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We investigated the effects of the Chinese herb Codonopsis pilosula isolate isorhapontigenin on antioxidant factor and the PI3K/Serine/Akt signaling pathway in Parkinson's disease. This research was, therefore, carried out to explore a possible protective mechanism of isorhamnetin in Parkinson's disease. The results support that isorhapontigenin could effectively inhibit isorhapontigenin restored myeloperoxidase + induced reduction of antioxidant levels. Also, 1-Methyl-4-phenylpyridine up-regulated the expression of phosphorylated-Akt, phosphorylated-PI3K, and phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin, while isorhapontigenin inhibited the expression of phosphorylated-Akt, phosphorylated-PI3K, and phosphorylated- mammalian target of rapamycin. Furthermore, LY294002 improved the antioxidant effect of isorhapontigenin in PC12 cells, and insulin-like growth factor 1 inhibited the antioxidant effect of isorhapontigenin in PC12 cells. Our results support the finding that isorhamnetin enhanced the antioxidant effect induced by 1-Methyl-4-phenylpyridine in PC12 cells by suppressing the activation of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

Background: Degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis (DLSS) is a complex clinical syndrome that leads to spinal compression. Decompression with fusion has been the most commonly used surgical procedure for treating DLSS symptoms for many years. However, the exact role of fusion and its effectiveness in DLSS therapy has recently been debated. Objective: The main purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of decompression alone and decompression plus fusion in the treatment of DLSS with or without spondylolisthesis. Study Design: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of the therapeutic effects of decompression for DLSS with or without the combination of fusion. Methods: A literature search in five relevant databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, Medline, and Cochrane Library was performed from the inception of the database to March 2022. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the comparison between decompression and decompression plus fusion for DLSS were included. Results: A total of seven studies, 894 patients were analyzed in this meta‐analysis. Among these, 443 patients were included in the decompression plus fusion group while 451 patients were included in the decompression alone group. Pooled analysis showed that the combination of decompression with fusion had no superior benefits to decompression alone in terms of Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) score in the first 2 years and long‐term follow‐up after surgery, also no significant difference in the improvement of back and leg pain was found between two groups. Adding fusion to decompression was associated with a longer operation time, higher complication rate, more blood loss, and extended hospital stay. Furthermore, there was no difference in reoperation rates and patients' satisfaction between the two groups at the last follow‐up. Conclusion: Decompression plus fusion may not be associated with a better clinical outcome in ODI scores and back or leg pain improvement but with a longer duration of operation time, extended hospital stay, and more blood loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The effects of Polygonum Cillinerve polysaccharide (PCP) on the immune and antioxidant activity were studied. Methods: The effects of PCP on cell proliferation, phagocytic activity, cell uptake, the secretion of NO, iNOS, IL-6, IL-12, CAT and POD, intracellular ROS, cell apoptosis and antioxidative mechanism were measured by MTT, ELISA, fluorescence staining, flow cytometry and western blot. Key findings: The results showed that PCP had no toxic effect at 31.25–1.95 µg/ml, could improve the uptake of neutral red and fluorescein isothiocyanate-labelled ovalbumin and promote the release of nitric oxide and nitric oxide synthase. Moreover, PCP also could promote the secretion of IL-6 and IL-12. The damage of RAW264.7 cells induced by hydrogen peroxide was significantly alleviated by PCP at 15.63–0.975 µg/ml. The mechanism of antioxidative damage might be that PCP inhibited the upstream p38 and the phosphorylation of JNK and ERK proteins, and down-regulated caspase 3 and up-regulated the protein expressions of cytochrome C and Bcl-2, finally PCP improved the antioxidative capacity and protected the oxidative damage of cells. Conclusions: These results indicated that PCP had the better immunopotentiation and antioxidative damage activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neuropathic pain (NPP) is deemed as a potential risk of stroke; however, recent pieces of evidence showed that calcitonin gene-related peptide is involving in pain progression as well as organ protection. The mechanisms underlying the neuroprotection of calcitonin gene-related peptide are yet poorly described with respect to stroke. The present study showed that the elevated level of calcitonin gene-related peptide-induced by NPP exerts a protective effect against stroke in rats, which was further confirmed in vivo and vitro via mitigation of inflammatory response, inhibition of neuronal cell apoptosis, and increase in regional cerebral blood flow. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation at trigeminal ganglion was performed to simulate to facilitate the release of calcitonin gene-related peptide for a similar neuroprotective effect. Together, these findings posit that the release of calcitonin gene-related peptide-induced by NPP or repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation protects against stroke in rats. Thus, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation could have high application prospects for the prevention and treatment of stroke., Competing Interests: None., (AJTR Copyright © 2020.)

