Study on preparation and properties of silver alloy for Mongolian medicine acupuncture.

The Mongolian medical silver needles often encounter issues of bending, fracturing, and blunting in clinical applications. Similarly, Mongolian warm needles can cause burns on patients due to inaccurate temperature control. In this study, we developed an Ag85Cu15 alloy specifically for acupuncture needles based on material preparation. By incorporating appropriate amounts of Mn and Ti elements, we were able to enhance the mechanical properties and biocompatibility of the acupuncture needles. Compared to commercially available silver needles, this alloy exhibited a significant increase in microhardness up to 210.2 Hv0.2 and an improved tensile strength of 880.2 MPa. Furthermore, we designed a thermoelectric effect-based temperature measurement model for precise control of the warm needle's temperature, enhancing the therapeutic effectiveness of the treatment.

Purity and Uncertainty Study of CRM Betulin by DSC.

Betulin (BE) can be obtained from many plants, such as those belonging Betulaceae family, and pharmacological investigations showed its notable biological properties and good potential for food and pharmaceutical development. We investigated the homogeneity, stability, purity, and uncertainty of a newly certified reference material (CRM) of BE. The certified purity value for the CRM of BE was 99.56% with an extended uncertainty of 0.07% (k = 2, P = 0.95), as determined by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). In this study, DSC was used for the first time for purity determination of BE. Given its high accuracy, precision, and reproducibility, DSC can be used as an alternative technique for purity determination of CRMs in the pharmaceutical and food industry.

Analysis of Four Solvatomorphs of Betulin by TG-DTA-EI/PI-MS System Equipped with the Skimmer-Type Interface.

Betulin (BE) has exceedingly become a potential natural product, providing multiple pharmacological and biological activities, including anti-cancer, anti-viral, and anti-inflammatory benefits. Previous research indicated that the solvatomorphism of BE can easily occur through crystallization with different organic solvents. This property of BE can directly affect its extraction, isolation, and preparation process. In this study, a system of thermogravimetry (TG)-differential thermal analysis (DTA) coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) with electron ionization (EI) and photoionization (PI) capability, equipped with the skimmer-type interface (i.e., skimmer-type interfaced TG-DTA-EI/PI-MS system), as a real-time and onsite analysis technique, was employed. Then, four solvatomorphs of BE, namely, with pyridine and water (A), sec-butanol (B), n,n-dimethylformamide (DMF) (C), and isopropanol (V), were analyzed for the first time. Finally, five kinds of the main volatile gaseous species, including H2O, pyridine, sec-butanol, DMF, and isopropanol, were identified clearly. Furthermore, the multi-step desolvation processes of the four solvatomorphs of BE were revealed by this system for the first time. This system showed great potential for the rapid and accurate analysis of various solvatomorphs of natural products.

Formononetin ameliorates myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats by suppressing the ROS-TXNIP-NLRP3 pathway.

Formononetin (FN), a methoxy isoflavone abundant in many plants and herbs, has been evidently proven to possess multiple medicinal properties. Our study aimed to clarify the impact of FN on myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury (MIRI) and the involved mechanism. A rat model of MIRI was produced by ligation and loosening of the left anterior descending (LAD) branch of the coronary artery. Rats received 10 and 30 mg/kg of FN when the reperfusion started. At 24 h after surgery, cardiac function, infarct size, and sera levels of the cardiac markers and inflammatory mediators were measured. To mimic the inflammasome activation in cardiomyocytes, neonatal rat cardiomyocytes (NRCMs) were cultured and treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus nigericin. Cell death and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were determined. Myocardial expression and activation of the nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome in rats were examined by western blotting. The level of thioredoxin interacting protein (TXNIP)-NLRP3 interaction was assessed. FN notably attenuated cardiac dysfunction, infarct size, release of cardiac markers, and elevation of TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6. FN alleviated LPS plus nigericin-induced injury and ROS increase in NRCMs. Western blotting revealed that FN suppressed the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and TXNIP-NLRP3 interaction in rats. These findings indicate that FN ameliorated MIRI in rats and inhibited the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, at least partially, attributable to suppression of the ROS-TXNIP-NLRP3 pathway.

[Polymorphism of shikimic acid].

This study was performed to systematically investigate the polymorphism of shikimic acid. Through optimizing the recrystallization solvent, solvent volume, recrystallization temperature, time and pressure, three crystal forms were discovered and prepared. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray powder diffraction (PXRD) and infrared spectrometry (IR) were used to characterize these solid states. Furthermore, the influencing factor experiments were used to explore the stability of these polymorphisms and the transformation among them. Three new polymorphisms were prepared and identified. The results indicated that only PXRD could identify different polymorphisms and there was no solvent in all three crystal forms. The composition, thermodynamic property and transformation of these crystal forms were described in this work. Furthermore, an effective method for qualitative analysis of these crystal forms was established.

[Experimental study on the effect of Glycyrrhiza on small intestinal motility in rats].

AIM: To investigate the effects of glycyrrhiza decoction on migrating myoelectric complex (MMC) and gastrointestinal hormone in small intestine in rats. METHODS: We observed MMC cycle,phase Ill duration,fast wave numbers of phase III of MMC in one minute, fast wave numbers of one cluster in phase III of MMC of small intestine of glycyrrhiza group and control group rats with electrophysiology method, and immunohistochemistry to examine relative content of serotonin (5-HT), substance p(SP) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) in small intestinal chromophil (EC) and myenteric nerve plexus in small intestine of control group and glycyrrhiza group rats. RESULTS: Compared glycyrrhiza group with control group,we found that glycyrrhiza was able to decrease fast wave numbers in one minute and fast wave numbers in one cluster in phase III of MMC of small intestine (P < 0.05), and evidently extend small intestinal cycle of MMC (P < 0.05), it also shortened the phase III III duration (P < 0.05) or made the phase III of MMC absent. Compared glycyrrhiza group with control group it was indicated that content of 5-HT in small intestinal mucous membrane and myenteric nerve plexus was evidently decreased (P < 0.05), and content of SP in myenteric nerve plexus of small intestine of rats was evidently decreased (P < 0.05), and content of VIP in small intestine of rats was evidently increased (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Glycyrrhiza is able to inhibit small intestinal motility, this inhibition is related with the amount of 5-HT, SP, VIP secreted by small intestinal mucous membrane of rats.