OBJECTIVETo study the anti-hyperglycemic effect and its mechanism of Dendrobium candidum (DC).

METHODNormal mice, adrenaline-induced hyperglycemic mice, streptozotocin-induced diabetic (STZ-DM) rats were used. The mechanisms of the anti-hyperglycemic action were studied with radio-immunoassay, immunohistochemical HRP-SPA stain, etc.

RESULTDC could not obviously decrease the serum glucose concentrations and insulin levels in normal mice. It could increase serum insulin levels and decrease serum glucagons concentrations in STZ-DM rats. The results of immunohistochemical stain demonstrated that the number of islet beta cells was increased and that of islet a cells was decreased in STZ-DM rats. It could also decrease the serum glucose concentrations and increase liver glucogen contents in adrenaline-induced hyperglycemic mice.

CONCLUSIONDC has obvious anti-hyperglycemic effects in adrenaline-induced hyperglycemic mice and STZ-DM rats. Its mechanisms are stimulating the secretion of insulin from beta cells and inhibiting the secretion of glucagons from a cells, and it can probably decrease the decomposition of liver glucogen and increase the synthesis of liver glucogen.

Animals ; Blood Glucose ; metabolism ; Dendrobium ; chemistry ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; blood ; pathology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Epinephrine ; Female ; Glucagon ; blood ; Glycogen ; metabolism ; Hypoglycemia ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; Hypoglycemic Agents ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Insulin ; blood ; Islets of Langerhans ; drug effects ; Liver ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

5-Aryl-4-cyano-1H-1, 2, 3-triazoles bearing a variety of substituting groups on 5-phenyl were synthesized. Their structures were established by MS, IR and 1H NMR spectra. The crystal structures of compounds 3f and 3m were determined by X-ray diffraction analysis. The active H of the triazole was on 1-N from the crystal structures. The compounds, designed as HER2 tyrosine kinase inhibitors, were screened for bioactivity of growth-inhibition of breast cancer MDA-MB-453 cells. The lowest IC50 value of inhibiting HER2 tyrosine kinase phosphorylation in breast cancer cells is 6.6 micromol x L(-1). The inhibiting-growth of breast cancer cells was enhanced from electron-drawing groups joining 5-phenyl on the triazole.
Breast Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Crystallization ; Crystallography, X-Ray ; Female ; Humans ; Phosphorylation ; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases ; antagonists & inhibitors ; metabolism ; Receptor, ErbB-2 ; antagonists & inhibitors ; metabolism ; Triazoles ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry ; pharmacology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of Paecilomyces cicadae polysaccharide (PCPS) on the immunological function of aged rats in vivo.

METHODThe young and old rats were administered with normal saline as control groups, and the rats from test group were sc given 50, 100, 200 mg x kg(-1) x d(-1) dosage of PCPS for 3 weeks. The phagocytizing rate and index of PMphi, AMphi to S. aureas were observed, and the colorimetric MTI was used to analyze the proliferative activity of spleenocytes which had been stimulated with ConA or LPS. We also inspected the ability varing of ACP, LDH, ARG of spleen, and observed the ultramicro structure of spleen under the SEM.

RESULTThe phagocytosis of Mphi was lower in aged group than that in young' s group, and the proliferative activity of spleenocytes was lower too. The activities of ACP, LDH, ARG of spleen were extremely decreased (P < 0.01) in aged rats as well. The proliferative activity and phagocytotic rate were both extremely increased in PCPS groups (P < 0.01), and the mitochondrion and endoplasmic reticulum of spleen were accrementition as well (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONPCPS could enhance the phagocytizing function of PMphi, AMphi of aged rats in vivo, and strengthen the immune function of spleen and its proliferative activity as well. Then the immunity of aged rats could be improved. The PCPS may be an anti-aging agent.

Animals ; Hypocreales ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Immunity ; drug effects ; Male ; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission ; Polysaccharides ; pharmacology ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Spleen ; drug effects ; ultrastructure

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) on secretion of inflammatory cytokines in macrophages stimulated by lipopolysacharide (LPS).

