OBJECTIVETo assess the efficacy and safety of Wuji Powder (WP) and a small dose aripiprazole in treatment of antipsychotic drug-induced phlegm dampness type amenorrhea.

METHODSSeventy female schizophrenic patients with antipsychotic drug-induced galactorrhea-amenorrhea syndrome (GAS) were recruited and randomly assigned to the treatment group and the control group, 35 in each group. All patients received antipsychotic drug therapy. Patients in the treatment group additionally took WP, while those in the control group took aripiprazole (at the daily dose of 5 mg, once daily). The therapeutic course for all was 4 weeks. Prolactin levels and obesity indices[body weight, waist aircumstance, body mass index (BMI) and waist-hit ratio (WHR)] were determined before and after treatment. The efficacy was evaluated.

RESULTSThe treatment course was completed in 95.71% of patients. The total effective rate of the 33 patients of the treatment group was 93.94% (31/33), while it was 91.18% (31/34) in the 34 patients of the control group. There was no difference in the total effective rate between the two groups (P > 0.05). Prolactin levels in both group after treatment were significantly lower than those of the baseline (P < 0.01). There was no significant difference in prolactin levels between the two groups after treatment (P > 0.05). Compared with before treatment, body weight, BMI, waist circumstance, and waist-hip ratio obviously decreased after treatment, showing significant difference when compared with the control group (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in body weight, BMI, waist circumstance, and waist-hip ratio in the control group between before and after treatment (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSBoth WP and aripiprazole could lower high prolactin levels of schizophrenics with phlegm dampness type amenorrhea. They showed equivalent efficacy. But WP showed more obvious effect in reducing obesity indices.

Aged ; Amenorrhea ; drug therapy ; Antipsychotic Agents ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Aripiprazole ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; methods ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Galactorrhea ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Obesity ; Piperazines ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Quinolones ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Waist-Hip Ratio

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Qingfei Peiyuan Micro-pill (QPM) on HIV/AIDS patients with pulmonary infection of phlegm heat obstructing lung syndrome (PHOLS).

METHODSTotally 141 HIV/AIDS patients with pulmonary infection of PHOLS were randomly assigned to the treatment group (94 cases) and the control group (47cases). On the basis of Western medicine, patients in the treatment group took QPM. The therapeutic course for all was 28 days. The improvement of symptoms and signs was observed. The body temperature (BT), chest X ray, and white blood cells (WBCs) were detected.

RESULTSThe Chinese medical syndrome score was lower in the treatment group than in the control group at the 7th, 21st, and 28th day of treatment, showing statistical difference (P < 0.05). The efficacy was better in the treatment group than in the control group at the 7th, 21st, and 28th day of treatment, showing statistical difference (P < 0.05). The BT was lower in the treatment group than in the control group on the 7th day. There was no statistical difference in the patient number with normal WBCs on the 7th day (P > 0.05). But there was statistical difference in the patient number with normal WBCs on the 14th, 21st, and 28th day of treatment (P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference in the patient number with normal chest X ray on the 7th and 28th day of treatment (P > 0.05). But there was statistical difference in the patient number with normal chest X ray on the 14th and 21 st day of treatment (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONQPM had certain complementary effect on HIV/AIDS patients with pulmonary infection of PHOLS.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; complications ; Adult ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; complications ; drug therapy ; Treatment Outcome

Because of irregular shapes of Chinese herbal pieces, we simplified the previously deduced general extraction kinetic model for TCMs, and integrated particle diameters of Chinese herbs that had been hard to be determined in the final parameter "a". The reduction of the direct determination of particle diameters of Chinese herbs was conducive to increase the accuracy of the model, expand the application scope of the model, and get closer to the actual production conditions. Finally, a simplified model was established, with its corresponding experimental methods and data processing methods determined. With total flavonoids in Scutellariae Radix as the determination index, we conducted a study on the adaptability of total flavonoids extracted from Scutellariae Radix with the water decoction method in the model. The results showed a good linear correlation among the natural logarithm value of the mass concentration of total flavonoids in Scutellariae Radix, the time and the changes in the natural logarithm of solvent multiple. Through calculating and fitting, efforts were made to establish the kinetic model of extracting total flavonoids from Scutellariae Radix with the water decoction method, and verify the model, with a good degree of fitting and deviation within the range of the industrial production requirements. This indicated that the model established by the method has a good adaptability.
Chemical Fractionation ; methods ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; isolation & purification ; Flavonoids ; isolation & purification ; Kinetics ; Models, Theoretical ; Scutellaria baicalensis ; chemistry ; Water ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo provide an intact rabbit pneumoconiosis model and a method of lung lavage for studying the pathogenesis and treatment of pneumoconiosis.

METHODSThe dust particles(< or = 5 microns diameter) were poured into the trachea of rabbit by trachea spile. The lung lavage of rabbit was carried out by the improved trachea catheter method.

RESULTSThe rabbit lungs exposed to coal dust showed many black dust spots and there were proliferation of fibroblasts. The rabbit lungs exposed to silica dust showed nodules and several fusing nodules. The X-ray film showed that there were small irregular shadows, or fusing together into flake-like or round shadows in both lungs. The recovery rate of the lung lavage was 89%-94%.

CONCLUSIONThe model made by trachea spile and the method of lung lavage by the improved trachea catheter were simple, safe and without being injured.

Animals ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage ; methods ; Coal ; Disease Models, Animal ; Dust ; Lung ; pathology ; Pneumoconiosis ; etiology ; Rabbits ; Silicon Dioxide

Objective We aimed to recent experience at our hospital in the diagnosis and treatment of pericardial effusion after cardiac surgery and to identify risk factors for its development.Methods We searched our hospital for patient who had cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass from January 2002 through December 2010.For patient with pericardial effusion,medical records were reviewed to evaluate its manifestations and management.To identify risk factors for effusion,patients with effusions were compared with patients without effusions.All patients had routine postoperative echocardiographic examination.Results Of 22462 patients identified,509 (2.3％) had pericardial effusion.Compared with patients without pericardial effusion,ages,sex,cardiac function and so on were no significant( P ＞ 0.05 ).Body,valve cardiac diseases,and cardiopulmonary bypass time and so on were significant ( P ＜ 0.05 ).Among 509 patients with pericardial effusion,262 patients (51.4％) of whom had specific symptoms.Clinical features of tamponade were documented in 51 patients( 10.1％ ).Pericardial effusions were evacuated by echocardilgraphy-guided pericardiocentesis ( n =27,10.3％ ) or surgical drainage ( n =15,5.7％ ).Pericardial effusion resolved after left thoracocentesis for pleural effusion in 5 patients ( 1.9％ ) ; The Other patients with pericardial effusion were treated conservatively.Indeperdent risk factors for pericardial effusion were large body,valve cardiac operations,and prolonged cardiopulmonsry bypass.Conclusion In our study,pericardial effusion occurred in 2.3％ of patients,and symptoms were nonspecific.Several factors,mainly related to preoperative characteristics and type of operation,predispose patients to effusion,echocardiography-guided pericardiocentesis is effective and safe in these patients with pericardial effusion.

Wound combined with total body irradiation (TBI) injury results in impairment of tissue repair and delayed processes of healing, so it has been considered as an important and representative model of impaired wound healing, but the mechanism is not fully clarified. Fibroblasts in wound are the most important cells participating in tissue repair, whereas its radiosensitivity is not high. To understand whether TBI injury has direct damaging effects on fibroblasts in wound, fibroblasts in wound combined with TBI injury and in wound of simple incision injury were isolated and cultured, and parameters associated with tissue repair were determined. The results showed that the abilities of proliferation, attachment and adhesion of fibroblasts isolated from wounds combined with TBI injury significantly decreased as compared with those of simple incision injury, nevertheless, apoptotic ratio of fibroblasts isolated from wounds combined with TBI injury increased significantly. These data suggest that TBI injury may cause direct damaging effects on fibroblasts in wounds, which might be one of the dominant reasons for impairment of wound healing when it is combined with TBI injury.
Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Fibroblasts ; metabolism ; physiology ; radiation effects ; Radiation Injuries, Experimental ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Skin ; injuries ; Whole-Body Irradiation ; Wound Healing ; physiology

BACKGROUND: At present, the transplantation of bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells (BM-EPCs) or bone marrow-derived hepatocyte stem cells (BDHSCs) is common in the treatment of liver fibrosis, but the combined treatment for liver fibrosis is rarely reported. Combined transplantation of BM-EPCs possessing the function of angiogenesis and BDHSCs possessing the function of hepatocyte regeneration might play a dual anti-fibrosis role. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the reversal effect on liver fibrosis by the combined transplantation of BM-EPCs and BDHSCs in rats. METHODS: The liver fibrosis rat models were induced with CCl4 subcutaneous injections for 6 weeks. BM-EPCs of rats with liver fibrosis were obtained by culture induction in vitro.BDHSCs of rats with liver fibrosis were obtained by magnetic bead cell sorting.BM-EPCs and/or BDHSCs were transplanted into liver fibrosis rats via the tail vein and branch of the portal vein,and then the effects of BDHSCs transplantatiron on liver fibrosis and liver function were observed. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) Masson staining results showed transplantations of BDHSCs and BM-EPCs, alone or both, could suppress the formation of collagen fibers. However, the staging scores of liver fibrosis showed that only the combined transplantation of BM-EPCs and BDHSCs could significantly improve liver fibrosis,which was significantly different from the model group(1.75±0.25 vs. 3.00±0.19, P < 0.05). (2) The liver biochemical assay in the blood showed that the levels of all five parameters of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin, prothrombin time, and activated partial thromboplastin time in the BM-EPCs/BDHSCs group were significantly improved to be equivalent to normal levels, compared with those in the model group (P < 0.05). To conclude, it is an effective treatment for liver fibrosis by the co-transplantation of BM-EPCs and BDHSCs.

OBJECTIVE An UPLC method in vitro was established for simultaneous determination of seven active components in Qianyang Yuyin prescription, including gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, loganin, stilbene glucoside, cyasterone, cinnamic acid and harpagoside.METHODS The analysis was performed on an Waters H-Class UPLC C18 column (2.1 mm×100 mm, 1.7 μm) eluted with a gradient mobile phase of acetonitrile-0.1% formic acid solution system at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min.The detective wavelength was set at 250nm, the column temperature was maintained at 30℃ and the injection volume was 2 μL.The 7 main chemical compounds in Qianyang Yuyin prescription were determined by UPLC.RESULTS The linear relationship of the 7 chemical constituents in Qianyang Yuyin Prescription were good in their respective concentration ranges(r>0.997 5), The average recoveries were 95.8%~103.75%, the RSD of average recovery were 0.1%~1.0%, the RSD of precision were 0.10%~0.56%, the RSD of stability were 1.25%~9.04% and the RSD of reproducibility were 1.01%~3.24%.CONCLUSION The new established method in Qianyang Yuyin prescription was simple, accurate and reliable, which will supply instruction and reference to the internal Pharmacokinetics of Qianyang Yuyin prescription in the late works of this issue.

Sequences of circular RNAs (circRNAs) produced from back-splicing of exon(s) com-pletely overlap with those from cognate linear RNAs transcribed from the same gene loci with the exception of their back-splicing junction (BSJ) sites. Therefore, examination of global circRNA expression from RNA-seq datasets generally relies on the detection of RNA-seq fragments span-ning BSJ sites, which is different from the quantification of linear RNA expression by normalized RNA-seq fragments mapped to whole gene bodies. Thus, direct comparison of circular and linear RNA expression from the same gene loci in a genome-wide manner has remained challenging. Here, we update the previously-reported CIRCexplorer pipeline to version 3 for circular and linear RNA expression analysis from ribosomal-RNA depleted RNA-seq (CIRCexplorer3-CLEAR). A newquantitation parameter, fragments per billion mapped bases (FPB), is applied to evaluate circular and linear RNA expression individually by fragments mapped to circRNA-specific BSJ sites or to linear RNA-specific splicing junction (SJ) sites. Comparison of circular and linear RNA expression levels is directly achieved by dividing FPBcirc by FPBlinear to generate a CIRCscore, which indicates the relative circRNA expression level using linear RNA expression level as the background. Highly-expressed circRNAs with low cognate linear RNA expression background can be readily identified by CIRCexplorer3-CLEAR for further investigation. CIRCexplorer3-CLEAR is publically avail-able at https://github.com/YangLab/CLEAR.

OBJECTIVETo explore Chinese medicine syndrome distribution laws of asymptomatic HIV infection patients.

METHODSUsing Chi-square test, Chinese medicine syndrome distribution laws were compared and analyzed in 1 156 asymptomatic HIV infection patients from March 2009 to October 2011 from four aspects, i.e., age, possible infection time, disease duration, and different routes of infection.

RESULTSQi deficiency syndrome (QDS) and internal dampness-heat accumulation syndrome (IDHAS) were dominant in all syndrome types. Along with aging, QDS showed a growing tendency, while IDHAS showed obvious declining tendency. There was no obvious change in other syndrome types. There was statistical difference in the distribution of each syndrome type among each age period (P < 0.01). Within 15 years, along with the increase of infection time, QDS showed a growing tendency, while IDHAS ratio showed an obvious declining tendency. No obvious laws were found in other syndrome types. There was statistical difference in the distribution of each syndrome type (P < 0.01). Along with the prolongation of disease duration, the case number of each syndrome showed a decreasing trend, but QDS and IDHAS still accounted for higher ratios in each stage. There was statistical difference in the distribution of each syndrome type (P < 0.01). As for infection routes, QDS was predominant in paid blood donation, blood transfusion infection, intravenous drugs. IDHAS was predominant in sexual transmit. No obvious laws were found in other syndrome types. There was statistical difference in the distribution of each syndrome type (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSDIS, IDHAS, and no confirmable syndrome typing were dominant in asymptomatic HIV infection patients. Deficiency and dampness were important pathological factors for them.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; HIV Infections ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Middle Aged ; Young Adult