Research progress in clinical application and pharmacological effect of Yiyi Fuzi Baijiang Powder / 中国中药杂志

Yiyi Fuzi Baijiang Powder(YFBP), originating from Synopsis of the Golden Chamber, is a classic prescription composed of Coicis Semen, Aconiti Lateralis Radix Praeparata, and Patriniae Herba for the treatment of abscesses and pus discharge. This article presented a systematic analysis of the clinical application of YFBP, including the indicated diseases, the number of cases, efficacy, dosage, administration methods, and compatibility with other drugs. The analysis reveals that YFBP has a wide range of clinical applications. It is commonly used, often with modifications or in combination with western medicine, for diseases in the fields of gastroente-rology, gynecology, urology, dermatology, and others. And most of the Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM) evidence involved in these diseases are damp-heat evudence. The prescription shows rich variations in clinical administration methods, and most of which are the treatment of aqueous decoction of it. The therapeutic effect is also significant, and the total effective rate of clinical treatment is re-latively high. Additionally, this article summarized the pharmacological research on YFBP and found that it possessed various pharmacological effects, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anticancer, and immune-modulating properties. Finally, correlation analysis was conducted on the main diseases, TCM types, prescription doses, pharmacological effects and action targets of YFBP, which to show the relationship between these five aspects in a visual form, reflecting the relationship between its clinical application and modern pharmacological effects. These findings provide a reference basis for further development and research on YFBP.

Untargeted and Targeted Metabolomics Reveal the Underlying Mechanism of Aspirin Eugenol Ester Ameliorating Rat Hyperlipidemia via Inhibiting FXR to Induce CYP7A1.

Hyperlipidemia is an important lipid disorder and a risk factor for health. Aspirin eugenol ester (AEE) is a novel synthetic compound which is made up of two chemical structural units from aspirin and eugenol. Therapeutic effect of AEE on hyperlipidemia has been confirmed in animal model. But the action mechanism of AEE on hyperlipidemia is still poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the effects of AEE on liver and feces metabolic profile through UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based untargeted metabolomics in hyperlipidemia hamster induced with high fat diet (HFD), and the effects of AEE on the expression of genes and proteins related to cholesterol and bile acid (BA) in HFD-induced hyperlipidemia SD rat. The concentrations of 26 bile acids (BAs) in the liver from hyperlipidemia SD rat were also quantified with the application of BA targeted metabolomics. The results of untargeted metabolomics showed that the underlying mechanism of AEE on hyperlipidemia was mainly associated with amino acid metabolism, glutathione metabolism, energy metabolism, BA metabolism, and glycerophospholipid metabolism. AEE induced the expression of the BA-synthetic enzymes cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase (CYP7A1) by the inhibition of BA nuclear receptor farnesoid X receptor (FXR) in liver, which resulted in accelerating the conversion of cholesterol into bile acids and excrete in feces. The results of BA targeted metabolomics showed that AEE elevated the glycine-conjugated BA level and decreased the tauro-conjugated BA level. In conclusion, this study found that AEE decreased FXR and increased CYP7A1 in the liver, which might be the possible molecular mechanisms and targets of AEE for anti-hyperlipidemia therapies.

Temporal dynamic in the impact of COVID- 19 outbreak on cause-specific mortality in Guangzhou, China.

BACKGROUND: Studies related to the SARS-CoV-2 spikes in the past few months, while there are limited studies on the entire outbreak-suppressed cycle of COVID-19. We estimate the cause-specific excess mortality during the complete circle of COVID-19 outbreak in Guangzhou, China, stratified by sociodemographic status. METHODS: Guangzhou Center for Disease Control Prevention provided the individual data of deaths in Guangzhou from 1 January 2018 through 30 June 2020. We applied Poisson regression models to daily cause-specific mortality between 1 January 2018 and 20 January 2020, accounting for effects of population size, calendar time, holiday, ambient temperature and PM2.5. Expected mortality was estimated for the period from 21 January through 30 June 2020 assuming that the effects of factors aforementioned remained the same as described in the models. Excess mortality was defined as the difference between the observed mortality and the expected mortality. Subgroup analyses were performed by place of death, age group, sex, marital status and occupation class. RESULTS: From 21 January (the date on which the first COVID-19 case occurred in Guangzhou) through 30 June 2020, there were three stages of COVID-19: first wave, second wave, and recovery stage, starting on 21 January, 11 March, and 17 May 2020, respectively. Mortality deficits were seen from late February through early April and in most of the time in the recovery stage. Excesses in hypertension deaths occurred immediately after the starting weeks of the two waves. Overall, we estimated a deficit of 1051 (95% eCI: 580, 1558) in all-cause deaths. Particularly, comparing with the expected mortality in the absence of COVID-19 outbreak, the observed deaths from pneumonia and influenza substantially decreased by 49.2%, while deaths due to hypertension and myocardial infarction increased by 14.5 and 8.6%, respectively. In-hospital all-cause deaths dropped by 10.2%. There were discrepancies by age, marital status and occupation class in the excess mortality during the COVID-19 outbreak. CONCLUSIONS: The excess deaths during the COVID-19 outbreak varied by cause of death and changed temporally. Overall, there was a deficit in deaths during the study period. Our findings can inform preparedness measures in different stages of the outbreak.

Clinical value of JNET classification for non-real-time diagnosis of colorectal lesions / 中华消化内镜杂志

Objective To study the diagnostic value of Japan narrow band imaging expert team ( JNET) classification for differentiating pathological type of colorectal lesions. Methods A total of 418 colorectal lesions were retrospectively diagnosed by magnifying endoscopy with narrow band imaging ( ME-NBI) using JNET classification by two inexperienced doctors after a short time of training in JNET classification. Then lesions were diagnosed with Sano classification by the two doctors. Diagnostic results were compared with histologic findings as a golden standard. Results The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of JNET classification and Sano classification for neoplastic lesion differentiation were 98. 2％ VS 98. 5％, 77. 8％ VS 66. 7％, and 96. 9％ VS 96. 4％, respectively ( all P>0. 05 ) . These indicators for diagnosing cancerous lesions, including high grade intraepithelial neoplasia, intramucosal carcinoma and submucosal carcinoma, were 66. 7％ VS 80. 2％ ( P=0. 023) , 87. 6％ VS 79. 5％ ( P=0. 006) , and 82. 1％ VS 79. 7％( P=0. 379 ) , respectively, and those for predicting submucosal deep invasive cancers were 34. 8％ VS 39. 1％, 100. 0％ VS 99. 0％, and 96. 4％ VS 96. 3％, respectively ( all P>0. 05) . The diagnostic accuracy of JNET classification for differentiating neoplastic lesions were 95. 2％ in those with diameter <10 mm, 97. 0％ in 10～<20 mm, and 97. 8％ in ≥20 mm (P=0. 483), this finding were 95. 2％, 85. 1％ and 72. 1％ for cancer, respectively ( P<0. 0001 ) , and 100％, 96. 3％, and 94. 4％ for submucosal deep invasive cancer, respectively (P=0. 026). Shape and location of colorectal lesions showed no significant effect on the diagnostic efficacy of JNET classification. Conclusion JNET classification is valuable for doctors without experience of ME-NBI in diagnosing colorectal lesions and the efficiency is slightly superior to Sano classification. However, the accuracy of diagnosis for cancer with diameter ≥20 mm need to be improved.

Degradation of sulfamethoxazole in bioelectrochemical system with power supplied by constructed wetland-coupled microbial fuel cells.

The removal rate and degradation pathway of Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in bioelectrochemical system (BES) and the elimination dynamics of SMX in a BES driven by stacked constructed wetland-coupled microbial fuel cells (CW-MFCs) were investigated. The results found that SMX (30mgL-1) was rapidly degraded in the BES, and the SMX removal kinetics was simulated well by a first-order kinetic model (R2>0.93). Low current had no effect on the degradation products but enhanced the SMX removal rate. Biotransformation was the main pathway for the SMX elimination in the BES. The CW-MFCs supplied adequate and stable electricity (0.84-1.01V) to support the BES for rapid SMX degradation without additional energy inputs. The relative abundance of Methanosarcina (18.7%) and VadinCA11 (3.1%) increased with an increase in voltage up to 1.2V. However, the opposite was observed for Methanosaeta and Methanomassiliicoccus. The current in the BES influenced the methanogenic communities.

Dynamics of antibiotic resistance genes in microbial fuel cell-coupled constructed wetlands treating antibiotic-polluted water.

Microbial fuel cell-coupled constructed wetlands (CW-MFCs) use electrochemical, biological, and ecological functions to treat wastewater. However, few studies have investigated the risks of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) when using such systems to remove antibiotics. Therefore, three CW-MFCs were designed to assess the dynamics of ARGs in filler biofilm and effluent over 5000 h of operation. The experimental results indicated that relatively high steady voltages of 605.8 mV, 613.7 mV, and 541.4 mV were obtained at total influent antibiotic concentrations of 400, 1,000, and 1600 µg L-1, respectively. The 16S rRNA gene level in the cathode layer was higher than those in the anode and two middle layers, but the opposite trend was observed for the sul and tet genes. The relative abundance of the three tested sul genes were in the order sulI > sulII > sulIII, and those of the five tet genes were in the order tetA > tetC > tetW > tetO > tetQ. The levels of sul and tet genes in the media biofilm showed an increase over the treatment period. The effluent water had relatively low abundances of sul and tet genes compared with the filler biofilm. No increases were observed for most ARGs over the treatment period, and no significant correlations were observed between the ARGs and 16S rRNA gene copy numbers, except for sulI and tetW in the effluent. However, significant correlations were observed among most of the ARG copy numbers.

FAS Grafted Electrospun Poly(vinyl alcohol) Nanofiber Membranes with Robust Superhydrophobicity for Membrane Distillation.

This study develops a novel type of electrospun nanofiber membranes (ENMs) with high permeability and robust superhydrophobicity for membrane distillation (MD) process by mimicking the unique unitary microstructures of ramee leaves. The superhydrophobic ENMs were fabricated by the eletrospinning of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), followed by chemical cross-linking with glutaraldehyde and surface modification via low surface energy fluoroalkylsilane (FAS). The resultant FAS grafted PVA (F-PVA) nanofiber membranes were endowed with self-cleaning properties with water contact angles of 158° and sliding angles of 4° via the modification process, while retaining their high porosities and interconnected open structures. For the first time, the robust superhydrophobicity of the ENMs for MD was confirmed by testing the F-PVA nanofiber membranes under violent ultrasonic treatment and harsh chemical conditions. Furthermore, vacuum membrane distillation experiments illustrated that the F-PVA membranes presented a high and stable permeate flux of 25.2 kg/m2 h, 70% higher than those of the commercial PTFE membranes, with satisfied permeate conductivity (<5 µm/cm) during a continuous test of 16 h (3.5 wt % NaCl as the feed solution, and feed temperature and permeate pressure were set as 333 K and 9 kPa, respectively), suggesting their great potentials in myriad MD processes such as high salinity water desalination and volatile organiccompounds removal.

Effects of promethazine or dexamethasone pretreatment on mivacurium-induced histamine release in children.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of pretreatment with either promethazine or dexamethasone on mivacurium-induced histamine release in children. METHODS: Eighty ASA I-II children (4-10 years of age) scheduled for tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy were randomly divided into 4 groups (n = 20 per group) designated as either the rocuronium, mivacurium, dexamethasone (DXM), or promethazine group. Children in the DXM and promethazine groups were treated separately with intramuscular DXM 0.2 mg·kg(-1) or promethazine 0.5 mg·kg(-1) injections 60 min before operation. Radial artery blood samples were collected to quantify plasma histamine concentrations 1 min before and 1, 3, and 5 min after administration of the relaxant. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), and skin flushing were recorded at the same time. RESULTS: No significant decreases in plasma histamine concentrations were observed between groups; however, more stable MAP and HR and less skin flushing were observed in DXM group participants compared with individuals in the mivacurium group (P < 0.05). By contrast, children in the promethazine group had significantly decreased plasma histamine concentrations and stable MAP and HR (without a significant increase in HR) compared with patients in mivacurium group. In addition, skin flushing was significantly decreased compared with that observed in the rocuronium group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Pretreatment with promethazine significantly decreased mivacurium-induced histamine release in children and provided stable hemodynamics during administration of anesthesia.

Liquid-gas dual phase microfluidic system for biocompatible CaCO3 hollow nanoparticles generation and simultaneous molecule doping.

Continuous CaCO(3) hollow nanoparticle generation at room temperature with simultaneous molecule doping is realized on a liquid-gas dual phase microfluidic system.

1-[(3-Nitro-phen-yl)(piperidin-1-yl)methyl]piperidine.

In the crystal structure of the title compound, C(17)H(25)N(3)O(2), one-dimensional chains are formed via inter-molecular C-H⋯O hydrogen bonds along the a axis.

[Nitrogen removal in earthworm ecofilter treating domestic wastewater].

The removal efficiency of different forms of nitrogen was studied in earthworm ecofilter treating domestic wastewater, and the mechanisms were discussed. Results indicated that, the major form of total nitrogen (TN) in influent water and effluent water were existed as ammonia-nitrogen (NH4+ -N) and nitrate-nitrogen (NO3- -N), respectively. NH4+ -N /TN in influent water and NO3- -N /TN in effluent water were 83.88% and 76.46%, respectively, NH4+ -N decreased and NO3- -N increased during the process. The average removal efficiency of TN and NH4+ -N were 28.08% and 90.44%, respectively, nitrate-nitrogen accumulated massively and nitrite-nitrogen (NO2- -N) accumulated a little. It was also observed that nitrification in earthworm ecofilter was strong and the denitrification was inhibited, TN removal was not as obvious as the NH4+ -N removal due to the poor denitrification environment. The overall removal of TN can be improved by increasing wet/dry ratio, modifying the structure of filter, multistage filter series, following by constructed wetland, and increasing C/N ratio of the influent water.

6-Fluoro-4-oxochroman-2-carboxylic acid.

The title compound, C(10)H(7)FO(4), is an inter-mediate in the synthesis of the drug Fidarestat, (2S,4S)-2-aminoformyl-6-fluoro-spiro[chroman-4,4'-imidazolidine]-2',5'-dione. The di-hydro-pyran-one ring adopts an envelope conformation with the asymmetric C atom in the flap position. In the crystal, the mol-ecules are linked into zigzag chains along [100] by O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds and C-H⋯π inter-actions involving the benzene ring.

Expression of endothelin receptor subtypes in the spiral ganglion neurons of the guinea pig.

OBJECTIVE: Endothelin 1 has many biological activities including regulating the functions of auditory system. The present study aimed to investigate the expression of the endothelin receptors in spiral ganglion neurons and its significance in the auditory transmission. METHODS: The cochleae of healthy guinea pigs were fixed, decalcified, embedded in paraffin and serially sectioned. The expression of endothelin receptor subunits, ET receptor A (ET-A) and ET receptor B (ET-B), was examined in the spiral ganglion neurons of guinea pig using immunohistochemical technique. RESULTS: Different degrees of ET-A and ET-B positive reactivity appeared in all spiral ganglion neurons from the basal turn to the apical turn. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the suggestion that endothelin via the endothelin receptor may play a physiological role in the spiral ganglion neurons.

The feasibility of outpatient data used for respiratory syndromic surveillance in general hospital / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective To find out the data sources of respiratory syndromes and their components from the outpatients of general hospitals and to describe the time distribution and mutual relations of different respiratory syndromes. Feasibility of respiratory syndromes used for early warning surveillance on respiratory infectious disease was also under research. Methods Retrospective investigation on Hospital Information System (HIS) was implemented in a general hospital in Guangzhou, 2005, and data of outpatients was collected and classified into different syndromes. The respiratory syndromes with its time distribution similar to influenza like illness (ILI),were selected, and cross-correlation analyses were conducted to inveshgate the feasibility of respiratory syndromes for early warning surveillance on respiratory infection diseases (influenza as an example). Results Primary sub-classification of respiratory syndromes in outpatient department would include upper respiratory infection(URI)(51.20%), trachitis/bronchitis (18.80%), asthma ( 17.52% ), etc. Pulmonary infection accounted for only 2.26%. Time distributions of URI, trachitis/bronchitis, pulmonary infection, cough and asthma in outpatient department, X-ray tests and pneumonia/acute respiratory distress syndromes (ARDSs) in outpatient X-ray room were similar, with two peaks observed. Cross-correlation functions were calculated with the data sets of 1st-28th week.The most significant correlation was detected between the time series of outpatient pulmonary infections and ILIs moved 4 weeks backward (r＝0.739, P＜0.01 ), and that was detected between URIs and ILIs moved 5 weeks backward (r=0.714, P＜0.01 ). Correlation between X-ray tests,pneumonia/ARDSs in outpatient X-ray room and ILIs was the strongest when ILIs time series moved 1 week backward (r=0.858, P＜0.001; r=0.821, P＜0.001 ). Conclusion Outpatient data from HIS system in general hospital could be applied to syndromic surveillance on respiratory diseases. For early warning epidemics or outbreaks of influenza or other respiratory infectious diseases, data of outpatient pulmonary infection appeared to be the most feasible for its specificity and timeliness, followed by URI and cough. X-ray tests and pneumonia/ARDSs in outpatient X-ray findings were important supplementary to verify the respiratory disease epidemics or outbreaks for its good specificity, but with no advantage for early warning.

Severity of sepsis is correlated with the elevation of serum high-mobility group box 1 in rats / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Sepsis is a leading cause of death in the intensive care units. The late inflammatory cytokine, high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), plays a critical role in sepsis. In the present study, we investigated the association between the serum HMGB1 levels and the severity of organ injury in the lipopolysaccharide-induced sepsis in rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>To produce an animal model of sepsis with different degree of organ injury, animals were treated with three different doses of lipopolysaccharide (4, 8 and 16 mg/kg), and the animals in control group were treated with the same volume of the vehicle (saline). The levels of serum HMGB1 were measured at 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 32 and 48 hours after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or vehicle injection, meanwhile the biochemical and histopathological indicators for the severity of organ injury were assessed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The level of HMGB1 had a positive, high correlation with the abnormal changes of serum cardiac troponin I, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, creatinine and blood urea nitrogen, as well as the pathologic scores of heart, lung, liver and kidney.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The level of serum HMGB1 is highly correlated with the severity of sepsis in rats, suggesting that HMGB1 could serve as a valuable adjunct in the diagnosis and management of sepsis.</p>

Study on human case of avian influenza in Guangzhou 2006 without causing human-to-human transmission among close contacts / 中华流行病学杂志

<p><b>UNLABELLED</b>Study on human case of avian influenza in Guangzhou 2006 without causing human-to-human transmission</p><p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the possibility of transmission from a human case of avian influenza to his close contacts.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Close contacts of the human case of avian influenza in Guangzhou 2006 were found out according to the definition and methods publicized by the Ministry of Health, People's Republic of China. Epidemiological investigation and medical observation were carried out. Serum antibodies were tested in some of the close contacts.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The avian influenza patient had never left Guangzhou in the month prior to disease onset. No contact history with dead or diseased poultry was found. A total of 56 close contacts, including his girl friend, relatives, friends and medical staff who had taken care of him, were brought under medical observation for 7 days but none of them showed signs of infection.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Unlike SARS, direct contact with patient contracted with avian influenza at the end of incubation period and in the stage of illness through flying droplets, saliva, mucous membrane and skin injuries will not lead to human-to-human transmission, indicating the virus' ability to pass from human to human is limited.</p>

