AIM: To investigate the influence of pterygium thickness and area on corneal refractive status.METHODS: Prospective longitudinal study. A total of 60 cases(60 eyes)of pterygium patients admitted to our hospital from January 2024 to September 2024 were randomly selected. All patients underwent pterygium excision combined with pedicle conjunctival flap transplantation for treatment. Optical coherence tomography(OCT)was used to measure the preoperative thickness of patient's pterygium, and a digital slit lamp microscope was used to measure the area of pterygium. The corneal refractive status(degree of corneal astigmatism and average curvature)and changes in uncorrected visual acuity of patients before surgery, 1 d, 1, and 3 mo after surgery were compared. The relationship between preoperative thickness and area of pterygium in patients and corneal refractive status indicators at different postoperative time points were analyzed, and Logistic regression was used to analyze the impact of pterygium thickness and area on postoperative visual improvement in patients.RESULTS: All patients completed follow-up after surgery for 3 mo. At 3 mo after surgery, visual acuity improved in 21 eyes(35%). The results of bivariate Pearson correlation analysis showed that the thickness and area of pterygium positively correlated with the degree of corneal astigmatism and uncorrected visual acuity before surgery and 1 d, 1, and 3 mo after surgery(all P<0.05), and negatively correlated with the average corneal curvature before surgery and 1 d, 1, and 3 mo after surgery(all P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that the thickness and area of pterygium before surgery, high degree of corneal astigmatism, and low uncorrected visual acuity(large LogMAR value)were all risk factors for poor postoperative visual improvement in patients(OR>1, P<0.05). The large average corneal curvature before surgery was a protective factor for poor postoperative visual improvement in patients(OR<1, P<0.05).CONCLUSION: The increase in thickness and area of pterygium can, to some extent, improve corneal astigmatism, reduce the average curvature of the cornea, and affect postoperative visual recovery.

Ferroptosis initiates membrane oxidative damage through lipid peroxidation and iron accumulation, and accumulates reactive oxygen species (ROS) during aplastic anemia (AA). Ferroptosis induces damage and apoptosis of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, mesenchymal stem cells, blood cells, and T lymphocytes through various pathways, inhibits bone marrow hematopoiesis, damages bone marrow microenvironment, exacerbates immune imbalance, leading to bone marrow failure and disease progression. Therefore, further exploring the ferroptosis mechanism in AA can help clarify the pathogenesis of disease and provide new research ideas and directions for the treatment of AA.
Anemia, Aplastic/metabolism* ; Humans ; Ferroptosis ; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism* ; Lipid Peroxidation ; Hematopoietic Stem Cells ; Apoptosis

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the mechanism underlying the therapeutic effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in rats. METHODS: Forty male SD rats were randomized equally into blank control group, PTSD model group, sham-acupuncture group, paroxetine group, and EA group. In the latter 3 groups, the rat models of PTSD, induced by continuous single-prolonged stress and plantar electrical stimulation, were treated with EA at GV20, GV24, BL18 and BL23 acupoints for 15 min (5 times a week for 3 weeks), sham-acupuncture without electrical stimulation, or gavage with paroxetine suspension on the same schedule. Behavioral changes of the rats were evaluated using open field test (OFT) and elevated plus maze (EPM) test. Hippocampal pathologies and neuronal changes were examined with HE and Nissl staining, and mitochondrial ultrastructure was examined using electron microscopy. The mRNA and protein expression levels of Bcl-2, Bax, and caspase-3 were detected by RT-qPCR and immunofluorescence staining. RESULTS: The rat models of PTSD showed significantly reduced total distance traveled in OFT and distance and time spent in the open arms of the EPM, with decreased hippocampal neurons, obvious neuronal and mitochondrial pathologies, decreased hippocampal expression of Bcl-2, and increased Bax and caspase-3 expressions. Treatments with paroxetine and EA both significantly improved behavioral changes of the rat models, increased the number of Nissl-stained neurons, obviously alleviated pathologies in the hippocampal neurons and mitochondrial ultrastructure, increased hippocampal Bcl-2 expression, and lowered caspase-3 expressions. Paroxetine showed significantly better effect than EA for improving performance of the rats in EPM test, whereas sham-acupuncture did not produce any significant improvement. CONCLUSIONS EA alleviates PTSD in rats possibly by upregulating Bcl-2 and downregulating Bax and caspase-3, thereby ameliorating hippocampal mitochondrial damage.
Animals ; Electroacupuncture ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/metabolism* ; Hippocampus/pathology* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Male ; Rats ; Mitochondria/pathology* ; Signal Transduction ; bcl-2-Associated X Protein/metabolism* ; Caspase 3/metabolism* ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2/metabolism* ; Disease Models, Animal

