The regulatory mechanism of physiological sleep-wake / 中国药理学通报

This paper explains the mechanism of the mutual switching between physiological sleep and wakefulness from the aspects of the sleep circadian system and the sleep homeostasis system. In the circadian rhythm system, with the suprachiasmatic nucleus as the core, the anatomical connections between the suprachiasmatic nucleusand various systems that affect sleep are summarized, starting from the suprachiasmatic nucleus, passing through the four pathways of the melatonin system, namely, subventricular area of the hypothalamus, the ventrolateral nucleus of the preoptic area, orexin neurons, and melatonin, then the related mechanisms of their regulation of sleep and wakefulness are expounded. In the sleep homeostasis system, with adenosine and prostaglandin D2 as targets, the role of hypnogen in sleep arousal mechanisms in regulation is also expounded.

Analysis of ABO and RhD blood group detection results among voluntary blood donors in Huainan of Anhui province / 中国基层医药

Objective:To analyze the distributions of ABO and RhD blood groups by analyzing the basic data of blood group detection among voluntary blood donors in Huainan in 2021, to provide data support for blood recruitment, clinical use of blood, and emergency guarantee of rare groups of blood.Methods:ABO and RhD blood groups of 24 484 voluntary blood donors eligible for blood donation in 2021 were detected using the Metis150-8 automatic blood group analyzer, manual saline method, antihuman globulin method, and manual polybrene test. The blood group results were statistically analyzed.Results:Among 24 484 voluntary blood donors in Huainan in 2021, A blood group accounted for the highest proportion (7 463 cases, 30.48%), followed by O blood group (7 444 cases, 30.40%) and B blood group (7 056 cases, 28.82%), and the last was AB blood group (2 521 cases, 10.30%). A total of 143 cases of RhD-negative blood were detected, and the negative frequency of RhD was 0.58% (143/24 484). Among the RhD-negative blood samples, 43 cases of type A, 41 cases of type B, 46 cases of type O, and 13 cases of type AB were RhD-negative, accounting for 30.07%, 28.67%, 32.17%, and 9.09%, respectively. There was no statistical difference in the detection rate of Rh-negative blood among different ABO blood groups in Huainan ( χ2 = 0.36, P = 0.948). The ABO blood group distribution of voluntary blood donors in Huainan in 2021 was not identical to those of voluntary blood donors in Guangzhou, Yueyang, Xinjiang Bozhou, Zhangzhou, and Liuzhou. The proportion of type A blood donors in Yueyang was higher than those in other regions. The proportions of type B blood donors in Huainan, Xinjiang Bozhou, and Zhangzhou were higher than those in other regions. The proportion of type O blood donors in Liuzhou was higher than those in other regions. The proportions of type AB blood donors in Huainan and Xinjiang Bozhou were higher than those in other regions. Conclusion:The distributions of ABO and RhD blood groups among voluntary blood donors in Huainan region have certain regional characteristics. Central blood banks and medical institutions should reasonably store and supply blood according to the blood collection from voluntary blood donations and the needs of clinical transfusion, to prevent the occurrence of situations such as blood expiration and waste.

A robust luminescent assay for screening alkyladenine DNA glycosylase inhibitors to overcome DNA repair and temozolomide drug resistance / 药物分析学报

Temozolomide(TMZ)is an anticancer agent used to treat glioblastoma,typically following radiation therapy and/or surgical resection.However,despite its effectiveness,at least 50％of patients do not respond to TMZ,which is associated with repair and/or tolerance of TMZ-induced DNA lesions.Studies have demonstrated that alkyladenine DNA glycosylase(AAG),an enzyme that triggers the base excision repair(BER)pathway by excising TMZ-induced N3-methyladenine(3meA)and N7-methylguanine le-sions,is overexpressed in glioblastoma tissues compared to normal tissues.Therefore,it is essential to develop a rapid and efficient screening method for AAG inhibitors to overcome TMZ resistance in glio-blastomas.Herein,we report a robust time-resolved photoluminescence platform for identifying AAG inhibitors with improved sensitivity compared to conventional steady-state spectroscopic methods.As a proof-of-concept,this assay was used to screen 1440 food and drug administration-approved drugs against AAG,resulting in the repurposing of sunitinib as a potential AAG inhibitor.Sunitinib restored glioblastoma(GBM)cancer cell sensitivity to TMZ,inhibited GBM cell proliferation and stem cell char-acteristics,and induced GBM cell cycle arrest.Overall,this strategy offers a new method for the rapid identification of small-molecule inhibitors of BER enzyme activities that can prevent false negatives due to a fluorescent background.

