1.Role of TFEB-autophagy pathway in rifampicin-induced liver injury and its mechanism
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2025;60(10):1827-1832
Objective:
To investigate the role of transcription factor EB (TFEB) -autophagy pathway in rifampicininduced liver injury and its possible mechanism.
Methods:
Forty 6-8-week-old C57/BL6 mice were randomly divided into five groups : control group , model group , TFEB low-dose agonist group , TFEB high-dose agonist group , and autophagy agonist group , with 8 mice in each group. Except for the control group , the other four groups were given rifampicin 200 mg/(kg ·d) by gavage daily. TFEB agonist was administered intraperitoneally at a low dose of 20 mg/kg and a high dose of 50 mg/kg for 7 days at 1 h after rifampicin administration. Autophagy agonist was administered by gavage at a dose of 10 mg/kg 6 h before rifampicin administration on day 1 . The experiment was completed 7 days after modeling. The degree of liver injury was evaluated by detecting liver function indexes and liver pathological changes. Western blot was used to detect the protein expression total TFEB , chelator 1( p62) , microtubule-associated protein light chain 3(LC3) , benzyl chloride 1(Beclin-1) , sodium taurocholate co-transporting polypeptide(NTCP) and bile salt export pump(BSEP) levels in liver nucleus/liver tissue were quantified.
Results:
Compared with the control group , the serum levels of alanine aminotransferase ( ALT) , aspartate aminotransferase (AST) , total bilirubin ( TBIL) , direct bilirubin ( DBIL) , and total bile acid ( TBA) in the model group increased (P < 0. 05) , and obvious pathological changes were observed in the liver. Compared with the model group , the high dose and low dose of TFEB agonist and autophagy agonist groups had reductions in the above indicators (P < 0. 05) . Compared with the low-dose TFEB agonist group , the high-dose TFEB agonist group had reductions in the above indicators (P < 0. 05) . The proportion of TFEB in the nucleus was ( 1. 0 ± 0. 10) in the control group , (0. 6 ± 0. 05) in the model group , (0. 8 ± 0. 08) in the low-dose agonist group , and (0. 9 ± 0. 07) in the high-dose agonist group (P < 0. 05) . Autophagy agonist group (0. 7 ± 0. 06) (P < 0. 05) . Compared with the control group , the levels of NTCP and BSEP in the liver of the model group decreased (P < 0. 05) , and the expression of NTCP and BSEP in the TFEB low-dose and high-dose agonist groups were restored , and the expression of NTCP and BSEP in the autophagy agonist group also increased (P < 0. 05) . Compared with the control group , the protein expression levels of TFEB , LC3- Ⅱ/LC3- Ⅰand Beclin-1 in the liver tissue of the model group significantly decreased (P < 0. 05) , while the protein expression level of p62 significantly increased ( P < 0. 05) . Compared with the model group , the protein expression levels of TFEB , LC3- Ⅱ/LC3- Ⅰand Beclin-1 in the liver tissue of the TFEB agonist high-dose group , low-dose group and autophagy agonist group increased (P < 0. 05) , while the protein expression level of p62 decreased (P < 0. 05) .
Conclusion
TFEB can improve rifampicin-induced liver injury by activating autophagy pathway , and the main mechanism may be related to the up-regulation of NTCP and BSEP expression.
