Effects of moxibustion on serum levels of β-EP, SP and expression of IL-1β and COX-2 protein in brainstem in rats with migraine / 中国针灸

OBJECTIVE@#To observe the effects of moxibustion at "Baihui" (GV 20) and "Dazhui" (GV 14) at different time points on the serum level of β-endorphin (β-EP), substance P (SP) and expression of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) protein in brainstem in rats with migraine, and to explore the effect and mechanism of moxibustion in preventing and treating migraine.@*METHODS@#Forty male SD rats were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group, a prevention+treatment (PT) group and a treatment group, 10 rats in each group. Except the blank group, the rats in the remaining groups were injected with nitroglycerin subcutaneously to prepare migraine model. The rats in the PT group were treated with moxibustion 7 days before modeling (once a day) and 30 min after modeling, while the rats in the treatment group were treated with moxibustion 30 min after modeling. The "Baihui" (GV 20) and "Dazhui" (GV 14) were taken for 30 minutes each time. The behavioral scores in each group were observed before and after modeling. After intervention, ELISA method was used to detect the serum level of β-EP and SP; the immunohistochemistry method was used to detect the number of positive cells of IL-1β in brainstem; the Western blot method was used to detect the expression of COX-2 protein in brainstem.@*RESULTS@#Compared with the blank group, the behavioral scores in the model group were increased 0-30 min, 60-90 min and 90-120 min after modeling (P<0.01); compared with the model group, in the treatment group and the PT group, the behavioral scores were decreased 60-90 min and 90-120 min after modeling (P<0.01). Compared with the blank group, in the model group, the serum level of β-EP was decreased (P<0.01), while the serum level of SP, the number of positive cells of IL-1β in brainstem and the expression of COX-2 protein were increased (P<0.01). Compared with the model group, in the PT group and and the treatment group, the serum level of β-EP was increased (P<0.01), while the serum level of SP, the number of positive cells of IL-1β and the expression of COX-2 protein in brainstem were decreased (P<0.01, P<0.05). Compared with the treatment group, in the PT group, the serum level of β-EP was increased and COX-2 protein expression was decreased (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Moxibustion could effectively relieve migraine. The mechanism may be related to reduce the serum level of SP, IL-1β and COX-2 protein expression in brainstem, and increase the serum level of β-EP, and the optimal effect is observed in the PT group.

Effectiveness and Safety of Chinese Medicine at Shenque (CV 8) for Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials / 中国结合医学杂志

BACKGROUND@#Primary dysmenorrhea (PD) is the most common complaint associated with menstruation and affects up to three-quarters of women at some stage of their reproductive life. In Chinese medicine, navel therapy, treatment provided at Shenque (CV 8), is used as a treatment option for PD.@*OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate the effect of navel therapy on pain relief and quality of life in women with PD, compared with Western medicine (WM).@*METHODS@#China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP), SinoMed and Wanfang Database, MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, and the International Clinical Trial Registry of the U.S. National Institutes of Health were searched from their inceptions to April 1, 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing therapeutic effects of navel therapy on PD were eligible for inclusion. RevMan 5.4 software was used for data analyses. The certainty of the evidence was assessed using the online GRADEpro tool.@*RESULTS@#Totally 24 RCTs involving 2,614 participants were identified. Interventions applied to acupuncture point CV 8 included: herbal patching, moxibustion or combined navel therapy (using at least 2 types of stimulation). Compared to placebo, there was a significant effect in favor of navel therapy on reducing overall menstrual symptom scores at the end of treatment [mean difference: -0.82, 95% confidence interval (CI): -1.00 to -0.64, n=90; 1 RCT]. As compared with Western medicine, navel therapy had a superior effect on pain intensity as assessed by Visual Analogue Scale at the end of treatment [standardized mean difference (SMD): -0.64, 95% CI: -1.22 to -0.06, I2=80%, n=262; 3 RCTs]; on symptom resolution rate at 3-month follow-up (risk ratio: 1.94, 95% CI: 1.47 to 2.56, n=1527, I2=38%; 13 RCTs); and on global menstrual symptoms score at the end of treatment (SMD: -0.67, 95% CI: -0.90 to -0.45, I2=63%, n=990; 12 RCTs). Subgroup analyses showed either a better or an equivalent effect comparing navel therapy with Western medicine. No major adverse events were reported. The methodological quality of included trials was poor overall.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Navel therapy appears to be more effective than Western medicine in decreasing menstrual pain and improving overall symptoms of PD. However, these findings need to be confirmed by well-designed clinical trials with adequate sample size (Systematic review registration at PROSPERO, No. CRD42021240350).

Research progress of TCM treatment for the patients with constipation of Parkinson disease / 国际中医中药杂志

The pathogenesis of constipation in Parkinson's disease is mainly deficiency of liver and kidney yin, deficiency of qi and blood, deficiency of yang qi, and stagnation of liver qi and phlegm coagulation. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is widely used in the treatment of this disease with Chinese herbal compound, acupuncture, acupoint application, auricular point pressure, scraping, massage and others, showing benfitial effects. However, it is still necessary for us to improve the syndrome differentiation, optimize the outcomes evaluation standards and improve the quality of research in future studies.

