The effects of neurofeedback training for children with cerebral palsy and co-occurring attention deficits: A pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Limited research exists regarding the effectiveness of electroencephalogram (EEG) neurofeedback training for children with cerebral palsy (CP) and co-occurring attention deficits (ADs), despite the increasing prevalence of these dual conditions. This study aimed to fill this gap by examining the impact of neurofeedback training on the attention levels of children with CP and AD. METHODS: Nineteen children with both CP and co-occurring ADs were randomly assigned to either a neurofeedback or control group. The neurofeedback group received 20 sessions of training, lasting approximately 1 h per day, twice a week. Theta/beta ratios of the quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG) recordings were measured pre-training and post-training in the resting state. The Continuous Performance Test (CPT), the Test of Visual Perceptual Skills-3rd Version (TVPS-3) and the Conners' Parent Rating Scale (CPRS) were measured at pre- and post-training. RESULTS: The neurofeedback group showed both decreased theta/beta ratios compared with control group (p = 0.04) at post-training and a within-group improvement during training (p = 0.02). Additionally, the neurofeedback group had a trend of decreased omission rates of the CPT (p = 0.08) and the visual sequential memory and the visual closure subscores in the TVPS-3, compared with the control group (p = 0.02 and p = 0.01, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggested that children with CP and co-occurring AD may benefit from neurofeedback training in their attention level. Further research is needed to explore long-term effects and expand its application in this population.

Association of congenital iodine deficiency syndrome and differentiated thyroid cancer: a Mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND: The effect of iodine deficiency, especially during the fetal period, on thyroid cancer risk remains unclear. The evidence from observational studies is controversial because of the inevitable confounding factors. We studied the causal effect of congenital iodine deficiency on differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) based on Mendelian randomization (MR). METHODS: Two-Sample MR analysis was performed using data from published genome-wide association studies, including congenital iodine deficiency syndrome (CIDS) (353 cases, 187,684 controls) and DTC (649 cases, 431 controls) data. RESULTS: There was a causal relationship between CIDS and DTC (P < 0.05), with CIDS increasing the DTC risk by 37.4% (OR = 1.374, 95%CI = 1.110-1.700). Heterogeneity tests and tests of multiple validities indicated that the results were solid and reliable (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Fetal iodine deficiency increases the risk of DTC, so future clinical studies should focus on the effect of iodine supplementation during pregnancy to reduce the risk of thyroid cancer in the offspring.

[Seasonal Regulation of Soil Microbial Carbon and Phosphorus Metabolisms in an Apple Orchard: Evidence from the Enzymatic Stoichiometry Method].

Soil microbial carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) nutrient requirements and metabolic limitations are closely related to the availability of environmental nutrients. However, it is unclear how manure and chemical fertilization shift nutrient limitations for microbes in terms of the soil enzymatic stoichiometry in an apple orchard. Therefore, based on the long-term experiment located in an apple orchard established in 2008, this study applied the theory and method of soil enzyme stoichiometry to systematically investigate the effects of the combined application of manure and chemical fertilizers on soil C, N, and P turnover-related enzyme activities (ß-1,4-glucosidase, BG; leucine aminopeptidase, NAG; ß-1,4-N-acetylglucosaminidase, LAP; and acid or alkaline phosphatase, PHOS) and their stoichiometric characteristics and analyzed their relationships with environmental factors and microbial carbon use efficiency. The experiment was designed with four treatments, such as, no fertilization input as the control (CK), single application of chemical fertilizer (NPK), combined application of manure and chemical fertilizer (MNPK), and single application of manure (M). The results revealed that:① at different growth stages of fruit trees, the soil microbial biomass C (microC) content of manure fertilizer treatments (MNPK and M) was significantly higher than that of no manure fertilizer treatments (CK and NPK). The content of microbial biomass N (microN) in the NPK, MNPK, and M treatments increased by 89%, 269%, and 213%, respectively, compared with that in CK (P<0.05). ② Compared with those in the fertilization treatments, CK had higher leaf N and P contents (29.8 g·kg-1 and 2.17 g·kg-1) at the germination stage, and the leaf P content at the germination stage alone was significantly negatively correlated with soil available phosphorus (AP) content. ③ Soil enzyme stoichiometry analysis demonstrated that all data points in this study were above the 1:1 line, indicating that microbial communities had a strong phosphorus limitation. The range of vector length and angle was 0.56-0.79 and 59.3°-67.7°, respectively, in the growth period of fruit trees, and the vector angle was >45° in this study, which also reflected the strong phosphorus limitation of microorganisms. ④ RDA and random forest model analysis showed that organic carbon and available nitrogen (AN) were the main physical and chemical factors affecting vector length; AP, AN, and soil water content were the main physical and chemical factors affecting vector angle. Combined with SEM analysis, AN and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) directly affected microC and microN, AP directly affected microP and microN, DOC and AP directly affected vector length, and AP and microN directly affected vector angle. In addition, microbial carbon utilization was positively correlated with vector length and negatively correlated with vector angle. In summary, the combined application of manure and chemical fertilizers regulated microbial carbon and phosphorus metabolism by affecting soil carbon and phosphorus content at different growth stages of fruit trees, thereby affecting microbial carbon utilization. This study provides a scientific basis for manure and chemical fertilizers to improve soil quality and maintain soil health.

Seven-day vonoprazan-based triple therapy as first-lineHelicobacter pylori treatment in comparison with extended sequential therapy.

Background and Aim: Vonoprazan as a new acid blocker has more potency and longer lasting acid suppression than proton pump inhibitors. Whether the efficacy of vonoprazan-based triple therapy is comparable with or even better than that of currently recommended first-line therapies is still unknown. Our study aims to compare the eradication rate and major adverse effects between 7-day vonoprazan-based triple therapy with high-dose amoxicillin and 14-day extended sequential therapy. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis from the database of 13C-urea breath test at Fu Jen Catholic University Hospital. All patients with a definite diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection by rapid urease test, urea breath test, stool antigen test, or pathology report were recruited. Patients receiving first-line regimens with vonoprazan-based triple therapy or extended sequential therapy were included. The respective eradication rate determined by 13C-urea breath test and major adverse effects were demonstrated. Results: Totally, 106 patients were recruited in the vonoprazan-based triple therapy group and 357 in the extended sequential therapy group. There was no significant difference in eradication rate between vonoprazan-based triple therapy with high-dose amoxicillin and extended sequential therapy (83.0 vs 88.8%, P = 0.12). Major adverse effects occurred in 13 of the extended sequential therapy group but none in the other group (0% vs 3.6%, P = 0.046). Conclusions: Seven-day vonoprazan-based triple therapy with high-dose amoxicillin is a potential first-line anti-Helicobacter pylori regimen alternative to current standard treatment, with the advantages of simplicity, short treatment duration, low pill burden, and fewer major adverse effects.

Standardized Extract of Centella asiatica Prevents Fear Memory Deficit in 3xTg-AD Mice.

ECa 233 is a standardized extract of Centella asiatica (CA), an herb widely used in traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine. Previous studies reported that ECa 233 enhanced memory retention and synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus of healthy rats. Because of this, we became curious whether ECa 233 has a therapeutic effect on the fear memory deficit in the triple transgenic Alzheimer's disease (3xTg-AD) model mice. Fear memory is a crucial emotional memory for survival that is found to be impaired in patients with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). In this study, we orally administered ECa 233 (doses: 10, 30, and 100[Formula: see text]mg/kg) to 3xTg-AD mice, who were five months old, for 30 consecutive days. We found that ECa 233 prevented a cued fear memory deficit and enhanced hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) in 3xTg-AD mice. Subsequent proteomic and western blot analyses revealed increased expression levels of the molecules related to LTP induction and maintenance, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), tyrosine receptor kinase B (TrkB) and its network proteins, and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1 and 2) in the hippocampi and amygdala of 3xTg-AD mice after ECa 233 pre-treatment. Our results indicate that ECa 233 is a promising potential herbal standardized extract that could be used in preventing the fear memory deficit and synaptic dysfunction before the early onset of AD.

[Multiple components of Mahuang Shengma Decoction on prevention and treatment of acute lung injury based on RAGE/NF-κB signaling pathway].

To investigate the potential molecular markers and drug-compound-target mechanism of Mahuang Shengma Decoction(MHSM) in the intervention of acute lung injury(ALI) by network pharmacology and experimental verification. Databases such as TCMSP, TCMIO, and STITCH were used to predict the possible targets of MHSM components and OMIM and Gene Cards were employed to obtain ALI targets. The common differentially expressed genes(DEGs) were therefore obtained. The network diagram of DEGs of MHSM intervention in ALI was constructed by Cytoscape 3. 8. 0, followed by Gene Ontology(GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG) enrichment analyses of target genes. The ALI model was induced by abdominal injection of lipopolysaccharide(LPS) in mice. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(BALF) was collected for the detection of inflammatory factors. Pathological sectioning and RT-PCR experiments were performed to verify the therapeutic efficacy of MHSM on ALI. A total of 494 common targets of MHSM and ALI were obtained. Among the top 20 key active compounds of MHSM, 14 from Ephedrae Herba were found to be reacted with pivotal genes of ALI [such as tumor necrosis factor(TNF), tumor protein 53(TP53), interleukin 6(IL6), Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4), and nuclear factor-κB(NF-κB)/p65(RELA)], causing an uncontrolled inflammatory response with activated cascade amplification. Pathway analysis revealed that the mechanism of MHSM in the treatment of ALI mainly involved AGE-RAGE, cancer pathways, PI3 K-AKT signaling pathway, and NF-κB signaling pathway. The findings demonstrated that MHSM could dwindle the content of s RAGE, IL-6, and TNF-α in the BALF of ALI mice, relieve the infiltration of inflammatory cells in the lungs, inhibit alveolar wall thickening, reduce the acute inflammation-induced pulmonary congestion and hemorrhage, and counteract transcriptional activities of Ager-RAGE and NF-κB p65. MHSM could also synergically act on the target DEGs of ALI and alleviate pulmonary pathological injury and inflammatory response, which might be achieved by inhibiting the expression of the key gene Ager-RAGE in RAGE/NF-κB signaling pathway and downstream signal NF-κB p65.

Erythromycin reduces nasal inflammation by inhibiting immunoglobulin production, attenuating mucus secretion, and modulating cytokine expression.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) and chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) share some similar pathological mechanisms. In current study, we intend to investigate the impact of AR on CRS. In addition, we explored the efficacy of erythromycin (EM) treatment on CRS mice with or without AR (CRSwoAR, CRSwAR). Study subjects were divided into control, CRSwoAR, and CRSwAR groups. Experimental mice were divided similarly into control, CRSwoAR, and CRSwAR groups. In addition, CRS mice were treated with EM at 0.75, 7.5, or 75 mg/kg or with dexamethasone (Dex) at 1 mg/kg. In our results, allergy exacerbates inflammation that was evident in nasal histology and cytokine expression both in patients and in mice with CRS. Dex 1 mg/kg, EM 7.5 or 75 mg/kg treatments significantly inhibited serum IgE and IgG2a in CRS mice. EM-treated CRS mice had significantly elevated IL-10 levels and had a reversal of Th-1/Th-2 cytokine expression in nasal-associated lymphoid tissue. MUC5AC expressions were significantly reduced in the 7.5 or 75 mg/kg EM-treated mice compared with untreated mice. EM showed inhibitions on immunoglobulin production and mucus secretion stronger than Dex. We concluded that comorbid AR enhanced inflammation of CRS. EM and Dex treatments showed similar anti-inflammatory effects on CRS but through partly different mechanisms.

Molecularly Imprinted Polymer/Anodic Aluminum Oxide Nanocomposite Sensing Electrode for Low-Concentration Troponin T Detection for Patient Monitoring Applications.

Various clinical studies have shown that myocardial troponin T (cTnT) is highly correlated with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). A highly sensitive molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) sensing electrode for the detection of cTnT in patients' blood serum can enable cost-effective, rapid, and real-time testing for patients requiring intensive care. However, the existing MIP-based sensing electrode does not perform well for low-concentration detection of cTnT (<0.2 ng/mL). In this study, a new type of sensing electrode, an anodic aluminum oxide molecularly imprinted (MIP/AAO) nanocomposite electrode is developed. By incorporating the AAO structure, i.e., one-dimensional (1D) pillars, through a semiconductor-compatible process, the new electrode exhibits a great performance improvement, higher sensitivity of 1.08 × 10-4 and 4.25 × 10-4 in the low (<0.03 ng/mL)- and high-concentration regions, respectively, and a lower limit of detection (LoD) of 5.34 pg/mL. Because the composite electrode can maintain a linear characteristic in the measurement range of low-concentration cTnT, it can effectively improve the accuracy and reduce the error in cTnT measurement. In addition, the novel sensing electrode exhibits good reusability and specificity.

