BACKGROUND:Wogonin is a flavonoid extracted from the root of Scutellaria baicalensis.Previous studies have shown that baicalein has protective effects against cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury,and can also reduce blood sugar and complications in diabetic mice,but its role and mechanism in diabetic cerebral infarction remain unclear. OBJECTIVE:To explore the effect of wogonin on nerve injury in rats with diabetic cerebral infarction and its mechanism. METHODS:Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into six groups:control group,model group,low-dose wogonin group,medium-dose wogonin group,high-dose wogonin group,and high-dose wogonin+Ras homolog gene family member A(RhoA)activator group.Except for the control group,the other rats were established with diabetes and cerebral ischemia models using intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin and middle cerebral artery occlusion.Low,medium-and high-dose wogonin groups were intragastrically given 10,20,40 mg/kg wogonin,respectively;high-dose wogonin+RhoA activator group was intragastrically given 40 mg/kg wogonin and intraperitoneally injected 10 mg/kg lysophosphatidic acid;control group and model group were given the same amount of normal saline once a day for 7 consecutive days.Rats in each group were evaluated for neurological deficits and their blood glucose levels were measured after the last dose.TTC staining was applied to detect the volume of cerebral infarction.Hematoxylin-eosin staining was applied to observe pathological changes in brain tissue.ELISA kit was applied to detect tumor necrosis factor-α,interleukin-6,malondialdehyde,and superoxide dismutase levels in brain tissue.Western blot was applied to detect the protein expression of RhoA and Rho-associated protein kinase(ROCK)2 in brain tissue. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the control group,the neuronal structure of rats in the model group was severely damaged,with cell necrosis and degeneration,the neurological deficit score,blood glucose level,and infarct volume were significantly elevated(P<0.05),the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α,interleukin-6,and malondialdehyde,and the protein expression of RhoA and ROCK2 in brain tissue were significantly increased(P<0.05),and the superoxide dismutase level was decreased(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,the low-,medium-,and high-dose wogonin groups showed improved neuronal damage,reduced cell degeneration and necrosis,a significant reduction in neurological deficit score,blood glucose level,infarct volume,and the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α,interleukin-6,and malondialdehyde,and the protein expression of RhoA and ROCK2 in brain tissue,and an increase in the superoxide dismutase level(P<0.05).Compared with the high-dose wogonin group,the high-dose wogonin+RhoA activator group significantly weakened the improvement in the above indexes of rats with diabetic cerebral infarction(P<0.05).To conclude,wogonin can improve the blood glucose level in rats with diabetic cerebral infarction,reduce cerebral infarction and nerve injury,and its mechanism may be related to the inhibition of RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway.

OBJECTIVE To explore the mechanism of Huayu jiedu formula in regulating inflammatory injury in chronic kidney disease （CKD）. METHODS Fifty male SD rats were randomly divided into a sham surgery group （10 rats） and a modeling group （40 rats）. The CKD model was replicated in the modeling group by unilateral ureteral obstruction surgery. After successful modeling， the rats were randomly divided into model group， esaxerenone group （positive control）， and TCM low- and high-dose groups， with 10 rats in each group. The Esaxerenone group was given 1 mg/kg of esaxerenone， while the TCM low- and high-dose groups were given 13.7 and 27.4 g/kg of Huayu jiedu formula respectively， the sham surgery group and model group were given an equal volume of physiological saline， all groups were intervened continuously for 14 days. Hematoxylin eosin and Masson staining were used to observe the pathological changes in rat kidney tissue. Conventional biochemical methods were used to detect serum urea （SUr）， serum creatinine （SCr）， malondialdehyde （MDA）， and superoxide dismutase （SOD） levels； enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect the levels of serum interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， IL-6， and tumor necrosis factor-α（TNF-α）； immunohistochemistry and Western blot were used to detect the protein expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α（PGC-1α） ， mitochondrial transcription factor A （TFAM）， absent in melanoma 2（AIM2）， caspase-1， gasdermin D （GSDMD）， IL-1β and IL-18 in renal tissue； real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR was used to detect the mRNA expression of AIM2. RESULTS Compared with the sham surgery group， the renal tissue of the model group showed pathological changes such as glomerular deformation and destruction， severe tubular dilation， and increased deposition of blue fibrin； the levels of SUr， SCr， MDA， IL-1β， IL-6， TNF-α，the protein expression of AIM2， GSDMD， caspase-1， IL-1β， IL-18 ， and the mRNA expression of AIM2 were significantly increased or up-regulated （P＜0.01）； the levels of SOD， the protein expression of PGC-1α， TFAM were significantly reduced or down-regulated （P＜0.01）. Compared with the model group， all treatment groups showed improvement in the above symptoms and most indicators in rats. CONCLUSIONS Huayu jiedu formula may improve renal function， alleviate renal inflammatory damage and pyroptosis， and exert renal protective effects by regulating the AIM2 pyroptosis pathway.

Aim To investigate the effect of Dahuang Tangluo pills(DHTL)on NOD-like receptor protein 3(NLRP3)/cysteine aspartate proteolytic enzyme-1(caspase-1)/apodermic D(GSDMD)pathway-media-ted pyroptosis in db/db mice with diabetic kidney dis-ease(DKD)and the underlying mechanism.Methods Eight db/m mice were selected as control group,and forty db/db mice were randomly divided into mod-el group,low dose group,medium dose group,high dose group and dapagliflozin group,with eight mice in each group.The control group and model group were given equal volume normal saline intragastric adminis-tration,the low,medium and high dose groups were given DHTL solution of 0.9,1.8 and 3.6 mg·kg-1,respectively,and the dapagliflozin group was given dapagliflozin tablet solution of 1.5 mg·kg-1,and the six groups were given intragastric administration once a day for 10 weeks.The body weight of mice was meas-ured daily and the dose was adjusted during adminis-tration.Fasting blood glucose(FBG)and body weight were measured after administration.The levels of 24-hour urinary total protein(24h-UTP),blood creatinine(Scr)and urea nitrogen(BUN)were measured by au-tomatic biochemical analyzer.The levels of interleukin-1 β(IL-1β),interleukin-6(IL-6),interleukin-18(IL-18)and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)in re-nal tissue of mice were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).The pathological changes of renal tissue were observed by hematoxylin-eosin(HE)staining.The DNA damage in mouse kid-ney tissue was observed using in situ end labeling(TUNEL)staining.The mRNA and protein expres-sions of NLRP3,caspase-1 and GSDMD in mouse kid-ney tissues were detected by Real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot.Results Compared with the control group,FBG,body weight,IL-1β,IL-6,IL-18 and TNF-α in the model group significantly increased(P＜0.01).The mRNA and protein expressions of NLRP3,caspase-1 and GSDMD in mouse kidney tis-sues significantly increased(P＜0.01).Compared with the model group,the levels of FBG,body weight,IL-1β,IL-6,IL-18 and TNF-α in each administration group significantly decreased(P＜0.05).The patho-logical morphology of renal tissue was improved in dif-ferent degrees,and the number of positive cells in re-nal tissue was significantly reduced(P＜0.05).The mRNA and protein expressions of NLRP3,caspase-1 and GSDMD in renal tissue of mice in high and medi-um dose of DHTL and dapagliflozin group significantly decreased(P＜0.05).Conclusions DHTL can im-prove the renal injury of DKD,and its mechanism may be through the regulation of NLRP3/caspase-1/GSD-MD pathway to inhibit pyroptosis and relieve the in-flammatory response of DKD mice.

Objective:To explore the genotypes and frequency distribution of thalassemia in Lingui District,Guilin City,and provide reference for the prevention and control of thalassemia in this area. Methods:The results of genetic testing for thalassemia in 1501 suspected cases at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guilin Medical University were analyzed retrospectively. The deletional mutations of α-thalassemia were detected by gap-PCR,the non-deletional mutations of α-thalassemia and β-thalassemia mutations were detected by PCR-reverse dot blot (PCR-RDB). Results:In 1501 samples,a total of 678 cases of thalassemia carriers were detected,with a detection rate of 45.17％. Among them,379 cases were α-thalassemia (including deletional α-thalassemia and non-deletional α-thalassemia),with a detection rate of 25.25％,the most common genotype was--SEA/αα (227 cases,15.12％),followed by-α3.7/αα (53 cases,3.53％). 270 cases of β-thalassemia were detected,with a detction rate of 17.99％,and βCD41-42/βN (144 cases,9.59％) was the main genotypes,followed by βCD17/βN (66 cases,4.40％) . In addition,there were 29 cases of αβ compound thalassemia,accounting for 1.93％,and the most common genotype was--SEA/αα complex βCD41-42/βN (5 cases,0.33％). Conclusion:Lingui District in Guilin City is a high-incidence area of thalassemia,and the genotypes of carriers are complex and diverse,with genetic heterogeneity. The results of this study provide a scientific basis for genetic counseling and prenatal diagnosis in this area.

Objective To develop and validate a fatigue risk nomogram model in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease(COPD)patients.Methods A prospective study design was adopted,and 430 COPD patients recruited from a tertiary A hospital in Huzhou City from January to December 2022 were conveniently selected for model construction,and 129 patients were recruited from the same hospital from January to June 2023 for external validation of the model.The general information questionnaire,Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index,2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale,2-item Patient Health Questionnaire,modified British Medical Research Council Dyspnea Index,International Physical Activity Questionnaire,and Fatigue Severity Scale were used for questionnaire survey.The risk prediction model and nomograms model were constructed using Logistic regression analysis and R 4.3.2 software,and the area under the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to test the prediction effect of the model.Results Univariate and binary logistic regression analysis results showed that age(OR=1.095),gender(OR=2.077),dyspnea(OR=3.309),sleep quality(OR=1.979),anemia(OR=3.289),the number of acute exacerbation(OR=2.991)were independent influencing factors for fatigue in COPD patients.The internal evaluation and external validation results of the model showed that the areas under the curve are 0.912 and 0.844 respectively,and the Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness of fit test P values were 0.806 and 0.526 respectively.The average absolute errors were 0.013 and 0.019 respectively.Conclusion The COPD fatigue risk prediction model constructed in this study has good prediction effect.The visual nomogram is intuitive,convenient and easy to operate.It can provide a tool for early screening of fatigue in COPD patients.

Objective:To investigate the popularization of non-iodized salt among residents in water-borne high iodine areas and the iodine nutrition status of key populations in Shandong Province.Methods:In 2021, monitoring was conducted on a county-by-county basis in 47 counties (cities, districts, hereinafter referred to as counties) in 9 cities of Shandong Province, in accordance with the newly designated high iodine areas in the "Definition of Water Source High Iodine Areas and High Iodine Disease Areas" (GB/T 19380-2016) and historical high iodine areas. In each monitoring county, administrative villages with a median water iodine level greater than 100 μg/L were sorted by water iodine value, and a systematic sampling method was used to select 5 administrative villages as monitoring sites to investigate the water improvement situation and the iodine level of residents' drinking water. Totally 40 non boarding students aged 8 to 10 from one primary school and 20 pregnant women were selected in each village location to collect household edible salt samples and random urine samples for testing salt iodine and urine iodine levels, and the B-ultrasound method was used for thyroid examination in children.Results:A total of 364 high iodine administrative villages had been monitored, all of which had completed water improvement with a water improvement rate of 100.0%. The median iodine content in residential drinking water was 20.3 μg/L, ranging from 0.1 to 869.1 μg/L; and 11 464 edible salt samples were collected from residents' homes, with a non-iodized salt rate of 82.7% (9 481/11 464). A total of 9 197 urine samples from children and 2 335 urine samples from pregnant women were tested, with median urinary iodine levels of 219.0 and 139.0 μg/L, respectively. A total of 9 197 children were examined for thyroid, with 262 cases detected and a goiter rate of 2.8%.Conclusions:The rate of non-iodized salt in high iodine areas of Shandong Province still needs to be improved. Children's iodine nutrition is above the appropriate level, while pregnant women are at an iodine deficiency level.

Objective To compare image quality of 5.0T and 3.0T non-contrast MRI for displaying insulinoma.Methods Twelve patients with insulinoma were prospectively enrolled,and non-contrast abdominal T1WI,T2WI as well as diffusion-weighted imaging(DWI)were acquired using 5.0T and 3.0T MR scanners,respectively.The subjective scores of image quality of each sequence of 5.0T and 3.0T MRI,also of tumor-pancreas parenchyma contrast scores were compared.The signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)and contrast-to-noise ratio(CNR)of insulinomas were observed,and the displayed rate of insulinoma by each sequence and overall MRI were compared.Results The subjective scores of 5.0T T1WI and DWI were higher than those of 3.0T T1WI and DWI(both P＜0.05),but not significantly different between 5.0T and 3.0T T2WI(P=0.166).Furthermore,the tumor-pancreas parenchyma contrast score of 5.0T T1WI was higher than that of 3.0T T1WI(P=0.023),but not significantly different between 5.0T and 3.0T T2WI,nor between 5.0T and 3.0T DWI(both P＞0.05).SNR of insulinomas on 5.0T T2WI were higher than on 3.0T T2WI(P=0.015),however,no significant difference of SNR was found between 5.0T and 3.0T T1WI,nor between 5.0T and 3.0T DWI(both P＞0.05).CNR of insulinomas on all 5.0T MRI were not significantly different with those on 3.0T MRI(all P＞0.05).The displayed rate of insulinoma on 5.0T T1WI,T2WI and DWI was 100％(12/12),66.67％(8/12)and 83.33％(10/12),respectively,on 3.0TT1WI,T2WI and DWI was 75.00％(9/12),58.33％(7/12),66.67％(8/12),respectively.The overall displayed rate of insulinoma on 5.0T and 3.0T MRI was 100％(12/12)and 83.33％(10/12),respectively.Conclusion Compared with 3.0T MRI,5.0T MRI was superior for displaying insulinoma,hence being helpful for diagnosis.

Objective To explore the inhibitory effect of Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment combined with cisplatin on Lewis lung cancer mice and its mechanism based on the lncRNA H19/miR-19b3p/FTH1 axis.Methods Totally 60 SPF grade male C57BL/6 mice were randomly selected as blank group,and Lewis lung cancer mouse model was replicated in the remaining 50 mice.The modeled mice were randomly divided into model group,cisplatin group,and TCM low-,medium-and high-dosage combined with cisplatin group,with 10 mice in each group.The cisplatin group was given intraperitoneal injection of cisplatin 5 mg/kg,while the TCM low-,medium-and high-dosage combined with cisplatin group were given Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment 1.75,3.5,7.0 g/kg by gavage combined with intraperitoneal injection of cisplatin 5 mg/kg,the blank group and model group were given equal volume of normal saline by gavage for 14 consecutive days.The general condition of mice was observed,the tumor mass of mice was measured,and the tumor inhibition rate,spleen index,and thymus index were calculated,HE staining was used to observe the pathological changes of tumor tissue,and the contents of malondialdehyde(MDA),reduced glutathione(GSH),hydrogen peroxide(H2O2),and ferrous ions(Fe2+)were detected in the tumor tissue,immunohistochemistry and Western blot were used to detect the expression of nuclear factor E2 related factor 2(Nrf2),glutathione peroxidase 4(GPX4),ferritin heavy chain 1(FTH1)and solute carrier family 7 member 11(SLC7A11)protein in tumor tissue,real time fluorescence quantitative PCR was used to detect the expression of lncRNA H19 and miR-19b3p mRNA in tumor tissue.Results Compared with the blank group,the body mass,spleen index and thymus index of mice in the model group were decreased(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,the mental state and tumor histopathological morphology of mice in each administration group were improved to different degrees,the tumor mass of mice was reduced(P<0.05),the spleen index and the thymus index of mice increased(P<0.05),tumor cell lysis,rupture,and decrease in quantity,the contents of MDA,H2O2,Fe2+in tumor tissue increased(P<0.05),while GSH content decreased(P<0.05),the expression of Nrf2,GPX4,FTH1,SLC7A11 protein in tumor tissue decreased(P<0.05),the lncRNA H19 mRNA expression decreased(P<0.05),miR-19b3p mRNA expression increased(P<0.05).Compared with the cisplatin group,the tumor mass of mice in TCM high-dosage combined with cisplatin group reduced(P<0.05),the body mass,spleen index and thymus index increased(P<0.05),the contents of MDA,H2O2,Fe2+in tumor tissue of mice increased(P<0.05),the content of GSH decreased(P<0.05),the expression of Nrf2,FTH1,SLC7A11,GPX4 protein expression decreased(P<0.05),lncRNA H19 mRNA expression decreased(P<0.05),miR-19b3p mRNA expression increased(P<0.05).Conclusion Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment combined with cisplatin can significantly inhibit the tumor of Lewis lung cancer mice,and its mechanism may be related to regulating the expression of ferroptosis molecules related to the lncRNA H19/miR-19b3p/FTH1 axis.

Objective To observe the anti-tumor effect and mechanism of Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment combined with cisplatin in Lewis lung cancer bearing mice based on AMPK/ULK1 signaling pathway.Methods The mice were inoculated with Lewis lung cancer cells to establish a subcutaneous tumor model in the right axillary subcutaneous area,and were randomly divided into blank group,model group,cisplatin group and Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment high-,medium-and low-dosage+cisplatin groups,with 10 mice in each group.The cisplatin group received intraperitoneal injection of 5 mg/kg(once every 7 days)cisplatin,while the Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment high-,medium-and low-dosage+cisplatin groups received gavage of 7.0,3.5 and 1.75 g/kg Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment on the basis of cisplatin group,once a day,for 14 consecutive days.HE staining was used to observe the morphology of tumor tissue,immunohistochemical method was used to detect the protein expression of p-AMPK and p-ULK1 in tumor tissue,transmission electron microscopy was used to observe the number of autophagosomes,RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of p62,Beclin-1,Atg5 and LC3 mRNA in tumor tissue,Western blot was used to detect the expression of Beclin-1,p62,Atg5,LC3 and AMPK/ULK1 signaling pathway proteins in tumor tissue.Results Compared with the model group,the tumor mass of mice in all administration groups decreased significantly(P<0.05);the tumor tissue showed patchy necrotic areas and an increase in the number of autophagosomes,the mRNA expressions of Beclin-1,Atg5,and LC3 increased,the protein expressions of Beclin-1,Atg5,LC3 Ⅱ/Ⅰ,AMPK,p-AMPK,ULK1 and p-ULK1 increased,and the expression of p62 mRNA and protein decreased(P<0.05).Compared with the cisplatin group,the tumor mass of mice in Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment high-,medium-dosage+cisplatin groups decreased(P<0.05),the tumor inhibition rate increased;the expressions of ULK1 protein and Atg5 mRNA in tumor tissue of Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment high-,medium-and low-dosage+cisplatin groups significantly increased(P<0.05),the expressions of Beclin-1 and LC3 mRNA in Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment high-,medium-dosage+cisplatin groups significantly increased(P<0.05),the expressions of Atg5,LC3 Ⅱ/Ⅰ,AMPK,p-AMPK and p-ULK1 protein significantly increased(P<0.05),and the expression of p62 protein significantly decreased(P<0.05),the expression of p62 mRNA in Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment high-dosage+cisplatin group significantly decreased(P<0.05),the expression of Beclin-1 protein significantly increased(P<0.05).Conclusion Guiqi Yiyuan Ointment combined with cisplatin may activate autophagy and inhibit subcutaneous tumor growth in Lewis lung cancer bearing mice through the AMPK/ULK1 signaling pathway.

AIM: To explore the intervention effect of Dahuangtang pellets (DHT) on diabetic nephropathy (DN) based on the AMP-activated protein kinase/mammalian target of rapamycin/unc-51-like kinase 1 (AMPK/mTOR/ULK1) signaling pathway. METHODS: Eight mice were randomly assigned to the model group, the dapagliflozin group, and the DHT (high, medium, and low dosage) group out of a total of 40 C57BL/KSJ-db/db (hereafter referred to as db/db) mice; another 10 C57BL/KSJ-db/dm mice were used as the normal group, saline was provided to the normal and model groups, and the mice in the treatment group received the appropriate medications. The medications were given for 10 consecutive weeks, once per day, to the mice in the treatment group. At weeks 0, 4, 8, and 10 of administration, fasting blood glucose (FBG) was assessed by drawing blood at a predetermined time from the tail vein; Urine samples were taken at 0, 5, and 10 weeks after treatment to evaluate the levels of albumin and creatinine, and the urinary albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR) was computed. After 10 weeks, mice in each group were assayed for 24 h total urine protein, serum creatinine (Scr), urea nitrogen (BUN) levels; Western blotting analysis was conducted to detect the expression of p-AMPK, p-mTOR, and p-ULK1, as well as the expression of autophagy related proteins homolog of yeast Atg6 (Beclin-1), autophagy-related proteins microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3), P62 in renal tissue; Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the expression of podocyte lacunar membrane proteins (Nephrin, Podocin) in renal tissues; The pathological morphology of renal tissue was observed by light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. RESULTS: Compared with the model group, FBG, ACR, and 24 h total urine protein were reduced in the dapagliflozin group and DHT groups of mice, and there was no statistically significant difference in Scr and BUN; In renal tissues, there is increased expression of p-AMPK and p-ULK1, decreased expression of p-mTOR, increased expression of LC3II / LC3I and Beclin-1, and decreased expression of P62 (P<0.01, P< 0.05); differentially upregulated in glomeruli are the podocyte lacunar membrane proteins Nephrin and Podocin (P<0.01, P<0.05); renal pathologic damage was reduced to varying degrees; transmission electron microscopy showed an increase in the number of autophagic vesicles and autophagic lysosomes. CONCLUSION: DHT can delay the development of DN by regulating the AMPK / mTOR / ULK1 signaling pathway, enhancing podocyte autophagy, and protecting glomeruli.