ObjectiveTo evaluate pharmacological effects of Shengmai injection（SMI）on cerebral ischemia and study its neuroprotective mechanism. MethodsMale specific pathogen-free （SPF） Sprague-Dawley （SD） rats were randomly divided into a sham group， a model group， a low-dose SMI group（3 mL·kg^-1）， a middle-dose SMI group（6 mL·kg^-1）， a high-dose SMI group（12 mL·kg^-1）， and a Ginaton group（4 mL·kg^-1）according to the random number table method， with 12 rats in each group. The rat model of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion（MCAO/R）was prepared via the suture method. The administration groups were intraperitoneally injected with corresponding concentrations of SMI or Ginaton injection after reperfusion， which was conducted for 3 consecutive days. The sham group and model group were administered the equivalent volume of physiological saline. The pharmacological effects of SMI on brain injury in MCAO/R rats were evaluated by neurological function scores， cerebral infarction area， hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining， Nissl staining， terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling （TUNEL） staining， and Western blot. The dominant link and key protein of SMI treating cerebral injury were explored using proteomic analysis. The related mechanisms of SMI were further validated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）， Western blot， and chloride ion fluorescence probe with oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation（OGD/R）-treated PC12 cells and MCAO/R rats. ResultsCompared with the sham group， the model group showed significantly increased neurological function scores， cerebral infarction area， neuronal apoptosis rate， and expression levels of apoptosis related proteins （P<0.05， P<0.01）and significantly decreased density of Nissl bodies and neurons（P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the SMI groups exhibited significantly decreased neurological function scores， cerebral infarction area， neuronal apoptosis rate， and expression levels of apoptosis related proteins （P<0.05， P<0.01）and significantly increased density of Nissl bodies and neurons （P<0.05）. The proteomic analysis results showed that oxidative stress and inflammatory response were important processes of SMI intervening in MCAO/R injury， and the chloride intracellular channel protein 1 （CLIC1） was one of key proteins in its action network. The levels of representative indicators of oxidative stress and inflammatory response in the MCAO/R rats of the SMI groups were significantly reduced， compared with those in the model group（P<0.05， P<0.01）， and the expression levels of CLIC1 and downstream NOD-like receptor protein 3 （NLRP3） decreased （P<0.01）. In addition， the experimental results based on the OGD/R PC12 cells showed that SMI significantly increased the cell survival rate（P<0.01） and significantly decreased the intracellular chloride ion concentration（P<0.05）. ConclusionSMI has neuroprotective effects. Oxidative stress and inflammatory response are key processes of SMI intervening in MCAO/R injury. The potential mechanism is closely related to the regulation of CLIC1.

Objective To investigate the characteristics of tremor in Parkinson disease （PD）， essential tremor （ET）， and neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease （NIID）. Methods The surface electromyography （sEMG） data of both upper limbs were collected from 73 patients with tremor （30 patients in PD group， 23 in ET group， and 20 in NIID group）， and the a power spectral analysis was used to investigate frequency characteristics. A one-way analysis of variance and the chi-square test were used for comparison of electrophysiological parameters on sEMG between the three groups. Results The ET group had a higher tremor frequency than the PD group （F=41.86， P<0.01）， while the PD group had a higher tremor frequency than the NIID group in resting state （F=41.86， P=0.002） and in postural state （F=41.86， P=0.011）. The PD group had a higher proportion of patients with alternating contractions than the NIID group in resting state （χ2=5.70， P=0.017） and in postural state （χ2=7.24， P=0.007）， as well as a higher proportion of such patients than the ET group （χ2=9.67， P=0.002）. The PD group also had a higher proportion of patients with harmonic resonances than the NIID group in resting state （χ2=4.64， P=0.031） and in postural state （χ2=7.73， P=0.005）， as well as a higher proportion of such patients than the ET group （χ2=6.52， P=0.011）. Conclusion The highest tremor frequency is observed in ET， while the lowest tremor frequency is observed in NIID； patients with PD have a higher proportion of individuals with alternating contractions or harmonic resonances than patients with NIID and ET.
Parkinson Disease ; Tremor

