Clinical Features and Prognosis of Patients with Castleman's Disease / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze the clinical features and prognosis of patients with Castleman's disease (CD) and improve the diagnosis and treatment of CD.@*METHODS@#Clinical data of patients diagnosed with CD by pathological biopsy in Gansu Provincial Hospital from January 2009 to November 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. According to clinical classification, the patients were divided into two groups: UCD (unicentric CD) group (n=20) and MCD (multicentric CD) group (n=9). The clinical manifestations, laboratory examination, treatment regimens, pathological examination and follow-up data were statistically analyzed.@*RESULTS@#There were no significant differences in average age and gender ratio between UCD group and MCD group. In UCD patients, 80.0% were hyaline vascular type, and 20.0% were plasma cell type. In MCD patients, 33.3% were hyaline vascular type, 55.6% were plasma cell type, and 11.1% were mixed type. There was significant difference in pathological classification between the two groups (P=0.039). The UCD patients usually presented asymptomatic single lymph node enlargement with mild clinical symptoms, while the MCD patients were characterized by multiple superficial and deep lymph node enlargement throughout the body. The incidences of asthenia, splenomegaly, serous effusion in MCD group were higher than those in UCD group (P<0.05). Meanwhile, the incidences of anemia, hypoproteinemia, increased ESR, elevated serum globulin and elevated β2-microglobulin were significantly higher than those in UCD group too (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidences of abnormal WBC, PLT and elevated LDH between the two groups (P>0.05). Among 20 patients with UCD, 13 cases reached complete remission (CR), 1 case achieved partial remission (PR). Among 9 patients with MCD, 3 cases received CR and 4 cases received PR.@*CONCLUSION@#Patients with CD requires pathological examination for diagnosis. Patients with UCD show mild clinical symptoms, good surgical treatment effect and good prognosis. Patients with MCD have diversified clinical manifestations and relatively poor prognosis, and these patients require comprehensive treatment.

Progress on the relationship between high-sugar diet and myopia development / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

Myopia has become a major public health problem affecting the eye health of our nationals, especially adolescents, and is listed as one of the three major diseases in the world. The etiology of myopia is complex and it is currently considered to be mainly related to environmental factors and genetic factors. Dietary factors are less concerned, but it has been reported that there is a correlation between high-sugar diet and the occurrence and development of myopia. Studies have found that high-sugar diet can cause hyperinsulinemia, which mediates the increase of retinal insulin-like growth factor(IGF-1, IGF-2)expression level, and the decrease of insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3(IGFBP-3)expression level in scleral fibroblasts, thereby activating signal transduction and transcriptional activator protein 3(STAT3)signaling pathway, and then acting on scleral matrix metalloproteinases(MMP)/transforming growth factor-β(TGF-β)and other factors, resulting in a decrease in scleral extracellular matrix(ECM), eventually leading to scleral remodeling, eye axis growth and myopia. This article explores the relationship between high-sugar diet and the occurrence and development of myopia from the aspects of epidemiology and biological mechanisms by consulting relevant literature, and provides research directions for the prevention and control of myopia.

Evaluation of in vitro antifungal activity of berberine against Talaromyces marneffei in yeast phase / 中华皮肤科杂志

Objective:To evaluate the in vitro antifungal activity of berberine against Talaromyces marneffei (TM) in yeast phase. Methods:There were 21 TM strains, including l standard strain (ATCC22019), 10 clinical isolates and 10 isolates from wild bamboo rats. TM strain suspensions at a concentration of (1 - 5) × 10 3 colony-forming units/ml were incubated in microdilution plates containing difierent concentrations of berberine, fluconazole, itraconazole, voriconazole, amphotericin B or caspofungin at 37 ℃ for 48 hours. Meanwhile, the wells containing only culture media and TM strains but without antifungal drugs served as the positive control group, and those containing only culture media served as the negative control group. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of antifungal drugs against TM yeasts were determined according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) broth microdilution susceptibility method (M27-A3 document) . Results:The MICs of the above antifungal drugs were all within the reference ranges for the quality control strain (ATCC22019), and TM strains grew well in the positive control wells. The MIC ranges of berberine, itraconazole, voriconazole, amphotericin B and caspofungin against TM strains were 32 - 64 mg/L, 0.06 - 0.125 mg/L, 0.06 - 0.125 mg/L, 1 - 2 mg/L and 16 - 32 mg/L respectively; the MIC range of fluconazole was 2 - 4 mg/L for non-resistant strains, and 128 mg/L for fluconazole-resistant clinical strains.Conclusion:Berberine exhibits antifungal activity against TM in yeast phase.

