The pharmacoclynamics of Kuntaian was studied. The results showed that it exerts an inhibiting effect on normal uterine smooth muscle in a dosedependent manner. It can counteract the violent uterine contraction induced by pituitrin, promote the growth of uterus of young mice, dilate the capilaries and accelerate blood circulation. It also exerts analgesic antiphlogistic antioneotie effects, suggesting that this drug may be applicable to the treatment of dysmanorrhea, irregular menstruation and pelvic infection.

OBJECTIVETo observe the clinical effect of Guoshu acupoint pressure therapy on acute mastitis during lactation.

METHODSFifteen cases suffered from acute lactation mastitis were treated with Guoshu acupoint pressure therapy, that is, firstly with lifting and flicking reduction at "Taiji" and "Xuepen" point, whose intensity was varied from patient's physical fitness. Subsequently, the patients were treated with flame therapy induced by distillate spirit, once each day.

RESULTSAfter the treatment, all the patients were cured completely in from 1 to 5 days, with an average of 2.5 days.

CONCLUSIONGuoshu acupoint pressure therapy is effective on acute mastitis during lactation.

Acupressure ; Acupuncture Points ; Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Lactation ; Mastitis ; therapy

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical manifestations, pathological characteristics, and treatments of urothelial-type mucinous adenocarcinoma of the prostate (UMAP).

METHODSWe reported a case of UMAP, reviewed relevant literature, and analyzed the clinicopaothological features, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of the disease.

RESULTSThe patient was a 60-year-old male and underwent transurethral resection of the prostate for dysuria. Postoperative pathology indicated mucinous adenocarcinoma and sigmoidoscopy revealed no primary colon cancer. Immunohistochemical staining showed the negative expressions of PSA and P504s and positive expressions of CK7, CK34 β E12, CK20, and CDX2. Thus UMAP was confirmed and treated by intensity-modulated radiotherapy. Then the patient was followed up for 30 months, which showed desirable therapeutic result, with neither local progression nor distant metastasis.

CONCLUSIONUMAP has a bad prognosis and its diagnosis depends on pathological and immunohistocchemical examinations. It responds well to radical prostatectomy but is not sensitive to endocrine therapy. Radiotherapy can be considered for those who are not fit to receive radical prostatectomy.

Adenocarcinoma, Mucinous ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Humans ; Keratins ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Proteins ; metabolism ; Prognosis ; Prostatectomy ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Racemases and Epimerases ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of rat Schwann cell secretion on the proliferation and differentiation of human embryonic neural stem cells (NSCs).

METHODSThe samples were divided into three groups. In Group One, NSCs were cultured in DMED/F12 in which Schwann cells had grown for one day. In Group Two, NSCs and Schwann cells were co-cultured. In Group Three, NSCs were cultured in DMEM/F12. The morphology of NSCs was checked and beta-tubulin, GalC, hoechst 33342 and GFAP labellings were detected.

RESULTSIn Group One, all neural spheres were attached to the bottom and differentiated. The majority of them were beta-tubulin positive while a few of cells were GFAP or GalC positive. In Group Two, neural spheres remained undifferentiated and their proliferation was inhibited in places where Schwann cells were robust. In places where there were few Schwann cells, NSCs performed in a similar manner as in Group One. In Group Three, the cell growth state deteriorated day after day. On the 7th day, most NSCs died.

CONCLUSIONThe secretion of rat Schwann cells has a growth supportive and differentiation-inducing effect on human NSCs.

