This study investigated the effect of different carrier materials on the in vitro properties of progesterone solid dispersions. The solid dispersions of the insoluble drug progesterone were prepared by hot melt extrusion technique using rheological properties as the index of investigation, and the in vitro properties of the solid dispersions were characterized. Scanning electron microscope revealed solid dispersions with rough surfaces and agglomerated microstructures into irregular lumpy particles. Differential scanning calorimetry and powder X-ray diffraction showed the change of progesterone crystalline form in solid dispersions from crystalline to amorphous state. In vitro dissolution studies showed that solid dispersions prepared with different carrier materials can effectively improve the dissolution rate of drugs. The results of the study showed that the type of carrier material had a significant effect on the in vitro properties of solid dispersions, providing a reference for the study of solid dispersions in the controlled release of insoluble drugs.

This article summarized Professor GUAN Guo-Hua's clinical experience in treating central serous chorioretinopathy(CSC)in Lingnan area.Based on the theory of"macula due to the spleen dysfunction",and by taking the geographical and climatic characteristics of Lingnan area as well as the body constitutional features of Lingnan residents into account,Professor GUAN Guo-Hua proposed that spleen deficiency leading to damp encumbrance was the fundamental pathogenesis of CSC in Lingnan area,and liver and kidney were gradually affected in the middle and late stages of CSC,which finally resulted into blood stasis and water retention.For the treatment of initial attack of CSC,the focus was on treating the spleen,and Erchen Decoction was adopted as the basic prescription for modified application to strengthen the spleen and drain dampness;for the treatment of CSC in the middle and late stages,the emphasis was on simultaneous treatment of the liver,spleen and kidney as well as blood and water,and Zhujing Pills and Wuling Powder were adopted as the basic prescriptions for nourishing the liver and kidney and for strengthening the spleen,activating blood and promoting urination.The treatment of the spleen is advocated throughout the whole treatment process,and the medication of drugs should be modified based on syndrome differentiation and according to the specific conditions,thus to achieve significant results.

Platycodonis Radix is the dry root of Platycodon grandiflorum of Campanulaceae, which has a variety of pharmacological effects and is a commonly used bulk Chinese medicine. In this study, the chloroplast genome sequences of six P. grandiflorum from different producing areas has been sequenced with Illumina HiSeq X Ten platform. The specific DNA barcodes were screened, and the germplasm resources and genetic diversity were analyzed according to the specific barcodes. The total length of the chloroplast genome of 6 P. grandiflorum samples was 172 260-172 275 bp, and all chloroplast genomes showed a typical circular tetrad structure and encoded 141 genes. The comparative genomics analysis and results of amplification efficiency demonstrated that trnG-UCC and ndhG_ndhF were the potential specific DNA barcodes for identification the germplasm resources of P. grandiflorum. A total of 305 P. grandiflorum samples were collected from 15 production areas in 9 provinces, for which the fragments of trnG-UCC and ndhG_ndhF were amplificated and the sequences were analyzed. The results showed that trnG-UCC and ndhG_ndhF have 5 and 11 mutation sites, respectively, and 5 and 7 haplotypes were identified, respectively. The combined analysis of the two sequences formed 13 haplotypes (named Hap1-Hap13), and Hap4 is the main genotype, followed by Hap1. The unique haplotypes possessed by the three producing areas can be used as DNA molecular tags in this area to distinguish from the germplasm resources of P. grandiflorum from other areas. The haplotype diversity, nucleotide diversity and genetic distance were 0.94, 4.79×10^-3 and 0.000 0-0.020 3, respectively, suggesting that the genetic diversity was abundant and intraspecific kinship was relatively close. This study laid a foundation for the identification of P. grandiflorum, the protection and utilization of germplasm resources, and molecular breeding.

The World Health Organization has declared that the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) is a global pandemic. As mutations occurred in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the global epidemic still needs further concern. Worryingly, the effectiveness and neutralizing activity of existing antibodies and vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 variants is declining. There is an urgent need to find an effective antiviral medication with broad-spectrum inhibitory effects on novel coronavirus mutant strains against the SARS-CoV-2 infection. Neutralizing antibodies play an important role in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The interaction of spike-receptor-binding domain (Spike-RBD) of SARS-CoV-2 and human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the first and critical step of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Hence, the SARS-CoV-2 Spike-RBD is a hot target for neutralizing antibodies development. Evusheld, the combination of Tixagevimab and Cilgavimab monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) targeting Spike-RBD exhibits neutralizing activity against BA.2.12.1, BA.4 and BA.5, which could be used as pre-exposure prophylaxis against SARS-CoV-2 infection. The nucleocapsid (N) protein is a conservative and high-abundance structural protein of SARS-CoV-2. The nCoV396 monoclonal antibody, isolated from the blood of convalescent COVID-19 patients against the N protein of SARS-CoV-2. This mAb not only showed neutralizing activity but also inhibits hyperactivation of complement and lung injury induced by N protein. The mAb 3E8 targeting ACE2 showed broadly neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2 and D614G, B.1.1.7, B.1.351, B.1.617.1 and P.1 variants in vitro and in vivo, but did not impact the biological activity of ACE2. Compared with neutralizing antibodies, small molecule inhibitors have several advantages, such as broad-spectrum inhibitory effect, low cost, and simple administration methods. Several small-molecule inhibitors disrupt viral binding by targeting the ACE2 and N-terminal domain (NTD) of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Known drugs such as chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine could also block the infection of SARS-CoV-2 by interacting with residue Lys353 in the peptidase domain of ACE2. The transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) inhibitors Camostat mesylate and Proxalutamide inhibit infection by blocking TMPRSS2 mediates viral membrane fusion. The main protease inhibitor Paxlovid and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase inhibitor Azvudine have been approved for treatment of COVID-19 patients. This review summarizes the current research status of neutralizing antibodies and small molecule inhibitors and prospects for their application. We expect to provide more valuable information for further studies in this field.

Objective: To uncover the underlying mechanisms of action of the Yinlai decoction on high-calorie diet-induced pneumonia through proteomics analysis. Methods: Based on the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, lung tissue samples from normal and high-fat diet (HFD) fed mice in the GSE16377 dataset were selected as test cohorts to identify differentially expressed genes and conduct bioinformatics analyses. In the animal experiments, mice were randomly divided into the control (N), high-calorie diet pneumonia (M), and Yinlai decoction treatment (Y) groups. Mice in the M group received high-calorie feed and a 0.5 mg/mL lipopolysaccharide solution spray for 30 min for 3 d. The mice in the Y group were intragastrically administered 2 mL/10 g Yinlai decoction twice daily for 3 d. Pathological evaluation of the lung tissue was performed. Differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) in the lung tissue were identified using quantitative proteomics and bioinformatics analyses. The drug-target relationships between Yinlai decoction and core DEPs in the lung tissue were verified using AutoDock Vina and Molecular Graphics Laboratory (MGL) Tools. DEPs were verified by western blot. Results: GEO data mining showed that an HFD altered oxidative phosphorylation in mouse lung tissue. The Yinlai decoction alleviated pathological damage to lung tissue and pneumonia in mice that were fed a high-calorie diet. A total of 47 DEPs were identified between the Y and M groups. Enrichment analysis revealed their association with energy metabolism pathways such as the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) and oxidative phosphorylation. The protein-protein interaction network revealed that Atp5a1, Pdha1, and Sdha were the target proteins mediating the therapeutic effects of Yinlai decoction. Molecular docking results suggested that the mechanism of the therapeutic effect of Yinlai decoction involves the binding of brassinolide, praeruptorin B, chrysoeriol, and other components in Yinlai decoction to Atp5a1. Conclusion The Yinlai decoction alleviated lung tissue damage and pneumonia in mice that were fed a high-calorie diet by regulating the TCA and oxidative phosphorylation. Our study highlights the importance of a healthy diet for patients with pneumonia and provides a scientific basis for the prevention and treatment of pneumonia through dietary adjustments.

Objective This study aimed to comprehensively analyze and compare the clinicopathological features and prognosis of Chinese patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)-low early breast cancer(BC)and HER2-IHC0 BC. Methods Patients diagnosed with HER2-negative BC(N=999)at our institution between January 2011 and December 2015 formed our study population.Clinicopathological characteristics,association between estrogen receptor(ER)expression and HER2-low,and evolution of HER2 immunohistochemical(IHC)score were assessed.Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test were used to compare the long-term survival outcomes(5-year follow-up)between the HER2-IHC0 and HER2-low groups. Results HER2-low BC group tended to demonstrate high expression of ER and more progesterone receptor(PgR)positivity than HER2-IHC0 BC group(P<0.001).The rate of HER2-low status increased with increasing ER expression levels(Mantel-Haenszel χ2 test,P<0.001,Pearson's R=0.159,P<0.001).Survival analysis revealed a significantly longer overall survival(OS)in HER2-low BC group than in HER2-IHC0 group(P=0.007)in the whole cohort and the hormone receptor(HR)-negative group.There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of disease-free survival(DFS).The discordance rate of HER2 IHC scores between primary and metastatic sites was 36.84%. Conclusion HER2-low BC may not be regarded as a unique BC group in this population-based study due to similar clinicopathological features and prognostic roles.

Objective:To evaluate the diagnostic value of hematological parameters for PCa with prostate-specific antigen(PSA)of 4-10 μg/L and construct a risk-stratification model with these parameters.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed the da-ta on the males undergoing the initial prostatic biopsy in the Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University with PSA of 4-10 μg/L from March 2010 to April 2021.According to the results of biopsy,we classified the patients into a PCa and a non-PCa group,and compared the hematological parameters between the two groups.We performed univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses,identified the independent risk factors for PCa,constructed a risk-stratification model for the prediction of PCa and evaluated its effi-ciency.Results:A total of 415 cases were included in this study,107(25.8％)in the PCa and 308(74.2％)in the non-PCa group.Compared with the non-PCa males,the PCa patients showed a significantly older age,higher ratios of neutrophil to lymphocyte and platelet to lymphocyte,systemic immune-inflammation index(SII),red blood cell distribution width and cystatin C(CysC)level(all P＜0.05),but lower red blood cell count and hemoglobin and free/total PSA(f/tPSA)levels(all P＜0.05).Multivariate logis-tic regression analysis indicated that age,f/tPSA,SII and CysC were independent risk factors for the prediction of PCa(all P＜0.05).Five prediction models were constructed based on the above risk factors,and the area under the ROC curve(AUC)of the four-parameter(age+f/tPSA+SII+CysC)model was 0.745(95％CI:0.694-0.796),significantly higher than those of the other mod-els(P＜0.05).A risk-stratification model(low-,intermediate-,and high-risk)was also constructed based on the total nomogram scores,which showed a comparable performance to that of the Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System(PI-RADS)for the predic-tion of PCa(AUC:0.727[95％CI:0.650-0.804]vs 0.734[95％CI:0.658-0.811]).However,the prediction rate by the risk-stratification model was evidently higher in the low-risk males than in those with low PI-RADS scores(1-2)(39.4％vs 22.2％).Conclusion:SII and CysC are independent risk factors for the prediction of PCa in patients with gray-zone PSA levels.The risk-stratification model based on age,SII,CysC and f/tPSA is comparable to PI-RADS in the diagnostic efficiency of PCa,with an even higher prediction rate in low-risk patients than in those with low PI-RADS scores,and contributive to precision screening and reduction of excessive biopsies in the diagnosis of PCa with gray-zone PSA.

AIM To study the chemical constituents from seeds of Canavalia gladiata(Jacq.)DC.,and their estrogen-like activities.METHODS The 75% ethanol extract from the seeds of C.gladiata was isolated and purified by various chromatography,then the structures of obtained compounds were identified by physicochemical properties and spectral data.The estrogen-like activities were evaluated by human breast cancer cells(MCF-7)stably transfected with estrogen receptor reporter gene(ER-Luc).RESULTS Twelve compounds were isolated and identified as biorobin(1),kaempferol 3-O-[O-β-D-apio-D-furanosyl(1→2)-O-[α-L-rhamno-pyranosyl(1 → 6)]-β-D-galactopyranoside(2),kaempferol 3-O-{β-D-glucopyranosyl(1 → 2)-[α-L-rhamonopyranosyl(1→6)]-β-D-galactopyranoside}(3),iso-quercitrin(4),quercetin 3-O-(6″-O-galloyl)-β-D-glucoside(5),isomyricitrin(6),myricetin-3-O-rutinoside(7)(3-ethenylphenyl)-1,2-ethanediol(8),1,3,6-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose(9),breynioside A(10),4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenol-1-O-β-D-(6′-O-galloyl)glucoside(11),maesopsin-6-O-β-D-glucopyranoside(12).Compounds 1,3-5,8-9 in the concentration of 50 μmol/L,and compounds 2,12 in 100 μmol/L showed estrogen-like activities.CONCLUSION All compounds are isolated from the gene Canavalia for the first time.Compounds 1,3-5,8-9 showed stronger estrogen-like activities than compounds 2 and 12.

Objective To summarize the clinical characteristics and genetic variations in children with cystic fibrosis(CF)primarily presenting with pseudo-Bartter syndrome(CF-PBS),with the aim to enhance understanding of this disorder.Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on the clinical data of three children who were diagnosed with CF-PBS in Hunan Children's Hospital from January 2018 to August 2023,and a literature review was performed.Results All three children had the onset of the disease in infancy.Tests after admission showed hyponatremia,hypokalemia,hypochloremia,and metabolic alkalosis,and genetic testing showed the presence of compound heterozygous mutation in the CFTR gene.All three children were diagnosed with CF.Literature review obtained 33 Chinese children with CF-PBS,with an age of onset of 1-36 months and an age of diagnosis of 3-144 months.Among these children,there were 29 children with recurrent respiratory infection or persistent pneumonia(88％),26 with malnutrition(79％),23 with developmental retardation(70％),and 18 with pancreatitis or extrapancreatic insufficiency(55％).Genetic testing showed that c.2909G＞A was the most common mutation site of the CFTR gene,with a frequency of allelic variation of 23％(15/66).Conclusions CF may have no typical respiratory symptoms in the early stage.The possibility of CF-PBS should be considered for infants with recurrent hyponatremia,hypokalemia,hypochloremia,and metabolic alkalosis,especially those with malnutrition and developmental retardation.CFTR genetic testing should be performed as soon as possible to help with the diagnosis of CF.

Cervical spondylotic radiculopathy(CSR)is a condition caused by the degeneration of cervical intervertebral discs and facet joints,primarily manifesting as the pain,sensory abnormalities,and motor dysfunction in the cervical nerve innervation area of neck,shoulder,and upper limb.For the treatment of CSR,tendon-bone syndrome differentiation in traditional Chinese medicine often faces the issues of conceptual confusion and non-standard syndrome differentiation.Based on the traditional tendon-bone syndrome differentiation and by integrating modern anatomical insights,Professor LIN Ding-Kun,an esteemed scholar of Traditional Chinese Medicine,proposed a classification system for the cervical spine that includes the categories of tendons,joints,bones and marrow.This paper explored the thoughts of Professor LIN for the tendon-bone syndrome differentiation of CSR,summarized the targets of manual therapy,and proposed the four kinds of pathological changes such as tendon overstrain,joint dislocation,bone lesion,and marrow injury,as well as the four techniques of traditional Chinese medicine manipulations,i.e.relaxation of tendons,reduction of joints,protection of marrow,and treatment of bones.The aim is to improve the syndrome-differentiation and treatment for CSR with orthopedic and traumatologic manipulations,and to provide reference for clinical practice.