ObjectiveTo explore the mechanism of Huoxue Rongluo prescription （HXRLP） in repairing the blood-brain barrier （BBB） after ischemic stroke （IS）. MethodsMale C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into sham operation （Sham） group， cerebral infarction model （MCAO） group， environmental circadian disruption with cerebral infarction model （ECD-MCAO） group， low-， medium-， and high-dose HXRLP （HXRLP-L， M， and H） groups （8.5， 17， 34 g·kg^-1·d^-1， respectively）， and positive drug butylphthalide （NBP） group （0.23 mL·d^-1）. In the Sham group， only the exposed blood vessels were isolated without suture insertion. In the other groups， the middle cerebral artery occlusion （MCAO） model of mice was prepared. In the ECD-MCAO group， HXRLP groups， and NBP group， the environmental circadian disruption （ECD） model was prepared. The mice in the Sham group， MCAO group， and ECD-MCAO group were given the same volume of soybean oil by gavage， while those in the other groups were given the corresponding drugs by gavage. Samples were collected after 7 consecutive days of administration. The mNSS score was used to evaluate the repair effect of HXRLP on neurological deficits after IS. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining was used to assess the impact of HXRLP on the pathological damage of brain tissue after IS. 2，3，5-Triphenyltetrazolium chloride （TTC） staining and cerebral blood perfusion status were used to evaluate the repair effect of HXRLP on brain tissue damage after IS. Evans blue staining and transmission electron microscopy were used to evaluate the improvement effect of HXRLP on the permeability injury of BBB after IS. Immunofluorescence （IF） staining was used to observe the expression of von Willebrand Factor （vWF）， brain and muscle Arnt-like 1 （Bmal1）， and Occludin in brain tissue. Western blot was used to detect the protein expression of Bmal1， Occludin， tight junction protein （Claudin-5）， vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF）， and angiopoietins（Ang）， and related analysis was conducted. ResultsCompared with the Sham group， the MCAO group exhibited significantly aggravated neurological deficits， cerebral infarction volume， brain pathological damage， and BBB leakage （P0.01） and significantly reduced cerebral blood perfusion （P0.01）. The expression of Bmal1， vWF， vascular endothelial growth factor A （VEGFA）， and Ang in brain tissue was significantly enhanced （P0.01）， while the expression of Occludin and Claudin-5 was significantly weakened （P0.01）. Compared with the MCAO group， the ECD-MCAO group showed significantly aggravated neurological deficits， cerebral infarction volume， and BBB leakage （P0.01）， obviously worsened brain pathological damage （P0.05）， significantly reduced cerebral blood perfusion （P0.01）， and significantly decreased expression of Bmal1， vWF， VEGFA， Ang， Occludin， and Claudin-5 in brain tissue （P0.01）. Compared with the ECD-MCAO group， the HXRLP groups of all doses presented significantly improved neurological deficits， cerebral infarction volume， brain pathological damage， and BBB leakage （P0.01）， significantly increased cerebral blood perfusion （P0.01）， and enhanced expression levels of Bmal1， vWF， VEGFA， Ang， Occludin， and Claudin-5 in brain tissue （P0.01）. ConclusionHXRLP can regulate the clock protein Bmal1 and promote the expression of VEGFA， Ang， Occludin， and Claudin-5， thereby improving BBB damage after IS.

As a key enzyme in the nitrogen cycle,urease is not only a nitrogen source for the growth of organisms,but also a virulence factor found in various pathogenic bacteria.The urease produced by Helicobacter pylori(H.pylori)plays an im-portant role in the colonization and survival of H.pylori.However,H.pylori infections are closely associated with gastrointestinal diseases such as intestinal metaplasia,active gastritis,peptic ulcer and gastric cancer.With the increasing of drug-resistant strains,there is an urgent need for effective and safe new drugs,so H.pylori has become one of the most frequently studied ure-ase-producing bacteria.Urease has also received considerable attention as a potential target for antibacterial drugs.Medicinal plants with high safety have been proven to have therapeutic potential,and many natural plant extracts have become the inspira-tion and starting point of new drug development;previous studies have also found that many naturally occurring flavonoids have anti-urease activity.Therefore,this review summarizes the effects of inhibiting some plant-derived flavonoids on H.pylori urease.According to their origins,structural characteristics,and possible mechanism of action,we seek and develop plant-derived com-pounds with the specificity of anti-H.pylori,which can provide references for developing clinical drug candidates.

