Background: Aristolochic acid II (AAII), a major nephrotoxic and carcinogenic component of aristolochic acids (AAs), has been less studied compared with its well-characterized analog, aristolochic acid I (AAI). Although AAs are known to induce carcinogenesis via DNA adduct formation, the toxicity mechanisms, environmental prevalence, and long-term health impacts of AAII remain poorly understood. Objective: This study aimed to systematically evaluate AAII’s acute and chronic toxicity, carcinogenic mechanisms, and environmental exposure patterns using integrated murine models and phytochemical analyses to clarify its toxicological profile and associated health risks. Methods: C57BL/6J mice were used in the following experiments: (1) determination of AAII content in 3 commonly used Aristolochia medicinal materials via liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry; (2) acute toxicity testing with single doses of 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg; and (3) chronic exposure with 1 or 10 mg/kg administered every other day for 24 weeks, followed by 21 to 40 weeks of postexposure monitoring. Histopathological examination, whole-exome sequencing, biochemical assays, and micronucleus tests were performed to assess multi-organ damage, tumorigenesis, genomic mutation signatures, and direct clastogenicity. Phytochemical analyses were used to evaluate environmental distribution. Results: (1) A single 40 mg/kg dose of AAII induced dose-dependent renal tubular degeneration without hepatotoxicity; (2) the 10 mg/kg group showed significant mortality (20%), tumor incidence (33.3%, primarily forestomach and bladder transitional cell carcinomas), persistent renal interstitial fibrosis, and subclinical hepatic injury. Chronic exposure to 1 mg/kg still induced 13.3% mortality and 15.5% tumor incidence over a 64-week period; (3) whole-exome sequencing revealed a predominance of C>T mutations and pathway enrichment in chemical carcinogenesis and cytochrome P450-mediated metabolism, indicating reactive metabolite-driven mechanisms distinct from classical AA-DNA adducts; and (4) no histopathological changes were observed in nontarget organs (brain, heart, and testes), and micronucleus assays confirmed the absence of direct clastogenicity. Conclusion: This study highlights the delayed carcinogenic risks of low-dose chronic AAII exposure and emphasizes the need to update regulatory frameworks to ensure the safe use of aristolochiaceae-containing herbal products.

BACKGROUND:Both calorie restriction and time-restricted feeding,as two common dietary patterns,have been shown to improve health by regulating metabolism.However,the difference between these dietary patterns,metabolic indices,as well as the gut microbiota still requires further attention.OBJECTIVE:To explore the differences of calorie restriction and time-restricted feeding on the metabolic indices and gut microbiota of mice.METHODS:The C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into three groups of ad libitum,calorie restriction,and time-restricted feeding(n=6 per group)for 28 weeks of dietary intervention.Various parameters such as body weight,food intake,glucose tolerance,serum fasting insulin,Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance,and leptin were measured.The impact of different interventions on the gut microbiota structure in mice was explored using 16S rRNA sequence analysis.Key operational taxonomic units responsive to dietary interventions were identified through LEfSe analysis.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Compared with the ad libitum group,the body weight,food intake,area under the glucose tolerance curve of the calorie restriction and time-restricted feeding groups were decreased(P＜0.01),and the serum leptin was decreased(P＜0.05).The fasting insulin level and serum leptin level of the calorie restriction group were decreased(P＜0.05)and were significantly lower than those of the time-restricted feeding group(P＜0.05);homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance decreased in the calorie restriction group(P＜0.01).(2)Compared with the ad libitum group,the αdiversity of gut microbiota in the calorie restriction group and the time-restricted feeding group was decreased(P＜0.05),but the diversity of the time-restricted feeding group was slightly lower than that in the calorie restriction group.(3)There were 15 key operational taxonomic units related to calorie restriction and the time-restricted feeding intervention,of which 8 were positively correlated with metabolic phenotypes and their abundance decreased,and 3 were negatively correlated with metabolic phenotypes and their abundance increased(P＜0.05).OTU819 Lachnospiraceae_UCG-006 was positively correlated with body weight,area under the glucose tolerance curve,homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance,and fasting insulin,while OTU1397 Muribaculaceae was negatively correlated with these indicators.The results show that both calorie restriction and the time-restricted feeding intervention can improve the weight and glucose metabolism of mice,and both intervention modes caused the remodeling of the gut microbiota,which helped to improve the metabolic disorders.

BACKGROUND:Both calorie restriction and time-restricted feeding,as two common dietary patterns,have been shown to improve health by regulating metabolism.However,the difference between these dietary patterns,metabolic indices,as well as the gut microbiota still requires further attention.OBJECTIVE:To explore the differences of calorie restriction and time-restricted feeding on the metabolic indices and gut microbiota of mice.METHODS:The C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into three groups of ad libitum,calorie restriction,and time-restricted feeding(n=6 per group)for 28 weeks of dietary intervention.Various parameters such as body weight,food intake,glucose tolerance,serum fasting insulin,Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance,and leptin were measured.The impact of different interventions on the gut microbiota structure in mice was explored using 16S rRNA sequence analysis.Key operational taxonomic units responsive to dietary interventions were identified through LEfSe analysis.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Compared with the ad libitum group,the body weight,food intake,area under the glucose tolerance curve of the calorie restriction and time-restricted feeding groups were decreased(P＜0.01),and the serum leptin was decreased(P＜0.05).The fasting insulin level and serum leptin level of the calorie restriction group were decreased(P＜0.05)and were significantly lower than those of the time-restricted feeding group(P＜0.05);homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance decreased in the calorie restriction group(P＜0.01).(2)Compared with the ad libitum group,the αdiversity of gut microbiota in the calorie restriction group and the time-restricted feeding group was decreased(P＜0.05),but the diversity of the time-restricted feeding group was slightly lower than that in the calorie restriction group.(3)There were 15 key operational taxonomic units related to calorie restriction and the time-restricted feeding intervention,of which 8 were positively correlated with metabolic phenotypes and their abundance decreased,and 3 were negatively correlated with metabolic phenotypes and their abundance increased(P＜0.05).OTU819 Lachnospiraceae_UCG-006 was positively correlated with body weight,area under the glucose tolerance curve,homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance,and fasting insulin,while OTU1397 Muribaculaceae was negatively correlated with these indicators.The results show that both calorie restriction and the time-restricted feeding intervention can improve the weight and glucose metabolism of mice,and both intervention modes caused the remodeling of the gut microbiota,which helped to improve the metabolic disorders.

BACKGROUND:In recent years,the incidence of hyperuricemia caused by purine metabolism disorders has been increasing,which can induce inflammatory responses and lead to renal injury. OBJECTIVE:To explore the role and mechanism of solute carrier family 2 member 12(SLC2A12)in hyperuricemia-related renal injury. METHODS:Renal tubular cells(HK2 cells)were divided into five groups:HK2 group,HK2+uric acid group,HK2+uric acid+NC group,HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group,and HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12+MK-2206 group.HK2 cells were treated with uric acid and transfected with siRNA SLC2A12,followed by MK-2206 treatment to inhibit AKT expression.Cell proliferation was detected by CCK-8 assay.Apoptosis was detected by TUNEL assay.qRT-PCR and western blot assay were used to detect fibrogenic factors as well as activation of the AKT/FOXO3a pathway.The concentrations of inflammatory cytokines were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Uric acid treatment inhibited cell proliferation and promoted cell apoptosis in the HK2+uric acid group compared with the HK2 group.The proliferative ability of cells in the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group was further decreased and apoptotic cells were further increased compared with the HK2 group.Compared with the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group,the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12+MK-2206 group showed an increase in cell proliferation and a decrease in apoptotic cells.(2)Compared with the HK2 group,the connective tissue growth factor(CTGF),α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA)and transforming growth factor beta(TGF-β)expressions increased in the HK2+uric acid group;CTGF,α-SMA and TGF-β expression further increased in the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group.Compared with the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group,the CTGF,α-SMA and TGF-β expressions decreased.(3)Compared with the HK2 group,the expression of p-AKT,FOXO3a,and p-FOXO3a elevated in the HK2+uric acid group;the expression of p-AKT further increased,while the expression of FOXO3a and p-FOXO3a decreased in the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group.Compared with the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group,p-AKT expression decreased;FOXO3a and p-FOXO3a expression increased in the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12+MK-2206 group.(4)Compared with the HK2 group,interleukin-6,interleukin-1 β,and tumor necrosis factor α levels increased in the HK2+uric acid group;interleukin-6,interleukin-1 β,and tumor necrosis factor α levels further increased in the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group.Compared with the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12 group,interleukin-6,interleukin-1 β,and tumor necrosis factor α levels diminished in the HK2+uric acid+siSLC2A12+MK-2206 group.(5)These findings indicate that SLC2A12 may protect against hyperuricemia-induced renal injury by counteracting uric acid-induced tubular fibrosis and inflammation through activation of the FOXO3a pathway.

The aim of this study is to establish a simple and accurate method for vaccine immune e-valuation of porcine pseudorabies virus.In this research,PRV-gD recombinant protein was ex-pressed from mammalian cell HEK-293F as coating antigen,and then the reaction conditions of gD-iELISA were optimized according to checkerboard titration method.The gD-iELISA was used to detect the antibody levels of 211 clinical pig serum samples and the consistency with the neu-tralizing antibody levels wasanalyzed.The results showed that the antigen coating concentration was 0.90 mg/L;the serum to be detected was diluted 1∶100 and incubated at 37 ℃ for 30 min;goat anti-pig IgG-HRP antibody was diluted 1∶55 000 and incubated at 37 ℃ for 30 min;TMB sub-strate was developed at 37 ℃ for 20 min.The method could detect 1∶6 400 diluted PRV positive serum.The results of CSFV,PRRSV,PCV-2,PEDV and FMDV positive sera were all negative by gD-iELISA,and there was no cross-reaction between the method and the above positive sera.The coincidence rate of gD-iELISA and commercial kits was 95.26％,and the intra-and inter-batch co-efficients of variation were both less than 10％.Correlation analysis showed that the correlation coefficient(r)between gD antibody level and neutralizing antibody level was significantly greater than that of gB antibody level,and the gD antibody level had a good linear relationship with the neutralizing antibody level.The results indicated that gD-iELISA was more suitable for vaccine im-mune evaluation of PRV than gB-iELISA.Therefore,the method will have a good prospect of ap-plication in the immunization control of the PRV.

Objective:To develop an imaging-assisted diagnostic tool for schizophrenia based on multimodal magnetic resonance imaging and artificial intelligence techniques.Methods:Three independent datasets were utilized. For each subject, four brain structural metrics including grey matter volume (GMV), white matter volume (WMV), cortical thickness (CT) and deformation-based morphometry (DBM) indicators were extracted from the structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI) data, and three brain functional metrics including amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (ALFF), regional homogeneity (ReHo) and functional connectivity (FC) were extracted from the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. To distinguish patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls, single-metric classification models and multi-metrics-fusion classification models were trained and tested using a within-dataset and a between-dataset cross-validation strategy.Results:The results of within-dataset cross-validation showed that the highest accuracy of the single-metric classifications for schizophrenia diagnosis was 86.18% (FC), while the multi-metric-fusion classifications could reach an accuracy of 90.21%. The results of between-datasets cross-validation showed that the highest accuracy of the single-metric classifications for schizophrenia diagnosis was 69.02% (ReHo), while the multi-metric-fusion classifications could reach an accuracy of 71.25%.Conclusion:The functional metrics generally outperforms the structural metrics for the classification between patients with schizophrenia and heathy controls. Additionally, fusion of multi-modal brain imaging metrics can improve the classification performance. Specifically, the fusion of CT, DBM, WMV, FC and ReHo demonstrates the highest classification accuracy, which is a potential tool for imaging-assisted diagnosis of schizophrenia.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a new combination treatment of vinorelbine and pyrotinib in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)–positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC) and provide higher level evidence for clinical practice. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective, single-arm, phase 2 trial conducted at three institutions in China. Patients with HER2-positive MBC, who had previously been treated with trastuzumab plus a taxane or trastuzumab plus pertuzumab combined with a chemotherapeutic agent, were enrolled between March 2020 and December 2021. All patients received pyrotinib 400 mg orally once daily plus vinorelbine 25 mg/m2 intravenously or 60-80 mg/m2 orally on day 1 and day 8 of 21-day cycle. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS), and the secondary endpoints included the objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), overall survival, and safety. Results: A total of 39 patients were enrolled. All patients had been pretreated with trastuzumab and 23.1% (n=9) of them had accepted trastuzumab plus pertuzumab. The median follow-up time was 16.3 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.3 to 27.2), and the median PFS was 6.4 months (95% CI, 4.0 to 8.8). The ORR was 43.6% (95% CI, 27.8% to 60.4%) and the DCR was 84.6% (95% CI, 69.5% to 94.1%). The median PFS of patients with versus without prior pertuzumab treatment was 4.6 and 8.3 months (p=0.017). The most common grade 3/4 adverse events were diarrhea (28.2%), neutrophil count decreased (15.4%), white blood cell count decreased (7.7%), vomiting (5.1%), and anemia (2.6%). Conclusion Pyrotinib plus vinorelbine showed promising efficacy and tolerable toxicity as second-line treatment in patients with HER2-positive MBC.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between serum Neuropilin 1 (NRP1) level and postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis.Methods:From Mar. 2019 to Mar. 2021, 80 patients with adenomyosis admitted to our hospital were regarded as the test group; 80 healthy women who came to our hospital for physical examination were as the reference group. Patients with adenomyosis were followed up for 24 months after surgery and were separated into a non recurrence group (62 cases) and recurrence group (18 cases) based on whether there was recurrence after surgery. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was applied to detect NRP1 level in the serum of the study subjects. Spearman method was applied to analyze the correlation between serum NRP1 level and visual analogue dysmenorrhea score (VAS) and menstrual blood loss (PBAC) scores in patients with adenomyosis. Multivariate Logistic regression was applied to analyze the influencing factors of postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of serum NRP1 level for postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis.Results:Compared with the reference group, the serum NRP1 level of patients with adenomyosis in the test group was obviously increased ( P<0.05). Compared with the non recurrence group, the recurrence group showed a obvious increase in serum NRP1 level, uterine volume, dysmenorrhea VAS score, and PBAC score ( P<0.05). Spearman’s method showed a positive correlation between serum NRP1 level and dysmenorrhea VAS score in patients with adenomyosis ( r=0.604, P<0.001) ; the serum NRP1 level in patients with adenomyosis was positively correlated with PBAC score ( r=0.586, P<0.001) ; the serum NRP1 level in patients with adenomyosis was positively correlated with uterine volume ( r=0.527, P<0.001). The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that serum NRP1 level, uterine volume, dysmenorrhea VAS score, and PBAC score were risk factors for postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis ( P<0.05). The ROC curve showed that the AUC of serum NRP1 level in predicting postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis was 0.903, which had certain clinical value. Conclusion:The serum NRP1 level in patients with adenomyosis obviously increases, which is closely related to postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between serum Neuropilin 1 (NRP1) level and postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis.Methods:From Mar. 2019 to Mar. 2021, 80 patients with adenomyosis admitted to our hospital were regarded as the test group; 80 healthy women who came to our hospital for physical examination were as the reference group. Patients with adenomyosis were followed up for 24 months after surgery and were separated into a non recurrence group (62 cases) and recurrence group (18 cases) based on whether there was recurrence after surgery. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was applied to detect NRP1 level in the serum of the study subjects. Spearman method was applied to analyze the correlation between serum NRP1 level and visual analogue dysmenorrhea score (VAS) and menstrual blood loss (PBAC) scores in patients with adenomyosis. Multivariate Logistic regression was applied to analyze the influencing factors of postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of serum NRP1 level for postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis.Results:Compared with the reference group, the serum NRP1 level of patients with adenomyosis in the test group was obviously increased ( P<0.05). Compared with the non recurrence group, the recurrence group showed a obvious increase in serum NRP1 level, uterine volume, dysmenorrhea VAS score, and PBAC score ( P<0.05). Spearman’s method showed a positive correlation between serum NRP1 level and dysmenorrhea VAS score in patients with adenomyosis ( r=0.604, P<0.001) ; the serum NRP1 level in patients with adenomyosis was positively correlated with PBAC score ( r=0.586, P<0.001) ; the serum NRP1 level in patients with adenomyosis was positively correlated with uterine volume ( r=0.527, P<0.001). The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that serum NRP1 level, uterine volume, dysmenorrhea VAS score, and PBAC score were risk factors for postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis ( P<0.05). The ROC curve showed that the AUC of serum NRP1 level in predicting postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis was 0.903, which had certain clinical value. Conclusion:The serum NRP1 level in patients with adenomyosis obviously increases, which is closely related to postoperative recurrence in patients with adenomyosis.

Asari Radix et Rhizoma （AR） is a traditional Chinese medicine with a history of more than 2 000 years of medication and has been included in ancient herbal works in the past dynasties. It is effective in releasing the exterior， dispersing cold， dispelling wind， relieving pain， opening orifices， warming the lung， and resolving fluids， and is still widely used in the clinical treatment of influenza， coronavirus disease-2019 （COVID-19） pneumonia， asthma， allergic rhinitis， eye pain， headache， toothache， oral ulcer， eczema， etc. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that AR has antipyretic， anti-inflammatory， analgesic， antibacterial， antiviral， relieving cough and asthma， anti-allergy， and other effects. AR contains a variety of chemical components， in which essential oil is not only associated with functions such as dispelling cold， relieving heat， relieving pain， and resisting inflammation and allergy， but is also toxic. AR also contains lignans， flavonoids， amides， phenanthrenes， alkaloids， and other non-volatile oil components， which play an important role in immunity regulation， anti-inflammation， pain relief， heart strengthening， and blood vessel expansion. The phenanthrene compounds are mainly aristolochic acid analogues， such as aristolochic acid Ⅳ_a and aristolochic lactam Ⅰ. Aristolochic acid Ⅳ_a has been proven to have a significant anti-inflammatory effect. The toxicity of AR is related to safrole， aristolochic acids and their analogues， and is also affected by many factors， such as preparation method， dosage， origin， collection time， medicinal part， and decocting time， which should be comprehensively considered in clinical application. Based on the relevant literature in China and abroad， the present study reviewed the correlation of chemical composition and pharmacological and toxicological effects of AR， and the safety of AR， aristolochic acid， safrole， and other components to provide a new perspective for an objective understanding of AR safety， as well as references for rational clinical application， production risk prevention and control， and drug scientific supervision of AR.