BACKGROUND: Ephedra, a Chinese medicine, is often used to treat obesity with relatively satisfying results recently. However, the effects of Ephedra on the perimenopausal and postmenopausal obese women remain unclear.OBJECTIVE: To observe the effects of oral Ephedra decoction on body mass and the levels of blood lipids, blood glucose and hormone in ovarietomized obese rats.DESIGN: A completely randomized and controlled experiment.SETTING: Institute of Physiology and Psychology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University.MATERIALS: The experiment was performed in the Key Laboratory of Pre-clinical Study for New Drugs of Gansu Province and the Laboratory of Institute of Physiology and Psychology, School of Basic Medical Sciences,Lanzhou University from February 2006 to June 2006. Forty-four healthy female SD rats were randomly divided into four groups with 11 rats in each group, namely sham-operated group, ovariectomized group, estrogen replacement therapy group and Ephedra group.METHODS: ① After having been narcotized by cloraminone (110 mg/kg),rats were underwent a bilateral ovariectomy except those in the sham-operated group, which were also operated, but their ovaries were not cut off. ②Rats in the sham-operated group and ovariectomized group were subcutaneously injected with sesame oil (0.2 mL/each rat) every day postoperatively till the end of the experiment. ③ The rats in the estrogen replacement therapy group were given estradiol (1 mg/kg) by subcutaneous injection every day postoperatively till the end of the experiment. ④ The rats in the Ephedra group freely drank 1% water extracts from Ephedra postoperatively, later the concentration of Ephedra gradually increased to 8% on the sixth day, which lasted until the end of the experiment. ⑤ The food intake was monitored daily, and body mass was measured every ten days. ⑥ At the end of the experiment, all the rats were fasted for 12 hours and collected blood samples for the measurement of serum indexes. The body mass and body length were measured to calculate the Lee's index [(g)×103/body length (cm)] at the same time.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: ① Body mass and Lee's index at different time points in each group. ② Food intake at different time points in each group. ③ Levels of blood lipids and blood glucose in each group. ④Levels of estrogen, progesterone and insulin in each group.RESULTS: Forty-four rats all entered the analysis of results. ① Result of body mass and Lee's index at different time points: The body masses on the 20th, 30th, 40th and 50th days in the ovariectomized group were (256.4±14.3),(271.3±16.1), (276.4±12.7), (285.7±24.2) g, which were significantly higher than those in the sham-operated group [(226.5±11.5), (241.8±12.6),(243.1±13.5), (251.1±22.4) g, P ＜ 0.05-0.01], and the Lee's index in the ovariectomized group was greater than that in the sham-operated group(317.2±13.5, 280.4±11.2, P ＜ 0.01). The body masses on the 40th and 50th days in the estrogen replacement therapy group were (243.7±14.8) and(246.2±11.9) g, which were significantly lower than those in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.05-0.01), and the Lee's index (289.9±13.5) was lower than that in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.01). The body masses on the 40th and 50th days in the Ephedra group were (245.4 ±14.1) and(252.4±14.9) g, and the Lee's index was 294.4±11.0, which were all lower than those in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.05). ② Result of Food in take at different time points: The food intakes on the 30th, 40th and 50th days in the Ephedra group were (17.8±2.4), (22.3±3.9), (26.1±3.5) g per day,which were decreased as compared with those in the ovariectomized group[(25.9±4.7), (28.5±5.3), (32.8±5.5) g per day, P ＜ 0.05]. ③ Levels of blood lipids and blood glucose: The levels of triglyceride, cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in the ovariectomized group were (1.73±0.32), (1.45±0.50), (0.78±0.19) mmol/L, which were higher than those in the sham-operated group [(0.94±0.29), (1.05±0.30), (0.08±0.11) mmol/L, P ＜ 0.01]. After the estrogen replacement therapy, the levels of triglyceride, cholesterol, LDL-C and blood glucose were (1.10±0.34),(1.14±0.30), (0.17±0.05), (5.88±1.21) mmol/L, which were lower than those in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.05-0.01), but the level of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was higher than that in the ovariectomized group [(1.11±0.31), (0.88±0.21) mmol/L, P ＜ 0.05]. The levels of triglyceride, cholesterol, LDL-C and HDL-C in the Ephedra group were (0.97±0.16), (1.11±0.20), (0.59±0.07) and (0.45±0.061) mmol/L, which were lower than those in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.05-0.01). ④ The serum levels of estrogen, progesterone and insulin in each group: The serum levels of estrogen and progesterone in the ovariectomized group were lower than those in the sham-operated group [(17.09±9.00), (28.51 ±7.99) μg/L;(58.69±12.11), (62.73±10.93) μg/L, P ＜ 0.01], the serum level of insulin was higher than that in the sham-operated group [(31.74±6.69),(23.75±6.66) mU/L, P ＜ 0.01]. The serum levels of estrogen in the estro gen replacement therapy and Ephedra group were (36.03±8.83) and (30.18±8.61) ng/L, which were higher than those in the ovariectomized group(P ＜ 0.05-0.01), the level of insulin were (21.34±4.57), (24.86±6.20) mU/L,which were lower than those in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.05-0.01).The serum level of progesterone in the Ephedra group [(17.68±6.19) μg/L]was lower than that in the ovariectomized group (P ＜ 0.01).CONCLUSION: Ephedra can promote loss of body mass, reduce levels of the blood lipids and insulin, and increase the serum levels of hormones in ovariectomized obese rats.

