High-throughput RNA-sequencing reveals novel targets of tofacitinib in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

OBJECTIVES: Although tofacitinib has been confirmed to have good efficacy and safety in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the relevant mechanism at the whole transcriptome level has not yet been revealed. In this study, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from patients with active RA before and after tofacitinib treatment were analysed using whole transcriptome sequencing technology. METHODS: Fourteen patients with active RA were selected to detect the alterations of mRNAs, lncRNAs, circRNAs, and miRNAs in PBMCs before and after tofacitinib treatment using whole transcriptome sequencing. Through bioinformatics analysis, differentially expressed RNAs and their functions were identified. Then the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network and the protein interaction network were constructed. And qRT-PCR validation was performed for RNAs in the ceRNA network. RESULTS: Based on 69 DEmRNAs, 1743 DElncRNAs, 41 DEcircRNAs, and 4 DEmiRNAs obtained from whole transcriptome sequencing, an RNA interaction network including mRNA DEPDC1, lncRNA ENSG00000272574, circRNA hsa_circ_0034415, miR-190a-5p, and miR-1298-5p was constructed according to ceRNA theory. The qRT-PCR validation results of DEPDC1, hsa_circ_0034415 and miR-1298-5p involved in the network were consistent with the sequencing results, which provided important research evidence for further study of these RNAs. CONCLUSIONS: The new discovered circRNA/lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA network in RA patients relevant to tofacitinib therapy will provide new enlightenment for the role of tofacitinib in the treatment of RA and shed light on a new direction for further exploring the deep-seated mechanism of this drug.

Online/offline self-disclosure to offline friends and relational outcomes in a diary study: The moderating role of self-esteem and relational closeness.

Previous work suggests that the experiences of online and offline self-disclosure are heterogeneous among individuals. Yet little work has been done to identify the moderating role of individual characteristics and pre-existing relationship characteristics on the diverse relational outcomes. The present study using a 7-day diary design examined whether individuals' self-esteem level and relational closeness would moderate the relationships between online and offline self-disclosure to offline friends and two relational outcomes, that is, relationship satisfaction and trust in friendships. The analyses on 686 diary responses from 98 participants revealed that offline self-disclosure generally predicted greater relationship satisfaction and trust in friendships, whereas the role of online self-disclosure was not statistically significant. More importantly, self-esteem moderated the pattern associated with offline self-disclosure but not that with online self-disclosure. Specifically, offline self-disclosure predicted greater benefits to people with lower self-esteem relative to people with higher self-esteem. Moreover, pre-existing relational closeness moderated the relationship between offline self-disclosure and trust in friendships such that casual friendships benefited more from offline self-disclosure than close friendships did. The present study highlights the importance of personal characteristics and relationship characteristics in understanding the heterogeneous relational influence of different communication modes.

Surface Defects Detection of Stamping and Grinding Flat Parts Based on Machine Vision.

Currently, surface defect detection of stamping grinding flat parts is mainly undertaken through observation by the naked eye. In order to improve the automatic degree of surface defects detection in stamping grinding flat parts, a real-time detection system based on machine vision is designed. Under plane illumination mode, the whole region of the parts is clear and the outline is obvious, but the tiny defects are difficult to find; Under multi-angle illumination mode, the tiny defects of the parts can be highlighted. In view of the above situation, a lighting method combining plane illumination mode with multi-angle illumination mode is designed, and five kinds of defects are automatically detected by different detection methods. Firstly, the parts are located and segmented according to the plane light source image, and the defects are detected according to the gray anomaly. Secondly, according to the surface of the parts reflective characteristics, the influence of the reflection on the image is minimized by adjusting the exposure time of the camera, and the position and direction of the edge line of the gray anomaly region of the multi-angle light source image are used to determine whether the anomaly region is a defect. The experimental results demonstrate that the system has a high detection success rate, which can meet the real-time detection rEquation uirements of a factory.

Two Clubroot-Resistance Genes, Rcr3 and Rcr9wa, Mapped in Brassica rapa Using Bulk Segregant RNA Sequencing.

Genetic resistance is widely used to manage clubroot (Plasmodiophora brassicae) in brassica crops, but new pathotypes have recently been identified on canola (Brassica napus) on the Canadian prairies. Resistance effective against both the most prevalent pathotype (3H, based on the Canadian Clubroot Differential system) and the new pathotypes is needed. BC1 plants of Brassica rapa from a cross of line 96-6990-2 (clubroot resistance originating from turnip cultivar 'Waaslander') and a susceptible doubled-haploid line, ACDC, exhibited a 1:1 segregation for resistance against pathotypes 3H and 5X. A resistance gene designated as Rcr3 was mapped initially based on the percentage of polymorphic variants using bulked segregant RNA sequencing (BSR-Seq) and further mapped using Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR. DNA variants were identified by assembling short reads against a reference genome of B. rapa. Rcr3 was mapped into chromosome A08. It was flanked by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) markers (A90_A08_SNP_M12 and M16) between 10.00 and 10.23 Mb, in an interval of 231.6 Kb. There were 32 genes in the Rcr3 interval. Three genes (Bra020951, Bra020974, and Bra020979) were annotated with disease resistance mechanisms, which are potential candidates for Rcr3. Another resistance gene, designated as Rcr9wa, for resistance to pathotype 5X was mapped, with the flanking markers (A90_A08_SNP_M28 and M79) between 10.85 and 11.17 Mb using the SNP sites identified through BSR-Seq for Rcr3. There were 44 genes in the Rcr9wa interval, three of which (Bra020827, Bra020828, Bra020814) were annotated as immune-system-process related genes, which are potential candidates for Rcr9wa.

A novel glaucomatous representation method based on Radon and wavelet transform.

BACKGROUND: Glaucoma is an irreversible eye disease caused by the optic nerve injury. Therefore, it usually changes the structure of the optic nerve head (ONH). Clinically, ONH assessment based on fundus image is one of the most useful way for glaucoma detection. However, the effective representation for ONH assessment is a challenging task because its structural changes result in the complex and mixed visual patterns. METHOD: We proposed a novel feature representation based on Radon and Wavelet transform to capture these visual patterns. Firstly, Radon transform (RT) is used to map the fundus image into Radon domain, in which the spatial radial variations of ONH are converted to a discrete signal for the description of image structural features. Secondly, the discrete wavelet transform (DWT) is utilized to capture differences and get quantitative representation. Finally, principal component analysis (PCA) and support vector machine (SVM) are used for dimensionality reduction and glaucoma detection. RESULTS: The proposed method achieves the state-of-the-art detection performance on RIMONE-r2 dataset with the accuracy and area under the curve (AUC) at 0.861 and 0.906, respectively. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, we showed that the proposed method has the capacity as an effective tool for large-scale glaucoma screening, and it can provide a reference for the clinical diagnosis on glaucoma.

Altered Olfactory Function in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

BACKGROUND The objective of this study was to detect the level of olfactory function in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and to explore the relationship between impaired olfactory function and anti-ribosomal P protein antibody (ARPA), disease duration, and age. MATERIAL AND METHODS The level of olfactory function in 65 patients with SLE and 50 healthy participants was detected using the Connecticut Chemosensory Clinical Research Center (CCCRC) method; serum ARPA levels in SLE patients and the healthy control group were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS CCCRC scores in the active SLE group was lower than that in the inactive SLE and healthy control groups (P<0.01). In SLE patients, the CCCRC scores of ARPA-positive patients were lower than those of ARPA-negative patients (P<0.01). A negative correlation was discovered between CCCRC scores and ARPA serum levels in SLE patients. Multiple linear regression analyses showed a correlation among the CCCRC score, age, and ARPA. CONCLUSIONS Olfactory dysfunction was found in patients with active SLE; which correlated with SLE disease activity and ARPA levels.

Metabolic interactions between the Lands cycle and the Kennedy pathway of glycerolipid synthesis in Arabidopsis developing seeds.

It has been widely accepted that the primary function of the Lands cycle is to provide a route for acyl remodeling to modify fatty acid (FA) composition of phospholipids derived from the Kennedy pathway. Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase (LPCAT) is an evolutionarily conserved key enzyme in the Lands cycle. In this study, we provide direct evidence that the Arabidopsis thaliana LPCATs, LPCAT1 and LPCAT2, participate in the Lands cycle in developing seeds. In spite of a substantially reduced initial rate of nascent FA incorporation into phosphatidylcholine (PC), the PC level in the double mutant lpcat1 lpcat2-2 remained unchanged. LPCAT deficiency triggered a compensatory response of de novo PC synthesis and a concomitant acceleration of PC turnover that were attributable at least in part to PC deacylation. Acyl-CoA profile analysis revealed complicated metabolic alterations rather than merely reduced acyl group shuffling from PC in the mutant. Shifts in FA stereo-specific distribution in triacylglycerol of the mutant seed suggested a preferential retention of saturated acyl chains at the stereospecific numbering (sn)-1 position from PC and likely a channeling of lysophosphatidic acid, derived from PC, into the Kennedy pathway. Our study thus illustrates an intricate relationship between the Lands cycle and the Kennedy pathway.

Single-cell transcriptome sequencing partially revealed the changes of T cells in the early stage of aging kidney.

Aging is a gradual, inevitable physiologic process. The organ aging is related to the persistence of chronic inflammation, but the understanding of inflammatory state during renal aging is lacking currently. Single-cell transcriptome sequencing was performed on aging mouse kidney to reveal the molecular phenotype and composition changes of different cell types. In the early stage of aging, immune cells such as T, B cells and mononuclear macrophages increased in kidney. The molecular state of T cells in aging kidney changed and polarized. Among them, we identified a group of GZMK+ CD8 + T cells with high expression of Eomes, Pdcd1 and Ifng and a group of Il17a+ T cells with high expression of Il17a and Il23r. Moreover, the cytokines and inflammations can aggravate tissue damage eventually. Furthermore, we found the interaction between different types of epithelial cells and T cells increased during the renal aging. These results identify the changes of T cells in the early stage of aging kidney and suggest that GZMK+CD8+ T cells might be a potential target to ameliorate age-associated dysfunctions of kidney(Graphical Abstract).

Causality of genetically proxied immunophenotypes on cardiovascular diseases: a Mendelian randomization study.

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) stand as the foremost global cause of mortality, prompting a growing interest in using the potential of immune cells for heart injury treatment. This study aims to assess the causal association between immune cells and CVDs. Methods: A total of 731 immune cells were derived from a previously published genome-wide association study (GWAS), which included approximately 22 million genetic variants among 3,757 individuals of Sardinian ancestry. Genetic associations with atrial fibrillation (AF), heart failure, coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction and stroke were extracted from large-scale GWAS. A two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was used to assess the causal association between immune cells and CVDs. Replication MR analysis based on FinnGen dataset and meta-analysis are sequentially conducted to validate causal relationships. Results: Collectively, genetically predicted 4 immune cell traits were associated with AF and 5 immune cell traits were associated with stroke. Increased levels of IgD- CD38dim absolute count were associated with a higher susceptibility to AF, while increased expression of CD14+ CD16+ monocytes, CD62L on CD62L+ myeloid dendritic cells, and CD16 on CD14- CD16+ monocytes were linked to a decreased susceptibility to AF. Additionally, an elevated susceptibility to stroke was linked to an increase in the percentage of CD39+ resting Tregs and heightened CD27 expression on IgD- CD38+ cells. Conversely, a decreased susceptibility to stroke was associated with increased CD40 expression on monocytes, particularly on CD14+ CD16+ and CD14+ CD16- monocytes, with the latter two showing the most compelling evidence. Conclusion: This study identified several immune cell traits that have a causal relationship with CVDs, thus confirming that immune cells play an important role in the pathogenesis of these diseases.

Revealing the changes in signaling pathways caused by tofacitinib in patients with rheumatoid arthritis through RNA sequencing and the correlation with clinical parameters.

OBJECTIVES: The current study is to accelerate the understanding of how tofacitinib works in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) due to the lack of relevant information. METHOD: We selected ten patients with active RA and obtained the expression profile for their peripheral blood mononuclear cells before and after the tofacitinib treatment by RNA sequencing. The gene set enrichment analysis was conducted, and the significantly enriched gene sets were identified. The hub gene highly correlated with clinical parameters in the gene set was selected. We constructed the weighted gene co-expression network, linked modules with clinical indicators, and screened hub genes. The expression of representative hub genes was validated by real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR). RESULTS: Gene set interferon (IFN) α and IFN ß signaling was the most significantly down-regulated after tofacitinib treatment. In this gene set, genes Oas2 and Oasl showed a significant positive correlation with morning stiffness. In co-expression network, gene Vgll3 from the violet module with the highest correlation coefficient, was positively correlated with morning stiffness. Among them, Oasl and Vgll3 have shown significant down-regulation in qPCR validation. CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlighted the role of type I IFN, mainly including IFN α and IFN ß, in the pathogenesis of RA and action for tofacitinib, and provided a new entry point for further elucidating the mechanism of morning stiffness. Key Points • Gene set IFN α and IFN ß signaling was the most significantly down-regulated after tofacitinib treatment in RA patients. • Gene Oasl and Vgll3 were correlated with morning stiffness and significantly down-regulated due to the action of tofacitinib. • Type I IFN system was highlighted in the action of tofacitinib.

Elucidating the mechanism of action of Radix Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels and Radix Astragalus mongholicus Bunge ultrafiltration extract on radiation-induced myocardial fibrosis based on network pharmacology and experimental research.

Myocardial fibrosis can induce cardiac dysfunction and remodeling. Great attention has been paid to traditional chinese medicine (TCM) 's effectiveness in treating MF. Radix Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels and Radix Astragalus mongholicus Bunge ultrafiltration extract (RAS-RA), which is a key TCM compound preparation, have high efficacy in regulating inflammation. However, studies on its therapeutic effect on radiation-induced myocardial fibrosis (RIMF) are rare. In this study, RAS-RA had therapeutic efficacy in RIMF and elucidated its mechanism of action. First, we formulated the prediction network that described the relation of RAS-RA with RIMF according to data obtained in different databases. Then, we conducted functional enrichment to investigate the functions and pathways associated with potential RIMF targets for RAS-RA. In vivo experiments were also performed to verify these functions and pathways. Second, small animal ultrasound examinations, H&E staining, Masson staining, transmission electron microscopy, Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Western-blotting, Immunohistochemical method and biochemical assays were conducted to investigate the possible key anti-RIMF pathway in RAS-RA. In total, 440 targets were detected in those 21 effective components of RAS-RA; meanwhile, 1,646 RIMF-related disease targets were also discovered. After that, PPI network analysis was conducted to identify 20 key targets based on 215 overlap gene targets. As indicated by the gene ontology (GO) and kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) analysis results, inflammation and PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways might have important effects on the therapeutic effects on RIMF. Molecular docking analysis revealed high binding of effective components to targets (affinity < -6 kcal/mol). Based on experimental verification results, RAS-RA greatly mitigated myocardial fibrosis while recovering the cardiac activity of rats caused by X-rays. According to relevant protein expression profiles, the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway was important for anti-fibrosis effect of RAS-RA. Experimental studies showed that RAS-RA improved cardiac function, decreased pathological damage and collagen fiber deposition in cardiac tissues, and improved the mitochondrial structure of the heart of rats. RAS-RA also downregulated TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1ß levels. Additionally, RAS-RA improved the liver and kidney functions and pathological injury of rat kidney and liver tissues, enhanced liver and kidney functions, and protected the liver and kidneys. RAS-RA also increased PI3K, AKT and mTOR protein levels within cardiac tissues and downregulated α-SMA, Collagen I, and Collagen III. The findings of this study suggested that RAS-RA decreased RIMF by suppressing collagen deposition and inflammatory response by inhibiting the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. Thus, RAS-RA was the potential therapeutic agent used to alleviate RIMF.

Therapeutic potential of Angelica sinensis in addressing organ fibrosis: A comprehensive review.

Fibrosis-related diseases (FRD) include conditions like myocardial fibrosis, pulmonary fibrosis, hepatic fibrosis, renal fibrosis, and others. The impact of fibrosis can be severe, causing organ dysfunction, reduced functionality, and even organ failure, leading to significant health issues. Currently, there is a lack of effective modern anti-fibrosis drugs in clinical practice. However, Chinese medicine has a certain beneficial effect on the treatment of such diseases. Angelica sinensis, with its considerable medicinal value, has garnered attention for its anti-fibrosis properties in recent investigations. In the past few years, there has been a growing number of experimental inquiries into the impact of angelica polysaccharide (ASP), angelica water extract, angelica injection, and angelica compound preparation on fibrosis-associated ailments, piquing the interest of researchers. This paper aims to consolidate recent advances in the study of Angelica sinensis for the treatment of fibrosis-related disorders, offering insights for prospective investigations. Literature retrieval included core electronic databases, including Baidu Literature, CNKI, Google-Scholar, PubMed, and Web of Science. The applied search utilized specified keywords to extract relevant information on the pharmacological and phytochemical attributes of plants. The investigation revealed that Angelica sinensis has the potential to impede the advancement of fibrotic diseases by modulating inflammation, oxidative stress, immune responses, and metabolism. ASP, Angelica sinensis extract, Angelica sinensis injection, and Angelica sinensis compound preparation were extensively examined and discussed. These constituents demonstrated significant anti-fibrosis activity. In essence, this review seeks to gain a profound understanding of the role of Angelica sinensis in treating fiber-related diseases. Organ fibrosis manifests in nearly all tissues and organs, posing a critical challenge to global public health due to its widespread occurrence, challenging early diagnosis, and unfavorable prognosis. Despite its prevalence, therapeutic options are limited, and their efficacy is constrained. Over the past few years, numerous studies have explored the protective effects of traditional Chinese medicine on organ fibrosis, with Angelica sinensis standing out as a multifunctional natural remedy. This paper provides a review of organ fibrosis pathogenesis and summarizes the recent two decades' progress in treating fibrosis in various organs such as the liver, lung, kidney, and heart. The review highlights the modulation of relevant signaling pathways through multiple targets and channels by the effective components of Angelica sinensis, whether used as a single medicine or in compound prescriptions.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene polymorphisms and risk of head and neck cancer: a meta-analysis involving 2,444 individuals.

The association between vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene polymorphisms and risk of head and neck cancer (HNC) were investigated in many published studies; however, the currently available results are inconclusive. Therefore, we conducted this meta-analysis for deriving a more precise estimation of association between VEGF polymorphisms and the risk of HNC. Finally, we yield eight case-control studies involving six polymorphisms contain 2,444 individuals from PubMed, Embase, and CNKI up to January 30, 2013 (last updated on May 4, 2013). The results of meta-analysis showed that all the six polymorphisms of VEGF were not associated with risk of HNC [OR 1.25, 95 % CI (0.60-1.58) for TT vs. CC for 936 C/T; OR 1.41, 95 % CI (0.79-2.52) for GG vs. AA for -1,154 A/G; OR 0.97, 95 % CI (0.38-2.50) for CC vs. GG for 405 G/C; OR 1.44, 95 % CI (0.80-2.61) for AA vs. CC for 2,578 C/A; OR 1.27, 95 % CI (0.77-3.72) for TT vs. CC for -460 C/T; and OR 0.87, 95 % CI (0.37-2.06) for GG vs. CC for -634 G/C]. When performed subgroup analysis according to ethnicity for VEGF 936 C/T, the results suggested that it was not associated with the risk of HNC for either Asians [OR 0.84, 95 % CI (0.27-2.56) for TT vs. CC] or Caucasians [OR 2.10, 95 % CI (0.82-5.37) for TT vs. CC]. However, due to the limitations of this meta-analysis, more well designed, larger sample size, and adjusted risk factors studies are suggested to further assess the findings.

Global research trends of diabetes remission: a bibliometric study.

Background: Research on diabetes remission has garnered prominence in recent years. However, to date, no pertinent bibliometric study has been published. This study sought to elucidate the current landscape and pinpoint potential new research directions through a bibliometric analysis of diabetes remission. Methods: We perused relevant articles on diabetes remission from January 1, 2000, to April 16, 2023, in the Web of Science. We utilized CiteSpace software and VOSviewer software to construct knowledge maps and undertake analysis of countries, institutional affiliations, author contributions, journals, and keywords. This analysis facilitated the identification of current research foci and forecasting future trends. Results: A total of 970 English articles were procured, and the annual publication volume manifested a steady growth trend. Most of the articles originated from America (n=342, 35.26%), succeeded by China and England. Pertaining to institutions, the University of Newcastle in England proliferated the most articles (n=36, 3.71%). Taylor R authored the most articles (n=35, 3.61%), and his articles were also the most co-cited (n=1756 times). Obesity Surgery dominated in terms of published articles (n=81, 8.35%). "Bariatric surgery" was the most prevalently used keyword. The keyword-clustering map revealed that the research predominantly centered on diabetes remission, type 1 diabetes, bariatric surgery, and lifestyle interventions. The keyword emergence and keyword time-zone maps depicted hotspots and shifts in the domain of diabetes remission. Initially, the hotspots were primarily fundamental experiments probing the feasibilities and mechanisms of diabetes remission, such as transplantation. Over the course, the research trajectory transitioned from basic to clinical concerning diabetes remission through bariatric surgery, lifestyle interventions, and alternative strategies. Conclusion: Over the preceding 20 years, the domain of diabetes remission has flourished globally. Bariatric surgery and lifestyle interventions bestow unique advantages for diabetes remission. Via the maps, the developmental milieu, research foci, and avant-garde trends in this domain are cogently portrayed, offering guidance for scholars.

