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Objective: To comprehensively evaluate the renal structure and function of patients with renal artery stenosis (RAS) using multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and analyze the correlation between magnetic resonance (MR) parameters and renal function., Materials and Methods: Renal multiparametric MRI was conducted on 62 patients with RAS utilizing a Philips Ingenia CX 3.0 T MRI system. The scanning protocols encompassed arterial spin labeling, phase contrast MRI, diffusion weighted imaging, T1 mapping, and blood oxygen level-dependent MRI. All patients underwent radionuclide renal dynamic imaging to calculate the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) for assessing renal function., Results: Most MR parameters were correlated with GFR: renal parenchymal volume (R = 0.603), whole kidney renal blood flow (RBF) (R = 0.192), renal cortical RBF (R = 0.294), renal artery mean velocity (R = 0.593), stroke volume (R = 0.599), mean flux (R = 0.629), renal cortical apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) (R = 0.466), medullary ADC (R = 0.332), cortical T1 value (R = - 0.206), corticomedullary T1 difference (R = 0.204), cortical T2 * value (R = 0.448), and medullary T2 * value (R = 0.272). The best prediction model for GFR using multiparametric MRI was obtained, including renal PV, whole kidney RBF, cortical RBF, mean velocity, mean flux, and CMD T1., Conclusion: Multiparametric MRI is a novel noninvasive examination method that can effectively and comprehensively assess the renal structure and function of RAS., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Mania has caused incalculable economic losses for patients, their families, and even society, but there is currently no effective treatment plan for this disease without side effects., Methods: Using bioinformatics and Mendelian randomization methods, potential drug target genes and key substances associated with mania were explored at the mRNA level. We used the chip expression profile from the GEO database to screen differential genes and used the eQTL and mania GWAS data from the IEU database for two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) to determine core genes by colocalization. Next, we utilized bioinformatics analysis to identify key substances involved in the mechanism of action and determined related gene targets as drug targets., Results: After differential expression analysis and MR, a causal relationship between the expression of 46 genes and mania was found. Colocalization analysis yielded six core genes. Five key substances were identified via enrichment analysis, immune-related analysis, and single-gene GSVA analysis of the core genes. MR revealed phenylalanine to be the only key substance that has a unidirectional causal relationship with mania. In the end, SBNO2, PBX2, RAMP3, and QPCT, which are significantly associated with the phenylalanine metabolism pathway, were identified as drug target genes., Conclusion: SBNO2, PBX2, RAMP3, and QPCT could serve as potential target genes for mania treatment and deserve further basic and clinical research. Medicinal target genes regulate the phenylalanine metabolism pathway to achieve the treatment of mania. Phenylalanine is an important intermediate substance in the treatment of mania that is regulated by drug target genes., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Xu, Hu, Wang and Wang.)

Background: Ischemic stroke is a disease in which cerebral blood flow is blocked due to various reasons, leading to ischemia, hypoxia, softening, and even necrosis of brain tissues. The level of cortisol is related to the occurrence and progression of ischemic stroke. However, the mechanism governing their interrelationship is still unclear. The main objective of this study was to identify and understand the molecular mechanism between cortisol and IS., Methods: The common cortisol-related biological processes were screened by mutual verification of two data sets and the cortisol-related hub biomarkers were identified. Modular analysis of protein interaction networks was performed, and the differential pathway analysis of individual genes was conducted by GSVA and GSEA. Drug and transcription factor regulatory networks of hub genes were excavated, and the diagnostic potential of hub genes was analyzed followed by the construction of a diagnostic model., Results: By screening the two data sets by GSVA, three biological processes with common differences were obtained. After variation analysis, four cortisol-related hub biomarkers (CYP1B1, CDKN2B, MEN1, and USP8) were selected. Through the modular analysis of the protein-protein interaction network and double verification of GSVA and GSEA, a series of potential molecular mechanisms of hub genes were discovered followed by a series of drug regulatory networks and transcription factor regulatory networks. The hub biomarkers were found to have a high diagnostic value by ROC; thus, a diagnostic model with high diagnostic efficiency was constructed. The diagnostic value was mutually confirmed in the two data sets., Conclusion: Four cortisol-related hub biomarkers are identified in this study, which provides new ideas for the key changes of cortisol during the occurrence of IS., (© 2024 The Authors. Brain and Behavior published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: The aim of this study was to identify prognostic markers for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and build an effective prognostic nomogram for ESCC. Methods: A total of 365 patients with ESCC from three medical centers were divided into four cohorts. In the discovery phase of the study, we analyzed transcriptional data from 179 cancer tissue samples and identified nine marker genes using edgeR and rbsurv packages. In the training phase, penalized Cox regression was used to select the best marker genes and clinical characteristics in the 179 samples. In the verification phase, these marker genes and clinical characteristics were verified by internal validation cohort (n = 58) and two external cohorts ( n = 81, n = 105). Results: We constructed and verified a nomogram model based on multiple clinicopathologic characteristics and gene expression of a patient cohort undergoing esophagectomy and adjuvant radiochemotherapy. The predictive accuracy for 4-year overall survival (OS) indicated by the C-index was 0.75 (95% CI, 0.72-0.78), which was statistically significantly higher than that of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) seventh edition (0.65). Furthermore, we found two marker genes (TM9SF1, PDZK1IP) directly related to the OS of esophageal cancer. Conclusion: The nomogram presented in this study can accurately and impersonally predict the prognosis of ESCC patients after partial resection of the esophagus. More research is required to determine whether it can be applied to other patient populations. Moreover, we found two marker genes directly related to the prognosis of ESCC, which will provide a basis for future research., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Liu, Jiao, Shen, Chen, Zhao, Li, Gu, Lan, Ruan, Liu, Xu, Yuan, Qi and Gao.)

To systematically review the efficacy of Xuebijing Injection combined with western medicine in the treatment of systemic inflammatory response syndrome(SIRS). In this study, CBM, CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, PubMed and EMbase databases were retrieved for clinical randomized controlled trials on the effect of Xuebijing Injection combined with western medicine in the treatment of SIRS from the establishment of the database to July 31, 2020. After screening, Meta-analysis was conducted by RevMan 5.3 software, trial sequential analysis was conducted by TSA 0.9.5.10 beta software, and the evidence quality level was evaluated by GRADEprofiler 3.6.1 software. Meta-analysis showed that Xuebijing Injection combined with western medicine could reduce white blood cell count(MD=-2.32, 95%CI[-2.44,-2.21], P<0.000 01), C-reactive protein count(MD=-22.70, 95%CI[-29.61,-15.79], P<0.000 01), APACHE Ⅱ score(MD=-2.15, 95%CI[-2.43,-1.87], P<0.000 01), tumor necrosis factor alpha count(SMD=-1.23, 95%CI[-1.48,-0.99], P<0.000 01) and interleukin-6 count(SMD=-0.92, 95%CI[-1.15,-0.69], P<0.000 01), improve treatment efficiency(RR=1.39, 95%CI[1.23, 1.56], P<0.000 01), reduce incidence of multiple organ dysfunction(RR=0.47, 95%CI[0.35, 0.64], P<0.000 01) and mortality(RR=0.22, 95%CI[0.13, 0.37], P<0.000 01), which were better than western medicine treatment alone. Trial sequential analysis showed that in terms of reducing the incidence of multiple organ dysfunction and C-reactive protein count, the cumulative Z value passed through the traditional threshold, TSA threshold and expected information value, and reached the required number of cases. GRADE evaluation showed that the level of evidence was low or very low. According to the findings, Xuebijing Injection combined with western medicine is effective in treating SIRS. However, as the low quality of the included studies may affect the reliability of the conclusion, more high-quality studies shall be included for further verification in the future, so as to provide better suggestions for clinical medication.

Aim: To evaluate the long-term effects of pattern scan laser (PASCAL) pan-retinal photocoagulation (PRP) on diabetic retinopathy (DR) in Chinese patients., Methods: In this retrospective study, we evaluated clinical data of 29 patients (53 eyes) with severe non-proliferative DR (SNPDR) or proliferative DR (PDR) who received PRP and follow-up at our hospital from 2008 to 2013. Sixteen patients (29 eyes) received PASCAL PRP and 13 patients (24 eyes) received 100-ms conventional laser PRP., Results: After long-term follow-up (mean, min-max days: 719.8, 290-1666 for PASCAL PRP vs 743.5, 240-1348 for conventional PRP, P =0.569), patients receiving PASCAL PRP required fewer photocoagulation sessions than the conventional PRP group (2.6±1.0 vs 3.9±0.9, P <0.01). Best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was reduced slightly in PASCAL PRP group while reduced significantly in conventional PRP group. At last visit, 24 eyes in the PASCAL group (88.9%) and 21 eyes in the conventional group (91.7%) were improved or stable. Two eyes in PASCAL PRP group (7.4%) and 3 eyes in the conventional PRP group (12.5%) developed vitreous hemorrhage or vitreous fibrovascular proliferation., Conclusion: PASCAL PRP is as effective and may be more conducive to maintaining visual acuity with less treatment sessions for DR treatment compared to conventional laser PRP., (International Journal of Ophthalmology Press.)

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a major complication of acute myocardial infarction(AMI), which can significantly increase mortality. This study is to analyze the related risk factors and establish a prediction score of acute kidney injury in order to take early measurement for prevention., Methods: The medical records of 6014 hospitalized patients with AMI in Beijing Anzhen Hospital from January 2010 to December 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. These patients were randomly assigned into two cohorts: one was for the derivation of prediction score (n = 4252) and another for validation (n = 1762). The criterion for AKI was defined as an increase in serum creatinine of ≥ 0.3 mg/dL or ≥ 50% from baseline within 48 h. On the basis of odds ratio obtained from multivariate logistic regression analysis, a prediction score of acute kidney injury after AMI was built up., Results: In this prediction score, risk score 1 point included hypertension history, heart rate > 100 bpm on admission, peak serum troponin I ≥ 100 μg/L, and time from admission to coronary reperfusion > 120 min; risks score 2 points included Killip classification ≥ class 3 on admission; and maximum dosage of intravenous furosemide ≥ 60 mg/d; risks score 3 points only included shock during hospitalization. In addition, when baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was less than 90 ml/min·1.73 m 2 , every 10 ml/min·1.73 m 2 reduction of eGFR increased risk score 1 point. Youden index showed that the best cut-off value for prediction of AKI was 3 points with a sensitivity of 71.1% and specificity 74.2%. The datasets of derivation and validation both displayed adequate discrimination (an area under the ROC curve, 0.79 and 0.81, respectively) and satisfactory calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow statistic test, P = 0.63 and P = 0.60, respectively)., Conclusions: In conclusion, a prediction score for AKI secondary to AMI in Chinese patients was established, which may help to prevent AKI early.

A series of novel boat-shaped host-guest complexes were designed and synthesized by the combination of a new calixarene fragment-based tetraphosphine ligand L with group 11 metal salts Cu(MeCN)4ClO4 and AgNO3 in a self-assembly process, and by the following anion exchange reactions of complex 1 with sodium p-toluenesulfonate, AcONa, PhCO2Na and sodium 9-anthrylcarboxylate. The host with a novel boat-shaped cavity is capable of self-adaptive encapsulation of various anions of different sizes through M(i)-O coordinations and CHπ interactions between the host and guest anion. The DFT calculations confirmed that the CHπ interaction played a vital role in the self-adaptive phenomenon in complexes 4-6.

This study investigated the effect of copper sulfate (CuSO 4 ) in the rat spermatogenesis. Forty male rats, weighing 70-80 g, were randomly divided into four groups: control group (CG, 0 mg/kg BW), low-dose group (LG, 100 mg/kg BW), mid-dose group (MG, 200 mg/kg BW), and high-dose group (HG, 400 mg/kg BW). Rats were administered CuSO 4 by gavage for 30 days. A variety of measurements were taken including the testis coefficients, the sperm count, the abnormal malformation rate, testosterone (T), luteinizing hormone (LH), and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) concentrations in the serum. In addition, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-P x ) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities, and malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration in the testis were determined. The results showed that in the CuSO 4 -treated groups, the testis coefficients, sperm count, T, LH, and FSH concentrations, and GSH-P x and SOD activities decreased, while the abnormal malformation rate and MDA concentration increased, compared with the CG. It indicates that CuSO 4 exposure impairs the sperm quality and inhibits secretion of sex hormone and gonadotropin, and testis anti-oxidative function, suppressing the rat spermatogenesis.

Objective: To study the interactive effects of Type II glutamine transaminase (TG2) and bone morphogenetic protein-9 (BMP-9) in the induction of osteogenesis in mice mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) C3H10T1/2 model., Materials and Methods: Batches of MSCs C3H10T1/2, divided into two groups, were treated with BMP-9 (control group) or BMP-9 and TG2 (experimental group) under oxygen deficient conditions. The secreted alkaline phosphatase (SEAP) chemiluminescence and the histochemical staining methods were used to detect the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) expression. The alizarin red S staining was used to detect the calcium salt precipitation and the caspase-3 protein expression was monitored using Western blot. Flow cytometry was employed to identify cell cycle, and trypan blue exclusion method to count the living cells and monitor cell proliferation., Results: The levels of ALP expression in the experimental group were much higher than that of the control group. The level of expression of advanced caspase-3 protein was significantly lower (p < 0.05) in the experimental group than in the control group. The highest fraction of cells in the experimental group was in the phase M while cells in the control group were in the interphase. Moreover, cell number in the experimental group was significantly increased (p < 0.05) relatively to the control group., Conclusions: BMP-9 interacts with TG2 in osteogenesis of MSCs C3H10T1/2 cells. Further studies are needed to understand the exact mechanism of BMP9/PG2 interactions in osteogenesis.

