Chinese medicinal formulae( CMF) were often used in the clinics of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) which were critical for modernization of Chinese medicine to shed light on the interaction between CMF and biological organisms. In current studies, correlation between system and part, macroscopic actions and microcosmic mechanism, ADME process and pharmacologic actions were often neglected. Thus, we put forward integrative pharmacology, which could integrate the correlation between CMF and biological organisms from multi-levels and multi-dimensional views. Integrative pharmacology would reveal the molecular mechanism of CMF for ailments treatment and screen out effective material systematically, which would be the new paradigm of TCM research.
Absorption ; Computational Biology ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; trends ; Pharmacology ; methods ; trends ; Tissue Distribution

Objective To investigate the feasibility of minimal access valve surgery. Methods The authors performed minimal access valve surgery from January 1997 to January 2003 in 72 cases: 36 cases of mitral valve operations and 9 cases of tricuspid valve operations were performed through right anterolateral thoracotomy; 5 cases of aortic valve operations through mini-sternotomy approach; 5 cases of aortic valve operations and 2 cases of mitral valve operations through para-sternotomy approach; 15 cases of mitral valve operations through “reversed L” mini-sternotomy access. Results In the early course following the surgery (within 1 postoperative month ) 71 patients survived and 1 patient died of acute hepatic and renal failure.Complete follow-up in 64 patients for 6～60 months(mean, 13 months) revealed that all the patients responded symptomatically, with New York Heart Association (NYHA) Class Ⅱ status in 56 patients and Class Ⅲ in 8 patients. Color ultrasonocardiogram revealed normal status of mechanical or biological valves. All the patients were satisfied with cosmetic results. Conclusions Minimal access valve surgery is feasible, and is also associated with a better outcome in terms of sternal stability and postoperative recovery.

Objective To investigate the safety and feasibility of totally laparoscopic radical resection of gallbladder cancer.Methods The retrospective cross-sectional descriptive study was adopted.The clinical data of 30 patients who underwent laparoscopic radical resection of gallbladder cancer at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University from January 2013 to August 2015 were collected.The patients received synchronous hepatic segmental or extrahepatic bile duct resection according to the conditions of patients,and choledochojejunostomy was applied to patients undergoing extrahepatic bile duct resection.The patients accepted postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy according to the results of postoperative pathological examination.Observation indicators included (1) operation situations,including surgical procedures,operation time,volume of intraoperative blood loss and number of lymph node dissected,(2) postoperative situations,including time for outoff-bed activity,time for diet intake,time of drainage tube removal,occurrence of complications and duration of hospital stay,(3) results of postoperative pathological examination,including tumor stage and surgical margin,(4) postoperative adjuvant treatment,(5) follow-up situation including the survival of patients,tumor recurrence and metastasis.The follow-up using outpatient examination and telephone interview was performed to detect the survival of patients and tumor recurrence and metastasis up to December 2015.Count data were represented as average (range).Results All the 30 patients underwent successful laparoscopic radical resection of gallbladder cancer combined with hepatic S4b and S5 resection + lymph node dissection at N1 region.Six patients with obstructive jaundice caused by tumor invaded to extrahepatic bile duct underwent combined laparoscopic extrahepatic bile duct resection + Roux-en-Y hepaticojejunostomy,without perioperative death.The average operation time,average volume of intraoperative blood loss and average number of intraoperative lymph node dissected were 238 minutes (range,178-430 minutes),250 mL (range,200-600 mL) and 7 (range,4-15),respectively.(2) The patients got out-off-bed activity and normal diet intake at postoperative day 2,with a average time of drainage tube removal of 3 days (range,0-25 days) and an average duration of hospital stay of 5 days (range,3-28 days).Two patients with complications were cured by symptomatic treatment.(3) Results of postoperative pathological examination showed that all the patients received R0 resection,and pathological stage showed that 12 patients were detected in Ⅰ B stage,10 in Ⅱ stage,7 in ⅢA stage and 1 in ⅢB stage.(4) One patient in Ⅲ B stage (pT3N1 M0 stage) received gemcitabine + cisplatin chemotherapy and other patients didn't receive the adjuvant treatment.(5) All the patients were followed up for a median time of 16 months (range,4-32 months),without tumor recurrence and metastasis at Trocar puncture site.There were 25 patients with tumor-free survival and 5 patiens died of tumor recurrence.Conclusion Laparoscopic radical resection of gallbladder cancer is technically safe and feasible,with a satisfactory short-term outcome.

