1.Qiangjing Tablets Regulate CDK4-E2F Signaling Pathway to Delay Aging of Leydig Cells and Testicular Tissue in Rats
Xiucheng LAN ; Meijing WANG ; Jingyi ZHANG ; Junjun LI ; Liang DONG ; Xujun YU ; Fang YANG ; Degui CHANG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(14):328-336
ObjectiveTo reveal the molecular mechanism by which the traditional Chinese medicine compound prescription Qiangjing tablets regulate the aging of the testicular tissue and Leydig cells in rats through the cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4)-early 2 factor (E2F) signaling pathway. MethodsFor the cell experiment, 2-month-old SPF-grade SD male rats were selected and randomly assigned into a blank control group (administrated with an equal volume of 0.9% sodium chloride injection) and a Qiangjing tablets group (20 rats in each group) according to body weight. The Leydig cell model of aging was established by treatment of TM3 cells with 100 μmol·L-1 H2O2, and the modeling performance was evaluated based on the levels of p16 and p21 determined by Western blot. The antioxidant NAC (1 mmol·L-1) was used as the positive control for eliminating reactive oxygen species (ROS). Cells were intervened with Qiangjing tablets-containing serum at low (2.5%), medium (5%), and high (10%) concentrations. The testosterone level in the cell supernatant was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and the protein levels of CDK4, E2F1, and E2F2 were analyzed by Western blot. In the animal experiment, 19-month-old naturally aging rats were used as the model group, and 2-month-old rats as the young control group. The positive control group was subcutaneously injected with 5.21 mg·kg-1·d-1 testosterone propionate. Qiangjing tablets were administered by gavage at low, medium, and high doses of 0.72, 1.44, 2.88 g·kg-1·d-1, respectively. The general conditions of rats were observed, and the protein levels of CDK4, E2F1, and E2F2 in the testicular tissue were determined by Western blot. ResultsIn the cell experiment, compared with the blank control group, the model group showed upregulated expression of CDK4 and E2F1 (P<0.05) and slightly downregulated expression of E2F2. Compared with that in the model group, the expression of CDK4 was upregulated in the NAC group and the low-dose Qiangjing tablets group (P<0.05), slightly upregulated in the medium-dose Qiangjing tablets group, and downregulated in the high-dose Qiangjing tablets group (P<0.05). The NAC group showed downregulated expression of E2F1 (P<0.05) and E2F2, and the low-, medium-, and high-dose Qiangjing tablets groups showed downregulated expression of both E2F1 and E2F2 (P<0.05). Compared with that in the NAC group, the expression of CDK4 was upregulated in the low-dose Qiangjing tablets group and downregulated in the medium-dose and high dose (P<0.05) groups. The expression of E2F1 was down-regulated in all the three dose groups, with statistically significance in the high dose group (P<0.05), and that of E2F2 were downregulated in all the three dose groups (P<0.05). In the animal experiment, compared with the young control group, the model group exhibited downregulated expression of CDK4 (P<0.05) and slightly upregulated expression of E2F1 and E2F2. Compared with that in the model group, the expression of CDK4 decreased in the testosterone propionate group and the low-dose Qiangjing tablets group (P<0.05) but increased in the medium-dose (P<0.05) and high-dose groups. In addition, the expression of E2F1 decreased (P<0.05), and that of E2F2 was slightly elevated. Compared with that in the NAC group, CDK4 expression was elevated in the Qiangjing tablets groups, with statistical significance in the medium- and high-dose groups (P<0.05). Similarly, the E2F1 expression was also upregulated in the Qiangjing tablets groups, with statistical significance in the medium-dose group (P<0.05). The expression of E2F2 was downregulated in all the Qiangjing tablets groups. ConclusionQiangjing tablets delay the aging process of Leydig cells and testicular tissue by up-regulating the expression of CDK4 and lowering the levels of E2F1 and E2F2.
2.Mechanism of Quercetin-loaded Exosomes in Improving Testosterone Synthesis in Leydig Cells from Correlation Perspective of "Disease, Syndrome, Formula, and Medicine"
Meijing WANG ; Xiucheng LAN ; Fangyue WANG ; Jingyi ZHANG ; Guangsen LI ; Degui CHANG ; Xujun YU ; Fang YANG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(14):360-370
ObjectiveBased on the multidimensional correlation analysis framework of "disease, syndrome, formula, and medicine", this study aims to systematically elucidate the regulatory effects of effective components in Qiangjing tablet on testosterone synthesis pathways in testicular Leydig cells under oxidative stress, providing a theoretical basis for the treatment of male infertility with traditional Chinese medicine and modern research on compounds. MethodsDisease targets for male infertility were obtained from The Human Gene Database (GeneCards, score ≥20), the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD, score ≥150), DrugBank (score ≥0.2), and DisGeNET (score ≥0.2). Targets related to the syndrome of kidney deficiency and blood stasis were acquired from the traditional Chinese medicine syndrome association database SymMap. Components of Qiangjing tablet were retrieved based on The Encyclopedia of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ETCM) database and the Integrative Pharmacology-based Research Platform of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCMIP), and they were screened according to a quantitative estimate of drug-likeness (QED ≥ 0.49) and a target confidence index>0.8. Intersecting targets were taken to construct a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network using the STRING database. The network was visualized with Cytoscape software and subjected to the functional annotation of gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis. Quality markers (Q-markers) were predicted via the ADMETlab 2.0 platform based on Lipinski's rule, Pfizer's rule, GSK's rule, and the Golden Triangle. For experimental validation, rats' testicular Leydig cells were used. Exosomes were extracted and loaded with active components via the ultrasonic method. Exosome concentration was determined using a BCA protein quantification kit. Morphology was observed using a transmission electron microscope. The particle size was analyzed with a particle size analyzer. The surface marker proteins such as cluster of differentiation 9 (CD9), cluster of differentiation 63 (CD63), and cluster of differentiation 81 (CD81) were identified by Western blot, and drug loading capacity was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). An oxidative stress model was induced by alpha, alpha'-azodiisobutyramidine dihydrochloride (AAPH), and Leydig cells were divided into the following groups: A control group, an AAPH group, a quercetin group (Que group), an exosome group (Exo group), and a QUE-loaded Exo group (Que-Exo group). The cell viability was detected using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) thiazolyl blue assay. The reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and mitochondrial membrane potential were measured by flow cytometry. The levels of oxidative indicators, including malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), catalase (CAT), and testosterone (T), were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The expressions of steroidogenic enzymes such as cytochrome p450 family 11 subfamily a member 1 (CYP11A1), hydroxy-delta-5-steroid dehydrogenase, 3 beta- and steroid delta-isomerase 1 (HSD3B1), and hydroxysteroid 17-beta dehydrogenase 3 (HSD17B3), regulatory factors such as steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1) and steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR), and miR-145-5p content, were detected by Western blot and real-time polymerse chain reaction (Real-time PCR). ResultsNetwork pharmacology analysis reveals that the main active components of Qiangjing tablet for intervening in male infertility with kidney deficiency and blood stasis syndrome were Que, luteolin, etc., with the core mechanism involving pathways such as steroid hormone biosynthesis. Experimental results show that compared with the control group, the AAPH group exhibits significantly reduced cell viability (P<0.01), decreased mitochondrial membrane potential (P<0.01), significantly elevated levels of ROS, MDA, and miR-145-5p (P<0.01), significantly reduced activities of SOD, GSH-Px, and CAT, as well as reduced testosterone content (P<0.01), and significantly downregulated protein and mRNA expressions of steroidogenic enzymes, SF-1, and StAR (P<0.01). The above indicators were reversed in the Que and Que-Exo groups (P<0.05). Compared with the Que group, the Que-Exo group showed more significant effects in enhancing cell viability, mitochondrial membrane potential, testosterone level, antioxidant enzyme activities, and expressions of key molecules in the steroidogenic pathway (P<0.05). ConclusionThis study demonstrates that Que, an active component of Qiangjing tablet, inhibits oxidative stress reaction, improves mitochondrial function in Leydig cells, upregulates steroidogenic enzyme expression, and restores testosterone production. As a carrier for Que, Exo enhance its stability, delivery efficiency, and biological effect. Additionally, miR-145-5p may be closely associated with testosterone synthesis, though its precise molecular mechanism requires further exploration. By integrating traditional Chinese medicine compounds with modern scientific technology, this research expands the paths for the modernized research of traditional Chinese medicine and opens a novel therapeutic direction with translational potential for clinical intervention of male infertility.
