Dioscin, a typical saponin, is widely present in the family of Dioscoreaceae, Liliaceae, Caryophyllaceae and Rosaceae, especially in Dioscoreaceae, including Discorea nipponica Makino, Dioscorea zingiberensis C. H. Wright and Dioscorea panthaica Prain et Burkill. Traditional Chinese medicine reported that dioscin plays a role in expectorant, relaxing the muscles and stimulating the blood circulation, aiding digestion and diuresis. With the development of science and technology in recent years, some new extraction and separation techniques and methods have been applied to the study of dioscin, and more and more pharmacological effects were found. Modern pharmacology studies have confirmed that dioscin had some activities on desensitization, anti-inflammatory, lipid-lowering, anti-tumor, hepatoprotection and anti-viral. After oral administration, dioscin is metabolized to diosgenin, which is the true active ingredient and is an important raw material to synthesize steroid hormone drugs. Therefore, the studies on dioscin are valueable and promising. In this review, we make a summary on the researches of dioscin including the extraction technology, separation and prepara- tion, chemical synthesis, drug metabolism, determination and pharmacological researches.
Animals ; Biological Products ; adverse effects ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Diosgenin ; adverse effects ; analogs & derivatives ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Plant Extracts ; adverse effects ; chemistry ; pharmacology

Objective To investigate the effect and mechanism of low-dose remifentanil(RF)on systemic artery tension of baby rabbit with septic shock.Methods Thirty-six systemic artery strips were prepared from 12 baby rabbits and randomly divided into 6 groups:control group,lipopoly-saccharide(LPS)group,RF group,LPS + RF group,NG-nitro-L-arginine(L-NNA)pretreated group,LPS + L-NNA pretreated group.Each group had six rings(n =6).The effect of low-dose RF on the systemic artery tension of baby rabbit with septic shock was observed with isolated vascular ring technique.The change was also obversed after L-NNA pretreatment.Results In control group:the relaxant rates after low-dose RF at the time point of 5 min,10 min,20 min were(18.48±3.96)％,(23.63±4.42)％,(28.33±3.73)％(P＜0.05),compared with NS group.After pretreatment with L-NNA,RF-related relaxant rates of systemic arteries decreased significantly to(8.15 ± 1.01)％,(13.08 ± 1.46)％,(18.54 ±2.94)％(P ＜ 0.05).In LPS group,low dose RF(4 μg/L)did not bring out any response to systemic arteries(P ＞0.05).The tension was not affected with pretreatment of L-NNA(P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion These results suggest that low dose RF has relaxant effect on systemic arteries of baby rabbits,and NO may be involved.Low dose RF has no relaxant effect on LPS-pretreated systemic arteries of baby rabbits,and it has no association with NO.

Objective:To study the influence of thrombus aspiration combined tirofiban on patients with acute ST seg-ment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI)after primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).Methods:A total of 98 patients,who received primary PCI because of STEMI in our hospital from Jan 2012 to Mar 2013,were selected.They were divided into thrombus aspiration group (n=48,received pure thrombus aspiration)and com-bined treatment group (n = 50,received thrombus aspiration combined intracoronary tirofiban injection during PCI).Coronary angiography (CAG)instantly after PCI and follow-up condition during hospitalization and six months after discharge were compared between two groups.Results:(1)Compared with thrombus aspiration group after PCI,there were significant rise in TIMI blood flow grade [(2.3±0.6)grades vs.(2.7±0.3)grades],per-centage of TIMI flow grade 3 (72.9% vs.90.0%)and ST segment regression >50% rate within 90min after PCI (52.1% vs.74.0%),P < 0.05 or < 0.01,and significant reduction in percentage of postoperative no-reflow (18.8% vs.4.0%,P =0.038)in combined treatment group in hospital;(2)After six-month follow-up,left ven-tricular ejection fraction (LVEF)of combined treatment group was significantly higher than that of thrombus aspi-ration group [(58±6.3)% vs.(51±5.6)%,P <0.05].Conclusion:Thrombus aspiration combined tirofiban can effectively reduce coronary thrombus burden and improve cardiac function in STEMI patients during primary PCI.

BACKGROUND:Conventional rehabilitation evaluation call not provide more objective data for analysis,so all innovative method to monitor rehabilitation of the cervical spine is introduced.OBJECTIVE:The monitoring rehabilitation system of the cervical spine develops independently under Visual Basic 6.0 environment.It can gather both video and photos at dynamic and static states.According to the suitable feature points of the video,the system could calculate characteristic parameters,such as moving angles,distances,speed,acceleration,and integral curves.Thus,the system could create patients'database.RESULTS:The system could calculate different kinds of patients'characteristic parameters through data recording.Through the objective comparison of characteristic parameters,the turning flexibility of head and controlling capability for head turning could be reflected.CONCLUSl0N:The design is an innovation in the monitoring rehabilitation systems of the cervical spine.It makes up the shortcomings of conventional rehabilitation evaluation and objectively reflects the rehabilitation status of patients.

Objective:To determine the effect of pelvic floor electrical stimulation combined with conventional treatment on neurogenic bladder dysfunction after spinal cord injury.Methods:The Pubmed/Medline, Embase, Cochrane, CINAHL, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, CQVIP and Wanfang databases were electronically searched for reports published before April 2019 of randomized and controlled trials testing the effect of electrical stimulation of the pelvic floor on neurogenic bladder after spinal cord injury. Meta-analysis of all the reports collected was performed.Results:Seven randomized and controlled trials with 319 patients were identified. Together they showed that compared with conventional treatment, pelvic floor muscle stimulation better increased bladder capacity and reduced the volume of residual urine. Average single urination output was increased, while the frequency of urination decreased along with episodes of urinary incontinence. Average lower urinary tract symptoms scores were also significantly better.Conclusions:Electrical stimulation of the pelvic floor combined with conventional therapy may be more effective than conventional therapy alone in alleviating the symptoms of neurogenic bladder.

Objective:To investigate the reliability of a tool based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) in the assessment of functioning despite disability.Methods:A total of 371 patients were assessed using a tool based on the ICF rehabilitation set combined with a numerical rating scale ranging from 0 to 10. The internal consistency, inter-rater reliability and intra-rater reliability were analyzed.Results:The scale′s Cronbach′s alpha coefficient was 0.89. The inter-rater correlation coefficient was 0.85, and the correlations among the items ranged from 0.78 to 0.94. The intra-rater correlation coefficient with the scale was 0.95, with the item correlations ranging from 0.72 to 0.97. Only item b230 Hearing function did not correlate well.Conclusions:The functioning assessment tool based on the ICF rehabilitation set when combined with a numerical rating scale has internal consistency, inter-rater reliability and intra-rater reliability sufficient for use in clinical practice.

Background The senescence of alveolar type II epithelial cells is an important driving factor for the progression of silicotic fibrosis, and the regulatory effects of oxamate on the senescence of alveolar type II epithelial cells is still unclear. Objective To explore whether lactate dehydrogenase inhibitor oxamate can alleviate silicotic fibrosis in mice by inhibiting senescence of alveolar type II epithelial cellsMethods This study was divided into two parts: in vivo experiments and in vitro experiments. In the first part, forty SPF C57BL/6J male mice were randomly divided into four groups with 10 in each group: control group, silicosis model group, low-dose oxamate treatment group, and high-dose oxamate treatment group. The silicotic mouse model was established by intratracheal instillation of 50 μL SiO₂ suspension (100 mg·mL⁻¹). The treatment models were prepared by intraperitoneal injection of 100 μL oxamate (225 mmol·L⁻¹ and 1125 mmol·L⁻¹). In the second part, induction of MLE-12 mouse alveolar type II epithelial cells was conducted with SiO₂. The in vitro experimental groups were ① SiO₂ induction groups: control group, 50 μg·mL⁻¹ SiO₂ group, 100 μg·mL⁻¹ SiO₂ group, and 200 μg·mL⁻¹ SiO₂ group, and ② oxamate treatment groups: control group, SiO₂ group (100 μg·mL⁻¹), low-dose oxamate (25 mmol·L⁻¹) treatment group, and high-dose oxamate (50 mmol·L⁻¹) treatment group. Pathological morphology of lung tissues was evaluated after hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining; deposition of collagen in lung tissues was evaluated after sirius red staining; positive co-expression of prosurfactant protein C (Pro-SPC) and β-galactosidase was detected by immunofluorescence staining; positive expression of β-galactosidase in MLE-12 cells was detected by immunofluorescence staining. The protein expression levels of collagen type I (CoL I), fibronectin1 (FN1), hexokinase 2 (HK2), pyruvate kinase isozyme type M2 (PKM2), lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA), p-ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related kinase (ATR), and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors p21, and p16 were detected by Western blotting. Results Compared with the control group, the protein expression levels of HK2, PKM2, LDHA, p-ATR, p21, and p16 were significantly upregulated in the silicosis model group and the SiO₂-induced MLE-12 cells (P＜0.05). The in vivo studies showed that, compared with the control group, the silicon nodule area, the collagen deposition area, the proportion of β-galactosidase positive cells, and the protein expression levels of CoL I, FN1, LDHA, p-ATR, p21, and p16 were significantly upregulated in the silicosis model group (P＜0.05). Compared with the silicosis model group, the oxamate treatment groups showed significant downregulation of the silicon nodule area, the collagen deposition area, the proportion of β-galactosidase positive cells, and the the CoL I, FN1, LDHA, p-ATR, p21, and p16 protein expression levels, and the high-dose oxamate treatment group showed a higher efficacy on these indicators than the low-dose oxamate treatment group (P＜0.05). The in vitro studies showed that, compared with the control group, the proportion of β-galactosidase positive cells and the protein expression levels of p-ATR, p21, and p16 were significantly upregulated in the SiO₂-induced group (P＜0.05). Compared with the SiO₂ group, the proportion of β-galactosidase positive cells and the LDHA, p-ATR, p21 and p16 protein expression levels were significantly downregulated in the oxamate treatment groups, and the high-dose oxamate treatment group showed a higher efficacy on these indicators than the low-dose oxamate treatment group (P＜0.05). Conclusion Lactate dehydrogenase inhibitor oxamate can alleviate silicotic fibrosis in mice by inhibiting the senescence of alveolar type II epithelial cells.

