1.Correlation Analysis of Huanglian Jiedu Wan on Syndrome Improvement and Clinical Biomarkers of "Excess Heat-Toxicity" Based on Machine Learning Model
Qi LI ; Keke LUO ; Baolin BIAN ; Hongyu YU ; Mengxiao WANG ; Mengyao TIAN ; Wen XIA ; Yuan MA ; Xinfang ZHANG ; Pengyue LI ; Nan SI ; Hongjie WANG ; Yanyan ZHOU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(8):162-173
ObjectiveThis paper aims to find the identified and validated clinical biomarker data building upon a clinical study of early-phase phase Ⅱ and investigate the correlation analysis of Huanglian Jiedu Wan on syndrome improvement and clinical biomarkers in the treatment of "excess heat-toxicity" based on a machine learning model. Additionally, the effective prediction of clinical biomarker values for the main symptoms of the "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome was assessed. MethodsA total of 229 patients meeting the inclusion criteria for "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome were randomly divided into the Huanglian Jiedu Wan group and the placebo group. Syndrome score transition matrices were constructed for the Huanglian Jiedu Wan group and the placebo group based on three main symptoms of "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome, such as oral ulcers, sore throat, and gum swelling and pain. Data from the patients with these three syndromes were also integrated for an overall analysis. The corresponding syndrome score transition matrices were further constructed to visualize symptom change trends of the patients in the two groups via heatmaps. Based on the identified and validated clinical biomarkers related to inflammation, oxidative stress, and energy metabolism in the early phase, Spearman correlation analysis was employed to analyze and evaluate the associations between clinical biomarkers and syndrome improvement. Key clinical biomarkers reflecting the effect of Huanglian Jiedu Wan were screened through the comparison of differences between groups. An extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) algorithm was used to develop a prediction model for main symptom classification, with classification performance evaluated through 10-fold cross-validation. Feature importance analysis was applied to identify variables with the greatest contribution to the prediction result. ResultsThe syndrome transition matrix results indicated that the Huanglian Jiedu Wan group showed a superior effect to the placebo group in improving oral ulcers, sore throat, and overall symptoms, with significant effects observed especially in sore throat and overall symptom analyses (P<0.01). Spearman correlation analysis revealed that several clinical biomarkers positively correlated with "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome and its main symptom improvement, were also called "heat-related biomarkers", including succinic acid, α-ketoglutaric acid, glycine, lactic acid, adenosine monophosphate (AMP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), interleukin-10 (IL-10), and so on. Conversely, clinical biomarkers negatively correlated with symptom severity, were also called "heat-clearing related biomarkers" after administration of Huanglian Jiedu Wan, including malic acid, fumaric acid, cis-aconitic acid, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), IL-1β, IL-4, IL-8, succinic acid, and citric acid. The XGBoost classification model using all 52 biomarkers as variables achieved an average test accuracy of 0.754 and an average F1 score of 0.777. Feature importance analysis identified the scores of glutamic acid in saliva and IL-6 were the highest in all the variables, with importance scores of 0.081 and 0.080, respectively. After screening out 14 key variables and optimizing the parameters, model performance improved to an average accuracy of 0.758 and an F1 score of 0.798. Feature importance analysis further determined that the glutamic acid in saliva and IL-6 showed obvious changes after screening the variables, confirming the good syndrome prediction ability of the model constructed by these key clinical biomarkers. ConclusionThis study systematically elucidates the correlation between syndrome improvement and clinical biomarkers of Huanglian Jiedu Wan in the treatment of "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome. An XGBoost classification model based on key clinical biomarkers is successfully established, achieving effective prediction of the symptoms related to the "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome such as oral ulcers and sore throat and providing a new insight for objective identification of traditional Chinese medicine syndromes.
