1.Protective Effect and Mechanism of Anmeidan against Neuronal Damage in Rat Model of Sleep Deprivation Based on Hippocampal Neuroinflammation
Guangjing XIE ; Zixuan XU ; Junlu ZHANG ; Jian ZHANG ; Jing XIA ; Bo XU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(10):65-71
ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of Anmeidan (AMD) on neuroinflammation in the hippocampus of sleep-deprived rats. MethodsSD rats were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10 per group): control group, model group, AMD group, and melatonin group. A sleep deprivation model was established using the modified multiple platform water environment method. The AMD group received AMD at a dose of 18.18 g·kg-1·d-1, the melatonin group received melatonin at 100 mg·kg-1·d-1, and the control and model groups were given an equal volume of pure water. All treatments were administered by gavage for four weeks. Spontaneous activity was assessed using an animal behavior video system. Serum levels of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Hippocampal pyramidal neuron morphology was examined using hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, and ultrastructural changes of hippocampal neurons were observed via transmission electron microscopy. Immunofluorescence was used to detect the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF) in the hippocampus. Western blot analysis was performed to measure the expression of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), phosphorylated NF-κB (p-NF-κB), NOD-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3), and Caspase-1 proteins. ResultsCompared with the control group, the model group showed a significant increase in activity duration and frequency (P<0.01), increased hippocampal pyramidal cell structural damage and decreased cell count, aggravated hippocampal ultrastructural damage, mitochondrial cristae disruption, and exacerbated vacuolization. The expression of p-NF-κB p65, NLRP3, and Caspase-1 proteins was upregulated, serum IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α levels were significantly elevated (P<0.01), and the fluorescence intensity of BDNF and NGF proteins was significantly reduced (P<0.01). Compared with the model group, the AMD group showed a significant reduction in activity duration and frequency (P<0.01), increased hippocampal pyramidal cell count with reduced structural damage, alleviated hippocampal ultrastructural damage, significantly downregulated p-NF-κB p65, NLRP3, and Caspase-1 protein expression (P<0.01), decreased serum IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α levels (P<0.01), and significantly increased the fluorescence intensity of BDNF and NGF proteins (P<0.01). ConclusionAnmeidan alleviates hippocampal neuronal damage in sleep-deprived rats, potentially by downregulating the NLRP3 signaling pathway, reducing inflammatory cytokine release, and increasing neurotrophic factor levels.
2.Research progress on techniques for detection of tick-borne encephalitis virus infections
Zhuofan LIU ; Hao XIE ; Xiaoliang SUN ; Tao XIA ; Junhui GUO
Chinese Journal of Schistosomiasis Control 2025;37(2):209-216
Tick-borne encephalitis is a central nervous system disease caused by infections with tick-borne pathogens, which is characterized by severe clinical symptoms, multiple sequelae, and a high fatality rate. Currently, there is no cure for tick-borne encephalitis. Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is the most common pathogen of tick-borne encephalitis. Therefore, rapid and accurate detection of TBEV contributes to reducing the mortality of tick-borne encephalitis, improving patients' prognosis, and reducing the risk of TBEV transmission. The currently available serological tests for detection of TBEV infections mainly include neutralization test, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), immunofluorescence assay, and nucleic acid tests mainly include polymerase chain reaction (PCR), loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), reverse transcription polymerase spiral reaction, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated proteins (Cas)-based assays. This review summarizes the progress of researches on serological and nucleic acid tests for detection of TBEV infections, so as to provide insights into prevention and control of tick-borne encephalitis.
