OBJECTIVETo observe the clinical effect of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) treated with moxibustion at Gaohuang (BL 43).

METHODSWith stratified block randomization, 72 patients accorded with inclusive criteria were divided into a moxibustion at Gaohuang (BL 43) group (moxibustion group) and an acupuncture group, 36 cases in each one. In the moxibustion group, Gaohuang (BL 43) was treated with big moxa cones as the main acupoint, 10 cones a time; Qihai (CV 6) and Zusanli (ST 36) were added with big moxa cones, 7 cones a time. In the acupuncture group, acupoints were the same as those in the moxibustion group, and twirling reinforcing method was used after qi arriving, 60 times one minute and 360° with range. In the two groups, 10-day treatment was made into one course and there were two days between courses. The treatment was given once a day for 3 courses. Changes of fatigue assessment index (FAI) before and after treatment and clinical effects were observed.

RESULTSThe total effective rate was 88.9% (32/36) in the moxibustion group, which was better than 72.2% (26/36) in the acupuncture group apparently (P < 0.05). After treatment in the two groups, FAI scores were obviously declined compared with those before treatment (both P < 0.01) and FAI score in the moxibustion group was apparently lower than that in the acupuncture group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONMoxibustion at Gaohuang (BL 43) can improve the FAI score of patients with CFS and the clinical efficacy is definite.

Acupuncture Points ; Adult ; Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Moxibustion ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

Patch-clamp is used to study all sorts of ionic channels and their regulations with measuring pA current of cell ionic channel, but the fast capacitance (C-fast) compensation and slow capacitance (C-slow) compensation transient currents are caused by measuring objects and measuring instruments themselves which will change the properties of action potentials. The present paper firstly discusses the C-Fast transient currents affecting membrane capacitance and membrane potential, and then draws a conclusion that the changes of membrane potential affect the properties of action potential through analyzing the changes of membrane potential in H-H model. Based on this conclusion, we discuss the influence mechanisms mainly through the analysis of traditional C-fast compensation errors, and focus discussion on the shape of electrode capacitance affecting C-fast. This method can not only improve the compensation speed greatly, but also improve the compensation precision from the electrode shape as much as possible.
Action Potentials ; Electric Capacitance ; Ion Channels ; physiology ; Membrane Potentials ; Neurons ; cytology ; Patch-Clamp Techniques

Objective To study the distribution of rs2234693 and rs9340799 of estrogen receptor (ER)gene and the relationship between them and lipid metabolism in the Ningxia Hui group,China.Methods We used cluster sampling method to select 5 3 3 cases of Ningxia Yinchuan communities of Hui. SNP genotyping was performed using the Sequenom MassARRAY platform.Results ① The frequencies of the distribution of each genotype of rs2234693 in Ningxia Hui population were the same as those in Chinese Han and Dai,Americans, Europeans,and Japanese (P>0.05).The distribution of each genotype of rs9340799,especially AA genotype,was different from that in Europeans (P<0 .0 5 ).② The body mass index in dyslipidemia group was significantly different from that in the control group (P<0.01).③ The risk of dyslipidemia in subjects with GG genotype of rs9340799 was 2.97 times higher than that in subjects with other genotypes (OR=2.97,P<2.97 ).After adjustment of gender,age,and body mass index (BMI),estrogen level was also 2.76 times higher (OR=2.76,P<0.05).(4)The frequency of C-G in rs2234693-rs9340799 haplotype was greater than that in the control group,but without any significant difference (P>0.05).Conclusion ER genes distribution in the Hui nationality of Ningxia is significantly different from that in other races;rs2234693 has no obvious relationship with the occurrence of dyslipidemia while GG genotype in SNP rs9340799 significantly increases the risk of lipid metabolism disorders.

Objective To study the association of the CAG repeat length polymorphism in exon 1 of the androgen receptor (AR) gene with metabolic syndrome (MS) and its components in men.Methods We used cluster sampling method to select 910 middle-and old-aged male subjects from the communities in Yinchuan and Wuzhong cities,Ningxia.Their body height,weight and blood pressure were measured;their testosterone (TT),serum lipids,fasting glucose (FBG) and fasting insulin (FINS) were assayed;and their body mass index (BMI) and free testosterone (FT) were calculated.Length of CAG repeats in exon 1 of the AR gene was determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and direct sequencing method.The subjects were divided into MS group (n =304) and normal control group (n=606) according to the diagnosis standards of MS.Results No obvious difference in the frequency distribution of CAG repeats in the AR gene was found between MS group and normal control group.The systolic blood pressure in the mcn with CAG repeat number of less than 22 was significantly higher than that in those with CAG repeat number of 22 or more,but HDL-C was significantly lower than men with CAG repeat number of 22 or more.However,the two groups did not significantly differ in diastolic blood pressure,other blood lipids level,FBG,FINS,BMI,TT or FT.The men with CAG repeat number of less than 22 had a higher prevalence of hypertension than those with CAG repeat number of 22 or more,but the prevalence of MS and other components of MS in the two groups had no significant difference,Conclusion The length of CAG repeats in exon 1 of the AR gene is related to the occurrence of hypertension and the dccreased level of HDL-C,but not to the incidence of MS.The number (less than 22) of CAG repeats of the AR gene may be a genetic factor of the occurrence of hypertension and reduced level of HDL-C.

Objective To measure the endogenous metabolites in synovial tissues of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) rabbits with cold syndrome;To investigate the specificity mechanisms of heat-reinforcing needling for RA. Methods A total of forty healthy purple blue rabbits were randomly allocated to normal group, model group, reinforcing-reducing needling group (RRN), twirling-reinforcing needling group (TRN) and heat-reinforcing needling group (HRN) 8 rabbits in each group. Arthritis rabbits cold model was made with ovalbumin and freezing. Except for normal groupand model group, RRN was given acupuncture of reinforcing-reducing needling at Zusanli (ST36), TRN was given acupuncture of twirling-reinforcing needling at Zusanli (ST36), HRN was administrated acupuncture of heat-reinforcing needling at Zusanli (ST36), once a day and retaining 30 min, a total of seven days. Fresh synovial tissues of rabbits knee joints were extracted after the intervention, then GC-Q/TOF-MS technology were employed to evaluate metabolic profiles. Results The synovial tissues metabolites of TCA cycle, carbohydrate and fatty acid metabolism in model group mainly increased compared with normal group (P<0.05); The synovial tissues metabolites of various kinds above-mentioned decreased compared with model group in all intervention of acupuncture group (P<0.05), and the metabolites of TCA cycle and carbohydrate metabolism in HRN were obviously less than that of RRN and TRN (P<0.05). Conclusion The specificity of heat-reinforcing needling for RA manifests in regulation of TCA cycle and carbohydrate metabolism.

Objective To screen out the biomarkers with diagnostic value in lung cancer by biochip technology. Methods We screened four pairs of differentially-expressed circRNAs in lung cancer by circRNA expression profiling chip, and then verified the screened differential circRNA hsa_circ_0044569 by qRT-PCR, and collected clinical case information of patients at the same time. The independent sample t test and ROC curve were used to analyze the relation between the clinical data of lung cancer patients and the expression of circRNA hsa_circ_0044569 on clinical samples. Results The expression level of hsa_circ_0044569 in lung cancer tissues was higher than that of its paired adjacent tissues. The cutoff value of hsa_circ_0044569 for the diagnosis of lung cancer was 9.62, AUC was 0.758, P < 0.05, sensitivity was 0.712, and specificity was 0.712. The expression of hsa_circ_0044569 was significantly related with the pathological type of lung cancer patients (P < 0.05). Conclusion hsa_circ_0044569 is highly expressed in lung cancer and related to the pathological type, suggesting that it may become a potential biomarker in the early diagnosis of lung cancer.

Objective To investigate the expression of hsa_circ_0018574 in colorectal cancer tissues and human colon cancer HT29 cell line, as well as its effect on the proliferation and apoptosis of colorectal cancer cells. Methods The circPrimer 1.2 software was used to draw the circRNA sequence structure. Meanwhile, the circRNA microarray was used to screen differentially-expressed circRNA in colorectal cancer tissues and adjacent tissues, and RNA was extracted from tissue samples. The expression of hsa_circ_0018574 in human colorectal tumors was detected by RT-qPCR. The si-circ_0018574 was transfected into HT29 cells, and the expression of CDK2, CDK4, CDK6, cyclinD1, and cyclinE cyclins were detected by colony formation assay, flow cytometry, and Western blot, respectively. Results The expression of hsa_circ_0018574 in human colorectal tumor tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent tissues (P < 0.01). Meanwhile, the si-circ_0018574 in HT29 cells could significantly inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells, reduce clone formation and colony formation ability (P < 0.01), and induce tumor cell apoptosis (P < 0.01). The expressions of CDK2, CDK4, CDK6, cyclinD1 and cyclinE cyclins were decreased. Conclusion The hsa_circ_0018574 is highly expressed in colorectal tumors, and si-circ_0018574 could significantly inhibit the proliferation of HT29 cells, reduce cell division, and induce apoptosis.

