Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) is the pillar for the development of motherland medicine, and animal medicine has a long history of application in China, characterized by wide resources, strong activity, definite efficacy, and great benefits. It has significant potential and important status in the consumption market of raw materials of TCM. In the context of global climate change, farming system alterations, and low renewability, the depletion of wild medicinal animal resources has accelerated. Accordingly, the conservation and sustainable utilization of wild resources of animal medicinal materials has become a problem that garners increasing attention and urgently needs to be solved. This paper summarizes the current situation of domestic and foreign medicinal animal breeding and research progress in industrial application in recent years and points out the issues related to standardized breeding, germplasm selection and breeding, and quality evaluation standards for medicinal animals. Furthermore, this paper discusses standardized breeding, quality standards, resource protection and utilization, and the search for alternative resources for rare and endangered medicinal animals. It proposes that researchers should systematically carry out in-depth basic research on animal medicine, improve the breeding scale and level of medicinal animals, employ modern technology to enhance the quality standards of medicinal materials, and strengthen the research and development of alternative resources. This approach aims to effectively address the relationship between protection and utilization and make a significant contribution to the sustainable development of medicinal animal resources and the animal-based Chinese medicinal material industry.
Animals ; Breeding ; China ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Conservation of Natural Resources

Nonobstructive azoospermia (NOA), one of the most severe types of male infertility, etiology often remains unclear in most cases. Therefore, this study aimed to detect four biallelic detrimental variants (0.5%) in the minichromosome maintenance domain containing 2 ( MCMDC2 ) genes in 768 NOA patients by whole-exome sequencing (WES). Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) demonstrated that MCMDC2 deleterious variants caused meiotic arrest in three patients (c.1360G>T, c.1956G>T, and c.685C>T) and hypospermatogenesis in one patient (c.94G>T), as further confirmed through immunofluorescence (IF) staining. The single-cell RNA sequencing data indicated that MCMDC2 was substantially expressed during spermatogenesis. The variants were confirmed as deleterious and responsible for patient infertility through bioinformatics and in vitro experimental analyses. The results revealed four MCMDC2 variants related to NOA, which contributes to the current perception of the function of MCMDC2 in male fertility and presents new perspectives on the genetic etiology of NOA.
Humans ; Male ; Azoospermia/genetics* ; Meiosis/genetics* ; Spermatogenesis/genetics* ; Adult ; Exome Sequencing ; Microtubule-Associated Proteins/genetics* ; Alleles ; Infertility, Male/genetics*

Progressive pulmonary fibrosis (PPF) is a progressive and lethal condition with few effective treatment options. Improvements in quality of life for patients with PPF remain limited even while receiving treatment with approved antifibrotic drugs. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has the potential to improve cough, dyspnea and fatigue symptoms of patients with PPF. TCM treatments are typically diverse and individualized, requiring urgent development of efficient and precise design strategies to identify effective treatment options. We designed an innovative Bayesian adaptive two-stage trial, hoping to provide new ideas for the rapid evaluation of the effectiveness of TCM in PPF. An open-label, two-stage, adaptive Bayesian randomized controlled trial will be conducted in China. Based on Bayesian methods, the trial will employ response-adaptive randomization to allocate patients to study groups based on data collected over the course of the trial. The adaptive Bayesian trial design will employ a Bayesian hierarchical model with "stopping" and "continuation" criteria once a predetermined posterior probability of superiority or futility and a decision threshold are reached. The trial can be implemented more efficiently by sharing the master protocol and organizational management mechanisms of the sub-trial we have implemented. The primary patient-reported outcome is a change in the Leicester Cough Questionnaire score, reflecting an improvement in cough-specific quality of life. The adaptive Bayesian trial design may be a promising method to facilitate the rapid clinical evaluation of TCM effectiveness for PPF, and will provide an example for how to evaluate TCM effectiveness in rare and refractory diseases. However, due to the complexity of the trial implementation, sufficient simulation analysis by professional statistical analysts is required to construct a Bayesian response-adaptive randomization procedure for timely response. Moreover, detailed standard operating procedures need to be developed to ensure the feasibility of the trial implementation. Please cite this article as: Zhang C, Nie YS, Zhang CT, Yang HJ, Zhang HR, Xiao W, Cui GF, Li J, Li SJ, Huang QS, Yan SY. An adaptive Bayesian randomized controlled trial of traditional Chinese medicine in progressive pulmonary fibrosis: Rationale and study design. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(2): 138-145.
Female ; Humans ; Male ; Bayes Theorem ; Disease Progression ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional/methods* ; Pulmonary Fibrosis/therapy* ; Quality of Life ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Research Design ; Adaptive Clinical Trials as Topic

