Minyi Lu

Recent studies have shown that transforming microglia phenotype from pro-inflammation of M1 phenotype to anti-inflammation and tissue-repairing M2 phenotype may be an effective therapeutic strategy for preventing ischemic stroke brain injury. Isosteviol Sodium (STV-Na) has shown promise as a neuroprotective agent in cerebral ischemia model, although its effect on microglial polarization and chronic recovery after stroke is not clear. Here, we demonstrated that STV-Na treatment significantly reduced cerebral ischemic damage at both acute and chronic time points. STV-Na has a profound regulatory effect on microglia response after stroke. It can promote M2 polarization and inhibit microglia-mediated inflammation (M1) response following stroke in vivo and in vitro. Furthermore, we also found that Growth Arrest-Specific 5 (GAS5) altered OGD/R-induced microglial activation by increasing Notch1 expression via miR-146a-5p, the mRNA level of GAS5 and the protein level of Notch1 in vivo and in vitro, were discovered that both downgraded with STV-Na. Taken together, the present study demonstrated that STV-Na exerted neuroprotective effects by modulating microglia/macrophage polarization in ischemic stroke via the GAS5/miR-146a-5p sponge. These findings provide new evidence that targeting STV-Na could be a treatment for the prevention of stroke-related brain damage.

The authors examined prospectively the association between dietary fat intake and cataract extraction in adult women from the Nurses' Health Study. A total of 71,083 women were followed prospectively for up to 16 years between 1984 and 2000. Dietary fat was assessed by repeated food frequency questionnaires. Incident cases of cataract extraction were determined by a biennial questionnaire. The multivariate-adjusted relative risk for the highest compared with the lowest quintile of total fat intake was 1.10 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.99, 1.22; p(trend) = 0.01). Women in the highest quintile of long-chain omega-3 fatty acid had a 12% lower risk of cataract extraction compared with those in the lowest quintile (relative risk = 0.88, 95% CI: 0.79, 0.98; p(trend) = 0.02). Total fish intake was inversely associated with cataract (for intake of > or = 3/week vs. <1/month: relative risk = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.81, 0.98; p(trend) = 0.01). The authors' findings suggest that higher intake of long-chain omega-3 fatty acid (eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid) and consumption of fish may modestly reduce the risk of cataract.