Publications by authors named "Zhikui Li"

Vaccines has long been the focus of antiviral immunotherapy research. Viral epitopes are thought to be useful biomarkers for immunotherapy (both antibody-based and cellular). In this study, we designed a novel vaccine molecule, the Hantaan virus (HTNV) glycoprotein (GP) tandem Th epitope molecule (named the Gnc molecule), in silico.

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Shikonin has been reported to exhibit a wide variety of medical functions. However, the strong non-selective cytotoxicity of shikonin can restrict its clinical application. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of shikonin at non-cytotoxic doses on the pro-inflammation functions of monocytes and macrophages.

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Increasing evidence indicates that the inflammatory tumor microenvironment can lead to cancer cell metastasis. Shikonin, which is extracted from the Chinese herb Zicao (the dried root of Lithospermum erythrorhizon), possesses various pharmacological effects, but its effect on tumor metastasis in the inflammatory microenvironment remains unknown. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the potential effect of shikonin on tumor metastasis in an inflammatory microenvironment as well as the underlying molecular mechanisms.

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Article Synopsis
  • Chronic bronchial asthma leads to persistent airway inflammation and structural changes, making it hard to treat with existing drugs.
  • Interleukin-13 (IL-13) and IL-25 are key players in this inflammation and remodeling process.
  • Research showed that targeting both IL-13 and IL-25 at the same time reduced inflammation and tissue changes more effectively than treating with either one alone, suggesting a new potential treatment approach for asthma patients who don't respond well to current therapies.
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Objectives: Several mutations of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene cause malfunction of the protein, resulting in steroid resistance. In diseases other than asthma, the GR variants I559N, D641V, and V729I have been linked to steroid resistance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the link of these GR variants in steroid-resistant (SR) asthma in the Chinese Han population.

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  • The study investigates the effects of recombinant bacille Calmette-Guerin (rBCG) that expresses Der p2 on asthma, particularly its influence on Th17 cell differentiation and airway inflammation.
  • Results showed that transferring dendritic cells infected with Der p2 rBCG led to reduced airway inflammation and mucin production, effectively inhibiting excessive Th17 responses compared to traditional BCG.
  • The research highlights the importance of dendritic cells in rBCG's immunoregulatory functions and provides insight into the cellular mechanisms behind its potential as an asthma treatment.
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Objective: Anesthesia has been shown to suppress immune function, which can negatively affect the treatment of patients with various tumors. Here, we assessed two different anesthesia methods, general versus combined regional/general, in treatment of benign ovarian tumor by laparoscopic therapy.

Methods: Out of 160 patients with benign ovarian tumors treated by laparoscopic therapy, 80 received general anesthesia combined with thoracic epidural anesthesia during surgery, and 80 received general anesthesia only.

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Copper-transporting P-type adenosine triphosphatase A (ATP7A) is associated with platinum drug resistance in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at post-transcriptional level. In this study, the aim is to explore which miRNAs might participate in the platinum resistance by targeting ATP7A in NSCLC.

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Emerging evidence suggests that diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW MRI) could be useful for tumor detection with N and M staging of lung cancer in place of fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG PET/CT). DW MRI at 3.0 T and FDG PET/CT were performed before therapy in 113 patients with pulmonary nodules.

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  • Notch signaling is shown to regulate the expression of MUC5AC, a key mucin in asthma-related mucus overproduction.
  • Various experiments revealed that activation of Notch can enhance MUC5AC promoter activity while Hes proteins can repress it.
  • This study suggests that targeting the Notch signaling pathway could provide new therapeutic options for managing mucus overproduction in asthma.
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Curcumin, a yellow pigment derived from Curcuma longa Linn, has been favored by the Eastern as dietary ingredients for centuries. During the past decade, extensive investigations have revealed curcumin sensitized various chemotherapeutic agents in human breast, colon, pancreas, gastric, liver, brain and hematological malignant disorders in vivo and in vitro. Several pathways and specific targets including NF-κB, STAT3, COX-2, Akt and multidrug resistant protein have been identified to facilitate curcumin as a chemosensitizer.

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Myopia is a significant public health problem and its prevalence is increasing over time and genetic factors in disease development are important. The prevalence and incidence of myopia within sampled population often varies with age, country, sex, race, ethnicity, occupation, environment, and other factors. Myopia growth is under a combination of genes and their products in time and space to complete the coordination role of the guidance.

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Congenital cataract is a crystallin severe blinding disease and genetic factors in disease development are important. Crystallin growth is under a combination of genes and their products in time and space to complete the coordination role of the guidance. Congenital cataract-related genes, included crystallin protein gene (CRYAA, CRYAB, CRYBA1/A3, CRYBA4, CRYBB1, CRYBB2, CRYBB3, CRYGC, CRYGD, CRYGS), gap junction channel protein gene (GJA1, GJA3, GJA8), membrane protein gene (GJA3, GJA8, MIP, LIM2), cytoskeletal protein gene (BF-SP2), transcription factor genes (HSF4, MAF, PITX3, PAX6), ferritin light chain gene (FTL), fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and so on.

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Objective: To explore the changes of the neurotransmitters in patients with chronic pulmonary heart disease (CPHD) and its clinical significance.

Methods: Seventy-two patients with CPHD (42 males, 30 females, mean age 55.6-/+8.

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Several monoclonal antibodies (McAbs) have been developed that show high sensitivity and specificity to gastric cancer and colorectal cancer. However, few of the antigens recognized by these antibodies have been identified. The authors now report the selection of anti-idiotype (anti-id) antibodies of MGb1 McAb against gastric cancer and MC5 McAb against colorectal cancer using phage-displayed single-chain variable fragment (ScFv) libraries.

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The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Na+/H+ exchanger-1 (NHE-1) antisense gene on drug-resistant human small cell lung cancer (SCLC) cell proliferation and apoptosis. A recombinant NHE-1 antisense gene was transfected into drug-resistant human SCLC H446/CDDP cells. Intracellular pH (pHi) was measured with fluorescence spectrophotometry.

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Amplification and over-expression of HER2/neu oncogene is found in diverse types of human cancers, and is closely related to tumor occurrence, metastasis, angiogenesis and chemotherapy resistance. Therapeutic agents targeting HER2/neu have been intensively addressed over the past decades. In non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs), the prevalence of HER2/neu activation, its role in prognosis, and its possible implications as a therapeutic target, are still to be elucidated.

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Objective: This study aimed to assess the efficacy, safety and tolerability of oral moxifloxacin in patients with respiratory tract infections (RTIs) treated by attending physicians in routine clinical practice in China.

Methods: This was an open-label, prospective, uncontrolled, post-marketing surveillance study that was undertaken between November 2002 and July 2003. Altogether, 855 patients with RTIs were treated with moxifloxacin.

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Aim: To study the feasibility of panning and screening phage-displaying recombinant single-chain variable fragment (ScFv) of anti-tumor monoclonal antibodies for fixed whole cells as the carriers of mAb-binding antigens.

Methods: The recombinant phage displaying libraries for anti-colorectal tumor mAb MC3Ab, MC5Ab and anti-gastric tumor mAb MGD1 was constructed. Panning and screening were carried out by means of modified fixation of colorectal and gastric tumor cells expressed the mAb-binding antigens.

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