Effect of qigong exercise and acupressure rehabilitation program on pulmonary function and respiratory symptoms in patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19: A randomized controlled trial

Shu-ting Liu,Chao Zhan,Yun-jing Ma,Chao-yang Guo,Wei Chen,Xiao-ming Fang,Lei Fang 한국한의학연구원 2021 Integrative Medicine Research Vol.10 No.-

Background There are several effective complementary and integrative therapies for patients with severe COVID-19. The trial aims to evaluate the efficacy and advantages of the qigong exercise and acupressure rehabilitation program (QARP) for treating patients with severe COVID-19. Methods A total of 128 patients with COVID-19 aged 20 to 80 years were recruited and randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to receive QARP plus standard therapies or standard therapies alone. QARP consisted of acupressure therapy and qigong exercise (Liu Zi Jue). The primary outcome was measured with the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale, and the secondary outcomes included the modified Borg dyspnea scale (MBS), fatigue Scale-14 (FS-14), patient health questionnaire-9 scale (PHQ-9), duration of respiratory symptoms, and vital signs. Results In total, 128 patients completed the clinical trial. The QARP group and standard therapies group showed significant improvements in vital signs (except blood pressure) and clinical scales compared with baseline (p<0.05). The QARP group also showed more significant improvement in the mMRC dyspnea scale (-1.8 [-2.1, -1.6], p=0.018) and modified Borg dyspnea scale (-3.7 [95% confidence intervals (CI) -4.3, -3.1], p=0.045). The duration of cough was 14.3 days (95% CI 12.6, 16.1, p=0.046), and the length of hospital stay was 18.5 days (95% CI 17.0, 20.0, p=0.042) in the QARP group, both of which were significantly reduced compared with the standard therapies group (p<0.05). Conclusion QARP plus standard therapies improved lung function and symptoms such as dyspnea and cough in patients with severe COVID-19 and shortened the length of hospital stay. Therefore, QARP may be considered an effective treatment option for patients with severe COVID-19. Trial registration Clinical Research Information Service Identifier: ChiCTR2000029994 Background There are several effective complementary and integrative therapies for patients with severe COVID-19. The trial aims to evaluate the efficacy and advantages of the qigong exercise and acupressure rehabilitation program (QARP) for treating patients with severe COVID-19. Methods A total of 128 patients with COVID-19 aged 20 to 80 years were recruited and randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to receive QARP plus standard therapies or standard therapies alone. QARP consisted of acupressure therapy and qigong exercise (Liu Zi Jue). The primary outcome was measured with the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale, and the secondary outcomes included the modified Borg dyspnea scale (MBS), fatigue Scale-14 (FS-14), patient health questionnaire-9 scale (PHQ-9), duration of respiratory symptoms, and vital signs. Results In total, 128 patients completed the clinical trial. The QARP group and standard therapies group showed significant improvements in vital signs (except blood pressure) and clinical scales compared with baseline (p<0.05). The QARP group also showed more significant improvement in the mMRC dyspnea scale (-1.8 [-2.1, -1.6], p=0.018) and modified Borg dyspnea scale (-3.7 [95% confidence intervals (CI) -4.3, -3.1], p=0.045). The duration of cough was 14.3 days (95% CI 12.6, 16.1, p=0.046), and the length of hospital stay was 18.5 days (95% CI 17.0, 20.0, p=0.042) in the QARP group, both of which were significantly reduced compared with the standard therapies group (p<0.05). Conclusion QARP plus standard therapies improved lung function and symptoms such as dyspnea and cough in patients with severe COVID-19 and shortened the length of hospital stay. Therefore, QARP may be considered an effective treatment option for patients with severe COVID-19. Trial registration Clinical Research Information Service Identifier: ChiCTR2000029994

Comparison of Serum Tumor Associated Material (TAM) with Conventional Biomarkers in Cancer Patients

Shu, Jian,Li, Cheng-Guang,Liu, Yang-Chen,Yan, Xiao-Chun,Xu, Xu,Huang, Xin-En,Cao, Jie,Li, Ying,Lu, Yan-Yan,Wu, Xue-Yan,Liu, Jin,Xiang, Jin Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.5

Objective: To compare expression level of serum tumor associated materials (TAM) with several conventional serum tumor biomarkers, eg., carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen19-9 (CA19-9), carbohydrate antigen 15-3 (CA15-3), alpha-fetoprotein(AFP), in selected solid tumors. Methods: Patients diagnosed histologically or cytologically with liver, breast, esophageal, gastric, colorectal or pancreatic cancers were enrolled into this study. After diagnosis, the level of TAM was determined by chemical colorimetry, and levels of conventional tumor markers was measured by chemiluminescence methods. Results: A total of 560 patients were enrolled into this study. No statistically significant difference was detected in TAM and the above mentioned tumor biomarkers in terms of their positivity and negativity ( P>0. 05). Conclusions: Detection of TAM in liver, breast, esophageal, gastric, colorectal, and pancreatic cancer patients demonstrates a good accordance with CEA, CA199, CA153, and AFP, thus suggesting that further study is warranted to verify whether TAM could be a surrogate for these conventional biomarkers.

