Search

To explore the threshold of ALT for initiating antiviral therapy in HBV infected patients, and to provide a basis for initiating antiviral therapy in chronic HBV-infected patients. Methods This retrospective cohort study recruited 707 consecutive treatment-naïve chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients undergoing diagnostic liver biopsy in the department of infectious diseases of the Affiliated Hospital of Yan'an University from October 2013 to August 2018. Liver biopsy specimens were obtained under ultrasound guidance using Menghini 16G disposable needles. The METAVIR scoring system, which is commonly used internationally, was used to divide the patients into the group with mild liver tissue injury and the group with significant liver tissue injury, and the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were measured separately. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and Mann-Whitney U test were used to evaluate the diagnostic value of ALT for significant liver tissue injury under different demographic characteristics. Results Of 707 patients, 292 (41.30%) had significant liver tissue injury confirmed by liver biopsy (METAVIR ≥A2 and/or F2). When the ULN of ALT was set to NICE criteria (30 U/L for males, 19 U/L for females), AASLD criteria (35 U/L for males, 25 U/L for females) and EASL or APASL criteria (40 U/L for males and females), CHB patients with 30 years olds, 22 U/L for HBeAg negative and 31 U/L for HBeAg positive patients. Conclusions The threshold of ALT for initiating antiviral therapy in chronic HBV patients should be individualized, especially should be down-regulated for the females, olders and HBeAg-negative patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the effects of organic fertilizer addition on accumulation and distribution of winter wheat assimilates, we compared organic carbon content in soil and wheat plants, photosynthetic characteristics and assimilation transformation under two different fertilizer treatments, CF (chemical fertilizer only) and OF (organic fertilizer with chemical fertilizer), using 13CO2 pulse labeling method. The results showed that OF increased soil organic carbon content and wheat photo- synthetic parameters, resulting in higher organic carbon content and total dry biomass accumulation in wheat plants compared with CF treatment. Compared marking to maturity with that on the 7th day after the same marking, the content and distribution rate of 13C in leaves and stems of two treatments decreased; the 13C content in spikes increased at jointing stage and filling stage, decreased at anthesis stage, and the ' C distribution rate increased at all stages. OF treatment was more beneficial for the transportation of photosynthetic product from leaves to spikes at filling stage, with higher 13C distribution rate in spikes compared with CF treatment. The results of correlation analysis showed that dry matter accumulation was significantly positively correlated with the net input of 13 C content and its distribution rate, but negatively correlated with organic carbon content in plants. The net input of C content was significantly positively correlated with its distribution rate, and negatively correlated with Fy/Fm and Pn. In conclusion, organic fertilizer application could increase the content of organic carbon in soil, improve wheat plants photosynthetic capacity and transportation of photosynthetic product to spikes, and ultimately increase dry matter accumulation in wheat spikes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking a long-term fertilized rice-rape rotation system in Taihu Lake as test objective, its annual C balance and economic benefit were estimated, based on the measurement of past years grain yield, litter C content, and field CO2 emission as well as the investigation of material and management inputs. The calculated annual C sink under different fertilizations ranged from 0.9 t C · hm-2 · a-1 to 7.5 t C · hm-2 · a-1, and the net C sink effect under combined inorganic/organic fertilization was three folds as that under chemical fertilization. The C cost of material input ranged from 0.37 t C · hm-2 · a-1 to 1.13 t C · hm-2 · a-1, and that of management input ranged from 1.69 t C · hm-2 · a-1 to 1.83 t C · hm-2 · a-1. The annual economic benefit ranged from 5.8 · 10(3) CNY · hm-2 · a-1 to 16.5 · 103 CNY · hm-2 · a-1, and was 2.1 times higher under combined fertilization than under chemical fertilization. Comparing with that under chemical fertilization, the marginal cost for per ton C sink under combined inorganic/organic fertilization was estimated as 217.1 CNY · t-1 C, very close to the C price of 20 Euro · t-1 C in the EU. In sum, under combined inorganic/organic fertilization, this rice paddy ecosystem could not only have higher productivity, but also present greater net C sink effect and higher economic benefit, compared with under chemical fertilizer fertilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy saving, emission reduction, and efficiency improvement are important directions for agricultural development in Central Henan Province, the main grain production area in the Huang-huai-hai Plain. Based on the tillage and fertilization positioning experiment in 2010, we investigated the effects of three tillage methods (deep tillage, shallow tillage, and no-tillage) and two fertilization methods (nitrogen fertilizer and nitrogen fertilizer+organic fertilizer) on soil nitrogen balance and greenhouse gas emissions from 2018 to 2019. The results showed that soil nitrogen accumulation increased with organic fertilizer addition. During wheat and maize maturation, soil total nitrogen accumulation in the 0-60 cm layer was the highest under the treatment of shallow tillage+organic fertilizer, being 8058.53 and 8299 kg N·hm -2 , respectively, being 3.2%-27.4% and 4.3%-7.2% higher than other treatments. The treatment with organic fertilizer addition resulted in nitrogen surplus. The shallow tillage+organic fertilizer treatment led to the highest nitrogen surplus (13.57 kg N·hm -2 ), which was 9.52 and 0.18 kg N·hm -2 higher than deep tillage+organic fertilizer and no tillage+organic fertilizer treatments. Nitrate leaching was the main way of nitrogen losses, accounting for 73.4%-76.9% of the total losses. The amount of nitrate leaching was the highest in deep tillage+organic fertilizer treatment (48.37 kg N·hm -2 ), being 18.9%-35.1% higher than other treatments. Results of greenhouse gases emission during 2018-2019 showed that global warming potential was the highest under the treatment of deep tillage+organic fertilizer, which was 33070 kg N·hm -2 , being 6.6%-26.8% higher than other treatments. The treatment of organic fertilizer addition increased the emission of N 2 O and CO 2 and reduced the absorption of CH 4 . The annual grain yield was highest under the treatment of deep tillage+organic fertilizer, which was 5.0%-17.1% higher than other treatments. The crop harvest index was the highest under the treatment of shallow tillage+organic fertilizer. The recommended cropping mode in Central Henan Pro-vince is shallow tillage+organic fertilizer, which could ensure crop yields, maintain soil nitrogen balance, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

To understand the effects of organic fertilizer addition on accumulation and distribution of winter wheat assimilates, we compared organic carbon content in soil and wheat plants, photosynthetic characteristics and assimilation transformation under two different fertilizer treatments, CF (chemical fertilizer only) and OF (organic fertilizer with chemical fertilizer), using 13 CO 2 pulse labeling method. The results showed that OF increased soil organic carbon content and wheat photosynthetic parameters, resulting in higher organic carbon content and total dry biomass accumulation in wheat plants compared with CF treatment. Compared marking to maturity with that on the 7th day after the same marking, the content and distribution rate of 13 C in leaves and stems of two treatments decreased; the 13 C content in spikes increased at jointing stage and filling stage, decreased at anthesis stage, and the 13 C distribution rate increased at all stages. OF treatment was more beneficial for the transportation of photosynthetic product from leaves to spikes at filling stage, with higher 13 C distribution rate in spikes compared with CF treatment. The results of correlation analysis showed that dry matter accumulation was significantly positively correlated with the net input of 13 C content and its distribution rate, but negatively correlated with organic carbon content in plants. The net input of 13 C content was significantly positively correlated with its distribution rate, and negatively correlated with F v /F m and P n . In conclusion, organic fertilizer application could increase the content of organic carbon in soil, improve wheat plants photosynthetic capacity and transportation of photosynthetic product to spikes, and ultimately increase dry matter accumulation in wheat spikes.

To investigate the effect and regulatory mechanism of puerarin on pulmonary arterial hypertension due to hypoxia and the possible accompanying pulmonary fibrosis, The rat model of hypoxic pulmonary hypertension and the rat model of hypoxia were established. Totally 18 clean-grade SD rats were fed and randomly divided into normal control group, model group and hypoxia+medicine group. Each group received intraperitoneal injection 30 min before modeling every day; hypoxia+medicine group was injected with 20 mg·kg⁻¹ puerarin. Normal control group and model group were injected with the equal volume of 0.9% NaCl solution. Normal control group was cultured under normal conditions in the laboratory, while model group and hypoxia+medicine group were cultured in ahypoxia environment for 21 days to observe rat hypoxic characteristics and make the preliminary judgment about modeling. Afterwards, small animal echocardiography, right cardiac catheterization, HE dyeing and other experiments were used to verify the successful modeling, and puerarin has a therapeutic effect in pulmonary hypertension caused by hypoxia in SD rats. Fluorescence quantitative PCR, Western blot and immunofluorescence method were used to detect the changes caused by hypoxia pulmonary fibrosis-associated protein. It was found that puerarin could be given in anoxia to promote the expressions of CD31, VE-cadherin, inhibit the expressions of α-SMA, vimentin and fibronection, namely the inhibition of vascular wall thickening. Puerarin has the therapeutic effect on the pulmonary hypertension and accompanying pulmonary fibrosis in rats induced by hypoxia., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

To investigate the effect of taurine(Tau) on ICAM-1, VCAM-1 by p-p38 pathway in bovine pulmonary artery endothelial cells(PAECs) and explore its mechanism of action. Generation 4-12 cells in primary cultures of PAECs were used in experiments and divided into five groups： control group, hypoxia(hyp) group, inhibitor(SB203580) group, treatment(Tau) group, and treatment+inhibitor(SB+Tau) group. The concentration of Tau：100 mmol•L⁻¹; p38 inhibitor SB203580： 20 μmol•L⁻¹; and the treatment time was 12 h. MTT assay was used to detect the inhibitory effect of different concentrations of Tau on PAECs. Western blot and Real-time PCR method were used to detect the p38 pathway proteins and ICAM-1, VCAM-1 expression levels. Immunofluorescence was used to investigate p38 nuclear displacement situation. The results of MTT showed that the inhibitory effect was gradually increased with increasing concentrations of Tau. Western blot and RT-PCR revealed that the protein and mRNA expression levels of ICAM-1, VCAM-1 were reduced by Tau. Western blot and immunofluorescence showed Tau can inhibit p38 activation. Tau may decrease the expression levels of VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 in endothelial cells induced by hypoxia through MAPK p38 pathway., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

To study the metabolic products of main compounds of Chuankezhi injection in rat, 12 Sprague Dawley rats were classed into 2 groups, a blank control group and an intermuscular administration group, respectively. Rat feces and urine samples were collected from 0−24 h and 24−48 h after administration. All the samples were ultrasonically treated with methanol and then analyzed using LC-LTQ Orbitrap MSn. By comparison with the total ion chromatogram of samples from the blank control group, the metabolites in the samples of drug-treated group were screened. These metabolites were further analyzed by multistage product ion scanning and comparison of retention time with reference substances. As a result, a total of 12 flavonoid metabolites were tentatively identified from the rat feces and no metabolite was discovered in the rat urine. Epimedin C and icariin were detected in the rat blood samples after 30 min of administration, but their metabolites and other original flavones were not detected. Furthermore, no original flavones and their metabolites were detected in rat blood samples after 2 and 4 h of administration. The potential metabolism paths were further characterized and the principal in vivo transformation of flavones from Chuankezhi injection were deglycosylation, dehydration, methylation, oxidation and isomerization in rats.

A quantitative method for epimedin A, B, C and icariin in rat plasma was established using LC-MS/MS after intermuscular administration of Chuankezhi injection to rat. Chromatographic separation was performed on an Agilent Eclipse XDB-C(18) column (150 mm × 2.1 mm, 5.0 μm) at 40 ℃. Mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile-0.1% formic acid in water（35∶65）, and the flow rate was 0.22 m L·min(-1). The LC effluent was detected and analyzed using an ESI-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer under the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) in the negative ion mode. The plasma samples were treated with solid phase extraction prior to LC-MS/MS analysis. As a result, all of the four analytes displayed a good linearity over the concentration of 1-1 000 ng·mL(-1). The RSDs of intra-day and inter-day assays were less than 5.99% and 10.16%, respectively. The relative recovery of each analyte was between 88.1%-101.1% with RSD < 7.9% and the absolute recovery was between 72.0%-86.6%（RSD < 6.3%）. In conclusion, the established method shows good specificity, sensitivity and efficiency for quantifying the four flavonoid glycosides contained in rat plasma.

