ObjectiveTo investigate the therapeutic efficacy of Danggui Shaoyaosan （DSS） on renal injury in db/db mice and its impact on endoplasmic reticulum stress （ERS） in renal tissues. MethodsThirty 8-week-old male db/db mice and six db/m mice were acclimated for one week， after which urinary microalbumin and blood glucose levels were monitored to establish a diabetic kidney disease （DKD） model. The model mice were randomly divided into a model group， an irbesartan group， and three DSS treatment groups with different doses （16.77， 33.54， and 67.08 g·kg^-1·d^-1）. A normal group was set as control. Each group was intragastrically administered with the corresponding drugs or saline for 8 weeks. After the intervention， general conditions were observed. Serum cystatin C （Cys-C）， 24-hour urinary total protein （24 h-UTP）， 24-hour urinary microalbumin （24 h-UMA）， urinary creatinine （Ucr）， and urea nitrogen （UUN） were measured. Transmission electron microscopy （TEM） was used to observe glomerular basement membrane （GBM） and ultrastructural changes of the endoplasmic reticulum （ER） in glomerular endothelial cells. Western blot， real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR）， and immunohistochemistry were used to analyze renal tissue structure and the expression of GRP78， CHOP， and related markers. ResultsCompared with the normal group， the mice in the model group showed curled posture， sluggish response， poor fur condition， increased levels of Cys-C， 24 h-UTP， 24 h-UMA， and UUN （P<0.05）， while Ucr decreased （P<0.05）. The GBM was significantly thickened， with podocyte and foot process fusion. The protein expressions of GRP78， CHOP， and ATF6 were significantly upregulated （P<0.05）， the mRNA levels of GRP78 and CHOP increased （P<0.05）， and immunohistochemistry showed an enhanced GRP78 signal （P<0.05）. After treatment， the mice exhibited improved behavior， normalized GBM and podocyte structure， improved ER morphology and markedly better biochemical indicators. Western blot， Real-time PCR， and immunohistochemistry indicated that the ERS-related markers were downregulated in the DSS treatment groups （P<0.05）， suggesting alleviated ERS and improved renal function. ConclusionDSS can effectively ameliorate renal pathological damage in db/db mice， possibly by regulating ERS in glomerular endothelial cells， although the underlying signaling mechanisms require further investigation.

Esophageal cancer is a prevalent malignant tumor of the digestive tract in China, and radical surgery remains the cornerstone of its comprehensive treatment. However, multifactorial challenges such as postoperative gastrointestinal tract reconstruction, traumatic stress, and tumor-related metabolic disturbances render esophageal cancer patients highly susceptible to malnutrition. Perioperative nutritional support therapy plays a crucial role in enhancing surgical safety, improving clinical outcomes, and elevating patients' quality of life by regulating metabolic homeostasis, preserving organ function, and optimizing the immune microenvironment. This article reviews the mechanisms underlying malnutrition in esophageal cancer, methods for nutritional status assessment, and precision intervention pathways based on multi-omics evaluations. The aim is to strengthen clinicians' awareness of standardized perioperative nutritional management for esophageal cancer patients and promote its clinical implementation, thereby facilitating postoperative recovery and improving long-term quality of life.

Objective To analyze the infection status and epidemic trends of soil-borne nematode infections in Yubei, Chongqing City, in 2010,2021, and 2022. Methods The local populations from four survey sites of four towns in 2010 and five sites of five towns in 2021 and 2022 were surveyed regarding their basic information using a unified form. Fecal samples of the participants were collected and tested for soil-borne nematode infections using the modified Kato-Katz thick smear method. Results In 2010, 2 049 participants were surveyed, followed by 1 000 participants in 2021 and 2022. The overall prevalence of parasitic infections declined significantly from 3.86% to 0.20%. In 2010, soil-transmitted nematode included hookworms(3.81%) and roundworms(0.29%). In 2021, the infection rates of roundworms and hookworms were 1.70% and 0.10% respectively. Notably, only Ascaris was identified in 2022(0.20%). The≥60 age group consistently exhibited the highest infection rates across all surveys, followed by the 40-59 age group. The infection rates of males in the three surveys were 3.31%,1.92%, and 0.20% respectively, and those of females were 4.37%, 1.46%, and 0.20% respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in the infection rates between males and females. Educational attainment was inversely associated with infection; in 2010, the highest prevalence was observed among those with primary education or below, whereas in 2021, illiterate or semi-literate individuals showed the highest susceptibility. The occupational distribution of infections in 2010 indicated that retirees (8.33%), farmers(4.86%), and homemakers or unemployed individuals(3.45%)were the most affected. However, in 2021 and 2022, farmers emerged as the predominant occupational group with soil-transmitted nematode infections. Conclusions The infection rate of soil-borne nematodes showed a decreasing trend in Yubei, and the infection species changed from hookworms in 2010 to Ascaris in 2022. Farmers, the elderly, and people with low education levels should continue to be the focus of preventive and control efforts.

Objective To gain insights into the biological characteristics of different populations of Culex tritaeniorhynchus within and around the Yellow Sea wetland from the perspective of the occurrence of resistance, we investigated the levels of resistance to deltamethrin and kdr gene mutation in the wetland and its peripheral areas. Methods Specimens were collected from Cx. tritaeniorhynchus populations at two monitoring sites in the Rare Bird National Nature Reserve and Tiaozi Ni Wetland Scenic Area, and also from two populations in Yancheng City and the Liuhe District of Nanjing, and the resistance of these mosquitoes to deltamethrin was determined using the CDC biotest bottle method. For each concentration of deltamethrin assessed, a random subset of exposed specimens was selected for amplification of the kdr gene fragment, followed by Sanger sequencing to identify and analyze resistance-associated mutations. Results The LC50 levels of deltamethrin among mosquitoes from the four populations in Luhe, Yancheng, the Rare Bird National Nature Reserve and the Tiaozi Ni Wetland Scenic Area were 2.048 5, 7.798 2, 3.473 3, and 17.695 5 mg/mL, respectively, with corresponding concentrations of deltamethrin ranging from 0.005 to 5.000,0.050 to 50.000,0.050 to 25.000 and 0.050 to 50.000 mg/mL, respectively. Furthermore, the ranges of the KT50 values were 11.76-107.43, 67.05-216.30,29.77-107.43 and 28.40-329.51 min; the 1-h knockdown rates were 34.58%-99.15%, 9.52%-43.80%, 55.09%-73.01%, and 10.09%-68.07%; and the 24-h mortality rates were 12.15%-67.52%,9.52%-79.56%,13.17%-82.21%, and 11.01%-78.99%, respectively. With respect to kdr gene mutation, we assayed a total of 63,70,59, and 57 mosquitoes for the four populations, for which we detected L1014F mutation frequencies of 14.29%, 35.00%, 20.34%, and 31.58%, respectively, with a majority of these mutations being heterozygous for resistance. In addition, five adult mosquitoes were identified has having synonymous mutations at site 1011[i. e. , AAT(asparagine)mutation to AAC(asparagine)]. Conclusions Our findings revealed the clear resistance of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus to deltamethrin in the Yancheng region of the Yellow Sea wetland, and the resistance phenotype and kdr frequency of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus in the wetland environment were comparable to those of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus in the wetland environment, thereby indicating that the resistance of different populations of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus was homogeneous under the pressure of different insecticide selection within and around the wetland. However, the underlying mechanisms need to be further studied.

ObjectiveTo analyze the microbial culture positivity rate， pathogen spectrum， prevalence of multidrug-resistant organisms （MDROs）， and differences among donor procurement sources in corneas from the Eye Bank of Guangdong Province， and to provide evidence for eye bank quality control and the prevention of post-keratoplasty infections. MethodsThis retrospective study included 7 442 donor corneas procured by the Eye Bank of Guangdong Province and used for keratoplasty at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center， Sun Yat-sen University， between 2018 and 2025. During surgery， donor corneoscleral rim tissue was excised for bacterial and fungal culture. Culture-positive specimens underwent microbial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing （AST）. Culture-positive corneas were compared across study years， pathogen categories， and donor procurement sources. ResultsOf the 7 442 donor corneas， 251 were culture-positive， corresponding to an overall culture positivity rate of 3.37%， with annual rates ranging from 1.50% to 5.31%. Among culture-positive corneas， 178 （70.92%） yielded bacteria alone， 72 （28.68%） yielded fungi alone， and 1 （0.40%） yielded both bacteria and fungi. Candida spp. and Aspergillus spp. were the predominant fungal isolates. Gram-negative bacteria were more frequently isolated than Gram-positive bacteria. The most common bacterial isolates were Acinetobacter baumannii， Staphylococcus epidermidis， Stenotrophomonas maltophilia， Enterococcus faecium， and Pseudomonas fluorescens. MDROs accounted for 75.47% of bacterial isolates， predominantly Acinetobacter baumannii， Staphylococcus epidermidis， and Enterococcus faecium， and demonstrated an increasing trend over the study period. Donor corneas procured through the Hospital Cornea Retrieval Program （HCRP） had a higher culture positivity rate than those obtained through Organ Procurement Organization （OPO） （P＜0.000 1）. Among culture-positive donor corneas， the proportion of fungal culture-positive corneas was significantly higher in the HCRP group than in the OPO group （P=0.001 5）， whereas the proportion of MDROs among bacterial culture-positive corneas was significantly higher in the OPO group than that in the HCRP group （P=0.005 2）. ConclusionsThe overall culture positivity rate of donor corneas from the Eye Bank of Guangdong Province is relatively low， indicating that the risk of microbial contamination is controlled. However， pathogen profiles and antimicrobial resistance patterns varies by procurement source. Ongoing microbiological and antimicrobial resistance surveillance， together with optimized donor risk assessment and timely reporting of culture results， may further improve eye bank quality management and help inform strategies for preventing post-keratoplasty infections.

ObjectiveTo analyze the microbial culture positivity rate， pathogen spectrum， prevalence of multidrug-resistant organisms （MDROs）， and differences among donor procurement sources in corneas from the Eye Bank of Guangdong Province， and to provide evidence for eye bank quality control and the prevention of post-keratoplasty infections. MethodsThis retrospective study included 7 442 donor corneas procured by the Eye Bank of Guangdong Province and used for keratoplasty at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center， Sun Yat-sen University， between 2018 and 2025. During surgery， donor corneoscleral rim tissue was excised for bacterial and fungal culture. Culture-positive specimens underwent microbial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing （AST）. Culture-positive corneas were compared across study years， pathogen categories， and donor procurement sources. ResultsOf the 7 442 donor corneas， 251 were culture-positive， corresponding to an overall culture positivity rate of 3.37%， with annual rates ranging from 1.50% to 5.31%. Among culture-positive corneas， 178 （70.92%） yielded bacteria alone， 72 （28.68%） yielded fungi alone， and 1 （0.40%） yielded both bacteria and fungi. Candida spp. and Aspergillus spp. were the predominant fungal isolates. Gram-negative bacteria were more frequently isolated than Gram-positive bacteria. The most common bacterial isolates were Acinetobacter baumannii， Staphylococcus epidermidis， Stenotrophomonas maltophilia， Enterococcus faecium， and Pseudomonas fluorescens. MDROs accounted for 75.47% of bacterial isolates， predominantly Acinetobacter baumannii， Staphylococcus epidermidis， and Enterococcus faecium， and demonstrated an increasing trend over the study period. Donor corneas procured through the Hospital Cornea Retrieval Program （HCRP） had a higher culture positivity rate than those obtained through Organ Procurement Organization （OPO） （P＜0.000 1）. Among culture-positive donor corneas， the proportion of fungal culture-positive corneas was significantly higher in the HCRP group than in the OPO group （P=0.001 5）， whereas the proportion of MDROs among bacterial culture-positive corneas was significantly higher in the OPO group than that in the HCRP group （P=0.005 2）. ConclusionsThe overall culture positivity rate of donor corneas from the Eye Bank of Guangdong Province is relatively low， indicating that the risk of microbial contamination is controlled. However， pathogen profiles and antimicrobial resistance patterns varies by procurement source. Ongoing microbiological and antimicrobial resistance surveillance， together with optimized donor risk assessment and timely reporting of culture results， may further improve eye bank quality management and help inform strategies for preventing post-keratoplasty infections.

ObjectiveMethylthioadenosine phosphorylase (MTAP) is found to be frequently deleted in malignant cancers, but the role of MTAP underlying metastasis and stemness of liver cancer remains far from clear. 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu) is clinically used in treating advanced liver cancer, however, chemoresistance is one of the major barriers impeding its efficacy. Liver cancer stem cells are considered to be the reservoir for tumor progression and chemoresistance. This study aims to explore the role of MTAP in regulating stemness and chemoresistance of 5-Fu in liver cancer. It is designed to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying MTAP-manipulated stemness. How MTAP influences metastasis and chemoresistance against 5-Fu in liver cancer is also elaborated. MethodsThe correlation of MTAP expression with stemness marker CD133 was evaluated by flow cytometry. Colony formation assays were conducted to analyze the tumorigenic ability. Western blot assays were applied to delineate the molecular mechanisms underlying MTAP-regulated stemness. Trans-well assays were conducted to analyze the metastatic potential of liver cancer cells.In vivo experiments were performed using subcutaneous xenograft and lung metastasis model on nude mice. Tumor size and weight were analyzed upon 5-Fu treatment. Metastatic nodules on lungs were evaluated. Immunohistochemical and TUNNEL assays were performed on slides obtained from tumor tissues. ResultsMTAP overexpression inhibited expression of CD133 and colony formation, which is further ablated by MTAP inhibitor. MTAP deprivation augmented stemness and colony formation, which is reversed by protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) overexpression but not its catalytically inactive counterparts. Critically, SRY-box transcription factor 2 (SOX2) was found to be a downstream regulator of MTAP/PRMT5, leading to stemness of liver cancer cells. MTAP overexpression suppressed SOX2 expression, while MTAP inhibition augmented expression of SOX2. Critically, MTAP overexpression inhibited migration and invasion of liver cancer cells. In vivo experiments in animal model found that MTAP deprivation promotes tumor growth and metastatic nodules of liver cancer. Additionally, MTAP overexpression inhibits tumor growth. Moreover, MTAP deprivation contributes to chemoresistance shown by increased tumor size and weight treated by 5-Fu. In contrast, MTAP overexpression led to further decline in tumor size and weight elicited by 5-Fu treatment. Accordingly, SOX2 was inhibited in tumor tissues after MTAP overexpression. Marker of proliferation Ki67 (Ki67) expression was dampened while apoptosis was found in MTAP-overexpressed tumor tissues. ConclusionIn this study, plethora of experimental studies collectively demonstrated that MTAP deprivation enhances stemness of liver cancer by regulating SOX2, exerting anti-cancer and chemoresistant role against 5-Fu in liver cancer. It is also worth noting that MTAP inhibition promoted metastasis of liver cancer. MTAP overexpression augmented tumor shrinking elicited by 5-Fu and SOX2 was involved in this process. These results concluded that MTAP/PRMT5/SOX2 signaling axis was involved in regulating stemness and chemoresistance of liver cancer. These findings help to exploit novel therapies by targeting stemness in MTAP-depleted liver cancer. It shed novel light on unveiling MTAP-regulated stemness in antagonizing 5-Fu treatment in liver cancer. It also adds mounting evidence to the theoretical basis for accomplishing personalized chemotherapy of liver cancer patients by targeting MTAP or its downstream PRMT5/SOX2.

Diabetic kidney disease(DKD)is a microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus with a complex pathogenesis.Recent studies have revealed that autophagy and ferroptosis,as two forms of programmed cell death,exhibit dynamic interactions in DKD:autophagy maintains homeostasis by eliminating damaged organelles,while ferroptosis is driven by iron-dependent lipid peroxidation.Imbalance between the two exacerbates renal injury.This review systematically summarizes the signaling pathways and key regulatory factors related to autophagy and ferroptosis,as well as their interaction mechanisms[such as nuclear receptor coactivator 4(NCOA4)-mediated ferritinophagy,clock autophagy,and lipid autophagy].It further elaborates the molecular network by which these processes synergistically regulate DKD progression.Additionally,the potential of modern pharmaceuticals and active components of traditional Chinese medicine to improve kidney injury by targeting autophagy and ferroptosis is discussed,proposing that targeting their cross-talk pathways may provide novel therapeutic strategies for DKD,aiming to lay a theoretical foundation for the development of targeted intervention strategies and precision therapeutic regimens.

Objective To develop a predictive model for postoperative mortality risk in patients with acute aortic dissection(AAD)using the Extreme Gradient Boosting(XGBoost)algorithm combined with Shapley Additive Explanation(SHAP),and to establish a prediction website to serve as a diagnostic and therapeutic support platform for clinicians and patients.Methods A retrospective cohort study design was adopted.Data from 782 AAD patients who underwent surgical treatment at the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University from January 2013 to December 2023 were collected,including basic information and initial serum biomarker test results.Patients were randomly divided into training and test sets at a 7:3 ratio.An external validation set consisting of 313 AAD patients admitted to the Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University from January 2020 to December 2023 was also established for further model validation.Variables were screened using LASSO regression,and an XGBoost machine learning model was constructed and interpreted using SHAP.The predictive performance of the model was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis.Using the Shiny package,the XGBoost model was deployed to shinyapps.io to create a prediction website for postoperative mortality risk in AAD patients.One patient was selected by simple random sampling from the test set and the external validation set respectively for the prediction example on the Shiny webpage.Results The XGBoost model demonstrated high predictive performance for postoperative mortality in AAD patients,with area under the ROC curve(AUC)values of 0.928(95%CI 0.901-0.956)in the training set,0.919(95%CI 0.891-0.949)in the test set,and 0.941(95%CI 0.915-0.967)in the external validation set.SHAP values indicated the following order of variable importance in the model(from highest to lowest):"lactate dehydrogenase""blood chlorine""multiple organ injury""carbon dioxide combining power""prothrombin time""α-hydroxybutyric acid""creatine kinase isoenzyme""Stanford classification""combined use of bedside blood purification""gender""acute kidney injury""gastrointestinal bleeding""brain injury"and"shock".A risk prediction website for adverse postoperative outcomes in AAD patients was developed using XGBoost-SHAP method(https://dun-dunxiaolu.shinyapps.io/document/)and validated with examples.One randomly selected patient from each of the test and external validation sets was applied:the predicted mortality risk value for patient 1(who died postoperatively)was 0.9539,and that for patient 2(who survived postoperatively)was 0.0206.Conclusions The XGBoost-SHAP model demonstrates high accuracy in predicting postoperative mortality risk for AAD patients.The online prediction tool established based on this model enhances the identification efficiency of high-risk postoperative mortality patients.

Objective:To explore the mechanism of curcumin (Cur) in intervening leukemia based on transcriptomics and network pharmacology.Methods:(1) Cell proliferation experiment: Leukemia MV-4-11 cells were cultured in vitro and divided into the control group (DMSO), 15 μmol/L curcumin group (Cur 15 μmol/L), and 20 μmol/L curcumin group (Cur 20 μmol/L). The CFSE method by flow cytometry was used to determine the inhibitory effect of curcumin on the growth of leukemia MV-4-11 cells at 0, 24, and 48 hours. (2) Network pharmacology analysis: the Smiles number of curcumin was obtained using the PubChem database. The targets of curcumin were retrieved from SwissTargetPrediction, SEA, TTD, and CTD platforms. Leukemia-related targets were screened using Genecards, OMIM, TTD, and CTD databases, and the intersection targets of curcumin-leukemia were further collected. (3) Transcriptomics and network pharmacology analysis: RNA from MV-4-11 cells in the control group and Cur group was collected, transcriptome sequencing was performed, and the common targets of differential genes in network pharmacology and transcriptomics were collected. The STRING website and Cytoscape software were used to construct a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network for the intersection targets. The David database and micro-bioinformatics were used for enrichment analysis based on gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) databases. Finally, the core targets and main pathways of curcumin in anti-leukemia were screened out.Results:(1) Compared with the control group, 15 μmol/L and 20 μmol/L curcumin significantly inhibited the proliferation of MV-4-11 cells (all P<0.05). (2) Network pharmacology analysis showed 1 209 curcumin drug targets and 7 702 leukemia-related targets, with 901 intersection targets for curcumin′s anti-leukemia effect. (3) Transcriptome sequencing showed 14 714 genes expressed in the curcumin group and 13 689 genes in the control group, with a total of 3 064 differentially expressed genes, including 2 189 up-regulated genes and 875 down-regulated genes. There were 182 intersection targets between network pharmacology and transcriptomics. KEGG enrichment results indicated that the anti-leukemia targets of curcumin were mainly related to cancer signaling pathways, phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase signaling pathway (PI3K-Akt) signaling pathway, and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway. Conclusions:This study obtained the gene expression profile of curcumin acting on leukemia and elaborated the molecular mechanism of inhibiting leukemia cell proliferation, which is mainly involved in cancer signaling pathways, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, MAPK signaling pathway, etc., indicating that the inhibitory effect of curcumin on leukemia is multi-faceted and multi-level.