Genome-wide identification of bZIP family genes and screening of candidate AarbZIPs involved in terpenoid biosynthesis in Artemisia argyi / 中国中药杂志

Artemisia argyi is an important medicinal and economic plant in China, with the effects of warming channels, dispersing cold, and relieving pain, inflammation, and allergy. The essential oil of this plant is rich in volatile terpenoids and widely used in moxi-bustion and healthcare products, with huge market potential. The bZIP transcription factors compose a large family in plants and are involved in the regulation of plant growth and development, stress response, and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites such as terpenoids. However, little is known about the bZIPs and their roles in A. argyi. In this study, the bZIP transcription factors in the genome of A. argyi were systematically identified, and their physicochemical properties, phylogenetic relationship, conserved motifs, and promoter-binding elements were analyzed. Candidate AarbZIP genes involved in terpenoid biosynthesis were screened out. The results showed that a total of 156 AarbZIP transcription factors were identified at the genomic level, with the lengths of 99-618 aa, the molecular weights of 11.7-67.8 kDa, and the theoretical isoelectric points of 4.56-10.16. According to the classification of bZIPs in Arabidopsis thaliana, the 156 AarbZIPs were classified into 12 subfamilies, and the members in the same subfamily had similar conserved motifs. The cis-acting elements of promoters showed that AarbZIP genes were possibly involved in light and hormonal pathways. Five AarbZIP genes that may be involved in the regulation of terpenoid biosynthesis were screened out by homologous alignment and phylogenetic analysis. The qRT-PCR results showed that the expression levels of the five AarbZIP genes varied significantly in different tissues of A. argyi. Specifically, AarbZIP29 and AarbZIP55 were highly expressed in the leaves and AarbZIP81, AarbZIP130, and AarbZIP150 in the flower buds. This study lays a foundation for the functional study of bZIP genes and their regulatory roles in the terpenoid biosynthesis in A. argyi.

Comparison of the diagnostic effect on different machine learning predictive model of imipenem sensitivity of Klebsiella pneumoniae based on MALDI-TOF MS / 中华检验医学杂志

Objective:Machine learning is not only an important branch of artificial intelligence, but also supporting technologies for bioinformatics analysis. In the presence work, four machine-learning-predictive model for the drug-sensitivity of Klebsiella pneumoniae to imipenem were established based on matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and the diagnostic effect of these methods was exmained. Methods:A retrospective study was performed and the data of MALDI-TOF-MS and imipenem sensitivity of a total number of 684 cases Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from clinical specimens in the laboratory of microbiology department of Tianjin Haihe Hospital from 2019 January to 2020 December were collected. The mass spectrometry and imipenem sensitivity data of 70 cases identified as imipenem-sensitive and 70 resistant cases were simple randomly selected to establish the training set model; whereas 30 cases of sensitive and 30 cases of resistant cases were randomly selected to establish the test set model. Mass spectral peak data were subjected to Orthogonal Partial least squares Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA). The training set data model was established by machine learning least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) algorithm, Logistic Regression (LR) algorithm, Support vector machines (SVM) algorithm, neural network (NN) algorithm. The area under the curve (AUC) and confusion matrix of training set and test set model were calculated and selected by Grid search and 10-fold Cross-validation respectively, the accuracy of the prediction model was verified by test set confusion matrix. Results:The R2Y and Q2 of OPLS-DA were 0.546 3 and 0.017 8. The AUC of the best training set and test set models were 1.000 0 and 0.858 1, 1.000 0 and 0.820 1, 0.940 8 and 0.756 1, 1.000 0 and 0.697 2 evaluated by LASSO, LR, SVM and NN model respectively. The accuracy of the model were 99% (69/70), 100% (70/70), 91% (64/70) and 100% (70/70) for prediction of drug resistance, 100% (70/70), 100% (70/70), 90% (63/70) and 100% (70/70) for drug sensitivity prediction, the correct rate were 99% (139/140), 100% (140/140), 91% (127/140) and 100% (140/140) in training set, the test set showed that the accuracy were 93% (28/30), 87% (26/30), 60% (18/30) and 60% (18/30) for prediction of drug resistance, 100% (30/30), 80% (24/30), 93% (28/30) and 67% (20/30) for drug sensitivity prediction, the correct rate were 97% (58/60), 83% (50/60), 77% (46/60) and 63% (38/60) by LASSO, LR, SVM and NN model respectively.Conclusion:The LASSO prediction model of Klebsiella pneumoniae sensitivity to imipenem established in this study has a high accuracy rate and has potential clinical decision support ability.

Chronic Injury of Mice Bone Marrow Multipotent Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells Induced by Ionizing Radiation / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the chronic injury and its possible mechanism of ionizing radiation on multipotent hematopoietic progenitor cells (MPPs) by determining the related indicators of MPPs in bone marrow of mice post-radiation.@*METHODS@#Sixteen C57BL/6 adult mice were randomly divided into normal control and irradiation groups, 8 mice in each group. The mice in irradiation group were exposed to 6 Gy X-ray. The proportion of bone marrow MPPs, their apoptosis and proliferation 2 months after irradiation were detected by flow cytometry. Mitochondrial activity and levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in each MPPs population were detected by Mitotracker Red and DCFDA probes, and the senescent state of MPPs in the bone marrow was analyzed.@*RESULTS@#Ionizing radiation could reduce the proportion of MPPs in mouse bone marrow. The proportions and numbers of MPP1, MPP3 and MPP4 in the bone marrow were significantly decreased after whole-body irradiation with 6 Gy X-ray (P<0.05). In addition, radiation significantly reduced the colony-forming capacity of MPPs in bone marrow (P<0.05), the proportions of apoptotic cells in the MPP1 and MPP4 cell populations increased significantly in the bone marrow (P<0.05). The activity of mitochondria was significantly reduced in the bone marrow MPP2, MPP3 and MPP4 cell populations compared with that of the control group (P<0.05). It was also found that the radiation could significantly increase the ROS levels of MPPs in bone marrow, and the content of ROS in the MPP2, MPP3 and MPP4 cell population of the bone marrow was significantly increased(P<0.05). The senescent cells ratios of MPP1, MPP3 and MPP4 cells in the bone marrow after irradiation were significantly higher than those in the control group (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Ionizing radiation can cause chronic MPPs damage in mice, which is closely associated with persistent oxidative stress, cells apoptosis, and cellular senescence.

Sex differences in the morphology of the distal humerus in Ming and Qing Dynasties population in North China / 解剖学报

Objective To explore the feasibility and accuracy of sex determination by morphology of the distal humerus in North China population. Methods Observing sexually dimorphic differences of olecranon fossa shape, trochlear symmetry, trochlear constriction and angle of medial epicondyle. Each characteristic was divided into three categories: male, unknown and female. The morphological characteristics of the humerus of 70 individuals (35 males and 35 females) from the Ming and Qing Dynasties in North China were counted to compare the occurrence rate of different categories of distal humeral morphology and the accuracy rate of sex determination. Results There were statistically significant differences in the performance of the four traits of the distal humerus between males and females. The accuracy rate of angle of medial epicondyle was the highest at 76%, while the lowest accuracy rate of trochlear constriction was only 52%. The accuracy of the combined four traits was higher than the single ones, with an accuracy rate of 76% (83% for males and 68% for females). Conclusion Distal humerus morphology can be used to determine sex when skulls and pelvis are absent.

Analysis on incidence of occupational diseases in Guangzhou from 2010 to 2020 / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

Objective: To analyze the incidence characteristics of occupational diseases in Guangzhou from 2010 to 2020, provide scientific basis for formulating occupational disease prevention and control policies. Methods: In January 2021, based on the data of occupational diseases in Guangzhou reported in the Information Monitoring System of Occupational Diseases and Occupational Health, descriptive epidemiological method was used to analyze the types and characteristics of occupational diseases in Guangzhou from 2010 to 2020. Results: A total of 1341 cases of 38 kinds of occupational diseases in 9 categories were reported in the past 11 years. The incidence of occupational pneumoconiosis, occupational otolaryngology and oral diseases and occupational chemical poisoning ranked the top three, accounting for 38.1% (511/1341) , 30.5% (409/1341) and 16.2% (217/1341) of the total cases respectively. The cases of pneumoconiosis in welders and silicosis accounted for 47.7% (244/511) and 34.4% (176/511) of the cases of occupational pneumoconiosis respectively. The cases of noise deafness accounted for 99.8% (408/409) of occupational otorhinolaryngology oral diseases. Acute occupational chemical poisoning cases accounted for 26.7% (58/217) of the occupational chemical poisoning cases, in which dichloroethane poisoning cases ranked the first, accounting for 79.3% (46/58) . Chronic occupational chemical poisoning cases accounted for 73.3% (159/217) of the occupational poisoning cases, in which benzene and lead poisoning cases ranked the top two, accounting for 79.2% (126/159) and 17.6% (28/159) respectively. Conclusion: Pneumoconiosis, silicosis, noise deafness, benzene poisoning, lead poisoning, dichloroethane poisoning should be supervised and managed as key occupational diseases in Guangzhou.

