The transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) was researched and developed based on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) auricular acupuncture (AA),vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) and anatomy.It is a typical representative of TCM modernization.Meanwhile,taVNS does not require surgery,with low cost,and has almost no side effects.Most importantly,it ensures a comparable efficiency as the classic VNS.The taVNS regulates the autonomic neural function as its core,opens up a new principle of peripheral nerve-brain network-body function,and has made breakthroughs in the treatment of epilepsy and depression.Other indications of taVNS contain disorders of consciousness (DOC),autism spectrum disorder (ASD),Alzheimer's disease (AD),and etc.The further improvement of taVNS technique will definitely benefit a wider range of patients.

OBJECTIVETo explore the impacts on the cognitive level of the children with mental retardation (MR) treated with JIN's three scalp needling therapy and the training for cognitive and perceptual disturbance so as to seek the more effective therapeutic method for the treatment of MR in children. Methods Sixty-six MR children were randomized into a head-point needle-retaining therapy + training group (group A) and a training after acupuncture group (group B). Seven cases and 12 cases were dropped in the two groups respectively. Twenty-six cases accomplished the treatment in the group A and 21 cases in the group B. In the group A, the points on the head were stimulated and the needles were retained (30 min after the general acupuncture, the needles on the body points were removed; and those on the head points were retained for 1 h, including Sishenzhen, Naosanzhen, Zhisanzhen and Niesanzhen). Simultaneously, the training for the cognitive perceptual disturbance was combined. In the group B, 1 h after needle retaining at the body points and head points, all the needles were removed; the training for the cognitive perceptual disturbance was followed. The treatment was given once a day, and the treatment for 3 months was required. Before and after treatment, the Wechsler intelligence scale for children (WISC) was used for evaluation and observation of verbal intelligence quotient (VIQ) , performance intelligence quotient (PIQ) and full-scale intelligence quotient (TFIQ) and score changes of 11 items such as information, picture vocabu; lary, arithmetic, picture generalization, comprehension, etc.

RESULTSAfter treatment, FIQ, VIQ and PIQ scores were different significantly as compared with those before treatment (all P<0. 01). In the group A, the results of picture vocabulary, animal egg laying, maze, block design and geometric figure were all improved significantly (all P<0. 05). In the group B, the results of information, comprehension, block design and geometric figure were all improved significantly (all P<0. 05). After treatment, concerning the value difference in FIQ and PIQ of the two groups; the changes in the group A were more significant (both P<0. 01). After treatment, the results of picture vocabulary and maze were improved significantly in the group A as compared with the group B (both P<. 01). The IQ categories changed apparently after treatment in the two groups, toward the higher level in tendency generally, but without significant difference (both P>0. 05).

CONCLUSIONThe simultaneous treatment with head point retaining of JIN's three needling therapy and the training for cognitive and perceptual disturbance obviously improves children patients' verbal comprehension, expression ability, hand-eye coordination ability, attention, logical reasoning ability and visual perception. The efficacy is better than that in the treatment of the training after acupuncture.

Acupuncture Therapy ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cognition ; Female ; Humans ; Intellectual Disability ; psychology ; therapy ; Intelligence Tests ; Male ; Perception ; Scalp ; Treatment Outcome

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of jin’s three-needle scalp electroacupuncture on Cyt-c and Caspase-3 expressions in the cerebral cortex in Intrauterine distress-induced HIBD rats and reveal the mechanism of its protective action on the brain. MethodThe abdomen was incised in a female SD rat at 21 days of pregnancy. Bilateral uterine horn blood vessels were tightly clamped with a hemostat for five minutes. An infant rat was then taken out by a cesarean section. A rat model of hypoxic-ischemic brain damage was confirmed by the use of a behavior test and braintissue sections. The rats were randomized into model and acupuncture groups. The model group was not needled. Acupuncture groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 began to be needled at 3, 5, 7 and 14 days after birth, respectively. Acupuncture treatment was given for seven consecutive days. The normal control group was naturally delivered, not used to make a model and not needled. All groups of rats were decapitated to take the brain tissue at 21 daysafter birth. Cyt-c and Caspase-3 expressions in the cerebral cortex were detected.ResultCyt-c optical density value decreased somewhat in the four acupuncture groups; there was a statistically significant difference between acupuncture group 1 or 2 and the modelgroup (P<0.05). Caspase-3 expression was significantly down-regulated in acupuncture group 1; there was a statistically significant difference compared with the model group (P<0.05).ConclusionThe protective effect of acupuncture beginning at 3 days after birthon the brain is related to the down-regulation of Cyt-c and Caspase-3 expressions in intrauterine distress-induced HIBD rats.

