1.Predicting intraoperative blood transfusion risk in hip fracture patients using explainable machine learning models
Fengting LU ; Xiaoming LI ; Dekui LI ; Xianyuan XIE ; Jiazhong WANG ; Qing YU ; Gan HUANG ; Jun SHEN
Chinese Journal of Blood Transfusion 2026;39(2):196-202
Objective: To investigate the factors influencing intraoperative blood transfusion in patients with hip fractures and to develop a machine learning (ML) model for predicting this risk. Methods: A total of 424 patients with hip fractures who underwent surgical treatment between November 2022 and March 2025 in our hospital were selected. Key feature variables of intraoperative blood transfusion risk were identified using the Boruta algorithm. Four different ML algorithms—support vector machine (SVM), linear discriminant analysis (LDA), mixed discriminant analysis (MDA), and extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost)—were used to develop predictive models for intraoperative blood transfusion risk. The predictive performance of the four ML models were evaluated using accuracy, precision, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, precision-recall curves (PRC), precision-recall gain curves (PRGC), and F1 scores. Shapley additive interpretation (SHAP) was used to interpret the final model. Results: Among the 424 patients, 77(18.2%) received intraoperative blood transfusion. The Boruta algorithm identified albumin (ALB), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), types of anesthesia, types of fracture, and hemoglobin (Hb) as key feature variables for predicting intraoperative blood transfusion risk. In model evaluation, the SVM model outperforms the other three models across multiple metrics, including the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), recall, recall gain, accuracy, precision, F1 score, and the area under the precision-recall curve (PRC-AUC). The SVM model, interpreted and visualized based on SHAP values, effectively predicted intraoperative blood transfusion risk in patients with hip fracture. A visual online application was developed based on the SVM model (https://pbo-nomogram.shinyapps.io/blood/). Conclusion: Preoperative low ALB and Hb levels, prolonged APTT, general anesthesia, and intertrochanteric fractures are risk factors for intraoperative blood transfusion in hip fracture patients. The risk prediction model for intraoperative blood transfusion constructed based on the SVM algorithm has optimal performance, which provides new ideas and methods for the clinical early identification of hip fracture patients with high transfusion risk and the implementation of targeted interventions.
2.Innovative Development and Cutting-edge Applications of Split Intein Technology
Jin-Qiu GAN ; Xiang-Yu DENG ; Xin-Yan WANG ; Jia-Bin LI
Progress in Biochemistry and Biophysics 2026;53(6):1520-1540
Inteins are unique protein insertion sequences capable of self-excision, enabling the covalent ligation of flanking extein peptides via amide bond formation. This process proceeds spontaneously without requiring external enzymes, cofactors, or chemical reagents, granting inteins exceptional biocompatibility and traceless performance in protein engineering applications. Split inteins represent a specialized and versatile subclass whose splicing domains are encoded by two separate gene fragments rather than a single continuous open reading frame. These fragments, known as the N-terminal (IntN) and C-terminal (IntC) split inteins, associate through non-covalent interactions including hydrophobic forces, hydrogen bonds, and van der Waals forces to assemble into an active three-dimensional structure, which then drives efficient extein ligation and enables protein trans-splicing. Protein trans-splicing mediated by split inteins has become a cornerstone for traceless protein ligation owing to its high specificity and irreversibility, fundamentally reshaping strategies for protein modification, assembly, and functional regulation. Compared with traditional chemical ligation methods, split intein systems require no complex chemical derivatization of peptide fragments and can operate efficiently at micromolar concentrations under physiological conditions, thus avoiding structural and functional damage caused by organic reagents. In contrast to enzymatic ligation tools such as sortase, split inteins eliminate the need for additional enzymes or cofactors, simplifying reaction systems, reducing costs, and minimizing non-specific side products. These distinctive advantages render split inteins highly promising for applications in chemical biology, synthetic biology, and biopharmaceutical development. In recent years, deepened mechanistic understanding has established structure-guided rational design as the primary approach to overcoming key limitations of split inteins, including intrinsic aggregation propensity, strict extein sequence dependence, and limited splicing efficiency. Bioinformatic tools have been used to identify aggregation-prone regions in the IntN fragment, and site-directed mutagenesis of hydrophobic residues, relocation of split sites, or removal of misfolding-prone sequences has substantially reduced in vitro aggregation and improved soluble expression and assembly activity. Rational engineering of catalytic residues and adjacent flexible loops has relaxed strict amino acid preferences at extein junctions, enhancing sequence tolerance and reducing the risk of functional impairment in target proteins. Consensus design based on multiple sequence alignments has yielded ultra-fast splicing variants such as Cfa DnaE and Cat-TerL, which exhibit significantly accelerated kinetics and improved tolerance to denaturing conditions. Meanwhile, advances in structural biology