Objective:To investigate the effects of aerobic exercise on blood glucose and insulin levels in chronic intermittent hypoxic(CIH)rats and the underlying mechanisms, and to provide new insights for the prevention and treatment of diabetes caused by CIH.Methods:SD rats were randomly divided into the blank control group, CIH control group and CIH exercise group.After adaptive feeding, a rat model of CIH was established.The CIH exercise group received non-weight bearing exercise training through swimming.After 4 weeks, all rats were sacrificed and levels of total antioxidant capacity(T-AOC), reactive oxygen species(ROS), malondialdehyde(MDA), fasting blood glucose(FPG)and fasting insulin(FINS)were measured.Results:Compared with the blank control group and CIH control group, levels of ROS, MDA, FPG, T-AOC, FINS and FPG were significantly different in the CIH exercise group( F=4.60, 5.03, 4.87, 4.52 and 6.42, P=0.021, 0.015, 0.017, 0.022 and 0.006). Compared with the blank control group, levels of ROS, MDA, FPG and FINS increased and levels of T-AOC declined in the CIH control and exercise groups(all P<0.05). Compared with the CIH control group, levels of ROS, MDA, FPG and FINS decreased and T-AOC levels increased in the CIH exercise group(all P<0.05). Conclusions:CIH increases blood glucose and insulin levels by activating the oxidative stress response.Aerobic exercise can reduce the impact of oxidative stress on blood glucose and insulin levels.

Objective:To investigate the effects of microRNA(miR)-133b on epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EM)of human small airway epithelial cells induced by cigarette smoke extracts(CSE)and its regulatory mechanisms.Methods:The miR-expression profiles with microarray in airway epithelial cells of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were searched in the Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO)database, and the differentially expressed miRs were searched and verified by a real-time fluorescence quantitative method(qRT-PCR). Human small airway epithelial cells(HSAEpiC)were divided into the control group, the CSE group, the CSE+ miR-133b inhibitor transfection group(inhibitor group)and the CSE+ miR-133b inhibitor negative control transfection group(inhibitor control group)according to different intervention methods.Levels of miR-133b and mRNA levels of transforming growth factor(TGF)-β1, Smad2, E-cadherin and vimentin were detected by RT-PCR; Protein levels of E-cadherin and vimentin were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays(ELISA)and Western blotting.Results:Nine differentially expressed miRs were found in GSE53519, with miR-133b showing the most significant differential in thee HSAEpiC cell model after verification.CSE induced morphological changes in HSAEpiC cells, and miR-133b inhibitors could partially reverse the morphological changes in cell mode.mRNA and protein expressions of E-cadherin were decreased and expression of Vimentin mRNA and protein were increared in CSE induced HSAEpiC cells( F=9.09、12.35、7.57、101.87, P=0.015、0.007、0.023、0.000); miR-133b inhibitors partally reversed the mRNA and protein expressions of E-cadherin and Vimentin( F=40.59、27.74、15.87、20.42, P=0.000、0.001、0.004、0.002). CSE induced incresed expression of TGF-β1 mRNA and Smad mRNA in HSAEpiC cells, and miR-133b inhibitors partially reversed the changes in TGF-β1 mRNA and Smad mRNA( F=17.25、64.15, P=0.003、0.000). Conclusions:miR-133b may regulate CSE-related HSAEpiC cell EMT through the TGF-β1/Smad pathway.

PURPOSE: Details of patients hospitalized for asthma exacerbation in mainland China are lacking. To improve disease control and reduce economic burden, a large sample survey among this patient population is indispensable. This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of such patients.METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on patients hospitalized for asthma exacerbation in 29 hospitals of 29 regions in mainland China during the period 2013 to 2014. Demographic features, pre-admission conditions, exacerbation details, and outcomes were summarized. Risk factors for exacerbation severity were analyzed.RESULTS: There were 3,240 asthmatic patients included in this study (57.7% females, 42.3% males). Only 28.0% used daily controller medications; 1,287 (39.7%) patients were not currently on inhaled corticosteroids. Acute upper airway infection was the most common trigger of exacerbation (42.3%). Patients with severe to life-threatening exacerbation tended to have a longer disease course, a smoking history, and had comorbidities such as hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and food allergy. The multivariate analysis showed that smoking history, comorbidities of hypertension, COPD, and food allergy were independent risk factors for more severe exacerbation. The number of patients hospitalized for asthma exacerbation varied with seasons, peaking in March and September. Eight patients died during the study period (mortality 0.25%).CONCLUSIONS: Despite enhanced education on asthma self-management in China during recent years, few patients were using daily controller medications before the onset of their exacerbation, indicating that more educational efforts and considerations are needed. The findings of this study may improve our understanding of hospital admission for asthma exacerbation in mainland China and provide evidence for decision-making.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Asthma ; China ; Comorbidity ; Disease Progression ; Education ; Female ; Food Hypersensitivity ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Inpatients ; Medication Adherence ; Mortality ; Multivariate Analysis ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Seasons ; Self Care ; Smoke ; Smoking

