OBJECTIVETo observe the intervention of Shenkangling Decoction (SD) on the renal injury of primary nephrotic syndrome (PNS) children patients of Shen deficiency blood stasis syndrome (SDBSS) and to explore its mechanism.

METHODSTotally 65 PNS children patients were randomly assigned to the combined group (33 cases, treated by SD +Western medicine) and the Western medicine group (32 cases, treated by Western medicine). Meanwhile, 30 healthy children were recruited as the healthy control group from the medical examination center. Those in the Western medicine group were treated with prednisone (5 mg per tablet) at the daily dose of 1.5 -2.0 mg/kg till two weeks after their urine protein turned to negative. Then the dosage was reduced once daily per every other day. The therapeutic course lasted for more than 1 year. For those with no effect of prednisone or partial effect, cyclophosphamide intravenous pulse therapy was additionally applied for 2 successive days per week, a total of 6 times, or they took cyclosporine A. Patients in the combined group additionally took SD while starting treatment of prednisone. SD was decocted in water for oral dose, once daily, taken in two portions until 2 months after prednisone was discontinued. Efficacy was evaluated based on serum levels of chemotactic factor CXCL16, disintegrin metalloproteinase 10 ( ADAM10 ), disintegrin metalloproteinase 17 (ADAM17), albumin (ALB), total cholesterol (TC), and 24-h urine protein excretion (UPE) detected by ELISA before and after treatment.

RESULTSCompared with before treatment in the same group, levels of CXCL16, ADAM10, ADAM17, TC, and 24-h UPE were significantly lower in the two treatment groups (P <0. 01). Compared with the control group, levels of CXCL16, ADAM10, ADAM17, TC, and 24-h UPE significantly increased, and the serum ALB level decreased in the two treatment groups (P <0.01). Compared with the Western medicine group at the same time point, levels of CXCL16, ADAM10, ADAM17, TC, and 24-h UPE significantly decreased in the combined group. The 1 -year recurrence rate and the recurrence times decreased in the combined group (P <0.01). The complete remission rate increased in the combined group (P <0.01).

CONCLUSIONSD could effectively improve the clinical prognosis of PNS children patients possibly by reducing the release of inflammatory mediators such as CXCL16, ADAM10, and ADAM17, decreasing UPE and the TC level, and elevating the serum ALB level.

Child ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Nephrotic Syndrome ; drug therapy ; Prednisone ; Syndrome

OBJECTIVETo investigate the protective action of Epimedium against chemotherapy-induced damage to rat epididymides.

METHODSFifty 60-day-old male rats were divided into a control, a model and a treatment group. Procarbazine was injected into the abdominal cavity of the model rats at the dose of 30 mg/(kg x d). In addition to procarbazine, Epimedium was given intragastrically to the treatment group. The changes in the ultrastructure of the epididymis were observed after 10 and 20 days.

RESULTSElectron microscopy showed that the chemotherapy-induced damages to the epididymal epithelia mainly included cell swelling, local cavitation of mitochondria, tumor-like change in nucleoli, agglutination of marginal translocation of heterochromatin and cell apoptosis. The damage to the epithelial ultrastructure was slight in the treatment group as compared with the model rats. Chemotherapy significantly affected sperm concentration, sperm viability and sialic acid (SA), which were (15.59 +/- 4.01) x 10(6)/ml, (76.71 +/- 10.11)% and (19.38 +/- 9.34) g/mg prot in the model group in comparison with (10.63 +/- 3.82) x 10(6)/ml (P < 0.01), (60.03 +/- 7.54)% (P < 0.01) and (13.62 +/- 7.81) g/g prot (P < 0.05) in the control. Epimedium significantly increased sperm viability in the treatment group (60.03 +/- 7.54)% as compared with the model rats (69.90 +/- 12.58)% (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONEpimedium can lessen chemotherapy-induced damage to the epididymis and protect the reproductive function of rats.

Animals ; Antineoplastic Agents ; toxicity ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Epididymis ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; ultrastructure ; Epimedium ; chemistry ; Infertility, Male ; chemically induced ; physiopathology ; prevention & control ; Male ; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission ; Phytotherapy ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

OBJECTIVEIt is important to use noninvasive methods to differentiate liver fibrosis and liver cirrhosis. A prospective study was conducted to evaluate the validity of ultrasonography (US) in evaluating the severity of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic viral hepatitis in reference to the pathologic diagnosis of their liver biopsy specimens.

METHODSThe liver fibrosis status of 324 chronic viral hepatitis patients was evaluated by both needle biopsy and US. Histologically their liver fibrosis was graded as S0-S4, and the inflammatory reaction in the liver was graded as G1-G4. The US examination included qualitative description of the liver surface and liver parenchyma, and the quantitative parameters were vascular diameters, blood flow volume and spleen size.

RESULTSUS qualitative description of the liver surface and liver parenchyma was correlated to the severity of fibrosis and the degree of the inflammation seen in the liver biopsies. An analysis of US quantitative parameters showed that a cut-off value of 12.1 cm for the length of spleen had a sensitivity of 60.0%, and specificity of 75.3% in detecting early liver fibrosis. For other quantitative parameters, the cut-off values were 8mm for the diameter of the splenic vein, 30.5 cm/sec for maximal blood flow velocity in the portal vein and 12 mm in diameter of the main portal vein. The diagnostic sensitivities for these parameters were 60.0%, 78.6% and 76.7%; the diagnostic specificities were 78.1%, 66.9% and 44.6% respectively.

CONCLUSIONEarly cirrhosis can be detected by US, and the sonographic results were well paralleled with their pathologic diagnoses made by liver biopsies. Individual US parameter has limited sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing early cirrhosis. In clinical practice a combination of 2-3 parameters could be used to detect or exclude severe liver fibrosis.

Adult ; Female ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; complications ; diagnostic imaging ; Hepatitis C, Chronic ; complications ; diagnostic imaging ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; diagnostic imaging ; virology ; Male ; Prospective Studies ; Ultrasonography

OBJECTIVETo develop quality of life questionnaire of Chinese medicine for postoperative patients with colorectal cancer (QLQ-CMPPCC), thus comprehensively and objectively evaluating the clinical efficacy of Chinese medicine and pharmacy in treating postoperative patients with colorectal cancer (CC).

METHODSThe theoretical structure model of the questionnaire was addressed in combined with basic theories of Chinese medicine according to the principle of WHO quality of life (QOL). The primary questionnaire was developed using methods of structuralization policy making after we extensively retrieve various universal and specific questionnaires for CC cancer patients at home and abroad. The 205 CC patients were tested by questionnaire. The items were screened using experts grading method, item selection analysis, dispersion trends of standard deviation, t-test, correlation coefficient method, factor analysis,and Cronbach's alpha.

RESULTSThe QLQ-CMPPCC was developed containing four domains of physical, psychological, independence, and social functions, involving 20 aspects and 54 items. Of them, non-fistula patients answered 43 items and fistula patients answered 46 items. One item covered the general QOL evaluation.

CONCLUSIONSQLQ-CMPPCC showed Chinese medical features. It comprehensively reflected the connotation of QOL for postoperative CC patients. It could be taken as a tool for evaluating Chinese medical efficacy for postoperative CC patients.

Colorectal Neoplasms ; surgery ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Postoperative Period ; Quality of Life ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Treatment Outcome

A fluorescence enhancement probe (ZY8) for the detection of N2H4was designed and synthesized by employing 3-hydroxyflavone as a fluorophore,and its spectral properties had been investigated. The results showed that ZY8 had relatively good selectivity and specificity to N2H4in Tris-HCl-ethanol solution (9:1, V/V, pH 7.40). The fluorescent intensity of ZY8 exhibited good linear relationship with concentration of N2H4in the concentration range of 1.6×10-7mol/L-6.2×10-5mol/L,and its detection limit was estimated to be 1. 6×10-7mol/L. ZY8 itself had weak fluorescence, upon addition of N2H4, an approximate 9-fold fluorescence enhancement was observed, and the color of the solution changed from light grayish green to bright grass-green at UV light of 365 nm. So ZY8 might be used to the visual recognition of N2H4. ZY8 could detect N2H4in near-physiological pH range, and it had fast response and strong anti-interference ability. Moreover,ZY8 could be loaded as test paper for naked-eye detection of N2H4at mmol/L level in water solution,and it was also applied in the determination of N2H4in various water samples by the standard addition recovery experiments, with the recovery ratio ranged from 96.0% to 104.2% %, and RSD of all< 4%. The results of this study demonstrated that ZY8 had potential application to the detection of N2H4in the monitoring of environmental pollution.

BACKGROUNDNontraumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (NONFH) is a debilitating disease that represents a significant financial burden for both individuals and healthcare systems. Despite its significance, however, its prevalence in the Chinese general population remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of NONFH and its associated risk factors in the Chinese population.

