Abundant experiences have already been accumulated in treatment of stroke with acupuncture. Development of rehabilitation theory also brings unprecedented opportunity and challenge to acupuncture. Combined with the modern rehabilitation theory and practice, it is very helpful to deepen the understanding on treatment of acupuncture for cerebral apoplexy and enhance the therapeutic effect in clinic by studying the mechanism of acupuncture treatment, opportunity of intervention, selection of acupoints, needling manipulations and quantity of stimulations etc. Through analysis on the necessity and the way of combination of acupuncture and modern rehabilitation, it is concluded that rehabilitation evaluation, rehabilitation phases and obstacle analysis should be taken as references by acupuncturists to reinforce the therapeutic effect and creditability of acupuncture treatment on cerebral apoplexy.
Acupuncture Therapy ; methods ; Hemiplegia ; rehabilitation ; therapy ; Humans ; Stroke ; therapy ; Stroke Rehabilitation

OBJECTIVETo explore a more effective therapy for treatment of hyperemesis gravidarum.

METHODSNinety cases were randomly divided into an acupuncture group, a western medicine group and a Chinese medicine group, 30 cases in each group. They were treated with same supplement of water and electrolyte, with acupuncture at Dazhu (BL 11), Shangjuxu (ST 37), Neiguan (PC 6), Gongsun (SP 4), etc. added in the acupuncture group, with oral administration of Luminal 30 mg thrice each day added in the western medicine group and with oral administration of Chinese herbal decoction according to syndrome differentiation of TCM added in the Chinese medicine group. The therapeutic effect, ketone bodies, carbon dioxide combining power (CO2-CP) and electrolyte imbalance situation in all the groups were observed.

RESULTSAfter treatment for 7 days, the total effective rate of 96.7% in the acupuncture group was better than 46.7% in the western medicine group and 60.0% in the Chinese medicine group (both P < 0.01). There were significant improvements in ketone bodies in the acupuncture group compared with those before treatment and those in the western medicine group (both P < 0.05), and improvements in CO2-CP and electrolyte imbalance in all the groups were following the recovery of disease.

CONCLUSIONAcupuncture has rapid and obvious therapeutic effect on hyperemesis gravidarum without adverse reactions.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperemesis Gravidarum ; drug therapy ; therapy ; Phenobarbital ; therapeutic use ; Pregnancy ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

Aim To study the effects of prenatal hy-poxia on the risk of fatty liver disease to search the drug targets .Methods Intrauterine hypoxia rats model was established .The bodies and livers of fetal rats of 21 days, and adult offspring rats of 5 months with and without anoxic treatment were all weighed .The liver index was calculated and the concentrations of renin-angiotensin system components in circulation system and livers of offspring rats were measured .Results The weight of the bodies , livers and index of liver weight to body weight ( liver index ) were significantly decreased in the PH group compared with the normal group.These differences disappeared in adulthood . However, the liver index of adult offsprings in the PH group after hypoxia stress for 7 days was significantly increased compared with that of adult offsprings in nor-mal group.There were no significant differences in the concentrations of AngⅠ, AngⅡ and ACE in plasma and livers between the two groups of fetal rats and the two groups of adult offspring rats separately .The con-centrations of AngⅡ in the livers of adult rats in PH group were significantly higher than those in normal group.The concentrations of AngⅠ in livers and the concentrations of AngⅡ in plasma and livers in the group treated with hypoxia stress for 7 days were signif-icantly higher than those without hypoxia stress .The concentrations of ACE in livers and the concentrations of AngⅡ in plasma and livers in PH adult offsprings were significantly higher than those of normal adult off-springs .Conclusion PH can induce the increase of RAS content in the livers of fetus and adult rats , RAS is more likely to be activated after hypoxia stimulation in the following adulthood .PH is a potential mecha-nism that mediates offspring susceptibility of fatty liver .

Altitude ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Oxygen ; Oxygen Consumption

OBJECTIVETo compare the efficacy differences between acupoint catgut-embedding combined western medicine (ACCWM) and simple western medicine (WM) for treatment of epilepsy of generalized seizures type.

METHODSFifty-two patients with epilepsy of generalized seizures type were randomly divided into an ACCWM group (n=30) and a WM group (n=22). Dazhui (GV 14), Yaoshu (GV 2), Jiuwei (CV 15), Qihai (CV 6) were selected in the ACCWM group as the main acupoints combined with routine antiepileptic drugs, Valpromide was taken orally, 2.0 g/d for adult, 50 mg/kg x d for child. The WM group was treated with routine antiepileptic drugs. The epilepsy score and the attack frequency one year before the treatment and one year during treatment were observed and the therapeutic effects in the two groups were compared.

