Aim To investigate the effects of acteoside(ACT)on ulcerative colitis(UC)mice from the per-spective of inflammation and intestinal flora.Methods The UC model was prepared by dextran sulfate sodi-um(DSS)drinking method and treated with ACT for 14 d,during which the activity of the mice was ob-served and the disease activity index(DAI)was scored.ELISA was used to detect the expression of in-flammatory factors.HE staining was used to observe the injury of colon tissue.16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing method was used to detect the structure and abundance of fecal intestinal flora in mice,and the correlation between the flora and inflammatory indica-tors was analyzed.Results After ACT administra-tion,the fear of cold and lazy movement of mice were improved,and the DAI of mice was reduced.The in-tegrity of colon mucosal epithelial cells was restored and mucosal damage was alleviated.The expressions of pro-inflammatory factors MPO,IL-1 β,IL-6,TNF-α,TF and PAF decreased,while the expression of anti-in-flammatory factor IL-10 increased.The abundance of harmful bacteria such as Firmicutes and Bacteroides de-creased,while the abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Bacteroidetes and Alistipes increased.Protective bacteria such as Bacteroidetes and Lachnospira were negatively correlated with IL-1β,IL-6 and other pro-inflammatory factors,while harmful bacteria such as Proteobacteria and Streptococcus were positively correla-ted with the above pro-inflammatory factors.Conclu-sions The therapeutic mechanism of ACT on chronic UC mice is related to its alleviation of inflammation and regulation of intestinal flora,and there is a correlation between inflammatory factors and intestinal flora.

OBJECTIVE: Acupuncture therapies are known for their effectiveness in treating a variety of gastric diseases, although the mechanisms underlying these effects are not fully understood. This study tested the effectiveness of electroacupuncture (EA) at acupoints Zhongwan (RN12) and Weishu (BL21) for managing gastric motility disorder (GMD) and investigated the underlying mechanisms involved. METHODS: A GMD model was used to evaluate the impact of EA on various aspects of gastric function including the amplitude of gastric motility, electrogastrogram, food intake, and the rate of gastric emptying. Immunofluorescence techniques were used to explore the activation of spinal neurons by EA, specifically examining the presence of cholera toxin B subunit (CTB)-positive neurons and fibers emanating from acupoints RN12 and BL21. The stimulation of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic neurons in the spinal dorsal horn, the inhibition of sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the spinal lateral horn, and their collective effects on the activity of sympathetic nerves were examined. RESULTS: EA at RN12 and BL21 significantly improved gastric motility compromised by GMD. Notably, EA activated spinal neurons, with CTB-positive neurons and fibers from RN12 and BL21 being detectable in both the dorsal root ganglia and the spinal dorsal horn. Further analysis revealed that EA at these acupoints not only stimulated GABAergic neurons in the spinal dorsal horn but also suppressed sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the spinal lateral horn, effectively reducing excessive activity of sympathetic nerves triggered by GMD. CONCLUSION EA treatment at RN12 and BL21 effectively enhances gastric motility in a GMD model. The therapeutic efficacy of this approach is attributed to the activation of spinal neurons and the modulation of the spinal GABAergic-sympathetic pathway, providing a neurobiological foundation for the role of acupuncture in treating gastric disorders. Please cite this article as: Zhang MT, Liang YF, Dai Q, Gao HR, Wang H, Chen L, Huang S, Wang XY, Shen GM. A spinal neural circuit for electroacupuncture that regulates gastric functional disorders. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(1): 56-65.
Electroacupuncture ; Animals ; Male ; Acupuncture Points ; Stomach Diseases/physiopathology* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Gastrointestinal Motility ; Rats ; Gastric Emptying ; Neurons ; Spinal Cord ; Stomach/physiopathology*

Investigating the correlation between micronucleus formation and male infertility has the potential to improve clinical diagnosis and deepen our understanding of pathological progression. Our study enrolled 2252 male patients whose semen was analyzed from March 2023 to July 2023. Their clinical data, including semen parameters and age, were also collected. Genetic analysis was used to determine whether the sex chromosome involved in male infertility was abnormal (including the increase, deletion, and translocation of the X and Y chromosomes), and subsequent semen analysis was conducted for clinical grouping purposes. The participants were categorized into five groups: normozoospermia, asthenozoospermia, oligozoospermia, oligoasthenozoospermia, and azoospermia. Patients were randomly selected for further study; 41 patients with normozoospermia were included in the control group and 117 patients with non-normozoospermia were included in the study group according to the proportions of all enrolled patients. Cytokinesis-block micronucleus (CBMN) screening was conducted through peripheral blood. Statistical analysis was used to determine the differences in micronuclei (MNi) among the groups and the relationships between MNi and clinical data. There was a significant increase in MNi in infertile men, including those with azoospermia, compared with normozoospermic patients, but there was no significant difference between the genetic and nongenetic groups in azoospermic men. The presence of MNi was associated with sperm concentration, progressive sperm motility, immotile spermatozoa, malformed spermatozoa, total sperm count, and total sperm motility. This study underscores the potential utility of MNi as a diagnostic tool and highlights the need for further research to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of male infertility.
Humans ; Male ; Infertility, Male/genetics* ; Adult ; Micronucleus Tests ; Semen Analysis ; Oligospermia/genetics* ; Azoospermia/genetics* ; Chromosome Aberrations ; Sperm Count ; Micronuclei, Chromosome-Defective ; Middle Aged

Aim To investigate the effects of acteoside(ACT)on ulcerative colitis(UC)mice from the per-spective of inflammation and intestinal flora.Methods The UC model was prepared by dextran sulfate sodi-um(DSS)drinking method and treated with ACT for 14 d,during which the activity of the mice was ob-served and the disease activity index(DAI)was scored.ELISA was used to detect the expression of in-flammatory factors.HE staining was used to observe the injury of colon tissue.16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing method was used to detect the structure and abundance of fecal intestinal flora in mice,and the correlation between the flora and inflammatory indica-tors was analyzed.Results After ACT administra-tion,the fear of cold and lazy movement of mice were improved,and the DAI of mice was reduced.The in-tegrity of colon mucosal epithelial cells was restored and mucosal damage was alleviated.The expressions of pro-inflammatory factors MPO,IL-1 β,IL-6,TNF-α,TF and PAF decreased,while the expression of anti-in-flammatory factor IL-10 increased.The abundance of harmful bacteria such as Firmicutes and Bacteroides de-creased,while the abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Bacteroidetes and Alistipes increased.Protective bacteria such as Bacteroidetes and Lachnospira were negatively correlated with IL-1β,IL-6 and other pro-inflammatory factors,while harmful bacteria such as Proteobacteria and Streptococcus were positively correla-ted with the above pro-inflammatory factors.Conclu-sions The therapeutic mechanism of ACT on chronic UC mice is related to its alleviation of inflammation and regulation of intestinal flora,and there is a correlation between inflammatory factors and intestinal flora.

Objective To investigate the risk factors for bronchopulmonary dysplasia(BPD)in twin preterm infants with a gestational age of<34 weeks,and to provide a basis for early identification of BPD in twin preterm infants in clinical practice.Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the twin preterm infants with a gestational age of<34 weeks who were admitted to 22 hospitals nationwide from January 2018 to December 2020.According to their conditions,they were divided into group A(both twins had BPD),group B(only one twin had BPD),and group C(neither twin had BPD).The risk factors for BPD in twin preterm infants were analyzed.Further analysis was conducted on group B to investigate the postnatal risk factors for BPD within twins.Results A total of 904 pairs of twins with a gestational age of<34 weeks were included in this study.The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that compared with group C,birth weight discordance of>25%between the twins was an independent risk factor for BPD in one of the twins(OR=3.370,95%CI:1.500-7.568,P<0.05),and high gestational age at birth was a protective factor against BPD(P<0.05).The conditional logistic regression analysis of group B showed that small-for-gestational-age(SGA)birth was an independent risk factor for BPD in individual twins(OR=5.017,95%CI:1.040-24.190,P<0.05).Conclusions The development of BPD in twin preterm infants is associated with gestational age,birth weight discordance between the twins,and SGA birth.

Background: and Purpose This study aimed to construct an optimal dynamic nomogram for predicting malignant brain edema (MBE) in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients after endovascular thrombectomy (ET). Methods: We enrolled AIS patients after ET from May 2017 to April 2021. MBE was defined as a midline shift of >5 mm at the septum pellucidum or pineal gland based on follow-up computed tomography within 5 days after ET. Multivariate logistic regression and LASSO (least absolute shrinkage and selection operator) regression were used to construct the nomogram. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and decisioncurve analysis were used to compare our nomogram with two previous risk models for predicting brain edema after ET. Results: MBE developed in 72 (21.9%) of the 329 eligible patients. Our dynamic web-based nomogram (https://successful.shinyapps.io/DynNomapp/) consisted of five parameters: basal cistern effacement, postoperative National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, brain atrophy, hypoattenuation area, and stroke etiology. The nomogram showed good discrimination ability, with a C-index (Harrell’s concordance index) of 0.925 (95% confidence interval=0.890–0.961), and good calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow test, p=0.386). All variables had variance inflation factors of <1.5 and tolerances of >0.7, suggesting no significant collinearity among them. The AUC of our nomogram (0.925) was superior to those of Xiang-liang Chen and colleagues (0.843) and Ming-yang Du and colleagues (0.728). Conclusions Our web-based dynamic nomogram reliably predicted the risk of MBE in AIS patients after ET, and hence is worthy of further evaluation.

Oral mucositis (OM) caused by cancer therapy is the most common adverse reaction in the radiotherapy of head and neck tumors. In severe cases, it can lead to the interruption of treatment, which affects the control of the disease and the quality of life. Shuanghua Baihe Tablet (SBT) is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula, which is administerd to treat OM in China. It has been clinically effective for more than 30 years, but the underlying mechanism is not completely understood. With the development of multiple omics, it is possible to explore the mechanism of Chinese herbal compound prescriptions. Based on transcriptomics and metabolomics, we explored the underlying mechanism of SBT in the treatment of OM. An OM model of rats was established by 5-FU induction, and SBT was orally administered at dosages of 0.75 and 3 g·kg
Animals ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; Metabolome ; Quality of Life ; Rats ; Stomatitis ; Tablets ; Transcriptome

ObjectiveThe aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index （APRI） and liver fibrosis-4 index （FIB-4） have been used for noninvasive prediction of liver fibrosis and cirrhosis and both indexes exhibit a high degree of accuracy in the the prediction of the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma（HCC）patients after hepatectomy.. This study aims to explore the predictive values of APRI and FIB-4 in the occurrence of posthepatectomy liver failure （PHLF） in HCC patients. MethodsThe clinical data of 426 patients with HCC who underwent hepatectomy in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Laboratory data were collected from patients within 2 weeks prior to hepatectomy. APRI， FIB-4 and Child-Pugh scores were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curves were used to determine the AUC values and optimal cut-off values of APRI， FIB-4 and Child-Pugh scores. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were employed to identify the independent risk factors for PHLF， and the predictive values of APRI and FIB-4 on PHLF were compared. ResultsA total of 48 patients （11.3%） developed PHLF. Multivariate analysis showed that major hepatectomy （≥3 segments resection）， blood loss >400 mL， total bilirubin （TBIL）， platelet （PLT）， fibrinogen （Fib）， APRI and FIB-4 were independent risk factors for PHLF. ROC curve analysis revealed that APRI （AUC = 0.816） and FIB-4 （AUC = 0.728） had better ability to predict PHLF than Child-Pugh score （AUC = 0.566； P<0.001）. ConclusionsPreoperative APRI and FIB-4 are independent predictors of PHLF in HCC patients after hepatectomy and have good predictive values.

ObjectiveThe aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index （APRI） and liver fibrosis-4 index （FIB-4） have been used for noninvasive prediction of liver fibrosis and cirrhosis and both indexes exhibit a high degree of accuracy in the the prediction of the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma（HCC）patients after hepatectomy.. This study aims to explore the predictive values of APRI and FIB-4 in the occurrence of posthepatectomy liver failure （PHLF） in HCC patients. MethodsThe clinical data of 426 patients with HCC who underwent hepatectomy in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Laboratory data were collected from patients within 2 weeks prior to hepatectomy. APRI， FIB-4 and Child-Pugh scores were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curves were used to determine the AUC values and optimal cut-off values of APRI， FIB-4 and Child-Pugh scores. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were employed to identify the independent risk factors for PHLF， and the predictive values of APRI and FIB-4 on PHLF were compared. ResultsA total of 48 patients （11.3%） developed PHLF. Multivariate analysis showed that major hepatectomy （≥3 segments resection）， blood loss >400 mL， total bilirubin （TBIL）， platelet （PLT）， fibrinogen （Fib）， APRI and FIB-4 were independent risk factors for PHLF. ROC curve analysis revealed that APRI （AUC = 0.816） and FIB-4 （AUC = 0.728） had better ability to predict PHLF than Child-Pugh score （AUC = 0.566； P<0.001）. ConclusionsPreoperative APRI and FIB-4 are independent predictors of PHLF in HCC patients after hepatectomy and have good predictive values.

Objective::To compare the protective effect of different bile (porcine bile, oxgall and sheep bile) and their Arisaema cum Bile on rats with acute lung injury, so as to provide reference for the selection of bile and the classification of decoction pieces of Arisaema cum Bile. Method::Wistar male rats were randomly divided into 8 groups (n=12), including blank group, model group, porcine bile group, oxgall group, sheep bile group, Arisaema cum Bile with porcine bile group, Arisaema cum Bile with oxgall group and Arisaema cum Bile with sheep bile group. Rats in each treatment group were given corresponding drug solution by gavage at 2.52 g·kg^-1 every day, and rats in the model group and the blank group were given the same volume of normal saline by gavage every day for a total of 8 days. On the 8^th day, after 1 h of administration, rats in the model group and each treatment group were intraperitoneally injected lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 2 mg·kg^-1) to prepare rat lung injury model. Blood and lung tissues were collected from every four rats at 3, 6, 24 h after LPS injection, respectively. Lung coefficient, lung water content and wet weight/dry weight ratio of lung tissue (W/D) were measured, and the levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-6 and thromboxane B₂ (TXB₂) in serum and the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and the contents of malondialdehyde (MDA) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) in lung tissue were determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The pathological morphology of rat lung tissue was observed and the score of lung tissue injury was calculated. Result::Compared with the model group at the same time point, the lung coefficient, W/D, lung water content, contents of TNF-α, IL-6 and TXB₂ in serum, contents of MDA and MMP-9 in lung tissue of rats in each treatment group were all decreased, and most of them had significant differences (P<0.05, P<0.01), but the activities of GSH-Px and SOD were all increased, and most of them had significant differences (P<0.05, P<0.01). The oxgall group and the sheep bile group were superior to the porcine bile group in most of the indexes, the Arisaema cum Bile with oxgall group and the Arisaema cum Bile with sheep bile group were superior to the Arisaema cum Bile with porcine bile group, and some of them had significant differences(P<0.05, P<0.01). Conclusion::Each bile group and each Arisaema cum Bile group all have protective effects on rats with acute lung injury induced by LPS, and the therapeutic effect of oxgall and sheep bile is better than that of porcine bile, the therapeutic effect of Arisaema cum Bile prepared by oxgall and sheep bile is better than that of Arisaema cum Bile prepared by porcine bile.