Objective To investigate the protective effects of a Yiqi Huatan Quyu formulation on liver injury in chronic intermittent hypoxia rats.Methods Thirty healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats of SPF grade were randomly divided into 3 groups:Group A(normoxia and normal saline gavage),Group B(chronic intermittent hypoxia and normal saline gavage)and Group C(chronic intermittent hypoxia and Yiqi Huatan Quyu formulation gavage)(n =10 in each group).After 8 weeks of treatment,the liver tissue was extracted for protein and RNA.Western blot was used to test the protein levels of B-cellymphoma-2 associated X protein (BAX) and B-cellymphoma-2 (BCL-2),and Realtime PCR was used to test gene expression of BAX and BCL-2.Transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling(TUNEL)was used to assay the apoptotic rate of liver cells.Results The expression of the BAX protein and BAX gene was higher and the expression of the BCL-2 protein and BCL-2 gene was lower in Group B than in Group A(t =13.490 and 16.480,P =0.005 and 0.002;t =5.142 and 9.776,P =0.036 and 0.001,respectively).The levels of the BAX protein and BAX gene were lower and the levels of the BCL-2 protein and BCL-2 gene were higher in Group C than in Group B(t =6.088 and 15.240,P =0.026 and 0.005;t =5.296 and 16.380,P =0.034 and 0.004,respectively).The apoptosis rate of hepatocytes was higher in Group B than in Group A(t =7.698,P =0.002),and was lower in Group C than in Group B(t=4.345,P =0.012).Conclusions The Yiqi Huatan Quyu formulation may alleviate the apoptosis of liver cells in chronic intermittent hypoxia rats by upregulating BCL-2 and down-regulating BAX levels,thus exerting protective effects on the liver.

Objective To evaluate the general level of asthma management in urban areas of China and further promote the national asthma management plan. Methods A multi-center, cross-sectional survey was carried out in 30 provinces of China (except for Tibet) during Oct 2015 to May 2016. It's a questionnaire-based face-to-face survey which included asthma management using peak flow meter (PFM) and pulmonary function test,medication choice of maintenance therapy and asthma education.Results A total of 3 875 asthmatic outpatients were recruited including 2 347(60.6%)females and 1 528(39.4%)males. The mean age was(50.7±16.7)years ranging from 14 to 99.Only 10.1%(388/3 837)patients used PFM as monitoring, whereas 62.1%(2 405/3 874) patients underwent pulmonary function test during the past year. There were 57.4%(2 226/3 875) patients treated with inhaled cortical steroid plus long-acting β2-agonist combinations (ICS+LABA) as daily medication. 43.3%(1 661/3 836) patients were followed up by physicians. Among this population, 1 362 asthmatic outpatients were recruited, who also took part in the asthma control survey in 2007-2008 in 10 cities.In this subgroup,17.9%(244/1 360)were tested by PFM and 66.6%(907/1 362)by pulmonary function test during last year.As to the medication,63.1%(860/1 362) selected ICS+LABA for daily control. There were 50.4%(685/1 359) patients in the follow-up cohort by physicians.Compared to the similar survey conducted in 2007-2008,the proportion of patients with ICS+LABA regimen and follow-up by physicians were markedly higher,while the rate of PFM use did not have significant improvement. Conclusion Although the present level of asthma management in China is still far from ideal, asthma management has improved compared to 8 years ago. Yet the use of PFM does not significantly improve.Asthma action plan and application of PFM should be further promoted to improve the level of asthma management.

