Clinical efficacy of periodontal endoscopy-assisted subgingival scaling and root planning and its effect on psychology and quality of life in patients with periodontitis / 口腔疾病防治

Objective@#To investigate the clinical efficacy and effects of periodontal endoscope (PE)-assisted subgingival scaling and root planning (SRP) and traditional SRP on the psychological and quality of life of patients with periodontitis.@*Methods@#This study was reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee, and informed consent was obtained from the patients. Patients with periodontitis who were treated in the Department of Periodontology, Nanjing Stomatological Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University from April 2018 to December 2022 with residual periodontal pockets (PD ≥ 5 mm) 6 weeks after traditional SRP treatment were enrolled, and the residual periodontal pockets were further treated with PE-assisted SRP (PE+SRP). After 6 weeks of traditional SRP treatment and 3 months of PE+SRP treatment, clinical indicators, including plaque index (PLI), probing depth (PD), clinical attachment loss (CAL) and bleeding on probing (BOP), were measured, and periodontal tissue self-awareness scale scores, oral health impact profile-14 (OHIP-14) score and dental fear scale (DFS) score were collected. Moreover, visual analog scale (VAS) scores were collected after traditional SRP and PE-assisted SRP treatments.@*Results@#Twenty-three patients with periodontitis, including 832 sites of 486 affected teeth, were included in the clinical study. Three months after PE+SRP treatment, all clinical periodontal indicators, PLI (t = 9.254, P<0.001), PD (t = 50.724, P<0.001), CAL (t = 22.407, P<0.001) and BOP (t = 9.217, P<0.001), were significantly improved. Compared with traditional SRP (VAS: 2.48 ± 1.70), the pain caused by PE+SRP (VAS: 2.57±1.80) was not significantly different (t = 0,192, P = 0.850). There was no significant difference in the scores of the periodontal tissue self-awareness scale between the two groups (t = 1.485, P = 0.152). The OHIP-14 (SRP: 12.13±7.63; PE+SRP: 10.26 ± 5.25, t = -1.589, P = 0.126) and DFS (SRP: 40.70 ± 12.63; SRP+PE: 41.57 ± 12.61, t = 0.404, P = 0.690) scores were not significantly different.@*Conclusion@#All clinical periodontal indicators were significantly improved after PE-assisted SRP treatment of residual periodontal pockets, and compared with traditional SRP, PE-assisted SRP had no negative impact on the quality of life or psychological status of patients with periodontitis. Therefore, PE+SRP can be promoted in clinical practice.

Development of monoclonal antibody based IgG and IgM ELISA for diagnosis of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus infection

ABSTRACT Introduction: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) is a newly emerged virus that poses a great threat to human health because of high fatality rate. Methods: To develop sensitive and specific sero-diagnostic systems for SFTSV infections, monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against recombinant SFTSV nucleocapsid (rSFTSV-N) protein were developed by immunizing BALB/C mice with rSFTSV-N protein and fusing the spleen cells with SP2/0 myeloma cells. Three hybridoma cell lines secreting MAbs against rSFTSV-N were obtained. MAb based IgG sandwich enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and IgM capture ELISA systems were established by using the newly developed MAbs. One hundred fifteen clinical suspected SFTS patients serum samples were used to evaluate the newly established systems by comparing with the total antibody detecting sandwich ELISA system and indirect ELISA systems. Results: The MAbs based sandwich IgG ELISA was perfectly matched with that of the total antibody sandwich ELISA and the indirect IgG ELISA. IgM capture ELISA results perfectly matched with that of the total antibody sandwich ELISA while detecting eight additional positive samples missed by the indirect IgM ELISA. Conclusions: The MAbs against rSFTSV-N protein offer new tools for SFTSV studies and our newly developed MAb-based IgG and IgM capture ELISA systems would offer safe and useful tools for diagnosis of SFTS virus infections and epidemiological investigations.

Efficacy and safety of potassium-competitive acid blockers versus proton pump inhibitors as Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Abstract Background and aims: Potassium-Competitive Acid Blockers (P-CABs) have been used in Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication therapies in recent years. However, the efficacy and safety of P-CABs compared to ProtonPump Inhibitors (PPIs) in this setting remain controversial. Methods: The efficacy and safety of P-CABs and PPIs for H. pylori eradication were compared in a meta-analysis based on a systematic literature search of major electronic databases for relevant Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs). Results: Seven studies and 1,168 patients were included. The pooled eradication rate determined by Intention-ToTreat (ITT) analysis was 90.2% for P-CAB-based and 75.5% for PPI-based triple therapy (pooled RR [95% CI] = 1.17 [1.08-1.28], p < 0.001). The Per-Protocol (PP) analysis also demonstrated significant superiority of P-CABs (pooled eradication rate = 92.4% vs. 77.8%; pooled RR [95% CI] = 1.14 [1.03-1.26], p < 0.01). In a subgroup evaluation, P-CABs were significantly better than PPIs as a first-line eradication therapy, in both the ITT analysis (pooled eradication rate = 91.8% vs. 76.4%; pooled RR [95% CI] = 1.18 [1.10-1.28], p < 0.0001) and the PP analysis (pooled eradication rate = 93.0% vs. 78.6%; pooled RR [95% CI] = 1.13 [1.02 -1.26], p < 0.05). However, P-CABs were not superior to PPIs when administered as salvage therapy, as determined in the ITT (75.0% vs. 66.0%, pooled RR [95% CI] = 1.11 [0.69-1.78], p = 0.66) and PP (85.7% vs. 70.0%, pooled RR [95% CI] = 1.20 [0.82-1.75], p = 0.34) analyses. In a subgroup analysis limited to Japanese patients, both the ITT analysis (pooled eradication rate = 89.6% vs. 73.9%; RR [95% CI] = 1.21 [1.14 -1.29], p < 0.01) and the PP analysis (pooled eradication rate = 92.0% vs. 75.7%; RR [95% CI] = 1.18 [1.06 -1.32], p < 0.01) showed that P-CABs were significantly superior compared to PPIs as triple eradication therapy. However, in the subgroup analysis of patients from other countries, there was no significant difference in either the ITT analysis (pooled eradication rate = 93.8% vs. 85.2%; RR [95% CI] = 1.10 [0.99-1.22], p = 0.07) or PP analysis (pooled eradication rate = 95.0% vs. 90.8%; RR [95% CI] = 1.05 [0.98-1.14], p = 0.17). The incidence of adverse events associated with the two regimens did not significantly differ (P-CABs vs. PPIs: 33.6% vs. 40.0%; RR [95% CI] = 0.84 [0.71‒1.00], p = 0.05). The incidence of serious adverse events and dropout rate due to adverse events also did not differ (p = 0.44 and p = 0.67, respectively). Conclusions: The efficacy of P-CAB-based triple therapy is superior to that of PPI-based triple therapy as a first-line approach to H. pylori eradication, particularly in Japanese patients. As salvage therapy, the efficacy of the two treatments did not significantly differ. The tolerability of P-CAB-based and PPI-based triple therapy was comparable, as was the incidence of adverse events. HIGHLIGHTS The efficacy of P-CAB-based triple therapy is superior to that of PPI-based triple therapy as a first-line approach to H. pylori eradication, particularly in Japanese patients. P-CABs were not superior to PPIs as a salvage triple eradication therapy. The safety and tolerability of P-CAB are comparable to PPI in H. pylori triple eradication therapies. Further large RCTs conducted in multiple regions and countries are necessary.

Enzymatic preparation of manno-oligosaccharides from locust bean gum and palm kernel cake, and investigations into its prebiotic activity

BACKGROUND: Manno-oligosaccharides (MOS) is known as a kind of prebiotics. Mannanase plays a key role for the degradation of mannan to produce MOS. In this study, the mannanases of glycoside hydrolase (GH) families 5 Man5HJ14 and GH26 ManAJB13 were employed to prepare MOS from locust bean gum (LBG) and palm kernel cake (PKC). The prebiotic activity and utilization of MOS were assessed in vitro using the probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum strain. RESULTS: Galactomannan from LBG was converted to MOS ranging in size from mannose up to mannoheptose by Man5HJ14 and ManAJB13. Mannoheptose was got from the hydrolysates produced by Man5HJ14, which mannohexaose was obtained from LBG hydrolyzed by ManAJB13. However, the same components of MOS ranging in size from mannose up to mannotetrose were observed between PKC hydrolyzed by the mannanases mentioned above. MOS stability was not affected by high-temperature and high-pressure condition at their natural pH. Based on in vitro growth study, all MOS from LBG and PKC was effective in promoting the growth of L. plantarum CICC 24202, with the strain preferring to use mannose to mannotriose, rather than above mannotetrose. CONCLUSIONS: The effect of mannanases and mannan difference on MOS composition was studied. All of MOS hydrolysates showed the stability in adversity condition and prebiotic activity of L. plantarum, which would have potential application in the biotechnological applications.

Comparative permeability of three saikosaponins and corresponding saikogenins in Caco-2 model by a validated UHPLC-MS/MS method / 药物分析学报

Saikosaponins (SSs) are the main active components extracted from Bupleuri Radix (BR) which has been used as an important herbal drug in Asian countries for thousands of years.It has been reported that the intestinal bacteria plays an important role in the in vivo disposal of oral SSs.Although the deglycosylated derivatives (saikogenins,SGs) of SSs metabolized by the intestinal bacteria are speculated to be the main components absorbed into the blood after oral administration of SSs,no studies have been reported on the characteristics of SGs for their intestinal absorption,and those for SSs are also limited.Therefore,a rapid UHPLC-MS/MS method was developed to investigate and compare the apparent permeability of three common SSs (SSa,SSd,SSb2) and their corresponding SGs (SGF,SGG,SGD) through a bidirectional transport experiment on Caco-2 cell monolayer model.The method was validated according to the latest FDA guidelines and applied to quantify the six analytes in transport medium samples extracted via liquid-liquid extraction (LLE).The apparent permeability coefficient (Papp) determined in this study indicated that the permeability of SGs improved to the moderate class compared to the corresponding parent compounds,predicting a higher in vivo absorption.Moreover,the efflux ratio (ER) value demonstrated an active uptake of SSd and the three SGs,while a passive diffusion of SSa and SSb2.

Effects of atmospheric fine particulate matter on respiratory diseases and symptoms of community residents in Chun'an County / 预防医学

Objective@#To evaluate the impact of fine particulate matter ( PM2.5 ) on respiratory diseases and symptoms of community residents in Chun’an County, so as to provide the basis for air pollution treatment strategies. @*Methods@#Using the cluster random sampling method, the permanent residents in Qiandaohu Town of Chun’an County were investigated from 2017 to 2018. The demographic information, respiratory diseases and symptoms were collected by using Surveillance Plan for the Impact of Air Pollution ( Haze ) on health ( 2016 Edition ). The air pollutants and meteorological data were collected through Qiandaohu station of Hangzhou Ecology and Environment Monitoring Center and Hangzhou Meteorological Information Center. The effects of PM2.5 on respiratory diseases and symptoms of residents were analyzed with generalized estimating equation. @*Results@#Totally 1 181 people aged 6 months to 95 years were recruited, including 557 ( 47.16% ) males and 624 ( 52.84% ) females. Acute nasopharyngitis (common cold) and tracheitis/tonsillitis occurred most frequently, with 203 cases, accounting for 3.44%. The median of daily average concentration of PM2.5 was 24 μg/m3, with the standard exceeding rate of 2.80%. The results showed that PM2.5 increased the risk of acute nasopharyngitis ( common cold ), tracheitis/tonsillitis, cough, expectoration, runny nose, sore throat and nasal congestion ( lag 3 days, OR: 1.015-1.022, 95%CI: 1.001-1.037 ); the effect of PM2.5+PM10 ( OR: 1.020-1.040, 95%CI: 1.006-1.070 ) and PM2.5+O3 ( OR: 1.017-1.024, 95%CI: 1.005-1.035 ) was greater than that of PM2.5 alone on respiratory diseases and symptoms.@*Conclusion@#Atmospheric PM2.5 exposure in Chun’an County increases the risk of respiratory diseases and symptoms among community residents.

Safety Evaluation of Jiaotaiwan Based on Zebrafish Model / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To take zebrafish embryo as the research object, in order to investigate the development toxicity, cardiotoxicity, liver toxicity and kidney toxicity of water extract of Jiaotaiwan (JTW) on zebrafish embryo. Method:Zebrafish embryos with normal development at 12 h (hpf) after fertilization were selected as model animals for the growth and cardiotoxicity experiments. The embryos were treated with 125, 250, 500 mg·L-1 of JTW water extracts, and the effects of the drugs on the heart rate and morphology of the embryos and LD50 were observed at 72 h (hpf) after fertilization. Zebrafish embryos with normal development at 72 h (hpf) after fertilization were used as model animals for the liver and kidney toxicity experiments. The embryos were treated with 125，250，500 mg·L-1 of JTW water extracts, and the effect of the drugs on morphological changes, Alanine aminotransferase(ALT), Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activity, and creatinine content of the larvae and LD50 were observed at 72 d (dpf) after fertilization. Result:The zebrafish embryos in control group developed normally, the heart was well developed, and the heartbeat was even and powerful. The LD50 of JTW water extract on zebrafish embryos for 72 h was 1 023 mg·L-1. Compared with the embryos in the control group, 250，500 mg·L-1 treatment groups in the development toxicity had a smaller head, shorter body lengths (P<0.05), and decreased eye size (P<0.05). Compared with the control group embryos, the pericardial edema was observed in the 500 mg·L-1 group, the heart rate was significantly decreased in the 250，500 mg·L-1 JTW water extract groups (P<0.01), the atrial and ventricular areas were significantly reduced (P<0.05), the distance of SV-BA became significantly larger (P<0.05), the distance of AV channel became significantly larger (P<0.01), and the in-flow distance was significantly shorter (P<0.01). In the acute toxicity experiment, the LD50 of JTW water extract for zebrafish larvae for 72 h was 1 067 mg·L-1. Compared with control group, JTW water extract significantly reduced ALT activity in zebrafish larvae (P<0.05). Conclusion:This experiment found that JTW has an obvious toxicity in embryonic development, which is mainly manifested as delayed growth and severe cardiotoxicity. Great attention shall be paid to clinical administration to pregnant women, lactating women and patients with heart disease.

Identification of the miRNA-mRNA regulatory network of antler growth centers

Antler growth is a unique event compared to other growth and development processes in mammals. Antlers grow extremelyfast during the rapid growth stage when growth rate peaks at 2 cm per day. Antler growth is driven by a specificendochondral ossification process in the growth center that is in the distal region of the antler tip. In this study, we usedstate-of-art RNA-seq technology to analyze the expression profiles of mRNAs and miRNAs during antler growth. Ourresults indicated that the expression levels of multiple genes involved in chondrogenesis and endochondral ossification,including Fn1, Sox9, Col2a1, Acan, Col9a1, Col11a1, Hapln1, Wwp2, Fgfr3, Comp, Sp7 and Ihh, were significantlyincreased at the rapid growth stage. Our results also indicated that there were multiple differentially expressed miRNAsinteracting with differentially expressed genes with opposite expression patterns. Furthermore, some of the miRNAs,including miR-3072-5p, miR-1600, miR-34-5p, miR-6889-5p and miR-6729-5p, simultaneously interacted with andcontrolled multiple genes involved in the process of chondrogenesis and endochondral ossification. Therefore, we established a miRNA-mRNA regulatory network by identifying miRNAs and their target genes that were differentially expressedin the antler growth centers by comparing the rapid growth stage and the initial growth stage

Carotid intima-media thickness and plaques in internal carotid artery as surrogate markers of lower limb arterial lesions in Chinese patients with diabetic foot

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) can impair healing of diabetic foot (DF) in patients with diabetes mellitus. To determine whether carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) can predict lower limb arterial lesions in patients with DF, this cross-sectional study enrolled patients with DF at West China Hospital (China) between January 2012 and December 2015. Ultrasonography was used to measure CIMT, assess the internal carotid arteries (ICA) for plaques, and evaluate lower limb segmental arteries for stenosis. The optimal CIMT cutoff for detecting lower limb PAD was determined by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Factors associated with PAD were identified by logistic regression analyses. A total of 167 patients (mean age: 69.7±10.3 years; 102 men) were included. Patients with PAD were older and had higher levels of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein than patients without PAD (P<0.05). The area under the ROC curve was 0.747 (P<0.001). At the optimal CIMT cutoff of 0.71 mm, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 79.65, 61.11, 81.08, and 58.93%, respectively. Compared with those without PAD, more patients with PAD had CIMT ≥0.71 mm (79.65 vs 38.89%; P<0.001) and ICA plaques (66.37vs 11.11%; P<0.001). Multivariate logistic regression revealed that age (odds ratio [OR]: 1.118; 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: 1.056-1.183; P<0.001), ICA plaques (OR: 13.452; 95%CI: 4.450-40.662; P<0.001), and CIMT ≥0.71 mm (OR: 2.802; 95%CI: 1.092-7.188; P=0.032) were associated with PAD.CIMT may be a surrogate marker of PAD in patients with DF.

Long-term use of first-line highly active antiretroviral therapy is not associated with carotid artery stiffness in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients

Objective: To evaluate whether or not highly active antiretroviral therapy is associated with carotid artery stiffness in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients in Henan Province, China. Method: Fifty human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients with at least a 5-year history of highly active antiretroviral therapy use and 50 human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients without a history of highly active antiretroviral therapy use were enrolled in this study. Carotid artery intima-media thickness and stiffness were determined by quantitative inter-media thickness and quantitative artery stiffness, respectively. Results: No statistically significant difference in carotid artery intima-media thickness and stiffness was observed between groups. A significant association between human immunodeficiency virus infection time and carotid artery stiffness was observed, but no significant association between human immunodeficiency virus infection time and intima-media thickness was found. No significant association between intima-media thickness, stiffness, and CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell counts were observed. Conclusion: The first-line highly active antiretroviral therapy currently used in China is not associated with carotid artery stiffness in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients with good highly active antiretroviral therapy compliance. Human immunodeficiency virus may play a role in the development of atherosclerosis. .

Leukemia Therapy: Mechanisms of Drug Resistance and Investigational Strategies.

Certain types of leukemia are amongst the first neoplasias to be “cured” with relatively high 5-year remission rates. This is largely due to targeted therapeutics. However, considerable resistance to tumor-specific targeting drugs has developed due to the presence of abundant cancer stem cells, profound genetic diversity, redundant growth/survival pathways and residual disease. Although these issues propose a challenge, they also provide the opportunity for novel innovations of therapy which currently include the development of multi-target kinase inhibitors, multiple drugs acting on multiple targets, key upstream targets covering multiple downstream targets and the future direction of hybrid molecules targeting two or more targets in different pathways.

Comparing the diagnostic values of circulating microRNAs and cardiac troponin T in patients with acute myocardial infarction

OBJECTIVE: Recent studies have shown that circulating microRNAs might be useful, novel biomarkers for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. The aims of this study were to evaluate the expression of cardiac-specific miRNAs (miR-1, -133a, -208b, and -499) in patients with acute myocardial infarction and to compare the diagnostic values of these miRNAs with that of cardiac troponin T. METHODS: Sixty-seven plasma samples obtained from patients with acute myocardial infarction and 32 plasma specimens collected from healthy volunteers were analyzed in this study. The levels of cardiac-specific miRNAs (miR-1, -133a, -208b, and -499) were measured by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, and the concentrations of plasma cardiac troponin T were measured using electrochemiluminescence-based methods and an Elecsys 2010 Immunoassay Analyzer. RESULTS: The levels of plasma miR-1, -133a, -208b, and -499 were significantly higher in acute myocardial infarction patients (all p<0.001) than in healthy volunteers. The expression of the cardiac-specific miRNAs in acute myocardial infarction patients decreased to close to the baseline levels at the time of hospital discharge (all p>0.05). There were no correlations between the levels of the four circulating miRNAs and the clinical characteristics of the study population (all p>0.05). Furthermore, receiver operating characteristic curve analyses showed that the four plasma miRNAs were not superior to cardiac troponin T for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (all p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrate that circulating miR-1, -133a, -208b, and -499 may be useful biomarkers in acute myocardial infarction patients but that these miRNAs are not superior to cardiac troponin T for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction.

Clinical efficacy observation on primary trigeminal neuralgia treated with joint needling method at the trigger point / 中国针灸

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the clinical efficacy on primary trigeminal neuralgia treated with joint needling method at the trigger point.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and three cases of primary trigeminal neuralgia were divided into a joint needling group (53 cases) and a conventional needling group (50 cases) according to the visit sequence. In the joint needling group, the joint needling method was used at the trigger point in the mandibular joint [the positive point near to Xiaguan (ST 7)]; the conventional needling was used at Hegu (LI 4), Waiguan (TE 5), Taichong (LR 3) and Neiting (ST 44). In the conventional needling group, Xiaguan (ST 7) and Fengchi (GB 20) were used and the supplementary acupoints were selected according to the involved branches of trigeminal nerve. The conventional needling method was used. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the score of trigeminal neuralgia were adopted to assess the pain severity and the comprehensive symptoms before treatment and after the 1st and 2nd sessions of treatment separately. The efficacy was assessed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>After the 1st and 2nd sessions of treatment, VAS score and the comprehensive symptom score were reduced obviously as compared with those before treatment in either group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). The score reducing in the joint needling group was much superior to that in the conventional needling group (both P < 0.05). The total effective rate was 90.6% (48/53) and 72. 0% (36/50) in the joint needling group and the conventional needling group respectively. The effect in the joint needling group was better than that in the conventional needling group (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The joint needling method at the trigger point achieves the significant efficacy on primary trigeminal neuralgia, which is superior to that with the conventional needling method.</p>