[Serum metabolomics of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with lung-Qi deficiency syndrome].

The present study analyzed the potential biomarkers of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD) with lung-Qi deficiency syndrome by non-targeted metabolomics and explored the biological basis of this syndrome. Blood samples of 96 COPD patients with lung-Qi deficiency syndrome(COPD with lung-Qi deficiency syndrome group) and 106 healthy people(healthy control group) were collected, and the metabolic profiles of both groups were analyzed by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS). Multivariate statistical analysis and differential metabolite screening were carried out by using Progenesis QI and Simca-P. Metabolic pathways were constructed through the MetaboAnalyst. Seven potential biomarkers, such as L-cystathionine, protoporphyrinogen Ⅸ, and citalopram aldehyde, were identified. Compared with the results in the healthy control group, the content of citalopram aldehyde, N1-methyl-2-pyridone-5-carboxamide, and 11ß,17ß-dihydroxy-4-androsten-3-one was significantly up-regulated, while that of the other four compounds such as L-cystathionine, dihydrotestosterone, protoporphyrinogen Ⅸ, and D-urobilinogen was down-regulated. These potential biomarkers involved six metabolic pathways, including cysteine and methionine metabolism, porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism, drug metabolism of cytochrome P450, steroid hormone biosynthesis, glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism, and nicotinate and nicotinamide meta-bolism. This study is expected to provide a certain scientific basis for the research on traditional Chinese medicine syndrome of COPD with lung-Qi deficiency syndrome from the molecular biology level.

LncRNA TSLNC8 synergizes with EGFR inhibitor osimertinib to inhibit lung cancer tumorigenesis by blocking the EGFR-STAT3 pathway.

The roles of lncRNA TSLNC8 and its synergetic effects with osimertinib remain unknown in lung cancer. qRT-PCR or western blotting was performed to determine the expression levels of TSLNC8, EGFR and STAT3. Colony formation and MTT assays were used to evaluate cell proliferation. Transwell and wound healing assays were performed to assess migration and invasion abilities. Flow cytometry with Annexin V/PI staining was used to detect changes in cell apoptosis. Nude mice subcutaneous tumor model was constructed and used for validating the effects of TSLNC8 and osimertinib in vivo. Expression of TSLNC8 was down-regulated in clinical lung cancer tissues and cell lines. TSLNC8 overexpression or osimertinib administration led to promotion of apoptosis and inhibition of cell proliferation, migration and invasion, as well as deactivation of the EGFR-STAT3 pathway, whereas TSLNC8 knockdown had opposite effects. Moreover, the above effects of osimertinib were remarkably enhanced by TSLNC8 overexpression and inhibited by TSLNC8 knockdown, respectively. Meanwhile, the effects of TSLNC8 overexpression were reversed by STAT3 activation or EGFR overexpression. In the animal model, combination of TSLNC8 overexpression and osimertinib administration resulted in efficient suppression of tumor growth. In this study, we revealed a TSLNC8-EGFR-STAT3 signaling axis in lung cancer, and TSLNC8 overexpression significantly enhanced the anti-tumor effects of osimertinib via inhibiting EGFR-STAT3 signaling.

Functional and psychosocial effects of pulmonary Daoyin on patients with COPD in China: study protocol of a multicenter randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major public health problem worldwide. Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an established intervention for the management of patients with COPD. Exercise training is an important part of PR, and its effectiveness in patients with COPD is well established. However, alternative methods of PR training such as Daoyin have not been appropriately studied. Hence, alternative forms of exercise training that require less exercise equipment and no specific training place should be evaluated. This paper describes the study protocol of a clinical trial that aims to determine if pulmonary Daoyin training will improve the exercise capacity and psychosocial function of patients with COPD in China. METHODS AND DESIGN: A multicenter, randomized, controlled trial will be conducted. A total of 464 patients meeting the inclusion criteria will be enrolled into this study with 232 patients in each of the trial group and the control group. Based on patient education, patients in the trial group will receive pulmonary Daoyin and continue with their usual therapy for three months. In the control group, patients will continue with their usual therapy. The primary outcome measures are exercise capacity assessed by the six-minute walking distance test and lung function. Secondary outcomes include dyspnea and quality of life. Measurements will be taken at baseline (month 0) and after the study period (month 3). DISCUSSION: It is hypothesized that pulmonary Daoyin will have beneficial effects in improving exercise capacity and psychosocial function of patients with stable COPD, and will provide an alternative form of exercise training that is accessible for the large number of people with COPD. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial has been registered in ClinicalTrials.gov. The identifier is NCT01482000.

