Protective Mechanism of Cordyceps sinensis Treatment on Acute Kidney Injury-Induced Acute Lung Injury through AMPK/mTOR Signaling Pathway.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate protective effect of Cordyceps sinensis (CS) through autophagy-associated adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway in acute kidney injury (AKI)-induced acute lung injury (ALI). METHODS: Forty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 4 groups according to a random number table, including the normal saline (NS)-treated sham group (sham group), NS-treated ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI) group (IRI group), and low- (5 g/kg·d) and high-dose (10 g/kg·d) CS-treated IRI groups (CS1 and CS2 groups), 12 rats in each group. Nephrectomy of the right kidney was performed on the IRI rat model that was subjected to 60 min of left renal pedicle occlusion followed by 12, 24, 48, and 72 h of reperfusion. The wet-to-dry (W/D) ratio of lung, levels of serum creatinine (Scr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin- ß and tumor necrosis factor- α, and biomarkers of oxidative stress such as superoxide dismutase, malonaldehyde (MDA) and myeloperoxidase (MPO), were assayed. Histological examinations were conducted to determine damage of tissues in the kidney and lung. The protein expressions of light chain 3 II/light chain 3 I (LC3-II/LC3-I), uncoordinated-51-like kinase 1 (ULK1), P62, AMPK and mTOR were measured by Western blot and immunohistochemistry, respectively. RESULTS: The renal IRI induced pulmonary injury following AKI, resulting in significant increases in W/D ratio of lung, and the levels of Scr, BUN, inflammatory cytokines, MDA and MPO (P<0.01); all of these were reduced in the CS groups (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared with the IRI groups, the expression levels of P62 and mTOR were significantly lower (P<0.05 or P<0.01), while those of LC3-II/LC3-I, ULK1, and AMPK were significantly higher in the CS2 group (P<0.05 or P<0.01). CONCLUSION: CS had a potential in treating lung injury following renal IRI through activation of the autophagy-related AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway in AKI-induced ALI.

Influence of rice husk addition on phosphorus fractions and heavy metals risk of biochar derived from sewage sludge.

This study investigated the effects of rice husk dose and pyrolysis temperature on the phosphorus (P) fractions and environmental risk of heavy metals in biochar co-pyrolyzed from sewage sludge and rice husk. Biochar properties were analyzed, and the transformation of P and heavy metals speciation during co-pyrolysis were also discussed. Co-pyrolysis of raw sludge and rice husk (10-50 wt%) could increase the carbonization degree and stability of biochar at 500 °C. The organic P (OP) in raw sludge (68 wt%) was transformed to inorganic P (IP) during co-pyrolysis, indicating that the addition of rice husk could improve biochar-P bioavailability by promoting the transformation of IP. The IP content increased from 71.5 wt% of sludge biochar to 92 wt% of blended biochar (50 wt% sludge and 50 wt% rice husk) at a pyrolysis temperature of 500 °C. With the mass ratio of sludge to rice husk of 5:5, the OP content decreased from 3 mg g-1 to 0.75 mg g-1 as the pyrolysis temperature increased from 300 °C to 700 °C. The 31P nuclear magnetic resonance spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results showed that P species in biochar mainly existed as orthophosphate, which can be directly taken up by plants. After co-pyrolysis, the toxicity and mobility of heavy metals gradually decreased with increasing rice husk dose and pyrolysis temperature. The study indicates that co-pyrolysis of sewage sludge and rice husk could be a promising P reuse strategy.

The efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese medicine's tonifying-kidney, strengthening-spleen, and invigorating-blood circulation (Bushen-Jianpi-Huoxue) principle for type 2 diabetes mellitus with osteoporosis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) and osteoporosis (OP) often coexist, and both are systemic metabolic diseases and seriously increase the risk of fragility fracture. However, there is no specific Western medicine for the treatment of T2D with OP (T2DOP). As reported in clinical and experimental studies, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) based on principle of tonifying-kidney, strengthening-spleen, and invigorating blood circulation (Bushen-Jianpi-Huoxue) (BSJPHX) has significant efficacy against T2DOP. This protocol will be designed for a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the efficacy and safety of TCM BSJPHX principle in the treatment of T2DOP. METHODS: All relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) related to TCM therapies conducted in BSJPHX principle for T2DOP will be searched in the 8 electronic databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library, Wed of Science, EMBASE, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure Database (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical Literatures Database (CBM), Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP), Wanfang Database, from inception to October 2020. The main outcomes will contain: fasting blood glucose (FPG), 2 hours postprandial blood glucose (2hPG), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), serum calcium, bone mineral density (BMD), TCM syndrome integral, and the additional outcomes will consist of visual analog scale (VAS), and adverse events. Two reviewers will independently carry out literature search, data selection and synthesis, and literature quality assessment. In case of any dispute, it will be settled by group discussion. Assessment of risk of bias, reporting bias, and data synthesis would be performed with Review Manager software (Rev-Man 5.3). RESULT: This study will collate and summarize the various current evidences of TCM BSJPHX principle for T2DOP. CONCLUSION: This study will offer convincing evidence for judging the efficacy and safety of TCM BSJPHX principle for T2DOP. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020218877.

