5 results on '"Cai Mei Zheng"'
Search Results
2. Perspective Adjunctive Therapies for COVID-19: Beyond Antiviral Therapy
- Author
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Wen Chih Liu, Chia-Chao Wu, Jing Quan Zheng, You Chen Chao, Cai Mei Zheng, Chien Lin Lu, Yi Chou Hou, Ping Ho, and Kuo Cheng Lu
- Subjects
medicine.medical_specialty ,vitamins and minerals ,melatonin ,Review ,Disease ,Asymptomatic ,statins ,Immunomodulation ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Immune system ,Pharmacotherapy ,indomethacin ,Immunity ,Intensive care ,Pandemic ,Humans ,Medicine ,Infection control ,Molecular Targeted Therapy ,Intensive care medicine ,Plant Extracts ,SARS-CoV-2 ,business.industry ,traditional medicines ,COVID-19 ,Vitamins ,General Medicine ,COVID-19 Drug Treatment ,Zinc ,Host-Pathogen Interactions ,Drug Therapy, Combination ,030211 gastroenterology & hepatology ,Medicine, Traditional ,medicine.symptom ,business ,Phytotherapy - Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is the largest health crisis ever faced worldwide. It has resulted in great health and economic costs because no effective treatment is currently available. Since infected persons vary in presentation from healthy asymptomatic mild symptoms to those who need intensive care support and eventually succumb to the disease, this illness is considered to depend primarily on individual immunity. Demographic distribution and disease severity in several regions of the world vary; therefore, it is believed that natural inherent immunity provided through dietary sources and traditional medicines could play an important role in infection prevention and disease progression. People can boost their immunity to prevent them from infection after COVID-19 exposure and can reduce their inflammatory reactions to protect their organ deterioration in case suffering from the disease. Some drugs with in-situ immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory activity are also identified as adjunctive therapy in the COVID-19 era. This review discusses the importance of COVID-19 interactions with immune cells and inflammatory cells; and further emphasizes the possible pathways related with traditional herbs, medications and nutritional products. We believe that such pathophysiological pathway approach treatment is rational and important for future development of new therapeutic agents for prevention or cure of COVID-19 infection.
- Published
- 2021
3. Hypoalbuminemia differently affects the serum bone turnover markers in hemodialysis patients
- Author
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Jia Fwu Shyu, Mai Szu Wu, Tian Jong Chang, Yuh Feng Lin, Chia-Chao Wu, Cai Mei Zheng, Chien Lin Lu, Yi Chou Hou, Kuo Cheng Lu, Remy Chen, and Yung Ho Hsu
- Subjects
Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,hemodialysis patients ,Serum Albumin Measurement ,Serum albumin ,Parathyroid hormone ,Gastroenterology ,Bone remodeling ,Phosphates ,renal osteodystrophy ,Renal Dialysis ,Internal medicine ,medicine ,Humans ,Renal osteodystrophy ,Hypoalbuminemia ,Serum Albumin ,Aged ,Aged, 80 and over ,Chronic Kidney Disease-Mineral and Bone Disorder ,Inflammation ,biology ,business.industry ,Interleukin-6 ,Hyperparathyroidism ,Albumin ,hypoalbuminemia ,General Medicine ,Middle Aged ,medicine.disease ,Fibroblast Growth Factors ,Fibroblast Growth Factor-23 ,Parathyroid Hormone ,biology.protein ,Kidney Failure, Chronic ,Female ,Bone Remodeling ,business ,bone turnover markers ,hormones, hormone substitutes, and hormone antagonists ,Biomarkers ,Kidney disease ,Research Paper - Abstract
Renal osteodystrophy (ROD) represents bone disorders related to chronic kidney disease (CKD) and several bone biomarkers are used clinically to predict ROD in CKD and hemodialysis (HD) patients. Serum albumin associates with inflammation other than nutritional status in these patients. Chronic inflammation is proved to relate with bone loss, however, the influence of hypoalbuminemia on bone biomarkers is still unclear. In this study, we evaluated the pattern of bone biomarker changes and further studied the influence of hypoalbuminemia on these biomarkers. A total of 300 maintenance HD patients were evaluated and 223 HD patients were included in the study. The patients were grouped according to serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels (PTH ≤150 pg/mL, PTH 150-300 pg/mL, PTH 300-600 pg/mL and PTH >600 pg/mL). Bone biomarkers and inflammatory markers were measured and their relation with PTH levels was determined. Significantly increased interleukin-6 (IL-6) and lower albumin levels were noted among PTH>600 pg/mL group. Bone turnover markers were significantly higher in PTH >600 pg/mL group (p< 0.05). Hypoalbuminemia significantly increased the fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23) and procollagen type 1N-terminal propeptide (P1NP) in PTH ≤150 pg/mL, PTH 150-300 pg/mL, PTH 300-600 pg/mL groups, whereas no such relation was noted among PTH> 600 ng/dL group. In conclusion, hypoalbuminemia represents a chronic inflammation which differently relates to bone turnover markers according to serum PTH levels in SHPT patients. Thus, serum albumin measurement should be considered in determining bone disorders among these patients.
