Relationship between reduction of urban PM2.5 and mental health of middle-aged and elderly people after China's Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan / 环境与职业医学

Background Epidemiological evidence indicates an association of particulate matter with depression and cognitive performance. From 2013 to 2017, China implemented the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan to reduce particulate matter concentration. There are few studies on the relationship between the decrease of particulate matter concentration and the improvement of mental health in middle-aged and elderly people. Objective To analyze the relationship between the decrease of city-level particulate matter concentration and the improvement of depression and cognitive function in the middle-aged and elderly population after the implementation of the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan. Methods Using the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) data in 2011 and 2018, this study applied longitudinal data clustering technology to group cities based on the actual response of each city to the policy (the dynamic change trajectory of PM2.5 in each city during the study period); the higher the degree of response, the greater the reduction of PM2.5 concentration in the city. We assigned participants to three groups with different degrees of response to the policy, including low-response group A as the control group, medium-response intervention group B, and high-response intervention group C. A difference-in-differences (DID) model was used to estimate the influence of PM2.5 decline on the depression and cognitive function among middle-aged and elderly people in China by considering potential individual and city-level time-varying confounders. Depression was measured using the 10-item Center for the Epidemiological Studies of Depression Scale (CES-D10) (10 questions, total score range 0-30) with higher score representing higher severity of depression. Cognitive function was evaluated with reference to the international cognitive function test questionnaire for the middle-aged and the elderly which was further categorized into two dimensions of memory and cognitive status and included 31 questions with a score range of 0-31; the higher the score, the better the cognitive function. Samples with relatively complete outcomes were selected for analysis, including 10729 people in depression analysis and 4510 people in cognitive analysis. Results The longitudinal clustering results indicated that the urban groups with the highest decline of PM2.5 concentrations (high-response group C) had the highest baseline PM2.5 concentrations, mainly in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, Chengdu-Chongqing metropolitan area, and Wuhan metropolitan area. In 2011, no significant differences were observed in depression and cognitive function among the three groups of middle-aged and elderly populations (Kruskal Wallis test: Pdepression=0.864, Pcognition=0.239). Significant differences were found in depression and cognitive function in both low-response group A and medium-response group B in 2018 compared to 2011 (paired Wilcox test, all P<0.001). However, in the high-response group C, there was no significant difference in depression in 2018 compared to 2011 (P=0.195), while a significant difference was detected in cognitive function (P=0.006). As PM2.5 concentrations decreased, the DID model showed that the depression of the middle-aged and elderly people in the high-response group C decreased by 7.55% (95%CI: 2.83%-12.03%), and the cognitive function improved by 2.70% (95%CI: 0.25%-5.22%) compared with the low-response group A. However, no intervention effect was observed in group B with moderate response level compared with group A with low response level. Conclusion After the implementation of the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan policy, the decrease of PM2.5 concentration has an ameliorative effect on the depression and cognitive function of middle-aged and elderly people in China. Given the aging population and the increasing burden of mental-related diseases in China, the promotion of environmental air pollution control has important public health implications.

Physical growth and neurodevelopment of preterm infants at the corrected age of 18-24 months / 中国当代儿科杂志

OBJECTIVES@#To investigate the levels of physical growth and neurodevelopment in preterm infants at the corrected age of 18-24 months.@*METHODS@#The physical growth data and neurodevelopment data of 484 preterm infants at corrected age of 18-24 months were prospectively collected by a post-discharge follow-up system for preterm infants. The infants were regularly followed up in Shenzhen Bao'an Maternal and Child Health Hospital Affiliated to Jinan University from April 2018 to December 2021. The neurodevelopment was evaluated by the Children Neuropsychological and Behavioral Scale-Revision 2016. A total of 219 full-term infants served as controls. The infants were divided into groups (extremely preterm, very preterm, moderate late preterm, and full-term) based on gestational age, and the groups were compared in the levels of physical growth and neurodevelopment.@*RESULTS@#Except that the moderate preterm group had a higher length-for-age Z-score than the full-term group (P=0.038), there was no significant difference in physical growth indicators between the preterm groups and the full-term group (P>0.05). Each preterm group had a significantly lower total developmental quotient (DQ) than the full-term group (P<0.05). Except for the social behavior domain, the DQ of other domains in the extremely preterm and very preterm groups was significantly lower than that in the full-term group (P<0.05). The <32 weeks preterm group had a significantly higher incidence rate of global developmental delay than the full-term group (16.7% vs 6.4%, P=0.012), and the incidence rate of global developmental delay tended to increase with the reduction in gestational age (P=0.026).@*CONCLUSIONS@#Preterm infants can catch up with full-term infants in terms of physical growth at the corrected age of 18-24 months, but with a lower neurodevelopmental level than full-term infants. Neurodevelopment monitoring and early intervention should be taken seriously for preterm infants with a gestational age of <32 weeks.

