Objective: To investigate the effects of a Twin-Block appliance combined with slow maxillary expansion (SME) on transverse dental and skeletal parameters in adolescent patients with Angle Class Ⅱ division 1 malocclusion, and to provide a reference for clinical orthodontic practice. Methods: This retrospective study was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee. A total of 21 adolescents with Class Ⅱ division 1 malocclusion who underwent two-phase treatment with a Twin-Block appliance combined with SME at the Department of Orthodontics, College & Hospital of Stomatology, Guangxi Medical University, in 2021 to 2023 were consecutively enrolled. In the first phase, a functional appliance was used to coordinate the skeletal relationship between the maxilla and mandible by leveraging growth potential. In the second phase, a fixed appliance was employed for fine adjustments of the dental arches based on the specific condition. Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans were obtained before treatment (T0) and after the first phase of functional correction (T1). Transverse measurements at the first molar region, including molar buccolingual inclination, dental arch width, and basal bone width, were performed using Dolphin 3D Imaging software. Changes between T0 and T1 were statistically analyzed. Results: After the first phase of treatment, the left and right maxillary first molars showed a significant increase in buccal inclination by 5.47° ± 1.38° and 5.35° ± 1.61°, respectively (P<0.001). The arch width in the maxillary first molar region also increased by (2.68 ± 1.14) mm, and the basal bone width increased by (1.14 ± 1.24) mm (all P<0.001). The proportion of skeletal expansion accounted for an average of 42.86%, while dental expansion accounted for 57.14%. No statistically significant changes were observed in any mandibular transverse measurements (all P>0.05). Conclusion In adolescent patients with Angle Class Ⅱ division 1 malocclusion accompanied by maxillary transverse deficiency, Twin-Block appliance combined with SME can effectively expand maxillary dental arch and basal bone width while improving sagittal relationship, thereby correcting transverse discrepancy. The maxillary width changes were predominantly dental.

Objective:To investigate the effects of acute sleep deprivation (ASD) on hippocampal glucose metabolism and neuroinflammation in rat models.Methods:Twenty SD rats (10 males and 10 females) were divided into four groups (five in each group) by random sampling method: female ASD group, male ASD group, female control group, and male control group. Among them, the ASD group constructed the ASD model. After 72h sleep deprivation, all rats underwent 18F-FDG and N, N-diethyl-2-(2-(4-(2- 18F-fluoroethoxy)phenyl)-5, 7-dimethylpyrazolo[1, 5-a]pyrimidin-3-yl)acetamide ( 18F-DPA-714) microPET/CT brain imaging in 2d to compare the changes of 18F-FDG and 18F-DPA-714 SUV mean in the hippocampus of rats. Brain histopathology, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining were detected in rats. Independent-sample t test was used to analyze the data. Results:18F-FDG imaging showed the hippocampal SUV mean between ASD group and control group (female: 4.11±0.35 vs 1.89±0.28; male: 3.43±0.47 vs 2.02±0.54) were statistically significant ( t values: 9.65, 3.92, P values: <0.001, 0.002). 18F-DPA-714 imaging showed the hippocampal SUV mean between ASD group and control group (females: 0.28±0.01 vs 0.28±0.02; male: 0.26±0.02 vs 0.31±0.04) were not statistically significant ( t values: -0.18, -2.24, P values: 0.859, 0.056). The 18×10 3 translocator protein (TSPO) immunohistochemistry showed the expression in the hippocampal region of the brain between ASD group and control group (female: 0.19±0.02 vs 0.19±0.01; male: 0.21±0.01 vs 0.20±0.01) were not statistically different ( t values: -0.48, -1.67, P values: 0.651, 0.139). Immunofluorescence staining showed that microglial cytosol in the hippocampal region of the brain decreased after 72h of ASD, and the protrusion points and surrounding branches were significantly reduced. Conclusion:Increased hippocampal glucose metabolism in rats is observed after 72 h of ASD without significant neuroinflammation.

Objective:To investigate the effect of curcumin on phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/Akt/mTOR) pathway on the autophagy of Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-infected macrophages.Methods:The infection model was established by infecting THP-1-derived macrophages with BCG. Five groups were involved in this study, which were control group, BCG group, BCG+ curcumin group, BCG+ curcumin+ IGF-1(PI3K agonist) group, and BCG+ curcumin+ LY294002 (PI3K inhibitor) group. The fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes was observed under fluorescence microscope using the fluorescent dye monodansylcadaverine (MDC staining). The expression of PI3K, Akt, mTOR, phospho-PI3K (p-PI3K), phospho-Akt (p-Akt), phospho-mTOR (p-mTOR), microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3-Ⅱ (LC3-Ⅱ), and Beclin-1 at protein level were detected by Western blot. Colony forming unit was used to detect macrophage load. Multiple independent, normal, and homogeneous data were compared using one-way analysis of variance, and pairwise comparisons were conducted using LSD test.Results:BCG infection significantly decreased the fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes, and the expression of autophagy marker proteins LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 ( P<0.05), but increased the expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, and p-mTOR ( P<0.05). Curcumin increased the fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes and enhanced the expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 proteins in a concentration-dependent manner ( P<0.05). Besides, curcumin inhibited the expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, and p-mTOR ( P<0.05). The PI3K agonist IGF-1 reversed the above effects of curcumin. Compared with the BCG+ curcumin group, the fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes and the expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 proteins were further increased ( P<0.05), while the expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt and p-mTOR was further decreased ( P<0.05) in the BCG+ curcumin+ LY294002 group. Compared with the BCG group, the bacterial loads in the BCG+ curcumin group and the BCG+ curcumin+ LY294002 group decreased significantly ( P<0.05), while the bacterial load in the BCG+ curcumin+ IGF-1 group increased significantly ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Curcumin can promote the autophagy of BCG-infected macrophages, which contributes to the clearance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by macrophages. Part of the mechanism may be related to the inhibition of PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway.

Objective To explore the molecular mechanism by which curcumin enhances the anti-tuberculosis function of macrophages through immune metabolic regulation mediated by liver X receptor α(LXRα)/ABCA1.Methods A model was established by infecting THP-1-derived macrophages with attenuated strain of Mycobacterium bovis(M.bovis).The control group,curcumin group,M.pavis group,M.pavis+LXRα agonist(T0901317)group,M.pavis+LXRα inhibitor(GSK2033)group,M.pavis+curcumin group,M.pavis+curcumin+GSK2033 group and M.pavis+curcumin+T0901317 group were set up.The protein and gene expressions of LXRα/ABCA1 were detected by Western blotting and real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR).The accumulation of lipid droplets was analyzed by Oil Red O staining and micro-assay.The lipid content of the supernatant was determined by a biochemical analyzer,and cell proliferation was assessed by the MTT method.Bacterial clearance capacity was evaluated by measuring intracellular bacterial load.Results Curcumin significantly upregulated the protein and gene expression of LXRα/ABCA1 in M.Bovis-infected macrophages,reduced intracellular lipid accumulation and promoted lipid efflux,while enhancing cell proliferation and reducing intracellular bacterial load(P<0.05,P<0.01).LXRα inhibitors could reverse the effect of curcumin,while agonists synergistically enhanced its effect.Correlation analysis showed that the expression of LXRα/ABCA1 in cells was negatively correlated with the intracellular bacterial load,while the lipid level was positively correlated with the intracellular bacterial load(P<0.01).Conclusion Curcumin activates the LXRα/ABCA1 pathway,coordinates the metabolic remodeling of macrophages and the enhancement of immune function,and forms a synergistic effect against tuberculosis,providing an experimental basis for the development of a novel host-directed treatment strategy for tuberculosis based on immune-metabolic regulation.

Objective To explore the molecular mechanism by which curcumin enhances the anti-tuberculosis function of macrophages through immune metabolic regulation mediated by liver X receptor α(LXRα)/ABCA1.Methods A model was established by infecting THP-1-derived macrophages with attenuated strain of Mycobacterium bovis(M.bovis).The control group,curcumin group,M.pavis group,M.pavis+LXRα agonist(T0901317)group,M.pavis+LXRα inhibitor(GSK2033)group,M.pavis+curcumin group,M.pavis+curcumin+GSK2033 group and M.pavis+curcumin+T0901317 group were set up.The protein and gene expressions of LXRα/ABCA1 were detected by Western blotting and real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR).The accumulation of lipid droplets was analyzed by Oil Red O staining and micro-assay.The lipid content of the supernatant was determined by a biochemical analyzer,and cell proliferation was assessed by the MTT method.Bacterial clearance capacity was evaluated by measuring intracellular bacterial load.Results Curcumin significantly upregulated the protein and gene expression of LXRα/ABCA1 in M.Bovis-infected macrophages,reduced intracellular lipid accumulation and promoted lipid efflux,while enhancing cell proliferation and reducing intracellular bacterial load(P<0.05,P<0.01).LXRα inhibitors could reverse the effect of curcumin,while agonists synergistically enhanced its effect.Correlation analysis showed that the expression of LXRα/ABCA1 in cells was negatively correlated with the intracellular bacterial load,while the lipid level was positively correlated with the intracellular bacterial load(P<0.01).Conclusion Curcumin activates the LXRα/ABCA1 pathway,coordinates the metabolic remodeling of macrophages and the enhancement of immune function,and forms a synergistic effect against tuberculosis,providing an experimental basis for the development of a novel host-directed treatment strategy for tuberculosis based on immune-metabolic regulation.

Objective:To investigate the effects of acute sleep deprivation (ASD) on hippocampal glucose metabolism and neuroinflammation in rat models.Methods:Twenty SD rats (10 males and 10 females) were divided into four groups (five in each group) by random sampling method: female ASD group, male ASD group, female control group, and male control group. Among them, the ASD group constructed the ASD model. After 72h sleep deprivation, all rats underwent 18F-FDG and N, N-diethyl-2-(2-(4-(2- 18F-fluoroethoxy)phenyl)-5, 7-dimethylpyrazolo[1, 5-a]pyrimidin-3-yl)acetamide ( 18F-DPA-714) microPET/CT brain imaging in 2d to compare the changes of 18F-FDG and 18F-DPA-714 SUV mean in the hippocampus of rats. Brain histopathology, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining were detected in rats. Independent-sample t test was used to analyze the data. Results:18F-FDG imaging showed the hippocampal SUV mean between ASD group and control group (female: 4.11±0.35 vs 1.89±0.28; male: 3.43±0.47 vs 2.02±0.54) were statistically significant ( t values: 9.65, 3.92, P values: <0.001, 0.002). 18F-DPA-714 imaging showed the hippocampal SUV mean between ASD group and control group (females: 0.28±0.01 vs 0.28±0.02; male: 0.26±0.02 vs 0.31±0.04) were not statistically significant ( t values: -0.18, -2.24, P values: 0.859, 0.056). The 18×10 3 translocator protein (TSPO) immunohistochemistry showed the expression in the hippocampal region of the brain between ASD group and control group (female: 0.19±0.02 vs 0.19±0.01; male: 0.21±0.01 vs 0.20±0.01) were not statistically different ( t values: -0.48, -1.67, P values: 0.651, 0.139). Immunofluorescence staining showed that microglial cytosol in the hippocampal region of the brain decreased after 72h of ASD, and the protrusion points and surrounding branches were significantly reduced. Conclusion:Increased hippocampal glucose metabolism in rats is observed after 72 h of ASD without significant neuroinflammation.