Analysis on the diagnosis of suspected occupational diseases in Guangzhou from 2014 to 2019 / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

Objective: To understand the diagnosis of suspected occupational diseases reported in Guangzhou from 2014 to 2019, so as to provide theoretical basis and technical support for the supervision of suspected occupational disease reports. Methods: By cluster sampling, the suspected occupational disease report card, occupational disease report card and pneumoconiosis report card reported by Guangzhou from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2019 in the occupational disease and occupational health information monitoring system were collected for matching analysis to understand the diagnosis of suspected occupational disease patients. Results: From 2014 to 2019, a total of 1426 suspected occupational cases in 7 categories and 32 species were reported in Guangzhou. The average number of reported cases per year was about 240. The main diseases of suspected occupational diseases were suspected occupational noise deafness (68.44%, 976/1426) , suspected occupational chronic benzene poisoning (16.48%, 235/1426) , suspected occupational other pneumoconiosis (4.84%, 69/1426) , suspected occupational silicosis (3.23%, 46/1426) and suspected occupational welder pneumoconiosis (1.82%, 26/1426) . The diagnostic rate required to enter the occupational disease diagnostic program is 36.61% (522/1426) , and the diagnostic rate is 59.20% (309/522) . In 2019, the diagnosis rate of suspected occupational diseases was the lowest (23.92%, 61/255) , Huadu District was the lowest (8.33%, 9/108) , suspected occupational pneumoconiosis was the lowest (28.03%, 44/157) , the diagnosis rate of suspected occupational diseases reported by the Centers for Disease control and prevention was the lowest (17.43%, 19/109) , and the diagnosis rate of suspected occupational diseases reported by outpatient treatment was the lowest (22.22%, 2/9) . The suspected occupational diseases reported by institutions outside Guangzhou did not enter the occupational disease diagnosis procedure. Suspected occupational skin diseases, suspected occupational diseases caused by physical factors and suspected occupational tumors were diagnosed, and the diagnosis rate of occupational disease prevention and control institutions was the highest (94.87%, 37/39) . Conclusion: The main types of suspected occupational diseases reported during these six years are noise deafness, chronic benzene poisoning and pneumoconiosis. The overall diagnosis rate and diagnosis rate of suspected occupational diseases are not high. It is suggested to improve the network direct reporting system of suspected occupational diseases and strengthen the follow-up management and supervision of suspected occupational diseases.

Optimization and screening of carrier for solid dispersion of olaparib based on the solubility parameter and differential scanning calorimetry / 药学学报

Solid dispersion, a dispersion system in which drug molecules are highly dispersed in carrier materials, has been commonly used to improve the solubility and dissolution rate of poorly soluble drugs. The miscibility between drug and carrier is crucial to improve the dissolution performance and stability of solid dispersion. Therefore, the selection of carrier types and the optimization of drug loading are very important. In the current study, the solubility parameter method and Flory-Huggins theory were used to predict the miscibility between olaparib (OLP) and different carriers (VA64, Soluplus, Plasdone S630 and Kollidon K29/32). Besides, the carrier material with good miscibility was experimentally screened by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The optimum of drug-carrier ratio was further performed based on the miscibility phase diagram of drug and carrier. Theoretical calculation and experimental evaluation showed that the miscibility of OLP and VA64 was the best, and the drug loading of 30% could meet the requirements of large drug loading and physical stability. Polarizing light microscope, X-ray powder diffraction, DSC and laser confocal Raman spectroscopy exhibited that OLP was amorphous form in the solid dispersion system. Powder dissolution test demonstrated that the solid dispersion showed significantly enhanced dissolution rate in comparison to crystalline OLP. In this study, theoretical calculation and experimental evaluation were used to screen the types of carriers and optimize the drug loading, which provides an efficient strategy for the selection of carrier and the amount used in solid dispersion.

