[Attribution between yin meridians and five zang organs in Tianhui medical slips].

The records in Ni Shun Wu Se Mai Zang Yan Jing Shen of Tianhui medical slips are generally viewed as the attribution between five zang organs and meridians and also have the confusion about the "absence" of "liver" and its attributive meridian. In the paper, by elaborating the contents of this medical slip, it is discovered that the statement refers to "pulsating site" specially for the diagnosis of five zang disorders and has nothing to lose. In fact, it reflects a specific stage in the construction of meridian theory, meaning "taishao yinyang" system in the connection between five zang organs and yin meridians of hand and foot.

Archaeobotanical evidence of the use of medicinal cannabis in a secular context unearthed from south China.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: As one of the first plants used by ancient people, cannabis has been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. The long history of medicinal cannabis use contrasts with the paucity of archaeobotanical records. Moreover, physical evidence of medicinal cannabis use in a secular context is much rarer than evidence of medicinal cannabis use in religious or ritual activities, which impedes our understanding of the history of medicinal cannabis use. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aims to provide archaeobotanical evidence of medicinal cannabis use and analyse the specific medicinal usage of cannabis in a secular context in ancient times. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Plant remains were collected from the Laoguanshan Cemetery of the Han Dynasty in Chengdu, South China, with the archaeological flotation process and were identified based on morphological and anatomical characteristics. The examination of the medicinal significance of the remains relied on the investigation of the documentation on unearthed medical bamboo slips, the diseases of the tomb occupants, the cemetery's cultural background and Chinese historical records. RESULTS: The botanical remains were accurately identified as cannabis. More than 120 thousand fruits were found, which represents the largest amount of cannabis fruit remains that have been statistically analysed from any cemetery in the world thus far. The cannabis fruits are suspected to have been used for medical purposes in a secular context and were most likely used to stop severe bleeding of the uterus and treat lumbago and/or arthralgia. CONCLUSIONS: The cannabis fruit remains reported here likely represent the first physical evidence of medicinal cannabis use for the treatment of metrorrhagia, severe lumbago, and/or arthralgia. This study emphasizes the importance of the evidence of the diseases suffered by the occupants of the tomb in determining the medicinal use of cannabis in a secular context and contributes to a comprehensive understanding of the ancient history of medicinal cannabis.

[Relationship between the residual Jingmai in Tianhui medical slips and Jingmai in Lingshu].

Except the complete literature of Maishu: Xiajing, Tianhui medical slips unearthed in Chengdu also include a part of literature document on meridian, which was seriously damaged. Both of them were found in the same box together with Yimashu. The title of the document chapter was not found in the residual medical slips. By investigated the textual content, it was discovered that such medical slips were different from the Mawangdui silk books, i.e. Yinyang Shiyimai Jiujing and Zubi Shiyimai Jiujing, Maishu of Zhangjiashan bamboo slips of Han Dynasty, as well as Maishu: Xiajing in Tianhui medical slips. But, the sentences in description are similar to the sentences of Jingmai in Lingshu (Miraculous Pivot), therefore, this residual slips was named as Jingmai (Meridian) by the collator. In the paper, by the comparison of this residual slip chapter with the unearthed literature document on meridian as well as Jingmai in Lingshu, the origin and evolution of meridian theory of traditional Chinese medicine in the Qin and Han dynasties were explained. By taking it as an example, the construction process of classical theory of traditional Chinese medicine was explored.

[Identification of Chinese character ""in Huangdi Neijing and "" in Taisu].

In order to identify the differences between "" in Huangdi Neijing (The Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic) and "" in Taisu (Grand Simplicity of the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic), the edition of Ninna-ji, Japan, the author analyzed all "" and ""of the extant Huangdi Neijing, its annotation books, its handed-down books and its collated books during the past dynasties. "" and "" are similar in Chinese character pattern. The authors had also analyzed the evolution factors of Chinese character patterns in detail, which induced the misunderstanding of "" as "". Hence, the phonology and Chinese exegetics were adopted in analysis. "" and "()" were completely same in ancient pronunciation. In compliance with the theory as seeking for the connotation from the pronunciation, "" was explained as "()", meaning cleft needling or point needling. Additionally, the academic significance of "" was explored. It was believed that it was the specific recognition stage from the vessel to the point regarding the sites of acupuncture and moxibustion in terms of the differences in needling techniques, i.e. vessel needling, muscle needling or tendon needling. It is concluded that "" resulted from the misunderstanding of "" in the books of different dynasties, hence, the mistakes in the explanation and annotation of "" since the Northern Song Dynasty have been clarified.

[Interpreting the Methods for Blending Decoctions to Treat 60 Ailments in Tianhui bamboo slip medical manuscripts].

Among the medical texts excavated in 2012-2013 from the Han Dynasty tomb at Tianhui township in Sichuan province, we found a collection on the treatment of 60 ailments. Under each ailment, we found one or more formulas, for a total of 106 formulas. The authors of this paper compiled and analyzed these texts based on the original bamboo slips and named this collection with the title Methods for Blending Decoctions to Treat 60 Ailments because the content was focused on blending and making medicinal formulas, and also due to the historical connections with the texts the Record of the Court Scribe, "Biography of Bian Que and Cang Gong". For these reasons, this title was determined, where "blending decoctions" mean "blending and harmonizing medicines optimally in preparation for decocting". The Tianhui texts preserve ancient forms of medicinal formulas, including some once believed to be lost, such as "grain decoctions", "fermented alcohol decoctions", and "fiery decoctions". Based on the historical evidence, we can now ascertain that this text is the "Blending Formulas and Making Decoctions" mentioned in the Record of the Court Scribe written by Cang Gong. Moreover, the medical texts, Canon Formulas in Decoction Form (from the book of Han Dynasty) and the Imperial Pharmacy Formulas to Benefit the People in Song Dynasty are both of this genre of medical literature. The Tianhui text is therefore a representative of this genre of literature in the Western and eastern Han, acting as a key link between early medical formula books and later formula books.

[Acupuncture techniques recorded in the Tianhui bamboo slips of medicine in the tomb of the Han Dynasty].

Ci Shu was nominated after the collection of the bamboo slips of medicine unearthed from the tomb of the Han Dynasty in Tiahui county, Chengdu of Sichuan Province. It is the special chapter on the therapeuticmethods of acupuncture, providing the valuable new historical evidences for the study on the inheritance and evolution of acupuncture in TCM. In the paper, using the cross-proof method among the unearthed literature, the inherited literatures and the unearthed relics, the ancient acupuncture techniques at the early Western Han Dynasty were explored. It was discovered that the manipulations of the different needling techniques, such as pulse needling and intermuscular needling, as well as the forms of the needling tools provided the evidences to the Nine Needles recorded in Lingshu (Miraculous Pivot) and the archaeological discovery. There were many acupuncture prescriptions, reflecting the needling methods recorded in Shiji: Canggong Zhuan (Records of the Grand Historian: Biography of CANG Gong) and Suwen: Miuci Lun (Plain Questions: On Contralateral Puncture) as well as Bianque needling chart, the stone portrait of the Han Dynasty. The close combination between the acupuncture needling techniques and the pulse diagnosis indicates the theoretic essence of the meridian medicine at the ancient time.

Highly sensitive detection of 25-HydroxyvitaminD3 by using a target-induced displacement of aptamer.

For the prevention of 25-HydroxyvitaminD3 deficiency, in this study, aptamers which can bind to 25-HydroxyvitaminD3 with high specificity and affinity, were successfully developed by using immobilization-free, graphene oxide-based systemic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (GO-SELEX) method. The 9 sequences including VDBA14 aptamer were obtained out of 16 aptamer candidates, based on the specificity and affinity of the aptamers confirmed by both the gold nanoparticles (AuNPs)-based colorimetric assay and the isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) method. Among them, the aptamer, VDBA14, developed in this study was found to show a great affinity to 25-HydroxyvitaminD3, with 11nM of its Kd value. Moreover, the circular dichroism (CD) analysis data indicated the target-induced displacement of the aptamer VDBA14clearly. In addition, this target-induced change of the aptamer was also confirmed again by conducting two different experimental formats, the use of streptavidin-coated 96-well plates and the use of magnetic beads. The results clearly indicated that the structure of VDBA14 aptamer was changed upon the binding of the target, 25-HydroxyvitaminD3, and so the indicator sequences (partially complementary to the aptamer sequence) tagged with an enzyme as a signaling molecule could be de-hybridized from the aptamer. Finally, the limit of detection for vitamin D based on AuNPs-based colorimetric assay using VDBA14 aptamer was found to be 1µM. All these results were taken together, the aptamer which was developed could play an exquisite role in the fields of early medical diagnosis of vitamin D deficiency with accurate, rapid and simple analytical method.

High-throughput prescreening of pharmaceuticals using a genome-wide bacterial bioreporter array.

We assessed the applicability of multi-strain bacterial bioreporter bioassays to drug screening. To this end, we investigated the reactions of a panel of 15 luminescent recombinant Escherichia coli bacterial bioreporters to a library of 420 pharmaceuticals. The panel included bacterial bioreporters associated with oxidative stress, DNA damage, heat shock, and efflux of excess metals. Eighty nine drugs elicited a response from at least one of the panel members and formed distinctive clusters, some of which contained closely related drugs. In addition, we tested a group of selected nine drugs against a collection of about 2000 different fluorescent transcriptional reporters that covers the great majority of gene promoters in E. coli. The sets of induced genes were in accord with the in vitro toxicity of the tested drugs, as reflected by the response patterns of the 15-member panel, and provided more insights into their toxicity mechanisms. Facilitated by microplates and robotic systems, all assays were conducted in high-throughput. Our results thus suggest that multi-strain assemblages of bacterial bioreporters have the potential for playing a significant role in drug development alongside current in vitro toxicity tests.

[Chemical Constituents from Rhizome of Valeriana jatamansi].

