ObjectiveTo explore the improving effect of Huangqi Chifengtang（HCT） on atherosclerosis（AS）， and elucidate its mechanism in relation to adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase（AMPK）/peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α（PPARα） signaling pathway and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain（NOD）-like receptor thermal protein domain associated protein 3（NLRP3） inflammasome. MethodsEight C57BL/6J mice were set as the normal group， and 32 ApoE^-/- mice were randomly divided into the model group， the positive drug group（atorvastatin， 5 mg·kg^-1·d^-1）， HCT low- and high-dose groups（1.95， 3.90 g·kg^-1·d^-1）. ApoE^-/- mice were fed with high-fat and high-cholesterol feed to establish an AS mouse model. After modeling， they were orally administered corresponding dose of drugs for 28 days， while the normal and model groups received an equal volume of physiological saline via oral gavage. Hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining was used to observe the pathological status of the aorta and liver in mice， Biochemical testing and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA） were used to detect the levels of total cholesterol（TC）， triglycerides（TG）， low-density lipoprotein cholesterol（LDL-C）， alanine aminotransferase（ALT）， aspartate aminotransferase（AST）， C-reactive protein（CRP）， interleukin（IL）-1β， IL-18 in the serum， as well as superoxide dismutase（SOD）， malondialdehyde（MDA）， and reduced glutathione（GSH） in the liver. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction（Real-time PCR） was used to measure the mRNA expression levels of NLRP3， apoptosis-associated speck-like protein（ASC）， cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-1（Caspase-1）， Toll-like receptor 4（TLR4） in the aorta， and fatty acid synthase（FAS）， stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1（SCD1）， PPARα， and carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1A（CPT1A） in the liver. Immunohistochemistry was used to determine the protein expressions of NLRP3， Caspase-1， and ASC in the aorta， and Western blot was used to measure the protein expressions of AMPK， p-AMPK， sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c（SREBP-1c）， CPT1A， and FAS in the liver. ResultsCompared with the normal group， the model group showed a significant increase in lipid plaque deposition in the aorta and lipid accumulation in the liver， the levels of TC， TG， LDL-C， AST， ALT， IL-1β， IL-18 and CRP in the serum were significantly increased（P<0.01）， and the mRNA and protein expressions of aortic TLR4， NLRP3， Caspase-1 and ASC were significantly upregulated（P<0.01）. The levels of SOD and GSH in the liver were significantly reduced， while the level of MDA was significantly increased（P<0.01）. The mRNA expressions of FAS and SCD1 in the liver were significantly downregulated， while the mRNA expressions of PPARα and CPT1A were significantly upregulated. The protein expressions of p-AMPK/AMPK and CPT1A in the liver were significantly reduced， while the expressions of SREBP-1c and FAS proteins were significantly increased（P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the low- and high-dose HCT groups showed significant improvements in aortic plaques and hepatic lipid deposition. The levels of TC， LDL-C， AST， IL-1β and IL-18 in the serum of the low-dose HCT group， as well as TC， TG， LDL-C， AST， ALT， IL-1β， IL-18 and CRP in the serum of the high-dose HCT group， were significantly reduced（P<0.01）. The mRNA expressions of TLR4， NLRP3 and Caspase-1 in the aorta of the low-dose HCT group， as well as TLR4， NLRP3， Caspase-1 and ASC in the aorta of the high-dose HCT group， were significantly downregulated（P<0.01）. The protein expressions of Caspase-1 and ASC in the aorta of the low-dose HCT group， as well as NLRP3， Caspase-1 and ASC in the high-dose HCT group， were significantly downregulated（P<0.01）. The levels of SOD and GSH in the liver of the low- and high-dose HCT groups were significantly increased， while the level of MDA in the high-dose HCT group was significantly decreased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. In the HCT-treated group， the mRNA expressions of FAS and SCD1 in the liver were significantly upregulated， while the mRNA expressions of PPARα and CPT1A were significantly downregulated， the protein expressions of p-AMPK/AMPK and CPT1A in the liver were significantly increased， while the protein expressions of SREBP-1c and FAS were significantly decreased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionHCT can improve lipid metabolism by activating the AMPK/PPARα pathway and inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated inflammatory responses， thereby reducing hepatic lipid deposition and AS plaque formation.

To explore the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） and integrative TCM-Western medicine approaches in the treatment of diabetic microvascular complications （DMC）， refine key pathophysiological insights and treatment principles， and promote academic innovation and strategic research planning in the prevention and treatment of DMC. The 38th session of the Expert Salon on Diseases Responding Specifically to Traditional Chinese Medicine， hosted by the China Association of Chinese Medicine， was held in Beijing， 2024. Experts in TCM， Western medicine， and interdisciplinary fields convened to conduct a systematic discussion on the pathogenesis， diagnostic and treatment challenges， and mechanism research related to DMC， ultimately forming a consensus on key directions. Four major research recommendations were proposed. The first is addressing clinical bottlenecks in the prevention and control of DMC by optimizing TCM-based evidence evaluation systems. The second is refining TCM core pathogenesis across DMC stages and establishing corresponding "disease-pattern-time" framework. The third is innovating mechanism research strategies to facilitate a shift from holistic regulation to targeted intervention in TCM. The fourth is advancing interdisciplinary collaboration to enhance the role of TCM in new drug development， research prioritization， and guideline formulation. TCM and integrative approaches offer distinct advantages in managing DMC. With a focus on the diseases responding specifically to TCM， strengthening evidence-based support and mechanism interpretation and promoting the integration of clinical care and research innovation will provide strong momentum for the modernization of TCM and the advancement of national health strategies.

Background:Nutritional risk is highly prevalent among gastric cancer patients,yet accurate screening tools remain lacking.Aims:To construct and validate a nutritional risk prediction model for gastric cancer inpatients.Methods:From August 2023 to July 2024,a total of 295 gastric cancer inpatients admitted to the First Hospital of Qinhuangdao were enrolled,and divided into the model group(n=206)and validation group(n=89)at a ratio of 7∶3.Nutritional screening was performed in the model group using the nutritional risk screening 2002(NRS 2002)score.Univariate analysis and multivariate Logistic regression analysis were employed to identify the independent risk factors for nutritional risk,and a prediction model was constructed.The Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test was used to evaluate the consistency between the model constructed and NRS 2002 score.The predictive performance was assessed using ROC curve and validated in the independent cohort.Risk stratification was performed based on the cut-off value derived from the ROC curve,and the nutritional risk in different subgroups of the model group and validation group was assessed.Results:Multivariate Logistic regression analysis indicated that age≥68 years,body mass index(BMI)≤22 kg/m2,anorexia,dysphagia and anemia were the independent risk factors for nutritional risk in gastric cancer patients in the model group(all P<0.05).The prediction model had good consistency with the NRS 2002 score(P=0.567).ROC curve showed that the area under the curve(AUC)of the prediction model for predicting nutritional risk were 0.840(95%CI:0.785-0.895,P<0.001)for the model group and 0.895(95%CI:0.831-0.958,P<0.001)for the validation group when the cut-off value was set at 9.5 points.The proportion of patients with nutritional risk in high-risk subgroup was significantly higher than that in low-risk subgroup in both model group and validation group(P<0.001).Conclusions:The prediction model based on age,BMI,anorexia,dysphagia and anemia can effectively identify nutritional risk in gastric cancer inpatients and may serve as a clinical reference tool.

Objective To explore the potential categories of frailty development trajectories in patients undergoing cardiac surgery from pre-operation to 6 months post-operation,and analyze the influencing factors.Methods By a longitudinal study design,patients undergoing elective heart valve replacement surgery or coronary artery bypass grafting in a tertiary general hospital in Zunyi City from August 2022 to June 2023 were selected by the convenience sampling method.Tilburg frailty scale was used to investigate the frailty level of cardiac surgery patients 1 day before surgery(T0),1 month(T1),3 months(T2)and 6 months after surgery(T3).The growth mixture model was used to identify the trajectory categories,and the influencing factors of different frailty trajectories were analyzed by binary Logistic regression.Results 261 patients were enrolled at T0,with 22,9,and 3 patients lost at T1 to T3,and 227 patients were finally included in the analysis.There were 2 types of trajectories being identified as the low frailty decline group and the high frailty maintenance group.Age,use of sedative and analgesic drugs,pace,and depression were the factors influencing the frailty in cardiac surgery patients(P＜0.05).Conclusion There are 2 kinds of frailty development trajectories in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.Medical staff should fonnulate precise interventions and nursing measures according to the factors influencing frailty,so as to improve frailty degree and quality of life of patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Background: Epimedii Folium, first recorded in the Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica (Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing), is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) known for its effects of “benefiting Qi and strengthening the heart.” Icariside II (ICS II) is one of the main active components of Epimedii Folium, possessing cardiovascular protective and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the potential mechanisms of ICS II on myocardial ischemia (MI) remain unclear. Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects and preliminary molecular mechanisms of ICS II in treating isoproterenolinduced MI in rats. Methods: A rat model of MI was established by subcutaneous injection of isoproterenol. Electrocardiography, echocardiography, myocardial enzymes analysis, heart weight index, triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining, histopathology, TUNEL staining, RT-qPCR, and Western blot were employed to evaluate the effects and preliminary molecular mechanisms of ICS II on MI rats. Results: Pharmacodynamic studies suggested that ICS II inhibited ST-segment elevation in electrocardiograms, improved cardiac function, reduced heart weight index and myocardial enzyme levels, decreased myocardial infarct size, alleviated cardiac histological damage, and inhibited apoptosis, thereby exerting cardioprotective effects in MI rats. Further studies revealed that ICS II may partially inhibit the expression of NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis-related targets at both protein and mRNA levels. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that ICS II exerts anti-MI effects, and its preliminary molecular mechanisms may be related to inhibiting the activation of the NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis to alleviate inflammatory responses.

