Objective To explore the effectiveness of auricular Gua Sha based on auricular vagus nerve stimulation in patients with chronic renal failure accompanied by nausea and vomiting.Methods Using a convenience sampling method,100 patients with chronic renal failure and nausea and vomiting admitted to the Nephrology Department of a tertiary hospital in Zhejiang Province between January 2022 and December 2023 were selected.They were randomly divided into a test group and a control group,with 50 patients in each group.The test group received the conventional treatment and care for chronic renal failure with nausea and vomiting,along with auricular Gua Sha,with a 3-day intervention.The control group received only conventional treatment and care.The Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)symptom scores for nausea and vomiting,total effective rate of the efficacy index,symptom improvement time,total number of bowel movements,and adverse events were compared between the 2 groups.Results A total of 100 patients completed the study.After intervention,the scores for nausea and vomiting symptoms were lower in both groups compared to the scores before intervention,with the experimental group having lower scores than the control group(P＜0.001);the total effective rate of the experimental group was 98.00％,higher than 88.00％in the control group(P＜0.001).Following intervention,the time for improvement of nausea and vomiting symptoms in the experimental group was(7.50±1.74)minutes,shorter than(13.38±2.31)minutes in the control group(P＜0.001);the total number of bowel movements in the experimental group was(3.34±0.63)times,more than(2.46±0.58)times in the control group(P＜0.001);no adverse events occurred during the study.Conclusion Auricular Gua Sha based on auricular vagus nerve stimulation helps reduce nausea and vomiting symptom scores,improves the total effective rate of the efficacy index,shortens the symptom improvement time,increases the frequency of bowel movements,and it is safe for patients with chronic renal failure.

Objective:To detect the expression level and clinical significance of centromere protein I (CENPI) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to preliminarily explore the effects of CENPI on the biological behavior of liver cancer cells and its possible molecular mechanisms. Methods:The TCGA database, real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, and immunohistochemical staining experiments were used to analyze and detect the expression differences of CENPI in liver cancer and adjacent tissues. The correlation between CENPI expression levels and clinical pathological features were analyzed in combination with clinical data from HCC patients. The value of CENPI in the diagnosis and prognosis assessment of HCC was explored by plotting receiver operating characteristic curves and Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Furthermore, we investigated the impact of CENPI overexpression on the migration and healing capabilities of liver cancer cells using Transwell and wound healing experiments. Finally, the effects of CENPI on the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process in liver cancer cells and the potential molecular mechanisms were explored using Western blot. Comparisons between two groups were analyzed using t-tests, and comparisons among multiple groups were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. The expression of CENPI and its correlation with clinical pathological features were analyzed using the χ2 test. Results:The TCGA database analysis showed that the expression level of CENPI was significantly higher in liver cancer tissues than adjacent tissues, which was further validated by real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, and immunohistochemical staining experiments. Combined clinical data analysis from HCC patients demonstrated that high expression of CENPI was positively correlated with the degree of tumor malignancy, T stage, and disease prognosis. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve indicated that the 5-year survival rate was significantly lower in patients with high CENPI expression compared to those with low expression. The results of the receiver operating characteristic curve further indicated that the expression level of CENPI had accurately predicted the prognosis of liver cancer patients (area under the curve=0.962). Transwell and wound healing experiment results indicated that overexpressing CENPI in Hep3B and Huh7 cells significantly increased cell migration numbers and healing rates. Further research results showed that overexpressing CENPI significantly upregulated the expression of mesenchymal cell-related marker genes: N-cadherin, Vimentin, and Snail protein, while the expression of the epithelial cell-related marker gene E-cadherin was significantly reduced. The mechanistic study revealed that when CENPI was overexpressed, the MEK and ERK phosphorylation levels and the expression of RAS protein were significantly increased compared to the control group, and the difference was statistically significant. Conclusion:The high expression of CENPI in the tissues of HCC patients is associated with poor prognosis, potentially promoting the migration of liver cancer cells and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process by activating the RAS/MEK/ERK signaling pathway axis, suggesting that the CENPI gene may be a promising target for HCC treatment.

Objective To explore the effectiveness of auricular Gua Sha based on auricular vagus nerve stimulation in patients with chronic renal failure accompanied by nausea and vomiting.Methods Using a convenience sampling method,100 patients with chronic renal failure and nausea and vomiting admitted to the Nephrology Department of a tertiary hospital in Zhejiang Province between January 2022 and December 2023 were selected.They were randomly divided into a test group and a control group,with 50 patients in each group.The test group received the conventional treatment and care for chronic renal failure with nausea and vomiting,along with auricular Gua Sha,with a 3-day intervention.The control group received only conventional treatment and care.The Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)symptom scores for nausea and vomiting,total effective rate of the efficacy index,symptom improvement time,total number of bowel movements,and adverse events were compared between the 2 groups.Results A total of 100 patients completed the study.After intervention,the scores for nausea and vomiting symptoms were lower in both groups compared to the scores before intervention,with the experimental group having lower scores than the control group(P＜0.001);the total effective rate of the experimental group was 98.00％,higher than 88.00％in the control group(P＜0.001).Following intervention,the time for improvement of nausea and vomiting symptoms in the experimental group was(7.50±1.74)minutes,shorter than(13.38±2.31)minutes in the control group(P＜0.001);the total number of bowel movements in the experimental group was(3.34±0.63)times,more than(2.46±0.58)times in the control group(P＜0.001);no adverse events occurred during the study.Conclusion Auricular Gua Sha based on auricular vagus nerve stimulation helps reduce nausea and vomiting symptom scores,improves the total effective rate of the efficacy index,shortens the symptom improvement time,increases the frequency of bowel movements,and it is safe for patients with chronic renal failure.

Objective:To detect the expression level and clinical significance of centromere protein I (CENPI) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to preliminarily explore the effects of CENPI on the biological behavior of liver cancer cells and its possible molecular mechanisms. Methods:The TCGA database, real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, and immunohistochemical staining experiments were used to analyze and detect the expression differences of CENPI in liver cancer and adjacent tissues. The correlation between CENPI expression levels and clinical pathological features were analyzed in combination with clinical data from HCC patients. The value of CENPI in the diagnosis and prognosis assessment of HCC was explored by plotting receiver operating characteristic curves and Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Furthermore, we investigated the impact of CENPI overexpression on the migration and healing capabilities of liver cancer cells using Transwell and wound healing experiments. Finally, the effects of CENPI on the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process in liver cancer cells and the potential molecular mechanisms were explored using Western blot. Comparisons between two groups were analyzed using t-tests, and comparisons among multiple groups were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. The expression of CENPI and its correlation with clinical pathological features were analyzed using the χ2 test. Results:The TCGA database analysis showed that the expression level of CENPI was significantly higher in liver cancer tissues than adjacent tissues, which was further validated by real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, and immunohistochemical staining experiments. Combined clinical data analysis from HCC patients demonstrated that high expression of CENPI was positively correlated with the degree of tumor malignancy, T stage, and disease prognosis. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve indicated that the 5-year survival rate was significantly lower in patients with high CENPI expression compared to those with low expression. The results of the receiver operating characteristic curve further indicated that the expression level of CENPI had accurately predicted the prognosis of liver cancer patients (area under the curve=0.962). Transwell and wound healing experiment results indicated that overexpressing CENPI in Hep3B and Huh7 cells significantly increased cell migration numbers and healing rates. Further research results showed that overexpressing CENPI significantly upregulated the expression of mesenchymal cell-related marker genes: N-cadherin, Vimentin, and Snail protein, while the expression of the epithelial cell-related marker gene E-cadherin was significantly reduced. The mechanistic study revealed that when CENPI was overexpressed, the MEK and ERK phosphorylation levels and the expression of RAS protein were significantly increased compared to the control group, and the difference was statistically significant. Conclusion:The high expression of CENPI in the tissues of HCC patients is associated with poor prognosis, potentially promoting the migration of liver cancer cells and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process by activating the RAS/MEK/ERK signaling pathway axis, suggesting that the CENPI gene may be a promising target for HCC treatment.

Objective This study aims to investigate the therapeutic effect and mechanism of Naoxinqing on non-alcohol fatty liver disease (NAFLD) induced by a high-fat diet through network pharmacology,molecular docking and in vitro and in vivo experiments. Methods ApoE-/-mice were given a high-fat diet for 12 weeks to establish the NAFLD model,followed by a 12-week Naoxinqing administration. To evaluate the therapeutic effect of Naoxinqing on NAFLD induced by a high-fat diet,biochemical and histopathological experiments were performed,including assessment of blood lipids,liver function,serum inflammatory factors,as well as Hematoxylin and eosin (HE),Oil red O,and Sirius red staining of liver. Subsequently,network pharmacology and molecular docking techniques were employed to predict the key targets of Naoxinqing. Finally,the mechanism of Naoxinqing was validated by Western Blot in HepG2 cells and liver tissue. Results The results of serum biochemistry and liver tissue pathology showed that Naoxinqing can significantly improve high-fat diet-induced hepatic lipid accumulation,hepatocellular injury,and inflammation. Network pharmacology and molecular docking analysis results suggested that Naoxinqing may affect lipid metabolism through the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)/Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) pathway. Finally,in vitro cell experiment confirmed that the main mechanism of Naoxinqing is to activative the AMPK/SIRT1 pathway,upregulate the expression of downstream carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT1A),promote fatty acid oxidation,and ultimately improve NAFLD. Conclusion This study demonstrated that Naoxinqing improved NAFLD by promoting fatty acid oxidation through the activation of the AMPK/SIRT1 pathway.

A 65-year-old female patient with paranoid schizophrenia switched to amisulpride due to poor treatment efficacy with risperidone, and gradually increased the dosage (0.1 g twice daily for 3 days, 0.2 g, twice daily for 2 days, and finally 0.4 g in the morning and 0.2 g in the evening). After 4 days of medication, electrocardiogram showed sinus bradycardia, with heart rate 49 beats/min and QT interval 492 ms; after 7 days of medication, dynamic electrocardiogram showed heart rate 25 beats/min (average heart rate 42 beats/min) and sinus arrest (207 R-R intervals greater than 2.0 s, with a maximum of 2.47 s). Sinus arrest in the patient mostly occurred at night. Amisulpride was reduced to 0.2 g once daily orally, and ECG monitoring was given. The next day, echocardiography showed left ventricular dyskinesia, mild mitral regurgitation, and abnormal left ventricular filling. It was considered that sinus arrest may be related to amisulpride. The drug was discontinued immediately, the dose of olanzapine increased from 5 mg/d to 10 mg/d, and other treatments remain unchanged. On the day after discontinuation of amisulpride, the number of sinus arrest in electrocardiogram monitoring significantly decreased compared to before. Three days after discontinuation, no sinus arrest was found on the dynamic electrocardiogram; 26 days later, the ECG showed sinus rhythm, with a heart rate of 60 beats/min.

A 65-year-old female patient with paranoid schizophrenia switched to amisulpride due to poor treatment efficacy with risperidone, and gradually increased the dosage (0.1 g twice daily for 3 days, 0.2 g, twice daily for 2 days, and finally 0.4 g in the morning and 0.2 g in the evening). After 4 days of medication, electrocardiogram showed sinus bradycardia, with heart rate 49 beats/min and QT interval 492 ms; after 7 days of medication, dynamic electrocardiogram showed heart rate 25 beats/min (average heart rate 42 beats/min) and sinus arrest (207 R-R intervals greater than 2.0 s, with a maximum of 2.47 s). Sinus arrest in the patient mostly occurred at night. Amisulpride was reduced to 0.2 g once daily orally, and ECG monitoring was given. The next day, echocardiography showed left ventricular dyskinesia, mild mitral regurgitation, and abnormal left ventricular filling. It was considered that sinus arrest may be related to amisulpride. The drug was discontinued immediately, the dose of olanzapine increased from 5 mg/d to 10 mg/d, and other treatments remain unchanged. On the day after discontinuation of amisulpride, the number of sinus arrest in electrocardiogram monitoring significantly decreased compared to before. Three days after discontinuation, no sinus arrest was found on the dynamic electrocardiogram; 26 days later, the ECG showed sinus rhythm, with a heart rate of 60 beats/min.

The liver is one of the most important organs which regulate lipid metabolism in the body. Hepatic steatosis is a major manifestation of metabolic syndrome and is associated with an imbalance between lipid synthesis and decomposition. There are gender and age differences in the prevalence of fatty liver, suggesting that sex hormones may play a crucial role. This review summarizes current literatures on the regulation of hepatic lipid metabolism by sex hormones and their receptors. In females, estradiol binds to estrogen receptors to reduce liver fat production and fatty acid intake, while enhancing lipolysis and cholesterol secretion. In males, testosterone reduces adipogenesis and promotes fat breakdown through androgen receptors. These findings suggest that sex hormones and their receptors can serve as potential targets for preventing hepatic steatosis.

OBJECTIVE:To systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of escitalopram and duloxetine in the treatment of depression, and provide evidence-based reference for clinical treatment. METHODS:Retrieved from PubMed, Wanfang database,VIP,CNKI and CBM,randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about escitalopram (trial group) and duloxetine (control group) in the treatment of depression were collected. Meta-analysis was conducted by using Rev Man 5.3 software after data extraction and quality evaluation according to bias risk assessment tool recommended by system evaluator manual 5.3. RESULTS:Finally 25 RCTs were included,involving 2621 patients. The results of Meta-analysis showed that there was no statistical significance in total response rate between 2 groups after 1,2,4,6,8 weeks of treatment or cure rate between 2 groupsafter 4,6,8 weeks of treatment (P>0.05). There was no statistical significance in total response rate [RR=0.96,95％CI(0.88, 1.05),P=0.42] or cure rate [RR=0.91,95％CI(0.78,1.06),P=0.24] of female patients,as well as total response rate [RR=0.96, 95％CI(0.84,1.11),P=0.61] or cure rate [RR=0.90,95％CI(0.54,1.49),P=0.69] of elderly patients between 2 groups. The incidence of constipation [RR=0.59,95％CI (0.42,0.81),P=0.001],dry mouth [RR=0.65,95％CI(0.51,0.82),P=0.0004], nausea [RR=0.68,95％CI(0.56,0.83),P=0.0002] and decreased appetite [RR=0.74,95％CI(0.55,0.99),P=0.04] in trial group were significantly lower than control group,with statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS:The effectiveness of escitalopram is similar to duloxetine in the treatment of depression,but the safety of escitalopram is better than duloxetine.

Objective The clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of Listeria monocytogenes (LM) meningitis were reviewed. Methods The clinical data of a case of LM meningitis were retrospectively analyzed and a literature review was performed. Results The child initially presenting with fever, headache and vomit was treated with amoxicillin/clavulanic acid and ceftriaxone and the treatment effect was obvious. Cerebrospinal fluid and blood cultures were LM positive. In 17 related arti-cles, a total of 24 children with LM meningitis were reviewed. Among them, 4 patients died and 10 had hydrocephalus. The treatment with either ampicillin alone or in combination with aminoglycoside was effective. Conclusions LM meningitis was rare in immunocompetent children, but has high rates of mortality and sequelae.