Objective To investigate the antidepressed effects of the extract of Hypericum perforatum with enriched flavonoids. Methods The forced swimming test( FST) , tail suspension test( TST) , open field activity( OFA) test and reserpine- induced hypothermia test were carried out to determine the antidepressant activity in mice. Mice immobility duration in FST and TST , spontaneous activity frequency in OFA , and body temperature decrease in reserpine antagonistic test were observed.Results Extract at the dosages of 40, 80, 160 and 240 mg/kg dosage except the dosage of 20 mg/kg, could significantly shorten mice immobility time in FST and TST.Extract could reduce mice spontaneous activity frequency to some degree in OFA. Compared with the model group, extract at the dosages of 30, 60 and 120 mg/kg could remarkably inhibit the decrease of body temperature in reserpine antagonistic test at 3rd, 4th and 5th hour, so did the extract at the dosages of 240 and 480 mg/kg. Conclusion Extract of Hypericum perforatum with enriched flavonoids (free of hyperforin) exerts an antidepressant activity in animal models.

Objective To study the relationship of expression of central cortex glucocorticoid receptor (GR) at protein level with GR expression in the liver at protein level and with changes of serum cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) following severe closed traumatic brain injury (TBI) in mice. Methods Severe TBI was established in awake mice by using a BIM-Ⅲ biomechanical machine. At 0.5, 2, 8, 24, 48 and 72 hours after TBI, the total cytosolic GR in the cortex and liver were detected with Western blotting. Levels of serum ACTH and cortisol were measured by ELISA technique and radio-immunological assay (RIA) respectively. Results The expression of GR both in the cortex and liver were obviously down-regulated at protein levels at 2-72 hours after TBI and increased slowly eight hours after injury. The GR in the liver showed no recovery at 72 hours after injury and that in the cortex was decreased continually at 24 hours after injury. Serum ACTH and cortisol levels were increased markedly compared with control group, when there were two different peaks in the observation curve.Conclusion There is glucocorticoid resistance both in the central and peripheral tissues after severe closed TBI in the awake mice, which changes in a time-dependent manner.

BACKGROUND: Cervical sympathetic ganglia block accelerates the re covery of the homeostasis of organic nervous-endocrine-immune system, butit is still unclear whether it can suppress the imbalance of homeostasis in duced by post-traumatic stress disorder. OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of cervical sympathetic ganglia blockon the mortality of mice with combined radiation and burn injury, andwhether it can become an easy and effective method to treat secondarydamage after serious trauma. DESIGN: A randomized grouping design, an animal controlled experiment. SETTING: Department of Anesthesiology, Guangzhou General Hospital, Guangzhou Military Area Command of Chinese PLA.MATERIALS: The experiments were carried out in the Institute of Combined Injury, the Third Military Medical University of Chinese PLA between February 2004 and July 2005. Totally 160 Kunming mice were randomly divided into control group (n=50) and cervical sympathetic ganglia block group (n=50). In the control group, the mice were only induced to models of combined radiation and bum injury, and treated with injection of 0.3 mL saline at cervical part. In the cervical sympathetic ganglia block group, the mice were induced to models of combined radiation and burn injury, and then treated with cervical sympathetic ganglia block, once a day for 14 days continuously.METHODS: Methods to induce injury in the animals: ① Radiation injury: The mice were given even radiation of 60Coγ ray (5 Gy) at a distance of 1.5 m to the whole body, the rate of absorptive dosage was (5.17-5.33) mGy/s. ② Burn injury: After the radiation injury, coagulated gasoline was smeared on the back and burnt for 8 s to induce degree Ⅲ burn injury of 15% of the total body surface, which was proved by the pathological section. Methods of cervical sympathetic ganglia block: Cervical sympathetic ganglia block was given bilaterally, and then the mice were injected with 0.2 mL lidocaine (5 g/L), and it was observed whether the symptoms similar to Horner syndrome (hyperemia of conjunctiva, drooping eyelid,blushing, smaller eyeslit) occurred or not at 5 minutes after injection.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The mortality at 2, 5, 7, 10, 20 and30 days after injury and the changes of the numbers of red blood cells,white blood cells and blood platelet in peripheral blood at 7, 14 and 21 days after injury were observed in both groups. The effects of cervical sympathetic ganglia block on the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α),interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in serum at 3, 6 and 14days after combined radiation and burn injury were also observed.RESULTS: All the 160 mice were involved in the analysis of results without deletion. ① Compared with the control group, the mortalities at 5,7, 10, 15, 20 and 30 days in the cervical sympathetic ganglia block group were significantly decreased [control group: 8%, 22%, 32%, 54%, 74%,82%, 90%; cervical sympathetic ganglia block group: 8%, 14%, 16%, 22%,28%, 34%, 56%]. ② Compared with the control group, the numbers of red blood cells, white blood cells and blood platelets in peripheral blood at 7,14 and 21 days after injury in the cervical sympathetic ganglia block group were significantly increased [at 21 days: red blood cells: 23.21×1012 L-1, 14.58×1012 L-1; blood platelet: 16.87×1011 L-1, 12.57×1011 L-1; white blood cells: 20.65×109 L-1, 14.58×109 L-1]. ③ The levels of TNF-α, IL-1β andIL-6 in serum at 3, 6 and 14 days after injury in the cervical sympathetic ganglia block group were significantly decreased as compared with those in the control group [at 14 days: TNF-α: 189, 365 ng/L; IL-1β: 14, 23 ng/L;IL-6: 70, 132 ng/L].CONCLUSION: Cervical sympathetic ganglia block can significantly decrease the mortality of animals with combined radiation and burn injury,and it is an easy and effective method to treat serious trauma, and the mechanism may be realized through accelerating the recovery of hematopoietic function and suppressing the excessive inflammatory reaction.

