A Protocol for Digitalized Collection of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)Pulse Information Using Bionic Pulse Diagnosis Equipment

Pulse diagnosis equipment used in Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)has long been developed for collecting pulse information and in TCM research.However,it is still difficult to implement pulse taking automatically or efficiently in clinical practice.Here,we present a digital protocol for TCM pulse information collection based on bionic pulse diagnosis equipment,which ensures high efficiency,reliability and data integrity of pulse diagnosis information.A four-degree-of-freedom pulse taking platform together with a wrist bracket can satisfy the spatial positioning and angle requirements for individually adaptive pulse acquisition.Three-dimensional reconstruction of a wrist surface and an image localization model are combined to provide coordinates of the acquisition position and detection direction automatically.Three series elastic joints can not only simulate the TCM pulse taking method that“Three fingers in a straight line,the middle finger determining the‘Guan’location and finger pulp pressing on the radial artery,”but also simultaneously carry out the force-controlled multi-gradient pressing process.In terms of pulse information integrity,this proposed protocol can generate rich pulse information,including basic individual information,pulse localization distribution,multi-gradient dynamic pulse force time series,and objective pulse parameters,which can help establish the fundamental data sets that are required as the pulse phenotype for subsequent comprehensive analysis of pulse diagnosis.The implementation of this scheme is beneficial to promote the standardization of the digitalized collection of pulse information,the effectiveness of detecting abnormal health status,and the promotion of the fundamental and clinical research of TCM,such as TCM pulse phenomics.

Importance of Monitoring of Emotional Stress and Physiological Functions of Humans during the Night Sleep

The diagnosis of disease and prescription of therapy are mainly realized through the control of physiological functions in humans during wakefulness. However, little attention is paid to evaluate the functional state of a patient in sleep. The efficiency of prescribed medicines is also determined in wakefulness. The effects of these drugs during sleep are usually out-of-sight of a physician. Human psychoemotional state during wakefulness is closely related to sleep. Various serious disturbances in physiological functions appear during the night sleep. They include cardiovascular disorders （hypertensive crisis, myocardial infarction, arrhythmias, stroke, etc.）, which may cause sudden death. A large body of evidence shows that stress is followed by sleep disorders. They serve as a factor, which contributes to the development of stress. It should be noted that sleep is the major anti-stress factor. The vicious circle is formed, which can be revealed by a complex control of human physiological functions during wakefulness and sleep. We developed a new methodology and constructed an information-and-equipment device for monitoring of vital physiological functions of humans during sleep in a real everyday life. This approach holds much promise for the diagnosis of disease and evaluation of therapeutic efficacy.

Hypothesis on how Distance External Qi Therapy works

Distance External Qi Therapy(DEQT)is a form of Distance Intention Healing.Though it is getting popular,there is still no clear explanation on how it works.This article highlights the plausibility of supporting the mechanism of DEQT with the theory of quantum entanglement.

Panax notoginseng Saponins Protect Kidney from Diabetes by Up-regulating Silent Information Regulator 1 and Activating Antioxidant Proteins in Rats

Objective： To explore the mechanism of the protective effects of Panax notoginseng saponins（PNS） on kidney in diabetic rats. Methods： Diabetic rat model was obtained by intravenous injection of alloxan, and the rats were divided into model, PNS-100 mg/（kg·day） and PNS-200 mg/（kg·day） groups, 10 each. Another 10 rats injected with saline were served as control. Periodic acid-Schiff staining and immunological histological chemistry were used to observe histomorphology and tissue expression of bone morphogenetic protein-7（BMP-7）. Silent information regulator 1（SIRT1） was silenced in rat mesangial cells by RNA interference. The mR NA expressions of SIRT-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1（MCP-1）, transforming growth factor β1（TGF-β1） and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1（PAI-1） were analyzed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The protein expressions of SIRT1 and the acetylation of nuclear factor κB（NF-κB） P65 were determined by western blotting. The concentration of MCP-1, TGF-β1 and malondialdehyde（MDA） in culture supernatant were detected by enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay. The activity of superoxide dismutase（SOD） was detected by the classical method of nitrogen and blue four. Results： In diabetic model rats, PNS could not only reduce blood glucose and lipid（P〈0.01）, but also increase protein level of BMP-7 and inhibit PAI-1 expression for suppressing fibrosis of the kidney. In rat mesangial cells, PNS could up-regulate the expression of SIRT1（P〈0.01） and in turn suppress the transcription of TGF-β1（P〈0.05） and MCP-1（P〈0.05）. PNS could also reverse the increased acetylation of NF-κB p65 by high glucose. In addition, redox regulation factor MDA was down-regulated（P〈0.05） and SOD was up-regulated（P〈0.01）, which were both induced by SIRT1 up-regulation. Conclusions： PNS could protect kidney from diabetes with the possible mechanism of up-regulating SIRT1, therefore inhibiting inflammation through decreasing the induction of inflammatory cytokines and TGF-β1, as well as activating antioxidant proteins.

Expert knowledge maps for knowledge management: a case study inTraditional Chinese Medicine research

OBJECTIVE:To design a model to capture information on the state and trends of knowledge creation,at both an individual and an organizational level,in order to enhance knowledge management.METHODS:We designed a graph-theoretic knowledge model,the expert knowledge map(EKM),based on literature-based annotation.A case study in the domain of Traditional Chinese Medicine research was used to illustrate the usefulness of the model.RESULTS:The EKM successfully captured various aspects of knowledge and enhanced knowledge management within the case-study organization through the provision of knowledge graphs,expert graphs,and expert-knowledge biography.CONCLUSION:Our model could help to reveal thehot topics,trends,and products of the research done by an organization.It can potentially be used to facilitate knowledge learning,sharing and decision-making among researchers,academicians,students,and administrators of organizations.