Inhibitory effects of hydrogen on in vitro platelet activation and in vivo prevention of thrombosis formation.

Aims: Hydrogen (H) has antioxidant effects. The pharmacologic function of H in platelets is not yet clear. Therefore, in this study we sought to investigate the inhibitory effects of H on in vitro platelet activation and in vivo prevention of thrombus formation.

Plasma Phospholipid Transfer Protein Promotes Platelet Aggregation.

It remains unclear whether plasma phospholipid transfer protein (PLTP) is involved in hyper-coagulation or hypo-coagulation. This study investigated the direct effect of PLTP on platelet aggregation and the underlying mechanism. Washed platelets from humans or mice and mouse platelet-rich plasma and human recombinant PLTP were isolated.

Characteristic enhancement of blood pressure V-shaped waves in sinoaortic-denervated rats in a conscious and quiet state.

A hemodynamic feature of chronic sinoaortic-denervated (SAD) rats is the increase in blood pressure variability (BPV) without significant changes in the average level of blood pressure (BP). The current study was designed to investigate the changes in BP V-shaped waves (V waves) in SAD rats. Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were divided into 2 groups: SAD rats and sham-operated rats (n=13).

Salvia Miltiorrhiza Bge.f.alba Ameliorates the Progression of Monocrotaline-Induced Pulmonary Hypertension by Protecting Endothelial Injury in Rats.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a life-threatening disease that is characterized by elevated pulmonary blood pressure, abnormally thickened pulmonary arteries, and right ventricular hypertrophy. Monocrotaline (MCT) has been used to generate an experimental model of PH in rats, with PH initiated from injuries of lung vascular endothelium. Salvia Miltiorrhiza Bge.

Chitosan Oligosaccharides Attenuate Atherosclerosis and Decrease Non-HDL in ApoE-/- Mice.

Aim: Chitosan-oligosaccharides (COS) treatment showed lipid lowering effects in rats and reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) promotion in mice, suggested that COS might be a potential atheroprotective material. In this study, we investigated the effects of COS treatment on atherosclerosis (AS) in apolipoprotein E deficient mice (apoE-/-).

Methods: After feeding high fat (HF) diet for 12 weeks with the gastric gavages administration of COS or vehicle, respectively, the mice were sacrificed for the assessment of atherosclerosis, plaque stability, and the mechanism investigation.

Cardioprotective Effect of Hydrogen-rich Saline on Isoproterenol-induced Myocardial Infarction in Rats.

Background: Infusion with hydrogen gas-saturated saline has recently been reported to exert antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity that may protect against organ damage induced by oxidative stress. Therefore because oxidative stress plays a significant role in the pathophysiology of myocardial infarction (MI), the aim of our study was to investigate whether hydrogen-rich saline has cardioprotective effects against isoproterenol-induced MI in rats.

Methods: An acute MI model was induced in male Wistar rats by subcutaneous injection of isoproterenol.

Endoplasmic reticulum stress promotes macrophage-derived foam cell formation by up-regulating cluster of differentiation 36 (CD36) expression.

Oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) up-regulates CD36, a scavenger receptor responsible for macrophage uptake of ox-LDL without limitation. However, the precise underlying mechanism is not completely understood. Our previous study has demonstrated that ox-LDL induces endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in macrophages.

Chitosan oligosaccharide decreases very-low-density lipoprotein triglyceride and increases high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in high-fat-diet-fed rats.

It is well known that chitosan has beneficial lipid-regulating effects, but it remains unknown whether chitosan oligosaccharide (COS), the chitosan degradation product, has the same lipid benefits. High-fat-diet-fed Wistar rats were administrated with COS by gastric gavage for three weeks. The effects of COS on lipids, lipoprotein components and lipid metabolism related protein activities were investigated.

Protective effects of hydrogen-rich saline on monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension in a rat model.

Background: Hydrogen-rich saline has been reported to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and effectively protect against organ damage. Oxidative stress and inflammation contribute to the pathogenesis and/or development of pulmonary hypertension. In this study, we investigated the effects of hydrogen-rich saline on the prevention of pulmonary hypertension induced by monocrotaline in a rat model.

The characteristics of endothelial progenitor cells derived from mononuclear cells of rat bone marrow in different culture conditions.

Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) derived from bone marrow are known to be heterogeneous. In this study, we tried to find favorable conditions that induce the differentiation of mononuclear cells (MNCs) from bone marrow into EPCs. The differentiation capacity of MNCs from rat bone marrow was investigated in different conditions, such as different media, different induction times and different culture surfaces.

Elevated plasma tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) and soluble thrombomodulin in patients suffering from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) as a possible index for prognosis and treatment strategy.

Objective: To detect the presence of endothelial injury in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) via enhanced levels of tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) and soluble thrombomodulin (sTM).

Methods: Case patients were from Xuanwu Hospital (Capital University of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China), and all of them met clinical criteria for SARS. Healthy controls were some of the hospital employees.