Zanthoxyli Radix is a traditional Chinese medicine. It can be used for the treatment of wind-cold-dampness arthralgia, muscle and bone pain, fall fracture, hernia, sore throat, toothache and other diseases. Due to possessing many excellent and mild pharmacological properties, there are lots of reports about Zanthoxyli Radix worldwide. At present, more than 100 bioactive components have been extracted and purified from Zanthoxyli Radix. Nitidine chloride (NC), one of the most important alkaloids in Zanthoxyli Radix, has the activities of anti-tumor, anti-inflammation, anti-bacteria, etc. In this review, we summarize the chemical components of Zanthoxyli Radix, pharmacological activity and mechanism of action of NC to provide references for further research and utilization of Zanthoxyli Radix.

BACKGROUND: It is quite difficult to produce a decellularized lung scaffold, in which cells are removed and the extracellular matrix components (ECM) are preserved effectively. Perfusion of detergent-enzymes is an effective method with wide applications for decellularized lung scaffolds. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of two detergents (sodium deoxycholate, SDC and sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS) on the preparation of decellularized lung scaffolds. METHODS: Twenty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized into three groups: control group with no intervention, SDC group and SDS group. Decellularized lung scaffolds were prepared by perfusion of SDC or SDS combined with enzymes. The rat lung tissues in the three groups were taken for histological staining, immunofluorescent staining and DNA quantification. A549 cells were cultured and seeded onto the decellularized lung scaffolds for 7 days followed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. The decellularized lung scaffolds prepared by perfusion of SDC or SDS were subcutaneously implanted into the rat back, and the implants were retrieved and assessed by Masson staining after 2 weeks. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: In the control group, there were abundant cells in the lung tissues. In the other two groups, the decellularized lung scaffolds were nearly transparent, and the morphology of the SDC scaffold was more close to the native lung. There were no residual cells and nuclei on the two scaffolds, and the DNA content in the SDS and SDC groups was significantly lower than that in the control group (P＜ 0.01). At 7 days of culture, A549 cells cultured on the SDS and SDC scaffolds migrated from the edge to the center of the scaffold. Comparatively speaking, the migration ability of A549 cells on the SDC scaffolds was stronger, and there was obvious cell invasion and growth in the middle part of the lung. After 2 weeks of scaffold transplantation, the SDC implants poorly fused with the surrounding tissues, with a clear boundary, a large number of infiltrating cells distributed evenly, and intravascular blood cells were clearly visible; the number of new blood vessels with larger diameter in the SDC scaffold was significantly higher than that in the SDS scaffold. These findings indicate that the SDC scaffold has better biocompatibility than the SDS scaffold, which can fuse with the surrounding tissues faster and produce more infiltrating cells and new blood vessels.

OBJECTIVEChronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a rare primary immunodeficiency of phagocytic oxidative bursts leading to recurrent severe bacterial and fungal infections as well as granuloma formation. There were few reports on the clinical characteristics of this disease in China. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical features of 48 Chinese cases with CGD which were confirmed by clinical features, dihydrorhodamine (DHR) assay and gene mutation analysis.

METHODThe study cohort was the population of CGD patients diagnosed in Children's Hospital of Fudan University from January, 2004, to June, 2011. Cases included in our analysis were restricted to those who had complete data of the clinical symptoms and laboratory tests. The patients were followed up by outpatient visiting and telephone call regularly for 0.5 to 6 years. The history and data of physical examination and treatment of 48 cases were collected and reviewed.

RESULTAll the patients were diagnosed by DHR analysis. The age of onset of all the 48 patients were less than 6 months, including 43 male and 5 female. The mean age at diagnosis was 2.42 years; 12 patients were infants under six months, 10 were between 6 and 12 months, 9 were between 1 and 2 years, 5 patients were between 2 and 3 years, 4 were between 4 and 5 years, and 8 were between 6 and 10 years. Recurrent respiratory infection (44/48) and chronic diarrhea (31/48) were the common symptoms in all the patients, and then skin lesion (22/48), including marked reaction at BCG infected site, pustular eruption and infected skin ulcer and urinary tract infection (3/48) were also general symptoms in our study. In addition, lymphadenectasis occurred in 31 cases and 23 of them were considered to be associated with BCG vaccination. The pathogens caused the infection were mycobacteria (52.08%), fungi (43.75%) and pyogenic bacteria. Thirty-seven patients had mutations in CYBB/CYBA/NCF1/NCF2 genes. Recombinant human interferon-gamma (rhIFN-γ) plus sulfamethoxazole were used for the prevention and treatment of infection, the frequency and severity of the disease could be reduced.

CONCLUSIONThe age at onset and diagnosis of the present group of CGD was younger. Clinical symptoms were associated with recurrent mycobacterial, fungal and pyogenic bacterial infection, which involved respiratory tract, alimentary tract, skin and lymph node. rhIFN-γ partially improved the prognosis of CGD.

Bacterial Infections ; epidemiology ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Gastrointestinal Diseases ; epidemiology ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Granulomatous Disease, Chronic ; complications ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Humans ; Infant ; Interferon-gamma ; therapeutic use ; Lung Diseases ; epidemiology ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Male ; Mutation ; Mycobacterium Infections ; epidemiology ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Recombinant Proteins ; Retrospective Studies ; Skin Diseases ; epidemiology ; etiology ; prevention & control

The incidence and mortality of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer are increasing year by year, which are causing massive social and financial burdens around the world. An increasing number of investigations indicate the possibility of COPD transforming into lung cancer. The pathogenesis of these two diseases have some common aspects, such as epithelial-mesenchymal transition, chronic inflammation, DNA damage, impaired immune system, oxidative stress and tumor angiogenesis, which are heavily complicated. This review summarizes the epidemiological connection between COPD and lung cancer, the molecular-level transformation mechanism as well as the therapeutic strategy. Exploring the transformation mechanism and related signaling pathway of COPD to lung cancer can contribute to block the risk factors for the transformation and provide guidance for the novel drug development and drug therapy.

non-coding RNA (ncRNA) is a kind of non-protein coding RNA, which plays a vital role in the initiation and development of tumor. The immune system also exhibits more complex function in tumor development. It can not only inhibit the development of tumor, but also create conditions for tumor growth. As an important means of tumor therapy, tumor immunotherapy can be regulated by non-coding RNA to achieve the goal of treatment. This article summarizes the regulation of tumor immunity by non-coding RNA.

Snow lotus is a medicinal plant with a wide range of pharmacological activities. It has been used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, cough with cold, stomach ache, dysmenorrhea, and altitude sickness in traditional medicine. This review summarizes the bioactive components in six species of snow lotus including flavonoids, lignans, phenolic compounds, phenylpropanoids, and sesquiterpenes present in Saussurea involucrate (SI), Saussurea obvallata (SO), Saussurea laniceps (SL), Saussurea medusa (SM), Saussurea stella (SS) and Saussurea tridactyla (ST). We review the pharmacological and related molecular mechanisms by which these components exert antineoplastic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects and promote lipid catabolism, and provide a reference for the future study of the traditional Chinese medicinal chemistry and pharmacological activities of snow lotus.

This research explored the synergistic effects and the mechanism of parthenolide (PTL) and vorinostat (suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid, SAHA) on the proliferation of A549 non-small cell lung cancer cells. The combination effect of PTL and SAHA was detected by cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) and colony formation assays. Scratch test was performed to detect cell migration. Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate isomer/propidium iodide (FITC/PI) flow cytometry and Western blot analyses were used to determine cell apoptosis and its mechanism. The results showed that combination of PTL and SAHA inhibited the proliferation and migration of A549 with a synergistic effect compared to the single-drug groups. The combination of PTL and SAHA had synergistic effect to induce cell apoptosis by regulating p53 and c-myc pathways, and affected the expression levels of poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP), cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase (caspase)-9, and caspase-3. Taken together, this study shows that combination of PTL and SAHA has synergistic effect, induces cell apoptosis and inhibits A549 proliferation, which is likely to be a novel strategy for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer.

