ObjectiveTo explore the suitability of four qualitative research methods in the development of TCM scale. MethodsTaking the development of "Seven Emotions Scale" as an example， we conducted semi-structured interviews with 31 patients of emotional disorders and 10 healthy people by objective sampling， and collected psychological feelings and emotional cognition data related to seven emotions according to the interview outline. Two qualitative methods， descriptive qualitative research and descriptive phenomenology， were used to analyze the data and construct the item library of the scale. The conceptual framework of the scale was constructed by using commonly used grounded theory and frame analysis. ResultsDuring data analysis， it is found that the themes extracted from descriptive phenomenology were not easily understood by the interviewees， and it is difficult for the researchers to truly achieve the "suspension" required by phenomenology. Considering the feasibility and convenience of the researchers' actual operation， as well as whether the initial purpose of the scale research can be intuitively included in the interviewees' views and feelings， descriptive phenomenology is not suitable for the formation of scale items. Using descriptive qualitative research method to analyze the interview data of healthy people and patients with emotional disorders， 306 and 476 scale items were obtained respectively. Through grounded theory， five selective codes were obtained： physical symptoms， external manifestations， psychological feelings， behaviors and emotional control. Using frame analysis， four themes including physical symptoms， psychological feelings， behavior and emotional cognition were constructed. Both methods can be used to construct the conceptual frame of scale， but the framework analysis is more convenient and can better ensure the transparency of the research. ConclusionDescriptive qualitative research methods can be used to form the item library of TCM scales. Framework analysis is more suitable for the construction of the conceptual framework of the scale than grounded theory， while descriptive phenomenology is not suitable for the development of TCM scales.

Chemical cleaning and disinfection are crucial steps for eliminating infection in root canal treatment.However,irrigant selection or irrigation procedures are far from clear.The vapor lock effect in the apical region has yet to be solved,impeding irrigation efficacy and resulting in residual infections and compromised treatment outcomes.Additionally,ambiguous clinical indications for root canal medication and non-standardized dressing protocols must be clarified.Inappropriate intracanal medication may present side effects and jeopardize the therapeutic outcomes.Indeed,clinicians have been aware of these concerns for years.Based on the current evidence of studies,this article reviews the properties of various irrigants and intracanal medicaments and elucidates their effectiveness and interactions.The evolution of different kinetic irrigation methods,their effects,limitations,the paradigm shift,current indications,and effective operational procedures regarding intracanal medication are also discussed.This expert consensus aims to establish the clinical operation guidelines for root canal irrigation and a position statement on intracanal medication,thus facilitating a better understanding of infection control,standardizing clinical practice,and ultimately improving the success of endodontic therapy.

Objective:To establish the ultra high performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) fingerprints of Mume flos at different flowering stages; To provide reference for the quality research of Mume flos.Methods:The fingerprints of Mume flos were established by UPLC method, and the common peaks were identified by high performance liquid chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Chemometrics analysis was carried out with the fingerprints' common peak area of plum blossom at different flowering stages as a variable. Semiquantitative analysis of changes in flavonoids and phenolic acids in Mume flos at different flowering stages was conduct using peak area calculation method.Results:Totally 31 common peaks were identified in the fingerprints of plum blossom medicinal materials at different flowering stages and 9 components were identified. Clustering analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA) both classified plum blossom medicinal herbs at different flowering stages into three categories. Among them, there were significant differences between the groups at the bud stage, blooming period, and final flowering period, while the differences between the groups at blooming period and final flowering period were relatively small. The orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) screened 16 different components with VIP>1.0. The contents of phenolic acids in different flowering stages were as follows: bud stage>blooming period>final flowering period, while the contents of flavonoids were as follows: blooming period>final flowering period>bud stage.Conclusions:This method is simple and reliable, and can provide reference for the quality evaluation of plum blossom medicinal materials at different flowering stages.

