Identification and analysis of AP2/ERF gene family of Panax notoginseng and function of PnDREB84 gene / 药学学报

The AP2/ERF gene family is one of the largest transcription factor families in the plant kingdom, and plays an important role in response to biological and abiotic stresses, plant hormone responses, and plant growth and development. In this study, the AP2/ERF family of Panax notoginseng was identified by bioinformatics methods, and the physicochemical properties, structure, phylogenetic relationship, expression pattern and function of PnDREB4 gene of the family were analyzed. The results showed that 140 AP2/ERF family members were identified in P. notoginseng, which were divided into DREB, ERF, AP2, RAV and Sololit subgroups. The physicochemical properties and motifs of proteins were similar among the subgroups. There were 34 differentially expressed genes in the AP2/ERF family of Fusarium oxysporum infected P. notoginseng plants, and 19 genes were up-regulated. The expression level of PnDREB84 was up-regulated with the extension of Fusarium oxysporum infection time in the range of 0-96 h. The content of ABA and SA in P. notoginseng plants overexpressing PnDREB84 gene increased after 4 ℃ stress. The results showed that PnDREB84 gene plays a dual regulatory role in the process of biological stress and abiotic stress. PnDREB84 gene can be used as a potential molecular marker for the breeding of new varieties of P. notoginseng. The identification of AP2/ERF transcription factor and function analysis of PnDREB84 gene of P. notoginseng provided data support for the analysis of stress resistance mechanism of P. notoginseng and the breeding of new varieties.

Changes in retinal nerve fiber layer and macular retinal thickness and predictive value of outcome in children with abnormal refractive amblyopia / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

AIM: To investigate the changes in retinal nerve fiber layer(RNFL)and macular retinal thickness(MRT)in children with refractive abnormalities and amblyopia, and their predictive value of outcome.METHODS: A total of 168 children with myopic refractive abnormalities and monocular amblyopia admitted to our hospital from January 2020 to October 2022 were selected as the observation group, with 118 cases of mild to moderate amblyopia and 50 cases of severe amblyopia, and 168 children with normal vision were included as the control group in a 1:1 ratio during the same period. The changes of RNFL and MRT in two groups of children were statistically counted, and the correlation between the severity of refractive abnormalities and RNFL and MRT in children with amblyopia was analyzed. Additionally, the observation group was divided into effective subgroup and ineffective subgroup based on the therapeutic effect. The general information, as well as RNFL and MRT of the effective subgroup and the ineffective subgroups before and after treatment were compared. Logistic was used to analyze the factors influencing efficacy, and ROC curves was plotted to analyze the predictive value of RNFL and MRT alone or in combination for efficacy.RESULTS: RNFL and MRT of cases of severe amblyopia were higher than those of the mild to moderate amblyopia and the control groups(all P<0.05); the severity of amblyopia in children with refractive abnormalities is positively correlated with RNFL and MRT(rs=0.745 and0.724, both P<0.001); among patients of mild to moderate and severe, there were statistically significant differences between the effective and ineffective subgroups in terms of initial treatment age, fixation form, treatment compliance, as well as RNFL, MRT, and their differences before and 1mo postoperatively(all P<0.05). Logistic analysis showed that initial treatment age, fixation nature, treatment compliance, RNFL and MRT before and 1mo postoperatively were all factors influencing the therapeutic effect of amblyopia with refractive abnormalities in children(all P<0.05); after 1mo of treatment, the combined prediction of RNFL and MRT was significantly better than that of single prediction in children with mild to severe amblyopia.CONCLUSION:There are differences in RNFL and MRT in children with abnormal refractive amblyopia, and they are closely related to the different degrees and curative effects of children. The combination of RNFL and MRT after 1mo of treatment has certain value in predicting children with different degrees of abnormal refractive amblyopia.

