Treatment of Chronic Heart Failure with Carotid Plaque Patients by Yiqi Huoxue Tongyang Xezhuo Recipe / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of Yiqi Huoxue Tongyang Xiezhuo Recipe (YHTXR, capable of supplementing qi, activating blood, warming yang, and discharge turbidity) in treating coronary atherosclerotic heart disease (CAHD). and chronic heart failure (CHF) with carotid plaque patients, and to explore new ways of Chinese medicine (CM).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Totally 69 CAHD-CHF patients of qi deficiency phlegm stasis syndrome (QDPSS) with carotid plaque were recruited in this study using parallel cohort method. They were assigned to the treatment group (35 cases) and the control group (34 cases). Patients in the control group received routine treatment of Western medicine, while those in the treatment group were additionally treated with YHTXR (twice daily). The therapeutic course for all was three months. Cardiac function levels, echocardiography, carotid plaque, blood lipids and safety indicators were observed before and after treatment.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>After treatment the improvement of cardiac function levels was better in the treatment group than in the control group (P < 0.05). Decreased LDL-C levels were higher in the treatment group than in the control group (P < 0.01). There was statistical difference in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), LDL-C, TC, TG in the treatment group between before and after treatment (P < 0.05). LDL-C and TG also decreased in the control group after treatment (P <0.05). There was no significant difference in the left ventricular ejection fraction, carotid IMT, or TC in the control group between before and after treatment (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference in stroke volume, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter, the area of carotid artery plaque, or HDL-C in the two groups between before and after treatment (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>YHTXR could effectively improve cardiac functions of CAHD-CHF patients of QDPSS with carotid plaque, reduce blood lipids and IMT. It had no significant adverse reactions for elderly patients in short term.</p>

Study of flavanoids extracted from onion on the blood-brain barrier permeation and neuroprotective effects / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the flavanoids extracted from onion on the blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeation, and their effects on primary cultured neuron cell proliferation and apoptosis of SD rats using ethanol reflux method.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMVECs) were first successfully primary cultured. Then rats BMVECs and astrocytes (ACs) were co-cultured to establish the in vitro BBB model. The flavanoids were extracted from onion using ethanol reflux method. The model was verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and trans-epithelial electric resistance (TEER). The flavanoids permeability was tested using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Meanwhile, rat neuron cells were cultured and exposed to H2O2 and flavanoids. Their effects on the cell proliferation and apoptosis were observed using MTT assay. The injury of neuron DNA was analyzed using single-cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE) and immunofluorescent assay.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The in vitro BBB model was successfully established by TEM and TEER. Results of HPLC proved flavanoids extracts could effectively permeate the BBB with the permeability of 60.58%. The extractive at 10 - 20 microg/mL showed obvious inhibition on the apoptosis of neuron cells induced by H2O2, and attenuated the injury of neuron DNA.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The flavanoids extracted from onion ethanol reflux method could effectively penetrate the BBB. They also showed obvious inhibition on the H2O2 induced neuron cell apoptosis and DNA injury.</p>