Corrigendum: Global research trends in catheter ablation and surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation: A bibliometric analysis and science mapping.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fsurg.2022.1048454.].

Ultrasensitive and Self-Powered Multiparameter Pressure-Temperature-Humidity Sensor Based on Ultra-Flexible Conductive Silica Aerogel.

The application of silica aerogel has been limited because of its poor mechanical properties. In order to expand the application scope of silica aerogel, this study fabricated an ultra-flexible conductive silica aerogel as a multiparameter sensor. The sample is fabricated by introducing poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) on a base of ultra-flexible silica aerogel, which was prepared by a diene synthesis reaction at atmospheric pressure. The pressure, temperature, and humidity can be converted into electrical signals. The pressure sensitivity can reach up to 54.88 kPa-1, and the detection limit is as low as 5 Pa. The temperature resolution is up to 0.1 K, and the response time of humidity is within 4 s. More importantly, the developed multiparameter sensor can be self-powered to realize multiparameter sensing of pressure, temperature, and humidity. The ultra-flexible conductive silica aerogel is a promising candidate for monitoring human activities and fire-affected areas.

Research progress of natural medicine Astragalus mongholicus Bunge in treatment of myocardial fibrosis.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Myocardial fibrosis (MF) is a common pathological manifestation of many cardiovascular diseases at a certain stage, with excessive accumulation of collagen fibers, excessive increase in collagen content, and a significant increase in collagen volume as the main pathological changes. There are currently no effective drugs for the treatment of myocardial fibrosis. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the main component of the medical practice used for more than 5000 years, especially in China, often exerts a wider action spectrum than previously attempted options in treating human diseases. In recent times, the great potential of TCM in the treatment of MF has received much attention. Especially many experimental studies on the treatment of MF by Astragalus mongholicus Bunge have been conducted, and the effect is remarkable, which may provide more comprehensive database and theoretical support for the application of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge in the treatment of MF and could be considered a promising candidate drug for preventing MF. AIM OF THE REVIEW: This review summarizes the chemical components of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge, Astragalus mongholicus Bunge extract, Astragalus mongholicus Bunge single prescription, and Astragalus mongholicus Bunge compound preparation in the treatment of MF, and provides comprehensive information and a reliable basis for the exploration of new treatment strategies of botanical drugs in the therapy of MF. METHODS: The literature information was obtained from the scientific databases on ethnobotany and ethnomedicines (up to August 2022), mainly from the PubMed, Web of Science, and CNKI databases. The experimental studies on the anti-myocardial fibrosis role of the effective active components of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge and the utility of its compound preparation and the involved mechanisms were identified. The search keywords for such work included: "myocardial fibrosis" or "Cardiac fibrosis ", and "Astragalus mongholicus Bunge", "extract," or "herb". RESULTS: Several studies have shown that the effective active components of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge and its formulas, particularly Astragaloside IV, Astragalus polysaccharide, total saponins of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge, triterpenoid saponins of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge, and cycloastragenol, exhibit potential benefits against MF, the mechanisms of which appear to involve the regulation of inflammation, oxidant stress, and pro-fibrotic signaling pathways, etc. Conclusion: These research works have shown the therapeutic benefits of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge in the treatment of MF. However, further research should be undertaken to clarify the unconfirmed chemical composition and regulatory mechanisms, conduct standard clinical trials, and evaluate the possible side effects. The insights in the present review provided rich ideas for developing new anti-MF drugs. THESIS: Myocardial fibrosis (MF) with excessive accumulation of collagen fibers, excessive increase in collagen content, and a significant increase in collagen volume as the main pathological changes is a common pathological manifestation of many cardiovascular diseases at a certain stage, which seriously affects cardiac function. At present, there is still a lack of effective drugs for the treatment of MF. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the main component of the medical practice used for more than 5000 years especially in China, often exerts wider action spectrum than previously attempted options in treating human diseases. In recent times, the great potential of TCM in the treatment of MF has received much attention. Especially many experimental studies on the treatment of MF by Astragalus mongholicus Bunge have been conducted, and the effect is remarkable, which may provide more comprehensive data base and theoretical support for the application of Astragalus mongholicus Bunge in the treatment of MF and could be considered a promising candidate drug for preventing MF.