Clinical efficacy of focused ultrasound ablation surgery in the treatment of internal adenomyosis / 中华妇产科杂志

Objective:To investigate the relationship between the clinical efficacy and the ablated area of endometrium in patients with internal adenomyosis treated with focused ultrasound ablation surgery (FUAS).Methods:From January 2015 to December 2018, 122 patients in Chongqing Haifu Hospital who were diagnosed as internal adenomyosis through history, clinical symptoms and enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and treated with FUAS were enrolled in this study. According to the patient′s wishes, patients were given whether to ablate the adenomyotic lesion alone or ablate the adenomyotic lesion and the endometrium that involved in adenomyotic lesions together. The ablated area of adenomyotic lesions and endomitrium were evaluated by post-FUAS enhanced MRI. The adverse events and the changes of dysmenorrhea and menstrual volume at different follow-up points within 24 months were recorded.Results:Among the 122 patients, 32 patients chose to ablate adenomyotic lesion alone, and 90 patients chose to ablate the adenomyotic lesion and the endometrium during FUAS. No major complications such as bowel injury and nerve injury occurred after FUAS. The median non-perfused volume ratio of adenomyotic lesions was 31.7% in the group without endometrial ablation and it was 60.0% in the group with endometrium ablation ( P<0.01). The improvement of dysmenorrhea in the group with endometrium ablation was significantly better than the group without endometrial ablation ( P<0.01). The average menstrual volume score (3.4±0.9) before FUAS in the group with endometrial ablation was higher than that in the group without endometrial ablation (2.5±0.6; P<0.01), but it decreased significantly after FUAS treatment, reaching the similar menstrual volume score of the group without endometrial ablation ( P>0.05). The proportions of abnormal vaginal discharge (34.4%, 31/90) and bleeding (16.7%, 15/90) were significantly higher in the group with endometrium ablation than those in the group without endometrial ablation (all P<0.01). Conclusions:FUAS could be safely and effectively used in the treatment of patients with internal adenomyosis. It seems that ablation of adenomyotic lesion and endometrium together could obtain better therapeutic effects.

Anti-tumor Effect and Mechanisms of Triterpenoids and Polysaccharides in Ganoderma lucidum： A Review / 中国实验方剂学杂志

With the population aging， the morbidity and mortality of cancer patients continue to rise. At present， the treatment methods for tumors include surgery， chemotherapy， radiotherapy， targeted therapy， and immunotherapy. However， most chemotherapeutic drugs can cause severe side effects and drug resistance. Therefore， as an alternative therapy， traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） treatment can effectively relieve the clinical symptoms of tumor patients， improve the quality of life， inhibit or stabilize the development of tumors， and prolong the survival period of patients. Due to the good safety of Chinese medicine， its potential anti-cancer activity has attracted increasing attention. Ganoderma lucidum， a treasure of Chinese medicinal material， is a medicinal fungus with a history of more than 2 000 years in China. So far， many studies have proposed the anti-cancer properties of G. lucidum. G. lucidum has extensive pharmacological activities， such as anti-tumor， anti-atherosclerosis， and anti-aging. It can also regulate immunity， protect the liver and the heart， and reduce blood glucose and lipid. The chemical composition of G. lucidum is complex. At present， it is proved to contain polysaccharides， triterpenoids， alkaloids， nucleosides， amino acids， and various trace elements. The anti-tumor mechanisms of polysaccharides and triterpenoids in G. lucidum are mainly achieved by apoptosis induction， immune regulation， anti-angiogenesis， and induction of cell cycle arrest. Currently， it has been widely used in the adjuvant treatment of complex tumors such as lung cancer， liver cancer， cervical cancer， prostate cancer， breast cancer， and colon cancer. The present study reviewed the bioactivities and mechanisms of triterpenoids and polysaccharides in G. lucidum in recent years and highlighted the anti-tumor effects and mechanisms to provide references for the further development and utilization of G. lucidum.