Noise-induced hearing loss is a worldwide public health issue that is characterized by temporary or permanent changes in hearing sensitivity. This condition is closely linked to inflammatory responses, and interventions targeting the inflammatory gene tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) are known to mitigate cochlear noise damage. TNFα-induced proteins (TNFAIPs) are a family of translucent acidic proteins, and TNFAIP6 has a notable association with inflammatory responses. To date, there have been few reports on TNFAIP6 levels in the inner ear. To elucidate the precise mechanism, we generated transgenic mouse models with conditional knockout of Tnfaip6 (Tnfaip6 cKO). Evaluation of hair cell morphology and function revealed no significant differences in hair cell numbers or ribbon synapses between Tnfaip6 cKO and wild-type mice. Moreover, there were no notable variations in hair cell numbers or hearing function in noisy environments. Our results indicate that Tnfaip6 does not have a substantial impact on the auditory system.
Animals ; Mice, Knockout ; Hair Cells, Auditory, Inner/pathology* ; Mice ; Mice, Transgenic ; Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced ; Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem/physiology*

Objective To observe the efficacy and safety of Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides in the continuation treatment of mild and moderate depression.Methods An open,single-arm,multi-center design was adopted in our study.Adult patients with mild and moderate depression who had received acute treatment of Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides were enrolled and continue to receive Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides capsules for 24 weeks,the dose remained unchanged during continuation treatment.The remission rate,recurrence rate,recurrence time,and the change from baseline to endpoint of Hamilton Depression Scale(HAMD),Hamilton Anxiety Scale(HAMA),Clinical Global Impression-Severity(CGI-S)and Arizona Sexual Experience Scale(ASEX)were evaluated.The incidence of treatment-related adverse events was reported.Results The scores of HAMD-17 at baseline and after treatment were 6.60±1.87 and 5.85±4.18,scores of HAMA were 6.36±3.02 and 4.93±3.09,scores of CGI-S were 1.49±0.56 and 1.29±0.81,scores of ASEX were 15.92±4.72 and 15.57±5.26,with significant difference(P＜0.05).After continuation treatment,the remission rate was 54.59％(202 cases/370 cases),and the recurrence rate was 6.49％(24 cases/370 cases),the recurrence time was(64.67±42.47)days.The incidence of treatment-related adverse events was 15.35％(64 cases/417 cases).Conclusion Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides capsules can be effectively used for the continuation treatment of mild and moderate depression,and are well tolerated and safe.

Objective To investigate the effect of transcranial direct current stimulation(tDCS)in the left posterior sylvia temporal-parietal association area on language function in patients with post-stroke conductive aphasia.Methods The post-stroke aphasia patients admitted to the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine,Xuanwu Hospital,Capital Medical University were prospectively included from June 2021 to April 2024.A self-cross randomized controlled trial was performed in this study.The patients enrolled were assessed as conductive aphasia by Western aphasia test kit diagnostic criteria.Twelve patients with post-stroke conductive aphasia were completely randomly divided into group A(treatment sequence:stage A—washout period—stage B)and group B(treatment sequence:stage B—washout period—stage A),with 6 cases in each group.Stage A performed true tDCS therapy combined with speech and language training,and stage B performed sham tDCS therapy combined with speech and language training.During washout period,only speech and language training was performed,and each stage was trained for 5 days.The tDCS anode is the stimulation electrode and is placed at the stimulation target.The cathode is the reference electrode and is placed on the right shoulder.The intensity of tDCS was 1.4 mA,the true stimulation was 20 min/time,and the sham stimulation stopped automatically after only 30 s/time,both twice/d,and a total of 10 times treatment were performed.Speech and language training was performed 30 min/time,2 times/d,a total of 10 times treatment.The function of rehearsal and picture naming(training item and non-training item)were examined before and after treatment of stage A and B immediately,and the difference of function scores of rehearsal and picture naming(training item and non-training item)before and after treatment of stage A and B were compared.Results(1)There were no significant differences in gender,age,course of disease and educational level between group A and group B(all P＞0.05).(2)Before and after washout period,there were no statistical significance in functional scores of rehearsal and picture naming(training items and non-training items)in both group A and group B(all P＞0.05).(3)There were no significant differences in functional scores of rehearsal and picture naming(training items and non-training items)between group A and group B before and after washout treatment(all P＞0.05).(4)Compared with the difference before and after treatment of stage B,the function scores difference before and after treatment of stage A in rehearsal function,picture naming(training item)and picture naming(non-training item)were higher([6.9±1.4]scores vs.[2.2±1.0]scores,t=9.604;[6.2±1.2]scores vs.[1.8±1.1]scores,t=9.277;[6.5±1.0]scores vs.[1.5±1.0]scores,t=12.247;all P＜0.01).Conclusions Preliminary analysis suggested that tDCS intervention in the brain tissue of the temporoparietal association area of the left posterior lateral cleft may help improve the rehearsal and picture naming(training and non-training items)ability in conductive aphasia patients after stroke.The sample size of this study is small,and the results need to be further explored.

Aim To investigate the mechanism of icar-itin(ICT)on D-galactose(D-gal)-induced TM4 ser-toli cell junctional function damage in vitro.Methods TM4 cells were divided into the normal control group and D-gal treatment group with different concentra-tions.The expression changes of TM 4 cell junction function-related proteins(ZO-1,Occludin,β-catenin and Cx43)and ERα/FAK signaling pathway-related proteins(ERα,FAK and pY397-FAK)were detected by Western blot.The concentration of ICT was screened by MTT method.TM4 cells were divided into normal control group,D-gal treatment group,and D-gal treatment+different concentrations of ICT group.The expression levels of the above proteins were detected by Western blot.Molecular docking was used to study the interaction between ERα and ICT,meanwhile predict the affinity between them.Finally,TM4 cells were di-vided into normal control group,D-gal treatment group,ERα inhibitor group,D-gal+ICT group,and ERα inhibitor+ICT group.The expression levels of the above proteins were detected by Western blot.Re-sults Compared with the normal control group,the ex-pression of junctional function-related proteins(ZO-1,Occludin,β-catenin and Cx43)and ERα/FAK signa-ling pathway-related proteins(ERα,FAK and pY397-FAK)were significantly down-regulated.After treat-ment with ICT,the expression of above proteins were significantly up-regulated.The docking results of ERα and ICT molecules revealed the formation of two hydro-gen bonds between Asp351 amino acid residue of ERα and ICT,with bond distances measuring 3.4? and 2.4?.Additionally,the docking binding energy be-tween them was found to be lower than-7 kcal·mol-1.After TM4 cells were treated with ERα inhibi-tor,the expression of above proteins and ERα/FAK signaling pathway-related proteins were significantly down-regulated,while the expression levels of the a-bove proteins did not change significantly after being given ICT protected group.Conclusions D-gal can cause damage to the junctional function of TM4 cells,and ICT can improve this damage,which may be related to the up-regulation of ERα/FAK signaling pathway.

Objective To investigate the incidence rate,clinical characteristics,and prognosis of neonatal stroke in Shenzhen,China.Methods Led by Shenzhen Children's Hospital,the Shenzhen Neonatal Data Collaboration Network organized 21 institutions to collect 36 cases of neonatal stroke from January 2020 to December 2022.The incidence,clinical characteristics,treatment,and prognosis of neonatal stroke in Shenzhen were analyzed.Results The incidence rate of neonatal stroke in 21 hospitals from 2020 to 2022 was 1/15 137,1/6 060,and 1/7 704,respectively.Ischemic stroke accounted for 75％(27/36);boys accounted for 64％(23/36).Among the 36 neonates,31(86％)had disease onset within 3 days after birth,and 19(53％)had convulsion as the initial presentation.Cerebral MRI showed that 22 neonates(61％)had left cerebral infarction and 13(36％)had basal ganglia infarction.Magnetic resonance angiography was performed for 12 neonates,among whom 9(75％)had involvement of the middle cerebral artery.Electroencephalography was performed for 29 neonates,with sharp waves in 21 neonates(72％)and seizures in 10 neonates(34％).Symptomatic/supportive treatment varied across different hospitals.Neonatal Behavioral Neurological Assessment was performed for 12 neonates(33％,12/36),with a mean score of(32±4)points.The prognosis of 27 neonates was followed up to around 12 months of age,with 44％(12/27)of the neonates having a good prognosis.Conclusions Ischemic stroke is the main type of neonatal stroke,often with convulsions as the initial presentation,involvement of the middle cerebral artery,sharp waves on electroencephalography,and a relatively low neurodevelopment score.Symptomatic/supportive treatment is the main treatment method,and some neonates tend to have a poor prognosis.

The structures and activities of enzymes are influenced by pH of the environment. Understanding and distinguishing the adaptation mechanisms of enzymes to extreme pH values is of great significance for elucidating the molecular mechanisms and promoting the industrial applications of enzymes. In this study, the ESM-2 protein language model was used to encode the secreted microbial proteins with the optimal performance above pH 9 and below pH 5, which yielded 47 725 high-pH protein sequences and 66 079 low-pH protein sequences, respectively. A deep learning model was constructed to identify protein acid-base tolerance based on amino acid sequences. The model showcased significantly higher accuracy than other methods, with the overall accuracy of 94.8%, precision of 91.8%, and a recall rate of 93.4% on the test set. Furthermore, we built a website (https://enzymepred.biodesign.ac.cn), which enabled users to predict the acid-base tolerance by submitting the protein sequences of enzymes. This study has accelerated the application of enzymes in various fields, including biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. It provides a powerful tool for the rapid screening and optimization of industrial enzymes.
Deep Learning ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Amino Acid Sequence ; Enzymes/metabolism* ; Sequence Analysis, Protein ; Proteins/metabolism* ; Bacterial Proteins/metabolism*

Aim To investigate the effects of baicalin on the inflammatory response and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)/myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD 88)/nuclear factor kappa B (N F-K B) signaling pathway in Alzheimer' s disease (AD) rat model induced by lateral ventricular injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Methods The AD animal model was constructed by lateral ventricular injection of STZ in SD rats, and divided into sham operation group, model group, low-dose (60 mg