Yoga and music intervention reduces inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and oppositional defiant disorder in children's consumer with comorbid ADHD and ODD.

Introduction: To analyze the impact of yoga and music intervention on child consumers, we selected 60 eligible child consumers from yoga and music companies. Methods: This preliminary study used a randomized controlled design to investigate whether a 16-week combined yoga and music intervention improves attention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) in 60 children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) comorbid with ODD aged 4-6 years. It also preliminarily identified which intervention is best for these children among three types: combined yoga and music, yoga-only, and musiconly interventions. We used both the parent- and teacher-rated MTA SNAP-IV ADHD Rating Scale for data collection. Results: We found that the combined yoga and music intervention had a positive effect on inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and ODD in children with comorbid ADHD and ODD. The combined yoga and music intervention was the most effective in reducing inattention (in repeated measures ANOVA effect size, 0.9; followed by the yoga- and the music-only interventions, respectively), hyperactivity/impulsivity (effect size, 0.92), and ODD behaviors (effect size, 0.93) in children with comorbid ADHD and ODD. Thus, the combined yoga and music intervention was the most effective and had a more comprehensive effect on children with combined ADHD and ODD compared with the two other interventions (i.e., yoga- and music-only interventions). Discussion: Our findings provide preliminary evidence for the use of combined yoga and music interventions on a daily basis as a safe and effective adjunctive treatment for children with comorbid ADHD and ODD. The children in the article refer to child consumers of yoga and music companies.

Method for real-time prediction of cutter wear during shield tunnelling: A new wear rate index and MCNN-GRU.

Cutter wear is one of the key factors influencing construction efficiency during shield tunnelling. Prediction of cutter wear can improve construction efficiency by reducing the times of cutter inspections in engineering practice. Evaluation of cutter life is vital for cutter wear prediction, however, existing cutter life indices can only estimate the health condition of all cutters on cutterhead on a holistic basis. A new index was proposed to evaluate cutter wear located at a specific installation position on cutterhead. A deep learning model integrating the index was developed for the estimation of accumulated cutter wear during real time shield tunnelling. The new index can be obtained by monitored field parameters and can predict cutter wear with historical wear patterns. The input and output data samples were reshaped for multi-step prediction. A shield tunnelling section in Guangzhou weathered granite was used for validation. The proposed method can help reduce the cost of cutter replacement by reducing the times of machine interventions. The method article is a companion paper to the original article [1].•Proposed index for prediction of cutter wear rate.•Deep learning model of 1D-CNN and GRU.•Multi-step cutter wear prediction.

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter clinical trial of Xiehuang Jiejing granule in the treatment of cough variant asthma in children.

BACKGROUND: Cough variant asthma (CVA), also called concealed asthma or allergic asthma, is the most common cause of chronic cough in children. The disorder is mainly characterized by a nonproductive dry cough associated with a high recurrence rate that is conventionally treated with antibiotics, anti-inflammatory medications, cough suppressants, or expectorants. For millennia, Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) has been used widely in China to treat pediatric CVA cases, although high-quality evidence of CHM efficacy is lacking. In this study, the effectiveness and safety of Xiehuangjiejing (XHJJ) granule will be evaluated when used alone to treat children with CVA. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A randomized, double-blind, parallel, placebo-controlled multicenter trial will be conducted over the course of 2 weeks. A total of 180 CVA patients of ages between 4 and 7 years old will be randomly assigned to the experimental group (XHJJ granules, 4.5 g administered 3 times daily) or control group (matched placebo, 4.5 g administered 3 times daily) in a 2:1 ratio based on subject number per group, respectively. The trial will consist of a 7-day medical interventional stage and a 7-day follow-up stage. On day 7 of the follow-up stage, an evaluation of all subjects will be carried out to assess cough symptom score as the primary outcome and several secondary outcomes, including TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) syndrome score, lung function, and dosage of salbutamol aerosol inhaler therapy. Safety assessments will also be evaluated during the trial. DISCUSSION: The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness and safety of Xiehuangjiejing (XHJJ) granule using a trial protocol designed to yield high-quality, statistically robust results for use in evaluating CHM as a treatment for CVA in children.

