ObjectiveBased on the theory of "spleen governing transportation and transformation"， this study investigates the efficacy of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma processed with Aurantii Fructus Immaturus juice（AMR-AFI） in improving slow-transit constipation（STC）， as well as the synergistic regulatory mechanism involving the microbiota-metabolism axis， thereby elucidating the scientific basis of its processing theory. MethodsAnimals were randomly divided into the control group， model group， positive drug（mosapride） group（3 mg·kg^-1）， and low-， medium-， and high-dose groups of AMR-AFI（3.9， 7.8， 15.6 g·kg^-1）. Except for the control group， the remaining five groups were induced with STC using loperamide hydrochloride. Following modeling， interventions were administered. All groups received continuous administration for 15 d， during which fecal samples， colon tissue， and serum were collected. Constipation improvement was assessed by measuring fecal moisture content and small intestinal propulsion rate， histological morphology of colonic tissue was observed via hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining， and the levels of interleukin（IL）-6， tumor necrosis factor（TNF）-α， and IL-2 in serum were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA）. Furthermore， the microbial community structure in mouse feces was analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing， while transcriptomic sequencing was employed to screen differentially expressed genes in colonic tissue， followed by gene ontology（GO） and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analyses. Finally， Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to explore the association between differential microbiota and differential genes. ResultsCompared with the control group， the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content in the model group were significantly decreased（P<0.01）， while serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2 were significantly elevated（P<0.01）. HE staining showed damage and shedding of colonic mucosal epithelial cells， along with a reduction in goblet cells in the model group. In comparison with the model group， all treatment groups improved the pathological state of the colonic mucosa to varying degrees and reduced serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2（P<0.01）. Among these， the high-dose group of AMR-AFI significantly increased the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content of rats（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Further transcriptomic analysis revealed that a total of 104 differentially expressed genes were identified from comparisons between the model group and the control group， as well as between the model group and the high-dose group of AMR-AFI. These genes were mainly enriched in pathways closely related to STC pathogenesis， such as arachidonic acid metabolism and aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption. 16S rRNA sequencing results indicated that AMR-AFI reversed the structural imbalance of the gut microbiota in model mice， increased species richness， downregulated the relative abundance of pro-inflammatory bacteria such as Parasutterella， and enriched beneficial and butyrate-producing bacteria， including Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group， Ruminococcaceae， and Lachnospiraceae. Spearman correlation analysis further showed that the beneficial bacteria enriched in the AMR-AFI group were negatively correlated with genes involved in the arachidonic acid metabolic pathway and positively correlated with genes in the aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption pathway. In contrast， pro-inflammatory bacteria in the model group exhibited the opposite correlation trends. ConclusionAMR-AFI can effectively exert synergistic therapeutic effects on STC by regulating intestinal microbiota， arachidonic acid-mediated inflammatory metabolism， and aldosterone-regulated water-salt balance pathways.

ObjectiveBased on the theory of "spleen governing transportation and transformation"， this study investigates the efficacy of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma processed with Aurantii Fructus Immaturus juice（AMR-AFI） in improving slow-transit constipation（STC）， as well as the synergistic regulatory mechanism involving the microbiota-metabolism axis， thereby elucidating the scientific basis of its processing theory. MethodsAnimals were randomly divided into the control group， model group， positive drug（mosapride） group（3 mg·kg^-1）， and low-， medium-， and high-dose groups of AMR-AFI（3.9， 7.8， 15.6 g·kg^-1）. Except for the control group， the remaining five groups were induced with STC using loperamide hydrochloride. Following modeling， interventions were administered. All groups received continuous administration for 15 d， during which fecal samples， colon tissue， and serum were collected. Constipation improvement was assessed by measuring fecal moisture content and small intestinal propulsion rate， histological morphology of colonic tissue was observed via hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining， and the levels of interleukin（IL）-6， tumor necrosis factor（TNF）-α， and IL-2 in serum were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA）. Furthermore， the microbial community structure in mouse feces was analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing， while transcriptomic sequencing was employed to screen differentially expressed genes in colonic tissue， followed by gene ontology（GO） and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analyses. Finally， Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to explore the association between differential microbiota and differential genes. ResultsCompared with the control group， the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content in the model group were significantly decreased（P<0.01）， while serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2 were significantly elevated（P<0.01）. HE staining showed damage and shedding of colonic mucosal epithelial cells， along with a reduction in goblet cells in the model group. In comparison with the model group， all treatment groups improved the pathological state of the colonic mucosa to varying degrees and reduced serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2（P<0.01）. Among these， the high-dose group of AMR-AFI significantly increased the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content of rats（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Further transcriptomic analysis revealed that a total of 104 differentially expressed genes were identified from comparisons between the model group and the control group， as well as between the model group and the high-dose group of AMR-AFI. These genes were mainly enriched in pathways closely related to STC pathogenesis， such as arachidonic acid metabolism and aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption. 16S rRNA sequencing results indicated that AMR-AFI reversed the structural imbalance of the gut microbiota in model mice， increased species richness， downregulated the relative abundance of pro-inflammatory bacteria such as Parasutterella， and enriched beneficial and butyrate-producing bacteria， including Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group， Ruminococcaceae， and Lachnospiraceae. Spearman correlation analysis further showed that the beneficial bacteria enriched in the AMR-AFI group were negatively correlated with genes involved in the arachidonic acid metabolic pathway and positively correlated with genes in the aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption pathway. In contrast， pro-inflammatory bacteria in the model group exhibited the opposite correlation trends. ConclusionAMR-AFI can effectively exert synergistic therapeutic effects on STC by regulating intestinal microbiota， arachidonic acid-mediated inflammatory metabolism， and aldosterone-regulated water-salt balance pathways.

BACKGROUND: The use of inserted sham acupuncture as a placebo in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) is controversial, because it may produce specific effects that cause an underestimation of the effect of acupuncture treatment. OBJECTIVE: This systematic survey investigates the magnitude of insert-specific effects of sham acupuncture and whether they affect the estimation of acupuncture treatment effects. SEARCH STRATEGY: PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched to identify acupuncture RCTs from their inception until December 2022. INCLUSION CRITERIA: RCTs that evaluated the effects of acupuncture compared to sham acupuncture and no treatment. DATA EXTRACTION AND ANALYSIS: The total effect measured for an acupuncture treatment group in RCTs were divided into three components, including the natural history and/or regression to the mean effect (controlled for no-treatment group), the placebo effect, and the specific effect of acupuncture. The first two constituted the contextual effect of acupuncture, which is mimicked by a sham acupuncture treatment group. The proportion of acupuncture total effect size was considered to be 1. The proportion of natural history and/or regression to the mean effect (PNE) and proportional contextual effect (PCE) of included RCTs were pooled using meta-analyses with a random-effect model. The proportion of acupuncture placebo effect was the difference between PCE and PNE in RCTs with non-inserted sham acupuncture. The proportion of insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture (PIES) was obtained by subtracting the proportion of acupuncture placebo effect and PNE from PCE in RCTs with inserted sham acupuncture. The impact of PIES on the estimation of acupuncture's treatment effect was evaluated by quantifying the percentage of RCTs that the effect of outcome changed from no statistical difference to statistical difference after removing PIES in the included studies, and the impact of PIES was externally validated in other acupuncture RCTs with an inserted sham acupuncture group that were not used to calculate PIES. RESULTS: This analysis included 32 studies with 5492 patients. The overall PNE was 0.335 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.255-0.415) and the PCE of acupuncture was 0.639 (95% CI, 0.567-0.710) of acupuncture's total effect. The proportional contribution of the placebo effect to acupuncture's total effect was 0.191, and the PIES was 0.189. When we modeled the exclusion of the insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture, the acupuncture treatment effect changed from no difference to a significant difference in 45.45% of the included RCTs, and in 40.91% of the external validated RCTs. CONCLUSION The insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture in RCTs represents 18.90% of acupuncture's total effect and significantly affects the evaluation of the acupuncture treatment effect. More than 40% of RCTs that used inserted sham acupuncture would draw different conclusions if the PIES had been controlled for. Considering the impact of the insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture, caution should be taken when using inserted sham acupuncture placebos in RCTs. Please cite this article as: Luo XC, Liu JL, Yao MH, Chen YM, Fan AY, Liang FR, Zhao JP, Zhao L, Zhou X, Zhong XY, Yang JH, Li B, Zhang Y, Sun X, Li L. Specific effect of inserted sham acupuncture and its impact on the estimation of acupuncture treatment effect in randomized controlled trials: A systematic survey. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(6):630-640.
Acupuncture Therapy/methods* ; Humans ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Placebo Effect ; Placebos ; Treatment Outcome

Castleman's disease is a rare polyclonal lymphoproliferative disorder.This article reports the diagnosis and treatment of a 45-year-old female patient with idiopathic multicentric Castleman's disease.The patient presented recurrent fever,enlarged lymph nodes,and elevated levels of inflammation markers.After multiple serological examinations and tissue biopsies,she was diagnosed with hyaline vascular-type Castleman's disease.Initially,the patient received siltuximab targeting interleukin-6,which significantly improved her condition.Considering the cost and convenience of long-term treatment,she subsequently switched the therapy to an oral treatment regimen of thalidomide,cyclophosphamide,and prednisone (TCP),which maintained disease control.This report aims to highlight the diagnostic complexity and diversity of treatment options for idiopathic multicentric Castleman's disease,demonstrating the potential of the TCP regimen as a cost-effective treatment choice.
Humans ; Castleman Disease/drug therapy* ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Thalidomide/therapeutic use* ; Prednisone/therapeutic use* ; Cyclophosphamide/therapeutic use* ; Antibodies, Monoclonal/administration & dosage*

Nodal marginal zone B-cell lymphoma(NMZL),the least common subtype of marginal zone lymphoma,represents a low-grade malignancy arising from the marginal zone of lymph node follicles,composed of small B-cells with an inert non-Hodgkin lymphoma nature.It accounts for 1.5% to 1.8% of all non-Hodgkin lymphomas and 10% of all marginal zone lymphomas.The low incidence and lack of typical clinical and pathological features pose a challenge to the diagnosis and clinical management of NMZL.In this article,we reported the diagnosis and treatment of a case of NMZL located in the parapharyngeal space of the left neck and reviewed the relevant literature from both domestic and international sources.We summarized the clinical manifestations,histopathological features,immunohistochemical characteristics,imaging features,diagnosis and treatment modalities,and prognosis of NMZL.
Humans ; Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone/pathology* ; Lymph Nodes/pathology* ; Neck/pathology* ; Male

Objective To explore the clinical efficacy of dual plasma molecular adsorption(DPMAS)sequential plasma exchange(PE)artificial liver mode in the treatment of liver failure(LF).Methods Eighty-five patients with LF receiving the artificial liver treatment in the Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical Univer-sity from January 2020 to December 2023 were selected as the study subjects and divided into the study group(n=52)and the control group(n=33)according to the different treatment modes.The study group conduc-ted DPMAS sequential PE treatment and the control group underwent the PE treatment.The liver function[total bilirubin(TBIL),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),aspartate aminotransferase(AST),serum albumin(ALB),globulin(GLO),prealbumin(PAB)],Hb,coagulation function[platelet(PLT),plasminogen activity(PTA),international normalized ratio(INR),fibrinogen(FIB)]before treatment and at 24 h after treatment were compared between the two groups.Results Compared with before treatment,the levels of TBIL,ALT,AST,GLO and Hb after the first and second treatment in the two groups were decreased,ALB level in the control group and PAB level after the second time treatment was increased(P＜0.05).Compared with after the first treatment,the levels of TBIL,ALT and GLO after the second treatment in the two groups and the levels of AST and Hb in the study group were decreased,ALB level in the study group and PAB level in the two groups were increased(P＜0.05).Compared with before treatment,the levels of PLT and FIB after the first treatment in the two groups and INR level in the control group were decreased,PTA level in the control group was increased(P＜0.05).Compared with before treatment,the levels of PLT,INR and FIB after the second treatment in the two groups were decreased,PTA level was increased(P＜0.05).Compared with be-fore treatment,the levels of PLT,INR and FIB after the second treatment in the two groups were decreased,and PTA level was increased(P＜0.05).Compared with after the first treatment,PTA level after the second treatment in the study group was increased and INR level was decreased.Conclusion PE and DPMAS sequen-tial PE all could improve the liver function in the patients with LF,moreover the two times treatment has more significant effect.

Objective To observe the effects of four different modeling method on the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal(HPA)axis,blood rheology,platelet aggregation rate,and myocardial ischemia in rats,and to provide new ideas for the establishment of a rat model of"double heart"disease in line with clinical diagnosis and treatment characteristics.Methods Sixty-nine male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided randomly into a Control group(unstimulated),chronic unpredictable mild stimulation(CUMS)group,isoproterenol(ISO)group(intraperitoneal injection of ISO),high-fat diet(HFD)group(fed high-fat chow),and composite model(CUMS+ISO+HFD)group(n=12 rats in the Control and HFD groups;n=15 rats in the other three groups,respectively).Modeling procedures were carried out for a total of 8 weeks,with ISO injection started from week 6 of the experiment for a total of 3 weeks.At the end of modeling,rats in each group were subjected to absent-field and sugar-water preference behavioral tests.Electrocardiography(ECG)was performed to observe changes in ECG lead Ⅱ in each group.Serum levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone(ACTH),cortisol(Cor),corticosterone(CORT),endothelin-1(ET-1),and soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1(sICAM-1)were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Myocardial histopathological changes were detected by hematoxylin/eosin(HE)staining.Serum total cholesterol(TC),triglycerides(TG),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C),and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C)were measured using an enzyme labeling instrument.Whole-blood high-cut viscosity(200 V/S),whole-blood low-cut viscosity(10 I/S),plasma viscosity,and fibrinogen were assessed using an automatic blood rheology analyzer.The maximum platelet aggregation rate(MAR)and average platelet aggregation rate(AAR)induced by arachidonic acid and adenosine diphosphate were detected using a whole-blood platelet aggregometer.Results Compared with the Control group,all four model groups had significantly lower absenteeism distance and number of entries into the central region in the absent-field test,and a lower sugar-water preference ratio(P＜0.01).ECG revealed ST-segment elevation in the ISO and CUMS+ISO+HFD groups,tachycardia in the CUMS group,and mild ST-segment elevation in the HFD.Serum ACTH,Cor,CORT,ET-1,and sICAM-1 were all significantly elevated in the four model groups(P＜0.01).HE staining showed that myocardial tissue was severely damaged in rats in the ISO and CUMS+ISO+HFD groups,with pathological changes such as localized fibrosis and inflammatory infiltration of the myocardium,while mild cardiomyocyte disarrangement and fracture was seen in the CUMS and HFD groups.Rats in the HFD group had increased serum TC and LDL(P＜0.01)and decreased HDL contents(P＜0.01).Compared with the Control group,whole-blood high-cut viscosity(200 V/S),whole-blood low-cut viscosity(10 I/S),plasma viscosity,and fibrinogen were all increased in the CUMS,HFD,and CUMS+ISO+HFD groups(P＜0.01,P＜0.05),while whole blood high-cut viscosity(200 V/S),whole blood low-cut viscosity(10 I/S),plasma viscosity,and fibrinogen levels were decreased in rats in the ISO group(P＜0.01,P＜0.05).MAR and AAR were significantly higher in rats in the CUMS,HFD,and CUMS+ISO+HFD groups(P＜0.01),while the platelet aggregation rate was decreased in the ISO group compared with the Control group(P＜0.01,P＜0.05).Conclusions These result showed that the rat CUMS+ISO+HFD model better reflected the complexity of clinical double heart disease than the other three models.

Objective:Exploring the role and mechanism of CHMP4C in regulating necroptosis during gastric can-cer development and progression.Method:The expression of CHMP4C in pan-cancer was analyzed by bioinformatics methods,and the expression of CHMP4C was detected in human normal gastric epithelial cells and GC cell lines by RT-qPCR and Western blot.Overexpression or knockdown of CHMP4C was performed in GC cell lines,and the effects of CHMP4C on the growth and proliferation of GC cells were detected using CCK-8 and clone formation assays.The CCK-8 experiment and Hoechst/PI double staining experiment were used to detect the changes in GC cell mortality and PI positive cell ratio after treatment with the necroptsis inducer TSZ or inhibitor necrostatin-1(Nec-1).Western blot assay was used to detect the protein and phosphorylation levels of RIPK1,RIPK3,and MLKL in GC cells.Result:CHMP4C was upregulated in GC tissues and cells.The CCK-8 and clone formation experiments showed that overex-pression of CHMP4C significantly improved the proliferation ability and colony formation efficiency of GC cells,while knockdown of CHMP4C significantly weakened GC cells.Moreover,the results of CCK-8 and Hoechst 33342/PI double staining experiments showed that upregulated CHMP4C could inhibit TSZ induced GC cell death;Nec-1 can reverse the decrease in GC cell viability caused by CHMP4C knockdown.Western blot experiment showed that the levels of p-RIPK1,p-RIPK3,and p-MLKL were significantly decreased in overexpressing cells,while they were increased in knockdown cells.After treatment with Nec-1,the expression levels of these three proteins decreased in knockdown cells.Conclusion:CHMP4C may promote GC progression by negatively regulating necroptosis through inhibiting the phosphorylation of the RIPK1/RIPK3/MLKL signaling pathway,suggesting that it is expected to be a potential target for GC therapy.

Elucidate the influence of RFRP-3 on follicular development and steroid hormone synthe-sis in mice.Forty 6-week-old female KM mice were randomly allocated into four groups,namely the 0(control),100,500 and 2 000 ng/d treatment groups.Each group received daily intraperitoneal injections of RFRP-3 for a duration of 7 days.The ovarian coefficients were calculated and recorded by measuring the wet weight of the ovaries.The effects of RFRP-3 at different concentrations on follicular maturation in mice were investigated through HE staining.Western blot analysis was em-ployed to assess the expression of apoptosis-related proteins,steroidogenic enzymes,and oocyte se-cretion factors within the mouse ovaries.The concentrations of progesterone(P4)and estradiol(E2)in the serum of the mice were determined using radioimmunoassay techniques.The results re-vealed no significant differences in body weight between the experimental groups and the control.However,the ovarian coefficients in the 500 and 2 000 ng/d treatment groups were significantly re-duced when compared to the control(P＜0.01).A marked decrease in the numbers of secondary and antral follicles was observed in the 500 ng/d and 2 000 ng/d groups(P＜0.01),concomitant with a substantial increase in atretic follicles(P＜0.01).A significant decline in follicle count was also noted in these groups(P＜0.01).Compared to the control,the protein expression of Bax and Caspase3 was substantially upregulated in the 500 and 2 000 ng/d treatment groups(P＜0.05),while the expression of Bcl-2 protein was significantly downregulated(P＜0.01).Similarly,the protein expression of 3βHSD,StAR,CYP11a1,and CYP17a1 was significantly decreased at the 500 and 2 000 ng/d groups(P＜0.01).E2 concentrations were moderately reduced in the 500 ng/d group(P＜0.05)and significantly decreased in the 2000 ng/d group(P＜0.01),whereas P4 levels remained unchanged across all experimental groups.Notably,the expression of BMP15 and GDF9 at both the gene and protein levels was markedly attenuated in the 500 and 2 000 ng/d treatment groups compared to the control(P＜0.05).In conclusion,RFRP-3 appears to inhibit follicular de-velopment and steroid hormone secretion in mice by modulating the expression of apoptotic fac-tors,oocyte secretion factors,and steroidogenic enzymes within the ovaries.This study provides a theoretical foundation for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of RFRP-3 on mammalian follicular development and steroid hormone synthesis.

Objective:To investigate factors influencing frequent episodes (≥ 4 episodes within 1 year) in children with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD) in China.Methods:A national multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted. Patients under the age of 18 years diagnosed with moderate-to-severe AD were enrolled at dermatology clinics in 18 medical institutions across 12 provinces and municipalities in China between June 12 and August 8, 2023. At the time of the visit, their guardians completed a structured questionnaire covering demographic characteristics, clinical features of AD, personal and family history, factors associated with frequent episodes of moderate-to-severe AD, compliance with treatment, and disease awareness. Statistical analyses included t tests, one-way analysis of variance, rank-sum tests, and chi-square tests, with multiple-response analysis applied for multiple-choice questions. Results:A total of 965 valid questionnaires were collected, and 965 children with moderate-to-severe AD were included. Among them, there were 531 males and 434 females, 678 (70.3%) were aged 2 - < 12 years, 837 (86.7%) were from urban areas, the age at onset was 2.47 ± 3.03 years, and the median frequency of AD episodes in the past year was 4 times. These children were divided into 2 groups based on the median episode frequency: < 4-episode group (439 cases, 45.5%) and ≥ 4-episode group (526 cases, 54.5%). Compared with the < 4-episode group, children in the ≥ 4-episode group showed younger ages at onset (2.22 ± 2.98 years vs. 2.76 ± 3.06 years, P = 0.006) and higher proportions of patients with comorbid allergic diseases in both the children themselves (82.9% [436/526] vs. 69.7% [306/439], χ2 = 23.42, P < 0.001) and their relatives (66.0% [347/526] vs. 57.4% [252/439], χ2 = 7.46, P = 0.006). Children in the ≥ 4- episode group also had higher monthly usage of moisturizers (150 [30, 300] g vs. 60 [6, 200] g) and daily frequency of moisturizer use, greater disease awareness, but more severe fear of medication use (all P < 0.05). The region and the human development index level were both significantly associated with the episode frequency (both P < 0.001), with the highest proportion of children from South China in the ≥ 4- episode group (36.3%, 191/526). Children in the ≥ 4-episode group also had a longer duration of topical glucocorticoid use than those in the < 4-episode group ( Z = -2.21, P = 0.027). External triggers associated with AD episodes mainly included heat exposure (50.36%, 486/965), hot water bathing (40.73%, 393/965), seafood (23.52%, 227/965), and dust mites (33.37%, 322/965) . Conclusion:In children with moderate-to-severe AD in China, factors influencing frequent episodes may include residence in southern or economically developed regions, earlier age at onset, having a personal or family history of allergic diseases, and fear of medication use.