Objective To observe the effects of five flavonoids include rutin(RU),dihydromyricetin(DMY),hesperetin(HP),daidzein(DA)and hydroxysaffor yellow A(HYSA)on myocardiocyte apoptosis induced by H2O2 and to explore their relationships with Keshan disease and the possible mechanism.Methods Primary cultured cardiocytes of neonatal rats were randomly divided into control group,model group,and flavonoids preincubation group.The cardiocyte apoptosis was examined by fluorescent staining,the rates of apoptosis were detected by flow cytometry,the expression of Bcl-2 family proteins associated with apoptosis were observed:by Western blot.Results Compared with model group[(24.33±6.51)%],RU[(13.95±3.80)%],DA[(11.82±3.50)%],HYSA[(12.33±3.78)%]could decreased the rate of apoptosis(P＜0.05).The five flavonoids could up-regulate Bcl-2 expression,down-regulate Bax expression,and increase the Bcl-2/Bax ratio[RU(0.989±0.094),DMY(0.931±0.280),HP(0.980±0.095),DA(1.049±0.092),HYSA(1.031±0.039),vs model(0.490±0.046),the difference had statistical significances(P＜0.05)],but the Bcl-xl did not significantly changed(P＞0.05).Conclusions RU,DMY,HP,DA and HYSA have antiapoptotic effects on cardiomyocyte via regulating Bcl-2 and Bax,which gives us a hint in prevention and treatment of Keshan disease.

Amyloid β protein (Aβ) is closely involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), and one of the main strategies for AD treatment is antagonizing the neurotoxicity of Aβ or even clearing the Aβ deposited in the brain. The present study was aimed to observe the effects of intrahippocampal injection of Aβ₃₁₋₃₅ on the spatial learning and memory of rats by using Morris water maze technique, and explore the neuroprotective effects and possible mechanism of [Gly14]-humanin (HNG) against Aβ-induced deficits in learning behavior. The results showed that bilateral intrahippocampal injection of 2.0 nmol Aβ₃₁₋₃₅ significantly increased the mean traveled distance of rats in searching for the hidden underwater platform and decreased the distance percentage in the target quadrant in probe test after withdrawal of platform, whereas pretreatment with HNG (0.2 nmol and 2.0 nmol) suppressed Aβ₃₁₋₃₅-induced increase in the traveled distance and decrease in swimming distance percentage. Application of Genistein (40 nmol), a specific tyrosine kinase inhibitor, almost completely blocked the antagonistic effects of HNG against Aβ₃₁₋₃₅. These results indicate that HNG can dose-dependently prevent against Aβ₃₁₋₃₅-induced impairment in spatial learning and memory of rats, and the neuroprotective effects of HNG might involve the activation of endogenous tyrosine kinase pathway, suggesting that up-regulation of the tyrosine kinase signaling by using HNG might be of great significance for the improvement of cognitive function in AD.
Alzheimer Disease ; physiopathology ; Amyloid beta-Peptides ; adverse effects ; antagonists & inhibitors ; Animals ; Brain ; drug effects ; Genistein ; pharmacology ; Memory ; drug effects ; Neuroprotective Agents ; pharmacology ; Peptide Fragments ; adverse effects ; antagonists & inhibitors ; Peptides ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Spatial Learning ; drug effects

AIMTo study the feasibility of long-term potentiation(LTP) recording in the CA1 area of the rat in vivo with electrodes-binding technique.

METHODSAnesthetizing Wistar rats with urethane and fixing the animal on the stereotaxic device for acute surgery; implanting cannula into lateral cerebral ventricle; inserting self-made bound stimulating/recording electrodes into hippocampal CA1 area; recording basal field excitatory postsynaptic potential (fEPSP) and tetanus-induced long term potentiation (LTP).

RESULTSfEPSPs were reliably induced by using the stimulating/recording electrodes-binding technique, and the appearance rate of fEPSP was nearly 100%; basal fEPSP recording was very stable, lasting for long time enough to finish all experiment; high frequency stimulation (HFS) successfully induced LTP, which maintained more than three hours, the inductivity is about 67%; paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) recording was also stable; intracerebroventricular (i c v) injection of amyloid beta suppressed HFSinduced LTP evidently.

CONCLUSIONThe electrodes-binding technique for recording hippocampal LTP in vivo is quite simple and convenient. The experimental resource can be saved, and the rates of fEPSP appearance and LTP induction are kept high. Therefore, it is promising for this technique to be one electrophysiological auxiliary method in the research of learning and memory.

Animals ; Electric Stimulation ; methods ; Electrodes ; Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials ; physiology ; Feasibility Studies ; Hippocampus ; physiology ; Long-Term Potentiation ; physiology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar