1.Phlorizin Ameliorates Glucose and Lipid Metabolism Disorders in T2DM Rats by Modulating IRS-1/PI3K/Akt Signaling Pathway
Nuer AILI ; Qingyu CAO ; Huan LIU ; Junwei HE ; Weihong ZHONG ; Lan CAO
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(3):139-148
ObjectiveTo observe the pharmacodynamic efficacy of phlorizin in improving hepatic glycolipid metabolism disorders in type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) rats and to explore its mechanism of action based on the insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1)/phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) signaling pathway. MethodsA high-fat diet and streptozotocin (STZ) were used to establish T2DM rat models. The rats were randomly assigned into six groups: the blank control group, model group, metformin group (300 mg·kg-1), and phlorizin high-dose (100 mg·kg-1) and low-dose groups (25 mg·kg-1). The rats were given intragastric administration for 6 weeks. The changes in body weight and fasting blood glucose (FBG) were observed, and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was carried out. The levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), glycated serum protein (GSP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in serum were detected by an automatic biochemical analyzer. The levels of fasting insulin (FINS), interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were detected by the biochemical assays. The pancreas index, liver index, and insulin resistance index were calculated. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was used to evaluate the pathological changes in liver and pancreatic tissues. The immunofluorescence method was used to detect the changes in insulin and glucagon in pancreatic tissue. Western blot was used to detect the expression of related proteins in the IRS-1/PI3K/Akt pathway of liver tissue and its downstream glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) and forkhead box transcription factor O1 (FoxO1) proteins. ResultsCompared with the blank control group, the body weight of rats in the model group continued to decrease, while the FBG level increased significantly. The area under the OGTT blood glucose curve (AUC), GSP, TC, TG, LDL-C, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, MDA, pancreatic index and liver index increased significantly, while the levels of HDL-C, SOD, and FINS decreased significantly (P0.05, P0.01). Histological results showed that the pancreatic islets of rats in the model group exhibited atrophy and severe structural abnormalities. The insulin-positive β-cells decreased significantly (P0.01), while the glucagon-positive α-cells increased significantly (P0.01). Inflammatory cell infiltration and partial necrosis were observed in the liver tissues of the model group rats. The expressions of p-IRS-1/IRS-1, p-GSK-3β/GSK-3β, and p-FoxO1/FoxO1 proteins in the liver of the model group increased significantly (P0.01), while the expressions of p-PI3K/PI3K and p-Akt/Akt proteins decreased significantly (P0.01). Compared with the model group, the diabetic symptoms of rats in all administration groups were improved. The changes in body weight and FBG were close to those of the blank control group. The levels of OGTT-AUC, GSP, TC, TG, LDL-C, MDA, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and the pancreatic index, liver index were obviously reduced (P0.05, P0.01), while the levels of HDL-C, SOD, and FINS obviously increased (P0.05, P0.01). The pathological changes of the pancreas and liver in rats in all treatment groups were effectively improved. The insulin-positive β-cells in the pancreas increased significantly (P0.01), while the glucagon-positive α-cells decreased significantly (P0.01). The protein expressions of p-IRS-1/IRS-1, p-GSK-3β/GSK-3β, and p-FoxO1/FoxO1 in the liver were significantly reduced (P0.01), while the protein expressions of p-PI3K/PI3K and p-Akt/Akt significantly increased (P0.01). ConclusionPhlorizin reversed the weight loss and abnormal increase of FBG in T2DM rats, improved blood lipid profiles, oxidative stress, and inflammatory levels, alleviated insulin resistance, and had certain protective effects on the liver and pancreas. The hypoglycemic mechanism may involve regulating the IRS-1/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway to inhibit the activities of GSK-3β and FoxO1, thereby promoting liver glycogen synthesis and suppressing hepatic gluconeogenesis, ultimately improving glycolipid metabolism disorders.
2.Phlorizin Ameliorates Glucose and Lipid Metabolism Disorders in T2DM Rats by Modulating IRS-1/PI3K/Akt Signaling Pathway
Nuer AILI ; Qingyu CAO ; Huan LIU ; Junwei HE ; Weihong ZHONG ; Lan CAO
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(3):139-148
ObjectiveTo observe the pharmacodynamic efficacy of phlorizin in improving hepatic glycolipid metabolism disorders in type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) rats and to explore its mechanism of action based on the insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1)/phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) signaling pathway. MethodsA high-fat diet and streptozotocin (STZ) were used to establish T2DM rat models. The rats were randomly assigned into six groups: the blank control group, model group, metformin group (300 mg·kg-1), and phlorizin high-dose (100 mg·kg-1) and low-dose groups (25 mg·kg-1). The rats were given intragastric administration for 6 weeks. The changes in body weight and fasting blood glucose (FBG) were observed, and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was carried out. The levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), glycated serum protein (GSP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in serum were detected by an automatic biochemical analyzer. The levels of fasting insulin (FINS), interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were detected by the biochemical assays. The pancreas index, liver index, and insulin resistance index were calculated. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was used to evaluate the pathological changes in liver and pancreatic tissues. The immunofluorescence method was used to detect the changes in insulin and glucagon in pancreatic tissue. Western blot was used to detect the expression of related proteins in the IRS-1/PI3K/Akt pathway of liver tissue and its downstream glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) and forkhead box transcription factor O1 (FoxO1) proteins. ResultsCompared with the blank control group, the body weight of rats in the model group continued to decrease, while the FBG level increased significantly. The area under the OGTT blood glucose curve (AUC), GSP, TC, TG, LDL-C, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, MDA, pancreatic index and liver index increased significantly, while the levels of HDL-C, SOD, and FINS decreased significantly (P0.05, P0.01). Histological results showed that the pancreatic islets of rats in the model group exhibited atrophy and severe structural abnormalities. The insulin-positive β-cells decreased significantly (P0.01), while the glucagon-positive α-cells increased significantly (P0.01). Inflammatory cell infiltration and partial necrosis were observed in the liver tissues of the model group rats. The expressions of p-IRS-1/IRS-1, p-GSK-3β/GSK-3β, and p-FoxO1/FoxO1 proteins in the liver of the model group increased significantly (P0.01), while the expressions of p-PI3K/PI3K and p-Akt/Akt proteins decreased significantly (P0.01). Compared with the model group, the diabetic symptoms of rats in all administration groups were improved. The changes in body weight and FBG were close to those of the blank control group. The levels of OGTT-AUC, GSP, TC, TG, LDL-C, MDA, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and the pancreatic index, liver index were obviously reduced (P0.05, P0.01), while the levels of HDL-C, SOD, and FINS obviously increased (P0.05, P0.01). The pathological changes of the pancreas and liver in rats in all treatment groups were effectively improved. The insulin-positive β-cells in the pancreas increased significantly (P0.01), while the glucagon-positive α-cells decreased significantly (P0.01). The protein expressions of p-IRS-1/IRS-1, p-GSK-3β/GSK-3β, and p-FoxO1/FoxO1 in the liver were significantly reduced (P0.01), while the protein expressions of p-PI3K/PI3K and p-Akt/Akt significantly increased (P0.01). ConclusionPhlorizin reversed the weight loss and abnormal increase of FBG in T2DM rats, improved blood lipid profiles, oxidative stress, and inflammatory levels, alleviated insulin resistance, and had certain protective effects on the liver and pancreas. The hypoglycemic mechanism may involve regulating the IRS-1/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway to inhibit the activities of GSK-3β and FoxO1, thereby promoting liver glycogen synthesis and suppressing hepatic gluconeogenesis, ultimately improving glycolipid metabolism disorders.
