OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of curcumin on lipid metabolism in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and its molecular mechanism. METHODS: The inhibitory effect of curcumin (0-70 μmol/L) on proliferation of A549 and H1299 cells was assessed using MTT assay, and 20 and 40 μmol/L curcumin was used in the subsequent experiments. The effect of curcumin on lipid metabolism was evaluated using cellular uptake assay, wound healing assay, triglyceride (TG)/free fatty acid (NEFA) measurements, and Oil Red O staining. Western blotting was performed to detect the expressions of PGC-1α, PPAR-α, and HIF-1α in curcumin-treated cells. Network pharmacology was used to predict the metabolic pathways, and the results were validated by Western blotting. In a nude mouse model bearing A549 cell xenograft, the effects of curcumin (20 mg/kg) on tumor growth and lipid metabolism were assessed by measuring tumor weight and observing the changes in intracellular lipid droplets. RESULTS: Curcumin concentration-dependently inhibited the proliferation of A549 and H1299 cells and significantly reduced TG and NEFA levels and intracellular lipid droplets. Western blotting revealed that curcumin significantly upregulated PGC-1α and PPAR‑α expressions in the cells. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis predicted significant involvement of the HIF-1 signaling pathway in curcumin-treated NSCLC, suggesting a potential interaction between HIF-1α and PPAR‑α. Western blotting confirmed that curcumin downregulated the expression of HIF-1α. In the tumor-bearing mice, curcumin treatment caused significant reduction of the tumor weight and the number of lipid droplets in the tumor cells. CONCLUSIONS Curcumin inhibits NSCLC cell proliferation and lipid metabolism by downregulating the HIF-1α pathway.
Curcumin/pharmacology* ; Humans ; Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit/metabolism* ; Animals ; Lipid Metabolism/drug effects* ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/pathology* ; Lung Neoplasms/pathology* ; Mice, Nude ; Down-Regulation ; Mice ; Cell Proliferation/drug effects* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma Coactivator 1-alpha ; PPAR alpha/metabolism* ; Signal Transduction/drug effects* ; A549 Cells

Objective To investigate the relationship and potential pathways between metal(loid)exposure and the risk of polycystic ovary syndrome(PCOS)in women of childbearing age. Methods This case-control study included 200 patients with PCOS(cases)and 896 non-PCOS controls with the age of 25-37 years.The concentrations of 29 metal(loid)s in the follicular fluid(FF)and clinical indicators in the serum were measured in all participants.Logistic regression analysis and mediation analysis were conducted to evaluate the associations between metal(loid)exposure and PCOS risk and investigate the possible roles of clinical indicators,respectively. Results Logistic regression analysis revealed an association between high copper levels in FF and increased PCOS risk(highest vs.lowest quartile:adjusted odds ratio=2.94,95%confidence interval:1.83-4.72).A high luteinizing hormone/follicle-stimulating hormone ratio and elevated levels of testosterone and anti-Müllerian hormone(AMH)were strongly associated with increased PCOS risk induced by high copper exposure.The mediation analysis indicated a mediating effect of AMH in the association between copper exposure and PCOS risk. Conclusion Copper may affect PCOS risk through the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis,mediated by AMH.Copper exposure and internal AMH levels are important indicators for early warning of PCOS development.

Following the principles of evidence-based medicine,in accordance with the structure and drafting rules of standardized documents,based on literature research,according to the characteristics of chronic cough in children and issues that need to form a consensus,the TCM Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic Cough in Children was formulated based on the Delphi method,expert discussion meetings,and public solicitation of opinions.The guideline includes scope of application,terms and definitions,eti-ology and diagnosis,auxiliary examination,treatment,prevention and care.The aim is to clarify the optimal treatment plan of Chinese medicine in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease,and to provide guidance for improving the clinical diagnosis and treatment of chronic cough in children with Chinese medicine.

Objective:To investigate the surgical effect of various circulatory pathways on replantation of severed distal segments of digits.Methods:From June 2017 to June 2023, a total of 137 patients (162 digits) who received digit replantation surgery in the Department of Trauma Orthopaedics and Microsurgery of Guilin People's Hospital were retrospectively studied. The patients were 82 males (97 digits) and 55 females (65 digits) aged 11.0 months to 51.0 years old, with 31.7 years old in average. The injured digits were 36 thumbs, 43 index fingers, 32 middle fingers, 28 ring fingers and 23 little fingers. Causes of injury: 55 digits were of electric saw, 68 of sharp object cut, 26 of twisting crush and 13 of degloving injury. According to the circulatory pathways, 66 patients (88 digits) were assigned to a physiological replantation group (PRG), 50 patients (53 digits) to an arterio-venolisation group (AVG) and 21 patients (21 digits) to a nail bed bloodletting group (NBG). Functional recovery was evaluated according to the Evaluation Standard of Severed Finger Functional of Hand Surgery of Chinese Medical Association. Analysis of variance or chi-square test was employed to analyse the age, gender, time from injury to surgery, surgery time, incidence of vascular compromise of the replanted digit, survival rate, score of functional recovery of the affected digit at 6 months after surgery, and incidence of postoperative complications in each group. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results:All patients were included in the 6-10 months of postoperative follow-up, with an average of 7.2 months. Regarding the score of functional recovery of affected digit according to the Evaluation Standard of Severed Finger Functional of Hand Surgery of Chinese Medical Association, PRG (86.3 points±7.9 points) was higher than that of NBG (78.3 points±11.2 points) and AVG (70.7 points±8.6 points), with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05 for both). In terms of the incidence of vascular compromise, PRG (3 digits for 3.4%) was lower than that of NBG (1 digit for 4.8%) and AVG (6 digits for 11.3%), with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05 for both). Of the survival rate, PRG (81 digits for 92.0%) was superior to that of NBG (18 digits for 85.7%) and AVG (42 digits 79.2%), with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05 for both). While of the incidence of postoperative complications, PRG (12.6%) was lower than that of AVG (17.1%) and NBG (21.2%), with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05 for both). Conclusion:For a severed distal segment of digit, the physiological replantation is preferred. For the digit with undetectable return veins, effective replantation can be achieved by the arterio-venolisation or nail bed exsanguination.

OBJECTIVES: To explore ferroptosis-related genes in osteoporosis through bioinformatic analysis and in vitro study. METHODS: Osteoporosis-related genes were identified from dataset GSE35958 in the Gene Expression Omnibus database; and the ferroptosis-related genes were identified from the FerrDb database. These were intersected with the differentially expressed genes in GSE35958 to obtain ferroptosis-related genes in osteoporosis. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis were performed for the differentially expressed genes. And Spearman correlation and protein-protein interaction network analysis were performed. Then, the hub genes of ferroptosis in osteoporosis were screened by Degree, MNC, EPC, MCC and DMNC in Cytoscape software CytoHubba plugin; and analyzed with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells from osteoporosis patients (osteoporosis group) and non-osteoporosis patients (control group) were subjected to quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to detect the messenger RNA expression of ferroptosis hub genes in both groups. RESULTS: A total of 32 differentially expressed genes related to ferroptosis in osteoporosis were identified, including 26 up-regulated genes and 6 down-regulated genes. GO enrichment analysis showed that the identified genes were mainly involved in intercellular adhesion, lipid metabolism and cytokine response. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the genes were mainly involved in signaling pathways of adhesive plaques, MAPK, PI3K-Akt, and Wnt. Spearman correlation analysis showed correlation among differentially expressed genes. Six hub genes for ferroptosis in osteoporosis were obtained, namely MAPK3, CDKN1A, MAP1LC3A, TNF, RELA, and TGF-β1. ROC curve analysis showed that these hub genes had good diagnostic performance in osteoporosis and may become potential biomarkers of osteoporosis. In vitro experiments confirmed significant differences in these hub genes between the control group and the osteoporosis group (all P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS This study has identified six ferroptosis-related hub genes in osteoporosis, which may be used as novel biomarkers for the early diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis/genetics* ; Humans ; Computational Biology ; Ferroptosis/genetics* ; Protein Interaction Maps/genetics* ; Gene Ontology ; Mesenchymal Stem Cells/metabolism* ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Databases, Genetic

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Chinese medicine (CM) in the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in China. METHODS: A multi-center retrospective cohort study was carried out, with cumulative CM treatment period of ⩾3 days during hospitalization as exposure. Data came from consecutive inpatients from December 19, 2019 to May 16, 2020 in 4 medical centers in Wuhan, China. After data extraction, verification and cleaning, confounding factors were adjusted by inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW), and the Cox proportional hazards regression model was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: A total of 2,272 COVID-19 patients were included. There were 1,684 patients in the CM group and 588 patients in the control group. Compared with the control group, the hazard ratio (HR) for the deterioration rate in the CM group was 0.52 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.41 to 0.64, P<0.001]. The results were consistent across patients of varying severity at admission, and the robustness of the results were confirmed by 3 sensitivity analyses. In addition, the HR for all-cause mortality in the CM group was 0.29 (95% CI: 0.19 to 0.44, P<0.001). Regarding of safety, the proportion of patients with abnormal liver function or renal function in the CM group was smaller. CONCLUSION This real-world study indicates that the combination of a full-course CM therapy on the basic conventional treatment, may safely reduce the deterioration rate and all-cause mortality of COVID-19 patients. This result can provide the new evidence to support the current treatment of COVID-19. Additional prospective clinical trial is needed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of specific CM interventions. (Registration No. ChiCTR2200062917).
Humans ; Retrospective Studies ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; COVID-19/epidemiology* ; COVID-19 Drug Treatment ; Aged ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional/methods* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/adverse effects* ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Treatment Outcome ; China/epidemiology* ; Adult

OBJECTIVE: Clinical characteristics and outcome in COVID-19 with brucellosis patients has not been well demonstrated, we tried to analyze clinical outcome in local and literature COVID-19 cases with brucellosis before and after recovery. METHODS: We retrospectively collected hospitalization data of comorbid patients and prospectively followed up after discharge in Heilongjiang Infectious Disease Hospital from January 15, 2020 to April 29, 2022. Demographics, epidemiological, clinical symptoms, radiological and laboratory data, treatment medicines and outcomes, and follow up were analyzed, and findings of a systematic review were demonstrated. RESULTS: A total of four COVID-19 with brucellosis patients were included. One patient had active brucellosis before covid and 3 patients had nonactive brucellosis before brucellosis. The median age was 54.5 years, and all were males (100.0%). Two cases (50.0%) were moderate, and one was mild and asymptomatic, respectively. Three cases (75.0%) had at least one comorbidity (brucellosis excluded). All 4 patients were found in COVID-19 nucleic acid screening. Case C and D had only headache and fever on admission, respectively. Four cases were treated with Traditional Chinese medicine, western medicines for three cases, no adverse reaction occurred during hospitalization. All patients were cured and discharged. Moreover, one case (25.0%) had still active brucellosis without re-positive COVID-19, and other three cases (75.0%) have no symptoms of discomfort except one case fell fatigue and anxious during the follow-up period after recovery. Conducting the literature review, two similar cases have been reported in two case reports, and were both recovered, whereas, no data of follow up after recovery. CONCLUSION These cases indicate that COVID-19 patients with brucellosis had favorable outcome before and after recovery. More clinical studies should be conducted to confirm our findings.
Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Brucellosis ; COVID-19 ; Retrospective Studies ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Treatment Outcome ; Case Reports as Topic

We investigated the impact and predictive value of bladder function in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) on the efficacy of transurethral prostatectomy. Symptomatic, imaging, and urodynamic data of patients who underwent transurethral prostatectomy at West China Hospital of Sichuan University (Chengdu, China) from July 2019 to December 2021 were collected. Follow-up data included the quality of life (QoL), International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), and IPSS storage and voiding (IPSS-s and IPSS-v). Moreover, urinary creatinine (Cr), nerve growth factor (NGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and prostaglandin estradiol (PGE2) were measured in 30 patients with BPH and 30 healthy participants. Perioperative indicators were determined by subgroup analyses and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Among the 313 patients with BPH included, patients with severe micturition problems had more improvements but higher micturition grades postoperatively than those with moderate symptoms. Similarly, good bladder sensation, compliance, and detrusor contractility (DC) were predictors of low postoperative IPSS and QoL. The urinary concentrations of BDNF/Cr, NGF/Cr, and PGE2/Cr in patients were significantly higher than those in healthy participants (all P < 0.001). After evaluation, only DC was significantly related to both urinary indicators and postoperative recovery of patients. Patients with good DC, as predicted by urinary indicators, had lower IPSS and IPSS-v than those with reduced DC at the 1st month postoperatively (both P < 0.05). In summary, patients with impaired bladder function had poor recovery. The combined levels of urinary BDNF/Cr, NGF/Cr, and PGE2/Cr in patients with BPH may be valid predictors of preoperative bladder function and postoperative recovery.

Humans ; Adenocarcinoma, Mucinous/pathology* ; Stomach Neoplasms/pathology*