The teaching status of Molecular Pharmacognosy in 28 institutions in China was investigated by questionnaire and the survey data was analyzed by SPSS. Research contents included course beginning years, majors, class hours, characteristics of the course, teaching ways, the theory and practice contents, evaluation modes, selection of teaching material, teaching achievements, teachers and so on for undergraduates and graduates. Research results showed that with 20 years' development, Molecular Pharmacognosy had been offered for both undergraduate and graduate students in at least 20 colleges and universities and Molecular Pharmacognosy education in China showed good development momentum. At the same time, to promote the development of Molecular Pharmacognosy further, investment for it should be increased and practical teaching condition should be improved.
China ; Humans ; Molecular Biology ; education ; manpower ; methods ; trends ; Pharmacognosy ; education ; manpower ; methods ; trends ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; genetics ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Teaching ; manpower ; methods ; trends

Objective To evaluate the diagnostic value of CT and PET-CT characteristics in predicting the presence of epidermal growth factor receptor(EGFR) gene mutations in lung adenocarcinomas. Methods One hundred and sixty-eight lung adenocarcinomas cases confirmed by pathology were enrolled in our study. They were divided into EGFR gene mutations group (89 cases) and wild types group (79cases) according to whether EGFR gene mutation occurred. All patients underwent CT examination. Seventy-five patients underwent PET-CT examination, including 37 gene mutationsand 38 wild types.The demographic (the patients' age, the gender and smoking history), CT characteristics(lobulation, cavitation, spiculation, pleural-indentation, air-bronchogram, ground glass opacity/tumor ratio(G/T) and the maximum diameter of tumor(Dmax)) and PET-CT characteristics(the maximum standardized uptake value, (SUVmax))between these two groups were retrospectively compared. The independent sample t test was used to analyze the
difference between these two groups regarding the patients' age,Dmax,SUVmax. The χ2 test was used to demonstrate the difference between these two groups regarding the gender, smoking history and CT features including lobulation, cavitation, spiculation, pleural-indentation, air-bronchogram and G/T.The trend analysis between SUVmax and EGFR gene mutations was performed by usingχ2 test for trend.Results No significant difference was found regarding partial CT characteristics of lesions including lobulation, cavitation, spiculation, pleural-indentation, air-bronchogram (P>0.05),however, the Dmax of EGFR gene mutations group and wild types group were(2.53±1.39),(3.00±1.77)cm, respectively. The amount of G/T>50%in EGFR gene mutations group and wild types group was 21 and 5, respectively. Significant differences were found regarding the G/T and Dmax(χ2=9.538, P<0.05;t=1.974,P<0.05). The SUVmax in EGFR gene mutations group (37 cases) and wild types group (38 cases) were 5.13 ± 4.35 and 9.64 ± 5.12, respectively. Significant difference was found regarding SUVmax(t=4.104, P<0.05). The sensitivity and specificity in predicting EGFR gene mutations were 24%and 93%, respectively, using G/T>50%as diagnostic criterion. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) results indicated Dmax=1.85 cm was the optimal value in predicting EGFR gene mutations, with the sensitivity and specificity of 76% and 42%, respectively. Meanwhile, SUVmax=6.85 was the optimal value, with the sensitivity and specificity of 71% and 73%, respectively. Moreover,χ2 test for trend showed that an obvious trend was found to associate SUVmax with the incidence of EGFR gene mutations (χ2=15.755, P<0.05). Conclusion SUVmax may be helpful in predicting EGFR gene mutations in lung adenocarcinomas with relatively high diagnostic value.