2.Allogeneic intrastromal lenticule implantation combined with corneal collagen cross-linking for moderate to advanced keratoconus
Jing ZHANG ; Jie HOU ; Yahui DONG ; Yulin LEI ; Yafei XU ; Fangfang SUN
International Eye Science 2025;25(9):1517-1522
AIM: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of allogeneic intrastromal lenticule implantation combined with corneal collagen cross-linking(CXL)in patients with moderate to advanced keratoconus.METHODS: A retrospective case series analysis was conducted. A total of 19 patients(20 eyes)with moderate to advanced keratoconus who underwent combined allogeneic intrastromal lenticule implantation and CXL at the Jinan Mingshui Eye Hospital from June 2021 to December 2023 were included. The uncorrected distance visual acuity(UCVA), thinnest corneal thickness, central corneal epithelial thickness, anterior corneal flat keratometry(Kf), steep keratometry(Ks), and mean keratometry(Km), as well as the first applanation time(A1T), the first applanation length(A1L), the velocity during the first applanation moment(VIN), the second applanation time(A2T), the second applanation length(A2L), the velocity during the second applanation moment(VOUT), highest concavity time(HCT), highest concavity radius(HCR), peak distance(PD), deformation amplitude(DA), stiffness parameter at first applanation(SP-A1), integrated radius(IR), central corneal thickness(CCT), intraocular pressure(IOP), corneal thickness-corrected IOP, biomechanically intraocular pressure IOP(bIOP), and corneal thickness variation rate(ARTH)were compared between the two groups before surgery and at 1 wk, 1, 3 and 6 mo after surgery.RESULTS: All patients successfully completed the surgery without any intraoperative complications. No significant differences were observed between pre-operative and post-operative measurements for UCVA or the corneal biomechanical parameters, including A1L, A2L, PD, A1T, A2T, VIN, VOUT, DA, IOP, and bIOP(all P>0.05). Significant differences were found between pre-operative and post-operative values for corneal thinnest point thickness, central corneal epithelial thickness, Kf, Ks, Km, and the corneal biomechanical parameters, including HCT, HCR, SP-A1, ARTH, IR, and CCT(all P<0.05). The anterior corneal curvature demonstrated an initial increase followed by a decrease post-operatively. Furthermore, significant differences were observed between pre-operative and post-operative values for HCT, HCR, SP-A1, ARTH, IR, and CCT(all P<0.005).CONCLUSION: Allogenic intrastromal lenticule implantation combined with corneal collagen cross-linking demonstrates favorable safety and stability in treating moderate-to-advanced keratoconus. This combined procedure effectively increases corneal thickness and rigidity, resulting in corneas that are more resistant to deformation postoperatively.
3.A lung cancer early-warning risk model based on facial diagnosis image features
Yulin Shi ; Shuyi Zhang ; Jiayi Liu ; Wenlian Chen ; Lingshuang Liu ; Ling Xu ; Jiatuo Xu
Digital Chinese Medicine 2025;8(3):351-362
Objective:
To explore the feasibility of constructing a lung cancer early-warning risk model based on facial image features, providing novel insights into the early screening of lung cancer.
Methods:
This study included patients with pulmonary nodules diagnosed at the Physical Examination Center of Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from November 1, 2019 to December 31, 2024, as well as patients with lung cancer diagnosed in the Oncology Departments of Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine and Longhua Hospital during the same period. The facial image information of patients with pulmonary nodules and lung cancer was collected using the TFDA-1 tongue and facial diagnosis instrument, and the facial diagnosis features were extracted from it by deep learning technology. Statistical analysis was conducted on the objective facial diagnosis characteristics of the two groups of participants to explore the differences in their facial image characteristics, and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression was used to screen the characteristic variables. Based on the screened feature variables, four machine learning methods: random forest, logistic regression, support vector machine (SVM), and gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) were used to establish lung cancer classification models independently. Meanwhile, the model performance was evaluated by indicators such as sensitivity, specificity, F1 score, precision, accuracy, the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC), and the area under the precision-recall curve (AP).
Results:
A total of 1 275 patients with pulmonary nodules and 1 623 patients with lung cancer were included in this study. After propensity score matching (PSM) to adjust for gender and age, 535 patients were finally included in the pulmonary nodule group and the lung cancer group, respectively. There were significant differences in multiple color space metrics (such as R, G, B, V, L, a, b, Cr, H, Y, and Cb) and texture metrics [such as gray-levcl co-occurrence matrix (GLCM)-contrast (CON) and GLCM-inverse different moment (IDM)] between the two groups of individuals with pulmonary nodules and lung cancer (P < 0.05). To construct a classification model, LASSO regression was used to select 63 key features from the initial 136 facial features. Based on this feature set, the SVM model demonstrated the best performance after 10-fold stratified cross-validation. The model achieved an average AUC of
4.Influence of perceived stress on anxiety among college students:a moderated mediation model
Qiong CHEN ; Guohua JIANG ; Yajun TIAN ; Lin HE ; Qingjun GUO ; Shan HU ; Xiuyang ZHU ; Wei ZHENG ; Yulin XU ; Tao XU
Academic Journal of Naval Medical University 2025;46(5):637-643
Objective To explore the mediating role of intolerance of uncertainty(IU)and moderating role of the negative emotion differentiation in the influence of perceived stress on anxiety among college students from a cognitive perspective.Methods A total of 271 participants were surveyed using the perceived stress scale,intolerance of uncertainty scale,depression anxiety and stress scale(Chinese version),and the test on negative emotional differentiation.SPSS 22.0 was used to perform descriptive statistics and correlation analyses and to test the moderated mediation model.Results Perceived stress affected anxiety and IU played a mediating role-perceived stress could affect anxiety through influencing IU.At the same time,the influence of IU on anxiety could be adjusted through the negative emotion differentiation.The higher the degree of negative emotion differentiation,the lower the degree of anxiety increase(β=0.17,t=5.70,P<0.01).Conclusion It may be effective to develop training programs to reduce anxiety by regulating perceived stress,increasing acceptance of uncertainty,and improving the negative emotion differentiation,which can help individuals reduce anxiety by perceiving and adjusting anxiety-related emotional or cognitive factors in a timely manner.
5.Augmentation of PRDX1-DOK3 interaction alleviates rheumatoid arthritis progression by suppressing plasma cell differentiation.
Wenzhen DANG ; Xiaomin WANG ; Huaying LI ; Yixuan XU ; Xinyu LI ; Siqi HUANG ; Hongru TAO ; Xiao LI ; Yulin YANG ; Lijiang XUAN ; Weilie XIAO ; Dean GUO ; Hao ZHANG ; Qiong WU ; Jie ZHENG ; Xiaoyan SHEN ; Kaixian CHEN ; Heng XU ; Yuanyuan ZHANG ; Cheng LUO
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(8):3997-4013
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by persistent inflammation and joint damage, accompanied by the accumulation of plasma cells, which contributes to its pathogenesis. Understanding the genetic alterations occurring during plasma cell differentiation in RA can deepen our comprehension of its pathogenesis and guide the development of targeted therapeutic interventions. Here, our study elucidates the intricate molecular mechanisms underlying plasma cell differentiation by demonstrating that PRDX1 interacts with DOK3 and modulates its degradation by the autophagy-lysosome pathway. This interaction results in the inhibition of plasma cell differentiation, thereby alleviating the progression of collagen-induced arthritis. Additionally, our investigation identifies Salvianolic acid B (SAB) as a potent small molecular glue-like compound that enhances the interaction between PRDX1 and DOK3, consequently impeding the progression of collagen-induced arthritis by inhibiting plasma cell differentiation. Collectively, these findings underscore the therapeutic potential of developing chemical stabilizers for the PRDX1-DOK3 complex in suppressing plasma cell differentiation for RA treatment and establish a theoretical basis for targeting PRDX1-protein interactions as specific therapeutic targets in various diseases.
6.Pulsatilla saponin D inhibits invasion and metastasis of triple-negative breast cancer cells through multiple targets and pathways.
Qiao CHU ; Xiaona WANG ; Jiaying XU ; Huilin PENG ; Yulin ZHAO ; Jing ZHANG ; Guoyu LU ; Kai WANG
Journal of Southern Medical University 2025;45(1):150-161
OBJECTIVES:
To explore the mechanism by which Pulsatilla saponin D (PSD) inhibits invasion and metastasis of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
METHODS:
The public databases were used to identify the potential targets of PSD and the invasion and metastasis targets of TNBC to obtain the intersection targets between PSD and TNBC. The "PSD-target-disease" interaction network was constructed and protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis was performed to obtain the core targets, which were analyzed for KEGG pathway and GO functional enrichment. Molecular docking study of the core targets and PSD was performed, and the therapeutic effect and mechanism of PSD were verified using Transwell assay and Western blotting in cultured TNBC cells.
RESULTS:
Network pharmacology analysis identified a total of 285 potential PSD targets and 26 drug-disease intersection core targets. GO analysis yielded 175 entries related to the binding of biomolecules (protein, DNA and RNA), enzyme activities, and regulation of gene transcription. KEGG analysis yielded 46 entries involving pathways in cancer, chemical carcinogenesis-receptor activation, microRNAs in cancer, chemical carcinogenesis-reactive oxygen species, PD-L1 expression and PD-1 checkpoint pathway in cancer. Molecular docking showed high binding affinities of PSD to MTOR, HDAC2, ABL1, CDK1, TLR4, TERT, PIK3R1, NFE2L2 and PTPN1. In cultured TNBC cells, treatment with PSD significantly inhibited cell invasion and migration and lowered the expressions of MMP2, MMP9, N-cadherin and the core proteins p-mTOR, ABL1, TERT, PTPN1, HDAC2, PIK3R1, CDK1, TLR4 as well as NFE2L2 expressionin the cell nuclei.
CONCLUSIONS
The inhibitory effects of PSD on TNBC invasion and metastasis are mediated by multiple targets and pathways.
Humans
;
Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms/metabolism*
;
Saponins/pharmacology*
;
Pulsatilla/chemistry*
;
Female
;
Molecular Docking Simulation
;
Cell Line, Tumor
;
Neoplasm Invasiveness
;
Protein Interaction Maps
;
Neoplasm Metastasis
;
Signal Transduction/drug effects*
;
Cell Movement/drug effects*
7.Pachymic acid attenuates lipopolysaccharides-induced acute kidney inju-ry by inhibiting inflammation and renal tubular epithelial cell apoptosis
Xun MO ; Shanshan YU ; Jing JIA ; Yuting CHEN ; Yulin PENG ; Fang-fang WANG ; Xiong YU ; Rongyu CHEN ; Wanlin TAN ; Xiaoxiao XU ; Luqun LIANG ; Yuanyuan RUAN ; Mingjun SHI ; Yuanyuan WANG ; Bing GUO
Chinese Journal of Pathophysiology 2025;41(5):995-1005
AIM:To investigate the therapeutic effects and potential mechanism of pachymic acid(PA)on li-popolysaccharide(LPS)-induced acute kidney injury(AKI)in mice.METHODS:(1)Genes related to AKI were screened using the DAVID database.Core genes were identified by intersecting related genes and analyzed using Cyto-scape software.Gene Ontology(GO)and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)analyses were performed through the DAVID database for the cross-targets.Molecular docking and activity assays were conducted on the primary core targets.(2)A total of 100 C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into five groups:normal control(NC),model(LPS),solvent control(LPS+DMSO),and treatment groups(LPS+PA-10 and LPS+PA-20),with 20 mice in each group.The LPS-AKI model was established by intraperitoneal injection of 18 mg/kg LPS.The treatment groups received 10 mg/kg and 20 mg/kg PA,respectively,and the solvent control group was administered an equivalent dose of DMSO.Mice were euthanized 24 h after injection.Serum was collected for biochemical analysis,and Western blot was used to detect neutro-phil gelatinase-associated lipocalin(NGAL),kidney injury molecule-1(KIM-1),caspase-3,cleaved caspase-3,interleu-kin-1β(IL-1β),and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1(MCP-1)protein expression.RT-qPCR was employed to detect inflammatory factor mRNA levels.Molecular docking was used to simulate the optimal binding site of PA to caspase-3.En-zyme activity assays were performed to assess caspase protein activity,and renal lesions were observed via hematoxylin and eosin(HE)staining.Apoptosis was detected by TUNEL staining.RESULTS:(1)Thirty-one potential targets of PA against AKI were identified through network pharmacology.GO and KEGG enrichment analyses indicated that these tar-gets were primarily involved in immune response,inflammatory processes,apoptosis and survival,angiogenesis and hemo-dynamics,oxidative stress,and endoplasmic reticulum stress.Key targets included CASP3(caspase-3),PTGS2,BCL2,CCL2,and CYP219.(2)PA treatment improved renal function and reduced tubular epithelial injury.It significantly de-creased NGAL,KIM-1,and cleaved caspase-3 protein levels,as well as inflammatory factors TNF-α,IL-1β,and MCP-1 mRNA and protein expression.PA also reduced apoptosis of renal tubular epithelial cells.Enzyme activity assays and mo-lecular docking revealed that PA exerted its anti-apoptotic effect by directly binding to caspase-3,thereby inhibiting its ac-tivation by caspase-8.CONCLUSION:PA demonstrated a therapeutic effect in LPS-AKI,potentially through the inhibi-tion of inflammatory factor synthesis and release,as well as the inhibition of caspase-3 activation by caspase-8,reducing apoptosis in renal tubular epithelial cells.
8.Study on the Tongue Characteristics of TCM Syndrome Types in Postoperative Colorectal Cancer Based on Multivariate Logistic Regression
Jindi LOU ; Yulin SHI ; Xiaoyan XU ; Tao JIANG ; Jiatuo XU
Chinese Journal of Information on Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;32(9):135-140
Objective To investigate the tongue image characteristics of patients in postoperative colorectal cancer and significant tongue image features using a multinomial Logistic regression model.Methods Totally 213 postoperative patients with colorectal cancer were included.TFDA-1 digital tongue diagnostic instrument was used to collect the tongue images of patients,and the statistical differences of tongue image characteristics of patients with qi deficiency syndrome,yin deficiency syndrome,phlegm dampness syndrome and blood stasis syndrome were analyzed.Multiple Logistic regression was used to analyze the different tongue image indexes of different syndrome types.Results In the tongue coating index,perAll had the following distribution order:yin deficiency syndrome
9.Causal relationship between periodontal disease and prostate cancer:A two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization analysis in two races
Xiaoxu JIN ; Jing LIU ; Xiaodong ZHAO ; Wenyi HUANG ; Ning DONG ; Shihao WANG ; Mengfei MA ; Yulin ZHOU ; Yuhao CHEN ; Jinlu SUN ; Jie DONG ; Jun HU ; Song XU
National Journal of Andrology 2025;31(10):885-890
Objective The aim of this study is to discuss the causal relationship between periodontal disease(PD)and prostate cancer(PCa).Methods A two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization(MR)analysis based on publicly statistical data from genome-wide association studies(GWAS)was conducted.MR Egger,weighted medium,simple mode and weighted mode were supplemented,while inverse variance weighted analysis(IVW)was the main method of analysis.Heterogeneity testing,pleiotropy testing and leave-one-out testing were used to assess the sensitivity and stabili-ty.Results The results of MR analysis showed that PD had no significant impact on the occurrence of PCa:East Asian(IVW,PD:OR=1.07,P=0.48);European(IVW,PD:OR=1.00,P=0.37,periodontitis:OR=1.03,P=0.14,chronic gingivitis:OR=0.99,P=0.37,chronic periodontitis:OR=1.03,P=0.22).The reverse MR analysis also did not show a causal relationship between PCa and PD:East Asian(IVW,PD:OR=0.97,P=0.22);European(IVW,PD:OR=0.84,P=0.44,periodontitis:OR=1.01,P=0.75,chronic gingivitis:OR=0.93,P=0.23,chronic periodontitis:OR=0.99,P=0.80).The results of other analysis were consistent with those of IVW analysis.Conclusions The results of our two-sample bidirectional MR analysis do not support a causal relationship between PD and PCa.
10.Study on Chromaticity Characteristics of Gastrointestinal Tumors and Construction of Auxiliary Diagnostic Models
Xiaoyan XU ; Yulin SHI ; Liping TU ; Tao JIANG ; Wen JIAO ; Xiaojuan HU ; Jiatuo XU
Chinese Journal of Information on Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;32(11):142-148
Objective To analyze the characteristics of facial and tongue chromaticity parameters in patients with gastrointestinal tumors by setting the inspection image characteristics of patients with gastrointestinal tumors as the main research content;To establish an auxiliary diagnostic model for gastrointestinal tumors.Methods One-way ANOVA,t-test,Mann-whitney U test,canonical correlation analysis and Spearman statistical methods were used to analyze the characteristics of inspection image indexes and correlation of tumor markers of the 391 cases in the control group and 359 patients with gastrointestinal tumors.Machine learning methods such as SVM,Random Forest,KNN,Naive Bayes,XG Boost and Ada Boost were used to establish an auxiliary diagnostic model for gastrointestinal tumors.Results In terms of facial indicators,there were differences in F-R,F-G and F-B indicators among the control group,early-stage gastrointestinal cancer patients,and mid-to late-stage gastrointestinal cancer patients,in the comparison of tongue features among,TC-L,TB-L and TB-a of the control group,patients with early gastrointestinal tumors,and patients with intermediate and advanced gastrointestinal tumors showed a gradual downward trend;the AUC of the auxiliary diagnosis model of gastrointestinal tumor disease based on the chromaticity parameters of face tongue image constructed by Ada Boost algorithm was 0.930.Conclusion The auxiliary diagnostic model of gastrointestinal diseases constructed by facial and tongue images has good diagnostic effect,which can provide objective data support for in-depth exploration of the complex relationship between diagnosis and disease.


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