Efficacy of Chinese herbal medicine in functional dyspepsia: A meta-analysis of randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicine(CHM)for the treatment of functional dyspepsia(FD).Methods:Web of Science,PubMed,EMBASE,Cochrane Library,and four other Chinese electronic databases,including China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),Chinese Biological Medical Database(CBM),Chinese Scientific Journals Database(VIP),and WanFang Database were used to search(up to Feb,2016)for randomized,double-blind,placebocontrolled trials recruiting adults with FD treated with CHM.Study selection,data extraction,quality assessment,and data analyses were conducted based on Cochrane standards using Review Manager software.Results:Fourteen publications(1424 patients)were included.Evidence revealed that CHM was more efficacious than the placebo in improving global dyspepsia symptoms(RR,1.45;95%CI,1.31e1.60),Chinese medicine syndrome(CMS)(RR,1.36;95%CI,1.23e1.50),and quality of life(SMD,0.30;95%CI,0.15e0.45)in FD patients.Furthermore,the difference in the incidence of adverse events between CHM and placebo groups had no statistical significance(RR,1.06;95%CI,0.66e1.70).Conclusion:This meta-analysis demonstrates that CHM has a therapeutic potential in treating FD with a certain safety.However,due to the restricted number of trials included,wellplanned,long-term studies are necessary to provide credible evidence.

Proteomics analysis of IBS-D with spleen and kidney yang deficiency

Objective:To investigate the molecular mechanism underlying the development of diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) with spleen and kidney yang deficiency (SKYD) using a proteomics approach.Methods:Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n =22) were divided into IBS-D (n =12) and normal control (n =10) groups.SKYD was then modeled in IBS-D rats by a combination of acetic acid enema,bondage,rectal dilation,tail stimulation,and Senna gavage.Colon tissue samples were subsequently collected and examined by Q Exactive mass spectrometry to identify differentially expressed proteins between the two groups.Results:The occurrence of SKYD/IBS-D was associated with ribosomal protein S23 (Rps23),protein phosphatase 2 catalytic subunit alpha (Pp2a),and growth factor receptor-bound protein 2 (Grb2),which are involved in the ribosome,neurotrophin signaling,and Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK-STAT) signaling pathways.Conclusion:These data suggest that SKYD/IBS-D pathophysiology likely involves inflammation,cell growth,apoptosis,stress granule formation,immune activation,loss of epithelial cell integrity,and visceral hypersensitivity.

In-depth understanding of ionic liquid assisted perovskite film formation mechanism for two-step perovskite photovoltaics

Ionic liquids(ILs)have been widely applied in the one-step fabrication of perovskite with noticeable enhancement in the device performance.However,in-depth mechanism of ionic-liquid-assisted perovskite film formation is not well understood for also important two-step perovskite fabrication method,with better control of crystallization behavior.In this work,we introduced ionic liquid methylammonium formate(MAFa)into organic salt to produce perovskite film via a two-step method.Systematic investigations on the influence of MAFa on the perovskite thin film formation mechanism were performed.Ionic liquid is shown to assist lowering the perovskite formation enthalpy upon the density functional theory(DFT)calculation,leading to an accelerated crystallization process evidenced by in-situ UV-Vis absorption measurement.A gradient up-down distribution of ionic liquid has been confirmed by timeof-flight SIMS.Importantly,besides the surface passivation,we found the HCOO-can diffuse into the perovskite crystals to fill up the halide vacancies,resulting in significant reduction of trap states.Uniform perovskite films with significantly larger grains and less defect density were prepared with the help of MAFa IL,and the corresponding device efficiency over 23%was obtained by two-step process with remarkably improved stability.This research work provides an efficient strategy to tune the morphology and opto-electronic properties of perovskite materials via ionic-liquid-assisted two-step fabrication method,which is beneficial for upscaling and application of perovskite photovoltaics.

A Pathological Study of GIFT Strain of Nile Tilapia(Oreochromis niloticus)Infected by Streptococcus agalactiae

[Objectives] This study aimed to determine the infection pathway and target organs of Streptococcus agalactiae in GIFT strain of Nile tilapia,thus providing theoretical basis for the breeding of disease-resistant tilapia and development of S. agalactiae vaccines. [Methods]GIFT strain of Nile tilapia was inoculated by S. agalactiae through intraperitoneal injection,oral gavage and in vitro immersion. The gill,spleen,liver and small intestine tissues of infected tilapia were collected for pathomorphological observation. Immunohistochemical localization was conducted using rabbit anti-S. agalactiae serum to identify the distribution pattern of S. agalactiae in various tissues of tilapia and its target organs via different infection pathways. [Results]GIFT strain of Nile tilapia could be infected by S.agalactiae via three artificial inoculation modes. Specifically,pathological changes occurred at 2 h post-inoculation in intraperitoneal injection and oral gavage groups,whereas tilapia in in vitro immersion group showed pathological changes at 5 h post-inoculation,and the lesion intensity in in vitro immersion group was slighter than that in intraperitoneal injection and oral gavage groups. Immunohistochemical localization indicated that the appearance time of positive signals in intraperitoneal injection group demonstrated an order of spleen→liver and gill→small intestine; positive signals in oral gavage group appeared in the order of small intestine→gill and spleen→liver; the appearance time of positive signals in in vitro immersion group showed an order of gill → spleen → liver and small intestine.[Conclusions]GIFT strain of Nile tilapia could be infected by S. agalactiae via intraperitoneal injection,oral gavage and in vitro immersion. The corresponding positive signals for pathogen infection were preferentially present in the spleen,intestine and gill tissues. Thus,preventing S. agalactiae contamination in aquaculture water and food sources is an effective measure to control the outbreak of S. agalactiae infections in tilapia under natural aquaculture conditions.

Qingre Lishi Tuihuang therapy for acute icteric hepatitis B: A systematic review

Objective:To assess the efficacy of Qingre Lishi Tuihuang therapy (QLTT) for acute icteric hepatitis B infection.Methods:Eight electronic databases were searched from inception to December 2016 with no language restrictions for reports of randomized controlled trials evaluating the effect of QLTT treating acute icteric hepatitis B.Two researchers independently extracted detailed data and assessed methodological quality.ReviewManager 5.3.0 software was used to analyze the data.Results:A total of 13 randomized controlled trials involving 2238 participants were included in this review.The methodological quality was generally poor.The results indicated that supplemented Yinchenhao decoction combined with non-specific treatments was more effective in improving the cure rate (risk ratio =1.80;95% CI 1.21-2.68) and reducing the serum levels of total bilirubin (mean difference =-29.74;95% CI-31.91 to-27.57) and aspartate aminotransferase.Other self-made prescriptions conforming to QLTT plus non-specific treatments had beneficial effect for acute icteric hepatitis B in curing this disease (risk ratio =1.48;95% CI 1.27-1.73),as well as for negative seroconversion of HBeAg (risk ratio =1.39;95% CI 1.11-1.74).Supplemented Yinchenhao decoction plus non-specific treatments was more effective than other self-made prescriptions conforming to QLTT in reducing serum total bilirubin level.Conclusion:Qingre Lishi Tuihuang therapy appears to improve effect based on non-specific treatments for the treatment of acute icteric hepatitis B.However,it is premature to draw confirmative conclusions,owing to the poor methodological quality and high clinical heterogeneity of the included trials.Further well-designed clinical randomized controlled trials with large sample sizes should be undertaken.

Ionic liquid engineering enabled in-plane orientated 1D perovskite nanorods for efficient mixed-dimensional perovskite photovoltaics

Mixed-dimensional engineering of perovskite material has been demonstrated as a facile and promising strategy to improve both photovoltaic performance and long-term stability of perovskite solar cells(PSCs).In this study,we report an in-plane preferred orientation of 1D perovskite induced by an ionic liquid(IL)of 1-(3-cyanopropyl)-3-methylimidazolium chloride(CPMIMCl)for the first time via sequential deposition approach,leading to a mixed dimensional perovskite thin films.The generated one-dimensional(1D)CPMIMPbI3 with in-plane orientation resides at the grain boundaries of three-dimensional(3D)perovskite can be appreciably observed from the morphology level,leading to creation of high-quality films with large grain size with more efficient defect passivation.Moreover,the dispersion of IL in the bulk phase of perovskite material allows for the formation of 1D perovskite for multiple level passivation to inhibit non-radiative recombination and optimize carrier transport.This IL engineering strategy not only yields a mixed-dimensional perovskite heterostructure with in-plane orientation 1D perovskite nano-rods but also significantly improves the opto-electronic property with suppressed trap states.As a result,the CPMIMCl-treated PSCs show an enhanced photovoltaic performance with a champion power conversion efficiency(PCE)up to 24.13%.More importantly,benefiting from the hydrophobicity of formed 1D perovskite and defects suppression,the corresponding PSC demonstrates an excellent longterm stability and maintain 97.1%of its pristine PCE at 25C under 50%RH condition over 1000 h.This research provides an innovative perspective for employing the low dimensional engineering to optimize the performance and stability of photovoltaic devices.

Boosting Stable and Fast Potassium Storage of Iron Sulfide through Rational Yolk-Shell Design and Ni Doping

Metal sulfides have been regarded as promising anodes for potassium-ion batteries(PIBs)due to their high theoretical capacities,while the performance is limited by their intrinsic poor conductivity and large volume fluctuation during the insertion/extraction of large potassium ion.Herein,the battery performance of iron sulfide anode is significantly enhanced through yolk-shell(Y-S)structure design and nickel doping,aiming to realize good structure stability and superior electron/ion transportation.For potassium storage,as-prepared Y-S Ni-FeS_(2)@C shows excellent cyclic performance and sustains high capacities of 328 mA h g^(-1)after 100 cycles at 0.2 A g^(-1)and 226 mA h g^(-1)after 1000 cycles at 1 A g^(-1).Especially,it displays a superior rate capacity of 200 mA h g^(-1)at 20 A g^(-1),higher than that of Y-S FeS_(2)@C and most as-reported metal sulfide anodes for PIBs.The experimental analysis and theoretical calculation illuminate the effect of Ni-doping on decreasing the particle size of iron sulfide and enhancing the ion/electron transport ability,thus accounting for the exceptional rate capability of Y-S Ni-FeS_(2)@C composite.