Effect of medical choice and health behavior on the health status for patients with subluxation of the sacroiliac joint.

The sacroiliac joint is an important part of human life behavior and daily activities. With the increase in people's lives and work pressure and the change of travel mode, the incidence rate of sacroiliac joint subluxation is getting higher and higher. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between medical choice, health behavior, and health status of patients with sacroiliac joint subluxation and put forward feasible suggestions for promoting the treatment and rehabilitation of patients. The EuroQoL 5 Dimensions 5 Levels health index survey scale was selected to investigate the health status of patients with sacroiliac joint subluxation. T test and analysis of variance were used for univariate analysis of medical choice and health behavior of patients with sacroiliac subluxation, and ordinary least squares was used for multivariate analysis. The elderly patients with subluxation of sacroiliac joint are in poor health. The health status of patients who chose to seek medical treatment for disease diagnosis and prescription was significantly worse. Patients with subluxation of sacroiliac joint with regular defecation have better health status. Patients who travel by bike or bus have worse health. The health status of those who sit still for more than 1 hour a day is significantly better. The health status of patients with sacroiliac subluxation is closely related to their choice of medical treatment and health behavior. It is suggested that rehabilitation therapy such as acupuncture and manipulation should be selected for intervention. Good health behaviors such as abstinence and regular defecation should be shaped. More attention should be paid to the health status of women at risk.

Du-Moxibustion in a Mouse Model of Ankylosing Spondylitis.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a progressively worsening and disabling form of arthritis that primarily affects the axial skeleton. This disease mainly involves the spine and the sacroiliac joint. Fusion of the spine and the sacroiliac joint may occur in the later stage of the disease, resulting in spinal stiffness and kyphosis, as well as difficulty in walking, which seriously affects the quality of work and daily living activities and imposes a heavy burden on the patient, the family, and society. Increasing attention has been paid to non-pharmacotherapy as an alternative therapy for AS. Moxibustion is an ancient therapeutic technique used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Du-moxibustion therapy, a unique and innovative external treatment developed on the basis of ordinary moxibustion, has a definite therapeutic effect on AS. Du-moxibustion skillfully combines the compatible techniques of TCM to integrate meridians, acupoints, Chinese herbal medicine, and moxibustion. This paper describes the operation procedures and precautions to be taken during Du-moxibustion in experimental mice in detail to provide an experimental basis for the study of the mechanism of Du-moxibustion in the treatment of AS.

[Thoughts on improving the design quality of acupuncture clinical randomized controlled trials].

The British Medical Journal published the Acupuncture research album which carried viewpoints, expert consensus, research methods and other genres of papers, providing an authoritative reference for standardizing the design of clinical randomized controlled trial (RCT) of acupuncture and improving the quality of clinical research. Based on the experts' consensus of "acupuncture album" on RCT, combining clinical practice and the related literature reports, and many existing problems existing in the design, we, in the present paper, analyzed ways to improve the design quality of clinical RCT of acupuncture, starting from improving the methodological quality and repeatability of clinica RCT, so as to provide methodological guidance for the design of clinical trials and to promote the standardization of clinical trials of acupuncture.

[Governor vessel moxibustion combined with western medication for mild to moderate depression with kidney-yang deficiency: a randomized controlled trial].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the therapeutic efficacy of governor vessel moxibustion combined with fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule, simple fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule and placebo moxibustion combined with fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule for mild to moderate depression with kidney-yang deficiency. METHODS: A total of 126 patients with mild to moderate depression with kidney-yang deficiency were randomized into a governor vessel moxibustion group (42 cases, 2 cases dropped off), a western medication group (42 cases, 1 case dropped off) and a placebo moxibustion group (42 cases, 1 case dropped off). The western medication group was given fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule orally, 20 mg a time, once a day. On the basis of the treatment in the western medication group, governor vessel moxibustion was applied from Dazhui (GV 14) to Yaoshu (GV 2) in the governor vessel moxibustion group, once a week; placebo moxibustion was applied in the placebo moxibustion group, once a week. Treatment of 8 weeks was required in the 3 groups. Before and after treatment, the scores of Hamilton depression scale-17 (HAMD-17), Asberg's rating scale for side effects (SERS) and TCM clinical symptom were compared, and the clinical efficacy was evaluated. RESULTS: After treatment, the scores of HAMD-17, SERS and TCM clinical symptom were decreased compared before treatment in the 3 groups (P<0.05), the decrease ranges of above scores in the governor vessel moxibustion group were larger than those in the western medication group and the placebo moxibustion group (P<0.05). The total effective rate was 92.5% (37/40) in the governor vessel moxibustion group, which was higher than 75.6% (31/41) in the western medication group and 80.5% (33/41) in the placebo moxibustion group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Governor vessel moxibustion combined with fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule can improve the degree of depression and relieve the clinical symptoms in mild to moderate depression patients with kidney-yang deficiency, the efficacy is superior to simple fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule, and can reduce the fluoxetine hydrochloride capsule-induced adverse effect to a certain extent.

