Biomedical subjects

Y M Wu

Publications and source records attributed to Y M Wu.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Epidemiological characteristics of diabetes mellitus and impaired glucose regulation in a Chinese adult population: the Shanghai Diabetes Studies, a cross-sectional 3-year follow-up study in Shanghai urban communities.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: To estimate the prevalence and incidence of diabetes mellitus and impaired glucose regulation (IGR) in a Chinese population aged 20-94 years. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A group of 5,628 randomly selected adults, aged 20-94 years, living in the Huayang and Caoyang communities in Shanghai, China, were investigated between 1998 and 2001. During 2002-04, 2,666 subjects were followed up. All the participants underwent anthropometric measurements, blood biochemical analyses and a 75-g OGTT. RESULTS: Based on the 2000 census data of China, the age-standardised prevalences were 6.87% for diabetes and 8.53% for IGR at baseline. More than two in five cases with diabetes were undiagnosed. The age-adjusted prevalence of diabetes and IGR increased with age. The age-adjusted prevalences of hypertension, dyslipidaemia and overweight in males were significantly higher (p < 0.001) than in females. The 3-year cumulative incidence rates of diabetes and IGR were 4.96 and 11.10%, respectively. The relative risk of developing diabetes was significantly higher in subjects with IGR than in subjects with NGT (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: The prevalence and incidence rates for diabetes or IGR have increased dramatically over the last decades, especially in younger age groups. A large proportion of cases are undiagnosed. We strongly recommend that population-based diabetes screening programmes should be implemented and generalised for younger people.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Lipid peroxidation: a possible role in the induction and progression of chronic periodontitis.

OBJECTIVES: Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are implicated in the destruction of the periodontium during inflammatory periodontal diseases. The imbalance in oxidant/antioxidant activity may be a key factor in the damaging effects of ROS. This study aimed to determine the lipid peroxidation levels in gingival crevicular fluid and saliva, and glutathione (GSH) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in saliva in patients with chronic periodontitis. METHODS: Gingival crevicular fluid and saliva were collected from 13 patients and 9 healthy control subjects during the preliminary study, and from 21 patients during the subsequent study. Lipid peroxidation level, GSH level and GPx activity were determined by spectrophotometric assay. RESULTS: The preliminary study found that when comparing patients to healthy controls, the gingival crevicular fluid samples produced the following results, respectively: higher lipid peroxidation concentration (microm) (by sites: 167.55 vs. 53.71, p < 0.0001; by subjects: 151.99 vs. 50.66, p < 0.005) and total amount (pmol) (by sites: 93.02 vs. 8.47, p < 0.0001, by subjects: 80.44 vs. 7.84, p < 0.0005). In saliva samples, lower GSH concentration (microm) (373.04 vs. 606.67, p < 0.05), higher lipid peroxidation concentration (microm) (0.66 vs. 0.13, p < 0.0005), and no difference in GPx activity were found in patients than in those of healthy controls. The subsequent study showed statistically significant (p < 0.05) improvement of clinical periodontal parameters (plaque index, gingival index, probing attachment level, probing pocket depth and gingival crevicular fluid volume), decreases in gingival crevicular fluid lipid peroxidation levels (concentration and total amount) at the sites after the completion of phase 1 periodontal treatment. Similarly, the periodontal treatment resulted in a significant decrease of lipid peroxidation concentrations (p < 0.05), increase in GSH concentration (p < 0.001), and no change in GPx activity in saliva samples. CONCLUSION: The increased levels of lipid peroxidation may play a role in the inflammation and destruction of the periodontium in periodontitis.

Antioxidants↗

PubMed2005

Effects of dietary sources of vegetable oils on performance of high-yielding lactating cows and conjugated linoleic acids in milk.

