Quality of ulcer healing (QUH) was applied to explore the mechanism of the recurrence of peptic ulcer. The relationship of QUH and epidermal growth factor, prostaglandins, heat shock proteins, immune function and Helico-bacter pylori was assayed. Mechanism of Chinese herbal medicine for the recurrence of peptic ulcer was presented as follows: improving blood circulation and barrier function of gastric mucosa, eliminating Helicobacter pylori and increas ing QUH.

Objective To investigate the efficacy of skin scraping plus movable cupping in treating neck-shoulder syndrome. Method One hundred and eighty patients with neck-shoulder syndrome were randomly allocated to treatment and control groups. The treatment group received skin scraping plus movable cupping and the control group, acupuncture. Result The total efficacy rate was 88.8% in the treatment group and 77.5% in the control group; there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05). Conclusion Skin scraping plus movable cupping has a good therapeutic effect on neck-shoulder syndrome.

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of intermittent liver-nourishing and mind-regulating acupuncture in preventive treatment of migraine. Method One hundred and twenty migraine patients were randomly allocated to treatment and control groups, 60 cases each. The treatment group received intermittent liver-nourishing and mind-regulating acupuncture and the control group took flunarizine hydrochloride capsules orally. The migraine score, the visual analogue scale (VAS) score and the headache severity rating score were recorded in the subjects before treatment and at the end of treatment and the 4-week, 8-week, 12-week, 16-week and 20-week follow-ups. The Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) score and the Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) were recorded before and after treatment.Result After one course of treatment, the total efficacy rate was 98.3% in the treatment group and 89.5% in the control group; there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in the migraine score between before treatment and at the end of treatment in the two groups (P<0.05) and between the two groups at the same follow-ups (P<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in the VAS score between before treatment and at the end of treatment in the two groups (P<0.05) and between the two groups at the same follow-ups (P<0.05). There were statistically significant differences in the SAS and SDS scores between before treatment and at the end of treatment in the two groups (P<0.05) and between the two groups after treatment (P<0.05).Conclusion Intermittent liver-nourishing and mind-regulating acupuncture has marked efficacy in preventive treatment of migraine. It can increase the total efficacy rate and reduce the number of relapses.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effects of copper-phenanthroline (CuOP) on pentachlorophenol (PCP)-induced adaptation and cell death of Escherichia coli.

METHODSBacterial growth and adaptation to PCP were monitored spectrophotometrically at 600 nm. Inactivation of bacterial cells was determined from colony count on agar dishes. Cellular ATP content and accumulation of PCP were assessed by chemiluminescence and HPLC analysis respectively. The formation of PCP-Cu-OP complex was shown by UV-visible spectra.

RESULTSEscherichia coli (E. coli) could adapt to PCP, a wood preservative and insecticide used in agriculture. The adaptation of E. coli to PCP prevented its death to the synergistic cytotoxicity of CuOP plus PCP and declined cellular accumulation and uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation of PCP. Furthermore, CuOP and PCP neither produced reactive oxygen species (ROS) nor had a synergistic effect on uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation in E. coli. The synergistic cytotoxicity of CuOP and PCP in E. coli might be due to the formation of lipophilic PCP-Cu-OP complex.

CONCLUSIONOur data suggested that adaptation of E. coli to PCP decreased the synergistic effects of CuOP and PCP on prokaryotic cell death due to the formation of lipophilic PCP-Cu-OP complex, but it had no effect on the uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation and production of reactive oxygen species in E. coli.

Adaptation, Physiological ; Adenosine Triphosphate ; metabolism ; Antioxidants ; metabolism ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Copper ; pharmacology ; Cytotoxins ; pharmacology ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Drug Synergism ; Escherichia coli ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Pentachlorophenol ; pharmacology ; Phenanthrolines ; pharmacology

ObjectiveTo investigate the clinic and pathologic features of one patient diagnosed with neurocutaneous melanosis ( NCM ) by biopsy.MethodsA 21-year-old woman presented with a 2-month history of tinnitus,headache,vomiting and 1-month history of impaired vision.At birth,a massive nevus covering most of the posterior abdomen had been noted as well as the presence of multiple smaller lesions all over the body.Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a posterior fossa cyst compatible with the Dandy-Walker syndrome and extensive leptomeningeal enhancement. Surgery was performed to cystectomy and to obtain pathologic specimens from the leptomeninges. Biopsy and immunohistochemical study was performed.ResultsAt surgery,diffuse black pigmentation of the leptomeninges and the cyst was found.Under microscope,the cyst and leptomeninges were composed with melanocytes with variable pigmentation.Those cells positive for HMB45,MelanA,S100 and vimentin.Ki-67 positive cells ＜ 1％.The pathologic diagnosis wasleptomeningeal diffusemelanocytosis. Thepatientdied 2months after thesurgery.ConclusionsNCM is characterized by a focal or diffuse proliferation of melanin-producing cells in both the skin and the leptomeninges.NCM could be compatible with the Dandy-Walker syndrome.Definite diagnosis relies upon the histological data obtained by mean of biopsy.

