AIM The effects of calcium antagonist diltiazem on plasma insulin levels were investigated in rats. METHODS Plasma insulin was measured with radioimmunoassay method. RESULTS In the fasting rat, plasma insulin levels were significantly increased after ig diltiazem 10 mg?kg -1 and 100 mg?kg -1 , and the level of plasma insulin was increased by 131% 30 min after administration of diltiazem 100 mg?kg -1 in comparison with that of control group. Diltiazem increased the plasma insulin level markedly in glucose tolerance test of the rat. In the hyperglycemia rat induced by adrenaline, diltiazem 100 mg?kg -1 weakly increased the plasma insulin level only at 1 h after administration. CONCLUSION Diltiazem increases the plasma insulin levels in the fasting rat and glucose loaded rat. The increase of plasma insulin level induced by diltiazem is due to the hyperglycemic action of diltiazem and other effect, probably a direct or an indirect insulin release action on pancreas of the rat.

Objective To evaluate vitamin D status in middle-aged subjects in Beijing and explore the correlation between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D[25(OH)D] levels and dyslipidemia.Methods A total of 448 individuals over 40 years old were enrolled in the cross-sectional survey.The general information,blood biochemical and lipid profiles and serum 25 (OH) D levels were collected.The subjects were either divided into two groups (the dyslipidemia group and the non-dyslipidemia group) based on the lipid levels,or four groups according to quartiles of 25 (OH) D levels.The association between 25 (OH) D levels and dyslipidemia risk was analyzed by a logistic regression analysis.Results A total of 234 cases were in dyslipidemia group,which accounted for 52.23％ of the subjects.The serum 25 (OH) D levels were significantly lower in the dyslipidemia group than in the non-dyslipidemia group both in men and in women (all P ＜ 0.05).The median serum 25 (OH) D level in the total subjects was 15.7 (12.2,20.1) μg/L with 91.1％ subjects of serum 25 (OH) D level ＜ 30 μg/L.The proportion of subjects with dyslipidemia (high TC,high TG,high LDL-C,or low HDL-C) increased with the decrease of 25 (OH) D level quartiles (P ＜0.05).After adjustment of confounding factors,the logistic regression analysis showed that subjects in the lowest 25 (OH) D quartile group had 143％ higher risks for dyslipidemia than those in the highest quartile group.Conclusion These findings indicate that 25 (OH) D insufficiency is highly prevalent among middleaged individuals and it may be associated with the risk of dyslipidemia.

Objective To observe the electroencephalogram (EEG) activity of sleep disorders and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).Methods Forty-nine PD patients,admitted to our hospital from December 2012 to June 2013,were examined by Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale,Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale,Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Scale (PSQS) and Scale Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA); electroencephalogram and their clinic features were analyzed.Results As compared with the normal sleep and non-MCI patients with PD (61.8％),sleep disorder and MCI patients with PD showed higher incidence of slow wave (65.6％).Logistic regression analysis showed that sleep quality was positively correlated to the incidence of slow wave (OR=4.117,P=0.042).PD patients with slow wave had higher PSQS scores and lower MoCA scores as compared with PD patients without slow wave.Conclusion PD patients with sleep disorder and MCI show high incidence of slow wave.

Objective To investigate the effect of Cyclocarya paliurus(Batal.)lljinskaja polysaccharides on insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic rats by regulating glucose transporter 4(GLUT4)translocation in islet and liver.Methods High-fat diet combined with low-dose streptozotocin(35 mg·kg-1)to induce type 2 diabetes model,all the rats were randomly divided into model control group,Cyclocarya paliurus polysaccharides groups(5,10 g·kg-1)and metformin group(0.25 g·kg-1),and treated for eight weeks(n=9 in each group).Fasting glucose and lipid were determined.Histopathology of rat islet and liver were observed by hematoxylin and eosin staining.Protein expressions of phosphorylated phosphoinositide-3-kinase(p-PI3K),phosphorylated serine-threonine kinase 1(p-Akt1),and GLUT4 in islet were measured by immunohistochemistry staining.GLUT4 translocation in the islet and liver was detected by immunofluorescence.Results Compared with the model control group,the Cyclocarya paliurus polysaccharides group and metformin group had declined fasting glucose levels and increased high-density lipoprotein(P＜0.05).The structure of the islets and liver was relatively complete.The content of p-PI3K,p-Akt1 and GLUT4 in the islet increased(P＜0.05).GLUT4 translocation in the liver and islet enhanced(P＜0.05).Conclusions Cyclocarya paliurus polysaccharides alleviate glucose and lipid metabolism disorders.The mechanism may lay in it activating protein expressions of p-PI3K,p-Akt1,and GLUT4 in islet cells.GLUT4 translocation to the islet and liver cell membrane are increased to regulate peripheral islet resistance.

The purpose of this study was to compare the pharmacokinetic profiles of tetramethylpyrazine phosphate (TMPP) in plasma and extracellular fluid of the cerebral cortex of rats via three delivery routes: intranasal (i.n.), intragastric (i.g.) and intravenous (i.v.) administration. After i.n., i.g. and i.v. administration of a single-dose at 10 mg/kg, cerebral cortex dialysates and plasma samples drawn from the carotid artery were collected at timed intervals. The concentration of TMPP in the samples was analyzed by HPLC. The area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) and the ratio of the AUCbrain to the AUCplasma (drug targeting efficiency, DTE) was calculated to evaluate the brain targeting efficiency of the drug via these different routes of administration. After i.n. administration, TMPP was rapidly absorbed to reach its peak plasma concentration within 5 min and showed a delayed uptake into cerebral cortex (t max=15 min). The ratio of the AUCbrain dialysates value between i.n. route and i.v. injection was 0.68, which was greater than that obtained after i.g. administration (0.43). The systemic bioavailability obtained with i.n. administration was greater than that obtained by the i.g. route (86.33% vs. 50.39%), whereas the DTE of the nasal route was 78.89%, close to that of oral administration (85.69%). These results indicate that TMPP is rapidly absorbed from the nasal mucosa into the systemic circulation, and then crosses the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to reach the cerebral cortex. Intranasal administration of TMPP could be a promising alternative to intravenous and oral approaches.

OBJECTIVE To explore the improvement effect and potential mechanism of Baicao fuyanqing suppository on bacterial vaginitis （BV） in rats. METHODS The female SD rats were randomly divided into normal group， model group， metronidazole group （positive control， 0.03 g/kg）， Baicao fuyanqing suppository low-dose， medium-dose and high-dose groups （0.18， 0.36， 0.72 g/kg）， with 8 rats in each group. Except for the normal group， the rats in other groups were injected subcutaneously with 0.2 g of Estradiol benzoate injection+20 μL of Escherichia coli suspension （2×108～3×108 cfu/mL） through the vaginal opening to establish the BV rat model. Administration groups were given relevant medicine vaginally， while the normal group and the model group were given normal saline， once a day， for 6 consecutive days. Twenty-four hours after the last administration， the vaginal appearance score and vaginal pH were measured for each group of rats. The levels of cytokines [interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， IL-2， IL-13， immunoglobulin A （IgA）] in vaginal lavage fluid were determined. The morphology of the uterus and accessories， and pathological changes in the vaginal tissue were observed. The expressions of Toll-like receptor 2 （TLR2）， TLR4 and nuclear factor-κB （NF-κB） in vaginal tissues were determined. RESULTS Compared with the normal group， the uterus edema， the irregular shape of uterus and accessories， the vaginal mucosa hyperplasia， and the massive desquamation of epithelial cells were observed in the model group， complicating with massive infiltration of inflammatory cells； vaginal opening redness and swelling score and secretion score， vaginal pH， the levels of proinflammatory cytokine IL-1β and IL-2， the protein expressions of TLR2， TLR4 and NF- κB were all increased or up-regulated， while the levels of IgA and anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-13 decreased significantly （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. Compared with the model group， varying cn degrees of improvement in uterine and accessories， and vaginal tissue lesions in rats were observed in administration groups， and most of the quantitative indicators mentioned above showed significant improvement （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. CONCLUSIONS Baicao fuyanqing suppository has a certain improvement effect on inflammatory symptoms in BV rats， and its mechanism may be related to the inhibition of the TLR/NF-κB signaling pathway.