BackgroundRecent advances in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) have led to increasing interest in its use during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). However, decisions regarding extracorporeal CPR (ECPR) in children are difficult as a result of limited studies, especially in Asia Pacific. The objective of this study was to investigate trends in survival and demographic details for children with ECPR in Asia Pacific recorded in the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) registry from 1999 to 2016 and identify the risk factors associated with in-hospital mortality.

MethodsThe data of children younger than 18 years of age who received ECPR over the past 18 years in Asia Pacific were retrospectively analyzed. The data were extracted from the ELSO registry and divided into two 9-year groups (Group 1: 1999-2007 and Group 2: 2008-2016) to assess temporal changes using univariate analysis. Then, univariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed between survivors and nonsurvivors to identify factors independently associated with in-hospital mortality.

ResultsA total of 321 children were included in final analysis, with an overall survival rate of 50.8%. Although survival rates were similar between Group 1 and Group 2 (43.1% vs. 52.5%, χ = 1.67, P = 0.196), the median age (1.7 [0.3, 19.2] months for Group 1 vs. 5.6 [0.8, 64.9] months for Group 2, t = -2.93, P = 0.003) and weight (3.7 [3.0, 11.5] kg for Group 1 vs. 6.0 [3.4, 20.3] kg for Group 2, t = -3.14, P = 0.002) of children increased over time, while the proportion of congenital heart disease (75.9% for Group 1 vs. 57.8% for Group 2, χ = 6.52, P = 0.011) and cardiogenic shock (36.2% for Group 1 vs. 7.2% for Group 2, χ = 36.59, P < 0.001) decreased. Patient conditions before ECMO were worse, while ECMO complications decreased across time periods, especially renal complications. Multiple logistic regression analysis of ECMO complications showed that disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), myocardial stunning, and neurological complications were independently associated with increased odds of hospital mortality.

ConclusionsThe broader indications and decreased complication rates make EPCR to be applicated more and more extensive in children in Asia Pacific region. ECMO complications such as myocardial stunning are independently associated with decreased survival.

Asia ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; methods ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Registries ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Survival Rate ; Time Factors

We investigated the inhibitory effect and mechanism of action of bruceantin (BCT) on the proliferation, invasion and migration of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. The cytotoxic activity of BCT was measured by MTT assay; a colony forming assay, wound healing assay, and a Transwell assay were used to investigate the anti-proliferative, anti-migration, and anti-invasion effects, respectively; immunoblotting and RT-qPCR were used to detect the expression of related proteins, miRNA, and mRNA, respectively, that were involved in cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. Two gene prediction websites were used to predict the downstream target gene of miRNA. Our results show that BCT has a potent cytotoxic effect on NSCLC cell lines, with a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) of BCT against H1299, PC-9, and A549 of 0.12 ± 0.02, 0.31 ± 0.20, and 2.07 ± 0.70 μmol·L^-1, respectively. When H1299 cells were treated with 0.03, 0.15, and 0.75 μmol·L^-1 BCT for 24 h, the proliferation, migration, and invasive ability were inhibited in a concentration-dependent manner. It is worth noting that the expression level of miRNAs related to cell migration and invasion, such as miR-29a-3p, miR-21-3p, miR-183-5p, and miR-34b-5p increased with the concentration of BCT, especially for miR-29a-3p. Using the two gene prediction websites, we predict that integrin β1 (ITGB1) may be the target gene of miR-29a-3p; immunoblot results further show that a variety of proteins related to cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, such as various proteins of the integrin family, β-catenin, p-Src, and vascular endothelial growth factor, all decreased in a concentration-dependent manner, among which the reduction of ITGB1 protein was the most obvious. RT-qPCR results showed that there was no change in ITGB1 mRNA expression. We speculate that BCT might inhibit the expression of ITGB1 protein by up-regulating miR-29a-3p independent of its mRNA level. The in-depth mechanism needs to be further explored. This study suggests that BCT has the potential for further development in the treatment of NSCLC.