Objective:To compare the immediate effectiveness of elbow forearm support with that of a traditional shoulder sling in reducing glenohumeral subluxation (GHS) after a stroke.Methods:Eight stroke survivors with GHS were randomized to receive either 30 minutes of intervention of an elbow forearm support treatment or a traditional shoulder sling treatment twice within 24 hours. Their healthy and affected shoulders were X-rayed before and right after the treatment is ongoing as well as after the end of the 30 min of treatment. The vertical (VD) and horizontal (HD) distances from the lower edge of the acromion to the center of the humeral head were measured. The satisfaction of the patients and their relatives was surveyed.Results:The average VD and HD improved significantly more after wearing the elbow forearm support. Moreover, the patients and their relatives expressed greater satisfaction with the elbow forearm support.Conclusion:Either an elbow forearm support or a traditional shoulder sling will have an immediate effect in reducing shoulder subluxation, but the elbow forearm support is more effective and gives greater satisfaction.

Objective To explore the effectiveness of the Five Elements Music Therapy(FEMT)in relieving stress in participants with different cultural backgrounds,and to compare the differences between the FEMT and the Western Art Music Therapy(WAMT)in stress relief.Methods This was a comparative pilot randomized pre-post repeated measures study,37 subjects were allocated with 2 dropped out,with an inclusion-ended sample of 35 subjects,23 from Canada and 12 from China.After informed consent,all subjects were randomly assigned to listening to either Five Elements Music or Western Art Music at home for 30 minutes,twice a week for four weeks.Participants were asked to use headphones,measure their pulse rate before and after each session,and fill out five questionnaires,including a background and demographic survey(reporting age,gender,education,cultural background,listening experience).Self-assessment of stress(pre-post after each session),General Hospital Anxiety/Depression Scale(HADS,weekly after 2nd session),Perceived Stress Survey(PSS,weekly after 2nd session),the Music Therapy Intervention Survey(MTIS,pre-post each session).Results ①There was a significant decrease in self-assessed stress scores after the second session in the FEMT compared with the WAMT group(t=-2.057,P=0.046).②In both groups,there was a significant decrease in stress scores pre-post treatment in each group(WAMT t=5.026;FEMT T=7.645,P=0.000).③There was no significant difference between the two groups in post-intervention HADS scores(P>0.05);In the Chinese sample,there was a significant difference in HADS scores after the eighth session in both FEMT and WAMT groups(t=-3.862,P=0.003),and a statistically significant difference in HADS pre-post intervention in the FEMT((t=5.117,P=0.004).There was a significant difference in MTIS pre-post treatment in the WAMT(t=-2.572,P=0.023),but in not the FEMT group(t= 1.331,P=0.207).Conclusion This pilot trial explores a safe and feasible self-administered music therapy approach for stress in two distinct cultural groups,and for the first time provides preliminary comparison and evidence of effectiveness of FEMT and WAMT in alleviating stress and anxiety.Further investigation with bigger randomized samples is needed to elucidate the effects of different kinds of music and cultural groups on stress and anxiety levels.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the practical and health economical values of non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT) in Changsha Municipal Public Welfare Program. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was carried out on 149 165 women undergoing NIPT test from April 9, 2018 to December 31, 2019. For pregnant women with high risks, invasive prenatal diagnosis and follow-up of pregnancy outcome were conducted. The cost-benefit of NIPT for Down syndrome was analyzed. RESULTS: NIPT was carried out for 149 165 pregnant women and succeeded in 148 749 cases (99.72%), for which outcome were available in 148 538 (99.86%). 90% of pregnant women from the region accepted the screening with NIPT. 415 (0.27%) were diagnosed as high risk. Among these, 381 (91.81%) accepted amniocentesis, which led to the diagnosis of 212 cases of trisomy 21 (PPV=85.14%), 41 cases with trisomy 18 (PPV=48.81%) and 10 cases with trisomy 13 (PPV=20.83%). The sensitivity and specificity of NIPT for trisomy 21, trisomy 18 and trisomy 13 were (97.70%, 99.98%), (97.62%, 9.97%) and (100%, 99.97%), respectively. In addition, 213 and 30 cases were diagnosed with sex chromosomal aneuploidies (PPV=46.2%) and other autosomal anomalies (PPV=16.57%), respectively. For Down syndrome screening, the cost and benefit of the project was 120.79 million yuan and 1,056.95 million yuan, respectively. The cost-benefit ratio was 1: 8.75, and safety index was 0.0035. CONCLUSION NIPT is a highly accurate screening test for trisomy 21, which was followed by trisomy 18 and sex chromosomal aneuploidies, while it was less accurate for other autosomal aneuploidies. The application of NIPT screening has a high health economical value.
Aneuploidy ; Cost-Benefit Analysis ; Female ; Humans ; Noninvasive Prenatal Testing ; Pregnancy ; Retrospective Studies ; Trisomy 18 Syndrome/genetics*

Objective:To study the efficacy of low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) on neuropathic pain (NP) in mice, and its effect on the activation of astrocytes and the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines were discussed.Methods:Thirty-six male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into three groups: sham operation (Sham) group and chroinc constriction injury (CCI) model group and treatment (CCI+ LIFU) group, 12 mice in each group.NP model was established by CCI on the sciatic nerve. The group of CCI+ LIFU received LIFU treatment for the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) on the 7th day after surgery, the mechanical withdrawal threshold (MWT) on the affected side of mice was measured at preoperation 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, and 27 days after operation, respectively, H&E staining was used to observe pathological morphological changes in the ACC region, the expression levels of ACC region AQP4 and GFAP protein were detected by Western Blot and immunofluorescence, and the expression levels of ACC region pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorption assay.Results:Compared with Sham group, MWT in the CCI group decreased from the 3rd day until the 27th day after surgery( P<0.05); Compared with the CCI group, the MWT in the CCI+ LIFU group increased on the 24th day after surgery, and was significantly higher than that of the CCI group on the 24th and 27th day after surgery ( P<0.05); LIFU stimulation did not produce significant pathological changes in the ACC region; Western Blot and immunofluorescence showed that AQP4 and GFAP protein expression in the ACC region were upregulated ( P<0.05) after peripheral nerve injury, while AQP4 and GFAP protein expression was downregulated after LIFU treatment ( P<0.05); Enzyme-linked immunosorbents showed that the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α in the region of ACC was upregulated ( P<0.05) after peripheral nerve injury, while the expression of IL-1β and TNF-α was downregulated after LIFU treatment ( P<0.05). Conclusions:LIFU can effectively relieve mechanical pain sensitivity symptoms in mice induced by CCI, possibly by inhibiting activation of astrocytes and neuro-inflammatory responses.

Objective:A multi-center and large sample volume study was conducted on the verification and improvement of the early established criteria for intelligent routine urinalysis validation (including the microscopic review rules and manual validation rules, referred to as intelligent criteria for short), in order to improve the clinical application of this intelligent criteria.Methods:A total of 31 456 urine specimens were collected from the inpatients and outpatients in six hospitals in China, from March to September 2019. Firstly, 3105 specimens were analyzed for preliminary verification and improvement of the intelligent criteria based on the results of the microscopic examination and manual validation. Secondly, 28 351 specimens were used to verify the clinical application of the improved intelligent criteria. All samples were manually validated as reference.Results:The approval inconsistency rate of the manual validation rules in the original intelligent criteria was 8.59% (202/2 352), and the interception inconsistency rate was 8.84% (208/2 352). The false negative rate and the microscopic review rate of the microscopic review rules were similar to the previous results. Based on an in-depth analysis of big data and the discussions by senior technicians from eight hospitals, one microscopic review rules and four manual validation rules were added, meanwhile two manual validation rule was deleted. The manual validation standards were unified. Finally, the intelligent criteria was improved. Based on the improved intelligent criteria, for microscopic review rules, the false positive rate, false negative rate (misdiagnosis rate), and microscopic review rate did not change significantly, which were 14.72% (457/3 105), 4.06% (126/3 105), and 24.73% (768/3 105), respectively. The approval inconsistency rate and the interception inconsistency rate of manual validation rules were both reduced to 0; the total manual validation rate of the intelligent criteria was 50.89% (1 580/3 105), and the auto-validation rate was 49.11% (1 525/3 105). The large sample volume verification results were consistent with the preliminary verification results of the improved intelligent criteria.Conclusion:This multi-center and large sample volume study had shown that the improved intelligent criteria had better clinical performance.

