Cardiac fibrosis(CF) is a cardiac pathological process characterized by excessive deposition of extracellular matrix(ECM). When the heart is damaged by adverse stimuli, cardiac fibroblasts are activated and secrete a large amount of ECM, leading to changes in cardiac fibrosis, myocardial stiffness, and cardiac function declines and accelerating the development of heart failure. There is a close relationship between heart yin deficiency and cardiac fibrosis, which have similar pathogenic mechanisms. Heart Yin deficiency, characterized by insufficient Yin fluids, causes the heart to lose its nourishing function, which acts as the initiating factor for myocardial dystrophy. The deficiency of body fluids leads to stagnation of blood flow, resulting in blood stasis and water retention. Blood stasis and water retention accumulate in the heart, which aligns with the pathological manifestation of excessive deposition of ECM, as a tangible pathogenic factor. This is an inevitable stage of the disease process. The lingering of blood stasis combined with water retention eventually leads to the generation of heat and toxins, triggering inflammatory responses similar to heat toxins, which continuously stimulate the heart and cause the ultimate outcome of CF. Considering the syndrome of heart Yin deficiency, traditional Chinese medicine capable of nourishing Yin, activating blood, and promoting urination can reduce myocardial cell apoptosis, inhibit fibroblast activation, and lower the inflammation level, showing significant advantages in combating CF.
Humans ; Fibrosis/drug therapy* ; Animals ; Yin Deficiency/metabolism* ; Myocardium/metabolism* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use*

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

Deactivation of the mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC) is important for the metabolic switching of cancer cell from oxidative phosphorylation to aerobic glycolysis. Studies examining PDC activity regulation have mainly focused on the phosphorylation of pyruvate dehydrogenase (E1), leaving other post-translational modifications largely unexplored. Here, we demonstrate that the acetylation of Lys 488 of pyruvate dehydrogenase complex component X (PDHX) commonly occurs in hepatocellular carcinoma, disrupting PDC assembly and contributing to lactate-driven epigenetic control of gene expression. PDHX, an E3-binding protein in the PDC, is acetylated by the p300 at Lys 488, impeding the interaction between PDHX and dihydrolipoyl transacetylase (E2), thereby disrupting PDC assembly to inhibit its activation. PDC disruption results in the conversion of most glucose to lactate, contributing to the aerobic glycolysis and H3K56 lactylation-mediated gene expression, facilitating tumor progression. These findings highlight a previously unrecognized role of PDHX acetylation in regulating PDC assembly and activity, linking PDHX Lys 488 acetylation and histone lactylation during hepatocellular carcinoma progression and providing a potential biomarker and therapeutic target for further development.
Humans ; Acetylation ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/genetics* ; Liver Neoplasms/genetics* ; Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex/genetics* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Animals ; Mice ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Protein Processing, Post-Translational ; Histones/metabolism* ; Disease Progression

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

This study aims to investigate the effect of salvianolic acid B (Sal B), the active ingredient of Salvia miltiorrhiza, on H9C2 cardiomyocytes injured by oxygen and glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R) through regulating mitochondrial fission and fusion. The process of myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury was simulated by establishing OGD/R model. The cell proliferation and cytotoxicity detection kit (cell counting kit-8, CCK-8) was used to detect cell viability; the kit method was used to detect intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), total glutathione (t-GSH), nitric oxide (NO) content, protein expression levels of mitochondrial fission and fusion, apoptosis-related detection by Western blot. Mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP) detection kit and Hoechst 33342 fluorescence was used to observe the opening level of MPTP, and molecular docking technology was used to determine the molecular target of Sal B. The results showed that relative to control group, OGD/R injury reduced cell viability, increased the content of ROS, decreased the content of t-GSH and NO. Furthermore, OGD/R injury increased the protein expression levels of dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1), mitofusions 2 (Mfn2), Bcl-2 associated X protein (Bax) and cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase 3 (caspase 3), and decreased the protein expression levels of Mfn1, increased MPTP opening level. Compared with the OGD/R group, it was observed that Sal B had a protective effect at concentrations ranging from 6.25 to 100 μmol·L^-1. Sal B decreased the content of ROS, increased the content of t-GSH and NO, and Western blot showed that Sal B decreased the protein expression levels of Drp1, Mfn2, Bax and caspase 3, increased the protein expression level of Mfn1, and decreased the opening level of MPTP. In summary, Sal B may inhibit the opening of MPTP, reduce cell apoptosis and reduce OGD/R damage in H9C2 cells by regulating the balance of oxidation and anti-oxidation, mitochondrial fission and fusion, thereby providing a scientific basis for the use of Sal B in the treatment of myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury.

Objective To make an epidemiological investigation on traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)dampness syndrome manifestations in the population at risk of cerebrovascular diseases in Guangdong area.Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted to analyze the clinical data related to the risk of cerebrovascular diseases in 330 Guangdong permanent residents.The diagnosis of dampness syndrome,quantitative scoring of dampness syndrome and rating of the risk of stroke were performed for the investigation of the distribution pattern of dampness syndrome and its influencing factors.Results(1)A total of 306(92.73%)study subjects were diagnosed as dampness syndrome.The percentage of dampness syndrome in the risk group was 93.82%(258/275),which was slightly higher than that of the healthy group(48/55,87.27%),but the difference was not statistically significant(χ2 = 2.91,P = 0.112).The quantitative score of dampness syndrome in the risk group was higher than that of the healthy group,and the difference was statistically significance(Z =-2.24,P = 0.025).(2)Among the study subjects at risk of cerebrovascular disease,evaluation time(χ2 = 26.11,P = 0.001),stroke risk grading(χ2= 8.85,P = 0.031),and history of stroke or transient ischemic attack(TIA)(χ2 = 9.28,P = 0.015)were the factors influencing the grading of dampness syndrome in the population at risk of cerebrovascular disease.Conclusion Dampness syndrome is the common TCM syndrome in the population of Guangdong area.The manifestations of dampness syndrome are more obvious in the population with risk factors of cerebrovascular disease,especially in the population at high risk of stroke,and in the population with a history of stroke or TIA.The assessment and intervention of dampness syndrome should be taken into account for future project of stroke prevention in Guangdong.

Objective:To investigate the effects of 3 adhesives on the bond force and durability of polished and glazed zirconia ceram-ics to orthodontic metal brackets respectively.Methods:Universal adhesives,Single Bond Universal(SBU)and Prime&Bond Universal(PBU)were respectively used to bond polished and glazed zirconia to metal braces of maxillary central incisors using TransbondTM MIP(TM)as the control.The shear bond strength(SBS),the fracture morphology and adhesive residual index(ARI)were examed after wa-ter bath or water bath-thermal cycling storage.Results:The adhesive(P＜0.001)and storage conditions(P＜0.001)significantly af-fected the shear bond strength of zirconia to brackets.There was no significant difference between the polished or glazed groups(P=0.09).SBU showed the stronger SBS and lower ABI,there were significant differences in ARI scores among the 3 cements(P＜0.001).Conclusion:SBU may have better bonding performance than PBU and TM in the orthodontic bonding of polished or glazed zir-conia surfaces to the zirconia ceramics.

Objective:To understand the molecular epidemiological characteristics of unique recombinant forms (URFs) in newly reported HIV-1 patients in Hangzhou, and provide theoretical support for prevention and control of AIDS.Methods:The blood samples of newly-diagnosed HIV-1 infected cases who received no antiviral therapy from 2019 to 2023 were collected, pol gene was amplified by RT-PCR and nested PCR, followed by sequencing. The URFs were screened using phylogenetic tree, followed by recombinant analysis. Genetic distances between URFs sequences were calculated and molecular transmission networks were constructed. The calibrated population resistance program (CPR) was used to analyze transmissible drug-resistant mutations. Results:A total of 222(5.0%, 222/4 471) URFs pol gene sequence were obtained, and the recombination types were CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC (60.4%, 134/222), CRF01_AE/C (11.7%, 26/222), CRF01_AE/B (9.5%, 21/222), CRF01_AE/B/C (8.1%, 18/222), B/C (7.6%, 17/222) and CRF55_01B/CRF07_BC (2.7%, 6/222), respectively. 78.8% (175/222) were infected by men who have sex with man(MSM), whoes mean age was 31.3±10.5. The proportion of URFs increased from 4.0% (34/843) to 7.4% (60/807) from 2019 to 2023. Under the optimal gene distance threshold of 1.5%, the molecular network access rate was 49.5% (110/222), included 23 clusters. We found a large active transmission cluster with 39 cases mixed homosexual and heterosexual, the recombination types was CRF01_AE/CRF07_BC, and the average gene distance was 0.005. Prevalence of URFs transmissible resistance was 3.2% (7/222). Conclusions:URFs are mainly produced and transmitted in young MSM, which shows an increasing trend year by year. There is a large active transmission cluster required major attention and effective intervention to prevent further expansion. At the same time, the occurrence and transmission of URFs should be continuously monitored to understand the clusters and drug resistance dynamics.

Vascular calcification is a highly regulated process of ectopic calcification in cardiovascular system while no effective intervention can be clinically performed up to date.As vascular calcification undergoes a common regulatory mechanism within bone formation,bone morphogenetic protein 7(BMP-7)main-tains contractile phenotype of vascular smooth muscle cells and further inhibits vascular calcification via promoting the process of osteoblast differentiation,reducing ectopic calcification pressure by increasing bone formation and reducing bone resorption.This work systematically reviews the role of BMP-7 in vascular calcifi-cation and the possible mechanism,and their current clinical application as well.The current proceedings may help develope early diagnostic strategy and therapeutic treatment with BMP-7 as a new molecular marker and potential drug target.The expec-tation could achieve early prevention and intervention of vascular calcification and improve poor prognosis on patients.

Objective: To investigate the epidemiology and hospitalization costs of pediatric community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in Shanghai. Methods: A retrospective case summary was conducted on 63 614 hospitalized children with CAP in 59 public hospitals in Shanghai from January 2018 to December 2020. These children's medical records, including their basic information, diagnosis, procedures, and costs, were extracted. According to the medical institutions they were admitted, the patients were divided into the children's hospital group, the tertiary general hospital group and the secondary hospital group; according to the age, they were divided into <1 year old group, 1-<3 years old group, 3-<6 years old group, 6-<12 years old group and 12-18 years old group; according to the CAP severity, they were divided into severe pneumonia group and non-severe pneumonia group; according to whether an operation was conducted, the patients were divided into the operation group and the non-operation group. The epidemiological characteristics and hospitalization costs were compared among the groups. The χ² test or Wilcoxon rank sum test was used for the comparisons between two groups as appropriate, and the Kruskal-Wallis H test was conducted for comparisons among multiple groups. Results: A total of 63 614 hospitalized children with CAP were enrolled, including 34 243 males and 29 371 females. Their visiting age was 4 (2, 6) years. The length of stay was 6 (5, 8) days. There were 17 974 cases(28.3%) in the secondary hospital group, 35 331 cases (55.5%) in the tertiary general hospital group and 10 309 cases (16.2%) in the children's hospital group. Compared with the hospitalizations cases in 2018 (27 943), the cases in 2019 (29 009) increased by 3.8% (1 066/27 943), while sharply declined by 76.2% (21 281/27 943) in 2020 (6 662). There were significant differences in the proportion of patients from other provinces and severe pneumonia cases, and the hospitalization costs among the children's hospital, secondary hospital and tertiary general hospital (7 146 cases(69.3%) vs. 2 202 cases (12.3%) vs. 9 598 cases (27.2%), 6 929 cases (67.2%) vs. 2 270 cases (12.6%) vs. 9 397 cases (26.6%), 8 304 (6 261, 11 219) vs. 1 882 (1 304, 2 796) vs. 3 195 (2 364, 4 352) CNY, χ²=10 462.50, 9 702.26, 28 037.23, all P<0.001). The annual total hospitalization costs of pediatric CAP from 2018 to 2020 were 110 million CNY, 130 million CNY and 40 million CNY, respectively. And the cost for each hospitalization increased year by year, which was 2 940 (1 939, 4 438), 3 215 (2 126, 5 011) and 3 673 (2 274, 6 975) CNY, respectively. There were also significant differences in the hospitalization expenses in the different age groups of <1 year old, 1-<3 years old, 3-<6 years old, 6-<12 years old and 12-18 years old (5 941 (2 787, 9 247) vs. 2 793 (1 803, 4 336) vs. 3 013 (2 070, 4 329) vs. 3 473 (2 400, 5 097) vs. 4 290 (2 837, 7 314) CNY, χ²=3 462.39, P<0.001). The hospitalization cost of severe pneumonia was significantly higher than that of non-severe cases (5 076 (3 250, 8 364) vs. 2 685 (1 780, 3 843) CNY, Z=109.77, P<0.001). The cost of patients who received operation was significantly higher than that of whom did not (10 040 (4 583, 14 308) vs. 3 083 (2 025, 4 747) CNY, Z=44.46, P<0.001). Conclusions: The number of children hospitalized with CAP in Shanghai decreased significantly in 2020 was significantly lower than that in 2018 and 2019.The proportion of patients from other provinces and with severe pneumonia are mainly admitted in children's hospitals. Hospitalization costs are higher in children's hospitals, and also for children younger than 1 year old, severe cases and patients undergoing operations.
Infant ; Female ; Male ; Humans ; Child ; Retrospective Studies ; China/epidemiology* ; Hospitalization ; Community-Acquired Infections/therapy* ; Hospitals, Pediatric ; Pneumonia/therapy*