Tooth pulpitis is a prevalent oral disorder. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of pulpitis and developing effective treatment strategies hold great significance. Ferroptosis has recently emerged as a new form of cell death, but the role of ferroptosis in pulpitis remains largely unknown. In our study, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) was used to identify cellular heterogeneity between 3 pulpitis tissue and 3 healthy pulp tissue, and explored ferroptosis occurrence in pulpitis tissue and inflamed dental pulp cells (DPCs). In scRNA-seq, 40 231 cells (Pulpitis: 17 814; Healthy pulp: 22 417) were captured, and visualized into 12 distinct cell clusters. Differentially expressed ferroptosis-related genes (DE-FRGs) were almost presented in each cluster in pulpitis vs healthy pulp. ROS and Fe²⁺ levels significantly rose, and immunohistochemistry showed low expression of GPX4 and high expression of PTGS2 in pulpitis. In LPS-stimulated DPCs, thymosin α1 increased the expression of GPX4 and FTL, and decreased expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, and Fe²⁺ levels. In rat pulpitis models, both prothymosin α (PTMA, precursor of thymosin α1) gelatin sponge placed at the hole of pulp (LPS-P(gs)) and PTMA injection in pulp (LPS-P(i)) significantly reduced infiltration of inflammatory cells and expression of PTGS2, and increased the expression of GPX4. In RNA sequencing, the expression of DE-FRGs were reversed when thymosin α1 were added in LPS-stimulated DPCs. Collectively, single-cell atlas reveals cellular heterogeneity between pulpitis and healthy pulp, and ferroptosis occurrence in pulpitis. Thymosin α1 may reduce ferroptosis in DPCs to alleviate pulpitis and thus potentially has the ability to treat pulpitis.
Ferroptosis/drug effects* ; Dental Pulp/drug effects* ; Animals ; Pulpitis/pathology* ; Rats ; Thymalfasin/pharmacology* ; Humans ; Male ; Thymosin/pharmacology* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Objective To explore the clinical efficacy of Liuwei Dihuang Capsules for type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)with yin deficiency syndrome and the effects on intestinal flora and inflammatory factors.Methods Totally 60 patients of T2DM with yin deficiency syndrome in Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from September 2022 to June 2023 were selected as the study objects,and were divided into control group and observation group according to the method of block randomization,with 30 cases in each group.Both groups received basic treatment.The control group was given a simulated agent of Liuwei Dihuang Capsules,while the observation group was given Liuwei Dihuang Capsules.The treatment course for both groups was 4 weeks.Clinical efficacy,blood glucose levels[fasting plasma glucose(FPG),2-hour postprandial plasma glucose(2 hPG),glycated albumin(GA)],serum insulin levels[fasting insulin(FINS)and insulin resistance index(HOMA-IR)],changes in gut microbiota,and serum inflammatory cytokine levels[interleukin(IL)-6,tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-α]of both groups were compared.Results The total effective rate of the observation group(76.67%)was better than that of the control group(50.00%)(P<0.05).Compared with before treatment,the FPG,2 hPG,GA,FINS and HOMA-IR decreased in the observation group,while the FPG,2 hPG and FINS decreased in the control group(P<0.05);after treatment,the Shannon index of the observation group increased after treatment(P<0.05),and the diversity of the microbiota increased;the abundance of the microbial communities such as Coprococcus 3,Cutibacterium,Pseudomonas,Faecalibaculum,Dubosiella and Mucispirillum significantly increased(P<0.05);the abundance of Sphingomonas,Corynebacterium 1,Ileibacterium,Ruminiclostridium and other microbiota communities significantly decreased(P<0.05).Compared with before treatment,the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in both groups were significantly reduced after treatment(P<0.01,P<0.05).After treatment,the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05).Conclusion Liuwei Dihuang Capsules can effectively reduce blood glucose levels in patients of T2DM with yin deficiency syndrome,improve insulin resistance,increase gut microbiota diversity,increase beneficial bacterial abundance,reduce harmful bacterial abundance,and alleviate inflammatory cytokine levels.

Objective To explore the clinical efficacy of Liuwei Dihuang Capsules for type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)with yin deficiency syndrome and the effects on intestinal flora and inflammatory factors.Methods Totally 60 patients of T2DM with yin deficiency syndrome in Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from September 2022 to June 2023 were selected as the study objects,and were divided into control group and observation group according to the method of block randomization,with 30 cases in each group.Both groups received basic treatment.The control group was given a simulated agent of Liuwei Dihuang Capsules,while the observation group was given Liuwei Dihuang Capsules.The treatment course for both groups was 4 weeks.Clinical efficacy,blood glucose levels[fasting plasma glucose(FPG),2-hour postprandial plasma glucose(2 hPG),glycated albumin(GA)],serum insulin levels[fasting insulin(FINS)and insulin resistance index(HOMA-IR)],changes in gut microbiota,and serum inflammatory cytokine levels[interleukin(IL)-6,tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-α]of both groups were compared.Results The total effective rate of the observation group(76.67%)was better than that of the control group(50.00%)(P<0.05).Compared with before treatment,the FPG,2 hPG,GA,FINS and HOMA-IR decreased in the observation group,while the FPG,2 hPG and FINS decreased in the control group(P<0.05);after treatment,the Shannon index of the observation group increased after treatment(P<0.05),and the diversity of the microbiota increased;the abundance of the microbial communities such as Coprococcus 3,Cutibacterium,Pseudomonas,Faecalibaculum,Dubosiella and Mucispirillum significantly increased(P<0.05);the abundance of Sphingomonas,Corynebacterium 1,Ileibacterium,Ruminiclostridium and other microbiota communities significantly decreased(P<0.05).Compared with before treatment,the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in both groups were significantly reduced after treatment(P<0.01,P<0.05).After treatment,the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05).Conclusion Liuwei Dihuang Capsules can effectively reduce blood glucose levels in patients of T2DM with yin deficiency syndrome,improve insulin resistance,increase gut microbiota diversity,increase beneficial bacterial abundance,reduce harmful bacterial abundance,and alleviate inflammatory cytokine levels.