3.Effect Analysis of Different Interventions to Improve Neuroinflammation in The Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease
Jiang-Hui SHAN ; Chao-Yang CHU ; Shi-Yu CHEN ; Zhi-Cheng LIN ; Yu-Yu ZHOU ; Tian-Yuan FANG ; Chu-Xia ZHANG ; Biao XIAO ; Kai XIE ; Qing-Juan WANG ; Zhi-Tao LIU ; Li-Ping LI
Progress in Biochemistry and Biophysics 2025;52(2):310-333
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a central neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive cognitive decline and memory impairment in clinical. Currently, there are no effective treatments for AD. In recent years, a variety of therapeutic approaches from different perspectives have been explored to treat AD. Although the drug therapies targeted at the clearance of amyloid β-protein (Aβ) had made a breakthrough in clinical trials, there were associated with adverse events. Neuroinflammation plays a crucial role in the onset and progression of AD. Continuous neuroinflammatory was considered to be the third major pathological feature of AD, which could promote the formation of extracellular amyloid plaques and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles. At the same time, these toxic substances could accelerate the development of neuroinflammation, form a vicious cycle, and exacerbate disease progression. Reducing neuroinflammation could break the feedback loop pattern between neuroinflammation, Aβ plaque deposition and Tau tangles, which might be an effective therapeutic strategy for treating AD. Traditional Chinese herbs such as Polygonum multiflorum and Curcuma were utilized in the treatment of AD due to their ability to mitigate neuroinflammation. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and indomethacin had been shown to reduce the level of inflammasomes in the body, and taking these drugs was associated with a low incidence of AD. Biosynthetic nanomaterials loaded with oxytocin were demonstrated to have the capability to anti-inflammatory and penetrate the blood-brain barrier effectively, and they played an anti-inflammatory role via sustained-releasing oxytocin in the brain. Transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells could reduce neuroinflammation and inhibit the activation of microglia. The secretion of mesenchymal stem cells could not only improve neuroinflammation, but also exert a multi-target comprehensive therapeutic effect, making it potentially more suitable for the treatment of AD. Enhancing the level of TREM2 in microglial cells using gene editing technologies, or application of TREM2 antibodies such as Ab-T1, hT2AB could improve microglial cell function and reduce the level of neuroinflammation, which might be a potential treatment for AD. Probiotic therapy, fecal flora transplantation, antibiotic therapy, and dietary intervention could reshape the composition of the gut microbiota and alleviate neuroinflammation through the gut-brain axis. However, the drugs of sodium oligomannose remain controversial. Both exercise intervention and electromagnetic intervention had the potential to attenuate neuroinflammation, thereby delaying AD process. This article focuses on the role of drug therapy, gene therapy, stem cell therapy, gut microbiota therapy, exercise intervention, and brain stimulation in improving neuroinflammation in recent years, aiming to provide a novel insight for the treatment of AD by intervening neuroinflammation in the future.
4.Characteristics of mitochondrial translational initiation factor 2 gene methylation and its association with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma
Huajie XIE ; Kai CHANG ; Yanyan WANG ; Wanlin NA ; Huan CAI ; Xia LIU ; Zhongyong JIANG ; Zonghai HU ; Yuan LIU
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2025;41(2):284-291
ObjectiveTo investigate the characteristics of mitochondrial translational initiation factor 2 (MTIF2) gene methylation and its association with the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). MethodsMethSurv and EWAS Data Hub were used to perform the standardized analysis and the cluster analysis of MTIF2 methylation samples, including survival curve analysis, methylation signature analysis, the association of tumor signaling pathways, and a comparative analysis based on pan-cancer database. The independent-samples t test was used for comparison between two groups; a one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison between multiple groups, and the least significant difference t-test was used for further comparison between two groups. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to perform the univariate and multivariate survival analyses of methylation level at the CpG site. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to investigate the survival differences between the patients with low methylation level and those with high methylation level, and the Log-likelihood ratio method was used for survival difference analysis. ResultsGlobal clustering of MTIF2 methylation showed that there was no significant difference in MTIF2 gene methylation level between different races, ethnicities, BMI levels, and ages. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that the patients with N-Shore hypermethylation of the MTIF2 gene had a significantly better prognosis than those with hypomethylation (hazard ratio [HR]=0.492, P<0.001), while there was no significant difference in survival rate between the patients with different CpG island and S-Shore methylation levels (P>0.05). The methylation profile of the MTIF2 gene based on different ages, sexes, BMI levels, races, ethnicities, and clinical stages showed that the N-Shore and CpG island methylation levels of the MTIF2 gene decreased with the increase in age, and the Caucasian population had significantly lower N-Shore methylation levels of the MTIF2 gene than the Asian population (P<0.05); the patients with clinical stage Ⅳ had significantly lower N-Shore and CpG island methylation levels of the MTIF2 gene than those with stage Ⅰ/Ⅱ (P<0.05). Clinical validation showed that the patients with stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ HCC had a significantly lower methylation level of the MTIF2 gene than those with stage Ⅰ/Ⅱ HCC and the normal population (P<0.05). ConclusionN-Shore hypomethylation of the MTIF2 gene is a risk factor for the development and progression of HCC.
