BACKGROUND:Ursolic acid can promote the directed differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells into osteoblasts.However,there are few reports on whether ursolic acid has osteogenic effect on human periodontal ligament stem cells. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect of ursolic acid on proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of human periodontal ligament stem cells. METHODS:The human periodontal ligament stem cells were isolated and cultured.Passage 3 cells were selected and treated with ordinary medium containing different concentrations(0,1,2,4,6,8 μmol/L)of ursolic acid.After intervention for 1,3,5,7 days,the cell proliferation was detected by CCK-8 assay and the appropriate intervention concentration was screened.Passage 3 human periodontal ligament stem cells were treated with osteogenic induction solution containing 0,1,2,4 μmol/L ursolic acid,respectively.After 7 days of intervention,the mRNA expressions of alkaline phosphatase,Runx2,and osteocalcin were detected by qRT-PCR.After 14 days of intervention,the formation of mineralized nodules was observed by alizarin red staining.Passage 3 human periodontal ligament stem cells were taken and the control group was added with osteogenic induction solution;the ursolic acid group and the antagonist group were added with osteogenic induction solution containing ursolic acid(2 μmol/L)and the bone morphogenetic protein signaling pathway antagonist Noggin,respectively.The ursolic acid+antagonist group was added with osteogenic induction solution containing ursolic acid(2 μmol/L)and Noggin,the inhibitor of bone morphogenetic protein signaling pathway,and cultured for 7 days.qRT-PCR and western blot assay were used to detect the mRNA and protein expressions of bone morphogenetic protein 2,Smad1,osteopontin,and Runx2. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)1,2,4 μmol/L ursolic acid could promote the proliferation of human periodontal ligament stem cells.6,8 μmol/L ursolic acid could inhibit the proliferation of human periodontal ligament stem cells,and 1,2,4 μmol/L ursolic acid was selected to intervene in subsequent experiments.(2)Compared with 0 μmol/L,1,2,4 μmol/L ursolic acid could promote the expression of alkaline phosphatase,Runx2,and osteocalcin mRNA and the formation of mineralized nodules(P<0.05),and the effect of 2 μmol/L ursolic acid was the most significant.(3)Compared with the control group,the mRNA and protein expressions of bone morphogenetic protein 2,Smad1,osteopontin,and Runx2 in the ursolic acid group were increased(P<0.05),while mRNA and protein expressions of the above indexes were decreased in the antagonist group(P<0.05).Compared with the ursolic acid group,mRNA and protein expressions of above indexes were decreased in ursolic acid+antagonist group(P<0.05).(4)The results indicate that ursolic acid promotes osteogenic differentiation of human periodontal ligament stem cells through bone morphogenetic protein signaling pathway.

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of acupuncture at Jiaji (EX-B2) points on upper limb motor dysfunction in patients after stroke. METHODS: A total of 62 patients with upper limb motor dysfunction after stroke were randomly assigned to an observation group (n=31, 3 cases dropped out) and a control group (n=31, 2 cases dropped out). Both groups received routine medical treatment and rehabilitation training. The control group was treated with conventional acupuncture at the affected side's Jianyu (LI15), Quchi (LI11), Shousanli (LI10), Huantiao (GB30), Yanglingquan (GB34), and Zusanli (ST36) etc. On this basis, the observation group received additional acupuncture at the affected side's Jiaji points from C₄ to T₅. Treatment was administered once daily, five times a week, for four weeks. Motor evoked potential (MEP) latency and amplitude of the abductor pollicis brevis and abductor digiti minimi, Fugl-Meyer assessment for upper extremity (FMA-UE), and Wolf motor function test (WMFT) scores were compared before and after treatment in the two groups. RESULTS: After treatment, both groups showed increased MEP amplitudes and decreased latencies of the abductor pollicis brevis and abductor digiti minimi (P<0.05), as well as increased FMA-UE and WMFT scores (P<0.05); the observation group had greater MEP amplitudes, shorter latencies, and higher FMA-UE and WMFT scores compared to the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Acupuncture at Jiaji (EX-B2) points could enhance the excitability of upper limb motor neural pathways in upper limb motor dysfunction after stroke patients, thereby promoting motor function recovery of the upper limb.
Humans ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Acupuncture Points ; Stroke/complications* ; Upper Extremity/physiopathology* ; Aged ; Adult ; Stroke Rehabilitation ; Treatment Outcome

Cemental tear is a rare and indetectable condition unless obvious clinical signs present with the involvement of surrounding periodontal and periapical tissues. Due to its clinical manifestations similar to common dental issues, such as vertical root fracture, primary endodontic diseases, and periodontal diseases, as well as the low awareness of cemental tear for clinicians, misdiagnosis often occurs. The critical principle for cemental tear treatment is to remove torn fragments, and overlooking fragments leads to futile therapy, which could deteriorate the conditions of the affected teeth. Therefore, accurate diagnosis and subsequent appropriate interventions are vital for managing cemental tear. Novel diagnostic tools, including cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), microscopes, and enamel matrix derivatives, have improved early detection and management, enhancing tooth retention. The implementation of standardized diagnostic criteria and treatment protocols, combined with improved clinical awareness among dental professionals, serves to mitigate risks of diagnostic errors and suboptimal therapeutic interventions. This expert consensus reviewed the epidemiology, pathogenesis, potential predisposing factors, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of cemental tear, aiming to provide a clinical guideline and facilitate clinicians to have a better understanding of cemental tear.
Humans ; Dental Cementum/injuries* ; Consensus ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Cone-Beam Computed Tomography ; Tooth Fractures/therapy*

Objective To investigate the current status and awareness of pharmaceutical services in hospitals in Guizhou province and to provide a reference for exploring and carrying out pharmaceutical service fees.Methods The questionnaire was designed by the"wjx.cn"website.Three kinds of questionnaires were designed for pharmacists,doctors,nurses,and patients as the research objects,with corresponding differences in some questions,and promoted on WeChat,Dingxiangyuan,and other network platforms.Results A total of 655 questionnaires were collected,and 639 valid questionnaires were recovered,with an effective recovery rate of 97.56%.324 pharmacists(50.70%),82 doctors and nurses(12.83%),233 patients(36.46%)were surveyed.The average approval score of these three groups of respondents on pharmaceutical service fees was 4.67,4.23,and 4.22,respectively(full score:5).Conclusions Overall,pharmacists'professional services have received support from medical staff and patients.However,patients'pharmaceutical service projects currently focus on dispensing services.The recognition of pharmacists'work and the public's awareness of pharmaceutical services can be improved by enhancing the professional ability of pharmacists,strengthening publicity and guidance,and exploring"Internet+pharmaceutical services",etc.,to promote the sustainable development of pharmaceutical services.

Objective To investigate causal relationship between gut microbiota and stroke by using Mendelian randomization(MR).Methods The gut microbiota genome wide association study(GWAS)data of MiBioGen study in public database(n=13 266)and stroke GWAS data of IEU Open GWAS were used.Independent genetic loci significantly correlated with the relative abundance of gut microbiota at genus level were used for instrumental variables(Ⅳs)according to preset thresholds.The inverse variance weighted method was used to analyse,results were evaluted according to odds ratio(OR)of effect index and 95％confidence interval(CI).The stability and reliability of the results were verified by leave one out,heterogeneity test and horizontal gene pleiotropy test.Results The rise of abundance of LachnospiraceaeFCS020group genera,Lachnospiraceae NK4A136group genera,RuminococcaceaeUCG004 genera and Intestinimonas genera,could reduce the risk of stroke,the OR(95％CI)were 0.914(0.845-0.988),0.909(0.838-0.985),0.919(0.849-0.995),0.924(0.866-0.987),respectively.The increase of abundance of Allisonella genera,Gordonibacter genera,Paraprevotella genera and Streptococcus genera can increase the risk of stroke,and the OR(95％CI)were 1.103(1.039-1.171),1.056(1.009-1.105),1.078(1.013-1.147),1.110(1.020-1.209),respectively.Leave one out showed that the results were stable,there were no IVs that had a strong influence on the results,and the influence of heterogeneity and horizontal gene pleiotropy on the estimation of causal effect could be eliminated.Conclusion The levels of Lachnospiraceae FCS020group genera,LachnospiraceaeNK4A136group genera,RuminococcaceaeUCG004 genera and Intestinimonas genera protect factors of brain stroke,with the increase of bacterial abundance,the incidence of stroke may be reduced.On the contrary,the levels of Allisonella genera,Gordonibacter genera,Paraprevotella genera and Streptococcus genera are positively correlated with stroke occurrence.Probiotics in the treatment of stroke may become the trend of future clinical or mechanism research.

OBJECTIVES: Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is one of the main causes of disability in middle-aged and elderly people, and early activity plays an important role in functional recovery. This study aims to understand the factors that affect the implementation of early activity in patients with AIS and to provide reference for promoting early activity implementation and developing intervention strategies for AIS patients. METHODS: Using purposive sampling, 19 AIS patients and their caregivers who visited at Stroke Center in the Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University and the Third Hospital of Changsha from June to December 2021, as well as 19 medical staff, hospital administrators, or community workers providing medical health services to stroke patients, were selected as interviewes. A semi-structured interview was conducted based on the social ecological theory model, and the Colaizzi seven-step method was used to analyze the interview data. RESULTS: According to qualitative interview results, the factors affecting early activity in AIS patients were summarized into 4 themes and 12 sub-themes: medical staff factors (insufficient knowledge and skills, insufficient knowledge of early activity, unclear division of responsibilities), patient factors (severity of the disease, lack of knowledge, psychological pressure, fear of falling), social environmental factors (lack of social support, shortage of human resources and rehabilitation equipment, insufficient medical insurance support), and evidence and norms (the evidence for early activity needs improvement, lack of standardized early activity procedures). CONCLUSIONS Early activity in AIS patients is impacted by factors at multiple levels, including medical staff, patients, social environment, and evidence and norms. Developing comprehensive intervention strategies to address these factors can promote early activity implementation in AIS patients.
Aged ; Middle Aged ; Humans ; Ischemic Stroke ; Accidental Falls ; Fear ; Social Environment ; Stroke

In growing children, growth plate cartilage has limited self-repair ability upon fracture injury always leading to limb growth arrest. Interestingly, one type of fracture injuries within the growth plate achieve amazing self-healing, however, the mechanism is unclear. Using this type of fracture mouse model, we discovered the activation of Hedgehog (Hh) signaling in the injured growth plate, which could activate chondrocytes in growth plate and promote cartilage repair. Primary cilia are the central transduction mediator of Hh signaling. Notably, ciliary Hh-Smo-Gli signaling pathways were enriched in the growth plate during development. Moreover, chondrocytes in resting and proliferating zone were dynamically ciliated during growth plate repair. Furthermore, conditional deletion of the ciliary core gene Ift140 in cartilage disrupted cilia-mediated Hh signaling in growth plate. More importantly, activating ciliary Hh signaling by Smoothened agonist (SAG) significantly accelerated growth plate repair after injury. In sum, primary cilia mediate Hh signaling induced the activation of stem/progenitor chondrocytes and growth plate repair after fracture injury.
Mice ; Animals ; Hedgehog Proteins/genetics* ; Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled/metabolism* ; Cilia/metabolism* ; Cartilage/metabolism* ; Regeneration

The mechanisms underlying autophagic defects in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) remain largely unknown. We aimed to elucidate the roles of hepatic cyclooxygenase 1 (COX1) in autophagy and the pathogenesis of diet-induced steatohepatitis in mice. Human nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) liver samples were used to examine the protein expression of COX1 and the level of autophagy. Cox1^Δhepa mice and their wildtype littermates were generated and fed with 3 different NASH models. We found that hepatic COX1 expression was increased in patients with NASH and diet-induced NASH mice models accompanied by impaired autophagy. COX1 was required for basal autophagy in hepatocytes and liver specific COX1 deletion exacerbated steatohepatitis by inhibiting autophagy. Mechanistically, COX1 directly interacted with WD repeat domain, phosphoinositide interacting 2 (WIPI2), which was crucial for autophagosome maturation. Adeno-associated virus (AAV)-mediated rescue of WIPI2 reversed the impaired autophagic flux and improved NASH phenotypes in Cox1^Δhepa mice, indicating that COX1 deletion-mediated steatohepatitis was partially dependent on WIPI2-mediated autophagy. In conclusion, we demonstrated a novel role of COX1 in hepatic autophagy that protected against NASH by interacting with WIPI2. Targeting the COX1-WIPI2 axis may be a novel therapeutic strategy for NASH.

Objective:To understand the current situation of early mobilization in elder patients with acute ischemic stroke, and to analyze the influencing factors of early mobilization in patients with different degrees of neurological deficits, aiming to provide evidence for promoting early mobilization in patients with stroke and for formulating intervention strategies.Methods:Patients with acute ischemic stroke admitted to the stroke centers of two class A tertiary hospitals in Hunan Province between January and December 2021 were enrolled.The degree of neurological impairment, activities of daily living and muscle strength were evaluated within 24 hours after admission, and patients' performance of early mobilization was recorded.Based on whether patients performed out-of-bed activities such as sitting at the bedside, standing or walking, transferring from bed to chair within 48 hours after admission, they were divided into an early ambulation group and a non-early ambulation group.Univariate analysis and Logistic regression analysis were then used to examine the influencing factors of early ambulation in patients with mild to moderate neurological deficits.Results:Among 257 patients with acute ischemic stroke, 60.7%(156 cases)conducted early mobilization.The rate of early mobilization for patients with moderate neurological deficits was only 12.9%(12/193), significantly lower than that for patients with mild neurological deficits(87.8%, 144/164)( χ2=139.571, P<0.001).Univariate analysis showed that there were significantly differences in the level of activities of daily living, stroke history, strength of the upper and lower limbs of the affected side between the early and non-early ambulation groups with moderate neurological impairment(all P<0.05), and there were significant differences in the level of activities of daily living between the early ambulation group and the non-early ambulation group in patients with mild neurological impairment( χ2=11.907, P<0.001).Logistic regression analysis showed that requiring assistance in daily life( OR=4.189, 95% CI: 1.724-10.668, P=0.002), muscle strength of the affected lower extremity ≤ grade 3( OR=9.605, 95% CI: 2.627-35.113, P=0.001)and moderate neurological deficits( OR=8.585, 95% CI: 3.216-22.913, P<0.001)were the risk factors of early mobilization in stroke patients. Conclusions:The rate of stroke patients with moderate neurological impairment performing early mobilization is low within 48 hours after admission.Activities of daily living ability, limb muscle strength and degrees of neurological deficits are influencing factors of early mobilization in stroke patients.

Currently, cardiovascular disease has become a major threat to the health of Chinese residents, and prevention and control work is urgent. Self-determination theory is a widely applied theory of behavioral change, extensively used in the field of patient' rehabilitation. This article reviews the content, relevant theoretical models, motivation measurement methods, application status and influencing factors of self-determination theory in the rehabilitation of cardiovascular disease patients, so as to provide a basis for promoting the transition of cardiovascular disease patients to healthy lifestyles and maintaining healthy behavior.