Pro-angiogenic Role of Danqi Pill Through Activating Fatty Acids Oxidation Pathway Against Coronary Artery Disease

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is one of the leading causes of deaths worldwide. Energy metabolism disorders, including a reduction in fatty acids oxidation and upregulation of glycolysis pathway, are involved in the process of CAD. Therapeutic angiogenesis has become a promising treatment for CAD. Traditional Chinese medicines, such as Danqi Pill (DQP), have been proven to be effective in treating CAD in China for many years. However, the pro-angiogenic effects of DQP based on fatty acids oxidation are still unknown and the mechanism is worthy of investigation. In this study, left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery was ligated to induce the CAD models in vivo, and cardiac functions were examined using echocardiography. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) were subjected to H2O2-induced oxidative stress in vitro. The effects of DQP on CAD rat models and in vitro HUVEC were detected. Our results showed that DQP had cardio-protective effects in rat model. The intensity of capillaries in the marginal area of infarction of the rat heart was increased remarkably in DQP group, and the expression of PPARα and VEGF-2 were increased. The key enzymes involved in the transportation and intake of fatty acids, including CPT1A and CD36, both increased. In H2O2-induced endothelial cells injury models, DQP also showed protective roles and promoted capillary-like tube formation. DQP up-regulated key enzymes in fatty acids oxidation in H2O2-treated HUVEC. In addition, inhibition of CPT1A compromised the pro-angiogenic effects of DQP. In conclusion, fatty acids oxidation axis PPARα-CD36-CPT1A was involved in the pro-angiogenic roles of DQP against CAD. Cardiac CPT1A may serve as a target in therapeutic angiogenesis in clinics

A study of Cantonese words

published_or_final_versionChineseMasterMaster of Philosoph

study of idiomatic expressions in Hong Kong Cantonese

published_or_final_versionChineseDoctoralDoctor of Philosoph

Effects of Storage Temperature on Postharvest Physiology of Amorphophallus cormifer Microbulb

[Objective] The paper was to explore the optimum storage temperature of Amorphophallus cormifer microbulbs. [Method] With A. cormifer as the raw material, the effects of different storage temperatures (4, 12 and 20℃) on postharvest physiology of A. cormifer during the storage period of 80 d were investigated. [Result] There was no significant difference in starch content among the treatments, and the content of reducing sugar at 4 ℃ was significantly higher than those of other treatments during the storage period. There was no significant difference in total water content among treatments, and the specific gravity of free water at 4 ℃ was significantly lower than those at 12 and 20 ℃, respectively. At 60 d post storage, the POD activity at 4 ℃ was significantly higher than those at 12 and 20 ℃, respectively. At the 80th day of storage, the PPO activity at 4 ℃ was significantly lower than those at 12 and 20 ℃, respectively. [Conclusion] The low temperature of 4 ℃ is more conducive to the storage of A. cormifer microbulbs, and the results also provide the theoretical basis for long-term storage of A. cormifer bulbs

In-house purchasing for green design products when the manufacturer’s promised-delivery-time matters

In practice, many brand-owners (e.g., Nike, Adidas, and Louis Vuitton) have developed green design products using the same materials as regular products. This helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions meanwhile do not waste materials to achieve social responsibility. However, the development of green design products will lead to competition with the regular products, and further increases the manufacturer’s workload, resulting in longer and uncertain delivery time. In this paper, we investigate the brand-owner’s in-house purchasing strategy for green design products which seems to isolate the material procurement of green and regular products but may prepose the manufacturer’s delivery time. We find that under Green In-house Purchasing Strategy the material supplier can avoid the impact of the manufacturer’s promised-delivery-time and the introduction of green design products, because it can bypass the cost by balancing brand-owner’s order quantities of the two products. This harms the brand-owner and induces it to prefer Full Purchasing Outsourcing Strategy when either the green market expansion or the promised-delivery-time cost is high. We also find the incentive alignment opportunities between the brand-owner and the manufacturer where both of them can benefit from Full Purchasing Outsourcing Strategy. The robustness of our main findings is further verified by considering the positive production cost and the regular product’s environmental impact

The Protective Effect of Qishen Granule on Heart Failure after Myocardial Infarction through Regulation of Calcium Homeostasis

Qishen granule (QSG) is a frequently prescribed traditional Chinese medicine formula, which improves heart function in patients with heart failure (HF). However, the cardioprotective mechanisms of QSG have not been fully understood. The current study aimed to elucidate whether the effect of QSG is mediated by ameliorating cytoplasmic calcium (Ca2+) overload in cardiomyocytes. The HF rat model was induced by left anterior descending (LAD) artery ligation surgery. Rats were randomly divided into sham, model, QSG-low dosage (QSG-L) treatment, QSG-high dosage (QSG-H) treatment, and positive drug (diltiazem) treatment groups. 28 days after surgery, cardiac functions were assessed by echocardiography. Levels of norepinephrine (NE) and angiotensin II (AngII) in the plasma were evaluated. Expressions of critical proteins in the calcium signaling pathway, including cell membrane calcium channel CaV1.2, sarcoendoplasmic reticulum ATPase 2a (SERCA2a), calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase type II (CaMKII), and protein phosphatase calcineurin (CaN), were measured by Western blotting (WB) and immunohistochemistry (IHC). Echocardiography showed that left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) and fractional shortening (FS) value significantly decreased in the model group compared to the sham group, and illustrating heart function was severely impaired. Furthermore, levels of NE and AngII in the plasma were dramatically increased. Expressions of CaV1.2, CaMKII, and CaN in the cardiomyocytes were upregulated, and expressions of SERCA2a were downregulated in the model group. After treatment with QSG, both EF and FS values were increased. QSG significantly reduced levels of NE and AngII in the plasma. In particular, QSG prevented cytoplasmic Ca2+ overload by downregulating expression of CaV1.2 and upregulating expression of SERCA2a. Meanwhile, expressions of CaMKII and CaN were inhibited by QSG treatment. In conclusion, QSG could effectively promote heart function in HF rats by restoring cardiac Ca2+ homeostasis. These findings revealed novel therapeutic mechanisms of QSG and provided potential targets in the treatment of HF