OBJECTIVE: To observe the effects of electroacupuncture at the pterygopalatine region on nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3)-mediated pyroptosis and inflammatory factors in rats with allergic rhinitis (AR). METHODS: Twenty-four SD rats were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group, an acupuncture group and an electroacupuncture group, 6 rats in each group. Except for the blank group, OVA-induced AR model was established in the remaining groups. In the electroacupuncture group, the rats were treated with electroacupuncture at the bilateral pterygopalatine region, with disperse-dense wave, in frequency of 2 Hz/100 Hz and current of 0.5-1 mA, 15 min each time, once every other day, for 3 times. In the acupuncture group, the rats were treated with acupuncture at bilateral pterygopalatine region simply, without electrical stimulation. The rhinitis symptom score was observed, the pathomorphology of the nasal mucosa was observed by HE staining; the serum levels of OVA-specific immunoglobulin E (OVA-sIgE), interleukin (IL)-4, IL-6 and IL-1β were detected by ELISA; the mRNA expression of NLRP3, apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing CARD (ASC), cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-1 (caspase-1) and IL-18 in the nasal mucosa was detected by real-time PCR; the protein expression of NLRP3, ASC, caspase-1 and IL-18 in the nasal mucosa was detected by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with the blank group, in the model group, the rhinitis symptom score was increased (P<0.01), the serum levels of OVA-sIgE, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-1β were increased (P<0.05), the nasal mucosa showed pathomorphology of inflammatory infiltration; the mRNA and protein expression of NLRP3, ASC, caspase-1 and IL-18 in the nasal mucosa was increased (P<0.05). Compared with the model group, in the electroacupuncture group, the rhinitis symptom score was reduced (P<0.01), the pathology of the nasal mucosa was improved; the serum levels of OVA-sIgE, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-1β were decreased (P<0.05); the mRNA and protein expression of NLRP3, ASC, caspase-1 and IL-18 in the nasal mucosa was decreased (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Electroacupuncture at the pterygopalatine region can exerting the anti-inflammatory effect by inhibiting NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis and inflammatory factor imbalance, thus alleviate rhinitis symptoms in AR rats.
Animals ; Electroacupuncture ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/immunology* ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rhinitis, Allergic/physiopathology* ; Pyroptosis ; Male ; Acupuncture Points ; Humans ; Female ; Interleukin-1beta/genetics* ; Interleukin-18/immunology* ; Interleukin-6/genetics* ; Caspase 1/immunology*

Objective To compare the laboratory indicators of bronchopneumoniaand lobar pneumonia caused by Mycoplasma pneumoniae(MP)in children,and to explore the risk factors of lobar pneumonia in children.Methods A total of 424 children diagnosed with pneumonia caused by MP infection,admitted to the Second Hospital of Weihai,Qingdao University(Weihai Maternal and Child Health Hospital)from July to October 2023 were selected as subjects.Based on chest X-ray findings at admission,the childron were divided into bronchopneumonia group(n=178)and lobar pneumonia group(n=246).Age,hospitalization duration,laboratory parameters,and clinical characteristics were compared between two groups.Results The age and hospitalization duration of children with lobar pneumonia group were significantly higher than those in bronchopneumonia group(P＜0.05).The lactic acid dehydrogenase(LDH),adenosine deaminase(ADA),C-reactive protein(CRP),erythrocyte sedimentation rate(ESR),and D-dimer levels in lobar pneumonia group were markedly elevated compared to bronchopneumonia group(P＜0.05).Rates of mixed infections,pleural effusion,concurrent organ damage,infection with multidrug-resistant MP,and bronchoscopy procedures were higher in lobar pneumonia group than those in bronchopneumonia group(P＜0.05).Elevated LDH,ADA,CRP,ESR,D-dimer levels and older children were identified as risk factors for developing lobar pneumonia following MP infection.LDH,ADA,CRP,ESR,D-dimer demonstrated predictive value for lobar pneumonia development,with their area under the curve(AUC)values were 0.612,0.704,0.659,0.645,and 0.679 respectively.When combined for prediction,the AUC was 0.793.Conclusion There are significant differences in various laboratory indicators between bronchopneumonia and lobar pneumonia caused by MP,and comprehensive analysis of multiple indicators is helpful for differential diagnosis of two types of pneumonia.

