OBJECTIVE To investigate the improvement mechanism of Huatan tongmai decoction on rats with polycystic ovary syndrome （PCOS） by regulating autophagy through phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase（PI3K）/protein kinase B（AKT）/mammalian target of rapamycin （mTOR） pathway. METHODS A total of 40 rats were randomly divided into blank group （purified water）， model group （purified water）， traditional Chinese medicine group [Huatan tongmai decoction， 24 g/（kg·d）] and chemical drug group [metformin， 0.16 g/（kg·d）]， with 10 rats in each group. Except for blank group， other groups were given a combination of high-fat diet and intragastric administration of 1 mg/kg letrozole suspension to establish PCOS rat model. After modeling， they were given relevant medicine or water intragastrically， once a day， for 42 consecutive days. After the last administration， the pathological and ultrastructural changes of ovarian tissue were observed. The levels of follicle stimulating hormone （FSH）， testosterone （T）， estradiol （E2） ，luteinizing hormone （LH） in serum were detected，and the LH/FSH ratio was calculated. mRNA expressions of Beclin-1， p62 and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 （LC3） in ovarian tissue were detected. The expressions of related proteins of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway and autophagy in rat ovarian tissues were also detected. RESULTS Compared with blank group， the pathological damage and ultrastructural changes of the ovarian tissue in the model group rats were obvious， and a large number of autophagosomes could be seen in cells. The levels of T and LH and the LH/FSH ratio in serum， as well as mRNA and protein expressions of Beclin-1 and LC3， were increased significantly （P＜0.05）， while the levels of E2 and FSH in serum， as well as mRNA and protein expressions of p62 and the phosphorylation levels of PI3K， AKT and mTOR proteins in ovarian tissue， were significantly decreased （P＜0.05）. Compared with model group， the pathological damage of ovarian tissue in the administration groups was significantly reduced， the number of autophagosomes was smaller， and the expression levels of the above indicators were significantly reversed （P＜0.05）. CONCLUSIONS Huatan tongmai decoction can inhibit autophagy in ovarian granular cells by activating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway， regulate the secretion of sex hormones， alleviate pathological damage in ovarian tissues， and promote normal follicular development， thereby exerting an ameliorative effect on PCOS rats.

OBJECTIVE: To study the distribution of α- and β -thalassemia-related mutations in Pingxiang area of Jiangxi Province, China. METHODS: PCR and reverse dot blotting (PCR-RDB) were carried out to detect common mutations of α and β globin genes among 2558 individuals with positive results of primary screening. RESULTS: The PCR-RDB assay has identified 1222 carriers of thalassemia-related mutations, which yielded a detection rate of 47.8%. Among these, 645 individuals (including homozygous patients) have carried α globin gene mutations, with the common types including -αSEA/αα, -α/αα and -α/αα. 539 individuals have carried β globin gene mutations, with the common types including IVS-Ⅱ-654, CD41-42, CD17, CD28, CD27-28, βE, and CD71-72. Thirty eight individuals (1.5%) have carried α and β globin gene mutations simultaneously. CONCLUSION The carrier rate for α and β globin gene mutations in Jiangxi is high. Attention should be paid to newborn screening as part of the birth defect prevention and control program in order to reduce the birth rate of thalassemia in this region.