Evaluating the role of interleukin-2 and interleukin-12 in pediatric patients with concurrent Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Epstein-Barr virus infections

BACKGROUND Mycoplasma pneumoniae(MP)frequently causes respiratory infections in children,whereas Epstein-Barr virus(EBV)typically presents subclinical manifestations in immunocompetent pediatric populations.The incidence of MP and EBV coinfections is often overlooked clinically,with the contributory role of EBV in pulmonary infections alongside MP remaining unclear.AIM To evaluate the serum concentrations of interleukin-2(IL-2)and interleukin-12(IL-12)in pediatric patients with MP pneumonia co-infected with EBV and assess their prognostic implications.METHODS We retrospectively analyzed clinical data from patients diagnosed with MP and EBV co-infection,isolated MP infection,and a control group of healthy children,spanning from January 1,2018 to December 31,2021.Serum IL-2 and IL-12 levels were quantified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Logistic regression was employed to identify factors influencing poor prognosis,while receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curves evaluated the prognostic utility of serum IL-2 and IL-12 levels in co-infected patients.RESULTS The co-infection group exhibited elevated serum IL-2 and C-reactive protein(CRP)levels compared to both the MP-only and control groups,with a reverse trend observed for IL-12(P<0.05).In the poor prognosis cohort,elevated CRP and IL-2 levels,alongside prolonged fever duration,contrasted with reduced IL-12 levels(P<0.05).Logistic regression identified elevated IL-2 as an independent risk factor and high IL-12 as a protective factor for adverse outcomes(P<0.05).ROC analysis indicated that the area under the curves for IL-2,IL-12,and their combination in predicting poor prognosis were 0.815,0.895,and 0.915,respectively.CONCLUSION Elevated serum IL-2 and diminished IL-12 levels in pediatric patients with MP and EBV co-infection correlate with poorer prognosis,with combined IL-2 and IL-12 levels offering enhanced predictive accuracy.

RDH12-associated retinal degeneration caused by a homozygous pathogenic variant of 146C>T and literature review

AIM:To describe the clinical,electrophysiological,and genetic features of an unusual case with an RDH12 homozygous pathogenic variant and reviewed the characteristics of the patients reported with the same variant.METHODS:The patient underwent a complete ophthalmologic examination including best-corrected visual acuity,anterior segment and dilated fundus,visual field,spectral-domain optical coherence tomography(OCT)and electroretinogram(ERG).The retinal disease panel genes were sequenced through chip capture high-throughput sequencing and Sanger sequencing was used to confirm the result.Then we reviewed the characteristics of the patients reported with the same variant.RESULTS:A 30-year male presented with severe early retinal degeneration who complained night blindness,decreased visual acuity,vitreous floaters and amaurosis fugax.The best corrected vision was 0.04 OD and 0.12 OS,respectively.The fundus photo and OCT showed bilateral macular atrophy but larger areas of macular atrophy in the left eye.Autofluorescence shows bilateral symmetrical hypo-autofluorescence.ERG revealed that the amplitudes of a-and b-wave were severely decreased.Multifocal ERG showed decreased amplitudes in the local macular area.A homozygous missense variant c.146C>T(chr14:68191267)was found.The clinical characteristics of a total of 13 patients reported with the same pathologic variant varied.CONCLUSION:An unusual patient with a homozygous pathogenic variant in the c.146C>T of RDH12 which causes late-onset and asymmetric retinal degeneration are reported.The clinical manifestations of the patient with multimodal retinal imaging and functional examinations have enriched our understanding of this disease.

Interleukin-12 Gene Modification Exerts Anti-Tumor Effects on Murine Mammary Sarcoma Cell Line in vivo

The aim of this project was to investigate the anti-tumor effect of an IL-12 gene modified mammary sarcoma murine cell line, EMT6/IL-12, in mouse model. In this study, we transfected the recombinant eukaryotic plasmid encoding IL-12 gene （pcDNA6-p70） into EMT6 and obtained the IL-12 expressing EMT6/IL-12 cell line. Then EMT6/IL-12 cells were s.c. inoculated into mice. The recombinant vector treatment group was set as control. We then evaluated the inhibition of tumor growth and the anti-tumor immunity function in vivo such as cytotoxicity, proliferation of splenocytes and serial IFN-T level. And the percentage of IFN-T producing CD4 or CD8 T cells among splenocytes was also analyzed in tumor bearing mice. Our results showed that the growth of tumors was obviously inhibited in EMT6/IL-12 group. Moreover, the capacities of anti-tumor immunity were all significantly higher in EMT6/IL-12 group compared to the controls. The results of the present investigation support the notion that EMT6/IL-12 could exert gene therapy in tumor model by improving the anti-tumor cellular immunity.

