ObjectiveTo investigate the role of the Toll-like receptor 4 （TLR4）/myeloid differentiation factor 88 （MyD88）/nuclear factor-κB （NF-κB） signaling pathway in intestinal mucosal barrier damage in ulcerative colitis， as well as the intervention mechanism of Shaoyaotang. MethodsSixty SD rats were allocated into a blank group， a model group， a mesalazine （0.42 g·kg^-1） group， and low-， medium-， and high-dose （11.1， 22.2， 44.4 g·kg^-1， respectively） Shaoyaotang groups. A model of ulcerative colitis was induced by 2，4，6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid （TNBS）. After successful modeling， rats were administrated with corresponding agents via gavage for 7 days. Changes in colon length and colon weight were observed. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was performed to examine the pathological changes of the colon， and immunohistochemistry was employed to detect the expression of the inflammatory cytokine interleukin-8 （IL-8）， cyclooxygenase-2 （COX-2）， junction adhesion molecule-1 （JAM-1）， and claudin-1 in the colon. Western blot analysis was performed to determine the protein levels of TLR4， MyD88， and NF-κB in the colon. ResultsCompared with the blank group， the model group showed elevated DAI score （P<0.01）， reduced colon length and colon weight （P<0.01）， down-regulated protein levels of JAM-1 and claudin-1 （P<0.01）， and up-regulated protein levels of IL-8， COX-2， TLR4， MyD88， and NF-κB p65 （P<0.01） in the colon tissue. Compared with the model group， each treatment group showed decreased DAI score （P<0.05， P<0.01）， increased colon length and colon weight （P<0.05， P<0.01）， up-regulated protein levels of JAM-1 and claudin-1 （P<0.01）， and down-regulated protein levels of IL-8， COX-2， TLR4， MyD88， and NF-κB p65 （P<0.01） in the colon tissue. ConclusionShaoyaotang alleviates intestinal inflammation and intestinal mucosal damage to protect intestinal barrier integrity by regulating the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway.

BackgroundLow medication compliance among patients with severe mental disorders increases the disease burden on both the patients' families and the society. Medication adherence is influenced by numerous factors. Traditional methods such as Logistic regression struggle to quantify the importance of these factors. By introducing Extreme Gradient Boosting （XGBoost） combined with Shapley Additive Explanations （SHAP）， enables the quantification of the relative contribution weights of each factor， providing support for identifying the core influencing factors. ObjectiveTo explore the influencing factors of medication adherence among patients with severe mental disorders in Zhuhai， aiming to provide references for optimizing patient management strategies. MethodsExtract the data of patients with severe mental disorders who were registered on the mental health system platform in Zhuhai City from January 1， 2023 to March 31， 2025. A total of 9 329 patients were finally included for analysis. Influencing factors were screened using univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis， and an XGBoost model combined with the SHAP algorithm was constructed to quantify the importance of each influencing factor. ResultsAmong 9 329 patients， 8 446 demonstrated medication adherence， yielding an adherence rate of 90.53%. Multivariable analysis identified several risk factors significantly associated with medication non-adherence， being unmarried （OR=1.237， 95% CI： 1.019–1.502） or divorced （OR=1.389， 95% CI： 1.038–1.832）， a diagnosis of mental retardation with psychiatric disorders （OR=3.025， 95% CI： 2.402–3.796） or paranoid psychosis （OR=5.117， 95% CI： 3.086–8.299）， a disease duration of 2–4 years （OR=1.355， 95% CI： 1.085–1.696）， 4–6 years （OR=2.143， 95% CI： 1.671–2.747）， or >6 years （OR=1.681， 95% CI： 1.365–2.079）， lack of guardian subsidies （OR=1.412， 95% CI： 1.099–1.801）， absence of a disability certificate （OR=1.900， 95% CI： 1.588–2.282）， not being enrolled in care and support groups （OR=1.384， 95% CI： 1.183–1.617） or community services （OR=1.313， 95% CI： 1.042–1.645）， and not cohabiting with a guardian （OR=1.257， 95% CI： 1.048–1.501）. Conversely， the enrollment in special outpatient disease programs （OR=0.716， 95% CI： 0.609–0.842） and a family history of mental illness （OR=0.713， 95% CI： 0.503–0.982） were identified as protective factors. The XGBoost model exhibited robust predictive performance， with a sensitivity of 0.433， specificity of 0.944， accuracy of 0.891， Area Under the Curve （AUC） of 0.837， and F1 value of 0.449. Feature importance ranking indicated that the top three factors were disease duration， diagnosis， and the acquisition of disability certificates. ConclusionPolicy-based support （acquisition of disability certificates， special outpatient disease enrollment） and clinical disease characteristics （disease duration， diagnosis type） are key factors affecting medication adherence among patients with severe mental disorders in Zhuhai City. ［Funded by Zhuhai Medical Research Project （number， 2220009000281）］

Objective To introduce the calculation of the DISO index in multi-dimensional data ranking for disease surveillance, and evaluate its applicability. Methods Using the data from the quality supervision and inspection of infectious disease reporting in Jingzhou City in a certain year as an example, the DISO index was used to rank 16 investigated medical institutions and compared with the TOPSIS method. The consistency between the two evaluation results was analyzed using Spearman correlation. Then, The DISO index from different medical institutions was used to evaluate the ranking of 8 counties (cities, districts). The evaluation indicators for the supervision and inspection included six items: report rate, timely report rate, completeness of report card filling, accuracy of report card filling, consistency rate with network information report, and completeness of valid ID number filling. Results Among the 16 medical institutions, 8 institutions had all six evaluation indicators at 100%. Using the two methods to rank the 16 medical institutions, the two methods showed that the 8 medical institutions with all six evaluation indicators at 100% were ranked first. There was a strong correlation between the rankings of the 16 medical institutions using the two methods (r_s=0.992, P=0.000). The three counties (cities, districts) with all six evaluation indicators at 100% were all ranked first, while country G was ranked seventh and country E was ranked eighth. Conclusion The results of the DISO index and the TOPSIS method were similar in one-dimensional ranking. DISO can be used for multi-dimensional ranking of disease surveillance data and deserves to be promoted and applied.

Objective:To analyze the values of platelet transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and SMAD family member 2 (Smad2) in patients′ peripheral platelets for CRC diagnosis and staging.Methods:Retrospective case-control study. Tumor tissues, paratumor tissues and peripheral blood samples were collected from 248 CRC patients (147 males, 101 females; age 21-93 years) diagnosed in the First Hospital of Jilin University from October 10th, 2020, to March 10th, 2025. Peripheral blood samples were also collected from 40 colorectal adenomatous polyp patients (21 males, 19 females; age 22-74 years) and 75 healthy individuals (43 males, 32 females; age 18-81 years) during the same period. Tissue homogenates and platelets were isolated using tissue disruption and gradient centrifugation, respectively. Total RNA was respectively extracted from tissues and platelets, and the expression levels of TGF-β and Smad2 were quantified by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) expressed as relative quantity 2 -ΔΔCt. Differences of TGF-β and Smad2 expression were compared between CRC tissues and adjacent tissues, as well as among CRC patients, polyp patients, and healthy controls. The relationship of platelet TGF-β and Smad2 expression with pathological features includingtumor stage, pathological type, and metastasis were analyzed. The efficiency of platelet TGF-β, Smad2, and their combination in diagnosing CRC was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Results:The expression levels of TGF-β and Smad2 in CRC tumor tissues[1.09 (0.45, 2.00), 2.93 (0.78, 6.73)] were significantly higher than those in adjacent tissues[0.81 (0.27, 1.50), 1.29 (0.40, 2.63)] ( Z TGF-β=4.54, Z Smad2=6.67, both P<0.001). The expression levels of TGF-β and Smad2 in platelets of CRC patients[2.73(1.53, 4.38), 3.16 (1.58, 4.38)] were significantly higher than those in the colorectal polyp group[1.23(0.70, 2.54), 1.16(0.78, 2.27)] and the healthy control group[0.96(0.51, 1.88), 0.92 (0.55, 1.88)] ( H TGF-β=59.71, H Smad2=78.74, both P<0.001). Platelet TGF-β expression increased progressively with tumor stage (stage 1-4) ( P<0.05), while platelet Smad2 levels were higher in metastatic CRC compared with non-metastatic cases ( P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) for diagnosing CRC when combining platelet TGF-β and Smad2 was 0.81[95%Confidence interval( CI) 0.77—0.86], which was 0.90 (95% CI 0.86—0.93) if adding serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). Conclusion:Platelet TGF-β and Smad2 expression correlates with the diagnosis and staging of CRC, demonstrating potential as liquid biopsy biomarkers for colorectal malignancies.

Endometriosis(EMs)is a common estrogen-depend-ent clinical disease with the pathological characteristics of malig-nant tumors,which has great impact on women's physical and mental health.In recent years,experimental exploration has re-vealed that ectopic foci are in a hypoxic environment outside the uterine cavity,and mitochondria,as the"functional factories"of the cells,play an important role in the process of planting and in-vasion,and the mitochondrial quality control system,which in-cludes mitochondrial oxidative stress,kinetics,autophagy,bio-genesis and calcium homeostasis,is a key mechanism for the e-quilibrium of the mitochondrial function.The mitochondrial quality control system,including mitochondrial oxidative stress kinetics,autophagy,biogenesis and calcium homeostasis,is a key mechanism for mitochondrial functional balance.Therefore,to clarify the role of the mitochondrial quality control system in the development of EMs with the help of rational and rigorous experi-mental and clinical studies can not only help to clarify the patho-genesis of the disease,but also explore the key targets in the prevention and treatment of the disease.Therefore,this article summarizes the research progress of mitochondrial quality control system in endometriosis,with a view to providing reference and theoretical basis for the etiology,pathogenesis and prevention strategies of EMs.

OBJECTIVE: Peritoneal fibrosis (PF) is an adverse event that occurs during long-term peritoneal dialysis, significantly impairing treatment efficiency and adversely affecting patient outcomes. Astragaloside IV (AS-IV), a principal active component derived from Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge, has exhibited anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic effects in various settings. This study aims to investigate the potential therapeutic efficacy and mechanism of AS-IV in the treatment of PF. METHODS: The PF mouse model was established by intraperitoneal injection of 4.25% peritoneal dialysis fluid (100 mL/kg). The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of HMrSV5 cells was induced by the addition of 10 ng/mL transforming growth factor β (TGF-β). The differentially expressed genes in HMrSV5 cells treated with AS-IV were screened using transcriptome sequencing analysis. The potential targets of AS-IV were screened using network pharmacology and analyzed using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations. RESULTS: Administration of AS-IV at doses of 20, 40, or 80 mg/kg effectively mitigated the increase in peritoneal thickness and the development of fibrosis in mice with PF. The expression of the fibrosis marker α-smooth muscle actin in the peritoneum was significantly decreased in AS-IV-treated mice. The treatment of AS-IV (10, 20, and 40 μmol/L) significantly delayed the EMT of HMrSV5 cells induced by TGF-β, as demonstrated by the decreased number of 5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine-positive cells, reduced migrated area, and decreased expression of fibrosis markers. A total of 460 differentially expressed genes were detected in AS-IV-treated HMrSV5 cells through transcriptome sequencing, with notable enrichment in the phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase (PI3K)-AKT serine/threonine kinase 1 (AKT) signaling pathway. The reduced levels of phosphorylated PI3K (p-PI3K) and p-AKT were detected in HMrSV5 cells with AS-IV treatment. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) was predicted as a direct target of AS-IV, exhibiting strong hydrogen bond interactions. The activation of the PI3K-AKT pathway by the compound 740Y-P, and the activation of the EGFR pathway by NSC 228155 each partially counteracted the inhibitory effect of AS-IV on the EMT of HMrSV5 cells. CONCLUSION AS-IV delayed the EMT process in peritoneal mesothelial cells and slowed the progression of PF, potentially serving as a therapeutic agent for the early prevention and treatment of PF. Please cite this article as: Huang Y, Chu CL, Qiu WH, Chen JY, Cao LX, Ji SY, Zhu B, Wang GK, Shen QQ. Astragaloside IV delayed the epithelial-mesenchymal transition in peritoneal fibrosis by inhibiting the activation of EGFR and PI3K-AKT pathways. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(6):694-705.
Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition/drug effects* ; Animals ; Saponins/pharmacology* ; Triterpenes/pharmacology* ; Mice ; Peritoneal Fibrosis/pathology* ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt/metabolism* ; ErbB Receptors/metabolism* ; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases/metabolism* ; Signal Transduction/drug effects* ; Male ; Humans ; Molecular Docking Simulation ; Cell Line ; Mice, Inbred C57BL

OBJECTIVE: Cancer remains a significant global health challenge, necessitating the development of effective treatment approaches. Developing synergistic therapy can provide a highly promising strategy for anti-cancer treatment through combining the benefits of various mechanisms. METHODS: In this study, we developed a synergistic strategy for chemo-photothermal therapy by constructing nanocomposites using gold nanorods (GNRs) and tetrahedral framework nucleic acids (tFNA) loaded with the anti-tumor drug doxorubicin (DOX). RESULTS: Our in vitro studies have systematically clarified the anti-cancer behaviors of tFNA-DOX@GNR nanocomposites, characterized by their enhanced cellular uptake and proficient lysosomal escape capabilities. It was found that the key role of tFNA-DOX@GNR nanocomposites in tumor ablation is primarily due to their capacity to induce cytotoxicity in tumor cells via a photothermal effect, which generates instantaneous high temperatures. This mechanism introduces various responses in tumor cells, facilitated by the thermal effect and the integrated chemotherapeutic action of DOX. These reactions include the induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress, characterized by elevated reactive oxygen species levels, the promotion of apoptotic cell death, and the suppression of tumor cell proliferation. CONCLUSION This work exhibits the potential of synergistic therapy utilizing nanocomposites for cancer treatment and offers a promising avenue for future therapeutic strategies.
Doxorubicin/chemistry* ; Gold/chemistry* ; Nanotubes/chemistry* ; Humans ; Nanocomposites/chemistry* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Nucleic Acids/chemistry* ; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic/pharmacology* ; Antineoplastic Agents/administration & dosage*

To analyze the clinical data of patients with recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection(rCDI)in the southwestern region,and help clinicians identify high-risk populations early and adopt appropriate treatment strate-gies.Methods Clinical data of rCDI cases from a tertiary first-class hospital in southwest China from July 2019 to June 2024 were collected,and their host-related risk factors,exogenous risk factors,treatment schemes,and end-point outcomes were analyzed.Results In the past five years,a total of 26 cases of rCDI were detected from a ter-tiary first-class hospital in southwest China,accounting for 4.04％of the total positive cases(n=643)detected during the same period.19.23％of the recurrent patients experienced a second recurrence.The median age of rCDI patients was 66.5 years old,with males accounting for 73.08％.The major comorbidity included diabetes mellitus(34.62％),malignant tumors(30.77％),and chronic renal diseases(23.08％).In the 8 weeks before the first on-set of rCDI in patients,the top three drugs used were β-lactam and enzyme inhibitor compound(69.23％),proton pump inhibitors(65.38％),and carbapenems(46.15％).In the initial treatment of recurrent patients,3.85％(1/26)of the cases were treated with metronidazole,19.23％(5/26)of the cases received non-standard vancomy-cin/norvancomycin treatment in usage or dosage,46.15％(12/26)of the cases received treatment with course less than 10 days.In the treatment of the first recurrence,34.78％(8/26)of the cases received treatment with course less than 10 days.Conclusion For elderly patients and patients with diabetes mellitus,malignant tumors,and chronic renal diseases,who have used β-lactam and enzyme inhibitor compound,proton pump inhibitors,carbapene-ms within 8 weeks before disease onset,standard dose and treatment course of vancomycin or norvancomycin are recommended under permitted conditions,so as to reduce the risk of recurrence.

The incidence of chronic venous disease(CVD)is significantly higher in the elderly population compared to non-elderly individuals,with more severe disease manifestations.Additionally,elderly CVD patients often have comorbid conditions such as cardiovascular diseases,making the evaluation process more complex and increasing treatment difficulty.Currently,there are no established recommendations in China for the diagnosis and treatment of CVD in individuals aged 60 and above.Against this backdrop,the Peripheral Vascular Disease Management Branch of the Chinese Geriatric Society has developed the Chinese Expert Consensus on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic Venous Disease in the Elderly based on domestic and international guidelines,relevant evidence-based medical research,and the physiological and clinical characteristics of the elderly population in China.This consensus aims to provide an important reference for improving the diagnosis and treatment of CVD in elderly patients in China.

In recent years,organs-on-chips(OOCs)technology has gradually matured and been recognized by regulatory agencies,playing a key role in the construction of pathophysiological models,pharmacodynamic screening,toxicological evaluation and other fields,providing guidance for the research and development of innovative drugs of Chinese materia medica and the clinical application of classic prescriptions.This article reviewed the application progress of OOCs technology in the research of Chinese materia medica from four dimensions:pharmacodynamic and toxicological evaluation,quality control,active component analysis and innovative drug research and development,in order to provide a reference for the precise application of this technology in the field of Chinese materia medica.