Objective The aim of this study was to explore the inhibitory effect of alcohol extracts of Narcissus bulb on melanogenesis in zebrafish embryos.Methods Zebrafish embryos were exposed to different concentrations of alcohol extracts of Narcissus (0, 50, 100, 200, and 500 μg/mL), and then the formation of melanin was observed.Furthermore, we measured the enzyme activity of tyrosinase (TYR), which plays a pivotal role in melanogenesis.Meanwhile, the spatial and temporal pattern of melanin-specific marker genes were detected.Arbutin (Ar) was used as a positive control in all these experiments.Results The treatment of alcohol extracts of Narcissus bulb inhibited melanogenesis in the zebrafish embryos in a dose-dependent manner.Furthermore, the mRNA expression levels of melanin-related genes such as tyrosinase (TYR), silver (SILV) and Mitfa were significantly reduced after treatment with different concentrations of Narcissus extracts by in-situ and semi-quantitative PCR.Finally, the enzyme activity of tyrosinase was also gradually decreased with increasing concentrations of the alcohol extracts.Conclusions Narcissus alcohol extracts can effectively inhibit the production of melanin in zebrafish embryos.This study provides potential evidence and approaches for the screening of natural whitening compounds using zebrafish models.

Objective To investigate the effect of acupuncture combined with antidepressant on behavioral changes and 5-hydroxytryptamine 1A and 2A receptor ( 5-HT1AR and 5-HT2AR) mRNA expression in nucleus raphes dorsalis (NRD) of sleep deprivation depression (SDD) rats. Methods Eight normal Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were caged together without any stimulus or treatment, serving as the normal group. Thirty-two SD rats were given solitary raise for 21 days, together with chronic unpredictable mild stress ( CUMS) and rapid eye movement ( REM) sleep deprivation to establish the model. Twenty-eight rats completed the modeling successfully, and were divided into model group, acupuncture group, medicine group, and combination group, 7 rats in each group. Rats in the model group were given modeling treatment but without any intervention. Rats in the acupuncture group were given acupuncture on acupoint Yintang, Shenting and bilateral Taichong, acupuncture stimulation lasting 15 s every 10 min and acupuncture retention for 20 min in each day. Rats in the medicine group were given gastric gavage of Zoloft solution (0.83 mg·kg-1·d-1) and Alprazolam solution (0.067 mg· kg-1·d-1) , and rats in the combination group were given both acupuncture and medicine intervention. The intervention for the three intervention groups lasted for 7 days. Results Compared with the normal group, body weight, Open-field scores and sucrose preference of the model rats were significantly decreased on modeling day 7, 14, 21 (P<0.05). On modeling day 28, body weight and Open-field scores of each intervention group were significantly increased compared with those of the model group (P<0.05), and Open-field scores of combination group differed from those of acupuncture group and medicine group ( P<0.05). Only sucrose preference of combination group was improved significantly compared with the model group (P<0.05). Compared with the model group, NRD 5-HT1AR mRNA expression level was increased in the combination group (P<0.05), and NRD 5-HT2AR mRNA expression level was down-regulated in all of the three intervention groups ( P<0.05). Conclusion Acupuncture and antidepressant treatment covering 7 days can evoke rapid effect on SDD rats, which can improve the slow effect of antidepressant.

OBJECTIVETo compare the components and contents of volatile oil in Gardenia jasminoids, Zingiber officinale, G. jasminoids roasted with ginger juice and to provide scientific basis for intrinsic material of G. jasminoids roasted with ginger juice.

