Etiological diagnostic value of metagenomic next-generation sequencing in peritoneal dialysis-related peritonitis / 中华肝脏病杂志

Objective: To explore the etiological diagnostic value of metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) in peritoneal dialysis (PD)-related peritonitis. Methods: The study was a retrospective cohort study. The clinical data of patients with PD-related peritonitis who were treated and underwent microbial cultivation and mNGS test at the same time from June 2020 to July 2021 in the Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University were analyzed. The positive rate, detection time and consistency between mNGS test and traditional microbial culture were compared. Results: A total of 18 patients with age of (50.4±15.4) years old and median dialysis time of 34.0 (12.4, 62.0) months were enrolled in the study, including 11 males and 7 females. Pathogenic microorganisms were isolated in 17 patients by mNGS test, with a positive rate of 17/18, which was higher than 13/18 of microbial culture, but the difference was not statistically significant (P=0.219). Both mNGS test and microbial culture isolated positive pathogenic bacteria in 12 patients, and mNGS test isolated the same types of pathogenic bacteria as microbial cultivation did in 11 patients. In five patients with negative microbial culture, mNGS test also isolated pathogenic microorganisms, including 3 cases of Staphylococcus epidermidis, 1 case of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and 1 case of Ureaplasma urealyticum. In 1 patient, microbial culture isolated pathogenic bacteria (Escherichia coli) whereas mNGS test did not. The detection time of mNGS was 25.0 (24.0, 27.0) h, which was significantly shorter than 89.0 (72.8, 122.0) h of microbial culture (Z=3.726, P<0.001). Conclusions: mNGS test can improve the detection rate of pathogenic microorganisms in PD-related peritonitis and greatly shorten the detection time, and has good consistency with microbial culture. mNGS may provide a new approach for pathogen identification of PD-related peritonitis, especially refractory peritonitis.

Preparation and intestinal absorption of Panax notoginseng saponins chitosan nanoparticles / 中国中药杂志

In this experiment, Panax notoginseng saponins chitosan nanoparticles(PNS-NPs) were prepared by self-assembly and their appearance, particle size, encapsulation efficiency, drug loading, polydispersity index(PDI), Zeta potential, and microstructure were characterized. The prepared PNS-NPs were intact in structure, with an average particle size of(209±0.258) nm, encapsulation efficiency of 42.34%±0.28%, a drug loading of 37.63%±0.85%, and a Zeta potential of(39.8±3.122) mV. The intestinal absorption of PNS-NPs in rats was further studied. The established HPLC method of PNS was employed to investigate the effects of pH, perfusion rate, and different drugs(PNS raw materials, Xuesaitong Capsules, and PNS-NPs). The absorption rate constant(K_a) and apparent permeability coefficient(P_(app)) in the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and colon were calculated and analyzed. As illustrated by the results, the intestinal absorption of PNS-NPs was increased in the perfusion solution at pH 6.8(P<0.05), and perfusion rate had no significant effect on the K_a and P_(app) of PNS-NPs. The intestinal absorption of PNS-NPs was significantly different from that of PNS raw materials and Xuesaitong Capsules(P<0.05), and the intestinal absorption of PNS-NPs was significantly improved.

Effects of Vitamin D on Autophagy and Apoptosis in Hippocampus of Rats with Traumatic Brain Injury / 中国康复理论与实践

Objective To explore the effect of vitamin D hormone(VDH)on autophagy and apoptosis in hippocampus of rats with traumatic brain injury(TBI). Methods A total of 45 male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into control group(n=15),model group(n=15)and VDH group(n=15).The TBI model was established in the model group and VDH group.VDH group was injected with VDH 1 μg/kg 30 minutes,24 hours and 48 hours after modeling,respectively.The expression of microtubule as-sociated protein 1 light chain 3(LC3)and p62 was detected with Western blotting,and the number of apoptotic cells were detected with TUNEL three days after modeling.All groups were tested with Morris water maze on the fifth,sixth and seventh days. Results The number of TUNEL positive cells in hippocampus was more in the model group than in the control group (P<0.05),and was lower in VDH group than in the model group(P<0.05),as well as the expression of LC3II/LC3I and p62(P<0.05).The escape latency was longer in the model group than in the control group(P<0.05),and was shorter in VDH group than in the model group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the swimming velocity on the fifth,sixth,and seventh days among three groups(F=0.530,P>0.05). Conclusion VDH has potential neuroprotective effects on TBI,which might be associated with its anti-apoptosis effect on the expression of LC3 and p62 proteins in hippocampus after TBI.