5.Practice of clinical pharmacist participating in the treatment of a case of mixed shock caused by severe scrub typhus
Xiaoyan HUANG ; Jingwen XIE ; Yanzhe XIA ; Jia LI
China Pharmacy 2025;36(5):600-605
OBJECTIVE To provide valuable insights for the adjustment of anti-infectious regimens, identification of adverse reactions, and individualized pharmaceutical care in patients with critically severe scrub typhus. METHODS Clinical pharmacists actively participated in the pharmaceutical care process for a patient with severe scrub typhus leading to mixed shock undergoing continuous renal replacement therapy and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Initially, the patient received meropenem (1 g, q12 h, ivdrip), in combination with doxycycline (0.1 g, q12 h, po), which was later switched to meropenem (1 g, q8 h, ivdrip) along with omacycline (100 mg, qd, ivdrip) due to impaired gastrointestinal function. However, as the patient’s condition progressively deteriorated and the infection became uncontrolled, the clinical pharmacists recommended that the clinicians adjust the anti-infective regimen to meropenem (2 g, q8 h, ivdrip) combined with tigecycline (100 mg for first dose; 50 mg, q12 h for maintenance; ivdrip). The clinicians followed the advice of the clinical pharmacists. After treatment, the patient’s symptoms exhibited significant improvement, accompanied by a notable decrease in inflammatory markers, indicating that the infection had been successfully controlled. However, due to continuously increasing bilirubin levels, in order to reduce the risk of drug-induced liver injury, the clinicians changed tigecycline to azithromycin (0.5 g, qd, ivdrip) following the recommendation of the clinical pharmacists. RESULTS Ultimately, metagenomic next-generation sequencing of the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and blood specimens indicated that Orientia tsutsugamushi had been completely eradicated in the patient. CONCLUSIONS Tigecycline may be a viable therapeutic choice for patients with severe scrub typhus. In the context of critically ill patients with scrub typhus, combining tigecycline with azithromycin might potentially enhance the efficacy in eliminating Orientia tsutsugamushi.
6.Association between overweight, obesity, central obesity and hypertension
YE Zhenmiao ; ZHANG Mohan ; FAN Lihui ; XIE Yimin ; JIANG Xuexia ; ZHENG Yuhang ; LUO Yongyuan ; XIA Zhezheng ; JIN Xi ; SUN Qian
Journal of Preventive Medicine 2025;37(11):1113-1118
Objective:
To investigate the association between overweight, obesity, central obesity and hypertension, so as to provide the basis for formulating targeted hypertension prevention and control strategies.
Methods:
Permanent residents aged ≥18 years were selected in Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province from June 2023 to August 2024 by a multistage cluster random sampling method. Data on demographic information, lifestyle, height, weight, waist circumference (WC), blood pressure, and blood biochemical indicators were collected through questionnaire surveys, physical examinations, and laboratory tests. The prevalence of hypertension was calculated and standardized using the data of the Sixth National Population Census in 2010. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated to determine overweight and obesity, while WC was used to identify central obesity. The association between overweight, obesity, central obesity and hypertension were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression models.
Results:
A total of 38 593 residents were surveyed, including 19 481 (50.48%) males and 19 112 (49.52%) females. The median age was 46.00 (interquartile range, 26.00) years. The rates of overweight, obesity, and central obesity were 32.74% (12 634 individuals), 10.27% (3 963 individuals), and 27.87% (10 755 individuals), respectively. There were 11 813 cases of hypertension, with a prevalence and standardized prevalence of 30.61% and 24.41%, respectively. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that after adjusting for demographic information, lifestyle, diabetes and dyslipidemia, the likelihood of hypertension in the overweight and obesity groups was 1.927 (95%CI: 1.815-2.045) times and 3.724 (95%CI: 3.404-4.073) times that of the normal BMI group, respectively. The likelihood of hypertension in the central obesity group was 2.346 (95%CI: 2.214-2.486) times that of the normal WC group. The likelihood of hypertension in the central obesity only, overweight only, overweight with central obesity, obesity only and obesity with central obesity groups was 1.586 (95%CI: 1.391-1.809), 1.704 (95%CI: 1.582-1.835), 2.433 (95%CI: 2.254-2.626), 1.768 (95%CI: 1.424-2.194), and 4.466 (95%CI: 4.053-4.921) times that of the normal BMI and WC group, respectively.
Conclusions
Overweight, obesity and central obesity were all associated with hypertension among adult residents. The highest likelihood of hypertension was observed among adult residents with both general obesity and central obesity.
7.A randomized controlled trial on the teaching effect of bullet screen interaction versus traditional interaction in classroom: a case study of internal medicine of traditional Chinese medicine
Xiongfeng ZHANG ; Liming HUANG ; Zhengsheng LI ; Zhengqi LIU ; Min XIE ; Xia LI
Chinese Journal of Medical Education Research 2024;23(9):1248-1252
Objective:To investigate the application effect of bullet screen interaction in the teaching of internal medicine of traditional Chinese medicine.Methods:A randomized controlled trial was conducted, and 150 students were randomly divided into bullet screen interaction group and traditional interaction group and received teaching with bullet screen interaction and traditional interaction, respectively. Flanders Interaction Analysis System (FIAS), class rating, questionnaire survey, and performance test were used to evaluate the effect of classroom interaction and teaching achievement. SPSS 22.0 was used to perform the t-test and the chi-square test. Results:Compared with the traditional interaction group, the bullet screen interaction group had a significantly lower teacher's language ratio [(62.63±2.83)% vs. (71.05±3.19)%] and significantly higher student's language ratio [(32.68±2.62)% vs. (22.79±1.32)%], teacher's indirect/direct influence ratio [(96.63±9.59)% vs. (69.84±3.48)%], and teacher's positive/negative influence ratio [(122.89±6.43)% vs. (50.58±2.35)%]. Compared with the traditional interaction group, the bullet screen interaction group had significantly higher scores of teacher's emotional atmosphere (23.82±6.54 vs. 21.01±6.51), quality of classroom activities (25.67±5.51 vs. 22.56±11.95), and information transmission of teacher's classroom interactive activities (25.46±10.30 vs. 18.44±6.52). The questionnaire survey showed that compared with the traditional interaction group, the bullet screen interaction group had a significantly higher number of the students who selected excellent and good for student interest in classroom, dullness of classroom, and the mastery of classroom knowledge [104 (69.33%)/110 (73.33%)/106 (70.67%) vs. 72(48.00%)/74 (49.33%)/84(56.00%)], and the bullet screen interaction group had significantly higher scores of basic knowledge and case analysis than the traditional interaction group (84.30±4.13/78.53±7.21 vs. 79.26±5.67/72.56±4.22).Conclusions:The application of bullet screen interaction teaching in the teaching of internal medicine of traditional Chinese medicine can help to improve interactive effect and teaching achievement.
8.Homoharringtonine promotes heart allograft acceptance by enhancing regulatory T cells induction in a mouse model
Xia QIU ; Hedong ZHANG ; Zhouqi TANG ; Yuxi FAN ; Wenjia YUAN ; Chen FENG ; Chao CHEN ; Pengcheng CUI ; Yan CUI ; Zhongquan QI ; Tengfang LI ; Yuexing ZHU ; Liming XIE ; Fenghua PENG ; Tuo DENG ; Xin JIANG ; Longkai PENG ; Helong DAI
Chinese Medical Journal 2024;137(12):1453-1464
Background::Homoharringtonine (HHT) is an effective anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and anti-tumor protein synthesis inhibitor that has been applied clinically. Here, we explored the therapeutic effects of HHT in a mouse heart transplant model.Methods::Healthy C57BL/6 mice were used to observe the toxicity of HHT in the liver, kidney, and hematology. A mouse heart transplantation model was constructed, and the potential mechanism of HHT prolonging allograft survival was evaluated using Kaplan–Meier analysis, immunostaining, and bulk RNA sequencing analysis. The HHT-T cell crosstalk was modeled ex vivo to further verify the molecular mechanism of HHT-induced regulatory T cells (Tregs) differentiation. Results::HHT inhibited the activation and proliferation of T cells and promoted their apoptosis ex vivo. Treatment of 0.5 mg/kg HHT for 10 days significantly prolonged the mean graft survival time of the allografts from 7 days to 48 days ( P <0.001) without non-immune toxicity. The allografts had long-term survival after continuous HHT treatment for 28 days. HHT significantly reduced lymphocyte infiltration in the graft, and interferon-γ-secreting CD4 + and CD8 + T cells in the spleen ( P <0.01). HHT significantly increased the number of peripheral Tregs (about 20%, P <0.001) and serum interleukin (IL)-10 levels. HHT downregulated the expression of T cell receptor (TCR) signaling pathway-related genes ( CD4, H2-Eb1, TRAT1, and CD74) and upregulated the expression of IL-10 and transforming growth factor (TGF) -β pathway-related genes and Treg signature genes ( CTLA4, Foxp3, CD74, and ICOS). HHT increased CD4 + Foxp3 + cells and Foxp3 expression ex vivo, and it enhanced the inhibitory function of inducible Tregs. Conclusions::HHT promotes Treg cell differentiation and enhances Treg suppressive function by attenuating the TCR signaling pathway and upregulating the expression of Treg signature genes and IL-10 levels, thereby promoting mouse heart allograft acceptance. These findings may have therapeutic implications for organ transplant recipients, particularly those with viral infections and malignancies, which require a more suitable anti-rejection medication.