This study was conducted to examine the effects of dietary supplementation with vegetable oils on performance of high-yielding lactating cows and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) content in milk fat. Twelve lactating Holstein cows in early lactation (30 to 45 d postpartum) were used in a triple 4 x 4 Latin square design. In each period, the cows in each group were fed the same basal diet and received one of the following treatments: 1) control (without oil), 2) 500 g of cottonseed oil, 3) 500 g of soybean oil, and 4) 500 g of corn oil. Each experimental period lasted for 3 wk, with the first 2 wk used for adaptation to the diet. Supplementation with vegetable oils tended to increase milk yield, with the highest milk yield in the cottonseed oil group (35.0 kg/d), compared with the control (34.4 kg/d). Milk fat percentage was decreased, but there were few effects on percentage and yield of milk protein as well as milk fat yield. The cows fed added soybean oil produced milk with the highest content of trans-11 C(18:1) (23.8 mg/g of fat), which was twice that of the control (12.6 mg/g of fat). Content of cis-9, trans-11 CLA in milk fat increased from 3.5 mg/g in the control to 6.0, 7.1, and 10.3 mg/g for the cows fed oils from cottonseed, corn, and soybean, respectively. A significant linear relationship existed between trans-11 C(18:1) and cis-9, trans-11 CLA. Supplementation with oils doubled the content of total fatty acids in blood plasma, with little difference between different vegetable oil sources. Octadecenoic acid content was significantly higher in blood plasma of animals fed added oils from cottonseed and soybean than those fed with corn oil and control. The plasma trans-11 C(18:1) content was significantly higher in the oil-added animals than in control. Supplementation of vegetable oils tended to improve milk production of lactating cows, and the CLA content in milk fat was significantly increased. Soybean oil seemed to be the optimal source to increase CLA production.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Do patients with acute liver failure have a better chance to receive liver grafting?

OBJECTIVE: Patients with acute hepatic failure (AHF) were always given first priority on the transplant waiting list. We investigated whether AHF patients will deprive other patients on the waiting list of the chance of liver transplantation (LTx). METHODS AND RESULTS: From January 1999 to March 2003, a total of 423 patients were on the transplant waiting list at the National Taiwan University Hospital. Sixty-five of the patients had AHF caused by hepatitis-B-related disease (HBV, n = 52, 80%), Wilson disease (n = 3, 4.6%), drug-induced AHF (n = 3, 4.6%), and other causes (n = 7, 10.8%).Thirty-three patients died and 16 survived by medical treatment. Two received LTx abroad and 14 underwent LTx at our hospital (7 living-related; 7 cadaver). A total of 140 patients died while waiting for a transplant during the period studied. Of them, 107 were among 358 non-AHF patients (30%), and time-to-death interval was 133 +/- 175 days (median: 62); 33 were among 65 AHF patients (51%); time to death was 19 +/- 28 days (median: 8). There were 35 cadaver donor livers available during the period; 28 of 358 non-AHF patients (7.8%), and 7 of 65 AHF patients (10.7%) received cadaveric LTx. Their waiting time totaled 342 +/- 316 and 12 +/- 9 days, respectively (P < .0001). CONCLUSION: Most AHF patients died unless they received liver grafts. Even with a higher priority assigned to them, AHF patients still have little chance to get a cadaver donor liver in Taiwan, and non-AHF patients have an even slimmer chance. Therefore, we need to encourage liver donation from living-related donors.

Cadaver↗

PubMed2002

A new area in the human brain associated with learning and memory: immunohistochemical and functional MRI analysis.

Previous studies identified a new brain area, the marginal division (MrD), at the caudomedial border of the neostriatum in the brain of the rat, cat and monkey. The MrD was distinguishable from the rest of the striatum by the presence of spindle-shaped neurons, specific connections, and dense immunoreactivity for neuropeptides and monoamines in fibers, terminals and neuronal somata. Behavioral testing demonstrated that the MrD contributes to learning and memory in the rat. In the present study, the structure and the function of the MrD were investigated in the human brain. The presence of spindle-shaped neurons and the distribution of neurotransmitters in the MrD were evaluated by immunocytochemical methods. The function of the MrD was identified with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of healthy volunteers tested with an auditory digital working memory task. Highly active areas were observed in the prefrontal cortex and MrD with left sided predominance during performance of the task, but other parts of the neostriatum were not excited and the MrD was not activated in a control test of non-working memory. The results of the present investigation therefore indicate the existence of a new area associated with learning and memory function in the human brain. The MrD probably plays an important role in the execution of digital working memory and appears to link the limbic system and the basal nucleus of Meynert. The MrD may also be involved in the mechanism of Alzheimer's disease.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Epidemiological study on obesity and its comorbidities in urban Chinese older than 20 years of age in Shanghai, China.

