1.Research Advances of Traditional Chinese Medicine Diagnosis and Treatment of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease:Overview and Prospects
Liang DAI ; Guang JI ; Xianbo WANG ; Li ZHANG ; Hanchen XU ; Xudong TANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(4):386-391
The pathogenesis of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is fundamentally rooted in spleen deficiency and is closely associated with phlegm turbidity, damp-heat and blood stasis. Clinically, liver constraint with spleen deficiency and internal retention of damp turbidity represent the predominant traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndrome patterns. Researches have indicated intrinsic connections between the syndrome patterns and biological indicators such as gut microbiota and metabolic profiles. Regarding treatment, classical famous formulas, modern empirical formulas, and newly developed TCM drugs show positive effects in regulating glucose and lipid metabolism, improving insulin resistance, and alleviating metabolic inflammation, exhibiting multi-target mechanisms of action; acupuncture and other external therapies also provide adjunctive value. Nevertheless, current researches still have limitations such as the lack of high-quality clinical evidence and insufficient systematic elucidation of the uncerlying mechanisms. Future efforts should focus on conducting high-quality TCM clinical trials with hard endpoint outcomes such as hepatic histology outcomes, and utilizing modern technologies like multi-omics to elucidate TCM's mechanisms of action, thereby advancing the position of TCM as a first-line therapeutic strategy for MASLD.
2.High expression of E2F2 in clear cell renal cell carcinoma and its association with prognosis and tumor immune microenvironment
Genyi QU ; Chaohui LONG ; Wenlin HUANG ; Guang YANG ; Cheng TANG ; Yong XU ; Li YIN
Journal of Modern Urology 2026;31(2):172-181
Objective To investigate the expression characteristics of the transcription factor E2F2 in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), its impact on patient prognosis, and its potential role in the tumor immune microenvironment, with validation using clinical samples and functional assays. Methods RNA sequencing data and clinical information of ccRCC patients were obtained from the TCGA database; GSE53757 and GSE66272 datasets were downloaded from the GEO database as external validation cohorts. The expression difference of E2F2 between ccRCC tissue and normal tissue was compared, and the relationship between E2F2 expression and clinical pathological characteristics was analyzed. Kaplan-Meier (KM) survival analysis with log-rank test was performed to evaluate the effects of E2F2 on overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and disease-specific survival (DSS). The prognostic efficacy of E2F2 in predicting 1-, 3- and 5-year survival was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. GSEA was performed to identify E2F2-related signaling pathways, and the ESTIMATE and CIBERSORT algorithms were used to assess the relationship between E2F2 expression level and tumor immune cell infiltration and immune microenvironment. Twenty pairs of surgically resected and pathologically confirmed ccRCC tissues and matched adjacent non-tumor tissues were collected from our hospital, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed to detect the protein expression of E2F2. Human ccRCC cell line 786-O was used for functional assays;shRNA was used to knock down E2F2 expression (constructing stable shE2F2#1 and shE2F2#2 cell lines), and qRT-PCR and Western blot were performed to verify knockdown efficiency, followed by MTT, colony formation, and Transwell migration assays to evaluate the effects of E2F2 on the biological behaviors of ccRCC cells. Results E2F2 was significantly upregulated in ccRCC tissues (the same results in the verification set). Higher E2F2 expression was associated with advanced histological grade, clinical stage and higher TNM classification (P<0.05). KM analysis showed that patients in the E2F2 high-expression group had worse OS, PFS, and DSS (P=0.019, 0.036, <0.001); the ROC curves showed area under the curve (AUC) of E2F2 of predicting 1-, 3- and 5- year survival of ccRCC patients were 0.844, 0.851 and 0.815, respectively. GSEA revealed that the E2F2 low-expression group was enriched in multiple metabolism-related pathways, whereas the E2F2 high-expression group was associated with immune-related pathways. Immune analysis demonstrated that high E2F2 expression was associated with increased immune scores, increased proportion of immune cells, higher tumor mutation burden, and potentially stronger immunotherapy response. IHC results showed that the E2F2 immunoreactivity score in ccRCC tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent non-tumor tissues (P<0.05). Functional assays indicated that E2F2 knockdown significantly inhibited the proliferation, colony formation, and migration of ccRCC cells. Conclusion E2F2 is highly expressed in ccRCC and may be involved in tumorigenesis and progression through modulation of the immune microenvironment. Its expression level is closely associated with patient prognosis, and E2F2 has the potential to serve as a prognostic biomarker and immunotherapeutic target in ccRCC.
