ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of retention enema with Huangling Jiedu Xiezhuo granules（HJXG） on Nod-like receptor protein 3（NLRP3）， intestinal flora， and short-term prognosis in patients with gout. MethodsA total of 60 patients with gout admitted to the hospital from January 2021 to December 2023 were selected and divided into a control group and an observation group according to the random number table method， with 30 cases in each group. The control group was treated with febuxostat， and the observation group was treated with retention enema with HJXG on the basis of the control group. After 14 days of continuous treatment， the clinical efficacy， traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndrome score， and visual analogue scale （VAS） pain index of the two groups were compared， and serum creatinine（SCr）， blood urea nitrogen（BUN）， uric acid（UA）， cystatin C（CysC）， β₂- microglobulin（β₂-MG）， glomerular filtration rate test（GFR）， creatinine clearance rate （Ccr）， erythrocyte sedimentation rate（ESR）， hypersensitive C-reactive protein，（hs-CRP）， interleukin 6（IL-6）， interleukin-1β（IL-1β）， interleukin-18 （IL-18）， NLRP3 inflammasome levels， and the number of intestinal flora were detected in the two groups. The prognosis of patients was followed up within 12 weeks. COX regression analysis was used to analyze the effect of short-term prognosis. ResultsAfter treatment， TCM syndrome scores and VAS pain index in both groups were reduced （P<0.05）， and TCM syndrome scores in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group. After treatment， ESR， hs-CRP， IL-6， NLRP3， IL-18， and IL-1β were significantly decreased in both groups （P<0.01）， and the levels of IL-6， ESR， NLRP3， and IL-18 were significantly improved in the observation group compared with the control group （P<0.05）. BUN， SCr， UA， β₂-MG， GFR indexes in both groups were significantly lower after treatment， Ccr indexes in both groups were significantly higher after treatment， and the levels of SCr， UA， CysC， and Ccr in the observation group were significantly better than those in the control group （P<0.05）. After treatment， the intestinal flora in both groups was improved， and the observation group was significantly improved compared with the control group in terms of Lactobacillus， Proteus， Bacteroides， and Escherichia coli （P<0.05）. COX regression analysis showed that retention enema with HJXG could reduce the risk of poor short-term prognosis in patients with gout compared with Western medicine alone. ConclusionThe retention enema with HJXG can improve the curative effect of patients with gout， improve the TCM syndromes， reduce inflammation， and enhance renal function， intestinal flora， and short-term prognosis.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of Xinfeng capsules combined with chronic disease management of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） on rapid disease control and short-term prognosis of patients with rheumatoid arthritis （RA）. MethodsA total of 80 RA patients hospitalized in the Department of Rheumatology of The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine from January 2022 to March 2024 were enrolled and randomly divided into an observation group （40 cases） and a control group （40 cases）. The control group was treated with conventional methotrexate combined with standard chronic disease management， while the observation group was additionally treated with Xinfeng Capsules combined with TCM chronic disease management. The treatment course lasted 24 weeks. The outcomes were compared between two groups， including disease activity ［28-joint disease activity score （DAS28）， clinical disease activity index （CDAI）， simplified disease activity index （SDAI）］， visual analogue scale （VAS） for pain， TCM syndrome score， tender joint count （TJC）， swollen joint count （SJC）， morning stiffness duration， Health Assessment Questionnaire （HAQ）， Self-Rating Anxiety Scale （SAS）， Self-Rating Depression Scale （SDS）， American College of Rheumatology （ACR） 20%， 50% and 70% response rates （ACR20/50/70）， erythrocyte sedimentation rate （ESR）， high-sensitivity C-reactive protein （hs-CRP）， rheumatoid factor （RF）， anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody （CCP-Ab）， interleukin （IL）-6， IL-1β， tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， and serum immunoglobulin G （IgG）. The Chronic Disease Self-Management Scale （CDSMS） was used to evaluate patients’ self-management ability， self-care ability， and nursing satisfaction. Patients were followed up for 12 weeks to assess prognosis， and COX regression analysis was performed to determine the impact on short-term prognosis. ResultsAfter treatment， TJC， SJC， morning stiffness duration， DAS28， CDAI， SDAI， VAS， TCM syndrome score， ESR， hs-CRP， RF， CCP-Ab， IL-6， IL-1β， TNF-α， IgG， HAQ， SAS， SDS， chronic disease self-management behavior， self-efficacy， and self-care ability all improved significantly in both groups compared with baseline （P<0.05，P<0.01）. Compared with the control group， the observation group showed more significant improvements in TJC， SJC， morning stiffness duration， DAS28， CDAI， SDAI， VAS， TCM syndrome score， ESR， IL-1β， IgG， HAQ， SAS， SDS， self-care ability， chronic disease self-management behavior， and self-efficacy （P<0.05 or P<0.01）. The ACR70 response rate and nursing satisfaction were significantly higher in the observation group than in the control group （P<0.01）. COX regression analysis showed that Xinfeng capsules combined with TCM chronic disease management reduced the risk of poor short-term prognosis in RA patients. ConclusionXinfeng capsules combined with TCM chronic disease management facilitates rapid disease control in RA patients， effectively improves short-term prognosis， and plays an important role in the treatment of the disease.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the fastest growing cancers in the world, ranking fourth among the causes of cancer-induced death in the world. At present, the field of HCC treatment is developing rapidly, and immunotherapy has been recognized as a promising treatment method, in which T cells play a key role in HCC immunotherapy. However, in the case of virus infection or in tumor microenvironment (TME), T cells will be continuously stimulated by antigens and then fall into the state of T cell exhaustion (Tex). This state will not only reduce the immunity of patients but also lead to poor efficacy of immunotherapy. Therefore, to deeply analyze the mechanism of Tex and to explore effective strategies to reverse Tex is the key point in the immunotherapy for HCC. This review aims to summarize the mechanism of Tex in HCC patients, and the current situation and shortcomings of drug research and development to reverse Tex at this stage, in order to provide theoretical basis for the optimization of immunotherapy regimen for HCC patients.
Humans ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/therapy* ; Liver Neoplasms/therapy* ; Immunotherapy/methods* ; T-Lymphocytes/immunology* ; Tumor Microenvironment/immunology* ; Animals ; T-Cell Exhaustion

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by cognitive and functional deterioration, with pathological features such as amyloid-beta (Aβ) aggregates in the extracellular spaces of parenchymal neurons and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles formed by the hyperphosphorylation of tau protein. Despite a thorough investigation, current treatments targeting the reduction of Aβ production, promotion of its clearance, and inhibition of tau protein phosphorylation and aggregation have not met clinical expectations, posing a substantial obstacle in the development of drugs for AD. Recently, artificial intelligence (AI), computational biology (CB), and systems biology (SB) have emerged as promising methodologies in AD research. Their capacity to analyze extensive and varied datasets facilitates the identification of intricate patterns, thereby enriching our comprehension of AD pathology. This paper provides a comprehensive examination of the utilization of AI, CB, and SB in the diagnosis of AD, including the use of imaging omics for early detection, drug discovery methods such as lecanemab, and complementary therapies like phototherapy. This review offers novel perspectives and potential avenues for further research in the realm of translational AD studies.

To investigate the clinical significance of platelet-neutrophil ratio in patients with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis(AAV),a total of 128 patients were recruited and retrospectively analyzed in our department from March 2015 to July 2023.Spearman correlation analysis indicated that there was negative correlation between the level of PNR and Birmingham vasculitis activity score(BVAS)in AAV patients(r=-0.268,P=0.002).According to the PNR optimal cutoff value(26.4)determinated by X-tile bioinformatics software version 3.6.1 for predicting the survival rate,AAV patients were divided into high level PNR(HPNR)group(≥26.4)(n=105)and low level PNR(LPNR)group(<26.4)(n=23).Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that the survival rate of HPNR group was significantly higher than that of LPNR group(P<0.001).The level of PNR was correlated with poor prognosis of kidney(OR=2.54,95%CI:1.1-5.88,P=0.029).In conclusion,the level of PNR is closely related to disease activity and prognosis of AAV,and it might be a potential biomarker for predicting the disease activity and predicting the prognosis.

Objective:To investigate the effects of 0.1% prednisolone acetate eye drops on the intraoperative pain and expression levels of inflammatory factors in hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers undergoing cataract surgery.Methods:A randomized single-blind controlled study was adopted.Thirty-six cataract patients diagnosed as HBV carriers in Beijing Tongren Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University from November 2021 to August 2023 were enrolled.All patients were scheduled to underwent phacoemulsification combined with intraocular lens implantation.The patients were randomly divided into prednisolone acetate group and control group using the random number table method, with 18 cases in each group.The two groups used 0.1% prednisolone acetate eye drops combined with 0.5% levofloxacin eye drops and 0.3% sodium hyaluronate eye drops combined with 0.5% levofloxacin eye drops for 3 days before the operation according to grouping, respectively.During cataract surgery, aqueous humor samples were collected, and cytokines in the samples were detected using the human cytokine antibody array detection technology.The degree of intraoperative pain of patients was evaluated using the Wong-Baker Scale and the intraoperative pain manifestation record form.This study adhered to the Declaration of Helsinki.The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University (No.TREXKY2017-018).Written informed consent was obtained from each subject.Results:In the aqueous humor samples of patients in the prednisolone acetate group, the expressions of inflammatory factors such as tumor necrosis factor-β, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist were lower than those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant ( t=-2.385, -2.286, -2.208, -2.134; all at P<0.05).The proportion of patients with obvious pain in the prednisolone acetate group was 16.7%(1/18), which was significantly lower than 61.1%(11/18) in the control group ( χ2=-2.697, P<0.05).The intraoperative pain score of patients in the prednisolone acetate group was 1(1, 2) points, which was lower than 2(1, 2) points in the control group, and the difference was statistically significant ( Z=-2.902, P<0.05). Conclusions:Preoperative use of prednisolone acetate eye drops for anti-inflammatory intervention can reduce the expression of inflammatory factors in patients' aqueous humor and mitigate the intraoperative pain during cataract surgery in HBV carriers.

