ObjectiveBased on literature data mining， this study explores the modeling elements of diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome （IBS-D） animal models in China and abroad， providing references and suggestions for improving modeling methods and evaluation indicators. MethodsRelevant literature on IBS-D animal experiments from 2014 to 2024 was retrieved through computer searches in databases such as China National Knowledge Infrastructure （CNKI）， Wanfang Data， VIP， Chinese Medical Journals Full-text Database， and PubMed. Information on experimental animal species， gender， body weight， modeling methods， modeling periods， intervention controls， modeling standards， and detection indicators was organized. Microsoft Excel 2021 software was used to establish a database and perform statistical analysis to examine the characteristics of IBS-D animal models. ResultsA total of 398 articles that met the inclusion criteria were reviewed. The IBS-D animal models were predominantly established using SD rats， Wistar rats， and C57BL/6 mice. Male animals were more commonly used， with rats typically aged 6-8 weeks and mice aged 4-6 weeks. In terms of interventions， piverium bromide was the main Western medicine， Tongxieyaofang was the primary Chinese medicine， and electroacupuncture was the primary acupuncture method. Among the modeling methods， the multi-factor combined composite modeling approach was the most common. Modeling periods were mainly concentrated between 1-14 days and 15-30 days. The success criteria for modeling were mainly evaluated based on the animal's general condition， fecal appearance， visceral sensitivity， gastrointestinal motility， behavior， and pathology. Detection indicators included apparent indexes， pathological markers， biochemical indicators， oxidative stress， brain-gut peptides， neurotransmitters， inflammatory factors， immune function， intestinal permeability， autophagy， apoptosis， proteins related to relevant signaling pathways， intestinal microbiota and its metabolites， etc. ConclusionThere are various methods for establishing IBS-D animal models， but no unified and universally accepted method has been established. The operation of the same modeling methods and the evaluation standards of the models vary across studies. Based on the results of data mining， the authors suggest that the multi-factor combined composite modeling approach most closely reflects the pathophysiological processes of IBS-D， better simulating the complex clinical symptoms of IBS-D patients， such as abdominal pain and diarrhea， and has a high degree of clinical relevance. This method is relatively recommended. While animal models in general align with Western medicine standards， models incorporating traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndromes are relatively few. Therefore， one of the future directions for research is to establish IBS-D animal models that meet the combined clinical disease and syndrome requirements of both Western and Chinese medicine.

Gene regulation relies on the precise binding of transcription factors (TFs) at regulatory elements, but simultaneously detecting hundreds of TFs on chromatin is challenging. We developed cFOOT-seq, a cytosine deaminase-based TF footprinting assay, for high-resolution, quantitative genome-wide assessment of TF binding in both open and closed chromatin regions, even with small cell numbers. By utilizing the dsDNA deaminase SsdAtox, cFOOT-seq converts accessible cytosines to uracil while preserving genomic integrity, making it compatible with techniques like ATAC-seq for sensitive and cost-effective detection of TF occupancy at the single-molecule and single-cell level. Our approach enables the delineation of TF footprints, quantification of occupancy, and examination of chromatin influences on TF binding. Notably, cFOOT-seq, combined with FootTrack analysis, enables de novo prediction of TF binding sites and tracking of TF occupancy dynamics. We demonstrate its application in capturing cell type-specific TFs, analyzing TF dynamics during reprogramming, and revealing TF dependencies on chromatin remodelers. Overall, cFOOT-seq represents a robust approach for investigating the genome-wide dynamics of TF occupancy and elucidating the cis-regulatory architecture underlying gene regulation.
Transcription Factors/genetics* ; Humans ; Chromatin/genetics* ; Animals ; Binding Sites ; Mice ; DNA Footprinting/methods*

