Long-term atorvastatin or the combination of atorvastatin and nicotinamide ameliorate insulin resistance and left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in a murine model of obesity.

Current studies aimed at investigating the association between atorvastatin therapy and insulin resistance (IR) appear to be controversial. IR is considered to be an important contributor to inducing cardiac dysfunction through multiple signals. The paradoxical cardiotoxicity of atorvastatin reported under different conditions suggests that the association between atorvastatin treatment, insulin resistance and cardiac function should be clarified further. In this study, C57BL/6 J male mice were fed a high-fat diet (HD) or standard chow diet (SD) for 12 weeks and subsequently randomly divided into four groups: the SD-Control (SD-C) and HD-Control (HD-C) groups treated with saline for 10 months and the HD-A and HD-A + N groups treated with atorvastatin (20 mg/kg/day) alone or atorvastatin combined with nicotinamide (NAM, 1 g/kg/day) for 10 months. Although no significant changes in systolic function and structure were observed between the four groups of mice at an age of 46 or 58 weeks, respectively, long-term treatment with atorvastatin alone or atorvastatin and NAM combination significantly retarded the HD-induced IR and diastolic dysfunction and attenuated both cardiac and hepatic fibrosis in obese mice possibly by regulating the cleavage of osteopontin and then controlling profibrotic activity. Changes in cardiac function and structure were similar between the HD-A and HD-A + N groups; however, mice in the HD-A + N group exhibited better glucose control and marked reduction in body weight and hepatic lipid accumulation. Thus, these results suggest that long-term treatment with atorvastatin or the combination of atorvastatin and nicotinamide may be alternative therapies due to their beneficial effects on IR and diastolic function.

Homogenized halides and alkali cation segregation in alloyed organic-inorganic perovskites.

The role of the alkali metal cations in halide perovskite solar cells is not well understood. Using synchrotron-based nano-x-ray fluorescence and complementary measurements, we found that the halide distribution becomes homogenized upon addition of cesium iodide, either alone or with rubidium iodide, for substoichiometric, stoichiometric, and overstoichiometric preparations, where the lead halide is varied with respect to organic halide precursors. Halide homogenization coincides with long-lived charge carrier decays, spatially homogeneous carrier dynamics (as visualized by ultrafast microscopy), and improved photovoltaic device performance. We found that rubidium and potassium phase-segregate in highly concentrated clusters. Alkali metals are beneficial at low concentrations, where they homogenize the halide distribution, but at higher concentrations, they form recombination-active second-phase clusters.

[Textual Research on Wang Fengchun's Life].

WANG Fengchun (1884 - 1949), born in Wu County, Jiangsu Province, was one of the four famous doctors of Beijing in the Republic of China periods. He learned Confucianism during his childhood and then learned medicine from AI Buchan, a famous doctor in Wuzhong area. In 1908, he went to Beijing and was appointed as the prosecutor of the court of law and a medical official, but also had learnt medicine from LI Jun, the head of the Business Ministry. In 1910, Wang resigned and lived as doctor in Beijing. According to the literature, from 1935 to 1942, Wang had been appointed 11 times as a member of Beiping (Beijing) TCM examination committee or test committee. In 1938, he was appointed as president of the Beijing Branch of the National Medical Professional Association and created the Beijing Medicine Monthly in 1939. In September 1939, Wang began to make preparations for a TCM symposium, i.e. the Medicine Symposium which was established officially in October 1939. In 1941, he was appointed as the director of the Beijing Traditional Chinese Medicines Workshop, employing famous doctors to cultivate reserve talents of medicines. Being a realist, he often exchanged opinions with TCM and western medical doctors and also made a contribution to medical education.