2.Correlation Analysis of Huanglian Jiedu Wan on Syndrome Improvement and Clinical Biomarkers of "Excess Heat-Toxicity" Based on Machine Learning Model
Qi LI ; Keke LUO ; Baolin BIAN ; Hongyu YU ; Mengxiao WANG ; Mengyao TIAN ; Wen XIA ; Yuan MA ; Xinfang ZHANG ; Pengyue LI ; Nan SI ; Hongjie WANG ; Yanyan ZHOU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(8):162-173
ObjectiveThis paper aims to find the identified and validated clinical biomarker data building upon a clinical study of early-phase phase Ⅱ and investigate the correlation analysis of Huanglian Jiedu Wan on syndrome improvement and clinical biomarkers in the treatment of "excess heat-toxicity" based on a machine learning model. Additionally, the effective prediction of clinical biomarker values for the main symptoms of the "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome was assessed. MethodsA total of 229 patients meeting the inclusion criteria for "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome were randomly divided into the Huanglian Jiedu Wan group and the placebo group. Syndrome score transition matrices were constructed for the Huanglian Jiedu Wan group and the placebo group based on three main symptoms of "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome, such as oral ulcers, sore throat, and gum swelling and pain. Data from the patients with these three syndromes were also integrated for an overall analysis. The corresponding syndrome score transition matrices were further constructed to visualize symptom change trends of the patients in the two groups via heatmaps. Based on the identified and validated clinical biomarkers related to inflammation, oxidative stress, and energy metabolism in the early phase, Spearman correlation analysis was employed to analyze and evaluate the associations between clinical biomarkers and syndrome improvement. Key clinical biomarkers reflecting the effect of Huanglian Jiedu Wan were screened through the comparison of differences between groups. An extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) algorithm was used to develop a prediction model for main symptom classification, with classification performance evaluated through 10-fold cross-validation. Feature importance analysis was applied to identify variables with the greatest contribution to the prediction result. ResultsThe syndrome transition matrix results indicated that the Huanglian Jiedu Wan group showed a superior effect to the placebo group in improving oral ulcers, sore throat, and overall symptoms, with significant effects observed especially in sore throat and overall symptom analyses (P<0.01). Spearman correlation analysis revealed that several clinical biomarkers positively correlated with "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome and its main symptom improvement, were also called "heat-related biomarkers", including succinic acid, α-ketoglutaric acid, glycine, lactic acid, adenosine monophosphate (AMP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), interleukin-10 (IL-10), and so on. Conversely, clinical biomarkers negatively correlated with symptom severity, were also called "heat-clearing related biomarkers" after administration of Huanglian Jiedu Wan, including malic acid, fumaric acid, cis-aconitic acid, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), IL-1β, IL-4, IL-8, succinic acid, and citric acid. The XGBoost classification model using all 52 biomarkers as variables achieved an average test accuracy of 0.754 and an average F1 score of 0.777. Feature importance analysis identified the scores of glutamic acid in saliva and IL-6 were the highest in all the variables, with importance scores of 0.081 and 0.080, respectively. After screening out 14 key variables and optimizing the parameters, model performance improved to an average accuracy of 0.758 and an F1 score of 0.798. Feature importance analysis further determined that the glutamic acid in saliva and IL-6 showed obvious changes after screening the variables, confirming the good syndrome prediction ability of the model constructed by these key clinical biomarkers. ConclusionThis study systematically elucidates the correlation between syndrome improvement and clinical biomarkers of Huanglian Jiedu Wan in the treatment of "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome. An XGBoost classification model based on key clinical biomarkers is successfully established, achieving effective prediction of the symptoms related to the "excess heat-toxicity" syndrome such as oral ulcers and sore throat and providing a new insight for objective identification of traditional Chinese medicine syndromes.
3.The Dual Role of p21 in Hormone-related Cancers and Its Therapeutic Implications
Jia-Wen LI ; Yang CHEN ; Jia-Qi WANG ; Yu-Kai MA ; Zhi-Yi GUO
Progress in Biochemistry and Biophysics 2026;53(3):593-608
p21 (encoded by the CDKN1A gene) is a critical cell cycle regulatory protein endowed with versatile biological functions. In various sex hormone-related cancers, p21 exhibits a paradoxical dual role, capable of both inhibiting tumorigenesis and promoting cancer progression, exerting dual, often opposing, effects on cellular fate that are dictated by the specific context. The clinical targeting of p21 remains elusive, largely due to its functionally pleiotropic and context-dependent nature within intricate regulatory networks. During the initial, hormone-dependent phase of cancers like breast and prostate cancer, p21 expression and activity are largely governed by the transcriptional programs of estrogen or androgen receptor signaling. This hormonal regulation contributes to the control of tumor cell proliferation and underpins the initial efficacy of endocrine therapies. In contrast, as these diseases advance to late stages or evolve into