Association between temperature and mortality: a multi-city time series study in Sichuan Basin, southwest China

BACKGROUND@#There are few multi-city studies on the association between temperature and mortality in basin climates. This study was based on the Sichuan Basin in southwest China to assess the association of basin temperature with non-accidental mortality in the population and with the temperature-related mortality burden.@*METHODS@#Daily mortality data, meteorological and air pollution data were collected for four cities in the Sichuan Basin of southwest China. We used a two-stage time-series analysis to quantify the association between temperature and non-accidental mortality in each city, and a multivariate meta-analysis was performed to obtain the overall cumulative risk. The attributable fractions (AFs) were calculated to access the mortality burden attributable to non-optimal temperature. Additionally, we performed a stratified analyses by gender, age group, education level, and marital status.@*RESULTS@#A total of 751,930 non-accidental deaths were collected in our study. Overall, 10.16% of non-accidental deaths could be attributed to non-optimal temperatures. A majority of temperature-related non-accidental deaths were caused by low temperature, accounting for 9.10% (95% eCI: 5.50%, 12.19%), and heat effects accounted for only 1.06% (95% eCI: 0.76%, 1.33%). The mortality burden attributable to non-optimal temperatures was higher among those under 65 years old, females, those with a low education level, and those with an alternative marriage status.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Our study suggested that a significant association between non-optimal temperature and non-accidental mortality. Those under 65 years old, females, and those with a low educational level or alternative marriage status had the highest attributable burden.

Occupational health risk assessment of noise in a coal mining enterprise in Shaanxi Province / 公共卫生与预防医学

Objective To evaluate the noise hazard level of a coal mining enterprise, and identify high-risk operation types and people, and to provide a basis for preventing and controlling the health damage caused by noise. Methods A large coal mining enterprise in Shaanxi Province was selected as the research object. The noise monitoring data of the coal mine over the years was used to calculate the noise exposure matrix of each post in the enterprise, and the classification of occupational hazards at workplaces (GBZ/T 229.4-2012) was used to assess the occupational health risk levels. Results Among the 22 noise-exposed positions in the enterprise, the 8-hour working day equivalent sound level in positions of shearer driver, horseshoe driver, crusher driver, shuttle driver, relaxation screen driver, and grading screen driver were all higher than the occupational exposure limit of noise. In 2021, the noise exposure levels of shearer drivers, crusher drivers, and coal-selecting workers were all higher than 90 dB (A), and the occupational hazard level was moderate hazard level. In addition, the noise exposure levels of most other jobs also exceeded the occupational exposure limit. Conclusion The noise hazards in the coal mine industry are mainly concentrated in the posts of the coal mining system, tunneling system, and screening workshop. Among them, the shearer driver, the crusher driver, and the coal preparation workers have higher noise exposure levels. It is recommended to take corresponding noise reduction measures and strengthen the protection level to reduce the noise exposure risk of workers.

Detection and genotyping of enteroviruses in 3 960 influenza-negativeinfluenza-like illness cases in Chongqing / 公共卫生与预防医学

Objective To understand the epidemiological characteristics and genotype distribution of enterovirus (EV) in influenza-negative influenza-like illness (ILI) cases in Chongqing, and to provide a scientific basis for EV prevention and control. Methods Throat swab samples of influenza-negative ILI cases were collected from surveillance sites. The samples were detected for EV using real-time RT-PCR. The VP4 regions of positive samples were amplified and sequenced for genotyping. Results A total of 3 960 influenza-negative ILI samples were collected from January to December 2021, and 316 (7.98%) of them were EV-positive. EV could be detected in influenza-negative ILI cases in Chongqing all year round. The months with high EV-positive rates were January (11.60%), April (10.56%), May (11.79%), June (12.62%), and July (10.33%). There was a statistically significant difference in the detection rate of EV in ILI cases in different regions, gender, and age groups (χ2=29.647，χ2=4.192，χ2=69.176，P<0.05). A total of 213 EV-positive cases were successfully genotyped, including 17 genotypes of EV-A, EV-B, and EV-C and 5 genotypes of HRV-B. The dominant genotypes were CV-A4 (32.86%), CV-A2 (23.00%), CA-6 (12.21%), and CA-10 (11.74%). EV-D and novel EV were not identified in this study. Conclusion EV is an important pathogen in ILI cases in Chongqing. The prevalence of EV in ILI cases in Chongqing has typical regional, seasonal and population characteristics. Prevention and control should be carried out in Chongqing according to the epidemic characteristics of EV.

