Liver cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in the digestive system and ranks sixth among newly diagnosed malignant tumors worldwide. Transforming growth factor-β （TGF-β） regulates cell differentiation， proliferation， apoptosis， and other physiological and pathological mechanisms and exerts cancer-suppressive and pro-cancerous dual effects in the process of tumor development. In recent years， with the continuous exploration of the mechanism of liver cancer， it has been found that the conversion of the cancer-suppressive effect into a pro-cancerous effect of this pathway plays a key role in the development of liver cancer. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） provides a unique perspective for the classification， diagnosis， and treatment of liver cancer with its comprehensive regulatory effects of multi-components， multi-targets， and multi-pathways. This paper summarized that the cancer-suppressive mechanisms of the TGF-β signaling pathway included promoting cancer cell cycle arrest， apoptosis， autophagy， et al， while the pro-cancerous mechanisms included promoting cancer cell proliferation， invasion and metastasis， immunosuppression， angiogenesis， et al. The TCM compounds intervening this pathway were sorted out， including Jianpi Huayu compound， Fuyang Baoyuan compound， Yipi Yanggan compound， Fuzheng Jiedu compound， compound Astragalus and Salvia， Biejia Jianwan， Dahuang Zhechong pill， and Qingxiang powder. The single TCMs mainly included Schizocapsa plantaginea， Dendrobii Caulis， Gleditsia sinensis， and Dracaena cochinchinensis. The active ingredients of TCM are mainly concentrated on flavonoids， alkaloids， glycosides， phenolics， terpenoids， polysaccharides， and other kinds of compounds. At the same time， it summarized that the liver cancer inhibition mechanism of TCM by regulating this pathway mainly included promoting apoptosis of liver cancer cells， blocking the cell cycle， and inhibiting liver cancer cell proliferation， migration， invasion， angiogenesis， immune escape， etc. The mechanism aims to give full play to the advantages of TCM and precisely regulate the TGF-β signal， thereby exerting positive anti-tumor effects， opening up a new direction for the precise targeted treatment of liver cancer， and providing a scientific basis and a new strategy for the application of TCM in the treatment of liver cancer.

Liver cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in the digestive system and ranks sixth among newly diagnosed malignant tumors worldwide. Transforming growth factor-β （TGF-β） regulates cell differentiation， proliferation， apoptosis， and other physiological and pathological mechanisms and exerts cancer-suppressive and pro-cancerous dual effects in the process of tumor development. In recent years， with the continuous exploration of the mechanism of liver cancer， it has been found that the conversion of the cancer-suppressive effect into a pro-cancerous effect of this pathway plays a key role in the development of liver cancer. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） provides a unique perspective for the classification， diagnosis， and treatment of liver cancer with its comprehensive regulatory effects of multi-components， multi-targets， and multi-pathways. This paper summarized that the cancer-suppressive mechanisms of the TGF-β signaling pathway included promoting cancer cell cycle arrest， apoptosis， autophagy， et al， while the pro-cancerous mechanisms included promoting cancer cell proliferation， invasion and metastasis， immunosuppression， angiogenesis， et al. The TCM compounds intervening this pathway were sorted out， including Jianpi Huayu compound， Fuyang Baoyuan compound， Yipi Yanggan compound， Fuzheng Jiedu compound， compound Astragalus and Salvia， Biejia Jianwan， Dahuang Zhechong pill， and Qingxiang powder. The single TCMs mainly included Schizocapsa plantaginea， Dendrobii Caulis， Gleditsia sinensis， and Dracaena cochinchinensis. The active ingredients of TCM are mainly concentrated on flavonoids， alkaloids， glycosides， phenolics， terpenoids， polysaccharides， and other kinds of compounds. At the same time， it summarized that the liver cancer inhibition mechanism of TCM by regulating this pathway mainly included promoting apoptosis of liver cancer cells， blocking the cell cycle， and inhibiting liver cancer cell proliferation， migration， invasion， angiogenesis， immune escape， etc. The mechanism aims to give full play to the advantages of TCM and precisely regulate the TGF-β signal， thereby exerting positive anti-tumor effects， opening up a new direction for the precise targeted treatment of liver cancer， and providing a scientific basis and a new strategy for the application of TCM in the treatment of liver cancer.

Objective: To define the mechanism by which swine TRIM25 restricts vesicular stomatitis virus replication. Methods: Porcine 3D4/21 cells with TRIM25 overexpression or knockdown were infected with vesicular stomatitis virus. Viral replication was quantified by immunoblotting, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, and 50% tissue culture infectious dose assays. Type I interferon signaling was assessed by transcript quantification, interferon-beta and interferon-stimulated response element reporter assays, and co-immunoprecipitation.Viral RNA binding was tested by RNA immunoprecipitation. Results: TRIM25 overexpression reduced viral RNA and infectious titers, whereas TRIM25 knockdown increased replication (p < 0.01). TRIM25 increased interferon-beta and interferon-stimulated gene expression and enhanced interferon-beta and interferonstimulated response element promoter activity (p < 0.01). Mechanistically, TRIM25 promoted Lys63-linked ubiquitination of RIG-I and increased phosphorylation of TANK-binding kinase 1 and interferon regulatory factor 3. TRIM25 also bound vesicular stomatitis virus genomic RNA, and binding required the C-terminal region. Conclusions and Relevance: Porcine TRIM25 restricts vesicular stomatitis virus replication by amplifying type I interferon signaling and directly binding viral RNA.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of a combination therapy regimen comprising stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) combined with liposomal irinotecan, camrelizumab, and anti-angiogenic therapy (CAP) in patients with advanced bone and soft tissue sarcomas. Methods This study is a prospective subgroup analysis of the multicenter, open-label, single-arm phase Ⅱ CAP trial (NCT04569916), which enrolled 60 patients with advanced solid tumors who had progressed after standard therapy between November 2020 and February 2023, including 11 patients with advanced bone and soft tissue sarcomas. All patients received sequential liposomal irinotecan within 48 hours after stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), followed by maintenance therapy with camrelizumab and an anti-angiogenic agent until disease progression or intolerable toxicity. The primary efficacy endpoint was objective response rate (ORR). Secondary endpoints included disease control rate (DCR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety. Results In the bone and soft tissue sarcoma subgroup (n=11), three patients achieved partial response (PR), five had stable disease (SD), and three experienced disease progression (PD). ORR was 27.3%, and DCR was 72.7%. mPFS was 5.8 months (95%CI: 2.2-10.3), and mOS not reached. Regarding safety, adverse reactions primarily included bone marrow suppression, fatigue, and gastrointestinal reactions, indicating overall manageable toxicity. Conclusion As a subgroup analysis of the CAP study, this research suggests that radiotherapy combined with liposomal irinotecan, camrelizumab, and anti-angiogenic therapy demonstrates certain efficacy in advanced bone and soft tissue sarcomas that have failed multiple lines of treatment, with overall manageable adverse reactions. Future studies should expand the sample size.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Shexiang Tongxin Dropping Pill (STDP) in treating stable angina patients with phlegm-heat and blood-stasis syndrome by exercise duration and metabolic equivalents. METHODS: This multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial enrolled stable angina patients with phlegm-heat and blood-stasis syndrome from 22 hospitals. They were randomized 1:1 to STDP (35 mg/pill, 6 pills per day) or placebo for 56 days. The primary outcome was the exercise duration and metabolic equivalents (METs) assessed by the standard Bruce exercise treadmill test after 56 days of treatment. The secondary outcomes included the total angina symptom score, Chinese medicine (CM) symptom scores, Seattle Angina Questionnaire (SAQ) scores, changes in ST-T on electrocardiogram and adverse events (AEs). RESULTS: This trial enrolled 309 patients, including 155 and 154 in the STDP and placebo groups, respectively. STDP significantly prolonged exercise duration with an increase of 51.0 s, compared to a decrease of 12.0 s with placebo (change rate: -11.1% vs. 3.2%, P<0.01). The increase in METs was significantly greater in the STDP group than in the placebo group (change: -0.4 vs. 0.0, change rate: -5.0% vs. 0.0%, P<0.01). The improvement of total angina symptom scores (25.0% vs. 0.0%), CM symptom scores (38.7% vs. 11.8%), reduction of nitroglycerin consumption (100.0% vs. 11.3%), and all domains of SAQ, were significantly greater with STDP than placebo (all P<0.01). The changes in Q-T intervals at 28 and 56 days from baseline were similar between the two groups (both P>0.05). Twenty-five participants (16.3%) with STDP and 16 (10.5%) with placebo experienced AEs (P=0.131), with no serious AEs observed. CONCLUSION STDP could improve exercise tolerance in patients with stable angina and phlegm-heat and blood stasis syndrome, with a favorable safety profile. (Registration No. ChiCTR-IPR-15006020).
Humans ; Double-Blind Method ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/adverse effects* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Angina, Stable/physiopathology* ; Aged ; Syndrome ; Treatment Outcome ; Placebos ; Tablets

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the dynamic changes of glucocorticoid (GC) dose and the feasibility of GC discontinuation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients under the background of Chinese medicine (CM). METHODS: This multicenter retrospective cohort study included 1,196 RA patients enrolled in the China Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry of Patients with Chinese Medicine (CERTAIN) from September 1, 2019 to December 4, 2023, who initiated GC therapy. Participants were divided into the Western medicine (WM) and integrative medicine (IM, combination of CM and WM) groups based on medication regimen. Follow-up was performed at least every 3 months to assess dynamic changes in GC dose. Changes in GC dose were analyzed by generalized estimator equation, the probability of GC discontinuation was assessed using Kaplan-Meier curve, and predictors of GC discontinuation were analyzed by Cox regression. Patients with <12 months of follow-up were excluded for the sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: Among 1,196 patients (85.4% female; median age 56.4 years), 880 (73.6%) received IM. Over a median 12-month follow-up, 34.3% (410 cases) discontinued GC, with significantly higher rates in the IM group (40.8% vs. 16.1% in WM; P<0.05). GC dose declined progressively, with IM patients demonstrating faster reductions (median 3.75 mg vs. 5.00 mg in WM at 12 months; P<0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis identified age <60 years [P<0.001, hazard ratios (HR)=2.142, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.523-3.012], IM therapy (P=0.001, HR=2.175, 95% CI: 1.369-3.456), baseline GC dose ⩽7.5 mg (P=0.003, HR=1.637, 95% CI: 1.177-2.275), and absence of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use (P=0.001, HR=2.546, 95% CI: 1.432-4.527) as significant predictors of GC discontinuation. Sensitivity analysis (545 cases) confirmed these findings. CONCLUSIONS RA patients receiving CM face difficulties in following guideline-recommended GC discontinuation protocols. IM can promote GC discontinuation and is a promising strategy to reduce GC dependency in RA management. (Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, No. NCT05219214).
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/drug therapy* ; Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Retrospective Studies

Traditional development of small protein scaffolds has relied on display technologies and mutation-based engineering, which limit sequence and functional diversity, thereby constraining their therapeutic and application potential. Protein design tools have significantly advanced the creation of novel protein sequences, structures, and functions. However, further improvements in design strategies are still needed to more efficiently optimize the functional performance of protein-based drugs and enhance their druggability. Here, we extended an evolution-based design protocol to create a novel minibinder, BindHer, against the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). It not only exhibits super stability and binding selectivity but also demonstrates remarkable properties in tissue specificity. Radiolabeling experiments with ^99mTc, ⁶⁸Ga, and ¹⁸F revealed that BindHer efficiently targets tumors in HER2-positive breast cancer mouse models, with minimal nonspecific liver absorption, outperforming scaffolds designed through traditional engineering. These findings highlight a new rational approach to automated protein design, offering significant potential for large-scale applications in therapeutic mini-protein development.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the RHD genotyping and sequencing results of RhD serology negative samples in the clinic, and to further explore the laboratory methods for RhD detection, in order to provide a basis for clinical precision blood transfusion. METHODS: A total of 27 200 whole blood samples were screened for RhD blood group antigen using microcolumn gel card method.Serologic RhD-negative confirmation tests were performed on blood samples that were negative for RhD on initial screening using three different clonal strains of IgG anti-D reagents. The 10 exons of the RHD gene on chromosome 1 were also analyzed by PCR-SSP to determine RHD genotyping.When the PCR-SSP method did not yield definitive results, the RHD gene of the sample was analyzed by the third-generation sequencing. RESULTS: The results of the initial screening test by the microcolumn gel card method showed that 136 of the 27 200 samples were RhD-negative, of which 86 underwent RhD-negative confirmation testing and RHD genotyping, 88.37% (76/86 cases) of the RhD-negative confirmation test results were negative for the three anti-D reagents, and the results of RHD genotyping showed that 67.44% (58/86 cases) of the cases had a complete deletion of 10 exons, and the remaining 28 cases were RHD*711delC (1 case), RHD*D-CE(1-9)-D (1 case), RHD*D-CE(2-9-)D (2 cases), RHD*D-CE(3-9)-D (4 cases), RHD*DEL1 (c.1227G >A) mutation (16 cases), RHD*weak partial 15(845G >A) mutation (3 cases), and a mutation of c.165C >T base was found in 1 sample by three-generation sequencing. CONCLUSION RHD genotype testing of samples that are serologically negative for RhD antigen shows that some of the samples have RHD gene variants, not all of which are total deletions of RHD, suggesting that there are some limitations of the serologic method for RhD detection. Due to the polymorphism of the RHD gene structure, different RhD variants present different serologic features, which need to be further detected in combination with molecular biology testing, especially for the identification of Asian-type DELs, which is important for clinical precision blood transfusion.
Humans ; Rh-Hr Blood-Group System/genetics* ; Genotype ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Exons ; Blood Grouping and Crossmatching

OBJECTIVE: EPF3 is a fibrinolysin monomer isolated and purified from Pheretima vulgaris Chen, an earthworm used in traditional Chinese medicine as Dilong for treating blood stasis syndrome. Its composition, anticoagulant and fibrinolytic activities, and relevant mechanisms have been confirmed through in vitro experiments. However, whether it has antithrombotic effects in vivo and can be absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract is unknown. This study evaluates the antithrombotic effect in zebrafish and investigates the gastrointestinal stability and intestinal absorption mechanism of this protein in vitro. METHODS: The antithrombotic effect of EPF3 in vivo was verified using the zebrafish thrombus model induced by arachidonic acid and FeCl₃. Then, the protein bands of EPF3 incubated with simulated gastric fluid (SGF), simulated intestinal fluid (SIF), and homogenate of Caco-2 cells (HC2C) were analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis to evaluate its gastrointestinal stability. Finally, the transport behavior and absorption mechanism of EPF3 were studied using Caco-2 cell monolayer. RESULTS: EPF3 could significantly enhance the returned blood volume and blood flow velocity in zebrafish with platelet aggregation thrombus induced by arachidonic acid. It could also prolong the formation time of tail artery thrombus and increase the blood flow velocity in zebrafish with vessel injury thrombus induced by FeCl₃. EPF3 was stable in SIF and HC2C and unstable in SGF. The permeability of EPF3 in Caco-2 monolayer was time-dependent and concentration-dependent. The efflux ratio was less than 1.2 during transport, and the transport behavior was not affected by inhibitors. EPF3 could reversibly reduce the expression of tight junction-related proteins, including zonula occludens-1, occludin, and claudin-1 in Caco-2 cells. CONCLUSION EPF3 could play a thrombolytic and antithrombotic role in zebrafish. It could be transported and absorbed into the intestine through cellular bypass pathway by opening the intestinal epithelium tight junction. This study provides a scientific explanation for the antithrombotic effect of earthworm and provides a basis for the feasibility of subsequent development of EPF3 as an antithrombotic enteric-soluble preparation. Please cite this article as: Zhong WL, Yang JQ, Liu H, Wu YL, Shen HJ, Li PY, Du SY. Antithrombotic effect in zebrafish of a fibrinolytic protein EPF3 from Dilong (Pheretima vulgaris Chen) and its transport mechanism in Caco-2 monolayer through cell bypass pathway. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(4): 415-428.
Animals ; Zebrafish ; Humans ; Caco-2 Cells ; Fibrinolytic Agents/pharmacology* ; Thrombosis/drug therapy* ; Intestinal Absorption

By using a strategy of leveraging the ability of metal-organic frameworks(MOFs)materials to precisely regulate the spatial orientation of cyclodextrins(CD),a polystyrene-modified γ-cyclodextrin metal-organic frameworks(PS-CD-MOFs)capillary coating was established and applied to the chiral separation of amino acids in open-tubular capillary electrochromatography(OT-CEC)based on the excellent film-forming property of polystyrene(PS).Characterization results by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR),X-ray diffraction(XRD)indicated that PS was successfully grafted onto the surface of CD-MOFs.The modification significantly improved the structural stability and thermal stability of CD-MOFs while maintaining the integrity of the MOFs.The PS-CD-MOFs coated capillary electrophoresis system exhibited excellent performance in separating dansylated amino acid enantiomers(Dns-D,L-AAs).Specifically,under the optimal separation conditions(Sodium dodecyl sulfate/boric acid buffer system,20 cm capillary,and 10 kV effective voltage),good separation was achieved for D,L-methionine(D,L-Met)and D,L-serine(D,L-Ser).Further quantitative analysis showed that Dns-D,L-Met presented a good linear relationship in the concentration range of 10.0-1500.0 μmol/L,with a correlation coefficient close to 0.998,demonstrating high sensitivity and repeatability.Not only did it overcome the problem that traditional CD(used as additives in capillary electrophoresis)could not precisely control the spatial orientation of chiral resolvents,but also it solved the issues of insufficient stability and bonding amount of CD-MOFs coatings by utilizing the excellent film-forming property of polymers on the inner wall of capillaries.This study provided an efficient and controllable new strategy for construction of chiral separation stationary phases.