Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common progressive neuro-degenerative disease, and the morbidity and mortality are still on the rise. In spite of recent advances in AD treatment, their clinical efficacy has been limited, non-curative and easy to drug resistance. Alpiniae oxyphyllae Fructus (AOF), derived from the dried and mature fruits of the Zingiberaceae plant Alpinia oxyphylla Miq, is a choice in traditional Chinese medicine to treat AD, which has a good effect and has been used for a long time. Recent studies have demonstrated its potent activities in modulating multiple signaling pathways associated with β-amyloid deposition, tau protein phosphorylation, chronic inflammation, oxidative stress. The neuropharmacological mechanism of AOF in AD have been fully illustrated in numerous studies. In this review, we first briefly described the active components of AOF and related mechanism for treating AD. And we also provide a systematic overview of recent progress on the pharmacokinetic characteristics of the active ingredients of AOF and analyzed their bioavailability differences in the development of AD. Thus, AOF hold a great therapeutic potential in the treatment of AD and is worthy of further research and promotion.

Pharmacists with long experience and low personal satisfaction from work are at higher risk of burnout, but the role of specific personality traits is less well understood. In addition, the medical system in China is different from that of other countries, and the characteristics of pharmacist burnout might be different from that of other countries. This study evaluated the roles played by personality, working environment, and work characteristics on burnout and job satisfaction among Chinese hospital pharmacists. This was a cross-sectional study undertaken between April 28 and 30, 2017. The questionnaires were completed at the “National Academic Conference of the Chinese Society of Clinical Pharmacy”. Questionnaires were handed out to 1786 pharmacists, and 1394 valid questionnaires were analyzed using structural equation modeling techniques. The final structural model showed that, as expected, personality and working environment factors directly or indirectly predicted burnout dimensions (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduction of personal accomplishment) and job satisfaction variables. The analyses were consistent with the features of pharmacists’ work characteristics, including job demands, job control, and workload playing mediating roles between antecedent variables (personality and working environment) and emotional outcomes (burnout and job satisfaction). On the other hand, job control and workload did not predict emotional exhaustion. This study indicates that personality is a negative predictor of 2 dimensions of burnout (emotional exhaustion and depersonalization), while the working environment, especially job demand, is a predictor of burnout and greater emotional exhaustion. Work characteristics are positively related to job satisfaction and play a protective role against burnout.

Background: No clinical study on the use of polymyxin B in Chinese children has been reported, thus making it difficult for pediatric clinicians to rationally select these drugs.Methods: A retrospective analysis of children treated with polymyxin B during hospitalization in a hospital from June 2019 to June 2021 was conducted to analyze its effectiveness and the incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) during treatment with polymyxin B.Results: A total of 55 children were included in this study, and the results showed that the intravenous polymyxin B-based regimen had an effective rate of 52.7% in the treatment of Carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacterial (CR-GNB) infection in children. The results of the subgroup analysis showed that the course of treatment was longer in the favorable clinical response group than in the unfavorable outcome group (p = 0.027) and that electrolyte disturbances in children during the course of treatment could lead to unfavorable clinical outcomes (p = 0.042). The risk of incidence of AKI during treatment was 27.3%, and the all-cause mortality rate in the children on their discharge from the hospital was 7.3%.Conclusion: Polymyxin B can be used as a salvage therapy for CR-GNB infection in children when no other susceptible antibiotics are available, and the monitoring of kidney function should be strengthened.

Icaritin is a naturally bioactive flavonoid with several significant effects. This study aimed to clarify the metabolite profiling, pharmacokinetics, and glucuronidation of icaritin in rats. An ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) assay was developed and validated for qualitative and quantitative analysis of icaritin. Glucuronidation rates were determined by incubating icaritin with uridine diphosphate glucuronic acid- (UDPGA-) supplemented microsomes. Kinetic parameters were derived by appropriate model fitting. A total of 30 metabolites were identified or tentatively characterized in rat biosamples based on retention times and characteristic fragmentations, following proposed metabolic pathway which was summarized. Additionally, the pharmacokinetics parameters were investigated after oral administration of icaritin. Moreover, icaritin glucuronidation in rat liver microsomes was efficient with CLint (the intrinsic clearance) values of 1.12 and 1.56 mL/min/mg for icaritin-3-O-glucuronide and icaritin-7-O-glucuronide, respectively. Similarly, the CLint values of icaritin-3-O-glucuronide and icaritin-7-O-glucuronide in rat intestine microsomes (RIM) were 1.45 and 0.86 mL/min/mg, respectively. Taken altogether, dehydrogenation at isopentenyl group and glycosylation and glucuronidation at the aglycone were main biotransformation process in vivo. The general tendency was that icaritin was transformed to glucuronide conjugates to be excreted from rat organism. In conclusion, these results would improve our understanding of metabolic fate of icaritin in vivo.