Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Facial Nerve Injuries ; etiology ; Female ; Male ; Rabbits

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the clinical efficacy of Shuanghuanglian injection in the treatment of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD),and to observe its effects on the plasma levels of C-reactive protein (CRP),procalcitonin(PCT)and interleukin-6(IL-6). METHODS:A total of 100 AECOPD patients were randomly divided into observation group and control group,with 50 cases in each group. Control group received routine treatment,such as controlled oxygen therapy,intravenous dripping of moxifloxacin,bronchodilator for relieving asthma,mucolytic for eliminating phlegm,nu-tritional support. Observation group was additionally given Shuanghuanglian injection 1 ml/(kg·d)added into 5% Glucose injec-tion 250 ml intravenously,qd,on the basis of control group. Treatment course of 2 groups lasted for 10 d. Clinical efficacies of 2 groups were compared as well as the changes of serum levels of CRP,PCT and IL-6 before and after treatment and the occur-rence of ADR. RESULTS:After treatment,total effective rate of observation group was 96.0%,which was significantly higher than 82.0% of control group,with statistical significance(P<0.05). Before treatment,there was no statistical significance in se-rum levels of CRP,PCT and IL-6 between 2 groups (P>0.05). After treatment,serum levels of CRP,PCT and IL-6 were de-creased significantly in 2 groups,and those of observation group were significantly lower than those of control group,with statis-tical significance (P<0.05). There was no statistical significance in the incidence of ADR between 2 groups (P>0.05). CON-CLUSIONS:Shuanghuanglian injection can effectively improve serum inflammatory factors of AECOPD patients,and shows good clinical efficacy and safety.

Objective:To determine the valproate concentration in plasma of epilepsy patients by HPLC, and compare with the re-sults of chemiluminescence microparticle immunoassay ( CMIA) to evaluate the consistency of the two methods. Methods:HPLC and CMIA was respectively applied to determine the plasma concentration of valproate in 230 epileptic patients. The correlation of the two methods was studied by Passing-Bablok regression and Bland-Altman method. Results:The regression equation of the determination re-sults of HPLC (Y) and CMIA (X) was Y=1. 069 7X+2. 338 2 (R2 =0. 969, n=230), which showed promising correlation. Bland-Altman analysis showed that the consistency of the two methods was poor, and the values of HPLC were higher. Conclusion: HPLC and CMIA used for the determination of valproate plasma concentration show good correlation. However, the consistency is poor and there is system error. In the clinical treatment, adjustment and choice should be paid more attention.

Objective: To study the effect of free radical injury induced by Soman in rats and protection by Se/Zn. [WT5FZ]Methods: [WT5BZ]40 male rats were randomly divided into 4 groups, i.e., negative group, positive group, Se group and Zn group according to weights. The serum, cerebrum and liver VE content, nitrogen oxide synthase (NOS activity and T AOC (total antioxidative capacity) were determined. Results: The VE content and T AOC decreased markedly, and NOS activities increased significantly after Soman intoxication. The changes were less significant in Se/Zn supplemented group. Conclusion: The mechanism of free radical injury is indicated in Soman intoxication and Se/Zn supplementation has significant protection.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the dosage-efficacy/toxicity relationship of prepared rhubarb, in order to explore the bidirectional effects in hepatoprotection and hepatotoxicity of prepared rhubarb and the objective authenticity for attenuating toxicity by processing.

METHODNormal and pathological animals were adopted simultaneous to investigate the effect of total extracts from prepared rhubarb within a high dose range (2.0, 5.4, 14.7, 40.0 g x kg(-1) x d(-1)) on normal state, biochemical index and histopathology of experimental animals. The factor analytic approach was used to analyze the dosage-efficacy/toxicity relationship of prepared rhubarb.

RESULTThe factor analytic approach was used to extract two common factors from the nine biochemical indexes. The firs common factor was mainly dominated by HA, LN and TGF-β1, and could be explained as fibrotic factors. The second common factor was mainly dominated by ALT, AST and ALP, and could be explained as cellular factor. The results of the factor analysis suggested that prepared rhubarb showed significant bidirectional effects in hepatoprotection and hepatotoxicity, which could protect liver in CC14 injured chronic hepatic injury, but had a certain hepatotoxic effect to normal animals. The pathological examination showed consistent results with the factor analysis. Under comparable dosages, prepared rhubarb showed a stronger liver protecting effect than crude rhubarb, with a lower toxicity.

CONCLUSIONAlthough prepared rhubarb has a certain hepatotoxic effect to normal animals, it has also a significant therapeutic effect to animals with liver injury. The results proved the symptom-based prescription theory and the scientificity of the symptom-based medication. The symptom-based prescription theory is important to correctly realize the dosage-efficacy/toxicity relationship of traditional Chinese medicines and guide the symptom-based medication.

Animals ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Drug Prescriptions ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; toxicity ; Female ; Fibrosis ; Liver ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rheum ; chemistry ; Toxicity Tests

Objective: To investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on cognitive function in D-galactose (D-gal)-induced aging rats, and the correlation between the effect and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NOD)-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3)-ASC-Caspase-1 signaling pathway. Methods: Forty-six male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into a control group (n=10), a model group (n=12), an EA-7 d group (n=12) and an EA-21 d group (n=12). Except the control group, the other three groups received 42 consecutive days of intraperitoneal injection of D-gal to establish aging rat models with cognitive dysfunction. The control group received the same amount of normal saline via intraperitoneal injection. Two EA groups were given EA therapy for 21 consecutive days (began from the 22nd day of modeling) or 7 consecutive days (began from the 36th day of modeling) accordingly at Dazhui (GV 14), Baihui (GV 20), Shenshu (BL 23) and Zusanli (ST 36). After modeling/ intervention, all four groups received behavioral evaluations by Morris water maze (MWM) test, novel object recognition (NOR) test and step-down passive avoidance (SDPA) test followed by the Western blot (WB) detection of the expression levels of hippocampal NLRP3 inflammasome-associated proteins NLRP3, ASC and Caspase-1. Results: MWM (place navigation test, PNT) results showed that the escape latency in the model group was significantly longer than that in the other three groups (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference among the other three groups on the 1st day of the test (P>0.05). From the 2nd day to the 4th day of the test, there was no significant difference between the EA-21 d group and the control group (P>0.05) in the escape latency; the escape latency was significantly shorter in the EA-21 d group than in the model group and the EA-7 d group (P<0.05). MWM (spatial probe test, SPT) results showed that the time spent in the target quadrant was significantly shorter and platform crossover number was significantly lower in the model group than in the other three groups (P<0.05). The time spent in the target quadrant was longer in the EA-7 d group than in the model group (P<0.05), but was shorter than that in the control group and the EA-21 d group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the swimming speed among the four groups (P>0.05). NOR results showed that there was no significant difference in the recognition ratio between the EA-7 d group and the EA-21 d group (P>0.05), and the recognition ratio was significantly higher in the two EA groups than in the model group (P<0.05), but was lower than in the control group (P<0.05). SDPA results showed that the electric shock number was higher in the model group than in the other three groups (P<0.05), and the differences among the other three groups were statistically insignificant (P>0.05). The model group had the shortest step-down latency, followed by the EA-7 d group, the EA-21 d group and the control group in order (P<0.05). The WB results indicated that the expression level of NLRP3 was significantly lower in the control group and the EA-21 d group than in the model group and the EA-7 d group (P<0.05). The expression levels of ASC and Caspase-1 were significantly higher in the model group than in the other three groups (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference among these three groups (P>0.05). Conclusion: NLRP3 inflammasome may be involved in the development of cognitive decline in aging rats; 7 consecutive days of EA intervention can partially improve the cognitive impairment in aging rats though the effect is rather limited; 21 consecutive days of EA intervention may improve the learning and memory abilities in aging rats via downregulating the expression levels of NLRP3 inflammasome-associated proteins in hippocampus.