Chemical and pharmacological progress on a Tibetan folk medicine formula Bawei Chenxiang Powder / 中国中药杂志

Bawei Chenxiang Powder is a traditional Tibetan folk medicine formula, consisting of resinous wood of Aquilaria sinensis, kernel of Myristica fragrans, fruit of Choerospondias axillaris, travertine, resin of Boswellia carterii or B. bhaw-dajiana, stem of Aucklandia lappa, fruit of Terminalia chebula(roasted), and flower of Gossampinus malabarica. It has the function of clearing heart heat, nourishing heart, tranquilizing mind, and inducing resuscitation, which has been used for the treatment of coronary heart disease and angina pectoris. Modern research shows that the medicine materials of this formula mainly contain terpenoids like sesquiterpenes and triterpenes and polyphenols like flavonoids, lignans, and tannins, displaying some pharmacological activities such as anti-myocardial ischemia, anti-cerebral ischemia, and spatial learning and memory promotion. This review summaries the traditional uses, chemical constituents, and pharmacological activities research progress, hopefully to provide a reference for clarification of its pharmacological active ingredients.

Analgesic and sedative effects of Mongolian medicine Syringa pinnatifolia / 中国中药杂志

The peeled root,stem or twig of Syringa pinnatifolia is a representative Mongolian folk medicine with the effects of antidepression and pain relief. It has been used for the treatments of heart tingling,heart palpitations,upset,insomnia and other symptoms. Inspired by Mongolian medical theory and clinical practices,this study evaluated the analgesic effect of S. pinnatifolia ethanol extract( T) through three analgesic models including acetic acid writhing test,formalin test,and hot plate test,and the sedative effect of T was evaluated by locomotor activity and synergistic sleeping experiments,and furthermore the effects of T on the GABAergic nervous system were investigated by ELISA,immunohistochemistry,Western blot,and PCR methods. The results showed that T can significantly reduce the number of writhing,the time of paw licking and extend the thermal threshold of mice,suggesting the analgesic effect of T.T also can indicate its sedative effect by reducing the number of activities,decreasing latency of sleeping and extending sleeping time of mice. ELISA results showed that T can increase the content of GABA/Glu in rat cortex,hippocampus,and hypothalamus,and the most significant increase in hypothalamus. The immunohistochemistry and Western blot results showed that T can up-regulate the expression of GAD67 protein in hypothalamus,and the PCR results showed that T can up-regulate the expression of GABAA Rα1,α2,α3,α5,β1-3,γ1-3 genes,suggesting a sedative effect through the GABAergic nervous system. In conclusion,this study shed insight into the theoretical basis and clinical application of S. pinnatifolia,and also provides inspiration for subsequent development and application.

Effect of Rong Huang granules of patients with non-dialysis kidney deficiency damp heat syndrome and chronic kidney disease mineral and bone metabolism disorder to serum OPG and RANKL levels / 中国免疫学杂志

