Effects of pioglitazone on proliferation and differentiation of human preadipocytes

Objective： To explore the effects of thiazolidinediones （TZDs） pioglitazone on proliferation and differentiation of human preadipocytes. Methods：Omental adipose tissue biopsies were obtained from 15 patients who were undergoing elective open-abdominal surgery. The primary culture and differentiated induction of human preadipocytes were performed, and the human preadipo-cytes were treated with pioglitazone at different concentrations at proper moments. Dynamic morphological changes of the human preadipocytes were observed, and their proliferation and differentiation were assessed with Colorimetric MTT Assay and Oil Red O Staining. Results：After 24 hours and 72 hours with pioglitazone, 0.1 μmol/L （μmol/ml） pioglitazone increased the MTT values of the human preadipocytes by 25.3% and 34.8%,respectively（P 〈 0.05）, while 1 μmol/L pioglitazone by 27.4% and 26.6%（P 〈 0.05）, compared with the control group without pioglitazone. The human preadipocytes with pioglitazone cumulated more adipose in the endochylema than those without pioglitazone obviously. 0.1 μmol/L pioglitazone increased the differentiation degree of the human preadipocytes differentiated for 8-10 days by 44.81% and 1 μmol/L pioglitazone by 53.76%（P 〈 0.05）. Conclusion：Thi- azolidinediones pioglitazone may significantly promote the proliferation and differentiation of the human omental preadipocytes.

Effect of Acupuncture on Proliferation and Differentiation of Neural Stem Cells in Brain Tissues of Rats with Traumatic Brain Injury

Objective： To observe the effect of acupuncture on proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells in brain tissues of rats with traumatic brain injuny. Methods： Thirty SD rats were randomly and equally allocated to the sham-operated, the model and the acupuncture groups. The traumatic brain injury model was established by the free drop method. For the rats in the acupuncture group, acupuncture was applied once a day for 7 days. Brain histotomy was carried out when treatments were completed. Immunohistochemical techniques were adopted to detect the cells that express nestin, neurofilament proteins （NF）-200 and glial fibrillary acidic proteins （GFAP）, the markers of neural stem cells, neurons, astrocytes respectively. Results： Compared to the sham-operated group, the number of nestin-positive cells and NF-200-positive cells in brain tissues was decreased significantly in the model group （P〈0.01）, whereas the number of GFAP-positive cells was significantly increased （P〈0.01）. Compared to the model group, the positive cells of nestin, NF-200, GFAP in brain tissues in the acupuncture group were increased obviously （P〈0.01）. Conclusions： Acupuncture can significantly increase the number of nestin-positive cells, NF-200-positive cells and GFAP-positive cells, indicating the significant increase of neural stem cells, neurons and astrocytes in number. Acupuncture can improve neuranagenesis by promoting the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells in brain tissues. This might be one of the mechanisms for acupuncture to treat traumatic brain injury and to promote the repair of nervous function.

Tissue Culture and Rapid Propagation Techniques of New Variety in Cymbidium hybridum

[Objectives]This study was conducted to select media suitable for proliferation,differentiation and rooting of Cymbidium hybridum"Huangjinjia".[Methods]The lateral buds and protocorms of the new variety C.hybridum"Huangjinjia"were used as materials to explore the effects of different concentrations of 6-BA and NAA on protocorm proliferation and rooting.[Results]The optimal medium for protocorm propagation was 1/2 MS+6-BA 1.0 mg/L+NAA0.5 mg/L+potato 50 g/L+sucrose 20 g/L,in which the protocorms multiplied easily and grew rapidly.The optimal medium for inducing adventitious buds was1/2 MS+6-BA 1.5 mg/L+NAA 0.3 mg/L+sucrose 30 g/L+banana 25 g/L+apple 25 g/L+activated carbon 1.0 g/L,in which the induction rate of adventitious buds reached 335%.The optimal medium for rooting was 1/2 MS+NAA 0.5 mg/L+sucrose 25 g/L+banana 75 g/L+apple 25 g/L+activated carbon1.0 g/L,in which the average root length was 3.0 cm,the average number of roots was 2.6,and plantlets had green leaves,thick roots and suitable plant height.[Conclusions]This study provides a theoretical basis and reference for the establishment of a rapid propagation system using lateral buds.

Effect of Porous Activated Charcoal Reinforcement on Mechanical and In-Vitro Biological Properties of Polyvinyl Alcohol Composite Scaffolds

The present work focused on developing an innovative composite material by reinforcing polymer matrix with highly porous activated charcoal. Polyvinyl alcohol-activated charcoal（PVA-AC） composite scaffolds were developed by varying the AC concentrations（0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2 and 2.5 wt%） in PVA matrix by freeze drying method. The developed scaffolds were characterized for their physicochemical, mechanical and in-vitro biological properties. In addition, the effect of AC on the attachment, proliferation and differentiation of osteoblast MG 63 cells was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy（SEM）, 3-（4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl）-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide（MTT） assay, alkaline phosphatase（ALP） activity assay and alizarin red stain-based（ARS） assay. All the PVA-AC composite scaffolds exhibited good bioactivity, hemocompatibility and protein adsorption properties. The scaffolds with high AC concentration（2.5 wt%） showed controlled drug release kinetics that are suitable for long term healing. The mechanical properties of all the PVA-AC composite scaffolds were improved when compared to the pure PVA scaffold. The high porosity, swelling degree and hydrophilicity of PVA-AC composite scaffolds facilitated cell attachment and proliferation. This is due to porous AC present in the sample that supported the osteoblast differentiation and formed mineralized nodules without the addition of any extra agents. From the above studies, it can be concluded that PVA-AC composite scaffolds are promising biomaterials for bone tissue engineering applications.