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Objective: To investigate the effects of modified endoscopic retrograde appendicitis therapy (mERAT) on the treatment of children with different severities of acute appendicitis. Methods: This study was a case-control study. A total of 586 children with acute appendicitis, who were admitted to the Pediatric Department of Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University between January 2019 and November 2023, were selected as the research subjects. According to the severity of the disease, the patients were divided into simple appendicitis group, suppurative appendicitis group and perforated appendicitis group. The baseline data, hospitalization treatment and costs, outcomes, and recurrence in each group were analyzed, and the difference in the effectiveness of mERAT between the groups were compared by Kruskal-Wallis H test and χ 2 test. Results: Among 586 children, there were 338 males and 248 females. The age at onset was 7.0 (4.6, 9.4) years. There were 475 cases of simple appendicitis, 78 cases of suppurative appendicitis, and 33 cases of perforated appendicitis. There were no significant differences in age and gender among the three groups ( F =0.59, χ 2 =3.31, both P >0.05). However, there were statistically significant differences in body temperature, white blood cell counts, neutrophil percentage, lymphocyte percentage, nausea or vomiting, right lower abdominal pain, umbilical pain, right lower abdominal tenderness, and right lower abdominal rebound pain ( H =7.56, 161.52, 169.11, and 169.61, χ 2 =12.05, 13.82, 12.05, 7.74, 20.35, and 94.61, all P <0.05). Also, the treatment time, postoperative hospital stay, total hospital stay, and cost showed statistically significant differences ( H= 4.70, 33.66, 34.99, 30.37, all P <0.05). There was no significant difference in the initial treatment success rate (98.1% (466/475) vs. 98.7% (77/78) vs. 90.9% (30/33), P =0.057). During the 30 (23, 36) months of follow-up, the recurrence rate was 7.9% (35/433) in the simple appendicitis group, 20.8% (15/72) in the suppurative appendicitis group, and 30.0% (9/30) in the perforated appendicitis group, with a statistically significant difference ( χ 2 =23.56, P< 0.001). Among the children with recurrent appendicitis, 15 cases still chose mERAT, of them 11 cases (31.2%) had simple appendicitis, 2 cases (2/15) had suppurative appendicitis, and 2 cases (2/9) had perforated appendicitis.The latest time to recurrence in the 3 groups was 32, 35 and 10 months, respectively. Conclusion: Treatment with mERAT has a good effect in pediatric simple appendicitis, but has a higher recurrence rate despite a better initial treatment success rate in suppurative appendicitis and perforated appendicitis.

It is well known that vitamin D is engaged in calcium and phosphorus metabolism. However, vitamin D also plays an important role in other aspects over the past decades, such as immune response. Vitamin D has thus aroused the interest of the scientific community, especially the field of dermatology. The major source of vitamin D comes from the exposure of the skin to ultraviolet B. In turn, vitamin D regulates the proliferation and differentiation of keratinocytes, prevents opportunistic infection, and regulates the inflammatory response and immune response of the skin. Acne, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and other inflammatory skin diseases have been found to have a certain relationship with vitamin D. This article review the correlation between vitamin D and inflammatory skin diseases.

Although transition metal selenides are considered to be extremely promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), severe volume changes and low electronic conductivity are their huge and unavoidable challenges. To solve these problems, CoSe nanoparticles in-situ grown on the inner surface of every macropore of 3D honeycomb C is successfully synthesized by three simple steps: dense assembling of polystyrene spheres, calcination and gaseous selenylation. The sizes of CoSe and honeycomb pores are 10-15 nm and 190 nm, respectively. The content of CoSe is 72 wt%. This unique architecture guarantees high electrochemical activity, rapid reaction kinetics and excellent structural stability of CoSe, as identified by cycling and rate performance measurements, various electrochemical kinetics analyses and ex-situ characterization of the cycled electrode material. As a result, the CoSe@honeycomb C anode exhibits extraordinary cycling performance (823.5 mAh g -1 after 200 cycles at 0.5 A g -1 , 610.1 mAh g -1 after 250 cycles at 2 A g -1 , 247 mAh g -1 after 1500 cycles at 5 A g -1 ) and exceptional rate capability (261.9 mAh g -1 at 10 A g -1 , 1491.4 mAh g -1 at 0.1 A g -1 ), demonstrating that it is a potential anode material for high-performance LIBs., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The intestinal microbiome has been associated with response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in humans and causally implicated in ICI responsiveness in animal models. Two recent human trials demonstrated that fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) from ICI responders can rescue ICI responses in refractory melanoma, but FMT has specific limitations to scaled use., Patients and Methods: We conducted an early-phase clinical trial of a cultivated, orally delivered 30-species microbial consortium (Microbial Ecosystem Therapeutic 4, MET4) designed for co-administration with ICIs as an alternative to FMT and assessed safety, tolerability and ecological responses in patients with advanced solid tumors., Results: The trial achieved its primary safety and tolerability outcomes. There were no statistically significant differences in the primary ecological outcomes; however, differences in MET4 species relative abundance were evident after randomization that varied by patient and species. Increases in the relative abundance of several MET4 taxa, including Enterococcus and Bifidobacterium, taxa previously associated with ICI responsiveness, were observed and MET4 engraftment was associated with decreases in plasma and stool primary bile acids., Conclusions: This trial is the first report of the use of a microbial consortium as an alternative to FMT in advanced cancer patients receiving ICI and the results justify the further development of microbial consortia as a therapeutic co-intervention for ICI treatment in cancer., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To compare the efficacy of high-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy (HFNC) and non-rebreather face mask (NRFM) in the treatment of mild acute carbon monoxide poisoning (ACOP) in reducing carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) , and to explore the feasibility of HFNC in the treatment of ACOP. Methods: Patients with mild ACOP with COHb >10% who were admitted to the emergency department of Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital from January 2015 to December 2020 were analyzed, and those with altered consciousness, mechanical ventilation and those requiring hyperbaric oxygen therapy were excluded. The patients were divided into HFNC group and NRFM group according to the oxygen therapy used in the emergency department. The COHb decline value and COHb half-life in the two groups were observed. Results: Seventy-one patients were enrolled, including 39 in the NRFM group and 32 in the HFNC group. The baseline COHb in the HFNC group was 24.8%±8.3%, and that in the NRFM group was 22.5%±7.1%, with no significant difference between the two groups ( t =1.27, P =0.094) . At 60 min, 90 min and 120 min of treatment, COHb in both groups decreased, but the COHb in HFNC group was lower than that in NRFM group at the same time point ( P <0.05) . After 1 h of treatment, the COHb decrease in the HFNC group (16.9%±4.5%) was significantly higher than that in the NRFM group (10.1%±7.8%) ( t =4.32, P =0.013) . The mean half-life of COHb in the HFNC group (39.3 min) was significantly lower than that in the NRFM group (61.4 min) ( t =4.69, P =0.034) . Conclusion: HFNC treatment of mild ACOP can rapidly reduce blood COHb level, it is a potential oxygen therapy method for clinical treatment of ACOP.

