The Huangdi Neijing proposes the " using bitter herbs to nourish or purge" theory to guide clinical prescription and formulation of herbal remedies based on the physiological characteristics and functions of the five zang viscera, along with the properties and flavors of medicinal herbs. This study explored diabetic kidney disease pathogenesis and treatment based on the " using bitter herbs to nourish or purge" theory. Kidney dryness is a key pathological factor in diabetic kidney disease, and the disharmony of kidney dryness is an essential aspect of its pathogenesis. Strengthening is the primary therapeutic principle, and kidney dryness is a persistent factor throughout the occurrence and progression of diabetic kidney disease. In the early stage, the pathogenesis involves heat-consuming qi and injuring yin, leading to kidney dryness. In the middle stage, the pathogenesis manifests as qi deficiency and blood stasis in the collaterals, resulting in turbidity owing to kidney dryness. In the late stage, the pathogenesis involves yin and yang deficiency, with kidney dryness and disharmony. This study proposes the staging-based treatment based on the " need for firmness" characteristic of the kidney. The aim is to provide new insights for clinical diagnosis and treatment in traditional Chinese medicine by rationally using pungent, bitter, and salty medicinal herbs to nourish and moisturize the kidney. This approach seeks to promote precise syndrome differentiation and personalized treatment for different stages of diabetic kidney disease, thereby enhancing clinical efficacy.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy and safety of omalizumab in the treatment of chronic urticaria (CU) patients with poor response to H1 antihistamines.Methods:CU patients, who showed poor response to H1 antihistamines and received omalizumab treatment, were collected from the Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University from June 2020 to June 2021. The efficacy of omalizumab was evaluated by using the 7-day urticaria activity score (UAS7) and urticaria control test (UCT) score at weeks 4, 12 and 24 after the start of treatment. The t-test, chi-square test, and Pearson correlation analysis were used to analyze the relationship between the clinical characteristics and efficacy. Results:A total of 121 CU patients who met the inclusion criteria and had relatively complete medical records were included in this study, including 54 males (44.63%) and 67 females (55.37%) , and their ages ranged from 13 to 70 years (39.88 ± 14.36 years) ; 88 patients were diagnosed with chronic spontaneous urticaria (72.73%) , 10 with chronic inducible urticaria (8.26%) , and 23 with chronic spontaneous urticaria accompanied by chronic inducible urticaria (19.01%) . At week 4 after the start of omalizumab treatment, the response rate was 50.86% (59/116) , and the complete response rate was 25.86% (30/116) ; at week 12, the response rate was 78.26% (54/69) , and the complete response rate was 34.78% (24/69) ; at week 24, the response rate was 64.71% (22/34) , and the complete response rate was 23.53% (8/34) . At week 4, CU patients with baseline serum total IgE levels of < 40 IU/ml had a lower response rate (26 cases, 30.77%) than those with baseline serum total IgE levels of ≥ 40 IU/ml (61 cases, 65.57%; χ2 = 8.93, P = 0.004) . Correlation analysis showed that the age at treatment, age at onset, allergic diseases, concomitant symptoms, baseline erythrocyte sedimentation rates, and baseline C-reactive protein levels were significantly correlated with the UCT scores (all P < 0.05) , while the course of disease, clinical types, serum total IgE levels, peripheral blood counts, dermatology life quality index scores, and UAS7 scores were not significantly correlated with the UCT scores. Among the 121 CU patients, 8 (6.61%) reported mild to moderate adverse reactions. Conclusion:Omalizumab could effectively improve clinical symptoms and signs of CU patients with poor response to H1 antihistamines, and was well tolerated;omalizumab treatment may be more beneficial to patients without allergic comorbidities such as allergic rhinitis, without concomitant symptoms such as angioedema, and with lower erythrocyte sedimentation rates and C-reactive protein levels.

Objective:To investigate the effect of tumor deposits on the prognosis and lymph node staging in patients with gastric cancer.Methods:The clinicopathological data of 907 patients with gastric cancer admitted to the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University from Jan to Dec 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. According to the pathological diagnosis, the patients were divided into tumor deposits positive group (121 cases) and tumor deposits negative group (786 cases), and the relationship between tumor deposits and clinicopathological features and prognosis was analyzed.Results:Tumor deposits were found in 121 patients among 907 cases. Univariate analysis showed that tumor deposits were correlated with pT stage, pN stage, pTNM stage, tumor diameter, nerve invasion and vascular invasion (all P<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that pT stage ( P<0.001), pN stage ( P=0.002), pTNM stage ( P=0.001), tumor diameter ( P=0.033),nerve invasion ( P=0.017), vascular invasion ( P=0.011) were the independent influencing factors of positive tumor deposits. The prognosis of patients with tumor deposits was worse than those without ( χ2=77.869, P<0.001). By univariate analysis, age, tumor location, size, pT stage, pN stage, pTNM stage, tumor thrombus, nerve invasion, tumor deposits and number affected prognosis (all P<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that age, pT stage, pN stage, pTNM stage, nerve invasion, vascular invasion and the number of tumor deposits were independent prognostic factors (all P<0.05). By stratified analysis tumor deposits were found to have statistical difference in N0~N3a stage (all P<0.05). Conclusion:Tumor deposits is an independent risk factor affecting the prognosis of gastric cancer patients.

