Objective To explore the effects of oral care on improving cough reflex sensitivity and prolonging time span of recurrent pneumonia. Methods Oral care was conducted among 19 pateints with recurrent pneumonia. Using capsaicin-induced cough reflex method, cough reflex thresholds were measured in 19 patients with recurrent pneumonia before the study began, at the 20th day and the twelfth month after the study began. The recorrent time spans were recorded before and after the oral care at the same time. Results Cough reflex threshold was (1.54±0.06) mmol at the 20th day after the oral care began, which was significantly lower than (2.13±0.05) mmol before the the oral care began (P<0.05); There was no significant difference between the cough reflex thresholds at the 20th day and the twelfth month (1.61±0.08) mmol (P>0.05). Pneumonia recurrent time span (210±54)days was significandy longer after performing the oral care than that (143±71)days of before performing the oral care (P<0.05). Conclusions Oral care may improve the cough reflex sensitivity among pateints with recurrent pneumonia. It can prolong the time span of recurrent pneumonia.

OBJECTIVETo clarify the resource of medicinal plants of genus Polygonum s. lat. distributed in Anhui Province.

METHODConducting field investigation and consulting related specimens and data.

RESULT AND CONCLUSIONThe distribution, growing environment and medicinal use of 32 taxa have been clarified. A scientific basis for further study for these medicinal plants has been provided.

Analgesics, Non-Narcotic ; pharmacology ; Antidiuretic Agents ; pharmacology ; China ; Conservation of Natural Resources ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Ecosystem ; Pharmacognosy ; Plants, Medicinal ; anatomy & histology ; chemistry ; classification ; Polygonum ; anatomy & histology ; chemistry ; classification

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the neuroprotective effect of tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) against focal cerebral ischemic injury in rats with diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWMRI).

METHODSRat models of focal cerebral ischemic injury were established in 16 male SD rats. They were randomly divided into the TMP group and the control group, eight in each group, and pretreated with TMP and normal saline respectively before modeling. Change of infarcted cerebral focus was observed with DWMRI at 1, 2, 6, 12 and 24 hrs after infarction, and the infarction volume (IV) at 24 hrs after modeling was estimated by triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) stain.

RESULTSThe IV in all time points observed in the TMP group with DWMRI was significantly smaller than that in the control group (P<0.01). Compared with that at 1 hr after infarction, in the control group at 2, 6, 12 and 24 hrs after modeling, the IV enlarged by 13.3%, 29.7%, 50.3% and 57.3% respectively, while that in the TMP group 9.9%, 21.3%, 37.1% and 40.5% respectively. The cerebral IV estimated by TTC stain 24 hrs after modeling was larger than that estimated by DWMRI.

CONCLUSIONTMP pretreatment before modeling was effective in protecting brain against cerebral ischemic damage in rats. DWMRI dynamic scanning observation has important significance in observing the cerebral ischemic developing process and evaluating the effectiveness of brain protective measures.

Animals ; Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Male ; Neuroprotective Agents ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Phytotherapy ; Pyrazines ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Professor GU Wei-chao is with great academic and clinical experience. He has thoughts in ZHANG Xi-chun's academic thoughts, especially his application of Zhang's theory. He added Rhodiolae Crenulatae Radix et Rhizoma, Agrimoniae Herba, Taxilli Herba, Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma, Corni Fructus, and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma Praeparata cum Melle to Shengxian Decoction to make modified Shengxian Decoction to strengthen the efficacy of invigorating qi and ascending qi collapse, reinforcing heart and astringing qi, cultivating the essence and notifying kidney, and inducing resuscitation and allaying tiredness, with a purpose to treat sinking qi syndrome of heart and lung diseases and expand the application areas of Zhang's Shengxian Decoction. This article introduced experience of GU Wei-chao in treating heart and lung diseases by using modified Shengxian Decoction through three clinical cases of effusion after lung surgery, chest and heart pain and difficulties in breathing.

To clarify the association between HLA-DPB1 alleles and chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) in South Chinese, the allelic types of HLA-DPB1 were detected by sequence based typing (SBT) in 86 patients with CML and 82 healthy individuals from Southern China. The results showed that the frequencies of HLA-DPB1 * 1301 and DPB1 * 20011 were higher in patients with CML in comparison with those of healthy individuals. It is concluded that positive association may exist between certain HLA-DPB1 alleles and CML.
Alleles ; Chi-Square Distribution ; China ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; HLA-DP Antigens ; genetics ; HLA-DP beta-Chains ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive ; genetics

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy of Dongbai Tonglin Mixture(DTM)in the treatment of chronic prostatitis(CP)with the damp-heat downward diffusion syndrome.Methods:We randomly selected 76 cases of CP with the damp-heat downward dif-fusion syndrome,equally divided them into a DTM and a control group,and treated them by oral administration of DTM and Qianlie Tai Tablets,respectively,both for 8 weeks.We obtained the NIH-CPSI and TCM Syndrome Scores of the patients,recorded the counts of white blood cells(WBC)and small particles of lecithin(SPL)in the prostate fluid,and compared them between the two groups before and after treatment.Results:Compared with the baseline,the total NIH-CPSI scores were significantly reduced in both groups after treatment(P<0.05),particularly the scores on urination symptoms,pain/discomfort and quality of life(P<0.05),even more sig-nificantly in the DTM than in the control group(P<0.05),and so were the TCM Syndrome Scores(P<0.05),especially the scores on urinary incontinence,abdominal pain,perineal pain,and scrotal dampness(P<0.05),even more significantly in the former than in the latter group(P<0.05).The count of WBC in the prostate fluid was remarkably decreased(P<0.05),while that of SPL markedly increased in both groups after treatment(P<0.05),with an even more significant improvement in the DTM than in the con-trol group(P<0.05),and the overall effectiveness rate of treatment was significantly higher in the former group than in the latter(88.89%vs 70.27%,P<0.05).Conclusion:Dongbai Tonglin Mixture is effective for the treatment of CP with the damp-heat downward diffusion syndrome.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of metformin on proliferation and apoptosis in multiple myeloma cell line RPMI8226 and U266, and to clarify the molecular mechanism of proliferation inhibition and apoptosis induced by metformin.

METHODSRPMI8226, U266 cells were treated with 0, 5, 10, 20, 40, 80 mmol/L of metformin for 24, 48 and 72 hours, then the inhibition rate was detected by CCK-8; RPMI8226 cells were treated with 0, 10, 20, 40 mmol/L of metformin for 48 hours, the apoptosis rates were detected by flow cytometry with Annexin-V-FITC/PI double staining; RPMI8226 cells were treated with 0, 5, 10, 20 mmol/L of metformin for 48 hours, the expressions of Caspase-3, PARP, STAT3, p-STAT3, BCL-2, Cyclin D1 and P21 were detected by Western blot.

RESULTSThe inhibition rate increased in RPMI8226 and U266 cells treated with metformin in the dose- (r=0.982, r=0.967, P<0.05) and time-dependent (r=0.956, r=0.962, P<0.05) manner; the apoptosis rate increased(r=0.976, P<0.05) in RPMI8226 cells treated with metformin; it also was found that procaspase-3 was degraded and PARP was cleaved when treated with metformin. Proliferation inhibition and apoptosis of RPMI8226 cells were related with inhibition of STAT3 phosphorylation, down-regulation of BCL-2 and Cyclin D1, and up-regulation of P21.

CONCLUSIONMetformin can inhibit the proliferation and induce apoptosis of RPMI8226 and U266 cell lines, which may be related to down-regulation of STAT3 signal transduction pathway.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the erythrocyte membrane protein gene mutations and the clinical severity of hereditary spherocytosis (HS). Methods: Targeted sequencings were performed on 25 HS patients, correlation between HS mutations and patients' clinical characteristics were evaluated. Results: A total of 25 HS patients were enrolled, including 13 males and 12 females with median age of 20 (4-55) years, including 9 compensatory hemolysis patients, 9 patients with mild anemia, 3 patients with moderate anemia and 4 patients with severe anemia. Of them, 18 patients (72%) harbored HS-related mutations, including ANK1 mutation in 6 cases, SLC4A1 mutation in 6 cases, SPTB mutation in 5 cases and 1 case with EPB41 mutation. Seven patients (28%) didn't carry common HS mutations. SPTB and SLC4A1 mutations mainly affected male patients. There was no significant difference between the age of diagnosis (P=0.130) and HGB level (P=0.585) in patients with HS mutation and those without mutation, however, the EMA binding fluorescence intensity (P=0.015), AGLT50 (P=0.032) and EOF minimal hemolytic concentration (P=0.027) were significantly different in these two groups of HS patients. Conclusion: To screen erythrocyte membrane protein coding gene mutations could favor the diagnosis of HS, and patients without mutations have mild clinical phenotype.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Erythrocyte Membrane ; Female ; Hemolysis ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; Spherocytosis, Hereditary ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo develop a safe and novel immunoadjuvant to enhance the immunity and resistance of animals against E. coli infection.

METHODSAn 88-base immunostimulatory oligodeoxynuleotide containing eleven CpG motifs (CpG ODN) was synthesized and amplified by PCR. The chitosan nanoparticle (CNP) was prepared by ion linking method to entrap the CpG ODN that significantly promotes the proliferation of lymphocytes of pig in vitro. Then the CpG-CNP was inoculated into 21-day old Kunming mice, which were orally challenged with virulent K88/K99 E. Coli 35 days after inoculation. Blood was collected from the tail vein of mice on days 0, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42, and 49 after inoculation to detect the changes and content of immunoglobulins, cytokines and immune cells by ELISA, such as IgG, IgA, IgM, IL-2, IL-4, and IL-6.

RESULTSThe CpG provoked remarkable proliferation of lymphocytes of pig in vitro in comparison with that of control group (P < 0.05). The inoculation with CpG-CNP significantly raised the content of IgG, IgM, and IgA in the sera of immunized mice (P < 0.05). The levels of IL-2, IL-4, and IL-6 in the mice significantly increased in comparison with those in controls (P < 0.05), so was the number of white blood cells and lymphocytes in immunized mice. The humoral and cellular immunities were significantly enhanced in immunized mice, which resisted the infection of E. coli and survived, while the control mice manifested evident symptoms and lesions of infection.

CONCLUSIONSCpG-CNP can significantly promote cellular and humoral immunity and resistance of mice against E. coil infection, and can be utilized as an effective adjuvant to improve the immunoprotection and resistance of porcine against infectious disease.

Adjuvants, Immunologic ; administration & dosage ; Animals ; Antibodies, Bacterial ; blood ; Biocompatible Materials ; administration & dosage ; Chitosan ; administration & dosage ; CpG Islands ; Escherichia coli ; pathogenicity ; Escherichia coli Infections ; immunology ; microbiology ; prevention & control ; Female ; Immunity, Cellular ; Interleukins ; biosynthesis ; Lymphocyte Activation ; Mice ; Nanoparticles ; Oligodeoxyribonucleotides ; administration & dosage ; Swine ; Vaccination

BACKGROUNDAlthough severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) has been controlled, the subsequently emerging sporadic cases in 2004 emphasize the necessity of developing a rapid diagnostic method, which would be of great help in clinical diagnosis and also wild host screening. This study aims to establish an effective and rapid serological tool for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV by comparison among whole viral, N and N199 proteins by ELISA.

METHODSSARS-CoV N and N199 (a truncated nucleocapsid gene) genes were cloned, expressed, identified by Western blotting, and applied in screening of human and swine samples. Sera of SARS convalescent-phase patients, normal human sera, sera of patients with other respiratory diseases, and swine sera were screened by ELISA, with whole SARS-CoV F69, N and N199 proteins as antigens.

RESULTSThe sensitivity and specificity of N and N199 proteins in human sera diagnosis were approximate (P = 0.743), which was higher than whole viral protein but the difference was not significant (P = 0.234). The N199 protein proved to be more specific in swine sera screening than whole viral and N protein (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONN199 protein is feasible in both clinical diagnosis and SARS-CoV reservoir screening.

Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Cloning, Molecular ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; methods ; Humans ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Nucleocapsid Proteins ; blood ; genetics ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ; diagnosis ; Swine