Efficacy of Electroacupuncture Combined with Chinese Herbal Medicine on Pain Intensity for Chronic Sciatica Secondary to Lumbar Disc Herniation: Study Protocol for a Randomised Controlled Trial.

Purpose: Chinese herbal medicine and electroacupuncture (EA) have been used to control pain for many decades in China. We aim to explore the efficacy of intervening patients whose discogenic sciatica symptoms lasting longer than 3 months with these conservative treatments. Patients and Methods: This is a single-center, parallel-group, patient-unblinded Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) with blinded outcome assessment and statistician. One hundred and twenty-four patients will be assigned randomly into 2 groups including conservative treatment group (Shenxie Zhitong capsule combined with EA treatment) and Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs, NSAIDs) control group (Celecoxib) in a 1:1 ratio. The trial involves a 4-week treatment along with follow-up for 6 months. The primary outcome is the leg pain intensity measured by the visual analogue scale (VAS) at 6 months after randomization. Secondary outcomes include leg pain intensity at other time points, back pain intensity, leg pain and back pain frequency, functional status, quality of life, return to work status and satisfaction of patients. Adverse events will also be recorded. Strengths and Limitations of This Study: Through this study, we want to observe the efficacy of electroacupuncture combined with Chinese herbal medicine on pain intensity for chronic sciatica secondary to Lumbar Disc Herniation. If the final results are favorable, it is expected to be a safe, economical, and effective treatment for patients. The study design has the following limitations: the setup of control group was less than perfect; patients and doctors could not be blinded in this trial; we skipped the feasibility study. We have tried our best to minimize adverse impacts. Trial Registration: ChiCTR2300070884 (Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, http://www.chictr.org.cn, registered on 25th April 2023).

Fire acupuncture for plaque psoriasis case series.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical efficacy of fire acupuncture (FA) on plaque psoriasis (PP), exploring its suitable syndrome types, in order to achieve better therapeutic effects, accelerate the possibility of psoriasis skin lesion recovery, and provide assistance for clinical treatment. METHODS: A total of 8 patients with PP aged between 18 and 60 years were recruited and treated with FA once a week, and the lesion area and severity index (PASI), visual analog scale and pruritus were measured before, 2, 4 and 8 weeks after treatment and at the follow-up period (week 12), respectively. Visual analog scale, and dermoscopy were used for assessment. RESULTS: All patients showed improvement in pruritus after 1 FA treatment, and lesions were reduced to varying degrees after 2 weeks. Except for patients 5 and 8, who only achieved effective results due to severe disease, all other patients with psoriasis achieved significant results at 8 weeks after treatment. CONCLUSION: FA can significantly control the development of lesions, reduce the symptoms of PP lesions and pruritus, and help prevent psoriasis recurrence.

Translation and validation of traditional Chinese version of the pediatric eating assessment Tool-10.

BACKGROUND: /Purpose: The Pediatric Eating Assessment Tool-10 (Pedi-EAT-10) is a caregiver-administrated subjective questionnaire for evaluating swallowing and feeding disorders among children. This study translated the Pedi-EAT-10 into Traditional Chinese and tested the translated version's reliability and validity. METHODS: Pedi-EAT-10 was translated into Traditional Chinese by experts and finalized after discussion and testing. A total of 168 participants, consisting of 32 children with dysphagia from a tertiary medical center and 136 healthy controls from its Children Care Center for Employees, were recruited. All participants were assessed by an otolaryngologist and speech-language pathologist. The reliability, validity, and efficacy of the translated Pedi-EAT-10 were analyzed to ensure it could be used to identify pediatric dysphagia and feeding problems. RESULTS: The Traditional Chinese version of the Pedi-EAT-10 had significant clinical discriminative validity between the dysphagia group and the control group (total score = 9.6 vs. 2.6, P < 0.001), acceptable test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation = 0.63), and excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.91 for the entire cohort). The overall performance of the test for distinguishing children with dysphagia from normal controls was acceptable, and the area under the curve was 74.8% (sensitivity = 71.9%; specificity = 69.9%). The optimal cutoff score was ≥3 on the Youdex index. CONCLUSIONS: The Traditional Chinese version of the Pedi-EAT-10 has fair reliability and validity and can be quickly and easily completed by caregivers. The translated Ped-EAT-10 can be used as a first-line tool for assessing the need for further referral and instrumental examination.

Research progress in parameterizing irrigation and fertilization in land surface model.

Under the context of global climate change and growing population, irrigation and fertilization have become important ways to ensure food production, with consequences on water cycling, energy flow, and materials cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. In the land surface model (LSM), coupling irrigation and fertilization schemes are of great importance for clearly understanding the land-atmosphere interactions to ensure food security. We reviewed the expression methods of three key parameters, namely, the applied method, usage, and time in the parameterization process of irrigation and fertilization (nitrogen fertilizer) in LSM. We found that the ways to irrigate and ferti-lize in LSM are different from the ways used in actual practice due to the limitation of the high resolution of spatio-temporal data, which makes it difficult to understand the actual influences of irrigation and fertilization on grain yield, environment, and local climate. Finally, we proposed future works: 1) taking the differences of crop water demand into account and making the different irrigation thresholds for different crops to properly evaluate the total and intensity of water consumption of different crops; 2) using the field records and the regional grid data of fertilization and irrigation developed in recent years to develop parameterized schemes that are more in line with actual agricultural operations, which can accurately reveal their economic, ecological, and climatic effects; 3) developing fertilization diagnosis scheme considering crop type, phenological stage, and soil basic fertility as the supplementary scheme in LSM, to improve the applicability and simulation accuracy of LSM in the areas without nitrogen fertilizer data.

Anthropogenic nitrogen pollution impacts saltmarsh resilience with inhibition of seedling establishment and population dispersal.

Saltmarsh, a prominent buffer ecosystem, has been identified as an important sink for nitrogen (N) pollutants from marine- and land-based anthropogenic activities. However, how the enriched anthropogenic N impacts saltmarsh sustainability has been neglected due to limited understanding of marsh resilience based on seedling establishment and population dispersal under anthropogenic N inputs. This study combined mesocosm experiments and model simulations to quantify the effects of increased anthropogenic N on the seedling-based vegetation expansion of Spartina alterniflora. The results indicated that seedling survivals, growth rates, and morphological indicators were inhibited by 20.08 %, 37.14 %, and > 35.56 %, respectively, under 1.5 gN/kg anthropogenic N. The sensitivity rate of vegetation expansion was increased by 70 % with 1 gN/kg increased N concentration under the scenario of low seedling density (< 15 m/yr). These findings revealed an important unidentified weakness of the marsh development process to anthropogenic N inputs. Finally, we highlighted the importance of appropriate protection measures to control nutrient pollution in salt marshes. Our study provides new insights for enhancing the resilience and sustainability of saltmarsh ecosystems.

Study on pulse current auxiliary heating process of submerged arc welding.

During the welding process, temperature filed distribution of weldment is one of the key factors which influence welding quality. In order to improve the mechanical properties of welding joint, a technology for heating process of weldment using auxiliary pulse current was proposed in this article. Firstly, through metallographic experiment, strength experiment and hardness experiment, it was proved that the auxiliary pulse current not only can refine grain size but also improves the mechanical property of the welding joint. Then the paper used ANSYS and its ANSYS Parametric Design Language parametric design language to simulate the welding process with assistant pulse current, and the temperature field, the pulse current density distribution and the time of effective pulse current in the welded joint were obtained. Quantitative analyses were undertaken on the influence laws of auxiliary pulse current parameters on weld temperature field, auxiliary pulse current density distribution and the time of effective pulse current. A new parameter was defined as time-current density (the time integral of current density) to demonstrate the change rule of auxiliary pulse current density distribution with time. Finally, analyzing the reasons for raising the welding quality. There were two reasons for such phenomenon: one was auxiliary pulse current change the state of heat distribution in the weld seam area, the other was that the impulse oscillation of the auxiliary pulse influences the nucleation process of melting region.

Nonlinear differential equations and their application to evaluating the integrated impacts of multiple parameters on the biochemical safety of drinking water.

The present study aimed to narrow such gaps by applying nonlinear differential equations to biostability in drinking water. Biostability results from the integrated dynamics of nutrients and disinfectants. The linear dynamics of biostability have been well studied, while there remain knowledge gaps concerning nonlinear effects. The nonlinear effects are explained by phase plots for specific scenarios in a drinking water system, including continuous nutrient release, flush exchange with the adjacent environment, periodic pulse disinfection, and periodic biofilm development. The main conclusions are, (1) The correlations between the microbial community and nutrients go through phases of linear, nonlinear, and chaotic dynamics. Disinfection breaks the chaotic phase and returns the system to the linear phase, increasing the microbial growth potential. (2) Post-disinfection after multiple microbial peaks produced via metabolism can increase disinfection efficiency and decrease the risks associated with disinfectant byproduct risks. This can provide guidelines for optimizing the disinfection strategy, according to the long-term water safety target or a short management. Limited disinfection and ultimate disinfection may be more effective and have low chemical risk, facing longer stagnant conditions. (3) Periodic biofilm formation and biofilm detachment increase the possibility of uncertainty in the chaotic phase. For future study, nonlinear differential equation models can accordingly be applied at the molecular and ecological levels to further explore more nonlinear regulation mechanisms.

S-9-PAHSA's neuroprotective effect mediated by CAIII suppresses apoptosis and oxidative stress in a mouse model of type 2 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: With the rapidly increasing prevalence of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), neuronal complications associated with these diseases have resulted in significant burdens on healthcare systems. Meanwhile, effective therapies have remained insufficient. A novel fatty acid called S-9-PAHSA has been reported to provide metabolic benefits in T2DM by regulating glucose metabolism. However, whether S-9-PAHSA has a neuroprotective effect in mouse models of T2DM remains unclear. METHODS: This in vivo study in mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 5 months used fasting blood glucose, glucose tolerance, and insulin tolerance tests to examine the effect of S-9-PAHSA on glucose metabolism. The Morris water maze test was also used to assess the impact of S-9-PAHSA on cognition in the mice, while the neuroprotective effect of S-9-PAHSA was evaluated by measuring the expression of proteins related to apoptosis and oxidative stress. In addition, an in vitro study in PC12 cells assessed apoptosis, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial membrane potential with or without CAIII knockdown to determine the role of CAIII in the neuroprotective effect of S-9-PAHSA. RESULTS: S-9-PAHSA reduced fasting blood glucose levels significantly, increased insulin sensitivity in the HFD mice and also suppressed apoptosis and oxidative stress in the cortex of the mice and PC12 cells in a diabetic setting. By suppressing oxidative stress and apoptosis, S-9-PAHSA protected both neuronal cells and microvascular endothelial cells in in vivo and in vitro diabetic environments. Interestingly, this protective effect of S-9-PAHSA was reduced significantly when CAIII was knocked down in the PC12 cells, suggesting that CAIII has a major role in the neuroprotective effect of S-9-PAHSA. However, overexpression of CAIII did not significantly enhance the protective effect of S-9-PAHSA. CONCLUSION: S-9-PAHSA mediated by CAIII has the potential to exert a neuroprotective effect by suppressing apoptosis and oxidative stress in neuronal cells exposed to diabetic conditions. Furthermore, S-9-PAHSA has the capability to reduce fasting blood glucose and LDL levels and enhance insulin sensitivity in mice fed with HFD.

A newly proposed heatstroke-induced coagulopathy score in patients with heat illness: A multicenter retrospective study in China.

PURPOSE: In patients with heatstroke, disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is associated with greater risk of in-hospital mortality. However, time-consuming assays or a complex diagnostic system may delay immediate treatment. Therefore, the present study proposes a new heatstroke-induced coagulopathy (HIC) score in patients with heat illness as an early warning indicator for DIC. METHODS: This retrospective study enrolled patients with heat illness in 24 Chinese hospitals from March 2021 to May 2022. Patients under 18 years old, with a congenital clotting disorder or liver disease, or using anticoagulants were excluded. Data were collected on demographic characteristics, routine blood tests, conventional coagulation assays and biochemical indexes. The risk factors related to coagulation function in heatstroke were identified by regression analysis, and used to construct a scoring system for HIC. The data of patients who met the diagnostic criteria for HIC and International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis defined-DIC were analyzed. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 26.0. RESULTS: The final analysis included 302 patients with heat illness, of whom 131 (43.4%) suffered from heatstroke, including 7 death (5.3%). Core temperature (OR = 1.681, 95% CI 1.291 - 2.189, p < 0.001), prothrombin time (OR = 1.427, 95% CI 1.175 - 1.733, p < 0.001) and D-dimer (OR = 1.242, 95% CI 1.049 - 1.471, p = 0.012) were independent risk factors for heatstroke, and therefore used to construct an HIC scoring system because of their close relation with abnormal coagulation. A total score ≥ 3 indicated HIC, and HIC scores correlated with the score for International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis -DIC (r = 0.8848, p < 0.001). The incidence of HIC (27.5%) was higher than that of DIC (11.2%) in all of 131 heatstroke patients. Meanwhile, the mortality rate of HIC (19.4%) was lower than that of DIC (46.7%). When HIC developed into DIC, parameters of coagulation dysfunction changed significantly: platelet count decreased, D-dimer level rose, and prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time prolonged (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The newly proposed HIC score may provide a valuable tool for early detection of HIC and prompt initiation of treatment.

Kefir Ameliorates Alcohol-Induced Liver Injury Through Modulating Gut Microbiota and Fecal Bile Acid Profile in Mice.

SCOPE: Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is the leading cause of liver-related deaths worldwide. Kefir has been studied for its properties of anti-obesity, rebuilding intestinal homeostasis, and alleviating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. However, the possible role of kefir in the prevention or treatment of ALD has not been carefully considered. Here, it evaluated the protective effects of kefir supplementation on alcohol-induced liver injury. METHODS AND RESULTS: C57BL/6J mice are fed to Lieber-DeCarli liquid diet containing alcohol to build ALD mouse model, followed by oral administration with kefir. Results indicate that kefir treatment improves liver pathological changes, decreases the expression levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and inflammatory markers, and increases antioxidant levels. Kefir supplementation also restores the intestinal barrier and altered microbial composition, indicates as increases of Blautia, Bacteroides, and Parasutterella and decreases in the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio and populations of Psychrobacter, Bacillus, and Monoglobus. Moreover, kefir supplementation decreases the levels of total bile acids (BAs) and primary BAs and increases the secondary/primary BA ratio. Gut microbes play a key role in the conversion of primary to secondary fecal BAs. CONCLUSION: Kefir can ameliorate ALD through regulating the composition of the gut microbiota.

Family caregiver's willingness to care from the perspective of altruism.

Objectives: The willingness of family members to take care of older relatives directly affects the quality of life of disabled older adults, so it is necessary to understand the status quo of willingness to care and its influencing factors. This has been extensively studied in other countries, but, it is rarely studied in China. Based on the theory of altruism, employing a unique sample from Shanghai, China in 2017 and 2022, we attempt to reveal the influencing factors of the care willingness of family caregivers during the transition period. Methods: To measure caregiver burden and functional disability of the care recipient, we employ the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) and the Barthel Index, respectively. Then we utilized the ordinary least squares (OLS) methodology and estimated four regression models. Models 1, 2, and 3 examined the impact of the variables of the caregiver burden, responsibility and love, and the quality of the caregiver-caregiver recipient relationship, respectively, on family caregivers' willingness to care. Model 4 was the full model. To testify whether the caregiver burden is likely to act as a mediator, path analysis was used, and the path was adjusted and verified. Results: According to the survey, in Shanghai, only half of the caregivers had a very high care willingness to care for disabled older relatives, while nearly one-tenth of the caregivers had a low willingness. It was the caregiver burden rather than the functional disability of older adults that harms family caregivers' willingness to care. Responsibility and caring out of love were positively related to care willingness. Relationship quality was the most important influencing factor, explaining 10.2% of the variance in care willingness. Path analysis demonstrated that responsibility, caring out of love, and relationship quality directly and through the mediation of caregiver burden indirectly affected care willingness. Conclusion: Our results revealed that reciprocal altruism presented by the quality of the caregiver-care recipient relationship had a significantly positive impact on family caregivers' willingness to care. In addition, the caregiver burden was found not only directly affected care willingness, but also acted as a mediator. To promote the perfection of laws and policies, comprehensive samples of different types of cities should be included and the measurement of key variables could be further improved in future studies.

Mechanism of analgesic effect of fire needle on peripheral sensitization in rats with neuropathic pain induced by chemotherapy. / ç«é’ˆå¯¹åŒ–ç–—æ‰€è‡´ç¥žç»ç— ç†æ€§ç–¼ç—›å¤§é¼ å¤–å‘¨æ•åŒ–çš„é•‡ç—›ä½œç”¨æœºåˆ¶.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to explore the analgesic mechanism of fire needle on peripheral sensitization in rats with neuropathic pain(NP) induced by oxaliplatin, so as to investigate its mechanism in improving peri-pheral sensitization. METHODS: Male SD rats aged 8 weeks were randomly divided into 4 groups：normal group(n=6), model group(n=6), fire needle group(n=6), and medication group(n=6). NP rat model was established by intraperitoneal injection of oxaliplatin(4 mg/kg) on days 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, and 23. For rats in the fire needle group, fire needle treatment was performed at the "Jiaji"(EX-B2) acupoints of the L4-L6 segments on days 24, 26, and 28, ie. 1 day, 3 and 5 days after modeling. The medication group received intraperitoneal injection of pregabalin(100 mg/kg). Mechanical pain thresholds of the rats were measured before modeling, after modeling and intervention. Serum contents of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α), interleukin-6(IL-6) and chemokine ligand 12(CXCL12) were detected by ELISA. Skin histopathology changes in the acupoint area were observed using HE staining. The number of mast cells in the skin of the acupoints was observed using toluidine blue staining. Immunohistochemical staining was performed to detect the postive expressions of transient receptor potential vanilloid 1(TRPV1), protease-activated receptor 2(PAR2) and tryptase(TPS) in the skin of the acupoint area. Western blot was used to detect the protein expressions of TRPV1 and PAR2 in the dorsal root ganglia(DRG). RESULTS: Compared with the normal group, the model group had decreased paw withdrawal threshold(PWT) after modeling(P<0.05), increased serum contents of IL-6, TNF-α, and CXCL12(P<0.05), increased number of mast cells in the acupoint area(P<0.05), and increased positive protein expressions of TPS, TRPV1, and PAR2 in the skin of the acupoint area(P<0.05). Compared with the model group, the fire needle group and medication group had increased PWT after intervention(P<0.05), decreased serum contents of IL-6, TNF-α, and CXCL12, and postive protein expressions of TPS, TRPV1, and PAR2 in the skin of the acupoint area(P<0.05)；while the medication group had decreased protein expressions of TRPV1 and PAR2 in DRG(P<0.05). HE staining showed thickened epidermis, disordered cellular arrangement, significant intercellular edema, and inflammatory cell infiltration in the model group. In the medication and fire needle groups, the epidermis was thinner, cellular arrangement was clearer, and the extent of tissue edema and inflammatory cell infiltration was reduced compared to the model group. CONCLUSIONS: Fire needle can improve mechanical pain threshold and reduce the contents of peripheral inflammatory factors in rats with oxaliplatin-induced NP. This effect may be related to the inhibition of mast cell activation and the inhibition of TPS, TRPV1 and PAR2 protein expressions, in the local areas of acupoints.

Forgotten memory storage and retrieval in Drosophila.

Inaccessibility of stored memory in ensemble cells through the forgetting process causes animals to be unable to respond to natural recalling cues. While accumulating evidence has demonstrated that reactivating memory-stored cells can switch cells from an inaccessible state to an accessible form and lead to recall of previously learned information, the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms remain elusive. The current study used Drosophila as a model to demonstrate that the memory of one-trial aversive olfactory conditioning, although inaccessible within a few hours after learning, is stored in KCαß and retrievable after mild retraining. One-trial aversive conditioning triggers protein synthesis to form a long-lasting cellular memory trace, approximately 20 days, via creb in KCαß, and a transient cellular memory trace, approximately one day, via orb in MBON-α3. PPL1-α3 negatively regulates forgotten one-trial conditioning memory retrieval. The current study demonstrated that KCαß, PPL1-α3, and MBON-α3 collaboratively regulate the formation of forgotten one-cycle aversive conditioning memory formation and retrieval.

[Clinical efficacy of fire needling combined with cupping therapy on herpes zoster of acute stage and the effect on Th17/Treg cellular immune balance].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy between the combined therapy of fire needling and cupping, and western medication on herpes zoster of acute stage, as well as the effects on Th17 and Treg cells and inflammatory factors, i.e. IL-10 and IL-17 in the peripheral blood. METHODS: Eighty patients with herpes zoster of acute stage were randomly divided into a combined therapy (fire needling plus cupping) group and a western medication group, 40 cases in each one. In the combined therapy group, the pricking and scattering techniques with fire needle were used at ashi points and Jiaji (EX-B 2) corresponding to the affected spinal segments; afterwards, cupping therapy was delivered. The combined treatment was given once daily. In the western medication group, valaciclovir hydrochloride tablet and vitamin B1 tablet were administered orally. The duration of treatment in each group was 10 days. Before each treatment from day 1 to day 10 and on day 11 , the score of symptoms and physical signs was observed in the two groups separately. Before each treatment from day 1 to day 10 and on day 11, 30, 60, the score of visual analogue scale (VAS) and skin lesion indexes were observed in the two groups. On day 60, the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia was recorded in the two groups. The levels of Th17 and Treg cells, Th17/Treg ratio in the peripheral blood, as well as serum levels of IL-10 and IL-17 were detected before and after treatment in the two groups. The clinical efficacy was compared between the two groups. RESULTS: From day 6 to day 10 during treatment and on day 11, the scores of symptoms and physical signs in the combined therapy group were lower than those of the western medication group (P<0.05, P<0.01). On day 3, day 6 to day 10 during treatment and day 11, day 30, VAS scores in the combined therapy group were lower than those of the western medication group (P<0.05, P<0.01). On day 60, the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia in the combined therapy group was lower compared with that in the western medication group (P<0.05). The blister arresting time and scabbing time in the combined therapy group were shorter than those of the western medication group (P<0.05). After treatment, the level of Th17, and Th17/Treg ratio in the peripheral blood, as well as the serum levels of IL-10 and IL-17 were all lower in comparison with those in the western medication group (P<0.05). The curative and remarkably effective rate was 82.5% (33/40) in the combined therapy group, higher than 62.5% (25/40) in the western medication group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The early application of fire needling combined with cupping therapy can effectively treat herpes zoster of acute stage, relieve pain, and reduce the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia, which may be related to reducing the levels of Th17 and Treg cells, and Th17/Treg ratio in the peripheral blood, as well as the serum levels of IL-10 and IL-17 so that the cellular immune balance is modulated.

Entrapment neuropathy of common peroneal nerve by fabella: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Neuropathy of the common peroneal nerve caused by compression by a fabella is an extremely rare form of compression neuropathy. Involving both the superficial and deep peroneal nerves, it usually manifests as either impaired sensation from the lower lateral leg to the top of the foot or drop foot, or as a combination of both. CASE SUMMARY: We report the case of a 58-year-old Asian female who presented with inversion of the right foot during the stance phase of gait without sensory complaints related to the lower leg. Electrodiagnostic testing revealed the neuropathy of the common peroneal nerve at the level of the knee, exclusively affecting the muscular branch of the superficial peroneal nerve. A neuromuscular ultrasound disclosed swelling of the right common peroneal nerve just before it crossed over a large fabella as well as atrophy and fatty infiltration of the right peroneus longus and peroneus brevis muscles. Surgical excision of the fabella and neurolysis were performed. Subsequently, the strength of the right foot evertors improved, but the unsteady gait with occasional falls persisted for nine months after the surgery. Therefore, another procedure was performed to transfer the split posterior tibialis tendon to the peroneus brevis in order to correct the gait. CONCLUSION: This is the first case of neuropathy of the common peroneal nerve caused by compression by a fabella affecting exclusively the muscular branch of the superficial peroneal nerve. Clinicians should be aware of this unusual peripheral neuropathy while evaluating and treating patients with gait disturbance.

Avian malaria parasite infections do not affect personality in the chestnut thrush (Turdus rubrocanus) on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Personality traits, the consistent individual behavioral differences, are currently gaining much attention in studies of natural bird populations. However, associations between personality traits and parasite infections are not often investigated. Even less attention has been given to studies of birds in the high-elevation region such as the Tibetan plateau. This research aims to examine the relationship between avian malaria parasites and two personality traits in a population of the Chestnut Thrush (Turdus rubrocanus) breed in the Tibetan plateau. Our results revealed no evidence of sex bias in malaria parasite prevalence. Furthermore, we found no effect of infection status on two personality scores: activity and boldness. Additionally, no effects on the activity level or boldness were observed for different parasite lineages of Haemoproteus, Leucocytozoon, the sex of the birds, or their interactions. Similarly, we did not find any relationship between activity level and boldness with nestling numbers, sex, or their interactions. Notably, individuals with a larger number of offspring tended to display greater boldness. Our findings indicate that blood parasite infections are common in this population but do not significantly impact the personality of the birds.

Anti-obesity effects exerted by Dioscorea opposita Thunb. polysaccharides in diet-induced obese mice.

Obesity is characterized by chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, and gut microbiota dysbiosis. Dioscorea opposita Thunb. is a traditional food and medicine homolog from China. In the present study, polysaccharides isolated from a water extract of Dioscorea opposita Thunb. (DOTPs) were prepared. We showed that DOTPs reduced body weight, accumulation of fat tissues, insulin resistance, and inflammation in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. Further experiments showed that DOTPs could regulate the composition of the gut microbiota in HFD mice. DOTPs supplementation in HFD-fed mice resulted in the reduction of the Firmicutes-to-Bacteroidetes ratio. We further demonstrated that DOTPs supplementation enhanced bacterial levels of Akkermansia and reduced levels of Ruminiclostridium_9. A significant reduction of glycolysis metabolism related to obesity and gut microbiota dysbiosis was also observed upon administration of DOTPs. Our results suggest that DOTPs can produce significant anti-obesity effects, by inhibiting systematic inflammation and ameliorating gut microbiota dysbiosis in diet-induced obese mice.

Using UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and HPLC-CAD to Identify Impurities in Cycloastragenol, Which Is a Pre-Clinical Candidate for COPD.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a highly prevalent disease that has become the third leading cause of death worldwide. Cycloastragenol (CAG), which is the genuine sapogenin of the main active triterpene saponins in Astragali radix, is a bioavailable pre-clinical candidate for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and it was investigated in our previous study. In order to progress medical research, it was first efficiently produced on a 2.5-kg scale via Smith degradation from astragaloside IV (AS-IV). Simultaneously, since the impurity profiling of a drug is critical for performing CMC documentation in pre-clinical development, a study on impurities was carried out. As these structures do not contain chromophores and possess weak UV absorption characteristics, HPLC-CAD and UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS were employed to carry out the quality control of the impurities. Then, column chromatography (CC), preparative thin-layer chromatography (PTLC), and crystallization led to the identification of 15 impurities from CAG API. Among these impurities, compounds 1, 4, 9, 10, 14, and 15 were elucidated via spectroscopic analysis, and 2-3, 5-8, and 11-13 were putatively identified. Interestingly, the new compounds 9 and 14 were rare 10, 19-secocycloartane triterpenoids that displayed certain anti-inflammatory activities against LPS-induced lymphocyte cells and CSE-induced MLE-12 cells. Additionally, a plausible structural transformation pathway of the degradation compounds from CAG or AS IV was proposed. The information obtained will provide a material basis to carry out the quality control and clinical safety assurance of API and related prescriptions. Reasonable guidance will also be provided regarding the compounds with weak UV absorption characteristics.

Paeonol repurposing for cancer therapy: From mechanism to clinical translation.

Paeonol (PAE) is a natural phenolic monomer isolated from the root bark of Paeonia suffruticosa that has been widely used in the clinical treatment of some inflammatory-related diseases and cardiovascular diseases. Much preclinical evidence has demonstrated that PAE not only exhibits a broad spectrum of anticancer effects by inhibiting cell proliferation, invasion and migration and inducing cell apoptosis and cycle arrest through multiple molecular pathways, but also shows excellent performance in improving cancer drug sensitivity, reversing chemoresistance and reducing the toxic side effects of anticancer drugs. However, studies indicate that PAE has the characteristics of poor stability, low bioavailability and short half-life, which makes the effective dose of PAE in many cancers usually high and greatly limits its clinical translation. Fortunately, nanomaterials and derivatives are being developed to ameliorate PAE's shortcomings. This review aims to systematically cover the anticancer advances of PAE in pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, nano delivery systems and derivatives, to provide researchers with the latest and comprehensive information, and to point out the limitations of current studies and areas that need to be strengthened in future studies. We believe this work will be beneficial for further exploration and repurposing of this natural compound as a new clinical anticancer drug.

Multiple domestications of Asian rice.

The origin of domesticated Asian rice (Oryza sativa L.) has been controversial for more than half a century. The debates have focused on two leading hypotheses: a single domestication event in China or multiple domestication events in geographically separate areas. These two hypotheses differ in their predicted history of genes/alleles selected during domestication. Here we amassed a dataset of 1,578 resequenced genomes, including an expanded sample of wild rice from throughout its geographic range. We identified 993 selected genes that generated phylogenetic trees on which japonica and indica formed a monophyletic group, suggesting that the domestication alleles of these genes originated only once in either japonica or indica. Importantly, the domestication alleles of most selected genes (~80%) stemmed from wild rice in China, but the domestication alleles of a substantial minority of selected genes (~20%) originated from wild rice in South and Southeast Asia, demonstrating separate domestication events of Asian rice.