Gardenia jasminoides protects against cerulein-induced acute pancreatitis

AIM: To investigate the effect of Gardenia jasminoides (GJ) on cerulein-induced acute pancreatitis (AP) in mice.METHODS: C57BL/6 mice weighing 18-20 g were divided into three groups.(1) Normal saline-treated group,(2) treatment with GJ at a dose of 0.1 g/kg,(3) treatment with GJ at a dose of 1 g/kg.GJ was administered orally (n = 6 per group) for 1 wk.Three hours later,the mice were given an intraperitoneal injection of cerulein (50 μg/kg),a stable cholecystokinin (CCK) analogue,every hour for a total of 6 h as described previously.The mice were sacrificed at 6 h after completion of cerulein injections.Blood samples were obtained to determine serum amylase,lipase and cytokine levels.The pancreas was rapidly removed for morphologic examination and scoring.A portion of pancreas was stored at -70℃ and prepared for the measurement of tissue myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity,an indicator of neutrophil sequestration,and for reverse-transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) and real-time PCR measurements.RESULTS: Treatment with GJ decreased significantly the severity of pancreatitis and pancreatitis-associated lung injury.Treatment with GJ attenuated the severity of AP compared with saline-treated mice,as shown by reduction in pancreatic edema,neutrophil infiltration,serum amylase and lipase levels,serum cytokine levels,and mRNA expression of multiple inflammatory mediators.CONCLUSION: These results suggest that GJ attenuated the severity of AP as well as pancreatitis-associated lung injury.

Variability and Risk Analysis of Hong Kong Air Quality Based on Monsoon and El Nino Conditions

This study presents an exploratory analysis aimed at improving understanding of the variability of Hong Kong air quality associated with different climate conditions. Significantly negative correlations were found when Nifio 3 led particulate matter 〈10 p.m PM10） and NO2 by 2 3 months over the Hong Kong territory, while the other pollutants （e.g., Oa, SO2） showed modest correlations. A significant decreasing trend in visibility was observed during the autumn and winter, which has potential implications for the air-quality degradation and the endangerment of human health in Hong Kong. In an E1 Nifio summer, the visibility was relatively better, while visibility in other seasons was diminished. On the other hand, in La Nifia events, significant changes occurred in visibility in winter and autumn. Air pollution indices were less sensitive to the South China Summer Monsoon （SCSM）, but a relatively high correlation existed between the East Asian Winter Monsoon （EAWM） and air pollutants. Rainfall was lower during most of the strong EAWM years compared to the weak years. This result suggests that the pollutants that accumulate in Hong Kong are not easy to wash out, so concentrations remain at a higher level. Finally, based on the conditional Air Pollution Index （API） risk assessment, site-specific vulnerabilities were analyzed to facilitate the development of the air-quality warning systems in Hong Kong.