Impact of Emulsifier Structure and Concentration on Lipolysis Dynamics and Curcumin Bioaccessibility in the Nanoemulsions Stabilized by Polyglycerol Fatty Acid Esters.

Polyglycerol fatty acid esters (PGFEs), a type of nonionic surfactants, have been widely used in food industry. However, the effects of the aliphatic chain lengths in PGFEs and the concentrations of PGFEs on digestive profiles in emulsion-based systems are poorly understood. The present study has investigated the physicochemical stability, lipolysis dynamics and curcumin bioaccessibility in the nanoemulsions stabilized by synthesized PGFEs with different aliphatic chains (C10-C18) at various concentrations using an in vitro gastrointestinal tract (GIT) model. Shorter aliphatic chain or higher concentrations of PGFEs resulted in smaller droplets in the emulsions before and during digestion. PGFEs concentration had different impacts on lipolysis dynamics of nanoemulsions depending on the aliphatic chain lengths of PGFEs. Furthermore, long aliphatic chain of PGFEs contributed to a greater rate and extent of lipolysis, but a lower bioaccessibility of curcumin compared with medium ones, which was attributed to the formation of insoluble calcium soaps induced by calcium ions. These results are expected to facilitate the application of PGFEs for developing optimized nanoemulsions in encapsulating poorly water-soluble nutraceuticals in functional food industry. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11483-021-09681-z.

Moxibustion for anorexia in COVID-19: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: As the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has rapidly spread over the world, the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak of COVID-19 an international public health emergency. Besides typical respiratory symptoms and signs of COVID-19, digestive symptoms and liver injury have been frequently reported during the course of the disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of moxibustion in the treatment of anorexia in patients with COVID-19. METHODS: According to the retrieval strategies, randomized controlled trials on moxibustion therapies for C19-A will be obtained from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WanFang Data, Chinese Scientific Journals Database, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library, regardless of publication date or language. Studies will be screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the Cochrane risk bias assessment tool will be used to evaluate the quality of the literature. The network meta-analysis will be performed with the Markov chain Monte Carlo method and carried out with Stata 14.2 and WinBUGS 1.4.3 software. Ultimately, the quality of the evidence obtained from the results will be evaluated. RESULTS: This study will evaluate whether moxibustion therapy can effectively treat anorexia in patients with COVID-19. CONCLUSION: This study will provide evidence for whether moxibustion therapy is beneficial to the treatment of anorexia in patients with COVID-19. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42022302499.

[Professor YANG Ji-guo's experience in treatment of functional gastrointestinal diseases with acupuncture combined with umbilicus moxibustion].

Professor YANG Ji-guo's clinical experience in treatment of functional gastrointestinal diseases was summerized. Professor YANG Ji-guo believes that this disease is caused by the deficiency of six fu organs. Dysfunction of six fu organs in descending transportation is the basic pathogenesis. The principle of acupoint selection includes benefiting gastrointestinal functions, unblocking and purging six fu, soothing liver qi and calming down the mind. In treatment, acupuncture is combined with umbilicus moxibustion. In acupuncture, the deqi promoting technique by rotating and trembling needle is adopted. Focusing on the deficiency of six fu organs, umbilicus moxibustion is adopted to benefit the spleen and stomach and harmonize the functions of six fu organs for both biao (symptoms) and ben (root cause).

Moxibustion for abdominal pain in COVID-19: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an acute respiratory infectious disease that makes breathing difficult and is often accompanied by abdominal pain and distension. Moxibustion, a special external treatment of traditional Chinese medicine, has shown beneficial effects in the treatment of abdominal pain. Currently, there is a lack of systematic reviews on moxibustion for the treatment of abdominal pain. We conduct this study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of moxibustion in the treatment of abdominal pain. This study is designed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of moxibustion for abdominal pain in COVID-19. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials from December 2019 to December 2021 will be included, without restrictions on language or publication date. PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Chinese Biomedical Databases, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, and VIP Database were searched. Two researchers will independently select studies, extract data, and evaluate study quality. The Cochrane risk of bias tool for randomized trials will be used to assess the risk of bias in the included studies. Statistical analyses will be conducted using the RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS: This study aimed to prove the efficacy and safety of moxibustion for abdominal pain in patients with COVID-19. Our study provides a more accurate treatment method for abdominal pain during COVID-19. We will publish our results in a peer-reviewed journal. CONCLUSION: This study will provide more convincing evidence for clinicians to treat these conditions and help them make appropriate decisions. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study did not include personal information. Ethical approval was not required for this study. INPLASY REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY2021120104.

