1.Cage design-centric glider approach to full-endoscopic lumbar fusion: optimizing nerve root protection in facet-sparing and facet-resecting techniques
Yu-Chia HSU ; Hao-Chun CHUANG ; Yuan-Fu LIU ; Chao-Jui CHANG ; Yu-Meng HSIAO ; Yi-Hung HUANG ; Keng-Chang LIU ; Chien-Min CHEN ; Hyeun-Sung KIM ; Cheng-Li LIN
Asian Spine Journal 2026;20(2):343-353
Endoscopic transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) offers substantial advantages in the management of degenerative spinal diseases, including accelerated postoperative recovery. However, its technical complexity and steep learning curve pose risks for nerve root injury. Optimizing nerve root protection in full-endoscopic facet-sparing TLIF (FE fs-TLIF) and full-endoscopic facet-resecting TLIF (FE fr-TLIF) is essential for enhancing surgical safety. This study aimed to improve the nerve root protection in FE fs-TLIF and FE fr-TLIF by optimizing cage glider selection and insertion techniques based on the specific cage shape—banana-shaped or bullet-shaped. The goal was to ensure safe cage positioning and mitigate nerve root injury during discectomy, endplate preparation, and cage insertion. These strategies were validated through cadaveric simulations and clinical implementation. In FE fr-TLIF utilizing bullet-shaped (straight) cages, one-tip and two-tip cage gliders effectively protected the traversing nerve root by facilitating medial cage entry, thereby minimizing irritation of the exiting nerve root. Conversely, in FE fr-TLIF with banana-shaped cages, the lateral tilt of the cage holder during implantation required the use of a two-tip cage glider to protect the traversing and exiting nerve roots, thereby mitigating the potential risk of nerve irritation. In FE fs-TLIF, a one-tip cage glider is preferred for safeguarding the exiting nerve root, while the traversing root is inherently protected by the medial wall of the facet joint. The use of a two-tip cage glider in FE fs-TLIF can cause injury to the nerve root during glider insertion. In addition to the selection of cage gliders, improper cage insertion steps can also contribute to postoperative neurapraxia. The appropriate selection of cage gliders with corresponding insertion techniques is critical for nerve root protection in endoscopic TLIF. Tailoring these choices to the specific approach (FE fs-TLIF or FE fr-TLIF) and cage type (banana or bullet) enhances surgical safety and clinical outcomes.
2.Role of Innate Trained Immunity in Diseases
Chuang CHENG ; Yue-Qing WANG ; Xiao-Qin MU ; Xi ZHENG ; Jing HE ; Jun WANG ; Chao TAN ; Xiao-Wen LIU ; Li-Li ZOU
Progress in Biochemistry and Biophysics 2025;52(1):119-132
The innate immune system can be boosted in response to subsequent triggers by pre-exposure to microbes or microbial products, known as “trained immunity”. Compared to classical immune memory, innate trained immunity has several different features. Firstly, the molecules involved in trained immunity differ from those involved in classical immune memory. Innate trained immunity mainly involves innate immune cells (e.g., myeloid immune cells, natural killer cells, innate lymphoid cells) and their effector molecules (e.g., pattern recognition receptor (PRR), various cytokines), as well as some kinds of non-immune cells (e.g., microglial cells). Secondly, the increased responsiveness to secondary stimuli during innate trained immunity is not specific to a particular pathogen, but influences epigenetic reprogramming in the cell through signaling pathways, leading to the sustained changes in genes transcriptional process, which ultimately affects cellular physiology without permanent genetic changes (e.g., mutations or recombination). Finally, innate trained immunity relies on an altered functional state of innate immune cells that could persist for weeks to months after initial stimulus removal. An appropriate inducer could induce trained immunity in innate lymphocytes, such as exogenous stimulants (including vaccines) and endogenous stimulants, which was firstly discovered in bone marrow derived immune cells. However, mature bone marrow derived immune cells are short-lived cells, that may not be able to transmit