Emodin is a hydroxyanthraquinone compound that is widely distributed and has multiple pharmacological activities, including anti-diarrheal, anti-inflammatory, and liver-protective effects. Research indicates that emodin may be one of the main components responsible for inducing hepatotoxicity. However, studies on the mechanisms of liver injury are relatively limited, particularly those related to bile acids(BAs) metabolism. This study aims to systematically investigate the effects of different dosages of emodin on BAs metabolism, providing a basis for the safe clinical use of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)containing emodin. First, this study evaluated the safety of repeated administration of different dosages of emodin over a 5-week period, with a particular focus on its impact on the liver. Next, the composition and content of BAs in serum and liver were analyzed. Subsequently, qRT-PCR was used to detect the mRNA expression of nuclear receptors and transporters related to BAs metabolism. The results showed that 1 g·kg~(-1) emodin induced hepatic damage, with bile duct hyperplasia as the primary pathological manifestation. It significantly increased the levels of various BAs in the serum and primary BAs(including taurine-conjugated and free BAs) in the liver. Additionally, it downregulated the mRNA expression of farnesoid X receptor(FXR), retinoid X receptor(RXR), and sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide(NTCP), and upregulated the mRNA expression of cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase(CYP7A1) in the liver. Although 0.01 g·kg~(-1) and 0.03 g·kg~(-1) emodin did not induce obvious liver injury, they significantly increased the level of taurine-conjugated BAs in the liver, suggesting a potential interference with BAs homeostasis. In conclusion, 1 g·kg~(-1) emodin may promote the production of primary BAs in the liver by affecting the FXR-RXR-CYP7A1 pathway, inhibit NTCP expression, and reduce BA reabsorption in the liver, resulting in BA accumulation in the peripheral blood. This disruption of BA homeostasis leads to liver injury. Even doses of emodin close to the clinical dose can also have a certain effect on the homeostasis of BAs. Therefore, when using traditional Chinese medicine or formulas containing emodin in clinical practice, it is necessary to regularly monitor liver function indicators and closely monitor the risk of drug-induced liver injury.
Emodin/administration & dosage* ; Bile Acids and Salts/metabolism* ; Animals ; Male ; Liver/injuries* ; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury/genetics* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/adverse effects* ; Humans ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Mice ; Rats

The analysis of poorly conductive samples using discharge plasma is a significant challenge in determining elemental content by atomic emission spectrometry.In this study,graphite as a conductive medium was combined with metal salts and silica to prepare soil sample pellets.A tungsten needle electrode was employed to generate point discharge microplasma with the sample,exciting atomic emission signals of analyte elements.By using Cu 324.7 nm as the analytical line,both the capability to excite atomic emission spectral lines and the impact of experimental conditions were investigated,resulting in accurate determination of trace copper in both standard and real samples.This method held promise for detecting other metals like manganese,iron,and zinc.This work offered methodology for non-conductive sample analysis via discharge plasma atomic emission spectrometry,showing potential for rapid on-site assessment of soil samples.

On the basis of the laboratory detection results of influenza viruses in Jiangsu Province from 2022 to 2023,this study was aimed at conducting a analysis of the genetic characteristics and resistance of the H3N2 influenza virus,and evalua-ting the effectiveness of vaccines and drugs.The full genome of 29 H3N2 isolates submitted by provincewide influenza surveil-lance network laboratories was amplified and sequenced.Phylogenetic trees of the HA and NA genes were constructed.The mutation characteristics of antigenic sites,glycosylation sites,and resistance sites were analyzed,and the influenza virus neura-minidase was detected with a fluorescence luminescence method.The homology of the 29 H3N2 isolates in Jiangsu Province was relatively high.The isolates belonged to the same evolutionary branch as domestic reference strains and the 2021-2022 vaccine strains,but were in different evolutionary branches from foreign reference strains and the 2022-2023 vaccine strains.Compared with the 2021-2022 vaccine strain A/Cambodia/e0826360/2020,the H3N2 influenza viruses isolated in Jiangsu Province during 2022-2023 had four amino acid substitutions in the HA protein and two amino acid substitutions in the NA protein.No changes in glycosylation sites,receptor-binding sites,and conserved amino acid residue regions were observed.IC50 analysis indicated that the 29 H3N2 isolates were not resistant to the antiviral drugs oseltamivir and zanamivir.The pre-dominant influenza viruses detected in Jiangsu Province during 2022-2023 were type A H3N2 influenza viruses.Monitoring of variations in HA and NA gene sites and influenza virus resistance aids in rapid understanding gene mutations,and can inform the selection of effective vaccine strains,and contribute to the prevention and control of influenza virus outbreaks.

The surface plasmon resonance(SPR)biosensor technology is a novel optical analysis method for studying intermolecular interactions.Owing to in-depth research on traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)in recent years,comprehensive and specific identification of components and target interactions has become key yet difficult tasks.SPR has gradually been used to analyze the active components of TCM owing to its high sensitivity,strong exclusivity,large flux,and real-time monitoring capabilities.This review sought to briefly introduce the active components of TCM and the principle of SPR,and provide historical and new insights into the application of SPR in the analysis of the active components of TCM.

Objective: To introduce a classification of alar retraction, and to discuss the therapeutic strategy of alar retraction with cartilage graft and the satisfaction evaluation of patients after operation. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 88 patients with alar retraction admitted to the Department of Plastic and Aesthetic (Burn) Surgery, the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University from January 2015 to December 2020, including 20 males and 68 females, aged 20 to 48 years, with an average age of 28.98 years. All patients underwent external rhinoplasty according to a series of treatment plans determined by the classification of alar retraction based on nostril exposure. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Rhinoplasty Outcomes Evaluation (ROE) were used to conduct satisfaction survey before and 12 months after operation. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to analyze patient satisfaction. Results: A total of 88 patients were included in this study. According to the classification of alar retraction based on nostril exposure, 45 cases were mild, 23 cases were moderate, and 20 cases were severe. There were 16 cases of unilateral and 72 cases of bilateral alar retraction. The patients were followed up for 12 to 18 months, with an average of 13.37 months. The VAS score and ROE score after each type of surgery were higher than those before surgery, with statistically significant (all P<0.05). Among them, the difference in VAS score (6.75±1.29) and in ROE satisfaction (67.70±7.38) of patients with severe alar retraction were the most significant improvement. Conclusion: The classification of alar retraction based on nostril exposure in the frontal view can comprehensively evaluate the severity of alar retraction, and makes the treatment algorithms systematic and comprehensive. The satisfaction of patients is relatively high.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Adult ; Rhinoplasty ; Retrospective Studies ; Patient Satisfaction ; Treatment Outcome ; Esthetics ; Nose/surgery*

【Objective】 To study the changes of platelet components(PC), apheresis platelets (AP) and pooled platelet concentrates (PPC) production of 19 provincial blood centers before and during the COVID-19 epidemic. 【Methods】 The data related to the collection of AP and the preparation of PPC from 2016 to 2021 of 19 provincial blood centers was collected. The production of PC, AP and PPC during the four years before the epidemic (i.e. 2016-2019) and during the COVID-19 epidemic (i.e. 2020 and 2021) were calculated respectively, and the change of production was analyzed. 【Results】 The total production of PC in 19 blood centers steadily increased from 2016 to 2019, with a decrease of 4.16% in 2020 and an increase of 15.60% in 2021, exceeding the output before the COVID-19 epidemic. In 2020, the production of PC of 42.11% (8/19) blood centers decreased compared with 2019, while 94.74% (18/19) in 2021 increased compared with 2020. The changes of AP output was basically consistent with the trend of PC. The total production of PPC in 2017 and 2018 both doubled compared to the previous year, while decreased by 67.98% in 2019, increased by 30.38% in 2020 and decreased by 27.08% in 2021. 【Conclusion】 The total production of PC kept increasing steadily between 2016 and 2019, but decreased in 2020 under the COVID-19 epidemic, with some blood centers being significantly affected. In 2021, with the strong support from government and various measures by blood centers, the total production of PC increased.

Objective: To investigate surgical strategies and the corresponding benefits for patients with perihilar cholangiocarcinoma(pCCA). Methods: A total of 81 patients with pCCA who underwent radical excision in the Department of Biliary and Pancreatic Surgery of Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital between January 2014 and December 2021 were retrospectively collected.The cohort consisted of 50 male and 31 female patients,with an age of (62.5±11.5)years(range:26 to 83 years).Seventy-five cases were diagnosed with jaundice,60 of whom received preoperative biliary drainage,while 20 patients received portal vein embolization.Their serum bilirubin level within one week before the operation(M(IQR)) was 44.3 (41.9) μmol/L(range:8.0 to 344.2 μmol/L).Preoperative imaging examinations were performed to evaluate the Bismuth-Corlette type of pCCA,showing 3,6,21,27,and 24 cases of Bismuth-Corlette type Ⅰ,Ⅱ,Ⅲa,Ⅲb,and Ⅳ,respectively.The primary outcome was overall survival (OS),and the secondary outcomes were relapse-free survival (RFS),90-day postoperative morbidity and 90-day postoperative mortality.OS and RFS were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared by the Log-rank test.Significant prognostic factors were determined using univariate and multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression analyses. Results: In the cohort of 81 pCCA patients,67 cases(82.7%) underwent major hepatectomy while 3 cases received major hepatectomy combined with pancreaticoduodenectomy.Thirty-four patients underwent hepatectomy combined with vascular resection and reconstruction(18 cases of portal vein resection and reconstruction alone;9 cases of hepatic artery resection and reconstruction alone;7 cases of combination of portal vein and hepatic artery resection and reconstruction).Margin negative(R0 excision) were achieved in 53.1%(43/81) of these patients.The operation duration was (627±136)minutes(range:565 to 940 minutes),and the intraoperative blood loss was 400(455)ml(range:200 to 2 800 ml).The 90-day postoperative mortality was 3.7%(3/81).Grade 3-4 postoperative morbidity was 23.4% (19/81) according to the Clavien-Dindo classification of surgical complications.Up to the last follow-up at September 2022,the follow-up time was 34.0(24.2)months (range:0.4 to 103.6 months).Three patients who died within 90 days after surgery were excluded from the survival analysis.The median OS was 36.10 months (95%CI:18.23 to 42.97 months) and the 1-,3-and 5-year OS rates were 85.3%,46.8% and 27.3%,respectively.The median OS of 41 patients with negative margins was 47.83 months(95%CI:36.90 to 58.80 months) and that of 37 patients with positive margins was 20.47 months(95%CI:10.52 to 30.58 months).The median RFS of 70 patients with R0 and R1 resection was 24.50 months(95%CI:12.15 to 31.85 months)and the 1-,3-and 5-year RFS rates were 65.2%,45.7% and 29.9%,respectively.The median RFS of 41 patients with R0 resection was 38.57 months(95%CI:21.50 to 55.63 months) and that of 29 patients with R1 resection was 10.83 months(95%CI:2.82 to 19.86 months). Conclusions: The primary therapy for pCCA is radical surgical resection.A precise preoperative evaluation and sufficient preparation can reduce postoperative morbidity.Surgical treatment can achieve a better survival outcome by increasing the radical resection rate.

Idiopathic asthenozoospermia, a common factor in male infertility, is characterized by altered sperm motility function in fresh ejaculate. Although the β-defensin 126 (DEFB126) protein is associated with asthenozoospermia, DEFB126 gene polymorphisms have not been extensively studied. Therefore, the association between DEFB126 gene polymorphisms and asthenozoospermia requires further investigation. Screening was performed by semen analysis, karyotype analysis, and Y microdeletion detection, and 102 fertile men and 106 men with asthenozoospermia in Chengdu, China, were selected for DEFB126 gene sequence analyses. Seven nucleotide mutations and two nucleotide deletions in the DEFB126 gene were detected. rs11467417 (317-318 del/del), rs11467497 (163-166 wt/del), c.152T>C, and c.227A>G were significantly different between the control and asthenozoospermia groups, likely representing high-risk genetic factors for asthenozoospermia among males. DEFB126 expression was not observed in sperm with rs11467497 homozygous deletion and was unstable in sperm with rs11467417 homozygous deletion. The rs11467497 four-nucleotide deletion leads to truncation of DEFB126 at the carboxy-terminus, and the rs11467417 binucleotide deletion produces a non-stop messenger RNA (mRNA). The above deletions may be responsible for male hypofertility and infertility by reducing DEFB126 affinity to sperm surfaces. Based on in silico analysis, the amino acids 51M and 76K are located in the highly conserved domain; c.152T>C (M51T) and c.227A>G (K76R) are predicted to be damaging and capable of changing alternative splice, structural and posttranslational modification sites of the RNA, as well as the secondary structure, structural stability, and hydrophobicity of the protein, suggesting that these mutations are associated with asthenozoospermia.
Male ; Humans ; Asthenozoospermia/metabolism* ; Sperm Motility/genetics* ; Homozygote ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Semen ; Sequence Deletion/genetics* ; Spermatozoa/metabolism* ; Nucleotides/metabolism* ; beta-Defensins/metabolism*

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a worldwide life-threatening pandemic. Lianhua Qingwen is believed to possess the ability to treat or significantly improve the symptoms of COVID-19. These claims make it important to systematically evaluate the effects of using Lianhua Qingwen with Western medicine to treat COVID-19. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of combination therapy, employing Lianhua Qingwen with Western medicine, to treat COVID-19, using a meta-analysis approach. SEARCH STRATEGY: China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, VIP Database, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases were searched for studies evaluating the effect of Lianhua Qingwen-Western medicine combination therapy in the treatment of COVID-19. INCLUSION CRITERIA: (1) Research object: hospitalized patients meeting the diagnostic criteria of COVID-19 were included. (2) Intervention measures: patients in the treatment group received Lianhua Qingwen treatment combined with Western medicine, while the control group received either Western medicine or Chinese medicine treatment. (3) Research type: randomized controlled trials and retrospective study were included. DATA EXTRACTION AND ANALYSIS: Two researchers extracted the first author, the proportion of males and females, age, body temperature, course of treatment, rate of disappearance of main symptoms, duration of fever, adverse reactions, and total effectiveness from the literature. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used as the effect value for count data, and mean difference (MD) and 95% CI were used as the effect value for measurement data. RESULTS: Six articles met the inclusion criteria, including a total of 856 COVID-19 patients. The meta-analysis showed that Lianhua Qingwen combination therapy achieved higher rates of fever reduction (OR = 3.43, 95% CI [1.78, 6.59], P = 0.0002), cough reduction (OR = 3.39, 95% CI [1.85, 6.23], P < 0.0001), recovery from shortness of breath (OR = 10.62, 95% CI [3.71, 30.40], P < 0.0001) and recovery from fatigue (OR = 2.82, 95% CI [1.44, 5.53], P = 0.003), higher total effectiveness rate (OR = 2.51, 95% CI [1.73, 3.64], P < 0.00001), and shorter time to recovery from fever (MD = -1.00, 95% CI [-1.04, 0.96], P < 0.00001), and did not increase the adverse reaction rate (OR = 0.65, 95% CI [0.42, 1.01], P = 0.06), compared to the single medication control. CONCLUSION The Lianhua Qingwen and Western medicine combination therapy is highly effective for COVID-19 patients and has good clinical safety. As only a small number of studies and patients were included in this review, more high-quality, multicenter, large-sample-size, randomized, double-blind, controlled trials are still needed for verification.
COVID-19 ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Multicenter Studies as Topic ; Pandemics ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Retrospective Studies ; SARS-CoV-2

OBJECTIVE To study the neuroprotective effects of Shenzao jianna o oral liquid （SZJN）on Alzheimer ’s disease （AD）model mice and its mechanism. METHODS The mice were randomly divided into sham operation group ，model group ， Donepezil hydrochloride tablet group （0.65 mg/kg），SZJN low-dose ，medium-dose and high-dose groups （0.3，1.5 and 7.5 g/kg， calculated by crude drug quantity ），with 12 mice in each group ，half male and half female. Each group was given relevant medicine（intragastric administration of water at constant volume in sham operation group and model group ），twice a day ，for consecutive 28 d. On the 15th day of administration ，intracerebroventricular injection of β-amyloid 1-42（Aβ1-42）combined with intraperitoneal injection of scopolamine hydrobromide were used to induce AD model. Morris water maze was used to detect the learning and memory ability of mice. HE staining and Nissl staining were used to evaluate the pathological changes of brain tissue in mice. The levels of MDA and SOD in brain tissue of mice were detected. The phosphorylation level of cyclic adenosine monophosphate response element binding protein （CREB） and expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor （BDNF） in hippocampal tissues were detected by Western blot. RESULTS Compared with sham operation group ，the escape latency of the model group was significantly prolonged ，and the number of crossing the platform and the percentage of residence time in the target quadrant were significantly reduced （P＜0.01）. The level of SOD in brain tissue ，the phosphorylation level of CREB and the expression level of BDNF in hippocampus decreased significantly （P＜0.01），while the level of MDA increased significantly （P＜ 0.01）. In hippocampal CA 1 area and cortical tissue ，nerve cells showed significantly decreased number ，the disordered arrangement and large gap ；the shape of nucleus was irregular and deeply stained ，and Nissl body was blurred ，loosely arranged and the number decreased. Compared with model group ，the escape latency of mice in each dose group of SZJN was significantly shortened ，and the times of crossing the platform and the percentage of residence time in the target quadrant were significantly jing- increased（P＜0.01）. Above indexes of brain tissue in mice were reversed sig nificantly in SZJN high-dose group （P＜0.01），and pathological damage of brain tiss ue was improved. CONCLUSIONS SZJN can significantly improve the learning and memory ability of AD model mice ，and alleviate the pathological injury and oxidative stress of brain tissue ，which may be related to the activation of CREB/BDNF signaling pathway.