Background: Adrenocortical hormones, particularly 11-oxygenated androgens, are pivotal in female reproductive health and fertility. Standardized detection kits and population-specific reference intervals are lacking in China, hindering related clinical applications. Methods: A HPLC-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) pipeline was developed, rigorously validated, and applied to simultaneously quantify corticosterone, cortisone, cortisol, 18-OH cortisol, androstenedione (A4), 11β-hydroxyandrostenedione (11-OH A4), dehydroepiandrosterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate in serum samples from 455 reproductive-aged women (18–45 yrs) in Guangxi, China. Age-dependent concentration trends were analyzed, and reference intervals stratified by age (2.5th to 97.5th percentiles) were established. Correlations with body-composition metrics, ethnicity, and the menstrual cycle were investigated. Results: The HPLC-MS/MS method demonstrated high precision (intra- and inter-assay CVs < 15%), accuracy, and sensitivity. All eight hormones exhibited significant age-related declines (P < 0.001 for seven hormones; P = 0.001 for 11-OH A4). Notably, 11-OH A4 levels were significantly lower in the 35–45-yr (3.05 nmol/L) and 25–34-yr (3.09 nmol/L) age groups than in the 18–24-yr (3.57 nmol/L) age group, whereas no significant difference was observed between the 35–45-yr and 25–34-yr age groups. Weak negative correlations were observed between the body mass index and corticosterone and cortisone levels, whereas ethnicity and the menstrual cycle showed no significant associations with hormone levels. Conclusions We developed an HPLC-MS/MS-based method for simultaneously quantifying eight adrenocortical hormones, including 11-OH A4, and defined age-specific reference intervals for reproductive-aged Chinese women. These findings advance the clinical utility of adrenocortical hormones in diagnosing and managing reproductive disorders.

Objective To systematically retrieve,evaluate and summarise the best available evidence on prevention and management of diagnostic blood loss in critically ill adult patients and to provide guidance for standardising diagnostic blood sampling in clinical practice.Methods A structured evidence question was created using the PIPOST framework(Population,Intervention,Professional,Outcome,Setting and Type of evidence).Guided by the"5S"levels-of-evidence pyramid,a top-down systematic search was conducted on databases of BMJ Best Practice,UpToDate,the Joanna Briggs Institute(JBI)EBP Database,GIN,SIGN,RNAO,NICE,Medlive Guideline,WHO,National Blood Authority(Australia),National Health Commission of China,Cochrane Library,PubMed,EMbase,CINAHL,Web of Science,Wanfang Data,CNKI,VIP,and SinoMed.Searched literature included clinical decision aids,guidelines,evidence summaries,systematic reviews Meta analysis,RCTs,quasi-experimental,cross-sectional,cohort studies and expert consensus/opinions.Search period covered between 1st January 2015 and 10th February 2025.Quality appraisal,evidence extraction,synthesis and grading were performed according to JBI and GRADE approaches.Results Nineteen articles were retrieved including five guidelines,five systematic reviews,one RCT,two quasi-experimental studies,two cross-sectional studies,one professional standard and three expert consensuses.A total of 26 recommendations were extracted and they were organised into five domains:education and training,blood-sampling assessment,frequency of sampling,strategies to minimise blood volume drawn,and quality control.Conclusion This evidence summary provides the best current guidance for preventing and managing iatrogenic blood loss caused by diagnostic testing in critically ill adults,providing evidence-based basis for standardizing blood tests by medical staff.

Objective:To study the risk and pattern of deaths caused by various diseases in the population and in the case of long-term occupational X-ray exposure.Methods:Using a combination of retrospective and prospective cohort research methods, an exposure group of medical X-ray diagnostic workers who worked in the radiology department of Jiangsu Provincial Hospital between 1950 and 1980 and a control group of medical workers from other departments who did not work with radiolog during the same period in the same hospital were selected to form a study cohort. The cumulative number of person years of observation in the cohort during 1950-2011 was calculated, and the Cox regression model was used to calculate the risk of deaths of medical X-ray diagnostic workers for various diseases through adjusting sex, attained age, birth age, and starting working age.Results:A total of 6 953 follow-up visits was completed to the cohort, including 3 649 in the radiation group and 3 304 in the control group, with a total of 347 362 person years of observation. There were 2 099 deaths in the cohort as of December 31, 2021. Cox regression results showed that diseases with a significantly higher risk of death in the radiation group compared with the control group were: all-cancer ( RR=1.20, 95% CI: 1.04-1.39, Z=2.56, P<0.05, including lung cancer RR=1.52, 95% CI: 1.17-1.98, Z=3.10, P<0.01, and pancreatic cancer RR=1.96, 95% CI: 1.11-3.46, Z=2.31, P<0.05); diseases of the circulatory system ( RR=1.29, 95% CI: 1.06-1.57, Z=2.58, P<0.01); endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases ( RR=1.90, 95% CI: 1.06-3.42, Z=2.14, P<0.05). Stratified analyses showed that, of male workers, the radiation group had an increased risk of death caused by all-cancer and lung cancer ( Z=3.50, 2.92, P<0.01); of the age group at starting ages 26 to 30, the radiation group had an increased risk of death distributed to circulatory diseases ( Z=2.06, P<0.05); and in the age group at attained ages elder than 61 years, the radiation group had an increased risk of death distributed to all cancers, lung cancer, and circulatory diseases ( Z=2.90-4.31, P<0.01). Conclusions:As has been shown, threre is an increasing risk of death distributed to lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, and circulatory diseases in medical X-ray diagnostic workers in Jiangsu province. Further in-depth research in related areas may be conducted in the future.

Objective:To investigate the basic situation of occupational internal exposure to 131I among staff in the nuclear medicine department. Methods:Direct in- vitro measurements of thyroid doses from internal exposure were conducted for six months on 36 staff members of a hospital′s nuclear medicine department in Nanjing using the ORTEC Detective-100 portable high-purity germanium (HPGe) spectrometer. The cumulative effective doses were estimated, and the distribution of internal doses and their relationship with job type and external doses were analyzed. Results:During the monitoring period, a total of 203 monitorings were made. Of the monitoring result, 85.7% were below the recording level. Of the result exceeding the recording level, 12.8% were below the investigation level, while 1.5% exceeded the investigation level. The highest personal internal dose during the monitoring period was 2.54 mSv, the lowest was 0.015 mSv, and the median was 0.094 mSv.Conclusions:During the monitoring period, 14.3% of the monitored staff had result above the recorded levels. In the working environment of radionuclide treatment, there is no significant difference in the internal dose received between doctors, nurses, technicians, or other relevant personnel.

OBJECTIVE:To review the development trend,target population,setting and construction process of osteoporosis-specific quality of life measures both domestically and internationally.METHODS:All of the currently available publicly available osteoporosis-specific quality-of-life scales were found by searching the PubMed,Embase,CNKI,and WanFang Data.The search period included the time from database construction to August 2024.The basic information,development trend,target population,and the setting of the scale's dimensions,entries,and levels were taken from the original research and development literature that included the scale.The content of the dimensions and the scale's construction process were then compiled and examined.RESULTS:A total of 20 osteoporosis-specific quality of life scales were included in the study,and the literature on the development of 34 scales was traced.The number of dimensions of the included scales ranged from 2-7 dimensions,all of which included physiological dimensions;the number of entries of the scales ranged from 10-84 entries,while the number of levels set under the entries was mostly focused on four or five levels.There are three main ways of constructing the scales,of which the construction of a pool of entries and the screening of the entries according to classical measurement theory and item response theory is an approach that has emerged in recent years.CONCLUSION:According to the specific target population and diversified measurement objectives,the content of osteoporosis-specific quality of life scales has become increasingly streamlined,with fewer dimensions and entries overall;and its building procedure is gradually becoming more standardized.

