ObjectiveTo investigate the efficacy of Xingpi capsules （XPC） in treating diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome （IBS-D） with spleen deficiency and elucidate its potential molecular mechanisms. MethodsA rat model of IBS-D with spleen deficiency was established by administering senna leaf in combination with restrained stress and swimming fatigue for 14 d. Ten specific pathogen free （SPF）-grade healthy rats were used as the normal control group. After successful modeling， SPF-grade rats were randomly divided into a model group， a pinaverium bromide group （1.5 mg·kg^-1）， and low- and high-dose XPC groups （0.135 and 0.54 g·kg^-1）， with 10 rats in each group. Rats in the normal control group and the model group were given distilled water by gavage， while the remaining groups were administered corresponding drug solutions by gavage once a day for 14 consecutive days. The rat body weights and fecal condition were observed every day， and the Bristol score was recorded. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was used to determine the levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine （5-HT） in serum and colon tissue. Transmission electron microscopy was used to observe the microvilli and tight junctions in the colon. The integrity of the colonic barrier， intestinal motility， and expression of related pathway proteins were evaluated by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining， immunohistochemistry， and Western blot. ResultsCompared with those in the normal control group， rats in the model group showed a significantly decreased body weight and increased diarrhea rate， diarrhea grade， and Bristol score （P<0.01）. HE staining revealed incomplete colonic mucosa in the model group， with evident congestion and edema observed. Electron microscopy results indicated decreased density and integrity of the colonic barrier， shedding and disappearance of microvilli， and significant widening of tight junctions. The expression levels of colonic tight junction proteins Occludin and Claudin-5 were downregulated （P<0.01）， and the levels of 5-HT in serum and colon tissue were elevated （P<0.01）. The small intestine propulsion rate significantly increased （P<0.01）， and the expression of contractile proteins Ras homolog family member A （RhoA） and Rho-associated coiled-coil containing protein kinase 2 （ROCK2） in colon and phosphorylation of myosin light chain （MLC₂₀） were upregulated （P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the treatment groups showed alleviated diarrhea， diarrhea-associated symptoms， and pathological manifestations of colon tissue to varying degrees. Specifically， high-dose XPC exhibited effectively relieved diarrhea， promoted recovery of colonic mucosal structure， significantly reduced congestion and edema， upregulated expression of Occludin and Claudin-5 （P<0.01）， decreased levels of 5-HT in serum and colon tissue （P<0.05，P<0.01）， significantly slowed small intestine propulsion rate （P<0.01）， and significantly downregulated expression of contractile proteins RhoA and ROCK2 in colon and phosphorylation of MLC₂₀ （P<0.05，P<0.01）. ConclusionXPC effectively alleviates symptoms of spleen deficiency and diarrhea and regulates the secretion of brain-gut peptide. The characteristics of XPC are mainly manifested in alleviating IBS-D with spleen deficiency from the aspects of protecting intestinal mucosa and inhibiting smooth muscle contraction， and the mechanism is closely related to the regulation of the 5-HT-RhoA/ROCK2 pathway expression.

The immune response against infection is a multifaceted process encompassing the activation and migration of diverse immune cells, as well as the clearance of pathogens. The behaviors of immune cells and the identification of pathogens play pivotal roles as indicators for disease diagnosis and prediction. In recent years, the utilization of microfluidic chip technology has gained substantial attention within the areas of biology, pharmacology, and clinical research and diagnosis. This is primarily attributed to the numerous advantages it offers, including miniaturization, enhanced throughput, heightened sensitivity, expedited analysis, and reduced sample consumption. As a result, microfluidic technology has facilitated the development and utilization of immune cell behavioral assays, bacterial growth studies, and drug-screening assays. This paper is to review the application of microfluidic technology in the field of anti-infection immunity research, focusing on the analysis of migratory behavior of innate immune cells, deformation of their nuclei, and rapid identification of pathogenic bacteria and viruses. The primary objective of this review is to advance the application of microfluidic technology in research on both anti-infection immunity and clinical diagnosis.

