BACKGROUND:Triptolide,a bioactive component of the traditional Chinese medicine Tripterygium wilfordii,has a certain protective effect on neurons.OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect of triptolide on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.METHODS:(1)Cell experiment:Hippocampal neurons(HT22 cells)were randomly divided into control group,glucose oxygen deprivation/reoxygenation(OGD/R)group,OGD/R+triptolide group,OGD/R+triptolide+si-TIGAR group,OGD/R+si-TIGAR group,and OGD/R+triptolide+rapamycin group.HT22 cell viability was detected by cell counting kit 8.Tp53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis factors,glutathione peroxidase 4,7 members of the solsolic vector family 11,sphingosine kinase 1(SPHK1)and(mTOR)were detected by western blot assay.Glutathione,malondialdehyde and iron level were detected using the biochemical kit.(2)Animal experiment:Rats were randomly divided into sham surgery group,model group,and triptolide group.Cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion rat models were prepared in the latter two groups.Rats in the triptolide group were orally administered 50 mg/kg triptolide for 7 days.Twenty-four hours after administration,LONGA method was used to evaluate the neurological impairment of rats,TTC method was used to observe the conditions of cerebral infarction,TUNEL staining was used to detect cell apoptosis,and western blot was performed to detect the expression level of related proteins.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)At the cellular level,triptolide promoted cell viability and inhibited apoptosis in HT22 cells treated with OGD/R.Triptolide also increased the expression levels of Tp53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis factors,glutathione peroxidase 4,and 7 members of the solsolic vector family 11,activated the SPHK1/mTOR pathway,increased glutathione content,inhibited malondialdehyde content and iron levels.Rapamycin treatment counteracted the protective effect of triptolide on HT22 cells.(2)At the animal level,triptolide significantly reduced neurological deficits,infarct volume,and cell apoptosis,and inhibited neuronal ferroptosis in brain tissue of rats.To conclude,triptolide can inhibit ferroptosis by upregulating the expression level of Tp53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis factors and activating the SPHK1/mTOR signaling,and thereby reduced cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.These findings suggest that triptolide may be a candidate drug for the treatment of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.

BACKGROUND:Triptolide,a bioactive component of the traditional Chinese medicine Tripterygium wilfordii,has a certain protective effect on neurons.OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect of triptolide on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.METHODS:(1)Cell experiment:Hippocampal neurons(HT22 cells)were randomly divided into control group,glucose oxygen deprivation/reoxygenation(OGD/R)group,OGD/R+triptolide group,OGD/R+triptolide+si-TIGAR group,OGD/R+si-TIGAR group,and OGD/R+triptolide+rapamycin group.HT22 cell viability was detected by cell counting kit 8.Tp53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis factors,glutathione peroxidase 4,7 members of the solsolic vector family 11,sphingosine kinase 1(SPHK1)and(mTOR)were detected by western blot assay.Glutathione,malondialdehyde and iron level were detected using the biochemical kit.(2)Animal experiment:Rats were randomly divided into sham surgery group,model group,and triptolide group.Cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion rat models were prepared in the latter two groups.Rats in the triptolide group were orally administered 50 mg/kg triptolide for 7 days.Twenty-four hours after administration,LONGA method was used to evaluate the neurological impairment of rats,TTC method was used to observe the conditions of cerebral infarction,TUNEL staining was used to detect cell apoptosis,and western blot was performed to detect the expression level of related proteins.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)At the cellular level,triptolide promoted cell viability and inhibited apoptosis in HT22 cells treated with OGD/R.Triptolide also increased the expression levels of Tp53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis factors,glutathione peroxidase 4,and 7 members of the solsolic vector family 11,activated the SPHK1/mTOR pathway,increased glutathione content,inhibited malondialdehyde content and iron levels.Rapamycin treatment counteracted the protective effect of triptolide on HT22 cells.(2)At the animal level,triptolide significantly reduced neurological deficits,infarct volume,and cell apoptosis,and inhibited neuronal ferroptosis in brain tissue of rats.To conclude,triptolide can inhibit ferroptosis by upregulating the expression level of Tp53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis factors and activating the SPHK1/mTOR signaling,and thereby reduced cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.These findings suggest that triptolide may be a candidate drug for the treatment of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Objective To analyze the detection significance of platelet to lymphocyte ratio(PLR),lymphocyte to monocyte ratio(LMR),neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio(NLR)and coagulation function indicators in patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction(NSTEMI)and patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction(STEMI).Methods One hundred and eighty-two elderly patients with acute myocardial infarction admitted to department of cardio-vascular medicine of the Third People's Hospital of Bengbu were selected from January 2021 to December 2023,and were divided into NSTEMI group(104 cases)and STEMI group(78 cases)according to electrocardiogram characteristics.Additionally,80 healthy subjects receiving physical examination in the Third People's Hospital of Bengbu were assigned into the control group.The levels of PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and fibrinogen(FIB)were measured after admission.Serum PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB levels were compared among the three groups.The evaluation model based on PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB was constructed by binary logistic regression analysis.ROC curve was adopted to analyze the value of PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB in evaluating NSTEMI patients and STEMI patients.Results The levels of serum PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB in the STEMI group and the NSTEMI group were significantly higher than those in the control group(P＜0.05).The serum PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB were independent influencing factors for STEMI and NSTEMI patients(OR=25.078,95％CI:3.147-199.865;OR=32.852,95％CI:4.398-245.417;OR=28.703,95％CI:3.310-248.867;OR=67.491,95％CI:8.518-534.729;OR=46.759,95％CI:8.219-266.006;OR=2.573,95％CI:1.026-6.451;OR=3.442,95％CI:1.750-6.768,OR=2.971,95％CI:1.799-4.907;OR=68.375,95％CI:12.598-371.103;OR=7.471,95％CI:1.759-31.737,P＜0.05).ROC curve indicated that the area under the curve(AUC),sensitivity and specificity of combination of serum PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB were 0.996,99.04％and 95.00％in evaluating NSTEMI,and were 0.995,94.87％and 97.50％in assessing STEMI,and the efficiency of combined evaluation was better than that of single evaluation(P＜0.05).Conclusions PLR,NLR,LMR,D-dimer and FIB in NSTEMI patients and STEMI patients are significantly increased.The combined determination of various indicators has important reference value in the early diagnosis of NSTEMI and STEMI.

Objective To investigate the association between the variability of remnant cholesterol inflammatory index(RCII),a novel composite biomarker,and the risk of stroke,in order to provide a theoretical basis for stroke prevention.Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted on 38 659 Kailuan individuals who took annual physical examinations in 2006,2008,and 2010.These subjects were grouped based on the quartiles of RCII variability,which was represented by standard deviation(SD)and average real variability(ARV),and were followed up every 2 years,with the occurrence of stroke(including ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes),death,or the end of follow-up on December 31,2022 as the endpoints.Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the cumulative incidence rate of endpoint events across different groups,and log-rank test was used to compare the difference of cumulative incidence of endpoint events in each group.Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression model was adopted to analyze the association between RCII variability and risk of stroke.Results Among the 38 659 participants,a total of 2 539 strokes occurred during a mean follow-up period of 11.22±2.26 years.After adjusting confounding factors,when the participants were grouped by the quartiles of RCII-SD,the hazard ratio(HR)for stroke was 1.034(95%CI:0.917～1.167,P=0.584),1.146(95%CI:1.018～1.290,P=0.025),and 1.209(95%CI:1.066～1.370,P=0.003),respectively in the Q2,Q3,and Q4 groups,when compared with the Q1 group(Ptrend<0.05).When they were grouped by the quartiles of RCII-ARV,the HR for stroke was 1.008(95%CI:0.894～1.136,P=0.901),1.109(95%CI:0.986～1.248,P=0.085),and 1.152(95%CI:1.018～1.303,P=0.025),respectively,in the Q2,Q3,and Q4 groups,when compared with the Q1 group.Furthermore,both sensitivity and stratified analyses yielded similar results.Conclusion RCII variability is significantly associated with stroke,and the risk of stroke is gradually increasing with increment of the variability.Countermeasures Relevant authorities can focus on reducing RCII variability as a central objective by establishing regular monitoring mechanism,strengthening lifestyle interventions,and standardizing dietary,exercise,and weight management in order to suppress the index fluctuations.The principle of stable lipid-lowering in medication and optimization of therapeutic regimens with stable efficacy should be emphasized to prevent the risk of additional vascular damage.

ObjectiveBased on ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry（UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， network pharmacology， molecular docking and cell experiments， the active ingredients， possible targets and molecular mechanisms of Baoxin granules（BXG） regulating ferroptosis in the treatment of heart failure（HF） were explored. MethodsBXG intestinal absorption fluid was prepared by everted gut sac and the chemical composition contained therein were identified by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. According to the obtained components， the potential targets of BXG were predicted， and the HF-related targets and related genes of ferroptosis were retrieved at the same time， and the intersecting targets were obtained by Venn diagram. In addition， the protein-protein interaction（PPI） network and the component-target network were constructed， and the core components and core targets were obtained by topological analysis. Then Gene Ontology（GO） function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analysis were performed on the core targets， and molecular docking validation of the key targets and main components was carried out by AutoDockTools 1.5.7. H9c2 cells were used to establish a oxygen-glucose deprivation model， and the protective effect of BXG on cells was investigated by detecting cell viability， cell survival rate and reactive oxygen species（ROS） level. The protein expression levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3（STAT3）， phosphorylation（p）-STAT3 and glutathione peroxidase 4（GPX4） were detected by Western blot to clarify the regulatory effect of BXG on ferroptosis. ResultsA total of 61 chemical components in BXG intestinal absorption fluid were identified， and network pharmacology obtained 27 potential targets of BXG for the treatment of HF， as well as 139 signaling pathways. BXG may act on core targets such as STAT3， tumor protein p53（TP53）， epidermal growth factor receptor（EGFR）， JUN and prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2（PTGS2） through core components such as glabrolide and limonin， which in turn intervene in lipid and atherosclerosis， phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B（PI3K/Akt）， endocrine resistance and other signaling pathways to exert therapeutic effects on HF. Molecular docking showed that the docking results of multiple groups of targets and compounds were good. In vitro cell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the cell viability and survival rate of the model group were significantly decreased， the level of ROS was significantly increased（P<0.01）， the expression levels of STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 proteins were significantly decreased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the cell viability and survival rate of the BXG group were significantly increased， the ROS level was significantly decreased（P<0.01）， the STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 protein levels were significantly increased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionBXG may inhibit the occurrence of ferroptosis by up-regulating the expression of STAT3 and GPX4， thus exerting a therapeutic effect on HF， and flavonoids may be the key components of this role.

Objective:To investigate the temporal expression of Growth Differentiation Factor-15 (GDF15) in the serum of patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) and explore the clinical significance of GDF15 in protecting cardiomyocytes in ACS.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted on 289 ACS patients admitted to the emergency departments from February to October 2023. Data on gender, age, troponin T (TnT), creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB), GDF15, and B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) within 30 minutes of admission were recorded. Differences in these indicators among different groups were compared. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted to evaluate the diagnostic value of GDF15, TnT, and BNP for ACS. Among the patients, 15 exhibited a temporal expression pattern of GDF15, and their blood samples were re-measured using a GDF15 fluorescent quantitative immunochromatographic assay kit. Fifteen patients without temporal expression were randomly selected as controls, and their samples were also re-measured to exclude detection errors. Fifteen patients with temporal expression were included in the temporal expression group, and 15 without temporal expression were included in the non-temporal expression group. Laboratory indicators such as fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin, triglycerides, creatinine, and uric acid were compared between the groups. Additionally, patient age, gender, body mass index (BMI), coronary angiography results, echocardiography, Gensini score, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), and GRACE risk score were recorded to assess their correlation with GDF15 temporal expression. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 27 software, with continuous data expressed as mean ± standard deviation (Mean ± SD) and compared using t-tests and χ2 tests. Results:The overall trend in ACS patients showed a higher proportion of males than females (73.36% vs. 26.64%). The oldest group was the Unstable Angina (UA) group, with a mean age of (63.98 ± 15.19) years, while the youngest group was the non-ACS chest pain group, with a mean age of (54.29 ± 16.39) years. A higher proportion of patients in the UA, ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), and non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) groups had a history of smoking. The combination of GDF15 and TnT showed high diagnostic value for ACS, with an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.843, consistent with previous studies. Among all ACS patients, 15 exhibited a temporal expression pattern of GDF15, where GDF15 levels peaked at 4 hours, gradually decreased, and peaked again at 24 hours. Patients in the temporal expression group had higher LVEF and left ventricular end-systolic diameter compared to the non-temporal expression group. The Gensini score was lower in the temporal expression group, and the GRACE risk score was significantly lower in the temporal expression group (00.7±14.72) compared to the non-temporal expression group (116.1±23.46), with a statistically significant difference ( P = 0.0115). There were no significant differences in general characteristics (age, gender, BMI) or clinical biochemical indicators (fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin, triglycerides, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, creatinine, uric acid) between the temporal and non-temporal expression groups ( P > 0.05). Conclusions:GDF15 demonstrates significant diagnostic and prognostic predictive value in ACS. Patients with temporally dynamic expression of serum GDF15 exhibit milder myocardial injury and a lower probability of mortality. These findings provide novel therapeutic targets and research directions for further exploring the role of GDF15 in ACS management.

Objective: To investigate the expression of ribosomal protein L26 ( RPL26) in gastric cancer cells (GC) and its effect on cell apoptosis and proliferation . Methods: The expression of RPL26 in GES-1 and GC cell lines was detected by Western blot. GC cell line HGC-27 was used to construct RPL26 overexpression cell line , and GC cell lines HGC-27 and AGS cells were used to construct RPL26 knockdown cell line . The overexpression and knockdown efficiency of RPL26 were detected by Western blot. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) , colony formation assay and Transwell assay were used to detect the effects of the overexpression and knockdown of RPL26 on the pro- liferation and migration of GC cells . Western blot was used to detect the expression of Phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) / protein kinase B (AKT) signaling pathway related factors PI3K , AKT , phosphorylated phosphatidylinosi- tol-3-kinase (p-PI3K) , phosphorylated protein kinase B ( p-AKT) and downstream factors B-Cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) , Bcl-2 associated X protein (Bax) and Cyclin A , G1 /S-specific Cyclin D1(Cyclin D1) , Cyclin-depend- ent kinases (CDK)4 and CDK2 in overexpression and knockdown of RPL26 stably transfected cell lines . Results: Compared with GES-1 , RPL26 was highly expressed in HGC-27 cells ( tHGC-27 = 4. 97 ; P < 0. 01) and elevated in AGS , but the difference was not statistically significant. In HGC-27 and AGS cells , CCK-8 and colony formation assays showed that the proliferation ability of cells decreased after the knockdown of RPL26. Transwell assay showed that the migration ability of cells decreased after the knockdown of RPL26. Western blot showed that Bcl-2 expression was decreased in HGC-27 , AGS cells after the knockdown of RPL26 ( tHGC-27 = 11 . 50 , tAGS = 4. 77 ; P < 0. 001 , P < 0. 01) , and Bax expression increased ( tHGC-27 = 9. 63 , tAGS = 4. 05 ; P < 0. 001 , P < 0. 05) . In HGC-27 cells , the ratios of p-PI3K/PI3K and p-AKT/AKT significantly decreased after the knockdown of RPL26 ( tp-PI3K/PI3K = 3 . 86 , tp-AKT/AKT = 8. 29 ; P < 0. 05 , P < 0. 01) . Cyclin A , Cyclin D1 , CDK4 , CDK2 protein expressions de- creased ( t = 9. 61 , 5 . 10 , 11 . 64 , 7. 81 ; P < 0. 01 or P < 0. 001) , while the overexpression of RPL26 in HGC-27 cells showed the opposite trend . Conclusion The knockdown of RPL26 may arrest the cell cycle in G1 /S phase by inhibiting the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway , thereby inhibiting cell proliferation and promoting apoptosis .

Cross-linking mass spectrometry (XL-MS) technology has become a key tool for identifying protein-protein interactions (PPIs) and revealing the protein structures in living cells, tissues, or organelles. The XL-MS technology has demonstrated remarkable superiority compared with conventional methods for studying PPIs and protein structures. In the past few years, new cross-linker structures have been arising continuously. They have not only broadened the range of cross-linking reactions but also provided additional methods for the enrichment of cross-linking peptides. Moreover, owing to the advancement of computer software and artificial intelligence, cross - linking data search engines and visualization software have also been enhancing the speed and accuracy of cross-linking peptide identification. The evolution of cross-linkers and cross-linking peptide search engines has promoted the application of the XL-MS technology in the research on protein-protein interactions (PPIs) within organelles and even living cells and in the analysis of protein structures.

Objective To analyze the clinical significance of subjective visual vertical (SVV) tests at different head deflection angles in assessing utricle function in patients with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). Methods A total of 61 BPPV patients who were treated at the Hearing Impairment and Vertigo Diagnosis and Treatment Center of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from August 2022 to May 2023 were retrospectively included, and 29 healthy adults were selected as controls. SVV tests were performed on all research subjects at different head deflection angles: upright head (0°), left head 45° (L45°), right head 45° (R45°). The test results between the two groups were compared. Results SVV absolute value at R45° in BPPV group was lower than that in the control group (P＝0.003); there was no significant difference in SVV values at 0° and L45° between the two groups. There was no statistical difference in SVV values at different head deflection angles between the control group and the left BPPV group. SVV absolute value at R45° in right BPPV group was lower than that in the control group (P＜0.001); there was no statistical difference in SVV values at 0° and L45° between the two groups. Conclusions SVV test can provide subjective information about the utricle, and SVV tests at different head deflection angles can fine-tune evaluate the function of the utricle in BPPV patients.

ObjectiveBased on ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry（UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， network pharmacology， molecular docking and cell experiments， the active ingredients， possible targets and molecular mechanisms of Baoxin granules（BXG） regulating ferroptosis in the treatment of heart failure（HF） were explored. MethodsBXG intestinal absorption fluid was prepared by everted gut sac and the chemical composition contained therein were identified by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. According to the obtained components， the potential targets of BXG were predicted， and the HF-related targets and related genes of ferroptosis were retrieved at the same time， and the intersecting targets were obtained by Venn diagram. In addition， the protein-protein interaction（PPI） network and the component-target network were constructed， and the core components and core targets were obtained by topological analysis. Then Gene Ontology（GO） function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） enrichment analysis were performed on the core targets， and molecular docking validation of the key targets and main components was carried out by AutoDockTools 1.5.7. H9c2 cells were used to establish a oxygen-glucose deprivation model， and the protective effect of BXG on cells was investigated by detecting cell viability， cell survival rate and reactive oxygen species（ROS） level. The protein expression levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3（STAT3）， phosphorylation（p）-STAT3 and glutathione peroxidase 4（GPX4） were detected by Western blot to clarify the regulatory effect of BXG on ferroptosis. ResultsA total of 61 chemical components in BXG intestinal absorption fluid were identified， and network pharmacology obtained 27 potential targets of BXG for the treatment of HF， as well as 139 signaling pathways. BXG may act on core targets such as STAT3， tumor protein p53（TP53）， epidermal growth factor receptor（EGFR）， JUN and prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2（PTGS2） through core components such as glabrolide and limonin， which in turn intervene in lipid and atherosclerosis， phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B（PI3K/Akt）， endocrine resistance and other signaling pathways to exert therapeutic effects on HF. Molecular docking showed that the docking results of multiple groups of targets and compounds were good. In vitro cell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the cell viability and survival rate of the model group were significantly decreased， the level of ROS was significantly increased（P<0.01）， the expression levels of STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 proteins were significantly decreased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the cell viability and survival rate of the BXG group were significantly increased， the ROS level was significantly decreased（P<0.01）， the STAT3， p-STAT3， p-STAT3/STAT3 and GPX4 protein levels were significantly increased（P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionBXG may inhibit the occurrence of ferroptosis by up-regulating the expression of STAT3 and GPX4， thus exerting a therapeutic effect on HF， and flavonoids may be the key components of this role.