We developed a detailed electroporation method to deliver efficiently siRNA into mouse preimplantation embryos. By introducing Cy3 labeled negative control small interfering RNA (siRNA) into mouse preimplantation embryos, we optimized conditions for the electroporation, including the voltage, pulse duration, pulse number, electroporation buffer and an important step to weaken the zona pellucida. Embryonic survival rate, transfection rate and blastocyst development rate were evaluated under the converted fluorescence microscope, by embryos counting and statistical analysis. The best transfection was achieved in opti-MEM under the conditions of 30 V, 1 ms, 3 pulses, and the duration of digestion in tyrode's solution was 10 s. In conclusion, the proposed electroporation approach here is a simple and efficient tool to deliver siRNA for RNA interference (RNAi) into mouse preimplantation embryos.
Animals ; Blastocyst ; metabolism ; Electroporation ; Female ; Male ; Mice ; RNA Interference ; RNA, Small Interfering ; genetics ; Transfection ; methods

Objective:To investigate the expression of hsa_circ_0019413 in the peripheral blood of patients with primary Sj?gren's syndrome (pSS) and its role in the development of pSS disease.Methods:Microarray screening of circ ribonucleic acid (circRNA) changes was first performed in the peripheral blood of 4 pSS patients and 4 healthy controls. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used to verify the difference in the expression of hsa_circ_0019413 in the peripheral blood of 30 pSS patients and 30 controls. By establishing the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, the potential diagnostic value of hsa_circ_0019413 in peripheral blood was analyzed, and the expression level of hsa_circ_0019413 was correlated with the clinical presentations of patients with pSS.Results:① By microarray analysis, 437 circRNAs were differentially expressed between the two groups (FC≥2.0, P<0.05), of which 365 were up-regulated and 72 were down-regulated. ② The expression level of hsa_circ_0019413 in pSS patients was significantly higher than that in healthy controls by qPCR. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant ( P<0.05). It showed that hsa_circ_0019413 in peripheral blood of pSS patients had potential diagnostic value by ROC curve analysis [area under the curve (AUC)=0.883, 95% CI (0.782, 0.984), P<0.01]. ③ The expression level of hsa_circ_0019413 was positively correlated with the ESSDAI, ANA, titer of the pSS patients by correlation analysis ( r=0.721, P=0.012; r=0.625, P=0.040), but not with (immunoglobulin (Ig)G or erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Conclusion:Hsa_circ_0019413 in the peripheral blood may be involved in the development of pSS and may be a biomarker for the diagnosis of pSS.

OBJECTIVETo compare the effects of different acupuncture methods on urine metabolites in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) rabbits, and to explore the specificity mechanism of heat-reinforcing acupuncture for RA.

METHODSA total of 40 clean purple-blue rabbits were randomly allocated to a normal group, a model group, a mild reinforcing-reducing needling (MRRN) group, a twirling-reinforcing needling (TRN) group and a heat-reinforcing needling (HRN) group, 8 rabbits in each one. Except the normal group, the rabbits in the remaining groups were treated with ovalbumin and freezing to establish RA model. The rabbits in the MRRN group, TRN group and HRN group were treated with MRRN, TRN and HRN at "Zusanli" (ST 36), respectively, 30 min per treatment, once a day for seven days. After treatment, 24-h urine was collected. The rabbits were sacrificed to collect synovial tissues of knee to perform morphology observation; the liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-Q/TOF-MS) was applied to measure urine metabolites. All the data were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA).

RESULTSCompared with the normal group, the leucine-related metabolites, as main urine metabolites, were decreased in the model group (<0.05), while the purine-related metabolites and tryptophane-related metabolites were increased (<0.05). Compared with the model group, the leucine-related metabolites, as main urine metabolites, were increased in the three needling groups after treatment (<0.05), while the tryptophan-related metabolites andpurine-related metabolites were decreased (<0.05), moreover, the leucine-related metabolites in the HRN group were obviously higher than those in the MRRN group and TRN gruop (<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSMRRN, TRN and HRN can regulate the pathway of leucine metabolism (energy metabolism), purine metabolism (oxidative damage) and tryptophane metabolism (immune regulation) for RA, The specificity of HRN for RA focuses on regulation of leucine metabolism (energy metabolism).