The significance of positional care combined with doula delivery during childbirth in the correction of abnormal fetal position.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of positional care combined with doula delivery during childbirth in the correction of abnormal fetal position. METHODS: In this retrospective study, a total 108 pregnant women with abnormal fetal orientation were included from February 2018 to February 2021 in the Jinan City People's Hospital. Among them, 54 patients who received positional care combined with doula delivery were included in the intervention group (IG), while the other 54 patients who received routine nursing were included in the control group (CG). The data of the fetal orientation correction, delivery method and the pain score of puerpera of two groups were collected. The length of delivery, delivery fear score, the degree of neonatal asphyxia and nursing satisfaction were observed as the secondary outcomes. RESULTS: Compared with the CG, puerpera in the IG had more occipital anterior position, less occipital transverse and posterior position, higher eutocia rate, lower pain and fear scores and shorter length of delivery; the Apgar score and nursing satisfaction were higher in the IG (all P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Positional care combined with doula delivery can effectively correct abnormal fetal orientation, improve the rate of eutocia, reduce puerpera's pain and fear, shorten the length of delivery, and improve the quality of neonatal outcome and patients' satisfaction.

Potential Health-Promoting Effects of Two Candidate Probiotics Isolated from Infant Feces Using an Immune-Based Screening Strategy.

Commensal microorganisms in the human gut are a good source of candidate probiotics, particularly those with immunomodulatory effects that may improve health outcomes by regulating interactions between the gut microbiome and distal organs. Previously, we used an immune-based screening strategy to select two potential probiotic strains from infant feces in China, Bifidobacterium breve 207-1 (207-1) and Lacticaseibacillus paracasei 207-27 (207-27). In this study, the in vitro immunological effects and potential in vivo general health benefits of these two strains were evaluated using Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) as the control. The results showed that 207-1 and 207-27 significantly and differentially modulated the cytokine profiles of primary splenic cells, while did not induce abnormal systemic immune responses in healthy mice. They also modulated the gut microbiota composition in a strain-dependent manner, thus decreasing Gram-negative bacteria and increasing health-promoting taxa and short-chain fatty acid levels, particularly butyric acid. Conclusively, 207-1 and 207-27 shaped a robust gut environment in healthy mice in a strain-specific manner. Their potential immunomodulatory effects and other elite properties will be further explored using animal models of disease and subsequent clinical trials. This immune-based screening strategy is promising in efficiently and economically identifying elite candidate probiotics.

Metabolomic analysis reveals potential biomarkers and serum metabolomic profiling in spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage patients using UPLC/quadrupole time-of-flight MS.

Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) accounts for 10-20% of all strokes and contributes to higher mortalities and severe disabilities. The aims of this study were, therefore, to characterize novel biomarkers, metabolic disruptions, and mechanisms involving ICH. A total 30 ICH patients and 30 controls were enrolled in the study, and their clinical characteristics were analyzed. Nontargeted metabolomic analysis was conducted using ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/Q-TOF). Multivariate statistical analysis and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis were used for screening and evaluating the predictive ability of biomarkers. ICH patients showed significantly higher systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, blood glucose levels, white blood cell counts, neutrophil count, percentage of neutrophils and globulin and a lower albumin/globin ratio when compared with controls. In sum, 11 important metabolites were identified, which were associated with disruption of fatty acid oxidation and sphingolipid and phospholipid metabolism, as well as increased inflammation, oxidative stress, and vascular pathologies. Further multiple logistic regression analyses of these metabolites showed that l-carnitine and phosphatidylcholine (20:3/22:6) have potential as biomarkers of ICH, and the area under the curve, sensitivity, specificity were 0.974, 90%, and 93%, respectively. These findings provide insights into the pathogenesis, early prevention, and diagnosis of ICH.

