ObjectiveTo investigate the therapeutic effect of Astragali Radix-mediated changes in gut microbiota on treating type 2 diabetes （T2DM）. MethodsA 12-week randomized， placebo-controlled clinical trial enrolled eighty patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes and poor glycemic control in the Qi deficiency type. All patients received insulin therapy. The observation group （40 cases） was administered with Astragali Radix Granules， while the control group （40 cases） received a placebo. Both treamtents were taken orally twice daily. Changes in gut microbiota were assessed by 16s rDNA sequencing. Serum glucagon-like peptide-1 （GLP-1） levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. Glucose metabolism indicators including fasting blood glucose （FPG）， 2-hour postprandial blood glucose （2 h PG），glycated albumin（GA）， and glycated hemoglobin （HbA1c） were evaluated. Pancreatic function was evaluated using fasting C-peptide （FCP）， 2-hour postprandial C-peptide （2 h CP）， and C-peptide area under the curve （AUC_cp）. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndrome scores， clinical efficacy， and safety indicators were also observed. ResultsIn terms of glucose metabolism indicators， compared with the baseline， both groups exhibited significantly lower FPG， 2 h PG， GA and HbA1C （P<0.01），while FCP， 2 h CP and AUC_cp were significantly higher （P<0.01）. Compared with the control group after the treatment， the observation group showed significantly lower FPG， 2 h PG， GA and HbA1C（P<0.05， P<0.01），and significantly higher FCP， 2 h CP and AUC_cp （P<0.05， P<0.01）， indicating that Astragali Radix can improve glucose metabolism. In terms of the diversity of gut microbiota， no significant differences were detected in the Chao1， Shannon and Simpson indexes of the two groups compared with their respective baselines. However， compared with the post-treatment control group， the observation group demonstrated significant increases in the Chao1， Shannon and Simpson indexes （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The β-diversity analysis showed significant separation in gut microbiota composition before and after treatment in both groups， indicating that Astragali Radix can significantly alter the structure and improve the diversity of gut microbiota. At the phylum level， compared with the baseline， both groups showed a significant increase in the relative abundance of Bacteroidota（P<0.01）. The relative abundance of the potentially harmful phylum Proteobacteria was significantly lower in the observation Group after treatment （P<0.01）. Compared with the post-treatment control group， the observation group had a significantly higher relative abundance of Bacteroidota（P<0.01）. No significant difference was found in Firmicutes/Bacteroidota （F/B） ratio between the two groups after treatment， and other phyla showed no significant differences. At the genus level， compared with the baseline， the observation group exhibited a significant increase in Bacteroides （P<0.01） and a significant decrease in Escherichia-Shigella （P<0.01）， whereas no significant difference was seen in the control group . Compared with the control group after treatment， the observation group after treatment had a significantly higher relative abundance of Bacteroides （P<0.01）. No significant differences were seen in other genera. Linear discriminant analysis （LDA） identified potential characteristics taxa： in the observation group， Bacteroidota at the phylum level and Bacteroides and Dubosiella at the genus level， in the control group， Proteobacteria at the phylum level as well as Barnesiella and Staphylococcus at the genus level. Correlation analysis based on a heatmap revealed that GLP-1 levels were positively correlated with Firmicutes， F/B ratio and Fusobacterium， and negatively correlated with Bacteroidota， Proteobacteria， Bacteroides and Escherichia-Shigella. In terms of clinical efficacy， compared with the control group， the total effective rate of the observation group was significantly higher （P<0.05）. Compared with the baseline， the scores for shortness of breath， fatigue， weakness， spontaneous sweating and reluctance to speak significantly decreased in both groups （P<0.01）. Compared with the control group after treatment， the score for weakness was significantly lower in the observation group （P<0.01），indicating that Astragali Radix could improve clinical symptoms and alleviate weakness symptoms. In terms of safety， compared with the baseline， alanine aminotransferase （ALT） levels significantly decreased in both groups （P<0.05，P<0.01），indicating that Astragali Radix did not induce any significant abnormalities in liver and kidney functions. ConclusionAstragali Radix demonstrates the potential to significantly improve the gut microbiota environment in patients of newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes with Qi deficiency. The therapeutic effect may contribute to glycemic control， possibly mediated by an elevation in GLP-1 level. These findings may support its further clinical investigations and potential applications.

OBJECTIVE To preliminarily assess the horizontal sound localization and its influencing factors in patients with unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss during the acute phase.METHODS The azimuth discrimination test and azimuth identification test were completed,with the speech sound(65 dB SPL)as the stimulus.The minimum audible angle(MAA)and root-mean-square error(RMSE)were obtained,and the RMSE of the affected side and the healthy side were calculated respectively.According to the WHO(2021)hearing loss classification criteria,the data were analyzed based on the pure-tone average(PTA)of the affected ear.And the best resident hearing at each frequency of the affected ear was recorded.RESULTS The performance of the unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss patients in the sound localization varied greatly.Some performed close to the normal level,while others completely lost the ability to localize sound.The RMSE of the moderate hearing loss group(≥35 dB HL)was significantly higher than that of the normal hearing group(P<0.01),the MAA of the moderate to severe hearing loss group(≥50 dB HL)showed statistically significant differencescompared with normal hearing group(P<0.001).The RMSE of the affected side of patients in the severe and above hearing loss group was significantly larger than that of the healthy side.Regression analysis showed that the best resident hearing at each frequency of the affected ear was the most significant factor affecting MAA(R2=0.572,P<0.001)and RMSE(R2=0.768,P<0.001).CONCLUSION The horizontal sound localization of unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss patients in the acute phase varies greatly.When the PTA of the affected side reaches moderate hearing loss,the localization ability is significantly lower than that of normal-hearing individuals.The best resident hearing at each frequency of the affected ear is the key factor affecting the localization ability.

Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy of acupuncture combined with Modified Zuojin Granules in treating reflux esophagitis(RE)with liver-stomach disharmony syndrome.Methods A total of 100 patients diagnosed with liver-stomach disharmony syndrome RE were enrolled from October 2022 to October 2024 at Zigong First People's Hospital.The patients were randomly assigned to the observation group and the control group,with 50 cases in each group.The control group was treated with Modified Zuojin Granules,while the observation group was given acupuncture plus Modified Zuojin Granules,both group were treated for 4 weeks.The changes in the traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)syndrome scores,24-hour esophageal acid reflux parameters(frequency and longest duration),serum gastrointestinal hormones[gastrin(GAS),motilin(MTL),vasoactive intestinal peptide(VIP)],gut microbiota composition(Lactobacillus,Bifidobacterium,Enterococcus,Enterobacter)were observed.The adverse reactions and safety profiles were evaluated.Results(1)Both groups showed significant improvement in TCM syndrome scores(P＜0.05),with greater improvement in the observation group,and the differences were statistically significant(P＜0.05).(2)After treatment,both groups of patients showed significant improvements in the number of gastric reflux episodes in the oesophagus over 24 hours and the longest reflux duration(P＜0.05).The observation group demonstrated significantly better improvements in the number of gastric reflux episodes in the oesophagus over 24 hours and the longest reflux duration compared to the control group,with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).(3)After treatment,the serum levels of GAS,MTL,and VIP in both groups of patients were significantly improved(P＜0.05).The observation group showed significantly better improvement in serum GAS,MTL,and VIP levels compared to the control group,with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).(4)After treatment,the levels of Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria in both groups increased significantly compared to before treatment(P＜0.05),while the levels of Enterococci and Enterobacteria were significantly decreased(P＜0.05).The improvement in intestinal microbiota levels was more pronounced in the observation group,with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).(5)The overall efficacy rate was 96.00％(48/50)in the observation group and 80.00％(40/50)in the control group.The observation group demonstrated superior efficacy compared to the control group,with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).(6)The incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group was 8.00％(4/50),while that in the control group was 12.00％(6/50).There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion The combined therapy significantly improves clinical symptoms,modulates gastrointestinal hormones and gut microbiota,demonstrating excellent efficacy and safety for liver-stomach disharmony syndrome RE.

Objective To investigate the prevalence of iron deficiency(ID)and iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in pregnant women in urban areas of China. Methods The study was a national cross-sectional survey conducted from September 19th, 2016 to November 20th, 2016. According to the classification of the National Bureau of Statistics, all survey sites were set up in 6 regions of the country. Pregnant women were continuously selected using multistage stratified sampling. A total of 12 403 pregnant women were collected and examined for serum ferritin and hemoglobin levels. Results The median serum ferritin level during pregnancy was 20.60 μg/L(11.78-36.98 μg/L), the hemoglobin level was(118±12)g/L. With the progress of pregnancy, the levels of serum ferritin and hemoglobin decreased gradually. The median serum ferritin levels in the first, second trimester and third trimester were 54.30 μg/L(34.48-94.01 μg/L), 28.60 μg/L(16.40-50.52 μg/L), and 16.70 μg/L(10.20-27.00 μg/L)respectively(P<0.01). The mean hemoglobin levels were(127 ± 10)g/L,(119 ± 11)g/L and(117 ± 11)g/L respectively(P<0.01). The prevalence of ID in urban pregnant women was 48.16%(5 973/12 403), and IDA prevalence was 13.87% (1 720/12 403). The prevalence of IDA in the first, second trimester and third trimester were 1.96% (20/1 019), 8.40%(293/3 487)and 17.82%(1 407/7 897), respectively(P<0.01). The prevalence of standardized ID and IDA were significantly different in various regions of China(P<0.01). The standardized prevalence of ID were relatively higher in East China and Northeast China, 57.37% and 53.41% respectively, while it was the lowest in Southwest China, 30.51%. The standardized prevalence of IDA in South Central, Northwest, and East China were relatively high, 21.30%, 16.97% and 17.53% respectively, and the standardized prevalence of IDA in Southwest China was the lowest, 5.44%,the differents in various regions were significant(all P<0.01). Conclusion The current phenomenon of ID and IDA in pregnant women is still very common,and nutrition and health care during pregnancy should be strengthened.

Objective To investigate the clinical study on drynaria injection for delayed healing of fracture patients.Methods 108 patients with fracture delayed union from February 2010 to February 2016 in our hospital were selected and randomly divided into the control group and the experiment group by different treatment,54 cases in each group.The control group were treated by conventional therapy,the experiment group were treated with drynaria rhizome injection on the bases of control group.The total effective rate,serum alkaline phosphatase,NGF and BMP-2 levels were observed and compared after treatment.Results After treatment,the total effective rate of experiment group was higher than control group (P<0.05);After treatment for 7 and 14 days,the serum alkaline phosphatase level of the two groups were significantly increased (P<0.05),and compared with the control group, the serum alkaline phosphatase content of the experimental group was higher (P<0.05);After treatment for 7 and 14 days,the serum NGF and BMP-2 levels of two groups were significantly increased(P<0.05),and compared with the control group,the experimental group was higher than those in the control group.Conclusion Injection of rhizoma drynariae in the treatment of delayed healing of patients with significant effect,increase the levels of serum alkaline phosphatase, serum NGF and BMP-2,promote fracture healing in patients and improve clinical efficacy.

AIM: To prepare and identify mouse polyclonal antibody against protein Hlb, which is the variant of major subunit of human ASGPR. METHODS: Hlb specific peptide was synthesized and coupled with keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) for immunization. Then H1b-KLH conjugation was injected into mouse subcutaneously to produce polyclonal antibody. ELISA assay was used to detect the titer of the antibody. Antibody was also identified by Western blot and immunohistochemistry assays. RESULTS: Mouse antibody against Hlb was prepared after injection of H1bKLH conjugation. The titer of H1b antibody was about 1:10~5.Western blot confirmed its high specificity. This antibody could also be used for immunohistochemistry analysis. CONCLUSION: The successful preparation of the polyclonal antibody against protein H1b, which can discriminate the two variants of the major subunit of ASGPR with high specificity, will provide an efficient reagent for further study of the physiologic functions of H1b and its role in the pathogenesis of human disease.