Background: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) possesses several advantages for treating patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The theory of 'Jianpi Huayu Therapy' rooted from 'Jin Kui Yao Lue' is one of the most important therapies in this respect. This study was conducted to investigate the clinical effect and safety of hepatectomy combining with 'Jianpi Huayu Therapy' in the treatment of HCC., Materials and Methods: One hundred and twenty patients with HCC were randomized allocated into hepatectomy combined with 'Jianpi Huayu Therapy' group (treatment group, n=60) and hepatectomy alone group (control group, n=60). Disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were the primary end-points. Liver function at the end of one week after surgery, complications, average days of hospitalization as well as performance status (PS) at the end of one month post operation were also compared., Results: No significant differences existed between two groups on baseline analysis (p>0.05). No treatment related mortality occurred in either group. Post-operative complications were detected among 14 patients (23.3%) in the treatment group, and 12 (20.0%) in the control group (p=0.658). Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) at the end of one week after operation was lower in the treatment than control groups (p=0.042). No significant differences in other indexes of liver function were discovered between two groups. Average days of hospitalization reduced by 0.9 day in treatment group than in control (p=0.034). During follow-up, 104 patients (86.6%) developed recurrence. The rates of 1-, 3-, and 5-year DFS and median DFS for all patients were 77.4%, 26.3%, 9.0% and 25.6 months (range, 6.0~68.0), respectively (78.2%, 29.2%, 14.3% and 28.7 months for the 48 patients in the treatment group and 75.0%, 23.3%, 6.4%, and 22.6 months for the 56 patients in the control group (p=0.045)). 101 patients had died at the time of censor, with 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival rates and median survival for all patients of 97.5%, 76.4%, 40.5% and 51.2 months (range, 10.0~72.0), respectively (98.3%, 78.0%, 43.6% and 52.6 months, for treatment and 96.7%, 74.7%, 37.4%, and 49.8 months, for controls, respectively (p=0.048))., Conclusions: Hepatectomy combined with 'Jianpi Huayu therapy' was effective in the treatment of HCC, and reduced post-operative recurrence and metastasis and improved DFS and OS of HCC patients.

Two novel alkynyl-bridged symmetric bis-tridentate ligands 1,2-bis(1'-[4'-(2,2':6',2''-terpyridinyl)]ferrocenyl)ethyne (3a; tpy-Fc-C[triple bond]C-Fc-tpy; Fc = ferrocenyl; tpy = terpyridyl) and 1,4-bis(1'-[4'-(2,2':6',2''-terpyridinyl)]ferrocenyl)-1,3-butadiyne (3b; tpy-Fc-C[triple bond]C-C[triple bond]C-Fc-tpy) and their Ru(2+) complexes 6a and 6b have been synthesized and characterized by cyclic voltammetry, UV-vis and luminescence spectroscopy, and in the case of 3b by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Cyclic voltammograms of both compounds, 3a and 3b, display two severely overlapping ferrocene-based oxidative peaks with only one reductive peak. The redox behavior of 6a and 6b is dominated by the Ru(2+)/Ru(3+) redox couple (E(1/2) from 1.33 to 1.34 V), the Fe(2+)/Fe(3+) redox couples (E(1/2) from 0.46 to 0.80 V), and the tpy/tpy(-)/tpy(2-) redox couples (E(1/2) from -1.19 to -1.48 V). The UV-vis spectra of 6a and 6b show absorption bands assigned to the (1)[(d(π)(Fe))(6)] → (1)[(d(π)(Fe))(5)(π*(tpy)(Ru))(1)] MMLCT transition at ~555 nm. Complexes and are luminescent in H(2)O-CH(3)CN (4 : 1, v/v) solution at room temperature, and 6b exhibits the strongest luminescence intensity (λ(max)(em): 710 nm, Φ(em): 2.28 × 10(-4), τ: 358 ns) relative to analogous ferrocene-based bis(terpyridine) Ru(II) complexes reported so far.

