Objective: To investigate the anti-obesity effects of the pomegranate leaf extract (PLE) in a mouse model of high-fat diet induced obesity and hyperlipidemia. Design: For the anti-obesity experiment, male and female ICR mice were fed with a high-fat diet to induce obesity. When the weight of the high-fat diet group was 20% higher than the normal diet group, the animals were treated with 400 or 800 mg/kg/ day of PLE for 5 weeks. Body weight and daily food intake were measured regularly during the experimental period. The various adipose pads were weighed and serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), glucose and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured after 5 weeks, treatment with PLE. In the fat absorption experiment, both the normal and obese mice were given 0.5 ml lipid emulsion and PLE at a dose of 800 mg/kg at the same time. Serial serum TG levels were measured at times 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 h after the treatment. TGs in fecal excretions were measured after the mice were orally given a lipid emulsion. Effects of PLE and its isolated compounds (ellagic acid and tannic acid) on pancreatic lipase activity were examined in vitro.Results: The PLE-treated groups showed a significant decrease in body weight, energy intake and various adipose pad weight percents and serum, TC, TG, glucose levels and TC/HDL-C ratio after 5 weeks treatment. Furthermore, PLE significantly attenuated the raising of the serum TG level and inhibited the intestinal fat absorption in mice given a fat emulsion orally. PLE showed a significant difference in decreasing the appetite of obese mice fed a high-fat diet, but showed no effect in mice fed a normal diet. Conclusion: PLE can inhibit the development of obesity and hyperlipidemia in high-fat diet induced obese mice. The effects appear to be partly mediated by inhibiting the pancreatic lipase activity and suppressing energy intake. PLE may be a novel appetite suppressant that only affects obesity owing to a high-fat diet.

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Berberine is one kind of isoquinoline alkaloid with anti-apoptotic effects on the neurons suffering ischemia. To address the explanation for these activities, the berberine-induced cell cycle arrest during neurons suffering ischemia/reperfusion had been studied in the present study. According to the in vitro neurons with oxygen-glucose deprivation and in vivo ICR mice with cerebral ischemia/reperfusion, it was found that berberine could protect the mRNA of retinoblastoma (Rb) from degradation through its function on the poly(A) tail. The prolonged half-life of retinoblastoma 1 (gene of Rb, RB1) mRNA level secures the protein level of retinoblastoma, which facilitates cell cycle arrest of neurons in the process of ischemia/reperfusion and subsequently avoids cells entering in the apoptotic process. The poly(A) tail of RB1 mRNA, as a newly identified target of berberine, could help people focus on the interaction between berberine and mRNA to further understand the biological activities and functions of berberine.

Purpose: To explore the long-term clinical efficacy and safety of transurethral plasmakinetic resection of the prostate (PKRP) for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Patients and Methods: A total of 550 patients with BPH who had undergone PKRP from October 2006 to September 2009 were enrolled in this study. All patients were evaluated at baseline and follow-up (3,12,24, 36, 48, 60 months postoperatively) by peak flow rate (Qmax), postvoid residual (PVR), quality of life (QoL), International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), and Overactive Bladder Symptom Score (OABSS). Operative details and postoperative complications regarded as safety outcomes were documented. Results: A total of 467 patients completed the 5-year follow-up. The mean duration of surgery was 36.43 minutes, mean catheterization time was 48.81 hours, mean hospital stay was 4.21 days. At 60 months postoperatively, the mean Qmax increased from 6.94 mL/s at baseline to 19.28 mL/s, the mean PVR decreased from 126.33 mL to 10.45 mL, the mean IPSS score decreased from 15.79 to 7.51, the mean QoL score decreased from 4.36 to 1.91, and the mean OABSS score decreased from 6.39 to 3.65 (P < 0.001), respectively. In perioperative complications, the blood transfusion rate was 2.7%, urinary tract infection rate was 3.6%; no transurethral resection syndrome (TUR syndrome) occurred. In late complications, urethral stricture rate was 5.4%, recurrent bladder outlet obstruction rate was 2.1%, and the reoperation rate was 4.5%. Conclusions: PKRP is based on conventional monopolar transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) and uses a bipolar plasmakinetic system. Our results indicate that the long-term clinical efficacy and safety of PKRP for BPH are remarkable. In particular, the incidence of urethral stricture, recurrent bladder outlet obstruction, and reoperation is low. We suggest that PKRP is a reliable minimally invasive technique that may be the preferred procedure for the treatment of patients with BPH.