Prognostic Impact of Cyclin D1, Cyclin E and P53 on Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumours

Liu, Shu-Zheng,Zhang, Fang,Chang, Yu-Xi,Ma, Jie,Li, Xu,Li, Xiao-Hong,Fan, Jin-Hu,Duan, Guang-Cai,Sun, Xi-Bin Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.1

Conventional classifications of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumours (GEP-NETs) are rather unsatisfactory because of the variation in survival within each subgroup. Molecular markers are being found able to predict patient outcome in more and more tumours. The aim of this study was to characterize the expression of the proteins cyclin D1, cyclin E and P53 in GEP-NETs and assess any prognostic impact. Tumor specimens from 68 patients with a complete follow-up were studied immunohistochemically for cyclin D1, cyclin E and P53 expression. High cyclin D1 and cyclin E immunostaining (${\geq}$ 5% positive nuclei) was found in 48 (71%) and 24 (35%) cases, and high P53 staining (${\geq}$ 10% positive nuclei) in 33 (49%). High expression of P53 was more common in gastric neuroendocrine tumors and related to malignant behavior, being associate with a worse prognosis on univariate analysis (RR=1.9, 95%CI=1.1-3.2). High expression of cyclin E was significantly associated with shorter survival in the univariate analysis (RR=2.0, 95%CI=1.2-3.6) and multivariate analysis (RR=2.1, 95%CI=1.1-4.0). We found no significant correlation between the expression of cyclin D1 and any clinicopathological variables. Our study indicated a prognostic relevance for cyclin E and P53 immunoreactivity. Cyclin E may be an independent prognostic factor from the 2010 WHO Classification which should be evaluated in further studies.

Association of Dietary Intake of Folate, Vitamin B₆ and B₁₂ and MTHFR Genotype with Breast Cancer Risk

Liu, Ying,Zhou, Long-Shu,Xu, Xiao-Ming,Deng, Liang-Qing,Xiao, Qian-Kun Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.9

Aim: We aimed to investigate the associations of dietary intake of folate, vitamin $B_6$ and $B_{12}$ and MTHFR genotype with breast cancer in a Chinese population. Methods: A matched case-control study was conducted, and 435 patients with newly diagnosed and histologically confirmed breast cancer and 435 controls were collected. The folate intake, vitamin $B_6$ and vitamin $B_{12}$ were calculated, and MTHFR C665T, C677T and A1298C were analyzed by PCR-RFLP. Results: We found vitamin $B_{12}$ was likely to reduce the risk of breast cancer, and MTHFR 665TT was associated with increased risk of breast cancer. Folate intake, vitamin $B_{12}$ intake and variants of MTHFR C677T and MTHFR A1298C demonstrated no association with risk of breast cancer. However, we found patients with low intake of vitamin $B_6$ and MTHFR 665TT genotype had a higher risk of breast cancer (OR=1.87, 95% CI=1.29-2.77), the association being less pronounced among subjects with a moderate intake of vitamin $B_6$ and MTHFR 665TT genotype (OR=1.58, 95% CI=1.03-2.49, P=0.03). Conclusion: Our study indicated that the MTHFR C665T polymorphism and vitamin $B_6$ are associated with risk of breast cancer, which indicated roles for nutrients in developing breast cancer.

Genetic Characterization of Two Putative Toxin-Antitoxin Systems on Cryptic Plasmids from Bacillus thuringiensis Strain YBT-1520

( Xiao Jin Liu ),( Shu Fang Zhu ),( Wei Xing Ye ),( Li Fang Ruan ),( Zi Niu Yu ),( Chang Ming Zhao ),( Ming Sun ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2008 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.18 No.10

Over-expression of SlWRKY39 leads to enhanced resistance to multiple stress factors in tomato

Xiao-chun Sun,Yong-feng Gao,Hui-rong Li,Shu-zhang Yang,Yong-sheng Liu 한국식물학회 2015 Journal of Plant Biology Vol.58 No.1

The WRKY transcription factors are one of the well-characterized classes of plant transcription factors, which participated in various biotic and abiotc stress responses. Previous study showed that there are 81 WRKY genes in tomato, wherein a number of SlWRKY genes including SlWRKY39 were significantly up-regulated under salt, drought stress and PstDC3000 infection. However little is known about their physiological role in tomato. In this study, by using a forward genetic approach, we demonstrated transgenic plants over-expressing SlWRKY39 showing enhanced resistance to multiple stress factors including PstDC3000, salt and drought. Transgenic plants accumulated higher level of proline and lower level of malonic dialdehyde. Compared with wild type, the expression of pathogenesis-related genes SlPR1, SlPR1a1 and environmental stress related genes SlRD22, SlDREB2A were up-regulated in the transgenic plants. These results indicated that SlWRKY39 is a positive regulatory component of tomato against biotic and abiotic stress probably via activating the expression of both pathogenesis-related genes and stress related genes.

Cervical Cancer Gene Therapy by Gene Loaded PEG-PLA Nanomedicine

Liu, Bo,Han, Shu-Mei,Tang, Xiao-Yong,Han, Li,Li, Chang-Zhong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.12

Background and Aims: Advances in the treatment of cervical cancer over the last decade have predominantly involved the development of genes directed at molecular targets. Gene therapy is recognized to be a novel method for the treatment of cervical cancer. Genes can be administered into target cells via nanocarriers. This study aimed to develop systemically administrable nano-vectors. Floate (Fa) containing gene loaded nanoparticles (NPs) could target HeLa human cervical cancer cells through combination with receptors on the cells to increase the nuclear uptake of genetic materials. Methods: Fa was linked onto Poly (ethylene glycol)-b-poly (D, L-lactide) (PEG-PLA) to form Fa-PEG-PLA, and the resulting material was used to load plasmids of enhanced green fluorescence protein (pEGFP) to obtain gene loaded nanoparticles (Fa-NPs/DNA). Physical-chemical characteristics, in vitro release and cytotoxicity of Fa-NPs/DNA were evaluated. The in vitro transfection efficiency of Fa-NPs/DNA was evaluated in HeLa cells and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). PEG-PLA without Fa was used to load pEGFP from NPs/DNA as a control. Results: Fa-NPs/DNA has a particle size of 183 nm and a gene loading quantity of 92%. After 72h of transfection, Fa-NPs/DNA displayed over 20% higher transfection efficiency than NPs/DNA and 40% higher than naked DNA in HeLa cells. However, in HUVECs, no significant difference appeared between Fa-NPs/DNA and NPs/DNA. Conclusions: Fa-PEG-PLA NPs could function as excellent materials for gene loading. This nano-approach could be used as tumor cell targeted medicine for the treatment of cervical cancer.

Control and Research on Blade Vibration of Wind Turbine

Shu Liu,Minghao Zhang,Zisong Xiao,Zhiyou Ren 보안공학연구지원센터 2015 International Journal of Smart Home Vol.9 No.7

This article takes control of fan blade vibration as the main body, introduces a new type of intelligent materials -- Electro rheological fluids, focusing on explain the smechanical and electrical properties of electro rheological fluid explain. The application of electro rheological technology to practical use in the performance of electro rheological fluids, control the occurrence of electro rheological effect, so as to achieve active vibration control effect on leaf and model simulation and eventually realize the effect of blade vibration weakened.

Enhanced ε-Poly-L-lysine Production from Streptomyces ahygroscopicus by a Combination of Cell Immobilization and In Situ Adsorption

( Liu Sheng Rong ),( Qing Ping Wu ),( Ju Mei Zhang ),( Shu Ping Mo ),( Xiao Juan Yang ),( Chun Xiao ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2012 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.22 No.9

ε-Poly-L-lysine (ε-PL), produced by Streptomyces or Kitasatospora strains, is a homo-poly-amino acid of Llysine, which is used as a safe food preservative. The present study investigates the combined use of cell immobilization and in situ adsorption (ISA) to produce ε-PL in shaken flasks. Loofah sponge-immobilized Streptomyces ahygroscopicus GIM8 produced slightly more ε-PL than those immobilized on synthetic sponge, and sugarcane bagasse. Moreover, loofah sponge supported the maximum biomass. Hence, loofah sponge was chosen for cell immobilization. Meanwhile, the ion-exchange resin D152 was employed for ISA. The loofah sponge-immobilized cells produced 0.54 ± 0.1 g/l ε-PL, which significantly increased to 3.64 ± 0.32 g/l after combining with ISA through the addition of resin bags. The free cells with ISA using the dispersed resin yielded 2.73 ± 0.26 g/l of ε-PL, an increase from 0.82 ± 0.08 g/l. These data illustrate that the proposed combination method improved production most significantly compared with either immobilization or ISA only. Moreover, the immobilized cells could be repeatedly used and an ε-PL total amount of 8.05 ± 0.84 g/l was obtained. The proposed combination method offers promising perspectives for ε-PL production.

Distributed Dual-rate Consensus Predictive Control of Looper Tension System in Hot Rolling Mills

Xiao-Dong Zhang,Shao-Shu Gao,Xin-Ping Liu,Ting-Pei Huang 제어·로봇·시스템학회 2018 International Journal of Control, Automation, and Vol.16 No.2

This paper considers a dual-rate distributed predictive control strategy for the looper tension system in hot rolling mills, which is a typical multi-agent system with directed communication topology. First, we establish an interconnected model for looper tension control system and the disturbances from the neighbors are considered effectively. Second, the consensus control protocol is developed based on the proposed control strategy to improve the robustness and stability of the multi-agent, and the sufficient conditions for consensus are developed. We update and implement all the agent controllers sequentially in one output sampling period and begin a new cycle at the next sampling instant, which leads the multi-agent control system is of fast control updating rate and slow output sampling rate. The control inputs of neighbors can be obtained to compensate the coupling effects, and the cooperation of controllers are improved. Finally, simulation results verify the proposed control strategy and corresponding results.