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To remove the toxicity of 10-Pterostilbene methylamine hydrochloride derivatives (PMDS ． HCl) and develop novel anti-inflammatory agents, twenty-five Pterostilbene-urea derivatives (PUDs, Q1-Q25) derived from PMDs were designed, synthesized, characterized by spectroscopic techniques and their anti-inflammatory activity in vitro were evaluated. Results exhibited that compounds (Q1-Q25) were low toxic or non-toxic toward RAW264.7 and L02 cell lines at 20 μM/L. Eight bioactive agents (Q4-Q10, Q20) displayed obvious inhibition ability against LPS-induced NO release, with IC50(NO) values ranged from 9.96 to 33.89 μM/L. Meanwhile, they were potential COX-2 inhibitors with IC50(COX-2) values ranging from 39.42 to 179.84 nM/L. A roughly positive correlation were observed between the inhibitory abilities on LPS-induced NO release and those on COX-2. Q7 , Q10and Q20 manifested stronger COX-2 inhibitory abilities than Celecoxib . The strongest anti-inflammatory agent, Q20 (IC50 (NO) = 9.96 μM/L, IC50(COX-2) = 39.42 nM/L) effectively inhibited the secretion of pro-inflammatory factors such as IL-1β (IC50 = 12.30 μM/L) and TNF-α (IC50 = 9.07 μM/L) in a dose-dependent manner. Western Blot analysis indicated that at low micromolar concentrations, Q20 obviously down-regulated the expression of COX-2, iNOS as well as TLR4 protein, and suppressed the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and NF-κB signal pathway., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Background: Intensive care units (ICUs) in China primarily focus on active rescue efforts, and it is not common to provide palliative care services within the ICU. As nurses play a primary role as caregivers for end-of-life patients in the ICU, it is necessary to explore the factors that impede or facilitate palliative care from their perspective., Aim: To explore the barriers and facilitators associated with implementing palliative care in Chinese adult ICUs from nurses' perspectives., Study Design: This study utilized a descriptive phenomenological research approach and purposive sampling to conduct face-to-face semi-structured interviews with nurses working in adult ICUs from three comprehensive hospitals in China during the period between February and May 2023. A total of 17 nurses were interviewed, and the collected data were transcribed, coded, and synthesized thematically., Results: Two themes of barriers and facilitators of palliative care in the Chinese adult ICU were extracted. The three sub-themes of hindering factors are as follows: (1) The influence of Chinese traditional culture. (2) The specificity of the ICU context. (3) Lacking sufficient attention in the ICU. The three sub-themes of the promoting factors are as follows: (1) Government and society value palliative care. (2) Patients and their families have palliative care needs. (3) Nurses view palliative care positively., Conclusion: Currently, integrating palliative care into the ICU may face challenges such as cultural factors, the specificity of the ICU context, and insufficient attention. However, it is worth noting that as the government and society place more emphasis on palliative care, more and more people are gradually paying attention to the palliative care needs of critically ill patients and their families., Relevance to Clinical Practice: This study serves as a reference for exploring an ICU palliative care service model that is suitable for China's national conditions, such as education and training, resource allocation, service processes, and the palliative care environment, among others., (© 2024 British Association of Critical Care Nurses.)

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been considered, for many years, an important source of medicine to treat different diseases. As a type of TCM, Illicium simonsii Maxim (ISM) is used as an anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and anti-virus. Besides, ISM is also used in the treatment of cancer. In order to evaluate the anti-hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) activity, petroleum ether extract was prepared from part of the fruit of ISM. First, the compounds of the petroleum ether fraction of Illicium simonsii Maxim (PEIM) were identified using LC-MS/MS analysis. Next, the cell viability and morphological changes were evaluated by MTT assay and Hoechst staining. In addition, the effect of PEIM on the levels of inflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) was determined using the ELISA kit. Furthermore, apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry, and gene expression and the regulation of signaling pathways were investigated, respectively, by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and western blot. Results showed that a total of 64 compounds were identified in the PEIM. Additionally, the PEIM had anti-HCC activity against HepG2 cells, in which the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC 50 ) was 55.03 μg·mL -1 . As well, the PEIM was able to modulate the expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6, while we also found that it induced HepG2 cell apoptosis through the activation of P53 mRNA and caspase-3 mRNA. Finally, the PEIM possibly downregulated the expression of TLR4, MyD88, p-NF-κBp65, TNF-α, IL-1β, INOS, IL-6, JAK2, STAT3, CyclinD1, CDK4, MDM2, and Bcl-2, and upregulated the expression of P53, P21, Bax, Cytochrome-C, Caspase-9, and Caspase-3 in HepG2 cells. These findings may confirm that the PEIM has possible anti-HCC effects. However, additional studies are required to fully understand the mechanisms of action of the PEIM and the signaling pathways involved in its effects. Moreover, the anti-HCC activity of the PEIM should be studied in vivo, and signaling pathways involved in its effects should be explored to develop the anti-HCC drug.

Objective: To identify risk factors for premature rupture of membranes (PROM) in pregnant women., Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis., Data Sources: Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP) and China Biology Medicine Disc were searched from inception to October 2022., Eligibility Criteria: Cross-sectional, case-control and cohort studies published in English or Chinese that reported the risk factors for PROM were eligible for inclusion., Data Extraction and Synthesis: Two reviewers independently extracted the data and evaluated the risk of bias using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and American Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality tools. Analyses were performed using RevMan 5.4 software, and heterogeneity was assessed using χ 2 tests and I 2 statistics. The sensitivity analyses included a methodological transition between fixed-effect and random-effect models and the systematic stepwise exclusion of studies., Results: A total of 21 studies involving 18 174 participants with 18 risk factors were included. The significant risk factors were low Body Mass Index (BMI) (OR 2.18, 95% CI 1.32 to 3.61), interpregnancy interval (IPI) <2 years (OR 2.99, 95% CI 1.98 to 4.50), previous abortion (OR 2.35, 95% CI 1.76 to 3.14), previous preterm birth (OR 5.72, 95% CI 3.44 to 9.50), prior PROM (OR 3.95, 95% CI 2.48 to 6.28), history of caesarean section (OR 3.06, 95% CI 1.72 to 5.43), gestational hypertension (OR 3.84, 95% CI 2.36 to 6.24), gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.44 to 3.23), abnormal vaginal discharge (OR 2.17, 95% CI 1.45 to 3.27), reproductive tract infection (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.70 to 2.75), malpresentation (OR 2.26, 95% CI 1.78 to 2.85) and increased abdominal pressure (OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.97). The sensitivity analysis showed that the pooled estimates were stable., Conclusions: This meta-analysis indicated that low BMI, IPI <2 years, previous abortion, previous preterm birth, prior PROM, history of caesarean section, gestational hypertension, GDM, abnormal vaginal discharge, reproductive tract infection, malpresentation and increased abdominal pressure might be associated with a greater risk of PROM. Associations between smoking status, short cervical length, fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and PROM require further investigation., Prospero Registration Number: CRD42022381485., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Caulis Spatholobi is one of the necessary Chinese herbal medicines for hematologists in the treatment of malignant tumors, but its potential targets and molecular mechanisms need further exploration., Objective: This study aimed to predict the relevant targets of the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) with Caulis Spatholobi by applying the network pharmacology method, and in vitro cell experiments were conducted to verify the mechanism of Caulis Spatholobi in the treatment of CML., Methods: TCMSP, ETCM, Genecards, and GisGeNET databases were used to obtain relevant