The effect of Huoxue Huayu decoction on restenosis after percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with coronary heart disease: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), as the most common treatment for coronary heart disease (CHD), has the advantages of simple operation, minimal invasion, rapid reconstruction, and vessels opening. The problem, however, is that many patients develop restenosis within 6 months after PCI. In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), Huoxue Huayu decoction (HXHYD) is widely used to treat cardiovascular diseases, and its important role as a complementary and alternative therapy for the prevention and treatment of post-PCI restenosis in CHD patients has been extensively reported. However, controversy exists among different studies. Therefore, we collected relevant randomized controlled trials for a meta-analysis to assess the efficacy and safety of HXHYD in the prevention of post-PCI restenosis in patients with CHD. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials of HXHYD in the prevention of post-PCI restenosis in patients with CHD will be retrieved from PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wan Fang Database, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, VIP Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals, and Clinical Trial Register. The 2 authors will independently conduct the literature search, literature screening, data extraction, and quality assessment. Data analysis will be performed using STATA 14.0. RESULTS: The results of this meta-analysis will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication. CONCLUSION: This study will provide high-quality, evidence-based medical evidence for the efficacy and safety of HXHYD in the prevention of post-PCI restenosis in patients with CHD. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not required for this study. The systematic review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal, presented at conferences, and shared on social media platforms. This review would be disseminated in a peer-reviewed journal or conference presentations. OSF REGISTRATION NUMBER: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/PNZSM.

Moxibustion for diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome: A protocol for systematic review and network meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is commonly accompanied by intestinal dysfunction, and diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome accounts for approximately 23.4% of all cases of IBS. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of moxibustion in the treatment of diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome. METHODS: According to the retrieval strategies, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on moxibustion therapies for IBS-D will be obtained from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WanFang Data, Chinese Scientific Journals Database, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library, regardless of publication date or language. Studies will be screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the Cochrane risk bias assessment tool will be used to evaluate the quality of the literature. The network meta-analysis will be performed with the Markov chain Monte Carlo method and carried out with Stata 14.2 and WinBUGS 1.4.3 software. Ultimately, the quality of the evidence obtained from the results will be evaluated. RESULTS: This study will evaluate whether moxibustion therapy can effectively treat diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome. CONCLUSION: This study will provide evidence for whether moxibustion therapy is beneficial to the treatment of human diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome. INPLASY REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY202180003.

Efficacy and safety of Tian Meng oral liquid for the treatment of insomnia: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of insomnia is very high and seriously affects the lives of its patients. Long-term insomnia can induce other diseases and even cause sudden death. Tian Meng oral liquid is a type of Chinese patent medicine that has been used in the clinical treatment of insomnia and has certain clinical effects. However, its wide application is limited by the lack of evidence-based medical evaluation. METHODS: Using retrieval strategies, randomized controlled trials on Tian Meng oral liquid for insomnia were obtained from China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WanFang, Chinese Scientific Journals Database PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library, regardless of publication date or language. Studies were screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the Cochrane risk bias assessment tool was used to evaluate the quality of the studies. The meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 and STATA 14.2 software. Ultimately, the evidentiary grade for the results will be evaluated. RESULTS: This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Tian Meng oral liquid in the treatment of insomnia and to provide a more reasonable option for clinical medication. CONCLUSION: Our findings will provide a strong basis for the effectiveness and safety of Tian Meng oral liquid in the treatment of insomnia.

Effectiveness comparisons of different Chinese herbal injection therapies for acute cerebral infarction: A protocol for systematic review and network meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Acute cerebral infarction (ACI) has a high incidence, recurrence rate, and mortality. Chinese herbal injections (CHIs) are widely used in the substitution therapy of ACI. Due to the lack of randomized trials comparing the efficacy of various injections directly, it is still difficult to judge the relative efficacy. Therefore, we intend to conduct a network meta-analysis to evaluate the benefit among these CHIs. METHODS: According to the retrieval strategies, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on CHI therapies for ACI will be obtained from China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WanFang, Chinese Scientific Journals Database, PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library, regardless of publication date or language. Studies were screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the Cochrane risk bias assessment tool will be used to evaluate the quality of the literature. The network meta-analysis will be performed in Markov Chain Monte Carlo method and carried out with Stata 14 and WinBUGS 1.4.3 software. Ultimately, the evidentiary grade for the results will be evaluated. RESULTS: This study will compare the efficacy and safety of CHIs in the treatment of ACI, and give a more reasonable choice. CONCLUSION: Our findings will provide references for future clinical decision and guidance developing.INPLASY registration number: INPLASY202060087.