memory phenotypes to their offspring and provide long-term protection. Therefore, trained immunity is more likely to be relied on long-lived cells, such as epithelial stem cells, mesenchymal stromal cells and non-immune cells such as fibroblasts. Epigenetic reprogramming is one of the key molecular mechanisms that induces trained immunity, including DNA modifications, non-coding RNAs, histone modifications and chromatin remodeling. In addition to epigenetic reprogramming, different cellular metabolic pathways are involved in the regulation of innate trained immunity, including aerobic glycolysis, glutamine catabolism, cholesterol metabolism and fatty acid synthesis, through a series of intracellular cascade responses triggered by the recognition of PRR specific ligands. In the view of evolutionary, trained immunity is beneficial in enhancing protection against secondary infections with an induction in the evolutionary protective process against infections. Therefore, innate trained immunity plays an important role in therapy against diseases such as tumors and infections, which has signature therapeutic effects in these diseases. In organ transplantation, trained immunity has been associated with acute rejection, which prolongs the survival of allografts. However, trained immunity is not always protective but pathological in some cases, and dysregulated trained immunity contributes to the development of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Trained immunity provides a novel form of immune memory, but when inappropriately activated, may lead to an attack on tissues, causing autoinflammation. In autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and atherosclerosis, trained immunity may lead to enhance inflammation and tissue lesion in diseased regions. In Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, trained immunity may lead to over-activation of microglial cells, triggering neuroinflammation even nerve injury. This paper summarizes the basis and mechanisms of innate trained immunity, including the different cell types involved, the impacts on diseases and the effects as a therapeutic strategy to provide novel ideas for different diseases.
3.Investigation and analysis of hypocalcemia,production performance,diseases,and culling of dairy cows in large-scale dairy farms
Jipeng TANG ; Shengyu HAN ; Xiaochen JIA ; Guang SHAO ; Chuang XU ; Cheng XIA
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(11):2507-2517
The purpose of this survey was to understand the occurrence of hypocalcemia in dairy cows in large-scale pasture and its relationship with production performance,disease and culling.Eighty-one large-scale pastures were selected in China to carry out a questionnaire survey on the lactation performance,reproductive performance,disease status and culling situations of dairy cows,and analyzed the production data of dairy farms by SPSS software.The survey results show that the incidence of hypocalcemia in dairy cows in pasture was different,the subclinical type was nearly twice as high as the clinical type,and the incidence rate of hypocalcemia was higher in about 30%of pasture.Hypocalcemia has no obvious effect on the lactation performance of dairy cows on dairy farms.However,a high incidence rate can reduce the conception rate,increase the incidence of subclinical mastitis,ketosis,and other common internal diseases,and raise the annual culling rate and culling rate of adult cows.Clinical,subclinical and total incidence of hypocalcemia have differ-ent effects on reproduction and diseases such as mastitis and ketosis,but clinical hypocalcemia is more harmful.Hypocalcemia is still an important metabolic disease that harms the health and pro-duction of dairy cows in large-scale pastures in China.For farms with a high incidence rate,it is recommended to conduct regular monitoring of blood calcium levels in dairy cows before and after calving,and to conduct in-depth investigations into the related pathogenic factors.This will provide a scientific basis for improving the prevention measures for hypocalcemia,reducing the incidence of the disease,increasing reproductive efficiency,and reducing culling rates.
4.Mechanism of oxidative stress and inflammatory response in liver injury induced by aflatoxin B1 exposure in rats under high-fat dietary pattern
Tianhui AN ; Honglin LIU ; Haiyan WANG ; Jiaxin CHENG ; Junqi WANG ; Cheng XIA ; Chuang XU ; Yuanyuan CHEN
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(11):2474-2480,2517
This study aims to investigate the mechanisms underlying the effects of the combined ac-tion of high-fat diet-induced obesity and the aflatoxin B1(AFB1)on hepatic oxidative stress and inflammatory responses.Thirty-six rats of similar weight and 4 weeks old were randomly divided into 4 groups,with 9 rats in each group:the blank control group(basal diet),the AFB1 group(0.4 mg/kg AFB1+basal diet),the HFD group(high-fat diet),and the HFD+AFB1 group(high-fat diet+0.4 mg/kg AFB1).Histological changes and lipid deposition were observed via hematox-ylin-eosin(HE)staining and Oil Red O staining.Levels of oxidative stress and inflammation-relat-ed factors were measured using commercial assay kits.The relative protein expression levels of factors involved in the Nrf2-Keap1 signaling pathway were assessed by Western blot analysis.The HE staining results showed that in the AFB1 group,the liver cells exhibited widespread watery de-generation,with shrunk and ruptured nuclei,inflammatory cells infiltration,and increased fibrosis.In the HFD group,liver cell fatty degeneration was observed,with cytoplasmic lipid droplet infil-tration.In the portal area,liver fibrosis was seen,with liver cell necrosis and inflammatory cell in-filtration in the fibrotic area,accompanied by lipofuscous granules.When HFD was applied to the AFB1 group,the abnormal state of liver interstitial and interstitial spaces was further aggravated,and a large number of lipid droplets appeared.The Oil Red O staining results showed that there were large numbers of dark red lipid droplets in the liver tissue of the HFD group,which were fused in strands.In the AFB1 group,lipid droplets could also be observed in the liver tissue of rats,but the number and degree were significantly less than those in the HFD group.The number and degree of red lipid droplets in the liver tissue of rats in the HFD+AFB1 group were higher than those in the AFB1 group and the HFD group.HFD exacerbated AFB1-induced oxidative stress by elevating ROS,MDA levels,and decreasing the expression of antioxidant stress factors such as CAT,SOD,Nrf2,HO-1,NQO1,and GCLC.Furthermore,the combined effect of HFD and AFB1 further significantly increased the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-2,IL-6,TNF-α,and IL-1β in the body.In summary,HFD treatment significantly exacerbated liver oxidative stress and in-flammatory responses in rats exposed to AFB1 through the Nrf2-keap1 signaling pathway.
5.β-hydroxybutyrate impaired mitochondrial function in dairy cow monocytes through the PGC-1α pathway
Yang CHI ; Wantong CHENG ; Xudong SUN ; Chuang XU
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(8):1763-1768
The aim of this study is to investigate whether β-hydroxybutyrate(BHB)impaired the mitochondrial function of dairy cow monocytes through the peroxisome proliferator-activated re-ceptor γ coactivator 1 alpha(PGC-1α)signaling pathway.According to the clinical symptoms and the concentration of BHB in whole blood,the tail vein blood of 12 healthy cows(BHB<1.2 mmol/L)and 12 clinical ketotic cows(CK,BHB>3.0 mmol/L)was collected.In vivo,after isolation and purification of CD14+monocytes,the intracellular mitochondrial membrane potential was detected by flow cytometry.The protein abundance of oxidative phosphorylation complex cytochrome c oxi-dase subunit Ⅰ(CO Ⅰ),CO Ⅱ,CO Ⅲ,COⅣ,CO Ⅴ,PGC-1 α,mitochondrial transcription factor A(TFAM)and nuclear respiratory factor 1(NFR1)were determined by Western blot.In vitro,CD14+monocytes were co-cultured with 3.0 mmol/L BHB for 0,6,12,24 h.Flow cytometry was applied for intracellular mitochondrial membrane potential detection,and determination the protein abundance of PGC-1α,TFAM and NFR1 by Western blot.The results showed that compared with control group,the mitochondrial membrane potential in CD14+monocytes of ketotic cows was sig-nificantly increased,and the protein abundance of CO Ⅰ,CO Ⅱ,CO Ⅲ,CO Ⅳ,CO Ⅴ PGC-1α,TFAM,and NRF1 in CD14+monocytes of ketotic cows were significantly decreased.Compared with 0 h,the mitochondrial membrane potential of CD14+monocytes was significantly increased after BHB treatment for 6,12,24 h,and the protein abundance of PGC-1α,TFAM and NRF1 were significantly decreased.The results indicated that BHB induced mitochondrial dysfunction in CD14+monocytes of ketotic cows by inhibiting PGC-1α signaling pathway.Therefore,the PGC-1αsignaling pathway may be a preventive and therapeutic target to the mitochondrial dysfunction of monocytes in ketotic cows caused by BHB.
6.Investigation and analysis ofincidence and treatment of mastitis in 79 large-scale pastures in China
Yan XING ; Yiran WANG ; Hongyu WANG ; Yunlong BAI ; Zhenheng BU ; Feng TIAN ; Cheng XIA ; Chuang XU
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(4):760-769,793
This study aims to clarify the incidence and prevention status of dairy cow mastitis in 79 large-scale pastures in China in 2022,reduce the incidence of dairy cow mastitis,and provide scien-tific basis for formulating prevention and control strategies for dairy cow mastitis in large-scale pastures suitable for China's national conditions.The research team relied on the large-scale ranch of the Comprehensive Experimental Station of National Dairy Industry Technology System to car-ry out research.A total of 79 questionnaires were received.The information on the stock of large-scale farms,the proportion of cows in the herd,the level of cow yields,the incidence and cure rate of cow mastitis,the prevention and control of cow mastitis,diagnosis and treatment programs of cow mastitis,the cost of treating cow mastitis,and the culling rate of farms was collected.Chi-square test and correlation analysis were carried out on the incidence of mastitis in dairy cows and the prevention and control plan,treatment plan,yield level and elimination rate of mastitis in dairy cows by descriptive statistical cross table.The incidence of cow mastitis in some pastures was con-trolled between 5%and 10%,and the cure rate was mostly as high as 98%.According to the co-hort analysis,the importance of prevention and control measures for dairy cow mastitis was as fol-lows:DMT>DHI>milk yield>milk traits>breast apparent change>electrical conductivity>CMT.The importance of treatment measures for dairy cow mastitis is as follows:DMT>DHI>milk yield>milk traits>breast apparent changes>electrical conductivity>CMT.The importance of treatment measures for mastitis is as follows:traditional Chinese medicine>pathogen detection and drug sensitivity test>non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs>regular maintenance of milking equipment>normal milking without treatment>broad-spectrum antibiotics.The incidence of mas-titis in dairy cows is moderately positively correlated with the yield per unit area,that is,the in-crease in the incidence of mastitis in dairy cows has a certain impact on the yield per unit area of dairy cows.Economic analysis shows that the treatment cost of mastitis is closely related to the in-cidence rate,and the treatment cost of pasture with higher incidence rate is higher.Pastures with higher yields usually have more efficient means of disease prevention and control,and the corre-sponding treatment costs are lower.In conclusion,China's large-scale pastures should strengthen the scientific feeding management level,improve the prevention and control methods to reduce the incidence of cow mastitis,improve the cure rate,and reduce the cost of pasture treatment.
7.β-hydroxybutyrate impaired mitochondrial function in dairy cow monocytes through the PGC-1α pathway
Yang CHI ; Wantong CHENG ; Xudong SUN ; Chuang XU
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(8):1763-1768
The aim of this study is to investigate whether β-hydroxybutyrate(BHB)impaired the mitochondrial function of dairy cow monocytes through the peroxisome proliferator-activated re-ceptor γ coactivator 1 alpha(PGC-1α)signaling pathway.According to the clinical symptoms and the concentration of BHB in whole blood,the tail vein blood of 12 healthy cows(BHB<1.2 mmol/L)and 12 clinical ketotic cows(CK,BHB>3.0 mmol/L)was collected.In vivo,after isolation and purification of CD14+monocytes,the intracellular mitochondrial membrane potential was detected by flow cytometry.The protein abundance of oxidative phosphorylation complex cytochrome c oxi-dase subunit Ⅰ(CO Ⅰ),CO Ⅱ,CO Ⅲ,COⅣ,CO Ⅴ,PGC-1 α,mitochondrial transcription factor A(TFAM)and nuclear respiratory factor 1(NFR1)were determined by Western blot.In vitro,CD14+monocytes were co-cultured with 3.0 mmol/L BHB for 0,6,12,24 h.Flow cytometry was applied for intracellular mitochondrial membrane potential detection,and determination the protein abundance of PGC-1α,TFAM and NFR1 by Western blot.The results showed that compared with control group,the mitochondrial membrane potential in CD14+monocytes of ketotic cows was sig-nificantly increased,and the protein abundance of CO Ⅰ,CO Ⅱ,CO Ⅲ,CO Ⅳ,CO Ⅴ PGC-1α,TFAM,and NRF1 in CD14+monocytes of ketotic cows were significantly decreased.Compared with 0 h,the mitochondrial membrane potential of CD14+monocytes was significantly increased after BHB treatment for 6,12,24 h,and the protein abundance of PGC-1α,TFAM and NRF1 were significantly decreased.The results indicated that BHB induced mitochondrial dysfunction in CD14+monocytes of ketotic cows by inhibiting PGC-1α signaling pathway.Therefore,the PGC-1αsignaling pathway may be a preventive and therapeutic target to the mitochondrial dysfunction of monocytes in ketotic cows caused by BHB.
8.Investigation and analysis of hypocalcemia,production performance,diseases,and culling of dairy cows in large-scale dairy farms
Jipeng TANG ; Shengyu HAN ; Xiaochen JIA ; Guang SHAO ; Chuang XU ; Cheng XIA
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(11):2507-2517
The purpose of this survey was to understand the occurrence of hypocalcemia in dairy cows in large-scale pasture and its relationship with production performance,disease and culling.Eighty-one large-scale pastures were selected in China to carry out a questionnaire survey on the lactation performance,reproductive performance,disease status and culling situations of dairy cows,and analyzed the production data of dairy farms by SPSS software.The survey results show that the incidence of hypocalcemia in dairy cows in pasture was different,the subclinical type was nearly twice as high as the clinical type,and the incidence rate of hypocalcemia was higher in about 30%of pasture.Hypocalcemia has no obvious effect on the lactation performance of dairy cows on dairy farms.However,a high incidence rate can reduce the conception rate,increase the incidence of subclinical mastitis,ketosis,and other common internal diseases,and raise the annual culling rate and culling rate of adult cows.Clinical,subclinical and total incidence of hypocalcemia have differ-ent effects on reproduction and diseases such as mastitis and ketosis,but clinical hypocalcemia is more harmful.Hypocalcemia is still an important metabolic disease that harms the health and pro-duction of dairy cows in large-scale pastures in China.For farms with a high incidence rate,it is recommended to conduct regular monitoring of blood calcium levels in dairy cows before and after calving,and to conduct in-depth investigations into the related pathogenic factors.This will provide a scientific basis for improving the prevention measures for hypocalcemia,reducing the incidence of the disease,increasing reproductive efficiency,and reducing culling rates.
9.Mechanism of oxidative stress and inflammatory response in liver injury induced by aflatoxin B1 exposure in rats under high-fat dietary pattern
Tianhui AN ; Honglin LIU ; Haiyan WANG ; Jiaxin CHENG ; Junqi WANG ; Cheng XIA ; Chuang XU ; Yuanyuan CHEN
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;45(11):2474-2480,2517
This study aims to investigate the mechanisms underlying the effects of the combined ac-tion of high-fat diet-induced obesity and the aflatoxin B1(AFB1)on hepatic oxidative stress and inflammatory responses.Thirty-six rats of similar weight and 4 weeks old were randomly divided into 4 groups,with 9 rats in each group:the blank control group(basal diet),the AFB1 group(0.4 mg/kg AFB1+basal diet),the HFD group(high-fat diet),and the HFD+AFB1 group(high-fat diet+0.4 mg/kg AFB1).Histological changes and lipid deposition were observed via hematox-ylin-eosin(HE)staining and Oil Red O staining.Levels of oxidative stress and inflammation-relat-ed factors were measured using commercial assay kits.The relative protein expression levels of factors involved in the Nrf2-Keap1 signaling pathway were assessed by Western blot analysis.The HE staining results showed that in the AFB1 group,the liver cells exhibited widespread watery de-generation,with shrunk and ruptured nuclei,inflammatory cells infiltration,and increased fibrosis.In the HFD group,liver cell fatty degeneration was observed,with cytoplasmic lipid droplet infil-tration.In the portal area,liver fibrosis was seen,with liver cell necrosis and inflammatory cell in-filtration in the fibrotic area,accompanied by lipofuscous granules.When HFD was applied to the AFB1 group,the abnormal state of liver interstitial and interstitial spaces was further aggravated,and a large number of lipid droplets appeared.The Oil Red O staining results showed that there were large numbers of dark red lipid droplets in the liver tissue of the HFD group,which were fused in strands.In the AFB1 group,lipid droplets could also be observed in the liver tissue of rats,but the number and degree were significantly less than those in the HFD group.The number and degree of red lipid droplets in the liver tissue of rats in the HFD+AFB1 group were higher than those in the AFB1 group and the HFD group.HFD exacerbated AFB1-induced oxidative stress by elevating ROS,MDA levels,and decreasing the expression of antioxidant stress factors such as CAT,SOD,Nrf2,HO-1,NQO1,and GCLC.Furthermore,the combined effect of HFD and AFB1 further significantly increased the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-2,IL-6,TNF-α,and IL-1β in the body.In summary,HFD treatment significantly exacerbated liver oxidative stress and in-flammatory responses in rats exposed to AFB1 through the Nrf2-keap1 signaling pathway.
10.Inhibition of excessive inflammatory response of macrophages by Ebselen against acute Escherichia coli infection
Xiao-wen LIU ; Xiao-qin MOU ; Chuang CHENG ; Shuang-shuang GONG ; Hao-ran ZHANG ; Jing HE ; Xi ZHENG ; Jun WANG ; Yue-qing WANG ; Li-li ZOU
Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin 2025;41(7):1346-1353
Aim To investigate the pharmacological mechanism of Ebselenin(Ebselen,EbSe)in the treat-ment of Escherichia coli(E.coli)infection,which had no significant inhibitory effect on Gram-negative bacte-ria,based on previous studies.Methods After EbSe intervention in E.coli infected Raw264.7 cells,the via-bility of Raw264.7 cells was determined by CCK-8 method,the morphology and structure of Raw264.7 cells were observed by electron microscope,and the in-tracellular bacterial load of Raw264.7 cells was calcu-lated by coated plate method.Polarization status of peritoneal macrophages,Raw264.7 intracellular NO and ROS content and intracellular HO-1 expression in Raw264.7 and E.coli acutely infected mice after E.co-li infection by flow cytometry.qPCR was used to detect the expression of related mRNAs in Raw264.7 cells.qPCR was used to detect the intracellular GSH content in Raw264.7 cells by spectrophotometric assay,and the state of cytoskeletal proteins was observed by immuno-fluorescence.Western blot assay was performed to de-tect the intracellular Txnrd1 expression level.Results Microtiter method,CCK-8,and electron microscopy observations showed that EbSe had no effect on the growth of E.coli and Raw264.7 cells in vitro.The re-sults of smear plate counting showed that EbSe reduced the intracellular bacterial load of Raw264.7 in the in-fected group.Flow cytometry results showed that EbSe upregulated the number of M2-type macrophages.The EbSe-treated infected group had reduced intracellular NO and ROS levels and increased GSH levels.The qPCR results showed that the expression of IL-6,IL-1β,and iNOS was decreased,and the expression of HO-1,Txnrd1,and Glut1 was increased in DHB4-in-fected Raw264.7 cells after EbSe treatment.Cytoskel-etal staining showed that the morphology of the EbSe-treated infected cells was similar to that of oxPAPC-in-duced cells.Western blot results showed the expres-sion of Txnrd1 protein in EbSe-treated infected cells in-creased.Conclusion EbSe exerts anti-E.coli acute infection effect by regulating macrophage polarization and inhibiting macrophage excessive inflammatory state.

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