ObjectiveTo explore the potential mechanism of Xianglian Huazhuo prescription （XLHZ） in treating chronic atrophic gastritis （CAG） by regulating cell cycle and inhibiting proliferation， using bioinformatics technology and animal experiments. MethodsDifferential expressed genes （DEGs） related to CAG were screened using GEO database and GEO2R tool. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis （WGCNA） was employed to search for hub genes of CAG. These hub genes were intersected with cell cycle proliferation based on GeneCards database. Eenrichment analysis of the intersecting genes was performed to obtain signaling pathways and biological processes related to CAG. Protein protein interaction （PPI） analysis of genes was conducted using the Protein Interaction Platform （STRING） database to search the super hub gene （hub 2.0）， and animal experiments were conducted for further validation. Fourteen of 70 male Wistar rats were randomly selected as the normal group， and the remaining 56 rats were prepared by the combined modeling method of "starvation disorder+N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine （MNNG） + sodium salicylate". The successfully modeled rats were randomly divided into the model group， XLHZ-H， XLHZ-M， and XLHZ-L groups （36， 18， 9 g·kg^-1， respectively）， and Morodan group （1.4 g·kg^-1）. Each group was given corresponding intervention for 60 days. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining was used to observe the histopathological changes of gastric mucosa in rats. The ultrastructure of gastric mucosal tissue cells was observed by transmission electron microscopy. The relative expression levels of TGF-β₁， Smad2 and Smad3 proteins， S/G₂/M phase marker geminin and proliferation marker MCM2 were detected by Western blot in gastric mucosal tissue， and Spearman correlation analysis was performed. ResultsA total of 15 hub 2.0 genes were identified， including TGF-β₁， suggesting the involvement of the TGF-β₁ signaling pathway in the CAG pathogenesis. Compared with the normal group， the expressions of TGF-β₁， Smad2， geminin and MCM2 proteins in the gastric mucosa tissue of the model group were increased （P<0.05）， and the expression of Smad3 protein was decreased （P<0.05）. Compared with the model group， the expressions of TGF-β₁ and geminin in the gastric mucosa were decreased in the drug groups （P<0.05）. The XLHZ-M group， XLHZ-H group and Morodan group had significantly decreased protein expression of Smad2 and MCM2 （P<0.05）. The protein expression of Smad3 was significantly increased in XLHZ-M， XLHZ-H， and Morodan groups （P<0.05）. Spearman correlation analysis showed that Smad3 was negatively correlated with other indicators， and positively correlated with other indicators （P<0.01）. ConclusionXLHZ may inhibit TGF-β₁/Smads signaling pathway， regulate cell cycle， and inhibit proliferation in the treatment of CAG.

ObjectiveTo explore the potential mechanism of Xianglian Huazhuo prescription （XLHZ） in treating chronic atrophic gastritis （CAG） by regulating cell cycle and inhibiting proliferation， using bioinformatics technology and animal experiments. MethodsDifferential expressed genes （DEGs） related to CAG were screened using GEO database and GEO2R tool. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis （WGCNA） was employed to search for hub genes of CAG. These hub genes were intersected with cell cycle proliferation based on GeneCards database. Eenrichment analysis of the intersecting genes was performed to obtain signaling pathways and biological processes related to CAG. Protein protein interaction （PPI） analysis of genes was conducted using the Protein Interaction Platform （STRING） database to search the super hub gene （hub 2.0）， and animal experiments were conducted for further validation. Fourteen of 70 male Wistar rats were randomly selected as the normal group， and the remaining 56 rats were prepared by the combined modeling method of "starvation disorder+N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine （MNNG） + sodium salicylate". The successfully modeled rats were randomly divided into the model group， XLHZ-H， XLHZ-M， and XLHZ-L groups （36， 18， 9 g·kg^-1， respectively）， and Morodan group （1.4 g·kg^-1）. Each group was given corresponding intervention for 60 days. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining was used to observe the histopathological changes of gastric mucosa in rats. The ultrastructure of gastric mucosal tissue cells was observed by transmission electron microscopy. The relative expression levels of TGF-β₁， Smad2 and Smad3 proteins， S/G₂/M phase marker geminin and proliferation marker MCM2 were detected by Western blot in gastric mucosal tissue， and Spearman correlation analysis was performed. ResultsA total of 15 hub 2.0 genes were identified， including TGF-β₁， suggesting the involvement of the TGF-β₁ signaling pathway in the CAG pathogenesis. Compared with the normal group， the expressions of TGF-β₁， Smad2， geminin and MCM2 proteins in the gastric mucosa tissue of the model group were increased （P<0.05）， and the expression of Smad3 protein was decreased （P<0.05）. Compared with the model group， the expressions of TGF-β₁ and geminin in the gastric mucosa were decreased in the drug groups （P<0.05）. The XLHZ-M group， XLHZ-H group and Morodan group had significantly decreased protein expression of Smad2 and MCM2 （P<0.05）. The protein expression of Smad3 was significantly increased in XLHZ-M， XLHZ-H， and Morodan groups （P<0.05）. Spearman correlation analysis showed that Smad3 was negatively correlated with other indicators， and positively correlated with other indicators （P<0.01）. ConclusionXLHZ may inhibit TGF-β₁/Smads signaling pathway， regulate cell cycle， and inhibit proliferation in the treatment of CAG.

Objective To evaluate the effects of the method of blood-cooling and blood stasis-resolving on heart function and prognosis in patients with sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction(SIMD).Methods Sixty patients with SIMD admitted to the department of critical care medicine of Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from June 2022 to October 2024 were enrolled as study subjects.The patients were divided into treatment group and control group according to random number table,with 30 patients in each group.All patients received conventional treatments,the patients in the treatment group were given Taohe Chengqi decoction(Persicae Semen 12 g,Chinese rhubarb 12 g,Cinnamon twig 6 g,Licorice root 6 g and Sodium Sulfate 6 g),the decoction was concentrated to 200 mL and taken in 2 divided doses in the morning and evening,one dose daily;and the patients in the control group were given the same amount of warm water.The total course of treatment lasts for 7 days.The differences in indicators of cardiac function[brain natriuretic peptide(BNP),cardiac troponin I(cTnI),MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase(CK-MB),aspartate aminotransferase(AST)]and echocardiographic parameters[left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF),left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(LVEDD),left ventricular end-systolic diameter(LVESD),mitral orifice early/late diastolic blood flow velocity ratio(E/A ratio),E/mitral and tricuspid valve ostia and the peak early diastolic velocity(E/e')]at admission,at 1st and 7th day after treatment,and prognosis indexes[mechanical ventilation time,intensive care unit(ICU)length of stay,total hospital stay,28-day survival rate]were compared between two groups.Draw the Kaplan-Meier survival curve and compare the difference in the 28-day cumulative survival rate between the two groups of patients.Results After 7 days therapy,LVEF of the treatment group was significantly higher than that the control(0.524±0.132 vs.0.458±0.118,P<0.05)and E/e'ratio of the treatment group was significantly lower than the control group[11.17(9.57,12.04)vs.11.82(11.28,13.72),P<0.05].There were no significant differences in the 28-day mortality and total hospital stay time between the two groups,but mechanical ventilation time[days:7.00(0.00,11.00)vs.12.50(3.50,21.75),P<0.05]and stay time of ICU[days:14.50(7.75,25.00)vs.21.00(14.25,31.50),P<0.05]in the treatment group were shorter than those in the control group.The Kaplan-Meier survival showed that the cumulative 28-day survival rate was similar between two groups(Log-Rank:χ2=1.448,P=0.229).Conclusion The method of blood-cooling and blood stasis-resolving could decrease mechanical ventilation time and length of stay in ICU of SIMD patients and could increase LVEF in the treatment group.

Objective To evaluate the effects of the method of blood-cooling and blood stasis-resolving on heart function and prognosis in patients with sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction(SIMD).Methods Sixty patients with SIMD admitted to the department of critical care medicine of Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from June 2022 to October 2024 were enrolled as study subjects.The patients were divided into treatment group and control group according to random number table,with 30 patients in each group.All patients received conventional treatments,the patients in the treatment group were given Taohe Chengqi decoction(Persicae Semen 12 g,Chinese rhubarb 12 g,Cinnamon twig 6 g,Licorice root 6 g and Sodium Sulfate 6 g),the decoction was concentrated to 200 mL and taken in 2 divided doses in the morning and evening,one dose daily;and the patients in the control group were given the same amount of warm water.The total course of treatment lasts for 7 days.The differences in indicators of cardiac function[brain natriuretic peptide(BNP),cardiac troponin I(cTnI),MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase(CK-MB),aspartate aminotransferase(AST)]and echocardiographic parameters[left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF),left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(LVEDD),left ventricular end-systolic diameter(LVESD),mitral orifice early/late diastolic blood flow velocity ratio(E/A ratio),E/mitral and tricuspid valve ostia and the peak early diastolic velocity(E/e')]at admission,at 1st and 7th day after treatment,and prognosis indexes[mechanical ventilation time,intensive care unit(ICU)length of stay,total hospital stay,28-day survival rate]were compared between two groups.Draw the Kaplan-Meier survival curve and compare the difference in the 28-day cumulative survival rate between the two groups of patients.Results After 7 days therapy,LVEF of the treatment group was significantly higher than that the control(0.524±0.132 vs.0.458±0.118,P<0.05)and E/e'ratio of the treatment group was significantly lower than the control group[11.17(9.57,12.04)vs.11.82(11.28,13.72),P<0.05].There were no significant differences in the 28-day mortality and total hospital stay time between the two groups,but mechanical ventilation time[days:7.00(0.00,11.00)vs.12.50(3.50,21.75),P<0.05]and stay time of ICU[days:14.50(7.75,25.00)vs.21.00(14.25,31.50),P<0.05]in the treatment group were shorter than those in the control group.The Kaplan-Meier survival showed that the cumulative 28-day survival rate was similar between two groups(Log-Rank:χ2=1.448,P=0.229).Conclusion The method of blood-cooling and blood stasis-resolving could decrease mechanical ventilation time and length of stay in ICU of SIMD patients and could increase LVEF in the treatment group.

Stroke-related sarcopenia (SRS) is a secondary sarcopenia caused by stroke, typically characterized by a rapid decline in muscle mass and structural changes following the onset of stroke. At present, there is a lack of clinical research on the diagnosis and treatment of SRS, and its mechanism of occurrence is complex, which cannot be explained by post-stroke apraxia alone, leading to significant difficulties in screening and intervening in SRS. This article reviews the pathogenesis, specific manifestations, screening, risk factors and predictive biomarkers of SRS, its impact on patients, and possible prevention and intervention strategies.

Objective:To evaluate the effect of prior statins use on the in-hospital mortality of adult sepsis patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM).Methods:A total of 3 545 sepsis patients with T2DM were retrospectively collected from the Critical Care Medical Information Market (MIMIC Ⅳ) database, with in-hospital mortality rate as the outcome variable. According to whether they have taken statins in the past, they were divided into two groups and propensity score matching was used. Multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed to calculate the adjusted hazard ratio ( HR) and 95% CI, and the relationship between past statins use and in-hospital mortality in sepsis patients with T2DM was analyzed. Results:A total of 3 545 sepsis patients with T2DM were included between 2008 and 2016. 1 556 patients used statins before admission, and 1 989 patients did not use statins. After propensity score matching, the number of patients who had previously used statins and those who had not used statins were 1 230 and 1 298, respectively. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, it was found that previous use of statins was associated with a reduced in-hospital mortality rate ( HR=0.82, 95% CI: 0.61-0.99, P=0.038). Kaplan Meier curves showed that sepsis patients with T2DM who used statins before admission had a lower in-hospital mortality rate (Log rank test: P<0.001). Conclusions:Pre admission use of statins may be associated with a reduced mortality rate in sepsis patients with concomitant T2DM.

Objective To investigate the risk factors of 28-day mortality in septic patients and develop optimizing clinical prediction model based on machine learning algorithms.Methods Data from patients admitted to the department of intensive care unit(ICU)of the Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from January 2019 to December 2023 were retrospectively analyzed.The data extracted included①gender,age,history of hypertension,diabetes,coronary heart disease,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD)and chronic kidney disease(CKD);②Vital signs and results of laboratory examination at admission were also collected,then acute physiology and chronic health evaluationⅡ(APACHEⅡ)score and sequential organ failure assessment(SOFA)score were calculated;③The other laboratory test results not included in APACHEⅡscore and SOFA score,such as blood lactate acid(Lac),alanine aminotransferase(AST),hemoglobin(Hb),procalcitonin(PCT),brian natriuretic peptide(BNP),C-reactive protein(CRP),activated partial thromboplastin time(APTT),D-dimer and troponin I(TNI)were also gathered.According to the 28-day survival,the patients were divided into a survival group and a death group.The difference of the clinical data and related loboratory indicators between the two groups of sepsis patients were compared.LASSO regression and Boruta algorithm were used to screen predictive variables.Models of Logistic regression(LG),neural network(NN)and light gradient boosting machine(LightGBM)were constructed.The data was divided into training set and verification set under a ratio of 7:3,and fivefold cross-validation was used to evaluate the stability of the models.Confusion matrix,receiver operator characteristic curve(ROC curve)and calibration curve were also used to assess the recognition ability and accuracy of three models.Decision curve analysis(DCA)was conducted to evaluate the models'utility in decision-making.Shapley additive explanations(SHAP)analysis was used to explain the best-performing model.Results A total of 426 patients were included in the study,of which 256 survived and 170 died.Compared with death group,the age(72.09±14.08 vs.76.88±11.32,P<0.05),COPD[11.33%(29/256)vs.20.00%(34/170)],CKD[20.31%(52/256)vs.31.77%(54/170)],Lac on admission[mmol/L:1.72(1.20,2.66)vs.2.25(1.60,3.50)],AST[U/L:32.00(18.00,59.75)vs.37.00(24.00,76.50)],CRP[mg/L:71.23(22.51,151.79)vs.87.00(37.00,173.36)],APACHEⅡscore(19.96±6.55 vs.22.83±6.92)and SOFA score[7(5,10)vs.9(5,12)]in surrial group were significantly decreased,the difference were statistically significant(all P<0.05).Age,APACHEⅡscore,Lac,PCT and CRP were revealed as independent predictors of 28-day mortality in sepsis by LASSO regression and Boruta algorithm,the above 5 variables were incorporated into the LG,NN and LightGBM models,and the five-fold cross-validation showed that the LightGBM model had the best stability.The confusion matrix,ROC curve and calibration curves of the 3 models were plotted,and the results showed that the F1 score of the 3 models were 0.61,0.63 and 0.74,respectively;area under the curve(AUC)was 0.68,0.74 and 0.87,respectively;the Log Loss was 0.62,0.41 and 0.34,respectively;and the Brier scores were 0.22,0.13 and 0.09,respectively,indicating that LightGBM model was optimal.DCA showed that LightGBM model had the greatest clinical net benefit.SHAP showed that the predicted results were in good agreement with the actual results.Conclusion The LightGBM model exhibited the best performance in predicting 28-day mortality in septic patients and has the potential to help clinicians identify high-risk patients and guide clinical decision-making.

Objective To investigate the risk factors of 28-day mortality in septic patients and develop optimizing clinical prediction model based on machine learning algorithms.Methods Data from patients admitted to the department of intensive care unit(ICU)of the Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from January 2019 to December 2023 were retrospectively analyzed.The data extracted included①gender,age,history of hypertension,diabetes,coronary heart disease,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD)and chronic kidney disease(CKD);②Vital signs and results of laboratory examination at admission were also collected,then acute physiology and chronic health evaluationⅡ(APACHEⅡ)score and sequential organ failure assessment(SOFA)score were calculated;③The other laboratory test results not included in APACHEⅡscore and SOFA score,such as blood lactate acid(Lac),alanine aminotransferase(AST),hemoglobin(Hb),procalcitonin(PCT),brian natriuretic peptide(BNP),C-reactive protein(CRP),activated partial thromboplastin time(APTT),D-dimer and troponin I(TNI)were also gathered.According to the 28-day survival,the patients were divided into a survival group and a death group.The difference of the clinical data and related loboratory indicators between the two groups of sepsis patients were compared.LASSO regression and Boruta algorithm were used to screen predictive variables.Models of Logistic regression(LG),neural network(NN)and light gradient boosting machine(LightGBM)were constructed.The data was divided into training set and verification set under a ratio of 7:3,and fivefold cross-validation was used to evaluate the stability of the models.Confusion matrix,receiver operator characteristic curve(ROC curve)and calibration curve were also used to assess the recognition ability and accuracy of three models.Decision curve analysis(DCA)was conducted to evaluate the models'utility in decision-making.Shapley additive explanations(SHAP)analysis was used to explain the best-performing model.Results A total of 426 patients were included in the study,of which 256 survived and 170 died.Compared with death group,the age(72.09±14.08 vs.76.88±11.32,P<0.05),COPD[11.33%(29/256)vs.20.00%(34/170)],CKD[20.31%(52/256)vs.31.77%(54/170)],Lac on admission[mmol/L:1.72(1.20,2.66)vs.2.25(1.60,3.50)],AST[U/L:32.00(18.00,59.75)vs.37.00(24.00,76.50)],CRP[mg/L:71.23(22.51,151.79)vs.87.00(37.00,173.36)],APACHEⅡscore(19.96±6.55 vs.22.83±6.92)and SOFA score[7(5,10)vs.9(5,12)]in surrial group were significantly decreased,the difference were statistically significant(all P<0.05).Age,APACHEⅡscore,Lac,PCT and CRP were revealed as independent predictors of 28-day mortality in sepsis by LASSO regression and Boruta algorithm,the above 5 variables were incorporated into the LG,NN and LightGBM models,and the five-fold cross-validation showed that the LightGBM model had the best stability.The confusion matrix,ROC curve and calibration curves of the 3 models were plotted,and the results showed that the F1 score of the 3 models were 0.61,0.63 and 0.74,respectively;area under the curve(AUC)was 0.68,0.74 and 0.87,respectively;the Log Loss was 0.62,0.41 and 0.34,respectively;and the Brier scores were 0.22,0.13 and 0.09,respectively,indicating that LightGBM model was optimal.DCA showed that LightGBM model had the greatest clinical net benefit.SHAP showed that the predicted results were in good agreement with the actual results.Conclusion The LightGBM model exhibited the best performance in predicting 28-day mortality in septic patients and has the potential to help clinicians identify high-risk patients and guide clinical decision-making.

Objective:To investigate the effects of ceftriaxone(CTX) on nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2(Nrf2)/glutathione peroxidase 4(GPX4) pathway and ferroptosis in early brain injury in rats with subarachnoid hemorrhage(SAH).Methods:Forty-eight clean grade male SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation group (Sham group), SAH group, SAH+ CTX group and SAH+ CTX+ Nrf2 inhibitor group (SAH+ CTX+ ML385 group) according to the random number table with 12 rats in each group.Seven days before modeling, rats in SAH+ CTX+ ML385 group were injected intraperitoneally with ML385 (30 mg · kg -1) once a day for consecutive 7 days.And 5 days before modeling, rats in SAH+ CTX group and SAH+ CTX+ ML385 group were treated with CTX(200 mg · kg -1) by intraperitoneal injection once a day for five consecutive days.Rats in Sham group and SAH group were intraperitoneally injected with the same amount of 0.9% sodium chloride solution.After 24 hours of modeling, the neurological function score and brain tissue water content of rats in each group were measured.HE staining was used to observe the morphology of neurons in CA1 and CA3 regions of hippocampus.Prussian blue staining was used to observe the iron deposition in cerebral cortex.Spectrophotometer was used to determine the iron content, malonic dialdehyde(MDA) content, glutathione(GSH) content and GPX4 activity in cerebral cortex.Western blot was used to detect the expression levels of Nrf2 and GPX4 proteins in cerebral cortex.SPSS 23.0 was used for statistical analysis.One-way ANOVA was used to compare the mean of multiple groups of samples, and Dunnett- t test was used for further pairwise comparison between groups. Results:There was a statistically significant difference in the neurological function scores of rats in the four groups 24 hours after SAH ( F=48.40, P<0.001). The neurological function score of rats in the SAH group 24 hours after SAH was significantly lower than those in Sham group and SAH+ CTX group (both P<0.05). The brain water content of rats in the four groups 24 h after SAH was statistically significant ( F=49.61, P<0.001). The brain water content of rats in the SAH group 24 h after SAH was significantly higher than that in Sham group and SAH+ CTX group(both P<0.05). There was statistically significant differences in the number of neuronal necrosis in CA1 and CA3 regions of hippocampus in the four groups 24 hours after SAH ( F=17.44, 246.50, both P<0.001). The numbers of neuronal necrosis in CA1 and CA3 regions of hippocampus in SAH group were significantly higher than those in Sham group and SAH+ CTX group, and the numbers of neuronal necrosis in CA1 and CA3 regions of hippocampus in SAH+ CTX+ ML385 group were significantly higher than those in SAH+ CTX group (all P<0.05). Twenty-four hours after SAH, the amount of iron deposited in the cerebral cortex of rats in the four groups was statistically significant ( F=2 363.0, P<0.001). The iron deposition in the cerebral cortex of rats in the SAH group was significantly higher than those in Sham group and SAH+ CTX group (both P<0.05). There were significant differences in iron content, MDA content, GSH content and GPX4 activity in the cerebral cortex of the four groups 24 h after SAH( F=2 380.0, 1 322.0, 789.1, 815.5, all P<0.001). The content of iron and MDA in the cerebral cortex of rats in SAH group were significantly higher than those in Sham group, while the content of GSH and the activity of GPX4 were significantly lower than those in Sham group (all P<0.05). The content of iron and MDA in the cerebral cortex of rats in SAH+ CTX group were lower than those in SAH group, and the content of GSH and the activity of GPX4 were higher than those in SAH group (all P<0.05). At 24 h after SAH, the expression levels of Nrf2 and GPX4 protein in the cerebral cortex of the four groups were statistically significant ( F=888.7, 1 556.0, both P<0.001). The protein expression levels of Nrf2 (0.382±0.014) and GPX4 (0.329±0.019) in the cerebral cortex in SAH group were lower than those in Sham group ((0.746±0.009), (0.953±0.009)) (both P<0.05). The expression levels of Nrf2 (0.631±0.006) and GPX4 (0.833±0.008) protein in the cerebral cortex in the SAH+ CTX group were significantly higher than those in the SAH group (both P<0.05). The expression levels of Nrf2 (0.427±0.009) and GPX4 (0.525±0.011) protein in the cerebral cortex in SAH+ CTX+ ML385 group were significantly lower than those in SAH+ CTX group (both P<0.05). Conclusion:Ceftriaxone may inhibit ferroptosis during EBI in SAH rats by regulating Nrf2/GPX4 signal axis.

Objective:To form the expert consensus on screening and evaluation of dysphagia with oral cancer patients (abbreviated as Consensus) , so as to standardize the relevant contents of screening and evaluation of dysphagia in the whole cycle of oral cancer. Methods:By referring to domestic and foreign literature related to dysphagia, combining with the specialty characteristics of oral cancer and the clinical experience of experts, a preliminary consensus was formed through in-depth interviews with experts. A total of 21 experts were selected for three rounds of expert letter consultation and expert meeting, the corresponding items were sorted out, analyzed and modified based on expert opinions, and the Consensus was finally formed. Results:The effective recovery rates of the three rounds of correspondence were 100.00% (21/21) , the expert authority coefficient was 0.91, the variation coefficient of each item was 0.04-0.20, and Kendall's harmony coefficient was 0.05 ( P<0.05) . The final consensus included four aspects, such as the effect of oral cancer on swallowing, the clinical manifestations of dysphagia, the basic procedures of screening and evaluation and the prevention and treatment of complications during evaluation. Conclusions:This Consensus is scientific and practical, which can provide clinical guidance for the screening and evaluation of dysphagia in the whole cycle of oral cancer.