Fatty liver disease is caused by abnormal accumulation of lipids within hepatocytes. According to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) theory, lipids belong to the category of essence obtained from cereals and the normal distribution of essence relies on the function of spleen yang. When spleen yang is injured, the normal distribution of essence (lipids) will be affected, leading to formation of phlegm retention in the liver. That is the TCM pathogenesis of fatty liver disease. Hence the treatment of fatty liver disease should be concentrated on warming yang to activate qi. With such a treatment, the normal distribution of essence will be restored, essence will be distributed, and phlegm will be dissipated.

Angina Pectoris ; prevention & control ; Coronary Disease ; prevention & control ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; History, Ancient ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Phytotherapy ; history ; methods

With the increasing incidence and prevalence of male sexual dysfunction, andrologists are more and more in need of accurate and efficient tools to assess therapeutic efficacy and patients' satisfaction and to help patients achieve satisfactory treatment results. This article summarizes some of the most commonly used questionnaires for the diagnosis and assessment of the treatment of male sexual dysfunction, including International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF), Erection Hardness Score (EHS), Quality of Erection Questionnaire (QEQ), Erectile Dysfunction Inventory of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS), Treatment Satisfaction Scale (TSS), Self-Esteem and Relationship (SEAR), Premature Ejaculation Profile (PEP), Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT), Index of Premature Ejaculation (IPE), Arabic Index of Premature Ejaculation (AIPE), Aging Male Symptoms Scale (AMS), Androgen Deficiency in the Aging Male (ADAM), and Symptomatic Inventory for Screening Late-Onset Hypogonadism in Males (SILOH), and presents an overview on their clinical application.
Erectile Dysfunction ; Humans ; Male ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Objective To research the clinical safety and feasibility of self-made devices in gasless laparoscopic surgery. Methods A total of 5 generations of gasless laparoscopic devices (8 models) were designed and manufactured by ourselves from April 1993 to September 2004. After animal experiments, 15 types of different gasless laparoscopic operations were carried out in 87 patients. Results Out of the 87 cases, conversions to open surgery were required in 7 cases (conversion rate, 8.0%). The other 80 cases of gasless laparoscopic operations were successfully performed, involving cholecystectomy, colorectal resection, partial cecectomy, subtotal gastrectomy, inguinal herniorrhaphy, abdominal wall contraction, radical resection for carcinoma of renal pelvis, haital herniorrhaphy with Toupet’s fundoplication and total hysterectomy. Conclusions Our self-made gasless laparoscopic devices may be applied safely and effectively in clinical cases. Gasless laparoscopic surgery has been reflecting the complementary advantages of modern laparoscopic surgery and traditional open surgery. It is of supplementary significance in patients contraindicated to pneumoperitoneum and of distinctive importance for laparoscopic gastrointestinal surgery requiring abdominal fistulization or prolonged incision, as well as hand-assisted hepatobiliary or pancreatic laparoscopic surgery.

To study the effects of Qinggan Huoxue Recipe (QGHXR), the compound traditional Chinese herbal medicine, and its separated recipes on the expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) mRNA and serum TNF-alpha content in rats with alcoholic liver injury (ALI).

Objective To investigate the expression and significance of Smad4 in peripheral hepatocytes of lesions in mice with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis.Methods Eight mice in the test group were inoculated with alveolar echinococcosis and 8 mice in the control group were injected with normal saline.The expression of Smad4 protein in the hepatic tissue of the mice was detected by immunohistochemistry method,and the data were analyzed by chi-square test.The effect of alveolar echinocoeeosis on the expression of Smad4 protein was investigated.Results Smad4 was detected in cell nuclei and partly in the cytoplasm.Six months after the establishment of the mice model for alveolar echinococeosis,the expression of Smad4 in the hepatic tissue in the test group was significantly higher than in the control group(x2=19.869,P＜0.05).The number of Smad4 with positive expression in the hepatocytes in the test group was slightly higher than in the control group,and the expression intensity of Smad4 in the test group was greater than in the control group(x2=58.3 10,P＜0.05).Conclusions The increase of the expression of Smad4 protein in the periphery hepatocytes and tissues of hepatic alveolar echinococcosis lesions may play a role in hepatic cirrhosis and immune evasion.

Two new sesquiterpenoids, named as tyromols A and B (1 and 2), were isolated from cultures of basidiomycete Tyromyces chioneus, along with two previously reported 15-hydroxy-6 α, 12-epoxy-7β, 10αH, 11βH-spiroax-4-ene (3) and agripilol C (4). Compounds 1-4 were separated and purified by silica gel, RP-18, Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis including IR, MS, 1D and 2D NMR experiments.
Basidiomycota ; chemistry ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Sesquiterpenes ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Sesterterpenes

To study the distribution pattern of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndromes in fatty liver disease.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of Qinggan Huoxue Recipe (QGHXR), a compound Chinese herbal medicine, and its decomposed formulas Qinggan Recipe (QGR) and Huoxue Recipe (HXR) on expressions of CD14, Toll like receptor 4 (TLR(4)) and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) in Kupffer cells. METHODS: The isolated primary rat Kupffer cells were treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for a certain period of time, a series of concentrations of drug-containing serums of QGHXR and its decomposed formulas were added, the expressions of NF-kappaB, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), CD14, and TLR(4) of the Kupffer cells were detected in different culture conditions by using Western blot, real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and ELISA methods respectively. RESULTS: QGR could down-regulate the expression of membrane receptor CD14, but the expression of NF-kappaB and TNF-alpha were not significantly decreased after QGR treatment. HXR could down-regulate the expression of membrane receptor TLR4 and inhibit the expressions of NF-kappaB and TNF-alpha. QGHXR could down regulate the expressions of membrane receptors CD14 and TLR(4) and inhibit the expressions of NF-kappaB and TNF-alpha. CONCLUSION: QGHXR can protect liver cells by down regulating the expressions of CD14, TLR(4) and NF-kappaB and inhibiting TNF-alpha expression.

Coronary Artery Disease ; pathology ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional