Research progress in the etiology of hepatitis type E virus / 中华肝脏病杂志

Hepatitis type E virus (HEV) is a significant infectious zoonotic disease that causes hepatitis E. The disease is primarily transmitted via the fecal-oral route through contaminated water or food and is transmissible between species and genera. The causative agent for the disease is the hepatitis type E virus, which is a member of the Hepadnaviridae family and a single-stranded RNA virus. Its 7.2 kb genome mainly contains three open reading frames (ORFs): ORF1 encodes a non-structural polyprotein that mediates viral replication and transcription; ORF2 encodes a capsid protein and free antigen that induce neutralizing antibodies; ORF3 partially overlaps with ORF2 and encodes a small multifunctional protein involved in virion formation and release. HEV has a unique dual life cycle: it is excreted into feces in the form of naked virions but circulates in the blood in the form of "quasi-enveloped" particles. The two kinds of virus particles adsorb and penetrate the host cell in distinct ways, then internalize and decapsulate to replicate the genome, thereby producing more virion and releasing it outside the cell to mediate the virus's spread. This paper reviews the morphological characteristics, genome structure, encoded proteins, and function of HEV virus-like particles in order to provide a theoretical basis for basic research and comprehensive disease prevention and control.

Association between sedentary behavior and force expiratory volume in 1 second reduction in middle-aged and elderly adults in communities / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective: To analyze the relationship between sedentary behavior and the force expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) reduction in middle-aged and elderly people in communities. Methods: The participants aged ≥40 years were randomly selected from a natural population cohort in Songjiang District, Shanghai, for pulmonary function tests and survey by using international physical activity questionnaire, a generalized additive model was used to analyze the association between sedentary behavior and FEV1 reduction in the study population and different sex-age subgroups. Results: A total of 3 121 study subjects aged ≥40 years were included. The prevalence of FEV1 reduction was 14.8%, which was higher in men than in women. There were 24.8% participants were completely sedentary. The prevalence of FEV1 reduction in women aged <60 years in complete sedentary group was 2.04 (95%CI: 1.11-3.72) times higher than that in non-complete sedentary group. In men aged <60 years, the prevalence of FEV1 reduction increased with daily sedentary time (OR=1.16, 95%CI: 1.04-1.29), and the prevalence of FEV1 reduction was also higher in those with sedentary time >5 hours/day than those with sedentary time ≤5 hours/day (OR=3.02, 95%CI: 1.28-7.16). The sensitivity analysis also found such associations. Conclusions: FEV1 reduction rate in age group <60 years was associated with sedentary behavior. Complete sedentary behavior or absence of moderate to vigorous physical activity played important roles in FEV1 reduction in women, while men were more likely to be affected by increased sedentary time, which had no association with physical activity. Reducing sedentary time to avoid complete sedentary behavior, along with increased physical activity, should be encouraged in middle-aged and elderly adults in communities to improve their pulmonary function.

Effects of rumen microorganisms on the decomposition of recycled straw residue / 浙江大学学报（英文版）（B辑：生物医学和生物技术）

Recently, returning straw to the fields has been proved as a direct and effective method to tackle soil nutrient loss and agricultural pollution. Meanwhile, the slow decomposition of straw may harm the growth of the next crop. This study aimed to determine the effects of rumen microorganisms (RMs) on straw decomposition, bacterial microbial community structure, soil properties, and soil enzyme activity. The results showed that RMs significantly enhanced the degradation rate of straw in the soil, reaching 39.52%, which was 41.37% higher than that of the control on the 30th day after straw return. After 30 d, straw degradation showed a significant slower trend in both the control and the experimental groups. According to the soil physicochemical parameters, the application of rumen fluid expedited soil matter transformation and nutrient buildup, and increased the urease, sucrase, and cellulase activity by 10%‒20%. The qualitative analysis of straw showed that the hydroxyl functional group structure of cellulose in straw was greatly damaged after the application of rumen fluid. The analysis of soil microbial community structure revealed that the addition of rumen fluid led to the proliferation of Actinobacteria with strong cellulose degradation ability, which was the main reason for the accelerated straw decomposition. Our study highlights that returning rice straw to the fields with rumen fluid inoculation can be used as an effective measure to enhance the biological value of recycled rice straw, proposing a viable solution to the problem of sluggish straw decomposition.

Analysis and evaluation of bioactive constituents from different parts of Epimedium brevicornum / 中国中药杂志

A comprehensive analytical method based on ultra-fast liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole/linear ion trap tandem mass spectrometry(UFLC-QTRAP-MS/MS) was established for simultaneous determination of the content of 45 bioactive constituents including flavonoids, alkaloids, amino acids, phenolic acids, and nucleosides in Epimedium brevicornum. The multiple bioactive constituents in leaves, petioles, stems and rhizomes of E. brevicornum were analyzed. The gradient elution was performed at 30 ℃ in an XBridge~® C_(18) column(4.6 mm×100 mm, 3.5 μm) with 0.4% formic acid aqueous solution-acetonitrile as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.8 mL·min~(-1). Single factor experiment and response surface methodology were employed to optimize the extraction conditions. Multivariate statistical analyses including systematic cluster analysis(SCA), principal component analysis(PCA), partial least squares discriminant analysis(PLS-DA), and one-way analysis of variance(One-way ANOVA) were carried out to classify the samples from different parts and identify different constituents. Grey relation analysis(GRA) and entropy weight-TOPSIS analysis were performed to build a multi-index comprehensive evaluation model for different parts of E. brevicornum. The results showed that there was a good relationship between the mass concentrations of 45 constituents and the corresponding peak areas, with the correlation coefficients(r) not less than 0.999 0. The precision, repeatability, and stability of the established method were good for all the target constituents in this study, with the relative standard deviations(RSDs) less than 5.0%(0.62%-4.9%) and the average recovery of 94.51%-105.7%. The above results indicated that the bioactive constituents varied in different parts of E. brevicornum, and the overall quality followed the trend of leaves > petioles > rhizomes > stems. This study verified the rationality of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia(2020 edition) stipulating that the medicinal part of E. brevicornum is the leaf. Moreover, our study indicated that the rhizome had the potential for medicinal development. The established method was accurate and reliable, which can be used to comprehensive evaluate and control the quality of E. brevicornum. This study provides data reference for clarifying the medicinal parts and rationally utilizing the resources of E. brevicornum.

Based on CT radiomics model for predicting the response to first-line chemotherapy of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma / 中华肿瘤杂志

Objective: To investigate the potential value of CT Radiomics model in predicting the response to first-line chemotherapy in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Methods: Pre-treatment CT images and clinical data of DLBCL patients treated at Shanxi Cancer Hospital from January 2013 to May 2018 were retrospectively analyzed and divided into refractory patients (73 cases) and non-refractory patients (57 cases) according to the Lugano 2014 efficacy evaluation criteria. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression algorithm, univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to screen out clinical factors and CT radiomics features associated with efficacy response, followed by radiomics model and nomogram model. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, calibration curve and clinical decision curve were used to evaluate the models in terms of the diagnostic efficacy, calibration and clinical value in predicting chemotherapy response. Results: Based on pre-chemotherapy CT images, 850 CT texture features were extracted from each patient, and 6 features highly correlated with the first-line chemotherapy effect of DLBCL were selected, including 1 first order feature, 1 gray level co-occurence matrix, 3 grey level dependence matrix, 1 neighboring grey tone difference matrix. Then, the corresponding radiomics model was established, whose ROC curves showed AUC values of 0.82 (95% CI: 0.76-0.89) and 0.73 (95% CI: 0.60-0.86) in the training and validation groups, respectively. The nomogram model, built by combining validated clinical factors (Ann Arbor stage, serum LDH level) and CT radiomics features, showed an AUC of 0.95 (95% CI: 0.90-0.99) and 0.91 (95% CI: 0.82-1.00) in the training group and the validation group, respectively, with significantly better diagnostic efficacy than that of the radiomics model. In addition, the calibration curve and clinical decision curve showed that the nomogram model had good consistency and high clinical value in the assessment of DLBCL efficacy. Conclusion: The nomogram model based on clinical factors and radiomics features shows potential clinical value in predicting the response to first-line chemotherapy of DLBCL patients.

Report on Cardiac Gross Pathologic Measurements of Sudden Cardiac Death in Adults / 法医学杂志

OBJECTIVES@#To analyze the gross pathological data of sudden cardiac death (SCD) with different causes, to provide data support for the identification of sudden cardiac death with unknown causes.@*METHODS@#A total of 167 adult SCD cases in the archive of the Forensic Expertise Institute of Nanjing Medical University from 2010 to 2020 were collected. The gross pathological data of SCD cases were summarized and the characteristics of different causes of death were statistically analyzed.@*RESULTS@#The ratio of male to female SCD cases was 3.4∶1. Coronary heart disease was the leading cause of SCD, and mainly distributed in people over 40 years old. SCD caused by myocarditis was mainly distributed in young people and the mean age of death was (34.00±9.55) years. By analyzing the differences in cardiac pathological parameters of SCD with different causes, it was found that the aortic valve circumference was significantly dilated in the SCD caused by aortic aneurysm or dissection (P<0.05). The heart weight of SCD caused by aortic aneurysm or dissection and combined factors was greater, and both pulmonary and tricuspid valvular rings were dilated in the SCD caused by combined factors in adult males (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSIONS@#Various gross pathological measures of SCD with different causes are different, which has reference value in the cause of death identification of SCD.

Prognostic value of lymphocyte subsets in gastric cancer with different tumor infiltration patterns / 中华普通外科杂志

Objective:To probe into the potential prognostic value of lymphocyte subsets in gastric cancer.Methods:This study included patients who underwent radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer from Aug 2014 to Dec 2016. The immunological differences was analyzed in different infiltration patterns. The overall survival of patients was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method and Log-rank test. COX regression was performed to assess independent prognostic factors of the patients, and finally constructed nomogram.Results:The median number of peripheral CD4 and CD19 cells in infiltration pattern c was 750 (94-2 504) cells/μl and 186 (17-820) cells/μl; the median number of peripheral CD4 and CD19 cells in infiltration pattern a was 802 (203-2 071) cells/μl and 213 (5-948) cells/μl, the number of peripheral CD4,CD19 cells in infiltration pattern c was lower than that in infiltration pattern a, with statistically significant differences (CD4: Z=-3.061, P=0.002; CD19: Z=-2.016 , P=0.044). CD19 lymphocytes ( P=0.023) were associated with infiltration pattern a, CD8 lymphocytes ( P=0.027) were associated with infiltration pattern b, and CD4 lymphocytes ( P=0.026) were independent risk factors associated with the prognosis of infiltration pattern c. A nomogram can be constructed to evaluate the prognosis of patients. Conclusion:There are differences in the number of peripheral lymphocyte subsets in patients with different INF types. A nomogram can be constructed from lymphocyte subsets and clinicopathological features to assess patient prognosis.

Survival analysis of proximal gastrectomy in patients with advanced upper gastric cancer / 中华普通外科杂志

Objective:To compare the prognosis difference between proximal gastrectomy (PG) and total gastrectomy (TG) in patients with advanced upper gastric cancer.Methods:This study included patients of upper gastric cancer admitted from Jan 2011 to Dec 2016 undergoing radical resection at Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital. Patients were divided into TG group (178 cases) and PG group (185 cases).Results:Comapared to PG group , more TG patients were with tumor diameter >4 cm, Borrmann type Ⅲ and postoperative stage Ⅲ ( χ2=9.687, P=0.002; χ2=24.897, P=0.001; χ2=6.257 P=0.044).The 5-year overall survival (OS) of the PG group and the TG group were 64.3% (95% CI: 45.1%-50.5%) and 60.6% (95% CI: 41.3%-47.6%) ( P=0.297).After propensity score matching, the OS between the two groups was not statistically significant ( P=0.876).Subgroup analysis of chemotherapy showed that the difference in survival between TG group and PG group was not statistically significant ( P=0.309). Conclusion:There was no difference in survival between PG and TG in patients with advanced upper gastric cancer.

Efficacy of microwave ablation versus radiofrequency ablation in the treatment of colon cancer liver metastases: a meta-analysis / 中华肝胆外科杂志

Objective:To explore the best treatment for local ablation of colon cancer liver metastases (CRLM) by meta-analysis.Methods:The electronic databases of PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, CNKI and the Cochrane Library were searched from the establishment to August 22, 2022, and studies that report outcomes with comparison between microwave ablation (WMA) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in CRLM treatment were selected by inclusion and exclusion criteria. Furthermore, the perioperative and survival data were statistically summarized and analyzed by Review Manager 5.3 software.Results:A total of 5 retrospective studies were included with a total sample size of 648 cases, including 316 cases (48.8%) in the WMA group and 332 cases (51.2%) in the RFA group. The results of meta-analysis showed that locoregional recurrence rate in WMA group was significantly lower than that in RFA group. The 1-year and 2-year disease-free survival (DFS) of the WMA group was significantly better than that of the RFA group with HR of 1.77 ( P=0.04, 95% CI: 1.04-3.02) and 1.60 ( P=0.02, 95% CI: 1.09-2.35), respectively. Conclusion:The local control rate and 1-year and 2-year DFS of WMA were superior to RFA.

Study on chemical constituents and in vitro anti-inflammatory activity of ethyl acetate extraction part from ethanol extract of the roots of Ardisia virens / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE To isolate and ide ntify the chemical constituents of the root of Ardisia virens and preliminarily evaluate the in vitro anti-inflammatory activity of the compounds. METHODS The ethyl acetate extraction part from 70％ ethanol extract of the root of A. virens were separated and purified by silica gel column chromatography ，ODS column chromatography ， etc. The structures of the compounds were identified according to physical and chemical properties and spectral data. The inflammation model of RAW 264.7 cells was induced by lipopolysaccharide ，and anti-inflammatory activity of the compound was investigated by MTT assay. RESULTS A total of 11 compounds were isolated from the ethyl acetate extraction part ，and were identified as cyclamiretin A （1），α-spinasterol （2），（3S，5R，6S，7E）-3，5，6-trihydroxy-7-megastigmen-9-one （3）， （+）-angelicoidenol（4），octadeca-dienoic acid- 2，3-dihydroxypropyl ester （5），α-linolenic acid （6），glycerol monooleate （7），5， 5′-（4，7-hexadecadlene-1，16-diyl）bisresorcinol（8），1-（3，5-dihydroxyphenyl）heptan-1-one（9），5-heptylresorcinol and （10） 5-n-nonylresorcinol（11）. The in vitro anti-inflammatory results showed that 80，40，20，10，5 μg/mL of compounds 2，8，9 and 10 could reduce the cell survival rate in different degrees. CONCLUSIONS Compounds 1-11 are isolated from this plant for the first time，and compound 8 is a new natural product. Compound 2，8，9 and 10 show certain anti-inflammatory activity in vitro .

Characteristics of Traditional Chinese Medicine Syndromes and Treatments of COVID-19 Patients from Two Hospitals Based on “Treatment of Disease in Accordance with Three Conditions” / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo explore the guidance value of “treatment of disease in accordance with three conditions” theory in the prevention and treatment of corona virus disease 2019（COVID-19） based on the differences of syndromes and traditional Chinese medicine（TCM） treatments in COVID-19 patients from Xingtai Hospital of Chinese Medicine of Hebei province and Ruili Hospital of Chinese Medicine and Dai Medicine of Yunnan province and discuss its significance in the prevention and treatment of the unexpected acute infectious diseases. MethodDemographics data and clinical characteristics of COVID-19 patients from the two hospitals were collected retrospectively and analyzed by SPSS 18.0. The information on formulas was obtained from the hospital information system （HIS） of the two hospitals and analyzed by the big data intelligent processing and knowledge service system of Guangdong Hospital of Chinese Medicine for frequency statistics and association rules analysis. Heat map-hierarchical clustering analysis was used to explore the correlation between clinical characteristics and formulas. ResultA total of 175 patients with COVID-19 were included in this study. The 70 patients in Xingtai，dominated by young and middle-aged males，had clinical symptoms of fever， abnormal sweating，and fatigue. The main pathogenesis is stagnant cold-dampness in the exterior and impaired yin by depressed heat， with manifest cold， dampness， and deficiency syndromes. The therapeutic methods highlight relieving exterior syndrome and resolving dampness， accompanied by draining depressed heat. The core Chinese medicines used are Poria，Armeniacae Semen Amarum，Gypsum Fibrosum，Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium，and Pogostemonis Herba. By contrast，the 105 patients in Ruili， dominated by young females， had atypical clinical symptoms， and most of them were asymptomatic patients or mild cases. The main pathogenesis is dampness obstructing the lung and the stomach， with obvious dampness and heat syndromes. The therapeutic methods are mainly invigorating the spleen， resolving dampness， and dispersing Qi with light drugs. The core Chinese medicines used are Poria，Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma，Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma，Coicis Semen，Platycodonis Radix，Lonicerae Japonicae Flos， and Pogostemonis Herba. ConclusionThe differences in clinical characteristics， TCM syndromes， and medication of COVID-19 patients from the two places may result from different regions，population characteristics， and the time point of the COVID-19 outbreak. The “treatment of disease in accordance with three conditions” theory can help to understand the internal correlation and guide the treatments.

Mechanism of Fangji Fulingtang for Treating Acute Kidney Injury Induced by Ischemia-reperfusion Based on Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking Verification / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo explore the mechanism of Fangji Fulingtang in the treatment of acute kidney injury （AKI） induced by ischemia-reperfusion based on network pharmacology and experimental verification. MethodActive components of Fangji Fulingtang were retrieved from Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform （TCMSP） and previous report and targets of these components were predicted by SwissTargetPrediction. The targets of AKI were searched from GeneCards， Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man （OMIM）， the database of gene-disease associations （DisGeNET）， and Therapeutic Target Database （TTD）. Protein-protein interaction （PPI） network was constructed by STRING. Metascape was used for Gene Ontology （GO） term enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes （KEGG） pathway enrichment of core targets. Cytoscape was employed to construct the "medicinal-active component-target-disease" network and “active component-target-pathway” network. AutoDock was applied for molecular docking. Finally， animal experiment was carried out to validate the mechanism of Fangji Fulingtang in treatment of AKI. ResultA total of 137 active components and 858 targets of Fangji Fulingtang， 1 294 targets of AKI， and 267 targets of Fangji Fulingtang in the treatment of AKI were screened out. Phosphoinositide-3-kinase regulatory subunit 1 （PIK3R1）， phosphatidylinositol-4，5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit alpha （PIK3CA）， proto-oncogene tyrosine protein kinase （SRC）， protein kinase B1 （Akt1）， and mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 （MAPK3） were the key anti-AKI targets of Fangji Fulingtang， which were involved in 1 609 GO terms， particularly cell response to lipids， membrane rafts， and protein kinase activity， and 140 KEGG pathways such as PI3K/Akt signaling pathway， chemokine signaling pathway， and Toll-like receptor signaling pathway. Molecular docking showed that the core active components had strong binding affinity to the key targets. The hematoxylin and eosin （HE） staining results indicated that Fangji Fulingtang can significantly improve the pathological state and the serological results suggested that the levels of serum creatinine （SCr） and blood urea nitrogen （BUN） were significantly reduced. ConclusionThis study clarified the mechanism of Fangji Fulingtang in the treatment of AKI and found that Fangji Fulingtang had the multi-component， multi-target， and multi-pathway characteristics in the treatment of AKI. The result lays a foundation for further study of its specific mechanism.

Study on chemical constituents and in vitro antioxidant activity of ethanol extract of Sabia parviflora / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE To separate and identif y the chemical constituen ts in 70％ ethanol extract of Sabia parviflora ，and to preliminarily evaluate their in vitro antioxidant activity. METHODS The chemical constituents were separated and purified by silica gel，ODS reversed-phase silica gel ，Sephadex-LH20 column and preparative high performance liquid chromatography. The structures of the isolated compounds were identified by 1H-NMR，13C-NMR and ESI-MS. The in vitro antioxidant activities of the compounds were investigated by 2，2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical （DPPH·），2，2′-azino-bis（3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6- sulfonate）diammonium radical （ABST+）and hydroxyl radical （OH·）. RESULTS A total of 9 compounds were isolated from the 70％ ethanol extracts of S. parviflora . They were identified as rutin （1），diiononyl phthalate （2），dibutyl phthalate （3），vomifoliol （4），rhododendrol（5），quercetin-3-O-gentiobioside（6），narcissoside（7），kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside（8）and bonaroside （9）. The in vitro antioxidant results showed that compound 1-9 showed certain in vitro antioxidant activity ，and the half scavenging concentrations of compound 1，6，7 and 8 to DPPH ·，ABST+，OH·were lower than 70 μg/mL. CONCLUSIONS Vomifoliol， rhododendrol and bonaroside are isolated from S. parviflora for the first time ，and rutin ，quercetin-3-O-gentiobioside，narcissoside and kaempferol- 3-O-rutinoside show good in vitro antioxidant activity.

Meta-Analysis of the Diagnostic Efficacy of the Luminex xTAG Respiratory Viral Panel FAST v2Assay for Respiratory Viral Infections

Purpose@#Acute respiratory viral infections pose significant morbidity and mortality, making it essential to diagnose respiratory viral infections rapidly. In this study, the diagnostic efficacy of the Luminex xTAG Respiratory Virus Panel (RVP) FAST v2 test was evaluated on respiratory viral infections. @*Materials and Methods@#Information was retrieved from electronic databases, including Embase, Web of Science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library, for systematic review. Studies that fulfilled predefined inclusion criteria were included. After the extraction of information, statistical software was utilized for quality evaluation, data analysis, and assessment of publication bias. @*Results@#Eighty groups in fourfold tables from nine articles were included to perform statistical analyses. Therein, the mean specificity and mean sensitivity of Luminex xTAG RVP FAST v2 test for the detection of respiratory viral infections were 0.99 (0.98–0.99) and 0.88 (0.87–0.90), respectively. Additionally, the negative and positive likelihood ratios were 0.14 (0.11–0.19) and 87.42 (61.88– 123.50), respectively. Moreover, the diagnostic odds ratio and area under the curve of summary receiver operating characteristic were 714.80 and 0.9886, respectively. @*Conclusion@#The Luminex xTAG RVP FAST v2 test could be a reliable and rapid diagnostic method for multiple respiratory viral infections.

A new γ-valerolactone derivative from the roots of Ardisia crispa / 药学学报

Four compounds were isolated from the 70% EtOH extract of Ardisia crispa by using various chromatographic techniques, including silica gel, ODS and semi-preparative HPLC. The structures of 1-4 were elucidated based on physicochemical properties and spectroscopic data. These compounds were defined as crispalactone A (1), (+)-pinoresinol (2), 3,5-dimethoxy-4- hydroxyphenol-1-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (3) and (+)-schizandriside (4). Compound 1 is a new γ-valerolactone derivative, and compounds 2-4 are firstly isolated from Ardisia crispa.

Paternal environmental exposure-induced spermatozoal small noncoding RNA alteration meditates the intergenerational epigenetic inheritance of multiple diseases / 医学前沿

Studies of human and mammalian have revealed that environmental exposure can affect paternal health conditions as well as those of the offspring. However, studies that explore the mechanisms that meditate this transmission are rare. Recently, small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs) in sperm have seemed crucial to this transmission due to their alteration in sperm in response to environmental exposure, and the methodology of microinjection of isolated total RNA or sncRNAs or synthetically identified sncRNAs gradually lifted the veil of sncRNA regulation during intergenerational inheritance along the male line. Hence, by reviewing relevant literature, this study intends to answer the following research concepts: (1) paternal environmental factors that can be passed on to offspring and are attributed to spermatozoal sncRNAs, (2) potential role of paternal spermatozoal sncRNAs during the intergenerational inheritance process, and (3) the potential mechanism by which spermatozoal sncRNAs meditate intergenerational inheritance. In summary, increased attention highlights the hidden wonder of spermatozoal sncRNAs during intergenerational inheritance. Therefore, in the future, more studies should focus on the origin of RNA alteration, the target of RNA regulation, and how sncRNA regulation during embryonic development can be sustained even in adult offspring.

Evaluation of CRISPR-Based Assays for Rapid Detection of SARS-CoV-2: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Purpose@#Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the pathogen of coronavirus disease 2019. Diagnostic methods based on the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) have been developed to detect SARSCoV-2 rapidly. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis were performed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of CRISPR for detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection. @*Materials and Methods@#Studies published before August 2021 were retrieved from four databases, using the keywords “SARS-CoV-2” and “CRISPR.” Data were collected from these publications, and the sensitivity, specificity, negative likelihood ratio (NLR), positive likelihood ratio (PLR), and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) were calculated. The summary receiver operating characteristic curve was plotted for analysis with MetaDiSc 1.4. The Stata 15.0 software was used to draw Deeks’ funnel plots to evaluate publication bias. @*Results@#We performed a pooled analysis of 38 independent studies shown in 30 publications. The reference standard was reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. The results indicated that the sensitivity of CRISPR-based methods for diagnosis was 0.94 (95% CI 0.93–0.95), the specificity was 0.98 (95% CI 0.97–0.99), the PLR was 34.03 (95% CI 20.81–55.66), the NLR was 0.08 (95% CI 0.06– 0.10), and the DOR was 575.74 (95% CI 382.36–866.95). The area under the curve was 0.9894. @*Conclusion@#Studies indicate that a diagnostic method based on CRISPR has high sensitivity and specificity. Therefore, this would be a potential diagnostic tool to improve the accuracy of SARS-CoV-2 detection.

Preliminary clinical observation on endoscopic longitudinal incision combined with bleomycin local injection for complex benign esophageal strictures / 中华消化内镜杂志

Data of 7 patients with complex benign esophageal strictures (CBESs) who underwent endoscopic longitudinal incision combined with local injection of bleomycin were retrospectively reviewed at Air Force Medical Center from August 2018 to November 2019.The length of preoperative esophageal stenosis was 4-14 cm and the minimum diameter of esophageal stenosis was 0.2-0.4 cm in 7 cases. The procedure was successful for all 7 patients.No adverse events occurred during 5-14 months of follow-up period.Restenosis and dysphagia occurred in 5 cases.The interval between the first endoscopic treatment and the recurrence of esophageal stenosis was 30-120 days.Among the 5 cases of recurrence, 4 cases remained unobstructed after 2 treatments and 1 case remained unobstructed after 4 treatments. The dysphagia scores of 7 patients were graded from 0 to 1 by the end of follow-up. Endoscopic longitudinal incision combined with bleomycin therapy in treatment of CBESs is safe and effective.

Short- and long-term outcomes of emergency resection versus transarterial embolization followed by resection for spontaneous rupture hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis / 中华肝胆外科杂志

Objective:To study the optimal surgical strategy for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) presenting with spontaneous rupture and hemorrhage.Methods:The electronic databases of PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library were searched, and studies reporting on survival outcomes comparing emergency resection (ER) and transarterial embolization followed by hepatectomy (SH) were included by using predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The perioperative and survival data were compared using the Review Manager 5.3 software.Results:Eight retrospective studies were included. The total sample size was 556, with 285 (51.3%) in the ER group and 271 (48.7%) in the SH group. Perioperative blood loss ( WMD=683.61, 95% CI: 283.36-1 083.86, P=0.0 008) and blood transfusion volume ( WMD=453.43, 95% CI: 250.27-656.58, P<0.0 001) in the SH group were significantly less than those in the ER group. There were no significant differences in operative time, incidences of complications, mortality and recurrence rates of tumors between the two groups (all P>0.05). The 1-, 2-, 3-year overall survival and 1-, 2-, 3-, 5-year disease-free survival of the ER group were not significantly different from those of the SH group (all P>0.05). The 5-year overall survival rate of the ER group was significantly lower than that of the SH group ( HR=1.52; 95% CI: 1.14-2.03, P=0.005). Conclusions:There was no significant difference in short-term outcomes in treatment of ruptured HCC, SH was superior to ER in long-term survival outcomes.

Clinical characteristics of coronavirus disease 2019 infected with Delta variant in Guangzhou:A real-world study / 中华急诊医学杂志

Objective:To summarize the clinical characteristics of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infected with Delta variant, so as to provide further references for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:A real-world study was conducted to analyze the characteristics of 166 COVID-19 patients infected with Delta variant at Guangzhou Eighth People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University.Results:The study enrolled 5 asymptomatic cases, 123 non-severe cases (mild and moderate type), and 38 severe cases (severe and critical type). Among these patients, 69 (41.6%) were male and 97 (58.4%) were female, with a mean age of 47.0±23.5 years. Thirty-nine cases (23.5%) had received 1 or 2 doses of inactivated vaccine. The incidence of severe COVID-19 cases was 7.7% in 2-doses vaccinated patients, which was lower than that of 11.5% in 1-dose and 26.8% in unvaccinated patients. The proportion of severe cases in 2 dose-vaccinated patients was 7.7%, which was lower than that of 11.5% in 1-dose vaccinated patients and 26.8% in unvaccinated patients, but the difference was not significant ( P>0.05). The most common clinical symptom was fever (134 cases, 83.2%), and 39.1% of cases presented with high-grade fever (≥39 °C); other symptoms were cough, sputum, fatigue, and xerostomia. The proportion of fever in severe cases was significantly higher than that of non-severe cases (97.4% vs. 76.4%, P<0.01). Similarly, the proportion of severe cases with high peak temperature (≥39 ℃) () was also higher than that of non-severe cases (65.8% vs. 30.9%, P<0.01). The median minimal Cycle threshold (Ct) values of viral nucleic acid N gene and ORFlab gene were 20.3 and 21.5, respectively, and the minimum Ct values were 11.9 and 13.5, respectively. Within 48 h of admission, 9.0% of cases presented with decreased white blood cell counts, and 52.4% with decreased lymphocyte counts. The proportions of increased C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, interleukin 6, and interleukin 10 were 32.5%, 57.4%, 65.3%, and 35.7%, respectively. The proportions of elevated C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A and interleukin-6 in severe cases were significantly higher than those in non-severe cases ( P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that older age and higher peak temperature were associated with a higher likelihood of severe cases ( OR>3, 95% CI: 2-7, P<0.01). In terms of treatment, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was used in 97.6% of non-severe cases and 100% in severe cases. Other treatments included respiratory and nutritional support, immunotherapy (such as neutralizing antibodies and plasma of recovered patients). The median times from admission to progression to severe cases, of fever clearance, and of nucleic acid conversion were 5 days, 6 days and 19 days, respectively. No deaths were reported within 28 days. Conclusions:The symptoms of Delta variant infection in Guangzhou are characterized by a high proportion of fever, high peak temperature, long duration of fever, high viral load, a long time to nucleic acid conversion, and a high incidence of severe cases. The severe cases exhibit a higher percentage of elderly patients, a longer duration of fever and have a higher fever rate and a higher hyperthermia rate than non-severe cases. Age and hyperthermia are independent risk factors for progression to severe disease. The combination of TCM and Western medicine can control the progression of the disease effectively.