High salt diet inhibits the expression of Bmal1 and promotes atrial fibrosis and vulnerability to atrial fibrillation in Dahl salt sensitive rats.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a risk factor for atrial fibrillation (AF), and brain and muscle arnt-like protein 1 (Bmal1) regulate circadian blood pressure and is implicated in several fibrotic disorders. Our hypothesis that Bmal1 inhibits atrial fibrosis and susceptibility to AF in salt-sensitive hypertension (SSHT) and our study provide a new target for the pathogenesis of AF induced by hypertension. METHODS: The study involved 7-week-old male Dahl salt-sensitive that were fed either a high-salt diet (8% NaCl; DSH group) or a normal diet (0.3% NaCl; DSN group). An experimental model was used to measure systolic blood pressure (SBP), left atrial ejection fraction (LAEF), left atrial end-volume index (LAEVI), left atrial index (LAFI), AF inducibility, AF duration, and atrial fibrosis pathological examination and the expression of Baml1 and fibrosis-related proteins (TNF-α and α-SMA) in left atrial tissue. RESULTS: DSH increased TNF-α and α-SMA expression in atrial tissue, level of SBP and LAESVI, atrial fibrosis, AF induction rate and AF duration, and decreased Bmal1 expression in atrial tissue, circadian rhythm of hypertension and level of LAEF and LAFI. Our results also showed that the degree of atrial fibrosis was negatively correlated with Bmal1 expression, but positively correlated with the expression of TNF-α and α-SMA. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that a high-salt diet leads to circadian changes in hypertension due to reduction Bmal1 expression, which plays a crucial role in atrial fibrosis and increased susceptibility to AF in SSHT rats.

The consistency and application value of MRI-based ovarian-adnexal reporting and data system in the diagnosis of ovarian adnexal masses / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To explore the consistency of MRI-based ovarian-adnexal report and data system (O-RADS) score and its diagnostic value for ovarian adnexal masses.Methods:The MRI data of 309 patients with ovarian adnexal masses confirmed by pathology were retrospectively collected from January 2017 to August 2021 in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, including 327 lesions consisted of 250 benign lesions, 21 borderline lesions, and 56 malignant lesions confirmed by pathology. Borderline and malignant lesions were classified into the malignant group ( n=77) and benign lesions were classified as benign group ( n=250). Two radiologists scored all lesions according to the MRI-based O-RADS, and scored again after 6 months. The proportion of borderline/malignant lesions in each MRI-based O-RADS score was calculated. The weighted Kappa test was used to assess the intra-reader and inter-reader consistency of the image interpretation results. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of MRI-based O-RADS classification for distinguishing benign and malignant ovarian adnexal masses. Results:The weighted Kappa value of the MRI-based O-RADS score between the two radiologists was 0.810 (95%CI 0.764-0.855), and the weighted Kappa values of the two radiologists′ scores at different times were 0.848 (95%CI 0.806-0.889) and 0.875 (95%CI 0.835-0.914), respectively. The borderline/malignant lesions accounted for 0/16, 0.8% (1/127), 10.1% (10/99), 76.0% (57/75), 9/10 and 0/17, 0 (0/122), 8.0% (8/100), 76.2% (48/63), and 84.0% (21/25) of the lesions in the two radiologists based on the MRI O-RADS score of 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively. When adopting O-RADS score>3 as a cut-off value, the area under the ROC curve of the two radiologists for distinguishing benign and malignant ovarian adnexal masses was 0.928 (95%CI 0.895-0.954) and 0.942 (95%CI 0.911-0.965), respectively. The sensitivity was 0.857 and 0.896, the specificity was 0.924 and 0.924, and the accuracy was 0.908 and 0.917 respectively.Conclusion:The MRI-based O-RADS yields high diagnostic efficiency in the evaluation of benign and malignant ovarian adnexal masses, and the intra-reader and inter-reader consistency of the image interpretation is strong.

Comparison of Functional Status Between Diabetic Patients With and Without Nephropathy Based on the International Classification of Functioning,Disability and Health Rehabilitation Set / 中国医学科学院学报

Objective To compare the functional status of diabetic patients with and without nephropathy and identify the items that diabetic patients with nephropathy are more likely to develop dysfunction than diabetic patients without nephropathy based on the international classification of functioning,disability and health rehabilitation set(ICF-RS).Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted.A total of 320 diabetic patients hospitalized in Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine from August 2021 to February 2022 were selected and assigned into a group with nephropathy and a group without nephropathy.The general characteristics,clinical examination,and laboratory findings were compared by the t test,rank sum test,and Chi-squared test.The functional status of the patients was compared between the two groups by the t test based on the ICF-RS.Logistic regression was employed to control interferential factors between the two groups and identify the association between nephropathy and ICF-RS problematic items among diabetic patients.Results The diabetic patients with nephropathy had more problematic items in ICF-RS(P<0.001),the body function dimension(P=0.003),the activity dimension(P<0.001),and the participation dimension(P<0.001)than those without nephropathy.Moreover,the diabetic patients with nephropathy experienced severer problems in 5 body function items(energy and drive functions,sleep functions,sexual functions,exercise tolerance functions,and muscle power functions),10 activity items(transferring oneself,walking,moving around using equipment,moving around,washing oneself,caring for body parts,toileting,dressing,doing housework,and looking after one's health),and 4 participation items(using transportation,assisting others,basic interpersonal interactions,and recreation and leisure)(all P<0.05).The Logistic regression results showed that compared with the diabetic patients without nephropathy,the diabetic patients with nephropathy were more likely to develop problems in energy and drive functions(aOR=4.35,95%CI=1.28-14.79,P=0.019),emotional functions(aOR=1.88,95%CI=1.06-3.34,P=0.031),sexual functions(aOR=3.39,95%CI=1.82-6.34,P<0.001),moving around(aOR=3.11,95%CI=1.76-5.52,P<0.001),doing housework(aOR=17.48,95%CI=3.57-85.60,P<0.001),looking after one's health(aOR=1.97,95%CI=1.13-3.43,P=0.017),using transportation(aOR=2.59,95%CI=1.38-4.88,P=0.003),and recreation and leisure(aOR=2.52,95%CI=1.46-4.35,P<0.001).Conclusion Compared with the diabetic patients without nephropathy,the patients with nephropathy suffer more ICF-RS problematic items and are more likely to develop dysfunction in certain items in all the three dimensions.

Analysis of Nosocomial Infection in a Cancer Hospital from 2019 to 2021 / 中山大学学报(医学科学版)

ObjectiveTo understand the situation of nosocomial infection in cancer hospitals and its changing trend， so as to provide a basis for adjusting the focus of nosocomial infection prevention and control in cancer hospitals. MethodsData of nosocomial infection quality control indices of Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center from 2019 to 2021 were obtained through the nosocomial infection monitoring system， and the changes of these indices across the three years were analyzed by Chi-square test and Cochran-Armitage trend test. ResultsFrom 2019 to 2021， the incidence rates of nosocomial infection in this hospital were 0.80%， 0.78% and 0.57%， which decreased significantly year by year （P<0.001）. Among them， surgical site and respiratory system infection were more common， accounting for 35.75% and 31.08%， respectively. Gram-negative bacteria and fungi were the main pathogens. The incidence rate of multidrug-resistant bacteria in hospital increased year by year， from 0.08‰ to 0.14‰ （P<0.001）， among which methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus， carbapenem-resistant Enterobacter and bacteria producing ultra-broad spectrum β-lactamase （ESBLs） bacteria increased significantly. The incidence rates of three-tube associated infections were no different across 3 years （P>0.05）， which were still at high levels. ConclusionFrom 2019 to 2021， the prevention and control of nonsocomial infection in the cancer hospital has been improved overall. Meanwhile， the infections of respiratory system and surgical sites， ESBLs related multidrug-resistant bacteria and three-tube are weak links in cancer specialized hospitals， which need to be emphasized and improved.

Gallium-Based Liquid Metal Materials for Antimicrobial Applications.

The hazards caused by drug-resistant bacteria are rocketing along with the indiscriminate use of antibiotics. The development of new non-antibiotic antibacterial drugs is urgent. The excellent biocompatibility and diverse multifunctionalities of liquid metal have stimulated the studies of antibacterial application. Several gallium-based antimicrobial agents have been developed based on the mechanism that gallium (a type of liquid metal) ions disorder the normal metabolism of iron ions. Other emerging strategies, such as physical sterilization by directly using LM microparticles to destroy the biofilm of bacteria or thermal destruction via infrared laser irradiation, are gaining increasing attention. Different from traditional antibacterial agents of gallium compounds, the pronounced property of gallium-based liquid metal materials would bring innovation to the antibacterial field. Here, LM-based antimicrobial mechanisms, including iron metabolism disorder, production of reactive oxygen species, thermal injury, and mechanical destruction, are highlighted. Antimicrobial applications of LM-based materials are summarized and divided into five categories, including liquid metal motors, antibacterial fabrics, magnetic field-responsive microparticles, liquid metal films, and liquid metal polymer composites. In addition, future opportunities and challenges towards the development and application of LM-based antimicrobial materials are presented.

PLK1 promotes cholesterol efflux and alleviates atherosclerosis by up-regulating ABCA1 and ABCG1 expression via the AMPK/PPARγ/LXRα pathway.

Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) is a serine/threonine kinase involving lipid metabolism and cardiovascular disease. However, its role in atherogenesis has yet to be determined. The aim of this study was to observe the impact of PLK1 on macrophage lipid accumulation and atherosclerosis development and to explore the underlying mechanisms. We found a significant reduction of PLK1 expression in lipid-loaded macrophages and atherosclerosis model mice. Lentivirus-mediated overexpression of PLK1 promoted cholesterol efflux and inhibited lipid accumulation in THP-1 macrophage-derived foam cells. Mechanistic analysis revealed that PLK1 stimulated the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), leading to activation of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ)/liver X receptor α (LXRα) pathway and up-regulation of ATP binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) and ABCG1 expression. Injection of lentiviral vector expressing PLK1 increased reverse cholesterol transport, improved plasma lipid profiles and decreased atherosclerotic lesion area in apoE-deficient mice fed a Western diet. PLK1 overexpression also facilitated AMPK and HSL phosphorylation and enhanced the expression of PPARγ, LXRα, ABCA1, ABCG1 and LPL in the aorta. In summary, these data suggest that PLK1 inhibits macrophage lipid accumulation and mitigates atherosclerosis by promoting ABCA1- and ABCG1-dependent cholesterol efflux via the AMPK/PPARγ/LXRα pathway.

Effects of shrimp pond effluent on functional traits and functional diversity of mangroves in Zhangjiang Estuary.

In recent years, the scale of shrimp ponds has rapidly increased adjacent to mangrove forests. Discharge of shrimp pond effluent has led to degradation of the surrounding environment and reduction of biodiversity in the estuary. But it remains poorly understood how shrimp pond effluent affects functional traits and functional diversity of mangroves. We sampled roots, stems and leaves of Kandelia obovata and other mangrove plants, as well as sediments and pore water from shrimp pond effluent polluted area (P) and clean area (control area, C) in Zhangjiang Estuary in southeast coast of China. Twenty plant functional traits and six functional diversity indices were analyzed to explore the effects of shrimp pond effluent on individual plants and mangrove communities. The results showed that the discharge of shrimp pond effluent significantly affected the nutrient content in soils and pore water, for example, sediment NH4+ and NO3- concentration increased from 0.26 ± 0.06 to 0.77 ± 0.29 mg/g and from 0.05 ± 0.03 to 0.16 ± 0.05 mg/g, respectively, when comparing the C and P site. Furthermore, some mangrove plant functional traits such as plant height, diameter at breast height, canopy thickness and specific leaf area were significantly increased by the effluent discharge. Functional diversity in the polluted area reduced as a whole compared to the control area. In particular, ammonium and nitrate nitrogen input is the main reason to induce the changes of plant functional traits and functional diversity. Besides, the community structure changed from functional differentiation to functional convergence after shrimp pond effluent discharge. In addition, the long-term shrimp pond effluent discharge may lead to the ecological strategy shift of K. obovata, while different organs may adopt different ways of nutrient uptake and growth strategies in the face of effluent disturbance. In conclusion, pollution from shrimp pond does affect the functional traits of mangrove plants and functional diversity of mangrove community. These results provide strong evidence to assess the impact of effluent discharges on mangrove plants and provide theoretical basis for conservation and sustainable development of mangroves.

Ammonium has stronger Cd detoxification ability than nitrate by reducing Cd influx and increasing Cd fixation in Solanum nigrum L.

Cadmium (Cd) is a harmful heavy metal that affects the growth and development of plants. Nitrogen (N) is an essential nutrient for plants, and appropriate N management can improve Cd tolerance. The aim of our study was to explore the effects of different forms of N on the molecular and physiological responses of the hyperaccumulator Solanum nigrum to Cd toxicity. Measurement of biomass, photosynthetic parameters, and Cd2+ fluxes using non-invasive micro-test technique, Cd fluorescent dying, biochemical methods and quantitative real-time PCR analysis were performed in our study. Our results showed that ammonium (NH4+) has stronger Cd detoxification ability than nitrate (NO3-), which are likely attributed to the following three reasons: (1) NH4+ decreased the influx and accumulation of Cd2+ by regulating the transcription of Cd transport-related genes; (2) the ameliorative effects of NH4+ were accompanied by the increased retention of Cd in the cell walls of roots; and (3) NH4+ up-regulated SnExp expression.

G6PD Regulates Cyclin E1 and CDK2 to Promote Cell Proliferation and Its Prognostic Value in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma / 中国生物化学与分子生物学报

Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) has been proved to be a metabolic disease with high

Flexible Wearables for Plants.

The excellent stretchability and biocompatibility of flexible sensors have inspired an emerging field of plant wearables, which enable intimate contact with the plants to continuously monitor the growth status and localized microclimate in real-time. Plant flexible wearables provide a promising platform for the development of plant phenotype and the construction of intelligent agriculture via monitoring and regulating the critical physiological parameters and microclimate of plants. Here, the emerging applications of plant flexible wearables together with their pros and cons from four aspects, including physiological indicators, surrounding environment, crop quality, and active control of growth, are highlighted. Self-powered energy supply systems and signal transmission mechanisms are also elucidated. Furthermore, the future opportunities and challenges of plant wearables are discussed in detail.

Clinical and immunological characteristics of 88 cases of overlap myositis / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the clinical and immunological characteristics of overlap myositis (OM) patients.@*METHODS@#The data of 368 patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) admitted to Peking University People's Hospital from January 2004 to August 2020 were analyzed retrospectively, including demographic characteristics, clinical characteristics (including fever, Gottron' s sign/papules, Heliotrope rash, V-sign, Shawl sign, Mechanic' s hands, skin ulceration, periungual erythema, subcutaneous calcinosis, dysphagia, myalgia, myasthenia, arthritis, Raynaud' s phenomenon, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary hypertension and myocardial involvement), laboratory characteristics, immunological characteristics [including antinuclear antibodies, rheumatoid factors, myositis-associated autoantibodies (MAAs) and myositis-specific autoantibodies (MSAs)] and survival. The clinical and immunological characteristics and prognostic differences of OM and non-OM were compared. The Kaplan-Meier and Log Rank methods were used to analyze the survival.@*RESULTS@#A total of 368 patients were included. 23.9% (88/368) of IIMs patients were OM patients. Among the 88 OM patients, 85.2% (75/88) of them were female, and the median interval between disease onset and diagnosis was 13.5 months. The incidence of overlapped connective tissue diseases in the OM patients was dermatomyositis (DM) in 60.2%, polymyositis (PM) in 3.4%, immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy (IMNM) in 2.3% and anti-synthetase syndrome (ASS) in 34.1%. Compared with the non-OM patients, the proportion of the females in the OM patients was higher (85.2% vs. 72.1%, P=0.016), the OM patients had longer disease duration [13.5(4.5, 48.0) months vs. 4.0(2.0, 12.0) months, P < 0.001]. As for clinical characteristics, compared with the non-OM patients, the incidence of V-sign (25.0% vs. 44.6%, P=0.001) and periungual erythema (8.0% vs. 19.6%, P=0.013) were lower; the incidence of Raynaud's phenomenon (14.8% vs. 1.8%, P < 0.001), interstitial pneumonia (88.6% vs. 72.1%, P=0.001), pulmonary hypertension (22.7% vs. 7.5%, P < 0.001) and myocardial involvement (18.2% vs. 9.3%, P=0.033) were higher. As for immunological characteristics, compared with the non-OM patients, the incidence of elevated aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (31.8% vs. 45.0%, P=0.035) was lower and elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) (58.0% vs. 44.6%, P=0.037) was higher; the positive rates of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) (85.1% vs. 63.4%, P=0.001) and rheumatoid factors (RF) (40.2% vs. 17.8%, P < 0.001) and anti-Ro-52 (71.6% vs. 56.1%, P=0.038) in serum were higher. There was no significant difference in the survival between the OM patients and non-OM patients.@*CONCLUSION@#Pulmonary hypertension and myocardial involvement were frequently observed in OM.

