Since the first reported case of swine influenza A in Mexico,a total of 15 510 cases have been confirmed in 53 countries by May 29,2009.On April 29,2009,the World Health Organization(WHO)raised its pandemic alert from grade 4 to grade 5.The virus is described as a new subtype of A/H1N1 and is not detected in pigs or humans previously.The virus is sensitive to oseltamivir and zanamivir,but resistant to amantadine and rimantadine.The genetics of the virus are so novel that humans are unlikely to have much immunity to it.The virus can transmit from human to human;therefore it is necessary to enforce quarantine measure for close contactors because the virus transmits during latency.Precaution methods like covering noses and mouths with a tissue when coughing or sneezing can reduce the transmission opportunity.Hands should be washed frequently with soap,especially after coughing or sneezing.Public places with ventilation conditions,personal health behavior and health condition are critical for the prevention and control of this epidemic.

Objective To investigate the relationship between corneal basal nerve change and type 2 diabetic retinopathy based on confocal laser microscopy.Methods Together 118 patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) were collected in our hospital from February 2016 to February 2017,including 57 patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR group) and 61 patients without DR (NDR group).For comparison,60 healthy volunteers were selected as the control group.And all the subjects were examined by corneal confocal laser microscopy to analyze the relationship between the morphological parameters of the corneal nerve and clinical variables.Results Corneal nerve fiber density,corneal nerve branch density and corneal nerve branch length in DR group were (20.03 ±4.22) · mm-2,(22.01 ± 7.05) · mm-2 and (9.50 ± 1.76) mm ·mm-2,significantly less than those of the control group and NDR group (all P ＜ 0.05);and corneal nerve fiber curvature was (0.30 ± 0.03),significantly higher than that of the control group and NDR group (all P ＜ 0.05);In DR patients,phase Ⅲ patients had smaller the corneal nerve fiber density,corneal nerve branch density and corneal nerve branch length,but the larger corneal nerve fiber curvature than the phase Ⅰ and Ⅱ patients (all P ＜ 0.05);course of disease of DR group was (12.04 ± 2.48) years,which was significantly higher than that of NDR group (P ＜ 0.05),while fasting C peptide and fasting insulin were (1.41 ± 0.58) μg · L-1 and (20.05 ± 7.91) mU · L-1,respectively,significantly lower than those of NDR group (all P ＜ 0.05);The duration of T2D was negatively correlated with the corneal nerve branch density and corneal nerve branch length (r =-0.322,-0.317,all P ＜0.05);Fasting C peptide was positively correlated with the corneal nerve branch density (r =0.298,P ＜ 0.05),and negatively correlated with the corneal nerve curvature (r =-0.311,P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Patients with T2D retinopathy have abnormal morphology of corneal nerve.And confocal laser scanning microscopy is conducive to the early detection of microvascular disease in T2D patients with a longer course of disease or a low level of fasting C peptide.

Pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, clinical study and safety of dapagliflozin in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus were reviewed in the paper. As a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, dapagliflozin can reduce HbA1c, FPG and body weight of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The main adverse reaction is genital infection. The antihypertensive effect of dapagliflo-zin is still under study at present.

Objective To observe the effect of recombinant human mannose-binding lectin (RhMBL)on the expression of Bcl-2 and p53 gene in thyroid cancer cell lines.Methods Two kinds of thyroid cancer cell lines( K1 cells and FTC-133 cells) were dealed with different concentrations of rhMBL( control group:0 mg/L;experimental group:1 mg/L),then total protein was extracted to detect the expression of Bcl-2 and p53 by Western Blot.Results The expression level of p53 and Bcl-2 were observed to be obviously down-regulated after incubation with RhMBL.( 1 ) K1 cells:There was significant difference on the expression of p53 and Bcl-2 between control group and experimental group [ p53:( 1.51 ± 0.29) vs (0.74 ±0.07),t =7.63 ; P =0.040;Bcl-2:( 1.20 ± 0.07 ) vs ( 0.59 ± 0.04 ),t =6.28,P =0.001 ] ; ( 2 ) FTC-133 cells:there was also significant difference on the expression of p53 and Bcl-2 between control group and experimental group [ p53:( 0.88 ±0.14) vs(0.35 ±0.08),t =3.29,P=0.003; Bcl-2:(1.07±0.11) vs (0.33 ±0.06),t =5.73,P=0.000 ].Conclusion Bcl-2 and p53 may play an important role on the induction of thyroid cancer cell apoptosis and inhibition its proliferation by RhMBL.