[An expert analysis of diagnostic criteria for traditional Chinese medicine syndromes of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at acute exacerbation stage].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the common syndromes, clinical symptoms and characteristics of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at acute exacerbation stage (AECOPD). METHODS: Delphi method was used to organize the AECOPD expert questionnaire. This questionnaire was distributed to 30 selected experts of respiratory diseases. The resulting data were statistically analyzed by Chi-square test and statistical description such as mean, coefficient of variation and ratio of full marks. Common syndrome: mean≥3.00, coefficient of variation <30% and ratio of full marks≥10% and common clinical symptoms: for major symptoms present, the index mean≥4.00 and coefficient of variation <30% and for minor symptom, index mean≥3.00 and coefficient of variation <30% were used as criteria. RESULTS: Twenty-nine valid expert questionnaires were received. The coefficient of positivity was 96.67%, of authority was 0.835 and of coordination equals 0.359 (χ(2)=463.15, P=0.001). The mean, coefficient of variation and ratio of full marks for AECOPD syndrome of wind and cold invasion of lung were 4.12, 21.50%, and 34.48%, respectively. Those for syndrome of exogenous cold-evil and fluid-retention were 4.39, 14.32%, 48.28%; those for syndrome of wind and heat invasion of lung were 3.54, 30.77%, 6.90%;those for syndrome of phlegm-heat obstruction of the lung were 4.85, 9.23%, 89.66%; those for syndrome of pulmonary stagnation of phlegm were 4.36, 15.57%, 48.28%; those for syndrome of external cold and internal heat were 4.59, 16.27%, 65.52%; those for syndrome of retention of phlegm and blood stasis in the lung were 4.54, 12.70%, 55.17%; those for syndrome of qi deficiency of the lung and spleen were 3.25, 27.30%, 13.79%; those for syndrome of qi deficiency of the lung and kidney were 3.32, 27.24%, 13.79%; those for syndrome of qi-yin deficiency of the lung and kidney were 3.29, 28.98%, 24.14%; those for syndrome of yin deficiency of the lung and kidney were 2.98, 32.71%, 3.45%; those for syndrome of blood stasis were 4.67, 10.29%, 62.07% and those for syndrome of fu shi were 3.07, 30.01%, 6.90%, all respectively. The blood stasis and fu shi were accompanying syndromes. CONCLUSION: Seven common syndromes of AECOPD are wind and cold invasion of lung, exogenous cold-evil and fluid-retention, phlegm-heat obstruction in the lung, pulmonary stagnation of phlegm qi deficiency of the lung and spleen, qi deficiency of the lung and kidney, as well as qi-yin deficiency of the lung and kidney. One additional syndrome that accompanies many of the afore-mentioned syndromes was blood stasis.

Shenmai injection for chronic pulmonary heart disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to evaluate the efficacy and safety of shenmai injection for chronic pulmonary heart disease (CPHD). METHODS: A systematic review was conducted of clinical trials that compared shenmai injection plus conventional medicine treatment versus conventional medicine treatment alone. Randomized controlled trials of clinical therapeutic studies on CPHD by shenmai injection were included. Searches were applied to the following electronic databases: the PubMed (1977-2008), the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, AMED, Chinese BioMedical Literature Database, and CBM. No blinding and language restriction was used. Data were extracted independently by 2 reviewers. All trials included were analyzed according to the criteria of the Cochrane Handbook. Review Manager 5.0 software was used for data analysis. RESULTS: Thirty-three (33) randomized clinical trials (2617 patients) with low methodological quality were included. Compared to conventional medicine treatment alone, shenmai plus conventional medicine treatment showed significant improvement in New York Heart Association classification of clinical status (odds ratio 0.24; 95% confidence interval 0.19-0.30), five studies had reported adverse events. No serious adverse effects were reported in any of the included trials. CONCLUSIONS: While there is some evidence that suggests potential effectiveness of shenmai plus conventional medical treatment for CPHD, the results of this study were limited by the methodological flaws, unknowns in concealment of allocation, number of dropouts, and blinding methods in the studies. Long-term and high-quality studies are needed to provide clear evidence for the future use of shenmai injection.