OBJECTIVETo study the flavonoids from the leaves of Santalum album.

METHODThe sample was extracted with 70% ethanol by continuous thermal reflux. The extraction was separated and purified by column chromatography over macroporous adsorption resin, polyamide and sephadexlh-20. Their structures were identified by detailed spectroscopic analysis.

RESULTEight flavonoids were isolated and identified as vicenin-2 (1), vitexin (2), isovitexin (3), orientin (4), isoorientin (5). chrysin-8-C-beta-D-glucopyranoside (6), chrysin-6-C-beta-D-glucopyranoside (7), and isorhamnetin (8).

CONCLUSIONAll compounds were isolated from this plant for the first time.

Flavonoids ; analysis ; Plant Leaves ; chemistry ; Santalum ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo investigate the mechanism of acupuncture at "Neiguan" (PC 6) and "Ximen" (PC 4) of the Pericardium Meridian in treatment of myocardial ischemia.

METHODSRats were randomly divided into 5 groups, sham-operation group, ischemia-reperfusion model group, Neiguan acupuncture group, Ximen acupuncture group and Zhigou acupuncture group. Electroacupuncture (EA) was given at corresponding acupoints for 20 min in the later 3 groups, followed by ligation of the left anterior descending branch of the coronary artery and 40 min later, acupuncture was given at the points for another 20 min, reperfusion for 60 min, with ECG monitoring. Then the myocardial tissue sample (below the ligation site) of the left cardiac ventricle was taken for preparation of sarcoplasmic reticulum, and determination of Ca2+-ATPase activity according to quantitative analysis of phosphorum. The relative mRNA levels were determined by Northerm Bolt analysis.

RESULTSIn the acupuncture groups, both the activities of Ca2+-ATPase and the gene expressions increased significantly as compared with the model group (all P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONThe points of the Pericardium Meridian can obviously improve the Ca2+-ATPase activity and the gene expressions, reduce the degree of myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury, and strength myocardial functions.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Animals ; Calcium ; metabolism ; Calcium-Transporting ATPases ; genetics ; metabolism ; Male ; Myocardial Ischemia ; enzymology ; therapy ; Myocardial Reperfusion Injury ; enzymology ; therapy ; Myocardium ; enzymology ; RNA, Messenger ; analysis ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

OBJECTIVEThe etiology of acute lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in children in Wenzhou City remains poorly defined. This study investigated the etiological agents responsible for acute LRTI and patterns of the antibiotic resistant bacterial pathogens in children with acute LRTI from Wenzhou City.

METHODSLower respiratory tract secretions were obtained from 454 children with acute LRTI (aged 1 month to 10 years, median age 6 months) within 24 hrs after admission for bacterial culture. Meanwhile respiratory viruses were detected by the Direct immunofluorescence (DIF) assay. The K-B method was applied for the drug susceptibility test.

RESULTSEtiological agents were identified in 297 cases out of 454 patients (65.4%. Viral pathogens were identified in 229 cases (50.4%), bacteria in 135 cases (29.7%) and mixed viral-bacterial infections in 67 cases (14.8%). The isolating rate of Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was the highest (180 cases, 39.6%) in all of the samples. The isolating rates of other viral pathogens were as follows: Parainfluenza virus 3 type (PIV3) (6.6%), Adenovirus (2.2%), Influenza A (0.9%) and Influenza B (0.7%). Of the 135 strains of bacterial pathogens, 19 kinds of bacterial pathogens were isolated. The predominant isolate was Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae) (9.9%), followed by Escherichia coli (E.coli) (4.4%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) (4.2%) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) (4.2%). The isolating rates of K. pneumoniae and E.coli with extended-spectrum beta-lactamases strains (ESBLs) positive were 42.2% and 65.0%, respectively. The pathogens isolated of the first 5 places in children with acute LRTI under six months were RSV, K. pneumoniae, PIV3, E.coli and S. aureus in turn. RSV, PIV3, S. pneumoniae, K. pneumoniae and E.coli were found to be the pathogens of the first 5 places in children with acute LRTI between six months and three years. The resistant rates of K. pneumoniae and E.coli to ampicillin were 97.8% and 75.0%, respectively. K. pneumoniae and E.coli with positive ESBLs were resistant to cephalosporin. The resistant rates of S. pneumoniae to erythromycin and penicilin were 100% and 68.4%, respectively. The resistant rates of S. aureus to erythromycin and penicillin were 94.7% and 89.5%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONSRSV is the most common pathogen responsible for acute LRTI in children in Wenzhou City, followed by K. pneumoniae and PIV3. The rate of antibiotic resistance of common bacteria and the isolating rate of Gram-negative bacillus with ESBLs positive are high.

Acute Disease ; Bacteria ; drug effects ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Klebsiella pneumoniae ; isolation & purification ; Male ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Respiratory Syncytial Viruses ; isolation & purification ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; etiology

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the clinical effects of anterior segmental decompression for the treatment of multi-segment cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

METHODSThe clinical data of 84 patients with multi-segment cervical spondylotic myelopathy treated between August 2005 to March 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. According to different operative methods the patients were divided into control group and observation group, with 42 cases in each group. In the control group, including 26 males and 16 females, the age was (56.87±11.89) years old and course of disease was(7.91±3.71) years on average, the lesion segment occurred on C₃-C₆ of 36 cases and on C₄-C₇ of 6 cases. There were 24 males and 18 females in observation group, with the mean age of (54.58±12.56) years old, and the course of disease was(8.03±3.52) years, the lesion segment occurred on C₃-C₆ of 34 cases, and on C₄-C₇ of 8 cases. The patients in control group were treated with posterior laminoplasty, and the patients in observation group underwent anterior segmental decompression. Operation time, intraoperative blood loss, hospitalization time, bone graft fusion time and complication rate were observed between two groups. JOA scores and Cobb angle of fusion segment were compared before operation and 3, 6, 9 months after operation.

RESULTSOperation time, intraoperative blood loss, hospitalization time and complication rate in observation group were significantly lower than in control group(<0.05); the bone fusion time in observation group was significantly lower than in control group(<0.01);3, 6, 9 months after surgery, JOA score and the segment Cobb angle in observation group were significantly higher than in control group(<0.01).

CONCLUSIONSAnterior segmental decompression for the treatment of multi-segment cervical spondylotic myelopathy has obvious advantages of less vertebral resection, thorough decompression, good stability, less postoperative complications, which can effectively promote the recovery of the spinal cord function and vertebral stability.

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake.

Increasing evidence suggests that a cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)-dependent intracellular signal drives the process of myelination. Yet, the signal transduction underlying the action of cAMP on central nervous system myelination remains undefined. In the present work, we sought to determine the role of EPAC (exchange protein activated by cAMP), a downstream effector of cAMP, in the development of the myelin sheath using EPAC1 and EPAC2 double-knockout (EPAC) mice. The results showed an age-dependent regulatory effect of EPAC1 and EPAC2 on myelin development, as their deficiency caused more myelin sheaths in postnatal early but not late adult mice. Knockout of EPAC promoted the proliferation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells and had diverse effects on myelin-related transcription factors, which in turn increased the expression of myelin-related proteins. These results indicate that EPAC proteins are negative regulators of myelination and may be promising targets for the treatment of myelin-related diseases.

Objective:To observe the effect of microelectronic EMG bridge (EMGB) training on the motor function of extensor carpi radialis longus in patients with complete cervical 5 spinal cord injury. Methods:From March, 2016 to March, 2017, 20 patients with complete cervical 5 spinal cord injury were randomly divided into control group (n = 10) and experimental group (n = 10). The control group received routine wrist extensor muscle training, and the experimental group received EMGB training in addition, for 180 days. The motor function of the affected limb was evaluated by sEMG of extensor carpi radialis longus, Manual Muscle Test (MMT), Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT) and Spinal Cord Lesion Independence Measure (SCIM). Results:After treatment, the peak value and average value of sEMG of extensor carpi longus of both sides increased in both groups (t > 2.510, P < 0.05), the peak value and average value of the left side were higher (t > 2.759, P < 0.05), and the peak value of the right side was higher (t = 2.691, P < 0.05) in the experiment group than in the control group, however, there was no significant difference in average value of the right side between two groups (t = 2.063, P = 0.054). The scores of MMT increased in both groups (t > 2.569, P < 0.05), and were higher in the experimental group than in the control group (t > 2.278, P < 0.05). The scores of WMFT and SCIM increased in both groups (t > 3.839, P < 0.05), however, there was no significant difference between two groups (t < 1.498, P > 0.05). Conclusion:EMGB training could improve the motor function of extensor carpi radialis longus in patients with complete cervical 5 spinal cord injury.