We reviewed the metabolic studies on flavonoids of Radix Scutellariae, and found that intestinal flora has played a very important role in the metabolism on Radix Scutellariae. This provided the theoretical basis for studying the bioavailability and metabolic characteristics of Radix Scutellariae.

Objective To describe and analyze the clinical and laboratory findings in a group of children diagnosed with scleroderma at Beijing Children's Hospital in the last 10 years.Methods The clinical charts of children with scleroderma in the Rheumatology Department at Beijing Children's Hospital,between January 2002 and October 2013 were reviewed.All of them fulfilled the classification criteria for juvenile sclerodema,both systemic scleroderma (SSc) and localized scleroderma (LS) types.T test was used for comparison between the two groups.Results Forty-six patients were enrolled and were diagnosed as scleroderma.Seven patients(15％) suffered from SSc and 39 patients(85％) were LS.Mean age-at-onset of LS was (5±4) years old.The male to female ratio was 1.2:1.Mean age-at-onset of SSc was (9±4) years old.All patients were female.The lesions found in LS were linear scleroderma (54％),mixed morphea (36％),generalized morphea (8％),and panclerotic morphea (3％).Twenty-six patients had internal organs involved.Three patients with nerve system involvement was found in en coup de sabre (ECDS).Systemic involvement included lung and gastrointestinal tract primarily.The heart,nerve system,kidney,eye involvement was also found.One girl had SSc combined with renal crisis.Antinuclear antibodies were positive in 77％ of LS patients and 100％ of SSc patients.Rheumatic factor was positive in 6 patients (15％),5 patients had joint involvement.Tests for anti-Scl-70 antibodies were positive in 5 (71％) patients with SSc.The most common drugs used were methotrexate and prednisone.Conclusion In this study,LS is common in children.SSc is more severe than LS.Multi-center and large sample study is needed to know the characteristics of juvenile scleroderma in China.

PURPOSE: Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) has been well-documented to induce liver injury. miRNA-222-3p (miR-222-3p) was implicated in SEB-induced lung injury and several liver injuries. This study aimed to explore the role of miR-222-3p in SEB-induced liver injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Expression of miR-222-3p and suppressors of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) was detected using real-time quantitative PCR and western blot. Liver injury was determined by levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and inflammatory cytokines, numbers of infiltrating mononuclear cells using AST/ALT assay kit, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and hematoxylin-eosin staining, respectively. Target binding between miR-222-3p and SOCS1 was predicted on targetScan software, and confirmed by luciferase reporter assay. RESULTS: SEB induced liver injury in D-galactosamine (D-gal)-sensitized mice, as demonstrated by increased serum levels of AST and ALT, elevated release of interferon-gamma (INF-γ), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-2, and promoted infiltrating immune cells into liver. Expression of miR-222-3p was dramatically upregulated, and SOCS1 was downregulated in SEB-induced liver injury both in mice and splenocytes. Moreover, miR-222-3p knockout (KO) mice exhibited alleviated liver injury accompanied with SOCS1 upregulation. Besides, splenocytes under SEB challenge released less INF-γ, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-2 during miR-222-3p knockdown. Mechanically, SOCS1 was targeted and downregulated by miR-222-3p. Upregulation of SOCS1 attenuated INF-γ, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-2 release in SEB-induced splenocytes; downregulation of SOCS1 could block the suppressive role of miR-222-3p knockdown in SEB-induced splenocytes. CONCLUSION: Inhibition of miR-222-3p relieves SEB-induced liver inflammatory injury by upregulating SOCS1, thereby providing the first evidence of miR-222-3p in SEB-induced liver injury.
Alanine Transaminase ; Animals ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; Blotting, Western ; Cytokines ; Down-Regulation ; Enterotoxins ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Interferon-gamma ; Interleukin-2 ; Interleukin-6 ; Liver ; Luciferases ; Lung Injury ; Mice ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; Up-Regulation

