Efficacy of acupuncture as an adjunctive treatment to patients with stable COPD: a multicenter, randomized, sham-controlled trial protocol.

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common respiratory disease and the third leading cause of death worldwide. Previous evidence has shown that acupuncture may be an effective complementary alternative therapy for stable COPD. However, large-sample, rigorously designed long-term follow-up studies still need to be completed. Notably, the relationship between the frequency of acupuncture and clinical efficacy in studies on acupuncture for stable COPD still needs further validation. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for stable COPD and further investigate the dose-effect relationship of acupuncture. METHODS/DESIGN: This is a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial that uses central randomization to randomly allocate 550 participants in a 1:1:1:1:1 ratio to once a week acupuncture group, twice a week acupuncture group, three times a week acupuncture group, sham acupuncture group and waiting-list control group. The sham acupuncture group will receive placebo acupuncture treatments three times per week, and the waiting-list control group will not receive any form of acupuncture intervention. The study consists of a 2-week baseline, 12-week of treatment, and 52-week of follow-up. Patients with COPD between 40 to 80 years old who have received stable Western medication within the previous 3 months and have had at least 1 moderate or severe acute exacerbation within the past 1 year will be included in the study. Basic treatment will remain the same for all participants. The primary outcome is the proportion of responders at week 12. Secondary outcomes include the proportion of responders at week 64, change in the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) Scale, change in the Modified-Medical Research Council (mMRC) Scale, change in the COPD Assessment Test (CAT) Scale, change in the Lung Function Screening Indicators (LFSI), change in the 6-min walk distance (6-MWD), change in Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36) Scale, the number of moderate and severe acute exacerbations and adverse event rate during the follow-up period. DISCUSSION: This study will provide robust evidence on whether acupuncture is safe and effective for treating stable COPD. Meanwhile, comparing the differences in efficacy between different acupuncture frequencies will further promote the optimization of acupuncture for stable COPD. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2200058757), on April 16, 2022.

Efficacy of Acupuncture in Acute Exacerbation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Purpose: The effect of acupuncture as adjunctive therapy for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) was controversial. Thus, we aimed to evaluate the effects of acupuncture for treating AECOPD. Methods: Eight databases were searched from database inception to July 30, 2023. All RCTs compared acupuncture plus conventional western medicine with conventional western medicine alone were included. Outcomes were quality of life, lung function, blood oxygen condition, exercise capacity, daily symptoms, duration of hospitalization, and adverse events. The statistical analyses were conducted using Stata 17.0, and methodological quality was measured by the Cochrane bias risk assessment tool. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to assess the quality of evidence. Results: Twelve studies including 915 patients were included. Compared with conventional western medicine alone, acupuncture combined with conventional western therapy significantly improved quality of life (CAT: MD: -3.25; 95% CI: -3.73 to -2.78, P<0.001) and arterial blood gas (PaCO2: MD: -1.85; 95% CI: -2.74 to -0.95, P<0.001; PaO2: MD: 5.15; 95% CI: 1.22 to 9.07, P = 0.01). And for lung function, statistical benefits were found in FEV1/FVC (MD: 4.66; 95% CI: 2.21 to 7.12, P<0.001), but no difference was seen for FEV1% (MD: 1.83; 95% CI: -0.17 to 3.83, P = 0.073). There was no significant improvement in exercise capacity (6MWD: MD: 96.69; 95% CI: -0.60 to 193.98, P = 0.051), hospitalization duration (MD: -5.70; 95% CI: -11.97 to 0.58, P = 0.075), and dyspnea (mMRC: MD: -0.19; 95% CI: -0.61 to 0.63, P = 0.376) between two groups. Overall bias for CAT and mMRC was in "high" risk, FEV1%, FEV1/FVC, PaCO2, and PaO2 was in "some concern" and 1 RCT assessing hospitalization duration was in "low" risk. And the overall assessments were either moderate, low or very low certainty. Seven trials performed safety assessment of acupuncture, and no serious adverse events were reported. Conclusion: Acupuncture might have auxiliary effects on AECOPD. However, the quality of the evidence is limited, and more high-quality RCTs are needed to be performed in the future.

