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Effect of probiotics supplementation combined with WeChat platform health management on nutritional status, inflammatory factors, and quality of life in patients with mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis: a randomized trial.
Ou, Q, Wang, L, Wang, K, Shao, P
Annals of palliative medicine. 2021;(6):6606-6616
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a refractory disease which is difficult to cure, is increasing in incidence, and is expensive to manage. The impact of long-term remission and recurrence in UC patients can cause a loss of confidence in patients regarding the efficacy of treatment and a lack of compliance, which creates a vicious circle. There is a lack of research on the nutritional status and quality of life (QOL) of UC patients in China. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of probiotics supplementation combined with WeChat platform health management on the nutritional status, inflammatory factor levels, and QOL of patients with mild to moderate UC. METHODS We enrolled 150 patients diagnosed with mild to moderate UC in the outpatient and inpatient department of the Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University between January 2018 to December 2020. Patients were randomly divided into an intervention group (probiotics supplement combined with WeChat platform) and a control group (routine follow-up). Changes to the nutritional status, inflammatory factor levels, and QOL of patients at discharge and 12 weeks after discharge were compared. RESULTS After 12 weeks of intervention, the nutritional status, inflammatory factor levels, and QOL scores of the two groups were improved compared with those before 12 weeks. Nutritional status related indicators (PA, ALB, and TP) of the intervention group were significantly higher than those of the control group (P<0.05); the inflammatory factors (IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α) of the intervention group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.05); the SF-36 scores (PF, RP, and SF) in the intervention group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P<0.05); and the IBDQ scores (BS, SS, and EF) in the intervention group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Probiotics supplements combined with WeChat platform health management have a better curative effect on UC than conventional treatment by significantly improving the nutritional status of patients, reducing the level of inflammatory factors, and improving the QOL of patients. This intervention adds value to the management of UC patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2100046446.
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Within-trial cost-effectiveness of lifestyle intervention using a 3-tier shared care approach for pregnancy outcomes in Chinese women with gestational diabetes.
Li, W, Zhang, C, Leng, J, Shao, P, Tian, H, Zhang, F, Dong, L, Yu, Z, Chan, JCN, Hu, G, et al
PloS one. 2020;(8):e0237738
Abstract
This study assessed within-trial cost-effectiveness of a shared care program (SC, n = 339) for pregnancy outcomes compared to usual care (UC, n = 361), as implemented in a randomized trial of Chinese women with gestational diabetes (GDM). SC consisted of an individualized dietary advice and physical activity counseling program. The UC was a one-time group education program. The effectiveness was measured by number needed to treat (NNT) to prevent one macrosomia/large for gestational age (LGA) infant. The cost-effectiveness was measured by incremental cost-effectiveness ratio in terms of cost (2012 Chinese Yuan/US dollar) per case of macrosomia and LGA prevented. The study took both a health care system and a societal perspective. This study found that the NNT was 16/14 for macrosomia/LGA. The incremental cost for treating a pregnant woman was ¥1,877 ($298) from a health care system perspective and ¥2,056 ($327) from a societal perspective. The cost of preventing a case of macrosomia/LGA from the two corresponding perspectives were ¥30,032/¥26,278 ($4,775/$4,178) and ¥32,896/¥28,784 ($5,230/$4,577), respectively. Considering the potential severe adverse health and economic consequences of a macrosomia/LGA infant, our findings suggest that implementing this lifestyle intervention for women with GDM is an efficient use of health care resources.
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Mixed Spices at Culinary Doses Have Prebiotic Effects in Healthy Adults: A Pilot Study.
