ObjectiveTo investigate the mechanism of action of Jiedu Huayu granules in improving liver injury in mice with acute liver failure （ALF） by observing its effect on a mouse model of ALF after prophylactic administration， and to provide a basis for clinical medication. MethodsA total of 60 specific pathogen-free male C57BL/6J mice were divided into normal group， model group， Jiedu Huayu granules group （JDHY group）， and farnesoid X receptor （FXR） agonist （GW4064） group using a random number table， with 15 mice in each group. The model of ALF was induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of D-galactosamine combined with lipopolysaccharide. The mice in the JDHY group were given prophylactic administration of 0.3 g/mL drug solution of Jiedu Huayu granules by gavage for 3 days before modeling， those in the normal group and the model group were given 0.9% NaCl solution by gavage， and those in the GW4064 group were given intraperitoneal injection of GW4064 for 3 consecutive days before modeling. The mice were sacrificed after modeling， and serum and liver tissue samples were collected. A veterinary automatic biochemical analyzer was used to measure the serum levels of total bilirubin （TBil）， total bile acids （TBA）， gamma-glutamyl transferase （GGT）， alanine aminotransferase （ALT）， and aspartate aminotransferase （AST） in mice from each group； HE staining was used to observe liver pathological changes； RT-PCR was used to measure the mRNA expression levels of FXR， fibroblast growth factor 15 （FGF15）， fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 （FGFR4）， small heterodimer partner （SHP）， and bile salt export pump （BSEP） in mice， and Western blot was used to measure the protein expression levels of FXR， FGF15， FGFR4， SHP， and BSEP. A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison between groups， and the Dunett method was used for further comparison between two groups. ResultsCompared with the normal group， the model group had significant increases in the serum levels of TBil， ALT， AST， TBA， and GGT （all P<0.01）， and compared with the model group， the JDHY group and the GW4064 group had significant reductions in the serum levels of TBil， ALT， AST， TBA， and GGT （all P <0.01）. HE staining showed that compared with the model group， the JDHY group and the GW4064 group had milder pathological injury， a reduction in the area of hepatocyte necrosis， and alleviation of cellular swelling and edema. Compared with the normal group， the model group had significant reductions in the mRNA and protein expression levels of FXR， FGF15， FGFR4， SHP， and BSEP in liver tissue （all P <0.01）， and compared with the model group， the JDHY group and the GW4064 group had significant increases in the mRNA and protein expression levels of FXR， FGF15， FGFR4， SHP， and BSEP in liver tissue （all P <0.05）. ConclusionJiedu Huayu granules may alleviate liver injury in mice with ALF through the FXR/SHP axis.

Objective: To analyze changes in tuberculosis infection among junior high school students before and after tuberculosis exposure, so as to provide a reference for improving school tuberculosis prevention and control measures and policy formulation. Methods: Retrospectively collect data on a tuberculosis outbreak that occurred in a grade of a junior high school in Chongqing in 2025, including tuberculosis screening records of students in this grade upon their enrollment in 2022 (1 156 students) and after two tuberculosis outbreaks in 2023 (206 students) and 2025 (171 students). The Wilcoxon signed rank test for paired design was used to compare the induration diameters of the subjects, and the Chi square test was adopted to analyze the rate of tuberculosis infection among students. Results: In the tuberculosis outbreak in 2023, the rate of tuberculosis infection among close contacts ( 11.84 %) and the rate of tuberculosis infection among freshrman at school enrollment (12.89%) showed no statistically significant difference ( χ 2=0.25, P >0.05). The rate of tuberculosis infection of close contacts in the 2025 tuberculosis outbreak (55.56%) was higher than that in the 2023 outbreak (11.84%) ( χ 2=30.42, P <0.01). Among the 106 students included in the cohort analysis, the median induration diameter was 3.50 (1.50, 7.50) mm in 2023 and 8.75 (4.25, 11.50) mm in 2025, with a statistically significant difference ( Z=-5.76, P <0.01). There was no statistically significant difference between the infection rate in 2022 (16.98%) and that in 2023 (10.38%) ( χ 2=1.96, P =0.16). The infection rate in 2025 (43.40%) was higher than those in 2022 and 2023 ( χ 2=17.55, 29.39, both P <0.017). The seroconversion rate of students in the same class in 2025 ( 58.00 %) was higher than that of students in different classes (16.07%), with a statistically significant difference ( χ 2=20.19, P <0.01). All 72 individuals with latent tuberculosis infections identified during the pandemic in 2023 and 2025 refused to undergo prophylactic treatment. Conclusions The lack of preventive treatment may be the underlying cause of the successive outbreaks during the epidemic. Early detection of infection sources and standardized outbreak management are crucial to controlling the spread of the epidemic.

ObjectiveDiscriminating atypical hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from other malignancies in liver nodules classified as Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System category M (LR-M) remains a significant diagnostic challenge on conventional ultrasound examination. The LR-M category, originally intended to capture non-HCC malignancies, paradoxically contains up to 63% of atypical HCCs that deviate from classic enhancement patterns, leading to potential misdiagnosis and suboptimal treatment planning. While deep learning has shown promise in HCC diagnosis, most existing models rely exclusively on single-modality ultrasound, overlooking the diagnostic benefits of integrating complementary information from multiple imaging sources. To address this gap, we propose a novel attention-weighted tri-modal ultrasound network (TUS-Net) that integrates contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS), B-mode ultrasound (BUS), and time-intensity curves (TICs) to improve diagnostic accuracy for these clinically challenging lesions. MethodsOur framework incorporates a three-dimensional convolutional neural network (C3D) backbone to extract spatiotemporal features from CEUS videos, capturing dynamic vascular patterns critical for lesion characterization. To effectively fuse complementary modalities, we introduce a dual-channel feature fusion module (DCFFM) that adaptively combines features from CEUS and BUS through channel-wise attention mechanisms, allowing the model to dynamically weigh the contribution of each modality based on diagnostic relevance. Additionally, we propose a temporal intensity feature fusion module (TIFFM) that leverages quantitative hemodynamic information from TICs to guide the model’s attention toward diagnostically critical temporal phases, such as arterial wash-in and portal venous washout. The model is further enhanced by automated lesion localization using YOLOX and class activation mapping for interpretability, ensuring that predictions align with clinically meaningful imaging features. ResultsEvaluated on a tri-modal ultrasound dataset comprising 161 patients with pathologically confirmed LR-M nodules (131 atypical HCC and 30 non-HCC malignancies), our model achieved an accuracy of 86.83%, a sensitivity of 92.50%, a specificity of 75.50%, and an AUC of 89.32% in screening atypical HCC. Compared to single-modality baselines, TUS-Net demonstrated superior specificity, a clinically critical metric given the higher risk associated with misclassifying non-HCC malignancies. Ablation studies confirmed the contribution of each module, with the full model outperforming both standard C3D and 3D ResNet backbones integrated with attention mechanisms. A reader study involving junior and senior radiologists further validated the clinical utility of AI assistance, showing consistent improvements in specificity and inter-reader consistency, particularly for less experienced clinicians. ConclusionThese results surpass existing benchmark models and demonstrate the potential of our approach to enhance diagnostic precision in clinically specific cases. By intelligently fusing multi-modal ultrasound data with attention-guided mechanisms, TUS-Net offers a reliable and interpretable tool that holds promise for improving the non-invasive diagnosis of atypical HCC in challenging LR-M liver nodules.

ObjectiveDiscriminating atypical hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from other malignancies in liver nodules classified as Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System category M (LR-M) remains a significant diagnostic challenge on conventional ultrasound examination. The LR-M category, originally intended to capture non-HCC malignancies, paradoxically contains up to 63% of atypical HCCs that deviate from classic enhancement patterns, leading to potential misdiagnosis and suboptimal treatment planning. While deep learning has shown promise in HCC diagnosis, most existing models rely exclusively on single-modality ultrasound, overlooking the diagnostic benefits of integrating complementary information from multiple imaging sources. To address this gap, we propose a novel attention-weighted tri-modal ultrasound network (TUS-Net) that integrates contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS), B-mode ultrasound (BUS), and time-intensity curves (TICs) to improve diagnostic accuracy for these clinically challenging lesions. MethodsOur framework incorporates a three-dimensional convolutional neural network (C3D) backbone to extract spatiotemporal features from CEUS videos, capturing dynamic vascular patterns critical for lesion characterization. To effectively fuse complementary modalities, we introduce a dual-channel feature fusion module (DCFFM) that adaptively combines features from CEUS and BUS through channel-wise attention mechanisms, allowing the model to dynamically weigh the contribution of each modality based on diagnostic relevance. Additionally, we propose a temporal intensity feature fusion module (TIFFM) that leverages quantitative hemodynamic information from TICs to guide the model’s attention toward diagnostically critical temporal phases, such as arterial wash-in and portal venous washout. The model is further enhanced by automated lesion localization using YOLOX and class activation mapping for interpretability, ensuring that predictions align with clinically meaningful imaging features. ResultsEvaluated on a tri-modal ultrasound dataset comprising 161 patients with pathologically confirmed LR-M nodules (131 atypical HCC and 30 non-HCC malignancies), our model achieved an accuracy of 86.83%, a sensitivity of 92.50%, a specificity of 75.50%, and an AUC of 89.32% in screening atypical HCC. Compared to single-modality baselines, TUS-Net demonstrated superior specificity, a clinically critical metric given the higher risk associated with misclassifying non-HCC malignancies. Ablation studies confirmed the contribution of each module, with the full model outperforming both standard C3D and 3D ResNet backbones integrated with attention mechanisms. A reader study involving junior and senior radiologists further validated the clinical utility of AI assistance, showing consistent improvements in specificity and inter-reader consistency, particularly for less experienced clinicians. ConclusionThese results surpass existing benchmark models and demonstrate the potential of our approach to enhance diagnostic precision in clinically specific cases. By intelligently fusing multi-modal ultrasound data with attention-guided mechanisms, TUS-Net offers a reliable and interpretable tool that holds promise for improving the non-invasive diagnosis of atypical HCC in challenging LR-M liver nodules.

Objective To investigate the correlation between sleep duration and chest pain in the Chinese population.Methods A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data on chest pain and sleep duration from 7942 participants in the 2018 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study(CHARLS).Among them,1239 had chest pain and 6703 did not;2645 were aged>65 years and 5297 were aged≤65 years.All participants were categorized into three groups based on sleep duration:≤6 h(n=3123),6-8 h(n=2959),and>8 h(n=1860).Differences in characteristics such as gender,age,marital status,education level,diabetes,and hypertension were compared across these groups.Multivariate logistic regression analysis,curve fitting,and threshold effect analysis were further employed to explore the correlation between sleep duration and chest pain.Results A total of 7942 participants were finally included in the study.Among the three groups with sleep duration>8 h,6-8 h and≤6 h,the incidences of chest pain were 12.6%,13.0%,and 19.8%,respectively.Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that with the increase in sleep duration,the incidence of chest pain showed a decreasing trend[odds ratio(OR)=0.88,95%confidence interval(CI)0.86-0.91,P<0.001].Curve fitting and threshold effect analysis indicated a U-shaped relationship between sleep duration and the risk of chest pain.In the population aged≤65 years,the inflection point for sleep duration was 8.5 h,beyond which the risk of chest pain did not decrease;in the population aged>65 years,the inflection point was 7.7 h,beyond which the risk of chest pain significantly increased(P<0.05).Conclusions There is a U-shape relationship between sleep duration and the risk of chest pain.In the age group≤65 years old,8.5 h is the turning point;in the population>65 years old,7.7 h is the turning point.When the sleep duration is below the turning point,prolonging the sleep time can help reduce the risk of chest pain.It is recommended to maintain an appropriate sleep duration of 6-8 h to reduce the risk of chest pain.

Objective To investigate the relationship between morphometric parameters of the cerebral cortex and the efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation(rTMS)in the treatment of tardive dyskinesia(TD).Methods A total of 105 schizophrenic patients with TD undergoing basic treatment were enrolled,and randomly divided into group A(n=35),group B(n=35)and group C(n=35).Group A received rTMS at 1 Hz,group B received rTMS at 10 Hz,and group C received sham stimulation.All groups were treated for 12 weeks.The severity of TD was assessed using the Ab-normal Involuntary Movement Scale(AIMS)before and after treatment.The Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status(RBANS)and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS)in Chinese were used to evaluate patients'neuropsychological status and symptom severity.magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)was employed to scan the left prefrontal cortex of patients to obtain parameters of cortical thickness,surface area and volume.Pearson correlation analysis was used to an-alyze the relationship between cortical morphological parameters and the efficacy of rTMS for TD in pa-tients.Results After treatment,AIMS scores in the three groups were significantly lower than before treatment,and the group A was significantly lower than the group B and group C(P＜0.05).After treatment,RBANS scores were significantly higher and PANSS scores were significantly lower in three groups than before treatment(P＜0.05).After treatment,the RBANS score of the group A was significantly higher than that of the group B and group C,and the group B was significantly higher than the group C(P＜0.05);the PANSS score of the group A was significantly lower than that of the group B and group C,and the group B was significantly lower than the group C(P＜0.05).Af-ter treatment,cortical morphological parameters(cortical thickness,surface area and volume)in the group A and group B were significantly higher than before treatment,and the group A was signif-icantly higher than the group B(P＜0.05).The therapeutic effect of the group A was positively correlated with cortical thickness,surface area and volume(P＜0.05).Conclusion The morpho-metric parameters of the left prefrontal cortex are associated with the efficacy of rTMS in treating TD.The rTMS at 1 Hz can facilitate structural remodeling of the motor cortex,thereby improving treat-ment outcomes for TD patients.

Background: Bushen Zhuanggu Formula (BZF), derived from the classic Yougui Pills, has shown favorable clinical efficacy in treating advanced nontraumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (NONFH), particularly by promoting bone repair. However, its underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Objective: This study aimed to explore the mechanisms by which BZF promotes bone repair in advanced NONFH. Materials and methods: A total of 518 potential BZF targets were identified from the ETCM v2.0 database. Transcriptomic profiling of clinical cohorts revealed 485 differentially expressed genes in advanced NONFH patients compared to healthy controls. A drug target-disease gene interaction network was constructed to identify candidate BZF targets involved in NONFH pathogenesis. In vivo experiments were conducted to validate the effects of BZF in a rat model of advanced NONFH. Results: Network analysis identified key pathways associated with blood circulation obstruction, immune-inflammatory imbalance, and abnormal bone metabolism. Protein kinase C alpha (PKCA), Ras proto-oncogene (RAS), mitogen-activated protein kinase 3(ERK), ETS proto-oncogene 1 (ETS1), and receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) formed a signaling axis implicated in NONFH pathogenesis. BZF treatment alleviated joint inflammation, preserved trabecular bone morphology, reduced bone loss, and promoted bone repair. Mechanistically, BZF significantly downregulated the expression of PKCA, RAS, ERK, ETS1, and RANKL, improved blood circulation, and inhibited osteoclast activation while promoting osteoblast activation. Conclusion: BZF may promote bone repair in advanced NONFH by enhancing blood circulation and modulating the PKC-RAS-ERK-ETS1-RANKL signaling axis, thereby reversing dysregulated bone metabolism.

Objective:To investigate the regulatory effects of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) on functional connectivity (FC) of thalamic subregions in patients with premenstrual syndrome (PMS).Methods:This study was a cross-sectional investigation. Clinical, laboratory, and imaging data were retrospectively collected from 56 PMS patients (PMS group) and 66 healthy controls (control group) recruited from various universities and hospitals in Nanning between November 2021 and June 2024. Resting-state functional MRI (fMRI) data and fMRI data during taVNS immediate stimulation (2 Hz, 25 Hz) were acquired from subjects during their late luteal phase. Using thalamic subregions (anterior thalamic nucleus, lateral nucleus, ventral nucleus, medial nucleus, central nucleus, posterior nucleus) as seeds, two-sample t-tests or paired t-tests were employed to analyze alterations in thalamic subregion FC in PMS patients and the regulatory effects of taVNS on these changes. Independent samples t-test were used to compare the differences in clinical and laboratory indicators between the PMS group and the control group. The relationship between taVNS regulation of thalamic subregion FC in PMS patients and thalamic internal functional connectivity were analyzed using mediation effect analysis. Results:Compared to the control group, patients in the PMS group showed increased scores on the Daily Record of Severity of Problems, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, Self-Rating Depression Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale 17, and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale 14 during the late luteal phase ( P<0.05). At baseline, PMS patients exhibited higher FC between the left thalamic lateral nucleus and the left insula, and lower FC between the left medial nucleus, posterior nucleus, and ventral nucleus of the thalamus and the right middle frontal gyrus (MFG) compared to the control group (GRF corrected, voxel-level P<0.001, cluster-level P<0.05). During 2 Hz taVNS immediate stimulation in PMS group, FC between the left thalamic medial nucleus, posterior nucleus, ventral nucleus and the right MFG, as well as the FC between the left thalamic ventral nucleu and the left MFG increased compared to baseline levels; meanwhile, FC between the left thalamic posterior nucleus, ventral nucleus and the left insula decreased compared to baseline levels (GRF corrected, voxel-level P<0.001, cluster-level P<0.05). During 25 Hz taVNS immediate stimulation, the FC between the left thalamic ventral nucleus and the right MFG decreased compared to the baseline level (GRF corrected, voxel-level P<0.001, cluster-level P<0.05). Mediation effect analysis showed that the FC between the left thalamic posterior nucleus and the left lateral nucleus mediated part of the association between the FC of the left lateral thalamic nucleus-left insula and the FC of the left ventral thalamic nucleus-left putamen/insula; there were significant direct effects between the FC of the left lateral thalamic nucleus-the left posterior nucleus and FC of the left lateral thalamic nucleus-the left insula, as well as between the FC of the left ventral thalamic nucleus-the left MFG and FC of the left ventral thalamic nucleus-the right MFG. Conclusions:taVNS can modulate abnormal FC of the left thalamic subregions in PMS patients, restoring it toward normalization. The regulatory effects of 2 Hz stimulation are more pronounced than those of 25 Hz stimulation. This modulation primarily operates through two pathways: the left thalamic lateral nucleus-left insula-left thalamic ventral nucleus pathway and the left MFG-left thalamic ventral nucleus-right MFG.

Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths,and al-though considerable progress has been made in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of HCC,the prognosis for patients remains poor,with a 5-year survival rate of only about 18％.The development of HCC is driven by the occurrence of mutations in driver genes that can directly promote cell proliferation,survival and metastasis.With the development of molecular biology and genomics technologies,researchers have elucidated that driver mutations that give HCC cells a selective growth advantage,the ability of the cells to resist apoptosis,maintain proliferative signals,initiate invasion and metastasis,induce angiogenesis,enable metabolic remodeling and immune escape.Exploring the key drivers of HCC development to fur-ther elucidate the pathogenesis of HCC may provide new directions for the diagnosis and treatment of HCC as well as improving the prognosis.In this paper,we summarize the driver gene mutations in HCC from various biological pathways such as telomere maintenance,cell cycle,the Wnt signaling pathway,oxida-tive stress,and epigenetic modifications.We also summarize the application prospects of driver gene mu-tations in the diagnosis and treatment of HCC.We aim to provide a reference for the diagnosis,treatment and research of HCC.

AIM:To investigate the preventive and therapeutic effects of sesamin(SES)on fatty liver disease in rats with hypertension combined with dyslipidemia,and to explore the potential mecha-nisms based on mRNA-seq.METHODS:Spontane-ously hypertensive rats(SHRs)were fed a high-fat,high-cholesterol diet to establish a rat model of hy-pertension combined with dyslipidemia,and then treated with SES for 16 weeks continuously.The ex-periment was divided into four groups:WKY,SHR,Model,and Model+SES(160 mg·kg-1·d-1).Blood pressure was measured using the tail-cuff method.Body weight was monitored,and body mass index was calculated.Liver morphology was detected by ultrasound,and liver thickness was measured.Liver wet weight was weighed,and liver index was calcu-lated.Liver volume was detected by the water dis-placement method.Serum triglycerides(TG),total cholesterol(TC),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C),high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),aspartate amino-transferase(AST),and total bile acids(TBA)were de-tected by ELISA.Liver sequencing analysis was per-formed using mRNA-seq.Liver histomorphological changes were observed by HE staining.The degree of hepatic steatosis was observed by Oil Red O stain-ing,and the degree of hepatic fibrosis was observed by MASSON staining.The mRNA expression of Al-dh1a7,Nnmt,Irs2,Pltp,and Scd was detected by q-PCR.The protein expression of Scd,Nnmt,AMPK,p-AMPK,PPARα,and PPARγ was detected by Western blotting.RESULTS:After 16 weeks of continuous SES administration to rats with hypertension combined with dyslipidemia,blood pressure was significantly reduced(P＜0.01),and body weight was decreased.Serum TG,TC,and LDL-C levels were decreased,while HDL-C levels were increased.Serum ALT and AST levels were decreased.Liver weight,organ in-dex,liver thickness,and liver volume were de-creased.The degree of hepatic steatosis and hepat-ic fibrosis was improved.A total of 545 differentially expressed mRNAs were identified in the livers of rats in each group,of which 278 were upregulated and 267 were downregulated.Among the 27 com-monly differentially expressed mRNAs,five mRNAs related to lipid metabolism were screened,namely Aldh1a7,Nnmt,Irs2,Pltp,and Scd.KEGG enrich-ment analysis showed that the enriched pathways were AMPK and PPAR.Further validation revealed that in the SES-treated group,the mRNA expression of Scd in the liver was decreased,while the mRNA expression of Nnmt was increased.The protein ex-pression of Scd was decreased,while the protein ex-pression of Nnmt,AMPK,p-AMPK,PPARα,and PPARγ was increased.CONCLUSION:SES has preven-tive and therapeutic effects on fatty liver disease in rats with hypertension combined with dyslipidemia,and its mechanism of action may be related to the reduction of Scd expression levels in the liver and the increase in the expression of Nnmt,AMPK,p-AMPK,PPARα,and PPARγ.