BackgroundPsoriasis is a chronic inflammatory immune disease with undefined pathogenesis. It is associated with T cells, and the IL-23/IL17 axis is believed to be crucial in the pathogenesis. The present treatments have side effects that influence the compliance of patients. Tea polyphenol is extracted from tea polyphenols, and its main active ingredient is Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), which has been shown to have antioxidant, anti-tumor, and anti-ultraviolet radiation effects. Here, we aim to report that EGCG can inhibit imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasis-like inflammation.MethodsWe used BALB/c mice, which were topically treated with IMQ for 6 consecutive days, as a psoriasis mouse model. Topical application of EGCG and treatment with EGCG were conducted in the experiments. Then observed the effects of the two methods on psoriasis-like mice dermatitis. Statistics are presented as the means ± standard error of mean (SEM) and compared using unpaired two-tailed Student’s t tests or one-way ANOVA.ResultsTopical application of EGCG alleviated psoriasiform dermatitis, improved the skin pathological structure by reduce the expression of epidermal PCNA, promoted the expression of caspase-14. Treatment with EGCG attenuated skin inflammation, accompanied by reduced infiltrations of T cells; reduced percentages of CD11c+ DC in the composition of immunocytes of spleens; reduced levels of interleukin (IL)-17A, IL-17F, IL-22, IL-23 and malondialdehyde (MDA) in plasma; increased percentages of CD4+ T cells in the composition of immunocytes of spleens; and increased bioactivities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in plasma.ConclusionsAll the results demonstrated that EGCG had anti-inflammatory, immune regulatory and antioxidant effects. It is a promising intervention in psoriasis in the future.

The photodynamic therapy (PDT) depends on the presence of molecular oxygen. Thus, the efficiency of PDT is limited in anoxic regions of tumor tissue and vascular shutdown. It is reported the use of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) may enhance the efficiency of PDT. However, there are rarely studies about utilizing HBO plus PDT for treatment with human squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Therefore, this study aimed to investigate and compare the therapeutic effect of combined therapy and PDT alone treatment. Multiple cellular and molecular biology techniques were used in the current study such as CCK-8, Western blotting, flow cytometry, monodansylcadaverine (MDC) staining and immunofluorescence assay. The results of combination index indicated that HBO combination with PDT synergistically inhibited A431 cells proliferation in vitro. In addition, we found that HBO significantly enhanced PDT-induced cell apoptosis via increasing the active caspase-3, active caspase-9, Apaf-1 and Bax levels and down-regulating Bcl-2. Meanwhile, the result of MDC and immunofluorescence assay confirmed that HBO increased PDT-induced autophagosome formation in A431 cells. Interestingly, autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine (3-MA) further increased combinationinduced cell apoptosis by increasing the levels of active-caspase 9 and Apaf-1. Our results showed that HBO combined with PDT markedly induced A431 cells apoptosis and autophagy. Nevertheless, autophagy play a pro-survival role against apoptosis. Thus, HBO combination with PDT may constitute a promising approach to treat human squamous cell carcinoma in the future.

Portal-systemic encephalopathy (PSE) is classified as type B hepatic encephalopathy. Portal-systemic shunting rather than liver dysfunction is the main cause of PSE in chronic hepatic schistosomiasis japonicum (HSJ) patients. Owing to lack of detectable evidence of intrinsic liver disease, chronic HSJ patients with PSE are frequently clinically undetected or misdiagnosed, especially chronic HSJ patients with covert PSE (subclinical encephalopathy). In this study, we investigated whether magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) could be a useful tool for diagnosing PSE in chronic HSJ patients. Magnetic resonance (MR) T1-weighted imaging, diffusion-weighted imaging, and MRS were performed in 41 chronic HSJ patients with suspected PSE and in 21 age-matched controls. The T1 signal intensity index (T1SI) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value were obtained in the Globus pallidus. Liver function was also investigated via serum ammonia and liver function tests. Higher T1SI and ADC values, increased lactate and glutamine levels, and decreased myo-inositol were found in the bilateral Globus pallidus in chronic HSJ patients with PSE. No significantly abnormal serum ammonia or liver function tests were observed in chronic HSJ patients with PSE. On the basis of these findings, we propose a diagnostic procedure for PSE in chronic HSJ patients. This study reveals that MRS can be useful for diagnosing PSE in chronic HSJ patients.

BackgroundTo explore potential metabolomics biomarker in predicting the efficiency of the chemo-immunotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).MethodsA total of 83 eligible patients were assigned to receive chemo-immunotherapy. Serum samples were prospectively collected before the treatment to perform metabolomics profiling analyses under the application of gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The key metabolites were identified using projection to latent structures discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). The key metabolites were used for predicting the chemo-immunotherapy efficiency in advanced NSCLC patients.ResultsSeven metabolites including pyruvate, threonine, alanine, urea, oxalate, elaidic acid and glutamate were identified as the key metabolites to the chemo-immunotherapy response. The receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) were 0.79 (95% CI: 0.69-0.90), 0.60 (95% CI: 0.48-0.73), 0.69 (95% CI: 0.57-0.80), 0.63 (95% CI: 0.51-0.75), 0.60 (95% CI: 0.48-0.72), 0.56 (95% CI: 0.43-0.67), and 0.67 (95% CI: 0.55-0.80) for the key metabolites, respectively. A binary logistic regression was used to construct a combined biomarker model to improve the discriminating efficiency. The AUC was 0.86 (95% CI: 0.77-0.94) for the combined biomarker model. Pathway analyses showed that urea cycle, glucose-alanine cycle, glycine and serine metabolism, alanine metabolism, and glutamate metabolism were the key metabolic pathway to the chemo-immunotherapy response in patients with advanced NSCLC.ConclusionMetabolomics analyses of key metabolites and pathways revealed that GC-MS could be used to predict the efficiency of chemo-immunotherapy. Pyruvate, threonine, alanine, urea, oxalate, elaidic acid and glutamate played a central role in the metabolic of PD patients with advanced NSCLC.

No abstract