To study pharmacokinetic characteristics of epimedin A, B, C and icariin after intermuscular administration of Chuankezhi injection to rat. The established RRLC-MS/MS method was applied for simultaneous determination of four analytes in rat plasma and calculating their pharmacokinetic parameters. As a result, each analyte showed a good linear relationship in the concentration range of 1-1 000 μg•L⁻¹.The intra-day precise was 96.9%-107.5% with RSD<5.99%, inter-day precise was 92.3%-105.0% with RSD<10.16%. The relative recovery of four analytes was 88.1%-101.1% with RSD<7.9% and their absolute recovery was 72.0%-86.6% with RSD<6.3%. After intermuscular administration of Chuankezhi injection, the plasma concentration of four flavonoid glycosides rapidly arose to peaks at about 10 min, and then quickly declined in rat. Tmax of epimedin A, B, C and icariin was 0.21, 0.19, 0.16 and 0.49 h, respectively, and their mean elimination half-life(t1/2z) was 0.60, 0.62, 0.47 and 0.49 h. The established method was validated to be sensitive, rapid and specific for determination of the four analytes. Serum concentration of 4 species of epimedium flavonoids in Chuankezhi injection was low, and their absorption and elimination seem quickly, displaying similar pharmacokinetic characteristics in this study., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

To discuss the effect of puerarin (Pue) on the proliferation of hypoxia-induced pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) and discuss whether the extracellular signal PI3K/AKT pathway was involved in the Pue-induced PASMC apoptosis. With the serum starvation group (SD group) as the control group, the MTT colorimetry method, Annexin V-FITC apoptosis detection kit and Western blot were used to detect Pue's effect on apoptosis of rat PASMCs. The protein immunoblot assay was used to detect whether PI3K/AKT pathway was involved in the inhibition of hypoxia-induced PASMC apoptosis process. The results show that under normoxic conditions, Pue had no effect on PASMC apoptosis; Under hypoxia conditions, Pue can inhibit PASMC apoptosis; Under normoxic and hypoxic conditions, Pue had no effect on TNF-α expression. Pue can reverse hypoxia-induced Bcl-2 (P <0.01), up-regulate it and down-regulated Bax (P <0.01). Under normoxic conditions, Pue had no effect on P-AKT expression. Both LY294002 and Pue can inhibit hypoxia-induced Bcl-2, up-regulation of P-AKT expression and down-regulation of Bax expression. Compared with the hypoxia + Pue group or the hypoxia + LY294002 group, the hypoxia + Pue + LY294002 group showed more significantly changes in Bcl-2, Bax, P-AKT expressions. The results show that, Pue can inhibit the hypoxic-induced PASMC apoptosis, which may be regulated through PI3K/AKT pathway.

To verify the effect of echinacoside on replication and antigen expression of hepatitis B virus (HBV) by using HBV-transfected HepG2. 2. 15 cells as the in vitro model. The ELISA method was used to determine HBeAg and HBsAg levels in cellular supernatants. The effect of echinacoside on HBV replication was studied by using HBV transgenic mice as the in vivo model. First of all, the HBV DNA level in hepatic tissues was quantified with PCR method. Meanwhile, the serum transaminase levels and hepatic pathological changes were also evaluated. Subsequently, HBV transgenic mice were divided into five groups: the control group, the lamivudine group (50 mg · kg(-1)) and echinacoside high, medium and low dose group (50, 25 and 12.5 mg · kg(-1)). The mice were orally administered with drugs once per day for 30 days. At the 31st day, the mice serum was separated to measure HBsAg, HBeAg and HBV DNA. Additionally, the liver HBV DNA level and histopathological change were detected. The results indicated that echinacoside at 50 and 100 mg · L(-1) suppressed significantly HBsAg and HBeAg expressions on the sixth day, with the maximum inhibition ratios of 42.68% and 46.29%; And echinacoside at 100 mg · L(-1) also showed an inhibitory effect on HBV DNA. Besides, echinacoside at 50 mg · kg(-1) inhibited significantly HBsAg and HBeAg expressions of HBV transgenic mice, with the inhibition ratios of 42.82% and 29.12%, and reduced markedly the serum HBV DNA level in HBV transgenic mice. In conclusion, the study suggested that echinacoside has a strong effect against HBV replication and antigen expression.

