Association between obstructive sleep apnea and low bone mass in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: This study aimed to synthesize existing evidence on the potential association between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and low bone mass in adults. Methods: Electronic searches of four main databases were performed. The inclusion criteria consisted of observational studies investigating the relationship between OSA and bone mass, osteoporosis, fractures, or bone metabolism markers in adult population. Bone mineral density (BMD) and T score of lumbar and femur neck, incidence of osteoporosis and fractures, bone metabolism marker levels were extracted as primary outcomes. Results: Among the 693 relevant publications, 10 studies consisting of 158,427 participants met with the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed a significant lower BMD of lumbar (mean difference (MD) = - 0.03; 95% CI - 0.05, - 0.01; I2 = 46%), femur neck (MD = - 0.06; 95% CI - 0.12, 0.00; I2 = 71%), and a significant lower T score of lumbar (MD = - 0.42; 95% CI - 0.79, - 0.05; I2 = 63%) in the OSA group. The results suggested that both male (odds ratio (OR) = 2.03; 95% CI 1.23, 3.35; I2 = 38%) and female (OR = 2.56; 95% CI 1.96, 3.34; I2 = 0%) had higher risk of osteoporosis in the OSA group. Besides, meta-analysis also showed that bone-specific alkaline phosphatase was significantly lower in OSA patients (MD = - 1.90; 95% CI - 3.48, - 0.32; I2 = 48%). Conclusions: A potential association between OSA and lower bone mass in adults is preliminarily proved. It also seems plausible that both male and female with OSA have a higher risk of osteoporosis. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s41105-023-00481-1.

Integrative traditional Chinese medicine treatment for children with obstructive sleep apnea.

Purpose: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic disease that affects 1%-6% of children. Our study aims to explore the effectiveness and clinical characteristics of integrative Traditional Chinese Medicine (ITCM) for pediatric OSA. Materials and methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we assessed differences of polysomnography (PSG) parameters and clinical characteristics between 2009 and 2020. Children <12 years old diagnosed with OSA (n = 508) were included and were categorized into ITCM cohort, western medicine (WM) cohort ,and surgery cohort. Outcomes were apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), respiratory disturbance index (RDI), and body mass index (BMI). Results: There were 56 (11%), 324 (63.8%), and 128 (25.2%) patients in the ITCM, WM, and surgery cohorts. Among 17, 26, and 33 patients in the ITCM, WM, and surgery cohorts underwent follow-up PSG studies, respectively. In the ITCM follow-up cohort, AHI were significantly reduced (9.59 to 5.71, p < 0.05). BMI significantly increased in the WM follow-up cohort (19.46 to 20.50, p < 0.05) and the surgery follow-up cohort (18.04 to 18.85, p < 0.01). Comparing ITCM to WM cohort, a significant difference was found between the changes in RDI (ITCM: -6.78, WM: 0.51, p < 0.05) after treatment. Among ITCM follow-up cohort, the most prescribed TCM formula was Forsythia and Laminaria Combination. The most prescribed TCM herb was Ephedrae Herba. Conclusions: ITCM therapy can significantly reduce RDI and control BMI. We identified potential TCM treatments for pediatric OSA. Further study of the pharmacological mechanisms and clinical efficacy is warranted.

Effects of Organic Elicitors on the Recycled Production of Ginkgolide B in Immobilized Cell Cultures of Ginkgo biloba.

Ginkgo biloba is a medicinal plant used in complementary and alternative medicines. Ginkgo biloba extracts contain many compounds with medical functions, of which the most critical is ginkgolide B (GB). The major role that GB plays is to function as an antagonist to the platelet-activating factor, which is one of the causes of thrombosis and cardiovascular diseases. Currently, GB is obtained mainly through extraction and purification from the leaves of Ginkgo biloba; however, the yield of GB is low. Alternatively, the immobilized cultivation of ginkgo calluses with biomaterial scaffolds and the addition of organic elicitors to activate the cell defense mechanisms were found to stimulate increases in GB production. The aim of this study was to use Ginkgo biloba calluses for immobilized cultures with different elicitors to find a more suitable method of ginkgolide B production via a recycling process.

Regular Glucosamine Use May Have Different Roles in the Risk of Site-Specific Cancers: Findings from a Large Prospective Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies indicated that glucosamine supplements may have a general anticancer effect. This study aimed to assess whether the potential effect differs across different types of cancers in a large prospective cohort study. METHODS: All participants from the UK Biobank who were free of cancers and had complete information on glucosamine use at baseline were included and followed up from 2006 until 2021. Cox proportional hazards models were used to assess the associations between regular glucosamine use and different site-specific cancers. Subgroup analyses were performed to explore potential interactions. Several sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess the robustness of the main findings. RESULTS: A total of 450,207 eligible participants (mean age: 56.2 years; females: 53.3%) were included, of whom 84,895 (18.9%) reported regular glucosamine use at baseline. During a median of 12.5 years follow-up, glucosamine use was significantly associated with an increased risk of overall cancer [HR, 1.04; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01-1.06], skin cancer (HR, 1.11; 95% CI, 1.07-1.15), and prostate cancer (HR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.01-1.13), and with a reduced risk of lung cancer (HR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.79-0.97) after adjusting for potential confounders. Statistical interaction was observed for gender, age, and education for the association of glucosamine use with overall cancer risk (all Pinteraction < 0.027). These results remained unchanged in the sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Regular glucosamine use was associated with lower risk of lung cancer but higher risk of skin cancer, prostate cancer, and overall cancer. IMPACT: The roles of glucosamine use potentially differ in the development of different site-specific cancers.

Analysis on research hotspots and trends in the field of TCM for cervical cancer based on CiteSpace / 国际中医中药杂志

Objective:To analyze the research hotspots and trends in the field of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for cervical cancer at home and abroad in recent 30 years through visualization method.Methods:By setting "cervical cancer" and "TCM" as the research subjects, the articles were retrieved from CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, SinoMed, PubMed, and Web of Science Core database (WoS) from January 1, 1992 to January 1, 2022. Citespace 5.8 R3 software was used to conduct visual analysis on the authors, institutions and keywords included in the articles.Results:A total of 1 123 Chinese articles and 573 English articles were included. The number of articles issued showed a gradual upward trend; the author with the largest number of Chinese publications was Jin Zhe, and the author with the largest number of English publications was Chen Guo. The institution with the largest number of Chinese publications was Beijing University of Chinese Medicine; the institution with the largest number of English publications was Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. Keywords co-occurrence of the top 3 Chinese keywords in the network frequency (excluding the search words) were "cervical erosion", "urinary retention" and "Yunnan Baiyao"; English keywords were "HeLa cell", "bibliometric", and "information monitoring system". Chinese keywords formed 11 clusters and 25 emergent words; English keywords formed 9 clusters and 17 emergent words.Conclusions:The research content in the field of TCM of cervical cancer about knowledge map in the past 30 years at home and abroad is rich. TCM can play the role of antagonizing human papillomavirus, enhancing immune function, regulating TCM constitution, improving quality of life and so on. At present, the research hotspot is the mechanism exploration of cervical cancer and the curative effect research of clinical complications, and the research trend is clinical curative effect research.

Association of Chinese herbal medicine use with the depression risk among the long-term breast cancer survivors: A longitudinal follow-up study.

Background: Breast cancer patients are at elevated risk of depression during treatment, thus provoking the chance of poor clinical outcomes. This retrospective cohort study aimed to investigate whether integrating Chinese herbal medicines citation(CHM) into conventional cancer therapy could decrease the risk of depression in the long-term breast cancer survivors. Methods: A cohort of patients aged 20-70 years and with newly diagnosed breast cancer during 2000-2008 was identified from a nationwide claims database. In this study, we focused solely on survivors of breast cancer at least1 year after diagnosis. After one-to-one matching for age, sex, and baseline comorbidities, breast cancer patients who received (n = 1,450) and did not receive (n = 1,450) CHM treatment were enrolled. The incidence rate and hazard ratio citation(HR) for depression between the two groups was estimated at the end of 2012. A Cox proportional hazard model was constructed to examine the impact of the CHM use on the risk of depression. Results: During the study period, the incidence rate of depression was significantly lower in the treated cohort than in the untreated cohort [8.57 compared with 11.01 per 1,000 person-years citation(PYs)], and the adjusted HR remained significant at 0.74 (95% CI 0.58-0.94) in a Cox proportional hazards regression model. The corresponding risk further decreasing to 43% among those using CHM for more than 1 year. Conclusion: Finding from this investigation indicated that the lower risk of depression observed in breast cancer patients treated with CHM, suggesting that CHM treatment should be considered for disease management toward breast cancer. Yet, the optimal administered dose should be determined in further clinical trials.

