Is There Volume Transmission Along Extracellular Fluid Pathways Corresponding to the Acupuncture Meridians?

Weibo Zhang,Ze Wang,Shuyong Jia,Yuying Tian,Guangjun Wang,Hongyan Li,Kjell Fuxe 사단법인약침학회 2017 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.10 No.1

Volume transmission is a new major communication signaling via extracellular fluid (interstitial fluid) pathways. It was proposed by the current authors that such pathways can explain the meridian phenomena and acupuncture effects. To investigate whether meridian-like structures exist in fish body and operate via volume transmission in extracellular fluid pathways, we injected alcian blue (AB) under anesthesia into Gephyrocharax melanocheir, which has a translucent body. The migration of AB could be seen directly and was recorded by a digital camera. The fish was then embedded and cut transversely to observe the position of tracks in three dimensions. Eight longitudinal threadlike blue tracks were recognized on the fish. The positions of these threadlike tracks were similar to meridians on the human body. Transverse sections showed that these tracks distributed to different layers of distinct subcutaneous loose connective tissues and intermuscular septa. Lymphatic vessels were sometimes associated with the extracellular blue tracks where the migration of AB occurred. Extracellular fluid pathways were found on fish through their transport of AB. These pathways operating via volume transmission appeared to be similar in positions and functions to the acupuncture meridians in Chinese medicine.

Automatic Multi-class Sleep Staging Method Based on Novel Hybrid Features

Wang WeiBo,Qin Dimei,Fang Yu,Zhou Chao,Zheng Yongkang 대한전기학회 2024 Journal of Electrical Engineering & Technology Vol.19 No.1

To address the problems of various sleep staging criteria and poor accuracy of sleep staging, we proposed an efective method with novel hybrid features. Besides the common signal of Heart Rate Variability (HRV), we also propose the R Peak (RP) signal which can better refect the essence of the ECG signal, and then extract the time domain, frequency domain, and nonlinear features from them. The features are processed and selected as novel hybrid features. The best-performing classifer was optimized to evaluate sleep under diferent criteria. There are four staging criteria, including 2-stages sleep (SW), Sleep and Wake; 3-stages sleep (NRW), Non-rapid Eye Movement (NREM), Rapid Eye Movement (REM), and Wake; 4-stages sleep (DLRW), Deep Sleep, Light Sleep, REM and Wake; and 5-stages sleep (N3RW), N3, N2, N1, REM, and Wake. The experiment was tested on the St. Vincent's University Hospital/University College Dublin Sleep Apnea Database (UCDDB) and validated on the MIT-BIH Polysomnographic Database (MITBPD). The optimized Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT) was employed as the sleep staging classifer. Compared with other state-of-the-art methods, the proposed method achieved better performance: Under SW, NRW, DLRW, and N3RW, the average accuracy rates of the two databases are 91.34%, 89.56%, 87.15%, and 82.02%, respectively. The average values of Cohen’s Kappa statistics are 0.7518, 0.7742, 0.7718, and 0.7288. The experimental results verifed that the proposed method could be used as a versatility, convenience, and reliability method for automatic sleep staging.

Application of advanced biomaterials in photothermal therapy for malignant bone tumors

Bo Chao,Jianhang Jiao,Lili Yang,Yang Wang,Weibo Jiang,Tong Yu,Linfeng Wang,He Liu,Han Zhang,Zhonghan Wang,Minfei Wu 한국생체재료학회 2023 생체재료학회지 Vol.27 No.00

Malignant bone tumors are characterized by severe disability rate, mortality rate, and heavy recurrence rate owing to the complex pathogenesis and insidious disease progression, which seriously affect the terminal quality of patients' lives. Photothermal therapy (PTT) has emerged as an attractive adjunctive treatment offering prominent hyperthermal therapeutic effects to enhance the effectiveness of surgical treatment and avoid recurrence. Simultaneously, various advanced biomaterials with photothermal capacity are currently created to address malignant bone tumors, performing distinctive biological functions, including nanomaterials, bioceramics (BC), polymers, and hydrogels et al. Furthermore, PTT-related combination therapeutic strategies can provide more significant curative benefits by reducing drug toxicity, improving tumor-killing efficiency, stimulating anti-cancer immunity, and improving immune sensitivity relative to monotherapy, even in complex tumor microenvironments (TME). This review summarizes the current advanced biomaterials applicable in PTT and relevant combination therapies on malignant bone tumors for the first time. The multiple choices of advanced biomaterials, treatment methods, and new prospects for future research in treating malignant bone tumors with PTT are generalized to provide guidance.

Application of Biophysical Properties of Meridians in the Visualization of Pericardium Meridian

Xiong Feng,Xu Ruimin,Li Tongju,Wang Jinyu,Hu Qingchuan,Song Xiaojing,Wang Guangjun,Su Huanhuan,Jia Shuyong,Wang Shuyou,Zhu Zongxiang,Zhang Weibo 사단법인약침학회 2023 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.16 No.3

Background: The biophysical properties of the meridian system, an important concept of traditional Chinese medicine, include low impedance, resounding voice, and high acoustic conductance, all of which are helpful for elucidating the essence of meridians. Objectives: To visualize the human pericardium meridian (PC) based on the resounding voice property of meridians. Methods: Visualization of the PC was performed by injection of fluorescein sodium at the PC6 acupoint (Neiguan) on the PC. Before injection, percussion active points (PAPs) were identified by the virtue of their resounding voice properties. After injection, the trajectories of fluorescein migration throughout the body surface were recorded and analyzed. The distribution of fluorescein in the tissue was further studied using cross-sections of hind limbs of mini-pigs, in which fluorescein was injected into low impedance points. Results: The identified PAP lines were colocalized with PC. Following intradermal fluorescein injection, 1-3 fluorescent lines, which were unrelated to the arm veins, were observed in 7 of 10 participants; 85.4% of fluorescent signals were coincident with PAPs and their intensity had a negative correlation with the body mass index (r = –0.56, p = 0.045). Cross-sections showed a Y-shaped fluorescence pattern where the two migration lines on the surface were the two vertices of the “Y.” Conclusion: The trajectories of fluorescein in the body are suggestive of the anatomical structure of meridians. The PC is related to the deep horizontal interstitial channels that connect to the body surface through vertical interstitial spaces. These biophysical properties and techniques for meridian visualization are valuable for revealing the anatomical structure of meridians.

Acupuncture Regulates the Heart Rate Variability

Weibo Zhang,Guang-Jun Wang,Yu-Ying Tian,Shuyong Jia 사단법인약침학회 2015 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.8 No.2

Acupuncture is widely used in clinical practice. According to traditional acupuncture theory, the Neiguan acupoint (PC6) is one of the most commonly used acupoints and is indicated for treating cardiovascular-related disorders. We present the case of a 27-year-old female who had been diagnosed with ventricular septal defect and had undergone surgery to repair the defect at the age of 11 years. The patient had no obvious symptoms, such as palpitations and difficulty breathing. However, while performing electrocardiography (ECG), we found that she suffered from arrhythmia, and therefore, we treated her by acupuncture at the left PC6. An ECG monitor was used to record data during the entire acupuncture procedure, which was divided into the following three segments: prior to, during, and after acupuncture. Various indices of heart rate variability (HRV) were then determined and analyzed. The results indicate that acupuncture can regulate the HRV effectively; however, more studies are needed to confirm this finding.

Violet Laser Acupuncture—Part 2: Effects on Peripheral Microcirculation

Lu Wang,Tao Huang,Weibo Zhang,Gerhard Litscher 사단법인약침학회 2011 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.4 No.1

Laser Doppler flowmetry for microcirculation monitoring was performed in 10healthy volunteers (mean age ± SD: 24.9 ± 3.3 years; 5 females, 5 males) prior to,during, and after stimulation using a noninvasive violet (405 nm) laser needle at the Dazhui (GV14) acupoint. The results of this controlled study (control point at the shoulder) showed significant (p < 0.05) increases in Flux (product of concentration and velocity of erythrocytes) at a distance of 3 cm from the acupoint. At the same time, no changes were found at the control point. Furthermore, 5 minutes after stimulation the microcirculation still flowed at a higher level than baseline values at the beginning of the investigation. In a single individual it was demonstrated that needle acupuncture enhanced this effect and placebo (deactivated laser) did not have a significant effect. The results suggest that violet laser acupuncture at the acupoint Dazhui can increase vascular effects on microcirculation.

Establishment of the Lunar Phase Morphological Classification for Cervical Spinal Canal

Cui Zhongyi,Wang Hongwei,Sun Yuan,Huang Weibo,Zou Fei,Ma Xiaosheng,Lyu Feizhou,Jiang Jianyuan,Wang Hongli 대한척추외과학회 2024 Asian Spine Journal Vol.18 No.1

Study Design: Retrospective clinical trial.Purpose: To establish a morphological classification of the cervical spinal canal using its parameters.Overview of Literature: Cervical spine computed tomography (CT) data of 200 healthy volunteers in 2 years were analyzed. The morphology of the spinal cord was also analyzed.Methods: The median sagittal diameter and transverse diameter of the spinal canal from C2 to C7 were measured on CT images. The ratio of the median sagittal diameter to the transverse diameter was calculated. Accordingly, the spinal canal shape of each segment was classified into four, and the specific criteria of lunar phase classification were determined through linear discriminant analysis based on the ratio of the median sagittal diameter to the transverse diameter. The inter-rater reliability of the classification was explored using Kappa coefficients. Finally, the morphology of the different segments of the cervical spinal canal in healthy volunteers was revised and compared.Results: According to the ratio of the median sagittal diameter and the transverse diameter of the cervical spinal canal, the lunar phase classification of the cervical bony spinal canal was determined as follows: full-moon >0.65, 0.55< convex-moon ≤0.65, 0.46≤ quarter-moon ≤0.55, and residual-moon <0.46. The Kappa values of C2–C7 were 0.851, 0.958, 0.823, 0.927, 0.793, and 0.946, and the Kappa value of all C2–C7 segments was 0.854 that mainly presented two forms of full-moon (76.5%) and convex-moon (23.0%). A quarter-moon spinal canal was mainly distributed in C3, C4, C5, and C6; a residual-moon spinal canal was mainly distributed in C4 and C5; and the morphological distribution of C4 and C5 were similar (<i>p</i>>0.05). The frequency of the spinal canal of the residual-moon type was the highest, and the full-moon (6.5%) and residual-moon (7.5%) types of C7 were rare.Conclusions: The morphological classification of the cervical spinal canal was established to present anatomical variations. The classification showed good inter-rater reliability.

Effects of repeated tuberculin skin testings on immune responses in experimental monkeys

Min, Fangui,Wang, Jing,Yuan, Wen,Kuang, Huiwen,Zhao, Weibo Korean Society of Animal Sciences and Technology 2014 한국축산학회지 Vol.56 No.8

Though many alternative methods to tuberculin skin testing (TST) have been established and evaluated in recent years, sensitivities and specificities of most methods could not meet the requirements of golden standards. In this study, we sought to identify whether repeated TSTs could affect the immune responses in experimental monkeys. Nine natural tuberculosis (TB) monkeys receiving repeated TSTs biweekly were used to demonstrate the effect on TST responsiveness. Two healthy monkeys were administrated with repeated TSTs to analyze the immune response profiling. Intrapalpebral reactions in TB infections gradually weakened or presented intermittent positive reactions. The leukocyte counts, cytokine responses, and antibody responses to all antigens except Old tuberculin (OT) and MPT64L showed no specific changes for TB in healthy monkeys. Positive antibody responses to OT and MPT64L emerged during the first half experimental period, which may cause by their cross-reactivity with mycobacterial species. Results showed that repeated TSTs had no significant effects on immune responses in healthy monkeys but a progressive reduction in TST responsiveness in TB infections.

Violet Laser AcupuncturedPart 3: Pilot Study of Potential Effects on Temperature Distribution

Gerhard Litscher,Lu Wang,Tao Huang,Weibo Zhang 사단법인약침학회 2011 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.4 No.3

Infrared thermography for temperature distribution monitoring was performed in ten healthy volunteers (M/F, 5/5; mean age SD, 24.9 3.3 years) before, during, and after stimulation by noninvasive violet (405 nm) laser needle at the Dazhui (GV14) acupoint. Significant (p < 0.001) increases of temperature at a region of interest around the acupoint were observed. Furthermore, temperature also increased significantly (p < 0.05)at a so-called “far field” area Zhiyang (GV9). In two persons, however, needle acupuncture and placebo (deactivated laser) did not have the same temperature effects. Violet laser induces changes in skin surface temperature distributions.

Numerical and experimental buckling of segmented spiral pressure hulls

Jian Zhang,Rui Wang,Yongsheng Li,Weibo Wang,Wenwei Wu 대한기계학회 2022 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.36 No.4

To optimally coordinate the operational safety, manoeuvrability, positioning reliability, and space expansibility of deep-sea stations, this study proposed a segmented spiral pressure hull with reference to the geometry of worm snails. The design addresses the disadvantages of existing ring-stiffened cylinder, segmented sphere, and circular toroid structures. This study numerically and experimentally examined the buckling performance of segmented spiral pressure hulls. The numerical, experimental, and analytical data exhibited satisfactory agreement. The proposed pressure hulls exhibited a favourable space expansibility and buckled in a nonlinear manner. The buckling loads varied slightly after the threshold number of segments. All the post buckling modes were local dents. The current findings may serve as a reference for the research and development of original deep-sea stations.