Effect of Shenwei Ningyu Pills on Immunoinflammatory Response Mediated by TLR4/MyD88 Signaling Pathway in Hippocampus of Rats Exposed to Chronic Restraint Stress / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To explore the effects of Shenwei Ningyu pills （SNP）， a new Chinese medicine for depression， on the immunoinflammatory response mediated by Toll-like receptor 4 （TLR4）/myeloid differentiation factor 88 （MyD88） signaling pathway in the hippocampus of rats exposed to chronic restraint stress （CRS）. Method:Forty-four male Sprague Dawley rats were randomly enrolled into a normal group， a model group， an escitalopram group， and an SNP group. Except for the rats in the normal group， all rats were exposed to CRS and isolated rearing for 21 days continuously. Rats in the escitalopram group and the SNP group were administered with escitalopram （30 mg·kg^-1） and SNP （18 mg·kg^-1） one hour prior to CRS， respectively. The changes in body weight， sucrose preference index， horizontal movement scores， and vertical movement scores were observed by body weight assessment， sucrose preference test， and open field test. The expression of hippocampal TLR4 and MyD88 was detected by Western blot. The content of serum interleukin-1<italic>β</italic> （IL-1<italic>β</italic>）， IL-10， and tumor necrosis factor-<italic>α</italic> （TNF-<italic>α</italic>） was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. Result:The results of the behavioral assessment showed that there was no significant difference in the changes of behavioral baselines among the groups before intervention. However， significant differences were found among the groups following different interventions. The body weight， sugar preference index， horizontal movement score， and vertical movement score of rats in the model group decreased after CRS for 21 days as compared with those in the normal group （<italic>P</italic><0.01）. The above indicators in the SNP<italic> </italic>group and the escitalopram group were higher than those in the model group （<italic>P</italic><0.01）， which indicated that SNP<italic> </italic>exerted an obvious antidepressant effect. The results of Western blot and ELISA showed that compared with the normal group， the model group showed elevated levels of hippocampal TLR4 and MyD88 and serum IL-1<italic>β</italic> and TNF-<italic>α </italic>（<italic>P</italic>˂0.01） and dwindled serum IL-10 （<italic>P</italic>˂0.01）， while SNP<italic> </italic>and escitalopram reversed the conditions in the model group （<italic>P</italic>˂0.01） except for TNF-<italic>α</italic>. Conclusion:The present study indicated that the antidepressant effect of SNP was presumedly achieved by inhibiting the immunoinflammatory response mediated by the TLR4/Myd88 signaling pathway in CRS rats.

Progress in the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

@#Age-related macular degeneration(ARMD)is an important cause of visual impairment in people over 65 years old in western countries. It is the third leading cause of blindness in China and mainly affects central visual acuity. Vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)plays an important role in the pathogenesis of ARMD. Currently, intravitreous injection of anti-VEGF agents has been considered as the first-line treatment for ARMD. However, some patients still need repeated injection, or response negatively to anti-VEGF agents. Therefore, it is necessary to explore novel therapy to improve clinical outcomes and provide insights for neovascular ARMD treatment.

Viral shedding in day-care children and students infected with norovirus in outbreaks / 上海预防医学

Objective:This study aimed to investigate the time duration of norovirus shedding among day-care children and students during norovirus outbreaks， as well as influencing factors affecting the viral shedding. Methods:Suspected cases of norovirus infection and their close contacts were collected from child care and school settings during norovirus outbreaks in Xuhui District， Shanghai， from 2017 through 2019. Specimens were detected using real-time RT-PCR to determine whether children had been infected with norovirus. Subsequently， further specimens were collected every 3-7 days from infected children until specimens tested negative for norovirus. Results:A total of 76 outbreaks were reported involving 1 014 suspected cases. In the 421 suspected cases， 311 confirmed cases were diagnosed after examination. Furthermore， a total of 58 confirmed cases participated in this study with informed consent， with a participation rate of 18.65%. The average time duration of norovirus shedding was （16.24±13.80） days， in which 79.31% had viral shedding more than 7 days， 37.93% more than 14 days and 17.24% more than 21 days. A Cox proportional-hazards model showed that children with more severe symptoms （HR=2.06，P=0.040）， day-care children （HR=4.13，P=0.012）， and confirmed cases in 2019 （HR=0.11，P<0.001） had longer duration of viral shedding. Conclusion:Children may remain shedding norovirus after their recovery and back to class. Improvement in sanitation for these recovered children in child care and schools is especially necessary， which may avert secondary transmission.

