[Research progress on the clinical features and mechanisms of COVID-19 combined with liver injury].

The highly contagious novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) that broke out in December 2019 has brought huge threats and losses to human society, so it has been the concern of every countries government. Presently, there are no specific drugs for COVID-19; however, a variety of potentially effective antiviral drugs, vaccines, cell therapies, traditional Chinese medicine and other methods are in clinical trials. Liver injury is a common complication of patients receiving COVID-19 treatment and its possible high incidence may affect the outcome of the disease. The pathogenesis of COVID-19 combined with liver injury in existing studies is still unclear, and relevant guidelines and expert consensuses are insufficient for clinical diagnosis and treatment. Therefore, the relevant progress and issues are now reviewed here.

Dynamic of modernizing traditional Chinese medicine and the standards system for its development.

This article reviewed the process of Traditional Chinese Medicine's modernization on a global scale. This process is motivated by the potential need for traditional medicine as a result of health transitions and increasing drug R&D based on know-how from TCM. The established standards system for modern medicine serves as a basic model yet has limitations in terms of comprehensively evaluating TCM. Spurred by policy committments, research to provide supplements suited to TCM's features and principles is underway. Advanced and interdisciplinary technology and methodology is expected to play an essential role in TCM development.

[Studies on the ganoderic acid, a new constituents from the fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum (Fr.) Karst].

Three compounds have been isolated from the dichloromethane soluble fraction of the fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum (Fr.) Karst. On basis of spectral analyses (UV, IR, MS, 1HNMR, 13CNMR and 2D-NMR), they were identified as 3, 7-dioxo-lanosta-8, 24(E)-dien-26-oic acid (I), 7 beta-15 alpha-dihydroxy-3, 11, 23-trioxo-5 alpha-lanost-8-en-26-oic acid (II) and 3 beta, 7 beta, 15 alpha-trihydroxy-11, 23-dioxo-5 alpha-lanosta-8-en-26-oic acid (III). Compound I is a new compound named ganoderic acid DM.

Function of myosin-V in filopodial extension of neuronal growth cones.

The molecular mechanisms underlying directed motility of growth cones have not been determined. The role of myosin-V, an unconventional myosin, in growth cone dynamics was examined by chromophore-assisted laser inactivation (CALI). CALI of purified chick brain myosin-V absorbed onto nitrocellulose-coated cover slips inhibited the ability of myosin-V to translocate actin filaments. CALI of myosin-V in growth cones of chick dorsal root ganglion neurons resulted in rapid filopodial retraction. The rate of filopodial extension was significantly decreased, whereas the rate of filopodial retraction was not affected, which suggests a specific role for myosin-V in filopodial extension.

Species limits in Rhizobium populations that nodulate the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris).

Evolutionary genetic relationships among 146 bean-nodulating Rhizobium strains, including 94 field isolates from three localities in Colombia and 36 strains from Mexico, were examined by multilocus enzyme electrophoresis and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of a PCR-amplified 260-bp segment of the 16S rRNA gene. Seventy-five electrophoretic types (ETs), corresponding to multilocus enzyme genotypes, were identified, including a genotypically diverse group of 18 ETs in Colombia that is strongly differentiated from the ETs of R. etli, which occur in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. Most strains of the distinctive Colombian ETs carried the same 16S rRNA allele as did strains of R. etli, but, surprisingly, 17 isolates of two of these ETs had the allele that is characteristic of R. leguminosarum, and strains of two other divergent groups of ETs were also polymorphic for the two alleles. No fully satisfactory explanation for the occurrence of the R. leguminosarum 16S rRNA allele in three distantly related groups of strains is available, but horizontal transfer and recombination of the gene, in whole or in part, would seem to be more plausible than convergence in nucleotide sequence.

Enkephalin involvement in acupuncture analgesia-radioimmunoassay.

Since there are several endogenous morphine-like substances differing in distribution and probably also in function, it seems necessary to study their roles in acupuncture analgesia separately. Therefore we set up a sensitive and specific radioimmunoassay (RIA) for met- and leu-enkephalin, and employ it in determining the changes of enkephalin contents in the brain regions and CSF during acupuncture. The main results are as follows: (i) Two enkephalins increase markedly in hypothalamus and striatum during acupuncture analgesia. (ii) Prior intraventricular bacitracin enhances the acupuncture analgesia with concomitant increased contents of enkephalins in the brain and CSF. (iii) Cycloheximide, the protein-synthesis inhibitor, reduces the enkephalin-increasing effect of acupuncture, indicating that one of the mechanisms by which acupuncture elevates the enkephalin levels is the acceleration of biosynthesis. (iv) After surgical isolation of rat hypothalamus, the effect of electric acupuncture is attenuated. This indicates that hypothalamus takes part in acupuncture analgesia.