Change of p16^(INK4a) and PNCA Protein Expression in Myocardium after Injection of hIGF-1 Gene Modified Skeletal Myoblasts into Post-infarction Rats

This study examined the change of p16^INK4a and PNCA protein expression in myocardium after injection of hIGF-1 gene modified skeletal myoblasts into post-infarction rats. HIGF-1 gene modified skeletal myoblasts （hIGF-1-myoblasts） were injected into hind limb muscles of 18 post-infraction rats （experimental group）. Primary-myoblasts were injected into 18 post-infraction rats （control group） and 12 non-infarction rats （sham group）. Expression of p16INK4a and PCNA pro- tein in myocardiums were separately detected immunocytochemically 1, 2 and 4 weeks after the inuection. The level of hIGF-1 and rIGF-1 protein in serum and myocardium were detected by en- zyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. Compared with the sham group, the percentage of p^16INK4a and PCNA positive cells reached a peak after 1 week in the control group and the experimental group （P〈0.01）. Moreover, the percentage of p16^INK4a-positive cells in the experimental group was lower than in control group whereas the percentage of PCNA-positive cells was lower in the control group than in the experimental group （P〈0.01）. The percentage of p16^INK4a-positive cells in the experimental group and the percentage of PCNA-positive cells in the control group were close to that in the sham group from the 2nd week （P〉0.05）. ELISA analysis disclosed that the myocardium level of rIGF-1 protein increased gradually in the controls and especially in the experimental group （P〈0.01）. The serum level of rIGF-1 decreased significantly in post-infraction rats, but these conditions were improved in the experimental group （P〈0.01）. The hIGF-1 protein in serum and myocar- dium were detected from the 1st week to the 4th week in the experimental group. Statistical analysis revealed significant associations of myocardium level of hIGF-1 protein with expression of p^16INK4a and PCNA protein （r=–0.323, P〈0.05; r=0.647, P〈0.01）. It is concluded that genetically hIGF-1-myoblast provides a means for constant synthesis and release of hIGF-1. It could not only improve the expression of rIGF-1 and PCNA protein in myocardium, but also suppress the expression of p16^INK4a protein for 30 days in post-infraction rats. Myoblasts-mediated IGF-1 gene therapy may provide a new alternative for the clinical treatment of heart failure.

A Novel Synthetic Analogue of Curcumin, B7, Inhibits Inflammatory Factors Expression in H_2O_2 Induced Endothelial Cells

Curcum in, a dietary phytochemical, exhibits multifunctional natural product with regulatory effects on inflammation. However, the poor bioavailability limits its clinical applications. Thus, we designed and synthesized a novel monocarbonyl analogue of curcumin B7 and their inhibition against monocyte chemotactic protein-1(MCP-1) and interleukin-8(IL-8) release was evaluated in H_2O_2-stimulated human vascular endothelial cells(ECs) in a dose-responsive manner, while exhibiting no cytotoxicity in ECs. Taken together, these insights on the novel compound B7 may serve as potential agents for the treatment of atherosclerosis.