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Background: The utility of circulating tumor DNA to monitor molecular residual disease (MRD) has been clinically confirmed to predict disease recurrence in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients after radical resection. Patients with longitudinal undetectable MRD show a favorable prognosis and might not benefit from adjuvant therapy., Patients and Methods: The CTONG 2201 trial is a prospective, multicenter, single-arm study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, NCT05457049), designed to evaluate the hypothesis that no adjuvant therapy is needed for patients with longitudinal undetectable MRD. Pathologically confirmed stage IB-IIIA NSCLC patients who have undergone radical resection will be screened. Only patients with 2 consecutive rounds of undetectable MRD will be enrolled (first at days 3-10, second at days 30 ± 7 after surgery), and admitted for imaging and MRD monitoring every 3 months without adjuvant therapy. The primary endpoint is the 2-year disease-free survival rate for those with longitudinal undetectable MRD. The recruitment phase began in August 2022 and 180 patients will be enrolled., Conclusions: This prospective trial will contribute data to confirm the negative predictive value of MRD on adjuvant therapy for NSCLC patients., Clinical Trial Registration: NCT05457049 (CTONG 2201)., Competing Interests: Disclosure W.-Z. Zhong declares honoraria from AstraZeneca, BMS, MSD, Roche, and Innovent outside the submitted work. Y.-L. Wu declares advisory services for AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, and Takeda; speaker fees from AstraZeneca, Beigene, Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS, Eli Lilly, MSD, Pfizer, Roche, and Sanofi; and grants from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS, Hengrui, and Roche outside the submitted work. The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Tumor cells tend to utilize glycolysis rather than aerobic respiration even under aerobic conditions. OVOL2, an inhibitory C2H2 zinc finger transcription factor, is a potential tumor suppressor in cancers. However, the association between OVOL2 and tumor energy metabolism is unknown., Methods: Western blotting was used to determine the expression of OVOL2 in different non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell lines and mouse models. The metabolic parameters in NSCLC cells following overexpression or knockdown OVOL2 were examined. To define the mechanism by which OVOL2 regulates aerobic glycolysis, interacting protein of OVOl2 and downstream molecular events were identified by luciferase assay and co-immunoprecipitation. We documented the regulatory mechanism in mouse xenograft models. Finally, clinical relevance of OVOL2, NF-κB signaling and GLUT1 was measured by immunostaining., Results: OVOL2 is downregulated in NSCLC and overexpression of OVOL2 inhibits the survival of cancer cells. Moreover, OVOL2 directly binds to P65 and inhibits the recruitment of P300 but facilitates the binding of HDAC1 to P65, which in turn negatively regulates NF-κB signaling to suppress GLUT1 translocation and glucose import. In contrast, OVOL2 expression is negatively regulated by NF-κB signaling in NSCLC cells via the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Re-expression of OVOL2 significantly compromise NF-κB signaling-induced GLUT1 translocation, aerobic glycolysis in NSCLC cells and mouse models. Immunostaining revealed inverse correlations between the OVOL2 and phosphorylated P65 levels and between the OVOL2 and membrane GLUT1 levels, and a strong correlation between the phosphorylated P65 and membrane GLUT1 levels., Conclusions: These results suggest a regulatory circuit linking NF-κB and OVOL2, which highlights the role of NF-κB signaling and OVOL2 in the modulation of glucose metabolism in NSCLC. Video Abstract., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objectives: To study the characteristics of amino acid metabolism in preterm infants in Guangxi, China., Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical data of 30 757 neonates who underwent the screening for inherited metabolic diseases and had negative results in Guangxi Neonatal Disease Screening Center from 2018 to 2020. Among these neonates, there were 28 611 normal full-term infants (control group) and 2 146 preterm infants (preterm birth group). According to gestational age, the preterm infants were further divided into four groups: very preterm ( n =209), moderately preterm ( n =307), and late preterm group ( n =1 630). According to birth weight, they were divided into three groups: very low birth weight group ( n =161), low birth weight group ( n =1 085), and normal birth weight group ( n =900). According to blood collection time, they were divided into three groups: 3-7 days group ( n =1 664), 8-14 days group ( n =314) and 15-28 days group ( n =168). Tandem mass spectrometry was performed to measure the levels of 11 amino acids in dried blood spots, which were then compared between groups., Results: After adjustment for confounding factors, there were significant differences in the levels of 11 amino acids among different gestational age groups ( P <0.05), and significant differences were observed in the levels of the 11 amino acids between the control group and the various preterm groups (except for citrulline and methionine in the late preterm group). There were significant differences in the levels of 11 amino acids among different birth weight groups ( P <0.05). Except for ornithine, there were significant differences in the levels of other amino acids among the different blood collection time groups ( P <0.05)., Conclusions: Gestational age, birth weight and blood collection time all affect amino acid metabolism in preterm infants in Guangxi, China. This provides a basis for the laboratory to establish the reference standard and clinical interpretation of blood amino acid levels in preterm infants, and to improve the nutritional metabolism of preterm infants.