Relationship between the use of Chinese herbal medicines and Sjögren syndrome risk among women with menopause: a retrospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Menopausal women appear to report a higher risk of Sjögren syndrome (SS). Although Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) are proven to lower SS risk, the scientific evidence of whether it can lessen the occurrence of SS among menopausal women is limited. This longitudinal cohort study aimed to clarify the relationship between CHMs use and SS risk in menopausal women. METHODS: Using a nationwide claims data, we enrolled 31,917 women with first-time diagnosed menopause who simultaneously were free of SS between 2000 and 2007. Among them, we randomly selected 12,757 CHMs users and 12,757 non-CHMs users using propensity scores matching. All participants were followed until the end of 2012 to record SS incidence. The hazard ratio of SS with regard to CHMs use was estimated using the Cox proportional hazards regression model. RESULTS: In the follow-up period, 589 CHMs users and 644 non-CHMs users developed SS, representing incidence rates of 5.12 and 6.40, respectively, per 1,000 person-years. CHMs use was associated with a 21% lower subsequent risk of SS (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.71-0.89). Six commonly prescribed CHMs were discovered to be associated with lower SS risk: Ge-Gen-Tang, Zhi-Gan-Cao-Tag, Da-Huang, Ye-Jiao-Teng, Tian-Hua-Fen, and Bo-Zi-Ren. CONCLUSIONS: A statistically significant association was found between CHMs use and lower risk of SS onset in menopausal women, suggesting that CHMs could be considered to integrate it into conventional therapy to reduce subsequent SS risk for menopausal women.

Study on the mechanism of Coptidis rhizoma in treating gastritis based on network pharmacology / 国际中医中药杂志

Objective:To investigate the mechanism of Coptidis rhizoma in the treatment of gastritis based on network pharmacology. Methods:The main components and targets of Coptidis rhizoma were screened by TCMSP and TCMID database. GeneCards were used to select the target genes related to gastritis from the human gene database, and the target genes related to gastritis were screened by Genemap in the OMIM database. We used R language VennDiagram package to crosse the gene targets of drugs and diseases, and screen the target of the main components of Coptidis rhizoma in the treatment of gastritis, and to use Cytoscape software to map the gene regulatory network of galangal in the treatment of gastritis, and to use the String database to construct the gene-protein of Coptidis rhizoma. The interaction visualization network map for protein- protein interaction (PPI) were screened out the core genes, and the Bioconductor in the R language was used to analyze the GO and KEGG pathways for the selected gene targets. Results:Fourteen main active compounds of Coptidis rhizoma were screened, and 71 gene targets may be involved in the treatment of gastritis. The results of GO and KEGG pathway analysis indicated that berberine mainly involves cytokine receptor binding, regulation of cytokine activity, and biological processes such as binding to heme, by regulating AGE-RAGE, IL-17, TNF, NF-kappa B and HIF-1. The signaling pathway acts to treat gastritis. Conclusions:This study constructed the role of berberine in the treatment of gastritis with multi-active component, multi-gene, multi-target pathway through network pharmacology. It comprehensively predicted the gene target and signaling pathway of Coptidis rhizoma in the treatment of gastritis, in order to further study the treatment of berberine. The mechanism of action of gastritis provides a reference basis.

Unraveling the Molecular Mechanism of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Formulas Against Acute Airway Viral Infections as Examples.

Herbal medicine, including traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is widely used worldwide. Herbs and TCM formulas contain numerous active molecules. Basically, they are a kind of cocktail therapy. Herb-drug, herb-food, herb-herb, herb-microbiome, and herb-disease interactions are complex. There is potential for both benefit and harm, so only after understanding more of their mechanisms and clinical effects can herbal medicine and TCM be helpful to users. Many pharmacologic studies have been performed to unravel the molecular mechanisms; however, basic and clinical studies of good validity are still not enough to translate experimental results into clinical understanding and to provide tough evidence for better use of herbal medicines. There are still issues regarding the conflicting pharmacologic effects, pharmacokinetics, drug interactions, adverse and clinical effects of herbal medicine and TCM. Understanding study validation, pharmacologic effects, drug interactions, indications and clinical effects, adverse effects and limitations, can all help clinicians in providing adequate suggestions to patients. At present, it would be better to use herbs and TCM formulas according to their traditional indications matching the disease pathophysiology and their molecular mechanisms. To unravel the molecular mechanisms and understand the benefits and harms of herbal medicine and TCM, there is still much work to be done.

Characterization of the Aroma-Active Compounds in Commercial Fragrant Rapeseed Oils via Monolithic Material Sorptive Extraction.

Commercial fragrant rapeseed oil (CFRO), from roasted and hot-pressed seeds, is enjoyed in China for its unique aroma. However, the characteristic of aroma-active compounds in CFRO is still unclear. In this study, a new odor monolithic material sorptive extraction method was established to trap volatiles from rapeseed oil. Thirty CFROs were investigated using this method coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. A total of 29 volatile compounds were identified by gas chromatography-olfactometry including pyrazines, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, and sulfur compounds. Further, 2,5-dimethylpyrazine (peanut-like), 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine (roasted nut-like), dimethyl trisulfide (cabbage-like), 4-isothiocyanato-1-butene (pungent and pickle-like), butyrolactone (caramel-like), and benzyl nitrile (pungent and sulfur-like) are affirmed as the key odorants for the overall aroma of CFRO, owing to their odor activity values ≥1. This work provides a new insight on acquiring aroma-active compounds from rapeseed oil in a more time-effective process compared to conventional methods. Futhermore, this novel approach is applicable in the field of food flavor.

[Study on morphological classification and chemical-type of Perilla frutescens cultivated germplasm].

Fifty cultivated Perilla seeds were collected all over the country and planted in Beijing experiment field for morphology and chemical-type researches. Twenty morphological characteristics were selected and observed, and the essential oil from leaves was extracted by steam distillation and analyzed by GC-MS to confirm chemical-types. There were significant diversities in plant height, leaf color and morphology, and fruit color and weight. Clustering analysis was carried out based on these morphological characteristics. Six types were divided with their chemical-type designated. Type Ⅰ: Six germplasms, attributed to P. frutescens var. crispa, with dwarf plants, thin creased purple leaf, named Crispa, their chemical types were diversified, including EK, PAPK, PA and PK. Type Ⅱ: Six germplasms, attributed to P. frutescens var. crispa, plants were taller than type I and with thin and creased green leaf, named Big Crispa, all PK type. Type Ⅲ: Seventeen germplasms, attributed to P. frutescens var. frutescens with leaf color upside green and underside purple, tall plant and wide distribution all over the China, named Ordinary Frutescens, all PK. Type Ⅳ: Four germplasms, attributed to P. frutescens var. acuta with tall plant and small seed, named Acuta, all PK. Type Ⅴ: Seven germplasms, attributed to P. frutescens var. frutescens with green leaves, tall plants and long clusters, named Long-spike Frutescens, all PK. Type Ⅵ: Ten germplasms, attributed to P. frutescens var. frutescens with big, thick and creased leaf, named Thick-leaf Frutescens, including PK, PP, PL and PA. The morphological classification of this paper would lay the foundation for the taxonomic naming and following evaluation of the Perilla germplasm resources.This study also showed that there was no correspondence but a certain correlation between volatile oil chemical-types and subspecies classification and morphological characteristics of Perilla.

Trend of subsequent epilepsy in children with recurrent febrile seizures: A retrospective matched cohort study.

PURPOSE: Trends of epilepsy in children were correlated with febrile seizure (FS) in a previous retrospective study. In the present study, the authors obtained relevant data from a nationwide cohort database to investigate trends in subsequent epilepsy in children with a history of recurrent FS. METHODS: A total of 10,210 children with FS comprised the cohort. The diagnosis date was used as the index date. A comparison cohort was randomly matched with each case based on age, sex, urbanization level, parents' occupation, and index date. Cox proportional hazard regression was performed to estimate the hazard ratio and confidence interval of FS-associated epilepsy. RESULTS: This retrospective cohort study included 7729 children with FS and a comparison cohort of 30,916 children. The incidence of epilepsy was 11.4-fold higher in the FS cohort than in the comparison cohort (5.67 vs. 0.49 per 1000 person-years, respectively). Compared with the comparison cohort, the epilepsy incidence rate ratio increased in children with admissions for FS, from 8.62 at 1 admission to 26.2 at ≥2 admissions (95% CI 6.80-10.9, and 19.78-34.8, respectively; p for trend < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: FS may increase the risk for subsequent epilepsy in children. Recurrent FS increased the cumulative incidence of epilepsy.

