The interactions between microorganisms and medicinal plants are crucial to the quality improvement of medicinal plants. Medicinal plants attract microorganisms to colonize by secreting specific compounds and provide niche and nutrient support for these microorganisms, with a symbiotic network formed. These microorganisms grow in the rhizosphere, phyllosphere, and endophytic tissues of plants and significantly improve the growth performance and medicinal component accumulation of medicinal plants by promoting nutrient uptake, enhancing disease resistance, and regulating the synthesis of secondary metabolites. Microorganisms are also widely used in the ecological planting of medicinal plants, and the growth conditions of medicinal plants are optimized by simulating the microbial effects in the natural environment. The interactions between microorganisms and medicinal plants not only significantly improve the yield and quality of medicinal plants but also enhance their geoherbalism, which is in line with the concept of green agriculture and eco-friendly development. This study reviewed the research results on the interactions between medicinal plants and microorganisms in recent years and focused on the analysis of the great potential of microorganisms in optimizing the growth environment of medicinal plants, regulating the accumulation of secondary metabolites, inducing systemic resistance, and promoting the ecological planting of medicinal plants. It provides a scientific basis for the research on the interactions between medicinal plants and microorganisms, the research and development of microbial agents, and the application of microorganisms in the ecological planting of medicinal plants and is of great significance for the quality improvement of medicinal plants and the green and sustainable development of TCM resources.
Plants, Medicinal/metabolism* ; Bacteria/genetics* ; Symbiosis

This study aims to investigate the polarized microscopic mineral phase characteristics, inorganic element content, and potential health risks associated with the intake of raw and calcined fossil mineral Chinese medicinal material Draconis Os. Microscopy was employed to observe the mineralogical characteristics of Draconis Os and compare the microscopic features and phase composition of raw and calcined Draconis Os under monochromatic and orthogonal polarized light. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry(ICP-MS) was employed to determine the content of 30 inorganic elements. Health risk assessment was conducted by calculating the single pollution index(P_i), average daily intake of elements for adults(ADI), target hazard quotient(THQ), non-carcinogenic assessment method-hazard quotient(HQ), and the carcinogenic risk of elements(CR). The results indicated that under monochromatic polarized light, the Draconis Os powder sections exhibited light gray-brown to gray-brown irregular fragments, some with undulating textures that were slightly curved. Under crossed polarized light, they appeared dark gray, grayish-white, and yellowish-white. Clear apatite was visible in the ground sections of Draconis Os under crossed polarized light. P_i results indicated that Draconis Os samples were free from contamination and were of good quality. According to the maximum allowable limits of heavy metals stipulated in ISO Traditional Chinese Medicine: Determination of heavy metals in herbal medicines used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, ADI, THQ, HQ, and CR were taken as assessment indicators. Only the THQ value for As(arsenic) in raw Draconis Os was greater than 1, while the THQ values for other heavy metal elements in the Draconis Os samples were all less than 1. The study demonstrates that the primary mineral phase of raw and calcined Draconis Os is apatite, with some samples co-existing with calcite, which can serve as one of the means for quality control of Draconis Os. The elemental analysis results from ICP-MS provide scientific evidence for the safety assessment of Draconis Os, indicating that Draconis Os is safe in clinical application.
Drugs, Chinese Herbal/analysis* ; Risk Assessment ; Minerals/chemistry* ; Fossils ; Humans ; Drug Contamination ; Mass Spectrometry

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the metabolic characteristics of ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG) in myeloid leukemia by in vitro culture of myeloid leukemia cells and construction of tumor-bearing nude mouse model. METHODS: U937, THP-1, HL60 and K562 cells were cultured in vitro. The cells in logarithmic growth phase (l×10 ⁵ cells/well) were added with ¹⁸F-FDG, and the uptake rate of ¹⁸F-FDG was measured at 15, 30, 60 and 120 min after addation, respectively. The four kinds of cells were inoculated subcutaneously into the hind limbs of nude mice to establish a tumor-bearing nude mouse model. When the tumor size was about 500 mm³, ¹⁸F-FDG was injected through the tail vein of the mice, and positron emission tomography/computed tomography was performed at 60 min after injection. The morphology of tumor-bearing cells was observed by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining in serial pathological sections. RESULTS: After co-incubation with ¹⁸F-FDG, the ¹⁸F-FDG uptake rates of U937 cells were significantly higher than THP-1, HL60 and K562 cells at 4 time points (all P <0.05), and THP-1 cells were higher than K562 cells (all P <0.05). The uptake rate of ¹⁸F-FDG by leukemia cells was rapid in the first 60 min, then tended to be stable. Pathological analysis showed that subcutaneous inoculation of U937, THP-1, HL60 and K562 cells could successfully establish tumor-bearing nude mouse models of myeloid leukemia. The ¹⁸F-FDG uptake value in U937 tumor-bearing nude mice was significantly higher than THP-1, HL60 and K562 tumor-bearing nude mice (all P <0.01). The ¹⁸F-FDG uptake values in THP-1 and HL60 tumor-bearing nude mice were significantly higher than that in K562 tumor-bearing nude mice (both P <0.01). CONCLUSION The tumor-bearing nude mouse model of myeloid leukemia can be successfully constructed by subcutaneous inoculation. The ¹⁸F-FDG uptake rate of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells is higher in cells cultured in vitro and tumor-bearing nude mouse model. ¹⁸F-FDG may have better clinical application value for AML.
Animals ; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18/metabolism* ; Mice, Nude ; Mice ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myeloid/diagnostic imaging* ; HL-60 Cells ; K562 Cells ; Cell Line, Tumor ; U937 Cells

Acute kidney injury (AKI) has high morbidity and mortality, but effective clinical drugs and management are lacking. Previous studies have suggested that macrophages play a crucial role in the inflammatory response to AKI and may serve as potential therapeutic targets. Emerging evidence has highlighted the importance of forkhead box protein O1 (FoxO1) in mediating macrophage activation and polarization in various diseases, but the specific mechanisms by which FoxO1 regulates macrophages during AKI remain unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the role of FoxO1 in macrophages in the pathogenesis of AKI. We observed a significant upregulation of FoxO1 in kidney macrophages following ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Additionally, our findings demonstrated that the administration of FoxO1 inhibitor AS1842856-encapsulated liposome (AS-Lipo), mainly acting on macrophages, effectively mitigated renal injury induced by I/R injury in mice. By generating myeloid-specific FoxO1-knockout mice, we further observed that the deficiency of FoxO1 in myeloid cells protected against I/R injury-induced AKI. Furthermore, our study provided evidence of FoxO1's pivotal role in macrophage chemotaxis, inflammation, and migration. Moreover, the impact of FoxO1 on the regulation of macrophage migration was mediated through RhoA guanine nucleotide exchange factor 1 (ARHGEF1), indicating that ARHGEF1 may serve as a potential intermediary between FoxO1 and the activity of the RhoA pathway. Consequently, our findings propose that FoxO1 plays a crucial role as a mediator and biomarker in the context of AKI. Targeting macrophage FoxO1 pharmacologically could potentially offer a promising therapeutic approach for AKI.

Objective To investigate the incidence rate,clinical characteristics,and prognosis of neonatal stroke in Shenzhen,China.Methods Led by Shenzhen Children's Hospital,the Shenzhen Neonatal Data Collaboration Network organized 21 institutions to collect 36 cases of neonatal stroke from January 2020 to December 2022.The incidence,clinical characteristics,treatment,and prognosis of neonatal stroke in Shenzhen were analyzed.Results The incidence rate of neonatal stroke in 21 hospitals from 2020 to 2022 was 1/15 137,1/6 060,and 1/7 704,respectively.Ischemic stroke accounted for 75％(27/36);boys accounted for 64％(23/36).Among the 36 neonates,31(86％)had disease onset within 3 days after birth,and 19(53％)had convulsion as the initial presentation.Cerebral MRI showed that 22 neonates(61％)had left cerebral infarction and 13(36％)had basal ganglia infarction.Magnetic resonance angiography was performed for 12 neonates,among whom 9(75％)had involvement of the middle cerebral artery.Electroencephalography was performed for 29 neonates,with sharp waves in 21 neonates(72％)and seizures in 10 neonates(34％).Symptomatic/supportive treatment varied across different hospitals.Neonatal Behavioral Neurological Assessment was performed for 12 neonates(33％,12/36),with a mean score of(32±4)points.The prognosis of 27 neonates was followed up to around 12 months of age,with 44％(12/27)of the neonates having a good prognosis.Conclusions Ischemic stroke is the main type of neonatal stroke,often with convulsions as the initial presentation,involvement of the middle cerebral artery,sharp waves on electroencephalography,and a relatively low neurodevelopment score.Symptomatic/supportive treatment is the main treatment method,and some neonates tend to have a poor prognosis.

Objective: The auditory deficits of single-sided deafness (SSD) can be treated with a novel intra-oral device, SoundBite, which delivers sound by applying vibratory signal to the teeth. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and benefit of the bone conduction device for Chinese adults with SSD. Methods: Eighteen patients aged 19-66 yrs with acquired, permanent sensorineural SSD and no current treatment by any other devices for SSD, were recruited in a prospective controlled, nonrandomized, unblinded study. They were requested the continually daily wear of the new device over a 30-day free trial period. The intra-oral hearing device was placed around two maxillary teeth and was similar to a small partial denture or retainer. The audiological tests included pure tone air conduction thresholds, monosyllable word recognition score (WRS) in quiet and sentence reception thresholds in noise (via CMNmatrix test). The benefit was determined with the Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB) and the Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ) questionnaire. Results: The monosyllable WRS and the 50% threshold of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR₅₀) were significantly better in all aided conditions. The head shadow effect, assessed by the SNR₅₀ via CMNmatrix test improved an average of 2.6 dB after 30 days' wearing compared with unaided condition (P<0.001). The APHAB scores improved (P<0.05) for all subjects for the Global and Ease of Communication, Reverberation, Background Noise subscales. The SSQ scores improved (P<0.05) for all subjects for Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing subscales. Conclusion: The SoundBite is a good alternative to the well-established implantable bone conduction devices in patients with SSD. An improvement in listening ability in noise and quiet as well as a decrease of the head shadow effect is validated as the expected.
Adult ; Aged ; Bone Conduction ; Deafness ; Hearing Aids ; Hearing Loss, Unilateral ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Speech Perception ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

Aim To observe the cardio-protective effects of curcumin on rats with myocardial hypertrophy, and to further explore the mechanism. Methods Abdominal aorta was constricted in SD rats to establish a pressure overload-induced myocardial hypertrophy model. Rats were divided into sham group, AAC group and curcumin group. They were treated by intragastric administration. Twenty weeks after the operation, cardiac function was evaluated using echocardiogram. The heart rate was recorded using biological function experiment system. The blood pressure and left ventricular pressure were measured by a cannulation into right common carotid artery and left ventricular respectively. Circulating blood MPs level in rats was detected by BCA. Effects of MPs on the viability of human umbilical vein endothelial cell were measured by CCK-8. Results Twenty weeks after surgery, only two rats in AAC group died. The results of echocardiography showed that compared with sham group, left ventricular internal dimension at systole (LVIDs), left ventricular internal diastolic dimension (LVIDd), left ventricular posterior wall diameter (LVPWd), heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP) all significantly increased in AAC group, whereas ejection fraction (EF), fractional shortening (FS), left ventricular systolic pressure (LVSP), maximum upstroke velocity of left ventricular pressure (+ dp/dt

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical features of catch-up growth of body height after kidney transplantation in children and related influencing factors. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed from the chart review data of 15 children who underwent kidney transplantation in Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center from July 2017 to November 2019. According to whether the increase in height standard deviation score (ΔHtSDS) in the first year after kidney transplantation reached ≥0.5, the children were divided into a catch-up group with 8 children and a non-catch-up group with 7 children. According to whether final HtSDS was ≥-2, the children were divided into a standard group with 6 children and a non-standard group with 9 children. The features of catch-up growth of body height and related influencing factors were compared between groups. RESULTS: The data showed that median ΔHtSDS was 0.8 in the first year after transplantation, which suggested catch-up growth of body height. There was a significant difference in HtSDS between the non-catch-up and catch-up groups (P<0.05). Baseline HtSDS before transplantation was positively correlated with HtSDS at the end of follow-up (r=0.622, P<0.05) and was negatively correlated with ∆HtSDS in the first year after transplantation (r=-0.705, P<0.05). Age of transplantation and mean dose of glucocorticoid (GC) per kg body weight were risk factors for catch-up growth after kidney transplantation (OR=1.23 and 1.74 respectively; P<0.05), while baseline HtSDS and use of antihypertensive drugs were independent protective factors for catch-up growth (OR=0.08 and 0.18 respectively; P<0.05); baseline HtSDS and ΔHtSDS in the first year after kidney transplantation were influencing factors for final HtSDS (β=0.984 and 1.271 respectively; P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Kidney transplantation should be performed for children as early as possible, growth retardation before transplantation should be improved as far as possible, and multiple treatment methods (including the use of GC and antihypertensive drugs) should be optimized after surgery, in order to help these children achieve an ideal body height.
Body Height ; Body Weight ; Child ; Glucocorticoids ; Growth Disorders ; Humans ; Kidney Transplantation ; Retrospective Studies

Objective To explore the characteristics and value for predicting prognosis of cytokines in septic children with or without neutropenia.Methods Totally 138 septic children were divided into the neutropenia and non-neutropenia groups according to absolute neutropenic count.Septic children were divided into the shock and non-shock groups according to circulation function and organ perfusion.The levels of C-reactive protein,procalcitonin,cytokines,PRISM-Ⅲ and clinical outcomes were analyzed between the relative groups.Results (1) Totally 138 septic children were recruited,64 with neutropenia and 74 without neutropenia.The level of PRISM-Ⅲ of the neutropenia group was significantly higher than that of the non-neutropenia group (P=0.048).Mortality showed no significant difference between the two groups,but hospital stay in the neutropenia group was longer than that in the non-neutropenia group.The levels of C-reactive protein,IL-6,and IL-10 ihe neutropenia group were significantly higher than those of the non-neutropenia group (P=0.001;P=0.001;P=0.032).The level of TNF-α in the neutropenia group was significantly lower than that of the non-neutropenia group (P=0.032).(2)Among the 64 septic children with neutropenia,23 were combined with shock.The PRISM-Ⅲ level of the shock group was significantly higher than that of the non-shock group (P=0.001).The mortality of the shock group (43.5％,10/23) was significantly higher than the non-shock group (2.4％,1/41) (P=0.001).C-reactive protein,procalcitonin,IL-6,IL-10 and TNF-α in the shock group elevated obviously than those in the non-shock group (P=0.001;P=0.001;P=0.001;P=0.005;P=0.019).The area under receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.8 for IL-6 (cut-offvalue 315.38 pg/mL),0.8 for IL-10 (cutoff value 45.18 pg/mL),and 0.85 for TNF-α (cut-off value 1.95 pg/mL).(3) Among the 74 septic children without neutropenia,19 were combined with shock The PRISM-Ⅲ level of the shock group was significantly higher than that of the non-shock group (P=0.022).There was no significant difference of mortality between the two groups (P=0.3).IL-10 level in the shock group elevated obviously than that in the non-shock group (P=0.015).(4) Among the 42 children with sepsis shock,23 were combined with neutropenia.The PRISM-Ⅲ level of the neutropenia group was significantly higher than that of the non-neutropenia group (P=0.005).There was no significant difference of mortality between the two groups (P=0.29).The levels of C-reactive protein,procalcitonin,IL-6 and IL-10 in the neutropenia group were significantly higher than those in the non-neutropenia group (P=0.001;P=0.001;P=0.001;P=0.035).There was no difference of TNF-α level between the two groups.(5) Among the 96 children without sepsis shock,41 were combined with neutropenia.No difference of PRISM-Ⅲ level was observed between the neutropenia and nonneutropenia groups.The mortality of the neutropenia group was significantly lower than that in the non-neutropenia group (2.4％ vs 20％,P=0.02).The levels of C-reactive protein and IL-6 in the neutropenia group were significantly higher than those in the non-neutropenia group (P=0.005;P=0.033).The TNF-α level was significantly lower than that in the non-neutropenia group (P=0.007).Conclusions Compared to children without neutropenia,septic children combined with neutropenia have longer hospital stay,and septic shock children combined with neutropenia have higher mortality,and levels of IL-6,IL-10 and TNF-α were also significantly increased.The levels of IL-6,IL-10 and TNF-α can help to predict prognosis of children with sepsis.

Objeetive To improve the method for the isolation and purification of rat hepatic stellate(HSC) cells and to provide a stable cell source for the research on liver-related diseases.Methods Rat liver was digested in situ by a two-step infusion assay under a strict control of the infusion temperature,flow rate and time with a combined utilization of Pronase E and Collagenase Ⅳ.And then,the HSC cells were separated by Percoll density gradient centrifugation.The cell growth curve and survival rate were measured by CCK-8 and trypan blue staining,respectively.The HSC cells were identified by flow cytometry and immunofluorescence cytochemistry.Results With the improved methods,there were (2.1 ± 0.2) × 107 HSC cells isolated from one rat and the survival rate was (96.2 ± 0.8) ％.The percentage of HSC cells with a spontaneous fluorescent characteristic from the isolated cells was 96.3％.The immunofluorescence cytochemistry was used to detect the expressions of the surface antigens α-SMA and Desmin in the isolated HSC cells.Conclusion By strict control of infusion temperature,flow rate and perfusion time as well as the combined application of Pronase E and Collagenase Ⅳ,there is an increased harvest of HSC cells with improved cell viability and purity,which is helpful for further research on HSC cells.