AIM:To investigate the effect of Astragalus polysaccharides ( APS) on chronic heart failure and its mechanism.METHODS:Male SD rats (n=32) were randomly divided into control group , sham group, model group and APS group (8 rats in each group).The left coronary artery ligation in the rats was conducted to establish myocardial infarc -tion heart failure model.After modeling, the rats in APS group were given APS (3 g· kg-1· d-1) by intragastric adminis-tration for 6 weeks.Left ventricular diastolic diameter (LVD), left ventricular systolic diameter (LVS), left ventricular ejection fraction ( LVEF) and fractional shortening ( FS) were detected by echocardiography .HE staining was used to ob-serve the pathological changes .The concentrations of free fatty acid ( FFA) in the serum and myocardium were observed by the method of acetyl coenzyme A synthetase and acetyl coenzyme A oxidase ( ACS-ACOD ) .The protein levels of total AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), phosphorylated AMP-activated protein kinase (p-AMPK), fatty acid translocase (FAT/CD36) and carnitine palmitoyltransferase I (CPT-1) were measured by Western blotting.RESULTS: No signifi-cant difference in each index between sham group and control group was observed .Compared with control group , LVEF and FS in model group was significantly decreased , while LVD and LVS was significantly increased ( P<0.05 ) .The LVEF and FS in APS group were significantly improved compared with model group ( P<0.05 ) , and there was no significant difference between APS group and control group .LVD and LVS in APS group were obviously improved compared with mo-del group (P<0.05), and the difference was significant compared with control group (P<0.05).Compared with control group, focal myocardial necrosis increased , and residual myocardial cells reduced in model group , while those was much better in APS group as compared with model group (P<0.05).The FFA concentrations in the serum and myocardium in model group increased significantly compared with control group ( P<0.05 ) , while those decreased significantly in APS group as compared with model group (P<0.05).The protein levels of p-AMPK, CPT-1, and cell membrane FAT/CD36 in model group decreased significantly compared with control group (P<0.05), and those in APS group increased obvious-ly compared with control group (P<0.05).CONCLUSION:APS improves chronic heart failure by activating the AMPK pathway and promoting myocardial ingestion and utiliation of FFA .

[ ABSTRACT] AIM:To study the protective effect of Astragalus polysaccharides ( APS) on free fatty acid-induced injury in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).METHODS: Cultured HUVECs were divided into control group, APS group [ APS (200 mg/L) treated for 24 h], free fatty acid group [free fatty acid (0.25 mmol/L) treated for 24 h], free fatty acid plus APS group [free fatty acid (0.25 mmol/L) and APS (200 mg/L) treated for 24 h], and com-pound C group [ free fatty acid (0.25 mmol/L) and APS (200 mg/L) and AMPK inhibitor compound C (10 μmol/L) treated for 24 h] .The cell viability was detected by MTT assay.Nitric oxide ( NO) content in the medium was determined by nitrate reductase assay.The protein levels of total adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), phos-phorylated adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (p-AMPK), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and phosphorylated endothelial nitric oxide synthase ( p-eNOS) were measured by Western blot.RESULTS: No significant difference of all indexes between APS group and control group was observed.The cell viability in free fatty acid group de-creased significantly compared with control group.The cell viability in free fatty acid plus APS group was significantly im-proved as compared with free fatty acid group.The cell viability in compound C group was almost the same as that in free fatty acid group.The No content and protein levels of p-AMPK and p-eNOS in free fatty acid group decreased obviously as compared with control group, while the NO content and protein levels of p-AMPK and p-eNOS in free fatty acid plus APS group increased obviously compared with free fatty acid group.No significant difference of the p-AMPK and p-eNOS protein levels between free fatty acid plus APS group and free fatty acid group was observed.No significant difference of the AMPK and eNOS protein levels in all groups was found.CONCLUSION:APS attenuates the free fatty acid-induced injury, and its mechanism is related to the AMPK-eNOS signal pathway.

Objective To investigate the effect of astragalus polysaccharides (APS) on the growth and proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells and its effect on adenosine monophosphate activated pro-tein kinase (AMPK) activity.Methods Hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells cultured for 12,24,and 48 hours were treated with 200,300,and 400 mg/L concentration of astragalus polysaccharides.The cell inhibition rate was detected with methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT),and apoptosis was observed under the fluorescence microscope.Western blot method was used to measure the expression of total AMPK,phosphorylated AMPK (p-AMPK),and phosphorylate mammalian target of rapamycin (p-mTOR) protein expressions.Results Astragalus polysaccharides of each concentration significantly inhibited the proliferation of human hepatoma HepG2 cells (P ＜ 0.01),and the effect of 300 mg/L concentration astragalus polysaccharides was more significant than that of the 200 mg/L concentration (P ＜0.01);while inhibitory effect of 400 and 300 mg/L Astragalus polysaccharides on the proliferation of human hepatoma cell line HepG2 was not significant difference.We found that Astragalus polysaccharides of each concentration could promote the apoptosis of HepG2 cells,and the effect of 300 mg/L Astragalus polysaccharides was more significant.However,astragalus polysaccharide of 400 mg/L concentration could promote the apoptosis no more than the 300 mg/L concentration,which was observed by fluorescent microscope.Western blot results showed that astragalus polysaccharides could increase the expression of p-AMPK (P ＜ 0.05),and inhibit its downstream protein expressions of p-mTOR (P ＜ 0.05).The proliferation effect of astragalus polysaccharides was weakened after accession of AMPK antagonist compound C on hepatocellular carcinoma cells.Conclusions APS can inhibit the growth and proliferation of hepatocarcinoma cells,and its mechanism is related to the AMPK-mTOR pathway.

Background::The incidence rate of lung cancer in women has significantly increased over the past decade, and previous evidence has indicated a significant relationship between the elevated levels of sex hormones and the risk of lung cancer. Therefore, we hypothesized that female hormone-related cancer (FHRC) patients, including breast, endometrial, cervical, and ovarian cancer patients, may experience a higher risk of developing subsequent lung cancer. This meta-analysis aimed to identify the risk of lung cancer among FHRC patients compared to the general population.Methods::The PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and CNKI databases were searched up to May 11, 2022. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to identify the risk of subsequent lung cancer after FHRC. Subgroup analyses based on the follow-up time and tumor type were also conducted.Results::A total of 58 retrospective cohort studies involving 4,360,723 FHRC participants were included. The pooled results demonstrated that FHRC patients had a significantly increased risk of developing subsequent primary lung cancer (SIR = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.48-1.76, P <0.001). Subgroup analysis revealed an obvious trend of increasing lung cancer risk over time (SIRs for <5 years, ≥5 years, ≥10 years, ≥20 years, and ≥30 years after FHRC: 1.32, 1.59, 1.57, 1.68, and 1.95, respectively). In addition, subgroup analysis stratified by tumor type indicated an increased risk of developing subsequent lung cancer after breast (SIR = 1.25, P <0.001), endometrial (SIR = 1.40, P = 0.019), cervical (SIR = 2.56, P <0.001), and ovarian cancer (SIR = 1.50, P = 0.010). Conclusion::FHRC patients are more likely to develop lung cancer than the general population. Furthermore, the increased risk of subsequent primary lung cancer is more obvious with a longer survival time and is observed in all types of hormone-related cancer.Registration::International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Protocols: No. INPLASY202270044; https://inplasy.com/

