The tuberous roots of Aconitum carmichaeli are largely used in traditional Chinese medicine and widely grown in Jiangyou, Sichuan, China. During the growth process, this medicinal plant releases a large amount of allelochemicals into soil, which retard the growth and development of near and late crops. Therefore, a pure culture experiment was thus carried out by seed soaking to study the allelopathic effects of extracts from tuberous roots of A. carmichaeli (ETR) on the seed germination and young seedling growth of Lolium perenne, Trifolium repens, and Medicago sativa, the late pasture grasses after cultivation of A. carmichaeli. The results showed that three pasture grasses varied significantly in seed germination and young seedling growth in response to ETR concentrations. Seed germination of M. sativa was stimulated by low ERT concentration (0.01 x g(-1)), while all of pasture grass seeds germinated poorly in solution with 1.00 g x L(-1). Seed soaking with 1.00 g x L(-1) also inhibited significantly the growth of pasture young seedlings, with M. sativa showing the highest seedling height reduction of 42.05% in seeding height, followed by T. repens (40.21%) and L. perenne with about 11%. Cultivation of L. perenne could thus be beneficial to increase whole land productivity in A. carmichaeli-pasture grass cropping systems. In addition, hydrolysis of protein, starch, and inositol phosphates was blocked and free amino acids, soluble sugars and phosphorus were decreased in seeds by seed soaking with ETR, which could be one of the reason for the inhibition of seed germination. There was a significant reduction in root vigor, nitrate reductase, and chlorophyll after the seed treatment with ETR, indicating the suppression of nutrient uptake, nitrate assimilation, and photosynthesis by allelopathic chemicals in ETR, which could lead to the slow growth rate of pasture grass seedlings.
Aconitum ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Allelopathy ; China ; Pheromones ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Plant Extracts ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Poaceae ; drug effects ; growth & development

Objective To investigate the protective effects and molecular mechanism of peroxisome proliferate-activated receptor α(PPARα) activation on acute myocardial damage induced by isoproterenol (Iso) in rats. Methods Thirty male Wistar rats, weighting 160～180 g, were randomly divided into control group, Iso group, fenafibrate(FF) group(each n=10) according to physique quantity. Acute myocardial injury caused by Iso abdomen cavity injection induced ischemia was established and the protective effects of peroxisome proliferate-activated receptor α activation were accessed by the level of ereatine kinase(CK), lactic dehydrogenase(LDH) in serum as well as the activities of myoperoxidase(MPO) in myocardium, and the protein expressions of PPABα in myocardium by Western blot. Results The level of serum CK in control group, lso group and FF group, was (62.41±9.47),(101.71±11.05),(75.64±11.73)kU/L, respectively(F= 34.34, P<0.01). Whereas the level of serum CK in Iso group and FF group was higher than that in control group(P<0.01 or<0.05), the level of serum CK in FF group was lower than that in Iso group(P<0.01). The levels of LDH in these three groups were (5912.20±204.44), (6365.78±137.10), (6089.76±169.60) U/L, respectively(F= 17.54, P<0.01). Compared with the control group, the levels of LDH in Iso and Fir groups were significantly increased(P<0.01 or<0.05). But the level of LDH in FIr group was decreased compared with that in Iso group(P<0.01). The activities of myocardial MPO in these three groups were (1.95±0.10),(3.89±0.17),(2.49±0.19)U/g, espectively(F=391.68,P< 0.01). The activities of myocardial MPO in Iso and FF groups were higher than that in the control group (all P< 0.01), while the activities of myocardial MPO in FIr group were lower than that in lso group(P<0.01). The protein expressions of PPARα in myocardium of these three groups were 251.57±10.95,191.97±10.74,215.08±9.61, respectively(F=82.69, P<0.01). Conclusion PPARα activation by its actor FF can exert protective effects on the acute myocardial ischemia injury induced by lso in rats through inhibiting the release of inflammatory cell factors.

Objective To explore the relationship of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection and carotid plaques in patients with coronary heart disease and analyze the related factors of carotid plaques.Methods This study enrolled 209 patients.13C-urea breath test (13C-UBT) was used to assess Hp infection.Based on the results of 13C-UBT,patients were divided into infection-positive group (101 patients) and infection-negative group (108 patients).The incidence of carotid plaques was detected by color Doppler,and plasma homocysteine (Hcy),total cholesterol (TC),low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C),fibrinogen (Fbg),high sensitivity C reactive protein (hs-CRP) were measured and compared.Results The incidence of carotid plaques in infection-positive group(69.31％,70/101) was higher than that in infection-negative group (55.56％,60/108),and there was significant difference (P =0.040).There was significant difference in hs-CRP between infection-positive group and infection-negative group [(3.91 ± 1.91) mg/L vs.(2.65 ± 1.15)mg/L] (P =0.041).There were no significant difference in Hcy,TC,LDL-C,Fbg between infection-positive group and infection-negative group (P ＞ 0.05).Logistic regression analysis showed that Hp infection was correlated with carotid plaques in patients with coronary heart disease.The severity of Hp infection had no significant effect on the incidence of carotid plaques.Conclusions Hp infection-positive patients with coronary heart disease may have a higher incidence of carotid plaque,regardless of Hcy,LDL-C,Fbg and TC level.This study shows that Hp is correlated with carotid plaque.The severity of Hp infection has no significant effect on the incidence of carotid plaque.

Silver nanoparticles were synthesized from the extract of Fagopyri Dibotryis Rhizoma and the optimization of synthesis was studied. The absorbance of UV-visible spectroscopy was determined under the different influencing factors such as extracting time of Fagopyri Dibotryis Rhizoma powder, reation temperature of synthesis, volume of Fagopyri Dibotryis Rhizoma extract and concentration of AgNO3 to seek the optimization conditions. By means of FT-IR, TEM, DLS and XRD, the silver nanoparticles were characterized. The results showed that when the boiling time of Fagopyri Dibotryis Rhizoma powder was 5 min, resultant temperature was 25 degrees C, the volume ratio of 0.1 g x mL(-1) Fagopyri Dibotryis Rhizoma extract and 1 mmol x L(-1) AgNO3 was 1 to 10, and the reaction time was 3.5 h, the obtained silver nanoparticles had mean size about 27 nm and Zeta potential about -34.3 mV with good uniformity and dispersivity. Therefore, the green synthesis method of silver nanoparticles using extract of traditional Chinese medicine is stable and feasible.
Fagopyrum ; chemistry ; Light ; Metal Nanoparticles ; chemistry ; ultrastructure ; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission ; Particle Size ; Plant Extracts ; chemistry ; Rhizome ; chemistry ; Scattering, Radiation ; Silver ; chemistry ; Silver Nitrate ; chemistry ; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared ; Temperature ; X-Ray Diffraction

Objective To investigate the relationship between serum adiponectin and metabolic syndrome(MS) in children and adolescents with obesity and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD).Methods Four elementary schools and 4 middle schools were selected from Haidian district in Beijing with representative cluster sampling.Two hundred and eighty obese children(obese group),65 obese children with NAFLD(NAFLD group) and 264 normal weight children(healthy control group) aged 7 to 18 years were recruited from the 8 schools with uncompletely randomized sampling.Data including questionnaire,anthropometric measurements,B type ultrasonographic examination for liver were collected and fasting blood laboratory assay were determined.Variables including triglyceride(TG),adiponectin,alanine aminotransferase(ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase(AST) were skewed distribution and natural logarithmical transformations were performed.Chi-square test for category and multiple binary Logistic regression analysis were used to statistical analysis.Results Body mass index(BMI) and waist circumference(WC) in obese group and NAFLD group were higher than those in healthy control group.All the chi-square tests for trend among the 3 groups were statistically significant(P

