Objective To investigate the hepatoprotective effect of Propolis alcohol-extract (PAE) against acetaminophen (APAP)-induced acute hepatic damage in mice and to explore the possible mechanism.Methods Sixty-three C57BL/6 MT(-/-)mice were equally randomized into 9 groups.The normal control group and the model group received gastric gavage of normal saline (20 mL?kg-1),four PAE groups were given PAE in the dose of 12.5,25,50 and 100 mg?kg-1 respectively,alcohol +APAP group and alcohol control group received 20 %alcohol 20 mL?kg-1 and PAE control group was given PAE in the dose of 100 mg?kg-1 qd,for 4 consective days.Thirty miniutes after last administration,the mice in the normal control group,PAE control group and alcohol control group received saline 10 mL?kg-1,and the mice in other groups received APAP 380 mg?kg-1 to induce acute hepatic injury.The activities of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT),aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were determined,and the liver tissues were collected for histopathological assessment by HE staining under light microscope.The ratio of glutathione (GSH) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG),and the content of GSH,GSSG and malondialdehyde (MDA) in liver homogenate were also measured.Results Compared with the model group,PAE could markedly decrease serum ALT,AST and LDH activity,reduce the MDA level in liver homogenate,and increase hepatic GSH content and the ratio of GSH/GSSG in the liver homogenate.The hepatic histopathological changes in liver were also significantly ameliorated.In PAE control group,GSH content and the ratio of GSH/GSSG were also increased.However,the above indexes remained unchanged in alcohol control group.Conclusion The propolis alcohol-extract can prevent the liver from PAP-induced acute hepatic injury.

Objective To summarize the characteristics of fetal hand deformity in prenatal two-and three-dimensional u1trasonography. To analyze the causes of missed diagnosis of prenatal u1trasonography in detecting fetal hand deformity. Methods Systematic continuous sequence approach was performed with two-and three-dimensional u1trasonography in 11 854 cases to detect the fetal hand development, deformity and accompanied malformations. Prenatal sonographic features of fetal hand deformities (59 cases) were correlated with the morphology and X-ray characteristics of the delivered fetuses. Results Fifty-nine cases of fetal hand deformity were diagnosed out of 11 854 fetuses by prenatal u1trasonography:44 cases of abnormal wrist posture,1 case of full-ifnger absence, 2 cases of metacarpal and phalanx absence, 3 cases of clinodactyly, 2 cases of forearm and hand absence, 1 case of syndacty, 1 case of polydacty, 5 cases of lethal bone dysplasia. The detection rate was 0.50%(59/11 854). Eight cases were missed:3 cases of partial ifnger absence, 2 cases of clinodactyly, 1 case of syndacty, and 2 cases of polydacty. The rate of missed diagnosis is 11.90%(8/67). Abnormal wrist posture showed a hook-shaped hand in the wrist. Full-finger absence showed that one or multiple ifngers were absent. Metacarpal and phalanx absence showed no fetal hands. Clinodactyly showed that four ifngers were not in the same plane. Forearm and hand missing showed that ulna, metacarpal and phalangeal were absent. Syndacty showed a beak-like hand. Multi-ifnger indicated six ifngers in one hand. Lethal bone dysplasia showed very short limbs. Conclusions Prenatal u1trasonography played an important role in detecting and diagnosing severe type of fetal hand deformity. The detection rate of fetal hand deformities can be greatly improved by appropriate use of the scan-time, fetal position, systematic continuous sequence approach and real three-dimensional u1trasonography.

BACKGROUND:Knee society score of Peking Union Medical Col ege has been promoted and used in the 306th Hospital of PLA for 2 years and we have accumulated some clinical data.
OBJECTIVE:To analyze the stability and feasibility for suitable clinical medical practice of knee society score of Peking Union Medical Col ege.
METHODS:Fifty-five patients with osteoarthritis of the knee were included, and the patients were divided into
three groups:the preoperative group;3 months postoperative fol ow-up group;6 months postoperative fol ow-up group. The measurement results obtained by the application of the scale were compared to those of the Western Ontario and McMaster Universityies Ostroarthritis Index, visual analog scale, and hospital for special surgery
score, and then knee society score goodness-of-fit analysis was performed based on the structural equation model.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Knee society score performance assessment of the signs and symptoms of
osteoarthritis of the knee patients was positively correlated with the pain severity of visual analog scale score;the overal knee society score of the patients after 6-month fol ow-up was significantly improved compared with that before treatment. The knee society score after 3-and 6-month fol ow-up was significantly higher than that before treatment, and the score was quite with the hospital for special surgery score. The overal assessment of the knee society score after treated for 3 and 6 months was improved for more than grade Ⅰ, the visual analog scale
score was decreased for more than 30%. The pain assessment items and physiological functional assessment items of Western Ontario and McMaster Universityies Ostroarthritis Index after 6-month fol ow-up were
significantly better than those before treatment (P<0.05);the visual analog scale score was poor after 3-month fol ow-up, and there was significant difference in visual analog scale score before and after treatment which was related with the pain level;the score accompanied by function and joint stiffness was significantly improved. The knee society score of Peking Union Medical Col ege obtained four dimensions of 22 assessment projects, and the
goodness-of-fit analysis showed that the scale had good goodness which had scientific nature and application value.