Clinical and immunological characteristics of patients with anti-synthetase syndrome complicated with cardiac involvement / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the clinical and immunological features of cardiac involvement in patients with anti-synthetase syndrome (ASS).@*METHODS@#In the study, 96 patients diagnosed with ASS hospitalized in the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Peking University People's Hospital from April 2003 to November 2020 were included. The patients were divided into two groups according to whether they were accompanied with cardiac involvement. Demographic features, clinical characteristics (Gottron's sign/papules, muscle damage, etc.), comorbidities, laboratory indices (creatine kinase, inflammatory indicators, immunoglobulin, complement, lymphocyte subset, autoantibodies, etc.) were collected and the differences between the two groups were analyzed statistically.@*RESULTS@#The prevalence of cardiac involvement in the patients with ASS was 25.0% (24/96). The ASS patients complicated with cardiac involvement presented with elevated cardiac troponin I (cTnI, 75.0%, 18/24), pericardial effusion (33.3%, 8/24), reduction of left ventricular function (33.3%, 8/24) and valves regurgitation (33.3%, 8/24). The age of onset of the patients with cardiac involvement was older than that of the patients without cardiac involvement [(54.58±10.58) years vs. (48.47±13.22) years, P=0.043). Arthritis was observed less frequently in the patients with cardiac involvement than those without cardiac involvement (37.5% vs. 61.1%, P=0.044). In addition, rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (54.2% vs. 30.6%, P=0.037) was observed more frequently in the patients with cardiac involvement than those without cardiac involvement. As compared with the ASS patients without cardiac involvement, C-reactive protein (CRP) [(13.55 (8.96, 38.35) mg/L vs. 4.60 (1.37, 17.40) mg/L, P=0.001], and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) [408.0 (255.0, 587.0) U/L vs. 259.5 (189.8, 393.8) U/L, P=0.007] were significantly higher in the patients with cardiac involvement. Anti-Ro-52 antibody was detected more commonly in the ASS patients with cardiac involvement compared with the patients without cardiac involvement (91.7% vs. 69.4%, P=0.029). No significant differences were found in the comorbidities, alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), creatine kinase (CK), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), ferritin (Fer), immunoglobulin G (IgG), complement 3 (C3), complement 4 (C4), lymphocyte subset between the two groups.@*CONCLUSION@#Cardiac involvement is common in ASS, mainly manifested as myocardial damage. It is necessary to be aware of cardiac complications in patients with elevated CRP, elevated LDH and positive anti-Ro-52 antibody.

Low-Temperature Triggered Shape Transformation of Liquid Metal Microdroplets.

Shape transformable materials that can respond to external environments have attracted widespread interest over the fields of soft robotics, flexible electronics, and tissue engineering. Among stimuli-responsive materials, liquid metals exhibit rather unique characteristics of versatile morphological changes upon diverse stimuli, including chemicals, electrical field, and mechanical force, etc. Herein, a superfast (few milliseconds), large-scaled (13.8% deformation increase), and fierce (cracks formation) transformation of liquid metal microdroplets (LMMs) with strong impulse expanded force due to liquid-solid phase transition in a dual fluid system composed of LMMs and aqueous solution is reported. When subject to low-temperature stimulus, LMM would transform from ellipsoidal shape to amorphous shape induced by thermal stress, driving the shape morphing. Furthermore, the phase changes of LMMs as well as the formation of surrounding ice crystals are proven to be responsible for this phenomenal behavior. The densification of ice crystals is demonstrated to play a significant role in the transformable behavior. In particular, these nonconductive LMMs in aqueous solutions are discovered to turn into conducive materials with an impedance change of about 105 times. The present discovery is of fundamental and practical significance, and would open new venues in fields such as fluid mechanics, thermal science, flexible electronics, biomedicine, and so forth.