[ ABSTRACT] AIM:To investigate the effects of Chaihu Shugan powder ( CSP) on lipid metabolism and the pro-teins involved in adenosine 5’-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK)/sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) pathway in the liver tissues of the rats with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).METHODS: Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly di-vided into normal control ( NC) group, with HFD ( HFD) group and CSP group.The NAFLD models were established by feeding with HFD for 16 weeks in the rats.The rats in CSP group were intragastrically administered with CSP extracts (9.6 g· kg-1 · d-1 ) , and blood and liver samples were collected 16 weeks later.Serum and liver levels of total cholesterol ( TC) and triglyceride ( TG) , and serum levels of alanine aminotransferase ( ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase ( AST) were measured using an automatic biochemical analyzer.The histological changes of liver tissues were observed with HE staining, while the lipid deposition was observed with Oil Red O staining.The ultrastructural changes of the liver tissues were observed under transmission electron microscope.Moreover, the protein levels of AMPK, phosphorylated AMPK (pAMPK), SIRT1 and uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) in the liver were detected by Western blot.RESULTS:The results of HE staining, Oil Red O staining and electron microscopy demonstrated that NAFLD rat model was successfully estab-lished.Compared with NC group, the serum and liver levels of TC and TG, and serum level of AST in model group were markedly elevated ( P<0.01) .Moreover, the protein levels of pAMPK and SIRT1 in HFD group were markedly reduced (P<0.01), whereas UCP2 level was elevated (P<0.01).Furthermore, liver levels of TC and TG, and serum level of AST in GSP group were markedly reduced as compared with HFD group ( P<0.05 ) .The protein levels of pAMPK and SIRT1 were elevated ( P<0.05 ) , whereas the UCP2 level was reduced as compared with HFD group ( P<0.01 ) .The protein level of AMPK between the 3 groups had no significant difference.CONCLUSION: CSP attenuates hepatic lipid disorder and hepatic lipid deposition in NAFLD rats induced by feeding with HFD for 16 weeks, which is associated with the activation of AMPK/SIRT1 pathway.

To summarise Professor WANG Xixing's experience in treating brain tumour from emotions and minds. Professor WANG regarded abnormal emotions and minds as the key to the treatment of brain tumor. Emotions and minds internal damage lead to malfunction of the five zang organs， resulting in phlegm， stasis， dampness， toxicity and other pathogenic qi gathering in the brain and developing into brain tumour. The treatment advocated regulating qi of the five zang organs and dispelling phlegm， blood stasis， dampness and toxins at the same time. The brain tumour is classified into four syndromes： heart-spleen deficiency， liver depression and spleen deficiency， failure of the heart and kidney to interact， and liver-kidney yin deficiency， with Guipi Yangshen Decoction （归脾养神汤） to fortify the spleen and nourish the heart， Guishao Shunzhi Decoction （归芍顺志汤） to soothe the liver and fortify the spleen， Liangui Tongshen Decoction （连桂通神汤） to restore interaction between the heart and the kidney， and Zishui Qingmu Huashen Decoction （滋水清木化神汤） to nourish the kidney and clear liver. At the same time， it was emphasised that the patient's emotional changes should be paid attention to， and psychological guidance should be given at the right time， so as to overcome the disease with emotions and mind.

Objective:Based on the specific cleavage and non-specific "trans-cleavage" activities of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated protein(CRISPR/Cas13), we established a visually amplification-free rapid detection technique of 2019-nCoV nucleic acid. This technique is easily processed with a low detection limit and good specificity.Methods:According to the 2019-nCoV gene sequence, specific CRISPR RNAs were screened and designed by bioinformatics analysis, and then synthesized as universal signal-strained RNA transcription targets in vitro to establish and optimize the reaction system. Moreover, the 2019-nCoV pseudoviral nucleic acid was used as a standard substance to evaluate the detection limit. A total of 65 positive samples were collected from various 2019-nCoV variants, while 48 negative samples included other clinically common respiratory pathogens, such as influenza A virus, influenza B virus, human parainfluenza virus, Klebsiella pneumonia, etc. All samples were tested by quantitative PCR (qPCR), digital PCR, and the method established in this study. The sensitivity and specificity of the newly established method were analyzed and evaluated. Results:With the newly established technique, the detection time for 2019-nCoV nucleic acid could be minimized to 6 minutes. In addition, the detection limit was 14 copies/μl when assisted by the displaying instrument, whereas it increased to 28 copies/μl with the naked eye. This technique had a sensitivity and specificity of 98.5% (66/67) and 100% (46/46) respectively, showing no statistically significant difference compared to the gold standard qPCR( P=1). Conclusions:This study has successfully established a CRISPR/Cas13a-based visually rapid detection technique for 2019-nCoV nucleic acid. This technique offers the advantages of a simple process, convenient operation, low environmental operating requirements, a detection limit close to qPCR, and a strong potential for on-site testing applications.