Bilirubin ; blood ; Child Development ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Neuropsychological Tests

Yinchenzhufu decoction (YCZFD) is a classic formula for treating Yin Huang syndrome, which can improve liver injury caused by cholestasis. However, the mechanism of action of YCZFD still remains unclear. This article used network pharmacology, molecular docking, animal experiments, and molecular biology methods to explore the mechanism of YCZFD in treating liver injury caused by cholestasis. A mouse model of acute cholestasis induced by lithocholic acid was used to investigate the effects of YCZFD on liver injury. The experimental procedures described in this paper were reviewed and approved by the Ethical Committee at the Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (approval NO. PZSHUTCM190823002). The results showed that YCZFD could reduce the levels of blood biochemical indicators and improve hepatocyte damage of cholestatic mice. Then, multiple databases were used to predict the corresponding targets of YCZFD active components on cholestatic liver injury. An intersection target protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks based on String database and Cytoscape software was used to demonstrate the possible core targets of YCZFD against cholestatic liver injury. The results indicated that core targets of YCZFD include tumor necrosis factor, interleukin-1β, non-receptor tyrosine kinase Src, interleukin-6, etc. GO (gene ontology) and KEGG (kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes) enrichment analysis indicated that YCZFD may regulate the tumor necrosis factor signaling pathway, nuclear factor-κB signaling pathway, bile secretion, and other related factors to ameliorate the cholestatic liver injury. AutoDockTools software was used to perform molecular docking verification on the core targets and components of YCZFD. To verify the results of network pharmacology, UPLC-MS/MS method was used to determine the effect of YCZFD on levels of bile acid profiles in mouse liver tissues. It was found that treatment with YCZFD significantly reduced the content of free bile acids, taurine bound bile acids, and total bile acids in the liver tissues of cholestatic mice. Then, results from real time PCR and Western blot also found that YCZFD can upregulate the expression of hepatic nuclear receptor farnesoid X receptor, metabolizing enzyme (UDP glucuronidase transferase 1a1), and efflux transporters (bile salt export pump, multidrug resistance-associated protein 2, multidrug resistance-associated protein 3, etc) in cholestasis mice, promote bile acid metabolism and excretion, and improve bile acid homeostasis. Moreover, YCZFD can also inhibit pyroptosis and inflammation by regulating NOD-like receptors 3 pathway, thereby inhibiting cholestatic liver injury.

OBJECTIVETo construct of tissue engineering skin including active composite dermal matrix.

METHODSThe human fibroblasts and bovine collagen with type I were inoculated on the surface of porcine acellular dermal matrix (PADM) for construction of active dermal substitute, then epidermal cells were inoculated on the dermal matrix for gas-liquid interface culture. The tissue-engineering skin was observed by histological examinations.

RESULTSThe structure of fibroblasts in collagen was intact, which was used to construct composite dermal matrix with PADM. The epithelial structure of tissue-engineering skin was similar to that of normal skin with good cell differentiation. Some phenomena were showed in epidermis: basic layer, stratum spinosum, granular layer and stratum corneum, desmosomes.

CONCLUSIONFibroblasts-Collagen-PADM can be an optimal dermal matrix for construction of tissue-engineering skin.

Animals ; Cattle ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Collagen Type I ; Dermis ; transplantation ; Epidermis ; cytology ; Extracellular Matrix ; transplantation ; Fibroblasts ; cytology ; Humans ; Skin ; cytology ; Skin, Artificial ; Swine ; Tissue Engineering

BACKGROUND: Valsartan is an antagonist of angiotensin Ⅱ (Ang Ⅱ ) receptor. Many researches have proved that it can protect heart tissue. Val-PREST suggests that valsartan with a long-term administration can decrease restenosis rate in stent; however, effect of valsartan on restenosis rate of Chinese population is still unclear presently.OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of oral valsartan for 6 months on patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) who undertook successful intervention therapy.DESIGN: Multicenter, double blind, randomized, and controlled evaluation and prospective design.SETTING: Beijing Friendship Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University; Beijing Anzhen Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University; Peking Union Hospital; People's Hospital of Peking University; Beijing Tongren Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University; Beijing Shijingshan Hospital; Beijing Fuxing Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University;Beijing Chuiyangliu Hospital.PARTICIPANTS: Eight three-grade A hospitals in Beijing participated in the study. Since December 2002 to October 2003, a total of 200 patients who underwent bare mental stent implantation were consented, but 196 patients were recruited in the end. All 196 patients were randomized into valsartan group (100 cases) and control group (96 cases).METHODS: Basic medicines in the two group included aspirin, clopidogrel, nitrides, statins, β-receptor antagonists, calcium channel antagonists, etc. Additionally, Patients in valsartan group were also given valsartan (Beijing Nuohua Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., batch number: SD 34004) in a dosage of 80 mg a day. Both groups were followed-up once a month for total 6 months.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: ① Major adverse cardiac events within 6 months on clinics (death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, hospitalisation once more due to recurrent myocardial ischemia, and target vessel revascularization); ② Results of duplicated coronary angiography or exercise treadmill test (ETT) of partial patients within 6 months.RESULTS: ① Two patients (2%) in valsartan group were excluded in this study because of intolerance, so 194 patients were involved in the final analysis. ② No significant differences of baseline characteristics in terms of lesion type, the number of diseased vessels and the cardiac function were found between the two groups (P ＜ 0.05). ③ During the period of 6-month follow-up, one case died in control group. One acute myocardial infarction occurred in each group, whilst one case undertook target vessel revascularization in valsartan group. It was found that the proportion of recurrent cardiac events was lower in valsartan group than that in control group (11.2% vs. 15.6%). However, this difference did not reach the statistic significance. ④ During the period of 6-month duplicated contrast examination, one case had restenosis of in-stent in valsartan group. ⑤ The positive rate of exercise treadmill test (ETT) was lower in valsartan group (25.7%) than that in control group (36.4%), but there was no statistic difference.CONCLUSION: Six-month oral valsartan on patients with coronary heart disease who undertook successful intervention therapy can decrease the trend of recurrent cardiac events and positive rate of ETT.

Objective To detect mutations of the RET proto-oncogene in a family with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A (MEN2A). Methods Nineteen family members were recruited in the study. The phenotype of the members with MEN2A were observed. PCR was performed to amplify exans 10 and 11 of the RET proto-oncogene. The PCR products were purified and a direct DNA sequence analysis was performed. Results The Cys (TGC)634Arg(CGC) missense mutation and Gly( GGT)691Ser(AGT) in exon 11 of the RET proto-oncogene were both detected in four members of the family. Only the pelymorphism Gly691Ser in exon 11 of the RET proto-oncogene was detected in one member. The results of the ultrasound examination were shown as follows: two members with bilateral thyroid, one side of parathyroid and adrenal solid lesions; one member with bilateral thyroid and one side of adrenal solid lesions; one member with bilateral thyroid and adrenal and one side of parathyroid solid lesions; and one member with multiple thyroid small nodules. Additionally, another three members with abnormal findings on ultrasound examinations had no gene mutation. Conclusion Analysis of RET gene identifies a TGC to CGC mutation at codan 634 and the polymorphism Gly691 Set in exon 11 in this family with MEN2A. Direct DNA sequencing analysis is useful in diagnosis of MEN2A at gene level.

OBJECTIVETo explore the mechanism of action of Longbixiao Capsule (LBXC, a Chinese herbal preparation) on human prostatic stromal cell cultured in vitro.

METHODSNine Japan rabbits were assigned to 3 groups. The high, low dose group was given LBXC [2.0 g/(kg x d), 1.0 g/(kg x d)] by gastro gavage respectively, while equal volume of normal saline was given by gastrog avage 60 rats in the control group, all twice a day with an infeval of 12 h, for 3 successive days. The serum collected at 3 h after the last gastro gavage was added into cell culture fluid. Rabbit's serum containing LBXC was incubated with the cultured stromal cells, and the levels of cell proliferation and apoptosis were determined using relative techniques as TUNEL, ELISA, and immunocytochemistry. Besides, Real-time RT-PCR was applied to detect the mRNA expressions of TGF-beta1, and Smad7 in the stromal cells.

RESULTSThe cell proliferation showed culture time dependence in all groups. The proliferation in the drug-serum treated groups was lower than that in the control group, and it was lower in the high dose treated group than in the low dose treated group (all P < 0.01). The unfavorable growth did not occur morphologically after being cultured for 48 h and showed insignificant difference between various groups. Cell apoptosis was not found excepting for a few appeared in the high dose treated group (with a little amount of apoptotic cells occurring). After treatment, the expressions of TGF-beta, and Smad7 were lower in the low dose treated group and high dose treated group than in the control group (P < 0.01). There was not statistical difference between the low dose treated group and high dose treated group (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONLBXC could reduce the expressions of TGF-beta1, and smad7 mRNA in stromal cells and inhibit the stromal cell proliferation, but its effect on promoting cell apoptosis is unobvious.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Capsules ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Male ; Prostate ; cytology ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rabbits ; Random Allocation ; Serum ; Smad7 Protein ; genetics ; metabolism ; Stromal Cells ; cytology ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1 ; genetics ; metabolism

Chronic prostatitis is a common disease in male. So far the etiology and pathogenesis of chronic prostatitis, particularly chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS), remain to be elucidated and there is no unified recognition in the treatment of this disease. This article discusses the thoughts and methods for the diagnosis and treatment of chronic prostatitis by combination of TCM and Western medicine systematically.
Chronic Disease ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Pelvic Pain ; drug therapy ; Phytotherapy ; Prostatitis ; drug therapy