AIM To study the relationship among typing of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and Helicobacterpylori infection, expression of oncogene and tumor suppresser genes in gastric cancer and precancerouslessions.METHODS According to TCM typing, 120 patients with chronic superficial gastritis, intestinal metaplasia,atypical hyperplasia and gastric cancer were divided into 4 groups: 21 patients with coexistence of cold andheat syndrome (group R), 22 patients with in coordination between the liver and the spleen (group U), 29patients with deficiency of the spleen-yin (group I) and 48 patients with insufficiency of the spleen-yang(group H). Protein expression of c-myc, p21 and p53 were detected immunohistochemically, and Hp wereconfirmed by modified Giemsa method.RESULTS The Hp infection of the group H was significantly higher (72.9%) than that of group R(38.1%, P<0.01) and group U (40.9%, P<0.01). Expression of c-myc, p21 and p53 were significantlyrelated to Hp infection and severity of gastric mucosa lesions (group H>group I>group U>group R).CONCLUSION Hp infection, expression of oncogene and tumor suppresser genes were related to TCMtyping. These parameters were helpful in identification of symptoms and signs and TCM differentiationdiagnosis.

Objective: To observe the clinical effects of acupoint injection therapy plus massage on primary dysmenorrhea (PD).
Methods: Ninety patients with PD were randomly divided into a treatment group or a control group, 45 cases in each group. The treatment group was treated by injection of Vitamin K3into Sanyinjiao (SP 6) plus massage on Diji (SP 8). The control group was treated by oral administration of Ibuprofen sustained-release capsule. Before and after the treatment, visual analogue scale (VAS) was adopted to assess pain degree of the patients. The therapeutic effects were observed after continuous treatment of three cycles of menstruation.
Results: After treatment, VAS scores were obviously decreased in both groups and the differences were statistically significant (allP<0.05). The difference in VAS score after treatment was more significantin the treatment group than that in the control group (P<0.01). The total effective rate was significantl higher in the treatment group than that in the control group (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Acupoint injection therapy plus massage for PD is effective and better than simple oral administration of Ibuprofen sustained-release capsule.

OBJECTIVE:There is increasing interest in complementary and alternative medicine generaly, and especialy by those affected by chronic diseases, such as diabetes melitus. We aimed to determine the prevalence and pattern of complementary and alternative medicine use among patients suffering from diabetes melitus in Shiraz, southern Iran. Another objective was to explore associated factors for use of complementary and alternative medicine among patients with diabetes melitus.
METHODS: A 19-item semi-structured questionnaire (open- and close-ended) was administered to 239 patients with diabetes melitus in this cross-sectional study. It was carried out in two outpatient diabetes clinics afifliated with the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
RESULTS:One hundred and eighty patients (75.3%) used at least one type of complementary and alternative medicine in the last year prior to the interview. Patients with diabetes melitus who were living in a large family (≥ 5 members), not taking insulin, and believed that complementary and alternative medicine have synergistic effects with conventional medicine, were independently and signiifcantly (P values: 0.02, 0.04, and 0.01, respectively) more likely to use complementary and alternative medicine. Most of the users (97.7%) reported use of herbal preparations, and 89.4% of users did not change their medication, neither in medication schedule nor its dosage.
CONCLUSION: The use of complementary and alternative medicine, especialy herbal remedies, is popular among diabetes patients in Shiraz, Iran. This use is associated with patients’ family size, type of conventional medications and their view about concomitant use of complementary and conventional medicine.

Autophagy is a lysosome-mediated degradation process for non-essential or damaged celular constituents, playing an important homeostatic role in cel survival, differentiation and development to maintain homeostasis. Autophagy is involved in tumors as wel as neurodegenerative, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Recently, active compounds from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) have been found to modulate the levels of autophagy in tumor cels, nerve cels, myocardial cels and endothelial cels. Ischemic stroke is a major cause of neurological disability and places a heavy burden on family and society. Regaining function can signiifcantly reduce dependence and improve the quality of life of stroke survivors. In healthy cels, autophagy plays a key role in adapting to nutritional deprivation and eliminating aggregated proteins, however inappropriate activation of autophagy may lead to cel death in cerebral ischemia. This paper reviews the process and the molecular basis of autophagy, as wel as its roles in cerebral ischemia and the roles of TCM in modulating its activity.

Liver fibrosis is a primary cause of liver cirrhosis, and even hepatocarcinoma. Recently, the usage of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) has been investigated to improve liver ifbrosis. It has been reported that the differentiation, proliferation and migration of MSCs can be regulated by traditional Chinese medicine treatment;however, the mechanisms are still unclear. In this article, the authors review the characteristics of MSCs such as multidirectional differentiation and homing, and its application in animal experiments and clinical trials. The authors also list areas that need further investigation, and look at the future prospects of clinical application of MSCs.

To meet community demands with optimal Chinese and conventional medical treatment, the University of Hong Kong is promoting integrative medicine by developing Chinese medicine programmes that train students of both Western and Chinese medicine. The programmes emphasize multi-disciplinary training and interaction between the two therapeutic approaches, enabling students to establish reliable, consistent, and respectful mutual cooperation in their future careers.

Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) serotype 2, 3 and 8 vectors are the most promising liver-tropic AAV serotype vectors. Liver diseases are signiifcant problems in China. However, to date, few studies on AAV neutralizing antibodies (Nabs) were working with the Chinese population or with the rAAV3 vectors. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of Nabs in Chinese population against wild-type AAV2, AAV3 and AAV8 capsids as wel as additional two AAV3 variants. In addition, we performed a preliminary analysis to investigate the potential inlfuence of traditional Chinese medicine body constitutions on AAV Nabs. Our work demonstrated that the majority of healthy Chinese subjects were positive for AAV Nabs, with the order of AAV2 > AAV3 = AAVLK03 > AAV8. There was no difference between: 1) AAV3 and its variants; 2) male and female subjects; and 3) different age cohorts (≤ 35, 36–50, and ≥ 51 years old). People in the Qi-deifciency constitution had signiifcantly increased AAV8 Nabs than people in the Gentleness constitution. Our studies may have impact on the future clinical design of AAV-based gene therapy in the Chinese population.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is commonly used in treating liver diseases worldwide, especially in China. The advantages of using TCM for treatment of liver diseases include: protecting hepatocytes, inhibiting hepatic inlfammation and antiifbrosis in the liver. In this article, we introduce TCM herbal preparations from the Chinese materia medica (such as Fuzheng Huayu) that are typically used for the treatment of liver diseases. Literature surrounding the mechanisms of TCM therapy for treatment of liver diseases is presented and discussed. We propose that side effects of herbal compounds are often under-appreciated, and that more care should be taken in the prescription of potentially hepatotoxic medicines. Further, to deepen the understanding of TCM mechanisms, new techniques and methodologies must be developed. Future studies will lead to the enhancement of clinical outcomes of TCM. As complementary and alternative therapies, TCMs will play an expanding role in the future of liver disease treatment.

Advancement in microarray technology can revolutionize many aspects of medicine. Microarrays have applications in gene expression profiling, genotyping, mutation analysis, gene identification, and pharmacology. This paper provides a brief review on the use of microarrays in studies of cancer, infectious diseases, chromosome disorders, neurological/mental disorders, and drugs, along with a prospect on its great potential in diagnosis, prognosis and the treatment of human diseases.

Objective: To investigate the effect and clinical significance of Xuebijing injection on periph-eral T-lymphocyte subpopulations in patients with severe trauma.Methods: Thirty-three patients with severe trauma were randomly divided into a control group (n=16) and a treatment group (n= 17).The patients of two groups were all treated conventionally, and the only difference was that Xuebijing injection was given to patients of the treatment group.The CD_4~+ and CD_8~+ subpopulations of T-lympho-cyte in the peripheral blood were detected respectively on admission, 3rd and 5th days after trauma by double anti-body labeling and flow cytometry.Results: The CD_4~+ T-lymphocytes and CD_4~+/CD_8~+ ra-tio of peripheral blood in patients with severe trauma de-creased markedly on the 3rd and 5th days after trauma.Furthermore, compared with control group, the peripheral CD_4~+ T-lymphocytes and CD_4~+/CD_8~+ ratio of treatment group renewed obviously on the 5th day after trauma, and showed statistical differences (P<0.05).Conclusion: In the treatment of patients with severe trauma, the early use of Xuebijing injection is effective in correcting disorder or suppression of T-lymphocyte sub-populations regulating network, and promoting a more bal-anced profile of immunologic function.