Methylophiopogonanone A, an Ophiopogon homoisoflavonoid, alleviates high-fat diet-induced hyperlipidemia: assessment of its potential mechanism

Methylophiopogonanone A (MO-A), a homoisoflavonoid extracted from Ophiopogon japonicus, has been shown to attenuate myocardial apoptosis and improve cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury. However, the hypolipidemic effects remain unknown. This study was performed to investigate a potential hypolipidemic effect of MO-A in hyperlipidemia rats, as well as its underlying mechanism of action. A rat model of hyperlipidemia was induced by a high-fat diet (HFD). Animals were randomly divided into three groups (n=8/group): normal control group (NC), HFD group, and HFD+MO-A (10 mg·kg-1·d-1) treatment group. The effects of MO-A on serum lipids, body weight, activity of lipoprotein metabolism enzyme, and gene expression of lipid metabolism were evaluated in HFD-induced rats. In HFD-induced rats, pretreatment with MO-A decreased the body weight gain and reduced serum and hepatic lipid levels. In addition, pretreatment with MO-A improved the activities of lipoprotein lipase and hepatic lipase in serum and liver, down-regulated mRNA expression of acetyl CoA carboxylase and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1c, and up-regulated mRNA expression of low-density lipoprotein receptor and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α in the liver. Our results indicated that MO-A showed strong ability to ameliorate the hyperlipidemia in HFD-induced rats. MO-A might be a potential candidate for prevention of overweight and dyslipidemia induced by HFD.

Treatment of Chilomastix mesnili infection with traditional Chinese medicine: a case report / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

This paper reports a case with Chilomastix mesnili infections, and summarizes the diagnosis and treatment with traditional Chinese medicine.

Adsorptive Granulocyte and Monocyte Apheresis in the Treatment of Ulcerative Colitis: The First Multicenter Study in China

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Patients with active ulcerative colitis (UC) have elevated levels of activated myeloid-derived leukocytes as a source of inflammatory cytokines. The selective depletion of these leukocytes by adsorptive granulocyte/monocyte apheresis (GMA) with an Adacolumn should alleviate inflammation, promote remission and enhance drug efficacy. However, studies have reported contrasting efficacy outcomes based on patients’ baseline demographic variables. This study was undertaken to understand the demographic features of GMA responders and nonresponders. METHODS: This was a multicenter study in China involving four institutions and 34 patients with active UC. Baseline conventional medications were continued without changing the dosage. The treatment efficacy was evaluated based on the endoscopic activity index and the Mayo score. RESULTS: Thirty of the 34 patients completed all 10 GMA treatment sessions. The overall efficacy rate was 70.59%. The receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that the area under the curve was approximately 0.766 for a Mayo score of ≤5.5 with 0.273 specificity and 0.857 sensitivity (Youden index, 0.584) for GMA responders. No GMA-related serious adverse events were observed. CONCLUSIONS: The overall efficacy of GMA in patients with active UC who were taking first-line medications or were corticosteroid refractory was encouraging. Additionally, GMA was well tolerated and had a good safety profile.

A bird's eye view of the air pollution-cancer link in China / 癌症

Air pollution in China comes from multiple sources, including coal consumption, construction and industrial dust, and vehicle exhaust. Coal consumption in particular directly determines the emissions of three major air pollutants: dust, sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), and nitrogen oxide (NOx). The rapidly increasing number of civilian vehicles is expected to bring NOx emission to a very high level. Contrary to expectations, however, existing data show that the concentrations of major pollutants [particulate matter-10 (PM10), SO(2), and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2))] in several large Chinese cities have declined during the past decades, though they still exceed the national standards of ambient air quality. Archived data from China does not fully support that the concentrations of pollutants directly depend on local emissions, but this is likely due to inaccurate measurement of pollutants. Analyses on the cancer registry data show that cancer burden related to air pollution is on the rise in China and will likely increase further, but there is a lack of data to accurately predict the cancer burden. Past experience from other countries has sounded alarm of the link between air pollution and cancer. The quantitative association requires dedicated research as well as establishment of needed monitoring infrastructures and cancer registries. The air pollution-cancer link is a serious public health issue that needs urgent investigation.

Active and passive smoking with breast cancer risk for Chinese females: a systematic review and meta-analysis / 癌症

Previous studies suggested that smoking and passive smoking could increase the risk of breast cancer, but the results were inconsistent, especially for Chinese females. Thus, we systematically searched cohort and case-control studies investigating the associations of active and passive smoking with breast cancer risk among Chinese females in four English databases (PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, and Wiley) and three Chinese databases (CNKI, WanFang, and VIP). Fifty-one articles (3 cohort studies and 48 case-control studies) covering 17 provinces of China were finally included in this systematic review. Among Chinese females, there was significant association between passive smoking and this risk of breast cancer [odds ratio (OR): 1.62; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.39-1.85; I2 = 75.8%, P < 0.001; n = 26] but no significant association between active smoking and the risk of breast cancer (OR: 1.04; 95% CI: 0.89-1.20; I2 = 13.9%, P = 0.248; n = 31). The OR of exposure to husband's smoking and to smoke in the workplace was 1.27 (95% CI: 1.07-1.50) and 1.66 (95% CI: 1.07-2.59), respectively. The OR of light and heavy passive smoking was 1.11 and 1.41, respectively, for women exposed to their husband's smoke (< 20 and ≥ 20 cigarettes per day), and 1.07 and 1.87, respectively, for those exposed to smoke in the workplace (< 300 and ≥ 300 min of exposure per day). These results imply that passive smoking is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, and the risk seems to increase as the level of passive exposure to smoke increases among Chinese females. Women with passive exposure to smoke in the workplace have a higher risk of breast cancer than those exposed to their husband's smoking.

Study on effect of Hypericum perforatum on pharmacokinetics of zedoary turmeric oil in compound antiviral preparation / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study zedoary turmeric oil (ZTO) and the pharmacokinetics of its homemade compound antiviral preparation in New Zealand rabbits.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>RP-HPLC was used to determinate the content of germacrone in rabbit plasma after oral administration.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>After oral administration of ZTO and its homemade compound antiviral preparation, the plasma concentration-time curve of germacrone is in conformity to two-compartment open model. The pharmacokinetic parameters of ZTO: t1/2alpha, t1/2beta, Vd, CL, AUC and Ka were (1.52 +/- 0.59), (1.97 +/- 0.27) h, (47.59 +/- 2.29) L x kg(-1), (176.77 +/- 7.65) L x h(-1) x kg(-1), (5.70 +/- 0.70) mg x h x L(-1) and (0.97 +/- 0.11) h(-1), respectively, while those of compound preparation were (0.41 +/- 0.03), (1.47 +/- 0.35) h, (75.21 +/- 5.21) L x kg(-1), (287.79 +/- 6.39) L x h(-1) x kg(-1), (3.91 +/- 0.53) mg x h x L(-1) and (5.14 +/- 1.26) h(-1), respectively. There was no significant difference between the above two groups of pharmacokinetic parameters, expect that Ka of compound preparation was significantly higher than that of ZTO (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Hypericum perforatum in compound preparation doesn't impact the distribution and elimination of active ingredients of ZTO in New Zealand rabbits, but it improves the absorption speed, and shortens the time of drug absorption, which contributes to rapid efficacy of ZTO in rabbits.</p>

Influence on cell proliferation by small interfering RNA of Cyclin Y expression in laryngeal cancer cells / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>The effects of lentivirus-mediated suppression of Cyclin Y (CCNY) expression on the proliferation of laryngeal cancer cells were investigated in vitro.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The lentivirus vectors containing a small hairpin RNA (shRNA) to target CCNY were constructed.Hep-2 cells were divided into the following two experimental groups:the negative control group (control lentivirus infected cells) and CCNY knockdown group (CCNY shRNA-expressing lentivirus infected cells). After Hep-2 cells were infected, Real-time PCR was used to measure CCNY expression. The influence of CCNY on the proliferation of laryngeal cancer cells were assessed using MTT and colony formation experiments.Each experiment was performed in triplicate and repeated three times.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Lentiviruses expressing shRNA against CCNY were constructed and Hep-2 cells were infected with above mentioned lentivirus at MOI (Multiplicity of infection) of 120.Real-time PCR analysis showed that the mRNA expression of CCNY in Hep-2 cells in the knockdown group was significantly decreased (P < 0.05); the mRNA level of CCNY was 75.3% lower in the si-CCNY group than in the si-CTRL group. After 5 days of lentiviral infection, the cell viability was significantly lower in cells infected with the CCNY-shRNA lentivirus compared to cells infected with the control lentivirus following a 6-day incubation. The colony number was decreased by 60% in Hep-2 cells infected with the CCNY-shRNA-lentivirus infected cells following a 10-day incubation.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The results suggested that lentivirus-mediated downregulation of CCNY expression decreased the proliferation and growth potency of laryngeal cancer cells.Lentiviruses delivering shRNA against CCNY may be a promising tool for laryngeal cancer therapy.</p>

Promoter methylation of CHFR gene in gastric carcinoma tissues detected using two methods / 癌症

<p><b>BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE</b>Transcriptional silencing induced by CpG island methylation is believed to be one of the important mechanisms of carcinogenesis. Checkpoint with fork head-associated and ring finger (CHFR) governs the transition from prophase to prometaphase in response to mitotic stress. This study was to analyze the relationship between the methylation of CHFR gene and the clinicopathologic features of gastric cancer, and the difference of results between methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) and combined bisulfite restriction analysis (COBRA) in detecting aberrant methylation of CHFR gene in gastric cancer.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Both MSP and COBRA methods were used to detect the promoter methylation of CHFR gene in gastric cancer specimens from 64 patients. The relationship between methylation status of CHFR gene and the clinicopathologic features of gastric cancer were analyzed using SPSS16.0.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The methylation rates of CHFR gene promoter were significantly higher in gastric cancer samples than in the corresponding paracancer normal gastric mucosa by MSP (51.6% vs. 18.8%, P < 0.001). However, there was no significant correlation between methylation status of CHFR gene and the clinicopathologic parameters of gastric cancer, including age, gender, tumor size, clinical stage, Borrman type, tumor invasion depth, differentiation, and lymph node metastasis (P > 0.05). Aberrant methylation of the CHFR gene was detected in 27 (42.2%) of the 64 specimens of gastric cancer using COBRA, which did not significantly differ from that using MSP (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Aberrant methylation of the CHFR gene is a frequent event in the carcinogenesis of gastric cancer. Detecting the methylation of CHFR gene in gastric mucosa may conduce to the diagnosis of gastric cancer. No difference was found between MSP and COBRA in detecting promoter methylation of CHFR gene in gastric cancer.</p>

Sex distribution of neural tube defects and their birth outcome in high- and low-prevalence areas of China / 中华预防医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To describe and analyze epidemiological characteristics of babies with neural tube defects (NTD) by sex and birth outcome in a high-prevalence and a low-prevalence areas of China.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Birth defects surveillance data collected from 1992 through 1994, as a part of the Sino-American cooperative project on NTD prevention, were used to classify NTD as four categories, i.e., anencephaly, encephalocele, high-level and low-level spina bifida according to the sites of lesion (high vs. low level lesion were cervicothoracic and lumbosacral, respectively). Each category was sub-classified, according to single or compound defect, as isolated external defects (including those with NTD only) or multiple external defects (including those with NTD and another major external birth defects that is not the sequence of a defect such as cleft lip with or without cleft palate). The rates of anencephalus, encephalocele, high- and low-level spina bifida (SB) in males and females and their sex ratios were calculated, adjusted for urban and rural areas, season, category and birth outcome by sex and sites of lesions (high vs. low).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Totally, 784 NTD cases were identified from 326 874 recorded births (including live births, stillbirths and fetal deaths with a gestation age of at least 20 weeks). The prevalence rates of anencephalus (1.30 per 1 000 female births) and high-level SB (3.99) in females were higher than those (0.66 and 1.66 per 1 000 male births) in males in the high-prevalence northern regions; with adjusted prevalence rates of females 1.8 - 2.1 times greater than those of males. In the low-prevalence southern regions, the prevalence of high- (0.32 per 1 000 female births) and low-level SB (0.21) in female were higher than those in males, with high- and low-level SB rate of 0.10 and 0.09 per 1 000 male births), with adjusted rates for females of 1.3 - 1.6 times higher than in males. Isolated NTD accounted for more than 80% of all NTD cases, and the prevalence of isolated NTD in females (2.57) was higher than that in males (1.40).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The sex differences in NTD existed between north and south, in accordance with the phenotype of NTD. It suggested that proportion of high level SB and anencephalus in females could increase as the prevalence of NTD going up, anencephaly, high- and low-level SB had the different genetic and environmental background.</p>