To explore the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） and integrative TCM-Western medicine approaches in the treatment of diabetic microvascular complications （DMC）， refine key pathophysiological insights and treatment principles， and promote academic innovation and strategic research planning in the prevention and treatment of DMC. The 38th session of the Expert Salon on Diseases Responding Specifically to Traditional Chinese Medicine， hosted by the China Association of Chinese Medicine， was held in Beijing， 2024. Experts in TCM， Western medicine， and interdisciplinary fields convened to conduct a systematic discussion on the pathogenesis， diagnostic and treatment challenges， and mechanism research related to DMC， ultimately forming a consensus on key directions. Four major research recommendations were proposed. The first is addressing clinical bottlenecks in the prevention and control of DMC by optimizing TCM-based evidence evaluation systems. The second is refining TCM core pathogenesis across DMC stages and establishing corresponding "disease-pattern-time" framework. The third is innovating mechanism research strategies to facilitate a shift from holistic regulation to targeted intervention in TCM. The fourth is advancing interdisciplinary collaboration to enhance the role of TCM in new drug development， research prioritization， and guideline formulation. TCM and integrative approaches offer distinct advantages in managing DMC. With a focus on the diseases responding specifically to TCM， strengthening evidence-based support and mechanism interpretation and promoting the integration of clinical care and research innovation will provide strong momentum for the modernization of TCM and the advancement of national health strategies.

Objective To investigate the impact of graft type on perioperative outcomes and long-term prognosis in patients undergoing surgical repair of post-myocardial infarction ventricular septal rupture (VSR) with concurrent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on clinical data from patients who underwent VSR repair and concurrent CABG at Fuwai Hospital between 2005 and 2022. Patients were divided into an arterial graft group and a saphenous vein graft (SVG)-only group based on the type of bypass grafts used. Clinical outcomes were compared between the two groups. Results A total of 92 patients were included, comprising 56 males and 36 females, with a mean age of (62.4±7.9) years. The arterial graft group consisted of 60 patients, and the SVG-only group consisted of 32 patients. There were no statistical differences between the two groups in age, gender, body mass index, past medical history, time interval from myocardial infarction to surgery, or culprit vessel distribution (P>0.05). A higher proportion of patients in the SVG-only group received preoperative intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) support (56.3% vs. 35.0%, P=0.049). However, cardiopulmonary bypass time, aortic cross-clamp time, and early mortality rates were similar between the two groups (P>0.05). Follow-up data revealed no statistically significant differences in cumulative 10-year survival (82.8% vs. 80.0%, P=0.940) or freedom from major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (49.6% vs. 58.6%, P=0.491) between the SVG-only and arterial graft groups. Furthermore, graft type did not significantly affect long-term mortality in patients with a culprit vessel in the left anterior descending artery or those with multivessel disease. Conclusion In patients undergoing delayed repair of VSR with concomitant CABG, the use of arterial or saphenous vein grafts does not significantly impact perioperative outcomes or long-term prognosis. Future research should further explore the benefits of different revascularization strategies to optimize treatment for this population.

BackgroundPersistent cognitive impairment is prevalent among patients with stable schizophrenia. While serum total bile acid （TBA） level in acute-phase patients are known to be associated with cognitive dysfunction， the relationship between serum TBA and multi-dimensional cognitive functions in stable phase patients remains unclear. ObjectiveTo investigate the correlation between serum TBA level and cognitive function in patients with stable schizophrenia， and to evaluate its predictive value for cognitive impairment， thereby providing a serological biomarker for the timely identification and objective assessment of cognitive dysfunction. MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted on 137 inpatients with stable schizophrenia at The Fourth People's Hospital of Yancheng from March to December 2024. All participants met the diagnostic criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders， fifth edition （DSM-5）. Cognitive function was evaluated using the Chinese Brief Cognitive Test （C-BCT）， patients were categorized into four groups： normal cognition （n=28）， mild impairment （n=28）， moderate impairment （n=47）， and severe impairment （n=34）. Fasting venous blood samples were collected， and serum TBA level was quantified using an enzymatic cycle assay. Spearman correlation analysis was ultilized to determine the relationship between serum TBA level， overall cognitive function， and specific cognitive domains. Binary Logistic regression model was used （adjusting for covariates such as age， gender， and disease duration） to analyze the impact of serum TBA level on overall and individual cognitive functions. The predictive value of serum TBA level for overall cognitive impairment was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve. ResultsSerum TBA levels differed significantly among the four groups （H=18.677， P<0.01）. Specifically， serum TBA levels in both the moderate and severe cognitive impairment groups were significantly higher than those in the normal cognitive group （adjusted P<0.01）. Serum TBA level was positively correlated with the severity grading of overall cognitive impairment （r_s=0.354， P<0.05）， and negatively correlated with T-scores on the trail making test （r_s=-0.328， P<0.05）， continuous performance test （r_s=-0.247， P<0.05）， digit span （r_s=-0.265， P<0.05）， and symbol coding （r_s=-0.221， P<0.05）. Binary Logistic regression analysis identified serum TBA level as an independent risk factor for overall cognitive impairment （OR=1.322， 95% CI： 1.021 - 1.713， P=0.034）， with a particularly robust predictive ability for impaired information processing speed （OR=1.325， 95% CI： 1.057 - 1.661， P=0.015）. The area under ROC curve （AUC） for serum TBA level in predicting overall cognitive impairment was 0.738， with a sensitivity of 60.61% and a specificity of 78.64%. ConclusionIn patients with stable schizophrenia， elevated serum TBA levels are associated with worse overall cognitive function， as well as deficits in information processing speed， attention， working memory， and executive function. Serum TBA serves as an independent risk factor and exhibits moderate predictive value for overall cognitive impairmen，particularly in the domain of information processing speed. ［Funded by Yancheng Municipal Health Commission Medical Research Project （number， YK2024141）］

Background Bufei Huoxue Capsule (BHC) has gradually been used in clinical practice to treat patients with pneumoconiosis in recent years. However, the comprehensive evaluation of its efficacy and safety is lacking. Objective To systematically assess the therapeutic potential of BHC for pneumoconiosis. Methods By searching 9 databases, e.g. China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, VIP Chinese Science and Technology Journals Database, SinoMed, Yiigle, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) related to the use of BHC for the treatment of pneumoconiosis were identified. The search covered the period from the inception of these databases to August 31, 2025. This systematic review conformed to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020. The included studies underwent quality appraisal by the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Subgroup analysis and sensitivity analysis were applied to assess the robustness of results and explore the potential heterogeneity among the studies. Results A total of 19 RCTs were included and all were reported in Chinese. The therapy containing BHC showed a superior impact on forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁) (95%CI: 0.38, 0.66; I²=69%, P<0.05), FEV₁% (95%CI: 3.37, 5.72; I²=12%, P<0.05), forced vital capacity (FVC) (95%CI: 0.34, 0.45; I²=0%, P<0.05), FEV₁/FVC% (95%CI: 6.29, 10.35; I²=21%, P<0.05), 6-minute walking distance (6MWD) score (95%CI: 16.32, 27.64; I²=22%, P<0.05), St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) score (95%CI: −1.47, −1.05; I²=13%, P<0.05), and total effective rate (95%CI: 2.71, 6.78; I²=0%, P<0.05) in patients with pneumoconiosis. In addition, BHC had less adverse reactions reported (95%CI: 0.69, 1.74; I²=0%, P=0.70). Conclusions Combined BHC therapy can significantly improve the lung function and the quality of life in patients with pneumoconiosis, with a good safety profile. However, high-quality RCTs with multicenter, large-sample, double-blind, and standardized protocols still need to be conducted in the future to provide more reliable evidence.

ObjectiveThe frequency difference limen (FDL) serves as a fundamental metric utilized for effectively quantifying the precise perceptual capabilities of the central auditory system. However, traditional measurement methods rely heavily on the active behavioral responses of subjects and are consequently highly susceptible to the negative influence of confounding subjective factors. Furthermore, existing research paradigms frequently employ uniform stimulus configurations that overlook critical individual perceptual differences. Based on brain-computer interface (BCI) technology, this comprehensive study aims to establish an objective and quantitative evaluation method for auditory frequency discrimination by systematically analyzing and decoding the specific neural responses elicited at the exact threshold state. MethodsWe designed a personalized rapid serial auditory presentation (RSAP) paradigm customized based on each individual’s precise FDL. A cohort of eleven healthy participants was recruited to evaluate the paradigm using pure-tone sequences at a baseline frequency of 4 000 Hz. This experimental paradigm simulates a realistic auditory perception environment through the continuous presentation of acoustic stimuli, thereby allowing for an in-depth investigation into the specific neural representations evoked by weak frequency deviations at the threshold state. Given that auditory stimulus-evoked response features exhibit complex and differentiated spatiotemporal distribution patterns across multiple frequency domains, this study further deeply integrates the cross-scale feature interaction module with the dynamic spatiotemporal attention allocation strategy, innovatively proposing the Multi-Scale Spatial-Temporal Dual Attention Network (MS-STAMNet). Specifically, the network constructs parallel processing branches with multiple receptive fields and introduces a dynamic adaptive weighting strategy to precisely localize core neural activity signals, further deeply integrating multi-scale information through cross-branch feature information interaction to achieve robust single-trial decoding of weak auditory evoked responses. ResultsThe comprehensive electrophysiological data analysis demonstrated that subtle auditory frequency deviation stimuli presented at the threshold level successfully elicited pronounced N2 and P3 event-related potential features, reflecting pre-attentive mismatch detection and subsequent cognitive evaluation, which were prominently distributed over the frontal, central, and temporal regions of the scalp. In the complex time-frequency domain, the extracted neural response characteristics exhibited distinct, statistically significant event-related synchronization within both the low-frequency δ and θ frequency bands, which was simultaneously accompanied by a widespread, prominent event-related desynchronization within the higher α band. A comparative analysis of model performance demonstrated that MS-STAMNet achieved an average unweighted average recall (UAR) of (69.67±6.12)% and area under the curve (AUC) of 0.761 8±0.07, significantly outperforming the established baseline models such as EEGNet and PLNet. Furthermore, a distinct dissociation phenomenon was verified between neural decoding and behavioral performance through regression analysis (R²=0.016, P=0.709), indicating that this model can effectively capture the implicit features of subtle frequency deviations, even when they fail to trigger explicit conscious responses. Additionally, attention weight visualization analysis further reveals the highly accurate focus of the network on key features concentrated over the bilateral temporal and fronto-parietal regions. ConclusionThis study systematically and comprehensively uncovers the multi-dimensional spatiotemporal evolutionary patterns of complex neural responses processing subtle acoustic variations under long-sequence threshold auditory stimulation. Concurrently, it verifies the efficacy and robustness of the proposed MS-STAMNet architecture in accurately deciphering weak, single-trial electroencephalogram signals amidst complex background noise. Ultimately, these neurophysiological and algorithmic findings lay a solid theoretical and methodological foundation for the objective and quantitative evaluation of individual auditory cognitive capabilities in clinical applications, transcending the fundamental limitations of traditional behavioral paradigms and providing robust technical support for future auditory research and related clinical assessments.

As one of the common systemic vasculitides in children， IgA vasculitis is closely associated with the interaction of "Wind pathogen" and "turbid stasis" in its pathogenesis. Based on the blood turbidity theory， this paper proposes "wind agitating blood turbidity and collateral damage" as the core pathogenesis. Regarding treatment， the sequential therapeutic principle of "stanch bleeding， activating blood circulation， and nourishing blood" is adopted， and combined with the dynamic application of wind-dispelling medicinals to "expel， search， and guard against wind"， turbidity-removing method is applied throughout all stages. In the acute stage，it is recommended to clear heat and purify turbidity， stanch bleeding and secure the collaterals. In the prolonged stage， the method of dissipating stasis and clearing up turbidity should be used， as well as activating blood circulation and unblocking the collaterals. In the recovery stage， it is advised to nourish blood to flourish the collaterals， reinforce healthy qi and resolve turbidity. This therapeutic system integrates the elimination of pathogens and the reinforcement of healthy qi to clear and resolve blood turbidity， ultimately achieving holistic collateral repair through securing， unblocking， and nourishing the collaterals， which provides new insights into the treatment of this disease in traditional Chinese medicine.

To explore the clinical significance of decreased serum immunoglobulin (Ig) A levels in patients with IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD).

ObjectiveTo investigate whether macrophage lipolysis-stimulated lipoprotein receptor （LSR） deficiency affects the progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis （MASH） by activating the Yes-associated protein （YAP） signaling pathway. MethodsMale wild-type （WT） mice and macrophage-specific Lsr knockout （Lsr^MφKO， KO） mice， with an age of 8 weeks and similar body weights， were selected and fed with a normal diet， a high-fat diet （HFD）， or a high-fat high-cholesterol （HFHC） diet for 30 weeks. HE staining and oil red O staining were used to evaluate liver pathological changes； immunofluorescent staining was used to measure the expression levels of F4/80 and α-smooth muscle actin； RT-qPCR and Western blot were used to measure the levels of markers associated with lipid metabolism， inflammation， and fibrosis. Bone marrow transplantation rescue experiments （WT→KO vs KO→KO groups） were conducted to explore the functional role of LSR in macrophages. At the cellular level， hepatic macrophages were isolated from WT and KO mice to measure the expression levels of YAP signaling pathway-related proteins and their downstream target genes， and in addition， these cells were treated in vitro with verteporfin （VP）， a specific inhibitor of YAP， to verify the regulatory effect of this pathway on the expression of inflammatory factors. The independent samples t-test was used for comparison of normally distributed measurement data between two groups， and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed measurement data. ResultsUnder the condition of normal diet， there were no significant differences in hepatic indicators between WT and KO mice. KO mice fed an HFD or HFHC diet showed a significant increase in hepatic lipid droplet accumulation， accompanied by lipid metabolism disorder and significant increases in the levels of indicators associated with inflammation and fibrosis （P<0.05）. Bone marrow transplantation experiments confirmed that compared with the KO→KO group， the WT→KO group had significant alleviation of liver injury （P<0.05）. Mechanistic studies showed that there were significant reductions in the levels of phosphorylated large tumor suppressor kinase 1 （LATS1） and phosphorylated YAP and significant increases in the expression levels of total YAP protein and its downstream target genes in hepatic macrophages of KO mice （P<0.05）. In vitro VP intervention significantly inhibited the expression levels of inflammatory factors in hepatic macrophages isolated from KO mice （P<0.05）. ConclusionMacrophage LSR deficiency activates the YAP signaling pathway by inhibiting LATS1/2 kinase activity and promotes the expression of inflammatory factors， thereby accelerating the progression of liver injury in a mouse model of MASH.

