ObjectiveTo explore the protective effect and mechanism of Gegen Qianliantang （GQT） on intestinal mucosal barrier function in dextran sulfate sodium （DSS）-induced ulcerative colitis （UC） model mice. MethodsA UC model was established in C57BL/6 mice using a 2.5% DSS solution. Mice were randomly divided into five groups （n=8 per group）： blank group， model group， mesalazine sustained-release granule group （0.52 g·kg^-1）， high-dose GQT group （2.23 g·kg^-1）， and low-dose GQT group （1.12 g·kg^-1）. Fecal characteristics and body weight changes were observed before and after treatment. The body weight loss and disease activity index （DAI） of UC mice were calculated to evaluate symptom severity. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining and Alizarin blue-periodic acid-Schiff （AB-PAS） staining were used to detect histological changes in colon tissue. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of zonula occludens-1 （ZO-1） and mucin 2 （MUC2）. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to detect serum levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines interferon-γ （IFN-γ）， interleukin-6 （IL-6）， tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， IL-17A， and anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10. Flow cytometry was used to detect the activation of helper T lymphocyte subsets （Th1， Th17）， regulatory T cells （Treg）， and regulatory B cells （Breg） in spleen and colon tissues. Western blot was used to detect the expression levels of T-bet， forkhead box protein P3（FoxP3）， nuclear transcription factor（NF）-κB p65， phosphorylated NF-κB p65 （p-NF-κB p65）， signal transducer and activator of transcription 3（STAT3）， and phosphorylated STAT3 （p-STAT3）. ResultsCompared with the model group， both high- and low-dose GQT groups significantly improved the body weight loss and DAI scores （P<0.05）， alleviated colonic inflammation， and showed optimal efficacy in the high-dose group. AB-PAS staining showed that compared with the model group， both the high- and low-dose GQT groups significantly increased goblet cell proliferation and mucin secretion， indicating improved mucosal barrier function. GQT upregulated the expression of ZO-1 and MUC2 in colon tissue （P<0.05）， suppressed IFN-γ， IL-6， and TNF-α secretion （P<0.05）， elevated IL-10 secretion （P<0.05）， but had no significant effect on IL-17A. At the same time， high- and low-dose GQT intervention increased the activation of CD4⁺ FoxP3⁺ Treg cells （P<0.05） and suppressed activation of CD4⁺ IFN-γ⁺ Th1 cells （P<0.05）. Western blot showed that GQT downregulated T-bet， NF-κB p65， and STAT3 protein expression （P<0.05）， upregulated FoxP3 （P<0.05）， and also reduced phosphorylation levels of p-NF-κB p65 and p-STAT3 （P<0.05）. ConclusionGQT can upregulate the activation of CD4⁺ FoxP3⁺ Treg cells， reduce the activation of CD4⁺ IFN-γ⁺ Th1 cells， inhibit the secretion of IFN-γ， IL-6， and TNF-α， and increase the secretion of IL-10. It enhances the expression of MUC2 and ZO-1 in colon tissue， thereby alleviating inflammatory damage to the intestinal mucosa and restoring mucosal barrier integrity. These effects may be related to its regulation of NF-κB p65 and STAT3 signaling pathways， ultimately regulating the activation of transcription factors T-bet and FoxP3.

OBJECTIVE: To construct and validate a predictive model for the therapeutic effect of acupuncture at Tongdu Yangxin prescription (acupoint prescription for promoting the circulation of the governor vessel and nourishing the heart) on insomnia, so as to develop an open-access interactive artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted decision-making platform. METHODS: Clinical data of 139 insomnia patients treated with Tongdu Yangxin acupuncture therapy were included. All the patients had received acupuncture at Baihui (GV20), Yintang (GV24⁺), bilateral Shenmen (HT7), and bilateral Sanyinjiao (SP6); and electric stimulation was attached to Baihui (GV20) and Yintang (GV24⁺), using a continuous wave and a frequency of 2 Hz. The treatment was delivered once every other day, 3 treatments a week, and for 2 consecutive weeks. Patients with Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) score reduction rate <50% were classified as the "no response group", and those with ≥50% were as the "response group". Outliers were addressed using the 1.5×IQR rule, and missing values were imputed via predictive mean matching. Key features were selected by intersecting the feature importance results from eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) and random forest algorithms. After balancing class distribution using the Synthetic Minority Over-sampling Technique (SMOTE), 20% of the data was reserved as a validation set. The remained data underwent the stratified sampling iterations to generate 200 pairs of 3∶1 training-test sets, which was employed for training and internal validation of 8 machine learning algorithms. The optimal algorithm and data partitioning strategy were selected to construct the final model, followed by external validation. The best-performing model was deployed online via Streamlit to create an interactive AI platform. RESULTS: Key predictive features for model construction included insomnia duration, the total PSQI score, PSQI sleep efficiency subscore, the proportion of N1 and N2 sleep stages in total sleep duration, and the maximum pulse rate during sleep. The CatBoost-based model achieved an AUC of 0.92, the average precision of 0.77, and accuracy, average recall, and average F1-score of 0.75 on the test set. On the validation set, it attained an AUC of 0.84, with accuracy, average precision, average recall, and average F1-score all at 0.72, demonstrating robust predictive performance. An interactive AI platform was subsequently developed (https://tdyx-catboost.streamlit.app/). CONCLUSION This study successfully establishes and validates a CatBoost-based efficacy prediction model for Tongdu Yangxin acupuncture therapy in treatment of insomnia. The developed AI platform provides data-driven decision support for acupuncture-based insomnia management.
Humans ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders/physiopathology* ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Male ; Acupuncture Points ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Artificial Intelligence ; Aged ; Young Adult

Objective:To explore the curative efficacy of Dingke Decoction in the treatment of post infectious cough based on the the real-world clinical data.Methods:Retrospective cohort study was conducted. 245 patients with cough after infection in the hospital of Jingan Chinese Medical Hospital from July 2021 to July 2022 were set as study objects. The fact that whether the patients with Dingke Decoction or not were divided into control group (90 cases, without Dingke Decoction) and treatment group (155 cases, with Dingke Decoction). By using propensity nearest neighbor 1:1 matching to balance the confounding factors before treatment, 56 cases were successfully matched in both groups. The control group was treated symptomatically according to the actual clinical situation, while the treatment group was treated with modified Dingke Decoction on the basis of symptomatic treatment in the control group. The treatment for both groups lasted for 2 weeks. TCM symptom scores and cough severity score were evaluated using the Leicester Cough Quality of Life Questionnaire (LCQ) before and after treatment. Levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were detected through ELISA; adverse reactions during the treatment were recorded, and the clinical efficacy was evaluated.Results:The total effective rate of the treatment group was 91.07% (51/56), while that of the control group was 76.79% (43/56), with a statistically significant difference between the two groups ( χ2=4.24, P=0.040). The daytime cough symptom score (1.03 ± 0.67 vs. 1.20 ± 0.66, t=7.40) and nighttime cough symptom score (0.74 ± 0.62 vs. 1.26 ± 0.54, t=6.27) in the treatment group were lower than those in the control group after treatment ( P<0.001). After treatment, the LCQ physiological (5.30 ± 0.79 vs. 4.78 ± 1.09, t=-2.44), psychological (5.33 ± 0.92 vs. 4.70 ± 1.12, t=-2.39), and social (5.23 ± 0.94 vs. 4.60 ± 0.81, t=-2.86) scores in the treatment group were higher than those in the control group ( P<0.05). After treatment, he treatment group serum IL-6 [(14.29 ± 3.94) ng/L vs. (19.99 ± 5.17) ng/L, t=4.80] and TNF-α [(36.23 ± 7.83) ng/L vs. (42.44 ± 7.63) ng/L, t=3.11] were lower than those in the control group ( P<0.01). The incidence of adverse reactions in the control group was 8.92% (5/56) and 5.36% (3/56), respectively, without statistical significance ( χ2=0.54, P=0.716). Conclusion:Based on the real-world research method, medicine Dingke Decoction can improve the clinical efficacy and the quality life of post infectious cough patients, and the mechanism may be related to reducing airway inflammation response.

Bronchiectasis has the characteristics of long course,gradual aggravation,easy recurrence and difficult to treat.The characteristics are similar to those arouse by incubative pathogenic factors.Based on the theory of incubative pathogenic factors,this disease is often related to the incubative pathogenic factors in the body's areas with deficient healthy qi,which occur at regular times.The etiology can be external,congenital,or internal.Treatment should focus on different characteristics of incubative pathogenic factors.Attention should be paid to clearing and dispersing in external pathogenic factors,while attention should be paid to supporting and promoting healthy qi in congenital pathogenic factors,and do not forget to remove internal pathogenic factors.

Objective To explore the regulatory effect of miR-204-5p on biological behaviors of bladder cancer cells and its molecular mechanism.Methods Survival analysis and correlation analysis were performed using TCGA database to explore the association of miR-204-5p expression with survival outcomes and clinicopathological parameters of bladder cancer patients.The expression level of miR-204-5p was detected in bladder cancer and adjacent tissues and in normal uroepithelial cells and bladder cancer cells.In cultured bladder cancer cells,the effects of miR-204-5p overexpression and knockdown on cell proliferation,migration,invasion,and apoptosis were analyzed.Transcriptome sequencing,bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase assay were carried out to confirm targeted inhibition of RAB22A by miR-204-5p to promote malignant biological behaviors of bladder cancer cells.Results Patients with high miR-204-5p expressions had lowered median survival time and poor prognosis(P<0.05).The expression of miR-204-5p was significantly up-regulated in bladder cancer tissues and cells(P<0.05).In bladder cancer cells,miR-204-5p overexpression significantly promoted cell proliferation,migration and invasion and reduced cell apoptosis.Transcriptome sequencing,bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase assay all suggested that RAB22A was a key downstream factor of miR-204-5p.Overexpression of miR-204-5p significantly inhibited RAB22A expression in bladder cancer cells,and overexpression of RAB22A partially reversed miR-204-5p overexpression-induced enhancement of bladder cancer cell proliferation.Conclusion High expression of miR-204-5p promotes proliferation,migration and invasion and reduces apoptosis of bladder cancer cells by negatively regulating RAB22A expression.

Objective To explore the regulatory effect of miR-204-5p on biological behaviors of bladder cancer cells and its molecular mechanism.Methods Survival analysis and correlation analysis were performed using TCGA database to explore the association of miR-204-5p expression with survival outcomes and clinicopathological parameters of bladder cancer patients.The expression level of miR-204-5p was detected in bladder cancer and adjacent tissues and in normal uroepithelial cells and bladder cancer cells.In cultured bladder cancer cells,the effects of miR-204-5p overexpression and knockdown on cell proliferation,migration,invasion,and apoptosis were analyzed.Transcriptome sequencing,bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase assay were carried out to confirm targeted inhibition of RAB22A by miR-204-5p to promote malignant biological behaviors of bladder cancer cells.Results Patients with high miR-204-5p expressions had lowered median survival time and poor prognosis(P<0.05).The expression of miR-204-5p was significantly up-regulated in bladder cancer tissues and cells(P<0.05).In bladder cancer cells,miR-204-5p overexpression significantly promoted cell proliferation,migration and invasion and reduced cell apoptosis.Transcriptome sequencing,bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase assay all suggested that RAB22A was a key downstream factor of miR-204-5p.Overexpression of miR-204-5p significantly inhibited RAB22A expression in bladder cancer cells,and overexpression of RAB22A partially reversed miR-204-5p overexpression-induced enhancement of bladder cancer cell proliferation.Conclusion High expression of miR-204-5p promotes proliferation,migration and invasion and reduces apoptosis of bladder cancer cells by negatively regulating RAB22A expression.