OBJECTIVE To analyze the clinical characteristics and the correlation between laboratory indicators and prognosis of severe Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia(SMPP)in children.METHODS A total of 85 children with SMPP admitted to Anhui Provincial Children's Hospital from Nov.2021 to May 2024 were selected as the study subjects.Based on clinical typing at admission,they were divided into a high-risk group(n=59)and a low-risk group(n=26).The clinical manifestations,laboratory indicators and outcomes at 28 days of treatment were compared between the two groups.RESULTS The duration of fever and cough before admission in the high-risk group was(7.17±1.09)days and(6.79±1.25)days,respectively,which was longer than that in the low-risk group(P＜0.05).There were no statistically significant differences in pulmonary auscultation(wheezing rales,moist rales)and extrapulmonary complications between the two groups.The levels of C-reactive protein(CRP),serum amyloid A(SAA),platelets(PLT),fibrinogen(FIB),D-dimer(DD)and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP)in the high-risk group were(11.62±1.45)mg/L,(226.88±36.83)mg/L,(3 18.57±39.82)×109/L,(4.28±0.74)g/L,(0.81±0.12)μg/ml and(2 295.48±413.75)pg/ml,respectively,all of which were higher than those in the low-risk group(P＜0.05).Within 28 days after treatment of children in both groups,one patient in the high-risk group died.CONCLUSIONS Compared with children with SMPP in the low-risk group,those in the high-risk group have a higher risk of prognostic mor-tality,suggesting a correlation between the children's blood CRP,SAA,PLT,FIB,DD and NT-proBNP levels and the prognosis of children with SMPP.

Objective:To study the effects of epidermal growth factor(EGF)on the coordinated motor behaviors and changes of nigrostriatal dopaminergic system under the impact of EGF in middle-aged rats.Methods:Healthy aged Sprague Dawley(SD)rats were subcutaneously administered EGF(0.1 mg/ml)in the dorsal region for 7 days.Adhe-sive removal test,tapered beam walking test and descending a wire mesh pole test were performed to detect the changes in the coordinated motor behaviors of rats as well as changes in the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase(TH)and dopa-mine transporter(DAT)of nigrostriatal dopaminergic system in rats.Results:Middle-aged rats showed reduced behav-ioral parameters of adhesive removal test,tapered beam walking test and descending a wire mesh pole test compared with those of adult rats(P<0.05),which were improved after treatment with EGF(P<0.05).The expression of TH and DAT in nigrostriatal dopaminergic system was down-regulated in middle-aged rats compared with that in adult rats(P<0.01),however,which were up-regulated after treatment with EGF(P<0.01).Conclusion:EGF can amelio-rate the decline in coordinated motor behaviors and increases the activity of nigrostriatal dopaminergic system in middle-aged rats.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a deadly condition of the aorta, carrying a significant risk of death upon rupture. Currently, there is a dearth of efficacious pharmaceutical interventions to impede the advancement of AAA and avert it from rupturing. Here, we investigated dihydromyricetin (DHM), one of the predominant bioactive flavonoids in Ampelopsis grossedentata (A. grossedentata), as a potential agent for inhibiting AAA. DHM effectively blocked the formation of AAA in angiotensin II-infused apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE^-/-) mice. A combination of network pharmacology and whole transcriptome sequencing analysis revealed that DHM's anti-AAA action is linked to heme oxygenase (HO)-1 (Hmox-1 for the rodent gene) and hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Remarkably, DHM caused a robust rise (∼10-fold) of HO-1 protein expression in VSMCs, thereby suppressing VSMC inflammation and oxidative stress and preserving the VSMC contractile phenotype. Intriguingly, the therapeutic effect of DHM on AAA was largely abrogated by VSMC-specific Hmox1 knockdown in mice. Mechanistically, on one hand, DHM increased the transcription of Hmox-1 by triggering the nuclear translocation and activation of HIF-1α, but not nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2). On the other hand, molecular docking, combined with cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA), isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), drug affinity responsive target stability (DARTS), co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP), and site mutant experiments revealed that DHM bonded to HO-1 at Lys243 and prevented its degradation, thereby resulting in considerable HO-1 buildup. In summary, our findings suggest that naturally derived DHM has the capacity to markedly enhance HO-1 expression in VSMCs, which may hold promise as a therapeutic strategy for AAA.

Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) can potentially induce immunogenic cell death in tumor cells, leading to the release of ATP, and facilitating the initiation of an immune response. Nevertheless, the enzymes CD39 and CD73 can swiftly convert ATP into immunosuppressive adenosine (ADO), resulting in an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). This study introduced a nanomedicine (QD/POM1@NP@M) engineered to reprogram TME by modulating the CD39/CD73/ADO pathway. The nanomedicine encapsulated sonosensitizers silver sulfide quantum dots, and the CD39 inhibitor POM1, while also incorporating homologous tumor cell membranes to enhance targeting capabilities. This integrated approach, on the one hand, stimulates the release of ATP via SDT, thereby initiating the immune response. In addition, it reduced the accumulation of ADO by inhibiting CD39 activity, which ameliorated the immunosuppressive TME. Upon administration, the nanomedicine demonstrated substantial anti-tumor efficacy by facilitating the infiltration of anti-tumor immune cells, while reducing the immunosuppressive cells. This modulation effectively transformed the TME from an immunologically "cold" state to a "hot" state. Furthermore, combined with the checkpoint inhibitor α-PDL1, the nanomedicine augmented systemic anti-tumor immunity and promoted the establishment of long-term immune memory. This study provides an innovative strategy for combining non-invasive SDT and ATP-driven immunotherapy, offering new ideas for future cancer treatment.

Objective:To explore the effects of Ziyu Ointment on granulation tissue,TGF-β and downstream Smad protein in the process of wound healing in rats by constructing a rat model of back trauma.Methods:A rat model of back trauma was constructed,and 100 SD male rats were separated into healthy group,back trauma group,Ziyu Ointment treatment group,petrolatum treatment group,Ziyu Ointment+TGF-β1 activation group,with 20 per group.Wound formation surgery was performed,and wound healing of rats in each group was recorded at 5th,10th,and 15th day after operation;the levels of IL-6,IL-1β and TNF-α in the serum of rats in each group were detected;the granulation tissue formed by wound healing at 15th day was selected for HE and Masson staining,the proportion of blood vessel area and collagen area of granulation tissue of rats in each group were analyzed and calculated;the mRNA expression levels of TGF-β1 and Smad3 in granulation tissues of rats in each group were detected by fluorescence quantitative PCR;the expression levels of TGF-β1,Smad3 and p-Smad3 in granulation tissues of rats in each group were detected by Western blot.Results:The healthy group rats had complete epidermal tissue;the levels of serum IL-6,IL-1β,TNF-α,the expression of TGF-β1 mRNA and protein in the wound granulation tissue,and the phosphorylation of Smad3 in the back trauma group were obviously higher than the healthy group(P<0.05);compared with back trauma group,the wound healing rate,proportion of collagen area,and propor-tion of blood vessel area in Ziyu Ointment treatment group and petrolatum treatment group were obviously increased,the serum IL-6,IL-1β,TNF-α contents,TGF-β1 mRNA and protein expression,and Smad3 phosphorylation were obviously decreased(P<0.05);compared with Ziyu Ointment treatment group,the petrolatum treatment group,Ziyu Ointment+TGF-β1 activation group had obviously lower wound healing rate,collagen area percentage,and blood vessel area percentage,and obviously lower serum IL-6,IL-1β,TNF-α contents,TGF-β1 mRNA and protein expression and Smad3 phosphorylation(P<0.05).Conclusion:Ziyu Ointment can inhibit the expression of related genes and proteins by regulating the TGF-β/Smad signal pathway,thereby alleviating inflammation and promoting wound healing.