Objective To gain insights into the biological characteristics of different populations of Culex tritaeniorhynchus within and around the Yellow Sea wetland from the perspective of the occurrence of resistance, we investigated the levels of resistance to deltamethrin and kdr gene mutation in the wetland and its peripheral areas. Methods Specimens were collected from Cx. tritaeniorhynchus populations at two monitoring sites in the Rare Bird National Nature Reserve and Tiaozi Ni Wetland Scenic Area, and also from two populations in Yancheng City and the Liuhe District of Nanjing, and the resistance of these mosquitoes to deltamethrin was determined using the CDC biotest bottle method. For each concentration of deltamethrin assessed, a random subset of exposed specimens was selected for amplification of the kdr gene fragment, followed by Sanger sequencing to identify and analyze resistance-associated mutations. Results The LC50 levels of deltamethrin among mosquitoes from the four populations in Luhe, Yancheng, the Rare Bird National Nature Reserve and the Tiaozi Ni Wetland Scenic Area were 2.048 5, 7.798 2, 3.473 3, and 17.695 5 mg/mL, respectively, with corresponding concentrations of deltamethrin ranging from 0.005 to 5.000,0.050 to 50.000,0.050 to 25.000 and 0.050 to 50.000 mg/mL, respectively. Furthermore, the ranges of the KT50 values were 11.76-107.43, 67.05-216.30,29.77-107.43 and 28.40-329.51 min; the 1-h knockdown rates were 34.58%-99.15%, 9.52%-43.80%, 55.09%-73.01%, and 10.09%-68.07%; and the 24-h mortality rates were 12.15%-67.52%,9.52%-79.56%,13.17%-82.21%, and 11.01%-78.99%, respectively. With respect to kdr gene mutation, we assayed a total of 63,70,59, and 57 mosquitoes for the four populations, for which we detected L1014F mutation frequencies of 14.29%, 35.00%, 20.34%, and 31.58%, respectively, with a majority of these mutations being heterozygous for resistance. In addition, five adult mosquitoes were identified has having synonymous mutations at site 1011[i. e. , AAT(asparagine)mutation to AAC(asparagine)]. Conclusions Our findings revealed the clear resistance of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus to deltamethrin in the Yancheng region of the Yellow Sea wetland, and the resistance phenotype and kdr frequency of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus in the wetland environment were comparable to those of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus in the wetland environment, thereby indicating that the resistance of different populations of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus was homogeneous under the pressure of different insecticide selection within and around the wetland. However, the underlying mechanisms need to be further studied.

ObjectiveTo investigate the repair effects of Zhengan Xifengtang on intestinal mucosal barrier in spontaneously hypertensive rats （SHRs） through the pathways of farnesoid X receptor （FXR）-myosin light chain kinase （MLCK）/phosphorylated myosin light chain （p-MLC） and its potential mechanism. MethodsForty 10-week-old male SHRs were randomly divided into model group， amlodipine besylate group （0.5 mg·kg^-1·d^-1）， and high， middle and low dose groups of Zhengan Xifengtang （34.5， 17.25， 8.625 g·kg^-1·d^-1）； eight age-matched male Wistar-Kyoto （WKY） rats of the same origin served as the normal control group. Drug intervention was carried out for 8 weeks， and the blood pressure of the rats was measured regularly. After the intervention， the rats were euthanized to collect tissue samples. Hematoxylin and eosin （HE） staining and Alcian blue-periodic acid-Schiff （AB-PAS） staining were used to evaluate the pathological morphology and the number of goblet cells in colonic mucosa. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was employed to measure plasma lipopolysaccharide （LPS） and diamine oxidase （DAO） levels in each group of rats. Immunofluorescence （IF） assay was used to detect the relative fluorescence intensity of FXR and p-MLC in colonic tissue. Western blot was used to detect the zonula occludens-1 （ZO-1）， Occludin， Claudin-1， junctional adhesion molecule-1 （JAM-1）， mucin-2 （MUC2）， FXR， MLCK， and p-MLC protein expression in colon tissue. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to detect mRNA expression levels of ZO-1， Occludin， Claudin-1， JAM-1， MUC2， FXR， MLCK， and MLC in colon tissue. ResultsCompared with the normal group， the blood pressure in the model group increased significantly （P<0.01）， the colonic mucosal structure was seriously damaged， and the number of goblet cells decreased significantly. The contents of LPS and DAO increased significantly （P<0.01）， the relative fluorescence intensity of FXR in colon decreased， while that of p-MLC increased （P<0.01）. The protein and mRNA expressions of ZO-1， Claudin-1， JAM-1， Occludin， MUC2 and FXR decreased significantly （P<0.01）， whereas the protein expression of MLCK and p-MLC increased significantly （P<0.01）. Additionally， the mRNA expression of MLCK and MLC increased significantly （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the Zhengan Xifengtang groups at various dosages and the amlodipine besylate group showed significantly reduced blood pressure （P<0.01）. The damage of colonic mucosa structure was alleviated， the infiltration of inflammatory cells decreased， and the number of goblet cells increased. LPS and DAO levels were decreased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. In the colon， the relative fluorescence intensity of FXR increased， while that of p-MLC decreased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The protein and mRNA expression levels of ZO-1， Claudin-1， JAM-1， Occludin， and FXR increased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）， while the protein expression of MLCK and p-MLC decreased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Furthermore， the mRNA expression of MLCK and MLC decreased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and the protein expression of MUC2 increased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The expression of MUC2 mRNA in each dose group of Zhengan Xifengtang increased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionZhengan Xifengtang may regulate the FXR-MLCK/p-MLC signaling pathway and enhance the expression of tight junction protein， thereby reducing intestinal mucosal permeability， promoting mucosal barrier repair， decreasing LPS release into the blood， and ultimately lowering blood pressure.

