Comparison of Leukotriene Receptor Antagonist and Theophylline in Addition to Inhaled Corticosteroid in Adult Asthma: A Meta-Analysis

( Hui Juan Fang ),( Jian Miao Wang ),( Di Jin ),( Yong Cao ),( Yong Jian Xu ),( Wei Ning Xiong ) 한국응용약물학회 2011 Biomolecules & Therapeutics(구 응용약물학회지) Vol.19 No.3

This meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the difference of the therapeutic efficacy and adverse effects of leukotriene receptor antagonist and theophylline added to inhaled corticosteroids in adult asthma. Databases were searched for studies published through Nov, 2010. Randomized-controlled trials containing inhaled corticosteroids plus leukotriene receptor antagonist and inhaled corticosteroids plus sustained-release theophylline for asthma therapy were selected. For each report, data were extracted to the outcomes analyzed: mean change in morning peak expiratory flow, mean change in evening peak expiratory flow, mean change in morning forced expiratory volume in 1 sec, mean change in daily short bete2-agonist use, asthma exacerbation and adverse effects. Four assessable trials including 182 asthmatic patients were identified. Inhaled corticosteroids plus leukotriene receptor antagonist was superior to inhaled corticosteroids plus theophylline therapy in improving morning peak expiratory flow in asthmatics (mean difference 19.08 [95% confidence interval 13.37-23.79] l/min, p<0.001) and morning forced expiratory volume in 1 sec in asthmatics (mean difference 0.09 [95% confidence interval 0.03-0.14] liter, p=0.001). In evening peak expiratory flow, daily short bete2-agonist use, asthma exacerbation and adverse effects, there was no significant difference between these two therapies (All p>0.05). Our meta-analysis showed that the combination of inhaled corticosteroids plus leukotriene receptor antagonist resulted in more improvement in both peak expiratory flow and forced expiratory volume in 1 sec in the morning than inhaled corticosteroids plus sustained-release theophylline in adult asthmatics. Further trials are necessary to evaluate the dominant effects of the former combination.

An Improved Method for Extracting Bacteria from Soil for High Molecular Weight DNA Recovery and BAC Library Construction

Juan Liu,Jingquan Li,Li Feng,Hui Cao,Zhongli Cui 한국미생물학회 2010 The journal of microbiology Vol.48 No.6

Separation of bacterial cells from soil is a key step in the construction of metagenomic BAC libraries with large DNA inserts. Our results showed that when combined with sodium pyro-phosphate and homogenization for soil dispersion, sucrose density gradient centrifugation (SDGC) was more effective at separating bacteria from soil than was low speed centrifugation (LSC). More than 70% of the cells, along with some soil colloids,were recovered with one round of centrifugation. A solution of 0.8% NaCl was used to resuspend these cell and soil pellets for purification with nycodenz density gradient centrifugation (NDGC). After purification,more than 30% of the bacterial cells in the primary soil were extracted. This procedure effectively removed soil contamination and yielded sufficient cells for high molecular weight (HMW) DNA isolation. Ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (RISA) showed that the microbial community structure of the extracted cells was similar to that of the primary soil, suggesting that this extraction procedure did not significantly change the the soil bacteria community structure. HMW DNA was isolated from bacterial cells extracted from red soil for metagenomic BAC library construction. This library contained DNA inserts of more than 200 Mb with an average size of 75 kb.

Acupuncture for Treatment of Erectile Dysfunction: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Bao-yong Lai,Hui-juan Cao,Guo-yan Yang,Li-yan Jia,Suzanne Grant,Yu-tong Fei,Emma Wong,Xin-lin Li,Xiao-ying Yang,Jian-ping Liu 대한남성과학회 2019 The World Journal of Men's Health Vol.37 No.3

ChinaPurpose: To assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for erectile dysfunction (ED).Materials and Methods: We searched six major English and Chinese databases included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) testing acupuncture alone or in combination for ED. Dichotomous data were presented as risk ratio (RR) and continuous data were presented as mean difference (MD) both with 95% confidence interval (CI). The Revman (v.5.3) was used for data analyses. Quality of evidence across studies was assessed by the online GRADEpro tool.Results: We identified 22 RCTs, fourteen of them involving psychogenic ED. Most of the included RCTs had high or unclear risk of bias. There was no difference between electro-acupuncture and sham acupuncture with electrical stimulation on the rate of satisfaction and self-assessment (RR, 1.50; 95% CI, 0.71–3.16; 1 trial). Acupuncture combined with tadalafil appeared to have better effect on increasing cure rate (RR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.00–1.71; 2 trials), and International Index of Erectile Function-5 scores (MD, 5.38; 95% CI, 4.46–6.29; 2 trials). When acupuncture plus herbal medicine compared with herbal medicine alone, the combination therapy showed significant better improvement in erectile function (RR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.31–2.15; 7 trials). Only two trials reported facial red and dizziness cases, and needle sticking and pruritus cases in acupuncture group. Conclusions: Low quality evidence shows beneficial effect of acupuncture as adjunctive treatment for people mainly with psychogenic ED. Safety of acupuncture was insufficiently reported. The findings should be confirmed in large, rigorously designed and well-reported trials.

Bioinformatic Prediction of SNPs within miRNA Binding Sites of Inflammatory Genes Associated with Gastric Cancer

Song, Chuan-Qing,Zhang, Jun-Hui,Shi, Jia-Chen,Cao, Xiao-Qin,Song, Chun-Hua,Hassan, Adil,Wang, Peng,Dai, Li-Ping,Zhang, Jian-Ying,Wang, Kai-Juan Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.2

Polymorphisms in miRNA binding sites have been shown to affect miRNA binding to target genes, resulting in differential mRNA and protein expression and susceptibility to common diseases. Our purpose was to predict SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms) within miRNA binding sites of inflammatory genes in relation to gastric cancer. A complete list of SNPs in the 3'UTR regions of all inflammatory genes associated with gastric cancer was obtained from Pubmed. miRNA target prediction databases (MirSNP, Targetscan Human 6.2, PolymiRTS 3.0, miRNASNP 2.0, and Patrocles) were used to predict miRNA target sites. There were 99 SNPs with MAF>0.05 within the miRNA binding sites of 41 genes among 72 inflammation-related genes associated with gastric cancer. NF-${\kappa}B$ and JAK-STAT are the two most important signaling pathways. 47 SNPs of 25 genes with 95 miRNAs were predicted. CCL2 and IL1F5 were found to be the shared target genes of hsa-miRNA-624-3p. Bioinformatic methods could identify a set of SNPs within miRNA binding sites of inflammatory genes, and provide data and direction for subsequent functional verification research.

ORiginal Article : The Expression of Programmed Death-1 in Circulating CD4+ and CD8+ T Cells during Hepatitis B Virus Infection Progression and Its Correlation with Clinical Baseline Characteristics

( Ping Xu ),( Yong Jing Chen ),( Hui Chen ),( Xiao Yan Zhu ),( Hua Feng Song ),( Li Juan Cao ),( Xue Feng Wang ) The Editorial Office of Gut and Liver 2014 Gut and Liver Vol.8 No.2

Background/Aims: Programmed death-1 (PD-1) expression was investigated in CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from hepatitis B virus (HBV)-infected patients at the chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection, liver cirrhosis (LC), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) stages. Methods: PD-1 expression in circulating CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was detected by flow cytometry. The correla-tions between PD-1 expression and HBV viral load, alanine aminotransaminase (ALT) levels and aspartate aminotrans-ferase (AST) levels were analyzed using GraphPad Prism 5.0. Results: PD-1 expression in CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was significantly increased in both the CHB group and advanced-stage group (LC plus HCC). In the CHB group, PD-1 expres-sion in both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was positively correlated with the HBV viral load, ALT, and AST levels. However, in the LC plus HCC group, significant correlations between PD-1 expression and the clinical parameters were nearly absent. Conclusions: PD-1 expression in peripheral CD4+ and CD8+ T cells is dynamic, changes with HBV infection progression, and is related to HBV viral load and liver function, especially in CHB. PD-1 expression could be utilized as a potential clini-cal indicator to determine the extent of virus replication and liver injury. (Gut Liver 2014;8:186-195)

Chinese herbal medicine (Rupi Sanjie capsule) for the treatment of breast pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Bao-yong Lai,Li-yan Jia,Bo-Wen Yu,Shi-Bing Liang,Ai-Jing Chu,Hui-juan Cao,Jian-ping Liu,Xiao-Hua Pei 한국한의학연구원 2021 Integrative Medicine Research Vol.10 No.2

Background: Breast pain is one of the most common breast disorders, affecting 41%–69% women in the clinical populations. Chinese herbal medicine (Rupi Sanjie, RPSJ) capsule has been recommended to be commonly used for breast pain in China. This review aimed to systematically collect latest evidence and critically evaluate the eff ;ectiveness and safety of RPSJ capsule for breast pain. Methods: We searched 6 databases from their inception to June 1, 2020 for randomized clinical trials (RCTs) comparing RPSJ capsule with conventional drug therapies, placebo or no treatment. Primary outcomes were breast pain relief, reduction of breast mass and clinical cure rate. Results: Seventeen RCTs were included in total, involving 2899 participants with breast pain. RPSJ capsule showed a significant effects in shortening duration of the breast pain (MD-6.51 days, 95%CI [-8.57, -4.45], n = 82, 1 trial), shortening the duration of breast mass (MD-5.17 days, 95%CI [-7.56, -2.78], n = 82, 1 trial), improving clinical cure rate (RR 1.55, 95% CI [1.21, 2.00], I² = 64%, n = 1398, 10 trials) and total effective rate (RR 1.08, 95% CI [1.03, 1.14], I² = 71%, n = 2170, 14 trials) compared to Tamoxifen (TAM). The meta-analysis showed that the incidence of total adverse events was higher in TAM group than the RPSJ capsule group (RR 0.30, 95%CI [0.21, 0.42], I² = 49%, n = 2122, 13 trials). Conclusions: RPSJ capsule appears to be a potentially effective in treating breast pain and seems generally safe for clinical application. However, this potential benefit is inconclusive due to generally weak evidence, and the findings should be further confirmed in large and rigorous trials.

Compound glycyrrhizin injection for improving liver function in children with acute icteric hepatitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Liang Shi-Bing,Hou Wen-Bin,Zheng Ruo-Xiang,Liang Chang-Hao,Yan Li-Jiao,Wang Hao-Nan,Cao Hui-Juan,Han Mei,Robinson Nicola,Liu Jian-Ping 한국한의학연구원 2022 Integrative Medicine Research Vol.11 No.1