Objective To investigate the disease spectrum and pathogenic genes of inherited metabolic disorder(IMD)among neonates in Gansu Province of China.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the tandem mass spectrometry data of 286 682 neonates who received IMD screening in Gansu Provincial Maternal and Child Health Hospital from January 2018 to December 2021.A genetic analysis was conducted on the neonates with positive results in tandem mass spectrometry during primary screening and reexamination.Results A total of 23 types of IMD caused by 28 pathogenic genes were found in the 286 682 neonates,and the overall prevalence rate of IMD was 0.63‰(1/1 593),among which phenylketonuria showed the highest prevalence rate of 0.32‰(1/3 083),followed by methylmalonic acidemia(0.11‰,1/8 959)and tetrahydrobiopterin deficiency(0.06‰,1/15 927).In this study,166 variants were identified in the 28 pathogenic genes,with 13 novel variants found in 9 genes.According to American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics guidelines,5 novel variants were classified as pathogenic variants,7 were classified as likely pathogenic variants,and 1 was classified as the variant of uncertain significance.Conclusions This study enriches the database of pathogenic gene variants for IMD and provides basic data for establishing an accurate screening and diagnosis system for IMD in this region.

Objective To investigate the effect of vecuronium bromide on the malignant biological behavior of gastric cancer cells and its molecular mechanism.Methods Gastric cancer cells HGC-27 were divided into control group,experimental-L,-M,-H groups,si-NC group,si-FGD5-AS1 group,pcDNA-FGD5-AS1 group,pcDNA group,experimental-H+pcDNA group,experimental-H+pcDNA-FGD5-AS1 group.The control group was cultured conventionally;experimental-L,-M,-H groups were treated with 5,10 and 20μmol·mL-1 vecuronium bromide,respectively;si-FGD5-AS1 group and the si-NC group were transfected with lncRNA FGD5-AS1 interference expression vector and negative control plasmid,respectively;pcDNA-FGD5-AS1 group and pcDNA group were transfected with lncRNA FGD5-AS1 overexpression vector and negative control plasmid,respectively;lncRNA FGD5-AS1 overexpression vector and negative control plasmid were transfected into HGC-27 cells in the experimental-H+pcDNA-FGD5-AS1 group and experimental-H+pcDNA group,and then treated with 20 μmuol·mL-1 vecuronium bromide.Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium(MTT),flow cytometry and real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR)were applied to dectect cell viability,apoptosis and lncRNA FGD5-AS1 expression.Results The cell activity of control group,experimental-L,-M,-H groups,si-NC group,si-FGD5-AS1 group,pcDNA group,PCDNA-FGD5-AS1 group,experimental-H+pcDNA group and experimental-H+PCDNA-FGD5-AS1 group were 1.31±0.07,0.58±0.03,1.31±0.06,0.51±0.03,1.29±0.08,1.68±0.15,0.59±0.03 and 1.16±0.06;the apoptosis rates were(6.49±0.44)％,(23.52±0.98)％,(6.42±0.44)％,(26.75±0.97)％,(6.72±0.38)％,(2.56±0.19)％,(23.56±1.04)％and(11.65±0.47)％;the expression levels of lncRNA FGD5-AS1 were 1.00±0.05,0.37±0.02,0.99±0.05,0.21±0.02,1.00±0.03,2.98±0.12,0.38±0.02 and 0.87±0.05,respectively.The above indexes were compared with the control group and experimental-H group,those in the si-FGD5-AS1 group were compared with the si-NC group,those in the pcDNA-FGD5-AS1 group were compared with the pcDNA group,and those in the experimental-H+pcDNA-FGD5-AS1 group were compared with the experimental-H+pcDNA group,the differences were statistically significant(all P＜0.05).Conclusion Vecuronium bromide may inhibit the proliferation of HGC-27 cells and promote cell apoptosis by down-regulating lncRNA FGD5-AS1.

