Objective To investigate the effect of the time factor on acupuncture effects by observing the changes of nitric oxide (NO) content at the acupuncture points in different times. Method The experimental study was done on 20 cases of healthy volunteers who provide informed consent. Among 10 cases of acupuncture group, 5 cases were male, 5 cases were female. Among 10 cases of non-acupuncture group, 5 cases were male, 5 cases were female. The age was around 25 to 45 years. Jianshi on Pericardium Meridian of Hand Jueyin and Weizhong on Bladder Meridian of Foot Taiyang was acupunctured. "Active"/"silent" time of points were projected with Ziwuliuzhu Najia method. Acupuncture was done at the points "active"/"silent" respectively. The changes of NO content at the body points were detected. The difference of acupuncture in different time at the body points was compared. Result NO content in acupuncture group was higher at the "active" than at the "silent", while there was no significant difference at non-acupuncture group. NO content was higher in acupuncture group than that in non-acupuncture group. Conclusion NO content at the points can be increased by acupuncture. Effect of acupuncture at acupoints "active" was more significant than at acupoints "silent". It was proved that the therapeutic effect of acupuncture can be increased by using time acupuncture.

BACKGROUND:The relationship between placing time after stem cel preparation and cel survival is the basis of safety and effectiveness for the clinical application. OBJECTIVE: To observe effects of different preservation solutions and different storage time on survival rate of umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cels, and to provide important evidence for identifying effectiveness of stem cels. METHODS:Umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cels were selected to prepare stem cel preparation, which was preserved in physiological saline, medium, medium+physiological saline, physiological saline containing epidermal growth factor, and medium containing low molecular heparin calcium suspension. Cold closet was selected for imitating celular transport conditions. Samples were obtained at 0, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42 and 48 hours. Total cel number and cel survival rate were detected. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:The difference in cel number and survival rate was not great within 24 hours in each group. Twenty-four hours later, total cel number and survival rate were better in the medium and medium containing low molecular heparin calcium groups than in the physiological saline containing epidermal growth factor, physiological saline, and medium+physiological saline groups. These findings suggest that after stem cel preparation, the cel survival rate can reach more than 90% within 24 hours under refrigerated transport conditions. Nutritional ingredients and proper pH value of preservation solution can make the cel survival rate increased greatly.

Animals ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Hematopoietic System ; drug effects ; Male ; Physical Conditioning, Animal ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

Objective To study the protective effect of phenethyl alcohol glycosides extracted from Herba Cistan-chis on human sperm DNA with oxidative damage by Raman spectroscopy. Methods The human sperm model of oxidative damage was induced with Fenton’s reagent in vitro. After co-cultured with the phenethyl alcohol gly-cosides extracted from Herba Cistanchis ( in the dosage of 0.1, 0.01 and 0.001 μg/mL) , the changes of the sperm nuclear DNA were observed by using confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy. Results The intensity and peaks of the Raman spectra of the human sperm nuclei treated by Fenton’s reagent were changed significantly, and then the changes of intensity and peaks were inhibited after treatment with phenethyl alcohol glycosides of Herba Cistanchis, the inhibition being dose-dependent. Conclusion The phenylethyl alcohol glycosides ex-tracted from Herba Cistanchis have protective effect on human sperm DNA with oxidative damage.

BACKGROUND:Stem celltumorigenicity is a practical issue concerning stability in the clinical application of stem cells. Therefore, it is particularly important to clear whether stem cells have tumorigenic ability or not. Nude mice occupy an increasingly important position in oncology, immunology, and safety evaluation of drugs and biological products.
OBJECTIVE:To observe the tumorigenicity of neural stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells in Balb/c nude immunodeficient mice.
METHODS:Balb/c nude mice were randomly divided into control group, negative group, positive group, neural stem cellgroup and mesenchymal stem cellgroup. HepG-2 cells, RPE cells, passage 4 neural stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells were injected subcutaneously into nude mice from different groups, respectively. After 12 weeks of injection, anatomical observation was performed to detect the tumor formation in the transplantation site. Meanwhile, soft agar colony formation assay was applied to investigate neural stem celland mesenchymal stem cellclone in vitro.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:After 12 weeks of injection, the tumorigenicity study results showed that no tumor developed in the transplantation site in the control group, negative group, neural stem cellgroup and mesenchymal stem cellgroup. Histopathologic examinations also showed no abnormality in these groups. Soft agar colony formation assay showed in soft agar resistance medium, neural stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells did not exhibit clone ability. These findings indicate that neural stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells undergoing short-term passages have no tumorigenic growth.

