Background. Uremic pruritus (UP) is a common symptom in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis for end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Objective. To determine the clinical efficacy of auricular acupressure therapy on pruritus in hemodialysis patients and to explore possible underlying mechanisms. Methods. Patients receiving maintenance hemodialysis at a referral medical center were recruited and assigned to intervention (n = 32) and control (n = 30) groups. The intervention group underwent auricular acupressure treatment three times a week for six weeks. Auricular acupressure was not applied to patients in the control group. However, tape without Vaccaria seeds was applied to the same six auricular acupoints as the intervention group. Pruritus scores were assessed using VAS scores, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) were used to measure levels of other possible contributory biochemical factors. Results. There was a significant difference in mean VAS scores between the postintervention and control groups during follow-up (3.844 ± 1.687 versus 5.567 ± 2.285, F = 22.32, P < 0.0001). Compared to the control group, serum histamine levels in the postintervention group at the six-week follow-up had decreased significantly (F = 5.01, P = 0.0290). Conclusion. Our findings suggest that auricular acupressure may be a useful treatment in the multidisciplinary management of UP in ESRD patients.

Thus our results provide evidence that miR-497 might function as a metastasis suppressor in CRC. Targeting miR-497 may provide a strategy for blocking its metastasis.

Golgi phosphoprotein 2 (GOLPH2) is a very important biomarker in a variety of diseases. Its biological function is not clear, particularly in gastric cancer. To investigate the role of GOLPH2 in human gastric cancer, and determine its effect on the Th1 lymphocyte response, its expression and that of IL-12A were measured by real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry. The relationship between GOLPH2 and IL-12A was analysed statistically. The effect of GOLPH2 on the Th1 lymphocyte response was investigated with an in vitro co-culture system. The results showed that in human gastric cancer, the expression of GOLPH2 was significantly higher and the expression of IL-12A was lower than in normal gastric mucosal tissues, and the expression levels of GOLPH2 and IL-12A were negatively correlated. In addition, obvious down-regulation of the Th1 response was observed when lymphocytes were co-cultured with gastric cancer SGC7901 cells over-expressing GOLPH2. GOLPH2 down-regulated the expression of IL-12A, and inhibited the expression of TNF-α and IFN-γ. The results indicated that GOLPH2 down-regulates the Th1 response via suppression of IL-12A in human gastric cancer, and this might provide a target for the prevention and treatment.

The pathogenesis of gastric cancer is characterized by excessive proliferation, abnormal differentiation, and reduced apoptosis. Ursolic acid, extracted from traditional Chinese medicine bearberry, inhibits cell growth and induces apoptosis in gastric cancer. However, the mechanism of the proapoptotic effect of ursolic acid on gastric cancer cells needs further investigation. In our present study, we found in apoptotic gastric cancer BGC-823 cells induced by ursolic acid that a translocation of cofilin-1 protein from the cytoplasm to the mitochondria promoted the release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria to the cytoplasm, thereby activating the caspase cascade and finally inducing gastric cancer cell apoptosis. These results implied that the mitochondrial translocation of cofilin-1 might play a crucial role in the promotion of apoptosis and might be a key target for future treatment of human gastric cancer.

A large number of studies have shown that bufalin can have a significant antitumor effect in a variety of tumors. However, because of toxicity, insolubility in water, fast metabolism, short half-life, and other shortcomings, its application is limited in cancer therapy. In this study, we explored the anti-metastatic role of bufalin-loaded pluronic polyetherimide nanoparticles on HCT116 colon cancer-bearing mice. Nanoparticle size, shape, drug loading, encapsulation efficiency, and in vitro drug release were studied. Also, cellular uptake of nanoparticles, in vivo tumor targeting, and tumor metastasis were studied. The nanoparticles had a particle size of about 60 nm and an encapsulation efficiency of 75.71%, by weight. The in vitro release data showed that free bufalin was released faster than bufalin-loaded pluronic polyetherimide nanoparticles, and almost 80% of free bufalin was released after 32 hours. Nanoparticles had an even size distribution, were stable, and had a slow release and a tumor-targeting effect. Bufalin-loaded pluronic polyetherimide nanoparticles can significantly inhibit the growth and metastasis of colorectal cancer.