Objective: To determine the clinical efficacy and mechanism of Piwei Peiyuan Pill (PPP) combined with moxibustion for treating patients with chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) with spleen and stomach weakness syndrome. Methods: Ninety-six CAG patients with spleen and stomach weakness syndrome who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were enrolled at the Department of Spleen and Stomach Diseases of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine from June 2022 to December 2023. The patients were randomly divided into a control, a Chinese medicine, and a combined group using a random number table method, with 32 cases in each group (two cases per group were excluded). The control group was treated with rabeprazole combined with folic acid tablets (both thrice daily), the Chinese medicine group was treated with PPP (8 g, thrice daily), and the combined group was treated with moxa stick moxibustion (once daily) on the basis of the Chinese medicine group for 12 consecutive weeks. Gastric mucosa atrophy in the three groups was observed before and after treatment. The gastric mucosal pathological score was evaluated. The Patient Reported Outcome (PRO) scale was used to evaluate the patients′ physical and mental health status and quality of life.An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-4, IL-10, IL-37, and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β levels in each group. Real-time fluorescence PCR was used to detect the relative expression levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) mRNA in each group. Western blotting was used to detect the relative expression levels of proteins related to the STAT3/mTOR signaling pathway, and the adverse drug reactions and events were recorded and compared. Results: There was no statistical difference in age, gender, disease duration, family history of gastrointestinal tumors, alcohol consumption history, and body mass index among the three groups of patients.The total therapeutic efficacy rates of the control, Chinese medicine, and combined groups in treating gastric mucosal atrophy were 66.67% (20/30), 86.67% (26/30), and 90.00% (27/30), respectively (P<0.05). Compared to before treatment, the pathological and PRO scale scores of gastric mucosa in each group decreased after treatment, and TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-37, and TGF-β levels decreased. The relative STAT3 and mTOR mRNA expression levels, as well as the relative STAT3, p-STAT3, mTOR, and p-mTOR protein expression levels decreased (P<0.05), whereas the IL-4 and IL-10 levels increased (P<0.05). After treatment, compared to the control group, the pathological score of gastric mucosa, PRO scale score, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-37, TGF-β content, relative STAT3 and mTOR mRNA expression levels, and relative STAT3, p-STAT3, mTOR, and p-mTOR protein expression levels in the Chinese medicine and combined groups after treatment were reduced (P<0.05), whereas the IL-4 and IL-10 levels increased (P<0.05). After treatment, compared to the Chinese medicine group, the combined group showed a decrease in relative STAT3, mTOR mRNA expression levels, and STAT3, p-STAT3, mTOR, and p-mTOR protein expression levels (P<0.05). Conclusion The combination of PPP and moxibustion may regulate the inflammatory mechanism of the body by inhibiting the abnormal activation of the STAT3/mTOR signaling pathway, upregulating related anti-inflammatory factor levels, downregulating pro-inflammatory factor expression, and increasing related repair factor expression, thereby promoting the recovery of atrophic gastric mucosa, reducing discomfort symptoms, and improving the physical and mental state of CAG patients with spleen and stomach weakness syndrome.

Atherosclerosis, a chronic inflammatory disease, is markedly influenced by both immune and inflammatory reactions throughout its progression. Dendritic cells, as pivotal antigen-presenting entities, play a crucial role in the initiation of immune responses and the preservation of immunological homeostasis. Accumulating data indicates that dendritic cells are present in healthy arteries and accumulate significantly in atherosclerotic plaques. Novel immunotherapeutic approaches and vaccination protocols have yielded substantial clinical advancements in managing chronic inflammatory diseases, with dendritic cell-centric modalities emerging for atherosclerotic management. In this review, we delineate the essential functions and underlying mechanisms of dendritic cells and their subsets in the modulation of atherosclerotic inflammation and immune responses. We underscore the immense promise of dendritic cell-based immunotherapeutic strategies, including vaccines and innovative combinations with nanotechnological drug delivery platforms for atherosclerosis treatment. We also discuss the challenges associated with dendritic cell immunotherapy and provide perspectives on the future direction of this field.

The ventral anterior (VA) nucleus of the thalamus is a major target of the basal ganglia and is closely associated with the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). Notably, the VA receives direct innervation from the hypothalamic histaminergic system. However, its role in PD remains unknown. Here, we assessed the contribution of histamine to VA neuronal activity and PD motor deficits. Functional magnetic resonance imaging showed reduced VA activity in PD patients. Optogenetic activation of VA neurons or histaminergic afferents significantly alleviated motor deficits in 6-OHDA-induced PD rats. Furthermore, histamine excited VA neurons via H1 and H2 receptors and their coupled hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channels, inward-rectifier K⁺ channels, or Ca²⁺-activated K⁺ channels. These results demonstrate that histaminergic afferents actively compensate for Parkinsonian motor deficits by biasing VA activity. These findings suggest that targeting VA histamine receptors and downstream ion channels may be a potential therapeutic strategy for PD motor dysfunction.
Animals ; Histamine/metabolism* ; Male ; Oxidopamine/toxicity* ; Rats ; Ventral Thalamic Nuclei/physiopathology* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Disease Models, Animal ; Parkinson Disease/metabolism* ; Neurons/physiology* ; Humans ; Optogenetics

A method was developed for determination of dilauryl thiodipropionate(DLTDP)in fried foods by coupling solid-phase extraction(SPE)pretreatment with reverse-phase liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(RPLC-MS/MS)detection.Samples were extracted with n-hexane as the solvent,purified using a neutral alumina SPE cartridge,and finally analyzed by RPLC-MS/MS.Quantitative analysis was performed using matrix-matched calibration curves combined with an external standard method under optimal experimental conditions.The results showed that DLTDP exhibited good linearity in the range of 2.0-50.0 μg/L,with a correlation coefficient(R2)≥0.999.The limit of detection(LOD)and the limit of quantification(LOQ)of the method were 0.15 mg/kg and 0.5 mg/kg,respectively.The mean recoveries at three fortification levels(0.5,1.0,and 200 mg/kg)in different samples ranged from 84.8%to 96.8%,with the relative standard deviations(RSDs)all less than 8.0%.The developed method was highly sensitive,accurate and reliable,and easy to operate,making it well suited for the routine quantitative analysis of DLTDP in fried foods.

Enzymatic cascade catalysis has emerged as an effective means to enhance the sensitivity of biosensors due to its remarkable amplification effect on electrochemical signals.However,the most used natural enzymes have high specificity and high catalytic activity,but are susceptible to environmental factors,easy denaturation and inactivation,and high cost,which limit their practical applications.Additionally,the majority of nanozymes with excellent catalytic activity cannot be directly used as redox probes.The redox signal can only be required under high potentials in strong acid/alkali solutions,or functionalized with electroactive substances.To tackle this problem,herein,AuNPs(glucose oxidase-like activity)and Mn,Zr dual-doped CeO2 nanozymes(Mn,Zr-CeO2,peroxidase-like activity)were used as model enzymes to construct a high-performance nanozymes cascade catalytic system.Owing to high Ce4+/Ce3+ratio and a considerable number of oxygen vacancies,Mn,Zr-CeO2 nanozymes exhibited excellent peroxidase-like activity and could generate amplified electrochemical signals in neutral medium at low potentials.Furthermore,the porous structure of Mn,Zr-CeO2 nanozymes could accelerate the mass transfer of intermediate H2O2,thereby enhancing the efficiency of enzymatic cascade catalysis.As a result,a label-free electrochemical biosensor was constructed for sensitive detection of the cancer marker miRNA-21 at physiological pH,with a detection limit as low as 32.5 fmol/L.This strategy offered a novel approach for the development of a new generation of high-performance nanozymes cascade platforms,which could be widely applied in the fields such as biotechnology,bioanalysis,and disease diagnosis.

