Steroidal Saponins from Water Eggplant (Fruits of Solanum torvum) Exhibit Anti-Epileptic Activity against Pentylenetetrazole-Induced Seizure Model in Zebrafish.

The fruits of Solanum torvum Swartz, a wild relative of eggplant, are consumed as a wild vegetable in tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and South America. In traditional Chinese medicine, it is believed to have anti-inflammatory and sedative effects. In the Philippines, water decoction is used to treat hyperactivity disorder. Twenty-two steroidal saponins were isolated and purified from the fruits grown in Yunnan, China, including six new compounds: torvosides U-Z (1-6). During drying and cooking, the saponins may undergo transformation, resulting in small amounts of sapogenins. These transformations can include dehydration of hydroxyl groups at position C22, formation of double bonds at position 20, 22 or 22, 23, and even formation of peroxide products. Saponin compounds torvoside X (4), torvoside Y (5), torvoside A (7), and (25S)-3-oxo-5α-spirostan-6α-yl-O-ß-d-xylopyranoside (20), which are glycosylated at C-6, showed certain anti-epileptic activity in a pentylenetetrazole-induced zebrafish seizure model. No antiproliferative activity was detected when tested on the cancer cell line HepG2, and no hepatotoxic effect was noted on normal liver cell line LO2.

Screening of pesticides in serum, urine and cerebrospinal fluid collected from an urban population in China.

Human exposure to pesticides is a topic of public health concern for decades. Pesticide exposures have been assessed through the analysis of urine or blood matrices, but little is known on the accumulation of these chemicals in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). CSF plays an important role in maintaining physical and chemical balance of the brain and central nervous system and any perturbation can have adverse effects on health. In this study, we investigated the occurrence of 222 pesticides in CSF from 91 individuals using gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). Measured pesticide concentrations in CSF were compared with those in 100 serum and urine specimens from individuals living in the same urban location. Twenty pesticides were found in CSF, serum and urine, at levels above the limit of detection. Three most frequently detected pesticides in CSF were biphenyl (100%), diphenylamine (75%), and hexachlorobenzene (63%). Median concentrations of biphenyl in CSF, serum and urine were 1.11, 10.6, and 1.10 ng/mL, respectively. Six triazole fungicides were found only in CSF, but not in other matrices. To our knowledge, this is the first study to report pesticide concentrations in CSF in a general urban population.

[Analysis of outcome indexes in randomized controlled trials of traditional Chinese medicine for rheumatic heart disease].

The present study analyzed the efficacy evaluation indexes of the randomized controlled trials(RCTs) of Chinese medi-cine in the treatment of rheumatic heart disease to lay the foundation for the construction of the corresponding core outcome index set. Clinical RCTs with a definite diagnosis of rheumatic heart disease were retrieved from CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, Sino Med, Pub Med, EMbase, and Cochrane Library from January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2020. Thirty-five RCTs were included, involving 3 314 patients and 41 efficacy evaluation indexes, which covered seven domains [traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) symptoms/syndromes, symp-toms/signs, physical and chemical examination, quality of life, long-term prognosis, economic evaluation, and safety events]. Physi-cal and chemical examination(56. 91%) and symptoms/signs(29. 27%) were the more frequently applied. The number of indexes used in a single trial ranged from 1 to 15, with an average of 4. The measurement time points of the top five indexes in the frequency of use were as follows: total response rate was reported at five measurement time points, ranging from 14 days to 6 months; left ventri-cular ejection fraction was measured at eight time points ranging from 5 days to 6 months; left ventricular end systolic diameter was measured at six time points, ranging from 5 days to 6 months; interleukin-2(IL-2) and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) were repor-ted 28 days after treatment. At present, there are many problems in the efficacy outcome indexes of RCTs in the treatment of rheumatic heart disease with TCM, such as large difference in quantity, unclear primary and secondary indexes, unreasonable selection of " surro-gate indexes", insufficient attention to long-term prognostic indexes and safety event indexes, non-standard application of composite in-dexes, long measurement period, and lack of TCM characteristics. It is urgent to establish the core outcome set for TCM treatment of rheumatic heart disease.

Knockdown of DEAD-box 51 inhibits tumor growth of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma via the PI3K/AKT pathway.

BACKGROUND: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most prevalent malignancies that seriously threaten people's health worldwide. DEAD-box helicase 51 (DDX51) is a member of the DEAD-box (DDX) RNA helicase family, and drives or inhibits tumor progression in multiple cancer types. AIM: To determine whether DDX51 affects the biological behavior of ESCC. METHODS: The expression of DDX51 in ESCC tumor tissues and adjacent normal tissues was detected by Immunohistochemistry (IHC) analyses and quantitative PCR (qPCR). We knocked down DDX51 in ESCC cell lines by using a small interfering RNA (siRNA) transfection. The proliferation, apoptosis, and mobility of DDX51 siRNA-transfected cells were detected. The effect of DDX51 on the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT pathway was investigated by western blot analysis. A mouse xenograft model was established to investigate the effects of DDX51 knockdown on ESCC tumor growth. RESULTS: DDX51 exhibited high expression in ESCC tissues compared with normal tissues and represented a poor prognosis in patients with ESCC. Knockdown of DDX51 induced inhibition of ESCC cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. Moreover, DDX51 siRNA-expressing cells also exhibited lower migration and invasion rates. Investigations into the underlying mechanisms suggested that DDX51 knockdown induced inactivation of the PI3K/AKT pathway, including decreased phosphorylation levels of phosphate and tensin homolog, PI3K, AKT, and mammalian target of rapamycin. Rescue experiments demonstrated that the AKT activator insulin-like growth factor 1 could reverse the inhibitory effects of DDX51 on ESCC malignant development. Finally, we injected DDX51 siRNA-transfected TE-1 cells into an animal model, which resulted in slower tumor growth. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests for the first time that DDX51 promotes cancer cell proliferation by regulating the PI3K/AKT pathway; thus, DDX51 might be a therapeutic target for ESCC.

Dietary glycemic index, glycemic load, and lung cancer risk: A case-control study in Los Angeles County.

BACKGROUND: Although there is some evidence of positive associations between both the glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) with cancer risk, the relationships with lung cancer risk remain largely unexplored. We evaluated the associations between GI and GL with lung cancer. METHODS: The analyses were performed using data from a population-based case-control study recruited between 1999 and 2004 in Los Angeles County. Dietary factors were collected from 593 incident lung cancer cases and 1026 controls using a modified food frequency questionnaire. GI and GL were estimated using a food composition table. Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using unconditional logistic regression adjusting for potential confounders. RESULTS: Dietary GI was positively associated with lung cancer (OR for upper vs. lower tertile = 1.62; 95 % CI: 1.17, 2.25). For histologic subtypes, positive associations were observed between GI and adenocarcinoma (OR for upper vs. lower tertile = 1.82; 95 % CI: 1.22, 2.70) and small cell carcinoma (OR for upper vs. lower tertile = 2.68; 95 % CI: 1.25, 5.74). No clear association between GL and lung cancer was observed. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that high dietary GI was associated with increased lung cancer risk, and the positive associations were observed for both lung adenocarcinoma and small cell lung carcinoma. Replication in an independent dataset is merited for a broader interpretation of our results.

[Guizhi Fuling capsule / pill treatment for chronic pelvic inflammatory disease：a systematic review of randomized clinical trials].

This systematic review aims to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of Guizhi Fuling Capsule/Pill on the treatment of chronic pelvic inflammatory disease. We searched CNKI datebases,WanFang,SinoMed,PubMed,Embase,The Cochrane Library from the inception to February 2017,to collect randomized controlled trials（RCTs）of Guizhi Fuling Capsule/Pill in treating chronic pelvic inflammation disease.Two reviewers independently screened literature,extracted date and assessed the risk of bias of included studies.Then,the risk assessment of included references was evaluated according to criteria recommended by Cochrane Handbook 5.3.A total of 30 RCTs involving 3 586 patients were finally included.30 studies reported the clinical efficacy,the result of meta-analysis showed that：compared with the western medicine group,Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine could significantly improve the clinical efficacy [RR=1.20,95%CI（1.16,1.23）];3 studies reported recurrence rate,the result of meta-analysis showed that：compared with the western medicine,Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine could decrease the recurrence rate [RR=0.33,95%CI（0.18,0.62）]; Their secondary indicators mainly included hs-CRP, plasma viscosity ratio and tumor necrosis factor and fibrin,the result of meta-analysis showed that： Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine was better than western medicine in terms of anti-inflammatory and improving blood circulation.17 studies reported adverse reactions,most of the adverse events were the irritation of gastrointestinal tract. The result showed that： compared with the western medicine group, the incidence of adverse reactions in Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine group is low.Guizhi Fuling（capsule,pill） did not increase the adverse reactions. The available evidence suggests that： Guizhi Fuling（capsule, pill） compared with the western medicine group, Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine was more effective than the western medicine group in terms of clinical efficacy, recurrence rate, anti-inflammatory and plasma viscosity.Due to the limited quality and quantity of included studies,more high quality RCTs are needed to verify the above conciusion.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha gene -308G > A polymorphism alters the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in a Han Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) -308 G > A polymorphism on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk. METHODS: The present case-control study was conducted in a Han Chinese population consisting of 753 HCC patients and 760 controls from May 2010 to March 2013. The -308 TNF-a promoter polymorphisms were detected. Conditional logistic regression was performed to analyze the association between TNF-α -308 G > A polymorphism and the risk of HCC, which were estimated by odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). RESULTS: The genotypic frequencies in the cases were not similar to that of the controls, differences being statistically significant (P = 0.002). Using the GG genotype as the reference genotype, AA was significantly associated with increased risk of HCC (adjusted OR = 5.12, 95% CI = 2.31-7.82). Similarly, AG + AA genotype showed 5.59-fold increased HCC risk in a dominant model. Furthermore, we found A allele was significantly associated with increased risk of HCC, compared with G allele (OR = 4.18, 95% CI = 1.76-6.97). CONCLUSION: The present study showed that TNF-α -308 G > A polymorphism was associated with increased HCC risk in a Han Chinese population. Further prospective studies on large and different ethnic populations will be necessary to confirm our findings and elucidate the underlying molecular mechanism for the development of HCC. VIRTUAL SLIDES: The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/13000_2014_199.