BACKGROUND:Stem cells expansion technology in vitro is affected by the microenvironment of the culture system. So, to find an effective method is particularly important to promote celladherent and growth. OBJECTIVE:To compare the effects of different culture media on cellexpansion. METHODS:Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells at a density of 5.0×104 cells/cm2 were inoculated into Corning? polystyrene culture dishes coated with or without poly-L-ornithine and Corning? cellBIND culture dishes. celladhesion and proliferation were observed, and expressions of celladhesion proteins and cellmarkers were detected. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:celladhesion was promoted when cells were cultured in Corning? cellBIND? Surface medium coated with poly-L-ornithine for 24 hours, and the cultured cells grew at the logarithmic phase. The cellproliferation was also enhanced, and the cells expressed celladhesion protein but not the cellmarkers of CD73, CD90, CD105. Corning? cellBIND? Surface medium was superior to Corning? polystyrene culture medium in the improvement of celladhesion and proliferation. Additional y, both of these two media showed no influence on cellphenotype. These findings indicate that Corning? cellBIND? Surface medium can promote celladhesion and proliferation, but shows no effects on cyclin and cellphenotype. This medium coated with poly-L-ornithine can further accelerate celladhesion and proliferation, and stably express cellphenotype of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells.

Background and purpose: Three-incision esophagectomy for patients with esophageal cancer has been increasingly used, but the incidence of either postoperative anastomotic leak or stricture is higher than that in intrathoracic gastroesophageal anastomosis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical effects of the side-to-side stapled cervical gastroesophageal anastomosis in preventing anastomotic leak and stricture after three-incision esophagectomy. Methods: One hundred and twenty-seven patients undergoing three-incision esophagectomy for esophageal cancer with gastric replacement were reviewed. A side-to-side stapled cervical gastroesophageal anastomosis was performed in 71 cases and manually sewn anastomosis in 56 cases. The incidence of postoperative anastomotic leak and stricture was compared between these two groups and the results were statistically analyzed using SPSS11.0 soft.Results: Anastomotic leakage was noted in seven patients (9.9%) in the stapler group and fourteen patients (25.0%) in the manually sewn group (P=0.04). After the operation two patients (2.8%) in the stapler group and nine patients (16.1%) in the manually sewn group developed a benign esophageal stricture (P=0.02).The incidence of either postoperative anastomotic leak or stricture in cases of the stapler group was significantly lower than that in the manually sewn group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Construction of the cervical esophagogastric anastomosis with a side-to-side stapled technique provides a larger luminal diameter which significantly reduces the incidence of postoperative anastomotic strictures. The surgery also greatly reduces the incidence of anastomotic leaks and strictures, so it could be used as an alternative strategy for cervical esophagogastric anastomosis after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer

BACKGROUND: Schizophrenia is substantially heritable, but specific susceptibility genes remain difficult to be identified. Therefore, it is necessary to explore hereditary markers first.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between schizophrenia and related vWA allele genes based on the analysis of microsatellite DNA vWA polymorphism.DESIGN: A case-controlled study with schizophrenic patients and randomly selected population as subjects.SETTING: Ward of Dalian Seventh People's Hospital and Molecular Biological Laboratory of Dalian Medical University.between March and July 2002 at Dalian Seventh People's Hospital which specializes in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia was diagnosed according to the diagnostic standard of the third edition of "the American Diagnostic Statistical Manual for Schizophrenic Diseases", and their clinical manifestations were predominantly negative signs. Altogether 123 normal blood samples were collected from random population at the Blood Center of Dalian Red Cross. They all denied psychological ailments and severe systematic diseases, and they had no kinship with each other.METHODS: Heparin anti-coagulation blood samples were collected and PCR compound amplification was carried out with the aid of PE Profiler plus system. Then the products were subjected to electrophoresis and gene detection with ABI310 type gene analysis system so as to calculate the frequency of allele genes; Hardy-Weinberg equation law was used to make coincidence test and linkage analysis of the theoretical frequency and actual one. Schizophrenic patients and random population were compared and relative risk was calculated with RR=Pd × (1-Pc)/Pc × (1-Pd) in order to assess the statistical significance (RR: relative risk; Pd: gene frequency of schizophrenia; Pc: gene frequency of random population). RR ＞ 1 was considered of higher susceptibility while RR ＜ 1 was considered of anti-susceptibility. In this way, we could find out vWA allele genes that had susceptible linkage or anti-linkage with schizophrenic related genes.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Major outcome: Correlation analysis of vWA allele genes in schizophrenic patients and random population. Secondary outcome: The coincidence of vWA allele gene frequency in patients with schizophrenia and random population with what was calculated by Hardy-Weinberg law.RESULTS: Data of the two groups were processed according to the objective and statistically analyzed.① vWA allele gene frequency in patients with schizophrenia and in random population was found to coincide with HardyWeinberg law(P ＞ 0.05).② The positive rate of vWA-14 in schizophrenic patients (17.2%) was obviously different from that in random population (33.3%) (RR=0.415, P=0.014). The positive rate of vWA-17 in schizophrenic patients (31.3%) was found to be significantly higher than that in random population (19.5%) (RR=1.866, P=0.043) while it did not differ significantly in other allele genes (P ＞ 0.05).CONCLUSION: The positive rate of vWA-14 was significantly lower in schizophrenic patients than in random population, indicating that vWA-14locus may be negatively selected in schizophrenia due to some reasons,which may be approximate to anti-schizophrenia genes. Moreover, the higher expression of vWA-17 in schizophrenic patients than in random population suggests that vWA-17 locus is correlated with schizophrenia,which may be approximate to schizophrenia-susceptibile genes.

The conductivity and permittivity of blood in mice were measured by the AC electrical impedance method at frequency range of 0.1-100MHz, and then the changes of the Cole-Cole parameters of dielectric spectra of blood from phenylhydrazine-induced anemia mice were observed by numerical calculation and curve fitting residual analysis of the Cole-Cole equation. The results showed that hematocrit (Hct) of the mice with phenylhydrazine injection was significantly reduced; the permittivity(epsilon) spectroscopy of blood moved to the low insulating region and its permittivity decreased; conductivity (kappa) spectrum curve of blood moved to the high conductivity zone and conductivity increased; the 2nd characteristic frequency was lower than that in the normal group. There was phenylhydrazine dose dependent in the changes of the Cole-Cole parameters of dielectric spectra of blood.
Anemia ; blood ; Animals ; Blood Physiological Phenomena ; Electric Conductivity ; Electric Impedance ; Hematocrit ; Mice

The physiological mechanism underlying the acupoint sensitization was evaluated systemically by using the method of electric physiology at spinal cord, medulla, and thalamus levels; the dynamic change of acupoint from the relative "silence" to the relative "activation" function was explained through the study on the dynamic process of acupoint sensitization; the biological process of the therapeutic effect of acupoint stimulation was illuminated through the research of the central mechanism underlining the dose effect relationship between the sensitive acupoint and the related brain area, thus scientific evidence for the functional link between the acupoint and internal organs as well as the nature of the acupoint were provided.
Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Animals ; Humans ; Moxibustion ; Nociceptors ; physiology ; Sensation ; Viscera ; innervation ; physiology ; Visceral Afferents ; physiology