Influences of intestinal flora metabolites on neonatal diseases / 国际儿科学杂志

The intestinal tract is an essential digestive organ of the human body, which is known as the "second brain". The intestinal flora disorder is closely related to the occurrence of host diseases.It has been found that the dysbiosis of intestinal flora plays an important role in the development of neonatal diseases.Gut microflora metabolites are bioactive, and the key metabolites can regulate or affect the host′s metabolic changes through different metabolic pathways.The metabolites of the neonatal intestine participate in and affect the progression and outcome of the diseases, and determine their short- and long-term quality of life.This review summarizes the effects of gut flora metabolites on neonatal diseases.

Effects of Hydroxycamptothecin Liposomes on Myocardial Fibrosis in Heart Failure Rats by Regulating Sphingosine Kinase 1/Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Signaling Pathway / 中山大学学报(医学科学版)

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of hydroxycamptothecin liposomes （LHCPT） on myocardial fibrosis in rats with heart failure by regulating the sphingosine kinase 1 （SphK1）/sphingosine-1-phosphate （S1P） signaling pathway. MethodsSD rats were divided into control group， model group， hydroxycamptothecin （HCPT） group， LHCPT group， captopril group， and LHCPT+K6PC-5 （SphK1 activator） group， with 12 rats in each group. The heart failure rat models in all groups except the control group were established by intraperitoneal injection of doxorubicin and then the corresponding drugs were given once a day. After four weeks， we applied color Doppler ultrasound to detect left ventricular end systolic diameter （LVESD）， left ventricular end diastolic diameter （LVEDD）， and left ventricular ejection fraction （LVEF） in rats； HE and Masson staining for myocardial pathological damage and myocardial fibrosis in rats， respectively； ELISA method for the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） and interleukin-6 （IL-6） in rat myocardial tissues； qRT-PCR for the expression of transforming growth factor-β1 （TGF-β1）， type I collagen （Collagen I）， and type Ⅲ collagen （Collagen Ⅲ） in rat myocardial tissues； Western blot for the expression of SphK1 and S1P proteins in rat myocardial tissues. ResultsCompared with the control group， the model group showed severe myocardial pathological damage and myocardial fibrosis， increased LVESD， LVEDD， levels of TNF-α and IL-6， expression of TGF-β1， Collagen I， Collagen Ⅲ， SphK1， S1P and decreased LVEF （P<0.05）. Compared with the model group， the HCPT group， LHCPT group and captopril group showed alleviated myocardial pathological damage and myocardial fibrosis， decreased LVESD， LVEDD， levels of TNF-α and IL-6， expression of TGF-β1， Collagen I， Collagen Ⅲ， SphK1， S1P and increased LVEF （P<0.05）. Compared with the LHCPT group， the LHCPT+K6PC-5 group showed aggravated myocardial pathological damage and myocardial fibrosis， increased LVESD， LVEDD， levels of TNF-α and IL-6， expression of TGF-β1， Collagen I， Collagen Ⅲ， SphK1， S1P and decreased LVEF （P<0.05）. ConclusionLHCPT may inhibit myocardial fibrosis in heart failure rats by inhibiting the SphK1/S1P signaling pathway.

Porcine skeletal muscle development regulated by MicroRNA: a review / 生物工程学报

The growth and development of skeletal muscle is an important factor affecting pork production and quality, which is elaborately regulated by many genetic and nutritional factors. MicroRNA (miRNA) is a non-coding RNA with a length of about 22 nt, which binds to the 3'UTR sequence of the mRNA of the target genes, and consequently regulates its post-transcriptional expression level. In recent years, a large number of studies have shown that miRNAs are involved in various life processes such as growth and development, reproduction, and diseases. The role of miRNAs in the regulation of porcine skeletal muscle development was reviewed, with the hope to provide a reference for the genetic improvement of pigs.

