Guidelines on the treatment with integrated traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine for severe coronavirus disease 2019.

Severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is characterized by numerous complications, complex disease, and high mortality, making its treatment a top priority in the treatment of COVID-19. Integrated traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and western medicine played an important role in the prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation of COVID-19 during the epidemic. However, currently there are no evidence-based guidelines for the integrated treatment of severe COVID-19 with TCM and western medicine. Therefore, it is important to develop an evidence-based guideline on the treatment of severe COVID-19 with integrated TCM and western medicine, in order to provide clinical guidance and decision basis for healthcare professionals, public health personnel, and scientific researchers involved in the diagnosis, treatment, and care of COVID-19 patients. We developed and completed the guideline by referring to the standardization process of the "WHO handbook for guideline development", the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system, and the Reporting Items for Practice Guidelines in Healthcare (RIGHT).

Changes in bladder function with time following cystostomy in rats.

AIMS: To investigate bladder function patterns following cystostomy and determine the best time window for cystometric evaluation of bladder function in conscious rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cystostomy was performed in rats of the first seven groups; thereafter, cystometry was performed in the designed time interval. Noncystostomy rats of group 8 voided freely as control. Basal bladder pressure (Pves.basal ), maximum bladder pressure (Pves.max ), bladder threshold pressure (Pves.thre ), voiding interval (VI), bladder contraction duration (CD), bladder compliance (ΔC), voided volume (VV), postvoiding residual urine (PVR), and bladder capacity (BC) were recorded and compared with cystostomy groups, with VV, PVR, BC compared with the control values. Bladders were collected after the urodynamic study for weighing, hematoxylin-eosin, and Masson staining to investigate pathological changes. RESULTS: Pves.basal , Pves.max , and Pves.thre trended downward, while BC, VI, VV, and ΔC trended upward on days 1 to 5 postcystostomy. BC and VV significantly decreased on days 1 to 3 postcystostomy compared with control values; on days 5 to 15 postcystostomy, Pves.basal , Pves.max , Pves.thre , VI, VV, BC, and PVR were stable, and BC, VV, and PVR showed no significant differences from the control values. However, on day 21 postcystostomy, BC increased significantly compared with the controls. Bladder weight increased in the cystostomy groups compared with the controls. Pathological analysis showed severe acute bladder inflammation on days 1 to 3, mild inflammation on days 5 to 15, and increased collagen deposition in bladder tissue on day 21 postcystostomy. CONCLUSION: Cystometric evaluation of bladder function in conscious rats is best performed on days 5 to 15 postcystostomy.

[Effects of light intensity on growth and content of active components of Uncaria rhynchophyll].

The aim of this study was to study the effects of different light intensity on the growth,biomass accumulation and distribution,chlorophyll content and effective components of Uncaria rhynchophylla seedlings,and explore the suitable light intensity conditions for artificial cultivation of U. rhynchophylla seedlings. Three-year-old U. rhynchophylla seedlings were used as experimental materials. Four light intensity levels( 100%,70%-75%,30%-35%,5%-10%) were set up with different layers of black shading net. With the decrease of light intensity,the results showed that the plant height,basal diameter and biomass( root,stem,leaf and hook) of U.rhynchophylla seedlings exhibited the trend of " increase-decrease". Under 70%-75% light intensity,the plant height,basal diameter,biomass( root,stem,leaf,hook) of U. rhynchophylla seedlings were significantly higher than those of other treatments( P< 0. 05);under 5%-10% light intensity,the plant height,basal diameter and biomass( root,hook) of U. rhynchophylla seedlings were significantly lower than those of other treatments( P<0. 05). With the decrease of light intensity,the chlorophyll content of U. rhynchophylla seedlings increased gradually: under 100% light intensity,the chlorophyll content of U. rhynchophylla seedlings were the smallest,while under 100% light intensity,its chlorophyll content was the highest. With the decrease of light intensity,the contents of rhynchophylline and isorhynchophylline in different organs of U. rhynchophylla seedlings varied: under 30%-35% light intensity,the contents of rhynchophylline and isorhynchophylline in hooks and rhynchophylline content in stems were the highest; under 5%-10% light intensity,the contents of rhynchophylline and isorhynchophylline in leaves and stems of U. rhynchophylla were the highest. In conclusion,70%-75% light intensity is suitable for seedling growth and biomass accumulation,and 30%-35% light intensity is suitable for the accumulation of effective components in U. rhynchophylla seedlings.

[Perioperative nutrition support for esophageal cancer complicated with diabetes mellitus].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy between perioperative enteral and parenteral nutrition support for esophageal cancer patients complicated with diabetes mellitus. METHODS: Thirty esophageal cancer patients complicated with diabetes mellitus between September and November 2012 were prospectively enrolled in this trial. According to random number table, 30 cases were randomly divided into enteral group (n=15) and parenteral group (n=15). During the period between 3 days before operation and 8 days after operation, patients received enteral nutrition (AnSure) and parenteral nutrition support respectively. The daily dynamic monitoring of blood glucose was performed. Nutritional indexes (albumin and prealbumin) were evaluated 1-day before operation and 8-day after operation. Postoperative recovery time of gastrointestinal function and complications associated with nutritional support were observed. The cost of nutritional support was calculated. RESULTS: Patients in the two groups achieved satisfactory perioperative blood glucose control. Finger tip blood glucose was 5.0-9.0 mmol/L before meal, 7.0-10.0 mmol/L 2-hour after meal, and 4.0-8.0 mmol/L at 10 PM and 3 AM. No hypoglycemia (<3.5 mmol/L) was found in all the patients. The time to first flatus after surgery was (62.4±15.7) in the enteral group, significantly earlier than (90.8±22.4) h in the parenteral group (P<0.01). Postoperative nutritional indices and associated complications were not significantly different between two groups (all P>0.05). Cost in the enteral group was significantly lower than that in the parenteral group [(650.8±45.8) RMB vs. (3016.5±152.6) RMB, P<0.01]. CONCLUSION: Perioperative nutrition support can effectively control blood glucose and improve perioperative nutritional status simultaneously for esophageal cancer patients with diabetes mellitus. Compared with parenteral nutrition, enteral nutrition can accelerate the recovery of gastric bowel function and reduce the cost of nutritional support.

[Effect of PC cell-derived growth factor RNA interference on biological behavior of esophageal squamous carcinoma cells].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of PC cell-derived growth factor (PCDGF) RNA interference on esophageal squamous carcinoma cells Eca-109 in vitro. METHODS: The PCDGF-shRNA expression vector was transfected into the Eca-109 cells by liposome. After transfection, the mRNA and protein expressions of PCDGF were detected by RT-PCR and Western-blot respectively. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay and Boyden chamber method were performed to measure the cell proliferation and invasion ability respectively. RESULTS: The expression levels of PCDGF mRNA and protein were both decreased in Eca-109 cells transfected with PCDGF-shRNA expression vector (transfection group). Twenty-four, 48 and 72 h after transfection, the cells proliferation in the transfection group was inhibited, and the inhibition rate was 20.4%, 21.1% and 20.9% respectively. The cell proliferation activity in the transfection group was significantly lower than that in the non-transfection group, liposome group and negative vector group (all P<0.05). The number of cell migration in the non-transfection group,negative vector group, liposome group and transfection group was 118.8±12.0, 100.8±9.0, 114.3±4.7, and 53.5±16.3 respectively. The differences were statistically significant between the transfection group and the other 3 groups (all P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: PCDGF RNA interference can inhibit the proliferation and invasion abilities of esophageal squamous carcinoma cells in vitro. PCDGF gene may be the new target of gene therapy.