AIM: To investigate the expression of Ficolin-3 and secreted frizzled-related protein 5(SFRP5)in the serum of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)combined with diabetic retinopathy(DR)and their diagnostic value.METHODS: Prospectively selected patients with T2DM combined with DR admitted to the hospital from May 2023 to May 2025 were divided into non-proliferative and proliferative groups according to the severity of DR. Another patients with T2DM alone during the same period were selected as the T2DM group. ELISA was used to detect Ficolin-3 and SFRP5 levels; Correlation of serum Ficolin-3, SFRP5 levels, and inflammatory markers in T2DM patients with DR were analyzed using Pearson method; Logistic regression was used to analyze related influencing factors; ROC curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of serum Ficolin-3 and SFRP5 for DR in T2DM patients.RESULTS: This study included a total of 108 patients with T2DM combined with DR(57 cases in the non-proliferative group, 51 cases in the proliferative group)and 108 cases in the T2DM group. The non-proliferative group had an average age of 59.01±6.28 y, with 34 males and 23 females. The proliferative group had an average age of 59.09±6.35 y, with 30 males and 21 females. The T2DM group had an average age of 58.96±6.18 y, with 62 males and 46 females.The serum levels of Ficolin-3, TNF-α, and IL-6 in the non-proliferative and proliferative groups were higher than those in the T2DM group(all P<0.05), while the level of SFRP5 was lower than that in the T2DM group(all P<0.05). The serum levels of Ficolin-3, TNF-α, and IL-6 in the proliferative group were higher than those in the non-proliferative group(all P<0.05), and the level of SFRP5 was lower than that in the non-proliferative group(P<0.05).Complying with Pearson correlation analysis showed that serum Ficolin-3 was negatively correlated with SFRP5(P<0.05), and both were related to TNF-α and IL-6(all P<0.001). Logistic analysis showed that the course of diabetes, SUA, HbA1c, Ficolin-3, TNF-α, and IL-6 were the risk factors for T2DM patients with DR(all P<0.05), and SFRP5 was a protective factor(P<0.05). Complying with the ROC curve, the AUC values of serum Ficolin-3 and SFRP5 alone and their combination for diagnosing T2DM patients with DR were 0.774, 0.793, and 0.864, respectively. The AUC of combined diagnosis was better than that of single diagnosis(Z=2.694, Z=2.708, both P<0.05).CONCLUSION: In patients with T2DM complicated by DR, serum levels of Ficolin-3 and SFRP5 are abnormally expressed. Both are influencing factors for T2DM with DR, and the combined detection can improve the diagnostic value in these patients.

Objective To investigate the efficacy of leaflet augmentation technique to repair the recurrent mitral valve (MV) regurgitation after mitral repair in children. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of children who underwent redo MV repair for recurrent regurgitation after initial MV repair, using a leaflet augmentation technique combined with a standardized repair strategy at Fuwai Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, from 2018 to 2022. The pathological features of the MV, key intraoperative procedures, and short- to mid-term follow-up outcomes were analyzed. Results A total of 24 patients (12 male, 12 female) were included, with a median age of 37.6 (range, 16.5–120.0) months. The mean interval from the initial surgery was (24.9±17.0) months. All children had severe mitral regurgitation preoperatively. The cardiopulmonary bypass time was (150.1±49.5) min, and the aortic cross-clamp time was (94.0±24.2) min. There were no early postoperative deaths. During a mean follow-up of (20.3±9.1) months, 3 (12.5%) patients developed moderate or severe mitral regurgitation (2 severe, 1 moderate). One (4.2%) patient died during follow-up, and one (4.2%) patient underwent a second MV reoperation. The left ventricular end-diastolic diameter was significantly reduced postoperatively compared to preoperatively [ (43.5±8.6) mm vs. (35.8±7.8)mm, P<0.001]. Conclusion The leaflet augmentation technique combined with a standardized repair strategy can achieve satisfactory short- to mid-term outcomes for the redo mitral repair after previous MV repair. It can be considered a safe and feasible technical option for cases with complex valvular lesions and severe pathological changes.

