Objective To study the clinical therapeutic effect of acupuncture in the treatment of depressive neurosis.Methods The 60 selected patients of depressive neurosis were randomized into treatment group(acupuncture regulating the liver group)and con- trol group(near-by sham-point acupuncture group),with 30 in each.The scores of Symptom Checklist 90(SCL-90),Self-rating De- pression Scale(SDS),and Hamilton Depression Scale(HAMD),and the total effective rate after treatment were observed.Results The total effective rate of the treatment group and the control group was 92.6% and 56.0% respectively,and the difference was sig- nificant(P

Objective To determine the effect of bacille Calmette-Guerin-polysaccharide nucleic acid (BCG/PSN)on 2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene(DNCB)-induced atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions in Nc/Nga mice.Methods Fifteen mice were randomly and equally classified into 3 groups,i.e.,control group receiving topical acetone on foot pad and abdomen and intraperitoneal injection of physiological saline,model group receiving topical 5% DNCB solution and intraperitoneal injection of physiological saline,treatment group receiving 5% DNCB solution and intraperitoneal iniection of BCG/PSN,and all drugs were used every other day for 7 weeks.Further more,0.1% DNCB was topically applied on the ear and neck of Nc/Nga mice once a week from week 2 to week 7.The effects of BCG/PSN were evaluated by ear thickness,skin histopathology and immunological parameters.Results Repeated application of DNCB caused the development of eczematous dermatitis in mice.Mice in model group chnieally manifested skin dryness,erythema,edema and erosion with histopathological changes including dermal and epidermal thickening,hyperkeratosis,and inflammatory infiltration.The serum levels of IL-4 and IrE in model group were significantly higher than those in control group[(174.72±12.64)μg/L vs (17.32±3.56)μg/L,(91.49±6.32)ng/L vs (83.95±6.63)ng/L,both P<0.05].Increased serum IL-12 and IFN-γ and decreased serum IgE were observed in treatment group compared with the model group[(122.10±4.64)ng/L vs (20.14±6.15)ng/L(73.89±2.39)ng/L vs (51.53±3.45)ng/L, (84.27±9.35)μg/L vs (174.72±12.64)μg/L, all P<0.05].Conclusion BCG/PSN might be beneficial for the treatment of atopie dermatitis-like skin lesions in Nc/Nga mice by enhancing the secretion of IL-12 and IFN-γ and suppressing the synthesis of IgE.

Objective To construct the serine protease gene(sprE)mutant and to study the pathogenicity of sprE gene of Enterococcus faecalis.Methods Recombinant suicide vector pCQ001 of Enterococcus faecalis with pTX4577,was constructed.Then,created isogenic sprE-deficient mu- tant(*sprE)by allelic replacement was constructed.Moreover,the growth ability and the virulence of the mutant were compared with those of the wide type in vitro and in vivo respectively.A mouse peritonitis model and a rabbit endocarditis model were utilized in the study.Results The *sprE was selected by kanamycin and identified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR),pulsed field gel electropho- resis(PFGE)and Southern blot.The evidences showed that the sprE gene had a major role in helping bacteria to resist the elevated temperature and oxidative stress.The virulence of mutant decreased af- ter sprE gene was knocked out.Conclusions The *sprE of Enterococcus faecalis is constructed suc- cessfully,sprE gene is important in the pathogenesis of Enterococcus faecalis,which probably is a major virulence factor of Enterococcus faecali.

BACKGROUND:Acute poisoning is frequently encountered at emergency department. This study was to investigate the epidemiology and characteristics of patients with acute poisoning who were treated at the Emergency Center, Fujian Provincial Hospital, China. METHODS:We retrospectively analyzed the gender, age, causes of poisoning, types of poisons, poisoning route, emergency diagnoses, outcomes, and prognoses of these patients. RESULTS:Altogether 2867 patients with acute poisoning were treated from January 2004 to December 2009. The ratio of male to female was 1:1.04, and their average age was 33.8 years. Of the 2867 patients, 76.39％ were between 18 and 40 years old. The incidence of acute poisoning was as high as 11.33％ in January each year. The incidence of poisoning was in a descending order:alcohol poisoning (54.55％), medication poisoning (25.95％), pesticide poisoning (5.65％), and drug poisoning (4.88％). Most (56.44％) of the patients with drug poisoning were under 25 years and their mean age was significantly lower than that of patients with medication poisoning or alcohol poisoning (P < 0.01). Approximately 69.54％ of the patients were followed up after emergency treatment, 30.39％ were hospitalized, and four patients died. CONCLUSIONS:Acute poisoning is largely alcohol poisoning and medication poisoning in a city. The emergency green channel "pre-hospital emergency care-emergency department-hospital treatment"can significantly improve the survival rate of patients with acute poisoning.