16-Hydroxycleroda-3, 13-dien-15, 16-olide inhibits the proliferation and induces mitochondrial-dependent apoptosis through Akt, mTOR, and MEK-ERK pathways in human renal carcinoma cells.

BACKGROUND: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is well known that it cannot be treated with traditional chemotherapy or radiotherapy. 16-Hydroxycleroda-3,13-dien-15,16-olide (CD), isolated from Polyalthia longifolia Benth. & Hook. f. var. pendula had been reported to display significant efficacy against cancer cell lines. PURPOSE: To determine the anti-tumour activities of CD in two clear cell type RCC (ccRCC) cell lines (A-498 and 786-O). In addition, the underlying mechanisms were also examined. METHODS: The cell viabilities of CD-treated ccRCC cells were examined by MTT assay. The apoptotic features were confirmed by acridine orange and ethidium bromide staining. 2',7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate was used to check reactive oxygen species (ROS) involvement. Mitochondria membrane potential (MMP) were determined by using fluorescent dyes, rhodamine 123 and 5',6,6'-tetrachloro-1,1',3,3'-tetraethyl benzimidazolylcarbocyanine iodide (JC-1). Proapoptotic, anti-apoptotic proteins and intracellular signaling molecules involved in CD-induced apoptosis were examined by Western blot analysis. RESULTS: CD inhibited both 786-O and A-498 cell proliferation and induced a series apoptotic characteristics expressions, ROS accumulation, caspase-3 activation as well as poly-(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage in both ccRCC cells. Additionally, CD caused MMP reduction and cytochrome c release from mitochondria as well as inhibition of anti-apoptotic proteins, including B cell lymphoma 2 and heat shock protein 70. Mechanically, we address that CD suppressed cell proliferation and induced apoptosis via induction of FOXO3a as well as decreased phosphorylation of Akt, mTOR, MEK/ERK and their downstream molecules, cMyc and hypoxia inducible factor 2α expression in a concentration- and time-dependent trend. CONCLUSION: CD caused cell death through ROS overproduction and induction of mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathway in ccRCC cells that accompanied with multiple oncogenic signals inactivation.

[Morphological characteristics of Chinese Perilla fruits].

The morphological traits of 55 Chinese Perilla fruit samples (size, 100 grains weight, color, hardness, surface ridge height) are described and the statistically analyzed. It can be divided into 6 categories by cluster analysis, namely: Ⅰ, big grain (diameter 1.5 mm above and 100 grains weight above 0.16 g), low ridge, hard; Ⅱ, big grain, low ridge, soft; Ⅲ, big grain, high ridge, soft, fruit; Ⅳ, big grain. high ridge, gray brown or dark brown; Ⅴ, small grain (diameter 1.5 mm below and 100 grain weight 0.16 g below), low ridge, hard, dark brown; Ⅵ, small grain, low ridge, hard, yellow brown. The 38 fruit samples were planted, among which 31 ones were P. frutescens var. frutescens, 4 ones P. frutescens var. crispa and 3 ones P. frutescens var. acuta. By chemotype classification, they were 29 PK type, 3 PA type, 2 PL type, 2 PP type, 1 EK type and 1 PAPK type. According the description of herb Perillae Fructus in China Pharmacopoeia, the plant originates from P. frutescens var. frutescens. In contrast, not all fruits of P. frutescens var. frutescens have accord features. The fruits with white pericarp are mainly from P. frutescens var. frutescens with purple leaves. The materials with small grain, low ridge, hard, yellow brown or dark brown, are likely to be PA type and mainly P. frutescens var. crispa.

[Research on effects of chemotype and components of Perilla frutescens leaf volatile oil I: different phenological periods].

This experiment researched on three kinds of Perilla frutescens including the widespread PK, PA and rare PL chemotype. The Perilla samples were the mature leaves collected in nutrition, flowering and frutescence three different phenological periods, and at 7 am, 12 pm and 6 pm three day time. The volatile oil was extracted by steam distillationand analyzed by GC-MS, as a result, the three chemotype samples'volatile oil yield was between 0.08% and 0.96%; volatile oil yield of different growth period was as follow: nutrition>flowering>fructescence, and the volatile oil yield of nutrition period: PA type>PK type>PL type. Each chemotype was not affected by the growth and development, indicating that the chemotype is determined by genetic factors. Characteristic and main components of PA and PK type are relatively stable, and the characteristic components of PL type are significantly decreased with the growth. There are still a large number of upstream metabolism components, and the chemical type may have their primitiveness and changeability. The relative content of perillaldehyde, characteristic components of PA type, is basically decreased from morning to night, in all the period. The relative content of perillaketone, characteristic components of PK type, in nutrition and flowering period, when samples were collected at 12 noon is relatively higher than that at 7 am and 6 pm, and contrary to samples collected in frutescence period. The relative content of perillene, characteristic components of PL type, in nutrition and frutescence period are highest at 12 noon, while in flowering period is highest at 6 pm. According to the volatile oil yield and relative content of maincomponents, the best harvest time of PA type is in the morning of the nutrition period; the best harvest time of PK type is in the morning of all the period; and the best harvest time of PL type is at dusk of the nutrition period.

Allergic Conjunctivitis and the Associated Risk of Migraine Among Children: A Nationwide Population-based Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: To investigate the risk of migraine in children with allergic conjunctivitis (AC). METHODS: In this population-based cohort study, 309 138 children with AC and 309 138 non-AC controls were included between 2000 and 2007. By 2008 end, the incidences of migraine in both cohorts, and the AC-to-non-AC cohort hazard ratios (HRs) were measured. RESULTS: The incidence of migraine during the study period was 1.92-fold higher in the AC cohort than in the non-AC cohort. The risk was greater for boys with AC and children aged <6 years. The mean time-interval between physician-diagnosed AC to physician-diagnosed migraine was 3.67 years (SD = 2.19).The risk of migraine development in the AC cohort increased with follow-up time and was highest during 4-5 years after AC diagnosis. The children with AC more likely had migraine without than with aura. CONCLUSIONS: Children with AC had a higher incidence and subsequent risk of migraine.

[Perilla resources of China and essential oil chemotypes of Perilla leaves].

This study, based on the findings for Perilla resources, aimed to describe the species, distribution, importance, features, utilization and status of quantitative Perilla resources in China. This not only helps people to know well about the existing resources and researching development, but also indicates the overall distribution, selection and rational use of Perilla resource in the future. According to the output types, Perilla resources are divided into two categories: wild resources and cultivated resources; and based on its common uses, the cultivated resources are further divided into medicine resources, seed-used resources and export resources. The distribution areas of wild resources include Henan, Sichuan, Anhui, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Hunan, Jiangsu and Zhejiang. The distribution areas of medicine resources are concentrated in Hebei, Anhui, Chongqing, Guangxi and Guangdong. Seed-used resources are mainly distributed in Gansu, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Chongqing and Yunnan. Export resource areas are mainly concentrated in coastal cities, such as Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shandong and Zhejiang. For the further study, the essential oil of leaf samples from different areas were extracted by the steam distillation method and analyzed by GC-MS. The differences in essential oil chemotypes among different Perilla leaves were compared by analyzing their chemical constituents. The main 31 constituents of all samples included: perillaketone (0.93%-96.55%), perillaldehyde (0.10%-61.24%), perillene (52.15%), caryophyllene (3.22%-26.67%), and α-farnesene (2.10%-21.54%). These samples can be classified into following five chemotypes based on the synthesis pathways: PK-type, PA-type, PL-type, PP-type and EK-type. The chemotypes of wild resources included PK-type and PA-type, with PK-type as the majority. All of the five chemotypes are included in cultivated resources, with PA-type as the majority. Seed-used resources are all PK-type, and export resources are all PA-type. The P. frutescens var. frutescens include five chemotypes, with PK-type as the majority. The PK-type leaves of P. frutescens var. acuta are green, while the PA-type leaves are reddish purple. The P. fruteseens var. crispa was mainly PA type with reddish purple leaves. The differences of the main chemotypes provide a scientific basis for distinguishing between Zisu and Baisu in previous literatures. Based on the lung toxicity of PK and the traditional use of Perilla, the testing standard of essential oil and Perilla herb shall be built, and PA type is recommended to be used in traditional Chinese medicine.

[Advances in research of volatile oil and its different chemotypes in leaves of Perilla frutescens].