3.Characteristic volatile organic compounds in exhaled breath of coal workers' pneumoconiosis patients by thermal desorption gas chromatography-mass spectrometry
Yazhen HE ; Chunguang DING ; Junyun WANG ; Yuzhen FENG ; Fangda PENG ; Gaisheng LIU ; Fan YANG ; Chunmin ZHANG ; Rui GAO ; Qingyu MENG ; Zhijun WU ; Jingguang FAN
Journal of Environmental and Occupational Medicine 2025;42(5):571-577
Background Coal workers' pneumoconiosis is a serious occupational disease in China. Exhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can serve as the "breath fingerprint" of internal pathological processes, which provides a theoretical basis for exhaled VOCs to be used as potential non-invasive biomarkers for early diagnosis of coal workers' pneumoconiosis. Objective To screen out the characteristic VOCs and important characteristic VOCs of exhaled air in patients with coal workers' pneumoconiosis, and to explore the potential of these VOCs as biomarkers for early non-invasive diagnosis of the disease. Methods In this study, 27 VOCs in the exhaled breath of 22 patients with stage I coal workers' pneumoconiosis, 77 workers exposed to dust, and 92 healthy controls were quantitatively detected by thermal desorption gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS). Substances with P<0.05 in univariate analysis and variable importance projection (VIP) >1 in supervised orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) model were selected as the characteristic VOCs for early diagnosis of coal workers' pneumoconiosis. Age was included in the LASSO regression model as a covariate to screen out important characteristic VOCs, and the diagnostic performance was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Spearman correlation was further used to explore the correlation between important characteristic VOCs and clinical lung function indicators. Results Through univariate analysis and OPLS-DA modeling, 8 VOCs were selected, including 2-methylpentane, 3-methylpentane, n-hexane, methylcyclopentane, n-heptane, methylcyclohexane, 4-methyl-2-pentanone, and 2-hexanone, in exhaled breath of patients with coal workers' pneumoconiosis. The concentrations of 4 VOCs, including 3-methylpentane, n-hexane, 4-methyl-2-pentanone, and 2-hexanone, showed a decreasing trend with the increase of dust exposure years. By LASSO regression, the important characteristic VOCs of the coal workers' pneumoconiosis group and the dust exposure group were n-hexane, methylcyclohexane and 4-methyl-2-pentanone, and the important characteristic VOCs of the coal workers' pneumoconiosis group and the healthy group were 2-methyl-pentane and 4-methyl-2-pentanone. The ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of n-hexane, methylcyclohexane, and 4-methyl-2-pentanone were 0.969, 0.909, and 0.956, respectively, and the AUC of combined diagnosis was 0.988 and its Youden index was 0.961, suggesting that these results can serve as a valuable reference for further research on early diagnosis. The Correlation analysis found that there was a positive correlation between n-hexane and lung function indicators in the important characteristic VOCs, indicating that it could indirectly reflect the obstruction of lung function ventilation, further proving that important characteristic VOCs have the potential to monitor lung function decline. Conclusion Three important characteristic VOCs selected in this study have the potential to be used as non-invasive biomarkers for early diagnosis and disease monitoring of coal workers' pneumoconiosis, and are worthy of further study and verification.
4.Application and progress of intelligent responsive hydrogels in articular cartilage injury repair.
Qingyu XU ; Baojian ZHANG ; Hongri LI ; Chengri LIU ; Shuhao BI ; Zhixiang YANG ; Yanqun LIU
Chinese Journal of Reparative and Reconstructive Surgery 2025;39(2):250-256
OBJECTIVE:
To review clinical application and research progress of different types of intelligent responsive hydrogels in repairing articular cartilage injury.
METHODS:
The animal experiments and clinical studies of different types of intelligent responsive hydrogels for repairing articular cartilage injury were summarized by reviewing relevant literature at home and abroad.
RESULTS:
The intrinsic regenerative capacity of articular cartilage following injury is limited. Intelligent responsive hydrogels, including those that are temperature-sensitive, light-sensitive, enzyme-responsive, pH-sensitive, and other stimuli-responsive hydrogels, can undergo phase transitions in response to specific stimuli, thereby achieving optimal functionality. These hydrogels can fill the injured cartilage area, promote the proliferation and differentiation of chondrocytes, and expedite the repair of the damaged site. With advancements in cartilage tissue engineering materials research, intelligent responsive hydrogels offer a novel approach and promising potential for the treatment of cartilage injuries.
CONCLUSION
Intelligent responsive hydrogel is a kind of flexible, controllable, efficient, and stable polymer, which has similar structure and functional properties to articular cartilage, and has become one of the important biomaterials for cartilage repair. However, there is still a lack of unified treatment standards and simple and efficient preparation technology.
Hydrogels/therapeutic use*
;
Cartilage, Articular/injuries*
;
Tissue Engineering/methods*
;
Humans
;
Animals
;
Chondrocytes/cytology*
;
Biocompatible Materials/chemistry*
;
Tissue Scaffolds/chemistry*
5.Synthesis and evaluation of TSPO-targeting radioligand 18FF-TFQC for PET neuroimaging in epileptic rats.
Wenhui FU ; Qingyu LIN ; Zhequan FU ; Tingting YANG ; Dai SHI ; Pengcheng MA ; Hongxing SU ; Yunze WANG ; Guobing LIU ; Jing DING ; Hongcheng SHI ; Dengfeng CHENG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(2):722-736
The translocator protein (TSPO) positron emission tomography (PET) can noninvasively detect neuroinflammation associated with epileptogenesis and epilepsy. This study explored the role of the TSPO-targeting radioligand [18F]F-TFQC, an m-trifluoromethyl ER176 analog, in the PET neuroimaging of epileptic rats. Initially, [18F]F-TFQC was synthesized with a radiochemical yield of 8%-10% (EOS), a radiochemical purity of over 99%, and a specific activity of 38.21 ± 1.73 MBq/nmol (EOS). After determining that [18F]F-TFQC exhibited good biochemical properties, [18F]F-TFQC PET neuroimaging was performed in epileptic rats at multiple time points in various stages of disease progression. PET imaging showed specific [18F]F-TFQC uptake in the right hippocampus (KA-injected site, i.e., epileptogenic zone), which was most pronounced at 1 week (T/NT 1.63 ± 0.21) and 1 month (T/NT 1.66 ± 0.20). The PET results were further validated using autoradiography and pathological analysis. Thus, [18F]F-TFQC can reflect the TSPO levels and localize the epileptogenic zone, thereby offering the potential for monitoring neuroinflammation and guiding anti-inflammatory treatment in patients with epilepsy.
6.Expert consensus on local anesthesia application in pediatric dental therapies.
Yan WANG ; Jing ZOU ; Yang JI ; Jun WANG ; Bin XIA ; Wei ZHAO ; Li'an WU ; Guangtai SONG ; Yuan LIU ; Xu CHEN ; Jiajian SHANG ; Qin DU ; Qingyu GUO ; Beizhan JIANG ; Hongmei ZHANG ; Xianghui XING ; Yanhong LI
West China Journal of Stomatology 2025;43(4):455-461
Dental treatments for children and adolescents have unique clinical characteristics that differ from dental care for adults in terms of children's physiology, psychology, and behavior. These differences impose specific requirements on the application of local anesthesia in pediatric dental procedures. This article presents expert consensus on the principles of local anesthesia techniques in pediatric dental therapies, including the use of common anesthetic drugs and dosage control, safety and efficacy evaluation, and prevention and management of complications. The aim is to improve the safety and quality of pediatric dental treatments and offer guidance for clinical application by dentists.
Humans
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Child
;
Anesthesia, Local/methods*
;
Consensus
;
Anesthesia, Dental/methods*
;
Adolescent
;
Anesthetics, Local/administration & dosage*
;
Dental Care for Children
7.Clinical efficacy of in-situ crown reattachment technique combined with pulpotomy in the treatment of complica-ted crown-root fractures of young permanent anterior teeth.
Xuelong SU ; Qingyu GUO ; Meiyue REN ; Fei LIU
West China Journal of Stomatology 2025;43(4):499-504
OBJECTIVES:
This study aimed to evaluate the clinical application value of in-situ crown reattachment technique combined with pulpotomy in the treatment of complicated crown-root fractures in young permanent anterior teeth.
METHODS:
A prospective study was conducted on 50 children with complicated crown-root fractures in young permanent anterior teeth, who were treated at the Pediatric Dentistry Department, Hospital of Stomatology, Xi'an Jiaotong University from June 2023 to June 2024. All patients underwent in-situ crown reattachment technique combined with pulpotomy. Clinical examinations, radiographic evaluations, and subjective satisfaction surveys (using a Likert scale of 1-10) were conducted at 1, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. Data were analyzed using SPSS 23.0.
RESULTS:
The loss-to-follow-up rate was 12% (6/50), with 44 cases completing the 12 months of evaluation. The clinical success rate was 93.18% (41/44), and the radiographic success rate was 97.73% (43/44). The subjective satisfaction scores showed a significant improvement in masticatory function from 7.03±0.52 at 1 month to 8.07±0.92 at 12 months postoperatively (P<0.05), whereas the scores for aesthetics, comfort, and quality-of-life impact showed no statistically significant differences (P>0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
In-situ crown reattachment technique combined with pulpotomy effectively treats complicated crown-root fractures in young permanent anterior teeth, demonstrating a high short-term clinical success rate, significantly improved masticatory function, and minimally invasive preservation of pulp vitality and root development potential. This technique provides an optimized treatment option for dental trauma in children, although its long-term efficacy requires further validation.