The Fragment of Dunhuang Ancient Tibetan Moxibustion Therapy contains rich content on fire moxibustion therapy of Tubo-period Tibetan medicine, characterized by distinctive clinical features of Tibetan acupuncture and strong regional attributes. This paper systematically reviews the relevant materials on moxibustion in the Fragment and summarizes the findings as follows: Tibetan fire moxibustion mainly uses mugwort as the material, and terms like "fine mugwort", "broad bean" and "sheep dung pellet" refer to the size of the moxa cone. The number of moxa cones used is predominantly odd numbers, usually ranging from 5 to 21. The main indications for fire moxibustion cover internal medicine, external medicine, gynecology, pediatrics, and various pain syndromes. The therapy advocates for treating acute conditions and heat syndromes with moxibustion. The manuscript also records detailed contraindications, including time-based and seasonal taboos. Moxibustion is applied to both local and distal acupoints, reflecting the therapeutic concept of treating both proximal and distal regions. Furthermore, it documents simple and practical acupoint localization methods such as surface anatomical markers, proportional bone measurement, finger measurement, and hand-span measurement. Compared with contemporaneous Chinese medical moxibustion techniques, the moxibustion methods recorded in this Fragment are rich in content and present unique Tibetan theoretical characteristics. It provides valuable data and evidence for the excavation, application, and further research of Tibetan acupuncture and moxibustion.
Moxibustion/instrumentation* ; Humans ; History, Ancient ; Medicine, Tibetan Traditional/history* ; Tibet ; Acupuncture Points

Acupuncture is considered both safe and effective for treating depression;however,its underlying mechanism remains incompletely understood.This article reviewed the mechanisms of acupuncture in depression from the perspective of brain network dynamics.It has been found abnormal alterations in the structural and functional brain networks,including the default mode network,cognitive control network,salience network and affective network in individuals with depression.Acupuncture has been shown to enhance the diffusion anisotropy value of white matter and repair the microstructure of white matter fiber bundles in key brain regions.It can also modulate the activation the functional brain networks,either globally or in specific network segments,improve functional connectivity within and between functional networks,regulate global transmission efficiency and connectivity patterns of functional networks,restore brain network interaction balance,regulate abnormal integration of functional networks,and improve emotional regulation ability and cognitive function,in order to alleviate the clinical symptoms of depression and serve as an effective antidepressant therapy,which can provide reference for the study of acupuncture intervention in the brain network mechanism of depression.

Objective:To evaluate the effects of silane and universal adhesive alone or in combination on the micro-shear bonding strength(μSBS)between resin cement and resin nanoceramic(Brilliant Crios)and polymer-infiltrated ceramic network(Vita Enam-ic)materials.Methods:The two experimental material blocks were respectively prepared into 42 specimens with a size of 7 mm×6 mm×1 mm,and 50 μm alumina particles were used for sandblasting pretreatment under 0.2 MPa atmospheric pressure.The speci-mens were randomly divided into 6 groups,and the following surface treatment strategies were applied except for control group:si-lane,universal adhesive with silane(single bond universal,SBU);universal adhesive without silane(One Coat 7 Universal,OCU),silane and SBU,silane and OCU.Water contact angle measurements were used to observe the wettability of the 2 materials before and after silane treatment.The bonded specimens were prepared to test μSBS,which were analyzed by Weibull and the failure modes and were observed by stereo microscope.The morphology of the bonding interface was observed by SEM before and after si-lane treatment.Results:After the two materials were treated with silane,the water contact angle decreased(P＜0.05).There was no significant difference of μSBS between the silane and control groups for Brilliant Crios(P＞0.05),while the μSBS improved in the other experimental groups(P＜0.05).Among the groups,silane+OCU group exhibited the highest Weibull modulus and charac-teristic strength.The μSBS of the experimental groups was increased compared with the Vita Enamic control group(P＜0.05),silane+SBU group demonstrated the highest Weibull modulus and characteristic strength.Conclusion:Silane can improve the wetta-bility of the interface,and it alone improves the μSBS of Vita Enamic,but does not improve the μSBS of Brilliant Crios.The com-bined use of silane and universal adhesive enhances the μSBS between resin-ceramic composites and resin cement.

Objective:To evaluate the effects of a reduced-positioning restrictions nursing program on postoperative recovery, sleep quality, self-care ability, and hip joint function in patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty (THA), providing a reference for postoperative positioning management.Methods:A randomized controlled trial was conducted, and 140 THA patients admitted to Zhejiang Provincial People′s Hospital from January 2022 to June 2023 were selected using convenience sampling. They were divided into a control group (70 cases) and an observation group (70 cases) using a random number table. The control group received conventional rehabilitation care, while the observation group received a reduced-positioning restrictions nursing program in addition to the conventional care. The incidence of dislocation at 3 months postoperatively, the activities of daily living, the hip joint function recovery at 1 month and 3 months postoperatively, the sleep quality at 1 month postoperatively were compared between the two groups.Results:Finally 63 cases in the control group and 64 cases in the observation group completed the study. The control group included 25 males and 38 females, with an average age of (65.44 ± 10.97) years, while the observation group included 28 males and 36 females, with an average age of (65.13 ± 12.18) years. At 3 months postoperatively, there was no significant difference in the dislocation rate between the control group and the observation group ( P>0.05). At 1 month and 3 months postoperatively, the scores of activities of daily living in the observation group were (77.89 ± 6.71) and (93.52 ± 6.59) points respectively, which were higher than those in the control group [(69.68 ± 5.53) and (87.38 ± 7.72) points], the differences were statistically significant ( t=5.38, 6.96, both P<0.05), the time, interaction and inter-group effects were all statistically significant ( F=33.93, 10.81, 876.91, all P<0.05). At 1 month postoperatively, the excellent and good rate of hip joint function score grade in the observation group was 73.44% (47/64), which was higher than 41.27% (26/63) in the control group, the difference was statistically significant ( Z=-3.67, P<0.05), there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups at 3 months postoperatively ( P>0.05). At 1 month after the operation, the excellent and good rate of sleep quality score grades in the observation group was 81.25% (52/64), which was higher than 57.14% (36/63) in the control group, and the difference was statistically significant ( Z=-3.00, P<0.05). Conclusions:Incorporating a reduced-positioning restrictions nursing program into the perioperative management of THA does not increase the risk of prosthesis dislocation. This approach enhances patient comfort, improves sleep quality, increases self-care ability, and supports the recovery of hip joint function.

Objective:To evaluate the effect and causality of serum metabolites on the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis (UC), so as to provide reference for nutritional programs for patients with UC.Methods:Two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was performed to estimate the causal relationship between serum metabolites and UC. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of 1 400 metabolites were performed, with the metabolites as exposure and UC as outcome. Inverse-variance weighted (IVW) was used to calculate causal estimates. Four other MR methods with different modeling assumptions including MR-Egger, weighted median, weighted mode, and simple mode were used as additional analyses to improve the stability of the results. The results were validated through heterogeneity and pleiotropy tests. Finally, the possible causal metabolites were analyzed by metabolic pathway analysis.Results:MR analysis revealed that 85 metabolites had a possible causal relationship with UC. Among them, phosphatidylglycerol 1,2-dipalmitoyl-gpc (DPPC) ( P=2.75×10 -6) and isovaleryl carnitine (C5) ( P=1.84×10 -5) were significant risk factors for UC. Metabolic pathway analysis identified 5 metabolic pathways that might be affected by these metabolites (all P<0.05), among which the porphyrin ( P=0.004) and pyrimidine metabolic pathways ( P=0.008) had higher confidence in impacting UC. Conclusions:There are causal relationships between some serum metabolites (in particular 1,2-dipalmitoyl-GPC and isovalerylcarnitine) and the risk of UC. The porphyrin and pyrimidine metabolic pathways may impact the pathogenesis of UC.

Objective:To evaluate the effects of silane and universal adhesive alone or in combination on the micro-shear bonding strength(μSBS)between resin cement and resin nanoceramic(Brilliant Crios)and polymer-infiltrated ceramic network(Vita Enam-ic)materials.Methods:The two experimental material blocks were respectively prepared into 42 specimens with a size of 7 mm×6 mm×1 mm,and 50 μm alumina particles were used for sandblasting pretreatment under 0.2 MPa atmospheric pressure.The speci-mens were randomly divided into 6 groups,and the following surface treatment strategies were applied except for control group:si-lane,universal adhesive with silane(single bond universal,SBU);universal adhesive without silane(One Coat 7 Universal,OCU),silane and SBU,silane and OCU.Water contact angle measurements were used to observe the wettability of the 2 materials before and after silane treatment.The bonded specimens were prepared to test μSBS,which were analyzed by Weibull and the failure modes and were observed by stereo microscope.The morphology of the bonding interface was observed by SEM before and after si-lane treatment.Results:After the two materials were treated with silane,the water contact angle decreased(P＜0.05).There was no significant difference of μSBS between the silane and control groups for Brilliant Crios(P＞0.05),while the μSBS improved in the other experimental groups(P＜0.05).Among the groups,silane+OCU group exhibited the highest Weibull modulus and charac-teristic strength.The μSBS of the experimental groups was increased compared with the Vita Enamic control group(P＜0.05),silane+SBU group demonstrated the highest Weibull modulus and characteristic strength.Conclusion:Silane can improve the wetta-bility of the interface,and it alone improves the μSBS of Vita Enamic,but does not improve the μSBS of Brilliant Crios.The com-bined use of silane and universal adhesive enhances the μSBS between resin-ceramic composites and resin cement.