Efficacy of partial nephrectomy in patients with localized renal carcinoma: a 20-year experience of 2 046 patients in a single center / 中华外科杂志

Objectives: To analyze the long-term survival of patients with localized renal cell carcinoma after partical nephrectomy. Methods: The clinicopathological records and survival follow-up data of 2 046 patients with localized renal cell carcinoma, who were treated with partial nephrectomy from August 2001 to February 2021 in the Department of Urology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, were retrospectively analyzed. There were 1 402 males and 644 females, aged (M(IQR)) 51 (19) years (range: 6 to 86 years). The primary end point of this study was cancer-specific survival. Survival curves were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the difference test was performed by Log-rank test. Univariate and multivariate Cox analysis were fitted to determine factors associated with cancer-specific survival. Results: The follow-up time was 49.2 (48.0) months (range: 1 to 229 months), with 1 974 patients surviving and 72 dying. The median cancer-specific survival time has not yet been reached. The 5- and 10-year cancer specific survival rates were 97.0% and 91.2%, respectively. The 10-year cancer-specific survival rates for stage pT1a (n=1 447), pT1b (n=523) and pT2 (n=58) were 95.3%, 81.8%, and 81.7%, respectively. The 10-year cancer-specific survival rates of patients with nuclear grade 1 (n=226), 2 (n=1 244) and 3 to 4 (n=278) were 96.6%, 89.4%, and 85.5%, respectively. There were no significant differences in 5-year cancer-specific survival rates among patients underwent open, laparoscopic, or robotic surgery (96.7% vs. 97.1% vs. 97.5%, P=0.600). Multivariate analysis showed that age≥50 years (HR=3.93, 95%CI: 1.82 to 8.47, P<0.01), T stage (T1b vs. T1a: HR=3.31, 95%CI: 1.83 to 5.99, P<0.01; T2+T3 vs. T1a: HR=2.88, 95%CI: 1.00 to 8.28, P=0.049) and nuclear grade (G3 to 4 vs. G1: HR=2.81, 95%CI: 1.01 to 7.82, P=0.048) were independent prognostic factors of localized renal cell carcinoma after partial nephrectomy. Conclusions: The long-term cancer-specific survival rates of patients with localized renal cancer after partial nephrectomy are satisfactory. The type of operation (open, laparoscopic, or robotic) has no significant effect on survival. However, patients with older age, higher nuclear grade, and higher T stage have a lower cancer-specific survival rate. Grasping surgical indications, attaching importance to preoperative evaluation, perioperative management, and postoperative follow-up, could benefit achieving satisfactory long-term survival.

The identification of bZIP gene family in Cannabis sativa L. and its preliminary research of the function in regulation of lipid metabolism / 药学学报

The bZIP (basic leucine zipper) gene family is one of the largest transcription factor families in eukaryotes, and its members play important roles in stress response, secondary metabolism, plant growth, seed development and other aspects. To investigate the biological functions of the bZIP (CsbZIP) gene in Cannabis sativa L., we systematically investigated the CsbZIP gene family using bioinformatics methods based on the whole-genome and transcriptome data. The results showed that 55 CsbZIP gene family members (CsbZIP1-CsbZIP55) were identified and distributed on 10 chromosomes, belonging to 12 subfamilies. The gene structure and protein motif distribution of the same subfamily members were similar. Segment repeats were the main reasons for the expansion of CsbZIP gene family. Cis-elements analysis showed that the promoter regions of 73 lipid synthesis genes contained G-box or A-box element. qRT-PCR showed that the relative expression levels of 7 CsbZIP genes and 7 lipid synthesis genes were relatively high in hemp seed. 7 CsbZIP genes had a significant positive correlation with 7 lipid synthesis genes. This study revealed the structural features, evolutionary patterns and expression patterns of CsbZIP, providing important clues for further study on the regulation of CsbZIP on oil metabolism of hemp seed.

Assessment of the Benefits of Targeted Interventions for Pandemic Control in China Based on Machine Learning Method and Web Service for COVID-19 Policy Simulation / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

Taking the Chinese city of Xiamen as an example, simulation and quantitative analysis were performed on the transmissions of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the influence of intervention combinations to assist policymakers in the preparation of targeted response measures. A machine learning model was built to estimate the effectiveness of interventions and simulate transmission in different scenarios. The comparison was conducted between simulated and real cases in Xiamen. A web interface with adjustable parameters, including choice of intervention measures, intervention weights, vaccination, and viral variants, was designed for users to run the simulation. The total case number was set as the outcome. The cumulative number was 4,614,641 without restrictions and 78 under the strictest intervention set. Simulation with the parameters closest to the real situation of the Xiamen outbreak was performed to verify the accuracy and reliability of the model. The simulation model generated a duration of 52 days before the daily cases dropped to zero and the final cumulative case number of 200, which were 25 more days and 36 fewer cases than the real situation, respectively. Targeted interventions could benefit the prevention and control of COVID-19 outbreak while safeguarding public health and mitigating impacts on people's livelihood.

Met-Controlled Allosteric Module of Neural Generation as A New Therapeutic Target in Rodent Brain Ischemia / 中国结合医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate a Met-controlled allosteric module (AM) of neural generation as a potential therapeutic target for brain ischemia.@*METHODS@#We selected Markov clustering algorithm (MCL) to mine functional modules in the related target networks. According to the topological similarity, one functional module was predicted in the modules of baicalin (BA), jasminoidin (JA), cholic acid (CA), compared with I/R model modules. This functional module included three genes: Inppl1, Met and Dapk3 (IMD). By gene ontology enrichment analysis, biological process related to this functional module was obtained. This functional module participated in generation of neurons. Western blotting was applied to present the compound-dependent regulation of IMD. Co-immunoprecipitation was used to reveal the relationship among the three members. We used IF to determine the number of newborn neurons between compound treatment group and ischemia/reperfusion group. The expressions of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) were supposed to show the changing circumstances for neural generation under cerebral ischemia.@*RESULTS@#Significant reduction in infarction volume and pathological changes were shown in the compound treatment groups compared with the I/R model group (P<0.05). Three nodes in one novel module of IMD were found to exert diverse compound-dependent ischemic-specific excitatory regulatory activities. An anti-ischemic excitatory allosteric module (AM@*CONCLUSIONS@#AM

Efficacy and Safety of Expectorant/antioxidants in the Treatment of COPD ：Network Meta-analysis / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE：To systematically e valuate the efficacy and safety of expectorant/antioxidants in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （COPD），and to provide evidence-based reference for clinical use. METHODS ：Retrieved from PubMed ，Embase，Cochrane Library ，Web of Science ，CBM，CNKI，VIP，Wanfang database ，etc.，randomized controlled trials（RCTs）about expectorant/antioxidants （trial group ）versus placebo （control group ）in the treatment of COPD were collected during the inception to May 2021. After literature screening and data extraction ，the quality of included literatures were evaluated with risk bias evaluation tool recommended by Cochrane systematic evaluator manual 5.1.0. The consistency check was performed by using Gemtc 14.3 software；network Meta-analysis ，clustering and hierarchical sorting were performed with Stata 15.1 software. The publication bias was analyzed by inverted funnel plot. RESULTS ：A total of 12 RCTs，involving 4 637 patients，were included. Five interventions measures were involved ，such as low-dose N-acetylcysteine （NAC），high-dose NAC ，carbo- cisteine， erdosteine and placebo. The results of network Meta-analysis showed that in terms of annual acute aggrava- tion rate ，the patients receiving high-do se NAC [MD ＝－0.45， 163.com 95％CI（－0.74，－0.17），P＜0.05]，carbocisteine [MD ＝－0.59，95％CI（－0.86，－0.32），P＜0.05] and erdosteine [MD ＝－0.26，95％CI（－0.51，－0.01），P＜0.05] in trial group were significantly lower than those in control group ；the annual acute aggravation rate of patients receiving high-dose NAC[MD ＝－0.55， 95％CI（－0.98，－0.11），P＜0.05] and carbocisteine [MD ＝－0.69，95％CI（－1.11，－0.26），P＜0.05] in trial group were significantly lower than those receiving low-dose of NAC ，there was no statistical significance among other groups （P＞0.05）； probability cumulative ranking results （calculated by the area under the curve ）of its network Meta-analysis was carbocisteine ＞ high-dose NAC ＞erdosteine＞placebo＞low-dose NAC. In terms of the incidence of ADR ，there was no statistical significance among groups （P＞0.05）；probability cumulative ranking results （calculated by the area under the curve ） of its network Meta-analysis was erdosteine ＞high-dose NAC ＞low-dose NAC ＞placebo＞carbocisteine. The results of clustering and hierarchical ranking showed that the efficacy and safety of the five interventions could be grouped into three categories ，including placebo and low-dose NAC with low efficacy and safety ，carbocisteine with good efficacy but low safety ，and high-dose NAC and erdosteine with good efficacy and safety. The results of publication bias showed that taking the annual acute exacerbation rate as the index ， there was a greater possibility of publication bias in this study ；taking the incidence of adverse event as index ，there was little possibility of publication bias in this study. CONCLUSIONS ：NAC，carbocisteine and erdosteine all can reduce the annual acute aggravation rate and have low incidence of ADR. Carbocisteine is the best in terms of annual acute aggravation rate ，erdosteine is the best in terms of safety. High-dose NAC and erdosteine are both better in term of efficacy and safety.

