Objective: To understand the hydration status and related factors of rural boarding primary school students, so as to provide a scientific basis for drinking water health intervention for primary school students. Methods: In November 2023, a convenience sampling approach was employed to conduct a hydration status survey among 144 boarding students in grades 5 and 6 of a rural primary school in Guangxi. The Duplicate meal method and weighing method were utilized to measure the food derived water intake over three consecutive days. Urine osmolarity of students was measured on site for three days, and a simple physical examination was also carried out. A self administered questionnaire was used to investigate students drinking water literacy, daily water intake, and physical activity levels. Meanwhile, a drinking water literacy survey was conducted among 21 substitute teachers and 144 parents of the boarding students in grades 5 and 6. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with students hydration status. Results: The median daily total water intake of students was 2 043.55 mL, and 54.86% of the students did not reach the recommended Adequate Intake (AI). The median food derived water intake was 1 149.24 mL, accounting for 53.94% of the total water intake. Univariate analysis revealed that the daily drinking frequency, daily water intake, and food derived water intake of students were related factors of hydration status ( β =-1.60, -1.01, -0.00, all P <0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that primary school students with a daily drinking frequency of ≥7 times were more likely to maintain an adequate hydration status ( OR =0.28, 95% CI =0.09-0.93, P ＜0.05). Conclusions The water intake from food is the main source of water in the body for boarding primary school students in a certain rural school in Guangxi. Primary school students should increase their water intake frequency appropriately to maintain an adequate hydration status.

The Guidelines for Establishing Animal Models of Rheumatoid Arthritis with Cold-dampness Obstruction Syndrome and Dampness-heat Obstruction Syndrome （hereinafter referred to as the Guidelines） （No. T/CACM1567-2024） was published by Chinese Association of Chinese Medicine on January 11， 2024. To assist researchers and medical workers in understanding and applying the Guidelines more accurately， and also to provide reference and assistance for the establishment of guidelines on other types of diseases and syndromes combined with animal models， this paper made a declaration of the workflow， technological links， development references， promotion of its application and after-effect evaluation of the Guidelines that has been made according to the requirements of "Draft Group Standard of the Standardization Office of the Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine".

ObjectiveTo investigate the characteristics of mitochondrial translational initiation factor 2 （MTIF2） gene methylation and its association with the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. MethodsMethSurv and EWAS Data Hub were used to perform the standardized analysis and the cluster analysis of MTIF2 methylation samples， including survival curve analysis， methylation signature analysis， the association of tumor signaling pathways， and a comparative analysis based on pan-cancer database. The independent-samples t test was used for comparison between two groups； a one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison between multiple groups， and the least significant difference t-test was used for further comparison between two groups. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to perform the univariate and multivariate survival analyses of methylation level at the CpG site. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to investigate the survival differences between the patients with low methylation level and those with high methylation level， and the Log-likelihood ratio method was used for survival difference analysis. ResultsGlobal clustering of MTIF2 methylation showed that there was no significant difference in MTIF2 gene methylation level between different races， ethnicities， BMI levels， and ages. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that the patients with N-Shore hypermethylation of the MTIF2 gene had a significantly better prognosis than those with hypomethylation （hazard ratio ［HR］=0.492， P<0.001）， while there was no significant difference in survival rate between the patients with different CpG island and S-Shore methylation levels （P>0.05）. The methylation profile of the MTIF2 gene based on different ages， sexes， BMI levels， races， ethnicities， and clinical stages showed that the N-Shore and CpG island methylation levels of the MTIF2 gene decreased with the increase in age， and the Caucasian population had significantly lower N-Shore methylation levels of the MTIF2 gene than the Asian population （P<0.05）； the patients with clinical stage Ⅳ had significantly lower N-Shore and CpG island methylation levels of the MTIF2 gene than those with stage Ⅰ/Ⅱ （P<0.05）. Clinical validation showed that the patients with stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ HCC had a significantly lower methylation level of the MTIF2 gene than those with stage Ⅰ/Ⅱ HCC and the normal population （P<0.05）. ConclusionN-Shore hypomethylation of the MTIF2 gene is a risk factor for the development and progression of HCC.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by synovial inflammation, joint destruction, and functional impairment. Angiogenesis plays a key role in the pathological progression of RA with dysfunction of endothelial cells to promote synovial inflammation, sustain pannus formation, subsequently leading to joint damage. Colquhounia Root Tablets (CRT), a Chinese patent drug, has shown a satisfying clinical efficacy in treating RA, while the underlying mechanism by which CRT inhibits RA-associated angiogenesis remains unclear. In this study, we applied a research approach combining transcriptomic data analysis, bio-network mapping, and in vivo and in vitro experiments to explore the molecular mechanisms of CRT in suppressing angiogenesis in RA. Animal welfare and experimental procedures follow the regulations of the Animal Ethics Committee of Institute of Basic Theory for Chinese Medicine, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences (ratification number: IBTCMCACMS21-2307-06). Network analysis identified that key genes such as nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-containing protein 2 (NOD2), SMAD family member 3 (SMAD3), and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) significantly enriched in pathways related to NOD-like receptor signaling and VEGF signaling, indicating that CRT may inhibit angiogenesis by regulating vascular endothelial cell function with modulating angiogenesis-related pathways. In vivo data showed that CRT significantly reduced the positive expression of CD31 and VEGF in the ankle joint of adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) rats. In vitro data further confirmed that CRT effectively inhibited VEGF-induced migration, invasion, and tube formation in HUVECs, while significantly reduced the expression of angiogenesis-related factors VEGF/CD31/Ang-1, as well as the positive expression of VEGF and CD31 in HUVECs. Furthermore, CRT markedly decreased the protein expression of NOD2, VEGFA, and SMAD3. In conclusion, these findings indicate that CRT may inhibit the RA-related angiogenesis by targeting the NOD2/SMAD3/VEGF signaling axis to improve endothelial cell function, enriching the scientific connotation of CRT in inhibiting pathological angiogenesis in RA and also offer new insights for clinical prevention and treatment of RA.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disorder affecting multiple systems, characterized by the development of harmful autoantibodies and immune complexes that lead to damage in organs and tissues. Chinese medicine (CM) plays a role in mitigating complications, enhancing treatment effectiveness, and reducing toxicity of concurrent medications, and ensuring a safe pregnancy. However, CM mainly solves the disease comprehensively through multi-target and multi-channel regulation process, therefore, its treatment mechanism is often complicated, involving many molecular links. This review introduces the research progress of pathogenesis of SLE from the aspects of genetics, epigenetics, innate immunity and acquired immunity, and then discusses the molecular mechanism and target of single Chinese herbal medicine and prescription that are commonly used and effective in clinic to treat SLE.
Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic/immunology* ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacology* ; Animals

