UNASSIGNED: Prior studies of mindfulness meditation have demonstrated anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory effects but whether meditation courses delivered online can exert similar effects is poorly understood. Barriers to large scale implementation of traditional mindfulness meditation programs has created an increased interest in the effect of less time- and resource-intensive online meditation courses. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a 6-week online mindfulness program with low time demands on nurses would lead to changes in gene expression, cytokine profiles, telomerase activity, and cortisol profiles.
UNASSIGNED: This was a randomized, parallel pilot study comparing an online mindfulness-based stress management program to an active control group from December 2018 to May 2019. Healthy nurses with above average levels of perceived stress were randomized to receive a 6-week online mindfulness-based stress management program including ≥5 min daily meditation practice or listen to relaxing music for ≥5 min daily as the control arm. Blood samples were collected at baseline and after 6 weeks, and various self-reported measures of stress, physical and emotional health were collected at baseline, after 6 weeks, and after 12 weeks. Whole transcriptome mRNA sequencing of whole blood at baseline and after 6 weeks was performed along with measurement of plasma IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α, and IFN-γ. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated, and telomerase activity was measured. Diurnal salivary cortisol profiles were assessed at baseline and after 6 weeks. The primary outcome was change over time in a pre-determined set of 53 genes representative of the immune-related changes seen with stress, which was analyzed using a mixed linear model. Secondary outcomes included all other self-reported measures and biomarkers mentioned above.
UNASSIGNED: A total of 61 nurses were randomized, with 52 having sufficient data to include in the final analysis. After 6 weeks, nurses in the control group reported significant reductions in stress as measured by the Perceived Stress Scale while those in the mindfulness group did not. However, after 12 weeks, the mindfulness group also showed a significant reduction in stress. When compared to the control group, no significant changes in RNA gene expression or any other biomarkers were observed in the nurses who participated in the mindfulness program.
UNASSIGNED: Our study found that this brief online mindfulness-based intervention was effective in reducing stress in nurses, albeit with a delayed effect compared to listening to relaxing music. Regarding immunoregulatory effects, there were no significant differences between treatment and control groups in transcriptomic or other tested biomarkers of immune function. This study provides evidence for a floor effect of mindfulness on transcriptional and circulating biomarkers of immune function.

UNASSIGNED: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials was performed to compare the effects of miniaturized extracorporeal circulation (MECC) and conventional extracorporeal circulation (CECC) on morbidity and mortality rates after cardiac surgery.
UNASSIGNED: A comprehensive literature search was conducted using Ovid, PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, and the Cochrane databases. Randomized controlled trials from the year 2000 with n > 40 patients were considered. Key search terms included variations of \"mini,\" \"cardiopulmonary,\" \"bypass,\" \"extracorporeal,\" \"perfusion,\" and \"circuit.\" Studies were assessed for bias using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. The primary outcomes were postoperative mortality and stroke. Secondary outcomes included arrhythmia, myocardial infarction, renal failure, blood loss, and a composite outcome comprised of mortality, stroke, myocardial infarction and renal failure. Duration of intensive care unit, and hospital stay was also recorded.
UNASSIGNED: The 42 studies eligible for this study included a total of 2154 patients who underwent CECC and 2196 patients who underwent MECC. There were no significant differences in any preoperative or demographic characteristics. Compared with CECC, MECC did not reduce the incidence of mortality, stroke, myocardial infarction, and renal failure but did significantly decrease the composite of these outcomes (odds ratio, 0.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.50-0.81; P = .0002). MECC was also associated with reductions in arrhythmia (odds ratio, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.54-0.83; P = .0003), blood loss (mean difference [MD], -96.37 mL; 95% CI, -152.70 to -40.05 mL; P = .0008), hospital stay (MD, -0.70 days; 95% CI, -1.21 to -0.20 days; P = .006), and intensive care unit stay (MD, -2.27 hours; 95% CI, -3.03 to -1.50 hours; P < .001).
UNASSIGNED: MECC demonstrates clinical benefits compared with CECC. Further studies are required to perform a cost-utility analysis and to assess the long-term outcomes of MECC. These should use standardized definitions of endpoints such as mortality and renal failure to reduce inconsistency in outcome reporting.

