ObjectiveTo systematically compare the differential regulation of the maternal-fetal interface cell lineages and communication networks in the CBA/J×DBA/2 mouse model of recurrent pregnancy loss （RPL） by the two classic therapeutic methods-tonifying the kidney to stabilize the fetus and invigorating the spleen to stabilize the fetus （Shoutai Wan， Juyuan Jian）-of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） at the single-cell resolution and clarify their modern scientific connotations. MethodsFemale non-pregnant CBA/J mice were caged with male BALB/c （blank group） and DBA/2 （modeling group） mice separately. Pregnant mice in the modeling group were randomly grouped as follows： high/low-dose Shoutai Wan， high/low-dose Juyuan Jian， model （RPL）， and positive control （dydrogesterone）， with 10 mice in each group. Starting from the day after the detection of the vaginal plug， mice were administrated with drugs or an equal volume of normal saline by gavage for 10 consecutive days. After the intervention， the following indicators were measured. ① Macroscopic evaluation： general conditions， uterine wet weight， embryo loss rate， four coagulation parameters ［prothrombin time （PT）， activated partial thromboplastin time （APTT）， fibrinogen （FIB）， and thrombin time （TT）］， and peripheral blood estradiol （E₂） and progesterone （Pg） levels. The decidua with embryos was stained with hematoxylin-eosin （HE） and evaluated by transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The expression of B-cell lymphoma-2 （Bcl-2）， vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF）， angiotensin Ⅱ （AngⅡ）， matrix metalloproteinase-2 （MMP-2）， interleukin-6 （IL-6）， leukemia inhibitory factor （LIF）， CXC chemokine ligand 12 （CXCL12）， and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 homolog （LC3）Ⅰ/Ⅱ was quantified by Western blot. ② Mechanism analysis at the single-cell level： The decidua with embryos from the blank， model， high-dose Shoutai Wan， and high-dose Juyuan Jian groups （6 mice per group， with 3 single-cell samples per group， totaling 24 mice） were analyzed by the BD Rhapsody™ platform， and the whole-cell atlas was drawn by uniform manifold approximation and projection （UMAP） dimensionality reduction clustering combined with the single-cell mouse cell atlas （scMCA）. The differentially expressed genes （DEGs） and cell interaction networks were analyzed via Gene Ontology （GO）， Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes （KEGG）， and CellChat， and the protein-protein interaction （PPI） map of subtype cells was constructed. The CytoTRACE pseudo-temporal analysis was performed to explore the developmental trajectories of core immune cells （natural killer cells， NK cells） from maternal and fetal sources. Results① Pathological and Western blot results indicated that compared with the blank group， the RPL group showed an increase in the embryo loss rate （P<0.01）， down-regulated expression of Bcl-2， LIF， MMP-2， and Vegf in the decidua with embryos （P<0.05）， up-regulated protein levels of CXCL-12， AngⅡ， and IL-6 （P<0.05）， blocked angiogenesis， apoptosis-inflammation imbalance， and coagulation dysfunction. Both prescriptions dose-dependently reduced the abortion rate and restored the angiogenesis-inflammation balance， and Shoutai pill showed superior performance in restoring the E₂ level to the Pg level （P<0.05）. ② Single-cell transcriptome analysis indicated that compared with the blank group， the RPL group showed differences in multiple key cell populations such as decidual cells， trophoblast cells， endothelial cells， erythroblasts， NK cells， and macrophages at the maternal-fetal interface. Immunity and angiogenesis were the key links in RPL. Compared with the RPL group， high-dose Shoutai Wan reversed the changes of NK cells in the embryonic layer （upregulating the mRNA levels of 17 genes and downregulating the mRNA levels of 29 genes） and macrophages （upregulating the mRNA levels of 117 genes and downregulating the mRNA levels of 53 genes） through the regulation of gene expression. High-dose Shoutai pill regulated the immune cells to affect unfolded proteins， cell adhesion， and programmed cell death， thereby promoting decidualization and angiogenesis and modulating embryo-membrane development. High-dose Juyuan Jian regulated the key subgroups of NK cells （up-regulating the mRNA levels of 9 genes and down-regulating the mRNA levels of 17 genes） and macrophages （up-regulating the mRNA levels of 110 genes and down-regulating the mRNA levels of 81 genes）， which affected decidual inflammation and apoptosis and intervened in glycolysis. ③ The pseudo-temporal analysis and communication network indicated that the communication frequency of the RPL group decreased. High-dose Shoutai Wan restored maternal-fetal tolerance through pathways such as NKG2D， CDH5， GDF， and FASLG. High-dose Juyuan Jian enhanced the IL-6/LIFR/JAK/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 （STAT3） and desmosome/SEMA6/tumor necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis （TWEAK） signaling to improve endometrial receptivity. The RPL group showed an increased proportion of toxic dNK7， a decreased proportion of reparative dNK4， and blocked embryo fNK1. High-dose Shoutai Wan down-regulated dNK7 and up-regulated dNK4. High-dose Juyuan Jian inhibited the terminal differentiation of dNK7 and up-regulated LILRB1， thus restoring the balance of cytotoxicity and repair. ConclusionBoth the kidney-tonifying and spleen-invigorating methods are effective in treating RPL. NK and macrophages are the key immune cells in the interaction between the embryo and the membrane. The kidney-tonifying method （Shoutai Wan） has an advantage in regulating the phenotypes of unfolded protein， cell adhesion， and programmed cell death， and shows expression characteristics closer to the physiological state in the regulation of NKG2D and CDH5 signals. The spleen-invigorating method （Juyuan Jian） has an advantage in regulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition （EMT）， angiogenesis， and glycolysis and shows higher communication intensity in the IL-6 and LIFR pathways.

ObjectiveTo explore the effect of serum containing Zhenwutang on myocardial mast cell apoptosis induced by angiotensin Ⅱ （AngⅡ） and the mechanism of the correlation between apoptosis and mitochondrial autophagy. MethodsIn this experiment， AngⅡ and serum containing Zhenwutang with different concentrations were used to interfere with H9C2 cardiomyocytes for 24 h， and the survival rate of H9C2 cardiomyocytes was detected by cell counting kit-8 （CCK-8） to screen the optimal concentration for the experiment. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to detect the content of B-type natriuretic peptide （BNP） in cell culture supernatant， and immunofluorescence was used to detect the cell surface area to verify the construction of the myocardial mast cell model. Subsequently， the experiment was divided into a blank group （20% blank serum）， a model group （20% blank serum + 5×10^-5 mol·L^-1 AngⅡ）， low-， medium-， and high-dose （5%， 10% and 20%） serum containing Zhenwutang groups， an autophagy inhibitor group （1×10^-4 mol·L^-1 3-MA）， and autophagy inducer group （1×10^-7 mol·L^-1 rapamycin）. The apoptosis level of H9C2 cells and the changes of mitochondrial membrane potential were detected by flow cytometry. The lysosomal probe （Lyso Tracker） and mitochondrial probe （Mito Tracker） co-localization was employed to detect autophagy. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to detect Caspase-3， Caspase-9， B-cell lymphoma 2 （Bcl-2）， Bcl-2-related X protein （Bax）， and cytochrome C （Cyt C） in apoptosis-related pathways and the relative mRNA expression of ubiquitin ligase （Parkin）， phosphatase and tensin homolog （PTEN）-induced kinase 1 （PINK1）， and p62 protein in mitochondrial autophagy-related pathways. Western blot was used to detect cleaved Caspase-3， cleaved Caspase-9， Bax， Bcl-2， and Cyt C in apoptosis-related pathways， phosphorylated ubiquitin ligase （p-Parkin）， phosphorylated PTEN-induced kinase 1 （p-PINK1）， p62， and Bcl-2 homology domain protein Beclin1 in mitochondrial autophagy-related pathways， and the change of microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 （LC3） Ⅱ/Ⅰ ratio. ResultsCCK-8 showed that when the concentration of AngⅡ was 5×10^-5 mol·L^-1， the cell activity was the lowest， and there was no cytotoxicity. At this concentration， the surface area of cardiomyocytes was significantly increased （P<0.01）， and the content of BNP in the supernatant of culture medium was significantly increased （P<0.05）. Therefore， AngⅡ with a concentration of 5×10^-5 mol·L^-1 was selected for the subsequent modeling of myocardial mast cells. Compared with the blank group， the model group and the autophagy inhibitor 3-MA group had a significantly increased apoptosis rate （P<0.01） and significantly decreased mitochondrial membrane potential （P<0.01）. The results of immunofluorescence co-localization showed that compared with the blank group， the model group had a significantly decreased number of red and green fluorescence spots. The results of Real-time PCR showed that compared with that in the blank group， the relative mRNA expression of Bax， Caspase-3， Caspase-9， Cyt C， and p62 in the model group was significantly up-regulated （P<0.01）， while the relative mRNA expression of Bcl-2， Parkin， and PINK1 was significantly down-regulated （P<0.01）. In addition， the relative protein expression of Bax， cleaved Caspase-3， cleaved Caspase-9， Cyt C， and p62 was significantly up-regulated （P<0.01）. The LC3Ⅱ/Ⅰ was significantly decreased， and the relative protein expression of Bcl-2， p-Parkin， p-PINK1， and Beclin1 was significantly down-regulated （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the serum containing Zhenwutang groups and the autophagy inducer group had significantly decreased apoptosis rate （P<0.01）， and the decrease ratio of mitochondrial membrane potential is significantly lowered （P<0.01） in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally， both red and green fluorescence spots became more in these groups. In the 3-MA group， the number of red and green fluorescence spots decreased significantly. The relative mRNA expression of Bax， Caspase-3， Caspase-9， Cyt C， and p62 was significantly down-regulated （P<0.05， P<0.01）， while that of Bcl-2， Parkin， and PINK1 was significantly up-regulated （P<0.01）. In the serum containing Zhenwutang groups， the relative protein expression levels of Bax， cleaved Caspase-3， cleaved Caspase-9， Cyt C， and p62 were significantly down-regulated （P<0.05，P<0.01）. The LC3Ⅱ/Ⅰ was significantly increased， and the relative protein expression levels of Bcl-2， p-Parkin， p-PINK1， and Beclin1 were significantly up-regulated （P<0.01）. ConclusionThe serum containing Zhenwutang can reduce the apoptosis of myocardial mast cells and increase mitochondrial autophagy. This is related to the inhibition of intracellular Bax/Bcl-2/Caspase-3 apoptosis pathway and regulation of Parkin/PINK1 mitochondrial autophagy pathway.

Objective To introduce the modeling method of pendulum-like modified rat abdominal heart heterotopic transplantation model and evaluate the quality of the model. Methods An operator without transplantation experience performed 15 consecutive models, recorded the time of each step, changes in body weight and modified Stanford scores, and calculated the surgical success rate, postoperative 1-week survival rate and technical success rate. Ultrasound examinations was performed in 1 week postoperatively. Results The times for donor heart acquisition, donor heart processing, recipient preparation and transplantation anastomosis were (14.3±1.4) min, (3.5±0.6) min, (13.6±2.1) min and (38.3±5.2) min respectively. The surgical success rate was 87% (13/15), and the survival rate 1 week after operative was 100% (13/13). The improved Stanford score indicated a technical success rate of 92% (12/13), and the postoperative 1-week ultrasound examination showed that grafts with Stanford scores ≥3 had detectable pulsation and blood flow signals. Conclusions The pendulum-like modified rat abdominal heart heterotopic transplantation improved model further optimizes the operational steps with a high success rate and stable quality, may be chosen as a modeling option for basic research in heart transplantation in the future.

With the widespread use of antibiotics, drug-resistant bacterial infections have become a significant threat to human health. Finding new antibacterial strategies that can effectively control drug-resistant bacterial infections has become an urgent task. Unlike small molecule drugs that target bacterial proteins, antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) can target genes related to bacterial resistance, pathogenesis, growth, reproduction and biofilm formation. By regulating the expression of these genes, ASO can inhibit or kill bacteria, providing a novel approach for the development of antibacterial drugs. To overcome the challenge of delivering antisense oligonucleotide into bacterial cells, various drug delivery systems have been applied in this field, including cell-penetrating peptides, lipid nanoparticles and inorganic nanoparticles, which have injected new momentum into the development of antisense oligonucleotide in the antibacterial realm. This review summarizes the current development of small nucleic acid drugs, the antibacterial mechanisms, targets, sequences and delivery vectors of antisense oligonucleotide, providing a reference for the research and development of antisense oligonucleotide in the treatment of bacterial infections.

[Objective] To investigate the factors associated with alanine aminotransferase (ALT) abnormalities in multi-ethnic blood donors across five Zang autonomous prefectures in the plateau regions of Qinghai Province, and to provide evidence for ensuring blood safety and formulating screening strategies. [Methods] A retrospective analysis was performed on the ALT abnormal test results of blood donors in the Zang autonomous prefectures of Qinghai from 2022 to 2024. The correlations between ALT levels and factors including gender, age, altitude, and infectious markers were investigated. [Results] The overall ALT unqualified rate among blood donors in this region was 9.01%. Significant differences in ALT levels were observed across genders and age groups (P<0.05). Variations in ALT abnormality rates were also noted among different plateau regions (P<0.05). Overall, ALT values exhibited an increasing trend with rising altitude. The average ALT unqualified rates were 11.19% in Zang donors, 7.96% in Han donors, and 4.79% in donors from other ethnic groups (P<0.05). No statistically significant association was observed between ALT abnormality and the presence of HBV/HCV infectious markers (P>0.05). [Conclusion] In the plateau areas of Qinghai, multi-ethnic blood donors have a relatively high ALT levels and ALT unqualified rates, showing distinct regional characteristics. ALT elevation in voluntary blood donors is related to non-pathological factors such as gender, age, and dietary habits, but not to infectious indicators.

Objective: Miniscrews are commonly utilized as temporary anchorage devices (TADs) in cases of maxillary protrusion and premolar extraction. This study aimed to investigate the effects and potential side effects of two conventional miniscrew configurations on the maxillary incisors. Methods: Eighty-two adult patients with maxillary dentoalveolar protrusion who had undergone bilateral first premolar extraction were retrospectively divided into three groups: non-TAD, two posterior miniscrews only (P-TADs), and two anterior and two posterior miniscrews combined (AP-TADs). Cone-beam computed tomography was used to evaluate the maxillary central incisors (U1). Results: The APTADs group had significantly greater U1 intrusion (1.99 ± 2.37 mm, n = 50) and less retroclination (1.70° ± 8.80°) compared to the P-TADs (–0.07 ± 1.65 mm and 9.45° ± 10.68°, n = 60) and non-TAD group (0.30 ± 1.61 mm and 1.91° ± 9.39°, n = 54).However, the AP-TADs group suffered from significantly greater apical root resorption (ARR) of U1 (2.69 ± 1.38 mm) than the P-TADs (1.63 ± 1.46 mm) and non-TAD group (0.89 ± 0.97 mm). Notably, the incidence of grade IV ARR was 16.6% in the AP-TADs group, significantly higher than the rates observed in the P-TADs (6.7%) and non-TAD (1.9%) groups. Multiple regression analysis revealed that after excluding tooth movement factors, the AP-TADs configuration resulted in an additional 0.5 mm of ARR compared with the P-TADs group. Conclusions In cases of maxillary protrusion and premolar extraction, the use of combined anterior and posterior miniscrews enhances incisor intrusion and minimizes torque loss of the maxillary incisors. However, this approach results in more severe ARR, likely due to the increased apical movement and composite force exerted.

Objective: Miniscrews are commonly utilized as temporary anchorage devices (TADs) in cases of maxillary protrusion and premolar extraction. This study aimed to investigate the effects and potential side effects of two conventional miniscrew configurations on the maxillary incisors. Methods: Eighty-two adult patients with maxillary dentoalveolar protrusion who had undergone bilateral first premolar extraction were retrospectively divided into three groups: non-TAD, two posterior miniscrews only (P-TADs), and two anterior and two posterior miniscrews combined (AP-TADs). Cone-beam computed tomography was used to evaluate the maxillary central incisors (U1). Results: The APTADs group had significantly greater U1 intrusion (1.99 ± 2.37 mm, n = 50) and less retroclination (1.70° ± 8.80°) compared to the P-TADs (–0.07 ± 1.65 mm and 9.45° ± 10.68°, n = 60) and non-TAD group (0.30 ± 1.61 mm and 1.91° ± 9.39°, n = 54).However, the AP-TADs group suffered from significantly greater apical root resorption (ARR) of U1 (2.69 ± 1.38 mm) than the P-TADs (1.63 ± 1.46 mm) and non-TAD group (0.89 ± 0.97 mm). Notably, the incidence of grade IV ARR was 16.6% in the AP-TADs group, significantly higher than the rates observed in the P-TADs (6.7%) and non-TAD (1.9%) groups. Multiple regression analysis revealed that after excluding tooth movement factors, the AP-TADs configuration resulted in an additional 0.5 mm of ARR compared with the P-TADs group. Conclusions In cases of maxillary protrusion and premolar extraction, the use of combined anterior and posterior miniscrews enhances incisor intrusion and minimizes torque loss of the maxillary incisors. However, this approach results in more severe ARR, likely due to the increased apical movement and composite force exerted.

Objective: Miniscrews are commonly utilized as temporary anchorage devices (TADs) in cases of maxillary protrusion and premolar extraction. This study aimed to investigate the effects and potential side effects of two conventional miniscrew configurations on the maxillary incisors. Methods: Eighty-two adult patients with maxillary dentoalveolar protrusion who had undergone bilateral first premolar extraction were retrospectively divided into three groups: non-TAD, two posterior miniscrews only (P-TADs), and two anterior and two posterior miniscrews combined (AP-TADs). Cone-beam computed tomography was used to evaluate the maxillary central incisors (U1). Results: The APTADs group had significantly greater U1 intrusion (1.99 ± 2.37 mm, n = 50) and less retroclination (1.70° ± 8.80°) compared to the P-TADs (–0.07 ± 1.65 mm and 9.45° ± 10.68°, n = 60) and non-TAD group (0.30 ± 1.61 mm and 1.91° ± 9.39°, n = 54).However, the AP-TADs group suffered from significantly greater apical root resorption (ARR) of U1 (2.69 ± 1.38 mm) than the P-TADs (1.63 ± 1.46 mm) and non-TAD group (0.89 ± 0.97 mm). Notably, the incidence of grade IV ARR was 16.6% in the AP-TADs group, significantly higher than the rates observed in the P-TADs (6.7%) and non-TAD (1.9%) groups. Multiple regression analysis revealed that after excluding tooth movement factors, the AP-TADs configuration resulted in an additional 0.5 mm of ARR compared with the P-TADs group. Conclusions In cases of maxillary protrusion and premolar extraction, the use of combined anterior and posterior miniscrews enhances incisor intrusion and minimizes torque loss of the maxillary incisors. However, this approach results in more severe ARR, likely due to the increased apical movement and composite force exerted.

BACKGROUND: The available evidence regarding the benefits of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on patients receiving dialysis with coronary artery disease (CAD) is limited and inconsistent. This study aimed to evaluate the association between PCI and clinical outcomes as compared with medical therapy alone in patients undergoing dialysis with CAD in China. METHODS: This multicenter, retrospective study was conducted in 30 tertiary medical centers across 12 provinces in China from January 2015 to June 2021 to include patients on dialysis with CAD. The primary outcome was major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), defined as a composite of cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and non-fatal stroke. Secondary outcomes included all-cause death, the individual components of MACE, and Bleeding Academic Research Consortium criteria types 2, 3, or 5 bleeding. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess the association between PCI and outcomes. Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) and propensity score matching (PSM) were performed to account for potential between-group differences. RESULTS: Of the 1146 patients on dialysis with significant CAD, 821 (71.6%) underwent PCI. After a median follow-up of 23.0 months, PCI was associated with a 43.0% significantly lower risk for MACE (33.9% [ n  = 278] vs . 43.7% [ n  = 142]; adjusted hazards ratio 0.57, 95% confidence interval 0.45-0.71), along with a slightly increased risk for bleeding outcomes that did not reach statistical significance (11.1% vs . 8.3%; adjusted hazards ratio 1.31, 95% confidence interval, 0.82-2.11). Furthermore, PCI was associated with a significant reduction in all-cause and cardiovascular mortalities. Subgroup analysis did not modify the association of PCI with patient outcomes. These primary findings were consistent across IPTW, PSM, and competing risk analyses. CONCLUSION This study indicated that PCI in patients on dialysis with CAD was significantly associated with lower MACE and mortality when comparing with those with medical therapy alone, albeit with a slightly increased risk for bleeding events that did not reach statistical significance.
Humans ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention/methods* ; Male ; Female ; Coronary Artery Disease/drug therapy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Renal Dialysis/methods* ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; China ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Treatment Outcome

Background/Aims: Liver cirrhosis involves chronic inflammation and progressive fibrosis.Among various immune cells, CD8+ T cells are considered a major contributor to hepatic inflammation and fibrosis. However, the exact molecular pathways governing CD8+ T-cell-mediated effects in cirrhosis remain unclear. Methods: This study analyzed transcriptomic and single-cell sequencing data to elucidate CD8+ T-cell heterogeneity and implications in cirrhosis. Results: Weighted gene co-expression analysis of bulk RNA-seq data revealed an association between cirrhosis severity and activated T-cell markers like HLA and chemokine genes. Furthermore, single-cell profiling uncovered eight CD8+ T-cell subtypes, notably, effector memory (Tem) and exhausted (Tex) T cells. Tex cells, defined by PDCD1, LAG3, and CXCL13 expression, were increased in cirrhosis, while Tem cells were decreased. Lineage tracing and differential analysis highlighted CXCL13+ Tex cells as a terminal, exhausted subtype of cells with roles in PD-1 signaling, glycolysis, and T-cell regulation. CXCL13+ Tex cells displayed T-cell exhaustion markers like PDCD1, HAVCR2, TIGIT, and TNFRSF9. Functional analysis implicated potential roles of these cells in immunosuppression. Finally, a CXCL13+ Tex-cell gene signature was found that correlated with cirrhosis severity and poorer prognosis of liver cancer. Conclusions In summary, this comprehensive study defines specialized CD8+ T-cell subpopulations in cirrhosis, with CXCL13+ Tex cells displaying an exhausted phenotype associated with immune dysregulation and advanced disease. Key genes and pathways regulating these cells present potential therapeutic targets.