Objective:To investigate the effect of curcumin on phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/Akt/mTOR) pathway on the autophagy of Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-infected macrophages.Methods:The infection model was established by infecting THP-1-derived macrophages with BCG. Five groups were involved in this study, which were control group, BCG group, BCG+ curcumin group, BCG+ curcumin+ IGF-1(PI3K agonist) group, and BCG+ curcumin+ LY294002 (PI3K inhibitor) group. The fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes was observed under fluorescence microscope using the fluorescent dye monodansylcadaverine (MDC staining). The expression of PI3K, Akt, mTOR, phospho-PI3K (p-PI3K), phospho-Akt (p-Akt), phospho-mTOR (p-mTOR), microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3-Ⅱ (LC3-Ⅱ), and Beclin-1 at protein level were detected by Western blot. Colony forming unit was used to detect macrophage load. Multiple independent, normal, and homogeneous data were compared using one-way analysis of variance, and pairwise comparisons were conducted using LSD test.Results:BCG infection significantly decreased the fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes, and the expression of autophagy marker proteins LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 ( P<0.05), but increased the expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, and p-mTOR ( P<0.05). Curcumin increased the fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes and enhanced the expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 proteins in a concentration-dependent manner ( P<0.05). Besides, curcumin inhibited the expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, and p-mTOR ( P<0.05). The PI3K agonist IGF-1 reversed the above effects of curcumin. Compared with the BCG+ curcumin group, the fluorescence intensity of autophagosomes and the expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 proteins were further increased ( P<0.05), while the expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt and p-mTOR was further decreased ( P<0.05) in the BCG+ curcumin+ LY294002 group. Compared with the BCG group, the bacterial loads in the BCG+ curcumin group and the BCG+ curcumin+ LY294002 group decreased significantly ( P<0.05), while the bacterial load in the BCG+ curcumin+ IGF-1 group increased significantly ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Curcumin can promote the autophagy of BCG-infected macrophages, which contributes to the clearance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by macrophages. Part of the mechanism may be related to the inhibition of PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway.

Objective To summarize the uric acid-lowering effects and mechanisms of Chinese medicines with medicine-food homology,aiming to provide novel perspectives for the devel-opment of new anti-hyperuricemia(HUA)drugs.Methods Papers on the research of HUA prevention and treatment with medicine-food ho-mology from December 15,2002 to August 10,2024 were screened and collected through Chi-na National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),PubMed,ScienceDirect,and Google Scholar.Subsequently,the impact of these medications and their extracts,as well as the active com-pounds on HUA were assessed.Results A total of 148 relevant papers were collected,including 43 kinds of Chinese medicines and 61 active compounds,all of which have anti-HUA activity.Among them,41 kinds of Chinese medicines could inhibit the activity of xanthine oxidase,thus leading to the inhibition of uric acid production;and 22 kinds of Chinese medicines could facilitate uric acid excretion,while 15 kinds of Chinese medicines could reduce the inflammation levels in the body and promoting renal protection.Notably,polyphenols and flavonoids are the key active components for the uric acid-lowering effects.Conclusion This study systematically summarized and analyzed the uric acid-lowering ef-fects and mechanisms of Chinese medicines with medicine-food homology,laying a founda-tion for their development as HUA agents.

Objective:To improve the quality of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET images at different acquisition times through deep learning (DL) PET image reconstruction methods. Methods:A total of 45 patients (20 males, 25 females; age (52.0±13.6) years) with malignant tumors and PET/CT scans from September 2020 to October 2020 in the Department of Nuclear Medicine of the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University were included in this retrospective study. The short acquisition time 30 s/bed PET images from the raw list mode were selected as the input of DL model. DL image reconstruction model, based on the Unet algorithm, was trained to output imitated PET images with full dose standard acquisition time (3 min). The image quality evaluation and quantitative analysis were carried out for four groups of images: DL images, 30 s, 90 s, and 120 s images, respectively. The quality of PET images in four groups was evaluated using the five-point method. Liver background activities, lesions quantification parameters (maximum standardized uptake value (SUV max), mean standardized uptake value (SUV mean), standard deviation (SD), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR)), and first-order texture features (skewness, kurtosis, uniformity, entropy) were measured. Kappa test, χ2 test and one-way analysis of variance (least significant difference t test) were used for data analysis. Results:The image quality scores between four groups were highly consistent ( Kappa=0.799, P<0.001). The number of patients with scores≥3 in DL, 30 s, 90 s and 120 s groups were 6, 4, 7 and 8, respectively ( χ2=125.47, P<0.001). The liver SD of DL group was significantly lower than that of 30 s group (0.26±0.07 vs 0.43±0.11; F=3.58, t=-7.91, P<0.05). The liver SNR of DL group was higher than that of 30 s group (11.04±4.36 vs 5.41±1.41; F=10.22, t=5.40, P<0.05). The liver SD and SNR of DL group were similar to those of 90 s group (0.39±0.16, 8.46±3.34; t values: -0.87 and 2.17, both P>0.05). In 18 tumor lesions with high uptake, SNR and CNR of DL group were significantly higher than those of 30 s group (60.21±29.26 vs 38.38±16.54, 22.26±15.85 vs 15.41±9.51; F values: 13.09 and 7.05; t values: 5.20 and 4.04, both P<0.001). There were statistically significant differences among four groups in the first-order texture features ( F values: 4.30-9.65, all P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between DL group and 120 s group ( t values: from -1.25 to 0.15, all P>0.05). Conclusion:DL reconstruction model can improve the quality of short-frame PET images, which meets the needs of clinical diagnosis, efficacy evaluation and radiomics research.

Objective:To compare four reconstruction algorithms of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT on standardized uptake value (SUV) of pulmonary nodules. Methods:A total of 46 patients (27 males, 19 females; median age: 66 (range: 44-82) years) with solid pulmonary nodules from February 2018 to July 2019 in the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University who performed 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging were enrolled. All PET/CT images were retrospectively reconstructed by using four algorithms reconstructions including ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM), OSEM+ time of flight (TOF), OSEM+ TOF+ point spread function (PSF) and block sequential regularized expectation maximization (BSREM) (G1-G4). Nodule and background parameters were analyzed semi-quantitatively and visually. The maximum of SUV(SUV max), mean of SUV(SUV mean) and peak of SUV (SUV peak) were collected by the region of interest (ROI). Nodules were divided into small nodule group (diameter ≤10 mm) and large nodule group (10 mm < diameter ≤30 mm). Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test and Bonferroni method were performed to compare the differences of SUVs between G1-G4, and Spearman correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between the change rate of SUV (%ΔSUV) and the diameter of nodules. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to analyze the diagnostic efficacy of SUV for the differential diagnosis of pulmonary nodules and to get the optimal threshold. Results:There were 114 pulmonary nodules (large nodules, n=55; small nodules, n=59). In visual analysis, the visual detection rates of small nodules in G4 were 55.93%(33/59), 44.07%(26/59), 20.34%(12/59) higher than those in G1-G3. Of 114 pulmonary nodules in 46 patients, there were differences in SUV max and SUV mean between G1-G4 (median SUV max : 2.65-5.29, median SUV mean: 2.05-2.99; H values: 20.628 and 17.749, respectively, both P<0.001), G4 had significant increases compared to G1 in SUV max (median 5.29 and 2.65, P<0.001) and SUV mean (median 2.99 and 2.05, P<0.001). The %ΔSUV max (median: 4.45%-52.96%) and %ΔSUV mean (median: 1.69%-47.56%) were negatively correlated with the diameter of nodules (9.75(6.20, 16.58) mm; r s values: -0.371 to -0.354, -0.371 to -0.320, all P<0.001). In 59 small nodules, G1 significantly increased the SUV max of G4 (median 4.05 and 2.14, H=18.327, P<0.001), while G4 significantly increased the SUV mean of G1 and G3 (median 2.31, 1.26 and 1.53, H=16.808, P<0.05). There was no significant difference in SUVs between G1-G4 in 55 large nodules ( H values: 0.812-7.290, all P>0.05). The optimal threshold values of SUV max in G1-G4 were 4.335, 5.185, 5.410, 5.745 and the area of under curves (AUCs) were 0.747, 0.699, 0.756, 0.778 respectively. The AUC of SUV mean and SUV peak also showed a similar trend. Conclusion:Among the four reconstruction algorithms, BRERM can not only enhance the image quality, but also significantly improve the SUV max and SUV mean of lung nodules diameter below 10 mm, and thus its diagnostic threshold of SUV should be appropriately increased.