Objective: To investigate the distribution of pupil diameter and its association with myopia in school age children, providing ideas into the mechanisms of the role of pupil diameter in the onset and development of myopia. Methods: Adopting a combination of stratified cluster random sampling and convenience sampling method, 3 839 children from six schools in Shandong Province were included in September 2021. Pupil diameters distribution was analyzed by age, sex, and myopic status. Pearson correlation analysis was used to assess the relationship between pupil diameter and cycloplegic spherical equivalent (SE), as well as axial length (AL) and other variables. Propensity score matching (PSM) was applied to match myopic and non myopic children at a 1∶1 ratio based on age and sex. A generalized linear model (GLM) was constructed with pupil diameter as the dependent variable to identify independent factors influencing pupil size and its association with myopia. Results: The mean pupil diameter of school age children was (5.77±0.80)mm. Pupil diameter exhibited a significant increasing trend with age ( F =49.34， P trend ＜ 0.01). Myopic children had a significantly larger mean pupil diameter [(6.10±0.73)mm] compared to non myopic children [(5.62±0.79)mm] with a statistically significant difference( t=18.10, P <0.01). Multivariable GLM analysis, adjusted for age, amplitude of accommodation, and uncorrected visual acuity, revealed a negative correlation between pupil diameter and cycloplegic SE (before PSM: β =-0.089, after PSM: β =-0.063, both P ＜0.01). Conclusions Myopic school age children exhibite larger pupil diameters than their non myopic counterparts. Pupil diameter may serve as a potential indicator for monitoring myopia development in school age children.

Debates persist regarding the efficacy and safety of azvudine, particularly its real-world outcomes. This study involved patients aged ≥60 years who were admitted to 25 hospitals in mainland China with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection between December 1, 2022, and February 28, 2023. Efficacy outcomes were all-cause mortality during hospitalization, the proportion of patients discharged with recovery, time to nucleic acid-negative conversion (T _NANC), time to symptom improvement (T _SI), and time of hospital stay (T _HS). Safety was also assessed. Among the 5884 participants identified, 1999 received azvudine, and 1999 matched controls were included after exclusion and propensity score matching. Azvudine recipients exhibited lower all-cause mortality compared with controls in the overall population (13.3% vs. 17.1%, RR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.67-0.90; P = 0.001) and in the severe subgroup (25.7% vs. 33.7%; RR, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.66-0.88; P < 0.001). A higher proportion of patients discharged with recovery, and a shorter T _NANC were associated with azvudine recipients, especially in the severe subgroup. The incidence of adverse events in azvudine recipients was comparable to that in the control group (2.3% vs. 1.7%, P = 0.170). In conclusion, azvudine showed efficacy and safety in older patients hospitalized with COVID-19 during the SARS-CoV-2 omicron wave in China.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of orexin-A-mediated regulation of ionotropic glutamate receptors for promoting motor function recovery in rats with spinal cord injury (SCI). METHODS: Thirty-six newborn SD rats (aged 7-14 days) were randomized into 6 groups (n=6), including a normal control group, a sham-operated group, and 4 SCI groups with daily intrathecal injection of saline, DNQX, orexin-A, or orexin-A+DNQX for 3 consecutive days after PCI. Motor function of the rats were evaluated using blood-brain barrier (BBB) score and inclined plane test 1 day before and at 1, 3, and 7 days after SCI. For patch-clamp experiment, spinal cord slices from newborn rats in the control, sham-operated, SCI, and SCI+orexin groups were prepared, and ventral horn neurons were acutely isolated to determine the reversal potential and dynamic indicators of glutamate receptor-mediated currents under glutamate perfusion. RESULTS: At 3 and 7 days after SCI, the orexin-A-treated rats showed significantly higher BBB scores and grip tilt angles than those with other interventions. Compared with those treated with DNQX alone, the rats receiving the combined treatment with orexin and DNQX had significantly higher BBB scores and grip tilt angles on day 7 after PCI. In the patch-clamp experiment, the ventral horn neurons from SCI rat models exhibited obviously higher reversal potential and greater rise slope of glutamate current with shorter decay time than those from sham-operated and orexin-treated rats. CONCLUSIONS Orexin-A promotes motor function recovery in rats after SCI possibly by improving the function of the ionotropic glutamate receptors.
Animals ; Spinal Cord Injuries/drug therapy* ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptors, Ionotropic Glutamate/metabolism* ; Recovery of Function/drug effects* ; Orexins/pharmacology* ; Male ; Female ; Animals, Newborn ; Neuropeptides/pharmacology* ; Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/pharmacology*

