Search

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP).We conducted a computer literature search in five databases and comprehensively extracted all kinds of information from each article. Traditional Chinese medicine inheritance support system (TCMISS) V2.5 was adopted to perform association analysis. The effectiveness, safety and methodological quality were analyzed using randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs).A total of 2880 related articles were collected. Finally, 423 articles which included 312 RCTs were included for in-depth analysis. We collected 369 Chinese medicine prescriptions and found that the top three frequently used herbs in the treatment of PMOP wereiEpimedii Folium/i(Yinyanghuo),iRehmanniae Radix Praeparata/i(Shudihuang) andiAngelicae Sinensis Radix/i(Danggui). The top Chinese patent medicine was Gushukang capsule. No serious adverse reaction (AR) had been reported in the Chinese medical treatment group.The effectiveness of TCM in treating PMOP needs to be further explored, and the safety is good. Therefore, high-quality evidence is urgently needed to supplement.

Experiments were conducted to develop and assess a method by which the water content of a lettuce canopy can be nondestructively detected and estimated using a combination of spectra, RGB images, and canopy temperature. To this end, 130 lettuce samples grown in four different substrate water content levels were collected for data acquisition. In the spectroscopy procedure, five spectral intervals (380 variables) were selected by backward interval partial least squares and were further reduced to 48 wavelength variables, chosen using a genetic algorithm based on Savitzky–Golay smoothing and log (1/R) transformation. Then, 967, 1170, 1221, 1406, 1484, 1942, and 1985 nm optimum spectral variables were selected by the successive projection algorithm. Thirteen plant features were extracted from top- and front-view RGB images. These features comprised morphological, color, and textural features. An empirical crop water stress index was established based on dry and wet reference surfaces via thermal imagery. Subsequently, a principal component analysis was applied to the spectral variables and the image features, and an extreme learning machine was used to construct the multisensor and single-sensor models. The results show that the multisensor model had a correlation coefficient of prediction of 0.9018, which was found to be approximately 9.4 and 15.7% better than that of the spectral and image models. This work demonstrates that integrating spectra, RGB images, and canopy temperature with suitable algorithms offers a high potential for use in the nondestructive measurement of water content in lettuce, considerably improving accuracy over that using a single-sensor modality.

The collision between tomato plug seedlings and the planting device during basket transplanter function causes the seedlings’ root lump to lose some mass. To resolve this problem, we establish a contact mechanics model using Hertzian contact theoretical and Newtonian methods, enabling us to formally derive the maximum deformation of the root lump. The equation of motion describing the collision between the tomato plug seedling and planting device is constructed using the principles of impulse and momentum. Then, we identify the optimization function of contact angle θ—which consists of the maximum deformation of the root lump, the angular velocity of the tomato plug seedling, and the absolute velocity of the root lump—via multi-objective methods. When the angular velocity of the planting device is 1.05 rad/s or 1.15 rad/s, the optimal contact angle is 67°. Further, we examine the velocity of the tomato plug seedling after collision. A small plant height reduces the root lump’s mass loss; we found that 12-cm-tall tomato plug seedlings lose less root lump mass than taller seedlings. Finally, for angular velocities of 1.05 rad/s and 1.15 rad/s, we carry out of tomato plug seedling crush tests with the optimized parameters, achieving minimum root lump mass losses of 8.76% and 7.43%, respectively.

