This study explored the potential therapeutic targets and mechanisms of Danggui Shaoyao San(DSS) in the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's disease(AD) through transcriptomics and metabolomics, combined with animal experiments. Fifty male C57BL/6J mice, aged seven weeks, were randomly divided into the following five groups: control, model, positive drug, low-dose DSS, and high-dose DSS groups. After the intervention, the Morris water maze was used to assess learning and memory abilities of mice, and Nissl staining and hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining were performed to observe pathological changes in the hippocampal tissue. Transcriptomics and metabolomics were employed to sequence brain tissue and identify differential metabolites, analyzing key genes and metabolites related to disease progression. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR) was employed to validate the expression of key genes. The Morris water maze results indicated that DSS significantly improved learning and cognitive function in scopolamine(SCOP)-induced model mice, with the high-dose DSS group showing the best results. Pathological staining showed that DSS effectively reduced hippocampal neuronal damage, increased Nissl body numbers, and reduced nuclear pyknosis and neuronal loss. Transcriptomics identified seven key genes, including neurexin 1(Nrxn1) and sodium voltage-gated channel α subunit 1(Scn1a), and metabolomics revealed 113 differential metabolites, all of which were closely associated with synaptic function, oxidative stress, and metabolic regulation. RT-qPCR experiments confirmed that the expression of these seven key genes was consistent with the transcriptomics results. This study suggests that DSS significantly improves learning and memory in SCOP model mice and alleviates hippocampal neuronal pathological damage. The mechanisms likely involve the modulation of synaptic function, reduction of oxidative stress, and metabolic balance, with these seven key genes serving as important targets for DSS in the treatment of AD.
Animals ; Alzheimer Disease/genetics* ; Male ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Metabolomics ; Transcriptome/drug effects* ; Maze Learning/drug effects* ; Hippocampus/metabolism* ; Humans ; Disease Models, Animal ; Memory/drug effects*

Objective To develop a novel protective ventilator circuit component and to verify its performance by water seal and anti-splash experiments.Methods A novel protective ventilator circuit component had a design scheme with the multifunctional joint,and consisted of a tee connection tube,an isolation sleeve and a stop sleeve,of which,the tee connection tube was made of polyethylene polymer material and the others were made of silicone material.The tee connection tube had a T-shaped structure with two standard connection ports,which was composed of an adapter,a sealing cap,a plug and a sealing ring;the isolation sleeve was in the shape of a cylinder with a raised bottom,which was inserted into the adapter;the stop sleeve was located in the isolation sleeve,with an inverted frustum of a cone at the bottom and a rounded hole in the middle of the inverted frustum.An open ventilator circuit tube was involved in the performance verification of the circuit component developed.In the water seal experiment,sputum aspiration was simulated and the heights of the liquid level drop in the L-shaped tubes were compared after sputum aspiration.In the anti-splash experiment,the infection rates on the surfaces of the sterile hole towels and gloves were calculated.Results Water seal experiment showed after sputum aspiration the open ventilator circuit tube had the liquid level at the L-shaped tube higher significantly than that of the circuit component;the anti-splash experiment indicated sputum aspiration resulted in the occurance of the splashing out of the secretion and 77.5%infection rate by the open ventilator circuit tube,while no splashing out and 0%infection rate by the circuit component developed.Conclusion The novel protective ventilator circuit component behaves well in sealing and anti-splashing,and thus is worthy of clinical application for sputum aspiration.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2025,46(4):113-117]

Japanese spotted fever(JSF)is an infectious disease caused by Rickettsia japonica,with nonspecific clinical symptoms and a high risk of misdiagnosis.We reported a case of JSF,in which Rickettsia japonica was detected in blood cells by metagenomic next-generation sequencing.The patient recovered after treatment with doxycycline.This report provides a reference for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of JSF.
Humans ; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ; Metagenomics ; Rickettsia/isolation & purification* ; Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis/microbiology*

Aim To explore the mechanism of ligustil-ide(LIG)improving demyelination by inhibiting in-flammatory response in mice with distal middle cerebral artery occlusion(dMCAO)through AIM2/caspase-1 signal pathway.Methods Thirty C57BL/6N male mice were randomly divided into three groups:sham operation group(Sham group,n=10),model group(dMCAO group,n=10)and treatment group(LIG group,n=10).The dMCAO mouse model was estab-lished by electrocoagulation in dMCAO group and LIG group.The mice were scored by Longa after waking up,and the changes of cerebral blood flow were moni-tored by laser speckle blood flow imaging system after dMCAO.One hour after modeling,LIG(30 mg·kg-1·d-1)was injected intraperitoneally in LIG group,and the same amount of normal saline was injected in sham group and dMCAO group for one week until the end of the experiment.The mice in each group were stained with TTC,and the brain injury was observed pathologically.Fatigue turning bar test and open field test were used to evaluate the motor function and anxie-ty degree of mice,and then the brain tissues of mice were taken for black gold staining to compare the chan-ges of myelin sheath in each group.Immunofluores-cence staining was used to detect the average fluores-cence intensity of MBP,IBA1 and GFAP in CC,CPU and CX regions of mouse brains.ELISAwas used to de-tect the contents of TNF-α,IL-6,IL-1 β,IL-17A and BDNF in brain tissue proteins of mice.Western blot-ting was used to detect the protein expressions of AIM2,caspase-1 and ASC-in each group.Results Compared with the dMCAO group,the infarct area was reduced,the behavior was significantly improved and the demyelination was reduced in the LIG group.The expression of MBP protein in CC,CPU and CX regions increased(P＜0.05),the expression of IBA1 in CX decreased(P＜0.01),and the expression of GFAP in-creased in CC,CPU and CX regions(P＜0.01).The results of ELISA showed that the levels ofTNF-α(P＜0.01),IL-6(P＜0.01),IL-1β(P＜0.05)and IL-17A(P＜0.01)significantly decreased,while the ex-pression of BDNF increased(P＜0.05).The protein expression levels of AIM2,caspase-1 and ASC in mouse brain decreased after treatment(P＜0.01).Conclusion LIG has a protective effect on demyelina-tion in dMCAO mice,which may be related to the inhi-bition of AIM2/caspase-1 signaling pathway and in-flammation and to the promotion of BDNF secretion.

Aim To explore the mechanism of ligustil-ide(LIG)improving demyelination by inhibiting in-flammatory response in mice with distal middle cerebral artery occlusion(dMCAO)through AIM2/caspase-1 signal pathway.Methods Thirty C57BL/6N male mice were randomly divided into three groups:sham operation group(Sham group,n=10),model group(dMCAO group,n=10)and treatment group(LIG group,n=10).The dMCAO mouse model was estab-lished by electrocoagulation in dMCAO group and LIG group.The mice were scored by Longa after waking up,and the changes of cerebral blood flow were moni-tored by laser speckle blood flow imaging system after dMCAO.One hour after modeling,LIG(30 mg·kg-1·d-1)was injected intraperitoneally in LIG group,and the same amount of normal saline was injected in sham group and dMCAO group for one week until the end of the experiment.The mice in each group were stained with TTC,and the brain injury was observed pathologically.Fatigue turning bar test and open field test were used to evaluate the motor function and anxie-ty degree of mice,and then the brain tissues of mice were taken for black gold staining to compare the chan-ges of myelin sheath in each group.Immunofluores-cence staining was used to detect the average fluores-cence intensity of MBP,IBA1 and GFAP in CC,CPU and CX regions of mouse brains.ELISAwas used to de-tect the contents of TNF-α,IL-6,IL-1 β,IL-17A and BDNF in brain tissue proteins of mice.Western blot-ting was used to detect the protein expressions of AIM2,caspase-1 and ASC-in each group.Results Compared with the dMCAO group,the infarct area was reduced,the behavior was significantly improved and the demyelination was reduced in the LIG group.The expression of MBP protein in CC,CPU and CX regions increased(P＜0.05),the expression of IBA1 in CX decreased(P＜0.01),and the expression of GFAP in-creased in CC,CPU and CX regions(P＜0.01).The results of ELISA showed that the levels ofTNF-α(P＜0.01),IL-6(P＜0.01),IL-1β(P＜0.05)and IL-17A(P＜0.01)significantly decreased,while the ex-pression of BDNF increased(P＜0.05).The protein expression levels of AIM2,caspase-1 and ASC in mouse brain decreased after treatment(P＜0.01).Conclusion LIG has a protective effect on demyelina-tion in dMCAO mice,which may be related to the inhi-bition of AIM2/caspase-1 signaling pathway and in-flammation and to the promotion of BDNF secretion.

Objective To develop a novel protective ventilator circuit component and to verify its performance by water seal and anti-splash experiments.Methods A novel protective ventilator circuit component had a design scheme with the multifunctional joint,and consisted of a tee connection tube,an isolation sleeve and a stop sleeve,of which,the tee connection tube was made of polyethylene polymer material and the others were made of silicone material.The tee connection tube had a T-shaped structure with two standard connection ports,which was composed of an adapter,a sealing cap,a plug and a sealing ring;the isolation sleeve was in the shape of a cylinder with a raised bottom,which was inserted into the adapter;the stop sleeve was located in the isolation sleeve,with an inverted frustum of a cone at the bottom and a rounded hole in the middle of the inverted frustum.An open ventilator circuit tube was involved in the performance verification of the circuit component developed.In the water seal experiment,sputum aspiration was simulated and the heights of the liquid level drop in the L-shaped tubes were compared after sputum aspiration.In the anti-splash experiment,the infection rates on the surfaces of the sterile hole towels and gloves were calculated.Results Water seal experiment showed after sputum aspiration the open ventilator circuit tube had the liquid level at the L-shaped tube higher significantly than that of the circuit component;the anti-splash experiment indicated sputum aspiration resulted in the occurance of the splashing out of the secretion and 77.5%infection rate by the open ventilator circuit tube,while no splashing out and 0%infection rate by the circuit component developed.Conclusion The novel protective ventilator circuit component behaves well in sealing and anti-splashing,and thus is worthy of clinical application for sputum aspiration.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2025,46(4):113-117]

Aim To discover the potential active compounds and possible mechanisms in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment with Zhi-Huang-Zhi-Tong powder (ZHZTP) by using network pharmacology and in vitro study. Methods The active ingredient targets and disease targets of Zhihuang Zhitong Powder were searched and screened by database; they intersected to get a common target; and the "drug-component-target" relationship network diagram was constructed for GO and KEGG enrichment analysis of the overlapping genes; then the core components were docked with the core targets. Finally, based on the inflammation model of HUVECs in vitro, the efficacy and mechanism of Zhihuang Zhitong powder were verified by MTT method, plate scratch test and Western blot. Results Active compounds involved in RA treatment were screened in the present study, and the top two were ursolic acid and emodin, all playing crucial roles in RA treatment with ZHZTP. Additionally, the key target was AKTA, TNF and IL-6. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that ZHZTP regulated BP, MF and CC, and also focused on regulating AKTA, TNF and IL-6 signaling pathway. Molecular docking showed that interactions between key active compounds and key targets were stable. In vitro ZHZTP significantly inhibited cell viability and migration of TNF-a-stimulated HUVECs, and the involved mechanism may be associated with PI3K/AKT/m-TOR signaling. Conclusions The present study reveals that the potential active compounds of ZHZTP are ursolic acid and emodin, and moreover, the involved mechanisms of ZHZTP for RA treatment are associated with PI3 K/AKT/m-TOR signaling.

Objective To observe the efficacy and safety of Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides in the continuation treatment of mild and moderate depression.Methods An open,single-arm,multi-center design was adopted in our study.Adult patients with mild and moderate depression who had received acute treatment of Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides were enrolled and continue to receive Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides capsules for 24 weeks,the dose remained unchanged during continuation treatment.The remission rate,recurrence rate,recurrence time,and the change from baseline to endpoint of Hamilton Depression Scale(HAMD),Hamilton Anxiety Scale(HAMA),Clinical Global Impression-Severity(CGI-S)and Arizona Sexual Experience Scale(ASEX)were evaluated.The incidence of treatment-related adverse events was reported.Results The scores of HAMD-17 at baseline and after treatment were 6.60±1.87 and 5.85±4.18,scores of HAMA were 6.36±3.02 and 4.93±3.09,scores of CGI-S were 1.49±0.56 and 1.29±0.81,scores of ASEX were 15.92±4.72 and 15.57±5.26,with significant difference(P＜0.05).After continuation treatment,the remission rate was 54.59％(202 cases/370 cases),and the recurrence rate was 6.49％(24 cases/370 cases),the recurrence time was(64.67±42.47)days.The incidence of treatment-related adverse events was 15.35％(64 cases/417 cases).Conclusion Morinda officinalis oligosaccharides capsules can be effectively used for the continuation treatment of mild and moderate depression,and are well tolerated and safe.

Objective To analyze the stress changes of thoracic vertebra(T)11-sacrum(S)titanium rods in patients with ankylosing spondylitis after vertebral column decancellation(VCD)osteotomy,and provide reference for the selection and improvement of titanium rods before surgery.Methods The original data of the continuous scanning tomographic images of patients with ankylosing spondylitis after VCD osteotomy were imported into Mimics 21.0 in DICOM format,and T11-S vertebrae,screws and titanium rods were respectively reconstructed.They were imported into 3-Matic to establish a preliminary geometric modeling,and then processed with noise removal,paving,smoothing,etc.The improved model was imported into Hypermesh 10 software for grid division,and the material was imported into ANSYS 19.2 to display the finite element model after attribute assignment,Set the boundary and load conditions,and measure the stress value at the connection between the screw and the titanium rod.Results Under neutral position,forward bending,lateral bending,and axial rotation conditions,the titanium rod had the highest stress at the upper vertebrae(T11)and the lowest stress at the top vertebrae(L3);Under the backward extension condition,the titanium rod has the highest stress at the lower end vertebra(L5).Conclusion In the upper and lower vertebrae,it is possible to consider increasing the diameter of the titanium rod,enhancing its hardness,or changing it to a double rod.

Objective To explore the property of projection neurons in the pathway from the medial prefrontal cortex(mPFC)to the thalamic paraventricular nucleus(PVT)and to investigate the effect of modulation of the pathway on physiological pain and acute pain in mice.Methods Three knock-in mice with glutamate decarboxylase 67-green fluorescent protein(GAD67-GFP)were used in morphological tracing experiments,and twenty-seven C57 mice were used for behavioral observation experiments.Cholera toxin subunit B(CTB)was injected into the PVT of GAD67-GFP transgenic mice,and the properties of mPFC neurons projected to PVT were observed.The mPFC-PVT pathway was activated or inhibited by chemogenetics to observe the effects on physiological pain,such as mechanical pain,thermal pain,cold pain,and on acute inflammatory pain induced by capsaicin in mice.Results CTB-labeled neurons in the mPFC were mainly distributed in layer Ⅴ and layer Ⅵ and not double-labeled with GAD67-GFP.Chemogenetic activation of the mPFC-PVT pathway decreased the mechanical pain threshold significantly(P＜0.0001)and shortened the thermal pain latency(P＜0.001),but had no obvious effects on cold pain.Inhibition of this pathway increased the mechanical pain threshold significantly(P＜0.05).Activation of the pathway increased the paw licking time(P＜0.05)in acute inflammatory pain induced by capsaicin.Conclusion mPFC-PVT pathway is a non GABAergic projection and its activation can promote mechanical pain,thermal pain,and acute inflammatory pain induced by capsaicin in mice.