ObjectiveThis study aimed to explore the effects of aerobic exercise on cognitive function in aging mice and to elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms by which aerobic exercise ameliorates cognitive decline through the regulation of gut microbiota-metabolite network. By providing novel insights into the interplay between exercise, gut microbiota, and cognitive health, this research seeks to offer a robust theoretical foundation for developing anti-aging strategies and personalized exercise interventions targeting aging-related cognitive dysfunction. MethodsUsing naturally aged C57BL/6 mice as the experimental model, this study employed a multi-omics approach combining 16S rRNA sequencing and wide-targeted metabolomics analysis. A total of 18 mice were divided into 3 groups: young control (YC, 4-month-old), old control (OC, 21-month-old), and old+exercise (OE, 21-month-old with 12 weeks of moderate-intensity treadmill training) groups. Behavioral assessments, including the Morris water maze (MWM) test, were conducted to evaluate cognitive function. Histopathological examinations of brain tissue sections provided morphological evidence of neuronal changes. Fecal samples were collected for gut microbiota and metabolite profiling via 16S rRNA sequencing and ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS). Data were analyzed using a combination of statistical and bioinformatics tools to identify differentially abundant microbial taxa and metabolites and to construct interaction networks between them. ResultsBehavioral tests revealed that 12 weeks of aerobic exercise significantly improved spatial learning and memory capacity of aged mice, as evidenced by reduced escape latency and increased target area exploration and platform crossings in the MWM. Histopathological analysis demonstrated that exercise mitigated aging-related neuronal damage in the hippocampus, enhancing neuronal density and morphology. 16S rRNA sequencing indicated that exercise increased gut microbiota α‑diversity and enriched beneficial bacterial genera, including Bifidobacterium, Parabacteroides, and Rikenella. Metabolomics analysis identified 32 differentially regulated metabolites between OC and OE groups, with 94 up-regulated and 30 down-regulated in the OE group when compared with OC group. These metabolites were primarily involved in energy metabolism reprogramming (e.g., L-homocitrulline), antioxidant defense (e.g., L-carnosine), neuroprotection (e.g., lithocholic acid), and DNA repair (e.g., ADP-ribose). Network analysis further revealed strong positive correlations between specific bacteria and metabolites, such as Parabacteroides with ADP-ribose and Bifidobacterium with lithocholic acid, suggesting potential neuroprotective pathways mediated by the gut microbiota-metabolite axis. ConclusionThis study provides comprehensive evidence that aerobic exercise elicits cognitive benefits in aging mice by modulating the gut microbiota-metabolite network. These findings highlight three key mechanisms: (1) the proliferation of beneficial gut bacteria enhances metabolic reprogramming to boost DNA repair pathways; (2) elevated neuroinflammation-inhibiting factors reduce neurodegenerative changes; and (3) enhanced antioxidant defenses maintain neuronal homeostasis. These results underscore the critical role of the “microbiota-metabolite-brain” axis in mediating the cognitive benefits of aerobic exercise. This study not only advances our understanding of the gut-brain axis in aging but also offers a scientific basis for developing personalized exercise and probiotic-based interventions targeting aging-related cognitive decline. Future research should further validate these mechanisms in non-human primates and human clinical trials to establish the translational potential of exercise-induced gut microbiota-metabolite modulation for combating neurodegenerative diseases.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.11909/j.issn.1671-5411.2017.08.005.].

Ischemic stroke (IS) is a globally life-threatening disease. Presently, few therapeutic medicines are available for treating IS, and rt-PA is the only drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US. In fact, many agents showing excellent neuroprotection but no blood flow-improving activity in animals have not achieved ideal clinical efficacy, while thrombolytic drugs only improving blood flow without neuroprotection have limited their wider application. To address these challenges and meet the huge unmet clinical need, we have designed and identified a novel compound AAPB with dual effects of neuroprotection and cerebral blood flow improvement. AAPB significantly reduced cerebral infarction and neural function deficit in tMCAO rats, pMCAO rats, and IS rhesus monkeys, as well as displayed exceptional safety profiles and excellent pharmacokinetic properties in rats and dogs. AAPB has now entered phase I of clinical trials fighting IS in China.

BACKGROUND: The use of inserted sham acupuncture as a placebo in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) is controversial, because it may produce specific effects that cause an underestimation of the effect of acupuncture treatment. OBJECTIVE: This systematic survey investigates the magnitude of insert-specific effects of sham acupuncture and whether they affect the estimation of acupuncture treatment effects. SEARCH STRATEGY: PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched to identify acupuncture RCTs from their inception until December 2022. INCLUSION CRITERIA: RCTs that evaluated the effects of acupuncture compared to sham acupuncture and no treatment. DATA EXTRACTION AND ANALYSIS: The total effect measured for an acupuncture treatment group in RCTs were divided into three components, including the natural history and/or regression to the mean effect (controlled for no-treatment group), the placebo effect, and the specific effect of acupuncture. The first two constituted the contextual effect of acupuncture, which is mimicked by a sham acupuncture treatment group. The proportion of acupuncture total effect size was considered to be 1. The proportion of natural history and/or regression to the mean effect (PNE) and proportional contextual effect (PCE) of included RCTs were pooled using meta-analyses with a random-effect model. The proportion of acupuncture placebo effect was the difference between PCE and PNE in RCTs with non-inserted sham acupuncture. The proportion of insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture (PIES) was obtained by subtracting the proportion of acupuncture placebo effect and PNE from PCE in RCTs with inserted sham acupuncture. The impact of PIES on the estimation of acupuncture's treatment effect was evaluated by quantifying the percentage of RCTs that the effect of outcome changed from no statistical difference to statistical difference after removing PIES in the included studies, and the impact of PIES was externally validated in other acupuncture RCTs with an inserted sham acupuncture group that were not used to calculate PIES. RESULTS: This analysis included 32 studies with 5492 patients. The overall PNE was 0.335 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.255-0.415) and the PCE of acupuncture was 0.639 (95% CI, 0.567-0.710) of acupuncture's total effect. The proportional contribution of the placebo effect to acupuncture's total effect was 0.191, and the PIES was 0.189. When we modeled the exclusion of the insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture, the acupuncture treatment effect changed from no difference to a significant difference in 45.45% of the included RCTs, and in 40.91% of the external validated RCTs. CONCLUSION The insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture in RCTs represents 18.90% of acupuncture's total effect and significantly affects the evaluation of the acupuncture treatment effect. More than 40% of RCTs that used inserted sham acupuncture would draw different conclusions if the PIES had been controlled for. Considering the impact of the insert-specific effect of sham acupuncture, caution should be taken when using inserted sham acupuncture placebos in RCTs. Please cite this article as: Luo XC, Liu JL, Yao MH, Chen YM, Fan AY, Liang FR, Zhao JP, Zhao L, Zhou X, Zhong XY, Yang JH, Li B, Zhang Y, Sun X, Li L. Specific effect of inserted sham acupuncture and its impact on the estimation of acupuncture treatment effect in randomized controlled trials: A systematic survey. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(6):630-640.
Acupuncture Therapy/methods* ; Humans ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Placebo Effect ; Placebos ; Treatment Outcome

Body weight abnormalities, including overweight, obesity, and underweight, have become a dual public health challenge in Chinese adults: overweight and obesity lead to a variety of chronic complications, while underweight increases the risks of malnutrition, sarcopenia, and organ dysfunction. To systematically address these issues, multidisciplinary experts in endocrinology, sports science, nutrition, and psychiatry from various regions have held multiple weight management seminars. Based on the latest epidemiological data and clinical evidence, they expanded the guideline to include assessment and intervention strategies for underweight, in addition to the core content of obesity management. This guideline outlines the etiological mechanisms, evaluation methods, and multidimensional management strategies for overweight and obesity, covering key areas such as diagnosis and assessment, medical nutrition therapy, exercise prescription, pharmacological intervention, and psychological support. It is intended to provide a scientific and standardized approach to weight management across the adult population, aiming to curb the rising prevalence of obesity, mitigate complications associated with abnormal body weight, and improve nutritional status and overall quality of life.

Objective:To explore the clinical application value of artificial intelligence（AI）-assisted training in enhancing the accuracy of nuchal translucency（NT）identification，standardization of measurement，and diagnostic efficacy for abnormalities among ultrasound residents.Methods:A retrospective collection of 300 standard fetal NT ultrasound images was conducted at the Center for Medical Ultrasound，Suzhou Hospital Affiliated of Nanjing Medical University from January 2018 to June 2024. The AI model performed NT measurements and diagnoses once. Four sonographers of different seniority levels（including two resident physicians）independently conducted NT measurements and diagnoses twice. Prior to the experiment，the middle-age and resident sonographers had uniformly completed traditional theory training. Following the first independent measurements，the two resident sonographers received additional AI-assisted training，after which all 4 sonographers performed the second independent measurements. A fetal medicine expert evaluated blindly all the results and compared the differences in NT recognition accuracy，measurement standard rate and diagnosis accuracy between the middle-age sonographer（traditional training only）and two resident sonographers（traditional + AI-assisted training）.Results:For the middle-aged sonographer who only received traditional lecture-based training，the accuracy of NT recognition，standardization rate of measurement，or diagnostic accuracy were not significantly improved befroe and after the training，and the diffrence was not statistically significant（ χ2=0.189，1.887，0.326；all P>0.05）. In contrast，the second-year resident（Resident 2）and first-year resident（Resident 1），who received both traditional lecture-based training and AI training，demonstrated some improvements in the accuracy of NT measurement site recognition，though the differences were not statistically significant（ χ2=1.301，2.418；all P>0.05）. However，both residents did significant improvements in the standardization rate of NT measurement（ χ2=25.768，17.035；all P<0.05）. In terms of diagnostic accuracy，Resident 1 did significant improvement（ χ2=10.180， P<0.05），while Resident 2 also did some improvement，though the difference was not statistically significant（ χ2=2.573， P>0.05）. Conclusions:The AI-assisted training system enhances the ability of ultrasound resident sonographers to recognize，measure，and diagnose NT，providing a novel and efficient training model for standardized residency training in ultrasound specialties.

Objective:To report the nationwide surveillance results of pathogenic profiles and antimicrobial resistance patterns of Gram-positive bloodstream infections in China in 2023.Methods:The clinical isolates of Gram-posttive bacteria from blood cultures were collected in member hospitals of National Bloodstream Infection Bacterial Resistant Investigation Collaborative System（BRICS）during January to December 2023. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed using the dilution method recommended by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute（CLSI）. Statistical analyses were conducted using WHONET 5.6 and SPSS 25.0 software.Results:A total of 4 385 Gram-positive bacterial isolates were obtained from 60 participating center. The top five pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus（ n=1 544，35.2%），coagulase-negative Staphylococci（ n=1 441，32.9%）， Enterococcus faecium（ n=574，13.1%）， Enterococcus faecalis（ n=385，8.8%），and α-hemolytic Streptococci（ n=187，4.3%）. The prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus（MRSA）and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococci（MRCNS）was 26.2%（405/1 544）and 69.8%（1 006/1 441），respectively. Notably，all Staphylococci remained susceptible to glycopeptide or daptomycin. Staphylococcus aureus demonstrated excellent susceptibility（>97.0%）to cephalobiol，rifampicin，trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole，linezolid，minocycline，tigecycline，and eravacycline. No Enterococcus exhibiting resistance to linezolid were detected. Glycopeptide resistance was uncommon but more frequent in Enterococcus faecium（resistance to vancomycin and teicoplanin：both 1.7%）compared to Enterococcus faecalis（both 0.3%）. The detection rates of MRSA and MRCNS exhibited significant regional variations across the country（ χ2=17.674 and 148.650，respectively，both P<0.001）. No vancomycin-resistant Enterococci were detected in central China. Institutional comparison demonstrated higher prevalence of MRSA（ χ2=14.111， P<0.001）and MRCNS（ χ2=4.828， P=0.028）in provincial hospitals than that in municipal hospitals. Socioeconomic analysis identified elevated detection rates of both MRSA（ χ2=18.986， P<0.001）and MRCNS（ χ2=4.477， P=0.034）in less developed regions（per capita GDP

Objective:To report the results of bacterial resistant investigation collaborative system（BRICS）on the distribution and antimicrobial resistance profile of clinical Gram-negative bacteria isolates from bloodstream infections in China in 2023，and provide reference for clinical tretment of bloodstream infections and prevention and control of bacterial resistance.Methods:The clinical isolates of Gram-negative bacteria from blood cultures in member hospitals of BRICS were collected during January 2023 to December 2023. Antibiotic susceptibility tests were conducted by agar dilution or broth dilution methods recommended by Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute（CLSI）. WHONET 5.6 and SPSS 25.0 were used to analyze the data.Results:During the study period，11 492 strains of Gram-negative bacteria were collected from 60 hospitals，of which 10 098（87.9%）were Enterobacterales and 1 394（12.1%）were non-fermentative bacteria. The top 5 bacterial species were Escherichia coli（50.0%）， Klebsiella pneumoniae（26.1%）， Pseudomonas aeruginosa（5.1%）， Acinetobacter baumannii complex（5.0%）and Enterobacter cloacae complex（4.1%）. The ESBL-producing rates in Escherichia coli， Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirablilis were 46.8%（2 685/5 741），18.3%（549/2 999）and 44.0%（77/175），respectively. The prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Escherichia coli（CREC）and carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae（CRKP）were 1.3%（76/5 741）and 15.0%（450/2 999）；32.9%（25/76）and 78.0%（351/450）of CREC and CRKP were sensitive to ceftazidime/avibactam combination，respectively. 94.7%（72/76）and 90.2%（406/450）of CREC and CRKP were sensitive to aztreonam/avibactam combination. Furthermore，57.9%（44/76）and 79.1%（356/450）were sensitive to imipenem/relebactam combination. The prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii（CRAB）complex was 64.6%（370/573），while more than 80.0% of CRAB complex was sensitive to tigecycline，eravacycline and polymyxin B. The prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa（CRPA）was 17.0%（99/581）. There were differences in the composition ratio of Gram-negative bacteria in bloodstream infections and the prevalence of important Gram-negative bacteria resistance among different regions in China，with statistically significant differences in the prevalence of CREC，CRKP，CRPA and CRAB complex（ χ2=10.6，28.6，10.8 and 19.3， P<0.05）. The prevalence of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli， CREC，CRAB complex and CRKP were higher in provincial hospitals than those in municipal hospitals（ χ2=12.5，9.8，12.7 and 57.8，all P<0.01）. Conclusions:Gram-negative bacteria are the main pathogens causing bloodstream infections in China，and Escherichia coli is ranked in the top，while the trend of Klebsiella pneumoniae increases continuously with time. CRKP infection shows a slow upward trend，CREC infecton maintains a low prevalence level，and CRAB complex infection continues to exhibit a high prevalence rate. The composition and resistance patterns of pathogens causing bloodstream infections vary to some extent across different regions and levels of hospitals in China.

The success of"New Medical Sciences"in higher education requires effective tools in evalua-ting students'performance in courses.Previously,we reported a teamwork(T),critique(C)and ap-preciation(A)(TCA)ideological and political model,a teaching model widely applied in Basic Medical courses.TCA is an abbreviation derived from Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle in Biochemistry as an analogy for nurturing the abilities of thinking and teamwork(T),critique(C)and appreciation(A),which hope-fully could provide students with moral norms for cognition,science and life.This paper further explores the tools to assess the educational outcomes of the TCA model,by which teachers can collect feedback and reflect on teaching quality and effectiveness.Addressing the challenges of individual differences in large classes,fragmented learning feedback,and the difficulty of measuring meta-cognition in educational evaluation,this study employs strategies of value-added assessment,matrix assessment and norm-transfer-able assessment to evaluate the TCA abilities from the aspects of thinking quality,thinking creativity,co-operation ability,iterative thinking,dialectical thinking and job responsibility.By modifying/using 18 e-valuation tools in Education and Psychology,we have established a rubric system composed of 30 primary indicators(with 11 newly designed,10 partly modified and 9 directly adopted),along with 49 secondary indicators and 98 tertiary indicators to enhance the feasibility of the evaluation process.This rubric sys-tem was applied to Biochemistry teaching among the five-year-program undergraduates at Air Force Medi-cal University.Specifically,thinking and teamwork are evaluated by creative works from"the magic bio-chemical-circle",while critiques are assessed in large classes under the guidance of basic and clinical teachers,coupled with appreciation measured by job responsibility in a task-driven virtual reality(VR)project.The results indicate that Biochemistry teaching not only accumulates knowledge in students,but also achieves the goals in nurturing values and cognition.The inclusion of creative performance evalua-tion,cooperative learning and clinical case studies,can enhance students'interpersonal skills,coopera-tion,quality of thinking,creative thinking,iterative thinking and dialectical thinking to varying degrees.TCA-based Biochemistry teaching has a long-lasting impact on character education,and is capable of in-ducing positive long-term changes in students'cognition and lifestyle.Taken together,with the help of this rubric system,teachers can promptly acknowledge the effectiveness of their teaching,thereby facilita-ting their teaching strategies.

The success of"New Medical Sciences"in higher education requires effective tools in evalua-ting students'performance in courses.Previously,we reported a teamwork(T),critique(C)and ap-preciation(A)(TCA)ideological and political model,a teaching model widely applied in Basic Medical courses.TCA is an abbreviation derived from Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle in Biochemistry as an analogy for nurturing the abilities of thinking and teamwork(T),critique(C)and appreciation(A),which hope-fully could provide students with moral norms for cognition,science and life.This paper further explores the tools to assess the educational outcomes of the TCA model,by which teachers can collect feedback and reflect on teaching quality and effectiveness.Addressing the challenges of individual differences in large classes,fragmented learning feedback,and the difficulty of measuring meta-cognition in educational evaluation,this study employs strategies of value-added assessment,matrix assessment and norm-transfer-able assessment to evaluate the TCA abilities from the aspects of thinking quality,thinking creativity,co-operation ability,iterative thinking,dialectical thinking and job responsibility.By modifying/using 18 e-valuation tools in Education and Psychology,we have established a rubric system composed of 30 primary indicators(with 11 newly designed,10 partly modified and 9 directly adopted),along with 49 secondary indicators and 98 tertiary indicators to enhance the feasibility of the evaluation process.This rubric sys-tem was applied to Biochemistry teaching among the five-year-program undergraduates at Air Force Medi-cal University.Specifically,thinking and teamwork are evaluated by creative works from"the magic bio-chemical-circle",while critiques are assessed in large classes under the guidance of basic and clinical teachers,coupled with appreciation measured by job responsibility in a task-driven virtual reality(VR)project.The results indicate that Biochemistry teaching not only accumulates knowledge in students,but also achieves the goals in nurturing values and cognition.The inclusion of creative performance evalua-tion,cooperative learning and clinical case studies,can enhance students'interpersonal skills,coopera-tion,quality of thinking,creative thinking,iterative thinking and dialectical thinking to varying degrees.TCA-based Biochemistry teaching has a long-lasting impact on character education,and is capable of in-ducing positive long-term changes in students'cognition and lifestyle.Taken together,with the help of this rubric system,teachers can promptly acknowledge the effectiveness of their teaching,thereby facilita-ting their teaching strategies.