1.CarsiDock-Cov: A deep learning-guided approach for automated covalent docking and screening.
Chao SHEN ; Hongyan DU ; Xujun ZHANG ; Shukai GU ; Heng CAI ; Yu KANG ; Peichen PAN ; Qingwei ZHAO ; Tingjun HOU
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(11):5758-5771
The interest in covalent drugs has resurged in recent decades, spurring the development of numerous specialized computational docking tools to facilitate covalent ligand design and screening. Herein, we present CarsiDock-Cov, a new paradigm distinguishing itself as the first deep learning (DL)-guided approach for covalent docking. CarsiDock-Cov retains the core components of its non-covalent predecessor, leveraging a DL model pretrained on millions of docking complexes to predict protein-ligand distance matrices, along with a dedicated-designed geometric optimization procedure to convert these distances into refined binding poses. Additionally, it incorporates several key enhancements specifically tailored to optimize the protocol for covalent docking applications. Our approach has been extensively validated on multiple public datasets regarding the docking and screening of covalent ligands, and the results indicate that our approach not only achieves comparably improved applicability compared to its non-covalent predecessor, but also exhibits competitive performance against various state-of-the-art covalent docking tools. Collectively, our approach represents a significant advance in covalent docking methodology, offering an automated and efficient solution that shows considerable promise for accelerating covalent drug discovery and design.
2.Association between the risk of increase in total cholesterol and the risk of cholelithiasis: A bidirectional Mendelian randomization study
Weiwei ZHAO ; Xiaoxu DU ; Hongyan GE
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2024;40(3):573-580
ObjectiveTo investigate the association between the risk of increase in total cholesterol (TC) and the risk of cholelithiasis by using bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR). MethodsThe open gwas public database was used to obtain the single nucleotide polymorphism data associated with TC and cholelithiasis, and a secondary data analysis was performed for all summary data of genome-wide association studies. The genetic loci closely associated with TC or cholelithiasis were selected as exposure or outcome variables, and the bidirectional MR analysis was performed using the methods such as Egger regression, Weighted median, IVW random effects model, and IVW fixed effects model, with odds ratio (OR) values for evaluating the causal relationship between TC and cholelithiasis. ResultsWith TC as the exposure and cholelithiasis as the outcome, TC-cholelithiasis had an overall OR value of 0.91 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.85 — 0.97) before elimination of heterogeneity and 0.93 (95%CI: 0.89 — 0.97) after elimination of heterogeneity. With cholelithiasis as the exposure and TC as the outcome, TC-cholelithiasis had an overall OR value of 0.20 (95%CI: 0.06 — 0.65) before elimination of heterogeneity and 0.28 (95%CI: 0.10 — 0.83) after elimination of heterogeneity. There was a bidirectional causal relationship between genetically predicted TC and cholelithiasis. ConclusionThis study confirms the bidirectional causal relationship between TC and cholelithiasis. The risk of cholelithiasis decreases with the increase in alleles associated with the elevation of TC level; on the contrary, the risk of elevated TC level decreases with the increase in alleles associated with the onset of cholelithiasis.
3.Clinical efficacy analysis of endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty in the treatment of obesity
Liangping WU ; Xiaojiang DAI ; Ye CHEN ; Hongyan HUANG ; Junjie TAN ; Jipei HE ; Weiguo ZHAO ; Lei WANG ; Hui ZENG
Chinese Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery 2024;27(8):846-849
Objective:To explore the clinical efficacy of endoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (ESG) in the treatment of obesity.Method:A 26 year old female patient was admitted on October 20, 2022 due to a progressive increase in weight for 2 years. Her body mass index (BMI) was 30.04 kg/m 2, body fat percentage was 39.2%, and visceral fat grade was 15. ESG was performed using the OverStitch SX endoscopic suture system. Result:The surgery was successful, with approximately 5 ml of intraoperative bleeding.The patient discharged on the first day after surgery. Two weeks after surgery, small bowel follow-through showed a tubular shape of the stomach. At 6 months after surgery, the BMI was 25.2 kg/m 2, body fat percentage was 32%, visceral fat grade was 10. The total body weight loss rate (%TBWL) at 6 months after surgery was 16%, and the excess weight loss rate (%EWL) was 54.5%. Conclusion:ESG is effective for the treatment of obesity.
4.Activation of ALDH2 alleviates hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in mice by upregulating the SIRT1/PGC-1α signaling pathway
Lei WANG ; Fenlan BIAN ; Feiyang MA ; Shu FANG ; Zihan LING ; Mengran LIU ; Hongyan SUN ; Chengwen FU ; Shiyao NI ; Xiaoyang ZHAO ; Xinru FENG ; Zhengyu SUN ; Guoqing LU ; Pinfang KANG ; Shili WU
Journal of Southern Medical University 2024;44(10):1955-1964
Objective To investigate whether activation of mitochondrial acetal dehydrogenase 2(ALDH2)alleviates hypoxic pulmonary hypertension by regulating the SIRT1/PGC-1α signaling pathway.Methods Thirty 8-week-old C57 BL/6 mice were randomized into control,hypoxia,and hypoxia+Alda-1(an ALDH2 activator)group(n=10),and the mice in the latter two groups,along with 10 ALDH2 knockout(ALDH2-/-)mice,were exposed to hypoxia(10%O2,90%N2)with or without daily intraperitoneal injection of Alda-1 for 4 weeks.The changes in right ventricular function and pressure(RVSP)of the mice were evaluated by echocardiography and right ventricular catheter test,and pulmonary artery pressure was estimated based on RVSP.Pulmonary vascular remodeling,right ventricular injury,myocardial α-SMA expression,distal pulmonary arteriole muscle normalization,right ventricular cross-sectional area,myocardial cell hypertrophy,and right cardiac hypertrophy index were assessed with HE staining,immunofluorescence staining and WGA staining,and the expressions of ALDH2,SIRT1,PGC-1α,P16INK4A and P21CIP1 were detected.In pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells with hypoxic exposure,the effect of Alda-1 and EX527 on cell senescence and protein expressions was evaluated using β-galactose staining and Western blotting.Results The wild-type mice with hypoxic exposure showed significantly increased RVSP,right ventricular free wall thickness and myocardial expressions of P16INK4A and P21CIP1,which were effectively lowered by treatment with Alda-1 but further increased in ALDH2-/-mice.In cultured pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells,hypoxic exposure significantly increased senescent cell percentage and cellular expressions of P16INK4A and P21CIP1,which were all lowered by treatment with Alda-1,but its effect was obviously attenuated by EX527 treatment.Conclusion ALDH2 alleviates hypoxia-induced senescence of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells by upregulating the SIRT1/PGC-1α signaling pathway to alleviate pulmonary hypertension in mice.
5.En1 promotes cell proliferation and migration via Hedgehog signaling pathway in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Ning ZHAO ; Tongyang GONG ; Zichao WEI ; Ji CONG ; Zhihua LIU ; Hongyan CHEN
Chinese Journal of Oncology 2024;46(2):99-107
Objective:To explore the function and mechanism of transcription factor En1 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).Methods:The correlations of En1 with prognosis were analyzed using the overall survival data of 9 397 pan-cancer patients and progression-free survival data of 4 349 pan-cancer patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. The En1 expression data in 53 and 155 cases of ESCC and their paired adjacent tissues were from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and National Genomics Data Center-Genome Sequence Archive(NGDC-GSA)database. Lentivirus was used to generate En1 stable knockout cell lines KYSE180 and KYSE450. The proliferation ability of the cells was detected by cell counting kit 8 and clone formation assay. The migration ability of the cells was detected by Transwell assay. The effect of En1 on the proliferation of ESCC was detected by xenograft experiment in BALB/c-nu/nu mice. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was used to detect the expressions of En1, glioma-associated oncogene family zinc finger 1 (GLI1), glioma-associated oncogene family zinc finger 2 (GLI2) and smoothened (SMO).Results:Pan-cancer data from TCGA showed that patients with low En1 expression had longer overall survival and progression-free survival than patients with high En1 expression ( P< 0.001). Data from GEO and GSA databases also showed a high expression level of En1 in ESCC tissues compared with paired tissues ( P<0.001). Proliferation was inhibited after knockout of En1 in KYSE180 and KYSE450 cells ( P<0.001). The colony formation numbers decreased. The colony formation numbers of KYSE180 cells in the shEn1#1 group and the shEn1#2 group were 138.33±23.07 and 127.00±19.70, respectively, significantly lower than that of the shNC group 340.67±12.06 ( P<0.001). The colony formation numbers of KYSE450 cells in the shEn1#1 group and the shEn1#2 group were 65.33±2.52 and 9.00±3.00, respectively, significantly lower than that of the shNC group 139.00±13.00 ( P<0.001). The migration numbers was inhibited after knockout of En1 [the Transwell numbers of KYSE180 cells in the shEn1#1 group and the shEn1#2 group were 66.67±12.66 and 71.33±11.02, respectively, significantly lower than that of the shNC group 334.67±16.56 ( P<0.001). The Transwell numbers of KYSE450 cells in the shEn1#1 group and the shEn1#2 group were 112.33±14.57 and 54.33±5.51, respectively, significantly lower than that of the shNC group 253.33±21.03 ( P<0.001)]. Xenograft model showed a slower growth rate of shEn1#1 and shEn1#2 cell lines ( P<0.001). The tumor weights of KYSE450 cells in the shEn1#1 group and the shEn1#2 group were (0.046±0.026)g and (0.047±0.025)g, respectively, significantly lower than that of the shNC group (0.130±0.038)g ( P<0.001). After knockdown of En1, the relative expression levels of GLI1 in KYSE180 cells of the shEn1#1 group and the shEn1#2 group were 0.326±0.162 and 0.322±0.133, and the relative expression levels of GLI1 in KYSE450 cells of the shEn1#1 and shEn1#2 groups were 0.131±0.006 and 0.352±0.050, respectively, which were all lower than that in the shNC group ( P<0.01). After knockdown of En1, overexpression of GLI1 attenuated the inhibitory effect of knockdown of En1 on cell proliferation ( P<0.001), colony formation[the colony formation numbers of the shEn1#1-GLI1 group were 151.00±9.54, higher than 102.33±10.02 ( P=0.004) of the shEn1#1-vector group] and migration [the migration numbers of the shEn1#1-GLI1 group were 193.67±10.07, higher than 109.33±11.50 ( P<0.001) in the shEn1#1-vector group]. In clinical samples of ESCC, major regulatory factors of the Hedgehog pathway were up-regulated and the pathway was activated. Conclusion:En1 promotes the proliferation and migration of ESCC cells by regulating the Hedgehog pathway and can be used as a new potential target for targeted therapy of ESCC.
6.Clinical efficacy analysis of endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty in the treatment of obesity
Liangping WU ; Xiaojiang DAI ; Ye CHEN ; Hongyan HUANG ; Junjie TAN ; Jipei HE ; Weiguo ZHAO ; Lei WANG ; Hui ZENG
Chinese Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery 2024;27(8):846-849
Objective:To explore the clinical efficacy of endoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (ESG) in the treatment of obesity.Method:A 26 year old female patient was admitted on October 20, 2022 due to a progressive increase in weight for 2 years. Her body mass index (BMI) was 30.04 kg/m 2, body fat percentage was 39.2%, and visceral fat grade was 15. ESG was performed using the OverStitch SX endoscopic suture system. Result:The surgery was successful, with approximately 5 ml of intraoperative bleeding.The patient discharged on the first day after surgery. Two weeks after surgery, small bowel follow-through showed a tubular shape of the stomach. At 6 months after surgery, the BMI was 25.2 kg/m 2, body fat percentage was 32%, visceral fat grade was 10. The total body weight loss rate (%TBWL) at 6 months after surgery was 16%, and the excess weight loss rate (%EWL) was 54.5%. Conclusion:ESG is effective for the treatment of obesity.
7.Mechanisms by which Mettl3 regulates pericyte-myofibroblast transdifferentiation through PI3K/AKT signaling pathway
Yi DENG ; Yan WANG ; Pingping HE ; Jiao LI ; Weiwei LIU ; Jinsong YUAN ; Hongyan ZHAO ; Zhijiang LIU ; Changyin SHEN ; Bei SHI
Chinese Journal of Cardiology 2024;52(7):814-826
Objective:To investigate the role and underlying mechanisms of methyltransferase (Mettl) 3 in the process of angiotensin Ⅱ (Ang Ⅱ)-induced pericyte-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation and renal fibrosis.Methods:C57BL/6J mice were used, in cell experiments, mouse renal pericytes were isolated and cultured using magnetic bead sorting. These pericytes were then induced to transdifferentiate into myofibroblasts with 1×10 6 mmol/L Ang Ⅱ, which was the Ang Ⅱ group, while pericytes cultured in normal conditions served as the control group. Successful transdifferentiation was verified by immunofluorescence staining, Western blotting, and real-time reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) for α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA). The levels of m6A modifications and related enzymes (Mettl3, Mettl14), Wilms tumor 1-associated protein (WTAP), fat mass and obesity protein (FTO), ALKBH5, YTHDF1, YTHDF2, YTHDC1, YTHDC2, YTHDC3 were assessed by Dot blot, RT-qPCR and Western blot. Mettl3 expression was inhibited in cells using lentivirus-mediated Mettl3-shRNA transfection, creating sh-Mettl3 and Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 groups, while lentivirus empty vector transfection served as the negative control (Ang Ⅱ+sh-NC group). The impact of Ang Ⅱ on pericyte transdifferentiation was observed, and the expression of downstream phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling pathway proteins, including PI3K, AKT, phosphorylated AKT at serine 473 (p-AKT (S473)), and phosphorylated AKT at threonine 308 (p-AKT (T308)), were examined. PI3K gene transcription was inhibited by co-culturing cells with actinomycin D, and the half-life of PI3K mRNA was calculated by measuring residual PI3K mRNA expression over different co-culture time. The reversibility of Mettl3 inhibition on Ang Ⅱ-induced pericyte-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation was assessed by adding the AKT activator SC79 to the Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 group. In animal experiments, mice were divided into these groups: sham group (administered 0.9% sterile saline), Ang Ⅱ group (infused with Ang Ⅱ solution), sh-Mettl3 group (injected with Mettl3 shRNA lentivirus solution), Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 group (infused with Ang Ⅱ solution and injected with Mettl3 shRNA lentivirus solution), and Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3+SC79 group (administered Ang Ⅱ solution and Mettl3 shRNA lentivirus, with an additional injection of SC79). Each group consisted of six subject mice. Blood pressure was measured using the tail-cuff method before and after surgery, and serum creatinine, urea, and urinary albumin levels were determined 4 weeks post-surgery. Kidney tissues were collected at 28 days and stained using hematoxylin-eosin (HE) and Masson′s trichrome to assess the extent of renal fibrosis. Results:Primary renal pericytes were successfully obtained by magnetic bead sorting, and intervened with 1×10 6 mmol/L Ang Ⅱ for 48 hours to induce pericyte-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation. Dot blot results indicated higher m6A modification levels in the Ang Ⅱ group compared to the control group ( P<0.05). RT-qPCR and Western blot results showed upregulation of Mettl3 mRNA and protein levels in the Ang Ⅱ group compared to the control group (both P<0.05). In the Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 group, Mettl3 protein expression was lower than that in the Ang Ⅱ group, with reduced expression levels of α-SMA, vimentin, desmin, fibroblast agonist protein (FAPa) and type Ⅰ collagen (all P<0.05). Compared to the control group, PI3K mRNA expression level was elevated in the Ang Ⅱ group, along with increased p-AKT (S473) and p-AKT (T308) expressions. In the Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 group, PI3K mRNA expression and p-AKT (S473) and p-AKT (T308) levels were decreased (all P<0.05). The half-life of PI3K mRNA was shorter in the Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 group than that in the Ang Ⅱ+sh-NC group (2.34 h vs. 3.42 h). The ameliorative effect of Mettl3 inhibition on Ang Ⅱ-induced pericyte-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation was reversible by SC79. Animal experiments showed higher blood pressure, serum creatinine, urea, and 24-hour urinary protein levels, and a larger fibrosis area in the Ang Ⅱ group compared to the sham group (all P<0.05). The fibrosis area was smaller in the Ang Ⅱ+sh-Mettl3 group than that in the Ang Ⅱ group ( P<0.05), but increased again upon addition of SC79. Conclusion:Mettl3-mediated RNA m6A epigenetic regulation is involved in Ang Ⅱ-induced pericyte-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation and renal fibrosis, potentially by affecting PI3K stability and regulating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.
8.Investigating Interventional Mechanism of Bufei Yishen Formula for Inhibiting Macrophage Inflammatory Response Based on Gene Set Enrichment Analysis
Qingzhou GUAN ; Peng ZHAO ; Yange TIAN ; Kangchen LI ; Yan PENG ; Hongyan GUO ; Jiansheng LI
World Science and Technology-Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2024;26(6):1490-1496
Objective To explore the interventional mechanism of Bufei Yishen formula on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease from pathway level.Methods Macrophage inflammatory model was established by LPS stimulation.Based on gene set enrichment analysis(GSEA)method,macrophage inflammation related pathways were screened,and normalized enrichment score(NES)was used to identify pathways that were reversed by traditional Chinese medicine treatment,revealing the interventional mechanism of Bufei Yishen formula and its compatibility.Results The NES of Bufei Yishen formula was-1377.23,among which the NES of Bushen compatibility was-485.07,that of Huoxue was-351.86,Huatan was-303.71,and Yiqi was-236.59.There were 213 significantly disturbed pathways reversed after the intervention of Bufei Yishen formula,among which there were 184 reversed pathways for Huoxue compatibility,147 reversed pathways for Bushen,134 reversed pathways for Huatan,133 reversed pathways for Yiqi,and the reversal rate was 75.41%,60.25%,54.92%,54.51%,respectively.90 pathways,including TGF-β production,were significantly reversed in the four compatibilities.Positive regulation of cytokine production involved in inflammatory response etc were specifically reversed pathways for compatibility.Conclusion The intensity of Bufei Yishen formula that reversed macrophage-inflammatory related pathways was in order of Bushen,Huoxue,Huatan and Yiqi compatibility.And the number of pathways that could be reversed by the compatibility of Bufei Yishen formula was Huoxue,Bushen,Huatan and Yiqi.Bufei Yishen formula could regulate the common and specific reversal pathways of the compatibilities to intervene the inflammatory response.