Pharmacological Mechanism of Curcumae Radix in Treatment of Post-stroke Depression： A Review / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Post-stroke depression， a common mental complication after stroke， seriously affects the quality of life and even endangers the life safety of patients. It is difficult to be cured due to the complex and diverse pathogenesis. At present， the widely accepted pathogenesis mechanisms include inflammatory mechanism， neurotransmitter mechanism， and endocrine mechanism. According to the theory of Chinese medicine， Qi stagnation， blood stasis， and phlegm turbidity lead to the occurrence of mental diseases after stroke. Curcumae Radix， as a commonly used Chinese herbal medicine， can activate blood circulation for relieving pain， regulate Qi， and relieve depression. The summary of the medication rules of DENG Tie-tao， ZHANG Xue-wen and other Chinese medical physicians showcases that Curcumae Radix is frequently used in the clinical treatment of depression， stroke， and post-stroke depression. Modern pharmacological studies have demonstrated that Curcumae Radix contains β-sitosterol， curdione， curcumin and other medicinal ingredients. This study reviewed the pharmacological effects of effective components in Curcumae Radix and the pharmacological mechanism in the treatment of post-stroke depression and summarized the processing methods of Curcumae Radix， aiming to clarify the important role and determine the optimal processing method of Curcumae Radix in the treatment of post-stroke depression. The results indicate that Curcumae Radix has the effects of regulating neurotransmitters， inhibiting neuroinflammation， protecting neurons， regulating neuroendocrine and antithrombosis， which can prevent and treat post-stroke depression through multiple components， targets， and pathways. The wine-processed Curcuma longa has the best effect.

Antiepileptic Pharmacological Mechanism of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma： A Review / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Epilepsy is a recurrent neurological disease with synchronous abnormal high discharge of neurons in the brain. The pathogenesis of this disease is extremely complex， which is closely related to neurotransmitter regulation， oxidative stress response， inflammatory factors， neuroglial cell， and abnormal gene expression. Western medicine mainly uses phenobarbital， phenytoin sodium， carbamazepine， and other drugs， but long-term use also produces certain toxic and side effects. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） believes that the pathogenesis of epilepsy is related to wind， fire， phlegm， and blood stasis， which leads to dysfunction of viscera， disorder of Qi movement， and finally uncontrolled spirit. In recent years， TCM has achieved certain curative effects on the treatment of epilepsy. As a high-frequency antiepileptic drug， Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma has the effects of opening orifices and eliminating phlegm， awakening spirit and benefiting intelligence， and removing dampness and opening stomach， which has been widely used in clinic. In this paper， the pathogenesis of epilepsy and the pharmacological mechanism of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma extract and chemical components in the treatment of epilepsy were expounded by referring to relevant pharmacological studies and animal experiments. It was found that Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma played a role in regulating the neurotransmitter level， antioxidant stress response， scavenging oxygen free radicals， regulating the expression of c-fos gene， reducing the level of inflammatory mediators， resisting neuronal apoptosis， and regulating the neuroglial cells and the permeability of blood-brain barrier. This paper summarizes the positive effects of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma on the treatment of epilepsy， and provides a scientific basis for the popularization and application of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma in the prevention and treatment of epilepsy.

Antiepileptic Pharmacological Mechanism of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma： A Review / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Epilepsy is a recurrent neurological disease with synchronous abnormal high discharge of neurons in the brain. The pathogenesis of this disease is extremely complex， which is closely related to neurotransmitter regulation， oxidative stress response， inflammatory factors， neuroglial cell， and abnormal gene expression. Western medicine mainly uses phenobarbital， phenytoin sodium， carbamazepine， and other drugs， but long-term use also produces certain toxic and side effects. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） believes that the pathogenesis of epilepsy is related to wind， fire， phlegm， and blood stasis， which leads to dysfunction of viscera， disorder of Qi movement， and finally uncontrolled spirit. In recent years， TCM has achieved certain curative effects on the treatment of epilepsy. As a high-frequency antiepileptic drug， Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma has the effects of opening orifices and eliminating phlegm， awakening spirit and benefiting intelligence， and removing dampness and opening stomach， which has been widely used in clinic. In this paper， the pathogenesis of epilepsy and the pharmacological mechanism of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma extract and chemical components in the treatment of epilepsy were expounded by referring to relevant pharmacological studies and animal experiments. It was found that Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma played a role in regulating the neurotransmitter level， antioxidant stress response， scavenging oxygen free radicals， regulating the expression of c-fos gene， reducing the level of inflammatory mediators， resisting neuronal apoptosis， and regulating the neuroglial cells and the permeability of blood-brain barrier. This paper summarizes the positive effects of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma on the treatment of epilepsy， and provides a scientific basis for the popularization and application of Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma in the prevention and treatment of epilepsy.

Simultaneous detection of ochratoxin A and fumonisin B1 in cereal samples using an aptamer-photonic crystal encoded suspension array.

A simple, new aptamer-photonic crystal encoded suspension array was designed to simultaneously quantify and qualify ochratoxin A(OTA) and fumonisin B1(FB1) in cereal samples. The aptamers of OTA and FB1 were immobilized on the surfaces of photonic crystals by chemical bonding. When the target mycotoxins appear in a sample, the fluorescence-labeled complementary DNA of the aptamer dissociates from their double DNA hybrid and results in an obvious decrease in fluorescence intensity of the microsphere. The difference value of fluorescent intensities for each kind of silica photonic crystal microsphere (SPCM) quantitatively conveys the concentration of mycotoxin, and the structure colors or reflectance peak positions of the SPCMs confirm the kind of mycotoxin detected. The reaction conditions including the immobilization method for aptamers, hybridization, and incubation conditions have been optimized. This developed method displayed a wide linear detection range (0.01-1 ng/mL for OTA and 0.001-1 ng/mL for FB1) and a low limit of detection (0.25 pg/mL for OTA and 0.16 pg/mL for FB1). The recovery rates in the spiked cereal samples ranged from 81.80% to 116.38% for OTA and 76.58%-114.79% for FB1. The positive detection results in the naturally contaminated cereal samples were in agreement with those of classic enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). This simple suspension array scheme displays a great application potential for the high throughput screen assay of mycotoxins.