OBJECTIVE: To study the chemical constituents from the rhizome of Valeriana jatamansi. METHODS: The chemical constituents were separated and purified by silica gel, medium pressure column chromatography, and preparative HPLC. Their structures were determined by physicochemical properties and spectral data. RESULTS: Six compounds were isolated from the dibromochloromethane extract in the rhizome of Valeriana jatamansi, and identified as decursidin (1), decursitin B (2), decursitin A (3), 3'(S)-acetoxy-4'(R)-angeloyloxy-3',4'-dihydroxanthyletin (4), 8-acetoxyl-pathchouli alcohol (5) and dibutyl phthalate (6). CONCLUSION: Compounds 1-4 are coumarins which are isolated from this genus for the first time,and compound 6 is isolated from this genus for the first time.

Protecting traditional knowledge of Chinese medicine: concepts and proposals.

With the development of the knowledge economy, knowledge has become one of the most important resources for social progress and economic development. Some countries have proposed measures for the protection of their own traditional knowledge. Traditional Chinese medicine belongs to the category of intangible cultural heritage because it is an important part of Chinese cultural heritage. Today the value of traditional knowledge of Chinese medicine has been widely recognized by the domestic and international public. This paper discusses the definition of traditional knowledge of Chinese medicine and its protection, and evaluates research on its classification. We review the present status of the protection of traditional knowledge of Chinese medicine and tentatively put forward some possible ideas and methods for the protection of traditional knowledge of Chinese medicine. Our goal is to find a way to strengthen the vitality of traditional Chinese medicine and consolidate its foundation. We believe that if we could establish a suitable sui generis(sui generis is a Latin term meaning "of its own kind" and is often used in discussions about protecting the rights of indigenous peoples. Here we use it to emphasize the fact that protection of traditional knowledge of Chinese medicine cannot be achieved through existing legal means of protection alone due to its unique characteristics) system for traditional knowledge, a more favorable environment for the preservation and development of traditional Chinese medicine will ultimately be created.

[Recording of classical prescriptions and materia medica in the Han Dynasty].

Shennong Bencaojing was orignally recorded in Qi Lu of the Liang Dynasty and Tangye Jingfa (about prescriptions) was originally recorded in Hanshu Yiwenzhi. According to the norm of the development of knowledge, knowledge about medical herbs should have been formed before that of prescriptions. In accordance with literature, Tangye Jingifa is recorded in QI Lue of the Western Han Dynasty, which was compiled much earlier than Shennong Bencaojing. So where was the knowledge about herbs recorded in the Western Han Dynasty and before? It was found after textual research that knowledge about medical herbs was recorded together with prescriptions long before the Han Dynasty. In the Western Han Dynasty, Liu Xiang and his colleagues placed herbs under the catalogue of prescriptions when they proofread books. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, materia medica became a single category due to the need to compose prescriptions according to syndrome differentiation and the standardization of herbal administration.

Analysis of the effects diclofenac has on Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes) using real-time PCR.

The expression levels of cytochrome P450 1A, p53 and vitellogenin were investigated in three different tissues of male medaka fish after exposure to diclofenac that is one of the main concerns among pharmaceuticals frequently found in sewage treatment plant (STP) effluents. The results showed that cytochrome P450 1A, p53 and vitellogenin were highly expressed in tissue-specific gene expression patterns after exposure to 8 mg/l and 1 microg/l of diclofenac. These elevated expression levels of three biomarkers suggested that diclofenac has potential to cause cellular toxicity, p53-related genotoxicity and estrogenic effects. It is also noteworthy that diclofenac has the potential to cause these effects even at an environmentally relevant concentration of diclofenac, 1 microg/l.

Construction and evaluation of nagR-nagAa::lux fusion strains in biosensing for salicylic acid derivatives.

The NagR protein is a response regulatory protein found in the bacterium Ralstonia sp. U2 that is involved in sensing for salicylic acid and the subsequent induction of the operon just upstream of its gene. The genes encoded for in this operon are involved in the degradation of salicylic acid. Escherichia coli strain RFM443 carrying a fusion of the Photorhabdus luminescens luxCDABE operon with the nagR gene and upstream region of the nagAa gene was constructed and characterized with respect to its optimum temperature, its response time and kinetics, and its ability to detect numerous benzoic acid derivatives. Although capable of detecting 0.5 mM salicylic acid at any temperature between 28 and 40 degrees C, this E. coli strain, labeled DNT5, showed its greatest relative activity at 30 degrees C, i.e., the temperature at which the largest induction was seen. Furthermore, experiments done with numerous benzoic acid derivatives found the NagR protein to be responsive to only a few of the compounds tested, including salicylic acid and 3-methyl salicylic acid, and acetyl salicylic acid was the strongest inducer. The lower limits of detection for these compounds with E. coli strain DNT5 were also established, with the native inducer, salicylic acid, giving the most sensitive response and detectable down to a concentration of about 2 microM. A second lux fusion plasmid was also constructed and transformed into an NahR background, Pseudomonas putida KCTC1768. Within this strain, NAGK-1768, the supplemental activity of the NahR protein on the nagAa promoter, was shown to extend both the range of chemicals detected and the sensitivity.