Dendrobium officinale flowers' topical extracts improve skin oxidative stress and aging.

BACKGROUND: Dendrobium officinale flowers (DOF) have the effects of antiaging and nourishing yin, but it lacks pharmacological research on skin aging. OBJECTIVE: Confirming the role of DOF in delaying skin aging based on the "in vitro animal-human" model. METHODS: In this experiment, three kinds of free radical scavenging experiments in vitro, D-galactose-induced aging mouse model, and human antiaging efficacy test were used to test whether DOF can improve skin aging through anti-oxidation. RESULTS: In vitro experiment shows that DOF has certain scavenging effect on 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical, hydroxyl free radical, and superoxide free radical, and its IC50 is 0.2090 µg/mL, 15.020, and 1.217 mg/mL respectively. DOF can enhance the activities of T-AOC, SOD, CAT, and GSH Px in the serum of aging mice, increase the content of GSH, and reduce the content of MDA when administered with DOF of 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 g/kg for 6 weeks. In addition, it can enhance the activity of SOD in the skin of aging mice, increase the content of Hyp, and decrease the content of MDA, activated Keap1/Nrf2 pathway in the skin of aging mice. Applying DOF with a concentration of 0.2 g/mL on the face for 8 weeks can significantly improve the skin water score and elasticity value, reduce facial wrinkles, pores, acne, and UV spots, and improve the facial brown spots and roughness. CONCLUSION: DOF can significantly improve skin aging caused by oxidative stress, and its mechanism may be related to scavenging free radicals in the body and improving skin quality.

Progress in the treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is one of the most common chronic complications of diabetes. Symptoms of DPN mainly include spontaneous intractable pain that is diffuse and continuous and can last from several weeks to several months. DPN is associated with a high mortality rate and poor prognosis. Its pathogenesis is not fully understood, and clinical treatment is focused on relieving its clinical symptoms, as well as improving blood sugar control and cardiovascular risk factors. DPN and its clinically effective treatments need to be studied. This study discusses the treatment methods and pathogenesis of DPN, summarizes the related research progress, and attempts to provide a reference for DPN research.

Application of Ion Exchangers with the N-Methyl-D-Glucamine Groups in the V(V) Ions Adsorption Process.

The adsorption capacities of ion exchangers with N-methyl-D-glucamine (NMDG) groups (Amberlite IRA 743, Lewatit MK 51, Purolite S110 and Purolite S108) relative to V(V) ions were tested in a batch system, taking into account the influence of various parameters, such as the adsorbent mass (0.05-0.20 g), phase contact time (1-240 min), initial concentration (10-150 mg/L), and temperature (293-333 K), as well as in a column system where the variable operating parameters were initial concentration (50, 100 mg/L), bed volume (10, 100 mL) and flow rate (0.6, 6 mL/min). Pseudo-first order, pseudo-second order, intraparticle diffusion and Boyd models were used to describe the kinetic studies. The best fit was obtained for the pseudo-second order model. The Langmuir, Freundlich and Temkin adsorption models were used to describe the equilibrium data to acquire better knowledge about the adsorption mechanism. The thermodynamic parameters were also calculated, which showed that the studied processes are endothermic, spontaneous and thermodynamically favorable. The physicochemical properties of the ion exchangers were characterized by nitrogen adsorption/desorption analyses, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS). The point of zero charge (pHPZC) was also determined.

Application of Modern Research Methods for the Physicochemical Characterization of Ion Exchangers.

Ion exchange technique as the reversible exchange of ions between the substrate and the surrounding medium can be an effective way of removing traces of ion impurities from the waters and wastewaters and obtaining a product of ultrapure quality. Therefore, it can be used in analytical chemistry, hydrometallurgy, purification and separation of metal ions, radioisotopes and organic compounds, and it also finds great application in water treatment and pollution control. In the presented paper, the new trends for ion exchanger characteristics determination and application are presented. Special attention is paid to the ion exchangers with multifunctionality for heavy metal ions removal. They show superior actions such as sorption capacity values with excellent resistance to fouling and the possibility of application in the co-current or modern packed bed counter-current systems, as well as for the condensate polishing or the conventional mixed bed systems in combination with other resins. The results of the paper are expected to help researchers to establish a powerful strategy to find a suitable ion exchanger for heavy metal ions removal from waters and wastewaters. It is important because the best ion exchangers are selected for a specific application during laboratory tests taking into account the composition of the feed solution, pH, type of ion exchangers and then the column breakthrough tests. Therefore, the optical profilometry and the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy can prove beneficial for this purpose in the case of three different ion exchangers such as Dowex M 4195, Amberlite IRA 743 and Purolite Arsen Xnp.

