ObjectiveTo explore the mechanism of Sangpi Zhike prescription in treating cough after respiratory syncytial virus （RSV） infection through the "lung-intestine co-treatment" approach using network pharmacology and animal experimental validation. MethodsActive ingredients and targets of Sangpi Zhike prescription were retrieved from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology （TCMSP） database. Disease targets were obtained from GeneCards and Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man（OMIM） databases. Protein-protein interaction （PPI） networks and drug-component-target networks were constructed using overlapping targets between drugs and diseases to identify core targets. Gene ontology（GO） and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes（KEGG） pathway enrichment analyses were performed on the overlapping targets. Sixty mouse models were established： 10 as the normal group， and the remaining mice were infected with RSV via slow nasal drip of RSV suspension， with cough induced using capsaicin solution. After modeling， mice were divided into a model group， a Montelukast Sodium group （1 mg·kg^-1·d^-1）， and low， medium， and high dose groups of Sangpi Zhike prescription （4.875，9.75，and 19.5 g·kg^-1·d^-1）， with 10 mice per group. From day 14 after RSV infection， the normal and model groups received saline via gavage， while other groups received corresponding drug treatments once daily for 5 d. Hematoxylin-eosin（HE） staining was used to observe pathological changes in lung and intestinal tissue. The protein content of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 （ERK1/2） and phosphorylated （p）-ERK1/2 in the lung and colon tissue of mice was detected by Western blot. Real-time polymerase chain reaction（Real-time PCR） detected ERK1/2 mRNA expression in lung and intestinal tissue. Immunohistochemistry assessed p-MEK1/2， p-ERK1/2， p-c-Fos protein levels， and inflammatory cytokines interleukin（IL）-4 and （TNF）-α in lung and colon tissue. ResultsNetwork pharmacology identified 184 active ingredients and 684 targets in Sangpi Zhike prescription， with 1 344 RSV-related disease targets and 209 overlapping targets. Core targets included TNF， Fos， and Jun. KEGG enrichment revealed 179 pathways， primarily mitogen-activated protein kinase（MAPK）， cancer， TNF， and IL-17 signaling pathways. Animal experiments showed that， compared to those of the normal group， the lung tissue sections of the model group showed typical inflammatory damage， infiltration of inflammatory cells， rupture of alveolar septa， extensive alveolar fusion， and disruption of tight junctions between single-layer columnar epithelial cells in the intestinal tissue. The values of p-ERK1/2 and ERK1/2 in lung and intestinal tissue were significantly increased （P<0.01）， and the expression level of ERK1/2 mRNA was significantly elevated （P<0.01）. The levels of ERK1/2， p-MEK1/2， p-ERK1/2， p-c-Fos， IL-4， and TNF-α along the ERK pathway were significantly increased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared to the model group， Sangpi Zhike prescription groups showed reduced lung and intestinal inflammation， decreased p-ERK1/2/ERK1/2 ratios （P<0.05，P<0.01）， lower ERK1/2 mRNA levels， and downregulated ERK pathway proteins （P<0.05，P<0.01）. ConclusionSangpi Zhike prescription alleviates cough and intestinal symptoms after RSV infection via the "lung-intestine co-treatment" mechanism by suppressing expression levels of ERK1/2， p-MEK1/2， p-ERK1/2， p-c-Fos， IL-4， and TNF-α on ERK pathway components， thereby mitigating lung and intestinal pathological damage.

ObjectiveTo investigate the value of liver stiffness measurement （LSM） and spleen stiffness measurement （SSM） measured by two-dimensional shear wave elastography （2D-SWE） in the diagnosis of severe portal hypertension （SPH） and high-risk varices （HRV）， and to provide a basis for noninvasive assessment of portal hypertension. MethodsA prospective study was conducted among 78 patients with cirrhotic portal hypertension who were treated in Liver Research Center of Beijing Friendship Hospital， Capital Medical University， from December 2019 to April 2023. According to hepatic venous pressure gradient （HVPG）， the patients were divided into 6 mmHg≤HVPG<12 mmHg group， 12 mmHg≤HVPG<20 mmHg group， and HVPG ≥20 mmHg group. All patients underwent gastroscopy and 2D-SWE within 1 week after HVPG measurement， and SWE-LSM and SWE-SSM measured by 2D-SWE were recorded. A one-way analysis of variance or the Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for comparison of continuous data between multiple groups， and the chi-square test or the Fisher’s exact test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. With HVPG and gastroscopy findings as the gold standard， the receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve was plotted and the area under the ROC curve （AUC） was calculated to evaluate diagnostic performance， while the DeLong test was used for comparison of AUC. The Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis was used to investigate the correlation between variables， and the linear regression analysis and the Logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the influencing factors for HVPG and HRV. ResultsThe mean HVPG was 18.1±6.4 mmHg for the patients enrolled in this study， and HRV was observed in 62 patients （79.5%）. Both SWE-LSM and SWE-SSM were significantly positively correlated with HVPG （r=0.413 and 0.633， both P<0.001）， with an AUC of 0.812 and 0.902， respectively， in the diagnosis of HVPG≥12 mmHg and an AUC of 0.804 and 0.789， respectively， in the diagnosis of HVPG≥20 mmHg （all P>0.05）. The multivariate linear regression analysis showed that SWE-SSM was an independent influencing factor for HVPG （β=0.17， P<0.001）. In the diagnosis of HRV， only SWE-SSM showed a significant positive correlation with HRV （r=0.432， P<0.001）， with a better diagnostic performance than SWE-LSM in terms of AUC （0.808 vs 0.642， Z=2.775， P=0.006）. The multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that platelet count was an independent influencing factor for HRV （odds ratio=0.97， P=0.014）. ConclusionSWE-SSM is closely correlated with both HVPG and HRV， showing a good performance in the diagnosis of SPH and HRV， and therefore， it is expected to become an effective noninvasive tool for assessing portal hypertension.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinical features and gene mutation characteristics of combined oxidative phosphorylation deficiency type 7 (COXPD7) caused by mutations in the C12orf65 gene, and to enhance the awareness of this disease. METHODS: A child diagnosed with COXPD7 in the Department of Neurology, Children's Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University in 2021 was included, along with 10 patients reported in the literature. All subjects were analyzed for their genotypes and clinical phenotypes. RESULTS: A total of 11 patients with COXPD7 were included, comprising 1 reported in this study and 10 from the literature. Among the 11 patients, 9 had homozygous mutations in the C12orf65 gene, while 2 had compound heterozygous mutations, which were identified as frameshift or nonsense mutations. The age of onset ranged from 1 day to 2 years, and clinical manifestations included optic nerve atrophy and delays in intellectual and motor development. Eight patients exhibited external ophthalmoplegia, and five patients displayed spastic paralysis. Cranial magnetic resonance imaging revealed optic nerve atrophy in all 11 patients, abnormal brainstem signals in 10 patients, and a lactate peak on brainstem magnetic resonance spectroscopy scans in 3 patients. CONCLUSIONS COXPD7 associated with the C12orf65 gene results from homozygous or compound heterozygous mutations, with primary clinical manifestations of optic nerve atrophy and delays in intellectual and motor development. Some patients may also present with spastic paralysis or external ophthalmoplegia. Cranial imaging reveals symmetrical abnormal signals in bilateral basal ganglia and brainstem, and a lactate peak is observed on brainstem magnetic resonance spectroscopy scans.
Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Mitochondrial Diseases/genetics* ; Mitochondrial Proteins/genetics* ; Mutation ; Oxidative Phosphorylation ; Infant, Newborn

OBJECTIVE To provide direction and reference for the adjustment of the discount rate （DR） in China’s pharmacoeconomic guidelines. METHODS Search was conducted on the official websites of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research， health technology assessment agencies in various countries/regions， as well as relevant websites of other upper-middle-income or high-income countries/regions. The recommended DR， adjustment trends， and setting rationales in pharmacoeconomic evaluation guidelines across different countries/regions were then summarized and compared. Based on theoretical derivation and literature analysis， the effects of different DR on the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio （ICER） were examined. RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS Among the 40 included guidelines， the base-case DR ranged from 1.5% to 5%， with 5% being the most common value； the range for sensitivity analysis was 0 to 12%. Thirty-six countries/regions applied the same DR to both costs and health outcomes， while in the Netherlands， Belgium， Poland and Czech Republic， DR for costs was higher than for health outcomes. In recent years， Korea， France and Ireland had lowered their DR in response to economic changes， whereas the Netherlands and Czech Republic had raised their DR for cost. The setting of the DR was primarily based on the public project investment interest rate or referred to recommendations from internationally authoritative institutions and other relevant guidelines. The direction and magnitude of the impact of different DR on the ICER largely depended on the distribution of costs and health outcomes between the intervention and reference measure. The setting and adjustment of DR were closely associated with the economic environment. Based on international experience, the DR in China can be lowered by 0.5% to 1.5%， and localized empirical research can be conducted using internationally common estimation methods.

Objective:To apply combined serological diagnostic methods for anti-BP180-type and anti-laminin 332 (Ln332) -type mucous membrane pemphigoid (MMP), and to summarize their clinical and immunoserological characteristics.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the data from 52 patients clinically suspected of having MMP at the Hospital of Dermatology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences from January 2017 to February 2022. Serum samples were collected, and combined serological tests, including indirect immunofluorescence on salt-split skin, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and immunoblotting, were performed to analyze the immunoserological and clinical characteristics of the patients. The Fisher′s exact test was used to compare the lesion occurrence rates between groups.Results:Among the 52 patients clinically suspected of MMP, 32 (61.5%) were diagnosed with anti-BP180-type MMP, 10 (19.2%) with anti-Ln332-type MMP, and 4 (7.7%) with anti-BP180- and anti-Ln332-type MMP due to the presence of both anti-BP180 and anti-Ln332 antibodies; 2 tested positive for IgG on the epidermal side of salt-split skin, but no target antigens were identified by serological tests, and they were diagnosed with MMP (subtype pending) ; 4 tested negative by immunoserological tests. Ocular involvement was observed in 6 out of 10 patients with anti-Ln332-type MMP, whereas only 6 out of 32 anti-BP180-type MMP patients (18.8%) had ocular symptoms, and there was a significant difference in the occurrence rate of ocular involvement between the two groups ( P = 0.02) ; the occurrence rates of nasal involvement and multi-mucosal involvement were significantly higher in the anti-Ln332-type MMP patients (50%[5/10], 90%[9/10], respectively) than in the anti-BP180-type MMP patients (0, 25%[8/32], respectively, both P < 0.001). Scar formation occurred in 6 out of 10 anti-Ln332-type MMP patients, but occurred in only 6 out of 32 anti-BP180-type patients (18.8%, P = 0.02) . Conclusion:The combination of indirect immunofluorescence on salt-split skin, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and immunoblotting could effectively identify anti-BP180 and anti-Ln332 autoantibodies in MMP patients, with BP180 being the most common target antigen; compared with anti-BP180-type MMP, anti-Ln332-type MMP appeared to be more frequently involve the ocular and nasal mucosae, associated with the involvement of multiple mucosal sites, carrying a higher risk of scar formation.

Objective To investigate the causal relationship between abnormal placental lipid metabolism and trophoblast dysfunction in patients with preeclampsia(PE),and to explore the regulatory effects of PPARγ on trophoblast function under hypoxic conditions.Methods Placental tissues were collected from 30 patients with PE and 30 individuals with normal pregnancies at the General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University between October 2020 and November 2021 for the analysis of lipid deposition.A rat model of PE was established,comprising a sham-operated(Sham)group and a reduced uterine perfusion pressure(Rupp)group,with six rats in each group(n=12 total).Human trophoblast cells(HTR-8/SVneo)were cultured in vitro and randomly assigned to four experimental groups:normoxic control,hypoxia,hypoxia+PPARγ agonist(Rosiglitazone),and hypoxia+PPARγ antagonist(T0070907).The expression levels of lipid metabolism-related genes and transcription factors(FASN,FABP4,PPARγ,LXRα)were assessed using RT-qPCR.Western blotting was performed to determine the protein expression levels of PPARγ.Cell migration and invasion capacities were evaluated using scratch wound healing and Transwell assays,respectively.Results Placental lipid deposition in the PE group was significantly higher than that in the control group,particularly in the Rupp model mice(P<0.001).Under hypoxic conditions,the expression levels of FASN and FABP4 were upregulated in trophoblast cells(P<0.001),whereas the expression of PPARγ and LXRα was downregulated(P<0.001).Furthermore,treatment with the PPARγ antagonist T0070907 exacerbated the inhibitory effects of hypoxia on cell function(P<0.001),significantly reducing cell invasion and migration capacity(P<0.001).Additional siRNA-mediated knockdown experiments confirmed that PPARγ deficiency further aggravated hypoxia-induced impairments in cell migration and invasion,and this detrimental effect could not be reversed by Rosiglitazone.Conclusions Abnormal placental lipid metabolism in PE is closely linked to PPARγ-mediated enhancement of lipid synthesis and metabolic dysregulation under hypoxic conditions,which may subsequently impair trophoblast invasion and migration.

Spinal cord injury (SCI), as a serious traumatic disease of the central nervous system, often leads to irreversible damage to neurological function and has a high disability rate. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have the ability of self-renewal capacity and multilineage differentiation potential, and thus show broad application prospects and research value in the repair of SCI. iPSCs can replace damaged cells by directionally differentiating into neurons, oligodendrocytes, etc., secrete neurotrophic factors to optimize the microenvironment, promote myelin regeneration, and regulate immune responses. In recent years, research has concentrated on refining the directional differentiation protocol of iPSCs, improving survival rate and functional integration of transplanted cells, and actively exploring combined treatment strategies with biomaterial scaffolds, electrical stimulation, etc., to enhance the repair effect. Preclinical studies substantiate that iPSC transplantation can improve motor function, and early-phase clinical trials have also demonstrated its biological safety. Furthermore, iPSCs avoid ethical controversies and can be applied to disease modeling and mechanism research.

Kupffer cells (KCs), as residents and sentinels of the liver, are involved in the formation of hepatic fibrosis (HF). However, the biological functions of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in KCs to HF have not been determined. In this study, the expression levels of circRNAs, microRNAs, and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) in KCs from a mouse model of HF mice were investigated using microarray and circRNA-Seq analyses. circDcbld2 was identified as a candidate circRNA in HF, as evidenced by its up-regulation in KCs. Silver staining and mass spectrometry showed that Wtap and Igf2bp2 bind to cirDcbld2. The suppression of circDcbld2 expression decreased the KC inflammatory response and oxidative stress and inhibited hepatic stellate cell (HSCs) activation, attenuating mouse liver fibrogenesis. Mechanistically, Wtap mediated the N ⁶-methyladenosine (m6A) methylation of circDcbld2, and Igf2bp2 recognized m6A-modified circDcbld2 and increased its stability. circDcbld2 contributes to the occurrence of HF by binding miR-144-3p/Et-1 to regulate the inflammatory response and oxidative stress. These findings indicate that circDcbld2 functions via the m6A/circDcbld2/miR-144-3p/Et-1 axis and may act as a potential biomarker for HF treatment.

Objective To explore the changes in serum epidermal growth factor receptor(EGFR)and cancer anti-gen 125(CA125)levels in pregnant women with adenomyosis(AM)and their relationship with pregnancy outcomes.Methods A total of 108 pregnant women with AM(AM pregnant women group)admitted to Baoding Maternal And Child Health Hospital from June 2021 to August 2023 were collected and divided into a good preg-nancy group(n=43)and a poor pregnancy group(n=65)based on pregnancy outcomes.Meanwhile,AM patients were selected as AM group and 108 pregnant women with normal pregnancy test were selected as control group.ELISA was applied to detect the serum level of EGFR and CA125.Pearson correlation was applied to analyze the correlation between serum EGFR and CA125 in AM pregnant women.Multivariate logistic regression was applied to analyze the factors that affected the outcome of AM pregnancy.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of serum EGFR and CA125 levels for AM pregnancy outcomes.Results Compared with the control group,serum level of EGFR and CA125 in AM group and AM pregnant women group were significantly increased and serum level of EGFR and CA125 in AM pregnant women group was higher than that in AM group(P＜0.05).As the depth grading of endometrial invasion increased,serum level of EGFR and CA125 increased sequentially;The serum level of EGFR and CA125 was obviously elevated in diffuse type and proliferate phase(P＜0.05).The expression level of EGFR and CA125 in the serum of AM pregnant women with premature rupture of membranes,premature birth,placenta previa,and miscarriage was significantly increased(P＜0.05).According to Pearson correlation analysis,there was a positive correlation between serum EGFR and CA125 in AM pregnant women(r=0.487,P＜0.05).The serum level of EGFR and CA125 in good pregnancy group was lower than that in poor pregnancy group(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of serum EGFR,CA125,and their combined prediction for AM pregnancy outcome was 0.880,0.835,and 0.955,re-spectively and the combined prediction of AUC for AM pregnancy outcome was significantly higher than that of se-rum EGFR and CA125 alone prediction(Zcombination-EGFR=2.279,Zcombination-CA125=3.304,both P＜0.05).Conclusions Serum level of EGFR and CA125 in AM pregnant women is elevated,which is closely related to pregnancy outcomes and is potential risk factor for poor pregnancy in AM.The combination of the two is more ef-fective in predicting pregnancy outcomes in AM.