Then, aiming at investigating the possible molecular mechanism of QZF on the treatment of Sjögren's syndrome in rats, we used WB analysis to detect expression of PI3K, pPI3K, AKT, pAKT, HIF-1α, VEGF, etc. The LC3-II/LC3-I ratio is a typical autophagy maker, whose expression in submandibular gland tissue was estimated. Here, AKT1 is linked to Sjogren syndrome.