Pharmacological Mechanism of Xiao Xianxiongtang in Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Based on Network Pharmacology / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective::To explore the pharmacological mechanism of Xiao Xianxiongtang in treating type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) by network pharmacology. Method::The main active ingredients, corresponding targets and target genes of Xiao Xianxiongtang were searched on Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP) website. Relevant target genes of T2DM were obtained through Gene Cards. The targets of drug active ingredients were mapped to the targets of T2DM, and the intersection targets were obtained as the predictive targets of Xiao Xianxiongtang on T2DM. Cytoscape 3.7.1 software was used to construct the drug active ingredient-intersection target network model and select the key active ingredients. Interactive protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was constructed by STRING website, and key target genes were selected. Gene function analysis (GO) and enrichment analysis based on the Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway were performed on the intersecting targets using DAVID6.8 online tool. Result::Xiao Xianxiongtang had 30 active ingredients, 156 relevant targets, 14 key active ingredients and 18 key target genes on T2DM. GO analysis showed that the biological functions of Xiao Xianxiongtang in the treatment of potential genes of T2DM mainly involved transcriptional regulation, oxidative stress, protein binding and inflammatory reaction. KEGG pathway enrichment showed that the main pathways of Xiao Xianxiongtang in the treatment of T2DM were hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) signaling pathway, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathway, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway and thyroid hormone signaling pathway, phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) signaling pathway, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, tyrosine kinase receptor2(ErbB) signaling pathway, calcium signaling pathway and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) signaling pathway. Conclusion: Xiao Xianxiongtang is a multi-component, multi-target and multi-pathway process in the treatment of T2DM. It plays an important role in the treatment of T2DM by regulating transcription, oxidative stress, protein binding and inflammatory reaction. Conclusion::The mechanism of Xiao Xianxiongtang in treating T2DM may alleviate insulin resistance, increase insulin sensitivity and reduce blood sugar by inhibiting the secretion of inflammatory factors, participating in anti-inflammatory response, reducing oxidative stress, increasing intracellular calcium concentration, blocking glucagon signaling pathway and activating PI3K/Akt pathway.

Gait Characteristics of Staircase Walking of Old and Young Adults under Dual Task Situation / 中国康复理论与实践

Objective:To compare the biomechanical characteristics and cognitive task performance of the young and the old adults as ascending and descending staircase. Methods:From March to April, 2018, 25 volunteers, including twelve old persons aged (71.54±3.25) and 13 young persons aged (22.24±1.56), were tested with continuous minus seven as sitting (pre-test), walking up and down stairs, walking up and down stairs with continuous minus seven and continuous minus seven as sitting again (post-test). Results:The performance of continuous minus seven was better as walking up stairs and post-test than pre-test in the old persons, and it was better as both up and down stairs, as well as post-test than pre-test in the young persons. As walking up stairs, the main effects of both age (F > 5.037,P < 0.05) and task (F > 6.122,P < 0.05) were significant in walking time, step length, frequency and speed; while walking down stairs, the main effects of both age (F > 17.252,P < 0.01) and task (F > 6.274,P < 0.05) were significant in walking time, step frequency and speed. Conclusion:People would alter the focus on cognitive tasks according to the difficulty of the action. The old adults would be more conservative in the action as upstair during the dual task, and would pay less attention to cognitive task additionally as downstair.

Mechanism of Modified Taohe Chengqitang in Treating Diabetic Gastroparesis Based on Network Pharmacology / 中国实验方剂学杂志