3.Experiences of food avoidance behavior in patients with inflammatory bowel disease:a qualitative study
Qingyu WANG ; Meijing ZHOU ; Yang LEI ; Sha LI ; Junyi GU ; Zheng LIN ; Qiugui BIAN ; Jiefeng YANG ; Lichen TANG ; Jiali CHEN ; Hantian CHENG
Chinese Journal of Nursing 2025;60(11):1323-1329
Objective This study applies Roy adaptation theory to deeply explore the experience of food avoid-ance behavior in patients with inflammatory bowel disease(IBD),offering insights for developing dietary management strategies.Methods A descriptive qualitative research method was employed.By purposive sampling,24 IBD pa-tients hospitalized in the gastroenterology department of a tertiary hospital in Nanjing from July 2022 to December 2024 were selected for semi-structured interviews.Data were analyzed using a directed content analysis approach.Results This study identified 4 main themes and 11 sub-themes,encompassing overattribution leading to inappro-priate avoidance(recurrent symptoms triggering overattribution,disease staging triggering inappropriate avoidance),negative self-perception leading management struggles(illness fear diminishing self-efficacy,disease trauma eroding self-identity,knowledge deficiency constraining self-determination),functional impairment intensifying role challenges(role internalization undermining social function,social roles relinquishing dietary management),and external con-straints amplifying practical difficulties(family and friend oversight heightening dietary stress,healthcare gaps foster-ing practical helplessness,traditional beliefs restricting dietary exploration,economic hardship limiting balanced nu-trition).Conclusion The interplay of overattribution,negative self-perception,functional impairment,and external constraints in IBD patients hinders their ability to adapt to disease fluctuations,ensnaring them in the adaptive predicament of food avoidance behavior.Healthcare professionals should comprehensively address these factors by fostering accurate perceptions,enhancing psychological support,guiding effective coping strategies,and optimizing ex-ternal resources,thereby improving patients' overall adaptive capacity and promoting their recovery.
4.Experiences of food avoidance behavior in patients with inflammatory bowel disease:a qualitative study
Qingyu WANG ; Meijing ZHOU ; Yang LEI ; Sha LI ; Junyi GU ; Zheng LIN ; Qiugui BIAN ; Jiefeng YANG ; Lichen TANG ; Jiali CHEN ; Hantian CHENG
Chinese Journal of Nursing 2025;60(11):1323-1329
Objective This study applies Roy adaptation theory to deeply explore the experience of food avoid-ance behavior in patients with inflammatory bowel disease(IBD),offering insights for developing dietary management strategies.Methods A descriptive qualitative research method was employed.By purposive sampling,24 IBD pa-tients hospitalized in the gastroenterology department of a tertiary hospital in Nanjing from July 2022 to December 2024 were selected for semi-structured interviews.Data were analyzed using a directed content analysis approach.Results This study identified 4 main themes and 11 sub-themes,encompassing overattribution leading to inappro-priate avoidance(recurrent symptoms triggering overattribution,disease staging triggering inappropriate avoidance),negative self-perception leading management struggles(illness fear diminishing self-efficacy,disease trauma eroding self-identity,knowledge deficiency constraining self-determination),functional impairment intensifying role challenges(role internalization undermining social function,social roles relinquishing dietary management),and external con-straints amplifying practical difficulties(family and friend oversight heightening dietary stress,healthcare gaps foster-ing practical helplessness,traditional beliefs restricting dietary exploration,economic hardship limiting balanced nu-trition).Conclusion The interplay of overattribution,negative self-perception,functional impairment,and external constraints in IBD patients hinders their ability to adapt to disease fluctuations,ensnaring them in the adaptive predicament of food avoidance behavior.Healthcare professionals should comprehensively address these factors by fostering accurate perceptions,enhancing psychological support,guiding effective coping strategies,and optimizing ex-ternal resources,thereby improving patients' overall adaptive capacity and promoting their recovery.
5.Influencing factors and nursing enlightenment of the fear of progression in patients with inflammatory bowel disease:a latent profile analysis
Qingyu WANG ; Zheng LIN ; Yang LEI ; Meijing ZHOU ; Mi WANG ; Caiyun SUN ; Junyi GU ; Zhanhui ZHU ; Lichen TANG ; Qiugui BIAN
Chinese Journal of Nursing 2024;59(3):308-316
Objective To explore the potential categories and influencing factors of the fear of progression in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases(IBD).Methods IBD patients who received inpatient treatment in a tertiary hospital in Nanjing from July 2022 to July 2023 were selected as the study subjects by convenience sampling method.The General Demographic Information Questionnaire,the Chinese version of the Fear of Progression Questionnaire-Short Form(FoP-Q-SF),the Chinese version of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Self-efficacy Scale(IBD-SES),and Social Support Rating Scale(SSRS)were administered to the participants.We applied one-way ANOVA and Logistic regression analysis to identify the factors associated with the potential categories of the fear of progression.Results A total of 303 retumed questionnaires(out of the 310)were valid,resulting an effective response rate of 97.74%.According to the results of latent profile analysis,we classified the respondents into 3 categories by the fear of progression,namely"low risk fear of disease adaptation group"(n=127,41.91%),"medium risk fear of illness distress group"(n=139,45.88%),"high risk fear of dysfunction group"(n=37,12.21%).3 groups showed statistically significant differences in permanent address,self-rated financial pressure,current disease status and self-efficacy(P<0.05).Conclusion Patients with IBD had obvious differences in characteristics on the fear of progression.Nursing personnel should formulate personalized intervention strategies based on the classification characteristics of the fear of progression of IBD patients.Moreover,nurses should focus on improving patients'self-efficacy and promoting patients to treat medical care,stress and emotion management correctly.
6.Impact of insulin injection induced lipohypertrophy on multidimensional glucose variability in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus
Hong WANG ; Jian YU ; Meijing ZHOU ; Min SHEN ; Yun SHI ; Min ZHU ; Jing HANG ; Mei ZHANG ; Jingjing XU ; Tao YANG
Chinese Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 2023;39(3):236-241
Objective:This study aimed to investigate the effect of lipohypertrophy induced by insulin injection on blood glucose fluctuation in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus.Methods:A total of 80 patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus were recruited between June 2021 and December 2021 from the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. And these patients all received insulin injection more than six months. Lipohypertrophy was assessed by ultrasound scanning, and blood glucose fluctuation was evaluated using the flash glucose monitoring system(FGM). Univariate analysis and multivariate linear regression were used to analyze the relationship of lipohypertrophy and and core indicators of blood glucose fluctuation.Results:Compared with patients without lipohypertrophy, patients with lipohypertrophy had higher mean amplitude of glycemic excursions(MAGE), coefficient of variation(CV), mean of daily differences(MODD), standard deviation(SD) of blood glucose, time above range(TAR), and high blood glucose index(HBGI; all P<0.05), while time in range(TIR) of glucose markedly become lower( P<0.01). Moreover, multivariate linear regression analysis showed that lipohypertrophy detected by ultrasound was an independent influencing factor of TIR( β=-9.423, P=0.032), MAGE( β=1.114, P=0.039), CV( β=4.304, P=0.041), MODD( β=0.717, P=0.046) after adjusting for age at diagnosis, duration of insulin injection, fasting C-peptide, and daily dose of insulin per unit weight. Conclusion:Lipohypertrophy increases glycemic variability and imposes negative impact on glycemic control rate in patients type 1 diabetes mellitus.
7.Research progress of stimulus-responsive transdermal drug delivery systems
Meijing LIANG ; Hongxin NING ; Chuangchuang WANG ; Mengyi LI ; Wenbin HOU ; Yiliang LI ; Yang WANG
China Pharmacy 2023;34(16):2028-2033
Stimulus-responsive transdermal drug delivery systems can achieve specific drug release and improve drug utilization. According to the different stimulation modes, these preparations can be divided into endogenous stimulus-responsive, exogenous stimulus-responsive and combined stimulus-responsive transdermal drug delivery systems. The endogenous stimulation- responsive transdermal drug delivery system can respond specifically to changes in temperature and pH of the lesion site through carrier materials, so as to deliver drugs to the target site. Exogenous stimulus-responsive transdermal drug delivery system can use light, heat, magnetic, electric and other external stimulation to make the carrier material phase change, so as to achieve drug delivery. The combined stimulus-responsive transdermal drug delivery system is a combination of two or more stimulus-responsive percutaneous drug delivery systems, such as temperature-pH dual-responsive drug delivery system. At present, the relevant studies of stimulus-responsive transdermal drug delivery systems are mostly in the experimental stage, and further evaluation of stability, toxicity and skin irritation is needed in the future to lay a theoretical foundation for clinical application.
8.Association of Ego-depletion level with glycemic control and quality of life among adolescents with type 1 diabetes
Hong WANG ; Meijing ZHOU ; Jian YU ; Min SHEN ; Min ZHU ; Dan LUO ; Yun SHI ; Mei ZHANG ; Jingjing XU ; Tao YANG
Chinese Journal of Practical Nursing 2023;39(20):1569-1575
Objective:To investigate the ego-depletion level of adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and to explore its association with glycemic control and quality of life.Methods:This was a cross-sectional survey study. A total of 195 adolescents with T1DM were recruited from the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from March to September 2022 by convenient sampling method. The Self-Regulatory Fatigue Scale (SRF-S) and Short Form of the Chinese version Diabetes Quality of Life for Youth Scale (C-DQOLY-SF) and the general information questionnaire were collected and the glycated hemoglobin (HbA 1c) value was detected. Results:The total score of self-regulatory fatigue for 195 adolescents with T1DM was (42.23 ± 9.94) points, with a scoring rate of 52.79%, which was at a medium level. Pearson correlation analysis showed that the total score of self-regulatory fatigue was positively correlated with HbA1c ( r = 0.25, P<0.01), and negatively correlated with quality of life ( r = -0.61, P<0.01). The hierarchical linear regression results showed that after controlling for demographic sociolagy and disease variables, ego-depletion had a positive predictive effect on HbA1c ( t = 3.69, P<0.01), while ego-depletion had a negative predictive effect on Quality of life ( t = -8.48, P<0.01). Conclusions:Ego-depletion of adolescents with T1DM may affect their blood glucose control and quality of life, which should be noticed by medical workers.
9.New opportunities and challenges of natural products research: When target identification meets single-cell multiomics.
Yuyu ZHU ; Zijun OUYANG ; Haojie DU ; Meijing WANG ; Jiaojiao WANG ; Haiyan SUN ; Lingdong KONG ; Qiang XU ; Hongyue MA ; Yang SUN
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2022;12(11):4011-4039
Natural products, and especially the active ingredients found in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), have a thousand-year-long history of clinical use and a strong theoretical basis in TCM. As such, traditional remedies provide shortcuts for the development of original new drugs in China, and increasing numbers of natural products are showing great therapeutic potential in various diseases. This paper reviews the molecular mechanisms of action of natural products from different sources used in the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer, introduces the methods and newly emerging technologies used to identify and validate the targets of natural active ingredients, enumerates the expansive list of TCM used to treat inflammatory diseases and cancer, and summarizes the patterns of action of emerging technologies such as single-cell multiomics, network pharmacology, and artificial intelligence in the pharmacological studies of natural products to provide insights for the development of innovative natural product-based drugs. Our hope is that we can make use of advances in target identification and single-cell multiomics to obtain a deeper understanding of actions of mechanisms of natural products that will allow innovation and revitalization of TCM and its swift industrialization and internationalization.
10.Tyrosine phosphatase SHP2 inhibitors in tumor-targeted therapies.
Zhendong SONG ; Meijing WANG ; Yang GE ; Xue-Ping CHEN ; Ziyang XU ; Yang SUN ; Xiao-Feng XIONG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2021;11(1):13-29
Src homology containing protein tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP2) represents a noteworthy target for various diseases, serving as a well-known oncogenic phosphatase in cancers. As a result of the low cell permeability and poor bioavailability, the traditional inhibitors targeting the protein tyrosine phosphate catalytic sites are generally suffered from unsatisfactory applied efficacy. Recently, a particularly large number of allosteric inhibitors with striking inhibitory potency on SHP2 have been identified. In particular, few clinical trials conducted have made significant progress on solid tumors by using SHP2 allosteric inhibitors. This review summarizes the development and structure-activity relationship studies of the small-molecule SHP2 inhibitors for tumor therapies, with the purpose of assisting the future development of SHP2 inhibitors with improved selectivity, higher oral bioavailability and better physicochemical properties.

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