Professor Qi Cong’ s therapeutic strategy of traditional Chinese medicine combined with different stages of assisted reproduction technology

The success rate of in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer is only about 28.5%.The combination of traditional Chinese medicine and assisted reproduction technology can effectively improve the pregnancy rate,which has good application prospect.However,there is no relevant record in traditional Chinese medicine.Unified diagnosis and treatment system has yet been established.According to many years of clinical experience,Professor Qi Cong summarized the treatment strategy of traditional Chinese medicine.Treatment of invigorating the spleen to nourish blood,reinforcing the spleen and kidney,tonifying the kidney and activating blood circulation,enriching the kidney to prevent miscarriage,cooling blood to stop bleeding are given based on the characteristics of each stage and patients'symptoms during the transplantation.Disease differentiation matters during intermittent stage.Besides,she advocated treating husband and wife together.All of the above are characterized by Chinese medicine concept of pre cultivating the loss,treating the same disease with different methods,and three categories of etiologic factors.

Amino acids TORC(talk)to anabolism through uncharged tRNA

Anabolism is essential for proliferation as well as to replenish dysfunctional macromolecules in cells.Due to that both substantial building blocks and energy are required for anabolism,cells must double check whether these prerequisites are met before deciding to start anabolism.Amino acids are building blocks of protein synthesis,their sufficiency in cells is closely monitored by several mechanisms,which all are linked to protein synthesis.

Analysis on Reverse of Atypical Endometrial Hyperplasia by Drugs in Patients with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Objective To analyze the efficacy and safety of drugs on reverse of atypical endometrial hyperplasia in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome （PCOS）. Methods Seventeen patients with PCOS complicated by atypical endometrial hyperplasia （9 patients who were treated with progestin but not reversed were considered as group A; 8 patients who were untreated were considered as group B） were retrospectively analyzed Both groups received oral glucose tolerance test （OGTT） and insulin release test, to check whether the patients had insulin resistance （IR） or hyperinsulinemia. The 17 patients were treated with oral contraceptives combined with metformin. Results After the 17 patients with PCOS complicated by IR and hyperinsulinemia received drug treatment for 3 -6 cycles, atypical endometrial hyperplasia was success- fully reversed Conclusion Oral contraceptives combined with metformin is a clinically practical and effective method for treatment of PCOS complicated by atypical insulin-resistant endometrial hyperplasia.

Sperm Donors in Shanghai,China:A Study of Motivations,Characteristics,and Semen Parameters of Actual Sperm Donors

Objective:To identify the sociodemographic characteristics,motivations,and semen parameters of sperm donors in Shanghai,China.Methods:The participants were sperm donors associated with the Human Sperm Bank of Fudan University in Shanghai,China.Among the 334 sperm donors that applied for participation,329 completed the survey process.The responses obtained in the questionnaire and face-to-face interviews were used to investigate the donor motivations and characteristics,and the semen quality was examined to identify the sperm parameter.Results:In terms of the sociodemographic characteristics,an altruistic donor in this study was aged between 26 and 30 years,was single,did not have a child,had a college or undergraduate education level,was of the Han ethnicity,and worked full time.The strongest motivation highlighted by sperm donors was a donation for altruistic(26.4%,n=87)reasons.The second-highest rated motivation was curiosity(20.7%,n=68),followed by a desire to procreate(17.9%,n=59)."Complimentary body checks"(14.3%,n=47)and"financial incentives"(14.7%,n=47)were regarded as less important.The average semen parameters of the 329 donors were as follows:the semen volume was 3.39±1.21 mL,the semen concentration was 82.75×10^(6)/mL,the progressive motility rate(PR%)was 63.77%±3.13%,the total motility rate was 66.26%,the total progressive motile count was 158.31%±54.43×10^(6)/mL,and the round cell concentration was 0.38±0.51×10^(6)/mL.The PR%of the procreation motivation group was significantly higher than that of the other motivation groups(P<0.05).Conclusions:Sperm donors in Shanghai,China,are altruistic about their donation,although curiosity is also a key motivator.In addition,the decisions of donors are culturally influenced,and the motivation to procreate may influence the PR%.

Guidelines for cervical cancer screening in China

In response to the incidence of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical cancer in China and global screening strategies,a collaborative effort was undertaken by seven Chinese medical associations to develop this guideline for cervical cancer screening.The guideline recommends high-risk human papillomavirus(hr-HPV)testing as the preferred method for primary screening,which should have been approved by authoritative institutions and clinically validated for primary screening.In areas without access to HPV testing,cytology can be used as an alternative.However,it is recommended to replace cytology with HPV-based screening as conditions permit.Cotesting(HPV testing in combination with cytology)is recommended for areas with sufficient medical resources,opportunistic screening populations,and partial special populations.The guideline recommends that individuals with a cervix initiate cervical cancer screening at the age 25 years and undergo HPV testing alone or cotesting every five years,or cytology alone every three years.Women over the age of 65 who have had documented adequate negative prior screening in the past may terminate screening.Corresponding screening programs are proposed for different special populations.The development of these guidelines is an important step in the effort to eliminate cervical cancer in China.

Cancer metabolism and tumor microenvironment:fostering each other?

The changes associated with malignancy are not only in cancer cells but also in environment in which cancer cells live.Metabolic reprogramming supports tumor cells’high demand of biogenesis for their rapid proliferation,and helps tumor cells to survive under certain genetic or environmental stresses.Emerging evidence suggests that metabolic alteration is ultimately and tightly associated with genetic changes,in particular the dysregulation of key oncogenic and tumor suppressive signaling pathways.Cancer cells activate HIF signaling even in the presence of oxygen and in the absence of growth factor stimulation.This cancer metabolic phenotype,described firstly by German physiologist Otto Warburg,ensures enhanced glycolytic metabolism for the biosynthesis of macromolecules.The conception of metabolite signaling,i.e.,metabolites are regulators of cell signaling,provides novel insights into how reactive oxygen species(ROS)and other metabolites deregulation may regulate redox homeostasis,epigenetics,and proliferation of cancer cells.Moreover,the unveiling of noncanonical functions of metabolic enzymes,such as the moonlighting functions of phosphoglycerate kinase 1(PGK1),reassures the importance of metabolism in cancer development.The metabolic,microRNAs,and ncRNAs alterations in cancer cells can be sorted and delivered either to intercellular matrix or to cancer adjacent cells to shape cancer microenvironment via media such as exosome.Among them,cancer microenvironmental cells are immune cells which exert profound effects on cancer cells.Understanding of all these processes is a prerequisite for the development of a more effective strategy to contain cancers.

Ketogenic diets inhibit mitochondrial biogenesis and induce cardiac fibrosis

In addition to their use in relieving the symptoms of various diseases,ketogenic diets(KDs)have also been adopted by healthy individuals to prevent being overweight.Herein,we reported that prolonged KD exposure induced cardiac fibrosis.In rats,KD or frequent deep fasting decreased mitochondrial biogenesis,reduced cell respiration,and increased cardiomyocyte apoptosis and cardiac fibrosis.Mechanistically,increased levels of the ketone body β-hydroxybutyrate(β-OHB),an HDAC2 inhibitor,promoted histone acetylation of the Sirt7 promoter and activated Sirt7 transcription.This in turn inhibited the transcription of mitochondrial ribosome-encoding genes and mitochondrial biogenesis,leading to cardiomyocyte apoptosis and cardiac fibrosis.

Butyrate induces apoptosis by activating PDC and inhibiting complex I through SIRT3 inactivation

The underlying anticancer effects of butyrate,an end-product of the intestinal microbial fermentation of dietary fiber,remain elusive.Here,we report that butyrate promotes cancer cell apoptosis by acting as a SIRT3 inhibitor.Butyrate inhibits SIRT3 both in cultured cells and in vitro.Butyrate-induced PDHA1 hyperacetylation relieves the inhibitory phosphorylation of PDHA1 at serine 293,thereby activating an influx of glycolytic intermediates into the tricarboxylic acid(TCA)cycle and reversing the Warburg effect.Meanwhile,butyrate-induced hyperacetylation inactivates complex I of the electron transfer chain and prevents the utilization of TCA cycle intermediates.These metabolic stresses promote apoptosis in hyperglycolytic cancer cells,such as HCT116p53^(−/−)cells.SIRT3 deacetylates both PDHA1 and complex I.Genetic ablation of Sirt3 in mouse hepatocytes abrogated the ability of butyrate to induce apoptosis.Our results identify a butyrate-mediated anti-tumor mechanism and indicate that the combined activation of PDC and inhibition of complex I is a novel tumor treatment strategy.

PCA-U-Net based breast cancer nest segmentation from microarray(jj)hyperspectral images

The incidence of breast cancer is tending younger globally,and tumor development,clinical treatment,and prognosis are largely influenced by histopathological diagnosis.For diagnosed patients,the distinction between the cancer nests and normal tissue is the basis of breast cancer treatment.Microscopic hyperspectral imaging technology has shown its potential in auxiliary pathological examinations due to the superior imaging modality and data characteristics.This paper presents a method for cancer nest segmentation from hyperspectral images of breast cancer tissue microarray samples.The scheme combines the strengths of the U-Net neural network and unsupervised principal component analysis,which reduces the amount of calculation and improves the recognition accuracy.The experimental accuracy of cancer nest segmentation reaches 87.14%.Furthermore,a set of quantitative pathological characteristic parameters reflects the degree of breast cancer lesions from multiple angles,providing a relatively comprehensive reference for the pathologist’s diagnosis.In-depth exploration of the combined development of deep learning and microscopic hyperspectral imaging technology is worthy to promote efficient diagnosis of breast tumors and concern for human health.

Follicle stimulating hormone controls granulosa cell glutamine synthesis to regulate ovulation

Polycystic ovary syndrome(PCOS)is the leading cause of anovulatory infertility.Inadequate understanding of the ovulation drivers hinders PCOS intervention.Herein,we report that follicle stimulating hormone(FSH)controls follicular fluid(FF)glutamine levels to determine ovulation.Murine ovulation starts from FF-exposing granulosa cell(GC)apoptosis.FF glutamine,which decreases in pre-ovulation porcine FF,elevates in PCOS patients FF.High-glutamine chow to elevate FF glutamine inhibits mouse GC apoptosis and induces hormonal,metabolic,and morphologic PCOS traits.Mechanistically,follicle-development-driving FSH promotes GC glutamine synthesis to elevate FF glutamine,which maintain follicle wall integrity by inhibiting GC apoptosis through inactivating ASK1-JNK apoptotic pathway.FSH and glutamine inhibit the rapture of cultured murine follicles.Glutamine removal or ASK1-JNK pathway activation with metformin or AT-101 reversed PCOS traits in PCOS models that are induced with either glutamine or EsR1-KO.These suggest that glutamine,FSH,and ASK1-JNK pathway are targetable to alleviate PCOS.