Luteolin Attenuates Allergic Nasal Inflammation via Inhibition of Interleukin-4 in an Allergic Rhinitis Mouse Model and Peripheral Blood From Human Subjects With Allergic Rhinitis.

Objectives: Luteolin is the active component of Perilla frutescens, an herb for the treatment of allergy in Asia. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects and mechanisms of luteolin treatment. Methods: BALB/c mice sensitized with house dust mite (HDM) to induce allergic rhinitis (AR), and treated with dexamethasone or luteolin. In addition, mononuclear cells from peripheral blood (PBMC) of AR patients were co-cultured with dexamethasone or luteolin, and were re-stimulated with HDM. Results: Luteolin-treated mice had decreased allergic symptoms, and serum HDM-specific IgE when compared to the untreated group. Flow cytometric analyses of splenocytes and nasal lymphoid tissues from AR mice found that luteolin decreased CD4+ IL-4-secreting T cells when compared to those from vehicle treated AR mice. Histopathology sections showed reduced infiltration of eosinophils and decreased mucus secretion of mouse nasal epithelium. In the in vitro study, the results showed that luteolin reduced the percentage of CD4+ IL-4-secreting splenocytes expression was through reducing expression of pSTAT6 and GATA3. PBMCs from AR patients pretreated with luteolin could decrease percentage of CD4+ IL-4-secreting cells. Conclusion: Our study identified that luteolin attenuates allergic nasal inflammation via inhibition of IL-4 production, which supports the potential pharmaceutical application of luteolin treatment for AR.

Zinc-induced protective effect for testicular ischemia-reperfusion injury by promoting antioxidation via microRNA-101-3p/Nrf2 pathway.

The present study was performed to determine the protective effect of Zinc on the rat testicular ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury and its mechanism. In vivo, the pathological changes and the apoptosis index were significantly relieved in the rats with Low-dose Zinc pretreatment, compared to the I/R group. After Low-dose Zinc treatment, the levels of tissue Malondialdehyde (MDA) were significantly decreased, while tissue antioxidant indices were significantly increased. Meanwhile, the level of NF-κB was significantly lower compared to I/R group, while the levels of Nrf2-dependent antioxidant enzymes were significantly higher in Low-dose Zinc+I/R group. In vitro, Low-dose Zinc markedly increased Leydig cell (TM3) cell viability, and relieved testicular oxidative damage via down-regulating ROS. A total of 22 differently expressed microRNAs were screened out using microRNA microarray in rat testicular tissue caused by I/R injury, especially showing that miR-101-3p was selected as the target miRNA. Furthermore, the levels of Nrf2 and NF-κB were apparently increased/decreased in TM3 cells treated with Hypoxic/Reoxygenation (H/R) after miR-101-3p mimics/inhibitor. In addition, H/R-induced testicular oxidative damage was recovered in TM3 administrated with miR-101-3p inhibitor and si-Nrf2. Therefore, this study provided a novel insight for investigating protective effect of Zinc on testicular I/R injury by promoting antioxidation via miR-101-3p/Nrf2.

Adjunctive Chinese herbal medicine therapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma: Clinical evidence and experimental validation.

BACKGROUND: To investigate the benefits of adjunctive Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). METHODS: We included all patients diagnosed with NPC during 1997-2009 and followed until 2011 in Taiwan. We used 1:1 frequency matching by age, sex, comorbidity, conventional treatment, and index year to compare the CHM users and non-CHM users (n = 2542 each). The prescribed CHM was further investigated with regard to its cytotoxicity. RESULTS: Compared with non-CHM users, adjunctive CHM users had a lower hazard ratio of mortality risk, and a better survival probability. Gan-Lu-Yin (GLY) was the most commonly prescribed CHM, and it reduced cell viability, inhibited tumor proliferation, and induced apoptosis through the poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase and caspase-3-dependent pathway in human NPC TW01 cells. Oral administration of GLY retarded NPC-TW01 tumor growth in the xenograft nude mouse model. CONCLUSION: Real-world data and laboratory experiments implied that adjunctive CHM might be beneficial for NPC patients.

[Effect and mechanism of Yunkang oral liquid in regulating endocrine system and VEGF signaling pathway and reducing abortion rate in recurrent abortion mice].

This experiment focuses on the effect of Yunkang oral liquid on abortion rate, endocrine system and VEGF signal pathway in Clark classical recurrent abortion model mice. RSA mice were randomly divded into model group, low, middle and high-dose groups and progesterone group. The normal pregnancy mice were included into normal group. Since the first day of pregnancy, the normal group and the RSA model group were given the same dose of distilled water, while low, middle and high-dose groups were given Yunkang oral liquid at the dose of 9, 18, 36 mL·kg¹·d⁻¹; progesterone group were given progesterone by 0.039 g·kg¹·d⁻¹. The mice were put to deathat the 15th day of pregnancy, and the embryo loss rate of each group was observed. Serum estradiol (E2), progesterone (P), prolactin (PRL), luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) level were tested; the protein expressions of estrogen receptor(ER), progesterone receptor (PR), prolactin receptor (PRLR) in decidua and RAS, MAPK, VEGF, VEGFR-2 gene and protein expressions in deciduas were studied. The results showed that middle, high dose Yunkang and progesterone could significantly decrease the embryo loss rate of RSA mice. The levels of FSH, LH, PRL, P and E2 in serum in Yunkang and progesterone groups were increased, and the serum levels of FSH, LH, and E2 in Yunkang group were higher than those in progesterone group. Western blot analysis showed that Yunkang oral liquid and progesterone can significantly increase the expressions of PRLR, PR in the uterine decidua of RSA mice, and the expression of ER in Yunkang group was higher than that in progesterone group. Western blot and PCR showed that the Yunkang oral liquid and progesterone can significantly increase RAS, MAPK, VEGF, VEGFR-2 gene and protein expressions in the uterine decidua of RSA mice. The results showed that Yunkang oral liquid can effectively reduce the embryo loss rate of RSA model mice, increase the levels of FSH, LH, PRL, P and E2 in serum, promote the expressions of PRLR, PR, ER protein in decidua and the RAS, MAPK, VEGF, VEGFR-2 gene and protein expressions in the decidua, improve the vascular remodeling of fetal interface, the endometrial receptivty, the development of decidua and the blastocyst implantation.

Chemoproteomics reveals baicalin activates hepatic CPT1 to ameliorate diet-induced obesity and hepatic steatosis.

Obesity and related metabolic diseases are becoming worldwide epidemics that lead to increased death rates and heavy health care costs. Effective treatment options have not been found yet. Here, based on the observation that baicalin, a flavonoid from the herbal medicine Scutellaria baicalensis, has unique antisteatosis activity, we performed quantitative chemoproteomic profiling and identified carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT1), the controlling enzyme for fatty acid oxidation, as the key target of baicalin. The flavonoid directly activated hepatic CPT1 with isoform selectivity to accelerate the lipid influx into mitochondria for oxidation. Chronic treatment of baicalin ameliorated diet-induced obesity (DIO) and hepatic steatosis and led to systemic improvement of other metabolic disorders. Disruption of the predicted binding site of baicalin on CPT1 completely abolished the beneficial effect of the flavonoid. Our discovery of baicalin as an allosteric CPT1 activator opens new opportunities for pharmacological treatment of DIO and associated sequelae.

[Antihypertensive effect and mechanism of Dendrobium officinale flos on high-blood pressure rats induced by high glucose and high fat compound alcohol].

This study aimed to investigate the antihypertensive effect and possible mechanism of Dendrobium officinale flos on hypertensive rats induced by high glucose and high fat compound alcohol. The hypertensive models were successfully made by high-glucose and high-fat diet, with gradient drinking for 4 weeks, and then divided into model control group, valsartan (5.7 mg·kg⁻¹) positive control group and D. officinale flos groups (3，1 g·kg⁻¹). After 6 weeks of treatment, the blood pressure of rats was measured regularly. After the last administration, endothelin-1 (ET-1), thromboxane B2 (TXB2), prostacyclin (PGI2) and nitric oxide (NO) were tested. Endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression and lesion status in thoracic aorta were detected. The vascular endothelium dependent dilation of the thoracic aorta was detected by the isolated vascular loop tension test. The results showed that D. officinale flos could significantly reduce systolic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure in hypertensive rats, inhibit the thickening of thoracic aorta and the loss of endothelial cells, reduce plasma content of ET-1 and TXB2, and increase the content of PGI2 and NO. After long-term administration, vascular endothelium dependent dilation of the thoracic aorta was significantly increased, and could be blocked by the eNOS inhibitor (L-NAME) and increase the expression of eNOS. Therefore, D. officinale flos has an obvious antihypertensive effect on high glucose and high fat compound alcohol-induced hypertensive rats. Its mechanism may be correlated with the improvement of vascular diastolic function by protecting vascular endothelial cells, and finally resist hypertension.

Regulation of SIRT3/FOXO1 Signaling Pathway in Rats with Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis by Salvianolic Acid B.

AIMS: To explore the effect of salvianolic acid B (Sal B) on regulation of SIRT3/FOXO1 signaling pathway in rats with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). METHODS: Sixty Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into control, model and treatment groups. After 12 weeks of successful model establishment with high fat diet, treatment group was given Sal B by intragastric administration. After 12 weeks of treatment, rats were sacrificed and livers were taken to test indicators such as liver index, TG, TC, ALT, AST, reactive oxygen species (ROS) by DCFH-DA probe, SOD2 activity by WST-8 test. mRNA and protein expression of SIRT3, SOD2, catalase were detected by real time PCR and western blot, respectively. The acetylation level of FOXO1 and SOD2 was detected by immuno-precipitation (IP). RESULT: Liver index, ALT, AST, TG, TC, and ROS of model group were higher than those of control and treatment groups, which the difference was statistically significant (p <0.01). SOD2 activity of model group was lower than that of control and treatment groups. In treatment group, HE staining and electron microscopy showed hepatic tissue pathological change and mitochondrial structure damage alleviate. mRNA and protein expression of SIRT3, SOD2, catalase were lower in model group and the difference was statistically significant (p <0.05), which was opposite in the acetylation level of FOXO1 and SOD2 by IP. CONCLUSION: Sal B can decrease oxidative stress reaction by regulating SIRT3/FOXO1 signaling pathway and play a therapeutic role in the treatment of NASH in rats.

[Effects of Mori Folium extract on diet-induced obesity mechanism in rats].

To study the anti-obesity effect of Mori Folium extract on diet-induced obesity(DIO) and to explore the preliminary mechanism in rats. DIO rat models were established by high glucose and high fat diet for 8 weeks. Then high(10 mg•kg⁻¹) and low(5 mg•kg⁻¹) does Mori Folium extracts were given by intragastric administration for 13 weeks. After the last administration, their body weight, 24 h food intake, water intake, Lee's index, liver/body mass index, and fat/body mass index were determined. The levels of lipoprotein lipase(LPL), CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha(C/EBPα) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma(PPARγ) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA). Phosphorylated AMP-activated protein kinase alpha(p-AMPKα), C/EBPα and PPARγ expression levels in adipose tissues were detected by Western blot. The hematoxylin-eosin staining(HE) was used to observe the histopathological changes of adipose tissues. The results showed that both high dose and low dose Mori Folium extract can decrease body weight, Lee's index, renal fat/body mass ratio and testicle fat/body mass ratio, and the high dose group could decrease the total fat/body mass ratio. Both high dose and low dose groups had no significant effect on the food intake and water intake; however, they could decrease levels of LPL in fat, up-regulate p-AMPKα protein expression, down-regulate C/EBPα and PPARγ protein expression, and reduce fat cell volume. In conclusion, Mori Folium extract had a slimming effect on DIO rats, and its mechanism may be associated with up-regulating the expression of p-AMPKα, down-regulating the expression of PPARγ, C/EBPα and LPL, inhibiting the differentiation of preadipocytes into mature fat cells, and reducing the volume of fat cells.