Application and Development of Non-psychoactive Medicinal Cannabis / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis is the cannabis that contain less than 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and high content of cannabidiol (CBD) (more than 2.0% is reasonable), and mainly used for medicinal purpose. Cannabis have a long medical history, in this review, we retrospected the medicinal history of cannabis in China and the world. We summarized the cannabinoid especially CBD application of medicine in epilepsy, mental disease, tumor, analgesic and inflammatory, also the widely application in food, healthy products, cosmetics and other fields. Based on the problems like shortage of high CBD cultivars, weakness of fundamental research existed in non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis industry. We should fully utilize the genetic information of medicinal cannabis, establish the comprehensive identification system of non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis varieties, accelerate the breeding process of non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis cultivars, to ensure the safety and effectiveness of non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis. Strengthen the basic research on CBD and other cannabinoids to promote the application of non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis products and sustainable development of medical cannabis industry.

Agricultural Risk Factors Influence Microbial Ecology in Honghu Lake / 基因组蛋白质组与生物信息学报·英文版

Agricultural activities, including stock-farming, planting industry, and fish aquaculture, can affect the physicochemical and biological characters of freshwater lakes. However, the effects of pollution producing by agricultural activities on microbial ecosystem of lakes remain unclear. Hence, in this work, we selected Honghu Lake as a typical lake that is influenced by agriculture activities. We collected water and sediment samples from 18 sites, which span a wide range of areas from impacted and less-impacted areas. We performed a geospatial analysis on the composition of microbial communities associated with physicochemical properties and antibiotic pollution of samples. The co-occurrence networks of water and sediment were also built and analyzed. Our results showed that the microbial communities of impacted and less-impacted samples of water were largely driven by the concentrations of TN, TP, NO-N, and NO-N, while those of sediment were affected by the concentrations of Sed-OM and Sed-TN. Antibiotics have also played important roles in shaping these microbial communities: the concentrations of oxytetracycline and tetracycline clearly reflected the variance in taxonomic diversity and predicted functional diversity between impacted and less-impacted sites in water and sediment samples, respectively. Furthermore, for samples from both water and sediment, large differences of network topology structures between impacted and less-impacted were also observed. Our results provide compelling evidence that the microbial community can be used as a sentinel of eutrophication and antibiotics pollution risk associated with agricultural activity; and that proper monitoring of this environment is vital to maintain a sustainable environment in Honghu Lake.

Stereotypes About Enterotype: the Old and New Ideas / 基因组蛋白质组与生物信息学报·英文版

In 2011, the term "enterotype" first appeared to the general public in Nature, which refers to stratification of human gut microbiota. However, with more studies on enterotypes conducted nowadays, doubts about the existence and robustness of enterotypes have also emerged. Here we reviewed current opinions about enterotypes from both conceptual and analytical points of view. We firstly illustrated the definition of the enterotype and various factors influencing enterotypes, such as diet, administration of antibiotics, and age. Then we summarized lines of evidence that pose the concept against the enterotype, and described the current methods for enterotype analysis. Finally, we showed that the concept of enterotype has been extended to other ecological niches. Based on current studies on enterotypes, it has been clear that more studies with larger sample sizes are needed to characterize the enterotypes. Improved computational methods are also required to build sophisticated models, reflecting the dynamics and resilience of enterotypes.

