Hygroscopicity research has long been a key focus and hot topic in Chinese materia medica（CMM）. Elucidating hygroscopic mechanisms plays a vital role in formulation design， process optimization， and storage condition selection. Hygroscopic models serve as essential tools for characterizing CMM hygroscopic mechanisms， with various types available. The double exponential model is a kinetic mathematical model constructed based on the law of conservation of energy and Fick's first law of diffusion， tailored to the physical properties of CMM extracts. In recent years， this model has been extensively applied to simulate the dynamic moisture absorption behavior of CMM extracts and solid dosage forms under varying humidity conditions. It has revealed the correlation between moisture absorption kinetic parameters and material properties， offering a new perspective for characterizing the moisture uptake behavior of CMM. This paper systematically reviews the application progress of this model in the field of CMM， analyzes its advantages， disadvantages， and challenges in this domain， and explores its potential application trends in other fields. It aims to provide references for elucidating the moisture absorption mechanisms of CMM and researching moisture-proofing technologies， while also offering insights for its broader application in food and polymer materials.

Osteoarthritis (OA), a highly prevalent degenerative joint disease worldwide, is defined by articular cartilage degradation, abnormal bone remodeling, and persistent chronic inflammation. It severely compromises patients’ quality of life, and currently, there is no radical cure. Abnormal mechanical stress is widely regarded as a core driver of OA pathogenesis, and the exploration of mechanical signal perception and transduction mechanisms has become crucial for deciphering OA’s pathophysiological processes. Piezo1, a key mechanosensitive cation channel belonging to the Piezo protein family, has recently gained significant attention due to its pivotal role in mediating cellular responses to mechanical stimuli in joint tissues. This review systematically examines Piezo1’s expression patterns, regulatory mechanisms, and pathological functions in OA, with a particular focus on its dual roles in modulating chondrocyte homeostasis and bone metabolism disorders, while also delving into the underlying molecular signaling pathways and potential therapeutic implications. Piezo1, consisting of approximately 2 500 amino acids and forming a unique trimeric propeller-like structure, is widely expressed in chondrocytes, osteocytes, mesenchymal stem cells, and synovial cells. It exhibits permeability to cations such as Ca²⁺, K⁺, and Na⁺, and directly responds to membrane tension changes induced by mechanical stimuli like fluid shear stress and mechanical overload. In OA patients and animal models, Piezo1 expression is significantly upregulated, especially in cartilage regions subjected to abnormal mechanical stress (e.g., human temporomandibular joint cartilage). This overexpression is closely associated with aggravated cartilage degeneration, increased chondrocyte apoptosis, accelerated cellular senescence, and intensified inflammatory responses. Mechanical overload and pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g., IL-1β) are key inducers of Piezo1 upregulation: IL-1β activates the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway to enhance Piezo1 expression, forming a pathogenic positive feedback loop that inhibits chondrocyte autophagy, promotes apoptosis, and further accelerates joint degeneration. Mechanistically, Piezo1 mediates OA progression through multiple interconnected pathways. When activated by mechanical stress, Piezo1 triggers excessive Ca²⁺ influx, leading to endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) and mitochondrial dysfunction, which directly induce chondrocyte apoptosis. This process involves the activation of downstream signaling cascades such as cGAS-STING and YAP-MMP13/ADAMTS5. YAP, a transcriptional regulator, upregulates the expression of matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13) and aggrecanase (ADAMTS5), thereby accelerating cartilage matrix degradation. Additionally, Piezo1-driven Ca²⁺ overload promotes the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and upregulates senescence markers (p16 and p21), accelerating chondrocyte senescence via the p38MAPK and NF-κB pathways. Senescent chondrocytes secrete senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) factors (e.g., IL-6, IL-1β), further amplifying joint inflammation. In terms of bone metabolism, Piezo1 maintains joint homeostasis by promoting the differentiation of fibrocartilage stem cells into chondrocytes and balancing bone formation and resorption through regulating the FoxC1/YAP axis and RANKL/OPG ratio. Therapeutically, targeting Piezo1 shows promising potential. Preclinical studies have demonstrated that Piezo1 inhibitors (e.g., GsMTx4) can reduce joint damage and alleviate pain in OA mice. Simultaneously, siRNA-mediated co-silencing of Piezo1 and TRPV4 (another mechanosensitive channel) decreases intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration, inhibits chondrocyte apoptosis, and promotes cartilage repair. Conditional knockout of Piezo1 using Gdf5-Cre transgenic mice alleviates cartilage degeneration in post-traumatic OA models by downregulating MMP13 and ADAMTS5 expression. Despite existing challenges, such as off-target effects of inhibitors, inefficient local drug delivery, and interindividual genetic variability, strategies like developing selective Piezo1 antagonists, optimizing targeted nanocarriers, and combining Piezo1-targeted therapy with physical therapy provide viable avenues for clinical translation. The authors propose that Piezo1 serves as a critical therapeutic target for OA, and future research should focus on deciphering its context-dependent regulatory networks, developing tissue-specific intervention strategies, and validating their efficacy and safety in clinical trials to address the unmet medical needs of OA patients.

Objective To introduce an innovative technique, the "balance-shaped sternal elevation device" and its application in the subxiphoid uniportal video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for anterior mediastinal masses resection. Methods Patients who underwent single-port thoracoscopic assisted anterior mediastinal tumor resection through the xiphoid process at the Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University from May to June 2024 were included, and their clinical data were analyzed. Results A total of 7 patients were included, with 3 males and 4 females, aged 28-72 years. The diameter of the tumor was 1.9-17.0 cm. The operation time was 62-308 min, intraoperative blood loss was 5-100 mL, postoperative chest drainage tube retention time was 0-9 days, pain score on the 7th day after surgery was 0-2 points, and postoperative hospital stay was 3-12 days. All patients underwent successful and complete resection of the masses and thymus, with favorable postoperative recovery. Conclusion The "balance-shaped sternal elevation device" effectively expands the retrosternal space, providing surgeons with satisfactory surgical views and operating space. This technique significantly enhances the efficacy and safety of minimally invasive surgery for anterior mediastinal masses, reduces trauma and postoperative pain, and accelerates patient recovery, demonstrating important clinical significance and application value.

Objective: Previous studies have discovered a correlation between cigarette smoking and cortical thickness and surface area, but the causal relationship remains unclear. The objective of this investigation is to scrutinize the causal association between them. Methods: To derive summary statistics from a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on cortical thickness, surface area, and four smoking behaviors: 1) age of initiation of regular smoking (AgeSmk); 2) smoking initiation (SmkInit); 3) smoking cessation (SmkCes); 4) cigarettes per day (CigDay). Linkage disequilibrium score regression (LDSC) was employed to examine genetic association analysis. Furthermore, for traits with significant genetic associations, Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses were conducted. Results: The LDSC analysis revealed nominal genetic correlations between AgeSmk and right precentral surface area, left caudal anterior cingulate surface area, left cuneus surface area, left inferior parietal surface area, and right caudal anterior cingulate thickness, as well as between CigDay and left caudal middle frontal surface area, between SmkCes and left entorhinal thickness, and between SmkInit and left rostral anterior cingulate surface area, right rostral anterior cingulate thickness, and right superior frontal thickness (rg=-0.36–0.29, p<0.05). MR analysis showed a unidirectional causal association between left caudal middle frontal surface area and CigDay (βIVW=0.056, pBonferroni=2×10-4). Conclusion Left caudal middle frontal surface area has the potential to serve as a significant predictor of smoking behavior.

Based on the etiology and clinical diagnostic criteria of type 2 diabetes mellitus （T2DM）， identification and typing of treatment from the perspective of traditional Chinese and western medicine， the criteria for evaluating the clinical compatibility of traditional Chinese and western medicine in animal models of T2DM were set up. The literature was reviewed to sort out and analyze the existing commonly used modeling methods， summarize the mechanism， compare the advantages and disadvantages， and calculate the consistency between the animal model and the clinical symptoms， syndromes， and indicators from the perspective of traditional Chinese and western medicine. The authors found that spontaneous animal models and high-fat diets combined with multiple low-dose streptozotocin （STZ） induction models were more in line with modern medical pathogenesis of T2DM. However， it fails to form some special syndromes required for traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） research. In addition， there are many methods of combining the etiology and pathogenesis of TCM， which can be divided into three categories： intervention carried out by drug administration， behavioral stimulation， or environmental changes according to TCM， or use of hormones according to clinical evidence and combination of the two methods mentioned above. All of them can successfully establish different types of animal models. However， different methods of establishing syndrome models have their own advantages and disadvantages， and there is no unified standard for the stability and evaluation of syndrome models. As for the clinical consistency criteria of traditional Chinese and western medicine established in this paper， the animal model with 100% consistency has not been calculated due to the conditions of incomplete symptoms and syndromes described in the studies and different selection indicators. Consequently， the establishment of a simple， easy-to-use， and affordable T2DM animal model with both traditional Chinese and western medicine disease characteristics and the improvement of the Chinese and western medicine evaluation system for different evidence types are of great significance for the future development of TCM research on T2DM.

