ObjectiveBased on ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry（UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， network pharmacology， molecular docking and cell experiments， the active ingredients， possible targets and molecular mechanisms of Baoxin granules（BXG） regulating ferroptosis in the treatment of heart failure（HF） were explored. MethodsBXG intestinal absorption fluid was prepared by everted gut sac and the chemical composition contained therein were identified by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. According to the obtained components， the potential targets of BXG were predicted， and the HF-related targets and related genes of ferroptosis were retrieved at the same time， and the intersecting targets were obtained by Venn diagram. In addition， the protein-protein interaction（PPI） network and the component-target network were constructed， and the core components and core targets were obtained by topological analysis. Then Gene Ontology（GO） function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analysis were performed on the core targets， and molecular docking validation of the key targets and main components was carried out by AutoDockTools 1.5.7. H9c2 cells were used to establish a oxygen-glucose deprivation model， and the protective effect of BXG on cells was investigated by detecting cell viability， cell survival rate and reactive oxygen species（ROS） level. The protein expression levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3（STAT3）， phosphorylation（p）-STAT3 and glutathione peroxidase 4（GPX4） were detected by Western blot to clarify the regulatory effect of BXG on ferroptosis. ResultsA total of 61 chemical components in BXG intestinal absorption fluid were identified， and network pharmacology obtained 27 potential targets of BXG for the treatment of HF， as well as 139 signaling pathways. BXG may act on core targets such as STAT3， tumor protein p53（TP53）， epidermal growth factor receptor（EGFR）， JUN and prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2（PTGS2） through core components such as glabrolide and limonin， which in turn intervene in lipid and atherosclerosis， phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B（PI3K/Akt）， endocrine resistance and other signaling pathways to exert therapeutic effects on HF. Molecular docking showed that the docking results of multiple groups of targets and compounds were good. In vitro cell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the cell viability and survival rate of the model group were significantly decreased， the level of ROS was significantly increased（P<0.01）， the expression levels of STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 proteins were significantly decreased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the cell viability and survival rate of the BXG group were significantly increased， the ROS level was significantly decreased（P<0.01）， the STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 protein levels were significantly increased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionBXG may inhibit the occurrence of ferroptosis by up-regulating the expression of STAT3 and GPX4， thus exerting a therapeutic effect on HF， and flavonoids may be the key components of this role.

ObjectiveBased on ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry（UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， network pharmacology， molecular docking and cell experiments， the active ingredients， possible targets and molecular mechanisms of Baoxin granules（BXG） regulating ferroptosis in the treatment of heart failure（HF） were explored. MethodsBXG intestinal absorption fluid was prepared by everted gut sac and the chemical composition contained therein were identified by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. According to the obtained components， the potential targets of BXG were predicted， and the HF-related targets and related genes of ferroptosis were retrieved at the same time， and the intersecting targets were obtained by Venn diagram. In addition， the protein-protein interaction（PPI） network and the component-target network were constructed， and the core components and core targets were obtained by topological analysis. Then Gene Ontology（GO） function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analysis were performed on the core targets， and molecular docking validation of the key targets and main components was carried out by AutoDockTools 1.5.7. H9c2 cells were used to establish a oxygen-glucose deprivation model， and the protective effect of BXG on cells was investigated by detecting cell viability， cell survival rate and reactive oxygen species（ROS） level. The protein expression levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3（STAT3）， phosphorylation（p）-STAT3 and glutathione peroxidase 4（GPX4） were detected by Western blot to clarify the regulatory effect of BXG on ferroptosis. ResultsA total of 61 chemical components in BXG intestinal absorption fluid were identified， and network pharmacology obtained 27 potential targets of BXG for the treatment of HF， as well as 139 signaling pathways. BXG may act on core targets such as STAT3， tumor protein p53（TP53）， epidermal growth factor receptor（EGFR）， JUN and prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2（PTGS2） through core components such as glabrolide and limonin， which in turn intervene in lipid and atherosclerosis， phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B（PI3K/Akt）， endocrine resistance and other signaling pathways to exert therapeutic effects on HF. Molecular docking showed that the docking results of multiple groups of targets and compounds were good. In vitro cell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the cell viability and survival rate of the model group were significantly decreased， the level of ROS was significantly increased（P<0.01）， the expression levels of STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 proteins were significantly decreased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the cell viability and survival rate of the BXG group were significantly increased， the ROS level was significantly decreased（P<0.01）， the STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 protein levels were significantly increased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionBXG may inhibit the occurrence of ferroptosis by up-regulating the expression of STAT3 and GPX4， thus exerting a therapeutic effect on HF， and flavonoids may be the key components of this role.

