1.How gene editing can “pursue good fortune and avoid disaster”: an ethical consideration of human gene editing for “seeking benefits and avoiding harm” under the thought of the way of heaven in the Book of Changes
Yujue WANG ; Honglei ZHANG ; Xiaoding WANG
Chinese Medical Ethics 2025;38(2):214-219
The thought of the way of heaven is the core philosophy of the Book of Changes, aiming to achieve the “pursuing good fortune and avoiding disaster” of human affairs or “seeking benefits and avoiding harm” in technology. The embedded value orientations, such as “continuous life”, “utmost sincerity”, and “correct desire”, provide ethical considerations for “seeking benefits and avoiding harm” in human gene editing technology. Among them, the thought of “continuous life” affirms the potential value of gene editing technology for human reproduction, diagnosis and treatment, or prevention of diseases and disabilities from two aspects of human reproduction and individual body and mind, while adopting a cautious attitude towards the risks of technology. The thought of “utmost sincerity” advocates that gene editing should be studied and applied following objective laws. The thought of “correct desire” puts forward the norm of human desire in human gene editing. In terms of the issue of offspring autonomy, the thought of the way of heaven provides some ethical support for parents to implement gene editing for their offspring for the sake of the offspring’s physical and mental development. In conclusion, the application of the thought of the way of heaven in the Book of Changes hopes that human gene editing technology will benefit mankind and provide it with broader prospects and a better future.
2.Effects of erythropoietin on restorative dentin formation and expression of bone morphogenetic protein 2 after pulp injury
Ruiqing CHENG ; Honglei SUN ; Shuangshuang GENG ; Chao WANG ; Junke LI ; Yanfang CHEN
Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research 2025;29(11):2231-2242
BACKGROUND:Erythropoietin has anti-inflammatory,anti-apoptotic,and pro-bone defect repair effects.To date,fewer studies have been conducted on its effects and molecular mechanism underlying restorative dentin formation after pulp injury. OBJECTIVE:To explore the effect of erythropoietin on restorative dentin formation after pulp injury. METHODS:(1)Animal experiment:Thirty-two rats were randomly divided into control group(n=16)and experimental group(n=16).In the experimental group,collagen sponges containing erythropoietin were used to directly cap the pulp at the pulp injury,and in the control group,collagen sponges containing PBS were used to directly cap the pulp at the exposed pulp injury.The cavity was then closed with glass ionomer adhesive.After 2 and 4 weeks of treatment,the maxillary bones of the two groups were collected,and the expression of nestin in dentin was detected by immunohistochemistry,and the reparative dentin production was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining.The maxillae of four Sprague-Dawley rats were taken for immunohistochemical detection of erythropoietin expression in molar and incisor teeth.(2)Cell experiment:Human dental pulp cells,human periodontal ligament cells and human gingival fibroblasts were obtained from human dental tissue,periodontal ligament,and gingival tissue.Real-time reverse transcription PCR(RT-PCR)was used to detect the mRNA expression of erythropoietin.Erythropoietin,dentin sialophosphoprotein,dentin matrix protein 1,and nestin mRNA levels in human pulp cells were detected by RT-PCR under induced or uninduced odontoblastic differentiation.After down-regulation of erythropoietin expression or exogenous administration of erythropoietin intervention under induced or uninduced differentiation odontoblastic differentiation,the relative mRNA expression of dentin sialophosphoprotein and dentin matrix protein 1 in human pulp cells was detected by RT-PCR,and the formation of mineralized nodules was detected by alizarin red S staining,and mRNA and protein expressions of bone morphogenetic protein 2 were detected by RT-PCR and western blot,respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Animal experiment:Compared with the control group,the restorative dentin production and nestin expression were higher in the experimental group after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment.The expression of erythropoietin was weakly positive in pulp,odontoblastic cell layer and periodontal membrane of the rat's first maxillary molar,and strongly positive in odontoblasts.(2)Cell experiment:The mRNA expression of erythropoietin was higher in human dental pulp cells than in the other two types of cells.The mRNA expressions of dentin sialophosphorin,dentin matrix protein 1,nestin,erythropoietin and bone morphogenetic protein 2 in human pulp cells increased and the formation of mineralized nodules during odontoblastic differentiation under induction compared with non-induction conditions.The mRNA expression of dentin sialophosphoprotein,dentin matrix protein 1,nestin,bone morphogenetic protein 2 and the formation of mineralized nodules were decreased in human pulp cells after downregulation of erythropoietin under induced odontoblastic differentiation,and the protein expression of bone morphogenetic protein 2 was also decreased.After exogenous erythropoietin intervention,the expression of the above indexes in human dental pulp cells increased.To conclude,erythropoietin can promote the formation of dentin to some extent.
3.Clinical significance of molecular classification and hereditary phenotypic characteristics in endometrial carcinoma
Xiaowei WANG ; Jie LIN ; Huang CHEN ; Fang YU ; Honglei ZHANG ; Ye WANG ; Ruiying JIANG ; Bei WANG ; Dingrong ZHONG
Chinese Journal of Oncology 2025;47(1):100-107
Objective:To analyze the clinical significance of molecular classification and hereditary phenotype in endometrial carcinoma (EC) based on high throughput sequencing (NGS).Methods:97 EC samples were collected retrospectively from December 2019 to October 2022 in China-Japan Friendship Hospital. NGS technique was used to analyze the molecular classification, POLE hypermutation, microsatellite high Instability/mismatch repair dysfunction (MSI-H/MMRd), P53 protein abnormality (P53 abn), and non-specific molecular profile (NSMP). Lynch syndrome related genes and BRCA1/2 genes were detected by NGS and their genetic characteristics were analyzed. Results:Of the 97 EC cases, 77 were endometrial adenocarcinoma and 20 were other pathological subtypes. The proportions of the four molecular subtypes were 9.3% (9/97) POLE hypermutation, 16.5% (16/97) MSI-H, 17.5% (17/97) P53 abn and 56.7% (55/97) NSMP, respectively. There were significant differences in age, histological type, lymph node metastasis, pathological stage and other parameters among the four molecular types ( P<0.05). 8.2% (8/97) were multiple molecular typing and four multiple molecular typings detected, including POLEmut-MSI-H, POLEmut-P53abn, MSI-H-P53abn, P53abn-P53abn, which accounted for 1.0% (1/97), 3.1% (3/97), 1.0% (1/97) and 3.1% (3/97), respectively. The consistent rate of MSI-H and MMR protein expression was 92.9% ( Kappa=0.818, P<0.001). The coincidence rate between TP53 gene sequencing and P53 protein expression was 88.9% ( Kappa=0.661, P<0.001). In MSI-H type, 25.0% (4/16) were diagnosed as Lynch syndrome, and 75.0% (12/16) were diagnosed as Lynch like syndrome. 7.2% (7/97) BRCA2 somatic variation was detected, while BRCA1/2 germline variation was not detected in 97 cases. Conclusions:EC molecular classification has feasibility and clinical value. High throughput sequencing can detect low frequency mutations of TP53 gene, suggesting that it can provide more accurate molecular information and more accurate molecular typing effect. It is suggested to further detect Lynch syndrome related genes in patients with MSI-H, so as to carry out genetic management for patients and their families and achieve better therapeutic effect.
4.A novel carbonyl reductase for the synthesis of (R)-tolvaptan.
Yahui LIU ; Xuming WANG ; Shuo MA ; Keyu LIU ; Wei LI ; Lulu ZHANG ; Jie DU ; Honglei ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Biotechnology 2025;41(1):321-332
Screening carbonyl reductases with the ability to catalyze the reduction of complex carbonyl compounds is of great significance for the biosynthesis of R-tolvaptan(R-TVP). In this study, the target carbonyl reductase in the crude enzyme extract of rabbit liver was separated, purified, and identified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, gel-filtration chromatography, ion exchange chromatography, affinity chromatography, and protein mass spectrometry. With the rabbit liver genome as the template, the gene encoding the carbonyl reductase rlsr5 was amplified by PCR and the recombinant strain was successfully constructed. After RLSR5 was purified by affinity chromatography, its enzymatic properties were characterized. The results indicated that the gene sequence of rlsr5 was 972 bp, encoding a protein with a molecular weight of 40 kDa. RLSR5 was a dimeric protein, and each monomer was composed of a (α/β)8-barrel structure. RLSR5 could asymmetrically reduce 7-chloro-1-[2-methyl-4-[(2- methylbenzoyl)amino]benzoyl]-5-oxo-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1H-1-benzazepine (prochiral ketone, PK) to synthesize R-TVP. The specific activity of the enzyme was 36.64 U/mg, and the optical purity of the product was 99%. This enzyme showcased the optimal performance at pH 6.0 and 30 °C. It was independent of metal ions, with the activity enhanced by Mn2+. This study lays a foundation for the biosynthesis of tolvaptan of optical grade.
Animals
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Rabbits
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Alcohol Oxidoreductases/biosynthesis*
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Recombinant Proteins/metabolism*
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Escherichia coli/metabolism*
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Liver/enzymology*
5.Research Progress on Mechanism of Chinese Herbal Monomers and Compound Formulas Against Lung Cancer Through Glucose Metabolic Reprogramming
Zhen WANG ; Honglei GUO ; Aidi WANG ; Lin MA ; Baoshan LIU
Cancer Research on Prevention and Treatment 2025;52(12):1021-1028
Glucose metabolic reprogramming is important in promoting the occurrence and development of malignant tumors and meeting the high demands of the malignant proliferation of tumor cells. An in-depth investigation of the mechanism of glucose metabolic reprogramming in lung cancer is important for the development of effective therapeutic strategies for lung cancer. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is characterized by multiple components, targets, and pathways and can exert antitumor effects through multiple mechanisms. This article illustrates systematically the mechanism of action of Chinese herbal monomers and compound formulas regulating glucose metabolic reprogramming in lung cancer and explores deeply their regulatory effects on key enzymes of glycolysis and metabolism-related signaling pathways, and their potential in overcoming the drug resistance of lung cancer. It aims to provide a reference basis for the study of therapeutic targets and mechanisms of action of TCM in prevention and treatment of lung cancer and theoretical sources for the research and development of new medicines.
6.Analysis of infection status and genetic evolution of B2L and F1L genes in epidemic orf virus isolates from primary goat and sheep-producing areas in Anhui Province from 2021 to 2023
Liujun ZHANG ; Jiale CHEN ; Xing FENG ; Weizhen CHEN ; Yafei DENG ; Bo WANG ; Guolin ZUO ; Shaojun HE ; Honglei XIN ; Deyi LIU
Chinese Journal of Zoonoses 2025;41(7):697-703
This study was aimed at investigating the infection status of orf virus(ORFV)and the genetic evolution characteristics of epidemic ORFV isolates from Anhui province.A total of 303 clinical samples collected from major meat sheep breeding cities in An-hui during 2021-2023 were subjected to ORFV detection with fluorescence quantitative PCR(qPCR).The full-length B2L and F1L genes of ORFV in the positive samples were amplified through conventional PCR and sequenced.Genetic evolution analysis of the B2L and F1L genes was conducted after sequencing.The qPCR results indicated a total ORFV positivity rate in the clinical samples of 48.8%(148/303).Multiple sequence comparisons indicated that the B2L genes of 56 sample isolates shared 96.7%-100.0%DNA and 97.4%-100.0%amino acid sequence identity.Moreover,the F2L genes of 56 sample isolates shared 95.1%-100.0%DNA and 95.0%-100.0%amino acid sequence identity.The genetic evolution tree constructed with the B2L gene DNA sequences indicated sample iso-lates and 21 reference strains located in subgroup 1,and 26 sheep-derived sample isolates and 17 reference strains located in sub-group 2.Among them,the goat-derived sample isolate FY-TYA was located in the same sub-branch as the human-derived reference strain Gansu,whereas the goat-derived sample isolate FY-XQC was located in the same sub-branch as the reference strains China Vaccine and OV-HLJ-04.The genetic evolution tree constructed with the F1L gene DNA sequences showed,the goat sample isolates FY-XQA and FY-XQC were located in the same sub-branch as the sheep-derived reference strain Xinjiang.ORFV infection was rela-tively widespread in the major meat sheep breeding areas of Anhui province,and the DNA and amino acid sequences of the B2L and F1L genes of current circulating ORFV isolates showed different degrees of genetic variation,among which F1L gene had a high de-gree of variation.Furthermore,some goat-derived sample isolates were closely related to human,vaccine,and sheep-derived refer-ence strains.These results may serve as a reference for the prevention and control of ORFV infection in Anhui province.
7.A case-control study on the attention characteristics of patients with stable schizophrenia
Honglei YANG ; Kang XIE ; Qunshan WANG ; Zhenyue LIU ; Wenjia LIU ; Xinyi GE ; Xianyun LI
Chinese Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases 2025;51(1):32-37
Objective To investigate the attention characteristics of patients with stable schizophrenia.Methods Fifty-five stable schizophrenic patients and 55 healthy subjects were included in the study.The attention network test paradigm(ANT paradigm)was used to measure the attention of participants.The observed indexes included reaction time under four cues and three stimulus types and converted reaction time(alerting network,orienting network,and executive control network).Results Under different cue prompts and stimulus conditions,the reaction time of patients with stable-phase schizophrenia was higher than that of the control group(P<0.001).The alerting network[25.43(11.71,42.53)ms vs.39.32(27.46,51.98)ms,P=0.020]and executive control network[96.17(36.32,160.13)ms vs.44.43(18.52,89.73)ms,P<0.001]in the patient group were significantly lower than those in the control group,while there was no significant difference in the orienting network compared to the control group(P=0.136).Conclusion Patients with stable schizophrenia show significant impairment in the efficiency of the alerting and executive control networks,while the orienting network is not significantly impaired.
8.Analysis of Risk Factors Associated with Lymph Node Metastasis in Endome-trial Cancer and Construction of a Predictive Model
Yanhong WU ; Mengli MAO ; Yutong XIE ; Yifeng WANG ; Dongxian PENG ; Jin YANG ; Ying MA ; Honglei ZHU ; Nana HAN ; Mingyue ZHU ; Xiafei FU
Journal of Practical Obstetrics and Gynecology 2025;41(10):859-864
Objective:To explore the relationship between general demographic characteristics,inflammatory indicators,nutritional indicators,pathological data and lymph node metastasis in endometrial cancer(EC)pa-tients,and to construct and validate a model for preoperative prediction of lymph node status in endometrial canc-er patients.Methods:The preoperative clinical data of 473 patients with EC who underwent surgical treatment in the Zhu Jiang Hospital of Southern Medical University from January 2010 to April 2024 were retrospectively ana-lyzed.The independent risk factors of lymph node metastasis of endometrial cancer were screened by univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses,and the nomogram prediction model was constructed by R soft-ware.The performance of the model was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve,calibra-tion curve and clinical decision curve.Results:Menopausal status,high grade biopsy pathology,CA125 ≥24.47U/ml,systemic immune inflammatory index(SII)≥710.91,and prognostic nutritional index(PNI)<52.90 were in-dependent risk factors for lymph node metastasis in endometrial cancer(OR>1,P<0.05).The nomogram model constructed based on these five factors had an AUC of 0.853 in the training set and 0.871 in the test set.The cali-bration curve fitted well,and the clinical decision curve shows a positive benefit.Conclusions:The endometrial cancer lymph node metastasis prediction model constructed based on menopausal status,biopsy pathology,CA125,SII,and PNI has good accuracy and fit,with certain clinical application value.
9.Differences in inflammatory indicators and prognostic factors between pulmonary and extrapulmonary ARDS caused by sepsis
Honglei QI ; Xiaojuan YANG ; Xiaojun YANG ; Xigang MA ; Xiaohong WANG ; Huan DING ; Jinyuan ZHU
Chongqing Medicine 2025;54(6):1300-1306
Objective To investigate the influencing factors of pulmonary and extrapulmonary acute re-spiratory distress syndrome(ARDS)caused by sepsis.Methods A total of 126 patients with ARDS admitted to the Department of Critical Care Medicine,General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University,from January 2022 to June 2024 were selected.Patients were divided into pulmonary ARDS and extrapulmonary ARDS groups based on the etiology of ARDS.General data,inflammatory indicators,and prognostic outcomes were compared between the two groups.COX regression analysis was used to identify prognostic factors.Results A-mong the 126 patients,72 were diagnosed with pulmonary ARDS and 54 with extrapulmonary ARDS.The pulmonary ARDS group had significantly lower SOFA scores,fewer organ dysfunctions,a lower incidence of arrhythmia,shorter mechanical ventilation duration,higher Murray scores,and higher Charlson Comorbidity Index(CCI)compared to the extrapulmonary ARDS group(P<0.05).Inflammatory markers,including pro-calcitonin(PCT),C-reactive protein(CRP),interleukin(IL)-4,IL-6,IL-10,and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),were significantly lower in the pulmonary ARDS group,while interferon-γ(INF-γ)levels were higher(P<0.05).For pulmonary ARDS,CCI and TNF-α were identified as independent risk factors for prog-nosis(P<0.05),with the combination of CCI and TNF-α yielding the highest predictive accuracy(AUC=0.81,95%CI:0.71-0.91).For extrapulmonary ARDS,CCI and CRP were independent risk factors(P<0.05),and their combination achieved the highest predictive performance(AUC=0.91,95%CI:0.84-0.98).Conclusion Inflammatory profiles between pulmonary and extrapulmonary ARDS caused by sepsis are different.CCI and TNF-α are independent risk factors for mortality in pulmonary ARDS,while CCI and CRP are independent risk factors in extrapulmonary ARDS.
10.Value of clinical indicators in predicting the efficacy of neoadjuvant therapy for esophageal cancer
Honglei CHENG ; Ti WANG ; Zhidong LAN ; Heyi GONG
Journal of International Oncology 2025;52(9):592-597
Neoadjuvant therapy is the preferred treatment mode for locally advanced operable esophageal cancer, and its clinical value has been established through evidence-based medical evidence. Accurately identifying patients who can benefit before or during treatment is of great significance for formulating the overall treatment strategy. Clinical indicators such as age, gender, pathological characteristics, nutritional status, and hematological/histological indicators have certain value in predicting the efficacy of neoadjuvant therapy for esophageal cancer. However, the predictive effect of a single indicator is limited. It is necessary to comprehensively use multiple indicators and combine advanced technologies and methods to provide accurate and practical tools for clinical efficacy prediction.

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