Action Mechanisms of Du-Huo-Ji-Sheng-Tang on Cartilage Degradation in a Rabbit Model of Osteoarthritis

Du-Huo-Ji-Sheng-Tang (DHJST) is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine used to treat osteoarthritis. In the present study, the therapeutic effect of DHJST on cartilage degradation in a rabbit model of osteoarthritis was investigated. In the knee joints of rabbits, anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT) was performed to induce experimental osteoarthritis. At the end of the sixth week, 30 rabbits with ACLT were divided into six groups, control group, DHJST group and Osaminethacine (OSA) group, which were followed for another 4 weeks. The other three groups of rabbits with ACLT were untreated with DHJST or OSA, which were sacrificed after 6 weeks, and served as 6-week time point controls. Results indicated that at the end of the sixth week after surgery, there was a significantly histological degeneration in the control group compared with the normal group. In the control group, the mean score for histological degeneration were further increases at 10th week, and there was a significantly lower mean score for histological degeneration in the DHJST group compared with the control group. To research the potential mechanism, the expression level of VEGF and HIF-1α were detected. The expression of VEGF mRNA and HIF-1α mRNA are low in normal group, while the activities increase gradually in the control group. However, compared to that of the same time point model group, activity of VEGF and HIF-1α decreased significantly in DHJST group. In conclusion, DHJST exerts significant therapeutic effect on osteoarthritis rabbits, and mechanisms are associated with inhibition of VEGF and HIF-1α expression

Investigation on Social Anxiety of Secondary Vocational Students

Objective: To investigate the status quo of social anxiety among secondary vocational students and the differences in demographic variables through the Communication Anxiety Scale (IAS) survey. Methods: A total of 890 students from a secondary vocational school in Changshou District of Chongqing were surveyed with the Communication Anxiety Scale (IAS) to understand the social anxiety of secondary vocational students. Results: The mean score of social anxiety of secondary vocational students was 45.25±9.32. The gender difference of social anxiety in secondary vocational students was significant (P0.05); The social anxiety of secondary vocational students was significantly different in household registration type (P0.05). The difference of social anxiety in family income of secondary vocational students was very significant (P<0.001). Conclusion: The level of social anxiety of secondary vocational students is above the middle level. From the perspective of gender variables, there is a significant difference in the level of social anxiety between male and female students, and the level of social anxiety of male students is significantly lower than that of female students. In terms of grade variables, there was no significant difference in social anxiety in grade variables. From the perspective of the variable of residence type, social anxiety is significantly different between rural students and urban students. The level of social anxiety of rural students is higher than that of urban students. There is no significant difference between only-child and non-only-child in social anxiety. From the perspective of family income level, social anxiety is significantly different among different income families. Students from families with wages higher than the average social level had the lowest level of social anxiety, students from families with wages comparable to the average social level had higher levels of social anxiety, and students from families with wages lower than the average social level had the highest level of social anxiety.

Study of Chlorophyll-related Compounds from Dietary Spinach in Human Blood

Human bioavailability data on chlorophyll (Chl) is very limited. The distribution of Chl-related compounds (CRCs) derived from dietary spinach was investigated in human blood. Eight healthy adults, aged from 21 to 61 year-old, consumed 1.2 kg of just-boiled fresh spinach after an 8-h overnight fast. Before and then 3 h after consuming the spinach, blood samples were taken from each participant. Freeze-dried blood samples were prepared, and 80% acetone was added for grinding. Eight peaks were found in the blood using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and the main CRCs in the samples were pheophytin (Phe) and pheophorbide (Pho) derivates. Compared to a fasted state, markedly higher levels of blood CRCs were detected in all subjects, except that Pho metabolites were not found in two subjects. No significant differences were seen in most of the peaks between males and females; however, relatively higher CRCs levels were observed in females, particular of Pho derivates. In addition, the blood contained significantly higher levels of Phe in the 36~61-year-old group than in the 21~35-year-old group. These results suggest that the conversion of Chls to CRCs is a rapid process, and Chls obtained by ingestion can be absorbed by the human body

Phenanthrene Antibiotic Targets Bacterial Membranes and Kills Staphylococcus aureus With a Low Propensity for Resistance Development

New classes of antibiotics with different mechanisms of action are urgently required for combating antimicrobial resistance. Blestriacin, a dihydro-biphenanthrene with significant antibacterial activity, was recently isolated from the fibrous roots of Bletilla striata. Here, we report the further characterization of the antimicrobial potential and mode of action of blestriacin. The phenanthrene compound inhibited the growth of all tested clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus including methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of blestriacin against these pathogens ranged from 2 to 8 μg/mL. Minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) tests were conducted, and the results demonstrated that blestriacin was bactericidal against S. aureus. This effect was confirmed by the time-kill assays. At bactericidal concentrations, blestriacin caused loss of membrane potential in B. subtilis and S. aureus and disrupted the bacterial membrane integrity of the two strains. The spontaneous mutation frequency of S. aureus to blestriacin was determined to be lower than 10-9. The selection and whole genome sequencing of the blestriacin –resistant mutants of S. aureus indicated that the development of blestriacin resistance in S. aureus involves mutations in multi-genes. All these observations can be rationalized by the suggestion that membrane is a biological target of blestriacin

Plasma fatty acids and the risk of metabolic syndrome in ethnic Chinese adults in Taiwan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Evidence of predictive power of various fatty acids on the risk of metabolic syndrome was scanty. We evaluated the role of various fatty acids, including saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, transfat, n-6 fatty acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), for the risk of the metabolic syndrome in Taiwan.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A nested case-control study based on 1000 cases of metabolic syndrome and 1:1 matched control subjects. For saturated fat, monounsaturated fat and transfat, the higher the concentration the higher the risk for metabolic syndrome: participants in the highest quintile had a 2.22-fold (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.66 to 2.97) higher risk of metabolic syndrome. In addition, the participants in higher EPA quintiles were less likely to have the risk of metabolic syndrome (adjusted risk, 0.46 [0.34 to 0.61] for the fifth quintile). Participants in the highest risk group (low EPA and high transfat) had a 2.36-fold higher risk of metabolic syndrome (95% CI, 1.38 to 4.03), compared with those in the lowest risk group (high EPA and low transfat). For prediction power, the area under ROC curves increased from 0.926 in the baseline model to 0.928 after adding fatty acids. The net reclassification improvement for metabolic syndrome risk was substantial for saturated fat (2.1%, <it>P </it>= 0.05).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Plasma fatty acid components improved the prediction of the metabolic syndrome risk in Taiwan.</p

Taiwan Oscillation Network

The Taiwan Oscillation Network (TON) is a ground-based network to measure solar intensity oscillations to study the internal structure of the Sun. K-line full-disk images of 1000 pixels diameter are taken at a rate of one image per minute. Such data would provide information onp-modes withl as high as 1000. The TON will consist of six identical telescope systems at proper longitudes around the world. Three telescope systems have been installed at Teide Observatory (Tenerife), Huairou Solar Observing Station (near Beijing), and Big Bear Solar Observatory (California). The telescopes at these three sites have been taking data simultaneously since October of 1994. Anl – v diagram derived from 512 images is included to show the quality of the data

Preoperative Proteinuria Is Associated with Long-Term Progression to Chronic Dialysis and Mortality after Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Surgery

AIMS: Preoperative proteinuria is associated with post-operative acute kidney injury (AKI), but whether it is also associated with increased long-term mortality and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) is unknown. METHODS AND RESULTS: We studied 925 consecutive patients undergoing CABG. Demographic and clinical data were collected prospectively, and patients were followed for a median of 4.71 years after surgery. Proteinuria, according to dipstick tests, was defined as mild (trace to 1+) or heavy (2+ to 4+) according to the results of the dipstick test. A total of 276 (29.8%) patients had mild proteinuria before surgery and 119 (12.9%) patients had heavy proteinuria. During the follow-up, the Cox proportional hazards model demonstrated that heavy proteinuria (hazard ratio [HR], 27.17) was an independent predictor of long-term ESRD. There was a progressive increased risk for mild proteinuria ([HR], 1.88) and heavy proteinuria ([HR], 2.28) to predict all-cause mortality compared to no proteinuria. Mild ([HR], 2.57) and heavy proteinuria ([HR], 2.70) exhibited a stepwise increased ratio compared to patients without proteinuria for long-term composite catastrophic outcomes (mortality and ESRD), which were independent of the baseline GFR and postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that proteinuria is a powerful independent risk factor of long-term all-cause mortality and ESRD after CABG in addition to preoperative GFR and postoperative AKI. Our study demonstrated that proteinuria should be integrated into clinical risk prediction models for long-term outcomes after CABG. These results provide a high priority for future renal protective strategies and methods for post-operative CABG patients

Recurrent disturbances and the degradation of hard coral communities in Taiwan

Recurrent disturbances can have a critical effect on the structure and function of coral reef communities. In this study, long-term changes were examined in the hard coral community at Wanlitung, in southern Taiwan, between 1985 and 2010. In this 26 year interval, the reef has experienced repeated disturbances that include six typhoons and two coral-bleaching events. The frequency of disturbance has meant that species susceptible to disturbance, such as those in the genus Acropora and Montipora have almost disappeared from the reef. Indeed, almost all hard coral species have declined in abundance, with the result that total hard coral cover in 2010 (17.7%) was less than half what it was in 1985 (47.5%). In addition, macro-algal cover has increased from 11.3% in 2003 to 28.5% in 2010. The frequency of disturbance combined with possible chronic influence of a growing human population mean that a diverse reef assemblage is unlikely to persist on this reef into the future