Integrative Analysis of the Gut Microbiota and Metabolome in Obese Mice with Electroacupuncture by 16S rRNA Gene Sequencing and HPLC-MS-based Metabolic Profiling.

Acupuncture has been used to treat numerous diseases such as obesity in China for thousands of years. Several mechanisms of acupuncture on obesity have been surveyed based on metabolomics, but the effects of acupuncture on the alterations in the gut flora are still unclear. In this study, an integrated approach based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing combined with high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) metabolic profiling was conducted to investigate the effects of acupuncture on high-fat-diet-induced obesity through the regulation of the relative abundances of gut microbiota and their relationships with biomarker candidates.

Differential expression of histamine receptors in the bladder wall tissues of patients with bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis - significance in the responsiveness to antihistamine treatment and disease symptoms.

Background: Activation of mast cells plays an important role in the pathogenesis of bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis (BPS/IC). Histamine, a mast cell-derived mediators, induced inflammation and hypersensitivity of the bladder. The present study investigated the expressions of histamine receptors in the bladder wall tissues of patients with BPS/IC, and its association with the effectiveness of antihistamine therapy and disease symptoms.

Microcatheter looping facilitates access to both the acutely angled parent artery and cerebral aneurysms for effective embolization.

Aneurysms with an acutely angled parent artery are difficult to access for coiling. This study aimed to investigate the safety and effectiveness of microcatheter looping for embolization of cerebral aneurysms with access difficulty. Ten patients (male:female=5:5) with cerebral aneurysms treated with the microcatheter looping technique were analyzed retrospectively.

The stent-assisted coil-jailing technique facilitates efficient embolization of tiny cerebral aneurysms.

Objective: Tiny cerebral aneurysms are difficult to embolize because the aneurysm's sac is too small for a single small coil, and coils within the aneurysm may escape from the confinement of a stent. This study was performed to introduce the stent-assisted coil-jailing technique and to investigate its effect on the coil embolization of tiny intracranial aneurysms.

Materials And Methods: Sixteen patients with tiny intracranial aneurysms treated with the stent-assisted coil-jailing technique between January 2011 and December 2013 were retrospectively reviewed and followed-up.