Tai Chi Qigong training appears to have beneficial effects in terms of the quality of life and physical functioning of elderly subjects with knee osteoarthritis. However, more rigorous trials are needed to confirm the efficacy of this training for patients with osteoarthritis of the knee.

Summary Emerging evidence has shown that noncoding RNAs, particularly microRNAs (miRNAs), contribute to the pathogenesis of mood and anxiety disorders, although the molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. Here we show altered levels of miR-17-92 in adult hippocampal neural progenitors have a significant impact on neurogenesis and anxiety- and depression-related behaviors in mice. miR-17-92 deletion in adult neural progenitors decreases neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus, while its overexpression increases neurogenesis. miR-17-92 affects neurogenesis by regulating genes in the glucocorticoid pathway, especially serum- and glucocorticoid-inducible protein kinase-1 (Sgk1). miR-17-92 knockout mice show anxiety- and depression-like behaviors, whereas miR-17-92 overexpressing mice exhibit anxiolytic and antidepression-like behaviors. Furthermore, we show that miR-17-92 expression in the adult mouse hippocampus responds to chronic stress, and miR-17-92 rescues proliferation defects induced by corticosterone in hippocampal neural progenitors. Our study uncovers a crucial role for miR-17-92 in adult neural progenitors through regulation of neurogenesis and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors.

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Background: Survivin, an inhibitor of apoptosis is expressed in several human cancers. Its expression is known to be associated with poor clinical outcome, but not widely studied in pancreatic cancer. We performed this study to determine the survivin expression in pancreatic cancer and its clinical significance as a prognostic factor.

We found that bee venom acupuncture effectively protected dopaminergic neurons against 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine toxicity, possibly through inhibition of Jun activation. Our results suggest that bee venom acupuncture could be a potential preventive agent for Parkinson's disease.

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Parkinson's disease (PD) is caused by the selective loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) and the depletion of striatal dopamine (DA). Acupuncture, as an alternative therapy for PD, has beneficial effects in both PD patients and PD animal models, although the underlying mechanisms therein remain uncertain. The present study investigated whether acupuncture treatment affected dopamine neurotransmission in a PD mouse model using 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP). We found that acupuncture treatment at acupoint GB34 improved motor function with accompanying dopaminergic neuron protection against MPTP but did not restore striatal dopamine depletion. Instead, acupuncture treatment increased dopamine release that in turn, may lead to the enhancement of dopamine availability in the synaptic cleft. Moreover, acupuncture treatment mitigated MPTP-induced abnormal postsynaptic changes, suggesting that acupuncture treatment may increase postsynaptic dopamine neurotransmission and facilitate the normalization of basal ganglia activity. These results suggest that the acupuncture-induced enhancement of synaptic dopamine availability may play a critical role in motor function improvement against MPTP.

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