Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of triethanolamine cream in the treatment of skin ulcer. MethodsA multicenter,single-blind,randomized,positive-control study was conducted.One-hundred and twenty patients aging 18-65 years with skin ulcer were randomly classified into the test and control group at a ratio of 2 ∶ 1 to be treated with triethanolamine cream and recombinant bovine basic fibroblast growth factor gel respectively for 4 weeks.The healing rate of ulcer,granulation tissue production rate and epithelialization rate were calculated.Results After the beginning of treatment,the condition of all patients was improved with time.In total,76 out of 80 triethanolamine-treated patients and 38 out of 40 basic fibroblast growth factor gel-treated patients completed the 4-week trial.Significant differences were observed in the healing rate of ulcer,epithelialization rate and granulation tissue production rate between the test and control group (71.05％ vs.34.21％,P =0.0002; 85％ vs.50％,P =0.0001; 66.25％ vs.37.5％,P =0.0035).No adverse events occurred in any of the patients.Conclusions Triethanolamine cream seems superior to recombinant bovine basic fibroblast growth factor gel with regard to the healing rate of ulcer,epithelialization rate and granulation tissue production rate,and may be a promising drug for the treatment of skin ulcer.

OBJECTIVE To assess the association of SLC12A3 and SCNN1B gene polymorphisms (rs11643718 and rs12447134) with essential hypertension among ethnic Koreans from Mudanjiang, China. METHODS For 204 patients with essential hypertension and 186 healthy controls, the genotypes of rs11643718 and rs12447134 loci were determined with an improved multiplex ligase detection reaction (iMLDR) method. RESULTS Allelic and genotypic frequencies of rs11643718 of SLC12A3 gene are associated with the onset of disease hypertension (P <0.05) as well as systolic blood pressure (P < 0.01, under a recessive model). No association was found between rs12447134 of SCNN1B gene with the onset of disease (P > 0.05) but diastolic blood pressure (P < 0.05, under a recessive model). CONCLUSION The polymorphisms of rs11643718 locus is associated with the susceptibility for essential hypertension among ethnic Koreans from Mudanjiang area and can be used as a predictor for the disease.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the cell cycle changes of hepatoma cells and the effect of antisense oligonucleotide targeting bFGF on apoptosis in the hepatoma cells.

METHODSThe oligodeoxynucleotides were transfected with Lipofectin into hepatoma HepG2 cells. Inhibition of bFGF protein expression was assessed by confocal laser scanning microscopy and Western blot under the best condition of transfection of antisense oligonucleotide targeting bFGF, and the apoptosis in those cells was determined by flow cytometry. HepG2 cells were cultured in 24-well culture dish. The cultured cells were divided into 3 groups: group 1, the normal control group without any treatment; group 2, transfected with antisense oligonucleotide targeting bFGF; group 3, transfected with scrambled sequence targeting bFGF.

RESULTSThe results from confocal microscopy and Western blot showed an inhibition of expression of bFGF at different levels under the best condition of transfection with antisense oligonucleotide targeting bFGF. The treatment with antisense oligonucleotide of bFGF not only reduced the expression of bFGF revealed by confocal microscopy and Western blotting, but also increased the apoptosis in HepG 2 cells (P < 0. 01).

CONCLUSIONTreatment with antisense oligonucleotide of bFGF inhibits expression of bFGF protein and increase apoptosis. bFGF may take part in apoptosis regulation of hepatoma cells and may be used as a target in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; metabolism ; pathology ; Cell Cycle ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Oligonucleotides, Antisense ; pharmacology ; Transfection

OBJECTIVETo compare the difference in the efficacy on post-stoke dysphagia between the point selection according to Thoroughfare Vessel theory and conventional point selection in treatment.

METHODSSeventy-eight patients were randomly divided into an observation group (n = 42) and a control group (n = 36). In observation group, acupuncture was applied to the acupoints selected according to Thoroughfare Vessel theory such as Dazhu (BL 11), Shangjuxu (ST 37), Xiajuxu (ST 39), Neiguan (PC 6) and Gongsun (SP 4) Mainly. In control group, acupuncture was applied to the conventional acupoints such as Fengchi (GB 20), Lianquan (CV 23), Tiantu (CV 22), Neiguan (PC 6) and Zusanli (ST 36), etc. Acupuncture was given once per day in either group, 12 treatments made one session and 4 sessions of treatment were required. The water swallow test was adopted to assess the swallowing function in two groups.

RESULTSThe effective rate was 100.0% (42/42) in observation group and was 77.8% (28/36) in control group. The efficacy in observation group was superior to control group (P < 0.05). The curative time was (28.65 +/- 10.42) days in observation group and was (38.74 +/- 21.30) days in control group. The time was shorter apparently in observation group as compared with control group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe Thoroughfare Vessel theory in acupuncture treatment for post-stroke dysphasia achieves a superior efficacy as compared with the conventional acupoint selection, and this theory may quickly determine the point prescription in treatment.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Aged ; Aphasia ; etiology ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Deglutition ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Meridians ; Middle Aged ; Stroke ; complications ; Treatment Outcome

This study was purposed to investigate the effect of ligustrazine on the expression of bFGF in bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) and to explore the mechanism of hematopoietic reconstitution after bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The mice were randomly divided into 3 groups: normal group, saline group and ligustrazine group. BMT mouse models were established. The mice of normal group were not treated, the mice of saline group were given normal saline (0.2 ml/mouse, twice a day) through gastric tube, while the mice of ligustrazine group were given ligustrazine (0.2 ml/mouse, twice a day) through gastric tube. On day 7, 14, 21 and 28 after BMT, the femora were taken and the bone marrow mononuclear cell (BMMNC) suspensions were used for the cultivation of bone marrow stromal cells according to Dexter's culture method. The mRNA and protein expressions of bFGF in BMSC were assayed by RT-PCR and Western blot respectively. The results showed that the expression of bFGF in BMSC on the level of mRNA and protein were all reduced significantly after BMT, and increased slowly with the time. On day 7, 14 and 21 after BMT, the expressions of bFGF mRNA and protein in bone marrow stromal cells of ligustrazine group and saline group were lower than that in bone marrow stromal cells of normal group, but the expressions of bFGF mRNA and protein in ligustrazine group were obviously higher than that in saline group (P < 0.01 or P < 0.05). On day 28 after BMT, the expressions of bFGF mRNA and protein in ligustrazine group returned to normal level, while the expressions of bFGF mRNA and protein in saline group not returned to normal level, there was significant difference between these two groups. It is concluded that ligustrazine can enhance bFGF expression level in bone marrow stromal cells after syngeneic bone marrow transplantation in mice, which confirms that ligustrazine can enhance the repair of bone marrow microvessels, improve bone marrow microenvironment and promote hematopoietic reconstitution.
Animals ; Bone Marrow Cells ; metabolism ; Bone Marrow Transplantation ; Cells, Cultured ; Female ; Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Hematopoiesis ; drug effects ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Pyrazines ; pharmacology ; RNA, Messenger ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Random Allocation ; Stromal Cells ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether the variants A(-6)G and A(-20)C of angiotensinogen (AGT) gene are involved in the pathogenesis of essential hypertension in Kazakans.

METHODST his case control study recruited 125 subjects with hypertension and 74 normotensive subjects from Kazakans of Xinjiang. Genomic DNA from leukocytes was analyzed for genetic variants A(-6)G and A(-20)C in 5' upstream core promoter of AGT gene by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP), restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and automatic sequencing.

RESULTS(1)There were only A(-6)G and A(-20)C variants in the -164 to +73 region of Kazakans' AGT gene. (2) The distributions of genotypes AA, AG, GG at locus -6 of AGT gene showed significant difference between the hypertensive group (0.39, 0.45, 0.16) and the normotensive group (0.49, 0.49, 0.02; Chi2=8.56, P=0.014). There were evident differences in the frequencies of the -6A and the -6G allele of the two groups (0.62, 0.38 and 0.73, 0.27; Chi2=5.35, P=0.021). (3) No significant difference was observed in the distribution of genotypes AA, AC, CC at locus -20 of AGT gene between the hypertensive group (0.69, 0.26, 0.05) and the normotensive group (0.65, 0.32, 0.03; Chi2=2.42, P=0.30). There was no distinct difference in the frequencies of the -20A allele and the -20C allele of the two groups (0.82, 0.18 and 0.82, 0.18; Chi2=0, P=0.99). (4) No significant difference was found at the levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure between the groups corresponding to genotypes at the loci -6 and -20 of AGT gene.

