Objective:To investigate the distribution of potential suitable habitats for Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province during different climatic periods. Methods:The geographical location data of Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province from 1980 to 2023 were collected through literature search and field ecological investigation. The environmental factor variables were downloaded from the WorldClim website and the Resource and Environmental Science and Data Platform. A combination of SDMtune, ENMTools packages, and the maximum entropy (MaxEnt) model were used to predict the potential habitats of Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province during different climatic periods and determine its dominant environmental factors. Among them, the time range of historical climatic period data was 1970 - 2000. The future climatic period data (2021 - 2040, 2041 - 2060) were selected as the low forcing scenario (SSP126 scenario) of the shared socioeconomic pathways (SSP) in the Beijing Climate Center - Climate System Model version 2-Medium Resolution, to simulate the impact of global warming on the distribution of potential habitats for Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province. Results:A total of 83 geographical distribution sites of Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province were obtained. After screening, 10 environmental factors were included in the MaxEnt model. Among them, the cumulative contribution percentage of annual precipitation, average annual temperature, and vegetation type was 67.3%. Compared with historical climatic period, the total potential habitats of Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province increased from 29.81 × 10 4 km 2 to 32.24 × 10 4 km 2 in 2041 - 2060. The center of potential habitats moved to 47.75° N, and 128.66° E, with a northwest offset of 126.07° and a migration distance of 45.83 km. Conclusion:With global climate warming, the total potential habitats of Ixodes persulcatus in Heilongjiang Province has increased, showing an overall trend of migration to the northwest.

ObjectiveTo predict the potential nephrotoxic components in traditional Chinese medicine health food products based on the Traditional Chinese Medicine Toxicity Alert System and Basic Toxicology Database （TCMTAS-BTD）， screen and validate the predicted components by cell and animal experiments， and decipher the mechanism of nephrotoxicity by network pharmacology. MethodTCMTAS-BTD was utilized to predict the toxicity of 3 540 compounds found in the catalogue of traditional Chinese health food ingredients. In the cell experiment， the top 5 compounds with high toxicity probability were screened by measurement of cell proliferation and viability （CCK-8） and high-content screening. ICR mice were randomized into a control group， a low-dose （2.91 mg·kg^-1·d^-1） ecliptasaponin A， and a high-dose （29.1 mg·kg^-1·d^-1） ecliptasaponin A group， with 10 mice in each group， and treated continuously for 28 days. During the experiment， the general conditions of the rats were observed， and the kidney index was calculated. The levels of serum creatinine （SCr） and blood urea nitrogen （BUN） in the serum as well as the content of malondialdehyde （MDA） and superoxide dismutase （SOD） in the renal tissue were measured. The pathological changes of the kidney were observed. Network pharmacology was employed to predict the potential pathways of nephrotoxicity. Finally， the pathway-associated proteins were validated by Western blot. ResultThe top 5 compounds with high probability of nephrotoxicity were ecliptasaponin A， chrysophanol， rutaecarpine， tanshinoneⅠ， and geniposidic acid. In the cell experiment， CCK-8 results showed that 10 μmol·L^-1 ecliptasaponin A， 60 μmol·L^-1 chrysophanol， 40 μmol·L^-1 rutaecarpine， and 20 μmol·L^-1 tanshinone I altered the viability of HK-2 cells. High-content analysis showed that 10 μmol·L^-1 ecliptasaponin A， chrysophanol， rutaecarpine， and tanshinone Ⅰ reduced the cell number （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The animal experiment showed that the mice in the high-dose ecliptasaponin A group presented slow movement， slow weight gain （P<0.01）， increased kidney index （P<0.01）， elevated SCr， BUN， and MDA levels （P<0.01）， and lowered SOD level （P<0.01）. Mild histopathological changes were observed in the high-dose ecliptasaponin A group. The network pharmacology results showed that the key targets of nephrotoxicity induced by ecliptasaponin A were mainly enriched in the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt） signaling pathway， prostatic cancer and lipid and atherosclerosis pathways. Western blot results verified that high dose of ecliptasaponin A raised the phosphorylation levels of PI3K and Akt （P<0.01）. ConclusionOn day 28 of administration， 29.1 mg·kg^-1 ecliptasaponin A was found to induce renal injury in rats. The mechanism may be related with the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway， which implied that excessive and prolonged usage of Ecliptae Herba may increase the incidence of adverse drug reactions.

ObjectiveTo study the effect of Tanreqing injection （TRQ） on the pulmonary flora in the rat model of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （COPD）. MethodWistar rats were randomized into control， model， and TRQ groups. The rats in other groups except the control group were treated by smoking combined with intratracheal instillation of lipopolysaccharide for the modeling of COPD. The TRQ group was intraperitoneally injected with TRQ （2 g·kg^-1）. At the end of the experiment， after blood collection from the abdominal aorta of the rats， the lung tissue was collected for hematoxylin-eosin and picric sirius red staining to reveal the pathological changes. The lung lavage fluid was collected， and the diversity and relative abundance of lung flora in different groups were analyzed by 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing. ResultThe lungs of the control group were normal， and those of the model group showed neutrophil infiltration， telangiectasia， lung hemorrhage and emphysema in individual cases， and thickening of collagen fibers in the trachea. Compared with the model group， the TRQ group showed significantly improved lungs and recovered collagen fibers. The MLI analysis showed that compared with the control group， the model group showcased increased alveolar space （P<0.01）， which was reduced in the TRQ group （P<0.05）. Compared with the control group， the model group showed increased wall thickness （P<0.01）， and the increase was attenuated in the TRQ group （P<0.01）. TRQ increased the Simpson index and altered the α diversity of pulmonary flora. The results of principal co-ordinate analysis showed that TRQ changed the β diversity and reduced the β diversity index of pulmonary flora. At the genus level， the model group showed increased relative abundance of g_Bacillus and g_Brevundimonas and decreased relative abundance of g_Pseudomonas， compared with the control group. After treatment with TRQ， the relative abundance of g_Stenotrophomonas increased， and that of g_Bacillus decreased. The LEfSe of differential taxa between groups showed that the modeling increased the relative abundance of g_Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group， and TRQ treatment increased the relative abundance of g_Rhodococcus and g_Stenotrophomonas. ConclusionTRQ can regulate the diversity of pulmonary flora and restore the balance of bacterial genera in the rat model of COPD， which may be one of the mechanisms of the prevention and treatment of COPD with TRQ.

ObjectiveTo construct a cough model induced by chemical stimuli by whole-body plethysmography （WBP） for counting coughs based on cough waveforms， and use this model to explore the antitussive effect of GK-A. MethodDifferent chemical stimuli were used to induce coughs in mice or guinea pigs. Respiratory waveforms were monitored by WBP， and the recognizable and typical cough waveforms were selected for cough counting. Guinea pigs were induced to cough with different concentrations of citric acid or capsaicin， and cough waveforms were used to optimize the stimulation conditions. The optimized guinea pig model of cough was validated with dextromethorphan， and the optimized guinea pig model of capsaicin-induced cough was used to evaluate the antitussive effect of GK-A. ResultWBP could count the coughs induced by capsaicin and citric acid in guinea pigs by recognizable and typical respiratory waveforms. The optimized stimulation conditions were capsaicin concentration of 100 µmol·L^-1 and nebulization for 2 min. The validation results showed that compared with the model group， the dextromethorphan group of guinea pigs had reduced coughs （P<0.05） and prolonged cough latency （P<0.01）. GK-A prolonged the cough latency （P<0.05） and reduced coughs （P<0.05） in the mouse model of ammonia-induced cough. In the guinea pig model of capsaicin-induced cough， GK-A prolonged cough latency （P<0.05）， reduced coughs （P<0.05）， and decreased substance P （SP） content in the guinea pig serum （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionA guinea pig model of capsaicin-induced cough was successfully established based on cough waveform counting， which provided an objective and accurate cough counting method. GK-A has antitussive effects， possibly by inhibiting the neuropeptide SP.

Objective:To investigate the effects of Guiling Gao on body temperature, gastrointestinal motility, gastrointestinal hormones, Th1/Th2 cytokines and water metabolism in rats with damp-heat syndrome.Methods:Totally 60 SD rats were randomly divided into control group, model group, mosapride group, Guiling Gao low dose group (3.4 g/kg), medium dose group (6.8 g/kg) and high dose group (13.6 g/kg) according to random number table method, with 10 rats in each group. Except for the blank group, the other groups adopted the method of "environmental factors + fat and sweet diet + biological factors" to prepare the rat model of damp heat syndrome of febrile diseases. After modeling, they were administered by gavage for 7 days. During the experiment, the general state, body weight and body temperature were observed, the gastric residue rate of rats was calculated by weighing method, the intestinal propulsion rate of rats was calculated by charcoal propulsion method, and the levels of serum motilin (MTL), gastrin (GAS), somatostatin (SS), substance P (SP),IL-4 and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) were detected by ELISA, and the changes of aquaporin 3 (AQP3) mRNA transcription level were detected by real-time PCR.Results:Compared with the model group, the weight of rats in Guiling Gao high dose group increased after experiment of 22 days ( P<0.05), and body temperature of rats in Guiling Gao medium and high dose group decreased in 19-20 day ( P<0.01); and the gastric emptying rate and the small intestine propulsion rate of small intestine in Guiling Gao medium and high dose group increased significantly ( P<0.01 or P<0.05); the serum MTL, GAS and SP levels increased ( P<0.01 or P<0.05), and SS decreased ( P<0.01 or P<0.05) in the Guiling Gao medium and high dose groups; The levels of IL-4, IFN-γ and IFN-γ/IL-4 ratio decreased ( P<0.01); The expression of AQP3 mRNA (1.16 ± 0.25 vs. 0.23 ± 0.01) in the Guiling Gao high dose group was up-regulated ( P<0.01). Conclusions:Guiling Gao can effectively improve the activity state of damp-heat syndrome model rats caused by complex factors. This mechanism may be related to enhancing gastrointestinal movement, increasing gastrointestinal hormone secretion, restoring the dynamic balance of immune system Th1/Th2 and promoting the transport of water from intestinal cavity.

ObjectiveTo investigate the detoxification mechanism of Chebulae Fructus， Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma and Prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta， and their effective components ellagic acid， liquiritin and aconitine based on cardiac cytochrome P450 （CYP450） system. MethodIn in vivo experiments， rats were randomly divided into control group， prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta group （0.25 g·kg^-1）， Chebulae Fructus group （0.252 g·kg^-1）， Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma group （0.25 g·kg^-1） and combination group （0.25 g·kg^-1 Chebulae Fructus+0.25 g·kg^-1 Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma+0.25 g·kg^-1 prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta， with prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta as standard）. After 8 days of administration， creatine kinase （CK） and lactate dehydrogenase （LDH） in rats were detected to observe the pathological changes of heart tissue. Real-time PCR and Western blot were performed to detect the mRNA and protein expressions of CYP2J3， respectively. In in vitro experiments， control group， aconitine group， ellagic acid group， liquiritin group and combination group （aconitine+ellagic acid+liquiritin） were set， and their effects on cell number， DNA content， reactive oxygen species （ROS） and mitochondrial membrane potential （MMP） were detected by high content analysis. The changes in the mRNA and protein expressions of CYP2J3 were also observed. ResultIn vivo experiments， compared with the control group， the prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta group had increased CK and LDH in serum （P<0.05， P<0.01）， while the combination group had decreased activities of CK and LDH. Additionally， pathological staining results showed that Chebulae Fructus and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma reduced the cardiac toxicity caused by prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta. Real-time PCR found that compared with the control group， prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta down-regulated the mRNA level of CYP2J3 （P<0.05）， while up-regulated that expression when used in combination with Chebulae Fructus and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma （P<0.01）. The protein and mRNA translation levels were basically consistent. In vitro experiments， high content analysis revealed that there was a decrease in the cell number， DNA content and MMP fluorescence value of the aconitine group （P<0.01） and the combination group （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and the fluorescence value of the combination group was higher than that of the aconitine group. Moreover， aconitine down-regulated the mRNA level of CYP2J3 （P<0.05）， but the down-regulating ability of aconitine was reversed in the combination group （P<0.05）. ConclusionThe detoxification mechanism of combined Chebulae Fructus， Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma and prepared Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Cocta is mainly that the combination of ellagic acid， liquiritin and aconitine can up-regulate the expression of CYP2J3， and promote the metabolism of arachidonic acid （AA） to produce epoxyeicosatrienoic acids （EETs）， thus reducing the cardiac toxicity， and this effect may start from the transcriptional link.