Based on the theory of qi， blood and fluids， and taking into account of the pathogenesis evolution process from constraint to phlegm， stasis and then mass in pulmonary nodules， an attempt has been made to construct a three-dimensional differentiation system for pulmonary nodules from the dimensions of time and space. The temporal progression of the early， middle， and late stages of pulmonary nodules reflects the pathological changes from constraint to phlegm and then stasis in the metabolism disorders of qi， blood and fluid. The spatial structures such as size， density， and morphology of pulmonary nodules reflect the pathological states of the duration， severity， and primary and secondary conditions of qi， blood and fluid metabolism disorders. Based on the temporal progression， the therapeutic principles have been proposed， which are dispelling pathogenic factors and promoting the use of beneficial factors to interrupt the growth momentum in the early stage， removing turbidity and dispersing phlegm to reduce the degree of nodules in the middle stage， and dispersing nodulation and eliminating abnormalities in the late stage. Based on the spatial structures， the suggested therapeutic methods are using wind herbs， employing multiple approaches to treat phlegm， and promoting blood circulation to resolve stasis， so as to provide theoretical reference for the systematic diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary nodules in traditional Chinese medicine.

Mice ; Animals ; Humans ; Disease Models, Animal

Objective: To understand the basic characteristics of previously reported patients with hepatitis C and analyze the related factors affecting their antiviral treatment. Methods: A convenient sampling method was adopted. Patients who had been previously diagnosed with hepatitis C in the Wenshan Prefecture of Yunnan Province and Xuzhou City of Jiangsu Province were contacted by telephone for an interview study. The Andersen health service utilization behavior model and related literature were used to design the research framework for antiviral treatment in previously reported hepatitis C patients. A step-by-step multivariate regression analysis was used in previously reported hepatitis C patients treated with antiviral therapy. Results: A total of 483 hepatitis C patients, aged 51.73 ± 12.06 years, were investigated. The proportion of male, agricultural occupants who were registered permanent residents, farmers and migrant workers was 65.24%, 67.49%, and 58.18%, respectively. Han ethnicity (70.81%), married (77.02%), and junior high school and below educational level (82.61%) were the main ones. Multivariate logistic regression analysis results showed that married patients with hepatitis C (OR = 3.19, 95% CI: 1.93-5.25, compared with unmarried, divorced, and widowed patients) with high school education or above (OR = 2.54, 95% CI: 1.54-4.20, compared with patients with junior high school education or below) were more likely to receive antiviral treatment in the predisposition module. Patients with severe self-perceived hepatitis C in the need factor module (compared with patients with mild self-perceived disease, OR = 3.36, 95% CI: 2.09-5.40) were more likely to receive treatment. In the competency module, the family's per capita monthly income was more than 1,000 yuan (compared with patients with per capita monthly income below 1,000 yuan, OR = 1.59, 95% CI: 1.02-2.47), and the patients had a high level of awareness of hepatitis C knowledge (compared with patients with a low level of knowledge, OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.01-2.35), and the family members who knew the patient's infection status (compared with patients with an unknown infection status, OR = 4.59, 95% CI: 2.24-9.39) were more likely to receive antiviral treatment. Conclusion: Different income, educational, and marital statuses are related to antiviral treatment behavior in hepatitis C patients. Family support of hepatitis C patients receiving hepatitis C-related knowledge and their families knowing the infection status is more important in promoting the antiviral treatment of patients, suggesting that in the future, we should further strengthen the hepatitis C knowledge of hepatitis C patients, especially the family support of hepatitis C patients' families in treatment.
Humans ; Male ; Antiviral Agents/therapeutic use* ; China ; Hepatitis C/drug therapy* ; Hepacivirus ; Logistic Models

