Network pharmacology and molecular docking were employed to predict the mechanism of Zhizhu Decoction in regulating macrophage polarization to reduce adipose tissue inflammation in obese children, and animal experiments were then carried out to validate the prediction results. The active ingredients and targets of Zhizhu Decoction were retrieved from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform(TCMSP). The inflammation related targets in the adipose tissue of obese children were searched against GeneCards, OMIM, and DisGeNET, and a drug-disease-target network was established. STRING was used to construct a protein-protein interaction(PPI) network and screen for core targets. R language was used to carry out Gene Ontology(GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses. AutoDock was used for the molecular docking between core targets and active ingredients. 24 SPF grade 6-week C57B/6J male mice were adaptively fed for 1 week, and 8 mice were randomly selected as the blank group. The remaining 16 mice were fed with high-fat diet for 8 weeks to onstruct a high-fat diet induced mouse obesity model. After successful modeling, the 16 mice were randomly divided into model group and Zhizhu Decoction group, with 8 mice in each group. Zhizhu Decoction group was intervened by gavage for 14 days, once a day. Blank group and model group were given an equal amount of sterile double distilled water(ddH_2O) by gavage daily. After the last gavage, serum and inguinal adipose tissue were collected from mice for testing. The morphology of inguinal adipose tissue was observed by hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining, the levels of inflammatory factors interleukin-6(IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA), and the protein expression of macrophage marker molecule nitric oxide synthase(iNOS) and epidermal growth factor like hormone receptor 1(F4/80) was detected by immunofluorescence staining. Network pharmacology predicted luteolin, naringenin, and nobiletin as the main active ingredients in Zhizhu Decoction and 15 core targets. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed involvement in the key signaling pathway of nuclear factor κB(NF-κB). Molecular docking showed that the active ingredients of Zhizhu Decoction bound well to the core targets. Animal experiment showed that compared with the model group, Zhizhu Decoction reduced the distribution of inflammatory cytokines in the inguinal adipose tissue of mice, lowered the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in the serum(P<0.05, P<0.01), and down-regulated the expression of iNOS and F4/80(P<0.05). The results showed that the active ingredients in Zhizhu Decoction, such as luteolin, naringenin, and nobiletin, inhibit the aggregation of macrophages in adipose tissue, downregulate their classic activated macrophage(M1) polarization, reduce the expression of inflammatory factors IL-6 and TNF-α, and thus improve adipose tissue inflammation in obese mice.
Animals ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacology* ; Molecular Docking Simulation ; Adipose Tissue/immunology* ; Mice ; Male ; Humans ; Network Pharmacology ; Macrophages/immunology* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Child ; Protein Interaction Maps/drug effects* ; Obesity/genetics* ; Inflammation/drug therapy*

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic factors of pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of children with newly diagnosed HL from January 2011 to December 2023 at four hospitals: Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, Fujian Medical University Zhangzhou Hospital, First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, and Fujian Children's Hospital. Patients were categorized into low-risk (R1), intermediate-risk (R2), and high-risk (R3) groups based on HL staging and pre-treatment risk factors. The patients received ABVD regimen or Chinese Pediatric HL-2013 regimen chemotherapy. Early treatment response and long-term efficacy were assessed, and prognostic factors were analyzed using the Cox proportional hazards regression model. RESULTS: The overall complete response (CR) rates after 2 and 4 cycles of chemotherapy were 42% and 68%, respectively. Compared with the ABVD regimen group, patients treated with the HL-2013 regimen in the R1 group showed significantly higher CR rates after both 2 and 4 cycles (P<0.05). However, no statistically significant differences in CR rates were observed between the two regimens in the R2 and R3 groups (P>0.05). The 5-year event-free survival (EFS) rate, overall survival rate, and freedom from treatment failure rate were 83%±4%, 97%±2%, and 88%±4%, respectively. Cox analysis indicated that the presence of a large tumor mass at diagnosis and failure to achieve CR after 4 cycles of chemotherapy were independent risk factors for lower EFS rates (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Pediatric HL generally has a favorable prognosis. The presence of a large tumor mass at diagnosis and failure to achieve CR after 4 cycles of chemotherapy indicate poor prognosis.
Humans ; Hodgkin Disease/pathology* ; Male ; Child ; Female ; Adolescent ; Retrospective Studies ; Child, Preschool ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use* ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Survival Analysis ; Infant

Objective Viral encephalitis is an infectious disease severely affecting human health.It is caused by a wide variety of viral pathogens,including herpes viruses,flaviviruses,enteroviruses,and other viruses.The laboratory diagnosis of viral encephalitis is a worldwide challenge.Recently,high-throughput sequencing technology has provided new tools for diagnosing central nervous system infections.Thus,In this study,we established a multipathogen detection platform for viral encephalitis based on amplicon sequencing. Methods We designed nine pairs of specific polymerase chain reaction(PCR)primers for the 12 viruses by reviewing the relevant literature.The detection ability of the primers was verified by software simulation and the detection of known positive samples.Amplicon sequencing was used to validate the samples,and consistency was compared with Sanger sequencing. Results The results showed that the target sequences of various pathogens were obtained at a coverage depth level greater than 20×,and the sequence lengths were consistent with the sizes of the predicted amplicons.The sequences were verified using the National Center for Biotechnology Information BLAST,and all results were consistent with the results of Sanger sequencing. Conclusion Amplicon-based high-throughput sequencing technology is feasible as a supplementary method for the pathogenic detection of viral encephalitis.It is also a useful tool for the high-volume screening of clinical samples.

During the progression of heart failure(HF),abnormal transduction of the transforming growth factor-β(TGF-β)/Smads signaling pathway is important mechanism of myocardial fibrosis(MF)in HF.TGF-β,a key factor in MF,is in an overexpression state in the process of MF in HF,and Smads is a major effector downstream of TGF-β.The TGF-β/Smads pathway induces abnormal proliferation of myofibroblasts,aggravates myocardial extracellular matrix deposition,and reduces the ability of the cardiac tissues to resist fibrosis,which plays a complex role in the pathogenesis of MF in HF.Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)has the efficacy of unequivocal inhibiting myocardial collagen deposition,anti-MF,protecting the myocardium and improving cardiac function in the prevention and treatment of MF in HF and so on,and the TGF-β/Smads pathway is one of the key pathways through which TCM monomers,TCM combinations,and proprietary medicines can exert their cardioprotective effects on the HF.This paper reviews the existing experimental research results of TCM intervening in the TGF-β/Smads pathway for the treatment of MF in HF over the past 10 years,with a view to providing theoretical basis for the prevention and treatment of HF MF well as the development and of new drugs.

Objective:To investigate the effects of low-frequency and high frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) combined with levodopa and benserazide hydrochloride on mild cognitive impairment in patients with Parkinson disease (PD).Methods:Totally 90 PD patients with mild cognitive impairment who visited from January 2020 to June 2022 were included , and they were divided into a simple drug group ( n=30), drug+ low-frequency group ( n=30), and drug+ high-frequency group ( n=30) according to the order of admission.The patients in the simple drug group were treated with oral levodopa and benserazide hydrochloride, while the patients in drug+ low-frequency and drug+ high-frequency groups were treated with low-frequency or high-frequency rTMS on the basis of oral levodopa and benserazide hydrochloride.Montreal cognitive assessment(MoCA), digital span (DS), Chinese auditory learning test (CALT), the judgment of line orientation test (JLOT) and verbal fluency test (VFT) were used to evaluate the cognitive function of patients before and after 4 weeks of treatment.SPSS 26.0 was used for statistical analysis.The paired t-test was used for intra-group comparison before and after treatment, while one-way ANOVA was used for inter-group comparison. Results:There were no significant differences in MoCA, DS anterograde, DS backward, CALT immediate recall, CALT delayed recall, JLOT, and VFT scores among patients in the simple drug group before and after 4 weeks of treatment( t=-1.157, -0.648, -0.215, -0.290, -0.154, -0.782, -0.960, all P>0.05). After 4 weeks of treatment, MoCA, DS anterograde, DS backward, CALT immediate recall, CALT delayed recall, JLOT and VFT scores in drug+ low-frequency group and drug+ high-frequency group were higher than before treatment (drug+ low frequency group: t=-16.357, -11.379, -7.999, -11.805, -16.624, -15.996, -17.241, all P<0.05; drug+ high-frequency group: t=-25.198, -13.971, -13.904, -25.831, -26.382, -20.108, -15.643, all P<0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in the scores of MoCA, DS anterograde, DS backward, CALT immediate recall, CALT delayed recall, JLOT and VFT among the three groups before treatment (all P>0.05). After treatment, there were statistically significant differences in the scores of MoCA, DS anterograde, DS backward, CALT immediate recall, CALT delayed recall, JLOT and VFT among the three groups (simple drug group : (20.37±1.96), (4.37±1.19), (2.80±0.55), (6.93±1.70), (5.17±1.09), (15.50±2.69), (10.73±1.55); drug+ low-frequency group: (23.83±2.32), (5.87±0.94), (3.87±0.73), (9.17±1.74), (8.13±1.50), (20.77±2.19), (13.30±1.73); drug+ high-frequency group: (27.17±1.64), (6.73±1.01), (4.80±0.81), (11.20±2.06), (10.03±1.54), (25.17±3.14), (15.87±2.05)) (all P<0.05). Further analysis showed that both the drug+ low-frequency and drug+ high-frequency groups had higher scores than the simple drug group, and the drug+ high-frequency group had higher scores than the drug+ low-frequency group(all P<0.05). Conclusion:The combination of drug+ low-frequency or drug+ high-frequency rTMS and drug therapy can help improve cognitive function in patients with PD, and the efficacy of drug+ high-frequency rTMS may be more significant, which provides a new therapeutic idea for clinical treatment of patients with PD.

AIM To establish an HPLC method for the simultaneous content determination of gallic acid,protocatechuic acid,morroniside,loganin,sweroside,paeoniflorin,hypericin,astragalin,salvianolic acid B,salvianolic acid A,epimedin C and icariin in Bushen Huoxue Sanjie Capsules.METHODS The analysis was performed on a 30℃thermostatic Agilent 5 TC-C18 column(250 mm×4.6 mm,5 μm),with the mobile phase comprising of acetonitrile-0.1%phosphoric acid flowing at 1.0 mL/min in a gradient elution manner,and the detection wavelength was set at 240 nm.RESULTS Twelve constituents showed good linear relationships within their own ranges(r≥0.999 8),whose average recoveries were 97.11%-101.14%with the RSDs of 0.60%-2.65%.CONCLUSION This simple,accurate and reproducible method can be used for the quality control of Bushen Huoxue Sanjie Capsules.

OBJECTIVE:Cement-augmentation pedicle screws have been widely used in spinal internal fixation surgery combined with osteoporosis in recent years,which can significantly improve the fixation strength,but compared with conventional methods,whether it has more advantages is still inconclusive of evidence-based medicine.To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of cement-augmented pedicle screw in the treatment of thoracolumbar degenerative diseases with osteoporosis. METHODS:Clinical controlled trials concerning the cement-augmented pedicle screw and the traditional pedicle screw placement for thoracolumbar degenerative diseases with osteoporosis were retrieved from the electronic databases such as CNKI,CBM,WanFang,VIP,PubMed,Cochrane Library,Web of Science and Embase.According to the unified criteria,we performed literature screening and quality evaluation.The meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.4 software. RESULTS:(1)Totally 20 articles were selected eventually,involving 2 randomized controlled studies and 18 retrospective cohort studies,totally 1 566 patients.Among them,789 cases were in the cement-augmented screw group and 777 cases in the conventional screw group.(2)Meta-analysis results showed that Japanese Orthopaedic Association score,intervertebral space height and fusion rate were higher in the cement-augmented screw group than those in the conventional screw group(MD=1.60,95%CI:1.14,2.07,P<0.000 01;MD=1.26,95%CI:0.62,1.90,P=0.000 1;OR=11.24,95%CI:2.86,44.14,P=0.000 5).Operation time was longer in the cement-augmented screw group than that in the conventional screw group(SMD=0.82,95%CI:0.42,1.23,P<0.000 1).Postoperative visual analog scale score,Oswestry dysfunction index score and incidence of screw loosening were lower in the cement-augmented screw group than those in the conventional screw group(MD=-0.50,95%CI:-0.78,-0.21,P=0.000 7;SMD=-0.49,95%CI:-0.88,-0.10,P=0.01;OR=0.08,95%CI:0.05,0.12,P<0.000 01).Hospitalization time,intraoperative blood loss,and postoperative drainage volume were not significantly different between the two groups(P>0.05). CONCLUSION:Compared with conventional pedicle screw placement,cement-augmented pedicle screw is more effective in the treatment of osteoporotic thoracolumbar degenerative disease by improving fusion rate and interbody height,reducing the incidence of screw loosening,and elevating long-term efficacy.

Objective: To understand anxiety symptoms among medical college students and their relationship with social ecological risk factors, so as to provide reference for mental health promotion among medical students. Methods: From September to October 2021, a convenient cluster sampling method was used to include 1 274 freshmen to senior students of a medical school in Taiyuan City, and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 and adolescent social ecological risk factors assessment questionnaire were used. Multivariate binary Logistic regression was used to analyze the association between anxiety symptoms and social ecological risk factors among medical students. Results: The overall detection rate of anxiety symptoms among medical students was 16.2%. The rate of anxiety varied significantly by grade (freshman: 19.9%, sophomore: 13.0%, junior: 14.0%, senior: 18.9% ) and number of friends (≤2: 22.8%, 3-5: 14.4%, ≥6: 11.8%) ( χ 2=8.70, 16.34, P <0.05). Spearman correlation analysis showed that individual, family, school, community, policy, culture, time, and total score in socio ecological risk factors were positively associated with anxiety symptom scores at different levels of risk ( r=0.33, 0.25, 0.32, 0.16, 0.15, 0.16, 0.16, 0.35, P <0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that high risk for personal dimension of the socio ecological risk factors was positively associated with rate of anxiety symptoms among medical students ( OR=3.32, 95%CI =1.66-6.61), and remained positively associated ( OR=2.98, 95%CI =1.49-5.94) after adjusting for grade and number of friends ( P <0.01). Conclusions Exposure to high personal dimensions of socio ecological risk factors increases the risk of developing anxiety symptoms among medical students. A focus should be placed on the personal factors associated with anxiety to promote medical students mental health.

Objective To investigate the imaging features of intestinal schwannoma(IS)in order to improve the diagnostic ability of the disease.Methods The clinical and imaging data of 14 patients with surgically and pathologically confirmed IS were retrospectively analyzed,including the location,size,morphology,nature,growth pattern,CT density,MRI signal,PET/CT metabolism and other characteristics of the tumors.Results Of the 14 IS cases,the lesions of 3 cases were located in the duodenum,2 cases in the cecum,8 cases in the colon and 1 case in the rectum.The lesions were all round or oval,with an average maximum diameter of(2.4±1.1)cm.The lesions were solid in 13 cases,extraluminal growth in 10 cases,cystic degeneration in 1 case and myxoid degeneration in 1 case.Chronic inflammatory lymph nodes were seen around the diseased intestines in 9 cases,and the short diameter of lymph nodes was greater than 5 mm in 6 cases.All 14 cases of IS showed low attenuation on plain CT scan,and progressive enhancement after contrast injection,including 1 case of mild enhancement,2 cases of moderate enhancement,and 11 cases of obvious enhancement.Two cases of IS showed low signal intensity on T1WI,slightly high signal intensity on T2WI,significantly high signal intensity on DWI,and obvious progressive enhancement after contrast injection on MRI.Two cases of IS showed high metabolism on 18F-FDG-PET/CT,and the SUVmax was 9.4 and 8.8,respectively.Conclusion The imaging findings of IS were characteristic to a certain extent.They mainly manifested as solid nodules or masses derived from the intestinal submucosa,with uniform attenuation or signal intensity,obvious progressive enhancement after contrast injection,obvious hypermetabolism on 18F-FDG-PET/CT,and slightly larger homogeneous lymph nodes were common around the lesions.

Objective To investigate the efficacy of rituximab combined with immunosuppressive pulse therapy for thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy(TAO)and analyze its influence on clinical activity score(CAS)and prognosis.Meth-ods A total of 136 patients(272 eyes)with TAO who were admitted to Huanggang Central Hospital from March 2020 to October 2022 were selected and divided into an observation group(68 patients)and a control group(68 patients)using a random number table method.Patients in the control group were given immunosuppressive pulse therapy,while patients in the observation group were given rituximab plus immunosuppressive pulse therapy.Both groups were treated for 4 courses(7 days per course).The clinical efficacy,eye signs,CAS score,thyroid conditions[thyrotropin receptor antibody(TRAb),thyroid peroxidase antibody(TPOAb),thyroid volume],T lymphocyte subsets,and adverse reactions were compared between the two groups.After a follow-up period of six months,the prognosis of patients in the two groups was compared.Results After 4 courses of treatment,the total effective rate of patients in the observation group was 94.12％(64/68),which was higher than that in the control group(82.35％,56/68)(P＜0.05).After 2 and 4 courses of treat-ment,the degree of exophthalmos,intraocular pressure,average palpebral fissure width,retrobulbar soft tissue volume,distance from the bulbus oculi,CAS score,TPOAb,TRAb,and thyroid volume of patients in the observation group were smaller than those in the control group,and all decreased compared to before treatment(all P＜0.05);the thickness of the tear film lipid layer was greater than that in the control group,and both increased compared to before treatment(all P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in the said indicators between the two groups before treatment(all P＞0.05).The CD3+,CD4+,and CD8+T lymphocyte levels of patients showed no significant difference between the two groups before treatment(all P＞0.05).After 2 and 4 courses of treatment,the levels of CD3+and CD4+T lymphocyte in both groups were higher than those before treatment.Except that the CD4+T lymphocyte level in the observation group was lower than that in the control group after 2 courses of treatment,the levels of CD3+and CD4+T lymphocyte in the obser-vation group were higher than those in the control group at other time points(all P＜0.05).After 2 and 4 courses of treat-ment,the level of CD8+T lymphocyte in both groups decreased compared to before treatment,and it was lower in the ob-servation group than the control group(all P＜0.05).There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reac-tions such as low fever,nausea,and hypokalemia between the two groups(all P＜0.05).After the 6-month follow-up,the improvement rate of patients in the observation group was 95.59％(65/68),which was higher than that in the control group(79.41％,54/68)(P＜0.05).Conclusion Rituximab combined with immunosuppressive pulse therapy is effec-tive for TAO.It can alleviate eye signs and thyroid conditions,reduce clinical activity,and promote prognosis.