A review of the potential issues of pollution caused by the Mineral elements, Mercury, Lead and Arsenic, its possible impacts on the human beings and the suggested solutions

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Network pharmacological identification of active compounds and potential actions of Erxian decoction in alleviating menopause-related symptoms

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Comparison of chemical profiles and effectiveness between Erxian decoction and mixtures of its individual herbs decoction: A novel approach for identification of the standard chemicals

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Comprehensive and Holistic Analysis of HT-29 Colorectal Cancer Cells and Tumor-Bearing Nude Mouse Model: Interactions Among Fractions Derived From the Chinese Medicine Formula Tian Xian Liquid in Effects on Human Colorectal Carcinoma

The Chinese medicine formula Tian Xian Liquid (TXL) has been used clinically for cancer therapy in China for more than 25 years. However, the comprehensive and holistic effects of its bioactive fractions for various antitumor therapeutic effects have not been unraveled. This is the first study to scientifically elucidate the holistic effect of Chinese medicine formula for treating colon cancer, hence allowing a better understanding of the essence of Chinese medicine formula, through the comparison of the actions of TXL and its functional constituent fractions, including ethyl acetate (EA), butanol (BU), and aqueous (WA) fractions. Tissue-specific proliferative/antiproliferative effects of these fractions on human colorectal carcinoma HT-29 cells and splenocytes were studied by using the MTT assay. Their modulations on the expression of markers of antiproliferation, antimetastasis, reversion of multidrug resistance in treated HT-29 cells were examined with real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis, and their modulations in a xenografted nude mouse model were examined by Western blot analysis. Results revealed that EA fraction slightly inhibited the proliferation of HT-29 cells, but tissue-specifically exerted the most potent antiproliferative effect on splenocytes. On the contrary, only TXL and BU fraction tissue-specifically contributed to the proliferation of splenocytes, but inhibited the proliferation of HT-29 cells. WA fraction exerted the most potent antiproliferative effect on HT-29 cells and also the strongest inhibitory action on tumor size in the nude mouse model in our previous study. In the HT-29 model, TXL and WA fraction exerted the most pronounced effect on upregulation of p21 mRNA and protein; TXL, and EA and WA fractions exerted the effect on downregulation of G1 phase cell cycle protein, cyclin D1 mRNA and protein; EA and BU fractions exerted the most prominent anti-invasive effect on anti-invasion via downregulation of MMP-1 mRNA; TXL potently reversed most multidrug resistance via downregulation of MDR-1 protein. In conclusion, the comprehensive and holistic effects of TXL were demonstrated with (a) mutual accentuation and mutual enhancement, (b) mutual counteraction and mutual suppression, and (c) mutual antagonism among the 3 constituent fractions. Moreover, the design of the present study may lead to further development of more tissue-specific effective drugs with minimal side effects for clinical use in combating carcinoma.published_or_final_versio

Evaluation of Chemical Constituents and Important Mechanism of Pharmacological Biology in Dendrobium Plants

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Protective effect of Dendrobium officinale polysaccharides on experimental Sjogren's syndrome

Sjogren's syndrome (SS), usually described as a chronic inflammation which results in xerostomia (dry mouth) and xerophthalmia (dry eyes). According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, body fluid impairment causes the dryness, inducing water secretion deficiency. Discovery of a family of water-specific membrane channel proteins, the aquaporins, provides an interesting molecular mechanism of water permeability and transportation which were found abnormal in tissues of SS patients. Thus, this dryness may lead to the dysfunction in organs as various systematic manifestations. We established an autoallergic mouse model in vivo, and human salivary gland cell line A-253 in vitro. Polysaccharides of Dendrobium officinale (DP) were administrated as treatment, which was described to nourish yin and promote the body fluid. Results showed that immunization with SG autoantigen induced decrease of body weight and increased water intake, decreased AQP5 expression in a series of organs related to body fluid. Sera from model mice induced apoptosis of A-253 cells with activation of caspase-3. Administration of DP could reverse these pathological changes in both the animal and cell model. Thus, DP may be a promising candidate for the treatment of SS by up-regulating the expression of AQP-5 and protecting cells from apoptosis. © 2010 The Berkeley Electronic Press. All rights reserved.published_or_final_versio

Protective effect of Dendrobium officinale polysaccharides on experimental Sjogren's syndrome

Sjogren's syndrome (SS), usually described as a chronic inflammation which results in xerostomia (dry mouth) and xerophthalmia (dry eyes). According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, body fluid impairment causes the dryness, inducing water secretion deficiency. Discovery of a family of water-specific membrane channel proteins, the aquaporins, provides an interesting molecular mechanism of water permeability and transportation which were found abnormal in tissues of SS patients. Thus, this dryness may lead to the dysfunction in organs as various systematic manifestations. We established an autoallergic mouse model in vivo, and human salivary gland cell line A-253 in vitro. Polysaccharides of Dendrobium officinale (DP) were administrated as treatment, which was described to nourish yin and promote the body fluid. Results showed that immunization with SG autoantigen induced decrease of body weight and increased water intake, decreased AQP5 expression in a series of organs related to body fluid. Sera from model mice induced apoptosis of A-253 cells with activation of caspase-3. Administration of DP could reverse these pathological changes in both the animal and cell model. Thus, DP may be a promising candidate for the treatment of SS by up-regulating the expression of AQP-5 and protecting cells from apoptosis. © 2010 The Berkeley Electronic Press. All rights reserved.published_or_final_versio

Designing nanomaterials with desired mechanical properties by constraining the evolution of their grain shapes

Grain shapes are acknowledged to impact nanomaterials' overall properties. Research works on this issue include grain-elongation and grain-strain measurements and their impacts on nanomaterials' mechanical properties. This paper proposes a stochastic model for grain strain undergoing severe plastic deformation. Most models deal with equivalent radii assuming that nanomaterials' grains are spherical. These models neglect true grain shapes. This paper also proposes a theoretical approach of extending existing models by considering grain shape distribution during stochastic design and modelling of nanomaterials' constituent structures and mechanical properties. This is achieved by introducing grain 'form'. Example 'forms' for 2-D and 3-D grains are proposed. From the definitions of form, strain and Hall-Petch-Relationship to Reversed-Hall-Petch-Relationship, data obtained for nanomaterials' grain size and conventional materials' properties are sufficient for analysis. Proposed extended models are solved simultaneously and tested with grain growth data. It is shown that the nature of form evolution depends on form choice and dimensional space. Long-run results reveal that grain boundary migration process causes grains to become spherical, grain rotation coalescence makes them deviate away from becoming spherical and they initially deviate away from becoming spherical before converging into spherical ones due to the TOTAL process. Percentage deviations from spherical grains depend on dimensional space and form: 0% minimum and 100% maximum deviations were observed. It is shown that the plots for grain shape functions lie above the spherical (control) value of 1 in 2-D grains for all considered grain growth mechanisms. Some plots lie above the spherical value, and others approach the spherical value before deviating below it when dealing with 3-D grains. The physical interpretations of these variations are explained from elementary principles about the different grain growth mechanisms. It is observed that materials whose grains deviate further away from the spherical ones have more enhanced properties, while materials with spherical grains have lesser properties. It is observed that there exist critical states beyond which Hall-Petch Relationship changes to Reversed Hall-Petch Relationship. It can be concluded that if grain shapes in nanomaterials are constrained in the way they evolve, then nanomaterials with desired properties can be designed

The use of a noninvasive and nondestructive method, microcomputed tomography, to evaluate the anti-osteoporotic activity of erxian decoction, a Chinese medicinal formula, in a rat model of menopausal osteoporosis

Aim of the study: The anti-osteoporotic activity of Erxian Decoction, a Chinese medicinal formula, in a rat model of menopausal osteoporosis was evaluated by microcomputed tomography (microCT). Materials and methods: Menopause causes a decline in both endocrine function and bone mineral density in human. In this study, 20-month-old female Sprague-Dawley-rats (SD-rats) with a low serum estradiol level and bone mineral density were employed. The anti-osteoporotic activity of EXD was assessed by the determination of trabecular material bone mineral density at the L2 mid-vertebral body after treatment. Serum estrogen levels were also determined to assess the effect of EXD on the endocrine status. Results: Results revealed a significant elevation in serum estradiol level and trabecular bone mineral density at the L2 mid-vertebral body in the EXD-treated menopausal rat model. Conclusions: The results obtained from the present investigation revealed that the EXD had anti-osteoporotic activity as evidenced by an increase of serum estradiol level and bone mineral density. ©2009 IEEE.published_or_final_versionProceedings of the 2009 2nd International Conference On Biomedical Engineering And Informatics (BMEI 2009), Tianjin, China, 17-19 October 2009, v. 1 p. 47-49, article number 530482

Ameliorating effect of Erxian decoction combined with Fructus Schisandrae chinensis (Wu Wei Zi) on menopausal sweating and serum hormone profiles in a rat model.

Background Modified Erxian decoction (MEXD), i.e., Erxian decoction (EXD) with Fructus Schisandrae chinensis (Wu Wei Zi) added, has been used to alleviate menopausal symptoms. This study aimed to investigate the effects of MEXD on menopausal sweating and serum hormone levels in a rat model of menopause after oral administration of MEXD. Methods Quality control of MEXD was conducted by employing a reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography column. The three treatment groups received oral administration of MEXD in 0.5% sodium carboxylmethyl cellulose (CMC-Na) at three different doses (5.5, 11, and 22 g/kg body weight) once-daily for 6 consecutive weeks, with 10 animals per group. Huangqijing oral liquor (5 mL/kg) prepared from the roots of Huang qi (Astragalus membranaceus) with an antiperspirant effect was used as a positive control. The negative control group received the same volume of vehicle (0.5% CMC-Na). Ten 3-month-old Sprague–Dawley rats were used as a young group for comparison with the treatment groups (12–14 months old rats). Blood was collected from all animals after 3–6 weeks of treatment. At the end of the treatment, the uterine weight, ovarian weight, and body weight were recorded. Serum malondialdehyde contents and superoxide dismutase activities were determined by thiobarbituric acid colorimetric assays and chemoluminescence assays, respectively. Serum levels of estradiol, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone were measured by radioimmunoassays. Rat foot pad assays were used to determine the antiperspirant activity of MEXD and histological examinations were conducted on plantar sweat glands. Results Treatment with MEXD (11 g/kg) significantly inhibited sweat excretion in the menopause model rats after treatment for 3 (P = 0.0026) and 6 (P < 0.0001) weeks. The decoction markedly decreased the number of secretory cells in plantar sweat glands. In addition, MEXD (11 g/kg) significantly increased the serum estradiol levels (P < 0.001) and superoxide dismutase activities (P = 0.0405). Furthermore, MEXD (11 g/kg) markedly decreased the serum levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (P = 0.001), luteinizing hormone (P = 0.0213), and malondialdehyde (P = 0.01). Conclusion Modified Erxian decoction significantly inhibited sweat excretion, regulated serum levels of pituitary gonadotropins and estradiol, and exhibited antioxidative effects in a rat model of menopause.published_or_final_versio