have further clarified the conformational dynamics and catalytic mechanisms of splicing, supporting the precise design of high-performance intein modules. On this basis, electrostatic interaction tuning and metagenomic screening have yielded multiple mutually orthogonal split intein pairs, enabling selective multi-fragment protein ligation and providing new routes for the efficient synthesis of large multi-domain functional proteins. With these engineered split inteins offering continuously improved performance and expanded applicability, protein trans-splicing has been widely applied in numerous cutting-edge areas of protein research and biomedicine. In gene delivery, split intein-based systems overcome the packaging limit of adeno-associated viral vectors, enabling the accurate reconstitution of large therapeutic proteins and base editors in target cells, thereby enhancing the efficacy and scope of gene therapy for genetic diseases. In internal protein sequence editing, split inteins mediate precise sequence replacement and modification in flexible regions or loops of target proteins, without the need for complex multi-step ligation and protein refolding involved in traditional protein semisynthesis. In protein-protein interaction studies, intein-mediated splicing covalently captures transient and weak intracellular complexes, enabling sensitive, high-throughput interaction detection and drug screening. In synthetic biology, conditionally controllable splicing systems support the construction of diverse intracellular and cell-surface biological logic gates for the precise regulation of cellular behavior. In mechanistic biochemical research, split inteins enable photocatalytic proximity labeling and site-specific tagging, allowing the preparation of homogeneous protein samples carrying precise post-translational modifications such as ubiquitination and polyglutamylation for chromatin interactome analysis and epigenetic studies. Moreover, covalent trapping strategies using split inteins stabilize transient enzymatic intermediates, providing unprecedented insights into molecular mechanisms such as nucleosome ubiquitination that are difficult to elucidate using conventional methods. This review systematically summarizes key technological advances in split inteins over the past decade, highlighting engineering strategies, mechanistic insights, and the development of orthogonal components. It comprehensively surveys emerging applications at the frontiers of protein research, analyzes current core challenges, and proposes future directions, particularly emphasizing artificial intelligence-driven de novo design and novel splicing pathways to break existing technical bottlenecks. By enabling traceless, efficient, and versatile protein manipulation, split inteins continue to serve as indispensable tools that drive innovation in protein engineering and fundamental life science research.
3.Construction of a tumor-associated myeloid cell infiltration signature model based on LASSO-Cox regression for predicting postoperative overall survival in patients with gastric cancer
Leihao WANG ; Siyuan WANG ; Mengxin TIAN ; Qiangjun GAN ; Zhaoqing TANG ; Xuefei WANG
Chinese Journal of Clinical Medicine 2026;33(3):396-405
Objective To explore the impact of tumor-associated myeloid cell infiltration signatures on postoperative overall survival (OS) in patients with gastric cancer. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on patients who underwent radical gastrectomy at Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University from January 2005 to December 2019. Patients were randomly divided into a training set (n=167) and an internal validation set (n=168) at a 1:1 ratio. Meanwhile, 147 patients with gastric cancer treated at Zhongshan Hospital (Xiamen), Fudan University during the same period were enrolled as the external validation set (n=147). Immunohistochemistry was used in all patients to evaluate the distribution characteristics of 18 immune markers in three regions of gastric cancer tissues, namely primary tumor (PT), invasive margin (IM), and normal tissue (NT). These markers include 11 myeloid cell markers (CD11b, CD33, CD11c, CD14, CD15, CD16, CD68, CD86, CD163, CD206, and CD66b) and 7 immune checkpoints (CD73, IDO, LAG3, PD-1, SIGLEC9, SIRPA, and TIM3). LASSO regression and Cox proportional hazards model were applied to screen immune markers associated with postoperative OS in gastric cancer patients, and a predictive model for 1-, 3-, and 5-year postoperative OS was established. Data from the internal and external validation set were used for internal and external verification of the predictive model. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated to assess the discriminative ability of the model. Results In the training set, LASSO regression and Cox proportional hazards model identified 4 immune marker signatures (CD14_PT, CD15_PT, CD206_PT, and SIGLEC9_PT) to construct the predictive model. ROC curve analysis showed that the AUCs of the model for predicting 1-, 3-, and 5-year postoperative OS were 0.74, 0.75, and 0.84, respectively. When the model was applied to the internal and external validation sets, the AUCs for 1-, 3-, and 5-year postoperative OS were 0.74, 0.72, 0.72 (internal validation set) and 0.72, 0.71, 0.74 (external validation set), respectively. Cox multivariate regression analysis showed that the risk score was an independent risk factor for postoperative OS in patients with gastric cancer. Conclusion The model constructed based on LASSO-Cox regression exhibits good predictive performance and can effectively predict postoperative OS in gastric cancer patients, which may serve as a basis for intensive treatment of high-risk patients after surgery.
4.Clinical efficacy of cardiovascular surgery combined with preoperative immunosuppression for Behçet's disease: A retrospective cohort study in a single center
Fanyu CHEN ; Lanxin YE ; Ziyan XU ; Oudi CHEN ; Lixi GAN ; Hongkun QING ; Weiteng WANG ; Xin LI ; Yang CUI ; Xuhua JIAN
Chinese Journal of Clinical Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 2026;33(09):1448-1456
Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of preoperative immunosuppressive therapy combined with surgical intervention for Behçet's disease. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on Behçet's disease patients who underwent cardiovascular surgery at Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital from 2012 to 2021. Patients were divided into an immunosuppressive group and a non-immunosuppressive group based on whether they received immunosuppressive therapy before surgery. The complications and long-term survival rates of the two groups were analyzed. Results A total of 28 patients were included, among which 2 patients underwent reoperation, a total of 30 surgeries were performed, including 16 males (53.3%), and the age at diagnosis was 37 (31, 45) years. There were 15 surgeries in the immunosuppressive group and 15 surgeries in the non-immunosuppressive group. Compared with the non-immunosuppressive group, the incidence of complications during hospitalization in the immunosuppressive group was lower (13.3% vs. 53.3%, P=0.008). One patient died in hospital, and the rest were discharged and followed up, with a median follow-up time of 38.7 (15.1, 57.3) months, and there was no statistically significant difference in long-term survival rate between the two groups (73.3% vs. 93.3%, P=0.158). There was no statistical difference in the cumulative incidence of complications one month (20% vs. 53%, P=0.058) and one year (27% vs. 60%, P=0.065) after surgery between the immunosuppressive group and the non-immunosuppressive group, but there was a statistical difference in the cumulative incidence of complications three years after surgery (47% vs. 92%, P=0.002). Conclusion Surgical treatment can save lives in Behçet's disease patients with cardiovascular diseases, but the incidence of postoperative complications is high. Timely use of immunosuppressants before cardiovascular surgery can reduce the incidence of postoperative complications.
5.Value of retinal multimodal imaging in the diagnosis and treatment of cerebrovascular and neurological disorders
Yu LIU ; Zifeng ZHANG ; Manhong LI ; Yusheng WANG ; Xiaolin GAN ; Jiaxing SUN
International Eye Science 2026;26(11):1956-1961
As an extension of the central nervous system, the retina is the only tissue in the body that allows direct in vivo observation of both neural and vascular structures, offering a unique non-invasive window for the assessment of cerebral neurovascular diseases. Recent studies have shown that multimodal imaging techniques—such as fundus photography, optical coherence tomography(OCT), and OCT angiography(OCTA)—enable quantitative analysis of retinal indicators including vascular caliber, fractal dimension, retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, and microvascular density. These metrics can, to some extent, reflect the severity and progression risk of cerebrovascular and neurodegenerative diseases such as stroke, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease. Consequently, retinal imaging holds promise as a powerful tool for early screening, risk stratification, and treatment monitoring. This article systematically reviews the application of retinal imaging technologies in the diagnosis and management of cerebral neurovascular disorders, with a particular focus on the important role of artificial intelligence(AI)-driven image analysis in enhancing screening efficiency, improving risk assessment accuracy, and promoting multidisciplinary collaborative care, thereby providing insights for clinical translation.
6.Correlation Analysis Between Microbial Community Changes and Medicinal Quality Formation During Processing of Angelicae Dahuricae Radix
Xiaoyan CHEN ; Xinglong ZHU ; Qingxia GAN ; Jiahao WANG ; Guangqin AN ; Qinghua WU ; Jin PEI ; Yuntong MA
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(4):198-207
ObjectiveTo compare the differences in color, odor, coumarin content and microbial community composition of Angelicae Dahuricae Radix(ADR) during different drying processes, and to explore the correlation between changes in microbial community composition and changes in quality indexes of ADR. MethodsThe fresh ADR was processed at three drying temperatures(50, 70, 100 ℃) by drying and steaming cutting, semi-fresh cutting and drying, fresh cutting and drying, and sulfur fumigation methods. The color values of samples were extracted by Adobe Photoshop 2022 software and subjected to principal component analysis(PCA), electronic nose was used to identify the odor information of medicinal powders and subjected to loadings analysis, PCA, and linear discriminant analysis(LDA), and high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) was used to determine the contents of five coumarins(bergapten, oxypeucedanin, imperatorin, phellopterin, isoimperatorin). The samples for microbial detection were taken from fresh dried samples, 50 ℃(dried and steamed cut, sulfur fumigated) samples, and 100 ℃(dried and steamed cut) samples when the water content was 50% and 14%, respectively. And the changes of microbial community composition during processing were determined by high-throughput sequencing method. The relationship between the changes of microbial community composition and the changes of odor, color and active component content of ADR during drying process was analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis. ResultsThe color quantification results showed that an increase in drying temperature led to the decrease of brightness value(L), and the increases of red-green value(a) and yellow-blue value(b), and the change of processing method had no obvious effect on the color of medicinal materials. The results of odor quantification showed that W1S, W2S, W5S, W2W and W1W sensor were sensitive to the odor changes of ADR and could be used to distinguish ADR decoction pieces from different processing methods. The results of HPLC showed that the coumarin content of ADR decreased with the increase of drying temperature and the delay of processing time, the optimal processing method was drying and steaming cutting method, and the optimal temperature was 50 ℃. High-throughput sequencing results showed that the dominant bacteria in ADR during processing were Achromobacter, Agrobacterium, Nocardioides, Mycobacterium and Enterobacter, the dominant fungi were Coprinopsis, Meyerozyma and Apiotrichum. The results of correlation analysis showed that the quality indexes of ADR were positively correlated with Agrobacterium, Mycobacterium in bacteria, Candida in fungi, and negatively correlated with Bacillus in bacteria. ConclusionThere are significant differences in the color, odor, coumarin content and microbial community composition of ADR in different drying processes, and the best drying method is drying and steaming cutting at 50 ℃. The relative abundance changes of 9 bacterial genera and 4 fungal genera are closely related to the quality formation of ADR during the drying process.
7.LI Candong's Experience in Treating Pediatric Diseases with Baxian Formula (八仙方)
Yang WANG ; Wen TANG ; Huijuan GAN ;
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;66(6):556-560
Baxian Formula (八仙方) is a folk pediatric prescription in Quanzhou, Fujian Province. This paper summarized the clinical experience of Professor LI Candong in treating pediatric diseases with Baxian Formula. By analyzing the distinctive composition and theoretical underpinnings of the Baxian Formula for treating pediatric lung, liver and spleen diseases, it is considered that the formula prioritizes wind medicinals, aimed at restoring the dynamics of qi movement within the zang fu (脏腑) organs. It excels in dispelling and dispersing wind, promoting digestion, calming the mind, invigorating the spleen and draining dampness, clearing heat and soothing the liver, extinguishing wind and arresting convulsion. The prescription can treat pediatric disorders caused by pathological factors such as wind, phlegm, dampness, food, heat and constraint. Moreover, this paper summarized the clinical thinking of Baxian Formula in treating pediatric diseases of the lung system (common cold, cough, eczema), spleen system (diarrhea, food retention) and liver system (fright from external stimuli, tic disorder), aiming at providing reference for diagnosing and treating pediatric diseases in clinical practice.
8.Analysis of depressive symptoms and associated factors among primary and secondary school students in the in depth monitoring counties Rural Nutrition Improvement Program
Chinese Journal of School Health 2025;46(2):219-222
Objective:
To understand the prevalence and related factors of depressive symptoms among primary and secondary school students in the in depth monitoring counties of China s Rural Compulsory Education Nutrition Improvement Program, so as to provide a basis for prevention and psychological intervention of depressive symptoms among children and adolescents in rural areas.
