AIM: To detect the distribution and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)in radiation retinopathy(RR)through fluorescence targeted imaging.METHODS:Covalent binding of fluorescein FITC with VEGF antibody ranibizumab to prepare targeted fluorescent imaging probe ranibizumab-FITC. SD rats were randomly divided into three groups based on the principle of weight balance: a normal control group(Con group), a low-dose radiation group(10 Gy group), and a high-dose radiation group(30 Gy group). Medical linear accelerators and lead blocks were used to locally irradiate the rat eyeballs for modeling. Western blot and qRT-PCR were used to detect the expression levels of VEGF-A in each group and to screen for appropriate modeling dose. The inverted fluorescence microscope and the confocal microscope were used to observe the distribution of VEGF and imaging probes in the retinas of control and RR model group rats, and to verify the effectiveness of targeted probes.RESULTS:The expression level of VEGF-A in the retina of rats in the high-dose radiation group(30 Gy group)was higher than that in the normal control group(Con group). In early RR, VEGF expression was observed to be associated with microaneurysms and abnormal microvessels in the retina. VEGF accumulation was observed at the site of capillary wall damage. When retinal capillary endothelial damage occurred, targeted probes gathered on the outer surface of the vessel wall.CONCLUSION:The expression level of VEGF in the retina of RR model rats is elevated, and fluorescent targeted molecular imaging probes can detect the spatial distribution of VEGF at the microvascular lesions in the retina of RR rats.

Disruption of the intestinal mucosal barrier caused by gut dysbiosis and metabolic imbalance is the underlying pathology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Traditional Chinese medicine Wuji Wan (WJW) is commonly used to treat digestive system disorders and showed therapeutic potential for IBD. In this interdisciplinary study, we aim to investigate the pharmacological effects of WJW against experimental colitis by combining functional metabolomics and gut-microbiota sequencing techniques. Treatment with WJW altered the profile of the intestinal microbiota and notably increased the abundance of Lactobacillus, thereby facilitating the conversion of tryptophan into indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and indoleacrylic acid (IA). These indole derivatives activated the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) pathway, which reduced colonic inflammation and restored the expression of intestinal barrier proteins. Interestingly, the beneficial effects of WJW on gut barrier function improvement and tryptophan metabolism were disappeared in the absence of gut microbiota. Finally, pre-treatment with the AhR antagonist CH-223191 confirmed the essential role of IAA-mediated AhR activation in the therapeutic effects of WJW. Overall, WJW enhanced intestinal barrier function and reduced colonic inflammation in a murine colitis model by modulating Lactobacillus-IAA-AhR signaling pathway. This study provides novel insights into colitis pathogenesis and presents an effective therapeutic and preventive approach against IBD.

Objective:To discuss the effect of erythritol on glucose and lipid metabolism in the body,and to clarify the mechanism of erythritol affecting liver metabolism based on metabonomics.Methods:The male ICR mice were randomly divided into normal group,sucrose group(2％sucrose),low dose of erythritol(1％erythritol)group,medium dose of erythritol(2％erythritol)group,and high dose of erythritol(4％erythritol)group,with 10 mice in each group.The corresponding concentrations of sucrose and erythritol solutions were prepared and placed in water bottles,and the mice were allowed to drink and eat freely for 12 consecutive weeks;the body mass,food intakes,and water intakes of the mice in various groups were measured.Commercial kits were used to detect the serum triglyceride(TG),total cholesterol(TC),and blood glucose levels of the mice in various groups;the liver indexes of the mice were calculated.Ultra performance liquid chromatography-orbitrap exactive mass spectrometry(UPLC-OE-MS)non-targeted metabonomics was used to detect the liver metabolites of the mice normal group and high dose of erythritol group;bioinformatics analysis was used to screen the differential liver metabolites between the two groups with variable importance in projection(VIP)＞1 and adjusted P＜0.05;Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)signaling pathway enrichment analysis were performed to investigate the functional roles of the differential liver metabolites.Results:Compared with normal group,there were no significant differences in the body mass,food intake,liver index,and blood lipid levels of the mice in various groups(P＞0.05);compared with normal group,the blood glucose level of the mice in high dose of erythritol group was significantly increased(P＜0.01).The metabonomics analysis of the liver tissues of the mice in two groups identified 1 144 metabolites,mainly including lipids and lipid-like molecules(17.39％),organic acids and derivatives(10.87％),organic heterocyclic compounds(5.80％),and organic oxygen compounds(5.07％).Compared with normal group,there were 138 differential liver metabolites in the mice in high dose of erythritol group,among which 112 metabolites were up-regulated and 26 metabolites were down-regulated.The KEGG signal pathway enrichment analysis results showed that the differential metabolites were mainly enriched in metabolism,steroid hormone biosynthesis,cortisol synthesis and metabolism,and Cushing's syndrome pathways;the further topological analysis of the metabolic pathways results showed that the differential metabolites were mainly involved in sphingolipid metabolism,tricarboxylic acid cycle,riboflavin metabolism,steroid hormone biosynthesis,and purine metabolism signal pathways.Conclusion:Long-term intake of high dose of erythritol can increase the blood glucose level in the mice,and the mechanism may be that it affects the tricarboxylic acid cycle by interfering with riboflavin metabolism and interferes with sphingolipid metabolism,leading to impairment of the blood glucose control system.

Objective To investigate the incidence of functional bowel disease(FBD)and its relationship with depression,anxiety and sleep in navy submarine forces.Methods A questionnaire survey on the incidence of FBD was conducted on 364 naval soldiers who were enrolled according to Rome Ⅳ classification and diagnostic criteria.The risk factors of FBD were analyzed.The incidence of specific diseases of FBD was compared among soldiers with different jobs.The depression,anxiety,and sleep quality were investigated in FBD patients.Results In the 364 participants,132(36.3%)were diagnosed with FBD according to Roman Ⅳcriteria.Military rank and marital status might be risk factors for FBD.There was no significant difference in the overall incidence of FBD among the participants with various jobs(P>0.05).The incidence of functional constipation in the submariners was significantly higher than that in the land soldiers,while the incidence of functional diarrhea in the land soldiers was higher than that in the submariners(all P<0.05).The incidences of depression,anxiety and sleep disorder in the participants with FBD were higher than those in the participants without FBD.Conclusion There is a high incidence of FBD in submariners,which may be related to their psychological states.

Empathy is a cornerstone in cultivating medical ethics.This article delves into the profound significance of empathy and underscores the importance of promoting it among medical students and practitioners.It also details methods for strengthening empathy and capacity building concerned in students through oral medicine instruction,with the goal of nurturing oral healthcare professionals who provide compassionate care.

Objective To evaluate the application of modified chairside case-based learning(CBL)in the teaching of dental residents in the prosthodontic clinic.Methods Dental residents in Peking Union Medical College Hospital from September 2022 to September 2024 were enrolled.Traditional CBL was conducted in control group.Modified chairside CBL was conducted in test group.The scores of department rotation examination and questionnaire results were analyzed with t-test statistical analysis.Results The score of"patient reception"in test group was significantly higher than control group(P＜0.05).24 valid questionnaires were collected in two groups each.The rate of approval in test group was significantly higher than control group in the following items of questionnaire,including"reduce learning pressure or burden""improve the capacity of doctor-patient communication""improve the capacity of literature review""improve the capacity of group cooperation"(P＜0.05).Conclusions Modified chairside CBL has showed good teaching effects in improving the capacity of patient reception,doctor-patient communication,literature review,group cooperation,and meanwhile reduced learning pressure or burden.

Objective To explore the need and evaluate the effectiveness for head-simulator in the teaching of sto-matology within the eight-year program of clinical medicine.Methods Questionnaire survey was conducted among the students from 2017 cohort of the eight-year program of clinical medicine at Peking Union Medical College.The survey results were statistically analyzed and described.Results Totally 87.9％of the students believed that incor-porating head-simulator into the clinical practice course of stomatology were necessary,and 93.9％expressed will-ingness to join the training.Most students preferred to practice peri-odontal scaling and cavity preparation for caries during the simulated training sessions.The majority of students considered two or four class hours of simulated head teaching to be reasonable.The pilot head simulation training was successfully implemented;75.0％of the students acknowledged clear teaching and convincible demonstrations.All the trainees agreed that the head simulation course helped them better understand stomatology knowledge,stimulated their interest in learning and expressed a desire for increased head simulation sessions during clinical practice course of stomatology.Additionally,87.5％of the students preferred head simulation training course to be applied in classic clinical clerkships.Conclusions There is strong demand among students of eight-year program of clinical medicine for incorporating head-simulator into the education of stomatology.The pilot simulation training received positive evaluations.Further exploration is needed to optimize specific scheduling and content arrangement.

Objective To investigate the expression levels and the clinical significance of upstream tran-scription factor 2(USF2)and ubiquitin-specific protease 10(USP10)in peripheral blood of patients with sep-sis combined with acute kidney injury(AKI).Methods A total of 259 patients with sepsis were selected from Jilin Provincial People's Hospital from January 2018 to December 2022.Patients were divided into AKI group(107 cases)and non AKI(NAKI)group(152 cases)according to whether they had AKI or not.General clini-cal data were collected and the expression levels of USF2 and USP10 in peripheral blood were detected.Pear-son analysis was used to investigate the correlation between USF2,USP10,and renal function.Binary Logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the factors influencing sepsis patients with AKI.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was drown to analyze the value of USF2 and USP10 in diagnosing AKI in patients with sepsis.Results The expression level of serum USF2 in AKI group was higher than that in NAKI group,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05),while the serum USP10 expression level in AKI group was lower than that in NAKI group,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).In AKI group,USF2 expression was positively correlated with urea nitrogen(BUN),serum creatinine(Scr)and Cys-tatin C(CysC)(P＜0.05),while USP10 expression was negatively correlated with BUN,Scr and CysC(P＜0.05).High sequential organ failure assessment(SOFA)score,septic shock and high expression of USF2 were risk factors for AKI in sepsis patients(P＜0.05),and high expression of USP10 was protective factor(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of single detection of USF2 and USP10 for diagnosing AKI in patients with sepsis was 0.742(95％CI:0.676-0.808)and 0.781(95％CI:0.724-0.839),respectively.The AUC of the combination of USF2 and USP10 for diagnosing AKI in patients with sepsis was 0.907(95％CI:0.865-0.948),which was higher than that of single detection(P＜0.05).Conclusion Increased expression of USF2 and decreased expression of USP10 in peripheral blood of patients with sepsis are associated with in-creased risk of AKI and decreased renal function.

