Although video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) offers clear advantages, including minimal trauma and rapid recovery, stable intraoperative visualization still depends heavily on the camera assistant. Traditional manual endoscope holding is therefore susceptible to several limitations, including image instability, assistant fatigue, and poor coordination with the primary surgeon. Operating in complex and confined anatomical spaces with a rigid thoracoscope further increases the demands on hand-eye coordination. Thoracoscopic camera-holding technology has progressively evolved from passive support systems to active camera holders and robot-assisted thoracic surgery (RATS) platforms, and is now advancing toward artificial intelligence-driven tracking and intelligent control. Based on this, a series of devices, including multifunctional intelligent assistant arms and active camera-holding arms for thoracic surgery, have been developed and have attracted increasing attention. This article reviews the development of intelligent camera-holding assistant arms and discusses related advances and future directions in the field.

Phosgene is a highly reactive chemical substance and a prevalent chemical warfare agent,and it is vitally important for rapid and accurate detection of phosgene to counteract terrorist threats and industrial accidents.In this work,a phosgene probe,designated as SX-Pho,which incorporated benzimidazole and hydroxyl groups as recognition motifs,was prepared through Suzuki coupling and Debus-Radziszewski methodologies to incorporate an electron-donating carbazole moiety.This probe exhibited a large Stokes shift(Approximately 130 nm).Upon exposure to triphosgene/triethylamine conditions(in situ phosgene generation),the fluorescence emission of probe at 470 nm underwent significant quenching,with a 20-fold reduction in intensity,while the fluorescence lifetime decreased from 3.30 ns to 3.06 ns.Concentration titration experiments demonstrated that SX-Pho achieved a lower detection limit of 57.8 nmol/L with high specificity and interference resistance.Preton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy(1H NMR),high-resolution mass spectrometry,and density functional theory(DFT)calculations confirmed the cyclization reaction between hydroxyl groups,imines,and phosgene.The extent of overlap between the highest occupied molecular orbital(HOMO)and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital(LUMO)was notably decreased,leading to the suppression of radiative transitions.The energy gap underwent a reduction of 0.43 eV,while the non-radiative transition was augmented,resulting in fluorescence quenching and achieving rapid detection of phosgene.Based on this,probe-loaded test strips were prepared.The color change under 365 nm illumination allowed visual discrimination of phosgene at concentrations below 20 μL/L.Furthermore,using a smartphone's built-in RGB application to measure the intensity of the blue(B)channel after the test strips were exposed to phosgene enabled both qualitative and quantitative detection.The detection range was 1.82-50 μL/L,with a limit of detection(LOD)of 1.814 μL/L.

Sarcopenia, characterized by reduced muscle mass, decreased strength, and impaired function, can lead to adverse outcomes, such as frailty, falls, fractures and disability, and subsequently lead to decreased quality of life, increased risk of complications and mortality and elevated healthcare costs. With the accelerating process of global aging, the prevalence of sarcopenia has significantly risen, posing a major public health threat and socioeconomic burden to populations worldwide. To more effectively implement medical nutrition management and exercise intervention for patients with sarcopenia, the Chinese Clinical Nutritionist Center of Chinese Medical Doctor Association and the Nutrition Oncology Branch and Geriatric Nutrition Branch of the Chinese Nutrition Society, in collaboration with the Nutrition and Food Safety Branch of Chinese Geriatrics Society, have developed the Expert Consensus on Medical Nutrition Management and Exercise Intervention for Sarcopenia (2024) based on the latest research evidence, clinical practice experiences and clinical nutrition guidelines. This consensus serves as a reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment of sarcopenia. The consensus emphasizes that the diagnosis and treatment of sarcopenia should focus on elderly population and also encompass patients with related chronic diseases including diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer, cognitive dysfunction and Parkinson's disease. Multi-modal lifestyle interventions centered on nutrition and exercise remain the preferred strategy for the prevention and treatment of sarcopenia.

