Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a disease of unknown etiology,its hallmark being ongoing hepatic inflammation.By its very nature,it is a chronic condition,although increasingly,we are becoming aware of patients with acu...Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a disease of unknown etiology,its hallmark being ongoing hepatic inflammation.By its very nature,it is a chronic condition,although increasingly,we are becoming aware of patients with acute presentations,some of whom may have liver failure.There are very limited published data on patients with AIH with liver failure at initial diagnosis,which consist mostly of small retrospective studies.As a consequence,the clinical features and optimal management of this cohort remain poorly defined.A subset of patients with AIH who present with liver failure do respond to corticosteroids,but for the vast majority,an urgent liver transplantation may offer the only hope of long-term survival.At present,there is uncertainty on how best to stratify such a cohort into responders and non-responders to corticosteroids as soon as possible after hospitalization,thus optimizing their management.This editorial attempts to answer some of the unresolved issues relating to management of patients with AIH with liver failure at initial presentation.However,it must be emphasized that,at present,this editorial is based mostly on small retrospective studies,and it is an understatement that multicenter prospective studies are urgently needed to address this important clinical issue.展开更多
Objective： To analyze the clinical characteristics and medical treatment of hospitalized patients with chronic heartfailure, and provide medication for the patients. Methods： According to medical records of inpatien...Objective： To analyze the clinical characteristics and medical treatment of hospitalized patients with chronic heartfailure, and provide medication for the patients. Methods： According to medical records of inpatients, demographicinformation, etiology, clinical features and treatment information were collected. Results： A total of 610 cases withheart failure from our hospital between July 2010 and June 2016 were analyzed. The average age of all the patientswas 63. Males accounted for 50.49%. There were 82.7% patients with NYHA functional classification at III-IV.31.3% patients with coronary artery disease, 28.4% with rheumatic heart diseases and 21.8% with expansion ofheart disease. 27.4 percent of the patients with the left ventricular ejection fraction lower than 40%. There were78.9% patients received aldosterone antagonist treatment, 63.4% received ACEI/ARB, 62.1% received digoxin,59.8% received beta blockers, and 75.4% patients received decoction, and 80.8% received Chinese patent medicine.Conclusion： The study has shown that high utilization of traditional Chinese medicine is to highlight theadvantages of the combination of traditional Chinese and western medicine in the treatment of heart failure. Theusage of spironolactone, ACEI/ARB, beta blockers in our hospital was lower than the ratio reported, higher thanthat of the national average. However, the use of diureticis is lower than that of national average, which may relateto the use of damp-clearing herbs. Clinicians should pay attention to the high utilization rate of digoxin. Patientswith the left ventricular ejection fraction 〉 50% accounted for 61.1%, which required more attention should be paidto the diagnosis and treatment of patients with heart failure of the ejection fraction remains.展开更多
AIM： To determine the functional significance of aryl hydrocarbon receptor （AhR） in gastric carcinogenesis, and to explore the possible role of AhR in gastric cancer （GC） treatment. METHODS： RT-PCR, real-time PC...AIM： To determine the functional significance of aryl hydrocarbon receptor （AhR） in gastric carcinogenesis, and to explore the possible role of AhR in gastric cancer （GC） treatment. METHODS： RT-PCR, real-time PCR, and Western blotting were performed to detect AhR expression in 39 GC tissues and five GC cell lines. AhR protein was detected by immunohistochemistry （IHC） in 290 samples： 30 chronic superficial gastritis （CSG）, 30 chronic atrophic gastritis （CAG）, 30 intestinal metapiasia （IN）, 30 atypical hyperplasia （AH）, and 70 GC. The AhR agonist tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin （TCDD） was used to treat AGS cells. MTr assay and flow cytometric analysis were performed to measure the viability, cell cycle and apoptosis of AGS cells.RESULTS： AhR expression was significantly increased in GC tissues and GC cell lines. IHC results indicated that the levels of AhR expression gradually increased, with the lowest levels in CSG, followed by CAG, IM, AH and GC. AhR expression and nuclear translocation were significantly higher in GC than in precancerous tissues. TCDD inhibited proliferation of AGS cells via induction of growth arrest at the G1-S phase. CONCLUSION： AhR plays an important role in gastric carcinogenesis. AhR may be a potential therapeutic target for GC treatment.展开更多
The antiepileptic effect of pinellia total alkaloids（PTA） on penicillin（PNC） chronically kindled rats was investigated. We investigated the effects of PTA on Glu,Asp,Gly andγ-aminobutyric acid（GABA） concentrati...The antiepileptic effect of pinellia total alkaloids（PTA） on penicillin（PNC） chronically kindled rats was investigated. We investigated the effects of PTA on Glu,Asp,Gly andγ-aminobutyric acid（GABA） concentrations and the expression level of cerebral GABA_A receptor in hippocampus.The influence of PTA on epilepsy seizure latency and degree in PNC chronically kindled rats were observed.High performance liquid chromatography（HPLC） was adopted to measure the concentrations of Glu, Asp,Gly and GABA in hippocampus. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR） was used to determine the expression of cerebral GABAA receptor mRNA. Compared with normal rats, the levels of GABA and Gly decreased obviously while the level of Glu and Asp increased significantly in model rats. The cerebral GABAA receptor mRNA level was also decreased at the same time. The difference was statistically different compared to the control group. PTA could prolong the latent period of the penicillin induced seizure and weaken the extent of seizure, compared with the model group without PTA treatment. Moreover, PTA increased the level of GABA and the expression level of GABAA receptor, while decreased the level of Glu significantly. However, it had no obvious effect on the level of Gly and Asp. Pre-treatment of PTA can also increase the GABAA receptor mRNA level. In conclusion, PTA could alleviate the PNC chronically kindled rat seizure. It increased the GABA level and the expression of GABAA receptor, and it decreased the Glu concentration.展开更多
Although advances have been made, chemotherapy for chronic, multifactorial diseases such as cancers, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes is far from satisfactory. Agents with different mechan...Although advances have been made, chemotherapy for chronic, multifactorial diseases such as cancers, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes is far from satisfactory. Agents with different mechanisms of action are required. The botanic compound berberine(BBR) has been used as an over-the-counter antibacterial for diarrhea in China for many decades. Recent clinical studies have shown that BBR may be therapeutic in various types of chronic diseases. This review addresses BBR's molecular mechanisms of action and clinical efficacy and safety in patients with type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, heart diseases, cancers and inflammation. One of the advantages of BBR is its multiple-target effects in each of these diseases. The therapeutic efficacy of BBR may reflect a synergistic regulation of these targets, resulting in a comprehensive effect against these various chronic disorders. The safety of BBR may be due to its harmonious distribution into those targets. Although the single-target concept is still the principle for drug discovery and research, this review emphasizes the concept of a multiple target strategy, which may be an important approach toward the successful treatment of multifactorial chronic diseases.展开更多
文摘Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a disease of unknown etiology,its hallmark being ongoing hepatic inflammation.By its very nature,it is a chronic condition,although increasingly,we are becoming aware of patients with acute presentations,some of whom may have liver failure.There are very limited published data on patients with AIH with liver failure at initial diagnosis,which consist mostly of small retrospective studies.As a consequence,the clinical features and optimal management of this cohort remain poorly defined.A subset of patients with AIH who present with liver failure do respond to corticosteroids,but for the vast majority,an urgent liver transplantation may offer the only hope of long-term survival.At present,there is uncertainty on how best to stratify such a cohort into responders and non-responders to corticosteroids as soon as possible after hospitalization,thus optimizing their management.This editorial attempts to answer some of the unresolved issues relating to management of patients with AIH with liver failure at initial presentation.However,it must be emphasized that,at present,this editorial is based mostly on small retrospective studies,and it is an understatement that multicenter prospective studies are urgently needed to address this important clinical issue.
文摘Objective： To analyze the clinical characteristics and medical treatment of hospitalized patients with chronic heartfailure, and provide medication for the patients. Methods： According to medical records of inpatients, demographicinformation, etiology, clinical features and treatment information were collected. Results： A total of 610 cases withheart failure from our hospital between July 2010 and June 2016 were analyzed. The average age of all the patientswas 63. Males accounted for 50.49%. There were 82.7% patients with NYHA functional classification at III-IV.31.3% patients with coronary artery disease, 28.4% with rheumatic heart diseases and 21.8% with expansion ofheart disease. 27.4 percent of the patients with the left ventricular ejection fraction lower than 40%. There were78.9% patients received aldosterone antagonist treatment, 63.4% received ACEI/ARB, 62.1% received digoxin,59.8% received beta blockers, and 75.4% patients received decoction, and 80.8% received Chinese patent medicine.Conclusion： The study has shown that high utilization of traditional Chinese medicine is to highlight theadvantages of the combination of traditional Chinese and western medicine in the treatment of heart failure. Theusage of spironolactone, ACEI/ARB, beta blockers in our hospital was lower than the ratio reported, higher thanthat of the national average. However, the use of diureticis is lower than that of national average, which may relateto the use of damp-clearing herbs. Clinicians should pay attention to the high utilization rate of digoxin. Patientswith the left ventricular ejection fraction 〉 50% accounted for 61.1%, which required more attention should be paidto the diagnosis and treatment of patients with heart failure of the ejection fraction remains.
