Atherosclerosis is a complex pathological condition resulting from lipid deposition， chronic inflammatory responses， and fibrosis， with a prolonged disease course and multifactorial etiology. Based on the traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） theory of accumulation syndrome， atherosclerosis can be classified under this category， with its pathogenesis involving phlegm， blood stasis， deficiency， and accumulation. This paper proposed a stage-based intervention strategy using the four therapeutic principles of "attacking， supplementing， dispersing， dissipating"， and divided into six stages based on the pathological progression， including the stage of accumulation before formation， the stage of accumulation already formed， the stage of nucleus accumulation， the stage of nucleus accumulation decay， the stage of nucleus accumulation consolidation， and the stage of severe stenosis of nucleus. At different stages， the intervention focuses on reinforcing healthy qi and consolidating the root， tonifying the kidneys and spleen， dispersing and removing turbidity， removing phlegm stagnation， promoting qi circulation， dispersing accumulations and removing stasis， attacking accumulation and expelling stasis， directing the turbid downward and dispersing accumulation， and treatment would be adjusted based on specific symptoms， which provides a theoretical framework for the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis with TCM.

Despite that sleep disturbance and poor neurocognitive performance are common complaints among coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) survivors, few studies have focused on the effect of post-COVID-19 sleep disturbance (PCSD) on cognitive function. This study aimed to identify the impact of PCSD on neurocognitive function and explore the associated risk factors for the worsening of this condition. This cross-sectional study was conducted via the web-based assessment in Chinese mainland. Neurocognitive function was evaluated by the modified online Integrated Cognitive Assessment (ICA) and the Number Ordering Test (NOT). Propensity score matching (PSM) was utilized to match the confounding factors between individuals with and without PCSD. Univariate analyses were performed to evaluate the effect of PCSD on neurocognitive function. The risk factors associated with worsened neurocognitive performance in PCSD individuals were explored using binary logistic regression. A total of 8692 individuals with COVID-19 diagnosis were selected for this study. Nearly half (48.80%) of the COVID-19 survivors reported sleep disturbance. After matching by PSM, a total of 3977 pairs (7954 individuals in total) were obtained. Univariate analyses revealed that PCSD was related to worse ICA and NOT performance (P<0.05). Underlying disease, upper respiratory infection, loss of smell or taste, severe pneumonia, and self-reported cognitive complaints were associated with worsened neurocognitive performance among PCSD individuals (P<0.05). Furthermore, aging, ethnicity (minority), and lower education level were found to be independent risk factors for worsened neurocognitive performance in PCSD individuals (P<0.05). PCSD was related to impaired neurocognitive performance. Therefore, appropriate prevention and intervention measures should be taken to minimize or prevent PCSD and eliminate its potential adverse effect on neurocognitive function.
Humans ; COVID-19/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Sleep Wake Disorders/epidemiology* ; Propensity Score ; Middle Aged ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Adult ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Aged ; Risk Factors ; China/epidemiology* ; Cognition ; Cognitive Dysfunction/etiology* ; Neuropsychological Tests

ObjectiveTo discuss the effects of Cistanches Herba phenylethanoid glycosides （CHPhGs） on the intestinal mucosal barrier and gut microbiota in alcoholic liver disease （ALD） mice were discussed. MethodThe 36 C57BL/6N female mice were randomly divided normal group， normal group of CHPhGs， model group， and low， medium， and high-dose groups （175， 350， 700 mg·kg^-1） of CHPhGs， with six mice in each group. The ALD mouse model was built using Lieber-Decarli alcohol liquid feed. The normal group and low， medium， and high-dose groups of CHPhGs were given CHPhGs by gavage daily. Serum aspartate aminotransferase aminotransferase （ALT）， alanine aminotransferase （AST）， triglycerides （TG）， and total cholesterol （TC） levels were detected by an automatic biochemical analyzer. Serum tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， lipopolysaccharide （LPS）， lipopolysaccharide-binding protein （LBP）， D-lactic acid （D-LA）， diamine oxidase （DAO）， and LBP of liver were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. The levels of TG and TC in the liver were detected by colorimetry. Liver tissue was treated by oil red O and hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining. The microstructure of jejunum epithelial cells was observed by electron microscope. Jejunum and colon were treated by HE staining and alcian blue-periodate-scheff (AB-PAS) staining staining， and mucin 2 （Muc2） was treated by immunohistochemistry. The intestinal contents of the normal group， normal group of CHPhGs， model group， and high-dose group of CHPhGs were collected and sequenced. ResultThe ALD model was established successfully. Compared with the normal group， the levels of serum ALT， AST， and TG， as well as the levels of liver TG and TC in the model group were significantly increased （P<0.05）. Histopathology showed that compared with the normal group， the liver cells in the model group showed obvious steatosis. Compared with the model group， the levels of serum TG and liver TG and TC in the low， medium， and high-dose groups of CHPhGs decreased significantly （P<0.05）. The serum ALT， AST， TNF-α， IL-1β， LPS， and LBP in the high-dose group of CHPhGs were also significantly decreased （P<0.05）. The number of liver cells with steatosis in the high-dose group of CHPhGs was significantly reduced， and the microvilli structure of jejunum epithelial cells was basically intact. The expression of Muc2 was reduced in the colon， and the gut microbiota of the high-dose group of CHPhGs changed significantly （P<0.05）. Compared with the normal group， the Allobaculum was significantly up-regulated in the model group （P<0.05）. Compared with the model group， the abundance of Akkermansia in the high-dose group of CHPhGs was significantly increased （P<0.01）. The abundance of Akkermansia was negatively correlated with that of Allobaculum （r=-0.701， P<0.01）. ConclusionCHPhGs can reduce the intestinal barrier injury caused by ALD， which may play a protective role by regulating the abundance and structure of Akkermansia and Allobaculum and affecting the homeostasis of intestinal mucus.

Objective:To construct a non-invasive pre-hospital screening model and early based on artificial intelligence algorithms to provide the severity of stroke in patients, provide screening, guidance and early warning for stroke patients and their families, and provide data support for clinical decision-making.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted. The clinical information of stroke patients ( n = 53?793) were extracted from the Yidu cloud big data server system of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University from January 1, 2001 to July 31, 2023. Combined with the results of single factor screening and the opinions of experts with senior professional titles in neurology, the input variable was determined, and the output variable was the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) representing the severity of the disease at admission. Python 3.7 was used to build DeepFM algorithm model, and five data mining models including Logistic regression, CART decision tree, C5.0 decision tree, Bayesian network and deep neural network (DNN) were built at the same time. The original data were randomly divided into 80% training set and 20% test set, which were used to train and test the models, adjust the parameters of each model, respectively calculate the accuracy, sensitivity and F-index of the six models, carry out the comprehensive comparison and evaluation of the model. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) and calibration curve were drawn, compared the prediction performance of DeepFM model and the other five algorithms. In addition, the data of stroke patients ( n = 1?028) were extracted from Dalian Central Hospital for external verification of the model. Results:A total of 14?015 stroke patients with complete information were selected, including 11?212 in the training set and 2?803 in the testing set. After univariate screening, 14 indicators were included to construct the model, including gender, age, recurrence, physical impairment, facial problems, speech disorders, head reactions, disturbance of consciousness, visual disorders, abnormal cough and swallowing, high risk factor, family history, smoking history and drinking history. DeepFM model adopted the two-order crossover feature. The number of hidden layers in DNN layer was 3. Dropout was used to discard the neurons in the neural network. Rule was used as the activation function. Each layer used Dense full connection. The objective function was random gradient descent. The number of iterations was 15. There were 133?922 training parameters in total. Comparing the predictive value of the six models showed that the accuracy of DeepFM model was 0.951, the sensitivity was 0.992, the specificity was 0.814, the F-index was 0.950, and the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.916. The accuracy of the other five data mining models were between 0.771-0.780, the sensitivity were between 0.978-0.987, the F-index were between 0.690-0.707, and the AUC were between 0.568-0.639. The calibration curve of the DeepFM model was more aligned with the ideal curve than the other five data mining models. Suggesting that the prediction performance of DeepFM model was the best. External validation was conducted on the DeepFM model, and its accuracy was 0.891, indicating good generalization performance of the model.Conclusion:The pre-hospital non-invasive screening prediction model based on DeepFM can accurately predict the severity grading of stroke patients, and has potential application value in rapid screening and early clinical decision-making of stroke.

With the wide application of artemisinin and its derivatives,its safety has become particularly important.Previous studies have shown that artemisinin and its derivatives have adverse reactions such as nausea,vomiting and diarrhea in clinical use,but they are all within the controllable range.In animal experiments,it has toxic effects on kidney,liver,heart,nerve,blood,embryo and DNA at a high dose.Toxicity and adverse reactions can be alleviated or eliminated by combining medication or changing the drug administration mode,solvent and preparation type.This article mainly discusses the drug safety,toxicity mechanism and attenuation countermeasures of artemisinin and its derivatives,in order to improve the understanding of the potential toxicity of artemisinin and its derivatives and provide reference for the safe use of the drug in clinic.

Objective This paper summarizes the research progress of biosynthesis and pharmacological effects of podophyllotoxin drugs,in order to provide reference for the wide application of these drugs.Methods The plant source,chemical structure,action mechanism and synthesis pathway of podophyllotoxin drugs were summarized.The pharmacological and toxicological characteristics and mechanisms of these drugs were discussed,and the research progress of new dosage forms of podophyllotoxin drugs was reviewed.Results Podophyllotoxin and its derivatives are important chemical constituents in the plants of the podophyllum,such as Dysosma versipellis,Diphylleia sinensis,Sinopodophyllum hexandrum.This kind of drug has few natural sources and can be artificially produced through chemical and biosynthetic pathways.Podophyllotoxin drugs have pharmacological effects such as anti-inflammatory,anti-tumor and anti-virus,but their toxic effects need to be paid attention to.Drugs can be transported by carriers to reduce toxicity and increase effect.Conclusion Podophyllotoxin drugs have broad clinical application prospects,and will be further studied and applied in the fields of anti-inflammatory,anti-tumor and anti-virus in the future.

Objective In this paper,the harmful effects and mechanisms induced by traditional Chinese medicine were expounded by combining the mechanism of programmed cell death and inflammatory reaction.It is expected to provide data support and theoretical reference for the rational use of traditional Chinese medicine and toxicology research.Methods By systematically analyzing the correlation between cell death and inflammatory response,the molecular mechanisms of pyroptosis,programmed cell necrosis and ferroptosis at home and abroad were summarized,and the harmful outcomes induced by traditional Chinese medicine were further discussed.Results Different toxic traditional Chinese medicines and their active ingredients have different tolerances to biological organisms.Programmed cell death is an important molecular mechanism for the toxicity of traditional Chinese medicines.Its signaling pathways are complex and diverse and are often accompanied by inflammatory reactions.Both of them have a certain effect on the toxic effects of traditional Chinese medicine.Conclusion Traditional Chinese medicine can provide inflammatory mediators for inflammatory response pathways through cell death or change the physiological balance of cells,thereby inducing inflammatory cascade reactions and promoting harmful outcomes in various systems of the body under the dual effects of cell death and inflammatory response.

Diabetic cardiomyopathy is one of the leading causes of heart failure and death in diabetic patients.There is classic evidence of ferroptosis in the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy,which proves that ferroptosis is correlated with the diabetic cardiomyopathy.Oxidative stress caused by excessive production of reactive oxygen species and loss of antioxidant capacity is considered to be the main mechanism leading to diabetic cardiomyopathy.As one of the key regulatory factors of oxi-dative stress,nuclear factor E2-related factor 2(NRF2)and its target gene play an important role in the prevention and treat-ment of diabetic cardiomyopathy.This article summarizes the mechanism of ferroptosis and the pathogenesis of diabetes cardio-myopathy,and expounds the relationship between them,and focuses on the molecular mechanism of NRF2 in the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy and its targeted treatment effect.

Objective:To explore the clinical effects of a series of posture intervention strategies on correcting abnormal fetal position, so as to provide a basis for Clinical position management and promotion of natural delivery.Methods:This study was a randomized controlled trial. The convenience sampling method was used to select 196 full-term primiparas women with abnormal fetal orientation confirmed by ultrasound as single fetal head position in the Women′s Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University from March to October 2022 as the research objects. They were divided into control group 106 cases and research group 90 cases by random number table method. The control group received normal nursing and chose comfortable position by themselves during labor. The research group received a series of ultrasound-guided postural intervention strategies for postural management in the first and second stages of labor on the basis of normal nursing. The angle of progression and the midline angle, the fetal orientation, fetal orientation during complete uterine orifice and delivery outcome were compared between the two groups.Results:Finally, 190 cases were included, 105 cases in the control group and 85 cases in the research group. There were 76 vaginal deliveries in the research group and 95 in the control group. The rate of anterior occipital position and the angle of fetal head rotation in the research group were 73.68% (56/76) and 64.55 (37.90, 85.55)°, which were higher than 45.26% (43/95) and 33.00 (14.00, 60.00)° in the control group;the midline angle of the research group was 57.10(38.50, 75.80)°, which was lower than 80.00 (52.50, 90.30)° of the control group. There was significant difference between the two groups ( χ2 = 14.14, Z = 4.17, - 3.74, all P<0.01). The first stage of labor was 522.50 (413.00, 695.00) minutes and the total stage of labor was 611.00 (488.00, 812.00) minutes in the research group, which was lower than 620.00 (450.00, 795.00) and 700.00 (539.00, 904.00) minutes in the control group ( Z = - 2.34, - 2.03, both P<0.05). Conclusions:The application of the serial position intervention strategy under the ultrasound guidance during the labor process can improve the abnormal fetal position, shorten the first stage of labor time effectively and safely, while it does not have any significant effect on the improvement of the delivery outcome.

Objective:To find clues potentially valuable for fighting against infection with human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV), the differentially expressed genes in HEp-2 cells infected with HRSV were analyzed.Methods:Gene expression profiles of HEp-2 cells infected with HRSV were collected from the public gene expression omnibus (GEO) database. The differentially expressed genes following HRSV infection at each time point of 4, 8, 12, and 15 hours were found using R language. The differentially expressed genes were analyzed by gene ontology (GO), KEGG pathway and protein-protein interaction network (PPI). Genes with relatively high protein interaction in PPI were randomly selected for quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) verification at the transcription level from HEp-2 cells after HRSV infection at 4 hours.Results:A total of 101 differentially expressed genes were determined, including 92 upregulated genes and 9 downregulated genes. Function enrichment analysis revealed that HRSV infection could cause significant changes in multiple signaling pathways such as immune response in HEp-2 cells. The results of qRT-PCR were consistent with the trend of transcriptome data.Conclusions:The differentially expressed genes and the change of signaling pathways in HRSV-infected HEp-2 cells is of great significance to the studies on pathogenic mechanism and prevention of HRSV infection.