To establish a new method for identifying genus of Lilium by DNA barcoding technology, ITS, ITS2, psbA-trnH, matK and rbcL sequences were analyzed in term of variation of inter- and intra-species, barcoding gap, neighbor-joining tree to distinguish genus of Lilium based on 978 sequences from experimental and GenBank database, and identification efficiency was evaluated by Nearest distance and BLAST1 methods. The results showed that DNA barcoding could identify different species in genus of Lilium. ITS sequence performed higher identification efficiency, and had significant difference between intra- and inter-species. And NJ tree could also divide species into different clades. Results indicate that DNA barcoding can identify genus of Lilium accurately. ITS sequence can be the optimal barcode to identify species of Lilium.
DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic ; DNA, Plant ; genetics ; DNA, Ribosomal Spacer ; genetics ; Lilium ; classification

China ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; Registries

Andrographolide total ester sulfonate (ATES) injection is one of the products of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) currently used against viral infection in China.ATES injection was approved for manufacturing and marketing in January 2002.It is indicated for acute respiratory infections,tonsillitis,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,influenza,foot and mouth disease,bronchiolitis,herpangina,mumps,infectious mononucleosis and psychosis.However,its usage also carries risk.We investigated the use of ATES at the Wuhan Union Hospital from January 2014 to December 2014 and evaluated its real-word clinical application using the hospital centralized monitoring method.A total of 848 cases were enrolled in this study.In these cases,it was mainly used for postoperative anti-inflammation and treating upper respiratory infection,pneumonia and bronchitis.Among them,39.86％ were contraindicated.Irregular medication of adults and children accounted for 1.91％ and 23.38％,respectively.Improper choice of solvent accounted for 3.18％.The choice of intravenous drip versus aerosol inhalation was reasonable.A case of adverse events (AEs) was observed in the monitoring period,and the incidence of adverse drug reaction (ADR) of ATES injection was 0.12％.ATES injection in our hospital is relatively safe with a low incidence of adverse reactions.The study assesses the clinical usage and adverse reactions of ATES injection,and provides suggestions for rational use in clinical practice.

Objective:To investigate the combining therapy which not only have cured effect but also can uphold and improve the NPC patient′s immunity function after radiotherrapy and chemotherapy.Method:90 cases randomly divided into 3 groups ①Local group (local injected with IL-2 +radiotherapy+chemotherapy);②General group(ivdrip with IL-2+radiotherapy+chemotherapy);③convention group(radiotherapy+chemotherapy).Checked and observed the immunity function around the immunotherapy and after the radiotherapy and chemotherapy.Result:Cellular immunity of 3 groups are lower and humoral immunity are hypetuntion than normal person.After treated with IL-2 the cellular immunity improves but there′s no great change of the humoral immunity. The immune status of the immune groups have not obvious change than before radiotherapy,at the same time,the cellular immunity of the convention group cut down and the humoral immunity doesn′t change obviously.Conclusion:①It has some effect to uphold and improve the NPC patient′s immunity function to treat with small dosage of IL-2 before radiotherapy and chemotherapy,general treatment is better than local injection;②The three therapies have not great influence on the patient′s humoral immunity.

Chronic liver diseases can further develop to liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. Currently, there is no effective treatment except liver orthotopic transplantation at this point. The extreme shortage of liver organ source forced people to find alternative treatment strategies. Mesenchymal stem cells ( MSCs) have the abilities of immunomodulatory, hepatocyte differentiation, promotion of liver cells regeneration in situ and inhibiting the activation of hepatic stellate cells. Therefore, MSCs transplantation provides a very broad prospect for cell therapy. It is important to provide preclinical evaluation of the efficacy and safety before the application of cell therapy in clinical trials. The progress of various animal models of human liver diseasees and significance of using MSCs to treat liver diseases in preclincal studies based on these animal models were reviewed in this paper.

Objective To explore the techniques and strategies for the retrieval of the retractable inferior vena cava filter (IVCF).Methods Celect IVCF retrieval was not removed successfully with Gtünther Celect recovery device in 9 cases and exchange-wire-loop removal of inferior vena cava filter method were applicated.Results The longest implanted time of 9 patients was 142 days,the shortest implanted time was 37 days,and the average time was (88.67±33.85)days.Eight fil ters were successfully removed and one failed due to severe bending of inferior vena cava.Filter retrieval rate was 88.89％ (8/9).The average retrieval time was (69.89± 12.12)min (57-162 min).No perforation of the wall and contrast agent were found in all patients after the inferior vena cava angiography.Conclusion For the retrieval of the hook heavily atta ched to the IVCF,the retrieval technique of using the exchange wire into the loop method can effectively improve the retrieval rate and has a certain clinical value.