ObjectiveThis study aims to investigate the effect of modified Baitouwengtang （MBTWD） on tumor growth and the number of tumor-associated macrophages （TAMs） in tumor tissue of MC38 cell tumor-bearing mice with colorectal cancer and explores whether MBTWD mediates the remodeling of TAM phenotype to play an immunologically antitumor effect. MethodFirstly， The C57BL/6 mouse tumor model grafted subcutaneously was established， and then model mice were classified into a model group， positive control group（3 mg·kg^-1）， and MBTWD groups with high and low dosages（23.43、46.86 g·kg^-1）， with 10 mice in each group. In addition， 10 healthy mice were set as the blank group， and the changes in body weight， tumor volume， and survival status of mice in each group were observed. Tumor tissue， spleen， and peripheral blood were collected to calculate the tumor volume change， tumor inhibition rate， and spleen mass. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining was used to observe the morphological changes of tumor tissue， and an immunofluorescence assay was used to detect the expression levels of CD4， CD8， and CD206 in tumor tissues of tumor-bearing mice. The secretion levels of transforming growth factor （TGF）-β， interleukin （IL）-6， and chemokine （C-C Motif） ligand 2 （CCL2） in peripheral serum were measured by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. Secondly， a co-culture model induced by IL-4 in vitro of MC38 cells and murine monocytic macrophage RAW264.7 cells was established. Cell proliferation and activity assay （CCK-8） was used to detect the inhibitory effect of MBTWD containing serum on cell proliferation. A transwell experiment was used to detect the effect of IL-4-induced M2 macrophages on the invasion of MC38 cells. Flow cytometry was used to detect the expression of CD86 on the membrane of M2 macrophages induced by IL-4 with MBTWD containing serum. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to detect the effect of MBTWD containing serum on the mRNA expression levels of M1 macrophage-related polarization factors CD86， nitric oxide synthase （iNOS）， and IL-12， as well as M2 macrophage-related polarization factors CD206， CD163， and IL-10 after co-cultivation. Finally， the protein expression levels of colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor （CSF1R）， stimulator of interferon genes （STING）， and TANK binding kinase 1 （TBK1） in tumor tissues of tumor-bearing mice were detected by Western blot. ResultIn vivo experimental results show that compared with the model group， the MBTWD can significantly inhibit the tumor growth of tumor-bearing mice. Immunofluorescence experiments show that the MBTWD can increase the number of CD8⁺ T cell infiltration in tumor tissue of tumor-bearing mice， reduce the number of CD206⁺ TAMs infiltration， and down-regulate the secretion levels of cytokines IL-6， TGF-β， and CCL2 in peripheral blood of tumor-bearing mice. The results of in vitro experiments show that the MBTWD containing serum has no obvious inhibitory effect on cell proliferation， but the cell supernatant after co-cultivation with RAW264.7 cells can inhibit the proliferation activity of MC38 cells， and the invasion ability of MC38 cells is enhanced by IL-4-induced M2 macrophages. However， this effect can be inhibited in a concentration-dependent manner by the MBTWD containing serum. At the same time， the results of Real-time PCR show that the MBTWD containing serum can up-regulate the mRNA expression levels of M1 macrophage-related polarization factors CD86， iNOS， and IL-12 and down-regulate those of M2 macrophage-related polarization factors CD206， CD163， and IL-10. Flow cytometry results also confirm that the MBTWD containing serum can increase the number of repolarized CD86⁺ M1 macrophages， indicating that MBTWD can induce M2 macrophages to repolarized M1 macrophages to play an anti-tumor growth role. Finally， Western blot results show that MBTWD can down-regulate the expression of CSF1R protein and up-regulate that of STING and TBK1 proteins in tumor tissue of tumor-bearing mice. ConclusionMBTWD can down-regulate the infiltration number of CD206⁺ TAMs and increase the infiltration of CD8⁺ T cells， thereby playing an immunologically antitumor effect on the growth inhibition of colorectal cancer， which may be related to regulating CSF1R signaling and then activating STING/TBK1 signaling pathway to induce phenotypic remodeling of TAMs.

