ObjectiveCerebrospinal fluid (CSF) plays a crucial role in maintaining the homeostasis of the central nervous system (CNS). CSF rapidly exchanges with interstitial fluid (ISF) via the glymphatic system within the brain parenchyma. CSF-ISF circulation and its associated mechanisms are often referred to as the brain lymphatic system. This system is connected directly to meningeal lymphatic vessels (mLVs), jointly performing the function of clearing metabolic waste from the CNS. Emerging evidence indicates that this system is closely associated with the onset and progression of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Importantly, abnormal CSF circulation is not only a downstream consequence of AD pathology, but also a risk factor. In AD, the dynamics of CSF flow within the CNS are diminished, immune dysregulation occurs, and this may increase the risk of AD by exacerbating the burden of amyloid β-protein (Aβ). In the mouse model of AD, impaired CSF flow compromises this clearance function, leading to cognitive deficits. Clinically, acupuncture at cognition-related acupoints is commonly used for the prevention and treatment of AD. However, whether its therapeutic effects are mediated through the modulation of CSF dynamics remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of acupuncture on CSF flow and investigate its acupoint specificity. MethodsMice were randomly assigned to experimental groups for the different electroacupuncture groups with the following acupoints: Baihui point (GV 20), Ear point, Neiguan point (PC 6), and Tianshu point (ST 25). Wild-type mice on a C57BL/6J background were used as controls. Fluorescent tracer was injected into the cisterna magna to label CSF flow. Fluorescence imaging was employed to assess the distribution of CSF within the brain before and after acupuncture stimulation. ResultsFollowing tracer injection into the cisterna magna, fluorescence signals rapidly reached the cerebellum and medulla—the regions closest to the injection site. Fluorescence intensity was higher in ventral brain regions compared to dorsal regions, likely due to greater vascular density in ventral areas facilitating CSF-ISF exchange. Electroacupuncture at the GV 20 produced the most pronounced enhancement of CSF across the whole brain, while stimulation at the ST 25 primarily augmented flow within subcortical regions. In contrast, electroacupuncture at the Ear point or the PC 6 had no observable effect on CSF in mice. ConclusionElectroacupuncture promotes CSF flow into the brain parenchyma in an acupoint-specific manner, with GV 20 exhibiting the most pronounced enhancement of CSF dynamics. These findings suggest that acupuncture-mediated facilitation of CSF flow may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for preventing or delaying age-related cognitive decline.

ObjectiveCerebrospinal fluid (CSF) plays a crucial role in maintaining the homeostasis of the central nervous system (CNS). CSF rapidly exchanges with interstitial fluid (ISF) via the glymphatic system within the brain parenchyma. CSF-ISF circulation and its associated mechanisms are often referred to as the brain lymphatic system. This system is connected directly to meningeal lymphatic vessels (mLVs), jointly performing the function of clearing metabolic waste from the CNS. Emerging evidence indicates that this system is closely associated with the onset and progression of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Importantly, abnormal CSF circulation is not only a downstream consequence of AD pathology, but also a risk factor. In AD, the dynamics of CSF flow within the CNS are diminished, immune dysregulation occurs, and this may increase the risk of AD by exacerbating the burden of amyloid β-protein (Aβ). In the mouse model of AD, impaired CSF flow compromises this clearance function, leading to cognitive deficits. Clinically, acupuncture at cognition-related acupoints is commonly used for the prevention and treatment of AD. However, whether its therapeutic effects are mediated through the modulation of CSF dynamics remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of acupuncture on CSF flow and investigate its acupoint specificity. MethodsMice were randomly assigned to experimental groups for the different electroacupuncture groups with the following acupoints: Baihui point (GV 20), Ear point, Neiguan point (PC 6), and Tianshu point (ST 25). Wild-type mice on a C57BL/6J background were used as controls. Fluorescent tracer was injected into the cisterna magna to label CSF flow. Fluorescence imaging was employed to assess the distribution of CSF within the brain before and after acupuncture stimulation. ResultsFollowing tracer injection into the cisterna magna, fluorescence signals rapidly reached the cerebellum and medulla—the regions closest to the injection site. Fluorescence intensity was higher in ventral brain regions compared to dorsal regions, likely due to greater vascular density in ventral areas facilitating CSF-ISF exchange. Electroacupuncture at the GV 20 produced the most pronounced enhancement of CSF across the whole brain, while stimulation at the ST 25 primarily augmented flow within subcortical regions. In contrast, electroacupuncture at the Ear point or the PC 6 had no observable effect on CSF in mice. ConclusionElectroacupuncture promotes CSF flow into the brain parenchyma in an acupoint-specific manner, with GV 20 exhibiting the most pronounced enhancement of CSF dynamics. These findings suggest that acupuncture-mediated facilitation of CSF flow may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for preventing or delaying age-related cognitive decline.