Based on the etiology and clinical diagnostic criteria of type 2 diabetes mellitus （T2DM）， identification and typing of treatment from the perspective of traditional Chinese and western medicine， the criteria for evaluating the clinical compatibility of traditional Chinese and western medicine in animal models of T2DM were set up. The literature was reviewed to sort out and analyze the existing commonly used modeling methods， summarize the mechanism， compare the advantages and disadvantages， and calculate the consistency between the animal model and the clinical symptoms， syndromes， and indicators from the perspective of traditional Chinese and western medicine. The authors found that spontaneous animal models and high-fat diets combined with multiple low-dose streptozotocin （STZ） induction models were more in line with modern medical pathogenesis of T2DM. However， it fails to form some special syndromes required for traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） research. In addition， there are many methods of combining the etiology and pathogenesis of TCM， which can be divided into three categories： intervention carried out by drug administration， behavioral stimulation， or environmental changes according to TCM， or use of hormones according to clinical evidence and combination of the two methods mentioned above. All of them can successfully establish different types of animal models. However， different methods of establishing syndrome models have their own advantages and disadvantages， and there is no unified standard for the stability and evaluation of syndrome models. As for the clinical consistency criteria of traditional Chinese and western medicine established in this paper， the animal model with 100% consistency has not been calculated due to the conditions of incomplete symptoms and syndromes described in the studies and different selection indicators. Consequently， the establishment of a simple， easy-to-use， and affordable T2DM animal model with both traditional Chinese and western medicine disease characteristics and the improvement of the Chinese and western medicine evaluation system for different evidence types are of great significance for the future development of TCM research on T2DM.

Metastasis serves as an indicator of malignancy and is a biological characteristic of carcinomas. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays a key role in the promotion of tumor invasion and metastasis and in the enhancement of tumor cell aggressiveness. Prostaglandin E synthase 3 (p23) is a cochaperone for heat shock protein 90 (HSP90). Our previous study showed that p23 is an HSP90-independent transcription factor in cancer-associated inflammation. The effect and mechanism of action of p23 on lung cancer metastasis are tested in this study. By utilizing cell models in vitro and mouse tail vein metastasis models in vivo, the results provide solid evidence that p23 is critical for promoting lung cancer metastases by regulating downstream CXCL1 expression. Rather than acting independently, p23 forms a complex with RNA-binding motif protein 14 (RBM14) to facilitate EMT progression in lung cancer. Therefore, our study provides evidence for the potential role of the RBM14-p23-CXCL1-EMT axis in the metastasis of lung cancer.

Ovarian tumor (OT) is the most lethal form of gynecologic malignancy, with minimal improvements in patient outcomes over the past several decades. Metastasis is the leading cause of ovarian cancer-related deaths, yet the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Psychological stress is known to activate the glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1), a factor associated with poor prognosis in OT patients. However, the precise mechanisms linking NR3C1 signaling and metastasis have yet to be fully elucidated. In this study, we demonstrate that chronic restraint stress accelerates epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis in OT through an NR3C1-dependent mechanism involving nuclear protein 1 (NUPR1). Mechanistically, NR3C1 directly regulates the transcription of NUPR1, which in turn increases the expression of snail family transcriptional repressor 2 (SNAI2), a key driver of EMT. Clinically, elevated NR3C1 positively correlates with NUPR1 expression in OT patients, and both are positively associated with poorer prognosis. Overall, our study identified the NR3C1/NUPR1 axis as a critical regulatory pathway in psychological stress-induced OT metastasis, suggesting a potential therapeutic target for intervention in OT metastasis.

Pulpotomy, which belongs to vital pulp therapy, has become a strategy for managing pulpitis in recent decades. This minimally invasive treatment reflects the recognition of preserving healthy dental pulp and optimizing long-term patient-centered outcomes. Pulpotomy is categorized into partial pulpotomy (PP), the removal of a partial segment of the coronal pulp tissue, and full pulpotomy (FP), the removal of whole coronal pulp, which is followed by applying the biomaterials onto the remaining pulp tissue and ultimately restoring the tooth. Procedural decisions for the amount of pulp tissue removal or retention depend on the diagnostic of pulp vitality, the overall treatment plan, the patient's general health status, and pulp inflammation reassessment during operation. This statement represents the consensus of an expert committee convened by the Society of Cariology and Endodontics, Chinese Stomatological Association. It addresses the current evidence to support the application of pulpotomy as a potential alternative to root canal treatment (RCT) on mature permanent teeth with pulpitis from a biological basis, the development of capping biomaterial, and the diagnostic considerations to evidence-based medicine. This expert statement intends to provide a clinical protocol of pulpotomy, which facilitates practitioners in choosing the optimal procedure and increasing their confidence in this rapidly evolving field.
Humans ; Calcium Compounds/therapeutic use* ; Consensus ; Dental Pulp ; Dentition, Permanent ; Oxides/therapeutic use* ; Pulpitis/therapy* ; Pulpotomy/standards*