By retrieving the clinical research literature of treatment functional dyspepsia by traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) from January 2004 to December 2014 based on China National Knowledge Internet (CNKI), we would establish a TCM decoction database for treating functional dyspepsia in this study. One hundred and sixty-four literature were included, involving 159 prescriptions, 377 medicines, in a total of 1 990 herbs. These herbs can be divided into 18 categories according to the effectiveness; and qi-regulating herbs, blood circulation herbs, and antipyretic herbs ranked top three ones according to the frequency of usage of the herbs, whose medicine usage frequency accounted for 51.81%. Usage frequency of 16 herbs was over 30, and Atractylodes, Radix, Poriaranked top three according to the usage frequency. Medicinal properties were divided into 9 kinds according to the frequency statistics, and the top three were warm, flat, and cold. Taste frequency statistics were classifiedinto 9 kinds, and the top three were acrid, sweet, and bitter. In frequency statistics of the meridian tropism of herbs, it was classifiedinto 11 kinds, and the top three were spleen, stomach, lung. The analysis can provide a reference for treatment and study of TCM of functional dyspepsia.
China ; Databases, Bibliographic ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; therapeutic use ; Dyspepsia ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Internet ; Spleen ; physiopathology ; Stomach ; physiopathology

Objective To evaluate the value of 18F-FDG PET/CT in early in vivo monitoring of tumor response to cisplatin,and analyze the relationship between 18F-FDG uptake in tumor and the corresponding pathological changes.Methods Thirty VX2 rabbits were divided into 5 groups by random number table with 6 in each group,including 4 treatment groups and 1 control group.18F-FDG PET/CT were performed before and after (6,12,24 and 36 h post-injection respectively) intravenous administration of cisplatin (7 mg/kg) in the treatment groups,respectively.The control group was injected with physiological saline followed by 18F-FDG PET/CT.The ROI was drawn and the SUVmax and T/NT ratio were calculated.The tumor necrosis rate and apoptosis index were observed by histopathologic examination.Paired t test,GamesHowell test and arcuation correlation analysis were used to analyze the data.Results Significant differences were found in SUVmax and T/NT of the control group before and after injection of physiological saline (6.58±1.67 vs 9.77±2.45,52.93±3.90 vs 29.34±3.31;t=-5.480,17.593,both P＜0.05).18F-FDG uptake decreased after 6 h post-injection of cisplatin,with the mean SUVmax decrease rate of (11.83±8.89) ％ and the mean T/NT decrease rate of (59.00±8.22)％.In the 24 h treatment group,18F-FDG uptake decreased most,and the mean SUVmax decrease rate was (42.33±33.80)％,the mean T/NT decrease rate was (83.50± 7.69) ％.The SUVmax and T/NT of those 2 groups were significantly different from those of the control group,and no difference was found between the 2 treatment groups(all P＜0.05).The changes of SUVmax and T/NT were positively correlated with apoptosis index and tumor necrosis rate (r=0.750,0.794,0.804,0.874,all P＜0.05).Conclusion 18F-FDG PET/CT is a sensitive method for monitoring early response to tumor chemotherapy in VX2 tumor-bearing rabbits at 24 h after treatment.

Objective Currently,pediatric 18F-FDG dose and acquisition durations are generally based on coarse extrapolation from adult guidelines.This study sought to determine whether shorter acquisition durations or a lower 18F-FDG injected activity could be used during pediatric 18F-FDG PET/CT examinations while maintaining diagnostic utility.Methods Thirty-six whole-body 18F-FDG PET/CT examinations were performed on 36 patients (weight,13-89 kg,(46.51±5.63) kg; age range,3-14 years old,(9.22±3.16) years old) with a weight-based injected activity (5.3 MBq/kg (0.144 mCi/kg)),fixed acquisition durations 180 S/FOV,VIP record acquisition mode using Discovery STE.For each examination,the Vip-mode data was truncated to form multiple datasets with shorter acquisition durations down to a minimum of 60 s/FOV (i.e.,60,80,100,120,140,160 s/FOV data were formed from single 180 s/FOV acquisition).168 image volumes were generated,randomized,and reviewed in a masked manner with corresponding CT image volumes by 6 radiologists.Overall,subjective adequacy and objective lesion detection accuracy by body region were evaluated.Results All examinations with maximum acquisition duration were graded as adequate and were used as the reference standard for detection accuracy.For patients more than 30 kg,when acquisition duration was more than 120 s/FOV,all PET/CT examinations were graded as adequate for clinical tasks,whereas,when acquisition duration was reduced to less than 120 s/FOV,lesion detection became less accurate.For patients less than 30 kg,lesion detection accuracy was perfect for acquisition times between 140 s/FOV and 180 s/FOV for all regions of the body.However,lesion detection became less accurate when imaging acquisition time was reduced less than 140 s/FOV.Conclusions When GE Discovery STE PET/CT was applied during pediatric PET/CT examination,using decreased acquisition times as a surrogate for 18F-FDG dose,18F-FDG dose can be reduced by approximately 33.33％ when patients weigh over 30 kg were scanned for 180 s/FOV.For patients less than 30 kg,18F-FDG dose can be reduced by approximately 22.22％ without losing diagnostic quality.Reduction of overall scan time potentially reduces motion artifacts,improves patient comfort,and decreases length of sedation.Alternatively,decreased 18F-FDG dose minimizes radiation risk.