METHODSA nationally representative survey of 30,030 respondents was undertaken from June 2012 to August 2013. All participants underwent a questionnaire investigation, physical examination of hip, and bilateral hip joint X-ray and/or magnetic resonance imaging examination. Blood samples were taken after overnight fasting to test serum total cholesterol, triglyceride, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels. We then used multivariate logistic regression analysis to investigate the associations between various metabolic, demographic, and lifestyle-related variables and NONFH.

RESULTSNONFH was diagnosed in 218 subjects (0.725%) and the estimated NONFH cases were 8.12 million among Chinese people aged 15 years and over. The prevalence of NONFH was significantly higher in males than in females (1.02% vs. 0.51%, χ2 = 24.997, P < 0.001). Among NONFH patients, North residents were subjected to higher prevalence of NONFH than that of South residents (0.85% vs. 0.61%, χ 2 = 5.847, P = 0.016). Our multivariate regression analysis showed that high blood levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and non-HDL-cholesterol, male, urban residence, family history of osteonecrosis of the femoral head, heavy smoking, alcohol abuse and glucocorticoid intake, overweight, and obesity were all significantly associated with an increased risk of NONFH.

CONCLUSIONSOur findings highlight that NONFH is a significant public health challenge in China and underscore the need for policy measures on the national level. Furthermore, NONFH shares a number of risk factors with atherosclerosis.

Adult ; Age Distribution ; Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Femur Head Necrosis ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the mechanism by which Chinese medicine Shengmai Yin (SMY) reverses epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) through lipocalin-2 (LCN2) in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells CNE-2R. METHODS: Morphological changes in EMT in CNE-2R cells were observed under a microscope, and the expressions of EMT markers were detected using quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blot assays. Through the Gene Expression Omnibus dataset and text mining, LCN2 was found to be highly related to radiation resistance and EMT in NPC. The expressions of LCN2 and EMT markers following SMY treatment (50 and 100 µ g/mL) were detected by RT-qPCR and Western blot assays in vitro. Cell proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities were measured using colony formation, wound healing, and transwell invasion assays, respectively. The inhibitory effect of SMY in vivo was determined by observing a zebrafish xenograft model with a fluorescent label. RESULTS: The CNE-2R cells showed EMT transition and high expression of LCN2, and the use of SMY (5, 10 and 20 µ g/mL) reduced the expression of LCN2 and reversed the EMT in the CNE-2R cells. Compared to that of the CNE-2R group, the proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities of SMY high-concentration group were weakened (P<0.05). Moreover, SMY mediated tumor growth and metastasis in a dose-dependent manner in a zebrafish xenograft model, which was consistent with the in vitro results. CONCLUSIONS SMY can reverse the EMT process of CNE-2R cells, which may be related to its inhibition of LCN2 expression. Therefore, LCN2 may be a potential diagnostic marker and therapeutic target in patients with NPC.
Animals ; Humans ; Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma/genetics* ; Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition ; Zebrafish ; Cell Proliferation ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms/radiotherapy* ; Cell Movement ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic

This study is to study the absorption properties of different particle size of Gastrodiae Rhizoma powder in rats. In vivo circulation pass perfusion model combined with ultra high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry(UPLC-MS/MS) method was used to determine the cumulative absorption of each component in different particle size of Gastrodiae Rhizoma powder, and the effect of different particle size, different concentrations, different intestine segments and bile on the intestine absorption of gastrodin and other compositions in Gastrodiae Rhizoma powder was investigated to illuminate the absorption properties and compare the absorption difference of gastrodin and other compositions in Gastrodiae Rhizoma powder in different particle size. The results showed that the absorption of gastrodin in each intestinal segment has no significant difference, pointing out that gastrodin may be passive absorption and the absorption of barrison glycosides may be active absorption; the absorption of gastrodin in ultrafine powder was better than that of common powder and superfine powder of Gastrodiae Rhizoma; the absorption of these barrison glycosides was good in ultrafine powder of Gastrodiae Rhizoma under the high concentration. However, an appropriate degree of superfine grinding can promote the absorption of active ingredients of Gastrodiae Rhizoma. This test can provide information for the deep development of Gastrodiae Rhizoma.
Animals ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacokinetics* ; Gastrodia ; Intestinal Absorption ; Particle Size ; Powders ; Rats ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry