OBJECTIVE:To determine the contents of citric acid in fentanyl citrate raw materials and its injection by ion chro-matography. METHODS:The determination was performed on Thermo Dionex IonPacTM AS11-HC column with mobile phase con-sisted of potassium hydroxide (gradient elution) at the flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. The column temperature was 35 ℃,and sample size was 20 μL. The detector was suppressed conductivity detector. RESULTS:The linear range of citric acid were 0.1157-74.05 μg/mL(r=0.9995). The limit of quantitation was 0.1150 μg/mL,and the limit of detection was 0.0400 μg/mL;RSDs of preci-sion,stability and reproducibility tests were all lower than 2.0%;the average recoveries were 99.6%-101.5%(RSD=0.68%,n=9). CONCLUSIONS:The method is environmentally-friendly and simple with good accuracy and precision,and suitable for the contents determination of citric acid in fentanyl citrate raw materials and injection.

Objective To investigate the effects of programmed intermittent epidural bolus (PIEB) with continuous epidural infusion (CEI) at different time intervals for epidural labor analgesia.Methods One hundred and eighty-six nulliparous parturients were randomized to the groups P1, P2 and C.Epidural infusion was given initial loading dose: 10 ml (0.125% ropivacaine with 0.4 μg/ml sufentanil), followed by maintaining dose: 0.08% ropivacaine with 0.4 μg/ml sufentanil.Group P1 was given basal infusion 5 ml per 30 min, 30 min after the initial dose;group P2 was given basal infusion of 10 ml per 60 min, 60 min after the initial dose;CEI basal infusion of 10 ml/h immediately after the initial dose;PCEA (patient-controlled epidural analgesia dose) 5 ml (lockout interval: 30 min).The baseline maternal heart rate, noninvasive arterial blood pressure, SpO2, respiratory rate, and fetal heart rate tracing were recorded.The visual analog scale (VAS) was recorded during the first stage of labor and at full cervical dilation.The degree of motor block was assessed in both lower extremities using the modified Bromage score (MBS).The maximum blocked segment, the consumption of anesthetic, delivery mode, amount of oxytocin, The number of cases of motor block and intrapartum fever, the fetal Apgar scores,adverse reactions,maternal satisfaction score were recorded.Results The VAS obviously decreased in the three groups since receiving labor analgesia (P<0.05).The ratio of VAS score more than 3 scales in group PIEBⅡ was significantly lower than that in groups P1 and C (P<0.05).The maximum blocked segment increased in group P1, while The incidence of unilateral block was significantly decreased in group P2 (P<0.05).The total drug consumption.And the toatal number of PCA were decreased obviously in group PIEB (P<0.05).The initial PCA time was significantly prolonged in group P2 (P<0.05).The number of instrumental midwifery and intrapartum fever in group P2 were significantly lower than that in group C (P<0.05).Conclusion Programmed intermittent epidural bolus at the beginning 60 min intervals after the initial dose for epidural labor analgesia is scientific and effective.

Doxorubicin (Dox) is widely used to the treatment of cancer, however, it could cause damage to gastric mucosa. To investigate the protective effects and related mechanisms of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and vitamin C (VC) on Dox-induced gastric mucosal injury, we presented the survey of the 4 groups of the rats with different conditions. The results showed Dox treatment significantly induced GES-1 apoptosis, but preconditioning in GES-1 cells with VC or CoQ10 significantly inhibited the Dox-induced decrease and other harm effects, including the expression and of IκKβ, IκBα, NF-κB/p65 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) in GES-1 cells. Moreover, high-throughput sequencing results showed Dox treatment increased the number of harmful gut microbes, and CoQ10 and VC treatment inhibited this effect. CoQ10 and VC treatment inhibits Dox-induced gastric mucosal injury by inhibiting the activation of the IkKB/IκBα/NF-κB/p65/TNF-α pathway, promoting anti-inflammatory effects of gastric tissue and regulating the composition of the intestinal flora.

Doxorubicin (Dox) is widely used to the treatment of cancer, however, it could cause damage to gastric mucosa. To investigate the protective effects and related mechanisms of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and vitamin C (VC) on Dox-induced gastric mucosal injury, we presented the survey of the 4 groups of the rats with different conditions. The results showed Dox treatment significantly induced GES-1 apoptosis, but preconditioning in GES-1 cells with VC or CoQ10 significantly inhibited the Dox-induced decrease and other harm effects, including the expression and of IκKβ, IκBα, NF-κB/p65 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) in GES-1 cells. Moreover, high-throughput sequencing results showed Dox treatment increased the number of harmful gut microbes, and CoQ10 and VC treatment inhibited this effect. CoQ10 and VC treatment inhibits Dox-induced gastric mucosal injury by inhibiting the activation of the IkKB/IκBα/NF-κB/p65/TNF-α pathway, promoting anti-inflammatory effects of gastric tissue and regulating the composition of the intestinal flora.

Objective:To explore the effect of combining hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy with cognition training for persons with vascular cognitive impairment (VCI).Methods:Forty-two persons with VCI were randomly divided into a control group of 19 and a research group of 23. In addition to basic treatment, the control group was given hyperbaric oxygen therapy once a day, 5 days per week for 4 weeks, while the research group received cognition training along with the hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Each person′s cognition was assessed using the Simple Mental Status Scale (MMSE) before and after the four-week treatment. Meanwhile, 3ml of venous blood was collected before eating in the morning to test the plasma levels of Klotho protein and homocysteine using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.Results:After the treatment the average MMSE score had improved significantly in both group, with the improvement in the research group′s average significantly greater than that in the control group. The average plasma levels of Klotho protein and homocysteine had also improved significantly more in the research group. In the control group, the only significant improvement was in the average homocysteine level.Conclusions:Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can be an effective supplement to cognition training for persons with vascular cognitive impairment.

Laboratory animals are essential in scientific research and experimental teaching in colleges and universities. Disciplines such as life sciences, medicine, pharmacy, chemistry, and biomedical engineering heavily rely on animal experiments. The standardized barrier environmental facility for laboratory animals provides a fundamental platform for stable, scientific, and reliable animal experiment results. Rigorous access management for such facilities is a vital safeguard for maintaining standardized operations of facilities, controlling the quality and stability of laboratory animals, mitigating pathogen contamination risks among animals and laboratory staff, and preventing biosecurity incidents such as zoonotic disease outbreaks. Taking the small-scale barrier facilities for laboratory rats and mice at Nanjing University's Xianlin Campus, operational since 2019, as an example, this study focuses on the safety access management system of these facilities. Based on five years of operational data and accumulated experience in studying and optimizing the access management system, this study, from the perspectives of management system development and the formulation and implementation of standard operating procedures, reviews five aspects of access management: personnel access, animals access, material access, equipment access, and air circulation control. Furthermore, these aspects are systematically analyzed and summarized to serve as a reference for the construction and management of the laboratory animal facilities in universities, while also contributing to scientific research, public health security, and the well-being of experimental personnel.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of cathepsin B in hepatic Kupffer cells (KCs) in activating Toll-like receptor 4(TLR- 4)-independent inflammatory pathways in mice with lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sepsis. METHODS: Eighteen wild-type (WT) mice and 18 TLR4-knockout (TLR4) mice were both divided into 3 groups for intraperitoneal injections of a lethal dose (54 mg/kg) of LPS, LPS and CA-074(a cathepsin B inhibitor), or normal saline, and the survival of the mice were observed. Another 36 WT mice and 36 TLR4mice were also divided into 3 groups and subjected to intraperitoneal injections of normal saline, 20 mg/kg LPS, or LPS with CA-074 pretreatment.After the treatments, KCs were collected from the mice for assessing the protein level and activity of cathepsin B.The histopathological changes of the liver were observed with HE staining, and the serum levels of IL-1α, IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-18 were detected. RESULTS: Compared with the WT mice,TLR4mice receiving the lethal dose of LPS had significantly longer survival time (up to 84 h) after the injection,but were still unable to fully resist LPS challenge.CA-074 pretreatment prolonged the survival time of WT mice and TLR4mice to 60 h and 132 h,respectively.In the mouse models of sepsis,20 mg/kg LPS induced significantly enhanced activity of cathepsin B without affecting its expression level in the KCs (<0.05) and increased the serum levels of the inflammatory cytokines.CA-074 pretreatment of the mice obviously lessened the detrimental effects of LPS in TLR4mice by significantly lowering cathepsin B activity in the KCs,alleviating hepatocyte apoptosis and reducing the serum levels of inflammatory cytokines. CONCLUSIONS Cathepsin B plays an important role in activating TLR4-independent inflammatory pathways in mice with LPS-induced sepsis.
Animals ; Cathepsin B ; antagonists & inhibitors ; physiology ; Dipeptides ; pharmacology ; Gene Knockout Techniques ; Hepatocytes ; Inflammation ; metabolism ; Interleukin-18 ; blood ; Interleukin-1alpha ; blood ; Interleukin-1beta ; blood ; Kupffer Cells ; metabolism ; Lipopolysaccharides ; Liver ; pathology ; Mice ; Sepsis ; etiology ; metabolism ; Toll-Like Receptor 4 ; genetics ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; blood