Interleukin-12 and Th1 immune response in Crohn’s disease: Pathogenetic relevance and therapeutic inplication

Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are chronic inflammatory disorders of the gastrointestinal tract that share clinical and pathological characteristics. The most accredited hypothesis is that both CD and UC result from a deregulated mucosal immune response to normal constituents of the gut microflora. Evidence, however, indicates that the main pathological processes in these two diseases are distinct. In CD, the tissue- damaging inflammatory reaction is driven by activated type 1 helper T-cell (Th1), whereas a humoral response predominates in UC. Consistently, a marked accumulation of macrophages making interleukin (IL)-12, the major Th1-inducing factor, is seen in CD but not in UC mucosa. Preliminary studies also indicate that administration of a monoclonal antibody blocking the IL-12/p40 subunit can be useful to induce and maintain clinical remission in CD patients. Notably, the recently described IL-23 shares the p40 subunit with IL-12, raising the possibility that the clinical benefit of the anti-IL-12/p40 antibody in CD may also be due to the neutralization of IL-23 activity. This review summarizes the current information on the expression and functional role of IL-12 and IL- 12-associated signaling pathways both in patients with CD and experimental models of colitis, thus emphasizing major differences between IL-12 and IL-23 activity on the development of intestinal inflammation.

Interleukin-12 as a Genetic Adjuvant Enhances Hepatitis C Virus NS3 DNA Vaccine Immunogenicity

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) chronic infection is a worldwide health problem, and numerous efforts have been invested to develop novel vaccines. An efficient vaccine requires broad immune response induction against viral proteins. To achieve this goal, we constructed a DNA vaccine expressing nonstructural 3 (NS3) gene (pcDNA3.1-HCV-NS3) and assessed the immune response in C57BL/6 mice. In this study, the NS3 gene was amplified with a nested-reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method using sera of HCV-infected patients with genotype 1a. The resulting NS3 gene was subcloned into a pcDNA3.1 eukaryotic expression vector, and gene expression was detected by western blot. The resultant DNA vaccine was co-administered with interleukin-12 (IL-12) as an adjuvant to female C57BL/6 mice. After the final immunizations, lymphocyte proliferation, cytotoxicity, and cytokine levels were assessed to measure immune responses. Our data suggest that co-administration of HCV NS3 DNA vaccine with IL-12 induces production of significant levels of both IL-4 and interferon (IFN)-γ (p<0.05). Cytotoxicity and lymphocyte proliferation responses of vaccinated mice were significantly increased compared to control (p<0.05). Collectively, our results demonstrated that co-administration of HCV NS3 and IL-12 displayed strong immunogenicity in a murine model.

血浆lncRNA SNHG12、miR-133b预测乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果的价值