Advances in antitumor research of bifunctional small molecule inhibitors targeting heat shock protein 90 / 药学学报

The heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) protein family is a cluster of highly conserved molecules that play an important role in maintaining cellular homeostasis. Hsp90 and its co-chaperones regulate a variety of pathways and cellular functions, such as cell growth, cell cycle control and apoptosis. Hsp90 is closely associated with the occurrence and development of tumors and other diseases, making it an attractive target for cancer therapeutics. Inhibition of Hsp90 expression can affect multiple oncogenic pathways simultaneously. Most Hsp90 small molecule inhibitors are in clinical trials due to their low efficacy, toxicity or drug resistance, but they have obvious synergistic anti-tumor effect when used with histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors, tubulin inhibitors or topoisomerase II (Topo II) inhibitors. To address this issue, the design of Hsp90 dual-target inhibitors can improve efficacy and reduce drug resistance, making it an effective tumor treatment strategy. In this paper, the domain and biological function of Hsp90 are briefly introduced, and the design, discovery and structure-activity relationship of Hsp90 dual inhibitors are discussed, in order to provide reference for the discovery of novel Hsp90 dual inhibitors and clinical drug research from the perspective of medicinal chemistry.

Casual Association Between Coffee Intake and Prostate Cancer Based on Two-sample Mendel Randomization / 肿瘤防治研究

Objective To assess the causal relationship between coffee intake and prostate cancer risk by using the two-sample Mendel randomization (MR) method. Methods The genome-wide association study (GWAS) data on coffee intake (exposure) and prostate cancer (outcome) were obtained from two independent data sets in UK Biobank. The inverse variance weighted method (IVW), weighted median estimator method (WME), and MR-Egger method were used for MR analyses. The OR value and 95%CI were used to represent the association between coffee intake and prostate cancer. In addition, the MR-Egger method was performed for pleiotropic and heterogeneity tests, and the leave-one-out method was used for sensitivity analysis. Results A total of 38 SNP were selected as instrumental variables. The IVW method showed that coffee intake might reduce the risk of prostate cancer (OR=0.994; 95%CI: 0.990-0.999; P=0.009). The WME method obtained the same conclusions (OR=0.991; 95%CI: 0.985-0.999; P=0.018), but MR-Egger regression did not find a causal relationship between coffee intake and prostate cancer (OR=0.992; 95%CI: 0.983-1.000; P=0.084). The MR-Egger method showed no pleiotropy (intercept=4.2E-5; P=0.581) or heterogeneity (Q=27.20; P=0.854) among the instrumental variables. The sensitivity analysis indicated that the conclusion was robust. Conclusion Two-sample Mendel randomization analysis reveals that coffee consumption might reduce the risk of prostate cancer.

Preliminary study on the block-based charging model for neonatal medication in pharmacy intravenous admixture service / 中华医院管理杂志

Objective:To explore the block-based charging method for centralized dispensing of neonatal drugs in pharmacy intravenous admixture service (PIVAS), analyze its effect on drug savings and inpatient drug cost, so as to provide the reference for the appropriate charging method of neonatal drugs.Methods:According to the balance quantity and amount of neonatal intravenous drugs that were centrally allocated by the PIVAS of our hospital, refer to the doctor′s orders, the dosage per dose as well as the number of patients per dose were analyzed, then the drug types and plans for block-based charging were formulated. Before and after the implementation of the plan, the monthly average drug balance quantity and amount, the average number of drug charges for the neonates, the average daily drug cost, and the adverse events of related drugs were used as the indicators to be investigated to clarify the implementation effect of the block-based charging mothod.Results:Fourteen medicines were charged by block-based, including 4 antibiotics, 2 ordinary infusion preparations, and 8 parenteral nutrition solution preparations. The monthly average drug balance quantity was reduced from 5 047±541 to 1 856±225, and the monthly average balance amount was reduced from 65 811±10 265 yuan to 20 659±6 002 yuan. The average drug dosage for children in the trial drug was significantly reduced with a decrease range of 39.2% to 90.1%. Both the inpatient daily drug cost of neonatus and the daily average antibacterial drug cost was decreased. During the centralized dispensing of neonatal drugs, no related adverse drug events occurred.Conclusions:The block-based charging method of centralized drug distribution can improve the utilization rate of drugs, reduce drug waste, reduce the cost of inpatient medicines the financial burden on children′s families, which is worthy of further promotion and implementation.

Exploration of human resource management practice for organ donation coordinators in public hospitals / 中华医院管理杂志

The human resource management of organ donation coordinators in China is still in its infancy stage, plagued by such problems as unclear career orientation, poor management and unclear career planning. In March 2010, a tertiary public hospital was approved as a medical institution in a national pilot province for organ donation. In recent years, the hospital had kept exploring human resource management of coordinators and established a relatively complete management mode for organ donation coordinators. This mode featured the establishment of full-time recruitment positions, development of human resource management plans, refinement of job descriptions, establishment of performance evaluation plans, optimization of assessment and incentive mechanisms, and innovation of talent cultivation modes. The management practice had achieved certain results, ensuring the sustainable development of hospital organ donation operation, and providing a reference for the scientific and standardized development of organ donation and transplantation in China.

Research progress on the common pathogenesis of Parkinson′s disease and rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder / 中华神经科杂志

Parkinson′s disease (PD) is one of the neurodegenerative diseases with high incidence in middle-aged and elderly people, and its prodromal stage lasts for several years to decades, markers of disease progression in prodromal stage are important basis for early recognition and diagnosis of PD. Current studies have shown that rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is the specific clinical prodromal symptoms of PD, and has some of the same mechanisms as PD. Part of the same mechanisms develop regularly in the process of RBD converting to PD, which may produce valuable prodromal markers of PD. This paper reviews the common mechanisms of PD and RBD, in order to provide some ideas for the early clinical diagnosis and treatment of PD.

Epidemiological characteristics of pneumoconiosis deaths in a certain area from 1961 to 2020 / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

Objective: To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of pneumoconiosis deaths in Putuo District of Shanghai, and to provide evidence for prevention and management of pneumoconiosis in the future. Methods: In June 2021, the data of 263 patients with pneumoconiosis who died from January 1961 to December 2020 in Putuo District of Shanghai were retrospectively analyzed. Trend χ(2) test, analysis of variance and Spearman rank correlation methods were used to analyze the basic information, age of exposure to dust, promotion period, course of disease and direct cause of death of patients with pneumoconiosis. Results: Among the 263 cases of pneumoconiosis patients who died in Putuo District of Shanghai from 1961 to 2020, 260 cases (98.86%) were male. The main types of pneumoconiosis were foundry worker pneumoconiosis (53.23%, 140/263) and silicosis (43.73%, 115/263). The main types of pneumoconiosis were sand cleaner (36.50%, 96/263). The age of onset was (53.42±10.13) years old, the age of death was (76.14±9.12) years old, and the age of exposure to dust was (20.91±8.99) years. The duration of dust exposure was negatively correlated with the duration of disease (r(s)=-0.24, P<0.001). With the increase of pneumoconiosis stage, the mortality of silicosis and foundry worker pneumoconiosis also showed an increasing trend (χ(2)(trend)=4.22, 3.87, P=0.040, 0.049). 31.94% (84/263) of pneumoconiosis patients died directly from pneumoconiosis, ranking first among the direct causes of death. Conclusion: The death cases of pneumoconiosis in Putuo District of Shanghai are mainly foundry worker pneumoconiosis and silicosis, and pneumoconiosis is the main cause of death.

Progress in signal centers in early tooth development / 中华口腔医学杂志

At the early stage of tooth development, the tooth embryo underwent three successive stages: bud stage, cap stage and bell stage through the interaction between epithelium and mesenchymal cells. During these stages, especially during the interphase transition, the presence of signal centers was particularly crucial. Signal center was composed of a small group of oral epithelial cell collections which were formed in a specific sequence, playing a decisive role in signal expression, morphogenesis and cell differentiation by secreting growth factors and other signaling molecules to regulate developmental signaling pathways. This paper reviews the evolution of signal centers as well as the important signal molecules and transcription factors in signal centers since the formation of dental placode.

Correlation between atmospheric nitrogen oxides and nitrogen dioxide acute exposure and outpatient visits of pediatric respiratory diseases / 预防医学

Objective @#To examine the association between acute exposure to traffic-related air pollutants (TRAP) NOX and NO2 and outpatient visits of pediatric respiratory diseases. @*Methods @#Data regarding outpatient visits to Department of Respiratory Diseases of Beijing Children's Hospital from 2015 to 2020 were collected, and the concentrations of nitrogen oxides (NOX), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and other TRAP were collected from the surveillance sites assigned by the Peking University Health Science Center. A time-stratified case-crossover design was employed, and a conditional logistic regression model was created to examine the association between NOX and NO2 acute exposure and outpatient visits of pediatric respiratory diseases. @*Results @#The daily mean outpatient visits of pediatric respiratory diseases were 571 (interquartile range, 554) person-times among children at ages of 0 to 14 years in Beijing Children's Hospital from 2015 to 2020, and the daily mean outpatient visits for upper respiratory tract infections (URI), bronchitis, and pneumonia were 265 (interquartile range, 282), 143 (interquartile range, 178) and 128 (interquartile range, 120) person-times, respectively. The daily mean concentrations of atmospheric NOX and NO2 were 67.8 (interquartile range, 50.7) and 49.3 (interquartile range, 30.7) μg/m3, respectively. Conditional logistic regression analysis showed the largest lagged effect of NOX and NO2 on pediatric respiratory diseases at cumulative lags of 0 to 7 days. An increase in NOX concentrations by an interquartile range resulted in the excess risks of URI, bronchitis and pneumonia by 6.87% (95%CI: 6.37%-7.38%), 7.25% (95%CI: 6.51%-7.99%), and 5.51% (95%CI: 4.69%-6.33%), and an increase in NO2 concentrations by an interquartile range resulted in excess risks of URI, bronchitis and pneumonia by 5.71% (95%CI: 5.12%-6.31%), 5.32% (95%CI: 4.51%-6.14%), and 4.83% (95%CI: 3.91%-5.75%), respectively. NOX and NO2 presented a more remarkable effect on outpatient visits of pediatric respiratory diseases among children at ages of over 5 years. @*Conclusion @#NOx and NO2 acute exposure may increase the outpatient visits of pediatric respiratory diseases.

Research progress of tumor immunomodulation strategies based on nanodrug delivery system / 中国药科大学学报

@#Tumor immunotherapy is a therapeutic modality that uses immunological principles and methods to activate and enhance the body''s immune system to generate immune response for the removal of tumour cells. Many new immunotherapeutic agents have demonstrated effective anti-tumour capabilities, yet their clinical use is challenging due to the complex mechanisms of tumour immune escape. Meanwhile, these drugs would accumulate in different tissues and organs in the human body and be unable to achieve precise and specific targeting therapeutic effects, resulting in serious immune-related adverse effects, which greatly hinders the clinical potential of immunotherapy.Nanodrug delivery systems can deliver immunotherapeutic drugs to target tissues or specific immune cells precisely, thereby enhancing immune effects and reducing side effects.This paper reviews the research progress of nanodrug delivery systems in tumour immunotherapy in recent years based on the regulatory mechanism of the anti-tumour immune response, with a prospect of the challenges and development in this field.

Acute Developmental Toxicity of Panax notoginseng in Zebrafish Larvae / 中国结合医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate toxicity of raw extract of Panax notoginseng (rPN) and decocted extract of PN (dPN) by a toxicological assay using zebrafish larvae, and explore the mechanism by RNA sequencing assay.@*METHODS@#Zebrafish larvae was used to evaluate acute toxicity of PN in two forms: rPN and dPN. Three doses (0.5, 1.5, and 5.0 µ g/mL) of dPN were used to treat zebrafishes for evaluating the developmental toxicity. Behavior abnormalities, body weight, body length and number of vertebral roots were used as specific phenotypic endpoints. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) assay was applied to clarify the mechanism of acute toxicity, followed by real time PCR (qPCR) for verification. High performance liquid chromatography analysis was performed to determine the chemoprofile of this herb.@*RESULTS@#The acute toxicity result showed that rPN exerted higher acute toxicity than dPN in inducing death of larval zebrafishes (P<0.01). After daily oral intake for 21 days, dPN at doses of 0.5, 1.5 and 5.0 µ g/mL decreased the body weight, body length, and vertebral number of larval zebrafishes, indicating developmental toxicity of dPN. No other adverse outcome was observed during the experimental period. RNA-seq data revealed 38 genes differentially expressed in dPN-treated zebrafishes, of which carboxypeptidase A1 (cpa1) and opioid growth factor receptor-like 2 (ogfrl2) were identified as functional genes in regulating body development of zebrafishes. qPCR data showed that dPN significantly down-regulated the mRNA expressions of cpa1 and ogfrl2 (both P<0.01), verifying cpa1 and ogfrl2 as target genes for dPN.@*CONCLUSION@#This report uncovers the developmental toxicity of dPN, suggesting potential risk of its clinical application in children.

COL4A5 genotypes and clinical characteristics of children with Alport syndrome / 中国当代儿科杂志

OBJECTIVES@#To investigate the genotypes of the pathogenic gene COL4A5 and the characteristics of clinical phenotypes in children with Alport syndrome (AS).@*METHODS@#A retrospective analysis was performed for the genetic testing results and clinical data of 19 AS children with COL4A5 gene mutations.@*RESULTS@#Among the 19 children with AS caused by COL4A5 gene mutations, 1 (5%) carried a new mutation of the COL4A5 gene, i.e., c.3372A>G(p.P1124=) and presented with AS coexisting with IgA vasculitis nephritis; 3 children (16%) had large fragment deletion of the COL4A5 gene, among whom 2 children (case 7 had a new mutation site of loss51-53) had gross hematuria and albuminuria at the onset, and 1 child (case 13 had a new mutation site of loss3-53) only had microscopic hematuria, while the other 15 children (79%) had common clinical phenotypes of AS, among whom 7 carried new mutations of the COL4A5 gene. Among all 19 children, 3 children (16%) who carried COL4A5 gene mutations also had COL4A4 gene mutations, and 1 child (5%) had COL4A3 gene mutations. Among these children with double gene mutations, 2 had gross hematuria and proteinuria at the onset.@*CONCLUSIONS@#This study expands the genotype and phenotype spectrums of the pathogenic gene COL4A5 for AS. Children with large fragment deletion of the COL4A5 gene or double gene mutations of COL4A5 with COL4A3 or COL4A4 tend to have more serious clinical manifestations.

Efficacy analysis of autologous facet joint bone block in lumbar interbody fusion of osteoporosis patients / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To compare and analyze the feasibility of autologous facet joint bone block as an alternative to polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cage in lumbar intervertebral fusion surgery for patients with osteoporosis.@*METHODS@#From December 2018 to June 2021, the case data of patients with osteoporosis (T value ≤ -2.5 on dual energy X-ray bone density) who underwent posterior lumbar interbody fusion in the Fourth Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital were retrospectively reviewed. All the cases were followed up for no less than 12 months and were divided into two groups according to the differences of interbody fusion materials: the autologous facet joint bone block group (autogenous bone group) and the PEEK cage group (PEEK group). The general data [such as age, gender, body mass index (BMI), primary diagnosis, distribution of fusion segments, bone mineral density of lumbar (BMD), incidence of preoperative complications], the perioperative data (such as duration of operation, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative drainage, perioperative allogeneic blood transfusion rate), and the incidence of postoperative complications were compared between the two groups. Imaging parameters (disc height, lumbar lordosis angle, segment lordosis angle, segmental lordosis angle, disc height improvement rate, and fusion rate) and lumbar functional scores [visual analogue scale (VAS), Oswestry disability index (ODI), Japanese Orthopedics Association (JOA) score for lower back pain] were compared to evaluate the clinical efficacy between the kinds of intervertebral fusion materials 1 week, 3 months and 6 months postoperative and at the last follow-up.@*RESULTS@#A total of 118 patients were enrolled, including 68 cases in the autogenous bone group and 50 cases in the PEEK group, there were no statistical differences in age, gender, BMI, primary diagnosis, distribution of fusion segments, BMD, incidence of preoperative complications, duration of operation, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative drainage, perioperative allogeneic blood transfusion rate, incidence of postoperative complications, all the preoperative imaging parameters and all the lumbar function scores between the two groups (P>0.05). Postoperative superficial surgical site infections occurred in 3 patients in the autogenous bone group and 2 patients in the PEEK group. At the last follow-up, 3 cases of intervertebral graft collapse occurred in the autogenous bone group and 5 cases in the PEEK group, 1 case of graft subsidence in the autogenous bone group and 1 case in the PEEK group. All the imaging parameters showed significant differences between postoperation and preoperation (P < 0.05), and all the imaging parameters showed significant differences between 1 week and 3 months postoperative in both groups (P < 0.05). The height, angle of fusion gap in the autogenous bone group were lower than those in the PEEK group 1 week postoperatively (P < 0.05), and the fusion gap height improvement rate in the autogenous bone group was lower than that in the PEEK group (P < 0.05). The cases in both groups started to show final fusion 3 months after surgery, and the fusion rate in the autogenous bone group was 75% 6 months postoperatively, which was significantly higher than the rate of 56% in the PEEK group (P < 0.05), and there was no statistically significant difference in the final fusion rate between the two groups (P>0.05). The ODI, the postoperative VAS score was significantly lower than that in preoperation, while the postoperative JOA score was significantly higher than that in preoperation (P < 0.05). The ODI was lower while the JOA score was higher of the autogenous bone group than that of the PEEK group 6 months postoperatively (P < 0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#In osteoporosis patients, good interbody fusion rate and improvement of lumbar vertebral function can be obtained by using autologous facet joint bone block or PEEK cage, while the fusion rate and the improvement of lumbar function with autologous facet joint bone block are better than those with PEEK cage 6 months post-operatively. PEEK cage is superior to autologous facet joint bone block in intervertebral distraction and improvement of lumbar lordosis. Significant disc space subsidence occurred in osteoporotic patients within 3 months after lumbar interbody fusion, and the subsidence of PEEK cage was more obvious than that of autologous facet joint bone block.

Role of Flow Cytometry in the Diagnosis of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze the immunological phenotype of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), and explore its characteristics and significance.@*METHODS@#The immunophenotypes of 40 CML children and 40 controls were analyzed by multicolor flow cytometry. CD45/SSC, as the basic gate, was used to delineate neutrophils. Then, the distribution of cluster differentiation (CD) molecules on the surface of granulocytes was analyzed in three ranges (≥1%, ≥5%, and ≥20%), and the expression rates of CD molecules (≥1% included in the statistical analysis) and the mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) were compared between the two groups.@*RESULTS@#The proportion of granulocytes in the CML group was (82.1±6.4)%, which was significantly higher than (57.8±11.8)% in the control group (P <0.001). The expression rates of CD15/CD11b/CD33/CD13 in CML and control groups were high, and both distributed in the range of ≥20%. The differentiation trajectory of CD33/CD13 was normal and there were no significant differences in the expression rate and MFI between the two groups. However, both the expression rate of CD11b and CD15 MFI in the CML group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P <0.001). There were no significant differences in the expression rate and MFI of CD10 between the two groups, and the expression levels of CD10 between the two groups were consistent in different distributions. In the CML group, there was a large number of cases with abnormal high expression of CD56, 52.5% of the cases had a CD56 expression rate of ≥5%, and 42.5% had a CD56 expression rate of ≥20%, while the control group did not express CD56 (<1%). The expression distribution of CD117 was different between the two groups. In the range of expression rate ≥5%, there were 35.0% cases in the CML group, while only 2.5% in the control group. The expression rate of CD117 in the CML group was higher than that in the control group (P <0.001), though there was no significant difference in MFI.@*CONCLUSION@#The immunophenotyping of CML is characterized by increased proportion of mature neutrophils, decreased CD15 MFI, decreased proportion of CD11b and abnormal high expression of CD56 and CD117. Flow cytometric analysis of immunophenotype can effectively distinguish normal granulocytes from chronic granulocytes, and help in the diagnosis of CML.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on erectile function in Chinese CP/CPPS patients / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

This study aimed to investigate the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on erectile function in Chinese patients with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS). A retrospective study was conducted on 657 CP/CPPS patients who visited The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University (Changsha, China) from November 2018 to November 2022. Patients were divided into two groups based on the timeline before and after the COVID-19 outbreak in China. The severity of CP/CPPS, penile erection status, anxiety, and depression was evaluated using the National Institutes of Health-Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI), International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scales, respectively. Compared with patients before the COVID-19 outbreak, more CP/CPPS patients developed severe erectile dysfunction (ED) due to depression and anxiety caused by the pandemic. After developing moderate-to-severe ED, mild and moderate-to-severe CP/CPPS patients exhibited more apparent symptoms of anxiety and depression ( P < 0.001 and P = 0.001, respectively), forming a vicious cycle. The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the psychological status of CP/CPPS patients, exacerbating their clinical symptoms and complicating ED. The exacerbation of clinical symptoms further worsens the anxiety and depression status of patients, forming a vicious cycle. During the COVID-19 pandemic, paying more attention to the mental health of CP/CPPS patients, strengthening psychological interventions, and achieving better treatment outcomes are necessary.

Herbal-moxa plaster for diarrhea type irritable bowel syndrome of spleen and kidney yang deficiency: a randomized controlled trial / 中国针灸

OBJECTIVE@#To compare the clinical efficacy between herbal-moxa plaster and moxa-box moxibustion for diarrhea type irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) of spleen and kidney yang deficiency.@*METHODS@#Eighty patients with IBS-D of spleen and kidney yang deficiency were randomly divided into a herbal-moxa plaster group and a moxa-box moxibustion group, 40 cases in each group. The patients in the two groups were treated with conventional acupuncture at Baihui (GV 20), Yintang (GV 24+), Zhongwan (CV 12) and bilateral Tianshu (ST 25), Yinlingquan (SP 9), and Taixi (KI 3), etc. In addition, the patients in the herbal-moxa plaster group were treated with herbal-moxa plaster (Wenyang Fuzheng ointment, composed of prepared monkshood, prepared evodia rutaecarpa, dried ginger, cinnamon, etc.) at Shenque (CV 8), Guanyuan (CV 4), Zhongwan (CV 12) and bilateral Tianshu (ST 25), Shenshu (BL 23) and Shangjuxu (ST 37); the patients in the moxa-box moxibustion group were treated with moxa-box moxibustion at the same acupoints as the herbal-moxa plaster group. The acupuncture-moxibustion treatment was provided once every other day for 4 weeks (14 treatments). Before and after treatment, the scores of clinical symptom of TCM, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptom severity scale (IBS-SSS) and IBS quality of life scale (IBS-QOL) were compared between the two groups, and the clinical efficacy was evaluated.@*RESULTS@#Compared with those before treatment, each item scores and total scores of clinical symptom of TCM, and IBS-SSS scores in the two groups were reduced after treatment (P<0.05). The abdominal bloating score, stool frequency score and total score of clinical symptom of TCM as well as IBS-SSS score in the herbal-moxa plaster group were lower than those in the moxa-box moxibustion group (P<0.05). Compared with those before treatment, the IBS-QOL scores in the two groups were increased after treatment (P<0.05), and the IBS-QOL score in the herbal-moxa plaster group was higher than that in the moxa-box moxibustion group (P<0.05). The total effective rate was 92.5% (37/40) in the herbal-moxa plaster group, which was higher than 85.0% (34/40) in the moxa-box moxibustion group (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#On the basis of conventional acupuncture treatment, herbal-moxa plaster could effectively improve the clinical symptoms and quality of life in IBS-D patients of spleen and kidney yang deficiency, and its efficacy is superior to that of moxa-box moxibustion.

