1.Mechanistic study of mitochondrial dysfunction in renal injury induced by maternal bone lead mobilization during pregnancy in rats
Ling LI ; Lin ZHANG ; Li LI ; Yuting WEI ; Man LYU ; Zeshi ZHANG ; Li MA ; Anxin LU ; Yin LIN ; Shaohua WANG ; Chonghuai YAN
Journal of Environmental and Occupational Medicine 2026;43(3):286-292
Background Lead is a typical persistent environmental pollutant that can accumulate in bones for decades. During pregnancy, alterations in calcium metabolism promote the mobilization of bone lead, resulting in secondary exposure; however, the mechanisms by which pregnancy-associated bone lead mobilization affects maternal renal function remain unclear. Objective To investigate the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in pregnancy-related bone lead mobilization-induced renal injury. Methods Newly weaned female Wistar rats were randomly assigned to a control or a lead-exposed group administered either 0.05% sodium acetate or 0.05% lead acetate in drinking water. Following a 4-week lead exposure and a 4-week washout period, the females were co-housed with healthy age-matched males for mating. Rats were sacrificed at early (gestational day 3) and late (gestational day 17) pregnancystages, respectively. Renal histopathology was assessed using hematoxylin and eosin staining staining. Mitochondria-related indicators, including oxidative stress, inflammatory responses, and energy metabolism, were measured. Differential metabolites were identified using serum metabolomics. Results Renal injury in the lead-exposed pregnant rats progressed in a time-dependent manner, characterized by degeneration of proximal tubular epithelial cells, glomerular hyaline changes, and interstitial inflammatory cell infiltration. Repeated measures ANOVA indicated a significant interaction between the treatment factor (lead exposure) and the temporal factor (gestational stage) on renal injury (P<0.001). Further analysis of mitochondrial function-related indicators in late-pregnancy renal tissue revealed that the lead exposure group exhibited significantly increased levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) (P<0.05), accompanied by a reduction in superoxide dismutase (SOD) and reduced glutathione (GSH) activities (P<0.05); regarding inflammatory markers, levels of interleukin-18 (IL-18) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) were elevated (P<0.01), whereas interleukin-33 (IL-33) was decreased in the lead-exposed group (P<0.05); energy metabolism-related indicators, including adenosine triphosphate (ATP) level, Na+-K+-ATPase and Ca2+-Mg2+-ATPase activities, and mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes I, III, and V activities, were significantly reduced (P<0.05) in the lead-exposed gorup. The typical differential metabolite N-methylisoleucine, identified through serum metabolomics analysis, was negatively correlated with blood lead levels, kidney injury scores, and IL-1β, while positively correlated with catalase (CAT) activity and Ca2+-Mg2+-ATPase. Conclusions Mitochondrial dysfunction may play a critical role in renal injury induced by bone lead mobilization during late gestation.
2.Effect of Qingxin Jieyu Granules on Artery Thrombosis and Akt/NF-κB Signaling Pathway in EA.hy926 Cells Exposed to TNF-α
Chenchen HE ; Chenyi WEI ; Zhenghao LYU ; Qiaoyan CAI ; Zhuye GAO ; Ling ZHANG ; Jianfeng CHU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(3):89-97
ObjectiveTo observe the effects of Qingxin Jieyu granules (QXJYG) on FeCl3-induced carotid artery thrombosis in rats and on the expression of thrombosis-related proteins tissue factor (TF) and tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) as well as the protein kinase B (Akt)/nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway in EA.hy926 cells exposed to tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), thus preliminarily exploring the mechanism of QXJYG in inhibiting thrombosis. MethodsThirty-six SD rats were randomized into normal control, model, positive control (aspirin, 9 mg·kg-1), and low-, medium-, and high-dose (0.99, 1.98, 3.96 g·kg-1, respectively) QXJYG groups (n=6). The rats in the drug treatment groups were administrated with corresponding drugs, and those in the normal control group and model group were given an equal volume of distilled water. After 14 consecutive days of prophylactic gavage, the rat model of common carotid artery thrombosis was established with 45% FeCl3 solution, and the blood vessels were collected and the wet weight of thrombus was weighed by an electronic balance (precision of 1/10 000). The thrombosis in the common carotid artery of each group of rats was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. The plasma levels of von Willebrand factor (vWF), platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (PECAM-1), tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA), and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. An endothelial cell injury model was established by treating EA.hy926 human umbilical vein endothelial cells with TNF-α. The cell counting kit-8 method was used to screen the intervention concentrations of QXJYG. Western blot was employed to determine the protein levels of TF, TFPI, Akt, p-Akt, NF-κB p65, and p-NF-κB p65 in each group of cells. ResultsThe animal experiment showed that compared with the normal control group, the model group showed an increase in carotid artery thrombus weight (P<0.05), with unclear vascular structure and extensive thrombosis in the lumen. In addition, the plasma levels of vWF, PECAM-1, and PAI-1 were elevated, while the t-PA level became lowered (P<0.05) in the model group. Compared with the model group, the aspirin and QXJYG groups showed reductions in the weight of FeCl3-induced carotid artery thrombi (P<0.05) and thrombosis in the lumen, declines in plasma levels of PECAM-1 and PAI-1, and an elevation in the t-PA level (P<0.05). Moreover, the QXJYG groups showed reductions in the plasma level of vWF (P<0.05), which, however, had no significant difference between the aspirin group and the model group. The cell experiments indicated that 31.25, 62.5, 125, 250, 500 mg·L-1 QXJYG had no effect on the viability of EA.hy926 cells. Therefore, 250, 500 mg·L-1 QXJYG were selected as the intervention concentrations for subsequent experiments. Western blotting results showed that compared with the control group, the TNF-α stimulation downregulated the expression of TFPI (P<0.05), upregulated the expression of TF, and increased the ratios of p-Akt/Akt and p-NF-κB p65/NF-κB p65 (P<0.05) in EA.hy926 cells. Compared with the model group, the intervention with QXJYG upregulated the expression of TFPI (P<0.05), inhibited the expression of TF, and decreased the ratios of p-Akt/Akt and p-NF-κB p65/NF-κB p65 (P<0.05). ConclusionQXJYG has the effect of inhibiting thrombosis and regulating the expression of TF and TFPI in endothelial cells exposed to TNF-α by suppressing the abnormal activation of the Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway.
3.Pathological changes in the total knee joint during spontaneous knee osteoarthritis in guinea pigs at different months of age
Xiaoshen HU ; Huijing LI ; Junling LYU ; Xianjun XIAO ; Juan LI ; Xiang LI ; Ling LIU ; Rongjiang JIN
Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research 2025;29(11):2218-2224
BACKGROUND:The guinea pig is considered to be the most useful spontaneous model for evaluating primary osteoarthritis in humans because of its similar knee joint structure and close histopathologic features to those of humans. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the pathological process of spontaneous knee osteoarthritis in guinea pigs by analyzing the histopathology of the total knee joint of guinea pigs aged 1 to 18 months. METHODS:Eight healthy female Hartley guinea pigs in each age group of 1,6,10,14,16,and 18 months old were selected.The quadriceps femoris was taken for hematoxylin-eosin staining,and the total knee joint was stained with hematoxylin-eosin and toluidine blue.The histopathology of the cartilage,subchondral bone,synovium,meniscus,and muscles were observed under light microscope.Mankin's score and synovitis score were compared,and the correlation analysis was conducted. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:As the guinea pig age increased,the Mankin's score increased(P<0.05),and the pathological score of synovitis also gradually increased(P<0.05),and there was a significant positive correlation between the two(r=0.641,P<0.001).The incidence rate of subchondral bone marrow lesion in 18-month-old guinea pigs was 50%,and the incidence of meniscus injury was 37.5%.In addition,osteophyte and narrowing of the joint space were observed,and only a few guinea pigs had inflammation in the quadriceps femoris.To conclude,guinea pigs develop significant cartilage defects,synovial inflammation,subchondral bone lesions,meniscus injury,osteophyte formation,and joint space narrowing as they age,all of which are similar to the pathological processes of primary knee osteoarthritis in humans,making it an ideal model of spontaneous knee osteoarthritis.
4.Apelin:A new target for the prevention and treatment of chronic kid-ney disease
Chengguo LYU ; Caiqian WU ; Qianrui MI ; Guojing ZHANG ; Ling LI ; Qifa YE
Chinese Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics 2025;30(9):1243-1252
Chronic kidney disease(CKD)is a chronic renal structural and functional disorder caused by multiple causes(history of kidney injury>3 months),with complex etiology and high inci-dence,which will eventually lead to end-stage re-nal disease(ESRD).Common chronic kidney diseas-es include diabetic nephropathy,polycystic ne-phropathy,nephrogenic diabetes insipidus and re-nal fibrosis.At present,there is still a lack of effec-tive specific treatment for chronic kidney disease.The Apelin system is an endogenous physiological regulator.Studies have shown that Apelin is in-volved in the occurrence and development of the above diseases mainly through the regulation of kidney body fluids and blood vessels,and the regu-lation of kidney glucose and lipid metabolism and immunity.This article aims to review the role of Apelin in chronic kidney diseases in recent years,and provide ideas for the treatment and drug de-velopment of kidney diseases with Apelin as a new target.
5.Development and validation of a machine learning-based prognostic model for portal vein thrombosis in liver cirrhosis
Junqi YUAN ; Sa LYU ; Jun LING ; Yiwen XU ; Hui FENG ; Shaoli YOU ; Fuquan LIU ; Limei YU ; Bing ZHU
Chinese Journal of Hepatobiliary Surgery 2025;31(7):497-502
Objective:To analyze the prognostic factors of patients with liver cirrhosis and portal vein thrombosis (PVT), and to construct a prognostic prediction model based on machine learning methods.Methods:The clinical data of 388 patients with liver cirrhosis and PVT admitted to the Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital from January 2022 to April 2024 were retrospectively collected and analyzed, including 243 males and 145 females, aged (56.9±10.9) years. A total of 388 patients were randomly divided into the training set ( n=310) and the testing set ( n=78) in a 4∶1 ratio. The Boruta algorithm was used to screen the key features in the training set, and then four machine learning algorithms, including random forest, support vector machine, generalized linear model and Bayesian, were used to establish a survival prediction model. Model performance was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves of the test set and the training set. The patients were followed up for 1 year for survival. Sort the importance of features based on the SHAP value. Results:There were 250 patients (80.6%) who survived and 60 (19.4%) who died. The model for end-stage liver disease score, total bilirubin, serum creatinine, prothrombin time, international normalized ratio, D-dimer, white blood cell count, severe ascites ratio, and Child-Pugh grade C ratio of liver function in the death group were higher than those in the survival group, and the red blood cell count and hematocrit were lower than those in the survival group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The areas under the ROC curve for predicting survival by random forest, support vector machine, generalized linear model and Bayesian model were 0.92, 0.78, 0.81 and 0.71 in the training set, and the area under the ROC curve in the testing set were 0.81, 0.72, 0.67 and 0.68, respectively. Random forest had the best prediction performance, with an accuracy of 81.7%, a sensitivity of 84.6%, and a specificity of 76.9% in the testing set. In the analysis of the importance of characteristic parameters of the random forest model, total bilirubin, red blood cells, hematocrit, serum creatinine, ascites classification, etc. had a relatively high contribution to the model. Conclusion:In the survival prediction model of patients with liver cirrhosis and PVT based on machine learning algorithm, the random forest model had high prediction performance, and total bilirubin may be the most important factor affecting the survival prognosis of patients.
6.Development and validation of a machine learning-based prognostic model for portal vein thrombosis in liver cirrhosis
Junqi YUAN ; Sa LYU ; Jun LING ; Yiwen XU ; Hui FENG ; Shaoli YOU ; Fuquan LIU ; Limei YU ; Bing ZHU
Chinese Journal of Hepatobiliary Surgery 2025;31(7):497-502
Objective:To analyze the prognostic factors of patients with liver cirrhosis and portal vein thrombosis (PVT), and to construct a prognostic prediction model based on machine learning methods.Methods:The clinical data of 388 patients with liver cirrhosis and PVT admitted to the Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital from January 2022 to April 2024 were retrospectively collected and analyzed, including 243 males and 145 females, aged (56.9±10.9) years. A total of 388 patients were randomly divided into the training set ( n=310) and the testing set ( n=78) in a 4∶1 ratio. The Boruta algorithm was used to screen the key features in the training set, and then four machine learning algorithms, including random forest, support vector machine, generalized linear model and Bayesian, were used to establish a survival prediction model. Model performance was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves of the test set and the training set. The patients were followed up for 1 year for survival. Sort the importance of features based on the SHAP value. Results:There were 250 patients (80.6%) who survived and 60 (19.4%) who died. The model for end-stage liver disease score, total bilirubin, serum creatinine, prothrombin time, international normalized ratio, D-dimer, white blood cell count, severe ascites ratio, and Child-Pugh grade C ratio of liver function in the death group were higher than those in the survival group, and the red blood cell count and hematocrit were lower than those in the survival group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The areas under the ROC curve for predicting survival by random forest, support vector machine, generalized linear model and Bayesian model were 0.92, 0.78, 0.81 and 0.71 in the training set, and the area under the ROC curve in the testing set were 0.81, 0.72, 0.67 and 0.68, respectively. Random forest had the best prediction performance, with an accuracy of 81.7%, a sensitivity of 84.6%, and a specificity of 76.9% in the testing set. In the analysis of the importance of characteristic parameters of the random forest model, total bilirubin, red blood cells, hematocrit, serum creatinine, ascites classification, etc. had a relatively high contribution to the model. Conclusion:In the survival prediction model of patients with liver cirrhosis and PVT based on machine learning algorithm, the random forest model had high prediction performance, and total bilirubin may be the most important factor affecting the survival prognosis of patients.
7.Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Endoscopic Screening of Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer in Yangcheng County,Shanxi Province in 2018
Dianhu RUAN ; Wangfei CUI ; Xinzheng WANG ; Licheng LYU ; Ling CAO ; Yongzhen ZHANG
China Cancer 2025;34(3):209-214
[Purpose]To analyze the cost-effectiveness of endoscopic screening for upper gastroin-testinal cancer in Yangcheng County of Shanxi Province.[Methods]People aged from 40 to 69 who participated in upper gastrointestinal cancer screening in Yangcheng County in 2018 were se-lected as the study subjects to participate in upper gastrointestinal cancer screening in 2018,and endoscopic examination with iodine staining and indicative biopsy were performed for screening.The detection rates of precancerous lesions and upper gastrointestinal malignancies,and early di-agnosis rates were calculated,and compared among different groups.The data of screening cost were collected;and the per capita screening cost,the average cost of early case detection and ear-ly detection cost index(EDCI)were calculated.[Results]Among 2 950 subjects undergoing en-doscopy,pathological biopsy was completed in 2 073 cases(70.27%),374 cases of precancerous le-sions(12.68%)and 52 cases of malignancies(1.76%)were detected,among which 17 cases were up-per gastrointestinal cancer with a detection rate of 0.58%,there were 44 early cases with an early diagnosis rate of 84.62%.The detection rate of precancerous lesions and positive cases in men was higher than that of women,but the early diagnosis rate of upper gastrointestinal cancer was lower than that of women;the detection rate of positive cases and digestive tract cancer of 50 years and above were higher than those of people aged 40 to 49.The cost of screening for one positive lesion was 25 528.85 CNY,the cost of screening for one early case was 30 170.46 CNY.The EDCI was 0.52,indicating a good cost-effective value.[Conclusion]The study shows that the early diagnosis and early treatment screening program of upper gastrointestinal cancer has achieved remarkable re-sults in Yangcheng County.The follow-up screening work should focus on men and people over 50 years old,and strengthen the publicity of upper gastrointestinal screening for cancer.
8.Experimental study on alternative method of local lymph node assay using bromodeoxyuridine with flow cytometry(LLNA:BrdU-FCM)for skin sensitization evaluation of cosmetics
Xiao-jun LYU ; Ju ZHANG ; Sen WU ; Xiao-ling XU ; Meng-ting SHI ; Jin-jing XU ; Wang-ping PAN ; Jia-te SHEN ; Kai-yong HE
Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin 2025;41(4):793-799
Aim To establish and evaluate an alternative meth-od for detecting skin sensitization of cosmetics based on local lymph node assay using bromodeoxyuridine(BrdU)with flow cytometry(FCM).Methods(1)25%hexyl cinnamic alde-hyde(HCA)was chosen as a positive control with an acetone:olive oil(4∶1,V/V,AOO)mixture as a vehicle control for the experiment.The dorsal sides of both ears of mice were treated with test solutions on day 1,day 2,and day 3.Brdu solution was injected inter-peritoneally on day 5.On day 6,the bilateral ears and mandibular lymph nodes were excised,and the number of Brdu positive cells was measured by flow cytometry.The stim-ulation index(SI)was calculated to identify whether it was ≥3,in order to establish the method of LLNA:Brdu-FCM.(2)BrdU-FCM test was conducted using a blind method with the fif-teen reference substances listed in OECD TG429 whose skin sensitization potentials were known.The test substances were dissolved in AOO,N,N-dimethylformamide(DMF)or dimeth-yl sulfoxide(DMSO)at three different concentrations.Tests were performed the same as above.SI and EC2.7 were calculat-ed to evaluate whether the test substance was categorized as a skin sensitizer.The reliability and accuracy of the method were validated by comparing the classification of test substances with that in OECD TG429.Results The SI for 25%HCA was 3.9,showing positive in the skin sensitization test.It demonstrated that the LLNA:Brdu-FCM test method was properly implemen-ted.Nine test substances(2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene,4-pheny-lenediamine,cobalt chloride,2-mercaptobenzothiazole,hexyl-cinnamaldehyde,eugenol,phenyl benzoate,cinnamic alcohol,imidazolidinyl urea)were positive,and six test substances(methyl methacrylate,chlorobenzene,isopropanol,lactic acid,methyl salicylate,salicylic acid)were negative.The method was evaluated with sensitivity of 90%,specificity of 100%,positive prediction rate of 100%,negative prediction rate of 83%,false positive rate of 0%,false negative rate of 17%and accuracy of 93%.The LLNA:BrdU-FCM assay could correctly categorize the test substances that were skin sensitizers or non-sensitizers.Conclusion The LLNA:BrdU-FCM assay appears to be a relia-ble predictor of skin sensitization protential of chemicals,and it is expected to an alternative method for identifying skin sensitization as a supplementary in safety evaluation of cosmetic ingredient.