METHODThe volatile oil in the three herbal medicines was extracted by steam distillation, the components were analyzed by GC-MS and the contents of the components were calculated by area normalization method.

RESULTThe contents of volatile oil in G. jasminoids, Z. officinale, G. jasminoids roasted with ginger juice were 1.0, 2.0, 1.5 microL x g(-1), respectively. A total of 89 components were identified by GC-MS. Although 42, 75 and 77 peaks were separated, only 30, 58 and 67 components were identified accordingly, which accounted 94.1%, 90.52% and 94.38% of the whole volatile oil.

CONCLUSIONAfter being processed with ginger juice, the components and contents of volatile oil in G. jasminoids has been changed obviously.

Gardenia ; chemistry ; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry ; methods ; Ginger ; chemistry ; Oils, Volatile ; analysis

Objective To study the application of the cold cutting technique in transumbilical sin gle-incision laparoscopic liver resection (TUSI-LLR),and to evaluate its feasibility and treatment results.Methods The clinical data of 35 patients with liver lesions treated by transumbilical single-incision laparoscopic liver resection from 2013 to 2017 were retrospectively analyzed in Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University.In all these patients,the liver parenchyma was transected with the cold cutting technique.The operation time,intraoperative blood loss,postoperative complications,time to remove abdominal drain,and total hospital stay in the patients were analyzed.Results 11 of the 35 patients were male.The average age was (49.9 ± 10.8) years.The average body weight was (63.2 ± 11.1) kg.The diagnoses were hemangiomas in 18 patients,hepatolithiasis in 5 patients,malignant hepatocellular tumors in 5 patients,focal nodular hyperplasia in 3 patients,and others in 4 patients.There were 22 left lateral sectionectomies,2 left hemihepatectomies,11 wedge resections (8 in the left and 3 in the right).The operations were all successfully performed,with no conversion to conventional laparoscopic hepatectomy or open surgery.The average operation time was (112.2 ±51.0) minutes,and the intraoperative blood loss was (105.4 ±70.1) ml.No patients required intraoperative blood transfusion.The average surgery cost was (36 336.7 ± 5 938.2) yuan.All patients recovered well,with no postoperative hemorrhage,bile leakage,or incisional wound infection.The average time periods for removal of the abdominal drain,and hospital stay were (4.5 ± 1.2) days and (5.2 ± 1.4) days,respectively.All the 35 patients were followed up (1 ～ 3 months),with no patients complaining of abdominal distension or abdominal pain.Conclusions The cold cutting technique in transumbilical single-incision laparoscopic liver resection was safe and feasible.Its benefits included the operative speed,the small amount of intraoperative blood loss and the rapid postoperative recovery of the patients.

Objective:To evaluate the cervical elasticity in pregnant women with singleton pregnancies exhibiting symptoms of threatened preterm labor using E-cervix elastography, and provide a basis for assessing the risk of preterm birth.Methods:This prospective cohort study included pregnant women with singleton pregnancies between 20 +0 and 32 +6 weeks of gestation and no history of preterm birth who developed symptoms of threatened preterm labor and attended the obstetrics outpatient clinic of the Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital from May 2022 to May 2023. Several cervical elastography data, including cervical length (CL), hardness ratio (HR), internal ostium (IOS), and external ostium (EOS), were obtained using E-cervix technology, and the differences in these data were compared between women with different pregnancy outcomes (preterm or full-term birth) or different CLs. Statistical analysis was performed using covariance analysis (adjusted for gestational age), Chi-square test or corrected Chi-square test, and Pearson correlation analysis. Results:A total of 120 pregnant women were included, with 39 (32.5%) in the preterm group and 81 (67.5%) in the full-term group. There were 41 women (34.2%) with CL≤25 mm and 79 (65.8%) with CL>25 mm. Among the 41 women with CL≤25 mm, 26 had preterm birth and 15 delivered at term. Compared with the full-term group, the preterm group had a lower cervical HR [(35.75±8.94)% vs. (61.30±10.69)%, F=156.88], but higher IOS and EOS (0.47±0.13 vs. 0.31±0.09, F=54.99; 0.45±0.11 vs. 0.34±0.08, F=34.57) (all P<0.001). The patients with CL≤25 mm had a lower cervical HR [(43.17±14.32)% vs. (58.09±13.94)%, F=26.03], but higher IOS and EOS (0.46±0.14 vs. 0.32±0.08, F=38.71; 0.44±0.12 vs.0.34±0.08, F=21.36) as compared with those with CL>25 mm, with all differences being statistically significant (all P<0.001). Among the women with CL≤25 mm, preterm birth cases had lower cervical HR but higher IOS and EOS than those delivered at term (all P<0.001). In both CL≤25 mm and CL>25 mm groups, the preterm birth rate was higher in patients with HR<50% than in those with HR≥50% [95.5% (21/22) vs. 5/19, χ2=21.01, P<0.001; 61.9% (13/21) vs. 0.0% (0/58), corrected χ2=38.59, P<0.001]. Besides, an increased preterm birth rate was also observed in patients with HR<40% as compared with those with HR≥40% regardless of the CL [CL≤25 mm: 18/18 vs. 34.8% (8/23), χ2=18.51, P<0.001; CL>25 mm: 11/14 vs. 3.1% (2/65), corrected χ2=42.42, P<0.001]. Pearson correlation analysis showed that there was a significant positive correlation between CL and HR ( r=0.51, P<0.001). Conclusion:E-cervix elastography can quantify the hardness of cervical tissue, and identify truly "soft" cervices that are associated with high risk of preterm birth, showing great potential as a more efficient new technology for predicting preterm birth.