Objective To investigate the distribution and antimicrobial resistance profiles of clinically isolated Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis in hospitals across China from 2015 to 2021,and provide evidence for rational use of antimicrobial agents.Methods Data of H.influenzae and M.catarrhalis strains isolated from 2015 to 2021 in CHINET program were collected for analysis,and antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by disc diffusion method or automated systems according to the uniform protocol of CHINET.The results were interpreted according to the CLSI breakpoints in 2022.Beta-lactamases was detected by using nitrocefin disk.Results From 2015 to 2021,a total of 43 642 strains of Haemophilus species were isolated,accounting for 2.91％of the total clinical isolates and 4.07％of Gram-negative bacteria in CHINET program.Among the 40 437 strains of H.influenzae,66.89％were isolated from children and 33.11％were isolated from adults.More than 90％of the H.influenzae strains were isolated from respiratory tract specimens.The prevalence of β-lactamase was 53.79％in H.influenzae strains.The H.influenzae strains isolated from children showed higher resistance rate than the strains isolated from adults.Overall,779 strains of H.influenzae did not produce β-lactamase but were resistant to ampicillin(BLNAR).Beta-lactamase-producing strains showed significantly higher resistance rates to these antimicrobial agents than the β-lactamase-nonproducing strains.Of the 16 191 M.catarrhalis strains,80.06％were isolated from children and 19.94％isolated from adults.M.catarrhalis strains were mostly susceptible to both amoxicillin-clavulanic acid and cefuroxime,evidenced by resistance rate lower than 2.0％.Conclusions The emergence of antibiotic-resistant H.influenzae due to β-lactamase production poses a challenge for clinical anti-infective treatment.Therefore,it is very important to implement antibiotic resistance surveillance for H.influenzae and guide rational antibiotic use.All local clinical microbiology laboratories should actively improve antibiotic susceptibility testing and strengthen antibiotic resistance surveillance for H.influenzae.

Objective:To investigate the effect of β-Ecdysterone (β-Ecd), an active ingredient in cow′s knee, on hormonal femoral head necrosis in young rabbits and explore the mechanism involved.Methods:An animal study.Sixty New Zealand young rabbits were divided into control, model and intervention groups by random number table method, with 20 rabbits in each group.Prednisolone acetate (7.5 mg/kg) was injected bilaterally into the gluteal muscle of rabbits in both model and intervention groups twice a week.β-Ecd (0.5 mg/kg) was injected subcutaneously at the time of the first injection of Prednisolone acetate in the intervention group for 5 times a week.An equal amount of saline was injected into rabbits in control and model groups.Eight weeks after modelling, animals were put to death, and femoral heads were taken from both sides for gross observation.Micro computed tomography(Micro-CT) was used to analyze the microstructure of bone trabeculae and to measure bone microstructural parameters.Histological staining was used to detect changes in the morphology of bone tissues.Immunohistochemistry and Western blot were used to examine the expression of osteogenic and lipogenic factors and proteins in the femoral head tissue.Rabbit bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) were divided into a blank control group, a Dexamethasone group and a β-Ecd intervention group.Cell damage was induced by Dexamethasone in Dexamethasone group and β-Ecd intervention group, and the β-Ecd intervention group was given the optimal concentration of β-Ecd.Western blot was used to detect the expression of osteogenic and lipogenic proteins in the cells of each group.Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was used to determine the mRNA expression of osteogenic and lipogenic marker genes.Results:After excluding 9 rabbits that died during the experimental period, 51 rabbits were finally included in the study, with 19 in the control group, 15 in the model group and 17 in the intervention group.Gross observation and Micro-CT showed that compared with that of the control group, the femoral head of the model group was obscure and greyish, with dark red necrotic areas.The bone trabeculae of the model group were sparse, thinned, disordered, and partially fractured, compared with those of the control group.The changes in the femoral head and bone trabeculae of the intervention group were between those of control and model groups.The bone mineral density, the number, thickness and relative volume of bone trabeculae significantly decreased and trabecular separation significantly increased in both model and intervention groups, compared with those in the control group ( F=12.78, 45.52, 32.74, 64.08, 8.83, all P<0.05).However, these symptoms in the intervention group were better than those in the model group.Pathological histology showed that in the control group, bone trabeculae were neatly arranged, robust and full, with a high number of osteoclasts and occasional empty bone sockets.In the model group, bone trabeculae were sparsely arranged and broken, with fewer osteoclasts, and the number of empty bone sockets increased and enlarged.In the intervention group, bone trabeculae had a more complete morphology, with fewer necrotic osteoclasts and reduced empty bone sockets, compared with the model group.Immunohistochemistry results showed that compared with the control group, the model group and intervention group had increased content of fatty acid binding proteins (FABP) and CCAAT/enhancer binding proteins α (CEBP) in the femoral head bone tissue, and decreased content of osteopontin (OPN) and Runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2) .The changes in each index were greater in the model group than those in the intervention group ( F=21.07, 24.06, 17.92, 21.36, all P<0.05). Western blot detection showed that compared with the control group, the CEBP protein expression content of the femoral head in the model group and the intervention group was increased and the RUNX2 protein expression content was decreased. The changes of CEBP and RUNX2 were greater in the model group than those in the intervention group( F=73.43, 197.87, all P<0.05).Western blot detection of BMSCs showed that compared with the blank control group, the Dexamethasone group and β-Ecd intervention group had decreased expression of OPN and RUNX2 proteins and increased expression of FABP and CEBP proteins ( F=161.61, 358.01, 91.18, 69.04, all P<0.05).The changes in each index in the β-Ecd intervention group were smaller than those in the Dexamethasone group.RT-qPCR detection of BMSCs showed that in the Dexamethasone group had lower expression of OPN and RUNX2 and higher expression of CEBP and FABP than the blank control group ( F=19.71, 45.08, 61.46, 15.12, all P<0.05).The changes in each index in the β-Ecd intervention group were smaller than those in the Dexamethasone group. Conclusions:β-Ecd can attenuate the pathological changes of hormonal femoral head necrosis in young rabbits by promoting osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs, inhibiting lipogenic differentiation of BMSCs, and improving bone microstructure.

Objective To investigate the changing antibiotic resistance profiles of E.coli isolated from patients in the 52 hospitals participating in the CHINET program from 2015 to 2021.Methods Antimicrobial susceptibility was tested for clinical isolates of E.coli according to the unified protocol of CHINET program.WHONET 5.6 and SPSS 20.0 software were used for data analysis.Results Atotal of 289 760 nonduplicate clinical strains ofE.coli were isolated from 2015 to 2021,mainly from urine samples(44.7±3.2)％.The proportion of E.coli strains isolated from urine samples was higher in females than in males(59.0％vs 29.5％).The proportion of E.coli strains isolated from respiratory tract and cerebrospinal fluid samples was significantly higher in children than in adults(16.7％vs 7.8％,0.8％vs 0.1％,both P＜0.05).The isolates from internal medicine department accounted for the largest proportion(28.9±2.8)％with an increasing trend over years.Overall,the prevalence of ESBLs-producing E.coli and carbapenem resistant E.coli(CREco)was 55.9％and 1.8％,respectively during the 7-year period.The prevalence of ESBLs-producing E.coli was the highest in tertiary hospitals each year from 2015 to 2021 compared to secondary hospitals.The prevalence of CREco was higher in children's hospitals compared to secondary and tertiary hospitals each year from 2015 to 2021.The prevalence of ESBLs-producing E.coli in tertiary hospitals and children's hospitals and the prevalence of CREco in children's hospitals showed a decreasing trend over the 7-year period.The prevalence of CREco in secondary and tertiary hospitals increased slowly.Antibiotic resistance rates changed slowly from 2015 to 2021.Carbapenem drugs(imipenem,meropenem)were the most active drugs amongβ-lactams against E.coli(resistance rate≤2.1％).The resistance rates of E.coli to β-lactam/β-lactam inhibitor combinations(piperacillin-tazobactam,cefoperazone-sulbactam),aminoglycosides(amikacin),nitrofurantoin and fosfomycin(for urinary isolates only)were all less than 10％.The resistance rate of E.coli strains to antibiotics varied with the level of hospitals and the departments where the strains were isolated,especially for cefazolin and ciprofloxacin,to which the resistance rate of E.coli strains from children in non-ICU departments was significantly lower than that of the strains isolated from other departments(P＜0.05).The E.coli isolates from ICU showed higher resistance rate to most antimicrobial agents tested(excluding tigecycline)than the strains isolated from other departments.The E.coli strains isolated from tertiary hospitals showed higher resistance rates to the antimicrobial agents tested(excluding tigecycline,polymyxin B,cefepime and carbapenems)than the strains from secondary hospitals and children's hospitals.Conclusions E.coli is an important pathogen causing clinical infection.More than half of the clinical isolates produced ESBL.The prevalence of CREco is increasing in secondary and tertiary hospitals over the 7-year period even though the overall prevalence is still low.This is an issue of concern.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the dynamic changes of glucocorticoid (GC) dose and the feasibility of GC discontinuation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients under the background of Chinese medicine (CM). METHODS: This multicenter retrospective cohort study included 1,196 RA patients enrolled in the China Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry of Patients with Chinese Medicine (CERTAIN) from September 1, 2019 to December 4, 2023, who initiated GC therapy. Participants were divided into the Western medicine (WM) and integrative medicine (IM, combination of CM and WM) groups based on medication regimen. Follow-up was performed at least every 3 months to assess dynamic changes in GC dose. Changes in GC dose were analyzed by generalized estimator equation, the probability of GC discontinuation was assessed using Kaplan-Meier curve, and predictors of GC discontinuation were analyzed by Cox regression. Patients with <12 months of follow-up were excluded for the sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: Among 1,196 patients (85.4% female; median age 56.4 years), 880 (73.6%) received IM. Over a median 12-month follow-up, 34.3% (410 cases) discontinued GC, with significantly higher rates in the IM group (40.8% vs. 16.1% in WM; P<0.05). GC dose declined progressively, with IM patients demonstrating faster reductions (median 3.75 mg vs. 5.00 mg in WM at 12 months; P<0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis identified age <60 years [P<0.001, hazard ratios (HR)=2.142, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.523-3.012], IM therapy (P=0.001, HR=2.175, 95% CI: 1.369-3.456), baseline GC dose ⩽7.5 mg (P=0.003, HR=1.637, 95% CI: 1.177-2.275), and absence of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use (P=0.001, HR=2.546, 95% CI: 1.432-4.527) as significant predictors of GC discontinuation. Sensitivity analysis (545 cases) confirmed these findings. CONCLUSIONS RA patients receiving CM face difficulties in following guideline-recommended GC discontinuation protocols. IM can promote GC discontinuation and is a promising strategy to reduce GC dependency in RA management. (Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, No. NCT05219214).
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/drug therapy* ; Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Retrospective Studies

This study investigated the role of the nuclear factor of activated T cells c3 (NFATc3) in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) during aortic aneurysm and dissection (AAD) progression and the underlying molecular mechanisms. Cytoplasmic and nuclear NFATc3 levels were elevated in human and mouse AAD. VSMC-NFATc3 deletion reduced thoracic AAD (TAAD) and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) progression in mice, contrary to VSMC-NFATc3 overexpression. VSMC-NFATc3 deletion reduced extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation and maintained the VSMC contractile phenotype. Nuclear NFATc3 targeted and transcriptionally upregulated matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) and MMP2, promoting ECM degradation and AAD development. NFATc3 promoted VSMC phenotypic switching by binding to eukaryotic elongation factor 2 (eEF2) and inhibiting its phosphorylation in the VSMC cytoplasm. Restoring eEF2 reversed the beneficial effects in VSMC-specific NFATc3-knockout mice. Cabamiquine-targets eEF2 and inhibits protein synthesis-inhibited AAD development and progression in VSMC-NFATc3-overexpressing mice. VSMC-NFATc3 promoted VSMC switch and ECM degradation while exacerbating AAD development, making it a novel potential therapeutic target for preventing and treating AAD.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the association between body mass index (BMI) and mortality based on the 10-year population-based multicenter prospective study. METHODS: A general population-based multicenter prospective study was conducted at four sites in rural China between 2013 and 2023. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models and restricted cubic spline analyses were used to assess the association between BMI and mortality. Stratified analyses were performed based on the individual characteristics of the participants. RESULTS: Overall, 19,107 participants with a sum of 163,095 person-years were included and 1,910 participants died. The underweight (< 18.5 kg/m ²) presented an increase in all-cause mortality (adjusted hazards ratio [ aHR] = 2.00, 95% confidence interval [ CI]: 1.66-2.41), while overweight (≥ 24.0 to < 28.0 kg/m ²) and obesity (≥ 28.0 kg/m ²) presented a decrease with an aHR of 0.61 (95% CI: 0.52-0.73) and 0.51 (95% CI: 0.37-0.70), respectively. Overweight ( aHR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.67-0.86) and mild obesity ( aHR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.59-0.87) had a positive impact on mortality in people older than 60 years. All-cause mortality decreased rapidly until reaching a BMI of 25.7 kg/m ² ( aHR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.92-0.98) and increased slightly above that value, indicating a U-shaped association. The beneficial impact of being overweight on mortality was robust in most subgroups and sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION This study provides additional evidence that overweight and mild obesity may be inversely related to the risk of death in individuals older than 60 years. Therefore, it is essential to consider age differences when formulating health and weight management strategies.
Humans ; Body Mass Index ; China/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Rural Population/statistics & numerical data* ; Aged ; Follow-Up Studies ; Adult ; Mortality ; Cause of Death ; Obesity/mortality* ; Overweight/mortality*