With the acceleration of China's aging society，the incidence of ischemic stroke is increasing year by year，and carotid artery vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque is closely related to its development.Various imaging techniques have been used to assess the vulnerability of carotid plaques，but each technique has its own set of advantages and disadvantages in detecting vulnerability features.The purpose of this article is to summarize the clinical applications of imaging techniques for the assessment of carotid plaque vulnerability and the advantages and disadvantages of each technique.

With the acceleration of China's aging society，the incidence of ischemic stroke is increasing year by year，and carotid artery vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque is closely related to its development.Various imaging techniques have been used to assess the vulnerability of carotid plaques，but each technique has its own set of advantages and disadvantages in detecting vulnerability features.The purpose of this article is to summarize the clinical applications of imaging techniques for the assessment of carotid plaque vulnerability and the advantages and disadvantages of each technique.

Objective To study the protective effect and related mechanism of pterostilbene(PTE)on renal ischemia-reperfusion injury(IRI)in mice.Methods Twenty-four C57 mice were randomly divided into 4 groups(n=6),including the sham operation group(S group),the renal ischemia reperfusion group(IR group),the renal ischemia reperfusion+5 mg/kg PTE group(IR+PTE1 group)and the renal ischemia reper-fusion+10 mg/kg PTE group(IR+PTE2 group).Hematoxylin-eosin(HE)and TUNEL staining were used to evaluate renal tissue injury.Creatinine(Cr),blood urea nitrogen(BUN),malondialdehyde(MDA)in renal tissue,inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor(TNF-α),interleukin(IL)-1β and IL-6 levels in serum were detected with relevant kits.The expression of Bcl-2 interacting protein 3(BNIP3)and microtubule-asso-ciated protein light chain(LC)-3 Ⅱ in kidney tissue was detected by Western blot.Results Compared with the S group,serum levels of Cr,BUN,MDA,TNF-α,IL-1β and IL-6 in the IR group were increased,renal tu-bule injury score and apoptosis index were increased,and expressions of BNIP3 and LC-3 Ⅱ were down-regula-ted,with statistical significance(P＜0.05).Compared with the IR group,serum levels of Cr,BUN,MDA,TNF-α,IL-1β and IL-6 in the IR+PTE1 group were decreased,renal tubule injury score and apoptosis index were decreased,and expressions of BNIP3 and LC-3 Ⅱ were up-regulated,with statistical significance(P＜0.05).Compared with the IR+PTE1 group,serum levels of Cr,BUN,MDA,TNF-α,IL-1β and IL-6 in the IR+PTE2 group were decreased,renal tubule injury score and apoptosis index were decreased,and expres-sions of BNIP3 and LC-3 Ⅱ were up-regulated,with statistical significance(P＜0.05).Conclusion PTE has protective effect on renal IRI in mice.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of postconditioning with Shenmai-injectio on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in rats.MethodsThirty-six healthy male SD rats aged 10-12 weeks weighing 240-260 g were randomly divided into 3 groups ( n =12 each):sham operation group (group S) ; myocardial I/R group and Shenmai-injectio postconditioning group (group SPO).Myocardial I/R was produced by ligation of the left anterior descending branch of coronary artery for 30 min followed by 120 min reperfusion in groups I/R and SPO.In group SPO Shenmai-injectio 9 ml/kg was injected iv at the end of 30 min ischemia.Blood samples were collected from abdominal aorta at the end of 120 min reperfusion for determination of serum CK activity and cTnI concentration.The animals were then sacrificed.Myocardial specimens were obtained for microscopic examination,detection of apoptosis and determination of myocardial Bcl-2 and Bax protein expression ( by immuno-histochemis-try).ResultsMyocardial I/R significantly increased serum CK activity,cTnI concentration,apoptotic index (percentage of apoptotic cells) and Bax protein expression and decreased Bcl-2 protein expression in group I/R as compared with group S.Shenmai-injectio postconditioning significantly attenuated I/R-induced above changes and ameliorated histo-pathological damage in group SPO as compared with group I/R.ConclusionShenmai-injectiopostconditioning can reduce myocardial I/R injury by up-regulating Bcl-2 expression and down-regulating Bax expression,leading eventually to reduction in apoptosis.