Objective To investigate the effect of bone metabolic markers on sarcopenia in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods A total of 412 patients with T2DM in the department of endocrinology of Nanjing Central Hospital from May 2020 to June 2025 were selected as the research subjects. According to Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS) in 2019, these patients were evaluated for skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI), muscle strength, and muscle function, and were divided into a sarcopenia group (84 cases) and a non-sarcopenia group (328 cases). The glucolipid metabolic indexes were detected in both groups of patients, and the bone metabolic markers were evaluated, including procollagen type 1 N-terminal peptide (P1NP), beta-C-terminal telopeptide of type 1 collagen (β-CTX), and 25-hydroxy vitamin D [25-(OH)D]. The factors influencing the occurrence of sarcopenia in T2DM patients were analyzed by logistic regression analysis, and the diagnostic values of bone metabolic markers on sarcopenia in patients with T2DM were assessed by ROC curve. Results The levels of P1NP and 25-(OH)D were lower, while β-CTX level was higher in the sarcopenia group compared to the non-sarcopenia group, with statistical differences (P<0.05). After logistic correlation analysis, it was found that P1NP, β-CTX and 25-(OH)D were all influencing factors for the occurrence of sarcopenia in T2DM patients. ROC curve analysis suggested that combined detection of PINP, β-CTX, and 25-(OH)D had higher diagnostic value, with an area under the curve up to 0.805. Conclusion The abnormal expression of bone metabolic markers is associated with the increased risk of sarcopenia in patients with T2DM. The detection of serum bone metabolic markers expression level is of certain significance for the assessment of diabetes-related sarcopenia.

OBJECTIVE To assess the safety profile of sintilimab in combination with chemotherapy for the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma. METHODS The data of patients with cholangiocarcinoma from January 1st， 2021 to December 31st， 2022 were collected and divided into control group （29 cases） and observation group （18 cases） based on different medication regimens. Patients in the control group were treated with Gemcitabine hydrochloride for injection+Cisplatin for injection or Oxaliplatin for injection， the observation group was treated with Sintilimab injection based on the control group. Patients in each group underwent blood routine， liver and kidney function， biochemical and other examinations before and after each treatment cycle to observe the occurrence of adverse drug reactions. The correlation of adverse drug reactions with drugs was evaluated with Naranjo’s scale. RESULTS The correlation between blood toxicity and drug use was deemed “probable” in both groups； however， the observation group exhibited a significantly higher score， indicating a stronger correlation. In the control group， hepatotoxic reactions were classified as “suspicious” whereas in the observation group， they were categorized as “probable”. The correlation of gastrointestinal symptoms between the two groups was considered “possible”. Systemic symptoms， skin toxicity， musculoskeletal toxicity， endocrine toxicity and renal toxicity were all classified as having a “suspicious” correlation with drug use. The total incidence of blood toxicity in the observation group was significantly higher than control group （P＝0.014）. There was no statistically significant difference in the total incidences of hepatotoxic， gastrointestinal symptoms， systemic symptoms， skin toxicity， musculoskeletal toxicity， endocrine toxicity， renal toxicity， or the incidence of grade 3 or higher blood toxicity， hepatotoxic between the two groups （P＞0.05）. For the patients experiencing adverse drug reactions， the symptoms were alleviated following drug discontinuation or symptomatic supportive treatment. No fatalities occurred during the treatment period. CONCLUSIONS Sintilimab combined with chemotherapy may significantly increase the risk of blood toxicity in patients with cholangiocarcinoma， especially thrombocytopenia， but the adverse reactions are within a controllable range， and the overall safety is good.

ObjectiveTo analyze the adverse reactions associated with the clinical use of Banxia （Rhizoma Pinelliae）- Wutou （Aconitum） in the same formula， with the aim of providing a reference for the safety of their clinical application. MethodsLiterature on the clinical application of antagonistic herbs "Banxia-Wutou" used in the same formula， published from January 1st， 2014， to June 30th， 2023， was retrieved from databases including CNKI， VIP， Wanfang， SinoMed， PubMed， Cochrane Library， and Embase. A database was established， and information related to adverse reactions was extracted， including descriptions， classifications， specific manifestations， management and outcomes， patients' primary diseases （western medicine diseases and traditional Chinese medicine diagnoses and syndromes）， and medication information （dosage， ratio， administration routes， and dosage forms）. ResultsA total of 79 researches simultaneously used antagonistic herbs Banxia-Wutou in the same formula and reported associated advers reactions. Gastrointestinal adverse reactions were the most common， with 8 studies reporting management of adverse reactions and 3 studies reporting improvement with no intervention. Among the 11 researches， the adverse reaction relieved to extant， while other 69 researches didn't report the managment of adverse reaction and its prognosis. For the primary disease in western medicine system， chronic bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （COPD） were most common， while gastric pain was the most common symptom in traditional Chinese medicine with spleen and kidney deficiency and spleen stomach cold deficiency being the most frequent syndromes. The most common Banxia dosage was 10 g， while for the Wutou， Fuzi （Radix Aconiti Lateralis Praeparata） was predominant with the highest dose at 15 g. The most frequent herbal combination was Banxia-fuzi， with a 1∶1 ratio. The main administration route was oral， and the primary dosage form was decoction. ConclusionGastrointestinal adverse reactions are the most common in the clinical use of Banxia-Wutou antagonistic herb combinations. Research on the safety of "Banxia-Wutou" combinations should focus on respiratory system diseases and spleen-stomach related conditions.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a metabolic disease characterized by abnormal deposition of lipid in hepatocytes. If not intervened in time, NAFLD may develop into liver fibrosis or liver cancer, and ultimately threatening life. NAFLD has complicated etiology and pathogenesis, and there are no effective therapeutic means and specific drugs. Currently, insulin sensitizers, lipid-lowering agents and hepatoprotective agents are often used for clinical intervention, but these drugs have obvious side effects, and their effectiveness and safety need to be further confirmed. Adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK) plays a central role in maintaining energy homeostasis. Activated AMPK can enhance lipid degradation, alleviate insulin resistance (IR), suppress oxidative stress and inflammatory response, and regulate autophagy, thereby alleviating NAFLD. Natural herbal medicines have received extensive attention recently because of their regulatory effects on AMPK and low side effects. In this article, we reviewed the biologically active natural herbal medicines (such as natural herbal medicine formulas, extracts, polysaccharides, and monomers) that reported in recent years to treat NAFLD via regulating AMPK, which can serve as a foundation for subsequent development of candidate drugs for NAFLD.

The core pathogenesis of disease caused by latent toxin is deficiency of healthy qi and lingering pathogen, which is characterized by lingering and recurrent courses, and onset upon exogenous induction. The biological mechanisms of disease caused by latent toxin present multi-dimensional and synergistic characteristics. Immune dysfunction and inflammatory response serve as the core links, involving the abnormal activation of signaling pathways such as Wnt/β-catenin, PI3K/Akt/mTOR, TLR, and NF-κB; the accumulation of metabolites, as the microscopic carrier of latent toxin, participates in chronic complications of diabetes by damaging vascular endothelium and inhibiting repair pathways; immune escape and tolerance, as well as weakened tumor suppressor function, supplement the potential mechanisms of latent toxin from the perspectives of pathogen/tumor cell latency and congenital insufficiency; the imbalance of tissue repair and remodeling, and the imbalance of protein metabolism and cellular homeostasis further improve the mechanism network of latent toxin. Among these, immune dysfunction, tumor suppressor gene mutation, and regulatory dysfunction may be the microscopic manifestations of "healthy qi deficiency"; inflammatory factors, metabolites, viruses, and tumor cells may be the microscopic manifestations of "latent toxin". Current studies have limitations, such as unclear specific biomarkers for different types of latent toxin, insufficient research on the interaction of multiple mechanisms, and lack of clinical verification. It is suggested that future research should be further carried out around "latent toxin classification-mechanism-efficacy".

Objective To investigate the expression and prognostic value of serum receptor for advanced glycation end products(RAGE)and CXC-chemokine ligand 16(CXCL16)in patients with sepsis complicated with acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS).Methods A total of 234 patients with sepsis diagnosed and treated in a hospital from January 2019 to January 2022 were selected as the study subjects,and were divided into 82 patients with sepsis complicated with ARDS(ARDS group)and 152 patients with sepsis without ARDS(non-ARDS group)according to whether the subjects were complicated with ARDS.ARDS group was divided into survival group(n=50)and death group(n=32)according to the survival status within 28 days of admission.Another 60 healthy subjects who underwent physical examination in the same period were se-lected as the control group.Serum RAGE and CXCL16 levels were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Pearson correlation analysis of serum RAGE and CXCL16 levels with sequential organ failure assess-ment(SOFA)score,acute physiology and chronic health evaluation Ⅱ(APACHE Ⅱ)score and oxygenation index in patients with sepsis and ARDS.Multivariate Logistic regression analysis of prognostic factors of sep-sis complicated with ARDS.The predictive value of serum RAGE and CXCL16 on the prognosis of sepsis complicated with ARDS patients was analyzed by receiver operating characteristic curve.Results The serum RAGE and CXCL16 levels in ARDS group were higher than those in non-ARDS group and control group,and the serum RAGE and CXCL16 levels in non-ARDS group were higher than those in control group,the differ-ence was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Compared with the survival group,the mechanical ventilation time,intensive care unit stay time,procalcitonin,SOFA score,APACHE Ⅱ score,serum RAGE,CXCL16 lev-els were higher in the death group,and the oxygenation index was lower,with statistical significance(all P＜0.05).The serum RAGE level in patients with sepsis complicated with ARDS was positively correlated with SOFA score and APACHE Ⅱ score(r=0.603,0.671,P＜0.05).Serum CXCL16 levels were positively corre-lated with SOFA score and APACHE Ⅱ score(r=0.655,0.707,P＜0.05).Serum RAGE and CXCL16 were negatively correlated with oxygenation index(r=-0.712,-0.683,P＜0.05).Multi-factor Logistics regres-sion analysis showed that serum RAGE and CXCL16 were independent risk factors for death within 28 days of admission in patients with sepsis complicated with ARDS.The area under the curve(AUC)of combined de-tection of serum RAGE and CXCL16 for predicting death within 28 days of admission in patients with sepsis complicated with ARDS was 0.882,which was higher than that of single index detection of serum RAGE and CXCL16,and the difference was statistically significant(Z=4.450,4.906,P＜0.05).Conclusion The com-bined detection of serum RAGE and CXCL16 is helpful to evaluate the clinical prognosis of sepsis complicated with ARDS patients.

Objective To analyze the quality of 22 batches of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules from 12 different manufacturers by using water-extraction reference substance of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus(ZBM ERS ST)and water-extraction reference substance of Fritillariae hupehensis bulbus(HBBM ERS ST)as references.Methods Ethyl acetate-methanol-triethylamine-water(17∶1∶1∶0.5)was used as the developing solvent for high-performance thin-layer chromatography(HPTLC)fingerprint analysis.The high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC)fingerprint analysis was performed on a Agilent Eclipse XDB-C18 column(4.6 mm×250 mm,5 μm)with the gradient mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile-0.03%diethylamine solution.The column temperature was set at 25℃and evaporative light-scattering detector was used.The determination was conducted according to standard test method for measurement of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules(Guangdong PFKL00117).Results The results of HPTLC and HPLC analysis showed that there are significant differences among the 22 batches of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules.There were 4 batches of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules from 3 manufacturers among them showed fingerprint characteristics of Fritillariae hupehensis bulbus.The total amount of peimine and peiminine in the remaining 18 batches of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules was 0.291-3.179 mg·g-1,which were quite different.Conclusion Currently,the quality of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules on the market varies greatly.Standardized water-extract reference substance has better applicability for the analysis of the quality of Fritillariae thunbergii bulbus Formula Granules than the control medicinal materials.

Liver fibrosis is a repair response to chronic liver injury caused by various etiologies. Its continuous progression can develop into liver cirrhosis or even hepatocellular carcinoma, eventually leading to liver failure. Currently, there is no effective treatment for liver fibrosis. Hepatic macrophages play a key role in intrahepatic inflammatory response, progression and resolution of fibrosis, and have emerged as an important therapeutic target for anti-hepatic fibrosis. The function of hepatic macrophages in the process of liver fibrosis was mainly reviewed and the mode of action of hepatic macrophages from various aspects was discussed to provide ideas for the treatment of liver fibrosis.