The biological function of type I receptors of bone morphogenetic protein in bone

Bone morphogenetic proteins （BMPs） have multiple roles in skeletal development, homeostasis and regeneration. BMPs signal via type I and type II serine/threonine kinase receptors （BMPRI and BMPRII）. In recent decades, genetic studies in humans and mice have demonstrated that perturbations in BMP signaling via BMPRI resulted in various diseases in bone, cartilage, and muscles. In this review, we focus on all three types of BMPRI, which consist of activin-like kinase 2 （ALK2, also called type IA activin receptor）, activin- llke kinase 3 （ALK3, also called BMPRIA）, and activin-like kinase 6 （ALK6, also called BMPRIB）. The research areas covered include the current progress regarding the roles of these receptors during myogenesis, chondrogenesis, and osteogenesis. Understanding the physiological and pathological functions of these receptors at the cellular and molecular levels will advance drug development and tissue regeneration for treating musculoskeletal diseases and bone defects in the future.

Regulation of neural stem/progenitor cell functions by P2X and P2Y receptors

Neural stem/progenitor cells：Radial glial cells constitute multipotent cells in the ventricular zone,lining the wall of the lateral ventricle of the embryonic brain.They have the capacity to give rise to cells belonging to all three major linages（neurons,astrocytes and oligodendrocytes）of the nervous system（Tang and Illes,2017）.

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells transplantation promotes the release of endogenous erythropoietin after ischemic stroke

This study investigated whether bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell（BMSC） transplantation protected ischemic cerebral injury by stimulating endogenous erythropoietin. The model of ischemic stroke was established in rats through transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. Twenty-four hours later, 1 × 106 human BMSCs（h BMSCs） were injected into the tail vein. Fourteen days later, we found that h BMSCs promoted the release of endogenous erythropoietin in the ischemic region of rats. Simultaneously, 3 μg/d soluble erythropoietin receptor（s EPOR） was injected into the lateral ventricle, and on the next 13 consecutive days. s EPOR blocked the release of endogenous erythropoietin. The neurogenesis in the subventricular zone was less in the h BMSCs ＋ s EPOR group than in the h BMSCs ＋ heat-denatured s EPOR group. The adhesive-removal test result and the modified Neurological Severity Scores（m NSS） were lower in the h BMSCs ＋ s EPOR group than in the heat-denatured s EPOR group. The adhesive-removal test result and m NSS were similar between the h BMSCs ＋ heat-denatured s EPOR group and the h BMSCs ＋ s EPOR group. These findings confirm that BMSCs contribute to neurogenesis and improve neurological function by promoting the release of endogenous erythropoietin following ischemic stroke.

An association study of protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type R gene polymorphism and the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in major depressive disorder

Objective To explore the influence of a polymorphism of protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type R(PTPRR)gene rs1513105 on abnormal brain activities in resting-state patients with major depressive disorder(MDD)using the gene-imaging technology.Methods 54MDD and 43 gender-,age-,and education-matched con-

Synergetic protective effects of combined blockade by two kinds of autolesion mediator receptor on neurological function after cervical cord injury

Abstract Objective To investigate the effects of combined blockade by platelet activating factor (PAF) receptor antagonist BN 52021 in combination with opiate receptor antagonist naloxone on neurological function and neurological tissue damage after cervical cord injury. Methods Spinal cord contusion at C 6 segment was made with Allen method in cats, which were randomly divided into four groups: saline control group; BN 52021 group; naloxone group; and combined treatment group with BN 52021 and naloxone. Alteration of cervical cord blood flow, blood barrier permeability of the spinal cord, cervical cord tissue pathology and neurological functional scores were studied after experimental cervical cord injury. Results The animals treated with BN 52021 or naloxone had significantly better functional scores than saline controls 6 weeks after injury (P<0.05). Moreover, the combined treatment showed significantly better neurologic recovery than either naloxone or BN 52021 treated animals (P<0.05). The other indexes in combined treatment animals were also superior to those in naloxone or BN 52021 treated animals. Conclusions Combined blockade by two kinds of autolesion mediator receptor can more effectively inhibit secondary damage production and development after cervical cord injury and improve neurologic function.

Correlations among Persistent Viral Infection,Heart Function and Chinese Medicine Syndromes in Dilated Cardiomyopathy Patients

Objective：To investigate the correlations among persistent viral infection,heart function and Chinese medicine（CM） difined-syndromes in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy（DCM）.Methods：Fifty patients with DCM in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University from October 2009 to December 2011 were selected as the research subjects,and 30 healthy people were simultaneously selected as the normal control group to detect persistent viral infections after admission.The CM syndrome type and grade of heart function were then evaluated.The expression level of Coxsackie adenovirus receptor（CAR） was detected using the flow cytometry（FCM） technique,coxsackie virus RNA（CVB-RNA） using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction（RTPCR）,and the plasma brain natriuretic peptide（BNP） level with a Triage meter plus diagnosis instrument.Finally,the parameters such as left ventricular end diastolic diameter（LVEDd） and left ventricular ejection fraction（LVEF） were measured by ultrasonic cardiogram.Person correlation analysis was used for measured data,Spearman correlation analysis for rating data,and the Chi-square test for numerical data.Results：CVB-RNA was positive in 22 patients（44%） with DCM,while only 6 cases（20%） were CVB-RNA-positive in the normal control group,with a significant difference between the two groups（P〈0.01）.The expression level of CAR was significantly elevated in the DCM group compared with the normal control group（P〈0.01）.In CVB-RNA-positive patients（22 cases）,the expression level of CAR was significantly higher than in CVB-RNA-negative patients（28 cases;P〈0.01）.In the DCM patients,there was a positive correlation between the CAR expression and the BNP level（r=0.34,P〈0.05）,while no significant difference was found between the CAR expression and the LVEF and LVEDd（r=-0.32,0.30,P〉0.05）.There was no clear correlation between virus infection and the CM syndrome types in DCM patients（r=-0.22,P〉0.05）.According to the sequence of syndrome types：phlegm → qi deficiency → blood stasis → hydroretention with asthenic yang（from low to high）,a positive correlation was existed between the BNP levels and CM syndrome types（r=0.139,P〈0.05）.Conclusion：The expression of CAR on the surface of white cells could be used to detect persistent viral infection.The expression level of CAR and heart function in DCM patients were highly correlated.The expression level of BNP may serve as an objective index for differentiating CM syndromes for patients with DCM.