Objective This article aimed to explore the inhibitory effect of β-ionone(BI)on the proliferation of breast canc-er cells through the nuclear factor kappa-B(NF-κB)pathway and its possible mechanism.Methods The methylene blue assay and MTT assay were used to determine the viability of breast cancer cells.The malachite green phosphate assay was used to detect the ac-tivity of protein phosphatase 2A(PP2A).Western blot was used to detect the levels of phosphorylated P65(s534 and s311)(p-P65),PP2A(A,B and C),and phosphorylated ataxia telangiectasia mutant(p-ATM)(s1981)protein.Results BI could significant-ly inhibit the proliferation of human breast cancer BT549 cells and MCF-7 cells in a time-and dose-dependent manner,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.01).After treated with BI,NF-κB activity was significantly inhibited in MCF-7 cells,as shown by a significant decrease in the level of phosphorylated P65(s311 and s534)protein and an increase in the level of PP2A pro-tein,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).In addition,BI also significantly reduced the phosphorylation of P65 protein and ATM protein in MCF-7 cells by the PP2A inhibitor-okada acid(OA).Conclusion This study shows that BI inhibits the proliferation of breast cancer cells by inhibiting NF-κB activity,and its mechanism may be achieved by increasing PP2A activity to regulate the NF-κB pathway.

Objective To investigate the clinical value of peripheral eosinophil count(PEC)in predicting the outcome of diabetic nephropathy(DN).Methods A retrospective cohort trial was conducted on 220 DN patients identified by renal biopsy in Department of Nephrology of Second Affiliated Hospital from Army Medical University from March 2021 to March 2023.Clinical data,results of routine blood test and renal function were collected.X-tile bioinformatics software version 3.6.1 was used to determine the optimal cut-off value of PEC for predicting survival.Cox proportional hazards model and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis were applied to analyze the prognosis.Results The level of PEC in DN patients was positively correlated with the levels of serum creatinine(Scr)(r=0.245),blood urea nitrogen(BUN)(r=0.237)and blood uric acid(UA)(r=0.252),and negatively with estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR)(r=-0.236).According to the optimal PEC cut-off value,DN patients were divided into high-level group(＞0.29×109/L,n=41)and low-level group(≤0.29 × 109/L,n=179).The levels of Scr(P＜0.001),BUN(P=0.001)and UA(P=0.005)were significantly higher,while the eGFR(P＜0.001)was obviously lower in the high-level group than the low-level group.Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the high level of PEC was associated with poor prognosis of DN(HR=2.20,95％CI:1.05～4.60,P=0.036).Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated that the incidence of end-stage renal disease(ESRD)was notably higher in the high-level group than the low-level group(P=0.024).Conclusion PEC level of DN patients is closely associated with the progression and prognosis of DN,and the count is a potential biomarker for predicting the prognosis of DN.

Gastric cancer and esophagogastric junction cancer (EGJC) are one of the world 's most common types of malignant tumors. Traditional treatment methods mainly include radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and surgery, but the patients ' prognosis is limited. In recent years, with the development in treatment methods, immunotherapy and targeted therapy are gradually recognized as the first-line treatment methods. In immunotherapy, nivolumab and pabolizumab have shown clear efficacy in patients with programmed deathligand 1 positive, while other immunotherapies (such as tumor vaccine, engineered T cells, and non-specific immunomodulators) are still being tested or developed. In addition, targeted therapy has only shown comparatively large therapeutic potential in certain specific populations or in second-line treatment. For instance, tratuzumab has a clear curative effect on patients with positive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, but has suboptimal efficacy in patients with amplification of other molecular targets. An in-depth discussion of the research progress of immunotherapy and targeted therapy in gastric cancer and EGJC will help to improve the prognosis of patients and provide a reference for accurate treatment of tumors.

The domestic and international research progress on the regulation of gut microbiota by Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) ingredients and their impact on intestinal absorption and transportation were summarized, which provided assistance for subsequent clinical rational drug use targeting gut microbiota. Literature on the relationship between gut microbiota and intestinal absorption and transportation in recent years were reviewed and analyzed, and the mechanism of TCM ingredients regulating gut microbiota on drug absorption and transportation was elucidated. Research has found that TCM ingredients alter gut microbiota, thereby affecting intestinal barrier function and absorption of transport proteins, which is of great significance for rational clinical medication.