ObjectiveTo observe the clinical efficacy and safety of Modified Guomin Decoction （加味过敏煎， MGD） in patients with mild to moderate atopic dermatitis （AD） of the traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） pattern of heart fire and spleen deficiency， and to explore its possible mechanisms. MethodsIn this randomized， double-blind， placebo-controlled study， 72 patients with mild to moderate AD and the TCM pattern of heart fire and spleen deficiency were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group， with 36 cases in each group. The treatment group received oral MGD granules combined with topical vitamin E emulsion， while the control group received oral placebo granules combined with topical vitamin E treatment. Both groups were treated twice daily for 4 weeks. Clinical efficacy， TCM syndrome scores， Visual Analogue Scale （VAS） for pruritus， Dermatology Life Quality Index （DLQI） scores， Scoring Atopic Dermatitis （SCORAD） and serum biomarkers， including interleukin-33 （IL-33）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， immunoglobulin E （IgE）， and tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） were compared before and after treatment. Safety indexes was also assessed. ResultsThe total clinical effective rates were 77.78% （28/36） in the treatment group and 38.89% （14/36） in the control group， with cure rates of 19.44% （7/36） and 2.78% （1/36）， respectively. The treatment group showed significantly better clinical outcomes compared to the control group （P＜0.05）. The treatment group exhibited significant reductions in total TCM syndrome scores， including erythema， edema， papules， scaling， lichenification， pruritus， irritability， insomnia， abdominal distension， and fatigue scores， as well as reductions in VAS， DLQI， SCORAD， and serum IgE and IL-33 levels （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. Compared to the control group， the treatment group had significantly better improvements in all indicators except for insomnia （P＜0.05）. No adverse events occurred in either group. ConclusionMGD is effective and safe in treating mild to moderate AD patients with heart fire and spleen deficiency pattern. It significantly alleviates pruritus， improves TCM syndromes and quality of life， and enhances clinical efficacy， possibly through modulation of immune responses.

Lung cancer poses a serious threat to global public health security.Chemotherapy,as the main strategy for cancer treatment,faces challenges such as high toxicity and drug resistance.Anticancer peptides have the potential of being developed into new anticancer drugs due to their advantages of broad-spectrum anticancer activity,rapid action,and difficulty in generating drug resistance,but they also face shortcomings such as weak activity and strong toxic side effects.The weakly acidic microenvironment of tumors(pH 6.5-6.8)provides a good idea for the design of anticancer peptides of high-efficiency and low-toxicity.Previously,we designed the acid-sensitive antibacterial peptide pHly-1 using the wolf spider(Lycosa singoriensis)toxin Lycosin-Ⅰ as a template.In this study,we found that pHly-1 also had acid-sensitive anticancer activity.Further alanine scanning analysis of pHly-1 was carried out,and we ob-tained a mutant pHTP-2 with better acid sensitivity,whose IC50(half maximal inhibitory concentration)against A549 cells was 15.68 μmol/L at pH 6.6 and was greater than 100 μmol/L at pH 7.4.At pH 6.6,pHTP-2 could act on various lung cancer cell lines and induce the death of A549 cells by rapid ly-sis;at pH 7.4,500 μmol/L pHTP-2 had weak toxicity to red blood cells(the hemolysis rate was ap-proximately 38％)and primary myocardial cells(the inhibition rate was 49.7％,with P＜0.05).Analy-sis of its charge,particle size,morphology,and secondary structure showed that at pH 6.6,the histidine in the sequence of pHTP-2 was protonated,increasing the positive charge(P＜0.01),decreasing the hy-drated particle size(P＜0.05)and forming an α-helical structure to induce membrane lysis of A549 cells.At pH 7.4,it was deprotonated,the positive charge decreases,a β-sheet structure was formed and self-aggregation occurred,limiting its effect on the A549 cell membrane and showing weak activity.In summary,pHTP-2 could respond to the weakly acidic microenvironment of tumors to exert selective cyto-toxic activity,effectively overcoming the shortcomings of anticancer peptides such as low efficiency and high toxicity.Our findings suggest that it is a high-quality lead molecule for anticancer drugs.

The working principle of Bausch&Lomb BL11110 phacoemulsification system was described.Three cases of typical faults of the phacoemulsification system were introduced,and the causes were analyzed,then the maintenance measures were given accordingly.References were provided for diagnosing and eliminating the faults of the phacoemulsification system.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2025,46(4):118-120]

Esophageal scar stenosis following chemical burns is a common and complex clinical issue.According to the Zargar classification,approximately 90％of patients with third-degree burns and 15％-30％of those with second-degree burns will develop esophageal or pyloric stenosis.Personalized treatment strategies tailored to the specifics of esophageal stenosis are particularly important.This review focuses on the selection of anastomotic sites during esophageal reconstruction following chemical burns and summarizes perioperative evaluations and timing of surgery.Overall,the treatment strategy for esophageal scar stenosis emphasizes personalized medicine,taking into account the characteristics of the stenosis and carefully selecting the most suitable surgical approach to achieve optimal therapeutic outcomes.

Objective:To evaluate the role of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) in renal fibrosis in a mouse model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury.Methods:Twelve male C57BL/6J wild-type mice and 12 macrophage IRF3 conditional knockout C57BL/6J mice, aged 8-10 weeks, weighing 20-25 g, were divided into 2 groups ( n=6 each) using a random number table method: wild-type sham operation group (WT-Sham group) and wild-type renal ischemia-reperfusion injury group (WT-I/R group); IRF3 conditional knockout sham operation group (cKO-Sham group) and IRF3 conditional knockout I/R group (cKO-I/R group). The model of renal I/R injury was established by occluding bilateral renal pedicles for 45 min followed by reperfusion in anesthetized animals. The orbital blood samples and renal tissues were collected at 14 days of reperfusion for determination of the concentrations of blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine (Cr) in serum, expression of fibronectin, collagen-I, alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) (by immunofluorescence), F4/80-α-SMA double positive cell count, and mRNA expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in renal tissues (by real-time polymerase chain reaction) and for observation of pathological changes which were scored. The area of renal fibrosis was measured. Results:For two types of mice, compared with group Sham, the levels of serum BUN and Cr, area of renal fibrosis and renal injury score were significantly increased, the expression of fibronectin, COL-Ⅰ and α-SMA protein and IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α and TGF-β1 mRNA was up-regulated, and the F4/80-α-SMA dual positive cell count was increased in group WT-I/R ( P<0.05). Compared with group WT-I/R, the concentrations of BUN and Cr in serum, area of renal fibrosis and renal injury score were significantly decreased, the expression of fibronectin, COL-Ⅰ and α-SMA protein and IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α and TGF-β1 mRNA was down-regulated, and the F4/80-α-SMA dual positive cell count was decreased in cKO-I/R group ( P<0.05). Conclusions:IRF3 is involved in the process of renal fibrosis in a mouse model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury, and the mechanism may be associated with the promotion of inflammatory responses and the transformation of macrophages into myofibroblasts.

The exoskeleton robot for lower limb medical rehabilitation in foreign countries and China was introduced in terms of the research status,structure and working principle,and analysis was carried out over its key technologies.It's pointed out the exoskeleton robot for lower limb medical rehabilitation would be enhanced in energy endurance,safety and comfort,individualized and intelligent control,modularity and lightweight design.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2025,46(1):88-100]

Objective:To evaluate the role of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) in renal fibrosis in a mouse model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury.Methods:Twelve male C57BL/6J wild-type mice and 12 macrophage IRF3 conditional knockout C57BL/6J mice, aged 8-10 weeks, weighing 20-25 g, were divided into 2 groups ( n=6 each) using a random number table method: wild-type sham operation group (WT-Sham group) and wild-type renal ischemia-reperfusion injury group (WT-I/R group); IRF3 conditional knockout sham operation group (cKO-Sham group) and IRF3 conditional knockout I/R group (cKO-I/R group). The model of renal I/R injury was established by occluding bilateral renal pedicles for 45 min followed by reperfusion in anesthetized animals. The orbital blood samples and renal tissues were collected at 14 days of reperfusion for determination of the concentrations of blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine (Cr) in serum, expression of fibronectin, collagen-I, alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) (by immunofluorescence), F4/80-α-SMA double positive cell count, and mRNA expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in renal tissues (by real-time polymerase chain reaction) and for observation of pathological changes which were scored. The area of renal fibrosis was measured. Results:For two types of mice, compared with group Sham, the levels of serum BUN and Cr, area of renal fibrosis and renal injury score were significantly increased, the expression of fibronectin, COL-Ⅰ and α-SMA protein and IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α and TGF-β1 mRNA was up-regulated, and the F4/80-α-SMA dual positive cell count was increased in group WT-I/R ( P<0.05). Compared with group WT-I/R, the concentrations of BUN and Cr in serum, area of renal fibrosis and renal injury score were significantly decreased, the expression of fibronectin, COL-Ⅰ and α-SMA protein and IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α and TGF-β1 mRNA was down-regulated, and the F4/80-α-SMA dual positive cell count was decreased in cKO-I/R group ( P<0.05). Conclusions:IRF3 is involved in the process of renal fibrosis in a mouse model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury, and the mechanism may be associated with the promotion of inflammatory responses and the transformation of macrophages into myofibroblasts.

Esophageal scar stenosis following chemical burns is a common and complex clinical issue.According to the Zargar classification,approximately 90％of patients with third-degree burns and 15％-30％of those with second-degree burns will develop esophageal or pyloric stenosis.Personalized treatment strategies tailored to the specifics of esophageal stenosis are particularly important.This review focuses on the selection of anastomotic sites during esophageal reconstruction following chemical burns and summarizes perioperative evaluations and timing of surgery.Overall,the treatment strategy for esophageal scar stenosis emphasizes personalized medicine,taking into account the characteristics of the stenosis and carefully selecting the most suitable surgical approach to achieve optimal therapeutic outcomes.