9.Value of SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 level in evaluating the condition and prognosis of children with refractory mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia
Xia LI ; Jing XIE ; Xiangli XIAO
International Journal of Laboratory Medicine 2024;45(22):2758-2761,2766
Objective To explore the value of serum amyloid A(SAA)/C-reactive protein(CRP),lactate dehydrogenase(LDH),and Gal-9(Gal-9)levels in the condition and prognosis of children with refractory my-coplasma pneumoniae pneumonia(RMPP).Methods A prospective study was conducted on totally 200 chil-dren with mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia(MPP)who visited the hospital from September 2021 to De-cember 2023.They were divided into general mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia(GMPP)group(n=132)and RMPP group(n=68)based on their condition,and they were divided into effective group(n=47)and in-effective group(n=21)based on the outcome of RMPP.General line data and laboratory data of pediatric pa-tients were collected,enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect SAA,CRP,LDH,Gal-9,and SAA/CRP was calculated.Baseline data and laboratory indicators of children with different MPP conditions and RMPP children with different prognosis outcomes were compared.Multivariate Logistic regression analy-sis was used to analyze the independent influencing factors on clinical efficacy in children with RMPP.The cor-relation between SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 was analyzed.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve a-nalysis was analyzed to predict the clinical efficacy of SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 in children with RMPP.Re-sults The levels of SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 in the RMPP group were higher than those in the GMPP group(P<0.05).The levels of SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 in the ineffective group were higher than those in the effective group(P<0.05).Logistic analysis showed that SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 were all independent influencing factors for clinical efficacy in children with RMPP(P<0.05).Pearson correlation analysis showed that SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 were positively correlated pairwise(r=0.427,0.431,0.378).The ROC curve showed that the area under the curve(AUC)of the combination of SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 in pre-dicting the clinical efficacy of RMPP was 0.816(95%CI:0.775-0.913),which was higher than those of sin-gle serum marker diagnosis(P<0.05).Conclusion The serum levels of SAA/CRP,LDH,and Gal-9 in chil-dren with RMPP could be used for disease condition and prognosis evaluation,and there is a close correlation between the above indicators.The combined prediction has a relatively high efficacy in predicting the prognosis of children with RMPP.
10.Comparative study on sedative and hypnotic effects of Semen Ziziphi Spinosae before and after processing
Ming CAI ; Lin-Lin CHEN ; Bo XU ; Guang-Jing XIE ; Jing XIA
Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin 2024;40(5):984-991
Aim To explore the differences in sedative and hypnotic effects of Semen Ziziphi Spinosae(SZS)before and after processing based on network pharma-cology and animal experiments.Methods The chemi-cal components and corresponding targets of SZS were collected through relevant platforms and databases,the insomnia and sleep disorder targets were retrieved,and the intersection targets of drugs and diseases were ob-tained.The protein interaction relationships were con-structed,and the Chinese medicinal herb-component-target-pathway network was drawn.Then database was used to analyze pathway enrichment.Based on the pre-dicted results,the effects of different SZS products on Kunming mice were evaluated through pentobarbital in-duced sleep test,behavioral analysis,brain tissue relat-ed gene mRNA levels,and plasma neurotransmitters.Results The target genes related to SZS and insomnia were acetylcholinesterase(ACHE),alpha-1B adrener-gic receptor(ADRA1B),solute carrier family 6(neu-rotransmitter transporter,serotonin),member 4(SLC6 A4),which might play a role through 9 related pathways and 69 biological processes such as calcium signaling pathway,salivary secretion,and so on.In vi-vo experiments found that SZS could reduce mouse ac-tivity,enhance the hypnotic effect of pentobarbital sodi-um,lower the levels of ACEE,ADRA1B,and SLC6A4 mRNA in cortex and hippocampus,and regulate the levels of acetylcholine,adrenaline,and other substances in plasma,all of which could be used in combination with raw and fried methods.The effect was proportion-al to the dosage of the drug.Conclusions SZS has sedative and hypnotic effects,and high doses of crude and parched SZS combined decoction have better effects.This effect may be caused by affecting the lev-els of neurotransmitters and their related receptors,me-diating the central nervous system.


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