Houttuynia Cordata Thunb.: A comprehensive review of traditional applications, phytochemistry, pharmacology and safety.

BACKGROUND: Houttuynia Cordata Thunb. (H. cordata; Saururaceae) is a medicine food homology plant that is grown in many Asian countries. Its main phytochemical constituents are volatile oils, flavonoids, polysaccharides and alkaloids. It has considerable clinical applications and health benefits. PURPOSE: This paper reviews the existing literatures and patents, summarizes the phytochemistry, pharmacological activity, safety and economic botanical applications of H. cordata, and provides a reference for systematic study of the pharmacological effects of H. cordata, improvement of quality standards and further development of its medicinal resources. METHODS: A comprehensive search of literature and patents on H. cordata and its active ingredients published before June 2023 was conducted using PubMed, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and China Knowledge Network. RESULTS: H. cordata is not only edible and medicinal but also used in various aspects of daily life such as fermented beverages, nutraceuticals, feed and cosmetics. The main phytochemical constituents of H. cordata are volatile oils, flavonoids, organic acids and alkaloids. Several in vitro and in vivo studies and clinical trials have found that H. cordata extracts possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, antibacterial, hepatoprotective and renal, immunomodulatory and potent antiviral effects. The mechanisms of expression of these pharmacological effects are related to the blood-brain barrier, lipophilicity, cAMP signaling and skin permeability, including blocking the MAPK signaling pathway, inhibiting the secretion of inflammatory factors such as TNF-α and IL-1ß, and activating the AMPK pathway. CONCLUSION: This paper provides a comprehensive review of the progress of research on the traditional applications, botany, chemical composition, pharmacological effects and safety of H. cordata and discusses for the first time the economic botanical aspects, which were not explored in the previous reviews. H. cordata has a wide range of bioactive substances whose therapeutic potential has not been fully exploited, and it could provide a new non-toxic approach to many diseases. This traditional medicinal food plant should receive more attention and in-depth research in the future.

A preliminary predictive model for selenium nutritional status in residents based on three selenium biomarkers.

BACKGROUND: Selenium (Se) is an essential nutrient and an important component of many selenoproteins that possess fundamental importance to human health. Selenium deficiency and excess will cause corresponding diseases in the human body. The nutritional health of Se in the human body mainly depends on the daily dietary Se intake of the human body, which in turn depends to a certain extent on the content of Se transmitted along the food chain. This study aims to research the transport of Se through the soil-crop-human chain in regions with different Se levels, and to establish the model between the residents' dietary Se intake and the three Se biomarkers (hair, nails, and plasma), to predict the nutritional health status of Se in residents through Se biomarkers. METHOD: Carry out field and cross-sectional surveys of populations in Loujiaba Village and Longshui Village. Samples were collected from soil, crops, drinking water, residents' hair, nails, plasma, and diet. The concentration of available Se fractions was extracted from soil samples using 0.1 mol/L K2HPO4. The concentration of total Se for all samples was determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), and the relative standard deviation was less than 5%. In this study, hair, nails, and blood samples were collected from volunteers according to the Declaration of Helsinki and the Ethics Committee of Soochow University. The dietary nutritional structure and dietary Se intake of the population were randomly selected by 12 volunteers using the duplicate portion method. Data were described using mean ± standard deviation. We performed saliency analysis and correlation analysis (with Pearson correlation coefficient), and fitted a regression to evaluate the associations between these variables. RESULTS: The soil total Se (5201 ± 609.2 µg/kg) and available Se (307.7 ± 83.5 µg/kg) in Luojiaba Village (LJB) were significantly higher than the soil total Se (229.2 ± 32.5 µg/kg) and available Se (21.9 ± 4.0 µg/kg) in Longshui Village (LS). The residents' dietary Se intake of LJB (150.3 ± 2.2 µg/d) was within the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended intake range, while LS (16.0 ± 0.4 µg/d) was close to the range of Keshan disease occurrence, and there was a risk of insufficient Se intake. The correlation analysis found significant positive correlations between residents' dietary Se intake and the three Se biomarkers. According to the preliminary model established in this study, if the daily dietary Se intake of residents reaches the WHO recommended value of 55-400 µg, the hair, nails, and plasma of Se concentration will be 522.1-2850.5 µg/kg, 1069.0-6147.4 µg/kg, and 128.3-661.36 µg/L, respectively. CONCLUSION: Selenium is transmitted through the soil-crop-human chain, and the Se concentration that enters the human body through the food chain in high-Se areas is significantly higher than that in low-Se areas. The nutritional health status of Se in the human body depends on the daily dietary intake of the human body, and there is a significant correlation between the daily dietary Se intake of the human body and the three biomarkers of Se levels in the human body, so the three biomarkers can be used to evaluate the Se nutritional health of the human.

