Objective To explore the mechanism by which She-Ti-Zhi-Qiu decoction alleviates allergic rhinitis (AR) through gut microbiota-mediated regulation of T helper cell 17(Th17)/regulatory T cells(Treg) balance and related cytokines. Methods Twenty-eight female SD rats were randomly divided into four groups: the Control group, Model group, STZQ group, and Probiotics group. Except for the Control group, all other groups were sensitized with ovalbumin (OVA) to establish AR models. The Control and Model groups received intragastric administration of normal saline, while the STZQ group was administered She-Ti-Zhi-Qiu Decoction, and Probiotics group received probiotics. After two weeks of continuous intragastric administration, nasal mucosa, serum, peripheral blood, and colon contents were collected. The inflammation of nasal mucosal tissue was assessed via HE staining. 16S rDNA sequencing was used to detect and analyze the structure and content of bacteria in colon contents. Flow cytometry was used to detect the relative proportions of Treg and Th17 cells in peripheral blood. ELISA was used to measure the levels of Th17- and Treg-related cytokines in serum. Results Compared with the Control group, the Model group showed an inflammatory response in nasal mucosal tissue, along with increased IL-17A and IL-17E levels and decreased IL-10 levels. The percentage of Th17 cells in peripheral blood increased, while the percentage of Treg cells decreased. Beneficial bacteria in the intestine were decreased, while pathogenic bacteria were increased. Compared with the Model group, the STZQ group showed lower serum IL-17A and IL-17E levels and higher IL-10 levels. The percentage of Th17 in peripheral blood decreased, while the percentage of Treg increased. There was an increase in beneficial bacteria in the intestine and a decrease in pathogenic bacteria. The changes in the microbiota were correlated with IL-17A, IL-17E, and IL-10 levels. Conclusion She-Ti-Zhi-Qiu decoction can ameliorate the inflammation of AR by regulating gut microbiota and Th17/Treg immune balance.
Animals ; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory/drug effects* ; Th17 Cells/drug effects* ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome/drug effects* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Female ; Rhinitis, Allergic/microbiology* ; Rats ; Cytokines

Chuanxiong Rhizoma (CX, the dried rhizome of Ligusticum wallichii Franch.), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine, is clinically used for treating cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and hepatobiliary diseases. Cholestatic liver damage is one of the chronic liver diseases with limited effective therapeutic strategies. Currently, little is known about the mechanism links between CX-induced anti-cholestatic action and intercellular communication between cholangiocytes and hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). The study aimed to evaluate the hepatoprotective activity of different CX extracts including the aqueous, alkaloid, phenolic acid and phthalide extracts of CX (CX_AE, CX_AL, CX_PA and CX_PHL) and investigate the intercellular communication-related mechanisms by which the most effective extracts work on cholestatic liver injury. The active compounds of different CX extracts were identified by UPLC-MS/MS. A cholestatic liver injury mouse model induced by bile duct ligation (BDL), and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)-treated human intrahepatic biliary epithelial cholangiocytes (HIBECs) and HSC cell line (LX-2 cells) were used for in vivo and in vitro studies. Histological and other biological techniques were also applied. The results indicated that CX_AE, CX_AL and CX_PHL significantly reduced ductular reaction (DR) and improved liver fibrosis in the BDL mice. Meanwhile, both CX_AE and CX_PHL suppressed DR in injured HIBECs and reduced collagen contraction force and the expression of fibrosis biomarkers in LX-2 cells treated with TGF-β. CX_PHL suppressed the transcription and transfer of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and fibronectin (FN) from the 'DR-like' cholangiocytes to activated HSCs. Mechanistically, the inhibition of PAI-1 and FN by CX_PHL was attributed to the untight combination of the acetyltransferase KAT2A and SMAD3, followdd by the suppression of histone 3 lysine 9 acetylation (H3K9ac)-mediated transcription in cholangiocytes. In conclusion, CX_PHL exerts stronger anti-cholestatic activity in vivo and in vitro than other CX extracts, and its protective effect on the intracellular communication between cholangiocytes and HSCs is achieved by reducing KAT2A/H3K9ac-mediated transcription and release of PAI-1 and FN.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the disease burden of prostate cancer (PC) and assess key influencing factors associated with the disease expenditures of PC in the United States. METHODS: The total deaths, incidence, prevalence, and disability-adjusted life-years of PC were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey was used to estimate healthcare expenditures and productivity loss and to investigate patterns of payment and use of healthcare resources in the United States. A multivariable logistic regression model was conducted to identify key factors influencing expenditures. RESULTS: For patients aged 50 and older, the burden for all age groups showed a modest increase over the 6-year period. Annual medical expenditures were estimated to range from US$24.8 billion to US$39.2 billion from 2014 to 2019. The annual loss in productivity for patients was approximately US$1,200. The top 3 major components of medical costs were hospital inpatient stays, prescription medicines, and office-based visits. Medicare was the largest source of payments for survivors. In terms of drug consumption, genitourinary tract agents (57.0%) and antineoplastics (18.6%) were the main therapeutic drugs. High medical expenditures were positively associated with age (p=0.005), having private health insurance (p=0.016), more comorbidities, not currently smoking (p=0.001), and patient self-perception of fair/poor health status (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS From 2014 to 2019, the national real-world data of PC revealed that the disease burden in the United States continued to increase, which was partly related to patient characteristics.

Objective:To explore the effects of hospital-to-community model-based case management on outcomes and life quality of patients with atrial fibrillation.Methods:By convience sampling method, a total of 90 cases of atrial fibrillation patients admitted to Changzhou Second People′s Hospital from January 2019 to May 2020 were randomly divided into control group and experimental group, with 45 cases in each group. The patients in the control group received routine nursing care, the experimental group implemented hospital-to-community model-based case management. The beliefs about medicine, medication compliance, quality of life and readmissions of cardiovascular events were compared between 2 groups before and 6 months after intervention.Results:Finally, 41 cases were included in the experimental group and 38 cases in the control group. Before intervention, there were no significant differences in various indexes between the two groups ( P>0.05). After 6 months of intervention, the scores of specific-necessity in Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire-Specific (BMQ-Specific) and Morisky Medication Adherence Scale-8 (MMAS-8) were (16.98 ± 4.22) and (7.15 ± 0.69) points in the experimental group, higher than in the control group (14.95 ± 4.33) and (6.32 ± 1.07) points; the scores of specific-concerns in BMQ-Specific were (6.83 ± 1.91)points in the experimental group, lower than in the control group (8.42 ± 2.73) points. The differences were statistically significant ( t = 2.11, 4.07, 2.98, all P<0.05); the scores of physical function, role-physical, pain, general health, mental health dimensions and total scores in SF-36 were (80.37 ± 3.46), (46.63 ± 14.54), (90.37 ± 5.78), (70.07 ± 9.98), (84.20 ± 8.73) and (584.88 ± 25.71) points in the experimental group, higher than in the control group (70.13 ± 11.20), (37.34 ± 10.25), (83.37 ± 6.89), (59.55 ± 7.98), (77.58 ± 9.09) and (533.87 ± 31.62) points, the differences were statistically significant ( t values were 3.30-7.89, all P<0.05). At 6 months after discharge, the re-admission of cardiovascular events were 5 cases (12.2%) in the experimental group and 12 cases (31.6%) in the control group, the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=4.74, P<0.05). Conclusions:Hospital-to-community model-based case management can effectively promote beliefs about medicine and medication compliance, improve quality of life and decrease re-admission of cardiovascular events of patients with atrial fibrillation.

Objective:To explore the optimum time of ambulation of atrial fibrillation patients after radiofrequency ablation, to provide basis for patients' early postoperative rehabilitation.Methods:By convenient sampling method, a total of 120 patients with atrial fibrillation after radiofrequency ablation were collected at Yanghu Branch and City Branch of Changzhou Second People's Hospital from January 2020 to May 2021. They were divided into the early group, middle group and late group according to the random number table method, each group were 40 cases. All patients received routine postoperative intervention, the time of ambulation were 4, 6 and 12 h after operation in the early group, middle group and late group, respectively. The complication rate within 24 h after operation was compared among the three groups, and the comfort level of the three groups at 24, 48 and 72 h after operation was evaluated with Comfort Status Scale (GCQ).Results:Finally, 111 patients were included, including 37 in the early group, 38 in the middle group and 36 in the late group. There was no significant difference in the incidence of bleeding or hematoma, urinary retention, lumbago within 24 h after operation among the three groups ( P>0.05). The incidence of postural hypotension within 24 h after operation in the early group was 2.7% (1/37), which was lower than 21.1% (7/38) and 25.0% (9/36) in the middle and late groups, with a statistically significant difference ( χ2=4.86, 7.67, both P<0.05). At 48 and 72 h after operation, the scores of physiological dimension, psychological dimension and the total score of GCQ in the early group were (20.68 ± 3.07), (22.54 ± 3.35), (81.68 ± 6.11) and (22.54 ± 3.73), (24.38 ± 2.49), (84.92 ± 6.37), higher than those in the middle group (19.16 ± 2.19), (21.32 ± 2.27), (78.24 ± 5.58), (20.93 ± 2.85), (22.32 ± 2.04), (81.66 ± 6.56), and those in the late group (18.44 ± 1.50) (21.31 ± 1.99), (78.06 ± 4.32), (20.89 ± 2.25), (21.58 ± 1.86), (80.28 ± 6.44), the differences were statistically significant ( t values were 2.19-4.15, all P<0.05). Conclusions:Ambulation at 4 h after operation does not increase peripheral vascular complications, but can reduce the incidence of postural hypotension and improve the comfort of patients with atrial fibrillation after radiofrequency ablation.

Objective:To explore the effect of case three-dimensional teaching method (CTTM) combined with multimedia teaching on the practice teaching of liver infectious diseases.Methods:Twenty-five interns of liver infectious diseases received by The Second Hospital of Nanjing from May 2019 to January 2020 were taken as the control group, and 25 interns of liver infectious diseases received from February 2020 to October 2020 were taken as the observation group. The control group was given the conventional teaching mode including the conventional case teaching and the conventional multimedia teaching, while the observation group was given CTTM integrated with multimedia teaching method, and both groups were taught for 4 weeks. After teaching, the examination results of liver infectious disease related theory and practice, the changes of core competence before and after teaching, and the recognition of teaching were compared between the two groups. SPSS 25.0 was used for t test and chi-square test. Results:After teaching, the examination results of liver infectious disease related theory [(92.45±7.23) vs. (81.21±7.11)] and practice [(93.27±6.68) vs. (81.23±6.26)] in the observation group were higher than those in the control group. There was no significant difference in the scores of core competence between the two groups before teaching; after teaching, the scores of autonomous learning, problem analysis and solving, doctor-patient communication and teamwork ability of the two groups were higher than those before teaching, and the scores of observation group were significantly higher than those of the control group ( P<0.05). The recognition rates of interns in the observation group were higher than those in the control group in the improvement of learning initiative, the consolidation of theoretical knowledge, the enhancement of practical ability and the improvement of learning efficiency ( P<0.05). Conclusion:In the teaching of liver infectious disease interns, CTTM integrated with multimedia teaching method can not only improve the examination results, and enhance the core competence, but also improve the recognition of interns on the teaching mode.

Small proteins specifically refer to proteins consisting of less than 100 amino acids translated from small open reading frames (sORFs), which were usually missed in previous genome annotation. The significance of small proteins has been revealed in current years, along with the discovery of their diverse functions. However, systematic annotation of small proteins is still insufficient. SmProt was specially developed to provide valuable information on small proteins for scientific community. Here we present the update of SmProt, which emphasizes reliability of translated sORFs, genetic variants in translated sORFs, disease-specific sORF translation events or sequences, and remarkably increased data volume. More components such as non-ATG translation initiation, function, and new sources are also included. SmProt incorporated 638,958 unique small proteins curated from 3,165,229 primary records, which were computationally predicted from 419 ribosome profiling (Ribo-seq) datasets or collected from literature and other sources from 370 cell lines or tissues in 8 species (Homo sapiens, Mus musculus, Rattus norvegicus, Drosophila melanogaster, Danio rerio, Saccharomyces cere-visiae, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Escherichia coli). In addition, small protein families identified from human micro-biomes were also collected. All datasets in SmProt are free to access, and available for browse, search, and bulk downloads at http://bigdata.ibp.ac.cn/SmProt/.