9.Bibliometric analysis of current status of global and Chinese anesthesiology research in 2023
Yuxiang MENG ; Zijie LING ; Sumin YUAN ; Li ZHANG ; Zhibiao XU ; Yuyun LIU ; Hongyan LIU ; Qingfeng WANG ; Linlin ZHAO
Chinese Journal of Anesthesiology 2024;44(10):1239-1246
Objective:To analyze the current status of anesthesiology research in the world and China in 2023 and to identify the anesthesiology research hotspots using bibliometrics.Methods:The literature related to anesthesiology published in PubMed in 2023 was searched, and the country and author of the literature, as well as the key words of the literature were visually analyzed by using the software CiteSpace6.2. R4.Results:A total of 22 473 articles were included, the country with the largest number of publications was the United States, and China ranked second. The author with the highest number of publications in the field of anesthesiology in the worldwide in 2023 was Kaye Alan D from the United States. Chronic pain, general anesthesia and pain management were the research hotspots in the field of anesthesiology worldwide in 2023. The research hotspots in the field of anesthesiology in China focused on general anesthesia, oxidative stress and neuropathic pain.Conclusions:The United States is the leader in the research in the field of anesthesiology, with China following behind. The keywords of the literature in the field of anesthesiology between China and the world are roughly the same, reflecting the convergence of Chinese scientific research with global scientific research. Domestic anaesthesia practitioners can refer to or learn from the research hotspots of related countries and strengthen communication and cooperation between teams while conducting academic research.
10.Changes in Drug Resistance and Cross-resistance Phenotype Analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Clinical Isolates from 2016 to 2022 in Kunming
Zan LU ; Hongyan ZHAO ; Chunfu LI ; Daibi LI ; Yang HE ; Limin YIN
Journal of Modern Laboratory Medicine 2024;39(6):189-194
Objective To provide some evidence for early empirical treatment of infections caused by Pseudanonas aeruginosa(PA)and establish a certain foundation for further studies on its resistance mechanisms.Analyzed the resistance rate of PA and the phenotype characteristics for seven years at this hospital.Methods Using Whonet 5.6 software,the drug sensitivity data of PA isolated and reported from clinical specimens at Kunming First People's Hospital from 2016 to 2022 were analyzed annually.Imipenem,meropenem,ceftazidime,and cefepime were the main observation objects,statisticaly analyze the resistance of other antibiotics under different drug resistance combinations of the above-mentioned drugs Results A total of 1 920 strains of PA were detected in 7 years,with polymyxins exhibiting the lowest resistance rate at 1%.The average resistance rates for Amikacin,Gentamicin and Tobramycin were 6.4%,8.6%and 5.1%,respectively.The resistance rates of Quinolones,Piperacillin/Tazobactam,Ceftazidime,and Cefepime were similar,ranging from 10%~20%.Imipenem and Meropenem did not show better sensitivity,with resistance rates of 21.3%and 18.4%,respectively.The resistance rates of major antibiotics have fluctuated over the past 7 years,mostly increasing from 2017 to reaching a peak in 2018 and then falling back.And then stabilized with the domestic average level.1 393 strains were sensitive to Imipenem,and the sensitivity rate of Meropenem in this part was 96.2%.1 451 strains were sensitive to Imipenem,and 89%of them were sensitive to Meropenem at the same time.369 strains were both resistant to Imipenem and Meropenem,and 33.1%of them were sensitive to Ceftazidime.The more resistant to β-lactam,the lower the sensitivity rate to Amikacin and Ciprofloxacin.Conclusion The overall drug sensitivity of PA in this hospital is relatively good.Should adhere to strict management of antibiotic use.Aminoglycosides can be the preferred drugs for empirical treatment,followed by Quinolones,and Carbapenems and Ceftazidime are also candidates.PA has diverse resistance mechanisms to β-lactam antimicrobials,and carbapenem-resistant strains can be mediated by different mechanisms or jointly.

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