Correlation between X-ray cross-complementing group 1 polymorphisms and the onset risk of glioma A meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE： To evaluate the association of X-ray cross-complementing group 1 （XRCC1） Arg399GIn, Arg194Trp and Arg280His polymorphisms with the risk of glioma. DATA SOURCES： A systematic literature search of papers published from January 2000 to August 2012 in PubMed, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure database, and Wanfang da- tabase was performed. The key words used were ＂glioma＂, ＂polymorphism＂, and ＂XRCC1 or X-ray repair cross-complementing group 1＂. References cited in the retrieved articles were screened manually to identify additional eligible studies. STUDY SELECTION： Studies were identified according to the following inclusion criteria： case-control design was based on unrelated individuals; and genotype frequency was available to estimate an odds ratio （OR） and 95% confidence interval （CI）. Meta-analysis was performed for the selected studies after strict screening. Dominant and recessive genetic models were used and the relationship between homozygous mutant genotype frequencies and mutant gene frequency and glioma incidence was investigated. We chose the fixed or random effect model according to the heterogeneity to calculate OR and 95%CI, and sensitivity analyses were conducted. Publication bias was examined using the inverted funnel plot and the Egger＇s test using Stata 12.0 software. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： Association of XRCC1 Arg399GIn, Arg194Trp, and Arg280His polymorphisms with the risk of glioma, and subgroup analyses were performed according to differ- ent ethnicities of the subjects.RESULTS： Twelve articles were included in the meta-analysis. Eleven of the articles were concerned with the Arg399GIn polymorphism and glioma onset risk. Significantly increased glioma risks were found only in the dominant model （Gin/Gin ＋ GIn/Arg versus Arg/Arg： OR = 1.26, 95%CI= 1.03-1.54, P = 0.02）. In the subgroup analysis by ethnicity, significantly increased risk was found in Asian subjects in the recessive （OR = 1.46, 95%CI= 1.04-2.45, P = 0.03） and dominant models （OR = 1.40, 95%CI= 1.10-1.78, P = 0.007）, and homozygote contrast （OR = 1.69, 95%CI= 1.17-2.45, P = 0.005）, but not in Caucasian sub- jects. For association of the Arg194Trp （eight studies） and Arg280His （four studies） polymorphisms with glioma risk, the meta-analysis did not reveal a significant effect in the allele contrast, the recessive genetic model, the dominant genetic model, or homozygote contrast. CONCLUSION： The XRCC1 Arg399GIn polymorphism may be a biomarker of glioma susceptibility, espe- cially in Asian populations. The Arg194Trp and Arg280His polymorphisms were not associated with overall glioma risk.

Procaine Inhibiting Human Bladder Cancer Cell Proliferation by Inducing Apoptosis and Demethylating APAF1 CpG Island Hypermethylated

Studies have shown that aberrant DNA methylation of apoptotic protease activating factor-1（APAF1） is an important epigenetic mechanism of gene regulation in the progression of bladder cancer.In this article,we have proved that procaine,an inhibitor of DNA methyltransferases,could inhibit the proliferation of T24 and 5637 human bladder cancer cells by inducing their apoptosis.The mechanism studies reveal that procaine could induce demethylation of APAF1 gene in T24 or 5637 cells,subsequently activating caspase-3/9.It was also shown that the serum soluble fas ligand（sFasL） was activated,and the expression of matrix metallopeptidase 9（MMP-9） was down-regulated.Procaine seems to induce cell death by different pathways,and it might be used as a potential agent for bladder cancer treatment.

Effect of Chinese Herbal Medicine for Calming Gan(肝) and Suppressing Hyperactive Yang on Arterial Elasticity Function and Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure in Patients with Essential Hypertension

Objective：To observe the effect of Chinese herbal medicine for calming Gan（肝） and suppressing hyperactive yang（平肝潜阳,CGSHY） on arterial elasticity function and the circadian rhythm of blood pressure in patients with essential hypertension（EH）.Methods：Adopting a parallel,randomized design,sixty-four patients with EH of stagesⅠandⅡwere randomly divided into two groups according to a random number table,with 32 in each group.The patients in the treatment group were treated with CGSHY and those in the control group were treated with Enalapril.All patients were given 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring（ABPM） before and after a 12-week treatment.Trough/peak（T/P） ratios of systolic and diastolic blood pressure（SBP DBP） of each group were calculated.The circadian rhythm of their blood pressure was observed at the same time. The changes in elasticity of the carotid artery in the patients,including stiffness parameter（β）,pressure-strain elastic modulus（Ep）,arterial compliance（AC）,augmentation index（Al）,and pulse wave velocity（PVWβ） were determined by the echo-tracking technique before and after a 12-week treatment.In the meantime,their levels of nitric oxide（NO） and endothelin-1（ET-1） were measured respectively.Results：After treatment,all parameters in the 24-h ABPM and the elasticity of the carotid artery（β,Ep,AC and PVWβ） were markedly improved,the level of NO was increased,and ET-1 was decreased in both groups as compared with values before treatment （P0.05 or P0.01）.Further,the improvements in the ratio of T/P of SBP DBP and in the level of NO and ET-1 in the treatment group were more significant than those in the control group（P0.05）.There were no significant differences in all parameters in the ABPM monitoring and the elasticity of the carotid artery,the recovery of blood pressure circadian rhythm,and the therapeutic effect of antihypertension in EH patients between the two groups （P0.05）.Conclusions：Chinese herbal medicine for CGSHY may lower the blood pressure smoothly and recover the circadian rhythm of blood pressure in EH patients.They may also improve the carotid elasticity of EH patients similar to that of Enalapril.The mechanism of action of Chinese herbs on EH might be related to the regulation of vascular endothelium function.

Effect of Xin’anning Nasal Drop (心安宁滴鼻剂) in Treating Coronary Heart Disease with Unstable Angina Pectoris

Objective： To observe the clinical efficacy of Xin＇anning Nasal Drop （XAND,心安宁滴鼻剂） in treating coronary heart disease with unstable angina pectoris （CHD-UAP）. Methods： Sixty patients with CHD-UAP were assigned, according to the randomizing number table, to two groups, the control group treated with conventional Western medicine, and the treated group treated with conventional Western medicine plus XAND. The clinical efficacy and the changes of S-T segment in resting EKG and total ischemia burden （TIB） in 24-h dynamic EKG were observed. Results： The clinical efficacy, including the effect of angina alleviation, its initiation, and the effect of TOM syndrome score reduction, were significantly superior in the treated group to those in the control group （ P〈0.05 or P〈0.01 ）. The degree and extent of myocardial ischemia were significantly improved in both groups （ P〈0.01 ）, but the improvement in the treated group was better than that in the control group （ P〈0.05）. Moreover, it was worth mentioning that the immediate effect in the treated group was better than that in the control group, and the reduction of TIB, the improvement in heart rate and myocardial oxygen consumption （ immediately after the first administration or by the end of the therapeutic course）, and systolic blood pressure after treatment in the former were all superior to those in the latter, showing significant difference （ P〈0.05 or P〈0.01 ）. Conclusion： XAND has a quick effect in alleviating angina in patients with CHD-UAP, and it is worthy of further studies and spreading in clinical practice.