ObjectiveTo analyze the clinical treatment plan and traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） medication rule of children with primary nephrotic syndrome （PNS） in the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine. MethodsThe gender and age of children firstly diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome in the pediatric nephrology department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine from November 2019 to December 2022 were collected， and the use of immunosuppressive agents and related frequencies were counted. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria， an independent TCM prescription database for children with nephrotic syndrome was established. Excel was used to analyze the relevant information of the literature. The frequency counting， association rule analysis， and cluster analysis were carried out on TCM in the prescription， and the high-frequent drugs were analyzed. Results（1） General information： A total of 711 children were included， consisting of 522 males （73.42%） and 189 females （26.58%）. The ratio of male to female was about 2.76∶1. The disease mainly occurred in infants and preschool age， and the average age of onset was （4.74 ± 3.48） years old. （2） Clinical treatment plan and use of immunosuppressive agents： Of the 711 children with PNS， 237 were treated with hormone alone （32.33%）， and 474 （66.67%） received immunosuppressive agents combined with hormones. In the initial treatment， hormone combined with Tacrolimus （TAC） was the preferred treatment （32.91%）. For children with refractory PNS who exhibited poor clinical efficacy， Rituximab （RTX） was mostly used for treatment， with a ratio of up to 23.63%. （3） TCM syndrome and medication rule： In PNS syndrome differentiation， Qi and Yin deficiency was identified as the main syndrome. This involved a total of 477 cases， accounting for 67.09%. Yang deficiency of spleen and kidney was observed in 118 cases， accounting for 16.60%. A total of 711 children were included， of which 706 children were treated with TCM. This involved a total of 706 prescriptions， 226 TCM， and 9 793 frequencies. There were 30 herbs used more than 95 times. The top five TCM were Radix et Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae （81.16%）， Radix Astragali （71.81%）， Poria （68.84%）， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae （63.60%）， and Fructus Corni （57.37%）. The drug association rules and network diagram showed that the combination of ''Radix Astragali-Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae-Poria'' was the closest， and five types of combinations were obtained by cluster analysis. ConclusionIn the diagnosis and treatment of PNS in children， TAC combined with hormones shows good clinical efficacy and high safety. For children with refractory PNS， RTX combined with hormones can be used. TCM medication for PNS should follow the basic principles of strengthening the body and vital Qi and make good use of drugs such as Radix Astragali， Poria， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae， and cornus to regulate the Yin and Yang balance and achieve better clinical efficacy.

ObjectiveTo analyze the clinical treatment plan and traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） medication rule of children with primary nephrotic syndrome （PNS） in the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine. MethodsThe gender and age of children firstly diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome in the pediatric nephrology department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine from November 2019 to December 2022 were collected， and the use of immunosuppressive agents and related frequencies were counted. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria， an independent TCM prescription database for children with nephrotic syndrome was established. Excel was used to analyze the relevant information of the literature. The frequency counting， association rule analysis， and cluster analysis were carried out on TCM in the prescription， and the high-frequent drugs were analyzed. Results（1） General information： A total of 711 children were included， consisting of 522 males （73.42%） and 189 females （26.58%）. The ratio of male to female was about 2.76∶1. The disease mainly occurred in infants and preschool age， and the average age of onset was （4.74 ± 3.48） years old. （2） Clinical treatment plan and use of immunosuppressive agents： Of the 711 children with PNS， 237 were treated with hormone alone （32.33%）， and 474 （66.67%） received immunosuppressive agents combined with hormones. In the initial treatment， hormone combined with Tacrolimus （TAC） was the preferred treatment （32.91%）. For children with refractory PNS who exhibited poor clinical efficacy， Rituximab （RTX） was mostly used for treatment， with a ratio of up to 23.63%. （3） TCM syndrome and medication rule： In PNS syndrome differentiation， Qi and Yin deficiency was identified as the main syndrome. This involved a total of 477 cases， accounting for 67.09%. Yang deficiency of spleen and kidney was observed in 118 cases， accounting for 16.60%. A total of 711 children were included， of which 706 children were treated with TCM. This involved a total of 706 prescriptions， 226 TCM， and 9 793 frequencies. There were 30 herbs used more than 95 times. The top five TCM were Radix et Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae （81.16%）， Radix Astragali （71.81%）， Poria （68.84%）， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae （63.60%）， and Fructus Corni （57.37%）. The drug association rules and network diagram showed that the combination of ''Radix Astragali-Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae-Poria'' was the closest， and five types of combinations were obtained by cluster analysis. ConclusionIn the diagnosis and treatment of PNS in children， TAC combined with hormones shows good clinical efficacy and high safety. For children with refractory PNS， RTX combined with hormones can be used. TCM medication for PNS should follow the basic principles of strengthening the body and vital Qi and make good use of drugs such as Radix Astragali， Poria， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae， and cornus to regulate the Yin and Yang balance and achieve better clinical efficacy.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the quality of diagnosis and treatment guidelines and expert consensuses on childhood immune thrombocytopenic purpura （ITP） published domestically and internationally， in order to provide reference for clinical practice and future guideline/expert consensus development and improvement. METHODS A systematic search was conducted across multiple databases， including PubMed， Cochrane Library， Embase， CNKI， Wanfang data， VIP， CBM； additionally， supplementary searches were carried out on websites such as Medlive， the Chinese Medical Association’s official website， and National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence in the UK. The retrieval time ranged from the inception to September 2， 2024. Researchers who had undergone systematic training independently evaluated the methodology and report quality included in the guideline/consensus using the Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation Ⅱ （AGREE Ⅱ） and the Reporting Items for Practice Guidelines in Healthcare （RIGHT）. RESULTS A total of 11 guidelines/consensuses were included. The average scores for the six domains of AGREE Ⅱ tool respectively were “range and purpose” （[ 66.67±17.98）% ]， “participants” [58.33% （13.89%，73.61%）]， “rigor” （[ 41.81±23.85）% ]， “clarity”（[ 69.57±19.35）%]， “applicability” （[ 35.98±17.83）%]， and “independence” [27.08% （0，75.00%）]； out of 11 articles， 9 had a recommendation level of B， 2 had a recommendation level of C， and there were no A-level articles. The average reporting rates of the 7 areas in the RIGHT tool were “basic information” （[ 72.35±12.95）% ]， “background” （[ 54.55±15.40）%]，“ evidence” （[ 36.36±24.81）%]，“ recommended opinions” （[ 53.25±19.20）%]，“ review and quality assurance” [0 （0， 25.00%）]， “funding and conflict of interest statement and management” [12.50%（0，25.00%）]， and other aspects [8.33%（0， 50.00%）]. In addition， there was no statistically significant difference in the AGREE Ⅱ and RIGHT scores between the guidelines and consensuses （P＞0.05）. CONCLUSIONS The overall quality of the guidelines and consensuses included in this study is not high， with a recommended level of B or C. It is recommended that clinical decision-making prioritize referring to the relatively high-quality guideline/consensus among them. The quality of evidence in the existing traditional Chinese medicine guidelines for children with ITP needs to be improved， and there is no integrated guideline/consensus for traditional Chinese and Western medicine. It is recommended to revise or write relevant guideline/consensus according to the requirements of AGREE Ⅱ and RIGHT in various fields to guide clinical practice.

Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycosides are one of the most commonly used Tripterygium wilfordii preparations， which have anti-inflammatory and immune-regulating effects. Their unique therapeutic effect on some autoimmune diseases and kidney diseases is almost irreplaceable by other similar drugs， but the possible reproductive damage is the bottleneck that hinders their clinical application. In clinical use， female patients often suffer from menstrual cycle disorders， decreased menstrual flow， even amenorrhea， infertility， and other symptoms， and the main toxic mechanism lies in damaging the reproductive and endocrine functions of the ovary and inhibiting the growth and development of follicles. Therefore， it is particularly necessary to understand the toxic and side effects of Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycosides on female reproduction and master the detoxification methods during clinical use. However， there is no clear solution to these problems. According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine， "kidney governs reproduction"， and the relationship between kidney Yin， kidney essence， and female ovum is close. Therefore， by considering that the damage to the reproductive system caused by Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycosides belongs to the category of kidney deficiency， Yin damage， and essence deficiency， the "strengthening kidney Yin" method is proposed. It points out that the reproductive toxicity damage of Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycosides on the female can be effectively alleviated by tonifying kidney and Yin essence in clinical use. The relevant research on traditional Chinese medicine， classical prescription， test prescription， and acupuncture is summarized to verify the necessity of the "strengthening kidney Yin" method， so as to provide a theoretical basis for the safe and rational clinical use of Tripterygium wilfordii.

To report a case of onychocytic carcinoma in China. A 76-year-old female patient presented with a subnail mass on her left thumb for 3 years. Skin examination showed thickening of the left thumb plate whose surface was partially yellow and black in color, slight curving of the distal plate, obvious telangiectasia under the nail plate, and verrucous hyperplasia under the nail plate and at the lateral edge of the nail plate. Histopathological examination showed that the tumor grew and infiltrated downward in clumps, with obvious keratosis and necrosis in the center of the mass, and many "squamous vortex" structures, atypical cells, and pathological mitotic figures could be seen. Immunohistochemical study revealed that HK31 and HK85 were positively expressed in the squamous vortex region, K6/K16 was positively expressed in the basal part of the tumor, and HK75 was strongly expressed in the whole tumor region. The diagnosis of onychocytic carcinoma was confirmed. The patient received surgical excision combined with 3 sessions of photodynamic therapy, and no recurrence was observed during 18 months of follow-up.

ObjectiveTo determine the syndrome of a rat model of follicular dysplasia induced by Tripterygium glycosides based on prescriptions and investigate the mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine intervention via the adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase （AMPK）/mammalian target of rapamycin （mTOR）/hypoxia-inducible factor-1 （HIF-1）/vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF） pathway. MethodForty-eight rats with regular estrous cycles were randomly assigned into a normal group （n=8） and a modeling group （n=40）. The rats in the modeling group were administrated with Tripterygium glycoside suspension （75 mL·kg^-1） by gavage for 30 days. The modeled rats were assigned into model， Siwutang （3.69 g·kg^-1）， Youguiyin （3.11 g·kg^-1）， Zuoguiyin （7.29 g·kg^-1）， and Guishenwan （10.35 g·kg^-1） groups， with 8 rats in each group. The drug intervention lasted for 14 days. The changes of estrous cycle were detected by Pap staining， and a stereoscope was used to observe the morphology of the ovarian tissue. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was employed to observe the pathological changes and follicle count in the ovarian tissue. Enzyme-related immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to measure the levels of follicle-stimulating hormone （FSH）， luteinizing hormone （LH）， and estradiol （E₂） in the serum. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot were employed to determine the mRNA and protein levels， respectively， of AMPK， mTOR， HIF-1， and VEGF in the ovarian tissue. ResultCompared with the normal group， the model group had a disordered estrous cycle， reduced secondary and mature follicles， increased atretic follicles， elevated FSH and LH levels， lowered E₂ level， up-regulated mRNA and protein levels of AMPK， and down-regulated mRNA and protein levels of mTOR， HIF-1， and VEGF （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， Guishenwan increased secondary and mature follicles， decreased atretic follicles， lowered the FSH and LH levels， elevated the E₂ level， down-regulated the mRNA and protein levels of AMPK， and up-regulated the mRNA and protein levels of mTOR， HIF-1， and VEGF （P<0.01）. Compared with Guishenwan group， Siwutang， Youguiyin， and Zuoguiyin decreased mature follicles， increased atretic follicles （P<0.01）， elevated the LH （P<0.01） and FSH （P<0.05） levels， and lowered the E₂ level （P<0.05）. In addition， Youguiyin up-regulated the protein level of AMPK （P<0.05） and down-regulated the mRNA levels of mTOR and HIF-1 （P<0.01） as well as the mRNA and protein levels of VEGF （P<0.01）. Siwutang down-regulated the mRNA levels of mTOR and HIF-1 as well as the mRNA and protein levels of VEGF （P<0.05）. Zuoguiyin down-regulated the mRNA level of mTOR and the protein and mRNA levels of VEGF （P<0.05）. ConclusionGuishenwan may improve the ovarian function and promote follicle maturation in a rat model of follicular dysplasia by inhibiting the AMPK/mTOR/HIF-1/VEGF pathway， with the therapeutic effect superior to Zuoguiyin， Youguiyin， and Siwutang. It was hypothesized that this model presented the syndrome of kidney-essence deficiency.

ObjectiveTo explore the recognition of oral breath odor map of chronic atrophic gastritis （CAG） patients with dampness-heat syndrome by electronic nose technique. MethodsPatients with chronic gastritis were recruited， including 60 cases in CAG group of dampness-heat syndrome， 50 cases in CAG group of non-dampness-heat syndrome， 60 cases in chronic non-atrophic gastritis （CNAG） group of dampness-heat syndrome， 50 cases in CNAG group of non-dampness-heat syndrome， and 30 cases of healthy volunteers were selected to set up the health control group. Ten cases in the CAG dampness-heat group and 50 cases in the CAG non-dampness-heat group were selected to form the CAG group， and 10 cases in CNAG dampness-heat group and 50 cases in CNAG non-dampness-heat group were selected to form the CNAG group. In addition to the health control group， the remaining patients were tested for Helicobacter pylori （Hp）； the electronic nose （GISXM-MQWA01） was used to collect the oral breath odor of all the participants to draw the mapping， and amplitudes and slopes of each curve （including curves A， B， C， D， E， F， G， H， I， J） of the oral odor mapping of health control group， CAG group， CNAG group， CAG dampness-heat group， CAG non-dampness-heat group， and CNAG dampness-heat group was compared. The modified transformer model was used to classify the odor mapping characteristics， and the confusion matrix method was used to evaluate the classification model， with metrics including accuracy and area under ROC curve （AUC）. ResultsThe Hp positivity rate in CAG dampness-heat group was 80.00% （48/60）， CAG non-dampness-heat group was 62.00% （31/50）， CNAG dampness-heat group was 46.67% （28/60）， and CNAG non-dampness-heat group was 42.00% （21/50）； the difference in Hp positivity rate between CAG dampness-heat group and CAG non-dampness-heat group was statistically significant （P＜0.05）. The amplitudes of response curves A， B， C， D， F， G， and I， and slopes of A and F in the odor mapping of the CAG group were lower than those in health control group， while the amplitude and slope of curve E were higher than those in the health control group and CNAG group （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）； The amplitude of the response curves A， B， C， D， F， G， and I， and slopes of A， D， and F in the CNAG group were lower than those in the health control group （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. The amplitude of response curve D and slope of response curve J in the odor mapping of the CAG dampness-heat group were higher than those in CNAG dampness-heat group， the amplitude of curve F was lower than that in CAG non-dampness-heat group， and the amplitude of curve H and slopes of curve A， H， and J were higher than those in CAG non-dampness-heat group （P＜0.05）. The recognition accuracy of CAG group and health control group reached 77.78%， AUC = 0.88； the recognition accuracy of CAG group and CNAG group was 69.44%， AUC = 0.61； the recognition accuracy of CAG dampness-heat group and CAG non-dampness-heat group reached 75.8%， AUC=0.70. ConclusionElectronic nose technology can make a more accurate identification of the oral breath odor in CAG patients with dampness-heat syndrome， with a decrease in the amplitude of the curve F and an increase in the amplitude of the curve H and in the slopes of the curves A， H， and J may as the characteristics of their odor mapping.

Pyroptosis, an inflammatory caspase-dependent programmed cell death, plays a vital role in maintaining tissue homeostasis and activating inflammatory responses. Orthodontic tooth movement (OTM) is an aseptic force-induced inflammatory bone remodeling process mediated by the activation of periodontal ligament (PDL) progenitor cells. However, whether and how force induces PDL progenitor cell pyroptosis, thereby influencing OTM and alveolar bone remodeling remains unknown. In this study, we found that mechanical force induced the expression of pyroptosis-related markers in rat OTM and alveolar bone remodeling process. Blocking or enhancing pyroptosis level could suppress or promote OTM and alveolar bone remodeling respectively. Using Caspase-1^-/- mice, we further demonstrated that the functional role of the force-induced pyroptosis in PDL progenitor cells depended on Caspase-1. Moreover, mechanical force could also induce pyroptosis in human ex-vivo force-treated PDL progenitor cells and in compressive force-loaded PDL progenitor cells in vitro, which influenced osteoclastogenesis. Mechanistically, transient receptor potential subfamily V member 4 signaling was involved in force-induced Caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis in PDL progenitor cells. Overall, this study suggested a novel mechanism contributing to the modulation of osteoclastogenesis and alveolar bone remodeling under mechanical stimuli, indicating a promising approach to accelerate OTM by targeting Caspase-1.
Animals ; Humans ; Mice ; Rats ; Bone Remodeling/physiology* ; Caspase 1 ; Periodontal Ligament ; Pyroptosis ; Tooth Movement Techniques

Pyroptosis,an inflammatory caspase-dependent programmed cell death,plays a vital role in maintaining tissue homeostasis and activating inflammatory responses.Orthodontic tooth movement(OTM)is an aseptic force-induced inflammatory bone remodeling process mediated by the activation of periodontal ligament(PDL)progenitor cells.However,whether and how force induces PDL progenitor cell pyroptosis,thereby influencing OTM and alveolar bone remodeling remains unknown.In this study,we found that mechanical force induced the expression of pyroptosis-related markers in rat OTM and alveolar bone remodeling process.Blocking or enhancing pyroptosis level could suppress or promote OTM and alveolar bone remodeling respectively.Using Caspase-1-/-mice,we further demonstrated that the functional role of the force-induced pyroptosis in PDL progenitor cells depended on Caspase-1.Moreover,mechanical force could also induce pyroptosis in human ex-vivo force-treated PDL progenitor cells and in compressive force-loaded PDL progenitor cells in vitro,which influenced osteoclastogenesis.Mechanistically,transient receptor potential subfamily V member 4 signaling was involved in force-induced Caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis in PDL progenitor cells.Overall,this study suggested a novel mechanism contributing to the modulation of osteoclastogenesis and alveolar bone remodeling under mechanical stimuli,indicating a promising approach to accelerate OTM by targeting Caspase-1.

Pyroptosis,an inflammatory caspase-dependent programmed cell death,plays a vital role in maintaining tissue homeostasis and activating inflammatory responses.Orthodontic tooth movement(OTM)is an aseptic force-induced inflammatory bone remodeling process mediated by the activation of periodontal ligament(PDL)progenitor cells.However,whether and how force induces PDL progenitor cell pyroptosis,thereby influencing OTM and alveolar bone remodeling remains unknown.In this study,we found that mechanical force induced the expression of pyroptosis-related markers in rat OTM and alveolar bone remodeling process.Blocking or enhancing pyroptosis level could suppress or promote OTM and alveolar bone remodeling respectively.Using Caspase-1-/-mice,we further demonstrated that the functional role of the force-induced pyroptosis in PDL progenitor cells depended on Caspase-1.Moreover,mechanical force could also induce pyroptosis in human ex-vivo force-treated PDL progenitor cells and in compressive force-loaded PDL progenitor cells in vitro,which influenced osteoclastogenesis.Mechanistically,transient receptor potential subfamily V member 4 signaling was involved in force-induced Caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis in PDL progenitor cells.Overall,this study suggested a novel mechanism contributing to the modulation of osteoclastogenesis and alveolar bone remodeling under mechanical stimuli,indicating a promising approach to accelerate OTM by targeting Caspase-1.