The use of dynamic navigation technology in edentulous jaw implant restoration can solve many problems associated with traditional edentulous jaw implant restoration. The benefits of dynamic navigation include fine positioning guidance, restoration-guided surgery, good aesthetic results, and the possibility of simultaneous conceptual design and real-time implant guidance, as well as the transition from "blind" to "direct" vision during the implantation. It can guide clinicians and adjust the plan in real time, improve the efficiency of communication between the clinician, technician, and patient throughout the process and so on. The workflow, current clinical application and challenges, accuracy analysis, and limitations of the dynamic navigation technology in the edentulous jaw are discussed in this paper, as well as an outlook on its future development, with the goal of contributing to the clinical development of dynamic navigation-guided implantology in the edentulous jaw.

Objective: To investigate the epidemiology, characteristics and risk factors of functional constipation (FC) in children aged 0-4 years in Xi'an. Methods: From October, 2020 to June, 2021, a prevalence survey was conducted among 2 615 children aged 0-4 years in Xi'an by group sampling. The related factors of FC were investigated by questionnaire designed based on Rome Ⅳ diagnostic criteria.The children were divided into FC group and non-FC group. The prevalence, symptoms and signs of FC were analyzed, and its risk factors were analyzed by multivariate Logistic regression. Results: A total of 2 985 valid questionnaires were handed out, and 2 711 (90.8%) were received back. A total of 2 615 questionnaires were valid, with an effective rate of 96.5%. There were 1 338 males (51.2%) and 1 277 females (48.8%). There were 260 cases in FC group and 2 355 cases in non-FC group. The prevalence of FC in children aged 0-4 years in Xi 'an was 10.6%.There were significant differences in FC prevalence among children of different ages and sex (χ 2 =14.58,4.39, both P <0.05), but not in urban or rural residence (χ 2 =3.29, P =0.070). The main symptoms of FC group in the last month were large-diameter feces (73.5%, 191/260), painful defecation or dry and hard defecation (65.8%, 171/260). In the last month, FC group had higher incidences of the Bristol type 1, 2 and 3 stool, fecal retention, prolonged defecation, abdominal pain and incomplete defecation compared with non-FC group, with statistical significance (all P <0.05). Parental history of childhood constipation ( OR =2.13, 95% CI 1.55-2.92), fever in the last month ( OR =1.86, 95% CI 1.32-2.63), history of constipation ( OR =3.24, 95% CI 2.46-4.26) and taking probiotics in the last month ( OR =1.45, 95% CI 1.11-1.91) were risk factors of FC in children aged 0-4 years. Stratified with age, the results showed that complementary feeding earlier than 5 months of age or later than 6 months of age ( OR =2.42, 95% CI 1.13-5.20), dry stools during the complementary feeding ( OR =11.27, 95% CI 5.15-24.66), history of constipation ( OR =2.29, 95% CI 1.23-4.29) and taking probiotics in the last month ( OR =1.88, 95% CI 1.10-3.23) were risk factors of FC in children aged 0-<1 year, and breastfeeding ( OR =0.53, 95% CI 0.29-0.94) was a protective factor of FC in children aged 0-<1 year. Family members' recent constipation history ( OR =2.02, 95% CI 1.06-3.85) and past history of constipation ( OR =3.06, 95% CI 1.74-5.38) were FC risk factors for children aged 1-<2 years. Parental history of childhood constipation ( OR =3.12, 95% CI 2.00-4.85), frequency of eating vegetables less than 3 times per week ( OR =3.28, 95% CI 2.00-5.38), history of constipation ( OR =3.66, 95% CI 2.42-5.53) and taking antibiotics in the last month ( OR =1.65, 95% CI 1.06-2.55) were risk factors for FC in children aged 2-4 years. Conclusions: FC in children aged 0-4 years in Xi'an is mainly manifested with large-diameter feces and painful defecation or dry and hard defecation in the last month. It is associated with a variety of risk factors, which are different in different age groups.

Objective: To explore the changes of cerebral blood perfusion in patients with unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) by using the three-dimensional pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (3D pCASL) technique. Methods: The clinical characteristics and ASL data of the 32 patients with unilateral SSNHL were retrospectively collected from November 2020 to June 2021 in Beijing Fuxing Hospital of Capital Medical University, among them, there were 7 males and 25 females, aged from 17 to 73 (44.9±14.4) years. According to the location of SSNHL, they were divided into the left SSNHL (L-SSNHL) group (18 cases) and the right SSNHL (R-SSNHL) group (14 cases). A total of 34 healthy volunteers, which including 14 males and 20 females, aged from 24 to 68 (46.2±14.4) years were enrolled from the local community. The parameter of cerebral blood flow (CBF) of each brain area was obtained using the CereFlow software. The Brainnetome Atlas software package based on MATLAB was used for visualization. The independent-samples t test was conducted to compare the difference of cerebral blood perfusion between the unilateral SSNHL group and healthy control (HC) group. Pearson correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between changes in cerebral blood perfusion and clinical scale scores. Results: The CBF of left orbital gyrus part 5, left inferior temporal gyrus part 7, right orbital gyrus part 5, right inferior temporal gyrus part 1, right inferior temporal gyrus part 7, and right parahippocampal gyrus part 3 of the L-SSNHL group were higher than that in the HC group[(49.1±8.8) vs (31.6±10.9)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(42.8±14.3) vs (27.1±13.6)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(51.8±9.4) vs (27.2±11.2)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(38.8±5.7) vs (28.0±9.2)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(38.4±13.8) vs (23.6±10.3)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(42.4±9.4) vs (30.1±12.6)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ; all P <0.05]. The CBF of left superior frontal gyrus part 7 and left middle frontal gyrus part 3 of the L-SSNHL group were lower than that in the HC group[(48.2±7.9) vs (59.3±13.7)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(46.4±10.3) vs (59.3±16.9)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;all P <0.05]. The CBF of left orbital gyrus part 5, right orbital gyrus part 5, right inferior temporal gyrus part 1, and right inferior temporal gyrus part 7 of the R-SSNHL group were higher than that in the HC group[(50.6±7.0) vs (31.6±10.9)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(50.9±8.8) vs (27.2±11.2)ml·100 g -1 ·min -1 ;(38.0±7.2) vs (28.0±9.2)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;(35.7±8.5) vs (23.6±10.3)ml·100g -1 ·min -1 ;all P <0.05]; the CBF of right insular part 4 was lower than that in the HC group [(44.2±6.1) vs (54.4±11.3) ml·100 g -1 ·min -1 , P =0.018]. In the L-SSNHL group, the CBF of left superior frontal gyrus part 7 and right orbital gyrus part 5 were negatively correlated with the VAS score( r =-0.83, -0.81, all P <0.05), and the CBF of right orbital gyrus part 5 was negatively correlated with the THI score( r =-0.75, P =0.013). There was no statistically significant correlation between the remaining differences in brain regions and clinical scale scores(all P >0.05). Conclusion: Changes in cerebral blood perfusion in multiple brain regions were found in patients with unilateral SSNHL by using the 3D pCASL technique.

