OBJECTIVE: To investigate the variability of bone metabolism levels among different populations and its association with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) pain. METHODS: A total of 50 people (control group) who participated in physical examination from January 2023 to June 2023 were selected, including 26 males and 24 females, wtih a mean aged of (52.14±9.04) years old ranging 41 to 65 years old. The other 50 patients with knee osteoarthritis(case group) who attended the outpatient clinic of the Orthopedics and Traumatology Department in the same time period, including 19 males and 31 females, with a mean age of (53.60±7.76) years old ranging 40 to 65 years. The two groups of Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index(WOMAC) and bone metabolism markers, such as 25-hydroxy-cholecalciferol[25(OH)D], β-isomerized typeⅠcollagen C-telopeptide breakdown products (β-CTX), total typeⅠprocollagen N-terminal propeptide (t-PINP), osteocalcin (OC), parathormone (PTH) levels were compared. Pearson correlation analysis was used to compare the correlation between two groups of bone metabolism related markers and WOMAC. RESULTS: The WOMAC score of the case group (39.90±2.34) was higher than that of the control group (3.60±0.57), with significant difference (P<0.05). There was no significant difference between the two groups of 25 (OH)D, β-CTX and PTH (P>0.05). The t-PINP and OC of the case group were (62.90±52.40) and (19.88±10.15) ng·ml-1, respectively, and those of the control group were (38.86±10.82) and (14.90±3.62) ng·ml^-1, respectively;the t-PINP and OC of the case group were higher than those of the control group, with significant difference (P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that t-PINP was positively correlated with WOMAC pain score in the case group (r²=0.045, P<0.01). CONCLUSION Bone metabolism levels in the serum of patients with knee osteoarthritis are different from those of healthy people, and the difference between OC and t-PINP is the most obvious, and the concentration of t-PINP levels is positively correlated with pain symptoms in patients with KOA. However, the specific mechanism of correlation between the bone metabolism levels of patients with KOA and their pain symptoms needs to be further elucidated by basic experimental research as well as by enlarging the samples.
Humans ; Female ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Osteoarthritis, Knee/metabolism* ; Aged ; Adult ; Bone and Bones/metabolism* ; Pain/etiology* ; Biomarkers/metabolism*

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia in clinical practice. It has a high prevalence and poor prognosis. The application of antiarrhythmic drugs and even surgery cannot completely treat the disease, and there are many sequelae. AF can be classified into the category of "palpitation" in Chinese medicine according to its symptoms. Acupuncture has a significant effect on AF. The authors find that an important mechanism of acupuncture in AF treatment is to regulate the cardiac vagus nerve. Therefore, this article intends to review the distribution and function of vagus nerve in the heart, the application and the regulatroy effect for the treatment of AF.
Atrial Fibrillation/physiopathology* ; Humans ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Vagus Nerve/physiology* ; Animals

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of Chailian Lvping Granules(mainly composed of Bupleuri Radix,Coptidis Rhizoma,Paeoniae Radix Alba,Angelicae Sinensis Radix,Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma,Citri Sarcodactylis Fructus,and Ziziphi Spinosae Semen)in treating post-stroke anxiety and to observe their effect on serum neurotransmitters and oxidative stress.Methods A total of 104 patients with post-stroke anxiety of liver-qi stagnation and heart-fire exuberance type were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group,52 cases in each group.The control group was treated with conventional western medicine of Paroxetine,and the observation group was treated with Chailian Lvping Granules on the basis of treatment for the control group.The course of treatment lasted for eight weeks.The two groups were observed in the changes of Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale(HADS)score,Hamilton Anxiety Scale(HAMA)score,serum neurotransmitter parameters of brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF),dopamine(DA),5-hydroxytryptamine(5-HT)and norepinephrine(NE),and oxidative stress indicators of malondialdehyde(MDA),superoxide dismutase(SOD),and glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px)before and after treatment.Moreover,the clinical efficacy and total incidence of adverse reactions were compared between the two groups.Results(1)After eight weeks of treatment,the total effective rate of the observation group was 94.23％(49/52),and that of the control group was 76.92％(40/52).The intergroup comparison(tested by chi-square test)showed that the curative effect of the observation group was significantly superior to that of the control group(P＜0.05).(2)After treatment,the HADS score and HAMA score for the axienty degree in the two groups were decreased compared with those before treatment(P＜0.05),and the decrease of HADS score and HAMA score in the observation group was significantly superior to that in the control group(P＜0.01).(3)After treatment,the serum level of neurotransmitter BDNF in the two groups was increased while the serum levels of DA,5-HT and NE were decreased compared with those before treatment(P＜0.05).The increase of serum BDNF level and the decrease of serum DA,5-HT and NE levels in the observation group were significantly superior to those in the control group(P＜0.01).(4)After treatment,the serum level of oxidative stress indicator MDA in the two groups was decreased while the serum levels of SOD and GSH-Px were increased compared with those before treatment(P＜0.05).The decrease of serum MDA level and the increase of serum SOD and GSH-Px levels in the observation group were significantly superior to those in the control group(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).(5)The total incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group was 5.77％(3/52),and that in the control group was 9.62％(5/52).There was no significant difference between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion On the basis of conventional western medicine treatment,Chailian Lvping Granules exert certain effect in the treatment of patients with post-stroke anxiety of liver-qi stagnation and heart-fire exuberance type.The combined therapy is effective and safe on alleviating the anxiety symptoms of patients,decreasing the degree of neurological impairment and stress response level,and has few adverse reactions.

Objective To observe and compare the changes of vertebral bone mineral density(BMD)in the early stages of spinal Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.Methods Patients who underwent spinal surgery at Xiangya Hospital,Central South University from January 1 to December 31,2023 were continuously enrolled(spinal tuber-culosis group),based on gender matching,non-spinal tuberculosis surgical patients treated for spinal stenosis were selected as the control group.Dual-energy X-ray scans were performed on the enrolled patients,difference in verte-bral BMD between two groups of patients was compared.An animal model of spinal Mycobacterium tuberculosis in-fection(referred to as the animal model)was constructed,differences in microstructure of trabecular bone between spinal tuberculosis group and control group was compared,and the bone volume/tissue volume(BV/TV),the thickness of trabecular bone(Tb.Th),the number of trabecular bone(Tb.N),and sparse density of trabecular(Tb.Sp)were used as evaluation indexes to further analyze the bone quality differences between the diseased verte-brae and the neighboring vertebrae.Results 69 patients were included in the spinal tuberculosis group and the con-trol group,respectively.The BMD of patients in the spinal tuberculosis group(0.793[0.712,0.869]g/cm2)was lower than that of the control group(0.907[0.800,1.020]g/cm2),difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Microstructure of trabecular bone BV/TV([18.4±5.4]％),Tb.Th([0.124±0.010]mm)in the spinal tuberculosis group of animal model were significantly altered compared with BV/TV([22.6±3.2]％),Tb.Th([0.160±0.017]mm)in the control group(both P＜0.05).In the spinal tuberculosis group,microstructure of diseased vetebral trabecular bone BV/TV([25.5±6.7]％)and Tb.N([1.871±0.443]/mm)were significantly lower than BV/TV([26.6±6.8]％)and Tb.N([1.969±0.454]/mm)in the neighboring vertebrae,both with statistically difference(both P＜0.05).Conclusion In the early stages of spinal Mycobacterium tuberculosis infec-tion,microstructure of vertebral trabecular bone can be altered,leading to a decrease in BMD.

Aim To investigate the possible mechanism of action of Qingjie Huagong decoction(QJHGD)on acute lung injury(ALI)associated with severe acute pancreatitis(SAP)using network pharmacology,and to verify it by animal experiments.Methods The TC-MSP,BATMAN-TCM,ETCM,and SwissTargetPredic-tion databases were searched to obtain the action tar-gets of the blood-entering active ingredients of each drug in the QJHGD.The GeneCard database was searched to obtain SAP-ALI disease targets.The drug targets and disease targets were intersected to obtain common targets.Subsequently,the common targets were analyzed by STRING database and Cytoscape 3.7.1 software for protein interaction network analysis.GO and KEGG enrichment analysis was performed with the help of DAVID database.Finally,the key signa-ling pathways were verified by animal experiments.Results A total of 28 active ingredients were screened out for the treatment of SAP-ALI with 42 common tar-gets.PPI network analysis showed that STAT3,IL-6,and TGFB1 might be core targets;GO and KEGG en-richment analysis mainly involved cell proliferation,PI3K/AKT signaling pathways,etc.Animal experi-ments confirmed that QJHGD could improve the pathol-ogy of pancreas and lung tissues in SAP-ALI rat mod-el,down-regulate the expression levels of α-amylase,lipase,IL-1 β,IL-6,and TNF-α in serum,and down-regulate the expression levels of proteins and mRNAs related to PI3K/AKT1 signaling pathway in lung tis-sues.Conclusion QJHGD synergistically treats SAP-ALI through multi-component,multi-target,and multi-pathway,with a mechanism that may be related to the inhibition of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway activation.

Objective To observe the effects of Wuhu Decoction on autophagy and the expressions of IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac in lung tissue of asthmatic mice induced by exosomes of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells infected by RSV(BMSCs-Exo-RSV);To explore its mechanism in the treatment of asthma.Methods Totally 40 male SPF C57 mice were randomly divided into blank group,model group,Wuhu Decoction group and ribavirin group,with 10 mice in each group.The blank group was given PBS nasal drops,and the other groups were given BMSCs-Exo-RSV nasal drops once every other day for 7 times.24 hours after the end of modeling,Wuhu Decoction group was given Wuhu Decoction,and ribavirin group was given ribavirin solution,the blank group and model group were given distilled water,once a day,for consecutive 7 d.The general behavior of mice was observed,the peak expiratory flow(PEF)and forced vital capacity(FVC)were detected,HE and Masson staining were used to observe the inflammatory infiltration and collagen deposition in the lung tissue,RT-qPCR was used to detect the expressions of LC3A/B,beclin-1,p62,IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac mRNA in lung tissue,Western blot was used to detect the expressions of LC3B,beclin-1 and p62 proteins in lung tissue,immunohistochemstry was used to detect the expression of IL-8,IL-23,muc5ac proteins in lung tissue.Results Compared with the blank group,the body mass of mice in the model group decreased,and showed behavioral changes such as shortness of breath,nodding wheezing,lifting of upper limbs,shrugging,vertical hair,scratching nose,etc.,the PEF and FVC were decreased(P<0.01),inflammatory infiltration and collagen deposition in lung tissue increased,the expressions of LC3A/B,beclin-1,IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac mRNA in lung tissue increased,the expression of p62 mRNA decreased(P<0.01),while the expression of LC3BⅡ,beclin-1,IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac proteins and the ratio of LC3BⅡ/Ⅰ increased(P<0.01),while the expression of LC3BⅠand p62 protein decreased(P<0.01).Compared with the model group,the symptoms of Wuhu Decoction group and ribavirin group were improved,the PEF and FVC were increased(P<0.01,P<0.05),the inflammatory infiltration and collagen deposition in lung tissue were reduced,the expression of LC3A/B,beclin-1,IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac mRNA in lung tissue decreased(P<0.01),the expression of p62 mRNA increased(P<0.01),the expressions of LC3BⅡ,beclin-1,IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac protein and the ratio of LC3BⅡ/Ⅰ decreased(P<0.05,P<0.01),while the expressions of LC3BⅠ and p62 protein increased(P<0.01).Conclusion BMSCs-Exo-RSV can promote autophagy and the expressions of IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac in lung tissue of mice to induce asthma changes.Wuhu Decoction has therapeutic effect on asthmatic mice by inhibiting autophagy and reducing the expressions of IL-8,IL-23 and muc5ac.

An automatic ash-removal heat-sensitive moxibustion device was developed, which could keep relatively constant temperature of heat-sensitive moxibustion, and realize the automatic ignition and automatic ash removal of moxa sticks during heat-sensitive moxibustion. The automatic ash-removal heat-sensitive moxibustion device comprises a bracket and a moxibustion box fixed on the top of the bracket; the bracket is composed of a base and a movable telescopic arm. This device can solve the problems of temperature instability, moxa ash blocking heat transfer and moxa ash falling during heat-sensitive moxibustion, avoiding the scalding caused by moxa ash falling, and reduce the workload of medical staff.
Humans ; Hot Temperature ; Moxibustion ; Temperature

Humans ; Male ; Semen ; Sperm Motility ; Mediation Analysis ; East Asian People ; Microcystins/toxicity* ; Spermatozoa ; Sperm Count ; Infertility, Male

In this study, ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS) were combined with non-targeted metabonomic analysis based on multivariate statistics analysis, and the content of five indicative components in nardosinone was determined and compared by UPLC. The main chemical components of Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma with imitative wild cultivation and wild Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma were comprehensively analyzed. The results of multivariate statistical analysis based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry(LC-MS) and GC-MS were consistent. G1 and G2 of the imitative wild cultivation group and G8-G19 of the wild group were clustered into category 1, while G7 of the wild group and G3-G6 of the imitative wild cultivation group were clustered into category 2. After removing the outlier data of G1, G2, and G7, G3-G6 of the imitative wild cultivation group were clustered into one category, and G8-G19 of the wild group were clustered into the other category. Twenty-six chemical components were identified according to the positive and negative ion modes detected by LC-MS. The content of five indicative components(VIP>1.5) was determined using UPLC, revealing that chlorogenic acid, isochlorogenic acid A, isochlorogenic acid C, linarin, nardosinone, and total content in the imitative wild cultivation group were 1.85, 1.52, 1.26, 0.90, 2.93, and 2.56 times those in the wild group, respectively. OPLS-DA based on GC-MS obtained 10 diffe-rential peaks. Among them, the relative content of α-humulene and aristolene in the imitative wild cultivation group were extremely significantly(P<0.01) and significantly(P<0.05) higher than that in the wild group, while the relative content of 7 components such as 5,6-epoxy-3-hydroxy-7-megastigmen-9-one, γ-eudesmol, and juniper camphor and 12-isopropyl-1,5,9-trimethyl-4,8,13-cyclotetrade-catriene-1,3-diol was extremely significantly(P<0.01) and significantly(P<0.05) lower than that in the wild group, respectively. Therefore, the main chemical components of the imitative wild cultivation group and wild group were basically the same. However, the content of non-volatile components in the imitative wild cultivation group was higher than that in the wild group, and the content of some volatile components was opposite. This study provides scientific data for the comprehensive evaluation of the quality of Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma with imitative wild cultivation and wild Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma.
Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry ; Chromatography, Liquid ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/chemistry* ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between serum lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) level and the risk of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) recurrence in hypertensive patients. METHODS: This retrospective case-control study was conducted among 211 hypertensive patients with AIS treated in Foshan First People's Hospital, including 35 patients with recurrence of AIS during the 1-year follow-up as confirmed by head CT/MR. In the overall patients, 60 had grade 1 hypertension (including 5 recurrent cases), 76 had grade 2 hypertension (with 11 recurrent cases), and 75 had grade 3 hypertension (with 19 recurrent cases). Univariate analysis, multivariate logistic regression analysis, trend analysis, and smooth curve fitting analysis were performed to explore the correlation between serum Lp-PLA2 level within 24 h after admission and the risk of AIS recurrence. The predictive efficacy of serum Lp-PLA2 level for AIS recurrence in different hypertension grades was evaluated using ROC curve analysis. RESULTS: Serum Lp-PLA2 level, age, NIHSS score at admission, mRS scores at 7 days, homocysteine level and smoking status differed significantly between patients with and without AIS recurrence (P < 0.05). After adjustment for confounding factors, multivariate regression analysis showed that the highest tertile of Lp-PLA2 level was associated with a 4.13-fold increase of AIS recurrence risk compared with the lowest tertile (OR=5.13, 95% CI: 1.35-19.40), and each 1 ng/mL increase of Lp-PLA2 level was associated with a 1% increase of AIS recurrence risk (OR= 1.01, 95% CI: 1.01-1.02). Serum Lp-PLA2 level was shown to positively correlate with AIS recurrence risk, and in patients with grade 3 hypertension, its areas under the ROC curve for predicting AIS recurrence was 0.869 with a specificity of 0.893 and a sensitivity of 0.737. CONCLUSION Serum Lp-PLA2 concentration is an independent risk factor and potentially an effective predictor for AIS recurrence in patients with grade 3 hypertension.
Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; 1-Alkyl-2-acetylglycerophosphocholine Esterase ; Acute Disease ; Biomarkers ; Brain Ischemia/etiology* ; Case-Control Studies ; Cerebral Infarction ; Hypertension/complications* ; Ischemic Stroke/complications* ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Stroke