Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) therapy is effective in treating malignant tumor. TCM therapy is a multi-way, multi-layer and multi-target integrated treatment characterized by "survival with tumor" and improvement of life quality. An ideal result of the TCM therapy for cancer should be a positive response of the patient with satisfactory quality of life (QOL) and longer survival time. So it is necessary to introduce the QOL, quantification of symptoms and signs and standardization of TCM syndromes to the objective, quantitative and standardized effect assessment of TCM therapy for cancer. A criterion for evaluating the effect of TCM therapy on tumors should be established, which reflects the characteristics and advantages of the TCM therapy, and meets the requirement of the developing effect assessment of modern medicine in cancer treatment. It is suggested that the treatment effect should be the sum of quality adjusted life years (QALYs) (equal to QOL multiplied by time of survival), syndrome remission rate and tumor remission rate. But the proportion of each of the three is variable, which has close relationships with the different tumor stages and corresponding treatments.

Four different extracts of Oxytropis falcata, including the aerial aqueous extract, and the underground aqueous extract, the aerial lipophilic extract, and the underground lipophilic extract were prepared and then administrated orally to mice at the maximum dose (50 g x kg(-1) x d(-1) calculated by raw material) for fifteen days respectively. Compared with the control group, which was administrated of 1.0% tween-80, the treatment groups did not show significant differences in appearance and behavior. However, the organcoefficient, blood biochemical indicator and pathological section results showed that the lipophilic extracts of the aerial and underground parts of O. flacata showed mild injury to the liver of mice, while the aerial and underground aqueous extracts and the underground lipophilic extract showed mild toxicity to the kidney of male mice. Chemical analysis showed that the lipophilic extracts of the aerial and underground parts, especially aerial lipophilic extract, consisted of large amount of flavonoid aglycones with little amount of polysaccharides and proteins, while the aqueous extracts contained much polysaccharides and proteins with almost no flavonoid aglycones detected.
Animals ; Body Weight ; drug effects ; Female ; Liver ; drug effects ; growth & development ; Male ; Medicine, Tibetan Traditional ; Mice ; Molecular Structure ; Organ Size ; drug effects ; Oxytropis ; adverse effects ; chemistry ; Plant Extracts ; chemistry ; toxicity ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization

OBJECTThe authors studied the influence of CO(2) pneumoperitoneum on intracellular pH and signal transduction arising from cancer cell multiplication in laparoscopic tumor operation.

METHODThey set up a simulation of pneumoperitoneum under different CO(2) pressure, and then measured the variation of intracellular pH (pHi) at different time and the activity of protein kinase C (PKC) and protein phosphatase 2a (PP2a) at the end of the pneumoperitoneum. After 1 week, the concentration of cancer cells in the culture medium was calculated.

RESULTWhen the pressure of CO(2) pneumoperitoneum was 0, 10, 20, 30 mmHg respectively, the average pHi was 7.273, 7.075, 6.783, 6.693 at the end of the pneumoperitoneum; PKC activity was 159.4, 168.5, 178.0, 181.6 nmol/(g.min) and PP2a was 4158.3, 4066.9, 3984.0, 3878.5 nmol/(g.min) respectively. After 1 week, the cancer cells concentration was 2.15 x 10(5), 2.03 x 10(5), 2.20 x 10(5), 2.18 x 10(5) L(-1).

CONCLUSIONCO(2) pneumoperitoneum could promote acidosis in cancer cells, inducing the activation of protein kinase C and deactivation of protein phosphatase 2a, but it could not accelerate the mitosis rate of the cancer cells.

Animals ; Breast Neoplasms ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Carbon Dioxide ; administration & dosage ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cell Survival ; drug effects ; Enzyme Activation ; drug effects ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Intracellular Fluid ; chemistry ; Phosphoprotein Phosphatases ; metabolism ; Pneumoperitoneum, Artificial ; methods ; Protein Kinase C ; metabolism ; Protein Phosphatase 2 ; Rats ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects

OBJECTIVETo study the chemical constituents of Gentiana veitchiorum.

METHODThe chemical constituents were isolated by chromatography and identified by spectral data.

RESULTFive glycosides, loganic acid (1), gentiopicroside (2), isoorientin 3'-methyl ether (3), isovitexin (4), isoorientin (5) were isolated and identified.

CONCLUSIONCompounds 1-5 were isolated from this plant for the first time.

Apigenin ; chemistry ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Gentiana ; chemistry ; Glucosides ; chemistry ; Glycosides ; chemistry ; Iridoid Glucosides ; Iridoids ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo study the chemical constituents of Tibetan medicine Caryopteris toroetii.

