Acute and chronic toxicity of a polyherbal preparation - Jueyin granules.

BACKGROUND: The potential toxicity of Chinese herbal medicine has attracted more attention in recent years. Jueyin granules (JYG), a polyherbal formula, have been proven to be an effective agent for treating psoriasis in both animal models and clinical research. However, little is known about the possible acute and chronic toxicity of JYG. The objective of this study was to investigate the safety of JYG in ICR mice and Wistar rats. METHODS: To examine the acute toxicity of JYG, ICR mice were randomly divided into an experimental group and a control group, each comprising 20 mice (10 male and 10 female). The experimental group was fed JYG solution at a dose of 21.5 g/kg, equivalent to 143 times the clinical human dosage, for 14 days, whereas control animals were fed distilled water. In the chronic toxicity test, Wistar rats were divided into four groups, each comprising 40 rats (20 male and 20 female). For 6 months, the experimental animals were given JYG at a dose of 7.5, 3.75 and 1.875 g/kg, whereas control animals were given distilled water. The animals' body weight, food and water consumptions were monitored weekly. In addition, their biochemical and hematological parameters, histopathology, and body and organ weights were all measured at specific observation time points. RESULTS: According to the results of the acute toxicity test, no mortality was found and no abnormal pathological changes in major organs were observed in mice treated with JYG. In the chronic toxicity test, JYG did not cause significant abnormalities in the physiological parameters or pathological changes in the major organs of the rats. CONCLUSION: The results indicated that JYG at the given doses did not induce any harmful effects in animals. Thus, it is reasonable to conclude that JYG is safe at the studied dosage levels and causes no acute or chronic toxicity in animal models.

Sheng-ji Hua-yu formula promotes diabetic wound healing of re-epithelization via Activin/Follistatin regulation.

BACKGROUND: Sheng-ji Hua-yu(SJHY) formula is one of the most useful Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the treatment of the delayed diabetic wound. However, elucidating the related molecular biological mechanism of how the SJHY Formula affects excessive inflammation in the process of re-epithelialization of diabetic wound healing is a task urgently needed to be fulfilled. The objectives of this study is to evaluate the effect of antagonisic expression of pro-/anti-inflammatory factors on transforming growth factor-ß(TGF-ß) superfamily (activin and follistatin) in the process of re-epithelialization of diabetic wound healing in vivo, and to characterize the involvement of the activin/follistatin protein expression regulation, phospho-Smad (pSmad2), and Nuclear factor kappa B p50 (NF-kB) p50 in the diabetic wound healing effects of SJHY formula. METHODS: SJHY Formula was prepared by pharmaceutical preparation room of Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine. Diabetic wound healing activity was evaluated by circular excision wound models. Wound healing activity was examined by macroscopic evaluation. Activin/follistatin expression regulation, protein expression of pSmad2 and NF-kB p50 in skin tissue of wounds were analyzed by Real Time PCR, Western blot, immunohistochemistry and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. RESULTS: Macroscopic evaluation analysis showed that wound healing of diabetic mice was delayed, and SJHY Formula accelerated wound healing time of diabetic mice. Real Time PCR analysis showed higher mRNA expression of activin/follistatin in diabetic delayed wound versus the wound in normal mice. Western Blot immunoassay analysis showed reduction of activin/follistatin proteins levels by SJHY Formula treatment 15 days after injury. Immunohistochemistry investigated the reduction of pSmad2 and NF-kB p50 nuclear staining in the epidermis of diabetic SJHY versus diabetic control mice on day 15 after wounding. H&E staining revealed that SJHY Formula accelerated re-epithelialization of diabetic wound healing. CONCLUSION: The present study found that diabetic delayed wound healing time is closely related to the high expression level of activin/follistatin, which leads to excessive inflammation in the process of re-epithelization. SJHY Formula accelerates re-epithelialization and healing time of diabetic wounds through decreasing the high expression of activin/follistatin.

Research on the wound healing effect of Shengji Huayu Formula ethanol extract-derived fractions in streptozotocin-induced diabetic ulcer rats.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic ulcer is a common complication of diabetes. It is characterized by a long-term disease course and high recurrence rate. Shengji Huayu Formula (SHF) is an effective formula for treating diabetic ulcers. However, the specific effective parts of SHF remain unclear. Clarifying the active polar site of SHF would be helpful to refine research on the components in SHF that promote wound healing. This research aims to focus on evaluating the activity of polar fractions. METHODS: A diabetic rat model was established by intraperitoneally injecting streptozotocin (STZ) and was adopted to confirm the therapeutic effect of SHF. Four different polarity parts were extracted from SHF and prepared into a cream to evaluate the activity. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to detect chemical constituents in chloroform extracts. RESULTS: It was discovered that dracorhodin, aloe-emodin, rhein, imperatorin, emodin, isoimperatorin, chrysophanol, physcion, and tanshinone IIA were the main components of the chloroform extract from SHF. The results revealed that chloroform extract could effectively accelerate diabetic wound healing by promoting collagen regeneration and epidermal repair. Chloroform extract of SHF could stimulate the generation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The results are also indicated that the effective active fraction was the chloroform part, and the method of detecting the main chemical constituents in the active part was successfully established. CONCLUSION: SHF could improve diabetic ulcers by promoting granulation tissue synthesis. In this study, four polar parts (petroleum ether, chloroform, ethylacetate, n-butanol) were extracted from a 95% ethanol extract. In contrast, chloroform polar parts showed a higher wound closure rate, stimulated more collagen regeneration and promoted more production of vascular endothelial cells. In conclusion, the chloroform extract of SHF was the effective polar part in ameliorating diabetic wound healing.

The role of Smad7 in cutaneous wound healing.

Chronic refractory wounds are generally caused by local tissue defects and necrosis, and they are characterized by delayed wound healing as well as high recurrence, which seriously affects life quality. However, effective therapeutics to treat wounds are currently unavailable. Therapy primarily aims to accelerate generation of granulation tissue and decrease recurrence. The pathogenesis of chronic refractory wounds is closely related to multiple complex signaling pathways and a series of cytokines. Among these signaling pathways, TGF-ß/Smad7 axis plays a critical role. Specifically, Smad7 is an antagonist of TGF-ß that inhibits activation of TGF-ß. Moreover, Smad7 promotes wound healing by regulating cytokines and controlling growth, differentiation and apoptosis of cells, which may be exploited to cure the disease. This review aims to reveal the exact functions and mechanisms of Smad7 in regulation of wound healing.

Successful treatment for multiple Bowen's disease using photodynamic therapy: A case report.

Bowen's disease, also named squamous cell carcinoma in situ, is usually treated by surgical excision. However, surgery is not suitable to patients with large area of lesions, multiple lesions or in cosmetically important areas where a scar will be visible. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has advantages of efficacy, safety, and does not generally induce scar or damage to joint function. It could also be used repeatedly. Therefore, PDT might be recommended to treat multiple Bowen's disease. This report shared a case of a patient having suffered from multiple Bowen's disease successfully treated by PDT. PDT not only avoided scars and joint dysfunction, but also raised quality of the patient's daily life.

Successful photodynamic therapy of tinea capitis child with liver dysfunction caused by oral antifungal drugs: A case report.

Antifungal medicine is the recommended therapy of tinea capitis. However, oral antifungal medicine could cause liver dysfunction to some extent, especially in children. This report shared a case of tinea capitis child suffering from liver dysfunction after taking antifungal drugs and having recovered after photodynamic therapy (PDT). This indicates PDT as a potentially safe and effective therapy of tinea capitis in children.

Application of a Cloud Model-Set Pair Analysis in Efficacy Assessment for Diabetic Ulcers.

Because treatment of diabetic ulcers includes various uncertainties, efficacy assessments are needed and significant. In previous studies, set pair analysis (SPA) has been applied to the efficacy assessments of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that pick out uncertainties related to the development and prognosis of disease. Optimized clinical protocols of SPA improve clinical efficacy. In the article, cloud model (CM) is employed to improve SPA, and a novel efficacy assessment method for a treatment of diabetic ulcers is proposed based on the cloud model-set pair analysis (CM-SPA). It is recommended to replace connection degree (CD) with cloud connection degree (CCD) that the efficacy assessment results are shown as normal clouds. Then, three diabetic ulcers patients treated with TCM made importance assessment by both CM-SPA and AHP based SPA. The comparison of assessment results shows that the CM-SPA is efficacious for the efficacy assessment of a treatment for diabetic ulcers and the results will be more scientific and accurate via CM-SPA.

Successful treatment of penile condyloma acuminata accompanied with lichen planus with photodynamic therapy.

Condyloma acuminata and lichen planus are different cutaneous diseases with disparate etiologies. Simultaneous appearance of two diseases in the same area is rare. This report aims to share the clinical and pathological features of a rare case; introduce an effective and safe therapy of it so as to broaden the therapeutic spectrum of Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) indications.

Methological quality of systematic reviews and meta-analyses on acupuncture for stroke: A review of review.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the methodological quality of systematic reviews and meta-analyses regarding acupuncture intervention for stroke and the primary studies within them. METHODS: Two researchers searched PubMed, Cumulative index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, Cochrane, Allied and Complementary Medicine, Ovid Medline, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang and Traditional Chinese Medical Database to identify systematic reviews and meta-analyses about acupuncture for stroke published from the inception to December 2016. Review characteristics and the criteria for assessing the primary studies within reviews were extracted. The methodological quality of the reviews was assessed using adapted Oxman and Guyatt Scale. The methodological quality of primary studies was also assessed. RESULTS: Thirty-two eligible reviews were identified, 15 in English and 17 in Chinese. The English reviews were scored higher than the Chinese reviews (P=0.025), especially in criteria for avoiding bias and the scope of search. All reviews used the quality criteria to evaluate the methodological quality of primary studies, but some criteria were not comprehensive. The primary studies, in particular the Chinese reviews, had problems with randomization, allocation concealment, blinding, dropouts and withdrawals, intent-to-treat analysis and adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Important methodological flaws were found in Chinese systematic reviews and primary studies. It was necessary to improve the methodological quality and reporting quality of both the systematic reviews published in China and primary studies on acupuncture for stroke.

Immune Signatures in Patients with Psoriasis Vulgaris of Blood-Heat Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective. To determine whether immunological serum markers IFN-γ, IL-4, IL-17, IL-23, IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-10 are elevated or decreased in patients compared with healthy controls. Methods. A complete search of the literature on this topic within the past 30 years was conducted across seven databases. Seventeen studies including 768 individuals were identified. Differences in serum marker levels between subjects and controls were pooled as MDs using the random-effects model. Results. The pooled MDs were higher in patients than in healthy controls for IFN-γ (MD 24.9, 95% CI 12.36-37.43), IL-17 (MD 28.92, 95% CI 17.44-40.40), IL-23 (MD 310.60, 95% CI 4.96-616.24), and TNF-α (MD 19.84, 95% CI 13.80-25.87). Pooled IL-4 (MD -13.5, 95% CI -17.74--9.26) and IL-10 (MD -10.33, 95% CI -12.03--8.63) levels were lower in patients. Conclusion. The pooled analyses suggest that levels of IFN-γ, IL-17, IL-23, and TNF-α are significantly elevated and that levels of IL-4 and IL-10 are significantly decreased in sera of patients with psoriasis vulgaris of blood-heat syndrome. Measuring progression of blood-heat syndrome of psoriasis vulgaris will require additional high-quality data, with a low risk of bias and adequate sample sizes, before and after antipsoriatic therapy.

Identification and characterization of a novel gene of grouper iridovirus encoding a purine nucleoside phosphorylase.

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) is a key enzyme in the purine salvage pathway. It catalyses the reversible phosphorolysis of purine (2'-deoxy)ribonucleosides to free bases and (2'-deoxy)ribose 1-phosphates. Here, a novel piscine viral PNP gene that was identified from grouper iridovirus (GIV), a causative agent of an epizootic fish disease, is reported. This putative GIV PNP gene encodes a protein of 285 aa with a predicted molecular mass of 30 332 Da and shows high similarity to the human PNP gene. Northern and Western blot analyses of GIV-infected grouper kidney (GK) cells revealed that PNP expression increased in cells with time from 6 h post-infection. Immunocytochemistry localized GIV PNP in the cytoplasm of GIV-infected host cells. PNP-EGFP fusion protein was also observed in the cytoplasm of PNP-EGFP reporter construct-transfected GK and HeLa cells. From HPLC analysis, the recombinant GIV PNP protein was shown to catalyse the reversible phosphorolysis of purine nucleosides and could accept guanosine, inosine and adenosine as substrates. In conclusion, this is the first report of a viral PNP with enzymic activity.