Calcitriol Suppressed Isoproterenol-induced Proliferation of Cardiac Fibroblasts via Integrinβ3/FAK/Akt Pathway

Objective Cardiac fibroblasts(CFs)proliferation and extracellular matrix deposition are important features of cardiac fibrosis.Various studies have indicated that vitamin D displays an anti-fibrotic property in chronic heart diseases.This study explored the role of vitamin D in the growth of CFs via an integrin signaling pathway.Methods MTT and 5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine assays were performed to determine cell viability.Western blotting was performed to detect the expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen(PCNA)and integrin signaling pathway.The fibronectin was observed by ELISA.Immunohistochemical staining was employed to evaluate the expression of integrinβ3.Results The PCNA expression in the CFs was enhanced after isoproterenol(ISO)stimulation accompanied by an elevated expression of integrin beta-3(β3).The blockade of the integrinβ3 with a specific integrinβ3 antibody reduced the PCNA expression induced by the ISO.Decreasing the integrinβ3 by siRNA reduced the ISO-triggered phosphorylation of FAK and Akt.Both the FAK inhibitor and Akt inhibitor suppressed the PCNA expression induced by the ISO in the CFs.Calcitriol(CAL),an active form of vitamin D,attenuated the ISO-induced CFs proliferation by downregulating the integrinβ3 expression,and phosphorylation of FAK and Akt.Moreover,CAL reduced the increased levels of fibronectin and hydroxyproline in the CFs culture medium triggered by the ISO.The administration of calcitriol decreased the integrinβ3 expression in the ISO-induced myocardial injury model.Conclusion These findings revealed a novel role for CAL in suppressing the CFs growth by the downregulation of the integrinβ3/FAK/Akt pathway.

Dermatosis as the initial presentation of gastric cancer: two cases

Paraneoplastic dermatoses are known to be certain dermatosis related with tumor. The common paraneoplastic dermatoses are acanthosis nigricans, acquired ichthyosis, dermatomyositis, erythroderma, and so on. Here we report two cases of paraneoplastic dermatoses associated with gastric cancer. One case was a 57-year-old man with dermatomyositis and proved to be associated with gastric cancer through stomachoscopy. The other was a 66-year-old man with erythroderma and proved to be associated with gastric cancer through stomachoscopy. Both cases were treated with radical total gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy（D2） and esophagojejunostomy of Roux-en-Y. The skin symptom of both cases had improved a lot but still existed after operation. Paraneoplastic dermatoses can be seen as the early manifestation of visceral carcinomas. As a result, gastric cancers should be excluded in the patients with paraneoplastic dermatoses.

Study on the effect of CH_(4) dissolution on the microstructure of wax crystal in waxy crude oil

In this work, the influence of the dissolution of methane(CH_(4)) gas on the wax crystal of waxy crude oil and the effect on the rheology of crude oil by dissolved CH_(4) were studied comprehensively. A self-deign high-pressure micro visualization device was developed to analyze wax crystals before and after gas dissolution. The crude oil from Shengli and Nanyang was tested by the device under various gas pressures. Results showed that the viscosity, maximum shear stress and equilibrium shear stress of Shengli crude oil decreased with the increasing pressure of the dissolved CH_(4). Due to the supersaturation of dissolved gas, the viscosity, maximum shear stress and equilibrium shear stress of Nanyang crude oil decreased initially and increased with the increasing pressure of dissolved CH_(4). The change in rheology of the dissolved gas crude oil can be a combined influence of gas pressure and dissolution mechanisms caused by CH_(4). Additionally, the wax precipitation point of Shengli crude oil decreased at the saturated dissolution of CH_(4), while Nanyang crude oil showed an increasing wax precipitation temperature.Notably, the wax precipitation area, number of wax particles, and average diameter of wax crystal in both crude oils gradually decreased with dissolution. However, a saturation of CH_(4) caused a small amount of precipitation of wax crystals in Nanyang crude oil, and the small wax crystals were aggregated to form the large wax crystals. The dissolution of CH_(4) gas can affect the wax crystallization process, crystallization ability, and morphology of wax crystals that resulted in significant variation in the rheology of crude oil.