Pancreatic cancer is a highly malignant solid tumor of the digestive system with extremely poor treatment prognosis. Although its incidence rate is low， its mortality rate is extremely high. In recent years， the number of diagnosed cases worldwide has continued to rise， making pancreatic cancer the sixth leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally. Currently， clinical treatment primarily relies on operation and chemotherapy to suppress tumors. However， these approaches face challenges such as suboptimal efficacy， high postoperative recurrence rates， and severe adverse reactions. Therefore， identifying safe and effective treatment modalities remains a pressing challenge for the medical community. In recent years， research on traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） interventions for pancreatic cancer has increased significantly. Multiple studies have shown that single-herb TCM， TCM formulas， and their derived single compounds can regulate the levels of tumor cell signaling pathways through multiple action targets. They inhibit the development and progression of pancreatic cancer by inhibiting cancer cell proliferation， promoting cell apoptosis， inhibiting tumor angiogenesis， reducing cancer cell invasion and migration capabilities， regulating the cell cycle， and modulating the tumor microenvironment. Additionally， TCM has the advantages of significantly enhancing the anticancer efficacy of chemotherapy drugs and causing fewer adverse reactions. However， the specific action mechanisms by which TCM intervenes in pancreatic cancer remain unclear. Further extensive research is still needed to validate the role of regulating classical signaling pathways such as phosphoinositide 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt）/mammalian target of rapamycin （mTOR）， Wnt/β-catenin， nuclear transcription factor-κB （NF-κB）， notch， and hedgehog in the treatment of pancreatic cancer. Therefore， this paper reviewed Chinese and international studies on TCM intervention in pancreatic cancer through relevant signaling pathways in recent years， summarized the potential action mechanisms of TCM in the treatment of pancreatic cancer， and provided references for related research in the future.

Objective To investigate the impact of smoking cessation on high-resolution compu-ted tomography(HRCT)phenotypes in smokers with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD)and its relationship with the frequency of acute exacerbations.Methods A retrospective study was conducted in 237 smokers with COPD who could cooperate with a 1-year follow-up.Among them,160 patients underwent a comprehensive 1-year smoking cessation intervention,and were divided into smoking cessation failure group(87 patients)and smoking cessation success group(73 patients)based on whether they successfully quited smoking.The remaining 77 smokers with COPD who did not receive smoking cessation intervention were designated as smoking group.HRCT phenotypes,total lung volume(TLV),total emphysema volume(TEV),emphysema index(EI)and the number of acute exacerbation at different time points were compared among the three groups.Pearson correlation analysis was used to explore the correlation between smoking cessation and the number of acute exac-erbations.Results There was no statistically significant difference in the proportion of A phenotype patients among the three groups before intervention and at 3 and 6 months of intervention(P＞0.05).At the 9th and 12th months of intervention,the proportion of patients with A phenotype in the smoking group was lower than that in the smoking cessation failure group and smoking cessation success group(P＜0.05).Before the intervention and at the 3rd,6th and 9th months of interven-tion,there were no statistically significant differences in the proportion of patients with E phenotype among the three groups(P＞0.05).Before intervention and at the 3rd and 6th months of interven-tion,there were no statistically significant differences in the proportion of patients with M phenotype among the three groups(P＞0.05).At the 9th and 12th months of intervention,the proportion of patients with M phenotype in the smoking group was higher than that in the smoking cessation failure group and smoking cessation success group(P＜0.05).Before intervention,there were no statisti-cally significant differences in TLV,TEV and EI among the three groups(P＞0.05).One year af-ter the intervention,TLV,TEV and El in the smoking cessation failure group and smoking cessation success group were lower than those in the smoking group(P＜0.05).At the 3rd,6th,9th and 12th months of intervention,the number of acute exacerbations in the the smoking cessation failure group and smoking cessation success group was less than that in the smoking group(P＜0.05).At the 9th and 12th months of intervention,the number of acute exacerbation in the smoking cessation success group was less than that in the smoking cessation failure group(P＜0.05).The results of Pearson correlation analysis showed that smoking cessation was negatively correlated with the number of acute exacerbation in smokers with COPD(P＜0.05),and this negative correlation gradually in-creased with the extension of smoking cessation duration.Conclusion Smoking cessation can im-prove HRCT phenotypes and effectively reduce the number of acute exacerbation in smokers with COPD.

Hot melt extrusion(HME)technology employs thermodynamic and kinetic principles to mix pharmaceutical polymers with crystalline drugs at high temperatures and extrude them,embedding drug molecules within the polymer matrix to form solid dispersions.Due to its solvent-free nature,capability for one-step processing,and support for continuous operation,HME has garnered significant attention in the pharmaceutical industry in recent years.This article introduced the basic principles and development history of HME technology and its marketed drugs.It reviewed the research progress of HME technology in improving drug solubility,masking taste,controlled release,targeted release,oral dispersible films,implant formulations,semi-solid formulations,and 3D printed formulations.Additionally,the article summarized the advantages and limitations of HME technology and provided an outlook on its future development.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.apsb.2021.07.004.].

Hot melt extrusion(HME)technology employs thermodynamic and kinetic principles to mix pharmaceutical polymers with crystalline drugs at high temperatures and extrude them,embedding drug molecules within the polymer matrix to form solid dispersions.Due to its solvent-free nature,capability for one-step processing,and support for continuous operation,HME has garnered significant attention in the pharmaceutical industry in recent years.This article introduced the basic principles and development history of HME technology and its marketed drugs.It reviewed the research progress of HME technology in improving drug solubility,masking taste,controlled release,targeted release,oral dispersible films,implant formulations,semi-solid formulations,and 3D printed formulations.Additionally,the article summarized the advantages and limitations of HME technology and provided an outlook on its future development.

This study aims to construct C57/B6-L and A549 cell lines that stably overexpress circu-lar RNA LAMP3(circLAMP3),laying the foundation for further research on the biological func-tions of circLAMP3.Total RNA was extracted and reverse transcripted into cDNA from C57/B6-L and A549 cells to amplify the full-length sequence of circLAMP3.Then,the fragments of cir-cLAMP3 were ligated into pLC5-ciR vector to obtain pLC5-Mouse-circLAMP3 and pLC5-Human-circLAMP3 recombinant plasmids.The lentiviruses expressing circLAMP3 were packaged on tran-sient transfected HEK293T cells.C57/B6-L and A549 cells were infected with lentiviruses to gen-erate cell lines overexpressing circLAMP3 through puromycin screening.To verify the overexpres-sion efficiency of circLAMP3 of cell lines,we performed the fluorescence microscopy,PCR amplifi-cation,quantitative PCR(qPCR),and Sanger sequencing experiments.The results indicated that the overexpression plasmids of pLC5-Mouse-circLAMP3 and pLC5-Human-circLAMP3 were suc-cessfully constructed.Strong green fluorescence was observed under a fluorescence microscopy.C57/B6-L and A549 cell lines showed a significant increase in the expression of circLAMP3 by PCR and qPCR methods.Sanger sequencing results showed that the junction site of circLAMP3 was correct.This study successfully constructed C57/B6-L and A549 cell lines overexpressing circLAMP3,providing biomaterials for further exploration of the biological function of circLAMP3 in influenza virus replication.

Objective:To explore the genetic basis for a Chinese pedigree affected with Fragile X syndrome (FXS) through Nanopore long-read sequencing.Methods:A FXS pedigree who had undergone genetic counseling at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in April 2023 was selected as the study subject. Nanopore long-read sequencing, triplet-repeat primed PCR (TP-PCR), methylation-specific multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MS-MLPA) and trinucleotide polymorphism genotyping of androgen receptor (AR) gene were used to analyze the FMR1 CGG repeat number, methylation, and X chromosome inactivation of the pedigree members. This study has been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University (No. KS-2018-KY-36). Results:Full mutation and CpG island hypermethylation were detected in the proband. The elder sister of the proband had full mutation of the FMR1 gene on one X chromosome and hypermethylation of CpG island, while the FMR1 gene on the other X chromosome was normal. FMR1 premutation was detected in the proband′s mother. Conclusion:Nanopore long-read sequencing can simultaneously detect the dynamic mutation and methylation status of the FMR1 gene on the two X chromosomes of females, which has important value for the diagnosis of FXS in different genders.

Objective:To investigate the diagnostic value of urine pH, serum uric acid and related clinical indicators in the diagnosis of urinary infection stones, and to construct a prediction nomogram.Methods:The clinical data of 432 patients with urinary calculi admitted to Xuzhou Central Hospital from August 2018 to November 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. The study included 289 males and 143 females, with an average age of (52.72±13.46) years old. Among the patients, there were 98 cases of hypertension, 67 cases of diabetes, and 100 cases of recurrent calculi. Kidney stones were present in 152 cases, ureteral stones in 242 cases, and bladder stones in 38 cases. Urine bacterial culture yielded positive results in 97 cases. According to the results of postoperative stone composition analysis, the two groups were categorized as infection and no-infection stone groups, and the differences in general data between the two groups were compared. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to assess the diagnostic value of urine pH, serum uric acid, and related clinical indicators for urinary infection stones. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and area under curve (AUC) were utilized to evaluate the clinical significance of urine pH, serum uric acid, and combined indexes in preoperatively diagnosing urinary infection stones, as well as constructing a nomogram prediction model.Results:There were 127 cases of infection stones and 305 cases of no-infection stones. The infection stone group exhibited a higher urine pH value [7.0(6.5, 7.5) vs. 6.0(5.5, 6.5), P<0.001], lower serum uric acid levels [(301.38±70.12) vs. (358.88±88.99) μmol/L, P<0.001], a higher proportion of females [55.1%(70/127) vs. 23.9%(73/305), P<0.001], younger age [(48.36±14.83)vs. (53.12±12.61)years old, P<0.001], a higher proportion of recurrence stones [34.6 %(44/127) vs. 18.4%(56/305), P<0.001], and a higher rate of positive urine bacteria culture[29.9%(38/127)vs. 19.3%(59/305), P=0.016]and nitrite test results [18.9%(24/127)vs. 6.3%(19/305), P <0.001]. Univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that urine pH value, serum uric acid levels, gender, age, recurrent stones, urine bacterial culture, and urine nitrite were associated with urinary infection stones ( P< 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that urine pH value ( OR= 4.836, 95% CI 3.342-6.997), female gender( OR=2.320, 95% CI 1.286-4.186), recurrent stones ( OR=2.225, 95% CI 1.208-4.101), positive urine bacterial culture ( OR=2.061, 95% CI 1.094-3.883), serum uric acid ( OR=0.992, 95% CI 0.949-0.989), age ( OR=0.969, 95% CI 0.949-0.990) were independent risk factors for urinary infection stones ( P<0.05). The combined diagnostic value of six indicators was the highest, with an AUC of 0.874 (95% CI 0.837-0.911). Following this, urine pH exhibited an AUC of 0.818 (95% CI 0.778-0.858), while serum uric acid had an AUC of 0.704 (95% CI 0.652-0.756). The nomogram model was successfully constructed based on the six indicators. The mean AUC of the ROC curve after 1 000 resamples of the Bootstrap method was 0.864 (95% CI 0.828-0.900), and the calibration curve showed that the predicted curve fit the ideal curve well, with a mean absolute error of 0.005 and a Hosmer-Lemeshow test of P>0.05. Clinical decision curve analysis (DCA) showed that the model had a higher net clinical benefit when the model had a threshold probability value≥0.01. Conclusions:Urine pH and serum uric acid are closely related to urinary infection stones. A nomogram model combining these factors with gender, age, recurrent stones, and urine culture results can effectively predict the probability of infection-related stones, providing significant clinical value.

Objective:To investigate the diagnostic value of urine pH, serum uric acid and related clinical indicators in the diagnosis of urinary infection stones, and to construct a prediction nomogram.Methods:The clinical data of 432 patients with urinary calculi admitted to Xuzhou Central Hospital from August 2018 to November 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. The study included 289 males and 143 females, with an average age of (52.72±13.46) years old. Among the patients, there were 98 cases of hypertension, 67 cases of diabetes, and 100 cases of recurrent calculi. Kidney stones were present in 152 cases, ureteral stones in 242 cases, and bladder stones in 38 cases. Urine bacterial culture yielded positive results in 97 cases. According to the results of postoperative stone composition analysis, the two groups were categorized as infection and no-infection stone groups, and the differences in general data between the two groups were compared. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to assess the diagnostic value of urine pH, serum uric acid, and related clinical indicators for urinary infection stones. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and area under curve (AUC) were utilized to evaluate the clinical significance of urine pH, serum uric acid, and combined indexes in preoperatively diagnosing urinary infection stones, as well as constructing a nomogram prediction model.Results:There were 127 cases of infection stones and 305 cases of no-infection stones. The infection stone group exhibited a higher urine pH value [7.0(6.5, 7.5) vs. 6.0(5.5, 6.5), P<0.001], lower serum uric acid levels [(301.38±70.12) vs. (358.88±88.99) μmol/L, P<0.001], a higher proportion of females [55.1%(70/127) vs. 23.9%(73/305), P<0.001], younger age [(48.36±14.83)vs. (53.12±12.61)years old, P<0.001], a higher proportion of recurrence stones [34.6 %(44/127) vs. 18.4%(56/305), P<0.001], and a higher rate of positive urine bacteria culture[29.9%(38/127)vs. 19.3%(59/305), P=0.016]and nitrite test results [18.9%(24/127)vs. 6.3%(19/305), P <0.001]. Univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that urine pH value, serum uric acid levels, gender, age, recurrent stones, urine bacterial culture, and urine nitrite were associated with urinary infection stones ( P< 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that urine pH value ( OR= 4.836, 95% CI 3.342-6.997), female gender( OR=2.320, 95% CI 1.286-4.186), recurrent stones ( OR=2.225, 95% CI 1.208-4.101), positive urine bacterial culture ( OR=2.061, 95% CI 1.094-3.883), serum uric acid ( OR=0.992, 95% CI 0.949-0.989), age ( OR=0.969, 95% CI 0.949-0.990) were independent risk factors for urinary infection stones ( P<0.05). The combined diagnostic value of six indicators was the highest, with an AUC of 0.874 (95% CI 0.837-0.911). Following this, urine pH exhibited an AUC of 0.818 (95% CI 0.778-0.858), while serum uric acid had an AUC of 0.704 (95% CI 0.652-0.756). The nomogram model was successfully constructed based on the six indicators. The mean AUC of the ROC curve after 1 000 resamples of the Bootstrap method was 0.864 (95% CI 0.828-0.900), and the calibration curve showed that the predicted curve fit the ideal curve well, with a mean absolute error of 0.005 and a Hosmer-Lemeshow test of P>0.05. Clinical decision curve analysis (DCA) showed that the model had a higher net clinical benefit when the model had a threshold probability value≥0.01. Conclusions:Urine pH and serum uric acid are closely related to urinary infection stones. A nomogram model combining these factors with gender, age, recurrent stones, and urine culture results can effectively predict the probability of infection-related stones, providing significant clinical value.

The emerging of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused COVID-19 pandemic. The first case of COVID-19 was reported at early December in 2019 in Wuhan City, China. To examine specific antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in biological samples before December 2019 would give clues when the epidemic of SARS-CoV-2 might start to circulate in populations. We obtained all 88,517 plasmas from 76,844 blood donors in Wuhan between 1 September and 31 December 2019. We first evaluated the pan-immunoglobin (pan-Ig) against SARS-CoV-2 in 43,850 samples from 32,484 blood donors with suitable sample quality and enough volume. Two hundred and sixty-four samples from 213 donors were pan-Ig reactive, then further tested IgG and IgM, and validated by neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. Two hundred and thirteen samples (from 175 donors) were only pan-Ig reactive, 8 (from 4 donors) were pan-Ig and IgG reactive, and 43 (from 34 donors) were pan-Ig and IgM reactive. Microneutralization assay showed all negative results. In addition, 213 screened reactive donors were analyzed and did not show obviously temporal or regional tendency, but the distribution of age showed a difference compared with all tested donors. Then we reviewed SARS-CoV-2 antibody results from these donors who donated several times from September 2019 to June 2020, partly tested in a previous published study, no one was found a significant increase in S/CO of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. Our findings showed no SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies existing among blood donors in Wuhan, China before 2020, indicating no evidence of transmission of COVID-19 before December 2019 in Wuhan, China.
Humans ; Antibodies, Viral ; Blood Donors ; China/epidemiology* ; COVID-19/immunology* ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Pandemics ; SARS-CoV-2