ObjectiveTo evaluate the clinical efficacy of Maxing Loushi decoction in the treatment of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （AECOPD） with phlegm turbidity obstructing lung syndrome， and to investigate its effects on inflammatory factors， immune function， and the programmed death-1（PD-1）/programmed death-ligand 1 （PD-L1） signaling pathway. MethodsA randomized controlled study was conducted， enrolling 90 hospitalized patients with AECOPD and phlegm turbidity obstructing lung syndrome in the Respiratory and Emergency Departments of Dongzhimen Hospital， Beijing University of Chinese Medicine， from April 2024 to December 2024. Patients were randomly assigned to a control group and an observation group using a random number table， with 45 patients in each group. The control group received conventional Western medical treatment， while the observation group received additional Maxing Loushi decoction for 14 days. Clinical efficacy， COPD Assessment Test （CAT） score， modified Medical Research Council Dyspnea Scale （mMRC）， 6-minute walk test （6MWT）， serum inflammatory factors， T lymphocyte subsets， and serum PD-1/PD-L1 levels were compared between the two groups before and after treatment. ResultsThe total clinical effective rate was 78.57% （33/42） in the control group and 95.35% （41/43） in the observation group， with the observation group showing significantly higher efficacy than that of the control group. The difference was statistically significant （χ² = 5.136， P<0.05）. After treatment， both groups showed significant reductions in CAT and mMRC scores （P<0.05， P<0.01） and significant increases in 6MWT compared to baseline （P<0.01）. The observation group demonstrated significantly greater improvements than the control group in this regard. Levels of inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein （CRP）， procalcitonin （PCT）， interleukin-6 （IL-6）， tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， monocyte chemoattractant protein-1（MCP-1）， and macrophage inflammatory protein-1α （MIP-1α） were significantly reduced in both groups （P<0.05， P<0.01）， with greater reductions in the observation group （P<0.05， P<0.01）. CD8⁺ levels were significantly reduced （P<0.01）， while CD3⁺， CD4⁺， and CD4⁺/CD8⁺ levels were significantly increased in both groups after treatment （P<0.05， P<0.01）， with more significant improvements observed in the observation group （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Serum PD-1 levels were reduced （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and PD-L1 levels were increased significantly in both groups after treatment （P<0.05， P<0.01）， with more pronounced changes in the observation group （P<0.05）. ConclusionMaxing Loushi decoction demonstrates definite therapeutic efficacy as an adjunctive treatment for patients with AECOPD and phlegm turbidity obstructing lung syndrome. It contributes to reducing serum inflammatory factors， improving immune function， and regulating the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the clinical efficacy of Maxing Loushi decoction in the treatment of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease （AECOPD） with phlegm turbidity obstructing lung syndrome， and to investigate its effects on inflammatory factors， immune function， and the programmed death-1（PD-1）/programmed death-ligand 1 （PD-L1） signaling pathway. MethodsA randomized controlled study was conducted， enrolling 90 hospitalized patients with AECOPD and phlegm turbidity obstructing lung syndrome in the Respiratory and Emergency Departments of Dongzhimen Hospital， Beijing University of Chinese Medicine， from April 2024 to December 2024. Patients were randomly assigned to a control group and an observation group using a random number table， with 45 patients in each group. The control group received conventional Western medical treatment， while the observation group received additional Maxing Loushi decoction for 14 days. Clinical efficacy， COPD Assessment Test （CAT） score， modified Medical Research Council Dyspnea Scale （mMRC）， 6-minute walk test （6MWT）， serum inflammatory factors， T lymphocyte subsets， and serum PD-1/PD-L1 levels were compared between the two groups before and after treatment. ResultsThe total clinical effective rate was 78.57% （33/42） in the control group and 95.35% （41/43） in the observation group， with the observation group showing significantly higher efficacy than that of the control group. The difference was statistically significant （χ² = 5.136， P<0.05）. After treatment， both groups showed significant reductions in CAT and mMRC scores （P<0.05， P<0.01） and significant increases in 6MWT compared to baseline （P<0.01）. The observation group demonstrated significantly greater improvements than the control group in this regard. Levels of inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein （CRP）， procalcitonin （PCT）， interleukin-6 （IL-6）， tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， monocyte chemoattractant protein-1（MCP-1）， and macrophage inflammatory protein-1α （MIP-1α） were significantly reduced in both groups （P<0.05， P<0.01）， with greater reductions in the observation group （P<0.05， P<0.01）. CD8⁺ levels were significantly reduced （P<0.01）， while CD3⁺， CD4⁺， and CD4⁺/CD8⁺ levels were significantly increased in both groups after treatment （P<0.05， P<0.01）， with more significant improvements observed in the observation group （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Serum PD-1 levels were reduced （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and PD-L1 levels were increased significantly in both groups after treatment （P<0.05， P<0.01）， with more pronounced changes in the observation group （P<0.05）. ConclusionMaxing Loushi decoction demonstrates definite therapeutic efficacy as an adjunctive treatment for patients with AECOPD and phlegm turbidity obstructing lung syndrome. It contributes to reducing serum inflammatory factors， improving immune function， and regulating the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway.

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics of patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) and corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection.Methods:Clinical data of AECOPD patients over 65 years old who were diagnosed in the Respiratory and Emergency Departments of the Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from September 2022 to September 2023 were collected. AECOPD patients were divided into a COVID-19 group ( n=29) and a non COVID-19 group ( n=31). The platelet count, white blood cell count, lymphocyte count, neutrophil count, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR), C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), partial pressure of oxygen (PO 2), partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO 2), D-dimer (D-D), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were compared between two groups of patients upon admission Confusion, Uremia, Respiratory, BP, Age 65 Years (CURB-65) was used to compare length of hospital stay, AECOPD grading, and mortality endpoint days. Results:There was no statistically significant difference in platelet count, white blood cell count, lymphocyte count, neutrophil count, NLR, and PLR between the COVID-19 group and the non COVID-19 group (all P>0.05). The proportion of males, CRP, PCO 2, D-D, IL-6, and CURB-65 scores in the COVID-19 group were higher than those in the non COVID-19 group, while PCT and PO 2 were lower than those in the non COVID-19 group, with statistically significant difference (all P<0.05). The proportion of AECOPD grade Ⅲ in the COVID-19 group was significantly higher than that in the non COVID-19 group, and the progression rate of the disease was higher in the COVID-19 group (37.9% vs 22.6%, P<0.05). COVID-19 was an independent influencing factor for the progression of AECOPD. Conclusions:Patients over 65 years old with AECOPD infected with COVID-19 have a more pronounced inflammatory response, and CRP, IL-6, and CURB-65 scores can be used as indicators to evaluate the degree of inflammation. AECOPD infected with COVID-19 are more prone to coagulation disorders, hypoxemia, more severe illness, and easier progression, suggesting that COVID-19 infection is an independent influencing factor for the progression of AECOPD.

Objective:To explore the correlation between the ratio of C-reactive protein (CRP) to albumin (CAR) and the syndrome type of Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue in patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).Methods:A case-control study was conducted to select 63 severe patients with COVID-19 admitted to the Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from December 2022 to December 2023, including 50 severe cases and 13 critical cases. The clinical data of the patients were collected. According to the syndrome differentiation of Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue, there were 21 cases of Qi syndrome, 20 cases of Ying syndrome and 22 cases of Xue syndrome. The differences of CRP, ALB and CAR levels in patients with different Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndromes were compared. Spearman correlation test was used to test the correlation between CRP, ALB, CAR and the Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome type, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to detect the diagnostic efficacy of CRP, ALB and CAR on the Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome type.Results:There was a statistically significant difference in the clinical classification of Western medicine among the three groups ( P<0.05). The CAR of the Ying group and the Xue group was higher than that of the Qi group ( P<0.05), while there was no statistically significant difference in age and comorbidities (all P>0.05). The CRP of the Xue group was higher than that of the Qi group ( P<0.05), and the ALB of the Ying group and the Xue group was lower than that of the Qi group (all P<0.05). Correlation analysis showed that there was a correlation between the Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome type and CRP, ALB and CAR ( P<0.05), among which CAR changed most significantly with the change of Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome type. ROC curve analysis showed that CRP, ALB and CAR had good diagnostic value for Qi syndrome and Xue syndrome ( P<0.05). The critical values of the diagnosis of Qi syndrome were 48.57 mg/L, 34.20 g/L and 2.97. The critical values of the diagnosis of Xue syndrome were 28.30 mg/L, 26.6 g/L and 5.96. Conclusions:CAR ratio is correlated with the Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome type of severe COVID-19 patients, and its level changes are in line with the evolution law of Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome. CAR≤2.97 is contributed to the diagnosis of Qi syndrome, and CAR>5.96 is contributed to the diagnosis of Xue syndrome. CAR may be an objective index related to the Wei-Qi-Ying-Xue syndrome type of severe COVID-19 patients.

Objective To investigate the value of intestinal fatty acid binding protein(I-FABP)in predicting the development and progression of acute-on-chronic liver failure(ACLF).Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 168 patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis who were admitted to The Affiliated Hospital of Yanbian University from September 2020 to March 2023.The conditions of the patients with ACLF on admission were observed,and the patients were followed up for 6 months to identify new-onset ACLF cases.ELISA was used to measure the serum level of I-FABP on admission.The Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed continuous data between two groups,and the Kruskal-Wallis H rank sum test was used for comparison between multiple groups;the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups;the Jonckheere-Terpstra test was used for trend analysis.The Spearman correlation analysis was used to investigate the correlation between two variables,and the multivariate Cox regression analysis was used to investigate the influencing factors for new-onset ACLF during follow-up.The Kaplan-Meier curve was used to analyze the onset of ACLF in different groups,and the log-rank test was used for the analysis of such differences.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve and the area under the ROC curve(AUC)were used to investigate the performance of I-FABP in predicting the development and progression of ACLF.Results Among the 168 patients enrolled in this study,there were 43 patients with ACLF and 125 patients without ACLF,among whom 19 developed ACLF during follow-up.The patients with ACLF on admission had a significantly higher level of I-FABP than those without ACLF(Z=4.359,P<0.001).The patients with new-onset ACLF had a significantly higher level of I-FABP than those without new-onset ACLF(Z=3.414,P<0.001).The level of I-FABP increased with the increase in ACLF severity grade(H=17.385,P<0.001,Ptrend<0.001).The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that I-FABP was independently associated with new-onset ACLF during follow-up(hazard ratio=2.138,95%confidence interval[CI]:1.297-3.525,P=0.003),and the tertile of I-FABP showed a good discriminatory ability(χ2=12.16,P<0.001).The ROC curve showed that I-FABP had a good performance in predicting the development and progression of ACLF,with an area under the ROC curve of 0.854(95%CI:0.791-0.903)and 0.747(95%CI:0.661-0.820),respectively,and an optimal cut-off value of 2.07 μg/L and 1.86 μg/L,respectively.Conclusion I-FABP can be used as a biomarker to predict the development and progression of ACLF,and it may help to identify high-risk patients and improve clinical management.

Objective:To analyze the distribution pattern of TCM syndrome elements in elderly patients with sepsis and septic shock, as well as the relationship between TCM syndrome elements, Sepsis Sequential Organ Failure Score (SOFA), Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Score Ⅱ (APACHE Ⅱ), and short-term mortality prognosis.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 58 patients treated in the Emergency Department and ICU of Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine and the Third Affiliated Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from January 1, 2021, to May 1, 2022. The patients were divided into a sepsis group of 38 cases and a septic shock group of 20 cases based on disease type. Basic information, TCM syndromes, SOFA score, and APACHE Ⅱ score of the two groups were collected. The survival and death statuses of the two groups within 28 days of admission were separately analyzed. Association rule analysis was used to investigate the distribution pattern of TCM syndromes in patients, and logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the relationship between TCM syndromes, SOFA score, APACHE Ⅱ score, and death prognosis.Results:In the sepsis group, the main TCM syndromes included yin deficiency, lung, phlegm, qi deficiency, blood stasis, heat, and yang deficiency; while in the septic shock group, the main TCM syndromes were yin deficiency, lung, yang deficiency, and qi deficiency. Multifactor logistic regression analysis showed that in the sepsis group, liver syndromes [ OR (95% CI)=0.080 (0.011, 0.578), P=0.012], meridians and collaterals [ OR (95% CI)=0.088 (0.011, 0.718), P=0.024], SOFA score [ OR (95% CI)=0.524 (0.310, 0.886), P=0.016], and APACHE Ⅱ score [ OR (95% CI)=0.426 (0.186, 0.977), P=0.044] were independent influencing factors for patient mortality prognosis. In the septic shock group, phlegm [ OR (95% CI)=0.014 (0.001, 0.267), P=0.005], meridians and collaterals [ OR (95% CI)=0.041 (0.003, 0.618), P=0.021], yang deficiency [ OR (95% CI)=0.028 (0.002, 0.427), P=0.010], SOFA score [ OR (95% CI)=0.543 (0.310, 0.950), P=0.032], and APACHE Ⅱ score [ OR (95% CI)=0.633 (0.408, 0.985), P=0.042] were independent influencing factors for patient mortality prognosis. Conclusions:The sepsis group mainly exhibits a mixture of deficiency and excess, while the septic shock group predominantly shows deficiency. Qi deficiency and yin deficiency are consistent throughout the disease progression. Meridians and collaterals, high SOFA score, and high APACHE Ⅱ score in elderly patients with sepsis and septic shock may indicate a poorer prognosis.

Objective To systematically evaluate the effect of Xuebijing injection on lactic acid clearance in sepsis,and to provide the theoretical basis for the application of Xuebijing injection in the field of lactic acid clearance in sepsis.Methods Randomized controlled trials(RCT)of the effect of Xuebijing injection on lactic acid clearance in sepsis were retrieved in Chinese and English databases,including China National Knowledge Internet(CNKI),Wanfang Database,VIP Database,Chinese Biomedical Database(CBM),PubMed,Embase,Cochrane Library Database,and Web of Science.These trials were evaluated according to the Cochrane Handbook 5.1.0 standard and analyzed using RevMan 5.4 software for Meta-analysis.Funnel plots were used to assess publication bias in the included studies Results A total of 13 articles with 872 patients were included,including 446 patients in the experimental group(Xuebijing injection and conventional treatment group)and 426 patients in the control group(conventional treatment group).Meta-analysis showed that the blood lactic acid concentrations at 12 hours and 24 hours in the experimental group were lower than those of the control group[mean difference(MD)=-0.88,-0.73;95%confidence interval(95%CI)were-1.26 to-0.50,-0.89 to-0.57;P<0.000 1)].The experimental group exhibited a better 24 hours lactic acid clearance rate(MD=17.20,95%CI was 8.80 to 25.59;P<0.000 1),and a reduced sequential organ failure assessment(SOFA)score(MD=-2.41,95%CIwas-2.79 to-2.03,P<0.00001).Additionally,the experimental group demonstrated lower 28-day mortality rates compared to the control group[odds ratio(OR)=0.51,95%CI was 0.30-0.88,P=0.02];the differences were all statistically significant.Conclusion Xuebijing injection benefits by enhancing the lactic acid clearance capacity of sepsis patients,thereby alleviating the sepsis condition and improve improving the prognosis.

OBJECTIVE To investigate whether electroacupuncture(EA)ameliorates abnormal trigeminal neuralgia(TN)orofacial pain and anxiety-like behavior by altering synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus CA1.METHODS A mouse infraorbital nerve transection model(pT-ION)of neuropathic pain was established,and EA or sham EA was used to treat ipsilateral acu-puncture points(GV20-Baihui and ST7-Xia-guan).Golgi-Cox staining and transmission elec-tron microscopy(TEM)were administrated to observe the changes of synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus CA1.RESULTS Stable and per-sistent orofacial allodynia and anxiety-like behav-iors induced by pT-ION were related to changes in hippocampal synaptic plasticity.Golgi stain-ings showed a decrease in the density of dendritic spines,especially mushroom-type dendritic spines,in hippocampal CA1 neurons of pT-ION mice.TEM results showed that the density of synapses,membrane thickness of the postsynap-tic density,and length of the synaptic active zone were decreased,whereas the width of the synap-tic cleft was increased in pTION mice.EA attenu-ated pT-ION-induced orofacial allodynia and anx-iety-like behaviors and effectively reversed the abnormal changes in dendritic spines and syn-apse of the hippocampal CA1 region.CONCLU-SION EA modulates synaptic plasticity of hippo-campal CA1 neurons,and reduces abnormal oro-facial pain and anxiety-like behavior,providing evidence for a TN treatment strategy.

Objective:The changes of serum inflammatory factors in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with different traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndrome types were compared, and the characteristics and significance of inflammatory factors in COPD were discussed from the perspective of traditional Chinese and western medicine.Methods:A total of 100 patients with COPD who met the inclusion criteria and were admitted to Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from September 2021 to September 2022 were selected and divided into phlegm turbation obstructing lung group ( n=50) and lung and kidney qi deficiency group ( n=50) according to TCM syndrome types. Twenty healthy subjects in the same period were selected as control group. Serum levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), macrophage inflammatory protein-1α (MIP-1α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP) and other inflammatory factors were compared in each group. Results:The MCP-1, IL-6, ESR, CRP, white blood cell count (WBC) and procalcitonin (PCT) of COPD patients in phlegm turbation obstructing lung group were significantly higher than those in lung and kidney qi deficiency group (all P<0.05). The WBC, MCP-1, MIP-1α, IL-6, ESR and CRP of COPD patients in the lung and kidney qi deficiency group were significantly higher than those in the control group (all P<0.05). In the phlegm turbation obstructing lung group, the MIP-1α, MCP-1, IL-6, ESR, CRP, WBC, and PCT were significantly higher than those in the control group (all P<0.05). Conclusions:Patients with COPD have inflammatory reactions, and the inflammatory reactions of patients with phlegm turbation obstructing lung syndrome are more obvious than those with lung and kidney qi deficiency syndrome. The inflammatory factors MCP-1, MIP-1α, IL-6, ESR, CRP, WBC, PCT and other indicators could be used to judge the degree of COPD inflammation, which had certain clinical guiding significance for different syndrome types of COPD patients.

Objective:To analyze the mechanism of Danpi-Chishao in treatment of sepsis based on network pharmacology.Methods:The corresponding targets of Danpi-Chishao and sepsis were carried out through TCMSP database, OMIM database and Genecards database. Cystoscope 3.8.2 software was used to construct the " Chinese medicine-active components-target-disease" network diagram. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis were carried out by DAVID database. Weisheng cloud platform was used to draw bubble map.Results:A total of 36 effective components of Danpi-Chishao was obtained, mainly including quercetin, kaempferol, baicalin, β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, paeoniflorin and so on. There were 96 potential common key targets between Danpi-Chishao and sepsis, such as prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2), transcription factor p65 (RELA), phosphatidylinositol-4, 5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit gamma (PIK3CG), B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2)-associated X (BAX), BCL-2, Caspase-3 (CASP3) with a degree value>4.9. The result of protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis showed that there were 10 important target proteins, including alpha serine/threonine-protein kinase (AKT1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), cellular tumor antigen p53 (TP53), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9), CASP3, PTGS2, C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2). The pathways obtained by GO and KEGG enrichment analysis included atherosclerosis pathway, advanced glycation end products (AGE)-receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) signal pathway, cancer pathway, tumor necrosis factor signal pathway, hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) signal pathway, IL-17 signal pathway and other pathway.Conclusions:The mechanism of the intervention effect of Danpi-Chishao on sepsis may be that the active components such as quercetin, kaempferol, paeoniflorin act on target proteins such as PTGS2, RELA, PIK3CG, BAX, BCL2, CASP3, and through TNF-related signal pathway, HIF-1 signal pathway, IL-17 signal pathway, etc. Nonetheless, the conclusion needs further experimental verification.