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From the perspective of market classification of Cnidii Fructus, this paper revealed the scientific connotation of evaluating the quality grade of Cnidii Fructus by its appearance traits. Thirty batches of Cnidii Fructus in different grades were selected as the research objects. The canonical correlation analysis and principal component analysis(PCA) were used to explore the measurement values of 15 appearance traits and intrinsic content indexes. The results of correlation analysis showed that except the aspect ratio, the 5 appearance trait indexes(length, width, 1 000-grain weight, broken grain weight proportion, and chroma) and 9 internal content indexes(the content of moisture, total ash, acid insoluble ash, osthole, imperatorin, 5-methoxy psoralen, isopimpinellin, xanthotoxin, and xanthotol) showed significant correlation to varying degrees. In addition, there was a significant positive correlation between the first typical variable U_1 composed of appearance traits and the first typical variable V_1 composed of internal content indexes(CR_1=0.963, P<0.01). The results of PCA showed that the classification results of appearance traits for 30 batches of Cnidii Fructus were consistent with the actual information of the samples. Under the same analysis conditions, 30 batches of Cnidii Fructus were reclassified by 9 groups of internal content indexes, and the analysis results were consistent. From the classification standard of the appearance traits of the system study, the statistical results of 6 appearance traits of Cnidii Fructus showed a correlation with grades. There was a good correlation between the appearance and the internal content of Cnidii Fructus, and the appearance quality effectively predicted the level of the internal content. There is a certain scientific basis for the quality classification of Cnidii Fructus by main appearance traits. Appearance classification can replace quality grading to realize the "quality evaluation through morphological identification" of Cnidii Fructus.
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Fruit , Phenotype , Principal Component Analysis , Population GroupsABSTRACT
Objectives: To study the association between metals mixture exposure and DNA oxidative damage using mixture analysis methods, and to explore the most significant exposure factors that cause DNA oxidative damage. Methods: Workers from steel enterprises were recruited in Shandong Province. Urinary metals were measured by using the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry method. The level of urinary 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) was determined by using the ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method. Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR), elastic net regression and quantile g-computation regression were used to analyze the association between urinary metals and urinary 8-OHdG. Results: A total of 768 subjects aged (36.15±7.40) years old were included in the study. BKMR, elastic net regression and quantile g-computation all revealed an overall positive association between the mixture concentration and increased urinary 8-OHdG. The quantile g-computation results showed that with a 25% increase in metal mixtures, the urinary 8-OHdG level increased by 77.60%. The elastic net regression showed that with a 25% increase in exposure risk score, the urinary 8-OHdG level increased by 26%. The BKMR summarized the contribution of individual exposures to the response, and selenium, zinc, and nickel were significant contributors to the urinary 8-OHdG elevation. Conclusion: Exposure to mixed metals causes elevated levels of DNA oxidative damage, and selenium, zinc, and nickel are significant exposure factors.
