Synergistic Release of Photothermal Molecules from Nanocarriers Induced by Light and Hyperthermia Benefits Efficient Anticancer Phototherapy.

Recently, nanoformulations have been widely applied in the delivery of organic photothermal agents (OPTAs) for cancer therapy to prolong blood circulation or improve tumor-targeting capacity. However, the systematic evaluations of their effects on the photothermal behavior of OPTAs are limited, especially for different types of nanoparticle systems. Herein, we prepared two kinds of nanoparticles (BSA and PEG nanoparticles (NPs)) to load an OPTA, a cyanine photosensitizer (IR780-O-TPE), and investigated their photothermal response, organelle targeting, and in vivo therapeutic efficacy. Due to different assembly forms, the two NPs showed distinct morphological changes after exposure to laser or hyperthermia. Under laser irradiation at 808 nm, BSA NPs could release IR780-O-TPE more efficiently than PEG NPs. We speculate that this phenomenon is probably caused by dual-responsive release of IR780-O-TPE from BSA NPs against light and hyperthermia. Moreover, IR780-O-TPE/BSA NPs were highly mitochondria-targeting and therefore displayed significant inhibition of cell viability. In contrast, IR780-O-TPE/PEG NPs were "shell-core" nanostructures and more stable under laser stimulation. As a consequence, the mitochondria-targeting and anticancer photothermal therapy by IR780-O-TPE/PEG NPs was less obvious. This study revealed the significance of nanocarrier design for OPTA delivery and demonstrated that BSA NPs could release IR780-O-TPE more effectively for efficient photothermal therapy. We also believe that the dual-responsive release of OPTAs from NPs can provide an effective strategy to promote anticancer photothermal treatment.

A Tumor-Targeting Near-Infrared Heptamethine Cyanine Photosensitizer with Twisted Molecular Structure for Enhanced Imaging-Guided Cancer Phototherapy.

In recent years, cancer phototherapy has been extensively studied as noninvasive cancer treatment. To present efficient recognition toward cancer cells, most photosensitizers (PSs) are required to couple with tumor-targeted ligands. Interestingly, the heptamethine cyanine IR780 displays an intrinsic tumor-targeted feature even without modification. However, the photothermal efficacy and photostability of IR780 are not sufficient enough for clinical use. Herein, we involve a twisted structure of tetraphenylethene (TPE) between two molecules of IR780 to improve the photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE). The obtained molecule T780T shows strong near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence and improved PCE (38.5%) in the dispersed state. Also, the photothermal stability and ROS generation capability of T780T at the NIR range (808 nm) are both promoted. In the aqueous phase, the T780T was formulated into uniform nanoaggregates (∼200 nm) with extremely low fluorescence and PTT response, which would reduce in vivo imaging background and side effect of PTT response in normal tissues. After intravenous injection into tumor-bearing mice, the T780T nanoaggregates display high tumor accumulation and thus remarkably inhibit the tumor growth. Moreover, the enhanced photostability of the T780T allows for twice irradiation after one injection and leads to more significant tumor inhibition. In summary, our study presents a tumor-targeted small-molecule PS for efficient cancer therapy and brings a new design of heptamethine cyanine PS for potential clinical applications.

Improve the ethical review of clinical trials on traditional medicine: A cross-sectional study of clinical trial registration, ethical review, and informed consent in clinical trials of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Recently, there is an increasing number of clinical trials on Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) published, but the implementation of Clinical Trial Registration (CTR), Ethical Review (ER), and Informed Consent (IC) in clinical trials of TCM is unclear. This study aims to investigate the status of CTR, ER, and IC in clinical trials of TCM.Clinical trials of TCM published in 10 high-quality Chinese journals in 2016 were selected as a sample. Information of clinical trial registration, ethical review, and informed consent of clinical trials was extracted for analysis. Two authors independently screened the literature and extracted the relevant information.A total of 659 clinical trials met the criteria and were included for analysis. Only 9 clinical trials reported information of clinical trial registration (1.4%). The number for ethical review and informed consent were 156 (23.7%) and 502 (76.2%).Trial registration, protocol approval, and informed consent were not well executed. Especially registration and ethical review of clinical trials in TCM should be carefully concerned by researchers, clinicians, and journal editors. Training on methodology of clinical trial should be strengthened.

[Chinese patent medicines with function of resolving hard lump for cyclomastopathy: network Meta-analysis].