LncRNA UNC5B-AS1 promotes proliferation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of cervical cancer cells by regulating Toll-like receptor signaling pathway / 中国药理学通报

Aim To investigate the effects of long non-coding RNA(lncRNA)UNC5B-AS1 on the proliferation and epithelial mesenchymal transformation(EMT)of cervical cancer. Methods GEO and TCGA databases were used to download data sets and differential expression analysis was performed. qRT-PCR was used to verify the differential expression of lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 in normal and cancerous cervical tissues.The interference and overexpression of lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 were transfected into cervical cancer cell lines, and plate cloning, CCK-8 and EdU experiments were used to detect the effect of lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 on the pro-liferation of cervical cancer cells.Transwell assay was used to detect its effect on migration and invasion of cervical cancer cells.The expression levels of EMT-related genes E-Cadherin, N-Cadherin and Vimentin were detected by Western blot. Transcriptome sequencing was used to obtain the signal pathway regulated by lncRNA UNC5B-AS1, and to verify the expression level of related genes. Results RNA microarray and bioinformatics analysis showed that the expression level of lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 in cervical cancer was significantly higher than that in normal cervical tissue, and correlated with the overall survival time of patients.Compared with the negative control group, knockdown lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 could reduce the proliferation, migration and invasion of cervical cancer cells, while overexpression could promote the proliferation, migration and invasion of cervical cancer cells. Western blot showed that lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 could regulate EMT of cervical cancer cells. Transcriptome sequencing showed that lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 could regulate Toll like receptor(TLR)signaling pathway. qRT-PCR and Western blot results showed that the expression levels of TLR-related genes IL-6 and TICAM2 in the knockdown and overexpression lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 group were significantly changed(P<0.05). Conclusions LncRNA UNC5B-AS1 is highly expressed in cervical cancer. Overexpression of lncRNA UNC5B-AS1 may enhance TLR signaling pathway activity, thereby promoting proliferation and EMT of cervical cancer cells.

Research progress of Eubacterium and its metabolite short-chain fatty acids in regulating type 2 diabetes mellitus / 中华预防医学杂志

Intestinal flora and its metabolites are closely related to the progression of type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM). Eubacterium is one of the dominant intestinal flora, and its metabolites short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) play a leading role in regulating intestinal metabolic balance. It has been reported that SCFAs can regulate the secretion of glucagon-like peptide-1, improve the function of pancreatic β cells, participate in bile acids metabolism and regulate the production of inflammatory factors in T2DM. Based on the above research background, this article mainly reviews the relationship between Eubacterium and its metabolite SCFAs and T2DM and its regulatory mechanism.

Implementation and quality control of human immunodeficiency virus laboratory diagnosis strategy / 中华预防医学杂志

The laboratory diagnostic strategy for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a process to accurately detect HIV patients through a combination of available HIV tests. Laboratory tests for HIV infection are mainly serological antibody and antigen testing and HIV RNA testing. With the update of testing reagents, the sensitivity and specificity have improved substantially and the window period of detection has shortened, but there is a risk of false positives. Various guidelines have recommended different diagnostic strategies for different target populations and different prevalence regions to guide patients to confirm the diagnosis and receive standardized antiretroviral therapy as early as possible. How to refer to the diagnostic strategies, reduce false positives and shorten the window period while increasing the detection rate is an urgent issue for laboratories to address. This article describes the characteristics and advantages and disadvantages of testing methods related to HIV infection from the perspective of laboratory diagnostic strategies, as well as the impact of the development of treatments on diagnostic strategies, in order to provide theoretical support for the practical application of HIV diagnostic strategies.

The expression and function of PD-L1 in CD133(+) human liver cancer stem-like cells / 中华肿瘤杂志

Objective: To investigate the expression of programmed death protein-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in liver cancer stem-like cells (LCSLC) and its effect on the characteristics of tumor stem cells and tumor biological function, to explore the upstream signaling pathway regulating PD-L1 expression in LCSLC and the downstream molecular mechanism of PD-L1 regulating stem cell characteristics, also tumor biological functions. Methods: HepG2 was cultured by sphere-formating method to obtain LCSLC. The expressions of CD133 and other stemness markers were detected by flow cytometry, western blot and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were used to detect the expressions of stemness markers and PD-L1. The biological functions of the LCSLC were tested by cell function assays, to confirm that the LCSLC has the characteristics of tumor stem cells. LCSLC was treated with cell signaling pathway inhibitors to identify relevant upstream signaling pathways mediating PD-L1 expression changes. The expression of PD-L1 in LCSLC was down regulated by small interfering RNA (siRNA), the expression of stem cell markers, tumor biological functions of LCSLC, and the changes of cell signaling pathways were detected. Results: Compared with HepG2 cells, the expression rate of CD133 in LCSLC was upregulated [(92.78±6.91)% and (1.40±1.77)%, P<0.001], the expressions of CD133, Nanog, Oct4A and Snail in LCSLC were also higher than those in HepG2 cells (P<0.05), the number of sphere-formating cells increased on day 7 [(395.30±54.05) and (124.70±19.30), P=0.001], cell migration rate increased [(35.41±6.78)% and (10.89±4.34)%, P=0.006], the number of transmembrane cells increased [(75.77±10.85) and (20.00±7.94), P=0.002], the number of cloned cells increased [(120.00±29.51) and (62.67±16.77), P=0.043]. Cell cycle experiments showed that LCSLC had significantly more cells in the G(0)/G(1) phase than those in HepG2 [(54.89±3.27) and (32.36±1.50), P<0.001]. The tumor formation experiment of mice showed that the weight of transplanted tumor in LCSLC group was (1.32±0.17)g, the volume is (1 779.0±200.2) mm(3), were higher than those of HepG2 cell [(0.31±0.06)g and (645.6±154.9)mm(3), P<0.001]. The expression level of PD-L1 protein in LCSLC was 1.88±0.52 and mRNA expression level was 2.53±0.62, both of which were higher than those of HepG2 cells (P<0.05). The expression levels of phosphorylation signal transduction and transcription activation factor 3 (p-STAT3) and p-Akt in LCSLC were higher than those in HepG2 cells (P<0.05). After the expression of p-STAT3 and p-Akt was down-regulated by inhibitor treatment, the expression of PD-L1 was also down-regulated (P<0.05). In contrast, the expression level of phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase 1/2 (p-ERK1/2) in LCSLC was lower than that in HepG2 cells (P<0.01), there was no significant change in PD-L1 expression after down-regulated by inhibitor treatment (P>0.05). After the expression of PD-L1 was knockdown by siRNA, the expressions of CD133, Nanog, Oct4A and Snail in LCSLC were decreased compared with those of siRNA-negative control (NC) group (P<0.05). The number of sphere-formating cells decreased [(45.33±12.01) and (282.00±29.21), P<0.001], the cell migration rate was lower than that in siRNA-NC group [(20.86±2.74)% and (46.73±15.43)%, P=0.046], the number of transmembrane cells decreased [(39.67±1.53) and (102.70±11.59), P=0.001], the number of cloned cells decreased [(57.67±14.57) and (120.70±15.04), P=0.007], the number of cells in G(0)/G(1) phase decreased [(37.68±2.51) and (57.27±0.92), P<0.001], the number of cells in S phase was more than that in siRNA-NC group [(30.78±0.52) and (15.52±0.83), P<0.001]. Tumor formation in mice showed that the tumor weight of shRNA-PD-L1 group was (0.47±0.12)g, the volume is (761.3±221.4)mm(3), were lower than those of shRNA-NC group [(1.57±0.45)g and (1 829.0±218.3)mm(3), P<0.001]. Meanwhile, the expression levels of p-STAT3 and p-Akt in siRNA-PD-L1 group were decreased (P<0.05), while the expression levels of p-ERK1/2 and β-catenin did not change significantly (P>0.05). Conclusion: Elevated PD-L1 expression in CD133(+) LCSLC is crucial to maintain stemness and promotes the tumor biological function of LCSLC.

A Prediction Model Based on the Risk Factors Associated with Pathological Upgrading in Patients with Early-Stage Gastric Neoplasms Diagnosed by Endoscopic Forceps Biopsy

Background/Aims@#The discrepancies between the diagnosis of preoperative endoscopic forceps biopsy (EFB) and endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in patients with early gastric neoplasm (EGN) exist objectively. Among them, pathological upgrading directly influences the accuracy and appropriateness of clinical decisions. The aims of this study were to investigate the risk factors for the discrepancies, with a particular focus on pathological upgrading and to establish a prediction model for estimating the risk of pathological upgrading after EFB. @*Methods@#We retrospectively collected the records of 978 patients who underwent ESD from December 1, 2017 to July 31, 2021 and who had a final histopathology determination of EGN. A nomogram to predict the risk of pathological upgrading was constructed after analyzing subgroup differences among the 901 lesions enrolled. @*Results@#The ratio of pathological upgrading was 510 of 953 (53.5%). Clinical, laboratorial and endoscopic characteristics were analyzed using univariable and binary multivariable logistic regression analyses. A nomogram was constructed by including age, history of chronic atrophic gastritis, symptoms of digestive system, blood high density lipoprotein concentration, macroscopic type, pathological diagnosis of EFB, uneven surface, remarkable redness, and lesion size. The C-statistics were 0.804 (95% confidence interval, 0.774 to 0.834) and 0.748 (95% confidence interval, 0.664 to 0.832) in the training and validation set, respectively. We also built an online webserver based on the proposed nomogram for convenient clinical use. @*Conclusions@#The clinical value of identifying the preoperative diagnosis of EGN lesions is limited when using EFB separately. We have developed a nomogram that can predict the probability of pathological upgrading with good calibration and discrimination value.

