Objective To investigate the development of ICUs and critical care medicine at secondary and above hospitals in Inner Mongolia.Methods Questionnaire survey of ICUs at secondary and tertiary hospitals in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region from October 2010 to June 2011.Results There are 76 ICUs at 26 hospitals,including 24 general ICUs and 52 special ICUs; tertiary hospitals average 2.47±0.63 special ICUs,while secondary hospital average 2.23±1.12 special ICUs; 35％ of the ICUs are subject to close-off management; general ICUs at tertiary hospitals account for 1.21％ ± 0.35 ％ of total beds of the hospital,and for 1.98％ ± 0.63％ of secondary hospitals.Regarding the ratio of physicians to ICUs beds,it is 0.75±0.15 at tertiary hospitals,and 0.62± 0.231 at secondary hospitals.As to the ratio of nurses to beds,it is 1.58 ± 0.72 at tertiary hospitals,and 1.36 ± 0.27 at secondary hospitals.Conclusion This survey showed that ICUs in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region are acceptable in numbers,but are found with problems in insufficient beds,poor staff deployment,obsolete medical equipments and weak technical forces.Therefore,critical care medicine and ICU development should be enhanced during the second round of hospital accreditation in China.

AIM: To evaluate the influence of radiofrequency (RF) hyperthermia on immunity function in mice. METHODS: The expression pattern of T helper type 1 (Th1) and T helper type 2 (Th2) cytokines in splenocyte culture supernatants, mainly the expression levels of IFN-?, IL-2, IL-4 and IL-10 in splenocyte culture supernatants of mice in tumor-bearing group, surgical resection group, RF therapy group and normal control group were detected by enzyme-linked immunoadsordent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: IL-2 concentration in two weeks after RF therapy group was higher than that in two weeks after surgical resection and normal control groups (P0.05). CONCLUSION: RF hyperthermia may activate the transformation from Th2 to Th1 and facilitate the excretion of Th1 type cytokines that play an important role in the anti-tumor immunity.

BACKGROUND:The mechanism underlying orthodontic-induced external root resorption is not yet clear, and it differs individual y. Kidney deficiency has been proved to be related to bone diseases which mediated by different cytokines. Interleukin-17 is an important cytokine involved in external root resorption. So figuring out whether kidney deficiency and interleukin-17 are related to root resorption wil be helpful for etiological research.
OBJECTIVE:To explore the relationship between kidney deficiency physique, interleukin-17 and root resorption during orthodontic treatment in rats.
METHODS:Thirty-six Wistar rats were selected and equivalently randomized into two groups, fol owed by modeled into kidney deficiency (kidney deficiency group) or injected with normal saline (control group), respectively. Afterwards, the right maxil ary of each rat served as an orthodontic force model, and the left maxil ary as a non-orthodontic force model. Al rats were respectively sacrificed under general anesthesia at the 3, 7 and 14 days after given orthodontic force. Then, the mesial surface of the root of maxil ary first molars and the expression level of interleukin-17 were observed through hematoxylin-eosin staining and immunohistochemical method.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Histological observation showed that significantly increasing root resorption in a time-dependent manner could be observed, and there were various absorbed lacunae of osteoclasts on the enamel in the kidney deficiency orthodontic force group. The alveolar bone resorption and widened periodontal membrane appeared in the control orthodontic force group. While no remarkable root and alveolar bone resorptions were found in the other two non-orthodontic force groups. The expression level of interleukin-17 in the kidney deficiency orthodontic force group was higher than that in the control orthodontic force group;the expression level of interleukin-17 in the kidney deficiency non-orthodontic force group was higher than that in the control non-orthodontic force group. In conclusion, kidney deficiency patients are easy to develop root resorption, the mechanism of which is maybe relevant to the upregulation of interleukin-17.

Objective To introduce a method of automatically identifying critical values from medical image examination reports and prompt the physician to report it,to prevent the omission of the critical value reporting and improve the medical quality.Methods According to the requirement of critical value reporting system,regular expressions were made for each emergency situation of medical image examination,in order to form a critical value feature library.And an algorithm was designed to find critical value and prompt doctors automatically.Results According to this method,the critical value auto recognize software was developed and had been tested in Nanfang Hospital for 6 months.The software ran well.Conclusion Using regular expressions to define a criteria value feature library and design an algorithm of identifying criteria values,can recognize critical values and prompt physician automatically.

Objective:To explore the application effect of four-track teaching mode (LBL: lecture-based learning; CBL: case-based learning; PBL: problem-based learning) in pediatric teaching of integrated traditional Chinese and Western Medicine.Methods:175 integrated traditional Chinese and Western medical students in seven-year program were divided into experimental group and control group. The experimental group was taught by four-track teaching mode, while students in the control group. Were applied with traditional teaching method ("LBL+CBL").Results:Students in the experimental group highly rated the four-track teaching mode and were better than those in the control group in the following aspects: satisfaction with teaching methods, interest in learning, the ability of creative thinking, the thinking ability of clinical diagnosis and treatment, and memorization ( P<0.05). And students' mid-term, final and comprehensive scores in the experimental group were significantly higher than those in the control group ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Compared with traditional teaching methods, the four-track teaching mode can improve the quality of pediatric teaching of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medical students, which should be further integrated and perfected in the teaching practice.

Objective:To explore the protective effect and mechanism of Tongfu Lifei decoction (TFL) on human monocytic leukemia cell THP-1 induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS).Methods:① THP-1 cells were cultured in vitro, and incubated with 1 mg/L LPS for 18 hours to construct an in vitro THP-1 cell inflammation model. Other THP-1 cells were taken as blank control group. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) secreted by cells. ② THP-1 cells were divided into seven groups and treated with 0, 0.005, 0.01, 0.02, 0.04, 0.08, and 0.16 mL/mL TFL for 24 hours (added different dosages of TFL solution per milliliter of culture medium, with a crude drug content of 1 kg/L). The cell survival rate was detected using methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) colorimetric method, and the intervention dosage of TFL for its non-toxic effect on THP-1 cells was screened. ③ Another THP-1 cells were divide into inflammatory model group and 0.01, 0.02, and 0.04 mL/mL TFL groups according to the intervention dosage of TFL screened by MTT colorimetry. After 24 hours of intervention, the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by cells were measured using ELISA. Western blotting was used to detect the expressions of programmed death-1/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) signaling pathway proteins in cells. Real time fluorescence quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to detect the expressions of microRNAs (miR-146a, miR-146b, miR-155) in cells. ④ The maximum non-toxic concentration of TFL (0.04 mL/mL) on the THP-1 cell was selected as the intervention dose. THP-1 cells were divided into inflammation model group, TFL group, TFL+miR-146a inhibitor group, TFL+miR-146b inhibitor group, and TFL+miR-155 inhibitor group. The inflammation model group was not given any drug intervention. The other inhibitor groups were added 100 nmol/L corresponding inhibitor. After 24 hours of intervention, the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by cells were measured using ELISA. Western blotting was used to detect the expressions of PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway proteins in cells. Results:① Compared with the blank control group, the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by cells in the inflammatory model group were significantly increased, indicating the successful construction of the THP-1 inflammatory cell model in vitro. ② 0-0.04 mL/mL TFL had no toxic effect on THP-1 cells. However, the survival rates of cells in the 0.08 mL/mL and 0.16 mL/mL TFL groups were significantly lower than those in the inflammation model group, indicating that TFL dosages exceeding 0.04 mL/mL had toxic effects on THP-1 cells. ③ Compared with the inflammation model group, 0.01 mL/mL TFL had no significant effect on the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by THP-1 cells, while intervention with 0.02 mL/mL and 0.04 mL/mL TFL significantly reduced the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by cells [TNF-α(ng/L): 95.89±8.55, 70.73±11.70 vs. 137.10±7.19, IL-6 (ng/L): 23.03±2.55, 16.58±1.72 vs. 32.60±2.55, all P < 0.01]. Compared with the inflammation model group, the expressions of PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway proteins in THP-1 cells in different dosages of TFL groups were significantly reduced, and showed a certain dosage dependence. The expressions of the pathway proteins in the 0.04 mL/mL TFL group were significantly lower than those in the inflammation model group [PD-1 protein (PD-1/β-actin): 0.28±0.04 vs. 1.00±0.10, PD-L1 protein (PD-L1/β-actin): 0.54±0.05 vs. 1.00±0.08, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) protein (PI3K/β-actin): 0.28±0.03 vs. 1.00±0.08, phosphorylated protein kinase B (p-Akt) protein (p-Akt/Akt): 0.38±0.04 vs. 1.00±0.10, all P < 0.01]. Compared with the inflammation model group, the expression of miR-146a in THP-1 cells in the 0.01, 0.02, and 0.04 mL/mL TFL groups was significantly reduced (2 -ΔΔCt: 0.46±0.11, 0.31±0.13, 0.23±0.14 vs. 1.01±0.18, all P < 0.01), while there was no significant change in the expressions of miR-146b and miR-155. ④ Compared with the inflammation model group, the TFL group showed a significant decrease in the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by THP-1 cells. The miR-146a inhibitor could significantly reverse the inhibitory effect of TFL on inflammatory factors, and the difference was statistically significant as compared with the TFL group [TNF-α (ng/L): 138.55±10.30 vs. 72.33±10.59, IL-6 (ng/L): 31.35±3.98 vs. 15.75±3.76, both P < 0.01]. Compared with the inflammation model group, the expressions of PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway proteins in THP-1 cells in the TFL group were significantly reduced. The expressions of pathway proteins in cells in the TFL+miR-146a inhibitor group were significantly higher than those in the TFL group [PD-1 protein (PD-1/β-actin): 0.85±0.09 vs. 0.37±0.04, PD-L1 protein (PD-L1/β-actin): 0.83±0.08 vs. 0.55±0.06, PI3K protein (PI3K/β-actin): 0.85±0.09 vs. 0.63±0.06, p-Akt protein (p-Akt/Akt): 0.98±0.10 vs. 0.75±0.07, all P < 0.05]. Conclusion:TFL regulates the expression of miR-146a to inhibit the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway in THP-1 cells, regulates the immune barrier of sepsis induced in cell inflammation model in vitro, and thus protects LPS induced THP-1 cells.

Objective To characterize the temporal dynamics of endophytic community and key metabolites during the growth developmental stages of Artemisia indica and to explore the effects of endophytes on the medicinal material quality of A.indica from the perspective of microorganism combined with the correlation analysis.Methods In this study,high-throughput sequencing was performed to obtain the temporal dynamics of diversity and composition of endophytic community during the growth stages of A.indica.Key metabolites quantitative analysis were performed using high-performance liquid chromatography and ultraviolet spectrophotometry.Spearman's correlation analysis was further conducted to identify the endophytic communities that were significantly correlated with metabolites.Results There were significant differences in the diversity and composition of endophytic communities during the growth stages of A.indica.Linear discriminant analysis efect size(LEfSe)analyses identified some potential microbial biomarkers,such as Firmicutes,Massilia,Pantoea,Alternaria,Didymella,and Trichomerium.The abundances of some genera were significantly and positively correlated with the content of total polyphenols and total flavonoids(P<0.05),such as Curtobacterium,Pantoea,Tilletiopsis,and Dissoconium.The abundances of Pseudozyma,Ralstonia,and Pleospora were significantly and positively correlated with Chlorogenic acid,Isochlorogenic acid B,Isochlorogenic acid A,and Isochlorogenic acid C(P<0.05).Conclusion This work described the distribution of endophytes and key metabolites during the development stages of A.indica.Some endophytic communities with significant correlation of key metabolites were identified,which provided valuable information to guide the isolation of endophytic strains related to key metabolites and improve the quality of A.indica.

BACKGROUND:Liuwei Dihuang Wan takes"three tonifying and three reducing effects"as its compatibility feature to nourish yin and tonify the kidneys,while Zuogui Wan takes"seeking yin in yang"as its compatibility feature to nourish yin and tonify the kidneys by promoting yang.Both of them belong to the same method of nourishing yin and tonifying the kidneys,and have better curative effects at the symptomatic and cellular molecular levels. OBJECTIVE:To observe the effects of Liuwei Dihuang Wan and Zuogui Wan in bone metabolism,and to explore their mechanism of action in the osteoprotegerin(OPG)/receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand(RANKL)osteoblastic pathway. METHODS:Thirty-two Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized into model,Liuwei Dihuang Wan,Zuogui Wan,and sham operation group,with eight rats in each group.Osteoporosis models were prepared using removal of both ovaries in the first three groups.Starting at 30 days postoperatively,rats in the Liuwei Dihuang Wan group were gavaged with Liuwei Dihuang Wan 1.125 g/kg/d;rats in the Zuoqui Wan group were gavaged with Zuogui Wan 2.25 g/kg/d;and rats in the sham operation group and the model group were gavaged with saline 10 mL/kg/d.After 12 weeks of gavage,the rat tibia was taken to measure bone mineral density.The serum levels of estrogen,bone alkaline phosphatase,and cAMP/cGMP were measured using ELISA,and the expression of OPG/RANKL in the femur was detected using western blot. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the sham operation group,the model group showed a decrease in bone mineral density and levels of estrogen and bone alkaline phosphatase(P＜0.05)and an increase in cAMP/cGMP level(P＜0.05).Compared with the model group,the Liuwei Dihuang Wan group and the Zuogui Wan group significantly increased bone mineral density(P＜0.05)and bone alkaline phosphatase levels(P＜0.05);the Zuogui Wan group significantly decreased cAMP/cGMP levels(P＜0.05)and upregulated OPG expression(P＜0.05);the Liuwei Dihuang Wan group upregulated OPG expression and downregulated RANKL expression(P＜0.05);and both groups were unable to significantly increase estrogen levels(P＞0.05).To conclude,Zuogui Wan,which seeks yin from yang,can effectively increase the expression of OPG but cannot downregulate the expression of RANKL.However,Liuwei Dihuang Wan,which has three tonifying and three reducing effects,can bidirectionally regulate the expression of OPG and RANKL.This result suggests that Liuwei Dihuang Wan can significantly inhibit osteoclastic function compared with Zuogui Wan,and further research is needed to verify this conclusion.

Osteoporotic thoracolumbar fracture in the elderly will seriously reduce their quality of life and life expectancy. For osteoporotic thoracolumbar fracture in the elderly, spinal reconstruction is necessary, which should comprehensively consider factors such as the physical condition, fracture type, clinical characteristics and osteoporosis degree. While there lacks relevant clinical norms or guidelines on selection of spinal reconstruction strategies. In order to standardize the concept of spinal reconstruction for osteoporotic thoracolumbar fracture in the elderly, based on the principles of scientificity, practicality and progressiveness, the authors formulated the Clinical guideline for spinal reconstruction of osteoporotic thoracolumbar fracture in elderly patients ( version 2022), in which suggestions based on evidence of evidence-based medicine were put forward upon 10 important issues related to the fracture classification, non-operative treatment strategies and surgical treatment strategies in spinal reconstruction after osteoporosis thoracolumbar fracture in the elderly, hoping to provide a reference for clinical treatment.

The incidence of osteoporotic thoracolumbar vertebral fracture (OTLVF) in the elderly is gradually increasing. The kyphotic deformity caused by various factors has become an important characteristic of OTLVF and has received increasing attention. Its clinical manifestations include pain, delayed nerve damage, sagittal imbalance, etc. Currently, the definition and diagnosis of OTLVF with kyphotic deformity in the elderly are still unclear. Although there are many treatment options, they are controversial. Existing guidelines or consensuses pay little attention to this type of fracture with kyphotic deformity. To this end, the Lumbar Education Working Group of the Spine Branch of the Chinese Medicine Education Association and Editorial Committee of Chinese Journal of Trauma organized the experts in the relevant fields to jointly develop Clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporotic thoracolumbar vertebral fractures with kyphotic deformity in the elderly ( version 2024), based on evidence-based medical advancements and the principles of scientificity, practicality, and advanced nature, which provided 18 recommendations to standardize the clinical diagnosis and treatment.