Objective To analyze the relationship between different rectal volume,bladder volume and dose of organs at risk (OARs) in intracavitary brachytherapy for cervical cancer.Methods A total of 47 patients with cervical cancer were selected.All of them were treated with high dose rate (HDR) intracavitary brachytherapy with a 600 cGy dose for the dosage point.The effects of different volume of rectum bladder and small intestine for corresponding exposure dose under the standard planning were evaluated using a dose-volume histogram (DVH).According to bladder volume,patients were divided into three groups,＜ 80 cm3 group,80-120 cm3 group and ＞ 120 cm3 group.And according to rectum volume,patients were divided into ＞ 60 cm3 group and ≤ 60 cm3 group.The relationship between the volume and dosage were analyzed.The ANOVA test and t test were used for analyzing D1 cm3,D2 cm3,D30％ and D50％.Results Compared with the group with ＜ 80 cm3 bladder volume,D30％,D50％ value of bladder in groups with 80-120 cm3 and ＞ 120 cm3 of bladder volume increased (F =5.074,5.088,P ＜ 0.05).The difference of D1 cm3 and D2 cm3 value of the small intestine between 80-120 cm3 and ＞ 120 cm3 bladder volume groups were not statistically significant (P ＞ 0.05).D1 cm3 of rectum in groups with ≤ 60 cm3 rectum volume was decreased than that of ＞ 60 cm3 group (t =-2.045,P ＜ 0.05).Conclusions Keeping an appropriatly full bladder and reducing rectal volume in cervical cancers treated with intracavitary brachytherapy can make the exposure dose of bladder,rectum and small intestine relatively small,and reduce the adverse reactions of radiotherapy.

Objective To assess the value of 18F-FDG PET-CT in monitoring early chemotherapy response in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).Methods 56 patients with DLBCL received 18F-FDG PET-CT before and after 2 cycles of chemotherapy (CHOP or R-CHOP protocol).The patients were divided into 3 groups,including complete response group (30 cases),partial response group (18 cases) and no response group (8 cases).The x2 test was performed on comparison of complete remission rate and the t test on SUVmax.Results Complete remission rate of complete response group,partial response group and no response group were 93.33 ％ (28/30),66.67 ％ (12/18),and 12.50 ％ (1/8),respectively (x2 =21.62,P ＜ 0.005).Complete remission rate of complete response group was higher than that of partial response group (x 2 =4.00,P ＜ 0.05).Complete remission rates of complete response group and partial response group were higher than that of no response group (x2 =18.58,P ＜ 0.005; x2 =4.51,P ＜ 0.05).A significant difference was observed in SUVmax of partial response group before and after chemotherapy (17.18±4.68 vs 5.20±3.35,t =14.32,P ＜ 0.001) and no obvious difference was showed in SUVmax of no response group between before and after chemotherapy (16.63±6.49 vs 13.81±5.95,t =2.073 2,P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion 18F-FDG PET-CT is very useful and helpful for predicting early chemotherapy response in DLBCL.