The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin(PI3K/Akt/mTOR)signaling pathway plays a crucial role in the regulation of renal fibrosis by participating in inflammatory response,oxidative stress and autophagy.Paeoniflorin exhibits remarkable efficacy in treating myocardial and liver fibrosis.This article provides a comprehensive review on the research progress of paeoniflora in preventing and treating renal fibrosis through modulation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway,offering novel insights for traditional Chinese medicine-based approaches to prevent and treat renal fibrosis.

BACKGROUND:During the treatment of posterolateral tibial plateau fractures through the fibular head approach,the gap between the fibular head and the lateral plateau cannot accommodate the posterior placement of a plate for all patients.OBJECTIVE:To analyze,via finite element analysis,the differences in fixation strength resulting from varying the angles and quantities of horizontal arm variable angle screws in the plate during the treatment of posterolateral tibial plateau fractures through the fibular head approach.METHODS:A finite element model was established based on CT images of the knee to ankle joints of a 30-year-old healthy adult male volunteer.The models were divided into two categories:posteriorly placed group and non-posteriorly placed group based on whether the lateral locking compression plate was posteriorly placed.The posteriorly placed group was further subdivided into groups A-D based on the offset angle of the two variable angle screws(0°,5°,10°,and 15°).The non-posteriorly placed group was subdivided into groups E and F based on offset angles(0° and 15°).Finite element analysis was used to evaluate the von Mises stress distribution,maximum von Mises stress,and compressive displacement under loads of 250,500,and 750 N,exploring the mechanical differences between the groups.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Finite element analysis results showed that under a 750 N load,the maximum compressive displacement trend of the internal fixation device was D＜B=C=F＜A＜E.The trend for maximum von Mises stress was B＜C＜A＜D＜F＜E.The trend for maximum compressive displacement on the bone was C=D＜B＜A＜F＜E,and for maximum von Mises stress,it was B＜C＜A＜F＜D＜E.The displacement and stress trends for the six models were similar under loads ranging from 250 N to 750 N.(2)These results suggest that for posterolateral tibial plateau fractures fixed through the fibular head approach,posterior placement of the plate should aim to accommodate two screws.If only one screw can be fixed during surgery,variable angle screws should be offset in the range of 0-15° to increase the probability of securing two screws.

OBJECTIVE: Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) or metal(loid)s individually has been associated with neural tube defects (NTDs). However, the impacts of PAH and metal(loid) co-exposure and potential interaction effects on NTD risk remain unclear. We conducted a case-control study in China among population with a high prevalence of NTDs to investigate the combined effects of PAH and metal(loid) exposures on the risk of NTD. METHODS: Cases included 80 women who gave birth to offspring with NTDs, whereas controls were 50 women who delivered infants with no congenital malformations. We analyzed the levels of placental PAHs using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, PAH-DNA adducts with ³²P-post-labeling method, and metal(loid)s with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. Unconditional logistic regression was employed to estimate the associations between individual exposures and NTDs. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) penalized regression models were used to select a subset of exposures, while additive interaction models were used to identify interaction effects. RESULTS: In the single-exposure models, we found that eight PAHs, PAH-DNA adducts, and 28 metal(loid)s were associated with NTDs. Pyrene, selenium, molybdenum, cadmium, uranium, and rubidium were selected through LASSO regression and were statistically associated with NTDs in the multiple-exposure models. Women with high levels of pyrene and molybdenum or pyrene and selenium exhibited significantly increased risk of having offspring with NTDs, indicating that these combinations may have synergistic effects on the risk of NTDs. CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that individual PAHs and metal(loid)s, as well as their interactions, may be associated with the risk of NTDs, which warrants further investigation.
Humans ; Neural Tube Defects/chemically induced* ; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons/adverse effects* ; Female ; Case-Control Studies ; China/epidemiology* ; Adult ; Pregnancy ; Environmental Pollutants ; Maternal Exposure/adverse effects* ; Metals/toxicity* ; Young Adult ; Risk Factors

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between physical activity and genetic risk and their combined effects on the risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. METHODS: This prospective cohort study included 318,085 biobank participants from the UK. Physical activity was assessed using the short form of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. The participants were stratified into low-, intermediate-, and high-genetic-risk groups based on their polygenic risk scores. Multivariate Cox regression models and multiplicative interaction analyses were used. RESULTS: During a median follow-up period of 13 years, 9,209 participants were diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. For low genetic risk, compared to low physical activity, the hazard ratios ( HRs) for moderate and high physical activity were 0.853 (95% confidence interval [ CI]: 0.748-0.972) and 0.831 (95% CI: 0.727-0.950), respectively. For intermediate genetic risk, the HRs were 0.829 (95% CI: 0.758-0.905) and 0.835 (95% CI: 0.764-0.914), respectively. For participants with high genetic risk, the HRs were 0.809 (95% CI: 0.746-0.877) and 0.818 (95% CI: 0.754-0.888), respectively. A significant interaction was observed between genetic risk and physical activity. CONCLUSION Moderate or high levels of physical activity were associated with a lower risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease across all genetic risk groups, highlighting the need to tailor activity interventions for genetically susceptible individuals.
Humans ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/epidemiology* ; Exercise ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Aged ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Risk Factors ; United Kingdom/epidemiology* ; Incidence ; Adult

Wastewater-based epidemiology has emerged as a transformative surveillance tool for estimating substance consumption and monitoring disease prevalence, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. It enables the population-level monitoring of illicit drug use, pathogen prevalence, and environmental pollutant exposure. In this perspective, we summarize the key challenges specific to the Chinese context: (1) Sampling inconsistencies, necessitating standardized 24-hour composite protocols with high-frequency autosamplers (≤ 15 min/event) to improve the representativeness of samples; (2) Biomarker validation, requiring rigorous assessment of excretion profiles and in-sewer stability; (3) Analytical method disparities, demanding inter-laboratory proficiency testing and the development of automated pretreatment instruments; (4) Catchment population dynamics, reducing estimation uncertainties through mobile phone data, flow-based models, or hydrochemical parameters; and (5) Ethical and data management concerns, including privacy risks for small communities, mitigated through data de-identification and tiered reporting platforms. To address these challenges, we propose an integrated framework that features adaptive sampling networks, multi-scale wastewater sample banks, biomarker databases with multidimensional metadata, and intelligent data dashboards. In summary, wastewater-based epidemiology offers unparalleled scalability for equitable health surveillance and can improve the health of the entire population by providing timely and objective information to guide the development of targeted policies.
China/epidemiology* ; Humans ; Wastewater/analysis* ; COVID-19/epidemiology* ; Public Health ; Wastewater-Based Epidemiological Monitoring ; SARS-CoV-2

In recent years,significant breakthroughs have been achieved in the immunotherapy for Alzheimer's disease.In line with global advancements,two anti-amyloid-β monoclonal antibodies have been approved and successfully launched in China for clinical use.Lecanemab and Donanemab were officially used in June 2024 and April 2025 in China,respectively.In order to standardize the rational and safe application of anti-amyloid-β monoclonal antibodies for Alzheimer's disease in China,this article integrates recom-mendations from the clinical trials and real-world experience from the author's team and domestic peers to further update the recom-mendations for the clinical use of anti-amyloid-β monoclonal antibody based on the 2024 version.It includes indications for therapy,pre-treatment evaluation and preparation,administration protocols and safety measures during treatment,and post-treatment monitor-ing strategies.

″Boundarics in biomedicine″(or″Biomedical boundarics″)is an emerging frontier interdisciplinary subject that focuses on addressing key scientific issues related to the formation,identification,and evolution of biological boundaries within living organisms.In this field,the study of tumor boundaries is of particular importance.Imaging tumor boundaries not only helps to reveal the molecular mechanisms of tumor boundary evolution and interaction with the microenvironment,tumor invasion and metastasis,but is also crucial for clinical tumor diagnosis,treatment decision-making,efficacy monitoring and prognosis evaluation.Molecular probes,as functional substances that enhance imaging signals,play a crucial role in tumor boundary recognition.In this article,the basic concepts and research significance of boundarics in biomedicine and tumor boundarics in biomedicine were summarized firstly.Then a comprehensive review of the research progress in tumor boundary imaging molecular probes was provided,covering areas such as magnetic imaging,optical imaging,acoustic imaging,nuclear imaging,and multimodal imaging.The strategies to regulate the sensitivity,specificity,and safety of molecular probes through chemical structure modifications,conjugation with targeting ligands,and tumor microenvironment-responsive designs were emphasized.Finally,the research trends of molecular probes for tumor boundary imaging were analyzed,and the challenges faced in this field and the future research directions were discussed.

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.

Objective To investigate the relationship between serum Rho-associated coiled coil containing protein kinase 2(ROCK2),syndecan-1(SDC-1),Apelin-13 and renal function and prognosis in patients with diabetes nephropathy.Methods From November 2019 to November 2021,153 patients with diabetic nephrop-athy admitted to the hospital were selected as the study group,and 153 patients with simple diabetes were se-lected as the simple diabetes group.Another 153 healthy individuals who underwent physical examinations during the same period were selected as the healthy control group.The levels of serum ROCK2,SDC-1 and Apelin-13 were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlations between the levels of serum ROCK2,SDC-1,and Apelin-13 and the clinical data of pa-tients with urinary nephropathy.Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses were conducted to analyze the influencing factors of poor prognosis in patients with diabetic nephropathy.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was drawn to analyze the predictive value of serum ROCK2,SDC-1 and Apelin-13 for poor prognosis of patients with diabetes nephropathy.Results Compared with the healthy control group,the levels of serum ROCK2 and SDC-1 in the simple diabetes group and the study group increased,the level of Apelin-13 decreased,the estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR)decreased,and the ratio of urinary albu-min to creatinine(UACR)increased,and the differences were statistically significant(P＜0.05).The levels of serum ROCK2,SDC-1,Apelin-13 and UACR in the study group were higher than those in the simple diabe-tes group,while eGFR was lower than that in the simple diabetes group,and the differences were statistically significant(P＜0.05).Pearson correlation analysis indicated that the levels of serum ROCK2,SDC-1,and Apelin-13 in the study group were negatively correlated with eGFR(P＜0.05),and positively correlated with renal disease stage,creatinine,24-hour proteinuria,and UACR index(P＜0.05).Compared with the good prognosis group,the levels of serum ROCK2,DCC-1,Apelin-13 and UACR in the poor prognosis group in-creased(P＜0.05),and eGFR decreased(P＜0.05).Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses indicated that the levels of serum ROCK2,SDC-1,and Apelin-13 were all influencing factors for the prognosis of patients(P＜0.05).ROC curve analysis indicated that the area under the curve(AUC)for the combined prediction of poor prognosis in patients by serum ROCK2,DCC-1,and Apelin-13 levels was significantly grea-ter than that by ROCK2(Z=2.854,P=0.004)and DCC-1(Z=2.426,P=0.015)and Apelin-13(Z=2.172,P=0.030)were predicted separately.Conclusion The serum ROCK2,DCC-1 and Apelin-13 levels in patients with diabetic nephropathy increase and are related to renal function.The combination of the three has a relatively high predictive efficacy for the prognosis of patients.