Plasma membrane vesicles of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells ameliorate acetaminophen-induced damage in HepG2 cells: a novel stem cell therapy.

Background: Acetaminophen (APAP) overdose is the common cause of acute liver failure (ALF) due to the oxidative damage of multiple cellular components. This study aimed to investigate whether plasma membrane vesicles (PMVs) from human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) could be exploited as a novel stem cell therapy for APAP-induced liver injury.

Methods: PMVs from hUCMSCs were prepared with an improved procedure including a chemical enucleation step followed by a mechanical extrusion.

Application of the yeast-surface-display system for orally administered salmon calcitonin and safety assessment.

High manufacturing costs and oral delivery are the constraints in clinical application of calcitonin. We selected surface-displayed Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a low-cost and safe carrier for oral delivery of salmon calcitonin (sCT). The sCT DNA fragment, optimized according to the codon preference of S.

[Application of bioinformatics analysis of signal peptide in the identification of Neurospora crassa phyA gene].

Objective: To identify the function of the gene encoding Neurospora crassa EAA33149.1 protein which has 46.85% similarity with Aspergillus niger phA gene.

FT-IR methodology for quality control of arabinogalactan protein (AGP) extracted from green tea (Camellia sinensis ).

A rapid methodology of quality control was developed for arabinogalactan proteins (AGP) extracted and purified from green tea. Using the vectorial angle method and IR spectrum analysis, the 1200-800 cm(-1) region in second-derivative IR spectra was determined as the key fingerprinting region of green tea AGP, with the 1090-900 cm(-1) region reflecting their conservative and common characteristics. In fact, the key monosaccharides, galactose (Gal) and arabinose (Ara), were shown to have intense peaks at about 1075 and 1045 cm(-1), respectively, and uronic acids at about 1018 cm(-1) in second-derivative IR spectra.

Effects of hepatitis B virus S protein on human sperm function.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) has been determined to exist in semen and male germ cells from patients with chronic HBV infection, but no data are yet available on the impact of HBV S protein (HBs), the main component of HBV envelop protein, on the human reproductive system. The purpose of this article was to investigate the effect of HBs on human sperm function.

Methods: Sperm motility analyses, sperm penetration assays, mitochondrial membrane potential assays, immunolocalizations with confocal microscopy and flow cytometry analyses were performed.