non-hormone-dependent subtypes—exemplified by castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) and specific forms of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)—these conventional hormonal control mechanisms often become dysfunctional or are entirely bypassed. This fundamental transition creates a critical therapeutic void, highlighting the urgent need to identify and exploit alternative molecular pathways to effectively target p21’s function. Promising strategies may include the precise modulation of its upstream transcriptional regulators, downstream effector proteins, or the intersecting parallel signaling networks that critically influence its activity. This review provides a systematic synthesis of the intricate and interconnected mechanisms that underpin the dual effects of p21 in sex hormone-related tumors. These mechanisms are categorized into three core, interrelated functional domains. (1) cell cycle regulation: p21 executes its canonical tumor-suppressive role by binding to and inhibiting cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) and by directly interacting with proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), thereby inducing cell cycle arrest, predominantly at the G1/S checkpoint; (2) apoptosis modulation: p21 exerts a highly context-dependent influence on programmed cell death, functioning either as a pro-apoptotic agent under severe genotoxic stress or as a pro-survival factor by inhibiting apoptosis through interactions with proteins like Bcl-2; (3) hormonal and signaling crosstalk: p21 is an integral node within broader cellular networks, engaging in direct physical interactions with hormone receptors(e.g., AR, ER) and participating in complex feedback loops with key oncogenic pathways, including PI3K/AKT, MAPK/ERK, and p53. Critically, the role of p21 is not static but highly dynamic. It can undergo a functional switch from tumor-suppressive to tumor-promoting in response to therapeutic pressures, metabolic alterations, or evolving tumor microenvironment cues. These adaptive shifts are frequently implicated in the development of therapy resistance and disease recurrence, particularly in advanced, hormone-resistant cancers. By synthesizing these insights, this review aims to establish a coherent theoretical framework to guide the future development of novel therapeutic strategies that target the p21 pathway. It underscores the necessity of moving beyond a simplistic, binary view of p21 and emphasizes the forthcoming challenges, such as the discovery of reliable biomarkers to predict its functional state and the rational design of context-specific pharmacological modulators to selectively harness its therapeutic potential.
4.Research progress on the role of macrophages in atherosclerosis
Wenxiu MA ; Li BAI ; Wen MA ; Tingting QI ; Haonan ZHANG ; Xuan WANG ; Xin ZHANG
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2026;61(4):770-775
Atherosclerosis (AS) is a chronic and inflammatory vascular disease. Macrophages are common immune cells and play an important role in the development of AS. In recent years, research has found that the formation of AS plaques is closely related to pathological and physiological processes such as macrophage polarization, energy metabolism, and lipid phagocytosis. This review aims to summarize the mechanism of macrophages in the development of AS, and to explore potential therapeutic methods for delaying AS by regulating macrophages, providing new ideas for the treatment and research of AS.
5.Fecal microbiota transplantation regulates the composition of intestinal-derived estrogens and their metabolites : a study on the correlation with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
Wanli Li ; Xueping Qi ; Shuqi Cong ; Wanting Zhang ; Tingting Zhang ; Sheng Wang ; Haiming Fang ; Jiyue Wen ; Jiajia Wang
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2025;60(8):1423-1431
Objective :
To investigate the impact of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) on the composition of 15 intestinal-derived estrogens and their metabolites (EMs) and its correlation with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) .
Methods:
Thirty male C57BL/6J mice were divided into a normal control group (Control) , a high- sugar high-fat diet combined with low-dose CCl4 -induced NAFLD model group ( Model) , and a group of model mice treated with fecal microbiota from normal female mice (FMT) . After 17 weeks of modeling , liver pathology in each group was observed using HE staining , biochemical methods were used to measure serum alanine aminotrans- ferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels , as well as hepatic triglyceride (TG) and total choles- terol (TC) levels. and the content of 15 EMs in portal vein serum was detected using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS) . The correlation between disease phenotype and intesti- nal EMs was analyzed using Pearson ′s method.
Results:
The NAFLD model was successfully established , and the FMT group showed improved liver structure and morphology , with significant decreases in liver function and hepatic lipids compared to the Model group. In NAFLD mice , the contents of E1 , E2 , and their 2- and 4-position metabo- lites in portal vein blood serum was reduced compared to normal mice , while the content of most 16- and 17-posi- tion metabolites ( except 16α-OHE1) increased compared to normal mice. Correlation analysis showed that ALT was strongly positively correlated with E3 and 17-epiE3 , and strongly negatively correlated with E1 , E2 , 4- MeOE1 , and 16α-OHE1 . The TC was strongly positively correlated with 17-epiE3 and strongly negatively correla- ted with E1 , 4-MeOE1 , and 16α-OHE1 .
Conclusion
FMT restores the disrupted composition of intestinal EMs and improves NAFLD.
6.Current status of field(emergency)rapid inspection systems
Pei-pei WANG ; Yu-hong HUANG ; Jing LI ; Wen REN ; Shi-chao LIANG ; Yu-qi QIAN ; Yan-jiang LIU
Chinese Medical Equipment Journal 2025;46(2):80-86
The field(emergency)rapid inspection systems involving in the backpack,chest,vehicle and shelter had their research advances introduced and characteristics and deficiencies analyzed,and some improvement suggestions were put forward accordingly.It's pointed out the backpack,chest,vehicle and shelter be combined effectively to enhance the mobility and flexibility of field(emergency)rapid inspection systems.References were provided for the future enhancement and effecient operation of field(emergency)rapid inspection systems.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2025,46(2):80-86]
7.The Role of Zinc Finger Structure Transcription Factors ZNF148 and SP5 on P53 Transcriptional Activity
Dai-Wei WANG ; Chen ZHOU ; Pin-Zheng ZHANG ; Xu-Ying WANG ; Jia-Wen LI ; Yu-Kai MA ; Jia-Qi YAN ; Zhi-Ting WANG ; Jia-Qi WANG ; Zhi-Yi GUO
Chinese Journal of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 2025;41(5):707-715
P53 is a key tumor suppressor gene,which is regulated in many ways.Zinc finger 148(ZNF148)and SP5,as zinc finger transcription factors(TFs),play important roles in tumor suppression and carcinogenesis.The regulatory relationship between these two TFs and p53 has not been reported.In this paper,Ishikawa and A549 cell lines with different p53 expression levels were used as research mod-els to explore the transcriptional regulation of the P53 gene by ZNF148 and SP5.The data showed that there were differences in the expression of ZNF148 and SP5 in the two cell lines.The mRNA expression of ZNF148 in Ishikawa was 1.9 times higher than that of A549,and the mRNA expression of SP5 in A549 was 802.4 times that of ZNF148.Data showed that in Ishikawa cells,the expression of P53 de-creased(81.8%)after ZNF148 knockdown,and increased(2.6 times)after SP5 overexpression.Transfection of si-SP5 and ZNF148 expression plasmids into A549 cells increased the mRNA expression of P53 by 6.6 times and 14.6 times,respectively.These results indicate that ZNF148 could activate,whereas SP5 could inhibit,P53 expression.The conserved cis-element of ZNF148 and SP5 TFs was found in the region of the P53 promoter by bioinformatics methods.The data from dual luciferase reporter gene assay showed that the luciferase activity of ZNF148 in Ishikawa and A549 cells was increased by 2.1-fold and 4.2-fold compared with the control group(P<0.05).Compared with the control group,the normalized relative luciferase activity of transfected SP5 decreased by 77.1%and 35.7%(P<0.05).However,when the cis-element of ZNF148 and SP5 was mutated,the effect disappeared.Further trans-fection of ZNF148 and SP5 with different ratios revealed that SP5 could reverse the transcriptional activa-tion of P53 by ZNF148.Studies have shown that ZNF148 shares a common site with SP5,and the ratio of the two TFs may influence the transcriptional activity of P53.The expression of the Wnt pathway and the cell proliferation rate after knockdown of ZNF148 and SP5 were further studied to explore the role of the two TFs.Our data show that ZNF148 and SP5 could regulate the transcriptional activity of P53,and their expression levels and interaction may be the key factors regulating P53 expression.
8.Predictive effect of serum amino acids on cognitive function improvement in patients with acute schizophrenia
Zhiyang QI ; Yajuan FAN ; Binglong WEN ; Min JIA ; Binbin ZHAO ; Zai YANG ; Wei WANG ; Xiancang MA ; Qingyan MA
Journal of Xi'an Jiaotong University(Medical Sciences) 2025;46(6):1007-1012
Objective To investigate the serum amino acid levels in patients with acute schizophrenia(SCZ)and their predictive effect on the improvement of cognitive function after treatment,so as to provide new insights into the clinical intervention of cognitive impairment in SCZ patients.Methods A total of 66 patients with acute SCZ were enrolled(case group-baseline period).Among them,36 cases completed the follow-up after 3 months of standardized treatment(case group-follow-up period);52 healthy controls(HCs)were included.The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery(MCCB)was used to assess the cognitive function of all the participants.Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS)was employed to detect the concentrations of 18 amino acids in fasting serum of the case group-baseline period and the control group.Independent samples t-test was used to compare serum amino acid levels and cognitive function between the case group-baseline period and the control group.Paired t-test was used to compare the differences in cognitive function between the baseline period and the follow-up period of the case group.Spearman correlation analysis and multivariate linear regression model were used to investigate the correlation between serum amino acid levels at baseline in the case group and the improvement of cognitive function after 3 months of treatment.Results Compared with the control group,the cognitive function of SCZ patients in multiple dimensions at baseline was significantly reduced(P<0.05).After treatment,the scores of Trail Making Test(TMT),Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia:Symbol Coding(BACS),Wechsler Memory Scale-Ⅲ(WMS),and Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised(BVMT)in patients were significantly improved(all P<0.05).In addition,the levels of proline,methionine,histidine,phenylalanine,arginine,tyrosine,aspartic acid,tryptophan,lysine,and glutamic acid were significantly lower in the case group at baseline than in the control group(all P<0.05).Among them,the baseline tyrosine level had a significant predictive value for the improvement of TMT(R2=0.136,P=0.029),Neuropsychological Assessment Battery(NAB)(R2=0.339,P<0.001),and Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test(MSCEIT)test(R2=0.165,P=0.015).The baseline arginine level had a significant predictive value for the improvement rate of Fluency test(R2=0.113,P=0.048).Conclusion There is a decrease in various amino acid levels in patients with SCZ,and some amino acids can effectively predict the improvement of cognitive function after treatment.
9.Analysis of Cardiac Involvement in Patients With Fabry Disease in Anhui Region
Zhiquan LIU ; Qi WANG ; Kui MAO ; Xueping WEI ; Guohong WU ; Jia LIU ; Wei WEN ; Fei YU ; Hao SU ; Ji YAN ; Dongmei YANG ; Kangyu CHEN
Chinese Circulation Journal 2025;40(6):597-604
Objectives:To analyze the cardiac involvement of patients with Fabry disease(FD)in Anhui region.Methods:This retrospective analysis included 48 previously and currently diagnosed FD patients(25 males)in Anhui region,overall patient and gender specific cardiac involvement was analyzed.Results:The median age of FD patients is 28.0(19.0,46.0)years.The cardiac manifestations of patients with FD were most commonly characterized by palpitations/arrhythmias(13/42 cases)and exertional dyspnea(11/42 cases),electrocardiographic changes were most commonly characterized by T-wave inversion(22/42 cases),ST-segment depression(16/42 cases),and left ventricular hypervoltage(18/42 cases),cardiac structural and functional changes were most common in papillary muscle hypertrophy(29/36 cases),bilateral sign(22/37 cases)and left ventricular hypertrophy(21/46 cases),as well as reduced left ventricular global longitudinal strain(26/39 cases).Neuropathic pain(28/43 cases)was the most common extracardiac manifestation of FD patients.FD patients of different gender differed in age at diagnosis(P=0.018),alpha galactosidase A activity(P<0.001),globotriaosylsphingosine(lyso-GL3)levels(P<0.001),enzyme replacement therapy rate(P=0.043),dyshidrosis(P<0.01),and the incidence of angiokeratoma(P=0.004).Correlation analysis showed that genotype was not correlated with enzyme activity or Lyso-GL-3 levels,whereas the Sokolow-Lyon index was positively correlated with Lyso-GL-3 levels(ρ=0.423,P=0.008),and the Sokolow-Lyon indices(septal thickness:ρ=0.562,P<0.001;left ventricle posterior wall thickness:ρ=0.569,P<0.001)and QRS duration(septal thickness:ρ=0.543,P<0.001;left ventricle posterior wall thickness:ρ=0.557,P<0.001)were positively correlated with left ventricular wall thickness.Conclusions:Cardiac involvement in patients with FD in the Anhui region is characterised by palpitations or arrhythmias,accompanied by nonspecific electrocardiographic changes.Echocardiography frequently reveals papillary muscle hypertrophy.The manifestation of cardiac involvement in patients of different genders is similar.
10.Research progress of berberine in neuropsychiatric diseases
Pan-pan LI ; Rui LAN ; Wen-jing HU ; Meng-ya LI ; Shui-zhi JIAO ; Ya-han LIU ; Bao-qi WANG
Chinese Pharmacological Bulletin 2025;41(7):1217-1222
Berberine is a kind of isoquinoline alkaloid extracted from the roots and rhizomes of many medicinal plants,such as Coptis chinensis of Ranunculus family,Phellodendron chinensis of rutaceae family,and Berberine Sanacanthus family.In recent years,with the deepening of research,berberine has shown re-markable prevention and treatment effect in a variety of neuro-psychiatric disease models.This paper summarizes the research progress of berberine in neuropsychiatric diseases and provides theoretical support for further clinical prevention and treatment of neuropsychiatric diseases.


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