3.Expert consensus on electronic patient-reported outcome-based symptom management for perioperative lung cancer patients (version 2026)
Wei DAI ; Cheng LEI ; Yuanqiang ZHANG ; Rong ZHANG ; Pengyu Jinming ; Jinming XU ; Yuzhen ZHENG ; Liang ZHAO ; Guibin QIAO ; Guowei CHE ; Jian HU ; Lei JIANG ; Jie LI ; Qiang LI ; Qiuling SHI
Chinese Journal of Clinical Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 2026;33(08):1166-1178
Patients with lung cancer experience a heavy symptom burden during the perioperative period, which seriously affects their recovery and quality of life. Traditional symptom management models rely mainly on scheduled ward rounds during hospitalization and outpatient follow-up after discharge. However, they have limitations such as delayed symptom recognition, lack of post-discharge monitoring, and non-quantitative symptom assessment, which often lead to delayed interventions and low patient satisfaction. In recent years, the symptom management model based on electronic patient-reported outcomes (ePRO) has been increasingly valued in clinical practice. Existing high-level evidence from both domestic and international studies indicates that, through proactive monitoring, real-time alerts, and remote interventions, this model enables dynamic and continuous symptom management and helps improve patient recovery and healthcare experience. As a supplement to routine medical care, the ePRO-based symptom management model aims to enhance the quality of care rather than replace existing medical processes. To promote the standardized application of this model in perioperative lung cancer care, this consensus integrates domestic and international evidence. After multiple rounds of voting by more than 50 experts, it formulates 12 consensus statements covering the three core components, symptom monitoring, alerting, and intervention, to provide scientific and practical recommendations for clinical practice.
4.Hydrogen sulfide ameliorates hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in rats by inhibiting aerobic glycolysis-pyroptosis.
Yuan CHENG ; Yun-Na TIAN ; Man HUANG ; Jun-Peng XU ; Wen-Jie CAO ; Xu-Guang JIA ; Li-Yi YOU ; Wan-Tie WANG
Acta Physiologica Sinica 2025;77(3):465-471
The present study aimed to explore whether hydrogen sulfide (H2S) improved hypoxic pulmonary hypertension (HPH) in rats by inhibiting aerobic glycolysis-pyroptosis. Male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into normal group, normal+NaHS group, hypoxia group, and hypoxia+NaHS group, with 6 rats in each group. The control group rats were placed in a normoxic (21% O2) environment and received daily intraperitoneal injections of an equal volume of normal saline. The normal+NaHS group rats were placed in a normoxic environment and intraperitoneally injected with 14 μmol/kg NaHS daily. The hypoxia group rats were placed in a hypoxia chamber, and the oxygen controller inside the chamber maintained the oxygen concentration at 9% to 10% by controlling the N2 flow rate. An equal volume of normal saline was injected intraperitoneally every day. The hypoxia+NaHS group rats were also placed in an hypoxia chamber and intraperitoneally injected with 14 μmol/kg NaHS daily. After the completion of the four-week modeling, the mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) of each group was measured using right heart catheterization technique, and the right ventricular hypertrophy index (RVHI) was weighed and calculated. HE staining was used to observe pathological changes in lung tissue, Masson staining was used to observe fibrosis of lung tissue, and Western blot was used to detect protein expression levels of hexokinase 2 (HK2), pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH), pyruvate kinase isozyme type M2 (PKM2), nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3), GSDMD-N-terminal domain (GSDMD-N), Caspase-1, interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and IL-18 in lung tissue. ELISA was used to detect contents of IL-1β and IL-18 in lung tissue. The results showed that, compared with the normal control group, there were no significant changes in all indexes in the normal+NaHS group, while the hypoxia group exhibited significantly increased mPAP and RVHI, thickened pulmonary vascular wall, narrowed lumen, increased collagen fibers, up-regulated expression levels of aerobic glycolysis-related proteins (HK2 and PKM2), up-regulated expression levels of pyroptosis-related proteins (NLRP3, GSDMD-N, Caspase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18), and increased contents of IL-1β and IL-18. These changes of the above indexes in the hypoxia group were significantly reversed by NaHS. These results suggest that H2S can improve rat HPH by inhibiting aerobic glycolysis-pyroptosis.
