OBJECTIVE To explore the antidepressant mechanism of Wenyang jieyu granules （WYJYG） via the NOD-like receptor thermal protein domain associated protein 3 （NLRP3）/apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD （ASC）/Caspase-1 pathway. METHODS A rat model of depression was established by chronic unpredictable mild stress combined with single-housing for 42 consecutive days.The experiment set up blank group， model group， MCC950 （NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitor） group （10 mg/kg）， fluoxetine group （positive control，2.08 mg/kg），low-dose WYJYG（3.78 g/kg） and high-dose WYJYG group （7.56 g/kg），with 10 rats in each group. From the 22nd day of the experiment， rats in the fluoxetine group， low-dose and high-dose WYJYG groups were intragastrically administered with the corresponding drugs and intraperitoneally injected with an equal volume of normal saline. Rats in the MCC950 group were intraperitoneally injected with MCC950 at the corresponding concentration and intragastrically administered with an equal volume of distilled water. Rats in the blank group and model group were given an equal volume of distilled water by gavage and an equal volume of normal saline by intraperitoneal injection. All interventions were performed once a day for 21 consecutive days. Behavioral tests were conducted once a week. After the last administration， the contents of ASC， ionized calcium binding adaptor molecule 1 （Iba1）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， and IL-18 in hippocampal tissues were detected. The protein expressions of NLRP3， cluster of differentiation 68 （CD68）， Caspase-1， B-cell lymphoma-2 （Bcl-2）， and Bcl-2-associated X protein were determined， and neuronal apoptosis was observed. RESULTS After the last administration， compared with the model group， the open-field activity time was significantly prolonged （ P ＜0.05）， and the latency to feed in a novel environment was significantly shortened （ P ＜0.05） in rats of the high-dose WYJYG group. In hippocampal tissue， the contents of ASC， Iba1， IL-1β， and IL-18， as well as the protein expression levels of NLRP3， Caspase-1， and CD68， and the positive rate of neuronal apoptosis were all significantly decreased/downregulated （ P ＜0.05）. Bcl-2 protein expression was significantly upregulated （ P ＜0.05）， and the density of neuronal apoptosis-positive cells was significantly reduced （ P ＜0.05）. CONCLUSIONS WYJYG play on antidepressant role by inhibiting the NLRP3/ASC/Caspase-1 pathway， reducing microglia-mediated neuroinflammation， and inhibiting hippocampal neurons apoptosis.

Aromatic Chinese medicinal essential oils are volatile oils extracted from aromatic Chinese herbs， which can prevent and treat respiratory infectious diseases through multiple synergistic mechanisms including pathogen inhibition， immune regulation， and inflammatory response regulation. Essential oils are primarily used externally on the body to prevent infections and alleviate symptoms through methods like inhalation， smearing， topical application， bathing， gargling or as a suppository. They can also be utilized in the environment for disinfection and air purification， through methods like diffusion， vaporization， or spraying. The external application of essential oils extracted from Chinese aromatic herbs has the advantages of convenience， quick absorption， and simultaneous influence on both the body and mind. However， there are still challenges and deficiencies in aspects such as the positioning of functions， indications， safety， and the research on the mechanism of action. It has been proposed to combine the theory of aromatic Chinese medicinals with the characteristics of essential oils， and formulate prescriptions of Chinese medicinal essential oils under the principles of traditional Chinese medicine syndrome differentiation， and prevent and treat respiratory infectious diseases efficiently， accurately， and safely， thereby expanding the clinical application of aromatic Chinese medicinals and the preventive theory of traditional Chinese medicine.

Abstract The mental health assessment work for students in the UK is based on mental health promotion theory, employing a multidimensional approach to evaluate emotional disorders, conduct disorders, hyperactivity disorders, and other aspects across the entire educational continuum from preschool to university. Utilizing international validated standardized scales and customized questionnaires, the system has demonstrated significant preventive efficacy against student mental health issues. China stands to gain valuable insights from the UKs experience, particularly in implementing the Special Action Plan for Comprehensively Strengthening and Improving Students Mental Health Work in the New Era (2023-2025). Strategic adaptation could involve expanding assessment populations, refining evaluation criteria, standardizing measurement tools, and strengthening implementation protocols to systematically enhance Chinas students mental health assessment framework.

Objective:To investigate the association between abdominal fat-related indicators derived from quantitative computed tomography (QCT) and coronary artery calcification (CAC) in middle-aged and elderly individuals, as well as the diagnostic value of these indicators.Methods:This cross-sectional study enrolled middle-aged and elderly participants who underwent health check-ups at Kaifeng Central Hospital between January and December 2024. Participants were divided into a CAC group and a non-CAC group based on the presence or absence of CAC. The CAC group was then stratified into mild, moderate, and severe subgroups according to CAC severity. General clinical data were collected for all participants. All subjects underwent one-stop QCT scanning of the chest and abdomen. An automated abdominal fat analysis system was used to identify fat distribution regions. If accurate identification was not possible, a semi-automated segmentation algorithm combined with manual correction was applied instead. Two physicians performed the measurements independently, and inter-observer consistency was assessed. The average values were calculated to obtain visceral fat area (VFA) and subcutaneous fat area (SFA). The ratio of visceral fat area to subcutaneous fat area (VFA/SFA) was also computed. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the factors associated with CAC in middle-aged and elderly individuals. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of these indicators for CAC. DeLong′s test was used to compare the differences in the area under the curve ( AUC). Results:A total of 252 middle-aged and elderly individuals were included, with a median age of 61 (interquartile rang: 59, 69) years. Of these individuals, 188(74.6%) were males. Among them, 172 were classified into the CAC group and 80 into the non-CAC group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that VFA, VFA/SFA ratio, age, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C), and hypertension were independently associated with CAC in middle-aged and elderly individuals (all P<0.05). The mild, moderate, and severe CAC subgroups comprised 78, 51, and 43 participants, respectively. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that VFA and VFA/SFA increased with CAC severity, and there were statistically significant differences between the subgroups (all P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the AUCs of VFA and VFA/SFA for diagnosing CAC were 0.841 and 0.810, respectively, with no significant difference between them ( P>0.05). The optimal cutoff values were 177.45 cm2 for VFA (sensitivity: 83.1%, specificity: 72.5%) and 1.592 for VFA/SFA (sensitivity: 65.7%, specificity: 83.7%). For the diagnosis of moderate-to-severe CAC, the AUCs of VFA and VFA/SFA were 0.765 and 0.761, respectively ( P>0.05 for comparison), with cutoff values of 231.75 cm2 (sensitivity: 61.7%, specificity: 83.3%) and 1.962 (sensitivity: 64.9%, specificity: 80.8%). Conclusion:Abdominal VFA and VFA/SFA derived from QCT are independently associated with the presence of CAC in middle-aged and elderly individuals, demonstrating good diagnostic performance for both overall CAC and moderate-to-severe CAC.

Objective:To explore the high-risk factors affecting the severity of neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).Methods:This study involved 153 NEC patients admitted to the Neonatology Department of the Children's Hospital of Soochow University from January 1, 2017, to December 30, 2023. Based on the severity of NEC determined by Bell's criteria, these patients were divided into two groups: mild group (Bell stage Ⅱ, n=70) and severe group (Bell stage Ⅲ, n=83). Clinical data including general conditions, clinical treatment and disease status before the onset of NEC, laboratory test results, and perinatal conditions of the mothers were retrospectively collected. Univariate analysis (rank-sum test and Chi-square test) and multivariate analysis (logistic regression analysis) were used to explore the risk factors affecting the severity of NEC. Results:The proportion of infants with gestational age<37 weeks or birth weight<1 500 g, the rate of antibiotic usage, sepsis or shock were higher in the severe group than in the mild group [91.6% (76/83) vs. 75.7% (53/70); 55.4% (46/83) vs. 34.3% (24/70); 85.5% (71/83) vs. 71.4% (50/70); 55.4% (46/83) vs. 17.1% (12/70); 30.1% (25/83) vs. 8.6% (6/70); with χ 2 values of 7.22, 6.84, 4.57, 23.64, and 10.91, respectively, all P<0.05]. Furthermore, the severe group had a late initiation of breastfeeding and longer durations of peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) placement and parenteral nutrition [2.00 d (1.00-2.00 d) vs. 1.00 d (1.00-2.00 d); 0.00 d (0.00-18.00 d) vs. 0.00 d (0.00-7.50 d); 14.00 d (5.00-21.00 d) vs. 10.50 d (0.00-18.25 d), with Z values of -2.90, -1.98, and -2.09, respectively, all P<0.05]. (2) Within 48 h before the onset, the severe group had higher proportions of infants with decreased white blood cell count, decreased platelet count, electrolyte imbalance, and metabolic acidosis than the mild group [53.0% (44/83) vs. 14.3% (10/70); 49.4% (41/83) vs. 10.0% (7/70); 38.6% (32/83) vs. 14.3% (10/70); 37.3% (31/83) vs. 14.3% (10/70), with χ2 values of 24.94, 27.38, 11.23, and 10.30, respectively, all P<0.05]. Besides, the levels of procalcitonin and C-reactive protein were higher in the severe group than in the mild group [2.31 ng/ml (0.26-11.71 ng/ml) vs. 0.22 ng/ml (0.00-2.19 ng/ml); 58.50 mg/L (14.34-125.25 mg/L) vs. 8.20 mg/L (0.23-34.56 mg/L), with Z values of -3.88 and -5.02, respectively, both P<0.05]. (3) Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that prolonged duration of PICC placement, decreased platelet count, electrolyte imbalance, metabolic acidosis, and concurrent sepsis were independent risk factors affecting the severity of NEC [ OR (95% CI) values were 1.104 (1.020-1.196), 5.364 (1.667-17.253), 4.047 (1.171-13.986), 4.333 (1.290-14.556), and 3.290 (1.005-10.774), respectively, with all P<0.05]. Conclusions:Prolonged duration of PICC placement, concurrent sepsis, decreased platelet count, electrolyte imbalance, and metabolic acidosis in NEC patients are more likely to lead to severe cases. In clinical practice, attention should be paid to relevant indicators, and abnormal changes should be identified and intervened in a timely manner to reduce the occurrence of severe NEC.

Objective:To explore the dual mediating effects of health belief and depression among health knowledge, social support, and health behaviors based on the capacity, opportunity, motivation-behavior (COM-B) model, and analyze the influencing factors of health behaviors in patients with ischemic stroke.Methods:This multi-center cluster sampling research recruited ischemic stroke patients ( n=1 696) who were hospitalized in neurology departments of five tertiary hospitals in Henan Province from October 2023 to October 2024. A cross-sectional investigation was conducted using the general information questionnaire, social support rating scale (SSRS), stroke prevention knowledge questionnaire(SPKQ), short form health belief model scale(SF-HBMS), health promoting lifestyle profile-Ⅱ (HPLP-Ⅱ), and patient health questionnaire-9(PHQ-9) to ultimately reveal the pathways and effect sizes among variables. Partial correlation analysis and multiple linear stepwise regression analysis were conducted to examine the relationships among social support, health knowledge, health belief, health behaviors, and depression in stroke patients by SPSS 26.0 software. Structural equation modeling was constructed using AMOS 28.0 software, and the mediating effect was tested using the Bootstrap method. Results:The scores of social support, health knowledge, health belief, and health behaviors among ischemic stroke patients were (37.46±9.94), (26.56±6.84), (75.62±12.62) and (130.79±26.27), respectively. The score of depression was 5.00 (2.00, 8.00). Health behaviors were positively correlated with health knowledge, social support, and health belief( r=0.333, 0.246, 0.267, all P<0.05), while negatively correlated with depression ( r=-0.146, P<0.05). Multiple linear stepwise regression analysis showed that health knowledge, social support, health belief, and depression were all influencing factors of health behaviors in ischemic stroke patients (all P<0.05). Health belief (effect value=0.068, 95% CI=0.048-0.093) and depression (effect value=0.009, 95% CI=0.003-0.018) both played partial mediating roles between health knowledge and health behaviors, accounting for 17.3%(0.077/0.446) of the total effect. Meanwhile, health belief (effect value=0.045, 95% CI=0.029-0.063) and depression (effect value=0.016, 95% CI=0.008-0.027) both played partial mediating roles between social support and health behaviors, accounting for 26.5%(0.061/0.230) of the total effect. Conclusion:Health knowledge and social support can not only directly influence health behaviors but also indirectly affect them through health belief and depression in patients with ischemic stroke.

