Imbalances in TCA, Short Fatty Acids and One-Carbon Metabolisms as Important Features of Homeostatic Disruption Evidenced by a Multi-Omics Integrative Approach of LPS-Induced Chronic Inflammation in Male Wistar Rats

Application of buried auricular point combined with Wenjing Sanhan prescription in arteriosclerosis obliterans patients with resting pain

BACKGROUND

Research on the combined use of ear acupoint embedding beans and warming meridians with cold-dispersing formulas for alleviating resting pain in patients with arteriosclerosis obliterans (ASO) remains limited.

AIM

To explore the therapeutic efficacy of auricular point embedding beans combined with Wenjing Sanhan prescription in alleviating resting pain in patients with lower-limb ASO.

METHODS

A total of 100 patients with ASO experiencing resting pain who were treated at our hospital from January 2022 to January 2023 were enrolled. They were randomly allocated into two groups using a double-blind approach. The control group was treated using a warming meridian with a cold-dispersing formula, while the study group received additional treatment with ear acupoint embedding beans. The clinical efficacy, ankle-brachial artery pressure ratio, hemorheological indicators, and traditional Chinese medicine symptom scores were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

The clinical efficacy rate in the study group was significantly higher (94.00%) than that in the control group (72.00%, P < 0.05). Moreover, the ankle-brachial artery pressure ratio was significantly higher in the study group after treatment (P < 0.05). Hemorheological parameters, including whole blood viscosity, plasma viscosity (1.83 ± 0.11) mPa/s, fibrinogen levels (3.30 ± 0.21) g/L, platelet adhesion rate (49.87% ± 10.51%), and erythrocyte aggregation index (1.79 ± 0) were improved in the study group compared to the control group. In addition, the scores for decreased skin temperature (1.41 ± 0.26), intermittent claudication (1.30 ± 0.20), and resting pain (1.23 ± 0.31) were significantly lower in the study group than those in the control group (all P < 0.05). The level of oxidative stress in the study group also exhibited significant improvement (P < 0.05), and the levels of inflammatory factors were considerably lower than those in the control group.

CONCLUSION

The combination of ear point embedding beans and Wenjing Sanhan prescription demonstrates promising clinical efficacy in alleviating resting pain associated with ASO.

Small molecules modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles orally deliver indomethacin with synergistic effect

Molecularly functional drug delivery systems possessed huge potentials to realize novel drug administration. To explore small molecules modified drug delivery, a series of small molecules modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles (L-Mal-MSNs, D-Mal-MSNs) were established by grafting small molecules. Poorly water-soluble indomethacin (IMC) was chosen to load into these small molecules modified carriers as well as corresponding control carrier, and further to study characteristics and delivery effects of drug loaded carriers. The results indicated that all these small molecules modified carriers formed hydrogen bonds with drugs and can successfully convert drug crystal phase to amorphous state so as to enhance drug dissolution compared to raw drug. In vivo rat intestinal perfusion demonstrated that IMC loaded L-Mal-MSNs performed the fastest drug absorption while analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects of IMC loaded D-Mal-MSNs turned out to be the best, giving hints that D-malic acid exhibited best synergic functions for IMC. The herein small molecules modified delivery system is an effective solution strategy for the current application of analgesia and anti-inflammatory drugs with outstanding significance.

Signaling Pathways in Inflammation and Its Resolution: New Insights and Therapeutic Challenges

Tissue inflammation is a dynamic process that develops step by step, in response to an injury, to preserve tissue integrity [...].