目的探讨血浆长非编码RNA小核仁宿主基因12(lncRNA SNHG12)、微小RNA(miR)-133b预测乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果的价值。方法选取2022年1月至2023年1月在该院进行新辅助治疗的86例乳腺癌患者作为乳腺癌组,依据新辅助治疗效果分为病理学完全缓解(pCR)组和non-pCR组。另选取同期在该院进行健康体检的50例健康女性作为对照组。检测并比较所有研究对象lncRNA SNHG12、miR-133b表达水平。采用多因素Logistic逐步回归模型分析影响乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果的因素。绘制受试者工作特征(ROC)曲线分析血浆lncRNA SNHG12、miR-133b单独及联合检测对乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果的预测价值。结果乳腺组血浆lncRNA SNHG12表达水平高于对照组,miR-133b表达水平低于对照组,差异均有统计学意义(P<0.05)。pCR组纳入34例患者,non-pCR组纳入52例患者。pCR组与non-pCR组雌激素受体、孕激素受体、人表皮生长因子受体-2(HER-2)、细胞增殖核抗原、分子分型比较,差异均有统计学意义(P<0.05)。pCR组lncRNA SNHG12表达水平低于non-pCR组,miR-133b表达水平高于non-pCR组,差异均有统计学意义(P<0.05)。多因素Logistic逐步回归分析结果显示,分子分型为HER-2过表达型、lncRNA SNHG12表达水平升高、miR-133b表达水平降低是乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果的危险因素(P<0.05)。ROC曲线分析结果显示,血浆lncRNA SNHG12、miR-133b单独检测预测乳腺癌患者新辅助治疗效果的曲线下面积(AUC)分别为0.850、0.951,均低于二者联合检测的0.963。86例乳腺癌中Luminal A型11例(pCR 1例、non-pCR 10例)、Luminal B型43例(pCR 12例、non-pCR 31例)、HER-2过表达型16例(pCR 14例、non-pCR 2例)、三阴型16例(pCR 7例、non-pCR 9例)。ROC曲线分析lncRNA SNHG12、miR-133b对4种不同亚型乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果的预测效能结果显示,血浆lncRNA SNHG12、miR-133b单独及联合检测预测Luminal B型乳腺癌患者新辅助治疗效果的AUC分别为0.753、0.974、0.981,预测HER-2过表达型乳腺癌患者新辅助治疗效果的AUC分别为0.804、0.857、0.893。预测三阴型乳腺癌患者新辅助治疗效果的AUC分别为0.849、1.000、1.000。结论乳腺癌患者血浆lncRNA SNHG12表达增高,miR-133b表达降低,二者联合检测对乳腺癌新辅助治疗效果具有较好的预测价值。

外源添加VB_(12)对肺炎克雷伯氏菌代谢3-羟基丙酸的影响

为了探究外源添加维生素B12(Vitamin B12,VB_(12))对Klebsiella pneumoniae HD79和K.pneumoniae HD79-T利用甘油还原途径生产3-羟基丙酸(3-hydroxypropionic acid,3-HP)的影响以及摸索VB_(12)对K.pneumoniae HD79和K.pneumoniae HD79-T的阈值上限,将不同浓度(0.01、0.02、0.03、0.04、0.05 g/L)的VB_(12)添加到K.pneumoniae HD79及K.pneumoniae HD79-T的发酵培养基中,利用HPLC检测其底物消耗及产物产生情况、qRT-PCR检测还原途径相关基因的mRNA表达情况以及酶联免疫试剂盒检测代谢相关酶活性。结果表明,VB_(12)对K.pneumoniae HD79和K.pneumoniae HD79-T的阈值为0.01 g/L和0.03 g/L。与未添加VB_(12)相比,菌株K.pneumoniae HD79和K.pneumoniae HD79-T的3-HP产量分别提高了24.39%,8.86%;醛脱氢酶基因puuC表达量分别提高了2.49倍和1.68倍;ALDH、GDHt和PDOR的酶活力分别提高了50.24%、40.36%和18.29%,及30.49%、37.84%和13.56%。说明通过外源添加辅酶因子VB_(12)对肺炎克雷伯氏菌高产3-HP是可行策略。

Interleukin-35: A key player managing pre-diabetes and chronic inflammatory type 1 autoimmune diabetes

Interleukin-35(IL-35)is a novel protein comprising IL-12αand IL-27βchains.The IL12A and EBI3 genes are responsible for its production.The study of IL-35 has experienced a substantial increase in interest in recent years,as demonstrated by many research papers.Recent clinical studies have shown that individuals who do not have a C-peptide have notably reduced amounts of IL-35 in their blood serum.This is accompanied by a drop in the percentage of IL-35+Treg cells,regulatory B cells,and CD8+FOXP3+cells that produce IL-35.This article em-phasizes the potential significance of IL-35 expression in governing the immune response and its involvement in chronic inflammatory autoimmune diabetes in pancreatic inflammation.It demonstrates IL-35's ability to regulate cytokine proportions,modulate B cells,and protect against autoimmune diabetes.However,further investigation is necessary to ascertain the precise mechanism of IL-35,and meticulous planning is essential for clinical studies.

