Dry eye disease (DED) is a prevalent and intractable ocular disease induced by a variety of causes. Elevated sphingomyelin (SM) levels and pro-inflammatory cytokines were detected on the ocular surface of DED patients, particularly in the meibomian glands. Sphingomyelin synthase 2 (SMS2), one of the proteins involved in SM synthesis, would light a novel way of developing a DED therapy strategy. Herein, we report the design and optimization of a series of novel thiophene carboxamide derivatives to afford 14l with an improved highly potent inhibitory activity on SM synthesis (IC_{50, SMS2} = 28 nmol/L). Moreover, 14l exhibited a notable protective effect of anti-inflammation and anti-apoptosis on human corneal epithelial cells (HCEC) under TNF-α-hyperosmotic stress conditions in vitro, with an acceptable ocular specific distribution (corneas and meibomian glands) and pharmacokinetics (PK) profiles (t _{1/2, cornea} = 1.11 h; t _{1/2, meibomian glands} = 4.32 h) in rats. Furthermore, 14l alleviated the dry eye symptoms including corneal fluorescein staining scores and tear secretion in a dose-dependent manner in mice. Mechanically, 14l reduced the mRNA expression of Tnf-α, Il-1β and Mmp-9 in corneas, as well as the proportion of very long chain SM in meibomian glands. Our findings provide a new strategy for DED therapy based on selective SMS2 inhibitors.

BACKGROUND:Graphene oxide,with its excellent physical and chemical properties and biocompatibility,can promote the differentiation of osteoblasts and inhibit the proliferation of bacteria,which will hopefully improve the success rate of implant restoration.OBJECTIVE:To summarize the research progress of graphene oxide in the field of dental implant restoration.METHODS:The related articles published by CNKI,WanFang Database,ScienceDirect,and PubMed from January 2000 to June 2024 were searched by computer.The keywords were"graphene oxide,dental implantation,biocompatibility,antibacterial mechanism,osteoblasts,mechanical properties,chemical properties"in Chinese and English.By reading the titles and abstracts,we preliminarily screened out the documents irrelevant to the topic of the article.According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,65 documents were finally included for analysis.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Graphene oxide can increase the innate immune protection response of the body through its own antibacterial and drug-loaded antibacterial abilities,thus inhibiting the occurrence and development of periimplant inflammation.Graphene oxide can promote the proliferation and differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells,enhance the proliferation of osteoblasts and vascular endothelial cells,inhibit the proliferation of osteoclasts,increase the rate of bone bonding between implants and alveolar bones,and contribute to the formation and stability of bone around implants.Graphene oxide can promote the combination of implant and gingival tissue,and reduce the occurrence of inflammation.Graphene oxide has low toxicity,and its biological safety needs further study.Graphene oxide coating endows the surface of titanium implant with excellent physical and chemical properties,which can greatly reduce the occurrence of complications such as implant fracture and prolong the survival time of implant.

BACKGROUND:Graphene oxide,with its excellent physical and chemical properties and biocompatibility,can promote the differentiation of osteoblasts and inhibit the proliferation of bacteria,which will hopefully improve the success rate of implant restoration.OBJECTIVE:To summarize the research progress of graphene oxide in the field of dental implant restoration.METHODS:The related articles published by CNKI,WanFang Database,ScienceDirect,and PubMed from January 2000 to June 2024 were searched by computer.The keywords were"graphene oxide,dental implantation,biocompatibility,antibacterial mechanism,osteoblasts,mechanical properties,chemical properties"in Chinese and English.By reading the titles and abstracts,we preliminarily screened out the documents irrelevant to the topic of the article.According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,65 documents were finally included for analysis.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Graphene oxide can increase the innate immune protection response of the body through its own antibacterial and drug-loaded antibacterial abilities,thus inhibiting the occurrence and development of periimplant inflammation.Graphene oxide can promote the proliferation and differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells,enhance the proliferation of osteoblasts and vascular endothelial cells,inhibit the proliferation of osteoclasts,increase the rate of bone bonding between implants and alveolar bones,and contribute to the formation and stability of bone around implants.Graphene oxide can promote the combination of implant and gingival tissue,and reduce the occurrence of inflammation.Graphene oxide has low toxicity,and its biological safety needs further study.Graphene oxide coating endows the surface of titanium implant with excellent physical and chemical properties,which can greatly reduce the occurrence of complications such as implant fracture and prolong the survival time of implant.

BACKGROUND:Knee osteoarthritis is a common disease in middle-aged and elderly people.It is a kind of disease that seriously affects the quality of life of patients and even has the risk of disability.Therefore,the pathogenesis and treatment of knee osteoarthritis have become the focus of research.In Chinese medicine,knee osteoarthritis is often treated as"biness,"which is closely related to"biness"caused by blood stasis and blood vessels blocking collaterals in the theory of"blood stasis"in traditional Chinese medicine.Iron overload is a kind of pathological state caused by iron metabolism disorder,which highly coincides with the pathogenic characteristics and clinical manifestations of the"blood stasis"theory of traditional Chinese medicine,and is a risk factor that promotes the development of knee osteoarthritis. OBJECTIVE:Based on the"blood stasis"theory,to summarize the effects of iron overload on cartilage metabolism and subchondral bone reconstruction,to lay a new theoretical foundation for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis with traditional Chinese medicine,and to explore the therapeutic effect of traditional Chinese medicine for promoting blood circulation after interfering with bone tissue. METHODS:CNKI,WanFang database,PubMed and Web of Science databases were searched for relevant literature.The Chinese search terms were"ferroptosis,iron,iron overload,osteoarthritis,blood stasis"and the English search terms were"ferroptosis,iron,iron overload,osteoarthritis,TCM."In the end,76 articles were included for further review. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:First of all,we explored the potential of the"blood stasis"theory in treating knee osteoarthritis,and found that"blood stasis"is a crucial part in the progress of knee osteoarthritis,indicating that the"blood stasis"theory is the key to the treatment of knee osteoarthritis in traditional Chinese medicine.Secondly,"blood stasis"and iron overload have a high degree of similarity in pathogenic factors,clinical manifestations,and pathogenic characteristics,suggesting the possibility of"blood stasis"theory in treating iron overload.This finding reminds us that iron overload may be an important mechanistic basis for the"blood stasis"theory in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.The extracts of blood-activating drugs can relieve iron overload and treat knee osteoarthritis,but the specific mechanism is still unclear.Therefore,we believe that the relationship between"blood stasis"theory and iron overload and related mechanisms are important research directions for knee osteoarthritis in the future.The related mechanism of"blood stasis"theory to alleviate iron overload and then treat knee osteoarthritis also provides a theoretical basis for the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine,such as the development of new drugs and innovative usage,and has certain guiding significance for clinical practice.

The relationship between chronic psychological stress and tumorigenesis has been well defined in epidemiological studies; however, the underlying mechanism remains underexplored. In this study, we discovered that impaired macrophage phagocytosis contributed to the psychological stress-evoked tumor susceptibility, and the stress hormone glucocorticoid (GC) was identified as a principal detrimental factor. Mechanistically, GC disturbed the balance of the "eat me" signal receptor (low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein-1, LRP1) and the "don't eat me" signal receptor (signal regulatory protein alpha, SIRPα). Further analysis revealed that GC led to a direct, glucocorticoid receptor (GR)-dependent trans-repression of LRP1 expression, and the repressed LRP1, in turn, resulted in the elevated gene level of SIRPα by down-regulating miRNA-4695-3p. These data collectively demonstrate that stress induces the imbalance of the LRP1/SIRPα axis and entails the disturbance of tumor cell clearance by macrophages. Our findings provide the mechanistic insight into psychological stress-evoked tumor susceptibility and indicate that the balance of LRP1/SIRPα axis may serve as a potential therapeutic strategy for tumor treatment.