Objective:To explore the risk factors of lymph node metastasis (LNM) in early gastric cancer (ECG), and establish a risk-prediction model based on LNM.Method:Four hundred and twenty-seven EGC patients undergoing curative radical gastrectomy were enrolled in this study. The risk factors for LNM of ECG were analyzed with Logistic regression. LNM risk was stratified and risk-predicting model was established. The risk-predicting model was measured by area under ROC curve. According to the same standard, clinical data of 133 patients with EGC who underwent radical surgery were selected for external verification of the model.Results:The frequency of LNM was 13.3% (32/427) in EGC patients. The LNM ratio of intramucosal carcinoma and submucosal carcinoma was 1.3% (3/237), 15.3% (29/190) respectively. Ulcer presence, tumor size >2 cm, undifferentiated tumor, submucosal invasion, neural invasion, and vascular tumor thrombus were significantly associated with LNM in EGC patients ( χ2=3.408, 16.379, 4.808, 29.804, 25.305, 47.120, respectively P<0.05). Multivariate analysis suggested that ulcer presence, tumor size >2 cm, depth of invasion, neural invasion, and vascular tumor thrombus were independent predictors of LNM in EGC patients, ( OR=0.326, 2.924, 11.824, 13.047, 7.756, respectively P<0.05). LNM predicting model is established, P=e^x/(1+e^x),x=-4.792-1.122 ulcer presence+1.073 tumor size+2.470 depth of invasion+2.569 neural invasion+2.048 vascular tumor thrombus,ROC-AUC of risk-predicting model was 0.845, the best cut-off was 0.094, the sensitivity was 72.70%, the specificity was 77.20%. The external verification result revealed the AUC of ROC was 0.840. The four-grid table is constructed by predicting model results and the postoperative pathological examination. The sensitivity and specificity of the model are calculated to be 82.35% and 68.96%, respectively. Conclusions:EGC patients with ulcer presence, tumor size >2 cm, depth of invasion, vascular tumor thrombus, and neural invasion have higher risk of LNM, the risk-predicting model can identify the high probability of LNM .

Objective : To investigate the association between c. 1311C > T and c. 1004C > A of glucose⁃6 ⁃phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) gene single nucleotide polymorphism ( SNP) with the risk of G6PD deficiency in Guangxi population. Methods : 417 patients with G6PD deficiency were randomly selected as case group , and 295 healthy patients were selected as control group. The c. 1311C > T and c. 1004C > A were genotyped using the SNPscanTM multiple SNP method , and the haplotype frequency of two sites were analyzed by SHEsis. Results : In the case and control group , there were statistically significant differences in the distribution frequency of genotype TT , CC + CT and allele T at c. 1311C > T locus [TT vs CC :(P = 0. 001 , OR = 0. 373 , 95% CI = 0. 204 - 0. 683) ; TT vs CC + CT :(P = 0. 001 , OR = 0. 371 , 95% CI = 0. 203 - 0. 678) ; T vs C :(P = 0. 002 , OR = 0. 601 , 95% CI = 0. 435 - 0. 829)] ;however, there was no significant difference in genotype and allele distribution frequency at c. 1004C > A locus (P > 0. 05) . The results of the rate method showed that compared with genotype CC , the genotype CT at c. 1311C > T increased the expression level of G6PD enzyme , while the genotype TT decreased the expression level of G6PD enzyme(P < 0. 05) , the haplotype analysis showed that C ⁃C and T ⁃C were associated with G6PD risk (P < 0. 05) . Conclusion In Guangxi population , c. 1311C > T locus genotypes TT , CC + CT and allele T were related to the decreased risk of G6PD deficiency.