Study of brain distribution of Ephedra alkaloids based on UHPLC-QTOF-MSE and UHPLC-MS/MS method / 药学学报

Using ultra high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled with mass spectrum (MS) technology, a method has been established for separation and analysis of alkaloid isomers. Alkaloids in Ephedra sinica transitionally crossed blood brain barrier (BBB) and the distribution were investigated. The concentrations of Ephedra alkaloids in rat central nervous system (CNS) were determined to acquire the distribution characteristics and differences in cerebral cortex, cerebellum, hippocampus, striatum, medulla oblongata and hypothalamus. It was founded that pseudoephedrine, norephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, methylephedrine (methylpseudoephedrine) were able to cross BBB fast via gastro-intestinal tract after administrated with Ephedra sinica. Cortex and hippocampus was the main distribution region, followed by hypothalamus, striatum and cerebellum, in which medulla oblongata had the least. The distribution of various alkaloids, as AUC0-t, brain/AUC0-t, blood was ephedrine > methylephedrine > demethyl ephedrine. Alkaloids in Ephedra sinica crossed BBB rapidly, showing the regional distribution tendency in central nervous system, and the distribution was diversity. This group of data provides distribution of bioactive constituents of Ephedra in CNS.

Expression of MED27 in lung cancer tissues and cells and its significance / 临床与实验病理学杂志

Purpose To investigate the expression level of MED27 in lung cancer tissue samples and lung cancer cell lines and to further study the biological function of MED27 in lung cancer cells.Methods Immunohistochemistry and Western blot were used to detect MED27 expression in 70 lung cancer tissues and 5 different lung cancer cell lines,and the correlation between MED27 expression and gender,age as well as PTNM was also analyzed.The silence sequence of MED27 was designed by the siRNA technique.Western blot was used to detect the silence efficiency of MED27.The proliferation,migration and invasion ability of cells were assessed by CCK-8 assay,Scratch assay and Transwell assay after the MED27 was knocked down.Western blot was used to detect the expression of protein involved in the cell proliferation,migration and invasion.Results The results of immunohistochemistry and Western blot showed that MED27 expression was higher in lung cancer tissues and cells (P ＜ 0.05).The expression of MED27 was positively correlated with lymph node metastasis (x2 =9.438,P =0.002,P ＜ 0.05).However,it was not related with gender,age,tumor size and distant metastasis (P ＞ 0.05).The knockdown of MED27 by MED27 specific siRNA could inhibit the proliferation,migration and invasion of H460 cells (P ＜ 0.05).The expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 involved in the cell migration that were significantly inhibited in H460 cells transfected by MED27 siRNA,and the expression of E-cadherin,related with cell invasion was also decreased,while E-cadherin negative regulatory protein Snail was increased.Conclusion MED27 is highly expressed in lung cancer tissues and cells and high expression of MED27 predicts poor prognosis in lung cancer patients.The knockdown of MED27 inhibits the proliferation,migration and invasion ability of lung cancer cells.All of the above results suggest that MED27 is expected to be a candidate target of lung cancer gene therapy.

Mechanisms of the role of fibroblast growth factor 21 in attenuating insulin resistance / 药学学报

This study is to evaluate the therapeutic effect of fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) on type 2 diabetic mice model and to provide mechanistic insights into its therapeutic effect. Type 2 diabetic animal model was established with high calorie fat diet and low dose streptozotocin (STZ) injection. Mice were then randomized into 5 groups: model control, FGF21 0.25 and 0.05 μmol x kg(-1) x d(-1) groups, insulin treatment group. Ten age-matched normal KM mouse administered with saline were used as normal controls. Serum glucose, insulin, lipid products and the change of serum and liver tissue inflammation factor levels between five groups of mouse were determined. The results showed that blood glucose, insulin, free fatty acids (FFAs), triglycerides, and inflammatory factor average FGF-21 of type 2 diabetes model group and normal control group were significantly higher (P < 0.01), while compared with insulin group, no difference was significant. Average blood glucose, insulin, blood lipid and inflammatory factor of FGF-21 treatment group compared with type 2 diabetes group was significantly lower (P < 0.01) and insulin group has no difference with the model control group. The results of OGTT and HOMA-IR showed that insulin resistance state was significantly relieved in a dose-dependent manner. Thus, this study demonstrates that FGF-21 significantly remits type 2 diabetic mice model's insulin resistance state and participates in the regulation of inflammatory factor levels and type 2 diabetes metabolic disorders.

