Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are a family of pattern recognition receptors involved in cardiovascular diseases. Notably, numerous studies have demonstrated that TLR4 activates the expression of several of pro-inflammatory cytokine genes that play pivotal roles in myocardial inflammation, particularly myocarditis, myocardial infarction, ischemia-reperfusion injury, and heart failure. In addition, TLR4 is an emerging target for anti-inflammatory therapies. Given the significance of TLR4, it would be useful to summarize the current literature on the molecular mechanisms and roles of TLR4 in myocardial inflammation. Thus, in this review, we first introduce the basic knowledge of the TLR4 gene and describe the activation and signaling pathways of TLR4 in myocardial inflammation. Moreover, we highlight the recent progress of research on the involvement of TLR4 in myocardial inflammation. The information reviewed here may be useful to further experimental research and to increase the potential of TLR4 as a therapeutic target.

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A new ion chromatographic method that is applicable to the direct determination of UV-absorbing inorganic anions in saline matrixes is described. An octadecylsilica column modified with a zwitterionic surfactant (3-(N,N-dimethylmyristylammonio)propanesulfonate) is used as the stationary phase, and an electrolytic solution is used as the eluent. Under these conditions, the matrix species (such as chloride and sulfate) are only retained weakly and show little or no interference. It is proposed that a binary electrical double layer (EDL) is established by retention of the eluent cations on the negatively charged (sulfonate) functional groups of the zwitterionic surfactant (forming a cation-EDL) and by retention of eluent anions on the positively charged (quaternary ammonium) functional groups of the zwitterionic surfactant (forming an anion-EDL). Sample anions are able to distribute into the cation-EDL and to form ion pairs with the EDL cations, while at the same time experiencing repulsion from the anion-EDL. Anions are therefore eluted in order of increased propensity to form ion pairs. The method has been applied to the determination of bromide, nitrate, and iodide in artificial seawater, giving detection limits of 0.75 ppb for bromide, 0.52 ppb for nitrate, and 0.8 ppb for iodide using UV absorbance detection at 210 nm and relative standard deviations of <1.2%. Real seawater samples have also been analyzed successfully.In a series of previous studies 1-7 employing stationary phases coated with zwitterionic surfactants (i.e., those containing both positively and negatively charged functional groups but carrying no formal net charge), it has been demonstrated that inorganic anions can be separated using pure water as eluent, with unique separation selectivity. This method has been termed electrostatic ion chromatography (EIC), and the separation has been attributed to a simultaneous electrostatic attraction and repulsion mechanism occurring at both the positive and the negative charges on the stationary phase. A drawback of EIC is that when the sample contains multiple anions and cations, each analyte anion may be eluted as more than one peak, with each peak being a specific combination of the anion with one of the cations of the sample. Recently, we showed 8 that addition of a small quantity of a suitable electrolyte to the eluent causes analyte anions to be eluted only as a single peak, irrespective of the number and type of cations in the sample. In the present study, we have investigated the separation mechanism in more detail and have applied the method to the determination of nitrate, bromide, and iodide in seawater.The determination of nitrate, bromide, and iodide in seawater is of importance to oceanographic research. 9-11 Ion-exchange chromatography (IEC) is generally inapplicable to this analysis for several reasons. First, the large amount of matrix ions (chloride, sulfate) saturate the active sites of the stationary phase and thereby impede the separation of the target analytes. Second, the high ionic...

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Puerarin (4¢-7-dihydroxy-8-b-D-glucosylisoflavone), the most abundant isoflavone-C-glucoside extracted from the root of the plant Pueraria lobata, has demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity in cellular models of inflammation. In this report, we examined the ability of puerarin to modulate C-reactive protein (CRP) expression and key molecules in the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-jB) pathway to determine its molecular target. The protein and mRNA levels of CRP were determined in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with unstable angina pectoris. Also, we detected the I-jBa phosphorylation and the p65NF-jB expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells under our experimental condition. The results indicated that puerarin inhibited the expression of the protein and mRNA levels of CRP in LPS-induced peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Subsequently, we determined that the inhibition of CRP expression was because of a dose-dependent inhibition of phosphorylation and degradation of inhibitor kappaB(I-jB), which resulted in a reduction of p65NF-jB nuclear translocation. We conclude that puerarin acts as an anti-inflammatory agent by blocking NF-jB signalling, and may possibly be developed as a useful agent for the chemoprevention of atherosclerosis.

Synthetic poly(vinyl alcohol)–chitosan as a new type of highly efficient hemostatic sponge with blood-triggered swelling and high biocompatibility.