Calculus Bovis (CB) is one of the precious traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) and has been widely used in oriental countries over 2000 years.It possesses a broad spectrum of pharmacological properties such as relieving fever,analgesic,diminishing inflammation,sedation,reducing blood pressure,recovering gallbladder functions,antioxygenation,and anti-tumor and improving immunity,et al.Due to the scarce resource and high price of natural CB,its substitutes,artificially synthesized CB and C.Bovis Sativus (CBS),also called in vitro cultured C.Bovis,have already been developed and widely used in medicine preparation.By using the literature material method,the current article explored literatures regard to pharmacological activities and clinical application of CB and its substitute,and the compound preparations were also included,from 1949 to 2016 in journals of domestic and foreign.All documents are summarized to provide a valuable reference for further basic or clinical research about CB and its substitute.

The preparation of Calculus bovis and its compounding preparations have been used widely in clinical practice.Traditionally,the forms of medicine were in raw material medicine way,preparing tablet,pill,powder or directly taking its powder.The main active ingredient of Calculus bovi were considered to be bilirubin and bile acids.However,the traditional formulations caused low bioavailability and wasted expensive herbs because its main component were insoluble in water.In recent years,many researchers have tried to use modern preparation technology to prepare its compounding formulations,such as solid dispersion technology,ultrafine grinding technology,powder coating technology,liposome encapsulation technology,or simplifying the prescription by using of known pharmacological effects of soluble components as substitutes.These methods were considered to be feasible to develop new formulations of Calculus bovis.In this paper,in order to provide reference of method and technology for the improvement of Calculus bovis compounding preparation and the development of new dosage form,ultramicrostructure,chemical composition,improvement methods and techniques of compounding preparation were analyzed.In addition,the relevant techniques and method of improving the formulation Calculus bovis compounding preparation in recent years were reviewed.

Expression of endogenous ouabain in placenta and the concentrations of serum ET-1 and NO were examined in 30 patients with hypertensive disorder complicating pregnancy (HDCP) and 30 healthy pregnant women to investigate the effect of endogenous ouabain on HDCP. Compared with the healthy pregnant group, the expression of endogenous ouabain dramatically increased in the HDCP groups (P<0.01). There was a significantly positive correlation between the expression of endogenous ouabain with ET-1 (r=0.5567, P<0.01), while the correlation of endogenous ouabain and NO was significantly negative (r=-0.6895, P<0.01). As expected, the correlation between ET-1 and NO was negative (r=-0.7796, P<0.01). ET-1 concentrations of maternal and cord sera in HDCP groups were significantly higher in comparison with healthy pregnant group (P<0.01). On the contrast, NO concentrations were much lower in the maternal and cord sera of HDCP groups as compared with healthy pregnant group (P<0.01). Our data suggest that endogenous ouabain is directly involved in the nosogenesis of HDCP, with accompanying decreased NO and the elevated of ET-1.
Case-Control Studies ; Endothelin-1/*blood ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced/*metabolism ; Nitric Oxide/*blood ; Ouabain/*metabolism ; Placenta/*metabolism

Objective To systematically review the efficacy and safety of Jinlian Qingre Effervescent Tablet (JQET) compared to Ribavirin for acute upper respiratory tract infection in children.Methods CNKJ,CBM,WanFang Data,VIP,PubMed,EM base,Web of science,and Cochrane Library databases were searched from the date of establishment to December 2016 for all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-RCT on the use of JQET in children with acute respiratory infections.Meta-analysis by using Rev Man 5.3.Results A total of seven RCTs involving 782 patients were included,while the group of JQET involving 392 patients,Ribavirin involving 390 patients.The results ofmeta-analysis indicated that the efficacy in Jinlianqingre group was superior to that of Ribavirin control group,such as clinical effectiveness [RR=l.26,95％CI=(1.18,1.34),P＜0.000 01],fever subsidence time [MD=-1.54,95％CI (-1.79,-1.30),P＜0.000 01],the time of subsided cough [MD=-1.53,95％CI (-1.79,-1.27),P＜0.000 01],the disappearance time of pharyngalgia [MD=-1.29,95％CI (-1.88,-0.70),P＜0.000 1],and Pharyngeal congestion disappearance time [MD=-2.80,95％CI(-3.11,-2.49),P＜0.000 01].The difference was statistically significant.There were three adverse reactions reported in JQET group.Conclusion JQET is superior to the Ribavirin control group in clinical effectiveness,fever subsidence time,time of subsided cough,disappearance time of pharyngalgia,and pharyngeal congestion disappearance time to treat acute upper respiratory tract infection in children.However,these results should be carefully interpreted,and this conclusion has to be further verified by high quality,large scale RCTs.

AIM:To investigate the effects of 17?-estradiol (E_2) on the gene expression of typeⅠA and typeⅠB bone morphogenetic protein receptor (BMPR-ⅠA,ⅠB) in rat bone marrow stromal cells exposured to the differentiation medium and to elucidate the effects of E_2 on osteoblastogenesis. METHODS: Adherent bone marrow stromal cells were cultured in differentiation medium containing DEX(10 -7 mol?L -1 ) and 1,25(OH)_2D_3 (10 -9 mol?L -1 ) and different concentrations of E_2. The gene expression of BMPR-ⅠA,ⅠB was quantified by semiquantitative RT-PCR. RESULTS: E_2 evidently inhibited the expression of BMPR-ⅠA mRNA in bone marrow stromal cells.The suppression was dose-dependent. When examined under various concentrations of E_2 (0-10 -6 mol?L -1 ),the expression of BMPR-ⅠA mRNA were decreased from (25.7?2.5)% to(16.3?1.5)%( P

Objective To assess the therapeutic effect of esomerphrazole in treating patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GRED) between Han and Inner Mongolia populations.Methods Those who underwent endoscopic examination and had reflux disease questionnaire (RDQ) >12 from March 2006 to March 2008 were selected. The patients were divided into Han group and Inner Mongolia group with 120 each. All patients were received esomerphrazole 20 mg daily for 6 weeks. The patients were evaluated by RDQ questionnaire at 2nd, 4th and 6th week, and were reexamined by gastroscopy at 6th week. Results After two weeks, effective rate of 50% was achieved in both groups, but it was higher in Han group than in Inner Mongolia group at 4th and 6th week. After 6 weeks, the curative rate of RE was higher in Han group than in Inner Mongolia group. Conclusion The different nations ancl habits result in the different efficacy of esomerphrazole, which may be improved by prolonging time of medication and changing habits.

Objective To explore the inhibition of Zn(PMFPCl) 2 on HepG2 cells and its mechanism.Methods The HepG2 cells were divided into control group and experimental group of 10, 30 and 70 μmol/L.The cell proliferation was detected by MTT assay, cell apoptosis and cell cycle was analysed by flow cytometry, cellular morphological change was observed with inverted microscope and the expressions of apoptosis-regulated proteins of p53, p21, caspase-3, bax and bcl-2 in HepG2 cells were detected by Western blot.Results The inhibitory rates of experimental groups (10, 30, 70μmol/L) at 24, 48 and 72h were significantly higher than those of control group (P<0.05), and the highest one was 63.29% of 70 μmol/L Zn (PMFPCl)2at 72 h.The apoptosis rates of each experimental group at 48h was significantly higher than that of control group (P<0.05).The cells were induced a remarkable G1 arrest by Zn(PMFPCl) 2 which could inhibit proliferation.The number of adherent cells reduced and cells shrank, convex on cytomembrane surface appeared and the cells changed to round and were brighter.Western blot results showed that the protein levels of p53, p21, caspase-3 and bax increased and bcl-2 decreased with the Zn(PMFPCl)2concentration increasing (P<0.05).Conclusion Zn(PMFPCl)2 could inhibit the proliferation and promote apoptosis of HepG2 cells whose mechanisms are promotation of p53, p21, caspase-3 and bax expressions and inhibition of bcl-2 expression.