Lu, QY, Rasmussen, AM, Yang, J, Lee, RP, Huang, J, Shao, P, Carpenter, CL, Gilbuena, I, Thames, G, Henning, SM, et al
Nutrients. 2019;11(6)
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An increasing body of evidence suggests that the gut microbiota has a profound impact on human health. While the microbiome of a healthy individual is relatively stable, gut microbial dynamics can be influenced by host lifestyle and dietary choices. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of mixed spices (cinnamon, oregano, ginger, black pepper, and cayenne pepper) at culinary doses consumed over 2 weeks in a standardized 5g capsule on the production of gut microbiota and short-chain fatty acids The study is a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind pilot study carried out with a total of 31 healthy women and men aged between 18 and 65. The subjects were randomly allocated to one of the two intervention groups. Results indicate that daily intake of 5g of mixed spices for 2 weeks in healthy subjects resulted in a significant reduction in the relative abundance of the phylum Firmicutes (bacteria), and a trend of increasing in phylum Bacteroidetes (bacteria) as compared with a matched control group. Authors conclude that a mixture of spices at culinary doses affects the composition of gut microbiota.
Abstract
Spices were used as food preservatives prior to the advent of refrigeration, suggesting the possibility of effects on microbiota. Previous studies have shown prebiotic activities in animals and in vitro, but there has not been a demonstration of prebiotic or postbiotic effects at culinary doses in humans. In this randomized placebo-controlled study, we determined in twenty-nine healthy adults the effects on the gut microbiota of the consumption daily of capsules containing 5 g of mixed spices at culinary doses by comparison to a matched control group consuming a maltodextrin placebo capsule. The 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing data were used for microbial characterization. Spice consumption resulted in a significant reduction in Firmicutes abundance (p < 0.033) and a trend of enrichment in Bacteroidetes (p < 0.097) compared to placebo group. Twenty-six operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were different between the spice and placebo groups after intervention. Furthermore, there was a significant negative correlation between fecal short-chain fatty acid propionate concentration and Firmicutes abundance in spice intervention group (p < 0.04). The production of individual fecal short-chain fatty acid was not significantly changed by spice consumption in this study. Mixed spices consumption significantly modified gut microbiota, suggesting a prebiotic effect of spice consumption at culinary doses.
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Non-Chloride in Situ Preparation of Nano-Cuprous Oxide and Its Effect on Heat Resistance and Combustion Properties of Calcium Alginate.
Shao, P, Xu, P, Zhang, L, Xue, Y, Zhao, X, Li, Z, Li, Q
Polymers. 2019;(11)
Abstract
With Cu2+ complexes as precursors, nano-cuprous oxide was prepared on a sodium alginate template excluded of Cl- and based on which the calcium alginate/nano-cuprous oxide hybrid materials were prepared by a Ca2+ crosslinking and freeze-drying process. The thermal degradation and combustion behavior of the materials were studied by related characterization techniques using pure calcium alginate as a comparison. The results show that the weight loss rate, heat release rate, peak heat release rate, total heat release rate and specific extinction area of the hybrid materials were remarkably lower than pure calcium alginate, and the flame-retardant performance was significantly improved. The experimental data indicates that nano-cuprous oxide formed a dense protective layer of copper oxide, calcium carbonate and carbon by lowering the initial degradation temperature of the polysaccharide chain during thermal degradation and catalytically dehydrating to char in the combustion process, and thereby can isolate combustible gases, increase carbon residual rates, and notably reduce heat release and smoke evacuation.
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The influence of genetic variants of sorafenib on clinical outcomes and toxic effects in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma.
Qin, C, Cao, Q, Li, P, Wang, S, Wang, J, Wang, M, Chu, H, Zhou, L, Li, X, Ye, D, et al
Scientific reports. 2016;:20089
Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether genetic variants that influence angiogenesis and sorafenib pharmacokinetics are associated with clinical outcomes and toxic effects in advanced renal cell carcinoma patients treated with this drug. One hundred patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma were enrolled. Forty-two polymorphisms in 15 genes were selected for genotyping and analyzed for associations with progression-free survival, overall survival, and toxic effects. We found that rs1570360 in VEGF and rs2239702 in VEGFR2 were significantly associated with progression-free. Specifically, patients carrying the variant genotypes (AG + AA) of these two polymorphisms both had an unfavorable progression-free. In addition, compared with those with the rs2239702 GG genotype, patients with the AG + AA genotype suffered an unfavorable OS. We found that the VEGF rs2010963 CG + GG genotypes had a significantly increased risk of hand-foot syndrome, and the ABCB1 rs1045642 CT + TT genotypes had an increased risk of high blood pressure. Our results suggest that polymorphisms in VEGF and VEGFR2 are associated with sorafenib clinical outcomes, and polymorphisms in VEGF and ABCB1 are associated with sorafenib-related toxicities. Larger studies are warranted to validate our findings.
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Metformin treatment of antipsychotic-induced dyslipidemia: an analysis of two randomized, placebo-controlled trials.
Wu, RR, Zhang, FY, Gao, KM, Ou, JJ, Shao, P, Jin, H, Guo, WB, Chan, PK, Zhao, JP
Molecular psychiatry. 2016;(11):1537-1544
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Abstract
Dyslipidemia is one of the most common adverse effects in schizophrenia patients treated with antipsychotics. However, there are no established effective treatments. In this study, data were pooled from two randomized, placebo-controlled trials, which were originally designed to examine the efficacy of metformin in treating antipsychotic-induced weight gain and other metabolic abnormalities. In total, 201 schizophrenia patients with dyslipidemia after being treated with an antipsychotic were assigned to take 1000 mg day-1 metformin (n=103) or placebo (n=98) for 24 weeks, with evaluation at baseline, week 12 and week 24. The primary outcome was the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels. After metformin treatment, the mean difference in the LDL-C value between metformin treatment and placebo was from 0.16 mmol l-1 at baseline to -0.86 mmol l-1 at the end of week 24, decreased by 1.02 mmol l-1 (P<0.0001); and 25.3% of patients in the metformin group had LDL-C ≥3.37 mmol l-1, which is significantly <64.8% in the placebo group (P<0.001) at week 24. Compared with the placebo, metformin treatment also have a significant effect on reducing weight, body mass index, insulin, insulin resistance index, total cholesterol and triglyceride, and increasing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The treatment effects on weight and insulin resistance appeared at week 12 and further improved at week 24, but the effects on improving dyslipidemia only significantly occurred at the end of week 24. We found that metformin treatment was effective in improving antipsychotic-induced dyslipidemia and insulin resistance, and the effects improving antipsychotic-induced insulin resistance appeared earlier than the reducing dyslipidemia.
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The G allele of CaSR R990G polymorphism increases susceptibility to urolithiasis and hypercalciuria: evidences from a comprehensive meta-analysis.
Liu, K, Wang, X, Ye, J, Qin, C, Shao, P, Zhang, W, Li, J, Yin, C
BioMed research international. 2015;:958207
Abstract
BACKGROUND The calcium-sensing receptor gene (CaSR) is a candidate to explain urolithiasis. A number of case-control studies were conducted to investigate associations between CaSR polymorphisms with risks of hypercalciuria and urolithiasis in humans. But the results were still inconsistent. METHODS A meta-analysis was performed to address this issue. Crude odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to estimate the strength of associations between CaSR polymorphisms and the risk of urolithiasis. The pooled standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% CI was used for the meta-analysis of CaSR polymorphisms and urine calcium concentration. RESULTS For urolithiasis association, the SS genotype of A986S polymorphism was a risk factor for urolithiasis in Asians and PHPT patients, but a protective factor in Caucasians. The GG genotype of R990 polymorphism was associated with an increased risk of urolithiasis, especially in Caucasians and healthy population. Regarding urine calcium concentration association, individuals with the G allele had a higher level of urine calcium than the noncarriers. CONCLUSIONS This meta-analysis revealed that the G allele of CaSR R990G polymorphism increases susceptibility to urolithiasis and hypercalciuria. The A986S and Q1011E polymorphisms were associated with urolithiasis and hypercalciuria in specific populations.