Search

In this study, Panax notoginseng leaves (PNL) were separately fermented by Rhizopus oryzae, Neurospora crassa, Monascus and Mucor rouxianus, and changes in the contents of total saponins, total polysaccharides, total phenolics, and total flavonoids, as well as in vitro antioxidant activity and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of PNL during the fermentation process were assessed. Additionally, the metabolite profiles of raw and fermented PNL were analyzed by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). The results indicated that the contents of total saponins and total polysaccharides in PNL were significantly reduced by fermentation with each of these four fungi. Interestingly, R. oryzae, N. crassa and Monascus were found to increase the content of total phenols, while Rhizopus oryzae and Mucor rouxianus increased the total flavonoid content. Fermentation for 3–5 days significantly enhanced the antioxidant activity of PNL, and the most pronounced effect was achieved with Monascus fermentation for three days, which increased the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) radical cation scavenging capacity and ferric reducing capacity by 14.30%, 5.13%, and 18.40%, respectively. Moreover, the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of PNL initially decreased and then increased during fungal fermentation, which increased by 16.03% after Monascus fermentation for six days. By untargeted metabolomics analysis, 573 metabolites were identified from PNL. After three days of Monascus fermentation, the up-regulated metabolites were significantly less than the down-regulated ones, and the predominant up-regulated metabolites were amino acids, alkaloids, carbohydrates, lipids, phenols, flavonoids, and terpenoids. Furthermore, analysis of the 21 saponins showed that only ginsenoside F2 was significantly up-regulated, while eight other saponins were significantly down-regulated. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis indicated that co-factor biosynthesis, flavonoid biosynthesis, purine metabolism, and pyrimidine metabolism were the most probable metabolic pathways during the fermentation process. In conclusion, fungal fermentation, especially Monascus fermentation, can effectively improve the functional activity of P. notoginseng by metabolic alterations through various pathways. Therefore, this study provides a scientific reference for the green processing of PNL.

Objective To evaluate the training outcomes of refresher physicians in Department of Rheumatic Immunology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, and to explore the standardized training mode. Methods In September 2021, twenty three intermediate-level refresher physicians from the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital participated in a comprehensive multi-scene training program including outpatient tutorials, case-based teaching of difficult and critical cases in wards, specialist lectures and multi-disciplinary lectures. After six months of training, the refresher physicians completed a questionnaire survey covering medical care, scientific research, teaching format, and advanced training duration, with 10 multiple-choice questions and 3 fill-in-the-blank questions. The results were analyzed descriptively. Results After six months of training in a multi-scene comprehensive training program, as shown by the results of the self-assessment by the trainees, the clinical skills and scientific research capacity improved by 55.7% and 50% respectively as compared to the pre-training period. The average improvement of standardized diagnosis and treatment was 60.9%, and the average improvement of diagnosis and treatment skills was 53.5%. The average improvement in the diagnosis and treatment level of difficult cases was 53.0%. The average improvement in the diagnosis and treatment level of rare diseases was 50.4%.There were 65.25% of the refresher physicians believed that the most rewarding learning was in the outpatient clinics, followed by discussion of difficult cases in wards and lectures by the fellowship physicians. 56.5% of the refresher physicians felt that the optimal duration of the advanced training was 12 months.Conclusions A comprehensive training system combining outpatient tutorials, case-based training of difficult cases in the ward, specialized lectures and multidisciplinary lectures for advanced refresher physicians is effective for training rheumatologists.