The aim of this work was to establish the prevalence of overweight and obesity and its associated comorbidities in a Chinese population older than 20 years of age. A group of 2776 randomly selected adults (20-94 years of age) living in the Huayang Community in Shanghai, China, were investigated between 1998 and 2000. Body weight, height, waist and hip circumferences and blood pressure were measured, as were fasting blood glucose, fasting insulin and lipid profile, as well as blood glucose 2 h after a glucose load, and a 75-g glucose tolerance test was performed. The prevalence of overweight was 29.5% and obesity was 4.3%, with a greater number of women being obese than men. More than one-third of the population had abnormal lipid levels. Impaired glucose regulation (IGR) occurred in 10.8%; and 9.8% of the population were classified as having type 2 diabetes mellitus. Hypertension was present in 58.4% of this population. About 21% and 29.3% of the population suffered from high total cholesterol and high triglyceride, respectively. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 10.2%. The prevalence of diabetes, IGR and metabolic syndrome increased progressively in association with a body mass index (BMI) of >23 kg m(-2). Hence, although the prevalence of obesity is low in this Chinese population, higher BMI and waist circumference values are clearly associated with an increasing prevalence of comorbidities. The absolute risk of having diabetes, IGR and metabolic syndrome is high in adults with a BMI of > or =23 kg m(-2).

Adult↗

PubMed2001

Suprahepatic venacavaplasty (cavaplasty) with retrohepatic cava extension in liver transplantation: experience with first 115 cases.

BACKGROUND: We first introduced the orthotopic liver transplantation utilizing cavaplasty technique in 1994. This paper describes the surgical technique and assesses the outcome of the cavaplasty OLT. METHODS: The cavaplasty procedure was used in 115 consecutive orthotopic liver transplantations, including six left lateral and two right lobe transplantations, between November 1994 and September 2000. Fifty-three (66.3%) transplantations required femoro-axillary veno-venous bypass in the initial 4 years, whereas only eight (22.9%) needed VB in the subsequent 2 years. Conversion to piggyback or standard technique was not necessary in any patient. RESULTS: Median results are as follows: operative time 4.5 hr, warm ischemia time 25 min, and blood transfused (packed red blood cells) 6 units. These findings did not differ between first transplantation and retransplantation. There were no perioperative deaths related to the cavaplasty technique. No hepatic venous outflow obstruction was observed, including living-related OLTs. No patient required postoperative hemodialysis for acute renal failure. The median intensive care and hospital stays were 2 days and 10 days, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The cavaplasty technique requires no retrocaval, hepatic vein, or short hepatic vein dissection, and the inferior vena cava can be preserved, which provides advantages for hepatectomy and easy hemostasis, especially during retransplantation. The wide-open triangular caval anastomosis is easy to perform, allowing short implantation time and size matching and avoiding outflow obstruction. The short implantation time reduces the need for veno-venous bypass. Our experience indicates that the cavaplasty technique can be applied to all patients and is justified by minimal technical complications.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Proteolytic activation of ETK/Bmx tyrosine kinase by caspases.

Etk/Bmx is a member of the Btk/Tec family of kinases, which are characterized by having a pleckstrin homology domain at the N terminus, in addition to the Src homology 3 (SH3), SH2, and the catalytic domains, shared with the Src family kinases. Etk, or Btk kinases in general, has been implicated in the regulation of apoptosis. To test whether Etk is the substrate for caspases during apoptosis, in vitro translated [(35)S]methionine-labeled Etk was incubated with different apoptotic extracts and recombinant caspases, respectively. Results showed that Etk was proteolyzed in all conditions tested with identical cleavage patterns. Caspase-mediated cleavage of Etk generated a C-terminal fragment, containing the complete SH2 and tyrosine kinase domains, but without intact pleckstrin homology and SH3 domains. This fragment has 4-fold higher kinase activity than that of the full-length Etk. Ectopic expression of the C-terminal fragment of Etk sensitized the PC3 prostate cancer cells to apoptosis in response to apoptosis-inducing stimuli. The finding, together with an earlier report that Etk is potentially antiapoptotic, suggests that Etk may serve as an apoptotic switch, depending on the forms of Etk existing inside the cells. To our knowledge, this is the first case where the activity of a tyrosine kinase is induced by caspase cleavage.

Apoptosis↗

PubMed2001

Identifications, classification, and evolution of the vertebrate alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA) receptor subunit genes.

The AMPA receptor (AMPAR), a pharmacologically defined ionotropic glutamate receptor, mediates fast excitatory synaptic transmission in the vertebrate central nervous system. Mammalian and avian AMPARs are assembled from the products of four genes (GRIA1-GRIA4) conserved in their translated sequences and gene organizations. Teleost fish also express AMPAR subunits; however, the AMPAR genes have not been extensively investigated in lower vertebrates. To elucidate the evolution of vertebrate AMPAR genes, reverse-transcriptase PCR-based surveys of subunits expressed in the brains of eight nonmammalian vertebrates were performed. The newly cloned vertebrate AMPAR subunits were classified by their sequence identities to the mammalian AMPAR subunits. The results of molecular and phylogenetic analyses indicated that the members of the AMPAR gene family increased from two in the jawless hagfish to four in the tetrapods and the shark and to more than four in the teleost fish. The sizes of AMPAR gene families correlate well with those of many multigene families observed in various vertebrates. Moreover, all vertebrates expressed at least one AMPAR subunit bearing an arginine (R) at the Q/R site, at which no invertebrate glutamate receptor subunit has been found to have an R residue, suggesting that the low calcium-permeable AMPARs appeared at early evolutionary stages of vertebrate central nervous systems. Uniquely, the loop 1 (L1) regions between hydrophobic domain 1 and hydrophobic domain 2 of the hagfish putative GRIA2 and all the teleost GRIA1 subunits were much longer than those of the remaining known ionotropic glutamate receptor subunits. The length and sequence of the L1 of teleost GRIA1 subunits were heterogeneous, suggesting that the amino acid residues in L1 were not highly selected.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2000

The protein tyrosine kinase family of the human genome.

As the sequencing of the human genome is completed by the Human Genome Project, the analysis of this rich source of information will illuminate many areas in medicine and biology. The protein tyrosine kinases are a large multigene family with particular relevance to many human diseases, including cancer. A search of the human genome for tyrosine kinase coding elements identified several novel genes and enabled the creation of a nonredundant catalog of tyrosine kinase genes. Ninety unique kinase genes can be identified in the human genome, along with five pseudogenes. Of the 90 tyrosine kinases, 58 are receptor type, distributed into 20 subfamilies. The 32 nonreceptor tyrosine kinases can be placed in 10 subfamilies. Additionally, mouse orthologs can be identified for nearly all the human tyrosine kinases. The completion of the human tyrosine kinase family tree provides a framework for further advances in biomedical science.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Genetic classification of "Rickettsia heilongjiangii" and "Rickettsia hulinii," two Chinese spotted fever group rickettsiae.

To determine the phylogenetic position of two new rickettsial strains isolated from ticks in China, 16S ribosomal DNA, gltA, and ompA (apart from the tandem repeat units) genes were amplified by PCR and sequenced. The phylogenetic relationships between these strains and other rickettsiae were inferred from the comparison of sequences of the three genes by the parsimony, neighbor-joining, and maximum-likelihood methods. The results demonstrated that the 054 strain, a rickettsia pathogenic in humans, and the HL-93 strain were related and clustered together with Rickettsia japonica. Significant statistical bootstrap values (100 and 92%) supported the nodes in this cluster. Based on previous genotypic and antigenic data and the phylogenetic analysis presented here, the 054 and HL-93 strains should be considered as new species, and we formally propose that they be named "Rickettsia heilongjiangii" and "Rickettsia hulinii," respectively.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Genomic organization of the Oreochromis mossambicus glutamate receptor subunit 2 beta gene (fGluR2 beta): presence of two different 5'-untranslated regions.

The AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-isoxazole-4-propionic acid)-preferring receptor is one of the pharmacologically defined ionotropic glutamate receptors, which mediate fast excitatory synaptic transmission in the central nervous system of vertebrates. Here, we report the mapping of the transcriptional start points and identification of the intron-exon boundaries of the teleost AMPA receptor subunit gene fGluR2 beta. fGluR2 beta and the mouse GluR2 share a similar genomic organization, having identical intron insertion sites and a large intron 2; however, fGluR2 beta has an extra exon encoding an alternate 5'-UTR. Results of RT-PCR and RNase protection analyses indicate that mature fish brain expresses two types of fGluR2 beta transcripts with different 5' ends. Transcriptions of these two fGluR2 beta transcripts started from two chromosomal regions separated by at least 10 kb. Only the transcript starting from the region more upstream on the chromosome was spliced. Moreover, transcript initiated from the downstream region was more abundant than that initiated from the upstream region.

5' Untranslated Regions↗

PubMed1999

Design of biomimetic habitats for tissue engineering with P-15, a synthetic peptide analogue of collagen.

