Meta-analysis and sequential analysis of acupuncture compared to carbamazepine in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia

BACKGROUND In this randomized controlled trial(RCT)comparing current acupuncture with carbamazepine for trigeminal neuralgia,meta-and sequential analyses were utilized.AIM To guide clinical decision making regarding the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia with carbamazepine.METHODS The RCT literature on needle comparison was searched in various Chinese biomedical databases including Chinese Biomedical Literature Database,Wanfang Data,VIP Database,as well as international databases such as Excerpt Medica Database,Cochrane Library,PubMed,and Web of Science,along with related clinical registration platforms such as World Health Organization International Clinical Trial Registry Platform,ChiCTR,and Clinical Trials up to 1 April 2020.Risk of bias was evaluated using the Cochrane Collaborative Risk Bias tool,primary outcome measures(pain reduction)were analyzed using STATA metaanalysis,outcome measures were analyzed using trial sequential analysis 0.9.5.10 Beta sequential analysis,GRADE was used to assess the evidence,and adverse reactions were documented.RESULTS This study analyzed 16 RCTs with a total of 1231 participants.The meta-analysis revealed a statistically significant difference in pain reduction between acupuncture and carbamazepine[standardized mean difference(SMD)=1.47;95%confidence interval(CI):0.99-1.95],although the quality of evidence was deemed to be of extremely low quality.Cumulative meta-analysis based on the year of publication indicated that carbamazepine treatment first demonstrated a statistically significant difference in pain reduction in 2014 and remained relatively stable over time[SMD=1.84;95%CI:0.22-3.47].Additionally,the number of adverse events associated with acupuncture was significantly lower compared to carbamazepine.CONCLUSION Acupuncture for trigeminal neuralgia is better than analgesia and safer than carbamazepine;however,firm conclusions still require a high-quality,multicenter,large-sample RCT to confirm these findings.

Quantitative Assessment of Amino Acid Damage upon keV Ion Beam Irradiation Through FTIR Spectroscopy

Ion beam irradiation induces important biological effects and it is a long-standing task to acquire both qualitative and quantitative assessment of these effects. One effective way in the investigation is to utilize Fourier transformation infrared （FTIR） spectroscopy because it can offer sensitive and non-invasive measurements. In this paper a novel protocol was employed to prepare biomolecular samples in the form of thin and transversely uniform solid films that were suitable for both infrared and low-energy ion beam irradiation experiments. Under the irradiation of N^＋ and Ar^＋ ion beams of 25 keV with fluence ranging from 5×10^15 ions/cm^2 to 2.5×10^16 ions/cm^2, the ion radio-sensitivity of four amino acids, namely, glycine, tyrosine, methionine and phenylalanine, were evaluated and compared. The ion beam irradiation caused biomolecular decomposition accompanied by molecular desorption of volatile species and the damage was dependent on ion type, fiuence, energy and types of amino acids. The effectiveness of application of FTIR spectroscopy to the quantitative assessment of biomolecular damage dose effect induced by low-energy ion radiation was thus demonstrated.

Effect of Ar Ion Beam Implantation on Morphological and Physiological Characteristics of Liquorice(Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch)Under Short-Term Artificial Drought Conditions

Ar^＋ ion beam with low energy of 30 keV was implanted into liquorice （Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch） seeds at the doses of 0, 600, 900 and 1200 × （2.6 × 10^13） ions/cm^2, respectively. The seeds were sowed in pots and after one month the plants were subjected to different drought conditions for two months. Then the plants＇ morphological and physiological characteristics, antioxidation enzymes and levels of endogenous hormones were investigated. The results showed that ion implantation at a proper dose can greatly enhance the liquorice seedlings＇ resistance against drought stress.

Analysis of a Partial Male-Sterile Mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana Isolated from a Low-Energy Argon Ion Beam Mutagenized Pool

A screen for Arabidopsis fertility mutants, mutagenized by low-energy argon ion beam, yielded two partial male-sterile mutants tc243-1 and tc243-2 which have similar phenotypes. tc243-2 was investigated in detail. The segregation ratio of the mutant phenotypes in the M2 pools suggested that mutation behaved as single Mendelian recessive mutations, tc243 showed a series of mutant phenotypes, among which partial male-sterile was its striking mutant characteristic. Phenotype analysis indicates that there are four factors leading to male sterility, a. Floral organs normally develop inside the closed bud, but the anther filaments do not elongate sufficiently to position the locules above the stigma at anthesis, b. The anther locules do not dehisce at the time of flower opening （although limited dehiscence occurs later）, c. Pollens of mutant plants develop into several types of pollens at the trinucleated stage. as determined by staining with DAPI （4＇,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole）. which shows a variable size. shape and number of nucleus. d. The viability of pollens is lower than that of the wild type on the germination test in vivo and vitro.

A Study of Mutation Breeding of High-Yielding Tryptophanase Escherichia coli by Low-Energy N^+ Ion Beam Implantation

Low energy ion beam has been widely applied in microbe breeding, plant breeding, gene transfer and cell modification. In this study, the Escherichia coli （E.coli） strain producing tryptophanase was irradiated by a low energy nitrogen ion beam with an energy of 10 keV at a fluence of 13 × 10^14 N^＋/cm^2 when glycerin at a 15% concentration was used as a protector. The effect on the biomass of E. coli after N^＋ implantation was analyzed in detail by statistic methods. The screening methods used in this study were proven to be effective. After continuous mutagenicity, a high-yield tryptophanase strain was selected and both its biomass and enzymatic activity were higher than those of the parent strain. The results of scale-up production showed that the biomass could reach wet weight 8.2 g/L and 110 g L-tryptophan could be formed in the volume of the 1 l enzymatic reaction system.

Mutation Breeding of an Organic Phosphorus-Solubilizing Bacterium B3 by Low Energy Ion Beam Implantation

A preliminary study on the mutation breeding of an organic phosphorus-solubilizing bacterium B3 by low-energy N^＋ ion beam was conducted. Analysis of dosage vs. survival rate and mutation rate showed that the dosage of 3×10^15 ions/cm^2 was optimal for the mutation. Some parameters for determining the efficient phosphorus content were studied to simplify the protocols for screening. Ultimately one reliable mutant was screened out under plating and flask-culturing screening conditions. Importantly, a novel phosphorus-dissolving mechanism is reported for the first time in terms of bio-surfactant production, which indicates that bio-surfactant might play a vital role in phosphorus-dissolving for some phosphobacteria.

External use of Ruyanneixiao cream efficiently blocks precancerous mammary lesions by interfering with glycolysis induced by inhibition of hypoxia inducible factor-1α, hexokinase 2, phosphofructokinase, and pyruvate kinase M2 expression

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect of Ruyanneixiao cream(RYNX) on the expression of hypoxia inducible factor-1α(HIF-1α), hexokinase 2(HK2),phosphofructokinase(PFK), and pyruvate kinase M2(PKM2) mRNA and protein in MCF-10 AT cells and in an animal model of precancerous mammary lesions.METHODS:Following treatment of MCF-10 AT cells with RYNX, tamoxifen(TAM) and YC-1 for 48 h,HIF-1α, HK2, PFK, PKM2 mRNA and protein expression was analyzed.Fifty female SD rats were randomly divided into control, model, TAM, and highand low-dose RYNX groups, with 10 rats in each group.A precancerous mammary lesion model was established for all groups except the control group.High-and low-dose RYNX cream containing TAM was coated on the breasts of animals in the corresponding groups.The rat mammary tissue was removed in the 10 th week and HIF-1α, HK2, PFK,PKM2 mRNA and protein was analyzed.RESULTS:In vitro analyses demonstrated that, compared with the matrix group, HIF-1α, HK2, PFK,PKM2 mRNA and protein expression was significantly decreased in the RYNX group(P < 0.05).Compared with the YC-1 + RYNX group, HK2, PFK,and PKM2 protein expression was significantly reduced in the RYNX group.HIF-1α, HK2, PFK, and PKM2 protein expression was increased significantly in the model group(P < 0.05) compared with the control group, while HIF-1α, HK2, PFK, and PKM2 mRNA and protein expression was significantly decreased in both the high-and low-dose RYNX groups(P < 0.05), with the effect being greater in the high-dose group.CONCLUSION:RYNX can block precancerous breast lesions by decreasing the expression of HK2,PFK, and PKM2 mRNA and protein via inhibition of HIF-1α mRNA and protein overexpression in a dose-dependent manner.

Studies on the binding of vinpocetine to human serum albumin by molecular spectroscopy and modeling

The interaction between vinpocetine（VPC） and human serum albumin（HSA） in physiological buffer（pH 7.40） was investigated by fluorescence,FT-IR,UV-vis absorption and molecular modeling.VPC effectively quenched the intrinsic fluorescence of HSA via static quenching.The binding site number n and apparent binding constant K_a,corresponding thermodynamic parametersΔG,ΔH andΔS at different temperatures were calculated.The synchronous fluorescence and FT-IR spectra were used to investigate the structural change of HSA molecules with addition of VPC.Molecular modeling indicated that VPC could bind to the site I of HSA and hydrophobic interaction was the major acting force,which was in agreement with the binding mode study.