Objective To examine whether autophagy plays a role in the development of chronic intermittent hypoxia-induced cardiac hypertrophy,whether resveratrol can reverse the process by modulating autophagy and what molecular pathways are involved.Methods Rats were randomly divided into four groups.Eight rats were treated with normoxia (control group),eight were exposed to chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) (CIH group),eight were exposed to CIH plus resveratrol (RSV) (CIH+RSV group) and eight were exposed to CIH,RSV and chloroquine (Cq) (CIH + RSV+ Cq group).After treatment for seven weeks,the levels of LC3,Beclin,P62,ANP,β-MHC,AMPK,P-AMPK,mTOR,P-mTOR and cleaved-caspase 3 were detected by Western blot.The area of cardiomyocytes and the ratio of brotic area to the total area were obtained by HE and Sirius Red staining.Results Rats in the CIH+RSV group were associated with an increased ratio of LC3 Ⅱ /LC3 Ⅰ,increased Beclin levels and decreased P62 levels,compared with those in the control and CIH groups (all P＜0.05).After chloroquine injection,the ratio of LC3 Ⅱ/LC3 Ⅰ was markedly increased in the CIH+RSV+Cq group,compared with that in the CIH+RSV group (all P＜0.05).Moreover,the CIH group was associated with significantly increased area of cardiomyocytes,ratio of fibrotic area to the total area,and levels of ANP,β-MHC and cleaved-caspase 3,compared with the control group (all P＜0.05).However,their values markedly decreased in the CIH +RSV group and significantly increased in the CIH+RSV+Cq group,compared with the CIH group (all P＜0.05).Furthermore,there were tendencies of progressively increased levels of P-AMPK and decreased levels of P-mTOR among the control group,CIH group and CIH+RSV group (both P ＜ 0.05).However,levels of AMPK and mTOR were similar among the three groups (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions Chronic intermittent hypoxia and resveratrol can affect the level of cardiac hypertrophy by autophagy through activating the AMPK/mTOR pathway.

Objective To investigate the significance of changes in serum uric acid levels in elderly patients with obstructive sleep apnea hyponea syndrome (OSAHS).Methods The study recruited elderly patients aged 60 years and over undergoing polysomnography (PSG) at the Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Sleep Disorders of our hospital from January 2012 to December 2014.According to the diagnostic criteria established by the Group of Sleep and Breathing Disorders,Respiratory Diseases Branch,Chinese Medical Association (2011),patients were divided into the simple snoring group,the mild OSAHS group,the moderate OSAHS group and the severe OSAHS group.Levels of serum uric acid,blood glucose,blood lipids and high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were compared between all groups after adjusting for age,gender and underlying diseases.Independent risk factors associated with serum uric acid were analyzed using Spearman' s rank correlation and stepwise multivariate analysis.Results A total of 129 elderly subjects including 100 males and 29 females,with a mean age of (63.6±2.25) years,were enrolled.Of these subjects,23 were grouped as simple snoring,24 as mild OSAHS,39 as moderate OSAHS and 43 as severe OSAHS.Serum uric acid and hs-CRP levels were increased in the severe OSAHS group as compared with the simple snoring group (both P＜0.05).Spearman's rank correlation analysis showed that the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and the oxygen desaturation index (ODD were positively correlated with the serum uric acid level (r =0.251 and 0.210,P =0.004 and 0.018,respectively).Stepwise multivariate analysis showed that,with serum uric acid level as the dependent variable,AHI was an independent risk factor for increased serum uric acid levels (β=0.354,P =0.000).Conclusions Serum uric acid levels are elevated in elderly patients with severe OSAHS,and AHI is an independent risk factor for the increased serum uric acid levels.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of eucalyptol-limonene-pinene enteric capsule on stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the elderly.Methods A total of 120 patients with stable COPD were randomized into ELP group (n=63) with conventional treatment combined ELP and control group (n=57) with conventional treatment without ELP.Primary outcome was the number of exacerbations per year, and secondly outcomes were lung function parameters and St.George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ).Results After 1 year of treatment, numbers of exacerbations per patient per year were lower in ELP group than in control group (0.70 times/y vs.1.21 times/y, Z=-3.887, P=0.000).The proportion of exacerbation-free patients were 25.4％(16/63) in ELP group and 5.3％ (3/57) in control group (x2 =9.103, P=0.003).The differences in the forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), and FEV1/ FVC ratio (FEV1％) between 5 different time points measurements were statistically significant in both groups (ELP group: F=15.429, 36.389, 33.278, respectively, all P=0.000;control group: F=54.238, 94.213 and 83.774, respectively, all P=0.000).Difference in FEV1/FVC ratio between 5 different time point was statistically significant in control group(F=2.766, P=0.043), but not in ELP group(F=0.861, P=0.451).After treatment, SGRQ score was decreased in both group, and difference in symptom score was statistically significant between the two groups (t=2.109, P =0.037).The adverse reactions were found in 3 cases in ELP group, and in 2 cases in control group with no statistically significant difference between the two groups [3 (4.8％) vs.2 (3.5％), x2 =0.013, P=0.732].Conclusions Long-term oral administration of eucalyptol-limonene-pinene enteric capsule can significantly decrease exacerbation frequency, improve quality of life, delay the deterioration in lung function, and have good safety in elderly patients with stable COPD.