Methods:
In November 2022, a stratified random sampling method was adopted to collect height and weight data, basic personal and family information of 7 949 primary and secondary school students from grade three to grade nine through physical measurements and questionnaires in 56 key monitoring schools implementing the Student Nutrition Improvement Program in 7 in depth monitoring counties (Jalaid Banner in Inner Mongolia, Jinzhai County in Anhui, Mao Xian in Sichuan, Tiandeng County in Guangxi, Mian County in Shaanxi, Zhaozhou County in Heilongjiang and Youxi County in Fujian), and to obtain the information related to their depressive symptoms through the self assessment questionnaire on depression. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis was conducted to analyze the prevalence of depressive symptoms among primary and secondary school students, as well as their related factors.
Results:
The detection rate of depressive symptoms among primary and secondary school students in the in depth monitored counties was 23.5%. Logistic regression analysis showed that the probability of detecting depressive symptoms was higher among female students, middle school students, students whose video screen duration per day was >2 h, and students whose parents marital status was divorced or widowed ( OR =1.40, 1.64, 1.60, 1.24), and students whose sleep duration reached the recommended standard, whose parents usually accompanied them daily for time was 60-<120 min and ≥120 min, and students whose mothers literacy level was middle school graduation had lower probability of detecting depressive symptoms ( OR =0.85, 0.84, 0.71, 0.76) ( P < 0.05 ).
Conclusion
The detection rate of depressive symptoms among students in the in depth monitoring area is high, and targeted interventions need to be developed for students to reduce the risk of mental health problems.
9.Cryopreservation of small-volume red blood cells: evaluation of blood group antigen reactivity and its application value
Yaling ZHAO ; Yanxia WANG ; Ziye WANG ; Siyu MA ; Wei SHAO ; Yuanyuan ZHANG ; Xin JIANG ; Jia GAN
Chinese Journal of Blood Transfusion 2025;38(3):352-357
[Objective] To establish a cryopreservation protocol for small-volume (≤1 mL) red blood cells (RBCs) and to evaluate the reactivity and stability of blood group antigens after cryopreservation, so as to explore its potential application in immunohematology reference laboratories. [Methods] Small-volume RBCs were cryopreserved for 120 days, followed by thawing and deglycerolization to restore the RBC components. The quality of the RBCs was assessed. Serum antibodies were serially diluted and reacted with RBCs before and after cryopreservation, and agglutination scores were recorded to quantitatively evaluate the reactivity and stability of blood group antigens such as Rh, Duffy, Lewis, Kidd, M, and H. Flow cytometry was used to analyze the percentage and mean fluorescence intensity of ABO antigen expression on RBCs before and after cryopreservation to assess the usability of cryopreserved RBCs in flow immunophenotyping and blood group subtype studies. [Results] The hemolysis rate of thawed and deglycerolized RBCs was (0.27±0.10)%, with a supernatant free hemoglobin level of (0.52±0.14) g/L, and the RBC recovery rate was (69.12±7.91)%. The direct antiglobulin test (DAT) was negative for all thawed RBCs. There was no difference in the reactivity of blood group antigens before and after cryopreservation, and no difference in the percentage and mean fluorescence intensity of A and B antigen expression on RBCs before and after cryopreservation. [Conclusion] The small-volume RBC cryopreservation protocol can be applied to immunohematology analysis in reference laboratories and is expected to be widely used in blood group identification, antibody screening, identification, and blood group-related research.
10.Implementation Status Quo Analysis of the Entrusted Management Medical Cooperation Projects in Mu-nicipal Hospitals of Beijing
Shuping WANG ; Jie ZHENG ; Xiushan GE ; Hongcui JIAO ; Jinhao HE ; Ying WANG ; Jing FENG ; Xiaozhao WANG ; Dingying MA ; Ge GAN
Chinese Hospital Management 2025;(9):89-93
Objective In order to summarize the implementation status and effectiveness of entrusted management projects in municipal hospitals of Beijing,the project aims to better promote the extension of high-quality urban re-sources to county-level hospitals.Methods Through survey questionnaires and focus group interviews,the survey questionnaire includes the size of the hospital,the number of surgeries,Case Mix Index,annual average number of new technologies and projects,personnel training entrusted,and interviews with 50 heads of municipal hospi-tals,district hospitals,and district level government relevant departments.Results Measures for medical homogeni-zation,talent cultivation,management,and cultural homogenization were sorted out.In terms of hospital scale,level evaluation,medical service capabilities,and the proportion of master's degree and above personnel in the managed hospitals,an upward trend was observed.Conclusion The medical cooperation project entrusted by Beijing Municipal Hospitals promotes the integration of regional medical services,and provides reference for the expansion and sinking of high-quality medical resources from the management mechanism,operation mechanism and key measures.


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