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To investigate the antipyretic effect of active components of Mahuang Decoction in febrile rats, and explore its correlation with pharmacokinetics at different time points. The feverished rat models were induced by dry yeast, and intragastrically administered with the effective components of Mahuang Decoction with different orthogonal compatibility ratios. At different time points after administration, body temperature was measured; blood was taken from orbital vena plexus, and the contents of interleukin-6(IL-6), interleukin-1β(IL-1β), and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) in rat serum were determined with the kits. Combined with the pharmacokinetic data of the seven effective components in Mahuang Decoction, PK-PD(pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics) data fitting was conducted by using the analysis method of non-atrioventricular model, and then the pharmacodynamic parameters were calculated to determine the optimal binding model. The results showed that the effective components of Mahuang Decoction inhibited the release of heat-causing factors IL-6, IL-1β and TNF-α, and reduced the increase of body temperature. There was a significant lag between drug effect and blood drug concentration, which was consistent with Sigmoid-E_(max) model. The model fitting value showed a good correlation with mea-sured data, which could be used to evaluate and predict the correlation between PK and PD in Mahuang Decoction, and further applied to the multiple-indicator and multiple-effect study of PK-PD in other compound traditional Chinese medicines.

While the Three George Dam might help in utilizing hydraulic power, historic weather data showed that the Three George Dam has a serious impact on the relative humidity for cities in the reservoir area. We conclude that the cooling energy consumption in Chongqing may have increased about 31 per cent, provided that the Three George Dam had not been constructed.

Construction workers are vulnerable to heat stress, and a number of heat-related injuries and deaths have been reported. This study thus introduces a phase change material (PCM) based cooling garment designed for construction workers. The PCM cooling garment will be effective in reducing the workers body temperature and can extend their maximum tolerable time on sites.

Construction dust may lead to Silicosis, a disabling respiratory disease which severely threatens the life of construction workers. Therefore, it is important to predict and determine the safety area of dust generated by the construction process and the corresponding protective measures that must be adopted. In this paper, based on real site data, we modelled and simulated the pneumatic drill holes in rock drilling processes to analyze the dust distribution on construction sites. Our simulation results show that the dangerous distance from the pneumatic drill hole is 3.5m. Within the dangerous distance, the dust concentration ranged from 0.039 mg/m3to30mg/m3, and decreased as distance increases. Within the dangerous distance, dust alleviation technologies are strongly recommended and appropriate protective measures must be adopted by construction workers.

Based on the analysis of the current railway track parameters measurement system, a digital system based on embedded processor is designed. The paper introduces the principle of the system , structure and methods. The system is still based on the deviation detection principle of three point method, using high brightness light source as a measurement point, in combination with linear CCD imaging features, completed the orbit measurement system of the digital processing, and through the network to complete the communication with PC. The photoelectric measuring system is realized in trajectory parameters of high accuracy and real time measurement; Also for the future development of tamping on railway cars plays a positive role.

Mechanical lifting garage is designed to achieve a variety of vehicles parked automatically and scientific storage storage facilities. Because the traditional design need one drives for each plate, it waste energy and increase the cost. This paper introduces the course of development of the lifting garage, status and various types of three-dimensional garage features. Then it takes two floors with five parking spaces lifting garage as an example, describing the working principle, the mechanical analysis, the main connection point of framework, and the driveline design. The design innovative use "one drive for multi-plate", reasonable design to achieve the lifting of the garage and pan. In addition, in order to ensure the safety of vehicles and personnel of the design also incorporates the gantry fall protection and other safety devices.

This paper presents an experimental investigation on flexural performance of carbon fiber reinforced bonding composite circular tubes with different length of reinforcing pieces. Four kinds of composites bonded tubes with different reinforcing pieces length 20mm, 30mm, 40mm and 50mm were carried out. The flexural strength and modulus of bonged composite samples tested were investigated. The experiment result indicates that the length of reinforcing pieces has some effects on the flexural performance of bonding composite circle tubes. The average flexural strengths of samples reinforced 20mm, reinforced 30mm, reinforced 40mm and reinforced 50mm are 41%, 45%, 49% and 51% of average flexural strength of boned samples without bonding, respectively. The bonding strength will improve when the length of reinforcing pieces increases. The modulus does not change when reinforcing length was greater or equal than 30mm. The main typical failure modes of tested specimens are adhesive cohesive failure and interlamination failure between prepreg and adhesive film.

This paper attempts to explore the influence to flexural performance of carbon fiber epoxy matrix composite circular tubes which were bonded in four different bonding Length with adhesive. Under the different bonding length, i.e. 20, 25, 35 and 40mm, the flexural performance of carbon fiber epoxy matrix composite circular tubes which were bonded were tested. It is shown that the bonding length affect the flexural properties of composite tubes. The flexural strength and elastic modulus of specimens CFRL50 increase about 18.11% and 36.95% respectively, compared to specimens CFRL20. The flexural properties of bonding composite tubes increased with the increasing length of reinforced pieces L2. Embedded bonding technology can provide a good bonding performance for composite circle tubes.

