ObjectiveGastric hemorrhage is one of the most common and life-threatening emergencies of the upper digestive tract. Early identification and continuous monitoring are essential for reducing rebleeding rates and mortality, particularly within the critical early hours after onset. Although endoscopy and radiological imaging can accurately localize bleeding sites, these approaches are invasive, resource-intensive, and unsuitable for continuous bedside monitoring. Electrical impedance tomography (EIT), as a noninvasive and radiation-free functional imaging technique, offers real-time visualization of conductivity distribution and has the potential for detecting intragastric bleeding based on the electrical contrast between blood and surrounding gastric tissues. In this study, a three-dimensional gastric EIT (3D-gEIT) framework is proposed to achieve noninvasive, real-time, and dynamic monitoring of gastric hemorrhage, with emphasis on spatial localization and quantitative volume assessment. MethodsA three-dimensional upper-abdominal simulation model incorporating the stomach, gastric wall, gastric contents, and surrounding tissues was established. Three electrode configurations, namely the dual layer ring, the four layer staggered ring, and the opposed dual plane array, were designed and systematically compared to evaluate their influence on depth sensitivity and spatial resolution. Based on the Tikhonov-Noser hybrid regularization scheme, a region-clustering constraint was introduced to develop the TK-Noser-RCC algorithm. This approach aggregates spatially adjacent elements with similar conductivity variations, thereby enhancing structural continuity and suppressing isolated noise artifacts. To validate the proposed framework, an upper-abdominal physical phantom was constructed using agar to simulate background tissue conductivity. Hemispherical high-conductivity inclusions with volumes ranging from 10 ml to 50 ml were attached to the inner gastric wall to mimic localized bleeding under different gastric filling states. Boundary voltages were acquired under a 120 kHz excitation current and reconstructed using the TK-Noser-RCC algorithm. Furthermore, an in vivo animal experiment was performed using a porcine model with adult-scale abdominal dimensions. A total of 100 ml of autologous blood was injected incrementally into the stomach to simulate progressive gastric hemorrhage, and time-difference EIT reconstruction was conducted at each injection stage to assess the dynamic system response under physiological conditions. ResultsSimulation results demonstrated that the opposed dual-plane electrode array achieved superior depth sensitivity distribution and spatial resolution. For a 40 ml hemorrhage model, the average ICC and SSIM improved by 55.9% and 38.8% compared with the dual-layer ring configuration, and by 64.0% and 39.5% compared with the four-layer staggered configuration. The proposed region-clustering constraint significantly enhanced reconstruction stability. Under added Gaussian noise of 40 dB and 30 dB, ICC values remained approximately 0.85, indicating effective artifact suppression and preservation of boundary integrity. In physical phantom experiments, reconstructed hemorrhage volumes increased approximately linearly with the preset hemispherical volumes, and the reconstructed high-conductivity regions closely matched the actual bleeding locations. Both empty-stomach and full-stomach conditions were evaluated, demonstrating that the opposed dual-plane configuration maintained stable imaging performance across varying gastric contents. In the animal experiment, reconstructed low-impedance regions expanded progressively with increasing injected blood volume. The spatial localization of the hemorrhage remained stable throughout the procedure, and no significant artifacts were observed. Quantitative analysis showed that reconstructed volume and average conductivity variation exhibited an approximately linear growth trend with injected blood volume, confirming the sensitivity of the system to dynamic intragastric conductivity changes. ConclusionThe proposed 3D-gEIT framework enables quantitative reconstruction of gastric hemorrhage volume and spatial distribution with improved depth sensitivity, structural continuity, and noise robustness compared with conventional EIT approaches. By integrating optimized electrode configuration and a region-clustering-constrained reconstruction algorithm, the system provides stable dynamic monitoring under both controlled phantom conditions and in vivo physiological environments. This method offers a noninvasive, real-time, and low-cost imaging strategy for early diagnosis, postoperative monitoring, and bedside surveillance of gastric bleeding.