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Humans , Adult , Nickel/toxicity , Selenium , Bayes Theorem , Metals/toxicity , 8-Hydroxy-2'-Deoxyguanosine , Oxidative Stress/physiology , Zinc , DNA DamageABSTRACT
Objective: To understand the performance of 2019-nCoV nucleic acid detection in screening of contacts of COVID-19 cases in same flights and provide evidence for the effective screening of persons at high risk for the infection in domestic flights. Methods: The information of passengers who took same domestic flights with COVID-19 cases in China from April 1, 2020 to April 30, 2022 were retrospectively collected,and χ2 test was used to analyze positive nucleic acid detection rates in the passengers in different times before the onsets of the index cases, in different seat rows and in epidemic periods of different 2019-nCoV variants. Results: During the study period, a total of 433 index cases were identified among 23 548 passengers in 370 flights. Subsequently, 72 positive cases of 2019-nCoV nucleic acid were detected in the passengers, in whom 57 were accompanying persons of the index cases. Further analysis of the another 15 passengers who tested positive for the nucleic acid showed that 86.67% of them had onsets or positive detections within 3 days after the diagnosis of the index cases, and the boarding times were all within 4 days before the onsets of the index cases. The positive detection rate in the passengers who seated in first three rows before and after the index cases was 0.15% (95%CI: 0.08%-0.27%), significantly higher than in the passengers in other rows (0.04%, 95%CI: 0.02%-0.10%, P=0.007),and there was no significant difference in the positive detection rate among the passengers in each of the 3 rows before and after the index cases (P=0.577). No significant differences were found in the positive detection rate in the passengers, except the accompanying persons, among the epidemics caused by different 2019-nCoV variants (P=0.565). During the Omicron epidemic period, all the positive detections in the passengers, except the accompanying persons, were within 3 days before the onset of the index cases. Conclusions: The screening test of 2019-nCoV nucleic acid can be conducted in the passengers took the same flights within 4 days before the onsets of the index cases on board. Passengers who seated within 3 rows from the index cases can considered as the close contacts at high risk for 2019-nCoV, for whom screening should be conducted first and special managements are needed. The passengers in other rows can be classified as general risk persons for screening and management.
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Humans , COVID-19 , Retrospective Studies , SARS-CoV-2 , China , Nucleic AcidsABSTRACT
As China is actively participating in global health governance in multiple dimensions at multiple levels, Chinese education on global health requires optimizing the curriculum system, strengthening the discipline construction, and improving students' literacy of global health. This study compared two postgraduate courses on global health, Global Health Study: Principles and Practice and Global Health Leadership in Practice, in terms of teaching objectives, course contents, teaching methods, and teaching evaluation. We analyzed the advantages and limitations in the current global heath curriculum, and explored course construction and improvement. We hope to provide a reference for improving the curriculum, teaching, and talent cultivation in the field of global health.
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In this paper, through consulting relevant records in materia medica, medical and prescription books, and combining with modern literature, the name, origin, producing area, collection and processing of Gentianae Macrophyllae Radix in famous classical formulas from The Catalogue of Ancient Famous Classical Formulas (The First Batch) was systematically sorted out and textual research was carried out, in order to provide a basis for the development of the famous classical formulas containing Gentianae macrophyllae Radix. After textual research, it was found that Gentianae Macrophyllae Radix was the rectification of name in the past dynasties. In addition, there were other names such as Qinjiao, Qingua and Qinzhua. Gentiana macrophylla, G. straminea, G. dahurica and G. siphonantha were the main origin of this herb in ancient literature. Among them, G. macrophylla is the mainstream. In the Southern and Northern dynasties, G. straminea and G. macrophylla produced in northern Sichuan were recommended as the best. In the early Tang dynasty, G. macrophylla from the Liupan Mountain area at the border of Shanxi and Gansu provinces was the mainstream. During the Northern Song dynasty, G. siphonantha from Linxia and Qilian Mountain of Gansu province and G. macrophylla from eastern Shaanxi province were two new producing areas. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the abundant base and production areas of Gentianae Macrophyllae Radix were gradually formed. In the past dynasties, harvesting was carried out in spring and autumn, and stored mainly by aeration drying or shade drying treatment. The processing methods are mainly the raw products after the net selection, cutting and drying, in addition to the frying, processing with wine and milk. G. macrophylla is recommended as the first choice for the herbal medicine involved in the famous classical formulas. Among them, wild products produced in Gansu and Shaanxi are the best, and raw products are recommended to be used. At the same time, it is suggested that G. siphonantha should be added to the subsequent edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia as one of origins of Gentianae Macrophyllae Radix.
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Objective:To investigate academic publications of students of the full-time master of public health (professional degree, MPH) program and explore their research capacity. Methods:A total of 160 students of the full-time MPH program admitted from 2010 through 2014 were included in the study. Their academic publications were retrieved for analysis. Results:The average number of academic publications was 1.35. Moreover, 10.2% of the students had academic publications in Chinese journals, and 12.5% had publications in SCI-indexed English journals. Type of disciplines, province they were from, and economic status of their family were determined to be significantly associated with academic publications in SCI-indexed journals. Conclusion:Students of the full-time MPH program have research capacity; however, they have achieved relatively few academic publications of high quality. Establishment of a teaching and training program is warranted in both practice and research for students in full-time MPH programs in universities.
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italic>Aconitum pendulum is a Tibetan medicine that is rich in bioactive compounds such as aconitine-type C19-diterpenoid alkaloids. To investigate the key enzymes in the aconitine biosynthesis pathway, roots, leaves and flowers of Aconitum pendulum were subjected to a high-throughput transcriptomic sequencing analysis by Illumina HiSeqTM2000. Trinity de novo assembly yielded 47 264 unigenes with an average length of 1 140 bp and N50 of 1 678 bp, of which 30 231 unigenes (63.96%) were annotated. In the KEGG database, 542 unigenes were implicated in 17 secondary metabolic pathways; the analysis showed that 44 genes encoded 20 key enzymes in the diterpene skeleton of aconitine biosynthesis and 12 BAHD acyltransferase genes were related to the acetylation modification, with differential expression among three organs. For example, ApTPS8 was the only committed enzyme in the upstream aconitine biosynthetic pathway. The high expression level of ApTPS8 in root indicated that it is the main tissue for the production of precursors of diterpene alkaloids. Consistent with the accumulation of aconitine, we propose that ApBAHD1/2/8 is involved in the biosynthesis of 2-hydroxyaconitine, dehydrated 14-benzoylaconitine, 8-O-methyl-14-benzoylaconine, benzoyldeoxyaconitine and benzoylaconitine, and ApBAHD10 is involved in the biosynthesis of acontine, lucidusculine, 14-O-acetylneoline and 14-O-acetylvirescenin. Comparative transcriptome analysis of A. pendulum and A. carmichaeli indicates significant gene loss in the family of diterpene synthases and acyltransferases in A. pendulum, which is in accordance with the significantly fewer type and quantity of aconitine compounds in this species. Therefore, A. pendulum has proved to be an ideal material for the study of the aconitine biosynthesis pathway. This work provides basic scientific data for further study of aconitine biosynthesis, the discussion of molecular mechanisms of toxicity, and the synthesis of genuine medicinal materials.
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The coagulation VIII factor (FVIII) contains eight pairs of disulfide bonds, which are involved in maintaining its structure and function. It has been demonstrated that the disulfide bond between Cys1899/Cys1903 of the A3 domain in the light chain impedes secretion. In our previous work, an engineered inter-chain disulfide in the B domain-deleted FVIII (BDD-FVIII) promoted heterodimer assembly and secretion of separately expressed heavy and light chains. In this study, we constructed two BDD-FVIII variants, one of which contains an engineered inter-chain disulfide bond (F8C) between Met662 > Cys and Asp1828 > Cys mutations and another contains an endogenous A3 domain with a disrupted disulfide bond from F8C (F8CG) by replacement of Cys1899 and Cys1903 with Gly in F8C. We explored their function and secretion. By transducing F8C and F8CG into HEK293 and COS-7 cells, the formation of disulfide bonds and the secretion and coagulation activity of the two variants in the culture media and their binding affinity for von Willebrand factor (vWF) could be observed. The results show that variants F8C and F8CG are mainly the disulfide bonded heavy and light chain dimer, while the wild type BDD-FVIII (F8) is dominated by the easily dissociated heavy and light chain dimer. The secretion and activity of F8C was significantly higher than that of F8, while the secretion and activity of F8CG was significantly higher than that of F8C. The vWF binding of the two variants is similar to F8. This indicates that the BDD-FVIII variant F8CG may be attractive molecule for protein replacement and as a transgene in gene-therapy strategies. These findings are encouraging for future studies targeting disulfide bond elimination for further enhancement of FVIII secretion.
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Objective To summarize the clinical features and imaging findings of six coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, so as to provide evidences for early diagnosis and clinical intervention. Methods Six COVID-19 patients with positive severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) were enrolled from the Seventh People's Hospital of Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from Jan. 1 to Feb. 22, 2020. The epidemiological history, clinical manifestations, imaging data and laboratory indicators were retrospectively analyzed. Results All six patients had a clear travel or residence history in Wuhan. Four patients had fever, three had cough, two had upper respiratory tract symptoms such as runny nose and sore throat, and two had systemic symptoms such as headache and muscle ache. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed that all the six patients had abnormal manifestations in bilateral lungs, and the lower lung lesions were more common than the upper lung lesions. The main manifestations were multiple ground-glass opacities, consolidation shadows, crazy paving sign and different degrees of fibrosis in lateral field of bilateral lungs. Chest CT examination later after onset showed lung consolidation and severe fibrosis. Conclusion The imaging of COVID-19 has special characteristics. Combined with the epidemiological history, clinical manifestations and the detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid, COVID-19 can be effectively diagnosed in the early stage.
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BACKGROUND@#Certain hemophilia patients are unable to cooperate with or afford magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations. The purpose of our study was to explore the value of multislice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) in evaluating hemophilic arthropathy (HA).@*METHODS@#Thirty-eight patients with 73 joints of HA were consecutively selected from January 2016 to May 2018 for this prospective study. All 73 joints were examined by X-ray, CT, and MRI within 2 days. The MRI scores of the joints were determined by the International Prophylaxis Study Group (IPSG) standard. The CT findings were quantified according to the IPSG standard, except for cartilage injury, which was quantified by joint space narrowing using the X-ray Pettersson score. The CT and MRI scores were compared by the paired Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The correlations between the CT score of joint space narrowing and MRI score of cartilage injury and the total CT and MRI scores were analyzed by Spearman rank correlation. The kappa test was used to compare the consistency of CT and MRI scores.@*RESULTS@#MRI was superior to CT based on the scores for small amount of effusion (P 0.05), and there was a high degree of consistency between the two scores (kappa > 0.81). The consistency between the Pettersson scores of joint space narrowing on CT and the IPSG scores of cartilage injury on MRI was high (kappa = 0. 774, P < 0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#The image scores of MSCT are generally consistent with MRI except for mild synovitis, which can be used as an alternative for the evaluation of HA.
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Objective: To analyze the effects of different doses of flurbiprofen and other analgesic drugs on the postoperative analgesia in the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) . Methods: 98 patients with jaw cysts or multiple impact teeth were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into 3 groups by the drug scheme: flurbiprofen 250 mg + 0. 9% NS to 100 ml (group Ⅰ, n =32), sulfentanil 100 μg + azasetron 20 mg + 0. 9% NS to 100 ml (group Ⅱ, n = 34), flurbiprofen 200 mg + sulfentanil 50 μg + azasetron 20 mg + 0. 9% NS to 100 ml (group Ⅲ, n = 32) . Analgesic effects were evaluated at 3 h, 1 d and 2 d after surgery with Wong-Baker expression scale and numeric rating scale (NRS) . Questionnaire survey was also used to evaluate degree of satisfaction on analgesia. Results: Analgesia effective rate of group Ⅰ, Ⅱ and Ⅲ was 40. 62%, 67. 65% and 68. 75% respectively (P <0. 05) . Degree of satisfaction on analgesia of group Ⅰ, Ⅱ and Ⅲ was 71. 87%, 58. 82% and 93. 75% respectively (P < 0. 05) .Conclusion: Flurbiprofen combined with sulfentanil has good analgesic effects and low side effects in the maxillofacial surgery of jaw cysts and multiple impact teeth.