Animals
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Rats, Sprague-Dawley
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Male
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Hypertension, Pulmonary/metabolism*
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Glycolysis/drug effects*
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Hydrogen Sulfide/therapeutic use*
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Hypoxia/complications*
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Rats
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Pyroptosis/drug effects*
5.Research progress in effect of traditional Chinese medicine on aerobic glycolysis in colorectal cancer.
Xu MA ; Sheng-Long LI ; Guang-Rong ZHENG ; Da-Cheng TIAN ; Gang-Gang LU ; Jie GAO ; Yu-Qi AN ; Li-Yuan CAO ; Liang LI ; Xiao-Yong TANG
China Journal of Chinese Materia Medica 2025;50(6):1496-1506
Colorectal cancer(CRC) is a common malignant tumor worldwide. Due to the treatment intolerance and side effects, CRC rank the top among various cancers regarding the incidence and mortality rates. Therefore, exploring new therapies is of great significance for the treatment of CRC. Aerobic glycolysis(AEG) plays an important role in the microenvironment formation, proliferation, metastasis, and recurrence of CRC and other tumor cells. It has been confirmed that intervening in the AEG pathway can effectively curb CRC. The active ingredients and compound prescriptions of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) can effectively inhibit the proliferation, metastasis, and drug resistance and regulate the apoptosis of tumor cells by modulating AEG-associated transport proteins [eg, glucose transporters(GLUT)], key enzymes [hexokinase(HK) and phosphofructokinase(PFK)], key genes [hypoxia-inducible factor 1(HIF-1) and oncogene(c-Myc)], and signaling pathways(MET/PI3K/Akt/mTOR). Accordingly, they can treat CRC, reduce the recurrence, and improve the prognosis of CRC. Although AEG plays a key role in the development and progression of CRC, the specific mechanisms are not yet fully understood. Therefore, this article delves into the intrinsic connection of the targets and mechanisms of the AEG pathway with CRC from the perspective of tumor cell glycolysis and explores how active ingredients(oxymatrine, kaempferol, and dioscin) and compound prescriptions(Quxie Capsules, Jiedu Sangen Decoction, and Xianlian Jiedu Prescription) of TCM treat CRC by intervening in the AEG pathway. Additionally, this article explores the shortcomings in the current research, aiming to provide reliable targets and a theoretical basis for treating CRC with TCM.
Humans
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Colorectal Neoplasms/genetics*
;
Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use*
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Glycolysis/drug effects*
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Animals
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Medicine, Chinese Traditional
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Signal Transduction/drug effects*
6.Exploring in vivo existence forms of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma in rats.
Meng-Ge FENG ; Lin-Han XIANG ; Jing ZHANG ; Wen-Hui ZHAO ; Yang LI ; Li-Li LI ; Guang-Xue LIU ; Shao-Qing CAI ; Feng XU
China Journal of Chinese Materia Medica 2025;50(9):2539-2562
The study aims to elucidate the existence forms(original constituents and metabolites) of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma in rats and reveal its metabolic pathways. After Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma was administered orally once a day for seven consecutive days to rats, all urine and feces samples were collected for seven days, while the blood samples were obtained 6 h after the last administration. Using the ultra high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry(UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS) technique, this study identified 6, 73, and 156 existence forms of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma in the rat plasma, urine, and feces samples, respectively. Among them, 101 compounds were identified as new existence forms, and 13 original constituents were identified by comparing with reference compounds. The metabolic reactions of constituents from Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma were mainly deglycosylation, dehydration, hydroxylation, hydrogenation, dehydrogenation, acetylation, and amino acid conjugation. Furthermore, the possible in vivo metabolic pathways of protopanaxatriol(PPT) in rats were proposed. Through comprehensive analysis of the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry(LC-MS) data, isomeric compounds were discriminated, and the planar chemical structures of 32 metabolites were clearly identified. According to the literature, 48 original constituents possess antitumor and cardiovascular protective bioactivities. Additionally, 32 metabolites were predicted to have similar bioactivities by SuperPred. This research lays the foundation for further exploring the in vivo effective forms of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma.
