This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of Huangqi Guizhi Wuwu decoction (HGWD) against cerebral ischemic injury and the underlying mechanisms. A middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model was established in C57BL/6 mice to evaluate the effects of HGWD on neurobehavioral scores, cerebral infarction rate, brain water content, and oxidative stress and inflammatory markers. The mRNA and protein expression levels of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), and Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax) in brain tissue were assessed. In addition, Nrf2 knockout mice were used to verify the role of Nrf2 in the protective effects of HGWD against MCAO-induced injury. Additionally, an oxygen-glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R) model in primary neuronal cells was employed to further confirm the pharmacological effects of HGWD in vitro. The results showed that HGWD significantly ameliorated cerebral ischemic injury in MCAO mice, alleviated oxidative stress, suppressed the release of inflammatory factors, and markedly upregulated the expression of Nrf2, HO-1, and Bcl-2 while downregulating Bax expression, with consistent trends being observed at both mRNA and protein levels. The protective effects of HGWD were significantly attenuated in Nrf2 knockout mice, indicating the pivotal role of Nrf2 in HGWD-mediated protection against cerebral ischemic injury. In vitro experiments revealed that HGWD significantly increased neuronal cell viability, reduced lactate dehydrogenase(LDH) leakage, and decreased apoptosis in OGD/R-treated cells, accompanied by upregulation of Nrf2, HO-1, and Bcl-2 and downregulation of Bax. In conclusion, HGWD protects against cerebral ischemic injury by activating the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway to enhance antioxidant capacity and modulating the Bcl-2/Bax signaling pathway to inhibit apoptosis, thereby protecting brain cells from ischemic damage.

Objective To investigate the predictive value of serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C)and high-sensitive C-reactive protein(hs-CRP)in combination with carotid ultrasound parameters for assessing the risk of coronary heart disease(CHD)in patients with suspected cases.Methods A total of 260 patients who underwent coronary angiography(CAG)in the Department of Cardiology at Wujin Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from August 2022 to August 2024 due to suspected CHD were enrolled in this study.Based on CAG results,patients were categorized into a non-CHD group(n=110)and a CHD group(n=150).General clinical characteristics,serum LDL-C,hs-CRP levels,and carotid ultrasound arameters-including carotid intima-media thickness(CIMT)and Crouse score of carotid artery plaque-were compared between the two groups.Spearman correlation analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to evaluate the associations among these parameters.The predictive value of individual and combined markers for suspected CHD was assessed by using receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis.Results(1)The coronary heart disease(CHD)group had higher age,smoking,fasting plasma glucose(FPG),and blood pressure compared to the non-CHD group(P>0.05).No significant difference was observed in the gender ratio,alcohol consumption rates,and body mass index(BMI),between the two groups(P>0.05).(2)Total cholesterol(TC),LDL-C,hs-CRP levels,and carotid ultrasound parameters were significantly higher in the CHD group than those in the non-CHD group(P<0.05).(3)Spearman correlation analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that serum LDL-C,hs-CRP,and carotid ultrasound parameters were significantly correlated with coronary heart disease(P<0.05).(4)ROC curve analysis demonstrated that the combined assessment of serum LDL-C,hs-CRP,and carotid ultrasound parameters achieved the highest area under the curve(AUC),sensitivity,and specificity,with statistically significant differences compared to individual markers(P<0.05).Conclusions Serum LDL-C,hs-CRP,and carotid ultrasound parameters individually have predictive value for coronary heart disease,while their combined assessment offers superior predictive accuracy.The enhanced diagnostic performance of the combined valuation provides valuable guidance for the diagnosis and management of patients with suspected coro-nary heart disease.

