1.Protective effect of short-chain fatty acids against liver fibrosis and analogical application of its mechanism to pancreatic fibrosis
Yunjun YAN ; Liang SHENG ; Qi WANG ; Shun PENG ; Jia LI ; Lei ZHANG
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2026;42(5):1160-1165
Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) are the main metabolic products generated by the fermentation of dietary fiber by gut microbiota. Studies have shown that SCFA not only play a role in energy metabolism, but also act as important signaling molecules, exhibiting a significant potential in alleviating liver and pancreatic fibrosis. The core mechanism of SCFA mainly involves the regulation of various key signaling pathways by activating G protein-coupled receptors and inhibiting the activity of histone deacetylase, thereby suppressing the activation and proliferation of hepatic stellate cell (HSC) and pancreatic stellate cell (PSC), which is a key link in fibrosis formation. In addition, SCFA can effectively alleviate tissue inflammation response, improve intestinal barrier function, and regulate gut microbiota balance, thus indirectly preventing the process of fibrosis mediated by the “gut-liver/pancreas axis”. Compared with the research on SCFA in liver fibrosis, studies on their role in pancreatic fibrosis are limited. Given that HSC and PSC are highly homologous, the transcription factors and proteins that have been confirmed in liver fibrosis-related studies are also similarly expressed in PSC, suggesting that they may also influence the activation of PSC. This article systematically summarizes the recent advances in the research on SCFA in alleviating liver and pancreatic fibrosis, in order to provide new perspectives for exploring the mechanism of pancreatic fibrosis and developing related interventional strategies.
2.Progress of Hyperthermic Intrathoracic Chemotherapy in Treatment of Thoracic Malignant Tumors
Jinjin SHENG ; Fei YAN ; Yanling MA ; Jianhai SUN ; Li LI
Cancer Research on Prevention and Treatment 2026;53(6):440-447
Hyperthermic intrathoracic chemotherapy (HITHOC) is a localized treatment that combines hyperthermia with medications such as chemotherapy, anti-angiogenic agents, targeted therapy, or immunotherapeutic agents. It has advanced clinical progress for conditions such as malignant pleural mesothelioma, pleural metastasis of lung cancer, and pleural dissemination of thymic tumors. Systematic analyses indicate that as an adjuvant therapy to cytoreductive surgery, HITHOC improves patient survival and effectively controls pleural effusion and pleural metastasis. It exerts antitumor effects by enhancing drug penetration through thermal effects, inducing apoptosis, and modulating the immune microenvironment. HITHOC combined with systemic therapies (e.g., chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy) demonstrates synergistic potential, but its role as a local treatment should be clearly defined as adjunctive within the comprehensive management of advanced-stage patients. Further research is needed to clarify its indications, standardized protocols, and long-term efficacy and to explore optimized regimens and personalized combination treatment strategies. This review delves into the key bottlenecks hindering the development of hyperthermia therapy, such as the lack of high-level evidence-based medicine and the absence of standardized diagnostic and efficacy evaluation criteria, and proposes potential solutions.
3.Mechanism of action of gut microbiota in chronic pancreatitis fibrosis and related treatment strategies
Yunjun YAN ; Liang SHENG ; Qi WANG ; Shun PENG ; Jia LI ; Lei ZHANG
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2026;42(2):484-489
Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a common disease in clinical practice characterized by progressive inflammatory fibrosis of the pancreas. Gut microbiota, known as the “second genome” of humans, bidirectionally modulates the progression of fibrosis in CP via the gut-pancreas axis. This article systematically elaborates on the characteristics of gut microbiota during the progression of CP and its molecular mechanism in mediating pancreatic fibrosis through bacterial translocation, metabolites, immune regulatory networks, and microbe-pancreatic stellate cell interactions, with a focus on the pivotal role of short-chain fatty acids and inflammatory cytokine networks in pancreatic stellate cell activation and extracellular matrix deposition. In addition, this article explores the potential value of gut microbiota-targeted interventions in the prevention and treatment of CP fibrosis, such as probiotics, prebiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation, and discusses the translational potential of using multi-omics technologies to identify diagnostic biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets for CP, in order to provide new ideas for the precise diagnosis and treatment of CP.
4.Comparative analysis of the characteristics of imported malaria cases in Nanning City in 2024 and the same period of the previous year
Shu-lin WEI ; Zhi-qiang QU ; Yuan-yuan LUO ; Yan-cui HUANG ; Shu-qin DIAO ; Xue LI ; Sheng-long YANG ; Xiao-yu HUANG ; Mi-fang LUO
Acta Parasitologica et Medica Entomologica Sinica 2026;33(2):81-84
Objective To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of malaria and provide a basis for developing improved prevention and control measures. Methods Data were obtained from the Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System. Malaria surveillance data for Nanning City from January 1,2023, to December 31,2024, were exported from the Infectious Disease Reporting Information Management Subsystem. The characteristics of the two groups of malaria cases were compared. Results A total of 103 imported malaria cases were reported in Nanning City in 2024, representing a 38.32% decrease compared with the same period of the previous year. No statistically significant difference were observed between cases reported in 2023 and 2024 in terms of average age, gender ratio, proportion of parasite species, and monthly reporting distribution;however, statistically significant differences were found in the proportion of reporting areas and current residence areas(χ2= 13.572 and 10.355, respectively; P = 0.001 and 0.035, respectively). The proportion of cases reported in Shanglin County and the proportion of cases residing in Shanglin County were both lower than those during the same period of the previous year. Conclusions The high aggregation of imported malaria cases in Nanning City has decreased. Medical institutions in areas other than Shanglin County should strengthen their vigilance against malaria.
5.Predictive Modeling of Symptomatic Intracranial Hemorrhage Following Endovascular Thrombectomy: Insights From the Nationwide TREAT-AIS Registry
Jia-Hung CHEN ; I-Chang SU ; Yueh-Hsun LU ; Yi-Chen HSIEH ; Chih-Hao CHEN ; Chun-Jen LIN ; Yu-Wei CHEN ; Kuan-Hung LIN ; Pi-Shan SUNG ; Chih-Wei TANG ; Hai-Jui CHU ; Chuan-Hsiu FU ; Chao-Liang CHOU ; Cheng-Yu WEI ; Shang-Yih YAN ; Po-Lin CHEN ; Hsu-Ling YEH ; Sheng-Feng SUNG ; Hon-Man LIU ; Ching-Huang LIN ; Meng LEE ; Sung-Chun TANG ; I-Hui LEE ; Lung CHAN ; Li-Ming LIEN ; Hung-Yi CHIOU ; Jiunn-Tay LEE ; Jiann-Shing JENG ;
Journal of Stroke 2025;27(1):85-94
Background:
and Purpose Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) following endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) is a severe complication associated with adverse functional outcomes and increased mortality rates. Currently, a reliable predictive model for sICH risk after EVT is lacking.
Methods:
This study used data from patients aged ≥20 years who underwent EVT for anterior circulation stroke from the nationwide Taiwan Registry of Endovascular Thrombectomy for Acute Ischemic Stroke (TREAT-AIS). A predictive model including factors associated with an increased risk of sICH after EVT was developed to differentiate between patients with and without sICH. This model was compared existing predictive models using nationwide registry data to evaluate its relative performance.
Results:
Of the 2,507 identified patients, 158 developed sICH after EVT. Factors such as diastolic blood pressure, Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score, platelet count, glucose level, collateral score, and successful reperfusion were associated with the risk of sICH after EVT. The TREAT-AIS score demonstrated acceptable predictive accuracy (area under the curve [AUC]=0.694), with higher scores being associated with an increased risk of sICH (odds ratio=2.01 per score increase, 95% confidence interval=1.64–2.45, P<0.001). The discriminatory capacity of the score was similar in patients with symptom onset beyond 6 hours (AUC=0.705). Compared to existing models, the TREAT-AIS score consistently exhibited superior predictive accuracy, although this difference was marginal.
Conclusions
The TREAT-AIS score outperformed existing models, and demonstrated an acceptable discriminatory capacity for distinguishing patients according to sICH risk levels. However, the differences between models were only marginal. Further research incorporating periprocedural and postprocedural factors is required to improve the predictive accuracy.
6.Traditional Chinese Medicine Treats Sepsis by Regulating PI3K/Akt Pathway: A Review
Zhu LIU ; Jiawei WANG ; Jing YAN ; Jinchan PENG ; Mingyao XU ; Liqun LI ; Sheng XIE
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(2):314-322
Sepsis is a systemic inflammatory response syndrome caused by the invasion of pathogenic microorganisms such as bacteria. In addition to the manifestations of systemic inflammatory response syndrome and primary infection lesions, critical cases often have manifestations of organ hypoperfusion. The morbidity and mortality of sepsis have remained high in recent years, which seriously affect the quality of life of the patients. The pathogenesis of sepsis is complicated, in which uncontrollable inflammation is a key mechanism. The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) signaling pathway plays a key role in mediating inflammation in sepsis. The available therapies of sepsis mainly include resuscitation, anti-infection, vasoactive drugs, intensive insulin therapy, and organ support, which show limited effects of reducing the mortality. Therefore, finding new therapeutic drugs is a key problem to be solved in the clinical treatment of sepsis. In recent years, studies have shown that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) can regulate the PI3K/Akt pathway via multiple pathways, multiple effects, and multiple targets to inhibit inflammation and curb the occurrence and development of sepsis, which has gradually become a hot spot in the prevention and treatment of sepsis. Moreover, studies have suggested that TCM has unique advantages in the treatment of sepsis. TCM can regulate the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway to inhibit inflammation, reduce oxidative stress, and control apoptosis in the prevention and treatment of sepsis. Despite the research progress, a systematic review remains to be performed regarding the TCM treatment of sepsis by regulating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. After reviewing relevant papers published in recent years, this study systematically summarizes the relationship between PI3K/Akt pathway and sepsis and the role of TCM in the treatment of sepsis, aiming to provide new ideas for the potential treatment of sepsis and the development of new drugs.
7.Value of intratumor and peritumor imaging radiomics features in predicting efficacy of radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma
Xing-yu DU ; Jin-kai LI ; Yuan-yuan TANG ; Xiao-yan XU ; Xi-Sheng LIU
Chinese Medical Equipment Journal 2025;46(11):50-56
Objective To develop a fused model based on combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors to accurately predict the efficacy of radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 124 HCC patients(95 males and 29 females)undergoing IMRT at the radiotherapy center of some hospital,who were divided into a training set and a validation set in a 7∶3 ratio.According to relevant standards for evaluating solid tumor treatment efficacy the patients at the progressive disease phase were enrolled into a non-response group,and the ones at the phases of complete response,partial response and stable disease were included into a response group.Firstly,radiomics features were extracted from pre-radiotherapy contrast-enhanced CT images,and were screened with the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator(LASSO)regression to obtain valuable radiomics features;secondly,the scores of intratumor radiomics features,peritumor radiomics features and combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features underwent binary Logistic regression(LR)analysis by using the glmnet package in R software(version 4.2.0),so as to construct three models for intratumor radiomics features,peritumor radiomics features and combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features;finally,a fused model was established based on the scores of combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors,and the corresponding Nomogram,calibration curve and clinical decision curve were plotted.R software(version 4.4.1)was used for image analysis and statistical analysis.Results The fused model based on the scores of combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors achieved an AUC of 0.87 on both the training and validation sets,outperforming the models based solely on intratumor radiomics features,peritumor radiomics features or combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features.The Nomogram plot showed the prediction probability of the fused model for the short-term treatment response rate was 10%-90%within the total score range of 42-93 points,and the calibration and clinical decision curves indicated that the fused model gained advantages in prediction and clinical application.Conclusion The fused model based on the scores of combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors predicts the short-term efficacy of HCC radiotherapy effectively,providing references for formulating radiotherapy plans and guiding subsequent treatment decisions.
8.Research progress on regulatory mechanism of AQP4 polarization distribution in glymphatic system
Xue-ling LIN ; Ying LI ; Jia-le REN ; Yan-jun ZHANG ; Peng-wei ZHUANG ; Qing-sheng YIN
Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin 2025;41(5):811-815
The glymphatic system(GS)is a unique toxic sub-stance clearance system in brain,which is very important for maintaining the microenvironment stability of the central nervous system.The polarization distribution of aquaporin 4(AQP4)lo-cated in the terminal foot of astrocytes affects the function of GS and participates in the pathological progress of many neurodegen-erative diseases,but the detailed regulation mechanism of AQP4 polarization distribution has not been systematically summarized.Therefore,this paper systematically combs the mechanism of reg-ulating the polarization distribution of AQP4 from the perspective of the composition integrity of dystrophin-glycoprotein complex(DGC)and basement membrane foot complex,and summarizes the potential drug and non-drug therapies for targeted regulation of AQP4 polarization distribution at present,aiming at providing new target reference and theoretical basis for targeted regulation of AQP4 polarization to prevent and treat neurodegenerative dis-eases.
9.Value of intratumor and peritumor imaging radiomics features in predicting efficacy of radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma
Xing-yu DU ; Jin-kai LI ; Yuan-yuan TANG ; Xiao-yan XU ; Xi-Sheng LIU
Chinese Medical Equipment Journal 2025;46(11):50-56
Objective To develop a fused model based on combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors to accurately predict the efficacy of radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 124 HCC patients(95 males and 29 females)undergoing IMRT at the radiotherapy center of some hospital,who were divided into a training set and a validation set in a 7∶3 ratio.According to relevant standards for evaluating solid tumor treatment efficacy the patients at the progressive disease phase were enrolled into a non-response group,and the ones at the phases of complete response,partial response and stable disease were included into a response group.Firstly,radiomics features were extracted from pre-radiotherapy contrast-enhanced CT images,and were screened with the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator(LASSO)regression to obtain valuable radiomics features;secondly,the scores of intratumor radiomics features,peritumor radiomics features and combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features underwent binary Logistic regression(LR)analysis by using the glmnet package in R software(version 4.2.0),so as to construct three models for intratumor radiomics features,peritumor radiomics features and combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features;finally,a fused model was established based on the scores of combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors,and the corresponding Nomogram,calibration curve and clinical decision curve were plotted.R software(version 4.4.1)was used for image analysis and statistical analysis.Results The fused model based on the scores of combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors achieved an AUC of 0.87 on both the training and validation sets,outperforming the models based solely on intratumor radiomics features,peritumor radiomics features or combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features.The Nomogram plot showed the prediction probability of the fused model for the short-term treatment response rate was 10%-90%within the total score range of 42-93 points,and the calibration and clinical decision curves indicated that the fused model gained advantages in prediction and clinical application.Conclusion The fused model based on the scores of combined intratumor-peritumor radiomics features and clinical risk factors predicts the short-term efficacy of HCC radiotherapy effectively,providing references for formulating radiotherapy plans and guiding subsequent treatment decisions.
10.Research progress on regulatory mechanism of AQP4 polarization distribution in glymphatic system
Xue-ling LIN ; Ying LI ; Jia-le REN ; Yan-jun ZHANG ; Peng-wei ZHUANG ; Qing-sheng YIN
Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin 2025;41(5):811-815
The glymphatic system(GS)is a unique toxic sub-stance clearance system in brain,which is very important for maintaining the microenvironment stability of the central nervous system.The polarization distribution of aquaporin 4(AQP4)lo-cated in the terminal foot of astrocytes affects the function of GS and participates in the pathological progress of many neurodegen-erative diseases,but the detailed regulation mechanism of AQP4 polarization distribution has not been systematically summarized.Therefore,this paper systematically combs the mechanism of reg-ulating the polarization distribution of AQP4 from the perspective of the composition integrity of dystrophin-glycoprotein complex(DGC)and basement membrane foot complex,and summarizes the potential drug and non-drug therapies for targeted regulation of AQP4 polarization distribution at present,aiming at providing new target reference and theoretical basis for targeted regulation of AQP4 polarization to prevent and treat neurodegenerative dis-eases.


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