UDP glycosyltransferase (UGT) is a terminal modifying enzyme for the formation of flavonoid glycosides. In this study, we obtained two glycosyltransferase genes, CtUGT25 and CtUGT18, which are closely related to the synthesis of safflower flavonoids, through the Pierce correlation analysis of the expression of glycosyltransferase genes in the safflower corolla transcriptome database at different developmental stages with the contents of the major constituents of safflower metabolome database, and bioinformatically analyzed the gene and protein sequences of the two genes. Expression pattern analysis revealed that CtUGT25 was mainly expressed in the corolla, with the highest expression on day 3 of flowering stage; CtUGT18 was mainly expressed in the root, with the highest expression on day 1 of flowering stage. Functional validation was verified in safflower by Agrobacterium-mediated pollen-tube pathway transgenesis method, demonstrating that CtUGT25 promoted the accumulation of kaempferol-3-O-glucoside and hydroxysafflor yellow A (HSYA), and CtUGT18 promoted the accumulation of kaempferol-3-O-glucoside and orientin, both of which may be the glycosyl-modifying enzymes for the synthesis of safflower flavonoids. Meanwhile, in vitro experiments demonstrated the catalytic activity of CtUGT25 protein on naringenin, quercetin, apigenin, kaempferol, luteoin, 2-hydroxynaringenin and galangin. This study serves as reference for future advancements in regulating the quality of safflower using molecular biotechnology, particularly focuses on the industrial production of safflower exclusive component HSYA. Additionally, it offers valuable insights for researching related genes in other plants.

Objective To investigate the publication status of papers written by key nursing staff of vascular interventional academic organizations and to analyze its influencing factors so as to provide a theoretical basis for improving the scientific research output of vascular interventional nursing staff.Methods The questionnaire was designed by reading and referring to the domestic and foreign literature.A survey was conducted in a total of 346 members of the Nursing Professional Committee of the China Branch of the International Vascular Alliance,who were from 22 provinces,autonomous regions,and municipalities of China.Results Of the 346 key vascular interventional nursing staff,190 had published one paper(54.91％)and 156(45.09％)had published multiple papers in the past 5 years as the first author or corresponding author,and among them 267(77.17％)wrote papers for the purpose to make a promotion.Multiple regression analysis showed that academic position,first education degree,professional position,length of nursing service,knowledge of the English literature,and source of scientific research knowledge(school study)were the independent factors affecting the paper publication by vascular interventional nursing staff(all P＜0.05).The survey showed that vascular interventional nursing staff had difficulties in carrying out scientific research because they were lack of scientific research-related knowledge,busy with daily work,and lack of scientific research atmosphere.Conclusion The publication of academic papers written by key nursing staff of vascular interventional academic organizations is influenced by many factors.It is recommended that the hospital administration should strengthen the training of English literature retrieval ability for nursing staff so as to fundamentally improve the overall scientific research level of nursing staff.(J Intervent Radiol,2024,33:309-313)

In healthy individuals,there is a favourable balance between commensal and potentially patho-genic bacteria.When the balance is broken,the host might suffer from gastrointestinal cancer.Studies have shown that high-fat diet can alter the composition of gastrointestinal microbiota,gastrointestinal microbiota may promote gastrointestinal cancer by affecting metabolites of gastrointestinal microbiota,leading to loss of gastrointestinal barrier function,suppressing anti-tumor immunity,etc.In this work,we will summary the current knowledge on relations and possible mechanisms of high-fat diet-associated gastrointestinal microbiota and gastrointestinal cancer.To provide new ideas for the treatment of gastrointestinal cancer.