Efficacy and safety of Shufeng Jiedu capsule for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: From the end of 2019 to the present, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has put considerable pressure on the worlds medical system and caused significant mortality and economic losses around the world. In China, the Shufeng Jiedu capsule has been widely used in the treatment of COVID-19, but there is still a lack of evidence-based medical evaluation. METHODS: According to the retrieval strategies, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the Shufeng Jiedu capsule for COVID-19 were obtained from CNKI, WanFang, VIP, PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library, regardless of publication date, or language. Studies were screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the Cochrane risk bias assessment tool was used to evaluate the quality of the studies. The meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 and STATA 14.2 software. Ultimately, the evidentiary grade for the results will be evaluated. RESULTS: This study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of the Shufeng Jiedu capsule in the treatment of COVID-19 and provide a more reasonable choice of medication in clinical practice. CONCLUSION: Our findings will provide references for future clinical decision and guidance development. REGISTRATION: INPLASY registration number: INPLASY202070024.

Facile and Green Production of Human Milk Fat Substitute through Rhodococcus opacus Fermentation.

Human milk fat substitute (HMFS) is a class of structured lipids widely used in infant formulas. Herein, HMFS was prepared by Rhodococcus opacus fermentation. The substrate oils suitable for HMFS production were coconut oil (66.1-57.5%), soybean oil (17.5-26.5%), high oleic acid sunflower oil (5.4-4.5%), Antarctic krill oil (9-9.5%), and fungal oil (2%). Six HMFSs were prepared, among which HMFS V and VI were similar to human milk fat from Chinese in terms of fatty acid composition and triacylglycerol species. The sn-2 position of HMFS was occupied by palmitic acid (49.31 and 43.48% in HMFS V and VI, respectively). The major triacylglycerols were OPL, OPO, and LPL, accounting for 15.90, 9.49, and 6.84 and 17.52, 8.44, and 8.55% in HMFS V and VI, respectively. This study is the first to prepare structured lipids intended for infant formula through fermentation, providing a novel strategy for the edible oil industry.

Using a novel polysaccharide BM2 produced by Bacillus megaterium strain PL8 as an efficient bioflocculant for wastewater treatment.

In this study, the purification and characterization of a novel polysaccharide-based bioflocculant BM2 produced by a bacterium Bacillus megaterium strain PL8 with self-flocculating property were investigated. The results showed that BM2 was an acidic polysaccharide composed of Gal, GalUA, Glc, GlcUA and Man at a molar ratio of 45.1: 33.8:9.3:9.2:2.4, respectively. The molecular weight of BM2 was 4.55 × 106 Da. BM2 had high flocculation efficiencies across a wide pH ranged from 4 to 11 and a wide temperature ranged from 20 to 100 °C towards kaolin clay. BM2 was a cation-independent bioflocculant which could achieve high flocculation activity without the addition of other cations. Adsorption bridging was the main mechanism in the flocculation process of BM2 towards kaolin clay. The BM2 also displayed a high removal efficiency in terms of Congo red (88.14%) and Pb2+ ions (82.64%). These results suggested that BM2 had a great potential as an efficient bioflocculant candidate in wastewater treatment.

A systematic review protocol of Tuina for children with acute bronchitis: A protocol for systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Acute bronchitis (AB) is a common cause of childhood morbidity. Tuina, a kind of Chinese massage, is frequently used for the treatment of AB in children by traditional Chinese medicine doctors. However, there is no relevant systematic review show its effectiveness and safety. The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Tuina for children with AB. METHODS: The following electronic databases will be searched from the respective dates of database inception to January 1st, 2020: The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, Springer, EMBASE, MEDLINE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, Wanfang database, the Chinese Scientific Journal Database, and other sources. All published randomized controlled trials and blinded researches that are relevant to the subject of interest only will be contained. Two independent researchers will operate article retrieval, duplication removing, screening, quality evaluation, and data analyses by Review Manager (V.5.3.5). Meta-analyses, subgroup analysis and/or descriptive analysis will be performed based on the included data conditions. RESULTS: High-quality synthesis and/or descriptive analysis of current evidence will be provided from the bronchitis severity score, symptom, and quality-of-life questionnaires, the questionnaire of clinical symptoms of cough and sputum, Patient Satisfaction Scale and adverse reactions. CONCLUSION: This study will provide the evidence of whether Tuina is an effective and safe intervention for children with AB. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42019140667.

