Betulinic acidのラット静脈虚血進行抑制効果について

Background/Objectives: Betulinic acid is a component of a Chinese traditional herb that upregulates endothelial nitric oxide (NO) synthase (eNOS) and reduces NADPH expression. Increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) after cerebral arterial ischemia is a major cause of neuronal damage. Local venous ischemia can arise that slowly damages surrounding brain tissue during surgical procedures. The present study investigated the effects on infarct size when betulinic acid was administered after inducing two-vein occlusion (2VO) with a slowly developing lesion in rats. Methods: We elicited 2VO in 18 male Wistar rats by the photochemical thrombosis of two adjacent cortical veins combined with KCL-induced cortical spreading depression (CSD). The rats were then randomized into groups (n=9 each) to receive either dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) vehicle (control) or betulinic acid (30mg/kg/day; n=9) by daily gavage for seven days, and then infarct volume and 3-nitrotyrosine expression were assessed. Results: Daily administration of betulinic acid for seven days significantly reduced infarct volume from 3.81 ± 0.7 to 1.90 ± 0.3mm³ (p=0.017). Physiological data and regional cerebral blood flow did not significantly differ between the two groups during the study. We found 3-nitrotyrosine expression within the border zone of the infarct area and cleaved caspase-3 only within the lesion at the ipsilateral hemisphere in both groups. However, 3-nitrotyrosine/caspase-3 expression did not significantly differ at any time between the groups. Conclusions: Betulinic acid reduced neuronal damage in a rat model of cerebral venous ischemia.博士（医学）・乙第1460号・令和2年6月30

Plant C, N, P Stoichiometry Was Effected with Nitrogen Deposition on the Loess Plateau, China

The mass ratio of C:N:P (Carbon: Nitrogen: Phosphorus) in plant tissue can reflect the utilization efficiency of these basic elements (Piao et al. 2005). Additionally, the N:P ratio in plant tissue can be used to detect nutrient limita-tions as N, P or both are most often the driving force for ecosystem development and change (Koerselman and Meuleman 1996). N deposition has been increasing dramatically and it has great influence on the productivity, stability and nutrient supply conditions in the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem in recent years (Wang and Yu 2008). Many scholars have focused on the C:N:P stoichiometry of individual plant or the whole plant communities which were based on weighted average of important key species and their element contents, rather than by collecting bio-mass samples of all the plants in the community level. Moreover, less is known of the effects of N deposition on C:N:P stoichiometry characteristics of plant communities, especially the grasslands of the Loess Plateau. An experiment was set to study the effects of N deposition on C, N,P stoichiometry characteristics by simulating N deposition by way of N addition

Género y VIH-sida: análisis diferencial de una estrategia de prevención

Introducción. La epidemia del VIH-sida continúa siendo un problema de salud pública al que se exponen, desigualmente, hombres y mujeres. Sin embargo, las intervenciones comportamentales preventivas no siempre han tenido en cuenta dichas diferencias, lo que ha causado una disminución de su potencial eficacia. Por este motivo, el presente estudio examina si existe una respuesta diferencial entre hombres y mujeres en variables asociadas al riesgo de infección, tras participar en estrategias preventivas del VIH-sida. Metodología. 122 estudiantes universitarios (18-24 años; 45 % hombres y 55 % mujeres) participaron en un diseño de comparación entre grupos. Los jóvenes, llevaron a cabo una serie de intervenciones basadas en modelos socio-cognitivos y cumplimentaron, previa y posteriormente a la intervención (postest, 1.º seguimiento y 2.º seguimiento) el Cuestionario para la Prevención del Sida (Ballester, Gil, Guirado y Bravo, 2004). Resultados. En líneas generales, todas las variables mejoran en hombres y mujeres aunque las ventajas percibidas asociadas al preservativo y el temor al vih solo cambian, significativamente, en las mujeres. Por otro lado, la realización de sexo seguro mejora de manera más significativa en los hombres que, a largo plazo, obtienen diferencias significativas en el sexo oral, coito vaginal y en la pareja estable. Conclusión. Nuestros resultados apoyan la existencia de un impacto diferencial entre los jóvenes universitarios, en función del género. En concreto, las variables conductuales parecen ser más resistentes para las mujeres mientras, para los hombres, lo son las variables actitudinales. Así pues, cabrá analizar con mayor profundidad estrategias específicas para reforzar aquellas variables que siendo relevantes resultan, de manera diferencial, más difíciles de transformar.Introduction. The AIDS/HIV epidemic remains a major problem of Public Health in which men and women are exposed unequally. However, preventive behavioral interventions have rarely considered these differences; consequently, these have diminished their potential effectiveness. For this reason, this study examines the existence of a differential response between men and women for variables associated with risk infection, after taking part in hiv-aids preventive strategies. Method. 122 college students (18-24 years old; 45 % men and 55 % women), participated in a inter-group comparison design. Young participants took part in several interventions based on socio-cognitive models and full-filled, previous and afterwards (posttest, 1st follow-up, 2nd follow-up), the Cuestionario para la Prevención del Sida (Ballester, Gil, Guirado and Bravo, 2004). Results. In general, all the variables improved for men and women although only women got better results significantly in condom’s advantages and the fear of HIV infection. On the other hand, men have improved more in safe sex than women and, at long term, they have shown significant results in oral sex, vaginal sex and steady partner. Conclusion. To sum up, our results support the differential impact among college students depending on gender. In particular, behavioral variables seem to be more resistant for women, meanwhile attitudinal variables are more difficult to change for men. Therefore, analyzing in depth specific strategies to improve the differential resistant variables for men and women is required

Human rights violations in organ procurement practice in China

Over 90% of the organs transplanted in China before 2010 were procured from prisoners. Although Chinese officials announced in December 2014 that the country would completely cease using organs harvested from prisoners, no regulatory adjustments or changes in China’s organ donation laws followed. As a result, the use of prisoner organs remains legal in China if consent is obtained