Meta-analysis of therapeutic effect of intense pulsed light combined with meibomian gland expression on meibomian gland dysfunction related dry eye / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

AIM: To systematically evaluate the efficacy of intense pulsed light(IPL)combined with meibomian gland expression(MGX)in the treatment of meibomian gland dysfunction(MGD)-related dry eye disease(DED).METHODS: Chinese and English databases such as Chinese national knowledge infrastructure(CNKI), Wanfang, VIP, CBM, ClinicalTrials, PubMed, Embase and Web of Science were searched, and clinical randomized controlled trials(RCTs)using IPL combined with MGX in the experimental group and MGX alone in the control group from January 2017 to September 2022 were included. Six outcome indicators including clinical efficacy, ocular surface disease index(OSDI)score, break-up time(BUT), corneal fluorescein staining(CFS)score, tear meniscus height(TMH)and meibomian gland yielding secretion score(MGYSS)were Meta analyzed by Review Manager 5.3 and Stata 14 software.RESULTS: A total of 15 RCTs were included, with 1 345 patients with MGD-related dry eye. Meta-analysis results showed that the treatment of MGD-related dry eye in the experimental group improved better clinical efficacy(OR=4.95, 95%CI: 2.76～8.90, Z=5.35, P&#x0026;#x003C;0.00001), BUT(SMD=1.26, 95%CI: 0.84～1.69, Z=5.78, P&#x0026;#x003C;0.00001), TMH(SMD=0.37, 95%CI: 0.15～0.59, Z=3.33, P=0.0009), and reduced OSDI scores(SMD=-0.86, 95%CI: -1.44～-0.27, Z=2.85, P=0.004)as well as MGYSS(SMD=-2.43, 95%CI: -4.31～-0.54, Z=2.52, P=0.01)than the control group. However, there was no statistically significant difference in CFS scores(SMD=-0.19, 95%CI: -0.46～0.07, Z=1.43, P=0.15).CONCLUSION: IPL combined with MGX in the treatment of MGD related dry eye can increase the overall effective rate and improve the symptoms and signs of patients with MGD related dry eye better than MGX alone.

TLC identification and quantitative determination of Shipi Xiaoshui gel plaster / 药学实践杂志

Objective To establish the method of thin layer chromatography (TLC) for identification and quantitative determination of Shipi Xiaoshui gel plaster. Methods TLC was adopted to qualitatively identify astragalus radix, plantaginis semen, curcumae rhizome, cinnamomi ramulus, polyporus umbellatus and akebia quinata. UPLC-MS was used to determine the content of astragaloside Ⅳ. Results TLC spots were clear and well-separated; RSDs of precision, reproducibility and stability tests were all lower than 3%, the linear range of astragaloside Ⅳ was 2.75-33 μg/ml (r=0.999 9, n=6), and the average recovery was 100.49% (RSD=1.98%, n=6). Conclusion The established method in this study is accurate, reliable and specific, which could be used for the quality control of Shipi Xiaoshui gel plaster.