[High-fat diet induces metabolic syndrome in mice and its influence on intestinal development, liver function and intestinal microbiota].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the possibility of high-fat diet to induce metabolic syndrome and to alter intestinal development, liver function and intestinal microbiotaof C57 BL/6 J mice. METHODS: Total 40 of male C57 BL/6 J aged 3 weeks old were randomly divided into two groups: control group and high-fat diet group. After one week of adaptive feeding, the tested mice in high-fat diet group were fed with high-fat diet for 20 weeks, while those in control group were fed with ordinary diet. During the intervention, the body weight of the tested mice was measured weekly and fasting blood glucose(FBG) was measured monthly. Before the end of the experiment, the oral glucose tolerance test(OGTT) of the tested mice was conducted and the fecal 16 S rRNA sequencing was used to profile fecal microbiota of the test mice. Real-time qPCR was used to analyze the concentration of fecal bifidobacteria. Viscera coefficient of liver, spleen and pancreas, visceral fat-body ratio and intestinal length were measured. The indexes of liver function and the levels of serum lipids, leptin and adiponectin were also measured. Liver inflammation and fat infiltration were observed by anatomical pathological analysis. RESULTS: After intervention of high fat diet, the body weight, FBG, oral glucose tolerance, the fat-body ratio, the levels of serum lipids, leptin and adiponectin of mice were significantly increased(P<0. 05). The inflammatory state of liver and the degree of fat infiltration increased. The length of intestine decreased(P<0. 05). The concentration of Bifidobacterium decreased(P<0. 05), however, the concentration of B. bifidum and B. angulatum increased(P<0. 05). The ACE, Chao1, Shannon and Simpson indexes of the high-fat diet were significantly lower than that of the control group(P<0. 05). Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Deferribacteres were found significantly more in high-fat diet group(P<0. 05), while Bacteroidetes and Verrucomicrobia were apparently more in control group(P<0. 05). CONCLUSION: High-fat diet could induce the metabolic syndrome in tested C57 BL/6 J, and lead to the damage of intestinal development, abnormality of liver tissue and its function, decrease diversity of intestinal microbiota, and the transformation of intestinal microbiota community to obesity type.

A high-fat diet and high-fat and high-cholesterol diet may affect glucose and lipid metabolism differentially through gut microbiota in mice.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of a high-fat diet (HFD) and high-fat and high-cholesterol diet (HFHCD) on glucose and lipid metabolism and on the intestinal microbiota of the host animal. A total of 30 four-week-old female C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into three groups (n=10) and fed with a normal diet (ND), HFD, or HFHCD for 12 weeks, respectively. The HFD significantly increased body weight and visceral adipose accumulation and partly lowered oral glucose tolerance compared with the ND and HFHCD. The HFHCD increased liver weight, liver fat infiltration, liver triglycerides, and liver total cholesterol compared with the ND and HFD. Moreover, it increased serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and total cholesterol compared with the ND and HFD and upregulated alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase significantly. The HFHCD also significantly decreased the α-diversity of the fecal bacteria of the mice, to a greater extent than the HFD. The composition of fecal bacteria among the three groups was apparently different. Compared with the HFHCD-fed mice, the HFD-fed mice had more Oscillospira, Odoribacter, Bacteroides, and [Prevotella], but less [Ruminococcus] and Akkermansia. Cecal short-chain fatty acids were significantly decreased after the mice were fed the HFD or HFHCD for 12 weeks. Our findings indicate that an HFD and HFHCD can alter the glucose and lipid metabolism of the host animal differentially; modifications of intestinal microbiota and their metabolites may be an important underlying mechanism.

[Alleviation and recovery effects of Lactobacillus on the antibiotic-induced intestinal dysbiosis in early life stages of mice].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of Lactobacillus on the alleviation and recovery of ceftriaxone-induced intestinal dysbiosis in early life stages of mice, and the possible effect on immunity of the host. METHODS: A total of 48 four-week-old Balb/c male mice were randomly divided into four groups, with 12 in each group. The experiment lasted for four weeks. In the first week, mice were given normal saline, ceftriaxone, ceftriaxone plus Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, ceftriaxone plus direct vat set pickle(PC) by gavage respectively in the control group(ctrl), ceftriaxone group(ceftri), PC group and LGG group. The PC group and LGG group were given PC and LGG respectively for the last three weeks. The feces were collected once a week, and the profile composition of fecal bacteria were analyzed by next-generation sequencing. The mRNA expression levels of interleukin-6(IL-6), IL-12 and tumor necrosis factor α(TNF-α) in the spleen were analysed using quantitative real-time PCR. RESULTS: In the first week, the simpson index decreased significantly in the ceftri group(P<0. 001), but not in PC and LGG groups. At week four, the observed-species index in the PC group increased significantly(P<0. 001) and the simpson index increased in both LGG group and ceftri group(P<0. 01). As for the flora structure, in the first week, the ctrl group differed from the other three groups significantly(P<0. 05) while no differences were found between the PC group and the LGG group. The firmicutes/bacteroides(F/B) ratio of three ceftriaxone-treated groups increased while the abundance of Akkermansia decreased, particularly in the ceftri group. In the fourth week, the intestinal flora structure were different between four groups(P<0. 05) and the F/B ratio and Akkermansia abundance recovered. Ruminococcaceae, Bacteroidaceae and Tannerellacea appeared in the ceftri group, while Lactobacillus was dominant in the PC group, and Akkermansia was the characteristic species of the LGG group. Weight lost was found in ceftriaxone-treated groups(P<0. 05) and the PC group recovered first. IL-12 and TNF-α mRNA expression of the spleen were lower in PC and LGG groups compared with the ceftri group(P<0. 01). IL-6 mRNA expression level in the LGG group were lower than the ctrl group(P<0. 01). CONCLUSION: The administration of antibiotics in the early life stage might inhibit weight gain, reduce the diversity of intestinal flora, damage functional bacteria and cause long-term inflammation, even though self-recovery ability exist. Lactobacillus might be helpful to alleviate the damage of antibiotics. But no therapeutic effect has been found.

Antibiotics can cause weight loss by impairing gut microbiota in mice and the potent benefits of lactobacilli.

This study assessed whether antibiotics could alter gut microbiota to affect host growth and the possibility of alleviation by lactobacilli. We divided four-week-old BABL/c mice into control (Ctrl), antibiotic exposure (Abx), Lactobacillus plantarum PC-170 (PC), and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) group and the Abx, LGG, and PC group received an one-week antibiotic/antibiotic + probiotic treatment. The fecal microbiota and the expression of splenic cytokines were determined. Following the ceftriaxone treatment, the body weight gain of Abx was delayed compared with others. The ceftriaxone treatment significantly decreased the alpha-diversity of the fecal microbiota and altered the fecal microbiota but LGG and PC can partly alleviate the effect. At the end of the study, the microbial community of LGG and PC group were more similar to Ctrl compared with Abx group. The results indicated that ceftriaxone could significantly alter intestinal microbiota. Lactobacilli might alleviate the side effects of antibiotics by stabilizing the intestinal microbiota.

[Determination of neohesperidin dihydrochalcone and naringin dihydrochalcone in feeds by solid phase extraction-high performance liquid chromatography].

A new method was established for the determination of neohesperidin dihydrochalcone (NHDC) and naringin dihydrochalcone (Naringin DC) in feeds by solid phase extraction-high performance liquid chromatography (SPE-HPLC). The samples were extracted by methanol and were purified on an HLB solid-phase extraction column. Chromatographic separation was achieved on an XB-C18 column (150 mm×4.6 mm, 5 µm) by linear gradient elution using methanol/water as the mobile phase. The analytes were detected by the diode array detector (DAD). The results revealed a good linear correlation (r>0.999) between the peak areas and mass concentrations of dihydrochalcone sweeteners in the range of 0.2-49.0 mg/L. The limits of quantification (LOQs) of NHDC and Naringin DC were 0.02 and 0.01 mg/kg, respectively. Intra- and inter-day reproducibilities were 0.7%-4.1% and 0.9%-6.0%, respectively. The spiked recoveries for the samples and relative standard deviations (RSDs) were 86.2%-105.0% and 1.0%-6.3% (n=3), respectively. It is both sensitive and repeatable for the quantitative determination of neohesperidin dihydrochalcone and naringin dihydrochalcone in feeds, and thus, can be used to effectively reduce interference in feeds.

[A site index model for Larix principis-rupprechtii plantation in Saihanba, north China].

It is often difficult to estimate site indices for different types of plantation by using an ordinary site index model. The objective of this paper was to establish a site index model for plantations in varied site conditions, and assess the site qualities. In this study, a nonlinear mixed site index model was constructed based on data from the second class forest resources inventory and 173 temporary sample plots. The results showed that the main limiting factors for height growth of Larix principis-rupprechtii were elevation, slope, soil thickness and soil type. A linear regression model was constructed for the main constraining site factors and dominant tree height, with the coefficient of determination being 0.912, and the baseline age of Larix principis-rupprechtii determined as 20 years. The nonlinear mixed site index model parameters for the main site types were estimated (R2 > 0.85, the error between the predicted value and the actual value was in the range of -0.43 to 0.45, with an average root mean squared error (RMSE) in the range of 0.907 to 1.148). The estimation error between the predicted value and the actual value of dominant tree height for the main site types was in the confidence interval of [-0.95, 0.95]. The site quality of the high altitude-shady-sandy loam-medium soil layer was the highest and that of low altitude-sunny-sandy loam-medium soil layer was the lowest, while the other two sites were moderate.