METHODThe crude drug was extracted with 95% EtOH and isolated by repeated chromatographic methods. The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectral analysis.

RESULTTwo en-kaurene diterpenoid compounds: oridonin (1) and nodosin (2), were obtained from C. toroetii and their 1H and 13C-NMR data in CD3OD were reported for the first time.

CONCLUSIONThe en-kaurene diterpenoid compounds were obtained from genus Caryopteris for the first time.

Diterpenes, Kaurane ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Lamiaceae ; chemistry ; Medicine, Tibetan Traditional

OBJECTIVETo study the chemical constituents of the Tibetan medicine Caryopteris toroetii.

METHODThe crude drug was extracted with 95% EtOH and isolated by repeatedly chromatographic methods. The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated by spectral analysis.

RESULTSix compounds were yielded and identified as: phenethyl cinnamide (1), 1-hydroxy-2, 3, 4, 5-tetramethoxy-xanthone (2), 1-hydroxy-2, 3, 5-trimethoxy-xanthone (3), (2S)-5-hydroxy-7-methoxyflavanone (4), 2', 4'-dihydroxydihydrochalcone (5) and rutin (6).

CONCLUSIONAll the above compounds were obtained from C. toroetii for the first time.

Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; Ethanol ; Lamiaceae ; chemistry ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Rutin ; chemistry

Fourteen compounds were isolated from wholeplants of Carduus acanthoides by various chromatographic techniques including column chromatography over HP-20 macroporous resin, MCI gel, silica gel, Sephadex LH-20 and ODS and reversed-phase HPLC. Their structures were identified as salidroside (1), 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-ethyl-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (2), 3,5-di-hydroxyphenethyl alcohol-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (3), p-coumaric acid (4), 3-hydroxy-1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl) propan-1-one (5), 3-hydroxy-1-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl) propan-1-one (6), syringin (7), p-hydroxybenzaldehyde (8), salicylic acid (9), tachioside (10), vanillic acid-4-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (11), syringic aldehyde (12), 2,6-dimethoxy-4-hydroxyphenol-1-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (13), and 2, 6-dimethoxy-p-hydroquinone-4-0-P-D-glucopyranoside (14) on the basis of spectroscopic data analysiS. All compounds were isolated from the genus Carduus for the first time except for compounds 4 and 7.
Carduus ; chemistry ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; Plant Extracts ; chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry

Object: The authors studied the influence of CO2 pneumoperitoneum on intracellular pH and signal transduction arising from cancer cell multiplication in laparoscopic tumor operation. Method: They set up a simulation of pneumoperitoneum under different CO2 pressure, and then measured the variation of intracellular pH (pHi) at different time and the activity of protein kinase C (PKC) and protein phosphatase 2a (PP2a) at the end of the pneumoperitoneum. After 1 week, the concentration of cancer cells in the culture medium was calculated. Result: When the pressure of CO2 pneumoperitoneum was 0, 10, 20, 30 mmHg respectively, the average pHi was 7.273, 7.075, 6.783, 6.693 at the end of the pneumoperitoneum; PKC activity was 159.4, 168.5,178.0, 181.6 nmol/(g.min) and PP2a was 4158.3, 4066.9, 3984.0, 3878.5 nmol/(g.min) respectively. After 1 week, the cancer cells concentration was 2.15×105, 2.03×105, 2.20×105, 2.18×105 L-1. Conclusion: CO2 pneumoperitoneum could promote acidosis in cancer cells, inducing the activation of protein kinase C and deactivation of protein phosphatase 2a, but it could not accelerate the mitosis rate of the cancer cells.

Objective To investigate the expression of transient receptor potential vanilloid 3 (TRPV3) ion channel protein in human odontoblasts (OD).Methods Twenty intact and healthy third molars extracted for orthodontic purpose were included.The quality of dental tissue sections was determined through HE staining,and the OD layer was further determined by dentin sialophosphoproteins (DSPP) antibody staining,and finally the expression of TRPV3 ion channel protein in human dental pulp tissue was examined by TRPV3 ion channel protein-specific antibody.The expression of TRPV3 channel proteins in human OD at different part of dental pulp was compared using Image Pro Plus(IPP) and SPSS software.Results TRPV3 channel protein expressed on the cell body of OD in the coronal and root pulp,and the expression in the coronal pulp was significantly higher than that in the root pulp.The TRPV3 protein also expressed at the odontoblastic process,with the higher expression in the crown (IA =2516 ± 162)than in the root (IA =2224 ± 150) and external root (IA =2121 ± 92) (P ＜ 0.05),but the expression between the lateral root area and external root area was not significantly different (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions Human odonoblasts expressed TRPV3 ion channel protein and the expression level was different at different part of dental pulp OD.