UNASSIGNED: In December 2019, a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 caused a series of acute atypical respiratory diseases worldwide. However, there is still a lack of drugs with clear curative effects, and the clinical trial research of vaccines has not been completely finished.
UNASSIGNED: LH capsules are approved TCM patent medicine that are widely used for the treatment of respiratory tract infectious diseases caused by colds and flu. On April 12, 2020, LH capsules and granules were officially repurposed by the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) for patients with mild COVID-19 based on their safety and efficacy demonstrated through multicentre, randomized, controlled clinical trials. We hope to conduct a comprehensive review of it through modern pharmacy methods, and try to explain its possible mechanism.
UNASSIGNED: Using the full names of LH capsules Lianhuaqingwen, Lianhua Qingwen andSARS-COV-2, COVID-19 as the keywords of the search terms, systemically search for existing related papers in various databases such as Web of Science and PubMed. And completed the collection of clinical data in ClinicalTrials.gov and Chinese Clinical Trial Registry. Last but not least, we have sorted out the anti-inflammatory and antiviral mechanisms of LH capsules through literature and Selleck.
UNASSIGNED: This review systematically sorted out the active ingredients in LH capsules. Furthermore, the related pharmacological and clinical trials of LH capsule on SARS-CoV-2, IAV and IBV were discussed in detail. Moreover, the present review provides the first summary of the potential molecular mechanism of specific substances in LH capsules involved in resistance to SARS-COV-2 infection and the inhibition of cytokine storm syndrome (CSS) caused by IL-6.
UNASSIGNED: This review summarizes the available reports and evidence that support the use of LH capsules as potential drug candidates for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. However, TCM exerts its effects through multiple targets and multiple pathways, and LH capsules are not an exception. Therefore, the relevant mechanisms need to be further improved and experimentally verified.

Smoking is a cause of serious diseases in smokers including chronic respiratory diseases. This study aimed to evaluate the tobacco harm reduction (THR) potential of an electronic vapor product (EVP, myblu™) compared to a Kentucky Reference Cigarette (3R4F), and assessed endpoints related to chronic respiratory diseases. Endpoints included: cytotoxicity, barrier integrity (TEER), cilia function, immunohistochemistry, and pro-inflammatory markers. In order to more closely represent the user exposure scenario, we have employed the in vitro 3D organotypic model of human airway epithelium (MucilAir™, Epithelix) for respiratory assessment. The model was repeatedly exposed to either whole aerosol of the EVP, or whole 3R4F smoke, at the air liquid interface (ALI), for 4 weeks to either 30, 60 or 90 puffs on 3-exposure-per-week basis. 3R4F smoke generation used the ISO 20778:2018 regime and EVP aerosol used the ISO 20768:2018 vaping regime. Exposure to undiluted whole EVP aerosol did not trigger any significant changes in the level of pro-inflammatory mediators, cilia beating function, barrier integrity and cytotoxicity when compared with air controls. In contrast, exposure to diluted (1:17) whole cigarette smoke caused significant changes to all the endpoints mentioned above. To our knowledge, this is the first study evaluating the effects of repeated whole cigarette smoke and whole EVP aerosol exposure to a 3D lung model at the ALI. Our results add to the growing body of scientific literature supporting the THR potential of EVPs relative to combustible cigarettes and the applicability of the 3D lung models in human-relevant product risk assessments.

BACKGROUND: Both inflammatory and remodelling processes are associated with irreversible airway obstruction observed in severe asthma. Our aim was to characterize a group of severe asthmatic patients with or without persistent airway obstruction in relation to specific sputum inflammatory and remodelling biomarkers.
METHODS: Forty-five patients under regular high-dose inhaled corticosteroid/ß-2agonist treatment were studied, after a follow-up period of at least 2 years, with a minimum of 4 visits. Periostin, TGF-ß, RANTES, IL-8, GM-CSF, FGF-2, and cell counts were measured in induced sputum. Serum periostin was also measured.
RESULTS: Sputum induction was successfully performed in all but 5 patients. There were no significant differences in demographic and clinical data between patients with non-persistent obstruction (NO: FEV1/VC>88%pred.) and those with persistent obstruction (O: a not completely reversible obstruction with FEV1/VC<88%pred. at each visit before the study visit). Patients with persistent obstruction had significantly higher sputum periostin and TGF-ß concentrations than NO patients and a trend of higher serum periostin levels. GM-CSF and FGF-2 were significantly increased in NO compared to O patients. No differences between groups were found for RANTES, IL-8 and differential cell counts. Sputum periostin inversely correlated with functional parameters (prebronch. FEV1: rho = -0.36, p < 0.05; postbronch. FEV1: rho = -0.33, p = 0.05). Patients with high sputum periostin concentration (>103.3 pg/ml: median value) showed an absolute number of sputum eosinophils significantly higher than patients with low sputum periostin; this behavior was unobserved when serum periostin was considered.
CONCLUSIONS: Only periostin and TGF-ß identified a subgroup of severe asthmatic patients with persistent airway obstruction. Sputum periostin was also inversely associated with FEV1 and proved to be a more sensitive biomarker than serum periostin to identify severe asthmatics with higher sputum eosinophilia.

