Effect of sulfur fumigation on quality and safety of Lilii Bulbus / 中国中药杂志

Lilii Bulbus is a commonly used Chinese herbal medicine with both medicinal and edible values, while the market products usually has the problem of sulfur fumigation. Therefore, the quality and safety of Lilii Bulbus products deserve attention. In this study, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-time of flight-tandem mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS) was combined with principal component analysis(PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA) to analyze the differential components of Lilii Bulbus before and after sulfur fumigation. We identified ten markers generated after sulfur fumigation, summarized their mass fragmentation and transformation patterns, and verified the structures of phenylacrylic acid markers of sulfur fumigation. At the same time, the cytotoxicity of the aqueous extracts of Lilii Bulbus before and after sulfur fumigation was evaluated. The results showed that in the concentration range of 0-800 mg·L~(-1), the aqueous extract of Lilii Bulbus after sulfur fumigation had no significant effect on the viability of human liver LO2 cells, human renal proximal tubular HK-2 cells, and rat adrenal pheochromocytoma PC-12 cells. Moreover, the viability of the cells exposed to the aqueous extract of Lilii Bulbus before and after sulfur fumigation showed no significant difference. This study identified phenylacrylic acid and furostanol saponins as markers of sulfur-fumigated Lilii Bulbus for the first time, and made clear that proper sulfur fumigation of Lilii Bulbus would not produce cytotoxicity, providing a theoretical basis for the rapid identification and quality and safety control of sulfur-fumigated Lilii Bulbus.

Advances in quality research of Cinnamomum cassia / 中国中药杂志

Cinnamomum cassis is one of the commonly used traditional Chinese medicines in China. Its genuine producing areas distribute in Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. As an important edible herb and export variety of China, the quality control and internationalization of quality standards of C. cassis is extremely significant. In the recent years, with the development of the cinnamon industry, relevant academic research and the upgrade of the international standards, it is necessary to summarize the quality-related progress of C. cassis. In the present review, the germplasm resources, specific quality marker(Q-marker) and quality standards of C. cassis were summarized on the basis of published research during the last 10 years.

Hearing loss may be associated with the novel mitochondrial tRNA(Asp) A7551G mutation in a Chinese family / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>We reported here the clinical and genetic evaluations as well as mutational analysis of mitochondrial DNA(mtDNA) in a Chinese family with maternally transmitted non-syndromic hearing loss and investigated the influence of the mitochondrial tRNA(Asp) A7551G mutation to the phenotypic manifestation of the deafness.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One Chinese Han pedigrees of maternally transmitted nonsyndromic hearing loss were collected. The proband and family members underwent clinical, genetic, and molecular evaluations, such as audiological examinations, mutational analysis of mitochondrial genome and mutational analysis of GJB2 gene.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Six people of this pedigree suffered from hearing loss, including four matrilineal members, and others did not have significant clinical abnormalities. Sequence analysis of the complete mitochondrial genome in the proband showed that there were 28 mtDNA polymorphisms belonging to East -Asian haplogroup A4.In addition to the A7551G homogeneity mutation, there were no other functionally significant variants found in this family. The A7551G mutation located immediately at the three prime end to the anticodon, corresponding with the conventional position 37 of tRNA(Asp), and its' CI value was 100% compared with other 15 primate species. The A7551G mutation was absent in other Chinese controls. The mutations on GJB2 were detected by direct sequence analysis,GJB2 235delC and 299delAT which was associated with hearing loss were found in the genomic DNA of the proband and some matrilineal members. Clinical evaluation showed a variable phenotype of severity, age-at-onset and audiometric configuration of hearing loss in the matrilineal relatives in these families.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The A7551G mutation may modify the secondary structure of the tRNA, and affect the stabilization of tRNA(Asp), produce non-normal functional tRNA(Asp) ultimately. And it may cause the phenotypic manifestation of the deafness that associated with A7551G mutation. Therefore, the mitochondrial tRNA(Asp) A7551G mutation may be a new mitochondrial mutation for hearing loss.</p>

Effects of environmental enrichment on the repair and proliferation of neurons in neonatal rats with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage / 中国当代儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effects of environmental enrichment on neuron proliferation, learning and memory ability and motor ability in neonatal rats with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and eight 7-day-old Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: sham operation (CON group), HIBD and intervention group. HIBD model was prepared according to the classic Rice-Vannucci method. Environmental enrichment was administered for the rats in the intervention group after HIBD inducement. Behavioral tests (Water maze test, Suspension test and Slope test) were performed and the number of neural cells in the left hippocampus was examined 7, 14 and 28 days after intervention.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The pyramid cells in the hippocampus CA1 area in the HIBD group were significantly less than in the CON group at 7, 14 and 28 days (P<0.05). The number of pyramid cells in the hippocampus CA1 area in the intervention group was significantly higher than in the HIBD group (P<0.01) at 7, 14 and 28 days. The hidden platform escape latency period (EL) in the Water maze test was significantly more prolonged and the cross-platform number within 2 minutes was significantly less in the HIBD and the intervention groups than in the CON group at all observed time points (P<0.01). The EL was significantly shorter and the cross-platform number within 2 minutes was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the HIBD group at all observed time points (P<0.01). The maintain time and score in the Suspension test were significantly lower and the time in the Slope test was significantly more prolonged in the HIBD and intervention groups than in the CON group at 7, 14 and 28 days (P<0.01). An increased maintain time and score and a decreased time in the Slope test were found in the intervention group compared with the HIBD group at 14 and 28 days (P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Environmental enrichment can improve motor function, learning and memory ability, and promote the repair and proliferation of neurons in neonatal rats with HIBD.</p>

Non-alcoholic fatty liver, high sensitivity C reactive protein and insulin resistance / 中南大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the relationship among non-acoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), high sensitivity reactive C protein (hsCRP) and insulin resistance.@*METHODS@#Workers of an enterprise in Changsha for health examination in Second Xiangya Hospital from October to December, 2006, NAFLD group (243 patients) and a control group without fatty liver disease (361 patients) were randomly drawn. Questionnaire, physical examination, fasting plasma glucose, serum lipid-profile, alanine aminotransferase (ALT),blood uric acid, and abdominal ultrasonographic examination were undertaken in the 2 groups.@*RESULTS@#The moderate NAFLD group had significantly higher hsCRP concentration and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) as compared with the mild NAFLD group (P or = 1 mg/L). Compared with the low concentration group, the odds ratio of the high concentration group for prevalence of NAFLD was 5.937(P<0.001). Multi-factor logistic regression analysis demonstrated that NAFLD was independently correlated with hsCRP or HOMA-IR after adjustment for sex, age and metabolic components (OR=2.044, 7.896,P<0.01).@*CONCLUSION@#NAFLD is closely correlated with hsCRP and HOMA-IR. Insulin resistance and elevated hsCRP concentration are the independent risk factors for the presence of NAFLD.

Relationship between islet autoantibodies and HLA-DQ genotypes in first-degree relatives of autoimmune type 1 diabetes / 中华内分泌代谢杂志

Objective To evaluate the association of islet autoantibodies [ glutamic acid decarboxylase antibody(GADA),protein tyrosine phosphatase antibody(IA-2A)and insulin autoantibodies(IAA)1 with HLA- DQ genotypes in the first-degree relatives of autoimmune type 1 diabetes mellitus.Methods This was a cross- sectional and case-control study.Three hundred and fifty-one first-degree relatives with normal glucose tolerance of patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus and 376 healthy controls were recruited and measured for GADA,IA-2A and IAA by radioligand assay,and 156 first-degree relatives of patients with autoimmune type 1 diabetes mellitus and 278 controls were typed for genetic polymorphisms of HLA-DQ with PCR sequencing-based typing method.Results (1)DQA1*03,DQBI*0303,*0401 alleles and DQA1 * 03-DQBI * 0303,DQA1 * 05-DQBI * 0201,DQA1 * 03-DQBI * 0401 haplotypes were significantly increased in the first-degree relatives of autoimmune type 1 diabetes mellitus(P