To enhance in vitro dissolution of Cur by preparing Cur solid dispersions. The ability of HPMCAS-HF,HPMCAS-MF,HPMCAS-LF and PVPK30 to maintain supersaturated solution was investigated by supersaturation test. Amorphous solid dispersions were prepared by the solvent-evaporation method. The prepared samples were characterized using infrared spectroscopy( IR) and differential scanning calorimetry( DSC),and in vitro dissolution was investigated. DSC and IR results showed that in 1 ∶3 and 1 ∶9 solid dispersions,Cur was amorphously dispersed in the carrier,and the interaction existed between drug and carrier. The supersaturation test showed that the order of the ability of polymer to inhibit crystallization of Cur was MF>HF>LF>K30. The dissolution results showed that Cur-K30 amorphous solid dispersion had the highest drug release rate; Cur-K30 and Cur-LF amorphous solid dispersions had a quicker but not stable dissolution rate,and the drug concentration decrease after 4 h; Cur-MF and Cur-HF solid dispersions had a low dissolution,which however increased steadily,attributing to the strong ability of the polymers to inhibit the crystallization of Cur. HPMCAS could inhibit the degradation of Cur better than K30,especially MF and HF. The amorphous solid dispersions of cur significantly enhanced the dissolution of Cur and improved the chemical stability of Cur. This study can provide a basis for the rational selection of the polymer used for Cur solid dispersion.
Chemistry, Pharmaceutical ; Curcumin ; chemistry ; Drug Stability ; Methylcellulose ; analogs & derivatives ; chemistry ; Polymers ; Solubility

In this study, the chloroplast genome of Camellia insularis Orel & Curry was sequenced using high-throughput sequencing technology. The results showed that the chloroplast genome of C. insularis was 156 882 bp in length with a typical tetrad structure, encoding 132 genes, including 88 protein-coding genes, 36 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes. Codon preference analysis revealed that the highest number of codons coded for leucine, with a high A/U preference in the third codon position. Additionally, 67 simple sequence repeats (SSR) loci were identified, with a preference for A and T bases. The inverted repeat (IR) boundary regions of the chloroplast genome of C. insularis were relatively conserved, except for a few variable regions. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that C. insularis was most closely related to C. fascicularis. Yellow camellia is a valuable material for genetic engineering breeding. This study provides fundamental genetic information on chloroplast engineering and offers valuable resources for conducting in-depth research on the evolution, species identification, and genomic breeding of yellow Camellia.
Genome, Chloroplast/genetics* ; Phylogeny ; Plant Breeding ; Camellia/genetics* ; Chloroplasts/genetics*

To establish a stable, useful culture system for human osteoclasts and to investigate the effect of osteoblasts on the differentiation, proliferation and activation of osteoclasts so as to provide a base for the studies on prevention and treatment of osteolysis and osteoporosis.

OBJECTIVE: To examine estrogen receptor (ER) in osteoblasts from adult human and to elucidate the mechanism of estrogen in modulating bone metabolism. METHODS: The cultured osteoblasts were harvested from bone chips by modified sequential digestive enzyme release and immunohistochemical assay of ER in osteoblasts were carried out in three groups of female adults: normal control (group 1), patients with moderate osteoporosis (group 2) and patients with serious osteoporosis (group 3). The percentages of ER-positive osteoblasts from the three groups were compared by t test. RESULTS: The brown marks that indicate ER were found in nuclei and plasma of the osteoblasts, and the percentages of ER-positive osteoblasts among three groups were significantly different. CONCLUSION: ERs exist in nuclei and plasma of the osteoblasts. Estrogen may modulate bone metabolism through binding ER in nuclei and plasma of the osteoblasts. The reduction of ER of osteoblasts may play an important role in the pathogenesis of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

