OBJECTIVES: To explore the mechanism of Pingchuanning Formula (PCN) for inhibiting airway inflammation in rats with asthmatic cold syndrome. METHODS: A total of 105 SD rats were randomized equally into 7 groups, including a control group, an asthmatic cold syndrome model group, 3 PCN treatment groups at high, medium and low doses, a Guilong Kechuanning (GLCKN) treatment group, and a dexamethasone (DEX) treatment group. In all but the control rats, asthma cold syndrome models were established and daily gavage of saline, PCN, GLCKN or DEX was administered 29 days after the start of modeling. The changes in general condition, lung function and lung histopathology of the rats were observed, and inflammatory factors in the alveolar lavage fluid (BALF), oxidative stress, lung tissue ultrastructure, cytokine levels, and expressions of the genes related to the HMGB1/Beclin-1 axis and autophagy were analyzed. RESULTS: The rat models had obvious manifestations of asthmatic cold syndrome with significantly decreased body mass, food intake, and water intake, reduced FEV_0.3, FVC, and FEV_0.3/FVC, obvious inflammatory cell infiltration in the lung tissue, and increased alveolar inflammation score and counts of neutrophils, eosinophils, lymphocytes, macrophages, and leukocytes in the BALF. The rat models also had significantly increased MDA level and decreased SOD level and exhibited obvious ultrastructural changes in the lung tissues, where the expressions of HMGB1, Beclin-1, ATG5, TNF-α, IL-6,IL-1β, and IL-13 and the LC3II/I ratio were increased, while the levels of Bcl-2 and IFN-γ were decreased. PCN treatment significantly improved these pathological changes in the rat models, and its therapeutic effect was better than that of GLKCN and similar to that of DEX. CONCLUSIONS PCN can effectively alleviate airway inflammation in rat models of asthmatic cold syndrome possibly by modulating the HMGB1/Beclin-1 signaling axis to suppress cell autophagy, thereby attenuating airway inflammatory damages.
Animals ; Rats ; Autophagy/drug effects* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Asthma/pathology* ; Beclin-1 ; HMGB1 Protein/metabolism* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Male ; Lung/pathology* ; Inflammation

Objective:To investigate the correlation between low-order and high-order aberrations and objective depth of focus in the human eye, and the factors that influence objective depth of focus.Methods:A cross-sectional study was performed.Seventy-six patients (152 eyes) with myopia and astigmatism patients who were treated at the Refractive Surgery Center of Tianjin Eye Hospital from February to April 2022 were selected, including 41 males and 35 females.The patients' whole-eye low-order and high-order aberrations and objective depth of focus were measured at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm manually selected pupil diameters using the iTrace visual function analyzer.The correlation between objective depth of focus and low-order and high-order aberrations at different pupil diameters was analyzed by Spearman rank correlation analysis.Objective depth of focus was compared between individuals with different degrees of myopia and astigmatism, individuals with different pupil diameters, right and left eyes, and different sexes.This study adhered to the Declaration of Helsinki.The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Tianjin Eye Hospital (No.2022039).Results:Objective depth of focus was positively correlated with total low-order aberrations at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.380, 0.317, 0.385, 0.519, all at P<0.01). Objective depth of focus was positively correlated with defocus at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.377, 0.323, 0.403, 0.512, all at P<0.01), and with astigmatism at 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.255, P<0.05). There were statistically significant overall differences in objective depth of focus between groups with different degrees of myopia at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( H=6.440, 7.370, 9.990, 16.930; all at P<0.05). Among them, the objective depth of focus of high myopia was significantly higher than that of low myopia at different pupil diameters, and the objective depth of focus of high myopia was higher than that of moderate myopia at 6 mm pupil diameter, with statistically significant differences (all at P<0.05). Objective depth of focus was positively correlated with total high-order aberration at pupil diameters of 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm ( rs=0.911, 0.807, 0.733, 0.677; all at P<0.001). Among various high-order aberrations, objective depth of focus was positively correlated with total coma at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.727, 0.557, 0.620, 0.487; all at P<0.001), positively correlated with vertical coma at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.439, 0.405, 0.553, 0.400; all at P<0.001), positively correlated with horizontal coma at 5 and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.308, 0.308; both at P<0.01), positively correlated with trefoil aberration at 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.344, 0.443, 0.316, 0.330; all at P<0.01), positively correlated with spherical aberration at 4, 5, and 6 mm pupil diameter ( rs=0.321, 0.310, 0.428; all at P<0.01). There was a significant difference in objective depth of focus between 3 and 4 mm, 5 and 6 mm pupil diameters ( P=0.011, 0.004). There was no statistically significant difference in objective depth of focus between different degrees of astigmatism, between males and females, or between left and right eyes (all at P>0.05). Conclusions:The objective depth of focus of the human eye is mainly strongly correlated with vertical coma, trefoil aberration in high-order aberrations, as well as defocus in low-order aberrations.Horizontal coma and spherical aberration are strongly correlated with objective depth of focus only when the pupil diameter is large.In addition, if the pupil diameter is too small (3 mm) or too large (6 mm), it has a significant effect on the objective depth of focus.

Objectives:This study aimed to compare the clinical characteristics between light-chain cardiac amyloidosis(AL-CA)and transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis(ATTR-CA). Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted in patients diagnosed with AL-CA and ATTR-CA at Peking University Third Hospital from January 2011 to October 2023.There were 35 patients diagnosed with AL-CA(AL-CA group)and 21 patients diagnosed with ATTR-CA(ATTR-CA group).Clinical manifestations,ECG,echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance(CMR)results were compared between patients with AL-CA and ATTR-CA. Results:Compared to the AL-CA group,the ATTR-CA group has a higher proportion of males(54.3%vs.90.5%,P=0.005),the proportion of patients with hypertension was lower(42.9%vs.9.5%,P=0.009).In terms of clinical manifestations,edema,proteinuria,renal insufficiency and serous effusion were more common in the AL-CA group,while the incidence of limb numbness was higher in the ATTR-CA group(all P＜0.05).There were significant differences in the incidence of limb lead low voltage(57.1%vs.28.6%,P=0.038)and conduction block(14.3%vs.61.9%,P=0.001)between the AL-CA group and ATTR-CA group on ECG.Although the AL-CA group had a shorter time interval from initial symptoms to diagnosis(6.0[2.0,15.0]months vs.35.0[14.0,56.5]months,P=0.002)and less pronounced left ventricular thickening on echocardiography(interventricular septum thickness:[13.3±2.0]mm vs.[15.7±2.2]mm,P=0.001;left ventricular mass:[198.4±67.8]g vs.[246.6±53.5]g,P=0.009)and CMR(interventricular septum thickness:[16.0±2.1]mm vs.[18.9±3.8]mm,P=0.033;left ventricular mass:[132.9±45.3]g vs.[194.7±50.8]g,P=0.011),the proportion of patients with NYHA grades Ⅲ-Ⅳ(48.6%vs.19.0%,P=0.027)was higher,the levels N-terminal B-type natriuretic peptide precursor and cardiac troponin T levels were higher(both P＜0.05),and the 1-year survival rate was lower in the AL-CA group than in the ATTR-CA group(65.7%vs.100%,P=0.001). Conclusions:AL-CA and ATTR-CA had differences in clinical and ECG manifestations.While the severity of left ventricular hypertrophy was less pronounced in AL-CA compared to ATTR-CA,cardiac function and prognosis were worse in AL-CA than in ATTR-CA.

Objective To study the impact of a subject's testing state on residual noise level and ABR wave V amplitude during non-sedated ABR testing using Kalman-weighted averaging(KWA).Methods Twenty-one adults(18～34 years old,42 ears)with normal hearing were enrolled for non-sedated ABR testing under three different states(lying,sitting,and writing)in a quiet room using a new Kalman-weighted averaging ABR system(vivosonic integrity system).The residual noise level and the amplitude of wave V for click ABR(cABR)of each subject were recorded.The traditional ABR test system(interacoustics,IA)was also used to record ABR with the residual noise level and the amplitude of wave V measured at the same time.Results ① There was no significant difference in am-plitude of wave V between traditional ABR and non-sedated ABR in three different testing states(P＞0.05).②The residual noise levels in the lying and sitting states of KWA ABR were lower than those of traditional ABR,but there was no statistically difference(P＜0.05).The residual noise level of the KWA ABR system in writing state was significantly higher than that of the other three conditions(P＜0.05).③ There was no significant difference between the left and right ears in the residual noise level and amplitude of wave V for non-sedated ABR in writing state(P＞0.05).Conclusion Compared with traditional ABR,the non-sedated KWA ABR system in uriting state was significantly higher than that of the other three conolitions.Haw ever,the residual noise level in lying and sit-ting states had no significant difference with conditional ABR,and different states of the subject had impact on the residual noise level in the ABR testing to sone extent.

