Antiaging Effect of Pine Pollen in Human Diploid Fibroblasts and in a Mouse Model Induced by D-Galactose

The present paper was designed to investigate the effect of pine pollen against aging in human diploid fibroblast 2BS cells and in an accelerated aging model, which was established by subcutaneous injections with D-galactose daily for 8 weeks in C57BL/6J mice. Pine pollen (1 mg/mL and 2 mg/mL) is proved to delay the replicative senescence of 2BS cells as evidenced by enhanced cell proliferation, decreased SA-β-Gal activity, and reversed expression of senescence-associated molecular markers, such as p53, p21Waf1, p16INK4a, PTEN, and p27Kip1 in late PD cells. Besides, pine pollen reversed D-galactose-induced aging effects in neural activity and inflammatory cytokine levels, as indicated by improved memory latency time and reduced error rate in step-down test and decreased concentrations of IL-6 and TNF-α in model mice. Similar to the role of AGEs (advanced glycation endproducts) formation inhibitor aminoguanidine (AG), pine pollen inhibited D-galactose-induced increment of AGEs levels thus reversed the aging phenotypes in model mice. Furthermore, the declined antioxidant activity was obviously reversed upon pine pollen treatment, which may account for its inhibitory effect on nonenzymatic glycation (NEG) in vivo. Our finding presents pine pollen as an attractive agent with potential to retard aging and attenuate age-related diseases in humans

A preliminary study on the establishment of an animal model of conjunctivochalasis

AIM: To explore a feasible method on the establishment of an animal model of conjunctivochalasis (CCH). METHODS: Twelve clean-grade New Zealand white rabbits were divided into four groups (n=3/group): the control group (one received no interventions, and the others underwent subconjunctival injection of sterile water), the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) group (administered subconjunctival injection of MMP-3), the aging group (administered subcutaneous injection of D-galactose), the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) solution group (administered eye drops of TNF-α). Anterior segment photography, conjunctival tissue light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were performed after 12wk. RESULTS: Among all groups, the MMPs group had the following changes: the looser connection between the inferior bulbar conjunctiva and sclera; the more disordered collagen fibers (Trichrome staining) and the broken elastic fibers (Aldehyde-fuchsin staining); the focal necrosis of fibroblasts (TEM). CONCLUSION: Administration of MMPs may be a feasible method for the establishment of an animal model of CCH

Human Papillomaviruses and Papillomatosis Lesions of the Female Lower Genital Tract

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine whether human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are involved in the development of papillomatosis lesions of the lower female genital tract

Quality of life among undergraduate university students duringCOVID-19 movement control order in Sarawak

Background and Aims: The aim of this study was to examine the QoL and health satisfaction of undergraduate university students in Sarawak during MCO and its association with socio-demographic profiles. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, QoL and satisfaction of health of 503 undergraduate university students (63.4% females) from a public university was assessed online using the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL)-BREF instrument. Results: The overall QoL and satisfaction with health were 3.7 ± 0.87 and 3.9 ± 0.82, respectively. Male students showed significantly lower mean scores for the environmental domains than female students (63.37 ± 16.21 vs 68.10 ± 14.00, p<0.01). Students who lived inside the campus (vs outside campus) showed significantly lower mean score for the physical health (61.49±13.94 vs 67.23±13.93, p<0.01), environmental health (58.35±15.07 vs 70.49±13.21, p<0.01), overall QoL (3.39±0.90 vs 3.84±0.83, p<0.01) and satisfaction with health (3.71±0.90 vs 3.97±0.77, p<0.01). Students with parent’s income below RM5000 (vs parent’s income more than RM5000) had significantly lower mean score for the environmental domain (65.06±14.35 vs 68.20±15.74, p<0.05). Others ethnicity scored significantly lower than Bumiputera Sarawak and Malay while Bumiputera Sarawak scored significantly lower than Chinese in physical health domain (Malay = 65.73±13.40, Chinese = 63.24±15.35, Bumiputra Sarawak = 67.35±13.30, Others = 60.84±15.88, p<0.05). Malay (69.99 ± 15.20) scored the significantly higher than other ethnicities (Chinese = 63.58 ± 15.80; Bumiputera Malaysia = 65.23 ± 13.66; others = 63.98 ± 15.59) in environmental domain (p<0.01). When comparing between religions, the results also showed there were significant differences between different religion groups in overall quality of life (Islam=3.75±0.93, Christianity=3.77±0.79, Others=3.34±1.14, p<0.05), physical health (Islam=65.00±13.86, Buddhism=68.40±11.99, Christianity=64.77±14.94, Others=61.00±16.03, p<0.05) and environmental health (Islam=69.66±15.48, Buddhism=64.99±11.36, Christianity=64.87±15.61, Others=62.13±16.28, p<0.05). Conclusion: By understanding university students’ QoL in this global disaster, relevant authorities would provide a better rehabilitation and assistance to those affected ones

Association Between c-Myc and Colorectal Cancer Prognosis: A Meta-Analysis

Background: There is debate as to whether c-Myc predicts prognosis in colorectal cancer (CRC). In this study, we aimed to review the association between c-Myc and CRC prognosis.Methods: Pertinent studies were identified by searching electronic databases and carefully reviewing the reference lists of pertinent studies until March 2016. The summary hazard ratio (HR) and corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated to study the association between c-Myc and CRC prognosis.Results: Eight cohort studies (including seven studies about overall survival [OS] and one study about disease free survival [DFS]) were included. The pooled HR of OS was 1.13 (95% CI: 0.66–1.95). In subgroup analysis, no significant association between c-Myc and CRC prognosis was found in the studies either from Western countries (HR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.68–1.10) or Asian countries (HR: 1.89, 95% CI: 0.62–5.77). HRs were 0.86 (95% CI: 0.38–1.94) and 1.57 (95% CI: 0.73–3.39) for the studies using univariate analysis and multivariate analysis, respectively. HR from the studies that examined DNA level was significantly different (HR: 2.05, 95% CI: 1.22–3.46); while that about RNA level or protein level was not significantly different.Conclusion: c-Myc was not associated with CRC prognosis in this meta-analysis. However, the conclusion is preliminary and should be examined in future studies