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Thrombosis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of several cardiovascular disorders, including acute coronary syndrome, unstable angina, myocardial infarction, sudden cardiac death, peripheral arterial occlusion, ischemic stroke, deep-vein thrombosis, and pulmonary embolism. Anticoagulants, antiplatelet agents, and fibrinolytics can reduce the risks of these clinical events. Especially, the blood coagulation factor Xa (FXa) inhibitor is a proven anticoagulant. Promoting blood circulation, using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), for the treatment of these diseases has been safely used for thousands of years in clinical practice. Therefore, highly safe and effective anticoagulant ingredients, including FXa inhibitors, could be found in TCM for activating the blood circulation. One FXa inhibitor, a pentacyclic triterpene (compound 1, betulinic acid) characterized by IR, MS and NMR analyses, was isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction of Lycopus lucidus by bioassay-directed fractionation. Compound 1 exhibited an inhibitory effect on FXa with IC50 25.05 μmol/L and reduced the thrombus weight in an animal model at 25-100 mg/kg. These results indicate that betulinic acid could be the potential for anticoagulant therapy.

Objective: To explore the anti-diabetic effects and its underlying mechanism of Annona muricata Linn fruit ethanol extract (AME). Methods: Streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic (T2DM) mouse model was constructed. Those diabetic mice were randomly grouped and given 50 mg/kg acarbose or AME (200 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg or 50 mg/kg) for four weeks. The body weight, postprandial blood glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin levels were measured during the administration. After the administration, a glucose tolerance test was performed, and the levels of triglycerides, cholesterol and low-density lipoproteins in mice were detected by biochemical test kits. The inhibitory activity of AME on α-glucosidase in vivo and in vitro was determined by enzyme inhibition tests. Results: AME significantly reduced weight gain, postprandial blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin and low-density lipoprotein levels in T2DM mice; enhanced glucose tolerance and pancreatic β-cell function of T2DM mice; inhibited α-glucosidase activity in mouse intestine in an noncompetitive manner. Conclusion: AME may noncompetitive inhibit α-glucosidase activity and reduce postprandial glucose intake to achieve a therapeutic and regulatory effect on type 2 diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the anti-diabetic effect of the root extract of Annona muricata (AME) in streptozotocin-nicotinamide-induced type 2 diabetic (T2DM) mice. Methods: After 4 weeks of high-fat diet, ICR mice were given 1 g/kg nicotine and 120 mg/kg streptozotocin (STZ) orally to construct a T2DM model. The T2DM mice were randomly divided into five groups: model group, 200 mg/kg metformin group and 50, 100, 200 mg/kg AME groups. Drugs were oral administered continuously for 4 weeks. Fasting blood glucose and body weight were measured weekly. Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and detection of serum glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level were performed one week before the end of the experiment. At the end of drug administration, serum total cholesterol (TG), triglycerides (TC), low-density lipoprotein levels (LDL-C) and insulin levels were tested by lipid detection kits; homeostasis model assessment-estimated insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and HOMA-β indexes were calculated. Liver and kidney tissues were weighed to calculate organ indices and pathological tests were performed. Western blot was performed in the liver to detect adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), acetyl coenzyme A carboxylase (ACC), glucose-6-phosphate carboxylase (G6Pase), and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PCK1) protein expression. Results: with 200 mg/kg AME significantly reduced fasting blood glucose, HbA1c, TG and LDL-C levels, protected liver and kindey in diabetic mice, decreased the area under the OGTT curve, inhibited ACC and G6Pase protein expressions, and activated AMPK protein expression. Conclusion: AME showed good therapeutic activity against T2DM, and the mechanism may be related to the activation of AMPK and inhibition of ACC and G6Pase proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pronounced exciton binding energy (Eb) in covalent organic frameworks (COFs) results in significant energy loss, thereby constraining the photocatalytic efficiency of COFs. Herein, triphenylamine is employed as an electron donor, while triphenyltriazine served as an acceptor; benzene, naphthalene, and anthracene are utilized as π‐bridges with progressively increasing conjugation to synthesize a series of D‐π‐A structured COFs photocatalysts (COF‐1, COF‐2, and COF‐3). The correlation between π‐bridge structures and Eb is systematically examined through the removal of hexavalent uranium U(VI) from tailings wastewater under visible light irradiation as a model reaction. Notably, an increase in π‐bridge conjugation initially enhanced and then diminished the photocatalytic properties of these three catalysts. This phenomenon can be attributed to the fact that coplanarity within the COFs frameworks does not consistently improve with greater π‐bridge conjugations; specifically, COF‐2 featuring a naphthalene π‐bridge exhibited the smallest dihedral angle. The reduced dihedral angle facilitated a more planar and delocalized electron transport pathway between donor and acceptor moieties, leading to decreased Eb and inhibited exciton recombination. Consequently, COF‐2 demonstrated exceptional photocatalytic reduction of U(VI), achieving efficiencies 1.8 times and 1.5 times greater than those of COF‐1 and COF‐3, respectively. This approach offers novel insights into mitigating Eb in COFs‐based photocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Piezoelectric catalysis is an emerging green strategy, but the existing piezoelectric heterostructures are not sufficient in performance for catalytic reduction of low-reduction potential uranium under harsh conditions. This study innovatively employs a defect heterogeneous engineering strategy, wherein covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are grown in situ on the surface of zinc oxide (ZnO) via Schiff base reactions, and defects are introduced into the COF shell layer via imine exchange reactions to construct D-COF@ZnO for piezoelectric catalytic uranium removal. The comprehensive study shows that defect heterogeneous engineering increases the asymmetry induced polarization of the material to promote charge redistribution, and thus significantly improves the activity of piezoelectric catalysis. In addition, defect engineering optimizes the nanosize of D-COF@ZnO to expose a richer array of active sites, resulting in ultra-fast U(VI) removal kinetics and ultra-high removal capacity. In the actual nuclear wastewater settings, D-COF@ZnO demonstrates outstanding selective removal efficacy for uranium, manifesting its considerable application potential and efficiency superiority. This strategy holds profound implications for facilitating the application of piezoelectric catalytic technology in environmental protection domains such as uranium removal, manifesting its considerable potential and value., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Aim: To demonstrate the outcomes of translacrimal canalicular drainage using a lacrimal probe and intranasal drainage by D-silicone intubation for acute dacryocystitis (AD)., Methods: This retrospective study included 23 patients with AD and had undergone abscess decompression with the use of lacrimal probe and intranasal drainage by D-silicone intubation between January 2019 and December 2022. Patients received abscess decompression and systemic antibiotic-corticosteroid from the time of diagnosis. D-silicone tube was inserted within 10d after diagnosis and removed 3-6mo after intubation. The procedure and outcomes of this method were evaluated., Results: All patients showed improvement of signs and symptoms of AD within 72h. No intraoperative and postoperative complications were observed. No recurrence of lacrimal sac abscesses occurred after D-silicone tube removed., Conclusion: Lacrimal probe and D-silicone intubation appear to be a feasible, minimally invasive, safe, and effective method, which could be a reasonable choice in the treatment of AD., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: He JJ, None; Gong JW, None; Zhou JN, None; Jiang J, None., (International Journal of Ophthalmology Press.)

