Humans ; Neutrophils ; Receptors, Cell Surface ; GPI-Linked Proteins ; HIV Infections ; Isoantigens

Objective:To observe any effect of repeated magnetic stimulation of the spine on lower urinary tract function and the life quality of patients with neurogenic bladder after suprasacral spinal cord injury (SCI).Methods:Fifteen suprasacral SCI patients whose lower urinary tract function was not improving were enrolled. In the first 2 weeks, all received water drinking management and intermittent catheterization, while in the following 4 weeks they were additionally provided with daily transspinal magnetic stimulation at the level of the spinous process of the first lumbar vertebra five times a week. The stimulation frequency was 1Hz. The patients kept voiding diaries. Their urodynamics were quantified using neurogenic bladder symptom scoring (NBSS) and a life quality scale.Results:The frequency of catheterization and the average voided volume, as well as the maximum detrusor pressure during the storage phase, maximum bladder capacity, maximum urethral pressure during the voiding phase and voiding efficiency at the end of the sixth week were significantly different from those at the end of the second week and before the intervention. The average NBSS and life quality scores then showed significant differences from the earlier time points.Conclusion:Repeteitive transspinal magnetic stimulation of the spine can improve lower urinary tract functioning and the life quality of persons with neurogenic bladder after a suprasacral SCI.

BACKGROUND: Functional constipation (FC) is one of the most prevalent functional gastrointestinal disorders. Dissatisfaction with medications prescribed to treat FC may lead patients to seek alternative treatments. Numerous systematic reviews (SRs) examining the use of acupuncture to treat FC have reported inconsistent results, and the quality of these studies has not been fully evaluated. OBJECTIVE: In this overview, we evaluated and summarized clinical evidence on the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for treating FC and evaluated the quality and bias of the SRs we reviewed. SEARCH STRATEGY: The search strategy was structured by medical subject headings and search terms such as "acupuncture therapy" and "functional constipation." Electronic searches were conducted in eight databases from their inception to September 2020. INCLUSION CRITERIA: SRs that investigated the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for managing FC were included. DATA EXTRACTION AND ANALYSIS: Two authors independently extracted information and appraised the methodology, reporting accuracy, quality of evidence, and risk of bias using the following critical appraisal tools: (1) A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR 2); (2) Risk of Bias in Systematic Reviews (ROBIS); (3) Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses for Acupuncture (PRISMA-A); and (4) the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations (GRADE). A κ index was used to score the level of agreement between the 2 reviewers. RESULTS: Thirteen SRs that examined the clinical utility of acupuncture for treating FC were identified. Using the AMSTAR 2 tool, we rated 92.3% (12/13) of the SRs as "critically low" confidence and one study as "low" confidence. Using the ROBIS criteria, 38.5% (5/13) of the SRs were considered to have "low risk" of bias. Based on PRISMA-A, 76.9% (10/13) of the SRs had over 70% compliance with reporting standards. The inter-rater agreement was good for AMSTAR 2, ROBIS, and PRISMA-A. Using the GRADE tool, we classified 22.5% (9/40) of the measured outcomes as "moderate" quality, 57.5% (23/40) as "low" quality, and 20.0% (8/40) as "very low" quality. The inter-rater agreement was moderate when using GRADE. Descriptive analyses indicated that acupuncture was more efficacious than sham acupuncture for improving weekly complete spontaneous bowel movements (CSBMs) and for raising the Bristol Stool Form Scale (BSFS) score. Acupuncture appeared to be superior to anti-constipation drugs for improving weekly spontaneous bowel movements, the total effective rate, and the Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life score. Although ten SRs mentioned the occurrence of adverse events, serious adverse events were not associated with acupuncture treatment. CONCLUSION: Acupuncture may be more efficacious than sham acupuncture for improving CSBMs and BSFS scores and may be superior to anti-constipation drugs for improving bowel movement frequency, as well as quality of life. Limitations to current studies and inconsistent evidence suggest a need for more rigorous and methodologically sound SRs to draw definitive conclusions. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION PROSPERO CRD42020189173.
Acupuncture Therapy ; Constipation/therapy* ; Humans ; Quality of Life ; Systematic Reviews as Topic

OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical features and genetic etiology for a neonate with Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS). METHODS: Copy number variation sequencing (CNV-seq) was applied to the neonate and his parents, and the genotype-phenotype correlation was analyzed. RESULTS: On the second day after birth, the neonate had presented with pathological jaundice and immunodeficiency. Cranial MRI revealed ventricular enlargement and enlargement of cisterna magna. At 3 months, the infant has presented with square face, prominent forehead, deep-set eyes, hypertelorism, palpebral fissure upward and button noses. Genetic testing showed that he had carried a 2.9 Mb deletion in 17p11.2 region, seq[GRCh37] del(17)(p11.2)(chr17:16 836 379-19 880 992). The same deletion was not found in either parent. CONCLUSION SMS is mostly diagnosed in child and adulthood, but rarely in neonates. For neonates with SMS, the neurological and behavioral abnormalities have not been shown, but pathological jaundice, CNS abnormalities and immune deficiency may be the characteristics, which require attention of neonatal physicians.
Adult ; Chromosome Deletion ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 17 ; DNA Copy Number Variations ; Genetic Testing ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Intellectual Disability/genetics* ; Male ; Phenotype ; Smith-Magenis Syndrome/genetics*

Objective:To optimize the ethanol reflux extraction process of total saponins in total saponins of Trillium tschonoskii Rhizome. Methods:On the basis of single factor tests, making the total extraction rate of three main compounds [paris saponin Ⅵ, paris saponin Ⅶ and pennogenin-3- O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→4)-[O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl (1→2)]- O-β-D-glucopyranoside (PRRG)] as the indicator, the optimal extraction parameter was selected with the main influencing factors: the ethanol concentration, solid-liquid ratio, and extraction time by the central composite design-response surface method.Results:The optimal extraction parameter for the ethanol extract of total saponins of Trillium tschonoskii Rhizome was as follows: ethanol concentration 69%, extraction time 1.9 h, and solid liquid ratio 1∶9.7. The binomial fitting complex correlation coefficient r = 0.966 1, and the deviation between the extracted predicted value and the actual value is 4.68%. Conclusion:The central composite design-response surface method is simple and reliable for the optimization of extraction process of total saponins of Trillium tschonoskii Rhizome.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a global metabolic disease with potentially life- threatening complications. Liver metabolism plays a vital role in the occurrence and development of diabetes mellitus. It has been reported that the Chinese medicinal Anemarrhenae rhizoma (AR) can relieve insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus. However, the effect on abnormal liver metabolism in diabetes mellitus is still unclear. Therefore, we extracted liver proteins of T2DM rats induced by high-fat diet (HFD) and streptozotocin (STZ), T2DM rats treated with AR extract (ARE), obesity rats (fed with HFD), and normal control rats (fed with normal diet). Then, through tandem mass tag (TMT) labeling combined with mass spectrometry (MS), we obtained the quantitative proteomic data. Bioinformatics software was used for hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis of the data in each group. The volcano map for differentially expressed proteins (P < 0.05, fold change > 1.5) was plotted. It was found that the treatment group was closer to the normal control group, indicating that the quantitative proteomic data of liver tissue can reflect the therapeutic effect of ARE on T2DM rats. Key protein clusters closely related to the treatment of ARE were screened out. The Gene Ontology (GO) terms and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways of the protein clusters were analyzed by David, and the result showed that AR's alleviation of abnormal fatty acid metabolism in livers of T2DM rats may be related to the regulation of the expression of key proteins Ndufa6 and Prkar2b.
Rats ; Animals ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/metabolism* ; Proteomics/methods* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Anemarrhena ; Liver/metabolism*

