The paper reports one case of osteitis condensans ilii treated with acupuncture in the young and middle-aged female patient. Based on the "analogy" thinking, bilateral Chengshan (BL57) and Ximen (PC4) were selected. The short needling was delivered at Chengshan (BL57), in which, the needle tip went directly to the bone surface and the needle was lifted and thrusted to induce the tolerable sensation. At Ximen (PC4), the needle was inserted, with the depth of 20 mm to 30 mm, and manipulated with the even needling technique. The needles were retained for 30 min. The treatment was given once every two days, 3 treatments a week. After treated for 3 weeks, the pain and discomforts in the lumbal and gluteal regions disappeared basically and no recurrence was found in 1-month follow-up visit.
Humans ; Female ; Acupuncture Therapy/instrumentation* ; Osteitis/therapy* ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Acupuncture Points

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical efficacy of chicken-claw needling with blade needle for postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). METHODS: A total of 30 patients with PHN were treated with chicken-claw needling with blade needle, the most painful area, costal angle on the same side with the affected intercostal nerve and the midpoint of the line connecting the first two points along the intercostal nerve were selected as treatment points, without needle retained, once a week, a total of 2 times were required. Before and after treatment, the scores of pain visual analogue scale (VAS) and dermatology life quality index (DLQI) were observed, and the clinical efficacy was evaluated after treatment. The recurrence rate of neuralgia was evaluated on the 60th day after treatment. RESULTS: After treatment, the scores of VAS and DLQI were decreased compared with those before treatment (P<0.05). Of 30 patients, 4 cases were cured, 20 cases showed markedly efficacy, 4 cases were improved, 2 cases were ineffective, the total effective rate was 93.3% (28/30). The recurrence rate of neuralgia was 6.7% (2/30). CONCLUSION Chicken-claw needling with blade needle could effectively relieve the pain in patients with PHN, improve the quality of life and reduce the recurrence rate of neuralgia.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Neuralgia, Postherpetic/therapy* ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Acupuncture Therapy/methods* ; Acupuncture Points ; Treatment Outcome ; Needles ; Adult

AIM:To investigate the impact of celastrol intervention on excitatory amino acid transporter 2(EAAT2)and its neuroprotective role in subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH).METHODS:Western blot analysis was uti-lized to assess the EAAT2 expression level within 72 h after SAH,while glutamate concentration in cortical brain tissues was measured.Computational simulation was employed to explore the binding of celastrol with EAAT2.Seventy SD rats were randomly assigned to sham,model,model+GT949(an EAAT2 agonist),model+dihydrokainic acid(DHK;an EAAT2 inhibitor),and model+celastrol groups.Glutamate concentration in cortical brain tissues was quantified,and brain edema was assessed by dry-wet weight method.Western blot analysis was conducted to evaluate the expression of EAAT2,aquaporin 4 and apoptosis-related proteins(Bax,Bcl-2,caspase-3 and caspase-9),and TUNEL staining was employed to assess the apoptotic cell count in each group.RESULTS:(1)EAAT2 level decreased while glutamate con-centration increased.(2)Celastrol was found to directly bind to EAAT2,enhancing EAAT2 expression and reducing glu-tamate concentration after SAH.(3)Celastrol demonstrated the ability to inhibit brain edema after SAH.(4)Celastrol was effective in reducing neuronal apoptosis after SAH.CONCLUSION:Celastrol has the potential to up-regulate EAAT2 expression,lower glutamate level,mitigate brain edema,and decrease neuronal apoptosis after SAH.

Cough is a common symptom of several respiratory diseases. However, frequent coughing from acute to chronic often causes great pain to patients. It may turn into cough variant asthma, which seriously affects people's quality of life. For cough treatment, it is dominated by over-the-counter antitussive drugs, such as asmeton, but most currently available antitussive drugs have serious side effects. Thus, there is a great need for the development of new drugs with potent cough suppressant. BALB/c mice were used to construct mice model with cough to investigate the pharmacological effects of pectolinarigenin (PEC). Hematoxylin-eosin and Masson staining were used to assess lung injury and airway remodeling, and ELISA was used to assess the level of inflammatory factor release. In addition, inflammatory cell counts were measured to assess airway inflammation. Airway hyperresponsiveness assay was used to assess respiratory resistance in mice. Finally, we used Western blotting to explore the potential mechanisms of PEC. We found that PEC could alleviate lung tissue injury and reduce the release of inflammatory factors, inhibit of cough frequency and airway wall collagen deposition in mice model with cough. Meanwhile, PEC inhibited the Ras/ERK/c-Fos pathway to exhibit antitussive effect. Therefore, PEC may be a potential drug for cough suppression.

