The properties of generalized John domains in metric spaces

In this paper, we studied the properties of generalized John domains in metric space. We prove that a domain $D$ is a $\varphi$-John domain if, and only if, $D\backslash P$ is a $\varphi'$-John domain, where $P$ is a subset of $D$ containing finitely many points of $D$. Meanwhile, we also showed that the union of $\varphi$-John domains is a $\varphi''$-John domain in metric space

Anti-tumor effect of polysaccharides from rhizome of Curculigo orchioides Gaertn on cervical cancer

Purpose: To investigate the anti-tumor effects of polysaccharides from Curculigo orchioides (PDC) on cervical cancer and the possible mechanisms involved.Methods: A Box–Behnken design (BBD) was employed to optimize extraction conditions for PDC. The anti-tumor effect of PDC on cervical cancer was investigated in vivo in mice injected with Hela cells. The parameters measured were tumor volume and weight. In vitro anti-tumor effects of PDC were assessed by measuring expressions of caspase-3, caspase-9 and P53 proteins in Hela cells via ELISA assay. Thymus and spleen indices were calculated for assessment of PDC effect on immune function.Results: The optimum extraction conditions predicted by the response surface methodology (RSM) were: extraction time = 1.58 h, ratio-of-water-to-sample = 30.05 mL/g and extraction number = 1.95. PDC showed significant anti-tumor effect on cervical cancer in mice. It significantly increased thymus and spleen indices in mice; and significantly up-regulated expressions of caspase-3, caspase-9 and P53 proteins in HeLa cells.Conclusion: PDC has significant anti-tumor effect on cervical cancer in vivo and in vitro, most probably through mechanisms involving enhancement on immune function and induction of apoptosis.Keyword: Curculigo orchioides, Polysaccharides, Cervical cancer, HeLa cells, Apoptosi

The changes and its significance of Th17 and Treg cells and related cytokines in patients with tuberculosis pleurisy

BACKGROUND: Tuberculous pleurisy is a kind of tuberculosis, it is well known that Th1 lymphocytes play a key role in the treatment of tuberculosis infection. However, latest studies show that Th17 lymphocyte may also play an important role tuberculosis infection. There is close relationship between Treg and Thl7 cells, and changes in the number or the function of the two kinds of cells may lead to diseases. The current researches on Thl7 and Treg cells maily focus on autoimmune diseases, however, reports about their role in tuberculosis are limited. In this study, we investigate the function of th17 and Treg cells and the above cytokines in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis pleurisy; by determining the expression of Th17 and Treg cells in peripheral CD4 T cells and the related cytokines in patients with tuberculous compared with healthy people. RESULTS: Th17 cells in patients were higher than that in the Healthy control group, expression of Treg cells in patients were lower than that in the healthy group; IL-17, IL-23 levels in peripheral blood and hydrothorax from the patients were higher than that in the healthy group; IL-17, IL-23 and IL-6 levels in hydrothorax were higher than that in peripheral blood. There was no difference in IL-6 level in peripheral blood between the patients and healthy control; TGF- β level in peripheral blood from the healthy group was higher than that in peripheral blood and hydrothorax from the patients. And there were no differences in TGF- β level between peripheral blood and hydrothorax. Th17 cells were negatively correlated with Treg cells ,but were positive correlation with IL-17, IL-23, IL-6 levels in peripheral blood; TGF- β level was positive correlation with Treg cells in the peripheral blood, but no correlation with Th17 cells. CONCLUSION: Th17 and Treg cells may be involved in the immune pathological mechanism of tuberculous pleurisy and changes of related cytokines may be involved in the differentiation of Th17 and Treg cells and inflammatory response. Thus, Th17 and Treg cells and related cytokines may be important immunopathogenesis for tuberculous pleurisy

Molecular analysis of the diversity of vaginal microbiota associated with bacterial vaginosis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is an ecological disorder of the vaginal microbiota that affects millions of women annually, and is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes including pre-term birth and the acquisition of sexually transmitted infections. However, little is known about the overall structure and composition of vaginal microbial communities; most of the earlier studies focused on predominant vaginal bacteria in the process of BV. In the present study, the diversity and richness of vaginal microbiota in 50 BV positive and 50 healthy women from China were investigated using culture-independent PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and barcoded 454 pyrosequencing methods, and validated by quantitative PCR.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our data demonstrated that there was a profound shift in the absolute and relative abundances of bacterial species present in the vagina when comparing populations associated with healthy and diseased conditions. In spite of significant interpersonal variations, the diversity of vaginal microbiota in the two groups could be clearly divided into two clusters. A total of 246,359 high quality pyrosequencing reads was obtained for evaluating bacterial diversity and 24,298 unique sequences represented all phylotypes. The most predominant phyla of bacteria identified in the vagina belonged to <it>Firmicutes</it>, <it>Bacteroidetes</it>, <it>Actinobacteria </it>and <it>Fusobacteria</it>. The higher number of phylotypes in BV positive women over healthy is consistent with the results of previous studies and a large number of low-abundance taxa which were missed in previous studies were revealed. Although no single bacterium could be identified as a specific marker for healthy over diseased conditions, three phyla - <it>Bacteroidetes</it>, <it>Actinobacteria </it>and <it>Fusobacteria</it>, and eight genera including <it>Gardnerella</it>, <it>Atopobium</it>, <it>Megasphaera</it>, <it>Eggerthella</it>, <it>Aerococcus</it>, <it>Leptotrichia</it>/<it>Sneathia</it>, <it>Prevotella </it>and <it>Papillibacter </it>were strongly associated with BV (<it>p </it>< 0.05). These genera are potentially excellent markers and could be used as targets for clinical BV diagnosis by molecular approaches.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The data presented here have clearly profiled the overall structure of vaginal communities and clearly demonstrated that BV is associated with a dramatic increase in the taxonomic richness and diversity of vaginal microbiota. The study also provides the most comprehensive picture of the vaginal community structure and the bacterial ecosystem, and significantly contributes to the current understanding of the etiology of BV.</p

Sigma metrics for assessing the analytical quality of clinical chemistry assays: a comparison of two approaches

Introduction: Two approaches were compared for the calculation of coefficient of variation (CV) and bias, and their effect on sigma calculation, when different allowable total error (TEa) values were used to determine the optimal method for Six Sigma quality management in the clinical laboratory. Materials and methods: Sigma metrics for routine clinical chemistry tests using three systems (Beckman AU5800, Roche C8000, Siemens Dimension) were determined in June 2017 in the laboratory of Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Imprecision (CV%) and bias (bias%) were calculated for ten routine clinical chemistry tests using a proficiency testing (PT)- or an internal quality control (IQC)-based approach. Allowable total error from the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 and the Chinese Ministry of Health Clinical Laboratory Center Industry Standard (WS/ T403-2012) were used with the formula: Sigma = (TEa − bias) / CV to calculate the Sigma metrics (σCLIA, σWS/T) for each assay for comparative analysis. Results: For the PT-based approach, eight assays on the Beckman AU5800 system, seven assays on the Roche C8000 system and six assays on the Siemens Dimension system showed σCLIA > 3. For the IQC-based approach, ten, nine and seven assays, respectively, showed σCLIA > 3. Some differences in σ were therefore observed between the two calculation methods and the different TEa values. Conclusions: Both methods of calculating σ can be used for Six Sigma quality management. In practice, laboratories should evaluate Sigma multiple times when optimizing a quality control schedule

Periostin as a promising target of therapeutical intervention for colorectal cancer

The expression of periostin in the tissue of colorectal cancer patients and its correlation with clinical features were studied. Periostin expression was ~4 fold up-regulated in cancer tissues compared to adjacent non-cancerous tissues. Serum levels of periostin in patients were significantly elevated to 32.6 ± 10.8 ng/mL vs 20.4 ± 11.1 ng/mL in healthy volunteers. Higher preoperative serum periostin levels in patients were closely related to advanced-stage disease (stage III/IV), distant and lymph nodes metastasis. High level of periostin expression was detected in the SW480 human colon carcinoma cells, and could be down-regulated by small interfering RNAs (siRNA). The siRNA-mediated knockdown of periostin arrested the cell cycle at G0/G1 phase and induced apoptotic cell death in the SW480 cells. In conclusion, periostin is a promising prognostic and therapeutic target for colorectal cancer