BACKGROUND:Stem cell transplantation is a novel therapy for myocardial infarction,but the extremely hostile microenvironment in the infarct area results in low survival rate of stem cells and little long-term effect.Exercise preconditioning is a way to induce endogenous protective effects through exercise,which can be used as a new strategy for prevention and treatment of cardiac rehabilitation. OBJECTIVE:To evaluate whether exercise preconditioning potentiates the cardioprotective effects of adipose-derived stem cell transplantation following myocardial infarction in rats and to explore the mechanism of angiogenesis. METHODS:Six-week-old male SD rats were randomly divided into control group,modeling group,stem cell group,and stem cell plus exercise group.Acute myocardial infarction model was made by coronary artery occlusion,and sham operation was performed in control group.The stem cell plus exercise group underwent aerobic exercise for 8 weeks before modeling,and adipose-derived stem cell transplantation was performed 30 minutes after modeling.The stem cell group performed only adipose-derived stem cell transplantation.One and seven days after stem cell transplantation,the expression levels of myocardial total Akt(t-Akt),phosphorylated Akt(p-Akt),vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF),total endothelial nitric oxide synthase(t-eNOS),and phosphorylated endothelial nitric oxide synthase(p-eNOS)protein were measured by western blotting,and the ratios of p-Akt/t-Akt and p-eNOS/t-eNOS were calculated.At 4 weeks after stem cell transplantation,the heart structure and function as well as myocardial blood flow were detected by color Doppler ultrasound diagnostic system.Myocardial infarction area was measured by TTC staining.Myocardial interstitial collagen deposition was examined by Masson staining.Myocardial capillary density was detected by immunofluorescence staining,and myocardial apoptosis was measured by TUNEL staining. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Four weeks after stem cell transplantation:Compared with control group,left ventricular shortening fraction,left ventricular ejection fraction,myocardial capillary density,and myocardial blood flow decreased(P<0.05),myocardial infarction area,collagen volume fraction,and apoptosis increased(P<0.05)in the modeling group.Compared with the modeling group,the above indexes(except for left ventricular fractional shortening and left ventricular ejection fraction)in the stem cell group improved(P<0.05).Compared with the stem cell group,the above parameters were further improved in the stem cell plus exercise group(P<0.05).(2)One day after stem cell transplantation:Compared with the control group,the protein expression of t-Akt,p-Akt,VEGF,t-eNOS,p-eNOS and the ratio of p-Akt/t-Akt and p-eNOS/t-eNOS had no significant changes in the modeling group(P>0.05).Compared with the modeling group,there were no significant changes in the above indexes in the stem cell group(P>0.05),and p-Akt protein expression and the ratio of p-Akt/t-Akt were up-regulated in the stem cell plus exercise group(P<0.05).(3)Seven days after stem cell transplantation:Compared with the control group,the protein expression of p-Akt,VEGF,p-eNOS and the ratio of p-Akt/t-Akt and p-eNOS/t-eNOS were decreased in the modeling group(P<0.05).Compared with the modeling group,there were no significant changes in all parameters in the stem cell group(P>0.05),and the protein expression of p-Akt,VEGF p-eNOS and the ratio of p-Akt/t-Akt and p-eNOS/t-eNOS were increased in the stem cell plus exercise group(P<0.05).These findings confirm that exercise preconditioning can potentiate the therapeutic effect of adipose-derived stem cells on cardiac remodeling in rats with myocardial infarction,and its mechanism is associated with the promotion of myocardial angiogenesis and blood perfusion.