In recent years, non-viral gene vectors have attracted great attention for efficient gene delivery due to the advantages, including low toxicity, low immunogenicity and simple preparation. Polyethylenimine (PEI) is one of the typical non-viral gene carriers that have been widely utilized for gene delivery owing to its superior capabilities in gene compression and buffering capacity. This article discusses the processes of gene delivery and the barriers of PEI-based carrier during the gene delivery, such as low biocompatibility, cytotoxicity, lack of specific targeting and insufficient gene release, etc. Therefore, we summarize the multiple approaches for the modifications of PEI in terms of improved biocompatibility, degradability, specific targeting and buffering capacity. Furthermore, we also review on the recent impressive progresses of smart stimuli-responsive PEI carriers, including endogenous stimuli (pH, reactive oxygen species, glutathione, biomolecular, etc), exogenous stimuli (light, temperature, magnetic field, etc) and dual-responsive strategies, which might provide guidance for the development of more efficient and safer non-viral gene vectors.

Objective: To observe the clinical efficacy of herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion for dysmenorrhea due to deficiency cold. Methods: A total of 70 patients with dysmenorrhea who met the inclusion criteria were randomized into a mild moxibustion group and a herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion group by the random number table, with 35 cases in each group. Shenque (CV 8), Zhongji (CV 3) and bilateral Zigong (EX-CA 1) were selected for both groups. The treatment continued for 3 menstrual cycles. The visual analog scale (VAS) and COX menstrual symptom scale (CMSS) were scored in both groups before treatment, after treatment and at the end of the 3rd menstrual cycle after treatment. The clinical efficacy was evaluated at the end of the 3rd menstrual cycle after treatment. Results: After treatment, the clinical efficacy of the herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion group had the tendency to be superior to that of the mild moxibustion group, while there was no statistically significant difference in the overall efficacy between the two groups (P>0.05). The VAS and CMSS scores after treatment and at the follow-up were significantly lower than those before treatment in both groups (all P<0.05). At the follow-up, the VAS scores in both groups had no significant intra-group differences from those after treatment (both P>0.05). The CMSS scores in both groups were significantly lower than those after treatment (both P<0.05). The VAS scores at the follow-up of both groups had no statistical differences from those after treatment (both P>0.05). After treatment, the CMSS score in the herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion group was significantly lower than that in the mild moxibustion group (P<0.05). At the follow-up, there were no statistical differences in the CMSS score between the two groups (P>0.05). Conclusion: The herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion has the same therapeutic efficacy for dysmenorrhea as the mild moxibustion; the two moxibustion methods can significantly improve the concomitant symptoms of dysmenorrhea, and the herbal cake-partitioned moxibustion is little better.

BACKGROUND: Ascariasis is one of the most common human parasitic infections worldwide. In some rare cases, ascariasis may cause serious consequences even sudden death. This study was undertaken to review the life-threatening complications of ascariasis in trauma patients reported in the literature. DATA SOURCES: Relevant articles about ascariasis and trauma were searched from Pubmed, Google scholar, Scirus, and Wanfang databases. RESULTS: Twenty-four patients with ascariasis were collected from 21 articles searched. Most of these patients were from tropical and subtropical countries. Of the 24 patients, 12 were children. Their major complications occurred in the airway passage and digestive tract. There were 3 fatal cases in these patients. Twelve of the 24 patients described in 10 articles were reported in the last 10 years. CONCLUSIONS: Early diagnosis and prompt intervention are essential to minimize the high morbidity and mortality of these serious complications in trauma patients. Physicians should be aware of the possibility of Ascaris infection in a trauma patient from endemic area of ascariasis. History of Ascaris infection and routine examination of feces forAscaris eggs may be helpful to make a correct diagnosis.

155 endophytic fungi were isolated from Equisetum arvense L.,Impatiens chinensis L. and Myriophyllum verticillatum L. They were identified to 26 taxa. The antagonistic activities of these isolates against 6 isolates of plant pathogenic fungi were tested on the medium,and 37(23.9%) isolates were activitive against one or more phytopathogens. The percentage of antifungal active isolates from E. arvense L.,I. chinensis L. and M. verticillatum L. were 13.9%,29.2% and 37.1%,respectively. It was lower than that of terrestrial plants. The active isolates were mainly belonging to 5 genera including Cladosporium,Trichoderma and Geotrichum.