Clinical efficacy of melatonin as adjunctive therapy to non-surgical treatment of periodontitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of adjunctive melatonin supplementation on clinical outcomes after non-surgical periodontal treatment. METHODS: PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases were systematically searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of melatonin adjuvant therapy for periodontitis from inception until May 2021. The systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines and registered on The International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (CRD42021250630). The risk of bias of included studies was assessed according to the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. The pooled effect estimates were calculated by a random-effects model, and results were expressed as weighted mean differences (WMD). RESULTS: Seven RCTs comprising 412 participants were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled results showed that adjuvant use of melatonin for non-surgical periodontal treatment significantly improved the probing depth (PD) [WMD = - 1.18, 95% CI (- 1.75, - 0.62) I2 = 85.7%], clinical attachment loss (CAL) [WMD = - 1.16, 95% CI (- 1.60, - 0.72) I2 = 76.7%] and gingival index (WMD = - 0.29, 95%CI [- 0.48, - 0.11], I2 = 63.6%) compared with non-surgical treatment alone. In addition, subgroup analysis showed that higher doses of melatonin (3-10 mg) significantly improved PD [WMD = - 1.32, 95%CI (- 2.31, - 0.15) I2 = 93%] and CAL [WMD = - 1.30, 95%CI (- 1.80, - 0.81) I2 = 73.7%] compared with lower doses of melatonin (< 3 mg). CONCLUSIONS: We found that adjunctive melatonin supplementation can significantly improve the periodontal status after non-surgical treatment, suggesting that melatonin may be a new adjuvant therapy for periodontitis when non-surgical periodontal treatment alone cannot achieve the desired improvement.

Gut microbiome alterations in colitis rats after moxibustion at bilateral Tianshu acupoints.

BACKGROUND: The pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis (UC) is closely related to the gut microbiota. Moxibustion has been used to improve the inflammation and gastrointestinal dysfunctions in gastrointestinal disorders such as UC. In this study, we investigated whether moxibustion could improve the gut microbial dysbiosis induced by dextran sulphate sodium. METHODS: Twenty-five male rats were randomly assigned into five groups. The UC rat model was established by administering DSS solution. The rats in the moxibustion and normal rats with moxibustion groups were treated with moxibustion at Tianshu (bilateral, ST25) points, and the mesalazine group rats were treated with mesalazine once daily for 7 consecutive days. Disease activity index (DAI) and haematoxylin and eosin staining were used to evaluate the effect of moxibustion. Gut microbiota profiling was conducted by metagenomic high throughput sequencing technology. The gut microbiota composition, diversity and function were analyzed and compared using metagenomics methodologies. RESULTS: The DAI scores and histopathology scores in the moxibustion and mesalazine groups were significantly decreased compared with the UC group (P < 0.01). Moxibustion treatment increased abundance levels of Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Ascomycota, Synergistetes and decreased abundance of Firmicutes, Proteobacteria. At the genus level, the abundance of Bacteroides, Bacteroides_bacterium_M7, Prevotella, Bacteroidales_bacterium_H2, were increased and Bacteroides_bacterium_H3, Parabacteroides, Porphyromonas, Alistipes, Parasutterella were decreased in the UC group in comparsion with those in the NG group. Moxibustion increased the abundance of Bacteroides and Bacteroides_bacterium_H3 and decreased Bacteroides_bacterium_M7, Prevotella, Bacteroidales_bacterium_H2. In UC group, the specie Bacteroides_massiliensis was negatively (P < 0.05) correlated with IL-23, Bacteroides_eggerthii_CAG109 and Bacteroides_eggerthii were negatively (P < 0.05) correlated with TGF-ß. And the species Prevotella_sp_CAG1031 and Bacteroides_bacterium_H2 were significant positively (P < 0.05) correlated with IL-23. In addition, compare with the normal group, genes involved in certain metabolic pathways, such as energy production and conversion, amino acid transport and metabolism, carbohydrate transport and metabolism, were under-represented in the UC group, and these changes in the metabolic pathways could be reversed by moxibustion treatment and mesalazine treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that moxibustion treatment may protect the host from mucosal inflammation by modulating the intestinal microbiota community.

Astragalus polysaccharides attenuate pulmonary fibrosis by inhibiting the epithelial-mesenchymal transition and NF-κB pathway activation.

Astragalus polysaccharides (APS), the active ingredients isolated from the plant Astragalus, have been reported to have numerous biological activities, including anti­inflammatory and antitumor activities. However, the effect of APS on pulmonary fibrosis (PF) remains unknown. The present study aimed to evaluate the protective effect of APS against PF and to explore its underlying mechanisms by using in vivo and in vitro models. A mouse in vivo model of bleomycin­induced PF and an in vitro model of transforming growth factor ß1 (TGF­ß1)­stimulated human lung epithelial A549 cells were established. Histopathologic examination and collagen deposition were investigated by hematoxylin and eosin staining and Masson staining, and by detecting the hydroxyproline content. The expression of related genes was analyzed by western blotting, reverse transcription­quantitative (RT­q) PCR, immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry. The results from the in vivo mouse model demonstrated that treatment with APS could ameliorate collagen deposition and reduce fibrotic area and hydroxyproline content in the matrix. Furthermore, APS significantly inhibited the epithelial­mesenchymal transition (EMT), as evidenced by an increased level of E­cadherin and a decreased expression of vimentin and alpha smooth muscle actin. Furthermore, APS treatment significantly decreased TGF­ß1­induced EMT and NF­κB pathway activation in vitro. The results from the present study provided new insights on PF regression via the anti­fibrotic effects of APS.

Efficacy and safety of elemene combined with chemotherapy in advanced gastric cancer: A Meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Elemene is a natural compound extracted from Zingiberaceae plants, and is used in various cancer. However, the efficacy and safety elemene combined with chemotherapy in advanced gastric cancer (GC) are lack of systematic assessment. METHODS: we searched the PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China Academic Journals (CNKI), Chinese Science and Technology Journals (CQVIP) and Chinese Biomedical Literature databases. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing elemene plus chemotherapy with chemotherapy alone in participants with advanced GC and reporting at least one of the following outcomes were selected and assessed for inclusion. JADAD scale was used to assess the quality. Data was screened and extracted by two independent investigators. The primary clinical outcome was overall response rate (ORR); the secondary outcomes were quality of life (QOL) and adverse events (AEs). Analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3. RESULTS: Sixteen RCTs matched the selection criteria, which reported on 969 subjects. Risk ratios (RR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled for ORR, life quality based on KPS, and risk of AEs. Compared to chemotherapy alone, elemene combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of GC may increase the efficiency of ORR(RR: 1.41; 95% CI: 1.23-1.60; P < .0001), improve their life quality based on KPS (RR: 1.84; 95% CI: 1.45-2.34; P < .00001), and reduce the adverse reactions, including leukopenia(RR: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.62-0.85; P < .00001), neutropenia (RR: 0.75; 95% CI: 0.60-0.95; P = .02), anemia (RR: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.60-0.95; P = .02), thrombocytopenia (RR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.43-0.73; P < .00001). Nausea and vomiting (RR: 0.84; 95% CI: 0.84-1.07; P = .39), diarrhea (RR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.41-1.15; P = .15), neurotoxicity (RR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.59-1.00; P = .05) and hepatic dysfunction (RR: 0.95; 95% CI: 0.58-1.54; P = .83) were similar between two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Elemene may have the potential to improve the efficacy and reduce the AEs of chemotherapy for gastric cancer. However, the long-term, high-quality researches with a large sample size in different populations are required.

Meta-Analysis of Astragalus-Containing Traditional Chinese Medicine Combined With Chemotherapy for Colorectal Cancer: Efficacy and Safety to Tumor Response.

This meta analysis evaluated the comparative safety and efficacy for the addition of Astragalus-based Chinese medicines combined with chemotherapy and chemotherapy alone for colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment. Systematic literature search was performed by PubMed, EMBSAE, Ovid, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Chinese Science and Technology Journals (CQVIP), China Academic Journals (CNKI), and Chinese Biomedical Literature database. A total of 22 studies which reported on 1,409 subjects were identified. This meta-analysis indicated that the combination of Astragalus-based Chinese medicines and chemotherapy may increase the efficiency of tumor response rate (TRR) for the treatment of CRC patients (RR: 1.52; 95% CI: 1.24-1.87; p < 0.0001), improve their life quality based on KPS (RR: 2.51; 95% CI: 1.85-3.42; p < 0.00001 and WMD: 10.96; 95% CI: 9.45-12.47; p < 0.00001), and reduce the adverse reactions, including neutropenia (RR: 0.52; 95% CI: 0.44-0.62; p < 0.00001), anemia (RR: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.34-0.70; p < 0.0001), thrombocytopenia (RR: 0.59; 95% CI: 0.46-0.77; p = 0.0001), nausea and vomiting (RR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.46-0.68; p < 0.00001), diarrhea (RR: 0.55; 95% CI: 0.40-0.75; p = 0.0001), and neurotoxicity (RR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.49-0.65; p < 0.00001). Hepatic dysfunction (RR: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.53-1.09; p = 0.13) and renal dysfunction (RR: 0.95; 95% CI: 0.51-1.76; p = 0.87) were similar between two groups. The results showed that Astragalus-based Chinese medicines combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of CRC may increase the efficiency of TRR, reduce chemotherapeutic agents-associated adverse reactions, and improve their life quality when compared with chemotherapy alone, but further randomized studies are warranted.

Emodin alleviates myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury by inhibiting gasdermin D-mediated pyroptosis in cardiomyocytes.

BACKGROUND: Emodin has recently been reported to have a powerful antiinflammatory effect, protecting the myocardium against ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Pyroptosis is a proinflammatory programmed cell death that is related to many diseases. The present study investigated the effect of emodin on pyroptosis in cardiomyocytes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham, I/R, and I/R+Emodin groups. I/R model was subjected to 30 minutes' ligation of left anterior descending coronary artery, followed by 2 hours of reperfusion. Cardiomyocytes were exposed to hypoxic conditions for 1 hour and normoxic conditions for 2 hours. The level of the pyroptosis was detected by Western blot, real-time PCR analysis, and ELISA. RESULTS: The level of gasdermin D-N domains was upregulated in cardiomyocytes during I/R or hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) treatment. Moreover, emodin increased the rate of cell survival in vitro and decreased the myocardial infarct size in vivo via suppressing the levels of I/R-induced pyroptosis. Additionally, the expression of TLR4, MyD88, phospho-IκBα, phospho-NF-κB, and the NLRP3 inflammasome was significantly upregulated in cardiomyocytes subjected to H/R treatment, while emodin suppressed the expression of these proteins. CONCLUSION: This study confirms that emodin treatment was able to alleviate myocardial I/R injury and inhibit pyroptosis in vivo and in vitro. The inhibitory effect of emodin on pyroptosis was mediated by suppressing the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB/NLRP3 inflammasome pathway. Therefore, emodin may provide an alternative treatment for myocardial I/R injury.

Moxibustion treatment modulates the gut microbiota and immune function in a dextran sulphate sodium-induced colitis rat model.

AIM: To investigate the effect and mechanism of moxibustion in rats with ulcerative colitis. METHODS: A rat colitis model was established by administering 4% dextran sulphate sodium solution. Seventy male rats were randomly divided into seven groups: Healthy controls (HC), ulcerative colitis model group (UC), UC with 7 d of moxibustion (UC-7), UC with 14 d of moxibustion (UC-14), UC with mesalazine gavage (UC-W), HC with 7 d of moxibustion (HC-7), HC with 14 d of moxibustion (HC-14). Moxibustion was applied to the bilateral Tianshu (ST25). Gut microbiome profiling was conducted by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, and PCR and ELISA determined the expression of inflammatory cytokines in colon mucosa and serum, respectively. RESULTS: Moxibustion treatment restored the colonic mucosa and decreased submucosal inflammatory cell infiltration in colitis rats. Rats treated with moxibustion and mesalazine had significantly lower levels of the dominant phyla Proteobacteria and the genera Saccharibacteria, Sphingomonas and Barnesiella than colitis rats, and they could restore the microbiome to levels similar to those observed in healthy rats. UC rats had reduced alpha diversity, which could be alleviated by moxibustion therapy, and UC-7 had a higher alpha diversity than UC-14. This finding suggests that short-term (7 d) but no longer term (14 d) moxibustion treatment may significantly affect the gut microbiome. The potential bacterial functions affected by moxibustion may be ascorbate and aldarate metabolism, and amino acid metabolism. Compared with HC group, the levels of the cytokines interleukin-12 (IL-12) (P < 0.05) and IL-6, IL-17, IL-23, interferon-γ, lipopolysaccharide, IgA, tumour necrosis factor-α and its receptors 1 (TNFR1) and TNFR2 (P < 0.01) were all increased, whereas anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-2 and IL-10 (P < 0.01) and transforming growth factor-ß (P < 0.05) were decreased in UC rats. These changes were reversed by moxibustion. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that moxibustion exerts its therapeutic effect by repairing mucosal tissue damage and modulating the gut microbiome and intestinal mucosal immunity.

Chemical composition and functional characteristics of dietary fiber-rich powder obtained from core of maize straw.

A novel dietary fiber (MsCDF) based core of maize straw (Core) was prepared by using high boiling solvent of sodium peroxide by high pressure pretreatment (HBSHP). The composition of MsCDF, and several physicochemical properties for MsCDF related to its nutritional quality were investigated. The results revealed that the MsCDF contains high contents total dietary fiber (TDF), soluble dietary fiber (SDF), insoluble dietary fiber (IDF) and two main monosaccharaides, xylose and glucose. Meanwhile, the studies of physicochemical properties of MsCDF indicated that MsCDF performed well water-holding capacity (WHC), oil-holding capacity (OHC), Swelling, solubility (SOL), Glucose dialysis retardation index (GDRI) and adsorption capacity on cholesterol. The results of this study serve as evidence that MsCDF can be used as a functional food additive, Core can be used as a crude material to produce MsCDF and the technology of HBSHP can be used to modify the physico-chemical properties of Core.

Sorafenib: A potential therapeutic drug for hepatic fibrosis and its outcomes.

Hepatic fibrosis is a common response to liver injury that occurs in almost all liver diseases and is characterized by an excessive deposition of extracellular matrix, which can cause hepatic dysfunction and develop into cirrhosis. There is no curative treatment except liver transplantation and few treatments have been thoroughly validated in the clinic or commercialized as a therapy. Recently, sorafenib, an FDA approved molecular targeted drug for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular and renal cell carcinomas, has been reported to exert anti-fibrotic effects in liver fibrosis. Animal models showed that sorafenib ameliorated intrahepatic vascular resistance, reduced portal hypertension, and reduced intrahepatic fibrosis, inflammation and angiogenesis. In this review, we highlight the potential molecular, cellular, microenvironmental mechanisms underlying the antifibrotic effects of sorafenib in fibrotic liver disease, and briefly discuss the potential of sorafenib for hepatic fibrogenesis and major complications in clinical treatments. There is a long way to go before sorafenib can be applied in preclinical practice and clinical therapy of liver fibrosis. Further studies are required to clarify its anti-fibrotic role, effective dose, and side effects.

Clinical Observation of Mild Moxibustion at Fengchi (GB20) for Cervical Spondylosis of Vertebral Artery Type / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of mild moxibustion at bilateral Fengchi (GB20) in treating vertigo due to cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type, and its effect on the blood flow of vertebral artery.Method A total of 103 eligible patients with cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type were randomized into two groups. Patients in the observation group were intervened by mild moxibustion at bilateral Fengchi; the control group was given oral administration of Nimodipine. The blood flow velocity was compared before and after the treatment, and the clinical efficacies of the two groups were compared.Result After the treatment, the systolic velocity (Vs) (left vertebral artery, LVA; right vertebral artery, RVA), mean velocity (Vm) (LVA, RVA) and diastolic velocity (LVA, RVA) of the observation group were better than those of the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05); at the end of the intervention and 3 months after, the Dizziness Assessment Rating Scale (DARS) scores of the observation group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.05); at the end of the intervention, the markedly effective rate was 80.0% in the observation group versus 62.3% in the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05).Conclusion Mild moxibustion at bilateral Fengchi can improve the blood flow of vertebral artery in patients with cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type, and produce a significant efficacy.

Clinical Observation of Mild Moxibustion at Fengchi (GB20) for Cervical Spondylosis of Vertebral Artery Type / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of mild moxibustion at bilateral Fengchi (GB20) in treating vertigo due to cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type, and its effect on the blood flow of vertebral artery.Method A total of 103 eligible patients with cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type were randomized into two groups. Patients in the observation group were intervened by mild moxibustion at bilateral Fengchi; the control group was given oral administration of Nimodipine. The blood flow velocity was compared before and after the treatment, and the clinical efficacies of the two groups were compared.Result After the treatment, the systolic velocity (Vs) (left vertebral artery, LVA; right vertebral artery, RVA), mean velocity (Vm) (LVA, RVA) and diastolic velocity (LVA, RVA) of the observation group were better than those of the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05); at the end of the intervention and 3 months after, the Dizziness Assessment Rating Scale (DARS) scores of the observation group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.05); at the end of the intervention, the markedly effective rate was 80.0% in the observation group versus 62.3% in the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05).Conclusion Mild moxibustion at bilateral Fengchi can improve the blood flow of vertebral artery in patients with cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type, and produce a significant efficacy.

[Detection of Cinnabars in Mongolian Medicines Using Raman Spectroscopy].

Cinnabar could soothe the nerves and the powder of cinnabar is always added in traditional Chinese medicine or mongolian medicines. The surface-enhanced Raman spectrum of cinnabar was identified using a portable Raman spectrometer and most structure vibration information was obtained. The results show that the Raman peaks of cinnabars were located at 253, 290, 343 cm(-1) and this three Raman characteristic peaks were selected for cinnabar identification. Meanwhile, the Raman spectra of several mongolian medicines were collected. The results showed that Raman signal of cinnabar could be observed in several mongolian medicines which contain cinnabar and Raman signal of cinnabar couldn't be detected in several mongolian medicines without cinnabar. In addition, the cinnabar in the oral ulcer powder was semi-quantitative analyzed and the limit of detection could reach to 10% of mass fraction. The relationship between the doped amount of cinnabar in the oral ulcer powder and the Raman intensity of characteristic peak was fitted and the correlation coefficient (r) was 0.995 9, which validated the accuracy of the result. This Raman analysis method for cinnabar detection is rapid, simple and accurate and it can be applied widely in mongolian medicines determination.

[Effect of extract of radix tetrastigma hemsleyani on apoptosis of human lung carcinoma H1299 cells and its mechanism study].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of extract of Radix Tetrastigma hemsleyani on the proliferation and apoptosis of human lung carcinoma H1299 cells, and to explore its mechanisms. METHODS H1299 cells were treated with the extract of Radix Tetrastigma hemsleyani in different concentrations at different time points. Its inhibition on H1299 cell proliferation was detected by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. The morphology of the H1299 cell was observed by inverted microscope. Changes of apoptosis were observed by Hoechst33258 methods. The apoptosis rate was detected by flow cytometry. Expression changes of apoptosis-related proteins pro-caspase-3, pro-caspase-9, cle-caspase-3, cle-caspase-9, and poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the inhibition rate of H1299 cells increased after acted by 0.5, 1, 5, and 10 mg/mL extract of Radix Tetrastigma hemsleyani (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). The longer the acting time, the higher the inhibition rate (P < 0.01). Under inverted microscope, typical morphological changes could be seen and the number of H1299 cells was reduced. Under fluorescence microscope, dark stained nucleus and formed apoptotic body could be observed. Results of flow cytometry showed that the apoptosis rate was obviously dose-effect correlated with the concentration of extract of Radix Tetrastigma hemsleyani. Results of Western blot indicated that compared with the control. group, the protein expression of pro-caspase-3, pro-caspase-9, and PARP were down-regulated and that of cle-caspase-3, cle-caspase-9, and cle-PARP were up-regulated by 5 and 10 mg/mL extract of Radix Tetrastigma hemsleyani (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Extract of Radix Tetrastigma hemsleyani had obvious effect in inhibiting the proliferation and inducing apoptosis of human lung carcinoma H1299 cells, which might be achieved by activating the expression of caspase protein.