9.Chinese experts' consensus on principles of preoperative hair removal
Yiping MAO ; Jun ZHENG ; Lei LI ; Deyan YANG ; Bing ZHANG ; Lei YANG ; Wang JIA ; Peng KANG ; Hui JIAO ; Yun YANG ; Qi QI ; Shiqing FENG ; Xiao LONG ; Yuewei ZHANG ; Xiaohui WANG ; Lize WANG ; Yuan WEI ; Jichao ZHOU ; Minghui MAO ; Pengju XIN ; Hongyu TAN ; Dahong ZHANG ; Lianxin LIU ; Lei TAO ; Xietong WANG ; Xiaoning YUAN ; Mang CAI ; Li MU ; Fang DU ; Rongzhu CHEN ; Fengmao ZHAO ; Jiuzuo HUANG ; Mingzi ZHANG ; Jie ZHANG ; Baoguo WANG ; Kun WANG ; Fang LUO ; Jinhua ZHANG ; Nong HE ; Ling LYU ; Zhiyong ZONG
Chinese Journal of Nosocomiology 2025;35(10):1441-1449
To formulate an expert consensus on the principles of preoperative hair removal and provide scientific guidance for standardized removal of hair before surgical procedures so as to reduce the incidence of surgical site infections.METHODS Led by the Hospital Management Institute of National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China,this consensus was reached with the joint efforts from the expects of relevant fields such as surgeries,interventional therapies,nursing,and infection prevention and control.The consensus facilitates the classification and evaluation of literatures by following the evidence grade formulated by Oxford Evidence-based Medicine Center and focuses on the association of preoperative hair removal with surgical site infection,it reaches the evidence grade of expert consensus and recommendation intensity by integrating with discussions on meetings and clinical experience of the expects from relevant fields.RESULTS A total of 6 items of consensus were reached by summarizing the latest evidence on the aspects including the indications for preoperative hair removal,tools,range,timing and places.CONCLUSION The consensus,to some extent,make supplements to and complete the exiting regulations and standards.It provides guidance for the medical institutions to carry out the preoperative hair removal.
10.Apelin:A new target for the prevention and treatment of chronic kid-ney disease
Chengguo LYU ; Caiqian WU ; Qianrui MI ; Guojing ZHANG ; Ling LI ; Qifa YE
Chinese Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics 2025;30(9):1243-1252
Chronic kidney disease(CKD)is a chronic renal structural and functional disorder caused by multiple causes(history of kidney injury>3 months),with complex etiology and high inci-dence,which will eventually lead to end-stage re-nal disease(ESRD).Common chronic kidney diseas-es include diabetic nephropathy,polycystic ne-phropathy,nephrogenic diabetes insipidus and re-nal fibrosis.At present,there is still a lack of effec-tive specific treatment for chronic kidney disease.The Apelin system is an endogenous physiological regulator.Studies have shown that Apelin is in-volved in the occurrence and development of the above diseases mainly through the regulation of kidney body fluids and blood vessels,and the regu-lation of kidney glucose and lipid metabolism and immunity.This article aims to review the role of Apelin in chronic kidney diseases in recent years,and provide ideas for the treatment and drug de-velopment of kidney diseases with Apelin as a new target.

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