Cell-wall-deficient bacteria: a major etiological factor for psoriasis? / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Psoriasis is a common inflammatory skin disease, yet knowledge of the factors that may induce, trigger, or exacerbate psoriasis is not fully delineated. Recent advances have improved our understanding of the link between psoriasis and cell-wall-deficient bacteria (CWDB) infections. In the present study we assessed the prevalence of CWDB infection in patients with psoriasis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The carriage rate of CWDB in the tonsil or pharynx of psoriasis patients, chronic tonsillitis patients and controls were investigated using hypertonic medium. Psoriasis patients with CWDB were randomly assigned to two groups and respectively treated with antibiotics or systemic therapy without antibiotic. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from psoriasis patients, chronic tonsillitis patients and control subjects were stimulated with bacteria antigens and extra-cellular levels of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and interleukin (IL)-10 were measured in the supernatants using the ELISA technique, in vitro. Meanwhile, the proliferation ability of PBMC to respond to bacteria antigens was detected by MTT assay.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>CWDB were isolated from 74.2% of psoriasis patients, 23.5% of chronic tonsillitis patients and only 6.3% of controls. Antibiotic therapy was appropriate for approximately 80% of psoriasis patients with CWDB infection, and in only 8.9% psoriasis patients CWDB infection was detected after antibiotic therapy. Meanwhile, our study showed that CWDB and wide-type bacteria did remarkably enhance the production of IFN-gamma, in vitro, and PBMC proliferation.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>CWDB infection may be a virtual triggering factor in psoriasis by regulating T-cell activation.</p>

Application of metabonomics in complicated theory system research of traditional Chinese medicine / 中国中药杂志

Metabonomics, a new and rapid-developing technology, will be powerful means to the research of complexed theory system and modernization of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Discovery of biomarkers and analysis of common properties from the metabolome of a specific TCM syndrome will facilitate the modernized study of TCM system, promote the quantitative and scientific elucidation of TCM syndrome differentiation, provide an in-depth understanding of the TCM theory of Zang-xiang, help predict the disease on-set, and achieve a comprehensive evaluation of systemic clinical efficacy, safety and mechanism of action of the TCM combination formulas along with a better understanding of intestinal microflora ecology. The new approach with combined metabonomics and TCM methodologies will provide a new pathway and methodology for the study of complicated theory system of TCM and its modernization.