Objective To explore the role of tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) in protection of homocysteine (HCY)-induced apoptosis of hippocampal neurons in mice. Methods One hundred healthy adult Kunming mice of clean grade were randomly divided into 5 groups, 20 for each group. HCY was injected into lateral ventricle using stereotaxic technique. FJB staining was used to detect neural apoptosis and the Morris water maze test was applied to assess memory and cognitive abilities. Results FJB staining showed that apoptosis of hippocampal neurons in the mice treated with TMP at different doses decreased significantly as compared with that in HCY group, especially at a dose of 20 g/L. Conclusions TMP can alleviate HCY-induced damage of the hippocampal neurons in mice and improve memory and cognitive functions, which suggests TMP has a potential clinical value in prevention and treatment of Alzheimer′s disease.

Paris polyphylla, the dried rhizome of Paris polyphylla Smith Var.yunnanensis (Franch.) Hand-Mazz.or Paris polyphylla Smith Var.chinensis (Franch.) Hara, has been commonly used as a traditional Chinese folk medicine for thousands of years.The extensive pharmacological studies indicated that steroidal saponins had multiple pharmacological activities, such as potential anticancer activity, antibacterial, antivirus, hemostasis, sedative activity, protecting cardiovascular and liver tissues.Obviously, the studies on steroidal saponins activity are very important in the development and clinical application of the potential new drug.The recent research advances in the pharmacological activities of Paris polyphylla reported in the paper could provide reference for the further utilization of Paris polyphylla.

Diphylleia sinensis is the dried rhizome of Diphylleia sinensis H.L.Li., which belongs to the subfamily of podophyl-lum ( berberidaceae ) , which is always recorded in monograph on materia medica in all ages as one of traditional Chinese medicine“Guijiu” herbal resources .Based on the previous researches in our laboratory and the literatures , the research progress in pharmacog-nosy, chemical constituent, endogeny fungus, quality control, pharmacology and the other aspects of Diphylleia sinensis were systemati-cally reviewed for the comprehensive utilization of its resources , and the development prospects of Diphylleia sinensis was also discussed in the paper , which can provide complete references and ideas for the rational utilization and development of Diphylleia sinensis.

OBJECTIVE:To establish HPLC fingerprints of taproot and rhizome of Paenoia lactiflora,and to compare the similarity and difference of them.METHODS:The determination was performed on Phenomenex C18 column with mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile-0.1％ phosphoric acid (gradient elution) at the flow rate of 1.0 mL/min.The detection wavelength was set at 230 nm,and column temperature was 30 ℃.The sample size was 10 tL.Using paeoniflorin as reference,HPLC chromatograms of the taproot and rhizome of P lactiflora were established.Common peak identification and similarity evaluation were performed by using TCM Chromatogram Fingerprint Similarity Evaluation System (2012 edition).RESULTS:There were 9 common peaks in HPLC chromatograms of taproot and rhizome of P lactiflora.The similarity of taproot with rhizome of P lactiflora was higher than 0.9.CONCLUSIONS:Established fingerprints can provide reference for identification and quality evaluation of P lactiflora.The effective constituent of taproot and rhizome of P lactiflora are uniform but have small difference.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the characteristics of the intra- and extra-hepatocyte sodium ions distribution in scalded rats during early postburn stage,with the aim of improving burn shock resuscitation regime and the resuscitation effects.

METHODSAdult Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham scalding (C, n = 12) and scalding (S, n = 7) groups. The rats in S group were subjected to 40% TBSA III degree scalding on the back and were catheterized via jugular vein for fluid resuscitation. The rats in C group were catheterized via jugular vein without fluid infusion and were sham scalded by warm water in temperature of 37 degrees. The changes in the intra- and extra-hepatocyte sodium ion contents were determined in vivo by (23)Na-magnetic resonance spectrum technology, while the existing state of the intra- and extra-hepatocyte sodium ion was determined by detecting (23)Na-magnetic resonance horizontal delaying time (T(2)).

RESULTSThe extra-hepatocyte sodium content in S group at 24 postburn hours (PBHs) was 17% less than that in C group. In addition, the T(2f) (fast T(2)) in S group remained stable but maintained a higher ratio during the observation time. This suggested that the sodium binding sites in extra-hepatocyte matrix increased relatively and that intra-hepatocyte sodium content increased by 57%. But the T(2) and the fast and slow parts of the T(2) kept stable, which implied that intra-hepatocyte catabolizing products were increased. This led to an increase in the sodium ion binding sites within intra-hepatocyte matrix in proportion to the sodium ion content.

CONCLUSIONDuring early postburn stage, the extra-hepatocyte sodium in a remote organ such as the liver exhibited relative deficiency due to its ingress into hepatocyte cytoplasm and to the increase of sodium combining sites.

Animals ; Binding Sites ; Burns ; metabolism ; Hepatocytes ; metabolism ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Sodium ; metabolism

Objective:To compare magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based and computed tomography (CT)-based target volume delineation and dose coverage in partial breast irradiation (PBI) for patients with breast cancer, aiming to explore the application value of MRI localization in PBI after breast-conserving surgery.Methods:Twenty-nine patients with early breast cancer underwent simulating CT and MRI scans in a supine position. The cavity visualization score (CVS) of tumor bed (TB) was evaluated. The TB, clinical target volume (CTV), planning target volume (PTV) were delineated on CT and MRI images, and then statistically compared. Conformity indices (CI) between CT- and MRI-defined target volumes were calculated. PBI treatment plan of 40 Gy in 10 fractions was designed based on PTV-CT, and the dose coverage for PTV-MRI was evaluated.Results:The CVS on CT and MRI images was 2.97±1.40 vs. 3.10±1.40( P=0.408). The volumes of TB, CTV, PTV on MRI were significantly larger than those on CT, (24.48±16.60) cm 3vs. (38.00±19.77) cm 3, (126.76±56.81) cm 3vs. (168.42±70.54) cm 3, (216.63±81.99) cm 3vs. (279.24±101.55) cm 3, respectively, whereas the increasing percentage of CTV and PTV were significantly smaller than those of TB. The CI between CT-based and MRI-based TB, CTV, PTV were 0.43±0.13, 0.66±0.11, 0.70±0.09( P<0.001), respectively. The median percentage of PTV-MRI receiving 40 Gy dose was 81.9%(62.3% to 92.4%), significantly lower than 95.6%(95.0%~97.5%) of PTV-CT. Conclusions:The CVS between CT and MRI is not significantly different, but the MRI-based TB, CTV, PTV are significantly larger than CT-based values. The PTV-MRI is of underdose if PBI treatment plan is designed for PTV-CT. As a supplement of CT scan, MRI can enhance the accuracy of TB delineation after breast-onserving surgery.

Objective: To analyze the failure patterns of locoregional recurrence (LRR) and investigate the range of radiotherapy in T_1-2N₁ breast cancer patients undergoing modified radical mastectomy. Methods: From September 1997 to April 2015, 2472 women with T_1-2N₁ breast cancer after modified radical mastectomy without neoadjuvant systemic therapy were treated in our hospital. 1898 patients who did not undergo adjuvant radiotherapy were included in this study. The distribution of accumulated LRR was analyzed. The LR and RR rates were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method, and the prognostic factors were identified in univariate analyses with Log-rank test. Multivariate analysis was performed using Cox logistic regression analysis. Results: With a median follow-up of 71.3 months (range 1.1-194.6), 164 patients had LRR, including supraclavicular/infraclavicular lymph nodes in 106(65%), chest wall in 69(42%), axilla in 39(24%) and internal mammary lymph nodes (IMNs) in 19 patients (12%). In multivariate analysis, age (>45 years vs.≤45 years), tumor location (other quadrants vs. inner quadrant), T stage (T₁ vs. T₂), the number of positive axillary lymph nodes (1 vs. 2-3), hormone receptor status (positive vs. negative) were significant prognostic factors for both LR and RR. Conclusions In patients with T_1-2N₁ breast cancer after modified radical mastectomy, the most common LRR site is supraclavicular/infraclavicular nodal region, followed by chest wall. The axillary or IMN recurrence is rare. The prognostic factors for LR and RR are similar, which indicates that supraclavicular/infraclavicular and chest wall irradiation should be considered for postmastectomy radiotherapy.

Objective: To validate whether the prognostic stage groups by the 8th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging system provides improved prognostic accuracy in T1-2N1M0 postmastectomy breast cancer patients compared to 7th edition. Methods: a total of 1 823 female patients with T1-2N1M0 breast cancer who underwent mastectomy and axillary lymph node dissection without neoadjuvant chemotherapy were analyzed and restaged according to 8th edition. Univariate analysis of prognostic factors was evaluated by using log-rank test. Multivariate analysis was estimated by using the Cox proportional hazards model. The prognostic accuracy of the two staging systems was compared using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses and the concordance index (C-index). Results: 5-year locoregional recurrence rate (LRR) for the whole group was 6.0%, 5-year distant metastasis (DM) rate was 11.5%, 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was 85.0%, and 5-year overall survival (OS) was 93.1%. Cox analysis showed that 7th edition of the AJCC staging system and progesterone receptor status were independent risk factors for LRR, DM, DFS and OS (P<0.05). Compared with stage by 7th edition, 1 278(70.1%) were assigned to a different prognostic stage group: 1 088 (85.1%) to a lower stage and 190 (14.9%) to a higher stage. LRR, DM, DFS and OS were significantly different between prognostic stage ⅠA, ⅠB, ⅡA, ⅡB and ⅢA according to 8th edition of the AJCC staging system(P<0.001). Prognostic stage had significantly higher C-indexes and provided better estimation of prognosis compared to stage by 7th edition of the AJCC staging system (P<0.001). Conclusion The prognostic stage groups of 8th edition AJCC staging system has superior prognostic accuracy compared to 7th edition in T1-2N1M0 breast cancer, and has better clinical therapeutic guidance value.

Objective To compare the clinical efficacy between breast-conserving surgery (BCS) plus radiotherapy (RT) and modified mastectomy in patients with stage Ⅰ breast cancer in clinical setting.Methods Clinical data of 6 137 patients diagnosed with pT1-2N0 breast cancer from 1999 to 2014 were retrospectively reviewed.Among them,1 296 patients received BCS plus RT (BCS group) and 4 841 cases underwent modified mastectomy alone (modified mastectomy group).Kaplan-Meier analysis was used for survival analysis.Log-rank test,single factor analysis and Cox's proportional hazards regression model were performed.The results were further confirmed with the propensity score-matching (PSM) method.Results Within a median follow-up period of 55.2 months (range,1-222 months),the 5-year locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS),distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS),disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were 96.3％,93.7％,91.9％ and 96.9％,respectively.In the BCS plus RT group,the 5-year DMFS (96.9％ vs.92.9％,P＜0.001),DFS (94.9％ vs.91.2％,P=0.005) and OS (99.1％ vs.96.4％,P=0.001) were significantly higher than those in the mastectomy group.Multivariate analysis revealed that postoperative RT was an influencing factor of DMFS (P=0.003,HR=0.621;95％CI:0.455-0.849) and OS (P=0.036;HR=0.623;95％CI:0.401-0.969).For 1 252 pairs of patients matched by PSM,the 5-year OS (99.1％ vs.96.1％,P=0.001),DMFS (97.0％ vs.92.2％,P＜0.001) and DFS (95.3％ vs.90.2％,P=0.001) in the BCS plus RT group were significantly higher compared with those in the mastectomy group.Conclusion The long-term clinical prognosis of patients with stage Ⅰ breast cancer in the BCS plus RT group is better than that in the mastectomy group.BCS plus RT should be recommended for patients with stage Ⅰ breast cancer.

Objective:To analyze the efficacy of chest wall boost radiotherapy in stage T 4 breast cancer patients after modified radical mastectomy. Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed on the data of 148 stage T 4 breast cancer patients who were admitted from 2000 to 2016 and received radiotherapy after modified radical mastectomy. There were 57 cases in the chest wall boost radiotherapy group and 91 cases in the conventional dose group. Radiotherapy was performed by conventional+ chest wall electron beam, three-dimensional conformal+ chest wall electron beam, intensity modulated radiotherapy+ chest wall electron beam irradiation. EQD 2 at the boost group was >50Gy. All patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze survival; Logrank was used to test differences; and Cox model was used to do multivariate prognostic analysis. Results:The median follow-up time was 67.2 months. The 5-year rates of chest wall recurrence (CWR), locoregional recurrence (LRR), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) were 9.9%, 16.2%, 58.0%, and 71.4%, respectively. The 5-year rates of CWR, LRR, DFS, and OS with and without chest wall boost radiotherapy were 14% vs. 7%, 18% vs. 15%, 57% vs. 58%, 82% vs. 65%( P>0.05), respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that chest wall boost radiotherapy had no significant effect on prognosis ( P>0.05). Among 45 patients in the recurrent high-risk group, boost radiotherapy seemed to have higher OS rate ( P=0.058), DFS rate ( P=0.084), and lower LRR rate ( P=0.059). Conclusions:Stage T 4 breast cancer patients had strong heterogeneity. Chest wall boost radiotherapy did not apparently benefit all patients. For patients with 2-3 high risk factors including positive vascular tumor embolus, pN 2-N 3, and hormone receptor negative, chest wall boost radiotherapy showed a trend of improving efficacy.