Tea and tea drinking: China's outstanding contributions to the mankind.

Background: Tea trees originated in southwest China 60 million or 70 million years ago. Written records show that Chinese ancestors had begun drinking tea over 3000 years ago. Nowadays, with the aging of populations worldwide and more people suffering from non-communicable diseases or poor health, tea beverages have become an inexpensive and fine complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapy.

Lipoxin A4 Activates Nrf2 Pathway and Ameliorates Cell Damage in Cultured Cortical Astrocytes Exposed to Oxygen-Glucose Deprivation/Reperfusion Insults.

Lipoxin A4 (LXA4), a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammation mediator, protects brains against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in vivo. However, few reports concern its function on astrocytes during cerebral I/R injury. The pathogenesis of cerebral I/R injury involves oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS).

Lipoxin A4 ameliorates cerebral ischaemia/reperfusion injury through upregulation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2.

Objectives: Lipoxin A4 (LXA4) is a potent anti-inflammatory mediator that exerts a neuroprotective effect following cerebral ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. However, little is known about the underlying mechanisms. Upregulation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is generally considered to reduce cerebral I/R injury.

Lipoxin A4 inhibits 5-lipoxygenase translocation and leukotrienes biosynthesis to exert a neuroprotective effect in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Lipoxin A(4) (LXA(4)), a biologically active eicosanoid with anti-inflammatory and pro-resolution properties, was recently found to have neuroprotective effects in brain ischemia. As 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) and leukotrienes are generally considered to aggravate cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, we investigated their effects on LXA(4)-mediated neuroprotection by studying middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO)/reperfusion in rats and oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD)/recovery in neonatal rat astrocyte primary cultures. LXA(4) effectively reduced infarct volumes and brain edema, and improved neurological scores in the MCAO/reperfusion experiments; this effect was partially blocked by butoxycarbonyl-Phe-Leu-Phe-Leu-Phe (Boc2), a specific antagonist of the LXA(4) receptor (ALXR).

[Effect of lipoxin A(4) on lipopolysaccharide-induced endothelial hyperpermeability in human umbilical vein endothelial cell].

Objective: To explore whether lipoxin A(4) (LXA(4))could prevent lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) monolayer hyperpermeability and its possible mechanism.

Methods: Human umbilical cords were obtained from women with normal pregnancy immediately after delivery from Tongji Hospital Affiliated of Tongji Medical College. Primary HUVEC were isolated from umbilical veins and subcultured, then, HUVEC were divided into four groups:control group; LPS group (10 mg/L of LPS); LPS + LXA(4) group(10 mg/L of LPS and 100 nmol/L of LXA(4)); LPS + LXA(4) + BOC-2 group [10 µmol/L of BOC-2, an effective antagonist of formyl peptide receptor like 1 (FPRL-1)].

[Effect of lipoxin A(4) on lipopolysaccharide-induced oxidant stress in human umbilical vein endothelial cells].

Objective: To explore the effects of lipoxin A(4) (LXA(4)) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced oxidative stress in human umbilical veins endothelial cells (HUVEC) and the possible mechanism.

Methods: Neonatal umbilical cords were obtained from normal term pregnant women with cesarean section within 4 hours and then were used to isolate HUVEC for subculture. HUVEC were divided into four groups:control group; LPS group (10 µg/ml of LPS); LPS + LXA(4) group (10 µg/ml of LPS and 100 nmol/L of LXA(4)); LXA(4) group (100 nmol/L of LXA(4)).

Effects of exogenous annexin-1 on lipopolysaccharide-induced proliferation and reactive oxygen species production partially through modulation of CRAC channels but independent of NF-kappaB pathway.

Objective: To investigate the effects of exogenous annexin-1 (ANXA1) on lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced proliferation, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and calcium signal transduction in RAW264.7 macrophages.

Methods: RAW264.

[Protective effects and its mechanism of lipoxins on human umbilical vein endothelial cells under hypoxia].

Objective: To investigate protective effects and mechanisms of lipoxinA(4) (LXA(4)) on human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) under hypoxia in vitro.

Methods: The HUVEC culture were divided into groups as followed: added M199 culture medium as normal control groups, added CoCl2 to mimic hypoxia in vitro as hypoxia group and added different concentrations of LXA(4) (1, 10, 100 nmol/L) were added to the induced hypoxial HUVEC as agents intervention group. Morphological changes of HUVEC were observed by using inverted phase contrast microscope.

Lipoxin A(4) inhibited hepatocyte growth factor-induced invasion of human hepatoma cells.

Aim: Inflammation is a critical component of tumor progression. Lipoxin A(4) (LXA(4)) has been approved for potent anti-inflammatory properties. Recently, it was reported that LXA(4) repressed the expression and activity of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), which is essential for invasion.

