1.Effects of Yangxin Tongmai Formula (养心通脉方) on Methylation Key Genes and the PERK/ATF4/CHOP Signaling Pathway in Myocardial Tissue of Coronary Heart Disease Model Rats with Blood Stasis Syndrome
Chun ZHANG ; Shumeng ZHANG ; Yan MAO ; Xing CHEN ; Huifang KUANG ; Yi YANG ; Lingli CHEN ; Jie LI
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(7):784-791
ObjectiveTo investigate the mechanism of Yangxin Tongmai Formula (养心通脉方, YTF) in trea-ting coronary heart disease with blood stasis syndrome based on DNA methylation. MethodsSeventy-two SD rats were randomly divided into a control group (n=12) and a modeling group (n=60). The modeling group was subjected to a high-fat diet, intragastric administration of vitamin D3, and subcutaneous injection of isoprenaline to establish the rat model of coronary heart disease with blood stasis syndrome. Forty-one successfully modeled rats were then randomly allocated into model group, YTF low-, medium-, and high-dose groups, and the atorvastatin calcium group, with 8 rats in each group and 1 rat reserved. The YTF low-, medium-, and high-dose groups received YTF at 6, 12, and 18 g/(kg·d) by gavage, respectively. The atorvastatin calcium group received atorvastatin calcium tablets at 1.8 mg/(kg·d) by gavage. The control group and the model group received 0.9% sodium chloride injection at 4 ml/(kg·d) by gavage. All administrations were performed once daily for 3 weeks. Twenty-four hours after the last administration, serum lipid levels including total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), myocardial enzymes including cardiac troponin T (cTnT), creatine kinase MB (CK-MB), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and inflammatory factors including interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) were detected by ELISA. Pathological changes in myocardial tissue were observed via HE staining. Whole blood DNA methylation sequencing was used to analyze differential methylation gene expression among the control group, model group, and YTF high-dose group. Western Blotting was used to verify the protein levels of the key genes and downstream signaling pathways. ResultsCompared to the control group, the model group showed increased levels of TC, TG, LDL-C, cTnT, CK-MB, LDH, and IL-1β, along with decreased levels of HDL-C and IL-10 (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared to the model group, all treatment groups exhibited decreased levels of TC, LDL-C, CK-MB, and LDH, along with increased IL-10 levels. Among these, the high-dose YTF group demonstrated superior efficacy in reducing cTnT levels compared to the other TCM groups (P<0.05 or P<0.01). HE staining indicated that the YTF high-dose group ameliorated myocardial cell swelling, disordered arrangement, pyknosis, and disappearance of nuclei, thereby reducing myocardial cell damage. Whole blood DNA methylation sequencing identified 240 differentially methylated genes shared by the control group, model group, and YTF high-dose group, including 109 hypermethylated and 131 hypomethylated genes; eif2ak3 was identified as a key differentially methylated gene. Compared to the control group, the model group exhibited increased protein levels of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 alpha kinase 3 (eIf2ak3), phosphorylated protein kinase RNA-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (p-PERK), activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4), C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP), and Bax, along with a decreased level of B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) protein (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared to the model group, the YTF high-dose group showed decreased protein levels of eIf2ak3, p-PERK, ATF4, CHOP, and Bax, and an increased level of Bcl-2 protein (P<0.05 or P<0.01). ConclusionYTF may regulate key differentially methylated genes such as eIf2ak3 and the PERK/ATF4/CHOP signaling pathway, thereby inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum stress, reducing myocardial cell apoptosis, and exerting therapeutic effects in coronary heart disease blood stasis syndrome.
2.Evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of the magnolol ester derivative YW and investigate its mechanism of action on chondrocyte senescence
Haochen XU ; Jie PENG ; Pingting YANG ; Meihua ZHANG ; Weiwen HU ; Xulei WANG ; Wei WEI ; Chun WANG ; Shangxue YAN
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2026;61(5):845-854
ObjectiveTo evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of the novel magnolol ester derivative YW and to investigate its effects on chondrocyte senescence and preliminary mechanisms. MethodsMagnolol and p-methylbenzoic acid were used as raw materials to synthesize the magnolol ester derivative YW (Molecular Formula: C26H24O3, Molecular Weight: 384.17, HPLC Purity >96%) via DCC/DMAP-catalyzed esterification. Cytotoxicity was assessed using the CCK-8 assay. A lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW264.7 macrophage activation model and an interleukin-1β (IL-1β)-induced rat primary chondrocyte model were established. The release and mRNA expression of inflammatory factors including nitric oxide (NO), IL-1β, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and IL-6 were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Griess reagent method, and quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR). The expression of senescence markers such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), pro-interleukin-1β (pro-IL-1β), lysine acetyltransferase 7 (KAT7), cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1A (p21), and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (p16), as well as proteins related to chondrocyte extracellular matrix synthesis and catabolism, were analyzed by Western blot (WB). Molecular docking was performed using Discovery Studio 2019 to validate target binding. ResultsYW exhibited no significant cytotoxicity at concentrations ≤20 μmol/L. YW concentration-dependently inhibited LPS-induced macrophage inflammatory cytokine release, significantly downregulated iNOS, Pro-IL-1β protein, and inflammatory cytokine mRNA expression (P<0.01). YW stably bound to KAT7 protein (binding energy: -94.2 kcal/mol); YW downregulated KAT7 and aging marker protein expression in naturally aged and IL-1β-induced chondrocyte models (P<0.01); YW regulated chondrocyte matrix synthesis and catabolic protein expression in IL-1β-induced chondrocytes (P<0.01). ConclusionYW inhibits macrophage activation and inflammatory cytokine release while downregulating KAT7 and senescence marker protein expression in chondrocytes, thereby blocking chondrocyte senescence.
3.Comparison of the effects of five Blastocystis sp. staining methods
Ao-kun ZHANG ; Long-fei CHEN ; Jing LI ; Hui-zhen YUAN ; Sen-yang LI ; Fu-chun JIAN
Acta Parasitologica et Medica Entomologica Sinica 2026;33(3):161-167,172
Objective To compare the efficacy of five Blastocystis staining method for staining cells with different morphologies and in different developmental stages to select appropriate staining techniques for specific scenarios and experimental purposes. Methods Blastocystis was stained using Wright-Giemsa, periodic acid-Schiff (PAS), Oil Red O, Nile Red, and Lugol's iodine solution respectively. The staining effects of the five method on Blastocystis were compared. Results Wright-Giemsa staining colored the cytoplasm and nucleus of Blastocystis bluish-purple, with other parts lightly stained; PAS staining rendered Blastocystis cells red; Oil Red O staining showed different structures within Blastocystis in varying intensities of orange-red; Nile Red enabled Blastocystis to fluoresce orange-yellow under a fluorescence microscope; Lugol's iodine solution stained the cytoplasm and nucleus a dark brownish-yellow. Conclusions Wright-Giemsa staining is recommended for clinical diagnosis. For metabolic studies, a combination of periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining and Oil Red O staining is suggested; PAS + Oil Red O staining can provide comprehensive morphological evidence for cell metabolism research. Nile Red staining is recommended for dynamic observation of live Blastocystis. Lugol's iodine staining is suitable for preliminary screening of large-scale samples.
4.Relationship between depression and sexual drug use in men who have sex with men in Chengdu
Ruiwen LIU ; Yang ZHU ; Bo ZHANG ; Xiaoting CHEN ; Chun HAO ; Jing GU ; Jinghua LI ; Wangnan CAO ; Fengsu HOU
Chinese Journal of Epidemiology 2025;46(3):462-468
Objective:To investigate the prevalence of sexual drug use in men who have sex with men (MSM) in Chengdu and analyze the relationship between depression and sexual drug use.Methods:A total of 1 277 MSM were recruited between November 2021 and May 2022. Questionnaire was used to collect information about their demographic characteristics, depression status and sexual drug use behavior. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze the relationship between depression and sexual drug use.Results:In the 1 277 MSM, assessment identified 503 mild depression cases (39.4%), 196 moderate depression cases (15.3%) and 171 severe depression cases (13.4%) and 444 MSM (34.8%) reported sexual drug use in the past 6 months. Multivariate logistic regression models showed that compared with non-depression, mild depression (a OR=1.67,95% CI:1.24-2.23), moderate depression (a OR=1.50,95% CI: 1.02-2.19) and severe depression (a OR=1.56,95% CI:1.04-2.32) were positively associated with sexual drug use. Conclusions:The prevalence of depression and sexual drug use were high in MSM in Chengdu. There was a positive correlation between depression and sexual drug use. It is necessary to pay close attention to depression and sexual drug use and conduct targeted intervention in MSM.
5.A case of lupus nephritis complicated with thrombotic microangiopathy
Yuqiu LIU ; Chun JIANG ; Fengmei WANG ; Yan YANG ; Bin WANG ; Xiaoliang ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Nephrology 2025;41(1):58-62
This paper reported a case of severe lupus nephritis in an adolescent with progressive hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, and multiple organs involvement, in which renal damage was characterized by sustained elevation of serum creatinine and oliguria. Accurate diagnosis of lupus nephritis complicated with thrombotic microangiopathy was achieved through genetic testing and molecular technology. The use of double filtration plasmapheresis, blocking B-cell targets and complement activation targets, and supplementing frozen plasma provided more accurate, safe and effective treatment options for patients, which significantly improved prognosis.