Effect of herbal medicine Shenghua decoction on uterine bleeding after early medical abortion: A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Excessive and prolonged uterine bleeding is an important obstacle for medical abortion to get popularized. Shenghua decoction (SHD) is widely used for treating uterine bleeding after early medical abortion. However, the clinical evidence is unclear. METHODS: Two researchers will dependently search literatures of SHD for the treatment of uterine bleeding after medical abortion from Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, and The Cochrane Library; traditional Chinese medicine databases; China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI); Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP database); and Wan-Fang Database. These inclusive data of included studies will be conducted by RevMan V5.3 software. RESULTS: This systematic review and meta-analysis will provide a detailed summary of the current evidence related to the efficacy of SHD in treating uterine bleeding after early medical abortion, including the duration and volume of uterine bleeding, the medical abortion pain. CONCLUSION: This systematic review and meta-analysis will provide a detailed summary of the current evidence related to the efficacy of SHD in treating uterine bleeding after early medical abortion, REGISTRATION NUMBER:: PROSPERO CRD42020184465.

Effective Targeted Photothermal Ablation of Multidrug Resistant Bacteria and Their Biofilms with NIR-Absorbing Gold Nanocrosses.

With the rapid evolution of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, antibiotic-resistant bacteria (in particular, multidrug-resistant bacteria) and their biofilms have been becoming more and more difficult to be effectively treated with conventional antibiotics. As such, there is a great demand to develop a nonantibiotic approach in efficiently eliminating such bacteria. Here, multibranched gold nanocrosses with strong near-infrared absorption falling in the biological window, which heat up quickly under near-infrared-light irradiation are presented. The gold nanocrosses are conjugated to secondary and primary antibodies for targeting PcrV, a type III secretion protein, which is uniquely expressed on the bacteria superbug, Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The conjugated gold nanocrosses are capable of completely destroying P. aeruginosa and its biofilms upon near-infrared-light irradiation for 5 min with an 800 nm laser at a low power density of ≈3.0 W cm(-2) . No bacterial activity is detected after 48 h postirradiation, which indicates that the heat generated from the irradiated plasmonic gold nanocrosses attached to bacteria is effective in eliminating and preventing the re-growth of the bacteria. Overall, the conjugated gold nanocrosses allow targeted and effective photothermal ablation of multidrug-resistant bacteria and their biofilms in the localized region with reduced nonspecific damage to normal tissue.

Oxidized pectin cross-linked carboxymethyl chitosan: a new class of hydrogels.

Oxidation of pectin was performed with sodium periodate to prepare pectin dialdehyde (PD). In this study we used the cross-linking reaction of the active aldehyde of PD and the amino of carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC) to prepare the hydrogels. By controlling the proportion of pectin dialdehyde and CMC we made different kinds of hydrogels. We systematically studied the characters of the hydrogels using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis of the pectin dialdehyde, CMC and the hydrogels, and also X-ray diffractometry and scanning electron microscopy analysis of the instrument of the hydrogels. Equilibrium swelling showed that the gels retained about 88-93% water. The water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) and the evaporation of water from gels showed that such hydrogels were optimal for maintaining a moist environment conducive for wound healing. Examination of the hemolytic potential showed that the hydrogels were nonhemolytic in nature. The hydrogels were non-toxic and blood-compatible. This hydrogel prepared from oxidized pectin and CMC without employing any extraneous cross-linking agents is expected to have potential as wound-dressing material.

Immunomodulatory activity of butanol extract from Solanum lyratum in tumor-bearing mice.

Solanum lyratum Thunb (Solanaceae) has been widely used for cancer as a folk remedy in Chinese traditional medicine. In this study, the main active fraction n-butanol extract from S. lyratum (BESL) was evaluated for the therapeutic efficacies on mice transplantable tumor and immunomodulatory potentials on the immune response in tumor-bearing mice. The effects of BESL on the growth of mouse transplantable S180 sarcoma, splenocyte proliferation, the activity of natural killer (NK) cells and cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL), production of cytokines from splenocytes, and serum antigen-specific antibody levels in S180-bearing mice were measured. BESL could not only significantly inhibit the growth of S180 sarcoma transplanted in mice, but also remarkably promote splenocytes proliferation, NK cell and CTL activity, interleukin-2 and interferon-γ production from splenocytes, and serum antigen-specific antibody levels in tumor-bearing mice (P < 0.05, P < 0.01, or P <0.001). The results suggested that BESL might exhibit antitumor activity by improving immune response, and it could act as antitumor agent with immunomodulatory activity. This study provided evidence to understand the therapeutic effects of S. lyratum for treatment of cancer and a natural product to further researches to be developed as a cancer chemopreventive agent.

Silica-coated metal nanoparticles.

The advanced high-quality synthesis of dense and porous silica-coated nanostructures is enjoying ever-increasing research interests for their important properties and diverse applications, especially for catalytic, controlled release, colorimetric diagnostics, photothermal therapy, surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection, and so forth. In this timely Focus Review, we summarize the up-to-date synthesis strategies, improved properties, and emerging applications of silica-coated metal nanoparticles. In particular, the large scale synthesis of silica-coated metal nanoparticles and the recent development of hollowed-out silica-coated metal nanoparticles by silica dissolution are emphasized for new and practical applications.

[Determination of geographical origins of Chinese medical herbs by NIR and pattern recognition].

Geographical origin of medical herbs is an important factor of the quality of many traditional Chinese herbal medicines. The objective of the present study is to investigate whether NIR spectroscopy coupled with pattern recognition techniques could effectively discriminate geographical origins of medical herbs. Nearest neighbor method (NNM) and a SVM-based multiclass classifier were employed to discriminate 269 Angelicae Dahuricae Radix (ADR) samples from 4 provinces and 380 Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix (SMR) samples from 6 provinces in China. The multiclass classifier achieves leave-one-out cross-validation accuracy of 99% for (ADR) and 95% (SMR). This classification scheme can be a highly accurate approach to the rapid and nondestructive discrimination of medical herbs of different origins.

[Use of FTIR and pattern recognition to determine geographical origins of Chinese medical herbs].

Geographical origin of medical herbs is an important factor of the quality of many traditional Chinese herbal medicines. The objective of this study is to investigate whether FTIR spectroscopy coupled with pattern recognition techniques could effectively discriminate geographical origins of medical herbs. Nearest neighbor method (NNM) and a SVM-based multiclass classifier were employed to discriminate 269 angelicae dahuricae radix (ADR) samples from 4 provinces in China and 380 salviae miltiorrhizae radix (SMR) samples from 6 provinces. A leave-one-out cross-validation accuracy of 99% was achieved by the multiclass classifier. The study shows this classification scheme can be a highly accurate approach for the discrimination of medical herbs of different origins.

Gram-scale synthesis and biofunctionalization of silica-coated silver nanoparticles for fast colorimetric DNA detection.

A direct silica-coating method has been developed for the gram-scale synthesis of well-dispersed Ag@SiO(2) nanoparticles. Subsequent surface functionalization via the well-established silica surface chemistry provided arching points for straightforward bioconjugation with amino-terminated oligonucleotides. Fast hybridization kinetics of the resulting robust oligo-modified Ag@SiO(2) nanoprobes with complementary target oligonucleotides render themselves very useful for the fast colorimetric DNA detection based on the sequence-specific hybridization properties of DNA. Additionally, the reliable protocols developed in this study for preparing and functionalizing Ag@SiO(2) nanoparticles can be readily extended to other silica-coated nanoparticles, which can also provide a specific platform for the covalent attachment of biomolecules such as amino-rich proteins, enzymes, or amino-terminated oligonucleotides for diverse bioapplications.

[A nursing experience with a child with rape trauma by using therapeutic play in an emergency room].

This article conceptualized a therapeutic game theory to discuss the pickings process of a preschool sexually violated victim with respect to nursing care delivery in our department of emergency medicine. In cooperation with the victim, we offered support to prevent her from fearing loss of her capacity for self-defense when facing a similar scenario. The overall exercise included observation time, a return outpatient visit and a follow-up phone interview. By using observation, role-play, leading drawing and interviews, we used Piaget's Cognitive Child Development model and game therapy theory to reduce the victim's sense of fear and shame, inducing the victim to eliminate her confusion by talking and to complete the whole pickings process.

[Clinical observation on treatment of multiple bone metastatic tumor of mammary cancer by combination therapy of 89Sr and Chinese herbal medicine].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical curative effects between 89Sr and its combination with the Guliu recipe (GLR, a Chinese herbal medicine) in treating multiple bone metastatic tumor of mammary cancer (MBM-MC). METHODS: By adopting the random sampling and grouping method, 89Sr alone (Sr) and 89Sr combined with CHM (Sr-GLR) were used in treating 86 and 40 patients with MBM-MC respectively. The efficacy of therapy were appraised according to the degree of ostalgia relieving and quality of life (QOF) in patients, and the effect of treatment on focal bone metabolism and bone marrow hematopoietic function were compared. RESULTS: The effective rate of Sr and Sr-GLR in relieving ostalgia was 83.72% and 95.00%, respectively (P > 0.05), the QOF improving and stabilizing rate of them 80.23% and 95.00% (P < 0.05), the effective rate on focal bone metabolism 59.30% and 52.50% (P > 0.05) and their hemo-toxicity 28.00% and 30.00% (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Sr-GLR is a combination therapy in treating MBM-MC with good effect, it could raise the patient's QOF, enhance the ostalgia relieving effect without increasing the hemo-toxicity of treatment.