Electroacupuncture reduces inflammatory factor expression by suppressing Toll-like receptor 4/nuclear factor-kappa B signaling in rats with cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:Inflammation is one of the important factors that induce cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury.Studies have shown that electroacupuncture can effectively reduce inflammation after ischemic stroke and improve the symptoms of neurological deficits,but the mechanism is not clear. OBJECTIVE:To observe the effect of electroacupuncture on Toll-like receptor 4/nuclear factor-κB in rats with cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. METHODS:Forty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham operation group,model group and electroacupuncture group,with 16 rats in each group.The rat model of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury was prepared by middle cerebral artery occlusion.At 24 hours after modeling,the rats in the electroacupuncture group were treated with electroacupuncture,once a day,20 minutes each time,for a total of 5 days.The sham operation group and the model group did not do any intervention.After 5 days of intervention,Longa method was used to evaluate the degree of neurological injury in rats.Triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining and hematoxylin-eosin staining were used to measure the volume of cerebral infarction and the pathological changes of brain tissue in rats.Serum interleukin-6,interleukin-18 and tumor necrosis factor-α were detected by ELISA.Expressions of Toll-like receptor 4 and nuclear factor-κB in the cerebral cortex at mRNA and protein levels were detected by fluorescence quantitative PCR and western blot,respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the sham operation group,the neurological function scores,serum interleukin-6,interleukin-18,and tumor necrosis factor-α levels,Toll-like receptor 4 and nuclear factor-κB mRNA and protein expression levels were significantly higher in the model group(P＜0.01).Compared with the model group,electroacupuncture significantly reduced the neurological function scores,serum interleukin-6,interleukin-18,and tumor necrosis factor-α levels,Toll-like receptor 4 and nuclear factor-κB mRNA and protein expression levels(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).Compared with the sham operation group,the volume of cerebral infarction in the model group increased significantly(P＜0.01).Compared with the model group,the volume of cerebral infarction in the electroacupuncture group decreased(P＜0.05).In the model group,the arrangement of neurons was disordered,some nerve cells disappeared,nuclei presented with pyknosis and incomplete structure.After electroacupuncture intervention,the degree of neuronal degeneration and neuronal loss in the cerebral cortex of rats were reduced compared with those in the model group.To conclude,electroacupuncture can significantly improve the neurobehavior of rats with cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury,reduce brain tissue injury,and effectively reduce the level of serum inflammatory factors.The mechanism may be related to the inhibition of Toll-like receptor 4/nuclear factor-κB signaling pathway.

Analysis of the influence of teachers' teaching input on teaching effect satisfaction in medical colleges / 中华医学教育探索杂志

Objective:To investigate and analyze the influencing factors of teachers' teaching input status on teaching effect satisfaction in medical colleges.Methods:A total of 782 teachers of basic medicine and clinical medicine in a local medical college in Hebei Province were selected by multi-stage stratified random sampling method. The (mean ± standard deviation) was used to describe the status quo of teachers' teaching input, and the t- or F-test was used for inter-group comparison. The influence of teaching input on teaching satisfaction was analyzed by multiple linear regression. Results:The teaching input of medical college teachers was affected by different demographic characteristics, among which the teaching time input was affected by gender, age, professional title, teaching age, educational background and category (all P<0.05), the emotional input was affected by age,professional title,teaching age,educational background and category (all P<0.05), and the teaching ability development input was affected by age, professional title, teaching age and category (all P<0.05). There was a correlation between the population characteristics of teachers and the teaching input and the satisfaction of teaching effect, and the teaching age of teachers is negatively correlated with the satisfaction of teaching effect ( β=-0.057, P<0.05). There were positive correlations between teaching satisfaction and teaching effect (all P<0.05), including the number of lesson preparation hours, the number of weekly teaching hours, the degree of teaching attention, the degree of medical teaching research balance, the learning and expansion of teaching skills, and the difference of teaching observation reflecting teaching input. The teaching input of basic medicine teachers was significantly higher than that of clinical teachers (all P<0.05). Conclusion:It is suggested that medical colleges and clinical teaching bases should pay attention to the construction of teacher echelon, optimization of policies and measures to balance the relationship between medical education and research, construction of the support system of teachers' teaching work input to improve teachers' professional efficacy, and the building of a professional development community of teachers integrating basic medical teachers and clinical teachers to improve the training quality of medical students.

Coping with COVID-19 Stressors: Adverse and Protective Factors Responding to Emotions in a Chinese Sample

BackgroundThe potential roles of affective responses to environmental stressors in individuals physical and mental health are complex and multi-faceted. This study, then, explores Chinese citizens emotional responses to COVID-19-related stressors and influence factors which may boost or buffer such effects. MethodsFrom late March to early June (2020), a cross-sectional study was conducted using an anonymous online questionnaire included demographic characteristics, COVID-19-related stressors related to individuals daily functioning, and the self-assessed impact of protective and adverse internal factors on emotions. Results1,662 questionnaires were received from residents in 32 Chinese provinces classified by prevalence level according to COVID-19 infections. Among the 17 positive and negative emotional responses, agglomerative hierarchical clustering revealed four subclassifications: (1) stress relations; (2) missing someone relations; (3) individual relations; and (4) social relations. Additionally, heightened regional prevalence levels positively corresponded to intensity of stress relations. Lowest intensity of social relations was found in the areas surrounding Wuhan and coastal areas. Specially, economic- and work-related stressors as well as negative self-perceptions (e.g., suppression, emotionally unstable, self-denial) implicated in negative emotions. While positive emotions were tied to demographic characteristics (e.g., high education, young age and male) and protective traits (e.g., creativity, sympathy, social responsibility), and inversely linked to relationships- and pandemic-related stressors, etc. ConclusionAssociations were clearly noted among Chinese residents emotions to specific stressors during pandemic. Providing appropriate psychological resources/supports during future or extended public health crises may help offset the cognitive burden of individuals striving to regain an adequate level of normalcy and emotional well-being.

Protective effects of resveratrol on neonatal rat cardiomyocyte lesion induced by hypoxia / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effects of resveratrol (Res) on neonatal rat cardiomyocyte lesion induced by hypoxia.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The cardiomyocyte of neonatal rats were cultured in vitro and the model of cardiomyocyte hypoxia was established. The cardiomyocyte vitalities were determined by MTT assay, the HIF-1alpha expression levels in myocardial cells was detected by immunohistochemical, the activities of peroxidase (GSH-Px) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were measured as well.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>After the administration of hypoxia for 24 hours, the HIF-1alpha expression in myocardial cells was significantly increased. The LDH level in the culture medium was increased from (93.07 +/- 15.84) U x L(-1) to (750.77 +/- 181.51) U x L(-1) (P < 0.01). The intracellular GSH-Px activity was decreased from (46.96 +/- 8.36) U x mL(-1) to (27.13 +/- 4.76) U x mL(-1) (P < 0.05). Res 25, 50 and 75 micromol x L(-1) could dose-dependently inhibit the raising of the HIF-1alpha expression in myocardial cells induced by hypoxia. The LDH activities were decreased dose-dependently to (486.17 +/- 69.97), (189.43 +/- 32.07), (155.34 +/- 29.57) U x L(-1), respectively (P <0.05 or P <0.01). The GSH-Px activities were increased dose-dependently (33.55 +/- 6.34), (37.67 +/- 6.73), (41.44 +/- 7.91) U x mL(-1) (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Res has a protective effect on neonatal rat cardiomyocyte lesion induced by hypoxia.</p>

Effects of Resveratrol on Neonatal Rat Cardiomyocyte Apoptosis Induced by Hypoxia / 医学研究杂志

Objective To investigate the effect of resveratrol(Res) on neonatal rat cardiomyocyte lesion induced by hypoxia. Methods The cardiomyocytes of neonatal rats were cultured in vitro and the model of cardiomyocytes hypoxia was established. The cardiomyocyte vitalities were determined by MTT assay. The cardiomyocyte apoptosis was detected by Hoechst33258 fluorescent staining. The levels of total antioxidant capacity(T-AOC) and glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px) were measured as well. Results After the administration of hypoxia for 8, 12, 16 and 24 hours, the cardiomyocyte inhibitory was(22.13?3.22)%, (29.75?0.34)%, (37.43?6.42)% and (45.47?7.32)%, respectively. After the administration of hypoxia for 24 hours, the typical morphologic changes of apoptosis in cardiomyocytes were showed.The intracellular GSH-Px activity decreased from(46.96?8.36)U/ml to(27.13?4.76)U/ml (P