Background: Epimedii Folium, first recorded in the Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica (Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing), is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) known for its effects of “benefiting Qi and strengthening the heart.” Icariside II (ICS II) is one of the main active components of Epimedii Folium, possessing cardiovascular protective and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the potential mechanisms of ICS II on myocardial ischemia (MI) remain unclear. Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects and preliminary molecular mechanisms of ICS II in treating isoproterenolinduced MI in rats. Methods: A rat model of MI was established by subcutaneous injection of isoproterenol. Electrocardiography, echocardiography, myocardial enzymes analysis, heart weight index, triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining, histopathology, TUNEL staining, RT-qPCR, and Western blot were employed to evaluate the effects and preliminary molecular mechanisms of ICS II on MI rats. Results: Pharmacodynamic studies suggested that ICS II inhibited ST-segment elevation in electrocardiograms, improved cardiac function, reduced heart weight index and myocardial enzyme levels, decreased myocardial infarct size, alleviated cardiac histological damage, and inhibited apoptosis, thereby exerting cardioprotective effects in MI rats. Further studies revealed that ICS II may partially inhibit the expression of NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis-related targets at both protein and mRNA levels. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that ICS II exerts anti-MI effects, and its preliminary molecular mechanisms may be related to inhibiting the activation of the NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis to alleviate inflammatory responses.

Background: Epimedii Folium, first recorded in the Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica (Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing), is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) known for its effects of “benefiting Qi and strengthening the heart.” Icariside II (ICS II) is one of the main active components of Epimedii Folium, possessing cardiovascular protective and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the potential mechanisms of ICS II on myocardial ischemia (MI) remain unclear. Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects and preliminary molecular mechanisms of ICS II in treating isoproterenolinduced MI in rats. Methods: A rat model of MI was established by subcutaneous injection of isoproterenol. Electrocardiography, echocardiography, myocardial enzymes analysis, heart weight index, triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining, histopathology, TUNEL staining, RT-qPCR, and Western blot were employed to evaluate the effects and preliminary molecular mechanisms of ICS II on MI rats. Results: Pharmacodynamic studies suggested that ICS II inhibited ST-segment elevation in electrocardiograms, improved cardiac function, reduced heart weight index and myocardial enzyme levels, decreased myocardial infarct size, alleviated cardiac histological damage, and inhibited apoptosis, thereby exerting cardioprotective effects in MI rats. Further studies revealed that ICS II may partially inhibit the expression of NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis-related targets at both protein and mRNA levels. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that ICS II exerts anti-MI effects, and its preliminary molecular mechanisms may be related to inhibiting the activation of the NLRP3/Caspase-1 axis to alleviate inflammatory responses.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical characteristics and genetic etiology of a child with Neurofibromatosis-Noonan syndrome (NFNS). METHODS: A child with NFNS who was treated at the Department of Endocrinology of Hangzhou Children's Hospital in January 2024 was selected as the study subject. Clinical data of the child was collected by retrospective analysis. Peripheral venous blood samples (2 mL each) were collected from the child and his parents. Genomic DNA was extracted, and trio-whole exome sequencing (Trio-WES) of the family was carried out. Sanger sequencing was used to perform family verification on the candidate variants. The identified variants were classified for pathogenicity according to the Standards and Guidelines for the Interpretation of Sequence Variants established by the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) (hereafter referred to as the "ACMG guidelines"). This study has been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Hangzhou Children's Hospital (Ethics No. 2021-06). RESULTS: The child was a 7-year and 4-month-old male. He has short stature, numerous