基金Supported by The grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30871145, No. 30670949 and No. 30671904the grant awarded to PhD supervisor from Chinese Ministry of Education, No. 20060558010+1 种基金the grant awarded to new teacher from Chinese Ministry of Education No. 20070558288the grants from the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, No. 5300767 and No. 7001641
文摘AIM： To determine the functional significance of aryl hydrocarbon receptor （AhR） in gastric carcinogenesis, and to explore the possible role of AhR in gastric cancer （GC） treatment. METHODS： RT-PCR, real-time PCR, and Western blotting were performed to detect AhR expression in 39 GC tissues and five GC cell lines. AhR protein was detected by immunohistochemistry （IHC） in 290 samples： 30 chronic superficial gastritis （CSG）, 30 chronic atrophic gastritis （CAG）, 30 intestinal metapiasia （IN）, 30 atypical hyperplasia （AH）, and 70 GC. The AhR agonist tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin （TCDD） was used to treat AGS cells. MTr assay and flow cytometric analysis were performed to measure the viability, cell cycle and apoptosis of AGS cells.RESULTS： AhR expression was significantly increased in GC tissues and GC cell lines. IHC results indicated that the levels of AhR expression gradually increased, with the lowest levels in CSG, followed by CAG, IM, AH and GC. AhR expression and nuclear translocation were significantly higher in GC than in precancerous tissues. TCDD inhibited proliferation of AGS cells via induction of growth arrest at the G1-S phase. CONCLUSION： AhR plays an important role in gastric carcinogenesis. AhR may be a potential therapeutic target for GC treatment.
基金Natural Science Foundation of Shanxi Province (Grant No.20041109).
文摘The antiepileptic effect of pinellia total alkaloids（PTA） on penicillin（PNC） chronically kindled rats was investigated. We investigated the effects of PTA on Glu,Asp,Gly andγ-aminobutyric acid（GABA） concentrations and the expression level of cerebral GABA_A receptor in hippocampus.The influence of PTA on epilepsy seizure latency and degree in PNC chronically kindled rats were observed.High performance liquid chromatography（HPLC） was adopted to measure the concentrations of Glu, Asp,Gly and GABA in hippocampus. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR） was used to determine the expression of cerebral GABAA receptor mRNA. Compared with normal rats, the levels of GABA and Gly decreased obviously while the level of Glu and Asp increased significantly in model rats. The cerebral GABAA receptor mRNA level was also decreased at the same time. The difference was statistically different compared to the control group. PTA could prolong the latent period of the penicillin induced seizure and weaken the extent of seizure, compared with the model group without PTA treatment. Moreover, PTA increased the level of GABA and the expression level of GABAA receptor, while decreased the level of Glu significantly. However, it had no obvious effect on the level of Gly and Asp. Pre-treatment of PTA can also increase the GABAA receptor mRNA level. In conclusion, PTA could alleviate the PNC chronically kindled rat seizure. It increased the GABA level and the expression of GABAA receptor, and it decreased the Glu concentration.
基金supported by the National Mega-Project for Drug Research&Development,China(to Jiang Jian Dong)
文摘Although advances have been made, chemotherapy for chronic, multifactorial diseases such as cancers, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes is far from satisfactory. Agents with different mechanisms of action are required. The botanic compound berberine(BBR) has been used as an over-the-counter antibacterial for diarrhea in China for many decades. Recent clinical studies have shown that BBR may be therapeutic in various types of chronic diseases. This review addresses BBR's molecular mechanisms of action and clinical efficacy and safety in patients with type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, heart diseases, cancers and inflammation. One of the advantages of BBR is its multiple-target effects in each of these diseases. The therapeutic efficacy of BBR may reflect a synergistic regulation of these targets, resulting in a comprehensive effect against these various chronic disorders. The safety of BBR may be due to its harmonious distribution into those targets. Although the single-target concept is still the principle for drug discovery and research, this review emphasizes the concept of a multiple target strategy, which may be an important approach toward the successful treatment of multifactorial chronic diseases.
