Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of acupuncture at affected-limb gallbladder meridian points and its effect on the recovery of lower limb function in treating hemiplegia patients with cerebral infarction. Methods Sixty hemiplegia patients with cerebral infarction were randomly allocated to treatment and control groups, 30 cases each. The treatment group received acupuncture at the gallbladder meridian points of the affected-side lower limb as main therapy and the control group, conventional acupuncture. After two courses of treatment, a pre-/post-treatment change in the Lower Extremity Fugl-Meyer Assessment score was observed in the two groups and post-treatment walking paces, pace lengths and incidences of strephenopodia were compared between the two groups.Results There was a statistically significant pre-/post-treatment difference in the Lower Extremity Fugl-Meyer Assessment score in the two groups (P<0.01). There was a statistically significant post-treatment difference in the Lower Extremity Fugl-Meyer Assessment score between the treatment and control groups (P<0.05). There were statistically significant post-treatment differences in walking pace, pace length and the incidence of strephenopodia between the treatment and control groups (P<0.05).Conclusion Acupuncture at affected-limb gallbladder meridian points can improve lower limb function and reduce the incidence of strephenopodia in hemiplegia patients with cerebral infarction.

Objective To investigate the effect of PDLIM4 (PDZ and LIM domain 4) gene on the prognosis and radiosensitivity of glioma. Methods The differentially expressed genes were analyzed by bioinformatics technique using GSE53733 gene chip. The expression of PDLIM4 protein was detected by Western blot. The effects of PDLIM4 gene on glioma prognosis and glioma cell radiosensitivity were studied by using real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR, siRNA, MTT and cell flow cytometry assays. Results PDLIM4 gene had the most significant differential expression in the chip (logFC=1. 055897, P<0. 05). The PCR assay of 40 glioma cases in our hospital confirmed that expression of PDLIM4 showed obvious difference between high- and low-grade gliomas (t =4. 44, P <0. 05), which was correlated with the survival of patients (χ2 =5. 52, P<0. 05). Moreover, PDLIM4 gene was involved in radioresistance of glioma cells (t = 35.99, P < 0.05). Conclusions PDLIM4 gene expression level correlates with malignant degree and prognosis of glioma and also contributes to cell radioresistance.

Objective:To investigate the clinical significance of autologous platelet separation (APS) in different time courses of cardiovascular surgery.Methods:The relevant data of 75 patients with cardiovascular surgery from September 2019 to August 2021 in Hunan Provincial Peoples′ Hospital were collected retrospectively. They were divided into two groups according to whether APS was used during the operation: group A used APS (37 cases) and group B did not use APS (38 cases). The two groups were divided into subgroups according to the length of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB): A1 and B1 were medium and short-term groups (CPB bypass time ≤200 min), and A2 and B2 were long-term groups (CPB bypass time >200 min). Blood routine, postoperative drainage volume, postoperative blood product infusion volume and thromboelastogram at different time points were recorded and compared.Results:The postoperative drainage volume, red blood cell infusion volume and ventilator assisted time in group A were less than those in group B (all P<0.05); The postoperative drainage volume [(645.79±205.25)ml vs (886.67±360.96)ml, P=0.006], erythrocyte infusion volume [(3.24±2.53)U vs (4.77±1.97)U, P=0.016], platelet infusion volume [0.00(0.00, 0.00)U vs 1.00(0.125, 2.00)U, P=0.002] and thromboelastogram coagulation reaction time [(7.38±1.74)min vs (9.09±3.57)min, P=0.047] in group A2 were significantly better than those in group B2 (all P<0.05); There were no significant difference in the above indexes between A1 and B1 group (all P>0.05). Conclusions:APS can improve the coagulation function of patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass and reduce the amount of bleeding and blood products. Its protective effect is more prominent in high-risk cardiovascular surgery with long cardiopulmonary bypass and complex operation.

Hepatic stellate cells(HSCs)are essential drivers of fibrogenesis.Inducing activated-HSC apoptosis is a promising strategy for treating hepatic fibrosis.18beta-glycyrrhetinic acid(18β-GA)is a natural com-pound that exists widely in herbal medicines,such as Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch,which is used for treating multiple liver diseases,especially in Asia.In the present study,we demonstrated that 18β-GA decreased hepatic fibrosis by inducing the apoptosis in activated HSCs.18β-GA inhibited the expression of α-smooth muscle actin and collagen type Ⅰ alpha-1.Using a chemoproteomic approach derived from activity-based protein profiling,together with cellular thermal shift assay and surface plasmon reso-nance,we found that 18β-GA covalently targeted peroxiredoxin 1(PRDX1)and peroxiredoxin 2(PRDX2)proteins via binding to active cysteine residues and thereby inhibited their enzymatic activities.18β-GA induced the elevation of reactive oxygen species(ROS),resulting in the apoptosis of activated HSCs.PRDX1 knockdown also led to ROS-mediated apoptosis in activated HSCs.Collectively,our findings revealed the target proteins and molecular mechanisms of 18β-GA in ameliorating hepatic fibrosis,highlighting the future development of 18β-GA as a novel therapeutic drug for hepatic fibrosis.

Objective:To measure the magnetic field correction factor of reference ionization chamber in a 1.5 T magnetic field and to explore the response of the ionization chamber among different angles between magnetic field and ionization chamber axis.Methods:A home-made magnetic compatible one-dimensional water tank was used to measure the response of PTW30013 and IBA FC65-G in 7 MV photon beam of Elekta Unity with and without magnetic field. The ionizing current was collected by PTW UNIDOS Tango electrometer. The effective measurement point of ionization chamber was positioned to the isocenter of MR-linac using electronic portal image device. The influence on water absorbed dose of reference point was obtained by Monte Carlo calculations.Results:The response of ionization chambers in strong magnetic field was related to the angle between chamber axis and magnetic field. The response of ionization chamber was significantly affected in perpendicular magnetic field with a deviation up to 4.54% compared to parallel magnetic field. The deviation between the magnetic field correction factors measured for parallel or reverse-parallel was 0.03%-0.24%. The magnetic field correction factors for PTW30013 and FC65-G measured in parallel magnetic field were 0.9934±0.0077 and 0.9990±0.0076, respectively.Conclusions:This study experimentally verifies that positioning the ionization chamber axis parallel to the magnetic field direction in MR-linac reference dosimetry can minimize the magnetic field impact. The determined magnetic field correction factor and uncertainty in 1.5 T magnetic field can provide necessary data for establishing an MR-linac reference dosimetry protocol.

Ergothioneine is a multifunctional physiological cytoprotector, with broad application in foods, beverage, medicine, cosmetics and so on. Biosynthesis is an increasingly favored method in the production of ergothioneine. This paper summarizes the new progress in the identification of key pathways, the mining of key enzymes, and the development of natural edible mushroom species and high-yield engineering strains for ergothioneine biosynthesis in recent years. Through this review, we aim to reveal the molecular mechanism of ergothioneine biosynthesis and then employ the methods of fermentation engineering, metabolic engineering, and synthetic biology to greatly increase the yield of ergothioneine.
Antioxidants ; Ergothioneine/metabolism* ; Fermentation ; Metabolic Engineering

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.