Background Organic phosphate flame retardants are emerging environmental pollutants. While there have been multiple toxicities reported following organic phosphate flame retardants exposure, few studies focus on their potential developmental toxicities. It is necessary to elucidate these developmental toxicological effects and underlying mechanisms to improve risk assessments and better protect sensitive populations. Objective To evaluate potential developmental toxicities in early chicken embryos following exposure to triphenyl phosphate (TPhP) or cresyl diphenyl phosphate (CDP), to reveal TPhP and CDP’s capabilities to activate peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) in vivo in an established chicken embryo gene reporter system, and to investigate the roles of PPARγ in TPhP/CDP-induced developmental toxicities with lentivirus-mediated in vivo gene silencing. Methods Firstly, diverse doses of TPhP and CDP were injected into the air sacs of fertilized eggs to assess the development of chicken embryos after 6 d of incubation, and an optimal dose was chosen for subsequent experiments. Subsequently, the report gene system was employed to evaluate the intraembryonic activation of PPARγ by TPhP and CDP. Eventually, PPARγ was silenced using lentivirus, and the embryos were co-treated with TPhP and CDP to further disclose the roles of PPARγ in the observed developmental toxicity. Results Following developmental exposure to TPhP or CDP, significantly lower chicken embryo weights (normalized with egg weights) were observed in the 6 d embryos (10, 30 mg·kg⁻¹ TPhP and 3, 10, 30 mg·kg⁻¹ CDP), indicating that both chemicals have general developmental toxicities and CDP is more potent. Additionally, exposure to CDP also resulted in remarkably increased sagittal brain area (normalized to embryo weights) and decreased sagittal eye area (normalized to embryo weights) (P<0.05), suggesting that CDP has specific developmental neurotoxicity and ocular toxicity. The PPARγ reporter gene experiment results revealed that rosiglitazone (positive control), TPhP, and CDP all significantly activated PPARγ relative to control (P<0.05). The potency order was rosiglitazone > CDP > TPhP. The lentivirus microinjection successfully achieved in vivo silencing of PPARγ in developing chicken embryos, and the estimated silencing efficacy was approximately 55% according to the real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) results. The in vivo silencing of PPARγ effectively alleviated TPhP or CDP-induced decrease of embryo weights (P<0.05), as well as CDP-induced increase of brain areas and decrease of eye areas (P<0.05). Conclusions Both TPhP and CDP can induce general developmental toxicities in early chicken embryos, and CDP is more potent than TPhP. Meanwhile, CDP can induce specific enlarged brain area and decreased eye area. The observed toxicities are associated with in vivo activation of PPARγ.

Objective To investigate the reliability and validity of the assessment tools of Brief ICF Core Sets for Arthroplasty of Knee Osteoarthritis in Perioperative Period(ICSAKOPP). Methods From May,2022 to April,2023,320 patients undergoing knee arthroplasty were selected in Peking University Third Hospital,China-Japan Friendship Hospital,Peking University First Hospital and Chinese PLA General Hospital.Trained assessors used Brief ICSAKOPP to evaluate all enrolled patients before arthroplasty,three days(±one day)after arthroplasty,three weeks(±one week)after arthroplasty,and three months(±one month)after ar-throplasty.Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index(WOMAC)scores were recorded at the same time.Five professionals were asked to score all the items of Brief ICSAKOPP,and the content validity index(CVI)was caculated. Results A total of 64 cases were dropped down.CVI of all the items of the Brief ICSAKOPP were above 0.8,with a av-erage CVI of the scale of 0.938.The Cronbach's α coefficient of the Brief ICSAKOPP was 0.813.There was a moderate correlation(r=0.681,P<0.001)between the overall Brief ICSAKOPP and WOMAC scores,as well as body functional dimension score(r=0.668,P<0.001)and activities and participation dimension score(r=0.657,P<0.001). Conclusion Brief ICSAKOPP is good in content validity,internal consistency reliability and criterion validity.

Cognitive reserve referred to the cumulative flexibility of an individual's cognitive processes,whereas accurately assessing an individual's cognitive reserve and intervening was important for preventing the occurrence of cognitive dysfunction as well as promoting cognitive health.This article reviewed the main contents and applications of cognitive reserve assessment tools,and compared the characteristics and limitations of each assessment tool.The purpose was to provide ideas for the development of cognitive reserve assessment tools suitable for China's cultural background and population characteristics,and to provide a basis for accurately assessing the current status of China's cognitive reserve and formulating targeted cognitive reserve enhancement programs.

Objective:To investigate the factors affecting the change of serum calcium and phosphorus after total parathyroidectomy for secondary hyperparathyroidism(SHPT).Method:Sixty patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism undergoing total parathyroidectomy were selected.Gender, age, hemodialysis time, bone pain time, intravenous calcium supplementation time, blood parathyroid hormone(PTH), parathyroid mass, blood calcium, phosphorus and alkaline phosphatase at admission were tested to compare the correlation between postoperative calcium and phosphorus changes.Result:Blood calcium was: (2.50±0.02), (2.27±0.03), (1.97±0.03), (1.95±0.03), (1.95±0.03), (2.03±0.02) mmol/L at admission, 6 hours after surgery, 1, 2, 3 days after surgery, and when discharged. Blood phosphorus was: (2.32±0.07), (1.95±0.05), (1.65±0.06), (1.44±0.05), (1.35±0.36), (1.14±0.04) mmol/L and when discharged.There are differences between pairwise comparisons ( F=100.979, P<0.05; F=118.910, P<0.05). The blood PTH was (1 791±760) pg/ml, and the postoperative intravenous calcium supplementation time was (7.13±2.34) days. Blood PTH was positively correlated with bone pain time, blood phosphorus and parathyroid mass at admission ( t=-2.199, P<0.05; t=4.718, P<0.05; t=2.507, P<0.05). The time of intravenous calcium supplementation was positively correlated with ALP at admission ( t=3.098, P<0.05). Preoperative serum PTH > 1 430 pg/ml or ALP > 191 mmol/L were prone to hypocalcemia on the first day after surgery. Conclusions:The longer bone pain time, the higher blood phosphorus and the more obvious parathyroid hyperplasia were, the higher PTH was. The higher the ALP, the longer the time of intravenous calcium supplementation. Preoperative serum PTH and ALP values can be used as predictors of hypocalcemia on the first day after surgery.

Breast augmentation using polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAHG) was widely used in China. We present the first case of delayed breast inflammation after 2019 novel coronavirus(2019-nCoV) infection in a patient who recieved breast augmentation with PAHG 20 years ago, without any other predispositions. The 45-year-old female patient complained of severe breast swelling and pain three weeks after 2019-nCoV infection. The swelling extended from the upper clavicle to the upper abdomen. Delayed inflammation reaction was diagnosed, followed by emergency surgery. During the surgery, the injected material was observed to gush out in a form of greenish and thin paste, with a foul odor. The wound had extensive diffuse oozing and hemoglobin decreased significantly. The patient was discharged one week after surgery. During a three-month follow-up, she experienced weakness and fatigue with no complications. There are still many unknown areas of the impact of 2019-nCoV on human foreign bodies and immune system, which is diverse and complex. Reporting various possible symptoms and mechanisms is conducive to improving the level of awareness and intervention of plastic surgeons.

Breast augmentation using polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAHG) was widely used in China. We present the first case of delayed breast inflammation after 2019 novel coronavirus(2019-nCoV) infection in a patient who recieved breast augmentation with PAHG 20 years ago, without any other predispositions. The 45-year-old female patient complained of severe breast swelling and pain three weeks after 2019-nCoV infection. The swelling extended from the upper clavicle to the upper abdomen. Delayed inflammation reaction was diagnosed, followed by emergency surgery. During the surgery, the injected material was observed to gush out in a form of greenish and thin paste, with a foul odor. The wound had extensive diffuse oozing and hemoglobin decreased significantly. The patient was discharged one week after surgery. During a three-month follow-up, she experienced weakness and fatigue with no complications. There are still many unknown areas of the impact of 2019-nCoV on human foreign bodies and immune system, which is diverse and complex. Reporting various possible symptoms and mechanisms is conducive to improving the level of awareness and intervention of plastic surgeons.

Objective:To explore the effect of pentraxin 3 (PTX3) on memory improvement and Aβ expression in Alzheimer's disease (AD) model mice.Methods:(1) Ten 5-month-old 5×FAD mice were randomly divided into PTX3 group and model group ( n=5); 5 C57BL/6 wild-type mice at the same age were selected as control group; mice in the PTX3 group and control group were stereotactically injected 4 μL 0.5 g/L PTX3 or same dose of phosphate buffered saline (PBS); Morris water maze test was used to detect the learning and memory abilities, Y maze test was used to detect the short-term memory, and ELISA was used to obsevre the contents of Aβ 40 and Aβ 42 in the brain hemisphere. (2) Twenty-five 3-month-old 5×FAD mice were randomly divided into model group, 2 μg/kg PTX3 group, 4 μg/kg PTX3 group, 8 μg/kg PTX3 group, and 16 μg/kg PTX3 group ( n=5); 5 C57BL/6 wild-type mice at the same age were selected as control group; mice in the PTX3 groups were intranasally injected 2, 4, 8, and 16 μg/kg PTX3, respectively; those in the model group and control group were intranasally injected same dose of PBS; injection was given once every 96 h for a total of 7 times. Morris water maze test was used to detect the learning and memory abilities, Y maze test was used to detect the short-term memory, and ELISA was used to obsevre the contents of Aβ 40 and Aβ 42 in the hippocampus. Results:(1) Compared with the model group, the PTX3 group had significantly shorter platform latency, higher percentage of exploration time and higher percentage of spontaneous alternations ( P<0.05). Compared with those in model group ([63.38±21.42] pg/mL, [29.77±6.11] pg/mL), the concentrations of Aβ 40 and Aβ 42 in the brain tissues of PTX3 group ([15.87±2.11] pg/mL, [16.55±1.95] pg/mL) were statistically lower ( P<0.05). (2) Compared with the model group, the 16 μg/kg PTX3 group had significantly shorter escape latency and higher percentage of exploration time ( P<0.05); compared with the model group, the 2 μg/kg PTX3 group and 16 μg/kg PTX3 group had significantly higher percentage of spontaneous alternations ( P<0.05). The contents of Aβ 40 and Aβ 42 in the hippocampus of 8 μg/kg PTX3 group and 16 μg/kg PTX3 group were statistically lower compared with those in the model group ( P<0.05). Conclusion:PTX3 may attenuate cognitive deficits and decrease Aβ expression in the brain or hippocampus tissues of 5×FAD mice with AD.

METTL3 and METTL14 are two components that form the core heterodimer of the main RNA m6A methyltransferase complex (MTC) that installs m6A. Surprisingly, depletion of METTL3 or METTL14 displayed distinct effects on stemness maintenance of mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC). While comparable global hypo-methylation in RNA m6A was observed in Mettl3 or Mettl14 knockout mESCs, respectively. Mettl14 knockout led to a globally decreased nascent RNA synthesis, whereas Mettl3 depletion resulted in transcription upregulation, suggesting that METTL14 might possess an m6A-independent role in gene regulation. We found that METTL14 colocalizes with the repressive H3K27me3 modification. Mechanistically, METTL14, but not METTL3, binds H3K27me3 and recruits KDM6B to induce H3K27me3 demethylation independent of METTL3. Depletion of METTL14 thus led to a global increase in H3K27me3 level along with a global gene suppression. The effects of METTL14 on regulation of H3K27me3 is essential for the transition from self-renewal to differentiation of mESCs. This work reveals a regulatory mechanism on heterochromatin by METTL14 in a manner distinct from METTL3 and independently of m6A, and critically impacts transcriptional regulation, stemness maintenance, and differentiation of mESCs.
Animals ; Mice ; Methylation ; Chromatin ; Histones/metabolism* ; RNA, Messenger/genetics* ; Methyltransferases/metabolism* ; RNA/metabolism*