Proteomic Research on Characteristic Processing Materials of Porcine Cardiac Blood and Porcine Blood from Menghe Medical School and Their Effect on Anti-microglial Inflammatory Damage of Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveProteomics was used to investigate the protein differences between porcine cardiac blood（PCB） and porcine blood（PB） from Menghe medical school and to compare the effects of both on the microglial inflammation of Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma（DS）. MethodNanoliquid chromatography-quadrupole orbitrap mass spectrometry（nLC-MS/MS） and bioinformatics were utilized to compare the proteomic differences of PCB and PB in simulated gastrointestinal digestion. Furthermore， Western blot was used to verify the contents of some shared proteins and differential proteins identified in PCB and PB. In addition， BV2 neuroinflammation model constructed by corticosterone（CORT） and lipopolysaccharide（LPS） was applied to detect the intervention effects of PCB and PB on the levels of tumor necrosis factor（TNF）-α and interleukin（IL）-6 in BV2 inflammatory cells of DS. ResultA total of 69 common proteins and 68 differential proteins were identified in PCB and PB， among which the common proteins included transferrin（Tf） with brain-targeting effect， and the differential proteins in the two were 41 and 27， respectively. Western blot validation showed that the difference in the content of the same protein Tf between PCB and PB was not statistically significant， while the difference in the contents of the specific proteins of creatine kinase M and heart-type fatty acid binding protein（H-FABP） were statistically significant（P<0.05）. Moreover， in vitro experimental studies revealed that compared with the same concentration of DS group， in addition to the 100 mg·L-1 PB-DS group， PCB-DS and PB-DS groups could significantly inhibit the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in BV2 inflammatory cells（P<0.05， P<0.01）， and PCB-DS group had more significant anti-inflammatory effect than PB-DS group with the same concentration（P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionBoth of PCB and PB can enhance the inhibitory effect of DS on the release of inflammatory factors， thus playing a neuroprotective role， and PCB promotes DS inhibition more significantly， which may be due to the existence of the two involved in energy metabolism-related differential proteins， which can lay a foundation for revealing the scientific connotation of the processing of PCB-DS and PB-DS.

Correlation between tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-1β in exhaled breath condensate and pulmonary function in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease / 中国热带医学

@#Abstract: Objective To explore the correlation between lung function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β) levels in exhaled breath condensate (EBC), and to provide a convenient methodological basis for the diagnosis and treatment of COPD and the determination of its efficacy. Methods A total of 81 COPD patients and 40 healthy controls were selected from the respiratory department of the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University from August 2020 to February 2022 as the research subjects. The COPD patients were divided into 41 cases in the acute exacerbation group and 40 cases in the remission group according to their status. All participants underwent lung function detection, venous blood and EBC collection, and the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β in EBC and venous blood were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and correlation analysis was performed by Pearson correlation analysis method. Results The levels of TNF-α and IL-1β in EBC of in the acute exacerbation group, the healthy control group, the remission group were (5.16±0.18) pg/μL and (7.75±0.27) pg/μL, (2.66±0.31) pg/μL and (2.41±0.24） pg/μL, (3.61±0.29) pg/μL and (3.17±0.38) pg/μL, respectively. Compared with the healthy control group, the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β in EBC in the COPD acute exacerbation group were significantly higher than those in the healthy control group and the COPD remission group (F=9.451, 8.217, P<0.001). Serum tests were consistent with this result. Correlation analysis showed that the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β in EBC were significantly positively correlated with the level of serum inflammation levels (P<0.001), while significantly negatively correlated with lung function (P<0.001).  Conclusions TNF-α and IL-1β in EBC are potential biomarkers of inflammation in patients with COPD, and their detection can be used to effectively assess lung function in patients with COPD.