Medical Plant Extract Purification from Cadmium(II) Using Modified Thermoplastic Starch and Ion Exchangers.

Pure compounds extracted and purified from medical plants are crucial for preparation of the herbal products applied in many countries as drugs for the treatment of diseases all over the world. Such products should be free from toxic heavy metals; therefore, their elimination or removal in all steps of production is very important. Hence, the purpose of this paper was purification of an extract obtained from Dendrobium officinale Kimura et Migo and cadmium removal using thermoplastic starch (S1), modified TPS with poly (butylene succinate); 25% of TPS + 75% PBS (S2); 50% of TPS + 50% PLA (S3); and 50% of TPS + 50% PLA with 5% of hemp fibers (S4), as well as ion exchangers of different types, e.g., Lewatit SP112, Purolite S940, Amberlite IRC747, Amberlite IRC748, Amberlite IRC718, Lewatit TP207, Lewatit TP208, and Purolite S930. This extract is used in cancer treatment in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis with differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray powder diffraction, gel permeation chromatography, surface analysis, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and point of zero charge analysis were used for sorbent and adsorption process characterization, as well as for explanation of the Cd(II) sorption mechanism.

Impacts of heavy metals and medicinal crops on ecological systems, environmental pollution, cultivation, and production processes in China.

Heavy metals are widely distributed in the environment due to the natural processes and anthropogenic human activities. Their migration into no contaminated areas contributing towards pollution of the ecosystems e.g. soils, plants, water and air. It is recognized that heavy metals due to their toxicity, long persistence in nature can accumulate in the trophic chain and cause organism dysfunction. Although the popularity of herbal medicine is rapidly increasing all over the world heavy metal toxicity has a great impact and importance on herbal plants and consequently affects the quality of herbal raw materials, herbal extracts, the safety and marketability of drugs. Effective control of heavy metal content in herbal plants using in pharmaceutical and food industries has become indispensable. Therefore, this review describes various important factors such as ecological and environmental pollution, cultivation and harvest of herbal plants and manufacturing processes which effects on the quality of herbal plants and then on Chinese herbal medicines which influence human health. This review also proposes possible management strategies to recover environmental sustainability and medication safety. About 276 published studies (1988-2021) are reviewed in this paper.

Comparison of outcomes of two minimally invasive approaches for multi-vessel coronary revascularization / 北京大学学报(医学版)

Objective:To compare the safety and effectiveness of two minimally invasive approaches for multi-vessel coronary revascularization.Methods:From August 2014 to February 2017,70 consecutive patients who underwent minimally invasive coronary artery bypass grafting in Peking University Third Hospital were randomly divided into two groups.In one group,40 patients underwent staged-hybrid coronary revascularization (staged-HCR) treatment;in the other group,30 patients underwent minimally invasive total arterial revascularization with bilateral internal thoracic artery (BITA).In staged-HCR group,the patients underwent minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass grafting (MIDCAB) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedure for treatment of multi-vessel disease.In BITA group,the patients underwent total arterial coronary artery bypass grafting with composite "Y" BITA graft.Preoperative and postoperative data of the two groups,including postoperative blood usage,mechanical ventilation time,domiciling duration in intensive care unit (ICU),major adverse cerebral and cardiovascular event (MACCE),and postoperative coronary angiography results were compared,in order to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of these surgical approaches.Results:The preoperative characteristics of 70 patients in the two groups showed no significant difference.All the patients underwent successfully,elective minimally invasive multi-vessel coronary artery bypass grafting as scheduled preoperatively.Postoperative result showed the patients in staged-HCR group took advantages in less postoperative mechanical ventilation time [Staged-HCR group (11.2 ± 8.7) h vs.BITA group (18.3 ± 9.1) h,P =0.013],shorter domiciling duration in ICU [Staged-HCR group (26.29 ± 4.05) h vs.BITA group (44.74 ± 28.75) h,P =0.022],and less total drainage [Staged-HCR group (695.57 ± 250.46) mL vs.BITA group (1 103.26±547.44) mL,P =0.03] than the patients in the group of minimally invasive total arterial revascularization with BITA.Postoperative in hospital coronary angiography showed satisfactory graft patency rates in both groups [97.5％ in Staged-HCR group vs.97.8％ in BITA group].No MACCE occurred in both groups during hospitalization.Conclusion:Staged-HCR is a feasible method for the treatment of multi-vessel revascularization involving right coronary artery.Minimally coronary revascularization with BITA is associated with superior long-term graft patency and it's recommended for patients who could not tolerate dual-antiplatelet therapy.This study shows that both minimally invasive surgical approaches are safe and effective for treatment of patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease.