1.Application advances, ethical dilemmas, and future directions of large language models in lung cancer diagnosis and treatment
Zhizhen REN ; Yufan XI ; Xu ZHU ; Yijie LUO ; Geting HUANG ; Junqiao SONG ; Xiuyuan XU ; Nan CHEN ; Qiang PU
Chinese Journal of Clinical Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 2026;33(03):353-362
Lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. Coupled with the substantial workload, the clinical management of lung cancer is challenged by the critical need to efficiently and accurately process increasingly complex medical information. In recent years, large language models (LLMs) technology has undergone explosive development, demonstrating unique advantages in handling complex medical data by leveraging its powerful natural language processing capabilities, and its application value in the field of lung cancer diagnosis and treatment is continuously increasing. The paper systematically analyzes that the exceptional potential of LLMs in lung cancer auxiliary diagnosis, tumor feature extraction, automatic staging, progression/outcome analysis, treatment recommendations, medical documentation generation, and patient education. However, they face critical technical and ethical challenges including inconsistent performance in complex integrated decision-making (e.g., TNM staging, personalized treatment suggestions) and "black box" opacity issues, along with dilemmas such as training data biases, model hallucinations, data privacy concerns, and cross-lingual adaptation challenges ("data colonization"). Future directions should prioritize constructing high-quality multimodal corpora specific to lung cancer, developing interpretable and compliant specialized models, and achieving seamless integration with existing clinical workflows. Through dual drivers of technological innovation and ethical standardization, LLMs should be prudently advanced for holistic lung cancer management processes, ultimately promoting efficient, standardized, and personalized diagnosis and treatment practices.
2.Similarities and Differences between Myofascial Trigger Points and Sinew Knot:from the Perspective of the Channel Sinew Theory
Zijie CHEN ; Haohan ZHU ; Xingke SONG ; Xue PU ; Junying WANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(9):1023-1026
Myofascial trigger points, as hyperirritable spots within taut bands of skeletal muscle, can induce local or referred pain, and show a high degree of similarity to acupoints in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), particularly the so-called sinew knot lesion point. From the perspective of channel sinew theory, and by examining the correlations of myofascial trigger points with acupoints and channel sinew disorders, this study aims to compare the similarities and differences between MTrPs and sinew knot lesion points in terms of pathological mechanisms, needling analgesic mechanisms, and therapeutic approaches. The goal is to deepen the understanding of MTrPs and dry needling, and provide a modern scientific perspective on channel sinew theory and the sinew knot lesion point.
3.Similarities and Differences between Myofascial Trigger Points and Sinew Knot:from the Perspective of the Channel Sinew Theory
Zijie CHEN ; Haohan ZHU ; Xingke SONG ; Xue PU ; Junying WANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(9):1023-1026
Myofascial trigger points, as hyperirritable spots within taut bands of skeletal muscle, can induce local or referred pain, and show a high degree of similarity to acupoints in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), particularly the so-called sinew knot lesion point. From the perspective of channel sinew theory, and by examining the correlations of myofascial trigger points with acupoints and channel sinew disorders, this study aims to compare the similarities and differences between MTrPs and sinew knot lesion points in terms of pathological mechanisms, needling analgesic mechanisms, and therapeutic approaches. The goal is to deepen the understanding of MTrPs and dry needling, and provide a modern scientific perspective on channel sinew theory and the sinew knot lesion point.
4.Spatiotemporal monitoring and ARIMA modeling of Blattella germanica populations in Nanjing, China (2017-2024)
Jian-jun XIA ; Pu-min ZHOU ; Yan ZHANG ; Bing-dong SONG ; Lu-yao SUN ; Shou-gang ZHANG
Acta Parasitologica et Medica Entomologica Sinica 2026;33(3):210-215
Objective Using cockroach surveillance data in Nanjing from 2017 to 2024, we have descriptively analyzed population characteristics and changes in insecticide resistance among Blattella germanica, and have established a seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model to predict monthly population densities in Nanjing spanning the year 2025. Methods B. germanica density and infestation rate were monitored using the sticky trap method, and insecticide resistance was assessed using the residual contact method. Our ARIMA model was applied to fit and estimate cockroach density fluctuations over time. Results From 2017 to 2024, B. germanica accounted for 94.90% of all cockroach specimens captured in Nanjing, with an average density of 0.37 cockroaches per trap and an average infestation rate of 5.56%. Significant differences in density and infestation rate were observed among different habitats (P<0.001). Significant downward annual trends in both density and infestation rate were found (P<0.05). ARIMA was found to be the optimal model for fitting the density data from 2017 to 2024 (0, 1, 1) × (0, 1, 1)1 2. Conclusions From 2017 to 2024, B. germanica was overwhelmingly the dominant cockroach species in Nanjing, with both its density and infestation rate declining annually. A positive correlation was observed between the amount and proportion of insecticide use and the development of insecticide resistance (P<0.05). The established model demonstrated good performance in predicting monthly B. germanica densities in Nanjing throughout 2025, providing a valuable reference for future surveillance and control efforts.
