The movement of wei qi （defensive qi） follows the circadian rhythm of "circulating on the yang during the day， and on the yin at night" and serves a defensive function to "protect the body". Guided by the theory of wei qi， it is believed that time rhythms and the immune system play significant roles in the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis （UC）. Dysfunction in wei qi circulation， particularly when "yang fails to enter yin，" can lead to the onset of UC； the cyclical nature of wei qi's movement results in disease patterns characterized by "morning relief， daytime stability， evening aggravation， and nighttime worsening"， which align with the rhythmic characteristics of immune responses. The defensive function of wei qi is crucial in maintaining intestinal immunity of patients with UC， and the spleen and stomach， which are the sources of wei qi， are key to sustaining intestinal mucosal immune homeostasis； additionally， obstruction in the ascending and descending movements of wei qi， internal disruption， and latent pathogen in the intestines lead to the development of UC. Based on the theory of wei qi， treatment approaches for UC are proposed， including time-based dietary adjustments and chronotherapy to harmonize human activities with natural rhythms； these approaches emphasize protecting the spleen and stomach while also considering the lungs and kidneys， balancing sanjiao， and harmonizing ying qi and wei qi， so as to improve the clinical effectiveness of UC treatment.

Objective To explore the effects of S100 calcium-binding protein A9 (S100A9) gene knockout on the phenotype of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in mice and to clarify the role of S100A9 in the pathogenesis of SLE. Methods Ten female C57BL/6 wild-type and S100A9 knockout (S100A9-KO ) mice were selected, with five wild-type and five S100A9-KO B6 mice receiving imiquimod (IMQ) cream to establish SLE mouse model. The other five wild-type and five S100A9-KO B6 mice were treated as control groups by wiping the skin of the right ear with a cotton swab. After 8 weeks, the mice were sacrificed. The serum was collected from each mouse to detect the levels of anti-double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) antibodies, immunoglobulin G (IgG), B cell activating factor (BAFF), and interleukin 6 (IL-6) using ELISA. The levels of serum creatinine were determined using a sarcosine oxidase method. Urine was collected to measure urinary protein concentration. Kidneys were collected and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) for evaluating histological changes. Results After IMQ treatment, the length and weight of spleen, levels of serum creatinine, anti-dsDNA antibodies, IgG, BAFF, IL-6, and urinary protein in the IMQ B6 group and IMQ S100A9-KO B6 group were significantly higher than those of the control groups. Lupus-like changes including increased glomerular volume and tubular epithelial swelling were observed in kidneys from the IMQ and IMQ S100A9-KO groups. However, compared with the IMQ B6 group, the IMQ S100A9-KO B6 group exhibited milder levels of serum and urine indicators as well as the lupus-like symptoms. Conclusion IMQ could induce lupus-like symptoms in both wild-type B6 mice and S100A9-KO B6 mice, but the lesions in S100A9 knockout mice are milder. Theses results suggested that S100A9 is involved in and promotes the pathogenesis of SLE.
Animals ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic/chemically induced* ; Female ; Calgranulin B/genetics* ; Mice, Knockout ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Phenotype ; Mice ; Interleukin-6/blood* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Antibodies, Antinuclear/blood* ; B-Cell Activating Factor/blood* ; Immunoglobulin G/blood* ; Kidney/pathology*

Objective:To investigate the impact of small extracellular vesicles(sEVs) derived from perirenal adipose cells on the biological behavior of renal tubular epithelial cells under diabetic conditions and the underlying molecular mechanisms.Methods:Primary perirenal adipose cells were extracted from db/m and db/db mice for in vitro culture. The culture supernatant was collected and sEVs(NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo, DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo) were extracted by ultracentrifugation. The sEVs were incubated with human renal tubular epithelial cell line(HK-2) to observe changes in their proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT) levels. The protein composition of sEVs was analyzed using mass spectrometry to explore the molecular mechanisms. Results:CCK8 results showed that the proliferation level of HK-2 cells after DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention did not change significantly compared with the two control groups(Ctrl group and NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention group). Western Blot(WB) results indicated that there were no significant changes in apoptosis levels(Bcl-2, Cleaved-caspase 3, Caspase 3) and autophagy levels(p62, LC3BⅠ, LC3BⅡ) in the DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention group compared with the two control groups. WB and immunofluorescence results demonstrated that DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention upregulated the expression levels of mesenchymal cell marker proteins(Vimentin, α-SMA, Snail2) and downregulated the expression level of epithelial cell marker protein ZO-1 in HK-2 cells compared with the two control groups. Mass spectrometry analysis of sEVs revealed that the differential proteins between DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo and NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo were enriched in EMT-related pathways. Among them, the enrichment of thrombospondin(THBS1) in DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo might be involved in the regulation of EMT in HK-2 cells. Conclusion:Under diabetic conditions, sEVs secreted by PRAT-derived adipocytes promote the upregulation of EMT in renal tubular epithelial cells, a process that may be mediated by the enrichment of THBS1 in sEVs.

OBJECTIVE：To i nvestigate the spectrum-effect relationship of analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects of ethyl acetate extract from Zhuang medicine Stahlianthus involucratus from different habitats. METHODS ：Ten batches of S. involucratus from different habitats were used as samples to investigate the anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities of ethyl acetate extracts by xylene induced ear swelling test and acetic acid induced writhing test in mice. HPLC fingerprints of 10 batches of ethyl acetate extract from S. involucratus were established and their similarity was evaluated by using Similarity Evaluation System of TCM Chromatogram Fingerprint （2012 edition），and the common peaks were identified by comparison with the control. The spectrum-effect relationship of anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects of ethyl acetate extract from S. involucratus were analyzed on the basis of Pearson correlation coefficient （auricle swelling degree and writhing times in 15 min as pharmacodynamic indexes ）and Grey relational analysis （inhibition rate of ear swelling and analgesic rate as pharmacodynamic indexes ）. RESULTS ： batches of ethyl acetate extract from S. involucratus had obvious anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects ； inhibition rates of ear swelling in mice were 46.43％-55.16％，and the analgesic rates of mice were 45.56％-52.72％. A total of 18 common peaks were identified in 10 batches of samples ，andthe similarity between them and the control fingerprint was 0.994-0.997. Compared with substance control ，the pea ks 1，2 and 4 were identified as protocatechuic acid ， p-hydroxy- 0771-4953513。E-mail：liangjie1101@126.com benzoic acid and p-hydroxybenzaldehyde，respectively. Results of Pearson correlation analysis showed that peak 10 and peak 18 were significantly negative correlated with auricle swelling degree and writhing times in 15 min（r were values －0.853，－0.738，P values were 0.002，0.015，respectively）. Results of Gray correlation degree analysis showed that the correlation degree of 18 common peaks with inhibition rate of ear swelling and analgesic rate were all greater than 0.65；among them ，peaks 14，1（protocatechuic acid ），17，9，4（p-hydroxybenzaldehyde），2（p-hydroxybenzoic acid ）， 16，7 and 6 showed the relatively high correlation degree （correlation degree ＞0.7）；peak 1（protocatechuic acid ），17，14，9，16，2 （p-hydroxybenzoic acid ）and 4（p-hydroxybenzaldehyde）showed the relatively high correlation degree （correlation degree ＞0.7）. CONCLUSIONS：The ethyl acetate extract of S. involucratus show good anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. Peak 1 （protocatechuic acid ），2（p-hydroxybenzoic acid ），10，14，17，18 may be its main active ingredients.

Objective To compare cortical bone screwing and Endobutton plating for the treatment of ankle joint fracture complicated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis. Methods Fifty-eight pa-tients with ankle joint fracture and injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis were treated at Department of Orthopedic Surgery, The Affiliated Hospital to Guangdong Medical University from January 2014 to June 2016. Half of them were treated by conventional cortical bone screwing. They were 16 males and 13 females with an average age of 43.2 ± 4.1 years. The other half were treated by Endobutton plating. They were 15 males and 14 females with an average age of 44.1 ± 3.9 years. The 2 groups were compared in terms of intraoperative bleed-ing, operation time, tibiofibular clear space ( TBCS ) , tibiofibular overlap ( TBOL ) , the American Orthopedic Foot Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot scale and complications. Results The cortical bone screwing group needed significantly shorter operation time (63.4 ± 5.4 min) than the plating group (89.6 ± 6.2 min) ( P ＜0.05) . There were no significant differences between the 2 groups in intraoperative bleeding ( 68.9 ± 6.3 mL versus 67.4 ± 6.4 mL ) , TBCS ( 4.6 ± 0.3 mm versus 4.7 ± 0.3 mm) , TBOL ( 7.5 ± 0.4 mm versus 7.4 ± 0.4 mm ) , good to excellent rate by AOFAS score ( 72.4% versus 75.9%) , or rate of complications ( 6.9% versus 10.3%) ( P ＞ 0.05 ). Conclusion Since cortical bone screwing and Endobutton plating show no signifi-cant difference for the treatment of ankle joint fracture complicated with distal tibiofibular syndesmosis injury, a proper surgical procedure should be decided according to the specific conditions of the patient.