Hazardous Substances ; adverse effects ; Humans ; Occupational Exposure ; adverse effects ; Risk

OBJECTIVEThe experiments were conducted to study specialty of seed germinating, plant growing and developing and cultural practices of A. edgeworthii.

METHODThe germinating and sowing test, growth habitants, photosensitive reaction of seedling from subterraneous seeds and above ground seeds on A. edgeworthii were studied in this experiment.

RESULT AND CONCLUSIONThe results indicated that (1) The water could not be absorbed by seed from plant above ground; (2) The underground and above ground seeds could normally germinate, grow, blossom and bear fruits, A. edgeworthii sowed in early May, blossomed in early September and matured in the last ten days of October; (3) The seed leaf of seedling grew underground; (4) The underground seed was produced from subterraneous branch stem which developed from node of seed leaf; (5) A. edgeworthii was shade demanding, high-temperature sensible short-day light plant. The flowering could be greatly advantaged by short-day light treatment (12, 10, 8, 6 h). Cultural practices were studied also in this experiment.

Fabaceae ; growth & development ; Plants, Medicinal ; growth & development ; Seedlings ; growth & development ; Seeds ; growth & development ; Sunlight

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of buffer on separate capacity of macroporous resin. To evaluate the quality of ferulic acid liposome and determine its entrapment efficiency.

METHODDifferent type of macroporous resin counterpoised by buffer system of Na2 HPO3-NaH2, PO3 was used to separate the free ferulic acid from the preparation and HPLC was used to determine the concentration of the ferulic acid to calculate the entrapment efficiency.

RESULTThis method had good linearity in the range of 0.56 - 2.8 g x mL(-1) (r = 0.999 6). The precision RSD was less than 1.1%. The adsorption effect of macroporous resin on liposome was reduced while it had no effect on the absorption ability of macroporous resin on the ferulic acid by the usage of buffer. The recovery of HPD450 resin on blank liposome was between 97.2% - 100.8%, while the average recovery is 98.1%.

CONCLUSIONBuffer system can enhance the separate ability of macroporous resin on liposome and free drug.

Adsorption ; Buffers ; Coumaric Acids ; administration & dosage ; analysis ; Drug Carriers ; Liposomes ; Quality Control ; Resins, Synthetic

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of endostar in controlling ascites tumor formation in mice.

METHODSMouse models bearing ascites tumors were established via intraperitoneal injection of H22 and S180 cell lines. Eighty-eight ICR mice were randomly assigned into 4 groups, namely the control group (0.9% normal saline) and 3 endostar groups with 8 mg/kg endostar administration daily, every other day or every two days. The peritoneal membrane permeability of the mice was assessed using Evan blue staining. The body weight curve of mice was drawn, and the cumulative ascites volume and number of red cells and tumor cells in the malignant ascites were determined. The survival of the mice was evaluated to assess the therapeutic effect of endostar.

RESULTSCompared with the control group, the mice receiving daily endostar injection showed obviously lower ascites accumulation and peritoneal capillary permeability (P<0.05) with reduced count of ascites tumor cells and red cells and tumor burden of the abdominal cavity. The mice with daily endostar injection also showed longer survival than the control group.

CONCLUSIONSContinuous intraperitoneal injection can be the optimal means for endostar administration for treatment of malignant ascites.

Animals ; Carcinoma, Ehrlich Tumor ; blood supply ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Endostatins ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred ICR ; Neovascularization, Pathologic ; Recombinant Proteins ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use

OBJECTIVETo observe different effects of moxibustion on extracellular potassium ion in acupoint under physiological and pathological status and provide experimental evidence for exploring action mechanism of moxibustion on acupoint local.

METHODSForty female SD rats were randomly divided into a blank group, a blank-moxibustion group, a model group and a model-moxibustion group, 10 cases in each one. The complete Freund's adjuvant(CFA) was adopted to establish model of adjuvant arthritis (AA) in the model group and model-moxibustion group. No treatment was given in the blank group and model group while moxibustion was applied at "Zusan-li" (ST 36) for 30 min in the blank-moxibustion group and model-moxibustion group. The tissue fluid in "Zusanli" (ST 36) was collected with microdialysis and real-time analyzed by electrolytic analyzer. The change of concentration of potassium ion in "Zusanli" (ST 36) was observed.

RESULTS(1) Under physiological status, the concentration of extracellular potassium ion in the blank group was not changed within 150 min (P > 0.05); before the moxibustion, the concentration of extracellular potassium ion in the blank-moxibustion group was (1.21 +/- 0.31) mmol/L, and after treatment it was gradually increased and reached its peak at (2.38 +/- 0.42) mmol/L after 60 min (P < 0.05), then it was reduced. 150 min after the treatment, concentration of potassium ion was slightly higher than that before moxibustion as well as that in the blank group. The concentration in the blank-moxibustion group at 60 min was statistically significant compared with that in the blank group (P < 0.05). (2) Under pathological status, the concentration of extracellular potassium ion in the model group was not changed within 150 min, differences of which at each time point was not statistically significant (all P > 0.05). Before the moxibustion, the concentration of extracellular potassium ion was (1.09 +/- 0.12) mmol/L in the model-moxibustion group, and it was immediately increased to (1.96 +/- 0.18) mmol/L after moxibustion. 60 min and 90 min after the moxibustion, it still maintained a higher level, which was (1.87 +/- 0.29) mmol/L and (1.59 +/- 0.16) mmol/L respectively (both P < 0.05). The differences of each time point after moxibustion in the model-moxibustion group were statistically significant compared with those in the model group (all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe moxibustion could increase the concentration of potassium ion in rat's acupoint local under physiological status but time of effect is short; with moxibustion at "Zusanli" (ST 36) under pathological status, the concentration of local potassium ion is obviously increased and maintains for a long time.

Acupuncture Points ; Animals ; Arthritis, Experimental ; metabolism ; therapy ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Humans ; Moxibustion ; Potassium ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a common preventable and treatable disease, is characterized by airflow limitation that is usually progressive and associated with an enhanced chronic inflammatory response in the airways. Its main pathological manifestations include airway inflammation, mucus hypersecretion, oxidative stress and apoptotic epithelial cells. Recent research suggests that MAP kinases and Keap1-Nrf2-ARE signaling pathway are involved in the pathological process of inflammation and oxidative stress. This review explores the potential role of the cross talk of these signaling pathways in airway inflammation, mucus hypersecretion, oxidative stress and apoptotic epithelial cells. To clarify the roles of cross talk between MAP kinases and Keap1-Nrf2-ARE signaling pathway, we also focus on the drugs related to that in the treatment of COPD, and it provides ideas for more drug research in the treatment of COPD.
Apoptosis ; Epithelial Cells ; cytology ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; Kelch-Like ECH-Associated Protein 1 ; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; NF-E2-Related Factor 2 ; Oxidative Stress ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive ; metabolism ; Respiratory System ; Signal Transduction

In this study, wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), tomato lectin (TL) and asparagus pea lectin (AL) were covalently coupled to conventional poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles using a carbodiimide method to take the bioadhesive properties. The influences of the amounts of activating agents and lectins, as well as the activating time and incubating time on the effect of lectin conjugating were investigated to optimize the preparation conditions. The mean diameters of the performed nanoparticles with or without lectin conjugation ranged from (140.7 +/- 5.7) nm to (245.6 +/- 18.3) nm. The yields of lectin conjugating and the lectin surface concentrations on nanoparticles were determined by Lowry's methods, and were calculated to be (18.97 +/- 2.9)% - (20.15 +/- 2.4)% and (9.46 +/- 1.45)--(10.05 +/- 1.19) microg x mg(-1), respectively. The in vitro bioadhesive activities of nanoparticles were evaluated by pig gastric mucin (PM) binding experiments. After incubation at room temperature for 60 min, the equilibria of binding between nanoparticles and PM reached. The percentages of the bulk PM which had interacted with different lectin-conjugated PLGA nanoparticles were 15.5%, 12.1% and 11.8%, respectively. The conjugation of lectin enhanced the interaction about 2.4 - 3.2 fold compared with that of the non-conjugated one. A mathematical model was used based on the Langmuir equation, and the rate constants of interaction (k) were calculated to be 2.373 x 10(-3), 1.536 x 10(-3) and 1.714 x 10(-3) (microg x min/mL)(-1), respectively. These interactions could be competitively inhibited by their corresponding sugars of lectins. The results suggested that lectin-conjugated PLGA nanoparticles greatly promoted the interaction with PM in vitro compared with the conventional PLGA nanoparticles, thus would improve the bioadhesion on gastrointestinal mucosa after oral administration resulting in a prolonged residence time in the gastrointestinal tract.
Adhesiveness ; Drug Carriers ; Drug Compounding ; Drug Delivery Systems ; Gastric Mucins ; metabolism ; Lactic Acid ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Nanoparticles ; Plant Lectins ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Polyglycolic Acid ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Protein Binding ; Wheat Germ Agglutinins ; chemistry ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate the mixed infection and analyze risk factors in children with severe adenovirus pneumonia.

METHODSA retrospective analysis was performed on the clinical data of 756 children with adenovirus pneumonia between June 2009 and June 2011. Pathogens and risk factors were studied in 216 severe cases.

RESULTSOf the 216 severe cases, 138 (63.9%) were aged from 6 months to 2 years, and 161 (74.5%) developed the disease in the winter and spring; 177 (81.9%) were affected by 1-4 pathogens besides adenovirus, including 74 cases (34.3%) infected with one pathogen as an addition. A total of 334 pathogen strains were identified from the respiratory secretions and sera of the 216 cases. Of them, 163 (48.8%) were bacterial strains, dominated by Gram-negative bacteria (124 strains), 108 (32.3%) were viral strains, and 40 (12.0%) were fungal strains. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that congenital heart disease, congenital airway abnormalities, nutritional anemia, recurrent pulmonary infection, and surgical history were the independent risk factors for severe adenovirus pneumonia in children, with odds ratios of 3.3, 11.1, 7.2, 14.3 and 12.9 respectively (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSSevere adenovirus pneumonia is mostly seen in children aged from 6 months to 2 years and occurs frequently in the winter and spring. Many cases are also infected with other pathogens, most commonly Gram-negative bacteria. Congenital heart disease, congenital airway abnormalities, nutritional anemia, recurrent pulmonary infection and surgical history are the independent risk factors for severe adenovirus pneumonia in children.

Adenoviridae Infections ; epidemiology ; etiology ; microbiology ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Coinfection ; epidemiology ; microbiology ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Pneumonia, Viral ; microbiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Seasons

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the prognostic factors in treating primary liver cancer (PLC) patients by Pi-strengthening and qi-regulating method (PSQRM), thus providing evidence and optimizing Pi-strengthening and qi-regulating program.

METHODSClinical data of 151 PLC patients treated by PSQRM at Oncology Department, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from May 2007 to March 2009 were retrospectively analyzed. The univariate analysis was determined to analyze possible prognostic factors. Selected key factors were introduced into the COX proportional hazard model, and multivariate analysis was carried out.

RESULTSThe 1-year survival rate was 21.85%, the median survival time was 6.80 months, and the mean survival time was 8.98 months. The univariate analysis showed that Chinese medicine (CM) syndrome types, clinical symptoms at the initial diagnosis, ascites, tumor types, ratios of foci, portal vein tumor thrombus, intrahepatic metastasis, a-fetoprotein (AFP) levels, total bilirubin classification, albumin classification, Child-Pugh classification, and domestic staging of liver cancer were significant prognostic factors (P < 0.05). The statistic data of multivariate analysis indicated that CM syndrome types, ascites, tumor types, portal vein tumor thrombus, AFP levels, Child-Pugh classification, and domestic staging of liver cancer were independent factors influencing prognosis (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe prognosis of PLC treated with PSQRM is determined by multiple factors including CM syndrome types, ascites, tumor types, portal vein tumor thrombus, AFP levels, Child-Pugh classification, and domestic staging of liver cancer.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; epidemiology ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; therapy ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome

Purpose: Sleep quality was considered a priority concern facing pregnant women. Conventional wisdom argues that good sleep quality benefits pregnant women and their fetuses. The aim of this study is to assess the effects of a specific exercise program on the　sleep quality in pregnant women. Methods: Searches were executed in seven databases since their inceptions until February 28, 2019, for randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of an exercise program on the sleep quality and insomnia in pregnant women. A random-effects model was applied for meta-analysis, and odds ratio, mean differences (MDs), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are shown as parts of outcomes. Results: Seven studies were included for meta-analysis. Compared with their not-exercising counterparts, analyses showed that regularly exercising women had significantly enhanced sleep quality, with an odds ratio of 6.21 (95% CI, 2.02–19.11;p = .001; I2 = 80.2%), with a standardized MD of −0.93 (95% CI, −1.19 to −0.67; p < .001; I2 = 30.0%). However, exercising women showed no significant insomnia improvement, with an standardized MD of −2.85 (95% CI, −7.67 to 1.98; p = .250; I2 = 97.0%), relative to their not-exercising counterparts. Conclusion This research indicated that exercise has a positive impact on the sleep quality of pregnant women. Despite the aforementioned positive impact on sleep quality, the present study did not find evidence to support that exercise may also improve insomnia for pregnant women.