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Worldwide, stroke is the leading cause of mortality and disability, with hypertension being an independent risk factor for a secondary stroke. Acupuncture for the treatment of hypertension gains more attention in alternative and complementary medicine, but the results are inconsistent. Few studies regarding the secondary prevention of stroke by managing hypertension with acupuncture have been carried out as there are some problems regarding the antihypertensive drug status in the secondary prevention of stroke. Still, the potential of acupuncture in regulating the blood pressure for secondary stroke prevention deserves our focus. This review is based on papers recorded in the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases, from their inception until March 28, 2017, and retrieved with the following search terms: hypertension and acupuncture, limited in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), stress-induced (or cold-induced) hypertensive or pre-hypertensive models. We find that, in these hypertensive animals, acupuncture could mainly influence factors related to the nervous system, oxidative stress, the endocrine system, cardiovascular function, and hemorheology, which are closely associated with the stroke outcome. This trend may give us a hint that acupuncture might well participate in the secondary prevention of stroke through these pathways when used in the management of hypertension.

Background Stroke is the prime cause of morbidity and mortality in the general population, and hypertension will increase the recurrence and mortality of stroke. We report a protocol of a pragmatic randomized controlled trial (RCT) using blood pressure (BP)-lowering acupuncture add-on treatment to treat patients with hypertension and stroke. Methods This is a large-scale, multicenter, subject-, assessor- and analyst-blinded, pragmatic RCT. A total of 480 patients with hypertension and ischemic stroke will be randomly assigned to two groups: an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group will receive “HuoXueSanFeng” acupuncture combined with one antihypertensive medication in addition to routine ischemic stroke treatment. The control group will only receive one antihypertensive medication and basic treatments for ischemic stroke. HuoXueSanFeng acupuncture will be given for six sessions weekly for the first 6 weeks and three times weekly for the next 6 weeks. A 9-month follow-up will, thereafter, be conducted. Antihypertensive medication will be adjusted based on BP levels. The primary outcome will be the recurrence of stroke. The secondary outcomes including 24-h ambulatory BP, the TCM syndrome score, the Short Form 36-item Health Survey (SF-36), the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), as well as the Barthel Index (BI) scale will be assessed at baseline, 6 weeks and 12 weeks post initiating treatments; cardiac ultrasound, carotid artery ultrasound, transcranial Doppler, and lower extremity ultrasound will be evaluated at baseline and 12 weeks after treatment. The safety of acupuncture will also be assessed. Discussion We aim to determine the clinical effects of controlling BP for secondary prevention of stroke with acupuncture add-on treatment. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT02967484. Registered on 13 February 2017; last updated on 27 June 2017. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13063-017-2171-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

To increase the permeation and retention of isopsoralen in skin, and improve its bioavailability.Isopsoralen loaded nanostructure liquid carrier (IPRN-NLC) was prepared by high pressure homogenization andoptimized by orthogonal experiment with the encapsulation efficiency, drug loading and average particle size as the evaluation indexes. The in vitro transdermal permeation of IPRN-NLC was evaluated by Franze diffusion cells.The results showed that solid-liquid lipid ratio of optimum IPRN-NLC formulation was 7∶3,drug-lipid ratio of 1∶30, 1% surfactant. Under these conditions, IPRN-NLC had an average encapsulation of （90.25±0.73）%,drug loading of （1.56±0.27）% and an average particle size of (305±1.57) nm.The in vitro transdermal permeation results showed that IPRN-NLC could increase the amount of IPRN permeated though skin, with 3 times of the epidermal retention as compared with IPRN solution. From the results we can know that the IPRN-NLC prepared by high pressure homogenization can improve the permeation andaccumulation of IPRN in the skin, with wide application prospects in the field of transdermal administration.

To prepare tanshinone ⅡA loaded nanostructured lipid carrier (Tan ⅡA-NLC), and study its in vitro transdermal permeation characteristics. The Tan ⅡA-NLC was prepared by high pressure homogenization technology and optimized by Box-Behnken design-response surface method, and it was characterized in terms of morphology, particle size, zeta potention, et al. The transdermal permeation of Tan ⅡA-NLC was evaluated by using Franz diffusion cells. The results showed that, the optimal formulation was as follows: drug/lipid materials ratio 88, GMS/MCT ratio 2, emulsifier concentration 1%, average particle size (182±14) nm, polydispersity index PDI (0.190 6±0.024 5), zeta potential (－27.8± 5.4) mV, encapsulation efficiency EE (86.44%±9.26%) and drug loading DL (0.98%±0.18%), respectively. The in vitro transdermal permeation results showed that as compared with Tan ⅡA solution, Tan ⅡA-NLC had lower transdermal permeation amount after applying drug for 24 h, but its retention in the epidermis was 3.18 times that of solution. These results indicated that the prepared Tan ⅡA-NLC could effectively increase the regention of Tan ⅡA in the epidermis, and had a broad application prospect.

In this study, we examined possible impacts of construction of ∼50,000 dams throughout the Yangtze River watershed on the soil microbial biomass (SMB) and bacterial community structure in Dongting Lake which is the second largest fresh lake in China. Soil samples were collected from 16 study sites where the surface soil was deposited in early stage (before 1970s) or recently years. Soil properties, SMB and bacterial community structure were measured. Relationship between soil properties and bacterial community compositions was simultaneously evaluated by redundancy analysis (RDA). The results indicated that there were significant differences in soil texture and other soil properties between the early sedimentary soil samples and the recently sedimentary soil samples. As a representative for SMB, microbial biomass carbon (MBC) had a significant increase from 686 to 1324 μg C/g soil. Bacterial community structure had an obvious change, and Shannon–Weiner diversity index had a significant increase from 2.39 to 2.92. Although causes for these changes could be multiple, these 50,000 dams would be the root causes as they decreased the grain-sizes of sediment, which affected soil properties, discharged into Dongting Lake.

In order to build a platform for overhaul and simulation training of CCIS (Command Control Information System), the simulation model of the hydraulic supercharger was established. By the model the simulator of hydraulic supercharger was designed and developed based on virtual instrument technology and SCM (single chip microcomputer) technology, the software of the simulator which was designed by the LabWindows/CVI provided a virtual interface and the hardware of the simulator which was developed with the SCM system gave the correct signal. As a result, when the simulator of hydraulic supercharger was connected to the CCIS, the simulation result was realized to be consistent with the real hydraulic supercharger.

The aim of this study was to compare the relative contribution of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) to nitrification during agricultural waste composting. The AOA and AOB amoA gene abundance and composition were determined by quantitative PCR and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), respectively. The results showed that the archaeal amoA gene was abundant throughout the composting process, while the bacterial amoA gene abundance decreased to undetectable level during the thermophilic and cooling stages. DGGE showed more diverse archaeal amoA gene composition when the potential ammonia oxidation (PAO) rate reached peak values. A significant positive relationship was observed between the PAO rate and the archaeal amoA gene abundance (R²=0.554; P

The abundance variation of the functional genes (nirK, nirS and nosZ) involved in denitrification was investigated using the real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) at different locations (top, center and bottom) of the compost pile during the agricultural waste composting. The changes in pile temperature, pH, moisture content, soluble NH4(+) -N, NO3(-) -N and water soluble carbon (WSC) were measured. The results showed that the abundance of those genes varied among the samples collected in different zones. Redundancy analysis (RDA) was applied to explore the correlations between the abundance of nirK, nirS and nosZ and the composting physic-chemical parameters. The results suggested that water soluble carbon (WSC), pile temperature and nitrate had the most significant impacts on the abundance of the three genes. The t-value biplots for each environmental variable indicated that nirK was positively related with temperature and pH (P0.05), nirS was positively related with temperature (P0.05), and nosZ was positively related with NH4(+) -N while negatively with WSC.

Mixed culture of microorganisms has been widely used for the research of lignocellulose transformation and degradation, but the results of the mixed culture are largely affected by the interactions of different lignocellulolytic microorganisms. At present, the researches on these interactions are mainly based on plate mixed culture assay. For this assay, two types of plate were used, namely, basic medium plate and improved medium plate. The basic medium plate is mainly used for the study of colony morphology, mycelia color, exocellular volatile organic compounds, and exocellular enzyme activity, whereas the improved medium plate is used for comparative study, with the carbon sources replaced by natural lignocelloses. This paper summarized the present research status and advancement about the plate mixed culture of lignocellulolytic microorganisms, and put forward a prospect about the focuses of future research in this field.

The dynamic succession of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) community during the agricultural waste composting was investigated using the polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). The changes of pile temperature, pH, moisture content, soluble NH4(+) -N and NO3(-)-N were measured. DGGE results showed that the Shannon-Weaver index changed from 2.58 to 2.02 during the composting process, which reflected the diversity trends downward overall. Nitrosospira and Nitrosomonas were dominant species. Nitrosomonas eutropha,which was found throughout the whole composting process, was identified as a kind of well-tolerated species. Redundancy analysis (RDA) was applied to explore the correlation between the dynamic succession of AOB community and composting physic-chemical parameters. Compared with the slight change referring to its structure during the earlier phase of thermophilic period (4-9 d), the AOB community experienced a more significant change during the later phase of thermophilic period (9-12 d) as well as the following temperature falling phase (12-25 d). Significant relationships have been found between pile temperature, soluble NH4(+) -N (P0.01) and NO3(-)-N (P0.05) with the dynamic succession of AOB community, which suggested those three parameters were likely to influence, or be influenced by AOB during the agricultural waste composting.

To discuss the operative indications and peri-operational management of single lung transplantation (SLT) and heart-lung transplantation (HLT) for patients suffering from Eisenmenger's syndrome (ES).From September.2002 to March.2006, four ES patients, 1 males and 3 females, aged 16 approximately 19, 2 with atrial septal defect and 2 with ventricular septal defect, underwent single right lung transplantation, and one patients, male, aged 43, who suffered heart failure secondary to an interventional occlusion for atrial septal defect underwent cardiac repair and HLT.Two patients, including the patient who received HLT and one, female, aged 15, who received SHT died of he died primary graft dysfunction on the 23rd day and 20th day post-operationally respectively. While the other 3 recipients kept a normal life for 5, 8, and 22 months respectively after operation with apparently decreased pulmonary artery pressure and improved cardiac-pulmonary functions.Lung transplantation companies with cardiac repair is effective in the therapy of ES. Donor-recipient matching in size, proper removal and protection of the donor lung, and appropriate postoperational management are the key procedures for those patients to survive.

To evaluate monitoring and cares in the intensive care unit (ICU) after lung transplantation.From September 2002 to April 2005, there were 18 cases of lung transplant recipients, who had suffered from emphysema (9 cases), pulmonary fibrosis (5 cases), silicosis (1 cases), bronchiectasis (1 case), pulmonary vascular leiomyoma (1 case), ventricular septal defect and Eisenmenger's syndrome (1 case), respectively. Operative procedures included 9 cases with left lung transplantation, 5 right lung transplantation, 1 case right single lung transplantation and ventricular septal defect repair, and 3 cases bilateral lung transplantations. All the patients received mechanical ventilation, immunosuppressive agents, antibacterial prophylaxis, and prevention of reperfusion injury in the ICU after operation. Preoperatively, echocardiography (ECHO), artery blood gas,and oxygenation index (partial pressure of oxygen in artery/fraction of inspired oxygen, PaO(2)/FiO(2)) were observed.The average weaning time from the ventilator was (7.39+/-4.89) days. The average ICU stay time was (9.72+/-8.32) days. The systolic pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa, syst) was monitored with Swan-Ganz catheterization 1 week post transplant, and it was found to have decreased significantly from (48.94+/-14.45) mm Hg (1 mm Hg=0.133 kPa) to (39.59+/-7.45) mm Hg (P0.05). At the same time, oxygenation index was improved from (263.89+/-82.09) mm Hg to (345.56+/-92.18) mm Hg (P0.05), partial pressure of carbon dioxide in artery (PaCO(2)) was decreased from (63.29+/-22.56) mm Hg to (38.37+/-9.19) mm Hg (P0.05). In hospital mortality (HM) was 16.7% (3/18 cases), and an early death was due to severe infection on the 30 th postoperative day in 1 patient and acute rejection on the 15 th postoperative day in another patient, and the other patient died due to pulmonary vein embolism on the 36 th day. Fifteen patients recovered quickly and discharged from the hospital. One patient was followed up for 32 months.Lung transplantation remains the only hope for many patients with end stage pulmonary disease. It is important that the lung transplant team possesses a working knowledge of the treatment of common complications, the time of these complications mostly likely to occur and how best to treat them when they do arise, to ensure long-term survival and success.

To evaluate operative technique, patient selection and perioperative management of single-lung transplantation for a patients with end-stage emphysema.A 56-year-old patient with end-stage emphysema underwent left-lung transplantation on September 28, 2002. The surgical technique used was similar to that mentioned in the literature. The donor lung was perfused by LPD solution with a cold ischemic time of 260 minutes. Cardiopulmonary bypass was not performed.The patient weaned from a ventilator at the 93th hour after operation. Immunosuppressants included cyclosporine, mycophenolate mofetil and corticosteroid. Acute rejection occurred on the ninth day after operation and was cured by bolus methylprednisolone given intravenously. Lung function was improved significantly and the patient was discharged from the hospital on the 47th day after operation.Single-lung transplantation for patients with end-stage emphysema is effective for long-term improvement of pulmonary function.

Background High-mobility group protein box1 (HMGB1) is a pivotal factor in the development and progression of many types of tumor. Its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and especially its correlation with intratumoral and peritumoral macrophage infiltration, remains obscure. We analyzed the potential roles and prognostic value of HMGB1 and explored the correlation between HMGB1 and macrophage infiltration in HCC using clinical samples. Methods We reviewed clinicopathological and follow-up data on a cohort of 149 patients with HCC complicated with Hepatitis B-related cirrhosis. We measured the expression of HMGB1 and CD68 in tumoral and peritumoral liver tissues after curative resection and assessed the impacts of the tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) count and HMGB1 expression on clinicopathologic characteristics, overall survival (OS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS). Results Ninety-four of the patients had elevated tumoral HMGB1 expression and 59 of the patients had elevated peritumoral HMGB1 expression, compared to only 4 patients with elevated peritumoral HMGB1 expression in 36 pateints with Hepatitis B virus (HBV)-negative HCC without liver cirrhosis (p