Animals ; Drug Tolerance ; Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 ; metabolism ; Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 beta ; Morphine ; Phosphorylation ; Rats ; Signal Transduction

OBJECTIVETo study the influence of different drying methods on the quality of Schisandrae Chinensis Fructus and thus provide useful reference for its proper drying methods.

METHODSchisandrae Chinensis Fructus was processed by eight drying methods including vacuum freeze drying, natural drying in the shade, drying in the sun, oven drying and vacuum drying under different temperature. The contents of the functional ingredients includes chisandrin, gomisin D, gomisin J, schisandrol B, angeloylgomisin H, angeloylgomisin Q, gomisin G, schisantherin A, deoxyschisandrin, schisandrin B, schisandrin C, 5-HMF, total aids and total sugars. The main components change after drying were analyzed by HPLC, ultraviolet spectrophotometry and potentiometric titration. Principal component analysis (PCA) was carried out by SPSS software to evaluate the quality of different processed products from Schisandrae Chinensis Fructus.

RESULTAll these results are in accordance with the requirements of Chinese Pharmacopoeia published in 2010, the contents of schisandrin and total eleven lignans were the highest using vacuum drying, and 5-HMF were the lower, oven drying made little difference but with lower schisandrin and higher 5-HMF as the heat increased.

CONCLUSIONDifferent drying methods have significant influence on the quality of Schisandrae Chinensis Fructus. Oven drying under 5°C should be adopted to substitute drying in the sun according to the China Pharmacopoeia published in 2010 for Schisandrae Chinensis Fructus by comprehensive analysis of the cost, content and practicality.

Desiccation ; methods ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; Quality Control ; Schisandra ; chemistry ; Temperature

Objective To evaluate the drill method to prepare for healthcare-associated infection (HAI)outbreak, and strengthen the control of HAI outbreak.Methods According to two cases of surgical site infection (SSI)re-ported by a neurosurgical department on January 16,2014,HAI outbreak emergency drill was started,SSI occurred from January 2012 to January 2014 were analyzed,specimens of air,object surface and hands of health care workers (HCWs)in the SSI-related operating room and neurosurgical intensive care unit(NSICU)were taken and analyzed. Results In July 2013,3 cases of SSI occurred in neurosurgical department (1 case was suspected of SSI,and didn’t per-form cerebrospinal fluid culture),SSI didn’t exceed 2 cases in the other months,and SSI outbreak couldn’t be confirmed. 16 specimens of air,object surface and hands of HCWs in operating room were taken,microbial detection results were all qualified.13 specimens of air,object surface and hands of HCWs in NSICU were taken,qualified rate was 61.54%;and mould was detected from 2 air specimens.24 disposable objects of neurosurgical department were performed bacterial cul-ture,3 were positive,and all were qualified after repeated detection.Conclusion HAI outbreak drill is helpful for HAI management professional personnel to grasp the method of HAI outbreak investigation method,improve the correct hand washing of surgeons and nurses,strengthen the standard operating procedure,and ensure the safety of pa-tients.

Objective To explore the expression and change of ski-interacting protein (SKIP) in rats after spinal cord injury. Methods A total of 60 adult female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham group (n=30) and spinal cord injury (SCI) group (n=30), each group was further divided into five time points including one day, three days, five days, seven days, and 14 days with six rats in each time points. The model was established at T10 with modified Allen's technique, and the sham group only bit the lamina of rats. The hindlimbs behavior was assessed with Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) score at each time point. The pathological changes of spinal cord neurons were detected with Nissl staining. The expression of SKIP were observed with immunofluorescence staining. Results The BBB scores were signif-icantly lower in each time point in SCI group than in the sham group (t>48.267, P<0.001). Compared with the sham group, Nissl bodies in the cytoplasm of spinal cord neurons began to disintegrate, coalesce and irregularly distribute, the neurons began to degenerate and die on the fifth day, and the damage deteriorated on the 14th day. Immunofluorescence staining showed that SKIP expression was mainly expressed in the gray matter of the spinal cord and little expressed in the white matter. The expression of SKIP gradually increased after SCI, and reached a peak on the fifth day (t=-17.035, P<0.001) and decreased significantly on the 14th day (t=3.853, P<0.05). Conclusion SKIP may be a new signaling molecule, which play an important role in neuronal apoptosis after SCI.

