This study aims to explore the mechanism of lung and gut protection by Tanreqing Capsules on the mice infected with influenza virus based on "the lung-gut axis". A total of 110 C57BL/6J mice were randomized into control group, model group, oseltamivir group, and low-and high-dose Tanreqing Capsules groups. Ten mice in each group underwent body weight protection experiments, and the remaining 12 mice underwent experiments for mechanism exploration. Mice were infected with influenza virus A/Puerto Rico/08/1934(PR8) via nasal inhalation for the modeling. The lung tissue was collected on day 3 after gavage, and the lung tissue, colon tissue, and feces were collected on day 7 after gavage for subsequent testing. The results showed that Tanreqing Capsules alleviated the body weight reduction and increased the survival rate caused by PR8 infection. Compared with model group, Tanreqing Capsules can alleviate the lung injury by reducing the lung index, alleviating inflammation and edema in the lung tissue, down-regulating viral gene expression at the late stage of infection, reducing the percentage of neutrophils, and increasing the percentage of T cells. Tanreqing Capsules relieved the gut injury by restoring the colon length, increasing intestinal lumen mucin secretion, alleviating intestinal inflammation, and reducing goblet cell destruction. The gut microbiota analysis showed that Tanreqing Capsules increased species diversity compared with model group. At the phylum level, Tanreqing Capsules significantly increased the abundance of Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, while reducing the abundance of Bacteroidota and Proteobacteria to maintain gut microbiota balance. At the genus level, Tanreqing Capsules significantly increased the abundance of unclassified＿f＿Lachnospiraceae while reducing the abundance of Bacteroides, Eubacterium, and Phocaeicola to maintain gut microbiota balance. In conclusion, Tanreqing Capsules can alleviate mouse lung and gut injury caused by influenza virus infection and restore the balance of gut microbiota. Treating influenza from the lung and gut can provide new ideas for clinical practice.
Animals ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Mice ; Lung/metabolism* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Capsules ; Orthomyxoviridae Infections/virology* ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome/drug effects* ; Male ; Humans ; Female ; Influenza A virus/physiology* ; Influenza, Human/virology*

Acute lung injury(ALI) is a critical clinical condition primarily characterized by refractory hypoxemia and infiltration of inflammatory cells in lung tissue, which can progress into a more severe form known as acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS). Immune cells and inflammatory cytokines play important roles in the progression of the disease. Due to its unclear pathogenesis and the lack of effective clinical treatments, ALI is associated with a high mortality rate and severely affects patients' quality of life, making the search for effective therapeutic agents particularly urgent. Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma, the dried root of the perennial herb Panax ginseng from the Araliaceae family, contains active ingredients such as saponins and polysaccharides, which possess various pharmacological effects including anti-tumor activity, immune regulation, and metabolic modulation. In recent years, studies have shown that ginsenosides exhibit notable effects in reducing inflammation, ameliorating epithelial and endothelial cell injury, and providing anticoagulant action, indicating their comprehensive role in alleviating lung injury. This review summarizes the pathogenesis of ALI and the molecular mechanisms through which ginsenosides act at different stages of ALI development. The aim is to provide a scientific reference for the development of ginsenoside-based drugs targeting ALI, as well as a theoretical basis for the clinical application of Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma in the treatment of ALI.
Ginsenosides/pharmacology* ; Humans ; Acute Lung Injury/immunology* ; Animals ; Panax/chemistry* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal

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: This study aimed to explore the association between body mass index (BMI) and mortality based on the 10-year population-based multicenter prospective study. METHODS: A general population-based multicenter prospective study was conducted at four sites in rural China between 2013 and 2023. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models and restricted cubic spline analyses were used to assess the association between BMI and mortality. Stratified analyses were performed based on the individual characteristics of the participants. RESULTS: Overall, 19,107 participants with a sum of 163,095 person-years were included and 1,910 participants died. The underweight (< 18.5 kg/m ²) presented an increase in all-cause mortality (adjusted hazards ratio [ aHR] = 2.00, 95% confidence interval [ CI]: 1.66-2.41), while overweight (≥ 24.0 to < 28.0 kg/m ²) and obesity (≥ 28.0 kg/m ²) presented a decrease with an aHR of 0.61 (95% CI: 0.52-0.73) and 0.51 (95% CI: 0.37-0.70), respectively. Overweight ( aHR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.67-0.86) and mild obesity ( aHR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.59-0.87) had a positive impact on mortality in people older than 60 years. All-cause mortality decreased rapidly until reaching a BMI of 25.7 kg/m ² ( aHR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.92-0.98) and increased slightly above that value, indicating a U-shaped association. The beneficial impact of being overweight on mortality was robust in most subgroups and sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION This study provides additional evidence that overweight and mild obesity may be inversely related to the risk of death in individuals older than 60 years. Therefore, it is essential to consider age differences when formulating health and weight management strategies.
Humans ; Body Mass Index ; China/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Rural Population/statistics & numerical data* ; Aged ; Follow-Up Studies ; Adult ; Mortality ; Cause of Death ; Obesity/mortality* ; Overweight/mortality*

Objective:To explore the clinical features and genetic variants in three children suspected for β-ketothiolase deficiency (BKTD).Methods:Clinical manifestations, laboratory examination and genetic testing of three children suspected for BKTD at Henan Children′s Hospital between January 2018 and October 2022 were collected, and their clinical and genetic variants were retrospectively analyzed.Results:The children were all males with a age from 7 to 11 months. Their clinical manifestations have included poor spirit, shortness of breath, vomiting, convulsions after traumatic stress and/or infection. All of them had severe metabolic acidosis, elevated ketone bodies in blood and urine, hypoglycemia, with increased isoprenyl-carnitine and 3-hydroxyisovalyl-carnitine in the blood, and 2-methyl-3-hydroxybutyrate and methylprotaroyl glycine in the urine. All of them were found to harbor compound heterozygous variants of the ACAT1 gene, including c. 1183G>T and a large fragment deletion (11q22.3-11q23.1) in child 1, c. 121-3C>G and c. 826+ 5_826+ 9delGTGTT in child 2, and c. 928G>C and c. 1142T>C in child 3. The variants harbored by children 2 and 3 were known to be pathogenic or likely pathogenic. The heterozygous c. 1183G>T variant in child 1 was unreported previously and rated as a variant of unknown significance (PM2_Supporting+ PP3+ PP4) based on guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. The large segment deletion in 11q22.3-11q23.1 has not been included in the DGV Database and was rated as a pathogenic copy number variation. Conclusion:The variants of the ACAT1 gene probably underlay the pathogenesis of BKTD in these three children.

Objective To explore the intrinsic connectivity alterations of brain-wide functional networks in patient with trigeminal neuralgia(TN)via combining resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging(rs-fMRI)and graph theory methods.Methods A total of 41 patients with TN(TN group)and 41 healthy controls(HC)(HC group)were recruited,and differences in network topologyat-tributes and correlations with clinical variables were analyzed between the two groups.Results Both groups met the σ standard.The global efficiency(Eg)of TN group was lower than that of HC group(P＜0.05),whereas the λ of TN group was higher than that of HC group(P＜0.05).The node efficiency(Ne)of bilateral rectus gyrus and bilateral pallidum of TN group were significantly higher than those of HC group,while the Ne of left supraparietal gyrus,left angular gyrus,left post-central gyrus,bilateral marginal supraparietal gyrus,and left caudate nucleus of TN group were significantly lower than those of HC group(P＜0.05).The local efficiency(Eloc)of the TN group was negatively correlated with the visual analogue scale(VAS)score(P＜0.05),the clustering coefficient(Cp)of the TN group was negatively correlated with the short-form McGill pain questionnaire(SF-MPQ)sensory score(P＜0.05),and the Ne of right rectus gyrus of the TN group was positively correlated with the disease duration(P＜0.05).Conclusion The TN group retain σ,but the overall information transfer efficiency of the brain is reduced and functional integration is diminished.Several brain regions in the TN group has abnormal Ne,which provide an objective basis for altered brain functional networks in TN.

The usage of pesticides can enhance the production of crops,but their overuses may be hazardous to both people health and the environment.Thus,it is of great significance to develop effective methods to detect pesticides.Metal nanoclusters(MNCs)have become increasingly popular in analytical sensing areas because of their miniscule size,high stability,ease of manufacturing and good biocompatibility.They have exhibited great potential in the field of pesticides detection.In this paper,the detection methods of pesticides by using MNCs and their development in detection of organophosphorus pesticides,organic nitrogen pesticides,organochlorine pesticides and other types of pesticides were reviewed.Finally,the development prospects were discussed.

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of successive trigger needling combined with fire needling in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis of cold-damp obstruction type.Methods A total of 72 patients with rheumatoid arthritis of cold-damp obstruction type were randomly divided into observation group and control group,36 cases in each group.The control group was treated with fire needling combined with ordinary acupuncture,and the observation group was treated with fire needling combined with filiform needle.The treatments were performed once every other day,3 times a week,2 weeks as a course of treatment,continuous treatment for 2 courses.After 4 weeks of treatment,the clinical efficacy of the two groups was evaluated.The changes of pain Visual Analogue Scale(VAS)score and Self-Rating Anxiety Scale(SAS)score before and after treatment,and the time of morning stiffness of the joints were observed in the two groups.The changes of the number of joint swelling and the number of joint tenderness were compared before and after treatment between the two groups.Results(1)After treatment,the time of morning stiffness of the joints of the two groups of patients was significantly improved(P＜0.05),and the observation group was significantly superior to the control group in improving morning stiffness of the joints,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).(2)After treatment,the number of swollen joints and the number of joint pressure and pain in the two groups were significantly improved(P＜0.05),and the observation group was significantly superior to the control group in improving swollen joints and joint pressure and pain,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).(3)After treatment,the VAS and SAS scores of patients in the two groups were significantly improved(P＜0.05),and the observation group was significantly superior to the control group in improving the VAS and SAS scores,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).(4)The total effective rate of the observation group was 91.66%(33/36),while that of the control group was 77.78%(28/36).The efficacy of the observation group was superior to that of the control group,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Conclusion Successive trigger needling combined with fire needling treating rheumatoid arthritis of cold-damp obstruction type can significantly improve the clinical symptoms of patients,reduce their anxiety,and thus improve the quality of life of patients,with remarkable efficacy.

Objective To establish the methods of galvanic vestibular stimulation-vestibular evoked myogenic potentials(GVS-VEMPs)in healthy children and to obtain the normal value of GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP in these children in China.Methods Twenty(3～14 years)healthy children and 24 healthy adults(18～30 years)were enrolled for conventional examinations of GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP.Using the galvanic stimulation in-tensity under 3 mA/1 ms for children and 5 mA/1 ms for adults.The characteristics of elicitation and parameter re-sults of GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP in children and adults,as well as the pain scores and the elicitation of differ-ent stimulus intensities in the two age groups were recorded.Results The elicitation of GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP were both 100.0％in children and adult groups.The p1 latency,n1 latency and p1-n1 interval latency of GVS-cVEMP were 10.46±1.84 ms,16.98±2.12 ms and 6.52±1.42 ms respectively in children group,the n1 la-tency and p1-n1 interval latency were significantly shorter than the adult group(P＜0.05).The n1 latency,p1 la-tency and p1-n1 interval latency of GVS-oVEMP were 8.87±1.40 ms,12.25±1.80 ms and 3.39±1.07 ms re-spectively in children group with no significant difference between the two groups.The thresholds of GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP in children group were significantly lower than adult group(P＜0.01),but no differences were found in adult group regarding on the amplitude and interaural amplitude asymmetry ratio.In addition,with the in-crease of the intensity of galvanic stimulation,the correlation between pain scores and the elicitation rates of GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP also increased.Conclusion Using appropriate stimulus intensity and recording methods,GVS-cVEMP and GVS-oVEMP could be successfully assessed and detected in healthy children over 3 years old and adolescents.The latency of GVS-cVEMP in children is slightly shorter than that in adults,therefore we recommend selecting the matched age group for assessment in the children group.

Objective To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of hand-foot-mouth disease(HFMD)in Gan-zhou.Methods The epidemiological data of HFMD reported by the Infectious Disease Surveillance System,a sub-system of China Disease Prevention and Control Information System,from 2017 to 2020 were analyzed by descriptive methods.Enterovirus(EV)nucleic acid and typing detections via throat swabs,anal swabs or herpes fluid of patients was detected by real-time fluo-rescent polymerase chain reaction.The change in HFMD epidemic characteristics was compared between 2020 and 2017-2019.Results The incidence of HFMD in Ganzhou in 2020 was significantly lower than that from 2017 to 2019(x2=50.587,P＜0.05).In 2020,the incidence of HFMD in counties and districts of Ganzhou(except Huichang County)signifi-cantly decreased compared with that in 2017-2019(P＜0.05).From 2017 to 2019,the incidence of HFMD was obviously seasonal,with a high incidence in summer and autumn,and two significant incidence peaks were formed in June and September in 2017 and 2018,respectively.In 2019,there was a summer peak in June.The epidemic trend in 2020 was different,with a very low epidemic trend in summer and autumn,and a peak in winter.The incidence of HFMD in men,women and all ages in 2020 significantly decreased compared with that in 2017-2019(P＜0.05),and the age of onset was mainly distributed in 1-5 years,especially in children aged 1 to 3 years.There was a significant difference in the incidence of HFMD among different ages(P＜0.05).The positive rate of EV in Ganzhou in 2020 was lower than that from 2017 to 2019(x2=47.273,P＜0.05).The positive rate of EV in January,March to September in 2020 was significantly lower,and the positive rate of EV in November,December 2020 was significantly higher than that in the same period in 2017 to 2019(P＜0.05).Strain CA16 showed an increasing trend year by year from 2017 to 2019,and became the dominant strain in 2019.The proportion of patients infected with CA6 strain was on the fise from 2018 to 2020,and CA6 became the dominant strain in 2020.Conclusion The HFMD in Ganzhou has obvious population characteristics and seasonality,and the pathogen spectrum is constantly changing.