Therapeutic window of Qingkailing injection for focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury

The time window in which a drug is effective varies between drugs. The present study investigated the therapeutic window of Qingkailing injection for focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion in mice. Animals underwent middle cerebral artery occlusion and were injected with Qingkailing （1.5, 3, 6 mL/kg）. Infarct volume and neurological function were assessed after 24 hours of ischemia. In addition, to establish the therapeutic time window, mice were injected with 3 mL/kg Qingkailing at 0, 1, 3, 4, 6, 9 and 12 hours after occlusion. Results revealed that Qingkailing injection significantly reduced infarct volume and improved neurological function in model mice after cerebral infarction for up to 9 hours, demonstrating that the therapeutic window of Qingkailing injection can extend to 9 hours for cerebral ischemia/reperfusion in mice.

Biologic basis of TCM syndromes and the standardization of syndrome classification

Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)syndrome is an integral and essential component of TCM theory,and goes beyond philosophic concepts.This article reviews the concept of TCM syndromes and summarizes research findings on the biologic foundation of syndromes.In addition,insight is provided into the promotion of standardization of syndrome classification by enforcing uniformity of TCM terminology,applying standardized diagnostic criteria and operating procedures to minimize subjective effects.Also incorporating interdisciplinary approaches such as data mining and structure modeling,as well as integrating findings on biomarker research are discussed.Consideration is made of the fundamental TCM aspects of syndrome elements,symptoms,phenotypic features,as well as diseases,to form an integral process in the diagnostic path.We believe that better understanding of the biologic basis of the TCM syndrome and standardization of syndrome classification will improve diagnosis,which in turn will enhance therapeutic efficacy and disease prognosis.

Fish transplantation and stress-related biomarkers as useful tools for assessing water quality

The active biomonitoring （ABM） approach was investigated using species of indigenous （from a pristine site） and transplanted （to a polluted area） fish Carassius auratus as an indicator organism of water/sediment pollution in Taihu Lake, a highly urbanized and industrialized area. The biotransformation enzymes 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase （EROD）, reduced glutathione （GSH） content, catalase activities （CAT） and lipoperoxidation （as MDA） in liver were determined as stress-related biomarkers during the field exposure period. At the same time, the contents of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs）, polychlorinated biphenyls （PCBs）, organochlorine pesticides （OCPs） and heavy metals in the surface sediments of biomonitoring sites were also determined. The results indicate that the in situ exposed organisms were stressed. The marked increases of EROD, GSH, CAT and MDA in transplanted animals, suggested their potential application as biomarkers in pollution monitoring. Integrated biomarker response （IBR） was used to evaluate an integrated impact of toxicants from different polluted sites.

Estrogenic effects of water from the Yangtze River (Nanjing section) on goldfish (Carassius auratus) after an early life stage exposure

Effects of river water from the Yangtze River （Nanjing section） on fish development, vitellogenin （VTG） induction, gonado-somatic index （GSI） and sex ratio were investigated by exposing goldfish （Carassius auratus） in the early life stage （from fertilization to 28 days post-hatch） to water samples （25%, 50% and 100%） collected from three representative sections. The results showed that there was no significant effect on hatching success for any of the exposure groups, but survival was significantly reduced when compared with the control （P 0.05）. Body lengths, weights of all treated fish did not differ significantly from those of the control. Condition factors （CF） of larval fish exposed to 50% and 100% river water from the Jiangxinzhou section and 100% river water from the Daqiao section were significantly lower than that of the control （P 0.05）. VTG inductions were significant in larval fish exposed to all the dilution series of river water. No significant difference in CF value was observed in any exposure group after 150 days of depuration. VTG was fully eliminated after 75 days of depuration. For both female and male, GSI did not significantly differ between exposure groups and the control after 150 days of convalescence. The highest female：male ratios were observed in response to the treatment with 50% or 100% river water from the Jiangxinzhou section and 100% river water from the Daqiao section （53：47, 56：44 and 54：46, respectively）, but no significant difference in sex ratio was observed in any treated group when compared to the control. The results showed that early life stage exposure of river water from the Yangtze River （Nanjing section） had adverse effects on goldfish development and reproductive health, and the effects on CF and VTG were reversible after depuration in clean water.