Objective To observe the effect of berberine on the proliferation and activation of hepatic stellate cells induced by transforming growth factor β1(TGF-β1)via regulating Hedgehog signaling pathway.Methods HSC-T6 cells were cultured and divided into blank group,TGF-β1 group,berberine low-,medium-and high-dose groups,berberine high-dose+purmorphamine(Hedgehog signaling pathway activator)group.After treatment,the proliferation of HSC-T6 cells was detected by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium(MTT)assay.The apoptosis of HSC-T6 cells was detected by flow cytometry.The expressions of collagen I and α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA)were detected by immunofluorescence staining.The mRNA expression levels of proliferating cell nuclear antigen(PCNA),Bcl-2 and Bcl-2 associated X protein(Bax)were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR).The protein expression levels of Hedgehog signaling pathway related factors Smo,Gli-1,Shh and Ptch were detected by Western Blot.Results Compared with the blank group,the proliferation rate of HSC-T6 cells,the positive protein expressions of Collagen Ⅰ and α-SMA,the mRNA expression levels of PCNA and Bcl-2,and the protein expression levels of Smo,Gli-1,Shh and Ptch in the TGF-β1 group were significantly increased,while the apoptosis rate and the mRNA expression level of Bax were significantly decreased(all P＜0.05).Compared with TGF-β1 group,the proliferation rate of HSC-T6 cells,the expression of Collagen I and α-SMA positive protein,the mRNA expression levels of PCNA and Bcl-2,and the protein expression levels of Smo,Gli-1,Shh and Ptch in berberine low-,medium-and high-dose groups were significantly decreased,while the apoptosis rate and the mRNA expression level of Bax were significantly increased(P＜0.05)in a dose-dependent manner.Compared with the high-dose berberine group,the proliferation rate of HSC-T6 cells,the positive proteins expression of Collagen Ⅰ and α-SMA,the mRNA expression levels of PCNA and Bcl-2,and the protein expression levels of Smo,Gli-1,Shh and Ptch in the high-dose berberine+purmorphamine group were significantly increased,while the apoptosis rate and the mRNA expression level of Bax were significantly decreased(all P＜0.05).Conclusion Berberine promotes TGF-β1-induced apoptosis of hepatic stellate cells and inhibits their proliferation and activation by regulating Hedgehog signaling pathway.

Helicobacter pylori(HP),a well-established carcinogenic factor,is implicated in the pathogenesis of gastric ulcer,gastric cancer,and other related diseases.Recent studies have unveiled a significant association between HP infection and an increased prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD).Furthermore,it has been observed that eradication of HP can ameliorate metabolic disorders and relieve NAFLD.Some studies have explored the possible mechanism,which may be related to energy metabolism disorder and gut microbiota imbalance caused by HP.This review outlined the current research status regarding the association between HP and NAFLD,as well as elucidated the potential mechanisms through which HP promoted the onset and progression of NAFLD.

The U6 promoter is an important element driving sgRNA transcription in the CRISPR/Cas9 system. Seven PqU6 promo-ter sequences were cloned from the gDNA of Panax quinquefolium, and the transcriptional activation ability of the seven promoters was studied. In this study, seven PqU6 promoter sequences with a length of about 1 300 bp were cloned from the adventitious roots of P. quinquefolium cultivated for 5 weeks. Bioinformatics tools were used to analyze the sequence characteristics of PqU6 promoters, and the fusion expression vectors of GUS gene driven by PqU6-P were constructed. Tobacco leaves were transformed by Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated method for activity detection. The seven PqU6 promoters were truncated from the 5'-end to reach 283, 287, 279, 289, 295, 289, and 283 bp, respectively. The vectors for detection of promoter activity were constructed with GUS as a reported gene and used to transform P. quinquefolium callus and tobacco leaves. The results showed that seven PqU6 promoter sequences(PqU6-1P to PqU6-7P) were cloned from the gDNA of P. quinquefolium, with the length ranged from 1 246 bp to 1 308 bp. Sequence comparison results showed that the seven PqU6 promoter sequences and the AtU6-P promoter all had USE and TATA boxes, which are essential elements affecting the transcriptional activity of the U6 promoter. The results of GUS staining and enzyme activity test showed that all the seven PqU6 promoters had transcriptional activity. The PqU6-7P with a length of 1 269 bp had the highest transcriptional activity, 1.31 times that of the positive control P-35S. When the seven PqU6 promoters were truncated from the 5'-end(PqU6-1PA to PqU6-7PA), their transcriptional activities were different in tobacco leaves and P. quinquefolium callus. The transcriptional activity of PqU6-7PA promoter(283 bp) was 1.59 times that of AtU6-P promoter(292 bp) when the recipient material was P. quinquefolium callus. The findings provide more ideal endogenous U6 promoters for CRISPR/Cas9 technology in ginseng and other medicinal plants.
Panax/genetics* ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; Agrobacterium tumefaciens/genetics* ; Computational Biology ; Cloning, Molecular

Objective: To explore the risk intensity and related influencing factors of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among high-stress rescue workers, and to provide effective tools for the risk assessment of PTSD in military rescue workers. Method: From June to August 2022, cluster sampling was used to select the high-stress rescue personnel of an Army department as the survey subjects. The acute Stress reaction (ASD) scale and PTSD checklist were used to evaluate the risk of PTSD in military rescue personnel. Multivariate logistic regression were used to analyze the influencing factors of PTSD. Results: The age of 4 460 subjects was (24.38±4.072) years old, including 4 396 males (98.6%). The positive rate of initial screening for ASD was 2.85% (127/4 460). The positive rate of PTSD was 0.67% (30/4 460). Multivariate logistic regression model analysis showed that female, older age, recent trauma exposure history, passive smoking and alcohol consumption were at higher risk of ASD, the values of OR (95%CI) were 4.183 (1.819-9.618), 6.278 (1.363-28.912), 3.094 (1.500-6.379), 2.059 (1.298-3.267) and 2.607 (1.614-4.211), respectively; Lower education level was associated with lower risk of ASD, OR (95%CI) was 0.593 (0.359-0.978); People who are older, thinner, have a history of mental illness, and drink alcohol were at higher risk for PTSD, the values of OR (95%CI) were 20.144 (2.459-165.043), 10.287 (2.218-47.700), 91.104 (8.592-965.980) and 2.866 (1.144-7.180), respectively. Conclusion: Gender, age, education level, passive smoking, alcohol consumption, past history of mental illness and body mass index may be related to the potential risk of PTSD in rescue workers,passive smoking, alcohol consumption, and weight controlling should be focused on to reduce potential risks of PTSD.
Male ; Humans ; Female ; Young Adult ; Adult ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/prevention & control* ; Tobacco Smoke Pollution ; Risk Assessment ; Military Personnel ; Alcohol Drinking

OBJECTIVE: To observe clinical efficacy of percutaneous endoscopic transforaminal discectomy (PETD) and target radioffrequency thermal coblation nucleoplasty(CN) on inclusive lumbar disc herniation(LDH) in different age groups, and provide a basis for clinical formulation of precise and individualized treatments. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of 219 patients with lumbar disc herniation treated with PETD and CN between January 2018 and June 2021 was performed, in which 107 patients were treated with PETD and 112 with CN. Patients were stratified by age into young group(≤45 years old), middle-aged group(>45 years old and <60 years old) and older group(≥60 years old). Before treatment, 3 days, 1 month and 6 months after treatment, visual analogue scale (VAS), Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score, infrared thermal imaging temperature difference (△T) and lumbar range of motion (ROM) were evaluated and clinical efficacy were compared in the different age groups between two treatment methods. RESULTS: ①VAS and JOA score outcomes, in the same age group and the same treatment method, the VAS and JOA scores at different time points postoperatively were obviously improved (P<0.05). For the same age group and the different treatment methods, the older group had lower VAS and higher JOA scores after PETD than after CN (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference between the young group and middle-aged group (P>0.05). There was no significant difference in VAS and JOA scores at the same time between age groups by PETD treatment (P>0.05). The VAS was higher and the JOA score was lower in older group than in young group and middle-aged group at 1, 6 months after CN treatment(P<0.05). ②△T and ROM outcomes, in the same age group and same treatment method, postoperative △T and ROM at different time points were obviously improved(P<0.05). There was no significant difference in △T between two methods of PETD and CN at the same age(P>0.05), there was no significant difference in ROM between young group and middle-aged group(P>0.05), ROM was higher after PETD treatment than after CN treatment(P<0.05). There was no significant difference in △T and ROM at the same time between age groups by PETD treatment(P>0.05). There was no significant difference in △T between age groups by CN treatment, but the ROM was smaller in older group than in young group and middle-aged group after CN treatment(P<0.05). CONCLUSION Both PETD and CN for inclusive LDH have good efficacy, the curative benefit for older patients receiving PETD within 6 months after surgery more than CN, and CN is more appropriate for young and middle-aged patients.
Middle Aged ; Humans ; Aged ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement/surgery* ; Retrospective Studies ; Lumbar Vertebrae/surgery* ; Diskectomy, Percutaneous/methods* ; Treatment Outcome ; Endoscopy/methods* ; Diskectomy/methods*

Objective: To explore the characteristics of Banna miniature pig liver failure induced by amanita exitialis. Methods: From September to October 2020, a reverse high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method was used to determine the toxin content of amanita exitialis solution, and 2.0 mg/kg amanita exitialis solution (α-amanitins+β-amanitins) was administered orally to Banna miniature pigs. Toxic symptoms, blood biochemical indexes and histopathological changes of liver, heart and kidney were observed at each time point. Results: All Banna miniature pigs died within 76 h of exposure, and different degrees of digestive tract symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea appeared between 6 and 36 h. The biochemical indexes of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase, myoglobin, creatine kinase isoenzyme, blood urea nitrogen and creatinine increased significantly at 52 h after exposure, and the differences were statistically significant compared with 0 h (P<0.05). The bleeding of liver and heart was obvious under macroscopic and microscopic observation, hepatocyte necrosis, renal tubule epithelial cell swelling. Conclusion: Large dose of amanita exitialis can cause acute liver failure of Banna miniature pigs, which is in line with the pathophysiological characteristics of acute liver failure, and lays a foundation for further research on the toxic mechanism and detoxification drugs of amanita exitialis induced liver failure.
Animals ; Swine ; Amanitins/metabolism* ; Swine, Miniature/metabolism* ; Amanita/metabolism* ; Liver Failure, Acute ; Mushroom Poisoning/diagnosis*

Platelets are reprogrammed by cancer via a process called education, which favors cancer development. The transcriptional profile of tumor-educated platelets (TEPs) is skewed and therefore practicable for cancer detection. This intercontinental, hospital-based, diagnostic study included 761 treatment-naïve inpatients with histologically confirmed adnexal masses and 167 healthy controls from nine medical centers (China, n = 3; Netherlands, n = 5; Poland, n = 1) between September 2016 and May 2019. The main outcomes were the performance of TEPs and their combination with CA125 in two Chinese (VC1 and VC2) and the European (VC3) validation cohorts collectively and independently. Exploratory outcome was the value of TEPs in public pan-cancer platelet transcriptome datasets. The AUCs for TEPs in the combined validation cohort, VC1, VC2, and VC3 were 0.918 (95% CI 0.889-0.948), 0.923 (0.855-0.990), 0.918 (0.872-0.963), and 0.887 (0.813-0.960), respectively. Combination of TEPs and CA125 demonstrated an AUC of 0.922 (0.889-0.955) in the combined validation cohort; 0.955 (0.912-0.997) in VC1; 0.939 (0.901-0.977) in VC2; 0.917 (0.824-1.000) in VC3. For subgroup analysis, TEPs exhibited an AUC of 0.858, 0.859, and 0.920 to detect early-stage, borderline, non-epithelial diseases and 0.899 to discriminate ovarian cancer from endometriosis. TEPs had robustness, compatibility, and universality for preoperative diagnosis of ovarian cancer since it withstood validations in populations of different ethnicities, heterogeneous histological subtypes, and early-stage ovarian cancer. However, these observations warrant prospective validations in a larger population before clinical utilities.
Humans ; Female ; Blood Platelets/pathology* ; Biomarkers, Tumor/genetics* ; Ovarian Neoplasms/pathology* ; China

Objective: To determine the feasibility of using temporary permanent pacemaker (TPPM) in patients with high-degree atrioventricular block (AVB) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) as bridging strategy to reduce avoidable permanent pacemaker implantation. Methods: This is a prospective observational study. Consecutive patients undergoing TAVR at Beijing Anzhen Hospital and the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from August 2021 to February 2022 were screened. Patients with high-degree AVB and TPPM were included. Patients were followed up for 4 weeks with pacemaker interrogation at every week. The endpoint was the success rate of TPPM removal and free from permanent pacemaker at 1 month after TPPM. The criteria of removing TPPM was no indication of permanent pacing and no pacing signal in 12 lead electrocardiogram (EGG) and 24 hours dynamic EGG, meanwhile the last pacemaker interrogation indicated that ventricular pacing rate was 0. Routinely follow-up ECG was extended to 6 months after removal of TPPM. Results: Ten patients met the inclusion criteria for TPPM, aged (77.0±11.1) years, wirh 7 females. There were 7 patients with third-degree AVB, 1 patient with second-degree AVB, 2 patients with first degree AVB with PR interval>240 ms and LBBB with QRS duration>150 ms. TPPM were applied on the 10 patients for (35±7) days. Among 8 patients with high-degree AVB, 3 recovered to sinus rhythm, and 3 recovered to sinus rhythm with bundle branch block. The other 2 patients with persistent third-degree AVB received permanent pacemaker implantation. For the 2 patients with first-degree AVB and LBBB, PR interval shortened to within 200 ms. TPPM was successfully removed in 8 patients (8/10) at 1 month without permanent pacemaker implantation, of which 2 patients recovered within 24 hours after TAVR and 6 patients recovered 24 hours later after TAVR. No aggravation of conduction block or permanent pacemaker indication were observed in 8 patients during follow-up at 6 months. No procedure-related adverse events occurred in all patients. Conclusion: TPPM is reliable and safe to provide certain buffer time to distinguish whether a permanent pacemaker is necessary in patients with high-degree conduction block after TAVR.
Female ; Humans ; Atrioventricular Block/therapy* ; Feasibility Studies ; Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement ; Pacemaker, Artificial ; Bundle-Branch Block

Objective: To explore the safety and efficacy of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using the "All in One" single-artery/vessel technique. Methods: This is a retrospective study. A total of 30 consecutive patients underwent TAVR using the single artery/vascular technique in Beijing Anzhen Hospital from August to December 2021 were included. Baseline clinical data, operative situation, postoperative outcomes, and incidence of adverse events during hospitalization and at one month post TAVR were analyzed. Results: Mean age was (72.6±9.7) years, 16 were male patients, STS score was (4.73±3.12)%. Four patients were diagnosed as isolated aortic regurgitation (all with tricuspid aortic valves), and 26 patients were diagnosed as aortic stenosis (AS), 10 of whom with tricuspid aortic valves and 16 of whom with bicuspid aortic valves. The single-vessel technique was applied in 3 aortic stenosis cases; the single-artery technique was applied in 27 cases. Echocardiography was performed immediately after procedure and results showed no or trace perivalvular leak in 27 cases and small perivalvular leak in 3 cases; the mean aortic transvalvular gradient of 26 AS patients decreased from (50.4±16.0) mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) to (9.4±3.2) mmHg (P<0.001). The procedure time was (64.8±18.9) min. There were no intraoperative death, valve displacement, conversion to surgery, coronary artery occlusion in all 30 patients. There were no major cardiac adverse events such as myocardial infarction or stroke occurred during hospitalization or at follow-up. One-month follow-up echocardiography indicated prosthesis works well. The symptoms were significantly alleviated, and the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Score (KCCQ score) of all patients increased from 48.1±18.4 to 73.5±17.6 (P<0.001). Conclusions: TAVR using the single artery/vessel technique is safe and feasible. This technique is related to reduced access complications and worthy of wide application.
Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement ; Retrospective Studies ; Arteries ; Aorta ; Aortic Valve Stenosis/surgery*

Objective: To explore the safety and efficacy of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using the "All in One" single-artery/vessel technique. Methods: This is a retrospective study. A total of 30 consecutive patients underwent TAVR using the single artery/vascular technique in Beijing Anzhen Hospital from August to December 2021 were included. Baseline clinical data, operative situation, postoperative outcomes, and incidence of adverse events during hospitalization and at one month post TAVR were analyzed. Results: Mean age was (72.6±9.7) years, 16 were male patients, STS score was (4.73±3.12)%. Four patients were diagnosed as isolated aortic regurgitation (all with tricuspid aortic valves), and 26 patients were diagnosed as aortic stenosis (AS), 10 of whom with tricuspid aortic valves and 16 of whom with bicuspid aortic valves. The single-vessel technique was applied in 3 aortic stenosis cases; the single-artery technique was applied in 27 cases. Echocardiography was performed immediately after procedure and results showed no or trace perivalvular leak in 27 cases and small perivalvular leak in 3 cases; the mean aortic transvalvular gradient of 26 AS patients decreased from (50.4±16.0) mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) to (9.4±3.2) mmHg (P<0.001). The procedure time was (64.8±18.9) min. There were no intraoperative death, valve displacement, conversion to surgery, coronary artery occlusion in all 30 patients. There were no major cardiac adverse events such as myocardial infarction or stroke occurred during hospitalization or at follow-up. One-month follow-up echocardiography indicated prosthesis works well. The symptoms were significantly alleviated, and the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Score (KCCQ score) of all patients increased from 48.1±18.4 to 73.5±17.6 (P<0.001). Conclusions: TAVR using the single artery/vessel technique is safe and feasible. This technique is related to reduced access complications and worthy of wide application.
Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement ; Retrospective Studies ; Arteries ; Aorta ; Aortic Valve Stenosis/surgery*