Objective:To explore the genetic background for a patient with refractory myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasm (MDS/MPN) with co-morbid neutrophilia patient.Methods:A MDS/MPN patient who was admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University in May 2021 was selected as the study subject. RNA sequencing was carried out to identify fusion genes in his peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Fusion gene sequence was searched through transcriptome-wide analysis with a STAR-fusion procedure. The novel fusion genes were verified by quantitative real-time PCR and Sanger sequencing.Results:The patient, a 67-year-old male, had progressive thrombocytopenia. Based on the morphological and molecular examinations, he was diagnosed as MDS/MPN with co-morbid neutropenia, and was treated with demethylating agents and Bcl-2 inhibitors. Seventeen months after the diagnosis, he had progressed to AML. A novel fusion gene NCOR1: : GLYR1 was identified by RNA-sequencing in his peripheral blood sample, which was verified by quantitative real-time PCR and Sanger sequencing. The patient had attained morphological remission after a DCAG regimen (a combinatory chemotherapy of decitabine, cytarabine, aclarubicin and granulocyte colony-stimulating factors) plus Chidamide treatment. A significant decrease in the NCOR1: : GLYR1 expression was revealed by quantitative real-time PCR at post-chemotherapy evaluation. Conclusion:NCOR1: : GLYR1 gene is considered as the pathogenic factor for the MDS/MPN patient with neutropenia.

Objective The aim of this study is to explore the hypoglycemic effect of active components of Anoectochilus roxburghii on zebrafish models. Methods Anoectochilus roxburghii components were extracted and separated into three groups: the alcohol extraction group, macromolecular polysaccharide group (≥ 5 ×103) and small molecular polysaccharide group (＜5×103). Zebrafish embryos were exposed to 2% glucose solution (2% Glu) at 24 h to imitate acute hyperglycemia phenotype, and then treated with the three Anoectochilus roxburghii components. Based on this high-glucose model, the zebrafish embryos at 72 h were collected to detect the whole tissue glucose value. Furthermore, semi-quantitative PCR and whole mount in situ hybridization were performed to detect the expression of mRNA levels of glycometabolism-related genes. Results An acute diabetic zebrafish model was induced by high glucose stress. In this model, some key factors during glycometabolism such as insulin, pck-1 and pdx-1 were significantly affected, while the alcohol extracts of Anoectochilus roxburghii obviously reversed these abnormalities induced by high glucose stress, even to normal levels. Conclusions The alcohol extracts of Anoectochilus roxburghii has obvious hypoglycemic effect on diabetic zebrafish model. Our result suggest that Anoectochilus roxburghii has a potential application in the hypoglycemic drug screening.