AIM: A new type of unsaturated poly (ester-amide) viz maleic anhydride-phthalic anhydride-propylene glycol-neopentylene glycol-hexane diamine copolymer was prepared by melt polycondensation and characterized.METHODS: To use it as biodegradable bone fixation polymer materials, the flexural strength of unsaturated poly (ester-amide) prepared under different heat treatment conditions was measured after depth cross-linking. The degradation and hydrolysis of the polymer were investigated in phosphate buffer (0.1 mol/L, pH7.4) at 37 ℃ and in 0.1 mol/L NaOH standard solution at room temperature.RESULTS: The results obtained indicate that increasing heat treatment time or temperature can dramatically increase the flexural strength of cross-linked unsaturated poly (ester-amide). The maximum flexural strength of the cross-linked polymer containing 50 wt% of cross-linker was 123 MPa. After degradation 3 months, the flexural strength of the cross-linked polymer that contained 50 wt% of cross-linker and was heated at 195 ℃ for 18 hours could maintain as high as 114.3 MPa.Heat treatment conditions and cross-linker content play an important role to control the mass loss of the cross-linked polymer during the hydrolysis. The polymer exhibits bulk erosion property.CONCLUSION: The preliminary results obtained suggested that the copolymer might be used as bone internal fixation material.

Objective To explore the characteristics and the clinical application of MR perfusion weighted imaging(PWI)in the normal kidneys and the renal diseases.Methods Thirty-one subjects including 9 cases without urinary diseases,14 cases with renal carcinoma,6 cases with renal cyst and 2 cases witll renal tuberculosis who had been examined with T1WI,T2WI and PWI were analyzed retrospectively.All the data were processed by a workstation to obtain time-signal intensity curves,color perfusion maps and relative perfusion value.The relative renal blood volume(RBV),relative renal blood flow(RBF),mean transition time(MTT)and the time to peak(TTP)in the normal renal cortex and medulla and the renal lesions were calculated.Comparisons between the right and the left normal kidneys,and between the cortex and the medulla of the normal kidneys were performed using t test,and comparisons between the normal and the abnormal kidneys were performed using q test.Results Relative RBV and relative RBF of the cortex were 1.33±0.08 and 1.44±0.09 respectively,and for medulla were 0.58±0.05 and 0.78±0.13 respectively(t=9.2241 and 5.0336,P＜0.01);MTT(1.11±0.08)and TTP (1.04±0.06)of the cortex has no difference with that of the medulla(0.97±0.04 and 0.94±0.03)in the normal kidneys(t=2.2551 and 2.2613.P＞0.05).The values of relative RBF of the renal carcinoma (1.35±0.34)were significantly higher than that of the normal tissues(1.02±0.06)(q=3.0882,P＜0.01).Conclusion PWI is able to demonstrate the hemodynamic change of the normal renal tissues and the renal lesions,and it maybe an ideal method for showing the functional changes of the kidney and for differentiating the renal diseases.

AIM: To optimize the technical parameters of total arasaponin'S purification with macroporous resin. METHODS: Conditions for the elution were studies under the conditio n of the content of total arasaponin. RESULTS: The purity of total arasaponin was up to 83.3% after d riing the part of 70% ethanolic elution. CONCLUSION: The method was a good purification for total arasaponi n.