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the promoting effect of rosuvastatin on the osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells in the rat model of osteoporosis through the Wnt/β-catenin signal., Materials and Methods: A total of 30 rats were purchased from the Animal Research Center of Shanxi Medical University. All rats were randomly allocated into three groups, including: group A (control group, n=10), group B (ovariectomized group, n=10), and group C (rosuvastatin gavage group, n=10). The bone metabolism indexes, bone mineral density (BMD) and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway-related proteins in blood samples of rats in each group were measured, respectively. Furthermore, the bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells of rats were used for alkaline phosphatase (ALP) staining. All data were analyzed using the Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) 22.0 software (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA)., Results: The rats firstly received 9 consecutive weeks of feeding with drug intervention. The imaging results revealed that trabecular thickness in group A was significantly higher than that of group B and group C, showing statistically significant differences (p<0.05). After 9 consecutive weeks of feeding with drug intervention, BMD of the femurs of rats in group A and group C was significantly higher than that of group B, showing statistically significant differences (p<0.05). However, there was no significant difference in BMD between group A and group C (p>0.05). The level of calcium representing bone absorption level in serum of rats in group B was remarkably higher than that of group A, and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). However, the level of ALP representing bone absorption level in the serum of rats in group B was significantly lower than that of group A (p<0.05). No significant differences were found in the levels of calcium and ALP that represented bone absorption level between group C and group A (p>0.05). Meanwhile. the levels of phosphorus in the three groups were similar, showing no statistically significant difference (p>0.05). Moreover, the expression of ALP-positive cells in the rats of group A and group C was markedly higher than that of group B (p<0.05). After drug intervention through feeding for 9 consecutive weeks, no evident difference was found in the relative expression of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway-related protein glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) among the three groups. The relative expression of the protein phosphorylated GSK-3β (p-GSK-3β) in group C was significantly lower than that of group B (p<0.05). Furthermore, the relative protein expressions of β-catenin and cyclin D1 in group C were significantly higher than those in group B (p<0.05)., Conclusions: Rosuvastatin can improve bone metabolism in osteoporosis rats and increasing BMD of bone tissues in rats with osteoporosis. Besides, the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway plays a crucial role in the regulation of the stem cell self-renewal and bone genesis.

Objective: Cerebrovascular disease is a disease which has the highest mortality in China. Angiogenesis in the ischemic region after cerebral infarction is closely related to its prognosis. Recent studies found that microRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in the regulation of neovascularization. MicroRNA-153 (MiR-153) has protective effects on the ischemic injury, but its relationship with the Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway is still unclear. This work aimed to investigate the role of miR-153 in angiogenesis of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rats through the Shh signaling pathway., Materials and Methods: The rat cerebral ischemic injury (MCAO) model was established by thread embolism and treated by Agomir-153 and 5-EI. MiR-153 expression was detected using Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). The neurological function was assessed. The infarct area of the brain and the capillary density were determined using 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) method. The Shh signaling pathway and angiogenesis-related factors were tested by Western blot assay., Results: Agomir-153 or Agomir-153 combined with 5-EI significantly increased miR-153 expression, reduced the infarct area, and promoted the generation of cerebral capillaries in the MCAO model. 5-EI partially blocked the protective effects of Agomir-153 and angiogenesis. The up-regulation of miR-153 markedly inhibited patched (PTC) expression and activated the Shh signaling pathway., Conclusions: The up-regulation of miR-153 rats activated the Shh signaling pathway to promote angiogenesis and improve prognosis through lipid-coated Patch (PTC) in MCAO. MiR-153 was considered to be a new therapeutic target for promoting angiogenesis after MCAO.

An efficient route is proposed to actively manipulate directional scattering based on magneto-optical (MO) effects and multipolar interferences with a coated MO cylinder. We demonstrate that the presence of an external magnetic field B contributes to breaking the degeneracy of multipoles and making them rotate. The rotated modes further interfere with each other, thus reshaping scattering profiles and introducing novel directional optical switching (OS) phenomena. As a result, we show that forward scattering (FS) and backward scattering (BS) can be flexibly altered by turning on or off the B for both s-polarization and p-polarization, and optical switching exhibits broadband performance as well. More specifically, the proposed nanostructure also operates robust and reliable functionalities when considering realistic MO materials with optical loss and dispersion; therefore, they are ideal candidates to develop reconfigurable, tunable and versatile optical devices.

We have achieved efficient polarization manipulations based on dipolar interferences and lattice couplings in one-dimensional cylindrical metalattices. First, we employ the scattering asymmetry factor g to quantify the directional scattering ability and find the maximum |g| max =1/2 for a cylinder with effective excitations of electric and magnetic dipoles simultaneously. Further, the strong negative-g (gp = -0.38) for p-polarization and positive-g (gs = 0.68) for s-polarization are obtained within a narrow visible band using c-Si with experimental data. Inspired by the polarization-dependent phenomena, we design a metalattice-based linear polarizer considering lattice effects with an optimal particle arrangement. The metalattice performs near-perfect reflection for p-polarized waves but with zero reflection for s-polarized waves with large extinction ratios for transmission (17 dB) and reflection (24 dB). The perfect functionalities can be attributed to the near-field lattice couplings with dipolar interferences. And, we reveal that the polarization-dependent scattering coefficients, which are sensitive to the lattice period, can be largely tuned owing to lattice effects, therefore contributing to modifying far-field scattering patterns. More specifically, the proposed linear polarizers also show robust and reliable functionalities when considering lattice imperfections, the effects of system sizes, oblique incident angles, and the tunbility for different working wavelengths. The present study paves a way to stimulate many advanced practical implements based on multipolar interferences and lattice couplings.

Engineering light-matter interaction using cold atomic arrays is one of the central topics in modern optics. Here we have demonstrated the capability of two-dimensional asymmetric cold atomic arrays as microscopic metasurfaces for controlling polarization states of light. The designed linear polarizer can lead to an extinction ratio over 20dB as well as a high transmittance over 0.8 for the permitted polarization at zero detuning. For detuned driving light, changing lattice constants can also achieve high performance linear polarizers. We have also accomplished a circular polarizer by manipulating the phases of transmitted light. A theoretical analysis based on Bloch theorem shows the underlying mechanism for this performance is actually attributed to cooperative effects in periodic lattices. Finally, we discuss in detail the effects of system size, lattice imperfection and nonzero driving light linewidth in practical implementation. The present study paves a way to design extremely miniaturized metasurfaces using cold atoms and other two-level systems, showing great potential in quantum information and quantum metrology sciences as well as the fundamental physics of light-matter interaction.