In tissues, collagen forms the scaffold for cell attachment and migration, and it modulates cell differentiation and morphogenesis by mediating the flux of chemical and mechanical stimuli. We are constructing biomimetic environments by immobilizing a collagen-derived high-affinity cell-binding peptide P-15 in three-dimensional (3-D) templates. The cell-binding peptide can be expected to transduce mechanical forces. In their physiological environment, periodontal ligament fibroblasts (PDLF) are subject to significant mechanical forces. We have examined the behavior of human PDLF in culture on particulate bovine anorganic bone mineral (ABM) coated with P-15 (ABM-P-15). Greater numbers of cells associated with ABM-P-15 compared to ABM alone. Higher levels of incorporation of radiolabeled precursors in DNA and protein were consistent with the presence of larger numbers of cells on ABM-P-15 compared to ABM cultures. Scanning electron microscopic examination showed that cultures on ABM-P-15 generated highly oriented 3-D colonies of elongated cells and formed copious amounts of fibrous as well as membranous matrix reminiscent of ligamentous structures. PDLF cultured on ABM formed sparse monolayers with little order and a meager matrix. Alizarin Red stained the matrix of particle associated cells and inter-particle cellular bridges in P-15-associated cultures, indicating mineralization. 3-D colony formation and ordering of cells along with increased mineralization suggests that the coupling of cells to the ABM matrix through P-15 may provide a biomimetic environment permissive for cell differentiation and morphogenesis. Our studies suggest that ABM-P-15 templates may be effective as endosseous grafts, and, when seeded with PDLF, these matrices may serve as tissue engineered substitutes for autologous bone grafts.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Prediction of tacrolimus blood levels by using the neural network with genetic algorithm in liver transplantation patients.

The neural network (NN) is a technique using an artificial intelligent concept in predicting outcomes by using various input variables. Tacrolimus pharmacokinetics has wide inter- and intra-subject variability and it is often difficult to predict its blood concentrations by dose alone. The objectives of this study are to select the clinically significant variables and to predict the blood concentration of tacrolimus in liver transplant patients by NN combined with genetic algorithm (GA). A total of thirty-two adult liver transplant patients from the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics were selected and the patients' data were retrospectively collected. These patient were randomly assigned into two groups: either the training group (n = 10), or testing group (n = 22). A back propagation (BP) NN was developed which contained two hidden layers. A dynamic BP NN based on the time series concept was trained by using the current and previous data sets to predict the trough levels of tacrolimus. The mean of the NN prediction for tacrolimus blood levels was not significantly different from the observed value by a paired t-test comparison (12.05+/-2.67 ng/ml vs. 12.14+/-2.64 ng/ml, p = 0.80). The average difference of the testing sets between the observed and predicted levels was 1.74 ng/ml with a range from 0.08 to 5.26 ng/ml which is clinically acceptable range. Thirty-seven out of 44 data sets (84%) in the testing group were within 3.0 ng/ml of the observed values. This study demonstrated that tacrolimus blood concentrations are precisely predictable in liver transplant patients using patients variables by NN.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Production of matrix-degrading enzymes and inhibition of osteoclast-like cell differentiation by fibroblast-like cells from the periodontal ligament of human primary teeth.

Clinically, the most apparent difference between the primary and permanent dentitions is the physiologic loss of the primary tooth by root resorption. Root resorption is associated with loss of integrity of the periodontal ligament (PDL), followed by recruitment of resorptive cells that remove root structure. We therefore cultured primary dentition PDL fibroblasts (PPDL cells) to investigate in vitro their production of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of MMP (TIMPs), and the effects of soluble factors produced by these cells on osteoclast-like cell differentiation. These studies demonstrate that PPDL cells in vitro have a heterogeneous morphology, and they constitutively synthesize 92-kDa gelatinase, 72-kDa gelatinase, and 53/57-kDa procollagenase as well as TIMP-1, -2, and a third inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase, as determined by substrate gel zymography and immunoblot analysis. Compared with PDL cells from the permanent dentition, PPDL cells generally produced a greater amount of collagenase but similar amounts of the gelatinases and inhibitors. PPDL cells were treated with pro-inflammatory cytokines to determine their effect on the expression of matrix-degrading enzymes and inhibitors. Interleukin-1alpha and tumor necrosis factor-alpha enhanced the constitutive expression of proteinases but not that of inhibitors in PPDL cells. Conditioned media from PPDL cell lines inhibited the differentiation of osteoclast-like cells in mouse bone marrow cultures. These findings indicate that PPDL cells may modulate the cascade of root resorption both by their regulated production of proteinases and inhibitors and by synthesis of unknown soluble factor(s) that may regulate osteoclast development.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Sudden hearing loss associated with tacrolimus in a kidney-pancreas allograft recipient.

