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Context: Obesity, one of the major public health problems worldwide, has attracted increasing attention. Ginsenoside Rb1 is the most abundant active component of Panax ginseng C.A.Mey (Araliaceae) and is reported to have beneficial effects on obesity and diabetes. However, the mechanisms by which Rb1 regulates obesity remain to be explored. Objective: This paper intends to further explore the mechanism of Rb1 in regulating obesity. Materials and methods: The C57BL/6 obese mice were divided into two groups: the control (CTR) and Rb1. The CTR group [intraperitoneally (ip) administered with saline] and the Rb1 group (ip administered with Rb1, 40mg/kg/d) were treated daily for four weeks. In vitro, Rb1 (0, 10, 20, 40 lM) was added to differentiated C2C12 cells and Rb1 (0, 20, 40 lM) was added to 3T3-L1 cells. After 24 h, total RNA and protein from C2C12 cells and 3T3-L1 cells were used to detect myostatin (MSTN) and fibronectin type III domain-containing 5 (FNDC5) expression. Results: Rb1 reduced the body weight and adipocyte size. Improved glucose tolerance and increased basic metabolic activity were also found in Rb1 treated mice. MSTN was downregulated in differentiated C2C12 cells, 3T3-L1 cells and adipose tissues upon Rb1 treatment. FNDC5 was increased after Rb1 treatment. However, MSTN overexpression attenuated Rb1-mediated decrease accumulation of lipid droplets in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Discussion & Conclusions: Rb1 may ameliorate obesity in part through the MSTN/FNDC5 signalling pathway. Our results showed that Rb1 can be used as an effective drug in the treatment of human obesity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify possible risk factors associated with post-endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) pancreatitis (PEP) in biliary stricture (BS), common bile duct stone (CBDS) and unselected patients. Materials and methods: Consecutive ERCP patients with native papilla from January 2010 to December 2014 in Xijing Hospital were eligible. Patient-related and procedure-related parameters were collected retrospectively. The primary outcome was PEP. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression were used for data analysis. Results: Totally 3133 unselected patients were included. 695 (22.2%) had BS alone and 1893 (60.4%) had CBDS alone. PEP incidence was higher in BS group compared with CBDS group (6.8% vs. 3.8%, p = .001). Among patient-related factors, duodenal stenosis (OR, 2.74; 95%CI, 1.14-6.59) and hilar stricture (OR, 2.59; 95%CI, 1.41-4.77) were found to be independently associated with PEP in BS group. While female gender (OR, 2.11; 95%CI, 1.20-3.73) and normal total bilirubin (OR, 1.93; 95%CI, 1.13-3.32) were related to PEP in CBDS group. Among procedure-related factors, cannulation time ≥ 5 min (OR, 2.38; 95%CI, 1.06-5.33) and precut (OR, 3.20; 95%CI, 1.35-7.59) was respectively the only independent risk factor for PEP in BS and CBDS group. Conclusions: Patients with BS and CBDS had different patterns of patient-related and procedure-related risk factors for PEP. The prophylaxis of PEP may need to be individualized based on different indications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]