Simultaneous treatment of parapelvic renal cysts and stones by flexible ureterorenoscopy with a novel four-step cyst localization strategy

ABSTRACT Objective: To assess the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of simultaneous treatment of parapelvic renal cysts and stones by flexible ureterorenoscopy with a novel four-step cyst localization strategy in selected patients. Patients and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 11 consecutive cases of parapelvic renal cysts with concomitant calculi treated by flexible ureterorenoscopy and laser lithotripsy (FURSL). Marsupialization was performed subsequently with holmium: YAG laser in our institution. Fragmentation was used to manage renal stones and a novel four-step cyst localization strategy was applied in each case for marsupialization. Results: There were no intraoperative complications. Two cases of cystitis were reported postoperatively. The mean operative times of FURSL and marsupialization were 23.6 ± 3.9 minutes and 29.1 ± 9.7 minutes, respectively. During marsupialization, seven patients underwent the first two steps of the new strategy, two patients underwent three steps and two patients underwent all four steps. The mean reduction in hemoglobin level was 4.7 ± 1.7 g / L (range 3-8 g / L). The mean length of hospital stay was 1.2 ± 0.4 days. During a mean follow-up duration of 18 months, all cases remained stone-free and there was no stone recurrence. Parapelvic cysts became undetectable in eight cases and decreased in size by at least half in three cases. Conclusion: With appropriate patient selection, FURSL and marsupialization with a four-step cyst localization strategy is feasible, safe, and effective in treating parapelvic renal cysts with concomitant calculi.

Laparoscopic radical cystectomy with novel orthotopic neobladder with bilateral isoperistaltic afferent limbs: initial experience

ABSTRACT Purpose To introduce a new method of constructing an orthotopic ileal neobladder with bilateral isoperistaltic afferent limbs, and to describe its clinical outcomes. Materials and Methods From January 2012 to December 2013, 16 patients underwent a new method of orthotopic ileal neobladder after laparoscopic radical cystectomy for bladder cancer. To construct the neobladder, an ileal segment 60cm long was isolated approximately 25cm proximally to the ileocecum. The proximal 20cm of the ileal segment was divided into two parts for bilateral isoperistaltic afferent limbs. The proximal 10cm of the ileal segment was moved to the distal end of the ileal segment for the right isoperistaltic afferent limb, and the remaining proximal 10cm ileal segment was reserved for the left isoperistaltic afferent limb. The remaining length of the 40cm ileal segment was detubularized along its antimesenteric border to form a reservoir. The neobladder was sutured to achieve a spherical configuration. Results All procedures were carried out successfully. The mean operative time was 330 min, mean blood loss was 328mL, and mean hospital stay was 12.5 days. The mean neobladder capacity 6 and 12 months after surgery was 300mL and 401mL, respectively. With a mean follow-up of 22.8 months, all patients achieved daytime continence and 15 achieved nighttime continence. The mean peak urinary flow rate was 11.9mL/s and 12.8mL/s at 6 and 12 months postoperatively, respectively. Conclusions This novel procedure is feasible, safe, simple to perform, and provides encouraging functional outcomes. However, comparative studies with long-term follow-up are required to prove its superiority.

Comparison of Clinical and Ultrasonographic Features of Poorly Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma and Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The clinical behavior and management of poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma (PDTC) are very different from papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). By comparing the clinical and ultrasonographic features between the two tumors, we proposed to provide more possibilities for recognizing PDTC before treatment.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The data of 13 PDTCs and 39 age- and gender-matched PTCs in Peking Union Medical College Hospital between December 2003 and September 2013 were retrospectively reviewed. The clinical and ultrasonic features between the two groups were compared.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The frequencies of family history of carcinoma, complication with other thyroid lesions, lymph node metastases, recurrent laryngeal nerve injuries, and distant metastases were higher in PDTCs (30.8%, 61.6%, 69.2%, 23.1%, and 46.2%, respectively) than those in PTCs (2.6%, 23.1%, 25.6%, 2.6%, and 2.6%, respectively) (P < 0.05). The mortality rate of PDTCs was greatly higher than PTCs (P < 0.01). Conventional ultrasound showed that the size of PDTCs was larger than that of PTCs (3.1 ± 1.9 cm vs. 1.7 ± 1.0 cm). Clear margins and rich and/or irregular blood flow were found in 92.3% of PDTCs, which differed substantially from PTCs (51.7% and 53.8%, respectively) (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>PDTC is more aggressive and its mortality rate is higher than PTCs. Accordingly, more attention should be given to suspicious thyroid cancer nodules that show large size, regular shape, and rich blood flow signals on ultrasound to exclude the possibility of PDTCs.</p>

