ObjectiveTo investigate the protective effect of Qiju Dihuang Wan on diabetic retinopathy （DR） and its regulatory mechanism on the NOD-like receptor protein 3/Cysteinyl aspartate-specific proteinase-1/Gasdermin D （NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD） signaling pathway. MethodsHuman retinal microvascular endothelial cells （HRMEC） were divided into the blank group， model group， and Qiju Dihuang Wan low- and high-dose groups. Except for the blank group， all groups were induced with 40 mmol·L^-1 high glucose， and the treatment groups were supplemented with 6% and 12% Qiju Dihuang Wan-containing serum， respectively， based on the induction. After 24 h of culture， the levels of interleukin （IL）-1β and IL-18 were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）， pyroptosis-related protein expression was detected by immunofluorescence and Western blot， and the mRNA levels of NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD signaling pathway-related molecules were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR）. The mice were randomly divided into the blank group， model group， Qiju Dihuang Wan low-， medium-， and high-dose groups （11， 22， 44 g·kg^-1·d^-1）， and calcium dobesilate group （0.13 g·kg^-1·d^-1）. Except for the blank group， all groups were intraperitoneally injected with streptozotocin to establish the DR model. After successful modeling， the treatment groups received corresponding doses of Qiju Dihuang Wan crude drug or calcium dobesilate suspension by gavage once daily， while the blank group and model group received an equal volume of normal saline， for 8 consecutive weeks. Fundus changes were examined by optical coherence tomography， optical coherence tomography angiography， and fundus fluorescein angiography. Retinal pathological morphology was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. Real-time PCR was used to detect the mRNA levels of NLRP3， Caspase‑1， GSDMD， IL‑1β， and IL‑18 in retinal tissue， and Western blot was used to detect the protein expression of NLRP3， ASC， cleaved Caspase‑1， and GSDMD‑N. ResultsCell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the model group showed significantly decreased HRMEC viability （P<0.01）， and significantly increased levels of IL-1β， IL-18， as well as increased protein expression of NLRP3， cleaved Caspase-1， and GSDMD-N （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the above indicators were significantly reduced in the high-dose Qiju Dihuang Wan groups （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Animal experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the model group had elevated blood glucose （P<0.01）， decreased retinal thickness and vascular density （P<0.01）， up‑regulated mRNA expression of NLRP3， Caspase‑1， GSDMD， IL‑1β and IL‑18 in retinal tissue （P<0.01）， and up‑regulated protein expression of NLRP3， ASC， cleaved Caspase‑1 and GSDMD‑N （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the Qiju Dihuang Wan medium- and high‑dose groups showed decreased blood glucose （P<0.01）， increased retinal thickness and vascular density （P<0.01）， alleviated retinal pathological damage， and down‑regulated mRNA expression of NLRP3， Caspase‑1， GSDMD， IL‑1β， IL‑18， as well as protein expression of NLRP3， ASC， cleaved Caspase‑1， and GSDMD‑N （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionQiju Dihuang Wan may exert protective effects against diabetic retinopathy by inhibiting the activation of the NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD signaling pathway and alleviating high glucose-induced retinal pyroptosis.

ObjectiveTo investigate the protective effect of Qiju Dihuang Wan on diabetic retinopathy （DR） and its regulatory mechanism on the NOD-like receptor protein 3/Cysteinyl aspartate-specific proteinase-1/Gasdermin D （NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD） signaling pathway. MethodsHuman retinal microvascular endothelial cells （HRMEC） were divided into the blank group， model group， and Qiju Dihuang Wan low- and high-dose groups. Except for the blank group， all groups were induced with 40 mmol·L^-1 high glucose， and the treatment groups were supplemented with 6% and 12% Qiju Dihuang Wan-containing serum， respectively， based on the induction. After 24 h of culture， the levels of interleukin （IL）-1β and IL-18 were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）， pyroptosis-related protein expression was detected by immunofluorescence and Western blot， and the mRNA levels of NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD signaling pathway-related molecules were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR）. The mice were randomly divided into the blank group， model group， Qiju Dihuang Wan low-， medium-， and high-dose groups （11， 22， 44 g·kg^-1·d^-1）， and calcium dobesilate group （0.13 g·kg^-1·d^-1）. Except for the blank group， all groups were intraperitoneally injected with streptozotocin to establish the DR model. After successful modeling， the treatment groups received corresponding doses of Qiju Dihuang Wan crude drug or calcium dobesilate suspension by gavage once daily， while the blank group and model group received an equal volume of normal saline， for 8 consecutive weeks. Fundus changes were examined by optical coherence tomography， optical coherence tomography angiography， and fundus fluorescein angiography. Retinal pathological morphology was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. Real-time PCR was used to detect the mRNA levels of NLRP3， Caspase‑1， GSDMD， IL‑1β， and IL‑18 in retinal tissue， and Western blot was used to detect the protein expression of NLRP3， ASC， cleaved Caspase‑1， and GSDMD‑N. ResultsCell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the model group showed significantly decreased HRMEC viability （P<0.01）， and significantly increased levels of IL-1β， IL-18， as well as increased protein expression of NLRP3， cleaved Caspase-1， and GSDMD-N （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the above indicators were significantly reduced in the high-dose Qiju Dihuang Wan groups （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Animal experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the model group had elevated blood glucose （P<0.01）， decreased retinal thickness and vascular density （P<0.01）， up‑regulated mRNA expression of NLRP3， Caspase‑1， GSDMD， IL‑1β and IL‑18 in retinal tissue （P<0.01）， and up‑regulated protein expression of NLRP3， ASC， cleaved Caspase‑1 and GSDMD‑N （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the Qiju Dihuang Wan medium- and high‑dose groups showed decreased blood glucose （P<0.01）， increased retinal thickness and vascular density （P<0.01）， alleviated retinal pathological damage， and down‑regulated mRNA expression of NLRP3， Caspase‑1， GSDMD， IL‑1β， IL‑18， as well as protein expression of NLRP3， ASC， cleaved Caspase‑1， and GSDMD‑N （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionQiju Dihuang Wan may exert protective effects against diabetic retinopathy by inhibiting the activation of the NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD signaling pathway and alleviating high glucose-induced retinal pyroptosis.

Objective To investigate the relationship between ferroptosis-related genes[heme oxygenase-1(HO-1),solute carrier family 7 member 11(SLC7A11),and long-chain acyl-coenzyme A synthetase 4(ACSL4)]expression and cardiovascular events in patients with chronic renal failure(CRF),aiming to pro-vide clinical insights for risk assessment of cardiovascular complications.Methods A total of 124 CRF pa-tients(CRF group)admitted to the hospital from January 2020 to January 2023 and 124 healthy people(con-trol group)who underwent physical examination in the hospital during the same period were selected as the research objects.The levels of ferroptosis-related gene HO-1,SLC7A11 and ACSL4 were detected and com-pared between the two groups.CRF patients were followed up for 12 months after discharge,and they were di-vided into concurrent group(n=56)and non-concurrent group(n=66)according to the occurrence of cardio-vascular events.Spearman correlation analysis was used to investigate the correlation between iron death relat-ed genes HO-1,SLC7A11,ACSL4 and cardiovascular events in CRF patients.Univariate and multivariate Lo-gistic regression analysis were used to investigate the influencing factors of cardiovascular events in CRF pa-tients.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to analyze the predictive value of iron death re-lated genes HO-1,SLC7A11,and ACSL4 for cardiovascular events in CRF patients.Results Serum HO-1 and SLC7A11 levels in CRF group were lower than those in control group(P＜0.05),and the ACSL4 level was higher than that in control group(P＜0.05).The serum HO-1 and SLC7A11 levels in concurrent group were lower than those in non-concurrent group(all P＜0.05),and the serum ACSL4 level was higher than that in non-concurrent group(P＜0.05).Ferroptosis-related genes HO-1 and SLC7A11 were negatively correlated with cardiovascular events(r=-0.708,—0.721,P＜0.05),while ACSL4 was positively correlated with car-diovascular events(r=0.699,P＜0.05).High serum ACSL4 expression and high cTnT level were risk fac-tors for cardiovascular events in CRF patients(P＜0.05),and high hemoglobin level and high serum HO-1 and SLC7A11 expression were protective factors for cardiovascular events in CRF patients(P＜0.05).ROC curve analysis results showed that the area under the curve(AUC)of serum HO-1,SLC7A11,ACSL4,hemo-globin and cTnT alone for predicting cardiovascular events in CRF patients were 0.787,0.735,0.773,0.651 and 0.782,respectively.The AUC of the combined prediction of ferroptosis-related genes was 0.837,and the AUC of the combined application of five factors was 0.880.According to Delong's test,the AUC of both com-bined application models was significantly higher than those of individual application(P＜0.05).The nomo-gram model showed that all ferroptosis-related genes were positively expressed(HO-1＜1.5,SLC7A11＜1.15,ACSL4&ge;2.75),and the risk of developing concurrent cardiovascular events in CRF patients could reach over 75％.Conclusion The expression of serum HO-1 and SLC7A11 in CRF patients is decreased,and the ACSL4 expression is increased,which is closely related to cardiovascular events,and the combined detection of three indexes has high value in predicting cardiovascular events in CRF patients.

Glioma is the most common primary malignant tumor of the central nervous system in adults. Despite the standard treatment of surgery combined with radiotherapy and chemotherapy, the prognosis for high-grade glioma patients remains poor, highlighting the urgent need to further explore its pathogenesis and develop new therapeutic strategies. This article reviews the research progress in the field of glioma in China in 2024, covering tumorigenesis mechanisms, tumor immune microenvironment composition, advances in imaging techniques and novel imaging agents, improvements in surgical approaches, mechanisms of radio- and chemoresistance, and explorations of new therapeutic modalities. These studies provide a solid theoretical foundation for advancing clinical diagnosis and treatment of gliomas and may offer new opportunities to improve patient outcomes.

Breast cancer remains a substantial threat to women's health and is one of the most prevalent malignant tumors in women.Because breast cancer onset is closely associated with female physiological characteristics,this article proposes that breast cancer be classified as a"women's miscellaneous diseases"and that its treatment be explored from this perspective.Drawing from Chapter 8 on Golden Chamber of Prescriptions for Miscellaneous Diseases in Women of Synopsis of Golden Chamber,the initial pathogenesis of breast cancer is associated with"emotional stress,improper lifestyle,deficiency,cold,and stagnation."The fundamental mechanism behind its formation is"blood cold accumulation and hardened masses."Specifically,emotional imbalance and improper lifestyle habits contribute to the combined invasion of the uterus by"deficiency,""accumulated cold,"and"stagnant qi."Over time,"cold-blood stasis accumulates at the uterine ostium,"and the cold and the stasis ascends from the uterus along the thoroughfare and conception vessels,obstructing the breast collaterals.This combination of yang qi stagnation and yin cold congealment,ultimately leads to the development of breast cancer.The treatment principle should focus on"activating yang and dispersing cold."A therapeutic approach centered on Wenjing Decoction combined with Xiaoyao Powder can be adapted based on the stage and type of breast cancer while also considering the dynamic interplay between pathogenic factors and healthy qi,along with shifts in deficiency and excess patterns of disease.By adhering to the principles of consistency and flexibility and integrating disease and syndrome differentiation,the goal is to develop precise and personalized treatment strategies to improve clinical outcomes.

Breast cancer remains a substantial threat to women's health and is one of the most prevalent malignant tumors in women.Because breast cancer onset is closely associated with female physiological characteristics,this article proposes that breast cancer be classified as a"women's miscellaneous diseases"and that its treatment be explored from this perspective.Drawing from Chapter 8 on Golden Chamber of Prescriptions for Miscellaneous Diseases in Women of Synopsis of Golden Chamber,the initial pathogenesis of breast cancer is associated with"emotional stress,improper lifestyle,deficiency,cold,and stagnation."The fundamental mechanism behind its formation is"blood cold accumulation and hardened masses."Specifically,emotional imbalance and improper lifestyle habits contribute to the combined invasion of the uterus by"deficiency,""accumulated cold,"and"stagnant qi."Over time,"cold-blood stasis accumulates at the uterine ostium,"and the cold and the stasis ascends from the uterus along the thoroughfare and conception vessels,obstructing the breast collaterals.This combination of yang qi stagnation and yin cold congealment,ultimately leads to the development of breast cancer.The treatment principle should focus on"activating yang and dispersing cold."A therapeutic approach centered on Wenjing Decoction combined with Xiaoyao Powder can be adapted based on the stage and type of breast cancer while also considering the dynamic interplay between pathogenic factors and healthy qi,along with shifts in deficiency and excess patterns of disease.By adhering to the principles of consistency and flexibility and integrating disease and syndrome differentiation,the goal is to develop precise and personalized treatment strategies to improve clinical outcomes.

Dengue fever, caused by of dengue virus (DENV) infection, is one of the most prevalent arboviral infections worldwide. It is estimated that approximately 390 million people are infected with DENV each year, of whom approximately 96 million will develop clinical symptoms and one in every twenty people may develop severe dengue leading to shock, internal bleeding and death. DENV includes four serotypes (1-4), each of which can cause various forms of disease. There is currently no specific treatment for dengue fever, and only two vaccines have been approved for use in some countries: CYD-TDV and TAK-003. CYD-TDV, which is suitable for people aged 9-45, can be affected by antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE), leading to more severe infections. Therefore, how to reduce or eliminate ADE becomes an important issue in current dengue vaccine research. In addition, the effects of DENV non-structural proteins on the immune system cannot be ignored. Currently, at least seven dengue vaccines are in various stages of development and clinical trials. This review will focus on three vaccine candidates that have made significant progress, and summarize the ways to avoid ADE the progress in the development of dengue vaccines using non-structural proteins as immunogens.

Objective To investigate the expression of PLCD3 mRNA in the synovium of osteoarthritis(OA)and its relationship with immune cell infiltration.Methods Based on the differentially expressed genes of OA found in the previous study,the expression of phospholipase Cδ3(PLCD3)mRNA was detected by col-lecting synovial samples from OA group and control group.CIBERSORT algorithm was used to analyze the infiltration pattern of immune cells in OA group and control group,and the correlation between PLCD3 and infiltrating immune cells was further analyzed.Results Compared with the control group,the relative expres-sion level of PLCD3 mRNA was significantly increased in synovial samples of OA group(P<0.05).The pro-portions of B cells naive,NK cells activated,M2 macrophages and mast cells activated in synovial tissues of OA group were relatively high(P<0.05).PLCD3 was positively correlated with the proportion of these four immune cells(P<0.05).Conclusion PLCD3 may be a key biomarker for the diagnosis of OA,which may be involved in the pathogenesis of OA by interacting with infiltrating immune cells.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the regulatory role of the long non-coding RNA LINC00926 in pyroptosis of hypoxia-induced human umbilical vein vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs) and explore the molecular mechanism. METHODS: HUVECs were transfected with a LINC00926-overexpressing plasmid (OE-LINC00926), a siRNA targeting ELAVL1, or both, followed by exposure to hypoxia (5% O2) or normoxia. The expression of LINC00926 and ELAVL1 in hypoxia-treated HUVECs was detected using real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blotting. Cell proliferation was detected using Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8), and the levels of IL-1β in the cell cultures was determined with ELISA. The protein expression levels of pyroptosis-related proteins (caspase-1, cleaved caspase-1 and NLRP3) in the treated cells were analyzed using Western blotting, and the binding between LINC00926 and ELAVL1 was verified with RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay. RESULTS: Exposure to hypoxia obviously up-regulated the mRNA expression of LINC00926 and the protein expression of ELAVL1 in HUVECs, but did not affect the mRNA expression of ELAVL1. LINC00926 overexpression in the cells significantly inhibited cell proliferation, increased IL-1β level and enhanced the expressions of pyroptosis-related proteins (all P < 0.05). LINC00926 overexpression further up-regulated the protein expression of ELAVL1 in hypoxia-exposed HUVECs. The results of RIP assay confirmed the binding between LINC00926 and ELAVL1. ELAVL1 knockdown significantly decreased IL-1β level and the expressions of pyroptosis-related proteins in hypoxia-exposed HUVECs (P < 0.05), while LINC00926 overexpression partially reversed the effects of ELAVL1 knockdown. CONCLUSION LINC00926 promotes pyroptosis of hypoxia-induced HUVECs by recruiting ELAVL1.
Humans ; Caspase 1 ; ELAV-Like Protein 1 ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; Pyroptosis ; RNA, Messenger ; RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics* ; Cell Hypoxia

Objective:To explore the role of navigation-assisted valgus stress method in avoiding excessive correction of lower limb mechanical axis after high tibial osteotomy (HTO).Methods:A retrospective study was carried out on osteoarthritis (OA) patients who were treated with HTO for medial compartment pain of knee from January 2020 to March 2022 in the Department of Joint Surgery, Shanghai Changhai Hospital, the First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University. According to the different ways of confirming alignment during operation, they were divided into computer navigation assisted valgus stress HTO group (referred to as navigation group) and traditional rod fluoroscopy HTO group (referred to as traditional group). There were 28 patients in the navigation group, 10 males and 18 females, with age of 54.4±9.1 years (range, 41-73 years) and body mass index of 26.1±3.3 kg/m 2 (range, 19.8-35.2 kg/m 2); There were 30 patients in the traditional group, 13 males and 17 females, aged 56.9±8.5 years (range, 40-70 years), with a body mass index of 25.7±4.0 kg/m 2 (range, 19.2-32.9 kg/m 2). Measuring the mechanical femoral tibial angle (mFTA), joint line convergence angle (JLCA), medial proximal tibial angle (MPTA), Lysholm score and Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) score before operation and at the last follow-up of the two groups, and conduct statistical analysis. Results:Both groups were followed up. The follow-up time of navigation group and traditional group was 21.3±8.7 months and 22.5±7.6 months, respectively, with no significant difference ( t=0.53, P=0.596). There were significant differences between the two groups in the amount of mechanical axis correction (ΔmFTA) and the amount of bone correction (ΔMPTA) ( t=2.09, P=0.041; t=2.58, P=0.012), while there was no significant difference in ΔJLCA ( t=0.32, P=0.753). In the navigation group, there were 9 cases (32%) of undercorrection, 17 cases (61%) with acceptable alignment, and 2 cases (7%) with over correction, while in the traditional group, there were 5 cases (17%) with under correction, 13 cases (43%) with acceptable alignment, and 12 cases (40%) with over correction. There was significant difference in the distribution rate of alignment between the two groups ( P=0.012), and the rate of overcorrection in the navigation group was significantly lower than that in the control group (7% vs. 40%, P=0.005). The intra group correlation coefficient between the navigation correction mechanical axis and ΔmFTA was 0.787. There was no significant difference in Lysholm score and HSS score between the two groups before and after surgery (all P>0.05), and they were significantly improved after operation (all P<0.05). Conclusion:Navigation-assisted valgus stress method HTO is reliable, which can accurately achieve the target alignment, reduce the incidence of over correction, and obtain good clinical results.