Purpose To investigate the consistency and reliability of immunohistochemistry(IHC)staining and polymerase chain reaction-capillary electrophoresis(PCR-CE)in the detection of microsatellite instability.Methods The clinical data of 735 patients with solid tumors who underwent biopsy or surgical resection were collected,and the microsatellite status of tissue samples was detected by IHC and PCR-CE.Results Among the 344 cases of colorectal cancer(CRC),IHC results showed that 290 cases(84.3％)had proficient mismatch repair(pMMR),and 54 cases(15.7％)had deficient mismatch repair(dMMR).The results of PCR-CE showed that 53 patients(15.4％)had high microsatellite instability(MSI-H),and 291 patients(84.6％)had microsatellite stable(MSS).The consistency analysis of IHC and PCR-CE results showed that the Kappa value was 0.923(P＜0.001).Among the 168 cases of en-dometrial cancer(EC),IHC results showed that 42 cases(25.0％)had dMMR and 126 cases(75.0％)had pMMR;The results of PCR-CE showed that 39 cases(23.2％)had MSI-H and 129 cases(76.8％)had MSS.The consisten-cy analysis of the two methods showed that the Kappa value was 0.854(P＜0.001).Among the 165 cases of gastric cancer,IHC results showed that 22(13.3％)had dMMR and 143(86.7％)had pMMR;The results of PCR-CE showed that 22 cases(13.3％)had MSI-H and 143 cases(86.7％)had MSS/low microsatellite instability(MSI-L).The consistency analysis of IHC and PCR-CE results showed that the Kappa value was 0.843(P＜0.001).Among the 58 cases of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma(HNSCC),IHC results showed that 3 cases(5.2％)had dMMR and 55 cases(94.8％)had pMMR;The results of PCR-CE showed that 3 cases(5.2％)had MSI-H and 55 cases(94.8％)had MSS.The consistency analysis of the two methods showed that the Kappa value was 1.000(P＜0.001).Conclusion IHC and PCR-CE have high consistency and reliability in detecting MSI status in patients with CRC,EC,gastric cancer and HNSCC,and their combined application is helpful to improve the accuracy of MSI detec-tion in patients with solid tumors.

Objective·To quantify brain iron content in Parkinson's disease(PD)patients by using quantitative susceptibility mapping(QSM)based on phase linearity fitting.Combined with texture analysis methods,the magnetic susceptibility distribution characteristics of gray matter nuclei in PD patients were quantitatively analyzed with multiple parameters and dimensions,and the sensitivity of texture features was evaluated with clinical scoring.Methods·Quantitative susceptibility images from 20 PD patients and 20 healthy controls(HC)were analyzed retrospectively.Regions of interest in basal ganglia were manually segmented,followed by three-dimensional texture analysis by using gray-level run-length matrix(GLRLM).One-way analysis of variance(ANOVA)was performed to compare differences between the two groups,and the bilateral Pearson linear correlation coefficient(r)was calculated to evaluate the correlation between texture parameters and UPDRS-Ⅲ clinical scores.Results·The analysis of texture feature parameters showed that there were significant differences between the PD and HC groups in the gray matter nuclei.Among all the texture feature parameters of GLRLM,LngREnch showed significant differences between the PD group and the HC group in the five gray matter nuclei measured.The average magnetic susceptibility of gray matter nuclei and GLRLM texture parameters were sensitive in distinguishing PD from HC(AUC＞0.5).The AUC values of RLNonUni,LngREnch,ShrtREmp,and Fraction were higher than that of the average magnetization susceptibiliyt.The correlation analysis showed that RLNonUni and GLevNonU in the caudate nucleus(CN),as well as GLevNonU in the red nucleus(RN),were significantly correlated with UPDRS-Ⅲ scores,while no significant clinical correlations were found for the remaining parameters.Conclusion·Compared to the mean magnetic susceptibility values,GLRLM texture parameters provide better differentiation between the PD and HC groups.Multiparameter texture analysis offers a novel approach to QSM-based quantitative assessment of brain iron content,which can provide additional multidimensional quantitative information for the non-invasive diagnosis of PD.

Probiotics have shown excellent application prospects in preventing and treating many diseases. However, their sensitivity to the harsh environment in vivo always leads to a massive loss of viability and insufficient therapeutic effect. Fortunately, modified probiotics have emerged and provide multiple possibilities for their use in various diseases. Modification not only endows probiotics with extra capacity to resist severe environments but also gives them exogenous characteristics, such as prolonged retention time and improved therapeutic effects. Modified probiotics could combine with other therapies, which has opened up new avenues to enhance the efficacy of probiotic-based therapy. In this review, we have summarized the current physicochemical and biological modification strategies of probiotics. In addition, the progress of research on probiotic-based combination therapy has also been extensively reviewed, which contributes to the enhanced delivery of probiotics or other active constituents and provides new ideas for disease treatment, bioimaging, and diagnosis.

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a medical condition characterized by cardiac remodeling and dysfunction in individuals with diabetes mellitus. Sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) and mitochondrial Ca²⁺ overload in cardiomyocytes have been recognized as biological hallmarks in DCM; however, the specific factors underlying these abnormalities remain largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of a cardiac-specific long noncoding RNA, D830005E20Rik (Trdn-as), in DCM. Our results revealed the remarkably upregulation of Trdn-as in the hearts of the DCM mice and cardiomyocytes treated with high glucose (HG). Knocking down Trdn-as in cardiac tissues significantly improved cardiac dysfunction and remodeling in the DCM mice. Conversely, Trdn-as overexpression resulted in cardiac damage resembling that observed in the DCM mice. At the cellular level, Trdn-as induced Ca²⁺ overload in the SR and mitochondria, leading to mitochondrial dysfunction. RNA-seq and bioinformatics analyses identified calsequestrin 2 (Casq2), a primary calcium-binding protein in the junctional SR, as a potential target of Trdn-as. Further investigations revealed that Trdn-as facilitated the recruitment of METTL14 to the Casq2 mRNA, thereby enhancing the m⁶A modification of Casq2. This modification increased the stability of Casq2 mRNA and subsequently led to increased protein expression. When Casq2 was knocked down, the promoting effects of Trdn-as on Ca²⁺ overload and mitochondrial damage were mitigated. These findings provide valuable insights into the pathogenesis of DCM and suggest Trdn-as as a potential therapeutic target for this condition.
Animals ; Diabetic Cardiomyopathies/pathology* ; RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics* ; Myocytes, Cardiac/metabolism* ; Mice ; Calsequestrin/genetics* ; Calcium/metabolism* ; Male ; Sarcoplasmic Reticulum/metabolism* ; Methyltransferases/metabolism* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Mitochondria, Heart/metabolism* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Mitochondria/metabolism*