targets of Caulis Spatholobi in the treatment of CML. Go and KEGG analyses were performed using the David database. Using Cytoscape 3.7.2, the "active compounds-targets-pathways" network was constructed. Further validation was carried out by pharmacological experiments in vitro. The proliferation and apoptosis of K562 cells were observed by the MTT method and Hoechst 33242 fluorescence staining method. The predicted targets and their related signal pathways were verified by western blotting., Results: In this study, 18 active compounds and 43 potential targets were obtained. The results of the MTT method showed that compared with the normal control group, 62.5-500 μg/mL alcohol extract of Caulis Spatholobi had an obvious inhibitory effect on K562 and the IC 50 value was less than 100 μg/mL. The Hoechst 33242 fluorescence staining method showed that the alcohol extract of Caulis Spatholobi could promote apoptosis. The results of western blotting showed that compared with the normal control group, the expressions of Bax and Caspase-3 proteins in the 62.5 and 125 μg/mL alcohol extract of Caulis Spatholobi groups were significantly up-regulated (p < 0.05). The expression of Bcl-2 in the 125 μg/mL alcohol extract of the Caulis Spatholobi group was significantly down-regulated (p < 0.01), and the expression of Bcl-2 in the 62.5 and 31.25 μg/mL alcohol extract of Caulis Spatholobi groups was also significantly down-regulated (p < 0.05). It showed that the ethanol extract of Caulis Spatholobus could promote apoptosis by up-regulating the expression of Bax and caspase-3 and down-regulating the expression of the Bcl-2 protein., Conclusion: The treatment of Caulis Spatholobi for CML has the characteristics of multi-targets and multi-pathways. The results of in vitro pharmacological experiments demonstrated that its mechanism of action might be based on the expression of key target proteins, such as Caspase-3, Bcl-2, and Bax, thereby inhibiting cell proliferation and promoting cell apoptosis, which provides a scientific basis for the treatment of CML., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Background: Caregivers of patients with cancer are susceptible to profound psychological distress and low quality of life owing to the substantial demands of caregiving. The comprehensive needs of caregivers are closely linked to their quality of life. However, little is known about the relationship between these factors., Objective: This study aimed to determine whether comprehensive needs mediate the relationships between psychological stress and quality of life in caregivers of patients with cancer., Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to recruit 382 participants through convenience sampling. Psychological stress, comprehensive needs, and quality of life were measured using a questionnaire., Results: Psychological stress was associated with higher comprehensive needs (r = 0.30, P < .01) and lower quality of life (r = -0.20, P < .01). Comprehensive needs were negatively associated with quality of life (r = -0.28, P < .01). Mediation analysis findings revealed that both the indirect effect of psychological stress on quality of life via comprehensive needs (β = -0.10; P < .001) and its direct effect on quality of life (β = -0.16; P < .01) were statistically significant, suggesting a partial mediatory effect of comprehensive needs between psychological stress and quality of life., Conclusions: Our findings suggest that reducing psychological stress can improve quality of life by promoting satisfaction with comprehensive needs., Implications for Practice: Interventions that help reduce psychological stress and meet the comprehensive needs of caregivers of patients with cancer can improve their quality of life., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2023 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

There needs to be more information concerning the effect of different milling methods on the physicochemical properties of whole-grain mung bean flour. Therefore, the physicochemical properties of whole grain mung bean flour were analyzed using universal grinders (UGMB), ball mills (BMMB), and vibration mills (VMMB). The results showed that the particle size of the sample after ultrafine grinding treatment was significantly reduced to 21.34 μm (BMMB) and 26.55 μm (VMMB), and the specific surface area was increased. The particle distribution was uniform to a greater extent, and the color was white after treatment. Moreover, the water holding capacity (WHC), oil holding capacity (OHC), and swelling power (SP) increased, and the bulk density and solubility (S) decreased. The Rapid Viscosity Analyzer (RVA) indicated that the final viscosity of the sample after ultrafine grinding was high. Furthermore, rheological tests demonstrated that the consistency coefficient K, shear resistance, and viscosity were decreased. The results of functional experiments showed that the treated samples (BMMB and VMMB) increased their capacity for cation exchange by 0.59 and 8.28%, respectively, bile acid salt adsorption capacity increased from 25.56 to 27.27 mg/g and 26.38 mg/g, and nitrite adsorption capacity increased from 0.58 to 1.17 mg/g and 1.12 mg/g., 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 © 2023 Yu, Wu, Li, Wang, Zhang and Wang.)

