The effect of iron plaque on lead translocation in soil-Carex cinerascens kukenth. system.

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of iron plaque on Pb uptake by and translocation in Carex cinerascens Kukenth. grown under open-air conditions. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectrometry, iron plaque was present as an amorphous coating on root surfaces with uneven distribution. The amount of iron plaque increased significantly with increasing Fe additions regardless of Pb additions. The presence of iron plaque on the root surface of Carex cinerascens Kukenth. increased the concentrations of Pb adsorbed by iron plaque. The Pb percentage in whole roots increased by 14.52% at 500 mg kg(-1) Fe treatment than at 0 mg kg(-1) Fe, and the distribution coefficient (DC) of Pb and translocation factor (TF) root increased with Fe additions, but translocation factor (TF) shoot decreased with Fe additions. The results suggested that iron plaque could promote the translocation of Pb from soil to roots to some extent, and it played a role to reduce heavy metals pollution of Poyang Lake wetland.

Fingerprint of Hedyotis diffusa Willd. by HPLC-MS.

A HPLC-MS fingerprint method has been developed based on the consistent chromatographic features of the major chemical constituents among 10 batches of Hedyotis diffusa Willd. Chromatographic separation was conducted on a Hypersil-Keystone Hypurity C(18) column using methanol:water:acetic acid as the mobile phase. Major compounds, including oleanolic acid, ursolic acid and ferulic acid, were analysed by HPLC-MS. Their analysis was ascertained by comparison with data derived from the standard compounds. The HPLC-MS fingerprint was successfully applied to analyse and differentiate samples from different geographical origins, or processing methods. H. diffusa was well distinguished from Hedyotis chrysotricha by HPLC-MS. Therefore the establishment of fingerprint of H. diffusa is critical in assessing and controlling its overall quality.

Subchronic toxicity studies of Radix Astragali extract in rats and dogs.

Radix Astragali extract (RAE) is obtained from Astragalus membranaceus. It consists of Astragalus polysaccharide and Astragalus membranaceus saponins. In the study, we observed the subchronic toxicity of RAE in Sprague-Dawley rats and beagle dogs to evaluate the safety dosage range in clinical application. These subjects were daily administered of RAE by intra-peritoneum or vein for three consecutive months. General index were observed such as food-intake, behavior, body weight, hematological parameters, etc. Body weight, the weight of principal organ and hematology index are normal in experimental groups and control groups. The hematological biochemistry examination and histopathology examination of experimental groups are similar to control groups. In conclusion, our studies clearly demonstrated that RAE was safe without any distinct toxicity and side effects, the safety dosage range is 5.7-39.9g/kg for rats and 2.85-19.95g/kg for beagle dogs, which is equal to 70 or 35 times of that of human (0.57g/kg, say, average BW 70kg), respectively.

High-level expression, one-step purification of soluble Ad5-knob protein and its activity assay.

This report describes a simple, highly efficient, and reproducible method for obtaining large quantities of highly pure recombinant Ad5-knob protein, which can be used for gene-delivery application. The Ad5- knob protein expressed in Escherichia coli contained a His tag at the N-terminus that allowed one-step isolation by immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC). The activity of the recombinant protein was tested by receptor-binding assay in Hela cells for potential application in gene delivery.

[The efficacy and safety in the treatment of chronic abacterial prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome after intraprostatic injection of Chuanshentong].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the clinic efficacy and safety in the treatment of chronic abacterial prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CABP/CPPS) after intraprostatic injection of Chuanshentong. METHODS: Five milliliter of solution blending Chuanshentong and lidocaine was transperineally injected into one lobe of prostate, once a day for 6 days, for a total of 98 cases of patients who had been diagnosed as chronic abacterial prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome. The efficacy was evaluated by the NIH Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (CPSI) after a 12 week follow-up. RESULTS: All cases had completed the follow-up. Fifty-three cases (54.08%) were completely cured, accompanied by remarkable effective in 17 cases (17.35%) and improved in 23 cases (23.47%). The total remarkable efficacy was 71.43% and improved 94. 90%. Scores of CPSI decreased significantly compared with pre-treatment (95% confidence interval 12.85 approximately 17.91). CONCLUSION: It is suggested that transperineally intraprostatic injection of Chuanshentong may be a useful method for the treatment of CABP/CPPS.