Coptis chinensis Franch. and Panax ginseng C. A. Mey. are traditional herbal medicines with millennia of documented use and broad therapeutic applications, including anti-diabetic properties. However, the synergistic effect of total alkaloids from Coptis chinensis and total ginsenosides from Panax ginseng on type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its underlying mechanism remain unclear. The research demonstrated that the optimal ratio of total alkaloids from Coptis chinensis and total ginsenosides from Panax ginseng was 4∶1, exhibiting maximal efficacy in improving insulin resistance and gluconeogenesis in primary mouse hepatocytes. This combination demonstrated significant synergistic effects in improving glucose tolerance, reducing fasting blood glucose (FBG), the weight ratio of epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT), and the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in leptin receptor-deficient (db/db) mice. Subsequently, a T2DM liver-specific network was constructed based on RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) experiments and public databases by integrating transcriptional properties of disease-associated proteins and protein-protein interactions (PPIs). The network recovery index (NRI) score of the combined treatment group with a 4∶1 ratio exceeded that of groups treated with individual components. The research identified that activated adenosine 5'-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK)/acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) signaling in the liver played a crucial role in the synergistic treatment of T2DM, as verified by western blot experiment in db/db mice. These findings demonstrate that the 4∶1 combination of total alkaloids from Coptis chinensis and total ginsenosides from Panax ginseng significantly improves insulin resistance and glucose and lipid metabolism disorders in db/db mice, surpassing the efficacy of individual treatments. The synergistic mechanism correlates with enhanced AMPK/ACC signaling pathway activity.
Animals ; Panax/chemistry* ; Ginsenosides/administration & dosage* ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/metabolism* ; Mice ; Male ; Alkaloids/pharmacology* ; Coptis/chemistry* ; Drug Synergism ; Insulin Resistance ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Humans ; Transcriptome/drug effects* ; Blood Glucose/metabolism* ; Hypoglycemic Agents/administration & dosage* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Hepatocytes/metabolism*

Chronic active Epstein-Barr virus (CAEBV) infection with renal involvement is not common. The paper reported a child of multisystem-compromised CAEBV infection with the onset of IgA nephropathy (IgAN). The child presented with intermittent gross hematuria, and renal biopsy showed focal proliferative IgAN, administered methylprednisolone pulse followed by oral prednisolone treatment. Intermittent increase of blood Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) load and abnormal EBV antibody, pneumonia caused by EBV and Staphylococcus aureus-mixed infection, periappendiceal abscess, and pancytopenia occurred during treatment follow-up. The CAEBV infection was considered. Echocardiography suggested pulmonary hypertension. Head CT presented multiple calcifications in the bilateral basal ganglia. Bone marrow biopsy showed bone marrow EBV-DNA 6.5×10 3 copies per liter. Immunohistochemistry of renal biopsy showed about 50 CD8 + (scattered +) cells per high power field (HPF), about 40 CD4 + (focal +) cells per HPF (local), CD68 + (-), latent membrane protein 1 (-), EBV-encoded small RNA (scattered +) approximately 25 cells per HPF. The lymphocyte subsets infected with EBV showed CD4 + T cells EBV-DNA 3.4×10 4 copies per 1 million cells, CD8 + T cells EBV-DNA 3.3×10 5 copies per 1 million cells, B cells EBV-DNA 1.25×10 4 copies per 1 million cells, NK cells/NK T cells EBV-DNA 2.3×10 4 copies per 1 million cells. The clinical diagnosis was CAEBV infection and EBV-associated IgAN. The patient currently receives oral prednisone treatment, and it is recommended to undergo hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and treatment is under follow up.

Rectal cancer is a common malignancy of the gastrointestinal tract. Extramural vascular invasion (EMVI) is a key indicator of risk stratification for rectal cancer and an important reference factor in determining individualised treatment options, so it is important to accurately assess whether extramural vessels are infiltrated by the tumour before surgery. The main imaging methods for rectal cancer include magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) and transrectal ultrasound (TRUS). This article focuses on the performance and diagnostic efficacy of these imaging methods in the diagnosis of EMVI in rectal cancer, and provides clinical reference.

Objective:To evaluate the value of transrectal ultrasound(TRUS)in diagnosing extramural venous invasion(EMVI) of rectal cancer.Methods:Clinical data of 81 rectal cancer patients were retrospectively analyzed in the People′s Hospital of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region from January 2015 to December 2021. The extramural vascular sonographic features in these patients were summarized. Based on the postoperative pathology and compared with MRI examination, the efficacy of TRUS for the diagnosis of EMVI in rectal cancer was investigated.Results:①According to the sonographic presentation, extramural vessels of rectal cancer can be divided into the following four types: typeⅠshowed that the mass broke through the muscularis propria of the intestinal wall, and no peripheral vascular shadow was observed; typeⅡshowed that the mass broke through the muscularis propria, surrounded by extraneous vessels with normal diameter, running and blood flow; type Ⅲ showed that the mass broke through the intrinsic muscle layer of the intestinal wall and was surrounded by extramural vessels with abnormally thickened diameters, and blood flow filling defects; type Ⅳ showed a mass that broke through the intrinsic muscular layer, with irregularly dilated vessels outside the peritumoral wall and no blood flow signal in the lumen. ②With type Ⅲ and type Ⅳ as positive signs of EMVI, the diagnosis compliance rate of TRUS was 90.1% (Kappa=0.580, P<0.001), sensitivity was 58.3%, specificity was 95.7%, positive predictive value was 70.0%, negative predictive value was 93.0%, and area under the ROC curve(AUC) was 0.770. The diagnosis compliance rate of MRI was 86.4% (Kappa=0.541, P<0.001), sensitivity was 75.0%, specificity was 88.4%, positive predictive value was 52.9%, negative predictive value was 95.3%, and the AUC was 0.817. The differences in sensitivity and specificity between TRUS and MRI for the diagnosis of rectal cancer EMVI were not statistically significant ( P>0.05), and the differences in the AUC were not statistically significant ( Z=0.447, P=0.655). Conclusions:TRUS is valuable in assessing the extramural vascular status of rectal cancer and is expected to be an effective imaging method for preoperative diagnosis of EMVI.

Objective:To translate the English version of Sexual Interest and Desire Inventory-Female (SIDI-F) into Chinese, evaluate its reliability, validity and the proper cut-off point of diagnosis of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in China.Methods:Chinese version of SIDI-F was developed and 96 healthy women from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019 in Taihe Hospital, Shiyan City, Hubei Province were selected to fill in the Chinese version of SIDI-F and the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). Next, analyzed the reliability, validity and the cut-off point of diagnosis of HSDD of the SIDI-F.Results:The Cronbach coefficient of the Chinese version of SIDI-F was 0.931, split-half reliability was 0.922, the intra-group correlation coefficient was 0.805. Analysis of content validity of the SIDI-F indicated that the average of scale-level content validity index was 1.00, the item-level content validity index was 1.00, and the Pearson correlation coefficient between the score of SIDI-F and the erotica score of the FSFI (FSFI-D) was 0.802. Factor analysis of the Chinese version of SIDI-F showed good construct validity. The area under ROC was 0.835. With the SIDI-F score and the best cut-off point of 26.5, Youden index was the largest, at 0.635. The validity indicators were 76.7% for sensitivity, 86.8% for specificity, 5.95 for positive likelihood ratio.Conclusions:The Chinese version of SIDI-F has high reliability and validity in Chinese population, and these show 26.5 point can be used as the best cut-off value of diagnose HSDD.

【Objective】 To explore the application value of preoperative gastroscopic carbon nanoparticles labeling in patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastric cancer surgery. 【Methods】 We included cases of laparoscopic radical gastric cancer surgery at The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University from January 2017 to December 2019. Some cases received submucosal injection of carbon nanoparticles under the gastroscope before surgery. The effects of carbon nanoparticles labeling on the number of lymph nodes detected， operation duration and surgical complications were compared and analyzed. 【Results】 A total of 397 patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastric cancer surgery were enrolled. Among them， 78 cases underwent gastroscopic carbon nanoparticles tracer labeling before operation. No complications were observed. The total number of lymph nodes detected by pathology after surgery in the carbon nanoparticles group significantly increased ［（22.0（4.0） vs. 22.0（3.0）， P=0.033）］ while the operation time significantly reduced ［（185.0±37.48）min vs. （213.4±23.66）min， P<0.001］ compared with those in the control group. New gastric cancer lesions were revealed by gastroscopy in three cases （3.8%） of carbon nanoparticles labeling， and the original planned operation method was changed in two cases （2.6%）. 【Conclusion】 Preoperative endoscopic carbon nanoparticles tracer labeling can not only help shorten the time of laparoscopic radical surgery for gastric cancer and increase the number of total lymph nodes detected for more accurate TNM staging， but also provide an opportunity for the discovery of synchronous multiple gastric cancer.

Objective:To design an infection control culture assessment scale to comprehensively assess a hospital in general.Methods:Based on the American mature safety culture survey scale(HSOPSC), we developed an infection control culture assessment scale. With this scale, a cross-sectional study was conducted to survey 684 medical staff between October 2018 to January 2019. 607 valid questionnaires were recovered. Reliability and validity of the assessment were then examined by Delphi method, Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, while the positive response ratio of the dimension was calculated.Results:The scale of infection control culture assessment included 30 entries and 7 factors with eigenvalue>1, and a cumulative variance contribution rate of 57.97%. The 7 factors were basic infection control ability, hospital management atmosphere, mutual support between coworkers, reporting of negative events, interdepartmental collaboration, organizational learning and continuous improvement and working load. Cronbach′s coefficient of the entire assessment was 0.909, and split-half reliability was 0.941. Confirmatory factor analysis showed GFI, CFI, RMSEA, IFI, AGFI and other indicators were better fitted. Among all the factors, the organizational learning and continuous improvement and working load were lower than 50%, which should to be improved for the infection control culture. Conclusions:The assessment scale proved good reliability and validity, which may be widely used in hospitals. Regular measurement and improvement could effectively improve the infection control awareness of medical staff and ensure medical quality.

OBJECTIVE: To detect genetic variant in a sib-pair with Finnish type congenital nephrotic syndrome (CNF). METHODS: Clinical data of the sib-pair was reviewed. Coding regions of the NPHS1 gene was analyzed for the sib-pair and both parents. RESULTS: The sister and brother respectively developed severe proteinuria 1 month and 28 days after birth, in addition with low serum albumin, hypercholesterolemia and severe edema, which were suggestive of CNF. Genetic testing identified that the sib-pair has both carried two heterozygous variants of NPHS1 gene, namely c.2605G>C (p.P869>A) and c.-61G>A, for which their father and mother were heterozygous carriers. CONCLUSION The c.2605G>C (p.869P>A) and c.-61G>A variants of the NHPS1 gene probably underlay the CNF in both sibs. The c.2605G>C(p.869P>A) was unreported previously.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Membrane Proteins/genetics* ; Mutation ; Nephrotic Syndrome/genetics* ; Siblings

Circular RNA (circRNA) is a kind of RNA with a circular structure. The unique structure of circRNA endows it with various cell biological functions and characteristics. It has become a research hotspot recently. CircRNA can play a role via mechanisms, such as microRNA (miRNA) sponge, RNA binding protein, peptide translation and regulation of gene transcription. CircRNA was found to be associated with disc degeneration, spinal cord injury, scoliosis, and facet arthritis. Some techniques, including bioinformatics and molecular biology techniques, microarray and high-throughput sequencing, can be used to predict and to discover disease-related circRNA, aiming to evaluate whether circRNA can be used as a molecular biomarker for spinal and spinal cord diseases. Based on the current role of circRNA, the corresponding therapeutic strategies have been carried out in experimental animals, which can provide theoretical basis for gene therapy. At present, the researches in circRNA for spinal and spinal cord diseases are still insufficient compared with those in other fields. Currently, the main direction focuses on the miRNA sponge mechanism of circRNA. Due to the variety of diseases in spinal surgery, the research progress of circRNA is also varied. In addition, the development of microarray and high-throughput sequencing technology have greatly promoted the researches in circRNA. The availability of public database is of great significance in the study. The present review summarized the current researches status of circRNA in spinal and spinal cord diseases, aiming to deepen understanding of circRNA in spinal and spinal cord diseases.