Objective : To investigate the association between c. 1311C > T and c. 1004C > A of glucose⁃6 ⁃phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) gene single nucleotide polymorphism ( SNP) with the risk of G6PD deficiency in Guangxi population. Methods : 417 patients with G6PD deficiency were randomly selected as case group , and 295 healthy patients were selected as control group. The c. 1311C > T and c. 1004C > A were genotyped using the SNPscanTM multiple SNP method , and the haplotype frequency of two sites were analyzed by SHEsis. Results : In the case and control group , there were statistically significant differences in the distribution frequency of genotype TT , CC + CT and allele T at c. 1311C > T locus [TT vs CC :(P = 0. 001 , OR = 0. 373 , 95% CI = 0. 204 - 0. 683) ; TT vs CC + CT :(P = 0. 001 , OR = 0. 371 , 95% CI = 0. 203 - 0. 678) ; T vs C :(P = 0. 002 , OR = 0. 601 , 95% CI = 0. 435 - 0. 829)] ;however, there was no significant difference in genotype and allele distribution frequency at c. 1004C > A locus (P > 0. 05) . The results of the rate method showed that compared with genotype CC , the genotype CT at c. 1311C > T increased the expression level of G6PD enzyme , while the genotype TT decreased the expression level of G6PD enzyme(P < 0. 05) , the haplotype analysis showed that C ⁃C and T ⁃C were associated with G6PD risk (P < 0. 05) . Conclusion In Guangxi population , c. 1311C > T locus genotypes TT , CC + CT and allele T were related to the decreased risk of G6PD deficiency.

Objective:To retrospectively analyze the relationship between patterns of local recurrence and radiotherapy target dose after adjuvant radiotherapy for the pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma(PDAC), aiming to provide reference for exploring reasonable target and dosage.Methods:Clinical data of 138 patients with T 1-4N 0-2M 0 PDAC who underwent adjuvant radiotherapy after radical resection from April 2012 to December 2020 were analyzed retrospectively. The influencing factors of local recurrence and the correlation between local recurrence site and radiotherapy target dose were analyzed. Results:The median follow-up time was 37.2 months. The median overall survival (mOS) was 29.9 months. The 5-year OS rate was 27.4%. And the median progression-free survival (mPFS) was 13.9 months. There were 24 cases of local recurrence (17.4%), and 10 cases of local recurrence complicated with distant metastasis (7.2%). The correlation between local recurrence site and radiotherapy target dose could be evaluated in 19 patients with complete clinical data. The first local recurrence occurred near the para-aortic (Ao), the celiac axis (CA) and the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) were 8, 5 and 4 cases, respectively. The radiotherapy doses of 8 patients with local recurrence only in the PTV field were above 45 Gy. There were 8 cases of local recurrence both in and out of the PTV field, including 3 cases with dose line between 40 and 52 Gy, 2 cases with dose line between 20 and 47.5 Gy, and 3 cases with dose line between 0.5 and 52.5 Gy. There were 3 cases of local recurrence out of the PTV field, and the dose line ranged from 0 to 20 Gy.Conclusions:The local recurrence rate of PDAC after radical surgery combined with postoperative radiotherapy is low, but a small number of patients have recurrence in the high-dose range of radiation field and regional recurrence out of the field. For these patients, it may be necessary to explore a more appropriate target dose and range for adjuvant radiotherapy.

Objective:To investigate the clinically relevant factors of progressive disease (PD) after neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced gastric cancer.Methods:From Jun 2011 to Mar 2016, 569 patients with locally advanced gastric cancer(cT3/4N0/+ M0) admitted to the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University were retrospectively analyzed .Results:All 569 patients completed neoadjuvant therapy, 59 patients (10.4%) had PD. Univariate analysis showed that tumor size (χ 2=10.091, P=0.001), pathological type (χ 2=4.110, P=0.043), Borrmann type (χ 2=91.941, P=0.001), pre-treatment cT stage (χ 2=7.980, P=0.005) were associated with PD after neoadjuvant therapy for gastric cancer. The results of multi-factor regression analysis showed that pathological type, Borrmann type, pre-treatment cT stage were independent factors influencing the occurrence of PD after neoadjuvant therapy for advanced gastric cancer. The overall survival and progression-free suruival time of patients with PD is significantly shorter than that of patients without PD . Conclusion:The pathological type, Borrmann typing and pre-treatment cT stage are the influencing factors for the occurrence of PD after neoadjuvant treatment in advanced gastric cancer, and the prognosis of PD patients is poor.

Objective:To investigate the expression of KLF11 in gastric cancer tissues and cell lines as well as its effect on proliferation and apoptosis of human gastric cancer cells BGC823.Methods:Sixty pairs gastric cancer tissues and corresponding adjacent tissues were collected. The expression of KLF11 mRNA in gastric cancer tissues and their adjacent tissues was detected by RT-PCR. The expression of KLF11 was detected in gastric cancer cells. KLF11 expression was silenced. The proliferation of cells were detected by using MTT assay. Flow cytometry was used to detect the cell cycle and cell apoptosis rate. Western bloting was used to examine the changes of concentration of proteins associated with cell cycle,cell apoptosis and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway related proteins. The activity of Caspase3 enzyme was detected by spectrophotometry.Results:The relative expression of KLF11 mRNA in gastric carcinoma tissues was significantly higher than that of the adjacent tissues ( t=11.38, P<0.05). Its expression was related to tumor size, depth of invasion, lymph node metastasis and TNM clinical stage (all P<0.05). The proliferation of BGC823 cells was significantly suppressed after KLF11 silencing ( F=19.56, P<0.05), and the cell cycle was arrested in G 0/G 1 phase [(41.40%±0.98%) vs. (66.53%±1.01%), F=32.69, P<0.05]. Meanwhile, the apoptosis rate was significantly increased by KFL11 silencing [(41.44%±1.59%) vs. (15.42%±0.86%), F=35.35, P<0.05]. The results of Western blotting revealed that the expression of Bax and Cleaved Caspase3 was significantly increased ( F=23.33, 33.63; both P<0.05), wheras that of β-catenin, Bcl-2, CyclinD1and CyclinE was significantly reduced ( F=22.21, 16.24, 26.75, 33.42; all P<0.05). The activity of Caspase3 enzyme was enhanced ( F=16.56, P<0.05). Conclusion:KLF11 was highly-expressed in gastric cancer tissues and cells, KFL11 silencing could inhibit gastric cancer cells proliferation and induce cell apoptosis via Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway.

Objective:To investigate the application value of individualized full-course nutritional intervention in neoadjuvant concurrent chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) for locally advanced Siewert type Ⅱ and Ⅲ adenocarcinoma of esophagogastric junction (AEG).Methods:The perspec-tive randomized control study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 90 patients with locally advanced Siewert type Ⅱ and Ⅲ AEG who underwent nCRT in the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University from February 2012 to December 2018 were selected. Patient were divided into two groups with 1:1 according to random number table. Patients undergoing nCRT combined with individualized full-course nutritional intervention were allocated into experimental group, and patients undergoing nCRT combined with common nutritional intervention were allocated into control group. Observation indicators: (1) grouping situations of the enrolled patients; (2) changing situations of nutritional status and quality of life of patients in nCRT and preoperative waiting period; (3) efficacy evaluation and adverse effects of nCRT; (4) surgical and recovery situations. Measurement data with normal distribution were represented as Mean± SD, and comparison between groups was conducted using the t test. Measurement date with skewed distribution were represented as M ( P25, P75) or M (range), and comparison between groups was conducted using the Mann-Whitney U test. Count data were represented as absolute numbers or percentages, and comparison between groups was conducted using the chi-square test or Fisher exact probability. Comparison of ordinal data was conducted using the non-parameter rank sum test. Repeated measurement data were analyzed using the repeated ANOVA. Results:(1) Grouping situations of the enrolled patients: a total of 90 patients were selected for eligibility. There were 77 males and 13 females, aged from 26 to 74 years, with a median age of 62 years. Of 90 patients, there were 45 cases in the experimental group and 45 cases in the control group. (2) Changing situations of nutritional status and quality of life of patients in nCRT and preoperative waiting period: ① during the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preoperative waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the body mass was (67±10)kg, (66±9)kg, (67±10)kg, (68±10)kg, (70±10)kg for the experi-mental group, respectively, and (65±9)kg, (59±8)kg, (62±8)kg, (64±8)kg, (66±9)kg for the control group. The multivariate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the body mass ( χ2=195.010, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, intervention effect of body mass changing between the two groups ( F=93.974, 60.638, 4.144, P<0.05). ② During the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preoperative waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the total protein was (66±4)g/L, (65±4)g/L, (65±4)g/L, (68±4)g/L, (71±5)g/L for the experimental group, respectively, and (65±4)g/L, (62±5)g/L, (63±5)g/L, (65±5)g/L, (67±6)g/L for the control group. The multivariate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the total protein ( χ2=652.524, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, interven-tion effect of total protein changing between the two groups ( F=672.507, 6.424, 5.057, P<0.05). ③ During the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preoperative waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the albumin was (40±3)g/L, (38±4)g/L, (38±4)g/L, (39±4)g/L, (40±4)g/L for the experimental group, respectively, and (39±4)g/L, (35±5)g/L, (36±4)g/L, (36±4)g/L, (37±5)g/L for the control group. The multivariate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the albumin ( χ2=289.324, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, intervention effect of albumin changing between the two groups ( F=4 210.683, 5.013, 7.330, P<0.05). ④ During the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preoperative waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the prealbumin was (228±41)mg/L, (222±56)mg/L, (223±47)mg/L, (227±46)mg/L, (233±53)mg/L for the experimental group, respectively, and (202±49)mg/L, (174±68)mg/L, (179±54)mg/L, (185±51)mg/L, (193±57)mg/L for the control group. The multi-variate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the prealbumin ( χ2=297.324, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, intervention effect of prealbumin changing between the two groups ( F=871.545, 6.111, 14.426, P<0.05). ⑤ During the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preoperative waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the hemoglobin was (124±14)g/L, (121±14)g/L, (125±13)g/L, (127±13)g/L, (128±13)g/L for the experimental group, respectively, and (121±18)g/L, (114±14)g/L, (116±14)g/L, (117±16)g/L, (118±22)g/L for the control group. The multivariate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the hemoglobin ( χ2=257.560, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, intervention effect of hemoglobin changing between the two groups ( F=2 533.553, 4.142, 4.985, P<0.05). ⑥ During the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preopera-tive waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) score was 4.4±1.2,6.3±1.4, 5.5±1.4, 4.3±1.4, 3.4±1.7 for the experimental group, respec-tively, and 4.9±1.2, 7.4±1.7, 7.3±1.6, 6.3±1.4, 6.0±1.5 for the control group. The multivariate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the PG-SGA score ( χ2=289.543, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, intervention effect of PG-SGA score changing between the two groups ( F=648.583, 41.906, 26.098, P<0.05). ⑦ During the nCRT treatment (week 3, week 6) and the preoperative waiting period (week 9, week 12, week 15), the quality of life questionnaire of stomach (QLQ-ST022) score was 13±3, 16±6, 16±4, 14±4, 12±5 for the experimental group, respectively, and 15±4, 21±6, 20±4, 17±4, 15±5 for the control group. The multivariate test was conducted based on the mauchly's test of sphericity for the QLQ-STO22 ( χ2=279.865, P<0.05). There were significant differences in the time effect, interaction effect, interven-tion effect of QLQ-STO22 changing between the two groups ( F=710.238, 7.261, 16.794, P<0.05). (3) Efficacy evaluation and adverse effects of nCRT: there were 25 patients and 20 cases of the experimental group with partial response and stable disease, showing the objective response rate and disease control rate as 55.6%(25/45)and 100.0%(45/45). There were 18 patients and 27 cases of the control group with partial response and stable disease, showing the objective response rate and disease control rate as 40.0%(18/45)and 100.0%(45/45). There was no significant difference in the nCRT efficacy between the two groups ( P>0.05). Cases with leukopenia, neutropenia, anemia, nausea, and loss of appetite were 27, 25, 19, 30, 34 for the experimental group, versus 37, 34, 29, 39, 42 for the control group, showing significant differences between the two groups ( χ2=5.409, 3.986, 4.464, 5.031, 5.414, P<0.05). (4) Surgical and recovery situations: patients of the experimental group underwent surgeries successfully. Two patients of the control group diagnosed with peritoneal metastasis after laparoscopic exploration underwent conversion therapy and no surgery, the other 43 patients underwent surgeries. The time to postoperative gastric tube removal, time to postopera-tive drainage tube removal, time to postoperative first flatus, time to postoperative first defecation, duration of postoperative hospital stay were 2.0 days (1.5 days, 3.0 days), 6.0 days (5.0 days,11.0 days), 2.0 days (1.5 days, 2.5 days), 2.0 days (1.5 days, 2.5 days), 7.0 days (6.0 days,14.0 days) for the experimental group, versus 3.0 days (2.0 days,4.0 days), 7.0 days (5.5 days,14.0 days), 2.0 days (1.5 days,3.0 days), 3.0 days (2.0 days,3.5 days), 8.0 days (6.0 days, 17.0 days) for the control group, showing significant differences between the two groups ( Z=-3.477, -4.398, -3.068, -5.786, -3.395, P<0.05). Conclusion:For AEG patients undergoing nCRT, the individualized full-course nutrition intervention involving nutritionists is beneficial to improve the nutritional status, reduce adverse reactions, and improve the quality of life of the patients, promote postoperative short-term recovery. Registry: this study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov in United States, with the registry number of NCT01962246.