Nanotechnological approaches in diabetes treatment: A new horizon

Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorder that affects millions of people worldwide and takes a heavy toll on human life. Treatment of diabetics often poses a problem in selection of the proper drug, its dose and unwanted side effects. Therefore, newer drugs with the least side effects but with highest efficiency are being relentlessly searched for. In recent years, nanotechnology has given new hope for the formulation of various drugs against a myriad of diseases, including diabetes. This review tries to give an overview of the advantages of various new drugs being used, including a wide range of nanoformulations of orthodox as well complementary and alternative medicines. Several studies and research reports based on nanotechnological approaches in the formulation of anti-diabetic drugs have pointed out the fact that research in the formulation of nanodrugs improved strategies for combating diabetes based on the plausible molecular mechanism of action of the drugs. Furthermore, attempts have also been made to delineate the optimum drug concentration and time of exposure in order to recommend a scientifically validated drug dose response in developing different therapeutic strategies. Thus, to a considerable extent, recent studies have contributed towards improving thelife expectancy and quality of life of diabetics, through both targeted orthodox medicine and complementary medicine, particularly those obtained from natural resources.

Review on Efficacy and Health Services Research Studies of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Objective：To assess the evidence of the use and efficacy for complementary and alternative medicine（CAM） in inflammatory bowel disease（IBD）. Methods：A systematic literature search in MEDLINE was performed for randomized controlled trials（RCTs） in Crohn＇s disease and ulcerative colitis.Moreover,a selective literature search for health services research studies on the use of CAM in patients with IBD was performed.Results：Health services research studies showed a high use of CAM in adult and pediatric patients with IBD worldwide.In contrast to the high use among IBD patients,there was a lack of high-quality data for many of the used CAM methods.Although most of the studies showed positive results,the methodological quality of most studies was rather low;therefore,the results had to be interpreted with caution.While there were many studies for probiotics and fish oil,RCTs for the highly used method homeopathy, for most herbal products,and for traditional Chinese medicine methods apart from acupuncture RCTs were completely lacking.Conclusions：The lack of high-quality studies might be the consequence of the problems associated with the funding of clinical trials involving CAM.However,having the high user rates in mind,high-quality studies assessing efficacy and safety of those methods are urgently needed.Furthermore,there is a need for better representation of CAM in undergraduate and postgraduate medical education.

Therapeutic role of yoga in neuropsychological disorders

Yoga is considered a widely-used approach for health conservation and can be adopted as a treatment modality for a plethora of medical conditions,including neurological and psychological disorders.Hence,we reviewed relevant articles entailing various neurological and psychological disorders and gathered data on how yoga exerts positive impacts on patients with a diverse range of disorders,including its modulatory effects on brain bioelectrical activities,neurotransmitters,and synaptic plasticity.The role of yoga practice as an element of the treatment of several neuropsychological diseases was evaluated based on these findings.

Traditional Chinese medicine is a useful and promising alternative strategy for treatment of Sjogren’s syndrome:A review

Primary Sjogren’s syndrome(p SS)is a chronic autoimmune disease involving exocrine glands.Current studies have found that the occurrence of the disease is closely related to genetic,environmental and neuroendocrine factors,as well as abnormal activation of T and B lymphocytes.The etiology and pathogenesis of p SS is complex,and there is a lack of specific targeted drugs.Traditional Chinese medicines(TCMs)have been comprehensively investigated for their treatment effects on p SS.Through a systematic review of the literature,we summarized the TCMs used to treat p SS,and find that there are four major ways that TCMs are used,including upregulation of aquaporin proteins,suppression of cell apoptosis,suppression of the abnormal activation of B lymphocytes and suppression of the abnormal activation of T lymphocytes(balancing T helper type[Th]1/Th 2& Th17/Treg and suppressing follicular helper T[Tfh]cells).However,there are not enough data about the active constituents,quality control,pharmacokinetics,toxicity and modern preparations of these TCMs;therefore,more investigations are needed.This paper highlights the importance of TCMs for treating p SS and provides guidance for future investigations.

Traditional Chinese Medicine Playing a More Important Role in the World's Complementary Medicine Research——Minutes of the 3rd International Congress on Complementary Medicine Research

The 3rd International Congress on Complementary Medicine Research （ICCMR 2008） was held on 29-31 March, 2008 in Sydney, Australia. More than 550 participants from over 30 countries in the diverse field of complementary medicine attended this great event.

Traditional Chinese Medicine for Modern Treatment of Parkinson＇s Disease

Parkinson＇s disease（PD）is a chronic and progressive degenerative disorder of brain commonly seen among the elderly.As conventionally medical therapy is of limited relief and potential side effects,complementary and alternative medicine（CAM）has attracted growing public and professional attention.Therapies such as acupuncture,musical/rhythmic therapy and deep brain stimulation have been gradually proved positively in clinic.In this review,we retrospected the scientific or evidence-based-medicine advances of application and research for modern treatment of PD by CAM,especially traditional Chinese medicine in categories.

Natural antioxidants in the management of Parkinson's disease: Review of evidence from cell line and animal models

Parkinson’s disease(PD) is a chronic progressive neurodegenerative disease. It results from the death of dopaminergic neurons. The pathophysiological mechanisms in idiopathic PD include the production of α-synuclein and mitochondrial respiratory function-affecting complex I, caused by reactive oxygen species.Therefore, the use of natural antioxidants in PD may provide an alternative therapy that prevents oxidative stress and reduces disease progression. In this review, the effects of hydroxytyrosol, Ginkgo biloba,Withania somnifera, curcumin, green tea, and Hypericum perforatum in PD animal and cell line models are compared and discussed. The reviewed antioxidants show evidence of protecting neural cells from oxidative stress in animal and cell models of PD. However, the clinical efficacy of these phytochemicals needs to be optimised and further investigated.

《黄帝内经》“阴阳”概念解析

阴阳是《黄帝内经》的核心概念,从集合论角度,可将阴阳视为共集互补二元分类符号,简称互补阴阳。阴阳可对变量进行划分,影响变量变化的两个相反综合矢量或因素称为阴气和阳气,与变量之间类似牛顿定律中力与加速度的关系,是变化的动因。阴阳具有相对性,可进行层级分类。阴阳与西方科学符号的区别在于它不是完全抽象的,有特定内涵,不可互易,隐含秩序和结构,比抽象符号的信息量更大。阴阳二气有时具有反向变化规律,简称翘板阴阳,还有生命演化的同向变化规律,两者共同构成阴阳螺旋。中医理论注重关系,阴阳、四象阴阳和三阴三阳系统是描述中医关系的特殊符号工具,是中医理论形成的关键。