Genetic analysis of three cases of acephalic spermatozoa syndrome caused by SUN5 mutation and the outcome of assisted reproductive technology / 北京大学学报(医学版)

To explore the genetic causes of 3 male infertility patients with acephalospermia and the outcome of assisted reproductive technology. Clinical diagnosis, sperm morphology examination, sperm transmission electron microscopy examination were performed on 3 patients, and the whole exome sequencing technology was used for screening, Sanger sequencing verification, mutation pathogenicity analysis, and protein sequence homology comparison. Assisted reproductive technology was implemented to assist pregnancy treatment. The 3 patients were all sporadic infertile men, aged 25, 42 and 26 years, and there was no obvious abnormality in the general physical examination. Male external genitalia developed normally, bilateral testicles were normal in volume, and bilateral epididymis and spermatic vein were palpated without nodules, cysts, and tenderness. Repeated semen analysis showed that a large number of immature sperm could be seen, and they had the ability to move. The SUN5 gene of the 3 male infertile patients was a case of homozygous missense mutation c.7C>T (p.Arg3Trp), a case of compound heterozygous missense mutation c.1067G>A (p.Arg356His) and nonsense mutation c.216G>A (p.Trp72*) and a case of homozygous missense mutation c.1043A>T (p.Asn348Ile), of which c.7C>T (p.Arg3Trp) and c.1067G>A (p.Arg356His) were new variants that had not been reported. SIFT, Mutation Taster and PolyPhen-2 software function prediction results were all harmful, the nonsense mutation c.216G>A (p.Trp72*) led to the premature termination of peptide chain synthesis which might have a greater impact on protein function. The homology regions in the protein sequence homology alignment were all highly conserved.The 3 male patients and their spouses obtained 4 biological offspring through intracytoplasmic sperm injection, all of which were boys, and one of them was a twin.Three male infertile patients might be caused by SUN5 gene mutations. Such patients could obtain their biological offspring through assisted reproductive technology. It was still necessary to pay attention to the genetic risk of ASS, it was recommended that both men and women conduct genetic counseling and screening at the same time. In clinical diagnosis, whole exome sequencing technology could be used to perform auxiliary examinations to determine the treatment plan and assisted reproductive methods as soon as possible to reduce the burden on the family and society. The newly discovered mutation sites of SUN5 gene provided clues and directions for elucidating the pathogenic mechanism, and at the same time expanded the pathogenic mutation spectrum of ASS.

Human Rhinovirus Infection Enhances the Th2 Environment in Allergic and Non-allergic Patients with Chronic Rhinosinusitis

Objectives@#. This study was conducted to determine whether patients with allergic rhinitis might be more susceptible to human rhinovirus (HRV) infection and whether the effects of infection on the elicited immune responses are different in allergic and non-allergic patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). @*Methods@#. Uncinate process tissues were obtained from 61 CRS patients (of whom 39 had allergies and 22 did not) and were infected with HRV-16 using an air-liquid interface organ culture system. The expression levels of programmed cell death-ligand (PD-L)1, PD-L2, intracellular adhesion molecule 1, interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, and IL-10 were evaluated in the infected nasal mucosa. @*Results@#. The HRV infection rates were not significantly different between the allergy (74.4%) and non-allergy (72.7%) groups. In the allergy group, the expression of PD-L1 (P=0.013) and IL-10 (P=0.040) was significantly elevated in the HRV-infected tissues, and there was a strong correlation between PD-L1 and IL-10 (r=0.868, P<0.001). In contrast, infected tissues from the non-allergy group displayed increased levels of IL-4 (P=0.039), IL-5 (P=0.023), and IFN-γ (P=0.031), as well as an increased IL-4/IFN-γ ratio, after HRV infection (P=0.043). @*Conclusion@#. This study showed that HRV infection rates were similar in the nasal mucosa of patients with CRS regardless of the presence of allergic rhinitis. HRV infection enhanced the Th2 environment by modulating PD-L1 and PD-L2 expression levels in allergic mucosa and by increasing the IL-4/IFN-γ ratio in non-allergic mucosa.