Objective:To explore the effects of environmental, genetic factors as well as the interactions in early life on the short-term and long-term health of offspring and to systematically evaluate the pregnancy outcomes and health of offspring after birth between families with assisted reproductive technology (ART) conception and families with spontaneous conception.Methods:The China National Birth Cohort (CNBC), a multicenter prospective birth cohort study, includes both families with ART conception and families with spontaneous conception. Since 2016, CNBC has recruited families from 24 hospitals located in 12 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions throughout China. Information and biospecimens were collected before ART treatment, embryo transfer, at early, second, third trimester and delivery, and at 42 days, 6, 12 and 36 months after birth.Results:By June 2020, CNBC had included 27 044 families with ART conception and 29 589 families with spontaneous conception. The majority of the participants are urban residents. Among the families with ART conception, 65.5% of the men and 63.7% of the women had college degrees or higher. The mean age distribution of men and women was (33.83±5.52) and (32.38±4.67) years. 83.2% of women were primiparas, and the prevalence rates of current regular smokers and current alcohol drinkers were 0.8% and 2.1% in women. Among the families with spontaneous conception, 81.5% of the men and 86.5% of the women had college degrees or higher. The mean age distribution of men and women was (32.06±5.09) and (30.40±4.27) years. 67.2% of women were primiparas, and the prevalence rates of current regular smokers and current alcohol drinkers were 0.1% and 2.2% in women. The baseline characteristics were different between the families with ART conception and spontaneous conception in different regions.Conclusion:CNBC provides a powerful and rich resource in studying the impact of genetic, environmental factors and interactions in early life and ART treatment on the health of offspring after birth.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a representative disease of children's neurodevelopmental disorders, brings huge pressure and financial burden to families and society. It is of great significance to explore its etiology and pathogenesis. Therefore, we established an ASD Cohort based on the existing China National Birth Cohort (CNBC), which applied parallel design to recruit and follow up families who achieved pregnancy after receiving assisted reproductive technologies (ART) and families with spontaneous conception. The main aims of this study are to compare the incidence of ASD among children born after ART with those born under spontaneous pregnancy, and to evaluate the impact of ART on the neurobehavioral development of offspring. Additionally, with a variety of clinical and behavioral related information collected during pregnancy and at early life of offspring, we are able to investigate the risk factors associated with ASD comprehensively. This article briefly introduces the objectives, contents, preliminary progress, strength and limitations, as well as further prospects of the ASD cohort study, mainly focusing on the overall design and current progress.

The importance of gut microbes to human health has gradually attracted attention. With the use of animal models, it has been revealed that maternal microbes during pregnancy could influence their children's health outcomes through shaping their microbial composition and regulating the development of their metabolic and immune system. However, the physiological mechanism of the human body is more complex and is affected by the interaction of multiple factors. The research results obtained from animal models are often inconsistent with human studies. At present, the influence of maternal intestinal microbes during pregnancy on the microbial colonization in their offspring and on a series of children's health outcomes is still unclear. Establishing a sub-cohort to detect the microbiome of the women across pregnancy and of their offspring, and further to integrate with variety of environmental and behavioral exposures can better provide reliable support for the research on the mechanism of children's health and diseases. This paper briefly introduces the research objectives, content, progress, strength and limitations of the sub-cohort study.

Objective To explore the influence of different bone quality around the implant on the implantation accuracy,the com-puter-aided design of implant guide plate was used for patients with poor bone quality to evaluate its accuracy.Methods Retrospective analysis of relevant clinical data from 29 single-tooth implant patients with relatively poor bone quality meeting inclusion criteria was conducted.Using 3Shape Implant Studio software,implant plans were designed and fully guided digital templates were fabricated before surgery.Implantation was guided by the templates throughout,with torque and ISQ values recorded to evaluate the initial stability of the implant.Postoperative implant positions were reconstructed using CBCT images,and the three-dimensional deviation of implant place-ment was evaluated in conjunction with the preoperative design.Bone quality around the implants was also recorded and analyzed before and after surgery.Results In this study,digital guide plates were used in patients with poor bone quality,and the initial stability of implants was≥20 N·cm except for three cases.In cases of poor bone quality,the accuracy of the fully guided digital templates was as follows:cervix deviation(0.94±0.59)mm,apex deviation(1.40±0.81)mm and angle deviation 4.10°±2.99°.Bone quality had a greater impact on angle deviation(P＜0.05).The higher the proportion of D3 bone was around the implant body 1/3,the smaller the deviation of neck,apex and angle was,while the higher the proportion of D5 bone,the greater the deviation of implantation.Conclu-sion For patients with poor bone quality,under the premise of restoration-oriented,the proportion of D3 bone around the implant can be increased by computer-aided design,and the initial stability of the implant can be improved by guiding the implantation with digital guide plate.Attention should be paid to the influence of bone on the angle deviation of implant during the application of guide plate.