Inflammation plays a pivotal role in the etiology and progression of various diseases. In traditional Chinese medicine, the whole plants of Thesium chinense Turcz. and its preparations (e.g. Bairui Granules) have been employed to manage inflammatory conditions. While flavonoids were previously considered the primary anti-inflammatory components, other potentially active constituents have been largely overlooked and not thoroughly investigated. This study presents a novel finding that the total alkaloids of T. chinense (BC-Alk) are potent active substances underlying the traditional and clinical applications of T. chinense and Bairui Granules as anti-inflammatory agents. UPLC-MS/MS analysis identified the composition of BC-Alk as quinolizidine alkaloids. The anti-inflammatory efficacy of BC-Alk was evaluated using a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced lung inflammation model in mice. Results demonstrated that BC-Alk significantly mitigated LPS-induced lung inflammation, attenuated the overproduction of IL-1β and the overproduction of inflammatory factors (TNF-α), and ameliorated lung tissue hyperplasia in mice in vivo. Mechanistic studies in vitro revealed that BC-Alk upregulated the expression of Nrf2 and its downstream proteins NQO1 and glutamate-cystine ligase and modifier subunit (GCLM), inhibited NF-κB phosphorylation, and suppressed NLRP3 activation. Collectively, these findings indicate that BC-Alk exerts potent inhibitory effects against lung inflammation by modulating Nrf2, NF-κB, and NLRP3 pathways. This study provides new insights into the anti-inflammatory constituents of T. chinense and Bairui Granules.
Animals ; Lipopolysaccharides/adverse effects* ; Alkaloids/pharmacology* ; NF-kappa B/metabolism* ; NF-E2-Related Factor 2/metabolism* ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/metabolism* ; Mice ; Signal Transduction/drug effects* ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents/pharmacology* ; Male ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Humans ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Pneumonia/genetics*

At present, pancreatic cancer is a solid tumor with the worst prognosis. Compared with surgery and chemotherapy, radiotherapy plays an auxiliary role in the treatment of pancreatic cancer. In recent years, significant advances have been achieved in radiotherapy technology, which have been gradually applied in the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer. In this article, the progress in radiation therapy in the treatment of pancreatic cancer was reviewed, especially the clinical application of magnetic resonance imaging-guided radiation therapy in the treatment of pancreatic cancer, aiming to deepen the understand of the progress in radiation therapy for pancreatic cancer, and providing reference for improving the survival rate of pancreatic cancer patients.

Objective:To investigate the risk factors for liver cancer after splenectomy in patients with cirrhosis.Methods:The clinical data of 150 patients diagnosed with hepatitis B associated cirrhosis, portal hypertension, and hypersplenism who underwent splenectomy at Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital and the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from March 2000 to November 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. There were a total of 150 patients included, 114 males and 36 females, aged (44±10) years old. General information, intraoperative conditions, and postoperative complications of the patients were documented. The postoperative progress of patients was monitored by telephone or outpatient follow-up. Based on the follow-up results regarding liver cancer presence, all patients were categorized into two groups: liver cancer group ( n=42) and non-liver cancer group ( n=108). Multivariate analysis was employed to identify factors influencing the liver cancer occurrence after splenectomy. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis along with log-rank test was utilized to assess overall survival and survival rate comparison. Results:Compared to the non-liver cancer group, the liver cancer group exhibited an increased prevalence of hypertension, direct bilirubin levels, prothrombin time, maximum spleen diameter, and postoperative thrombosis (all P<0.05). However, there was a significant reduction in the number of patients receiving long-term regular antiviral therapy and postoperative bleeding (all P<0.05). The multivariate analysis revealed that preoperative hypertension ( OR=6.310, 95% CI: 1.729-23.024, P=0.005), spleen diameter exceeding 12 cm ( OR=5.338, 95% CI: 1.234-23.094, P=0.025), and occurrence of postoperative thrombosis ( OR=8.652, 95% CI: 2.700-27.729, P<0.001) in patients with hepatitis B-related liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension were associated with an increased risk of developing liver cancer following splenectomy. Patients who receive long-term regular antiviral treatment after surgery ( OR=0.143, 95% CI: 0.038-0.545, P=0.004) have a lower risk of developing liver cancer. There was no statistically significant difference observed in the cumulative survival rate between the liver cancer group and the non-liver cancer group ( χ2=1.74, P=0.187). Conclusion:Preoperative hypertension, spleen diameter exceeding 12 cm, and postoperative thrombosis are independent risk factors for liver cancer in patients with hepatitis B-related cirrhosis and portal hypertension after splenectomy. Additionally, postoperative long-term antiviral therapy serves as an independent protective factor.

Objective To explore the mediating effect of coping styles of newly graduated nurses between personality traits and transitional shock,aiming to provide references for managers to help new nurses reduce the level of transitional shock and smoothly go through the role transition period.Methods By convenience sampling,580 new nurses from 13 tertiary A hospitals in Guangzhou,Changsha,and Zhuzhou were surveyed from May to October 2023.A general information questionnaire,Eysenck Personality Questionnaire short form,Transition Shock of Newly Graduated Nurses Scale,and Brief Coping Style Scale were used for the survey.Structural equation modeling was employed to examine the mediating effect of newly graduated nurses'coping styles between personality traits and transitional shock.Results A total of 537 new nurses participated in the survey.Psychoticism and neuroticism were positively correlated with transformational shock and negative coping styles(P＜0.01),but negatively correlated with positive coping styles(P＜0.01).Extroversion was negatively correlated with transformational shock and negative coping style(P＜0.0 1),but positively correlated with positive coping style(P＜0.01).The results of the mediation effect analysis show that coping styles play a partial mediating role between personality traits and transformational shock.The mediating effects of coping styles on psychoticism,extraversion,and neuroticism are 0.095,-0.051,and 0.134,respectively,accounting for 43.18％,30.36％,and 32.29％of the total effect.Conclusion Coping styles of newly graduated nurses act as mediating variables between personality traits and transitional shock.Nursing managers should pay attention to cultivating good individual personality traits and establishing a supportive work environment to enhance new nurses'positive coping and reduce the level of transitional impact.

Objective:To investigate the complex Calculus Bovis-target-keratitis network and to explore the molecular mechanism of Calculus Bovis treating keratitis through network pharmacology. Methods:Genes related to keratitis were searched in the online DisGeNET database and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of keratitis-associated proteins was constructed.The components isolated and identified in Calculus Bovis were collected through the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP, https: //tcmsp-e.com/tcmsp.php), Chemistry Database by Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry of CAS (http: //www.organchem.csdb.cn), and published literature.The canonical SMILES information of the collected components was exported, which were submitted to the SwissTargetPrediction platform to predict potential targets of the components.The active component-predicted target network of Calculus Bovis was constructed and merged with the PPI network of keratitis-associated proteins to build the active component-potential target network of Calculus Bovis and systemically investigate the potential targets and signal pathways of Calculus Bovis in treatment of keratitis.The component-target-pathway network was established to analyze the mechanism of Calculus Bovis treating keratitis. Results:Thirty-nine components isolated and identified in Calculus Bovis were searched and 65 target genes related to keratitis were screened.Of the 28 potential targets involved in Calculus Bovis treating keratitis, there were 7 direct targets, including tumor necrosis factor, caspase 1, Toll-like receptor 9, C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 8, interleukin-6, mitogen-activated protein kinase 8, neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase 1.The 28 potential targets were annotated to 12 entries for biological process, 18 for cellular components and 13 for molecular function.In the Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes pathway enrichment analysis, 10 signal pathways were identified as enriched categories, which were mainly related to human cytomegalovirus infection, amoebiasis, antifolate resistance, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, rheumatoid arthritis, apoptosis, cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, malaria, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, interleukin-17 signaling pathway. Conclusions:Calculus Bovis may play an adjuvant therapeutic effect on keratitis through anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, immune regulation, inflammatory regulation and other functions.

OBJECTIVES: As a remedy for the failure of in vitro fertilization (IVF), rescue intracytoplasmic sperm injection (R-ICSI) has been widely carried out, but it has failed to significantly improve the fertilization rate and clinical pregnancy rate. Sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) was highly correlated with pregnancy outcome of artificial assisted reproduction. This study aims to investigate the effect of the sperm DFI on the outcome of R-ICSI and the clinical value of R-ICSI. METHODS: This retrospective analysis was conducted among 140 infertile couples receiving R-ICSI in from January 2014 to December 2019. The subjects were assigned into a total fertilization failure (TFF)+low DFI group (R-ICSI after TFF and DFI<30%) (n=63), a TFF+high DFI group (R-ICSI after TFF and DFI≥30%) (n=16), a partial fertilization failure (PFF)+low DFI group (R-ICSI after PFF and DFI<30%) (n=52), a PFF+high DFI group (R-ICSI after PFF and DFI≥30%) (n=9). All transferred embryos were come from R-ICSI. The general clinical data [infertility duration, male age, female age, basal serum level of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), basal serum level of luteinizing hormone (LH), antral follicle count, endometrial thickness of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) day, and eggs] and R-ICSI cycle outcomes (fertilization rate, normal fertilization rate, cleavage rate, good embryo rate, implantation rate, clinical pregnancy rate and live birth rate) were analyzed. In addition, the effect of R-ICSI on the fertilization outcome of conventional IVF total fertilization failure and partial fertilization failure was explored. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the general clinical data and R-ICSI cycle outcome between the TFF+low DFI group and the TFF+high DFI group (all P>0.05). There was no significant difference in the general clinical data between the PFF+low DFI group and the PFF+high DFI group (all P>0.05). The fertilization rate and normal fertilization rate in the PFF+low DFI group were significantly higher than those in the PFF+high DFI group (85.40% vs 72.41%, 71.90% vs 58.62%, respectively; both P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference in cleavage rate, good embryo rate, implantation rate, clinical pregnancy rate, and live birth rate between the 2 groups (all P>0.05). The R-ICSI cycle of TFF: A total of 79 fresh cycles, 57 fresh transplant cycles, a total of 761 unfertilized oocytes, and 584 M II oocytes were treated with R-ICSI, the fertilization rate was 83.22%, the normal fertilization rate was 75.51%, the cleavage rate was 98.15%, the good embryo rate was 40.74%, the implantation rate was 30.56%, and the clinical pregnancy rate was 43.86%; 29 live births were obtained. The R-ICSI cycle of PFF: A total of 61 fresh cycles, 31 fresh transplant cycles, a total of 721 unfertilized oocytes, and 546 M II oocytes were treated with R-ICSI; the fertilization rate was 83.33%, the normal fertilization rate was 69.78%, the cleavage rate was 97.36%, the good embryo rate was 44.39%, the implantation rate was 25.42%, and the clinical pregnancy rate was 45.16%; 12 live births were obtained. CONCLUSIONS In the case of partial fertilization failure of IVF, the sperm DFI affects the fertilization rate and normal fertilization rate of R-ICSI; whether it is a TFF of IVF or PFF of IVF, ICSI can be used as an effective remedy way.
DNA Fragmentation ; Female ; Fertilization in Vitro ; Humans ; Male ; Pregnancy ; Retrospective Studies ; Sperm Injections, Intracytoplasmic ; Spermatozoa

Objective:To investigate and analyze the basic occupational situation of Chinese radiotherapists and to provide references for the development and construction of the radiation therapist team in China.Methods:Between May 7, 2021 and June 15, 2021, this survey was conducted using a self-designed questionnaire, which was distributed and collected in the form of online survey to conduct a statistical analysis of the basic situation of radiotherapists in 30 provincial-level administrative regions in China.Results:A total of 2 928 valid questionnaires were collected from 30 provincial-level administrative regions. The ratio of male to female and average age of the participants were 69∶31 and 35 years (18-65), respectively. According to the survey result, 84.7% of the participants came from Tertiary A-level hospitals. In terms of educational background, the participants with doctoral, master, undergraduate, junior-college, and technical-secondary degrees accounted for 0.2%, 6.9%, 76.6%, 14.9%, and 1.4%, respectively. In terms of title, full senior technologists, associate senior technologist, technologist-in-charge, technologist, and technician in the participants accounted for 0.5%, 5.8%, 32.5%, 52.2%, and 8.2%, respectively. The participants with years of employment of 0-, 5-, 10-, 20-y accounted for 33.74%, 25.79%, 25.51%, and 14.96%, respectively. The majors of the participants included medical imaging/imaging technology (45.9%), clinical medicine (19.1%), and biomedical engineering (11.9%).Conclusions:Chinese radiotherapists tend to be younger and are rapidly increasing in number. Employers should attach importance to the career planningand continuing education of radiotherapists to improve their technical skills, in order to fully satisfy the demand for radiotherapists in the new era.

Objective To investigate the effect of Yangxue Rougan pills on a rat model of liver fibrosis induced by multiple factors and the mechanism of action of Yangxue Rougan pills in the treatment of liver fibrosis. Methods A total of 50 male rats were randomly divided into blank control group, multi-factor model group, Fuzheng Huayu capsule group, and high-, middle-, and low-dose Yangxue Rougan pill groups. The rats in the blank control group were given normal water and feed, and those in the other groups were given modified high-fat low-protein diet and 5% alcohol, as well as subcutaneous injection of olive oil solution containing 40% carbon tetrachloride and intraperitoneal injection of pig serum 0.5 mL per rat, twice a week for 12 consecutive weeks. Since week 7, the rats in the high-, middle-, and low-dose Yangxue Rougan pill groups were given Yangxue Rougan pills at a dose of 9.5, 4.75, and 2.38 g/kg, respectively, those in the Fuzheng Huayu capsule group were given Fuzheng Huayu capsules at a dose of 0.75 g/kg, and those in the blank control group and the multi-factor model group were given an equal volume of distilled water by gavage every day for 6 consecutive weeks. The rats were treated at week 12. HE staining and Masson staining were used to observe the degree of liver fibrosis in rats, and PCR and Western blot were used to measure the expression of TGF-β1, Smad3, and Smad7 in the liver. A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison of continuous data between multiple groups, and the Dunnett's t -test was used for further comparison between two groups. Results Compared with the blank control group, the multi-factor model group had a severely damaged lobular structure and a significantly higher degree of liver fibrosis, with the formation of pseudolobules with different sizes; compared with the multi-factor model group, the Yangxue Rougan pill groups had a significant improvement in the degree of liver fibrosis, with the most significant therapeutic effect in the high- and middle-dose Yangxue Rougan pill groups. Compared with the blank control group, the multi-factor model group had significant increases in the expression of TGF-β1 and Smad3 and a significant reduction in the expression of Smad7 in liver tissue (all P < 0.05); compared with the multi-factor model group, the Yangxue Rougan pill groups had a significant reduction in the expression of TGF-β1 and a significant increase in the expression of Smad7 (all P < 0.05); compared with the multi-factor model group, the high- and middle-dose Yangxue Rougan pill groups had a significant reduction in the expression of Smad3 (both P < 0.05). Conclusion Yangxue Rougan pills can significantly inhibit liver fibrosis in rats by downregulating the expression of TGF-β1 and Smad3 and upregulating the expression of Smad7, and therefore, the TGF-β1/Smad signaling pathway is one of the mechanisms of action of Yangxue Rougan pills in improving liver fibrosis.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of Asari Radix et Rhizoma-Zingiberis Rhizoma herb pair （XGHP） on lung and liver lipid metabolism in rats with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （COPD）. MethodForty SD male rats were divided into a normal group （10 rats） and a model group （30 rats）. The method of cigarette smoke + tracheal injection of lipopolysaccharide（LPS） + cold stimulation was used to replicate COPD model with the syndrome of cold phlegm obstruction in lung. A COPD group， a XGHP group （5.4 g·kg^-1·d^-1）， and an aminophylline group （0.5 g·kg^-1·d^-1） were established after successfully inducing the model， with 10 rats in each group. After treatment， the serum triglyceride （TG）， total cholesterol （TC）， high-density lipoprotein cholesterol （HDL-C）， and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol （LDL-C） levels of rats in each group were measured. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometer （GC-MS） was used to detect the differential metabolites in the lung and liver tissues of rats in each group， and the relevant targets of the differential metabolites were predicted by network pharmacology. Molecular docking was used to verify the binding ability of key components in XGHP to the relevant targets in network pharmacology. The mRNA and protein expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α （PPARα） and fatty acid binding protein 4 （FABP4） in lung and liver tissues of rats in each group were detected by real-time polymerase chain reaction （PCR） and Western blot. ResultXGHP significantly increased the levels of TG， TC， and LDL-C in serum （P<0.05）， and decreased the level of HDL-C （P<0.05） in rats with COPD. GC-MS results showed that there were 8 lung differential metabolites and 17 liver differential metabolites in the COPD group and XGHP group. Network pharmacology predicted 59 common targets for the two differential metabolites， mainly enriched in the PPAR signaling pathway. Molecular docking results showed that the main components in XGHP were well combined with both PPARα and FABP4. Real-time PCR showed that XGHP effectively up-regulated the expression levels of PPARα and FABP4 mRNA （P<0.05）， and Western blot showed that XGHP effectively up-regulated the expression levels of PPARα and FABP4 proteins （P<0.05） in lung and liver tissues of rats with COPD. ConclusionXGHP effectively improves the blood lipid levels of rats with COPD， which may be related to the increase of the expression levels of PPARα and FABP4 mRNA and proteins in the PPAR signaling pathway， thus regulating lung and liver lipid metabolism.

Objective:To investigate the manpower allocation and scientific research level of radiotherapists in radiotherapy units in mainland China, aiming to provide reference for the construction of radiotherapist teams.Methods:The questionnaire was designed and produced by the organizer, released in the professional committee, professional group and other channels of the radiotherapist industry, and filled out by the technical person in charge of the radiotherapy unit through the online questionnaire survey. The collection time started from mid-May 2021 to mid-June 2021.Results:A total of 558 effective questionnaires filled out by radiotherapy units. The radiotherapy institutions participating in the survey had a total of 5500 radiotherapists, including 3702 males and 1798 females, 3754 with a bachelor's degree, 371 who are currently studying or have obtained a master's degree, 21 who are currently studying or have already obtained a doctoral degree, 3642 with junior or lower titles, 1580 with intermediate titles, and 278 with senior titles. In 2020, radiotherapists from 193 units published articles, those from 81 units received project funding, and those from 56 units obtained patent authorization, and those from 15 units had scientific research transformation. The participating units had a total of 1080 large-scale radiation therapy equipment. In 2020, the daily average number of radiotherapy patients was 47 900, the average daily load of accelerator patients was 44.35, and the average workload index per capita was 8.71. The average daily radiotherapy patients in county-level or below, city-level, and provincial-level institutions were 25.78, 65.68, and 173.76, respectively, and the per capita workload index was 5.22, 8.09, and 10.11.Conclusions:Compared with the 2019 survey, the educational background of radiotherapists in mainland China has been improved, and the title structure has been optimized to a certain extent, and the workload of large-scale radiotherapy units is larger than that of grass-roots units.