Identification of sika deer and red deer using partial cytochrome b and 12s ribosomal RNA genes

A study was conducted on the identifications of the degraded samples of sika deer （Cervus nippon） and red deer （Cervus elaphus） by phylogenetic and nucleotide distance analysis of partial Cytb and 12s rRNA genes sequences. 402 bp Cytb genes were achieved by PCR-sequencing using DNA extracted from 8 case samples, and contrasted with 27 sequences of Cytb gene downloaded from GenBank database. The values of three nucleotide distance between three suspected samples and sika deer were identical （0.026±0.006）, which was smaller than the smallest nucleotide distance between eastern red deer and sika deer （0.036）. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis of sika deer and red deer indicated that the evidences located within the same cluster as sika deer. The evidences were sika deer materials. As the same way, other three suspected samples were derived from red deer. The results were further confirmed by phylogenetic and nucleotide distance analysis of 387 bp 12s rRNA gene. The method was powerful and less time-consuming and helpful to reduce the related cases with wildlife.

Phylogenetic Relationships among 12 Species of Tetrigidae (Orthoptera:Tetrigoidea) Based on Partial Sequences of 12S and 16S Ribosomal RNA

Mitochondrial 12S and 16S ribosomal RNA genes sequences were sequenced using dye-labeled terminator on an ABI 377 automated sequencer in 11 individuals and 1 species' sequences were gained from GenBank,representing 6 genera of family Tetrigidae.The collated sequences were aligned using Clustal X version 1.81 and then,the sequence variability and heredity distances based on Kimura 2-parameter model were calculated using Mega 2.1.In obtained sequences (736 bp),the average A+T content is 73.9%,ranging from 71.2% to 77.5%;the overall G+C content is 26.1%,ranging from 22.5% to 28.8%.Based on alignment of the combined sequences,185 parsimony-informative sites were revealed in 755 available base pairs.Phylogenetic trees were reconstructed using NJ,MP and ML methods with Cylindraustralia kochii as outgroup.The results indicated that the monophyletic nature of Tetrix is questioned and suggest that T.tubercarina may be given tribal rank.Our results also show that Coptltettix huanjiangensis and C.gongshanensis are the same species,i.e.Coptltettix gongshanensis Zheng,and C.huanjiangensis is the synonyms of C.gongshanensis.

The in vitro Anti Hptocarcinoma Effects of Human Interleukin-12 from Transgenic Potato

[Objective]The aim was to examine the anti heptocarcinoma effects of human interleukin-12（hIL-12） from transgenic potatoes.[Method]Human heptocarcinoma cell line HepG22.2.15 was cocultured with human peripherial blood monocyte（PBMC）.Human IL-12 extracted from its transgenic patatoes was introduced to this coculture system.MTT method and laser confocal microscope were then employed to evaluate its survival rates and morphological changes of HepG22.2.15 cell line.[Result]The HepG22.2.15 survival rate of the plant produced hIL-12 treated group was significantly lower than that of the wild type control,while similar to that of commercial purified recombinant hIL-12 group.As indicated by AnnexinV/PI double staining laser confocal microscope,cocultured heptocarcinoma cells showed the typical early and final phase apoptotic morphological characteristics 48 hours after 2 × 10-4 mg/L potato secreted hIL-12 treatment.[Conclusion] These results demonstrated that Heptocarcinoma HepG22.2.15 cell growth could be actively inhibited by the transgenic potato expressed hIL-12 in vitro.

Cloning of Cotton Delta-12 Oleate Desaturase Gene FAD2-1 and Construction of Its ihpRNA and amiRNA Interference Vectors

Delta-12 oleate desaturase gene （FAD2-1） which converts oleic acid into linoleic acid, is the key enzyme determining the fatty acid composition of cottonseed oil. By employing RT-PCR method, full length cDNA of cotton delta-12 oleate desat- urase gene GhFAD2-1 containing an open reading frame of 1 158 bp was cloned for constructing RNAi vector. A 515 bp long specific fragment of this gene was se- lected for constructing ihpRNA vector under the control of a seed-specific promoter NAPIN, named pFGC1008-NAPIN-FAD2-1; meanwhile miRNA gene-silencing vector pCAMBIA1302-amiRNA-FAD2-1 targeting GhFAD2-1 was also constructed.