Biomechanical evaluation of tenodesis reconstruction in ankle with deltoid ligament deficiency: a finite element analysis.

PURPOSE: Isolated deltoid ligament injuries are relatively uncommon but can be a significant source of pain and disability. Several approaches to deltoid reconstruction have been reported. However, there is no previous comparative study of Wiltberger, Deland, Kitaoka and Hintermann procedures with respect to biomechanical characteristics such as kinematics, ligaments and grafts stresses using finite element analysis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the biomechanical results of those deltoid ligament reconstructions using finite element analysis. METHODS: A three-dimensional finite element model of the ankle including six bony structures, cartilage and nine principal ligaments surrounding the ankle joint complex was developed and validated. In addition to the intact model, superficial deltoid-deficient, deltoid-deficient, Wiltberger reconstruction, Deland reconstruction, Kitaoka reconstruction and Hintermann reconstruction models were simulated. Then, the forces in the ligaments and grafts and the kinematics of talus and calcaneus were predicted for an eversional or external torque through the range of ankle flexion. RESULTS: No reconstructions could completely restore the values for ankle flexibility and the stresses of the lateral ligaments to normality. The Kitaoka procedure was the most effective technique in eliminating external rotation displacement. The Deland procedure restored better the talar tilt than the other three reconstructions. CONCLUSION: This study showed that Kitaoka and Deland procedures have advantages with regard to rotational stabilities as well as ligaments stress in comparison with other methods.

[The anti-injury effect of breviscapine injection on the hypoxic ischemic brain damage of neonatal rats and the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the protective effect of Breviscapine injection on the hypoxic ischemic brain damage of neonatal rats, and the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax. METHODS: In this experiment 7-day-old newborn rat with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage model was used and divided into four groups: sham group, model group, control with sterile water for injection group and Breviscapine injection group. Breviscapine injection group was divided into large, medium, and small doses. Used thionin staining and immunohistochemical staining to assay the neuronal density, histological grade, and the expresssion of Bcl-2 and Bax protein in the CA1 hippocampus of each group , the number of positive cells and the integral optical density (IOD) of the immunostaining on Bcl-2, Bax protein expression in the CA1 hippocampus. RESULTS: Sham group, there was no significant neuronal damage and no obvious positive cells of Bcl-2 and Bax in the CA1 hippocampus. In model group and control with sterile water for injection group, the level of Bcl-2, Bax expression peaked at 3 d after hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) (P < 0.05 vs other groups), the value of neuronal density (ND) was decreased, and histological grade (HG) was increased compared with that in the sham group (P < 0.05). Breviscapine injection group, compared with control with sterile water for injection group, the expression of Bcl-2 protein was further increased, IOD value increased, while the expression of Bax protein was decreased, IOD value decreased, the value of ND increased, and HG decreased. CONCLUSION: Breviscapin injection maybe reduce the delayed neuronal death, and reduce the apoptosis of neuron after severe brain injury through improving the expression of Bcl-2 protein and inhibiting expression of Bax. The study would provide a fine theoretical foundation for clinical therapy of neonatal HIBD.