With the extension of the global population's lifespan and the increasingly severe aging problem,cardio-vascular diseases have become the leading cause of death among the elderly population.Most cardiovascular diseases orig-inate from the formation of atherosclerotic plaques.In addition to common risk factors such as dyslipidemia,diabetes,hy-pertension,smoking,and obesity,circadian rhythm disruption is also regarded as an important but often overlooked risk factor for atherosclerosis.The circadian rhythm is involved in regulating key physiological processes such as inflammation and metabolism,which in turn affect the pathological processes of arteriosclerosis and thrombosis.In this process,the key genes that maintain the stability of the circadian rhythm,namely clock gene,play a crucial role.Clock gene have an important role in the pathological mechanism of atherosclerosis,and they may become potential new targets for the preven-tion and treatment of atherosclerosis.This paper reviews the latest research progress on the mechanism of action of clock gene in the occurrence and development of atherosclerosis.These findings may provide new ideas for the diagnosis and treatment of atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND:Leonurine has many biological activities such as improving microcirculation,anti-oxidation,anti-apoptosis,scavenging free radicals,anti-inflammation,and anti-fibrosis,and can promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells,which has the potential to be applied in the treatment of periodontitis. OBJECTIVE:To explore the anti-inflammatory and osteogenic effects of leonurine loading into chitosan/sodium glycerophosphate/sodium alginate hydrogel. METHODS:(1)Chitosan/sodium glycerophosphate/sodium alginate hydrogel(blank hydrogel)and chitosan/sodium glycerophosphate/sodium alginate/leonurus alkali hydrogel were prepared respectively.RAW 264.7 and MC3T3-E1 cells were inoculated with the two kinds of hydrogel.The cytotoxicity of hydrogels was detected by CCK-8 assay and live/dead cell staining.(2)RAW 264.7 cells were cultured in five groups.The blank group was cultured for 24 hours routinely.The lipopolysaccharide group was treated with lipopolysaccharide.The simple hydrogel group was treated with lipopolysaccharide and blank hydrogel.The drug-loaded hydrogel group was treated with lipopolysaccharide and drug-loaded hydrogel.The inhibitor group was treated with lippolysaccharide,drug-loaded hydrogel,and PI3K inhibitor LY294002.24 hours later,mRNA expression of inflammation-related factors was detected by qRT-PCR.Western blot assay was utilized to detect the protein expression of inflammation-related factors and PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.(3)MC3T3-E1 cells were inoculated in four groups.The blank group was cultured without any material.The simple hydrogel group was treated with blank hydrogel.The drug-loaded hydrogel group was treated with drug-loaded hydrogel.The inhibitor group was treated with drug-loaded hydrogel and PI3K inhibitor LY294002 for 7 days.Alkaline phosphatase staining was performed.mRNA expression levels of osteogenic factors were detected by qRT-PCR.The protein expression levels of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway were detected by western blot assay. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The results of CCK-8 assay and live/dead cell staining showed that the two kinds of hydrogels had no cytotoxic effect and had good cytocompatibility.(2)Compared with the blank group,the mRNA and protein expression levels of interleukin 6,tumor necrosis factor α,and interleukin 1β were significantly increased(P<0.05),and the protein expression levels of p-AKT,p-PI3K,p-p65,and p-IκBα were significantly increased in the lipopolysaccharide group(P<0.05).Compared with lipopolysaccharide group,mRNA and protein expression levels of the above indexes were decreased in drug-loaded hydrogel group(P<0.05).Compared with the drug-loaded hydrogel group,the mRNA and protein expression levels of the above indexes were decreased in the inhibitor group(P<0.05).(3)The activity of alkaline phosphatase in drug-loaded hydrogel group was higher than that in the blank group,simple hydrogel group,and inhibitor group(P<0.05).Compared with blank group,the mRNA expression levels of alkaline phosphatase,Runx2,osteocalcin,and type I collagen were increased(P<0.05),and the protein expression levels of p-AKT and p-PI3K were increased in the simple hydrogel group(P<0.05).Compared with the simple hydrogel group,the mRNA and protein expression levels of the above indexes were increased in the drug-loaded hydrogel group(P<0.05).Compared with the drug-loaded hydrogel group,the mRNA and protein expression levels of the above indexes were decreased in the inhibitor group(P<0.05).(4)These findings conclude that chitosan/sodium glycerophosphate/sodium alginate/leonurine hydrogel has anti-inflammatory and osteogenic effects,which may be related to the regulation of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.