Acupuncture as adjunctive therapy for patients with AECOPD: study protocol for a multicenter, randomized controlled trial.

Background: The acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) is a common respiratory disease among older adults, which imposes a significant burden on individuals and society and poses a major challenge to the global public health system due to its high morbidity and mortality. Acupuncture is effective for AECOPD, but its efficacy has been questioned due to the limited methodological quality. Thus, we aim to investigate the efficacy of acupuncture as adjunctive therapy for AECOPD and determine whether the efficacy of acupuncture differs with the type of acupoint combinations. Methods and analysis: This study proposes a prospective, multicenter randomized controlled trial that will comprise four groups, including two acupuncture treatment groups, one sham acupuncture group, and one basic treatment group. The acupuncture treatment groups will be distinguished by their focus on different patterns of acupoint combination, namely the Xi-cleft and He-sea acupoint combination and the Eight Confluence points acupoint combination, which may vary in clinical efficacy based on traditional acupuncture theories. The study aims to randomize 556 patients in a 1:1:1:1 ratio across the four groups. Each patient in acupuncture group or sham acupuncture group will receive routine drug therapy and 7 sessions of acupuncture treatment over 1 week. Participants in the basic treatment group will only receive routine drug therapy. The trial will be conducted in seven hospitals located in China. The primary outcomes in this trial will include differences in the Breathlessness, Cough, and Sputum Scale (BCSS) before randomization, 7 days after randomization, 5 and 9 weeks after randomization. Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval was obtained from the Sichuan Regional Ethics Review of Committee on Traditional Chinese Medicine (Approval ID: 2022KL-068). The results of this study will be distributed through peer-reviewed journals.Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier ChiCTR2200064484.

Dose-response relationship between acupuncture time parameters and the effects on chronic non-specific low back pain: a systematic review and Bayesian model-based network meta-analysis protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Low back pain (LBP) is a major global public health problem and the majority (nearly 90%) of patients with LBP suffer from non-specific LBP (NSLBP). Acupuncture has been widely used for relieving pain and is recommended as a first-line treatment in LBP guidelines. However, the guidelines do not recommend a specific acupuncture temporal dosage. A Bayesian model-based network meta-analysis (MBNMA) will be conducted to optimise the dosages of time parameters (session, frequency and duration). METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The following databases will be searched from their inception until 1 July 2023: MEDLINE (via PubMed), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), EMBASE, Web of Science, Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), alternative health research database (Alt HealthWatch), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Database, VIP Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals, ClinicalTrials.gov, the WHO's International Clinical Trial and Chinese Clinical Registry. RCTs assessing the effects of acupuncture on chronic NSLBP will be selected. The primary outcome measure will be the improvement in pain intensity at different acupuncture time points. The MBNMA will be performed using R V.4.2.1 with related R packages. Risk of Bias V.2.0 and Confidence in Network Meta-Analysis will be used to assess the evidence quality. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not required for literature-based studies. The results will be published in peer-reviewed journals or conferences. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42022336056.

Research trends of acupuncture therapy on postoperative nausea and vomiting from 2011 to 2023: A bibliometric analysis.

BACKGROUND: The utilization of acupuncture as a therapeutic intervention for the management of postoperative nausea and vomiting has experienced a notable increase in its popularity, and the purpose of this analysis is to provide a comprehensive understanding of the level of concern within the academic discipline and the main contributors and their partnership, as well as to identify research focal points and trends. METHODS: A comprehensive search was carried out to identify relevant articles on the topic of acupuncture therapy for PONV in the Web of Science and China National Knowledge Internet. The search spanned from January 1, 2011, to June 6, 2023. The annual publications were count to see the degree of scholarly attention devoted to the discipline and how it has changed over time. A statistical analysis of article distribution across various journals was conducted to serve a rough indicator for assessing the quality of articles. And a bibliometric analysis was conducted using the software CiteSpace to visually analyze various aspects of the literature. Analyze authors, institutions and countries to identify the main contributors and their collaborative relationship; and analyze keywords and references to explore research hotspots and trends. RESULTS: This study examined a comprehensive collection of 819 articles focused on acupuncture therapy for PONV, demonstrating a varying upward trend in the quantity of publications. Notably, the most productive author and institution were identified as Zheng Man and Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, respectively. While China had the highest number of publications, the United States held a greater prominence in this specific field. Collaboration among contributors was found to be weak. High-frequency keywords in the publications included "transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation," "electroacupuncture," "pain," and so forth. The literature with the highest citation count pertained to "Stimulation of the wrist acupuncture point PC6 for preventing postoperative nausea and vomiting," while the article with the highest centrality was "Consensus Guidelines for the Management of Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting." Several large clusters obtained from the references are also included "postoperative pain," "transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation". Nothing pertaining to mechanism study was found in the analysis results. CONCLUSION: The utilization of acupuncture for the treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting has been gaining increasing recognition, although there remains room for improvement in the quality of research conducted in this area. Chinese authors and institutions have emerged as significant contributors to this field, while the United States has demonstrated greater proficiency in fostering collaborative efforts. It is imperative to enhance collaboration among these contributors. The current focal points of acupuncture for PONV encompass pain management, electroacupuncture, auricular acupuncture, and transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation. Additionally, TEA and enhanced recovery after surgery have been identified as the forefronts of research in this particular domain. In addition, there is still much room for research in the aspect of mechanism and insurance coverage. This study provides an in-depth perspective on acupuncture for PONV, which offers reference material for clinicians with rational choice of therapeutic scheme, educators with hot topics, and researchers with valuable research directions.

Association between nineteen dietary fatty acids and hearing thresholds: findings from a nationwide survey.

INTRODUCTION: Hearing loss is a prevalent health concern, and dietary factors, such as fatty acid intake, may play a role in its development. The current study aimed to investigate the association between the intake of dietary fatty acids and hearing thresholds among U.S. adults. METHODS: The researchers examined data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), including 7,623 participants with available dietary fatty acid intake and audiometry data. Dietary fatty acid intake was assessed using dietary recalls, and hearing thresholds were measured using pure-tone audiometry. Multivariate linear regression models and smoothing curve fitting were utilized to explore the associations between dietary fatty acid intake and hearing thresholds, adjusting for relevant covariates. RESULTS: This study reveals a direct association between both low and high frequency pure tone average (PTA) hearing thresholds and the dietary intake of total saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and total polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Conversely, the intake of total monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) demonstrates an inverted U-shaped correlation with low-frequency and high-frequency PTA hearing thresholds, having inflection points at 11.91 (energy (%)) and 10.88 (energy (%)), respectively. CONCLUSION: Dietary intake of certain fatty acids may influence hearing thresholds in adults.

Low temperature and highly-efficient one-step decomposition of phosphogypsum via biochar by Fe3+/Co2+/Ni2+ unitary/ternary catalyst.

