Seeds are the source for the production of Chinese medicinal materials. The seed authenticity and quality of directly affect the effectiveness and safety of Chinese medicinal materials. The seed quality is faced with the problems such as mixed sources， existence of adulterants and seeds stocked for years， low maturity， and low purity. To ensure the high-quality and sustainable development of the Chinese medicinal material industry， it is urgent to standardize the seed market and identify and evaluate the quality of the seeds circulating in the market. Seed identification methods include visual inspection， microscopic observation， micro-character identification， chemical fingerprinting， molecular identification， electronic nose， X-ray diffraction， electrochemical fingerprinting， spectral imaging， and artificial intelligence. These methods have different application scopes and unique advantages and disadvantages. According to the different species of Chinese herbal medicines and different requirements of testing sites， suitable methods can be selected to achieve rapid and accurate identification with low costs. In the future， the seed identification methods should be developed based on emerging technologies with interdisciplinary knowledge， and intelligent， nondestructive， and single-grain detection methods are needed for the modern Chinese medicinal material industry. This paper introduces the seed identification technologies currently applied in research and production， compares the principles， applicability， advantages， and disadvantages of different technologies， and provides an outlook on the future development of seed identification technologies， aiming to provide a reference for the identification and quality evaluation of seeds of Chinese medicinal material.

Objective To investigate the expression of the ubiquitination enzyme UBE2S in different cell types in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)microenvironment and its impact on proliferation and stemness of HCC cells.Methods TCGA and CPTAC database were used to analyze the transcriptional and promoter methylation levels and protein expressions of UBE2S in HCC.Specific expression patterns of UBE2S,intercellular communication and key transcription factors in different cell types were analyzed based on single-cell sequencing data from TISCH website.We further examined UBE2S expressions in clinical samples of HCC tissues,HCC cells and T cells using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining.We also tested the effects of UBE2S knockdown on stemness of HCC-LM3 and HepG2 cells using clone formation experiments and sphere formation assay.Results Analysis based on TCGA database suggested significant overexpression of UBE2S in both paired and non-paired tumor tissues(P<0.001),and its transcriptional level increased with tumor grades.The methylation level of UBE2S promoter was significantly decreased in HCC(P<0.001),and its transcription level increased obviously in HCC with TP53 mutation(P<0.001).Analysis of CPTAC database also demonstrated overexpression of UBE2S protein in HCC tissues(P<0.001).Three prognostic models suggested that HCC patients with high UBE2S expression had poorer prognosis(P<0.001).Single-cell sequencing data analysis revealed high expressions of UBE2S in T cells and high intensities of interaction between endothelial cells,epithelial cells and fibroblasts in HCC microenvironment.Immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining demonstrated high UBE2S expressions in clinical samples of HCC tissues,HCC cells and T cells.In HCC-LM3 and HepG2 cells,UBE2S knockdown significantly inhibited cell clone formation and tumor sphere formation(P<0.05).Conclusion UBE2S is highly expressed in T cells in HCC microenvironment in close correlation with a poor prognosis.High UBE2S expression promotes the stemness of HCC cells.

Objective To investigate the expression of the ubiquitination enzyme UBE2S in different cell types in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)microenvironment and its impact on proliferation and stemness of HCC cells.Methods TCGA and CPTAC database were used to analyze the transcriptional and promoter methylation levels and protein expressions of UBE2S in HCC.Specific expression patterns of UBE2S,intercellular communication and key transcription factors in different cell types were analyzed based on single-cell sequencing data from TISCH website.We further examined UBE2S expressions in clinical samples of HCC tissues,HCC cells and T cells using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining.We also tested the effects of UBE2S knockdown on stemness of HCC-LM3 and HepG2 cells using clone formation experiments and sphere formation assay.Results Analysis based on TCGA database suggested significant overexpression of UBE2S in both paired and non-paired tumor tissues(P<0.001),and its transcriptional level increased with tumor grades.The methylation level of UBE2S promoter was significantly decreased in HCC(P<0.001),and its transcription level increased obviously in HCC with TP53 mutation(P<0.001).Analysis of CPTAC database also demonstrated overexpression of UBE2S protein in HCC tissues(P<0.001).Three prognostic models suggested that HCC patients with high UBE2S expression had poorer prognosis(P<0.001).Single-cell sequencing data analysis revealed high expressions of UBE2S in T cells and high intensities of interaction between endothelial cells,epithelial cells and fibroblasts in HCC microenvironment.Immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining demonstrated high UBE2S expressions in clinical samples of HCC tissues,HCC cells and T cells.In HCC-LM3 and HepG2 cells,UBE2S knockdown significantly inhibited cell clone formation and tumor sphere formation(P<0.05).Conclusion UBE2S is highly expressed in T cells in HCC microenvironment in close correlation with a poor prognosis.High UBE2S expression promotes the stemness of HCC cells.

The number of artificial intelligence(AI)tools for colonoscopy on the market is increasing with supporting clinical evidence.Nevertheless,their implementation is not going smoothly for a variety of reasons,including lack of data on clinical benefits and cost-effectiveness,lack of trustworthy guidelines,uncertain indications,and cost for implementation.To address this issue and better guide practitioners,the World Endoscopy Organization has provided its perspective about the status of AI in colonoscopy as the position statement.

ObjectiveTo investigate the change in the proportion of non－B， non－C hepatocellular carcinoma （NBNC－HCC） in hepatocellular carcinoma， and to compare and analyze the clinicopathological features of NBNC－HCC. MethodsA total of 3 090 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） who were diagnosed in Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital from January 2011 to December 2021 were enrolled， and according to the hepatitis markers， they were divided into hepatitis virus infection－associated HCC group with 2 472 patients and NBNC－HCC group with 618 patients. According to the liver disease and metabolic risk factors， the NBNC－HCC group was further divided into metabolic disorder HCC group with 289 patients， alcoholic liver disease （ALD）－associated HCC group with 174 patients， and other HCC group with 155 patients. General information， laboratory markers， and pathological findings were collected from all HCC patients. The Mann－Whitney U test was used for comparison of continuous data between two groups， and the Kruskal－Wallis H test was used for comparison between three groups； the chi－square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups， and the chi－square trend test was used to investigate the trend of the change in the proportion of NBNC－HCC in HCC. ResultsThe proportion of patients with NBNC－HCC in HCC increased from 13.7% in 2011 to 20.1% in 2021 （χ²=5.529， P=0.019）， and compared with the hepatitis virus infection－associated HCC group， the NBNC－HCC group had a significantly higher proportion of patients with diabetes （28.0% vs 10.3%， χ²=129.482， P<0.001） or hypertension （33.2% vs 15.2%， χ²=105.079， P<0.001）， a significantly lower proportion of patients with liver cirrhosis （44.5% vs 68.4%， χ²=122.563， P<0.001） or vascular invasion （20.4% vs 29.6%， χ²=7.749， P=0.005）， and a significantly higher body mass index （BMI） （Z=－4.015， P<0.001）. Compared with the ALD－HCC group， the metabolic disorder HCC group had a significantly higher BMI， a significantly lower FIB－4 index， and a significantly lower proportion of patients with liver cirrhosis （all P<0.05）. ConclusionThere is a tendency of increase in the proportion of patients with NBNC－HCC in HCC， and NBNC－HCC often coexists with metabolic risk factors such as obesity， diabetes， and hypertension. Patients in the metabolic disorder HCC group may develop liver cancer in the absence of liver cirrhosis or in the early stage of liver fibrosis.

The number of artificial intelligence (AI) tools for colonoscopy on the market is increasing with supporting clinical evidence. Nevertheless, their implementation is not going smoothly for a variety of reasons, including lack of data on clinical benefits and cost-effectiveness, lack of trustworthy guidelines, uncertain indications, and cost for implementation. To address this issue and better guide practitioners, the World Endoscopy Organization has provided its perspective about the status of AI in colonoscopy as the position statement.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a manifestation of multi-system dysfunction involving the liver, ranging from simple hepatic steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, liver fibrosis, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. An increasing number of studies have shown the importance of the changes in gut microbiota dysbiosis and its metabolites in NAFLD. Tryptophan and its derivatives produced by gut microbiota have the effects on improving intestinal barrier function, regulating abnormal glucose and lipid metabolism, and alleviating insulin resistance and inflammatory response. This article reviews gut microbiota, tryptophan and its metabolites, and the effect of their interaction on NAFLD.

The incidence rate of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has increased sharply, and there is still a lack of effective pharmacotherapy at present. Although great achievements have been made in the research on the pathogenesis of NAFLD, we still do not know enough about the gender differences of NAFLD. As an important sex hormone, estrogen affects the development and progression of NAFLD by regulating mood and energy homeostasis, adipose tissue function and distribution, inflammatory response, insulin resistance, liver fat accumulation, and liver immunity. An adequate understanding of the mechanism of action of estrogen and its receptor in NAFLD may provide new ideas for the treatment of NAFLD.

Objective:To investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of percutaneous transhepatic cholangioscopy(PTCS) in the treatment of bilioenteric anastomotic stricture after choledochojejunostomy.Methods:From April 2016 to April 2020, the clinical data of 9 patients (7 males and 2 females, aged 40-76 years) who underwent percutaneous transhepatic cholangioscopy(PTCS) for stricture expansion and lithotomy at Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine were retrospectively analyzed. The operation was divided into two stages. In the first stage, ultrasound-guided percutaneous intrahepatic bile duct puncture was performed, and the sheath tube was inserted and fixed. In the second stage, percutaneous choledochoscopy was used for anastomotic stricture after sinus formation.The clinical outcome was evaluated by related biochemical indexes.Results:The operation time was (53.3±31.0)minutes(range:15-120 minutes).The postoperative hospital stay was (4.4±2.3)days(range:2-9 days).After systematic treatment, the preoperative symptoms, such as abdominal pain, jaundice, fever and shivering, disappeared in 8 patients. The range of alkaline phosphatase was 122-1 334 U/L before operation and 85-702 U/L after operation. The range of gamma glutamyl transpeptidase was 44-1 219 U/L before operation and 46-529 U/L after operation.Conclusion:PTCS is a safe and effective option for minimally invasive treatment of bilioenteric anastomotic stricture.