1.Characterization and Application of Moisture Absorption Kinetics of Traditional Chinese Medicines Based on Double Exponential Model:A Review
Yanting YU ; Lei XIONG ; Yan HE ; Wei LIU ; Jing YANG ; Yao ZHANG ; Jiali CHEN ; Xiaojian LUO ; Xiaoyong RAO
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(5):340-346
Hygroscopicity research has long been a key focus and hot topic in Chinese materia medica(CMM). Elucidating hygroscopic mechanisms plays a vital role in formulation design, process optimization, and storage condition selection. Hygroscopic models serve as essential tools for characterizing CMM hygroscopic mechanisms, with various types available. The double exponential model is a kinetic mathematical model constructed based on the law of conservation of energy and Fick's first law of diffusion, tailored to the physical properties of CMM extracts. In recent years, this model has been extensively applied to simulate the dynamic moisture absorption behavior of CMM extracts and solid dosage forms under varying humidity conditions. It has revealed the correlation between moisture absorption kinetic parameters and material properties, offering a new perspective for characterizing the moisture uptake behavior of CMM. This paper systematically reviews the application progress of this model in the field of CMM, analyzes its advantages, disadvantages, and challenges in this domain, and explores its potential application trends in other fields. It aims to provide references for elucidating the moisture absorption mechanisms of CMM and researching moisture-proofing technologies, while also offering insights for its broader application in food and polymer materials.
2.Decision-making behavior in patients with depressive disorder and its relationship with depressive and anxiety symptoms
Yuxiang WANG ; Luoya ZHANG ; Maomao ZHANG ; Juan DENG ; Yanjie PENG ; Xiaotong CHENG ; Kezhi LIU ; Wei LEI ; Jing CHEN
Sichuan Mental Health 2025;38(1):22-27
BackgroundPatients with depressive disorder often exhibit impaired decision-making functions. However, the relationship between decision-making abilities and depressive and anxiety symptoms in these patients remains unclear. ObjectiveTo explore the characteristics of decision-making behavior in patients with depressive disorder, and to analyze its relationship with clinical symptoms. MethodsA total of 48 patients diagnosed with depressive disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV) were recruited from the Department of Psychosomatic Medicine of the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University from October 2020 to May 2023. Concurrently, 52 healthy individuals matched for age and gender were recruited from Luzhou as the control group. Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) were used for assessment, and decision-making behavior was evaluated using Probabilistic Reversal Learning (PRL) task. Indicators assessed included the number of trials to criterion, perseverative errors, win-stay rate and lose-shift rate. Spearman correlation analysis was used to assess the correlation between BDI and BAI scores and PRL task indicators. ResultsThe depression group showed a significantly higher lose-shift rate compared with the control group (t=3.684, P<0.01). There were no statistically significant differences between two groups in trials to criterion, perseverative errors and win-stay rate (t=0.329, 0.132, 0.609, P>0.05). In depression group, BDI and BAI scores were positively correlated with the win-stay rate(r=0.450, 0.398, P<0.01). ConclusionPatients with depressive disorder are more likely to change their decision-making strategies following negative outcomes. Furthermore, the severity of depressive and anxiety symptoms is associated with a greater propensity to maintain existing decisions after receiving positive feedback. [Funded by 2019 Joint Project of Luzhou Science and Technology Bureau-Southwest Medical University (number, 2019LZXNYDJ39]
3.Impact of childhood maltreatment and sleep quality on depressive symptoms among middle school students
Chinese Journal of School Health 2025;46(1):73-77
Objective:
To explore the impact of sleep quality, experience of childhood maltreatment, and their interaction on depressive symptoms among middle school students, so as to provide the reference for early intervention of depressive symptoms among middle school students.
Methods:
From September to December 2023, a questionnaire survey was conducted among 1 231 students from two secondary schools in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province by a convenient sampling method. The survey included general demographic information, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Short Form, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Short Version of Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. The Chi square test was used to analyze the differences in depressive symptom, sleep quality and childhood maltreatment among students with different demographic characteristics. Correlation analysis was conducted using Logistic regression, and interaction analysis was performed by both additive and multiplicative interaction models.
Results:
The detection rate of depressive symptoms among middle school students was 22.7%, and the rate for high school students (35.2%) was significantly higher than that for middle school students (17.0%) ( χ 2=50.35, P <0.01). The detection rates of depressive symptoms among middle school students with a history of childhood maltreatment and poor sleep quality were 45.8% and 44.0%, respectively. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that compared to students without a history of childhood maltreatment, students with a history of childhood maltreatment had a higher risk of depressive symptoms ( OR =4.49,95% CI =3.31~ 6.09 , P <0.01);students with poor sleep quality had a higher risk of depressive symptoms than students with good sleep quality ( OR = 5.99,95% CI =4.37~8.22, P <0.01).The interaction results showed that the presence of childhood maltreatment and poor sleep quality had an additive interaction on the occurrence of depression in middle school students. Compared with students without childhood maltreatment and having good sleep quality, students with childhood maltreatment and poor sleep quality had a 22.49 times higher risk of developing depression ( OR =22.49,95% CI =14.22~35.59, P <0.01).
Conclusion
Depressive symptoms among middle school students are associated with childhood maltreatment and poor sleep quality, and there is an additive interaction between childhood maltreatment and poor sleep quality on the impact of depressive symptoms.
4.Construction of Tax-PC/SDC/PVP-K30 micelles and their protective effect on alcoholic liver injury
Shi-yu ZHANG ; Jing-meng SUN ; Dong-dong LI ; Xin ZHANG ; Jia-hui ZHANG ; Wei-yu ZHANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica 2025;60(2):488-497
Taxifolin (Tax) has been proved to be a medicinal edible substance with protective effects against alcoholic liver injury, however, its poor hydrophilicity and permeability have hindered the clinical application of Tax. In this study, we prepared taxifolin-phosphatidylcholine/sodium deoxycholate/PVP-K30 micells (Tax-MLs). Box-Behnken test was used to obtain the optimal preparation process, and Tax-MLs were characterised by transmission electron microscopy and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Physicochemical parameters such as proximate micelle concentration, equilibrium solubility and oil-water partition coefficient were determined, and the release pattern of Tax-MLs was investigated by
5.The effect of rutaecarpine on improving fatty liver and osteoporosis in MAFLD mice
Yu-hao ZHANG ; Yi-ning LI ; Xin-hai JIANG ; Wei-zhi WANG ; Shun-wang LI ; Ren SHENG ; Li-juan LEI ; Yu-yan ZHANG ; Jing-rui WANG ; Xin-wei WEI ; Yan-ni XU ; Yan LIN ; Lin TANG ; Shu-yi SI
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica 2025;60(1):141-149
Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) and osteoporosis (OP) are two very common metabolic diseases. A growing body of experimental evidence supports a pathophysiological link between MAFLD and OP. MAFLD is often associated with the development of OP. Rutaecarpine (RUT) is one of the main active components of Chinese medicine Euodiae Fructus. Our previous studies have demonstrated that RUT has lipid-lowering, anti-inflammatory and anti-atherosclerotic effects, and can improve the OP of rats. However, whether RUT can improve both fatty liver and OP symptoms of MAFLD mice at the same time remains to be investigated. In this study, we used C57BL/6 mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 4 months to construct a MAFLD model, and gave the mice a low dose (5 mg·kg-1) and a high dose (15 mg·kg-1) of RUT by gavage for 4 weeks. The effects of RUT on liver steatosis and bone metabolism were then evaluated at the end of the experiment [this experiment was approved by the Experimental Animal Ethics Committee of Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (approval number: IMB-20190124D303)]. The results showed that RUT treatment significantly reduced hepatic steatosis and lipid accumulation, and significantly reduced bone loss and promoted bone formation. In summary, this study shows that RUT has an effect of improving fatty liver and OP in MAFLD mice.
6.Research status of quality assessment of hospice care for children with cancer abroad
Jing WU ; Xianhong ZHANG ; Lu WEI ; Xiaochuan ZHU
Chinese Medical Ethics 2025;38(3):275-280
The effectiveness and professionalism of hospice care services for children with cancer are of great significance for improving their quality of life and reducing the mental and economic burden on their families. Currently, a relatively complete quality evaluation system for hospice care for children with cancer has been established abroad, while research in this field in China is still in its infancy. By elaborating on the concept and connotation of quality assessment of hospice care for children with cancer in detail, systematically reviewing the research status of quality assessment of hospice care for children with cancer abroad, and addressing the problems and challenges faced by quality assessment of hospice care for children with cancer in China, corresponding inspirations and improvement strategies were proposed, aiming to provide a reference for improving the quality of hospice care for children with cancer in China.
7.Quality evaluation of Mongolian medicine Sendeng-4 based on qualitative and quantitative analysis combined with chemical pattern recognition
Fengye ZHOU ; Jun LI ; Qian ZHANG ; Rongjie LI ; Wei ZHANG ; Jing LIU ; Fang WANG ; Shengnan LI
China Pharmacy 2025;36(9):1040-1045
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the quality of Mongolian medicine Sendeng-4 based on qualitative and quantitative analysis combined with chemical pattern recognition, in order to provide the reference for its quality control. METHODS The chemical components in Sendeng-4 were analyzed qualitatively by HPLC-Q-Exactive-MS. The contents of 16 components (methyl gallate, ethyl gallate, epicatechin, dihydromyricetin, genipin-1-O-β-D-gentiobioside, caffeic acid, catechin, corilagin, deacetylasperulosidic acid methyl ester, rutin, geniposide, luteolin, myricetin, quercetin, ferulic acid, and toosendanin) in 15 batches of Sendeng-4 (sample S1-S15) were quantitatively analyzed by HPLC-MS/MS. Cluster analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA), and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis were conducted and variable importance projection (VIP) value greater than 1 was used as the index to screen the differential components. RESULTS A total of 73 chemical components were identified in Sendeng-4, including 20 flavonoids, 16 tannins, 14 organic acids, etc. According to the quantitative analysis, the results exhibited that the average contentsthe of above 16 components in 15 batches of Sendeng-4 were 3.683-7.730, 2.391-6.952, 2 275.538-4 377.491, 2 699.188-3 537.924, 858.266-1 377.393, 3.366-11.003, 140.624-315.683,414.629-978.334, 285.501-1 510.457, 27.799-48.325, 3 625.415-6 309.563, 0.506-0.656, 442.337-649.283, 47.093-59.736, 12.942-15.822, 127.738-326.649 μg/g, respectively. According to the results of CA and PCA, 15 batches of samples could be clustered into two categories: S1-S3, S5-S6, S9-S10 and S13 were clustered into one category; S4, S7-S8, S11-S12, S14-S15 were clustered into one category. VIP values of geniposide, epicatechin, deacetylasperulosidic acid methyl ester and genipin-1-O- β-D-gentiobioside were all greater than 1. CONCLUSIONS HPLC-Q-Exactive-MS and HPLC-MS/MS techniques are employed for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of Sendeng-4. Through chemical pattern recognition analysis, four differential components are identified: geniposide, epicatechin, deacetylasperulosidic acid methyl ester, and genipin-1-O-β-D-gentiobioside.
8.Impact of Onset-to-Door Time on Endovascular Therapy for Basilar Artery Occlusion
Tianlong LIU ; Chunrong TAO ; Zhongjun CHEN ; Lihua XU ; Yuyou ZHU ; Rui LI ; Jun SUN ; Li WANG ; Chao ZHANG ; Jianlong SONG ; Xiaozhong JING ; Adnan I. QURESHI ; Mohamad ABDALKADER ; Thanh N. NGUYEN ; Raul G. NOGUEIRA ; Jeffrey L. SAVER ; Wei HU
Journal of Stroke 2025;27(1):140-143
9.Exon Sequencing of HNF1β in Chinese Patients with Early-Onset Diabetes
Siqian GONG ; Hong LIAN ; Yating LI ; Xiaoling CAI ; Wei LIU ; Yingying LUO ; Meng LI ; Si-min ZHANG ; Rui ZHANG ; Lingli ZHOU ; Yu ZHU ; Qian REN ; Xiuying ZHANG ; Jing CHEN ; Jing WU ; Xianghai ZHOU ; Xirui WANG ; Xueyao HAN ; Linong JI
Diabetes & Metabolism Journal 2025;49(2):321-330
Background:
Maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) due to variants of hepatocyte nuclear factor 1-beta (HNF1β) (MODY5) has not been well studied in the Chinese population. This study aimed to estimate its prevalence and evaluate the application of a clinical screening method (Faguer score) in Chinese early-onset diabetes (EOD) patients.
Methods:
Among 679 EOD patients clinically diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus (age at diagnosis ≤40 years), the exons of HNF1β were sequenced. Functional impact of rare variants was evaluated using a dual-luciferase reporter system. Faguer scores ≥8 prompted multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) for large deletions. Pathogenicity of HNF1β variants was assessed following the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) guidelines.
Results:
Two rare HNF1β missense mutations (E105K and G454R) were identified by sequencing in five patients, showing functional impact in vitro. Another patient was found to have a whole-gene deletion by MLPA in 22 patients with the Faguer score above 8. Following ACMG guidelines, six patients carrying pathogenic or likely pathogenic variant were diagnosed with MODY5. The estimated prevalence of MODY5 in Chinese EOD patients was approximately 0.9% or higher.
Conclusion
MODY5 is not uncommon in China. The Faguer score is helpful in deciding whether to perform MLPA analysis on patients with negative sequencing results.
10.Andrographolide as a Multi-Target Therapeutic Agent in Diabetic Nephropathy: Insights into STAT3/PI3K/Akt Pathway Modulation
Yuan YIN ; Jing HE ; Yu FANG ; Min WEI ; Wang ZHANG
Biomolecules & Therapeutics 2025;33(3):529-543
Diabetic nephropathy (DN) remains a leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD), driven by chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. Current therapies targeting glycemic and blood pressure control fail to address the underlying molecular mechanisms of DN. This study investigates the therapeutic potential of andrographolide (AD), a diterpenoid lactone from Andrographis paniculata, in mitigating DN by modulating key molecular pathways. Through integrative network pharmacology, molecular docking, and in vivo/in vitro experiments, 107 overlapping DN-related targets were identified, with STAT3, PI3K, and AKT1 emerging as core nodes. Molecular docking revealed high binding affinities between AD and these targets, supporting its modulatory potential. In vivo, AD significantly improved renal function in streptozotocin-induced DN rats, reducing proteinuria, glomerular hypertrophy, and renal fibrosis. AD also attenuated oxidative stress, decreased pro-inflammatory cytokine levels, and enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities, demonstrating systemic anti-inflammatory and antioxidative effects. In vitro studies further confirmed that AD alleviates podocyte oxidative stress and apoptosis under high glucose conditions by suppressing the RAGE-NF-κB and STAT3/PI3K/Akt pathways. Histological analyses revealed substantial improvements in renal architecture, including reductions in fibrosis and mesangial expansion. These results underscore AD’s multi-target mechanism, directly addressing DN’s core pathological drivers, including inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. As a natural compound with notable safety and efficacy, AD holds promise as an adjunct or standalone therapeutic agent for DN. This study establishes a robust preclinical foundation for AD, warranting further exploration in clinical trials and its potential application in other diabetic complications.


Result Analysis
Print
Save
E-mail