Rice sheath blight (RSB) caused by Rhizoctonia solani is one of the most destructive diseases of rice ( Oryza sativa ). Although chemical fungicides are the most important control methods, their long-term unreasonable application has brought about problems such as environmental pollution, food risks, and non-target poisoning. Therefore, considering the extraction of fungistatic substances from plants may be an alternative in the future. In this study, we found that the Moutan cortex ethanol extract has excellent antifungal activity against R. solani , with a 100% inhibition rate at 1000 μg/mL, which aroused our great exploration interest. In-depth exploration found that the antifungal active ingredients of M. cortex were mainly concentrated in the petroleum ether extract of the M. cortex ethanol extract, which still maintained a 100% inhibition rate with 250 μg/mL, and its effective medium concentration (EC 50 ) was 145.33 μg/mL against R. solani . Through the measurement of extracellular relative conductivity and OD 260 , the petroleum ether extract induced leakage of intracellular electrolytes and nucleic acids, indicating that the cell membrane was ruined. Therefore, we preliminarily determined that the cell membrane may be the target of the petroleum ether extract. Moreover, we found that petroleum ether extract reduced the content of ergosterol, a component of the cell membrane, which may be one of the reasons for the cell membrane destruction. Furthermore, the increase of MDA content would lead to membrane lipid peroxidation, further aggravating membrane damage, resulting in increased membrane permeability. Also, the destruction of the cell membrane was observed by the phenomenon of the mycelium being transparent and broken. In conclusion, this is the first report of the M. cortex petroleum ether extract exhibiting excellent antifungal activity against R. solani . The effect of the M. cortex petroleum ether extract on R. solani may be on the cell membrane, inducing the disorder of intracellular substances and metabolism, which may be one of the antifungal mechanisms against R. solani ., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

(1) Background: In this study, aiming at the problems of low efficiency and high energy consumption in the esterification reaction of OSA and starch, the jet milling technology was used to pretreat corn starch and starch raw materials with different pulverization strengths were obtained by controlling the speed of the classifier. (2) Methods: The starch obtained under different classification speeds was modified by esterification with OSA. Using CLSM, FTIR, XRD, NMR, FTIR, XPS, and other technologies, the modification effect was verified, and the physical and chemical properties of J-OSA-Starch such as DSC, RVA, transparency, and emulsifying properties were determined. (3) Results: Jet milling pretreatment significantly reduced the particle size of corn starch and improved the reaction efficiency and degree of substitution during esterification with OSA. After pretreatment, the corn starch granules were broken, and the relative crystallinity was significantly reduced. CLSM, FTIR, XPS, and NMR confirmed the esterification of corn starch with OSA, which increased with increasing crushing strength. The thermodynamic properties and viscosity of J-OSA-starch decreased with the increase in the classification speed. Jet milling pretreatment enhanced the clarity, emulsifying activity, and emulsifying stability of OSA-modified corn starch. (4) Conclusions: Jet milling pretreatment can effectively increase the esterification efficiency of starch and OSA. Therefore, jet milling can be used as a pretreatment to improve the esterification of starch OSA and produce modified starch for industrial applications.

Herpes zoster (HZ) is caused by the reactivation of latent varicella-zoster virus (VZV) from the sensory ganglia due to aging or immunosuppression. Glycoprotein E (gE) is a widely used vaccine antigen for specific humoral and cellular immune responses. Immediate early protein 63 (IE63) is expressed during latency, suggesting that it is a potential antigen against HZ reactivation. In this study, HZ DNA vaccines encoding gE, IE63, IE63-2A-gE (where 2A is a self-cleaving sequence), or IE63-linker-gE were developed and investigated for immunogenicity in mice. The results showed that each HZ DNA vaccine induced VZV-specific antibody production. The neutralizing antibody titer elicited by IE63-2A-gE was comparable to that elicited by gE or live attenuated HZ vaccine (LAV). IE63-2A-gE-induced gE or IE63-specific INF-γ + T cell frequencies in splenocytes were comparable to those of LAV. Furthermore, IE63-2A-gE, gE, or IE63 led to a significant increase in IFN-γ (IE63 stimulation) and IL-2 (gE stimulation) secretion compared to LAV, showing a Th1-biased immune response. Moreover, IE63-2A-gE and gE induced cytotoxic activity of CD8 + T cells compared to that of LAV. This study elucidates that the IE63-2A-gE DNA vaccine can induce both humoral and cell-mediated immune responses, which provides a candidate for the development of an HZ vaccine.

Homoharringtonine (HHT), a natural plant alkaloid derived from Cephalotaxus, has demonstrated to have a broad antitumor activity and efficacy in treating human chronic myeloid leukemia. An alternative source is required to substitute for the slow-growing and scarce Cephalotaxus to meet the increasing demand of the drug market. The objective of this study was to screen HHT-producing endophytic fungi from Cephalotaxus hainanensis Li. By screening 213 fungal isolates obtained from the bark parts of Cephalotaxus hainanensis Li, one isolate was found to be capable of biosynthesizing HHT. The fungus was identified as Alternaria tenuissima by morphological characteristics and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence analysis and was named as CH1307. HHT obtained from CH1307 was analyzed through the HPLC and LC-MS/MS and NMR spectroscopy. The extract of the fermentation broth of CH1307 showed antiproliferative activities against K562 (chronic myelocytic leukemia), NB4 (acute promyelocytic leukemia), and HL-60 (promyelocytic leukemia) human cancer cell lines with IC50 values of 67.25 ± 4.26, 65.02 ± 4.75, and 99.23 ± 4.26 μg/mL, respectively. The findings suggest that HHT-producing endophytic fungus, Alternaria tenuissima CH1307 might provide a promising source for the research and application of HHT.

Background: Shenfu injection (SFI) promotes tissue microcirculation and oxygen metabolism. We aimed to assess its effects on intestinal epithelial damage in septic rats., Methods: Fifty Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham operation (Sham), sepsis (cecal ligation and puncture [CLP]), and SFI (low-dose, middle-dose, high-dose) groups (n = 10). For Sham animals, the abdominal cavity was opened and closed. For other groups, severe sepsis was induced by CLP. After surgery, saline (Sham and CLP rats) and SFI (treatment groups) were administered intraperitoneally. Samples were collected 12 hours after injection. Serum tumor necrosis factor α, diamineoxidase, and d-lactate levels and ileal mucosal damage and ultrastructural change, as well as protein and messenger RNA expression of tight junction markers, including Claudin-3 and zonula occludens protein-1 in ileal mucosa's epithelial cells, were assessed. All animal experiments were carried out under aseptic conditions., Results: Compared with Sham animals, serum tumor necrosis factor α, DAO, and d-lactic acid levels in CLP animals were significantly higher; the ileal mucosal damage was more severe; and the expression levels of tight junction markers were significantly decreased. These indexes were significantly improved in SFI groups, in a concentration-dependent manner, compared with CLP rats. Sham animals displayed orderly arranged ileal mucosal villi, continuous tight junctions between epithelial cells, intact organelles, and microvilli. Compared with CLP animals (with obvious damage in these structures), an overt improvement was observed in SFI groups, especially in the high-dose SFI group, with tight junctions clearly visible between epithelial cells., Conclusions: Shenfu injection significantly alleviates intestinal epithelial damage in septic rats, in a dose-dependent manner., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of preoperative visits on patients' psychology, physiology, and behavior during the perioperative period of eye surgery under local anesthesia, with the aim of enhancing patients' cooperation with the surgery and improving their degree of satisfaction., Methods: A total of 240 patients scheduled to undergo eye surgery between August and October 2013 were randomly divided into an observation (n = 120) and a control (n = 120) group. Patients in the observation group attended preoperative visits with nurses and received conventional nursing care. The control group received only conventional nursing., Results: The Zung self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) scores were significantly lower in patients from the observation group than in the control group (P<0.05). Surgeons operating on the observation group were more satisfied with their patients' cooperation with the surgery than were surgeons operating on the controls (P < 0.01). Patients in the observation group had a significantly higher degree of satisfaction in terms of work efficiency in the operating room (P < 0.01)., Conclusion: Preoperative visits by patients scheduled to undergo eye surgery can effectively mitigate preoperative anxiety in those patients, build up a positive attitude toward the upcoming surgery, instruct the patients to coordinate with the surgery, enhance surgical safety, and improve the patients' degree of satisfaction regarding the nursing care in the operating room.