ObjectiveTo investigate the repair effects of Zhengan Xifengtang on intestinal mucosal barrier in spontaneously hypertensive rats （SHRs） through the pathways of farnesoid X receptor （FXR）-myosin light chain kinase （MLCK）/phosphorylated myosin light chain （p-MLC） and its potential mechanism. MethodsForty 10-week-old male SHRs were randomly divided into model group， amlodipine besylate group （0.5 mg·kg^-1·d^-1）， and high， middle and low dose groups of Zhengan Xifengtang （34.5， 17.25， 8.625 g·kg^-1·d^-1）； eight age-matched male Wistar-Kyoto （WKY） rats of the same origin served as the normal control group. Drug intervention was carried out for 8 weeks， and the blood pressure of the rats was measured regularly. After the intervention， the rats were euthanized to collect tissue samples. Hematoxylin and eosin （HE） staining and Alcian blue-periodic acid-Schiff （AB-PAS） staining were used to evaluate the pathological morphology and the number of goblet cells in colonic mucosa. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was employed to measure plasma lipopolysaccharide （LPS） and diamine oxidase （DAO） levels in each group of rats. Immunofluorescence （IF） assay was used to detect the relative fluorescence intensity of FXR and p-MLC in colonic tissue. Western blot was used to detect the zonula occludens-1 （ZO-1）， Occludin， Claudin-1， junctional adhesion molecule-1 （JAM-1）， mucin-2 （MUC2）， FXR， MLCK， and p-MLC protein expression in colon tissue. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to detect mRNA expression levels of ZO-1， Occludin， Claudin-1， JAM-1， MUC2， FXR， MLCK， and MLC in colon tissue. ResultsCompared with the normal group， the blood pressure in the model group increased significantly （P<0.01）， the colonic mucosal structure was seriously damaged， and the number of goblet cells decreased significantly. The contents of LPS and DAO increased significantly （P<0.01）， the relative fluorescence intensity of FXR in colon decreased， while that of p-MLC increased （P<0.01）. The protein and mRNA expressions of ZO-1， Claudin-1， JAM-1， Occludin， MUC2 and FXR decreased significantly （P<0.01）， whereas the protein expression of MLCK and p-MLC increased significantly （P<0.01）. Additionally， the mRNA expression of MLCK and MLC increased significantly （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the Zhengan Xifengtang groups at various dosages and the amlodipine besylate group showed significantly reduced blood pressure （P<0.01）. The damage of colonic mucosa structure was alleviated， the infiltration of inflammatory cells decreased， and the number of goblet cells increased. LPS and DAO levels were decreased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. In the colon， the relative fluorescence intensity of FXR increased， while that of p-MLC decreased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The protein and mRNA expression levels of ZO-1， Claudin-1， JAM-1， Occludin， and FXR increased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）， while the protein expression of MLCK and p-MLC decreased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Furthermore， the mRNA expression of MLCK and MLC decreased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and the protein expression of MUC2 increased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）. The expression of MUC2 mRNA in each dose group of Zhengan Xifengtang increased significantly （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionZhengan Xifengtang may regulate the FXR-MLCK/p-MLC signaling pathway and enhance the expression of tight junction protein， thereby reducing intestinal mucosal permeability， promoting mucosal barrier repair， decreasing LPS release into the blood， and ultimately lowering blood pressure.

ObjectiveTo investigate the triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index and the level of serum homocysteine (Hcy) in association with the incidence of stroke in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. MethodsBased on the chronic disease risk factor surveillance cohort in Pudong New Area, Shanghai, excluding those with stroke in baseline survey, T2DM patients who joined the cohort from January 2016 to October 2020 were selected as the research subjects. During the follow-up period, a total of 318 new-onset ischemic stroke patients were selected as the case group, and a total of 318 individuals matched by gender without stroke were selected as the control group. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to adjust for confounding factors and explore the serum TyG index and the Hcy biochemical indicator in association with the risk of stroke. ResultsThe Cox proportional hazards regression results showed that after adjusting for confounding factors, the risk of stroke in T2DM patients with 10 μmol·L⁻¹-¹ and Hcy>15 μmol·L⁻¹ was 1.532 times (95%CI: 1.017‒2.309 times, P=0.041) and 1.738 times (95%CI: 1.119‒2.699 times, P=0.014) higher respectively, compared to T2DM patients with Hcy≤10 μmol·L⁻¹. T2DM patients with TyG>9.074 had 1.396 times higher risk of stroke (95%CI: 1.091‒1.787, P=0.008) compared to those with TyG≤9.074. The study found that urea and α1-antitrypsin (α1-AT) were independent risk factors for the incidence of stroke in T2DM patients. For every unit increase in urea andα1-AT, the risk of stroke in T2DM patients increased by 233.6% (HR=3.336, 95%CI: 1.588‒7.009, P=0.001) and 11.3% (HR=1.113, 95%CI: 1.028‒1.205, P=0.008), respectively. Cumulative risk curves showed that Hcy>10 μmol·L⁻¹ and TyG>9.074 accelerated the time to stroke occurrence in T2DM patients. ConclusionElevated levels of Hcy>10 μmol·L⁻¹ and a higher TyG index are risk factors for stroke in T2DM patients. Effective interventions for Hcy and TyG should be conducted for diabetic patients to reduce the incidence of stroke.

ObjectiveThis study aims to develop and validate a novel multimodal predictive model， termed criss-cross network（CCNet）-directed graph neural network（DGNN）（CGN）， for accurate assessment of pulmonary nodule progression in high-risk individuals for lung cancer， by integrating longitudinal chest computed tomography（CT） imaging with both traditional Chinese and western clinical evaluation data. MethodsA cohort of 4 432 patients with pulmonary nodules was retrospectively analyzed. A twin CCNet was employed to extract spatiotemporal representations from paired sequential CT scans. Structured clinical assessment and imaging-derived features were encoded via a multilayer perceptron， and a similarity-based alignment strategy was adopted to harmonize multimodal imaging features across temporal dimensions. Subsequently， a DGNN was constructed to integrate heterogeneous features， where nodes represented modality-specific embeddings and edges denoted inter-modal information flow. Finally， model optimization was performed using a joint loss function combining cross-entropy and cosine similarity loss， facilitating robust classification of nodule progression status. ResultsThe proposed CGN model demonstrated superior predictive performance on the held-out test set， achieving an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve（AUC） of 0.830， accuracy of 0.843， sensitivity of 0.657， specificity of 0.712， Cohen's Kappa of 0.417， and F₁ score of 0.544. Compared with unimodal baselines， the CGN model yielded a 36%-48% relative improvement in AUC. Ablation studies revealed a 2%-22% increase in AUC when compared to simplified architectures lacking key components， substantiating the efficacy of the proposed multimodal fusion strategy and modular design. Incorporation of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）-specific symptomatology led to an additional 5% improvement in AUC， underscoring the complementary value of integrating TCM and western clinical data. Through gradient-weighted activation mapping visualization analysis， it was found that the model's attention predominantly focused on nodule regions and effectively captured dynamic associations between clinical data and imaging-derived features. ConclusionThe CGN model， by synergistically combining cross-attention encoding with directed graph-based feature integration， enables effective alignment and fusion of heterogeneous multimodal data. The incorporation of both TCM and western clinical information facilitates complementary feature enrichment， thereby enhancing predictive accuracy for pulmonary nodule progression. This approach holds significant potential for supporting intelligent risk stratification and personalized surveillance strategies in lung cancer prevention.

BACKGROUND: Disease-modifying therapies have been approved for the treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS). The present study aims to examine the safety of teriflunomide in Chinese patients with RMS. METHODS: This non-randomized, multi-center, 24-week, prospective study enrolled RMS patients with variant (c.421C>A) or wild type ABCG2 who received once-daily oral teriflunomide 14 mg. The primary endpoint was the relationship between ABCG2 polymorphisms and teriflunomide exposure over 24 weeks. Safety was assessed over the 24-week treatment with teriflunomide. RESULTS: Eighty-two patients were assigned to variant ( n  = 42) and wild type groups ( n  = 40), respectively. Geometric mean and geometric standard deviation (SD) of pre-dose concentration (variant, 54.9 [38.0] μg/mL; wild type, 49.1 [32.0] μg/mL) and area under plasma concentration-time curve over a dosing interval (AUC tau ) (variant, 1731.3 [769.0] μg∙h/mL; wild type, 1564.5 [1053.0] μg∙h/mL) values at steady state were approximately similar between the two groups. Safety profile was similar and well tolerated across variant and wild type groups in terms of rates of treatment emergent adverse events (TEAE), treatment-related TEAE, grade ≥3 TEAE, and serious adverse events (AEs). No new specific safety concerns or deaths were reported in the study. CONCLUSION: ABCG2 polymorphisms did not affect the steady-state exposure of teriflunomide, suggesting a similar efficacy and safety profile between variant and wild type RMS patients. REGISTRATION NCT04410965, https://clinicaltrials.gov .
Humans ; Crotonates/adverse effects* ; Toluidines/adverse effects* ; Nitriles ; Hydroxybutyrates ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily G, Member 2/genetics* ; Middle Aged ; Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting/genetics* ; Prospective Studies ; Young Adult ; Neoplasm Proteins/genetics* ; East Asian People

BACKGROUND: Pancreatic cancer is a lethal malignancy prone to gemcitabine resistance. The single-strand selective monofunctional uracil DNA glycosylase (SMUG1), which is responsible for initiating base excision repair, has been reported to predict the outcomes of different cancer types. However, the function of SMUG1 in pancreatic cancer is still unclear. METHODS: Gene and protein expression of SMUG1 as well as survival outcomes were assessed by bioinformatic analysis and verified in a cohort from Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center. Subsequently, the effect of SMUG1 on proliferation, cell cycle, and migration abilities of SMUG1 cells were detected in vitro . DNA damage repair, apoptosis, and gemcitabine resistance were also tested. RNA sequencing was performed to determine the differentially expressed genes and signaling pathways, followed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting verification. The cancer-promoting effect of forkhead box Q1 (FOXQ1) and SMUG1 on the ubiquitylation of myelocytomatosis oncogene (c-Myc) was also evaluated. Finally, a xenograft model was established to verify the results. RESULTS: SMUG1 was highly expressed in pancreatic tumor tissues and cells, which also predicted a poor prognosis. Downregulation of SMUG1 inhibited the proliferation, G1 to S transition, migration, and DNA damage repair ability against gemcitabine in pancreatic cancer cells. SMUG1 exerted its function by binding with FOXQ1 to activate the Protein Kinase B (AKT)/p21 and p27 pathway. Moreover, SMUG1 also stabilized the c-Myc protein via AKT signaling in pancreatic cancer cells. CONCLUSIONS SMUG1 promotes proliferation, migration, gemcitabine resistance, and c-Myc protein stability in pancreatic cancer via protein kinase B signaling through binding with FOXQ1. Furthermore, SMUG1 may be a new potential prognostic and gemcitabine resistance predictor in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.
Humans ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/pathology* ; Forkhead Transcription Factors/genetics* ; Signal Transduction/genetics* ; Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt/metabolism* ; Cell Proliferation/physiology* ; Mice ; Uracil-DNA Glycosidase/genetics* ; Female ; Male ; Gemcitabine ; Mice, Nude ; Apoptosis/physiology* ; Deoxycytidine/analogs & derivatives* ; Cell Movement/genetics*

Selenoproteins, as the active form of selenium, play an important role in various physiological and pathological processes, such as anti-oxidation, anti-tumor, immune response, metabolic regulation, reproduction and aging. Although the expression level of selenoproteins in adipose tissue is significantly influenced by dietary selenium intake, it is closely related to the homeostasis of adipose tissue. In this review, we summarized the role of selenoproteins in the physiological function of adipose tissue and the pathogenesis of obesity in recent years, in order to provide a rationale for developing potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of obesity and related metabolic diseases.
Selenoproteins/metabolism* ; Adipose Tissue/physiology* ; Obesity/metabolism* ; Humans ; Animals ; Selenium

This study aims to investigate the ameliorating effect of Corni Fructus(CF) on the myocardial ischemic injury and the pharmacokinetic properties of characteristic components of CF. The mouse model of isoproterenol-induced myocardial ischemia was established and administrated with the aqueous extract of CF. The general efficacy of CF in ameliorating the myocardial ischemic injury was evaluated based on the cardiac histopathology and the levels of myocardial injury markers: creatine kinase isoenzyme(CK-MB) and cardiac troponin I(cTn-I). The metabolomics analysis was carried out for the heart and serum samples of mice to screen the biomarkers of CF in ameliorating the myocardial ischemic injury and then the predicted biomarkers were submitted to metabolic pathway enrichment. The pharmacokinetic analysis was performed for morroniside, loganin, and cornuside Ⅰ in mouse heart and serum samples to obtain the pharmacokinetic parameters of these components. The pharmacokinetic parameters were then integrated on the basis of self-defined weighting coefficients to simulate an integrated pharmacokinetic profile of CF iridoid glycosides in the heart and serum of the mouse model of myocardial ischemia. The results indicated that CF reduced the pathological damage to cardiac cells and tissue(hematoxylin-eosin staining) and lowered the levels of CK-MB and cTn-I in the serum of the mouse model of myocardial ischemia(P<0.01). Metabolomics analysis screed out 31 endogenous metabolites in the heart and 35 in the serum as biomarkers of CF in ameliorating the myocardial ischemic injury. These biomarkers were altered by modeling and restored by CF. Six metabolic pathways in the heart and 5 in the serum were enriched based on these metabolic markers. The main integrated pharmacokinetic parameters of CF iridoid glycosides were T_(max)=1 h, t_(1/2)=(1.52±0.05) h in the heart and T_(max)=1 h, t_(1/2)=(1.56±0.50) h in the serum. Both concentration-time curves showed a double-peak phenomenon. In conclusion, CF demonstrated the cardioprotective effect by regulating metabolic pathways such as taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, and pantothenic acid and coenzyme A biosynthesis. The integrated pharmacokinetics reflect the general pharmacokinetic properties of characteristic components in CF.
Animals ; Cornus/chemistry* ; Mice ; Metabolomics ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Male ; Myocardial Ischemia/metabolism* ; Humans ; Troponin I/metabolism* ; Myocardium/pathology* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Biomarkers/metabolism* ; Creatine Kinase, MB Form/metabolism*

Medical institutions, with their clinical practice foundation and abundant human use experience data, have become important carriers for the inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) and the "cradles" of the preparation of new TCM. To effectively promote the transformation of new TCM originating from the TCM clinical practice in medical institutions and establish an effective evaluation index system for the transformation of new TCM conforming to the characteristics of TCM, consensus experts adopted the literature research, questionnaire survey, Delphi method, etc. By focusing on the policy and technical evaluation of new TCM originating from the TCM clinical practice in medical institutions, a comprehensive evaluation from the dimensions of drug safety, efficacy, feasibility, and characteristic advantages was conducted, thus forming a comprehensive evaluation system with four primary indicators and 37 secondary indicators. The expert consensus reached aims to encourage medical institutions at all levels to continuously improve the high-quality research and development and transformation of new TCM originating from the TCM clinical practice in medical institutions and targeted at clinical needs, so as to provide a decision-making basis for the preparation, selection, cultivation, and transformation of new TCM for medical institutions, improve the development efficiency of new TCM, and precisely respond to the public medication needs.
Medicine, Chinese Traditional/standards* ; Humans ; Consensus ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Surveys and Questionnaires