Prognostic role of the ABO blood types in Chinese patients with curatively resected non-small cell lung cancer: a retrospective analysis of 1601 cases at a single cancer center / 癌症

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>A positive association between the ABO blood types and survival has been suggested in several malignancies. The aim of this study was to assess the role of the ABO blood types in predicting the prognosis of Chinese patients with curatively resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We retrospectively analyzed 1601 consecutive Chinese patients who underwent curative surgery for NSCLC between January 1, 2005 and December 31, 2009. The relationship between the ABO blood types and survival was investigated. In addition, univariate and multivariate analyses were performed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Group 1 (patients with the blood type O or B) had significantly prolonged overall survival (OS) compared with group 2 (patients with the blood type A or AB), with a median OS of 74.9 months versus 61.5 months [hazard ratio (HR) 0.83; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.72-0.96; P = 0.015]. Additionally, group 1 had significantly longer disease-free survival (DFS; HR 0.86; 95% CI 0.76-0.98; P = 0.022) and locoregional relapse-free survival (LRFS; HR 0.79; 95% CI 0.64-0.98; P = 0.024) than group 2. The association was not significantly modified by other risk factors for NSCLC, including smoking status, pathologic tumor-node-metastasis stage, pT category, pN category, and chemotherapy.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>There is an association between the ABO blood types and the survival of Chinese patients with resected NSCLC. Patients with the blood type O or B had significantly prolonged OS, DFS, and LRFS compared with those with the blood type A or AB.</p>

The synergistic effect of FGF-21 and insulin on regulating glucose metabolism and its mechanism / 药学学报

Previous studies proposed that the synergistic effect of fibroblast growth factor-21 (FGF-21) and insulin may be due to the improvement of insulin sensitivity by FGF-21. However, there is no experimental evidence to support this. This study was designed to elucidate the mechanism of synergistic effect of FGF-21 and insulin in the regulation of glucose metabolism. The synergistic effect of FGF-21 and insulin on regulating glucose metabolism was demonstrated by investigating the glucose absorption rate by insulin resistance HepG2 cell model and the blood glucose chances in type 2 diabetic db/db mice after treatments with different concentrations of FGF-21 or/and insulin; The synergistic metabolism was revealed through detecting GLUT1 and GLUT4 transcription levels in the liver by real-time PCR method. The experimental results showed that FGF-21 and insulin have a synergistic effect on the regulation of glucose metabolism. The results of real-time PCR showed that the effective dose of FGF-21 could up-regulate the transcription level of GLUT1 in a dose-dependent manner, but had no effect on the transcription level of GLUT4. Insulin (4 u) alone could up-regulate the transcription level of GLUT4, yet had no effect on that of GLUT1. Ineffective dose 0.1 mg kg(-1) FGF-21 alone could not change the transcription level of GLUT1 or GLUT4. However, when the ineffective dose 0.1 mg x kg(-1) FGF-21 was used in combination with insulin (4 u) significantly increased the transcription levels of both GLUT1 and GLUT4, the transcription level of GLUT1 was similar to that treated with 5 time concentration of FGF-21 alone; the transcription level of GLUT4 is higher than that treated with insulin (4 u) alone. In summary, in the presence of FGF-21, insulin increases the sensitivity of FGF-21 through enhancing GLUT1 transcription. Vice versa, FGF-21 increases the sensitivity of insulin by stimulating GLUT4 transcription in the presence of insulin. FGF-21 and insulin exert a synergistic effect on glucose metabolism through mutual sensitization.

Treatment of leukemia with immunized donor cell infusion after nonmyeloablative haploidentical bone marrow transplantation / 中国实验血液学杂志

