1.Bioinformatics analysis of potential biomarkers for primary osteoporosis
Jiacheng ZHAO ; Shiqi REN ; Qin ZHU ; Jiajia LIU ; Xiang ZHU ; Yang YANG
Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research 2025;29(8):1741-1750
BACKGROUND:Primary osteoporosis has a high incidence,but the pathogenesis is not fully understood.Currently,there is a lack of effective early screening indicators and treatment programs. OBJECTIVE:To further explore the mechanism of primary osteoporosis through comprehensive bioinformatics analysis. METHODS:The primary osteoporosis data were obtained from the gene expression omnibus(GEO)database,and the differentially expressed genes were screened for Gene Ontology(GO)function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)pathway enrichment analysis.In addition,the differentially expressed genes were subjected to protein-protein interaction network to determine the core genes related to primary osteoporosis,and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator algorithm was used to identify and verify the primary osteoporosis-related biomarkers.Immune cell correlation analysis,gene enrichment analysis and drug target network analysis were performed.Finally,the biomarkers were validated using qPCR assay. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:A total of 126 differentially expressed genes and 5 biomarkers including prostaglandins,epidermal growth factor receptor,mitogen-activated protein kinase 3,transforming growth factor B1,and retinoblastoma gene 1 were obtained in this study.GO analysis showed that differentially expressed genes were mainly concentrated in the cellular response to oxidative stress and the regulation of autophagy.KEGG analysis showed that autophagy and senescence pathways were mainly involved.Immunoassay of biomarkers showed that prostaglandins,retinoblastoma gene 1,and mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 were closely related to immune cells.Gene enrichment analysis showed that biomarkers were associated with immune-related pathways.Drug target network analysis showed that the five biomarkers were associated with primary osteoporosis drugs.The results of qPCR showed that the expression of prostaglandins,epidermal growth factor receptor,mitogen-activated protein kinase 3,and transforming growth factor B1 in the primary osteoporosis sample was significantly increased compared with the control sample(P<0.001),while the expression of retinoblastoma gene 1 in the primary osteoporosis sample was significantly decreased compared with the control sample(P<0.001).Overall,the study screened and validated five potential biomarkers of primary osteoporosis,providing a reference basis for further in-depth investigation of the pathogenesis,early screening and diagnosis,and targeted treatment of primary osteoporosis.
2.Inhibition of Oxidative Stress by Wuzi Yanzongwan to Ameliorate Idiopathic Oligoasthenospermia: A Review
Jiacheng ZHANG ; Hangqi HU ; Yuxin JIN ; Qiancheng ZHAO ; Qiuning LIU ; Xiyan XIN ; Yang YE ; Dong LI ; Yutian ZHU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2024;30(11):238-244
Idiopathic oligoasthenospermia (IO) has been increasingly emphasized in the diagnosis and treatment of male infertility. Oxidative stress damage directly affects sperm quality and spermatogenesis, constituting a major causative factor of IO. Firstly, due to its high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids, the sperm plasma membrane is highly sensitive to reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to lipid peroxidation accumulation and even inducing ferroptosis. Secondly, deficient downstream key proteins in the base excision repair pathway render sperm unable to repair extensive DNA oxidative damage under oxidative stress. Simultaneously, under oxidative stress, the apoptotic pathway of sperm is cascade-activated, causing rapid loss of motility. ROS further disrupts the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, inhibiting testosterone production and ultimately affecting spermatogenesis. Wuzi Yanzongwan,in line with traditional Chinese medicine theory of treating IO through "nourishing kidney essence and harmonizing Yin and Yang", clinically demonstrates its ability to improve sperm morphology, count, and motility, thereby enhancing male fertility. The research on the pharmacological constituents of Wuzi Yanzongwan primarily involves establishing a characteristic spectrum of Chinese medicine to achieve quality control and exploring the pharmacology of effective components. Studies have found that its main active ingredients consist of flavonoids and phenylpropanoids. Specifically, compounds such as hyperin, acteoside, kaempferol, and schisandrin A are identified as the primary active substances and quality control components. These compounds exhibit strong antioxidant activity and have been partly applied in research related to reproductive endocrine disorders. Tripterygium glycoside is primarily used for modeling of oxidative stress-induced IO. It leads to the accumulation of various lipid peroxides in testicular tissues and concurrently compromises the body's antioxidant capacity. Mechanistic studies have found that Wuzi Yanzongwan can inhibit elevated ROS levels in IO models and enhance the body's antioxidant capacity, thereby ameliorating inflammation, suppressing cell apoptosis, promoting testosterone production, and ultimately alleviating the decline in sperm quality and spermatogenesis caused by oxidative stress.
3.Locking compression plating for treatment of periprosthetic distal femur fractures in the aged
Yake LIU ; Zhenyu ZHOU ; Ran TAO ; Yi CAO ; Jianwei ZHU ; Youhua WANG ; Yue LU ; Hua XU ; Jiacheng XU ; Hongdong MA ; Jining SHEN ; Fengxiang ZHAO ; Kefan WU ; Fan LIU
Chinese Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma 2024;26(9):790-796
Objective:To explore the clinical outcomes of locking compression plating (LCP) in the treatment of periprosthetic fracture (PPF) of the distal femur in the aged patients.Methods:A retrospective study was performed to analyze the 31 aged patients who had been treated at Department of Orthopedic Surgery, The Affiliated Hospital to Nantong University for PPF of the distal femur with LCP between June 2012 and May 2023. There were 27 females and 4 males with an age of (80.2±6.1) years. According to the Unified Classification System (UCS), 18 PPFs were classified as type Ⅴ.3B1 and 6 PPFs as type Ⅴ.3B2 after total knee arthroplasty and 7 PPFs as type Ⅳ.3C after total hip arthroplasty. The patients were fixated with a lateral single plate in 25 cases, and with lateral and medial dual plates in 6 cases. The surgical time, intraoperative blood loss, hospitalization time, postoperative weight-bearing time, fracture healing time, and knee joint function and complications during follow-up were recorded.Results:For the 25 patients undergoing fixation with a lateral single plate, the surgical time was (58.7±7.9) minutes, the intraoperative blood loss (78.0±15.1) mL, the hospitalization time (6.9±1.6) days, the postoperative weight-bearing time (5.9±1.4) days, and the follow-up time 37 (15, 51) months. For the 6 patients undergoing fixation with lateral and medial dual plates, the surgical time was (186.6±9.8) minutes, the intraoperative blood loss (1,256.7±231.2) mL, the hospitalization time (17.8±3.3) days, the postoperative weight-bearing time (3.6±0.6) days, and the follow-up time 17 (16, 21) months. The fracture healing time was (14.9±2.0) and (18.7±2.6) weeks, respectively, for patients fixed with single and double steel plates. By the scoring criteria of the American Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), the knee joint function was evaluated at the last follow-up as excellent in 10 cases and as good in 15 cases for the 25 patients undergoing fixation with a lateral single plate, and as good for all the 6 patients undergoing fixation with lateral and medial dual plates. No patient experienced such complications as incision infection, bone nonunion, or internal fixation failure during the follow-up period.Conclusions:LCP fixation can achieve satisfactory outcomes in the treatment of PPF of the distal femur in the aged patients. As fixation with a single lateral femoral plate is suitable for most of the aged patients with PPF of the distal femur, it can be used as the first choice. Fixation with dual plates can provide stronger stability, but its indications should be strictly controlled.
4.Analysis of clinical prognosis and influencing factors of pathological complete response in patients with locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy
Puchun ER ; Fangdong ZHAO ; Jiacheng LI ; Xi CHEN ; Jie DONG ; Tian ZHANG ; Wencheng ZHANG ; Ping WANG ; Qingsong PANG
Chinese Journal of Radiation Oncology 2024;33(5):413-418
Objective:To investigate the influencing factors of pathologic complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) in patients with locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), and to compare the clinical prognosis of ESCC patients with and without pCR after NCRT (40 Gy/ 20F).Methods:Among patients enrolled in a prospective clinical study, 87 ESCC patients treated with NCRT followed by surgery in Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute & Hospital between June 2015 and October 2019 were selected. They were divided into the pCR ( n=35) and non-pCR groups ( n=52). Clinicopathological characteristics were retrospectively analyzed and subsequent follow-up was performed. Clinical prognosis and influencing factors were compared between two groups by using Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses. Results:After NCRT, 40% of the ESCC patients could achieve pCR. Univariate analysis showed that patients in the pCR group had a disease-free survival (DFS) of 39.3 months and an overall survival (OS) of 64.0 months. In comparison, patients in the non-pCR group had a DFS of only 14.1 months and an OS of only 25.2 months. The differences were statistically significant (DFS: P<0.01, OS: P<0.05). Multivariate analysis revealed that whether pCR or not after NCRT, age, number of primary lesions, evaluation results after NCRT and postoperative pathological outcomes were important prognostic factors. The differences were statistically significant between two groups (all P<0.05). Conclusion:pCR after NCRT is significantly correlated with long-time survival of patients with ESCC, and pCR after NCRT has an important value in predicting clinical prognosis for long-term survival of ESCC patients.
5.Establishment of C57/B6-L and A549 cell lines stably expressing circLAMP3
Fuzai CHEN ; Conghui ZHAO ; Xiaoxuan ZHANG ; Chunping ZHANG ; Jiacheng HUANG ; Jilong CHEN ; Shujie MA
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2024;44(9):2010-2016
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.
6.Ursolic acid targets secreted phosphoprotein 1 to regulate Th17 cells against metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease
Yiyuan ZHENG ; Lina ZHAO ; Zhekun XIONG ; Chaoyuan HUANG ; Qiuhong YONG ; Dan FANG ; Yugang FU ; Simin GU ; Chong CHEN ; Jiacheng LI ; Yingying ZHU ; Jing LIU ; Fengbin LIU ; Yong LI
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology 2024;30(3):449-467
Background/Aims:
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has become an increasingly important health challenge, with a substantial rise linked to changing lifestyles and global obesity. Ursolic acid, a natural pentacyclic triterpenoid, has been explored for its potential therapeutic effects. Given its multifunctional bioactive properties, this research further revealed the pharmacological mechanisms of ursolic acid on MASLD.
Methods:
Drug target chips and bioinformatics analysis were combined in this study to explore the potential therapeutic effects of ursolic acid on MASLD. Molecular docking simulations, surface plasmon resonance analyses, pull-down experiments, and co-immunoprecipitation assays were used to verify the direct interactions. Gene knockdown mice were generated, and high-fat diets were used to validate drug efficacy. Furthermore, initial CD4+ T cells were isolated and stimulated to demonstrate our findings.
Results:
In this study, the multifunctional extracellular matrix phosphorylated glycoprotein secreted phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1) was investigated, highlighting its capability to induce Th17 cell differentiation, amplifying inflammatory cascades, and subsequently promoting the evolution of MASLD. In addition, this study revealed that in addition to the canonical TGF-β/IL-6 cytokine pathway, SPP1 can directly interact with ITGB1 and CD44, orchestrating Th17 cell differentiation via their joint downstream ERK signaling pathway. Remarkably, ursolic acid intervention notably suppressed the protein activity of SPP1, suggesting a promising avenue for ameliorating the immunoinflammatory trajectory in MASLD progression.
Conclusions
Ursolic acid could improve immune inflammation in MASLD by modulating SPP1-mediated Th17 cell differentiation via the ERK signaling pathway, which is orchestrated jointly by ITGB1 and CD44, emerging as a linchpin in this molecular cascade.
7.HotSpots and countermeasures analysis of clinical trial subject recruitment
Bingwei WANG ; Liang MA ; Ruoyan HAN ; Jiacheng GUO ; Ming SONG ; Ying ZHAO ; Keke CUI ; Yan ZHENG ; Wenjie MA ; Yanyan LIU
Chinese Journal of Medical Science Research Management 2023;36(5):351-355
Objective:This study is to understand the hot spots and trends in the recruitment of clinical trial subjects in China over the past 20 years, explore the existing problems and countermeasures, and provide scientific ideas for domestic clinical trial institutions to effectively solve the problem of subject recruitment.Methods:Bibliometric analysis was used to study the relevant literature from three major domestic databases from 2001 to 2021, analyzing key indicators such as annual publication volume, journal distribution, institutional distribution, regional distribution, and high-frequency keyword co-occurrence.Results:A total of 162 articles were selected. The results showed that the overall publication volume in this field showed an upward trend, and the research institutions were diversified, with a concentration of medical and pharmaceutical institutions and universities. The current research hotspots in this field focused on quality and efficiency improvement of subject recruitment, with themes of subject protection, ethical review, regulation development, standardized management, etc.Conclusions:The research in this field has made significant progress, but the overall research level is still relatively weak. Therefore, it is suggested that the country should play a role in macro-regulation, on the one hand, starting with top-level design, promoting the construction of a standardized management system for subject recruitment, continuously strengthening subject protection, and enhancing the effectiveness of scientific recruitment. On the other hand, releasing the potential of grassroots institutions and giving full play to the volume advantage by promoting the sinking of advantageous resources. Meanwhile, great importance should be attached to the development of Phase I clinical trials, giving full play to the strong internal energy of traditional medicine and promoting the development of Chinese traditional medicine. These multi-measures should provide a theoretical basis for exploring the transformation of ′clinical research hospitals′, and promote the high-quality development of new drug research and development in China.
8.The early effects of revision hip arthroplasty for reconstruction of Paprosky type III acetabular defect using Cup-in-Cup technology
Jiacheng ZANG ; Xiuxiang ZHAO ; Xinlong MA ; Yinguang ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Orthopaedics 2022;42(9):579-586
Objective:To investigate the early effects of cup in cup technique in reconstructing paprosky III acetabular bone defect in revision hip arthroplasty.Methods:From January 2017 to December 2019, a total of 20 cases (20 hips) with paprosky III acetabular bone defect were reconstructed by Cup-in-Cup technique, including 9 males and 11 females. The age ranged from 45 to 76 years, with an average of 64.6 years. The causes of revision were aseptic loosening of prosthesis in 17 cases and loosening of prosthesis caused by periprosthetic infection in 3 cases. There were 13 hips with acetabular bone defect of paprosky IIIA and 7 hips with paprosky IIIB. The acetabular side was repaired in 13 cases, and the acetabulum and femoral side were repaired in 7 cases at the same time. Harris hip score was used to evaluate hip function during postoperative follow-up. The occurrence of serious complications such as intraoperative vascular and nerve injury, postoperative prosthesis dislocation, periprosthetic infection and fracture were counted. The height and horizontal position of hip rotation center were measured by X-ray film.Results:The operation duration was 110±25 min (range 80-180 min) and intraoperative bleeding was 700±180 ml. All cases were followed up for 12-36 months, with an average of 18 months. At the last follow-up, the Harris hip score of 16 cases was more than 80, with excellen in 2 cases, good in 14 cases and fair in 4 cases. The Harris score was 84.3±7.5, which was significantly higher than that before operation 40.1±16.6 ( t=15.34, P<0.001). The height of hip joint rotation center on the affected side decreased from 34.2± 3.3 mm before operation to 18.6±2.8 mm after operation with significant difference ( t=15.11, P<0.001). The horizontal distance increased from 18.1±5.5 mm before operation to 26.2±7.3 mm after operation with significant difference ( t=-5.95, P<0.001). After operation, the height of hip joint rotation center on the affected side was slightly higher than that on the opposite side, with a significant difference between the affected side 18.6±2.8 mm and the opposite side 12.2±3.3 mm ( t=6.73, P=0.018). The horizontal position was 26.2±7.3 mm, which had no significant difference compared with the contralateral 30.1±5.5 mm ( t=-3.29, P=0.381). There was no vascular and nerve injury, periprosthetic infection or incision related complications. During the following-up, the prosthesis was in satisfied position without prosthesis or screw loosening and fracture. Conclusion:The reconstruction of paprosky III acetabular bone defect with Cup-in-Cup technique in revision hip arthroplasty can obtain satisfied early effects, with achieving relatively normal hip rotation center and initial stability.
9.Targeting a cryptic allosteric site of SIRT6 with small-molecule inhibitors that inhibit the migration of pancreatic cancer cells.
Qiufen ZHANG ; Yingyi CHEN ; Duan NI ; Zhimin HUANG ; Jiacheng WEI ; Li FENG ; Jun-Cheng SU ; Yingqing WEI ; Shaobo NING ; Xiuyan YANG ; Mingzhu ZHAO ; Yuran QIU ; Kun SONG ; Zhengtian YU ; Jianrong XU ; Xinyi LI ; Houwen LIN ; Shaoyong LU ; Jian ZHANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2022;12(2):876-889
SIRT6 belongs to the conserved NAD+-dependent deacetylase superfamily and mediates multiple biological and pathological processes. Targeting SIRT6 by allosteric modulators represents a novel direction for therapeutics, which can overcome the selectivity problem caused by the structural similarity of orthosteric sites among deacetylases. Here, developing a reversed allosteric strategy AlloReverse, we identified a cryptic allosteric site, Pocket Z, which was only induced by the bi-directional allosteric signal triggered upon orthosteric binding of NAD+. Based on Pocket Z, we discovered an SIRT6 allosteric inhibitor named JYQ-42. JYQ-42 selectively targets SIRT6 among other histone deacetylases and effectively inhibits SIRT6 deacetylation, with an IC50 of 2.33 μmol/L. JYQ-42 significantly suppresses SIRT6-mediated cancer cell migration and pro-inflammatory cytokine production. JYQ-42, to our knowledge, is the most potent and selective allosteric SIRT6 inhibitor. This study provides a novel strategy for allosteric drug design and will help in the challenging development of therapeutic agents that can selectively bind SIRT6.
10.Perioperative localization of ectopic functioning parathyroid gland in patients with hyperparathyroidism
Teng ZHAO ; Bojun WEI ; Xing LIU ; Hong SHEN ; Jiacheng WANG ; Qian WANG ; Yunhui XIN
Chinese Journal of General Surgery 2021;36(6):446-450
Objective:To investigate the value and influence factors of preoperative and intraoperative localization of ectopic hyperparathyroidism (EHPT).Methods:Results of 99mTc-sestamibi ( 99mTc-MIBI), neck ultrasound, contrast CT and intraoperative local venous parathyroid hormone (IOLVPTH) were retrospectively analyzed in 205 patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) suspected of EHPT. Results:Incidence of EHPT was 16.6% (34 cases), and 36 ectopic lesions were detected. The proportion of EHPT in antero-superior mediastinum, intrathyroidal, in the retropharyngeal region, in carotid sheath, in the prevertebral region and intrapericardial were 44.1% (15 cases), 29.4% (10 cases), 11.8% (4 cases), 5.9% (2 cases), 5.9% (2 cases) and 2.9% (1 cases), respectively. Contrast CT was the most sensitive (86.1%, 31 lesions/36 lesions) for EHPT, followed by 99mTc-MIBI (66.7%, 24 lesions/36 lesions), IOLVPTH monitoring (61.8%, 21 lesions/34 lesions) and neck ultrasound (55.6%, 20 lesions/36 lesions). Contrast CT was most sensitive,100% in detecting deep-located EHPT lesions, whereas IOLVPTH had advantages in detecting intrathyroidal EHPT lesions, with a sensitivity of 100.0%.The combined use of 99mTc-MIBI and neck ultrasound showed a sensitivity of 77.8% in the localization of EHPT. Conclusions:Contrast CT is highly sensitive in the localization of EHPT. The combined use of preoperative imaging and IOLVPTH monitoring helps to higher localization for EHPT.

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