Objective:To observe serum osteoprotegerin (OPG),receptor activator of NF-kB ligand (RANKL) levels and the therapeutic effect of Rong Huang granules of patients with non-dialysis chronic kidney disease mineral and bone metabolism disorder (CKD-MBD) and kidney deficiency damp heat syndrome.Methods:70 cases of non-dialysis CKD-MBD with kidney deficiency damp heat syndrome,were randomly divided into treatment group and control group,the actual completion of 61 cases,30 cases in treatment group,31 cases in the control group;and a healthy normal group of 20 cases of patients was established.Two groups of patients were given symptomatic treatment,in addition,Rong Huang granules was plused in treating at treatment group and it was used three times a day,each time blunt one bag.The course of treatment was 8 weeks.The changes of kidney deficiency damp heat syndrome,blood urea nitrogen (BUN),serum creatinine (Scr),estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR),serum of calcium (Ca),phosphorus (P), alkaline phosphatase (ALP),parathyroid hormone (iPTH),OPG and RANKL levels were observed in two groups of patients.Results:The total effective rate in treatment group was significantly better than the control group(P<0.01).The integral value of syndrome decreased more significantly with the course of treatment increased of two groups of patients(P<0.01).Compared with the same period of therapy,the descender in the treatment group was significantly better than that in the control group(P<0.01).The levels of BUN, Scr,eGFR,Ca,P,iPTH and ALP were improved in the treatment group after treatment(P<0.05 or P<0.01),BUN and iPTH were improved in the control group(P<0.05 or P<0.01),other indexes were not improved(P>0.05).After treatment,BUN,Scr,eGFR,Ca, P,iPTH,ALP of treatment group were significantly better than the control group(P<0.05 or P<0.01).Compared with the normal group,the levels of OPG and RANKL were significantly higher in CKD-MBD patients (P<0.01).After treatment,serum OPG level, serum RANKL level and OPG/RANKL ratio were significantly improved than before treatment in treatment group(P<0.05 or P<0.01),and in the control group,only the OPG/RANKL ratio increased(P<0.01).After treatment,OPG,RANKL and OPG/RANKL ratio in the treatment group were obviously improved compared with them in the control group(P<0.05 or P<0.01).Conclusion:The levels of OPG and RANKL in non-dialysis CKD-MBD patients with kidney deficiency damp heat syndrome were higher than those in healthy people,and the ratio of OPG/RANKL was lower than that in healthy people.Rong Huang granules can ameliorate clinical symptoms,prevent calcium and phosphorus metabolism,improve renal function,the mechanism may be related to the ameliorate of serum OPG and the decrease of serum RANKL level and the raise of ratio of OPG/RANKL.

A clinical study of the male anterior hairline / 中华整形外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To measure the male anterior hairline (AH) and provide data for hair transplantation.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>205 males were randomly involved and divided into different age groups, as the young group( age 18-29), the middle-aged group (age 30-49) and the old group (age 50+). Their AH shape and height were measured. The data was then analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>According to the morphological classification of AH, the linear type was most common in the young and middle-aged groups (48.40% and 37.33%), the anterior protrusion type was most common in the old group (34.80%). The mean height of AH was 6.42 cm (5.00-8.50 cm)for the median line, and there was no statistical difference between groups (P > 0.05); the mean ratio of median line AH height to facial length was 0.30 (0.22-0.37), there were significant differences between the old group against the young, or the middle-aged group (P < 0.05), and no difference between the young group and the middle-aged group (P > 0.05); the mean height of AH was 5.83 cm (3.5-8.0 cm) for the paramedian line, and there was no statistical difference between groups (P > 0.05); the mean height of AH was 8.34 cm (5.5-10.5 cm) for the lateral line, there were significant differences between the young group against the middle-aged, or the old group (P < 0.05), and no difference between the middle-aged group and the old group (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The shape and height of AH were age-associated. The linear type is most common in the young and middle-aged groups, the anterior protrusion type is most common in the old group. The change first occurs on the lateral lines since the age of 30, and the central portion is involved since the age of 50. The older the age gets, the higher the hairline is.</p>

Screening and application of enhancer-like sequences from vaccinia virus / 中华实验和临床病毒学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To screen enhancer-like sequences from vaccinia virus genome, to construct an expression vector harboring prokaryotic enhancer-like sequence and study the effect of interferon gene expression.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Enhancer-like element from vaccinia virus genome was obtained by using the chloramphenicol acetyl-transferase cat gene as reporter gene. An expression vector harboring prokaryotic enhancer-like sequence VV1 from vaccinia virus was constructed. Interferon was expressed and assayed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Eighteen enhancing sequences were found. From them two enhancer-like sequences with distance and orientation independence property were screened and named VV1 and VV16 respectively. Quantification test showed that the direct and reverse orientation of VV1 could increase the activity of beta-galactosidase with 10.9 and 3.8 times and those of VV16 could increase by 9.0 times and 4.1 times respectively. The enhancing activity of the element was on transcription level. An expression vector harboring prokaryotic enhancer-like sequence VV1 was constructed. Using this vector the antiviral activity of interferon alpha-2b was increased by 2.6 times in comparison with the original expression plasmid.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Two enhancer-like sequences were screened from vaccinia virus genome. Interferon gene was highly expressed by using an expression vector harboring enhancer-like sequences.</p>