Testing nicotine gum for ulcerative colitis patients

Epidemiologic studies have documented an association between nonsmoking and ulcerative colitis and case reports have demonstrated that symptoms improve with smoking and worsen with removal of a nicotine source. A double-blind randomized crossover trial for individual ulcerative colitis patients (single-patient trial, or Nof 1 clinical trial) was designed to study the safety, patient acceptance, and the effectiveness of nicotine gum in improving patient symptoms and proctoscopic appearance of involved colon. Seven nonsmoking patients chewed up to 10 squares/day (20 mg) of nicotine gum or placebo gum for two weeks. Therapy was crossed-over every two weeks over the eight-week trial. Effectiveness was judged from comparisons between nicotine-gum and placebo-gum periods of patient self-reported symptoms at the conclusion of each two-week period using visual analog scales and proctoscopic appearance using ordered categorical scales. Three of seven patients, all three of whom were former smokers, demonstrated sufficient improvement without adverse effects to warrant institution of nicotine gum into their drug treatment regimens. Three patients demonstrated an uncertain response, despite tolerating the drug, and have not had nicotine gum added to their regimens. One patient could not tolerate the medication and was withdrawn from the study. No serious side effects were noted. We conclude that a randomized trial for an individual patient is a useful method for evaluating treatment regimens for ulcerative colitis and that nicotine gum may be effective therapy for individual patients with ulcerative colitis who demonstrate an objective response with few adverse effects.Dr. Silverstein is a Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation Clinical Scholar in General Internal Medicine.Research supported in part by the Gastrointestinal Research Foundation Junior Board.     

Food groups and bone health

Studies aimed at determining the relationship between key nutrients (especially calcium) and bone health have examined directly the effect of a specific nutrient (or, in some cases, various nutrients) commonly consumed in the human diet. Consideration of the foods man actually consumes rather than the nutrients contained within them is an alternative strategy that has been adopted in other disciplines examining the relationship between diet and disease. Two studies indicate that a high fruit and vegetable, intake is protective for the skeleton, whereas high candy consumption is associated with lower bone mass, irrespective of gender. These data also suggest that a high intake of fatty, sugary foods is detrimental to bone health around the time of menopause. Because milk and milk products provide greater than 50% of the total calcium in the Western diet as well as a number of other key nutrients including phosphorus, magnesium, and zinc, they have a fundamental role in bone health determination. Milk supplementation also improves the nutritional quality of postmenopausal women's diets to a greater extent than calcium. Data for alcohol consumption are also intriguing. Recently, a positive association was noted between tea drinking and bone mass in postmenopausal women and may point to the influence of flavonoids contained in tea on bone health.     

酚氨咖敏颗粒质量标准研究

目的完善酚氨咖敏颗粒的质量标准。方法采用薄层色谱(TLC)法对乙酰氨基酚、氨基比林、咖啡因及马来酸氯苯那敏进行定性鉴别。采用气相色谱(GC)法同时测定4种成分的含量,色谱柱为TR-1弹性石英毛细管柱(30 m×0. 32 mm,0. 25μm),程序升温(起始温度为180℃,保持1 min,再以8℃/min的速率升至240℃,保持2 min),氢火焰离子化检测器温度为260℃。结果 TLC法可同时鉴别酚氨咖敏颗粒中4种成分。对乙酰氨基酚、氨基比林、咖啡因及马来酸氯苯那敏质量浓度线性范围分别为186. 3~5 960μg/m L(r=0. 999 9),124. 9~3 996μg/m L(r=0. 999 9),38. 24~1 224μg/m L(r=1. 000 0)和2. 525~80. 80μg/m L(r=0. 999 9);平均加样回收率分别为98. 69%,99. 45%,99. 52%,101. 40%,RSD分别为1. 36%,1. 62%,1. 20%,1. 25%(n=9)。结论该方法简便快速、准确可靠,适用于酚氨咖敏颗粒中4种成分的定性、定量分析,可更全面地控制该制剂的质量。     

Biological evaluation of intervertebral disc cells in different formulations of gellan gum‐based hydrogels

Gellan gum (GG)‐based hydrogels are advantageous in tissue engineering not only due to their ability to retain large quantities of water and provide a similar environment to that of natural extracellular matrix (ECM), but also because they can gelify in situ in seconds. Their mechanical properties can be fine‐tuned to mimic natural tissues such as the nucleus pulposus (NP). This study produced different formulations of GG hydrogels by mixing varying amounts of methacrylated (GG‐MA) and high‐acyl gellan gums (HA‐GG) for applications as acellular and cellular NP substitutes. The hydrogels were physicochemically characterized by dynamic mechanical analysis. Degradation and swelling abilities were assessed by soaking in a phosphate buffered saline solution for up to 170 h. Results showed that as HA‐GG content increased, the modulus of the hydrogels decreased. Moreover, increases in HA‐GG content induced greater weight loss in the GG‐MA/HA‐GG formulation compared to GG‐MA hydrogel. Potential cytotoxicity of the hydrogel was assessed by culturing rabbit NP cells up to 7 days. An MTS assay was performed by seeding rabbit NP cells onto the surface of 3D hydrogel disc formulations. Viability of rabbit NP cells encapsulated within the different hydrogel formulations was also evaluated by Calcein‐AM and ATP assays. Results showed that tunable GG‐MA/HA‐GG hydrogels were non‐cytotoxic and supported viability of rabbit NP cells. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Caffeine alters resting‐state functional connectivity measured by blood oxygenation level‐dependent MRI

This study aimed to investigate the pharmacological effect of caffeine on functional connectivity measured by resting‐state blood oxygenation level‐dependent (BOLD) MRI in the motor cortex, visual cortex and default mode network (DMN). The protocols and procedures of the study were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of our institution. On a 3‐T clinical MR system, 20 healthy volunteers underwent imaging before and after oral ingestion of a 200‐mg over‐the‐counter caffeine pill (data from three individuals were excluded from further analysis because of excessive motion). The demographics of the remaining participants were as follows: female/male, 8/9; age, 21–35 years; non‐habitual caffeine consumers over the past 6 months. Functional connectivity was calculated using the general linear model, assessed in terms of connected area (voxels) and statistical significance (Student t‐values), and correlated with changes in regional cerebral blood flow as measured by arterial spin labeling MRI. Per‐subject data analysis showed that caffeine decreased functional connectivity in the motor/visual cortices, but its effects on DMN varied among subjects. Correlation analysis of the changes in functional connectivity and regional blood flow suggested that the effect of caffeine on BOLD functional connectivity was predominantly neural (motor/visual cortices) and partly vascular (DMN). Group analysis showed that, after caffeine ingestion, DMN involved more attentional networks, and more extrastriate areas were integrated into the functional connectivity of the visual cortex, which may be associated with the known pharmacological effect of caffeine in elevating alertness. Caffeine consumption should thus be considered in the experimental design and data interpretation of functional connectivity studies using resting‐state BOLD MRI. © 2014 The Authors. NMR in Biomedicine published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

枸橼酸咖啡因治疗早产儿呼吸窘迫综合征的临床疗效及对神经发育的影响

探讨不同枸橼酸咖啡因治疗方案对早产儿呼吸窘迫综合征的临床疗效和神经发育的影响,分析本院收治的80例呼吸窘迫综合征早产儿临床资料,在采用枸橼酸咖啡因负荷量(每天,20 mg/kg)24 h后,分别使用维持量为每天10 mg/kg枸橼酸咖啡因(为观察组)或使用每天5mg/kg维持量 (为对照组)。结果显示,与治疗前相比,两组治疗后β-内啡肽(β-EP)显著降低,智力发展指数(MDI)、精神运动指数(PDI)显著提高。与对照组比较,且观察组β-EP降低幅度较大。结果说明,枸橼酸咖啡因每天10 mg/kg维持量比5mg/kg更有利于提高早产儿呼吸窘迫综合征的临床疗效,同时可改善神经发育。     

氢核磁共振波谱法测定复方对乙酰氨基酚片中阿司匹林、咖啡因和对乙酰氨基酚

目的建立复方对乙酰氨基酚片中阿司匹林、咖啡因和对乙酰氨基酚测定的氢核磁共振波谱方法。方法采用氘代甲醇为溶剂,马来酸为内标。采用zg30脉冲序列获取~1H-NMR谱图。测试温度:300 K;谱宽:8 012 Hz;采集时间:4.01 s:弛豫时间:20 s,样品扫描次数:64次;空扫次数:2次。并采用HPLC法测定进行比较。结果阿司匹林、对乙酰氨基酚和咖啡因平均回收率分别为101.29%、101.68%、99.13%,RSD值分别为1.15%、1.73%、1.92%。qNMR法测定结果与HPLC法测定结果基本一致。结论氢核磁共振波谱法操作简便、快速,能准确测定复方对乙酰氨基酚片中阿司匹林、咖啡因和对乙酰氨基酚。