Conventional cancer therapies, such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy, often damage normal cells and may induce new tumors. Oncolytic viruses (OVs) selectively target tumor cells while sparing normal cells. Most OVs used in clinical trials have been genetically engineered to enhance their ability to target tumor cells and activate immune responses. To develop a specific OV-based approach for treating cervical cancer, this study constructed an oncolytic adenovirus that delivered a base editor targeting oncogenes to achieve efficient killing of tumor cells through inhibiting tumor growth and directly lysing tumor cells. We utilized the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) promoter to drive the expression of adenovirus early region 1A (E1A) and successfully constructed the P-hTERT-E1A-GFP vector, which was validated for its activity in cervical cancer cells. Given the critical role of the MYC oncogene in the research of oncology, identifying efficient editing sites for the MYC oncogene is a key step in this study.Three MYC-targeting gRNAs were engineered and co-delivered with ABE8e base editor plasmids into HEK293T cells. Following puromycin selection, Sanger sequencing demonstrated differential editing efficiencies: MYC-1 (43%), MYC-2 (25%), and MYC-3 (35%), identifying MYC-1 as the most efficient editing locus. By constructing the P-ABEs-hTERT-E1A-GFP and P-MYC gRNA-hTERT-E1A-GFP vectors, we successfully packaged the virus and confirmed its specificity and efficacy. The experimental results demonstrate that this novel oncolytic adenovirus effectively inhibits the growth of HeLa cells in vitro, providing new experimental evidence and potential strategies for treating cervical cancer based on the HeLa cell model.
Humans ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms/pathology* ; Oncolytic Viruses/genetics* ; Female ; HEK293 Cells ; Oncolytic Virotherapy/methods* ; Adenoviridae/genetics* ; Gene Editing/methods* ; Telomerase/genetics* ; Adenovirus E1A Proteins/genetics* ; Genetic Vectors/genetics* ; HeLa Cells

Objective The objective of this study was to explore the values of hsa-let-7b-5p in the clinical diagnosis and targeted therapy of non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC).Methods Thirteen pairs of NSCLC tissues and their adjacent tissues with the same pathological type in Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital from September to October 2020 were collected,and differen-tially expressed miRNAs were obtained by RNA-Seq,and the expression of candidate miRNAs were verified in NSCLC tissues and cells through qRT-PCR.The effects of miRNAs on the proliferation,migration and invasion ability of NSCLC were verified by CCK-8 assay,clone formation assay,scratch assay and Transwell assay.Target genes were predicted using MiRDB,TarBase and ENCORI da-tabases,and gene enrichment analysis was performed using FunRich tool.Results Compared with adjacent tissues and human bron-chial epithelial cells(HBE),hsa-let-7b-5p was downregulated in NSCLC tissues and cell lines(A549 cells,H1299 cells,H358 cells and H460 cells)(P<0.05).The high expression of hsa-let-7b-5p inhibited the proliferation,migration and invasion ability of NSCLC(P<0.01).The results of target genes and enrichment analysis showed that among 378 target genes and related genes of hsa-let-7b-5p,147 genes were negatively correlated with the expression of hsa-let-7b-5p(P<0.05).Conclusion Hsa-let-7b-5phas inhibitory effects on the proliferation,migration and invasion of NSCLC.

Objective To evaluate the quality and authenticity of Ophiopogon japonicus in Shengmaiyin,establish ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry(UPLC-MS/MS)for the determination of three characteristic components(methylophiopogonanone A,liriopeside B and liriope muscari baily saponin C),and provide technical support for drug supervision.Methods Samples were analyzed on a Phenomenex Kinetex F5 C18 column(100 mm×3.0 mm,2.6 μm)in a gradient elution mode with 0.1％formic acid water and-0.1％formic acid acetonitrile as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min,the column temperature was 30 ℃,and the injection volume was 1 μL.Mass spectrometer detector,electro spray ion source of positive and negative ions,and multi-reaction monitoring mode were used.Results The linear ranges of methylophiopogonanone A,liriopeside B and liriope muscari baily saponin C were 0.016 7-1.666 0,0.039 7-15.872 0 and 0.022 5～8.988 0 ng(r＞0.999 9),respectively.The average recovery rates of these three components were 85.16％,86.95％and 95.07％,respectively,with RSSDs of 2.65％,1.45％and 1.14％(n=6).The content of methylophiopogonanone A in thirty-eight batches was quite different.Seven batches of liriopeside B or liriope muscari baily saponin C were detected.Conclusion The method is simple and sensitive,and suitable for determining of three characteristic components in Shengmaiyin,which provides references for the quality control of Ophiopogon japonicus in Shengmaiyin.

