1.Quality control of Sagina japonica by HPLC fingerprint combined with quantitative analysis of multi-components by single-marker
Junhong LIU ; Xue LI ; Meiqin ZHANG ; Han HU ; Chunmei BAI ; Chunhua LIU ; Yongjun LI
China Pharmacy 2026;37(7):883-888
OBJECTIVE To establish the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprint of Sagina japonica , and to establish a quantitative analysis of multi-components by single-marker (QAMS) method for simultaneous determination of six componen ts in S. japonica , aiming to provide references for the quality control of this medicinal herb. METHODS HPLC method was used to establish the fingerprints of 12 batches (No. S1-S12) of S . japonica according to Similarity Evaluation System of Chromatographic Fingerprint of Traditional Chinese Medicine . The similarity evaluation and identification of common peaks were conducted, followed by cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA) for 12 batches of samples. Using vicenin-2 as internal reference, the contents of p-hydroxy cinnamic acid, apigenin-6-C-arabinoside-8-C-glucoside, isoorientin, vitexin and 20-hydroxyecdysone were determined by QAMS method. The results were then compared with those obtained by the external standard method. RESULTS The similarities of HPLC fingerprints for 12 batches of S . japonica ranged from 0.828-0.998. A total of 17 common peaks were calibrated, and 6 common peaks were identified. Specifically, peak 5 was identified as vicenin-2, peak 7 as p-hydroxycinnamic acid, peak 10 as apigenin-6-C-arabinoside-8-C-glucoside, peak 11 as isoorientin, peak 13 as vitexin, and peak 15 as 20-hydroxyecdysone. The results of CA showed that S1-S5, S7 and S9-S11 were clustered into one category, S6 was clustered into one category, and S8 and S12 were clustered into one category. The results of PCA revealed that the accumulative contribution rate of the four main components was 89.430%. The content ranges measured by QAMS method for p-hydroxy cinnamic acid, apigenin-6-C-arabinoside-8-C-glucoside, isoorientin, vitexin and 20-hydroxyecdysone were 0.017 4-0.269 4, 0.568 8-4.240 3, 0.503 2-5.040 3, 0.024 0-0.132 0 and 2.551 3-4.881 1 mg/g, respectively. There was no significant difference in the contents of components measured between QAMS method and the external standard method ( P >0.05). CONCLUSIONS The established HPLC fingerprint and QAMS method can be used for quality evaluation and quality control of S . japonica.
2.Clinical Advantages of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Treatment of Childhood Simple Obesity: Insights from Expert Consensus
Qi ZHANG ; Yingke LIU ; Xiaoxiao ZHANG ; Guichen NI ; Heyin XIAO ; Junhong WANG ; Liqun WU ; Zhanfeng YAN ; Kundi WANG ; Jiajia CHEN ; Hong ZHENG ; Xinying GAO ; Liya WEI ; Qiang HE ; Qian ZHAO ; Huimin SU ; Zhaolan LIU ; Dafeng LONG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(6):238-245
Childhood simple obesity has become a significant public health issue in China. Modern medicine primarily relies on lifestyle interventions and often suffers from poor long-term compliance, while pharmacological options are limited and associated with potential adverse effects. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has a long history in the prevention and management of this condition, demonstrating eight distinct advantages, including systematic theoretical foundation, diversified therapeutic approaches, definite therapeutic efficacy, high safety profile, good patient compliance, comprehensive intervention strategies, emphasis on prevention, and stepwise treatment protocols. Additionally, TCM is characterized by six distinctive features: the use of natural medicinal substances, non-invasive external therapies, integration of medicinal dietetics, simple exercise regimens, precise syndrome differentiation, and diverse dosage forms. By combining internal and external treatments, TCM facilitates individualized regimen adjustment and holistic regulation, demonstrating remarkable effects in improving obesity-related metabolic indicators, regulating constitutional imbalance, and promoting healthy behaviors. However, challenges remain, such as inconsistent operational standards, insufficient high-quality clinical evidence, and a gap between basic research and clinical application. Future efforts should focus on accelerating the standardization of TCM diagnosis and treatment, conducting multicenter randomized controlled trials, and fostering interdisciplinary integration, so as to enhance the scientific validity and international recognition of TCM in the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity.
3.Prediction of p53 Mutation in Endometrial Carcinoma Based on Radiomics Nomogram of Intratumoral and Peritumoral MRI
Hua ZHANG ; Yunze YANG ; Junhong HE ; Mengtong LIU ; Mingjie WANG
Chinese Journal of Medical Imaging 2025;33(5):553-559
Purpose To investigate the value of radiomics nomogram for the prediction of p53 abnormal in patient with endometrial carcinoma based on intratumoral and peritumoral MRI.Materials and Methods A total of 145 female patients were pathologically confirmed endometrial carcinoma who underwent pelvic MRI before treatment in Baoding First Central Hospital from January 2020 to April 2024,including 96 patients with p53 wild type and 49 with p53 abnormal.Radiomics features were extracted from both intratumoral and peritumoral regions(2 mm)in diffusion weighted imaging and equilibrium phase of dynamic contrast enhanced MRI,which were selected using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator.Three machine learning algorithms of random forest,K-nearest neighbors and extra trees were conducted to develop the intratumoral,peritumoral and intratumoral combined peritumoral radiomics models.Multivariate Logistic regression was used to constitute the clinical model and nomogram.The performance of these models was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic curve,decision curve analysis and calibration curve.Results The K-nearest neighbors model of the intratumoral combined peritumoral regions performed the best in all radiomics models,the area under the curve were 0.921 and 0.773 in the training cohorts and test cohorts.The radiomics nomogram,which was composed of age,apparent diffusion coefficient and radiomics signatures,achieved the best performance with area under the curve of 0.970 and 0.777 in the training cohorts and test cohorts,respectively.Calibration curve analysis and decision curve analysis demonstrated favorable calibration and clinical utility of the nomogram model.Conclusion The nomogram based on intratumoral and peritumoral MRI radiomics yields a favorable diagnostic value for predicting p53 abnormal in patient with endometrial carcinoma.
4.Exploration on the Mechanism of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in Irritable Bowel Syndrome with Diarrhea Based on Network Pharmacology and Experimental Validation
Jinxue ZHANG ; Junhong LIU ; Lining SU ; Xueqian LAI ; Dan WANG ; Jiale CHEN ; Yajie CHEN ; Hongmei LI ; Yajing LI
Chinese Journal of Information on Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;32(12):39-45
Objective To investigate the mechanism of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in treating irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea(IBS-D)using network pharmacology;To validate the findings through in vivo experiments.Methods Active components and potential targets of Shugan Zhixie Prescription were identified via the TCMSP database.Disease targets for IBS-D were retrieved from GeneCards,DisGeNET and OMIM databases.The intersection of drugs and disease targets was taken,and the protein interaction network was constructed by using STRING database.GO and KEGG pathways were enriched to identify the key signaling pathways of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in the treatment of IBS-D.The rat model of liver depression and spleen deficiency type IBS-D was established by the method of abnormal hunger and satiety,restraint pinch stress and intestinal perfusion of acetic acid.The rats were intervened with low-,medium-and high-dosage of Shugan Zhixie Prescription respectively for 14 days.Serum contents of diamine oxidase(DAO),interleukin(IL)-8,and IL-18 were measured by ELISA.Protein expressions and mRNA expressions of relevant targets in colonic tissue were detected using Western blot and RT-qPCR.Results A total of 26 active components and 553 targets of Shugan Zhixie Prescription were obtained,and 1 930 targets of IBS-D disease were obtained,with 184 drug-disease intersection targets.The possible mechanism was related to NF-κB,AGE-RAGE,Th17 cell differentiation and other signaling pathways.Animal experiments demonstrated that Shugan Zhixie Prescription could significantly reduce defecation frequency,fecal water content,and inflammatory cytokine levels in model rats.It markedly decreased TLR4 and NF-κB protein expressions(P<0.01),while increased AQP3,AQP8 and Occludin protein expressions in colonic tissue(P<0.01,P<0.05).Conclusion Shugan Zhixie Prescription exerts therapeutic effects on IBS-D through multiple pathways and targets,and the mechanism may be related to inhibiting TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway and promoting intestinal barrier repair.
5.Expression and significance of miR-1243 and lncRNA HULC in papillary thyroid carcinoma tissues
Mingyue GAO ; Duxian LIU ; Jizong ZHANG ; Cheng GONG ; Xiaoya ZHANG ; Junhong MENG
Journal of Chinese Physician 2025;27(10):1543-1547
Objective:To investigate the expression of miR-1243 and long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) HULC in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) tissues, and their relationships with clinicopathological features and postoperative prognosis of patients.Methods:A total of 116 PTC patients treated in the Second Hospital of Nanjing from August 2021 to August 2023 were selected. The expression levels of miR-1243 and lncRNA HULC in PTC tissues and adjacent normal tissues were detected by real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The differences in the expression levels of miR-1243 and lncRNA HULC between PTC tissues and adjacent normal tissues, as well as among PTC tissues with different clinical features and different prognoses, were analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the value of miR-1243 in predicting postoperative recurrence of PTC patients.Results:The relative expression level of miR-1243 in PTC tissues was significantly lower than that in adjacent normal tissues ( P<0.05), while the relative expression level of lncRNA HULC was higher than that in adjacent normal tissues ( P<0.05). The relative expression level of lncRNA HULC in PTC tissues of patients with tumor diameter ≥2 cm, tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ, and lymph node metastasis was higher than that in patients with tumor diameter <2 cm, TNM stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ, and no lymph node metastasis (all P<0.05). The relative expression level of miR-1243 in PTC tissues of patients with TNM stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ and lymph node metastasis was lower than that in patients with TNM stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ and no lymph node metastasis (all P<0.05). There was no significant correlation between the expression of miR-1243 and lncRNA HULC in PTC tissues ( r=0.129, P=0.167). All patients were followed up for 12 months, and 20 patients had postoperative recurrence. The proportion of TNM stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ in recurrent patients was 70.00%(14/20), which was higher than that in non-recurrent patients [29.17%(28/96), P<0.05], and the relative expression level of miR-1243 was lower than that in non-recurrent patients ( P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the relative expression level of lncRNA HULC between recurrent and non-recurrent patients ( P>0.05). The area under the ROC curve of miR-1243 relative expression level in predicting postoperative recurrence of PTC patients was 0.809(95% CI: 0.711-0.907, P<0.05), with a cut-off value of 1.17, sensitivity of 65.00% and specificity of 87.50%. Conclusions:The expression of miR-1243 is down-regulated and lncRNA HULC is up-regulated in PTC tissues, and both are related to clinicopathological features such as lymph node metastasis and TNM stage. Among them, the expression of miR-1243 is related to postoperative recurrence.
6.Development and Application of the Evidence Quality Rating Scale for Ancient Classical Prescriptions in Traditional Chinese Medicine
Juwen ZHANG ; Jianping LIU ; Xiangfei SU ; Wei WEI ; Xiaolan SU ; Xue FENG ; Fanya YU ; Xudong ZHANG ; Junhong YU ; Wei CHEN
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;66(8):804-810
ObjectiveTo develop the Evidence Grading Scale for Ancient classical prescriptions in Traditional Chinese medicine, assess its reliability and validity, and apply it in practice to provide multi-source evidence for clinical practice guidelines development. MethodsLiterature retrieval was conducted to extract and screen existing evaluation dimensions, then the initial items were summarized using thematic analysis. Experts in the clinical medicine, medical history and literature participated in the Delphi questionnaire survey to evaluate and refine the items. An expert consensus meeting was conducted to finalize the included items, refine the method for items evaluation and evidence grading. The evidence quality rating scale for ancient classical traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescriptions was then established and tested for reliability and validity. ResultsThrough literature review, extraction, screening and summarization, a total of 3 dimensions and 12 initial items were formed. Questionnaires were sent to 69 experts to evaluate the initial items, with a questionnaire response rate of 100% and an expert authority coefficient of 0.92. All 12 items were retained for they had importance scores above 4. The Evidence Grading Scale on Ancient classical prescriptions in Traditional Chinese medicine includes 3 dimensions with 12 items. The 3 dimensions includes ancient evidence, inheritance status, and modern application. Each dimension contains 4 items, and each item has a full score of 5 points. The evidence was rated as high-level, moderate-level, and low-level according to the final scores. The content validity index (CVI) of the 12 items was >0.9, the average CVI of the scale was 0.98, and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.90. ConclusionThe Evidence Grading Scale on Ancient classical prescriptions in Traditional Chinese medicine has good reliability and validity, which is practical for use in the development of TCM clinical guidelines and can better support clinical decision-making.
7.Treatment for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder from the Perspective of "Fire" Based on the Dynamic and Static Concept of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Kangning ZHOU ; Zhenhua YUAN ; Qiang ZHANG ; Junhong WANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;66(4):349-353
From the perspective of dynamic and static concept in traditional Chinese medicine, we explored the pathogenesis and treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ADHD is categorized into "dynamic type" and "static type" based on symptom presentation. It is believed that the core disease mechanism of static type ADHD refers to insufficiency of essence and blood, as well as the loss of nourishment of brain marrow and heart blood; the dominant mechanism of dynamic type ADHD refers to excessive use of the mind and improper diet lead to the excessive movement of dragon-thunder fire (symbolizing hyperactivity). The treatment should first differentiate between static type and dynamic type. The treatment for static type focuses on the spleen and kidney, and involves replenishing the acquired constitution to nourish the congenital, supporting the heart and spirit, and enriching the brain and marrow, so as to ensure sufficient qi and blood, abundant essence and strong spirit, thereby improving symptoms of attention deficits. The dynamic type should be treated by static method, and involves using calming medicinals to supplement, transform, and subdue to reach the aims of enriching yin and subduing yang, warming and supplementing the spleen and kidney, which helps restore the dragon-thunder fire to its balance. Based on the physiological characteristics of children, a dynamic-static differentiation and treatment system is established to provide a reference for the clinical treatment of ADHD.
8.Iron deposition in subcortical nuclei of Parkinson's disease: A meta-analysis of quantitative iron-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging studies.
Jianing JIN ; Dongning SU ; Junjiao ZHANG ; Joyce S T LAM ; Junhong ZHOU ; Tao FENG
Chinese Medical Journal 2025;138(6):678-692
BACKGROUND:
Iron deposition plays a crucial role in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD), yet the distribution pattern of iron deposition in the subcortical nuclei has been inconsistent across previous studies. We aimed to assess the difference patterns of iron deposition detected by quantitative iron-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) between patients with PD and patients with atypical parkinsonian syndromes (APSs), and between patients with PD and healthy controls (HCs).
METHODS:
A systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases to identify studies investigating the iron content in PD patients using the iron-sensitive MRI techniques (R2 * and quantitative susceptibility mapping [QSM]), up until May 1, 2023. The quality assessment of case-control and cohort studies was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale, whereas diagnostic studies were assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2. Standardized mean differences and summary estimates of sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve (AUC) were calculated for iron content, using a random effects model. We also conducted the subgroup-analysis based on the MRI sequence and meta-regression.
RESULTS:
Seventy-seven studies with 3192 PD, 209 multiple system atrophy (MSA), 174 progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), and 2447 HCs were included. Elevated iron content in substantia nigra (SN) pars reticulata ( P <0.001) and compacta ( P <0.001), SN ( P <0.001), red nucleus (RN, P <0.001), globus pallidus ( P <0.001), putamen (PUT, P = 0.021), and thalamus ( P = 0.029) were found in PD patients compared with HCs. PD patients showed lower iron content in PUT ( P <0.001), RN ( P = 0.003), SN ( P = 0.017), and caudate nucleus ( P = 0.017) than MSA patients, and lower iron content in RN ( P = 0.001), PUT ( P <0.001), globus pallidus ( P = 0.004), SN ( P = 0.015), and caudate nucleus ( P = 0.001) than PSP patients. The highest diagnostic accuracy distinguishing PD from HCs was observed in SN (AUC: 0.85), and that distinguishing PD from MSA was found in PUT (AUC: 0.90). In addition, the best diagnostic performance was achieved in the RN for distinguishing PD from PSP (AUC: 0.86).
CONCLUSIONS:
Quantitative iron-sensitive MRI could quantitatively detect the iron content of subcortical nuclei in PD and APSs, while it may be insufficient to accurately diagnose PD. Future studies are needed to explore the role of multimodal MRI in the diagnosis of PD.
REGISTRISION
PROSPERO (CRD42022344413).
Humans
;
Parkinson Disease/diagnostic imaging*
;
Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods*
;
Iron/metabolism*
10.Study on the expression of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 in thyroid cancer tissues and their relationship with pathological parameters and prognosis
Mingyue GAO ; Jizong ZHANG ; Cheng GONG ; Junhong MENG ; Xiaoya ZHANG ; Duxian LIU
International Journal of Laboratory Medicine 2025;46(13):1620-1625
Objective To investigate the expression of microRNA-873-5p(miR-873-5p)and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 16(CXCL16)in thyroid cancer tissue and their relationship with pathological parameters and prognosis.Methods A total of 125 patients with thyroid cancer who underwent surgery at Nanjing Sec-ond Hospital from January 2018 to June 2019 were selected as the research subjects.Some cancer tissues and corresponding adjacent tissues of the patients were collected,and the expressions of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 mRNA were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction.The binding sites of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 were predicted through the online database.Pearson correlation was used to analyze the correlation between miR-873-5p and CXCL16 mRNA expression,and the correlation between miR-873-5p,CXCL16 mRNA expression and pathological parameters.According to the median expression of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 mRNA in thyroid cancer tissues,they were classified as high expression and low expression.The survival curves of patients with high and low expression of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 mRNA were plotted by the Kaplan-Meier method.Taking the survival status of patients with thyroid cancer as the dependent varia-ble,Cox regression was used to determine the relationship between the expressions of miR-873-5p and CX-CL16 mRNA and the death of patients with thyroid cancer.Results The expressions of miR-873-5p and CX-CL16 mRNA in thyroid cancer tissues were 0.83±0.12 and 1.54±0.25,respectively,and those in adjacent tissues were 1.13±0.15 and 0.98±0.13,respectively,the differences were statistically significant(t=-18.160,21.089).P<0.001).Pearson correlation analysis showed that the expression of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 mRNA in thyroid cancer tissues was negatively correlated(r=-0.722,P<0.001).The expression of miR-873-5p in thyroid cancer tissues was negatively correlated with pathological type,TNM stage and lymph node metastasis(r=-0.510,—0.262,-0.315,P<0.05).The expression of CXCL16 mRNA was positively correlated with pathological type,TNM stage and lymph node metastasis(r=0.593,0.275,0.314,P<0.05).The Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that the 5-year overall survival rate of patients with high expression of miR-873-5p was higher than that of patients with low expression of miR-873-5p.The 5-year o-verall survival rate of patients with high expression of CXCL16 mRNA was lower than that of patients with low expression of CXCL16 mRNA,and the difference was statistically significant(x2=11.328,10.514,all P=0.001).miR-873-5p≥0.84 was an independent protective factor for death in patients with thyroid cancer,and CXCL16 mRNA≥1.55 was an independent risk factor for death in patients with thyroid cancer(P<0.05).Conclusion The expressions of miR-873-5p and CXCL16 mRNA in thyroid cancer tissues are related to patho-logical parameters and prognosis,and may become prognostic markers for patients with thyroid cancer.

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