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common infectious diseases. It has the characteristics of high recurrence rate and prolonged course. At present, the problem of antibiotic resistance is becoming more and more serious, the incidence of adverse reactions is high, and the disadvantages of long-term administration appear, which brings severe challenges to the treatment of recurrent urinary tract infection. The prevention and treatment of UTI recurrence has become the focus of research. Recurrent urinary tract infection is related to the immune regulation mechanism of the body. Administration of immune regulation can provide new ideas for prevention and treatment. The vaccine based on immune regulation to prevent rUTI has made some progress. It can not only reduce the frequency of recurrences, but also decrease related symptoms. At the same time, the vaccine has good tolerance, high safety and good application prospect. This paper aims to summarize the progress of immune regulation and immune vaccines in vivo and clinical research.

Objective:To investigate the effect of mechano-growth factor（MGF）on osteoclast activity and its mechanism.Methods:The RAW264.7 precursor osteoclast cell line was cultured with 25 ng/ml macrophage-colony stimulating factor（M-CSF）and 30 ng/ml receptor activator of NF-κB ligand（RANKL），and identified by tartrate resistant acid phosphatase（TRAP）staining after 7 days of culture. Western blot anslysis was used to determine the effect of 45 ng/ml MGF on the phosphoinositide-3-kinase/protein kinase B（PI3K/AKT）signaling pathway in separated osteoclasts，including levels of AKT，phosphorylation（p）-AKT，lactation mammalian target of rapamycin（mTOR），p-mTOR and TRAP at 0，4，8 and 12 hours. Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR was used to expressions of TRAP in osteoclasts at 0，4，8 and 12 hours. The PI3K/Akt phosphorylation inhibitor LY294002（20 μmol/L）combined with MGF（45 ng/ml）was used to act on osteoclasts，and expression levels of Akt，p-Akt，mTOR，p-mTOR and TRAP were detected by Western blot at 0，4，8 and 12 hours.Results:After culturing RAW264.7 cells with M-CSF and RANKL for 7 days，a large number of osteoclasts with positive TRAP staining can be obtained. Western blot analysis showed expression levels of Akt and mTOR did not change significantly over time（ P>0.05），expression levels of p-Akt and p-mTOR increased continuously from（2.18±0.34）pg/ml and（0.83±0.10）pg/ml at 0 hour to（3.86±0.36）pg/ml and（1.56±0.19）pg/ml at 12 hours（ P<0.05），and expression level of TRAP decreased significantly over time，from（5.66±0.47）pg/ml at 0 hour to（3.76±0.38）pg/ml at 12 hours（ P<0.05）. Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR analysis of expression of TRAP in osteoclasts showed that MGF inhibited the expression of TRAP in osteoclasts，which decreased from 1.02±0.06 at 0 hour to 0.53±0.11 at 12 hours（ P<0.05）. After acting LY294002 combined with MGF on osteoclasts，Western blot analysis showed expression levels of Akt and mTOR did not change significantly over time（ P>0.05），expression levels of p-AKT and p-mTOR decreased significantly from（3.28±0.18）pg/ml and（3.29±0.22）pg/ml at 0 hour to（2.06±0.34）pg/ml and（2.04±0.20）pg/ml at 12 hours（ P<0.05），and expression level of TRAP had no significant difference over time（ P>0.05）. Conclusions:MGF inhibits osteoclast activity by inhibiting the expression of TRAP in osteoclasts through PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. LY294002 inhibits the expression of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in osteoclasts，further verifying the mechanism of MGF inhibiting osteoclast activity，and this finding puts forward new ideas for clinical prevention and treatment of osteoporosis.