猪产业链中鼠伤寒沙门菌及沙门菌血清型4,[5],12:i:-基因组学分析

旨在探究鼠伤寒沙门菌及沙门菌血清型4,[5],12:i:-基因组学特征。采用Illumina NovaSeq 6000平台对91株河南省猪产业链中鼠伤寒沙门菌及沙门菌血清型4,[5],12:i:-分离菌进行全基因组测序,通过生物信息学分析,进行其血清型的预测、多位点序列的分型以及质粒类型、耐药基因和毒力基因分析。结果表明,在河南省猪产业链中沙门菌4,[5],12:i:-的流行率(1.58%,50/3173)已经超过鼠伤寒沙门菌的流行率(1.29%,41/3173);91株沙门菌的序列型分为ST34(71.42%,65/91)和ST19(28.57%,26/91);鼠伤寒沙门菌/ST34菌株和4,[5],12:i:-/ST34菌株都是IncHI2A_1、IncHI2_1和Col440I_1质粒的偏好宿主;沙门菌血清型4,[5],12:i:-携带率较高的耐药基因是blaTEM-1B_1(72%)、tet(B)_2(90%)、sul2_3(66%)、blaOXA-1_1(34%)等;相比鼠伤寒沙门菌菌株,沙门菌血清型4,[5],12:i:-菌株中质粒的携带率更高,且携带更多种类的耐药基因和毒力基因。本研究首次证实,河南省猪产业链中沙门菌血清型4,[5],12:i:-的流行已经超过鼠伤寒沙门菌,在一定程度上解释了该血清型在河南省病人中主要流行的原因。

广西地区壮族正常听力人群线粒体基因12S rRNA的突变研究

目的研究广西地区壮族正常听力人群线粒体基因12S rRNA的突变携带率以及突变特点,为临床防聋及治聋提供参考。方法采用晶芯十五项遗传性耳聋基因检测试剂盒(微阵列芯片法)对广西地区150例壮族正常听力的受试者进行线粒体基因12S rRNA的2个突变位点检测,对确诊的阳性结果进行Sanger测序分析。结果150例受试者中,检出线粒体基因12S rRNA 1555 A>G突变者1例(携带率为0.67%),经Sanger测序证实为1555 A>G突变,未发现1494C>T位点突变。结论在广西地区壮族人群中开展线粒体基因12S rRNA突变筛查具有重要意义,可以为突变携带者及其母系亲属提供合理的用药指导、遗传咨询,是预防药物性聋的有效措施。

An effective vaccine against colon cancer in mice:Use of recombinant adenovirus interleukin-12 transduced dendritic cells

AIM： To investigate the effect of a vaccine with recombinant adenovirus interleukin-12 （AdVIL-12） transduced dendritic cells （DCs） against colon cancer in mice. METHODS： DCs and AdVIL-12 were incubated together at different time intervals and at different doses. Supernatant was collected and tested for IL-12 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. In order to determine whether tumor cell lysate-pulsed （TP） AdVIL-12/DCs enhance therapeutic potential in the established tumor model, CT26 colon tumor cells were implanted subcutaneously （s.c.） in the midflank of naive BALB/c mice. Tumor-bearing mice were injected with a vaccination of CT26 TP AdVIL-12/DCs on d 3 and 10. As a protective colon tumor model, naive BALB/c mice were immunized s.c. in their abdomens with CT26 TP AdVIL-12/DCs twice at seven day intervals. After the immunization on d 7, the mice were challenged with a lethal dose of CT26 tumor cells and survival times were evaluated. Subsequently, cytotoxic T lymphocyte （CTL） activity and interferon gamma （IFNy） secretion was evaluated in the immunized mice, and assayed CTL ex vivo. RESULTS： Murine DCs were retrovirally transduced with AdVIL-12 efficiency, and the AdVIL-12 transduced DCs secreted a high level of IL-12 （AdVIL-12/DCs, 615.27 ± 42.3 pg/mL vs DCs, 46.32 ± 7.29 pg/mL, P 〈 0.05）. Vaccination with CT26 TP AdVIL-12/DCs could enhance anti-tumor immunity against CT26 colon tumor in murine therapeutic models （tumor volume on d 19：CT26 TP AdVIL-12/DCs 107 ± 42 mm^3 vs CT26 TP DCs 383± 65 mm^3, P 〈 0.05） and protective models. Moreover, the CT26 TP AdVIL-12/DC vaccination enhances tumor-specific CTL activity, producing high levels of IFN7 in immunized mice. Ex vivo primed T cells with AdVIL-12/DCs were able to induce more effective CTL activity than in primed T cells with CT26 TP/DCs （E：T = 100：1, 69.49% ± 6.11% specific lysis vs 37.44% ＋ 4.32% specific lysis, P 〈 0.05）.CONCLUSION： Vaccination with recombinant AdVIL-12 transduced DC pulsed tumor cell lysate enhance antitumor immunity specific to colon cancer in mice.

Association of polymorphisms of interleukin-18 gene promoter region with chronic hepatitis B in Chinese Han population

AIM: To investigate the polymorphisms of interleukin-18 (IL-18) gene promoters, and to disclose whether such polymorphisms are associated with susceptibility to chronic hepatitis B in Chinese Han population. METHODS: Using polymerase chain reaction with sequence specific primers (PCR-SSP) method, the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the promoter region of IL-18 gene at position -607 and -137 were detected in 231 patients with chronic hepatitis B and 300 normal controls. RESULTS: Allele C at position -607 in the promoter of IL-18 gene was detected in 48.7% of normal controls and 51.9% of patients, while allele A at position -607 was detected in 51.3% of normal controls and 48.1% of patients. The frequencies of -607CC, -607 CA and -607AA genotypes in normal controls were 22.0%, 53.3% and 24.7% respectively and in chronic hepatitis B patients were 26.8%, 50.2% and 23.0% respectively. Allele G at position -137 in the promoter of IL-18 gene was detected in 82.3% of normal controls and 88.5% of chronic hepatitis B patients, while allele C at position -137 was detected in 17.7% of normal controls and 11.5% of patients. The frequencies of -137GG, GC and CC genotype were 67.3%, 30.0% and 2.7% in normal controls respectively, while in chronic hepatitis B patients were 78.8%, 19.5% and 1.7% respectively. The frequency of-137GG genotype in chronic hepatitis B groups was significantly higher than that in normal controls (x2=8.55, P=0.003 <0.05), whereas the frequencies of -607C/-137C and -607A/-137C haplotypes in chronic hepatitis B groups were significantly lower than that in normal controls. The association between genotypes of IL-18 promoter region polymorphisms and HBV copies showed that the frequency of -607AA genotype in high HBV-DNA copies groups was lower than that in low HBV-DNA copies groups (x2=6.03, P=0.014 <0.05). CONCLUSION: The polymorphisms of the promoter region of IL-18 gene at position -607 and -137 are closely associated with susceptibility to chronic hepatitis B. The people with allele C at position -137 in the promoter of IL-18 gene may be protected against HBV infection; moreover AA genotype at position -607 may be closely linked to inhibit HBV-DNA replication. These findings give some new clues to the study of pathogenesis of chronic hepatitis B.

Expression and significance of intratumoral interleukin-12 and interleukin-18 in human gastric carcinoma

AIM: To explore the effect of intratumoral expressions of interleukin-12 (IL-12) and interleukin-18 (IL-18) on clinical features, angiogenesis and prognosis of gastric carcinoma. METHODS: The expressions of IL-12 and IL-18 from 50 samples of gastric cancer tissue were analyzed by immunohistochemistry, and microvessel density (MVD) was determined with microscopic imaging analysis system. RESULTS: The positive expression rates of IL-12 and IL-18 were 44% (22/50) and 26% (13/50), respectively. IL-12 was significantly associated with pathologic differentiation, depth of invasion, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and TNM stage, and IL-18 was closely related to distant metastasis. Intratumoral IL-12 and IL-18 expressions were not statistically related to MVD scoring. IL-12-positive patients survived significantly longer than those with IL-12-negative tumors, but there was no significant difference between IL-18-positive patients and IL-18-negative ones. The multivariate analysis with Cox proportional hazard model revealed IL-12, MVD and T stage were independent prognostic factors. CONCLUSION: The positive expressions of IL-12 and IL-18 can play an important role in progression and metastasis of gastric cancer, and IL-12 might be an independent factor of poor prognosis in gastric carcinoma.