A 38-year-old woman with type 1 diabetes underwent kidney-pancreas transplantation. Her postoperative course was complicated due to recurrent acute graft rejections and pancreatitis. After initial immunosuppression with microemulsion cyclosporine, mycophenolate mofetil, and prednisone with muromonab-CD3 induction, cyclosporine was switched to tacrolimus on day 44. The initial dosage was 5 mg twice/day, but it was gradually increased to 10 mg twice/day, aiming at 15-20 ng/ml. On day 17 of tacrolimus therapy the woman developed sudden hearing loss with tinnitus. The serum tacrolimus level was 28.3 ng/ml (therapeutic range 10-20 ng/ml) on day 20 of tacrolimus therapy, and peaked at 34.9 ng/ml on day 28. Two audiograms performed on days 28 and 29 confirmed bilateral hearing loss of 80% for speech perception, characterized as mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss with speech reception threshold of 35 dB (normal < 20 dB) in both ears. The tacrolimus dosage was gradually reduced to 6 mg twice/day by day 36, with drug level 9.7 ng/ml, after which her hearing gradually recovered.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

[TGF-beta 1 in the experimentally induced inflammatory periodontal tissues in miniature swines].

TGF-beta 1 is a multifunctional molecule which has unique and potent effects on many target cells and tissues. TGF-beta 1 may promote inflammatory reaction by certain intercellular interaction. TGF-beta 1 at extremely low concentrations shows strong chemotatic activity for mononuclear phagocytes and stimulates bone resorption by enhancing production of PGE2. On the other hand, TGF-beta 1 plays a very important role in the regulation of extracellular matrix turnover presumably by modulating the action of other growth factors on matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) expression. TGF-beta 1 was identified intra- and extracellularly in the inflamed gingival tissues and the distribution was associated with areas of inflammation. Sixteen miniature swines were used in this experimental gingivitis/periodontitis study. The ligatures were placed in situ for periods of 3, 5, 8 and 13 weeks and peroral innoculations of Porphyromonas gingivalis/Actinomyces viscosus into the ligatures were carried out only in the experimental group. ELISA was used to measure the levels of TGF-beta 1 in gingival tissues from the experimental and control groups. Recording of the clinical periodontal parameters was performed and the proportion of black-pigmented Bacteroides in the ligature (plaques) removed immediately prior to the biopsies was recorded. The results revealed that the concentration of TGF-beta 1 of the experimental group was higher and significantly different in statistics on the period of third week than that of the control group. The concentration of TGF-beta 1 was significantly different between the third week and the thirteenth week in the experimental group, and was negatively related to the time-length of ligatures. Furthermore, the concentration of TGF-beta 1 was negatively related to the changes of the calculus index and gingival index. These data indicated that the concentration of TGF-beta 1 of gingival tissue exhibited dynamic changes associated with the progression of experimental periodontal inflammation. The levels of TGF-beta 1 in gingival tissue may be valuable in detecting the inflammatory reaction of periodontal tissues.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Biphasic activation of renal afferent by intrarenal artery injection of bradykinin in anesthetized rabbits.

The effect of intrarenal artery injection of bradykinin (BK, 5.0 micrograms/kg) on multi- and single-unit recordings of afferent renal nerve activity (ARNA) was examined in anesthetized 48 rabbits. The results obtained are as follows. (1) There were two phases of increase in ARNA following intrarenal BK. The early phase occurred immediately while the delayed phase made its appearance about 7 min later. The degree of increase in ARNA of the delayed phase induced by intrarenal BK was more prominent than that in the early phase. BP was actually unaltered following intrarenal BK. (2) By pretreatment with indomethacin (Indo, 5.0 mg/kg), the delayed phase of increase in ARNA induced by intrarenal BK was attenuated, while the early phase was not affected. (3) Pretreatment with L-NAME (30 mg/kg) led the delayed phase to be blocked completely while the early phase was partially decreased. From the above-mentioned observations, it is concluded that intrarenal BK induces a significant increase in ARNA in two phases. The early phase may be due to the direct action of BK and partially due to the NO action, while the delayed phase may be attributed to the action of released prostaglandin and NO as a result of intrarenal BK.

Afferent Pathways↗