Chronological Changes of Viral Shedding in Adult Inpatients With COVID-19 in Wuhan, China.

BACKGROUND: In December 2019, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) broke out in Wuhan. Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with COVID-19 have been reported, but the relationships between laboratory features and viral load has not been comprehensively described. METHODS: Adult inpatients (≥18 years old) with COVID-19 who underwent multiple (≥5 times) nucleic acid tests with nasal and pharyngeal swabs were recruited from Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, including general patients (n = 70), severe patients (n = 195), and critical patients (n = 43). Laboratory data, demographic data, and clinical data were extracted from electronic medical records. The fitted polynomial curve was used to explore the association between serial viral loads and illness severity. RESULTS: Viral load of SARS-CoV-2 peaked within the first few days (2-4 days) after admission, then decreased rapidly along with virus rebound under treatment. Critical patients had the highest viral loads, in contrast to the general patients showing the lowest viral loads. The viral loads were higher in sputum compared with nasal and pharyngeal swab (P = .026). The positive rate of respiratory tract samples was significantly higher than that of gastrointestinal tract samples (P < .001). The SARS-CoV-2 viral load was negatively correlated with portion parameters of blood routine and lymphocyte subsets and was positively associated with laboratory features of cardiovascular system. CONCLUSIONS: The serial viral loads of patients revealed whole viral shedding during hospitalization and the resurgence of virus during the treatment, which could be used for early warning of illness severity, thus improve antiviral interventions.

A new Cannabis germplasm classification system and research strategies of non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis / 中国中药杂志

At present,China manages cannabis into industrial and medical types. Industrial cannabis( THC<0. 3%) is grown for fiber and seed,while medical cannabis( THC>0. 3%) is prohibited from being planted and used. In recent years,breakthroughs have been made in the applications for a variety of fields of CBD,a non-psychoactive cannabinoid of Cannabis. However,China made a minimal contribution to this international research hotspot,mainly due to the outdated way of classification on cannabis. Here we reviewed the medicinal use history of cannabis,achievements in the study of Cannabis germplasm,and first proposed the three-level classification of management: psychoactive medicinal cannabis( THC>0. 3%),non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis( THC<0. 3%,high CBD)and industrial cannabis( THC<0. 3%,for fiber and seed,low CBD). Based on summarizing the research progress of the non-psychoactive medicinal cannabis,four key research strategies of breeding,sex control,plant factory,and synthetic biology are proposed.

Effects of Adipose-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes on Corneal Stromal Fibroblast Viability and Extracellular Matrix Synthesis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>Background</b>Corneal stromal cells (CSCs) are components of the corneal endothelial microenvironment that can be induced to form a functional tissue-engineered corneal endothelium. Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) have been reported as an important component of regenerative medicine and cell therapy for corneal stromal damage. We have demonstrated that the treatment with ADSCs leads to phenotypic changes in CSCs in vitro. However, the underlying mechanisms of such ADSC-induced changes in CSCs remain unclear.</p><p><b>Methods</b>ADSCs and CSCs were isolated from New Zealand white rabbits and cultured in vitro. An Exosome Isolation Kit, Western blotting, and nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA) were used to isolate and confirm the exosomes from ADSC culture medium. Meanwhile, the optimal exosome concentration and treatment time were selected. Cell Counting Kit-8 and annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate/propidium iodide assays were used to assess the effect of ADSC- derived exosomes on the proliferation and apoptosis of CSCs. To evaluate the effects of ADSC- derived exosomes on CSC invasion activity, Western blotting was used to detect the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and collagens.</p><p><b>Results:</b>ADSCs and CSCs were successfully isolated from New Zealand rabbits. The optimal concentration and treatment time of exosomes for the following study were 100 μg/ml and 96 h, respectively. NTA revealed that the ADSC-derived exosomes appeared as nanoparticles (40-200 nm), and Western blotting confirmed positive expression of CD9, CD81, flotillin-1, and HSP70 versus ADSC cytoplasmic proteins (all P < 0.01). ADSC-derived exosomes (50 μg/ml and 100 μg/ml) significantly promoted proliferation and inhibited apoptosis (mainly early apoptosis) of CSCs versus non-exosome-treated CSCs (all P < 0.05). Interestingly, MMPs were downregulated and extracellular matrix (ECM)-related proteins including collagens and fibronectin were upregulated in the exosome-treated CSCs versus non-exosome-treated CSCs (MMP1: t = 80.103, P < 0.01; MMP2: t = 114.778, P < 0.01; MMP3: t = 56.208, P < 0.01; and MMP9: t = 60.617, P < 0.01; collagen I: t = -82.742, P < 0.01; collagen II: t = -72.818, P < 0.01; collagen III: t = -104.452, P < 0.01; collagen IV: t = -133.426, P < 0.01, and collagen V: t = -294.019, P < 0.01; and fibronectin: t = -92.491, P < 0.01, respectively).</p><p><b>Conclusion:</b>The findings indicate that ADSCs might play an important role in CSC viability regulation and ECM remodeling, partially through the secretion of exosomes.</p>

The Significance of Long Noncoding RNA H19 in Predicting Progression and Metastasis of Cancers: A Meta-Analysis.

Recently, numerous studies indicate that H19 plays a key role in tumorigenesis, but the results have been disputed, especially in the aspects of tumor progression and metastasis. Therefore, we performed this meta-analysis to systematically summarize the relationship between H19 and cancers. We searched PubMed, the Cochrane Library, CNKI, and Chinese Wan Fang to identify eligible studies. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated to assess the effect size. A total of 13 studies were enrolled in this meta-analysis, which was performed by Revman5.3 and Stata11.0 software. Our meta-analysis showed that the expression of H19 was associated with distant metastasis in nongastrointestinal tumors (OR = 3.85, 95% CI = 1.31-11.36, P = 0.01) and, in gastrointestinal tumors (OR = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.15-0.78, P = 0.01), lymph node metastasis (OR = 2.04, 95% CI = 1.19-3.48, P = 0.009). Moreover, in gastric cancer, H19 expression was significantly related to histological grade (OR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.29-0.86, P = 0.01), TNM stage (OR = 0.19, 95% CI = 0.11-0.33, P < 0.01), and tumor invasion depth (OR = 0.11, 95% CI = 0.04-0.27, P < 0.01). Therefore, H19 could serve as a potential marker for progression and metastasis evaluation of cancers.

Effect of Tongxinluo on the proliferation and differentiation of rat embryonic neural stem cells / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of Tongxinluo in on the proliferation and differentiation of rat embryonic neural stem cells (NSCs).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>NSCs were isolated from 12- to 14-day SD rat embryo and treated with Tongxinluo at different doses, and the proliferation and differentiation of the cells were observed by immunofluorescence staining at different time points.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The ratio of embryonic NSCs labeled with nestin decreased soon after Tongxinluo treatment, but increased afterwards. Significant difference was noted in the number of cells labeled with beta-tubulin between Tongxinluo group and the control group 3 and 7 days after the treatment, and also between high-dose and low-dose Tongxinluo groups at 7 days.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Tongxinluo can induce the proliferation and neuronal differentiation of rat embryonic NSCs, and the effect is related to the dose of Tongxinluo administered.</p>

Effect of electro-scalp acupuncture on cerebral dopamine transporter in the striatum area of the patient of Parkinson's disease by means of single photon emission computer tomography / 中国针灸

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To probe the mechanism of electro-scalp acupuncture in treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) by single photon emission computer tomography (SPECT).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Five cases of PD received electro-scalp acupuncture at Dingnie Qianxiexian (MS 6), Epangxian III (MS 4), Dingpangxian I (MS 8), Dingpangxian II (MS 9) and Zhenxia Pangxian (MS 14). Contralateral points were selected for pathologic change on one side and bilateral points were selected for pathologic lesion on both sides. All the patients received 99mTc-TRODAT-1 SPECT examination before and after acupuncture treatment of 6 weeks. And activities of dopamine transporter (DAT) were analyzed by the ratio of striatum/occipital lobe (ST/OC), which was evaluated by means of technique of regional of interesting (ROI).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The ratio of ST/OC on the same side of the affected extremity before and after treatment were 1.19 +/- 0.15 and 1.24 +/- 0.31 respectively. And on the other side were 0.90 +/- 0.12 and 0.95 +/- 0.25 respectively. They were increased after treatment (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Electro-scalp acupuncture can decrease the loss of DAT and improve the activities of DAT in the striatum of the patient of PD.</p>

18FDG PET cerebral function imaging in 10 vascular dementia patients receiving needling at Baihui(DU20), Shuigou(DU26) and Shenmen(HT7) / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effect of needling at Baihui(DU20), Shuigou(DU26) and Shenmen(HT7) on glucose metabolism in different regions of the brain in vascular dementia patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Ten patients with vascular dementia were randomized into 2 groups, and the patients in the control group received the treatment with needling in the routine acupoints for hemiplegia (chosen from 6 Yang meridians of the hand and foot), while those in treatment group received needling at 3 additional acupoints, namely Baihui(DU20), Shuigou(DU26) and Shenmen(HT7), which were specific for dementia treatment. All the patients were examined by positron-emission tomography(PET) to detect the glucose metabolism in different brain regions before and after acupuncture treatment by means of semiquantitative analysis of the average values of radioactive count in the brain regions.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Needling at the additional 3 acupoints could obviously enhance glucose metabolism in the bilateral frontal lobes, bilateral thalamus, temporal lobe and lentiform nucleus on the uncompromised side.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The effect of needling at Baihui(DU20), Shuigou(DU26) and Shenmen(HT7) on vascular dementia is closely related to improved cerebral glucose metabolism.</p>

Effect of scalp acupuncture on glucose metabolism in brain of patients with depression / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effect of scalp acupuncture (SA) on the glucose metabolism in different regions of brain in patients with depression by positron emission computed tomography (PET).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Twelve depressive patients were treated by scalp acupuncture on middle line of vertex (MS5), middle line of forehead (MS1) and bilateral lateral line 1 of forehead (MS2), once a day for six days per week, and received PET detection on different region of brain before and after 6 weeks acupuncture treatment. Semiquantitative analysis was used to compare the average values of radioactive count gotten from various brain regions before and after treatment, which could reflect the condition of glucose metabolism at the brain region detected.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>SA could increase the glucose metabolism at bilateral frontal lobes, bilateral parietal lobes, right occipital lobe, right caudate nucleus, right cingulated gyrus and left cerebellum and decrease that at right temporal lobe and bilateral thalamus.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>SA on MS5, MS1 and MS2 in depressive patients could influence the glucose metabolism in various brain regions. It primarily illustrated that the mechanism of SA in treating depression is related with its regulation on cortex-limbic circuitry dysfunction and increase the glucose metabolism in various brain regions.</p>