5.Regulatory effect of electroacupuncture at "Neiguan" (PC6) on mitochondrial autophagy during the ischemia and reperfusion phases in rats with myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.
Qirui YANG ; Xinghua QIU ; Xingye DAI ; Daonan LIU ; Baichuan ZHAO ; Wenyi JIANG ; Yanhua SONG ; Tong PU ; Kai CHENG
Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion 2025;45(5):646-656
OBJECTIVE:
To investigate the regulatory effect of electroacupuncture (EA) at "Neiguan" (PC6) on mitochondrial autophagy in rats with myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) at different phases (ischemia and reperfusion phases), and to explore the bidirectional regulatory effects of EA at "Neiguan" (PC6) and its potential mechanism.
METHODS:
Forty-five male SD rats were randomly divided into 6 groups according to the random number table method, namely, sham-operation group (n=9), model-A group (n=6), model-B group (n=9), EA-A1 group (n=6), EA-B1 group (n=6), and EA-B2 group (n=9). Except the rats in the sham-operation group, the MIRI model was established in the other groups with the physical ligation and tube pushing method. In the model-A group, the samples were collected directly after ligation, and in the model-B group, the samples were collected after ligation and reperfusion. In the EA-A1 group, EA was delivered while the ligation was performed, and afterwards, the samples were collected. In the EA-B1 group, while the ligation was performed, EA was operated at the same time, and after reperfusion, the samples were collected. In the EA-B2 group, during ligation and the opening of the left anterior descending branch of the coronary artery, EA was delivered, and after reperfusion, the samples were collected. EA was performed at bilateral "Neiguan" (PC6), with a disperse-dense wave, a frequency of 2 Hz/100 Hz, a current of 1 mA, and a duration of 30 min. HE staining was employed to observe the morphology of cardiomyocytes, TUNEL was adopted to detect the apoptosis of cardiomyocytes, transcriptome sequencing was to detect the differentially expressed genes in the left ventricle, JC-1 flow cytometry was to detect the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) of cardiomyocytes, Western blot was to detect the protein expression of phosphatase and tensin homolog-induced kinase 1 (Pink1), Parkin and p62 in the left ventricle of rats, and ELISA was to detect the levels of serum creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB) and cardiac troponin I (cTn-I) in the rats.
RESULTS:
Compared with the sham-operation group, the cardiomyocytes of rats in the model-B group were severely damaged, with disordered arrangement, unclear boundaries, broken muscle fibers, edema and loose distribution; and the cardiomyocytes in the EA-B2 group were slightly damaged, the cell structure was partially unclear, the cells were arranged more regularly, and the intact cardiomyocytes were visible. Compared with the sham-operation group, the apoptosis of cardiomyocytes increased in the model-B group (P<0.001); and when compared with the model-B group, the apoptosis alleviated in the EA-B2 group (P<0.001). The differentially expressed genes among the EA-B2 group, the sham-operation group and the model-B group were closely related to cell autophagy and mitochondrial autophagy. Compared with the sham-operation group, MMP of cardiomyocytes was reduced (P<0.001), the protein expression of Pink1, Parkin, and p62 of the left ventricle and the levels of serum CK-MB and cTn-I were elevated in the model B group (P<0.001). In comparison with model-A group, the MMP of cardiomyocytes and the levels of serum CK-MB and cTn-I were reduced (P<0.001, P<0.05), and the protein expression of Pink1 in the left ventricle rose in the EA-A1 group (P<0.01). Compared with the model-B group, MMP of cardiomyocytes increased (P<0.001), the protein expression of Pink1, Parkin, and p62 of the left ventricle, and the levels of serum CK-MB and cTn-I decreased (P<0.001) in the EA-B1 group and the EA-B2 group. When compared with the EA-A1 group, MMP of cardiomyocytes increased (P<0.001), and the protein expression of Pink1, Parkin, and p62 of the left ventricle, and the levels of serum CK-MB and cTn-I decreased in the EA-B1 group (P<0.01).
CONCLUSION
EA at "Neiguan" (PC6) can ameliorate MIRI in rats, which may be achieved through the Pink1/Parkin-mediated mitochondrial autophagy pathway. EA can alleviate myocardial injury by enhancing mitochondrial autophagy at the ischemia phase, and it can reduce reperfusion injury by weakening mitochondrial autophagy at the reperfusion phase.
Animals
;
Electroacupuncture
;
Male
;
Myocardial Reperfusion Injury/metabolism*
;
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
;
Rats
;
Acupuncture Points
;
Autophagy
;
Humans
;
Mitochondria/genetics*
7.Analysis of influencing factors on the trajectories of psychological symptom clusters in pregnant women with assisted reproductive technology and nursing revelation
Danni SONG ; Shuang HU ; Congshan PU ; Yiting WANG ; Jin HE ; Yajie DING ; Chunjian SHAN
Chinese Journal of Nursing 2025;60(10):1209-1216
Objective To explore the trajectory of psychological symptom clusters in pregnant women with assisted reproductive technology(ART),and analyze the influencing factors of each trajectory subgroups,in order to provide a theoretical basis for the management of psychological health during pregnancy in pregnant women with ART.Methods A total of 205 pregnant women who had conceived using ART were sampled from the obstetrics clinic of a tertiary hospital in Nanjing from August 2023 to April 2024 using a convenient sampling method.The baseline data were assessed by general information questionnaire,Symptom Checklist-90,Distress Disclosure Index and Positive Psychological Capital Questionnaire at 10-14 weeks gestation,and the follow-up information was assessed by Symptom Checklist-90 at 22-26 weeks of gestation and 34-38 weeks of gestation.Exploratory factor analysis was used to extract symptom clusters;the latent class growth mixture model was used to identify the track categories;the multiple logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the influencing factors of the track.Results 180 cases were finally included.By exploratory factor analysis,5,4 and 5 factors were extracted at 3 time points respectively.Trajectories of psychological symptom clusters in pregnant women with ART is divided into 3 potential classes:low level-slow relieving group(28.89%),high level-significant increasing group(6.11%),medium level-slow increasing group(65.00%).Logistic regression analyses showed that duration of infertility,number of ART,literacy,pain self-expression and positive psychological capital were influential factors in the potential categories of psychological symptom clusters in pregnant women conceived with ART(all P<0.05).Conclusion The trajectory of psychological symptom clusters in pregnant women with ART was divided into 3 potential classes.Medical workers could develop corresponding interventions based on the influencing factors and implement comprehensive and efficient symptom management.
8.Predictive Value of Residual Quantitative Flow Ratio for Long-term Vessel-oriented Composite Endpoints
Rui ZHANG ; Yanpu SHI ; Changdong GUAN ; Yanyan ZHAO ; Shengxian TU ; Bo YU ; Guosheng FU ; Yujie ZHOU ; Jian'an WANG ; Yundai CHEN ; Jun PU ; Kefei DOU ; Weixian YANG ; Yongjian WU ; Shubin QIAO ; Lei SONG
Chinese Circulation Journal 2025;40(9):862-869
Objectives:To explore the predictive value of residual Murray's law-based quantitative flow ratio(μQFR)on long-term vessel-oriented composite endpoints(VoCE).Methods:This retrospective study included 3 510 patients from the FAVOR Ⅲ China trial.Offline residual μQFR analysis was performed on all vessels(diameter≥2.5 mm)with 50%-90%stenotic lesions.Patients were stratified into high-,intermediate-,and low-risk groups based on residual μQFR tertiles.The primary endpoint was 3-year VoCE,defined as a composite of cardiac death related to the target vessel,target vessel-related spontaneous myocardial infarction,and ischemia-driven target vessel revascularization.Results:Offline analysis was performed on 5 256 vessels from 3 510 patients.The mean residual μQFR was 0.92±0.75.The high-risk group(residual μQFR≤0.91)with 1 554 patients(1 958 vessels);the intermediate-risk group(residual μQFR 0.92-0.96)with 1 211 patients(1 906 vessels);and the low-risk group(residual μQFR>0.96)with 745 patients(1 392 vessels).Over 3-year follow-up,VoCE occurred in 227 vessels(4.3%).The 3-year VoCE incidence was significantly higher in the high-risk group compared to the intermediate-and low-risk groups(6.2%vs.4.1%vs.2.5%,log-rank P<0.001),primarily driven by ischemia-driven target vessel revascularization(5.0%vs.3.0%vs.1.6%,log-rank P<0.001).Hypertension(OR=0.83,95%CI:0.72-0.96),hypercholesterolemia(OR=0.84,95%CI:0.73-0.97),bifurcation lesions(OR=0.72,95%CI:0.63-0.83),moderate/severe calcification(OR=0.70,95%CI:0.57-0.84),and tandem lesions(OR=0.59,95%CI:0.47-0.75)were independent predictors of lower residual μQFR values.Conclusions:Lower residual μQFR is significantly associated with increased VoCE risk during the 3-year follow up period.
9.Discussion on Technical Characteristics of National Drug Standards for Traditional Chinese Medicine Dispensing Granules
Shengjun CHEN ; Song LI ; Kejia GUO ; Yuntian ZHANG ; Haiqin ZHOU ; Xianglan PU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(10):256-264
On the premise of respecting the objective law of the occurrence and development of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) dispensing granules, relevant national departments have gradually formed the research and formulation ideas of national drug standards for dispensing granules based on the experiences and lessons learned in the development process of quality standards, as well as the formation mechanism of national standards for dispensing granules. This has certain reference significance for the formulation path of TCM quality standards. Combined with the general situation of the published standards and specific cases, the research concepts of the national standards for dispensing granules were analyzed and summarized in this paper, and the analysis of the technical characteristics of the issued national standards was focused, including the introduction of standard decoction, the overall quality control of TCM, the whole process quality control and other research ideas. At the same time, it summarized the industry common problems in the research and development process of national standards for dispensing granules, such as the source and process control of medicinal materials, and strived to solve them together, encouraging the demonstration and application of new technological means in the field of TCM dispensing granules. Finally, based on the literature analysis, the shortcomings of the current national standards were discussed, and relevant suggestions were put forward to further improve the national standards for dispensing granules. Through the overall analysis, it is helpful to comprehensively understand the technical characteristics of the national standards for TCM dispensing granules, and provide reference for the scientific exploration and practice of quality control methods for TCM.
10.Nano-drug delivery strategies affecting cancer-associated fibroblasts to reduce tumor metastasis.
Linghui ZOU ; Peng XIAN ; Qing PU ; Yangjie SONG ; Shuting NI ; Lei CHEN ; Kaili HU
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(4):1841-1868
Tumor metastasis is the leading cause of high mortality in most cancers, and numerous studies have demonstrated that the malignant crosstalk of multiple components in the tumor microenvironment (TME) together promotes tumor metastasis. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are the major stromal cells and crosstalk centers in the TME of various kinds of tumors, such as breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, and prostate cancer. Recently, the CAF-induced pro-tumor metastatic TME has gained wide attention, being considered as one of the effective targets for tumor therapy. With in-depth research, CAFs have been found to promote tumor metastasis through multiple mechanisms, such as inducing epithelial-mesenchymal transition in tumor cells, remodeling the extracellular matrix, protecting circulating tumor cells, and facilitating the formation of a pre-metastatic niche. To enhance the anti-tumor metastasis effect, therapeutic strategies designed by combining nano-drug delivery systems with CAF modulation are undoubtedly a desirable choice, as evidenced by the research over the past decades. Herein, we introduce the physiological properties of CAFs, detail the possible mechanisms whereby CAFs promote tumor metastasis, categorize CAFs-based nano-drug delivery strategies according to their anti-metastasis functions and discuss the current challenges, possible solutions, as well as the future directions in order to provide a theoretical basis and reference for the utilization of CAFs-based nano-drug delivery strategies to promote tumor metastasis therapy.


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