Based on spleen deficiency-phlegm dampness as the core pathogenesis of obesity， and integrating recent advances in modern medicine regarding the key role of immune inflammation in obesity， this paper proposes a multidimensional pathogenic network of "obesity-spleen deficiency-phlegm dampness-immune imbalance". Various traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） herbs that strengthen the spleen， regulate qi， and resolve phlegm and dampness can treat obesity by improving spleen-stomach transport and transformation， promoting water-damp metabolism， and regulating immune homeostasis. This highlights immune inflammation as an important entry point to elucidate the TCM concepts of "spleen deficiency-phlegm dampness" and the therapeutic principle of "strengthening the spleen and eliminating dampness to treat obesity". By systematically analyzing the intrinsic connection between "spleen deficiency generating dampness， internal accumulation of phlegm dampness" and immune dysregulation in obesity， this paper aims to provide theoretical support for TCM treatment of obesity based on dampness.

Objective: To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) among college students in Yangzhou from 2020 to 2024, so as to provide a scientific basis for developing prevention and control strategies. Methods: An epidemiological investigation was conducted among 162 college students with PTB, and 7 134 of their contacts were screened. Data were obtained from the tuberculosis information management system and on campus screening records. Using descriptive epidemiological methods, trends in incidence, seasonal distribution, and bacteriological characteristics were analyzed. Results: From 2020 to 2024, the annual average incidence of pulmonary tuberculosis among college students in Yangzhou was 29.42 per 100 000, showing an overall fluctuating downward trend ( χ 2=12.36, P <0.01). Cases were mainly concentrated in summer and autumn, with the highest proportion in autumn (41.36%, 67/162), followed by summer (23.46%, 38/162). The proportion of etiologically positive cases increased from 37.21% in 2020 to 71.43% in 2024; among positive cases, the proportion of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) decreased from 66.67% (10/15) to 26.67% (4/15). The etiological positive rate was higher in females than in males ( χ 2= 11.76 , P <0.01). Comparison of screening methods showed that among index cases, the LTBI detection rate of the recombinant Mycobacterium tuberculosis fusion protein skin test (C-TST) was higher than that of the tuberculin skin test (TST), but the difference was not statistically significant ( χ 2=0.65, P =0.42); among close contacts, the detection rate of TST was higher than that of C-TST (15.1%,10.1%; χ 2=5.23, P <0.05). Conclusion From 2020 to 2024, the annual average incidence of pulmonary tuberculosis among college students in Yangzhou showed an overall fluctuating downward trend, with differences in TB infection screening methods and gender.

High-throughput sequencing-based high-throughput screening （HTS²） technology， as a new advancement in the field of high-throughput biotechnology， is the world's first technology to integrate high-throughput sequencing into large-scale drug screening and target discovery. The artificially designed DNA probes were bound to the undetermined mRNAs of thousands of genes in cell lysates， and then the probes were ligated with ligases. The large-scale simultaneous detection of gene expression changes in thousands of drug-treated cell samples was performed using barcoding， automated operating platforms， and high-throughput sequencers. This technology enables high-throughput identification of drugs that significantly perturb the gene expression profiles characteristic of diseases. It can also take gene expression signature as the readout and exert great high-throughput advantages in the screening of multi-drug， multi-component， and multi-target drugs， as well as the research on complex mechanisms. Therefore， it is particularly suitable for elucidating the multi-target mechanisms of traditional Chinese medicine and identifying its multi-effective components. Its main technical advantages include high throughput， automation， and low cost. In recent years， HTS² technology has yielded important achievements in the elucidation of the mechanism of action of traditional Chinese medicine formulas， the scientific connotation analysis of the regional characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine， the targeted isolation of active compounds of traditional Chinese medicine， and the discovery of novel pharmacological functions of monomeric compounds of traditional Chinese medicine. In the era of artificial intelligence， HTS² technology will serve as a powerful tool for generating high-quality， original big data of traditional Chinese medicine， providing core data support and promoting AI-driven traditional Chinese medicine research. Ultimately， HTS² technology offers new strategies and critical data support for deeply analyzing the scientific connotation of traditional Chinese medicine and discovering novel traditional Chinese medicine-based drugs， thereby accelerating the modernization and internationalization of traditional Chinese medicine in China.

ObjectiveTo explore the mechanism by which Qijia Rougan decoction ameliorates liver fibrosis through amino acid/fatty acid metabolic reprogramming and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt） pathway， based on the miRNA-mRNA regulatory network and the interaction between metabolism and signaling pathways. MethodsSprague-Dawley （SD） rats were randomized into four groups （n=8）： control， model， and low-dose and high-dose （7.0， 28.0 g·kg^-1·d^-1， respectively） Qijia Rougan decoction. Liver fibrosis was induced by subcutaneous injection of carbon tetrachloride （CCl₄）. From week 9， drug intervention was implemented for 7 weeks. After the final administration， the pathological changes in the liver were evaluated through hematoxylin-eosin （HE） and picrosirius red （PSR） staining. An automated biochemical analyzer was used to measure the serum levels of biochemical indicators， including alanine aminotransferase （ALT）， aspartate aminotransferase （AST）， alkaline phosphatase （ALP）， total bile acid （TBA）， albumin （ALB）， and cholesterol （TC）. High-throughput miRNA sequencing was performed to identify differentially expressed miRNAs （DemiRs） during liver fibrosis. A miRNA-mRNA interaction network was constructed to identify key targets， which were then subjected to GO and KEGG enrichment analyses. The expression levels of selected DemiRs were validated by Real-time PCR. ResultsCompared with the control group， the model group showed marked hepatic lobular necrosis， increased collagen deposition， significant fibrosis， elevated serum levels of ALT， AST， ALP， and TBA （P<0.01）， and declined levels of ALB and TC （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， Qijia Rougan decoction treatment reduced hepatic necrosis， collagen accumulation， and fibrosis， lowered the serum levels of ALT， AST， ALP， and TBA （P<0.01）， and raised the levels of ALB and TC （P<0.01）. Integrated miRNA-seq and RNA-seq analysis identified 31 DemiRs （6 upregulated and 25 downregulated） and 498 targets. The expression trends of four selected DemiRs， including rno-miRNA-376b-3p， were consistent with sequencing results （R²=0.93）. Functional annotation revealed that top 20 upregulated targets were enriched in amino acid and fatty acid metabolism， while top 20 downregulated targets were significantly associated with the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and cancer progression. ConclusionQijia Rougan decoction alleviates liver fibrosis by reconstructing the miRNA-mRNA regulatory network， promoting metabolic reprogramming， and inhibiting the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. These findings provide mechanism evidence supporting the multi-targeted antifibrotic effects of traditional Chinese medicine compound formulas.

Intelligent algorithms， as the core element of artificial intelligence （AI）， have played an irreplaceable and key role in fields such as medical AI-assisted diagnosis and treatment. Meanwhile， they have also presented new features such as the complexity of interdisciplinary integration， the conflict of ethical convergence in science and technology， the duality of risks and benefits coexistence， and the concealment of algorithm black box calculations. These features lead to numerous ethical challenges， such as algorithm bias， data security， and difficulty in tracing responsibility. Therefore， it is urgent to break through these challenges by establishing a micro-ethical institutional system for intelligent medical algorithms， setting up an ethical supervision mechanism for the operation of intelligent medical algorithms， improving ethical norms for data security protection of intelligent medical algorithms， and strengthening ethical standards for the identification of the main responsibility of intelligent medical algorithms.

The investigator-initiated trials （IIT）， as a widely existing form of clinical research both domestically and internationally， have attracted the attention of governments around the world due to the potential legal risks and issues they may cause， and the trend of legal supervision has gradually strengthened. The legal regulation of IIT in China is still in its early stages， with numerous legal issues that need to be clarified and sorted out. Based on the domestic and international legal reviews of IIT， this paper systematically sorted out the current situation of legal supervision of IIT in China and examined the existing issues， including weak legislative rules， incomplete regulatory systems， imperfect protection rules for research participants and informed consent systems， inadequate regulation of conflicts of interest management， and lax legal supervision of ethical review. Furthermore， this paper proposed suggestions for legal regulation of IIT from three perspectives， including strengthening legislation and emphasizing regulation， improving the mechanism for protecting research participants’ rights and interests， and balancing the legalization of IIT and the scientific development of clinical research， with a view to providing references for legal regulatory paths of IIT in China.

Background Existing studies have confirmed that fine particulate matter (PM_2.5)is one of the important factors inducing pulmonary fibrosis. Pulmonary fibrosis is the terminal stage of a major category of lung diseases characterized by the destruction of tissue structure, and eventually leading lung ventilation and ventilation dysfunction. No effective pulmonary fibrosis treatment is available yet. Objective To investigate the protective effect of salidroside on pulmonary fibrosis induced by the exposure of PM_2.5 and its molecular mechanism. Methods Seventy 7-week-old male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into four groups: control group (intratracheal instillation of normal saline + saline by gavage, n=25), Sal group (intratracheal instillation of normal saline + Sal 60 mg·kg⁻¹ by gavage, n=10), PM_2.5 group (intratracheal instillation of PM_2.5 5 mg·kg⁻¹ + saline by gavage, n=10), and Sal + PM_2.5 group (intratracheal instillation of PM_2.5 5 mg·kg⁻¹ +Sal 60 mg·kg⁻¹ by gavage, n=10). The mice were administered by gavage once daily, intratracheal instillation once every 3 d, and every 3 d constituted an experimental cycle. At the end of the 26-30th cycles, 3 mice in the control group and 3 mice in the PM_2.5 group were randomly sacrificed, and the lung tissues were collected for Masson staining to verify whether the pulmonary fibrosis model was successfully established. After 30 cycles, the model was successfully constructed. After 1 week of continuous observation, the mice were sacrificed, and the blood and lung tissues of the mice were collected to make lung tissue sections. Assay kits were correspondingly employed to detect oxidative stress indicators such as serum malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Western blotting was used to detect the expression of fibrosis-related proteins (Collagen-III, α-SMA), mitochondrial dynamics-related proteins (MFN1, Drp1), and mitophagy-related proteins (PINK1, Parkin, and LC3). Results Compared with the control group, the weight gain rate of the PM_2.5 group was slowed down (P<0.05), which was alleviated by the Sal intervention (P<0.05). The lung coefficient increased after the PM_2.5 exposure (P<0.05), which was alleviated by Sal intervention. Compared with the control group, the PM_2.5 group showed severe alveolar structure damage, inflammatory cell infiltration, and blue collagen deposition, and significantly increased the lung injury score, collagen volume fraction (CVF), Szapiel score, and Ashcroft score (P<0.05), as well as serum oxidative stress levels (P<0.05). The protein expression levels of Collagen-III, α-SMA, Drp1, PINK1, Parkin, and LC3 II/I were increased (P<0.05), and the expression of MFN1 was decreased (P<0.05). Compared with the PM_2.5 group, the Sal intervention alleviated lung injury, reduced inflammatory cell infiltration and collagen deposition, showing decreased lung injury score, CVF, Szapiel score, and Ashcroft score (P<0.05), and decreased serum oxidative stress levels (P<0.05); the protein expression levels of Collagen-III, α-SMA, PINK1, Parkin, and LC3 II/I were decreased (P<0.05), the expression level of Drp1 was decreased, and the expression level of MFN1 was increased. Conclusion In the process of pulmonary fibrosis induced by PM_2.5 exposure in mice, Sal may affect mitochondrial autophagy through PINK1/Parkin pathway and play a protective role. The specific mechanism needs to be further verified.

PANoptosis is a newly defined type of programmed cell death (PCD), which is triggered by a variety of stimuli and covers three known forms of PCD: apoptosis, pyroptosis and necroptosis. In physiological state, cell death plays an important protective role against pathogen invasion, but its over-activation may aggravate inflammatory response and cause tissue damage. Studies have shown that the occurrence and progression of acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS), asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other lung diseases are closely related to PANoptosis. The purpose of this review is to deeply explore the molecular mechanism of PANoptosis and its regulatory factors in lung diseases, in order to discover potential therapeutic targets and provide new targets and innovative ideas for clinical treatment for lung diseases.
Humans ; Lung Diseases ; Apoptosis ; Pyroptosis ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive ; Necroptosis ; Acute Lung Injury

Ischemic stroke (IS) is a globally life-threatening disease. Presently, few therapeutic medicines are available for treating IS, and rt-PA is the only drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US. In fact, many agents showing excellent neuroprotection but no blood flow-improving activity in animals have not achieved ideal clinical efficacy, while thrombolytic drugs only improving blood flow without neuroprotection have limited their wider application. To address these challenges and meet the huge unmet clinical need, we have designed and identified a novel compound AAPB with dual effects of neuroprotection and cerebral blood flow improvement. AAPB significantly reduced cerebral infarction and neural function deficit in tMCAO rats, pMCAO rats, and IS rhesus monkeys, as well as displayed exceptional safety profiles and excellent pharmacokinetic properties in rats and dogs. AAPB has now entered phase I of clinical trials fighting IS in China.