Inflammation contributes to acute pulmonary embolism (APE). However, the contributions of the extracellular signal‑regulated protein kinases (ERK) and phosphoinositide 3 kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) signaling pathways have not yet been elucidated. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of aspirin on ERK and PI3K/Akt signaling in a rat model of APE and evaluate the prognostic values of brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), troponin (TnT) and D‑Dimer. A total of 108 Sprague‑Dawley rats were assigned into the control, sham, model and low‑, medium‑ and high‑dose aspirin (150, 300 and 600 mg/kg, respectively) groups. In each group, six rats were sacrificed 6, 24 and 72 h subsequent to the induction of APE to collect the lungs and serum. Western blot analysis was used to assess ERK, PI3K and Akt expression; enzyme‑linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to analyze BNP, TnT and D‑Dimer levels; and changes in lung pathology were evaluated using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. The results showed that ERK and PI3K levels were decreased in the control, sham and the three aspirin groups at all time‑points compared with the model group (P<0.01). The exception was in the medium‑dose aspirin group at 24 h. The serum levels of BNP, TnT and D‑Dimer were lower in the control and sham groups at all time‑points compared with the model group (P<0.05). Furthermore, the levels of BNP, TnT and D‑Dimer levels were decreased in the aspirin‑treated groups (P<0.05) and markedly increased in the model group (P<0.05) at 24 h compared with the levels at 6 h. Pulmonary embolism, alveolar wall necrosis and hemorrhage were observed in the model group 6, 24 and 72 h subsequent to the induction of the model. However, congestion and inflammation were attenuated following aspirin treatment. In conclusion, aspirin reduces lung damage and improves prognosis. Decreased ERK, PI3K and Akt expression in the lungs and reduced levels of BNP, TnT and D‑Dimer may be important factors in the effects observed.

Control of familiar visually guided movements involves internal plans as well as visual and other online sensory information, though how visual and internal plans combine for reaching movements remain unclear. Traditional motor sequence learning tasks, such as the serial reaction time task, use stereotyped movements and measure only reaction time. Here, we used a continuous sequential reaching task comprised of naturalistic movements, in order to provide detailed kinematic performance measures. When we embedded pre-learned trajectories (those presumably having an internal plan) within similar but unpredictable movement sequences, participants performed the two kinds of movements with remarkable similarity, and position error alone could not reliably identify the epoch. For such embedded movements, performance during pre-learned sequences showed statistically significant but trivial decreases in measures of kinematic error, compared to performance during novel sequences. However, different sets of kinematic error variables changed significantly between learned and novel sequences for individual participants, suggesting that each participant used distinct motor strategies favoring different kinematic variables during each of the two movement types. Algorithms that incorporated multiple kinematic variables identified transitions between the two movement types well but imperfectly. Hidden Markov model classification differentiated learned and novel movements on single trials based on the above kinematic error variables with 82 +/- 5% accuracy within 244 +/- 696 ms, despite the limited extent of changes in those errors. These results suggest that the motor system can achieve markedly similar performance whether or not an internal plan is present, as only subtle changes arise from any difference between the neural substrates involved in those two conditions.