The herbs used as the material for traditional Chinese medicine are mostly planted at mountain areas where there is appropriate weather condition. Due to the complex terrain condition in mountain area, the planting at such places is always associated with a scattered pattern, which inevitably bring difficulty to the work of accurate measurement for the planting area. Advanced research about monitoring the planting area for medicine-herb under complex environmental condition is so critical and meaningful for developing the medicine-herb planting to a large scale and an industry. Therefore, this research, taking the planting of Herpetospermum pedunculosum in Luding county as an example, utilizes RS&GIS: using the image data from TM and ETM datum as the remote sensing information source, integrating GPS data from quadrat survey on the spots, and analyzing on a GIS platform, to extract the planting area of H. pedunculosum in Luding county. The results indicate that: (1) the method and technology used to estimate the planting area of H. pedunculosum are feasible and can be applied to monitoring the planting area of medicine-herb at mountain area under complex environmental conditions: (2) the planting area of H. pedunculosum in Luding county is estimated to be 857. 246 acres by the methods utilized in this research, which is closed to the value from local statistical data with an error range less than 5%; (3) in consideration of those inevitable errorrs generating from the procedures such as remote sensing data acquisition, data preprocessing, data interpretation, and so on, and the fact that the classification of remote sensing data, which must be implemented by those above procedures, was used directly to extract the herb type, the accuracy of area estimation for the herb is significantly influenced by the accuracy of classification for herb type, and the estimated area is inevitably associated with some error.
China ; Cucurbitaceae ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Geographic Information Systems ; Medicine, Tibetan Traditional ; Remote Sensing Technology ; methods

AIM: To evaluate the therapeutic effect and safety of Rhadiola Extract Injection for treatment of stable angina pectoris of coronary heart disease with cariac blood stasis syndrome. METHODS: Arandomized,double-blind,positive drug parallel controlled,multi-center clinical trial was adopted.414 patients with stable angna pectoris of coronary heart disease with cariac blood stasis syndrome were randomly chosen and divided into two groups: test group(n=308 cases) and control group(n=106 cases).The test group was treated with Rhadiola Extract Injection and the control group received Xiangdan Injection.Treatment course of each group was 10 days.(RESULTS:) The therapeutic effect and changes of electrocardiogram in the test group were better than that of the control group(P0.05).The test group had no obvious side-effects. CONCLUSION: Rhadiola Extract Injection is safe and effective in treating stable angina pectoris of coronary heart disease with cariac blood stasis syndrome.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the methylation of p16(INK4a) and RB gene, and the expression of p16(INK4a) in meningiomas.

METHODSMethylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) was used to detect the methylation of p16(INK4a) and RB in 50 cases of meningiomas, and immunostaining was performed to analyze the protein expression of p16(INK4a) in 25 of those cases.

RESULTSNo methylation was found in the benign meningiomas, whereas methylation of p16(INK4a)or RB occurred in 6(37.5%) cases of grade II tumors and 4(28.6%) cases of grade III tumors, and among these cases, an atypical meningioma showed methylation of both genes. Thirteen cases showed p16(INK4a) positive expression, but none of them was methylated.

CONCLUSIONThe methylation of p16(INK4a) or RB is related with the tumorigenesis and progression of atypical and anaplastic meningiomas, and a probable mechanism is that methylation causes the loss of expression and leads to dysfuncation of the p16(INK4a)/cyclin D1/CDK4/RB pathway.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Cyclin D1 ; genetics ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 4 ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinases ; genetics ; DNA Methylation ; Female ; Genes, Retinoblastoma ; Genes, p16 ; Humans ; Male ; Meningeal Neoplasms ; genetics ; Meningioma ; genetics ; Middle Aged ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins

OBJECTIVETo study the prevalence of chondromalacia patella among college students and the correlation with sports injury.

METHODS354 students from gymnastic department and 429 from nongymnastic department with knee joint pain were selected. 184 students from gymnastic department and 342 from nongymnastic department were checked randomly by a surgeon. 77 patients (37 males, 40 females) from gymnastic department and 119 patients (62 males, 57 females) from nongymnastic department were diagnosed as chondromalacia patellae. The amount of exercise and the occurrence of sports injury were investigated in each student. All data were analyzed with SPSS 10.0 statistical software.

RESULTSThe prevalence of chondromalacia patella was 20.1% in female students and 11.6% in male students from gymnastic department, and 5.61% in female students and 4.92% in male students from nongymnastic department. The amount of exercise and the occurrence of sports injury to the knee joint in students from gymnastic department were greater than those from nongymnastic department.

CONCLUSIONSIn both female and male students, the prevalence of chondromalacia patella is higher in gymnastic department than nongymnastic department. Sports injury is an important cause of chondromalacia patella.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Distribution ; Athletic Injuries ; epidemiology ; pathology ; Cartilage Diseases ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; Case-Control Studies ; China ; epidemiology ; Comorbidity ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Injury Severity Score ; Knee Injuries ; epidemiology ; pathology ; Male ; Patella ; pathology ; Prevalence ; Probability ; Prognosis ; Reference Values ; Risk Factors ; Sex Distribution

Psychrotrophs were isolated by using four media from low-temperature sewage of sewage treatment plant in Urumqi, Xinjiang. Totally, 154 strains were obtained including 12 filamentous fungi, 46 yeasts, 6 actinomycetes and 90 bacteria. The results of tolerance tests of the isolates to salt, phenol and SDS, and enzyme producing characters of amylase, proteinase and esterase were shown. Then 60 bacterial strains were chosen for 16S rRNA gene sequencing and analysis. The blasting results showed that the strains were assigned to 13 recognized genera , and the Strain 39 exhibited 96.6% similarity to Acinetobacter lwoffii(DSM2403), indicating that it might be a novel species. These results suggested that there were a lot of psychrotrophs and rich bacterial diversity in low-temperature sewage. In addition, which maybe an important and potential library of microbial resources.

OBJECTIVETo assess the reliability and validity of the Aging Males' Symptoms (AMS) scale in the male population of Shanghai.

METHODSWe enrolled 973 males aged 40 years and over in a community of Shanghai, China. Using the AMS scale, we calculated the split-half reliability coefficient and Cronbach's alpha coefficient, assessed the validity through confirmatory factor analysis and correlation analysis, and obtained the domain scores of different people by analysis of variance and independent sample test.

RESULTSThe split-half reliability was > 0.78 (P < 0.01) and Cronbach's alpha coefficients of all the dimensions > 0.82 (P < 0.01). Confirmatory factor analysis showed 3 domains in the AMS scale, Pearson correlation coefficients of all the items to their domains were > 0.49 (P < 0.01), and the total testosterone level was not correlated with AMS scores, with Pearson correlation coefficient of -0.04 (P > 0.05). Statistically significant differences were found in AMS scores among different age groups as well as among those with different chronic disease histories, but not in the psychological domain among different age groups.

CONCLUSIONThe reliability and validity of the AMS scale are acceptable in assessing aging males'symptoms among the male population of Shanghai, but further studies are needed to determine whether it could be used as a tool for screening late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) in males.

Adult ; Aged ; Aging ; China ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Hypogonadism ; epidemiology ; psychology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Psychometrics ; Reproducibility of Results ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of different concentrations of bilirubin on expression of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in cord blood monocytes (CBMC).

METHODSUnder the sterile condition, umbilical vein blood samples were obtained from normal full-term newborns, and the monocytes were in vitro separated by the method of gelatin/plasma coated flasks. The monocytes were preincubated with various concentrations (0-307.8 μmol/L) of bilirubin dissolved in bovine albumin solution for 1 hr. Bilirubin-treated CBMC were further cultured with LPS (1 μg/mL) to induce cellular activation for 24 hrs, and then the CBMC were collected. The expression of TLR4 in monocytes was measured by indirect immunofluorescence method.

RESULTSBilirubin at the concentrations of 102.6, 153.9, 220.6 and 307.8 μmol/L inhibited the expression of TLR4 of CBMC. The inhibition effect increased with the increasing concentration of bilirubin.

CONCLUSIONSBilirubin can inhibit the TLR4 expression of CBNC in a dose-dependent manner.

Bilirubin ; pharmacology ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Fetal Blood ; chemistry ; drug effects ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Monocytes ; chemistry ; drug effects ; Toll-Like Receptor 4 ; blood

The study was purposed to investigate the growth inhibitory effect of tanshinones on K562 cell line and the relationship between their structures and cytotoxicity. The modified MTT assay was adopted to measure the inhibitory effect of tanshinones at different concentrations and chemical structures on K562 cells, and the changes of cell morphology were observed by inverted phase contrast microscopy. The results indicated that the tanshinones could inhibit the proliferation of K562 cells effectively, and their cytotoxicities on K562 cells showed concentration- and time-dependent manners. The IC(50) of dihydrotanshinone I, tanshinone I, tanshinone IIA and cryptotanshinone at 24 hours were 0.91, 4.04, 5.95, 13.85 µg/ml at 48 hours were 0.37, 1.35, 1.71, 6.71 µg/ml; at 72 hours were 0.33, 0.46, 0.82, 6.02 µg/ml, respectively. It is concluded that all of the four tanshinones have proliferation inhibitory effect on K562 cell line, among them the dihydrotanshinone I is the most active one, followed by tanshinone I, tanshinone IIA and cryptotanshinone subsequently, indicating that the chemical structure of aromatic ring A of tanshinones can enhance their cytotoxicity and the structure of furan ring C may influence the cytotoxicity, but their mechanism is still remained to be further investigated.
Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Diterpenes, Abietane ; pharmacology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Humans ; K562 Cells ; Structure-Activity Relationship

BACKGROUNDTumor surgery in brain motor functional areas remains challenging. Novel techniques are being developed to gain maximal and safe resection for brain tumor surgery. Herein, we assessed the magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (MR-DTI) and fluorescein sodium dyeing (FLS) guiding technique for surgery of glioma located in brain motor functional areas.

METHODSTotally 83 patients were enrolled according to our inclusion and exclusion criteria (56 patients in experimental group, 27 patients in control group). In the experimental group, the surgical approach was designed by DTI imaging, which showed the relationship between the tumor and motor tract. The range of resection in the operation was determined using the FLS-stained area, which recognized the tumor and its infiltrated tissue. The traditional routine method was used in the control group. Postoperatively, all patients underwent enhanced brain MRI within 72 hours to ascertain the extent of resection. Patients were followed in our outpatient clinic over 6 - 24 months. Neurological deficits and Karnofsky scoring (KPS) were evaluated.

RESULTSThere were no significant differences in balance test indexes of preoperative data (sex, age, lesion location and volume, and neurological deficits before operation) and diagnosis of histopathology between the two groups. There was a trend in the experimental group for greater rates of gross total resection (80.4% vs. 40.7%), and the paralysis rate caused by surgery was lower in experimental (25.0%) vs. control (66.7%) groups (P < 0.05). The 6-month KPS in the low-grade and high-grade gliomas was 91 ± 11 and 73 ± 26, respectively, in the experimental group vs. 82 ± 9 and 43 ± 27, respectively, in the control group (P < 0.05 for both).

CONCLUSIONSMR-DTI and FLS dye guiding for surgery of glioma located in brain motor functional areas can increase the gross total resection rate, decrease the paralysis rate caused by surgery, and improve patient quality of life compared with traditional glioma surgery.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Brain Neoplasms ; pathology ; psychology ; surgery ; Diffusion Tensor Imaging ; methods ; Female ; Fluorescein ; Glioma ; pathology ; psychology ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Motor Cortex ; pathology ; Muscle Strength ; Prognosis

OBJECTIVETo isolate MSCs from adult human bone marrow cells and to induce them into adipocytes.

METHODSMSCs were isolated from adult human bone marrow aspirated by Percoll and expanded in L-DMEM. The surface antigen of MSCs, CD14, CD34, CD45, CD44, VLA-1, HLA-DR and cell cycle were analysed on a FACScan flow cytometer. MSCs were cultured in adipogenisis inducing medium including insulin, 1-methyl-3-isobutylxanthine, indomethine and dexamethasone for 7 days and stained with Oil Red O.

RESULTSMSCs grew as adherent cells and expanded more than 10 passages. They were positive for CD44 and negative for CD14, CD34, CD45, HLA-DR. The expression of VLA-1 was weak. After 7 days of adipocyte inducing, about 85%of the cells displayed accumulation of lipid vacuoles, as detected by Red Oil O.

CONCLUSIONMSCs isolated and cultured from adult human bone marrow can be induced to adipogenisis committed differentiation.

Adipocytes ; physiology ; Adult ; Antigens, CD34 ; analysis ; Bone Marrow Cells ; physiology ; Cell Differentiation ; Cell Separation ; methods ; Cells, Cultured ; HLA-DR Antigens ; analysis ; Humans ; Hyaluronan Receptors ; analysis ; Lipopolysaccharide Receptors ; analysis ; Stem Cells ; physiology