Objective:To investigate the effects of body mass index (BMI) on lung function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Methods:A total of 3 312 patients with COPD were selected from outpatients and inpatients in Department of Gerontal Respiratory Medicine of the First Hospital of Lanzhou University from August 2016 to August 2020, including 1 103 patients in stable period and 2 209 patients in acute exacerbation period. According to body mass index (BMI), these COPD patients were divided into four groups: low weight (56 cases, 131 cases), normal weight (448 cases, 945 cases), overweight (424 cases, 773 cases) and obesity groups (175 cases, 360 cases) respectively in stable stage and in acute exacerbation stage. The lung function of inspiratory capacity (IC), vital capacity (VC), residual volume (RV)/total lung capacity (TLC), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV 1), forced vital capacity (FVC), FEV 1/FVC, maximal mid-expiratory flow (MMEF), diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO), DLCO normalized per liter alveolar volume (DLCO/VA), respiratory impedance (Zrs), respiratory resistance at 5 Hz (R5), respiratory resistance at 20 Hz (R20) and respiratory reactance at 5 Hz (X5) were measured using MasterScreen PFT in all patients, and the influence of BMI on lung function was analyzed respectively. The risk factors of impaired lung function were analyzed by ordered logistic regression with lung function grade as dependent variable and age, gender, smoking history, smoking index and BMI as independent variables (“%pred”represents the percentage of predicted value). Results:The proportion of patients with lung function grade Ⅲ/Ⅳ in acute exacerbation period (64.9%, 37%, 27.4%, 24.4%) was higher than that in stable stage (42.9%, 25.9%, 13.7%, 9.1%), while the proportion of patients with lung function grade Ⅰ in stable stage (21.4%, 34.2%, 38.2%, 40.0%) was higher than that in acute exacerbation period (7.6%, 20.0%, 25.4%, 22.8%) (all P<0.05). The IC%pred, VC%pred, FEV 1%pred, FVC%pred, FEV 1/FVC, MMEF%pred, DLCO%pred, DLCO/VA%pred and R20 in low weight group were significantly lower than other groups both in stable period and acute exacerbation period (all P<0.05). The RV/TLC was higher in low weight group than that of normal weight and overweight groups in both periods (all P<0.05). The IC%pred, FEV 1%pred, FEV 1/FVC, DLCO%pred, DLCO/VA%pred, R5 and R20 in overweight and obesity groups were higher than those of normal weight group (all P<0.05). The RV/TLC, FEV 1/FVC, DLCO%pred, DLCO/VA%pred, Zrs, R5 and R20 in obesity group were higher than those of overweight group (all P<0.05). The ordered logistic regression analysis showed that low weight was independent risk factor for impaired lung function of COPD both in stable period [ OR (95% CI) 2.316 (1.206-3.554)] and acute exacerbation period [ OR (95% CI): 2.457 (1.647-3.669)]. Conclusion:Lower BMI has an adverse effect on lung function, and it is an independent risk factor for impaired lung function in COPD patients.

Cell Differentiation ; Humans ; Hyperthermia, Induced ; Stem Cells

Humans ; Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin Complex 2/metabolism* ; Multiprotein Complexes/metabolism* ; Neural Stem Cells/metabolism* ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt/metabolism* ; Rapamycin-Insensitive Companion of mTOR Protein/metabolism* ; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases/metabolism*

Aging-induced changes in the immune system are associated with a higher incidence of infection and vaccination failure. Lymph nodes, which filter the lymph to identify and fight infections, play a central role in this process. However, careful characterization of the impact of aging on lymph nodes and associated autoimmune diseases is lacking. We combined single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) with flow cytometry to delineate the immune cell atlas of cervical draining lymph nodes (CDLNs) of both young and old mice with or without experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU). We found extensive and complicated changes in the cellular constituents of CDLNs during aging. When confronted with autoimmune challenges, old mice developed milder EAU compared to young mice. Within this EAU process, we highlighted that the pathogenicity of T helper 17 cells (Th17) was dampened, as shown by reduced GM-CSF secretion in old mice. The mitigated secretion of GM-CSF contributed to alleviation of IL-23 secretion by antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and may, in turn, weaken APCs' effects on facilitating the pathogenicity of Th17 cells. Meanwhile, our study further unveiled that aging downregulated GM-CSF secretion through reducing both the transcript and protein levels of IL-23R in Th17 cells from CDLNs. Overall, aging altered immune cell responses, especially through toning down Th17 cells, counteracting EAU challenge in old mice.
Aging ; Animals ; Autoimmune Diseases ; Disease Models, Animal ; Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor/metabolism* ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Th17 Cells/metabolism* ; Uveitis/pathology* ; Virulence

The gross specimens and tissue slices used for traditional experimental pathology curriculum are fragile, and some specimens or slices are difficult to be supplemented. Besides, the classroom and schedule for experimental pathology teaching are inflexible. Therefore, the teaching effects for experimental pathology course are limited. The development of digital technology has promoted the teaching reform of medical experimental curriculum. We have digitalized the gross specimens and tissue slices to preserve and expand the samples, and constructed pathological sample repository containing both physical samples and digital samples. Furthermore, we have established a platform for remote access, and thus improved the flexibility and autonomy of study for experimental pathology curriculum. Additionally, we have integrated clinical information of the teaching samples, and interpreted the specimens with the assistance of two-dimensional code technology and voice broadcast technology, to realize human-computer interactive learning. The questionnaire shows that the application of pathological sample repository in experimental teaching has improved student learning effect and recognition.