The resolution of aglinin A epimers and their NMR assignments.

Aglinin A (1) is a mixture of C(24)-epimeric 20S,24-epoxy-24,25-dihydroxy-3,4-secodammar-4(28)-en-3-oic acid and present in plants of the family Meliaceae. The two epimers of 1 were resolved through an acetonide reaction, and the absolute configurations of two derivatives were deduced by the analysis of their (13)C NMR differences induced by γ-gauche or steric effect. Based on it, the (13)C NMR assignment of 24R-1 and 24S-1 was also established.

Recent developments and contributions from Chinese scientists in multidimensional separations for proteomics and traditional Chinese medicines.

The most basic task in proteomics remains the detection and identification of proteins from a biological sample, and the most traditional way to achieve this goal consists in protein separations performed by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-D PAGE). Yet the 2-D PAGE-mass spectrometry (MS) approach has its drawbacks with regard to automation, sensitivity, and throughput. Consequently, considerable effort has been devoted to the development of non-gel-based proteome separation technologies in an effort to alleviate the shortcomings of 2-D PAGE. In addition, traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), due to their long period of clinical testing and reliable therapeutic efficacy, are attracting increased global attention. However, hundreds or even thousands of components are usually present in TCMs, which results in great difficulties of separation. As a mainstream separation tool, multidimensional liquid separation systems have shown powerful separation ability, high peak capacity, and excellent detectability in the analysis of complex samples including biological samples and TCMs, etc. Therefore, this review emphasizes the most recent advances in multidimensional liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis-based separation techniques, and the corresponding applications in proteomics and TCMs. In view of the significant contributions from Chinese scientists, this review focuses mainly on the work of Chinese scientists in the above fields.

Development of gas chromatography/mass spectrometry following headspace solid-phase microextraction for fast determination of asarones in plasma.

Asarones (alpha-asarone and beta-asarone) are the active components in the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) of Acorus tatarinowii Schott, which has been used to treat epilepsy for several thousand years. To perform the pharmacokinetics (PK) study of alpha- and beta-asarone from the TCM essential oil, a simple, rapid and sensitive method was developed for the determination of asarones from the TCM in rabbit plasma, based on headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) followed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) with electron ionization (EI). The extraction parameters of headspace volume, fiber coating, sample temperature, extraction time, stirring rate and ion strength were systemically optimized. Furthermore, the method linearity, detection limit and precision were also investigated. It was shown that the proposed method provided a good linearity (0.02-20 microg/mL, R(2) > 0.99), low detection limit (<2.0 ng/mL) and good precision (RSD < 7.0%). Finally, HS-SPME followed by GC/MS was applied to fast determination of alpha- and beta-asarone in rabbit plasma at different time points after oral adminstration of the essential oil from A. tatarinowii. The experimental results suggest that the proposed method provides an alternative approach to the PK studies of volatile compounds in TCMs.

[Investigate into of effective constituent transference of herba Ephedrae and cortex Magnoliae officinalis in preparation course of Shujin Kechuan capsule].

OBJECTIVE: Investigate into transport rate and retention rate transference of principal effective constituent in Shujin Kechuang capsule, a new development Chinese patent medicine for theraphy asthma. METHOD: HPLC was applied to analyze the content of ephedrine hydrochloride and honokiol and magnolol in crude drugs and 60% ethanol extracting solution and 25% concentrated solution,50% concentrated solution, 100% concentrated solution and finished product ( Shujin Kechuang capsule). RESULT: The transport rate of ephedrine hydrochloride and honokiol and magnolol is 56. 32%, 14. 43%, 14. 56% in the finished product respectively. CONCLUSION: should be concentrate and desiccation in the condition that decompress and low temperature.