[Abstract] Objective To evaluate the effect of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Direct Assay (MTD) for rapid detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis rRNA and Multi-locus PCR for M.bovis BCG strain typing in patients with suspected extra-pulmonary tuberculosis.Methods From June 2010 to December 2011,47 children and 75 adult patients with suspected extra-pulmonary tuberculosis in Shanghai public health clinical center were recruited.Also 48 non-tuberculosis patients were taken as a negative control.Clinical specimens from these patients were collected.Acid fast stain,solid culture,liquid culture,and MTD were used to detect all clinical specimens simultaneously.Screen tuberculosis strains of the culture isolates by MPT64 antigen assay and use Multi-locus PCR for the BCG strain genotyping of the isolates without MPT64 antigen.SPSS16.0 was used to analyse the results.Results The sensitivity for acid fast stain,solid culture,liquid culture and MTD test was 10.7％ (13/122),11.5％ (14/122),16.4％ (20/122) and 37.7％ (46/122),respectively.And the specificity of MTD was 100.0％.Six clinical isolates from children were identified as BCG by Multi-locus PCR typing,the same with chemical tests.Conclusions The MTD assay and the MGIT960 liquid culture are effective and reliable method for diagnosing extra-pulmonary tuberculosis.And Multi-locus PCR can be assisted for the early diagnosis of extra-pulmonary tuberculosis patients with suspected BCG infection.

Objective To establish the rapid pathogen identification method for HIV and Mycobac-terium tuberculosis (Mtb)co-infection and the assay for the drug susceptibility. Methods Geneprobe and 16S rDNA sequencing were used to differentiate mycobacterium species and modified microscopic observation drug susceptibility (MODS) was used for the drug susceptibility test. The above assays were compared with acid-fast smear, L-J culture and proportional drug susceptibility tests. Results (1) Thirty-four mycobacte-rial isolates were obtained from 112 samples collected from 68 HIV patients. Among these isolates, the strain species were determined by Geneprobe and 16S rDNA sequencing as the followings: 21 Mtb complex, 10 NTM including 5 M.avium complex, 2 M.gordonae, 2 M.kansasii, 1 M.colombiense, and 3 co-infection. (2) The sensitivity of Mtb to rifampicin, ethambutol, isoniazid and streptomycin were 100%, 100%, 76.2%, 90.5% respectively, while the sensitivity of NTM to rifampicin, ethambutol, isoniazid and strepto-mycin were 40%, 60%, 0%, 30% respectively. There is no significant statistic difference between the two methods, MODS and the reference standard, for the drug susceptibility test. (3) Six to eight weeks are nee-ded for the identification of the species of mycobacteria and the drug susceptibility test by using traditional method. In this study, 5-14 d, 6-15 d and 10-14 d are needed for Geneprobe, 16S rDNA sequencing, and MODS respectively. The time for the testing has been dramatically shortened. Conclusion The identifica-tion of mycobacterial species and the drug susceptibility test using clinical samples could be completed within 15 days by using combined Geneprobe, 16S rDNA sequencing and modified MODS. This combined method can be used for the pathogen identification and drug resistant test in HIV patients who are co-infected by my-cobacteria.

Objective To improve the diagnosis of tuberculosis ( TB) by analyzing Mycobacterium infection in fine-needle aspiration biopsy specimens from children with tuberculous lymphadenitis .Methods Fine-needle aspiration biopsy was performed on 269 children with tuberculous lymphadenitis diagnosed by Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center from January 2011 to September 2013 .The needle aspiration biopsy specimens were processed for acid-fast bacillus (AFB) smear test, mycobacterial culture and Mycobacterium identification ( p-nitrobenzoic acid inhibition test ) .Results Cytological diagnosis of tuberculous lymphade-nitis was made for 269 patients.The positive results by AFB smear test were detected in 63.19% of 269 specimens (n=170) and 40.15%(n=108) specimens were positive in mycobacterial culture .The differ-ence between the two tests were significant (P<0.01).The positive rate of Mycobacterium detected by using BACTEC MGIT 960 automated system and L?wenstein-Jensen culture method were 38 .66% ( n=104 ) and 28.99%(n=78), respectively, showing the significant difference between two tests (P<0.05).AFB smear test in combination with mycobacterial culture could precisely diagnose 70.63% of tuberculous lym-phadenitis in children.Of the 108 clinical isolates, 105 strains (97.2%) were Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex and the rest were non-tuberculous Mycobacterium strains (2.8%).Conclusion The positive rate by AFB smear test was significantly increased in fine needle aspiration biopsy specimens after a series of treatments including sample digestion , centrifugation and precipitation , but the positive rate of mycobacterial culture was reduced .Diagnostic accuracy could be significantly improved by using BACTEC MGIT 960 sys-tem.Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex was the predominant pathogenic bacterium in children with tubercu-lous lymphadenitis .