Objective:To explore the pupil size distribution of the Chinese myopic population under different mesopic conditions, and to analyze the possible influencing factors.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted.Two hundred and fourteen myopic patients (428 eyes) who underwent refractive surgery in Tianjin Eye Hospital from December 2018 to April 2019 were randomly selected.The patients were 17 to 45 years old, with an average age of (22.62±4.88) years old.The patients were divided into astigmatism <-1.5 D group (372 eyes) and astigmatism ≥-1.5 D group (56 eyes) according to their astigmatism measurements.The low mesopic pupil size (LMPS) (0.2 lx) was measured with the infrared Colvard pupillometer, and the high mesopic pupil size (HMPS) (6-12 lx) was obtained through the anterior Pentacam segment analyzer.The pupil size was compared between both eyes, different sexes and different astigmatism measurements.The relationship between pupil size and possible influencing factors, such as age, sex, spherical equivalent, spherical diopter, cylinder diopter, axis, mean keratometry(Km), and central cornea thickness was analyzed.This study adhered to the Declaration of Helsinki.The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Tianjin Eye Hospital (No.201912). Written informed consent was obtained from each subject or their guardians.Results:The pupil sizes measured by the Colvard pupillometer and Pentacam were (6.806±0.776)mm and (3.312±0.540)mm, respectively.The pupil size of male subjects was (6.692±0.754)mm, which was larger than (6.668±0.792)mm of females, showing a statistically significant difference ( t=2.935, P=0.004). Under the high mesopic condition, the pupil size of astigmatism ≥-1.5 D group was lower than that of astigmatism <-1.5 D group, with a statistically significant difference ( t=2.611, P=0.009). Under the low mesopic condition, pupil size was negatively correlated with age and Km ( r=-0.213, -0.210; both at P<0.001). Under the high mesopic condition, pupil size was weakly positively correlated with cylinder power ( r=0.124, P=0.010) and was weakly negatively correlated with Km ( r=-0.142, P=0.003). The multiple linear regression analysis revealed that the LMPS=0.659×HMPS-0.019×age-0.084×Km+ 8.662.About 28% of pupil size under low mesopic conditions could be predicted by Pentacam.LMPS of ≤7 mm could be better predicted when the results were below 3.6 mm. Conclusions:Age and corneal curvature are influencing factors of mesopic pupil size.Older people with steep curvature have a smaller pupil.At high mesopic conditions, astigmatism affects pupil size.Pentacam measurements can predict LMPS to some degree but are not a substitute for dark-adapted pupil diameter.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of Mashao Pingchuan decoction （MSPC） on lipopolysaccharides （LPS）-induced autophagy in human bronchial airway epithelial cells （16HBE） via the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt）/mammalian target of rapamycin （mTOR） signaling pathway. Method16HBE cells were selected for the study， and cell counting kit-8 （CCK-8） was used to detect the activity of of LPS-induced 16HBE cells and the effect of MSPC-containing serum on the cells. Suitable LPS-induced 16HBE cells were screened by the CCK-8 method， and the content of tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） was measured to identify the established model. And MSPC-containing serum was prepared. The cells were divided into normal group， LPS group， LPS+MSPC group， LY294002+LPS group and LY294002+LPS+MSPC group. Transmission electron microscopy was performed to observe the changes in autophagic vesicles and ultrastructure of the cells. Western blot was performed to detect the protein expressions of PI3K， phosphorylated PI3K （p-PI3K）， Akt， phosphorylated Akt （p-Akt）， mTOR， phosphorylated mTOR （p-mTOR） and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3B （LC3B）， and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to detect the expressions of inflammatory factors interleukin-5 （IL-5）， IL-6， TNF-α and IL-10 in the five groups. ResultLPS inhibited the 16HBE cells in a dose-dependent manner. Compared with the normal group， the LPS group （150 mg·L^-1 of LPS） increased the expression of pro-inflammatory factor TNF-α after 24 h of treatment （P<0.05） and facilitated the autophagosome formation， and MSPC-containing serum exerted a concentration-dependent promotion effect on the 16HBE cells， inhibited the autophagy to a certain degree and enhanced the cell status. Western blot revealed that the protein expressions of p-PI3K， p-Akt and p-mTOR in the model group were lower （P<0.05） and the protein expression of LC3B was higher （P<0.01） than those in the normal group. Compared with the conditions in the LPS group， the protein expressions of p-PI3K， p-Akt and p-mTOR in the LPS+MSPC group were elevated （P<0.05） and that of LC3B was reduced （P<0.05）. Compared with the LPS+LY294002 group， the LY294002+LPS+MSCP group had up-regulated protein expressions of p-PI3K， p-Akt and p-mTOR （P<0.05） and down-regulated protein expression of LC3B （P<0.05）. ELISA showed that the LPS group had higher levels of IL-5， IL-6， TNF-α and IL-10 than the normal group， while the levels of TNF-α， IL-6 and IL-8 were decreased （P<0.01） and the level of IL-10 was increased （P<0.01） after treatment with MSCP. ConclusionMSCP may lower the LPS-induced autophagy in 16HBE cells and improve the inflammatory response through activating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway.

The recent discovery of activator compounds binding to an allosteric site on the NAD

Wavefront aberration is an evaluation index of objective visual quality.In recent years, the relationship between the wavefront aberration compensation in human eyes and the visual quality has been paid more and more attention.There is a mutual compensation relationship between various aberration terms, between corneal aberration and intraocular aberration, and between the anterior and posterior corneal surfaces, and the visual nervous system compensates human eye aberrations.The characteristics of aberration compensation change with age, and are different in analysis of different regions.Vision correction methods, such as refractive surgery and contact lenses, will change the aberration compensation relationship in human eyes, and the changes caused may have an impact on visual quality.It is important to understand the relationship between the aberration compensation characteristics in human eyes and the visual quality.Therefore, not only the existing aberrations should be taken into consideration, but also the compensation characteristics of human eye aberrations must be elucidated to make personalized correction for the aberrations and improve the visual quality after correction.The research progress and significance on the relationship between human eye aberration compensation characteristics and visual quality were reviewed in this article.

Objective To assess the difference in left atrial properties between elderly and younger control subjects and the role of left atrium remodeling in patients of different ages with atrial fibrillation.Methods A total of 194 patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation were enrolled from September 2014 to June 2016.Based on age,patients were divided into an elderly group (≥60 years,n=129) and a younger group (＜60 years,n=65).We evaluated remodeling parameters for the left atrium using an Ultrasound Cardiography (UCG) system in 125 elder subjects,together with 64 control subjects.All remodeling parameters were recorded,including left atrial diameter (LAD),left atrial square (LAS),left atrial pressure (LAP) and left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (LVEDD).Results The elderly group had more female patients and more patients with persistent atrial fibrillation.Meanwhile,scores of CHA2DS2Vsc and levels of N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-ProBNP) were significantly increased in elderly patients (both P＜0.05).Moreover,the elderly group was associated with increased values of LAD and LAS[(39.1±4.4)mm vs.(37.1±5.3)mm,P＜0.01;and(23.3±4.5)cm2 vs.(21.4±4.8)cm2,P＜0.01;respectively],compared with those in the control group.Spearman's correlation analysis showed that LAD,LAS and LAP were all markedly related to age (r=0.213,P＜0.05;r=-0.175,P＜0.05;r=0.170,P＜0.05;respectively),persistent onset of atrial fibrillation (r=0.401,P＜0.05;r=0.446,P＜0.05;r=0.160,P＜0.05;respectively),and impaired heart function,measured by left ventricular ejection fraction (r=-0.4371,P＜0.05;r=-0.403,P＜0.05;r=-0.364,P＜0.05;respectively) and NT-ProBNP (r=0.485,P＜0.01;r=0.483,P＜ 0.01;r =0.293,P＜ 0.01;respectively).Conclusions Left atrial remodeling properties measured by the UCG system in the elderly with non-valvular atrial fibrillation are more serious than those in mid-aged and young subjects.As a convenient and accurate assessment of remodeling parameters,the UCG system is an excellent option for measuring left atrial remodeling in the elderly population.

To accurately analyze metabolites in industry-important photosynthetic microbes, LC-MS based metabolomics protocol needs to be optimized specifically for individual species. In this study, an LC-MS based metabolomics method was optimized for cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. With the optimized extraction, liquid chromatographic and mass spectral parameters, the method was capable of detecting 24 important metabolites related to central carbohydrate and energy metabolism in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. The study laid an important foundation for the metabolomics analysis of cyanobacteria.
Chromatography, Liquid ; Mass Spectrometry ; Metabolome ; Metabolomics ; Photosynthesis ; Synechocystis ; metabolism