Objective: To investigate the influences of trigeminal neuropathic pain on the cerebral blood flow in a ET-1 focal cerebral ischemia model., Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats (220-260 g) were randomly divided into a model group (trigeminal neuralgia, TN group) and a sham operation group (sham group). The TN group received bilateral infraorbital nerve chronic constriction surgery, and the sham group only underwent exposure of the infraorbital nerve. The mechanical pain threshold of the rats was continuously monitored for 30 days post surgery. On postoperative day 30, the animals were anesthetized, and 3 μL (120 pM/μL) ET-1 was injected into the surroundings of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) to establish a cerebral focal ischemia-reperfusion injury model in rats. The changes in cerebral blood flow of these two groups were monitored 30 min after the injection of ET-1., Results: The mechanic pain threshold values between rats in the two groups were not significantly different (P>0.05). The threshold value in the TN group on postoperative day 9 significantly decreased compared with that before surgery (P<0.01). Between postoperative days 9 and 30, the pain threshold values in the TN group were significantly lower than those in the sham group (P<0.01). From postoperative day 10, the mean arterial pressure in the TN group significantly increased compared with that before surgery (P<0.05), and the blood pressure (BP) in the TN group was higher than that in the sham group between postoperative days 10 and 30 (P<0.05). After 75 min of ET-1 microinjection, the cerebral blood flow in the rat frontal cortex exhibited reperfusion, and the cerebral blood flow in the TN group was significantly higher than that in the sham group (P<0.05). In addition, the content of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in the blood of rats in the TN group was significantly higher than that in the sham group (P<0.05)., Conclusions: Trigeminal neuropathic pain may increase the mean arterial pressure and the content of CGRP in the plasma of rats, thus increasing the cerebral blood flow in the frontal cortex of the ET-1 ischemia-reperfusion model.

Objective: To explore the effects of ventilatory mode "pressure controlled ventilation-volume guaranteed" (PCV-VG) on the inspiratory pressures, oxygenation parameters and hemodynamics of patients during one lung ventilation (OLV) for thoracic surgery, compared with volume controlled ventilation (VCV)., Methods: Twenty participants were recruited and equally assigned into two groups in a controlled, randomized, crossover design. Group A: VCV was performed initially and changed into PCV-VG after 30 min; Group B: In the reverse order. Blood gas analysis, peak inspiratory pressure (Ppeak), mean inspiratory pressure (Pmean), plateau inspiratory pressure (Plateau) were measured at four different time points: (1) 30 min after total lung ventilation (TLV); (2) 30 min after one lung ventilation (VCV or PCV-VG); (3) 30 min after shifting to the other ventilatory mode, and (4) 30 min after reconstruction of TLV., Results: The Ppeak, Plateau, and Pmean were significantly lower in PCV-VG compared with VCV. There was significant increase in arterial partial pressure of oxygen under PCV-VG., Conclusion: In patients undergoing thoracic surgery with OLV, pressure controlled volume guaranteed mode of ventilation may have better effects by decreasing inspiratory pressure parameters and improving arterial oxygenation than volume controlled ventilation.