RESULTSThe epilepsy score and the attack frequency were both decreased in the two groups (P<0.01, P<0.05), and the epilepsy score in the ACCWM group decreased significantly (6.57 +/- 3.29 vs 10.73 +/- 2.54, P<0.05). The total effective rate of 90.0% (27/30) in the ACCWM group was superior to that of 68.2% (15/22) in the WM group (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe therapeutic effect of ACCWM is superior to that of simple western medicine in treating epilepsy of generalized seizures type. It can improve significantly the attack symptoms so as to enhance life quality of the patients with epilepsy.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Anticonvulsants ; therapeutic use ; Catgut ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Epilepsy ; drug therapy ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Seizures ; drug therapy ; therapy ; Valproic Acid ; analogs & derivatives ; therapeutic use ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo observe the efficacy difference between meridian cosmetology and western medicine in the treatment of chloasma and explore the impacts of meridian cosmetology on E2 and PRGE.

METHODSThree hundreds cases of chloasma were randomized into a meridian cosmetology group and a western medication group according to the visit sequence, 150 cases in each one. In the meridian cosmetology group, the meridian regulation, acupuncture based on pattern/syndrome differentiation [at the body acupoints such as Qihai (CV 6), Xuehai (SP 10), Zusanli (ST 36), Sanyinjiao (SP 6), Ganshu (BL 18), Pishu (BL 20) and Shenshu (BL 23), etc.] and the local surrounding needling therapy on the chloasma skin lesion were adopted. In the western medication group, the oral administration of Vitamin C and E was prescribed for 3 months. The clinical efficacy was observed for the patients in the two groups. Additionally, 30 cases were collected from the meridian cosmetology group randomly for the detection of estrogen (E2) and progestin (PRGE) before and after treatment.

RESULTSThe effective rate in the meridian cosmetology group was 92.6% (126/136), which was superior to 67.0% (75/112) in the western medication group (P < 0.05). For the patients collected from the meridian cosmetology group, as compared with that before treatment, E2 level was decreased (P < 0.01) and PRGE level was increased (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe meridian cosmetology achieves the superior efficacy as compared with the western medication group for the chloasma and it can regulate the levels of E2 and PRGE.

Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Cosmetic Techniques ; Estrogens ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Melanosis ; metabolism ; therapy ; Meridians ; Progestins ; metabolism ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo explore the inhibitory effect of migration-inducing gene 7 (Mig-7) gene silencing induced by retroviral-mediated small hairpin RNA (shRNA) on vasculogenic mimicry (VM), invasion and metastasis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells in vitro.

METHODSTwo target sequences (Mig-7 shRNA-1 and Mig-7 shRNA-2) and one negative control sequence (Mig-7 shRNA-N) were synthesized. The recombinant retroviral vectors carrying Mig-7 shRNA were constructed, and HCC cell line MHCC-97H were transfected with Mig-7 shRNA-1, Mig-7 shRNA-2, Mig-7 shRNA-N, or the empty vector, or treated with 125 µg/mL recombinant human endostatin (ES). Mig-7 expression in the treated cells was detected using semi-quantitative PCR and Western blotting. The inhibitory effect of Mig-7 silencing on VM formation was investigated in a 3-dimensional cell culture system; the changes in cell adhesion, invasion and migration were assessed with intercellular adhesion assay, Transwell invasion assay and Transwell migration assay, respectively.

RESULTSThe expression of Mig-7 at both mRNA and protein levels decreased significantly, VM formation, invasion and metastasis were suppressed, while intercellular adhesion increased significantly in MHCC-97H cells in Mig-7 shRNA-1 and Mig-7 shRNA-2 groups (P<0.05); such changes were not observed in cells transfected with Mig-7 shRNA-N or the empty vector, nor in cells treated with ES.

CONCLUSIONSMig-7 silencing by retroviral-mediated shRNA significantly inhibits VM formation, invasion and metastasis and increases the intercellular adhesion of the HCC cells, while ES does not have such inhibitory effects.

OBJECTIVESTo investigate the effect of magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate on the proliferation and oxidative stress of rat hepatic stellate cells (HSCs).

METHODSThe effect of various concentrations of maganesium isoglycyrrhizinate on the proliferation of primary rat HSCs and HSCs strains were measured by making cell growth curves and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphennylterazolium bromide (MTT) colorimetric assay. Morphological changes of the rat HSCs were also studied. After rat HSCs were incubated with various concentrations of maganesium isoglycyrrhizinate and ferric nitrilotriacetate (Fe-NTA) for 24 hours, the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and contents of malondialdehyde (MDA) in supernates were measured to observe the effect of magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate on the oxidative stress of rat HSCs.

RESULTSCompared with the control group, the proliferation of rat HSCs was significantly inhibited when the concentration of magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate in the medium reached a certain level range. In the oxidative stress induced by Fe-NTA, magnesium isoglycyrrhizinate, within a certain strength range, obviously enhanced the activity of SOD and decreased the contents of MDA in supernates of rat HSCs culture media.

CONCLUSIONSMagnesium isoglycyrrhizinate could significantly inhibit the proliferation of rat HSCs and it, within a certain strength range, exert protective effects in the oxidative stress induced by Fe-NTA.

Animals ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Hepatocytes ; cytology ; Male ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; drug effects ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Saponins ; pharmacology ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism ; Triterpenes ; pharmacology

This study investigated the effects of microRNA-135a (miR-135a) targeting of glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) on the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), migration and invasion of bladder cancer (BC) cells by mediating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. BC and adjacent normal tissues were collected from 165 BC patients. Western blotting and quantitative real-time PCR were used to detect the expression of GSK3β, β-catenin, cyclinD1, E-cadherin, vimentin and miR-135a in BC tissues and cells. Cells were assigned to blank, negative control (NC), miR-135a mimics, miR-135a inhibitors, small interfering RNA (siRNA)-GSK3β or miR-135a inhibitors+siRNA-GSK3β groups. miR-135a, β-catenin, cyclinD1 and vimentin expression increased, while GSK3β and E-cadherin expression decreased in BC tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues. Compared with the blank and NC groups, the expression of miR-135a, β-catenin, cyclinD1 and vimentin was higher, and cell proliferation, migration, invasion and tumor growth were increased in the miR-135a mimics and siRNA-GSK3β groups. These groups showed an opposite trend in GSK3β and E-cadherin expression and cell apoptosis. The miR-135a inhibitors group was inversely correlated with the blank and NC groups. It was concluded that miR-135a accelerates the EMT, invasion and migration of BC cells by activating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway through the downregulation of GSK3β expression.
Apoptosis ; Blotting, Western ; Cadherins ; Cell Proliferation ; Down-Regulation ; Glycogen Synthase Kinases ; Humans ; Negotiating ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; Urinary Bladder ; Vimentin

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that is caused by a shift in the Th1/Th2 balance toward Th1-dominant immunity. It has been established as an effective treatment to counteract psoriasis by subcutaneous injection of recombinant interleukin (IL)-4, and IL-4 gene therapy by topical transdermal penetration has shown its antipsoriatic effect in mice. Retinoic acid (RA) and dimethylsulfoxide can increase the efficiency of gene transfection in the topical transdermal delivery system. OBJECTIVE: We investigated whether RA could improve anti-psoriasis efficiency using IL-4 expression plasmid pORF-mIL-4 (pIL-4) via transdermal delivery system in K14-vascular endothelial growth (K14-VEGF) factor transgenic mice. METHODS: After pretreatment with RA, plasmid pIL-4 in 10% dimethylsulfoxide was applied to the ear skin by topical transdermal penetration. Hematoxylin- eosin staining and immunohistochemistry were performed with ear samples to evaluate anti-psoriasis efficiency in mice. RESULTS: The psoriasis pathological features were relieved and psoriasis-associated factors were significantly reduced. CONCLUSION: Our results reveal that topical application of pIL-4 in dimethylsulfoxide by transdermal delivery with RA pretreatment can improve psoriasis significantly.
Animals ; Autoimmune Diseases ; Dimethyl Sulfoxide ; Ear ; Eosine Yellowish-(YS) ; Genetic Therapy ; Immunohistochemistry ; Injections, Subcutaneous ; Interleukin-4* ; Interleukins ; Mice ; Mice, Transgenic ; Plasmids ; Psoriasis* ; Skin ; Transfection ; Tretinoin*