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of compound Wufengcao liquid combined with negative pressure wound therapy with instillation(NPWTi)for the treatment of stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ pressure injury(PI),and to preliminarily explore its action mechanism.Methods(1)Clinical research:from January 2019 to October 2022,60 PI patients who were admitted to the Scrofula Department and Wound Care Clinic at Nanjing Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine were randomly divided into normal saline NPWTi group and compound Wufengcao liquid NPWTi group,with 30 cases in each group.Both groups underwent NPWTi under the premise of systemic basic treatment,before treatment,after removing the negative pressure device in the 1st,2nd and 3rd weeks of treatment,the pressure ulcer scale for healing(PUSH)score,the wound bacterial culture detection rate and the wound healing time were counted,and the vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)content of wound tissue was detected by ELISA method.(2)Animal experiments:24 SD rats were randomly divided into blank group,model group,normal saline NPWTi group and compound Wufengcao liquid NPWTi group,6 rats in each group.PI rat model was established by local tissue ischemia/reperfusion injury method,and the negative pressure device was removed at the end of each day of treatment.Before treatment and 3,7 and 10 days after treatment,the wound morphology of each group of rats was observed,the wound histopathology was observed by HE staining,the CD34 positive cells rate of wound tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry,and the expressions of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase(p38 MAPK),nuclear factor-κB p65(NF-κB p65),inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS),tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),arginase-1(Arg-1)and transforming growth factor-β(TGF-β)in rat blood and wound tissue were detected by ELISA and RT-qPCR.Results(1)Clinical research:Both groups could effectively reduce the PUSH score and the wound bacterial culture detection rate,shorten the wound healing time,and promote the expression of VEGF in wound tissue,the compound Wufengcao liquid NPWTi group was better than the normal saline NPWTi group(P<0.05).(2)Animal experiments:Compared with blank group,the rats in the model group showed obvious wound inflammatory response and tissue damage,and the CD34 positive cells rate,blood and wound tissue p38 MAPK,NF-κB p65,iNOS and TNF-α levels were significantly increased,Arg-1 and TGF-β level was significantly reduced(P<0.05);Compared with model group,after 7 days of treatment,the normal saline NPWTi group and the compound Wufengcao liquid NPWTi group significantly decreased the wound morphology score,the histopathological morphology was significantly improved,the CD34 positive cells rate was significantly increased(P<0.05),the levels of blood and wound tissue p38 MAPK,NF-κB p65,iNOS,and TNF-α were significantly reduced,and the levels of Arg-1 and TGF-β were significantly increased(P<0.05),and the compound Wufengcao liquid NPWTi group was better than that of the normal saline NPWTi group(P<0.05).Conclusion Compound Wufengcao liquid combined with NPWTi can effectively promote the healing of PI wounds,and its mechanism of action may be by inhibiting the activation and expression of p38 MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathway,thereby regulating the polarization balance of M1/M2 macrophages.

Objective To construct machine learning models that can be used to predict AUC fold change(FC)using a database of existing pharmacokinetic(PK)and drug-drug interaction(DDI)information,which can be used to explore the possibility of predicting existing drug interactions and to provide certain rational recommendations for clinical drug use.Methods PK data of DDIs and AUC fold change data were extracted from FDA-approved drug labels.Peptide and pharmacodynamic(PD)information related to drug interactions were retrieved through DrugBank,and PPDT identification of relevant peptide IDs was performed using Protein Resource(UniProt),and a matrix normalization code was used to generate multidimensional vector data that were easy to analysis.The effect of PPDT on the AUC,and the resulting multiplicity change was used as the dependent variable for machine learning model construction.The model with the smallest root mean square error(RMES)value was used for model construction to train a bagged decision tree(Bagged)prediction model.The models were tested using the trained models for some of the drug tests.The models were evaluated by reviewing the available literature findings on detection of drug interaction pairs and analyzing and comparing the predicted values.Results A total of 16 pairs of model drug pairs were tested for the effects of 16 drugs on tacrolimus,and it was found that the accuracy of the prediction of the presence or absence of drug interactions was 81.25％;the prediction results were classified according to the FDA standard classification of the strong and weak for the strength of drug interactions,and the results showed that the prediction of the strength of drug interactions,with a large deviation from the larger prediction was less.Conclusion The evaluation of the model to predict the presence or absence of drug interactions was general;however,after classifying the strengths and weaknesses of drug interactions,the prediction of drug interactions was better,and the prediction results indicated that the model prediction performance has a certain reference value for potential DDI assessment before clinical trials.