Effect of Osteoking on Inflammatory Injury and NF-κB/NFATc1 Signaling Pathway in Model Mice with Postmenopausal Osteoporosis / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo explore the possible mechanism of Osteoking （OK） on postmenopausal osteoporosis （PMOP）. MethodForty adult female mice were randomly divided into a sham operation （Sham） group， osteoporosis model （OVX） group， estradiol intervention （E2） group， and OK group， with 10 mice in each group. The modeling was completed by conventional back double incision ovariectomy， and the corresponding drugs were given one week later. After 12 weeks， the body mass and uterine index of mice were measured， and the pathological changes of bone tissue and the number of osteoclasts （OCs） were determined by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase （TRAP） staining， respectively. Bone mineral density （BMD）， trabecular number （Tb.N）， trabecular separation （Tb.Sp）， and bone volume fraction （BV/TV） were measured by microcomputed tomography （Micro-CT）. The maximum load of the femur was detected by a three-point bending test. The contents of tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） and bone resorption marker C-terminal telopeptide of type Ⅰ collagen （CTX-1） were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. The protein expression levels of nuclear factor-kappa B p65 （NF-κB p65）， phosphorylated nuclear factor-kappa B p65 （p-NF-κB p65）， nuclear factor kappa B inhibitor alpha （IκBα）， phosphorylated nuclear factor kappa B alpha （p-IκBα）， nuclear factor of activated T cells 1 （NFATc1）， and proto-oncogene （c-Fos） were detected by Western blot. The mRNA expressions of OCs-related specific genes matrix metalloproteinase-9 （MMP-9）， NFATc1， TRAP， cathepsin K （CTSK）， and c-Fos were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR）. ResultCompared with the Sham group， the uterine index decreased significantly in the OVX group， and the body mass （BMI） increased significantly. The structure of bone trabeculae was completely damaged， and the number of OCs increased. BMD， Tb.N， BV/TV， and maximum load decreased， while Tb.Sp was up-regulated. The levels of TNF-α and CTX-1 in serum were up-regulated. The protein expressions of c-Fos， p-NF-κB p65/NF-κB p65， NFATc1， and p-IκBα/IκBα were increased. The mRNA expressions of NFATc1， c-Fos， CTSK， TRAP， and MMP-9 were up-regulated （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with the OVX group， the body mass of the OK and E2 groups decreased， and the uterine index increased. The bone trabeculae increased， and the number of OCs decreased. BMD， Tb.N， BV/TV， and maximum load increased， while Tb.Sp decreased. The levels of TNF-α and CTX-1 in serum were decreased. The protein expressions of c-Fos， p-NF-κB p65/NF-κB p65， NFATc1， and p-IκBα/IκBα were decreased， and the mRNA expressions of NFATc1， c-Fos， CTSK， TRAP， and MMP-9 were decreased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionOK can inhibit the NF-κB/NFATc1 signaling pathway and reduce bone mass loss by reducing the level of inflammatory injury factors in PMOP mice， which is one of the mechanisms for treating PMOP.

Difference of cervical and shoulder muscle performance and its correlation with pain and body mass index in patients with chronic neck pain / 中国康复理论与实践

ObjectiveTo test the inter-tester reliability and test-retest reliability of MyotonPRO for evaluating neck and shoulder muscle performance parameters in patients with unilateral chronic neck pain, observe the difference of muscle performance between the healthy and affected sides of patients with chronic neck pain, and analyze the factors that cause the imbalance of muscle performance in patients with chronic neck pain. MethodsFrom January to June, 2023, 32 patients with unilateral chronic neck pain in Guangdong Second Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital were selected. Two testers used the same MyotonPRO equipment to measure the muscle tone, muscle hardness and muscle elasticity on both sides of the sternocleidomastoid muscle and the upper trapezius muscle in the relaxed position. Tester 1 repeated the measurement after an interval of 30 minutes, and Tester 2 was measured within the time interval between the two measurements of Tester 1. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), standard error of mean (SEM) and minimum detectable change (MDC) were calculated simultaneously. The measurement results were plotted into Bland-Altman diagram and systematic bias analysis was performed. The difference in muscle characteristics between the affected side and the healthy side was compared. At the same time, the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score and body mass index (BMI) of the subjects were collected for correlation analysis. ResultsExcept the sternocleidomastoid muscle elasticity of the affected side (ICC = 0.697), the inter-tester reliability of all other parameters was high to very high (ICC = 0.719 to 0.952, SEM = 0.04 to 6.53, MDC = 0.12 to 18.11). The test-retest reliability of all parameters was high (ICC = 0.883 to 0.981, SEM = 0.03 to 5.72, MDC = 0.09 to 15.84). Bland-Altman plot analysis showed that the scatter distribution was consistent. The muscle tone, muscle hardness and muscle elasticity of sternocleidomastoid muscle and upper trapezius muscle were higher on the affected side than on the healthy side (t > 2.846, P < 0.05). The asymmetry index of tension, hardness and elasticity of upper trapezius muscle and sternocleidomastoid muscle was significantly positively correlated with VAS score and BMI (r > 0.385, P < 0.05). ConclusionMyotonPRO has good inter-tester reliability and retest reliability in evaluating the muscle performance of both sides of patients with chronic neck pain. The muscle tone, muscle hardness and muscle elasticity of sternocleidomastoid muscle and upper trapezius muscle on the affected side were higher than on the healthy side, and the difference of muscle performance was positively correlated with pain and BMI.

Costunolide covalently targets NACHT domain of NLRP3 to inhibit inflammasome activation and alleviate NLRP3-driven inflammatory diseases

The NLRP3 inflammasome's core and most specific protein, NLRP3, has a variety of functions in inflammation-driven diseases. Costunolide (COS) is the major active ingredient of the traditional Chinese medicinal herb Saussurea lappa and has anti-inflammatory activity, but the principal mechanism and molecular target of COS remain unclear. Here, we show that COS covalently binds to cysteine 598 in NACHT domain of NLRP3, altering the ATPase activity and assembly of NLRP3 inflammasome. We declare COS's great anti-inflammasome efficacy in macrophages and disease models of gouty arthritis and ulcerative colitis via inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation. We also reveal that the α-methylene-γ-butyrolactone motif in sesquiterpene lactone is the certain active group in inhibiting NLRP3 activation. Taken together, NLRP3 is identified as a direct target of COS for its anti-inflammasome activity. COS, especially the α-methylene-γ-butyrolactone motif in COS structure, might be used to design and produce novel NLRP3 inhibitors as a lead compound.

NEDD8-conjugating enzyme E2 UBE2F confers radiation resistance by protecting lung cancer cells from apoptosis / 浙江大学学报（英文版）（B辑：生物医学和生物技术）

Lung cancer, which is exacerbated by environmental pollution and tobacco use, has become the most common cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with a five-year overall survival rate of only 19% (Siegel et al., 2020; Yang et al., 2020; Yu and Li, 2020). Nearly 85% of lung cancers are non-small cell lung cancers, of which lung adenocarcinoma is the most common subtype accounting for 50% of non-small cell lung cancer cases. At present, radiotherapy is the primary therapeutic modality for lung cancer at different stages, with significant prolongation of survival time (Hirsch et al., 2017; Bai et al., 2019; Shi et al., 2020). Irradiation can generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) through the radiolysis reaction of water and oxygen, cause DNA damage and oxidative stress, and subsequently result in cancer cell death (Kim et al., 2019). Nevertheless, radioresistance seriously hinders the success of treatment for lung cancer, owing to local recurrence and distant metastasis (Huang et al., 2021). Compared with small cell lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer shows more tolerance to radiotherapy. Therefore, it is of great importance to decipher key mechanisms of radioresistance and identify effective molecular radiosensitizers to improve patient survival.

Influential factors of emotional overeating among college students based on social ecosystem theory in Anhui Province / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To investigate the underlying influential factors related to emotional overeating behavior among college students,and to provide a reference for formulating intervention strategies for prevention of unhealthy eating behavior of college students.@*Methods@#A questionnaire designed based on the social ecosystem theory was used to assess the potential influential factors of at personal, social, physical and macro level emotional overeating behavior of 2 045 college students. The Emotional Overeating Questionnaire was used to measure the frequency of emotional overeating behavior among normal weight college students. Binary Logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the association between dietary norms and the influence emotional overeating behaviors.@*Results@#In the full adjusted model, dietary norms (OR=1.28,95%CI=1.16-1.41)，emotion scale (OR=1.46, 95%CI=1.24-1.73) and close friends attitude(OR=0.75, 95%CI=0.59-0.95)were associated with emotional overeating behaviors. Sex, urban and rural origin, monthly living expenses, parental attitude, distance to frequent fast food restaurants outside the school, and the unmarked proportion of nutritional content and calorie information on food packaging were not associated with emotional overeating behaviors (P>0.05).@*Conclusion@#Dietary norms and emotion scale might increase the risk of motional overeating, close friends attitude might reduce the risk of emotional overeating. For reducing the frequency of unhealthy eating behavior, our results implied that 1) it s necessary to improve mental health of the college students; strengthening health education in order to make them distinguish the unhealthy dietary norms is important; peer education might be effective.

Study of peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ in children withHenoch-Schonlein purpura / 中国基层医药

Objective@#To observe the change and clinical significance of the peripheral blood T-lymphocytes CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ in children with Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) under different clinical classification.@*Methods@#From October 2015 to July 2017, the clinical data of 80 children with HSP in the Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College were retrospectively analyzed.According to the clinical classification, they were divided into three groups: skin involvement group (35 cases), abdominal type group (36 cases), and renal type group (9 cases). Another 80 healthy children were selected as the control group.The changes and clinical significance of peripheral blood T-lymphocytes CD45RA+ , CD45RO+ and CD45RA+ /CD45RO+ ratio were analyzed.@*Results@#Among the 80 children, 40 cases were male and 40 cases were female, with age of (7.2±2.3)years old.The CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ rates in the HSP group were (13.19±7.09)%, (12.07±3.46)%, respectively, which were significantly lower than those in the control group [(23.26±6.01)%, (21.74±3.46)%], the differences were statistically significant (t=9.69, 16.42, all P<0.05). The CD45RA+ ratio, CD45RA+ count and CD45RA+ /CD45RO+ ratio of the kidney type group were (8.02±3.63)%, (2.19±0.33)/μL, (-0.28±0.19), respectively, which were significantly lower than those of the skin group [(15.74±7.71)%, (2.55±0.33)/μL, (0.27±0.12)], the differences were statistically significant(t=3.085, 2.709, 4.013, all P<0.05). The ratio of CD45RA+ /CD45RO+ in the abdominal group was significantly lower than that in the skin group[(-0.07±0.27)vs.(0.27±0.12), t=2.989, P<0.05].@*Conclusion@#Peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ may play a role in the generation and development of immune function changes in children with HSP, and the decrease of CD45RA+ T cells may be related to the risk of HSP nephritis.