and marked exaltation of disease activity indices and IL-6,IL-1βand TNF-αlevels.Further,the dysfunction of gut microbiota was identified in the psicose group.The abundance of pro-inflammatory bacteria Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group was significantly up-regulated while the abundance of probiotics Akkermansia and Lactobacillus were significantly down-regulated in the psicose group compared to the model group.Moreover,the production of SCFAs was suppressed in the psicose group,accompanied by a decrease in the level of mucin 2(Muc-2).Collectively,the underlying mechanism of the exacerbation of colitis by D-psicose intervention might be attributed to microbiota dysfunction accompanied by the reduction of SCFAs,which leads to the damage of the mucosal barrier and the intensifi cation of inflammatory invasion.

Motor neuron-specific RhoA knockout delays degeneration and promotes regeneration of dendrites in spinal ventral horn after brachial plexus injury

Dendrites play irreplaceable roles in the nerve conduction pathway and are vulnerable to various insults.Peripheral axotomy of motor neurons results in the retraction of dendritic arbors,and the dendritic arbor can be re-expanded when reinnervation is allowed.RhoA is a target that regulates the cytoskeleton and promotes neuronal survival and axon regeneration.However,the role of RhoA in dendrite degeneration and regeneration is unknown.In this study,we explored the potential role of RhoA in dendrites.A line of motor neuronal conditional knockout mice was developed by crossbreeding HB9~(Cre+)mice with RhoA~(flox/flox)mice.We established two models for assaying dendrite degeneration and regeneration,in which the brachial plexus was transection or crush injured,respectively.We found that at 28 days after brachial plexus transection,the density,complexity,and structural integrity of dendrites in the ventral horn of the spinal cord of RhoA conditional knockout mice were slightly decreased compared with that in Cre mice.Dendrites underwent degeneration at 7 and 14 days after brachial plexus transection and recovered at 28–56 days.The density,complexity,and structural integrity of dendrites in the ventral horn of the spinal cord of RhoA conditional knockout mice recovered compared with results in Cre mice.These findings suggest that RhoA knockout in motor neurons attenuates dendrite degeneration and promotes dendrite regeneration after peripheral nerve injury.

Ascorbic acid accelerates Wallerian degeneration after peripheral nerve injury

Wallerian degeneration occurs after peripheral nerve injury and provides a beneficial microenvironment for nerve regeneration.Our previous study demonstrated that ascorbic acid promotes peripheral nerve regeneration,possibly through promoting Schwann cell proliferation and phagocytosis and enhancing macrophage proliferation,migration,and phagocytosis.Because Schwann cells and macrophages are the main cells involved in Wallerian degeneration,we speculated that ascorbic acid may accelerate this degenerative process.To test this hypothesis,400 mg/kg ascorbic acid was administered intragastrically immediately after sciatic nerve transection,and 200 mg/kg ascorbic acid was then administered intragastrically every day.In addition,rat sciatic nerve explants were treated with 200μM ascorbic acid.Ascorbic acid significantly accelerated the degradation of myelin basic protein-positive myelin and neurofilament 200-positive axons in both the transected nerves and nerve explants.Furthermore,ascorbic acid inhibited myelin-associated glycoprotein expression,increased c-Jun expression in Schwann cells,and increased both the number of macrophages and the amount of myelin fragments in the macrophages.These findings suggest that ascorbic acid accelerates Wallerian degeneration by accelerating the degeneration of axons and myelin in the injured nerve,promoting the dedifferentiation of Schwann cells,and enhancing macrophage recruitment and phagocytosis.The study was approved by the Southern Medical University Animal Care and Use Committee(approval No.SMU-L2015081)on October 15,2015.

Role of microtubule dynamics in Wallerian degeneration and nerve regeneration after peripheral nerve injury

Wallerian degeneration,the progressive disintegration of distal axons and myelin that occurs after peripheral nerve injury,is essential for creating a permissive microenvironment for nerve regeneration,and involves cytoskeletal reconstruction.However,it is unclear whether microtubule dynamics play a role in this process.To address this,we treated cultured sciatic nerve explants,an in vitro model of Wallerian degeneration,with the microtubule-targeting agents paclitaxel and nocodazole.We found that paclitaxel-induced microtubule stabilization promoted axon and myelin degeneration and Schwann cell dedifferentiation,whereas nocodazole-induced microtubule destabilization inhibited these processes.Evaluation of an in vivo model of peripheral nerve injury showed that treatment with paclitaxel or nocodazole accelerated or attenuated axonal regeneration,as well as functional recovery of nerve conduction and target muscle and motor behavior,respectively.These results suggest that microtubule dynamics participate in peripheral nerve regeneration after injury by affecting Wallerian degeneration.This study was approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee of Southern Medical University,China(approval No.SMUL2015081) on October 15,2015.

纳米粒子在药物传递中的应用

目前,利用纳米粒子传递药物并用于恶性肿瘤组织的靶向识别,进一步提高肿瘤的诊断和治疗水平是一个比较热点的领域,人们期望用制备容易、价格便宜、毒性小的纳米技术来提高肿瘤的治疗效率。然而,由近年的报道来看,所摄入的纳米粒子仅有约0.7%能够到达肿瘤部位,传递效率较低,这无疑加大了治疗应用的难度。本综述中,我们分析了造成纳米粒子靶向药物转运效率较低的原因,包括纳米粒子的转运途径,纳米粒子转运过程中所遇到的屏障,纳米粒子在体内的清除途径等;随后我们介绍了较早应用的聚合物纳米粒子、磁性氧化铁纳米粒子以及目前广泛研究的介孔二氧化硅纳米粒子在药物传递系统构建中的应用情况,还介绍了细胞膜仿生纳米粒子在药物传递系统中的应用;最后,对纳米粒子在药物传递中的研究进行总结和展望。我们希望通过对纳米粒子传递药物的系统研究,进一步促进纳米粒子在药物传递上的研究,加速纳米药物的临床应用。

基于光学成像的益生菌体内示踪技术

益生菌是指对宿主健康有利而且能够促进人类健康的活的微生物,主要通过调节胃肠道菌群、改善肠上皮细胞屏障功能、调节免疫功能等对宿主产生有益影响.过去,益生菌在体内的存活情况是通过分析粪便中细菌的数量或是不同时间解剖动物胃肠道来进行益生菌计数.关于益生菌发挥益生作用的机理不清楚,通过现代生物学技术对益生菌进行遗传标记可为解释益生作用机理提供参考.基于光学成像的益生菌体内示踪技术主要包括生物发光、传统荧光(荧光蛋白和荧光染料)和新型纳米材料3种技术,本文评述了3种技术各自的特点和优缺点,旨在为进一步发展和研究益生菌体内示踪技术提供理论和参考依据.