Objective To investigate the intervention effects of Jiawei Ditan Decoction on oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction in elderly patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS).Methods A total of 60 OSAHS patients with deficiency of phlegm and blood stasis mutual junction were enrolled,and randomly divided into treatment group (n=30,receiving JiaweiDitan Decoction+ conventional treatment for 12 weeks) and control group (n=30,receiving conventional treatment for 12 weeks).The clinical symptoms integral,Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS),apnea hypopnea index (AHI),minimum oxygen saturation (SaO2),superoxide dismutase (SOD),malondialdehyde (MDA),tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α interleukin (IL)-6,and C-reactive protein (CRP) were observed before and after treatment.Results The clinical symptoms integral,AHI value,minimum SaO2,ESS score,levels of SOD,MDA,TNF-α,IL-6 and CRP were significantly improved in treatment group after treatment as compared with pretreatment [(11.65 ± 3.82) points vs.(14.32±4.25) points,(21.18 ± 12.37) times/h vs.(29.16 ± 13.58) times/h,(83.24±7.42)％ vs.(76.92±11.91)％,(7.12±4.84)points vs.(10.01±4.16) points,(99.24± 13.15)×103 U/L vs.(87.511±14.82) ×103 U/L,(8.56 ± 3.23) μmol/L vs.(11.25±3.41) μmol/L,(50.63±10.57) ng/L vs.(58.92±11.65) ng/L,(78.12±15.92) ng/L vs.(89.13± 16.54) ng/L,(9.93±5.25) mg/L vs.(13.59±4.92) mg/L,t=2.559,2.379,2.467,2.480,3.243,3.137,2.887,2.651,2.786,respectively,all P＜0.05].All the above indicators after treatment had significant differences between the treatment group and the control group [(11.65 ± 3.82) points vs.(13.89±4.45) points,(21.18± 12.37) times/h vs.(28.03± 13.12) times/h,(83.24±7.42)％ vs.(78.26±10.15)％,(7.12±4.84) points vs.(9.56±7.12) points,(99.24± 13.15)×103 U/Lvs.(90.13±13.56)×103 U/L,(8.56±3.23) μmol/L vs.(10.86±3.65)μmol/ L,(50.63±10.57) ng/L vs.(56.52±11.04) ng/L,(78.12±15.92) ng/L vs.(87.81±15.61) ng/ L,(9.93±5.25) mg/L vs.(12.97±5.03) mg/L,t=2.092,2.018,2.169,2.009,2.642,2.585,2.111,2.380,2.290,respectively,all P＜0.05].Conclusions Jiawei Ditan Decoction could improve the clinical symptoms and has the intervention effect on oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction in elderly patients with OSAHS,which provides the experimental basis for the treatment of senile OSASH with Chinese herbal medicine.

Objective To investigate the effect of β-lactam antibiotics on the false positive rate of the serum Aspergillus galactomannan (GM) assay in patients with lung diseases.Methods We selectively recruited 77 lung disease patients who did not meet the diagnostic criteria of invasive pulmonary Aspergillosis (IPA) and received different β-lactam antibiotics,while 41 patients without IPA who did not receive any antibiotic treatment were recruited as the control group.Serum samples for GM detection were collected from all participants.The rate of false-positive Aspergillus galactomannan was compared between the two groups.Results False-positive serum results were found in patients who received piperacillin-tazobactam (30.8％ or 8/26) and cefoperazone sulbactamand (27.8％ or 5/18).The rate of false-positive Aspergillus galactomannan in patients who receive β-lactam antibiotics were significantly higher than that in the control group (24.7％ or 19/77vs.7.3％ or 3/41,x2 =5.315,P=0.025).Taking false-positive serum Aspergillus galactomannan as the dependent variable and β-lactam antibiotic treatment as the independent variable,univariate logistic regression analysis showed that the rate of false-positive Aspergillus galactomannan in patients who received β-lactam antibiotics were 4.149 times more than that in the control group (OR=4.149,P=0.030).Conclusions The administration of β-lactam antibiotics may increase the occurrence of false-positive serum Aspergillus galactomannan,and physicians should be aware of this possible interference.