BackgroundAlthough transplantation of the fecal microbiota from normotensive donors has been shown to have an antihypertensive effect in hypertensive animal models, its effect on blood pressure in patients with hypertension is unclear. This study aimed to assess the effect of washed microbiota transplantation (WMT) from normotensive donors on blood pressure regulation in hypertensive patients.MethodsThe clinical data of consecutive patients treated with washed microbiota transplantation (WMT) were collected retrospectively. The blood pressures of hypertensive patients before and after WMT were compared. The factors influencing the antihypertensive effect of WMT in hypertensive patients and fecal microbial composition of donors and hypertensive patients were also analyzed.ResultsWMT exhibited an antihypertensive effect on blood pressure: the blood pressure at hospital discharge was significantly lower than that at hospital admission (change in systolic blood pressure: −5.09 ± 15.51, P = 0.009; change in diastolic blood pressure: −7.74 ± 10.42, P < 0.001). Hypertensive patients who underwent WMT via the lower gastrointestinal tract (β = −8.308, standard error = 3.856, P = 0.036) and those not taking antihypertensive drugs (β = −8.969, standard error = 4.256, P = 0.040) had a greater decrease in systolic blood pressure, and hypertensive patients not taking antihypertensive drugs also had a greater decrease in diastolic blood pressure (β = −8.637, standard error = 2.861, P = 0.004). After WMT, the Shannon Diversity Index was higher in six of eight hypertensive patients and the microbial composition of post-WMT samples tended to be closer to that of donor samples.ConclusionWMT had a blood pressure-lowering effect in hypertensive patients, especially in those who underwent WMT via the lower gastrointestinal tract and in those not taking antihypertensive drugs. Therefore, modulation of the gut microbiota by WMT may offer a novel approach for hypertension treatment.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has greatly impacted health systems. Many guidelines on chronic liver diseases have been released to optimize the use of medical resources and patient management. However, most of these guidelines have been established through expert consensus because the existing data do not provide strong evidence for developing effective recommendations. As Wilson disease (WD) is a rare chronic liver disease, the impact of COVID-19 on the clinical status of patients with WD is unclear. The present study showed a marked shortage of medical resources for clinically managing patients with WD during the pandemic. Although patients with WD who consistently took anticopper therapy showed no significant differences in hepatic and extrahepatic markers before and after the pandemic, their complication incidences, especially the infection incidence, were significantly increased during the study period. Therefore, patients with WD should be encouraged to adhere to anticopper therapy and be closely monitored to prevent infections and other complications. The present study provides a clinical basis for further managing WD during the pandemic.

In China, Semen Cassiae is used clinically to improve eyesight, relieve constipation, and to treat headache and dizziness. Prepared Semen Cassiae is obtained by stir-frying raw Semen Cassiae until it turned dark brown, micro dilatancy, and overflow aroma. After processing, the therapeutic effects change-the purgation effect is alleviated and the hepatoprotective effect is enhanced. To explore the changes in chemical compositions of Semen Cassiae after processing and clarify the material basis of the changed therapeutic effects, an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry coupled with automated data analysis software and statistical strategy was developed. As a result, 53 compounds in raw Semen Cassiae and 43 compounds in prepared Semen Cassiae were found, a total of 55 chemical compounds were identified. Principle component analysis and t-test were processed by Markerview 1.2.1 software. Finally, 39 peaks were found to be the main contributors to the significant difference (p < 0.05) between raw and prepared Semen Cassiae. Compared with raw Semen Cassiae, 19 peaks showed a higher intensity in prepared Semen Cassiae, while the contents of 20 compounds in prepared Semen Cassiae were lower, most of which belonged to naphthopyrones glycosides and anthraquinone glycosides.

Objective. To investigate the association between intestinal permeability and severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and the value of intestinal permeability in predicting the efficacy of metabolic therapy for NAFLD. Methods. Disease severity was compared between patients with normal and elevated intestinal permeability; correlations between D-lactate and different NAFLD parameters were analyzed; and the effects of metabolic therapy on NAFLD patients with normal and elevated intestinal permeability were evaluated. Results. A total of 190 patients with NAFLD were enrolled. NAFLD patients with elevated intestinal permeability had significantly higher levels of liver test parameters, liver ultrasonographic fat attenuation parameter, triglyceride, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance value, and diamine oxidase (all P˂0.05) than NAFLD patients with normal intestinal permeability. Furthermore, serum D-lactate levels were positively correlated with alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, total bilirubin, indirect bilirubin, fat attenuation parameter, triglyceride, and diamine oxidase (all P  ˂ 0.05). Moreover, NAFLD patients with elevated intestinal permeability showed less improvement in TG levels ( P  = 0.014) after metabolic therapy. Conclusion. Intestinal permeability correlates with the disease severity in patients with NAFLD. Moreover, intestinal permeability may have value for predicting the efficacy of metabolic therapy for NAFLD patients.

Xanthii Fructus (XF), a well-known herb in traditional Chinese medicine, has been frequently used for the treatment of allergic rhinitis in the clinic. Its therapeutic metabolic mechanism, however, remains undetermined. In this work, a metabolomics research coupled with metabolic pathway analysis has been employed to screen out the potential mechanism in its effects on allergic rhinitis. Specifically, mouse serum samples containing XF were analyzed based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography equipped with electrospray ionization quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry detection (UHPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS) in both positive and negative polarity. In addition, the raw data gained from UHPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS were processed by principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) in order to discover remarkable metabolites. Twenty-seven potential biomarkers in mouse serum were filtered from free databases like HMDB. Interestingly, this study filtered the potential metabolic pathways including glycerophospholipid metabolism and branch-chain amino acid metabolism. We hope that this paper will provide a feasible strategy for revealing the therapeutic mechanism of XF in allergic rhinitis mice model.