Objective: To investigate the current status of iron metabolism among apheresis donors in Guangzhou and analyze the improvement effects of health education on iron deficiency in frequent apheresis donors. Methods: Using a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM), a 180-day follow-up was conducted on 261 eligible apheresis donors at the Guangzhou Blood Center from January to July 2024. Hemoglobin (Hb), serum ferritin (SF), unsaturated iron-binding capacity (UIBC), total iron-binding capacity (TIBC), and transferrin saturation (TS) were selected as outcome variables. The effects of gender, age group, and number of donations within 180 days on these outcomes were analyzed and modeled. A general linear model (GLM) with repeated measures was applied to 55 donors who received health education interventions, comparing changes in Hb and iron metabolism-related indicators before and after follow-up and health education. Results: No significant difference in Hb levels was observed between first-time and regular apheresis donors, but SF levels were significantly higher in first-time donors (F=6.195, P<0.05). The GLMM revealed that female donors exhibited more significant reductions in Hb (T=-12.546) and SF (T=-5.829)(P<0.05 for both). Age group showed no interactive effects on Hb or SF changes. While number of donations within 180 days had no interactive effect on Hb, SF levels significantly decreased with increased number of donations (using ≥9 donations as the reference group; P<0.05 for all groups). After health education, Hb levels remained unchanged, but SF increased compared to pre-intervention levels (mean difference: -18.571, P<0.05), though a declining trend persisted compared to baseline (mean difference from baseline to post-intervention: 23.068,P<0.05). Conclusion: Female and number of donations are primary factors contributing to SF reduction in apheresis donors. Health education interventions promote SF recovery. Extending donation intervals and reinforcing iron deficiency-related health education may improve iron status in donors.

Working memory is an executive memory process that includes encoding, maintenance, and retrieval. These processes can be modulated by transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) with sinusoidal waves. However, little is known about the impact of the rate of current change on working memory. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of two types of tACS with different rates of current change on working memory performance and brain activity. We applied a randomized, single-blind design and divided 81 young participants who received triangular wave tACS, sinusoidal wave tACS, or sham stimulation into three groups. Participants performed n-back tasks, and electroencephalograms were recorded before, during, and after active or sham stimulation. Compared to the baseline, working memory performance (accuracy and response time) improved after stimulation under all stimulation conditions. According to drift-diffusion model analysis, triangular wave tACS significantly increased the efficiency of non-target information processing. In addition, compared with sham conditions, triangular wave tACS reduced alpha power oscillations in the occipital lobe throughout the encoding period, while sinusoidal wave tACS increased theta power in the central frontal region only during the later encoding period. The brain network connectivity results showed that triangular wave tACS improved the clustering coefficient, local efficiency, and node degree intensity in the early encoding stage, and these parameters were positively correlated with the non-target drift rate and decision starting point. Our findings on how tACS modulates working memory indicate that triangular wave tACS significantly enhances brain network connectivity during the early encoding stage, demonstrating an improvement in the efficiency of working memory processing. In contrast, sinusoidal wave tACS increased the theta power during the later encoding stage, suggesting its potential critical role in late-stage information processing. These findings provide valuable insights into the potential mechanisms by which tACS modulates working memory.
Humans ; Memory, Short-Term/physiology* ; Male ; Female ; Young Adult ; Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation/methods* ; Brain/physiology* ; Adult ; Electroencephalography ; Single-Blind Method

Objective To report cases of checkpoint inhibitor pneumonitis （CIP） in patients with advanced biliary tract cancer, aiming to provide additional approaches for the assessment, treatment, and monitoring of this condition. Methods Three patients developed oxygen desaturation and interstitial lung lesions during chemotherapy combined with immunotherapy, and were diagnosed with CIP in collaboration with the respiratory department. Antitumor therapy was discontinued in the acute phase, and glucocorticoids were administered, with regular monitoring of disease progression. During follow-up, case 1 developed lung metastasis; case 2 showed improvement; case 3 had concurrent infection and tumor progression. Results Glucocorticoids improved lung lesions and hypoxic symptoms in patients with CIP, but attention should be paid to the potential for concurrent infections and tumor progression. Conclusions Comprehensive assessment and early identification of CIP are crucial for patients with advanced biliary tract cancer. For those with recurrent symptoms after glucocorticoid therapy, timely and accurate adjustment of the treatment regimen is essential.

Stomach exuberance and spleen deficiency are common pathogenesis of many metabolic diseases. Through analyzing the pathogenesis of stomach exuberance and spleen deficiency， it is believed that its essence is stomach heat and spleen deficiency. Stomach heat includes gastrointestinal heat， spleen and stomach damp-heat， and spleen deficiency is divided into deficiency of spleen yin， deficiency of spleen qi ， and deficiency of spleen yang. It is suggested that the metabolic diseases of stomach-exuberance and spleen-deficiency syndrome can be divided into three categories，i.e. stomach-heat and spleen yin-deficiency， stomach-heat and spleen qi-deficiency， and stomach-heat and spleen yang-deficiency， and the main treatment methods are clearing and draining heat， nourishing yin and moistening intestine， clearing dampness and heat， strengthening spleen and qi， clearing dampness and heat， strengthening spleen and warming yang， respectively， with prescriptions as Maziren Pills （麻子仁丸）， Qinlian Pingwei Powder （芩连平胃散）， and Jiawei Lianli Decoction （加味连理汤） accordingly.

Objective To establish a coronavirus(CoV)infection model using human nasal mucosa organoids for testing antiviral drugs and evaluate the feasibility of using human nasal mucosa organoids with viral infection as platforms for viral research and antiviral drug development.Methods Human nasal mucosa organoids were tested for susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV-OC43 pseudoviruses.In a P3 laboratory,nasal mucosa organoids were infected with the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 and 4 variant strains,and the infection conditions were optimized.The viral loads in the culture supernatants were measured at different time points using RT-qPCR,and immunofluorescence assay was employed to localize SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein to determine the type of the infected cells.In the optimized nasal mucosa viral infection model,the antiviral effects of camostat and bergamot extract(which were known to inhibit SARS-CoV-2)were tested and the underlying molecular mechanisms were explored.Results In the optimized nasal mucosa organoid models infected with SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV-OC43 pseudoviruses,the viral load in the culture supernatants increased significantly during the period of 2 to 24 h following the infection,which confirmed infection of the organoids by both of the pseudoviruses.The nasal mucosa organoids could be stably infected by the original SARS-CoV-2 strain and its 4 variant strains,validating successful establishment of the viral infection model,in which both camostat and bergamot extract exhibited dose-dependent antiviral effects.Conclusions Human nasal mucosa organoids with SARS-CoV-2 infection can serve as platforms for screening and testing antiviral drugs,particularly those intended for nasal administration.

Cardiovascular diseases(CVDs)are a leading factor driving mortality worldwide.Iron,an essential trace mineral,is important in numerous biological processes,and its role in CVDs has raised broad discussion for decades.Iron-mediated cell death,namely ferroptosis,has attracted much attention due to its critical role in cardiomyocyte damage and CVDs.Furthermore,ferritinophagy is the upstream mechanism that induces ferroptosis,and is closely related to CVDs.This review aims to delineate the processes and mechanisms of ferroptosis and ferritinophagy,and the regulatory pathways and molecular targets involved in ferritinophagy,and to determine their roles in CVDs.Furthermore,we discuss the possibility of targeting ferritinophagy-induced ferroptosis modulators for treating CVDs.Collectively,this review offers some new insights into the pathology of CVDs and identifies possible therapeutic targets.

Osteosarcoma,which primarily affects children and adolescents,is a highly malignant bone tumor with high rates of disability and mortality.Therefore,the exploration of biological markers related to its occurrence,development,and prognosis is crucial.Genome-wide association studies have revealed the vital role of genetic polymorphisms in the pathogenesis of osteosarcoma.This study aims to provide new insights into reliable biomarkers of osteosarcoma through the analysis of the functional single-nucleotide polymor-phisms of tumor-related genes.

Objective:To explore the anti-inflammatory effect and safety of two non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the phacoemulsification combined with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation.Methods:A randomized, double-blind, clinical trial was conducted.A total of 90 age-related cataract patients (90 eyes) who were diagnosed in Qingdao Eye Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University were enrolled from October 2020 to February 2021.The patients were randomized to diclofenac sodium group and bromofenac sodium group by random number table method, with 45 cases (45 eyes) in each group.All patients underwent phacoemulsification combined with IOL implantation, and 0.1% diclofenac sodium eye drops (preservative-free), 4 times a day, and 0.1% pramiphene eye drops, 2 times a day were applied in the perioperative period.The duration of continuous medication treatment and follow-up time were 6 weeks.The subjective symptoms of the patients were scored before and after surgery.The amount of tear fluid secretion was detected by Schirmer I test, and the tear film breakup time was recorded with the Oculus dry eye analyzer.Corneal fluorescein staining was observed under a slit lamp microscope with cobalt blue light.Anterior chamber flash was measured by slit-lamp biomicroscopy.The thickness of central macular area and the presence of macular cystoid edema was measured by optical coherence tomography.Visual acuity, noncontact intraocular pressure (IOP) and the drug safety were examined and evaluated.This study adhered to the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the Ethics Committee of Qingdao Eye Hospital (No.[2020]60).All patients were informed about the surgery and postoperative medication and signed the informed consent form.Results:All subjects had no intraoperative complications, and completed treatment and follow-up as required.The preoperative, 1-day postoperative, 1-week postoperative, 6-week postoperative subjective symptom scores were (0.47±0.73), (0.56±0.62), (0.33±0.48), and (0.51±0.66) points in the diclofenac group, and (0.47±0.51), (0.75±0.61), (0.64±0.65), and (0.78±0.77) points in the bromfenac group.There were statistically significant differences in the subjective symptom scores at different time points between the two groups ( Fgroup=5.001, P=0.028; Ftime=2.920, P=0.035), and the subjective symptom scores of diclofenac sodium group were significantly lower than those of bromofenac sodium group (all at P<0.05).The preoperative, 1-week postoperative, 6-week postoperative tear secretion volume were (5.87±2.37), (6.07±2.53), and (6.29±0.25) mm in diclofenac sodium group, and (7.36±2.74), (6.29±3.46), and (5.80±2.76) mm in bromofenac sodium group.There was statistically significant difference in the tear secretion volume between the two groups before surgery ( F=6.910, P=0.012), but there was no significant difference on postoperative weeks 1 and 6 ( F=1.121, 0.772; P=0.729, 0.384).The preoperative, 1-week postoperative, 6-week postoperative non-invasive tear break-up time (NIBUT) were (8.00±6.28), (6.68±5.24), and (6.17±5.00) seconds in diclofenac sodium group, and (6.40±5.28), (4.50±2.46), and (5.39±5.39) seconds in bromofenac sodium group.There was no significant difference in NIBUT between the two groups ( Fgroup=3.415, P=0.068).There was significant difference in NIBUT within groups among different time points ( Ftime=4.358, P=0.020).The 1-day postoperative, 1-week postoperative, 6-week postoperative corneal epithelial staining score were (1.40±0.81), (0.13±0.34), (0.00±0.00) points in diclofenac sodium group, and (1.38±0.89), (0.22±0.47), and (0.00±0.00) points in bromofenac sodium group.There was no statistically significant difference in the corneal epithelial staining score between the two groups after surgery ( Fgroup=0.110, P=0.741).There were statistically significant differences in corneal epithelial staining scores within groups among different time points ( Ftime=175.054, P<0.01).The 1-day postoperative, 1-week postoperative, 6-week postoperative anterior chamber flare classification were 1.13±0.51, 0.13±0.34, and 0.00±0.00 in diclofenac sodium group, and 1.02±0.34, 0.16±0.37, and 0.00±0.00 in bromofenac sodium group.There was no significant difference in the overall anterior chamber flash between the two groups ( Fgroup=0.045, P=0.507).There were statistically significant differences in anterior chamber flash within groups among different time points ( Ftime=322.331, P<0.001).There was no significant difference in the preoperative and 6-week postoperative macular fovea thickness between both groups ( t=-0.221, -0.374; both at P>0.05).The incidence of macular cystoid edema 6 weeks after operation was 0% in both groups.Subjects tolerated the two tested drugs well.Eight adverse events occurred in this study, all of which were mild postoperative IOP elevation, including 3 in diclofenac sodium group with an incidence of 6.67% and 5 in bromofenac group with an incidence of 11.1%.IOP returned to normal in all the patients 1 week after stopping the use of drug. Conclusions:Two nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are safe and effective for anti-inflammatory treatment after cataract phacoemulsification combined with IOL implantation.The new diclofenac sodium eye drops are more comfortable than bromfenac sodium eye drops.

Objective To establish a coronavirus(CoV)infection model using human nasal mucosa organoids for testing antiviral drugs and evaluate the feasibility of using human nasal mucosa organoids with viral infection as platforms for viral research and antiviral drug development.Methods Human nasal mucosa organoids were tested for susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV-OC43 pseudoviruses.In a P3 laboratory,nasal mucosa organoids were infected with the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 and 4 variant strains,and the infection conditions were optimized.The viral loads in the culture supernatants were measured at different time points using RT-qPCR,and immunofluorescence assay was employed to localize SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein to determine the type of the infected cells.In the optimized nasal mucosa viral infection model,the antiviral effects of camostat and bergamot extract(which were known to inhibit SARS-CoV-2)were tested and the underlying molecular mechanisms were explored.Results In the optimized nasal mucosa organoid models infected with SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV-OC43 pseudoviruses,the viral load in the culture supernatants increased significantly during the period of 2 to 24 h following the infection,which confirmed infection of the organoids by both of the pseudoviruses.The nasal mucosa organoids could be stably infected by the original SARS-CoV-2 strain and its 4 variant strains,validating successful establishment of the viral infection model,in which both camostat and bergamot extract exhibited dose-dependent antiviral effects.Conclusions Human nasal mucosa organoids with SARS-CoV-2 infection can serve as platforms for screening and testing antiviral drugs,particularly those intended for nasal administration.

Alzheimer's disease(AD)is a common degenerative disease of the central nervous system in which neuropathological changes precede cognitive dysfunction and behavioral impairment. Currently, early diagnosis of AD is based on invasive and expensive testing techniques that are difficult to use widely in the clinical setting. Therefore, there is an urgent need for new markers to detect AD at an early stage. The eye, as an extension of the brain, has been found to show earlier onset of ocular pathologic changes in patients with AD compared to brain pathologic changes, such as retinal structural abnormalities, visual dysfunction, retinal abnormal protein accumulation, choroidal thickness changes, decreased corneal nerve fiber density, deposition of abnormal Aβ proteins in the lens, and pupillary light decreased sensitivity of response, etc. This article reviews the ocular pathologic changes in AD patients in recent years to provide new ideas for the early clinical diagnosis of AD.