AIM:To analyze the alterations of angiotensin Ⅱ (Ang Ⅱ), connexin 43 (Cx43), angiotenisinⅡreceptor type 1 (AT1) and signaling molecules in the TGF-β1/Smad pathway in different regions of the left ventricular heart tissue for exploring whether Ang Ⅱregulates Cx43 expression via the TGF-β1/Smad signaling pathway in myocardial infarction ( MI) rats.METHODS:MI was induced in 20 male Sprague-Dawley rats by the left anterior descending coronary artery ligation.The rats were then randomized into 2 groups.In the losartan group, 20 mg· kg-1· d-1 of losartan were ad-ministered for 2 weeks.Heart functions were assessed after surgery and 2 weeks later again following the above treatments . All the rats were sacrificed and relevant molecules , including Ang Ⅱ, AT1, and Cx43 were determined thereafter in diffe-rent areas of the left ventricle .TGF-β1 and its downstream signaling molecules , including Smad 2, Smad 3 and Smad 7, were also detected .RESULTS:In losartan group , both left ventricular internal dimension diastole ( LVIDd) and left ven-tricular internal dimension systole (LVIDs) were smaller, with diminished interventricular septal thickness (IVSd) and left ventricular posterior wall depth ( LVPWd ) and distinct improvement of left ventricular ejection fraction ( LVEF ) ( P<0.05 ) .Losartan therapy exhibited a reduction of Ang Ⅱin the infarct zone and the border zone in the cardiac tissues .AT1 was obviously attenuated in the infarct zone with an enhanced expression of Cx 43, which was also elevated in the border zone and none infarct zone .TGF-β1, Smad 2 and Smad 3 were decreased in different zones of the left ventricle , while Smad 7, in contrary to the above factors , presented a converse alteration .CONCLUSION:The activation of Ang Ⅱpro-vokes downregulation of Cx 43 through TGF-β1/Smad signaling pathway in MI rats .

Objective To verify the antiviral effects of Siji Kangbingdu mixture (SJKBDM) against coxsackievirus A16 (CoxA16).Methods Vero cells and 5-day-old suckling mice, injected with 75/50 and 1×106 TCID50 CoxA16, were used as evaluation models.The preventive influences of SJKBDM against CoxA16 in Vero cells were assessed in the models.The effects of SJKBDM on the mortality, survival time, change rate of body weight, and clinical symptom scores of suckling mice were observed.Results ①The half maximal inhibitory concentration of SJKBDM on Vero cells was 9.59 mg·mL-1.②Toxic effects were not observed from 32.3 g·kg-1 single dose or continuous intraperitoneal injectin of SJKBDM in suckling BALB/c mice.③The SJKBDM had significant inhibitory effect against CoxA16 virus.Doses higher than 1.22 mg·mL-1 could significantly improve the Vero cell survival rate, and the SJKBDM inhibition of 75/50 TCID50 CoxA16 induced pathological changes in Vero cells.④The SJKBDM significantly improved clinical symptoms of mice with CoxA16 viral infection, especially with crude drug doses of higher than 1.62 g·kg-1.The survival rate and other indicators were comparable or slightly higher compared with ribavirin, and the clinical score was higher than that of ribavirin.Conclusion The SJKBDM has significant inhibitory effect on CoxA16 cell proliferation, significantly decreases death rate, and improves clinical symptoms of mice infected with CoxA16 virus.

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of detoxifying and blood circulation activating Chinese herb extraction of polygonum cuspidatum and hawthorn on carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), plaque integral and plaque stability related serum indexes of patients with carotid atherosclerosis.

METHODSixty and four cases of carotid artery atherosclerosis patients were assigned randomly to 2 groups: detoxifying and blood circulation activating treatment group (treatment group, 32 cases) and control group (32 cases). Patients in treatment group were treated with capsules of extraction of polygonum cuspidatum and hawthorn, 1 pill po, bid (dosage of administration: polygonum cuspidatum extraction 5.33 mg x kg(-1) x d(-1), hawthorn extraction 5.0 mg x kg(-1) x d(-1)); patients in control group were treated with lovastatin 20 mg po, qd (dosage of administration: 0.33 mg x kg(-1) x d(-1)). The course of treatment was six months. To observe changes of IMT, plaque integral, and detect the level of plaque stability related serum indexes such as Hs-CRP, MMP-1 and TIMP-1.