[Relaxation effect of buddleoside combined with luteolin on isolated vessels in vivo and its mechanism].

To study the relaxation effect of buddleoside combined with luteolin on aortic rings in SD rats and its mechanism. The effect of buddleoside alone(7.5×10⁻6g•mL⁻¹), luteolin alone(7.5×10⁻6g•mL⁻¹) and the combination of buddleoside and luteolin(1∶4) on norepinephrine-induced contractility of complete, endothelium-denuded, and L-NAME and indomethacin-pretreated thoracic aorta in SD rats were observed in the in vitro ring tension test. Western blot was used to detect p-Akt and p-eNOS protein expressions in the thoracic aorta. The experimental results showed that buddleoside combined with luteolin could significantly increase the relaxation rate of blood vessels and endothelium and L-NAME-pretreated vascular rings compared with the two single administrations. And buddleoside combined with luteolin could also significantly increase p-Akt and p-eNOS protein expressions.The results suggested that the combination of buddleoside and luteolin could effectively relax the blood vessel, and the mechanism may be to increase the synthesis and release of NO and reach the role of relaxing blood vessel by activating PI3K/Akt/NO signaling pathway and enhancing the activity of eNOS.

Chlorella vulgaris Induces Apoptosis of Human Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma (NSCLC) Cells.

OBJECTIVE: Chlorella vulgaris (C. vulgaris), a unicellular green microalga, has been widely used as a food supplement and reported to have antioxidant and anticancer properties. The current study was designed to assess the cytotoxic, apoptotic, and DNA-damaging effects of C. vulgaris growth factor (CGF), hot water C. vulgaris extracts, inlung tumor A549 and NCI-H460 cell lines. METHODS: A549 cells, NCI-H460 cells, and normal human fibroblasts were treated with CGF at various concentrations (0-300 µg/ml) for 24 hr. The comet assay and γH2AX assay showed DNA damage in A549 and NCI-H460 cells upon CGF exposure. Evaluation of apoptosis by the TUNEL assay and DNA fragmentation analysis by agarose gel electrophoresis showed that CGF induced apoptosis in A549 and NCI-H460 cells. RESULTS: Chlorella vulgaris hot water extract induced apoptosis and DNA damage in human lung carcinoma cells. CONCLUSION: CGF can thus be considered a potential cytotoxic or genotoxic drug for treatment of lung carcinoma.

Two new sesquiterpene glycosides isolated from the fresh needles of Pinus massoniana Lamb.

Two new sesquiterpene glycosides, namely massonside A (1) and massonside B (2), were isolated from the n-Bu extract of the fresh needles of Pinus massoniana Lamb. Their structures were established by 1D, 2D nuclear magnetic resonance and high-resolution mass spectrometry. Their biological activities were profiled by the anti-HBV and anti-HCV assays.

Study on the small intestine absorptive kinetics characters of tanshinol and protocatechualdehyde of Salvia miltiorrhiza extracts in rats in vivo.

In order to provide scientific basis for clinical selection of drugs, to compare and analyze the effective constitutes and the intestinal absorption in vivo in rats of the compound salvia tablets and compound salvia dropping pills (taken as the representatives). Determine the contents of tanshinol, protocatechuic aldehyde, salvianolic acid B and tanshinone II A, cryptotanshinone, ginseng saponin Rg1 and Rb1 in the compound salvia tablets and compound salvia dropping pills by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The intestinal absorption condition of the tanshinol, protocatechuic aldehyde, salvianolic acid B of the compound salvia tablets and compound salvia dropping pills in rats were detected by intestinal perfusion experiment. Only the intake of protocatechuic aldehyde in the compound salvia tablets was higher than in the compound dropping pills, the intake of the other 6 effective constitutes were all lower than in the compound dropping pills. The intestinal absorption of protocatechuic aldehyde was rather complete, while the intestinal absorption of tanshinol and salvianolic acid B were not significant. The duodenum was the main absorption region of these three components. The absorption of protocatechuic aldehyde was different in different regions of the intestines. Each intake of the effective constitutes in the tablets and dropping pills were significantly different, and the rat intestinal absorption of part of the components were different.