1.Molecular Mechanism of Programmed Cell Death in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Traditional Chinese Medicine Intervention: A Review
Xin PENG ; Yunhui LI ; Lei LIANG ; Zheyu LUAN ; Hanxiao WANG ; Haotian XU ; Ziming DANG ; Jihong FENG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(3):304-313
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic respiratory disease that poses a significant threat to global health, exhibiting high morbidity, disability and mortality rate, with its prevention and treatment situation becoming increasingly critical. The pathogenesis of COPD is complex, and the underlying cellular and molecular biological mechanisms remain incompletely elucidated. Programmed cell death (PCD) is the process wherein cells actively undergo demise to maintain internal environmental stability in response to certain signals or specific stimuli. Contemporary medical research indicates that the dysregulation of PCD patterns such as apoptosis, necroptosis, pyroptosis, autophagy, and ferroptosis is closely related to the onset and progression of COPD. Clarifying the molecular mechanisms of PCD in COPD may provide novel perspectives for in-depth understanding and prevention of the disease. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is characterized by holistic regulation. In recent years, extensive research has been conducted in the TCM field focusing on modulating apoptosis, necroptosis, pyroptosis, autophagy, and ferroptosis for the treatment of COPD, yielding remarkable achievements. Therefore, this study systematically explored the molecular mechanism of PCD in COPD and reviewed the potential mechanisms and intervention status of TCM targeting PCD in COPD, aiming to provide insights and references for the clinical prevention, treatment and in-depth research of COPD.
2.Molecular Mechanism of Programmed Cell Death in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Traditional Chinese Medicine Intervention: A Review
Xin PENG ; Yunhui LI ; Lei LIANG ; Zheyu LUAN ; Hanxiao WANG ; Haotian XU ; Ziming DANG ; Jihong FENG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(3):304-313
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic respiratory disease that poses a significant threat to global health, exhibiting high morbidity, disability and mortality rate, with its prevention and treatment situation becoming increasingly critical. The pathogenesis of COPD is complex, and the underlying cellular and molecular biological mechanisms remain incompletely elucidated. Programmed cell death (PCD) is the process wherein cells actively undergo demise to maintain internal environmental stability in response to certain signals or specific stimuli. Contemporary medical research indicates that the dysregulation of PCD patterns such as apoptosis, necroptosis, pyroptosis, autophagy, and ferroptosis is closely related to the onset and progression of COPD. Clarifying the molecular mechanisms of PCD in COPD may provide novel perspectives for in-depth understanding and prevention of the disease. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is characterized by holistic regulation. In recent years, extensive research has been conducted in the TCM field focusing on modulating apoptosis, necroptosis, pyroptosis, autophagy, and ferroptosis for the treatment of COPD, yielding remarkable achievements. Therefore, this study systematically explored the molecular mechanism of PCD in COPD and reviewed the potential mechanisms and intervention status of TCM targeting PCD in COPD, aiming to provide insights and references for the clinical prevention, treatment and in-depth research of COPD.
3.Discussion on Scientific Connotation of Vital Qi Strengthening for Detoxification Therapy in Treatment of Community-acquired Pneumonia Based on Theory of "Vital Qi Deficiency and Toxic Stasis"
Hanxiao WANG ; Zheyu LUAN ; Haotian XU ; Xin PENG ; Ziming DANG ; Kun YANG ; Qianqian WANG ; Jihong FENG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(4):226-234
Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) refers to an infectious inflammation of the lung parenchyma (including the alveolar wall,that is,the broad pulmonary interstitium) acquired outside the hospital. Its common pathogens include streptococcus pneumoniae,respiratory viruses, mycoplasma pneumoniae, and so on. The related factors for the occurrence and development of CAP include patient characteristics (immune function,mucus production and clearance function,coagulation function,physical condition, and comorbidity) and pathogen characteristics (susceptibility,virulence,and antibiotic resistance). The pathogenesis of CAP lies in immune deficiency,pathogen invasion,inflammatory response disorder,mucus production and clearance disorder, coagulation disorder, and so on. The pathogenesis of CAP in traditional Chinese medicine can be described as "vital Qi deficiency and toxic stasis". Vital Qi deficiency (lack of immunity) is the potential pathogenesis of the disease and easy to be invaded by external pathogens (respiratory pathogens). Toxic stasis (inflammatory disorder,mucus production and clearance disorder,and coagulation dysfunction) is the key pathogenic factor. Vital Qi deficiency and toxic stasis are intermingled in a state of deficiency and excess,which suggests that the treatment of CAP lies in strengthening vital Qi and eliminating pathogenic factors. This involves strengthening vital Qi in the whole process to consolidate body resistance and nourish promordial Qi. It also involves clearing heat,eliminating phlegm,removing dampness,and dispelling stasis to dispel pathogenic toxins based on the syndrome differentiation. Its action mechanism is to regulate immune and inflammatory responses,resist pathogens,and improve mucus production and clearance, as well as coagulation disorders. Starting from the key pathogenesis of CAP,"vital Qi deficiency and toxic stasis", this paper discussed the pathogenesis of CAP and summarized the action mechanism of vital Qi strengthening for detoxification in its treatment. It is intended to complement the theoretical system by identifying "vital Qi deficiency and toxic stasis" as the key pathogenesis underlying CAP and the scientific connotation of treating CAP with vital Qi strengthening for detoxification,thereby providing insights for its clinical application.
