ObjectiveTo investigate the immunomodulatory effect of polysaccharides from Astragali Radix-Angelicae Sinensis Radix herb pair（Qi-gui polysaccharides） on lipopolysaccharide（LPS）-induced RAW264.7 macrophages and to characterize the structure of the active component Qi-gui homogeneous polysaccharide（AAPS-4a）， and evaluate its protective effect on ulcerative colitis（UC）. MethodsThe effects of six Qi-gui polysaccharides（0.01-100 mg·L^-1） on the proliferation of RAW264.7 cells were assessed by cell proliferation and activity assay（CCK-8）， and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA） was used to investigate the effects of the six polysaccharides（3， 10 mg·L^-1） on the secretion levels of tumor necrosis factor（TNF）-α， interferon（IFN）-β， and nitric oxide（NO） in LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells. After screening for active polysaccharides， high-performance size-exclusion chromatography（HPSEC） was used to determine its homogeneity and relative molecular weight， then its characteristic functional groups were identified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy（FT-IR）， monosaccharide composition was analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography（HPLC）， methylation analysis combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry（GC-MS） was performed to determine the types and linkage modes of sugar residues， and one- and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance（NMR） were used to identify the sugar residue composition and configuration of the active polysaccharide. Finally， experimental animals were divided into the normal group， model group， AAPS-4a low-dose group（50 mg·kg^-1）， AAPS-4a high-dose group（100 mg·kg^-1）， and sulfasalazine（SASP） group （75 mg·kg^-1）. Except for the normal group， the acute UC mouse model was induced using 3.5% dextran sulfate sodium salt（DSS）. Each treatment group was administered the corresponding dose via oral gavage for 7 days， and changes in body weight were recorded. After treatment， the spleen index and disease activity index（DAI） score were calculated， TNF-α and interleukin-6（IL-6） levels in the serum were detected by ELISA， and histopathological changes in colon tissue were observed by hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining. ResultsAt the cellular level， AAPS-4a exhibited a dose-dependent inhibition of LPS-induced increases in TNF-α， IFN-β， and NO levels（P<0.01）. Structural characterization of AAPS-4a revealed that it was a homogeneous polysaccharide with a relative molecular weight of 7.6×10³ Da， consisting of mannose（Man）， glucose（Glc）， and galactose（Gal） in a molar ratio of 1.3∶23.9∶1.0. It was primarily composed of five sugar residues of 1，6-α-D-Glcp， T-α-D-Glcp， 1，3-β-D-Galp， 1，4-α-D-Manp， and 1，2-α-D-Galp. In vivo experiments showed that compared with the normal group， the model group demonstrated markedly increased DAI score and spleen index， significantly reduced colon length， and significantly elevated levels of TNF-α and IL-6（P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the AAPS-4a high-dose group significantly reduced the DAI score and spleen index， as well as TNF-α and IL-6 levels， and improved colonic atrophy（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Pathological observations showed that AAPS-4a significantly inhibited inflammatory cell infiltration in colon tissue and alleviated pathological damage. ConclusionAAPS-4a， a neutral homogeneous polysaccharide composed of 1，6-α-D-Glcp， T-α-D-Glcp， 1，3-β-D-Galp， 1，4-α-D-Manp and 1，2-α-D-Galp， is identified as a key bioactive component contributing to the anti-UC effect of the Qi-gui herb pair. Its immunoregulatory and anti-UC properties suggest its potential as a therapeutic agent for UC.

Objective:To investigate microstructural alterations in the optic chiasm and optic radiations of multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) based on diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI).Methods:This study was a cross-sectional study. Retrospective analyses were conducted on the clinical and imaging data of 63 patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and 62 patients with NMOSD diagnosed at First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2019 to December 2023. According to the occurrence of optic neuritis (ON), they were categorized into ON-positive MS (ON+MS) group (40 cases), ON-negative MS (ON-MS) group (23 cases), ON-positive NMOSD (ON+NMOSD) group (40 cases) and ON-negative NMOSD (ON-NMOSD) group (22 cases). In addition, 40 healthy controls were enrolled during the same period. DKI data of all subjects were collected, and DKI post-processing was performed to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA), mean kurtosis (MK), axial kurtosis (AK), and radial kurtosis (RK) values of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations. The scores of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA), and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) were obtained. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze the differences in DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiation among the 5 groups, and the Holm-Bonferroni method was employed for multiple comparison correction in pairwise comparisons.Results:There were statistically significant overall differences in the DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations among healthy control group, ON+MS group, ON-MS group, ON+NMOSD group, and ON-NMOSD group (all P0.05). The FA value of the optic chiasm in ON+NMOSD group was significantly lower than that of healthy control group and ON-MS group, as well as ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The FA value of the left optic radiation in ON+NMOSD group was lower than that in healthy control group and the ON-MS group. The RK value of the optic chiasm in ON+MS group was lower than that in the healthy control group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The MK and RK values of the left optic radiation in ON-MS group were significantly lower than those in the ON+NMOSD group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). Conclusions:NMOSD and RRMS patients demonstrate varying degrees of microstructural damage in the optic chiasm and optic radiations. Differences of DKI parameters suggest different pathological mechanisms of visual pathway damage between NMOSD and MS, which may be helpful for early detection of occult visual pathway lesions.

Objective:To investigate microstructural alterations in the optic chiasm and optic radiations of multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) based on diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI).Methods:This study was a cross-sectional study. Retrospective analyses were conducted on the clinical and imaging data of 63 patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and 62 patients with NMOSD diagnosed at First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2019 to December 2023. According to the occurrence of optic neuritis (ON), they were categorized into ON-positive MS (ON+MS) group (40 cases), ON-negative MS (ON-MS) group (23 cases), ON-positive NMOSD (ON+NMOSD) group (40 cases) and ON-negative NMOSD (ON-NMOSD) group (22 cases). In addition, 40 healthy controls were enrolled during the same period. DKI data of all subjects were collected, and DKI post-processing was performed to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA), mean kurtosis (MK), axial kurtosis (AK), and radial kurtosis (RK) values of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations. The scores of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA), and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) were obtained. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze the differences in DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiation among the 5 groups, and the Holm-Bonferroni method was employed for multiple comparison correction in pairwise comparisons.Results:There were statistically significant overall differences in the DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations among healthy control group, ON+MS group, ON-MS group, ON+NMOSD group, and ON-NMOSD group (all P0.05). The FA value of the optic chiasm in ON+NMOSD group was significantly lower than that of healthy control group and ON-MS group, as well as ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The FA value of the left optic radiation in ON+NMOSD group was lower than that in healthy control group and the ON-MS group. The RK value of the optic chiasm in ON+MS group was lower than that in the healthy control group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The MK and RK values of the left optic radiation in ON-MS group were significantly lower than those in the ON+NMOSD group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). Conclusions:NMOSD and RRMS patients demonstrate varying degrees of microstructural damage in the optic chiasm and optic radiations. Differences of DKI parameters suggest different pathological mechanisms of visual pathway damage between NMOSD and MS, which may be helpful for early detection of occult visual pathway lesions.

Abstract: Objective　To analyze the serotypes, drug resistance, and molecular epidemiological characteristics of non-typhoidal Salmonella in Chaozhou City, Guangdong Province in 2022, providing pathogenic support for the effective prevention and control of foodborne diseases. Methods In 2022, human-derived non-typhoidal Salmonella strains and food-derived strains were isolated through sentinel surveillance and food risk monitoring in Chaozhou City, Guangdong Province. The strains were subjected to serotyping, drug susceptibility testing, and whole-genome sequencing analysis. Results A total of 1 257 fecal specimens were collected for diarrhea surveillance in Chaozhou City in 2022, and 58 strains of non-typhoidal Salmonella were detected, with an isolation rate of 4.61%. Among 116 foodstuffs, 2 strains of non-typhoidal Salmonella were detected, with an isolation rate of 1.72%. Early childhood was the main age group for infection (14/144, 9.72%). The highest detection rate was in June (12/123, 9.76%). The 58 human-derived non-typhoidal Salmonella strains were classified into 12 serotypes, with Salmonella typhimurium being the most prevalent (44/58, 75.86%). In terms of drug resistance, 55 strains showed resistance, with a resistance rate of 91.67%, among which ampicillin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, and streptomycin had the highest resistance rates, 76.67%, 70.00%, 67.67%, and 60.00%, respectively. Forty-nine strains were multi-resistant, accounting for 81.67%. From the molecular characteristics standpoint, multilocus sequence typing (MLST) divided the strains into 14 sequence typing (ST), with Salmonella typhimurium ST34 being the dominant type. Whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (wg-SNP) evolutionary analysis revealed high genetic heterogeneity among the studied strains, with Salmonella typhimurium clustering together and showing close evolutionary relationships to clinical samples of Salmonella enteritidis. Conclusions In 2022, the non-typhoidal Salmonella strains from Chaozhou showed a diversity of serotypes, with Salmonella typhimurium being predominant and exhibiting severe multidrug resistance. Molecular typing revealed diverse evolutionary characteristics.

Aim To study the protective effect of simvastatin(Sim)on liver function injury in apolipoprotein E gene knockout(ApoE KO)mice fed with high-fat diet and the underlying mechanism.Methods Twenty-four 8-week-old male ApoE KO mice were randomly divided into ApoE KO group,ApoE KO+Sim group and ApoE KO+PD150606 group.The contents of total cholesterol(TC)and triglyceride(TG)in serum and liver,and the activities of aspartate aminotransferase(AST)and alanine aminotransferase(ALT)in serum were measured.The contents of malondialdehyde(MDA)and reactive oxygen species(ROS)and the activity of superoxide dismutase(SOD)in liver were determined.The contents of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)and interleukin-6(IL-6)and the activity of calpain in liver were examined.Results Compared with C57 group,ApoE KO group showed significant increase in the contents of TC and TG in both serum and liver.In addition,the activities of AST and ALT in serum and the contents of MDA and ROS in liver significantly increased,while SOD activity in liver decreased in ApoE KO group.The contents of TNF-α and IL-6 and the activity of calpain in liver significantly increased.Compared with ApoE KO group,Sim group had no significant effects on TC and TG,while reduced the activities of AST and ALT,decreased the contents of MDA and ROS,increased the activity of SOD and decreased the contents of TNF-α and IL-6 as well as the activity of calpain in liver.PD,the calpain inhibitor,had the similar effects with Sim regarding the above mentioned parameters.Conclusions Sim improved the liver function injury of ApoE KO mice,which might be related to the inhibition of calpain activity,subsequently increasing the antioxidant capacity and reducing the inflammatory response.

Objective To systematically review the efficacy of different artificial liver support systems in the treatment of acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) using a network Meta-analysis. Methods PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane library, Clinical Trial, CNKI, SinoMed, and Wanfang Data were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on different artificial liver support systems in the treatment of ACLF. Literature screening, data extraction, and method ological quality assessment were performed according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, and Stata15.1 software and R4.1.0 software were used to perform a network Meta-analysis. Results A total of 14 RCTs were included, with 1141 patients in total. The network meta-analysis showed different intervention methods had no significant difference in reducing mortality rate based on cross comparison (all P > 0.05). The probability ranking diagram showed that plasma exchange (PE) showed the best effect in reducing 30-day mortality rate, followed by extracorporeal liver assist device (ELAD), fractionated plasma separation and adsorption with Prometheus system, molecular adsorbent recirculating system (MARS), Biologic-DT liver dialysis device, and PE+MARS. PE showed the best effect in reducing 90-day mortality rate, followed by Prometheus, ELAD, and MARS. Biologic-DT showed the best effect in improving hepatic encephalopathy, followed by MARS, PE+MARS, and ELAD. Patients undergoing ELAD had the lowest risk of bleeding, and compared with standard medical treatment, Biologic-DT might increase the risk of bleeding [risk ratio=1.9×10 8 , 95% confidence interval: (4.6-6.2)×10 27 ]. Conclusion PE might be the best option for reducing 30- and 90-day mortality rates in ACLF patients. Biologic-DT has a better effect in improving hepatic encephalopathy, but it may increase the risk of bleeding.

AIM: To study the protective effect and mechanism of Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP) on diabetic kidney injury in rats. METHODS: Intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ) to establish a rat model of diabetes (DM). The rats were divided into control group, diabetes group, LBP (60 mg/kg) group and LBP (30 mg/kg) group. The LBP group was given LBP by gavage once a day for 12 weeks. Determination of rat fasting blood glucose level, blood creatinine (Scr), urea nitrogen (BUN), C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) content. Calculate relative kidney mass, observe changes in kidney tissue morphology, and determine superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, and glutathione (GSH) in kidney tissue, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, nuclear factor-кB (NF-кB) subunit p65, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) andmonocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) expression. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the blood glucose of rats in the diabetic group was significantly increased (≥16.7 mmol/L), the content of Scr, BUN, CRP, IL-6, and TNF-α in the serum increased, the content of MDA in the kidney tissue increased, and the content of GSH increased And GSH-Px, CAT, SOD activity decreased, NF-кB subunit p65, MCP-1 and ICAM-1 expression levels increased. Compared with the diabetes group, LBP can reduce blood glucose in diabetic rats, reduce the serum levels of Scr, BUN, CRP, IL-6, and TNF-α, reduce the content of MDA in kidney tissue, increase the content of GSH, GSH-Px, CAT, SOD, and down-regulate the expression levels of NF-кB subunit p65, MCP-1 and ICAM-1. CONCLUSION: LBP has a significant protective effect on diabetic kidney injury, and its mechanism of action may be related to the improvement of blood glucose, reduction of renal oxidative stress and reduction of inflammatory reaction in diabetic rats.

Objective　To explore the relationship between free fatty acid metabolites and the acute cerebral infarction based on tandem mass spectrometry.Methods　Collecting 460 objects admitted to the first affiliated hospital of jinzhou medical university from October 2019 to January 2020.According to the presence of new cerebral infarction in the head imaging examination，they were divided into two groups：acute cerebral infarction group and control group.The tandem mass spectrometry was used to detect plasma 25 free fatty acids metabolites.Orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA)，Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and logistic regression were used to screen the differential metabolites.Results　There are 5 free fatty acid metabolites and the comprehensive indicators W significantly correlated with the incidence of cerebral infarction.The area under curve (AUC) of each metabolite for predicting cerebral infarction was as follows：W (0.917)，palmitic acid (0.892)，stearic acid (0.878)，linoleic acid (0.864)，oleic acid (0.840)，arachidonic acid (0.806).Conclusion　Linoleic acid，palmitic acid，stearic acid，arachidonic acid，oleic acid may be related to the occurrence and development of cerebral infarction，and the study of their metabolic processes may provide a basis for exploring the pathogenesis of cerebral infarction.

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of honokiol on proliferation, migration and apoptosis of human tongue carcinoma CAL-27 cells. METHODS: Routinely cultured CAL-27 cells were treated with 20, 40, or 60 μmol/L honokiol and the changes in cell proliferation were assessed with MTT assay. The scratch wound healing assay was used to assess the migration ability of the treated cells, and the cell apoptosis was detected with Hoechst33342 fluorescence staining and annexin V-FITC/PI method. The protein expression levels of p-Pi3k, p-Fak, Fak, MMP-2, MMP-9, p-Akt, Akt, Bax, Bcl-2 and cleaved-caspase-3 in the treated cells were detected using Western blotting. RESULTS: Treatment with honokiol at 20, 40, and 60 μmol/L for 24 h significantly lowered the proliferation and migration ability of CAL-27 cells. The number of apoptotic cells increased with the increase of honokiol concentration, which resulted in a cell apoptosis rate of (15.24±2.06)% at 20 μmol/L, (35.03±2.42)% at 40 μmol/L, and (48.13±4.61)% at 60 μmol/L, as compared with (6.53±1.80)% in the control group. The expressions of p-Pi3k, p-Fak, MMP-2, MMP-9, p-Akt and BCL-2 decreased and those of Bax and cleaved-caspase-3 increased significantly in the cells after the treatment ( < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Honokiol can inhibit the proliferation and migration and induce apoptosis of CAL-27 cells possibly by regulating the expressions of p-Pi3k, p-Fak, MMP-2, MMP-9, p-Akt, Bax, Bcl-2 and cleaved-caspase-3.
Apoptosis ; Biphenyl Compounds ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Humans ; Lignans ; Tongue Neoplasms

miR-29b是最近生物医学界所关注的研究热点之一，尤其在人类癌症中。越来越多的研究发现，miR-29b在多种癌症 中异常表达，与肿瘤细胞增殖、分化、凋亡、侵袭、转移及药物耐受相关，有望成为癌症的新型诊断标志物及治疗靶点。本文重点 就miR-29b在人类癌症中的表达、作用及其调控机制和临床应用的研究进展进行综述，以促进miR-29b在临床诊断和治疗中的转 化应用。