OBJECTIVE To study the sedative and hypnotic effects of zolpidem and the content of amino acid neurotransmitters in the thalamus and hypothalamus after treatment with zolpidem.METHODS Experiments on the loss of righting reflex(LORR)induced by the upper-threshold dose pentobarbital sodium(50 mg·kg-1,ip)were conducted to establish a hypoxic insomnia model in mice by simulating an altitude of 5500 m.Based on this model,the synergistic effect of zolpidem(0.33,1,3,9 and 27 mg·kg-1,ip)and the subthreshold(20 mg·kg-1,ip)and upper-threshold pentobarbital sodium,as well as the sedative hypnotic effect of zolpidem(10,13,17,20,23,30 and 40 mg·kg-1,ip)were evaluated via the LORR in normoxic and hypoxic environments.One hour after ip given zolpidem,the levels of glutamic acid(Glu)and γ-aminobutyric acid(GABA)in the thalamus and hypothalamus of mice in either environment were determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC)with fluorescence detection.RESULTS One-day treatment with hypoxia significantly shortened the duration of LORR induced by the upper-threshold dose pentobarbital sodium.Compared with normoxia vehicle and hypoxia induced insomnia vehicle groups,zolpidem 9 and 27 mg·kg-1 significantly shortened the latency to LORR(P<0.01,P<0.05)and prolonged duration of LORR induced by subthreshold and upper-threshold pentobarbital sodi-um(P<0.01,P<0.05).The median effective dose(ED50)of LORR induced by zolpidem was 16.21 and 20.55 mg·kg-1 in normoxic and hypoxic environments,respectively.The results of neurotransmitter level detection showed that Glu contents in the thalamus and hypothalamus and the ratio of Glu/GABA in the hypothalamus were decreased after treatment with zolpidem 40 mg·kg-1 in a normoxic environment(P<0.01,P<0.05).Compared with the normoxia control group,Glu content and the ratio of Glu/GABA in the hypothalamus were significantly increased after treatment with hypoxia(P<0.01,P<0.05),and zolpidem 40 mg·kg-1 could reverse their elevation.CONCLUSION The sedative-hypnotic effect of zolpidem is weakened in a hypoxic environment,and the effect of zolpidem on the levels of Glu and GABA in the hypothalamus may play an important role in the sedative-hypnotic effect of zolpidem.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between liver stiffness and histopathological changes in a rat model of acute hepatitis using virtual touch tissue imaging quantification (VTIQ) technology.Methods:A total of 100 SPF-grade SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: control ( n=30), low-dose ( n=35), and high-dose ( n=35) groups. Acute hepatitis models were induced in the low-dose and high-dose groups using 400 mg/kg and 600 mg/kg of Thioacetamide (TAA), respectively. Liver stiffness parameters of the right median lobe and right lobe were measured using VTIQ technology, Mean-H and Mean-L represent the liver lobes with higher and lower liver stiffness measurments, respectively, while Mean represent the average of the measurements from both liver lobes. Comparative analyses of liver stiffness parameters were performed across three groups and between the two lobes of the liver. The correlations between the Mean values of liver stiffness and semi-quantitative histopathological data were investigated. Ten rats were randomly selected from each of the 3 groups to test the repeatability of VTIQ values before and after euthanasia with intraperitoneal anesthesia. Subsequently, 10 rats after euthanasia from each 3 group were randomly chosen to assess the repeatability of VTIQ measurements for inter-observer and intra-observer variabilities. Results:VTIQ results showed statistically significant differences in Mean, Mean-H, and Mean-L among the 3 groups (all P<0.01). The high-dose group had higher measurements compared to the low-dose and control groups, with significant intergroup differences (all P<0.01). Significant differences in Mean-H and Mean-L were observed between the two liver lobes in both low and high-dose groups (all P<0.01). The Mean value showed significant positive correlations with semi-quantitative histopathological data of hepatocellular edema, periportal inflammatory cell infiltration, macrophage proliferation, and bile duct proliferation ( r=0.391, 0.648, 0.577, 0.542; all P<0.01). Multivariate linear regression analysis indicated that hepatocellular edema, eosinophilic change, and bile duct proliferation significantly and positively predicted the Mean value (β=-0.278, -0.196, -0.333; all P<0.05). There were no significant differences of VTIQ measurements befor and after euthanasia (all P>0.05), with repeatability coefficients of 0.166, 0.182, 0.185 for Mean, Mean-H, and Mean-L, respectively. Post-euthanasia, inter- and intra-observer VTIQ differences remained non-significant (all P>0.05), with Mean, Mean-H, Mean-L coefficients of 0.114, 0.194, 0.165 and 0.206, 0.322, 0.268, respectively. Conclusions:VTIQ technology demonstrates potential clinical value in assessing a rat model of acute hepatitis, offering a new perspective for non-invasive evaluation of acute hepatitis. However, its clinical application requires further validation.