OBJECTIVE:To investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of Cinobufacin capsules combined with radiotherapy in the treatment of median and advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. METHODS:Ninety-five patients with median and advanced naso-pharyngeal carcinoma in cancer center of our hospital during 2011-2012 were analyzed retrospectively,and then divided into con-trol group (57 cases) and observation group (38 cases) according to therapy plan. Control group received radiotherapy alone, while observation group was additionally given Cinobufacin capsule 0.5 g,tid,till the end of radiotherapy. A treatment course last-ed for 4 weeks. The prolonged radiotherapy were compared between 2 groups. Clinical response rate was observed in 2 group,and 1-year and 3-year survival rate and the occurrence of ADR were followed up. RESULTS:The proportion of prolonged radiotherapy was 89.47% in control group,which was significantly higher than 52.63% of observation group,with statistical significance(P<0.05). At the end of therapy and one month after therapy,clinical total response rates of observation group were 81.58% and 63.16%,which were significantly higher than 70.18% and 45.61% of control group,with statistical significance (P<0.05). The incidence of white blood cell lowering,hemoglobin lowering,local side effect of radiotherapy, nasopharyngeal dysphagia/odyno-phagia in observation group were significantly lower than in control group,with statistical significance (P<0.05). There was no statistical significance in survival rate between 2 groups in 1st-year and 3rd-year follow-up (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS:Cinobu-facin capsule combined with radiotherapy can significantly relieve the side effects of radiotherapy in median and advanced nasopha-ryngeal carcinoma patients.

Primary liver cancer (PLC) is one of the most common malignant tumors in China. PLC is characterized by insidious onset, rapid progress, poor quality of life, and short survival time. Notably, current treatment strategies remain unsatisfactory. Traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) have been used to treat a variety of diseases, including liver diseases, for more than 2000 years. In this study, we performed a review of the use frequency and clinical efficacy of TCM in treating PLC. Relevant literature from January 1, 2009, to January 1, 2021 was retrieved from network databases of China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chongqing VIP, Wanfang, PubMed, and SinoMed. The most frequently used TCM and their effi-cacy in PLC treatment were summarized. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 33 articles were selected. Overall, the efficacy of the combination of TCM and Western medicines in the treatment of PLC was higher than that in the control groups (i.e. treatment with Western medicines alone) (65.11％ vs. 44.31％, P < .05). Among the 33 selected articles, 11 were investigated for TCM preparation (marketed drugs) and 22 for TCM formulas. In total, 102 types of TCM (single herbs) were used to treat PLC. The top five most frequently used TCM were Poria (14.71％), Astragali radix (13.73％), Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma (12.75％), Bupleuri radix (12.75％), and Glycyrrhizae radix et Rhizoma (11.76％). Of the 102 types of TCM, tonics were the most frequently used categories, followed by heat-clearing medicines, blood-invigorating medicines, and stasis-resolving medicines. Of 207 papers, 174 (84.06％) could not be sub-jected to statistical analysis due to research quality. Further high-quality research on herb sources, for-mula components and dosage, toxicology, and ethics of TCM is necessary. In conclusion, TCM play a promising role in the treatment and management of PLC, although further investigations are warranted.

Stimulus-specific adaptation (SSA), defined as a decrease in responses to a common stimulus that only partially generalizes to other rare stimuli, is a widespread phenomenon in the brain that is believed to be related to novelty detection. Although cross-modal sensory processing is also a widespread phenomenon, the interaction between the two phenomena is not well understood. In this study, the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN), which is regarded as a hub of the attentional system that contains multi-modal neurons, was investigated. The results showed that SSA existed in an interactive oddball stimulation, which mimics stimulation changes from one modality to another. In the bimodal integration, SSA to bimodal stimulation was stronger than to visual stimulation alone but similar to auditory stimulation alone, which indicated a limited integrative effect. Collectively, the present results provide evidence for independent cross-modal processing in bimodal TRN neurons.
Acoustic Stimulation ; Animals ; Auditory Perception/physiology* ; Geniculate Bodies ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Thalamic Nuclei/physiology*

Endogenously eliminating the hematoma is a favorable strategy in addressing intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). This study sought to determine the role of retinoid X receptor-α (RXR-α) in the context of hematoma absorption after ICH. Our results showed that pharmacologically activating RXR-α with bexarotene significantly accelerated hematoma clearance and alleviated neurological dysfunction after ICH. RXR-α was expressed in microglia/macrophages, neurons, and astrocytes. Mechanistically, bexarotene promoted the nuclear translocation of RXR-α and PPAR-γ, as well as reducing neuroinflammation by modulating microglia/macrophage reprograming from the M1 into the M2 phenotype. Furthermore, all the beneficial effects of RXR-α in ICH were reversed by the PPAR-γ inhibitor GW9662. In conclusion, the pharmacological activation of RXR-α confers robust neuroprotection against ICH by accelerating hematoma clearance and repolarizing microglia/macrophages towards the M2 phenotype through PPAR-γ-related mechanisms. Our data support the notion that RXR-α might be a promising therapeutic target for ICH.

Endogenously eliminating the hematoma is a favorable strategy in addressing intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). This study sought to determine the role of retinoid X receptor-α (RXR-α) in the context of hematoma absorption after ICH. Our results showed that pharmacologically activating RXR-α with bexarotene significantly accelerated hematoma clearance and alleviated neurological dysfunction after ICH. RXR-α was expressed in microglia/macrophages, neurons, and astrocytes. Mechanistically, bexarotene promoted the nuclear translocation of RXR-α and PPAR-γ, as well as reducing neuroinflammation by modulating microglia/macrophage reprograming from the M1 into the M2 phenotype. Furthermore, all the beneficial effects of RXR-α in ICH were reversed by the PPAR-γ inhibitor GW9662. In conclusion, the pharmacological activation of RXR-α confers robust neuroprotection against ICH by accelerating hematoma clearance and repolarizing microglia/macrophages towards the M2 phenotype through PPAR-γ-related mechanisms. Our data support the notion that RXR-α might be a promising therapeutic target for ICH.
Anilides/pharmacology* ; Cerebral Hemorrhage/drug therapy* ; Hematoma/drug therapy* ; Humans ; Macrophages ; Microglia ; Neuroprotection ; PPAR gamma ; Retinoid X Receptor alpha