Humans
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Pulpotomy
;
Tooth Fractures/surgery*
;
Child
;
Prospective Studies
;
Male
;
Female
;
Tooth Root/injuries*
;
Tooth Crown/injuries*
;
Treatment Outcome
;
Incisor/injuries*
;
Child, Preschool
8.Analysis of the molecular epidemiological characteristics of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in a hospital in Hunan Province
Xingwang NING ; Yongxue TANG ; Siyu WANG ; Xiaomei WANG ; Huibin ZHU ; Xiaobing XIE ; Qingyu LIU
Chinese Journal of Preventive Medicine 2024;58(7):1041-1047
To examine the molecular epidemiology of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) and investigate the horizontal transmission of blaKPC and blaNDM genes for the prevention and treatment of CRKP. A total of 49 clinically isolated CRKP strains were retrospectively analyzed from January to December 2022 at The First Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine. Phenotypic screening was performed using modified carbapenem inactivation assay (mCIM) and EDTA-carbapenem inactivation assay (eCIM). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was utilized to identify carbapenem resistance genes, β-lactamase resistance genes, and virulence genes, while multi-locus sequence analysis (MLST) was employed to assess the homology of CRKP strains. Conjugation experiments were conducted to infer the horizontal transmission mechanism of blaKPC and blaNDM genes. The results showed that the study included 49 CRKP strains, with 44 carrying blaKPC and 8 carrying blaNDM, Three strains were identified as blaKPC+ blaNDM-CRKP. In this study, 28 out of 49 CRKP strains (57.2%) were found to carry virulence genes. Additionally, one CRKP strain tested positive in the string test and was found to carry both Aerobactin and rmpA virulence genes. MLST results revealed a total of 5 ST types, with ST11 being predominant (41/49, 83.7%). Successful conjugation was observed in all 3 blaKPC-CRKP strains, while only 1 out of 3 blaNDM-CRKP strains showed successful conjugation. The transconjugant exhibited significantly reduced susceptibility to imipenem and cephalosporin antibiotics. In conclusion, the resistance mechanism of CRKP in this study is primarily attributed to the production of KPC enzymes, along with the presence of multiple β-lactamase resistance genes. Additionally, there is a local prevalence of hv-CRKP and blaKPC+ blaNDM-CRKP. blaKPC and blaNDM can be horizontally transmitted through plasmids, with varying efficiency among different strains.
9.Research Progress of Regulating Mechanism and Traditional Chinese Medicine Intervention of Iron Lipid Metabolic Disorder Based on Ferroptosis
Shuwen WANG ; Xufeng BAI ; Qingyu CAO ; Yali LIU ; Huiming HU ; Yanchen ZHU
Herald of Medicine 2024;43(11):1816-1821
Ferroptosis is a form of iron-dependent cell death caused by a disorder of iron lipid metabolism.Its mechanism mainly includes lipid metabolism and iron metabolism,which are complicated and strictly regulated by various metabolic and signaling pathways.Current studies have shown that ferroptosis is associated with cancer,atherosclerosis,and neurological diseases.Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)is characterized by various active ingredients,relatively high safety,and lower treatment costs,which possess unique advantages in clinical applications.It has been widely used in the treatment of various diseases.Taking the regulation of ferroptosis by traditional Chinese medicine as the entry point may be a new direction for the future prevention and treatment of various diseases.In this review,we discussed the mechanism of iron lipid metabolic disorders based on ferroptosis and the research progress of traditional Chinese medicine intervention to provide reference and treatment strategies for the prevention and treatment of related diseases.
10.The hard tissue thickness of primary teeth studied by CBCT
Panxi WANG ; Jinyi LI ; Zhengyang LI ; Shuqi ZHANG ; Qingyu GUO ; Fei LIU
Journal of Practical Stomatology 2024;40(5):703-707
Objective:To analyze the hard tissue thickness in the crown of primary teeth by CBCT.Methods:The CBCT imaging data of 47 children were included,and the hard tissue thickness of primary teeth was measured by MIMICS software.SPSS 22.0 was used for data analysis.Results:The average thickness in the mesial surfaces was the smallest(P<0.01),except for the libial surface of maxillary central incisor and the distal surface of mandibular first primary molar.In primary anteriors,the thickness in the same sur-face of maxillary teeth was greater than that of mandibular teeth significantly(P<0.01)except for the libial surface of primary canine.In primary molars,the thickness of hard tissue in the same part of the distal and lingual side of the maxillary teeth was greater than that of the mandibular teeth(P<0.01),and the thickness in the buccal side of maxillary teeth was lower than that of the mandibular teeth(P<0.01).Conclusion:The distribution of hard tissue thickness of primary teeth in different position is different.

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