1.Discovery of a novel thiophene carboxamide analogue as a highly potent and selective sphingomyelin synthase 2 inhibitor for dry eye disease therapy.
Jintong YANG ; Yiteng LU ; Kexin HU ; Xinchen ZHANG ; Wei WANG ; Deyong YE ; Mingguang MO ; Xin XIAO ; Xichen WAN ; Yuqing WU ; Shuxian ZHANG ; He HUANG ; Zhibei QU ; Yimin HU ; Yu CAO ; Jiaxu HONG ; Lu ZHOU
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(1):392-408
Dry eye disease (DED) is a prevalent and intractable ocular disease induced by a variety of causes. Elevated sphingomyelin (SM) levels and pro-inflammatory cytokines were detected on the ocular surface of DED patients, particularly in the meibomian glands. Sphingomyelin synthase 2 (SMS2), one of the proteins involved in SM synthesis, would light a novel way of developing a DED therapy strategy. Herein, we report the design and optimization of a series of novel thiophene carboxamide derivatives to afford 14l with an improved highly potent inhibitory activity on SM synthesis (IC50, SMS2 = 28 nmol/L). Moreover, 14l exhibited a notable protective effect of anti-inflammation and anti-apoptosis on human corneal epithelial cells (HCEC) under TNF-α-hyperosmotic stress conditions in vitro, with an acceptable ocular specific distribution (corneas and meibomian glands) and pharmacokinetics (PK) profiles (t 1/2, cornea = 1.11 h; t 1/2, meibomian glands = 4.32 h) in rats. Furthermore, 14l alleviated the dry eye symptoms including corneal fluorescein staining scores and tear secretion in a dose-dependent manner in mice. Mechanically, 14l reduced the mRNA expression of Tnf-α, Il-1β and Mmp-9 in corneas, as well as the proportion of very long chain SM in meibomian glands. Our findings provide a new strategy for DED therapy based on selective SMS2 inhibitors.
2.Small-sized twin-nanoparticles normalize tumor vasculature to enhance tumor accumulation and penetration for potent eradication of cancer stem-like cells.
Changshun ZHAO ; Wei WANG ; Zhengchun HUANG ; Yuqing WAN ; Rui XU ; Junmei ZHANG ; Bingbing ZHAO ; Ke WANG ; Suchen WEN ; Yinan ZHONG ; Dechun HUANG ; Wei CHEN
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(10):5458-5473
Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are proposed to account for the progression, metastasis, and recurrence of diverse malignancies. However, the disorganized vasculars in tumors hinder the accumulation and penetration of nanomedicines, posing a challenge in eliminating CSCs located distantly from blood vessels. Herein, a pair of twin-like small-sized nanoparticles, sunitinib (St)-loaded ROS responsive micelles (RM@St) and salinomycin (SAL)-loaded GSH responsive micelles (GM@SAL), are developed to normalize disordered tumor vessels and eradicate CSCs. RM@St releases sunitinib in response to the abundant ROS in the tumor extracellular microenvironment for tumor vessel normalization, which improved intratumor accumulation and homogeneous distribution of small-sized GM@SAL. Sequentially, GM@SAL effectively accesses CSCs and achieves reduction-responsive drug release at high GSH concentrations within CSCs. More importantly, RM@St significantly extends the window of vessel normalization and enhances vessel integrity compared to free sunitinib, thus further amplifying the anti-tumor effect of GM@SAL. The combination therapy of RM@St plus GM@SAL produces considerable depression of tumor growth, drastically reducing CSCs fractions to 5.6% and resulting in 78.4% inhibition of lung metastasis. This study offers novel insights into rational nanomedicines designed for superior therapeutic effects by vascular normalization and anti-CSCs therapy.
3.Graph Neural Networks and Multimodal DTI Features for Schizophrenia Classification: Insights from Brain Network Analysis and Gene Expression.
Jingjing GAO ; Heping TANG ; Zhengning WANG ; Yanling LI ; Na LUO ; Ming SONG ; Sangma XIE ; Weiyang SHI ; Hao YAN ; Lin LU ; Jun YAN ; Peng LI ; Yuqing SONG ; Jun CHEN ; Yunchun CHEN ; Huaning WANG ; Wenming LIU ; Zhigang LI ; Hua GUO ; Ping WAN ; Luxian LV ; Yongfeng YANG ; Huiling WANG ; Hongxing ZHANG ; Huawang WU ; Yuping NING ; Dai ZHANG ; Tianzi JIANG
Neuroscience Bulletin 2025;41(6):933-950
Schizophrenia (SZ) stands as a severe psychiatric disorder. This study applied diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data in conjunction with graph neural networks to distinguish SZ patients from normal controls (NCs) and showcases the superior performance of a graph neural network integrating combined fractional anisotropy and fiber number brain network features, achieving an accuracy of 73.79% in distinguishing SZ patients from NCs. Beyond mere discrimination, our study delved deeper into the advantages of utilizing white matter brain network features for identifying SZ patients through interpretable model analysis and gene expression analysis. These analyses uncovered intricate interrelationships between brain imaging markers and genetic biomarkers, providing novel insights into the neuropathological basis of SZ. In summary, our findings underscore the potential of graph neural networks applied to multimodal DTI data for enhancing SZ detection through an integrated analysis of neuroimaging and genetic features.
Humans
;
Schizophrenia/pathology*
;
Diffusion Tensor Imaging/methods*
;
Male
;
Female
;
Adult
;
Brain/metabolism*
;
Young Adult
;
Middle Aged
;
White Matter/pathology*
;
Gene Expression
;
Nerve Net/diagnostic imaging*
;
Graph Neural Networks
4.Investigation of the current situation of pharmaceutical clinics in medical institutions in China
Lijuan YANG ; Mingyuan WAN ; Wei ZHANG ; Yuqing ZHANG ; Jin LU ; Jiancun ZHEN ; Qunhong SHEN
China Pharmacy 2024;35(2):134-139
OBJECTIVE To investigate the current situation of pharmaceutical clinic service in medical institutions in China and provide experience and suggestions for promoting the development of pharmaceutical clinics. METHODS Questionnaire survey was used to investigate the development of pharmaceutical clinics in medical institutions of 31 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government) in March to April 2023, and the descriptive analysis was conducted. The regression analysis was carried out for the influential factors of pharmaceutical clinic service. RESULTS A total of 1 368 questionnaires were distributed in this survey and 1 304 valid questionnaires were collected with the effective response rate of 95.32%. A total of 463 medical institutions carried out pharmaceutical clinic service, the rate of which was 35.51% (463/1 304); the rates of pharmaceutical clinics in tertiary, secondary, primary and other medical institutions were 52.80%, 17.18% and 5.88%, respectively. The frequency of opening pharmaceutical clinics was 3.17 days per week on average, with an average of 5.99 visiting pharmacists in each medical institution. Among the visiting pharmacists, clinical pharmacists accounted for the vast majority (88.68%, 2 459/2 773). There were various categories of pharmaceutical clinics, including joint clinics and pharmacist-independent clinics; among pharmacist-independent clinics, pharmaceutical specialty/specialty disease clinics were the main ones, accounting for 89.72% of the total number of pharmaceutical clinics. The value of pharmacists in pharmaceutical clinics was manifested in various forms, among which the proportion of medical institutions charging pharmaceutical clinics was 10.80%. The main experiences in developing pharmaceutical clinics were to attach importance to discipline construction and personnel training. The main difficulties in developing pharmaceutical clinics were low compensation levels and a shortage of talent.The number of clinical pharmacists, the number of visiting pharmacists in pharmaceutical clinics and additional compensation were positively correlated with the amount of pharmaceutical clinic services(P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS In recent years, pharmaceutical clinics have made significant progress; in the future, it is still necessary to further strengthen discipline construction and talent cultivation, pay attention to the value embodiment of pharmacists, to promote the healthy development of pharmaceutical clinics.
5.Study on Self-management Level of Elderly Diabetic Mellitus Patients in Dongcheng District of Beijing and Its Influencing Factors
Yuqing YANG ; Quan CHEN ; Qile HE ; Jinyao ZHANG ; Zhuocun WU ; Yanli WAN
Journal of Medical Informatics 2024;45(1):59-63,88
Purpose/Significance To investigate the status quo and influencing factors of self-management level of elderly diabetic mellitus patients in Dongcheng District of Beijing,and to provide references for further development of community diabetes health educa-tion and health management.Method/Process The survey is conducted on 1 962 cases of elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who are randomly selected from community-level health service institutions in Dongcheng District of Beijing and are investigated by self-made questionnaires and the summary of diabetes self-care activities.Multiple stepwise regression and logistic regression are used to analyze the influencing factors of patients'self-management level.Result/Conclusion The self-management level of elderly diabetic mellitus patients is affected by many factors,among which the awareness of disease-related knowledge,the form of medical security and the use of health-related software to manage chronic diseases are the main influencing factors(P<0.05).Local management depart-ments can take targeted health interventions to further improve the self-management ability of elderly diabetic mellitus patients.
6.Diagnosis of a case with Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome type 5 through high-throughput sequencing and a literature review.
Dong WANG ; Jing HUANG ; Kaihui ZHANG ; Yuqing LYU ; Min GAO ; Jian MA ; Ya WAN ; Zhongtao GAI ; Yi LIU
Chinese Journal of Medical Genetics 2023;40(11):1392-1396
OBJECTIVE:
To explore the clinical and genetic characteristics of a patient with Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome type 5 (HPS-5).
METHODS:
A child with HPS-5 who had attended the Children's Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University on October 3, 2019 was selected as the study subject. Clinical data of the child were collected. Genetic variant was analyzed through high-throughput sequencing. A literature review was also carried out.
RESULTS:
The child, a 1-year-and-5-month-old girl, had nystagmus since childhood, lost of retinal pigmentation by fundus examination and easy bruising. High-throughput sequencing revealed that she has harbored compound heterozygous variants of the HPS5 gene, namely c.1562_1563delAA (p.F521Sfs*27) and c.1404C>A (p.C468X), which were inherited from his father and mother, respectively. Based on the guidelines from the American College for Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), both variants were predicted to be pathogenic (PVS+PM2_Supporting+PM3+PP4). Among 18 previously reported HPS-5 patients, all had had eye problems, and most of them had tendency for bleeding. Eight cases had carried compound heterozygous variants of the HPS5 gene, 8 carried homozygous variants, 2 carried double homozygous variants, and most of them were null mutations.
CONCLUSION
The c.1562_1563delAA(p.F521Sfs*27) and c.1404C>A (p.C468X) compound heterozygous variants of the HPS5 gene probably underlay the HPS-5 in this child. High-throughput sequencing has provided an important tool for the diagnosis. HSP-5 patients usually have typical ocular albinism and/or oculocutaneous albinism and tendency of bleeding, which are commonly caused by compound heterozygous and homozygous variants of the HPS5 gene, though serious complications have been rare.
Female
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Humans
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Infant
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Hermanski-Pudlak Syndrome/pathology*
;
High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
;
Mutation
7.Administration of a single chain variable fragments chimeric protein (SD) of ovalbumin epitopes internalizing receptor DEC-205 antibody inhibits food allergy in mice.
Chong WAN ; Meiying WU ; Yuqing ZHANG ; Junwei SHAO ; Qingqing LUO ; Jiyu JU ; Lingzhi XU
Chinese Journal of Cellular and Molecular Immunology 2023;39(5):391-396
Objective To investigate the preventive therapeutic effect and possible mechanism of single chain variable fragments chimeric protein (SD) of ovalbumin epitopes internalizing receptor DEC-205 antibody on food allergy in mice. Methods Mice were randomly divided to five groups (control, PBS, scFv DEC 100 μg, SD 50 μg, SD 100 μg) and treated for 24 hours before OVA administration. After challenge, the serum level of OVA-specific IgE, IgG1, IgG2a and IL-4 were detected by ELISA. Infiltration of eosinophils and mast cells in the jejunum was observed by HE staining and toluidine blue staining respectively. The bone marrow of tibia and femur was isolated and cultured to obtain immature dendritic cells(BMDCs), which were further treated with LPS (10 ng/mL), TSLP (50 ng/mL), scFv DEC protein (1000 ng/mL) and SD protein (10,100,1000)ng/mL for 24 hours, and the IL-10 level of supernatant was assayed by ELISA. Results Compared with PBS group, the number of SD-treated mice with diarrhea was markedly reduced. The difference in rectal temperature and the levels of serum OVA-specific IgE, IgG1, IgG2a and IL-4 decreased significantly after prophylactic administration of SD; The number of eosinophils and mast cells in jejunum also decreased significantly while the IL-10 level in the supernatant of BMDCs increased significantly after SD intervention. Conclusion SD mitigates experimental FA response by fosters the immune tolerance property of dendritic cells.
Mice
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Animals
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Ovalbumin
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Interleukin-10
;
Single-Chain Antibodies/genetics*
;
Immunoglobulin E
;
Epitopes/therapeutic use*
;
Interleukin-4
;
Food Hypersensitivity/prevention & control*
;
Immunoglobulin G
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Recombinant Fusion Proteins/genetics*
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Mice, Inbred BALB C
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Disease Models, Animal
8.The prediction of oxygenation index on clinical outcomes of adult community acquired pneumonia patients
Yuqing Wan ; Haoming Ye ; Min Shao
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2023;58(11):1957-1961
Objective :
To explore the predictive value of oxygenation index ( P/F) for clinical outcomes in adult
community acquired pneumonia (CAP) patients .
Methods :
493 patients with CAP eligible for inclusion were extracted from AHCCDM , and were divided into survival group ( n = 405 ) and death group ( n = 88) according to
whether they survived at discharge ; multivariate Logistic regression analysis was used to identify independent risk factors associated with hospitalization death in CAP patients ; the trend of changes in oxygenation index (P/F) and hospital mortality risk was evaluated using a restricted cubic spline ( RCS) curve .
Results :
Multivariate Logistic
regression analysis found that independent risk factors affecting hospitalization death in CAP patients included acute and chronic health scores (Apache II score)( OR = 1 . 11 , 95% CI : 1 . 07 - 1 . 15 , P = 0. 02) , P/F ( OR = 1 . 70 ,95% CI : 1 . 03 - 2. 82 , P = 0. 04) , and hemoglobin (Hb) and HCO3- concentration P > 0. 05 , which were not statistically significant; restrictive cubic spline regression analysis found that there was a non⁃linear response relation ship between P/F and hospital mortality (non⁃linear test P < 0. 001) , and a P/F of 250 mmHg was the cutoff point for the hospital mortality association analysis . P/F < 250 mmHg , for every 1 mmHg increased in P/F , the risk of
in⁃hospital mortality was reduced by 1% , HR : 0. 99 (0. 99 - 1 . 00) , P < 0. 001 . P/F > 250 mmHg , there was no association between CAP patients and in⁃hospital mortality , HR : 1 . 00 ( 1 . 00 - 1 . 01) , P < 0. 001 , indicating that other factors played a dominant role .
Conclusion
A significantly reduced P/F has a high predictive value for mortality in patients with community⁃acquired pneumonia .
9.Impact of psychological health on dry eye and management during the coronavirus disease-19 epidemic
Yi YU ; Yiwen ZHOU ; Shanshan WAN ; Yuqing HUANG ; Huiling WANG ; Yanning YANG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Ophthalmology 2020;38(5):468-472
At the end of 2019, the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) broke out in Wuhan and has spread throughout the world, bringing great challengees to the public health, prevention, and control work in our country and globally.Although the national medical staff and Public Health Epidemic Prevention personnel are fighting the epidemic, the large numbers of patients and the long-term isolation measures greatly impacted people's lifestyles.The epidemic's development has currently been eased, but the blockades and quarantines in many cities have not been completely lifted.While controlling the coronavirus, lifestyle changes caused by long-term isolation, as well as fear of the disease and economic recession have brought people various negative emotions.These mental health issues may cause or aggravate the occurrence and development of dry eye.Therefore, the authors explore the impact of mental health on dry eye during the COVID-19 epidemic, alongside possible mechanisms, and put forward relevant suggestions for managing eye-related diseases during and after the epidemic.
10.Solanine induces the apoptosis of human prostate cancer cells via ROS/p38 signaling pathway
Weifeng ZHONG ; Nanhui CHEN ; Yuqing HUANG ; Pei WAN ; Yifeng LIN ; Huiming JIANG ; Kaihua ZHONG ; Bin PAN ; Siping LIU
Journal of Xi'an Jiaotong University(Medical Sciences) 2017;38(3):457-461,封3
Objective To investigate the molecular mechanism of solanine-induced apoptosis of prostate cancer cells Du145 and LNCaP.Methods The effects of solanine on the viability of Du145 and LNCaP cells were evaluated by MTT assay.The generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and solanine-induced apoptosis were measured by flow cytometry.The protein levels of p38 and p-p38 expressions were examined by Western blot.Results Solanine significantly inhibited the viability of Du145 and LNCaP cells in a dose-dependent manner (P<0.01).The inhibition of solanine on cell viability was suppressed by the ROS scavenger NAC.ROS generation,apoptosis and phosphorylation of p38 were induced by treatment with solanine at 40 μmol/L for 24 h.The expression of p38 and solanine-induced apoptosis were suppressed by NAC and SB203580.Conclusion Solanine induces the apoptosis of human prostate cancer cell via the RO.S-p38 signaling pathway.


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