Attention is the cornerstone of effective functioning in a complex and information-rich world. While the neural activity of attention has been extensively studied in the cortex, the brain-wide neural activity patterns are largely unknown. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of neural activity across the mouse brain during attentional processing using EEG and c-Fos staining, utilizing hierarchical clustering and c-Fos-based functional network analysis to evaluate the c-Fos activation patterns. Our findings reveal that a wide range of brain regions are activated, notably in the high-order cortex, thalamus, and brain stem regions involved in advanced cognition and arousal regulation, with the central lateral nucleus of the thalamus as a strong hub, suggesting the crucial role of the thalamus in attention control. These results provide valuable insights into the neural network mechanisms underlying attention, offering a foundation for formulating functional hypotheses and conducting circuit-level testing.
Animals ; Attention/physiology* ; Mice ; Brain/physiology* ; Male ; Electroencephalography ; Reaction Time/physiology* ; Brain Mapping ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Choice Behavior/physiology* ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos/metabolism*

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) belongs to the category of emotional diseases in TCM, and its occurrence is closely related to liver depression and qi stagnation, and liver depression and fire syndrome is one of the TCM syndromes of GAD. With the deepening of modern medical research on GAD, microglia have been found to play an important role in the development of liver depression and fire syndrome of GAD. Excessive activation of microglia and transformation to M1 type would cause inflammatory mediator secretion up-regulation and destruction of neurons, etc. When using liver-soothing and heat-clearing medicines such as Bupleuri Radix, Gardeniae Fructus, Dangzhi Xiaoyao San, Yuejiu Pills and other Chinese materia medica or compounds, activation of microglia would be suppressed, and the inflammatory mediators mediated by microglia would also be suppressed, and the neurons could be protected. Therefore, this article discussed the modern biological connotation of the liver depression and fire syndrome of GAD from the perspective of microglia, and summarized the effects of TCM modulation of microglia on the liver depression and fire syndrome of GAD, and concluded that microglia could mediate the development of liver depression and fire syndrome of GAD.

Objective: To investigate the regulatory relationship between long non-coding RNA LINC01578 and c-Myc, and to explore the effect of LINC01578 on the metabolic process of oral squamous cell carcinoma(OSCC). Methods: After c-Myc was knocked down in OSCC cell line CAL27, LINC01578, a long non-coding RNA that is positively regulated by c-Myc, was identified by high-throughput sequencing technology. qRT-PCR was employed to measure the expression levels of c-Myc and LINC01578 in OSCC tissues and adjacent normal tissues. Following overexpression or knockdown of c-Myc in CAL27 and HN6 cells, qRT-PCR was conducted to validate the consistency with sequencing results. The binding of c-Myc to the LINC01578 promoter was confirmed using a dual luciferase reporter assay. Seahorse, ATP production and lactate production assays were utilized to examine the impact of c-Myc on glucose metabolism in OSCC via LINC01578. Colony formation assays assessed the proliferative capacity of OSCC cell lines. Results: qRT-PCR analysis revealed significantly higher expression levels of c-Myc LINC01578 in OSCC tissues compared to adjacent tissues( P < 0. 05 ) , confirming that c⁃Myc positively regulates LINC01578 expression. Consistent with sequencing data , c⁃Myc overexpression markedly upregulated LINC01578 (P < 0. 001) , while c⁃Myc knockdown led to a significant decrease in LINC01578 levels(P < 0. 000 1) . Dual lu ciferase reporter gene assays demonstrated that c⁃Myc directly targets and transcriptionally enhanced LINC01578 ex⁃ pression(P < 0. 001) . Seahorse experiments indicated that c⁃Myc promoted glucose metabolism in OSCC through LINC01578 regulation(P < 0. 05) . Colony formation assays showed that LINC01578 overexpression enhanced OS⁃ CC cell proliferation , whereas LINC01578 knockdown inhibited it. Conclusion c⁃Myc upregulates LINC01578 expression in OSCC cells , thereby modulating glycolysis and promoting cell proliferation.

Objective: To explore the role of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) in dental pulp inflammation . Methods: Human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs) were cultured in vitro as the target cells , the inflammatory response was induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) , and high-throughput sequencing was used to detect relevant highly ex- pressed genes in the inflammatory state . The expression of LIF under graded concentrations of LPS stimulation was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR (qPCR) . The expression levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) , inter- leukin-1β(IL-1β) , and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) were detected after LIF knockdown and overexpression in hDPSCs by qPCR . Normal and inflammatory pulp tissues were collected , and the expression of LIF in both tis- sues was detected by qPCR and immunofluorescence (IF) . Results: The expression level of LIF increased in hu- man dental pulp cells after LPS stimulation . The expression level of LIF was subsequently elevated in inflammatory pulp induced by graded concentrations of LPS . The expression of IL-6 , IL-1β, and TNF-αwas significantly down- regulated in hDPSCs after LIF knockdown in response to LPS stimulation , while LIF overexpression upregulated the expression of these cytokines . qPCR and IF assays showed high expression of LIF in inflamed pulp tissue . Conclusion LIF is involved in dental pulp inflammation and promotes the development of pulpitis .

Objective: To elucidate the molecular mechanism by which prohibitin 2(PHB2) mediates periodontitis-induced bone tissue inflammation through regulating the nuclear factor kappa B(NF-κB) signaling pathway and its role in irreversible alveolar bone resorption. Methods: Quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry(IHC) were used to detect the expression differences of inflammatory factors and PHB2 in healthy and inflamed alveolar bone tissues of mice in vivo. In vitro, an inflammatory model was established using lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced a mouse calvaria-derived preosteoblastic cell line, subclone E1(MC3T3-E1) cells. Western blot and qRT-PCR were used to clarify the regulatory relationship between PHB2 and inflammatory factors, and immunofluorescence staining was performed to observe changes in PHB2 subcellular localization. PHB2 overexpression plasmids were constructed using molecular cloning, and RNA interference was employed to knock down PHB2 expression to assess its regulatory role in inflammation. Based on RNA-seq data, differential expression analysis based on the negative binomial distribution, version 2(DESeq2) was used for differential expression analysis, and kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes(KEGG) pathway enrichment along with gene ontology(GO) functional annotation were performed to identify key signaling pathways and differentially expressed genes. Results: In the mouse periodontitis model, PHB2 expression was significantly upregulated in alveolar bone tissues. In the in vitro inflammatory cell model, PHB2 levels positively correlated with interleukin(IL)-6, IL-1β, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha(TNF-α) levels, and its subcellular localization shifted during inflammation. RNA-seq data and the detection of the level of phosphorylation of p65 protein(p-p65) demonstrated that PHB2 exacerbated inflammatory responses through the NF-κB signaling pathway and was mechanistically linked to upregulation of the upstream chemokine C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10(CXCL10). Conclusion PHB2 aggravates LPS-induced periodontitis inflammation via the NF-κB signaling pathway, providing new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the development of periodontitis.

OBJECTIVE To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of the sedative effect of remimazolam in endoscopy and to compare it with propofol and midazolam. METHODS Search PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Wanfang database, CNKI and other databases to collect the literature of randomized controlled trials of remimazolam for sedation in endoscopy. The search period was from 2018 onwards when remimazolam was approved for clinical trials until April 2022. The search strategy included the following variable keywords: remimazolam, gastroscopy, bronchoscopy, and colonoscopy. The quality of the included literature was assessed and the collected data were subjected to meta-analysis by RevMan 5.4 software. RESULTS Ten relevant RCTs involving midazolam and propofol, involving a total of 2 076 patients were included in the analysis. The results showed that the sedative effect of remimazolam was significantly higher than that of midazolam [OR=0.03, 95%CI(0.02, 0.05), I2=0%, P<0.000 01]; but lower than that of propofol [OR=11.32, 95%CI(2.12, 60.56), I2=0%, P=0.005]. The onset time of remimazolam was longer than that of propofol, but shorter than that of midazolam; the recovery time was faster than that of propofol and midazolam. Compared with midazolam, there was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions. Compared with propofol, remimazolam was associated with lower rates of hypotension, slowed heart rate, hypoxemia, and injection pain, but higher risk ratio of nausea, with no difference invomiting. CONCLUSION The sedative effect and onset of action of remimazolam are better than midazolam but less than propofol when used for endoscopy. Wake-up time is faster than that of propofol and midazolam. The incidence of respiratory and circulatory depression is lower with remimazolam than with propofol, and there are no significant differences in adverse effects compared with midazolam.

Objective This study examined the influence of c-Myc regulated long noncoding RNA TBL1XR1-5(lnc-TBL1XR1-5)on the progression of oral squamous cell carcinoma(OSCC).Methods Based on the expres-sion of c-Myc,bioinformatics analysis was performed on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma samples in the TCGA database,and lnc-TBL1XR1-5 with closely related c-Myc expression was screened.The effects of c-Myc overexpression and knockdown on lnc-TBL1XR1-5 were detected.Expression relationship of c-Myc and lnc-TBL1XR1-5 in OSCC and para-cancer tissues.Dual-luciferase reporter assays were used to verify the binding of c-Myc to the lnc-TBL1XR1-5 promoter region.RNA FISH were used to determine the localization of lnc-TBL1XR1-5 in OSCC cell lines.The effects of overexpression,knockdown of lnc-TBL1XR1-5 on migration,metabolism,and proliferation of OSCC cells were observed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR),scratch tests,transwell assays,medium color and pH changes,cell counts,CCK-8 assay,and colony formation assays.Results It was found that c-Myc positively regulated the expression of lnc-TBL1XR1-5 in OSCC cell lines and tis-sues.The binding of c-Myc to the lnc-TBL1XR1-5 promoter region was verified by dual-luciferase reporter assays.RNA FISH showed that lnc-TBL1XR1-5 was localized in the nuclei in OSCC cells.Overexpression of lnc-TBL1XR1-5 promoted migration,metabolism and proliferation in OSCC cell lines,while knockdown of it had the opposite effect.Conclusion c-Myc positively regulates lnc-TBL1XR1-5 in OSCC.Lnc-TBL1XR1-5 affect the mi-gration,proliferation,and metabolism of OSCC by influencing the tumor microenvironment.

Objective To explore the action mechanism of long non-coding RNA(lncRNAs)lncRNA KCTD13-DT in oral squamous cell carcinoma(OSCC)and its potential interaction with transcription factor c-Myc,providing a potential diagnostic and therapeutic target for patients with OSCC.Methods The expression of lncRNA KCTD13-DT in OSCC and paracancerous tissues was detected by qRT-PCR.The effects of c-Myc overexpression and knock-down on human tongue squamous carcinoma cells HN6 and CAL27 were detected by qRT-PCR.Fluorescence in si-tu hybridization(FISH)assessed the localization of lncRNA KCTD13-DT in cells.A dual luciferase reporter gene was used to analyze the role of c-Myc in target binding to the promoter region of lncRNA KCTD13-DT.Stable cell lines with knockdown or overexpression of lncRNA KCTD13-DT were constructed in human OSCC cell lines HN6 and CAL27 by lentiviral infection,and the knockdown and overexpression efficiencies of lncRNA KCTD13-DT were detected by qRT-PCR.Cell proliferation changes were detected by growth curve assay,CCK-8 assay,colony forma-tion assay,and cell migration was detected by scratch assay and Transwell.Results lncRNA KCTD13-DT expres-sion level was reduced in OSCC tissues and OSCC cells(HN6,CAL27),and Western blot verified that after knoc-king down and overexpression of c-Myc in HN6 and CAL27,the qRT-PCR experiments showed that c-Myc nega-tively regulated lncRNA KCTD13-DT,and overexpression of c-Myc significantly down-regulated lncRNA KCTD13-DT;knockdown of c-Myc significantly up-regulated lncRNA KCTD13-DT levels.Dual luciferase reporter gene showed that c-Myc could target lncRNA KCTD13-DT,and c-Myc could be involved in regulating and repressing the transcriptional activity of lncRNA KCTD13-DT.FISH showed that lncRNA KCTD13-DT mainly existed in the nu-cleus.Growth curve assay,CCK-8 assay,cell scratch assay,Transwell,and colony formation assay showed that knockdown of lncRNA KCTD13-DT promoted the growth and proliferation of OSCC cells,and overexpression of ln-cRNA KCTD13-DT significantly inhibited the proliferation and migration of OSCC cells.Conclusion lncRNA KCTD13-DT is negatively regulated by c-Myc.Knockdown of lncRNA KCTD13-DT promotes cell proliferation,while overexpression of it inhibits cell growth.