Objective To study the relationship between serum leptin and thyroid function by investigating the change of serum leptin concentration in children with abnormal thyroid function (hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism).Methods The levels of serum leptin was determined by radio-immunoassay(RIA) in 20 cases of hyperthyroidism, 17 cases of hypothyroidism, 25 cases of normal controls, respectively .Meanwhile, the serum levels of free triiodothyronine(FT 3), free thyroxine(FT 4) and thyroid-stimulating hormone(TSH) were measured by micro-particle-chemiluminescence immunoassay.Results The levels of serum leptin in hypothyroidism group before treatment was significantly lower than that of normal control groups (P0.05).Conclusions The levels of serum leptin in hypothyroidism markedly descend and no change in the hyperthyroidism. Thyroid hormone can promote the secretion of serum leptin eligibly.

Background The cryptochrom 2 (Cry2)in mammalian retina is a main influential factor of circadian clock.Objective Purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of light exposure rhythm on expression of Cry2 in retina.Methods Thirty clean healthy Sprague Dawley(SD)rats were collected and divided into two groups randomly.The rats of the control group exposed to natural light with the normal rhythm for 30 days,but rats of the experimental group exposed to the artificial light (light: dark =18 hours:6 hours) for 3 months with the light intensity of(533± 16)lx.The histopathological change and ultrastructural alteration of rat retina in both groups were examined under the light microscope and transmission electron microscope at the end of the experiment.Expressions of Cry2 protein and its mRNA were assayed by immunohistochemistry and quantitative PCR(Q-PCR).Results The rat retinal morphology and ultrastructure were clear and order-arranged under the light microscope and transmission electron microscope in the control group.However,atrophy and disorganization of retina were found under the light microscope,and liquefaction and vacuole of outer segments of photoreceptors were observed.The vacuolar degeneration of mitochondria in the inner segments of photoreceptors,cellular nuclear shrinkage,chromatin margination,nuclear notch and destruction were seen in the outer nuclear layer under the transmission electron microscope.Immunohistochemistry showed that the expression of Cry2 protein located in cytoplasm and nuclei membrane of the retinal ganglion cell layer and inner nuclear layer in both normal rats and experimental rats.The scores of Cry2 protein expression were 0.833±0.197 in the experimental group,and 1.700±0.245 in the control group,with a significant difference between them (P=0.009).The quantities of Cry2 mRNA were 0.962 ± 0.125 in the control group and 0.615±0.100 in the experimental group,showing a significant difference between the two groups (P =0.006).Conclusions Long-term light exposure under the 533 lx leads to retinal structural and functional damage probably by down-regulating Cry2 expression in retina.Whether the regulation of Cry2 expression is helpful for stabilizing the biorhythm or not is a worthy question to explore.

This paper is in order to study the anti-feeding and growth inhibition activity of toatal ginsenoside of ginseng stems and leaves against 4th-instar Mythimna separata larvae. Simulating natural growing condition indoors, on the base, To study the anti-feeding and growth inhibition activity of toatal ginsenoside against 4th-instar M. separata larvae by leaf disc test. The toatal ginsenoside appeared to be of significant antifeeding activity against 4th-instar M. separata larvae. The 4th-instar M. separata larvae fed on the leaves of Sorghum bicolor treated with 20, 10, 5 g · L(-1) toatal ginsenoside. At 8 h, non-selective anti-feeding rate were 88.67%, 64.40% and 47.36%, and selective anti-feeding rate were 62.49% , 44.29% and 34.19%; Compared with the photographic, The toatal ginsenoside conld make the development period had prolonged 13h in treated group. The toatal ginsenoside had significant inhibition effect on feeding and growth and development against 4th-instar M. separata larvae, and inhibition effect increases as the increase of concentration ginsenoside.
Animals ; Ginsenosides ; pharmacology ; Insecticides ; pharmacology ; Larva ; Moths ; growth & development ; Panax ; chemistry

Smoke water and distillation liquid were used to treat the seeds of Trichosathes kirilowii and to study the effects of smoke water and distillation liquid on the seed germination and seedling growth of T. kirilowii. The results showed that germination rate, germination index and germination vigor of T. kirilowii all were significantly improved with the treatment of SW and DL treatment. The activity of α-amylase were significantly increased with the treatment of SW and DL at 1:2,000. SW and DL treatment showed no significant effects on the activity of SOD. The activity of POD were markedly enhanced under the treatment of SW (1:000) and DL (1:2,000). CAT activity were increased with the treatment of SW and DL at 1:2,000 while were inhibited by SW and DL at 1:500. Seedling height and root length were increased with the treatment of SW and DL (1:1,000, 1:2,000). SW and DL treaments improved the content of chlorophyll, and moreover with the concentration of SW and DL, the stimulatory were also increased. This work demonstrated that smoke water and diatillation liquid at 1:2,000 could stimulate the seed germination and seedling growth of T. kirilowii, and it provided the references for the study of seed germination technology.
Agriculture ; instrumentation ; methods ; Distillation ; Germination ; Seedlings ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Seeds ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Smoke ; analysis ; Trichosanthes ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Water ; chemistry ; metabolism

The technique of liquisolid compress is a new technique developed in 1990s, which was considered to be the most promising technique to improve the dissolution of water-insoluble drugs. In this article, tanshinone II(A) and the extracts of the ester-solubility fractions were chosen as the model drugs to evaluate the effects of the liquisolid technique for enhancement of dissolution properties of tanshinone II(A). Several liquisolid tablets (LS) formulations containing different dosage of drugs and various liquid vehicle were pre-pared and for all the formulations, microcrystalline cellulose and silica were chosen as the carrier and coating materials to evaluate their flow properties, such as angle of repose, Carr's compressibility index and Hausner's ratio. The interaction between drug and excipients in prepared LS compacts were studied by differential scanning calorimetry(DSC) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD). The dissolution curves of tanshinone II(A) from liquisolid compacts were investigated to determine the technique's effect in improving the dissolution of tanshinone II(A) and its impacting factors. According to the results, the dissolution increased with the rise in the dissolution of the liquid-phase solvent. The R-value and drug dosage can significantly affect the drug release, but with less impact on active fractions. This indicated that liquisolid technique is a promising alternative for improvement of dissolution property of water-soluble drugs, and can make a synergistic effect with other ester-soluble constituents and bettern improve the release of tanshinone II(A). Therefore, the technique of liquisolid compress will have a better development prospect in traditional Chinese medicines.
Calorimetry, Differential Scanning ; Diterpenes, Abietane ; chemistry ; Solubility ; X-Ray Diffraction

Objective To investigate the expression of cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2) in pigmented nevus and malignant melanoma and its significance. Methods The protein and mRNA expressions of CB2 were measured in tissue samples of 20 patients with pigmented nevus and 20 patients with malignant melanoma using immunohistochemical staining and RT-PCR, respectively. Results CB2 was expressed in both pigmented nevus and malignant melanoma. In tissue of pigmented nevus, CB2 was chiefly expressed in nevocytes and basal cell layer, and only a small quantity of CB2 was expressed in subcutaneous tissue. Statis-tical differences were observed between samples of malignant melanoma and pigmented nevus in the expres-sion intensity of CB2 (P < 0.05). Conclusions Increased protein and mRNA expressions of CB2 are observed in tissue of malignant melanoma, and the expression intensity of CB2 is higher in tissue of malig-nant melanoma than in that of pigmented nevus.

Objectives To summarize the characteristics,differential diagnosis and management of incomplete 17 alpha-hydroxylase/17,20-1yase deficiency(17 OHD)of Chinese patients.Methods Six cases of incomplete 17 OHD from Peking Union Medical College Hospital were studied retrospectively through analyzing their clinical data,and the molecular pathogenic mechanism was discussed after literature review.Results Four cases of 46,XX incomplete 17 OHD were reported.The clinical characteristics included female phenotype,various degrees of breast development and absent or sparse axillary/pubic hair, oligomenorrhea or secondary amenorrhea,recurrent luteinized ovarian cysts,hypogonadism with persistent hyperprogesteronemia or high serum 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone level,with or without hypokalemic hypertension.There were also 2 cases of 46,XY incomplete 17 OHD,in which ambiguous genitalia were present besides hypokalemic hypertension.Conclusions Incomplete 17 OHD is a very rare form of congenital enzymatic deficiencies of steroid synthesis,which should be included in the differential diagnosis when there are menstrual disorders,sexual infantilism,recurrent ovarian cysts or ambiguous genitalia.Under such circumstances,hyperprogesteronemia offers a valuable clue for further investigation.

Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T_RFLP) analysis is a culture- independent approach for analyzing microbial community in environment. It bases on PCR technology, and its process includes DNA extraction of environmental samples, amplification of genes encoding the 16S rRNA, 18S rRNA or enzymes with fluorescently labeled primers, the restriction enzyme digestion of PCR products, cap- illary electrophoresis and the analysis of T_RFLP profile. It has been proved to be powerful applied on mi- crobial community in environment since developed in 1997. Currently, T_RFLP rarely applied in China, and it has no applications on microbial community analysis of nitrifying bacteria. In this article, the fundamental principle of this technique and the recent applications of T_RFLP on microbial community are summarized; in addition, it illustrates the confinements of conventional culture-dependent of nitrifying bacteria and the foreground of T_RFLP applying on microbial community structure analysis of nitrifying bacteria.

Objective To evaluate the embolic effect on rabbits arteries using self-made copper plated platinum coil.Methods 1 7 New Zealand Big Ear Rabbits were selected.Unilateral subclavian artery or carotid artery was embolized with self-made secondary level copper plated platinum micro-coils (experimental group)through 3F-catheter.Contralateral subclavian artery or carotid artery was also embolized using secondary level platinum micro-coils (control group)as a control.The level of serum copper ions and the liver and renal function were recorded during different intervals before and after embolization.The arteriography and the tissue his-tology were observed respectively during different intervals after the embolization.Results 1 5 of 1 7 rabbits were embolized success-fully.After embolization,the level of serum copper ions increased in 2 weeks(P <0.05).However,it returned to preoperative level after 4 weeks (P >0.05).The liver and renal function was similar to that of the preoperation after 2 weeks.After embolization,an-giography showed that vascular embolization effect between two groups was not significantly different at 10 min and 30 min;howev-er,the embolization effect of experimental group was superior to that of control one (P <0.01)at 3 days and 1 week,2 weeks,4 weeks,6 weeks and 12 weeks.Pathological results showed that there were a lot of thromboses inside,outside and around the copper coil.Few thromboses appeared around platinum coil in control group.The thrombosis situation in experiment group was better than that in control one (P <0.01).However,no significant difference in inflammatory cell infiltration between two groups was found. Conclusion Self-made secondary level copper plated platinum coil has good physical property,rememorability,flexibility and con-trollability.

Objective To investigate the relationship between serum or urine tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1)levels and the stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD).Methods Serum and urine level of TIMP-1 were measured by enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assay (ELISA) in 122 CKD patients and 40 healthy controls.Serum cystatin-C (CystC),parathyroid hormone (PTH),low-density lipoprotein (LDL)and other markers were determined simultaneously.Correlationanalysis between TIMP-1 level and degree of renal function were performed.Results Serum and urine TIMP-1 of the patients in CKD group was significantly higher than that in control group (P