It has been shown that powerful Saussurea involucrata spirit has effects of expelling wind and removing dampness, anti-inflammation and alleviating pain, and activating blood flow and diminishing swelling. The pharmacokinetic findings show that this drug has advantages of slow-absorption, long-action and high-bioavailability.

Objective To investigate the association between TLR4,C-Jun N-terminal kinase,tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),Leptin changes and chronic intermittent hypoxia(CIH). Methods Twenty-four SD rats were divided into 3 groups (n=8):control group,CIH 6 weeks group, CIH 8 weeks group. After the modeling,the change of blood pressure and renal artery were observed by the use of non-invasive blood pressure analyzer and HE staining. ELISA was employed to determine the production of TNF-αand Leptin in sera of these animals. The expressions of TLR4 and JNK mRNA were detected by real time quantitativer everse transcription-polymerase chain reaction ( QRT-PCR) method in the adipose tissue. Results The blood pressure in intermittent hypoxia group was signifi-cantly higher than those in control group(P<0.01), and the renal artery pathological changes in intermittent hy-poxia group were significantly heavier than those in control group;the content of TNF-α and Leptin in intermittent hypoxia was significantly higher than those in control group(P<0.01),and the content of TNF-α and Leptin was significantly increased with the days of hypoxia;the expression of TLR4 and JNK at mRNA levels in intermittent hy-poxia was significantly higher than those in control group(P<0.01),and the expression of TLR4 and JNK at mR-NA levels was significantly increased with the days of hypoxia. Conclusion TLR4,JNK,TNF-α,Leptin may be in-volved in the inflammatory response of chronic intermittent hypoxia in rats.

Objective To screen the HBV SPⅡ promoter DNA-binding protein, and to investigate its potential role in the regulation of replication and expression of HBV DNA. Methods By using HBV SPⅡ biotinylated promoter DNA as a selective molecule, the T7 select human liver cDNA library was biopanned and the positive clones were selected. After screening, amplification of positive plaques was performed for inserted DNA fragment and then they were cloned into the pGEM-Teasy vector. Results Four positive plaques were chosen for DNA sequencing. The binding protein of HBV SPⅡ promoter was demonstrated as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) dehydrogenase 4 by BLAST. Conclusion The result suggests that this approach may provide a new tool for the study of replication and expression mechanism of HBV DNA.

Brain injury is one of the most serious diseases in neonatal period,which can cause cerebral palsy,motor development delay,cognitive dysfunction and learning difficulties and other sequelae,and severely affects the health development and quality of life of the newborn.Neonatal brain injury (NBI) is a wide range of diseases caused by a variety of causes,its clinical manifestations lack specificity,clinically,it is difficult to judge the severity,duration and the time of prenatal injury,and it has been paid much attention to by scientific researchers and clinicians.At present,imaging method is a major means of NBI diagnosis,but imaging examination is usually a lag and limitations.Levels of humoral biomarkers change early after brain injury,and early brain injury can be predicted by detecting their changes.In recent years,a variety of sensitive brain damage biomarkers have been detected in various body fluids of newborns,mainly including neuron-specific enolase (NSE),ubiquitin carboxyl hydrolase L1 (UCH L1),S100B protein,tau protein,myelin basic protein (MBP),glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and activin A and so on.the application and research progress of these commonly used biomarkers in NBI are reviewed in this paper.

Objective To study the effect of the extract of total flavonoids of Chrysanthemum indicum(TFC) on adjuvant arthritis(AA) synoviocytes.Methods Totally 0.1ml of the complete Freund's adjuvant was subcutaneously injected into the right hind feet pads of 20 SD rats.24 days after immunity synoviocytes in the knee joint were treated with TFC.Cell morphology was examined with electron microscopy.Protein level of caspase-3 cleaved fragments was analyzed by Western blotting.The annexin V stain assay was applied to explore the effect of caspase-3 inhibitor on the amelioration in synovial cells apoptosis of AA rats.Results Typical morphology and biochemical feature of apoptosis in synovial cells of AA rats were observed with TFC.The protein level of caspase-3 cleaved fragments increased obviously and was related with the concentration of TFC in synovial cells of AA rats.The apoptotic cells positively stained with annexin V were markedly reduced by caspase-3 inhibitor.Conclusion TFC can induce apoptosis in AA rats synoviocytes,which may achieve therapeutical effects in AA.The activation of caspase-3 may be one of the main causations.

OBJECTIVETo explore the therapeutic effect of diagnosis and treatment program of integrative medicine (IM) on level 2 hypertension in the young and middle-aged patients and their ambulatory blood pressure.

METHODSA randomized, placebo parallel and controlled, multi-center clinical trial was performed. Totally 199 young and middle-aged level 2 hypertension patients were randomly assigned to the treatment group (99 cases) and the control group (100 cases). All received combined hypotensive treatment program by taking Nifedipine Sustained Release Tablet and Hydrochlorothiazide as basic drugs. Patients in the treatment group additionally took Western medicine (WM) combined Jiangyabao serial drugs (0.31 g per tablet, 2 tablets each time, twice daily), while those in the control group additionally took WM combined simulative agents of Jiangyabao serial drugs (0.31 g per tablet, 2 tablets each time, twice daily). The treatment course was 8 weeks for all, and 24-week follow-ups performed. 24 h ambulatory blood pressure and casual blood pressure, and their efficacies were compared between the two groups, and safety assessed as well.