café-au-lait spots on the neck and trunk, and special facial features such as a full forehead, wide interpupillary distance, a low nasal bridge, and low-set ears. The results of Trio-WES showed that the he had harbored the NF1 gene c.3773G>T (p.W1258L) mutation, which was verified by Sanger sequencing to be de novo in origin. The NF1 gene was associated with NFNS, which has an autosomal dominant inheritance. According to the ACMG guidelines, this variant was judged to be a likely pathogenic variant (PS2+PM2+PP3+PP2). No pathogenic variant in genes associated with Noonan syndrome, such as PTPN11, SOS1, RAF1, RIT1, and KRAS, was found. CONCLUSION The child with NFNS has clinical features such as short stature, special facial features, and café-au-lait spots. The c.3773G>T (p.W1258L) variation in the NF1 gene may be the genetic etiology of the NFNS child in this study. The results of this study has enriched the variation spectrum of the NF1 gene.
Child ; Humans ; Male ; Exome Sequencing ; Mutation ; Neurofibromatosis 1/genetics* ; Neurofibromin 1/genetics* ; Noonan Syndrome/genetics*

Objective To explore the potential categories of frailty development trajectories in patients undergoing cardiac surgery from pre-operation to 6 months post-operation,and analyze the influencing factors.Methods By a longitudinal study design,patients undergoing elective heart valve replacement surgery or coronary artery bypass grafting in a tertiary general hospital in Zunyi City from August 2022 to June 2023 were selected by the convenience sampling method.Tilburg frailty scale was used to investigate the frailty level of cardiac surgery patients 1 day before surgery(T0),1 month(T1),3 months(T2)and 6 months after surgery(T3).The growth mixture model was used to identify the trajectory categories,and the influencing factors of different frailty trajectories were analyzed by binary Logistic regression.Results 261 patients were enrolled at T0,with 22,9,and 3 patients lost at T1 to T3,and 227 patients were finally included in the analysis.There were 2 types of trajectories being identified as the low frailty decline group and the high frailty maintenance group.Age,use of sedative and analgesic drugs,pace,and depression were the factors influencing the frailty in cardiac surgery patients(P＜0.05).Conclusion There are 2 kinds of frailty development trajectories in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.Medical staff should fonnulate precise interventions and nursing measures according to the factors influencing frailty,so as to improve frailty degree and quality of life of patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Systematically sort out the successful development experience and current shortcomings of various aspects of combined Chinese and Western medicine first aid,and on this basis,we discuss the development ideas of combined Chinese and Western medicine first aid.Based on the complementary advantages of the combination of Chinese and Western medicines in first aid,it takes the special diseases with bottlenecks in the efficacy of the current single system as an entry point,and further optimizes the combination of Chinese and Western medicines in first aid through the dynamic and sequential coordination of Chinese medicine's holistic conditioning and Western medicine's targeted treatment,and promotes the development of the synergistic strategy of the first aid of Chinese and Western medicines,so as to better play the advantageous roles of the combination of Chinese and Western medicines in first aid to enhance the clinical efficacy,reduce the toxicity and side-effects,and improve the prognosis of the diseases.We also strive to promote the improvement of the dosage form of traditional first aid prescriptions and the technical innovation of the production process,so as to realize the improvement of the key indexes such as the timeliness of the onset of action,the controllability of the quality,and the targeting of the efficacy of the Chinese medicinal preparations in the first aid,in order to better support and guarantee the medicines for the first aid of the combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicines.At the same time,we should also promote the systematic construction of the standardized operation specification and efficacy evaluation system of acupuncture and moxibustion,explore the integration of acupuncture and moxibustion with modern first aid,and optimize acupuncture and moxibustion intervention strategies in emergency departments to enhance the efficacy of first aid under the restriction of medical equipments.The proposal of these suggestions may provide some enlightenment in the development of the idea of integrating Chinese and Western medicine in emergency care,and may have some reference value for the development of emergency medicine model with Chinese characteristics.