BACKGROUND: Obesity has become the most common and costly metabolic problem in the world, and the genetic and environmental effects on the generation of obesity have become one of the focus factors in obesity research. Gene-chips have been reported as a useful tool in human adipose tissue research. OBJECTIVE: To determine the peripheral blood gene expression profile of Chinese adult obesities by gene chip technique for the first time. DESIGN: Randomized controlled observation. SETTING: Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. PARTICIPANTS: The experiment was performed at the Basic Medical College of Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine between August 2003 and May 2004. Five obese patients, 4 males and 1 female, aged (21.4±0.9) years and three non-obese persons, 2 males and 1 female, aged (26.0±5.3) years were selected by the international body mass index (BMI) standard. The written informed consent was obtained from all subjects, and the research was approved by the medical ethical committee of Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. METHODS: Total RNA was extracted from peripheral blood, amplified and labeled. The quality and quantity of the processed samples were checked by Test3 array. The gene expression profiles were monitored by U133A set. The data was analyzed statistically, and the gene symbols with significant difference were searched in Gene BANK database. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Gene expression signal. RESULTS: Compared with non-obese adults, 66 genes showed up-regulated expression and 28 genes showed down-regulated, of which 11 genes were up-regulated above twofold, and 6 genes were down-regulated above twofold. The results demonstrated that HLA-DQAI (human leucocytic antigens), CRAT, MAPKSI3 and DKFZP434N1923 genes were up-regulated above 4 fold, and HLA-DQA1 gene was even up-regulated above 20 fold. CONCLUSION: Significant differences in peripheral blood gene expression profiles in Chinese adult obesities are found for the first time. The results indicate that obesity is strongly associated with MHC class II antigen HLA-DQA1, and HLA-DQB 1, etc.

The quality of teachers is the key to enhance the effectiveness of "Two Courses" teaching.This paper mainly talks about the basic qualities of "Two Courses"teachers,such as the ideology and politics,professional ethics,theory,business technology,capacity and so on.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the genetic diversity among wild germplasm resources of Coix that distributed at altitude of 550-1550 m in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan province by comparing the morphological variation, biological and economical factors.

METHODThe field plot experiments were conducted to observation the germination rate, growth period. While the milled rice rate, content of protein, crude fat and ethanol extract of 9 wild Coix germplasm resources were measured.

RESULTThe germination rate of 9 germplasm was from 22% to 81%, and the growth period was among 139-156 d, which belongs to the medium-late mature type. The germination rate, growth stage, plant height, leaf length and width, tiller number, ramification number, seed number per stem of 9 Coix germplasm were significantly different (P < 0.05), respectively. The range of seed total protein contents were from 15.63% 25.74%, crude fat contents were from 5.05%-7.14%, and the contents of alcohol extract, which showed antitumor activity, were from 5.85%-7.27%.

CONCLUSIONThe fact of quite different in plant morphological, biological and quality characters of 9 germplasm suggested that the genetic diversity in the wild populations of Coix distributed throughout the regions of Xishuangbanna is relatively abundant.

China ; Coix ; chemistry ; genetics ; growth & development ; physiology ; Germination ; Plant Extracts ; analysis ; Plant Proteins ; analysis ; Seeds ; chemistry ; genetics ; growth & development ; physiology

OBJECTIVETo explore the species, distributing and resource of Paris genus plants in Xishuangbanna area of Yunnan province.

METHODTwo steps, talking with the folk doctors and field survey, were employed to explore the resource status of Paris plants. Twenty six villages and towns, which are at an elevation of 500 m to 2000 m, were investigated.

RESULTA total of 214 specimens were collected and identified according to morphological characteristics. All investigated spots had Paris genus resources distribution but there always had a small Paris population less than 20. The Paris genus is an understory plants which lives always in a specific environment beside creek in hill valley and with many commensal plants such as bamboo and broadleaf. Three species of Paris, P. polyphylla var. yunnanensis, P. polyphylla var. chinensis, and P. vietnamensis were collected and identified.

CONCLUSIONParis genus resources declined rapidly in recent year, particular the P. polyphylla var. yunnanensis. Developing the breeding and cultivation technologies and enhancing the resources protection are needed urgently.

China ; Conservation of Natural Resources ; Liliaceae ; classification ; growth & development

Objective:To explore therapeutic efficacy and mechanism of puerarin(PUE)in treating of ulcerative colitis(UC).Methods:Network pharmacology and molecular docking technique were used to screen and analyze targets of PUE in regulating UC.C57BL/6 mice were given free access to 2.5%DSS aqueous solution for 7 days,and influence of PUE on changes in body weight and disease activity index(DAI)score were subsequently observed.Histopathological alterations of colon tissue were observed by HE staining,changes of goblet cell population in colon tissue were evaluated through Alcian blue staining;expressions of inflammatory factors in colon tissue were detected by qRT-PCR and ELISA.Effect of PUE on MODE-K cell viability and apoptosis were assessed by CCK-8 and flow cytometry.Results:A total of 38 common targets of PUE in modulating UC,such as AKT1,TNF,STAT3,CASP3,HIF1A and etc,mainly involving TNF,IL-17 and PI3K-Akt signaling pathway.In vivo experiments confirmed that PUE ameliorated degree of colon shortening,body weight and DAI scores and reduced inflammatory cell infiltration in mice.Besides,expressions of inflammatory factors in colon,such as TNF-α and IL-1β,were inhibited by PUE.Furthermore,in vitro experiments validated that PUE relieved DSS-induced apoptosis of epithelial cells.Conclusion:PUE alleviates occurrence and development of DSS-induced UC in mice.

