Asthma is a chronic airway inflammatory disease characterized by eosinophilic infiltration and airway hyperresponsiveness. The over-activated Th2 and lung epithelium cells express many different cytokines, and chemokines mainly contribute to the severity of lung inflammation. Clara cell 10 kD protein (CC10) is highly expressed in airway epithelium cells and exhibits anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. Adeno-associated virus (AAV) 2/9 vector, composed of AAV2 rep and AAV9 cap genes, can efficiently and specifically target lung epithelium cells. Thus, AAV2/9 vector might carry therapeutic potential gene sequences for the treatment of asthma. This study tested whether AAV2/9 vector carrying CC10 could reduce inflammatory and asthmatic responses in OVA-induced asthmatic mouse model. The results showed that AAV2/9-CC10 vector virus significantly reduced airway hyperresponsiveness, CCL11, interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-13, and eosinophilia in the lungs of sensitized mice. CC10 level in OVA-sensitized mice was rescued with the administration of AAV2/9-CC10 vector virus. Lung tissue remodeling, including collagen deposition and goblet cell hyperplasia, was also alleviated. However, serum levels of OVA-specific IgG1 and IgE as well as Th2 cytokine levels in OVA-stimulated splenocyte culture supernatants were at the comparable levels to the sensitized control group. The results demonstrate that AAV2/9-CC10 vector virus relieved local inflammatory and asthmatic responses in lung. Therefore, we propose that AAV2/9-CC10 vector virus guaranteed sufficient CC10 expression and had an anti-inflammatory effect in asthmatic mice. It might be applied as a novel therapeutic approach for asthma.

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This paper presents the design and the implementation of a lighting system which is able to detect the approach of the visitors and then turn the lighting onto the normal intensity to let the exhibition be bright enough. All lightings are equipped with the energy-saving function which will turn itself to the dimming level automatically after the visitors' leaving. PIR (Passive Infrared) sensors are utilized in the system instead of a video camera for the purposes of both cost-down and privacy issue. The lightings are also designed to have network interface to let them be able to be connected together to form an intelligent lighting system which can not only collect the exhibition information but also help the administrators to secure the exposition.

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This study presents an intelligent voltammetric system consisting of a personal computer and a digital voltammeter with VXIbus architecture of system control board, voltammetric measurement board and electrode evaluation board. System is designed to provide superior, comprehensive, versatile and convenient storage, analysis and display of electrochemical and voltammetric waveforms. Voltammeter is capable of stand-alone operation or direct PC control through a Labview program and serial communication interface. Stand-alone offers several general voltammetric functions such as electrochemical treatment and evaluation of electrodes and experimental voltammetry. PC connection gives additional functions such as automatic scanning of oxidation potential, expanded storage and processing of experimental data, arbitrary voltammetric waveform parameters, etc. Standalone uses microcontroller and three-bus structure, with EEPROM storing waveform parameters, experimental data and machine code program downloaded from PC. Electrode evaluation board tests electrode quality by measuring electrode equivalent resistance and capacitance, requiring only one button to perform the entire procedure. Minimum potential unit is 1 mV, at which setting the voltage range is −2.05 to +2.05 V. At a minimum unit of 4.9 mV, the voltage range is −10 to +10V. Experimental results are presented using carbon fiber electrode to measure the dopamine concentration in PBS solution, showing minimum oxidation current can be measured to less than 10 pA, with a minimum detectable bulk concentration of less than 10 ppb. The combination of PC with stand-alone voltammeter offers high-speed, precision, automation, versatility and portability, while the VXIbus architecture allows easy expansion capability.