Assessment of diabetes care and the healthcare system in economically and transport underdeveloped rural mountain areas of western China: A cross-sectional survey.

Background: The aim of the present study was to assess the quality of diabetes care and characteristics of the healthcare system in underdeveloped rural mountain areas of western China.

Methods: Questionnaires were used to collect data from 288 diabetic patients with a multistage cluster sampling method in Zhongjiang County (Sichuan Province) between October 2009 and April 2010. Sixty-two village clinics, 23 town health centers, and a county central hospital were included to assess the availability of diabetes-related medical resources, in addition to diabetes-related medical insurance, reimbursement policies, and manpower.

Chinese herbal medicines for hypothyroidism.

Background: The reduced production of thyroid hormones is the main feature of the clinical state termed hypothyroidism. In Chinese philosophical and medical theory, it results from Yang deficiency. Chinese herbal medicines (CHM) are thought to restore Yang and have been used in China to treat hypothyroidism for many years.

Activation of PPARδ promotes mitochondrial energy metabolism and decreases basal insulin secretion in palmitate-treated β-cells.

The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor δ (PPARδ) regulates the expression of genes involved in cellular lipid and cell energy metabolism in many metabolically active tissues, such as liver, muscle, and fat, and plays a role in the cellular response to stress and environmental stimuli. The particular role of PPARδ in insulin-secreting β-cells, however, is not well understood; we recently identified the cell-specific role of PPARδ on mitochondrial energy metabolism and insulin secretion in lipotoxic β-cells. After treatment of HIT-T15 cells, a syrian hamster pancreatic β-cell line, with high concentrations of palmitate and/or the specific PPARδ agonist GW501516, we detected the gene expression changes for transcripts, such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1 (PGC-1α), nuclear respiratory factor 1 (NRF-1), mitochondrial transcription factor A (mtTFA), the protein levels of the mitochondria uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2), mitochondrial morphology, the insulin secretion capacity and ATP/ADP ratio.

Activation of PPARdelta up-regulates fatty acid oxidation and energy uncoupling genes of mitochondria and reduces palmitate-induced apoptosis in pancreatic beta-cells.

Recent evidence indicates that decreased oxidative capacity, lipotoxicity, and mitochondrial aberrations contribute to the development of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta (PPARdelta) activation on lipid oxidation, mitochondrial function, and insulin secretion in pancreatic beta-cells. After HIT-T15 cells (a beta-cell line) were exposed to high concentrations of palmitate and GW501516 (GW; a selective agonist of PPARdelta), we found that administration of GW increased the expression of PPARdelta mRNA.

Danazol for uterine fibroids.

Background: Uterine fibroids (myomas, fibromyomas, leiomyomas) are the most common benign tumours of the female genital tract. Danazol, a synthetic isoxazole derivative chemically related to 17-ethinyl testosterone, has been used for many years for the treatment of women with uterine fibroids.

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of danazol in women with uterine fibroids.