ABSTRACT
ObjectiveTo investigate the effect and mechanism of Mori Folium extract on the glucose and lipid metabolism disorders in the liver of rats with type 2 diabetes mellitus （T2DM） through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/peroxisome proliferation-activated receptor α/carnitine palmitoyl transferase-1 （PI3K/Akt/PPARα/CPT-1） signaling pathway. MethodThe T2DM model was induced by the high-fat diet combined with the intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin （STZ）. The model rats were randomly divided into a model group， a metformin （0.2 g·kg-1） group， and a Mori Folium water extract （4.0 g·kg-1） group according to blood glucose and body weight. In the 8-week administration， fasting blood glucose was measured at the same time every week. The histomorphological and fat changes in the rat liver were observed by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining and oil red O staining. The levels of total cholesterol （TC）， triglyceride （TG）， low-density lipoprotein cholesterol （LDL-C）， high-density lipoprotein cholesterol （HDL-C）， alanine aminotransferase （ALT）， and aspartate aminotransferase （AST） in the serum were measured by biochemical methods. Western blot （WB） was used to quantitatively detect the protein expression of p-PI3K，PI3K，p-Akt，Akt，PPARα，and CPT-1 in the rat liver. ResultAfter 8-week administration， the blood glucose of rats was higher in the model group than that in the control group （P<0.01）， and lower in the Mori Folium water extract group than that in the model group （P<0.01）. The results of HE staining showed that the liver tissue structure of the control group was complete， and the hepatocytes were arranged radially around the central vein， while the hepatocyte injury in the model group was obvious. Compared with the model group， the Mori Folium water extract group showed improved vacuolar degeneration and no lesions such as small bile duct hyperplasia. Oil red O staining showed that there was no obvious steatosis and necrosis in the hepatocytes of rats in the control group， and no lipid droplets in the hepatocytes were observed， while the model group showed increased lipid droplets. Mori Folium significantly reduced the lipid droplets in the liver. Biochemical analysis showed that the levels of TC， TG， LDL-C， AST， and ALT in the model group were significantly higher than those in control group （P<0.01）. The levels of TC， TG， LDL-C， AST， and ALT in the Mori Folium water extract group were significantly lower than those in the model group （P<0.05，P<0.01）. WB showed that the protein expression of p-PI3K/PI3K， p-Akt/Akt， PPARα， and CPT-1 in the model group were lower than those in the control group （P<0.01）. Mori Folium water extract could increase the protein expression of p-PI3K/PI3K， p-Akt/Akt， PPARα， and CPT-1 （P<0.05 or P<0.01）. ConclusionThe hypoglycemic mechanism of Mori Folium water extract may be related to the regulation of the PI3K/Akt/PPARα/CPT-1 signaling pathway.
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@#AIM:To compare the difference, correlation and consistency of the thinnest corneal thickness(TCT)in myopic patients among Sirius, Oculyzer, anterior segment optical coherence tomography(AS-OCT)and A-mode ultrasound pachymetry, in order to provide a reference for clinical applications.<p>METHODS: TCT was measured in 81 patients(162 eyes)treated between March and April, 2016 using Sirius, Oculyzer, AS-OCT and A-mode ultrasound pachymetry before femtosecond LASIK, and then the values were statistically analyzed.<p>RESULTS: TCT measured by A-mode ultrasound pachymetry, Sirius, Oculyzerand AS-OCT were respectively(537.91±24.12)μm,(538.12±22.64)μm,(538.20±23.74)μm,(527.04±23.11)μm(<i>P</i><0.01). There was a significant difference in TCT measurements among the four measurements. The results of AS-OCT were significantly smaller than those of the other three methods. There was no statistical difference among A-mode ultrasound pachymetry, Sirius and Oculyzer.Pearson correlation coefficient of measured value by the four measurements were more than 0.9(<i>r</i>=0.920, 0.914, 0.951, 0.908, 0.929, 0.919, <i>P</i><0.001), which means there were highly correlation between each other. The 95% <i>CI</i> of the consistency interval of A-mode ultrasound pachymetry and Sirius, A-mode ultrasound pachymetry and Oculyzer, A-mode ultrasound pachymetry and AS-OCT were(-18.77-18.33)μm,(-19.79-19.19)μm,(-3.79-25.53)μm, respectively. The Bland-Altman Plots demonstrates relatively good consistency between A-mode ultrasound pachymetry and the other three methods.<p>CONCLUSION:The TCT measured by AS-OCT were thinner than that measured by A-mode ultrasound pachymetry. There were a high correlation and consistency of the thinnest corneal thickness in myopic patients among Sirius, Oculyzer, AS-OCT and A-mode ultrasound pachymetry. The TCT measured by the four measurements can be referenced but not replaced since the 95% of the consistency intervals were wide.
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With the aging of population and the changes of lifes-tyle, the cardiovascular diseases have become a serious threat to human health. Meanwhile, the cardiovascular death has become the chief death reason during recent epidemiological survey, so the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases have be-come the focus of researches now. Mitochondrial ATP-sensitive potassium channels ( mitoKATP ) is an inward rectifier potassium channel located in the mitochondrial inner membrane, which has the effect of improving the energy metabolism, inhibiting the ap-optosis, relieving the overload of Ca2+ and stabilizing the inter-nal environment. Recently, some researchers have also found that mitoKATP can influence the development of cardiovascular diseases in different ways. This paper summarizes the structure and function of mitoKATP and the relationship between cardiovas-cular diseases and mitoKATP , aiming to clarify its role in the de-velopment of cardiovascular diseases.
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the efficacy of early caffeine treatment in preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A prospective controlled clinical trial was performed. A total of 59 preterm infants with RDS were enrolled and divided into a caffeine group (30 infants) and a control group (29 infants). Caffeine was administered in the caffeine group and control group at the same dosage at 12-24 hours after birth and before extubation respectively. The respirator parameters and the incidence rates of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and apnea were compared between the two groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the control group, the caffeine group had significantly lower peak inspiratory pressure, peak fraction of inspired oxygen, and incidence rate of VAP (p<0.05), as well as significantly shorter intubation time, NCPAP time, and total duration of oxygen supply (p<0.05). In addition, the caffeine group had a significantly longer time to first onset of apnea after extubation (p<0.05) and significantly fewer times of onset of apnea 1-2 days after extubation (p<0.01), as compared with the control group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Early caffeine treatment can reduce the need for assisted ventilation in preterm infants with RDS, help with early extubation and ventilator weaning, reduce the oxygen time in the late stage, reduce the incidence of VAP, and prevent the development of apnea after extubation.</p>