Objective:To explore the gaze characteristics towards emotional portraits in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD),in order to reveal their potential unique patterns of emotional cognition.Methods:A case-control design was employed,including 81 children diagnosed with the DSM-5 ADHD and 57 normal control(NC)children.Emotional images from the Chinese Children's Emotional Image Library were used as stimuli.The Tobii Pro X3-120 eye-tracking device was utilized to record fixation count(FC)and fixation duration percentage(FDP)under a free-viewing paradigm.Mixed-effects ANOVA was applied to explore the effects of group,gaze region(eyes and mouth),and emotional attributes on gaze characteristics,controlling for gen-der and age.Results:The FC and FDP of ADHD children were lower than those of NC children,particularly in the eye region of non-negative emotional images(P＜0.05).However,no significant differences were observed be-tween the two groups when viewing negative emotional images(sadness and anger)(P＞0.05).NC children ex-hibited a significant emotional bias effect in their gaze behavior towards emotional portraits(P＜0.05),whereas ADHD group showed only slight differences between non-negative emotional images(adjusted P＜0.05),indica-ting a weaker overall emotional attention bias.Conclusion:Children with ADHD display reduced attention to non-negative emotional expressions and a diminished emotional attention bias,suggesting potential deficits in emotional processing during face perception.

Objective:To explore the gaze characteristics towards emotional portraits in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD),in order to reveal their potential unique patterns of emotional cognition.Methods:A case-control design was employed,including 81 children diagnosed with the DSM-5 ADHD and 57 normal control(NC)children.Emotional images from the Chinese Children's Emotional Image Library were used as stimuli.The Tobii Pro X3-120 eye-tracking device was utilized to record fixation count(FC)and fixation duration percentage(FDP)under a free-viewing paradigm.Mixed-effects ANOVA was applied to explore the effects of group,gaze region(eyes and mouth),and emotional attributes on gaze characteristics,controlling for gen-der and age.Results:The FC and FDP of ADHD children were lower than those of NC children,particularly in the eye region of non-negative emotional images(P＜0.05).However,no significant differences were observed be-tween the two groups when viewing negative emotional images(sadness and anger)(P＞0.05).NC children ex-hibited a significant emotional bias effect in their gaze behavior towards emotional portraits(P＜0.05),whereas ADHD group showed only slight differences between non-negative emotional images(adjusted P＜0.05),indica-ting a weaker overall emotional attention bias.Conclusion:Children with ADHD display reduced attention to non-negative emotional expressions and a diminished emotional attention bias,suggesting potential deficits in emotional processing during face perception.

Objective To compare the laboratory indicators of bronchopneumoniaand lobar pneumonia caused by Mycoplasma pneumoniae(MP)in children,and to explore the risk factors of lobar pneumonia in children.Methods A total of 424 children diagnosed with pneumonia caused by MP infection,admitted to the Second Hospital of Weihai,Qingdao University(Weihai Maternal and Child Health Hospital)from July to October 2023 were selected as subjects.Based on chest X-ray findings at admission,the childron were divided into bronchopneumonia group(n=178)and lobar pneumonia group(n=246).Age,hospitalization duration,laboratory parameters,and clinical characteristics were compared between two groups.Results The age and hospitalization duration of children with lobar pneumonia group were significantly higher than those in bronchopneumonia group(P＜0.05).The lactic acid dehydrogenase(LDH),adenosine deaminase(ADA),C-reactive protein(CRP),erythrocyte sedimentation rate(ESR),and D-dimer levels in lobar pneumonia group were markedly elevated compared to bronchopneumonia group(P＜0.05).Rates of mixed infections,pleural effusion,concurrent organ damage,infection with multidrug-resistant MP,and bronchoscopy procedures were higher in lobar pneumonia group than those in bronchopneumonia group(P＜0.05).Elevated LDH,ADA,CRP,ESR,D-dimer levels and older children were identified as risk factors for developing lobar pneumonia following MP infection.LDH,ADA,CRP,ESR,D-dimer demonstrated predictive value for lobar pneumonia development,with their area under the curve(AUC)values were 0.612,0.704,0.659,0.645,and 0.679 respectively.When combined for prediction,the AUC was 0.793.Conclusion There are significant differences in various laboratory indicators between bronchopneumonia and lobar pneumonia caused by MP,and comprehensive analysis of multiple indicators is helpful for differential diagnosis of two types of pneumonia.

Objective:To develop a recombinase-aided amplification (RAA)-clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)/Cas12a-based nucleic acid assay for monkeypox virus with high specificity and sensitivity.Methods:RAA primers and CRISPR RNA (crRNA) were designed based on the known conserved regions of the monkeypox virus gene and synthesized, and specific crRNAs were screened using fluorescence detection. The sensitivity and specificity of the detection system were evaluated.Results:An RAA-CRISPR/Cas12a-based nucleic acid assay for monkeypox virus was developed with a sensitivity of 2.5 copies/reaction and high specificity without cross-reactivity with ectromelia virus and vaccinia virus.Conclusions:An RAA-CRISPR/Cas12a-based nucleic acid assay for monkeypox virus was established, which would provide a powerful tool for efficient, rapid and specific detection of monkeypox virus.

Dental hard tissues lack the ability to self-heal. In dentin and cementum, hydroxyapatite (HA) can exist outside and/or inside collagen fibers. It is difficult to repair or regenerate HA with a highly ordered orientation in the presence of collagen fibers. At present, the biomimetic mineralization of dentin and cementum, mainly carried out by imitating its biological formation process and its physiological structure, can be divided into those originating from the fiber mineralization mechanism and those with HA as the main component. The materials used include natural materials such as demineralized dentin matrix (DDM) and calcined bovine hydroxyapatite (BHA), and synthetic materials such as polymer-induced liquid precursor (PILP) and synthetic HA. In the future, natural materials and synthetic materials should be combined for the restoration and regeneration of dentin and cementum by means of biomimetic mineralization of calcium phosphate released by remineralization solution-HA.

Objective:To explore the application effect of five-in-one anti-cancer support model in patients with breast neoplasms.Methods:A total of 70 patients who were admitted to the Fourth Ward of Department of Breast Surgery in Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital from May to September 2019 were selected as research objects by using the convenient sampling method. According to the random number table method, they were randomly divided into the study group and the control group, with 35 cases in each group.The control group was given routine nursing, while the study group was given five-in-one anti-cancer support model nursing. The depression, anxiety, social isolation, social support and quality of life scores of patients of the two groups were evaluated before and after the intervention.Results:After intervention, the depression scores of patients in the study group were lower than those in the control group. The total score of quality of life, score of social and family status and score of functional status in the study group were lower than those in the control group. The differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05) . Conclusions:The five-in-one anti-cancer support model is adopted to design body, mind, spirit, and social relaxation courses that meet the characteristics of breast cancer patients to meet their psychological and social needs, which has certain clinical significance.

Objective To investigate the correlation between chronic hepatic diseases and small intestinal inflammation.Methods Patients who received capsule endoscopy in The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Pharmaceutical University were divided into groups of liver cirrhosis,non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD),chronic hepatitis and non-hepatic disease according to clinic data from August 2011 to August 2015.The severity of small intestinal mucosal inflammation was graded according to Lewis Scoring system and incidence of small intestinal lesions in different groups and Lewis scores were compared.The liver function was also graded with liver noninvasive scoring systems.Then the correlation between liver function damage and small intestinal lesions was investigated.Results A total of 338 cases were enrolled in the study,including 25 cases of liver cirrhosis,47 cases of NAFLD,20 cases of chronic hepaitis and 246 cases of non-hepatic disease.There were 22 (88.0％),36 (76.6％),12 (60.0％) and 78 (31.7％) cases with lesions in small intestine in the four group respectively with significant differences(P＜0.001).Rate of small intestinal villi edema was significantly higher in liver cirrhosis group,NAFLD group,chronic hepatitis group than that in non-hepatic disease group(all P＜0.017).Small intestinal villi edema was found mainly in the upper and one third of middle parts in small intestine (P =0.033).Lewis scores of liver cirrhosis group (190.80±228.42)and NAFLD group(125.38± 191.31) were higher than those of non-hepatic disease group (42.91±97.69,P=0.021,P =0.034).Forns score,FIB-4 score,NAFLD-FS score and Child-Pugh score were positively correlated with Lewis score (correlation coefficient:0.247,0.244,0.223,0.284respectively,all P＜0.001).Conclusion Chronic hepatic diseases such as liver cirrhosis,NAFLD,chronic hepatitis might be risk factors for small intestinal mucosal inflammation,and the severity of chronic hepatic diseases may be positively correlated with that of small intestinal mucosal lesions.

Objective To test and eva1uate the abi1ity of three potential chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) barcoding sequences;To find new methods to identify the species of gardenia. Methods Three cpDNA sequences were amplified and sequenced by universal primers of matK, rbcL and psbA. By comparing PCR amplification efficiency, length, intra-and inter-specific divergence, and barcoding gap, BLAST and DNA MAN were used to evaluate these loci. Results The amplification efficiency of 5 samples from 3 gardenia species was 100%. Analysis of the intra-and inter-specific divergence of matK among the sequences showed that barcoding gap was superior to psbA and rbcL, with higher identification efficiency. Conclusion Gardenia jasminoides Ellis can be better identified by matK sequence.