Effect of Bushen Yisui Capsule () on oligodendrocyte lineage genes 1 and 2 in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effects of Bushen Yisui Capsule (, BSYSC) on the oligodendrocyte lineage genes (Olig) 1 and Olig2 in C57BL/6 mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in order to explore the remyelination effect of BSYSC.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The mice were randomly divided into normal control (NC), EAE model (EAE-M), prednisone acetate (PA, 6 mg/kg), BSYSC high-dose (3.02 g/kg) and BSYSC low-dose (1.51 g/kg) groups. The mice were induced by immunization with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) 35-55. The neurological function scores were assessed once daily. The pathological changes in mice brains were observed with hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The protein expressions of myelin basic protein (MBP), Olig1 and Olig2 in brains were measured by immunohistochemistry. The mRNA expressions of Olig1 and Olig 2 was also determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the EAE-M mice, (1) the neurological function scores were significantly decreased in BSYSC-treated mice on days 22 to 40 (P<0.01); (2) the inflammatory cells and demyelination in brains were reduced in BSYSC-treated EAE mice; (3) the protein expression of MBP was markedly increased in BSYSC-treated groups on day 18 and 40 respectively (P<0.05 or P<0.01); (4) the protein expression of Olig1 was increased in BSYSC (3.02 g/kg)-treated EAE mice on day 40 (P<0.01). Protein and mRNA expression of Olig2 was increased in BSYSC-treated EAE mice on day 18 and 40 (P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The effects of BSYSC on reducing demyelination and promoting remyelination might be associated with the increase of Olig1 and Olig2.</p>

The Main Biological Hazards in Animal Biosafety Level 2 Facilities and Strategies for Control / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

Concern about the biological hazards involved in microbiological research, especially research involving laboratory animals, has increased in recent years. Working in an animal biosafety level 2 facility (ABSL-2), commonly used for research on infectious diseases, poses various biological hazards. Here, the regulations and standards related to laboratory biosafety in China are introduced, the potential biological hazards present in ABSL-2 facilities are analyzed, and a series of strategies to control the hazards are presented.

Biological ingredient analysis of traditional Chinese medicines utilizing metagenomic approach based on high-throughput-sequencing and big-data-mining / 药学学报

The quality of traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) has been mainly evaluated based on chemical ingredients, yet recently more attentions have been paid on biological ingredients, especially for pill-based preparations. It is a key approach to establish a fast, accurate and systematic method of biological ingredient analysis for realization of modernization, industrialization and internationalization of TCMs. The biological ingredient analysis of TCM preparations could be abstracted as the identification of multiple species from a biological mixture. The metagenomic approach based on high-throughput-sequencing (HTS) and big-data-mining has been considered as one of the most effective methods for multiple species analysis of a biological mixture, which would also be helpful for the analysis of biological ingredients in TCMs. Simultaneous identification of diverse species, including the prescribed species, adulterants, toxic species, protected species and even the biological impurities introduced through production process, could be achieved by selecting appropriate DNA biomarkers, as well as applying large-scale sequence comparison and data mining. By this approach, it is prospective to offer an evaluation basis for the effectiveness, safety and legality of TCM preparations.

Clinical Value of Ultrasonography in Predicting Massive Hemorrhage during Cesarean Scar Pregnancy / 中国医学科学院学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the clinical value of ultrasonography in predicting massive haemorrhage during Cesarean scar pregnancy.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinical and ultrasonograhic data of 119 Cesarean scar pregnancy patients were retrospective analyzed. According to the amount of bleeding, these patients were divided into two groups:massive hemorrhage group and non-massive hemorrhage group. The potential risk factors of massive hemorrhage were analyzed with Logistic regression analysis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The size and type of lesions, flow grade, and residual muscular thickness were screened as the risk factors of massive haemorrhage by Logistic regression model. When P=0.3 was applied as the cutoff value,the diagnostic accuracy was 90.75%;meanwhile,the sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 88.23%, 91.76%, 81.08%, and 95.12%,respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Ultrasonography can accurately predict the risk of massive hemorrhage during the Cesarean scar pregnancy.</p>

