To evaluate the effect of Tongxie Yaofang on cardiac endogenous metabolism in irritable bowel syndrome(IBS) rats by using metabolomics method, find its potential biomarkers, analyze the metabolic pathways, and explore the pharmacological effects, mechanisms of action and syndrome essence of syndrome model. Forty Wistar rats were used to establish IBS models, and then randomly divided into four groups： model control group and Tongxie Yaofang treatment groups (high, medium, low dose). Another 10 rats were used as normal group. The rats in Tongxie Yaofang-treated(low, medium and high dose) groups were orally administrated with Tongxie Yaofang extracts once a day for 2 weeks, respondingly with the doses of 0.203,0.406,0.812 g•mL⁻¹. The rats in normal group and model control group were given with equal volume of saline once a day for 2 weeks. On the 0 and 15th days, serum was collected and each sample extract was analyzed by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. Eight potential biomarkers were identified and 8 major metabolic pathways were found to be related with IBS diseases neurotransmitter metabolism, inflammatory immunity, brain function and energy metabolism, etc. Tongxie Yaofang had certain pharmacological effects on IBS, and its mechanism may be related to serotonergic synapse, tryptophan metabolism, cysteine and methionine metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism, nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism and so on, which might be the biological basis of IBS liver-spleen deficiency syndrome.

OBJECTIVETo assess the value of neutrophil?to?lymphocyte ratio (NLR) for predicting type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

METHODSA cohort of 404 non?diabetic patients diagnosed with stable COPD between January, 2010 and December, 2012 at Zhujiang Hospital were enrolled and followed up for 3 years, during which fast blood glucose (FBG) was monitored every 6 months. The primary endpoint was the occurrence of T2DM, and the cumulative incidence of T2DM in this cohort was calculated. The patients who developed T2DM and those without T2DM at the end of the follow?up were compared for clinical parameters to identify the potential predictors for T2DM in patients with stable COPD.

RESULTSAfter follow?up for a mean of 2.1 years, 41 (10.1%) patients with COPD developed T2DM, who showed significantly higher baseline NLR levels than those without T2DM (P<0.001). The receiver?operating characteristic (ROC) analysis revealed that the optimum cut?off value for NLR was 5.626. Spearman rank correlation analysis suggested that the incidence of T2DM in the patients was positively correlated with the number of hospital admissions for acute exacerbation of COPD in the past year (r=0.136, P=0.006), hypertension (r=0.151, P=0.002) and NLR (r=0.340, P<0.001). Logistic regression analysis identified triglyceride (TG) (P=0.047) and NLR (P<0.001) as the independent risk factors for T2DM in patients with COPD.

CONCLUSIONThe occurrence of T2DM in COPD patients is closely related to NLR level, which may serve as an early predictor for T2DM in these patients.

BACKGROUNDPyoderma gangrenosum (PG) is a rare neutrophilic dermatosis that is highly associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Certain PG patients with no systemic disorders have been diagnosed with idiopathic PG. This study sought to clarify the difference between PG with IBD and idiopathic PG based on clinical features, laboratory tests, and medications.

METHODSTwelve patients with PG and IBD and 24 patients with idiopathic PG, who were hospitalized in Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 2000 to 2017, were retrospectively categorized into the IBD group and control group, respectively. Data of clinical features, laboratory tests, and medications were collected and compared between the two groups.

RESULTSBoth groups were similar with respect to their clinical features. However, the IBD group had an increased occurrence of arthralgia or arthritis (58.3% vs. 12.5%, P = 0.007), anemia (83.3% and 29.2%, P = 0.004), and an increased percentage of antineutrophilic cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-positive patients (85.7% and 0.0%, P < 0.001), compared to the control group.

CONCLUSIONPG patients with IBD had increased occurrence rates of arthralgia or arthritis, anemia, and ANCA-positive status compared to idiopathic PG patients.

To analyze the protein composition of Brucea javanica seeds and evaluate the cytotoxicity of its gulbulin hydrolysates. Four protein fractions of albumin, gulbulin, prolamin and glutelin were sequentially extracted and then quantified by Kjeldahl method. Different kinds of proteases were applied to hydrolyze B.javanica gulbulin, and MTT assay was used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of low molecular weight hydrolysates (≤3 kDa) on human breast cancer MCF-7 cell. The results showed that： the total protein content of B.javanica seeds was 17.47%, albumin, gulbulin, coxin, glutelin and residue protein accounted for 15.01%, 8.11%, 2.47%, 44.92% and 23.62% of the total protein content, respectively. The hydrolysates (≤3 kDa) of B.javanica globulin produced by pepsin showed significant growth inhibitory activity on MCF-7 cells, and the IC₅₀ value was（6.52±0.01） mg•L⁻¹ after 72 h of incubation. Protein was abundant in B.javanica seeds, and its peptides demonstrated specific cytotoxicity on MCF-7 cell line in vitro, suggesting antitumor active ingredient can be further generated from B.javanica seeds.

Based on DPPH method, the antioxidant activities of Shenqi Tongmai Yizhi particles with different extraction processes were compared. The contribution to the anti-oxidant capacity in vitro was explored by means of grey relational analysis on different chemical compositions in the fingerprint. The results showed that the IC₅₀ concentration values of water extract, water extract from alcohol precipitation, alcohol extract, and alcohol and water extract were 0.801 4, 0.859 1, 0.796 1, 0.918 0 g•L⁻¹; and the alcohol extract is the best method to extract antioxidative components, with the highest antioxidant activity and lowest IC₅₀. When the mass concentration of the herbs reached a certain degree, its free radical clearance rate was similar to that of vitamin C control group. The order of different chemical contributions of constituents to the antioxidant activity in the fingerprint was 4>3>33>53>9>10>11>34>15>59>8>61>52>20>42>18>29. The preliminary exploration for the spectrum efficiency relations provides reference for studying traditional Chinese medicine compound processing method and the pharmacodyamic material basis.

ObjectiveTo observe the clinical efficacy of Kangle Decoction in the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED) with liver-qi stagnation and kidney deficiency.

METHODSA total of 79 ED patients with liver-qi stagnation and kidney deficiency were randomly assigned to an experimental group (aged ［36.62±8.05］ yr and with a disease course of ［18.15±6.41］ mo) and a control group (aged ［37.44±8.10］ yr and with a disease course of ［17.51±6.79］ mo), the former treated orally with Kangle Decoction at 0.5 dose bid while the latter with Cialis at 10 mg qd alt, both for 8 weeks. Before treatment, after 4 and 8 weeks of medication, and at 4 weeks after drug withdrawal, we obtained the scores of the patients in the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5), Erectile Dysfunction Inventory of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS), and Short-Form Psychological and Interpersonal Relationship Scales (SF-PAIRS), and compared the indexes between the two groups of patients.

RESULTSThe IIEF-5 score was dramatically increased in both the treatment and control groups after 4 weeks (13.40±2.42 and 16.00±2.68) and 8 weeks of medication (18.60±3.50 and 18.59±3.80) and at 4 weeks after drug withdrawal (17.00±3.05 and 13.95±2.61) as compared with the baseline (10.78±2.28 and 10.77±2.33) (P<0.05 ), even higher in the treatment than in the control group after drug withdrawal (P<0.05 ). The EDITS scores in the treatment and control groups were (28.88±3.31 and 28.90±3.31) after 4 weeks of intervention, (29.68±3.30 and 29.13±3.32) after 8 weeks of intervention, and (29.20±2.92 and 26.82±3.23) at 4 weeks after drug withdrawal, all significantly higher in the former than in the latter group after drug withdrawal (P<0.05 ). The sexual self-confidence score (SSCS), sexual spontaneity score (SSS), and sexual time-concern score (STCS) were all improved in the treatment and control groups after medication as compared with the baseline (P<0.05 ), even higher in the former than in the latter group after drug withdrawal (P<0.05 ).

CONCLUSIONSKangle Decoction has a definite efficacy in the treatment of ED with liver-qi stagnation and kidney deficiency, with few adverse reactions and long-term post-withdrawal effect, and therefore deserves a wide clinical application.

Adult ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Erectile Dysfunction ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Patient Satisfaction ; Qi ; Self Concept ; Sexual Behavior ; Tadalafil ; therapeutic use ; Treatment Outcome

The research aimed to evaluate the intestinal absorption of alkaloids extracted by decoction and alcohol extraction proces- ses from Rhizoma Coptidis-Rheum rhabarum herbal pair via everted gut sacs. Berberine, palmatine, coptisine and epiberberine were the main alkaloids in this herbal pair and taken as the standard indexes in the quantitative analysis with multi-components by single marker (QAMS) method, in order to calculate absorption rate constant (Ka) and evaluate intestinal absorption characteristics of these four alkaloids extracted by different extraction methods in different intestinal segments in rats. The results showed that the four alkaloids extracted by two different processes in high, medium and low doses had linear absorption properties in the small intestine segment, which conformed to zero-order absorption rate, intestinal segment than 0.99. The absorption rate constant (Ka) of decoction group was higher than that of alcohol extraction group.
Alkaloids ; pharmacokinetics ; Animals ; Coptis ; chemistry ; Intestinal Absorption ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rheum ; chemistry

Bronchopulmonary Sequestration ; diagnosis ; Coronary Vessels ; pathology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the value and clinical effect of peripheral aneurysms with polytetrafluoroethene (PTFE) stent graft after peripheral endovascular procedures.

METHODSFrom May 2012 to November 2013, 13 patients of peripheral aneurysms were treated with PTFE stent graft. There were 9 male and 4 female patients, aged from 24 to 74 years with a mean of 52 years. There were 7 aneurysms and 6 pseudoaneurysms. This stent graft was a self-expanding nitinol stent, internally covered by an ultra-thin polytetrafluoroethene (PTFE) graft. All peripheral aneurysms were repaired with the PTFE stent graft, using an entirely percutaneous approach. All patients were given clopidogrel and (or) aspirin postoperatively. Complications and reintervention rates were also examined.

RESULTSPTFE stent graft placement was successfully performed in all the 13 cases, and the instant isolation effect was quite satisfactory. During the follow-up period of 3 to 18 months, no stent graft related complications occurred in all patients except one patient with iliac arterial pseudoaneurysm, who developed pseudoaneurysms presented as a complication at puncture site. There were no other symptomatic complications with graft patience.

CONCLUSIONEndovascular repair can be considered as an effective treatment strategy for peripheral aneurysms by PTFE stent graft.

Adult ; Aged ; Aneurysm ; surgery ; Drug-Eluting Stents ; Endovascular Procedures ; Female ; Fluorocarbons ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymers ; Treatment Outcome

Adolescent ; Adult ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma ; drug therapy ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult