The presence of physiological barriers in the eye （both external and internal） makes conventional ophthalmic medications （eye drops， ointments， gels， etc.） less bioavailable and difficult to reach the posterior segment of the eye. Although intravitreal injection can deliver drugs to the posterior segment of the eye， it has disadvantages such as infection， injury， and poor tolerance. Ophthalmic microneedle breaks through the intra- and extra-ocular barriers， enabling the drug to reach the target site accurately and to be released continuously greatly avoiding intraocular infections and injuries， and improving the bioavailability of the drug， which has obvious advantages as an ophthalmic drug delivery tool. Ophthalmic microneedle can be classified into hollow microneedle， dissolving microneedle， and coated microneedle according to the usage methods. Each type of microneedle has its own advantages and has shown satisfactory performance in the treatment of diseases such as bacterial and fungal keratitis， glaucoma， exudative age-related macular degeneration， diabetic macular edema， non-infectious uveitis， corneal neovascularization， and even choroidal melanoma.

As new evidence emerges, treatment strategies toward the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B are evolving. In 2019, a panel of national hepatologists published a Consensus Statement on the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B. Currently, an international group of hepatologists has been assembled to evaluate research since the publication of the original consensus, and to collaboratively develop the updated statements. The 2.0 Consensus was aimed to update the original consensus with the latest available studies, and provide a comprehensive overview of the current relevant scientific literatures regarding functional cure of hepatitis B, with a particular focus on issues that are not yet fully clarified. These cover the definition of functional cure of hepatitis B, its mechanisms and barriers, the effective strategies and treatment roadmap to achieve this endpoint, in particular new surrogate biomarkers used to measure efficacy or to predict response, and the appropriate approach to pursuing a functional cure in special populations, the development of emerging antivirals and immunomodulators with potential for curing hepatitis B. The statements are primarily intended to offer international guidance for clinicians in their practice to enhance the functional cure rate of chronic hepatitis B.

Background/Aims: Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a chronic liver disease characterized by hepatic steatosis. Ubiquitin-specific protease 29 (USP29) plays pivotal roles in hepatic ischemiareperfusion injury and hepatocellular carcinoma, but its role in MASLD remains unexplored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to reveal the effects and underlying mechanisms of USP29 in MASLD progression. Methods: USP29 expression was assessed in liver samples from MASLD patients and mice. The role and molecular mechanism of USP29 in MASLD were assessed in high-fat diet-fed and high-fat/high-cholesterol diet-fed mice and palmitic acid and oleic acid treated hepatocytes. Results: USP29 protein levels were significantly reduced in mice and humans with MASLD. Hepatic steatosis, inflammation and fibrosis were significantly exacerbated by USP29 deletion and relieved by USP29 overexpression. Mechanistically, USP29 significantly activated the expression of genes related to fatty acid β-oxidation (FAO) under metabolic stimulation, directly interacted with long-chain acyl-CoA synthase 5 (ACSL5) and repressed ACSL5 degradation by increasing ACSL5 K48-linked deubiquitination. Moreover, the effect of USP29 on hepatocyte lipid accumulation and MASLD was dependent on ACSL5. Conclusions USP29 functions as a novel negative regulator of MASLD by stabilizing ACSL5 to promote FAO. The activation of the USP29-ACSL5 axis may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for MASLD.

As new evidence emerges, treatment strategies toward the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B are evolving. In 2019, a panel of national hepatologists published a Consensus Statement on the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B. Currently, an international group of hepatologists has been assembled to evaluate research since the publication of the original consensus, and to collaboratively develop the updated statements. The 2.0 Consensus was aimed to update the original consensus with the latest available studies, and provide a comprehensive overview of the current relevant scientific literatures regarding functional cure of hepatitis B, with a particular focus on issues that are not yet fully clarified. These cover the definition of functional cure of hepatitis B, its mechanisms and barriers, the effective strategies and treatment roadmap to achieve this endpoint, in particular new surrogate biomarkers used to measure efficacy or to predict response, and the appropriate approach to pursuing a functional cure in special populations, the development of emerging antivirals and immunomodulators with potential for curing hepatitis B. The statements are primarily intended to offer international guidance for clinicians in their practice to enhance the functional cure rate of chronic hepatitis B.

Background/Aims: Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a chronic liver disease characterized by hepatic steatosis. Ubiquitin-specific protease 29 (USP29) plays pivotal roles in hepatic ischemiareperfusion injury and hepatocellular carcinoma, but its role in MASLD remains unexplored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to reveal the effects and underlying mechanisms of USP29 in MASLD progression. Methods: USP29 expression was assessed in liver samples from MASLD patients and mice. The role and molecular mechanism of USP29 in MASLD were assessed in high-fat diet-fed and high-fat/high-cholesterol diet-fed mice and palmitic acid and oleic acid treated hepatocytes. Results: USP29 protein levels were significantly reduced in mice and humans with MASLD. Hepatic steatosis, inflammation and fibrosis were significantly exacerbated by USP29 deletion and relieved by USP29 overexpression. Mechanistically, USP29 significantly activated the expression of genes related to fatty acid β-oxidation (FAO) under metabolic stimulation, directly interacted with long-chain acyl-CoA synthase 5 (ACSL5) and repressed ACSL5 degradation by increasing ACSL5 K48-linked deubiquitination. Moreover, the effect of USP29 on hepatocyte lipid accumulation and MASLD was dependent on ACSL5. Conclusions USP29 functions as a novel negative regulator of MASLD by stabilizing ACSL5 to promote FAO. The activation of the USP29-ACSL5 axis may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for MASLD.

As new evidence emerges, treatment strategies toward the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B are evolving. In 2019, a panel of national hepatologists published a Consensus Statement on the functional cure of chronic hepatitis B. Currently, an international group of hepatologists has been assembled to evaluate research since the publication of the original consensus, and to collaboratively develop the updated statements. The 2.0 Consensus was aimed to update the original consensus with the latest available studies, and provide a comprehensive overview of the current relevant scientific literatures regarding functional cure of hepatitis B, with a particular focus on issues that are not yet fully clarified. These cover the definition of functional cure of hepatitis B, its mechanisms and barriers, the effective strategies and treatment roadmap to achieve this endpoint, in particular new surrogate biomarkers used to measure efficacy or to predict response, and the appropriate approach to pursuing a functional cure in special populations, the development of emerging antivirals and immunomodulators with potential for curing hepatitis B. The statements are primarily intended to offer international guidance for clinicians in their practice to enhance the functional cure rate of chronic hepatitis B.

Background/Aims: Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a chronic liver disease characterized by hepatic steatosis. Ubiquitin-specific protease 29 (USP29) plays pivotal roles in hepatic ischemiareperfusion injury and hepatocellular carcinoma, but its role in MASLD remains unexplored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to reveal the effects and underlying mechanisms of USP29 in MASLD progression. Methods: USP29 expression was assessed in liver samples from MASLD patients and mice. The role and molecular mechanism of USP29 in MASLD were assessed in high-fat diet-fed and high-fat/high-cholesterol diet-fed mice and palmitic acid and oleic acid treated hepatocytes. Results: USP29 protein levels were significantly reduced in mice and humans with MASLD. Hepatic steatosis, inflammation and fibrosis were significantly exacerbated by USP29 deletion and relieved by USP29 overexpression. Mechanistically, USP29 significantly activated the expression of genes related to fatty acid β-oxidation (FAO) under metabolic stimulation, directly interacted with long-chain acyl-CoA synthase 5 (ACSL5) and repressed ACSL5 degradation by increasing ACSL5 K48-linked deubiquitination. Moreover, the effect of USP29 on hepatocyte lipid accumulation and MASLD was dependent on ACSL5. Conclusions USP29 functions as a novel negative regulator of MASLD by stabilizing ACSL5 to promote FAO. The activation of the USP29-ACSL5 axis may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for MASLD.

Abstract Modern western medicine typically focuses on treating specific symptoms or diseases, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) emphasizes the interconnections of the body’s various systems under external environment and takes a holistic approach to preventing and treating diseases. Phenomics was initially introduced to the field of TCM in 2008 as a new discipline that studies the laws of integrated and dynamic changes of human clinical phenomes under the scope of the theories and practices of TCM based on phenomics. While TCM Phenomics 1.0 has initially established a clinical phenomic system centered on Zhenghou (a TCM definition of clinical phenome), bottlenecks remain in data standardization, mechanistic interpretation, and precision intervention. Here, we systematically elaborates on the theoretical foundations, technical pathways, and future challenges of integrating digital medicine with TCM phenomics under the framework of “TCM phenomics 2.0”, which is supported by digital medicine technologies such as artificial intelligence, wearable devices, medical digital twins, and multi-omics integration. This framework aims to construct a closed-loop system of “Zhenghou–Phenome–Mechanism–Intervention” and to enable the digitization, standardization, and precision of disease diagnosis and treatment. The integration of digital medicine and TCM phenomics not only promotes the modernization and scientific transformation of TCM theory and practice but also offers new paradigms for precision medicine. In practice, digital tools facilitate multi-source clinical data acquisition and standardization, while AI and big data algorithms help reveal the correlations between clinical Zhenghou phenomes and molecular mechanisms, thereby improving scientific rigor in diagnosis, efficacy evaluation, and personalized intervention. Nevertheless, challenges persist, including data quality and standardization issues, shortage of interdisciplinary talents, and insufficiency of ethical and legal regulations. Future development requires establishing national data-sharing platforms, strengthening international collaboration, fostering interdisciplinary professionals, and improving ethical and legal frameworks. Ultimately, this approach seeks to build a new disease identification and classification system centered on phenomes and to achieve the inheritance, innovation, and modernization of TCM diagnostic and therapeutic patterns.

OBJECTIVE To explore the predictive factors of cefoperazone/sulbactam-induced thrombocytopenia in adult inpatients， and to establish and validate the nomogram prediction model. METHODS Data of adult inpatients treated with cefoperazone/sulbactam in Xi’an Central Hospital from Jun. 30th， 2021 to Jun. 30th， 2023 were retrospectively collected. The training set and internal validation set were randomly constructed in a 7∶3 ratio. Singler factor and multifactor Logistic regression analysis were used to screen the independent predictors of cefoperazone/sulbactam-induced thrombocytopenia. The nomogram was drawn by using “RMS” of R 4.0.3 software， and the predictive performance of the model was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic curve and C-index curve. Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test was used to evaluate the calibration degree of the model. Using the same standard， the clinical data of hospitalized patients receiving cefoperazone/sulbactam in Xi’an First Hospital in the same period were collected for external validation of the nomogram prediction model. RESULTS A total of 1 045 patients in Xi’an Central Hospital were included in this study， among which 67 patients suffered from cefoperazone/sulbactam-induced thrombocytopenia， with an incidence of 6.41%. After the false positive patients were excluded， 473 patients were included finally， including 331 in the training set and 142 in theinternal validation set. Multifactor Logistic regression analysis showed that age [OR＝1.043， 95%CI （1.017， 1.070）]， estimated glomerular filtration rate （eGFR） [OR＝0.988，95%CI（0.977， 0.998）]， baseline platelet （PLT） [OR＝0.989， 95%CI（0.982， 0.996）]， nutritional risk [OR＝3.863， 95%CI（1.884， 7.921）] and cumulative defined daily doses （DDDs） [OR＝1.082， 95%CI（1.020， 1.147）] were independent predictors for cefoperazone/sulbactam-induced thrombocytopenia （P＜0.05）. The C-index values of the training set and the internal validation set were 0.824 [95%CI （0.759， 0.890）] and 0.828 [95%CI （0.749， 0.933）]， respectively. The results of the Hosmer-Lemeshow test showed that χ 2 values were 0.441 （P＝0.802） and 1.804 （P＝0.406）. In the external validation set， the C-index value was 0.808 [95%CI （0.672， 0.945）]， the χ 2 value of the Hosmer-Lemeshow test was 0.899 （P＝0.638）. CONCLUSIONS The independent predictors of cefoperazone/sulbactam-induced thrombocytopenia include age， baseline PLT， eGFR， nutritional risk and cumulative DDDs. The model has good predictive efficacy and extrapolation ability， which can help clinic identify the potential risk of cefoperazone/sulbactam-induced thrombocytopenia quickly and accurately.

Objective To explore EEG characteristics and the therapeutic effect in children with electrical status epilepticus during slow sleep(ESES).Methods The eligible ESES cases in our center from 2014 to 2020 were included.The age at diagnosis of ESES,the duration of ESES,spike wave index(SWI)during wakefulness and the distribution of spike wave during the period of ESES,age at seizure onset,the clinical syndromes and the outcomes after treatment were analyzed.The ESES cases were divided into 4 groups according to the distribution of spike wave:focal ESES,unilateral ESES,bilateral asymmetric ESES,multiple foci ESES.The SWI during the awake stage were divided into 3 groups based on the different rates:≤20%,21%～49%,≥50%.The therapeutic outcomes were classified into three groups:satisfactory response,seizure control and ineffective.Results 50 cases were included,with 32 males and 18 females.The average onset age of ESES was 6 years and 7 months,and the average duration of ESES was 28 months.A significant correlation between the distribution of ESES and the thera-peutic effects was found,bilateral asymmetric ESES had a good therapeutic effects,while multiple foci ESES showed a poor therapeutic effects.The duration of ESES was significantly correlated with therapeutic effects,and the efficacy was worse when the duration was longer than 1 year.A significant relationship between the SWI during wakefulness of ESES and the therapeutic effects was detected,the patient with SWI≤20%during wakefulness had a good therapeutic effect.There was a negative correlation between the onset age of ESES and the duration of ESES and SWI index during wakefulness.There was a positive correlation between the duration of ESES and SWI index during wakefulness.Conclusion Our results suggest that onset age,distribution,duration and SWI during wake-fulness of ESES were correlated with therapeutic outcomes,The patient with SWI≤20%during wakefulness had a good therapeutic effect and have unfavorable outcomes with ESES last more than 1 year.The earlier onset of ESES,the longer duration of ESES and higher SWI during wakefulness will be showed..