ABSTRACT
As the search for effective treatments for COVID-19 continues, the high mortality rate among critically ill patients in Intensive Care Units (ICU) presents a profound challenge. This study explores the potential benefits of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as a supplementary treatment for severe COVID-19. A total of 110 critically ill COVID-19 patients at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Vulcan Hill Hospital between Feb., 2020, and April, 2020 (Wuhan, China) participated in this observational study. All patients received standard supportive care protocols, with a subset of 81 also receiving TCM as an adjunct treatment. Clinical characteristics during the treatment period and the clinical outcome of each patient were closely monitored and analysed. Our findings indicated that the TCM group exhibited a significantly lower mortality rate compared with the non-TCM group (16 of 81 vs 24 of 29; 0.3 vs 2.3 person/month). In the adjusted Cox proportional hazards models, TCM treatment was associated with improved survival odds (P < 0.001). Furthermore, the analysis also revealed that TCM treatment could partially mitigate inflammatory responses, as evidenced by the reduced levels of proinflammatory cytokines, and contribute to the recovery of multiple organic functions, thereby potentially increasing the survival rate of critically ill COVID-19 patients.
Subject(s)
Humans , COVID-19 , Medicine, Chinese Traditional , SARS-CoV-2 , Critical Illness , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
An excessive immune response contributes to SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis and lethality, but the mechanism remains unclear. In this study, the N proteins of SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 were found to bind to MASP-2, the key serine protease in the lectin pathway of complement activation, resulting in aberrant complement activation and aggravated inflammatory lung injury. Either blocking the N protein:MASP-2 interaction or suppressing complement activation can significantly alleviate N protein-induced complement hyper-activation and lung injury in vitro and in vivo. Complement hyper-activation was also observed in COVID-19 patients, and a promising suppressive effect was observed when the deteriorating patients were treated with anti-C5a monoclonal antibody. Complement suppression may represent a common therapeutic approach for pneumonia induced by these highly pathogenic coronaviruses. One Sentence SummaryThe lectin pathway of complement activation is a promising target for the treatment of highly pathogenic coronavirus induced pneumonia.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Irradiation crosslinking can remarkably increase the abrasive performance of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), thereby reducing its wear rate. OBJECTIVE: To review the recent progress in irradiated crosslinking UHMWPE. METHODS: A computer-based online search of ISI Web of knowledge was performed for articles related to irradiated crosslinking UHMWPE published from January1995 to April 2012 using the keywords of“irradiation crosslinking UHMWPE” in English. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: At present, domestic studies on irradiation crosslinking of UHMWPE mainly focus on the wear resistance, oxidation resistance and mechanical properties. Under high-energy radiation, radicals generate from the UHMWPE, which are inter-crosslinked. Irradiation crosslinking dramatical y enhances the UHMWPE wear resistance, while reduces its oxidation resistance and mechanical properties. In the future, the research wil focus on how to develop new UHMWPE composite with good wear resistance, oxidation resistance and mechanical properties.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:Coculture of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cel s and human umbilical vein endothelial cel s can improve both osteogenic and angiogenic outcomes and provide a promising strategy for bone tissue engineering and osteanagenesis. OBJECTIVE:To summarize recent researches and related progresses in coculture of human umbilical vein endothelial cel s and bone marrow mesenchymal stem cel s. METHODS:A computer-based online search of CNKI database from January 2000 to March 2012, PubMed database and Web of Knowledge database from January 1980 to March 2012, was performed with the keywords of“human umbilical vein endothelial cel s, bone mesenchymal stem cel s, coculture, tissue engineering”both in Chinese and English. A total of 135 articles were screened out, 103 of them were excluded due to unrelated study objective and repeated contents, and final y 32 articles were involved in further analysis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:At present, studies on coculture of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cel s and human umbilical vein endothelial cel s mainly focus on mimicking in vivo environments, the interactions between cel s, and the influence of different cel ratios and culture media. Most of these researches play important roles in bone tissue engineering and bone regeneration therapy, but the mechanism of action and concrete regulation in vivo between bone marrow mesenchymal stem cel s and human umbilical vein endothelial cel s stil need further research and analysis.
