Hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） is a common malignant tumor with a high mortality rate， an insidious onset， and complex pathological mechanisms. In the tumor microenvironment， tumor-promoting immune cells protect tumor cells from immune attacks， while dysfunction of anti-tumor immune cells causes the inhibition of immune response， thereby leading to the continuous deterioration of cancer. In recent years， traditional Chinese medicine has shown good efficacy in the treatment of HCC， and it can inhibit the proliferation and metastasis of cancer cells by regulating immune cells. By analyzing related articles in China and globally， this article summarizes how immune cells affect the progression of HCC through the immunosuppressive pathway and how traditional Chinese medicine exerts an anti-HCC effect by regulating immune cells， in order to provide theoretical basis and reference for optimizing the treatment of HCC.

Objective To investigate the effects and mechanisms of silica dust on the apoptosis of alveolar epithelial cell (AEC) through in vitro and animal experiments. Methods i) In vitro experiment. A549 cells were stimulated with 100 mg/L silica suspension for 0, 12, 24 and 48 hours. The cell apoptosis rate was detected by flow cytometry. ii) Animal experiment. Specific pathogen-free male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into control, 14-day, 28-day, and 56-day groups, with five mice in each group. The mice in the control group were sacrificed at 56 days after being treated with 40.0 μL 0.9% sodium chloride solution, and the mice in the last three groups were sacrificed at 14, 28 and 56 days after being treated with 40.0 μL silica suspension with a mass concentration of 125 g/L via tracheal exposure method. The lung tissues of mice were collected to measure lung organ coefficients. Masson staining was used to detect the degree of pulmonary fibrosis, and Ashcroft scores were evaluated. The apoptosis of AEC in mice was observed by TUNEL immunofluorescence assay. iii) The mRNA relative expression of apoptosis-related genes in A549 cells and mouse lung tissue was detected using reverse transcription and real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results i) In vitro experiment. The apoptosis rate of A549 cells increased with longer silica exposure (all P<0.05). The relative expression of B cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2) mRNA in A549 cells in 24 h group and 48 h group decreased (both P<0.05), and the relative expression of BCL-2 associated X protein (BAX) mRNA increased (both P<0.05), compared with 0 h group. The mRNA relative expression of caspase (CASP) -3 and CASP-9 in A549 cells increased with longer silica exposure (all P<0.05). ii) Animal experiment. The lung organ coefficients and Ashcroft score in mice progressively increased (all P<0.05), the degree of pulmonary fibrosis was gradually aggravated, and TUNEL positive cells in lung tissue were gradually increased, while Bax, Casp-3 and Casp-9 mRNA relative expression increased with longer silica exposure (all P<0.05). Conclusion Silica dust may cause pulmonary fibrosis by inducing apoptosis of AEC, with a time-dependent effect. The mechanism may be related to the effect of silica dust on mitochondrial apoptosis through Bcl-2/Bax/Caspase-3 signaling pathway.

Objective: To explore the muscle mass index (MMI) among adolescents in Xinjiangs agricultural and pastoral areas and its association with cardiovascular risk factors, providing references and basis for the prevention and intervention of cardiovascular diseases among adolescents in these regions. Methods: From March to July 2023, a total of 1 842 students aged 13-18 years from four middle schools in Yili agricultural and pastoral areas of Xinjiang were selected using cluster random sampling. Measurements of muscle mass, physical indicators, questionnaires, and blood samples were conducted and analyzed. Statistical analyses were performed using oneway analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis H test, Mann-Whitney U test, and Logistic regression analysis. Results: There were significant differences in weight，body mass index (BMI)，waist circumference，muscle mass，systolic blood pressure，diastolic blood pressure，total cholesterol，highdensity lipoprotein cholesterol and fasting blood glucose among adolescents with severe, insufficient, good, and sufficient MMI in Xinjiangs agricultural and pastoral areas(F=326.78，634.76，261.67，134.56，80.14，16.78，5.84，21.67，3.42，P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that, after adjusting age and BMI, the risk of cardiovascular risk factors aggregation in adolescents with good (OR=0.55-0.62) and adequate (OR=0.52-0.57) MMI were lower than that in adolescents with insufficient MMI (P<0.05). After gender stratification, the risk of cardiovascular risk factors aggregation in adolescents with good MMI for boys (OR=0.48-0.62) and with good MMI for girls (OR=0.61) were also lower than that in adolescents with insufficient MMI (P<0.05). Conclusions MMI in adolescents from agricultural and pastoral areas of Xinjiang are positively correlated with cardiovascular health. Future efforts should focus on muscle strength training for adolescents in these areas, as improving MMI can play a positive role in promoting cardiovascular health in adolescents.

The expert consensus on the clinical treatment of herpes zoster with fire needling was developed, and the commonly used fire needling treatment scheme verified by clinical research was selected to form a standardized diagnosis and treatment scheme for acute herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), so as to answer the core problems in clinical application. The consensus focuses on patients with herpes zoster, and forms recommendations for 9 key clinical issues, covering simple fire needling and TCM comprehensive therapy based on fire needling, including fire needling combined with cupping, fire needling combined with Chinese herb, fire needling combined with cupping and Chinese herb, fire needling combined with filiform needling, fire needling combined with moxibustion, and provides specific recommendations and operational guidelines for various therapies.
Humans ; Herpes Zoster/therapy* ; Acupuncture Therapy/instrumentation* ; Consensus ; Clinical Protocols

Objective To explore the mechanism of the gut-lung axis in paraquat-induced lung injury in mice, with a focus on analyzing the changes in intestinal gene expression and their potential roles. Methods Specific pathogen-free C57BL/6 wild-type mice were randomly divided into control, low-dose, and high-dose groups, with 10 mice in each group. Mice in the three groups received a single intragastric administration of paraquat solution at doses of 0, 25, or 50 mg/kg body weight. The mice were euthanized on day 21. Lung histopathological changes were assessed, and the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the intestinal tissues of mice in these two groups were analyzed through transcriptomics. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses were conducted to explore potential mechanisms of the gut-lung axis in paraquat-induced lung injury and fibrosis. Results Paraquat exposure induced dose-dependent pulmonary injury and fibrosis in the mice. The Ashcroft score of lung tissue was higher in the mice of low-dose group than that in the control group (P<0.05). Both the lung organ coefficient and Ashcroft score of lung tissues in the mice of high-dose group were higher than those in the control group and the low-dose group (all P<0.05). The result of transcriptomic analysis showed 146 DEGs, including 91 upregulated and 55 downregulated genes, in intestinal tissues of mice in the low-dose group, and 57 DEGs, including 47 upregulated and 10 downregulated genes in the high-dose group, compared with the control group. Notably, 19 DEGs were commonly altered in both low- and high-dose groups. The result of GO enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs were primarily involved in biological processes including "immune response", "oxidative stress" and "cell differentiation". The result of KEGG enrichment analyses showed that DEGs were primarily involved in key processes including "oxidative stress response path way", "immune response path way" and "digestion and absorption path way". Conclusion Paraquat exposure alters intestinal gene expression, particularly in genes in biological processes related to immune responses and oxidative stress. These changes may mediate inflammatory signaling via the gut-lung axis and contribute to the development of paraquat-induced pulmonary fibrosis.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the efficacy of Ag₂Se nanoparticles for eliminating intracellular Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis) in esophageal cancer and examine the effect of P. gingivalis clearance on progression of esophageal cancer. METHODS: Ag₂Se nanoparticles were synthesized via a chemical synthesis method. The effects of Ag₂Se nanoparticles on P. gingivalis viability and colony-forming ability were assessed using fluorescence staining and colony formation assays. In a mouse model bearing subcutaneous murine esophageal cancer cell allograft with P. gingivalis infection, the effect of treatment with Ag₂Se nanoparticles on the abundance of P. gingivalis in the tumor tissues was quantified using RNAscope in situ hybridization and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), and the changes in tumor volume were monitored. The biosafety of Ag₂Se nanoparticles was assessed by examining liver and kidney functions and pathological changes in the major organs of the mice. RESULTS: Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the synthesized Ag₂Se nanoparticles were uniformly dispersed spherical particles with a diameter around 50 nm. In vitro experiments demonstrated that exposure to Ag₂Se nanoparticles significantly reduced the viability and clonal proliferation capacity of P. gingivalis in a dose-dependent manner. In the tumor-bearing mice, treatment with Ag₂Se nanoparticles significantly reduced the abundance of P. gingivalis in tumor tissues and suppressed tumor cell proliferation. No significant damages to the liver and kidney functions or the major organs were observed in Ag₂Se nanoparticle-treated mice, demonstrating good biocompatibility of Ag₂Se nanoparticles. CONCLUSIONS Ag₂Se nanoparticles exhibit significant bactericidal and inhibitory effects against P. gingivalis, and can effectively eliminate intracellular P. gingivalis to suppress the growth of esophageal cancer allograft in mice, suggesting the potential of Ag₂Se nanoparticles in the treatment of esophageal cancer.
Animals ; Porphyromonas gingivalis/drug effects* ; Mice ; Esophageal Neoplasms/pathology* ; Nanoparticles ; Metal Nanoparticles ; Bacteroidaceae Infections ; Cell Line, Tumor

OBJECTIVE To study the effect of different proportion compatibility of Astragali Radix and Chuanxiong Rhizoma on the extraction kinetics of flavonoids. METHODS The content determination method of flavonoids(with rutin as the control substance) was established, and the concentrations of flavonoids in the extracts of Astragali Radix membranicum and Chuanxiong Rhizoma in different proportions(1∶1, 1∶2, 1∶3, 1∶4, 1∶5, 2∶1, 3∶1, 4∶1, 5∶1) were determined dynamically within 2 h, respectively. The extraction kinetics model was established according to Feck's first diffusion law. The extraction rate constant was calculated and the difference of dissolution kinetics was compared. RESULTS The compatibility of different proportions of Astragali Radix and Chuanxiong Rhizoma had significant effects on the extraction rate and concentration of flavonoids. The extraction kinetics models of flavonoids were consistent with the characteristics of the first-order kinetic equation. The extraction rate was the fastest when Astragali Radix ∶ Chuanxiong Rhizoma was 3∶1, the extraction rate was the slowest when Chuanxiong Rhizoma∶ Astragali Radix was 2∶1. The equilibrium concentration of flavonoids was the highest when Chuanxiong Rhizoma∶ Astragali Radix was 3∶1, when the ratio of Astragali Radix∶Chuanxiong Rhizoma was 5∶1, it was the lowest. CONCLUSION The compatibility of different proportions of Astragali Radix and Chuanxiong Rhizoma has a significant effect on the extraction rate and concentration of flavonoids.

Objective:To explore the clinical phenotype and pathogenesis of a child with partial duplication in the long arm of chromosome 10 (10q), and conduct a review of relevant literature.Methods:A child presented at Lianyungang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital in April 2018 for growth retardation, intellectual disability, and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was selected as the study subject. Peripheral blood samples were collected from the child and his parents for G-banded chromosomal karyotyping analysis. Genomic DNA was also extracted for chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA). The clinical phenotype and relevant genes were searched in the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) and the UK Database of Genomic Variation and Phenotype in Humans using Ensembl Resources (DECIPHER). The pathogenicity of chromosomal variation was analyzed based on guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). Relevant literature was searched from the CNKI, Wanfang Data, and PubMed databases by using keywords such as " 10q" " duplication" and " trisomy", with the time set as from the establishment of database to December 1, 2023. This study has been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the Lianyungang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital (No. XM2023030).Results:The clinical phenotype of child had included growth retardation, intellectual disability, and ASD. G-banded chromosomal analysis suggested that the child has a karyotype of 46, XY, dup(10)(q23.31q24.33), whilst both of his parents were normal. CMA analysis of the child revealed that the child was arr[19]10q23.31q24.33(87603382_104948862)×3, with a 17.34 Mb duplication in the 10q23.31q24.33 region. Search of the OMIM database suggested that the duplicated segment has contained 171 genes associated with various diseases, and search of the DECIPHER database has identified cases with overlapping with the duplication. A search of the PubMed database has identified 2 publications involving 2 patients with chromosomal duplications overlapping the 10q23.31q24.33 region with a segment length of > 10 Mb. The 2 patients had mainly manifested growth retardation, intellectual disability, ASD, and facial and limb malformations. The main pathogenic genes had included PTEN, WNT8B, LZTS2, NFKB2, PAX2, KIF11, FRA10AC1, and CNNM2. No similar case was retrieved from the CNKI and Wanfang Data databases. Conclusion:The partial 10q duplication as a novel CNV involving genes such as PTEN and WNT8B probably underlay the growth retardation, intellectual disability and ASD in the child. This study has enriched the genotype-phenotype spectrum of patients with partial 10q23.31q24.33 duplications.

Objective To investigate the relationship between hemoglobin glycation index(HGI)and metabolic syndrome(MS)and its components.Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted to randomly select 823 patients from the First People's Hospital of Huzhou from September 2022 to September 2023.HGI is calculated based on fasting blood glucose(FPG)and glycosylated hemoglobin(HbA1c)values.The patients were divided into low HGI group(HGI<-0.250%,274 cases),medium HGI group(-0.250%≤HGI≤0.214%,275 cases)and high HGI group(HGI>0.214%,274 cases)by HGI quantile method.The general data and metabolic indexes of each group were compared,and the correlation between HGI and MS and its components was analyzed by multiple Logistic regression.Results With the increase of HGI level,the prevalence rate of MS showed an upward trend(P<0.05).The prevalence rate of MS in low,medium and high HGI groups was 24.8%,42.5%and 55.5%,respectively.Multiple Logistic regression analysis showed that elevated HGI level was risk factor for MS,central obesity,hypertension,hyperglycemia,hypertriglyceridemia and low high-density lipoprotein hyperlipidemia(P<0.05).The risk of MS,central obesity,hypertension,hyperglycemia,hypertriglyceridemia and low high-density lipoprotein hyperlipidemia in high HGI group was 4.005 times(95%CI:2.763-5.808),3.765 times(95%CI:2.604-5.443),1.596 times(95%CI:1.089-2.337),2.655 times(95%CI:1.809-3.895),2.024 times(95%CI:1.404-2.918)and 2.247 times(95%CI:1.537-3.284)of that in low HGI group,respectively.Conclusion HGI is related to MS and its components,and HGI may be a new indicator to prevent and monitor MS.

Objective:To construct an intelligent operation and maintenance management model and to explore its application value in the management of orthopedic equipment and instruments.Methods:Through establishing the system architecture of display layer,business layer and data layer,an intelligent operation and maintenance management model was constructed to realize the whole life cycle management of orthopedic equipment and instruments.A total of 12 equipment and instruments in clinical use in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University from 2021 to 2022 were selected,taking the application time of intelligent operation and maintenance management model as the research node,the traditional equipment and instrument management model(referred to as the traditional management model)and intelligent operation and maintenance management model(referred to as the intelligent management model)were adopted respectively for equipment management.The use of equipment and instruments,the disinfection and sterilization of equipment and instrument and the therapeutic effect of equipment and instruments were compared during the management period of the two management modes.Results:During the research period,the abnormal loss rate and failure rate of 692 equipment and instrument use records of 12 devices using intelligent management mode were 3.32%(23/692)and 1.30%(9/692),respectively,which were lower those of the traditional management mode,the difference was statistically significant(x2=14.188,13.656,P<0.05).The average scores of equipment cleaning,sterilization,disinfection and packaging of equipment and instruments using the intelligent management mode were(93.17±2.08)points,(94.68±1.92)points,(93.11±2.19)points and(95.37±3.04)points,respectively,which were higher than those of the traditional management mode,the difference was statistically significant(t=9.209,11.338,4.277,9.198,P<0.05).The average scores of therapeutic effect of intermittent pressure wave therapy instrument,joint rehabilitation continuous passive movement(CPM)machine,cold compress machine,orthopedic treatment instrument,syringe pump,infusion pump and automatic external defibrillator(AED)equipment managed by intelligent management mode were(92.14±1.19)points,(91.15±2.82)points,(93.61±1.94)points and(89.28±3.94)points,(90.06±1.25)points,(90.47±1.31)points and(88.74±3.82)points,all of which were higher than those of the traditional management mode,the difference was statistically significant(t=8.644,5.883,19.049,7.925,17.582,19.197,9.501,P<0.05).Conclusion:The application of intelligent operation and maintenance management model of orthopedic medical equipment management in hospitals can effectively improve the quality and effect of equipment and instrument management and improve the efficiency of equipment and instruments use.