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@#【Objective】To investigate whether bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells(BMSC)over-expressing FoxM1genecanattenuatelipopolysaccharide(LPS)-inducedapoptosisofalveolarepithelialcells,andexploreitspossi⁃ blemechanism.【Methods】SDratBMSCwereisolatedandculturedbywholebonemarrowadherencemethod.FoxM1 genewasoverexpressedinBMSCbylentiviraltransfection.TheexpressionofthetargetgeneFoxM1wasverifiedbyWestern blot.ApoptosisofA549cellswasmeasuredbyTUNELandflowcytometry.Andthemulti-factorlevelofsupernatantin BMSC-A549co-culturesystemwasdetectedbyMilliplexmethod.【Results】TUNELandflowcytometryconfirmedthat theapoptosisrateofA549inducedbyLPSdecreasedafterco-culturewithBMSCoverexpressingFoxM1,andthediffer⁃ encewasstatisticallysignificant(P <0.05).MilliplexassayshowedthatthelevelsofIL-13,IL-21,IL-23,MIP-1a, MIP-1bandinBMSCoverexpressing FoxM1 geneandA549co-culturesystemweresignificantlyincreased,whilethe MIP-3alevelissignificantlyreduced.【Conclusion】BMSCoverexpressingFoxM1genecanattenuateLPS-inducedapop⁃ tosisofalveolarepithelialcells.BMSCmayplayananti-apoptoticrolebychangingthelevelsofinflammation-related cytokinesreleasedbyA549cells.
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Objective To compare the effects of three different methods for extracting short RNA-DNA hybrids, including the TRI reagent method , the phenol saturated with water method and the phenol saturated with Tris buffer method in order to facilitate studies on the biological function of RNA-DNA hybrids .Methods Short RNA fragments modifiedwith FAM at the 5′end and those modified with Cy 5 at the 5′end were synthesized .RNA and DNA fragments were annealed to form RNA-DNA hybrids.They were extracted with the above-mentioned 3 methods respectively .The extracted products were analyzed with electrophoresis .Results and Conclusion Short RNA-DNA hybrids can be extracted by the phenol saturated with water method and by the phenol saturated with Tris buffer method .The results can help study the function of short RNA-DNA hybrids .
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AIM:To investigate the protective effect of basic fibroblast growth factor(bFGF)on the heart of mice with myocardial infarction and its mechanism.METHODS:The model of myocardial infarction was established by the ligation of left anterior descending artery of C57/B6 mice(8~12 weeks old)after lateral thoracotomy.The mice were divided into sham operation group ,myocardial infarction group and bFGF administration group.bFGF at 0.5μg was intra-peritoneally injected on alternate days after myocardial infarction for 7 d.Cardiac Doppler ultrasonography was used to de-tect cardiac function after myocardial infarction for 28 d,and left ventricular end-diastolic diameter ,left ventricular end-systolic diameter,left ventricular ejection fraction and left ventricular shortening fraction(LVFS)were used to evaluate cardiac function.After myocardial infarction for 28 d,the mice were sacrificed and the hearts were collected for preparing pathological sections.The degrees of myocardial fibrosis and angiogenesis in the myocardial infarction area were observed. Western blot was used to detect the indicators of angiogenesis.RESULTS:The results of Masson staining showed that bF-GF administration significantly reduced myocardial fibrosis at 28 d after myocardial infarction.Cardiac ultrasound data showed that cardiac functions in myocardial infarction group were poorer than those in sham group ,and bFGF administration significantly improved cardiac functions.Immunofluorescence staining showed that neovascularization in myocardial infarc -tion area of bFGF administration group was more than that in myocardial infarction group.The results of Western blot showed that bFGF activated AKT/HIF-1α/VEGF signaling pathway.CONCLUSION:Intraperitoneal injection of bFGF reduces myocardial fibrosis and improves cardiac function in myocardial infarction mice.bFGF may promote angiogenesis by activating AKT/HIF-1α/VEGF signaling pathway.
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Objective To understand the grade point average (GPA) of degree courses and its in-fluence factors in Master postgraduates in China. Method A cross-sectional study was carried out to collect the data on GPA and the student information in the management system of postgraduates who graduated from Graduate School of Public Health from 2013 to 2015. SPSS 20.0 was used to describe the basic situa-tion, and the data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation analysis and multivariate analysis of variance. Results During 3-year, totally 213 Master students were graduated with the average GPA of (3.19±0.30). The female had higher GPA than the male subjects [(3.24±0.29) vs. (3.05±0.29), F=17.11, P=0.000], those enrolled by the recommendation than those enrolled by the graduate entry examinations [(3.36±0.25) vs. (3.11±0.28), F=39.36, P=0.000], those graduated from the university of 985 were better than the graduate students from other universities [(3.30±0.29) vs. (3.11±0.28), F=22.14, P=0.000], those with the academic degree than those with the professional degree [(3.31±0.25) vs. (2.99±0.27), F=72.38, P=0.000], and there was a negative relationship between the total credits and GPA of degree courses (r=-0.48, P=0.000). Further, sex, enrollment way, undergraduate university, and total credits of degree courses were independent influence factors under multivariate analysis of variance (all P<0.05). Conclusion These master graduates in medicine have better GPA of degree courses and it can be statistically related to sex, enrollment way, undergraduate university, and total credits of degree courses. Some measures should be developed to enroll more students from better university, improve the master programs, and raise the quality of graduate education management.
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Objective To assess the therapeutic efficacy and prognostic factors in elderly patients with stage Ⅲ non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT).Methods A retrospective analysis of 124 stage Ⅲ NSCLC patients aged 70 or over who had received treatment with 3DCRT was conducted retrospectively in this study.There were 99 male and 25 female patients,with a median age of 74 years(range:70-84).The median dose was 60 Gy(range 50-72 Gy).Eighty-three patients were treated with radiotherapy alone,27 with sequential and 14 with concurrent radiochemotherapy.Results The end date of follow-up was August 30,2013.After 3DCRT,the 1-,3-and 5-year overall survival (OS) were 61.1%,23.8% and13.2 %,respectively,and the median survival time was 18 months.Univariate analysis revealed that gender,obstructive pneumonia,dosage,method of therapy and immediate effect were related to OS(x2 =3.957,6.398,7.147,12.307 and 11.035,respectively;P=0.047,0.011,0.008,0.002 and 0.001,respectively).Multi-variable analysis indicated that age,gender,obstructive pneumonia,dosage and method of therapy were independent prognostic factors for OS.The OS time was longer inpatients who were female,aged over 75,with no obstructive pneumonia or dosage≥ 60 Gy.Compared with radiotherapy alone,sequential radiochemotherapy increased OS while concurrent radiochemotherapy decreased OS.Conclusions Sex,age,obstructive pneumonia and dosage affect the survival of elderly stage Ⅲ NSCLC patients treated with three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy.Concurrent radiochemotherapy should be considered with caution
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Objective To investigate the effect of Abro1 on acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS)/acute lung injury(ALI)in mice.Methods Abro1 knock-out(KO)mice and wild type(WT)mice were both randomly divided into two groups for intratracheal instillation of lipopolysaccharide(LPS)or normal saline.At 6 or 24 hours after treatment, the pathological changes in lung tissue were observed by HE staining.At 6 hours after treatment,inflammatory immune cells and cytokines production(IL-6)in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were examined.Myeloperoxidase(MPO)and the mRNA level of IL-6 in the lung tissue were compared.Results At 24 hours after treatment, compared with WT mice treated with LPS,Abro1 KO mice showed a significantly lower lung injury score.At 6 hours after treatment,Abro1 depletion resulted in reduced levels of inflammatory immune cell infiltration and cytokines production(IL-6)in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(P<0.05).In addition,the MPO content and the mRNA level of IL-6 in the lung tissue were much lower than those in WT mice treated with LPS for 6 hours(P<0.05).Conclusion Abro1 deficiency can attenuate LPS-induced ARDS/ALI.
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The paper analyzes the current problems of medical students'humanistic quality and the causes,points out the necessity of strengthening the humanistic quality of medical students,and puts forward the countermeasures to be taken by libraries of medical colleges in the humanistic quality education for college students,including strengthening the construction of medical humanistic resources,doing well of medical humanistic reading guide and entrance education for new students,and strengthening reading promotion activities,etc.
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Ischemic stroke leads to high potentiality of mortality and disability.The current treatment for ischemic stroke is mainly focused on intravenous thrombolytic therapy.However,ischemia/reperfusion induces neuronal damage,which significantly influences the outcome of patients with ischemic stroke,and the exact mechanism implicated in ischemia/reperfusion injury remains unclear,although evidence shows that oxidative stress is likely to be involved.Betulinic acid is mainly known for its anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory activities.Our previous study showed that betulinic acid could decrease the reactive oxygen species (ROS) production by regulating the expression of NADPH oxidase.Thus,we hypothesized that betulinic acid may protect against brain ischemic injury in the animal model of stroke.Focal cerebral ischemia was achieved by using the standard intraluminal occlusion method and reperfusion enabled after 2 h ischemia.Neurological deficits were scored.Infarct size was determined with 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride monohydrate (TTC) staining and the mRNA expression of NADPH oxidase 4 (NOX4) was determined by RT-PCR in infarct tissue.ROS generation and apoptosis in ischemic tissue were analyzed by measuring the oxidative conversion of cell permeable 2',7'-dichloro-fluorescein diacetate (DCF-DA) to fluorescent dichlorofluorescein (DCF) in fluorescence microplate reader and TUNEL assay,respectively.In Kunming mice,2 h of middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion followed by 24 or 72 h of reperfusion led to an enhanced NOX4 expression in the ischemic hemisphere.This was associated with elevated levels of ROS generation and neuronal apoptosis.Pre-treatment with betulinic acid (50 mg/kg/day for 7 days via gavage) prior to MCA occlusion prevented the ischemia/reperfusion-induced up-regulation of NOX4 and ROS production.In addition,treatment with betulinic acid could markedly blunt the ischemia/reperfusion-induced neuronal apoptosis.Finally,betulinic acid reduced infarct volume and ameliorated the neurological deficit in this stroke mouse model.Our results suggest that betulinic acid protects against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in mice and the down-regulation of NOX4 may represent a mechanism contributing to this effect.
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Objective To evaluate the efficacy of three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) and prognostic factors for stage Ⅲ non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).Methods From 2000 to 2010,474 patients with stage Ⅲ NSCLC undergoing 3DCRT were enrolled as subjects.Those patients,consisting of 382 males and 92 females,had a median age of 63 years.In those patients,211 had stage ⅢA NSCLC and 263 had stage ⅢB NSCLC;165 were treated with radiotherapy alone and 309 with chemoradiotherapy;55 were treated with conventional radiotherapy plus 3DCRT,340 with 3DCRT,and 79 with intensity-modulated radiotherapy;the median equivalent dose was 60 Gy (44-77 Gy).The Kaplan-Meier method,log-rank test,and Cox model were used for survival rate calculation,univariate analysis,and multivariate analysis,respectively.Results The follow-up rate was 96.6%.In all patients,the 1-,3-,and 5-year overall survival rates were 63.0%,24.9%,and 17.8%,respectively;the median survival time was 18 months.The univariate analysis showed that sex,age,immediate response,radiotherapy method,fractionation scheme,chemotherapy,and radiation pneumonitis (RP) were prognostic factors (P=0.004,0.001,0.000,0.007,0.004,0.009,0.049).The multivariate analysis showed that sex,age,immediate response,radiotherapy method,and RP were independent prognostic factors (P=0.006,0.000,0.000,0.003,0.048).Patients with radiation doses of 60-66 Gy had the best prognosis of all.Conclusions In patients with stage Ⅲ NSCLC undergoing 3DCRT,female patients,patients at a young age,patients with satisfactory immediate response,patients treated with full-course 3DCRT,and patients with grade 0-1 RP have better prognosis than others.3DCRT combined with chemotherapy improves survival in patients.A radiation dose of 60-66 Gy is recommended.