This research paper presents an experimental investigation on the compression and compressive resilience properties of warp-knitted spacer fabric composites with different resin content and different kinds of resin. By means of hand roller coating technology, four kinds of warp-knitted spacer fabric composites were made. The experiments were tested according to GB/T1453-2005 and ISO3386/2:1984. It is shown that the resin content and resin type seriously affect the compression and compressive resilience properties of warp-knitted spacer fabric composite. The data indicated that when the warp-knitted spacer fabric composite coated with the same kind of resin, with increasing resin content the elastic modulus added and the compressive resilience decreased. Having the same resin content, the compression properties of pacer fabric composite increase with the increase of flexural strength of resin; while the compressive resilience decrease.

In order to investigate the effect of different reinforcement structure on the dynamic characteristics of sandwich structure composite plates used for manufacturing the high speed reciprocating motion composite components, four kinds of paulownia wood sandwich composite test specimens with dimensions of 350×83.5×9.5mm was designed and made by hand lay-up performing and press molding technology. The woven and 2D braiding fabric prepreg were both selected as top face and inner face materials , respectively, and the carbon fiber woven fabric prepreg was chosen as inner part materials. According to the impulse response modal test method, a modal test system was established. It was found that this kind of sandwich structure composite plate has bigger natural frequency value, it’s minimum natural frequency was about 609.77Hz that could meet the requirement for high speed reciprocating motion parts. The dynamic test results shown that the natural frequency of F2BAF-IUC-CPW sample is higher t about 11.17% at least, selecting 2D integral braiding pipe fabric as top face and inner face reinforced materials could effectively improve the dynamic properties of sandwich composite rectangular plates. The modal experiments indicated that the modal shapes of sandwich composite plate specimen with four kind reinforcement structures were identical, it’s 1st modal shape, 2nd modal shape and 3rd modal shape presented torsional vibration shape, flexural vibration shape and torsional flexural vibration shape, separately, the modal shapes of sandwich composite plate specimen were not obviously affected by reinforcement structure.

A innovative structure of sandwich composite rectangular plate with dimensions of 350 ×83.5×9.5mm was designed, it was made of unidirectional prepreg of carbon fibre and woven fabric prepreg of carbon fiber as face materials and paulownia as core material by hand lay-up performing and press molding technology for investigating the dynamic performance such as natural frequency and modal shapes. Based on testing the in-plane and out-plane mechanical properties of composite samples reinforced by unidirectional carbon fibre and carbon fiber woven fabric, a ANSYS FEA dynamic modeling was developed. According to the impulse response modal test method, a modal test system was established. The natural frequency test results showed that the minimum natural frequency of sandwich composite rectangular plate is about 616.45Hz which is higher about 27.5% than that of aluminum rectangular plate reinforced by carbon. The modal experiment indicated that the 1st modal shape, 2nd modal shape, 3rd modal shape and 4th modal shape of the sandwich composite rectangular plate were torsional vibration, flexural vibration shape, torsional flexural vibration and double-flexural vibration separately. It was found the calculating precision of FEA dynamic predication was very high, the dynamic predicating results by FEA could provide fundamental data to the optimal design high speed reciprocating sandwich composite rectangular parts.

Based on the analysis of the motion of fiber band in compact field, a mathematic model is proposed in this article. The factors affecting the additional twists and final twists of the compact spun yarn, such as diameter of the fiber band in the compact field, tilting angle of suction slot in profile tube and spinning speed, were discussed in detail. The validity of the model was validated by experiments.

This paper presents an experimental investigation on the failure modes of glass fiber reinforced 2D woven fabric with ladder splicing laminate composites. On the basis of [0/0/+45/90/-45/90]s ply sequence, six kinds of laminated performs with different splicing interval lengths which were 4mm, 8mm, 12mm respectively and two different splicing shape which were ladder splicing and double vertical line splicing, and a kind of laminated perform with continuous laminates of 2D glass fiber woven fabric were made. By means of RTM molding technology, the technological parameters of RTM processing were designed as follows: injection temperature was 25°C, injection duration time was 180min and injection pressure was 0.4MPa, the epoxy resin based 2D glass fiber woven fabric RTM laminated specimen were prepared. According to the GB/T 1447-2005 and GB/T 1449-2005standard test method, the failure modes of 2D glass fiber woven fabric laminated RTM specimen were tested. Results show that the failure modes of laminate composites manifest as rapid damage in the form of line inlay mode and wedge shape mode at 4mm interval length condition, and accumulating failure in the form of inlay layer slippage - fiber pulled out mode and fiber fracture - splicing layer deboning mode at 12mm interval length. Otherwise, all fracture position of splicing laminates occurs at the site of splicing line because of the concentration of tensile stress.

In this paper, the design and manufacture technology of three dimensional(3D) integrated braided composite tube with flange are researched, including: braiding technology of 3D braided preform of tube with flange, the determination of process parameters of resin transfer molding(RTM) for 3D braided composite tube with flange, and the design of mould for consolidation of composite tube with flange. The fiber volume fraction of this component is calculated. The quality of composite tube with flange is good analyzed by ultrasonic A-scan. The maximum compressive force borne by composite tube flange is 56.65 kN, which has met the need of usage of 38 kN. The research result will provide a good way for designing and manufacturing high performance 3D integrated braided composite components with irregular shape.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the tensile property of laminated epoxy resin composites reinforced by carbon fiber plain woven fabric with different heating period of time at relatively high temperature. For this purpose, the tensile tests of laminated resin composites are carried out at 150°C and 180°C with 15 minutes, 10 hours and 30 hours heating period of time, respectively. The reasons for the variations of tensile property of these composites with different heating period of time at 150°C and 180°C are analyzed. At 150°C and 180 °C，with heating period of time increasing the tensile strength of samples keep the same level. However at 180 °C the average tensile strength of samples is decreased by 14.95% compared with that at 150°C and the variation coefficient (CV) of tensile strengths at 180°C is much more than that at 150°C. These show that the tensile strength of resin laminated composites is sensitive at high temperature, although the tensile strength of resin laminated composites keeps the same level at same temperature with different heating period of time. The reason of the tensile strength of resin laminated composites decreased at high temperature is that resin has been damaged，which losing the adhesion of fiber and resin, so that these make resin and fiber can not bear the tensile load together. The research results will provide a basic reference for the application of plain woven fabric reinforced laminated resin composites with long using period of time at high temperature.

Nanocomposites based on epoxy which were reinforced by different nanoparticles were fabricated. Five types of nanoparticles (corresponding to multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), nano-Al2O3, nano-TiO2 and nano-SiO2) were chosen and the weight content of the nanoparticles was 2wt.%. Impact, flexural and thermal-mechanical properties of the nanocomposites were investigated. Compared with neat epoxy, impact strength of systems which were reinforced by MWNTs and nano-TiO2 was increased by 60%. Concerned with the flexural properties, there was also an increase of about 10%~50% with the addition of the some nanoparticles such as MWNTs, nano-TiO2 and nano-SiO2. The heat resistance of the EP was not decreased by adding nanoparticles and the thermal properties of the systems were even improved with the addition of MWNTs.

The tensile tests of 3-dimension and 5-direction braided/epoxy resin composites were carried out at 150°C and 180°C with 15 minutes, 10 hours and 30 hours heating period of time, respectively. The reasons for the variations of tensile property of these composites with different heating period of time at 150°C and 180°C were analyzed. At 150°C and 180 °C，with heating period of time increasing the tensile strength of samples keeps the same level. the average tensile strength of samples at 180 °C is decreased only 5.0% compared with that at 150°C. The variation coefficient (CV) of tensile strengths at 180°C is also close to that at 150°C. These show that the tensile strength of 3-dimension and 5-direction braided/resin composites has no great change under 180 °C. However the resin in samples tested at 180°C is damaged more seriously than that at 150°C. The reason of damaged resin no great effect on tensile strength is that at high temperature, 3-dimension and 5-direction braided reinforcement still keeps an integrated structure, which can recuperate the loss of tensile strength made by resin damage. So the structure of reinforcement plays an important role at the tensile property of 3-dimension and 5-direction braided/resin composites at high temperature. The results derived from this paper will provide a useful reference for the application of 3-dimension and 5-direction braided/epoxy resin composites at high temperature and over a relatively long period of time.

This research paper presents an experimental investigation on the tensile strength loss rate of glass fiber reinforced 2D woven fabric with ladder splicing laminate composites. On the basis of three kinds of ply sequence, two series of laminates with different plies numbers were prepared through RTM molding technology, including ladder splicing(LS) laminates and continuous laminates (CL). And the RTM technological parameters of RTM processing were designed as follows: injection temperature was room temperature, injection duration time was 180min and injection pressure was 0.5MPa, the epoxy resin based 2D glass fiber woven fabric RTM laminated specimen were prepared. According to the GB/T 1447-2005 standard test method, the tensile tests of the 2D glass fiber woven fabric laminates were carried out. Results show that the tensile strength loss rate of ladder splicing laminates is 11.05%, 9.37%, 7.78% while the number of plies is 8, 10, 12 respectively. In other words, the tensile strength loss rate is reduced with the plies number increasing. In addition, because of the concentration of tensile stress, all fractures of ladder splicing laminates occur at the site of splicing line.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the tensile property of laminated resin composites reinforced by carbon fiber plain woven fabric at relatively high temperature. For this purpose, the tensile tests of laminated resin composites are carried out at room temperature(20°C) and high temperature(150°C and 180°C). The effect rules of different temperature on the tensile property of these composites are discussed. The reasons for the variations of tensile property of these composites at different temperature are also analyzed. At 150 °C and 180 °C, the tensile strength of laminated composite decreased by 13.3% and 34.42% respectively, compared with that at room temperature, which shows that the tensile strength of resin laminated composites is sensitive at high temperature. The reason of the tensile strength of resin laminated composites declined at high temperature is that resin has been damaged and can not transfer tensile load, which makes resin and fiber can not bear the tensile load together at high temperature. The research results will provide a basic reference for the application of plain woven fabric reinforced resin laminated composites at room temperature to 180°C.

The γ-ray pre-irradiation induced method was employed to study the effect of chloroepoxypropane modification on the surface of carbon fibre (CF) and the interfacial properties of CF/epoxy. Systematic experimental work was conducted to determine the fibre surface topography, fibre surface energy, fibre tensile strength and interfacial adhesion of CF/epoxy before and after γ-ray pre-irradiation grafting. The roughness and surface energy were all found to increase significantly. The tensile strength of carbon fibres was improved marginally by γ-ray pre-irradiation. The surface modification of carbon fibres led to an improvement (at most 18.2%) of the interlaminar shear strength of CF/epoxy composites. The mechanisms of pre-irradiation of CF are proposed.

The aim of the present study was to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-inflammatory effect of Scutellaria Radix (SR). The complementary DNA (cDNA) microarray method was used to survey the effects of SR on the changes of gene expression profile in HEK293 cells. Based on differential expression, 66 genes were selected for further analysis from 9,600 candidate genes in the microarray; 23 genes were validated by RT-PCR. The broad spectrum of the differentially expressed genes, including those associated with inflammation, immune response, energy metabolism, as well as others, such as ISGF3G, IL6ST, CD98, ATP5G2, PHKG2, YB-1 and SLC7A4, indicate overall cellular response to SR treatment. Our results suggest that the anti-inflammatory effect of SR may be related to IL6ST down-expression, and over-expression of CD98. Moreover, SR-related improvement in immune response may be related to the ISGF3G over-expression.

We investigated the anticancer effect of AE (1,8-dihydroy-3-[hydroxymethyl]-anthraquione) in the T24 human bladder cancer cell line (Food Industry Research and Development Institute, Hsinchu, Taiwan) by studying apoptosis regulation.AE, which is purified from aloe vera leaves, has been reported to have antitumor activity. Cell viability, cell cycle and apoptosis were determined by flow cytometric methods. Levels of cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinase 1 and other enzyme were examined by Western blotting methods.AE inhibited cell viability, and induced G2/M arrest and apoptosis in T24 cells. AE increased the levels of Wee1 and cdc25c, and may have led to inhibition of the levels of cyclin-dependent kinase 1 and cyclin B1, which cause G2/M arrest. AE induced p53 expression and was accompanied by the induction of p21 and caspase-3 activation, which was associated with apoptosis. In addition, AE was associated with a marked increase in Fas/APO1 receptor and Bax expression but it inhibited Bcl-2 expression.AE induced apoptosis in T24 cells is mediated through the activation of p53, p21, Fas/APO-1, Bax and caspase-3.

The purpose of this study was to develop a new dynamic image analyzing technique that will give us the ability to measure the viscoelastic parameters of individual living red blood cells non-invasively, in situ and in real time. With this technique, the bending modulus KC, the shear elasticity mu and their ratio were measured under different temperatures, oxygen partial pressures and osmotic pressures. The results not only show the effects of external conditions on mechanical properties of cell membranes including deformability, flexibility, adhesive ability and plasticity, but also demonstrate that the technique can be used to measure cell membrane parameters continuously under several physiological and pathological conditions.

Diallyl disulfide (DADS), one of the major components of garlic (Allium sativum), is well known to have chemopreventative activity against human cancer such as colon, lung and skin. But the exact mechanism of the action is still unclear. In this study, we investigated how DADS--induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in T24 human bladder cancer cells in vitro. Apoptosis induction, cell viability, cell cycle arrest, caspases-3, -9 activity and gene expression were measured to determine their variation by flow cytometric assay, western blot, and determination of caspase-3 activity, PCR and cDNA microarray. There are significant differences in cell death (decreased viable cells then increased the amounts of apoptosis) of T24 cells that were detected between DADS (5-75 microM) treated and untreated groups. A significant increase was found in apoptosis induction when cells were treated with DADS (50 microM) compared to without DADS treated groups. DADS also promoted caspase-3 activity after exposure for 1, 3, 6, 12, and 24 h, which led to induce apoptosis. DADS also increased the product of intracellular hydrogen peroxide. Furthermore, the DADS-induced apoptosis on T24 cells was blocked by the broad-spectrum caspase inhibitor, z-VAD-fmk and antioxidant (catalase). DADS also increased cyclin E and decreased CDK2 gene expression which may lead to the G2/M arrest of T24 cells.

Berberine was used to determine inhibition of arylamine N-acetyltransferase (NAT) activity in human bladder tumour cells. The NAT activity was measured by HPLC assaying for the amounts of N-acetyl-2-aminofluorene (AAF) and N-acetyl-p-aminobenzoic acid (N-Ac-PABA) and remaining 2-aminofluorene (AF) and p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA). Two assay systems were performed, one with cellular cytosols, the other with intact bladder tumour cell suspensions. The NAT activity in human bladder tumour cells was inhibited by berberine in a dose-dependent manner, that is, the higher the concentration of berberine, the higher the inhibition of NAT activity. The values of apparent Km and Vmax calculated from cytosol NAT and intact cells were also decreased by berberine. This report is the first demonstration to show berberine did affect human bladder tumour cell NAT activity.

Arylamine N-acetyltransferase (NAT) activities with 2-aminofluorene (2-AF) were determined in the bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae. Cytosols or suspensions of K. pneumoniae with or without specific concentrations of diallyl sulphide (DAS) or diallyl disulphide (DADS) as co-treatment showed different percentages of 2-AF acetylation. The data indicated that there was decreased NAT activity associated with increased levels of DAS or DADS in K. pneumoniae. In growth studies on K. pneumoniae it was demonstrated that DAS or DADS elicited a dose-dependent bacteriocide effect on K. pneumoniae. For the cytosol examinations, the apparent values of Km and Vmax were 0.96+/-0.09 mM and 7.87+/-0.79 nmol min(-1) mg(-1) protein, respectively, for 2-AF. However, when DAS or DADS was added to the reaction mixtures, the apparent values of Km and Vmax were 0.16+/-0.04 mM and 0.99+/-0.16 nmol min(-1) mg(-1) protein with DAS, respectively, and 0.14+/-0.18 mM and 0.85+/-0.10 nmol min(-1) mg(-1) protein with DADS, respectively, for 2-AF. For the intact bacteria examination, the apparent values of Km and Vmax were 0.57+/-0.06 mM and 2.00+/-0.14 nmol min(-1) per 10x10(10) CFU, respectively, for 2-AF. However, when DAS or DADS was added to the reaction mixtures, the apparent of values of Km and Vmax were 0.41+/-0.04 mM and 1.30+/-0.10 nmol min(-1) per 10x10(10) CFU with DAS, respectively, and 0.34+/-0.04 mM and 1.08+/-0.08 nmol min(-1) per 10x10(10) CFU with DADS, respectively, for 2-AF. This report is the first demonstration to show that the garlic components DAS and DADS would affect K. pneumoniae growth and NAT activity.

This study was designed to assess the effects of aspirin on arylamine N-acetyltransferase (NAT) activities in the bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae using high performance liquid chromatography to measure the acetylation of 2-aminofluorene (2-AF) with or without aspirin. Cytosols or suspensions of K. pneumoniae with or without specific concentrations of aspirin co-treatment showed different percentages of 2-AF acetylation. The data indicated that there was decreased NAT activity associated with increased levels of aspirin in K. pneumoniae cytosols and in intact bacteria. For the cytosol examination, the apparent values of Km and Vmax decreased 0.59- and 0.58-fold after co-treated with 40 microM aspirin, respectively, for 2-AF. For the intact bacteria examination, the apparent values of Km and Vmax decreased 0.60- and 0.67-fold after co-treated with 40 microM aspirin, respectively, for 2-AF. This report is the first demonstration to show that aspirin can decrease N-acetyltransferase activity in the bacterium K. pneumoniae.

10 Title compounds of type (IV) and 8 of type (VI) and (VIII) are prepared and tested in vitro for their inhibitory effects on various human tumors.

A series of desloratadine derivatives were stereoselectively synthesized and evaluated for H 1 antihistamine activity. For the evaluation of H 1 antihistamine activity, the in vitro histamine-induced contraction of the guinea-pig ileum assay (HC) was used. The synthesized desloratadine derivatives 7 , 8 and 9 are structurally related to rupatadine and were generated by replacement of the 5-methyl-3-pyridine group of rupatadine with γ-alkylidene butenolide. Their H 1 antihistamine activities have shown a high dependence on the exact nature of the substituent in the lactone ring. Optimum structures 7 , 8a and 8g display potent activity inhibiting histamine-induced effects.

The cytotoxicity of berberine on C6 rat glioma cells indicated that berberine induced morphological changes and caused cell death through G2/M arrest and apoptosis. While undergoing apoptosis, there was a remarkable accumulation of G2/M cells with the upregulatoin of Wee1 but it also inhibited cyclin B, CDK1 and Cdc25c that led to G2/M arrest. Along with cytotoxicity in C6 cells, several apoptotic events including mitochondrial cytochrome c release, activation of caspase-9, -3 and -8 and DNA fragmentation were induced. Berberine increased the levels of GADD153 and GRP 78 in C6 cells based on the examination of Western blotting and this is a major hallmark of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. We also found that berberine promoted the production of reactive oxygen species and Ca2+ in C6 cells. Western blotting assay also showed that berberine inhibited the levels of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 but increased the levels of pro-apoptotic protein Bax before leading to a decrease in the levels of mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsim) followed by cytochrome c release that caused the activations of capase-9 and -3 for apoptotic occurrence. The caspase-8, -9 and -3 were activated by berberine in C6 cells based on the substrate solution (PhiPhiLux-G1D1, CaspaLux 8-L1D2, CaspaLux 9-M1D2 for caspase-3, -8 and -9, respectively) and analyzed by flow cytometer and each inhibitor of caspase-8, -9 and -3 led to increase the percentage of viable C6 cells after exposure to berberine. This finding was also confirmed by Western blot assay which showed that berberine promoted the active form of caspase-8, -9 and -3. These results demonstrate that the cytotoxicity of berberine in C6 rat glioma cells is attributable to apoptosis mainly through induced G2/M-arrested cells, in an ER-dependent manner, via a mitochondria-dependent caspase pathway regulated by Bax and Bcl-2.

Although rhein has been shown to induce apoptosis in several cancer cell lines, the mechanism of action of rhein-induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis at the molecular level is not well known. In this study, the mechanism of rhein action on A-549 human lung cancer cells was investigated. Rhein induced G0/G1 arrest through inhibition of cyclin D3, Cdk4 and Cdk6. The efficacious induction of apoptosis was observed at 50 microM for 12 h and up to 72 h as examined by a flow cytometric method. Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that rhein increased the levels of GADD153 and GRP78, both hallmarks of endoplasmic reticulum stress, promoted ROS and Ca2+ production, induced the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (delta psi(m)), promoted cytochrome c release from mitochondria, promoted capase-3 activation and led to apoptosis. Rhein also increased the levels of p53, p21 and Bax but reduced the level of Bcl-2. The Ca2+ chelator BAPTA was added to the cells before rhein treatment, thus blocking the Ca2+ production and inhibiting rhein-induced apoptosis in A-549 cells. Our data demonstrate that rhein induces apoptosis in A-549 cells via a Ca2+ -dependent mitochondrial pathway.

Emodin was isolated from Rheum palmatum L. and exhibits an anticancer effect on human cancer cell lines, however, the molecular mechanisms of emodin-mediated apoptosis in human tongue cancer cells have not been fully investigated. In this study, treatment of human tongue cancer SCC-4 cells with various concentrations of emodin led to G2/M arrest through promoted p21 and Chk2 expression but inhibited cyclin B1 and cdc2; it also induced apoptosis through the pronounced release of cytochrome c from mitochondria and activations of caspase-9 and caspase-3. These events were accompanied by the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential (delta psi(m)) and a decrease in the ratio of mitochondrial Bcl-2 and Bax content; emodin also promoted the levels of GADD153 and GRP78. The free radical scavenger N-acetylcysteine and caspase inhibitors markedly blocked emodin-induced apoptosis. Taken together, these findings suggest that emodin mediated oxidative injury (DNA damage) based on ROS production and ER stress based on the levels of GADD153 and GRP78 that acts as an early and upstream change in the cell death cascade to caspase- and mitochondria-dependent signaling pathways, triggers mitochondrial dysfunction from Bcl-2 and Bax modulation, mitochondrial cytochrome c release and caspase activation, consequently leading to apoptosis in SCC-4 cells.

Menthone, the Chinese old remedy extracted from genus Mentha, has been widely used as a cooling agent, a counterirritant for pain relief, and for the treatment of pruritus. However, its detail mechanisms for interfering inflammatory reaction remain unknown. In this study, we found that menthone can suppress the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), as well as nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) activity induced by LPS and other inflammatory agents, including 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate, hydrogen peroxide, okadaic acid, and ceramide. Furthermore, our data also demonstrated that the translocation of NF-kappaB activated by LPS into the nucleus was suppressed by menthone, and I-kappaB and beta-transducin repeat containing protein (beta-TrCP) were both involved in this suppression. To sum up, this study has provided molecular evidence for menthone effect on the LPS-induced cytokine production, NF-kappaB activation, and the involvement of I-kappaB and beta-TrCP.

Tanshinone IIA is the most abundant diterpene quinone in Danshen, Salviae miltiorrhizae Radix, a widely prescribed traditional herbal medicine that is used to treat cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. Recently, tanshinone IIA was demonstrated to induce cell death and apoptosis in a variety of tumors. However, the effect of tanshinone IIA on human colon cancer cells is not clearly understood yet. In this study, the antigrowth and apoptosis-eliciting effects of tanshinone IIA, as well as its cellular mechanisms of actions, were investigated in Colo-205 human colon cancer cells. Tanshinone IIA reduced cell growth in a concentration-dependent manner, inducing apoptosis accompanied by an increase in TUNEL staining and by an increased percentage of cells in the sub-G1 fraction. The expression of p53 and p21 and mitochondrial cytochrome c release were increased in tanshinone IIA-treated cells. In addition, the expression of Fas proteins was up-regulated by tanshinone IIA. Tanshinone IIA-induced catalytic activation of caspases was confirmed by cleavage of caspase-8 and caspase-3. These findings suggest that tanshinone IIA induces apoptosis in Colo-205 cells through both mitochondrial-mediated intrinsic and Fas-mediated extrinsic caspase cell-death pathways. Accordingly, the chemotherapeutic potential of tanshinone IIA for colon cancer warrants further study.

The effects of the crude extract of Solanum lyratum (SLE) on human colon cancer colo 205 cells were investigated. The cell viability, morphological changes of the cells, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS), mitochondrial membrane potential (deltapsi(m)) and cell cycle- and apoptosis-associated protein levels and gene expressions were examined in colo 205 cells after exposure to various concentrations of SLE for different time periods. The results indicated that SLE decreased the percentage of viable colo 205 cells accompanied by morphological changes. The most effective concentration of SLE was 300 pg/ml (SLE 300) and this concentration was used for further investigations. SLE induced S-phase arrest and apoptosis (sub-G1) in the colo 205 cells and those effects were dose- and time-dependent. DAPI staining and DNA gel electrophoresis confirmed that SLE induced apoptosis in colo 205 cells. Flow cytometric analysis also showed that SLE 300 promoted ROS production and decreased the deltapsi(m). Western blotting analysis indicated that SLE 300 increased Bax levels and decreased Bcl-2 levels, which caused the loss of deltapsi(m) followed by cytochrome c release and caspase-9 and -3 activation, finally leading to apoptosis. SLE 300 also promoted p53 and p27, but decreased the levels of cyclin B1 thus causing S-phase arrest. The gene expression associated with those proteins was also confirmed by PCR methods. The findings show that SLE might be used as a colon cancer therapeutic agent in the future.

Berberine, a yellow benzylisoquinoline alkaloid, is a constituent of Coptis chines and is commonly used in Chinese herbal medicine for patients with gastrointestinal disorders. The pharmacological effects of berberine include anti-inflammation, antidiarrhetic, antimalarial, and even antimicrobial activities. However, its mechanism of action on the cell migration of human gastric cancer SNU-5 cells is not fully understood. The effects of berberine on the percentage of viable cells were examined first and it was found that berberine induced dose-dependent inhibition in human gastric cancer SNU-5 cells. The effect of berberine on the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and matrix metalloproteinase-1, -2, -7 and -9 was then examined using Western blotting and the results showed that berberine induced ROS production for up to 6 hours of incubation. It was also found that berberine induced downregulation of MMP-1 -2, and -9 but did not affect the level of MMP-7. The mRNA levels of MMPs in SNU-5 cells after treatment with berberine for 24 hours were investigated using a polymerase chain reaction and the results showed that berberine inhibited the gene expression of MMP-1, -2 and -9 in human SNU-5 cells but it did not affect MMP-7. In conclusion, berberine appears to exert its anticancer properties by inducing ROS production and prevention of cell migration via inhibition of the gene expression of MMP-1, -2 and -9 in human gastric cancer SNU-5 cancer cells.

Our previous studies have shown that bee venom (BV) can induce apoptosis in human cervical cancer Ca Ski cells, but it can also affect human breast cancer cells, though its molecular mechanisms are not precisely known. In this study, the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis induced by BV in human breast cancer MCF7 cells were investigated. BV induced morphological changes (examined by phase-contrast microscopy) and inhibited the proliferation (examined by MTT assay) of MCF7 cells; both effects occurred in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that BV induced the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and dysfunction of the mitochondrial membrane potential (Azm), and led to cytochrome c release, an increase in the levels of caspase-9 and Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) and then apoptosis. It also showed that BV induced S-phase arrest in MCF7 cells which may occur through the promotion of p53, p21, p27 and the exhibition of Cdk2. Western blotting demonstrated that BV reduced Bcl-2 and increased Bax protein levels which may have caused the changes of delta psi m. BV treatment led to ROS production up to but after treatment led to a decrease in the levels of ROS, which may be associated with the observations of BVaffecting glutathion S-transferase (GST), Zn-superoxide dismutase (Zn-SOD), Cu/Zn-superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn-SOD) and catalase. The Comet assay also showed that BV induced DNA damage while DAPI staining also confirmed that BV induced apoptosis in examined MCF7 cells. Our results also showed that BV increased the levels of AIF and EndoG in MCF7 cells. In conclusion, our data demonstrated that BV induced apoptosis via a mitochondria-dependent pathway based on the changes of delta psi m, AIF and EndoG release in MCF7 cells.

Gynostemma pentaphyllum Makino is known in Asia for its effect on the treatment of hepatitis and cardiovascular diseases. Gypenosides (Gyp) are the major components extracted from Gynostemma pentaphyllum Makino. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the Gyp-induced cell cycle arrest and apoptotic process is unclear. In this study, the chemopreventive role of Gyp in human lung cancer (A549) cells in vitro was evaluated by studying the regulation of the cell cycle and apoptosis. Gyp induced GO/G1 arrest and apoptosis in the human lung cancer A549 cells. Investigation of the cyclin-dependent protein kinase inhibitors by Western blotting showed that p16, p21, p27 and p53 proteins were increased with the increasing time of incubation with Gyp in the A549 cells. This increase may be the major factor by which Gyp caused GO/G1 arrest in the examined cells. Flow cytometric assay and gel electrophoresis of DNA fragmentation also confirmed that Gyp induced apoptosis in the A549 cells. Our data demonstrated that Gyp-induced apoptotic cell death was accompanied by up-regulation of Bax, caspase-3 and caspase-9, but down-regulation of the Bcl-2 levels. Taken together, Gyp appears to exert its anticancer properties by inducing GO/GI-phase arrest and apoptosis via activation of caspase-3 in human lung A549 cancer cells.

It is important for people to view the early development of traditional Chinese medicine in Taiwan from a historical perspective as the World Health Organization (WHO) has already confirmed that traditional Chinese medicine is a great contribution to human civilization. In this article, we will introduce the early development of traditional Chinese medicine in Taiwan chronologically.

Curcumin (diferuloylmethane), the yellow pigment in turmeric (Curcuma longa), is known to inhibit proliferation of cancer cells by arresting them at various phases of the cell cycle and to induce apoptosis in tumor cells. Curcumin-induced apoptosis mainly involves the activation of caspase-3 and mitochondria-mediated pathway in various cancer cells of different tissue origin. In the present study, the induction of apoptosis and cytotoxicity by curcumin in colon cancer colo 205 cells was investigated by using flow cytometry. The results demonstrated that curcumin induced cytotoxicity and apoptosis dose- and time-depedently. Curcumin induced the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Ca+2, decreased the levels of mitochondria membrane potential and induced caspase-3 activity. Curcumin also promoted the expression of Bax, cytochrome C, p53 and p21 but inhibited the expression of Bcl-2. These observations suggest that curcumin may have a possible therapeutic potential in colon cancer patients.