Background/aims: To explore the effect of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression on prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after partial liver resection., Methodology: The expression of VEGF in 64 preoperative serum and resection specimens of HCC, confirmed by pathology, was detected by enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunohistochemistry. Correlations of VEGF level to clinicopathological features were analyzed. Cox regression model was used to analyze the recurrence risk factors after hepatectomy., Results: Serum level of VEGF in HCC patients was 334.50±247.62pg/mL, significantly higher than healthy control group (p<0.01); it was also significantly higher in recurrent group than in non-recurrent group (p<0.05). VEGF was expressed in cytoplasm of HCC specimens. The positive rates of VEGF was significantly higher in recurrent group than in non-recurrent group (85.0% vs. 54.5%, p<0.05). The 1-, 2- and 3-year disease-free survival rates were significantly higher in VEGF(-) group than in VEGF(+) group (81.3% vs. 52.2%, 68.8% vs. 33.3%, and 62.5% vs. 29.1%, p<0.01). The overall survival rates of VEGF(-) subgroup was borderline significant higher than that of VEGF(+) subgroup (p=0.068). Multivariate analysis revealed that preoperative macroscopically disseminated nodules, tumor micrometastasis, serum and tissue VEGF level were independent recurrence risk factors., Conclusions: Serum and tissue VEGF level of HCC patients ascends distinctly, correlates to the recurrence of HCC after partial liver resection which can be used to estimate the risk of postoperative recurrence of HCC.

In the molecule of the centrosymmetric title compound, [Co(C(25)H(20)N(2)O(5))(2)(H(2)O)(4)](ClO(4))(2)·6H(2)O, the Co atom is octa-hedrally coordinated by four water mol-ecules lying in the equatorial plane and two monodentate carboxyl-ate groups from two dicarboxylate ligands. The crystal structure involves O-H⋯O and O-H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds..

Two novel extended calix[4]arene analogues by two P-Cu(I)-P bridges have been synthesized. The molecular structures and anion encapsulation ability for ClO4- and BF4- have been studied by X-ray analysis.

The reaction of 9-{[N-n-propyl-N-(diphenylphosphino)amino]methyl}anthracene (1) with Au(SMe2)Cl yields complex 2 with an arm-opening configuration. The latter is treated with AgClO4 to form complex 4 and then respectively reacted with acetonitrile, pyridine, and triphenylphosphine sulfide to afford novel gold(I) eta2-arene complexes 3a-c, which have arm-closing configurations and feeble or weak fluorescence emissions. The observation can be attributed to charge transfer from the anthracene unit to the Au+ ion. When the solution of 3a or 4 in CH2Cl2 was added with 1 equiv of Ph3P, complex 5 with the arm-opening configuration was formed and strong emission was restored.

An experimental drug, 1-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-ylcarbonyl)piperidine, that facilitates glutamatergic transmission in brain after systemic administration was tested for its effects on the induction of long-term potentiation in the hippocampus of rats. Intraperitoneal injections of the drug markedly increased the degree and duration of long-term potentiation; similar results were obtained with an analogue of 1-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-ylcarbonyl)piperidine that was also found to improve retention of memory in a radial maze task and in an odor-matching problem. These results define tools for enhancing long-term potentiation in vivo and confirm an important prediction from the hypothesis that long-term potentiation is a substrate of memory.

Washed rabbit platelets were incubated with [14C] arachidonic acid (AA sodium salt) after being exposed to 2-naphthyl-3-(3,4-dimethoxy) phenyl-propenoic acid (NM-PA), indomethacin (Ind) and imidazole (Imi) or control solvent. The metabolites of AA in rabbit platelets were separated with the system of chloroform: methanol: acetic acid: water (90:8:1:0.8) by thin layer chromatography and quantitated by liquid scintillation counter. The metabolism of AA was influenced by NMPA dose-dependently in the range of 0.05-0.5 mmol/L. The formation of thromboxane B2 (TXB2) and 12-hydroxy-5,8,10-heptadecatrienoic acid (HHT), the final metabolites in the pathway of cyclooxygenase-thromboxane synthetase, were decreased from 24 +/- 6.7 to 3.2 +/- 1.6% and 10.3 +/- 2.49 to 4.7 +/- 2.8%, respectively. Meanwhile, 12-hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic acid (12-HETE), the metabolite in the pathway of lipoxygenase, was increased from 11.9 +/- 1.7 to 34 +/- 5.6%. It is suggested that NMPA blocks the pathway of cyclooxygenase-thromboxane synthetase and then changes the direction of arachidonate metabolism in platelets, the activation of platelets is inhibited in this way.