OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of metformin （Met） on liver injury in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis （NASH） rats by regulating the PI3K/AKT/PDGF signaling pathway. METHODS NASH model was constructed by feeding rats with a high- glucose and high-fat diet， and assigned into Model group， Met low-dose group （Met-L group， 100 mg/kg）， Met medium-dose group （Met-M group， 200 mg/kg）， Met high-dose group （Met-H group， 400 mg/kg）， and high dose of Met+PI3K activator group （Met-H+740 Y-P group， 400 mg/kg Met+50 mg/kg 740 Y-P）， with 12 rats in each group. Another 12 rats were regarded as the Control group. Each group of rats was orally administered/injected with the corresponding medication once a day for 6 consecutive weeks. The changes in body weight and liver index of rats were recorded and analyzed. The pathological damage [evaluation of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease activity score （NAS）]， lipid deposition （calculation of the proportion of oil red O-positive staining area）， and fibrosis （calculation of collagen deposition score） were observed in liver tissue of rats. The levels of inflammatory factors [interleukin-6 （IL-6） and tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）] in serum and liver tissue， the levels of serum lipid metabolism indicators [total cholesterol （TC）， triglyceride （TG）， and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol （LDL-C）] and liver function indicators [aspartate aminotransferase （AST） and alanine Δ 基金项目 武汉市知识创新专项项目（No.2022020801010588）； aminotransferase （ALT）] were measured. The expression levels of PI3K/AKT/PDGF signaling pathway-related proteins and Caspase-3 in liver tissue of rats were determined. RESULTS Compared with the Control group， body weight， liver index， the levels of serum lipid metabolism indicators and liver function indicators， the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in serum and liver tissue， the NAS， the proportion of oil red O-positive staining area， the collagen deposition fraction， and the levels of phosphorylated PI3K and AKT proteins， as well as the expression levels of PDGF and Caspase-3 proteins in liver tissue， were all significantly increased （P＜0.05）. The liver tissue showed severe pathological damage， characterized by an abundance of lipid droplets and pronounced collagen deposition. After the intervention with Met， the aforementioned quantitative indicators and pathological changes in rats were significantly improved in a dose- dependent manner （P＜0.05）. 740 Y-P could reverse the improvement effects of high dose of Met on the above indexes of rats （P＜ 0.05）. CONCLUSIONS Met can improve liver damage， and alleviate inflammatory reactions and liver fibrosis of NASH rats， the mechanism of which may be associated with inhibiting PI3K/AKT/PDGF signaling pathway.

OBJECTIVE To explore the pharmacokinetic characteristics of 3 blood-absorbed components of Xiangshao sanjie oral liquid in rats with hyperplasia of mammary gland （HMG）. METHODS Female SD rats were divided into control group and HMG group according to body weight， with 6 rats in each group. The HMG group was given estrogen+progesterone to construct HMG model. After modeling， two groups were given 1.485 g/kg of Xiangshao sanjie oral liquid （calculated by crude drug） intragastrically， once a day， for 7 consecutive days. Blood samples were collected before the first administration （0 h）， and at 5， 15， 30 minutes and 1， 2， 4， 8， 12， 24 hours after the last administration， respectively. Using chlorzoxazone as the internal standard， the plasma concentrations of ferulic acid， paeoniflorin and rosmarinic acid in rats were detected by UPLC-Q/TOF-MS. The pharmacokinetic parameters [area under the drug time curve （AUC0－24 h， AUC0－∞）， mean residence time （MRT0－∞）， half-life （t1/2）， peak time （tmax）， peak concentration （cmax）] were calculated by the non-atrioventricular model using Phoenix WinNonlin 8.1 software. RESULTS Compared with the control group， the AUC0－24 h， AUC0－∞ and cmax of ferulic acid in the HMG group were significantly increased （P＜0.05）； the AUC0－24 h， AUC0－∞ ， MRT0－∞ ， t1/2 and cmax of paeoniflorin increased， but there was no significant difference between 2 groups （P＞0.05）； the AUC0－24 h and MRT0-∞ of rosmarinic acid were significantly increased or prolonged （P＜0.05）. C ONCLUSIONS In HMG model rats， the exposure of ferulic acid， paeoniflorin and rosmarinic acid in Xiangshao sanjie oral liquid all increase， and the retention time of rosmarinic acid is significantly prolonged.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect and mechanism of Jingangteng capsules in the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease （NAFLD）. METHODS Thirty-two SD rats were randomly divided into normal group and modeling group. The modeling group was fed a high-fat diet to establish a NAFLD model. The successfully modeled rats were then randomly divided into model group， atorvastatin group[positive control， 2 mg/（kg·d）]， and Jingangteng capsules low- and high-dose groups [0.63 and 2.52 mg/（kg·d）]， with 6 rats in each group. The pathological changes of the liver were observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining and oil red O staining. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed to determine the serum levels of triglycerides （TG）， total cholesterol （TC）， high-density lipoprotein cholesterol （HDL-C）， low-density lipoprotein cholesterol （LDL-C）， alanine transaminase （ALT）， aspartate transaminase （AST）， tumour necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， IL-6， IL-18. 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing and metabolomics techniques were applied to explore the effects of Jingangteng capsules on gut microbiota and metabolisms in NAFLD rats. Based on the E-mail：591146765@qq.com metabolomics results， Western blot analysis was performed to detect proteins related to the nuclear factor kappa-B （NF-κB）/NOD-like receptor family protein 3 （NLRP3） signaling pathway in the livers of NAFLD rats. RESULTS The experimental results showed that Jingangteng capsules could significantly reduce the serum levels of TG， TC， LDL-C， AST， ALT， TNF-α， IL-1β， IL-6， IL-18， while increased the level of HDL-C， and alleviated the hepatic cellular steatosis and inflammatory infiltration in NAFLD rats. They could regulate the gut microbiota disorders in NAFLD rats， significantly increased the relative abundance of Romboutsia and Oscillospira， and significantly decreased the relative abundance of Blautia （P＜0.05）. They also regulated metabolic disorders primarily by affecting secondary bile acid biosynthesis， fatty acid degradation， O-antigen nucleotide sugar biosynthesis， etc. Results of Western blot assay showed that they significantly reduced the phosphorylation levels of NF-κB p65 and NF-κB inhibitor α， and the protein expression levels of NLRP3， caspase-1 and ASC （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. CONCLUSIONS Jingangteng capsules could improve inflammation， lipid accumulation and liver injury in NAFLD rats， regulate the disorders of gut microbiota and metabolisms， and inhibit NF-κB/NLRP3 signaling pathway. Their therapeutic effects against NAFLD are mediated through the inhibition of the NF-κB/NLRP3 signaling pathway.

[摘 要] 目的：探讨lncRNA SOX2-OT是否通过调控miR-215-5p/NIN1/RPN12结合蛋白1同源物（NOB1）信号通路抑制结直肠癌（CRC）HCT-116细胞增殖和迁移。方法：收集2022年6月至2024年5月期间武汉市金银潭医院收治的29例CRC患者的癌及癌旁组织标本，以及CRC细胞SW480、HCT-116、HP116和LoVo及人结肠上皮细胞HCoEpiC。qPCR法检测CRC组织和细胞中SOX2-OT、miR-215-5p和NOB1 mRNA的表达水平。利用RNA干扰技术分别将敲低或过表达SOX2-OT质粒及阴性对照质粒转染至HCT-116细胞，实验分为对照组、si-NC组、si-SOX2-OT组、si-SOX2-OT + inhibitor（Inh）NC组、si-SOX2-OT + miR-215-5p Inh组、si-SOX2-OT + oe-NC组、si-SOX2-OT + oe-NOB1组。qPCR法检测各组细胞中SOX2-OT、miR-215-5p和NOB1 mRNA表达水平，通过MTT、划痕愈合实验、Transwell实验和流式细胞术分别检测各组细胞的增殖、迁移、侵袭及凋亡水平，WB法检测各组细胞中E-cadherin、N-cadherin、vimentin、Bcl-2、BAX、PCNA、MMP-9和NOB1蛋白表达水平。通过双萤光素酶报告基因实验验证miR-215-5p与SOX2-OT和NOB1之间的靶向关系。结果：CRC组织和细胞中SOX2-OT和NOB1 mRNA均呈高表达、miR-215-5p低表达（均P < 0.05）。敲低SOX2-OT表达的HCT-116细胞中SOX2-OT和NOB1 mRNA表达水平、增殖、划痕愈合率和侵袭细胞数量，以及细胞中N-cadherin、vimentin、Bcl-2、NOB1、PCNA和MMP-9蛋白表达均显著降低（均P < 0.05），miR-215-5p、细胞凋亡率、E-cadherin和BAX蛋白表达均显著升高（均P < 0.05）。敲低miR-215-5p表达或上调NOB1表达均可减弱敲低SOX2-OT表达对细胞的抑制作用（均P < 0.05）。miR-215-5p与SOX2-OT和NOB之间存在靶向关系。结论：敲低SOX2-OT表达可促进miR-215-5p表达，抑制NOB1表达进而抑制HCT-116细胞的增殖、迁移、侵袭并促进细胞凋亡。

Background::Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has potential risks for both clinically worsening pulmonary hypertension (PH) and increasing mortality. However, the data regarding the protective role of vaccination in this population are still lacking. This study aimed to assess the safety of approved vaccination for patients with PH.Methods::In this national prospective cohort study, patients diagnosed with PH (World Health Organization [WHO] groups 1 and 4) were enrolled from October 2021 to April 2022. The primary outcome was the composite of PH-related major adverse events. We used an inverse probability weighting (IPW) approach to control for possible confounding factors in the baseline characteristics of patients.Results::In total, 706 patients with PH participated in this study (mean age, 40.3 years; mean duration after diagnosis of PH, 8.2 years). All patients received standardized treatment for PH in accordance with guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of PH in China. Among them, 278 patients did not receive vaccination, whereas 428 patients completed the vaccination series. None of the participants were infected with COVID-19 during our study period. Overall, 398 patients received inactivated severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine, whereas 30 received recombinant protein subunit vaccine. After adjusting for baseline covariates using the IPW approach, the odds of any adverse events due to PH in the vaccinated group did not statistically significantly increase (27/428 [6.3%] vs. 24/278 [8.6%], odds ratio = 0.72, P = 0.302). Approximately half of the vaccinated patients reported at least one post-vaccination side effects, most of which were mild, including pain at the injection site (159/428, 37.1%), fever (11/428, 2.6%), and fatigue (26/428, 6.1%). Conclusions::COVID-19 vaccination did not significantly augment the PH-related major adverse events for patients with WHO groups 1 and 4 PH, although there were some tolerable side effects. A large-scale randomized controlled trial is warranted to confirm this finding. The final approval of the COVID-19 vaccination for patients with PH as a public health strategy is promising.

Background::The potential impact of pre-existing coronary artery stenosis (CAS) on acute pulmonary embolism (PE) episodes remains underexplored. This study aimed to investigate the association between pre-existing CAS and the elevation of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) levels in patients with PE.Methods::In this multicenter, prospective case-control study, 88 cases and 163 controls matched for age, sex, and study center were enrolled. Cases were patients with PE with elevated hs-cTnI. Controls were patients with PE with normal hs-cTnI. Coronary artery assessment utilized coronary computed tomographic angiography or invasive coronary angiography. CAS was defined as ≥50% stenosis of the lumen diameter in any coronary vessel >2.0 mm in diameter. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate the association between CAS and hs-cTnI elevation.Results::The percentage of CAS was higher in the case group compared to the control group (44.3% [39/88] vs. 30.1% [49/163]; P = 0.024). In multivariable conditional logistic regression model 1, CAS (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 2.680; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.243–5.779), heart rate >75 beats/min (OR, 2.306; 95% CI, 1.056–5.036) and N-terminal pro-B type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) >420 pg/mL (OR, 12.169; 95% CI, 4.792–30.900) were independently associated with elevated hs-cTnI. In model 2, right CAS (OR, 3.615; 95% CI, 1.467–8.909) and NT-proBNP >420 pg/mL (OR, 13.890; 95% CI, 5.288–36.484) were independently associated with elevated hs-cTnI. Conclusions::CAS was independently associated with myocardial injury in patients with PE. Vigilance towards CAS is warranted in patients with PE with elevated cardiac troponin levels.