Disruption of the intestinal mucosal barrier caused by gut dysbiosis and metabolic imbalance is the underlying pathology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Traditional Chinese medicine Wuji Wan (WJW) is commonly used to treat digestive system disorders and showed therapeutic potential for IBD. In this interdisciplinary study, we aim to investigate the pharmacological effects of WJW against experimental colitis by combining functional metabolomics and gut-microbiota sequencing techniques. Treatment with WJW altered the profile of the intestinal microbiota and notably increased the abundance of Lactobacillus, thereby facilitating the conversion of tryptophan into indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and indoleacrylic acid (IA). These indole derivatives activated the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) pathway, which reduced colonic inflammation and restored the expression of intestinal barrier proteins. Interestingly, the beneficial effects of WJW on gut barrier function improvement and tryptophan metabolism were disappeared in the absence of gut microbiota. Finally, pre-treatment with the AhR antagonist CH-223191 confirmed the essential role of IAA-mediated AhR activation in the therapeutic effects of WJW. Overall, WJW enhanced intestinal barrier function and reduced colonic inflammation in a murine colitis model by modulating Lactobacillus-IAA-AhR signaling pathway. This study provides novel insights into colitis pathogenesis and presents an effective therapeutic and preventive approach against IBD.

Pelvic organ prolapse (POP), whose etiology is influenced by genetic and clinical risk factors, considerably impacts women's quality of life. However, the genetic underpinnings in non-European populations and comprehensive risk models integrating genetic and clinical factors remain underexplored. This study constructed the first polygenic risk score (PRS) for POP in the Chinese population by utilizing 20 disease-associated variants from the largest existing genome-wide association study. We analyzed a discovery cohort of 576 cases and 623 controls and a validation cohort of 264 cases and 200 controls. Results showed that the case group exhibited a significantly higher PRS than the control group. Moreover, the odds ratio of the top 10% risk group was 2.6 times higher than that of the bottom 10%. A high PRS was significantly correlated with POP occurrence in women older than 50 years old and in those with one or no childbirths. As far as we know, the integrated prediction model, which combined PRS and clinical risk factors, demonstrated better predictive accuracy than other existing PRS models. This combined risk assessment model serves as a robust tool for POP risk prediction and stratification, thereby offering insights into individualized preventive measures and treatment strategies in future clinical practice.
Humans ; Female ; Pelvic Organ Prolapse/epidemiology* ; Middle Aged ; Risk Assessment/methods* ; China/epidemiology* ; Multifactorial Inheritance ; Aged ; Risk Factors ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Case-Control Studies ; Adult ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Genetic Risk Score ; East Asian People

OBJECTIVE: Varied acupoint selections represent a potential cause of the uncertainty surrounding the efficacy of acupuncture for knee osteoarthritis (OA). Skin temperature, a guiding factor for acupoint selection, may help to address this issue. This study explored thermal sensitization of acupoints used for the treatment of knee OA. METHODS: This cross-sectional case-control study enrolled cases aged 45-75 years with symptomatic knee OA and age- and gender-matched non-knee OA controls in a 1:1 ratio. All participants underwent infrared thermographic imaging. The primary outcome was the relative skin temperature of acupoint (STA), and the secondary outcome was the absolute STA of 11 acupoints. The Z test was used to compare the relative and absolute STAs between the groups. Principal component analysis was used to extract the common factors (CFs, acupoint cluster) in the STAs. A general linear model was used to identify factors affecting the STA in the knee OA cases. For the group comparisons of relative STA, P < 0.0045 (adjusted for 11 acupoints through Bonferroni correction) was considered to indicate statistical significance. For other analyses, P < 0.05 was used as the threshold for statistical significance. RESULTS: The analysis included 308 participants, consisting of 151 cases (mean age: [64.58 ± 6.67] years; male: 25.83%; mean body mass index: [25.70 ± 3.16] kg/m²) and 157 controls (mean age: [63.37 ± 5.96] years; male: 26.11%; mean body mass index: [24.47 ± 2.84] kg/m²). The relative STAs of ST34 (P = 0.0001), EX-LE2 (P < 0.0001), EX-LE5 (P = 0.0006), SP10 (P < 0.0001), BL40 (P = 0.0012) and GB39 (P = 0.0037) were higher in the knee OA group. No difference was found in the STAs of ST35, ST36, SP9, GB33 and GB34. Four CFs were identified for relative STA in both groups. The acupoints within each CF were consistent between the groups. The mean values of the relative STAs across each CF were higher in the knee OA group. In the knee OA cases, no factors were observed to affect the relative STA, while age and gender were found to affect the absolute STA. CONCLUSION Among patients with knee OA, thermal sensitization occurs in the acupoints of the lower extremity, exhibiting localized and regional thermal consistencies. The thermally sensitized acupoints that we identified in this study, ST34, SP10, EX-LE2, EX-LE5, GB39 and BL40, may be good choices for the acupuncture treatment of knee OA. Please cite this article as: Tu JF, Wang XZ, Yan SY, Wang YR, Yang JW, Shi GX, Zhang WZ, Jing LN, Yang LS, Liu DH, Wang LQ, Mi BH. Thermal sensitization of acupoints in patients with knee osteoarthritis: A cross-sectional case-control study. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(3): 289-296.
Humans ; Osteoarthritis, Knee/physiopathology* ; Male ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Middle Aged ; Female ; Acupuncture Points ; Case-Control Studies ; Aged ; Skin Temperature ; Acupuncture Therapy

Objective To investigate the factors influencing pathologic complete response(pCR)after neoadjuvant chemotherapy(NAC)and its correlation with prognosis in patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)-low breast cancer.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients with HER2-low breast cancer who underwent NAC at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Jiujiang College from February 28,2018 to February 28,2021.Patients were divided into pCR group(achieved pCR,n=143)and non-pCR group(did not achieve pCR,n=300)based on pCR status.General clinicopathological data were collected and compared between the two groups,including age,surgical method,NAC regimen,postoperative radiotherapy,clinical tumor stage,tumor cT stage,tumor cN stage,pathological type,tumor Nottingham grade,hormone receptor(HR)status,Ki-67 status,menopausal status,and endocrine therapy.Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors influencing pCR after NAC.Propensity score matching(1:1)was employed to balance baseline characteristics between the two groups.The matched groups'baseline data were compared.Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis of the matched cohorts.Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to analyze the independent influence of pCR on disease-free survival(DFS)and overall survival(OS)in HER2-low breast cancer after matching.Results A total of 443 patients with HER2-low breast cancer receiving NAC were included,with a mean age of(49.5±8.0)years.Binary logistic regression analysis identified clinical tumor stage(OR=0.498,95%CI 0.267-0.930),HR status(OR=0.513,95%CI 0.328-0.801),Ki-67 status(OR=2.580,95%CI 1.366-4.874),tumor Nottingham grade Ⅲ(OR=3.197,95%CI 1.147-8.910),and endocrine therapy(OR=0.513,95%CI 0.328-0.801)as independent factors influencing pCR after NAC(P<0.05).After propensity score matching,80 patients remained in each group(PCR and non-PCR).No significant differences were found in clinicopathological characteristics between the matched groups(P>0.05).The median follow-up time was 45.0 months(95%CI 43.1-46.9)for pCR group and 43.0 months(95%CI 41.0-45.0)for non-pCR group.The DFS rate was significantly higher in pCR group than that in non-pCR group(87.5%vs.70.0%,P=0.004),but there was no significant difference in OS rate(88.8%vs.85.0%,P=0.438).Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that pCR was an independent factor influencing on DFS(HR=0.312,95%CI 0.142-0.688,P=0.004),but not OS in HER2-low breast cancer patients.Conclusions Patients with HER2-low breast cancer who have a lower clinical tumor stage,HR-negative status,high Ki-67 expression,high tumor Nottingham grade,and absence of endocrine therapy are more likely to achieve pCR.Achieving pCR prolongs DFS significantly but does not significantly improve OS in these patients.