Effect of aridity and dune type on rhizosphere soil bacterial communities of Caragana microphylla in desert regions of northern China.

Understanding the response of soil properties and bacterial communities in rhizosphere soil to aridity and dune types is fundamental to desertification control. This study investigated soil properties and bacterial communities of both rhizosphere and bulk soils of Caragana microphylla from four sites with different aridity indices, and one site with three different types of dunes. All sites were located in the desert regions of northern China. The results indicated that compared with the bulk soil, the soil nutrient content of rhizosphere, especially the content of total phosphorus, was generally significantly improved in different desertification environments. The bacterial richness and diversity were also higher than those of bulk soil, especially in arid regions and fixed dunes. Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Acidobacteria were the most dominant phyla in all samples. The regression analyses showed that at different sites, soil total organic C, total N, Na+, and total P played key roles in determining the bacterial community structure while total organic carbon, electronic conductivity, pH and total phosphorus were the dominant factors at the different dunes. The results further revealed that the dominant phyla strongly affected by environmental factors at different sites were Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and Actinobacteria among which, Acidobacteria and Gemmatimonadetes were negatively correlated with Na+ content. At different types of dunes, Actinobacteria, Planctomycetes, and Gemmatimonadetes were particularly affected by environmental factors. The increased abundance of Actinobacteria in the rhizosphere soil was mainly caused by the decreased soil pH.

[Effect of Manual Acupuncture Stimulation of Single Acupoint or Acupoints Combination on Intestinal Movement in Slow Transit Constipation Mice].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of acupuncture stimulation of different acupoints or acupoint groups on intestinal locomotor in slow transit constipation (STC) mice, so as to provide experimental evidence for demonstrating the synergic function of acupoint combination. METHODS: A total of 190 Kunming mice were randomized into 19 groups:normal control, model, uni-"Quchi" (LI 11), uni-"Shangjuxu" (ST 37), uni-"Tianshu"(ST 25), and uni-"Dachangshu"(BL 25) groups, for analyzing the effect of single acupoint; normal control, model, uni-ST 25+uni-BL 25, uni-LI 11+uni-ST 37, bi-ST 25, bi-BL 25, bi-LI 11, and bi-ST 37 groups, for comparing the effect between single acupoint and two acupoints combination; normal control, model, bi-ST 25+bi-BL 25, bi-LI 11+bi-ST 37, and uni-LI 11+uni-ST 37+uni-ST 25 +uni-BL 25 groups, for comparing the effect between four acupoints and two acupoints combinations (10 mice/group). The STC model was established by intragastric administration of compound diphenoxylate suspension (1 mg/100 g), once daily for 2 days. Manual acupuncture needle stimulation (200 twirling times/min for 1 min) was applied to the abovementioned unilateral or bilateral acupoints twice daily for 7 times. The first defecation time, the defecation grain number in 12 h and the intestinal propulsion rate were determined using activated carbon gavage. RESULTS: Compared with the normal group, the first defecation time was significantly increased in the STC model group (P<0.01), while the 12 h defecation grain number and the intestinal propulsion rate were considerably decreased in the model group (P<0.01). After manual acupuncture intervention, the first defecation time was notably shortened in the uni-LI 11, uni-ST 37, uni-ST 25, uni-BL 25, bi-ST 25, bi-BL 25, bi-LI 11, bi-ST 37, uni-ST 25+uni-BL 25, uni-LI 11+uni-ST 37, bi-ST 25+bi-BL 25, bi-LI 11+bi-ST 37 and the uni-ST 25+uni-BL 25+uni-LI 11+uni-ST 37 groups compared with the model group (P<0.05), while both the 12 h defecation grain number and intestinal propulsion rate were considerably increased in the abovementioned 13 acupuncture groups (P<0.05, P<0.01). The effects of uni-ST 25+uni-BL 25 and uni-LI 11+uni-ST 37 were significantly superior to those of bi-ST 25, bi-BL 25, bi-LI 11 and bi-ST 37 groups, and those of the uni-ST 25+uni-BL 25+uni-LI 11+uni-ST 37 group were markedly superior to those of bi-ST 25+bi-BL 25 and bi-LI 11+bi-ST 37 groups in shortening the first defecation time and in increasing the 12 h defecation grain number and intestinal propulsion rate (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture stimulation of LI 11, ST 37, ST 25 and BL 25 can improve constipation in STC mice, and the effect of two acupoints combination is significantly superior to that of the corresponding bilateral single acupoint, and that of the 4 unilateral single acupoint combination is obviously superior to that of two bilateral acupoints combination, suggesting a synergistic action of acupuncture stimulation.

[Exterior-interior correlation of "heart" and body surface based on researches of classic literature and modern animal experiments].

Exterior-interior relationship of meridians and zangfu organs is an important component of the theory of acupuncturology in Chinese medicine. According to the descriptions in classic works of Chinese medicine and findings of modern experimental researches, in the present paper, the authors analyzed the close association between the "Heart" and "Small Intestine", exterior-interior correlation between the Heart Meridian and Small Intestine Meridian, and between the "Heart" and body surface (acupoints), limbs, five sensory organs, etc. In addition, the authors also summarized the underlying mechanisms of the above-mentioned exterior-interior relationship of the "Heart" and put forward some proposals for the future researches.