AIM:To investigate the roles of ATP-sensitive potassium ( KATP ) channels in high glucose-induced cardiac injury and the inhibitory effect of hydrogen sulfide ( H2 S) on the cardiomyocyte injury.METHODS:The expres-sion level of KATP channel protein was tested by Western blot.The cell viability was measured by CCK-8 assay.The number of apoptotic cells was observed by Hoechst 33258 nuclear staining.Mitochondrial membrane potential ( MMP) was exam-ined by JC-1 staining.RESULTS:After the H9c2 cells were treated with 35 mmol/L glucose ( high glucose, HG) for 1~24 h, the protein level of KATP channel was significantly reduced at 6 h, 9 h, 12 h and 24 h, reaching the minimum level at 12 h and 24 h.Pretreatment of the cells with 400μmol/L NaHS ( a donor of H2 S) prior to exposure to HG for 12 h con-siderably blocked the down-regulation of KATP channels induced by HG.Pretreatment of the cells with 100 μmol/L mito-chondrial KATP channel opener diazoxide, 50μmol/L non-selective KATP channel opener pinacidil or NaHS obviously inhibi-ted HG-induced injuries, leading to an increase in the cell viability, and decreases in the number of apoptotic cells and the MMP loss.Pretreatment with 100μmol/L mitochondrial KATP channel antagonist 5-hydroxydecanoic acid or 1 mmol/L non-selective KATP channel antagonist glibenclamide attenuated the above cardioprotective effects of NaHS.CONCLUSION:KATP channels mediate the inhibitory effect of H2 S on HG-induced cardiac injury.

Digital therapeutics(DTs)refers to a non-drug intervention method that uses electronic devices such as computers,smartphones,and wearable devices to evaluate and intervene through software programs and Internet technologies.It has been confirmed that there is a good therapeutic effect on a variety of mental disorders.Digital therapeutics can improve the insomnia problems of insomniacs,enhance the attention and work memory ability of patients with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,and can also alleviate symptoms such as depression and anxiety disorder.Digital therapy will develop towards personalized treatment,popular treatment,fragmented treatment,and entertainment treatment in the future and have broad development prospects.

Objective To investigate the difference of niacin skin flush response between patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and healthy controls (HCs), and its sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of MDD. Methods Twenty-one untreated patients with MDD and 28 age- and gender-matched HCs were enrolled in this study. The severity of depressive symptoms was assessed mainly by using the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS-17). Methyl Nicotinate (MN) solution at 8 different concentrations (10-5 mol/L, 10-4 mol/L, 10-3.5 mol/L, 10-3 mol/L, 10-2.5 mol/L, 10-2 mol/L, 10-1.5 mol/L, 10-1 mol/L) were applied on subjects' forearms. Signals of blood flow were collected using the Doppler Laser Flowmetry to detect the skin flushing of the test. Results Under the concentrations of 10-2.5 mol/L, 10-2 mol/L, 10-1.5 mol/L and 10-1 mol/L MN solution, the blood flow was significantly higher in depressive patients than in HCs (P<0.01). The MN sensitivity (logEC50) was inversely correlated to the severity of depressive symptoms (r=-0.57, P<0.05). ROC curve analysis implied that the maximum blood flow (MBF) caused by the niacin skin flush response, could efficiently discriminate MDD from HCs (AUC=0.90, P<0.01). Conclusion The presence of enhanced niacin skin flush response may be helpful in the diagnosis of MDD.

In the context of "New Era" and "New Medicine", the teaching team of laboratory diagnostics proposed a new teaching method of PDCA (Plan, Do, Check, Action) cycle to innovate the instructional design and implementation of laboratory diagnosis on the base of traditional teaching model. Through optimizing the curriculum system, integrating superior resources, taking full advantage of information technology, mobilizing the virtual simulation laboratory, implementing moral education and multiple comprehensive evaluation results, the self-learning enthusiasm, innovation and development ability of students were improved significantly, accompanied with high humanistic care spirit. Moreover, the enthusiasm of participating in scientific research activities and professional competitions was enhanced obviously. Therefore, we believe that the PDCA cycle, with notable successes, deserves high promotion value and wide application.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a serious health problem worldwide, whereas there is still no efficient cure. The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in maintaining human health and disease resistance, and multiple studies have confirmed that the gut microbiota is closely related to the occurrence and development of CKD. Starting from the "gut-kidney axis" theory, this article provides a systematic review of the changes in gut microbiota composition and function in patients with CKD, such as a decrease in the abundance of butyrate-producing bacteria Roseburia and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii. Besides that, the article explores the mechanisms by which the gut microbiota affects CKD progression, such as inflammation and immunity, and also describes the application methods of using the gut microbiota as a therapeutic target for CKD, such as fecal microbiota transplantation, microecologics, and dietary therapy, in order to provide microbial- based targets for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of CKD.

Human milk oligosaccharides (HMO) are important immunoactive components found in breast milk. Scientific research proves that HMOs are significantly beneficial for infant health. 2'-fucosyllactose (2'-FL) is the major component of HMO, which obtained growing attentions from food industry. Besides, 3-fucosyllactose (3-FL) is another important fucosyllactose and it has a similar synthetic route comparing to 2'-FL. Thus, research of the two HMO components has interactive effects for each other. Recently, numerous publications are available for 2'-FL and 3-FL. The microbial cell factory is able to massively produce fucosyllactose via an efficient way, which will show considerable influences in dairy industry. In this paper, we review recent studies on 2'-FL and 3-FL, and discuss their prospects according to published literature and patents.
Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Milk, Human ; Oligosaccharides ; Trisaccharides