Objective To investigate the effect of plasma erythropoietin ( EPO) concentration on left ventricular systolic function and its relationship with acute mountain sickness ( AMS ) .Methods A total of 289 healthy young men were recruited in this study and divided into five groups:plain control group (Ⅰ) with 55 subjects;acute high altitude exposure group(Ⅱ) with 74 subjects(3700 m exposure for 24 h); the group of acute exposure after acclimatization (Ⅲ) with 68 subjects(4400 m exposure for 24 h after 1 week acclimatization at 3700 m); high altitude migrate group (Ⅳ) with 19 subjects ( migration to 3700 m for more than 1 year ); and the group of exposure after migration (Ⅴ) with 73 subjects (4400 m exposure for 50 d after more than one year migration to 3700 m).Lake Louise Self-assessment Scoring System ( LLSS) was used to assess AMS .Plasma concentrations of EPO and echocardiography were also determined .Results EPO was significantly increased after acute high altitude exposure .There was no significant difference in EPO between groupⅡand Ⅲ(P>0.05), but significantly higher than in group Ⅰ (P<0.05).No significant difference was found between group Ⅳ,Ⅴ and Ⅰ (P>0.05).In group Ⅱ, positive correlation was found between EPO concentration and stroke volume (SV) as well as left ventricular diastolic diameter (LVDD) (R=0.278 and 0.236,respectively,P<0.05), while negative correlation was expressed between EPO concentration and the AMS score (R=-0.249,P<0.05).In other groups,there was no relationship between EPO concentration and the index of left ventricular function .Conclusion EPO may work on AMS through left ventricular systolic function enhancement after acute high altitude exposure .

Objective To understand the current situation of endemic fluorosis in Shandong Province,and to provide a scientific basis for development of control strategies.Methods In accordance with the requirements of the national Surveillance Scheme of Drinking-Water-Borne Endemic Fluorosis (Trial) and Shandong Provincial Surveillance Scheme of Drinking-Water-Borne Endemic Fluorosis (Trial),and to understand the progress of the province's water-improvement projects,10 counties were chosen in the province,and 10 water-improvement projects were selected in each county.Running condition of the water-improvement projects was investigated,and water fluoride content was tested.Three epidemic villages were chosen as fixed monitoring villages in each county.In each village,fluoride content in drinking water was determined,and dental fluorosis of all children aged 8 to 12 was diagnosed.Water fluoride content was determined by fluoride ion selective electrode method,and dental fluorosis of children aged 8 to 12 was diagnosed by Dean method.Results ① There were 3570 water defluoridation projects in the province,and water-improvement rate was 87.49％ (10 122/11 569).Normal operating projects accounted for 89.10％ (3181/3570),and the passing rate of water fluoride content was 73.14％ (2611/3570),with the maximum water fluoride as 9.71 mg/L.② In the 10 counties,a total of 86 waterimprovement projects were monitored.Normal operation,intermittent operation and scrapped projects accounted for 95.35％ (82/86),3.49％ (3/86) and 1.16％ (1/86),respectively,and passing rate of fluoride content in water was 50.00％ (43/86),and the maximum water fluoride was 5.32 mg/L.③ In the 27 monitored villages with improved water quality,the passing rate of fluoride content in water was 74.07％ (20/27),and the maximum water fluoride was 4.50mg/L.In the 3 monitored villages without improved water quality,villages of mean water fluoride ≤ 1.20 mg/L and ＞ 1.20 mg/L accounted for 33.33％ (1/3) and 66.67％ (2/3),respectively,and the maximum water fluoride was 1.53 mg/L.④ In the 27 monitored villages with improved water quality,the detection rate of dental fluorosis among children aged 8 to 12 was 57.65％(791/1372),and the detection rate of defect type dental fluorosis was 7.80％(107/1372); the index of dental fluorosis was 1.15.In the 3 monitored villages without improved water quality,the detection rate of dental fluorosis among children aged 8 to 12 was 50.97％ (80/155),and the detection rate of defect type dental fluorosis was 7.10％(11/155); the index of dental fluorosis was 1.16.Conclusions In Shandong Province,the running condition of water improvement project to reduce fluoride still needs to be further improved,and the water fluoride is seriously overweight and endemic fluorosis has not been effectively controlled.Preventive measures should be strengthened.

