ObjectiveTo explore the mechanism of Yishen Qubi Tongluo Formula （益肾祛痹通络方， YQTF） in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis（RA）. MethodsNetwork pharmacology was employed to retrieve and screen the active components and potential targets of YQTF as well as RA-related targets using databases including TCMSP， BATMAN， ETCM and GEO. The intersection of targets related to active components and RA-related targets was identified， and a protein-protein interaction （PPI） network was constructed. Gene Ontology （GO） functional enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes （KEGG） pathway enrichment analysis were performed， and a drug-active component-common target network of YQTF in the treatment of RA was established. The core components of YQTF were molecularly docked with key targets. Human rheumatoid arthritis synovial fibroblast cell line MH7A was divided into blank group， model group， methotrexate group and YQTF group. The blank group was cultured with 10% fetal bovine serum， while the other three groups were stimulated with 10 μg/L of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） for 24 h to establish the RA cell model. On this basis， the methotrexate group was treated with methotrexate suspension at a concentration of 20 μmol/L， and the YQTF group was treated with 10% YQTF-medicated serum. After 48 h of intervention， the levels of TNF-α and interleukin-17A（IL-17A）contents in cell supernatants were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）， and mRNA expressions of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase（PI3K）， protein kinase B（AKT） and mammalian target of rapamycin（mTOR） were detected by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction （RT-qPCR）. ResultsNetwork pharmacological analysis identified 209 active components and 583 potential target genes of YQTF， as well as 818 RA-related targets. A total of 29 common targets were obtained from the intersection of drug-related targets and RA-related targets. Quercetin，β-sitosterol， kaempferol， stigmasterol and luteolin were the core active components of YQTF for the treatment of RA， while matrix metalloproteinase-9 （MMP9）， prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 （PTGS2）， Toll-like receptor 4 （TLR4）， tumor protein p53 （TP53） and transcription factor AP-1 subunit JUN were the key targets. The GO and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that the involved biological processes and pathways were mainly associated with antioxidant responses， PI3K-AKT signaling pathway and Toll-like receptor （TLR） signaling pathway. Molecular docking results showed that MMP9 and PTGS2 exhibited high binding affinities with quercetin， β-sitosterol， kaempferol， stigmasterol and luteolin； TLR4 exhibited high binding activities with β-sitosterol， stigmasterol and luteolin； and TP53 showed high binding affinity with luteolin. The results of cell experiments showed that compared with the control group， the contents of TNF-α and IL-17A as well as the mRNA expressions of AKT and mTOR in the model group significantly increased （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. Compared with the model group， all the above indicators significantly decreased in the YQTF group， while the contents of TNF-α and the mRNA expression of AKT significantly decreased in the methotrexate group （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. ConclusionThe mechanism of YQTF in the treatment of RA may be associated with reducing inflammatory cytokine secretion and inhibiting the activation of the PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling pathway.

The development of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)medical alliances plays a pivotal role in enhancing grassroots TCM service capabilities and meeting public demand for TCM healthcare.However,challenges persist in establishing these alliances,including insufficient Party leadership at primary TCM institutions and deficiencies in clinical services,talent de-velopment,and emergency care capacity.This study examines innovative Party building approaches in public hospitals within the new era context,analyzing practical cases of alliance development.Our findings demonstrate that integrating Party building into the governance structure of medical alliances not only strengthens Party leadership at primary TCM institutions but also significant-ly promotes TCM service development.Systematic analysis of case hospital practices reveals several key insights.Firstly,strengthening top-level design through Party committee leadership is crucial.Secondly,addressing the most pressing public healthcare concerns with genuine commitment forms the foundation.Thirdly,deep integration of Party building with core medical services represents the essential approach.Lastly,policy-responsive innovation based on consolidated achievements serves as the key driver.

The development of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)medical alliances plays a pivotal role in enhancing grassroots TCM service capabilities and meeting public demand for TCM healthcare.However,challenges persist in establishing these alliances,including insufficient Party leadership at primary TCM institutions and deficiencies in clinical services,talent de-velopment,and emergency care capacity.This study examines innovative Party building approaches in public hospitals within the new era context,analyzing practical cases of alliance development.Our findings demonstrate that integrating Party building into the governance structure of medical alliances not only strengthens Party leadership at primary TCM institutions but also significant-ly promotes TCM service development.Systematic analysis of case hospital practices reveals several key insights.Firstly,strengthening top-level design through Party committee leadership is crucial.Secondly,addressing the most pressing public healthcare concerns with genuine commitment forms the foundation.Thirdly,deep integration of Party building with core medical services represents the essential approach.Lastly,policy-responsive innovation based on consolidated achievements serves as the key driver.

Objective:To investigate the normal reference values of spinal bone mineral density measured by quantitative computed tomography (QCT) and the differences of bone mineral density (BMD) in different regions of in Chinese adult males.Methods:Men who underwent low-dose CT lung scan for cancer screening in regions of Northeast, North, East, South, Central and Southwest of China from January 2018 to December 2019 were selected. And the lumbar vertebrae BMD values in the male subjects were measured by the QCT system (Mindways Software, Inc.). The mean BMD values and their decline rates were calculated at an age interval of 10 years, and the prevalence of osteoporosis was calculated according to the American College of Radiology spine QCT osteoporosis diagnostic criteria.Results:A total of 50 682 males with a mean age of (50.22±12.79) years (ranged 20 to 98 years) were included in this study. The peak BMD of (173.11±28.56) mg/cm 3 in the healthy Chinese adult male population appeared in the age group of 20 to 29 years and then declined with age. Before the age of 70 years, the BMD was relatively higher in males in South China, and it was lower in Central China and Southwest China, and it was intermediate in Northeast, North and East of China, with statistically significant differences. There was no significant differences in BMD in the males in the two age groups of 70 to 79 years and 80 and older among the regions in China. The overall decline rate of spinal BMD in Chinese males under QCT was about 46.92% over the lifetime, and it declined obviouslyin the 40-49 age group. The overall prevalence of osteoporosis in Chinese male population aged 50 years and above was approximately 11.42%, with the highest prevalence in Southwest China and Central China (14.72% and 13.87%, respectively) and the lowest in North China and South China (8.53% and 7.71%, respectively). Conclusions:A reference of lumbar spine BMD values for healthy males in China based on QCT is established. BMD values were highest in South China and Lowest in Central China.

A Monte Carlo model for optical coherence tomography of human skin is proposed. The new model includes importance sampling technique which is designed to suit for the multi-layer human skin, new rules for back scattered photon classification are correspondingly proposed. Based on the new simulation model, we analyzed the focusing of Gaussian beam through skin and the maximum detecting depth of optical coherence tomography. The experimental results show that there exists focus distortion when beam propagates in skin, including focus shift and diffusion. Object lens with greater NA will lower the maximum detecting depth of optical coherence tomography.
Humans ; Models, Theoretical ; Monte Carlo Method ; Photons ; Skin ; Tomography, Optical Coherence

BACKGROUNDWe evaluated the impact of the number of metastatic lymph nodes and the metastatic lymph nodes ratio (the ratio between metastatic lymph nodes and total dissected lymph nodes, MLNR) in patients with gastric adenocarcinoma following curative gastrectomy and also analyzed the relationship between the number of removed lymph nodes and prognosis in node-negative gastric cancer.

METHODSFrom January 2005 to December 2010, 1 390 patients who were diagnosed with gastric adenocarcinoma and underwent curative gastrectomy were included. In particular, lymph node metastasis was not present in 515 patients. The number of metastatic lymph nodes and the metastatic lymph nodes ratio were selected for univariate and multivariate analyses to evaluate their influences on the disease outcome. The survival curve was presented according to the number of removed lymph nodes in node-negative gastric cancer using Kaplan-Meier plots.

RESULTSThe overall 5-year survival rate was 54% in this group. Univariate analysis revealed that age category, macroscopic appearance, histological grade, tumor size, depth of primary tumor invasion, number of metastatic lymph nodes, metastatic lymph nodes ratio, tumor, nodes, metastasis-classification (TNM) stage and status of lymphovascular, and vessel invasion have significant impact on survival. The number of metastatic lymph nodes and the metastatic lymph nodes ratio both have significant impact on survival (P < 0.001). However, in multivariate analyses, only the metastatic lymph nodes ratio was identified to be an independent prognostic factor (P < 0.001). The number of removed lymph nodes in node-negative was a strong prognostic factor of survival, the more lymph nodes dissected, the better the survival.

CONCLUSIONSThe metastatic lymph nodes ratio has more significant prognostic value for survival in patients with gastric cancer following curative gastrectomy than the number of metastatic lymph nodes. The number of removed lymph nodes might be an important prognostic factor for gastric cancer without lymph node metastasis.

Adenocarcinoma ; mortality ; surgery ; Aged ; Female ; Gastrectomy ; Humans ; Lymph Node Excision ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Prognosis ; Stomach Neoplasms ; mortality ; surgery

Objective To explore the effects of family and telephone follow-up on quality of life of the patients with tota1 hip arthroplasty(THA).Methods One hundred and twelve patients with THA were randomly divided into experiment group and control group with 56 cases in each group.The experiment group was treated with rehabilitative instruction by family and telephone follow-up.The control group was treated with outpatient follow-up after leaving the hospital.The living quality in both groups were compared by the medical outcomes study 36-item short-form health survey(SF-36 QOL)one year after leaving the hospital.Results One-year after leaving the hospital,the total score and demension score of experiment group were better than those of the control group.There was significant difference between the control group and in experiment group(P<0.05).Conclusion Family and telephone follow-up is an effective implementation for THA patients to accomplish physiological functional recovery and promote the quality of life.