Objective To study the effect of injection ganciclovir in infants with rotavirus disease.Methods According to age (6 months to 2 years) and typical clinical symptoms in combination with etiologic evidence of rotavirus, 76 patients within 2 days after onset were selected as study subjects. These young children were randomly assigned to two groups according to the hospitalized order.Treated group received intravenous administration of ganciclovir 5～10 mg/(kg?d) once daily for 3 days while control group didn′t receive any antivirus drugs. Rotavirus testing by ELISA on stool samples was performed for every patient on admission and the third day after treatment. Stool sample was collected to a clear box every day in patients with positive results until the reaction was negative.Results The total effective rate after treatment was 88.1% and 61.8% in treated group and the controll group, respectively. There was significant difference between these two groups(?2=20.42 P

This study was aimed to investigate the induction effect ofRe-Du-Ning (RDN) Injection on rat liver microsome CYP450 enzymes. SD rats were randomly divided into the solvent control group, positive control group as well as the low, middle and high dose group of RDN (1, 2, 4 mL·kg-1·d-1). After drugs were administrated continuously for 7 days, the rats were sacrificed. The liver was weighed and prepared to microsomes. Meanwhile, the liver coefficients of rats were calculated. And the protein content was detected by BCA method. Finally, activities of five important subtypes of CYP450 enzymes such as CYP1A2, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, CYP2D6 and CYP3A1/2 were measured by the“cocktail” method. The results showed that the levels of liver coefficients, microsome yield rate and activities of CYP450 subtypes increased significantly in the positive control group compared with the solvent control group (P < 0.01). There was no significant difference on the levels of liver coefficients, microsome yield and protein content between the low and middle dose group of RDN. However, there was significant difference on the levels of liver coefficients and microsome yield in the high dose group (P < 0.05). In terms of the influence on enzyme activity, RDN Injection can significantly induce the activities of CYP1A2 with dose dependence. It can induce the activities of CYP2C9 and CYP2C19 at the middle and high dose. However, there was no obvious influence on the activities of CYP3A1/2 and CYP2D6. It was concluded that the positive control group can obviously induce activities of CYP450, which can be used in the evaluation of induction experiments. RDN Injection had induction effect on CYP1A2, CYP2C9 and CYP2C19. But it had no influence on the activities of CYP3A1/2 and CYP2D6.

Objective To investigate the expression of Mta-1 in bladder transitional cell carcinoma (BTCC)and to analyze its correlation with the clinical staging,pathologic grading,metastasis and recur- rence,and to explore the possible molecular mechanisms.Methods Samples of 42 cases of BTCC and 12 normal bladder mueosa tissues were examined with immunohistochemical analysis for the expression of Mta- 1,ER,u-PA and PAI-1.Endothelial cells were stained by anti-CD34,and microvascular density(MVD)of carcinoma tissue was calculated.The correlation of Mta-1 expression with the invasion,metastasis,angiogene- sis and recurrence of BTCCs was analyzed;and the correlation of Mta-1 expression with ER,u-PA,PAI-1,and MVD was also analyzed.Results The positive rate of Mta-1 expression in BTCCs was 73.8%(31/42) , while it was 0.0% in normal bladder mucosa tissues(P＜0.01).The expression level of Mta-l increased with the higher clinical stages and pathologic grades of BTCCs;it was higher in recurrence group(100.0% , 15/15)than in non-recurrence group(59.3%,16/27),and high in metastasis group(100.0%,14/14) than in non-metastasis group(60.7%,17/28)(P＜0.05).The expression level of ER increased with the lower clinical stages and pathologic grades of BTCCs;the positive rate of ER expression was 0.0% in 14 ca- ses with metastasis and was 53.6% in 13 of 28 cases without metastasis(P＜0.05);and the rate was 6.7% in 1 of 15 cases with recurrence and 44.4% in 12 of 27 cases without recurrence(P＜0.05).Negative cor- relation was found between Mta-1 and ER expression(r=-0.739,P＜0.01).The positive rate of u-PA ex- pression(59.5%,25/42)was significantly higher in BTCCs than that in normal bladder mucosa tissues (16.7%,2/12)(P＜0.05).Positive correlation was found between u-PA and Mta-1 expression(r= 0.875),while negative correlation was found between u-PA and PAI-1 expression(r=-0.535).The posi- tive rate of PAI-1 expression in normal bladder mucosa tissues(50.0%,6/12)was significantly higher than that in BTCCs(19.0%,8/42)(P＜0.05).In addition,negative correlation was found between PAI-1 and Mta-1 expression(r=-0.706).And positive correlation was found between MVD in BTCCs marked by an- ti-CD34 and Mta-1 expression(r=0.683).Conclusions Mta-1 is highly expressed in BTCCs,and it correlates closely with tumor pathologic grades,clinical stages,recurrence and metastasis.Mta-1 up-regulates the expression of u-PA and down-regulates that of PAI-1,which is associated with invasion and metastasis and acts as an angiogenic mediator in BTCCs.A negative correlation is found between Mta-1 and ER in inva- sion and metastasis of BTCCs.