6.Development and validation of the rapid health aging assessment scale for the Chinese population
Bingqi YE ; Jialu YANG ; Jianhua LI ; Wunong CHEN ; Jianhua YE ; Xiaotao ZHOU ; Yong WANG ; Siqi LI ; Qi ZHANG ; Wanying ZHAO ; Jiayi SONG ; Chun WANG ; Yan LIU ; Min XIA
Chinese Journal of Preventive Medicine 2025;59(7):1078-1083
Objective:To develop a rapid assessment scale for healthy aging suitable for the Chinese population.Methods:Based on existing healthy aging assessment scales, national standards, and expert consensus, an initial Healthy Aging Rapid Assessment Scale was drafted through two rounds of expert consultation. A pre-survey was conducted with 3 220 subjects recruited from Guangzhou between July 2023 and July 2024. Items were screened through item analysis and exploratory factor analysis to form the final scale. Reliability and validity of the final scale were validated across five cities: Guangzhou, Dongguan, Shenzhen, Baoding, and Chuxiong.Results:The initial version comprised 36 items, while the finalized scale contained 18 items across three dimensions: metabolic health, mental health, and cognitive health. Test-retest reliability ranged from 0.71 to 0.81 across all study sites. The Spearman-Brown coefficient varied between 0.91-0.96, Cronbach′s α between 0.77-0.83, comparative fit index (CFI) between 0.90-0.98, goodness-of-fit index (GFI) between 0.90-0.99, and root-mean-square error of approximation (RMSEA) between 0.03-0.09. For the three dimensions, reliability and validity metrics demonstrated consistency: Spearman-Brown coefficients 0.87-0.99, Cronbach′s α 0.77-0.83, CFI 0.90-0.98, GFI 0.90-0.99, and RMSEA 0.03-0.09 across four regions.Conclusion:The developed Healthy Aging Rapid Assessment Scale for the Chinese population exhibits robust reliability and validity.
7.Study on the elements of medical service value from the perspective of cancer patients based on free-form comment text analysis
Xiao CHEN ; Yuhong ZHANG ; Chun YANG ; Pengfei HAN ; Jianyou CHEN ; Yuxia ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Hospital Administration 2025;41(2):139-145
Objective:To explore the focus points and emotional tendencies of cancer patients regarding medical services from their free-form comments, and to analyze the elements of perceived medical service value by patients.Methods:A tertiary general hospital in Shanghai invited patients to evaluate inpatient services through the assessment module of a patient satisfaction management platform, which included open-ended questions in the patient satisfaction survey. This study extracted free-form comment texts from cancer patients regarding medical services collected from September 2022 to August 2023 from this platform, forming a corpus of patient opinions. A hybrid method combining manual coding and natural language processing techniques was used to conduct sentiment analysis and topic modeling on the free-form comment texts. Descriptive analysis was performed on the comment themes and emotions, and logistic regression analysis was used to explore the relationship between patient negative comments and patient satisfaction and loyalty.Results:A total of 10 446 comment texts provided by cancer patients were included. The most frequently targeted objects in the comments were nurses (2 223 cases), followed by doctors (1 125 cases) and nursing assistants (162 cases). The results of sentiment analysis showed that 7 058 patients made positive comments, 1 958 patients made negative comments, 1 114 patients made neutral comments, and 316 patients made mixed comments. The results of topic analysis showed that the five most frequently mentioned themes by cancer patients were humanistic care (1 327 times), information provision, communication, and education (589 times), diet (582 times), effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment (506 times), and medical staff responsibility (489 times). Logistic regression analysis showed that negative evaluations of humanistic care ( OR=0.306, P<0.001), professional technical level ( OR=0.425, P=0.010), information provision, communication, and education ( OR=0.475, P<0.001), and response to needs ( OR=0.412, P=0.026) were significantly associated with decreased patient satisfaction. Negative evaluations of humanistic care ( OR=0.407, P<0.001), professional technical level ( OR=0.466, P=0.009), and information provision, communication, and education ( OR=0.557, P<0.001) were significantly associated with decreased patient loyalty. Conclusions:Hospital managers should value the role of patient free-form comment texts in improving medical services and make full use of natural language processing techniques for information mining. In addition, the results of this study show that patient comments mainly involve the interpersonal and functional aspects of service, especially the interpersonal interactions, which are often the " critical moments" for patients to critically evaluate hospital services during their service experience.