The purpose of this article is to evaluate the clinical effect of clinical practice guideline on traditional Chinese medicine therapy alone or combined with antibiotics for acute tonsillitis. The applicability and application of the Guideline were evaluated based on the clinicians by using the electronic questionnaire. Questionnaires about 538 on application evaluation and 502 questionnaires on applicability evaluation were completed from April 28 to July 9, 2018. The subjects in the questionnaires include the clinicians with junior title, intermediate title, and senior title that have used this Guideline. The descriptive statistical analysis of the collected questionnaire was carried out. In the applicability evaluation, according to the classification of professional titles, the application rate was highest in intermediate title clinicians (26.77%), followed by junior (23.98%) and deputy senior (19.33%) professional title clinicians. In the quality evaluation, the rationality of application scope (98.61%) and the terminology accuracy (98.81%) scores were higher, and the rationality of differentiation and classification (96.05%) was the lowest. The applicability evaluation suggested that clinicians believed this Guideline had high safety (98.42%), reasonable content (98.03%), significant effect (99.6%), reduced use of antibiotics in Western medicine (93.89%), and a high applicability ratio (96.44%). In the application evaluation, Department of lung disease showed the highest application rate (44.24%); rationality of the Guideline was more than 97% in treatment rules and prophylaxis except the syndrome differentiation (92.75%); a high ratio of clinicians believed the recommended scheme was good: curative effect 97.4%, safety 97.59%, and economy 93.87%. The study shows that the clinical practice guideline on traditional Chinese medicine therapy alone or combined with antibiotics for acute tonsillitis is of good quality, high clinical use and good effect. It can be used as a standardized treatment scheme for acute tonsillitis in traditional Chinese medicine. But there are some unsuitable contents and need to be further improved. The Guideline should strengthen the revision on differentiation of symptoms and signs as well as prophylaxis.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Practice Guidelines as Topic ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Syndrome ; Tonsillitis ; drug therapy

Drug repositioning provides new clinical indications for existing drugs. The imbalance between body's "immune-inflammation" regulation is one of the important factors in the occurrence and development of diabetic nephropathy (DN). Chinese patent medicine Kunxian capsule is clinically used for treating rheumatoid arthritis with satisfying immune-modulatory and anti-inflammatory actions. Notably, accumulating clinical evidence based on small cohorts had shown that Kunxian capsule may be used to treat DN. But the underlying pharmacological mechanisms remain unclear. Therefore, this study integrated "drug target-disease gene-biological pathway-function module" multi-level associated network analysis, and in vivo and in vitro experiments, to verify the pharmacological effects of Kunxian capsules in DN and to elucidate its molecular mechanisms. The experimental protocol was reviewed by the Laboratory Animal Welfare and Ethics Committee of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, and it complies with the relevant regulations on laboratory animal welfare and ethics. As a result, the network analysis showed that the candidate targets of Kunxian capsule against DN were significantly involved into various functional modules which were related to modulation of immune-inflammation system, basement membrane lesion, abnormal hemorheology, energy metabolism and hormone metabolism, and the number of targets enriched by PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway is the largest. In addition, both in vivo and in vitro experiments demonstrated that Kunxian capsule by gavage effectively reduced blood glucose, improved insulin resistance, reduced blood lipid, inhibited renal extracellular matrix protein production and renal inflammation, improved renal function and pathological damages, and inhibited the activity of PI3K/AKT/NF-κB/TNF-α/IL-1β pathway in diabetic nephropathy rats. Collectively, these findings suggest the therapeutic potentials of Kunxian capsule to alleviate DN by regulating the imbalance of immune-inflammation system.

Nano-drug delivery strategies have been highlighted in cancer treatment, and much effort has been made in the optimization of bioavailability, biocompatibility, pharmacokinetics profiles, and in vivo distributions of anticancer nano-drug delivery systems. However, problems still exist in the delicate balance between improved anticancer efficacy and reduced toxicity to normal tissues, and opportunities arise along with the development of smart stimuli-responsive delivery strategies. By on-demand responsiveness towards exogenous or endogenous stimulus, these smart delivery systems hold promise for advanced tumor-specificity as well as controllable release behavior in a spatial-temporal manner. Meanwhile, the blossom of nanotechnology, material sciences, and biomedical sciences has shed light on the diverse modern drug delivery systems with smart characteristics, versatile functions, and modification possibilities. This review summarizes the current progress in various strategies for smart drug delivery systems against malignancies and introduces the representative endogenous and exogenous stimuli-responsive smart delivery systems. It may provide references for researchers in the fields of drug delivery, biomaterials, and nanotechnology.