Bats, notable as the only flying mammals, serve as natural reservoir hosts for various highly pathogenic viruses in humans (e.g., SARS-CoV and Ebola virus). Furthermore, bats exhibit an unparalleled longevity among mammals relative to their size, particularly the Myotis bats, which can live up to 40 years. However, the mechanisms underlying these distinctive traits remain incompletely understood. In our prior research, we demonstrated that bats exhibit dampened STING-interferon activation, potentially conferring upon them the capacity to mitigate virus- or aging-induced inflammation. To substantiate this hypothesis, we established the first in vivo bat-mouse model for aging studies by integrating Myotis davidii bat STING ( Md STING) into the mouse genome. We monitored the genotypes of these mice and performed a longitudinal comparative transcriptomic analysis on Md STING and wild-type mice over a 3-year aging process. Blood transcriptomic analysis indicated a reduction in aging-related inflammation in female Md STING mice, as evidenced by significantly lower levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, immunopathology, and neutrophil recruitment in aged female Md STING mice compared to aged wild-type mice in vivo . These results indicated that Md STING knock-in attenuates the aging-related inflammatory response and may also improve the healthspan in mice in a sex-dependent manner. Although the underlying mechanism awaits further study, this research has critical implications for bat longevity research, potentially contributing to our comprehension of healthy aging in humans.

Since Curcumae Radix decoction pieces have multiple sources, it is difficult to distinguish depending on traditional cha-racters, and the mixed use of multi-source Curcumae Radix will affect its clinical efficacy. Heracles Neo ultra-fast gas phase electronic nose was used in this study to quickly identify and analyze the odor components of 40 batches of Curcumae Radix samples from Sichuan, Zhejiang, and Guangxi. Based on the odor fingerprints established for Curcumae Radix decoction pieces of multiple sources, the odor components was identified and analyzed, and the chromatographic peaks were processed and analyzed to establish a rapid identification method. Principal component analysis(PCA), discriminant factor analysis(DFA), and soft independent modeling cluster analysis(SIMCA) were constructed for verification. At the same time, one-way analysis of variance(ANOVA) combined with variable importance in projection(VIP) was employed to screen out the odor components with P<0.05 and VIP>1, and 13 odor components such as β-caryophyllene and limonene were hypothesized as the odor differential markers of Curcumae Radix decoction pieces of diffe-rent sources. The results showed that Heracles Neo ultra-fast gas phase electronic nose can well analyze the odor characteristics and rapidly and accurately discriminate Curcumae Radix decoction pieces of different sources. It can be applied to the quality control(e.g., online detection) in the production of Curcumae Radix decoction pieces. This study provides a new method and idea for the rapid identification and quality control of Curcumae Radix decoction pieces.

Objective: To elucidate the difference in the pathogenesis between strabismic and anisometropic amblyopia., Methods: It was a case-control study.We used psychophysical methods, including grating acuity, edge contrast sensitivity, contrast sensitivity function tests, and examined the visual functions of 150 cases from 8 to 40-year-old. Then we applied the Origin 8.0 software for statistical analysis of experimental data, we did the correlation analysis between the grating acuity, edge contrast sensitivity and optotype acuity, and the similarity comparison of the contrast sensitivity function curve between the strabismic and anisometropic amblyopia., Results: The grating acuity had a strong correlation with optotype acuity, the correlation value was 0.81. The grating acuity of the strabismic group was roughly 15% lower than the whole abnormal population, for any given level of optotype acuity; the edge contrast threshold had a weak correlation with optotype acuity, the correlation value was 0.24. Anisometropia, for a given level of optotype acuity, had edge contrast thresholds that were 15% higher (worse) than the whole population, while strabismic and strabismic-anisometropia had edge contrast thresholds that are 17% lower (better) than the whole population. The CSF of all amblyopic eyes were reduced in comparison with the non-amblyopic eye of the same person, the peak sensitivity shifted toward to the low spatial frequency region, the CS curve was depressed especially in the middle and high spatial frequencies, there were no significant difference, but at low frequency area(1.0 c/d) there were statistically significant between the two types of amblyopia(t = 2.239, P < 0.05)., Conclusion: There were differences in the patterns of visual loss between strabismic and anisometropic amblyopic patients.