Protectin DX Exhibits Protective Effects in Mouse Model of Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Lung Injury / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>Background</b>Acute lung injury (ALI) is a severe disease with high mortality and poor prognosis. Protectin DX (PDX), a pro-resolving lipid mediator, exhibits protective effects in ALI. Our experiment aimed to explore the effects and related mechanisms of PDX in mice with ALI induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS).</p><p><b>Methods</b>BALB/c mice were randomly divided into five groups: sham, LPS, LPS plus 1 ng of PDX (LPS + PDX-1 ng), LPS plus 10 ng of PDX (LPS + PDX-10 ng), and LPS plus 100 ng of PDX (LPS + PDX-100 ng). Bronchoalveolar lavage fluids (BALFs) were collected after 24 h, and total cells, polymorphonuclear leukocytes, monocyte-macrophages, and lymphocytes in BALF were enumerated. The concentration of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1α, and MIP-2 in BALF was determined, and histopathological changes of the lung were observed. The concentration of protein in BALF and lung wet/dry weight ratios were detected to evaluate pulmonary edema. After determining the optimal dose of PDX, neutrophil-platelet interactions in whole blood were evaluated by flow cytometry.</p><p><b>Results</b>The highest dose of PDX (100 ng/mouse) failed to provide pulmonary protective effects, whereas lower doses of PDX (1 ng/mouse and 10 ng/mouse), especially 1 ng PDX, alleviated pulmonary histopathological changes, mitigated LPS-induced ALI and pulmonary edema, inhibited neutrophil infiltration, and reduced pro-inflammatory mediator (IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and MIP-1α) levels. Meanwhile, 1 ng PDX exhibited pro-resolving functions in ALI including upregulation of monocyte-macrophage numbers and anti-inflammatory mediator IL-10 levels. The flow cytometry results showed that PDX could inhibit neutrophil-platelet interactions in ALI.</p><p><b>Conclusion</b>PDX exerts protective effects in LPS-induced ALI by mitigating pulmonary inflammation and abrogating neutrophil-platelet interactions.</p>

Comparative Study on Traditional Cutting Processing and Integration Processing of Origin of Moslae Herba / 中国中医药信息杂志

Objective To provide the feasible basis for the implementation of integration processing technology of origin of Moslae Herba by comparing the traditional cutting processing and integration processing of origin of Moslae Herba. Methods Taking the softening time, the length of cutting section and the drying temperature as the investigation factors of the traditional cutting processing, and the cutting length, drying temperature and drying time as the investigation factors of the integration processing of origin, L9(34) orthogonal test was used. Carvacrol, thymol, volatile oil content were setting as the evaluation indexes, the traditional cutting processing and the integration processing of origin were optimized, and the two selected process were compared. The contents of carvacrol and thymol were deterrmined by Agilent 1200 high performance liquid chromatography and ECOSIL-C18 column. The mobile phase was acetonitrile-0.2％ acetic acid, gradient elution, with wavelength of 274 nm, flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, sample volume of 20 μL. The extraction of the volatile oil was in accordance with the volatile oil determination method in Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2015 edition. Results The optimized traditional cutting processing: softening 1 h with 3 times amount of water, cutting to 1.0 cm, drying at 50–60 ℃. The optimized integration processing of origin: cutting to 1.0 cm in fresh, drying at 50–60 ℃, drying to 36 h. The contents of carvacrol, thymol, and volatile oil in the optimum integration processing of origin were all higher than the traditional cutting processing. Conclusion The technology of integration processing of origin is simple and convenient, which can make up the defects of the complicated traditional cutting processing and the lessen of effective components, and is feasible.

Developing of a new multicolor-fluorescent labeled STR amplification kit / 法医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To develop a PCR-based STR system for genotyping of 18 loci (Amelogenin, D3S1358, vWA, FGA, D8S1179, D21S11, D18S51, D5S818, D13S317, D16S539, TH01, TPOX, CSF1PO, D7S820, D2S1338, D19S433, D12S391 and D19S253).@*METHODS@#By using primers labeled with four color fluorescent (FAM, HEX, TAMRA and ROX), two multiplex amplification reaction systems were developed to genotype Amelogenin and 17 STR loci.@*RESULTS@#Amelogenin and these 17 STR loci were genotyped successfully in different kinds of biological samples by the kit.@*CONCLUSION@#The STR amplification kit developed in our study gives a new approach to genotype these 18 loci in a efficient, steady and reliable way.