Objective Neuromuscular electrical stimulation(NMES)-evoked kinesthetic information in muscle spindle can be purely extracted from the mixed motor and sensory afferents using Ischemic nerve block(INB).This study aims to investigate the somatosensory cortical response evoked by NMES activating muscle spindle afferents in forearm.Methods All subjects performed four experimental tasks designed according to a 2×2 factors,including one factor of the INB state(without INB and within INB)and the other of the stimulation intensity(above and below motor threshold).During the experiment,we recorded EEG data with 64 channels and then beta event-related desynchronization(Beta ERD)were utilized quantize somatosensory cortical excitability evoked by the tasks.The subjective perception about the sensation and movement of the right hand were evaluated by a psychophysical test after the right wrist was performed by INB.Results INB significantly reduced beta ERD on the contralateral somatosensory cortex evoked by NMES above the motor threshold,and there was significant difference of NMES-evoked beta ERD values on the contralateral somatosensory cortex between above and below motor threshold.Meanwhile,contralateral dominance of NMES-evoked beta ERD on the somatosensory cortex was transferred to ipsilateral hemisphere under INB.Conclusion INB can significantly reduce NMES-evoked somatosensory cortical response above motor threshold and decrease cortical perception on the stimulus intensity,which may be due to INB resulting in rapid functional reorganization of somatosensory cortex.

AIM:To investigate the impact of celastrol intervention on excitatory amino acid transporter 2(EAAT2)and its neuroprotective role in subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH).METHODS:Western blot analysis was uti-lized to assess the EAAT2 expression level within 72 h after SAH,while glutamate concentration in cortical brain tissues was measured.Computational simulation was employed to explore the binding of celastrol with EAAT2.Seventy SD rats were randomly assigned to sham,model,model+GT949(an EAAT2 agonist),model+dihydrokainic acid(DHK;an EAAT2 inhibitor),and model+celastrol groups.Glutamate concentration in cortical brain tissues was quantified,and brain edema was assessed by dry-wet weight method.Western blot analysis was conducted to evaluate the expression of EAAT2,aquaporin 4 and apoptosis-related proteins(Bax,Bcl-2,caspase-3 and caspase-9),and TUNEL staining was employed to assess the apoptotic cell count in each group.RESULTS:(1)EAAT2 level decreased while glutamate con-centration increased.(2)Celastrol was found to directly bind to EAAT2,enhancing EAAT2 expression and reducing glu-tamate concentration after SAH.(3)Celastrol demonstrated the ability to inhibit brain edema after SAH.(4)Celastrol was effective in reducing neuronal apoptosis after SAH.CONCLUSION:Celastrol has the potential to up-regulate EAAT2 expression,lower glutamate level,mitigate brain edema,and decrease neuronal apoptosis after SAH.

Diarrhea is a common and frequent disease in clinical practice.Many factors cause diarrhea,and numerous research method with animal models of diarrhea have been explored.Despite this,drugs for the treatment of diarrhea in clinical practice are limited,and some existing drugs are only suitable for diarrhea caused by a single factor.Therefore,the construction and selection of appropriate animal models of diarrhea are not only important for in-depth studies of the pathogenesis,but are also effective means for the clinical screening and evaluation of drugs for comprehensively preventing and treating diarrhea.This article reviews the literature on the establishment and evaluation of animal models of functional,bacterial,viral,and symptomatic diarrhea,as well as progress of therapeutic drug research,to provide a reference for animal experimental research into the prevention and treatment of diarrhea.

Depression is a mental disorder with high morbidity, disability and relapse rates. Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE), a traditional Chinese medicine, has a long history of clinical application in the treatment of cerebral and mental disorders, but the key mechanism remains incompletely understood. Here we showed that GEB exerted anti-depressant effect in mice through regulating gut microbial metabolism. GBE protected against unpredictable mild stress (UMS)-induced despair, anxiety-like and social avoidance behavior in mice without sufficient brain distribution. Fecal microbiome transplantation transmitted, while antibiotic cocktail abrogated the protective effect of GBE. Spatiotemporal bacterial profiling and metabolomics assay revealed a potential involvement of Parasutterella excrementihominis and the bile acid metabolite ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) in the effect of GBE. UDCA administration induced depression-like behavior in mice. Together, these findings suggest that GBE acts on gut microbiome-modulated bile acid metabolism to alleviate stress-induced depression.
Humans ; Mice ; Animals ; Depression/drug therapy* ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; Plant Extracts ; Ginkgo biloba

Humans ; Teas, Herbal/analysis* ; Beverages/analysis* ; Tea ; Liver Neoplasms

Objective:To analyze the detection rate of hyperuricemia (HUA) and the distribution of serum uric acid (SUA) levels by multiple correlation analysis in middle-aged and elderly population receiving health examination.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, the study object were 25 587 middle-aged and elderly people who receiving health examination in Nanfang Hospital from January to December in 2014. According to the latest diagnostic criteria, the population was divided into HUA and non-HUA groups. Furthermore, the subjects were divided into 4 groups with the level of SUA (Q 1: SUA<313 μmol/L, Q 2:313 μmol/L≤SUA<375 μmol/L, Q 3:375 μmol/L≤SUA<440 μmol/L, Q 4: SUA≥440 μmol/L). According to the data types, two independent sample t test, Mann-Whitney U test, Chi-square test and multiple correspondence analysis were used for statistical analysis. Results:The mean age of the study subjects was (54.78±8.80) years with 16 570 males (64.8%) and 9 017 females (35.2%). The overall detection rate of HUA was 31.5%, and it was higher in men (43.1%) than in women (10.1%). The body mass index(BMI), systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglyceride (TG) and fasting blood glucose (FBG) in the HUA group were all higher than those in the non-HUA group (all P<0.001); and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was lower than that in the non-HUA group( P<0.001). In multiple correspondence analysis, Cronbach′s α coefficients of the first dimension and the second dimension was 0.608 and 0.237, respectively. Further analysis was performed stratified by gender, it indicated that 45-<55 years old male and overweight were closely associated with the Q 3 group, fatty liver and hyperlipidemia were closely associated with Q 4 group; the 55-<65 years old female, hyperlipidemia, fatty liver and obesity were closely associated with the Q 3 group, while hyperglycemia and hypertension were closely associated with the Q 4 group. Conclusion:The detection rate of HUA in middle-aged and elderly population receiving health examination was high, and the detection rate of HUA in male was higher than that in female. SUA levels are higher in middle-aged and elderly men who have fatty liver and hyperlipidemia. While SUA levels are higher in middle-aged and elderly women who have hyperglycemia and hypertension.

The eukaryotic genome is folded into higher-order conformation accompanied with constrained dynamics for coordinated genome functions. However, the molecular machinery underlying these hierarchically organized three-dimensional (3D) chromatin architecture and dynamics remains poorly understood. Here by combining imaging and sequencing, we studied the role of lamin B1 in chromatin architecture and dynamics. We found that lamin B1 depletion leads to detachment of lamina-associated domains (LADs) from the nuclear periphery accompanied with global chromatin redistribution and decompaction. Consequently, the inter-chromosomal as well as inter-compartment interactions are increased, but the structure of topologically associating domains (TADs) is not affected. Using live-cell genomic loci tracking, we further proved that depletion of lamin B1 leads to increased chromatin dynamics, owing to chromatin decompaction and redistribution toward nucleoplasm. Taken together, our data suggest that lamin B1 and chromatin interactions at the nuclear periphery promote LAD maintenance, chromatin compaction, genomic compartmentalization into chromosome territories and A/B compartments and confine chromatin dynamics, supporting their crucial roles in chromatin higher-order structure and chromatin dynamics.
Chromatin ; Chromosomes ; Genome ; Humans ; Lamin Type B/genetics*