Background Alcohol dependence and related health problems have attracted greater than ever attention in recent years.Alcohol dependence not only affected personal behavior control ability,but also brought adverse effect to families and society.Objective To analyze the relationship between cognitive function and personality traits among male alcohol-dependent patients with aggressive behavior,in order to provide references for improving the cognitive function of male alcohol-dependent patients with aggressive behavior.Methods Male patients with alcohol dependence attending Hunan Brain Hospital from March 2020 to March 2022 and fulfilling the International Classification of Diseases,tenth edition(ICD-10)diagnostic criteria were enrolled.According to the score of Modified Overt Aggression Scale(MOAS),participants were classified into aggressive behavior group and non-aggressive behavior group at 1∶1 ratio,each with 80 cases.The enrolled subjects were then evaluated using Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Short Scale for Chinese(EPQ-RSC)and Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status(RBANS).Pearson correlation analysis was utilized to examine the correlation between EPQ-RSC and RBANS scores among alcohol-dependent patients with aggressive behavior.Results Scores on each subscale in RBANS were all lower in aggressive behavior group than those in non-aggressive behavior group(t=2.176,2.580,2.076,2.308,2.193,P<0.05),and scores on each dimension in EPQ-RSC in aggressive behavior group were higher than those in non-aggressive behavior group(t=4.497,5.242,6.459,P<0.01).Pearson correlation analysis denoted that the scores of introversion/extroversion,neuroticism and psychoticism in EPQ-RSC were positively correlated with the scores of immediate memory,visuospatial/constructional ability,language,attention and delayed memory in RBANS among alcohol-dependent patients with aggressive behavior(r=0.294～0.482,0.362～0.511,0.265～0.475,P<0.05).Conclusion The cognitive function may have a certain correlation with personality traits in alcohol-dependent patients with aggressive behavior.

Gastric ulcer is a common digestive system disease,and the long-term use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs(NSAIDs)is the second most important cause.NSAID-induced gastric ulcer animal models are key experimental tools for studying the pathogenesis,corresponding treatment method,and effective mechanisms of NSAID-induced gastrointestinal injury.However,there are currently a lack of reviews on NSAID-induced gastric ulcer animal models.This review summarizes and compares the relevant literature on animal research into indomethacin-and aspirin-induced gastric ulcers in the past 10 years,including the selection of experimental animals,drug solvents,and specific modeling method.The limitations of current models,such as the cumbersome modeling method,incomplete modeling details,inadequate models for clinical use,and lack of comparative drug research,are discussed.Feasible solutions are proposed with the aim of providing an effective reference for research in this field.

Objective:To assess the applicability of fully automatic pipeline automated testing for internal quality control (automated quality control).Methods:Stability, assay efficiency and implementation costs of 18 biochemical tests, 5 immunoturbidimetric tests and 11 chemical illuminescent tests in the Department of Laboratory Medicine of Peking Union Hospital from January 2019 to July 2022 were evaluated using automated quality control implementation methods. The detailed method is as follows: quality control materials for biochemical, immunoturbidimetric and chemiluminescent tests were stored in the refrigerator in the pipeline which was controlled by the intermediate software, and were automatically retrieved and tested as pre-set followed by documenting and storing. The quality control setup for the biochemical tests included refreshing quality control materials daily and weekly,both of which were paralleled for 3 months. The on-line storage stability of quality control materials in the pipeline was evaluated by comparing the coefficients of variation ( CV) of the quality control results between the two patterns. Effect of automated quality control application was evaluated using 6 indicators, including the results′ variation of automatically performed and manually performed quality controls, the out-of-controlled rate, the consumption of quality control materials, the change of staff workload, the impact on the testing time of the first sample, and the failure rate of automated quality control. Results:(1) Storage stability of quality control materials in the pipeline: under the pattern of weekly refresh of the biochemical quality control materials, except for total carbon dioxide (TCO 2) (the CVs of low and high level quality control were respectively 20.24% and 21.82%) and sodium (the CV of low level quality control was 1.51%) that were greater than the allowable variation set by the laboratory, the CVs of the rest tests meet the lab requirements on the allowable variations. (2) The results′ variation of quality control in automatically performed and manually performed control patterns: in the patterns of daily refresh of biochemical quality control materials and weekly refresh of immunoturbidimetric and chemiluminescent quality control materials, the CVs of both low and high levels of quality control were lower in the automatically performed control pattern than that in manually performed pattern for 8 chemiluminescent items of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, estradiol, follicle stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, serum ferritin, serum folic acid, vitamin B12 and testosterone, 3 immunologic items of complement 3, C reactive protein and immunoglobulin G, and 10 biochemical items of alkaline phosphatase, glucose, calcium, chloride, potassium, lactate dehydrogenase, sodium, urea, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, and adenosine deaminase. The out-of-control rates of biochemistry, immunoturbidimetric and chemiluminescence tests in both quality control patterns conformed with the clinical routine work requirements. (3) Comparison of quality control materials′ consumption: compared with manually performed quality control, weekly consumption of automatically performed chemiluminescent quality control materials decreased 37.5% (from 8 ml to 5 ml); weekly consumption of automatically performed immunoturbidimetric quality control materials decreased 33.3% (from 3 ml to 2 ml). (4)Comparison of staff workload and first sample testing time: compared with manually performed quality control, automatical quality control reduced manual work by about 156 steps per week, and the daily initial testing time was earlier by 15 min on average. The failure rate was 54.5% (37/64) during the early-stage application of the automated quality control which dropped to 10.2% (13/128) in the late-stage. Conclusion:The results of automated quality control detected in the pipeline system meet the quality indicators′ requirements of the laboratory, and the application of automated quality control can improve the quality control, save costs, reduce workload, and improve work efficiency.

Objective To observe the application effect of transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation in the psychological craving and protracted abstinence symptoms of alcohol-dependent patients. Methods A total of 120 male alcohol-dependent patients who completed the acute alcohol withdrawal phase and were hospitalized in the Department of Alcoholism in Hunan Brain Hospital were selected as the study subjects. They were divided into conventional drug group, transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation group and placebo group according to different treatment methods, with 40 patients in each group. The conventional drug group was treated with benzodiazepine drugs for replacement and reduction and supportive symptomatic treatment. The transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation group was treated with conventional treatment combined with transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation. The placebo group was treated with conventional treatment combined with simulated transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation. The Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), Alcohol Urge Questionnaire (AUQ), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score and recurrence conditions were compared before and after treatment among the three groups. Results After treatment, the SAS, SDS, AUQ and VAS scores of the three groups were lower than those before treatment, and the above scores of the transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation group were lower than those of the conventional drug group and placebo group (P < 0.05). After treatment, the scores of sleep quality, the time to fall asleep, sleep duration, sleep efficiency, sleep disturbance, hypnotic drugs, daytime dysfunction and total PSQI score of the three groups were lower than those before treatment, and the above scores of the transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation group were lower than those of the conventional drug group and placebo group (P < 0.05). The recurrence rate of the transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation group was lower than that of the conventional drug group and placebo group (P < 0.05). Conclusion Compared with conventional treatment and simulated transcutaneous electrical stimulation, transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation is more effective in reducing the severity of protracted abstinence symptoms such as anxiety, depression and insomnia, and is also beneficial in reducing patients' psychological craving, thereby reducing the recurrence rate.

MAGED4B belongs to the melanoma-associated antigen family; originally found in melanoma, it is expressed in various types of cancer, and is especially enriched in glioblastoma. However, the functional role and molecular mechanisms of MAGED4B in glioma are still unclear. In this study, we found that the MAGED4B level was higher in glioma tissue than that in non-cancer tissue, and the level was positively correlated with glioma grade, tumor diameter, Ki-67 level, and patient age. The patients with higher levels had a worse prognosis than those with lower MAGED4B levels. In glioma cells, MAGED4B overexpression promoted proliferation, invasion, and migration, as well as decreasing apoptosis and the chemosensitivity to cisplatin and temozolomide. On the contrary, MAGED4B knockdown in glioma cells inhibited proliferation, invasion, and migration, as well as increasing apoptosis and the chemosensitivity to cisplatin and temozolomide. MAGED4B knockdown also inhibited the growth of gliomas implanted into the rat brain. The interaction between MAGED4B and tripartite motif-containing 27 (TRIM27) in glioma cells was detected by co-immunoprecipitation assay, which showed that MAGED4B was co-localized with TRIM27. In addition, MAGED4B overexpression down-regulated the TRIM27 protein level, and this was blocked by carbobenzoxyl-L-leucyl-L-leucyl-L-leucine (MG132), an inhibitor of the proteasome. On the contrary, MAGED4B knockdown up-regulated the TRIM27 level. Furthermore, MAGED4B overexpression increased TRIM27 ubiquitination in the presence of MG132. Accordingly, MAGED4B down-regulated the protein levels of genes downstream of ubiquitin-specific protease 7 (USP7) involved in the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α)-induced apoptotic pathway. These findings indicate that MAGED4B promotes glioma growth via a TRIM27/USP7/receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 1 (RIP1)-dependent TNF-α-induced apoptotic pathway, which suggests that MAGED4B is a potential target for glioma diagnosis and treatment.
Humans ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; DNA-Binding Proteins/metabolism* ; Ubiquitin-Specific Peptidase 7 ; Cisplatin ; Temozolomide ; Transcription Factors ; Glioma ; Cell Proliferation ; Melanoma ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Apoptosis ; Nuclear Proteins/genetics*

The mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) has been recently identified as a neurotrophic factor, but its role in hepatic fibrosis is unknown. Here, we found that MANF was upregulated in the fibrotic liver tissues of the patients with chronic liver diseases and of mice treated with CCl₄. MANF deficiency in either hepatocytes or hepatic mono-macrophages, particularly in hepatic mono-macrophages, clearly exacerbated hepatic fibrosis. Myeloid-specific MANF knockout increased the population of hepatic Ly6C^high macrophages and promoted HSCs activation. Furthermore, MANF-sufficient macrophages (from WT mice) transfusion ameliorated CCl₄-induced hepatic fibrosis in myeloid cells-specific MANF knockout (MKO) mice. Mechanistically, MANF interacted with S100A8 to competitively block S100A8/A9 heterodimer formation and inhibited S100A8/A9-mediated TLR4-NF-κB signal activation. Pharmacologically, systemic administration of recombinant human MANF significantly alleviated CCl₄-induced hepatic fibrosis in both WT and hepatocytes-specific MANF knockout (HKO) mice. This study reveals a mechanism by which MANF targets S100A8/A9-TLR4 as a "brake" on the upstream of NF-κB pathway, which exerts an impact on macrophage differentiation and shed light on hepatic fibrosis treatment.

Objective:The characteristics of women with false elevated testosterone were analyze and the literature was reviewed to provide reference for clinical laboratory identification of false elevated testosterone.Methods:The characteristics of three patients with false elevated testosterone in Peking Union Medical College Hospital were analyzed retrospectively, and the results of different detection platforms and methods for the determination of testosterone levels were compared. International and domestic literatures related to false elevation of testosterone and detection methods of testosterone were searched for a comprehensive analysis from PUBMED and CNKI.Results:The levels of testosterone in 3 female patients were elevated by immunoassay and normal by mass spectrometry. They were excluded from the diagnosis of hyperandrogenemia. A total of 38 literatures related to testosterone detection were retrieved, of which 9 case reports of pseudohyperandrogenemia, among which 12 cases of pseudohyperandrogenemia were reported in 2 domestic literatures in 2021. All cases were confirmed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Previous studies have clearly indicated that the result of routine immunoassay in clinical laboratory for the determination of female testosterone have poor correlation with the results of LC-MS/MS, with varying degrees of deviation.Conclusions:Immunoassay tests for female testosterone is susceptible to interference and lead to elevated false results. It is suggested that clinical laboratories evaluate the detection methods used and establish a identification program, and confirm samples with suspected pseudoelevated testosterone elevation using other immune platforms or LC-MS/MS.

Objective:To evaluate whether dialysis modality will affect cognitive function in dialysis population.Methods:This was a cross-sectional study. Chronic dialysis patients in our center was screened from July 2013 to July 2014. All of the subjects received brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination and comprehensive cognitive function evaluation.Results:A total of 189 chronic dialysis patients were enrolled in this study, 122 cases on hemodialysis (HD) and 67 cases on peritoneal dialysis (PD). There was no significant difference in age between HD and PD groups [(56.4±13.2) years vs (56.4±16.1) years, t=0.004, P=0.997]. The dialysis vintage and serum albumin of HD patients was higher than those of PD patients[58.0(16.8, 107.5) months vs 31.0(7.0, 67.0) months, Z=-3.490, P<0.001; (39.6±3.9) g/L vs (35.3±3.8) g/L, t=7.328, P<0.001, respectively]. The prevalence of cerebral small vessel diseases (CSVDs) was comparable between HD and PD groups (all P>0.05). Compared with HD patients, PD patients presented a 11.90-fold risk of immediate memory impairment (95% CI 1.40-101.08, P=0.023) and a 6.18-fold risk of long-delayed memory impairment (95% CI 2.12-18.05, P=0.001). After adjusting for age, educational lever, dialysis vintage, serum creatinine, and CSVDs, the influence of dialysis modality on memory still worked. PD patients presented a 43% risk of executive function impairment of HD patients ( OR=0.43, 95% CI 0.17-1.04, P=0.061). Conclusions:HD patients manifested better memory than PD patients, while PD probably performed better in executive function than HD patients. There was no significant difference in language function between the two groups. The difference in cognitive function may not be related to CSVDs.