Background: Brief behavioral therapy for insomnia (BBT-I) has been proven to be a simple and effective alternative to cognitive behavioral therapy. However, low adherence limits the application in Chinese primary medical institutions, resulting in delayed or irregular treatment for many patients. This study aimed to explore the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine external treatments on the adherence to behavioral therapy for insomnia in Chinese primary healthcare institutions, with a particular focus on patients who live in regions with weak healthcare systems. Methods: This randomized controlled clinical trial will be conducted in primary medical institutions and will recruit 98 adult participants with insomnia. BBT-I will be used as the base treatment. The participants will be divided into experimental (combined with Wuqinxi and other traditional Chinese medicine [TCM] external treatment n = 49) and control (combined with trazodone treatment, n = 49) groups, and each group will be treated for 4 consecutive weeks. The severity index of insomnia will be used as the main indicator of disease evaluation, with an 8-point reduction in the score considered as effective and a score <8 considered as cured. The secondary indicators of the disease evaluation will include the Pittsburgh sleep quality index, Zung's self-rating anxiety scale, Zung's self-rating depression scale, treatment adherence, and adverse event reports. All participants will be followed up at the time of enrollment, 4 weeks after treatment, and 3 months after the end of treatment. Discussion: This clinical trial will provide evidence for the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine external treatment on the adherence to behavioral therapy for insomnia in primary medical institutions. This cheap and accessible model may benefit insomnia patients in medically underserved areas. Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2100042845. Registered on 30 January 2021, dataset: http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=65691 . Official scientific title of the research topic: Wuqinxi and other external treatment of Chinese Medicine combined with brief behavior therapy for insomnia.

Gallbladder cancer (GBC) ranks seventh among the gastrointestinal cancers. Messenger RNAs (mRNAs) could regulate the progression of GBC. For the purpose of exploring the targets for GBC treatment, RNA sequencing was used to identify the differential expressed mRNAs between GBC and adjacent tissues. Next, CCK8 assay was used to assess the cell viability, and cell proliferation was investigated by colony formation assay. Flow cytometry was performed to evaluate the cell apoptosis. Protein and mRNA expression were analyzed by western blot and RT‐qPCR, respectively. Transwell was performed to evaluate the cell metastasis. GBC‐derived exosomes were isolated with ultracentrifugation. To evaluate the function of exosomes in GBC, in vivo model of GBC was constructed. The data revealed IGF2BP3 was identified to be upregulated in GBC, and IGF2BP3 silencing was able to decrease GBC cell proliferation by promoting the apoptosis. The migration and invasion of GBC cells were reduced by IGF2BP3 knockdown. Silencing of IGF2BP3 obviously suppressed the level of p‐STAT3 in GBC cells. Meanwhile, GBC cell‐derived exosomes notably promoted macrophage M2 polarization via carrying IGF2BP3, and then the polarized macrophages promoted the malignant behavior of GBC cells. Furthermore, exosomes markedly promoted the tumor growth of GBC via promoting macrophage M2 polarization. In summary, knockdown of IGF2BP3 suppressed the malignant behavior of GBC cells. Additionally, knockdown of IGF2BP3 modified tumor microenvironment during the progression of GBC. Thus, these findings might provide a new theoretical basis for exploring a strategies against GBC.

Background: Brief behavioral therapy (BBT-I) for insomnia has been proven to be a simple and effective alternative to cognitive behavioral therapy. However, low adherence limits the application in Chinese primary medical institutions, resulting in delayed or irregular treatment for many patients. This study aimed to explore the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine supportive treatments on the adherence to behavioral therapy for insomnia in Chinese primary healthcare institutions, with a particular focus on patients who live in regions with weak healthcare systems.Methods: This randomized controlled clinical trial will be conducted in primary medical institutions and will recruit 98 adult participants with insomnia. BBT-I will be used as the base treatment. The participants will be divided into experimental (combined with traditional Chinese medicine supportive treatment n = 49) and control (combined with trazodone treatment, n = 49) groups, and each group will be treated for 4 consecutive weeks. The severity index of insomnia will be used as the main indicator of disease evaluation, with an 8-point reduction in the score considered as effective and a score < 8 considered as cured. The secondary indicators of the disease evaluation will include the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), Zung’s self-rating anxiety scale, Zung’s self-rating depression scale, treatment adherence, and adverse event reports. All participants will be followed up at the time of enrollment, 4 weeks after treatment, and 3 months after the end of treatment.Discussion: This clinical trial will provide evidence for the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine supportive treatment on the adherence to behavioral therapy for insomnia in primary medical institutions. This cheap and accessible model may benefit insomnia patients in medically underserved areas.Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2100042845. Registered on 30 January 2021, dataset: http://www.chictr.org.cn/edit.aspx?pid=65691&htm=4

Background Sheng-Ma-Ge-Gen-Tang (SMGGT; 升麻葛根汤) is a famous prescription of traditional Chinese medicine used against measles of children for many hundreds of years. And its anti-hepatitis B virus (HBV) activity has been justified in clinical, however, the function substances and the mechanisms have not been studied yet. Methods The latent active compounds of Cimicifugae Rhizoma (Shengma)-Radix Puerariae (Gegen) drug pair were searched, and excavated their related targets. Then seek the targets of HBV through three network databases. The drug-disease targets of protein-protein interaction (PPI) data was carried out. The drug-disease targets were enriched by gene ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis. Subsequently, anti-HepG2.2.15 cytotoxicity and anti-HBV experiments were performed on the aqueous and ethanol extracts of Shengma-Gegen in vitro to test and verify their anti-HBV activities. Results GO enrichment indicated biological processes (cellular response to lipid, cellular response to organic cyclic compound, etc.), cellular components (vesicle lumen, cytoplasmic vesicle lumen, etc.) and molecular function (kinase binding, steroid binding, etc.). Many cancer-related pathways were enriched in KEGG pathway analysis. Also got some virus and bacteria diseases. A KEGG-targets network showed that RAF1, CCND1, BCL2, and EGFR might be the core targets. Cytotoxicity of Shengma and Gegen to HepG2.2.15 are in proportion to their concentrations. Shengma and Gegen aqueous and ethanol extracts exhibited a curtain extant anti-HBV-DNA activity. Conclusions Shengma-Gegen showed not only anti-HBV activity but also anti-tumor and anti-viral activities, which need to be tested in the future.