Effects of regulating gut microbiota by electroacupuncture in the chronic unpredictable mild stress rat model.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) treatment on depression, and the potential molecular mechanism of EA in depression-like behaviors rats.

Methods: A total of 40 male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into three groups: normal control, chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS), and EA (CUMS + EA). The rats in CUMS and EA groups underwent chronic stress for 10 weeks, and EA group rats received EA treatment for 4 weeks starting from week 7.

Excessive umbilical cord coiling confers risk of elevated nocturnal blood pressure and severe/early-onset preeclampsia.

Background: The associations between umbilical cord coiling, feto-placental vascular resistance and maternal blood pressure (BP) are not well understood.

Method: We retrospectively analyzed 502 pregnant women suspected of hypertensive disorders in the third trimester from a hospital-based cohort, who underwent ambulatory BP monitoring and umbilical artery Doppler velocimetry examinations within 14 days before delivery. By applying quantile regression, a significant quantile-dependent positive association between umbilical cord coiling index and umbilical artery pulsatility index (UAPIMOM; converted to multiples of median) was observed from above 0.

Trimester-Specific Weight Gain and Midpregnancy Diastolic Blood Pressure Rebound During Normotensive Pregnancy.

The longitudinal exposure-response relationship between trimester-specific gestational weight gain (GWG) and blood pressure (BP) during pregnancy is not well understood. We retrospectively assessed 1112 uncomplicated, normotensive pregnant women whose body weight and BP were measured from 12 to 40 weeks of gestation from a hospital-based cohort. By using growth curve modeling, a J-shaped pattern dominated diastolic BP (DBP) changing dynamics, with a midpregnancy drop at 20 to 22 weeks followed by a rebound.

Antidepressant effect of electroacupuncture regulates signal targeting in the brain and increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels.

Electroacupuncture improves depressive behavior faster and with fewer adverse effects than antidepressant medication. However, the antidepressant mechanism of electroacupuncture remains poorly understood. Here, we established a rat model of chronic unpredicted mild stress, and then treated these rats with electroacupuncture at (EX-HN3) and (DU20) with sparse waves at 2 Hz and 0.

Prehypertension During Normotensive Pregnancy and Postpartum Clustering of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: A Prospective Cohort Study.

The nonstratification of blood pressure (BP) levels may underestimate future cardiovascular risk in pregnant women who present with BP levels in the range of prehypertension (120-139/80-89 mm Hg). We prospectively evaluated the relationship between multiple antepartum BP measurements (from 11(+0) to 13(+6) weeks' gestation to term) and the occurrence of postpartum metabolic syndrome in 507 normotensive pregnant women after a live birth. By using latent class growth modeling, we identified the following 3 distinctive diastolic BP (DBP) trajectory groups: the low-J-shaped group (34.

A microarray study of chronic unpredictable mild stress rat blood serum with electro-acupuncture intervention.

In the present study, we investigated the changes of microRNA (miRNA) expression upon depression and electro-acupuncture (EA) intervention in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) rats using microarray analysis. Results showed that EA intervention remarkably improved behavioral indexes in terms of crossing number, rearing number, sucrose preference and body weight of CUMS rats. Microarray analysis revealed that a total of 153 differentially expressed miRNAs were regulated by CUMS, and the expression of 180 differentially expressed miRNAs was changed after EA intervention.

A comparison study of metformin only therapy and metformin combined with Chinese medicine jianyutangkang therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes: A randomized placebo-controlled double-blind study.

The aim of this 26-week, double-blind, controlled clinical trial, was to compare the efficacy of monotherapy (metformin only) with combination therapy (Chinese medicine prescription JianYuTangKang [JYTK] plus metformin) on type 2 diabetes. All patients on metformin were randomized to receive authenticated JYTK (59 patients) or placebo JYTK (53 patients), 4.5g daily, for 26 weeks.

[Evaluation of the diagnostic criteria of gestational metabolic syndrome and analysis of the risk factors].

Objectives: To investigate gestational multiple metabolic abnormalities aggregation and diagnostic criteria for gestational metabolic syndrome (GMS), and to analyze the risk factors of GMS.

Methods: A cohort study recruiting 309 pregnant women with preeclampsia, 627 pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and 1245 normal pregnant women was performed from January 2008 to December 2011 in Guangdong Women and Children's Hospital. Information regarding age, gestational weeks, basic blood pressure, admission blood pressure, height and body mass index(BMI)before pregnancy was recorded.

Serum levels of the adipokine chemerin in preeclampsia.

Objective: Hypothesising that maternal serum chemerin levels may be associated with preeclampsia, we investigated whether maternal serum chemerin levels differ between preeclamptic and healthy pregnant women. We also investigated the association of serum chemerin with metabolic parameters and the severity of the disease.

Methods: This case-control study included 144 women (72 healthy and 72 preeclamptic women) in the third trimester of a singleton pregnancy.

The relevance between symptoms and magnetic resonance imaging analysis of the hippocampus of depressed patients given electro-acupuncture combined with Fluoxetine intervention - A randomized, controlled trial.

Objective: To probe the relevance between depressive symptoms and hippocampal volume and its metabolites detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in depressed patients who were given electro-acupuncture (EA) combined with Fluoxetine before and after treatment.

Methods: A randomized, controlled trial was conducted. A total of 75 cases of mild or moderate depression were randomly assigned to two groups: the EA group which received EA combined with Fluoxetine; the Fluoxetine group which received Fluoxetine only as the control.

[Effect of Shuyusan on neuropeptide Y and serotonin expression in the hippocampal neurons of rats with chronic mild unpredictable stress-induced depression].

Objective: To investigate the effect of Shuyusan decoction on neuropeptide Y (NPY) and serotonin (5-HT) expression in the hippocampus and plasma of rats with chronic mild unpredictable stressors depression.

Methods: Fifty Wistar rats were randomly divided into 5 groups, namely the normal control group, model group, fluoxetine group, and high- and low-dose Shuyusan groups. Except for those in the normal control group, all the rats were subjected to chronic mild unpredicted stress for 21 consecutive days with corresponding treatments.

Efficacy evaluation for depression with somatic symptoms treated by electroacupuncture combined with Fluoxetine.

Objective: This study is to investigate the clinical therapeutic effects and safety of treating mild or moderate depression with somatic symptoms with electroacupuncture combined with Fluoxetine.

Methods: 95 cases of mild or moderate depression with somatic symptoms were randomly divided into a Fluoxetine group, and an electroacupuncture plus Fluoxetine group. Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) was used for the assessment of clinical therapeutic effects and Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS) was used for assessment of adverse reactions.

[Effects of electroacupuncture at different acupoint groups on behavior activity and p-CREB expression in hippocampus in the rat of depression].

Objective: To observe therapeutic effects and mechanisms at different acupoint groups for treatment of the depression rat.

Methods: Fifty Wistar rats were randomly divided into a normal group, a model group, a body acupoint group, a scalp acupoint group and a Fluoxetine hydrochloride group, 10 cases in each group. Depression rat model was established by using chronic unpredictable mild stress stimulation combined with lonely breeding for 21 days.

[Assessment of effectiveness of electroacupuncture and fluoxetine for treatment of depression with physical symptoms].

Objective: To study on clinical therapeutic effect and safety of electroacupuncture and Fluoxetine for treatment of mild or moderate depression with physical symptoms.

Methods: Seventy-five cases were randomly divided into a western medicine group (group A), an electroacupunctue group(group B) and an electroacupuncture plus medicine group (group C), 25 cases in each group. The group A were treated by oral Fluoxetine, 20 mg each day; the group B by electroacupuncture with Baihui (GV 20) and Yintang (EX-HN 3) selected as main points; the group C by oral administration of Fluoxetine plus electroacupunctue.