Objective To investigate the screening results and factors affecting abnormal detection rates among high-risk groups of esophageal cancer and to explore effective intervention measures. Methods We investigated and collected the information on gender, education level, age, marital status, symptoms of reflux esophagitis (heartburn, acid reflux, belching, hiccup, foreign body sensation in the pharynx, and difficulty swallowing), consumption of pickled vegetables, salt use, and esophageal cancer incidence of villagers in a natural village in Wenfeng District, Anyang City, Henan Province. Changes in reflux esophagitis symptoms in the high-incidence area of esophageal cancer before and after 16 years were observed, and the relationship of such changes with esophageal cancer was analyzed. Results In 2008, 711 cases were epidemiologically investigated, including 213 cases with one of the symptoms of reflux esophagitis such as heartburn, acid reflux, belching, hiccups, foreign body sensation in the pharynx, and difficulty swallowing (sorted in accordance with the abovementioned symptoms; if there are multiple symptoms, then the former is taken); 55 cases with at least two related symptoms, among which the most symptom was heartburn in 108 cases (15.1%); followed by acid reflux, belching, etc. In 2024, the same group of people was investigated, and eight people were missing because of relocation. A total of 703 people were successfully investigated, of which 189 cases (26.8%) had one of the symptoms of reflux esophagitis, such as heartburn (sorted in accordance with relevant symptoms, if there are multiple symptoms, then the former will be selected); 167 cases (23.7%) had at least two related symptoms, among which the most symptom was heartburn in 139 cases (19.7%); followed by acid reflux. Over 16 years, among the 703 people investigated, 45 cases had esophageal cancer and they had one or more of the abovementioned symptoms. No significant differences in the reflux esophagitis-like symptoms were found between 2008 and 2024 (P=0.26); no significant differences in the composition of reflux esophagitis-like symptoms were found between 2008 and 2024 (P=0.299). Conclusion The detection rate of reflux esophagitis-related symptoms in the population in a high-risk area of esophageal cancer has not decreased in the past 16 years, and the high-risk factors still exist. Esophageal cancer is closely related to reflux esophagitis, and clinical practice can provide early diagnosis and treatment for high-risk population.

Objective To investigate the relationship between tooth loss and the occurrence of esophageal cancer in a natural village in Wenfeng District, Anyang City, Henan Province. Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted to observe the occurrence of tooth loss and esophageal cancer among the asymptomatic residents of the natural village for 16 years from January 2008 to July 2024. Data were analyzed by chi-square test, binary logistic regression, and restricted cubic spline. Results Among the total population of 711 cases, 136 cases were lost to follow-up and 575 cases were included in the final statistics, including 45 cases with esophageal cancer. Significant statistical difference was found between esophageal cancer patients with and without tooth loss (P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that tooth loss was associated with the occurrence of esophageal cancer (OR=3.977, 95%CI: 1.543-10.255). After the adjustment for confounders, tooth loss remained significantly associated with the occurrence of esophageal cancer (OR=3.038, 95%CI: 1.035-8.914). A nonlinear dose-response relationship was observed between the number of teeth lost and the incidence of esophageal cancer. When the number of teeth lost was less than 12, the risk of esophageal cancer increased with the number of teeth lost. When more than 12 teeth were lost, the risk of esophageal cancer decreased as the number of teeth lost increased. Conclusion Tooth loss is a risk factor for the occurrence of esophageal cancer in this natural village. When the number of teeth lost is less than 12, the risk of esophageal cancer increases with the number of teeth lost.

Assessment is an indispensable and critical activity in the educational process. In the recent decades, with the birth and development of competence-based educational paradigm, the rationale behind assessment is shifting from "assessment of learning" to "assessment for learning". Workplace-based assessment (WPBA), which aims to improve the quality of both learning and teaching through assessment in real workplace circumstances, is a set of assessment tools that conforms to the new concepts of medical education. In this article, with the purpose to promote the application of WPBA and thus enhance the quality of dental education in our country, a thorough discussion is performed regarding the core principles, tools, advantages of WPBA as well as attentions that should be noted when applying WPBA. It is recommended to establish a longitudinal assessment system which employs various WPBA tools and assesses the development of students' competencies through the whole educational process. Such a dynamic assessment system may be helpful to provide all-rounded and competent dental talents who can eventually benefit the society.

Aim To investigate the effects of Cartham-us tinctorius L.extract(CTLE)on oxidative stress,lipid metabolism,and apoptosis levels of mice with al-cohol-induced liver injury and its mechanism of action.Methods The mouse model of alcohol-associated liver disease was established by chronic alcohol feeding and acute alcohol gavage.Mice were randomly divided into four groups.During the modeling period,the state changes of mice were observed every day,and their weight was recorded.At the end of modeling,blood and liver tissues were collected from each group of mice.The blood of mice was analyzed biochemically,and HE staining and Oil Red O staining were used to evaluate further the degree of pathological damage in the liver of mice.Quantitative real-time PCR(qPCR)and Western blot were applied to detect the mRNA and protein expression levels of p-PI3K,PI3K,p-Akt,Akt,p-mTOR,mTOR,p-FoxO1,FoxO1,p-FoxO3a,FoxO3a,p-FoxO4,FoxO4,BCL and BAX factors.Results Compared to the model group,the CTLE administration group showed improved hepatic patho-logical injury and reduced lipid deposition.The bio-chemical indexes in serum and liver,such as ALT,AST,TG,TC,and MDA levels were reduced,while GSH and SOD levels increased.Regulating the PI3K/Akt/FoxO pathway resulted in increased production of SOD,which reduced damage and apoptosis caused by reactive oxygen species(ROS).Conclusions CTLE can exert anti-oxidative stress and anti-apoptotic effects through the PI3K/Akt/FoxO pathway and attenuates alcoholic liver injury in mice,providing new ideas for the treatment of alcoholic liver disease and the develop-ment of related drugs.

Objective To monitor the susceptibility of clinical isolates to antimicrobial agents in tertiary hospitals in major regions of China in 2022.Methods Clinical isolates from 58 hospitals in China were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using a unified protocol based on disc diffusion method or automated testing systems.Results were interpreted using the 2022 Clinical &Laboratory Standards Institute(CLSI)breakpoints.Results A total of 318 013 clinical isolates were collected from January 1,2022 to December 31,2022,of which 29.5％were gram-positive and 70.5％were gram-negative.The prevalence of methicillin-resistant strains in Staphylococcus aureus,Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species(excluding Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus schleiferi)was 28.3％,76.7％and 77.9％,respectively.Overall,94.0％of MRSA strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 90.8％of MRSE strains were susceptible to rifampicin.No vancomycin-resistant strains were found.Enterococcus faecalis showed significantly lower resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents tested than Enterococcus faecium.A few vancomycin-resistant strains were identified in both E.faecalis and E.faecium.The prevalence of penicillin-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae was 94.2％in the isolates from children and 95.7％in the isolates from adults.The resistance rate to carbapenems was lower than 13.1％in most Enterobacterales species except for Klebsiella,21.7％-23.1％of which were resistant to carbapenems.Most Enterobacterales isolates were highly susceptible to tigecycline,colistin and polymyxin B,with resistance rates ranging from 0.1％to 13.3％.The prevalence of meropenem-resistant strains decreased from 23.5％in 2019 to 18.0％in 2022 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa,and decreased from 79.0％in 2019 to 72.5％in 2022 in Acinetobacter baumannii.Conclusions The resistance of clinical isolates to the commonly used antimicrobial agents is still increasing in tertiary hospitals.However,the prevalence of important carbapenem-resistant organisms such as carbapenem-resistant K.pneumoniae,P.aeruginosa,and A.baumannii showed a downward trend in recent years.This finding suggests that the strategy of combining antimicrobial resistance surveillance with multidisciplinary concerted action works well in curbing the spread of resistant bacteria.

