Association of serum interleukin-6 with negative symptoms in stable early-onset schizophrenia

BACKGROUND Accumulating evidence suggests that the inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6(IL-6)contributes to the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders.However,there was no study concerning the relationship between IL-6 concentrations and clinical features in the chronic phase of early-onset schizophrenia(EOS).AIM To investigate the relationship between serum IL-6 concentration and the clinical features of EOS.METHODS We measured serum IL-6 Levels from 74 patients with chronic schizophrenia,including 33 with age at onset<21 years(EOS group)and 41 with onset≥21 years in[adult-onset schizophrenia(AOS)group],and from 41 healthy controls.Symptom severities were evaluated using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS).RESULTS Serum IL-6 concentrations were higher in both EOS and AOS groups than healthy controls(F=22.32,P<0.01),but did not differ significantly between EOS and AOS groups(P>0.05)after controlling for age,body mass index,and other covariates.Negative symptom scores were higher in the EOS group than the AOS group(F=6.199,P=0.015).Serum IL-6 concentrations in the EOS group were negatively correlated with both total PANSS-negative symptom score(r=-0.389,P=0.032)and avolition/asociality subscore(r=-0.387,P=0.026).CONCLUSION Patients with EOS may have more severe negative symptoms than those with adult-onset schizophrenia during the chronic phase of the illness.IL-6 signaling may regulate negative symptoms and its avolition/asociality subsymptoms among the early-onset chronic schizophrenic patients.

高糖培养人晶状体上皮细胞创伤后Cyclin D1的表达

目的:观察高糖培养的人晶状体上皮细胞在创伤刺激后Cyclin D1的表达情况。方法:采用MTT法观察不同浓度葡萄糖对体外培养的人晶状体上皮细胞(HLEB3)作用24h后细胞增殖活性的影响,确定最适葡萄糖作用浓度。将HLEB3细胞分为高糖预处理组(高糖培养基预处理24h后再更换高糖培养基培养)和非高糖预处理组(正常培养基培养24h后再更换高糖培养基培养),根据更换高糖培养基时是否进行划伤处理将细胞分为对照组和划伤组,分别采用qRT-PCR和Western blot法检测各组细胞创伤后不同时间点Cyclin D1 mRNA和蛋白的表达情况。结果:一定浓度范围的葡萄糖能够增强细胞增殖活性,25.5mmol/L葡萄糖处理时细胞活性最强。高糖预处理细胞Cyclin D1表达在一定时间范围内呈时间依赖性表达下调;非高糖预处理细胞Cyclin D1表达呈不规律性,在12h和48h处表达上调;划伤处理可在一定程度上刺激细胞Cyclin D1表达上调。结论:葡萄糖对人晶状体上皮细胞活性及Cyclin D1表达的影响呈现不规律性,创伤处理可在一定程度上上调细胞Cyclin D1的表达。

Characteristics of mucosa-associated gut microbiota during treatment in Crohn's disease

BACKGROUND The dysbiosis of the gut microbiome is evident in Crohn's disease(CD) compared with healthy controls(HC), although the alterations from active CD to remission after treatment are unclear.AIM To characterize the mucosa-associated gut microbiota in patients with CD before and after the induction therapy.METHODS The basic information was collected from the subjects and the CD activity index(CDAI) was calculated in patients. A 16S rRNA sequencing approach was applied to determine the structures of microbial communities in mucosal samples including the terminal ileal, ascending colon, descending colon and rectum. The composition and function of mucosa-associated gut microbiota were compared between samples from the same cohort of patients before and after treatment.Differential taxa were identified to calculate the microbial dysbiosis index(MDI)and the correlation between MDI and CDAI was analyzed using Pearson correlation test. Predictive functional profiling of microbial communities was obtained with PICRUSt.RESULTS There were no significant differences in microbial richness among the four anatomical sites in individuals. Compared to active disease, the alpha diversity of CD in remission was increased towards the level of HC compared to the active stage. The principal coordinate analysis revealed that samples of active CD were clearly separated from those in remission, which clustered close to HC. Sixty-five genera were identified as differentially abundant between active and quiescent CD, with a loss of Fusobacterium and a gain of potential beneficial bacteria including Lactobacillus, Akkermansia, Roseburia, Ruminococcus and Lachnospira after the induction of remission. The combination of these taxa into a MDI showed a positive correlation with clinical disease severity and a negative correlation with species richness. The increased capacity for the inferred pathways including Lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis and Lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis proteins in patients before treatment negatively correlated with the abundance of Roseburia,Ruminococcus and Lachnospira.CONCLUSION The dysbiosis of mucosa-associated microbiota was associated with the disease phenotype and may become a potential diagnostic tool for the recurrence of disease.

Elucidating the interaction of kansui and licorice by comparative plasma/tissue metabolomics and a heatmap with relative fold change

Although compatibility is highly advocated in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), inappropriate combination of some herbs may reduce the therapeutic action and even produce toxic effects. Kansui and licorice, one of TCM “Eighteen Incompatible Medicaments”, are the most representative cases of improper herbal combination, which may still be applied simultaneously under given conditions. However, the potential mechanism of their compatibility and incompatibility is unclear. In the present study, two different ratios of kansui and licorice, representing their compatibility and incompatibility respectively, were designed to elucidate their interaction by comparative plasma/tissue metabolomics and a heatmap with relative fold change. As a result, glycocholic acid, prostaglandin F2a, dihydroceramide and sphinganine were screened out as the principal alternative biomarkers of compatibility group;sphinganine, dihydroceramide, arachidonic acid, leukotriene B4, acetoacetic acid and linoleic acid were those of incompatibility group. Based on the values of biomarkers in each tissue, the liver was identified as the compatible target organ, while the heart, liver, and kidney were the incompatible target organs. Furthermore, important pathways for compatibility and incompatibility were also constructed. These results help us to better understand and utilize the two herbs, and the study was the first to reveal some innate characters of herbs related to TCM “Eighteen Incompatible Medicaments”.

Long-term Follow-up of 5 Survivors after the First Outbreak of Human Infections with Avian Influenza A（H7N9） Virus in Shanghai, China

At the end of March 2013, the first case of human infection with avian influenza A（H7N9） virus was confirmed in Shanghai. From April to May 2013, 18 patients with avian influenza A（H7N9） virus infection were hospitalized in Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, and finally, 12 of them survived. The short-term prognosis of these patients had been described previously, but the long-term prognosis remained unclear.