Objective To evaluate the rabbit modle of frozen shoulder induced by persistent strain injuries and ice com-pression.Methods Twelve clean,healthy male New Zealand rabbits with a mass of(2 500±500)g were selected and randomly divided into a blank group and a control group with 6 rabbits in each group.In the control group,the rabbits were modeled with persistent strain injuries and ice compression,the general conditions of the rabbits and the active and passive activities of the shoulder joint were observed and their body weights were recorded.MRI was performed on the affected shoulder joints at 6 d and 29 d after modelling to observe the fluid and soft tissue;HE staining was used to observe the morphology of the rabbit bi-ceps longus tendon and the synovial membrane of the joint capsule;Masson staining was used to observe the fibrous deposits of the rabbit biceps longus tendon and the synovial membrane of the joint capsule,and the fibrous deposits were analysed semi-quantitatively by Image J software.Results Six days after the end of modeling,the active movement of the shoulder joints in the control group was limited,the passive movement was not significantly limited,and they walked with a limp;29 days after the end of the modeling,the active and passive movements of the shoulder joints in the model group were severely limited.Com-pared with the blank group(2.50±0.14)kg,the body weight of the model group(2.20±0.17)kg was significantly reduced(P＜0.01).MRI showed that 6 days after modelling,the muscles around the shoulder joint were not smooth in shape,the joint cap-sule structure was narrowed and a large amount of fluid was seen in the joint cavity;29 days after modelling,the muscles around the shoulder joint were rough in shape,structure of the joint capsule was unclear and the fluid in the joint cavity was reduced compared with 6 days after modelling.Pathological staining showed that the long-headed biceps tendon fibres in the control group were disorganised,curled or even broken,and the synovial tissue of the joint capsule was heavily vascularised,with col-lagen fibre deposits and severe inflammatory cell infiltration.The fiber deposition of the long head of biceps brachii in the mod-el group[(23.58±3.41)％,(27.56±3.70)％]and synovial tissue[(41.78±5.59)％,(62.19±7.54)％]were significantly higher than those in the blank group[(1.79±1.03)％,(1.29±0.63)％]at 7 and 30 days after modeling and synovial tissue fiber de-position[(8.15±3.61)％,(11.29±7.10)％],as shown by the semi-quantitative analysis of Masson staining results by Image J software.And the longer the time,the more severe the fibrosis(P＜0.01).Conclusion The behavioral,imaging and pathological findings showed that the rabbit frozen shoulder model with persistent strain injuries and ice compression is consistent with the clinical manifestations and pathogenesis of periarthritis,making it an ideal method for periarthritis research.

Veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation is an effective method to reduce perioperative adverse events such as cardiogenic shock in patients undergoing complex high-risk indicated percutaneous coronary intervention.Femoral artery and femoral vein are the main routes for conventional veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in China,while the cases of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation insertion via axillary artery are relatively rare.However,the axillary artery intubation veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation assisted mode has been regarded as one of the routine clinical paths for the treatment of critically ill patients in foreign countries.This paper reports a case of an elderly male patient who underwent high risk and complex percutaneous coronary interventional therapy by right axillary artery implantation with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation assisted circulation due to the difficulty of femoral artery approach.In order to provide reference for the selection of clinical extracorporeal membrane oxygenation technique route.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the protective mechanism of Forsythia suspensa extracts(FSE)on S.aureus-induced inflammatory injury of rat mammary epithelial cells.Fifty lactating rats were selected and randomly divided into five groups with 10 rats each:the blank control group(the fourth pair of mammary glands were injected with saline),the model group(the fourth pair of mammary glands were injected with 100 pL of S.aureus bacterial solution),the high-dose group(the fourth pair of mammary glands were injected with S.aureus bacterial solu-tion for 24 h,and then the rats were administered by gavage of 3.750 g/(kg·d)FSE for 1-7 d),the medium-dose group(24 h after the fourth pair of mammary injections,the rats were adminis-tered by gavage 1.875 g/(kg·d)FSE for 1-7 d),and in the low-dose group(24 h after the fourth pair of mammary injections,the rats were administered by gavage 0.935 g/(kg·d)FSE for 1-7 d),blood samples were collected 24 h after the last administration of the drug and then the rats were executed.The results showed that the mammary tissue of the model group was severely dam-aged,and the mRNA expression of IKKβ,MyD88,NF-κB,and TLR4 was significantly increased in the mammary tissue(P＜0.05).The relative expression of IKKβ,MyD88,NF-κB,and TLR4 pro-teins in the mammary tissue of the model group was significantly decreased(P＜0.05)by medium and high doses of FSE compared with the model group.Therefore,FSE may play an anti-inflammatory role by inhibiting the Toll-like signaling pathway to improve S.aureus-induced inflammatory re-sponse in rat mammary epithelial cells and decrease the expression of the downstream pathway proteins IKKβ,MyD88,NF-κB,and TLR4.

Objective:To explore the relationship between normal serum creatinine(Scr) level and diabetic kidney disease(DKD) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM).Methods:This was a prospective cohort study. Patients with yet not DKD who were regularly followed up at six centers of Li′s United Clinic in Taiwan, China from January 1, 2002 to December 31, 2018 were selected. At baseline, clinic information and lab tests were collected. According to whether the patients developed DKD during the follow-up period, they were divided into DKD group and non-DKD(NDKD) group. The exposure factor was the Scr(μmol/L) value, and it was used as a categorical variable. According to the quartiles of Scr, they were divided into 4 groups: Q1 group(Scr<57.68 μmol/L), Q2 group(57.68 μmol/L≤Scr<68.51 μmol/L), Q3 group(68.51 μmol/L≤Scr<80.44 μmol/L) and Q4 group(Scr≥80.44 μmol/L). The Cox regression model was used to explore the relationship between Scr level and the incidence of DKD. Receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve was used to analyze the predictive effect of normal level Scr on DKD. Results:A total of 2 202 T2DM patients without DKD at baseline were included. After a follow-up period of(5.2±2.17) years, there were 966 patients in the DKD group and 1 236 patients in the NDKD group. Compared with the NDKD group, the DKD group had older age, longer duration of diabetes, higher BMI, SBP, DBP, LDL-C, Scr, and UACR(all P<0.05). Cox regression analysis results showed that compared with the Q1 group as the reference, the risk of developing DKD in the Q2, Q3, and Q4 groups after adjusting for confounding factors was 1.394, 1.688, and 2.821 times higher, respectively(all P<0.05). ROC curve analysis results showed that the area under the curve(AUC) for predicting DKD occurrence using normal serum creatinine level was 0.70(95% CI 0.678-0.722), with an optimal cutoff value of 74.27 μmol/L, sensitivity of 0.54, and specificity of 0.76. The cumulative risk plot showed that after adjusting for confounding factors, patients in the Q4 group had a higher cumulative risk of developing DKD compared to the Q1, Q2, and Q3 groups(all P<0.05). Conclusion:Scr is an independent risk factor for developing DKD in patients with T2DM. The higher the Scr level, the greater the risk, especially when Scr is greater than 74.27 μmol/L.