Adolescent ; Cough ; complications ; Fatal Outcome ; Female ; Fever ; complications ; Humans ; Pulmonary Fibrosis ; complications ; diagnosis

Adult ; Brain Abscess ; Cholesteatoma ; surgery ; Endoscopy ; Female ; Humans ; Maxillary Sinus ; surgery

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Endoscopy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Maxillary Sinus ; surgery ; Middle Aged ; Otorhinolaryngologic Surgical Procedures ; methods ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of catecholamine hormone on the blood and brain of heroin addicts.

METHODSRats were divided into three groups and treated with the glucose (control group), the heroin (im) (heroin group), and the combination of the intramuscular injection of reserpine and heroin (reserpine group). Changes in the levels of the dopamine (DA), cAMP, and cGMP were detected by the radioimmunoassay (RIA) method in the blood and brain tissue.

RESULTSNo significant withdrawal symptoms were observed in the reserpine group. Compared with the control and heroin groups, the blood cAMP levels were increased by 35.36% and 15.53% in the reserpine group, respectively; the cAMP levels in the midbrain ventral tegmental area (VTA), prefrontal cortex (PFC), and hippocampus (Hipp) were increased by 24.08% & 8.53%, 15.66% & 8.13%, and 21.95% & 8.40%, respectively. While compared to the control and heroin groups, the DA levels of the PFC, Hipp, striatum, and nucleus accumbens (NAc) were significantly reduced in the reserpine group, decreasing by 74.09% & 82.86%, 81.06% & 82.23%, 91.62% & 86.55% and 84.35% & 90.63%, respectively. The concentrations of cGMP of the brain tissues in the reserpine group were lower than those in the control group. In addition, the neural electrophysiological testing showed that the electroencephalogram (EEG), electrocardiogram (ECG), and muscle spindle discharge diagram of rats in both the reserpine and heroin groups were apparently changed.

CONCLUSIONCatecholamine hormone plays an important role in heroin addiction.

Animals ; Brain ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Catecholamines ; physiology ; Cyclic AMP ; blood ; metabolism ; Cyclic GMP ; blood ; metabolism ; Dopamine ; blood ; metabolism ; Heroin Dependence ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

Seven compounds were isolated from Onychium japonicum by macroporous resin, silica gel, ODS, Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography and semi-preparative HPLC. Their structures were identified by NMR, MS and other spectroscopic methods as onychone A (1), quercetin (2), quercetin-3-O-α-L-rhamnoside (3), kaempferol-7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (4), kaempferol-3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (5), (-)-prunin (6), and norathyriol (7). Compound 1 is a novel macrocyclic flavonoid, and all the others are reported from this plant for the first time. In vitro cytotoxic activities of compounds 1-7 were evaluated by MTS testing with five cancer cell lines. Compound 7 exhibited weak cytotoxicity against tumor cell lines A549, SMMC-7721, and SW480.

Based on the improved design of the existing thoracic cavity closed drainage system, a new multi-functional device is developed and is described here in detail. The device is more convenient and more efficient than the existing system. Besides, it has a function of autotransfusion. Animal experimental results show that it has attained the goal of the improved design.
Drainage ; instrumentation ; methods ; Equipment Design ; Humans ; Thoracic Cavity ; Thoracic Surgical Procedures ; instrumentation

The dialysis method was employed to prepare blank and doxorubicin (DOX) loaded micelles formed by temperature- and pH- sensitive polyhistidine-co-polyDL-lactide-co-glycolide-co-polyethyleneglycol-co-polyDL-lactide-co-glycolide-co-polyhistidine (PHis-b-PLGA-b-PEG-b-PLGA-b-PHis). The critical micelle concentrations (CMC) of the copolymers were measured with Pyrene Fluorescent Probe Technique. The temperature- and pH- sensitive properties of the blank micelles solution were investigated by optical transmittance measurement. The morphology and diameter of DOX micelles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The entrapment rate and drug-loading rate were determined with dialysis method. The in vitro release study was further performed to examine the temperature- and pH-responsive drug release behavior from DOX-loaded micelles. The results indicated that the CMC, entrapment efficiency and drug-loaded amount of the micelles were 7.5 x 10(-3) g x L(-1), 85.2 +/- 3.1% and 10.4 +/- 4.5%, respectively. The DOX micelle was globular-shaped with a mean diameter of 91.1 +/- 15.8 nm. The transmittance of micelle solution consistently increased with the increasing temperature or decreasing pH. In comparison to the drug release profile at physiological conditions (37 degrees C, pH 7.4), the DOX-loaded micelles showed faster drug release rate at higher temperature (41 degrees C), lower pH (pH 7.0, pH 6.5, pH 5.0) or higher temperature and lower pH (41 degrees C, pH 5.0). This indicated that the micelles showed a temperature and pH-triggered drug release pattern. Base on the above results, it can be concluded that PHis-b-PLGA-b-PEG-b-PLGA-b-PHis block copolymer micelles which respond to temperature and pH stimuli are promising smart carriers for anti-tumor drugs with the advantages of temperature- and pH- triggered drug release.
Antibiotics, Antineoplastic ; administration & dosage ; chemistry ; Doxorubicin ; administration & dosage ; chemistry ; Drug Carriers ; Drug Compounding ; Histidine ; chemistry ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Micelles ; Particle Size ; Polyethylene Glycols ; chemistry ; Polyglactin 910 ; chemistry ; Polymers ; chemistry ; Temperature

Recently the use of peptides in bee venom (PBV) for cancer therapy has attracted considerable attention. In this study, the sterically stabilized liposomal PBV (PBV-SL) was prepared using soybean phosphatidylcholine, cholesterol, and cholesterol-PEG-COOH. The humanized antihepatoma disulfide-stabilized Fv (hdscFv25) was coupled to sterically stabilized liposomes using the N-hydroxysuccinimide ester method. The hdscFv25-immunoliposomes (SIL[hdscFv25]) were immunoreactive as determined by ELISA assay. SIL[hdscFv25] showed higher tumor cells selectivity. PBV-SIL[hdscFv25] can kill SMMC-7721 cells in vitro with higher efficiency than non-targeted liposomes. Whereas cytotoxicties were compared for Hela cells, no significant differences was observed between PBV-SIL[hdscFv25] and PBV-SL. Sterically stabilized immunoliposomal peptides in bee venom could be one drug targeting delivery system.
Antineoplastic Agents ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Bee Venoms ; chemistry ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; pathology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Survival ; drug effects ; Cholesterol ; chemistry ; Drug Delivery Systems ; HeLa Cells ; Humans ; Immunoconjugates ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Liposomes ; chemistry ; Liver Neoplasms ; pathology ; Melitten ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Peptides ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Recombinant Proteins ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology

Ferulic acid (FA) was loaded into liposomes via calcium acetate gradient with (80.2 +/- 5.2)% entrapment efficiency. The average sizes of blank liposome and FA liposome were about 155 nm and 154 nm, respectively. The zeta potential of blank liposome and FA liposome were (13.14 +/- 1.67) mV and (4.12 +/- 0.05) mV, respectively. Unilamellar vesicles were present in freeze-fracture electron microscopy. In the pharmacodynamic studies, the protective effect of liposomal ferulic acid on tBHP-challenged U937 cells was measured with the morphology of cell injury, mitochondrial transmembrane potential alternation and cell viability assay used as index. The results of MTT assay, microscopy indicated that FA liposomes exhibited greater antioxidant activity than FA solution on U937 cell.
Antioxidants ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Cholesterol ; chemistry ; Coumaric Acids ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Drug Carriers ; Humans ; Liposomes ; chemistry ; Membrane Potentials ; drug effects ; Mitochondria ; physiology ; Particle Size ; U937 Cells

The discovery, sorting and identification methods as well as targeted drug delivery systems for cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been reviewed by consulting the recent research papers. CSCs have been believed to be responsible for the occurrence and development of chemo-resistance, leading to the failure of chemotherapy. Much progress has been made in the approaches for CSCs targeting drug delivery systems. The understanding and targeted drug delivery systems for CSCs are promising to provide an alternative for cancer therapy.
Animals ; Antineoplastic Agents ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Drug Delivery Systems ; methods ; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Neoplastic Stem Cells ; drug effects ; pathology ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects ; Wnt Signaling Pathway ; drug effects