Objective To retrieve,evaluate and summarize the best pertinent evidence on the placement and management of peripheral arterial catheters in critically ill children at home and abroad for clinical references.Methods A systematic search was conducted in related databases on the evidence of the placement and management of peripheral arterial catheters in critically ill children.The spectrum of eligible documents included clinical decisions,guidelines,evidence summaries,systematic reviews,expert consensuses,and norms.The search period was from the establishment of the databases to April 30,2023.The included literature was limited to English and Chinese languages.The quality of the literature was independently evaluated by evidence-based trained investigators and combined with professional judgment to extract information from the literature that met the quality standards.Results A total of 18 articles were included,including 3 guidelines,3 clinical decisions,8 evidence summaries,3 systematic reviews and 1 expert consensus.The best evidence included a total of 27 pieces of evidence in 4 areas,namely the assessment of indwelling peripheral arterial catheters,placement of peripheral arterial catheters,maintenance during the duration of indwelling peripheral arterial catheters,and removal.Conclusion This study summarized the most robust evidence pertaining to the management of peripheral arterial catheters in critically ill children,and provided an evidence-based basis for the standardized placement and management of peripheral arterial catheters in critically ill children.Nursing staff should carefully select and apply evidence according to the actual clinical situation,the wishes of children and parents.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between impulse oscillometry system examination indicators and conventional pulmonary ventilation function.Methods:The pulmonary ventilation function data of 10 883 patients from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2022 at Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology were included. The one-second rate [ratio of forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV 1) to forced vital capacity (FVC)] measured as a percentage of the predicted value was ≥92% for the control group ( n=3 478) and <92% for the pulmonary obstruction group ( n=7 405). The obstruction group was subdivided into five groups according to the degree of pulmonary dysfunction: mild group ( n=3 938),moderate group ( n=1 142),oderate-severe group ( n=917),severe group ( n=737),and extremely severe group ( n=671). Conventional pulmonary ventilatory function FVC, FEV 1, one-second rate, and forced expired flow at 50% of FVC (MEF50%), forced expired flow at 75% FVC (MEF25%), maximal mid-expiratory flow (MMEF), peak expiratory flow (PEF), and pulsed oscillation pulmonary function test were detected in both groups of patients. Impedance at 5 Hz (Z5) means total respiratory resistance, resistance at 5 Hz (R5) means total airway resistance, reactance at 5 Hz (X5) indicates the elastic recoil of the peripheral airways, and resistance at 20 Hz (R20) represents resistance of the central airways. R5-R20 reflects resistance in the small airways. Additionally, peripheral resistance (Rp), respiratory resonance frequency (Frex), and area under the reactance curve (Ax) were also measured. Correlation between the indicators of the two groups and the sensitivity and specificity of the impulse oscillometry system parameters for the diagnosis of obstructive pulmonary ventilation dysfunction were analyzed. Results:Pulmonary function force expiratory volume in the first second as a percentage of predicted value (FEV 1%Pre) [80.10 (54.95,97.10)%],one-second rate [62.43(48.67, 67.02)%],MEF50% [1.33 (0.62,1.97)L/s],MEF25% [0.28 (0.17,0.41)L/s], MMEF [0.85 (0.43,1.29)L/s],and PEF [5.64 (3.73,7.50)]L/s in the obstruction group were significantly lower than those in the control group ( P<0.05). The differences within the subgroups of the obstruction group were also significant ( P<0.05). Pulsed oscillation Z5 [0.42 (0.33,0.55)kPa·L -1·s -1],Rp [0.25 (0.20,0.45)kPa·L -1·s -1], R5 [0.39 (0.31,0.49)kPa·L -1·s -1], R20 [0.28 (0.24,0.34)kPa·L -1·s -1], R5-R20 [0.09 (0.05,0.17)kPa·L -1·s -1],Frex [16.32 (13.07,20.84)Hz], and Ax [0.67 (0.28,1.64)] indices in the obstruction group were significantly higher than those in the control group. X5 [-0.14 (-0.23, -0.10)kPa·L -1·s -1] was significantly lower than that in the control group ( P<0.05). Z5, Rp, X5, R5, R5-R20, Frex, and Ax were statistically significant between different degrees of obstruction in the obstruction group ( P<0.05). The impulse oscillometry system parameters Z5, Rp, R5, R20, R5-20, Frex, and Ax were negatively correlated with the indices of conventional pulmonary ventilation ( r=-0.21-0.68, P<0.05), and the parameter X5 was positively correlated with the indices of conventional pulmonary ventilation ( r=0.41-0.68, P<0.05). The pulsed oscillation pulmonary function test parameters X5 (58.60%-95.68%) and Ax (57.08%-98.06%) presented the best sensitivity; X5 (86.29%-98.82%), Frex (86.69%-94.71%), and Ax (88.10%-98.53%) displayed the best specificity; and R20 presented the worst sensitivity and specificity. The sensitivity and specificity were slightly better in female patients than in male patients. Conclusion:The technical parameters of the impulse oscillometry system showed significant correlation with relevant indices of conventional pulmonary ventilation function detection. These well reflect the changes of different degrees of pulmonary ventilation function and have greater significance for reference in evaluating the degree of pulmonary function impairment.

AIM To establish the quality standard of the zhujieshen Formula Granules based on standard decoction.METHODS The contents and transfer rates of ginsenoside Ro and chikusetsu saponin Ⅳa in standard decoction and formula granules were determined by HPLC,after which the transfer rates were calculated.The HPLC characteristic chromatograms of standard decoctions were established,after which cluster analysis and principal component analysis were adopted.Then the HPLC characteristic chromatograms of formula granules were established.RESULTS Nine common peaks were found in the HPLC characteristic chromatograms of seventeen batches of standard decoctions with the similarities of more than 0.9(except for S6,S12),which were clustered into two categories,and the accumulative variance contribution rate of three principal components reached 86.7％.The contents of ginsenoside Ro in three batches of formula granules were 83.1-88.6 mg/g,and the transfer rates were 53.1％-55.5％.The contents of chikusetsusaponin Ⅳa were 14.8-15.0 mg/g,and the transfer rates were 47.4％-48.1％.Nine common peaks were found in the HPLC characteristic chromatograms of three batches of formula granules with the similarities of 0.998,0.998 and 0.999,respectively.CONCLUSION This reasonable and reliable method can comprehensively evaluate the quality of Zhujieshen Formula Granules,and provide a reference for the quality control.

Objective To investigate the effects of Carthamus tinctorius L.extract(CTLE)on the levels of oxidative stress and inflammation in mice with ethanol-induced alcoholic liver disease and its mechanism of action.Methods SPF-grade C57BL/6 male mice were randomly divided into four groups:control group,model group,low-CTLE group(50 mg·kg-1),and high-CTLE group(100 mg·kg-1).The control group was given Lieber-Decarli liquid diet,and the other groups were given Lieber-Decarli alcohol diet to construct a chronic alcoholic liver injury model in mice.Serum and liver tissues of mice were collected and serum biochemical indexes of mice were detected.HE and oil red O staining were applied to observe pathological changes in mouse liver tissues.Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western Blot were used to detect the mRNA and protein expression levels of Keap1/Nrf2 and STAT3/NF-κB pathway-related factors.Results Compared with the model group,the ALT,AST,LDL-C,and MDA levels were significantly reduced(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),while the levels of HDL-C,SOD,and GSH were increased dramatically in the administered group(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),which indicated that CTLE has specific protective and antioxidant effects on alcoholic liver injury in mice.HE staining and oil red O staining showed that the hepatic lesions and lipid deposition of mice were ameliorated.It enhances the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of the body by activating the mRNA and protein expression levels of antioxidant factors related to the Keap1/Nrf2 pathway and inhibiting the mRNA and protein expression levels of inflammatory factors related to STAT3/NF-κB pathway(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).Conclusion It was shown that CTLE could exert anti-oxidative stress and anti-inflammatory effects through regulating Keap1/Nrf2 and STAT3/NF-κB signaling pathways to attenuate alcoholic liver injury in mice.This study may provide a new idea for the treatment of alcoholic liver disease and the subsequent study of molecular mechanisms.