No abstract

Background Electroacupuncture (EA) has been commonly used to treat stroke in China. However, the underlying mechanism remains largely unknown. The present study investigated the neuroprotective effects of EA in middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rats and elucidated the possible anti-inflammatory mechanisms. Material/Methods In this study, modified neurological severity scoring (mNSS) was used to assess neurological deficits, and TTC staining and brain water content were measured to evaluate the degree of brain damage. HE staining, Nissl staining, and TUNEL staining were employed to evaluate apoptotic neuronal death. Molecular biological methods were used to measure the levels of miR-233, NLRP3, caspase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 in the peri-infarct cortex. Results Our results showed that EA treatment significantly decreased the neurological deficit score and infarct volume of MCAO rats. The level of miR-223 was increased, while the levels of NLRP3, caspase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 were decreased in the peri-infarct cortex of EA-treated MCAO rats. However, the neuroprotective effect of EA was partially blocked by antagomir-223. Conclusions These data suggest that EA treatment can alleviate neuroinflammation by inhibiting the miR-223/NLRP3 pathway, thus playing a neuroprotective role in MCAO in rats.

Cyclamen persicum Mill. is a widely grown ornamental species that is clonally propagated by somatic embryogenesis. To better understand the biology of somatic embryo development in C. persicum, detailed proteomic (two-dimensional gel electrophoresis) and mass spectrometric analyses of somatic embryos at globular, torpedo, and germinating stages of development, along with nonembryogenic callus and zygotic embryos, were conducted. Of~460 proteins resolved in two-dimensional gels, 35 proteins were differentially expressed and could be reproducibly displayed across an isoelectric focusing range of 5 to 8. Among those proteins, five were constitutively expressed, 13 were upregulated, nine were downregulated, and eight were deemed as novel proteins during the torpedo stage. A total of 35 protein spots were analyzed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS), and only four proteins were identified and these were available in public protein databases. The remaining protein spots were subsequently analyzed by MALDI-TOF-TOF-MS, and six proteins were then identified. These findings suggested that specific proteins are involved in the regulation of somatic embryogenesis.