In order to research the target of superior efficacy and lesser side effects, combination of herbal materials has been applied to phytotherapy for thousands of years in China and some other countries. Zuojin Wan (ZJW), a famous traditional Chinese medicine formula, is used in treating gastric diseases in China. It is composed of two herbs, Rhizoma Coptidis (RC) and Fructus Evodiae (FE) in the ratio of 6: 1(w/w). In the present study, we examined the effects of ZJW, RC, FE and active components isolated from these herbs on catecholamine (CA) secretion and intracellular calcium ([Ca(2+)](i)) in cultured bovine adrenal medullary cells. Extracts of ZJW and RC and berberine, palmatine and jatrorrhizine, components of RC, all inhibited CA secretion and rise in [Ca(2+)](i) induced by acetylcholine (ACh), veratridine (Ver) and/or 56 mM K(+). On the other hand, extract of FE, evodiamine and rutaecarpine, components of FE, stimulated CA secretion and rise in [Ca(2+)](i) induced by ACh. Furthermore, different proportions of RC and FE caused different responses in CA secretion. The present findings suggest that two herbs in ZJW have opposite effects, i.e., inhibitory effect of RC and stimulatory effect of FE, on CA secretion induced by acetylcholine in cultured bovine adrenal medullary cells.

To compare the effects of two inocula on the induction of amyloidosis in normal and thymectomized ducks, 180 normal and 50 thymectomized ducks were injected intravenously weekly for up to 16 weeks with either crude endotoxin or crude whole cell extract of a virulent strain of Escherichia coli (O78), and another 60 ducks were injected with normal saline as study control. During the first 5 weekly injections, the initial doses of inducing agents were the smallest and then adjusted upward to the maximum study doses (1 or 2 mg/bird of crude endotoxin and 15-18 × 108bacteria/bird of crude whole cell extract), which were then maintained over the course of the study. The incidence of amyloid deposition were: 50.00% (25/50) for thymectomized ducks that received 1 mg/bird/week of crude endotoxin, 61.67% (37/60) for intact ducks that received 15 × 108-18 × 108bacteria (crude whole cell extract)/bird/week, 53.33% (32/60) for intact ducks received 2 mg/bird/week of crude endotoxin, and 63.33% (38/60) for intact ducks received 1 mg/bird/week of crude endotoxin. The results suggest that crude whole cell extract and crude endotoxin induced amyloidosis in ducks at similar rates and that, in ducks, thymectomy has no appreciable effect on the occurrence of amyloidosis.

In order to improve the accuracy and reliability on measuring grain loss, a research scheme of dynamic strain sensing using piezoelectric patches is put forward. Kinetic model of the grain and straw impacting sensor is analyzed by vibration theory of plates and shells, vibration model about sensitive element of the grain loss sensor is set up. The paper discusses the vibration shape and distribution of dynamic strain about low order modes of sensitive element in order to choose the sensing position of piezoelectric patches reasonably and construct piezoelectric sensor arrays. The grain and straw impacting sensor is proceeded on test bench. The analysis result is compared with the measure result obtained by the dynamic signal analyzer, the conclusion showed experiment results is well coincided with theory results. These are help to devise monitor for grain loss of combine and amend its parameters.

The events that precipitate cell death and the stress proteins responsible for cytoprotection during ATP depletion remain elusive. We hypothesize that exposure to metabolic inhibitors damages mitochondria, allowing proapoptotic proteins to leak into the cytosol, and suggest that heat stress-induced hsp72accumulation prevents mitochondrial membrane injury. To test these hypotheses, renal epithelial cells were transiently ATP depleted with sodium cyanide and 2-deoxy-d-glucose in the absence of medium dextrose. Recovery from ATP depletion was associated with the release into the cytosol of cytochrome c and apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF), proapoptotic proteins that localize to the intermitochondrial membrane space. Concomitant with mitochondrial cytochrome c leak, a seven- to eightfold increase in caspase 3 activity was observed. In controls, state III mitochondrial respiration was reduced by 30% after transient exposure to metabolic inhibitors. Prior heat stress preserved mitochondrial ATP production and significantly reduced both cytochrome c release and caspase 3 activation. Despite less cytochrome c release, prior heat stress increased binding between cytochrome c and hsp72. The present study demonstrates that mitochondrial injury accompanies exposure to metabolic inhibitors. By reducing outer mitochondrial membrane injury and by complexing with cytochrome c, hsp72 could inhibit caspase activation and subsequent apoptosis.