Comparative medicine East and West最新文献

The effects of Yunnan Bai Yao on platelets was investigated in the absence of plasma co-factors. Platelets were washed with Tyrode's solution and incubated with this herbal drug at 37 degrees C. It was found that this drug can, to a lesser extent, also induce the release of platelet constituents in the absence of the plasma co-factors. The possible action of this drug is also discussed.

The effects of Yunnan Bai Yao on blood platelets were studied at an ultrastructural level. This herbal drug is found to cause the release of platelet constituents which accounts for its hemostatic effects. The fine structural changes of platelets in response to this drug are also described.

The effects of orally administered Yunnan Bai Yao were studied on the bleeding time in rats and the blood clotting time in rabbits. Significant decreases were seen in both the bleeding and clotting times, observed over a 4 h period following administration. These effects were seen as early as 1/2 h and were still present at 4 h. Graded doses of Yunnan Bai Yao produced dose-related decreases in blood clotting times in the rabbits. The findings suggest that some active principle, able to affect the hemostatic mechanism, is absorbed after oral administration of the herbal preparation.

Berberine-containing herbs have been used in folk medicine to relieve neonatal jaundice. In the present investigation, the acute and chronic effects of berberine on bilirubin excretion were studied in rats. Acute doses of berberine were found to increase the secretion of bilirubin in experimental hyperbilrubinemia without affecting the UDP-glucuronyltransferase activity and BSP clearance. Continuous treatment abolished this effect. This apparent tolerance could be attributed to the inhibitory action of chronic berberine treatment on UDP-glucuronyltransferase activity, but the mechanism of this inhibition was not elucidated. Liver microsomal protein concentration, ethylmorphine N-demethylation, and BSP clearance were unchanged.

Acupuncture has been claimed to be effective in restoring consciousness in some comatose patients. Possible mechanisms to explain alleged acupuncture-induced arousal may include vasodilatory effects caused by sympathetic stimulation which leads to an augmentation of cerebral microcirculation and thereby improves oxygen supply to the brain tissue. Experiments were performed in ten albino rats (Wistar) employing PO2 microelectrodes which were inserted into the cortex of the animals through small burholes. Brain tissue PO2 was continuously recorded before, during, and after acupuncture. Stimulation of certain acupuncture loci (Go-26) resulted in immediate increase of PO2 in the frontal cortex of the rat brain. This effect was reproducible. The effect was comparable to that obtained with increase of inspiratory CO2 known to induce arterial vasodilatation and thus capillary perfusion pressure. The effect was more significant as compared to tissue PO2 increases obtained after increase of inspiratory oxygen concentration from 21% to 100%. It appears that acupuncture causes an increase of brain tissue perfusion which may be, at least in part, responsible for arousal of unconscious patients. Dilatation of cerebral vascular vessels and improvement of autoregulation in the brain by acupuncture stimulation may also explain the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of migraine headache.

The case history of a patient with thoracic vertebra fracture and following pain syndrome of the inferior limbs is reported. As a result of acupuncture treatment the pain was significantly reduced, but it could be reinduced by stimulation of the B1-31-33 loci during treatment. On needling the connecting locus of the related meridian of the bladder (Ki-6) the pain disappeared; otherwise stimulation of other loci showed a failure to stop the pain induced by the stimulation of B1-31-33 loci. It is remarkable that both the bladder's and the Ki-6 loci belong to the lumbal 4 spinal segment. The problem of the specific role of the acupuncture loci also is discussed.

Chinese medicine employs complex mixtures of remedies and does not appreciate the advantage or effectiveness of a single drug entity. Chinese herbal remedies are derived from animal, mineral, as well as arboreous and herbaceous sources. At least 1,500 different herbal drugs have been tested, analysed, and used in Chinese medicine; this is well documented in more than 50 different or revised editions of Pen-ts'ao. Both Sheng-nung Pen-ts'ao Ching, the earliest Chinese materia medica book, and the latest Pen-ts'ao Kang-mu are well-known and valuable compendia of herbal drugs.