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the inhibitory effect and mechanism of tanshinone ⅡA combined with cisplatin on tumor Fadu cells in pharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Method: Cytotoxicity was determined by CCK8 assay. Flow cytometry was used to detect apoptosis and cell cycle distribution. Western blotting was used to assess the protein expression of related signaling proteins. Result: Compared with the two single drug groups treated with Tan ⅡA and DDP respectively, the combination group showed significantly higher anti-proliferative rate ( P <0.01), arrested cell cycle at S phase, and resulted in observably higher apoptotic cell fractions in human hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas Fadu cells; Western blotting showed that the protein expression of cleaved caspase 3 and cleaved PARP increased ,while survivin significantly decreased in the cells treated with the combination of tanshinone ⅡA and cisplatin. Conclusion: Tanshinone ⅡA potentiates the efficacy of Cisplatin in Fadu cells, which may be attributed to the downregulation of survivin protein expression., 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 Editorial Department of Journal of Clinical Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery.)

In this Letter, we propose a method to design ultrabroadband near-perfect absorbers, consisting of a periodic dielectric-metal multilayer. In the method, the Bloch theorem and optical topological transition (OTT) of iso-frequency surfaces are employed to manipulate the start and end of the near-perfect spectral absorption band, respectively. Moreover, we design and fabricate an ultrabroadband near-perfect absorber utilizing the proposed method. The average absorption of the designed absorber is ∼95% in the focused visible and near-infrared range (0.4-2 μm). This omnidirectional and polarization-independent near-perfect absorber is promising for solar energy harvesting, emissivity control, and thermal imaging.

Objective: To explore the composition of the gastrointestinal bacterial flora of mouse embryos and the placenta tissue bacterial flora. Method: Twenty-four specimens were collected from pregnant Kunming mouse including 8 mice of early embryonic (12-13 days) gastrointestinal tissues, 8 cases of late embryonic (19-20 days)gastrointestinal tissues, 8 of late pregnancy placental tissues.The 24 samples were extracted by DNeasy Blood & Tissue kit for high-throughput DNA sequencing. Result: The level of Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Actino-bacteria and Firmicutes were predominantin all specimens.The relative content of predominant bacterial phyla in each group: Proteobacteria (95.00%, 88.14%, 87.26%), Bacteroidetes(1.71%, 2.15%, 2.63%), Actino-Bacteria(1.16%, 4.10%, 3.38%), Firmicutes(0.75%, 2.62%, 2.01%). At the level of family, there were nine predominant bacterial families in which Enterobacteriaeae , Shewanel laceae and Moraxellaceae were dominant.The relative content of dominant bacterial family in eachgroup: Enterobacteriaeae (46.99%, 44.34%, 41.08%), Shewanellaceae (21.99%, 21.10%, 19.05%), Moraxellaceae (9.18%, 7.09%, 5.64%). From the species of flora, the flora from fetal gastrointestinal in early pregnancy and late pregnancy (65.44% and 62.73%) were the same as that from placenta tissue in the late pregnancy.From the abundance of bacteria, at the level of family, the same content of bacteria in three groups accounted for 78.16%, 72.53% and 65.78% respectively. Conclusion: It was proved that the gastrointestinal bacterial flora of mouse embryos and the placenta tissue bacterial flora were colonized. At the same time the bacteria are classified.

A one dimensional nanostructure array has been considered as a successful charge transport material for perovskite solar cells (PSCs), because of its large internal surface area, superior charge collection efficiency and fast charge transport. Herein we demonstrate a ZnO nanorod (NR) array as the electron collector in a hole-conductor-free PSC with a carbon counter electrode (CE). A relatively low initial power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 5.6% was achieved using a 1 μm long ZnO NR array as an electron collector. However, by introduction of a thin TiO 2 coating layer on the surface of ZnO via TiCl 4 treatment, the PCE of the cell has been improved to the highest value of 8.24%. It is revealed that the performance enhancement of the ZnO/TiO 2 NR based PSCs is largely attributed to the larger surface area, reduced electron combination, and superior electron transport properties.

Objective: To investigate the role of T-type α1H Ca(2+) channels(Cav 3.2) in the pathogenesis of Hirschsprung disease(HD)., Method: Eighty neonatal SD rats 6 to 8 days of age were randomly divided into 2 groups, 40 in each. Microinjector catheters were carefully placed into the bowl of one group, and 0.2% benzalkonium chloride (BAC) solution was injected to establish HD rat model. Control group was treated with saline instead of benzalkonium chloride. At postoperative 4, 6 and 8 weeks, ten rats were sacrificed randomly and examined through general observation, histopathological observation and immunofluorescent staining of PGP 9.5 to identify the animal models. Meanwhile, the distribution of Cav 3.2 in abnormal colon of HD rat model was studied by immunohistochemical staining, Western blot, and the co-localization of Cav 3.2 and c-kit was studied by double immunofluorescent staining. Besides, function of Cav 3.2 was surveyed with the model rats tensile force and frequency of colonic muscle in vitro., Result: After 8 weeks of BAC treatment, the rat model was successfully established according to the results of histopathological and immunofluorescent staining, which showed decrease or lack of ganglion cells within the area of BAC treatment. The distribution of Cav 3.2 was detected by immunohistochemical staining. In the normal colon, Cav 3.2 were mainly distributed between circular muscle and longitudinal muscle, and showed continuous distribution. However, in the narrow segment of HD rat model, the distribution of Cav 3.2 was decreased significantly, and its continuity was destroyed . The results of Western blot were quite consistent with immunohistochemistry staining, in the narrow segment of HD rat model, the expression of Cav 3.2 was decreased gradually after the BAC treatment, especially at postoperative 8 weeks. The relative expression of Cav 3.2 of the control group was 0.63±0.06, 0.62±0.09, 0.63±0.06 at postoperative 4, 6 and 8 weeks respectively. While that of HD group was 0.63±0.06, 0.38±0.06, 0.26±0.07 respectively, which was significantly lower as compared with that of control group at postoperative 6 and 8 weeks respectively (t-value 5.27 and 8.63 respectively, both P<0.05). The co-localization of Cav 3.2 and c-kit was studied by double immunofluorescent staining. Similarly, compared with control groups, the co-localization of Cav 3.2 and c-kit were reduced obviously or vanished in the narrow segment of HD rat model. In motility studies, the control rats show cyclic depolarization regularly. However, the cyclic depolarization largely disappeared in model rats. Besides, on the premise of cyclic depolarization in control muscle strips, when we added ZnCl2, known to inhibit Cav 3.2 selectively among three T-channel isoforms, into tissue chambers, the pattern of muscle contractions appear similar to HD model rats., Conclusion: The abnormal alteration of Cav 3.2 probably mediate the functional change of interstitial cells of cajal in the HD, and finally induce the intestinal dysfunction of HD.