Study on the epidemiology and measures for control on severe acute respiratory syndrome in Guangzhou city / 中华流行病学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To analyze the epidemiological characteristics, related risk factors, measures for its control of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Data on epidemiological features, pathogens and measures for control were collected and analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Since Jan 2003, infectious atypical pneumonia (AP) has become epidemic in Guangzhou city. The first autochthonous case was identified on Jan 2nd. Number of cases started to increase since February and reached peak in the early 10 days of February. Hereafter the epidemic tended to decline in March and since early April, the average number of new cases began to decrease, less than 10 per day. Epidemiological studies revealed that the number of cases aged between 20 and 50 was higher than that below the age of 20. Of the total 966 cases, 429 were males versus 537 females. Geographically, the epidemics covered all 13 districts of Guangzhou, but 95% of the cases concentrated in 7 urban districts. As for professional distribution, health care workers accounted for 28.67% of the total cases. There were 36 deaths, aged from 5 to 89, with half of them older than 60. Out of the victims, 38.9% of them had complications as hypertension, diabetes, heart diseases and COPD etc. Data regarding the clustering features of cases showed that there were 42 families having 2 or more cases in one family, while 277 health workers suffered from SARS were concentrated in 28 hospitals. Only one outbreak took place in a public setting but no outbreak was reported in schools. Relevant research also indicated that SARS could be classified as an air-borne infectious disease, transmitted through aerosol and droplets, but close contact also played an important role in the mode of transmission. The disease was highly infectious, suggesting that people who had close contact with patients in the place with poor ventilation was in greater risk of getting infection. The incubation period ranged from 1 to 11 days (mainly from 3 to 8 days), with an average of 5 days. According to our observation, the following measures might be effective such as: early diagnosis, isolation and treatment provided to the patients, and suspected cases under medical observation should also be put in separate places. Improving ventilation and regular disinfection over air and stuff in hospital wards were also recommended. In order to prevent iatrogenic infection, sense on self-protection among health care workers must be strengthened. Patients were not allowed to be visited by any one other than hospital staff.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>SARS is a preventable disease and can be under control. It is of great importance to prevent clustered SARS cases and the prevention of iatrogenic infection is essential.</p>

Esterase Isozyme Analysis of 14 Strains of Ganoderma / 微生物学通报

Antagonism, esterase isozyme ployacrylamide gel electrophoretic (EST-PAGE) and cluster analysis was used in the study of 14 strains of Ganoderma. The results showed that there were 18 bands of EST with different Rf. Cluster analysis at 50% similarity level showed that all strains could be clustered into five groups, the first included Xian zhi, Da xian 823, Nan han, Yuan zhi 6, Tian zhi, Han zhi; the second included Chi zhi 10, Chi zhi 12, Chi zhi, Ri ben hong zhi; the third included Zi zhi, Hei zhi; the fourth included Xue zhi; the fifth included Bai zhi. And this result was similar to the result of antagonism and morphological characters. Because of its stablity, the technique of EST can be used for identification of Gamoderma.

STUDY ON MULTIMEDIA TEACHING METHOLDS OF MICROBIOLOGY / 微生物学通报

Microbiology is one of the fundamental courses in life science and its theories and application techniques are being developed rapidly, in order to arouse the students interest and help them master better the knowledge of microbiology, we have attemped an exploration and reform in the traditional teaching methods of this subject, our study would center on multimedia teaching methods of microbiology, its content were chiefly multimedia microbiology; multimedia microbiology experiment and microbiology network teaching.