8.Correlation between brain abnormal glucose metabolism and striatal dopaminergic neuron damage in early-stage Parkinson disease patients
Shaung LI ; Shaozhen YAN ; Weizhao LU ; Tianbin SONG ; Chang YANG ; Chun ZHANG ; Jie LU
Chinese Journal of Medical Imaging Technology 2025;41(1):35-39
Objective To observe the correlation between brain abnormal glucose metabolism and striatal dopaminergic neuron damage in early-stage Parkinson disease(PD)patients.Methods Thirty-two early-stage PD patients(PD group)and 18 healthy individuals(control group)were prospectively enrolled,and 18F-FDG and 18F-9-fluoropropyl-(+)-dihydrotetrabenazine(18 F-FP-DTBZ)PET/MR brain imaging were performed.The degrees of uptake were compared between groups,and the correlation between brain abnormal glucose metabolism and striatal dopaminergic neuron damage was analyzed.Results Compared with control group,18F-FDG PET showed that in PD group glucose metabolism decreased in bilateral frontal and parietal lobes but increased in bilateral putamen,pons and bilateral cerebellum(all P<0.05),while18 F-FP-DTBZ PET showed that in PD group glucose metabolism decreased in bilateral caudate nucleus,anterior putamen and posterior putamen(all P<0.05).In PD group,the mean standard uptake value(SUVmean)of putamen was positively correlated with the standard uptake value ratio(SUVR)of contralateral caudate nucleus(r=0.305,P=0.014),while SUVmean of frontal cortex was positively correlated with SUVR of contralateral and symptomatic caudate nucleus(r=0.352,0.324,both P<0.05)as well as anterior putamen(r=0.300,0.314,both P<0.05),SUVmean of the partial cortex in parietal lobe was positively correlated with SUVR of contralateral and symptomatic caudate nucleus and contralateral anterior putamen(r=0.329,0.303,0.330,all P<0.05).Conclusion Brain abnormal glucose metabolism had certain correlation with striatal dopaminergic neuron damage in early-stage PD patients.
9.Design,Synthesis and Application of Peroxynitrite Anion Fluorescent Probe with Large Stokes Shift
Xin-Tong YANG ; Xiao-Chun WANG ; Cui-Ping MA ; Liang-Wei ZHANG ; Ling-Xin CHEN
Chinese Journal of Analytical Chemistry 2025;53(7):1118-1126,中插1-中插8
Peroxynitrite anion(ONOO-),which is originated from the reaction of nitric oxide(NO)and superoxide anion(O2-),plays a pivotal role in immune defense and signal regulation.Excessive levels of ONOO-may induce the occurrence of various diseases such as Alzheimer's disease,inflammation,cardiovascular disease and cancer,etc.Existing detection methods for ONOO-have limitations such as complexity,time consumption,and low cell biocompatibility.In this study,a novel fluorescent probe QFPD was developed using quinoline and diphenylphosphinamide as fluorescent keleton and recognition group,respectively.The strong oxidizing property of ONOO-triggerd the cleavage of phosphoramide bond,leading to fluorescence quenching and a visible color change of the solution from yellow to purple,thereby enabling"ON-OFF"type recognition of ONOO-.QFPD exhibited excellent characteristics including good selectivity and high sensitivity in fluorescence detection(Limit of detection of 1.37 μmol/L),large Stokes shift(130 nm),rapid response(10 min),and strong anti-interference ability.Additionally,QFPD demonstrated good biocompatibility and could realize real-time dynamic monitoring of endogenous ONOO-.Furthermore,QFPD was successfully applied to environmental toxicology research by visualizing the oxidative stress effects induced by microplastics polymethyl methacrylate(PMMA)and Hg2+exposure,which might be a novel tool for the mechanism research on oxidative stress associated with microplastic pollution and heavy metal exposure.
10.Comparison of Logistic Regression and Machine Learning Approaches in Predicting Depressive Symptoms: A National-Based Study
Xing-Xuan DONG ; Jian-Hua LIU ; Tian-Yang ZHANG ; Chen-Wei PAN ; Chun-Hua ZHAO ; Yi-Bo WU ; Dan-Dan CHEN
Psychiatry Investigation 2025;22(3):267-278
Objective:
Machine learning (ML) has been reported to have better predictive capability than traditional statistical techniques. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of ML algorithms and logistic regression (LR) for predicting depressive symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods:
Analyses were carried out in a national cross-sectional study involving 21,916 participants. The ML algorithms in this study included random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), neural network (NN), and gradient boosting machine (GBM) methods. The performance indices were sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, precision, F1-score, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC).
Results:
LR and NN had the best performance in terms of AUCs. The risk of overfitting was found to be negligible for most ML models except for RF, and GBM obtained the highest sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, precision, and F1-score. Therefore, LR, NN, and GBM models ranked among the best models.
Conclusion
Compared with ML models, LR model performed comparably to ML models in predicting depressive symptoms and identifying potential risk factors while also exhibiting a lower risk of overfitting.


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