RESULTSCompared with before treatment in the same group, daytime and night casual blood pressure, as well as 24 h ambulatory blood pressure were all obviously improved in the two groups (P < 0.01). Average diastolic and systolic blood pressures at night decreased more in the treatment group than in the control group with statistical difference (P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference in total efficacies of daytime casual blood pressure or ambulatory blood pressure (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONJiangyabao serial drugs combined WM in treating young and middle-aged level 2 hypertension patients showed obvious effect in improving night blood pressure, especially for night diastolic blood pressure.

Blood Pressure ; Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Hypertension ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Integrative Medicine ; Middle Aged ; Nifedipine

Craniofacial Abnormalities ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Skull ; abnormalities

Aging ; Animals ; Brain ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Male ; Neurotransmitter Agents ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Objective To observe the effect of Sini decoction on inflammatory response and immune function in septic rats and to discuss its possible mechanism.Methods 66 Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into normal control group (n=6),model group (n=30),and Sini decoction group (n=30).Septic model was reproduced by intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS,5 mg/kg).After the reproduction of sepsis,rats in Sini decoction group received Sini decoction (5 g/kg) by gavage,while those in model group were given equal dose of normal saline in the same way.Rats in normal control group did not receive any treatment.Blood was collected via eye sockets at 2,12,24,48,72 hours after LPS administration,then the rats were sacrificed.The concentrations of inflammatory mediators,such as interleukin (IL-1,IL-6,IL-10),tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α),and the expression level of monocyte human leukocyte antigen-DR (HLA-DR) were determined with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA),and the pathological changes in intestinal mucosa were observed under electron microscope.Results The concentration of IL-1 (ng/L) at 2 hours in model group was gradually increased and peaked at 48 hours (4.07 ± 0.10),and then gradually decreased,while the IL-1 level in Sini decoction group peaked at 12 hours (2.98 ± 0.12) followed by a gradual decrease.IL-6 (ng/L) in model and Sini decoction groups peaked twice at 12 hours (91.39 ± 1.55,73.00 ± 2.38) and 48 hours (82.51 ± 1.49,64.68 ± 1.68) respectively.IL-10 (ng/L) in model group gradually decreased after peaking at 2 hours (86.66 ± 6.12),and that in Sini decoction decreased at 12 hours (71.61 ± 2.35) followed by an increasing tendency,and approached normal level at 48 hours (109.09 ±4.77 vs.124.01 ± 7.89,P＞0.05).TNF-α (ng/L) in model group was gradually increased and peaked at 48 hours (83.37 ±3.79),and that in Sini decoction peaked at 12 hours (48.52 ± 1.21),and decreased to normal level at 72 hours (18.59 ± 1.97 vs.15.50 ± 2.68,P＞0.05).During the course of the experiment,as compared with those of the model group,level of IL-1,IL-6,and TNF-α were significantly lower at all time points in Sini decoction group,and IL-10was significantly higher.The expression level of HLA-DR (μg/L) in model and Sini decoction groups peaked at 2 hours (4.86 ± 0.15,4.85 ± 0.17),and then gradually lowered.HLA-DR expression μg/L) at 48 hours and 72 hours in Sini decoction group was significantly lower than that in model group (48 hours:4.21 ± 0.12 vs.2.74 ± 0.16,72 hours:3.80 ± 0.09 vs.2.27 ± 0.12,both P＜0.01).Pathological study of intestinal mucosa showed that the intestinal mucosa were infiltrated significandy by inflammatory cells,and villi were damaged severely in both model group and Sini decoction group at 2 hours after LPS challenge.Infiltration of inflammatory cells in Sini decoction group was less intense after 12 hours,and the intestine villi repair was more obvious compared with model group.Conclusion Sini decoction could regulate systemic inflammatory response,and promote the repair of intestinal mucosa,the intestinal function and the immune status of septic rats.

Objective To investigate the echocardiographic features in patients with right atrial myxoma and thus evaluate the value of echocardiog?raphy in the diagnosis of right atrial myxoma. Methods The echocardiographic findings of 20 patients with right atrial myxomas were retrospectively analyzed,and the echocardiographic features of these patients were summarized. Results The main clinical symptoms of right atrial myxoma includ?ed chest tightness,shortness of breath,lower limb edema,and syncope. Of these 20 patients,the echocardiography showed that the average size of the right atrial myxomas was 3.11 cm × 2.90 cm to 7.44 cm × 4.52 cm. The myxomas were round or oval shape in 15 patients(75%)and lobulated shape in 5(25%). The myxomas were attached to the atrial septum in 15 patients(75%)and to right atrial free wall in 25%of the patients. The aver?age width of the basement was 1.62±0.30 cm,and the width was greater than 1 cm in 80%of the patients had the width over 1 cm. Some myxomas had internal areas of calcification and anechoic cystic areas. The percentages of patients with the blocking of right atrium,tricuspid and pulmonary hy?pertension were 70%,50%,and 10%,respectively. Conclusion The echocardiographic features of right atrial myxoma were specific. Echocardiog?raphy can accurately assess the tumor and identify the secondary changes in cardiac structure and hemodynamics and thus provide evidence for time?ly and accurate diagnosis of right atrial myxoma.