Objective To investigate the effect of magnesium sulfate on NF-κB p65,inflammatory cyto-kines in brain and serum of preeclampsia model rats by magnesium sulfate. Methods The healthy SD rats were randomly divided into 4 groups,normal pregnancy group(n = 10),magnesium sulfate control group(n = 10), preeclampsia(PE)model group(n = 10)and magnesium sulfate intervention group(n = 10). Blood pressure, urinary protein,blood urea nitrogen and alanine aminotransferase levels were detected in rats in each group. RT-qP-CR and ELISA were used to detect the expression of IL-1β,TNF-αand IL-6 in the brain and serum. Western blot assay was used to detect the expression of the NF-κB p65 in brain. Results The level of proteinuria,blood urea nitrogen and blood pressure in PE model rats were significantly higher than those in the normal pregnancy group and those in the magnesium sulfate intervention group at 20 days of gestation(P<0.05). Results of RT-qPCR and ELISA assay showed that IL-1β,TNF-α and IL-6 level in magnesium sulfate intervention group were sig-nificantly lower than those in PE model group(P<0.05),but still higher than those in the normal pregnancy group (P < 0.05). Western blot result showed that NF-κB p65 in the magnesium sulfate intervention group was lower than that in the PE group(P<0.05),but still higher than that in the normal pregnancy group(P<0.05). Con-clusion The prevention and treatment preeclampsia mechanism of magnesium sulfate may inhibit inflammatory cyto-kines through NF-κB p65 pathway in the preeclampsia model rats.

Objective: To investigate the effect of multi-stent assisted coil embolization for blood blister-like aneurysms (BBA) and the impact on vascular endothelial function. Methods: Multi-stent assisted coil embolization was performed on 31 patients with internal carotid artery BBA. The effect of embolization was evaluated with Raymand classification on the day after operation. And the prognosis was evaluated using modified Rankin scale (mRS) 28 days and 3 months postoperatively during follow-up. The levels of plasma endothelin-1 (ET-1), von Willebrand factor (vWF) and serum nitric oxide (NO) in peripheral blood of patients were compared before and 1 week after operation through statistical methods. Results: The technical success rate of multi-stent assisted coil embolization was 93.55% (29/31). Among 29 patients who underwent successful BBA embolization, Raymand classification results showed that the effective rate of embolization (proportion of grade and Ⅱ) was 100% (29/29) with 22 cases of grade and 7 cases of grade Ⅱ. Twenty-eight days after operation, mRS showed good prognosis (grade 0-2) in 68.97% (20/29) patients, incluing 5 cases of grade 0, 8 cases of grade 1 and 7 cases of grade 2. And the proportion of good prognosis was 75.86% (22/29) 3 months after operation, with 7 cases of grade 0, 12 cases of grade 1 and 3 cases of grade 2. The levels of ET-1 ([518.38±22.91]pg/ml vs [550.32±28.57]pg/ml, t=-4.848, P<0.001), vWF ([1.66±0.20]ng/ml vs [1.86±0.29]ng/ml, t=-3.161, P=0.002) significantly increased, while the serum NO level significantly decreased ([37.40±4.88]nmol/ml vs [33.02±4.24]nmol/ml, t=3.796, P<0.001) 1 week after operation compared with preoperative results in all 31 patients. Conclusion: Multi-stent assisted coil embolization for the treatment of internal carotid artery BBA is effective, but may bring certain adverse impact on postoperative vascular endothelial function.

OBJECTIVE: To optimize the extraction and inclusion processes of ginger oleoresin from Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens. METHODS: Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction was selected to extract ginger oleoresin from Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens. The extraction condition was optimized by orthogonal experiment. The inclusion method, the ratio of ginger oleoresin to β-cyclodextrin and inclusion time were studied as factors of inclusion process. RESULTS: The optimized extraction technology was as follows: extraction temperature was 50℃, extraction pressure was 25 MPa, separation pressure was 9 MPa and extraction time was 90 min. The optimal inclusion method was triturating inclusion, with the ratio of ginger oleoresin to β-cyclodextrin of 1:8 and inclusion time of 60 min. CONCLUSION: The optimized technology of extraction and inclusion is stable and feasible, and can be used for the extraction and inclusion of ginger oleoresin.