Efficacy and safety of Shenyankangfu Tablet, a Chinese patent medicine, for primary glomerulonephritis: A multicenter randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Shenyankangfu Tablet (SYKFT) is a Chinese patent medicine that has been used widely to decrease proteinuria and the progression of chronic kidney disease. OBJECTIVE: This trial compared the efficacy and safety of SYKFT, for the control of proteinuria in primary glomerulonephritis patients, against the standard drug, losartan potassium. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS AND INTERVENTION: This was a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Primary glomerulonephritis patients, aged 18-70 years, with blood pressure ≤ 140/90 mmHg, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥ 45 mL/min per 1.73 m2, and 24-hour proteinuria level of 0.5-3.0 g, were recruited in 41 hospitals across 19 provinces in China and were randomly divided into five groups: SYKFT, losartan potassium 50 mg or 100 mg, SYKFT plus losartan potassium 50 mg or 100 mg. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was change in the 24-hour proteinuria level, after 48 weeks of treatment. RESULTS: A total of 735 participants were enrolled. The percent decline of urine protein quantification in the SYKFT group after 48 weeks was 8.78% ± 2.56% (P = 0.006) more than that in the losartan 50 mg group, which was 0.51% ± 2.54% (P = 1.000) less than that in the losartan 100 mg group. Compared with the losartan potassium 50 mg group, the SYKFT plus losartan potassium 50 mg group had a 13.39% ± 2.49% (P < 0.001) greater reduction in urine protein level. Compared with the losartan potassium 100 mg group, the SYKFT plus losartan potassium 100 mg group had a 9.77% ± 2.52% (P = 0.001) greater reduction in urine protein. With a superiority threshold of 15%, neither was statistically significant. eGFR, serum creatinine and serum albumin from the baseline did not change statistically significant. The average change in TCM syndrome score between the patients who took SYKFT (-3.00 [-6.00, -2.00]) and who did not take SYKFT (-2.00 [-5.00, 0]) was statistically significant (P = 0.003). No obvious adverse reactions were observed in any group. CONCLUSION: SYKFT decreased the proteinuria and improved the TCM syndrome scores of primary glomerulonephritis patients, with no change in the rate of decrease in the eGFR. SYKFT plus losartan potassium therapy decreased proteinuria more than losartan potassium therapy alone. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02063100 on ClinicalTrials.gov.

[Exploration on the acupoint selection rule for the treatment of postpartum hypogalactia with acupuncture and moxibustion based on the set visualization analysis system].

Based on the set visualization analysis system and Apriori algorithm, the acupoint selection rule for the treatment of postpartum hypogalactia with acupuncture and moxibustion was explored. The clinical research articles relevant with postpartum hypogalactia treated with acupuncture and moxibustion were retrieved from CNKI, Wanfang and VIP databases till July 15, 2019 since the database establishment. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the articles were screened and the acupoint prescriptions were extracted. On the base of the set visualization analysis system and Apriori algorithm, the characteristics of acupoints and the common acupoint combination were analyzed for the treatment of postpartum hypogalactia with acupuncture and moxibustion. Totally, 120 articles are included and 72 acupoints are extracted for the treatment of postpartum hypogalactia with acupuncture and moxibustion, of which, the conception vessel and the stomach meridian of foot-yangming are the most commonly used and the combination of Danzhong (CV 17), Rugen (ST 18), Zusanli (ST 36), Shaoze (SI 1) and Taichong (LR 3) is of the high frequency. The analyses of set visualization, acupoint association rule and acupoint combination network consistently indicate that the above mentioned 5 acupoints are the basic combination for the treatment of postpartum hypogalactia with acupuncture and moxibustion, co-acting on tonifying and nourishing qi and blood, smoothing liver qi and relieving stagnation, activating circulation and promoting lactation. This combination effectively treats postpartum hypogalactia caused by the source insufficiency of transformation of qi and blood and qi stagnation.

[Determination of methyl isocyanate (MIC) in air of workplaces by HPLC].

OBJECTIVE: To establish the method of detecting the concentrations of methyl isocyanate (MIC) in air of workplaces with high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC). METHODS: Samples are collected by XAD-7 tubes coated with 1-(2-pyridyl) piperazine (1-2PP). Samples are desorbed with acetonitrile (ACN) and analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using a fluorescence detector. RESULTS: There was a linear relationship within the range of 0.01 ∼ 10 µg/ml, and the detection limit was 5.3×10(-4) µg/ml. The minimum detectable concentration was 0.01 µg/ml, and the lowest detected concentration was 3.3×10(-3) mg/m(3). The relative standard deviation was 2.2% ∼ 5.3%. The average desorption efficiency was 90% and the sampling efficiencies were 100%. The samples could be stored for 10 days in cold storage condition. CONCLUSION: The present method could meet with the requirements of Guide for establishing occupational health standards-Part4 Determination methods of air chemicals in workplace and be feasible for determination of MIC in workplace air.

Genome-wide analysis of clustering patterns and flanking characteristics for plant microRNA genes.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been proven to play important roles at the post-transcriptional level in animals and plants. To investigate clustering patterns and specific sequence characteristics in the flanking regions of plant miRNA genes, we performed genome-wide analyses of Arabidopsis thaliana, Populus trichocarpa, Oryza sativa and Sorghum bicolor. Our results showed that miRNA pair distances were significantly higher than would have been expected to occur at random and that the number of miRNA gene pairs separated by very short distances of < 1 kb was higher than of protein-coding gene pairs. Analysis of the promoter architecture of different miRNA genes in plants revealed significant differences in the number and distribution of core promoters between intergenic miRNAs and intragenic miRNAs, and between highly conserved miRNAs and low conserved or nonconserved miRNAs. We applied two motif-finding algorithms to search for over-represented, statistically significant sequence motifs, and discovered six species-specific motifs across the four plant species studied. Moreover, we also identified, for the first time, several significantly over-represented motifs that were associated with conserved miRNAs, and these motifs may be useful for understanding the mechanism of origin of new plant miRNAs. The results presented provide a new insight into the transcriptional regulation and processing of plant miRNAs.

[Determination methods of bromine in air of workplace].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a spectrophotometric determination method of bromine in the air of workplace. METHODS: Bromine in the air of workplace was absorbed by methyl orange solution, then determined by spectrophotometry. RESULTS: The range of the determination was 0.2 to 2.8 microg/ml, the linear equation was Y=0.0427X-0.0092, r=0.9996. The detection limit was 0.2 microg/ml. The minimum detectable concentration was 0.27 mg/m(3) for 7.5 L air sample. The relative standard deviations covered the range of 1.1% approximately 3.7%. The recovery rate was in the range of 93.6% to 97.2%. The sampling efficiency ranged from 93.5% to 100.0%. CONCLUSION: The method is available for the determination of bromine in the air of workplace.