Ubiquitinome Profiling Reveals the Landscape of Ubiquitination Regulation in Rice Young Panicles / 基因组蛋白质组与生物信息学报·英文版

Ubiquitination, an essential post-transcriptional modification (PTM), plays a vital role in nearly every biological process, including development and growth. Despite its functions in plant reproductive development, its targets in rice panicles remain unclear. In this study, we used proteome-wide profiling of lysine ubiquitination in rice (O. sativa ssp. indica) young panicles. We created the largest ubiquitinome dataset in rice to date, identifying 1638 lysine ubiquitination sites on 916 unique proteins. We detected three conserved ubiquitination motifs, noting that acidic glutamic acid (E) and aspartic acid (D) were most frequently present around ubiquitinated lysine. Enrichment analysis of Gene Ontology (GO) annotations and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways of these ubiquitinated proteins revealed that ubiquitination plays an important role in fundamental cellular processes in rice young panicles. Interestingly, enrichment analysis of protein domains indicated that ubiquitination was enriched on a variety of receptor-like kinases and cytoplasmic tyrosine and serine-threonine kinases. Furthermore, we analyzed the crosstalk between ubiquitination, acetylation, and succinylation, and constructed a potential protein interaction network within our rice ubiquitinome. Moreover, we identified ubiquitinated proteins related to pollen and grain development, indicating that ubiquitination may play a critical role in the physiological functions in young panicles. Taken together, we reported the most comprehensive lysine ubiquitinome in rice so far, and used it to reveal the functional role of lysine ubiquitination in rice young panicles.

Recent research progress on galectin-3 as a potential therapeutic target in respiratory diseases / 药学学报

Galectin-3 is an endogenous β-galactoside-binding lectin widely distributed in the human body, and it plays an important role in various functions such as cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, cell adhesion, immune response and signal transduction. Accumulating evidence has shown that galectin-3 is involved in the occurrence and development of respiratory diseases, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, lung cancer, pulmonary hypertension and bronchial asthma. This review summarizes and analyzes the research progress on galectin-3 in the above respiratory diseases in order to clarify its role and mechanism, and to provide new ideas for clinical treatment.

Anti-HIV lignans from Justicia procumbens / 中国天然药物

Twenty-one lignans including three new ones (1, 2 and 13) were isolated from Justicia procumbens. The chemical structures of the new lignans were determined by spectroscopic means including 1D and 2D NMR analysis. These compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxic and anti-HIV activities. The new secoisolariciresinol dimethyl ether acetate (13) exhibited anti-HIV-1 activity with an IC value of 5.27 μmol·L and a selective index (SI) value of 2.2. The known arylnaphthalene lignan procumbenoside A (3) and diphyllin (8) demonstrated inhibitory activity against HIV-1 with IC values of 4.95 (SI > 6.2) and 0.38 μmol·L (SI = 5.3), respectively.

Current Research and Prospects on Postmortem Interval Estimation / 法医学杂志

The researches on postmortem interval （PMI） estimation are very important and meaningful in forensic science. PMI estimation is also an important issue that must be solved in practice of forensic pathology. There are many defects existing in traditional methods for PMI estimation, so it is imperative to introduce new pathways. With the emergence of various new technologies, the researches on PMI estimation have a tendency from simple to complex with a growth of data. The present review firstly summarizes a series of methods used for PMI estimation, and then gives an outlook for the application of artificial intelligence algorithms in this field.

Effects of Temperature on FTIR Spectral Characteristics of Renal Tissue in Rats after Death / 法医学杂志

OBJECTIVES@#To analyse the Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spectral data of renal tissue at different temperatures in rats after death, and to explore the effects of temperature on the FTIR spectral characteristics of renal tissue.@*METHODS@#The rats were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and placed at 4 ℃, 20 ℃ and 30 ℃. The FTIR spectral data of renal tissue were collected at different time points and analysed by data mining method.@*RESULTS@#The principal component analysis （PCA） results showed that there were significant trends of clustering in the samples of partial time point at 4 ℃, 20 ℃ and 30 ℃. Partial least square （PLS） regression models were established with the spectral data at three temperature groups. The performance of PLS regression models in 20 ℃ and 30 ℃ groups were more superior than that in 4 ℃ group, and the stability of the model in 20 ℃ group was better than that in 30 ℃ group.@*CONCLUSIONS@#There are differences in the FTIR spectral characteristics of renal tissue of rats after death at different temperatures. Temperature has a major impact on the performance of FTIR spectral PLS regression model. Therefore, in order to improve the accuracy of postmortem interval estimation, the effects of temperature on the model should be considered in the related study by spectral method.

Infrared Spectral Characteristics of Electrical Injuries on Swine Skin Caused by Different Voltages Based on Machine Learning Algorithms / 法医学杂志

Objective To explore infrared spectrum characteristics of different voltages induced electrical injuries on swine skin by using Fourier transform infrared-microspectroscopy (FTIR-MSP) combined with machine learning algorithms, thus to provide a reference to the identification of electrical skin injuries caused by different voltages.Methods Electrical skin injury model was established on swines.The skin was exposed to 110 V, 220 V and 380 V electric shock for 30 s and then samples were took, with normal skin tissues around the injuries as the control.Combined with the results of continuous section HE staining, the FTIR-MSP spectral data of the corresponding skin tissues were acquired.With the combination of machine learning algorithms such as principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), different spectral bands were selected (full band 4 000-1 000 cm-1and sub-bands 4 000-3 600 cm-1, 3 600-2 800 cm-1, 2 800-1 800 cm-1, and 1 800-1 000 cm-1), and various pretreatment methods were used such as orthogonal signal correction (OSC), standard normal variables (SNV), multivariate scatter correction (MSC), normalization, and smoothing.Thus, the model was optimized, and the classification effects were compared.Results Compared with simple spectrum analysis, PCA seemed to be better at distinguishing electrical shock groups from the control, but was not able to distinguish different voltages induced groups.PLS-DA based on the 3 600-2 800 cm-1band was used to identify the different voltages induced skin injuries.The OSC could further optimize the robustness of the 3 600-2 800 cm-1band model.Conclusion It is feasible to identify electrical skin injuries caused by different voltages by using FTIR-MSP technique along with machine learning algorithms.

Establishment of the Mathematical Model for PMI Estimation Using FTIR Spec-troscopy and Data Mining Method / 法医学杂志

Objective To analyse the relationship between Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spectrum ofrat's spleen tissue and postmortem interval （PMI） for PMI estimation using FTIR spectroscopy combinedwith data mining method. Methods Rats were sacrificed by cervical dislocation, and the cadavers were placed at 20 ℃. The FTIR spectrum data of rats' spleen tissues were taken and measured at different time points. After pretreatment, the data was analysed by data mining method. Results The absorption peak intensity of rat's spleen tissue spectrum changed with the PMI, while the absorption peak position was unchanged. The results of principal component analysis （PCA） showed that the cumulative contribution rate of the first three principal components was 96%. There was an obvious clustering tendency for the spectrum sample at each time point. The methods of partial least squares discriminant analysis （PLS- DA） and support vector machine classification （SVMC） effectively divided the spectrum samples with different PMI into four categories （0-24 h, 48-72 h, 96-120 h and 144-168 h）. The determination coefficient （R2） of the PMI estimation model established by PLS regression analysis was 0.96, and the root mean square error of calibration （RMSEC） and root mean square error of cross validation （RMSECV） were 9.90 h and 11.39 h respectively. In prediction set, the R2 was 0.97, and the root mean square error of prediction （RMSEP） was 10.49 h. Conclusion The FTIR spectrum of the rat's spleen tissue can be effectively analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively by the combination of FTIR spectroscopy and data mining method, and the classification and PLS regression models can be established for PMI estimation.

Research progress on role of exosomes-shuttle-RNAs within central nervous system / 中国药理学通报

Exosomes are nanoscale vesicles produced and secre-ted into extracellular fluid by all cells. They mediate cell com-munication through carrying and transferring informational car-goes ( proteins, nucleic acids, lipids and so on ) to recipient cells. In central nervous system, exosomes can be released from all cell types including neurons, neural stem cells and neuroglia cells. These exosomes shuttle nucleic acids ( miRNAs, mRNAs and so on) and play an important role in nervous system devel-opment and function as well as diseases including Alzheimer's disease and drug addiction. Furthermore, the functional effects and targeting characteristics of exosomes-shuttle-RNAs suggest that exosomes-shuttle-RNAs can be diagnostic and therapeutic targets. In this review, we elaborate the effects, functions and mechanisms of exosomes-shuttle-RNAs in order to gain a new recognition of CNS development and diseases.

Sinapine thiocyanate inhibits hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, atheroscle-rosis and hepatocellular steatosis in IR mice / 中国病理生理杂志

AIM:To investigate the inhibitory effect of sinapine thiocyanate(ST)on hyperglycemia,hyper-lipemia,atherosclerosis and hepatocellular steatosis of ApoE-/-mice with insulin resistance(IR)and the possible mecha-nisms.METHODS:ApoE-/-male mice(n=60)were assigned randomly into control group ,saline group,rosiglitazone group and ST treatment groups(at low,middle and high doses )with 10 mice in each group.The mice in control group were fed with fundamental diet ,while the mice in other groups were fed with high-fat diet for 12 weeks.The mice in ST groups were given gavage with different doses of ST(10,30 and 90 mg· kg-1· d-1)simultaneously,while the mice in rosiglitazone group received gavage with rosigltazone(1.33 mg· kg-1 · d-1 ).In the last 3 weeks,the mice in control group received daily intrape-ritoneal injection of physiological saline ,and IR was induced in other groups by daily intrape-ritoneal injection of dexamethasone(0.8 mg/kg).The blood sample was collected and fasting plasma glucose was tested weekly through tail vein.After all animals fasted for 12 h at the end of the 12th week,they were sacrificed and the levels of fasting insulin,tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),triglyceride,total cholesterol and liver lipids were measured.The li-ver tissue and aortic immobilized sections were detected by HE staining.The expression of the proteins related to liver lipid metabolism and skeletal muscle MAPK signaling pathway was determined by Western blot.RESULTS:ST showed dose-dependently reduced serum lipids ,plasma glucose and TNF-α(P<0.05),delayed hepatocellular steatosis and atheroscle-rosis,and dose-dependently regulated hepatic lipid metabolism signaling molecules(HMGR and SREBP-2)and MAPK signaling molecules(ERK and p38)(P<0.05).CONCLUSION:ST has the biological potential of reducing blood li-pids and relieving IR.The mechanism may be related to the regulation of liver lipid metabolism and skeletal muscle MAPK signaling pathway.

Genetic relationship and population genetic diversity of Epimedium pubescens and its related species based on ISSR and non-glandular hair characteristic / 中国中药杂志

In this study, 128 individuals form 14 Epimedium pubescens populations and 1 E. stellulatum population were analyzed by ISSR marker. The data were calculated by POPGENE software and clustered by UPGMA method. Optical microscope was used to observe the main types of the non-glandular hairs and their characteristics in each population. It is found that the following conclusions: Non-glandular hairs can be divided into five morphological categories, long straight pubescent, curly pubescent, appressed curly pubescent, pseudo short appressed hairs and long appressed. Eight primers were screening and a total of 94 bands were detected in ISSR, among which 90 were polymorphic bands. Based on the results of ISSR cluster analysis, 15 populations were divided into 3 clades. E. stellulatum populations should be incorporated into the E. pubescens or as avariety under E. pubescens not be independent and as it has no separate phylogenetic branch for a cluster. The genetic relationship among the populations of E. pubescens was closely related with its geographical distribution and non-glandular hair features. But there were also some inconsistency, which provided a good hint for the further study on the interspecific relationship and natural speciation manner of Epimedium species. Population diversity analysis showed Nm=0.354 4, Nei's=0.585 2. It was showed that E. pubescens has high genetic diversity among populations, for which the main reason was probably the high inbreeding rate and the small range of seed dispersal.

Relationship between PMI and ATR-FTIR Spectral Changes in Swine Costal Cartilages and Ribs / 法医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze postmortem chemical changes in Landrace costal cartilages and ribs using attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, and to provide a novel technique for estimation of postmortem interval (PMI).@*METHODS@#The swines were sacrificed by hemorrhage and their costal cartilages and ribs were kept in 20 degrees C. The chemical analysis of the costal cartilages and ribs were performed using ATR-FTIR every 72 h. The correlation between the certain spectral parameters and PMI was also analyzed. The time-dependent changes of costal cartilages were more significant than ribs.@*RESULTS@#There were no obvious changes for the main absorbance bands position, and some absorbance band ratios showed time-dependent changes and significant correlations with the PMI.@*CONCLUSION@#ATR-FTIR has the ability to analyze postmortem chemical changes of the swine costal cartilages and ribs, and it can be a new method to estimate PMI based on spectroscopy.

Changes in plasma pharmacokinetics and urinary excretion characteristics before and after combined administration of Ephedrae Herba-Gypsum Fibrosum / 中国中药杂志

In this study, UPLC-MS/MS was adopted to determine the contents of five ephedrine alkaloids (Norephedrine, Norpseudoephedrine, Ephedrine, Pseudoephedrine, Methylephedrine) in plasma and urine in rats after the combined administration of Ephedrae Herba-Gypsum Fibrosum and calculate relevant pharmacokinetic parameters, in order to discuss the effect of the combined administration of Ephedrae Herba-Gypsum Fibrosum on plasma pharmacokinetics and urinary excretion characteristics. According to the results, after being combined with Gypsum, the five ephedrine alkaloids showed similar pharmacokinetic changes, such as shortened t(max), accelerated absorption rate, but reduced AUC(0-t) and V(z)/F, which may be related to the increase in urine excretion. Besides, Gypsum was added to enhance C(max) of Pseudoephedrine and prolong MRT(0-t) of Methylephedrine, so as to enhance the anti-asthmatic effect of Ephedrae Herba and resist the toxic effect of Norephedrine and Ephedrine. This study proved the scientific compatibility of Ephedrae Herba-Gypsum Fibrosum and provided a reference for studies on the prescription compatibility regularity and relevant practices.

Effects of preoperative oral carbohydrate on postoperative insulin resistance in radical gastrectomy patients / 中华外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effects and mechanism of postoperative insulin resistance in gastrectomy patients with preoperative oral carbohydrate.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From April to October 2011, 60 consecutive gastric cancer patients met inclusion criteria were divided into oral carbohydrate group and placebo group by randomized double-blind principles. Resting energy expenditure (REE), fasting blood glucose, insulin and triglyceride level were detected in 4 hours preoperatively. The 500 ml carbohydrate or placebo were administrated orally 2-3 hours before anaesthesia. Two group patients underwent radical distal subtotal gastrectomy under epidural compounded intravenous anesthesia. After laparotomy and before the abdomen was closed, a piece of rectus abdominis was taken and fixed in 3% glutaraldehyde. REE, fasting blood glucose, insulin and triglyceride level were detected immediately after surgery. The changes of insulin resistance index, blood triglycerides level, REE and respiratory quotient were compared pre- and post-operatively. The changes of rectus abdominis mitochondrial ultrastructure were observed by transmission electron microscopy respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>There were 48 patients (34 males and 14 females) completed the trial. The 24 and 24 patients in oral placebo and carbohydrate groups respectively. In oral placebo group, post-operative insulin resistance index, REE, respiratory quotient, serum triglyceride level and the rectus abdominis mitochondrial damage index were 12.68 ± 3.13, (1458 ± 169) kcal/d, 0.73 ± 0.42, (0.53 ± 0.24) g/L and 1.14 ± 0.33, respectively. And the above items were 5.67 ± 1.40, (1341 ± 110) kcal/d, 0.79 ± 0.22, (1.04 ± 0.97) g/L and 0.92 ± 0.19 in oral carbohydrate groups respectively. All difference was statistically significant (t = 6.646, 2.851, 6.546, 2.542 and 2.730, all P < 0.05). Oral placebo group showed a markedly swollen mitochondria, steep membrane was not clear, mitochondria appeared vacuolated changes.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Preoperative oral carbohydrate could reduce the insulin resistance and REE, improve the material metabolism status in radical gastrectomy patients. The possible mechanisms should be related to promotion of insulin release and protection of mitochondrial function.</p>