AIM: To establish a method for the quality standard of Chanfukang Granules (Radix Astragali, Herba Leonuri, Fructus Aurantii, Herba Agrimoniae, Radix Rehmanniae, etc.). METHODS: TLC was used for identification of Herba Leonuri, Fructus Aurantii, Herba Agrimoniae, Radix Rehmanniae. The content of astragaloside Ⅳ was determined by HPLC-ELSD. RESULTS: The TLC identification was highly specific and the spots clear and concentrated. The linear range of astragaloside Ⅳ was 0.336-2.016 ?g, r=0.999 4. The average recovery was 97.13% and RSD was 1.3%. CONCLUSION: The method is simple and accurate. It can be used for quality control of Chanfukang Granules.

Objective To investigate the clinical characteristic of laparoscopic cholecystectomy(LC) for elderly patients with gallstone. Methods A retrospective analysis was made on the clinical data of 310 patients over 60 years old with gallstone treated by LC at our hospital from May, 1993 to March, 2001. Results Of the 310 patients, 193 cases (62.9%) were accompanied by diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and/or bronchitis. During the operation, 49(15.8%) in 310 patients with severe adhesion surrounding gallblader which made LC difficultly. 6 turned to operation, other 304 patients had LC succeessfully without serious complication. Conclnsions Despite the general condition, the organism degeneration and function recession, immunity function decrease accompaned with other diseases in the elderly patient, the LC has less injury, less pain and less complications, So LC is the optimal method for the elderly patients with gallston.

Objective To investigate the effects of ginsenoside Rg3 on growth and apoptosis of gastric cancer cell line MKN-45 and SGC-7901 in vitro. Methods MKN-45 and SGC-7901 cells at logarithmic growth phase were obtained, and were cultured with ginsenoside Rg3 of different concentrations (20, 30, 40, 50 μg/mL) for 24, 48 h or 24, 48 and 72 h. Cells cultured without ginsenoside Rg3 were served as controls. The inhibition rates of ginsenoside Rg3 on MKN-45 and SGC-7901 cells were detected by MTT assay, apoptosis rate of SGC-7901 cells was determined by Annexin V/PI double staining flow cytometry, cell cycles of SGC-7901 cells were analysed by flow cytometry, and morphological changes of SGC-7901 cells in 50 μg/mL ginsenoside Rg3 treatment group were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Results The inhibition rates on MKN-45 and SGC-7901 cells in each ginsenoside Rg3 treatment group were significantly higher than those in control group (P < 0.05), and the inhibition rates increased with the concentrations of ginsenoside Rg3 and time of culture ( P < 0.05). Compared with control group, the apoptosis rates of SGC-7901 cells and percentages of cells in G_1/G_1 cell cycle in each ginsenoside Rg3 treatment group were significantly increased in a concentration and time dependent manner. Typical morphology of SGC-7901 cell apoptosis was observed by transmission electron microscopy in 50 μg/mL ginsenoside Rg3 treatment group. Conclusion Ginsenoside Rg3 has significant inhibition effect on gastric cancer cell lines in vitro with a concentration and time dependent manner, the mechanism of which may involve the induction of gastric cell line apoptosis.

Objective To analyze the relationship between the change of serum vascular epidermis growth factor(VEGF) level and curative effect of pancreatic cancer treated by gamma rays, and evaluate it clinical significance. Methods The serum VEGF level of thirty patients with pancreatic cancer treated by gamma rays were determined before and one month after treatment. The relationship between curative effect,survival, life quality and the serum VEGF level was analyzed. Results The serum VEGF level of 30 cases before treatment was (624.1 ± 144.3) pg/ml, whereas one month after treatment it was (279.3 ± 83.4) pg/ml(P ＜0.01 ). In the 19 patient whose serum VEGF level decreased by more than 50%, CR + PR was gained in 18 patients, improved quality of life in 7 patients, and in the 11 patient whose serum VEGF level decreased by less than 50%, CR + PR in 7 patients, improved quality of life in 1 patient( P = 0.012, P = 0. 028). In 24patients who completed 2 years follow-up, 11 of 15 patients whose serum VEGF level decreased by more than 50% survived more than 1 year, which was higher than that of the patients whose serum VEGF level decreased by less than 50%. Conclusions The serum VEGF level decreased significantly after gamma rays treatment and the extent of decrease could be used as a surrogate to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy.