Objective This study conducted molecular biological identification of the viruses carried by Culex pipiens pallens specimens collected in Shunyi District, Beijing in 2023, and observed the changes in the infection rate of the viruses carried by Cx. pipiens pallens at different collection times. Methods Cx. pipiens pallens were collected using carbon dioxide mosquito traps. The mosquito samples were ground in batches and analyzed by molecular biology technologies. The virus infection rate at different collection times was analyzed statistically. Results 17 strains of Culex pipiens pallens densovirus(CppDNV)were identified from Cx. pipiens pallens samples collected in Shunyi District, Beijing, in 2023. The nucleotide sequence analysis of the virus genome coding region showed that CppDNV was a single-stranded DNA virus with a total length of 3 335 nt, encoding 2 non-structural proteins(NS1, NS2)and 1 capsid protein(VP). The nucleotide(amino acid)sequence lengths of the three proteins were 2 376 nt(791 aa),1 092 nt(363 aa)and 1 071 nt(356 aa), respectively. Phylogenetic analysis showed that CppDNV was located in genus Brevihamaparvovirus. Statistical analysis showed no significant difference in infection rates across collection times(χ2=4.429, P=0.194). Conclusions CppDNV was identified in Cx. pipiens pallens in Beijing, and it was stably maintained in this natural population.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the effect of Astragalus (AST) on osteoporosis (OP) and the downstream mechanisms. METHODS: Human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) were induced to differentiate into osteogenic cells. After transfection with relevant plasmids, cell proliferation, cell cycle progression, and apoptosis were assessed. Alizarin red staining was used to detect calcium nodules in the cells, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) staining was used to detect ALP activity in the cells, and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and western blotting were used to determine RUNX2 and Osterix expression levels. An OP rat model was established using ovariectomy and micro-computed tomography scanning. Hematoxylin and eosin staining and Masson's trichrome staining were used to evaluate the pathological conditions of bone tissues, while immunohistochemistry was conducted to detect RUNX2 in bone tissues. RESULTS: AST promoted the osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs, reduced miR-181d-5p expression levels, and increased SOX11 expression levels. Restoring miR-181d-5p expression or reducing SOX11 expression levels reversed the effects of AST on the osteogenic differentiation of hBMSCs. miR-181d-5p was found to target SOX11 in hBMSCs. AST improved OP in rats, and miR-181d-5p overexpression or SOX11 inhibition reversed the therapeutic effects of AST on OP in rats. CONCLUSION AST promoted the osteogenic differentiation of hBMSCs and alleviated OP by targeting SOX11 via miR-181d-5p.
Osteogenesis/drug effects* ; Animals ; MicroRNAs/genetics* ; Mesenchymal Stem Cells/drug effects* ; Osteoporosis/drug therapy* ; Humans ; Cell Differentiation/drug effects* ; Astragalus Plant/chemistry* ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Female ; SOXC Transcription Factors/genetics* ; Plant Extracts/pharmacology* ; Cells, Cultured ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacology*

Sarin(GB)is a typical representative of nerve agents with high toxicity,and very low amount can cause death.GB can cause water and atmospheric environment poisoning,so the detection of GB in water and air is of great significance.In this work,a colorimetric sensor array(CSA)based on GB inhibition of cholinesterase activity was constructed to detect GB with high selectivity.A 4×4 colorimetric array was constructed using acetylcholinesterase(AChE),butyryl cholinesterase(BuChE)and the corresponding substrate acetylthiocholine iodide(S-ACh),butyryl thiocholine iodide(S-BCh),acetylcholine chloride(ACh),butyryl choline chloride(BCh)and 2,6-dichloroindophenol ethyl ester(DCIE).The linear curve of the sensor was Y=131.3×lgC+271.6(R2=0.997),where Y was the array response Euclidean distance,C was the concentration of GB(mg/L),the linear range was 0.03?0.32 mg/L,and the detection limit was 27.6 μg/L.The method could effectively distinguish chemical warfare agents(CWA)such as VX,Soman(GD),mustard gas(HD),Louie reagent(L),and had high anti-interference ability,sensitivity and good repeatability.It was successfully applied to the detection of GB in simulated water and simulated air samples,and the sample recovery rate was 97.2% ?100.9%.This method would be potentially applied to the field rapid detection of nerve agents.

Objective To develop a predictive model for postoperative mortality risk in patients with acute aortic dissection(AAD)using the Extreme Gradient Boosting(XGBoost)algorithm combined with Shapley Additive Explanation(SHAP),and to establish a prediction website to serve as a diagnostic and therapeutic support platform for clinicians and patients.Methods A retrospective cohort study design was adopted.Data from 782 AAD patients who underwent surgical treatment at the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University from January 2013 to December 2023 were collected,including basic information and initial serum biomarker test results.Patients were randomly divided into training and test sets at a 7:3 ratio.An external validation set consisting of 313 AAD patients admitted to the Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University from January 2020 to December 2023 was also established for further model validation.Variables were screened using LASSO regression,and an XGBoost machine learning model was constructed and interpreted using SHAP.The predictive performance of the model was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis.Using the Shiny package,the XGBoost model was deployed to shinyapps.io to create a prediction website for postoperative mortality risk in AAD patients.One patient was selected by simple random sampling from the test set and the external validation set respectively for the prediction example on the Shiny webpage.Results The XGBoost model demonstrated high predictive performance for postoperative mortality in AAD patients,with area under the ROC curve(AUC)values of 0.928(95%CI 0.901-0.956)in the training set,0.919(95%CI 0.891-0.949)in the test set,and 0.941(95%CI 0.915-0.967)in the external validation set.SHAP values indicated the following order of variable importance in the model(from highest to lowest):"lactate dehydrogenase""blood chlorine""multiple organ injury""carbon dioxide combining power""prothrombin time""α-hydroxybutyric acid""creatine kinase isoenzyme""Stanford classification""combined use of bedside blood purification""gender""acute kidney injury""gastrointestinal bleeding""brain injury"and"shock".A risk prediction website for adverse postoperative outcomes in AAD patients was developed using XGBoost-SHAP method(https://dun-dunxiaolu.shinyapps.io/document/)and validated with examples.One randomly selected patient from each of the test and external validation sets was applied:the predicted mortality risk value for patient 1(who died postoperatively)was 0.9539,and that for patient 2(who survived postoperatively)was 0.0206.Conclusions The XGBoost-SHAP model demonstrates high accuracy in predicting postoperative mortality risk for AAD patients.The online prediction tool established based on this model enhances the identification efficiency of high-risk postoperative mortality patients.

Background Although current evidence suggests a link between outdoor air pollution and depressive symptoms, the effect of solid fuel use (a significant indoor air pollutant) on depressive symptoms in China's rural middle-aged and elderly population remains poorly understood. Objective To explore the association between solid fuel use for cooking and depressive symptoms among middle-aged and elderly people in rural areas of China, and to provide a basis for the prevention and control of depressive symptoms among residents in rural areas. Methods Data were obtained from the 2020 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), depressive symptoms were assessed using 8-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and cooking fuel type was self-reported. Subsequently, two-level binary unconditional logistic regression models were fitted to assess the impact of solid fuel use for cooking on depressive symptoms. Results A total of 7991 participants aged 45 years and older [mean age (58.52±9.18) years] were included in the study, with a mean CES-D score of 6.07±4.48 and a mean positive depressive symptoms rate of 34% (40.54% in the solid fuel group and 30.81% in the clean fuel group, χ²=74.40, P<0.001). After controlling for potential confounding covariates, rural middle-aged and elderly residents in the solid fuel group had a higher risk of reporting depressive symptoms than those in the clean fuel group (OR=1.36, 95%CI: 1.20-1.54), an association that was unaffected by participant characteristics and was positive across age and gender groups. Conclusion There is a positive association between solid fuel use for cooking and depressive symptoms in middle-aged and elderly people in rural areas of China. It is recommended that rural areas promote the upgrading of stoves through the installation of ventilation equipment or the switch from solid cooking fuel to clean fuel. This approach is directed toward reducing exposure to household air pollution, alleviating the prevalence of depression among middle-aged and elderly residents in vast rural areas, and enhancing their mental health.

Ginsenoside Rg_2(GRg2) is a triterpenoid compound found in Panax notoginseng. This study explored its effects and mechanisms on diabetic retinopathy and angiogenesis. The study employed endothelial cell models induced by glucose or vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF), the chorioallantoic membrane(CAM) model, the oxygen-induced retinopathy(OIR) mouse model, and the db/db mouse model to evaluate the therapeutic effects of GRg2 on diabetic retinopathy and angiogenesis. Transwell assays and endothelial tube formation experiments were conducted to assess cell migration and tube formation, while vascular area measurements were applied to detect angiogenesis. The impact of GRg2 on the retinal structure and function of db/db mice was evaluated through retinal thickness and electroretinogram(ERG) analyses. The study investigated the mechanisms of GRg2 by analyzing the activation of Yes-associated protein(YAP) and Toll-like receptors(TLRs) pathways. The results indicated that GRg2 significantly reduced cell migration numbers and tube formation lengths in vitro. In the CAM model, GRg2 exhibited a dose-dependent decrease in the vascular area ratio. In the OIR model, GRg2 notably decreased the avascular and neovascular areas, ameliorating retinal structural disarray. In the db/db mouse model, GRg2 increased the total retinal thickness and enhanced the amplitudes of the a-wave, b-wave, and oscillatory potentials(OPs) in the ERG, improving retinal structural disarray. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that the TLR signaling pathway was significantly down-regulated following YAP knockdown, with PCR results consistent with the transcriptome sequencing findings. Concurrently, GRg2 downregulated the expression of Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4), TNF receptor-associated factor 6(TRAF6), and nuclear factor-kappaB(NF-κB) proteins in high-glucose-induced endothelial cells. Collectively, GRg2 inhibits cell migration and tube formation and significantly reduces angiogenesis in CAM and OIR models, improving retinal structure and function in db/db mice, with its pharmacological mechanism likely involving the down-regulation of YAP expression.
Animals ; Ginsenosides/pharmacology* ; Diabetic Retinopathy/physiopathology* ; Mice ; YAP-Signaling Proteins ; Humans ; Male ; Signal Transduction/drug effects* ; Cell Movement/drug effects* ; Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing/genetics* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Neovascularization, Pathologic/metabolism* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Panax notoginseng/chemistry* ; Endothelial Cells/metabolism* ; Transcription Factors/genetics* ; Angiogenesis

The general models for intermediates quality analysis in the production process of Yaobitong capsule were established by near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) combined with chemometrics, realizing the rapid determination of notoginsenoside R1, ginsenoside Rg1, ginsenoside Re, ginsenoside Rb1, ginsenoside Rd and moisture. The spray-dried fine powder and total mixed granule were selected as research objects. The contents of five saponins were determined by high performance liquid chromatography and the moisture content was determined by drying method. The measured contents were used as reference values. Meanwhile, NIR spectra were collected. After removing abnormal samples by Monte Carlo cross validation (MCCV), Monte Carlo uninformative variables elimination (MC-UVE) and competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) were used to select feature variables respectively. Based on the feature variables, quantitative models were established by partial least squares regression (PLSR), extreme learning machine (ELM) and ant lion optimization least squares support vector machine (ALO-LSSVM). The results showed that CARS-ALO-LSSVM model had the optimum effect. The correlation coefficients of the six index components were greater than 0.93, and the relative standard errors were controlled within 6%. ALO-LSSVM was more suitable for a large number of samples with rich information, and the prediction effect and stability of the model were significantly improved. The general models with good predicting effect can be used for the rapid quality determination of Yaobitong capsule intermediates.

Objective:To construct and evaluate a risk warning model for enteral nutrition associated diarrhea(ENAD)in acute stroke patients based on logistic regression and Nomogram.Methods:This study was a retrospective study,a total of 172 patients with acute stroke who were admitted to Yancheng First People's Hospital from January 2022 to May 2024 were selected,and clinical data of patients were collected.Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the influencing factors of ENAD occurrence,based on the results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis,a Nomogram warning model was constructed,the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of the Nomogram warning model for the risk of ENAD occurrence in patients with acute stroke.Results:Univariate analysis showed that,the occurrence of ENAD in patients with acute stroke was related to fasting time,mechanical ventilation,oral potassium preparations,albumin,number of types of antibiotics used,acute physiology and chronic health status Ⅱ(APACHE Ⅱ)score,enteral nutrition infusion rate,length of stay in the intensive care unit(ICU),use of proton pump inhibitors,duration of antibiotic use,use of gastrointestinal prokinetic drugs,and daily enteral nutrition infusion volume(P＜0.05).The results of multiple logistic regression analysis showed that,high APACHE Ⅱ score,prolonged use of antibiotics,low albumin,use of gastrointestinal prokinetic drugs,oral potassium preparations,prolonged fasting time,and rapid enteral nutrition infusion were risk factors for ENAD in patients with acute stroke(P＜0.05).Construct and validate a Nomogram warning model based on the results of multiple logistic regression analysis.After evaluation,the model fits well with an area under the curve(AUC)of 0.823,indicating high predictive value for ENAD occurrence in patients with acute stroke.Conclusion:High APACHE Ⅱ score,prolonged use of antibiotics,low albumin,use of gastrointestinal prokinetic drugs,oral potassium preparations,prolonged fasting time,and rapid enteral nutrition infusion are risk factors for ENAD in patients with acute stroke.The Nomogram warning model constructed based on the above indicators has high predictive value for the occurrence of ENAD in patients with acute stroke.

Objective:To construct and evaluate a risk warning model for enteral nutrition associated diarrhea(ENAD)in acute stroke patients based on logistic regression and Nomogram.Methods:This study was a retrospective study,a total of 172 patients with acute stroke who were admitted to Yancheng First People's Hospital from January 2022 to May 2024 were selected,and clinical data of patients were collected.Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the influencing factors of ENAD occurrence,based on the results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis,a Nomogram warning model was constructed,the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was applied to analyze the predictive value of the Nomogram warning model for the risk of ENAD occurrence in patients with acute stroke.Results:Univariate analysis showed that,the occurrence of ENAD in patients with acute stroke was related to fasting time,mechanical ventilation,oral potassium preparations,albumin,number of types of antibiotics used,acute physiology and chronic health status Ⅱ(APACHE Ⅱ)score,enteral nutrition infusion rate,length of stay in the intensive care unit(ICU),use of proton pump inhibitors,duration of antibiotic use,use of gastrointestinal prokinetic drugs,and daily enteral nutrition infusion volume(P＜0.05).The results of multiple logistic regression analysis showed that,high APACHE Ⅱ score,prolonged use of antibiotics,low albumin,use of gastrointestinal prokinetic drugs,oral potassium preparations,prolonged fasting time,and rapid enteral nutrition infusion were risk factors for ENAD in patients with acute stroke(P＜0.05).Construct and validate a Nomogram warning model based on the results of multiple logistic regression analysis.After evaluation,the model fits well with an area under the curve(AUC)of 0.823,indicating high predictive value for ENAD occurrence in patients with acute stroke.Conclusion:High APACHE Ⅱ score,prolonged use of antibiotics,low albumin,use of gastrointestinal prokinetic drugs,oral potassium preparations,prolonged fasting time,and rapid enteral nutrition infusion are risk factors for ENAD in patients with acute stroke.The Nomogram warning model constructed based on the above indicators has high predictive value for the occurrence of ENAD in patients with acute stroke.

Objective:To analyze the expression and significance of circ-BCAR3 in gastric cancer tissues, and to explore the effect and molecular mechanism of silencing circ-BCAR3 on the proliferation and invasion of gastric cancer cells. Methods:The expression of circ-BCAR3 in gastric cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues was analyzed using the UCSC database. The relationship between circ-BCAR3 expression and the survival rate of gastric cancer patients was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method. Small interfering RNA (siRNA)-negative control (si-NC) and si-circ-BCAR3 were transfected into gastric cancer BGC823 cells, and recorded as si-circ-BCAR3 group and si-NC group, respectively. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR (RT-qPCR) was used to detect the expression of circ-BCAR3 gene in gastric cancer NCI-N87, AGS, BGC823, HS-746T, SGC7901 cells, and immortalized gastric mucosal epithelial GES-1 cells. The proliferation and invasion abilities of BGC823 cells were detected by clone formation assay and Transwell assay, respectively. The binding sites of circ-BCAR3 and miR-145-5p were predicted using the online Circinteractome platform, and their targeting relationship was verified by a dual luciferase reporter gene assay. The relationship between the expression of circ-BCAR3 and miR-145-5p in gastric cancer tissues was analyzed using the UCSC database. The expression levels of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2) signaling pathway proteins, including phosphorylated VEGFR-2 (p-VEGFR-2), phosphorylated phospholipase C-λ (p-PLC-λ), phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (p-Erk), and phosphorylated P38 (p-P38), were detected in BGC823 cells using Western blotting analysis. Results:The relative expression level of circ-BCAR3 in gastric cancer tissues (8.04±2.34) was significantly higher than that in adjacent normal tissues (2.53±1.74), and the difference was statistically significant ( P<0.01). The survival rate of gastric cancer patients with low circ-BCAR3 expression was higher than that of gastric cancer patients with high circ-BCAR3 expression, and the difference was statistically significant ( P<0.05). The relative expression levels of circ-BCAR3 in NCI-N87, HS-746T, AGS, BGC823, and SGC7901 cells (5.05±0.36, 3.50±0.21, 2.87±0.38, 6.80±0.29, and 3.77±0.53) were all higher than those in GES-1 cells (1.02±0.21), and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.01). The number of clones formed in the si-NC group and si-circ-BCAR3 group were [(126.70±21.78) and (44.89±8.33) unit], respectively, and the number of invasive cells were [(53.81±5.92) and (24.91±4.56) unit], respectively, with statistically significant differences ( P<0.01). The AACUGGA sequence in circ-BCAR3 was found to have the capacity to bind to the UUGACCU sequence in miR-145-5p. The luciferase activity of wild type circ-BCAR3 (WT- circ-BCAR3)+ miR-145-5p group (0.26±0.03) was lower than that of WT- circ-BCAR3+miR-NC group (1.00±0.05), and the difference was statistically significant ( P<0.01). In contrast, for the miR-NC, the luciferase activities of the mutant- circ-BCAR3 (MUT- circ-BCAR3)+ miR-145-5p and MUT- circ-BCAR3+ miR-NC groups were (1.07±0.12) and (1.00±0.09), and the differences were not statistically significant ( P>0.05). The expression of circ-BCAR3 and miR-145-5p showed a negative correlation in gastric cancer tissues ( R=0.82, P<0.01). The relative expression levels of VEGFR-2 signaling pathway proteins p-VEGFR-2, p-PLC-λ, p-Erk, and p-P38 in BGC823 cells in the si-circ-BCAR3 group (1.08±0.21, 1.50±0.21, 3.01±0.25, and 0.46±0.10) were lower than those in the si-NC group (5.22±0.17, 5.56±0.19, 6.63±0.31, and 4.24±0.16), and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Conclusions:The expression of circ-BCAR3 is elevated in gastric cancer tissues and cells. Furthermore, silencing of circ-BCAR3 may inhibit the proliferation and invasion of BGC823 cells by regulating the miR-145-5p/VEGFR-2 signaling pathway.