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of forage: concentrate ratio (F:C) on growth performance, ruminal fermentation and blood metabolites of housing-feeding yaks. Thirty-two Maiwa male yaks (initial body weight = 207.99±3.31 kg) were randomly assigned to four dietary treatments (8 yaks per treatment). Experimental diets were: A, B, C, D which contained 70:30, 60:40, 50:50 and 40:60 F:C ratios, respectively. Dry matter intake and average daily gain in yaks fed the C and D diets were greater (p<0.05) than yaks fed the A and B diets. No differences were found in ruminal NH3-N, total volatile fatty acids, acetate, butyrate, valerate, and isovalerate concentrations. The propionate concentration was increased (p<0.05) in the C and D groups compared with the A and B diets. In contrast, the acetate to propionate ratio was decreased and was lowest (p<0.05) in the C group relative to the A and B diets, but was similar with the D group. For blood metabolites, no differences were found in serum concentrations of urea-N, albumin, triglyceride, cholesterol, low density lipoprotein, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase (p>0.05) among treatments. Treatment C had a higher concentration of total protein and high density lipoprotein (p<0.05) than A and B groups. In addition, there was a trend that the globulin concentration of A group was lower than other treatments (p = 0.079). Results from this study suggest that increasing the level of concentrate from 30% to 50% exerted a positive effect on growth performance, rumen fermentation and blood metabolites in yaks.

Background: This study compared prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) with observation in patients with resected stage IIIA-N2 non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and high risk of cerebral metastases after adjuvant chemotherapy., Patients and Methods: In this open-label, randomized, phase III trial, patients with fully resected postoperative pathologically confirmed stage IIIA-N2 NSCLC and high cerebral metastases risk without recurrence after postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy were randomly assigned to receive PCI (30 Gy in 10 fractions) or observation. The primary end point was disease-free survival (DFS). The secondary end points included the incidence of brain metastases, overall survival (OS), toxicity and quality of life., Results: This trial was terminated early after the random assignment of 156 patients (81 to PCI group and 75 to control group). The PCI group had significantly lengthened DFS compared with the control group, with a median DFS of 28.5 months versus 21.2 months [hazard ratio (HR), 0.67; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.46-0.98; P = 0.037]. PCI was associated with a decrease in risk of brain metastases (the actuarial 5-year brain metastases rate, 20.3% versus 49.9%; HR, 0.28; 95% CI 0.14-0.57; P < 0.001). The median OS was 31.2 months in the PCI group and 27.4 months in the control group (HR, 0.81; 95% CI 0.56-1.16; P = 0.310). While main toxicities were headache, nausea/vomiting and fatigue in the PCI group, they were generally mild., Conclusion: In patients with fully resected postoperative pathologically confirmed stage IIIA-N2 NSCLC and high risk of cerebral metastases after adjuvant chemotherapy, PCI prolongs DFS and decreases the incidence of brain metastases., (© The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Aims: This study investigated the role of L-3-n-Butylphthalide (NBP) in cardiac protection., Methods: The left anterior descending coronary arteries (LAD) of the rats were occluded for 30 min following by 2-h reperfusion to make the ischaemia/reperfusion models. Neonatal cardiomyocytes were cultured and subjected to hypoxia. L-3-n-Butylphthalide was administered intraperitoneally 2 h before the surgery and right after the reperfusion in the in vivo experiments or added to the culture medium in vitro. Haemodynamic parameters were recorded to evaluate the cardiac functions, triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) and Evens blue staining were used to determine the area of risk and infarct area, apoptotic cell numbers were counted with terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labelling (TUNEL) staining. Western blotting was used to determine the apoptotic protein levels and immune staining to determine the translocation of Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) protein., Results: Our research showed for the first time that L-3-n-Butylphthalide had great effects in improving cardiac hemodynamic function and decreasing cardiac infarct areas and apoptotic cell numbers in the peri-infarct areas. The apoptotic signals investigation showed that L-3-n-Butylphthalide affected the mitochondrial pathway including Bcl-2 protein expression, inhibition of caspase 3 activation and cytochrome C releasing. Besides, Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase protein translocation was inhibited by L-3-n-Butylphthalide treatment, and this effect was mediated by endogenous reactive oxygen species (ROS)., Conclusion: L-3-n-Butylphthalide protects cardiomyocytes from ischaemia/reperfusion-induced apoptosis by antioxidant effect and affecting mitochondrial apoptotic pathway., (© 2013 Scandinavian Physiological Society. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Aims: This work is aiming at investigating algicidal characterization of a bacterium isolate DHQ25 against harmful alga Alexandrium tamarense., Methods and Results: 16S rDNA sequence analysis showed that the most probable affiliation of DHQ25 belongs to the γ-proteobacteria subclass and the genus Vibrio. Bacterial isolate DHQ25 showed algicidal activity through an indirect attack. Xenic culture of A. tamarense was susceptible to the culture filtrate of DHQ25 by algicidal activity assay. Algicidal process demonstrated that the alga cell lysed and cellular substances released under the visual field of microscope. DHQ25 was a challenge controller of A. tamarense by the above characterizations of algicidal activity assay and algicidal process., Conclusion: Interactions between bacteria and harmful algal bloom (HAB) species proved to be an important factor regulating the population of these algae., Significance and Impact of Study: This is the first report of a Vibrio sp. bacterium algicidal to the toxic dinoflagellate A. tamarense. The findings increase our knowledge of the role of bacteria in algal-bacterial interaction., (© 2010 The Authors. © 2010 The Society for Applied Microbiology.)

Werner syndrome (WS) is an autosomal recessive inherited disease characterized by features of premature ageing. It is caused by mutations of the WRN gene encoding a protein with both exonuclease and helicase activities. The aim of this study was to identify gene mutations in a Chinese patient with WS. A 31-year-old Chinese man with typical features of WS was diagnosed as having probable WS. We performed PCR to scan 33 exons of the WRN gene of the patient, six members of his family, and 50 unrelated controls. Automated DNA sequencing identified the mutation in the patient as 3250delG. The proband's parents, son, younger brother and paternal grandmother were heterozygous. We did not find this heterozygous mutation in the proband's maternal grandmother or in any of 50 normal controls. The novel mutation in the WRN gene is responsible for the pathogenesis of WS and genetic detection is a useful method to confirm the diagnosis.

A new steroidal saponin, dioscoreside E (1), and a known compound, protodioscin (2), were isolated from an ethanol extract of the rhizomes of Dioscorea panthaica. The structure of 1 was established as 3-O-[bis-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 --> 2 and 1 --> 4)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl]-26-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-20(R)-methoxy-25(R)-furosta-5,22(23)-diene-3beta,26-diol, on the basis of spectral and chemical evidence. Compounds 1 and 2 showed cytotoxic activity against a panel of tumor cell lines.

Two new steroidal saponins, dioscoresides C (1) and D (2), along with a new natural product, pregnadienolone 3-O-beta-gracillimatriose (3), and two known compounds, pregnadienolone 3-O-beta-chacotrioside (4) and pseudoprotodioscin (5), were isolated from the rhizomes of Dioscorea panthaica Prain et Burkill. On the basis of extensive NMR studies and chemical evidence, dioscoresides C and D were determined to be 26-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-3 beta,26-dihydroxy-23(S)-methoxy-25(R)-furosta-5,20(22)-dien-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->2)-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->4)]-beta-D-glucopyranoside and 26-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-3 beta,26-dihydroxy-20,22-seco-25(R)-furosta-5-en-20,22-dine-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->2)-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1--> 4)]-beta-D-glucopyranoside. These compounds showed mild cytotoxicity against the cancer cell lines, A375, L929, and HeLa, in a dose-dependent manner.

Objective: To compare the chemical composition and bioactivity of polypeptides(PPs) isolated from velvet antlers of sika deer (Cervus nippon Temminck) and red deer (Cervus elaphus Linnaeus)., Method: The two kind of polypeptides were isolated from the above mentioned velvet antlers with same technology. The chemical composition was determined using sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Stimulant activity of cells proliferation was measured by [3H] TdR incorporation into DNA., Result: The graphs of SDS-PAGE and MALDI-TOF MS of velvet antler polypeptides (VAPPs) from Chinese and New zealand red deer were very similar, but there were obvious difference in respect of graph between sika deer and red deer. VAPPs 25-50 mg.L-1 showed marked proliferation-promoting activity for rabbit costed chondrocytes, either sika deer or red deer. However, the activity of sika deer VAPPs 12.5 mg.L-1 for epidermal cells was weaker than that of red deer (12.5 mg.L-1)., Conclusion: The chemical property and bioactivity of VAPPs from sika deer and red deer are significantly different.

Aim: To study the metabolic process of ginsenoside Rb1 (G-Rb1) and panaxadiol saponins (PDS) by fungi., Methods: Ten strains of fungi were incubated with G-Rb1 and PDS at a certain temperature with shaking. A portion was taken out at different time and mixed up with butanol. The butanol extract was analysed by thin layer chromatography (TLC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and electrospray ionazition mass spectrometry (ESI-MS)., Results: It was found that there were ginsenoside-Rd (G-Rd), ginsenoside-F2 (G-F2), compound K (CK) and 20(S) protopanaxadiol (Ppd) metabolites beside the prodrug G-Rb1 induced by fungi (No. 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9)., Conclusion: The six strains of fungi have different degrees of ability to metabolize G-Rb1 and PDS. The possible metabolic process could be as follows: G-Rb1 (or PDS)-->G-Rd-->G-F2-->CK-->Ppd.

Objective: To study the oxymatrine metabolism induced by human intestinal bacteria and its absorbed metabolites in blood., Method: TLC and HPLC were used to examine oxymatrine and its metabolites, and UV, IR, NMR and MS were used to confirm the chemical structures of the metabolites., Result: Oxymatrine was transformed into matrine by human intestinal bacteria metabolism in vitro. Rats were given orally oxymatrine 100 mg.kg-1 and were decapitated 3 hours after administration, and their blood was taken to examine serum metabolites by TLC and HPLC, which revealed that oxymatrine and matrine were absorbed into blood., Conclusion: Oxymatrine will be transformed into matrine when it is given orally and both of the alkaloids can be absorbed to blood.

Objective: The decomposition of Ginsenoside Rg1(Rg1) by intestinal bacteria in rats or human was investigated both in vitro and in vivo., Method: The decompositions were investigated by means of thin-layer chromatography and Electron spurt ion mass., Result: It was found that Rg1 was converted into two metabolites [Rh1 and 20(S)-protopanaxatriol(20S-Ppt)] by human intestinal bacteria in vitro, while three compounds [Rh1, F1, and 20(S)-Ppt] were detected in rat intestinal bacteria metabolism in vitro and in vivo., Conclusion: The decomposition and/or metabolism of Rg1 in rat and human digestive tract was confirmed. The mode of metabolism in rat is Rg1-->Rh1(F1)-->Ppt, while in human it is Rg1-->Rh1-->Ppt.

Aim: To investigate the chemical constituents of the rhizomes of Dioscorea panthaica Prain et Burkill and look for new active compounds., Methods: The compounds were isolated with silica gel and HPLC, and their structures were elucidated on the basis of chemical evidences and spectral analysis (IR, ESI-MS, 1HNMR, 13CNMR, DEPT, 1H-1H COSY, HMQC, HMBC, NOESY)., Results: Three steroidal saponins were isolated from the rhizomes of Dioscorea panthaica. They were elucidated as 26-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-3 beta, 26-diol-23(S)-methoxy-25(R)-delta 5,20(22)-diene-furosta-3-O-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->2)- O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->4)]-beta-D-glucopyranoside (I), pseudoprotodioscin (II), 26-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-3 beta, 26-diol-25 (R)-delta 5,20(22)-diene-furosta-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl- (1-->2)-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (III)., Conclusion: Compound I is a new steroidal saponin and was named as dioscoreside C. Compound II and III were obtained from this genus for the first time.

Aim: To compare the effects of water-soluble polysaccharides, FI0-b, and its formic acid-modified derivative, FI0-b-H, on production of human proinflammatory cytokines., Methods: The polysaccharides were modified by formic acid. Cytokine production was quantitated by radioimmunoassay. mRNA for cytokines was measured by semi-quantitative RT-PCR., Results: FI0-b and FI0-b-H 4, 40, and 400 mg/L significantly downregulated interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) production by THP-1 cells induced by lypopolysaccharide (LPS) 1 or 10 mg/L and phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) 200 nmol/L. At lower stimulation with LPS 10 mg/L and PMA 200 nmol/L, both polysaccharides significantly upregulated tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) production by THP-1 cells. However, at higher stimulation with LPS 100 mg/L and PMA 200 nmol/L, they downregulated TNF alpha production. FI0-b-H downregulated interleukin-8 (IL-8) production by THP-1 cells at a lower-dose of LPS 1 mg/L and PMA 200 nmol/L, but upregulated IL-8 production at a higher-dose of LPS 10 mg/L and PMA 200 nmol/L. Production of cytokines (IL-1 alpha and TNF alpha) was transcriptionally or post-transcriptionally regulated by FI0-b and FI0-b-H., Conclusion: The water-soluble polysaccharides of Ganoderma tsugae mycelium have bidirectional immunomodulatory effects on cytokine production in different stimulatory conditions in a dose-dependent manner. Compared with FI0-b, FI0-b-H has more marked effects on human proinflammatory cytokine production.

Aim: To study the effects of water-soluble polysaccharides. FI0-c, and its sulfated derivative, FI0-c-S, on production of human proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha)., Methods: The herbal polysaccharides were modified by chlorosulfornic acid in dimethyl sulfoxide (Me2SO). Cytokine production was measured by radioimmunoassay, mRNA for the cytokines was measured by semi-quantitative RT-PCR., Results: FI0-c 4 mg/L itself induced IL-1 alpha production by THP-1 cells without stimulants, such as lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and phorbol myristate acetate (PMA). On the other hand, FI0-c and FI0-c-S inhibited the IL-1 alpha production by THP-1 cells with these stimulants. FI0-c and FI0-c-S significantly upregulated TNF alpha production by THP-1 cells without stimulants or at a low dose of LPS 10 mg/L and PMA 200 nmol/L, whereas these polysaccharides markedly downregulated the TNF alpha production by a high dose of LPS 100 mg/L and PMA. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) responded to FI0-c and FI0-c-S in IL-1 alpha and TNF alpha production in a fashion similar to THP-1 cell responses. FI0-c 4 mg/L downregulated high-dose LPS- and PMA-induced IL-1 alpha or TNF alpha mRNA and their protein production by THP-1 cells., Conclusion: The water-soluble polysaccharides of Ganoderma tsugae mycelium have bidirectional immunomodulatory effects on cytokine production in different cell stimulatory conditions. Chemical modification of this polysaccharide changed the intensity of regulatory effect on cytokine production.

Aim: To compare the effect of ginsenoside Rg1 and its metabolite Rh1 on proinflammatory cytokines and their mRNA expression by THP-1 cells., Methods: Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were incubated with Rg1 and Rh1 at concentrations of 0.1, 1, 10, and 100 mg/L, and the cell proliferation was measured 24 h after incubation. Radioimmunoassay (RIA) was used to detect the production of proinflammatory cytokines, TNF alpha, IL-1 alpha, and IL-8. TNF alpha mRNA level was detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) after administration of Rg1 and Rh1., Results: Rg1 and Rh1 (at concentration of 0.1, 1, 10, 100 mg/L) had no effect on PBMC proliferation. Rh1 1 mg/L could upregulate the productions of TNF (and IL-8 induced by lipopolysaccharides (LPS) 10 mg/L plus phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) 200 nmol/L, however, Rg1 showed an inhibitory effect on TNF alpha production induced by LPS 100 mg/L. Rg1 1 mg/L and Rh1 100 mg/L enhanced the production of IL-1 alpha level in THP-1 cells in the presence of LPS 10 mg/L. RT-PCR revealed that Rh1 stimulated TNF alpha mRNA expression in suitable stimulatory conditions., Conclusion: Rg1 and Rh1 have different effects on the production of cytokines produced THP-1 cells stimulated by LPS and PMA.

Neurogranin (Ng) is a neuron-specific protein kinase C (PKC) substrate, which contains four cysteine (Cys) residues. Recently, it has been shown that Ng is a redox-sensitive protein and is a likely target of nitric oxide (NO) and other oxidants [F.-S. Sheu, C.W. Mahoney, K. Seki, K.-P. Huang, Nitric oxide modification of rat brain neurogranin affects its phosphorylation by protein kinase C and affinity for calmodulin, J. Biol. Chem. 271 (1996) 22407-22413: J. Li, J.H. Pak, F.L. Huang, K.-P. Huang, N-methyl-D-aspartate induces neurogranin/RC3 oxidation in rat brain slices, J. Biol. Chem. 274 (1999) 1294-1300]. In this study, we directly examine the redox reactions between dissolved NO and Cys as well as between NO and bacterial expressed Ng in its reduced form, at concentrations approximate to the physiological levels in phosphate buffer solution (PBS) under aerobic conditions. The reaction kinetics are measured directly by our newly developed electrochemical sensor. Our sensor is based on the chemical modification of electrode with immobilized nanoparticles of transition metal palladium (Pd) which serves as catalytic centers for the electrochemical oxidation of thiol and NO selectively and quantitatively at different potentials. It detects Cys and Ng in a linear range from nano to micromolar concentration at + 450 mV, vs. a saturated calomel reference electrode (SCE), while the detection of NO at the sensor can be optimally achieved at + 700 mV (vs. SCE) with a linear current-to-concentration range of nM to microM. It thus provides a selective control to monitor two reactants independently. With this sensor as a detector, we found that (1) the oxidation of either Cys or Ng by NO is a fast reaction which reaches a near completion within 1-2 min at its physiological concentration; and (2) after the completion of reaction, NO is mostly, if not all, regenerated, an observation consistent with the reaction mechanism involving the formation of S-nitrosothiol as an intermediate. The reaction kinetics of both NO to Cys and NO to Ng implies that NO can achieve local action on cellular proteins in addition to its effect on targets located in neighboring cells via concentration-gradient-dependent diffusion.

Aim: To study the effects of velvet antler (VA) total polypeptides (VATP) and VA polypeptides, VAP-A, VAP-B, and VAP-C on proliferation of chondrocytes and osteoblast precusors., Methods: Chondrocytes (rabbit and human fetus) and osteoblast precusors (chick embryo) were incubated in the culture medium containing VATP or VAP-A, VAP-B, and VAP-C. [3H]TdR incorporation into DNA was measured. Fracture healing-promoting action of VATP was determined in rats., Results: VATP 50-200 mg.L-1 and VAP-B 12.5, 25, and 50 mg.L-1 showed most marked proliferation-promoting activity for rabbit costed chondrocytes and increased incorporation of [3H]TdR from (73 +/- 9) Bq (control group) to (272 +/- 55), (327 +/- 38), and (415 +/- 32) Bq, respectively (P < 0.01). The activity of VAP-A was weaker than that of VAP-B, and VAP-C had no activity. VATP 10 and 20 mg.kg-1 by local injection into the cross-section fracture area accelerated healing of radial fracture. The healing rate of VATP-treated group was higher (75%) than that of control group (25%) (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: VATP accelerated fracture healing by stimulating proliferation of chondrocytes and osteoblast precursors.

Pilose antler peptide (PAP:MW:7200; amino acid residue:68) isolated from the antlers of Cervus nippon temminck 10 and 20 mg.kg-1 i.p. produced inhibitions towards acute and chronic inflammations in a dose-dependent manner. PAP reduced ascorbic acid and cholesterol contents in adrenal glands and decreased the serum hydrocortisone level of rats. The reduction of ascorbic acid and cholesterol contents were unaffected by the pretreatment of dexamethasone. PAP also showed an anti-inflammatory action on the swelling of carrageenan-induced hind paw in adrenalectomized rats. The results suggest that the anti-inflammatory effects of PAP do not depend absolutely on pituitary-adrenal system.

The effect of sodium artesunate on Plasmodium yoelii-infected mouse erythrocytes was analysed by flow cytometry. The results showed that malarial DNA content in experimental group was obviously decreased 2-5 hours after the drug was administered, fluorescence distribution of malarial DNA almost disappeared within 24 hours after the administration. Thus we deem that sodium artesunate can inhibit the DNA synthesis in P. yoelii.

An anti-inflammatory compound was purified and isolated from pilose antler of Cervus nippon Temminck by dialysis, gel filtration and ion-exchange chromatography techniques. HPLC and N-terminal amion acid analysis identified the compound as a homogeneous peptide. The peptide is composed of 68 amino acids and its molecular weight as determined by amino analysis, is about 7200.

Intraperitoneal administration of CCl4 to mice led to significant increases of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBA-RS), free malondialdehyde (MDA), lipid conjugated dienes and fluorescent lipid peroxidation products in the liver. However, subchronic pretreatment with oral doses of the MeOH extract of either the underground part of Notopterygium incisum or that of N. forbesii appreciably suppressed the formation of CCl4-induced lipid peroxidation products. The suppressing potency was more remarkable in the former.

The ginseng polysaccharides GH1 (100, 200 mg.kg-1) iv reduced liver glycogen and increased adenosine-3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) level and adenyl cyclase (AC) activity in mice. The action of GH1 was completely antagonized by propranolol, inhibitor of adrenergic beta receptor. The stimulating effect of GH1 on AC activity was significant 2 and 4 h after iv GH1. However, GH1 at concentration of 20-120 mumol.L-1 in vitro showed no manifest effect on AC activity. GH1 stimulated the activities of 3',5'-cyclic-GMP phosphodiesterases (PDE) and calmodulin (CaM) in a dose-dependent manner. It is suggested that the reduction of liver glycogen induced by GH1 resulted from its obvious increase of cAMP which promoted glycogenolysis and decreased glycogenesis.

The images of C. cellulosae detected by freeze-itch technique were exactly similar to those observed in the thin section. The scolex microtriches might be divided into two parts, a thick proximal portion and a thinner spinal distal end, the former measuring about 0.2-0.4 micron in length, the latter measuring about 1-2 microns in length. On the extracellular surface of the proximal portion of microthrix, 1 or 2 particles could occasionally be seen, while numerous particles appeared on the protoplasmic fracture face (PF face) of the proximal portion. The PF face were closely packed and irregularly distributed with membranous particles, which were spherical or subspherical in shape, measured 0.01-0.02 micron in diameter. The extracellular fracture face (EF face), of proximal portion and all four membranous faces of spinal end were smooth. The tegumentary plasmic membrane was 0.02 micron in thickness, with smooth ES face. The PF face of this membrane packed closely with numerous particles, which were similar with those on the PF face of the microthrix. Numerous globular or discoidal vesicles scattered at random in the tegumentary matrix. Most mitochondria were near the basement membrane of the matrix. In the parenchymal layer, the parenchymal cells, calcareous corpuscles and flame-cells could easily be seen. Most of the calcareous corpuscles and flame-cells were located closely beneath the muscle layer. The flame-cell of C. cellulosae mainly consisted of three portions, cell body, a bundle of cilia and a filtered cell lumen. The flame-cell body had a large nucleus and relatively few cytoplasm with several mitochondria.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Ginseng polysaccharides (GH1) 50-200 mg/kg ip or sc reduced blood glucose and liver glycogen of mice. Adrenalectomy did not affect this action. GH1 increased the content of pyruvic acid, but decreased the content of lactic acid by weakening the activity of lactate dehydrogenase. GH1 accelerated oxidative-phosphorylation of carbohydrate since the activities of succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) and cytochrome oxidase (CCO) were obviously stimulated. Besides the promotion of the activity of SDH in human embryonic lung fibroblasts (HELF), GH1 decreased the content of polysaccharides in HELF of the 24th age generation, but increased that of the 40th age generation. On the other hand, GH1 stimulated the release of insulin. It is suggested that the reduction of blood glucose and liver glycogen induced by GH1 be primarily due to the increase of carbohydrate utilization and the decrease of glycogenesis.

The polyamines of pilose antler (PASPA) consist of putrescine (PU, 70.9%), spermidine (SPD, 26.3%) and spermine (SP, 2.8%). The incorporations of [3H] leucine into protein and [3H] uridine into RNA in mouse liver tissue were increased when PASPA was given orally to mice at the dose of 30 mg/kg for 4 successive days. The incorporations of [3H] leucine into liver protein and [3H] uridine into the cytosolic and nuclear RNA were also increased by treatment with PU (21 mg/kg). In addition, the RNA polymerase activity in the solubilized liver nuclear fraction of PU (21 mg/kg)-treated mice was increased. SPD only promoted the synthesis of protein in mouse liver tissue at the dose of 8 mg/kg. However, SP showed no effect on the synthesis of protein and RNA polymerase activity under the used dose (1 mg/kg). The results suggest that PASPA is the main active substance responsible for the promotion of the synthesis of protein and RNA in mouse liver.

Ginseng polypeptide (GPP) isolated from the root of Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer was demonstrated to decrease the levels of blood sugar and liver glycogen when injected intravenously to rats at doses of 50-200 mg/kg without affecting total blood lipid. when mice were injected subcutaneously daily at doses of 50 and 100 mg/kg for 7 successive days, GPP was also found to decrease blood glucose and liver glycogen. In addition, GPP was found to decrease various experimental hyperglycemia induced by injection of adrenaline, glucose and alloxan. However, GPP exhibited inhibiting effect on the glycogen enhancement induced by glucose, but strengthening effect on the glycogen decrease induced by adrenaline. When the levels of blood total lipid and liver glycogen were increased by alloxan, GPP was shown to inhibit these changes except its lowering of blood sugar. The toxicity of GPP is very low, its iv LD50 for mice was found to be 1.62 +/- 0.130 g/kg.

When ginseng polypeptide (GP) was administered iv or sc to mice or rats, the blood sugar and liver glycogen were decreased. The decrease of blood sugar and liver glycogen induced by GP in rats were inhibited by pretreatments with pentolamine and propranolol, respectively. The results suggest that the effect of GP on glucose metabolism may be related to adrenergic receptors. In addition, GP at doses which cause decreases of blood sugar and glycogen, inhibited LDH activity, and consequently produced decrease of lactic acid and increase of pyruvic acid. GP was also found to stimulate SDH and CCO activities (which are respiratory enzymes in the electron transport chain), consequently promote aerobic oxidation course.