The intestinal barrier is the primary defense that separates the host from the external environment, possessing several crucial physiological functions, including nutrient digestion, absorption, and protection against potentially harmful dietary antigens and pathogenic microorganisms. Nevertheless, various factors, such as diet, medications, circadian rhythm disturbances, gut microbiota, microbial metabolites, and genetic predisposition, can disrupt the intestinal barrier. Such disruption may lead to bacterial translocation, subsequently triggering enterohepatic and systemic inflammation. Impaired intestinal barrier has been implicated in the pathogenesis of numerous diseases, particularly chronic gut and liver diseases. In this review, we will summarize the fundamental functions of intestinal barrier and discuss clinical correlations between intestinal barrier dysfunction and diseases such as colitis, colorectal cancer, and chronic liver diseases including metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, alcohol-associated liver disease, and primary sclerosing cholangitis. Additionally, we will also highlight some potential therapeutic strategies aimed at restoring barrier integrity to improve disease management.

Objective To investigate the adverse pregnancy outcomes of fetuses with increased nuchal translucency(NT).Methods A total of 376 pregnant women at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from May 2023 to January 2024 were selected as research subjects,who had a diagnosis of fetal NT ≥ the 95th percentile and complete pregnancy outcomes for singleton pregnancies.The fetuses were divided into simple thickening group(n=320)and thickening with structural abnormalities group(n=56)based on NT ultrasound results.The interventional prenatal diagnosis outcomes and pregnancy outcomes of two groups were compared.Results The rate of chromosomal abnormalities and the incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes were higher in thickening with structural abnormalities group compared to simple thickening group with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).The overall incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes in NT thickened fetuses was 31.65％,but after excluding chromosomal abnormalities and structural malformations,the good pregnancy outcome rate in NT thickened fetuses was 98.09％.Conclusion NT thickening is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes in fetuses,and the risk of poor fetal outcome is further increased when NT thickening combined with structural abnormalities in early pregnancy,but the pregnancy outcome is better in fetuses with NT thickening after excluding chromosomal abnormalities and structural malformations.

OBJECTIVE To explore the construction path and effectiveness of dynamic zoning management model during dengue fever pandemic,and to provide evidence for optimizing hospital-acquired infection control strategies.METHODS Retrospective analysis method was conducted,the practical data of dengue fever epidemic prevention and control in a tertiary general hospital in 2024 as the sample,to evaluate the application effect of the"zoned treatment-dynamic allocation-environmental coordination"trinity prevention and control model.Based on the optimized infection prevention and control strategies implemented during the epidemic,such as the"core ward-specialist collaboration"dynamic zoning,flexible ward expansion,hierarchical disinfection,real-time dynamic re-source allocation mechanism,and precise environmental intervention,a comprehensive evaluation of prevention and control efficiency was conducted across key dimensions including infection control,resource utilization,pre-vention and control costs and patient outcomes.RESULTS Through the construction of flexible wards,the number of expanded isolation beds accounted for 44.13％(331/750)of the total beds,including 144 beds(19.20％)in core wards and 187 beds(24.93％)in specialist collaborative wards.The expansion of specialist collaborative wards increased the isolation admission capacity by 129.86％.The two types of wards admitted 57.27％of single-disease dengue patients and 42.73％of isolated patients with combined diagnosis and treatment needs from inter-nal medicine,surgery,obstetrics,gynecology,and pediatrics.The minimum ratio of flexible buffer isolation beds was 6.34％(21/331),with a maximum daily treatment capacity of 310 patients.Data showed:hospital infec-tion incidence rate was 0,peak adult mosquito density was 0.13 mosquitoes/trap·night,prevention and control cost was 95.22 yuan per case,and patient satisfaction increased by 1.98％(95.09 vs.93.24,P=0.014).CONCLUSIONS The"dynamic zoning"model achieves rapid spatial elastic reconstruction of inpatient wards for"peace-epidemic conversion"through the coordination of three links.Based on effectively blocking in-hospital transmission,it ensures the needs of multi-specialty treatment,enabling the hospital to strike a balance between the bottom line of prevention and control safety and the fulfillment of diversified medical service requirements dur-ing the epidemic outbreak period.It can provide standardized prevention and control solutions for medical institu-tions to respond to public health emergencies of vector-borne infectious diseases,and achieve the goal of zero cross infection of hospital-acquired Dengue.

Objective To investigate the adverse pregnancy outcomes of fetuses with increased nuchal translucency(NT).Methods A total of 376 pregnant women at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from May 2023 to January 2024 were selected as research subjects,who had a diagnosis of fetal NT ≥ the 95th percentile and complete pregnancy outcomes for singleton pregnancies.The fetuses were divided into simple thickening group(n=320)and thickening with structural abnormalities group(n=56)based on NT ultrasound results.The interventional prenatal diagnosis outcomes and pregnancy outcomes of two groups were compared.Results The rate of chromosomal abnormalities and the incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes were higher in thickening with structural abnormalities group compared to simple thickening group with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).The overall incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes in NT thickened fetuses was 31.65％,but after excluding chromosomal abnormalities and structural malformations,the good pregnancy outcome rate in NT thickened fetuses was 98.09％.Conclusion NT thickening is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes in fetuses,and the risk of poor fetal outcome is further increased when NT thickening combined with structural abnormalities in early pregnancy,but the pregnancy outcome is better in fetuses with NT thickening after excluding chromosomal abnormalities and structural malformations.

OBJECTIVE To explore the construction path and effectiveness of dynamic zoning management model during dengue fever pandemic,and to provide evidence for optimizing hospital-acquired infection control strategies.METHODS Retrospective analysis method was conducted,the practical data of dengue fever epidemic prevention and control in a tertiary general hospital in 2024 as the sample,to evaluate the application effect of the"zoned treatment-dynamic allocation-environmental coordination"trinity prevention and control model.Based on the optimized infection prevention and control strategies implemented during the epidemic,such as the"core ward-specialist collaboration"dynamic zoning,flexible ward expansion,hierarchical disinfection,real-time dynamic re-source allocation mechanism,and precise environmental intervention,a comprehensive evaluation of prevention and control efficiency was conducted across key dimensions including infection control,resource utilization,pre-vention and control costs and patient outcomes.RESULTS Through the construction of flexible wards,the number of expanded isolation beds accounted for 44.13％(331/750)of the total beds,including 144 beds(19.20％)in core wards and 187 beds(24.93％)in specialist collaborative wards.The expansion of specialist collaborative wards increased the isolation admission capacity by 129.86％.The two types of wards admitted 57.27％of single-disease dengue patients and 42.73％of isolated patients with combined diagnosis and treatment needs from inter-nal medicine,surgery,obstetrics,gynecology,and pediatrics.The minimum ratio of flexible buffer isolation beds was 6.34％(21/331),with a maximum daily treatment capacity of 310 patients.Data showed:hospital infec-tion incidence rate was 0,peak adult mosquito density was 0.13 mosquitoes/trap·night,prevention and control cost was 95.22 yuan per case,and patient satisfaction increased by 1.98％(95.09 vs.93.24,P=0.014).CONCLUSIONS The"dynamic zoning"model achieves rapid spatial elastic reconstruction of inpatient wards for"peace-epidemic conversion"through the coordination of three links.Based on effectively blocking in-hospital transmission,it ensures the needs of multi-specialty treatment,enabling the hospital to strike a balance between the bottom line of prevention and control safety and the fulfillment of diversified medical service requirements dur-ing the epidemic outbreak period.It can provide standardized prevention and control solutions for medical institu-tions to respond to public health emergencies of vector-borne infectious diseases,and achieve the goal of zero cross infection of hospital-acquired Dengue.

Sepsis is a leading life-threatening problem in intensive care medicine. The recent studies have given insights into the transition from inflammation to long-term immunosuppression in sepsis. This condition might cause physiological changes that comprise the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) tolerance. Most studies about the LPS tolerance focus on the reduced ability of macrophages to secrete pro-inflammatory cytokines. Although this method has identified various molecular changes, it remains ambiguous since changes in the whole cell population are measured as an average and markers are required for cell recognition. A fast and label-free method is in demand to detect cell tolerance and screen therapeutic agents that might reverse the process. In this study, direct current insulator-based dielectrophoresis (DC-iDEP) was used to characterize the biophysical properties (EKMr) of inflamed cells, LPS-tolerant cells, and cells treated with therapeutic agents. The results showed that the EKMr of these cells was 4.28×10⁸, 3.13×10⁸, and 4.25×10⁸ V/m², respectively, suggesting that the established method was useful in distinguishing LPS-tolerant cells. The device holds the promise to be applied in medical diagnosis and medicine screening.
Lipopolysaccharides/pharmacology* ; Animals ; Mice ; Macrophages/metabolism* ; Immune Tolerance/drug effects* ; RAW 264.7 Cells ; Drug Evaluation, Preclinical

With the rapid development and expansion of the scale of the industry of Chinese materia medica,a large number of by-products in the process industrialization of Chinese materia medica have been produced,among which,the solid by-products of Chinese materia medica have been favoured by researchers due to the fact that they are rich in a large number of proteins,cellulose,hemicellulose,lignin,etc.,which can be used in the preparation of high value-added products.Therefore,the authors elaborated on the research on biochemical conversion,thermochemical conversion,resource oriented chemical components,preparation of biomass fuel,new composite materials and high-efficiency adsorbent of solid by-products in the process of industrialization of Chinese materia medica in recent years,aiming to provide theoretical basis for the comprehensive and high-value utilization of the solid by-products of Chinese materia medica and extension of the industrial chain.

Bone diseases, such as osteoporosis and osteoarthritis, have emerged as pressing public health concerns requiring immediate attention and resolution. Cellular therapy and tissue engineering techniques are among the most promising therapeutic approaches for such conditions. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) possess remarkable capacity for indefinite self-renewal in vitro and the ability to differentiate into all somatic cell types originating from the three germ layers, thereby making them a promising source of osteoblasts. Consequently, it is crucial to establish a well-delineated system for osteogenic differentiation of hiPSCs in vitro, with the aim to generate osteoblast-like cells that conform to clinical application standards. Numerous research teams have achieved substantial advancements in both the direct osteogenic differentiation of hiPSCs and the indirect pathway via mesenchymal stem cells. In this article, we provide a comprehensive review of these two osteogenic differentiation pathways and their current applications, with the aim of serving as a valuable reference for bone regeneration technologies. Current research efforts have relied on embryoid body formation and monolayer induction methods utilizing biomaterials to develop a system that facilitates in vitro culture and osteogenic differentiation of hiPSCs. However, the existing research is primarily constrained by unclear system components and low efficiency. Therefore, the development of a stepwise and three-dimensional induction system based on stringent regulation by specific compounds is a primary research direction for the future.

BACKGROUND: The addition of growth factiors is commonly applied to improve the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells. However, for human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), their complex differentiation processes result in the unknown effect at different stages. In this study, we focused on the widely used bone forming peptide-1 (BFP-1) and investigated the effect and mechanisms of its addition on the osteogenic induction of hPSCs as a function of the supplementation period. METHODS: Monolayer-cultured hPSCs were cultured in osteogenic induction medium for 28 days, and the effect of BFP-1 peptide addition at varying weeks was examined. After differentiation for varying days (0, 7, 14, 21 and 28), the differentiation efficiency was determined by RT–PCR, flow cytometry, immunofluorescence, and alizarin red staining assays. Moreover, the expression of marker genes related to germ layers and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) was investigated at day 7. RESULTS: Peptide treatment during the first week promoted the generation of mesoderm cells and mesenchymal-like cells from hiPSCs. Then, the upregulated expression of osteogenesis marker genes/proteins was detected in both hESCs and hiPSCs during subsequent inductions with BFP-1 peptide treatment. Fortunately, further experimental design confirmed that treating the BFP-1 peptide during 7–21 days showed even better performance for hESCs but was ineffective for hiPSCs. CONCLUSION The differentiation efficiency of cells could be improved by determining the optimal treatment period.Our study has great value in maximizing the differentiation of hPSCs by adding osteogenesis peptides based on the revealed mechanisms and promoting the application of hPSCs in bone tissue regeneration.

In order to reduce the disease burden of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and improve the treatment rate of CHB, the indications for anti-viral therapy have been gradually expanded and simplified in guidelines for the prevention and treatment of CHB released by Chinese Medical Association from 2005 to 2022. This article elaborates on the evolution in the indications for anti-viral therapy in CHB from the five aspects of converging indications of HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative CHB, reduction in the treatment threshold of HBV DNA, reduction in the treatment threshold of serum alanine aminotransferase, emphasis on the risk factors for disease progression, and gradual loosening of the requirements for virological indicators in patients with liver cirrhosis.