Objective:To investigate the clinical efficacy of moxibustion(Mox)combined with low-dose tadalafil(TAD)in the treatment of diabetes mellitus-induced erectile dysfunction(DMED)with the syndrome of Qi deficiency and blood stasis.Meth-ods:According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,we selected 90 patients with DMED for this trial and equally randomized them into a Mox,a TAD,and a Mox combined with TAD(Mox+TAD)group to be treated by mild Mox applied to the acupoints Zusanli,Sanyinjiao and Yinlingquan qd alt,oral medication with low-dose TAD at 5 mg per dose qd,and combination of the above two thera-pies,respectively,all for 4 weeks.We obtained from the patients their IIEF-5 scores,traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)symptoms scores,Erectile Hardness Scale(EHS)scores,corpus cavernosal hemodynamic indexes,and the peak systolic velocity(PSV),end diastolic velocity(EDV)and resistance index(RI)of the corpus cavernosal arteries before and after treatment,and compared them among the three groups.Results:The total effectiveness rate was significantly higher in the Mox+TAD(90.0％)than in the Mox(46.7％)and TAD groups(60.0％)(P＜0.05).Compared with the baseline,the IIEF-5 and EHS scores were increased,while the TCM symptoms scores decreased in all the three groups after treatment,more significantly in the Mox+TAD group than in the other two(P＜0.05).And the PSV and RI were remarkably increased,while the EDV decreased(P＜0.05)in all the three groups(P＜0.05)after treatment,with PSV even higher in the Mox+TAD than in the Mox and TAD groups(P＜0.05).Conclusion:Moxi-bustion combined with tadalafil has a definite efficacy and safety for the treatment of DMED,which can effectively improve the erectile function of the patients by increasing penile blood supply,benefiting qi and activating blood circulation.

Aim To explore the possible regulatory effect of leptin on acyl-CoA synthetase long chain fami-ly member ACSL5 and their effect on migration and in-vasion of breast cancer cell,and to explore the underly-ing mechanism.Methods The expression of leptin receptor was detected by immunofluorescence assay.The migration and invasion ability of MCF-7 cells were detected by wound healing assay and Transwell assay respectively.The downstream target gene of leptin was analyzed by PCR microarray data.The expression of ACSL5 in breast cancer and its correlation with the staging and prognosis of breast cancer patients were as-sessed uing bioinformatics methods.The expression of ACSL5 in MCF-7 cells treated with different concentra-tions of leptin was detected using real time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR).Overexpressing ACSL5 was constructed by lentiviral transfection;the expressions of EMT related proteins,AMPK-α and p-AMPK-α were detected by Western blot.Results Leptin promoted breast cancer cell mi-gration and invasion and EMT.ACSL5 was significant-ly low expressed in breast cancer and related to progno-sis.Leptin downregulated the expression of ACSL5 through OBR.Leptin activated AMPK pathway to downregulate ACSL5 and promote migration,invasion and EMT of breast cancer cells.Conclusions Leptin may promote the migration,invasion and EMT of breast cancer by downregulating ACSL5 through activating AMPK pathway.

Objective To evaluate the effects of transcatheter aortic valve replacement(TAVR)on left ventricular reverse remodeling(LVRR)and outcomes in patients with mixed aortic valve disease(MAVD)and predominant aortic stenosis(AS).Methods Patients undergoing TAVR at our center between January 2020 and December 2022 were enrolled consecutively.Propensity score matching(PSM)(1∶1 ratio)was used to reduce selection bias.Transthoracic echocardiography(TTE)was used to monitor left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF)and other structural parameters over time.The study outcome was a composite of cardiovascular death and rehospitalization due to cardiovascular causes.Linear mixed-effects models and logistic regression were utilized for comparing echocardiographic changes across groups and identifying independent risk factors for no-LVRR,respectively.Results After PSM,126 patients were included.MAVD group exhibited larger structural parameters(left ventricular end-systolic/end-diastolic diameter and volume,left ventricular mass index)and a lower left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF)(all P＜0.05).However,more pronounced improvements in left ventricular structure and hemodynamics were observed during follow-up.Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that the left ventricular mass index(LVMI)was an independent predictor of left ventricular reverse remodeling(LVRR)after TAVR,whereas persistent moderate or greater mitral regurgitation(MR)and paravalvular leak(PVL)significantly reduced the incidence of LVRR.During a median follow-up period of 23 months,a total of 31 endpoint events occurred,and there was no statistically significant difference in long-term prognosis between the two groups(Log-rank P=0.330).Conclusions Compared to patients in the AS group,those in the MAVD group exhibited more severe left ventricular remodeling before TAVR.However,more significant LVRR was observed during postoperative follow-up.Additionally,the long-term prognosis was comparable between the two groups.

Emotions are an integral part of animal welfare.Facial expressions are increasingly used as a non-invasive method for assessing the emotional state of animals.Dogs(Canis familiaris)are closely related to humans,and facial expressions are crucial for interspecies communication and emotional expression.This paper reviews the neurobiological mechanisms of facial expressions and the anatomical structure of the facial muscles and their evolution in dogs,the analogy between dog and human facial expressions,and the expression of various parts of the dog's face under different emotions.These studies demonstrate that dog's facial expressions can be used as a potential indicator of animal welfare,and that dogs can be used as a model animal for studying interspecies facial emotional communication.The use of dog's facial expressions to assess emotions will aid multidisciplinary research,including in the fields of neuroscience,psychopharmacology,animal behavior,and animal welfare.

Central nervous system(CNS)degenerative disorders refer to a spectrum of pathological alterations triggered by struc-tural damage to cerebral neural tissues,clinically manifested as diverse neurological dysfunction syndromes,including multiple sclerosis(MS),neurodegenerative diseases(NDs),and ische-mic stroke.The hallmark pathological features of these disorders involve irreversible neuronal damage and decompensation of functional neural networks,ultimately leading to progressive neurological deficits.Notably,with the accelerating global popu-lation aging,the incidence of these diseases has surged signifi-cantly.According to WHO statistics,they now rank among the top three global causes of disability and mortality.Current re-search has confirmed that the pathogenesis of CNS degenerative disorders exhibits high heterogeneity,encompassing multifaceted pathophysiological processes such as genetic predisposition,oxi-dative stress,protein misfolding,and metabolic dysregulation.This intricate pathogenic network not only complicates clinical differential diagnosis but also poses substantial challenges to the development of precision therapeutic strategies.Importantly,re-cent studies have revealed that mitochondrial homeostasis disrup-tion-induced inflammatory cascades(termed mitochondrial in-flammation)play a pivotal regulatory role in neurodegenerative progression.Key molecular mechanisms include impaired mito-phagy,aberrant mitochondrial DNA(mtDNA)release and NL-RP3 inflammasome activation.This review systematically deci-phers the molecular regulatory network of mitochondrial inflam-mation,with a focus on its biological effects in critical pathologi-cal events such as blood-brain barrier disruption,microglial hy-peractivation and neuronal apoptosis.The overarching aim is to provide a theoretical foundation for developing innovative thera-peutic strategies targeting mitochondrial homeostasis restoration.

Objective To investigate the expression and clinical significance of serum microRNA-144-3p(miR-144-3p)and microRNA-126-3p(miR-126-3p)in patients with intracerebral hemorrhage(ICH).Methods From February 2022 to April 2023,120 ICH patients who underwent treatment at our hospital were recruited as the ICH group.They were separated into a good prognosis group and a poor prognosis group based on the modified Rankin Scale(mRS)score After 6 months treatment Additionally,110 healthy individuals who underwent physical examination at our hospital were included as the control group.Clinical data of patients were collected and analyzed.Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)was applied to detect serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)indicators.Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR)was applied to detect the expression levels of serum miR-144-3p and miR-126-3p.Pearson method was applied to analyze the correlation between serum miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,TNF-α,and VEGF levels in ICH patients.Multivariate Logistic regression was applied to analyze the factors affecting the prognosis of ICH patients.ROC curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of serum miR-144-3p and miR-126-3p for the prognosis of ICH patients.Results In the control group,the serum miR-144-3p was 1.02±0.02,the TNF-α was(19.15±6.79)pg/ml,the VEGF level was(1.05±0.18)ng/ml,and the serum miR-126-3p level was 1.04±0.05.The values in the ICH group were 2.12±0.23,(48.32±8.43)pg/ml,(6.56±1.49)ng/ml,and(0.53±0.12),respectively.There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups(P＜0.05).Pearson analysis results showed that serum miR-144-3p was positively correlated with TNF-α and VEGF levels in ICH patients(r=0.496,0.542,P＜0.05),while serum miR-126-3p was negatively correlated with TNF-α and VEGF levels(r=-0.493,-0.526,P＜0.05).There were significant differences in the serum levels of miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,TNF-α,VEGF,and NIHSS score between different prognostic groups(P＜0.05).Multivariate logistic analysis revealed that serum miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,TNF-α,and VEGF were all factors affecting the poor prognosis of ICH patients(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of serum miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,and combined prediction of prognosis in ICH patients was 0.851,0.886,and 0.952,respectively,the combined prediction of the two was more valuable(Zcombination-miR-144-3p=3.371,Zcombination-miR-126-3p=2.791,P＜0.05).Conclusion The expression of miR-144-3p in the serum of ICH patients increases,while the expression of miR-126-3p decreases.The two may serve as biological markers for predicting the prognosis of ICH patients,and the combination of the two is more valuable in predicting the prognosis of ICH patients.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the impact of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion(CIR)injury on glucuronidation of IMM-H004 in the brain.METHODS IMM-H004,a neuroprotective agent,underwent glucuronidation primarily mediated by uridine diphosphate glucuronosyltransferases(UGT)to form IMM-H004G,which was subsequently hydrolyzed back to IMM-H004 by β-glucuronidase.① Cellular experiments:human glial cells(HEB)and human neuroblastoma cells(SH-SY5Y)cell lines were assigned to two groups:a normal control group and an oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation(OGD/R)model group.An OGD/R model was established by subjecting the cells to one-hour oxygen-glucose deprivation,followed by reoxygenation.Cell viability was assessed using the methylthiazolyldi-phenyl-tetrazolium bromide(MTT)assay.The mRNA levels of UGT and its regulatory factor,nuclear factor erythroid 2 related factor 2(Nrf2),were measured by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR(RT-qPCR).The content of IMM-H004G glucuronidated from IMM-H004,and the content of IMM-H004 hydrolyzed from IMM-H004G were determined using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS).② Animal experiments:Male SD rats were randomly assigned to three groups:a normal control group,a CIR model group,and a sham operation group.Rats in the normal control group received no surgical interventions while those in the CIR model group underwent four-vessel occlusion surgery to induce acute CIR injury.Rats in the sham operation group was treated the same way as the CIR model group except for the four-vessel occlusion.The activities of UGT and β-glucuronidase in brain tissues were determined by LC-MS/MS.IMM-H004 was administered via intracerebroventricular injec-tion,and the concentrations of IMM-H004 and IMM-H004G in different regions of the brain were deter-mined using LC-MS/MS to investigate the impact of CIR injury on IMM-H004 metabolism.RESULTS① Cellular experiments:Compared with the control group,OGD/R injury reduced the viability of HEB and SH-SY5Y cells to 72.30%and 53.56%,respectively.In HEB cells,OGD/R injury significantly down-regulated the mRNA expressions of UGT1A1,UGT1A7 and UGT1A8,resulting in a reduction of IMM-H004G production to 50.05%-68.95%of the normal level,while hydrolytic metabolism remained unaf-fected.No significant changes were observed in SH-SY5Y cells.②Animal experiments:CIR injury had no impact on the activity of UGT or β-glucuronidase in rat brain tissues.In addition,the distribution of IMM-H004 and IMM-H004G across different brain regions remained unchanged.CONCLUSION These findings show that OGD/R injury reduces UGT-mediated glucuronidation of IMM-H004,whereas CIR injury does not significantly affect its metabolism in the brain,suggesting the presence of compen-satory mechanisms in brain tissues that help maintain drug homeostasis.

Objective To investigate the expression and clinical significance of serum microRNA-144-3p(miR-144-3p)and microRNA-126-3p(miR-126-3p)in patients with intracerebral hemorrhage(ICH).Methods From February 2022 to April 2023,120 ICH patients who underwent treatment at our hospital were recruited as the ICH group.They were separated into a good prognosis group and a poor prognosis group based on the modified Rankin Scale(mRS)score After 6 months treatment Additionally,110 healthy individuals who underwent physical examination at our hospital were included as the control group.Clinical data of patients were collected and analyzed.Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)was applied to detect serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)indicators.Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR)was applied to detect the expression levels of serum miR-144-3p and miR-126-3p.Pearson method was applied to analyze the correlation between serum miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,TNF-α,and VEGF levels in ICH patients.Multivariate Logistic regression was applied to analyze the factors affecting the prognosis of ICH patients.ROC curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of serum miR-144-3p and miR-126-3p for the prognosis of ICH patients.Results In the control group,the serum miR-144-3p was 1.02±0.02,the TNF-α was(19.15±6.79)pg/ml,the VEGF level was(1.05±0.18)ng/ml,and the serum miR-126-3p level was 1.04±0.05.The values in the ICH group were 2.12±0.23,(48.32±8.43)pg/ml,(6.56±1.49)ng/ml,and(0.53±0.12),respectively.There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups(P＜0.05).Pearson analysis results showed that serum miR-144-3p was positively correlated with TNF-α and VEGF levels in ICH patients(r=0.496,0.542,P＜0.05),while serum miR-126-3p was negatively correlated with TNF-α and VEGF levels(r=-0.493,-0.526,P＜0.05).There were significant differences in the serum levels of miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,TNF-α,VEGF,and NIHSS score between different prognostic groups(P＜0.05).Multivariate logistic analysis revealed that serum miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,TNF-α,and VEGF were all factors affecting the poor prognosis of ICH patients(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of serum miR-144-3p,miR-126-3p,and combined prediction of prognosis in ICH patients was 0.851,0.886,and 0.952,respectively,the combined prediction of the two was more valuable(Zcombination-miR-144-3p=3.371,Zcombination-miR-126-3p=2.791,P＜0.05).Conclusion The expression of miR-144-3p in the serum of ICH patients increases,while the expression of miR-126-3p decreases.The two may serve as biological markers for predicting the prognosis of ICH patients,and the combination of the two is more valuable in predicting the prognosis of ICH patients.

Objective:To investigate the clinical efficacy of moxibustion(Mox)combined with low-dose tadalafil(TAD)in the treatment of diabetes mellitus-induced erectile dysfunction(DMED)with the syndrome of Qi deficiency and blood stasis.Meth-ods:According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,we selected 90 patients with DMED for this trial and equally randomized them into a Mox,a TAD,and a Mox combined with TAD(Mox+TAD)group to be treated by mild Mox applied to the acupoints Zusanli,Sanyinjiao and Yinlingquan qd alt,oral medication with low-dose TAD at 5 mg per dose qd,and combination of the above two thera-pies,respectively,all for 4 weeks.We obtained from the patients their IIEF-5 scores,traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)symptoms scores,Erectile Hardness Scale(EHS)scores,corpus cavernosal hemodynamic indexes,and the peak systolic velocity(PSV),end diastolic velocity(EDV)and resistance index(RI)of the corpus cavernosal arteries before and after treatment,and compared them among the three groups.Results:The total effectiveness rate was significantly higher in the Mox+TAD(90.0％)than in the Mox(46.7％)and TAD groups(60.0％)(P＜0.05).Compared with the baseline,the IIEF-5 and EHS scores were increased,while the TCM symptoms scores decreased in all the three groups after treatment,more significantly in the Mox+TAD group than in the other two(P＜0.05).And the PSV and RI were remarkably increased,while the EDV decreased(P＜0.05)in all the three groups(P＜0.05)after treatment,with PSV even higher in the Mox+TAD than in the Mox and TAD groups(P＜0.05).Conclusion:Moxi-bustion combined with tadalafil has a definite efficacy and safety for the treatment of DMED,which can effectively improve the erectile function of the patients by increasing penile blood supply,benefiting qi and activating blood circulation.

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) in differentiating tumor deposits (TDs) from metastatic lymph nodes (MLNs) in rectal cancer. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 70 patients with rectal cancer, including 168 lesions (70 TDs and 98 MLNs confirmed by histopathology), who underwent pretreatment MRI and subsequent surgery between March 2019 and December 2022. The morphological characteristics of TDs and MLNs, along with quantitative parameters derived from DCE-MRI (K trans , kep, and v e) and DWI (ADCmin, ADCmax, and ADCmean), were analyzed and compared between the two groups.Multivariable binary logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed to assess the diagnostic performance of significant individual quantitative parameters and combined parameters in distinguishing TDs from MLNs. Results: All morphological features, including size, shape, border, and signal intensity, as well as all DCE-MRI parameters showed significant differences between TDs and MLNs (all P < 0.05). However, ADC values did not demonstrate significant differences (all P > 0.05). Among the single quantitative parameters, v e had the highest diagnostic accuracy, with an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.772 for distinguishing TDs from MLNs. A multivariable logistic regression model incorporating short axis, border, v e, and ADC mean improved diagnostic performance, achieving an AUC of 0.833 (P = 0.027). Conclusion The combination of morphological features, DCE-MRI parameters, and ADC values can effectively aid in the preoperative differentiation of TDs from MLNs in rectal cancer.