PVA-assisted CNCs/SiO2 composite aerogel for efficient sorption of ciprofloxacin.

Efforts to develop a green, inexpensive and effective adsorbent are crucial for eliminating antibiotics in polluted water. The sorption capacity of the as-prepared polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-assisted cellulose nanocrystals/SiO2 (CNCs/SiO2) composite aerogel to ciprofloxacin (CIP) rises with the increase of temperature and initial concentration. Reverse trend of sorption capacity can be found when increasing the adsorbent dosage of adsorbent. The optimal pH value for the sorption is proved to be 4. It's found in the uniaxial compression test that the maximum load that PVA-assisted aerogels can withstand is nearly 100 times than that of non-PVA aerogels. Sorption results confirm that the Pseudo-second order (R2 = 0.9885) and Langmuir models (R2 = 0.9959) fit well to sorption kinetics and equilibrium data, respectively. The rate constant differs from the initial concentration of CIP according to the Pseudo-second order model. The composite aerogel sorption capacity of Langmuir (qmax) for CIP was 163.34 mg·g-1. The thermodynamic studies showed that the sorption process is endothermic with the value of enthalpy change of 41.032 kJ/mol. Hydrogen bonding, π-π interaction, hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions are the dominant mechanisms of CIP sorption by the PVA-assisted CNCs/SiO2 composite aerogel.

Pharmacological action of Hedysarum polysaccharides: a review.

Hedysarum, a traditional Chinese herbal medicine and food with a long history of clinical application, is used to improve health conditions and treat various diseases. Hedysarum polysaccharides (HPS), flavonoids, saponins, and alkaloids, are the primary components of Hedysarum. HPS is the most important natural active ingredient of Hedysarum, which has many pharmacological effects. Currently, HPS exhibits significant promise in drug development for various ailments such as tumors, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, Alzheimer's disease, and fibrosis. This review paper discusses the extraction, separation, and content determination techniques of HPS, along with the investigation of its chemical constituents. More importantly, we reviewed the anti-inflammatory pharmacological effects of HPS, such as inhibition of inflammatory factors and NF-κB signaling pathway; antitumor activity through apoptosis induction in tumor cells and blocking tumor cell proliferation and metastasis; antioxidant effects; regulation of various cytokines and immune cells; regulation of blood sugar levels, such as in type I and type II diabetes and in diabetic complications; improvement in symptoms of Alzheimer disease; anti-aging and anti-fibrosis properties; and improvement in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. This review paper establishes the theoretical foundation for future studies on the structure, mechanism, and clinical use of HPS.

Development and Validation of a Nomogram Model for the Risk of Cardiac Death in Patients Treated with Chemotherapy for Esophageal Cancer.

The primary cause of mortality in esophageal cancer survivors is cardiac death. Early identification of cardiac mortality risk during chemotherapy for esophageal cancer is crucial for improving the prognosis. We developed and validated a nomogram model to identify patients with high cardiac mortality risk after chemotherapy for esophageal cancer for early screening and clinical decision-making. We randomly allocated 37,994 patients with chemotherapy-treated esophageal cancer into two groups using a 7:3 split ratio: model training (n = 26,598) and validation (n = 11,396). 5- and 10-year survival rates were used as endpoints for model training and validation. Decision curve analysis and the consistency index (C-index) were used to evaluate the model's net clinical advantage. Model performance was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic curves and computing the area under the curve (AUC). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis based on the prognostic index was performed. Patient risk was stratified according to the death probability. Age, surgery, sex, and year were most closely related to cardiac death and used to plot the nomograms. The C-index for the training and validation datasets were 0.669 and 0.698, respectively, indicating the nomogram's net clinical advantage in predicting cardiac death risk at 5 and 10 years. The 5- and 10-year AUCs were 0.753 and 0.772 for the training dataset and 0.778 and 0.789 for the validation dataset, respectively. The accuracy of the model in predicting cardiac death risk was moderate. This nomogram can identify patients at risk of cardiac death after chemotherapy for esophageal cancer at an early stage.