Objective To find out the prevalence of antiretroviral therapy(ART)drugs among treponema pallidum(TP)antibody(anti-TP)positive blood donors in Shenzhen,and to assess the blood safety risks brought about by the new trends of human immunodeficiency virus(HIV)diagnosis and treatment.Methods A stratified random sampling method was used to select 60 repeat blood donors(negative control group)who passed blood screening in Shenzhen from March 2019 to January 2023,and 3 people who regularly took known ART drugs were named positive control group,358 anti-TP positive/anti-HIV negative blood do-nors were named experimental group 1,20 anti-TP positive/anti-HIV positive blood donors were named ex-perimental group 2.The liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry(HPLC-MS/MS)was applied to detect the concentration of 8 ART drugs in plasma samples of each group,and the use of ART drugs was analyzed.Re-sults After the positive control group's plasma was diluted with a 1:6 dilution mixture,the ART drugs could still be detected.The positive mixed plasma samples of 1:6 people in Group 1 and Group 2 were split and validation,one ART drug positive sample was detected in Group 2,which was positive for anti-HIV,pro-tein immunoblotting,and HIV RNA.The detection rate of ART drugs in anti-TP positive blood donors was 0.26％,0.00％in Group 1 and 4.00％in Group 2.Conclusion The use of ART drugs has been found among anti-TP positive blood donors in Shenzhen,and people with HIV infection and high-risk sexual behavior are more likely to use antiretroviral drugs.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between serum procollagen Ⅲ amino terminal peptide (PIIINP), collagen I carboxyl terminal cross-linking peptide (CTXI), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) T 1 mapping value in patients with lone atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods:Fifty-five patients with lone AF in Beijing Anzhen Hospital from July 2017 to June 2018 were prospectively enrolled. Another 20 healthy volunteers were examined at the same time to provide normal reference range. All patients completed PIIINP, CTXI, hs-CRP and CMR examination within one week. CMR examination including cine, pre-contrast T 1 mapping, and late gadolinium enhancement sequences. We used t test, Mann-Whitney U test or chi square test to compare the difference of the above indexes between AF patients and the control group. Spearman correlation analysis was used to determine the associations between left ventricular native T 1 value and blood biomarker in AF patients. Results:All the patients were paroxysmal AF with an average age of (48±10) years, of which 46 (83.6%) were male. The PIIINP, CTXI, hs-CRP, left ventricular native T 1 value of AF patients were 5.83 (3.52, 12.40) ng/ml, 4.63 (3.31, 6.82) μg/ml, 3.41 (1.72, 6.61) mg/L and (1 261±23) ms, respectively, which all significant higher than those in healthy subjects (all P<0.05). The native T 1 value of left ventricular myocardium was positively correlated with PIIINP ( r=0.492, P<0.05) and hs-CRP ( r=0.516, P<0.05), but not with CTXI ( r=0.021, P>0.05). Conclusions:The PIIINP, CTXI and hs-CRP increased in patients with lone AF, PIIINP and hs-CRP were correlated with elevated native T 1 value of left ventricular myocardium.

Objective To observe the short- and long-term efficacies of acupuncture in treating metabolic syndrome (MS). Method A hundred MS patients were randomized into an acupuncture group and a Western medication group. In addition to basic treatment, acupuncture was used in the acupuncture group, while Western medication was adopted in the Western medication group. The fasting plasma glucose (FPG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), insulin (INS), triglyceride (TG), blood pressure (BP), weight circumference (WC), body mass index (BMI), and MS score were evaluated before and after treatment, and a month and 3 months after the treatment. Result There was no significant difference in comparing the short-term therapeutic efficacy between the two groups after treatment, while the long-term therapeutic efficacy of the acupuncture group was superior to that of the Western medication group (P<0.01); the FPG, INS, TG, HDL, BP, and MS score were significantly improved after treatment and a month after the treatment in both groups (P<0.01); the acupuncture group had significant improvements in WC and BMI after treatment and a month after the treatment (P<0.01), significantly superior to the Western medication group (P<0.01); the acupuncture group showed marked improvement in INS, HDL, WC, and BMI 3 months after the treatment (P<0.01), significantly superior to the Western medication group (P<0.01,P<0.05). Conclusion Acupuncture can produce a similar short-term but a better long-term therapeutic efficacy compared to Western medication. Hence, acupuncture can be taken as an assistant intervention for MS.

The medicinal fungi, which are of great importance in traditional medicine, are facing the problems of wild resources scarcity and low concentration of bioactive compounds. Velvet family and LaeA global regulator play a vital role in secondary metabolism and developmental programs, which are found in a wide variety of fungi ranging from Chytridiomycota to Basidiomycota. This review elaborates the structures and functions between Velvet family and LaeA protein. The Velvet family which shares the Velvet protein domain, including VeA (Velvet), VelB (Velvet like B), VosA (viability of spores A) and VelC (Velvet like C), acts on the regulation function is secondary metabolism and developmental programs such as asexual and sexual development. Furthermore, the function is affected by environmental factors such as light and temperature. LaeA protein which owns S-adenosylmethionine-dependent methyltransferase domain, coordinately regulates development and secondary metabolism by regulating and modifying the Velvet proteins. The regulation of LaeA is mediated by light receptor proteins. Therefore, clarifying the mechanism of Velvet and LaeA proteins in medicinal fungi will pave the way for nurturing medicinal fungi and improving production of bioactive compounds.