<b>Objective::To study the mechanism of modified Taohe Chengqitang in preventing and treating diabetic gastroparesis by regulating relative genes and signaling pathways based on network pharmacology. <b>Method::Target genes of modified Taohe Chengqitang were obtained from Bioinformatics Analysis Tool for Molecular Mechanism of TCM (BATMAN-TCM) database, and target genes of diabetic gastroparesis were obtained from Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD) database. The target genes of modified Taohe Chengqitang-diabetic gastroparesis intersection protein were obtained through the integration of two groups of genes. STRING was used to build the protein-protein interaction network and visualize the results. Cytospace software ClueGO, CluePedia plug-in were used for gene ontology (GO) analysis and enrichment analysis of KEGG pathway of modified Taohe Chengqitang-diabetic gastroparesis target genes intersection, and results were visualized. Finally, CTD database and literatures were used to obtain intersection genes in the treatment of diabetic gastroparesis. <b>Result::Among 621 target genes in modified Taohe Chengqitang, 25 were related to diabetic gastroparesis. By regulating expressions of MLNR, SST, PTGS1, HRH2, HTR3A, HTR4, HTR7, NOS3 and other intersection genes, Taohe Chengqitang could improve the gastrointestinal hormone levels, affected the combination of serotonin and its receptors, activated adenylate cyclase (AC), and induced cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and protein kinase A (PKA), so as to activiate AC/cAMP/PKA signaling pathway, regulate Ca²⁺ /K⁺ channel, control ion balance, promote the adaptability of gastric smooth muscle, and contract gastric smooth muscle to regulate gastric volume. At the same time, gastric acid secretion was improved to protect gastric mucosa, which may help improve vasoconstriction and hemodynamics. <b>Conclusion::Based on the network pharmacology, modified Taohe Chengqitang has multiple mechanisms in the prevention and treatment of diabetic gastroparesis. This study explored relevant signaling pathways, advantages and research directions of modified Taohe Chengqitang in treatment of diabetic gastroparesis.

Clinical and immunological characteristics of myositis complicated with thromboembolism / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate and analyse the clinical and immunological features of patients with myositis complicated with thromboembolism.@*METHODS@#We identified a cohort of 390 myositis patients diagnosed with myositis admitted to People's Hospital of Peking University from 2003 to 2019. The patients were retrospectively enrolled in this investigation. According to the outcome of the color Doppler ultrasound, CT pulmonary angiography, pulmonary ventilation and perfusion scan patients were divided into myositis with and without thromboembolism group. Demographic, clinical (heliotrope rash, Gottron's sign/papules, periungual erythema, skin ulceration, subcutaneous calcinosis, Mechanic's hands, myalgia, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary arterial hypertension), laboratory, immunological [anti-autoantibodies including melanoma differentiation associated gene 5 (anti-MDA5), anti-Mi-2, anti-transcription intermediary factor-1γ (anti-TIF-1γ, anti-nuclear matrix protein 2 (anti-NXP2), anti-small ubiquitin-like modifier activating enzyme (anti-SAE), anti-synthetase], imaging and therapeutic status data of the patients at the diagnosis of myositis with and without thromboembolism were collected and the differences in these data were analyzed. Logistic regressive analysis was used to identify the risk factors of thromboembolism.@*RESULTS@#In the retrospective study, 390 myositis patients were investigated. The mean age of onset was (49.6±13.4) years, male to female ratio was 0.31 :1. Thromboembolism was identified in 4.62% (18/390) of the myositis patients, which was lower than the published reports. Out of 18 patients with thromboembolism, 55.6% (10/18) of them were deep venous thrombosis, followed by cerebral infarction (22.2%, 4/18), pulmonary embolism (11.1%, 2/18), renal artery embolism (5.6%, 1/18) and embolism of upper extremity (5.6%, 1/18). Fifty percent of thromboembolism events occurred 6 months after the diagnosis of myositis, 38.9% of thromboembolism events occurred 6 months within the diagnosis of myositis, 11.1% of thromboembolism events occurred 6 months before the diagnosis of myositis. As compared with the myositis patients without thromboembolism, the myositis patients complicated with thromboembolism were older [(58.3±11.7) years vs. (49.3±13.4) years, P=0.006]. C-reaction protein (CRP) (12.2 mg/L vs. 4.1 mg/L, P < 0.001), ferritin (20 085.5 μg/L vs. 216.6 μg/L, P < 0.001) and D-dimer (529.0 μg/L vs. 268.0 μg/L, P=0.002) were significantly higher in thromboembolism group. Diabetes (44.4% vs. 16.4%, P=0.006), coronary heart disease (22.2% vs. 3.0%, P=0.003) and surgery (16.7% vs. 3.5%, P=0.032) were observed more common in thromboembolism group than those without thromboembolism. Activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) (26.9 s vs. 28.7 s, P=0.049) and albumin (32.4 g/L vs. 36.5 g/L, P=0.002) was lower in thromboembolism group. The risk factors of thromboembolism in the myositis patients were low level of albumin (OR=0.831, 95%CI: 0.736-0.939, P=0.003), diabetes (OR=4.468, 95%CI: 1.382-14.448, P=0.012), and coronary heart disease (OR=22.079, 95%CI: 3.589-135.837, P=0.001) were independent significant risk factors for thromboembolism in the patients with myositis. There was no significant difference in clinical manifestations, myositis-specific antibodies or myositis-associated antibodies between the two groups.@*CONCLUSION@#Thromboembolism is a complication of myositis. Lower levels of albumin, diabetes, and coronary heart disease might be risk factors of thromboembolism in myositis patients.

