Clinical observation of herb-separated moxibustion on segmental conception vessel combined with low-frequency TEAS for asthenospermia and oligospermia / 中国针灸

OBJECTIVE@#To observe the clinical effect of herb-separated moxibustion on segmental conception vessel combined with low-frequency transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) for asthenospermia and oligospermia.@*METHODS@#A total of 105 patients with asthenospermia and oligospermia were randomly divided into a combination group, a TEAS group and a medication group, 35 cases in each one. In the medication group, vitamin E capsules, coenzyme Q10 capsules，@*RESULTS@#Compared before treatment, except for the sperm morphology 2 months into treatment in the medication group, the semen routine indexes 2, 3 months into treatment were improved in the 3 groups (@*CONCLUSION@#Herb-separated moxibustion on segmental conception vessel combined with low-frequency TEAS can improve semen routine, reduce sperm oxidative stress damage for patients with asthenospermia and oligospermia, and the clinical efficacy is better than the medication and TEAS.

High-performance supercapacitor based on three-dimensional flower-shaped Li4Ti5O12-graphene hybrid and pine needles derived honeycomb carbon.

A three-dimensional (3D) flower-shaped Li4Ti5O12-graphene (Gr) hybrid micro/nanostructures and pine needles derived carbon nanopores (PNDCN) has been prepared by using the effective hydrothermal process. Due to the unique micro/nanostructures which can provide abundant surface active sites, the obtained 3D Li4Ti5O12-Gr displays a high specific capacitance of 706.52 F g-1 at 1 A g-1. The prepared PNDCN also exhibits high specific capacitance of 314.50 F g-1 at 1 A g-1 benefiting from its interconnected honeycomb-like hierarchical and open structure, which facilitates the diffusion and reaction of electrolyte ions and enables an isotropic charging/discharging process. An asymmetric supercapacitor utilizing Li4Ti5O12-Gr as positive electrode and PNDCN as negative electrode has been fabricated, it delivers a high energy density of 35.06 Wh kg-1 at power density of 800.08 W kg-1 and outstanding cycling stability with 90.18% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles. The fabrication process presented in this work is facile, cost-effective, and environmentally benign, offering a feasible solution for manufacturing next-generation high-performance energy storage devices.

A yolk-shell V2O5 structure assembled from ultrathin nanosheets and coralline-shaped carbon as advanced electrodes for a high-performance asymmetric supercapacitor.

Various V2O5 three-dimensional nanostructures are synthesized using a facile template-free hydrothermal method and evaluated for use as supercapacitor electrode materials. As a result, the yolk-shell structure assembled from ultrathin nanosheets shows the best electrochemical performance, with a specific capacitance of 704.17 F g-1 at 1.0 A g-1 and a high capacity retention of 89% over 4000 cycles at 3.0 A g-1. In addition, a continuous three-dimensional porous coralline-shaped carbon is synthesized from osmanthus and has a large Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of 2840.88 m2 g-1. Then, an asymmetric supercapacitor is developed using the as-prepared yolk-shell V2O5 as a positive electrode and the osmanthus derived coralline-shaped carbon as a negative electrode. This exhibits an energy density of 29.49 W h kg-1 at a power density of 800 W kg-1 with a good cycling performance that retains 90.6% of its initial capacity after 2000 cycles at 3.0 A g-1. Furthermore, two cells in series can easily brightly light up a light-emitting diode (3 V), further demonstrating the great potential of the prepared materials for high-performance supercapacitor devices.

Preparation of layered graphene and tungsten oxide hybrids for enhanced performance supercapacitors.

Tungsten oxide (WO3), which was originally poor in capacitive performance, is made into an excellent electrode material for supercapacitors by dispersing it on graphene (Gr). The obtained Gr-WO3 hybrids are characterized by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy techniques, and evaluated as electrode materials for high-performance supercapacitors by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge-discharge curves and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. A great improvement in specific capacitance is achieved with the present hybrids, from 255 F g-1 for WO3 nanoparticles to 580 F g-1 for Gr-WO3 hybrids (scanned at 1 A g-1 in 2 M KOH over a potential window of 0 to 0.45 V). The Gr-WO3 hybrid exhibits an excellent high rate capability and good cycling stability with more than 92% capacitance retention over 1000 cycles at a current density of 5 A g-1. The enhancement in supercapacitor performance of Gr-WO3 is not only attributed to its unique nanostructure with large specific surface area, but also its excellent electro-conductivity, which facilitates efficient charge transport and promotes electrolyte diffusion. As a whole, this work indicates that Gr-WO3 hybrids are a promising electrode material for high-performance supercapacitors.

Ultrasensitive electrochemical sensing platform for microRNA based on tungsten oxide-graphene composites coupling with catalyzed hairpin assembly target recycling and enzyme signal amplification.

An ultrasensitive electrochemical biosensor for microRNA (miRNA) is developed based on tungsten oxide-graphene composites coupling with catalyzed hairpin assembly target recycling and enzyme signal amplification. WO3-Gr is prepared by a simple hydrothermal method and then coupled with gold nanoparticles to act as a sensing platform. The thiol-terminated capture probe H1 is immobilized on electrode through Au-S interaction. In the presence of target miRNA, H1 opens its hairpin structure by hybridization with target miRNA. This hybridization can be displaced from the structure by another stable biotinylated hairpin DNA (H2), and target miRNA is released back to the sample solution for next cycle. Thus, a large amount of H1-H2 duplex is produced after the cyclic process. At this point, a lot of signal indicators streptavidin-conjugated alkaline phosphatase (SA-ALP) are immobilized on the electrode by the specific binding of avidin-biotin. Then, thousands of ascorbic acid, which is the enzymatic product of ALP, induces the electrochemical-chemical-chemical redox cycling to produce a strongly electrochemical response in the presence of ferrocene methanol and tris (2-carboxyethyl) phosphine. Under the optimal experimental conditions, the established biosensor can detect target miRNA down to 0.05fM (S/N=3) with a linear range from 0.1fM to 100pM, and discriminate target miRNA from mismatched miRNA with a high selectivity.

Scraping technique of stuck needle at Anmian point in the treatment of insomnia: a randomized controlled trial / 中国针灸

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To compare the efficacy difference in the treatment of insomnia between scraping technique of stuck needle and conventional acupuncture at Anmian (Extra).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and thirty one cases were randomized into an Anmian group (68 cases) and a conventional acupuncture group (63 cases). In the Anmian group, Anmian (Extra) was selected. After arrival of qi, the stuck needling was adopted by rotating the needle gently in single direction, 2-3 rounds till the needle body was stuck tightly. Afterwards, the needle tail was touched gently with the index finger to fix the needle body and the needle handle was scraped gently with the thumbnail from bottom to up. The needle was retained for 30 min. In the conventional acupuncture group, Sanyinjiao (SP 6), Shenmen (HT 7) and Baihui (GV 20) were selected and stimulated with reducing technique by rotating the needles. The needles were retained for 30 min. The treatment was given once every day, continuously for 2 weeks in both groups. The score of each factor and the total score in Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) were assessed before and after treatment in the two groups. Additionally, the efficacies of two groups were evaluated.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>For the patients in the conventional acupuncture group, the sleep quality and time of falling into spleen after treatment were improved as compared with those before treatment (all P < 0.01). The improvement of sleep time, sleep efficiency, sleep disturbance, hypnotic drug and daytime dysfunction, and PSQI total score did not present statistically significant difference as compared with those before treatment (all P > 0.05). After treatment, for the patients in the Anmian group, the factor score and total score in PSQI were apparently improved as compared with those before treatment (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). And the improvements of the above items were superior to the conventional acupuncture group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). The total effective rate was 91.2% (62/68) in the Anmian group and was 74.6% (47/63) in the conventional acupuncture group. The clinical efficacy in the Anmian group was apparently superior to the conventional acupuncture group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The scraping technique of stuck needle at Anmian (Extra) achieves the superior effect on insomnia as compared with the conventional acupuncture.</p>