To discuss the effect of puerarin (Pue) on the proliferation of hypoxia-induced pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) and discuss whether its mechanism is achieved by regulating reactive oxygen. PASMCs of primarily cultured rats (2-5 generations) were selected in the experiment. MTT, Western blot, FCM and DCFH-DA were used to observe Pue's effect the proliferation of PASMCs. The Western blot was adopted to detect whether ROS participated in Pue's effect in inhibiting PASMC proliferation. The PASMCs were divided into five groups: the normoxia group, the hypoxia group, the hypoxia + Pue group, the hypoxia + Pue + Rotenone group and the hypoxia + Rotenone group, with Rotenone as the ROS blocker. According to the results, under the conditions of normoxia, Pue had no effect on the PASMC proliferation; But, under the conditions of hypoxia, it could inhibit the PASMC proliferation; Under the conditions of normoxia and hypoxia, Pue had no effect on the expression of the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) among PASMCs, could down-regulate the expression of hypoxia-induced cell cycle protein Cyclin A and proliferative nuclear antigen (PCNA). DCFH-DA proved Pue could reverse ROS rise caused by hypoxia. Both Rotenone and Pue could inhibit the up-regulated expressions of HIF-1α, Cyclin A, PCNA caused by anoxia, with a synergistic effect. The results suggested that Pue could inhibit the hypoxia-induced PASMC proliferation. Its mechanism may be achieved by regulating ROS.

Doctor WANG Zhi-zhong in the Southern Song Dynasty proposed the acupoint view of "location of disease", which explained the connotation of acupoints from the angle of clinic. Its meaning included two levels, one level meant pathological change on the body surface, that was the location of acupuncture diagnosis-treatment, and the other one indicated that the body surface which was the reflecting point of pathological change on the distal area or inside the body was the location of acupuncture diagnosis-treatment. The specific connotations of clinical acupoints were: location of pathogenic factors or reflection of pathogenic factors, regularity between acupoints un- der disease and specific organ, morphological differences and positioning variability after acupoints under disease, and acupoints examination, diagnosis and treatment.

Objective: To prepare matrine double-sensitive colon-specific pellets and study the factors affecting its quality and evaluateing the colon-specific effects of preparation., Method: Matrine enzyme-sensitive pellets core were prepared by carboxymethyl konjac glucomannan as the main carrier material, and coated the core by acrylic resin II and III to prepare matrine double-sensitive colon-specific pellets. The prescription and technology of the matrine colon-specific pellets were studied by the single factor investigation, through the in vitro release test and coating rate determination., Result: The optimized process conditions: FeCl3 concentration is 4.0 g x L(-1), chitosan concentration is 3.0 g x L(-1), carboxymethyl konjac glucomannan concentration is 20 g x L(-1), mixed gel solution pH value is 3. The release of matrine is less than 30% in the simulation of the upper gastrointestinal medium. The release of matrine is close to 100% in simulated full gastrointestinal medium, the coating weight is 7%., Conclusion: The prepared pellets have good colon positioning effect in vitro.

Objective: To reveal the relationship between the quality and the leaf shape of Magnolia officinalis produced in Hubei Enshi., Methods: Determined the content of magnolol and honokiol by HPLC with methanol-water (78:22) and the detective wavelength was 294 nm., Results: The content of magnolol and honokiol in the leaf of Magnolia officinalis was usually higher if the leaf apex was convex and the leaves were short. In certain years, the content of magnolol and honokiol in Cortex Magnoliae officinalis was positively correlated with the bark thickness., Conclusion: The leaf shape of Magnolia officinalis produced in Hubei Enshi is directly related to the phenolic content of leaf itself. But it has nothing to do with the content of magnolol and honokiol in Cortex Magnoliae officinalis.