4.Tim4 deficiency reduces CD301b+macrophage and aggravates periodontitis bone loss
Wang ZIMING ; Zeng HAO ; Wang CAN ; Wang JIAOLONG ; Zhang JING ; Qu SHUYUAN ; Han YUE ; Yang LIU ; Ni YUEQI ; Peng WENAN ; Liu HUAN ; Tang HUA ; Zhao QIN ; Zhang YUFENG
International Journal of Oral Science 2024;16(2):280-292
Periodontitis is a common chronic inflammatory disease that causes the periodontal bone destruction and may ultimately result in tooth loss.With the progression of periodontitis,the osteoimmunology microenvironment in periodontitis is damaged and leads to the formation of pathological alveolar bone resorption.CD301b+macrophages are specific to the osteoimmunology microenvironment,and are emerging as vital booster for conducting bone regeneration.However,the key upstream targets of CD301b+macrophages and their potential mechanism in periodontitis remain elusive.In this study,we concentrated on the role of Tim4,a latent upstream regulator of CD301b+macrophages.We first demonstrated that the transcription level of Timd4(gene name of Tim4)in CD301b+macrophages was significantly upregulated compared to CD301b-macrophages via high-throughput RNA sequencing.Moreover,several Tim4-related functions such as apoptotic cell clearance,phagocytosis and engulfment were positively regulated by CD301b+macrophages.The single-cell RNA sequencing analysis subsequently discovered that Cd301b and Timd4 were specifically co-expressed in macrophages.The following flow cytometric analysis indicated that Tim4 positive expression rates in total macrophages shared highly synchronized dynamic changes with the proportions of CD301b+macrophages as periodontitis progressed.Furthermore,the deficiency of Tim4 in mice decreased CD301b+macrophages and eventually magnified alveolar bone resorption in periodontitis.Additionally,Tim4 controlled the p38 MAPK signaling pathway to ultimately mediate CD301b+macrophages phenotype.In a word,Tim4 might regulate CD301b+macrophages through p38 MAPK signaling pathway in periodontitis,which provided new insights into periodontitis immunoregulation as well as help to develop innovative therapeutic targets and treatment strategies for periodontitis.
5.Analysis of newly diagnosed HIV infection and influencing factors among men who have sex with men in gay bathhouses in Tianjin
Ziming WU ; Yan GUO ; Hui GONG ; Zhongquan LIU ; Peng XU ; Jie YANG ; Jie XU ; Maohe YU
Chinese Journal of Epidemiology 2023;44(11):1781-1786
Objective:To analyze the newly diagnosed HIV infections and influencing factors among MSM (men who have sex with men) in gay bathhouses in Tianjin and to provide evidence for taking preventive interventions to reduce HIV infections in this population.Methods:Male individuals who sought sexual partners in gay bathhouses and engaged in insertive oral or anal sex with men within the past year were targeted. An open cohort was formed from March 2011 to December 2021 for HIV testing and baseline investigation, followed by follow-ups and screenings. The survey included demographic data and information related to AIDS behaviors. The differences between single-testing and multiple-testing groups were compared, and the positivity rate and incidence rate of new infections in the multiple-testing group were calculated. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to analyze the factors influencing the incidence rate of new HIV infections. EpiData 3.02 was used for database construction and SAS 9.4 for statistical analysis.Results:During the research period, 12 195 tests were conducted, involving 7 151 subjects. Among them, primarily those aged ≥30 years (70.18%) and non-local residents (61.32%), with ages ranging from 16 to 82, and M ( Q1, Q3) of age was 36 (28,48), 547 tested positive. Compared to the single-testing group, the multiple-testing group had higher proportions of local residents, married/cohabiting individuals, recent anal intercourse, peer education acceptance, and those diagnosed with an STD in the last year, but a lower proportion of consistent condom usage in recent same-sex encounters. The positivity rate during this period was 7.65% (95% CI: 7.00%-8.00%), declining from 12.58% in 2011 to 3.31% in 2021. A total of 1 740 subjects were included in the open cohort with a cumulative follow-up time of 4 688.61 person-years, with 144 new HIV infections identified. The incidence rate of new infections was 3.07/100 person-years (95% CI: 2.57/100 person-years- 3.57/100 person-years). Multifactorial Cox regression analysis revealed that non-local subjects (a HR=1.32,95% CI:1.19-1.45) and those engaged in group sex with the same gender in the last six months (a HR=1.18,95% CI:1.02-1.36) had higher risks of new HIV infections. Conclusions:MSM in gay bathhouses in Tianjin commonly engage in unsafe sexual behaviors like group sex, emphasizing the need for increased awareness, intervention efforts, and collaboration with MSM community organizations for peer education and proactive HIV testing in gay bathhouses. Moreover, exploring new methods to reduce new HIV infections among MSM is necessary.
6.Construction and verification of a nomogram prediction model of severe adult community-acquired pneumonia
Ziming WANG ; Yue QU ; Mei HUANG ; Yanting ZHU ; Daibao PENG ; Wei YU
Chinese Critical Care Medicine 2022;34(9):935-940
Objective:To construct and verify the nomogram prediction model based on inflammatory indicators, underlying diseases, etiology and the British Thoracic Society modified pneumonia score (CURB-65 score) in adults with severe community acquired pneumonia (CAP).Methods:The clinical data of 172 adult inpatients first diagnosed as CAP at Taikang Xianlin Drum Tower Hospital from January 2018 to December 2021 were divided into severe and non-severe diseases groups according to the severity of their conditions. The baseline conditions (including gender, age, past history, comorbidities and family history), clinical data (including chief symptoms, onset time, CURB-65 score), first laboratory results on admission (including whole blood cell count, liver and kidney function, blood biochemistry, coagulation function, microbiological culture results) and whether the antimicrobial therapy was adjusted according to the microbiological culture results were recorded in both groups. Univariate analysis was used to screen for differential indicators between severe and non-severe patients. After covariate analysis, multi-factor Logistic regression analysis was performed based on the Aakaike information criterion (AIC) forward stepwise regression method to rigorously search for risk factors for constructing the model. Based on the results of the multi-factor analysis, a nomogram prediction model was constructed, and the discriminatory degree and calibration degree of the model were assessed using the receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) and calibration curve.Results:A total of 172 adult CAP patients were included, 48 in severe group and 124 in non-severe group. The median age was 74 (57, 83) years old, onset time was 5.0 (3.0, 10.0) days, total number of comorbidities was 3 (2, 5), including 58 cases (33.7%) with hypertension and 17 (9.9%) with heart failure, 113 (65.7%) with CURB-65 score≤1, 34 cases (19.8%) had a CURB-65 score = 2 and 25 cases (14.5%) had a CURB-65 score≥3. Univariate analysis showed that there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in age, smoking history, CURB-65 score, heart rate, onset time, total comorbidity, pathogenic microorganisms, fibrinogen (FIB), D-dimer, C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Multi-factor Logistic regression analysis showed that hypertension [odds ratio ( OR) = 3.749, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.411 to 9.962], heart failure ( OR = 4.616, 95% CI was 1.116 to 19.093), co-infection ( OR = 2.886, 95% CI was 1.073 to 7.760), history of smoking ( OR = 8.268, 95% CI was 2.314 to 29.537), moderate to high CURB-65 score ( OR = 4.833, 95% CI was 1.892 to 12.346), CRP ( OR = 1.012, 95% CI was 1.002 to 1.022), AST ( OR = 1.015, 95% CI was 1.001 to 1.030) were risk factors for severe CAP (all P < 0.05). The filtered indicators were included in the nomogram model, and the results showed that the area under the ROC curve (AUC) for the model to identify patients with severe adult CAP was 0.896, 95% CI was 0.840 to 0.937 ( P < 0.05), and the calibration curve showed that the predicted probability of severe CAP was in good agreement with the observed probability (Hosmer-Lemeshow test: χ2 = 6.088, P = 0.665). Conclusions:The nomogram model has a good ability to identify patients with severe adult CAP and can be used as a comprehensive and reliable clinical diagnostic tool to provide a evidence for timely intervention in the treatment of adults with severe CAP.
7.Association between cholesterol and liver regeneration and its significance and potential value in clinical treatment of liver failure
Yong LIN ; Gengjie YAN ; Feng FENG ; Ziming PENG ; Fuli LONG ; Ailing WEI ; Minggang WANG ; Chun YAO
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2022;38(3):708-713
Liver failure is a common severe liver disease syndrome in clinical practice and is one of the critical medical conditions in internal medicine. Massive hepatocyte death is the main pathological feature of liver failure, and its core mechanisms include endotoxin, immune response, and inflammatory cascade reaction. Effective regeneration of hepatocytes to compensate liver function is the physiological basis for promoting the good prognosis of liver failure, which directly affects the prognosis and quality of life of patients with liver failure. It has been found in clinical practice that liver failure patients with a low serum level of cholesterol tend to have an extremely high mortality rate, but as an index of hepatocyte anabolism, the association between cholesterol and hepatocyte regeneration has not been taken seriously. Based on the association between cholesterol and liver regeneration, this article reviews its significance and potential value in the clinical treatment of liver failure, in order to understand the pathogenesis of liver failure from another perspective and provide new ideas for the diagnosis and treatment of liver failure and the development of drugs.
8.Research advances in animal models of acute liver failure
Fuli LONG ; Yong LIN ; Ziming PENG ; Feng FENG ; Jianling ZHANG ; Dewen MAO ; Ailing WEI
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2021;37(1):204-208
Acute liver failure is a serious and complex liver disease with a high short-term mortality rate. Its pathogenesis remains unknown and there is still a lack of effective drugs. Animal models play an important role in further revealing the pathogenesis of acute liver failure and the therapeutic mechanism of drugs, and the selection of experimental animals and preparation methods is the key to the effective implementation of research. This article summarizes the commonly used and new animal models of acute liver failure in recent years and the corresponding preparation methods and divides the animal models of acute liver failure into following four categories: chemical drug model, surgical model, infection model, and other models. Meanwhile, the above models are evaluated based on Terblanche and Hickman evaluation criteria for liver failure models, hoping to provide a reference for model selection and evaluation in basic research on this disease.
9. Epidemiologic characteristics and strategies on prevention and control of sexually transmitted human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in China
Yan LI ; Ziming LIN ; Yingqian XIE ; Peng LIN
Chinese Journal of Preventive Medicine 2018;52(12):1309-1314
At present, sexual route is the main transmission route of AIDS in China, and its role in the process of AIDS epidemic has been evolving. Various modes of transmission in sexual transmission and the prevention and control strategies adopted by China have also been changing. This paper mainly summarizes the epidemic characteristics of different periods and different modes of transmission of human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) in China in recent years. The strategies of prevention and control were described from seven aspects, including health education, promotion of condom use, expanded testing, HIV/AIDS antiviral treatment, pre-exposure prophylactic medication, post-exposure prophylactic medication, social organization participation and sexually transmitted diseases prevention and control. Only when innovative and targeted measures according to the evolution of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and various specific methods are complemented by each other, can the transmission of HIV/AIDS through sexual route be effectively prevented and controlled.
10.The hearing and vestibular evoked myogenic potentials test in patients with primary benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.
Zhiwei XU ; Peng ZHAO ; Xu YANG ; Xingjian LIU ; Xianbing CHEN ; Suzhen ZHANG ; Ziming WU
Journal of Clinical Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery 2015;29(1):20-23
OBJECTIVE:
To investigate the result of vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMP) of primary benign paroxysmal positional vertigo(BPPV)and to identify the characteristics in VEMP examination of the primary BPPV and to observe the relevance of patients with primary BPPV and abnormal VEMP with hearing loss.
METHOD:
Patients with primary BPPV were tested with pure tone audiometry, videonystagmograph and VEMPs test. We analyzed the difference in the two groups with normal hearing and hearing loss, discussed the etiology and pathogenesis.
RESULT:
Primary BPPV comprised 23.0% with hearing lost, 77.0% hearing normal. The results of oVEMP were abnormal in 79. 7% (59/74) of the cases; and the results of cVEMP were abnormal in 66. 2% (49/74) of the cases; oVEMP and cVEMP differences to the diagnosis of primary BPPV (P<0. 05); oVEMP and cVEMP differences to the diagnosis primary BPPV with hearing lost (P<0. 05).
CONCLUSION
oVEMP detection positive rate of primary BPPV is higher than cVEMP,which may be due to otolithic particles falling from the utricle; positive rate of cVEMP in primary BPPV with hearing loss is higher than that of oVEMP, which may related to the cochlear and sacculus occured in the same embryonic tissue structure.
Audiometry, Pure-Tone
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Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo
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physiopathology
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Cochlea
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Hearing Loss
;
etiology
;
Hearing Tests
;
Humans
;
Otolithic Membrane
;
Saccule and Utricle
;
Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials

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