Objective To investigate the predictive value of serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C)and high-sensitive C-reactive protein(hs-CRP)in combination with carotid ultrasound parameters for assessing the risk of coronary heart disease(CHD)in patients with suspected cases.Methods A total of 260 patients who underwent coronary angiography(CAG)in the Department of Cardiology at Wujin Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from August 2022 to August 2024 due to suspected CHD were enrolled in this study.Based on CAG results,patients were categorized into a non-CHD group(n=110)and a CHD group(n=150).General clinical characteristics,serum LDL-C,hs-CRP levels,and carotid ultrasound arameters-including carotid intima-media thickness(CIMT)and Crouse score of carotid artery plaque-were compared between the two groups.Spearman correlation analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to evaluate the associations among these parameters.The predictive value of individual and combined markers for suspected CHD was assessed by using receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis.Results(1)The coronary heart disease(CHD)group had higher age,smoking,fasting plasma glucose(FPG),and blood pressure compared to the non-CHD group(P>0.05).No significant difference was observed in the gender ratio,alcohol consumption rates,and body mass index(BMI),between the two groups(P>0.05).(2)Total cholesterol(TC),LDL-C,hs-CRP levels,and carotid ultrasound parameters were significantly higher in the CHD group than those in the non-CHD group(P<0.05).(3)Spearman correlation analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that serum LDL-C,hs-CRP,and carotid ultrasound parameters were significantly correlated with coronary heart disease(P<0.05).(4)ROC curve analysis demonstrated that the combined assessment of serum LDL-C,hs-CRP,and carotid ultrasound parameters achieved the highest area under the curve(AUC),sensitivity,and specificity,with statistically significant differences compared to individual markers(P<0.05).Conclusions Serum LDL-C,hs-CRP,and carotid ultrasound parameters individually have predictive value for coronary heart disease,while their combined assessment offers superior predictive accuracy.The enhanced diagnostic performance of the combined valuation provides valuable guidance for the diagnosis and management of patients with suspected coro-nary heart disease.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy of Balanophora involucrata Hook.f.in treatment of hyperuricemia(HUA)based on network pharmacology,molecular docking,and hyperuricemia models in vivo and in vitro,and to clarify the main targets of its active components and related signaling pathway mechanism.Methods:The potential targets of Balanophora involucrata Hook.f.in treatment of HUA were identified by Databases such as the Traditional Chinese Medicine Database in Taiwan,the Chinese Herbal Medicine Identification Database,Professional Chemical Database,TargetNet Database,SwissTargetPrediction Database,GeneCards,Therapeutic Target Database(TTD),DrugBank Database,DisGeNET Database,Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man(OMIM)Database,and Venny Database.STRING Database and Cytoscape software were used to construct the active component-predictive target network and protein-protein interaction(PPI)network for Balanophora involucrata Hook.f.;topological analysis was used to select the main active components and core targets;Gene Ontology(GO)functional and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)signaling pathway enrichment analysis were performed by R software;AutoDock Vina software was used for molecular docking validation.The NRK-52E cells were divided into blank control group,blank administration group,model group,and different concentrations(2.0,10.0,and 50.0 μmol·L-1)of erythrodiol(EDT)groups.High-performance liquid chromatography culture(HPLC)was used to detect the uric acid(UA)levels in the cell culture supernatants in various groups.The male ICR mice were divided into blank control group,blank administration group,model group,and EDT group;the mice in the last two groups were used to prepare the HUA models;kits were used to detect the levels of UA,creatinine(Cr),and blood urea nitrogen(BUN)in serum of the mice in various groups;the bilateral kidney tissue of the mice was harvested and weighed;the kidney indexes of the mice in various groups were calculated;TUNEL staining was used to observe the apoptosis in kidney tissue of the mice in various groups;Western blotting method was used to detect the expression levels of protein kinase B(AKT),phosphorylated AKT(p-AKT),phosphoinositide 3-kinase(PI3K),phosphorylated PI3K(p-PI3K),B-cell lymphoma-2(Bcl-2),Bcl-2-associated X protein(Bax),and matrix metalloproteinase-9(MMP-9)proteins in kidney tissue of the mice in various groups.Results:Six active components of Balanophora involucrata Hook.f.were identified,involving 116 intersecting targets and 14 core targets.The enrichment analysis yielded 1 828 GO terms and 145 signaling pathways.The molecular docking results showed that EDT had good binding activity with MMP-9.The high uric acid cell experiment results showed that compared with blank control group,the UA level in the cells in model group was significantly increased(P<0.01);compared with model group,the UA levels in the cells in 2.0,10.0,and 50.0 μmol·L-1 EDT groups were significantly decreased(P<0.01).Compared with blank control group,the levels of UA,Cr,and BUN in serum of the mice in model group were increased(P<0.01),and the kidney indexes were significantly increased(P<0.01);compared with model group,the levels of UA,Cr,and BUN in serum of the mice in EDT group were decreased(P<0.05 or P<0.01),and the kidney index was significantly decreased(P<0.05 or P<0.01).Compared with blank control group,the number of apoptotic cells in kidney tissue of the mice in model group was increased;compared with model group,the number of the apoptotic cells in kidney tissue of the mice in EDT group was significantly decreased.Compared with blank control group,the ratios of p-AKT/AKT and p-PI3K/PI3K and expression level of Bcl-2 protein in kidney tissue of the mice in model group were significantly decreased(P<0.05 or P<0.01),while the expression levels of Bax and MMP-9 proteins were significantly increased(P<0.01);compared with model group,the ratios of p-AKT/AKT and p-PI3K/PI3K and expression level of Bcl-2 protein in kidney tissue of the mice in EDT group were significantly increased(P<0.05 or P<0.01),and the expression levels of Bax and MMP-9 proteins were significantly decreased(P<0.01).Conclusion:The active component of Balanophora involucrata Hook.f.,EDT,has a UA-decreasing effect and may inhibit the apoptosis and alleviate the kidney injury by activating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Objective:To evaluate the reliability of cardiac late iodine enhancement dual-energy CT (LIE-DECT) multiparameter post-processing technique for evaluating the presence, location, and extent of cardiac scars in patients with heart failure (HF), using cardiac MR (CMR) late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) as a reference standard.Methods:Thirty-nine HF patients who underwent cardiac LIE-DECT and LGE-CMR examinations in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University from November 2019 to November 2021 were prospectively collected, all enrolled HF patients underwent LIE-DECT post-processing to reconstruct monoenergetic plus (Mono+) map (40 keV), iodine map and Rho/Z map, to evaluate the enhancement degree, location and extent of left ventricular myocardial LIE on the left ventricular short-axis map, respectively, and compared with LGE-CMR. Cohen′s Kappa test was used to assess the intra-and inter-observer consistency of LIE by DECT multiparameter technique and the consistency of LIE presence and location by DECT multiparameter technique and by CMR. The diagnostic efficacy of DECT multiparameter technique in diagnosing myocardial scar was calculated.Results:Of the 39 patients included, 32 patients were detected by CMR with LGE in 147 segments, including 37 subendocardial patterns, 19 transmural patterns, 74 mid-wall patterns, and 17 epicardial patterns. The intra-observer consistency Kappa values of 40 keV Mono+map, iodine map and Rho/Z map were 0.878, 0.930 and 0.835 ( P all<0.001), respectively. The inter-observer consistency Kappa values were 0.838, 0.892 and 0.808 ( P all<0.001), respectively. The LIE of 40 keV Mono+map, iodine map and Rho/Z map were in good agreement with CMR, Kappa values were 0.903, 0.883 and 0.810 ( P all<0.001), respectively. For the per-patient analysis, the accuracies of 40 keV Mono+map, iodine map and Rho/Z map were 92.3% (36/39), 92.3% (36/39) and 82.1% (32/39), respectively. For the segment-based analysis, the accuracies of 40 keV Mono+map, iodine map and Rho/Z map accuracy were 96.1% (492/512), 95.3% (488/512) and 92.6% (474/512), respectively. In Bland-Altman analysis, the consistency bias between scar extent measured by 40 keV Mono+map, iodine map, Rho/Z map and that measured by LGE-CMR were -2.03%, -2.21%, -2.65%, and the 95% limit of agreement were -12.20%-8.14%, -12.69%-8.28% and -14.85%-9.58%, respectively. Conclusion:LIE-DECT multiparameter technique can detect myocardial scar in HF patients well, which is consistent with LGE-CMR.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of imatinib in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients and analyse the factors affecting the survival. Methods 135 CML patients receiving imatinib were evaluated for hematologic, cytogenetic, and molecular responses and adverse events. Results The median follow-up was 20 (range 3-67) months. The rate of cumulative complete hematological response (CHR), major cytogenetic response (MCyR), complete cytogenetic response( CCyR ) and complete molecular response (CMoR) in chronic phase CML patients were 97.9 %, 78.3 %, 72.2 % and 35.1%, respectively.These rates were significantly higher in chronic phase than in accelerated phase and blastic phase (P ＜0.001).The rate of CCyR in low-risk patients was significantly higher than high-risk patients (P =0.048). The estimated overall survival (OS) rate at 1, 3 and 5 year for chronic phase patients were (97.8±1.5) %, (95.2±2.4) % and (91.9±3.2) %, respectively. The estimated progression-free (PFS) survival rate at 1, 3 and 5 year were (92.6±2.7) %, (85.5±3.7) % and (81.3±4.3) %, respectively. The OS rate for accelerated phase patients at 6, 12 and 24 month were (93.8±6.1) %, (72.5±11.8) % and (64.5±12.9) %, the PFS rate were (92.3±7.4) %,(64.5±14.7) %, (53.7±15.7) %, respectively. The OS rate for blastic phase patients at 6, 12 and 19 month were (86.4±7.3) %, (45.4±11.4) %, (19.4±9.8) %, the PFS rate were (70.1±12.6) %, (37.6±15.6) % and (18.8±15.4) %, respectively. The OS and PFS of patients in chronic phase who achieved CCyR or CMoR were better than patients only achieved CHR (P ≤0.001). Multivariate analysis for survival of chronic phase patients indicated that imatinib resistance was the unfavourable factor for PFS (P =0.000, RR =46.744) and OS(P =0.007, RR =20.270). The non-hematological toxicity of imatinib was slight and tolerable, severe hematological toxicity was the major reason for dose reduction or drug discontinuation. Conclusion The efficacy of imatinib in chronic phase CML patients is significantly superior to which in accelerated phase and blastic phase; Achieving CCyR even CMoR is the most important thing for longer survival, iinatinib resistance is the major problem in the treatment with imatinib.

Objective To report two cases of severe pulmonary complication after bortezomib treatment for multiple myeloma. Methods Two cases of severe pulmonary complication after bortezomib treatment patients with relapsed multiple myeloma wereas discussed with review of literature. Results Two relapsed MM patients were treated with bortezomib and thalidomide or dexametbasone. Cough, dyspnea, fever and hypoxia developed after completion of bortezomib. Chest X-ray revealed bilateral pulmonary infiltrates,but infection was not identified with sputum cultures, and broad-spectrum antibiotics were ineffective.Conclusion Severe pulmonary injury was rare complication in patients receiving treatment for multiple myeloma, however, it was a life-threatening disorder. Prophylaxis corticosteroids maybe effective. Although corticosteroids are effective, but the mechanism of lung injury associated with bortezomib is unclear, and further evaluation of this potential toxicity is appropriate.

Objective To improve the recognition of precursor T- lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL)of the breast. Methods One case of breast T- LBL was reported, the development of breast non-Hodgkin lymphoma and T-LBL presenting as breast masses was reviewed. Results One case of breast T-LBL was diagnosed, the patient with a high leukocyte count, breast mass and peripheral lymph nodes was treated with Hyper-CVAD regimen after active therapy and achieved complete remission (CR). Followed by maintenance therapy with Hyper-CVAD regimen for three times, disease free survival had been obtained five month.Conclusion Lymphoma of the brest is a rare malignancy. T-LBL is a highly aggressive disease with adverse prognosis, it is very uncommon for presenting as lymphoma of breast. Initiation of intensive muhiagent chemotherapy can improve the free survival and the prognosis.

OBJECTIVETo understand the clinical feature and natural course of polycythemia vera (PV).

METHODSThe clinical symptoms, signs, laboratory examination and prognosis of 185 patients with PV were analysed.

RESULTSThere are 122 males and 63 females. The mean age was (52.7 +/- 14.1) years. The mean hemoglobin level was (208.3 +/- 21.2) g/L. Pancytosis was displayed in 74 (40%) cases, excess of red blood cells in 33 (17.8%), excess of red blood cells and granulocytes in 67 (36.2%) and excess of red blood cell and platelets in 11 (5.9%). Splenomegaly was found in 123 (66.5%) patients and hepatomegaly in 30 (16.2%). Quantitative assess of serum Epo was done in 25 patients. The level was low in 16 (64.2%) and normal in 9 (36.0%). Hematopoietic progenitor culture yields was elevated in 11 patients, endogenous erythroid colonies (EEC) formation was found in 10 cases (90.9%). Eighty two patients (44.3%) had 101 attacks of vascular thrombotic incidents, 7 patients developed myelofibrosis (MF). Secondary cancer occurred in 1 patient. Two patients died of thrombosis.

CONCLUSIONPV is an elderly adult myeloproliferative disease with a high frequency of thrombosis. EEC can be found out in PV patients. The serum Epo level is not increased in PV patients. The main sequelae of PV is MF.

Adult ; Aged ; Erythrocyte Count ; Female ; Hemoglobins ; metabolism ; Hepatomegaly ; etiology ; Humans ; Leukocyte Count ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polycythemia Vera ; blood ; complications ; pathology ; Primary Myelofibrosis ; etiology ; Splenomegaly ; etiology ; Thrombosis ; etiology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the complications and conversions in myeloproliferative disorders (MPD).

METHODSThree hundred and fifty six patients with MPD were reviewed, including 78 with etiologic thrombocythemia (ET), 93 with primary myelofibrosis (MF), 185 with polythythemia vera (PV). The clinical observation, follow-up, analysis with SPSS statistic software were performed.

RESULTSOut of the 356 cases, 101 (28.5%) developed thromboembolic events, 81 (22.8%) hemorrhage, 60 (16.9%) hypertension, 20 (5.6%) coronary heart disease, 3 (0.8%) hemolysis and 1 (0.3%) gastrointestinal ulcer, 2 (0.6%) calculus and 1 (0.3%) bone marrow necrosis. Twenty four patients (6.7%) developed MF (9 in ET, 15 in PV), 2 (0.6%) erythrocytosis (1 in ET, 1 in MF), 3 (0.8%) thrombocythemia (all in PV), 5 (1.4%) acute leukemia (2 in ET, 3 in MF) and 1 (0.3%) multiple myeloma (in ET). Eleven cases (3.1%) died, 5 (1.4%) from acute leukemia, 2 (0.6%) fatal hemorrhages, 1 (0.3%) each myocardial infarction and infectious shock, 2 (0.6%) unknown causes.

CONCLUSIONEmbolism and bleeding were the main complications in MPD. Conversions among ET, MF and PV hematological malignancies could occur.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myeloproliferative Disorders ; complications ; mortality