Colorectal inflammatory cancer transformation poses a major risk to patients with colitis.Patients with chronic intestinal inflammation have an approximately 2-3 fold increased risk of developing colorectal cancer(CRC).Unfortunately,there is currently no effective intervention available.Huangqin decoction(HQD),a well-known traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)formula,is frequently clinically prescribed for treating patients with colitis,and its active ingredients have effective antitumour efficacy.Nonetheless,the mechanism of HQD-mediated prevention of colorectal inflammatory cancer transformation remains unclear.A strategy integrating metagenomic,lipidomic,and messenger RNA(mRNA)sequencing analysis was used to investigate the regulatory effects of HQD on the gut microbiome,metabolism and potential mechanisms involved in colorectal inflammatory cancer transformation.Our study revealed that HQD suppressed colorectal inflammatory cancer transformation,which was associated with enhanced in-testinal barrier function,decreased the inflammatory response,and regulation of the gut microbiome.Notably,cohousing experiments revealed that the transfer of the gut microbiome from HQD-treated mice largely inhibited the pathological transformation of colitis.Moreover,gut microbiome transfer from HQD-treated mice primarily resulted in the altered regulation of fatty acid metabolism,especially the remodeling of arachidonic acid metabolism,which was associated with the amelioration of pathological transformation.Arachidonic acid metabolism and the key metabolic enzyme arachidonic acid 12-lipoxygenase(ALOX12)were affected by HQD treatment,and no obvious protective effect of HQD was observed in Alox12-/-mice,which revealed that ALOX12 was a critical mediator of HQD protection against colorectal inflammatory cancer transformation.In summary,multiple omics analyses were applied to produce valuable data and theoretical support for the application of HQD as a promising intervention for the transformation of inflammatory CRC.

Objective:To explore whether perioperative oral probiotic therapy reduces infectious complications following pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD), aiming to obtain higher-level evidence for clinical practice.Methods:A total of 81 participants undergoing PD at the Department of Pancreatic and Metabolic Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital & Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, from May 2024 to December 2024 were enrolled in this single-center, prospective, randomized controlled trial. The participants were randomly divided into a probiotic treatment group and a control group (receiving conventional treatment without probiotics) using a random number method. The primary outcomes included the incidence of postoperative infectious complications and intra-abdominal infection, and the secondary outcomes were the recovery of gastrointestinal function, postoperative hospital stay, and duration and costs of antibiotic use. The hematological indicators including inflammation and immune markers on postoperative days (POD) 1, 3, 5, and 7 were also compared between these two groups.Results:Finally 72 cases (39 males and 33 females) were analyzed, with 36 patients in the probiotic treatment group and 36 patients in the control group. Compared to the control group, the probiotic treatment group showed statistically significant reductions in the incidence of infectious complications (33.3% vs. 66.7%, P=0.029), intra-abdominal infection (27.8% vs. 58.3%, P=0.030), and incidence of delayed gastric emptying (0 vs. 16.7%, P=0.033). Also, the probiotic treatment group exhibited significantly faster recovery in postoperative bowel movements and shorter time to defecation, liquid diet, and semi-liquid diet (all P<0.05). Additionally, the probiotic treatment group had significantly shorter hospital stay, reduced duration of antibiotic use, and lower antibiotic costs (all P<0.05). Finally, the probiotic treatment group had significantly higher lymphocyte counts on POD 1 ( P<0.05) and showed a significant downward trend in inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 on PODs 3 and 5 and C-reactive protein on POD 7 (all P<0.05). Conclusions:Perioperative application of probiotic preparations in PD may reduce the incidence of postoperative infectious complications, especially intra-abdominal infection. Additionally, it can prevent delayed gastric emptying, promote the recovery of postoperative gastrointestinal function, shorten hospital stay, and reduce the use of antibiotics. These benefits may be related to the improvement of postoperative inflammatory status.