Formyl-peptide receptor like 1: a potent mediator of the Ca2+ release-activated Ca2+ current ICRAC.

In electrically non-excitable cells, one major source of Ca(2+) influx is through the store-operated (or Ca(2+) release-activated Ca(2+)) channel by which the process of emptying the intracellular Ca(2+) stores results in the activation of Ca(2+) channels in the plasma membrane. Using both whole-cell patch-clamp and Ca(2+) imaging technique, we describe the electrophysiology mechanism underlying formyl-peptide receptor like 1 (FPRL1) linked to intracellular Ca(2+) mobilization. The FPRL1 agonists induced Ca(2+) release from the endoplasmic reticulum and subsequently evoked I(CRAC)-like currents displaying fast inactivation in K562 erythroleukemia cells which expresses FPRL1, but had almost no effect in K562 cells treated with FPRL1 RNA-interference and HEK293 cells which showed no FPRL1 expression.

Differential response of human fetal smooth muscle cells from arterial duct to retinoid acid.

Aim: The aim of the present study was to understand the role of retinoic acid (RA) in the development of isolated patent ductus arteriosus and the features of arterial duct-derived vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC).

Methods: The VSMC were isolated, and the biological characteristics and the response to RA were investigated in the arterial duct, aorta, and pulmonary artery VSMC from 6 human embryonic samples. Western blotting, immunostaining, and cell-based ELISA were employed to analyze the proliferation regulation of VSMC.

Lipoxin A4 negatively regulates lipopolysaccharide-induced differentiation of RAW264.7 murine macrophages into dendritic-like cells.

Background: Lipoxins (LXs), endogenous anti-inflammatory and pro-resolving eicosanoids generated during various inflammatory conditions, have novel immunomodulatory properties. Because dendritic cells (DCs) play crucial roles in the initiation and maintenance of immune response, we determined whether LXs could modulate the maturation process of DCs and investigated the effects of lipoxin A(4) (LXA(4)) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced differentiation of RAW264.7 cells into dendritic-like cells.

Close functional coupling between Ca2+ release-activated Ca2+ channels and reactive oxygen species production in murine macrophages.

Aim: To investigate the role of Ca(2+) release-activated Ca(2+) (CRAC) channels in the ROS production in macrophages.

Methods: The intracellular [Ca(2+)](i) was analyzed by confocal laser microscopy. The production of ROS was assayed by flow cytometry.

Posttreatment with aspirin-triggered lipoxin A4 analog attenuates lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury in mice: the role of heme oxygenase-1.

Background: We hypothesized that posttreatment with 15-epi-16-parafluoro-phenoxy lipoxin A4 (ATL) could attenuate lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury in mice.

Methods: All the animals were randomly assigned to one of six groups (n = 6 per group). In the sham-vehicle group, mice were treated with 0.

Experimental study on the action of allitridin against human cytomegalovirus in vitro: Inhibitory effects on immediate-early genes.

Garlic (Allium sativum) extraction has been reported having anti-HCMV efficacy. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of allitridin (diallyl trisulfide, a compound from A. sativum extraction) on the replication of HCMV and the expression of viral immediate-early genes.

An experimental study on astrocytes promoting production of neural stem cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells.

Background: The production of neural stem cells (NSCs) derived from embryonic stem (ES) cells was usually very low according to previous studies, which was a major obstacle for meeting the needs of clinical application. This study aimed at investigating whether astrocytes could promote production of NSCs derived from ES cells in vitro.

Methods: Mouse ES cells line-D3 was used to differentiate into NSCs with astrocytes as inducing stromal cells by means of three-stage differentiation procedure.

[Effect of tetramethylpyrazine on lipopolysaccharides induced macrophage cyclo-oxidase-2 expression and apoptosis of cardiac myocytes].

Objective: To observe the effect of tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) on lipopolysaccharides (LPS) induced macrophage cyclo-oxidase-2 (COX-2) gene expression and activity in RAW264.7 mice, and to further investigate the effect and mechanism of TMP on LPS induced apoptosis of cardiac myocytes in suckling mice.

Methods: RT-PCR and Western Blot (WB) were used to investigate the macrophage COX-2 gene expression, ELISA was used to measure its activity, fluorescence microscopy was used to determine the apoptosis of murine neonatal cardiac myocyte, and fluorescence spectrophotometry was used to detect the concentration of intracellular calcium ion (Ca2+).

[Expression of cyclooxygenase-2 mRNA and identification of its spliceriant in human myometrium obtained from women in labor].

Objective: To investigate the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in human lower segments of myometrium obtained from women in labor and those not in labor and identify the splice variant of COX-2.

Methods: Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used for investigating the expression of COX-2. According to the sequence of rat COX-2 splice variant, the primers were designed and synthesized, then the splice variant of COX-2 in human myometrium from woman in labor was identified, cloned into vector and sequenced.