ObjectiveTo provide a basis for the establishment of an ideal animal model of allergic asthma by statistically analyzing the modeling characteristics and the selection of indicators of the available models. MethodsWe retrieved the relevant articles from China National Knowledge Infrastructure（CNKI）， VIP， Wanfang Data， SinoMed， and PubMed with "allergic asthma" as the keyword and the time interval from January 2019 to January 2024. Through integrating the literature and extracting data， we used Excel 2021 to create a personal database and sorted out the animal strains， genders， allergenic substances， modeling routes， and test indicators and methods. Excel 2021， Cytoscape 3.10.2， and SPSS Modeler 18.0 were then used to analyze the relevant characteristics of the animal models. ResultsA total of 418 articles were included in the database， and the comparative analysis showed that the most frequently used animal strain for modeling was BALB/c mice， and female animals were mostly used. The main modeling method was sensitization by intraperitoneal injection of ovalbumin （OVA）， which was combined with intranasal inhalation. The test indicators mainly included appearance signs， cellular analysis， lung histopathology， lung function indicators， and protein and gene expression in the lung. The test methods mainly involved pathological staining， enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay， immunohistochemistry， immunofluorescence， Western blot， and polymerase chain reaction（PCR） assays. ConclusionThere is no recognized modeling method or evaluation standard for the animal models of allergic asthma. Based on the results of data analysis， the OVA-induced allergic asthma model in BALB/c mice is recommended. The main criteria for evaluating the success of modeling are the general behavioral changes， the morphological changes of the airway and inflammatory cell infiltration in the lung tissue， the changes of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in the serum， and the alterations of inflammatory cells in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid.

Objective To organize a nationwide interlaboratory comparison for measurement of gross α and gross β radioactivity in water, and improve the laboratory analysis of gross α and gross β radioactivity in water. Methods A unified comparison protocol was developed by the organizers. The groundwater with high natural radioactivity was used as water sample and distributed randomly to the participating laboratories. The participating laboratories used routine analytical methods to measure the samples and provided information such as analytical results, original records, and test reports. The results were evaluated using z-score. Results A total of 76 laboratories participated in the comparison, all employing the evaporation concentration-α/β counting method. Among them, 69 laboratories achieved |z| ≤ 2 for both gross α and gross β radioactivity measurements, and 32 laboratories achieved |z| ≤ 0.50 for both gross α and gross β radioactivity measurements. There were 69 laboratories with qualified results and 30 laboratories with excellent results, yielding a qualified rate of 90.8% and an excellent rate of 39.5%. Seven laboratories showed unqualified results and the unqualified rate was 9.2%. Conclusion Most laboratories have the ability to analyze gross α and gross β radioactivity in water. The main reasons for the deviation in comparison results are calibration efficiency, errors in the total residue mass caused by improper water sample processing operations. By analyzing the main technical problems existed in unqualified laboratories, their ability for measurement of gross α and gross β radioactivity in water has been improved.

Purpose: To investigate the therapeutic potential of eliminating insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 5 (IGFBP5) expression in improving erectile function in mice with cavernous nerve injury (CNI)-induced erectile dysfunction (ED). Materials and Methods: Eight-week-old male C57BL/6 mice were divided into four groups: a sham-operated group and three CNI-induced ED groups. The CNI-induced ED groups were treated with intracavernous injections 3 days before the CNI procedure.These injections included phosphate-buffered saline, scrambled control short hairpin RNA (shRNA), or shRNA targeting mouse IGFBP5 lentiviral particles. One week after CNI, erectile function was evaluated and the penile tissue was then harvested for histological examination and western blot analysis. Additionally, the major pelvic ganglia (MPG) and dorsal root ganglia (DRG) were cultured for ex vivo neurite outgrowth assays. Results: Following CNI, IGFBP5 expression in the cavernous tissues significantly increased, reaching its peak at day 7. First, ablation of IGFBP5 expression promotes neurite sprouting in MPG and DRG when exposed to lipopolysaccharide. Second, ablating IGFBP5 expression in CNI-induced ED mice improved erectile function, likely owing to increased neurovascular contents, including endothelial cells, pericytes, and neuronal processes. Third, ablating IGFBP5 expression in CNI-induced ED mice promoted neurovascular regeneration by increasing cell proliferation, reducing apoptosis, and decreasing Reactive oxygen species production. Finally, western blot analysis demonstrated that IGFBP5 ablation attenuated the JNK/c-Jun signaling pathway, activated the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, and increased vascular endothelial growth factor and neurotrophic factor expression. Conclusions Ablating IGFBP5 expression enhanced neurovascular regeneration and ultimately improved erectile function in CNI-induced ED mice.

BACKGROUND: In China, lung cancer remains the cancer with the highest incidence and mortality rate. Among early-stage lung adenocarcinomas (LUAD), the micropapillary (MPP) component is prevalent and typically exhibits high aggressiveness, significantly correlating with early metastasis, lymphatic infiltration, and reduced five-year survival rates. Therefore, the study is to explore the similarities and differences between MPP and non-micropapillary (non-MPP) components in malignant pulmonary nodules characterized by GGOs in early-stage LUAD, identify unique mutational features of the MPP component and analyze the relationship between the ZNF469 gene, a member of the zinc-finger protein family, and the prognosis of early-stage LUAD, as well as its correlation with immune infiltration. METHODS: A total of 31 malignant pulmonary nodules of LUAD were collected and dissected into paired MPP and non-MPP components using microdissection. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed on the components of early-stage malignant pulmonary nodules. Mutational signatures analysis was conducted using R packages such as maftools, Nonnegative Matrix Factorization (NMF), and Sigminer to unveil the genomic mutational characteristics unique to MPP components in invasive LUAD compared to other tumor tissues. Furthermore, we explored the expression of the ZNF469 gene in LUAD using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to investigate its potential association with the prognosis. We also investigated gene interaction networks and signaling pathways related to ZNF469 in LUAD using the GeneMANIA database and conducted Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis. Lastly, we analyzed the correlation between ZNF469 gene expression and levels of immune cell infiltration in LUAD using the TIMER and TISIDB databases. RESULTS: MPP components exhibited a higher number of genomic variations, particularly the 13th COSMIC (Catalogue of Somatic Mutations in Cancer) mutational signature characterized by the activity of the cytidine deaminase APOBEC family, which was unique to MPP components compared to non-MPP components in tumor tissues. This suggests the potential involvement of APOBEC in the progression of MPP components in early-stage LUAD. Additionally, MPP samples with high similarity to APOBEC signature displayed a higher tumor mutational burden (TMB), indicating that these patients may be more likely to benefit from immunotherapy. The expression of ZNF469 was significantly upregulated in LUAD compared to normal tissue, and was associated with poor prognosis in LUAD patients (P<0.05). Gene interaction network analysis and GO/KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that COL6A1, COL1A1, COL1A2, TGFB2, MMP2, COL8A2 and C2CD4C interacted with ZNF469 and were mainly involved in encoding collagen proteins and participating in the constitution of extracellular matrix. ZNF469 expression was positively correlated with immune cell infiltration in LUAD (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS The study has unveiled distinctive mutational signatures in the MPP components of early-stage invasive LUAD in the Asian population. Furthermore, we have identified that the elevated expression of mutated ZNF469 impacts the prognosis and immune infiltration in LUAD, suggesting its potential as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in LUAD.
Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/genetics* ; Adenocarcinoma of Lung/genetics* ; China ; Prognosis ; Transcription Factors

Trace elements (TEs), also known as micronutrients in biology, are trace components required by the human body, accounting for 0.005% to 0.01% of body weight. Although TEs are present in small quantities in the human body, they play significant roles in cellular metabolism, enzyme activity regulation, immune function, nerve conduction, and bone health. In this review, the effects of TEs (zinc, iron, magnesium, selenium, copper, chromium, and manganese) for modulating biological functions on organisms are comprehensively analyzed and summarized. The mechanisms of various TEs in immune system, enzymatic reaction, oxidative stress, physical growth, and blood glucose regulation are deeply discussed, emphasizing the indispensable role of TEs in maintaining normal physiological functions of body. In addition, the future research directions of TEs are also prospected, including the mechanism of action, intake, metabolism, and storage of TEs at the cellular level. This review will provide useful information to further understand the biological effects and the application of TEs.

ObjectiveTo explore the effect of grain-sized moxibustion at "Zhongwan （RN12）" "Tianshu （ST25）" and "Shangjuxu （ST37）" on the colon tissue of mice with ulcerative colitis （UC）， and to analyze the potential mechanism. MethodsForty C57BL/6 male mice were randomly divided into blank group， model group， moxibustion group and mesalazine group， with 10 mice in each group. In all the groups except for the blank group， UC mouse model was prepared by freely drinking 3% sodium dextran sulfate solution. After successful modeling， the moxibustion group was treated with grain-sized moxibustion at Zhongwan， Tianshu and Shangjuxu ， 3 cones per acupoint， 30 s of each cone. The mesalazine group was given 300 mg/kg of mesalazine enteric-coated tablet solution by gavage. The blank group and the model group were only fixed by grasping without any intervention. Each group was intervened once a day for 7 consecutive days. The general condition of mice in each group was observed， and the disease activity index （DAI） score was evaluated. The colon length， intestinal weight and colon mucosal injury score were detected. The contents of serum intercellular adhesion molecule-1 （ICAM-1）， interleukin-6 （IL-6） and tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） were detected by ELISA. The pathological changes of colon tissue were observed by HE staining. The mRNA and protein expressions of non-receptor tyrosine protein kinase 2 （JAK2）， signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 （STAT3） and suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 （SOCS3） in colon tissue of mice were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and immunohistochemistry， respectively. The mean fluorescence intensity of JAK2 and SOCS3 in colon tissue of mice was detected by immunofluorescence double staining. ResultsCompared to the blank group， the mice in the model group had unclean perianal area， unformed stool， destroyed colonic mucosal morphology， shortened body weight and colon length， increased DAI score， intestinal weight index， colonic mucosal injury and pathological score， serum ICAM-1， IL-6 and TNF-α levels， increased mRNA and protein expression of JAK2 and STAT3 in colon tissue， and decreased mRNA and protein expression of SOCS3 （P＜0.01）. Compared to those in the model group， the perianal area of mice in the moxibustion group and the mesalazine group was improved， and the colonic mucosal morphology was more complete； body weight and colon length increased， while DAI score， intestinal weight index， colonic mucosal injury and pathological score， serum ICAM-1， IL-6 and TNF-α levels decreased， with decreased mRNA and protein expression of JAK2 and STAT3 in colon tissue， and increased SOCS3 mRNA and protein expression （ P＜0.01 or P＜0.05 ）. There was no significant difference in any index between the moxibustion group and the mesalazine group. ConclusionGrain-sized moxibustion at "Zhongwan"， "Tianshu" and "Shangjuxu" can improve the damage of colon mucosa in UC model mice， and the mechanism may be related to the key factors regulating JAK2 / STAT3 signaling pathway based on SOCS3.

OBJECTIVE To establish a method for the content determination of 11 components such as protodioscin in Guge fengtong tablets， and to evaluate the comprehensive quality of Guge fengtong tablets by combining with chemometric analysis and entropy weight-technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution （EW-TOPSIS） method. METHODS HPLC method was adopted. The determination was performed on Agilent Eclipse Plus C18 column with a mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile- 0.2% phosphoric acid solution at the flow rate of 1.0 mL/min by gradient elution. The column temperature was set at 30 ℃ . The detection wavelengths were set at 203 nm （0-28 min， protodioscin， methyl protodioscin， pseudoprotodioscin， dioscin） and 280 nm （28-60 min， catechin， epicatechin， liquiritigenin， medicarpin， 6-gingerol， 8-gingerol， 10-gingerol）； the sample size was 10 μL. Using epicatechin as the internal reference， quantitative analysis of multi-components by single marker （QAMS） method was used to determine the contents of protodioscin， methyl protodioscin， pseudoprotodioscin， dioscin， catechin， liquiritigenin， medicarpin， 6-gingerol， 8-gingerol and 10-gingerol， which were compared with the results of the external standard method. SPSS 26.0 software and SIMCA 14.1 software were used for principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis， with variable importance in projection （VIP） value greater than 1 as the standard， to screen for differential markers that affect the quality； the EW-TOPSIS method was adopted to evaluate the quality of 15 batches of samples comprehensively.RESULTS The contents of protodioscin， methyl protodioscin， pseudoprotodioscin， dioscin， catechin， liquiritigenin， medi-carpin， 6-gingerol， 8-gingerol and 10-gingerol determined by HPLC combined with QAMS were 6.330-10.863， 1.150-2.274， 0.431- 0.740， 2.818-4.823， 0.826-1.510， 0.043-0.094， 0.079-0.231， 0.479-1.020， 0.146-0.288， 0.118-0.318 mg/g， respectively； there were no statistical significances， compared with the external standard method （P＞0.05）. A total of 15 batches of samples were clustered into 3 groups， with S1-S6， S7-S10， and S11-S15 clustered into one group， respectively. The VIP values of protodioscin， epicatechin， dioscin and 6-gingerol were greater than 1. Euclidean closeness values of the optimal solution （C）i for 15 batches of samples were 0.163 5 to 0.703 7， and Ci values of S11-S15 were all higher than 0.6. CONCLUSIONS The established QAMS method is accurate and simple， and can be used for comprehensive quality evaluation of Guge fengtong tablets， by combining with chemometric analysis and EW-TOPSIS method. Protodioscin， epicatechin， dioscin and 6-gingerol are the differential markers that affect the quality of Guge fengtong tablets. Samples S11-S15 have better quality.

Objective To study the correlation between traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)constitution and pathogenic factors in patients with ankylosing spondylitis(AS).Methods One hundred patients of AS and their family members who had medical consultation in the Fifth Hospital of Xi'an(i.e.,Shaanxi Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine)in August 2019 and September 2020 were selected as the study subjects.The guidelines of Classification and Determination of Traditional Chinese Medicine Constitution issued by the China Association of Chinese Medicine were adopted to determine the traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)constitution types of the study subjects.The sociodemographic information,living habits,clinical symptoms,and TCM constitution types of the AS patients and their family members were collected by means of questionnaires and clinical investigations,and then the pathogenic factors of the patients with AS were investigated.The binomial Logistic regression model was used to analyze the correlation between TCM constitution types and pathogenic factors in patients with AS.Results(1)Among the 100 AS patients,the majority of them had the biased constitutions,and the biased constitutions with the occurrence frequency in descending order were yang deficiency constitution,qi deficiency constitution,and damp-heat constitution,which accounted for 33.00%,14.00%,and 18.00%,respectively.(2)The prevalence rates of AS in the first-,second-,and third-degree relatives of AS patients were 56.25%,40.00%and 25.00%,respectively.For the positive rates of human leukocyte antigen B27(HLA-B27)in AS patients and their family members,HLA-B27 in AS patients was all positive,while the positive rates of HLA-B27 in the first-,second-,and third-degree relatives of AS patients were 44.31%,30.67%and 15.63%,respectively.(3)The results of regression analysis showed that the disease duration of AS patients was significantly correlated with qi deficiency constitution,the grading of sacroiliac arthritis was correlated with qi stagnation constitution,and age was correlated with blood stasis constitution(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).The results indicated that disease duration and age were the important factors affecting the constitution types of AS patients,and disease duration was closely related to qi deficiency while age was closely related to blood stasis.Conclusion AS is a highly hereditary autoimmune disease,and its onset is associated with HLA-B27.Yang deficiency is the basic constitution type of AS,and damp-heat constitution is the main constitution type in the progression of AS(especially in the active stage of the disease).The prolongation of the disease will exacerbate the illness condition of AS and then the manifestations of qi deficiency will be more obvious.

Objective·To investigate the effect of Astragali Radix on T lymphocyte subsets and cytokine expression in Hashimoto's thyroiditis patients with normal thyroid function.Methods·A total of 120 Hashimoto's thyroiditis patients with normal thyroid function and complete data were selected from January 2020 to December 2020 in Jinshan Branch of Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital.The patients were randomly divided into intervention group(n=60)and control group(n=60)by the method of random number table.The treatment plan of the control group was iodine appropriate state diet,and the intervention group was combined with oral Astragali Radix solution(150 mL per time,twice/d)on the basis of the treatment of the control group.The two groups were treated for 6 months.The changes in peripheral blood serum T lymphocyte subsets(CD3+,CD4+,CD8+,and CD4+/CD8+),cytokines[interleukin-2(IL-2),tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),interleukin-6(IL-6),and interleukin-10(IL-10)],hypersensitive C-reactive protein(hs-CRP),erythrocyte sedimentation rate(ESR),thyroid function,autoantibody,liver and kidney function,and other biochemical indexes were compared before and after treatment between the two groups.Adverse reactions were observed during the treatment.The factors influencing the change amplitude of thyroid peroxidase antibody(TPOAb)were analyzed by multifactor linear regression.Results·Finally,118 patients,with 59 cases in each group,were included in the study.After 6 months of treatment,the intervention group showed significant improvements in the proportions of CD4+ T cells,the ratio of CD4+/CD8+,and the levels of IL-2,TNF-α,IL-10,hs-CRP,ESR,TPOAb,and thyroglobulin antibody(TGAb)compared to the values before treatment and in the control group(P<0.05).There were no statistically significant differences on the above indicators before and after treatment in the control group(P>0.05).No serious adverse reactions were observed in the intervention group.Multiple linear regression analysis results showed that the use of Astragali Radix,increase of CD4+ level,increase of CD4+/CD8+ ratio,and decrease of hs-CRP level were influencing factors for the decrease of TPOAb level(β=-0.393,P=0.029;β=-0.513,P=0.010;β=-0.351,P= 0.035;β=0.434,P=0.023).Conclusion·Astragali Radix can improve the levels of CD4+ T cells,CD4+/CD8+ratio,IL-2,TNF-α,IL-6,and IL-10 in Hashimoto's thyroiditis patients with normal thyroid function,and it is safe to use.

Objective: To analyze the characteristics of influenza virus detection in an influenza outbreak in schools, so as to provide a strategic basis for the treatment of influenza outbreaks in schools. Methods: A total of 1 702 samples were collected from 52 school influenza outbreaks reported in Linyi City in 2021-2022. The samples were divided into 3 types according to different symptoms during the management of the epidemic [group A:influenzalike illness (ILI) group; group B:mild illness group; group C:close contacts group]. Rt-PCR was used to detect influenza virus nucleic acid in the collected samples. The detection rate of influenza virus in the outbreaks was analyzed by χ2 test. Results: In total, 1 071 samples (62.93%) tested positive for influenza virus nucleic acid. Among them, 610 out of 726 samples (84.02%) were detected in group A, while 331 out of 634 samples (52.21%) were detected in group B. In group C, 130 out of 342 samples (38.01%) tested positive. The differences were statistically significant (χ2=260.71, P<0.01). In group A, males had a detection rate of 80.83% for influenza virus nucleic acid, compared to 91.36% for females. For group B, the rates were 53.31% for males and 50.87% for females. In group C, males had a rate of 30.72%, while females had a rate of 43.92%. Statistical significance for gender differences was observed only in groups A and C (χ2=12.67, 6.25, P<0.05). According to the days of onset, the detection rates of influenza virus nucleic acid among patients with onset 0-6 days were 56.30%, 74.49%, 89.35%, 86.23%, 69.67%, 62.75%, 34.33%, respectively, and the difference was statistically significant (χ2=128.27, P<0.01). Conclusions Mild cases and close contacts are likely key factors contributing to the prolonged emergence of new cases within classrooms during school influenza outbreaks. The progression of influenza symptoms is related to the risk of transmission.