Objective To evaluate the accuracy and clinical application value of the fluorescence quantitative PCR melting curve meth-od for detecting fungal nucleic acid.Methods 460 suspected or confirmed patients with respiratory fungal infections were enrolled in the study.The fluorescence quantitative PCR melting curve method was used as the test method,and the fungal 26S rRNA gene nucleic acid detection kit combined with Sanger sequencing was used as the reference method.Sputum samples from each study subject were collected and detected by the test method and reference method,respectively.The Kappa value of the two methods was calculated to evaluate the consistency of the results.Results Compared with the reference method,the overall conformity rate of the test method was 92.83%(427/460).Compared with the reference method,the positive conformity rates,negative conformity rates,and overall conformity rates of the test method for detecting 8 fungi,including Candida albicans,Candida glabrata,Candida krusei,Candida trop-icalis,Candida parapsilosis,Cryptococcus neoformans,Candida guilliermondii,and Aspergillus,were 97.34%(183/188),97.06%(264/272),and 97.17%(447/460),100.00%(33/33),99.77%(426/427),and 99.78%(459/460),100.00%(16/16),99.55%(442/444),and 99.57%(458/460),98.11%(52/53),99.75%(442/444),and 99.57%(458/460),95.08%(58/61),99.50%(397/399),and 98.91%(455/460),100.00%(9/9),99.56%(449/451),and 99.57%(458/460),85.00%(17/20),99.32%(437/440),and 98.70%(454/460),and 97.59%(81/83),97.88%(369/377),and 97.83%(450/460),respectively.The Kappa values for the consistency evaluation of the two methods'detection results were both greater than 0.8.Upon retesting the inconsistent re-sults of the two methods,it was found that 53.7%(22/41)of the detection results were consistent with the test method,and the others were consistent with the reference method.Conclusion The fluorescence quantitative PCR melting curve method can simultaneously detect 8 kinds of fungi,and the detection results are highly consistent with the reference method.It has unique advantages in fungal de-tection and important clinical application value.

OBJECTIVE To explore the mechanism of total flavonoids from stem and leaf of Scutellaria baicalensis in treating ulcerative colitis based on network pharmacology and animal experiments. METHODS The total flavonoids in stem and leaves of Scutellaria baicalensis were reviewed in literature, the corres ponding targets of total flavonoids in stem and leaves of Scutellaria baicalensis were retrieved by TCM systematic pharmacology database and analysis platform(TCMSP), and the related targets of ulcerative colitis were collected by GeneCards database. The corres ponding targets of total flavonoids from the stem and leaves of Scutellaria baicalensis and those related to ulcerative colitis were in put into Venny 2.1 mapping software to obtain the intersection targets, which were uploaded to STRING data platform for the construction of protein-protein interaction network. The gene ontology(GO) functions and the Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes(KEGG) pathway enrichment were analyzed using the DAVID data platform jointly. The network pharmacological results were verified in a mouse model of ulcerative colitis induced by 3% DSS. RESULTS The results of network pharmacology showed that there were 69 related targets, 1383 related targets in ulcerative colitis and 24 overlapping targets in 7 components of total flavonoids from stem and leaves of Scutellaria baicalae. GO and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were conducted to obtain the potential pathways of total flavonoids from stem and leaves of Scutellaria baicalensis in the treatment of ulcerative effects, including aryl hydrocarbon receptor(AhR), Th17 cell differentiation, T cell receptor, etc. The results of 3% DSS induced ulcerative colitis mouse model showed that compared with the model group, total flavonoids of scutellaria scutellaria stem and leaf significantly decreased the levels of MPO, TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-17 and increased levels of IL-10 and IL-22 with statistical difference, and restored the colon length of mice. Activated the AhR pathway and its CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 targets to promote the expression of anti-inflammatory factor IL-22, and repair the intestinal barrier by activating ZO-1 proteins. CONCLUSION Total flavonoids from stem and leaf of Scutellaria scutellaria can synergistically treat ulcerative colitis based on the characteristics of multi-component, multi-target and multi-pathway.