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of heat-sensitive moxibustion plus point-toward-point needling in treating poststroke strephenopodia.Method Eighty patients with poststroke strephenopodia were randomized into a treatment group intervened by heat-sensitive moxibustion plus point-toward-point needling and a control group intervened by rehabilitation, 40 cases in each group. In addition to the basic treatment, the treatment group was given heat-sensitive moxibustion plus point-toward-point needling, and the control group was given rehabilitation treatment. Holden's Functional Ambulation Classification (FAC), Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) of the lower-limb motor function, and Tinetti Gait Assessment (TGA) were adopted for evaluation of the two groups, and the clinical efficacies were compared.ResultThe effective rate was 90.0% in the treatment group versus 77.5% in the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05); after the treatment,there was a significant difference in comparing the Holden's FAC between the two groups (P<0.05); the FMA score changed significantly after the treatment in both groups (P<0.05), and there was a significant difference in comparing the FMA score between thetwo groups after the treatment (P<0.05); the TGA score changed significantly after the intervention in both groups (P<0.05), and there was a significant difference in comparing the TGA score between the two groups after the intervention (P<0.05).ConclusionHeat-sensitive moxibustion plus point-toward-point needling can produce a significant efficacy in treating poststroke strephenopodia, as it can enhance the effective rate and improve the lower-limb motor function.

Aim To study the effect of melatonin on expression and activity of myosin light chain kinase in the artery wall of atherosclerotic rabbits.Methods The rabbit model of atherosclerosis was induced by a high-cholesterol diet.The blood lipid levels were assayed in the serum of each group.MLCK expression was detected by Western blot and immunohistochemical method.MLCK activity was measured by ?-32P-ATP incorporation into myosin light chain.Results The atherosclerosis model was established successfully.The levels of lipids decreased after MLT treatment.After fed with cholesterol for twelve weeks,the expression and activity of MLCK in the artery of atherosclerotic rabbits increased markedly,whereas there was no obvious difference in expression of MLCK in the artery of atherosclerotic rabbits fed with cholesterol and melatonin for twelve weeks compared with that of control.Conclusions It was suggest that high expression and activity of MLCK in the artery might be closely correlated with the development of atherosclerosis.Melatonin played an important role in inhibiting the development of atherosclerosis by decreasing the expression and activity of MLCK.

Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Follicle Stimulating Hormone ; blood ; Gonadotropins ; blood ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Sex Factors ; Time Factors

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the sub-acute oral effect of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles on the oxidation/antioxidation biomarkers and inflammatory cytokines in blood, liver, intestine, and colon in rats. METHODS: Twenty four 4-week-old clean-grade Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were randomly devided into 4 groups by body weight (n=6, control, low, middle, and high), in which the rats were orally exposed to TiO₂ nanoparticles at doses of 0, 2, 10 and 50 mg/kg body weight/day for 28 consecutive days separately. Food intake, body weight and abnormal behaviors during the experiment were recorded. The rats were euthanized on the 29th day. The blood was collected via abdominal aortic method and centrifuged to collect the serum. Tissues from liver, intestine and colon were collected and homogenated. Then enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and microwell plate methods were used to detect oxidation/antioxidation biomarkers including superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), total mercapto (T-SH), glutathione disulfide (GSSG), malomdialdehvde (MDA) and inflammatory cytokines including interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in the serum, liver, intestine and colon in the rats. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, no significant differences in body weight, food intake and organ coefficients were observed in all the three groups after TiO₂ gavage. No significant changes in GSH, GSH-Px, T-SH, and IL-6 were observed. Compared with the control group, significant increase of SOD activity in serum in high dose group, signi-ficant increase of GSSG concentration in intestine in middle and high dose group and significant increase of MDA concentration in liver in low and high dose group were observed. Compared with the control group, a significant increase of TNF-α in liver in middle and high dose group was observed. CONCLUSION TiO₂ nanoparticle can increase antioxidant enzymes activities in blood, increase oxidative biomarkers in liver and intestine, increase inflammatory cytokines in liver in rats after a 28-day sub-acute orally administration. Among blood, liver, intestine, and colon, liver is most sensitive to the toxicity induced by TiO₂ nanoparticles, followed by intestine, blood, and colon in sequence.
Animals ; Antioxidants ; Biomarkers ; Cytokines ; Nanoparticles ; Oxidative Stress ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Titanium

A new phenylpropanoid (1), together with seven known ones (2-8), has been isolated from the flowers of Rosa rugosa collected from Shanxi province by using various chromatographic techniques. Compound 1 is a new compound, and it displayed cytotoxicity against NB4, SH-SY5Y, PC3, A549 and MCF7 cell lines with IC₅₀ values of 8.2, 6.2, 4.3, 2.8, and 9.6 µmol · L⁻¹ respectively.
Cell Line ; Cell Survival ; drug effects ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Flowers ; chemistry ; Humans ; Molecular Structure ; Phenylethyl Alcohol ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Rosa ; chemistry ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization