ObjectiveTo observe the clinical efficacy of Sanren Runchang formula in treating constipation-predominant irritable bowel syndrome （IBS-C） by regulating the brain-gut axis and the effects of the formula on serum levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine （5-HT）， vasoactive intestinal peptide （VIP）， and substance P （SP）. MethodsA randomized controlled design was adopted， and 72 IBS-C patients meeting Rome Ⅳ criteria were randomized into observation and control groups （36 cases）.The observation group received Sanren Runchang formula granules twice daily， and the control group received lactulose oral solution daily for 4 weeks. IBS Symptom Severity Scale （IBS-SSS）， IBS Quality of Life Scale （IBS-QOL）， and Bristol Stool Form Scale （BSFS） were used to assess clinical symptoms， and bowel movement frequency was recorded. The Self-Rating Anxiety Scale （SAS） and Self-Rating Depression Scale （SDS） were employed to evaluate psychological status. ELISA was employed to measure the serum levels of 5-HT， VIP， and SP. ResultsThe total response rate in the observation group was 91.67% （33/36）， which was higher than that （77.78%， 28/36） in the control group （χ²=4.50， P<0.05）. After treatment， both groups showed increased defecation frequency and BSFS scores， decreased IBS-SSS total score， abdominal pain and bloating scores， IBS-QOL health anxiety， anxiety， food avoidance， and behavioral disorders scores， SAS and SDS scores， serum 5-HT and VIP levels， and increased SP levels （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Moreover， the observation group showed more significant changes in the indicators above than the control group （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The SP level showed no significant difference between the two groups. During the 4-week follow-up， the recurrence rate was 5.88% in the observation group and 31.25% in the control group. No adverse events occurred in observation group， and 2 cases of mild diarrhea occurred in the control group. ConclusionSanren Runchang formula demonstrated definitive efficacy in alleviating gastrointestinal symptoms and improving the psychological status and quality of life in IBS-C patients， with a low recurrence rate. The formula can regulate serum levels of neurotransmitters such as 5-HT and VIP， suggesting its potential regulatory effect on the brain-gut axis through modulating neurotransmitters and neuropeptides. However， its complete mechanism of action requires further investigation through detection of additional brain-gut axis-related biomarkers.

As one of the most common malignant tumors， digestive system tumors exhibit an increase in the incidence and mortality year by year. Its pathogenesis is complex， making it difficult to carry out early prevention. Autophagy is a process in which cells use lysosomes to degrade their organelles and macromolecules to maintain cellular homeostasis under the regulation of autophagy-related genes. Cellular autophagy has a dual regulatory effect on the tumor microenvironment， which always affects the occurrence and development of digestive system tumors. Therefore， the effect and mechanism of action of cellular autophagy on digestive system tumors have become a hot topic in tumor therapy in recent years. Meanwhile， the remarkable research results of targeted autophagy drugs indicate that cellular autophagy may become an important target for anti-digestive system tumors. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has been widely used in the comprehensive treatment of digestive system tumors with good efficacy. A variety of active ingredients in TCM， such as flavonoids， glycosides， terpenoids， quinones， and alkaloids， can increase the expression of autophagy-associated proteins microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 （LC3）Ⅱ/Ⅰ， autophagy-related gene （ATG）5， ATG7， inhibit the expression of autophagy-related protein p62 ， and induce autophagy in digestive system tumor cells， thereby exerting the anti-digestive system tumor effect. By summarizing the research results in recent years on the modulation of cell autophagy by active ingredients in TCM to fight against digestive system tumors， this paper analyzed the relevant signaling pathways， regulatory factors， and functional characteristics of cell autophagy modulation， so as to elucidate the mechanism by which active ingredients of TCM induce autophagy and to provide ideas and references for clinical application.

