Effects of the composite of buckwheat-oat-pea on blood glucose in diabetic rats / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To study the effects of buckwheat-oat-pea (BOP) composite flour [buckwheat ∶ oats ∶ peas=6 ∶ 1 ∶ 1 (quality ratio)] on blood glucose in diabetic rats.@*METHODS@#In this study, 64 male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 8 groups by fasting blood glucose (FBG) and body weight: normal control group, model control group, metformin group, buckwheat group, oats group, BOP low-dose group (BOP-L), medium-dose group (BOP-M), and high-dose group (BOP-H). The rats in the normal control group were fed with normal diet, the rats in the model control group and metformin group were fed with a high-fat diet (HFD), and the rats in the buckwheat group, oats group, and BOP-L, BOP-M, BOP-H groups were fed with HFD containing 10% buckwheat flour, 10% oat flour, 3.3% BOP, 10% BOP, 30% BOP, respectively. The HFD in all the groups had the same percentage of energy from fat (45%). After 30 days, the rats fed with HFD received intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (30 mg/kg, once a week for two weeks) to establish diabetes mellitus. After the model was successful established, the rats were fed for another 28 days. During the study, the body weight, food intake/body weight (FI/BW) and water intake/body weight (WI/BW), food utilization rate, 24 h urine volume, FBG, glucose area under curve (GAUC) of oral glucose tolerance test were measured regularly. At the end of the study, the fasting serum glucose and insulin were measured, and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was calculated.@*RESULTS@#With the inducing of HFD and streptozotocin, compared with the normal control group, the rats in the model control group had higher FI/BW, WI/BW, 24 h urine volume, FBG, GAUC, HOMA-IR (P < 0.05), and lower body weight, food utilization rate (P < 0.05). Compared with the model control group, the rats in the three BOP groups all had higher body weight, food utilization rate (P < 0.05), and lower WI/BW, HOMA-IR (P < 0.05); the rats in the BOP-L and BOP-M groups had lower FI/BW, 24 h urine volume, FBG (P < 0.05), and the rats in the BOP-M group also had lower GAUC (P < 0.05). After the establishment of diabetes, there was no significant difference in blood glucose and the other indicators between the rats in the three BOP groups and the buckwheat group or the oats group (P>0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#The BOP had the effects of reducing blood glucose, insulin resistance and diabetic symptoms on diabetic rats, and had the value for further development and utilization.

Analysis of treating syndrome by I-Ching navel acupuncture / 中国针灸

Based on the theories of I-Ching and umbilicus-hologram, the navel acupuncture is considered as a new acupuncture therapy that only acupuncture at Shenque (CV 8). It has a good effect on the treatment of syndrome and provides a new treatment idea for syndrome. This article presents the definition, etiology and treatment of syndrome, and introduces the application of umbilical-holographic, the principle and method of positioning and needle-inserting, the adjustment of therapies and the analysis of cases, in order to introduce the idea of treating syndrome by I-Ching navel acupuncture.

Combination of Jianpi Liqi Yiliu Formula with Cytokine-induced Killer Cell Treatment for Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the clinical efficacy of Jianpi Liqi Yiliu Formula (JLYF) combined with cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells for treating patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Between January 2011 and January 2014, 60 advanced HCC patients were enrolled in this study, who were assigned to the treatment group and the control group according to their willingness for taking JLYF, 30 cases in each group. All patients received CIK cell treatment: 1 x 10⁹-3 x 10⁹ each time, by intravenous dripping from the 1st day to the 3rd day, once per day. Besides, patients in the treatment group took JLYF decoction, while those in the control group took Chinese medical decoction by syndrome typing. All patients received treatment of at least two cycles. The time to progression (TTP) , overall survival (OS), disease control rate (DCR), performance status scale (PS), Child-Pugh scale, and adverse reactions were observed, and subgroup analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>To May 31, 2014, all patients reached the clinical endpoint. TTP was 3.5 months (95% Cl: 3.30-4.10) in the treatment group, better than that (2.5 months, 95% CI: 2.32-2.68) of the control group (P < 0.05). DCR was 36.7% in the treatment group and 30.0% in the control group (P > 0.05). OS was 5.2 months (95% CI: 4.53-5.87) in the treatment group and 4.6 months (95% CI: 4.06-5.14) in the control group (P > 0.05). The PS scale was 1.60 ± 0.10 after treatment, lower than that (1.80 ± 0.09) before treatment in the treatment group (P < 0.05). When the PS scale was 0-2 or Child-Pugh scale was class A, TTP was longer in the treatment group than in the control group (P < 0.05). No adverse reaction occurred in the two groups during the treatment course.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The combination of JLYF with ClK cell treatment could prolong advanced HCC patients' TTP, improve PS scale, as compared with syndrome typed Chinese medical decoction treatment group. Besides, when the PS scale was 0-2 or Child-Pugh scale was class A, it was a better treatment program for advanced HCC patients.</p>

Xiaoji Decoction inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis through Akt signaling pathway in human lung cancer A549 cells / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the inhibitive effect and the underlying mechanism of Xiaoji Decoction (, XJD) in human lung cancer A549 cells.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A549 cells in logarithmic proliferation were cultivated in RPMI-1640 containing 10% low, medium or high dosages of XJD serum. The inhibitive effect of XJD in A549 cell proliferation was assessed by methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The pro-apoptotic effect of XJD in A549 cells was observed by fluorescence microscope via Hoechst 33258 staining. The role of the Akt signaling pathway was observed by examining the presence of p-Akt protein by Western blot and the mRNA expression of downstream proteins such as Bcl-2/Bcl-XL-associated death promoter (BAD) and caspase-9 by real time polymerase chain reaction.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>MTT assay revealed that XJD could inhibit A549 proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Hoechst 33258 staining showed that XJD induced the typical nuclear apoptotic morphology after XJD treatment. Moreover, XJD could reduce the phosphorylation of Akt and increase the mRNA expression of BAD and caspase-9.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>XJD can inhibit the proliferation of A549 cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner through signaling Akt pathway via up-regulating the expression of BAD and caspase-9. XJD may provide a novel therapeutic model for lung cancer and deserve further study.</p>