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has become the most prevalent chronic liver disease worldwide, affecting approximately 32%-38% of the adult population and posing a growing public health burden. MASLD represents a continuous disease spectrum ranging from simple steatosis to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), progressive hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis, and ultimately hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The pathological core of MASLD lies in disruption of hepatic lipid metabolic homeostasis, characterized by an imbalance among de novo lipogenesis, fatty acid β-oxidation, and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL)-mediated lipid export. This metabolic disequilibrium subsequently drives inflammatory injury and fibrotic progression. Among the multiple regulatory pathways involved, thyroid hormone (TH) signaling has emerged as a central regulator of hepatic metabolic homeostasis. The liver is a major peripheral target organ of TH action, where TH predominantly exerts its metabolic effects through thyroid hormone receptor β (TRβ). Large-scale epidemiological studies and meta-analyses have demonstrated that hypothyroidism is significantly associated with increased MASLD prevalence, more severe histological injury, and advanced hepatic fibrosis, suggesting that dysregulation of TH signaling may participate throughout the entire MASLD disease spectrum. At the molecular level, TH regulates hepatic lipid metabolism by coordinating suppression of lipogenesis, enhancement of mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation, and promotion of VLDL assembly and secretion through integrated genomic actions of the T3-TRβ axis and non-genomic signaling pathways. Across different stages of MASLD, TH signaling exerts stage-dependent protective effects. In the steatosis stage, TH improves metabolic flexibility by modulating insulin sensitivity, glucose metabolism, and lipid droplet clearance, thereby alleviating early lipotoxic stress. During progression to MASH, TH attenuates inflammatory amplification by improving mitochondrial homeostasis, suppressing activation of the NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, and modulating the gut-liver axis microenvironment. In advanced stages, TH signaling influences hepatic stellate cell activation and extracellular matrix deposition, partly through interaction with the transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)/SMAD pathway, while alterations in intrahepatic TH availability, mediated by dynamic changes in iodothyronine deiodinase 1 (DIO1), contribute to fibrosis progression and hepatocellular dedifferentiation. In hepatocellular carcinoma, coordinated downregulation of TRβ and DIO1 establishes a tumor-associated hypothyroid state that promotes metabolic reprogramming and tumor progression. The clinical relevance of TH signaling in MASLD has been underscored by the recent approval of Resmetirom, a liver-targeted TRβ‑selective agonist, for the treatment of non-cirrhotic MASH with moderate-to-severe fibrosis (F2-F3). This approval represents a landmark transition from mechanistic understanding to metabolism-centered precision therapy in MASLD. Clinical trials have demonstrated that Resmetirom not only improves key histological endpoints, including MASH resolution and fibrosis regression, but also favorably modulates atherogenic lipid profiles, highlighting the therapeutic potential of selectively targeting hepatic TH pathways. This review systematically summarizes the multidimensional regulatory roles of TH across the MASLD disease spectrum and discusses emerging diagnostic and therapeutic implications of TH-based interventions, aiming to inform future mechanistic research and optimize clinical management strategies.

Objective: Scutellarin in Shuganning injection has potential allergenicity and is prone to causing anaphylactoid reactions. There is an urgent need to establish a simple and rapid chromatographic quantitative method to achieve the limit control of scutellarin in Shuganning injection.
Methods: For scutellarin, HPLC method was used in the quantitative analysis using a Shim-pack GIS C₁₈ (2.1 mm×150 mm, 5 μm) column. The mobile phase was a blend of 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid in water and acetonitrile, and gradient elution progress was applied for the whole process. The flow rate was 0.3 mL·min^-1 and the column temperature was maintained at 37 ℃. The detecting wavelength was 320 nm.
Results: The linear regression equation was y=51 456x-27 352, the correlation coefficient r=0.999 8, namely the calibration curve was linear in the range of 1.02-102.00 μg·mL^-1; the average recovery was 103.76%; the detection and quantification limit for determining scutellarin was 0.16 μg·mL^-1 and 0.57 μg·mL^-1, respectively; the injection sample was stable at room temperature for 48 h.
Conclusion: This method is easy to operate, reproducible and has high accuracy, thus can be used for quality control of Shuganning injection.

ObjectiveTo investigate the application value of a predictive model constructed based on quantitative imaging parameters and serum tumor markers in predicting the postoperative prognosis of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma （PDAC）. MethodsA retrospective study was conducted among 146 patients with PDAC who underwent radical resection in Hebei Medical University Fourth Hospital from April 2020 to March 2023， and the patients were divided into a training set with 102 patients and a validation set of 44 patients at a ratio of 7∶3 using the completely randomized method. All patients underwent enhanced computed tomography （CT） and multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging scans， and CT values in the arterial phase， the venous phase， and the delayed phase were recorded， as well as apparent diffusion coefficient （ADC） at b = 800 s/mm² and signal intensity （SI） of T₂ weighted imaging. The serum levels of carbohydrate antigen 19-9 （CA19-9） and carcinoembryonic antigen （CEA） were also measured. The independent-samples t test was used for comparison of continuous data between groups， and the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were plotted for survival analysis； the univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the association of clinical and imaging indicators with prognosis； the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator （LASSO）-Cox regression model was used to identify the important influencing factors for prognosis， and a prognostic prediction model was constructed. The receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve was used to analyze the predictive value of the model in predicting prognosis in both the training set and the validation set. ResultsThe Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed a median survival time of 33.00 months in the training set and 32.00 months in the validation set， with no significant difference between the training set and the validation set （P>0.05）. The univariate analysis showed that patient age， degree of tumor differentiation， lymph node metastasis， tumor stage， vascular invasion， CA19-9， CEA， ADC value， and SI value were significantly associated with the survival prognosis of patients （χ²=5.906， 13.116， 12.807， 17.277， 14.611， 7.275， 14.339， 9.506， and 13.137， all P<0.05）. The LASSO-Cox multivariate regression analysis showed that six factors were incorporated into the regression model， i.e.， tumor stage （HR=8.934， 95%CI： 3.215 — 21.562， P<0.001）， lymph node metastasis （HR=2.971， 95%CI： 1.298 — 5.647， P=0.002）， CA19-9 （HR=3.948， 95%CI： 1.758 — 8.994， P<0.001）， CEA （HR=1.965， 95%CI： 1.083 — 3.664， P=0.039）， ADC value （HR=2.873， 95%CI： 1.307 — 6.037， P=0.003）， and SI value （HR=3.107， 95%CI： 1.264 — 7.339， P=0.001）. The nomogram model constructed based on these factors had an area under the ROC curve of 0.845 （95%CI： 0.774 — 0.915） in the training set and 0.919 （95%CI： 0.870 — 0.967） in the validation set. ConclusionThe combined model of quantitative imaging parameters and serum tumor markers constructed based on LASSO-Cox regression can effectively predict the postoperative prognosis of PDAC patients， thereby helping to identify high-risk patients and guide decision-making for adjuvant therapy.

Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)expresses abundant glycolytic enzymes and displays comprehensive glucose metabolism reprogramming.Aldolase A(ALDOA)plays a prominent role in glycolysis;however,little is known about its role in HCC development.In the present study,we aim to explore how ALDOA is involved in HCC proliferation.HCC proliferation was markedly suppressed both in vitro and in vivo following ALDOA knockout,which is consistent with ALDOA overexpression encouraging HCC prolifera-tion.Mechanistically,ALDOA knockout partially limits the glycolytic flux in HCC cells.Meanwhile,ALDOA translocated to nuclei and directly interacted with c-Jun to facilitate its Thr93 phosphorylation by P21-activated protein kinase;ALDOA knockout markedly diminished c-Jun Thr93 phosphorylation and then dampened c-Jun transcription function.A crucial site Y364 mutation in ALDOA disrupted its interaction with c-Jun,and Y364S ALDOA expression failed to rescue cell proliferation in ALDOA deletion cells.In HCC patients,the expression level of ALDOA was correlated with the phosphorylation level of c-Jun(Thr93)and poor prognosis.Remarkably,hepatic ALDOA was significantly upregulated in the promotion and progression stages of diethylnitrosamine-induced HCC models,and the knockdown of Aldoa strikingly decreased HCC development in vivo.Our study demonstrated that ALDOA is a vital driver for HCC development by activating c-Jun-mediated oncogene transcription,opening additional avenues for anti-cancer therapies.

Bacterial infection is a major threat to global public health,and can cause serious diseases such as bacterial skin infection and foodborne diseases.It is essential to develop a new method to rapidly di-agnose clinical multiple bacterial infections and monitor food microbial contamination in production sites in real-time.In this work,we developed a 4-mercaptophenylboronic acid gold nanoparticles(4-MPBA-AuNPs)-functionalized hydrogel microneedle(MPBA-H-MN)for bacteria detection in skin inter-stitial fluid.MPBA-H-MN could conveniently capture and enrich a variety of bacteria within 5 min.Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy(SERS)detection was then performed and combined with ma-chine learning technology to distinguish and identify a variety of bacteria.Overall,the capture efficiency of this method exceeded 50％.In the concentration range of 1 × 10 7 to 1 × 10 10 colony-forming units/mL(CFU/mL),the corresponding SERS intensity showed a certain linear relationship with the bacterial concentration.Using random forest(RF)-based machine learning,bacteria were effectively distinguished with an accuracy of 97.87％.In addition,the harmless disposal of used MNs by photothermal ablation was convenient,environmentally friendly,and inexpensive.This technique provided a potential method for rapid and real-time diagnosis of multiple clinical bacterial infections and for monitoring microbial contamination of food in production sites.

Hepatic encephalopathy(HE)is a common complication of severe liver disease in the end stage,and it is urgently needed to improve the rate of effective treatment and clarify the pathogenesis of HE.The liver is a crucial hub for immune regulation,and disruption of immune homeostasis is a key factor in the pathological mechanisms of HE.As the main metabolites of intestinal flora,short-chain fatty acids(SCFAs)play a vital role in the biological processes of both innate and adaptive immunity and can regulate the proliferation and differentiation of immune cells maintain the homeostasis of intestinal microenvironment and the integrity of barrier function.Studies have shown that SCFAs participate in bidirectional and dynamic interactions with the liver-gut-brain axis through immunomodulatory pathways,thereby playing an important role in the diagnosis,treatment,and prognostic evaluation of HE.Starting from the immunoregulatory effect of SCFAs,this article summarizes and analyzes the crosstalk relationship between SCFAs and the liver-gut-brain axis and the significance of SCFAs in the diagnosis and treatment of HE,in order to provide new ideas for optimizing clinical prevention and treatment strategies.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical characteristics and genetic etiology of a Chinese pedigree affected with Hereditary dentin dysplasia type II (DD-II) due to variant of dentin sialophosphoprotein (DSPP) gene. METHODS: A child diagnosed with DD- II at the Third Clinical Division of Peking University Hospital of Stomatology in December 2021 and her family members were selected as study subjects. Clinical data were retrospectively analyzed. Saliva samples were collected from the proband, her parents and sister for genomic DNA extraction. Whole exome sequencing (WES) was carried out. Candidate variant was verified by Sanger sequencing and TOPO-TA cloning sequencing. The candidate variant was also subjected to bioinformatics analysis using Mutation Taster v2021. Secondary and tertiary structures of the wild-type and variant DSPP proteins were predicted with psipred v4.0 and PyMOL v2.3 software, respectively. The pathogenicity of the variant was classified based on the guidelines from American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Peking University Hospital of Stomatology (Ethics No.: PKUSSIRB-202162021). RESULTS: The proband and her mother and sister had all exhibited typical clinical manifestations of hereditary DD-II. The primary dentition of the proband displayed yellowish brown discoloration, wear, and obliteration in the chamber and root canal, while the permanent teeth of the proband's sister and mother appeared nearly normal in both color and appearance, though with obliteration in the chamber and root canal. Her father showed normal dentition. WES identified a heterozygous c.1915_1918delAAGT, p.(Lys639Glnfs*674) frameshift variant in the DSPP gene. Sanger sequencing and TOPO-TA cloning sequencing confirmed the presence of this variant in the proband, the proband's sister, and the mother, while the proband's father was negative for the variant, indicating an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern. The variant was predicted to be pathogenic by Mutation Taster v2021. Prediction of the secondary structure of the DSPP protein showed that the variant has changed it from coil to helix. The tertiary structure prediction of the DSPP protein showed change of the spatial structure of the variant DSPP, with the loops in the variant region replaced by helices at multiple sites. Based on the guidelines from the ACMG, the variant was classified as pathogenic (PVS1+PM2_Supporting+PP1+PP4). CONCLUSION Phenotypic analysis and genetic testing of this family has clarified the clinical diagnosis of hereditary DD- II. The c.1915_1918delAAGT variant probably underlay the pathogenesis of DD-II in this family. Above results have expanded the phenotypic spectrum of the disease and may contribute to further clinical and genetic research on this disease.
Humans ; Pedigree ; Female ; Extracellular Matrix Proteins/chemistry* ; Male ; Sialoglycoproteins/chemistry* ; Dentin Dysplasia/genetics* ; Asian People/genetics* ; Phosphoproteins/chemistry* ; Child ; Mutation ; China ; Exome Sequencing ; Adult ; East Asian People

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of posterior cruciate ligament(PCL) resection on soft tissue elasticity and knee stability in total knee arthroplasty(TKA). METHODS: Six adult cadaveric knee specimens (involving 10 knees) were included in the study. With the assistance of the robotic system(TiRobot Recon, TINAVI, Beijing), total knee arthroplasty (TKA) was performed sequentially using cruciate retaining (CR) prostheses and posterior stabilizing (PS) prostheses. Between the two surgical procedures, the femoral and tibial osteotomy surfaces were not altered;only the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) was resected and the intercondylar fossa was treated. After installing the femoral trial component, a soft tissue balance solver was used to apply tension ranging from 30 N to 90 N in 5 N increments at 0°, 10°, and 90° of knee flexion. Meanwhile, the medial and lateral joint gaps were measured synchronously. Based on the tension-gap coupling data, the equivalent elastic coefficients of the medial and lateral soft tissue sleeves at different knee flexion angles, as well as the range of the joint line convergence angle (JLCA) under fixed varus-valgus stress, were calculated. Additionally, the gap balance status under 80 N of tension was analyzed. Self-control comparisons of each indicator were conducted before and after PCL resection to analyze the change patterns. RESULTS: After PCL resection, in the fully extended position (knee flexion 0°). The medial equivalent elastic coefficient was 32.2 (25.7, 63.3) N·mm^-1 for the CR prosthesis and 27.7 (22.0, 51.9) N·mm^-1 for the PS prosthesis, and the statistically significant difference (P=0.013). The range of JLCA was 0.41°(0.26, 0.55)° for the CR prosthesis, which was smaller than 0.75° (0.40, 0.98)° for the PS prosthesis, and the difference was statistically significant(P=0.041). At 90° of knee flexion, the medial joint gap was 10.7(10.1, 11.7) mm for the CR prosthesis, which was smaller than 12.1(10.9, 15.1) mm for the PS prosthesis, with a statistically significant difference(P=0.011). No statistically significant differences were observed in other joint gaps. CONCLUSION PCL resection reduces the rigidity of the medial soft tissues in the fully extended knee and increases the medial joint gap in the flexed position, thereby affecting knee stability and balance. This finding suggests that PS and CR prostheses may require different morphological designs, and there should be differences in indications and osteotomy strategies between CR-TKA and PS-TKA. CR-TKA is more suitable for patients with preoperative medial soft tissue laxity.
Humans ; Posterior Cruciate Ligament/physiopathology* ; Knee Joint/physiopathology* ; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee ; Elasticity ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Adult

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the predictive role of the modified Endothelial Activation and Stress Index (mEASIX) in the efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy and cytokine release syndrome (CRS). METHODS: The clinical data of 70 relapsed and refractory (R/R) B-cell tumor patients who were treated with CAR-T therapy from September 1, 2018 to February 28, 2023 in the Department of Hematology, Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, were retrospectively analyzed. The value of log-2 mEASIX before conditioning (-7 d) was calculated, and the patients were divided into a low-mEASIX group (42 patients) and a high-mEASIX group (28 patients) based on the cut-off value of 5.443 determined by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Eventually, the predictive role of mEASIX before conditioning on the efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy and CRS was analyzed. RESULTS: The high-mEASIX group exhibited significantly worse median overall survival (OS) and median progression-free survival (PFS) in comparison to the low mEASIX group (OS: 3.2 months vs not reached, P < 0.01; PFS: 1.3 months vs 6.0 months, P =0.009). The incidence of grade ≥2 CRS in the high-mEASIX group was substantially higher than that in the low-mEASIX group (57.1% vs 19.0%, P =0.007). The degree of remission after CAR-T therapy (P =0.001), whether CRS occurs or not (P =0.041), the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level before conditioning (P =0.046), and the mEASIX score before conditioning (P =0.047) were independent influencing factors for the OS of patients receiving CAR-T cell therapy. CONCLUSION The mEASIX score before conditioning can predict OS and the incidence of grade ≥2 CRS in patients with relapsed and refractory B-cell tumors who receive CAR-T cell therapy.
Cytokine Release Syndrome/therapy* ; Immunotherapy, Adoptive/methods* ; Humans ; Lymphoma, B-Cell/therapy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Hematology ; China ; Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/blood* ; Predictive Value of Tests