Animals ; Brain ; cytology ; embryology ; Cell Differentiation ; drug effects ; Cell Division ; drug effects ; Coculture Techniques ; Humans ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Schwann Cells ; secretion ; Sciatic Nerve ; cytology ; Stem Cells ; cytology

Objective: To investigate the effect of moxibustion at Shenque (CV 8) on fatigue in rats with chronic exercise-induced exhaustion. Methods: Thirty male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group and a moxibustion group, 10 rats in each group. Except rats in the blank group, the remaining rats were subjected to create long-term exhaustion models by repeated swimming. After successful modeling, rats in the moxibustion group received mild moxibustion at Shenque (CV 8) for 15 min, once every other day with a total of 10 times. Rats in the model group and the blank group did not receive moxibustion. At the end of the treatment, the exhausted times, and the body weight of rats before and after the experiment were compared among groups. The levels of blood malondialdehyde (MDA) and urea nitrogen (BUN), as well as the activities of aspartate transarninase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were also measured by the automatic biochemical analyzer, 24 h after the exhausting excise. Results: The 10th swimming time was significantly longer in the moxibustion group than that in the model group (P<0.01). The increase rate of the body weight was lower in the rats of the moxibustion group than that in the model group before the 7th and the 10th exhausting excise (P<0.05, P<0.01). The levels of serum MDA and BUN, as well as the activities of AST, ALT and LDH in the model group were higher than those in the blank group (all P<0.01). The levels of serum MDA and BUN, as well as the activities of AST, ALT and LDH in the moxibustion group were lower than those in the model group (P<0.01). Conclusion: Moxibustion at Shenque (CV 8) can decrease the serum levels of MDA and BUN, as well as activities of AST, ALT and LDH in the long-term fatigue rats, thus to improve the symptoms of fatigue.

This study was aimed to analyze the clinical features, anti-fungal therapeutic efficacy and safety in hematological malignancy patients with invasive aspergillosis (IA) after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) or chemotherapy. The patients with hematological malignancies received chemotherapy or HSCT were analyzed retrospectively, then the clinical characteristics and diagnosis were analyzed according to the diagnostic criteria for IA. The efficacy and safety of anti- Aspergillus therapy, and the factors influencing therapeutic response were evaluated. The results showed that out of 30 cases with IA, 2 were proven, 19 were probable, 9 were possible, and 19 were diagnosed after HSCT, most in the late period after-HSCT (> 40 d). 8 cases received fluconazol only, 6 received caspofungin only, 7 received combined therapy. The efficacy and time interval from the first day of treatment to successful response (TTR) were 87.5%, 50% and 85.7% and 38, 20 and 36 days, respectively. Combined therapy is better than single drug treatment (p < 0.05) while the TTR was not significantly different between them. The factors influencing the therapeutic efficacy were as follows: age, HSCT, GVHD and CMV, previous IFI and so on (p < 0.05). All the anti- Aspergillus medicines resulted in some injury of hepatic and renal function. However, there were no significant difference between the drugs or between combination and single drug therapy (p > 0.05). It is concluded that IA is also the major and severe complication in the patients with hematological malignancies or received HSCT. Combined therapy for anti- aspergillus is better than single drug in efficacy and safety, without increasing the adverse drug reactions for hepatic and renal function. The efficacy of anti- aspergillus may be related to age, HSCT, GVHD and CMV, previous IFI and so on.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Antifungal Agents ; therapeutic use ; Aspergillosis ; complications ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; Aspergillus ; Female ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; complications ; drug therapy ; microbiology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo design DNA microarray and investigate the molecular anti-tumor mechanism of herbs of traditional Chinese medicine.

METHODcDNA microarrays consisting of 56 probes representing 24 human cell cycle genes were constructed, Four anti-hepatocarcinoma herbs including Radix Linderae, Hebra Artemisiae Annuae, Radix Amebiae, Radix Astragli, were chosen. Effects of herbs on SMMC-7721 cell cycle were observed by flow cytometry assay. Effects of herbs on cell cycle gene expression in SMMC-7721 cells were analyzed by comparing hybridization of Dig-Labeled cDNAs from herb-treated cells and cDNAs from untreated cells.

RESULTExpressions of cell cycle geneswere changed in different degrees after herbs treated. Some genes were down-regulated and some genes were up-regulated. The changes in gene expression agreed with the results of flow cytometry assay.