- Published
- 2019
4. Endothelial Progenitor Cells Predict Long-Term Mortality in Hemodialysis Patients
- Author
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Chia-Chao Wu, Wen Chih Liu, Cai Mei Zheng, Jyh Gang Leu, Jia Fwu Shyu, Yuh Feng Lin, Chien Lin Lu, and Kuo Cheng Lu
- Subjects
Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,medicine.medical_treatment ,030232 urology & nephrology ,CD34 ,Kaplan-Meier Estimate ,030204 cardiovascular system & hematology ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Renal Dialysis ,Diabetes mellitus ,Internal medicine ,medicine ,Humans ,Progenitor cell ,Aged ,Endothelial Progenitor Cells ,Aged, 80 and over ,hemodialysis ,business.industry ,Critical event ,General Medicine ,Middle Aged ,medicine.disease ,mortality ,Surgery ,Treatment Outcome ,embryonic structures ,cardiovascular system ,Cardiology ,Biomarker (medicine) ,Female ,Long term mortality ,Hemodialysis ,Risk of death ,business ,Biomarkers ,Research Paper ,Follow-Up Studies ,circulatory and respiratory physiology - Abstract
Background: The endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) dysfunction is a critical event in the initiation of atherosclerotic plaque development and the level of circulating EPCs can be considered a biomarker of cardiovascular events. The level and functional change in EPCs has been investigated in hemodialysis patients, but the effect of absolute number of EPCs on risk of death has not yet been explored. We hypothesized that the number of EPCs predicted death from cardiovascular and all-cause mortality in hemodialysis patients. Methods: We evaluate the association between endothelial progenitor cells and clinical outcome in 154 patients on maintenance hemodialysis. The blood sample was drawn at the time of patient enrollment and EPCs were identified by flow cytometry using triple staining for CD34/CD133/KDR. Results: The median duration of follow-up was 4.19 years. There were 79 (51.3%) deaths during the follow-up period, 41 of whom died due to a confirmed cardiovascular cause. The cumulative survival was greater in the high-EPC group than the low-EPC group for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Decreased EPCs levels were associated with a significant increase in the risk of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality after adjusting for age, gender, current smokers, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. Conclusions: The level of circulating EPCs independently predicts the clinical outcome in patients on maintenance hemodialysis. Thus, the EPCs levels may be a useful predictive tool for evaluating the risk of death in maintenance hemodialysis patients.
- Published
- 2016
5. Perspective Adjunctive Therapies for COVID-19: Beyond Antiviral Therapy.
- Author
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Ping Ho, Jing-Quan Zheng, Chia-Chao Wu, Yi-Chou Hou, Wen-Chih Liu, Chien-Lin Lu, Cai-Mei Zheng, Kuo-Cheng Lu, and You-Chen Chao
- Published
- 2021
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