Neglect and associated factors among children aged 3-6 years in families with non only children in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To analyze the neglect status of children aged 3-6 years old from non-only-child families in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and influencing factors, so as to provide assistance for the healthy growth of preschool children from non-only-child families.@*Methods@#From April to June 2022, 2 882 parents of preschool children from 15 kindergartens were selected in urban areas of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei by randomized cluster sampling method, and were investigated with general information and neglect experiences. The χ 2 test, t-test and ANOVA were used to compare the neglect status of different categories of preschool children, and the binary Logistic regression method was used to analyze the influencing factors of the neglect of preschool children who were not only children.@*Results@#The detection rate of neglect among children aged 3-6 years from non-only-child families in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region was 33.47%, the detection rate of neglect among children from only-child families was 9.24%, and the difference was statistically significant ( χ 2=261.94, P <0.01). The neglect score for children aged 3-6 years in non-only-child families was (42.35±7.52), the neglect score for onechild families was (38.16±6.56), and the difference was also statistically significant ( t=15.95, P <0.01). Binary Logistic regression analysis showed that family income <4 000 yuan/month ( OR= 2.75, 95%CI =1.18-6.32), grandparents or other relatives as the primary guardian ( OR=2.18, 95%CI =1.35-3.52), and poor parental relationship ( OR=2.64, 95%CI =1.42-3.87), average ( OR=2.31, 95%CI =1.32-4.01) non-only-child preschoolers had a higher risk of neglect ( P <0.05).@*Conclusion@#Neglect is prevalent among 3-to 6-year-old children from non-only-child families in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Targeted intervention measures based on influencing factors should be taken to reduce neglect among preschool children.

Development and verification of multiplex fluorescence quantitative PCR (Taqman probe) for detection of telomerase activity / 中国生物制品学杂志

@#Objective To develop and verify a multiplex fluorescence quantitative PCR(Taqman probe) method for the detection of telomerase activity.Methods Specific reverse transcription primers,two pairs of quantitative primers and probes were designed for the CDS sequence of telomerase catalytic subunit telomerase reverse transcriptase(TERT).After optimization of the reverse transcription primers(specific reverse transcription primers and random primers) and quantitative primers(two pairs of quantitative primer probes used alone or in combination) in the reaction system,with the primer probe of internal reference gene GAPDH,multiplex fluorescence quantitative PCR was performed in a single tube.In addition,telomerase positive standard and negative standard were prepared with 293T and MRC-5 cells respectively,and the stability and precision of the method were verified.The telomerase activity in 19 normal mesenchymal cell samples and 32 breast cancer cell samples were detected by the developed method.Results The optimum reaction system was as follows:using cDNA synthesized with specific reverse transcription primers as the template,2 pairs of quantitative primer probes of TERT gene were mixed with internal reference gene GAPDH primer probes for multiplex fluorescence quantitative PCR reaction in a single tube.After optimization,the sensitivity and TERT fluorescence signal quantity of the system were greatly improved,and the ΔRn was enhanced by 3 times.The amplification curve of positive standard TERT gene was normal,and the ΔCt between TERT gene and GAPDH gene remained stable.The amplification curve of GAPDH gene in negative standard was normal,while there was no amplification curve of TERT gene.There was a little difference in ΔCt between TERT and GAPDH genes in the positive standard frozen and thawed for 3 and 5 times repeatedly and the positive standard without freezing and thawing,and the CVs of precision in intra-and inter-groups were all less than 1%.Telomerase activity was negative in 19 normal mesenchymal cell samples and positive in 32 breast cancer cell samples,and significant difference in Ct value of TERT gene between them was observed(t=4.236,P <0.001).Conclusion The developed multiplex fluorescence quantitative PCR(Taqman probe) method for the detection of telomerase activity has good stability and precision,which is expected to be used in early diagnosis and gene therapy of tumors.

Efficacy of external treatment of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine on chloasma / 中华医学美学美容杂志

Objective:To explore the efficacy of external treatment of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine on melanized type complicated with vascularized type of chloasma.Methods:A total of 82 patients (aged 26-50 years, with an average age of 44.5 years) with melanized type complicated with vascularized type of chloasma were selected, and randomly divided into groups: 28 cases in the traditional Chinese medicine control group were treated with traditional Chinese medicine pourmask combined with surrounded facial acupuncture; 26 cases in Western medicine control group underwent wet compress with 0.5% tranexamic acid solution. In the integrated Chinese traditional and Western medicine treatment group, 28 cases were treated with 2 regimens. After 8 weeks, MASI score was carried out, and vascular hyperplasia in skin lesions was observed by polari-light skin scope.Results:After treatment, the MASI scores in the three groups were all decreased, and the decreasing rate of MASI scores from high to low was as follows: Integrated Chinese traditional and Western medicine treatment group (8.60±4.53) > TCM control group (6.26±3.20) > Western medicine control group (4.39±2.11). After treatment, the vascular hyperplasia scores in the three groups were all decreased, and the value of vascular hyperplasia in the integrated Chinese traditional and Western medicine treatment group (2.57±0.63) and Western medicine control group (1.55±0.51) was greater than that in TCM control group (0.96±0.51), but there was no significant difference between the integrated Chinese traditional and Western medicine treatment group and Western medicine control group.Conclusions:External treatment of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine is effective in the treatment of melanized type complicated with vascularized type of chloasma, and wet compress with tranexamic acid solution can inhibit vascular hyperplasia in patients with chloasma.