Processing evolution,chemical components and pharmacological effects of Bufonis Venenum / 中国中药杂志

Bufonis Venenum,the dried secretion of Bufo bufo gargarizans or B. melanostictus,is toxic and hard with the efficacy of removing toxicity for detumescence and relieving pain. The processing of Bufonis Venenum dates back to the Song dynasty. In addition to the wine-processing,milk-processing and talcum powder-processing,there were some other kinds of processing methods in ancient times,such as baking,calcining,water-soaking and vinegar-processing. Modern studies have shown that the Bufonis Venenum has the main chemical components of bufadienolides,indole alkaloids sterols,and other compounds. It has the pharmacological effects of antitumor,cardiac,antibacterial,and analgesic activities,local anesthesia,and so on. This paper reviews the processing evolution,chemical components and pharmacological effects of Bufonis Venenum,providing references for its special processing and modern research as well as the theoretical basis for the research on its processing mechanism and quality control.

microRNA-1 gene delivery mediated by exosomes suppresses CAL-27 cell proliferation / 华西口腔医学杂志

OBJECTIVES@#This study aims to construct endogenous exosomes abundantly loaded with miR-1 and investigate the role of exosome-mediated microRNA-1 (miR-1) delivery on CAL-27 cell proliferation.@*METHODS@#Exosomes secreted by miR-1-overexpressing HEK293 cells (miR1-EXO) were purified via ultracentrifugation and subjected to transmission electron microscopy, nanoparticle analysis, Western blot analysis, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). CAL-27 cells were cocultured with exosomes secreted by HEK293 cells (CON-EXO) and miR1-EXO and equivalent phosphate buffer saline. The intracellular transport of exosomes was measured by using immunofluorescence, the expression of miR-1 and its target gene MET were investigated via qPCR, CAL-27 cell proliferation was measured through MTT assay, and cell cycle state was determined by applying flow cytometry.@*RESULTS@#Electron microscopy revealed that miR1-EXO and CON-EXO were spherical or cup-shaped with an average diameter of approximately 110 nm. The well-known exosome markers CD9, Tsg101, and Alix were enriched. The expression of miR-1 in miR1-EXO was higher than that in CON-EXO (285.80±14.33 vs 1.00±0.06, @*CONCLUSIONS@#Exosomes secreted from miR1-EXO cells could load abundant miR-1. Exosomal miR-1 delivered into CAL-27 cells by using miR1-EXO suppressed the expression of MET mRNA and inhibited cell proliferation.

Diagnosis value of MRI in acute rotator interval injury / 中国骨伤

OBJECTIVE@#To compare clinical application of 1.5 T MRI in acute rotator interval injury.@*METHODS@#Totally 160 patients with acute rotator cuff tear by clinical diagnosis were retrospectively analyzed by MRI examination and arthroscopy from March 2016 to February 2019, including 122 males and 38 females, aged from 22 to 71 years old with an average of (42.35±3.48) years old. Based on the results of arthroscopy as the gold standard, the shape and signal changes of rotator cuff, rotator interval, peripheral bursa, bone and soft tissue were observed by MRI on axial, oblique coronal and oblique sagittal imagese.@*RESULTS@#The direct MRI signs of acute rotator interval injury displayed thickening, diminution, distortion, interruption of the coracohumeral ligament and superior glenohumeral ligament complex with highsignal intensity on fat-suppression by proton weighted sequence. The indirect MRI signs displayed rotator cuff, peripheral bone and soft tissue injury. The consistency of the results between the two methods was quite satisfactory (Kappa=0.85), and the concordance rate of the two methods has statistically significant (@*CONCLUSION@#MRI could clearly display acute rotator interval, and could accurately diagnose acute rotator interval injury, which provide more accurate imaging basis for clinical diagnosis and treatment.

DNA barcoding identification of original plants of a rare medicinal material Resina Draconis and related Dracaena species / 中国中药杂志

Resina Draconis, a rare and precious traditional medicine in China, is known as the "holy medicine for promoting blood circulation". According to the national drug standard, it's derived from the resin extracted from the wood of Dracaena cochinchinensis, a Liliaceae plant. In addition, a variety of Dracaena species all over the world can form red resins, and there is currently no molecular identification method that can efficiently identify the origin of Dracaena medicinal materials. In this study, seven species of Dracaena distributed in China were selected as the research objects. Four commonly used DNA barcodes(ITS2, matK, rbcL and psbA-trnH), and four highly variable regions(trnP-psaJ, psbK-psbI, trnT-trnL, clpP) in chloroplast genome were used to evaluate the identification efficiency of Dracaena species. The results showed that clpP sequence fragment could accurately identify seven species of Dracaena plants. However, due to the long sequence of clpP fragment, there were potential problems in the practical application process. We found that the combined fragment "psbK-psbI+ trnP-psaJ" can also be used for accurate molecular identification of the Resina Draconis origin plants and relative species of Dracaena, which were both relatively short sequences in the combined fragment, showing high success rates of amplification and sequencing. Therefore, the "psbK-psbI+ trnP-psaJ" combined fragment can be used as the DNA barcode fragments for molecular identification of Resina Dracon's origin plants and relative species of Dracaena. Research on the identification of Dracaena species, the results of this study can be used to accurately identify the original material of Resina Draconis, and providing effective means for identification, rational development and application of Resina Draconis base source.

