Chaihu Guizhi Ganjiangtang （CGG）is a classic prescription in the Treatise on Cold Damage，which has the effects of clearing and relieving stagnation heat in Shaoyang，warming and dissolving water drink，and relieving the pivot mechanism. It is a classic prescription for treating spleen deficiency and liver depression and stopping internal stagnation caused by water drink. The formula is exquisite and well-matched and is often modified and used by ancient and modern medical practitioners to treat various miscellaneous diseases of internal and external medicine，with significant therapeutic effects. In recent years，with the rapid development of modern pharmacology，research on the micro mechanism of CGG has been continuously developed and deepened，providing new ideas for the treatment of diseases with CGG. Therefore，the authors systematically searched databases such as China National Knowledge Infrastructure，Wanfang Data Knowledge Service Platform，VIP Database， and PubMed for literature on the clinical application and pharmacological mechanism of CGG published by Chinese and foreign scholars in recent years. This article summarized the literature from two aspects：the modern clinical application and mechanism of action of CGG and elaborated on the diseases treated by CGG in modern literature，involving digestive system，respiratory system，nervous system，endocrine system，circulatory system，urinary system，gynecology，as well as its application in reducing the side effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy， gynecology， dermatology， ophthalmology， and orthopedics. At the same time，the mechanism of CGG in treating diseases may be related to anti-inflammatory，anti-oxidative stress， regulation of immunity， anti-fibrosis， anti-tumor， improvement of gastrointestinal flora and motility， protection of liver tissue， reduction of blood lipids and blood sugar， and regulation of hormone levels.

Spermatogenesis is a fundamental process that requires a tightly controlled epigenetic event in spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). The mechanisms underlying the transition from SSCs to sperm are largely unknown. Most studies utilize gene knockout mice to explain the mechanisms. However, the production of genetically engineered mice is costly and time-consuming. In this study, we presented a convenient research strategy using an RNA interference (RNAi) and testicular transplantation approach. Histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9) methylation was dynamically regulated during spermatogenesis. As Jumonji domain-containing protein 1A (JMJD1A) and Jumonji domain-containing protein 2C (JMJD2C) demethylases catalyze histone H3 lysine 9 dimethylation (H3K9me2), we firstly analyzed the expression profile of the two demethylases and then investigated their function. Using the convenient research strategy, we showed that normal spermatogenesis is disrupted due to the downregulated expression of both demethylases. These results suggest that this strategy might be a simple and alternative approach for analyzing spermatogenesis relative to the gene knockout mice strategy.
Spermatogenesis/physiology* ; Animals ; Male ; Mice ; Epigenesis, Genetic ; Jumonji Domain-Containing Histone Demethylases/metabolism* ; Histones/metabolism* ; RNA Interference ; Testis/metabolism* ; Methylation ; Mice, Knockout ; Histone Demethylases

Background/Aims: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is an unmet clinical challenge due to the rapid increased occurrence but lacking approved drugs. Autophagy-related protein 16-like 1 (ATG16L1) plays an important role in the process of autophagy, which is indispensable for proper biogenesis of the autophagosome, but its role in modulating macrophage-related inflammation and metabolism during MASH has not been documented. Here, we aimed to elucidate the role of ATG16L1 in the progression of MASH. Methods: Expression analysis was performed with liver samples from human and mice. MASH models were induced in myeloid-specific Atg16l1-deficient and myeloid-specific Atg16l1-overexpressed mice by high-fat and high-cholesterol diet or methionine- and choline-deficient diet to explore the function and mechanism of macrophage ATG16L1 in MASH. Results: Macrophage-specific Atg16l1 knockout exacerbated MASH and inhibited energy expenditure, whereas macrophage-specific Atg16l1 transgenic overexpression attenuated MASH and promotes energy expenditure. Mechanistically, Atg16l1 knockout inhibited macrophage lipophagy, thereby suppressing macrophage β-oxidation and decreasing the production of 4-hydroxynonenal, which further inhibited stimulator of interferon genes(STING) carbonylation. STING palmitoylation was enhanced, STING trafficking from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi was promoted, and downstream STING signaling was activated, promoting proinflammatory and profibrotic cytokines secretion, resulting in hepatic steatosis and hepatic stellate cells activation. Moreover, Atg16l1-deficiency enhanced macrophage phagosome ability but inhibited lysosome formation, engulfing mtDNA released by pyroptotic hepatocytes. Increased mtDNA promoted cGAS/STING signaling activation. Moreover, pharmacological promotion of ATG16L1 substantially blocked MASH progression. Conclusions ATG16L1 suppresses MASH progression by maintaining macrophage lipophagy, restraining liver inflammation, and may be a promising therapeutic target for MASH management.

Collagen contains abundant cell binding motifs, which are conducive to adhesion, migration, and differentiation, maintain cell vitality and promote cell proliferation. However, pure collagen hydrogel has some shortcomings such as poor mechanical properties, poor thermal stability and fast degradation. Numerous studies have shown that the properties of collagen can be improved by combining it with natural polysaccharides such as alginate, chitosan, hyaluronic acid and cellulose. In this paper, the research status and biological application fields of four kinds of composite hydrogels, including collagen-alginate composite hydrogels, collagen-chitosan hydrogels, collagen-hyaluronic acid hydrogels and collagen-cellulose hydrogels, were summarized. The common preparation methods of four kinds of composite hydrogels were introduced, and the future development direction of collagen-based composite hydrogels was prospected.
Hydrogels/chemical synthesis* ; Collagen/chemistry* ; Polysaccharides/chemistry* ; Alginates/chemistry* ; Hyaluronic Acid/chemistry* ; Chitosan/chemistry* ; Biocompatible Materials/chemistry* ; Humans ; Tissue Engineering/methods* ; Cellulose/chemistry* ; Tissue Scaffolds

Objectives: To investigated the safety and efficacy of treating patients with acute non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and elevated levels of N-terminal pro-hormone B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) with levosimendan within 24 hours of first medical contact (FMC). Methods: This multicenter, open-label, block-randomized controlled trial (NCT03189901) investigated the safety and efficacy of levosimendan as an early management strategy of acute heart failure (EMS-AHF) for patients with NSTEMI and high NT-proBNP levels. This study included 255 patients with NSTEMI and elevated NT-proBNP levels, including 142 males and 113 females with a median age of 65 (58-70) years, and were admitted in the emergency or outpatient departments at 14 medical centers in China between October 2017 and October 2021. The patients were randomly divided into a levosimendan group (n=129) and a control group (n=126). The primary outcome measure was NT-proBNP levels on day 3 of treatment and changes in the NT-proBNP levels from baseline on day 5 after randomization. The secondary outcome measures included the proportion of patients with more than 30% reduction in NT-proBNP levels from baseline, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) during hospitalization and at 6 months after hospitalization, safety during the treatment, and health economics indices. The measurement data parameters between groups were compared using the t-test or the non-parametric test. The count data parameters were compared between groups using the χ² test. Results: On day 3, the NT-proBNP levels in the levosimendan group were lower than the control group but were statistically insignificant [866 (455, 1 960) vs. 1 118 (459, 2 417) ng/L, Z=-1.25,P=0.21]. However, on day 5, changes in the NT-proBNP levels from baseline in the levosimendan group were significantly higher than the control group [67.6% (33.8%,82.5%)vs.54.8% (7.3%,77.9%), Z=-2.14, P=0.03]. There were no significant differences in the proportion of patients with more than 30% reduction in the NT-proBNP levels on day 5 between the levosimendan and the control groups [77.5% (100/129) vs. 69.0% (87/126), χ²=2.34, P=0.13]. Furthermore, incidences of MACE did not show any significant differences between the two groups during hospitalization [4.7% (6/129) vs. 7.1% (9/126), χ²=0.72, P=0.40] and at 6 months [14.7% (19/129) vs. 12.7% (16/126), χ²=0.22, P=0.64]. Four cardiac deaths were reported in the control group during hospitalization [0 (0/129) vs. 3.2% (4/126), P=0.06]. However, 6-month survival rates were comparable between the two groups (log-rank test, P=0.18). Moreover, adverse events or serious adverse events such as shock, ventricular fibrillation, and ventricular tachycardia were not reported in both the groups during levosimendan treatment (days 0-1). The total cost of hospitalization [34 591.00(15 527.46,59 324.80) vs. 37 144.65(16 066.90,63 919.00)yuan, Z=-0.26, P=0.80] and the total length of hospitalization [9 (8, 12) vs. 10 (7, 13) days, Z=0.72, P=0.72] were lower for patients in the levosimendan group compared to those in the control group, but did not show statistically significant differences. Conclusions: Early administration of levosimendan reduced NT-proBNP levels in NSTEMI patients with elevated NT-proBNP and did not increase the total cost and length of hospitalization, but did not significantly improve MACE during hospitalization or at 6 months.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Aged ; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain ; Simendan/therapeutic use* ; Non-ST Elevated Myocardial Infarction ; Heart Failure/drug therapy* ; Peptide Fragments ; Arrhythmias, Cardiac ; Biomarkers ; Prognosis

Objective:To study the prevalence and distribution of adult thyroid diseases in urban and rural areas of Hebei Province.Methods:A multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method was used to select Renqiu City and Licun Town, Luquan City of Hebei Province as the urban and rural survey sites, respectively. Questionnaire survey, physical examination and thyroid B ultrasound examination were conducted on local permanent residents (≥ 5 years of residencies) over 18 years old. The fasting venous blood sample was collected to determine the serum thyroid function indicaters.Results:A total of 2 650 adults were surveyed, including 1 393 urban residents and 1 257 rural residents (1 357 males and 1 293 females). A total of 435 patients with thyroid diseases were diagnosed, the detection rate was 16.42%. There were seven thyroid diseases, including subclinical hypothyroidism (60.92%, 265/435), Hashimoto's thyroiditis (34.02%, 148/435), hypothyroidism (4.83%, 21/435), simple goiter (3.22%, 14/435), hyperthyroidism (2.53%, 11/435), subclinical hyperthyroidism (2.53%, 11/435), and thyroid cancer (1.84%, 8/435). The detection rates of thyroid diseases in urban and rural areas were 21.18% (295/1 393) and 11.14% (140/1 257), respectively. The detection rates of thyroid diseases in males and females were 11.42% (155/1 357) and 21.66% (280/1 293), respectively. The detection rates of thyroid diseases in 18-< 30, 30-< 40, 40-< 50, 50-< 60 and ≥60 years old were 13.46% (91/676), 14.81% (81/547), 15.42% (89/577), 20.94% (85/406) and 20.05% (89/444), respectively. There were statistically significant differences between different areas, gender and age groups (χ 2 = 48.54, 50.53, 14.68, P < 0.05). Conclusions:The detection rate of subclinical hypothyroidism in adults in urban and rural areas of Hebei Province is relatively high, followed by Hashimoto's thyroiditis. Attention should be paid to the screening, evaluation, and intervention of thyroid function among urban female populations.

This study aims to observe the effects of diosgenin on the expression of mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR), sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c(SREBP-1c), heat shock protein 60(HSP60), medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase(MCAD), and short-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase(SCAD) in the liver tissue of the rat model of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD) and explore the mechanism of diosgenin in alleviating NAFLD. Forty male SD rats were randomized into five groups: a control group, a model group, low-(150 mg·kg~(-1)·d~(-1)) and high-dose(300 mg·kg~(-1)·d~(-1)) diosgenin groups, and a simvastatin(4 mg·kg~(-1)·d~(-1)) group. The rats in the control group were fed with a normal diet, while those in the other four groups were fed with a high-fat diet. After feeding for 8 weeks, the body weight of rats in the high-fat diet groups increased significantly. After that, the rats were administrated with the corresponding dose of diosgenin or simvastatin by gavage every day for 8 weeks. The levels of triglyceride(TG), total cholesterol(TC), alanine transaminase(ALT), and aspartate transaminase(AST) in the serum were determined by the biochemical method. The levels of TG and TC in the liver were measured by the enzyme method. Oil-red O staining was employed to detect the lipid accumulation, and hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining to detect the pathological changes in the liver tissue. The mRNA and protein levels of mTOR, SREBP-1c, HSP60, MCAD, and SCAD in the liver tissue of rats were determined by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR) and Western blot, respectively. Compared with the control group, the model group showed increased body weight, food uptake, liver index, TG, TC, ALT, and AST levels in the serum, TG and TC levels in the liver, lipid deposition in the liver, obvious hepatic steatosis, up-regulated mRNA and protein expression levels of mTOR and SREBP-1c, and down-regulated mRNA and protein expression levels of HSP60, MCAD, and SCAD. Compared with the model group, the rats in each treatment group showed obviously decreased body weight, food uptake, liver index, TG, TC, ALT, and AST levels in the serum, TG and TC levels in the liver, lessened lipid deposition in the liver, ameliorated hepatic steatosis, down-regulated mRNA and protein le-vels of mTOR and SREBP-1c, and up-regulated mRNA and protein levels of HSP60, MCAD, and SCAD. The high-dose diosgenin outperformed the low-dose diosgenin and simvastatin. Diosgenin may prevent and treat NAFLD by inhibiting the expression of mTOR and SREBP-1c and promoting the expression of HSP60, MCAD, and SCAD to reduce lipid synthesis, improving mitochondrial function, and promoting fatty acid β oxidation in the liver.
Rats ; Male ; Animals ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/genetics* ; Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Protein 1/metabolism* ; Diet, High-Fat/adverse effects* ; Diosgenin/metabolism* ; Chaperonin 60/therapeutic use* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Liver ; Signal Transduction ; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases/metabolism* ; Triglycerides ; RNA, Messenger/metabolism* ; Simvastatin/therapeutic use* ; Body Weight ; Lipid Metabolism ; Mammals/metabolism*

Objective To evaluate and analyze the feasibility and application effect of ^“DOTS + WeChat^” in the treatment and management of tuberculosis patients. Methods From 2018 to 2019, a total of 2 420 active pulmonary tuberculosis patients were registered in Zibo City, and 1 988 patients meeting the inclusion criteria were selected as the research subjects. 836 patients were randomly enrolled under the ^“DOTS + WeChat^” integrated management mode, while the other 1152 cases were treated with single DOTS management mode. The regular medication status, treatment and outcome, and core knowledge awareness of the two groups were analyzed by SPSS16.0 software, χ²- test and t- test methods. Result The ^“DOTS + WeChat^” comprehensive management group had higher a regular medication rate (98.80%), coincidence rate of sputum test times (95.81%), and success rate of treatment (98.68%) than the single DOTS management group (92.10%, 90.19%, and 96.53%) (P=0.000, 0.000, 0.003). The rate of medical staff participating in supervision and management in the comprehensive management group (100%) was higher than that in the single management group (75.87%) (P=0.000). The complete follow-up rate in the consolidation period (100%) and the complete whole course follow-up rate (99.76%) were both higher than those in the single management group (P=0.000, 0.001). The awareness level of core knowledge in the comprehensive management group (78.58±4.32) was higher than that in the single management group (70.70±8.02) (P=0.000). Conclusion The application of WeChat management mode has a positive effect on the treatment and management of tuberculosis patients in Zibo City. It is a feasible and effective supplement and improvement to the current tuberculosis control and management measures, which is worthy of further promotion and exploration.

Objective To analyze the epidemic characteristics of tuberculosis in Zibo City in recent years, and to provide a scientific basis for the formulation of tuberculosis prevention and control strategies and measures during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Methods Descriptive epidemiological analysis was used to analyze the information of tuberculosis patients registered in ^“China Disease Control and Prevention Information System-Tuberculosis Information System^” from 2012 to 2020 in Zibo City. Results From 2012 to 2020, a total of 12,706 pulmonary tuberculosis patients were registered in Zibo City, and the registered incidence rate decreased year by year (F=53.348, P<0.001), with an average annual rate of 30.45/10 million. There was no significant change in mortality. In regional distribution, the incidence was higher in northern region of Zibo than that in the southern region, with a cross distribution in the central region. In terms of time distribution, there were cases in each month over the years, and the overall trend increased first, then decreased and once again increased (F=8.856, P=0.006<0.01), with two low points occurring between January to February and also in October, and two peaks occurring between May to June and also in December. In terms of population distribution, most patients were local cases (82.38%). The incidence rate of males was about 2.09 times that of females. The incidence rate of children aged 0-14 was the lowest, while elderly people aged 65 years old and over had the highest incidence (61.02/10 million). Farmers were the main occupation among tuberculosis cases, accounting for 60.59% of the total. The main source of patients was from tracking, accounting for more than 50% since 2016. Conclusion The epidemic of tuberculosis in Zibo is stable and the incidence rate is decreasing year by year, showing seasonal variations. The majority of the patients are male. Special attention should be paid to farmers and the elderly, and further research on risk factors in high-risk areas and counties should be strengthened.

Objective To investigate the changes in intestinal flora in patients with extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ECC) and related influencing factors. Methods Fecal samples were collected from 16 patients with ECC who were hospitalized and treated in Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, from January to December 2020, and absolute quantitative bacterial 16S rRNA was used for sequencing. A comparison was made with 20 patients with common bile duct stones (CBDS group) and 10 healthy controls (normal group), and the three groups were compared in terms of the differences in intestinal flora and the association with clinical indices. A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison of normally distributed data with homogeneity of variance between the three groups, the t -test was used for comparison between two groups; the Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed data between the three groups, and the Nemenyi test was used for comparison between groups. The chi-square test or the Fisher's exact test were used for comparison of categorical data between the three groups, and a Spearman correlation analysis was used to investigate correlation. Results The ECC group had significantly higher levels of total bilirubin (TBil) and direct bilirubin (DBil) than the CBDS group and the normal group. The α diversity analysis showed that there were no significant differences in observed species, Chao1 Index, and Shannon Index between the three groups (all P > 0.05), while there were significant differences in Shannon Index and Simpson Index between the three groups. The ECC group had a similar species diversity to the normal group and a significantly greater species diversity than the CBDS group ( P < 0.05), and the CBDS group had a significantly greater species diversity than the normal group ( P < 0.05). The β diversity analysis showed that the structure of intestinal flora in the ECC group was significantly different from that in the normal group and the CBDS group ( P < 0.05). The analysis of the difference in bacterial composition showed that Prevotella , Lactobacillus , Megasphaera , and Sutterella were significantly enriched in the ECC group. The correlation analysis showed that Prevotella was negatively correlated with the use of antibiotics, acid inhibitors, and liver-protecting drugs, and Lactobacillus , Megasphaera , and Sutterella were positively correlated with TBil and DBil. Conclusion There is a significant change in intestinal flora in patients with ECC, which is closely associated with liver function and the use of drugs.