AIM:The present study was designed to establish H2O2-induced NRK52E cell apoptotic model and to investigate the effects and the mechanism of nmhaFGF on the NRK52E cell apoptosis induced by H2O2. METHODS: In vitro experiment, a apoptotic model of normal rat kidney epithelium (NRK52E) was made by MTT method, Hoechst33342 dyeing and flow cytosorting (FCR). NRK52E cells were cultured with different concentrations of nmhaFGF and haFGF for 24 h before H2O2 was added. The apoptotic rate was detected with FCR method. RESULTS: H2O2 at concentration of 0.4 mmol/L, the optimal condition to establish the apoptotic model, was used to treat NRK52E cells for 18h. Different doses of nmhaFGF (0.01, 0.03, 0.10, 0.30, 1.00 mg/L) reduced the apoptotic rates with the dose rising. However, the decreasing tends of apoptotic rates with dose increasing for haFGF was not so obvious. CONCLUSION: nmhaFGF protects the NRK52E cells against apoptosis. The mechanism might be connected with its non-mitogenic property.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Free running EMG and stimulus triggered EMG, including time, frequency, amplitude, muscle group were observed and recorded simultaneously. Never root functional injury and restoration after surgery were detected.RESULTS: 378 pedicle screws in 74 patients were monitored intraoperatively, and only 3 pedicle screw malposition (2 of L_4, 1 of L_5) was detected and then replaced with the help of C-arm fluoroscopic examination. Myoelectricity appeared when the current intensity was less than 10 mA. The correct rate of implantation was 99.2%. Nerve root impingement was found in two cases during laminectomy for L_5 and S_1 decompression and never root solution, which alerted the surgical team of critical neural structures. Nerve symptoms of the lower limb were aggravated after surgery and restored following 2-4 weeks of conventional treatment. The error injury rate of nerve root was 2.7%. In all reported cases, no irreversible neurological deficit was observed 2-4 weeks after operation.CONCLUSION: Intraoperative EMG monitoring can find improperly placed screws and detect impending nerve root injury promptly. Combined EMG and 3-D imaging modality monitoring is a reliable and practicable method that can be used to protect neural structures during complex lumbosacral surgery.

Objective: To investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on cognitive function in D-galactose (D-gal)-induced aging rats, and the correlation between the effect and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NOD)-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3)-ASC-Caspase-1 signaling pathway. Methods: Forty-six male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into a control group (n=10), a model group (n=12), an EA-7 d group (n=12) and an EA-21 d group (n=12). Except the control group, the other three groups received 42 consecutive days of intraperitoneal injection of D-gal to establish aging rat models with cognitive dysfunction. The control group received the same amount of normal saline via intraperitoneal injection. Two EA groups were given EA therapy for 21 consecutive days (began from the 22nd day of modeling) or 7 consecutive days (began from the 36th day of modeling) accordingly at Dazhui (GV 14), Baihui (GV 20), Shenshu (BL 23) and Zusanli (ST 36). After modeling/ intervention, all four groups received behavioral evaluations by Morris water maze (MWM) test, novel object recognition (NOR) test and step-down passive avoidance (SDPA) test followed by the Western blot (WB) detection of the expression levels of hippocampal NLRP3 inflammasome-associated proteins NLRP3, ASC and Caspase-1. Results: MWM (place navigation test, PNT) results showed that the escape latency in the model group was significantly longer than that in the other three groups (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference among the other three groups on the 1st day of the test (P>0.05). From the 2nd day to the 4th day of the test, there was no significant difference between the EA-21 d group and the control group (P>0.05) in the escape latency; the escape latency was significantly shorter in the EA-21 d group than in the model group and the EA-7 d group (P<0.05). MWM (spatial probe test, SPT) results showed that the time spent in the target quadrant was significantly shorter and platform crossover number was significantly lower in the model group than in the other three groups (P<0.05). The time spent in the target quadrant was longer in the EA-7 d group than in the model group (P<0.05), but was shorter than that in the control group and the EA-21 d group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the swimming speed among the four groups (P>0.05). NOR results showed that there was no significant difference in the recognition ratio between the EA-7 d group and the EA-21 d group (P>0.05), and the recognition ratio was significantly higher in the two EA groups than in the model group (P<0.05), but was lower than in the control group (P<0.05). SDPA results showed that the electric shock number was higher in the model group than in the other three groups (P<0.05), and the differences among the other three groups were statistically insignificant (P>0.05). The model group had the shortest step-down latency, followed by the EA-7 d group, the EA-21 d group and the control group in order (P<0.05). The WB results indicated that the expression level of NLRP3 was significantly lower in the control group and the EA-21 d group than in the model group and the EA-7 d group (P<0.05). The expression levels of ASC and Caspase-1 were significantly higher in the model group than in the other three groups (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference among these three groups (P>0.05). Conclusion: NLRP3 inflammasome may be involved in the development of cognitive decline in aging rats; 7 consecutive days of EA intervention can partially improve the cognitive impairment in aging rats though the effect is rather limited; 21 consecutive days of EA intervention may improve the learning and memory abilities in aging rats via downregulating the expression levels of NLRP3 inflammasome-associated proteins in hippocampus.

In the present study, a risperidone loaded microsphere/sucrose acetate isobutyrate (SAIB) in situ forming complex depot was designed to reduce the burst release of SAIB in situ forming depot and to continuously release risperidone for a long-term period without lagime. The model drug risperidone (Ris) was first encapsulated into microspheres and then the Ris-microspheres were embedded into SAIB depot to reduce the amount of dissolved drug in the depot. The effects of different types of microsphere matrix, including chitosan and poly(lactide-coglycolide) (PLGA), matrix/Ris ratios in microspheres and morphology of microspheres on the drug release behavior of complex depot were investigated. In comparison with the Ris-loaded SAIB depot (Ris-SAIB), the complex depot containing chitosan microspheres (in which chitosan/Ris = 1 : 1, w/w) (Ris-Cm-SAIB) decreased the burst release from 12.16% to 5.80%. However, increased drug release rate after 4 days was observed in Ris-Cm-SAIB, which was caused by the high penetration of the medium to Ris-Cm-SAIB due to the hydrophilie of chitosan. By encapsulation of risperidone in PLGA microspheres, most drugs can be prevented from dissolving in the depot and meanwhile the hydrophobic PLGA can reduce the media penetration effect on the depot. The complex depot containing PLGA microspheres (in which PLGA/ drug=4 : 2, w/w) (Ris-Pm-SAIB) showed a significant effectiveness on reducing the burst release both in vitro and in vivo whereby only 0.64% drug was released on the first day in vitro and a low AUC0-4d value [(105.2± 24.4) ng.mL-1.d] was detected over the first 4 days in vivo. In addition, drug release from Ris-Pm-SAIB can be modified by varying the morphology of microspheres. The porous PLGA microspheres could be prepared by adding medium chain triglyceride (MCT) in the organic phase which served as pore agents during the preparation of PLGA microspheres. The complex depot containing porous PLGA microspheres (which were prepared by co-encapsulation of 20% MCT) (Ris-PPm-SAIB) exhibited a slightly increased AUC0-4d of (194.6±15.8) ng.mL-1d and high plasma concentration levels from 4 to 78 days [Cs(4-78d)=(7.8±1.2) ng.mL-1]. The plasma concentration on 78 day C78d was (9.0 2.5) ng.mL-1 which was higher than that of Ris-Pm-SAIB [C78d= (1.6 ± 0.6) ng.mL-1]. In comparison with Ris-Pm-SAIB, the AUC4-78d of Ris-PPm-SAIB increased from (379.0±114.3) ng.mL-1.d to (465.0 ±149.2) ng.mL-1.d, indicating sufficient drug release from the Ris-PPm-SAIB. These results demonstrate that the risperidone loaded porous PLGA microsphere/SAIB in situ forming complex depot could not only efficiently reduce the burst release of SAIB depot both in vitro and in vivo, but also release the drug sufficiently in vivo, and be capable to continuously release the drug for 78 days.
Chitosan ; Drug Carriers ; Lactic Acid ; Microspheres ; Polyglycolic Acid ; Risperidone ; chemistry ; Sucrose ; analogs & derivatives ; Technology, Pharmaceutical

Based on the structure and function of acupoint and in association of the definition and principle of sensor, the acupoint is the sensitive element, being sensitive to the physical stimulation with acupuncture and moxibustion and sensitively responded to the disorders; the acupoint is the sensing element, transforming the changes of the acupoint information via the complicated internet conduction, integration and regulation, so as to generate the effects on organic body; the acupoint is the conversion element, transforming every irritation into the bioelectric signal or optical signal so that the organic body could recognize it. Therefore, the acupoint is regarded as the sensor of information in the organic body.
Acupuncture Points ; Electrophysiological Phenomena ; Humans ; Meridians