BACKGROUND: Gastric cancer has a high morbidity and is a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is commonly found in the early stage of gastric cancer pathogenesis, which induces chronic gastritis. Artemisinin (ART) and its derivatives (ARTS, artesunate and DHA, dihydroartemisinin), a new class of potent antimalarials, have been reported to exert both preventive and anti-gastric cancer effects. However, the underlying mechanisms of the chemopreventive effects of ART and its derivatives in H. pylori infection induced-gastric cancer are not fully elucidated.
OBJECTIVE: We investigated the effects of H. pylori infection in gastric cancer; and the preventive mechanisms of ART, ARTS and DHA.
METHODS: The H. pylori growth was determined by the broth macro-dilution method, and its adhesion to gastric cancer cells was evaluated by using the urease assay. The protein and mRNA levels, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, as well as the production of inflammatory cytokines were evaluated by Western blot, real-time PCR, flow cytometry and ELISA, respectively. Moreover, an in vivo MNU (N-methyl-N-nitroso-urea) and H. pylori-induced gastric adenocarcinoma mouse model was established for the investigation of the cancer preventive effects of ART and its derivaties, and the underlying mechanisms of action.
RESULTS: ART, DHA and ARTS inhibited the growth of H. pylori and gastric cancer cells,suppressed H. pylori adhesion to the gastric cancer cells, and reduced the H. pylori-enhanced ROS production. Moreover, ART, DHA and ARTS significantly reduced tumor incidence, number of tumor nodules and tumor size in the mouse model. Among these three compounds, DHA exerted the most potent chemopreventive effect. Mechanistic studies showed that ART and its derivatives potently inhibited the NF-κB activation.
CONCLUSIONS: ART, DHA and ARTS have potent preventive effects in H. pylori-induced gastric carcinogenesis. These effects are, at least in part, attributed to the inhibition of NF-κB signaling pathway. Our findings provide a molecular justification of using ART and its derivatives for the prevention and treatment of gastric cancer.

Over the past few decades, there has been growing interest in understanding the molecular mechanisms of cancer pathogenesis and progression, as it is still associated with high morbidity and mortality. Current management of large bone sarcomas typically includes the complex therapeutic approach of limb salvage or sacrifice combined with pre- and postoperative multidrug chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, and is still associated with high recurrence rates. The development of cellular strategies against specific characteristics of tumour cells appears to be promising, as they can target cancer cells selectively. Recently, Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs) have been the subject of significant research in orthopaedic clinical practice through their use in regenerative medicine. Further research has been directed at the use of MSCs for more personalized bone sarcoma treatments, taking advantage of their wide range of potential biological functions, which can be augmented by using tissue engineering approaches to promote healing of large defects. In this review, we explore the use of MSCs in bone sarcoma treatment, by analyzing MSCs and tumour cell interactions, transduction of MSCs to target sarcoma, and their clinical applications on humans concerning bone regeneration after bone sarcoma extraction.

Eosinophilic cholecystitis (EC) is a rare inflammatory condition of the gallbladder, confirmed by a cellular infiltrate comprised of more than 90% eosinophils in the gallbladder wall on histological examination. Although the etiology of EC is largely unknown, local autoimmune reactions within the gallbladder wall to inflammatory mediators from distal sites of inflammation have been hypothesized. Talc pleurodesis (TP) is a common clinical procedure used within respiratory medicine. However, it is associated with activation of systemic acute inflammatory responses including an increase in serum interleukin-8 (IL-8), which is a potent mediator of eosinophil chemotaxis. We report a case of EC following a TP procedure for persistent, secondary pneumothorax.

Thrombus formation leading to vaso-occlusive events is a major cause of death, and involves complex interactions between coagulation, fibrinolytic and innate immune systems. Leukocyte recruitment is a key step, mediated partly by chemotactic complement activation factors C3a and C5a. However, mechanisms mediating C3a/C5a generation during thrombosis have not been studied. In a murine venous thrombosis model, levels of thrombin-antithrombin complexes poorly correlated with C3a and C5a, excluding a central role for thrombin in C3a/C5a production. However, clot weight strongly correlated with C5a, suggesting processes triggered during thrombosis promote C5a generation. Since thrombosis elicits fibrinolysis, we hypothesized that plasmin activates C5 during thrombosis. In vitro, the catalytic efficiency of plasmin-mediated C5a generation greatly exceeded that of thrombin or factor Xa, but was similar to the recognized complement C5 convertases. Plasmin-activated C5 yielded a functional membrane attack complex (MAC). In an arterial thrombosis model, plasminogen activator administration increased C5a levels. Overall, these findings suggest plasmin bridges thrombosis and the immune response by liberating C5a and inducing MAC assembly. These new insights may lead to the development of strategies to limit thrombus formation and/or enhance resolution.

Ischemic stroke and ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury induced by thrombolytic therapy are conditions with high mortality and serious long-term physical and cognitive disabilities. They have a major impact on global public health. These disorders are associated with multiple insults to the cerebral microcirculation, including reactive oxygen species (ROS) overproduction, leukocyte adhesion and infiltration, brain blood barrier (BBB) disruption, and capillary hypoperfusion, ultimately resulting in tissue edema, hemorrhage, brain injury and delayed neuron damage. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used in China, Korea, Japan and other Asian countries for treatment of a wide range of diseases. In China, the usage of compound TCM preparation to treat cerebrovascular diseases dates back to the Han Dynasty. Even thousands of years earlier, the medical formulary recorded many classical prescriptions for treating cerebral I/R-related diseases. This review summarizes current information and underlying mechanisms regarding the ameliorating effects of compound TCM preparation, Chinese materia medica, and active components on I/R-induced cerebral microcirculatory disturbances, brain injury and neuron damage.