Intestinal fibrosis is a significant clinical challenge in inflammatory bowel diseases, but no effective anti-fibrotic therapy is currently available. Glucagon receptor (GCGR) and glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP1R) are both peptide hormone receptors involved in energy metabolism of epithelial cells. However, their role in intestinal fibrosis and the underlying mechanisms remain largely unexplored. Herein GCGR and GLP1R were found to be reduced in the stenotic ileum of patients with Crohn's disease as well as in the fibrotic colon of mice with chronic colitis. The downregulation of GCGR and GLP1R led to the accumulation of the metabolic byproduct lactate, resulting in histone H3K9 lactylation and exacerbated intestinal fibrosis through epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Dual activating GCGR and GLP1R by peptide 1907B reduced the H3K9 lactylation in epithelial cells and ameliorated intestinal fibrosis in vivo. We uncovered the role of GCGR/GLP1R in regulating EMT involved in intestinal fibrosis via histone lactylation. Simultaneously activating GCGR/GLP1R with the novel dual agonist peptide 1907B holds promise as a treatment strategy for alleviating intestinal fibrosis.

The plant Melastoma dodecandrum Lour. is an ingredient used in She medicine that belongs to the Melastomacea family. Its main chemical components include fatty acids, organic acids, polysaccharides, volatile oils, flavonoids, tannins, triterpenes, steroids and other chemical components. Various pharmacological properties of this herbal medicine have been proved, such as anti-oxidation, hypoglycemic, blood lipid, anti-inflammatory and analgesic, hemostasis and coagulation, and antibacterial effects. Clinical studies have shown that it can be used for diseases such as gastrointestinal bleeding, metrorrhagia and diabetes. This article mainly reviews the research progress of the chemical components, pharmacological effects and clinical application of Melastoma dodecandrum, and provides theoretical guidance and practical value for the development, application and clinical research of Melastoma dodecandrum.

Objective The potential mechanism of curcumin(CUR)combined with berberine(BBR)in improving drug-induced liver injury(DILI)was preliminarily predicted by a method of in vivo experiment in combination with network pharmacology.Methods The animal model was established by acetaminophen(APAP)-induced DILI and the levels of alanine aminotransferase(ALT)and aspartate aminotransferase(AST)were detected in serum of mice.The network pharmacological approach was used to collect related targets of CUR,BBR,and DILI;Wayne mapping was carried out to screen intersection targets,followed by establishment of a protein-protein interaction(PPI)network of CUR-BBR-DILI.Functional enrichment analysis of gene ontology(GO)and pathway enrichment analysis of Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)were conducted finally.Results The in vivo experimental results showed that the combination of CUR and BBR can significantly reduce the serum ALT and AST levels in mice,which is better than administration alone;Network pharmacology experiment results exhibited that 291 related targets of CUR and 208 related targets of BBR were collected by PharmMapper database,and 904 related targets of DILI were collected by Genecards database;77 intersection targets were screened by Venny 2.1.0 database;52 gene functions and 20 signal pathways possibly in connection with the improvement of DILI via drug combination were obtained by GO and KEGG analysis,respectively;nine of the top ten core targets according to degree in PPI network were enriched to PI3K/AKT signaling pathway,which were in order as follows:SRC,EGFR,HSP90AA1,IGF1,HRAS,MAPK14,ESR1,CASP3,and PTK2.Conclusion DILI might be synergistically improved by CUR combined BBR through multi-target and multi-pathway manner,providing a theoretical basis for the elucidation of the mechanism of drug combination against DILI.

Background: To evaluate the feasibility of treating odontoid fractures in the Chinese population with two cortical screws based on computed tomography (CT) scans and describe a new measurement strategy to guide screw insertion in treating these fractures. Methods: A retrospective review of cervical computed tomographic scans of 128 patients (aged 18–76 years; men, 55 [43.0%]) was performed. The minimum external transverse diameter (METD), minimum external anteroposterior diameter (MEAD), maximum screw length (MSL), and screw projection back angle (SPBA) of the odontoid process were measured on coronal and sagittal CT images. Results: The mean values of METD and MEAD were 10.0 ± 1.1 mm and 12.0 ± 1.0 mm, respectively, in men and 9.2 ± 1.0 mm and 11.0 ± 1.0 mm, respectively, in women. Both measurements were significantly higher in men (p < 0.001). In total, 87 individuals (68%) had METD > 9.0 mm that could accommodate two 3.5-mm cortical screws. The mean MSL value and SPBA range were 34.4 ± 2.9 mm and 13.5°–24.2°, respectively, with no statistically significant difference between men and women. Conclusions The insertion of two 3.5-mm cortical screws was possible for anterior fixation of odontoid fractures in 87 patients (68%) in our study, and there was a statistically significant difference between men and women.