This systematic review aims to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of Chinese patent medicines with resolving hard lump function for the treatment of cyclomastopathy. We searched CNKI, WanFang, SinoMed, PubMed, EMbase, and The Cochrane Library from the inception to January 3 2018, to collect the randomized controlled trials（RCTs）on Chinese patent medicines with resolving hard lump function in treating cyclomastopathy. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of included studies. Then, statistical analysis was performed by using Stata 12.0 and WinBUGS 1.4.3 software. A total of 52 RCTs involving 9 605 patients were finally included. The inventions included 11 commercial Chinese patent medicines with functions of resolving hard lump, such as Rupi Sanjie Capsules, Xiaoru Sanjie Capsules, Ruhe Sanjie Pills, and Hongjin Xiaojie Capsules. The result of direct Meta-analysis showed that: as compared with the simple western medicine group, the Chinese patent medicines such as Hongjin Xiaojie Capsules, Ruhe Sanjie Pills, Rupi Sanjie Capsules, Xiaoru Sanjie Capsules and Xiakucao Oral Liquid could significantly improve the clinical efficacy. In addition, the incidence of adverse reactions of Chinese patent medicines with resolving hard lump function was lower than that in Western medicine group in gastrointestinal reactions, menstrual disorders, leucorrhea abnormalities, liver dysfunction and estrogen-like effect. The network Meta-analysis showed that: Xiaoru Sanjie Capsules, Ruhe Sanjie Pills, Yanlu Rukang Capsules, Quyu Sanjie Capsules, and Hongjin Xiaojie Capsules were the top five in terms of treatment effect. Chinese patent medicines with resolving hard lump function had better clinical efficacy. Due to the low quality of included studies， more high quality RCTs are needed to verify the above conclusion.

[Huoxiang Zhengqi formulas for treatment of gastrointestinal type cold：a systematic review and Meta-analysis].

This systematic review aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Huoxiang Zhengqi formulas in treating gastrointestinal type cold. Seven electronic databases,including CNKI, WanFang Data, Vip, SinoMed, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase will be searched from the inception of the study until March 2017.All randomized controlled trials that evaluate the treatment of Huoxiang Zhengqi formulas for gastrointestinal type cold will be eligible. The methodological quality will be assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool for randomized clinical trials and Review Manager 5.3 software is used for analyzing the data.The results are： eight RCTs and 680 patients are included .Meta-analysis are performed according to the stratification of the treatment strategy. Eight studies report clinical efficacy, among them four studies show Huoxiang Zhengqi formulas are better than western medicine(RR and 95%,1.2[1.08, 1.33]), another four studies showHuoxiang Zhengqi formulas in conjunction with conventional treatment are better than conventional treatment(RR and 95%, 1.32[1.20,1.46]).About symptom remission rate, one study shows the treatment group effect is better than the control group from the following clinical symptoms：chills,fever,bowel diarrhea,the effect of treating sore throat itchy is same with western medicine treatment.No adverse reactions are found about Huoxiang Zhengqi formulas in this study.Current evidence shows that Huoxiangzhengqi formulas are better than Western medicine group and western medicine routine treatment group from clinical efficacy. Limited by the quantity and quality of studies, more large-scale and rigorously designed randomised controlled trials with large sample size are warranted to clarify the conclusions.

[Guizhi Fuling capsule / pill treatment for chronic pelvic inflammatory disease：a systematic review of randomized clinical trials].

This systematic review aims to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of Guizhi Fuling Capsule/Pill on the treatment of chronic pelvic inflammatory disease. We searched CNKI datebases,WanFang,SinoMed,PubMed,Embase,The Cochrane Library from the inception to February 2017,to collect randomized controlled trials（RCTs）of Guizhi Fuling Capsule/Pill in treating chronic pelvic inflammation disease.Two reviewers independently screened literature,extracted date and assessed the risk of bias of included studies.Then,the risk assessment of included references was evaluated according to criteria recommended by Cochrane Handbook 5.3.A total of 30 RCTs involving 3 586 patients were finally included.30 studies reported the clinical efficacy,the result of meta-analysis showed that：compared with the western medicine group,Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine could significantly improve the clinical efficacy [RR=1.20,95%CI（1.16,1.23）];3 studies reported recurrence rate,the result of meta-analysis showed that：compared with the western medicine,Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine could decrease the recurrence rate [RR=0.33,95%CI（0.18,0.62）]; Their secondary indicators mainly included hs-CRP, plasma viscosity ratio and tumor necrosis factor and fibrin,the result of meta-analysis showed that： Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine was better than western medicine in terms of anti-inflammatory and improving blood circulation.17 studies reported adverse reactions,most of the adverse events were the irritation of gastrointestinal tract. The result showed that： compared with the western medicine group, the incidence of adverse reactions in Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine group is low.Guizhi Fuling（capsule,pill） did not increase the adverse reactions. The available evidence suggests that： Guizhi Fuling（capsule, pill） compared with the western medicine group, Guizhi Fuling (capsule,pill) combined with western medicine was more effective than the western medicine group in terms of clinical efficacy, recurrence rate, anti-inflammatory and plasma viscosity.Due to the limited quality and quantity of included studies,more high quality RCTs are needed to verify the above conciusion.

[Brief introduction to professor Xue Li-gong's aponeurotic theory and long-round needle therapy].

Professor Xue Li-gong is engaged in clinic, scientific research and teaching of acupuncture and moxibustion for over 30 years, being good at treatment of numbness and pain of the aponeurotic system with richer learning and experiences. His theories about the aponeurotic system develop a school of one's own, including conception of the aponeurotic diseases, differentiation of the aponeurotic system with channels, the anatomic basis of the twelve aponeurotic systems, causes and pathogenesis of diseases of the aponeurotic system, and special treatment principles of the aponeurotic diseases, needling instruments for treatment, and manipulation methods. Professor XUE's long-round needle therapy has obvious clinical therapeutic effect on numbness and pain of the aponeurotic system.