Background: and Purpose Vertebrobasilar fusiform aneurysms (VBFAs) carry substantial morbidity and mortality, but optimal management for unruptured VBFAs remains unclear. We compared the safety and efficacy of conservative management (CM), stent-assisted coiling (SAC), and flow diverters (FDs) in patients with unruptured VBFAs, focusing on long-term prognosis. Methods: This study included data from a nationwide Chinese cohort of patients with vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms. Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) balanced confounders across groups. The primary outcome was poor prognosis (modified Rankin Scale score >2). Secondary outcomes included aneurysm rupture, ischemic stroke, compression symptoms, and VBFA-related deaths. Logistic regression estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed. Results: Among 1,115 patients with unruptured VBFAs, 838 (median age, 54 years; 655 men) were included. After IPTW, baseline characteristics were balanced. Median follow-up was 54 months. FD was associated with a lower risk of poor prognosis than CM (OR, 0.48 [95% CI, 0.30 to 0.77]; p=0.002), with no difference between CM and SAC. FD also reduced aneurysm rupture (OR, 0.20 [95% CI, 0.07 to 0.60]; p=0.004) and compression symptoms (OR, 0.30 [95% CI, 0.13 to 0.68]; p=0.004) versus CM. Time-to-event analyses further revealed significant differences in vertebral artery lesions and Type I–II VBFAs, whereas no significant differences were observed in basilar or vertebrobasilar junction lesions or in Type III–IV VBFAs. Conclusions Compared with CM, FD was associated with improved long-term outcomes in unruptured VBFAs, particularly in vertebral artery lesions and Type I–II VBFAs, although residual confounding cannot be excluded.

ObjectiveTo construct a large language model （LLM）-based intelligent pre-consultation system for traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） to improve efficacy of clinical practice. MethodsA TCM large language model was fine-tuned using DeepSpeed ZeRO-3 distributed training strategy based on YAYI 2-30B. A weighted undirected graph network was designed and an agent-based syndrome differentiation model was established based on relationship data extracted from TCM literature and clinical records. An agent collaboration framework was developed to integrate the TCM LLM with the syndrome differentiation model. Model performance was comprehensively evaluated by Loss function， BLEU-4， and ROUGE-L metrics， through which training convergence， text generation quality， and language understanding capability were assessed. Professional knowledge test sets were developed to evaluate system proficiency in TCM physician licensure content， TCM pharmacist licensure content， TCM symptom terminology recognition， and meridian identification. Clinical tests were conducted to compare the system with attending physicians in terms of diagnostic accuracy， consultation rounds， and consultation duration. ResultsAfter 100 000 iterations， the training loss value was gradually stabilized at about 0.7±0.08， indicating that the TCM-LLM has been trained and has good generalization ability. The TCM-LLM scored 0.38 in BLEU-4 and 0.62 in ROUGE-L， suggesting that its natural language processing ability meets the standard. We obtained 2715 symptom terms， 505 relationships between diseases and syndromes， 1011 relationships between diseases and main symptoms， and 1 303 600 relationships among different symptoms， and constructed the Agent of syndrome differentiation model. The accuracy rates in the simulated tests for TCM practitioners， licensed pharmacists of Chinese materia medica， recognition of TCM symptom terminology， and meridian recognition were 94.09%， 78.00%， 87.50%， and 68.80%， respectively. In clinical tests， the syndrome differentiation accuracy of the system reached 88.33%， with fewer consultation rounds and shorter consultation time compared to the attending physicians （P＜0.01）， suggesting that the system has a certain pre- consultation ability. ConclusionThe LLM-based intelligent TCM pre-diagnosis system could simulate diagnostic thinking of TCM physicians to a certain extent. After understanding the patients' natural language， it collects all the patient's symptom through guided questioning， thereby enhancing the diagnostic and treatment efficiency of physicians as well as the consultation experience of the patients.

Objective: To investigate the efficacy，safety and feasibility of regional lymph node dissection in laparoscopic radical surgery for bladder cancer under the guidance of indocyanine green fluorescence imaging. Methods: A total of 30 patients with muscle invasive bladder cancer (T2/T3NxM0) who volunteered to enter the clinical trial were randomly divided into the indocyanine green imaging guided laparoscopic regional lymph node dissection group (n=15) and the standard pelvic lymph node dissection group (n=15).The number of positive lymph nodes，operation time，intraoperative bleeding volume，incidence of lymph leakage，and tumor recurrence and metastasis rate 2-year after surgery were collected. Results: The number of positive lymph nodes was (4.20±1.66) and (4.60±1.72) respectively in the indocyanine green and standard groups，with no statistically significant difference (P>0.05).There were no statistically significant difference in the tumor recurrence and metastasis rates 2-year after surgery between the two groups (P>0.05).However，the indocyanine green group had shorter operation time，less intraoperative bleeding volume，and lower incidence of lymphatic leakage than the standard group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Indocyanine green fluorescence imaging guided laparoscopic lymph node dissection has comparable clinical efficacy to standard lymph node dissection，but with fewer complications.

ObjectiveTo reveal the active substances and mechanisms of modified Qing'e formula （MQEF） in delaying skin photoaging by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry （UPLC-Q-TOF-MS），network pharmacology， and cell experiments. MethodsUPLC-Q-TOF-MS and a literature review were employed to analyze the transdermally absorbed components in mice after the topical application of MQEF. The potential targets of MQEF in treating skin photoaging were retrieved from databases.The compound-potential target network and protein-protein interaction network were constructed to screen the key components and core targets. A photoaging cell model was established by irradiating HaCaT cells with medium-wave ultraviolet B （UVB）. The safe doses of bakuchiol （BAK） and salvianolic acid B （SAB） for treating HaCaT cells and the effects of BAK and SAB on the viability of cells exposed to UVB irradiation were determined by the cell counting kit-8 （CCK-8） method.The reactive oxygen species （ROS） fluorescent probe was used to measure the ROS production in the cells treated with BAK and SAB.The expression levels of genes related to oxidative stress，inflammation，collagen metabolism，and circadian rhythm clock were measured by Real-time PCR. ResultsA total of 24 transdermally absorbed components of MQEF were identified，which acted on 367 potential targets，and 417 targets related to skin photoaging were screened out，among which 47 common targets were predicted as the targets of MQEF in treating skin photoaging. MQEF exerted the anti-photoaging effect via key components such as BAK and SAB，which acted on core proteins such as serine/threonine kinase 1 （Akt1） and mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 （MAPK3） and intervened in core pathways such as the tumor necrosis factor （TNF） and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt） signaling pathways.Compared with the model group，the administration of BAK and SAB increased the survival rate of HaCaT cells （P<0.01），down-regulated the mRNA levels of cyclooxygenase-2 （COX-2），interleukin-6 （IL-6），tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α），matrix metalloproteinase-1 （MMP-1），and matrix metalloproteinase-9 （MMP-9） （P<0.01），and up-regulated the mRNA levels of heme oxygenase-1 （HO-1） and NAD（P）H quinone dehydrogenase 1 （NQO-1） （P<0.05，P<0.01） in photoaged HaCaT cells.In addition，it eliminated excess ROS production induced by UVB and up-regulated the mRNA levels of brain and muscle ARNT-like 1 （BMAL1） and circadian locomotor output cycles kaput （CLOCK） associated with circadian clock （P<0.05，P<0.01）. ConclusionMQEF delays skin photoaging through the coordinated effects of various components，multiple targets，and diverse pathways.The key components BAK and SAB in MQEF exhibit anti-photoaging properties，which involve inhibiting oxidative stress，preventing collagen degradation，mitigating inflammation，and maintaining normal skin circadian rhythms by regulating clock gene expression.

Objective To investigate the correlation between indocyanine green(ICG)fluorescence imaging and lymph node metastasis of bladder cancer and its application value.Methods The clinicopathological data of 35 patients with bladder cancer(T1-T4aNxM0)treated in our hospital during Jun.2019 and Mar.2023 were collected.All patients underwent ICG submucous injection,and those with successful imaging received lymph node dissection under fluorescent guidance.After that,the remaining lymph tissue was cleared according to the standard lymph node dissection range,and the resected lymph tissue was subassembled for examination.Patients with non-imaging underwent standard pelvic lymph node dissection according to the routine procedure.Intraoperative lymph node imaging areas were recorded,and postoperative lymph node pathological data were collected.The correlation between fluorescence imaging patterns and lymph node metastasis in patients with different stages of bladder cancer was analyzed with correlation coefficients.Results The ICG fluorescence imaging rate was 91.43％(32/35),and there was no statistically significant difference in the imaging rate among patients with different stages of bladder cancer(P＞0.05).The fluorescence imaging range was significantly correlated with the stage(C=0.351,P=0.034).There was a significant correlation between the imaging range and lymph node metastasis in early-stage patients(C=0.619,P=0.022),but there was no significant difference in the lymph node metastasis rate in advanced patients with different imaging range(P＞0.05).In patients with full staging,the sensitivity of lymph nodes to predict metastasis was 60.00％(6/10),and the negative predictive value was 84.62％(22/26).In early-stage patients,the sensitivity and negative predictive value were 50.00％(1/2)and 93.75％(15/16),respectively.In advanced-stage patients,they were 62.50％(5/8)and 70.00％(7/10),respectively.Conclusion ICG fluorescence imaging rate of tracing lymph node metastasis is high,and the imaging range is significantly related to the tumor stage.For patients with early-stage(T1-T2)bladder cancer,the range of imaging helps to predict the risk of lymph node metastasis and guide the extent of lymph node dissection.Resection of multi-area imaged lymph nodes can comprehensively evaluate the lymphatic metastasis status of early-stage patients.

Objective:To explore the effect of combining transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) with acupuncture in the treatment of patients with vascular cognitive impairment (VCI).Methods:A total of 40 VCI patients were randomly assigned to either the control group or the experimental group ( n=20 per group) using a random number table. Both groups received routine treatment and rTMS, while the experimental group was additionally provided with acupuncture for four weeks. The rTMS was at 10Hz at 90% of the motor threshold. Before and after the treatment, both groups′ cognition was evaluated using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Ability in the activities of daily living (ADL) was quantified using the modified Barthel Index (MBI). Serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Results:Significant improvement was observed in both groups′ average MoCA, MMSE, and MBI scores, along with reductions in peripheral serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels. The experimental group exhibited significantly higher MoCA subdomain scores in the visuospatial and executive function, attention, and delayed recall subdomains, as well as a higher total MoCA score compared to the control group. The average MMSE and MBI scores were significantly higher in the experimental group than the control group, and that group′s serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels were significantly lower, on average. Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated a positive correlation between the improvements in MoCA and MMSE scores and the reductions in IL-6 and TNF-α levels in both groups.Conclusions:rTMS combined with acupuncture effectively improves cognition and ADL ability among VCI patients. The underlying mechanism may be associated with the reduction of neuroinflammatory factors IL-6 and TNF-α.

Objective:To explore the potential mechanisms of autophagy suppressing the activation of pro-inflammatory macro-phages.Methods:Macrophage-specific knockout mice(Atg5△mye)was generated by the hybridization of Lyz2-Cre mice and Atg 5flox/+mice.Bone marrow cells were differentiated into bone marrow-derived macrophages(BMDMs)induced by monocyte colony-stimulating factor.The expressions of endoplasmic reticulum stress(ER stress)-related proteins,such as glucose regulatory protein 78(GRP78),autophagy-related marker LC3-Ⅱ and p62,and pro-inflammatory iNOS,were detected by Western blot.GO analysis was performed on BMDMs from Atg5flox/flox and Atg5△mye mice stimulated by LPS.Tauroursodeoxycholate(TUDCA)or ATF6 inhibitor Ceapin-A7 was used to suppress the ER stress in BMDMs.Results:LPS promoted the expression of ER stress-related proteins and the activation of pro-in-flammatory macrophages,while inhibiting autophagy in BMDMs.By utilizing proteomic detection and GO enrichment analysis,it was found that the autophagy deficiency in BMDMs caused changes in the ATF6 pathway,a key downstream pathway of ER stress.Inhibi-tion of ER stress by TUDCA significantly down-regulated the expression of iNOS and the secretion of inflammatory cytokines IL-18 and IL-1β in autophagy-deficient BMDMs.ATF6-specific inhibitor(Ceapin-A7)was used to exculpate LPS-stimulated BMDMs,and it was found that Ceapin-A7 significantly down-regulated the elevated expression of iNOS and inflammatory factors caused by Atg5 deletion in BMDMs.Conclusion:Autophagy inhibits the activation of pro-inflammatory macrophages by suppressing ATF6 pathway.

BACKGROUND:Intervertebral disc degeneration is the main pathological factor causing low back pain,which is closely related to macrophage-mediated immune inflammation.Tongdu Huoxue Decoction is a proven prescription for the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration,but it is still unclear whether it can treat intervertebral disc degeneration by regulating the polarization phenotype of macrophages to inhibit inflammation in intervertebral disc tissue.OBJECTIVE:To investigate the regulatory effects of Tongdu Huoxue Decoction on the expression of macrophage-related inflammatory factors in intervertebral disc tissues of rats,as well as its mechanisms for the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration.METHODS:Twenty-four Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham operation group,model group,and Tongdu Huoxue Decoction group,with eight rats in each group.An intervertebral disc degeneration model was established using the annulus fibrosus puncture method in the latter two groups.On the 1st postoperative day,10.8 g/kg Tongdu Huoxue Decoction was given by gavage in the Tongdu Huoxue Decoction group,and the same dose of saline was given by gavage in the sham operation group and the model group,once a day.After 4 weeks of intervention,histopathological changes in the intervertebral disc tissues were assessed using hematoxylin-eosin.Immunohistochemistry and quantitative real-time PCR were performed to detect the relative expression levels of CD68,CD206,interleukin 1β,interleukin 10,type II collagen,and matrix metalloproteinase 13 proteins or mRNA in the intervertebral disc tissues.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Hematoxylin-eosin staining results revealed that the model group exhibited a significant decrease in intervertebral disc height,disorganized annulus fibrosus structure with fissures,and unclear demarcation between the nucleus pulposus and the annulus fibrosus.The Tongdu Huoxue Decoction group showed organized arrangement of the annulus fibrosus with pyknosis.(2)Immunohistochemical results demonstrated that,compared with the model group,the Tongdu Huoxue Decoction group had significantly lower expressions of CD68,interleukin 1β,and matrix metalloproteinase 13,and significantly higher expressions of CD206,type II collagen and interleukin 10(P<0.05 or P<0.01).(3)qPCR results showed that there were significant differences in the mRNA expression of CD68,CD206,interleukin 1β,matrix metalloproteinase 13,type II collagen,and interleukin 10 between the three groups(P<0.001).To conclude,Tongdu Huoxue Decoction can improve intervertebral disc degeneration in the rat model of intervertebral disc degeneration,and its mechanism is associated with the inhibition of macrophage-related inflammatory responses in the intervertebral discs.

Objective To analyze the characteristics of TCM symptoms of aging in female insomnia patients;To provide syndrome differentiation evidence for clinical prevention and treatment of female aging.Methods A cross-sectional study method was used to include female insomnia patients who attended outpatient clinics at Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine,Beijing Changping District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine,and the Third Affiliated Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from August 2021 to July 2024.The patients'clinical information was collected,and frequency analysis,factor analysis,and clustering analysis of the relevant clinical information of the 107 female insomnia patients were conducted,which,together with the experts'opinions,resulted in characteristics of TCM syndrome elements and syndrome distribution of aging in female insomnia patients.Results Totally 20 core items were screened and 7 common factors were obtained from the factor analysis.There were 5 types of syndrome elements of disease location associated with aging symptoms in female patients with insomnia,including heart,liver,spleen,kidney and lung;and there were 7 types of syndrome elements of disease property,including qi deficiency,yin deficiency,qi stagnation,blood deficiency,heat,phlegm,and dampness.There were 4 types of syndromes were obtained from the systematic clustering,including heart-kidney disharmony syndrome,heart-liver stagnation syndrome,spleen deficiency and qi stagnation syndrome,lung-spleen qi deficiency syndrome.Conclusion By analyzing the TCM syndrome characteristics of aging symptoms in female patients with insomnia,four types of syndromes are obtained.The heart-kidney disharmony syndrome is the common syndrome.The internal relationship between insomnia and aging process in female patients with insomnia is revealed from the perspective of pathogenesis,which can provide a research basis for the clinical practice of TCM anti-aging guided by syndrome differentiation and treatment in the future.

Objective:To explore the effect of combining transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) with acupuncture in the treatment of patients with vascular cognitive impairment (VCI).Methods:A total of 40 VCI patients were randomly assigned to either the control group or the experimental group ( n=20 per group) using a random number table. Both groups received routine treatment and rTMS, while the experimental group was additionally provided with acupuncture for four weeks. The rTMS was at 10Hz at 90% of the motor threshold. Before and after the treatment, both groups′ cognition was evaluated using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Ability in the activities of daily living (ADL) was quantified using the modified Barthel Index (MBI). Serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Results:Significant improvement was observed in both groups′ average MoCA, MMSE, and MBI scores, along with reductions in peripheral serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels. The experimental group exhibited significantly higher MoCA subdomain scores in the visuospatial and executive function, attention, and delayed recall subdomains, as well as a higher total MoCA score compared to the control group. The average MMSE and MBI scores were significantly higher in the experimental group than the control group, and that group′s serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels were significantly lower, on average. Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated a positive correlation between the improvements in MoCA and MMSE scores and the reductions in IL-6 and TNF-α levels in both groups.Conclusions:rTMS combined with acupuncture effectively improves cognition and ADL ability among VCI patients. The underlying mechanism may be associated with the reduction of neuroinflammatory factors IL-6 and TNF-α.