Objective: To analyze the characterization of cognitive function in Parkinson's disease with dementia and Alzheimer's disease., Methods: Cognitive function was examined in Parkinson's disease with dementia (PDD) patients (n = 30), Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients (n = 30) and healthy elderly control subjects (n = 60). Neuropsychological evaluation contained semantic fluency test, phonemic fluency test, action fluency test, objective and action naming tests., Results: In PDD group, the score of semantic fluency test is 9.33 ± 2.78, 6.17 ± 1.67 of phonemic fluency test and 7.03 ± 2.34 of action fluency test, it is 6.90 ± 2.47, 7.87 ± 2.01, 8.30 ± 3.17 of AD group. The score of objective and action naming tests is 36.33 ± 3.39, 17.63 ± 2.17 in PDD group, while AD patients is 33.23 ± 3.56 and 22.33 ± 2.37. The verbal fluency tests and naming tests were impaired in PDD and AD patients compared with the healthy elderly control group (P < 0.01), phonemic fluency, action fluency and action naming were more impaired in PDD patients compared with the AD group, while semantic fluency and objective naming were more impaired in AD patients (P < 0.01)., Conclusions: Executive function deficit and naming impairment are found in PDD and AD patients, it shows that PDD is characterized by the addition of cortical dysfunction upon a predominant and progressive fronto-subcortical impairment. There is subcortical dysfunction in AD patients.

Objective: To explore the feasibility of using gene chip method to identify pathogens in blood cultures., Methods: Clinical blood samples were obtained and cultured using an automated blood culture system. A gene chip diagnostic kit was used to detect the pathogenic bacteria in these blood cultures following the procedures of target gene extraction and amplification, hybridization and result analysis. The conventional method was also used to isolate and identify the bacteria from the clinical blood cultures, and the results of the two methods were compared., Results: In the 86 clinical blood samples, 74 were positive and 12 negative according to the conventional method, while 48 were positive and 38 negative as found by the gene chip method, showing significant differences in the results (P<0.05). The two methods only had a concordance rate of 69.77%., Conclusion: The gene chip diagnostic kit has low concordance rate with the conventional method for detecting pathogens in clinical blood cultures and awaits further improvement.

Taking a long-term fertilized rice-rape rotation system in Taihu Lake as test objective, its annual C balance and economic benefit were estimated, based on the measurement of past years grain yield, litter C content, and field CO2 emission as well as the investigation of material and management inputs. The calculated annual C sink under different fertilizations ranged from 0.9 t C x hm(-2) x a(-1) to 7.5 t C x hm(-2) x a(-1), and the net C sink effect under combined inorganic/organic fertilization was three folds as that under chemical fertilization. The C cost of material input ranged from 0.37 t C x hm(-2) x a(-1) to 1.13 t C x hm(-2) x a(-1), and that of management input ranged from 1.69 t C x hm(-2) x a(-1) to 1.83 t C x hm(-2) x a(-1). The annual economic benefit ranged from 5.8 x 10(3) CNY x hm(-2) x a(-1) to 16.5 x 10(3) CNY x hm(-2) x a(-1), and was 2.1 times higher under combined fertilization than under chemical fertilization. Comparing with that under chemical fertilization, the marginal cost for per ton C sink under combined inorganic/organic fertilization was estimated as 217.1 CNY x t(-1) C, very close to the C price of 20 Euro x t(-1) C in the EU. In sum, under combined inorganic/organic fertilization, this rice paddy ecosystem could not only have higher productivity, but also present greater net C sink effect and higher economic benefit, compared with under chemical fertilizer fertilization.

Aim: To observe the protective effects of tanshinones (tanshinone IIA, tanshinone I, cryptotanshinone and dihydrotanshinone) against liver injury in mice loaded with restraint stress., Methods: The liver injury model was established under 12 h restraint stress in mice 5 days after tanshinones treatment. The hepatoprotective effects were evaluated by assessing alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels in plasma. The contents of vitamin C, GSH and malondialdehyde (MDA) in liver were performed by HPLC and TBARS methods, respectively. Oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay was used to measure the antioxidant capacity., Results: Tanshinones decreased ALT and MDA levels, and increased ORAC, vitamin C and GSH levels in liver tissues as compared with restraint stress control. Tanshinones also significantly inhibited oxidation in vitro. Among four tanshinones, dihydrotanshinone was more effective than others both in vivo and in vitro test., Conclusion: Tanshinones possesses potent antioxidant activity in vitro and in vivo, and protected against liver injury induced by restraint stress. The active mechanisms may be related to their antioxidant capability.