This study was purposed to investigate the therapeutic effects of early transfusion of immunized donor lymphocytes after haploidentical transplantation by means of mouse model of nonmyeloablative haploidentical bone marrow transplantation. CB6F1 female mouse was served as recipient and C57BL/6 male mouse was served as donor. Each CB6F1 female mouse was subjected to intravenous transfusion with 1×10(6) erythroleukemia (EL9611) cells at day 4 before transplantation, followed with intraperitoneal injection of Ara-C (0.015 g) respectively at day 2 and day 1, then conditioned for BMT with TBI (450 cGy) at day 1 before transplantation. After conditioning (day 0), each of recipients was transplanted with 6×10(7) mixture of bone marrow and spleen cells from the C57BL/6 mice, and was infused with 6 × 10(7) immunized donor lymphocytes at day 15 after transplantation. All treated animals were evaluated for survival, development of leukemia and aGVHD. The donor CD3(+) cell chimerism and sex determining region Y gene (SRY)in recipients were monitored periodically after transplantation. The results showed tht all mice with only inoculation of 10(6) EL9611 cells survived for 15 ± 1 days (n = 4); all mice of other groups obtained the varying degrees of implantation. SRY could be detected at day 30 and 60 after transplantation. The chimerism of donor CD3(+) cells in mixed bone marrow transplantation (MT) group at day 14, 30 and 60 respectively reached 17.95% ± 12.03%, 37.34% ± 2.78% and 47.06% ± 6.1%. In donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) group it reached 69.78% ± 12.62%, 75% ± 15.97%, 83.41% ± 16.07% at day 30, 45 and 60 after transplantation. The mice of MT and DLI group survived for 66.66 ± 1.47 days and 78.2 ± 7.82 days. It is concluded that the high tumor burden before transplantation can affect donor cell engraftment and prognosis.Early post-transplanted infusion of immunized lymphocytes from donor can help to improve the therapeutic efficacy and survival.

Molecular genetics and clinical features of nine patients with inherited coagulation factor VII deficiency / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate potential mutations and clinical features of 9 unrelated patients with inherited coagulation factor VII (FVII) deficiency.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinical diagnosis was validated by assaying of coagulation parameters including prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, FVII activity and specific antigens. All exons, exon-intron boundaries, and 5' and 3' untranslated regions of F7 genes were amplified with PCR. Potential mutations were detected by direct sequencing of purified PCR products. Suspected mutations were confirmed by sequencing of the opposite strand.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>All probands have featured prolonged prothrombin time, with FVII activity ranging between 2.0% to 6.0%. The titers of FVII antigen were significantly reduced in 7 probands. Eight mutations, including 6 missense mutations, 1 deletion and 1 insertion, were identified, among which 3 (Gln100Leu, Ser269Pro and g.11520_11521insT) were not described previously. Six mutations have located in the protease domain. All mutations were inherited, and consanguineous marriages were reported in 5 families. Mutations g.27_28delCT, Cys329Gly, Arg304Trp and His348Gln have been identified in unrelated families. There was a lack of correlation between the mutations and their clinical features. Two individuals with homozygous His348Gln mutations and 1 individual with homozygous Arg304Trp mutation were only mildly affected or asymptomatic. Two patients, who have respectively carried homozygous and heterozygous deletions of g.27_28delCT, were moderately affected and asymptomatic. In 4 patients carrying double heterozygous mutations, 1 (Ser269Pro and Cys329Gly) was asymptomatic, 2 (Arg304Trp and Cys329Gly, Arg277Cys and g.11520_11521insT, respectively) had a mild bleeding tendency, whilst 1 (Gln100Leu and His348Gln) has a moderate bleeding diathesis.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>There seem to be hotspots of F7 gene mutations in ethnic Han Chinese populations. And there is a lack of correlation between particular types of mutations and clinical phenotypes.</p>

Gene analysis of a combined inherited factor VII and factor X deficiency pedigree / 中华血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To perform gene analysis and family survey of a patient with combined inherited FVII and FX deficiency, and to identify the gene mutation of this patient.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The phenotype diagnosis was validated by coagulant parameter assay on prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), fibrinogen, FVII and FX activity (FVII:C, FX:C) and FVII and FX antigen (FVII:Ag, FX:Ag). FVII and FX gene mutations were analyzed in the proband and other family members by DNA direct sequencing of all exons, exon-intron boundaries and 5', 3' untranslated sequences. One hundred and six health examination participants were selected as control.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The values of PT and APTT of the proband showed significantly prolonged, which were 84.5s and 63.4s, respectively. The levels of FVII:C, FVII:Ag, FX:C and FX:Ag were 6%, 7%, 4% and 30%, respectively. The PT of his father, mother and sister was prolonged slightly while both APTT and FVII:Ag were in the normal range. Two homozygous mutations, g.11267C→T in exon 8 of FVII gene resulting in the substitution of Arg277Cys and g.28139G→T in exon 8 of FX gene leading to the substitution of Val384Phe, were identified in the proband. The proband's parents and sister were heterozygous for Arg277Cys and Val384Phe mutations.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Homozygous mutation Arg277Cys in FVII gene and Val384Phe in FX gene were the molecular mechanism causing combined inherited FVII and FX deficiency. The Val384Phe substitution was a novel mutation, which may affect the synthesis or secretion of FX protein.</p>