High-speed railways often run over underground metro stations. Dynamic load induced by high-speed train can influence the internal force of underground structure and hence can pose danger to the underground structure. Hence, it is necessary to estimate the safety of underground structure due to high-speed train load. In this paper, the effects of dynamic load induced by high-speed train on metro station are investigated by carrying out three-dimensional numerical analysis. Guinan high-speed railway, which is designed to run over Jinqiao metro station in Nanning, Guangxi province of China are adopted as the background of this case study. The hardening soil model with small-strain stiffness was adopted to model the behaviour of soil. Two typical speed of railway train (i.e., 160 km/h and 350 km/h) are considered in this study. Based on the numerical analysis, vertical vibration acceleration and bending moment of the structure of the metro station are presented and analysed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endothelial cells (ECs) form a monolayer that serves as a barrier between the blood and the underlying tissue. ECs tightly regulate their cell-cell junctions, controlling the passage of soluble materials and immune cells across the monolayer barrier. We studied the role of N-WASP, a key regulator of Arp2/3 complex and actin assembly, in EC monolayers. We report that N-WASP regulates endothelial monolayer integrity by affecting the organization of cell junctions. Depletion of N-WASP resulted in an increase in transendothelial electrical resistance, a measure of monolayer integrity. N-WASP depletion increased the width of cell-cell junctions and altered the organization of F-actin and VE-cadherin at junctions. N-WASP was not present at cell-cell junctions in monolayers under resting conditions, but it was recruited following treatment with sphingosine-1-phosphate. Taken together, our results reveal a novel role for N-WASP in remodeling EC junctions, which is critical for monolayer integrity and function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on ZBP1-MLKL necroptotic signaling potentiates radiation-induced antitumor immunity via intratumoral STING pathway activation. Topics include the necroptosis, a form of regulated necrosis, participates in tumor development and dying cell immunogenicity, and the unclear how tumor cell–intrinsic necroptotic signaling contributes to radiation-induced antitumor immunity.

The article discusses the effectiveness of mannitol and arsenic trioxide (ATO) in treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) relapse in the central nervous system. It states the need of major obstacle to all treatments for the therapeutic drugs penetrating the blood-brain barrier (BBB). It also emphasizes the limitation in the application of ATO and all-frans retinoic acid (ATRA) medications for APL intramarrow treatment.

Objective: In recent years, research on microRNAs (miRNAs) associated with coronary artery disease (CAD) has attracted considerable attention. However, findings of these studies on the validity of circulating miRNAs in CAD diagnosis are controversial. A meta-analysis was therefore conducted to determine the potential value of miRNAs as biomarkers in CAD diagnosis. Methods: Relevant documents on miRNAs expression levels in the diagnosis of CAD were searched and collected from Pubmed, Embase, and Web of Science. They were collected from the time of inception of the database till January 31, 2020. A meta-analysis was conducted using Stata14.0 software. Forest maps were studied and a comprehensive evaluation of the diagnostic value of the expression levels of mRNAs in CAD was conducted using statistical indicators such as the summary receiver operating characteristic curve. Results: Overall, 14 studies were included, with 38 data sets, involving 29 miRNAs with 846 cases and 898 controls. The meta-analysis revealed that the average sensitivity and specificity of miRNAs for CAD diagnosis were 0.80 (0.75–0.84) and 0.78 (0.75–0.81), respectively. The positive likelihood, negative likelihood, and diagnostic odds ratios were 3.7 (3.1–4.4), 0.26 (0.21–0.33), and 14 (10–21), respectively, and the area under the curve was 0.85 (0.82–0.88). Subgroup analysis revealed that the accuracy in the Asian population was higher than that in the non-Asian population. Multiple miRNAs may be more diagnostically accurate than single miRNAs. MiRNAs in whole blood were more accurate than those in plasma, serum, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The diagnostic performance of the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction group was better than that of the qPCR group. Conclusion: According to our study, miRNAs may be a new, non-invasive diagnostic tool for the diagnosis of CAD. As a screening tool in clinical practice, it has potential diagnostic value and is worthy of clinical promotion. Considering the number and quality of the studies included in this meta-analysis, the above conclusion requires more quality research to verify it. (Anatol J Cardiol 2020; 24: 290-9). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a case of a man with concurrent unilateral upper cervical cord infarction in Opalski's syndrome due to spontaneous vertebral artery dissection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abstract of the article "Intravenous sodium valproate for diazepam refractory convulsive status epilepticus," by Lei Chen and colleagues is presented.