Interleukin-1β gene polymorphism associated with hepatocellular carcinoma in hepatitis B virus infection

AIM： To examine the effect of interleukin-l-beta （IL-113） promoter region C-511T and IL-1 receptor antagonist （IL-1RN） polymorphism among the patients with chronic hepatitis B virus （HBV） infection （HCC and non-HCC）. METHODS： Genomic DNA from 136 Thai patients with chronic HBV infection （HCC =46 and non-HCC= 90） and 152 healthy individuals was genotyped for IL-113 gene polymorphism （-511） using polymerase chain reaction with sequence specific primers （PCR-SSP）. The variable number of tandem repeats （VNTR） of IL-1RN gene was assessed by a PCR-based assay. The association between these genes and status of the disease was evaluated by X^2 test. RESULTS： IL-1B-511 genotype c/c was found to be significantly different in patients with HCC when compared with healthy individuals （P = 0.036, OR = 2.29, 95%CI = 1.05-4.97） and patients without HCC （P=0.036, OR= 2.52, 95%CI=1.05-6.04）. Analysis of allele frequencies of IL-1B-511 showed that IL-1B-511 C allele was also significantly increased in patients with HCC, compared to that in healthy control （P=0.033, OR= 1.72, 95%CI=1.04-2.84）. However, no significant association in IL-1RN gene was found between the two groups. CONCLUSION： IL-1B-511C allele, which may be associated with high IL-1B production in the liver, is a genetic marker for the development of HCC in chronic hepatitis B patients in Thai population.

Study of recombinant human interleukin-12 for treatment of complications after radiotherapy for tumor patients

AIM To evaluate the treatment effects of recombinant human interleukin-12(rh IL-12) on radiotherapy complications, such as severe myelosuppression or pancytopenia, the decline or imbalance of immune function, etc.METHODS The patients received high-dose and short-course precise radiotherapy, such as Cyber knife and image-guided radiotherapy(IGRT), which can cause myelosuppression or pancytopenia and immune function decline within a short time. One-hundred subjects were enrolled in the study, and 50 were randomized to a treatment group which used rh IL-12 and 50 were randomized to a control group which used symptomatic and supportive therapy after radiotherapy. The 50 subjects in the treatment group were further divided into five subgroups and intervenedwith rh IL-12 at a dose of 50, 100, 150, 200 or 250 ng/kg respectively. The dose-effect relationship was observed. RESULTS Rh IL-12 significantly attenuated the decrease of peripheral blood cells in the treatment group, and immune function was improved after treatment. Due to the different radiation doses, there was a fluctuation within 12 h after treatment but mostly showing an increasing trend. As to the clinical manifestations, 2 patients in the 250 ng/kg subgroup showed low fever after administration, 1 patient in the 200 ng/kg subgroup and 2 patients in the 250 ng/kg subgroup showed mild impairment of liver function during the observation period.CONCLUSION Rh IL-12 has effective therapeutic and protective effects on complications following radiotherapy, such as the decline of blood cells, myelosuppression and the decline or imbalance of immune function, which indicated good prospects for development and application.

Construction of retroviral vector of p^(125FAK) specific ribozyme genes and its effects on BGC-823 cells

AIM： To construct the retroviral vector of p^125FAK specific ribozyme genes and to explore the feasibility of ribozyme in BGC-823 gene therapy in vitro. METHODS： A hammerhead ribozyme DNA targeting p^125FAK mRNA from nt 1010 to nt 1032 was synthesized and recombinated into the retroviral vector pLXSN forming pLRZXSN recon. Using the lipofectin-mediated DNA transfection technique, pLRZXSN was introduced into BGC-823 cells. The effects of ribozyme on the growth of BGC-823 cells and apoptosis were studied by cell colony assay, flow cytometry （FCM）, reverse transcriptasepolymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR）, detection of DNA fragmentation and electron microscopy. RESULTS： The number of BGC-823 cell colonies was inhibited by 56% after the cells were treated for 48 h. The cell proliferation was inhibited effectively by p^125FAK ribozyme and the inhibitory effect depended on the concentration and the time of incubation. The expression of p^125FAK mRNA and protein p^125 decreased sharply in BGC-823 cells treated with p^125FAK ribozyme. The characteristics of apoptosis, namely sub-G1 peak, DNA fragmentation and morphological changes, were revealed in BGC-823 cells treated with p^125FAK ribozyme. CONCLUSION： p^125FAK ribozyme decreases p^125FAK gene expression and induces apoptosis of human gastric cancer cells in vitro.