Objective:To explore the clinical efficacy of metoprolol combined with trimetazidine on elderly patients with coronary heart disease(CHD)and chronic heart failure(CHF).Methods:This randomized controlled trial enrolled 120 elderly CHD+CHF patients admitted to Army 73rd Group Military Hospital of Chinese PLA between June 2020 and June 2023.Patients were divided into control group(metoprolol based on routine treatment)and in-tervention group(additional trimetazidine therapy).Each group consisted of 60 patients,treated for 1 month.The clinical efficacy,left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF),cardiac index(CI),left ventricular end-systolic diame-ter(LVESd),left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(LVEDd),serum levels of brain natriuretic peptide(BNP),high sensitive C-reactive protein(hsCRP),platelet a granule membrane protein-140(GMP-140),intercellular adhesion molecule-1(ICAM-1)and growth differentiation factor 15(GDF-15),and incidence of adverse reac-tions were compared between the two groups.Results:The total effective rate of the intervention group was significant-ly higher than that of the control group(95.00％vs.81.67％,P=0.023).Compared to patients in the control group,those in the intervention group had significant lower LVESd[(35.03±5.14)mm vs.(40.63±3.87)mm],LVEDd[(43.53±4.27)mm vs.(48.36±5.22)mm],levels of BNP[(94.35±7.55)pg/ml vs.(127.86±45.11)pg/ml],hsCRP[(0.91±0.28)mg/L vs.(1.47±0.52)mg/L],GMP-140[(7.14±1.06)μg/L vs.(9.37±1.59)μg/L],ICAM-1[(43.81±5.75)pg/ml vs.(52.74±5.83)pg/ml]andGDF-15[(891.46±62.51)pg/ml vs.(1025.57±110.08)pg/ml],and significant higher LVEF[(55.62±5.11)％vs.(47.35±8.61)％]and CI[(3.41±0.38)L·min-1·m-2 vs.(3.08±0.31)L·min-1·m-2](P＜0.001 all).There was no significant difference in the total inci-dence of adverse reactions between the intervention group and control group(8.33％vs.11.67％,P=0.543).Conclu-sion:Metoprolol combined trimetazidine may relieve myocardial inflammatory response and injury,and inhibit ventricular remodeling,thereby improve cardiac function in elderly patients with CHD and CHF.

Objective:To identify and validate secreted effector proteins of Chlamydia psittaci ( C. psittaci) through bioinformatic prediction and experimental verification, and to characterize their subcellular localization in host cells. Methods:Potential effector proteins were predicted using bioinformatics tools. Candidate effectors were fused to β-lactamase through the constructed expression vectors, and these vectors were transformed into C. psittaci. The secretion of these candidate effectors was evaluated by β-lactamase translocation assays. Eukaryotic expression vectors of confirmed effectors were transfected into host cells to determine their intracellular localization patterns. Results:Bioinformatic analysis identified 29 candidate effector proteins. Experimental validation confirmed the secretion of five effectors, with four exhibiting cytoplasmic localization and one displaying nuclear localization in host cells.Conclusion:This study characterizes five novel C. psittaci secreted effector proteins, providing critical insights for investigating the molecular pathogenesis of psittacosis.

Objective:To explore the clinical efficacy of metoprolol combined with trimetazidine on elderly patients with coronary heart disease(CHD)and chronic heart failure(CHF).Methods:This randomized controlled trial enrolled 120 elderly CHD+CHF patients admitted to Army 73rd Group Military Hospital of Chinese PLA between June 2020 and June 2023.Patients were divided into control group(metoprolol based on routine treatment)and in-tervention group(additional trimetazidine therapy).Each group consisted of 60 patients,treated for 1 month.The clinical efficacy,left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF),cardiac index(CI),left ventricular end-systolic diame-ter(LVESd),left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(LVEDd),serum levels of brain natriuretic peptide(BNP),high sensitive C-reactive protein(hsCRP),platelet a granule membrane protein-140(GMP-140),intercellular adhesion molecule-1(ICAM-1)and growth differentiation factor 15(GDF-15),and incidence of adverse reac-tions were compared between the two groups.Results:The total effective rate of the intervention group was significant-ly higher than that of the control group(95.00％vs.81.67％,P=0.023).Compared to patients in the control group,those in the intervention group had significant lower LVESd[(35.03±5.14)mm vs.(40.63±3.87)mm],LVEDd[(43.53±4.27)mm vs.(48.36±5.22)mm],levels of BNP[(94.35±7.55)pg/ml vs.(127.86±45.11)pg/ml],hsCRP[(0.91±0.28)mg/L vs.(1.47±0.52)mg/L],GMP-140[(7.14±1.06)μg/L vs.(9.37±1.59)μg/L],ICAM-1[(43.81±5.75)pg/ml vs.(52.74±5.83)pg/ml]andGDF-15[(891.46±62.51)pg/ml vs.(1025.57±110.08)pg/ml],and significant higher LVEF[(55.62±5.11)％vs.(47.35±8.61)％]and CI[(3.41±0.38)L·min-1·m-2 vs.(3.08±0.31)L·min-1·m-2](P＜0.001 all).There was no significant difference in the total inci-dence of adverse reactions between the intervention group and control group(8.33％vs.11.67％,P=0.543).Conclu-sion:Metoprolol combined trimetazidine may relieve myocardial inflammatory response and injury,and inhibit ventricular remodeling,thereby improve cardiac function in elderly patients with CHD and CHF.

Objective:To identify and validate secreted effector proteins of Chlamydia psittaci ( C. psittaci) through bioinformatic prediction and experimental verification, and to characterize their subcellular localization in host cells. Methods:Potential effector proteins were predicted using bioinformatics tools. Candidate effectors were fused to β-lactamase through the constructed expression vectors, and these vectors were transformed into C. psittaci. The secretion of these candidate effectors was evaluated by β-lactamase translocation assays. Eukaryotic expression vectors of confirmed effectors were transfected into host cells to determine their intracellular localization patterns. Results:Bioinformatic analysis identified 29 candidate effector proteins. Experimental validation confirmed the secretion of five effectors, with four exhibiting cytoplasmic localization and one displaying nuclear localization in host cells.Conclusion:This study characterizes five novel C. psittaci secreted effector proteins, providing critical insights for investigating the molecular pathogenesis of psittacosis.

Early start denver model(ESDM)is a comprehensive early intervention approach for the children with autism spectrum disorder(ASD)between 12-month-old-36-month-old.The model is built upon the theoretical foundations of applied behavior analysis,denver model(DM),and pivotal response treatment,and it is one of the naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions.Compared with the other early intervention methods,ESDM is not limited by the environment of intervention;it encompasses all the areas of development during teaching practice and has been widely adopted for the early intervention of the children with ASD,and achieves the satisfactory therapeutic effect.The ESDM typically uses an intensive one-on-one intervention approach,but variabilities have emerged in its practical application,such as group ESDM(G-ESDM),parent-implemented ESDM(P-ESDM),and peer-mediated ESDM.In particular,G-ESDM and P-ESDM have provided the learning opportunities for more families,showing a broad application prospect.This study reviews the theoretical foundations,teaching models,and the effects of various intervention modalities of the ESDM in the treatment of ASD;combined with the domestic and international research findings,this study offers a reference for further studies on the mechanism of ESDM intervention for ASD.

By analyzing information such as the number of publications，authors，institutions and keywords in the literature on the integration of traditional Chinese medicine（TCM）culture into ideological and political education in the past 10 years，it was found that the overall number of publications showed an increasing trend. As the main research fronts，TCM colleges and universities had not yet formed teams in cooperation with other universities. The research hotspots were relatively concentrated，but the research horizons were not broad enough. It is suggested that in the future，policy should be taken as the guide to build a cross-regional interdisciplinary cooperation system，horizontally and vertically extend research subjects，innovate and construct diversified teaching models，continue to deeply explore and organically integrate ideological and political education elements，continuously improve the evaluation system of educational functions，and further enhance the timeliness of integrating traditional Chinese medicine culture into ideological and political education. So as to make greater contributions to cultivating talents in the new era and promoting the inheritance and innovation of TCM culture.

Objective To investigate the prevalence of tick-borne rickettsial infections in selected areas of Liupanshui City, Guizhou Province, 2023, so as to provide insights into the management of tick-borne rickettsioses in the city. Methods Ticks were captured from the body surface of bovines and sheep in Gaoxing Village, Dashan Township, Liupanshui City, Guizhou Province during the period between April and June, 2023, and tick species were identified using morphological and molecular biological techniques. In addition, tick-borne Rickettsia was identified using a nested PCR assay, including spotted fever group rickettsiae (SFGR), Coxiella spp., Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., and Orientia spp., and positive amplified fragments were sequenced and aligned with known sequences accessed in the GenBank database. Results A total of 200 ticks were collected and all tick species were identified as Rhipicephalus microplus. Nestle PCR assay combined with sequencing identified ticks carrying Candidatus Rickettsia jingxinensis (40.50%), Coxiella burnetii (1.50%), and Coxiella-like endosymbionts (27.00%), and Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp. or Orientsia spp. was not detected. Conclusions R. microplus carried Candidatus R. jingxinensis, C. burnetii, and Coxiella-like endosymbionts in selected areas of Liupanshui City, Guizhou Province. Intensified monitoring of tickborne rickettsial infections is needed in livestock and humans to reduce the damages caused by rickettsioses.

Objective To evaluate the ability of the ratio of peripheral blood white blood cell(WBC)counts to platelet counts to predict the onset of radiation-induced thymic lymphoma(TL)in a mouse model.Methods Mice were subjected to fractionated total-body irradiation(TBI)to established a TL model before the changes of the WBC-to-platelet ratio during the development and progression of TL were investigated.Four-week-old male C57BL/6J mice were randomized into the normal(non-irradiation)group and radiation exposure group that was subjected to 1.8 Gy TBI once weekly for four consecutive weeks.The survival and TL-incidence of those two groups were compared within 370 days of TBI.Histomorphology and hematoxylin & eosin(H&E)staining of the thymus were used for definite diagnosis of TL while flow cytometry was adopted to detect the frequency changes of T cells in the thymus,bone marrow and spleen.Peripheral blood(PB)cell counts were measured to analyze the changes of peripheral hemogram during TL pathogenesis.Results No mice in the normal group were diagnosed with TL while 83％of the irradiated mic suffered from TL within 370 days of fractionated TBI(P＜0.0001).Using histopathologic technology,medium-sized tumor cells were observed in the thymus of irradiated mice diagnosed with TL.Cytometric analysis showed decreased frequencies of CD4 mono-positive cells and increased frequencies of CD8 mono-positive cells in the thymus,bone marrow and spleen of mice diagnosed with TL.PB analysis displayed a significant increase in the WBC-to-platelet ratio one week prior to the TL-caused death in the irradiated mice(P＜0.01).Conclusion Elevation of the peripheral blood WBC-to-platelet ratio can help predict the onset of IR-induced TL of mice.

Objective A recombinant plasmid for CRISPR interference(CRISPRi)that incorporates dCas9 from Streptococcus pyogenes was constructed to investigate the function of Coxiella burnetii genes through a prompt,simple method.Methods A single guide RNA(sgRNA)sequence targeting C.burnetii dotB was integrated into a recombinant plasmid,which was then transformed into C.burnetii using electroporation.Next,dCas9 expression was induced with dehydrated tetracycline(aTC)to inhibit the transcription of dotB.Results The results demonstrated that dCas9 can be expressed normally in the CRISPRi system through aTC induction.Suppression of dotB was observed at the transcriptional and translational levels.In addition,the intracellular reproduction of C.burnetii significantly decreased after the suppression of dotB expression.Conclusion Silencing technology for the C.burnetii gene based on CRISPRi was established in this study,providing support for studying the biological functions of C.burnetii genes.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the value of using flat-sided culture tubes for preparing chromosomes through chorionic villi (CV) and amniotic fluid (AF) cell cultures during prenatal diagnosis. METHODS: From February to March 2020, 157 CV samples and 147 AF samples subjected to prenatal diagnosis at the Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region were selected as the study subjects. For each sample, one flat-sided tube and one flask culture were set up by following the standard protocols. The methods were evaluated by comparing the cell growth, experimental process, quality of chromosome preparation and costs. RESULTS: The success rates for the culturing of CV and AF samples by the flat-sided culture tube method were 97.45% (153/157) and 97.96% (144/147), respectively. By contrast, the success rates for the conventional flask method were 98.72% (155/157) for CV and 98.64% (145/147) for AF samples. No significant difference was found between the two methods (P > 0.05). The average harvest time required by the flat-sided culture tube method was 8.45 days for CV and 9.43 days for AF cultures, whilst the average harvest time for conventional flask method was 9.05 days and 9.54 days, respectively. The flat-sided culture tube method for CV had required significantly shorter average harvest time than the conventional method (P < 0.001). No statistical significant difference was found in the average harvest time for AF by the two methods (P > 0.05). The conventional culturing method had required three containers with two sample transfers. By contrast, the flat-sided culture tube method was carried out in one tube without any sample transfer. The average total amount of medium used was 3.91 mL for each flat-sided culture tube and 6.26 mL for each conventional flask. CONCLUSION The flat-sided culture tube method can provide a simple, cost-effective and error-reducing procedure for the CV and AF samples culture during prenatal diagnosis.
Child ; Female ; Pregnancy ; Humans ; China ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; Chorionic Villi Sampling ; Amniotic Fluid ; Cell Proliferation