Isoliquiritigenin (ISL) is a flavonoid compound isolated from licorice. It possesses excellent antioxidant and anti-diabetic activities. This study aims to investigate the molecular mechanism underlying the alleviatory effect of ISL on energy metabolism imbalance caused by type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). 8-week-old male C57BL/6J mice were used in in vivo experiments. The high-fat-high-glucose diet combined with intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin was applied to establish T2DM animal model. All animal experiments were performed in accordance with the Institutional Guidelines of Laboratory Animal Administration issued by the Committee of Ethics at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine. HepG2 cells were used in in vitro experiments. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were used to examine the protein and mRNA levels of mitochondrial function-related targets. The levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) in HepG2 cells were measured by the flow cytometry. Additionally, the molecular docking of ISL and key target proteins was analyzed. It was found that ISL significantly inhibited the activity of mitochondrial respiratory chain complex I and increased the protein levels of uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) in the livers of mice and HepG2 cells. It also obviously decreased the ROS levels and increased the MMP levels in cultured HepG2 cells. In addition, ISL promoted mitochondrial biogenesis by activating proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1α (PGC-1α) and enhanced mitophagy by upregulating Parkin. It also improved mitochondrial fusion by increasing the mRNA and protein levels of mitofusin 2 (MFN2). In conclusion, ISL alleviates energy metabolism imbalance caused by T2DM through suppression of excessive mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation and promotion of mitochondrial biogenesis, mitophagy, and fusion.

Isoliquiritigenin (ISL) is an active chalcone compound isolated from licorice. It possesses anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative activities. In our previous study, we uncovered a great potential of ISL in treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Therefore, this study aims to reveal the mechanism underlying the alleviatory effects of ISL on T2DM-induced glycolipid metabolism disorder. High-fat-high-sugar diet (HFD) combined with intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ) were used to establish T2DM mice model. All animal experiments were carried out with approval of the Committee of Ethics at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine. HepG2 cells were used in in vitro experiments, and sodium palmitate (SP) was applied to establish insulin resistance (IR) model cells. The effects of ISL on body weight, fasting blood glucose levels, and pathological changes in the livers of mice were examined. Enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay (ELISA) and real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) were applied to detect the regulatory effects of ISL on key targets involved in glucolipid metabolism. Additionally, molecular docking and analytical dynamics simulation methods were used to analyze the interaction between ISL and key target protein. The results indicate that ISL significantly downregulates the transcriptional levels and inhibits the activities of key enzymes involved in gluconeogenesis, including pyruvate carboxylase (PC), phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK), and fructose-1, 6-bisphosphatase (FBP). It also downregulates the transcriptional and protein levels of hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α (HNF4α) and cAMP response element binding protein (CREB), the two transcriptional factors involved in gluconeogenesis. Thus, ISL inhibits hepatic gluconeogenesis in T2DM mice. In addition, ISL reduces total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) levels in the livers of T2DM mice. Moreover, ISL downregulates the mRNA levels of lipogenesis genes and upregulates those of genes involved in fatty acid oxidation, lipid uptake, and lipid export. In conclusion, ISL suppresses hepatic gluconeogenesis, promotes lipolysis, and restrains lipogenesis in T2DM mice, thereby improving the abnormal glycolipid metabolism caused by T2DM.

OBJECTIVE:To explore the improvement effect of different polar parts of Sanye Chongcha on models rat with ul-cerative colitis(UC). METHODS:The total extract was obtained from Sanye Chongcha by extraction with 80% ethanol,and dis-persed in water,from which the extracts of corresponding parts were obtained after extraction successively with trichloromethane and ethyl acetate and drying. 60 rats were randomized into normal group,model group,positive group(sulfasalazine enteric-coated tablets,312.5 mg/kg),trichloromethane extraction part group(70 mg/kg),ethyl acetate extraction part group(35 mg/kg)and wa-ter extraction part group(320 mg/kg). The rats except for normal group received 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid solution(TN-BS)to establish UC model. 24 h later,the rats in the drug administration groups were given corresponding drugs ig,while those in normal group and model group were given normal saline ig,once a day,for 14 consecutive days. For the rats,the pathological change of the colon tissue was observed,and the colon mucosa damage index(CMDI)was scored;the activity of superoxide dis-mutase(SOD)and the content of malondialdehyde(MDA)in serum were determined. RESULTS:Compared to normal group,the rats in model group had obvious UC-like lesion,higher CMDI,lower activity of SOD and higher content of MDA in serum(P<0.01). Compared to model group,the rats in the drug administration groups had the lesion which became less serious or improved and had lower CMDI score,among which those of the ethyl acetate extraction part group and the positive group demonstrated a sta-tistically significant difference(P<0.01);and the rats in the drug administration groups except for trichloromethane extraction part group had higher activity of SOD and lower content of MDA in serum,among which the activity of SOD of the ethyl acetate ex-traction part group and the activity of SOD and content of MDA of the positive group demonstrated a statistically significant differ-ence(P<0.05 or P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS:The ethyl acetate extraction part of Sanye Chongcha can reduce colonic lipid peroxi-dation and thus has obvious improvement effect on the rats with UC caused by TNBS.

Objective To explore the effects of the autoantibody against the second extracellular loop of ?3-adrenoceptor(?3AR)from children with heart failure on isolated cardiomyocytes of adult rats.Methods The synthetic peptide corresponding to the sequence of the se-cond extracellular loop(176-202 amino acid residues)of the human ?3AR was used as the antigen to screen the anti-?3AR autoantibodies from the sera of the 50 children with heart failure and 50 healthy children by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA);IgG in the children with heart failure of positive autoantibodies sera was purified.The effects of purified IgG per each group on contractile response of isolated cardiomyocytes of adult rats were observed using motion-edge detection system and double-provocation fluorescence photomultiplier system.Results Among the 50 children with heart failure,the anti-?3AR autoantibodies positive rate was 30%(15/50 cases),and ob-viously higher than that of healthy children[12%(6/50)cases,P

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of Bushen Shuji Granule (BSG) in treating ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients.

METHODSA prospective randomized controlled clinical trial was carried out in 62 active stage AS patients with Shen deficiency Du-channel cold syndrome (SDDCS), who were randomly assigned to the BSG group (treated with BSG) and the control group (treated with Celecoxib Capsule). Twelve weeks consisted of one therapeutic course. Therapeutic effects were evaluated by ASAS20 and ASAS40 (set by Assessments in Ankylosing Spondylitis working group) , BASDA150, Chinese medical (CM) syndrome efficacy evaluation standards. BASDAI, the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), the Bath AS Metrology Index (BASMI), scores for spine pain, scores for pain at night, patient global assessment (PGA) , erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) , and C reactive protein (CRP) were observed before and after treatment.

RESULTSAfter three-month treatment by BSG, ASAS20 standard rate was 63. 33% (19/30 cases) in the BSG group and 66.67% (20/30 cases) in the control group with no significant difference between the two groups (χ2 = 0.073, P > 0.05). The efficacy for CM syndromes was 70.00% (21/30 cases) in the BSG group, higher than that in the control group [40.00% (12/30 cases), χ2 = 5.455, P < 0.05]. Scores for CM syndromes, BASDAI, night pain index, spinal pain index, PGA, CRP were improved in the BSG group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). The incidence of adverse events in the BSG group was lower than that of the control group.

CONCLUSIONBSG based on Shen supplementing, Du-channel strengthening, blood activating, and channels dredging method had good short-term clinical efficacy and safety in treating AS.

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Biomedical Research ; Blood Sedimentation ; C-Reactive Protein ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Pain ; Prospective Studies ; Safety ; Spondylitis, Ankylosing ; drug therapy

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of total saponins from Sanguisorba officinalis (DYS) on hematopoietic cell proliferation, differentiation and the expression level of IL-3R and c-kit.

METHODBaf3 and 32D cells were cultured with or without IL-3, then the cells were exposed to DYS in different concentrations of 5, 10, 20, 30 and 40 mg x L(-1) for 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours separately. After that, the cell proliferation and differentiation capacity were determinated by the methods of CCK8 and Giemsa staining separately. The effects of DYS on the expression level of IL-3 receptor in Baf3 cells and the expression level of c-kit in 32D cells were determinated using RT-PCR.

RESULTDYS promotes alone proliferation of Baf3 cells and 32D cells after 48 h. In contrast to control cells, 32D cells containing DYS without IL-3 form many large clusters. DYS also increases the proliferation when cultured with IL-3. High concentration of DYS induce alone the differentiation of 32D cells and increase alone the number of the polyploidy megakaryocyte. Moreover, DYS increases alone the expression level of IL-3R in Baf3 cells and the expression level of c-kit in 32D cells separately.

CONCLUSIONOur data shows DYS can promote alone proliferation and differentiation of megakaryocyte progenitor cells. The proliferative and differentiative effect of DYS on megakaryocyte progenitor cells is correlated to the up-regulation of IL-3 receptor and c-kit expression.

Animals ; Cell Differentiation ; drug effects ; genetics ; Cell Line ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Gene Expression ; drug effects ; Interleukin-3 ; pharmacology ; Megakaryocyte Progenitor Cells ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Mice ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit ; genetics ; Receptors, Interleukin-3 ; genetics ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sanguisorba ; chemistry ; Saponins ; pharmacology ; Time Factors