Clinical features of acute macular neuroretinopathy induced by Omicron / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

AIM: To observe the clinical features of acute macular neuroretinopathy(AMN)induced by Omicron.METHODS: A retrospective study. A total of 9 patients(18 eyes)diagnosed with AMN from December 2022 to January 2023 in the Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine were included. Patients underwent spectral-domain optical coherence tomography(SD-OCT), fundus fluorescein angiography(FFA), fundus photography, autofluorescence(AF), infrared reflectance(IR), optical coherence tomography angiography(OCTA)and multicolor, etc. Furthermore, they were followed up for 1～3mo and observed the prognosis.RESULTS: The initial symptom of the Omicron-induced AMN was the sudden onset of central/paracentral scotoma in the eyes with or without impaired vision and metamorphopsia, and the scotoma could persist for at least 3mo. The image features of AMN are as follows. First, the SD-OCT examination showed the rupture of outer retinal layers, scattered hyperreflective lesions, and atrophy of outer retinal layers. In severe cases, hyperreflective lesions were seen in the inner nuclear layer(INL)or with microcystic cavities under the retinal pigment epithelium(RPE). Second, the OCTA examination demonstrated the decreased blood flow density of the deep capillary plexus(DCP)of the macula. Third, the IR examination showed the weak reflection of lesion areas. Fourth, the fundus photography demonstrated the localized brown wedge-shaped lesion.CONCLUSIONS: The Omicron-induced AMN is mostly found in young females, and the characteristic manifestation of fundus is damage to the outer retinal layers. The extent of fundus lesions is related to the systemic inflammatory response and ocular microcirculatory changes after infection. The multimodal fundus image examination and a history of Omicron infection are helpful to diagnose the Omicron-induced AMN.

Astragaloside IV for Heart Failure: Preclinical Evidence and Possible Mechanisms, A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis / 中国结合医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the cardioprotective effects of astragaloside IV (AS-IV) in heart failure (HF).@*METHODS@#PubMed, Excerpta Medica Database (EMBASE), Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Wanfang Database, Chinese Bio-medical Literature and Retrieval System (SinoMed), China Science and Technology Journal Database (VIP), and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) were searched from inception to November 1, 2021 for animal experiments to explore AS-IV in treating HF in rats or mice. The left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular fractional shortening (LVFS), left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (LVEDD), left ventricular end-systolic dimension (LVESD), left ventricular weight-to-body weight (LVW/BW) and B-type brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) were recorded. The qualities of included studies were assessed by the risk of bias according to the Cochrane handbook. Meta-analysis was performed using Stata 13.0.@*RESULTS@#Twenty-one articles involving 558 animals were considered. Compared with the control group, AS-IV improved cardiac function, specifically by increasing LVEF (mean difference (MD)=6.97, 95% confidence interval (CI)=5.92 to 8.03, P<0.05; fixed effects model) and LVFS (MD=7.01, 95% CI=5.84 to 8.81, P<0.05; fixed effects model), and decreasing LVEDD (MD=-4.24, 95% CI=-4.74 to -3.76, P<0.05; random effects model) and LVESD (MD=-4.18, 95% CI=-5.26 to -3.10, P<0.05; fixed effects model). In addition, the BNP and LVW/BW levels were decreased in the AS-IV treatment group (MD=-9.18, 95% CI=-14.13 to -4.22, P<0.05; random effects model; MD=-1.91, 95% CI=-2.42 to -1.39, P<0.05; random effects model).@*CONCLUSIONS@#AS-IV is a promising therapeutic agent for HF. However, this conclusion needs to be clinically validated in the future.