Cinobufacino injection is a significant anti-tumor medicine for the treatment of various tumors in clinic, which was made from water extraction of the skin of Bufo bufo gargarizans. In present paper, HPLC-DAD-FT-ICR-MS method was used to identify the major bufadienolides in cinobufacino for the first time. Solid-phase extraction with dichloromethane and silica was used to enrich the total bufadienolides in cinobufacino. Based on the UV and high resolution MS/MS data, 33 bufadienolides were analyzed and characterized. Among them, eight compounds were identified by comparing with standard references unambiguously. This study elucidated the major bufadienolides in cinobufacino, which provided material foundation of cinobufacino and will be benefit for the further pharmacological research.
Amphibian Venoms ; chemistry ; Animals ; Bufanolides ; analysis ; chemistry ; Bufo bufo ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Molecular Structure ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

To obtain chemical constituent information of rat plasma after oral administration of Huang-Lian-Jie-Du Decoction (HLJDD), a LC-FT-ICR-MS method has been established, and both positive and negative ions scan modes were include in the analysis. By comparing their retention time, high resolution mass data of HLJDD extracts, blank plasma and dosed plasma, 38 constituents, including 22 prototype compounds and 16 metabolites, were detected in rat plasma after oral administration of HLJDD. In the 22 prototype compounds, 16 constituents were determined unambiguously by comparing with references. In the analysis of metabolites, phase II reactions like glucuronidation and sulfation were the major biotransformation pathways of HLJDD. M11 was observed as the only phase I metabolite in present experiment. The results will be beneficial for the further pharmacokinetics and pharmacological evaluations of HLJDD.
Administration, Oral ; Alkaloids ; blood ; Animals ; Biotransformation ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Drug Combinations ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; isolation & purification ; metabolism ; Flavonoids ; blood ; Iridoids ; blood ; Male ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Objective To investigate the distribution of water-borne fluoride and the current status of water defluoridation project by improving drinking water quality in endemic fluorosis areas in Shandong province,and to provide scientific basis for making strategies in prevention and control of the disease. Methods According to "the National Technical Scheme for Endemic Disease Control in 2004, 2005 and 2006", 113 endemic fluorosis diseased counties(cities, and districts) of the province's 17 cities were screened in order to investigate the fluoride level in drinking water in fluorosis villages, recheck the fluoride level after implementing the water defluoridation project, and investigate the current status of the water defluoridation project. The fluoride level in drinking water was determined by F-ion selective electrode. Results There were a total of 5816 water defluoridation projects in the province. Most of them were carried out by drilling a deep well to get under-ground water. The wells still in good condition were accounted for 72.80% (4234/5816). Intermittent operated wells were accounted for 3.11% (181/5816). Abandoned wells were accounted for 24.09%(1401/5816). Level of water fluoride was determined in 6940samples from fluorosis villages(villages that not carry out the water defluoridation project as well as villages carried out the water defluoridation project with abandoned wells were included) and the value that lower or equal to 1.00mg/L was determined in 2987 villages which accounted for 43.04% (2987/6940). Level of water fluoride that over 1.00 mg/L was found in 3953 villages which accounted for 56.96% (3593/6940), and the highest level of water fluoride was 11.33 mg/L. Level of water fluoride were determined in 4415 samples from water defluoridation project and the value lower or equal to 1.00 mg/L was in 2983 wells which accounted for 65.53%(2983/4415). The value over 1.00 mg/L was in 1522 wells which accounted for 34.47%(1522/4415), the highest value of water fluoride was 9.71 mg/L. Conclusions Level of water fluoride in up to 1/2 of the villages and 1/3 of the projects, is still higher than the standard in Shandong province. Nearly 1/4 of the project has been abandoned. The current situation for endemic fluorosis control is still not good in the province, countermeasures for endemic fluorosis must be carried out as soon as possible and surveillance of water defluoridation project must be strengthened.

Objective To investigate the efficacy and toxicity of neoadjuvant regional arterial chemotherapy in the treatment of advanced gastric cancer. Methods The clinical data of 158 patients with advanced gastric cancer and with the same clinical stages who were admitted to Renji Hospital of Shanghai Jiaotong University from February 2002 to May 2005 were retrospectively analysed. Preoperative regional arterial chemotherapy was applied to 76 patients (test group) and the remaining 82 patients only received surgical treatment (control group). The chemotherapy regimen was epirubicin (50 mg/m2) + cisplatin (60 mg/m2) + 5-fluorouracil (1000 mg/m2).This regimen was modified to oxaliplatin (130 mg/m2) + 5-fluorouracil (1000 mg/m2) since 2003, and surgery was performed 6-11 days after the chemotherapy. All patients received postoperative intravenous chemotherapy.The clinical effects, radical resection rate, operative complications and long-term survival of the two treatment methods were evaluated. All data were analysed using the chi-square test and Kaplan-Meier analysis. Results The radical resection rate was significantly higher at 86% (65/76) in the test group compared with 71% (58/82)in the control group ( x2 = 5.01, P ＜ 0. 05 ). The toxicity of the chemotherapy in the test group was mild. The postoperative complication rate was 20% (15/76) in the test group and 16% (13/82) in the control group, with no significant difference between the two groups (x2 = 0.41, P＞0.05). The median survival time was 41 months in the test group and 23 months in the control group. The 5-year overall survival rate was higher in the test group (44.6%) than that in the control group (29.1%) (x2 =3.95, P＜0. 05). Conclusions Neoadjuvant regional arterial chemotherapy is well tolerated by patients with advanced gastric cancer. It is also effective for increasing the radical resection rate and improving the long-term survival.

Cinobufacino injection is purified from water extraction of the skin of Bufo bufo gargarizans, which has been widely used for various cancers in clinic with significant anti-tumor effects. Bufadienolides were regarded as the main active constituents of cinobufacino injection in previous reports. In present study, 6 bufadienolides were isolated and purified from Cinobufacino injection. Their structures were identified as 3-epi-ψ-bufarenogin (1), ψ-bufarenogin (2), 3-epi-arenobufagin (3), arenobufagin (4), 3-epi-gamabufotalin (5), and 3-oxo-arenobufagin (6), separately. Among them, 1 and 3 were new compounds, 5 and 6 were new natural products. Compounds 1, 2 and compounds 3, 4 were two pairs configuration isomers at C-3, separately.
Animals ; Bufanolides ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Bufo bufo ; Injections ; Skin ; chemistry

Objective To investigate the current prevailing status of endemic fluorosis in the Yellow River basin of Shandong Province and to provide the scientific evidence for making strategies in prevention and control.Methods Nine counties were chosen to carry out the epidemiological investigation.The content of fluoride in drinking water was determined by F-ion selective electrode and dental fluorosis of children aged 8～12 years old was diagnosed by Deans method.Results Water fluoride content was determined in 1761 fluorosis villages,among which 606 villages had water fluoride content≤1.00 mg/L,accounting for 34.41%(606/1761);1155 villages had water fluoride content＞1.00 mg/L,which accounted for 65.59%(1155/1761).The highest water fluoride content was 11.33 mg/L.Water fluoride content of 618 water-improving and defluoridation projects had been determined,among which 449 projects had water fluoride content≤1.00 mg/L and accounted for 72.65%(449/618),169 projects had water fluoride content＞1.00 mg/L and accounted for 27.35%(169/618),the highest water fluoride content was 5.85 mg/L.The total rate of dental fluorosis of children aged 8～12 years old was 45.03%(25 579/56 804) and the index of dental fluorosis was 0.80. Conclusions In the Yellow River basin in Shandong Province,up to 50.00%in the villages the water fluoride content exceeds the county standard(≤1.00 mg/L).The prevalence of endemic fluorosis in the basin hasn't been effectively controlled.So the counterrneasures for endemic fluorosis should be carried out as soon as possible.

Objective To investigate the current status of endemic fluorosis in Shandong province, and to provide scientific evidence for the development of control strategies. Methods According to "The National Technical Scheme for Endemic Disease Control in 2007", 19 counties were chosen to carry out the epidemiological investigation in 2008. Water and urinary fluoride were determined by F-ion selective electrode, dental fluorosis of children aged 8 to 12 were diagnosed by Dean method and skeletal fluorosis of adults over the age of 16 were examined clinically and by X-rays. Results In 19 counties, 186 villages were surveyed, 44 villages were found with mean water fluoride ≤ 1.00 mg/L, accounting for 23.66%(44/186);the value ＞ 1.00 mg/L in 142 villages,accounting for 76.34% (142/186);maximum water fluoride 8.88 mg/L. Total detection rate of dental fluorosis of children aged 8 to 12 was 66.35% (4518/6809), dental fluorosis index was 1.55, and defect rate was 15.39%(1048/6809). Children with urinary fluoride ＞ 1.40 mg/L was 83.29%(2149/2580), and the maximum value was 31.92 mg/L. Detection rates of skeletal fluorosis clinically and by X ray among adults over 16 years were 6.37%(5577/87 607) and 20.23% (229/1132), respectively. Conclusions Endemic fluorosis in Shandong province is still serious, prevention efforts need to be further increased.

In order to clarify the metabolism pathways of scandoside methyl ester, the analysis of metabolites profiling in four kinds of liver microsomes was performed by using an ultra-performance liquid chromatography/ electrospray-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS). The data obtained from the 0 h-incubation and the 2 h-incubation were compared and analyzed. After incubation, 5 metabolites of scandoside methyl ester were found in rat, Beagles, rhesus monkey and human liver microsome. The results showed that scandoside methyl ester's major metabolic pathway in the liver microsomes is hydrolysis, oxidation and reduction reactions, and there are certain kinds differences between species. The study provides a research base for further research about iridoid compounds in vivo metabolic pathways.
Animals ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Dogs ; Esters ; metabolism ; Humans ; Iridoids ; metabolism ; Macaca mulatta ; Microsomes, Liver ; metabolism ; Rats ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization