Cinnabar(HgS) was widely used in ancient times for medicinal purposes, religious rituals, and pigments. A group of bright red powdery clumps was excavated from Mawangdui Tomb No.3 of the Han Dynasty. Early studies considered the clumps as evidence of cinnabar's medicinal use during the Qin-Han period. This study employed a range of archaeometric techniques, including extended-depth-of-field stereo imaging, micro-CT, scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry FTIR, to systematically analyze the material composition and structural characteristics of these remains. The results revealed that the cinnabar particles were granular, finely ground, and tightly bound to silk matrix, with no detectable excipients typically associated with medicinal formulations. Micro-CT imaging indicated a well-preserved textile structure, with clear signs of sedimentary accumulation and mechanical damage. Based on historical and archaeological studies, this study suggested that these remains were more likely degraded accumulations of cinnabar-colored silk textiles rather than medicinal cinnabar. By clarifying the diversity of ancient cinnabar applications and preservation states, this study provides new insights for the archaeological identification of mineral medicinal materials and contributes to the standardized study of Chinese medicinal materials and understanding of the historical use of cinnabar.
History, Ancient ; China ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional/history* ; Archaeology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/history* ; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared ; Spectrum Analysis, Raman ; Mercury Compounds

Mineral oil contaminants composed of saturated hydrocarbons(MOSH)and aromatic hydrocarbons(MOAH)are commonly found in edible oils and related processed foods.Currently,the analysis of mineral oils primarily employs the liquid chromatography-gas chromatography-flame ionization detector(LC-GC-FID)method.Liquid chromatography is used to purify and separate MOSH and MOAH from interfering substances,and the interface technology transfers MOSH or MOAH into different GC channels for quantitative analysis.The MOSH and MOAH chromatograms typically exhibit an irregular hump shape,with sharp peaks above the hump representing natural hydrocarbon interferences,which usually do not affect the identification of the hump profile.However,when the purification of interferences is incomplete,they can form one or more gaps above the hump,interfering with the accurate judgment and delineation of the hump profile,and leading to poor reproducibility of analysis results of mineral oil.In this study,an algorithm that mimicked the manual drawing of the hump shape or contour was proposed for automatically determining the mineral oil hump contour(i.e.,the lower envelope line).The algorithm used a multiple second-order difference quotient filtering method to identify and remove the gaps above the hump.The method involved first searching and determining the lowest value of the mineral oil hump,which was the valley point sequence,and then applying second-order difference quotient filtering to the valley point sequence.Compared to the hump,the second-order difference quotient of sharp peaks was a significantly larger negative value.By filtering out the points in the valley point sequence with larger negative second-order difference quotients(or multiple second-order difference quotients),the sharp peaks above the hump were removed.To verify the accuracy of the algorithm,42 different types of samples,including edible oils and milk powders were analyzed,using both the automatic algorithm and manual methods.The results showed that there were no significant differences in the detected mineral oil contents between these two methods.

Purpose To investigate the protective effect and mechanism of A-485 on renal tubular injury in diabetic mice.Methods Eighteen male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into three groups:Control group,diabetic kidney dis-ease(DKD)group and A-485 treatment group.The DKD mice model was established by feeding high-fat diet for 8 weeks and intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin for 5 days.Subsequent-ly,the A-485 treatment group was given A-485(10 mg/kg/day)by intraperitoneal injection every other day for 4 weeks.After treatment,the renal function,P300 enzyme activity and lipid deposition in renal tissue were measured.Western blot a-nalysis was performed to detect SREBP-1,FASN,ACC,ChREBP,P300,CBP,H3K18ac and H3K27ac protein levels.Results Compared with control mice,the levels of FBG,BUN,Scr and UAE were significantly increased in diabetic mice(FBG:2.52 times,BUN:2.89 times,Scr:2.13 times,UAE:4.21 times),while diabetic mice treatment with A-485 exhibi-ted a remarkable decrease on BUN,Scr and UAE(BUN:0.511 times,Scr:0.636 times,UAE:0.574 times,P＜0.01).The results of the transmission electron microscopy and oil red O stai-ning showed that A-485 treatment prevents lipid droplets forma-tion and up-regulation of SREBP-1,FASN,ACC and ChREBP in renal tubular cells of diabetic mice(SREBP-1:0.544 times,FASN:0.449 times,ACC:0.306 times,ChREBP:0.317 times,P＜0.01).Furthermore,A-485 intervention downregu-lated the enzyme activity of P300(0.546 times)and suppressed the expression of H3K18ac(0.337 times)and H3K27ac(0.308 times,P＜0.01).Conclusion A-485 can significant-ly improve renal lipid metabolic disorder in diabetic mice,which may be achieved by inhibiting p300-induced H3K18ac and H3K27ac.

Objective:To investigate the clinical features and prognosis of male with anti-melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA5) autoantibody.Methods:The clinical data of 246 patients with DM and anti-MDA5 autoantibodies hospitalized by Jiangsu Myositis Cooperation Group from 2017 to 2020 were collected and retrospectively analyzed. Chi-square test was performed to compared between counting data groups; Quantitative data were expressed by M ( Q1, Q3), and rank sum test was used for comparison between groups; Single factor survival analysis was performed by Kaplan-Meier method and Log rank test; Cox regression analysis were used for multivariate survival analysis. Results:①The male group had a higher proportion of rash at the sun exposure area [67.1%(47/70) vs 52.8%(93/176), χ2=4.18, P=0.041] and V-sign [50.0%(35/70) vs 30.7%(54/176), χ2=8.09, P=0.004] than the female group. The male group had higher levels of creatine kinase [112(18, 981)U/L vs 57 (13.6, 1 433)U/L, Z=-3.50, P<0.001] and ferritin [1 500 (166, 32 716)ng/ml vs 569 (18, 14 839)ng/ml, Z=-5.85, P<0.001] than the female group. The proportion of ILD [40.0%(28/70) vs 59.7%(105/176), χ2=7.82, P=0.020] patients and the red blood cell sedimentation rate[31.0(4.0, 101.5)mm/1 h vs 43.4(5.0, 126.5)mm/1 h, Z=-2.22, P=0.026] in the male group was lower than that of the female group, but the proportion of rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (PR-ILD) [47.1%(33/70) vs 31.3%(55/176), χ2=5.51, P=0.019] was higher than that of the female group. ②In male patients with positive anti-MDA5 antibodies,the death group had a shorter course of disease[1.0(1.0, 3.0) month vs 2.5(0.5,84) month, Z=-3.07, P=0.002], the incidence of arthritis [16.7%(4/24) vs 42.2%(19/45), χ2=4.60, P=0.032] were low than those in survival group,while aspartate aminotransferase (AST)[64(22.1, 565)U/L vs 51(14,601)U/L, Z=-2.42, P=0.016], lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) [485(24,1 464)U/L vs 352(170, 1 213)U/L, Z=-3.38, P=0.001], C-reactive protein (CRP) [11.6(2.9, 61.7) mg/L vs 4.95(0.6, 86.4) mg/L, Z=-1.96, P=0.050], and ferritin levels [2 000(681, 7 676) vs 1 125 (166, 32 716)ng/ml, Z=-3.18, P=0.001] were higher than those in the survival group, and RP-ILD [95.8%(23/24) vs 22.2%(10/45), χ2=33.99, P<0.001] occurred at a significantly higher rate. ③Cox regression analysis indicated that the course of disease LDH level, and RP-ILD were related factors for the prognosis of male anti-MDA5 antibodies [ HR (95% CI)=0.203(0.077, 0.534), P=0.001; HR (95% CI)=1.002(1.001, 1.004), P=0.003; HR (95% CI)=95.674 (10.872, 841.904), P<0.001]. Conclusion:The clinical manifestations of male anti-MDA5 antibody-positive patients are different from those of female. The incidence of ILD is low, but the proportion of PR-ILD is high. The course of disease, serum LDH level, and RP-ILD are prognostic factors of male anti-MDA5 antibody-positive patients.

Objective To investigate the risk factors associated with prolonged hospitalization in patients diagnosed with diabetic foot ulcers(DFU),to develop a predictive model,and to conduct internal validation of the model.Methods The clinical data of DFU patients admitted to West China Hospital,Sichuan University between January 2012 and December 2022 were retrospectively collected.The subjects were randomly assigned to a training cohort and a validation cohort at a ratio of 7 to 3.Hospital stays longer than 75th percentile were defined as prolonged length-of-stay.A thorough analysis of the risk factors was conducted using the training cohort,which enabled the development of an accurate risk prediction model.To ensure robustness,the model was internally validated using the validation cohort.Results A total of 967 inpatients with DFU were included,among whom 245 patients were identified as having an extended length-of-stay.The training cohort consisted of 622 patients,while the validation cohort comprised 291 patients.Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that smoking history(odds ratio[OR]=1.67,95%confidence interval[CI],1.13 to 2.48,P=0.010),Wagner grade 3 or higher(OR=7.13,95%CI,3.68 to 13.83,P＜0.001),midfoot ulcers(OR=1.99,95%CI,1.07 to 3.72,P=0.030),posterior foot ulcers(OR=3.68,95%CI,1.83 to 7.41,P＜0.001),multisite ulcers(OR=2.91,95%CI,1.80 to 4.69,P＜0.001),wound size≥3 cm2(OR=2.00,95%CI,1.28-3.11,P=0.002),and white blood cell count(OR=1.11,95%CI,1.05 to 1.18,P＜0.001)were associated with an increased risk of prolonged length of stay.Additionally,a nomogram was constructed based on the identified risk factors.The areas under the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curves for both the training cohort and the validation cohort were 0.782(95%CI,0.745 to 0.820)and 0.756(95%CI,0.694 to 0.818),respectively,indicating robust predictive performance.Furthermore,the calibration plot demonstrated optimal concordance between the predicted probabilities and the observed outcomes in both the training and the validation cohorts.Conclusion Smoking history,Wagner grade≥3,midfoot ulcers,posterior foot ulcers,multisite ulcers,ulcer area≥3 cm2,and elevated white blood cell count are identified as independent predictors of prolonged hospitalization.Therefore,it is imperative that clinicians conduct a comprehensive patient evaluation and implement appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic strategies to effectively shorten the length of stay for DFU patients.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the effect of acupuncture at the acupoints for Yizhi Tiaoshen (benefiting the intelligence and regulating the spirit) on the functional connectivity between the hippocampus and the whole brain in the patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), and reveal the brain function mechanism of acupuncture in treatment of AD using resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). METHODS: Sixty patients with mild to moderate AD were randomly divided into an acupuncture + medication group (30 cases, 3 cases dropped out) and a western medication group (30 cases, 2 cases dropped out). In the western medication group, the donepezil hydrochloride tablets were administered orally, 2.5 mg to 5 mg each time, once daily; and adjusted to be 10 mg each time after 4 weeks of medication. Besides the therapy as the western medication group, in the acupuncture + medication group, acupuncture was supplemented at the acupoints for Yizhi Tiaoshen, i.e. Baihui (GV 20), Sishencong (EX-HN 1), and bilateral Shenmen (HT 7), Neiguan (PC 6), Zusanli (ST 36), Sanyinjiao (SP 6) and Xuanzhong (GB 39). The needles were retained for 30 min in one treatment, once daily; and 6 treatments were required weekly. The duration of treatment was 6 weeks in each group. The general cognitive function was assessed by the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) and Alzheimer's disease assessment scale-cognitive part (ADAS-Cog) before and after treatment in the two groups. Using the rs-fMRI, the changes in the functional connectivity (FC) of the left hippocampus and the whole brain before and after treatment were analyzed in the patients of the two groups (11 cases in the acupuncture + medication group and 12 cases in the western medication group). RESULTS: After treatment, compared with those before treatment, MMSE scores increased and ADAS-Cog scores decreased in the two groups (P<0.05); MMSE score was higher, while the ADAS-Cog score was lower in the acupuncture + medication group when compared with those in the western medication group (P≤0.05). After treatment, in the western medication group, FC of the left hippocampus was enhanced with the left fusiform gyrus, the inferior frontal gyrus of the left triangular region, the bilateral superior temporal gyrus and the right superior parietal gyrus (P<0.05), while FC was weakened with the left inferior temporal gyrus, the left middle frontal gyrus and the right dorsolateral superior frontal gyrus when compared with that before treatment (P<0.05). After treatment, in the acupuncture + medication group, FC of the left hippocampus was increased with the right gyrus rectus, the left inferior occipital gyrus, the right superior temporal gyrus and the left middle occipital gyrus (P<0.05), and it was declined with the left thalamus (P<0.05) when compared with those before treatment. After treatment, in the acupuncture + medication group, FC of the left hippocampus was strengthened with the bilateral inferior temporal gyrus, the bilateral middle temporal gyrus, the right gyrus rectus, the bilateral superior occipital gyrus, the left lenticular nucleus putamen, the left calcarine fissure and surrounding cortex, the inferior frontal gyrus of the left insulae operculum, the left medial superior frontal gyrus and the right posterior central gyrus (P<0.05) compared with that of the western medication group. CONCLUSIONS Acupuncture at the acupoints for Yizhi Tiaoshen improves the cognitive function of AD patients, and its main brain functional mechanism is related to intensifying the functional connectivity of the left hippocampus with the default network (inferior temporal gyrus, middle temporal gyrus and superior frontal gyrus, gyrus rectus), as well as with the sensory (posterior central gyrus) and visual (calcarine fissure and surrounding cortex and superior occipital gyrus) brain regions.
Humans ; Acupuncture Points ; Alzheimer Disease/therapy* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Brain/physiology* ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Hippocampus/diagnostic imaging*

OBJECTIVE: Clinical characteristics and outcome in COVID-19 with brucellosis patients has not been well demonstrated, we tried to analyze clinical outcome in local and literature COVID-19 cases with brucellosis before and after recovery. METHODS: We retrospectively collected hospitalization data of comorbid patients and prospectively followed up after discharge in Heilongjiang Infectious Disease Hospital from January 15, 2020 to April 29, 2022. Demographics, epidemiological, clinical symptoms, radiological and laboratory data, treatment medicines and outcomes, and follow up were analyzed, and findings of a systematic review were demonstrated. RESULTS: A total of four COVID-19 with brucellosis patients were included. One patient had active brucellosis before covid and 3 patients had nonactive brucellosis before brucellosis. The median age was 54.5 years, and all were males (100.0%). Two cases (50.0%) were moderate, and one was mild and asymptomatic, respectively. Three cases (75.0%) had at least one comorbidity (brucellosis excluded). All 4 patients were found in COVID-19 nucleic acid screening. Case C and D had only headache and fever on admission, respectively. Four cases were treated with Traditional Chinese medicine, western medicines for three cases, no adverse reaction occurred during hospitalization. All patients were cured and discharged. Moreover, one case (25.0%) had still active brucellosis without re-positive COVID-19, and other three cases (75.0%) have no symptoms of discomfort except one case fell fatigue and anxious during the follow-up period after recovery. Conducting the literature review, two similar cases have been reported in two case reports, and were both recovered, whereas, no data of follow up after recovery. CONCLUSION These cases indicate that COVID-19 patients with brucellosis had favorable outcome before and after recovery. More clinical studies should be conducted to confirm our findings.
Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Brucellosis ; COVID-19 ; Retrospective Studies ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Treatment Outcome ; Case Reports as Topic

Neuropathic pain(NP) has similar phenotypes but different sequential neuroinflammatory mechanisms in the pathological process. It is of great significance to inhibit the initiation of neuroinflammation, which has become a new direction of NP treatment and drug development in recent years. Mongolian drug Naru-3 is clinically effective in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia, sciatica, and other NPs in a short time, but its pharmacodynamic characteristics and mechanism of analgesia are still unclear. In this study, a spinal nerve ligation(SNL) model simulating clinical peripheral nerve injury was established and the efficacy and mechanism of Naru-3 in the treatment of NPs was discussed by means of behavioral detection, side effect evaluation, network analysis, and experimental verification. Pharmacodynamic results showed that Naru-3 increased the basic pain sensitivity threshold(mechanical hyperalgesia and thermal radiation hyperalgesia) in the initiation of SNL in animals and relieved spontaneous pain, however, there was no significant effect on the basic pain sensitivity threshold and motor coordination function of normal animals under physiological and pathological conditions. Meanwhile, the results of primary screening of target tissues showed that Naru-3 inhibited the second phase of injury-induced nociceptive response of formalin test in mice and reduced the expression of inflammatory factors in the spinal cord. Network analysis discovered that Naru-3 had synergy in the treatment of NP, and its mechanism was associated with core targets such as matrix metalloproteinase-9(MMP9) and interleukin-1β(IL-1β). The experiment further took the dorsal root ganglion(DRG) and the stage of patho-logical spinal cord as the research objects, focusing on the core targets of inducing microglial neuroinflammation. By means of Western blot, immunofluorescence, agonists, antagonists, behavior, etc., the mechanism of Naru-3 in exerting NP analgesia may be related to the negative regulation of the MMP9/IL-1β signaling pathway-mediated microglia p38/IL-1β inflammatory loop in the activation phase. The relevant research enriches the biological connotation of Naru-3 in the treatment of NP and provides references for clinical rational drug use.
Rats ; Mice ; Animals ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9/metabolism* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Neuroinflammatory Diseases ; Interleukin-1beta/metabolism* ; Spinal Cord/metabolism* ; Signal Transduction ; Hyperalgesia/metabolism* ; Neuralgia/metabolism*

OBJECTIVE To investigate the efficacy and safety of different doses of zinc in the treatment of diarrhea in children， and to provide a reference for clinical safe and rational drug use. METHODS Retrieved from PubMed， Cochrane Library， Embase database， randomized controlled trials about zinc （zinc group） versus placebo or conventional treatment （control group） in the treatment of diarrhea in children were collected from the inception to October 2022. Then， the quality of the included literature was evaluated by the Cochrane Handbook 6.0， and meta-analysis and sensitivity analysis were performed by RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS Finally， 25 RCTs were included， with a total of 8 618 children. The results of meta-analysis showed that in terms of duration of diarrhea， in zinc ＜20 mg group， the zinc group was significantly shorter than the control group [SMD＝ －0.39， 95%CI（－0.71， －0.08）， P＝0.01]， but in subgroups of ＜6 months old， there was no significant difference between the two groups [SMD＝0.01， 95%CI（－0.10， 0.11）， P＝0.88]. In zinc 20 mg group， the zinc group was significantly shorter than the control group [SMD＝－0.52， 95%CI（－0.80， －0.23）， P＝0.000 3]. In zinc ＞20 mg group， the zinc group was significantly shorter than the control group [SMD＝－0.83， 95%CI（－1.39， －0.27）， P＝0.004]. In zinc ＞10 mg （age ≤12 months） or zinc ＞ 20 mg （age ＞12 months） group （short for “constant dose group”）， the zinc group was significantly shorter than the control group [SMD＝－0.16， 95%CI（－0.27， －0.06）， P＝ 0.003]. In the aspect of diarrhea rate after 7 days of treatment，there was no significant difference in the diarrhea rate after 7 E-mail：lihuiying@etyy.cn days of treatment between the zinc group and the control group： in zinc ＜20 mg group[OR＝1.28，95%CI （0.96，1.70），P＝0.09]， in zinc 20 mg group [OR＝0.40， 95%CI （0.15，1.01），P＝ 0.05]， in constant dose group [OR＝0.64， 95%CI （0.28， 1.44）， P＝0.28]. In terms of vomiting rate， in zinc ＜20 mg group， the vomiting rate of zinc group was significantly higher than that of the control group [OR＝2.13， 95%CI （1.68， 2.70）， P＜0.001]； in constant dose group， vomiting rate of zinc group was significantly higher than that of the control group [OR＝1.84， 95%CI （1.44， 2.34）， P＜0.001]. CONCLUSIONS Zinc can significantly shorten the duration of diarrhea in children（6 months and above）， but low doses can increase the risk of vomiting， which should be taken attention in clinical.

Objective To analyze and compare the therapeutic effects of COM.TEC and COBE Spectra blood cell separators in therapeutic plasma exchange.Methods Totally 20 patients admitted to some hospital from March to July 2022 were selected as the study subjects prospectively,and then divided into A and B groups randomly.Therapeutic plasma exchange was carried out with COM.TEC blood cell separator in group A(10 cases,42 treatments)and COBE Spectra blood cell separator in group B(10 cases,36 treatments).The two groups were compared in terms of anticoagulant dosage,plasma exchange time and adverse events.SPSS 25.0 software was used for statistical analysis.Results The anticoagulant dosage for per liter of circulating blood volume in group A was(76.83±7.80)mL,which was significantly lower than that((83.89±1.16)mL)in group B(t=5.040,P＜0.05).When the fluid balance was set to 100％,the plasma exchange time for per liter of plasma in group A was(38.39±5.74)min,which was statistically shorter than that((42.30±5.35)min)in group B(t=3.528,P＜0.05).There were 11 adverse events in group A including 2 allergic reactions and 9 instrument alarms,and 8 adverse events in group B including 4 allergic reactions and 4 instrument alarms.Conclusion Both COM.TEC and COBE Spectra blood cell separators can meet the requirements for clinical treatment in spite of differences in performances,and the blood cell separator has to be selected properly for therapeutic plasma exchange based on patient conditions.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2023,44(10):55-58]