Ten novel podophyllotoxin derivatives (IIIa-IIIi and IV) were synthesized by three-step reactions using podophyllotoxin and N-benzyloxycarbonyl glycine-L-proline as raw material. The structures of the target compounds were confirmed by 1H NMR, 13C NMR and MS. MTT method was used to test anti-tumor activity of the target compounds on HepG2, THP-1, HeLa and MCF-7 cells. The results showed that all the target compounds had inhibitory activity against HepG2, THP-1, HeLa and MCF-7 cells, and the inhibitory activity of IIIa on HepG2 cells was the most prominent with an IC50 value of 0.58 nmol/L. The binding mode of compound IIIa and FAPα was studied by molecular docking. Compound IIIa could bind to multiple sites of FAPα enzyme.

Objective To screen microRNAs(miRNAs)related to early mycosis fungoides(MF). Methods A high?throughput miRNA PCR array was used to determine miRNA expression profiles in skin lesions of 6 patients with early MF (early MF group) and 6 patients with lichen planus (control group), followed by screening of differentially expressed miRNAs between the two groups. Then, real?time fluorescence?based quantitative PCR(RT?qPCR)was performed to verify the differentially expressed miRNAs in lesional specimens from 13 patients with early MF and 13 patients with eczema or lichen planus, as well as in Myla cells and normal human T?lymphocytes. Results The high?throughput miRNA PCR array showed that the expressions of hsa?miR?378a?5p, hsa?miR?107 and hsa?miR?302c?3p were significantly higher in the early MF group than in the control group(all P<0.05). For skin lesions, the results from RT?qPCR were similar to those from the miRNA array assay. Compared with normal human peripheral blood T?lymphocytes, Myla cells showed significantly increased expressions of hsa?miR?378a?5p and hsa?miR?107, which was consistent with the results from the miRNA array assay. However, no significant difference was observed in the expression of hsa?miR?302c?3p between the two kinds of cells. Conclusion MiRNA expression profiles in early MF are different from those in inflammatory skin diseases.

AIM:To explore the effects of confluent endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) derived from young and aged rats on the phenotype conversion, proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells ( SMCs) .METH-ODS:Mononuclear cells were obtained from the bone marrow of young (1~2 month old) and aged (19 to 26 month old) Sprague-Dawley rats and cultured with medium DMEM/F12 ( containing 15% fetal bovine serum, endothelial cell growth supplements (ECGs) 100 g/L, 1 ×105 units/L of penicillin and streptomycin, respectively).EPCs were characterized as double positive for DiI-Ac-LDL uptake and lectin binding.Abdominal aorta was obtained from 1 to 2 month old Sprague-Dawley rats.Vascular SMCs were cultured by tissue explant method and identified byα-SM-actin immunofluorescence.In transwell co-culture system, the confluent EPCs located in the upper chamber and SMCs were seeded on the lower cham-ber.The experiments were divided into passage 3 SMCs group (P3), passage 4 SMCs group (P4), passage 4 SMCs co-culture with EPCs derived from young rats group (P4YE) and passage 4 SMCs co-culture with EPCs derived from aged rats group (P4AE).The protein expression ofα-SM-actin and osteopontin was detected by Western blotting.[3H]-TdR incor-poration assay was used to determine the proliferation.SMC migration was analyzed by scratch wound healing assay.RE-SULTS:Compared with P3 group,α-SM-actin expression in P4 group significantly decreased and osteopontin protein ex-pression obviously increased, whereas no significant change was found in P4YE group.Compared with P4 group, confluent EPCs derived from young and aged rats both markedly increased α-SM-actin and decreased osteopontin expression in P4 SMCs.Compared with aged rat-derived EPCs, young rat-derived EPCs were more effectively to induce a delayed SMC phe-notype transition (from contractile phenotype to a synthetic phenotype), and to inhibit SMC proliferation and migration. CONCLUSION:Co-culture of confluent EPC induces a delayed vascular SMC phenotype transition and inhibits SMCs pro-liferation and migration.Young rat derived EPCs are more effective to induce a delayed vascular SMC phenotype transition and has stronger inhibitory effects on SMCs proliferation and migration compared with that derived from aged rats.

Basing on the basic theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the technical standards of TCM industry is such a Link that it is to clarify the internal relations between the basic theory of TCM and developing of TCM industry. This article analyzed several problems of technical standards of TCM industry, such as basic theory of TCM and standardization problem of TCM industry. Technical standards of TCM industry must receive the guidance of basic theory of TCM, so that it will promote the process of modernization and internationalization of TCM industry.
China ; Drug Industry ; standards ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; standards