METHODSRat BMSCs and macrophages were isolated, cultured, and identified. The BMSCs and macrophages, cultured alone or in co-culture, were treated with LPS or PBS or without treatment and tested for interleukin-10 (IL-10) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) concentrations in the supernatants at 1, 3, 5, 7, 12, and 24 h after the treatment using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

RESULTSExposure to LPS caused significantly increased IL-10 and TNF-α concentrations in the supernatant of cultured macrophages but not in BMSC culture. Macrophages co-cultured with BMSCs showed significantly lowered IL-10 and TNF-α secretions in response to LPS exposure as compared with the macrophages cultured alone.

CONCLUSIONBMSCs can reduce LPS-induced secretion of inflammatory cytokines by the macrophages to ameliorate inflammatory reactions.

Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Coculture Techniques ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Inflammation ; Interleukin-10 ; secretion ; Lipopolysaccharides ; Macrophages ; secretion ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; Rats ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; secretion

OBJECTIVE: To compare the diagnostic efficacy among three RT-PCR test kits for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) nucleic acid detection. METHODS: The throat swab samples from 40 hospitalized patients clinically diagnosed as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and 16 hospitalized non-COVID-19 patients were recruited. The SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid was detected in throat swab samples with RT-PCR test kits from Sansure Biotech ("Sansure" for short), Jiangsu Bioperfectus Technologies ("Bioperfectus" for short) and BGI Genomics ("BGI" for short). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and Kappa value were analyzed. The viral nucleic acid was extracted from the throat swab samples by one-step cleavage and magnetic bead methods, and the efficacy of two extraction methods was also compared. The results of magnetic bead method for nucleic acid extraction by two different extractors (Sansure Natch CS S12C Fully Automated Nucleic Acid Extraction System vs. Tianlong NP968-C Nucleic Acid Extractor) were also compared. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV and kappa value were 95.00%, 87.50%, 95.00%, 87.50%and 0.825 for Sansure kit; 90.00%, 87.50%, 94.74%, 77.78%and 0.747 for the Bioperfectus kit, and 82.50%, 81.25%, 91.67%, 65.00%and 0.593 for the BGI kit, respectively. The positive, negative and total coincident rates and kappa value of viral nucleic acid detection results using the samples extracted by one-step cleavage and magnetic bead methods were 95.24%, 100.00%, 96.43%and 0.909, respectively, but the one-step cleavage method took only 25 min, while the magnetic bead method required 180 min. The positive, negative and total coincident rates and kappa value of viral nucleic acid detection results using the samples extracted by the two different nucleic acid extractors were 85.00%, 100.00%, 89.29% and 0.764, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The detection efficacy for SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid by the Sansure kit is relatively higher and the one-step cleavage method has advantages of convenient operation and less time consuming.
Betacoronavirus ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Coronavirus Infections ; diagnosis ; virology ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; diagnosis ; virology ; RNA, Viral ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Reagent Kits, Diagnostic ; standards

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the potential mechanisms of electroacupuncture (EA) to prevent ischemic stroke. METHODS: The method of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) was employed to establish a rat model of ischemic stroke. Seventy-eight Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into the sham group, MCAO + EA control (EC) group, and MCAO + EA (EA) group according to a random number table (n=26 per group). EA was applied to the acupoints of Baihui (DU 20) and Shenting (DU 24) 5 min and 6 h, respectively after the onset of MCAO. Rats in the sham and EC groups received only light isoflurane anesthesia for 30 min after MCAO. The neuroprotective effects of EA were evaluated by rota-rod test, neurological deficit scores and infarct volumes. Additionally, Nissl staining and immunostaining were performed to examine brain damage, rod formation, cellular apoptosis, and neuronal loss induced by ischemia. The activities of caspase-3, and expression levels of cofilin and p-cofilin in mitochondria and cytoplasm after ischemic injury were determined by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with the EC group, EA significantly improved neuromotor function and cognitive ability after ischemic stroke (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Therapeutic use of EA also resulted in a significant decrease of cofilin rod formation and microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP2) degradation in the cortical penumbra area compared with the EC rats (P<0.01). Furthermore, Western blot analysis showed that EA stimulation significantly inhibited mitochondrial translocation of cofilin and caspase-3 cleavage (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Additionally, brain damage (infarct volume and neuropathy), cellular apoptosis and neuronal loss induced by ischemia were remarkably suppressed by EA in the cortical penumbra of rats (P<0.05 or P<0.01). CONCLUSION EA treatment after ischemic stroke may attenuate ischemic brain injury and cellular apoptosis through the regulation of mitochondrial translocation of cofilin, a novel mechanism of EA therapy.