Objective: To explore the characteristics and rules of acupoint sensitization phenomena based on knee osteoarthritis (KOA), one of the clinical dominant diseases of acupuncture-moxibustion., Methods: In combination with literature and expert experiences, the acupoints with the highest use frequency in treatment of KOA were screened, e.g. Heding (EX-LE 2), Liangqiu (ST 34), Mingmen (GV 4), Neixiyan (EX-LE 4), Ququan (LR 8) and Dubi (ST 35). In 814 patients with KOA and 217 healthy subjects, the acupoint temperature, mechanic pain threshold and pressure pain threshold were detected separately. Using machine learning method, the sensitization was judged at each acupoint., Results: Compared with healthy subjects, the acupoint temperature was increased and the mechanic pain threshold and pressure pain threshold were reduced in KOA patients ( P <0.05). Besides, the cut-off value was presented to distinguish whether the acupoint was sensitized or not. The results of machine learning showed that the highest prediction accuracy of acupoint sensitization was 86.7% (Shenshu [BL 23]) and the lowest one was 73.9% (Heding [EX LE 2]). The prediction accuracy at the third clinical stage trial was higher, the highest was 93.3% (Ququan [LR 8]) in KOA patients., Conclusion: It is confirmed that the acupoint sensitization reflects the characteristics of disease and is correlative with the conditions of illness, which may provide the reference for the auxiliary diagnosis and condition assessment of KOA.

Toxoplasma gondii can infect almost all warm-blooded vertebrates with pathogensis being largely influenced by the host immune status. As important epidemiological hosts, rodents are globally distributed and are also commonly found infected with haemoflagellates, such as those in the genus Trypanosoma. We here address whether and how co-infection with trypanosomes can influence T. gondii infection in laboratory models. Rats of five strains, co-infected with T. lewisi and mice of four strains, co-infected with T. musculi, were found to be more or less susceptible to T. gondii infection, respectively, with corresponding increased or decreased brain cyst burdens. Downregulation of iNOS expression and decreased NO production or reverse were observed in the peritoneal macrophages of rats or mice, infected with trypanosomes, respectively. Trypanosoma lewisi and T. musculi can modulate host immune responses, either by enhancement or suppression and influence the outcome of Toxoplasma infection.

Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the leading causes of cancer mortality worldwide. A growing body of evidence indicates that microRNA (miR) have important and diverse roles in the proliferation, apoptosis and metastasis of human cancer cells. In the present study, the molecular regulation mechanism of miR-30a and its potential target, Myb-related protein B (MYBL2) was investigated in NSCLC. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction results showed that miR-30a was significantly downregulated in NSCLC tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues (P<0.05). MYBL2 has a putative miR-30a target site in its 3'untranslated region according to previous data, prediction databases and TargetScan software. In the present study, a negative correlation was demonstrated between miR-30a and MYBL2 expression in NSCLC. Direct interaction between miR-30a and MYBL2 was also confirmed via a dual-luciferase reporter assay. miR-30a overexpression inhibited the growth of A549 and H460 cells via MTT and bromodeoxyuridine incorporation assays, whereas miR-30a downregulation promoted cell proliferation. In addition, miR-30a overexpression not only increased cell apoptosis and induced cell cycle arrest in A549 and H460 cell lines, but also attenuated tumor growth, and mRNA and protein expression levels of MYBL2. The present findings suggest that miR-30a may suppress NSCLC by targeting MYBL2.

