1.Myocardial Metabolomics Reveals Mechanism of Shenfu Injection in Ameliorating Energy Metabolism Remodeling in Rat Model of Chronic Heart Failure
Xinyue NING ; Zhenyu ZHAO ; Mengna ZHANG ; Yang GUO ; Zhijia XIANG ; Kun LIAN ; Zhixi HU ; Lin LI
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(5):178-186
ObjectiveTo examine the influences of Shenfu injection on the endogenous metabolic byproducts in the myocardium of the rat model exhibiting chronic heart failure, thus deciphering the therapeutic mechanism of the Qi-reinforcing and Yang-warming method. MethodsSD rats were randomly allocated into a control group and a modeling group. Chronic heart failure with heart-Yang deficiency syndrome in rats was modeled by multi-point subcutaneous injection of isoproterenol, and the rats were fed for 14 days after modeling. The successfully modeled rats were randomized into model, Shenfu injection (6.0 mL·kg-1), and trimetazidine (10 mg·kg-1) groups and treated with corresponding agents for 15 days. The control group and the model group were injected with equal doses of normal saline, and the samples were collected after the intervention was completed. Cardiac color ultrasound was performed. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was used to observe histopathological morphology, and the serum level of N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) was assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The mitochondrial morphological and structural changes of cardiomyocytes were observed by transmission electron microscopy, and the metabolic profiling was carried out by ultra high performance liquid chromatography-quantitative exactive-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QE-MS). Differential metabolites were screened and identified by orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) and other methods, and then the MetaboAnalyst database was used for further screening. The relevant biological pathways were obtained through pathway enrichment analysis. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was established to evaluate the diagnostic value of each potential biomarker for myocardial injury and the evaluation value for drug efficacy. ResultsThe results of color ultrasound showed that Shenfu Injection improved the cardiac function indexes of model rats (P<0.05). The results of HE staining showed that Shenfu injection effectively alleviated the pathological phenomena such as myocardial tissue structure disorder and inflammatory cell infiltration in model rats. The results of ELISA showed that Shenfu injection effectively regulated the serum NT-proBNP level in the model rats. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed that Shenfu injection effectively restored the mitochondrial morphological structure. The results of metabolomics showed that the metabolic phenotypes of myocardial samples presented markedly differences between groups. Nine differential metabolites could be significantly reversed in the Shenfu injection group, involving three metabolic pathways: pyruvate metabolism, histidine metabolism, and citric acid cycle (TCA cycle). The results of ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) values of all metabolites were between 0.75 and 1.0, indicating that the differential metabolites had high diagnostic accuracy for myocardial injury, and the changes in their expression levels could be used as potential markers for efficacy evaluation. ConclusionShenfu injection significantly alleviated the damage of cardiac function, myocardium, and mitochondrial structure in the rat model of chronic heart failure with heart-Yang deficiency syndrome by ameliorating energy metabolism remodeling. Reinforcing Qi and warming Yang is a key method for treating chronic heart failure with heart-Yang deficiency syndrome.
2.Herbal Textual Research on Tribuli Fructus and Astragali Complanati Semen in Famous Classical Formulas
Jiaqin MOU ; Wenjing LI ; Yanzhu MA ; Yue ZHOU ; Wenfeng YAN ; Shijun YANG ; Ling JIN ; Jing SHAO ; Zhijia CUI ; Zhilai ZHAN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(22):241-251
By systematically combing ancient and modern literature, this paper examined Tribuli Fructus and Astragali Complanati Semen(ACS) used in the famous classical formulas from the aspects of name, origin, production area, harvesting and processing, clinical efficacy, so as to provide a basis for the development of famous classical formulas containing such medicinal materials. The results showed that the names of Tribuli Fructus in the past dynasties were mostly derived from its morphology, and there were nicknames such as Baijili, Cijili and Dujili. The name of ACS in the past dynasties were mostly originated from its production areas, and there were nicknames such as Baijili, Shayuan Jili and Tongjili. Because both of them had the name of Baijili, confusion began to appear in the Song dynasty. In ancient and modern times, the main origin of Tribuli Fructus were Tribulus terrestris, and ancient literature recorded the genuine producing areas of Tribuli Fructus was Dali in Shaanxi and Tianshui in Gansu, but today it is mainly cultivated in Anhui and Shandong. The fruit is the medicinal part, harvested in autumn throughout history. There is no description of the quality of Tribuli Fructus in ancient times, and the plump, firm texture, grayish-white color is the best in modern times. Traditional processing methods for Tribuli Fructus included stir-frying and wine processing, while modern commonly used is purified, fried and salt-processed. The ancient records of Tribuli Fructus were spicy, bitter, and warm in nature, with modern research adding that it is slightly toxic. The main effects of ancient and modern times include treating wind disorders, improving vision, promoting muscle growth, and treating vitiligo. The mainstream base of ACS used throughout history is Astragalus complanatus. Ancient texts indicated ACS primarily originated from Shaanxi province. Today, the finest varieties come from Tongguan and Dali in Shaanxi. The medicinal part is the seed, traditionally harvested in autumn. Modern harvesting occurs in late autumn or early winter, followed by sun-drying. Ancient texts valued seeds with a fragrant aroma as superior, while modern standards prioritize plump, uniform and free of impurities. Traditional processing methods for ACS included frying until blackened and wine-frying, while modern practice commonly employs purification methods. In terms of medicinal properties, the ancient and modern records are sweet and warm in nature. Due to originally classified under Tribuli Fructus, its effects were thus regarded as equivalent to those of Tribuli Fructus, serving as the medicine for treating wind disorders, additional functions included tonifying the kidneys and treating vitiligo. The present record of its efficacy is to tonify the kidney and promote Yang, solidify sperm and reduce urine, nourish the liver and brighten the eye, etc. Based on the textual research results, it is suggested that when developing the famous classical formulas of Tribuli Fructus medicinal materials, we should pay attention to the specific reference object of Baijili, T. terrestris and A. complanatus should be identified and selected, and the processing method should be in accordance with the requirements of the formulas.
3.Effect of different liver biopsy needle track management on Yttrium-90 selective internal radiation therapy on liver cancer
Zhenyuan XU ; Xue LIU ; Shuqun SHEN ; Zhijia XU ; Changkai LI ; Yefa YANG
Chinese Journal of Clinical Medicine 2025;32(2):288-294
Objective To explore the effect of different needle track management on Yttrium-90 microsphere selective internal radiation therapy (90Y-SIRT) on liver cancer after liver biopsy. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 21 patients with liver cancer who underwent Technetium-99m-macroaggregated albumin (99mTc-MAA) evaluation and 90Y-SIRT after liver biopsy from June 2023 to December 2024. The methods of needle track management, hepatic arteriovenous shunting, and lung shunt fraction (LSF) were recorded. The occurrence of hepatic arteriovenous fistula (HAVF), as well as the corresponding countermeasures were analyzed. Results Among the 21 liver cancer patients, 7 cases (medical glue group) underwent embolization of the needle tract with medical glue (N-butyl 2-cyanoacrylate [NBCA]) immediately after biopsy, and no significant HAVF was observed during the 99mTc-MAA tests; 14 cases (non-medical glue group) were treated with delayed needle extraction or gelatin sponge particle blocking after biopsy, among which 7 cases developed significant HAVF, and the fistulas were treated with NBCA. The LSF of the medical glue group was significantly lower than that of the non-medical glue group ([7.06±2.33] % vs [12.43±7.73] %, P=0.037). All 21 patients successfully completed 90Y-SIRT. Conclusions Liver biopsy may affect 90Y-SIRT by causing iatrogenic HAVF. Immediate NBCA-embolization of the needle tract after biopsy or timely NBCA-embolization of fistulas during 99mTc-MAA tests may reduce the impact.
5.Advances in traditional Chinese medicine treatment of liver fibrosis in metabolic associated fatty liver disease
Zhijia ZHOU ; Xinyue LI ; Chao ZHENG ; Xuehua SUN
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2025;41(10):1968-1974
Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) has become one of the most prevalent chronic liver disease worldwide, and its progression to liver fibrosis is a key influencing factor for prognosis and the risk of complications. In recent years, novel drugs, such as selective thyroid hormone receptor-β agonists, glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, and fibroblast growth factor 21 analogs, have shown preliminary efficacy in the treatment of MAFLD-related liver fibrosis; however, such drugs have limited overall effectiveness, and there is still a lack of ideal therapeutic strategy to address the disease across its different stages. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), with its characteristics of multiple targets and systemic regulation, has shown unique advantages in this field. This article systematically reviews the basic and clinical research on the anti-fibrotic mechanisms of compound TCM prescriptions and their active components in recent years, focusing on the key processes including hepatic stellate cell activation, lipid metabolism disorders, oxidative stress, immune inflammation, and gut-liver axis dysfunction. Meanwhile, it is pointed out that there are still certain issues in current research, including ambiguities in the clarification of mechanisms, a lack of standardized evaluation systems, and the need to improve the quality of clinical evidence. Future research should emphasize the standardization and quality control of TCM herbal preparations and integrate emerging technologies, such as omics analysis, organoid models, and real-world data, to advance TCM intervention of MAFLD-related liver fibrosis toward well-defined mechanisms, clear therapeutic pathways, and robust scientific evidence. TCM is expected to play a vital role in the multi-dimensional targeted intervention and stage-specific management of MAFLD-related liver fibrosis, in order to provide new perspectives and comprehensive solutions for the precise treatment of chronic liver diseases.
6.Composite Manipulation in the Treatment of Thoracolumbar Vertebral Fractures(A3):A Finite Element Study
Wenchao LI ; Pengfei YU ; Zhijia MA ; Guangye ZHU ; Daixinpeng ZHAN ; Chao LI ; Zihang LI ; Zhenyu TANG ; Hongwei LI
Journal of Medical Biomechanics 2024;39(5):903-909
Objective To analyze thoracolumbar vertebral fractures(A3)treated by multiple manipulations using the finite element method and to explore the feasibility and advantages of the composite surgical method for treating thoracolumbar vertebral fractures(A3).Methods For three-dimensional reconstruction of thoracolumbar vertebral fractures(A3),the model was loaded with simulated hyperextension posture restoration,simple press restoration,press restoration under hyperextension posture,and composite manipulation.Subsequentially,the stress distribution of the model and displacement of the fractured vertebral body were observed.Results The equivalent stress under composite manipulation was 111.88 MPa,which was greater than that under other manipulations,and the stress under composite manipulation was more concentrated in the anterior and middle columns of the vertebral body.The peak stress under composite manipulation was 122.53 MPa,which was greater than that under other manipulations,and the stress was centrally distributed in fracture region of the fractured vertebral body.The fracture displacement under composite manipulation was 3.94 mm,which was greater than that under other manipulations,and the displacement distribution decreased from the posterior column to the anterior mid-column.The anterior longitudinal and intertransverse interligamentous ligaments of the fractured vertebral body experienced the greatest stress under composite manipulation,and the joint capsule ligaments experienced the greatest stress under hyperextension postural restoration,simple press restoration,and press restoration under the hyperextension posture.Conclusions Compound manipulation for treating thoracolumbar vertebral fractures(A3)has obvious advantages over other manipulative restorations and is a reasonable program for the current treatment of thoracolumbar vertebral fractures(A3).
7.Minimal improvement in coronary artery disease risk prediction in Chinese population using polygenic risk scores: evidence from the China Kadoorie Biobank.
Songchun YANG ; Dong SUN ; Zhijia SUN ; Canqing YU ; Yu GUO ; Jiahui SI ; Dianjianyi SUN ; Yuanjie PANG ; Pei PEI ; Ling YANG ; Iona Y MILLWOOD ; Robin G WALTERS ; Yiping CHEN ; Huaidong DU ; Zengchang PANG ; Dan SCHMIDT ; Rebecca STEVENS ; Robert CLARKE ; Junshi CHEN ; Zhengming CHEN ; Jun LV ; Liming LI
Chinese Medical Journal 2023;136(20):2476-2483
BACKGROUND:
Several studies have reported that polygenic risk scores (PRSs) can enhance risk prediction of coronary artery disease (CAD) in European populations. However, research on this topic is far from sufficient in non-European countries, including China. We aimed to evaluate the potential of PRS for predicting CAD for primary prevention in the Chinese population.
METHODS:
Participants with genome-wide genotypic data from the China Kadoorie Biobank were divided into training ( n = 28,490) and testing sets ( n = 72,150). Ten previously developed PRSs were evaluated, and new ones were developed using clumping and thresholding or LDpred method. The PRS showing the strongest association with CAD in the training set was selected to further evaluate its effects on improving the traditional CAD risk-prediction model in the testing set. Genetic risk was computed by summing the product of the weights and allele dosages across genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphisms. Prediction of the 10-year first CAD events was assessed using hazard ratios (HRs) and measures of model discrimination, calibration, and net reclassification improvement (NRI). Hard CAD (nonfatal I21-I23 and fatal I20-I25) and soft CAD (all fatal or nonfatal I20-I25) were analyzed separately.
RESULTS:
In the testing set, 1214 hard and 7201 soft CAD cases were documented during a mean follow-up of 11.2 years. The HR per standard deviation of the optimal PRS was 1.26 (95% CI:1.19-1.33) for hard CAD. Based on a traditional CAD risk prediction model containing only non-laboratory-based information, the addition of PRS for hard CAD increased Harrell's C index by 0.001 (-0.001 to 0.003) in women and 0.003 (0.001 to 0.005) in men. Among the different high-risk thresholds ranging from 1% to 10%, the highest categorical NRI was 3.2% (95% CI: 0.4-6.0%) at a high-risk threshold of 10.0% in women. The association of the PRS with soft CAD was much weaker than with hard CAD, leading to minimal or no improvement in the soft CAD model.
CONCLUSIONS
In this Chinese population sample, the current PRSs minimally changed risk discrimination and offered little improvement in risk stratification for soft CAD. Therefore, this may not be suitable for promoting genetic screening in the general Chinese population to improve CAD risk prediction.
Male
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Humans
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Female
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Coronary Artery Disease/genetics*
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Biological Specimen Banks
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East Asian People
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Risk Assessment/methods*
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Genetic Predisposition to Disease/genetics*
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Risk Factors
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Genome-Wide Association Study
8.Antibody-drug conjugates: Recent advances in payloads.
Zhijia WANG ; Hanxuan LI ; Lantu GOU ; Wei LI ; Yuxi WANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2023;13(10):4025-4059
Antibody‒drug conjugates (ADCs), which combine the advantages of monoclonal antibodies with precise targeting and payloads with efficient killing, show great clinical therapeutic value. The ADCs' payloads play a key role in determining the efficacy of ADC drugs and thus have attracted great attention in the field. An ideal ADC payload should possess sufficient toxicity, low immunogenicity, high stability, and modifiable functional groups. Common ADC payloads include tubulin inhibitors and DNA damaging agents, with tubulin inhibitors accounting for more than half of the ADC drugs in clinical development. However, due to clinical limitations of traditional ADC payloads, such as inadequate efficacy and the development of acquired drug resistance, novel highly efficient payloads with diverse targets and reduced side effects are being developed. This perspective summarizes the recent research advances of traditional and novel ADC payloads with main focuses on the structure-activity relationship studies, co-crystal structures, and designing strategies, and further discusses the future research directions of ADC payloads. This review also aims to provide valuable references and future directions for the development of novel ADC payloads that will have high efficacy, low toxicity, adequate stability, and abilities to overcome drug resistance.
9.Clinical study on the classification of renal artery involvement and comparison of renal function and prognosis of Stanford type B aortic dissection after thoracic aortic endovascular repair
Chunliu WU ; Zhijia LI ; Tienan ZHOU ; Lei ZHANG ; Quanyu ZHANG ; Xiaozeng WANG
Chinese Journal of Internal Medicine 2023;62(3):297-303
Objective:To investigate the different types of renal artery involvement in Stanford type B aortic dissection (TBAD) and the comparison of clinical effecacy after thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR).Methods:This is a retrospective cohort study included 330 patients with TBAD and renal artery involvement treated with TEVAR from June 2002 to September 2021 in General Hospital of Northern Theater Command of the PLA. According to aortic CTA image, unilateral renal artery involvement conditions were divided into 5 types: the true lumen type (renal artery opening completely from the true lumen), false lumen type (renal artery opening completely from the false lumen), double lumen type (renal artery opening from the true and false double lumen), compression type (renal artery opening connected with the true lumen, but the renal artery opening was extremely squeezed by the inner membrane), open type (renal artery opening with intimal tear). There were seven types of bilateral renal artery involvement: true-true type (true lumen-true lumen type), true and false type (true lumen-false lumen type), true-double type (true lumen-double lumen type), true-opening type (true lumen-opening type), false-false type (false lumen-false lumen type), false-compression type (false lumen-compression type), double-double type (double lumen-double lumen type). The primary observation index of this study was the comparison of postoperative renal function and the incidence of clinical adverse events of different types of renal artery involvement. One-way ANOVA test, Kruskal-Wallis H test and paired sample rank sum test were used to compare postoperative renal function between different types of bilateral renal artery involvement. The Chi-square test or Fisher′s exact probability test were used to compare the near and long term adverse events between different types of bilateral renal artery involvement. Kaplan-Meier method was used to compare the all-cause mortality of patients with severe renal functional injury and non-severe renal functional injury before surgery. Results:The average age of the patients included in this study was (53±11) years, including 276 males (83.6%) and 54 females (16.4%). There were statistical difference in the level of serum creatinine (preoperative: H=18.686, P=0.005, postoperative: H=18.101, P=0.006) and cystatin C (preoperative: H=17.566, P=0.007, postoperative: H=10.433, P=0.016), pre-and post-operative, between the seven groups of TBAD patients with different renal artery involvement types ( P<0.05), and the false-false type group shown the worst kidney function. However, no statistically significant differences were shown when comparing their pre- and post-operative change values ( P>0.05). The 30-day follow-up result showed that there were statistically significant differences in the incidence of postoperative acute kidney injury ( χ2=15.623, P=0.007), aorta-related adverse events ( χ2=15.523, P=0.010), and intraoperative endoleak ( χ2=17.935, P=0.004) among the seven groups, and the false-false group was the highest (2/9, 5/9 and 5/9, respectively). In terms of long-term follow-up results, there were statistically significant differences in all-cause death ( χ2=14.772, P=0.011) and non-aortic death ( χ2=15.589, P=0.008) among the seven groups. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that patients with worse pre-operative renal function showed higher long-term all cause death (17.7% vs. 4.8%, P=0.009). Conclusions:For TBAD patients with renal artery involvement, there were differences in renal function among different types, and TEVAR showed no significant effect on renal function in TBAD patients. The long-term all cause death was higher in patients with worse renal function pre-operative.
10.Lamin B1 regulates the growth of hepatocellular carcinoma cells by influencing telomerase activity.
Ruiguan WANG ; Si CHEN ; Zhijia SUN ; Shikun WANG ; Jie WANG ; Lingmei QIN ; Jiangbo LI
Chinese Journal of Biotechnology 2023;39(4):1609-1620
Lamin B1 (LMNB1) is highly expressed in liver cancer tissues, and its influence and mechanism on the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells were explored by knocking down the expression of the protein. In liver cancer cells, siRNAs were used to knock down LMNB1. Knockdown effects were detected by Western blotting. Changes in telomerase activity were detected by telomeric repeat amplification protocol assay (TRAP) experiments. Telomere length changes were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). CCK8, cloning formation, transwell and wound healing were performed to detect changes in its growth, invasion and migration capabilities. The lentiviral system was used to construct HepG2 cells that steadily knocked down LMNB1. Then the changes of telomere length and telomerase activity were detected, and the cell aging status was detected by SA-β-gal senescence staining. The effects of tumorigenesis were detected by nude mouse subcutaneous tumorigenesis experiments, subsequent histification staining of tumors, SA-β-gal senescence staining, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) for telomere analysis and other experiments. Finally, the method of biogenesis analysis was used to find the expression of LMNB1 in clinical liver cancer tissues, and its relationship with clinical stages and patient survival. Knockdown of LMNB1 in HepG2 and Hep3B cells significantly reduced telomerase activity, cell proliferation, migration and invasion abilities. Experiments in cells and tumor formation in nude mice had demonstrated that stable knockdown of LMNB1 reduced telomerase activity, shortened telomere length, senesced cells, reduced cell tumorigenicity and KI-67 expression. Bioinformatics analysis showed that LMNB1 was highly expressed in liver cancer tissues and correlated with tumor stage and patient survival. In conclusion, LMNB1 is overexpressed in liver cancer cells, and it is expected to become an indicator for evaluating the clinical prognosis of liver cancer patients and a target for precise treatment.
Animals
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Mice
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Telomerase/metabolism*
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Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/genetics*
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Liver Neoplasms/genetics*
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Telomere Shortening
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In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence
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Mice, Nude
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Telomere/pathology*
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Carcinogenesis

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