Huangqi Decoction, a compound Chinese herbal medicine, inhibits the proliferation and activation of hepatic stellate cells by regulating the long noncoding RNA-C18orf26-1/microRNA-663a/transforming growth factor-β axis / 中西医结合学报

OBJECTIVE@#Huangqi Decoction (HQD), a classical traditional Chinese medicine formula, has been used as a valid treatment for alleviating liver fibrosis; however, the underlying molecular mechanism is still unknown. Although our previous studies showed that microRNA-663a (miR-663a) suppresses the proliferation and activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and the transforming growth factor-β/small mothers against decapentaplegic (TGF-β/Smad) pathway, whether long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in HSC activation via the miR-663a/TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway has not yet reported. The present study aimed to investigate the roles of lncRNA lnc-C18orf26-1 in the activation of HSCs and the mechanism by which HQD inhibits hepatic fibrosis.@*METHODS@#The expression levels of lnc-C18orf26-1, miR-663a and related genes were measured by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. HSCs were transfected with the miR-663a mimic or inhibitor and lnc-C18orf26-1 small interfering RNAs. The water-soluble tetrazolium salt-1 assay was used to assess the proliferation rate of HSCs. Changes in lncRNA expression were evaluated in miR-663a-overexpressing HSCs by using microarray to identify miR-663a-regulated lncRNAs. RNA hybrid was used to predict the potential miR-663a binding sites on lncRNAs. Luciferase reporter assays further confirmed the interaction between miR-663a and the lncRNA. The expression levels of collagen α-2(I) chain (COL1A2), α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway-related proteins were determined using Western blotting.@*RESULTS@#Lnc-C18orf26-1 was upregulated in TGF-β1-activated HSCs and competitively bound to miR-663a. Knockdown of lnc-C18orf26-1 inhibited HSC proliferation and activation, downregulated TGF-β1-stimulated α-SMA and COL1A2 expression, and inhibited the TGF-β1/Smad signaling pathway. HQD suppressed the proliferation and activation of HSCs. HQD increased miR-663a expression and decreased lnc-C18orf26-1 expression in HSCs. Further studies showed that HQD inhibited the expression of COL1A2, α-SMA, TGF-β1, TGF-β type I receptor (TGF-βRI) and phosphorylated Smad2 (p-Smad2) in HSCs, and these effects were reversed by miR-663a inhibitor treatment.@*CONCLUSION@#Our study identified lnc-C18orf26-1 and miR-663a as promising therapeutic targets for hepatic fibrosis. HQD inhibits HSC proliferation and activation at least partially by regulating the lnc-C18orf26-1/miR-663a/TGF-β1/TGF-βRI/p-Smad2 axis.

Inducible co-stimulatory molecules participate in mesenteric vascular endothelial-mesenchymal transition and sclerosis of mesenteric vessels in spontaneously hypertensive rats / 南方医科大学学报

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the correlation of inducible co-stimulatory molecules (ICOS) with mesenteric vascular endothelial- mesenchymal transition (EndMT) and sclerosis in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR).@*METHODS@#Twenty 4-week-old WKY rats and 20 SHRs of the same strain were both randomly divided into 4 groups for observation at 4, 6, 10 and 30 weeks of age. ICOS expression frequency in rat spleen CD4+T cells was analyzed using flow cytometry, and the expressions of ICOS, VE-cad, α-SMA and Col3 mRNA in rat mesentery were detected by RT-PCR. The distributions of ICOS, IL-17A and TGF-β in rat mesentery were detected by immunohistochemistry. The levels of IL-17A and TGF-β in rat plasma were measured using ELISA. The morphological changes of rat mesenteric vessels were observed with Masson staining. Spearman or Pearson correlation analyses were used to evaluate the correlation between ICOS expression and the expressions of the markers of vascular EndMT and sclerosis.@*RESULTS@#Compared with the control WKY rats, the SHRs began to show significantly increased systolic blood pressure and ICOS expression frequency on CD4+T cells at 6 weeks of age (P < 0.05). In the SHRs, the mRNA and protein expressions of ICOS, α-SMA, Col3, IL-17A and TGF-β in the mesentery were significantly higher than those in control group (P < 0.05), while the mRNA and protein expressions of VE-cad started to reduce significantly at 10 weeks of age (P < 0.05). The plasma levels of IL-17A and TGF-β were significantly increased in SHRs since 6 weeks of age (P < 0.05) with progressive worsening of mesenteric vascular sclerosis (P < 0.05). ICOS mRNA and protein expression levels in the mesenteric tissues of SHRs began to show positive correlations with α-SMA and Col3 expression levels and the severity of vascular sclerosis at 6 weeks of age (P < 0.05) and a negative correlation with VE-cad expression level at 10 weeks (P < 0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#ICOS play an important pathogenic role in EndMT and sclerosis of mesenteric vessels in essential hypertension by mediating related immune responses.