[Objective] To investigate the effect of Xiaocuo Prescription (XP), a herbal medicine compound with the actions of clearing away heat and toxins, activating blood and removing blood-stasis, on acne vulgaris. [Methods] Four hundred and forty six cases of acne vulgaris were randomized to two groups: group A (325 cases) treated with oral use of XP (mainly composed of Flos Lonicerae, Herba Hedyotis Diffusae, Herba Taraxaci, Flos Chrysanthemi, Radix Scutellariae, Cortex Mori, Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae, etc.) and external application of Acne Vulgaris Liquid (composed of 3% metronidazole and 2% erythromycin), group B (121 cases) treated with oral use of isotretinoin and external application of Acne Vulgaris Liquid. Skin lesions on the face as well as the side effects were observed before and after treatment. [Results] Ridit analysis showed that curative effect in group A was better that in group B ( u = 2.204 6, P .05). No obvious side effects were found in group A but in 5 cases of group B side effects such as skin dryness, nausea and vertigo were found. [ Conclusion ] XP is effective in treating acne vulgaris . Further research is needed for its therapeutic mechanism.

BACKGROUND: The extracellular matrix (ECM) in demis consists of collagen, elastin and other matrix components, and as an in vitro skin model, the tissue-engineered artificial skin should have the synthesis, excretion and decomposition functions. OBJECTIVE: To observe the collagen and proteoglycan metabolism of tissue-engineered artificial skin. DESIGN: Single sampling observation SETTING: Department of Dermatology, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital. MATERIALS: Siderophilin, trypsin, 3H-proline and sirius red, etc. METHODS: The experiment was conducted at Department of Dermatology, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital and Institute of Frontier Medical Science, Jilin University from June 2000 to December 2004.①The tissue-engineered artificial skin was prepared in accordance with literatures.②The collagen synthesis of tissue-engineered artificial skin was examined by 3H proline incorporation. The culture plate was added with 3H-proline in each hole and cultured for 4 hours respectively in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd weeks after tissue engineering culture, and compared with natural skin.③Picric acid sirius red staining was applied to observe collagen synthesis and excretion functions of tissue-engineered artificial skin, while proteoglycan synthesis and excretion were examined by AB-PAS staining respectively after 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 weeks of culture. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: ①The detections of collagen synthesis and excretion; ②The detections of proteoglycan synthesis and excretion; ③ The results of 3H-proline incorporation experiment. RESULTS: ①The quantity of 3H-proline incorporation of tissue-engineered artificial skin was similar with that of normal skin after 7 and 14 days of culture, but obviously higher than that of normal skin at the 21st day after culture. ②Under polarization microscope, the tissue-engineered artificial skin presented fasciculate red double refraction and thin green double refraction, whereas simple matrix lattice only displayed red double refraction.③AB-PAS staining was negative in tissue-engineered artificial skin after 1 and 2 weeks culture together with simple matrix lattice, while positive in artificial skin after 3-6 weeks of culture. CONCLUSION: The tissue-engineered artificial skin has the capacity of synthesizing and excreting ECM collagen and proteoglycan.

Objective To investigate the effects of hairpin RNA on the expression of human papillomavirus E6 gene. Methods Plasmids expressing hairpin RNA, sense RNA and anti-sense RNA were constructed. The recombinants were transfected into cervical cancer cell line, CaSKi. Expression of E6 was detected with semi-quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot. Results Hairpin RNA could significantly reduce the expressions of E6 mRNA and protein, which was more efficient than traditional anti-sense RNA did. Conclusion The RNA interference through hairpin RNA can effectively inhibit the expression of target gene, and can be potentially useful in gene therapy of HPV related tumors.