Large-Magnitude Transformable Liquid-Metal Composites.

Most of the existing robots would find it difficult to stretch and transform all parts of their body together due to rigid components and complex actuation mechanisms inside. Here, we presented a highly transformable liquid-metal composite (LMC) that is easy to change shape in large magnitude and resume its original state again according to need. When subject to heating, part of the ethanol droplets embedded in the composite would change phase and then actuate. We demonstrate the flexible transformation of LMC-made octopus from a two-dimensional shape into several predictable three-dimensional shapes freely on a large scale (even up to 11 times its initial height) through remote wireless heating, which needs no sophisticated operating system at all. Further, several designed behaviors, such as movement of octopus and entangling objects of soft robots, are also realized. Theoretical analysis of the heating-induced liquid-vapor transition of the embedded ethanol droplet interprets the mechanisms involved. The present findings open a new way to fabricate functional transformable composites that would find significant applications in developing future generation soft robots.

Study on Mechanism of Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang in Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Based on Network Pharmacology / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective: To explore the mechanism of Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus based on network pharmacology. Method: Major chemical constituents, corresponding targets and target genes of Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang were obtained by Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology(TCMSP), and target genes of type 2 diabetes mellitus were obtained by GeneCards. The target genes of drug and disease were mapped to predict target genes of Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang for type 2 diabetes mellitus. Cytoscape3.7.1 software was used to construct the compound-target network and protein-protein interaction network (PPI) of traditional Chinese medicine. Gene ontology (GO) analysis of potential genes and enrichment analysis of gene encyclopedia kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway were carried out using DAVID 6.8 online tool. Result: There were 17 active ingredients, 94 related targets, 17 key active ingredients and 16 key targets in Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang on type 2 diabetes mellitus. GO analysis showed that the biological functions of potential genes of Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang in the treatment of type 2 diabetes were mainly related to oxidative stress, apoptosis, protein binding, inflammatory reaction, et al. KEGG pathway enrichment results showed that the pathways of potential genes of Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mainly involved hypoxia inducible factor(HIF), tumor necrosis factor(TNF), phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/protein kinase B(PI3K/Akt), nuclear transcription factor-кB(NF-кB), and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) signaling pathways. Conclusion: Dahuang Huanglian Xiexintang is a complex process of multi-component, multi-target and multi-pathway in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. It plays an important role in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus by participating in oxidative stress, apoptosis, protein binding and inflammatory reaction.

Natural Law and Pathogenesis Based on Wufang Circular Motion / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Various academic discussions have been officially proposed in the " theory of circular motion" in Circular Motion of Ancient Chinese Medicine. The theory of circular motion reflects the inheritance and development of the theory of Yin-Yang and five elements in ancient Chinese medicine, which has a great significance in the modern basic theory research and clinical practice of traditional Chinese medicine. On the basis of ancient literatures, this article aims to discuss the natural law of circular motion from the perspectives of the path of sun and 24-solar-terms of seasons via five-elements and Wufang circular motion theory according to circular motion. The circular motion has an effect on human body and natural environment. The invasion of pathogen is caused by deficiency of essential Qi. The combination of the healthy-Qi deficiency with the deficiency-type pathogen leads to the occurrence of external contraction. Therefore, the abnormality of Yang-Qi including nature and human is the main cause of the disease's development. Because the circular motion can expound the change rule and mutual relations of nature and human, we can predict the development of disease by it. When the circulation motion is disordered, clinical symptoms appear with inner pathogenesis. The understanding of the change of the circulation motion is helpful for us to have a deeper realization of the disease, grasp the pathogenesis and provide treatment based on syndrome differentiation. The authors explain nature environment and human physiology, and elaborate the relations between natural rule and Wufang's effect on circulation motion, in order to provide certain suggestions to guide clinical treatment based on pathogenesis.