[Evaluation of clinical efficacy and mechanisms of Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy on carotid atherosclerosis].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical efficacy and possible efficacy mechanisms of Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy in patients with carotid atherosclerosis (CAS). METHODS: A total of 100 patients with CAS were randomly divided into Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy group (n=51) and control group (n=49). The patients in the Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy group were treated by herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion ï¼»applied on Governor Vessel from Dazhui (GV14) to Yaoshu (GV2)ï¼½, once a week, for 8 weeks. Patients in the control group received oral administration of atorvastatin calcium tablets (10 mg) once daily for 8 weeks. Before and after treatment, the patients' constitution quantized score, body mass index (BMI), carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and laboratory indicators ï¼»including total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein (LDL), homocysteine (Hcy), fibrinogen (Fbg), and hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP)ï¼½ were observed, and their clinical efficacy was evaluated. RESULTS: After the treatment, the constitution score and BMI were significantly reduced, and the IMT, TC, TG, LDL, Fbg and hs-CRP decreased significantly in the patients of the two groups as compared with those before treatment (P<0.05); and the constitution score and BMI were obviously lower in the Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy group than in the control group (P<0.05). In the Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy group, the effective rate of constitution score was 88.2% (45/51), the effective rate of weight loss was 54.9% (28/51), while the control group was 61.2% (30/49) and 34.7% (17/49) respectively, those in the Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy group were significantly higher than in the control group (P<0.05). Regarding to the CAS clinical effect, the effective rate was 80.4% (41/51) in the Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy group, and it was 73.5% (36/49) in the control group. There was no significant difference between the two groups in the CAS effective rate (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: The Governor Vessel moxibustion therapy can effectively treat CAS, and its mechanism may be related to the improvement of risk factors such as high level of TC, TG, LDL, Fbg, and hs-CRP.

Biofunctionalization of Selenium Nanoparticle with Dictyophora Indusiata Polysaccharide and Its Antiproliferative Activity through Death-Receptor and Mitochondria-Mediated Apoptotic Pathways.

Bio-functionalized nanoparticles with semiconducting/metallic core encapsulated in a bio- or bio-derived materials are promising for applications in biology and especially in cancer diagnostic and healing. In this report, we report a facile, single-step, first-time synthesis and in-situ functionalization strategy for the preparation of monodispersed selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) functionalized using a novel polysaccharide (DP1) extracted from Dictyophora indusiata (a fungus). The DP1 functionalized SeNPs (DP1-SeNPs), where DP1 is attached to the surface via Se-O bond as well as physic-sorption had, an average diameter of 89 nm, and were highly uniform, extremely stable compared to bare SeNPs. Detailed investigation of the biological properties of DP1-SeNP illustrated that they exhibit unprecedented, enhanced, and selective antiproliferative activity through inducing cell apoptosis confirmed by nuclear condensation, DNA cleavage, and accumulation of S phase cell arrest. The mechanism of the induced apoptosis was found to be a combination of the activation of caspases 3, 8, and 9, the Fas-associated death domain protein (FADD), reactive oxygen species (ROS) overproduction, as well as mitochondrial dysfunction. It is envisioned that the reported DP1-SeNPs will offer a new phase space for high-efficiency anticancer treatment with little side effect.

Lentinula edodes-derived polysaccharide rejuvenates mice in terms of immune responses and gut microbiota.

Aging is characterized by impaired immunity and unbalanced gut microbiota. Prebiotics have the capability to prevent or reverse age-related declines in health by modulating gut microbiota. Mushroom polysaccharides have been suggested to be potential prebiotics. However, their effects on the immunity and gut microbiota in aged mice have not been determined. This study firstly assessed the effects of a heteropolysaccharide L2 isolated from the fruit body of L. edodes on the immune response of aged mice, and then compared the composition of fecal microbiota in adult (N), old (O) and L2-treated old (Oa) mice using the high-throughput pyrosequencing technique. The results showed that L2 can restore the age-attenuated immune responses by increasing cytokine levels in peripheral blood. Moreover, L2 can partly reverse the age-altered composition of gut microbiota. The Euclidean distances (De) among 3 groups (N, O and Oa) are determined to be De(O, N) = 0.19, De(O, Oa) = 0.20, and De(N, Oa) = 0.10, i.e. there is a marked reduction in the distance from 0.19 to 0.1 by L2. This suggests the beneficial effects of L2 on enhancing immunity and improving gut health.