CONCLUSIONThe results suggest that the polymorphism of A(-6)G in 5' upstream core promoter of the AGT gene may be involved in the pathogenesis of essential hypertension in Kazakans, while the A(-20)C variant may not play an important role in the etiology of essential hypertension in Kazakans.

5' Flanking Region ; genetics ; Adult ; Alleles ; Angiotensinogen ; genetics ; Base Sequence ; Blood Pressure ; physiology ; Case-Control Studies ; China ; DNA ; chemistry ; genetics ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; Humans ; Hypertension ; genetics ; physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; genetics

The discovery of penicillin has effectively controlled the infection caused by Gram-positive bacteria. Afterwards, the research and development of antibacterial drugs has entered the golden age, and made a great contribution to human health. However, in recent years, with the increasing use of antibiotics around the world, pathogenic bacteria drive gene mutation to obtain drug resistance to ensure its survival advantage, and promote the transfer of drug-resistant genes, resulting in a sharp increase of drug-resistant bacteria. In addition, the current development speed of new antibiotics is far slower than the growth and spread speed of drug-resistant bacteria, which makes the drug-resistant crisis more serious and becomes one of the biggest threats to the global community. Compared with the same type of bacterial infection, drug-resistant bacterial infection has the characteristics of complexity and refractoriness, which causes worse clinical outcome and higher risk of death in patients, and brings severe challenges to clinical work. If the trend of bacterial drug resistance is not controlled, the crisis of no drug available will come. Therefore, it is urgent to explore effective alternative means to fight against bacterial drug resistance and reduce the harm of drug-resistant bacterial infection. Traditional Chinese medicine（TCM） has unique advantages in the treatment of infectious diseases. Compared with modern antibacterial drugs, it has the characteristics of wide sources, rich active ingredients, and is not easy to produce drug resistance. It may be an important source for screening and developing new anti-infective drugs. Therefore, it is promising to develop and utilize TCM to solve the problem of drug-resistant bacteria infection. This paper will review relevant studies in recent years in terms of interfering with the biochemical metabolism of drug-resistant bacteria to directly inhibit or kill drug-resistant bacteria, improving bacterial drug resistance to indirectly inhibit bacteria and kill bacteria, and maintaining the balance of the body and regulating the treatment of drug-resistant bacteria infection as a whole, so as to provide references for guiding clinical medication and research and development of new traditional Chinese medicines.

Aim To use microdialysis technology combined with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) technology to study the effect of Achyranthes bidentata saponins (ABS) on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and its mechanisms. Methods SD rats were randomly divided into adjuvant arthritis (AA) model group, blank control group and ABS administration group. AA rat model was induced by Freund's complete adjuvant. UPLC-Q-TOF/MS was used to collect joint cavity microdialysis fluid sample information of each group of rats. Results On 6th day after administration of ABS, an inhibitory effect on the paw swelling, improved the arthritis score (P < 0. 05), and better the pathological morphology of the synovial tissues were found in AA rats. Nineteen potential biomarkers were discovered and identified. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed that they mainly involved purine metabolism, pyrimidine metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis and steroid hormone biosynthesis pathway. Conclusions Microdialysis combined with metabolomics can reveal the metabolic mechanism of ABS intervention on RA, laying a foundation for further study of the mechanism of ABS.

Diabetes mellitus complicated with cerebral infarction is the commonest and most serious vascular complication of diabetes mellitus. With a high disability and mortality rate, it seriously threatens human health. Because the pathogenesis is still unclear, more and more scholars have focused on the research of diabetic cerebral infarction at home and abroad. Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) compounds have a remarkable curative effect in the treatment of diabetic cerebral infarction. Its mechanisms of action mainly include anti-hypertension, reduction of blood sugar and lipid, promotion of vascular regeneration and vascular endothelial function, anticoagulation, anti-thrombosis, improvement of nerve function defect, reduction of infarct volume, improvement of hemorheological, inhibition of inflammation and platelet aggregation, and promotion of collateral circulation. Through literature search, this paper summarizes the research progress of the mechanisms of TCM compounds in treating diabetic cerebral infarction in recent five years at home and abroad, in order to provide reference for clinical treatment.