Objective:To explore the optimal matching of the current parameters about artificial facial nerve (AFN) for inducing contraction of the orbicularis oris muscle (OOM) in rabbit with peripheral facial paralysis.Methods:According to the combinations of different stimulus parameters, at different time points, we used AFN to induce contraction of the affected side OOM of the paralyzed rabbit in waking state. We recorded the current amplitudes of the threshold stimulation and peak stimulation under each combination, then compared the total charge of the stimulus consumption under different combinations.Results:Compared the total stimulus charge consumption of the AFN threshold stimulation and that in the peak stimulation respectively under different stimulus frequency and pulse width matching combinations, we found that the frequency, the pulse width and the interaction of the frequency and pulse width among different groups could affect the total charge, the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05). Conclusions:When AFN stimulus frequency is 60 Hz and the stimulus pulse width is 100 μs, the output current intensity is relatively lowest and the total consumed charge is the lowest under the premise of effectively inducing the paralytic side OOM contraction. Thus we recommend this stimulus parametric combination as the optimal combination for meeting the low power consumption of AFN.

Objective To evaluate the effect of different doses of thoracic radiotherapy (TRT) upon the clinical prognosis of patients with extensive-stage (stage Ⅳ) small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC) and establish a Nomogram prediction model.Methods Clinical data of 144 patients pathologically diagnosed with ES-SCLC undergoing TRT in Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital from month,2010 to month,2016 were retrospectively analyzed.Clinical characteristics,treatment data and responses were evaluated.A Nomogram was established by using Cox's proportional hazard regression model to predict the overall survival (OS).The prediction capability and accuracy were assessed by the concordance index (C-index) and a calibration curve between the model and verification groups.Results The median follow-up time was 31.9 months.The 2-year OS rate was 20.3％.The Nomogram model demonstrated that TRT dose,liver metastases,oligometastases/polymetastases,number of chemotherapy cycle and response to chemotherapy were significantly correlated with clinical prognosis.The calibration curve revealed that the predicted and actual OS were highly consistent.The C-index was calculated as 0.701.In the subgroup analyses,patients with high-dose TRT obtained significantly better OS than their counterparts with low-dose TRT.Conclusion The Nomogram prediction model based on different TRT doses can accurately predict the OS rate of ES-SCLC patients,which is an individualized model for predicting the survival probability.

Objective: To explore the optimal positions of the implanted stimulating eletrodes for artificial facial nerve (AFN) for inducing contraction of the orbicularis oris muscle (OOM) in rabbit with peripheral facial paralysis. Methods: According to the four microelectrodes of the AFN stimulating side, four modes of the implanted positions were divided. In line with different modes, the electrodes were implanted into the affected OOM of the rabbits with unilateral peripheral facial paralysis. AFN output electric stimulation to induce contraction of the affected OOM with uniform stimulating frequency and pulse length in vitro. Then compared the stimulus threshold amplitude and the peak amplitude separately among different modes by SAS 9.3 version statistical software. Results: The differences of the stimulus threshold amplitude and the peak amplitude had no statistically significant separately between the first mode and the second mode (P>0.05), but there were statistically significant differences between the third mode and the fourth mode (P<0.05). Both kinds of the amplitudes were approximated between the first mode and the second mode respectively, and higher than those in the third mode or the fourth mode. Furthermore, both kinds of the amplitudes in the fourth mode were higher than those in the third mode. Conclusions The microelectrodes of the AFN stimulating lateral are implanted into the upper lip with a public microelectrode and an output microelectrode, into the lower lip with an output microelectrode, and into the way, which is located to the angle 40° to 45° about the line joining between the midpoint of the ipsilateral auricle root and the corner of the mouth with an output microelectrode. This is the third positional mode which requires lowest effective stimulus current intensity. Thus the mode is suitable as the optimal placement programme.