Aim To investigate the dynamic changes of neuronal cells at different time points following acute cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury by establishing a model of brain ischemia-reperfusion injury.Methods Thirty male Sprague-Dawley(SD)rats were ran-domly divided into six groups:sham group and cere-bral ischemia-reperfusion injury(IR)groups at differ-ent time points.Focal cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury model was established using the middle cerebral artery occlusion(MCAO)technique.The Longa sco-ring method was used to assess neurobehavioral scores in rats.After successful model preparation,routine paraffin sections were made,and TUNEL staining and immunohistochemistry staining with NeuN antibody were performed to observe cell apoptosis and neuronal cell survival,respectively.Immunohistochemistry stai-ning was also performed to investigate the changes in glial fibrillary acidic protein(GFAP)as a marker for astrocytes,ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1(IBA-1)as a marker for microglia,and CD31 as a marker for endothelial cells at different time points.Results No significant changes were observed in neu-ronal cells of the sham group at different time points.In the cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury groups,cell apoptosis was activated at IR3h and increased in quan-tity with morphological damage as time progressed.Ne-uN+neurons showed signs of ischemic injury after IR3h,with abnormal cell morphology.From 12 h,Ne-uN+neurons decreased in a time-dependent manner and reached their peak severity at 24 h.GFAP+astro-cytes decreased significantly after IR3h,while poorly labeled GFAP+astrocytes increased at IR 6 h and al-most disappeared in the infarcted area at 24 h and 48 h.The number of IBA-1+microglia-positive cells de-creased at IR3h,and their volume increased at IR6h.Microglial cell death was observed in the infarcted area at IR12h.CD31+endothelial cells around the infarc-ted cortex and striatum increased significantly after IR3h and persisted until 48 h.Conclusions After cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury,the number of ap-optotic cells increases with the prolongation of time,and NeuN+neurons exhibit the most severe damage at 24 h.GFAP+astrocytes and microglial cells gradually die over time.The number of CD31+endothelial cells increases significantly around the infarcted cortex and striatum after 3 h of reperfusion and persists until 48 h.

Aim To investigate the protective effect of Jujing formula on retina of mice with dry age-related macular degeneration(AMD).Methods The mouse model of dry AMD was induced by intraperitoneal in-jection of sodium iodate,and the prognosis was given to the Jujing formula.Retinal thickness was detected by optical coherence tomography(OCT),the retinal morphological changes were observed by hematoxylin-eosin(HE)staining,and the apoptosis of retinal cells was detected by in situ terminal transferase labeling(TUNEL)staining.Combination of tumor necrosis fac-tor-α(TNF-α),interleukin-6(IL-6)and interleukin-1β(IL-1 β)in eyeballs and serum,superoxide dis-mutase(SOD),glutathione(GSH)and malondialde-hyde(MDA)were evaluated to assess the protective effects of Jujing formula on retinal injury in mice with dry AMD.Results The results of OCT,HE and TUNEL staining showed that Jujing formula significant-ly improved the retinal injury induced by sodium iodate in mice with dry AMD,increased the retinal thickness(P＜0.05),reduced the apoptosis of retinal cells(P＜0.01),and increased the levels of GSH,IL-6 and SOD activity in eyeballs and serum(P＜0.01).The levels of TNF-α,IL-6,IL-1β and MDA were reduced(P＜0.01).Conclusions Jujing formula has certain therapeutic effects on retinal injury in dry AMD,which may be related to inhibiting inflammatory response and enhancing antioxidant capacity.

Coronary atherosclerotic heart disease(CHD)is an ischemic cardiovascular condition caused by the narrowing or blockage of the vascular lumen due to coronary atherosclerosis.Clinically,it presents as angina pectoris,heart failure,or sud-den cardiac death,and stands as one of the primary causes of mortality among both urban and rural populations in China.Cir-cRNA,classified as non-coding RNAs,can function as upstream regulatory molecules for miRNA or RNA-binding proteins.They actively participate in various pathological processes associated with CHD,including endothelial cell dysfunction,smooth mus-cle cell migration,macrophage-derived foam cell formation,an-giogenesis,myocardial injury,and repair,as well as post-in-farction heart failure.The expression pattern of these molecules is highly specific to the illness and tissue,indicating their poten-tial as therapeutic targets for disease management and as biomar-kers.Furthermore,they also open up new avenues for drug tar-get development in the field of traditional Chinese medicine.This article aims to provide an overview of the recent research progress on circRNA in the regulation of coronary heart disease,as well as the mechanisms involved in traditional Chinese medi-cine.It serves as a valuable reference for future research on cor-onary heart disease.

Objective:To summarize the best evidence for the prevention and management of radiation esophagitis in patients with chest tumors, so as to provide basis for the prevention and management of radiation esophagitis in patients.Methods:The research question was proposed based on the population, intervention, professional, outcome, setting and type of evidence (PIPOST) model, and guidelines, expert consensus, clinical decision-making, evidence summary, systematic review, and randomized controlled trials on the prevention and management of radiation esophagitis in chest tumor patients were systematically searched on UpToDate, BMJ Best Practice, Cochrane Library, PubMed, American Society of Clinical Oncology, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WanFang Data, and other databases and websites based on the "6S" model. The search period was from database establishment to August 1, 2023. Two researchers independently evaluated the quality of the literature and extracted and integrated evidence from the literature that met the quality standards.Results:A total of ten articles were included, including three guidelines, one expert consensus, one systematic review, two systematic evaluations, and three randomized controlled trials. Twenty-three pieces of evidence were summarized from six dimensions of building multidisciplinary teams, screening and evaluation, nutritional support, drug and non-drug prevention, integrated traditional Chinese and western medicine treatment, and health education.Conclusions:The included evidence can provide a theoretical basis for the prevention and management of radiation esophagitis in patients undergoing chest tumor radiotherapy. Clinical medical and nursing personnel can provide personalized interventions to patients based on clinical practice.

This study was aimed at creating an engineered strain of Bacillus subtilis for efficient expression of biologically active type 2 toxin B(TcdB2)derived from a highly virulent strain of Clostridium difficile.The TcdB2 gene was cloned from ST1/RT027 strain genome DNA,incorporated into the PHT01 vector,and then transformed into B.subtilis strain WB800N for prokaryotic expression.Cell toxicity assays revealed that the recombinant TcdB2 exhibited cytotoxic effects in various cells.The engineered B.subtilis strain effectively expressed biologically active TcdB2,thus providing a basis for further exploration of the pathogenic mechanisms of highly virulent strains of C.difficile and establishing a foundation for potential vaccine can-didate targets.

Exosomes can ameliorate neuronal cell injury induced by hypoxia-ischemia,but the relation-ship between astrocyte-derived exosomes(As-exo)and mitochondrial function,mitochondrial associated ER membrane(MAM)function and whether mitochondrial autophagy is relevant is currently unclear.The aim of this study was to investigate the role of astrocyte-derived exosomes in the regulation of mito-chondrial function,MAM and mitochondrial autophagy in PC 12 cells after oxygen and glucose depriva-tion/reoxygenation(OGD/R).Exosomes were extracted from the supernatant of the astrocyte culture me-dium by ultracentrifugation.Using the live cell imaging system,we observed that fluorescently labeled exosomes could show obvious enrichment in PC 12 cells at 24 h.Meanwhile,co-localization of exosomes with mitochondria could be observed under the laser confocal scanning microscope;mitochondrial pres-sure changes were detected using the Seahorse cellular energy metabolism fractionation instrument.The result showed that basal respiration in the OGD/R group,compared with that in the control group,proton leakage,maximal respiration and ATP-related respiration were significantly reduced(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01),and all four indexes were elevated and statistically significant in the OGD/R+exo group compared with the control group(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).The results of the co-localization of the mitochondria and ER showed that the structure of the MAM was harmed by oxygen-sugar deprivation and then reoxygen-ation,and the structure of As-exo and the mitochondria appeared to have a distance-reduced polymeriza-tion phenomenon,while the mitochondria and ER co-localized.The co-localization results of mitochondri-a and ER showed that the structure of MAM was damaged by oxygen deprivation and reoxygenation,and the aggregation phenomenon of MAM was weakened by the treatment of As-exo;the flow-through results showed that As-exo could restore the decrease of the mitochondrial membrane potential and the elevation of the ROS by oxygen deprivation to a certain degree.Western blotting showed that As-exo could signifi-cantly inhibit the mitochondrial autophagy-associated tension protein homologue induced hypothetical ki-nase 1(PTEN induced kinase 1(PINK1)and Parkin protein(parkin RBR E3 ubiquitin protein ligase(Parkin))were elevated,and the addition of As-exo decreased LC3 Ⅱ/LC3 Ⅰ protein expression,ele-vated P62 protein expression,and reduced OGD/R-induced mitochondrial autophagy.The results showed that OGD/R treatment can cause mitochondrial dysfunction,MAM structural changes and increased mito-chondrial autophagy in PC12 cells,and As-exo treatment can improve mitochondrial function,attenuate the formation of MAM,and reduce mitochondrial autophagy in PC 12 cells,which can have the potential of preventing the reperfusion injury in ischemic stroke.

In order to understand the prevalence and genetic variation of H9N2 subtype avian influ-enza virus in Shandong,a total 492 tracheal and lung tissue samples collected from chicken farms with respiratory symptoms in partial areas in Shandong were detected by H9 subtype AIV real-time RT-PCR,and the positive samples were inoculated with chicken embryos for two generations.Whole genome sequences of the positive strains by applying Illumina Miaseq platform,and genetic evolution and mutation at positions associating with viral pathogenicity and transmissibility were analyzed.The results showed that there were 72 samples were positive for H9 subtype AIV among the 492 samples,with a positive rate of 14.63％.Thirty-four strains of H9 subtype AIV were ob-tained from the positive samples after passing through chicken embryo,meanwhile,the 34 isolates were all H9N2 subtype AIV by whole genome sequencing analysis.By analyzing the evolutionary tree of HA and NA genes,HA and NA genes of the 34 H9N2 AIV strains belonged to Y280-like branch and F/98-like branch,respectively.Meanwhile,based on above branches,there were obvious time node subbranch,which one was"isolates before 2013",another one was"isolates after 2013".The HA cleavage sites of thirty-four H9N2 strains were all 325PSRSSR↓GLF333,which met the se-quence characteristics of the lowly pathogenic avian influenza virus,and the HA receptor binding site 226 amino acid was leucine,which had the characteristics of blinding to a-2,6 mammalian sialic acid receptors.Among the internal amino acid sites that are key to mammalian adaptation,all strains had an I368V mutation in the PB1 gene that enhanced viral transmissibility in mammals and the PB2 genes of some strains were mutated to enhance the mammalian adaptation of I292 V and A588 V.The above results illustrated that the H9N2 subtype AIV gene segments in Shandong have different degrees of recombination and gene variation,so it is necessary to strengthen the monito-ring of virus variation.

Objective:To explore the plasma metabolomic characteristics of children with transfusion-dependent thalassemia(TDT),and reveal the changes of metabolic pattern in children with TDT.Methods:23 children with TDT who received regular blood transfusion in Ganzhou Women and Children's Health Care Hospital in 2021 were selected,and 11 healthy children who underwent physical examination during the same period were selected as the control group.The routine indexes between children with TDT and the control group were compared,and then the metabolic composition of plasma samples from children with TDT and the control group was detected by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.An OPLS-DA model was established to perform differential analysis on the detected metabolites,and the differential metabolic pathways between the two groups were analyzed based on the differential metabolites.Results:The results of routine testing showed that the indexes of ferritin,bilirubin,total bile acid,glucose and triglycerides in children with TDT were significantly higher than those in healthy controls,while hemoglobin and total cholesterol were significantly lower(all P＜0.05).However there was no significant difference in lactate dehydrogenase between the two groups(P＞0.05).Compared with the control group,190 differential metabolites(VIP＞1)were identified in TDT children.Among them,168 compounds such as arginine,proline and glycocholic acid were significantly increased,while the other 22 compounds such as myristic acid,eleostearic acid,palmitic acid and linoleic acid were significantly decreased.The metabolic pathway analysis showed that the metabolic impact of TDT on children mainly focused on the upregulation of amino acid metabolism and downregulation of lipid metabolism.Conclusion:The amino acid and lipid metabolism in children with TDT were significantly changed compared with the healthy control group.This finding is helpful to optimize the treatment choice for children with TDT,and provides a new idea for clinical treatment.

Objective:To explore the current status of lipid-lowering therapy, the distribution of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels and the risk assessment of cardiovascular events recurrence in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) complicated by hypertension.Methods:This was a cross-sectional study. Patients with CHD combined with hypertension were hospitalized in the Department of Cardiology, General Hospital of Chinese People′s Liberation Army from August 5, 2008 to July 22, 2018 were included, and were divided into standard group and substandard group according to whether LDL-C reached the standard. Study data were obtained from inpatient coronary angiography records and electronic medical records database of Department of Cardiology, General Hospital of Chinese People′s Liberation Army, who used data from the first diagnosis of CHD. Clinical data of the selected patients were collected. Multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the associated factors of whether LDL-C reached the standard in CHD patients with hypertension.Results:A total of 18 800 patients were selected from 31 provinces/autonomous regions/municipalities directly under the central government in China, with Beijing accounting for the largest proportion (5 692 patients (30.28%)), followed by Hebei (3 621 patients (19.26%)), Henan (1 837 patients (9.77%)), and Shandong (1 618 patients (8.61%)). Among the selected patients, 1 493 had LDL-C<1.4 mmol/L (standard group), and 17 307 had LDL-C≥1.4 mmol/L (substandard group). Only 1 493 patients (7.94%) had LDL-C<1.4 mmol/L. There were 4 518 patients (24.03%), 4 366 patients (23.22%), 6 924 patients (36.83%) and 1 499 patients (7.97%) with LDL-C for 1.4-<2.0, 2.0-<2.5, 2.5-<3.8 and≥3.8 mmol/L levels, respectively. 17 855 patients (95.15%) were treated with statins, but only 1 334 patients (7.10%) were treated with statins and ezetimibe. Of the selected patients, 4 986 patients (26.52%) were at low risk, 6 515 patients (34.65%) were at intermediate risk, and 7 299 patients (38.82%) were at high risk. The combined lipid-lowering treatment rates of statin and ezetimibe in the middle-and high-risk patients were 7.43% (484/6 515) and 7.48% (546/7 299), respectively. The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that increasing age, male, diabetes mellitus, stroke, and history of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were positively associated with LDL-C standards in patients with CHD and hypertension, whereas obesity and acute myocardial infarction (AMI) were negatively associated with LDL-C standards (all P<0.01). Conclusions:The rate of achieving the standard LDL-C in patients with CHD combined with hypertension was low in China. Although the majority of patients had received moderate-intensity statin therapy, the proportion of statin-treated patients combined with ezetimibe was extremely low. The proportion of high-risk patients with recurrent cardiovascular events was higher in patients with CHD and hypertension in China, whereas the proportion of such patients receiving statin combined with ezetimibe lipid-lowering therapy was lower. This study also found that increasing age, male, diabetes mellitus, stroke, and history of PCI were positively associated with LDL-C standards, while obesity and AMI were negatively associated with LDL-C standards in patients with CHD and hypertension.

Objective:To investigate the association between triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index and all-cause mortality in elderly patients with hypertension and coronary artery disease.Methods:This was a retrospective cohort study, a total of 5 640 elderly inpatients (≥65 years) with hypertension and coronary artery disease who were admitted to the Department of Cardiology, Liberation Army General Hospital from August 2008 to July 2018 were enrolled in this study. The baseline clinical data of the patients were collected and the TyG index was calculated. Patients were divided into four groups according to their TyG index quartiles: TyG index<8.31 ( Q1 group, n=1 392), 8.31≤TyG index<8.67 ( Q2 group, n=1 417), 8.67≤TyG index<9.07 ( Q3 group, n=1 427), and TyG index≥9.07 ( Q4 group, n=1 404). All patients were followed up by obtaining outpatient/rehospitalization records or by telephone. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. Log-rank test was used to compare the cumulative all-cause mortality among groups. Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to analyze the risk of all-cause mortality in each group (the Q2 group with the lowest all-cause mortality was used as a reference), after adjusting for confounding factors, Restricted cubic spline analysis (RCS) was used to determine the association between TyG index and risk of all-cause mortality. Results:During a follow-up of 6.44 (4.70, 8.85) years, 1 037 all-cause deaths (18.39 %) were documented. The cumulative all-cause mortality in Q1- Q4 groups was 16.52%, 16.51%, 17.59% and 22.93%, respectively, and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=26.49, P<0.01). In the Cox regression model, compared with Q2 group (reference), the HR (95% CI) for all-cause mortality was 1.06 (0.88-1.28) in the Q1 group, 1.23 (1.02-1.48) in the Q3 group and 1.48 (1.23-1.77) in the Q4 group, respectively ( P for trend<0.01). RCS curve analysis showed that when the TyG index was greater than 8.67, the risk of all-cause mortality increased with the TyG index, and there was a linear relationship between TyG index and all-cause mortality in this patient cohort (non-linearity P=0.31). Conclusion:The elevated TyG index is significantly associated with a higher risk for all-cause mortality in elderly hypertension and coronary artery disease patients.