Study on mechanism of combination of Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus with homology of medicine and food in treating pneumonia / 中国中药杂志

To investigate the potential molecular mechanism of the combination of Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus with the homology of medicine and food in the treatment of pneumonia by means of network pharmacology and in vitro verification experiment. Under the condition of bioavailability(OB)≥30% and drug-like(DL)≥0.18, the active components of Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus were screened in TCMSP database; the prediction targets of active components were searched from TCMSP, DrugBank and other databases, and the potential targets of pneumonia were obtained through GeneCards and OMIM database. The common targets were obtained by the intersection of drug and disease targets. The PPI network of common targets was constructed by STRING 11.0, and the core targets were obtained by topological analysis. Then the core targets received GO and KEGG analysis with use of WebGestalt and Metascape. The "component-target-pathway" network was constructed with the help of Cytoscape 3.7.1 software, and the component-target molecular docking verification was carried out with Discovery Studio 2016 software. Finally, the core targets and pathways were preliminarily verified in vitro. In this study, 12 active components were screened, 225 drug prediction targets and 420 potential diseases targets were obtained based on data mining method, and 14 core targets were obtained by topological analysis, including TNF, MMP9, AKT1, IL4 and IL2. The enrichment results of GO and KEGG showed that "Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus" drug pair may regulate inflammation, cell growth and metabolism by acting on 20 key signaling pathways such as TNF and IL-17, thereby exerting anti-pneumonia effects. The results of molecular docking showed that 12 active components had good binding ability with 14 core targets. In vitro experiment results showed that the core components of "Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus" drug pair could inhibit the expression of MMP9 and TNF-α by regulating TNF signal pathway. This study confirmed the scientificity and reliability of the prediction results of network pharmacology, and preliminarily revealed the potential molecular mechanism of the compatibility of Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus in the treatment of pneumonia. It provides a novel insight on systematically exploring the mechanism of the compatible use of Platycodonis Radix and Lilii Bulbus, and has a certain reference value for the research, development and application of new drugs.

Analysis of Chemical Constitutions of Polygonatum cyrtonema Dried Rhizomes Before and After Processing with Wine Based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To quickly analyze and identify the components in raw and wine-processed products of <italic>Polygonatum cyrtonema</italic> （PC） dried rhizomes by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry （UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， and then find out the differential components before and after processing. Method:The ACQUITY UPLC BEH C₁₈ column （2.1 mm×100 mm， 1.8 μm） was used with 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution-acetonitrile as the mobile phase for gradient elution at a flow rate of 0.25 mL·min^-1. Electrospray ionization was selected for collection and detection in positive and negative ion modes， and the data were analyzed by PeakView 1.2.0.3. According to the retention time， accurate relative molecular weight and fragmentation ion information provided by MS， and combined with the reference substance and literature， the components were identified. After normalized treatment， the MS data of each sample were analyzed with principal component analysis （PCA） and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA）， and then the differential components before and after processing were screened according to the principle that variable importance in the projection （VIP） value was >1. Result:A total of 38 components were identified from raw and wine-processed products of PC dried rhizomes， including 15 steroidal saponins， 6 alkaloids， 3 flavonoids， 2 amino acids， 2 organic acids and 10 others. The results of PCA and OPLS-DA showed that there were significant differences in the contents of components in PC dried rhizomes before and after processing， and 16 differential components such as kingianoside Z， disporopsin and linoleic acid were screened. Conclusion:UPLC-Q-TOF-MS technique can accurately and comprehensively identify the components in PC dried rhizomes， these components are mainly steroidal saponins， flavonoids and alkaloids. It takes a great difference in the contents of components before and after processing， and transformation of the same category components is the main reason for the differences of raw and wine-processed products， which will provide reference for the researches on material basis and processing chemistry of PC dried rhizomes.

Human Rhinovirus Infection Enhances the Th2 Environment in Allergic and Non-allergic Patients with Chronic Rhinosinusitis

Objectives@#. This study was conducted to determine whether patients with allergic rhinitis might be more susceptible to human rhinovirus (HRV) infection and whether the effects of infection on the elicited immune responses are different in allergic and non-allergic patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). @*Methods@#. Uncinate process tissues were obtained from 61 CRS patients (of whom 39 had allergies and 22 did not) and were infected with HRV-16 using an air-liquid interface organ culture system. The expression levels of programmed cell death-ligand (PD-L)1, PD-L2, intracellular adhesion molecule 1, interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, and IL-10 were evaluated in the infected nasal mucosa. @*Results@#. The HRV infection rates were not significantly different between the allergy (74.4%) and non-allergy (72.7%) groups. In the allergy group, the expression of PD-L1 (P=0.013) and IL-10 (P=0.040) was significantly elevated in the HRV-infected tissues, and there was a strong correlation between PD-L1 and IL-10 (r=0.868, P<0.001). In contrast, infected tissues from the non-allergy group displayed increased levels of IL-4 (P=0.039), IL-5 (P=0.023), and IFN-γ (P=0.031), as well as an increased IL-4/IFN-γ ratio, after HRV infection (P=0.043). @*Conclusion@#. This study showed that HRV infection rates were similar in the nasal mucosa of patients with CRS regardless of the presence of allergic rhinitis. HRV infection enhanced the Th2 environment by modulating PD-L1 and PD-L2 expression levels in allergic mucosa and by increasing the IL-4/IFN-γ ratio in non-allergic mucosa.

Basal Energy Expenditure of Chinese Healthy Adults: Comparison of Measured and Predicted Values / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

Objective@#This study aimed to measure the basal energy expenditure (BEE) of Chinese healthy adults and establish an accurate predictive equation for this population.@*Methods@#In total, 470 Chinese healthy adults had their BEE measured using the Cosmed K4b portable metabolic system. Multiple linear regression analysis was applied to develop new optimal equations for predicting BEE. The bias, accuracy rate, concordance correlation coefficient (CCC), and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to evaluate the accuracy of the predictive equations.@*Results@#There was a significant difference in BEE between males and females, with 5,954 kJ/d and 5,089 kJ/d, respectively. People living in rural areas expended significantly higher BEE (5,885 kJ/d) than those in urban areas (5,279 kJ/d). Previous equations developed by Henry, Schofield, Harris-Benedict (H-B), and Liu overestimated the BEE of Chinese healthy adults. The new equations derived from the present study displayed the smallest average bias and RMSE from the measured basal energy expenditure (mBEE). The CCC of the new equations was higher than other predictive equations, but it was lower than 0.8. There was no significant difference in the accuracy rate among all predictive equations.@*Conclusions@#Sex and regional differences in BEE were observed in Chinese healthy adults. Neither the widely used previous predictive equations nor the one derived in the present study were accurate enough for estimating the BEE of Chinese healthy adults. Further study is required to develop more accurate equations for predicting the BEE of Chinese healthy adults aged between 20-45 years.

Research progress on alkaloid acetylcholinesterase inhibitors from natural products / 中草药

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor is research hotspot for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which can be divided into two categories, chemical synthesis and natural products, according to its sources. Alkaloids are important sources of natural AChE inhibitors. In this paper, the research progress of plant-derived alkaloids with the inhibitory activity of AChE was reviewed from the aspects of structure type, mechanism of action and structure-activity relationship, in order to provide reference for the research and development of AChE inhibitors derived from natural alkaloids.

Non-diterpenoid alkaloids in aerial parts of Aconitum carmichaelii / 中草药

Objective: To study the chemical constituents in the aerial parts of Aconitum carmichaelii. Methods: The air-dried arial parts of A. carmichaelii were powdered and extracted with methanol by percolation extraction. After the removal of solvent under reduced pressure, the crude extract was dissolved in 1.5% HCl solution, and then extracted by ethyl acetate to obtain the total crude extract. The compounds were isolated and purified by column chromatography and identified by spectral analyses (MS, 13C-NMR, and 1H-NMR). Results: Fifteen compounds were isolated from A. carmichaelii and characterized as indol-3-carboxylic acid (1), corchoionol C (2), β-sitosterol-3-O-β-D-glucoside-6’-palmitate (3), (+)-pinoresinol (4), (+)-N-formylnorglaucine (5), oxoglaucidaline (6), glaucine (7), (+)-cataline (8), kaempferol-7-O-α-L-rhamnofuranoside (9), kaempferol-3-O-β-(2″-acetyl)-galactopyranoside (10), megastigmane (11), kaempferol-7-O-α-L-arabinoside (12), kaempferol-3-O-β-D-xylopyranoside (13), kaempferol-3-O-β-D- glucopyranoside (14), and quercetin-3-O-β-D-galactopyranoside (15). Conclusion: All compounds are isolated from aerial parts of A. carmichaelii for the first time, and compounds 1-3,5-6,8-15 are isolated from this plant for the first time.

GG Genotype at rs1275988 and rs2586886 Loci of TWIK-related Acid-sensitive K Channel-1 Gene is A Potential Risk Factor for Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea / 中国医学科学院学报

To explore the mechanism of obstructive sleep apnea(OSA) by assessing the association between human TWIK-related acid-sensitive K channel-1(TASK-1) gene and OSA. A total of 164 patients with severe OSA and 171 patients without OSA were recruited from the Hypertension Center of People's Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region,China,from April to December 2016.Two single nucleotide polymorphisms(rs1275988 and rs2586886) in the TASK-1 gene were selected and genotyped using a Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR genotyping system. In patients with blood potassium 3.95 mmol/L in patients with TASK-1 GG genotype may be conducive to reducing the incidence of severe OSA.

Effect of Guanxin Danshen Formulation on diabetic kidney disease in db/db mice through regulation of Nrf2 pathway / 中国中药杂志

Diabetic kidney disease(DKD) has become a primary cause of end-stage kidney disease, without any effective treatment available. In this study, we assessed the protective effect of Guanxin Danshen Formulation(GXDSF) on diabetic nephropathy in db/db mice. The db/m and db/db mice were randomly divided into 4 groups: control group, model group, metformin group, and GXDSF group. After 8 weeks' treatment with GXDSF, metformin or normal saline, the mice were sacrificed, and the blood and kidney tissues were collected for the further analysis. Compared with the model group, TG, TCH and LDL levels significantly decreased in the GXDSF group. The results from HE and PAS staining showed that db/db mice exhibited abnormal kidney tissues with increased glomerular volume, basement-membrane thickening and mesangial cell proliferation, which could be significantly alleviated by GXDSF treatment. GXDSF treatment also reduced serum creatinine and BUN. Meanwhile, GXDSF treatment markedly elevated GSH-PX levels, while reduced LDH and MDA levels in the kidney tissues. Western blot assay showed that GXDSF evidently up-regulated protein levels of ERα and p-Akt, and subsequently promoted HO-1 expression mediated by Nrf2. These data collectively indicated that GXDSF protects db/db mice against DN by regulating ERα and Nrf2-mediated HO-1 expression.

Identification of medicinal plants within the Apocynaceae family using ITS2 and psbA-trnH barcodes / 中国天然药物

To ensure the safety of medications, it is vital to accurately authenticate species of the Apocynaceae family, which is rich in poisonous medicinal plants. We identified Apocynaceae species by using nuclear internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) and psbA-trnH based on experimental data. The identification ability of ITS2 and psbA-trnH was assessed using specific genetic divergence, BLAST1, and neighbor-joining trees. For DNA barcoding, ITS2 and psbA-trnH regions of 122 plant samples of 31 species from 19 genera in the Apocynaceae family were amplified. The PCR amplification for ITS2 and psbA-trnH sequences was 100%. The sequencing success rates for ITS2 and psbA-trnH sequences were 81% and 61%, respectively. Additional data involved 53 sequences of the ITS2 region and 38 sequences of the psbA-trnH region were downloaded from GenBank. Moreover, the analysis showed that the inter-specific divergence of Apocynaceae species was greater than its intra-specific variations. The results indicated that, using the BLAST1 method, ITS2 showed a high identification efficiency of 97% and 100% of the samples at the species and genus levels, respectively, via BLAST1, and psbA-trnH successfully identified 95% and 100% of the samples at the species and genus levels, respectively. The barcode combination of ITS2/psbA-trnH successfully identified 98% and 100% of samples at the species and genus levels, respectively. Subsequently, the neighbor joining tree method also showed that barcode ITS2 and psbA-trnH could distinguish among the species within the Apocynaceae family. ITS2 is a core barcode and psbA-trnH is a supplementary barcode for identifying species in the Apocynaceae family. These results will help to improve DNA barcoding reference databases for herbal drugs and other herbal raw materials.