Animals
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Rats
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Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacokinetics*
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Rhizome/metabolism*
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Male
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Rats, Sprague-Dawley
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Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid
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Panax notoginseng/chemistry*
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Tandem Mass Spectrometry
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Feces/chemistry*
7.Effectiveness of Acupuncture in Improving Quality of Life for Patients with Advanced Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Xin YU ; Si-Yao GONG ; Qin LUO ; Gui-Xing XU ; Hao TIAN ; Qian LI ; Ming CHEN ; Sha YANG ; Shu-Guang YU
Chinese journal of integrative medicine 2025;31(4):360-371
OBJECTIVE:
To investigate the effect of acupuncture on advanced cancer patients by meta-analysis.
METHODS:
Nine databases (the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, China Science and Technology Journal Database, and WanFang Data) were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on acupuncture in advanced cancer patients published from inception to February 13, 2023 and updated to June 1, 2023. Primary outcomes were quality of life (QOL), while secondary outcomes were pain, fatigue, and adverse events (side effects). Data synthesis was performed using RevMan V.5.3 to calculate pooled effect sizes. RoB-2 was used for the risk of bias, and the quality of evidence was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) tool.
RESULTS:
Totally 17 RCTs involving 1,178 participants were included, 15 of which were pooled for meta-analysis. Most studies demonstrated some concern for the overall risk of bias. The pooled data indicated that acupuncture was associated with improved QOL [mean difference (MD)=6.67, 95% confidence interval (CI): 5.09 to 8.26], pain (MD=-1.18, 95% CI -2.28 to -0.08), and adverse events (risk ratio=0.30, 95% CI: 0.26 to 0.57) compared with control groups. Fatigue outcome was not included. Heterogeneity was substantial, and GRADE evidence was very low for both QOL and pain.
CONCLUSIONS
Acupuncture could benefit patients with advanced cancer and is considered safe compared with usual care. However, the evidence regarding QOL and pain outcomes requires further validation. It is crucial to encourage the development of high-quality studies to strengthen this evidence. (Registry No. CRD42023423539).
Humans
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Acupuncture Therapy
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Neoplasms/therapy*
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Quality of Life
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Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
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Treatment Outcome
8.Clinical effects of Huayu Ditan Linao Decoction combined with Suhexiang Pills on elderly patients with cerebral hemorrhage in convalescent stage
Xian-kun ZHU ; Tian-yu LI ; Kai-qin LI ; Ze-ling DONG ; Guang-xian MIAO ; Ying LIU ; Ping XU
Chinese Traditional Patent Medicine 2025;47(7):2229-2233
AIM To explore the clinical effects of Huayu Ditan Linao Decoction combined with Suhexiang Pills on elderly patients with cerebral hemorrhage in convalescent stage.METHODS One hundred and ten patients were randomly assigned into control group(55 cases)for 1-month intervention of both conventional treatment and rehabilitation training,and observation group(55 cases)for 1-month intervention of Huayu Ditan Linao Decoction,Suhexiang Pills,conventional treatment and rehabilitation training.The changes in clinical effects,TCM syndrome score,NIHSS score,FMA score,BI index,cerebrovascular function indices(dynamic resistance,average flow velocity,peripheral resistance,average flow rate),serum inflammatory indices(IL-6,hs-CPR,TNF-α)and serum oxidative stress indices(SOD,MDA)were detected.RESULTS The observation group demonstrated higher total effective rate than the control group(P<0.05).After the treatment,the two groups displayed decreased TCM syndrome score,NIHSS score,dynamic resistance,peripheral resistance,serum inflammatory indices,MDA(P<0.05),and increased FMA score,BI index,average flow velocity,average flow rate,SOD(P<0.05),especially for the observation group(P<0.05).CONCLUSION For the elderly patients with cerebral hemorrhage in convalescent stage,Huayu Ditan Linao Decoction combined with Suhexiang Pills can enhance clinical effects,improve limb functions and nerve functions,regulate serum inflammatory and oxidative stress indice,and promote prognosis.
9.Adams-Oliver syndrome presenting with a large congenital scalp defect as the initial sign:two case reports and literature review
Liu XU ; Guang LI ; Shuxin TIAN
Clinical Medicine of China 2025;41(2):147-150
Adams-Oliver syndrome is a rare genetic disease. We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of two neonates with Adams-Oliver syndrome and large congenital scalp defects admitted to Tangshan Maternal and Child Health Hospital, and summarized their clinical manifestations and treatment methods in combination with literature. The two patients were full-term infants, both with lower limbs and heart congenital malformations, combined with leukodystrophy. One patient with Adams-Oliver syndrome underwent karyotype analysis, and the chromosomes were polymorphic (46, XX, 15pstk+). Both cases of congenital scalp defects were treated conservatively. For neonates with large congenital scalp defects, accompanied by congenital malformation at the extremities and heart as well as abnormal development of the central nervous system. Adams-Oliver syndrome should be considered and relevant pathogenic gene testing should be completed to provide a basis for precise diagnosis and treatment.
10.Shenxiao Tongluo Prescription Alleviates Kidney Injury in Diabetic Rats via PGC-1α/SIRT3/HIF-1α Pathway
Cangcang XU ; Xianbing GUO ; Guang LI ; Wenhao JIAO ; Yang ZHAO ; Yingjun DING
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(17):108-116
ObjectiveTo investigate the mechanisms of mitochondrial dynamics and metabolic reprogramming in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy (DN) by Shenxiao Tongluo prescription via the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α)/sirtuin-3 (SIRT3)/hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) signaling pathway. MethodsSixty-five SD rats were randomized into a sham group (10 rats) and a modeling group (55 rats), and the modeling rats underwent left nephrectomy and intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (35 mg·kg-1) to prepare a DN model. After successful modeling, the rats were randomized into model, empagliflozin (10 mg·kg-1), and low-, medium-, and high-dose (7.656, 15.312, 30.624 g·kg-1, respectively) Shenxiao Tongluo prescription groups. The urine microalbumin (UmAlb), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and serum creatinine (SCr) levels of rats in each group were assessed after continuous gavage for 8 weeks. The corresponding kits were used to measure the levels of lactate, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and malondialdehyde (MDA) in the kidney tissue. Hematoxylin-eosin staining, Masson staining, and periodic acid-Schiff staining were performed to observe the pathological changes in the kidney tissue. Transmission electron microscopy was employed to observe mitochondrial morphology. Immunohistochemistry was employed to determine the expression levels of dynamin-related protein 1 (DRP1) and pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) in the kidney tissue. Western blot was adopted to assess the protein levels of PGC-1α, SIRT3, HIF-1α, dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1), optic atrophy 1 (OPA1), hexokinase 2 (HK2), and pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) in the kidney tissue. ResultsCompared with the sham group, the model group showed elevated levels of UmAlb, BUN, SCr, lactate, and MDA, decreased SOD level (P<0.05), glomerular hypertrophy, thickening of the mesangial basement membrane, vacuolar degeneration of renal tubular epithelial cells, and infiltration of renal interstitial inflammatory cells, oval mitochondria with disordered, blurred or disappearing cristae, down-regulated protein levels of PGC-1α, SIRT3, and OPA1, and up-regulated protein levels of HIF-1α, DRP1, HK2, and PKM2 (P<0.05). Compared with the model group, the treatment in all the groups increased the body weight, lowered the levels of GLU, UmAlb, BUN, and MDA, raised the level of SOD, alleviated the pathological damage in the kidney tissue and mitochondrial damage, up-regulated the expression of PGC-1α, SIRT3, and OPA1, and down-regulated the expression of HIF-1α, DRP1, and PKM2 (P<0.05). Empagliflozin and Shenxiao Tongluo prescription at medium and high doses lowered the levels of SCr and lactate and down-regulated the expression of HK2 (P<0.05), which had no statistical significance in the low-dose Shenxiao Tongluo prescription group. ConclusionShenxiao Tongluo prescription may regulate mitochondrial dynamics and metabolic reprogramming by activating the PGC-1α/SIRT3/HIF-1α pathway, thereby alleviating oxidative damage in the kidney tissue and delaying the progression of DN.

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