Background: Compound glycyrrhizin injection (CGI) is a preparation with glycyrrhizin as the main active ingredient extracted from licorice. As clinical trials suggest that CGI is effective in improving liver function for acute icteric hepatitis in children (AIHC), this systematic review aimed to evaluate and verify its therapeutic effects and safety. Methods: Six electronic databases were searched from their inception to 15 May 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing therapeutic effects and safety of CGI for AIHC were included. The risk of bias for each trial was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool 2.0. Primary outcomes were indexes related to liver function, including total bilirubin (TBiL), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST). RevMan 5.4 software was used for data analyses. The certainty of the evidence was assessed using the online GRADEpro tool. Results: Six RCTs involving 608 children were included. The overall bias was assessed as having “high risk of bias” in all trials. All trials compared the combination of CGI and conventional western medicine (CWM) with CWM alone. Regarding the effects of CGI for AIHC, results showed that CGI plus CWM was superior to CWM alone in reducing the levels of TBiL (mean difference (MD) = -8.19 mmol/L, 95% CI -9.86 to -6.53), ALT (MD = -24.09 U/L, 95% CI -30.83 to -17.34) and AST (MD = -18.67 U/L, 95% CI -21.88 to -15.45). No trial reported adverse events. The certainty of the evidence for outcomes were all evaluated as low or very low. Conclusion: CGI may have adjuvant therapeutic effects on improving the liver function of children with AIHC. There is no evidence to determine the safety of CGI for AIHC. As current evidence is weak, further well-designed RCTs are required for verification of the therapeutic effects of CGI. Background: Compound glycyrrhizin injection (CGI) is a preparation with glycyrrhizin as the main active ingredient extracted from licorice. As clinical trials suggest that CGI is effective in improving liver function for acute icteric hepatitis in children (AIHC), this systematic review aimed to evaluate and verify its therapeutic effects and safety. Methods: Six electronic databases were searched from their inception to 15 May 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing therapeutic effects and safety of CGI for AIHC were included. The risk of bias for each trial was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool 2.0. Primary outcomes were indexes related to liver function, including total bilirubin (TBiL), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST). RevMan 5.4 software was used for data analyses. The certainty of the evidence was assessed using the online GRADEpro tool. Results: Six RCTs involving 608 children were included. The overall bias was assessed as having “high risk of bias” in all trials. All trials compared the combination of CGI and conventional western medicine (CWM) with CWM alone. Regarding the effects of CGI for AIHC, results showed that CGI plus CWM was superior to CWM alone in reducing the levels of TBiL (mean difference (MD) = -8.19 mmol/L, 95% CI -9.86 to -6.53), ALT (MD = -24.09 U/L, 95% CI -30.83 to -17.34) and AST (MD = -18.67 U/L, 95% CI -21.88 to -15.45). No trial reported adverse events. The certainty of the evidence for outcomes were all evaluated as low or very low. Conclusion: CGI may have adjuvant therapeutic effects on improving the liver function of children with AIHC. There is no evidence to determine the safety of CGI for AIHC. As current evidence is weak, further well-designed RCTs are required for verification of the therapeutic effects of CGI.

Five miRNAs as Novel Diagnostic Biomarker Candidates for Primary Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Tang, Jin-Feng,Yu, Zhong-Hua,Liu, Tie,Lin, Zi-Ying,Wang, Ya-Hong,Yang, La-Wei,He, Hui-Juan,Cao, Jun,Huang, Hai-Li,Liu, Gang Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.18

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an essential role in the development and progression of nasopharyngeal carcinomas (NPC). Despite advances in the field of cancer molecular biology and biomarker discovery, the development of clinically validated biomarkers for primary NPC has remained elusive. In this study, we investigated the expression and clinical significance of miRNAs as novel primary NPC diagnostic biomarkers. We used an array containing 2, 500 miRNAs to identify 22 significant miRNAs, and these candidate miRNAs were validated using 67 fresh NPC and 25 normal control tissues via quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Expression and correlation analyses were performed with various statistical approaches, in addition to logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic curve analyses to evaluate diagnostic efficacy. qRT-PCR revealed five differentially expressed miRNAs (miR-93-5p, miR-135b-5p, miR-205-5p and miR-183-5p) in NPC tissue samples relative to control samples (p<0.05), with miR-135b-5p and miR-205-5p being of significant diagnostic value (p<0.01). Moreover, comparison of NPC patient clinicopathologic data revealed a negative correlation between miR-93-5p and miR-183-5p expression levels and lymph node status (p<0.05). These findings display an altered expression of many miRNAs in NPC tissues, thus providing information pertinent to pathophysiological and diagnostic research. Ultimately, miR-135b-5p and miR-205-5p may be implicated as novel NPC candidate biomarkers, while miR-93-5p, miR-650 and miR-183-5p may find application as relevant clinical pathology and diagnostic candidate biomarkers.