Objective:Select a suitable macroporous resin for the purification technic of total saponins from Panacis Japonici Rhizoma and determine the parameter of purification technic. Methods:Made the content of total saponins as the index, used static adsorption test and combined the adsorption kinetic parameters to select the type of macroporous resin. By using dynamic adsorption experiment to investigate the technical parameters of the purified macroporous resin extracted from Panacis Japonici Rhizoma. Then the preparation technic of the total saponins of Panacis Japonici Rhizoma was determined. Results:The D101 macroporous resin could absorpt and desorpt total saponins of Panacis Japonici Rhizoma effectively. The optimal purification parameters were as follow: the loading mass concentration was 0.1 g/ml (based on crude drug), and the loading volume was 100 ml (which means the loading volume of resin per ml was equivalent to 3.3 grams of crude drug). During the elution process, distilled water (3 BV) and 20% ethanol (3 BV) were used to remove impurity, and then 70% ethanol elution (6 BV) was used to enrich the total saponins. The flow rate of loading and elution was 0.5 ml/min. The transfer rate of total saponins could reache 85.6%. Conclusion:The D101 macroporous resin can effectively enrich and purify the total saponins of Panacis Japonici Rhizoma, which provides the scientific basis for the development and utilization of Panacis Japonici Rhizoma.

Tyrosine phosphorylation is one of the important protein phosphorylations in eukaryotes responsible for a variety of biological processes including cell signaling transduction, cell migration, and apoptosis. In the study of phosphoproteomics, due to the low stoichiometry of tyrosine phosphorylation (pTyr) proteins and sometimes limited initial sample, traditional phosphoproteomics enrichment technology is inefficient for the enrichment of pTyr peptides. Here, we review the substantial progress in tyrosine phosphoproteomics by preparation of limited amount sample and the newly introduced SH2 superbinder.
Cell Movement ; Peptides ; Phosphorylation ; Technology ; Tyrosine/metabolism*

Oocyte cryopreservation is widely used for clinical and social reasons. Previous studies have demonstrated that conventional slow-freezing cryopreservation procedures, but not storage time, can alter the gene expression profiles of frozen oocytes. Whether vitrification procedures and the related frozen storage durations have any effects on the transcriptomes of human metaphase II oocytes remain unknown. Four women (30-32 years old) who had undergone IVF treatment were recruited for this study. RNA-Seq profiles of 3 fresh oocytes and 13 surviving vitrified-thawed oocytes (3, 3, 4, and 3 oocytes were cryostored for 1,2, 3, and 12 months) were analyzed at a single-cell resolution. A total of 1987 genes were differentially expressed in the 13 vitrified-thawed oocytes. However, no differentially expressed genes were found between any two groups among the 1-, 2-, 3-, and 12-month storage groups. Further analysis revealed that the aberrant genes in the vitrified oocytes were closely related to oogenesis and development. Our findings indicated that the effects of vitrification on the transcriptomes of mature human oocytes are induced by the procedure itself, suggesting that long-term cryostorage of human oocytes is safe.
Adult ; Cryopreservation ; Female ; Humans ; Metaphase ; Oocytes ; RNA-Seq ; Vitrification

Pyroptosis is a form of programmed cell death, and recently described as a new molecular mechanism of chemotherapy drugs in the treatment of tumors. Miltirone, a derivative of phenanthrene-quinone isolated from the root of Bunge, has been shown to possess anti-cancer activities. Here, we found that miltirone inhibited the cell viability of either HepG2 or Hepa1-6 cells, and induced the proteolytic cleavage of gasdermin E (GSDME) in each hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell line, with concomitant cleavage of caspase 3. Knocking out switched miltirone-induced cell death from pyroptosis to apoptosis. Additionally, the induction effects of miltirone on GSDME-dependent pyroptosis were attenuated by siRNA-mediated caspase three silencing and the specific caspase three inhibitor Z-DEVD-FMK, respectively. Miltirone effectively elicited intracellular accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and suppressed phosphorylation of mitogen-activated and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (MEK) and extracellular regulated protein kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2) for pyroptosis induction. Moreover, miltirone significantly inhibited tumor growth and induced pyroptosis in the Hepa1-6 mouse HCC syngeneic model. These results provide a new insight that miltirone is a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of HCC GSDME-dependent pyroptosis.