As one of the most common malignant tumors， digestive system tumors exhibit an increase in the incidence and mortality year by year. Its pathogenesis is complex， making it difficult to carry out early prevention. Autophagy is a process in which cells use lysosomes to degrade their organelles and macromolecules to maintain cellular homeostasis under the regulation of autophagy-related genes. Cellular autophagy has a dual regulatory effect on the tumor microenvironment， which always affects the occurrence and development of digestive system tumors. Therefore， the effect and mechanism of action of cellular autophagy on digestive system tumors have become a hot topic in tumor therapy in recent years. Meanwhile， the remarkable research results of targeted autophagy drugs indicate that cellular autophagy may become an important target for anti-digestive system tumors. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has been widely used in the comprehensive treatment of digestive system tumors with good efficacy. A variety of active ingredients in TCM， such as flavonoids， glycosides， terpenoids， quinones， and alkaloids， can increase the expression of autophagy-associated proteins microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 （LC3）Ⅱ/Ⅰ， autophagy-related gene （ATG）5， ATG7， inhibit the expression of autophagy-related protein p62 ， and induce autophagy in digestive system tumor cells， thereby exerting the anti-digestive system tumor effect. By summarizing the research results in recent years on the modulation of cell autophagy by active ingredients in TCM to fight against digestive system tumors， this paper analyzed the relevant signaling pathways， regulatory factors， and functional characteristics of cell autophagy modulation， so as to elucidate the mechanism by which active ingredients of TCM induce autophagy and to provide ideas and references for clinical application.

ObjectiveBased on the theory of "spleen governing transportation and transformation"， this study investigates the efficacy of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma processed with Aurantii Fructus Immaturus juice（AMR-AFI） in improving slow-transit constipation（STC）， as well as the synergistic regulatory mechanism involving the microbiota-metabolism axis， thereby elucidating the scientific basis of its processing theory. MethodsAnimals were randomly divided into the control group， model group， positive drug（mosapride） group（3 mg·kg^-1）， and low-， medium-， and high-dose groups of AMR-AFI（3.9， 7.8， 15.6 g·kg^-1）. Except for the control group， the remaining five groups were induced with STC using loperamide hydrochloride. Following modeling， interventions were administered. All groups received continuous administration for 15 d， during which fecal samples， colon tissue， and serum were collected. Constipation improvement was assessed by measuring fecal moisture content and small intestinal propulsion rate， histological morphology of colonic tissue was observed via hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining， and the levels of interleukin（IL）-6， tumor necrosis factor（TNF）-α， and IL-2 in serum were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA）. Furthermore， the microbial community structure in mouse feces was analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing， while transcriptomic sequencing was employed to screen differentially expressed genes in colonic tissue， followed by gene ontology（GO） and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analyses. Finally， Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to explore the association between differential microbiota and differential genes. ResultsCompared with the control group， the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content in the model group were significantly decreased（P<0.01）， while serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2 were significantly elevated（P<0.01）. HE staining showed damage and shedding of colonic mucosal epithelial cells， along with a reduction in goblet cells in the model group. In comparison with the model group， all treatment groups improved the pathological state of the colonic mucosa to varying degrees and reduced serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2（P<0.01）. Among these， the high-dose group of AMR-AFI significantly increased the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content of rats（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Further transcriptomic analysis revealed that a total of 104 differentially expressed genes were identified from comparisons between the model group and the control group， as well as between the model group and the high-dose group of AMR-AFI. These genes were mainly enriched in pathways closely related to STC pathogenesis， such as arachidonic acid metabolism and aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption. 16S rRNA sequencing results indicated that AMR-AFI reversed the structural imbalance of the gut microbiota in model mice， increased species richness， downregulated the relative abundance of pro-inflammatory bacteria such as Parasutterella， and enriched beneficial and butyrate-producing bacteria， including Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group， Ruminococcaceae， and Lachnospiraceae. Spearman correlation analysis further showed that the beneficial bacteria enriched in the AMR-AFI group were negatively correlated with genes involved in the arachidonic acid metabolic pathway and positively correlated with genes in the aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption pathway. In contrast， pro-inflammatory bacteria in the model group exhibited the opposite correlation trends. ConclusionAMR-AFI can effectively exert synergistic therapeutic effects on STC by regulating intestinal microbiota， arachidonic acid-mediated inflammatory metabolism， and aldosterone-regulated water-salt balance pathways.

ObjectiveThis study systematically analyzed the arginine metabolic dysregulation in the rat model of heart failure （HF）， providing a modern scientific basis for elucidating the pathogenesis of HF and offering new insights for the prevention and treatment of HF with traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）. MethodsA thoracotomy was performed to ligate the left anterior descending coronary artery of rats， which induced acute myocardial ischemia and thus led to the development of post-myocardial infarction heart failure. The rats were divided into a sham surgery group and a model group， with eight rats in each group. Serum targeted metabolomics analysis was performed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry （UPLC-TQ-S）， and the spatial distribution of metabolites in cardiac tissue was observed using airflow-assisted desorption electrospray ionizationmass spectrometry imaging （AFADESI-MSI）. Targets associated with HF and arginine metabolism were screened from databases including GeneCards and the Gene Expression Omnibus （GEO）， a protein-protein interaction （PPI） network was constructed， and enrichment analysis of the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes （KEGG） pathway and Gene Ontology （GO） was performed. Finally， molecular docking was conducted to verify the binding between core metabolic components and key targets， and potential TCMs were predicted based on the core pathways and targets. ResultsCompared with the sham surgery group， the levels of arginine and citrulline in the serum of model rats were significantly decreased （P<0.01）， while those of proline， ornithine， creatine， creatinine and glutamate were significantly increased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Cardiac mass spectrometry imaging showed a decreased abundance of arginine in the local myocardial tissue. Bioinformatics analysis identified 24 core functional targets， such as the angiotensin-converting enzyme （ACE）， neuronal nitric oxide synthase （NOS1）， 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor 2A （HTR2A）， and epidermal growth factor receptor （EGFR）， and enrichment analysis indicated that these targets were significantly involved in the calcium signaling pathway， neuroactive ligand-receptor interactions， and phosphatidylinositol signaling pathway. Molecular docking confirmed strong binding activities between arginine， citrulline and HTR2A， as well as between creatine， creatinine and EGFR. Based on pathway-target prediction， potential TCM interventions， such as ginseng and magnolia， were identified. ConclusionThis study revealed characteristic arginine metabolic disorder in HF， and the core targets of HF were closely associated with the phosphatidylinositol signaling pathway. It provides a modern biological interpretation of the pathogenesis of HF in TCM from the perspectives of metabolites and signaling pathways， and offers valuable insights for targeted therapy of HF and the development of TCM.

Uveal melanoma(UM)is the most common primary intraocular malignancy in adults, characterized by high invasiveness and unique metastatic biological features. Although local treatments(such as proton beam therapy and brachytherapy)can effectively control the primary lesion, approximately 50% of patients eventually develop distant metastasis, with the liver being the primary target organ(occurring in 90% of cases). This highlights a paradigm shift in treatment focus from mere local control to systemic prevention and management. For metastatic UM(mUM), current treatment strategies encompass biomarker-guided molecular targeted therapy, immunotherapy(including Tebentafusp, vaccines, and oncolytic virus therapy), and liver-directed therapy. Focusing on the synergy between local and systemic prevention and control, this article systematically elaborates on the precision local treatment for primary UM, the decision-making pathway for systemic treatment of metastatic UM based on molecular subtyping, the integration of local and systemic therapies for liver metastases, and the translational value of nanomedicine in addressing therapeutic bottlenecks. It provides insights for optimizing clinical management of mUM and developing novel therapeutic strategies.

ObjectiveBased on the theory of "spleen governing transportation and transformation"， this study investigates the efficacy of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma processed with Aurantii Fructus Immaturus juice（AMR-AFI） in improving slow-transit constipation（STC）， as well as the synergistic regulatory mechanism involving the microbiota-metabolism axis， thereby elucidating the scientific basis of its processing theory. MethodsAnimals were randomly divided into the control group， model group， positive drug（mosapride） group（3 mg·kg^-1）， and low-， medium-， and high-dose groups of AMR-AFI（3.9， 7.8， 15.6 g·kg^-1）. Except for the control group， the remaining five groups were induced with STC using loperamide hydrochloride. Following modeling， interventions were administered. All groups received continuous administration for 15 d， during which fecal samples， colon tissue， and serum were collected. Constipation improvement was assessed by measuring fecal moisture content and small intestinal propulsion rate， histological morphology of colonic tissue was observed via hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining， and the levels of interleukin（IL）-6， tumor necrosis factor（TNF）-α， and IL-2 in serum were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA）. Furthermore， the microbial community structure in mouse feces was analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing， while transcriptomic sequencing was employed to screen differentially expressed genes in colonic tissue， followed by gene ontology（GO） and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analyses. Finally， Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to explore the association between differential microbiota and differential genes. ResultsCompared with the control group， the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content in the model group were significantly decreased（P<0.01）， while serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2 were significantly elevated（P<0.01）. HE staining showed damage and shedding of colonic mucosal epithelial cells， along with a reduction in goblet cells in the model group. In comparison with the model group， all treatment groups improved the pathological state of the colonic mucosa to varying degrees and reduced serum levels of IL-6， TNF-α， and IL-2（P<0.01）. Among these， the high-dose group of AMR-AFI significantly increased the intestinal propulsion rate and fecal moisture content of rats（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Further transcriptomic analysis revealed that a total of 104 differentially expressed genes were identified from comparisons between the model group and the control group， as well as between the model group and the high-dose group of AMR-AFI. These genes were mainly enriched in pathways closely related to STC pathogenesis， such as arachidonic acid metabolism and aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption. 16S rRNA sequencing results indicated that AMR-AFI reversed the structural imbalance of the gut microbiota in model mice， increased species richness， downregulated the relative abundance of pro-inflammatory bacteria such as Parasutterella， and enriched beneficial and butyrate-producing bacteria， including Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group， Ruminococcaceae， and Lachnospiraceae. Spearman correlation analysis further showed that the beneficial bacteria enriched in the AMR-AFI group were negatively correlated with genes involved in the arachidonic acid metabolic pathway and positively correlated with genes in the aldosterone-regulated sodium reabsorption pathway. In contrast， pro-inflammatory bacteria in the model group exhibited the opposite correlation trends. ConclusionAMR-AFI can effectively exert synergistic therapeutic effects on STC by regulating intestinal microbiota， arachidonic acid-mediated inflammatory metabolism， and aldosterone-regulated water-salt balance pathways.

ObjectiveThis study systematically analyzed the arginine metabolic dysregulation in the rat model of heart failure （HF）， providing a modern scientific basis for elucidating the pathogenesis of HF and offering new insights for the prevention and treatment of HF with traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）. MethodsA thoracotomy was performed to ligate the left anterior descending coronary artery of rats， which induced acute myocardial ischemia and thus led to the development of post-myocardial infarction heart failure. The rats were divided into a sham surgery group and a model group， with eight rats in each group. Serum targeted metabolomics analysis was performed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry （UPLC-TQ-S）， and the spatial distribution of metabolites in cardiac tissue was observed using airflow-assisted desorption electrospray ionizationmass spectrometry imaging （AFADESI-MSI）. Targets associated with HF and arginine metabolism were screened from databases including GeneCards and the Gene Expression Omnibus （GEO）， a protein-protein interaction （PPI） network was constructed， and enrichment analysis of the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes （KEGG） pathway and Gene Ontology （GO） was performed. Finally， molecular docking was conducted to verify the binding between core metabolic components and key targets， and potential TCMs were predicted based on the core pathways and targets. ResultsCompared with the sham surgery group， the levels of arginine and citrulline in the serum of model rats were significantly decreased （P<0.01）， while those of proline， ornithine， creatine， creatinine and glutamate were significantly increased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Cardiac mass spectrometry imaging showed a decreased abundance of arginine in the local myocardial tissue. Bioinformatics analysis identified 24 core functional targets， such as the angiotensin-converting enzyme （ACE）， neuronal nitric oxide synthase （NOS1）， 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor 2A （HTR2A）， and epidermal growth factor receptor （EGFR）， and enrichment analysis indicated that these targets were significantly involved in the calcium signaling pathway， neuroactive ligand-receptor interactions， and phosphatidylinositol signaling pathway. Molecular docking confirmed strong binding activities between arginine， citrulline and HTR2A， as well as between creatine， creatinine and EGFR. Based on pathway-target prediction， potential TCM interventions， such as ginseng and magnolia， were identified. ConclusionThis study revealed characteristic arginine metabolic disorder in HF， and the core targets of HF were closely associated with the phosphatidylinositol signaling pathway. It provides a modern biological interpretation of the pathogenesis of HF in TCM from the perspectives of metabolites and signaling pathways， and offers valuable insights for targeted therapy of HF and the development of TCM.

Objective: To develop a prediction model for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) risk among the elderly, so as to provide a tool for MCI early screening. Methods : From July 2022 to September 2024, a multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling method was used to recruit permanent residents aged ≥65 years from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region as study participants. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, nutritional status, body composition indices, bone mineral density, and handgrip strength were collected through questionnaires and physical examinations. Sarcopenia was defined based on appendicular skeletal muscle index and handgrip strength. MCI was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination, with adjustments for educational level. Participants were randomly divided into a training set and a validation set in a 7∶3 ratio. LASSO regression and multivariable logistic regression models were employed to screen for predictors and construct an MCI risk prediction model. The predictive performance of the model was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and decision curve analysis (DCA). Results: A total of 1 641 participants were surveyed, including 755 males (46.01%) and 886 females (53.99%). The majority of participants were aged 65-<75 years, comprising 1 154 individuals (70.32%). MCI was detected in 517 participants, corresponding to a detection rate of 31.51%. Resultsfrom LASSO regression and multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that residence (rural, OR = 2.323, 95% CI: 1.682-3.210), age (75-<85 years, OR = 1.405, 95% CI: 1.019-1.937; ≥85 years, OR = 3.655, 95% CI: 1.696-7.875), educational level (primary school, OR = 0.341, 95% CI: 0.247-0.472; junior high school, OR = 0.255, 95% CI: 0.160-0.408; high school, OR = 0.286, 95% CI: 0.154-0.531; bachelor's degree or above, OR = 0.120, 95% CI: 0.041-0.351), history of alcohol consumption (yes, OR = 3.216, 95% CI: 2.164-4.779), risk of malnutrition (yes, OR = 1.464, 95% CI: 1.064-2.014), sarcopenia (yes, OR = 3.197, 95% CI: 2.332-4.385), and waist-to-hip ratio (abnormal, OR = 1.540, 95% CI: 1.159-2.048) were identified as predictive factors for MCI among the elderly. In the training set, the area under the ROC curve, sensitivity, and specificity were 0.788, 0.719, and 0.712, respectively. In the validation set, the corresponding values were 0.784, 0.913, and 0.542, respectively. DCA demonstrated that the model provided a higher clinical net benefit for predicting MCI risk when the risk threshold probability ranged from 0.124 to 0.764. Conclusion The prediction model developed in this study demonstrates good discriminative ability and clinical utility, indicating its substantial value for predicting the MCI risk among the elderly.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the antitumor activity of Periplaneta americana extract（PAE） against human-derived lung adenocarcinoma organoids（LUAD-PDOs） and to elucidate its potential mechanism based on transcriptomics. MethodsFresh tumor and adjacent normal tissues from patients with LUAD were collected to construct LUAD-PDOs and normal lung organoid（Nor-PDOs） models using 3D organoid culture technology. The effective intervention concentration of PAE was determined using the cell counting kit-8（CCK-8） assay. Experimental groups included the model group（LUAD-PDOs）， normal group， model administration group（LUAD-PDOs+PAE）， and normal administration group（Nor-PDOs+PAE）. Hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining was used to observe the pathological structures of PDOs， immunohistochemistry（IHC） was performed to detect the expressions of the proliferation marker Ki-67 and lung adenocarcinoma differentiation markers cytokeratin-7（CK-7） and Napsin A， TUNEL staining was applied to detect cell apoptosis. RNA sequencing（RNA-Seq） was conducted to identify differentially expressed genes（DEGs）， followed by Gene Ontology（GO）， Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG）， and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis（GSEA）， alongside protein-protein interaction（PPI） network analysis to screen core mechanisms. Finally， key targets were validated by integrating external database analysis with immunofluorescence（IF）. ResultsNor-PDOs and LUAD-PDOs that highly recapitulated the pathological characteristics of the primary tissues were successfully established. The CCK-8 assay determined that the effective intervention concentration of PAE was 16 g·L^-1. Morphological observation showed that Nor-PDOs exhibited lumen-forming structures， whereas LUAD-PDOs displayed dense， solid structures. CCK-8 and TUNEL assays revealed that， compared with the model group， PAE intervention inhibited the proliferation of LUAD-PDOs and promoted apoptosis in LUAD cells， while showing no significant effect on the viability of Nor-PDOs. Transcriptomic analysis identified 719 DEGs that were significantly reversed after PAE intervention（347 up-regulated and 372 down-regulated）（P<0.05）. GO enrichment analysis indicated that DEGs in the model administration group were significantly enriched in biological processes related to cell cycle regulation compared to the model group. KEGG pathway analysis revealed that PAE affected pathways related to proliferation and metabolism， including pathways in cancer and the p53 signaling pathway. GSEA further confirmed that PAE significantly enhanced the activity of the p53 signaling pathway（P<0.05）. PPI network analysis indicated that breast cancer type 1 susceptibility protein（BRCA1） and checkpoint kinase 1（CHEK1） were the core down-regulated targets in the p53 pathway. IF verified the high expression of BRCA1 and CHEK1 in LUAD-PDOs and their significant downregulation after PAE intervention（P<0.05）. Furthermore， survival analysis based on The Cancer Genome Atlas（TCGA） database indicated that low expression of BRCA1 and CHEK1 was significantly associated with prolonged overall survival in patients with LUAD（P<0.05）. ConclusionPAE effectively inhibits proliferation of LUAD-PDOs and promotes their apoptosis， its anti-tumor mechanism is potentially associated with the activation of the p53 signaling pathway， with BRCA1 and CHEK1 genes likely serving as key downstream targets for the effects of PAE.