Cinnamon effectively inhibits the activity of leukemia stem cells.

Cinnamon is the main component of Sanyangxuedai, which is one of the effective traditional Chinese medicines for treating malignancies. Leukemia is a prevalent malignant disease that Sanyangxuedai has been used to treat. Although successful in several studies, there is a lack of solid evidence as to why Sanyangxuedai has an effect on leukemia, and little is known about the underlying mechanisms. In this study, the active ingredients of cinnamon were isolated, purified, and identified. The transwell transport pool formed with the Caco-2 cell model was used to filter the active ingredients of cinnamon by simulating the gastrointestinal barrier in vitro. Moreover, the cell morphology, cell cycle status, apoptosis status, and antigenic variation of the cell surface antigens were observed and measured in K562 cells after treatment with the active ingredients of cinnamon. Our results showed that 50-75 µM was a safe concentration of cinnamon extract for treatment of K562 cells for 72 h. The cinnamon extract caused growth inhibition of K562 cells. Cinnamon extract seemed to arrest the cells at the G1 stage and increased the apoptosis rate significantly. Interestingly, cinnamon extract treatment upregulated the expression of erythroid and myeloid differentiation antigens and downregulated that of the megakaryocytic differentiation antigens in a dose-dependent manner. Our findings indicate that cinnamon extract from Sanyangxuedai may be effective for treating leukemia.

An integrated healthcare enterprise information portal and healthcare information system framework.

The paper presents an integrated, distributed Healthcare Enterprise Information Portal (HEIP) and Hospital Information Systems (HIS) framework over wireless/wired infrastructure at National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH). A single sign-on solution for the hospital customer relationship management (CRM) in HEIP has been established. The outcomes of the newly developed Outpatient Information Systems (OIS) in HIS are discussed. The future HEIP blueprints with CRM oriented features: e-Learning, Remote Consultation and Diagnosis (RCD), as well as on-Line Vaccination Services are addressed. Finally, the integrated HEIP and HIS architectures based on the middleware technologies are proposed along with the feasible approaches. The preliminary performance of multi-media, time-based data exchanges over the wireless HEIP side is collected to evaluate the efficiency of the architecture.

Snail-headed catheter retriever: a simple way to remove catheters from female patients.

A snail-headed catheter retriever was designed to remove the Double-J* catheter from female patients. The catheter can be removed within a few minutes using topical anesthesia at the outpatient department without endoscopic instrumentation and lithotomy position. No infection or bleeding developed following the procedure and all patients tolerated it well. The cost-effective retriever can be used as a convenient alternative for Double-J catheter removal from female patients.

Studies on hyperthermic solidification as a supplement to surgical resection in the treatment of 39 advanced cases of liver cancer.

Localized hyperthermic solidification therapy employs a high temperature of around 65 degrees C to induce biological heat effects for the solidification and inactivation of the cells of visceral cancers without affecting the physiological processes of the body or any of the viscera. This technique was used in combination with surgical resection to treat 39 moderately or far advanced cases of liver cancer and quite satisfactory results were obtained. The FHCL-92B localized hyperthermic solidification apparatus, designed and manufactured under the supervision of the authors, was preliminarily put into clinical use and exhibited its efficiency. It is believed that, if the technique of localized hyperthermic solidification is introduced more widely into the field of cancer surgery for internal organs, it will be of benefit to prevent iatrogenic metastases and to promote the efficacy of cancer surgery.

Cytotoxic principles of Securinega virosa: virosecurinine and viroallosecurinine and related derivatives.

Virosecurinine (1) and viroallosecurinine (2) were isolated as two cytotoxic alkaloids from the leaves of Securinega virosa. A comparison of the cytotoxicity of 1 and several of its derivatives indicates that an alpha,beta- and a gamma,delta-unsaturated lactone located in a strained ring system, such as rings -B, -C, and -D of 1, is structurally required for significant cytotoxicity.

The role of central 5-hydroxytryptamine in acupuncture analgesia.

The role played by central 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in acupuncture analgesia (AA) has been studied in rats with the tail-flick response as the antinociceptive test. The analgesic effect of acupuncture can be enhanced or lowered by the increment or the decrement of the 5-HT level in the CNS. Furthermore, the turnover rate of 5-HT in the CNS has been found to be greatly facilitated during the period of acupuncture. The results imply that 5-HT in the CNS may be one of the most important neurochemical agents mediating AA.