OBJECTIVES: To investigate the therapeutic mechanism of 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone (DMQ) for alleviating dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced ulcerative colitis (UC) in mice. METHODS: Eighteen male C57BL/6J mice were equally randomized into control group, DSS group and DMQ treatment group. In DSS and DMQ groups, the mice were treated with DSS in drinking water to induce UC, and received intraperitoneal injections of sterile PBS or DMQ (20 mg/kg) during modeling. The changes in body weight, disease activity index (DAI), colon length, spleen weight, and colon histological scores of the mice were examined, and the percentages of Th17 and IFN-γ⁺ CD8⁺ T cells in the mesenteric lymph nodes and spleen were analyzed using flow cytometry. The expressions of tight junction proteins (Occludin and ZO-1), proteins associated with inflammasome activation (caspase-1 and p20), IL-1β and TNF-α in the colon tissues were detected using Western blotting or ELISA. In the cell experiment, mouse bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) primed with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were treated with DMQ, followed by stmulation with nigericin to activate the classical NLRP3 inflammasome pathway. In cultured human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) treated with either LPS alone or LPS plus nigericin, the effects of DMQ on inflammasome activation, pyroptosis, and cytokine release were evaluated via Western blotting, ELISA, and flow cytometry. RESULTS: In DSS-treated mice, DMQ treatment significantly alleviated DSS-induced body weight loss, colon shortening, spleen enlargement, and colon inflammation. The DMQ-treated mice showed significantly reduced percentages of Th17 cells and IFN-γ⁺ CD8⁺ T cells in the mesenteric lymph nodes and spleen, with increased occludin and ZO-1 expressions and decreased caspase-1 expression in the colon tissue. DMQ obviously inhibited classical NLRP3 inflammasome activation in mouse BMDMs and both the classical and alternative pathways of NLRP3 activation in human PBMCs, causing also suppression of caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis. CONCLUSIONS DMQ ameliorates DSS-induced UC in mice by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation.
Animals ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/metabolism* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Colitis, Ulcerative/metabolism* ; Dextran Sulfate/adverse effects* ; Male ; Inflammasomes/metabolism* ; Mice ; Benzoquinones/therapeutic use* ; Th17 Cells ; Caspase 1/metabolism*

BACKGROUND:Lisfranc ligament is an important structure to maintain the transverse and longitudinal arch of the foot.This injury is a serious middle-foot injury.Lisfranc ligamentous injuries are complex,and their treatment,along with the preferred method of fixation,is controversial. OBJECTIVE:To compare the short-term efficacy of plate combined with Suture tape versus plate combined with headless compression screw in the treatment of Lisfranc injury with comminuted fractures of the 1st and 2nd proximal metatarsal bones. METHODS:A retrospective analysis was performed on 48 patients with Lisfranc injury due to comminuted fractures of the 1st and 2nd proximal metatarsal bones in Seventh Department of Orthopedics,Dongguan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from January 2019 to June 2022.Among them,25 were fixed with plate combined with Suture tape(observation group)and 23 were fixed with plate combined with headless compression screw(control group).Preoperative classification was performed according to Myerson classification system based on preoperative imaging data.Postoperative follow-up was performed according to fracture healing time,visual analog scale,and American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society(AOFAS)criteria to assess the recovery of foot functions.Postoperative complications were compared and analyzed between the two groups. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)All cases completed the operation successfully and obtained follow-up in the two groups.The postoperative follow-up time of the two groups was 12-36 months,with a mean of(18.0±5.42)months.(2)There were no significant differences in operation time and intraoperative blood loss between the two groups(P>0.05).(3)The fracture healing time of observation group was slightly longer than that of control group(P<0.05).(4)After 3,6,and 12 months of follow-up,the visual analog scale score of the observation group was significantly lower than that of the control group(P<0.05).(5)At 6 and 12 months after operation,AOFAS score of foot function in the observation group was significantly improved compared with the screw group at various time points after operation(P<0.05),and was significantly higher than that before operation(P<0.05).(6)The postoperative complications were 1 case of traumatic arthritis in the observation group and 1 case of incision infection,1 case of screw fracture,and 2 cases of traumatic arthritis in the control group.There was no significant difference between the two groups(P>0.05),considering the correlation with a small sample size.(7)It is indicated that as for the surgical method of Lisfranc injury with comminuted fractures of the 1st and 2nd proximal metatarsal bones,the application of plate combined with Suture tape internal fixation has a reliable effect in the treatment of Lisfranc joint injury,which can improve the function of the foot joint of patients,and has the advantages of less surgical trauma,fewer postoperative complications,and lower risk of long-term iatrogenic traumatic arthritis.Compared with headless compression screw,it is more beneficial to the recovery of foot function.

OBJECTIVE To explore the optimal parameters of simmered Rhei Radix et Rhizoma and the correlation between the chroma values and the intrinsic composition of simmered Rhei Radix et Rhizoma decoction pieces powder.METHODS The single-factor-response surface method was used to investigate the simmering temperature,simmering time,paper dosage and plant ash dos-age,the response surface experiment was carried out on the basis of the single factor experiment,the appearance traits,total anthraqui-nones,free anthraquinones,leachables,sennoside A and B contents were taken as indicators,the analytic hierarchy process(AHP)was used to give weights to each index,and the process was optimized.The chroma values of raw and simmered products were deter-mined by electronic eye,the correlation and regression analysis were carried out by SPSS22.0 software,and the chroma-component re-gression equation was constructed.RESULTS The optimal process of simmering Rhei Radix et Rhizoma was 140 ℃,5 times of plant ash,2 layers of wet paper wrapped and being simmered for 2.5 h.CONCLUSION The simmering process of Rhei Radix et Rhizoma optimized by AHP combined with response surface method is reasonable and feasible,the color of decoction pieces has a significant correlation with the component content,and the regression equation constructed is reliable,which can predict the intrinsic component content of decoction pieces through chroma values.

OBJECTIVE To explore the optimal parameters of simmered Rhei Radix et Rhizoma and the correlation between the chroma values and the intrinsic composition of simmered Rhei Radix et Rhizoma decoction pieces powder.METHODS The single-factor-response surface method was used to investigate the simmering temperature,simmering time,paper dosage and plant ash dos-age,the response surface experiment was carried out on the basis of the single factor experiment,the appearance traits,total anthraqui-nones,free anthraquinones,leachables,sennoside A and B contents were taken as indicators,the analytic hierarchy process(AHP)was used to give weights to each index,and the process was optimized.The chroma values of raw and simmered products were deter-mined by electronic eye,the correlation and regression analysis were carried out by SPSS22.0 software,and the chroma-component re-gression equation was constructed.RESULTS The optimal process of simmering Rhei Radix et Rhizoma was 140 ℃,5 times of plant ash,2 layers of wet paper wrapped and being simmered for 2.5 h.CONCLUSION The simmering process of Rhei Radix et Rhizoma optimized by AHP combined with response surface method is reasonable and feasible,the color of decoction pieces has a significant correlation with the component content,and the regression equation constructed is reliable,which can predict the intrinsic component content of decoction pieces through chroma values.

Objective On the premise of meeting the image quality requirements of simulated location for pediatric radiotherapy,the simulated localizable CT parameters are optimized through phantom scanning to reduce the radiation dose.Methods CatPhan700 phantom was used to simulate the child's body,Philip 24-row large-aperture spiral simulated localizable CT was performed,and the CT images were obtained by scanning the phantom at different mAs and tube voltages.The mAs range was set at 60-400 mAs,the scanning was performed every 20 mAs interval,and the kV was set at 80,100,and 120 kV.Image evaluation was carried out using parameters such as image noise(N10 and mean SD),uniformity,low contrast resolution,high contrast resolution,and the stabilities of HU values of Air,Acrylic,50%bone,LDPE,20%bone,Teflon,Polystyrene,DelrinTM,Lung,PMP and Water.The CTDIVol and DLP automatically calculated by the simulated localizable CT system were read to evaluate the radiation dose.Results At 100 kV,as mAs increased,both CTDI and DLP showed upward trends,and the fitting results were linear correlated,with slopes of 0.034 5 and 0.932 4.Image noise was decreased nonlinearly with the increasing mAs.When mAs increased from 60 to 140 mAs,N10 decreased from 0.25%to 0.14%,and SD reduced from 3.74 HU to 2.54 HU.When mAs reached 180 mAs or higher,N10 fluctuated between 0.1%and 0.12%,the mean SD fluctuated between 2.0 and 2.5 HU,and the downward trends obviously slowed down.When mAs increased from 60 to 200 mAs,the low contrast resolution of the image dropped from 0.53 to 0.29.The image uniformity,high contrast resolution and HU values of different substances were less affected by mAs.The image quality of 100 kV and 200 mAs scanning was close to that of 120 kV scanning,but the image quality of 80 kV scanning failed to meet the clinical requirements.Conclusion In order to reduce the radiation dose as much as possible,the mAs should be set at 200 mAs when the tube voltage is set at 100 kV for a simulated cylinder with a diameter of 20 cm.In the actual simulation scanning for pediatric radiotherapy,the scanning parameters should be fine-tuned according to the phantom results and the actual physical characteristics of children to satisfy the optimization principle for radiation protection.

Objective:To verify the feasibility of using Elekta accelerated go live (AGL) standard process for the acceptance of multiple accelerators.Methods:The beams of three accelerators were adjusted by PTW Beamscan three-dimensional water tank to reach the AGL standard. Dose verification was performed for three accelerators that met AGL standards. A simple field test example from Cancer Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences was used to compare the MapCheck 3 surface dose measurement results with the surface dose calculated by the same accelerator model. Images of 10 patients including head and neck, esophagus, breast, lung and rectum were randomly selected. volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) and intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) treatment techniques were used for planning design, and the measured dose of ArcCheck was compared with the planned dose calculated by the same accelerator model. One-way ANOVA was used to statistically analyze the passing rates of two-dimensional and three-dimensional dose verification.Results:The 6 MV X-ray percentage depth dose at 10 cm underwater (PDD 10) of three accelerators was 67.45%, 67.36%, 67.47%, and the maximum deviation between the three accelerators was 0.11%. The 6 MV flattenting filter free (FFF) mode X-ray PDD 10 was 67.33%, 67.20%, 67.20%, and the maximum deviation between the three accelerators was 0.13%. All required discrete point doses on each energy 30 cm×30 cm Profile spindle of the three accelerator X-rays deviated less than ±1% from the standard data. Absolute γ analysis was performed on the results of MapCheck 3 two-dimensional dose matrix validation. Under the 10% threshold of 2 mm/3% standard, the average passing rate of the test cases in Cancer Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences was above 99%, and the difference was not statistically significant ( P>0.05). Absolute γ analysis was performed on the ArcCheck verification results. Under the 10% threshold, the pass rate of 2 mm/3% was all above 95%, the maximum average passing rate of the three accelerators with different energy and different treatment techniques was 0.28% (6 MV, VMAT), 0.19%(6 MV FFF, VMAT), 0.56% (6 MV, IMRT) and 0.05% (6 MV FFF, IMRT), and the difference was not statistically significant ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Compared with traditional accelerator acceptance process, the acceptance time of each accelerator is shortened by 4-6 weeks by using the AGL standard process, and the radiotherapy plan of patients can be interchangeably executed among different accelerators.

Objective:To investigate a time series deep learning model for respiratory motion prediction.Methods:Eighty pieces of respiratory motion data from lung cancer patients were used in this study. They were divided into a training set and a test set at a ratio of 8∶2. The Informer deep learning network was employed to predict the respiratory motions with a latency of about 600 ms. The model performance was evaluated based on normalized root mean square errors (nRMSEs) and relative root mean square errors (rRMSEs).Results:The Informer model outperformed the conventional multilayer perceptron (MLP) and long short-term memory (LSTM) models. The Informer model yielded an average nRMSE and rRMSE of 0.270 and 0.365, respectively, at a prediction time of 423 ms, and 0.380 and 0.379, respectively, at a prediction time of 615 ms.Conclusions:The Informer model performs well in the case of a longer prediction time and has potential application value for improving the effects of the real-time tracking technology.

Objective To investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs)of YTHDF1 rs6011668,HNRNPA2B1 rs2070601 and rs76558212 with the risk of gastric cancer.Methods A total of 457 cases with gastric cancer and 525 healthy controls were collected.The candidate SNPs were genotyped using Hi-SNP genotyping methods by multiplex rounds of PCR and high-throughput sequencing;the association between the three SNPs with the risk of gastric cancer was analyzed by test and Logistic regression.Multifactorial logistic regression and Risk Score(RS)model was used to analyze the influence of environmental and genetic factors on the risk of gastric cancer.Results YTHDF1rs6011668 TT genotype carriers had 3.075 times higher risk of gastric cancer than CC genotype carriers(95%CI:1.128～8.382,P = 0.028),and 2.961 times higher risk than CC/TC genotypes carriers(95%CI:1.091～8.033,P = 0.033).Subgroups-analysis revealed that TT genotype mainly increased the risk of gastric cancer in non-tea drinkers,pickled food eaters and fried food eaters(P<0.05).In addition,TT genotype carriers had the increased risk of gastric cancer infiltration,lymph node metastasis,distal metastasis and intermediate to advanced stages(P<0.05).The RS of the case and control groups were calculated by combining environmental and genetic factors.The higher the RS score,the higher the risk of gastric cancer was found in the RS quartile groups.Compared with the RS

To know the current status of family health and negative psychology of primary and secondary school students, and to explore the correlation between them during the prevention and control of COVID-19. From January 15 to 30, in 2022, a total of 19 343 urban and rural primary and secondary school students in X city were selected. The short form of the family health scale, center for epidemiologica survey-depression scale and student burnout inventory for junior middle school students were used to conduct a cross-sectional survey. The Pearson correlation was used to analyze the relationship between the family health and negative psychology. The family health of primary and secondary school students is at the medium level or above, and more than half of students may/must be depressed. There are significant differences in study burnout in different learning stages and epidemic management in different places of residence. It is recommended that family members and schools staff should give more psychological and social support to primary and secondary school students to reduce the negative impact of COVID-19 on them.

Objective:To observe the expression of miRNA in retinal tissue of mice with oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR), and screen miRNAs related to p21 and retinal neovascularization (RNV) formation.Methods:A experimental study. Forty healthy 7-day-old C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into normal group and OIR group, with 20 mice in each group. The oxygen induced RNV model was constructed in the OIR group, and no treatment was performed in the normal group. At the age of 17 days, the mice were killed and the RNV of mice was observed by retinal fluorescence; the nuclei of vascular endothelium that broke through the inner limiting membrane of retina were counted under light microscope. The retinal tissues were taken for miRNA chip analysis to detect the differentially expressed miRNAs between the normal group and the OIR group. The resulting differential miRNA target genes were subjected to enrichment analysis based on gene annotation (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG); miRNAs and pathways that may be related to p21 were screened through Targetscan, MiRanda and MicroT-CDs database alignment. Independent sample t-test was used for pairwise comparison between groups. Results:Compared with the normal group, the area of nonperfusion area, RNV and the number of vascular endothelial nuclei that broke through the inner limiting membrane of the retina in the OIR group increased significantly, differences were statistically significant ( t=18.800, 9.025; P<0.05). Compared with the normal group, there were 54 miRNAs that were statistically differentially expressed in the OIR group, of which 47 were up-regulated and 7 were down-regulated. A total of 13 miRNAs related to p21 were screened from the alignment results of the three databases with the obtained differential miRNAs. According to the difference multiples, they were miR-7218-5p, miR-322-5p, miR-224-5p, miR-335-5p, miR-329-3p, miR-362-3p, miR-532-5p, miR-20b-5p, miR-20a-5p, miR-195a-5p, miR-423-5p, miR-497a-5p, and miR-129-5p. Differential miRNA target gene enrichment analysis yielded 1 112 go entries and 50 KEGG pathways, of which 50 go entries and 13 KEGG pathways were related to p21. Conclusion:13 miRNAs related to p21 were screened out in the OIR model.