Preventive and inhibitive effects of Yiwei Xiaoyu granules on the development and progression of spasmolytic polypeptideexpressing metaplasia lesions

BACKGROUND Spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia(SPEM)is a potential preneoplastic lesion.AIM To elucidate the microRNA(miR)-7-mediated preventive and inhibitive effects of Yiwei Xiaoyu granules(YWXY)in SPEM lesions.METHODS Gastric mucosa biopsies were collected from chronic atrophic gastritis patients and healthy people with signed informed consent.YWXY was administered to the mice with induced SPEM by tamoxifen,and the gastric mucosa was harvested on the tenth day of the experiment.Then immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence were performed to validate the SPEM,lesions and the potential mechanism was investigated.RNA transcripts were detected with reverse transcriptionquantitative polymerase chain reaction.RESULTS The expression of miR-7 was downregulated in the SPEM lesions,and expression of trefoil factor 2(TFF2)and clusterin was high in the human gastric mucosa.In vivo experiments showed that YWXY could inhibit the cell proliferation in the tamoxifen-induced SPEM lesions by regulating Ki67.Simultaneously,YWXY could restore the expression of miR-7 by regulating TFF2 by detection with immunofluorescence but not with reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction,indicating its potential mechanism of targeting miR-7 by mediating TFF2.The expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-βand gastric intrinsic factor was restored within 3 d of YWXY administration for the SPEM lesions,speculating that the possible mechanism of YWXY is to inhibit the development and progression of SPEM by regulating vascular endothelial growth factor-βand gastric intrinsic factor.CONCLUSION miR-7 downregulation is an early event in SPEM through regulation of TFF2 in human gastric mucosa.YWXY is able to inhibit the cell proliferation and restore the expression of miR-7 by mediating TFF2 in the SPEM mouse model.

Construction and analysis of the c DNA subtraction library of yeast and mycelial phases of Sporothrix globosa isolated in China: identification of differentially expressed genes

Species included in the Sporothrix schenckii complex are temperature-dependent with dimorphic growth and cause sporotrichosis that is characterized by chronic and fatal lymphocutaneous lesions. The putative species included in the Sporothrix complex are S. brasiliensis, S. globosa, S. mexicana, S. pallida, S. schenckii, and S. lurei. S. globosa is the causal agent of sporotrichosis in China, and its pathogenicity appears to be closely related to the di- morphic transition, i.e. from the mycelial to the yeast phase, it adapts to changing environmental conditions. To determine the molecular mechanisms of the switching process that mediates the dimorphic transition of S. globosa, suppression subtractive hybridization （SSH） was used to prepare a complementary DNA （cDNA） subtraction library from the yeast and mycelial phases. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to profile the relationship between dif- ferently expressed genes and the dimorphic transition. Two genes that were expressed at higher levels by the yeast form were selected, and their differential expression levels were verified using a quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction （qRT-PCR）. It is believed that these differently expressed genes are involved in the pathogenesis of S. globosa infection in China.

Morphological and physiological comparison of taxa comprising the Sporothrix schenckii complex

Based on recent molecular data, it has been suggested that Sporothrix globosa is the main causal agent of sporotrichosis in China. The objective of this study was to compare the morphology, growth characteristics, patterns of carbon source usage, and susceptibility to antifungal agents among Sporothrix strains. A total of 15 clinical strains confirmed to be S. globosa, from three different regions of China, and 11 ex-type strains from the CBS-KNAW biodiversity center were obtained. The elongated conidia of S. pal/ida, S. variecibatus, S. schenckii, and S. schenckii luriei were clearly different from the subglobose and globose conidia of S. globosa strains. S. schenckii is able to assimilate sucrose, raffinose, and ribitol. Susceptibility profiles of these Sporothrix species were evaluated by measuring minimum inhibitory concentrations （MICs）. Fluconazole, itraconazole, terbinafine, and amphotericin B showed good activity against most S. globosa clinical isolates from China. Potassium iodide also showed a low MIC against S. pal/ida, while fluconazole showed a high MIC for S. mexicana, S. humicola, S. g/obosa, S. schenckii, and S. inflata; these strains might be considered tolerant. The species showed differences in susceptibility to antifungal drugs and should therefore be properly identified during diagnosis prior to designing therapeutic strategies.