Phosphogypsum (PG), which has great environmental harm and restricts the sustainable development of phosphorus chemical industry, is a solid waste produced in phosphoric acid production. Thermal decomposition of PG is an extensive way to reutilization of resource, and the key point is to establish an appropriate decomposition path and catalyst system of PG. In the work, the strategy for low-temperature and highly-efficient decomposition of PG is established based on the thermodynamic analysis and the experimental research by metal ions to reduce the decomposition temperature. Meanwhile, SEM(Scanning Electron Microscope) is used to characterize the composition and morphology of PG in the various conditions, also the decomposition temperature is analyzed by TGA(Thermogravimetric Analysis). Then, the decomposition ratio via Fe3+/Co2+/Ni2+ unitary/ternary catalyst is obtained by precipitation method. Through kinetic analysis combined with XRF(X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer) and EDX(Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy) results, it is found that there is a reaction competition in the decomposition process by Fe3+/Co2+/Ni2+ ternary catalyst. Further the mechanism of catalytic system on PG is derived. The present work can be concluded that Fe3+/Co2+/Ni2+ can effectively reduce the decomposition temperature of PG, and the effect of ternary metal is more obvious than that of unitary metal. Finally, pomelo peel is used instead of coke to successfully decompose PG at low temperature by one step method. The establishment of low temperature decomposition system of PG has potential application in phosphorus chemical industry and is in line with sustainable development.

Effects of traditional Chinese mind-body exercises on older adults with cognitive impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of traditional Chinese mind-body exercises in improving cognition, memory, and executive function in older adults with cognitive impairment. Data sources: Relevant English and Chinese language studies published until September 14th, 2022 were retrieved from PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, CINAHL, WAN FANG DATA, VIP Information, CNKI, and SinoMed databases. Review methods: Randomized controlled trials assessing traditional Chinese mind-body exercises (Tai Chi, Baduanjin, Qigong, Mind-Body Therapies, and Yijinjing) in older adults with cognitive impairment were included. Two researchers independently identified eligible studies and extracted data. A risk-of-bias assessment was performed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool. Results: This study included 15 randomized controlled trials (1,127 participants) from China, Thailand and American. Most studies had a high risk of bias in the blinding of participants and researchers, one study had a high risk of bias in the random sequence generation and two studies had a high risk of bias in the incomplete outcome data. Compared with conventional therapy alone, traditional Chinese mind-body exercises significantly improved global cognitive function (p < 0.00001), and Baduanjin could improve the global cognitive function (p < 0.00001), memory function (p < 0.0001), and executive function (p < 0.0001) outcomes after treatment, and significantly improved some dimensional scores on the auditory verbal learning test after treatment (p = 0.04). Conclusion: Compared with conventional therapy, traditional Chinese mind-body exercises (Tai Chi, Baduanjin, and Qigong) significantly improved global cognitive function, and Baduanjin could improve global cognitive function, memory function, and executive function in older adults with cognitive impairment. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/#searchadvanced, CRD42022327563.

[Two new prenylated 2-arylbenzofurans from roots of Artocarpus heterophyllus and their anti-respiratory burst activities].

Two prenylated 2-arylbenzofurans were isolated from roots of Artocarpus heterophyllus, with a combination of various chromatographic approaches, including ODS, MCI, Sephadex LH-20, and semipreparative high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC). They were identified as 5-[6-hydroxy-4-methoxy-5,7-bis(3-methylbut-2-enyl)benzofuran-2-yl]-1,3-benzenediol(1) and 5-[2H,9H-2,2,9,9-tetramethyl-furo[2,3-f]pyrano[2,3-h][1]benzopyran-6-yl]-1,3-benzenediol(2) with spectroscopic methods, such as HR-ESI-MS, IR, 1D NMR, and 2D NMR, and named artoheterins B(1) and C(2), respectively. The anti-respiratory burst activities of the two compounds were evaluated with rat polymorphonuclear neutrophils(PMNs) stimulated by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate(PMA). The results showed that 1 and 2 exhibited significant inhibitory effect on respiratory burst of PMNs with IC_(50) values of 0.27 and 1.53 µmol·L~(-1), respectively.

Acupuncture therapies for cancer-related fatigue: A Bayesian network meta-analysis and systematic review.

Background: Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is one of the most commonly reported symptoms impacting cancer survivors. This study evaluated and compared the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatments for CRF. Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China Biology Medicine China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Science and Technology Journal Database, and WanFang Database from inception to November 2022 to identify eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing acupuncture treatments with sham interventions, waitlist (WL), or usual care (UC) for CRF treatment. The outcomes included the Cancer Fatigue Scale (CFS) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and pair-wise and Bayesian network meta-analyses were performed using STATA v17.0. Results: In total, 34 randomized controlled trials featuring 2632 participants were included. In the network meta-analysis, the primary analysis using CFS illustrated that point application (PA) + UC (standardized mean difference [SMD] = -1.33, 95% CI = -2.02, -0.63) had the highest probability of improving CFS, followed by manual acupuncture (MA) + PA (SMD = -1.21, 95% CI = -2.05, -0.38) and MA + UC (SMD = -0.80, 95% CI = -1.50, -0.09). Moreover, the adverse events of these interventions were acceptable. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that acupuncture was effective and safe on CRF treatment. However, further studies are still warranted by incorporating more large-scale and high-quality RCTs. Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO, identifier CRD42022339769.

Yi-Shen-Xie-Zhuo formula alleviates cisplatin-induced AKI by regulating inflammation and apoptosis via the cGAS/STING pathway.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Yi-Shen-Xie-Zhuo formula (YSXZF) is a traditional Chinese medicine prescription developed from the classic prescription Mulizexie powder documented in the book of Golden Chamber Synopsis and the Buyanghuanwu Decoction recorded in the book of Correction of Errors in Medical Classics. According to our years of clinical experience, YSXZF can effectively improve qi deficiency and blood stasis in kidney disease. However, its mechanisms need further clarification. AIM OF THE STUDY: Apoptosis and inflammation play key roles in acute kidney disease (AKI). The Yi-Shen-Xie-Zhuo formula, consisting of four herbs, is commonly used for treating renal disease. However, the underlying mechanism and bioactive components remain unexplored. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of YSXZF against apoptosis and inflammation in a cisplatin-treated mouse model, and identify the main bioactive components of YSXZF. MATERIALS AND METHODS: C57BL/6 mice were administered cisplatin (15 mg/kg) with or without YSXZF (11.375 or 22.75 g/kg/d). HKC-8 cells were treated with cisplatin (20 µM) with or without YSXZF (5% or 10%) for 24 h. Renal function, morphology, and cell damage were evaluated. UHPLC-MS was used to analyze the herbal components and metabolites in the YSXZF-containing serum. RESULTS: Blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine, serum and urine neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) levels were clearly increased in the cisplatin-treated group. Administration of YSXZF reversed these changes; it improved renal histology, downregulated kidney injury molecule 1 (KIM-1) expression, and lowered the number of TdT-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells. YSXZF significantly downregulated cleaved caspase-3 and BAX, and upregulated BCL-2 proteins in renal tissues. YSXZF suppressed increase in cGAS/STING activation and inflammation. In vitro treatment with YSXZF markedly reduced cisplatin-induced HKC-8 cell apoptosis, relieved cGAS/STING activation and inflammation, improved mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and lowered reactive oxygen species (ROS) overgeneration. Small RNA interference (siRNA)-mediated silencing of cGAS or STING inhibited the protective effects of YSXZF. Twenty-three bioactive constituents from the YSXZF-containing serum were identified as key components. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to demonstrate that YSXZF protects against AKI by suppressing inflammation and apoptosis via the cGAS/STING signaling pathway.

Case report and literature review on a large MBC with ulceration.

RATIONALE: Metaplastic breast cancer (MBC) is a rare tumor of the breast, and skin ulceration of breast tumors is a difficult clinical problem that reduces the patient's quality of life. PATIENT CONCERNS: There are currently no Standard Treatment Guidelines for MBC at present, and the treatment for the skin ulceration of breast tumors is limited in clinics. DIAGNOSIS: Here, we report the case of a patient with a large MBC and skin ulceration, accompanied by exudation and odor. INTERVENTION: The combined treatment of albumin paclitaxel and carrelizumab (anti-PD-1 immunotherapy) was effective in reducing the tumor, but it increased the severity of the skin ulceration. After taking traditional Chinese medicine, the skin ulceration healed completely. Then the patient underwent a mastectomy and radiotherapy. OUTCOMES: The patient has a high quality of life and was in good condition after the comprehensive treatment. LESSONS: This suggests that traditional Chinese medicine may have a good auxiliary therapeutic effect on the skin ulceration of MBC.

Production regions discrimination of Huangguanyin oolong tea by using the content of chemical components and rare earth elements.

Oolong tea is one of the most popular tea beverages in China. Tea cultivars, processing technology and origin of production affect the quality and price of oolong teas. To investigate the differences in Huangguanyin oolong tea from different production regions, the chemical components, mineral elements and rare earth elements of Huangguanyin oolong tea produced in Yunxiao (YX) and Wuyishan (WY) were analyzed by using spectrophotometry methods, targeted metabolomics and inductive plasma coupled mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The results of spectrophotometry methods revealed that there were significant differences in thearubigin, tea polyphenols and water extract between Huangguanyin oolong teas from different production regions. Targeted metabolomics identified a total of 31 chemical components in Huangguanyin oolong teas from the two production regions, of which 14 chemical components were significantly different and contributed to the regional differentiation of Huangguanyin oolong tea. Yunxiao Huangguanyin had relatively higher contents of (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-O-(3-O-methylgallate) (EGCG3″Me), ornithine (Orn) and histidine (His), while Wuyishan Huangguanyin had relatively higher contents of glutamic acid (Glu), γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), ß-aminobutyric acid (ß-ABA) and other components. Moreover, ICP-MS identified a total of 15 mineral elements and 15 rare earth elements in Huangguanyin oolong tea from the two production regions, of which 15 elements were significantly different between YX and WY, and contributed to the regional differentiation of Huangguanyin oolong tea. K had a relatively higher content in Yunxiao Huangguanyin, while rare earth elements had relatively higher contents in Wuyishan Huangguanyin. The classification results by the production region showed that the discrimination rate of the support vector machine (SVM) model based on the 14 different chemical components reached 88.89%, while the SVM model based on the 15 elements reached 100%. Therefore, we used targeted metabolomics and ICP-MS techniques to screen and explore the chemical components, mineral elements and rare earth elements differences among two production regions, which indicated the feasibility of Huangguanyin oolong tea classification by production regions in the study. The results will provide some reference for the distinction between the two production regions of Huangguanyin oolong tea.

Characterization of Dendrobium catenatum CBL-CIPK signaling networks and their response to abiotic stress.

Dendrobium catenatum is a traditional Chinese medicine listing as rare and endangered due to environmental impacts. But little is known about its stress resistance mechanism. The CBL-CIPK signaling pathway played vital roles in various stress responses. In this study, we identified 9 calcineurin B-like (CBL) genes and 28 CBL-interacting protein kinase (CIPK) genes from D. catenatum. Phylogenetic analysis showed that DcCBL and DcCIPK families could be divided into four and six subgroups, respectively. Members in each subgroup had similar gene structures. Cis-acting element analyses showed that these genes were involved in stress responses and hormone signaling. Spatial expression profiles showed that they were tissue-specific, and expressed lower in vegetative organs than reproductive organs. Gene expression analyses revealed that these genes were involved in drought, heat, cold, and salt responses and depended on abscisic acid (ABA) and salicylic acid (SA) signaling pathways. Furthermore, we cloned 19 DcCIPK genes and 9 DcCBL genes and detected ten interacting CBL-CIPK combinations using yeast two-hybrid system. Finally, we constructed 20 CBL-CIPK signaling pathways based on their expression patterns and interaction relationships. These results established CBL-CIPK signaling pathway responding to abiotic stress and provided a molecular basis for improving D. catenatum stress resistance in the future.

Recent trends in acupuncture for chronic pain: A bibliometric analysis and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Acupuncture has been increasingly used in patients with chronic pain, yet no bibliometric analysis of acupuncture studies for chronic pain exists. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the characteristics, hotspots and frontiers of global scientific output in acupuncture research for chronic pain over the past decade. METHODS: We retrieved publications on acupuncture for chronic pain published from 2011 to 2022 from the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-expanded) of the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC). The co-occurrence relationships of journals/countries/institutions/authors/keywords were performed using VOSviewer V6.1.2, and CiteSpace V1.6.18 analyzed the clustering and burst analysis of keywords and co-cited references. RESULTS: A total of 1616 articles were retrieved. The results showed that the number of annual publications on acupuncture for chronic pain has increased over time, with the main types of literature being original articles (1091 articles, 67.5 %) and review articles (351 articles, 21.7 %). China had the most publications (598 articles, 37 %), with Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (93 articles, 5.8 %) and Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ranked first (169 articles, 10.45 %) as the most prolific affiliate and journal, respectively. Liang FR was the most productive author (43 articles), and the article published by Vickers Andrew J in 2012 had the highest number of citations (625 citations). Recently, "acupuncture" and "pain" appeared most frequently. The hot topics in acupuncture for chronic pain based on keywords clustering analysis were experimental design, hot diseases, interventions, and mechanism studies. According to burst analysis, the main research frontiers were functional connectivity (FC), depression, and risk. CONCLUSION: This study provides an in-depth perspective on acupuncture for chronic pain studies, revealing pivotal points, research hotspots, and research trends. Valuable ideas are provided for future research activities.

Two new dammarane triterpenoid saponins from the leaves of Cyclocarya paliurus.

Two undescribed dammarane triterpenoid saponins, cypaliurusides O and P (1 and 2), were isolated from the ethanol extracts of the leaves of Cyclocarya paliurus. Bioactivity assay results showed that compound 1 has potential cytotoxic activities against selected human cancer cell lines in vitro, with IC50 values ranging from 14.55 ± 0.55 to 22.75 ± 1.54 µM. Compound 1 showed better antitumor activity against HepG2 cells with IC50 of 14.55 ± 0.55 µM. In addition, compound 2 showed no obvious antitumor activity.

Plant biomass responses to elevated CO2 are mediated by phosphorus uptake.

Elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations [CO2] potentially alter carbon (C) and phosphorus (P) cycles in terrestrial ecosystems. Although numerous field experiments and a few meta-analyses have been conducted, it is still largely unclear how the P cycle affects plant biomass responses under elevated [CO2] globally. Here, we conducted a global synthesis by analyzing 111 studies on the responses of above- and belowground P cycling to elevated [CO2], to examine how changes in the P cycle affect the plant biomass response to elevated [CO2]. Our results show that elevated [CO2] significantly increased plant aboveground biomass (+13 %), stem biomass (+4 %), leaf biomass (+11 %), belowground biomass (+12 %), and the root: shoot ratio (+7 %). Effects of elevated [CO2] on aboveground biomass, belowground biomass, and root: shoot ratio were best explained by plant P uptake. In addition, elevated [CO2]-induced changes in the aboveground P pool, leaf P pool, and leaf P concentration were modulated by ecological drivers, such as ΔCO2, experimental duration, and aridity index. Our findings highlight the importance of plant P uptake for both above- and belowground plant biomass responses under elevated [CO2], which should be considered in future biosphere models to improve predictions of terrestrial carbon-climate feedbacks.

Unusual sesquilignans with anti-inflammatory activities from the resin of Ferula sinkiangensis.

Sinkianlignans A - D (1-4), four new sesquilignans with an unusual architectures was characterized with a rarely α-γ', ß-γ', and γ-γ' linkage pattern, and sinkianlignans E - F (5 and 6), two lignans, were isolated from the Ferula sinkiangensis. Hypothetic biosynthetic pathway of compound 3 contain a newly formed six-membered C-ring by Diels-Alder cycloaddition. The structures of isolates were established by spectroscopic techniques and computational methods. Biological evaluation of all the isolated compounds revealed that compounds 2a and 2b could inhibit IL-6 and TNF-α production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced RAW264.7 cells in a dose-dependent manner.