RESULTAfter 6 months of treatment, in control group one patient quit the clinical trial because of liver dysfunction and one patient was rejected because of having not followed the therapeutic regimen. 32 cases in treatment group and 30 cases in control group were analyzed. The results showed that IMT and plaque integral of treatment group decreased significantly after the treatment (P < 0.05, P < 0.01), and there was no significant difference compared with control grope. Serum Hs-CRP, MMP-1 and MMP-1/TIMP-1 decreased after the treatment (P < 0.05, P < 0.01), and the treatment group was superior to control group in decreasing serum Hs-CRP (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONDetoxifying and blood circulation activating Chinese herb extraction of polygonum cuspidatum and hawthorn has good effect of anti-atherosclerosis and promoting plaque stability. Its mechanism might be related with anti-inflammation and inhibiting degradation of extracellular matrix, and deserves further studies.

C-Reactive Protein ; metabolism ; Carotid Artery Diseases ; blood ; drug therapy ; Crataegus ; chemistry ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; adverse effects ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Fallopia japonica ; chemistry ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 1 ; blood ; Middle Aged ; Safety ; Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-1 ; blood

Objective: To investigate the detection of HIV/AIDS cases in medical institutions in Tianjin Municipality from 2005 to 2021, so as to provide insights into optimization of HIV antibody testing strategies in medical institutions. Methods: All data pertaining to individuals receiving HIV antibody tests in medical institutions in Tianjin Municipality from 2005 to 2021 were collected from the information systems in medical institutions and the HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Information System of Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System. The positive rate of HIV antibody and epidemiological characteristics of HIV/AIDS cases in medical institutions were analyzed. Results: The number of HIV antibody tests increased from 86 102 person-times in 2005 to 1 369 345 person-times in 2021 in medical institutions in Tianjin Municipality, with annual increase by 18.88%. The positive rate of HIV antibody increased from 2.44/104 to 2.85/104 (P<0.05), with annual increase by 2.79/104. Both the proportion of the number of HIV antibody tests and the number of HIV/AIDS cases detected by medical institutions in the whole city appeared a tendency towards a rise (P<0.05). A high positive rate of HIV antibody was seen in sexually transmitted disease clinics (53.69/104) and other testing services (12.25/104), and the highest positive rate of HIV antibody was seen in individuals at ages of 20 to 39 years (5.40/104), while the positive rate of HIV antibody was higher in men (5.84/104) than in women (0.53/104) (P<0.05). A total of 3 610 HIV/AIDS cases were detected in medical institutions in Tianjin Municipality from 2005 to 2021, with a median age of 38 (interquartile range, 24) years. Of all HIV/AIDS patients, there were 3 277 men (90.78%), and men who have sex with men was the predominant transmission route (63.46%), while the proportion of late identification of HIV/AIDS cases was 65.60%. In addition, the proportion of timely detection for the first CD4+T lymphocyte count testing increased from 23.81% in 2005 to 71.54% in 2021 (P<0.05). Conclusions The number of HIV antibody tests and positive rate of HIV antibody appeared a tendency towards a rise in medical institutions in Tianjin Municipality from 2005 to 2021. The HIV/AIDS cases were predominantly identified in sexually transmitted disease clinics and other testing services, and were predominantly men.

Designed the degenerate primers of alcohol dehydeogenase and L-lactate dehydrogenase to aug- ment Ethanoligenens harbinense B49 genomic DNA, and obtained about 780 bp and 610 bp PCR product respectively. Augmented flank sequences of the two PCR fragments with the Cassette PCR method. Similar- ity alignment showed that the products of the cloned DNA were very high similar to those of alcohol dehy- drogenase genes and L-lactate dehydrogenase genes respectively. One of the two sequences was 1902 bp long, and the ORF of adh was 1101 bp long and encoded 366 amino acids. Its putative molecular weight was about 39.71 kD, its calculational isoionic point was pH 5.93. The maximal identity and positive was 51% and 73% with Clostridium thermocellum ATCC 27405 adh. The other one was 2490 bp long, and the ORF of adh was 951 bp long and encoded 316 amino acids. Its putative molecular weight was 34.23 kD, its calcula-tional isoionic point was pH 6.09. The maximal identity and positive was 55% and 74% with Bacillus megaterium L-ldh. Successfully cloning these two genes would not only enrich the gene resources of L-lactate dehydrogenase and alcohol dehydrogenase genes, but also give the scientific warrant for the meta- bolic engineering research and the construction of the gene-engineering bacteria.

Carbon-nitrogen lyases (E.C.4.3) are a group of enzymes that release ammonia, amidine or amino group etc, and also show ability to form double bond or ring structure. Specifically, enzymes forming amino group are called amine-lyases (E.C.4.3.3), which are critical in the industrial production of many medicine intermediates. In this review is a summary of four major amine-lyases in terms of their source, enzymatic characteristics and their applications in preparation of pharmaceutical intermediates.