Insulin is associated with the progression of numerous different types of cancer. However, the association between insulin and non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) remains unknown. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the role of insulin in the proliferation, migration and drug resistance of NSCLC cells, and to determine whether the phosphoinositide 3-kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) pathway was involved. NSCLC cells were treated with insulin in the absence or presence of LY294002, an inhibitor of the PI3K/Akt pathway. Following co-incubation with insulin, cell proliferation and drug resistance were measured by MTT; cell migration was examined by wound healing and Transwell assays; and the expression of cyclin A, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), p27, matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP3), P-gp and proteins involved in the PI3K/Akt pathway were assessed via western blotting. The results of the current study demonstrated that insulin enhanced the proliferation, migration and drug resistance of NSCLC cells. Correspondingly, insulin upregulated the expression of cyclin A, PCNA, MMP3, P-gp and downregulated p27 expression in NSCLC cells. Following treatment with insulin, it was demonstrated that phospho-Akt expression increased in a dose-dependent manner. However, the effects of insulin on NSCLC cells was inhibited by the PI3K/Akt pathway inhibitor LY294002. Therefore, the results of the current study indicate that insulin is associated with the development of NSCLC by activating the PI3K/Akt pathway. This may improve understanding of the mechanism of action of insulin in NSCLC in the future.

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is spreading rapidly among men who have sex with men (MSM) in China. Anonymous questionnaires or direct interviews have been frequently used to study their behavior. The aim of the study was to describe the behavioral risk profile of the MSM in Beijing using the randomized response techniques (RRTs)., Methods: A cross-sectional survey of sexual behavior among a sample of MSM was conducted in two HIV counseling and testing clinics in Beijing. The survey was carried out with an anonymous questionnaire containing sensitive questions on sexual behavior. To obtain the honest responses to the sensitive questions, three distinctive RRTs were used in the questionnaire: (1) Additive randomized response model for quantitative questions, (2) randomized response model for multiple choice questions, and (3) Simmons randomized response model for binomial questions. Formulae for the point estimate, variance, and confidence interval (CI) were provided for each specific model., Results: Using RRTs in a sample of 659 participants, the mean age at first homosexual encounter was estimated to be 21.7 years (95% CI: 21.2-22.2), and each had sex with about three (2.9, 95% CI: 2.4-3.4) male partners on average in the past month. The estimated rate for consistent condom use was 56.4% (95% CI: 50.1-62.8%). In addition, condom was estimated to be used among 80.0% (95% CI: 74.1-85.9%) of the population during last anal sex with a male partner., Conclusions: Our study employed RRTs in a survey containing questions on sexual behavior among MSM, and the results showed that RRT might be a useful tool to obtain truthful feedback on sensitive information such as sexual behavior from the respondents, especially in traditional Chinese cultural settings.

Despite recent advances in the therapy of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the chemotherapy efficacy against NSCLC is still unsatisfactory. Previous studies show the herbal antimalarial drug dihydroartemisinin (DHA) displays cytotoxic to multiple human tumors. Here, we showed that DHA decreased cell viability and colony formation, induced apoptosis in A549 and PC-9 cells. Additionally, we first revealed DHA inhibited glucose uptake in NSCLC cells. Moreover, glycolytic metabolism was attenuated by DHA, including inhibition of ATP and lactate production. Consequently, we demonstrated that the phosphorylated forms of both S6 ribosomal protein and mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), and GLUT1 levels were abrogated by DHA treatment in NSCLC cells. Furthermore, the upregulation of mTOR activation by high expressed Rheb increased the level of glycolytic metabolism and cell viability inhibited by DHA. These results suggested that DHA-suppressed glycolytic metabolism might be associated with mTOR activation and GLUT1 expression. Besides, we showed GLUT1 overexpression significantly attenuated DHA-triggered NSCLC cells apoptosis. Notably, DHA synergized with 2-Deoxy-D-glucose (2DG, a glycolysis inhibitor) to reduce cell viability and increase cell apoptosis in A549 and PC-9 cells. However, the combination of the two compounds displayed minimal toxicity to WI-38 cells, a normal lung fibroblast cell line. More importantly, 2DG synergistically potentiated DHA-induced activation of caspase-9, -8 and -3, as well as the levels of both cytochrome c and AIF of cytoplasm. However, 2DG failed to increase the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels elicited by DHA. Overall, the data shown above indicated DHA plus 2DG induced apoptosis was involved in both extrinsic and intrinsic apoptosis pathways in NSCLC cells.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the short-term efficacy and safety of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in female diabetic patients complicated with acute myocardial infarction (AMI)., Methods: A total of 169 diabetic patients with AMI who underwent primary PCI were selected and divided into group A (52 females) and group B (117 males). The clinical data, characteristics of coronary artery lesions, lengths of hospital stay, and incidences of complications were then compared between two groups., Results: The average age, history of hyperlipidemia, double branch lesions, triple branch lesions, and left main lesions were significantly higher in group A than in group B (P < 0.05). Smoking history, PCI history, and pre-infarction angina were distinctly lower in group A than in group B (P < 0.05). Thrombolysis in myocardial infarction 3 (TIMI3) flow and TIMI myocardial perfusion grade 3 (TMPG3) after PCI were markedly lower in group A than in group B (P < 0.001). Group A had a higher incidence of complications, such as severe arrhythmia, cardiac function Killip III/IV, cardiogenic shock, major, moderate and mild bleed event, as well as a 30-day mortality rate, compared with group B (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: In summary, our study demonstrated that female diabetic patients with AMI had lower TIMI3 flow and TMPG3 following PCI than male patients, while there was higher incidence of complications and 30-day mortality rate. Therefore, more attention should be paid to the therapy of diabetic women with acute myocardial infarction as well as the control of risk factors.

Mouse models differ considerably from humans with regard to clinical symptoms of toxoplasmosis caused by Toxoplasma gondii and, by comparison, the rat model is more representative of this disease in humans. In the present study, we found that different strains of adult and newborn rats (Lewis, Wistar, Sprague Dawley, Brown Norway and Fischer 344) exhibited remarkable variation in the number of brain cysts following inoculation with the T.gondii Prugniaud strain. In adult rats, large numbers of cysts (1231 ± 165.6) were observed in Fischer 344, but none in the other four. This situation was different in newborn rats aged from 5 to 20 days old. All Fischer 344 and Brown Norway newborns were cyst-positive while cyst-positive infection in Sprague Dawley neonates ranged from 54.5% to 60% depending on their age at infection. In Wistar and Lewis rat neonates, however, cyst-positivity rates of 0-42.9% and 0-25% were found respectively. To investigate whether rat strain differences in infectivity could be related to inherent strain and genetic differences in the host immune response, we correlated our data with previously reported strain differences in iNOS/Arginase ratio in adult rats and found them to be linked. These results show that interactions between host genetic background and age of rat influence T.gondii infection., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

SATB2, a member of the family of special AT-rich binding proteins, has been shown to affect numerous tumorigenesis. However, the role of SATB2 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unclear. In this study, the SATB2 expression was examined at mRNA and protein levels by quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry in ESCC tissues and adjacent non-cancerous tissues. Statistical analyses were applied to test the associations between SATB2 expression, clinicopathologic factors, and prognosis. Western blotting and qRT-PCR showed that the expression levels of SATB2 mRNA and protein were both significantly lower in SATB2 tissues than those in non-cancerous tissues. Immunohistochemistry analysis showed that SATB2 expression was significantly correlated with clinical stage and Histological differentiation. The results of Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that a low expression level of SATB2 resulted in a significantly poor prognosis of ESCC patients. Importantly, multivariate analysis showed that low SATB2 expression was an independent prognostic factor for ESCC patients. In sum, our data suggest that SATB2 plays an important role in ESCC progression, and that decreased expression of SATB2 in tumor tissues could be used as a potential prognostic marker for patients with ESCC.

Human-infectious trypanosomes such as Trypanosoma cruzi, T. brucei rhodesiense, and T. b. gambiense can be discriminated from those only infecting animals by their resistance to normal human serum (NHS). These parasites are naturally resistant to trypanolysis induced by the human-specific pore-forming serum protein apolipoprotein L1 (ApoL-1). T. lewisi, a worldwide distributed parasite, has been considered as rat-specific and non-pathogenic to the natural hosts. Here we provide evidence that 19 tested T. lewisi isolates from Thailand and China share resistance to NHS. Further investigation on one selected isolate CPO02 showed that it could resist at least 90% NHS or 30 μg/ml recombinant human ApoL-1 (rhApoL-1) in vitro, in contrast to T. b. brucei which could not survive in 0.0001% NHS and 0.1 μg/ml rhApoL-1. In vivo tests in rats also demonstrated that this parasite is fully resistant to lysis by NHS. Together with recent reports of atypical human infection by T. lewisi, these data allow the conclusion that T. lewisi is potentially an underestimated and thus a neglected human pathogen., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To investigate the correlation between epidermal growth factor (EFG) and atrophic glossitis (AG) in patients with Sjoigren's syndromes (SS) and explore its pathogenesis., Methods: Ninety-three patients with SS (60 with AG and 33 without AG) and 20 normal were selected. The concentrations of EGF in saliva were analyzed by ELISA. The expressions of EGF receptor (EGFR) in the epithelial cells of the tongue were assayed by immunohistochemistry. The differences among each group were analyzed with SPSS19.0 software package., Results: The saliva EGF concentrations in SS was lower than that in normal control group(P<0.0001),and EGF concentrations in SS with AG was significantly lower than that in SS without AG (P=0.024). EGF levels in saliva gradually decreased in the mild, moderate and severe atrophic glossitis groups, and there were significant differences among each group(P<0.05). EGFR in the epithelial cells of tongue was lower in SS with moderate and severe AG than in the control group(P=0.009, P=0.037), and there was a significant correlation between EGF and the degree of AG (r=-0.673, P<0.01)., Conclusions: Saliva EGF concentrations decrease significantly in patients with SS and it is closely related to the morbidity of atrophic glossitis.

It is well known that toxoplasmosis can be life threatening to immunocompromised individuals such as AIDS and organ transplantation patients. Glucocorticoids (GCs) are widely used in the clinic for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and organ transplantation resulting in acute toxoplasmosis in these patients. However, the interaction and mechanism between the development of acute toxoplasmosis and GC therapy are still unknown. The aims of this study were to investigate the infection of Toxoplasma gondii in the peritoneal macrophages of rats treated with glucocorticoids. Our results showed that the growth rate of T. gondii RH strain was significantly increased in the peritoneal macrophages of rats treated with glucocorticoids in vivo. For instance, 242 (±16) tachyzoites were found in 100 macrophages from the rats treated with methylprednisolone (MP), while only 16 (±4) tachyzoites were counted in the macrophages from the non-treated control rats 24 h after infection (P < 0.01). We also demonstrated that a significant inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production was detected in the macrophages collected from the rats post-treated with GCs with 12.90 μM (±0.99 μM) of nitrite production from the rats treated with MP, while 30.85 μM (±1.62 μM) was found in the non-treated control rats 36 h after incubation (P < 0.01). Furthermore, glucocorticoids could significantly inhibit the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase mRNA and its protein in the rat peritoneal macrophages. Our results strongly indicate that the decrease of NO in the rat peritoneal macrophages is closely linked to the cause of acute toxoplasmosis in the host. Additionally, there was a significant increase in the number of cysts produced by the naturally cyst forming, T. gondii Prugniaud strain with an average of 2,795 (±422) cysts of the parasite being detected in the brains of the rats treated with dexamethasone, while only 1,356 (±490) cysts were found in the non-treated control animals (P < 0.01). As rats and humans are both naturally resistant to T. gondii infection, these novel data could lead to a better understanding of the development of acute toxoplasmosis during glucocorticoid therapy in humans.

Objective: This work aims to explore the short-term efficacy and safety of coronary arterial injection of tirofiban in elderly diabetic patients complicated with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) who underwent emergency percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)., Methods: Ninety-seven elderly diabetic patients complicated with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) who underwent emergency PCI were selected and randomized into control (group A, 49 cases) and tirofiban (group B, 48 cases) groups. Another 129 nonelderly diabetic patients (group C) complicated with STEMI who underwent emergency PCI and tirofiban treatment in the corresponding period were also involved for comparison., Results: Thrombolysis in myocardial infarction 3 (TIMI3) flow was significantly higher in groups B and C than in group A after PCI (p < 0.01). TIMI myocardial perfusion grades (TMPG) 0 to 1 and 2 were distinctly lower (p < 0.01, p < 0.05) and TMPG3 was obviously higher (p < 0.01) in groups B and C than in group A. The average length of hospital stay, post-infarction angina pectoris, severe arrhythmia, and cardiac function Killip III to IV were markedly lower in groups B and C than in group A (p < 0.01, p < 0.05). Meanwhile, mucocutaneous hemorrhage was significantly higher in groups B and C than in group A (p < 0.01)., Conclusions: Tirofiban effectively improved TIMI flow and TMPG perfusion in elderly diabetic patients complicated with AMI and reduced the incidence of serious complications without increasing the occurrence of severe hemorrhage., Key Words: Acute myocardial infarction; Diabetes mellitus; Emergency percutaneous coronary intervention; Tirofiban.

Purpose: To study the surface roughness of early carious lesions which were treated with resin infiltration and polished with different materials, and to provide reference for selection of appropriate polishing system., Methods: Fifty-four labial surface specimens of mandibular incisors were created out of bovine teeth. They were randomly divided into 6 groups. One group was sound enamel group. Another group was early enamel carious group. Other specimens were treated with a partially saturated acidic buffer solution for preparation of initial artificial enamel caries. These initial artificial enamel caries were treated with resin infiltration. Then they were randomly divided into 4 groups according to polishing or not and type of polishing tool (rubber cups, polishing discs, HiLuster polishers). The surface roughness of specimens in all groups were measured with Form Talysurf PGI 800. Arithmetical mean deviation of the assessed profile (Ra) and the maximum height of the profile(Rz) were used as measurement parameter. SPSS 17.0 software package was used for data analysis., Results: Comparison of sound enamel surfaces and early carious surfaces revealed no significant difference in surface roughness(P>0.05), but the mean value of the latter one was higher. After infiltration, the roughness of surfaces without polishing was significantly higher than that of early carious surfaces(P<0.05). After infiltration and polishing with different tools, there was no significant difference in surface roughness of every two groups (P>0.05). The roughness of polishing groups after infiltration was significantly smaller than that of group without polished after infiltration (P<0.05). Comparison of polishing surfaces after infiltration and early carious surfaces revealed no significant difference in surface roughness (P>0.05)., Conclusions: After early caries being treated with infiltration technique, the roughness of teeth surfaces increases significantly. Those surfaces should be polished. Rubber cup and polishing discs with smaller granularity are more effective and reasonable as the surface polishing materials.

A method for indirectly determining the molybdenum in Chinese herbal medicine by butanol extraction and dilute hydrochloric acid dissolution was established for atomic fluorescence spectrometry. The molybdoarsenate heteropoly acid, formed in the presence of As(V) and ammonium molybdate in 0.3 mol x L(-1) sulphuric acid medium, was separated and enriched in the organic solvent, then the evaporation of organic reagent was implemented and the left residue was dissolved in dilute hydrochloric acid in which the arsenic content was determined on behalf of molybdenum. In the optimum experimental conditions, molybdenum content in 0-15 microg x L(-1) range depicts a good linear relationship, the detection limit and relative standard deviation of 0.44 microg x L(-1) and 1.1% were obtained, respectively. Spiked Chinese herbal medicine samples were determined with the proposed method, and recoveries of 95.6%-101.3% were achieved.

Endophytic Undifilum oxytropis found within toxic locoweeds (Astragalus and Oxytropis spp.) produces the indolizidine alkaloid swainsonine, which is responsible for locoism in grazing animals. The aim of the current study is to establish an easy and accurate method for the determination of swainsonine in the endophytic Undifilum fungi. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with evaporative light-scattering detector (ELSD) was used for the assay of swainsonine in this study for the first time. The HPLC conditions were Waters XBridge hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography column using acetonitrile-5 mM ammonium acetate (1:1, vol/vol) containing 0.02% (vol/vol) aqueous ammonium hydroxide as mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. ELSD conditions were optimized at nebulizer-gas flow rate of 25 psi and drift tube temperature of 55 °C. The method was validated to achieve the satisfactory precision and recovery, and the calibration range was 15.625-250 μg/mL. Application of the developed analytical procedure to determine swainsonine content in the endophytic Undifilum fungi samples ensured its suitability for the routine analysis of swainsonine., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In this paper, a new method was developed for indirect determination of iodine with methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK) extraction by atomic fluorescence spectrometer (AFS). Based upon the complex, which can be extacted perfectly by MIBK, formed between I- and Hg2+ in 0.1 mol x L(-1) of nitric acid, indirectly measuring the iodine in organic phase becomes possible. The effects of extraction conditions and other influence factors were investigated. Under the optimized experimental conditions, the results showed that the linearity between its absorbance and the concentration of iodine was 0-12 microg x L(-1), the detection limit is 0.14 microg x L(-1), and the relative standard deviation is 3.3%. The method has been applied to the determination of iodine in eggs, and the recoveries are in the range of 101.8%-110.4%.

The research investigated the effect of Patrinia heterophylla Bunge (Valerianaceae) polysaccharides (PHB-P1) on U14-bearing mice. The tumor weight of mice treated with PHB-P1 (30, 60 mg/kg body weight) was significantly lower than that of the control group, a decrease of serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity was observed, and the serum alkaline phosphatase (AKP) level was increased slightly. The number of apoptotic tumor cells was significantly increased in the mice by treatment of PHB-P1 (30, 60 mg/kgbw). Cell cycle analysis showed the accumulation of tumor cells in the G2/M phase and a relative decrease of the S phase. By the immunohistochemical analysis, PHB-P1 (30, 60 mg/kgbw) might up-regulate the expression of p53 and Bax, and significantly inhibited the expression of Bcl-2 in tumor tissues. In conclusion, PHB-P1 could inhibit tumor growth and induce tumor cell apoptosis.

Eight swainsonine (SW)-degrading bacteria were isolated from the soil where locoweed was buried for 6 months and one of the strains (YLZZ-1) was selected for further study. Based on morphology, physiologic tests, 16S rRNA gene sequence, and phylogenetic characteristics, the strain showed the greatest similarity to members of the order Acinetobacters and within the order to members of the Acinetobacter calcoaceticus group. The ability of the strain for degrading SW, as sole carbon source, was investigated under different culture conditions. The preferential temperature and initial pH for the strain were 25-35 degrees C and 6-9, respectively. The optimal temperature for the strain was 30 degrees C and the optimal pH was 7.0. There was a positive correlation between degradation rate and inoculation amount. The concentration of SW affected the degradation ability. When the concentration of SW was lower than 100 mg/l, SW decreased immediately after incubation, and when the concentration of SW was 200 mg/l, there was an inhibiting effect for bacteria growth and SW degradation. The strain could degrade SW completely within 14 h when the concentration of SW was 50 mg/l. These results highlight the potential of this bacterium to be used in detoxifying of SW in livestock consuming locoweed.

The aim of our study was to investigate the effect of Patrinia scabra Bunge polysaccharide (PSB-P2) on cervical cancer cell (U14)-bearing mice. The tumor weight of mice treated with PSB-P2 (40, 80 mg/kg b.w.) was significantly lower than that of the control group and serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity was decreased, while serum alkaline phosphatase (AKP) level was only changed slightly. Meanwhile, the number of apoptotic tumor cells was significantly increased in the mice by the treatment of PSB-P2 (40, 80 mg/kg b.w.). At the same time, cell cycle analysis showed the accumulation of tumor cells in the G0/G1 phase and a relative decrease in the S phase. On the other hand, using the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay, PSB-P2 (40, 80 mg/kg b.w.) showed the up-regulation of p53 and Bax, and significant inhibition of Bcl-2 in tumor tissues. It suggests a possible mechanism of the inhibitory effect of PSB-P2 on tumor growth.

The primary study of Ginkgo leaf such as crude drug macroscopic and powder characteristics were carried out, and the flavonoids content in the leaf of Ginkgo in different areas of Gansu province was determined by HPLC, in order to provide scientific references for the exploitation of Ginkgo in Gansu province.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of type 2 diabetes and impaired glucose regulation among the permanent urban and rural inhabitants in Shanghai., Methods: Questionnaire survey, physical examination, and laboratory testing were conducted among 14401 urban and rural inhabitants aged 15 - 74 in Shanghai selected by multistage cluster random sampling. The data about the prevalence of type 2 diabetes and impaired glucose regulation were collected and analyzed., Results: The respondent rate of this investigation was 80.5% (11,589/14,401). The prevalence rates of type 2 diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and impaired fasting glucose (IFG) were 8.6% (1000/11,589), 6.9% (802/11,589), and 1.0% (120/11,589) respectively (the standardized rates were 6.2%, 5.1% and 0.8%). The prevalence rates of type 2 diabetes, IGT, and IFG were significantly higher in those with overweight, obesity, central obesity, and hypertension. The prevalence rates of type 2 diabetes, IGT, and IFG in men were 8.9% (412/4621), 6.4% (296/4621), and 1.0% (47/4621) respectively, all not significantly different from those of the women, i.e. e., 8.4% (588/6968), 7.3% (506/6968), and 1.0% (73/6968) respectively (all P > 0.05). The prevalence rates of type 2 diabetes and IGT in the urban area were 11.2% (730/6500) and 6.4% (419/6500) respectively, both significantly higher than those in the rural area, i.e., 5.3% (270/5089) and 7.5% (383/5089) respectively (both P < 0.05). The prevalence rate of IFG in the urban area was 1.2% (77/6500), not significantly different from that in the rural area (0.8%, 43/5039, P > 0.05). The prevalence of type 2 diabetes, IGT, and IFG increased apparently with age, body mass index, waist hip ratio, and waist circumference. The ratios of undiagnosed type 2 diabetes in the urban area and rural area were 39.6% (289/730) and 69.3% (187/270) respectively (chi(2) = 74.07, P < 0.01)., Conclusion: The prevalence rate of type 2 diabetes in Shanghai is higher than the mean national level and shows an increasing tendency. Screening of type 2 diabetes in rich rural areas should be emphasized.

Objective: To study the antitumor effect of the stings of Gleditsia sinensis on mice bearing uterine cervical carcinoma (U14) and the expression of PCNA (proliferating cell nuclear antigen) and p53., Method: The effect of the ethanolic extract of G. sinensis stings on the inhibition rate of solid tumor and the life span of ascites tumor were calculated by the animal tumor model experiment in vivo. The positive cell numbers of PCNA and mutant p53 protein were measured by immunohistochemical SP method., Result: As compared with the control group, the ethanolic extract of G. sinensis stings (250, 500 and 1 000 mg x kg(-1) body weight, p.o.) and CTX (25 mg kg(-1) body weight, i.p.) administration significantly reduced the tumor weight of solid tumor and increased the life span of ascites tumor harboring mice (P < 0.01). The inhibition rate of solid tumor and the rate in life span were up to 47.44%, 59.49%, 63.92%, 73.42% and 52.21%, 67.26%, 78.76%, 95.58% respectively. Meanwhile,the expression of PCNA and mutant p53 protein also suppressed by ethanolic extract (P < 0.05, P < 0.01)., Conclusion: The stings of G. sinensis showed antitumor activity and its possible mechanism might be related with the expression inhibition of PCNA and mutant p53 protein.