Correlation of Contrast-enhanced Ultrasound with Expression of Hypoxia Inducible Factor-1α in Transplanted Mice Mammary Cancer / 中国医学科学院学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the correlation of contrast-enhanced pattern with expression of hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) and microvessel density (MVD) in mice breast cancer.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 22 mice were implanted with breast cancer cells (Ca761) subcutanously in the thigh. The tumors were examined with conventional ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) on days 4,6,7,8,9,10,and 11 after implantation and then sacrificed. Three or four mice were included each time. Expressions of HIF-1α and MVD in cancer tissues were detected immunohistochemically. Correlation of contrast-enhanced patterns with expression of HIF-1α and MVD in breast cancer was analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Mice were divided into 3 groups according to the tumor volume:group 1 (volume<0.05 cm(3),n=5),group 2 (volume 0.05-0.75 cm(3),n=9),and group 3 (volume>0.75 cm(3),n=8). The CEUS pattern was different in different groups:four mice in group 1 presented as type 1 (peripheral ring enhancement with no enhancement within the tumor) and 1 case presented as type 2 (peripheral ring enhancement with deep penetration). Most mice in group 2 presented as type 3 (homogeneous or heterogeneous enhancement in the whole tumor,n=5). In group 3,most mice presented as type 4 (peripheral ring enhancement with focal nodular enhancement within the tumor,n=7). Contrast-enhanced pattern was significantly different in different volume groups (P<0.01). Enhanced pattern (type 1-4) was closely correlated with tumor volume (r=0.841,P<0.05). The expression of HIF-1α was negatively correlated with enhanced patterns (type 1-4) (r=-0.596,P＝0.003),but not with tumor volume (P>0.05). There was no significant difference in MVD values between different enhanced patterns (type 1-4),and there was no correlation between the MVD and tumor volumes (P>0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>CEUS can be used as a noninvasive tool to monitor tumor angiogenesis in tumor and the enhanced patterns may reflect the expression of HIF-1α inside the tumor.</p>

Biological ingredient analysis of traditional Chinese medicines utilizing metagenomic approach based on high-throughput-sequencing and big-data-mining / 药学学报

The quality of traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) has been mainly evaluated based on chemical ingredients, yet recently more attentions have been paid on biological ingredients, especially for pill-based preparations. It is a key approach to establish a fast, accurate and systematic method of biological ingredient analysis for realization of modernization, industrialization and internationalization of TCMs. The biological ingredient analysis of TCM preparations could be abstracted as the identification of multiple species from a biological mixture. The metagenomic approach based on high-throughput-sequencing (HTS) and big-data-mining has been considered as one of the most effective methods for multiple species analysis of a biological mixture, which would also be helpful for the analysis of biological ingredients in TCMs. Simultaneous identification of diverse species, including the prescribed species, adulterants, toxic species, protected species and even the biological impurities introduced through production process, could be achieved by selecting appropriate DNA biomarkers, as well as applying large-scale sequence comparison and data mining. By this approach, it is prospective to offer an evaluation basis for the effectiveness, safety and legality of TCM preparations.

Meta-Mesh: metagenomic data analysis system / 生物工程学报

With the current accumulation of metagenome data, it is possible to build an integrated platform for processing of rigorously selected metagenomic samples (also referred as "metagenomic communities" here) of interests. Any metagenomic samples could then be searched against this database to find the most similar sample(s). However, on one hand, current databases with a large number of metagenomic samples mostly serve as data repositories but not well annotated database, and only offer few functions for analysis. On the other hand, the few available methods to measure the similarity of metagenomic data could only compare a few pre-defined set of metagenome. It has long been intriguing scientists to effectively calculate similarities between microbial communities in a large repository, to examine how similar these samples are and to find the correlation of the meta-information of these samples. In this work we propose a novel system, Meta-Mesh, which includes a metagenomic database and its companion analysis platform that could systematically and efficiently analyze, compare and search similar metagenomic samples. In the database part, we have collected more than 7 000 high quality and well annotated metagenomic samples from the public domain and in-house facilities. The analysis platform supplies a list of online tools which could accept metagenomic samples, build taxonomical annotations, compare sample in multiple angle, and then search for similar samples against its database by a fast indexing strategy and scoring function. We also used case studies of "database search for identification" and "samples clustering based on similarity matrix" using human-associated habitat samples to demonstrate the performance of Meta-Mesh in metagenomic analysis. Therefore, Meta-Mesh would serve as a database and data analysis system to quickly parse and identify similar