“Deficiency cause， cold accumulation， and qi stagnation” originates from Essentials from the Golden Cabinet （《金匮要略》）， which is a guiding principle for the pathogenesis of women's diseases， pioneering the differentiation and treatment of women's diseases based on patterns， and having a profound influence on future generations. Following the classical principles and simplifying the complexities， this paper explored the pathogenesis and mechanism of polycystic ovary syndrome （PCOS） from the perspective of “deficiency cause， cold accumulation， and qi stagnation”， and believed that depletion of essence and blood， long-term accumulation of internal cold， and qi constraint and blood stasis are the causes of PCOS， with depletion of essence and blood， and lack of nourishment of zang-fu （脏腑） organs as the root， and cold pathogen invasion， qi constraint and blood stasis as the branch. The main treatment principle is “treating deficiency with supplementation”， and dispelling pathogen while reinforcing healthy qi， along with “treatment of cold by warming” and “treatment of stagnation by dispersing”. This is of great significance for the treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome. Clinically， these methods can be used flexibly to guide treatment and formula selection for PCOS， with the goal of harmonizing qi and blood and regulating menstruation.

Based on plant species databases, species lists and literature records, general situation of the Chinese medicinal endemic plant (vascular plant) has been systematically summarized, and its quantity and distribution characteristics of Chinese medicinal endemic plants are presented in this paper. The results showed that 3 150 endemic species are Chinese medicinal plants belonging to 785 genera in 153 families, which includes 38 species of 22 genera in 12 families of pteridophyta, 42 species of 14 genera in7 families of gymnosperms, and 3 070 species of 749 genara in 134 families of angiosperms. The top four families involving medicinal endemic species are Asteraceae (218 species), Ranunculaceae (182 species), Labiatae (151 species), and Liliaceae (133 species). The top four provincial administration distributed medicinal endemic species are Sichuan (1 568 species), Yunnan (1 533 species), Guizhou (955 species) and Hubei (930 species).On the regional scale, the most abundant one is the southwest region (2 465 species), followed by the central region (1 226 species) and the northwest region (949 species). Localization characteristics for domestication and artificial cultivation of medicinal endemic species are more prominent due to their narrower and limited distribution areas, indicating it is possible for these species acting as local potential resource for reasonable economic development.

Objective    To investigate the diagnostic value and safety of electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy combined with radial endobronchial ultrasound in peripheral pulmonary nodules. Methods    The clinical imaging, surgical and pathological data of 60 patients with 76 peripheral pulmonary nodules who underwent electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy combined with radial endobronchial ultrasound guided biopsy in the Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School from June 2020 to June 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The diagnosis rate and complications were analyzed and summarized. The 76 pulmonary nodules were divided into a small pulmonary nodules group (10 nodules, diameter≤1 cm) and a pulmonary nodules group (1 cm

Imported medicinal materials are an important part of Chinese medicinal resources. To be specific, about 10% of the around 600 commonly used Chinese medicinal materials are from abroad, and the introduction of foreign medicinal materials has promoted the development of Chinese medicine. Amid the advancement of reform and opening up and the "Belt and Road" Initiative, major headway has been made in the cross-border trade in China, bringing opportunities for the import of medicinal materials from border ports. However, for a long time, there is a lack of systematic investigation on the types of exotic medicinal materials at border ports. In the fourth national census of traditional Chinese medicine resources, National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, together with several organizations, investigated the nearly 40 border ports, Chinese medicinal material markets, and border trade markets in 6 provinces/autonomous regions in China for the first time and recorded the types, sources, circulation, and the transaction characteristics of imported medicinal materials. Moreover, they invited experts to identify the origins of the collected 237 medicinal materials. In addition, the status quo and the problems of the medicinal materials were summarized. This study is expected to lay a basis for clarifying the market and origins of imported medicinal materials as well as the scientific research on and supervision of them.
Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Materia Medica ; Records ; Censuses ; China ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal

The main sources of natural drugs include various biological species such as plants, animals, and microorganisms. The accurate identification of these species is the bedrock of natural drug development. We propose a novel method of species identification in this paper: analysis of whole-genome (AGE), a molecular diagnostic method used to identify species by finding species-specific sequences from the whole genome and precisely recognizing the specific target sequences. We elaborate that the principle for species identification based on AGE is that the genome sequences of diverse species must differ and divide the implementation strategy of the method into two levels of research and application. Based on our analysis of its characteristics, the method would have the potential advantages of reliable principle, high specificity, and wide applicability. Moreover, three crucial concerns related to building method systems including genome acquisition, bioinformatics analysis, and database construction, are further discussed. In summary, we offer theoretical underpinnings and methodological guidance for the development of bioinformatics software and commercial kits, indicating AGE has great application potential in objects, subjects, and industries.