The aim of the present study was to search for the differential gene expression and measure the serum level of a number of biochemical parameters in the cold Zheng (CZ) and non-cold Zheng (NCZ) in patients receiving hemodialysis. Hemodialysis (HD) patients were randomly selected from the CZ and NCZ groups. The between-group differences in gene expression were assessed using complementary DNA (cDNA) microarray. Differential gene expression was further validated by real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Our results demonstrated that the up-regulation of the inflammation-associated genes, ALOX5AP, S100A8 and S100A12, down-regulation of the genes related to immunity (DEFA4), metabolism (GNG11, PYGB, PRKAR2B), and growth/proliferation (HSF2, DDR2, TK1) were found in the CZ group. Furthermore, the CZ HD patients had significantly lower serum albumin levels compared with their NCZ counterparts (3.31 ± 0.08 g/dL versus 4.18 ± 0.12 g/dL ). It appears reasonable to conclude that up-regulated inflammatory-gene expression (ALOX5AP, S100A8 and S100A12) may play an important role in CZ HD patients.

Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) is a chemical derived from several Curcuma species (turmeric), possessing anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties and which, thus, may be a potential anticancer drug. However, its mechanism of action is not fully understood. Our previous studies had shown that curcumin induced cytotoxicity, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human colon cancer colo 205 cells. In this study, curcumin affected the levels of NF-kappaB/ p65 in a time-dependent manner but did not affect NF-kappaB/ p50, based on Western blotting methods. In vitro experiments revealed that curcumin inhibited Cox-2 levels, but promoted those of Cox-1 in colo 205 cells. Curcumin also inhibited MMP-2 levels and promoted MMP-9 levels, but did not affect MMP-7 levels, based on Western blotting assays. These effects were also confirmed by cDNA microarray. Remarkably, curcumin not only exerted its effect on the protein levels of NF-kappaB, Cox-1 and -2, MMP-2 and -7, but also directly inhibited their mRNA levels. Curcumin was also found to significantly repress the in vitro invasion of colo 205 cells.

Berberine has a wide range of biological actions that suggest it may be of use in cancer prevention. It was previously reported that berberine induced cell cycle arrest, not only at the G0/G1-phase, but also at the G2/M-phase in a dose-dependent manner. However, the mechanism of berberine-induced G2/M-phase arrest in leukemia cells is not fully understood. In the present study, the effects of the naturally occurring berberine (the major constituent of Coptis chinensis) on the cell cycle, as well as on CDK1, cyclin B1, 14-3-3sigma, Wee1 and Cdc25c expressions, were investigated in the human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells and in the murine myelomonocytic leukemia WEHI-3 cells. The flow cytometry assays indicated that berberine induced G2/M-phase arrest in both examined cell lines. The berberine-induced G2/M-phase arrest in both examined cell lines was accompanied by increased levels of Wee1 and 14-3-3sigma, but decreased levels of Cdc25c, CDK1 and cyclin B1. However, CDK2 expression was not affected as revealed by Western blotting assay. Berberine induced G2/M arrest in both the examined cells via the inhibition of cyclin B1 and the promotion of Wee1.

Enhanced garlic (Allium sativum) consumption is closely related to reduced cancer incidence, as shown in epidemiological studies. Diallyl disulfide (DADS), a component of garlic, inhibits the proliferation of human blood, colon, lung and skin cancer cells. Although DADS had been reported to induce apoptosis in human leukemia HL-60 cells, there are no reports regarding whether or not it affects leukemia cells in vivo. Therefore, the present study is focused on the in vivo effects of DADS on WEHI-3 leukemia cells. The effects of DADS on murine WEHI-3 cells were initially examined, and the results indicated that DADS induced cytotoxicity and that this effect was dose-dependent. The effects of DADS on WEHI-3 in BALBIc mice were also examined, and the results indicated that DADS decreased the percentage of MAC-3 marker, indicating that differentiation of the precursor of macrophage and T cells was inhibited. The weights of liver and spleen were also measured, and the results indicated that DADS decreased the weight of these organs. An important characteristic of WEHI-3 leukemia is the enlarged spleen in mice after i.p. injection of WEHI-3 cells. Based on pathological examination, the function of DADS was observed in the liver and spleen of mice previously injected with WEHI-3 cells. Apparently, DADS affects WEHI-3 cells both in vitro and in vivo.

Garlic (Allium sativum) is a popular spice, a remedy for a variety of ailments and is also known for its medicinal uses as an antibiotic, antithrombotic and antineoplastic agent. Epidemiological and animal studies have shown that garlic consumption reduces the incidence of cancer e.g. in the stomach, colon, breast and cervix. The aim of this study was to investigate whether garlic extract has any influence on caspase-3 activity and gene expression and on the signal induction of apoptosis in vitro. As an assay system, the flow cytometry assay, Western blotting and cDNA microarray were applied in human colon cancer colo 205 cells. Our results indicated that garlic extract, when administered to the colo 205 cell cultures, reduced the percetange of viable cells, induced apoptosis, increased the levels of Bax, cytochrome c and caspase-3, but decreased the level of Bcl-2. The results also showed that raw extract of garlic decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential and increased the caspase-3 activity and gene expression. We conclude that crude extract of garlic can induce apoptosis in colo 205 cells through caspase -3 activity, by means of a mitochondrial-dependent mechanism.