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy on cervical spondylosis of nerve root type with qi stagnation and blood stasis treated with warming needle with different lengths of moxa stick. METHODS: Six hundred patients with cervical spondylosis of nerve root type with qi stagnation and blood stasis were randomly divided into 4 groups: a 4 cm length group (150 cases, 5 cases dropped off, 2 cases suspended), a 3 cm length group (150 cases, 6 cases dropped off, 2 cases suspended), a 2 cm length group (150 cases, 6 cases dropped off), and a routine acupuncture group (150 cases, 6 cases dropped off). Warming needle with moxa stick in the length of 4 cm, 3 cm and 2 cm was delivered in the 4 cm length group, the 3 cm length group and the 2 cm length group, respectively. In the routine acupuncture group, simple acupuncture was applied. The acupoints selected in the above groups included Dazhui (GV 14) and bilateral Jiaji (EX-B 2) of C₅ and C₇, Fengchi (GB 20), Jianzhen (SI 9), Quchi (LI 11), Zhongzhu (TE 3), etc. In each group, the intervention was delivered once daily and 5 times a week. One course of intervention was composed of 2 weeks and 2 courses were required. The TCM syndrome score, the score of clinical assessment scale for cervical spondylosis (CASCS), the score of the brachial plexus traction test of the affected upper limb, F wave occurrence rate and conduction velocity of the ulnar nerve, the median nerve and the radial nerve of the affected upper limb were compared before and after treatment in the patients of each group. The levels of serum inflammatory factors, i.e. interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) and hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), were measured before and after treatment in the patients of each group. The clinical cfficacy was evaluated in the 4 groups. RESULTS: After treatment, the results of TCM syndrome evaluation, i.e. the scores of neck pain, activity limitation and upper limb numbness and pain, as well as the total scores; and the scores of brachial plexus traction test were reduced when compared with those before treatment in each group (P<0.01, P<0.05). The scores of subjective symptoms and adaptability, and the total scores of CASCS were elevated in comparison with those before treatment in each group (P<0.01, P<0.05). In the 4 cm length group, compared with the other 3 groups, the scores of neck pain and activity limitation for TCM syndrome evaluation, and its total score were lower (P<0.05, P<0.01); and the scores of subjective symptoms and adaptability, and the total score of CASCS were higher (P<0.05, P<0.01). The score of the brachial plexus traction test in the 4 cm length group was lower than that of the routine acupuncture group (P<0.05). After treatment, F wave occurrence rates and conduction velocity of median nerve and radial nerve were increased when compared with those before treatment in each group (P<0.05, P<0.01). F wave occurrence rate and conduction velocity of the radial nerve in the 4 cm length group were higher than those of the other 3 groups (P<0.05), and those of the median nerve were higher when compared with the routine acupuncture group (P<0.05). After treatment, the levels of serum IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α were all reduced when compared with those before treatment in each group (P<0.01, P<0.05); the level of serum IL-6 in the 4 cm length group was lower than those of the other 3 groups and serum level of TNF-α was lower compared with that in the routine acupuncture group (P<0.05). The total effective rate of the 4 cm length group was 78.3% (112/143), which was higher when compared with the 3 cm length group (67.6%, 96/142), the 2 cm length group (65.3%, 94/144) and the routine acupuncture group (53.5%, 77/144), respectively (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Warming needle with moxa stick of 4 cm in length effectively relieves the clinical symptoms of cervical spondylosis of nerve root type with qi stagnation and blood stasis, improves the nerve function of the upper limbs, and reduces the inflammatory responses caused by nerve compression. The clinical efficacy of this therapy with moxa stick of 4 cm in length is superior to the warming needle with moxa sticks of 3 cm and 2 cm, as well as the routine acupuncture.
Humans ; Interleukin-6 ; Neck Pain ; Qi ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; Spondylosis/therapy*

Humans ; Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne/epidemiology* ; Prevalence ; Myocardium