The volatile oil is the main component in the leaves of Perilla frutescens. According to the main types of monoterpenoids or aromatic compounds, it can be divided into different chemotypes and the main chemotypes of Chinese producing Perilla are PA type (mainly containing Perilla aldehyde and limonene), PK type (mainly containing perillaketone) and PP type (subdivided as PP-a type, with apiole as its main component; PP-m type, with myristicin as its main component; PP-e type, with elemicin as main component; PP-as type, with asarone as main component). Based on the biosynthetic pathways analysis, we also found that the formation of the particular chemotype is usually controlled by a single gene or a few genes, and different types have different pharmacological effects. In this paper, the classification under the species P. frutescens, main chemotypes of the volatile oil, and their biogenesis and regulation, pharmacological effect and influence factors are summarized and reviewed.

Natural hybridization and asymmetric introgression at the distribution margin of two Buddleja species with a large overlap.

BACKGROUND: Natural hybridization in plants is universal and plays an important role in evolution. Based on morphology it has been presumed that hybridization occurred in the genus Buddleja, though genetic studies confirming this assumption have not been conducted to date. The two species B. crispa and B. officinalis overlap in their distributions over a wide range in South-West China, and we aimed to provide genetic evidence for ongoing hybridization in this study. RESULTS: We investigated the occurrence of hybrids between the two species at the southern-most edge of the distribution of B. crispa using five nuclear loci and pollination experiments. The genetic data suggest substantial differentiation between the two species as species-specific alleles are separated by at least 7-28 mutations. The natural hybrids found were nearly all F1s (21 of 23), but backcrosses were detected, and some individuals, morphologically indistinguishable from the parental species, showed introgression. Pollen viability test shows that the percentage of viable pollen grains was 50 ± 4% for B. crispa, and 81 ± 2% for B. officinalis. This difference is highly significant (t = 7.382, p < 0.0001). Hand cross-pollination experiments showed that B. crispa is not successful as pollen-parent, but B. officinalis is able to pollinate B. crispa to produce viable hybrid seed. Inter-specific seed-set is low (8 seeds per fruit, as opposed to about 65 for intra-specific pollinations), suggesting post-zygotic reproductive barriers. In addition, one of the reference populations also suggests a history of introgression at other localities. CONCLUSIONS: The occurrence of morphologically intermediate individuals between B. crispa and B. officinalis at Xishan Mountain is unequivocally linked to hybridization and almost all examined individuals of the putative hybrids were likely F1s. Despite pollination experiments indicating higher chances for introgression into B. officinalis (hybrids only produced viable seed when crossed with B. officinalis), observed introgression was asymmetrical into B. crispa. This could be due to seeds produced by hybrids not contributing to seedlings, or other factors favoring the establishment of backcrosses towards B. crispa. However, further research will be needed to confirm these observations, as the small number of plants used for the pollination experiments could have introduced an artifact, for example if used individuals were more or less compatible than the species average, and also the small number of loci used could convey a picture of introgression that is not representative for the whole genome.

Neonatal jaundice and risks of childhood allergic diseases: a population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Only a few studies have systemically analyzed the association between neonatal jaundice and childhood-onset allergic diseases. METHODS: From 2000 to 2007, 27,693 neonates with newly diagnosed neonatal jaundice and 55,367 matched nonneonatal jaundice cohorts were identified. The incidences and hazard ratios (HRs) of five allergic diseases, namely allergic conjunctivitis (AC), allergic rhinitis (AR), atopic dermatitis (AD), asthma, and urticaria, by the end of 2008 were calculated. RESULTS: The incidence density and HRs of the five allergic diseases were greater in the neonatal jaundice cohort than in the nonneonatal jaundice cohort, and the HRs declined modestly with age. The HRs for AR (HR = 2.51, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.43-2.59) and AD (HR = 2.51, 95% CI = 2.40-2.62) were the highest, and that for urticaria was the lowest (HR = 2.06, 95% CI = 1.94-2.19). The HRs of allergic diseases were substantially greater for boys and those requiring phototherapy. The HRs of the allergic diseases, except urticaria (HR = 2.49, 95% CI = 1.57-3.97), were not significantly different between the neonatal jaundice regardless of whether the patients received exchange transfusion. CONCLUSION: Neonatal jaundice is associated with the development of allergic diseases in early childhood.