Objective] To analyze the medication experience of Zhong Yi-tang for insomnia by using TCM inheritance support system 1.1ver.[Methods] The prescriptions of Zhong Yi-tang for insomnia were collected and input the data into TCM inheritance support system .The frequency and association rules of drugs were calculated by using data mining methods such as apfiofi algorithm,complex system entropy cluster and unsupervised hierarchical cluster,and medication rule of Zhong Yi-tang for epigastric pain was analyzed.[Results] Based on the analysis of 354 prescriptions, the frequency of each herb and association rules among the herbs were computed. Spine date seed, tuber fleeceflower stem, paeony, red sage root, boxthorn and Chinese Date were highly frequently found, 18 pairs of Chinese medicines based on these and 5 core combinations such as ganmai-dazao decoction were mined out . [Conclusion] Zhong Yi-tang usually used ganmai-dazao decoction, spine date seed, tuber fleeceflower stem and red sage root to cure insomnia. The sweet and moistening Chinese medcine were used to strengthen-spleen-stomach, benefiting ying-blood, and nourishing the heart-blood. Data mining method can be used to analyze old TCM doctors’clinical experience.

Objective:To analyze the differential genes and related signaling pathways of microglia subpopulations in Parkinson's disease (PD) -like mouse brains induced by paraquat (PQ) based on single-cell RNA sequencing, and provide clues to elucidate the mechanism of PQ-induced PD-like changes in the brain of animals.Methods:In September 2021, six male 6-week-old C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into control group and experimental group (three mice in each group) . The mice were injected with saline, 10.0 mg/kg PQ intraperitoneally, once every three days, and 10 consecutive injections were used for modeling. After infection, the brains of mice were taken and 10×Genomics single-cell RNA sequencing was performed. Microglia subpopulations were screened based on gene expression characteristics, and Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses were performed. The differential genes of microglia subpopulations between the experimental group and control group were further screened, and functional enrichment analysis was performed using bioinformatics tools. Mouse microglia (BV2 cells) were treated with 0, 60, 90 μmol/L PQ solution, respectively. And real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR experiments were conducted to validate the expressions of differential genes hexokinase 2 (Hk2) , ATPase H+ Transporting V0 Subunit B (Atp6v0b) and Neuregulin 1 (Nrg1) .Results:Cluster 7 and Cluster 20 were identified as microglia subpopulations based on the signature genes inositol polyphosphate-5-phosphatase d, Inpp5d (Inpp5d) and transforming growth factor beta receptor 1 (Tgfbr1) , and they reflected the microglia-activated M2 phenotype. The bioinformatics analysis showed that the characteristic genes of identified microglia subpopulations were enriched in endocytosis. In terms of molecular function, it mainly enriched in transmembrane receptor protein kinase activity and cytokine binding. The up-regulated genes of Cluster 7 were mainly enriched in lysosomal pathway, endocytosis pathway, and down-regulated genes were mainly enriched in neurodegenerative disease and other signaling pathways. The up-regulated genes of Cluster 20 were mainly enriched in signaling pathways related to PD, and down-regulated genes were mainly enriched in cyclic adenosine 3', 5'-monophosphate (cAMP) signaling pathways, neurological development, synaptic function and other signaling pathways. The results of real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR showed that the expressions of Hk2 mRNA and Atp6v0b mRNA increased and the expression of Nrg1 mRNA decreased in the 90 μmol/L PQ-treated BV2 cells compared with the 0 μmol/L, and the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05) . Conclusion:Microglia are activated in the PQ-induced PD-like mouse model and polarized toward the M2 phenotype. And their functions are associated with lysosomal (endocytosis) , synaptic functions and the regulation of PD-related pathways.

Objective:To analyze the differential genes and related signaling pathways of microglia subpopulations in Parkinson's disease (PD) -like mouse brains induced by paraquat (PQ) based on single-cell RNA sequencing, and provide clues to elucidate the mechanism of PQ-induced PD-like changes in the brain of animals.Methods:In September 2021, six male 6-week-old C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into control group and experimental group (three mice in each group) . The mice were injected with saline, 10.0 mg/kg PQ intraperitoneally, once every three days, and 10 consecutive injections were used for modeling. After infection, the brains of mice were taken and 10×Genomics single-cell RNA sequencing was performed. Microglia subpopulations were screened based on gene expression characteristics, and Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses were performed. The differential genes of microglia subpopulations between the experimental group and control group were further screened, and functional enrichment analysis was performed using bioinformatics tools. Mouse microglia (BV2 cells) were treated with 0, 60, 90 μmol/L PQ solution, respectively. And real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR experiments were conducted to validate the expressions of differential genes hexokinase 2 (Hk2) , ATPase H+ Transporting V0 Subunit B (Atp6v0b) and Neuregulin 1 (Nrg1) .Results:Cluster 7 and Cluster 20 were identified as microglia subpopulations based on the signature genes inositol polyphosphate-5-phosphatase d, Inpp5d (Inpp5d) and transforming growth factor beta receptor 1 (Tgfbr1) , and they reflected the microglia-activated M2 phenotype. The bioinformatics analysis showed that the characteristic genes of identified microglia subpopulations were enriched in endocytosis. In terms of molecular function, it mainly enriched in transmembrane receptor protein kinase activity and cytokine binding. The up-regulated genes of Cluster 7 were mainly enriched in lysosomal pathway, endocytosis pathway, and down-regulated genes were mainly enriched in neurodegenerative disease and other signaling pathways. The up-regulated genes of Cluster 20 were mainly enriched in signaling pathways related to PD, and down-regulated genes were mainly enriched in cyclic adenosine 3', 5'-monophosphate (cAMP) signaling pathways, neurological development, synaptic function and other signaling pathways. The results of real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR showed that the expressions of Hk2 mRNA and Atp6v0b mRNA increased and the expression of Nrg1 mRNA decreased in the 90 μmol/L PQ-treated BV2 cells compared with the 0 μmol/L, and the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05) . Conclusion:Microglia are activated in the PQ-induced PD-like mouse model and polarized toward the M2 phenotype. And their functions are associated with lysosomal (endocytosis) , synaptic functions and the regulation of PD-related pathways.

Objective To investigate the impact of Yanghe-patch acupoint in the treatment of impaired glucose tolerance(IGT)with Yang-deficiency constitution and its influence on serum metabolites.Methods The study enrolled a total of 63 patients with IGT were randomly selected and stratified into two groups:The control group(32 cases)and the treatment group(31 cases)at Ningbo Municipal Hospital of TCM Affliated to Zhejiang Chinese Medical University from October 2022 to January 2024,blood glucose,blood lipids,tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),Yang-deficiency body mass score,and infrared thermal imaging temperature before and after treatment were compared between two groups.Furthermore,29 healthy individuals were selected as healthy negative controls,and their serum metabolites were analyzed by using liquid chromatograph-mass spectrometer(LC-MS)among three groups.Principal component analysis and orthogonal projections to latent structures-discriminate analysis were employed to identify characteristic differential metabolites.Additionally,key metabolic pathways were screened through network analysis by using MetaboAnalyst software.Results The treatment group after Yanghe-patch showed significant reductions in fasting blood glucose,glycosylated hemoglobin,triglycerides,low-density lipopro-tein and TNF-α levels(P＜0.05).Additionally,Yang-deficiency constitution conversion points significantly decreased within the treatment group(P＜0.05),while there were significant increases in the temperatures of Ren channel,Du channel,middle-Jiao and lower-Jiao(P＜0.05).However,there was a notable decrease in upper-Jiao temperature(P＜0.05).Metabolomics analysis identified varying levels of serum metabolites in IGT patients with Yang-deficiency constitution,such as 4-acetylaminobutyric acid,3-dehydrocholic acid,citric acid,and cystine etc.16 metabolites.Treatment group exhibited distinct expression patterns for 16 metabolites(including diaminoheptadecic acid,acetyl-L-carnitine and monobutyl phthalate etc.).The analysis by MetaboAnalyst shows that Yang-deficiency constitution with IGT was linked to dysregulation in the tricarboxylic acid cycle,aminoacyl bioanabolic pathway,and Gly-Ser-Thr metabolic axis.Additionally,Yanghe-patch intervention affects the glycine,serine and threonine(Gly-Ser-Thr)metabolic axis and sphingolipid metabolism.Conclusion The application of Yanghe-patch on acupoints shows potential in alleviating chronic systemic inflammation and improving symptoms associated with Yang-deficiency constitution in individuals with IGT.Metabolomics analysis has revealed a range of metabolites involved in their mechanism,among which the Gly-Ser-Thr metabolic pathway is considered crucial for regulating the constitution of Yang-deficiency constitution in individuals with IGT.

Background Paraquat (PQ) is one of the most widely used herbicides in the world and a risk factor for Parkinson's disease (PD), but the mechanisms underlying PD are poorly understood. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) technology can study cellular heterogeneity at genetic level, providing insights into the pathogenesis of PQ-induced PD. Objective To analyze the brain cell grouping of PQ-infected mice and the biological processes involved in the subpopulation of PD-like changes cells by scRNA-seq, and to provide clues for revealing potential mechanisms of PQ-induced PD-like changes in mouse brains. Methods Six male 6-week-old C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into a control group and an experimental group, three mice in each group, and were intraperitoneally injected with 0 (saline) and 10.0 mg·kg⁻¹ PD respectively, once every two days, for 10 consecutive injections for modeling. After infection, mouse brains were taken and scRNA-seq was performed. Cell segmentation was performed according to gene expression characteristics of different cell types, PD-related cell subsets were screened by bioinformatics tools, and gene ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), protein interaction network analysis, and transcription factor prediction were performed on their characteristic genes. Finally, GO and KEGG analyses were performed on the differential genes of PD-associated cell subsets between the PQ-treated group and the control group, and the biological processes in which these genes may participate were analyzed. Results The sequencing data met quality control standards, a total of 55779 cells were obtained, and all cell dimensionality reduction analysis results showed that they could be further divided into 37 clusters, including 5 major cell types. Based on the KEGG analysis of the top 20 characteristic genes of each subpopulation, the specifically expressed Cluster 33 subpopulation (dopaminergic neurons) was screened and found to be significantly associated with PD. The results of GO analysis showed that the biological function of this subpopulation mainly enriched neurotransmitter transport and regulation. The results of GSEA analysis showed that the tyrosine metabolic pathway and the ligand-receptor interaction pathway of neural activity in brain tissues were significantly enriched. The analysis of transcriptional regulatory networks showed that 39 transcription factors were expressed differently. The metabolic pathway of the dopamine neuronal subset, endocytosis, Ras-associated protein 1 (Rap1) signaling pathway, and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway were all affected by PQ exposure, according to further analysis of its effects on this subpopulation. The GO analysis showed that differential genes were involved in biological processes such as ion transport and synaptic assembly regulation, and were involved in the cellular component formation of cytoplasm and synapses. Conclusion This study has initially mapped the transcriptome of single cells in the mouse brain after PQ exposure, and screened out the specific expression of Cluster 33 subgroup (dopaminergic neurons), which is significantly correlated with PD, and its biological function changes may be one of the mechanisms of PD-like changes in the mouse brain induced by PQ.