Objective To explore the effect of hepatitis B virus(HBV) on the expression of apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1) and its regulatory mechanism.Methods RT-PCR and Western blot were used to measure the expression of ApoA1 in HepG2 and HepG2.2.15 cells,serum ApoA1 and high density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C) levels in patients with HBV infection and in healthy individuals were measured by biochemical analyzer,statistical difference was analyzed by SPSS13.0,HepG2 cells was co-transfected with ApoA1 promoter containing the luciferase gene and HBV infectious clone pHBV1.3,luciferase activity was measured,expression of ApoA1 in HepG2 cells was measured by RT-PCR and Western blot after transfected with pHBV1.3.Results Expression of ApoA1 mRNA and protein was lower in HepG2.2.15 cells than in HepG2 cells,serum ApoA1 and HDL-C levels were much lower in HBV patients as compared to healthy individuals( P＜0.05 ),HBV represses ApoA1 gene promoter activity,ApoA1 mRNA and protein expression in HepG2 cells.Conclusion HBV can inhibit the expression of ApoA1 bothin vivo and in vitro.

Objective To investigate the effects of 17?-estradiol (E2) on the gene expression of typeⅠA bone morphogenetic protein receptor (BMPR-ⅠA) and core-binding factor alpha 1 (Cbf?1) in rat bone marrow stromal cells exposed to the differentiation medium and to elucidate the effects of E2 on osteoblastogenesis. Methods Adherent bone marrow stromal cells were cultured in differentiation medium containing DEX (10 -7 mol/L), 1,25-(OH)2D3 (10 -9 mol/L) and different concentrations of E2. Effects of different concentrations of E2 on the gene expression of BMPR-ⅠA and Cbf?1 was quantified by RT-PCR based on the comparison with an internal reference, ?-actin expression, and identified by Northern blotting. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of cells was detected. Contents of type Ⅰ collagen were determined by Van Gieson staining. Results E2 could evidently inhibit the expression of BMPR-ⅠA and Cbf?1 mRNA during the differentiation process of bone marrow stromal cells into osteoblasts in a dose-dependent manner. These were confirmed by Northern blotting. The ALP activity increased in a concentration-dependent manner, but the amount of type Ⅰ collagen decreased in a concentration-dependent manner. Conclusion E2 can significantly inhibit the gene expression of BMPR-ⅠA and Cbf?1 in bone marrow stromal cells and inhibit osteoblastogenesis in vitro.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) can promote developmental competence in mammalian oocytes during in vitro maturation (IVM), but the role of BDNF in oocyte maturation at cellular level is not still clear. In this study, mouse cumulus-enclosed oocytes subjected to IVM were fertilized and cultured to blastocyst stage. Meiotic spindle configuration and cortical granules distribution during oocyte maturation in vitro were assessed by using immunofluorescence and laser confocal microscopy. The results showed that BDNF contributed to the complete preimplantation development of mouse oocytes compared to the control oocytes (13.78% vs. 5.92%; P<0.05). Further, BDNF did not accelerate nuclear maturation of IVM oocytes. For the BDNF-treated oocytes at meiosis I, Meiotic spindle areas were significantly smaller and the number of cytoplasmic microtubule organizing centers was greater than that in the control, and the percentages of oocytes showed spindles positioned near the oolemma and a well-formed cortical granule-free domain were significantly higher than that of the control. These morphological characteristics of the BDNF-treated oocytes were much closer to the oocytes matured in vivo than those of the control oocytes. In conclusion, BDNF can promote the developmental competence of mouse IVM oocytes, by improving the meiotic spindle configuration and location and cortical granules distribution at meiosis.