CONCLUSIONThe results suggest that these herbs may have effects on cell cycle and DNA damage checkpoint genes which may be the mechanism of the herbs, and DNA microarray can be used to investigate the biological function of extracts of traditional Chinese medicine.

Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Artemisia ; chemistry ; Astragalus membranaceus ; chemistry ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; metabolism ; pathology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 4 ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinases ; genetics ; metabolism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Gene Amplification ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Genes, cdc ; drug effects ; Humans ; Lindera ; chemistry ; Lithospermum ; chemistry ; Liver Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; methods ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen ; genetics ; metabolism ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; cdc25 Phosphatases ; genetics ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo develop a with high efficiency and practicality for separating and purifying total steroidal saponins lax china.

METHODUsing adsorption capacity and desorption rate of total steroidal saponins as the primary screening index, surveyed, and the optimized conditions of adsorption and desorption of total steroidal saponins were studied.

RESULTThe adsorption and desorption rate of total steroidal saponins reached 16 mg x mL(-1) and 90% respectively for macroporous resin HPD100 chosen. Macroporous resin HPD100 could be well used in separating and purifying total steroidal saponins from S. china.

Adsorption ; Anion Exchange Resins ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Rhizome ; chemistry ; Saponins ; isolation & purification ; Smilax ; chemistry ; Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet ; methods

This study was purposed to investigate the significance of Id4 gene methylation in monitoring the efficacy of allo-PBSCT for treatment of acute leukemias. MS-PCR method was used to detect Id4 gene methylation in bone marrow samples from 29 patients with acute leukemia before and at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after allo-PBSCT. The results showed that the Id4 gene was methylated in 18 patients before allo-PBSCT, out of which Id4 gene methylation in 8 patients could be detected sustainedly after allo-PBSCT, whereas among remaining 11 patients with Id4 gene unmethylation before PBSCT, the Id4 gene of only one case was found to be methylated after PBSCT. Out of 9 patients with Id4 gene methylation after allo-PBSCT, 4 had relapse during the follow-up. 20 patients with Id4 gene unmethylation after allo-PBSCT were in continuously complete remission status. Id4 gene methylation was found more frequently between 6 months and 1 year after allo-PBSCT. It is concluded that detecting Id4 gene methylation is important for the AL patients who underwent allo-PBSCT. Choosing the patients with Id4 gene unmethylaiton to receive allo-PBSCT may help to reduce relapse rate. After allo-PBSCT, Id4 gene methylation status can be regarded as an indicator for predicting prognosis of acute leukemias.
Adult ; DNA Methylation ; Female ; Humans ; Inhibitor of Differentiation Proteins ; genetics ; Leukemia ; genetics ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation ; methods ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the value of serum TR(6) for the diagnosis and TNM classification in patients with gastric carcinoma.

METHODSSerum TR(6) levels were measured using ELISA method in 31 gastric cancer patients, 19 patients with nonmalignant conditions and 29 healthy individuals. TR(6) expression in tumor mass was studied with immunohistochemistry. TR(6) gene copy number in tumor tissues was evaluated by real time PCR.

RESULTSNinety-seven point nine percent (47 of 48 cases) of healthy individuals and patients with nonmalignant conditions were serum TR(6)-negative. In contrast, 71% (22 of 31 cases) of gastric cancer patients were serum TR(6)-positive. Serum TR(6) positiveness was closely correlated with tumor differentiation status and TNM classification. TR(6) gene amplification did not occur in gastric carcinoma.

CONCLUSIONSSerum TR(6) levels were correlated significantly with TNM stage and histopathological type of tumor. This can help to determine the pre-operative TNM classification and to choose the optimal extent of lymph node dissection for gastric cancer.

Humans ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Membrane Glycoproteins ; blood ; Neoplasm Staging ; Receptors, Cell Surface ; blood ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Member 6b ; Stomach Neoplasms ; blood ; pathology