The purpose of the present study is to confirm the protective effect of berberine (BBR) on gastrointestinal injury caused by acute heavy alcohol exposure, an effect that has not been reported previously. Our research details how BBR protects against gastrointestinal injuries from acute alcohol exposure using both in vivo and in vitro experiments. Acute high alcohol concentrations lead to obvious damage to the gastrointestinal mucosa, resulting in necrosis of the intestinal mucosa. Oral administration of BBR was able to significantly reduce this alcohol-induced damage, inhibit increases of alcohol-induced TNFα and IL-1β expression in gastrointestinal mucosa as well as their upstream signals TLR2 and TLR4, and regulate cytokines that modulate tight junctions. Alcohol consumption is a popular human social behavior worldwide, and the present study reports a comprehensive mechanism by which BBR protects against gastrointestinal injuries from alcohol stress, providing people with a novel application of BBR.

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Aims: To investigate the prevalence of overactive bladder (OAB) and assess its risk factors in 5-to 14-year-old Chinese children. Methods: A cross-sectional study of OAB prevalence was performed by distributing 11 800 anonymous self-administered questionnaires to parents in five provinces of mainland China from July to October 2018. The questionnaires included questions on sociodemographics, history of urinary tract infection (UTI), lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), family history of LUTS, bowel symptoms, and details about the elimination communication (EC) start time.OAB was defined as urgency and increased the daytime frequency with or without urinary incontinence. Results: A total of 10 133 questionnaires qualified for statistical analysis. The overall prevalence of OAB was 9.01% and decreased with age, from 12.40% at 5 years to 4.55% at 14 years (χ 2 trend = 88.899; P < .001). The proportion of dry OAB increased with age, whereas the proportion of wet OAB decreased. A lateonset of EC was associated with a high OAB prevalence (χ 2 trend = 39.802; P < .001). Children with obesity, a history of UTI, nocturnal enuresis (NE), a family history of LUTS, constipation, and fecal incontinence had a higher prevalence of OAB than did normal children (P < .05).Conclusion: Obesity, a history of UTI, NE, a family history of LUTS, and bowel symptoms are risk factors associated with OAB. Starting EC before 12 months of age might help reduce the prevalence of OAB in children. K E Y W O R D S children, elimination communication, overactive bladder, prevalence

Purpose To determine longitudinal relationships between lumbar vertebral bone marrow permeability and marrow adipose tissue in a rabbit diabetes model by using quantitative dynamic contrast agent-enhanced (DCE) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and iterative decomposition of water and fat with the echo asymmetry and least-squares estimation quantitation (IDEAL IQ) sequence. Materials and Methods Twenty rabbits were randomly assigned to the diabetic (n = 10) or control (n = 10) group. All rabbits underwent sagittal MR imaging of the lumbar region at fixed time points (0, 4, 8, 12, and 16 weeks after alloxan injection). A linear mixed-effects model was used to analyze fat fraction (FF) and permeability parameter changes for 16 months after baseline. These parameters were compared between the two groups by using an independent-samples t test. Correlation of DCE MR imaging parameters with FF and with microvessel density (MVD) was analyzed by using the Spearman correlation coefficient. All statistical analyses were performed with software. Results Twelve weeks after injection, transfer constant (K) and rate constant (K) were markedly and significantly increased, while fractional plasma volume (V) significantly decreased. The volume of extravascular extracellular space (V) decreased significantly after 16 weeks in the diabetic group. MVD was negatively correlated with K and K and positively correlated with V and V, while FF was positively correlated with K and K and negatively correlated with V and V (P < .05 for all). Conclusion DCE MR imaging and the IDEAL IQ sequence can be used for quantitative evaluation of changes in vertebral microvascular permeability and vertebral fat deposition in alloxan-induced diabetic rabbits. This variation is highly associated with increased vertebral fat deposition. RSNA, 2017 Online supplemental material is available for this article.