Objective To optimize a method for extracting traditional Chinese medicine composition with insomnia,and to prepare the insomnia granules for quality control.Methods The optimal extraction process was screened by orthogonal test using high-performance liquid chromatography with geniposide as the evaluation index.The particle size,bulk density,angle of repose,moisture,solubility,hygroscopicity and loading difference of the insomnia granule were evaluated,and the difference between the trial test and the pilot test were analyzed to comprehensively monitor the quality of the insomnia granule.Results The best extraction process was to add 10 times of water and cooked it three times for 1.5 hours each time.The average yield rate of dry extract of the pilot test and trial test was 22.10％,15.52％,and the average yield of powder was 84.96％ and 93.12％,respectively.The conversion rate from the pilot test to the trial test is 76.97％.Both the trial test and the pilot test particles met the quality requirements of the 2015 edition of the pharmacopoeia.Conclusions The preparation method of the insomnia granules is simple and the quality is uniform.The results of the pilot scale showed that the conversion rate is high,the quality is controllable,and the technical feasibility of industrial production is obtained.

Previously, we reported that Y, a new epigallocatechin gallate derivative, is efficacious in reversing doxorubicin (DOX)--mediated resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma BEL-7404/DOX cells. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of Y in reversing drug resistance both and by determining its effect on the adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette protein B1 transporter (ABCB1 or P-glycoprotein, P-gp). Our results showed that Y significantly sensitized cells overexpressing the ABCB1 transporter to anticancer drugs that are ABCB1 substrates. Y significantly stimulated the adenosine triphosphatase activity of ABCB1. Furthermore, Y exhibited a higher docking score as compared with epigallocatechin gallate inside the transmembrane domain of ABCB1. In addition, in the nude mouse tumor xenograft model, Y (110 mg/kg, intragastric administration), in combination with doxorubicin (2 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection), significantly inhibited the growth of BEL-7404/DOX cell xenograft tumors, compared to equivalent epigallocatechin gallate. In conclusion, Y significantly reversed ABCB1-mediated multidrug resistance and its mechanisms of action may result from its competitive inhibition of the ABCB1 drug efflux function.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and Chemokine CX3C ligand 1 (Fractalkine/CX3CL1) play important roles in vascular inflammation and injury. To study if STAT3 promotes vascular endothelial cell proliferation and migration through fractalkine, we overexpressed or knocked down STAT3 in vascular endothelial cells, and used quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting to determine the effect of STAT3 on fractalkine expression. The wild type and STAT3 binding site mutant fractalkine promoter luciferase reporter plasmids were constructed, and luciferase activity assays were used to explore the effect of STAT3 on the transcriptional activity of the fractalkine promoter. MTT assays were used to detect the effect of overexpression or knockdown of STAT3 or fractalkine on the proliferation rate of vascular endothelial cells. Scratch assays were used to detect the effect of overexpression or knockdown of STAT3 or fractalkine on vascular endothelial cell migration. There results showed that overexpression of STAT3 could promote fractalkine expression, and knockdown of STAT3 could down-regulate fractalkine expression. STAT3 could directly bind to the promoter of fractalkine to promote its transcriptional activity via binding the GAS site of the fractalkine promoter. Knockdown of STAT3 could inhibit the migration of vascular endothelial cell, and overexpression of fractalkine antagonized this inhibition. Our data concluded that STAT3 promotes the proliferation and migration of vascular endothelial cell by binding the GAS site of the fractalkine promoter to promote fractalkine transcriptional activity and expression.
Cell Proliferation ; Chemokine CX3CL1 ; Endothelial Cells ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; STAT3 Transcription Factor