Research progress in assisting in the diagnosis of early Alzheimer's disease through eye structure / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

Alzheimer's disease(AD)is a common degenerative disease of the central nervous system in which neuropathological changes precede cognitive dysfunction and behavioral impairment. Currently, early diagnosis of AD is based on invasive and expensive testing techniques that are difficult to use widely in the clinical setting. Therefore, there is an urgent need for new markers to detect AD at an early stage. The eye, as an extension of the brain, has been found to show earlier onset of ocular pathologic changes in patients with AD compared to brain pathologic changes, such as retinal structural abnormalities, visual dysfunction, retinal abnormal protein accumulation, choroidal thickness changes, decreased corneal nerve fiber density, deposition of abnormal Aβ proteins in the lens, and pupillary light decreased sensitivity of response, etc. This article reviews the ocular pathologic changes in AD patients in recent years to provide new ideas for the early clinical diagnosis of AD.

Chinese Medicine Intervention in Signaling Pathways Related to Diabetic Ulcer： A Review / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Diabetic ulcer （DU） wound is one of the chronic and serious complications of diabetes characterized by prolonged wound healing， and it is more common in foot and lower extremity ulcers. DU has brought great economic and psychological pressure to patients and seriously affected the quality of life of patients because of its great difficulty in treatment， long treatment process， and high morbidity and mortality. Therefore， how to help the rapid healing of DU wounds， reduce the disability rate and mortality rate， protect limb function， and improve the quality of life is an important topic and hot spot in the field of medical research. The pathogenesis of DU is complex， mainly including microcirculation disorder， peripheral neuropathy， inflammation and infection， and excessive apoptosis of cells， involving physiological processes such as wound inflammation， granulation tissue hyperplasia and re-epithelialization. A large number of previous studies have found that Chinese medicine can regulate phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B （PI3K/Akt）， Wnt/β-catenin， nuclear factor-κB （NF-κB）， Notch， nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 （Nrf2）， transforming growth factor-β （TGF-β）/Smad， and other signaling pathways， regulate abnormal glucose metabolism， improve microcirculation， inhibit inflammation and oxidative stress， regulate cell proliferation and excessive apoptosis， and promote wound tissue growth to promote the rapid healing of DU wounds under the guidance of treatment based on traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndrome differentiation and internal and external treatment. Therefore， this paper reviewed Chinese medicinal monomers or Chinese medicinal compounds in recent years in regulating the above signaling pathways and the expression of key protein molecules and promoting the rapid healing of DU wounds， aiming to provide ideas and a theoretical basis for the in-depth study and clinical application of Chinese medicine in promoting the healing of DU wounds.

Research progress on the role and mechanism of premature cellular senescence on wound healing in radiation-induced skin injury / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Radiation skin injury can be induced by medical exposure, occupational exposure, and emergency exposure. Many relevant studies focused on the prevention and treatment of radiation-induced skin injury, but the underlying molecular mechanisms have not been fully clarified. It has been demonstrated that radiation-induced premature cellular senescence is involved in radiation skin injury. To discuss the relationship between radiation-induced premature cellular senescence and radiation-induced skin injury, this paper reviewed the mechanism of radiation-induced skin injury, the promotion of premature cellular senescence and related signal pathways, and the role of premature cellular senescence in wound healing.

Minimally invasive repair of acute closed Achilles tendon rupture with two-way needle suture technique / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective:To investigate the efficacy of two-way needle suture technique (TNST) in the minimally invasive repair of acute closed Achilles tendon rupture.Methods:From June 2019 to June 2021, 26 patients with acute closed Achilles tendon rupture were treated at Zhengzhou Orthopedic Hospital. They were 20 males and 6 females, with a mean age of 28 (23, 31) years. The rupture end was (4.2±1.3) cm away from the calcaneal insertion, and the interval from injury to operation 4.3 (2.0, 5.0) d. Preoperative MRI examinations revealed in all the patients closed Achilles tendon rupture which was to be repaired by TNST. The operation time, incision length, incidence of complications, ankle dorsiflexion and plantar flexion were recorded. The Arner-Lindholm scoring was used to evaluate the clinical efficacy.Results:The operation time was (20.0±5.0) min and the incision length (2.5±0.4) cm. Postoperatively, all incisions healed by the first stage, with no complications like incision infection, skin edge necrosis, deep vein thrombosis at lower limbs, injury to the sural nerve, or re-rupture of the Achilles tendon. All patients were followed up for (12.0±6.0) months. At the last follow-up, the patients walked normally, their incisions healed well, the continuity of the Achilles tendon was good by palpation, their heel lift was strong, and all their activities were restored to the levels before rupture of the Achilles tendon. The ankle dorsiflexion was 22.6°±3.7° and the plantar flexion 25.3°±3.7°, According to the Arner-Lindholm evaluation, the clinical efficacy was rated as excellent in 25 cases and as good in 1 case, giving an excellent and good rate of 100% (26/26).Conclusion:In the minimally invasive repair of acute closed Achilles tendon rupture, TNST shows the advantages of limited surgical invasion, a low incidence of postoperative complications, and reliable curative effects.

Establishment and application of hepatic organoid model of hepatitis B virus infection / 中华传染病杂志

Objective:To establish the hepatic organoid of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection on the basis of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and an inverted colloidal crystal polyethylene glycol scaffold (ICC), and to evaluate the antiviral effect of nucleoside drugs.Methods:iPSC was differentiated into hepatocyte-like cells (HLC), and inoculated into ICC to construct a hepatic organoid. The relative mRNA expressions of Nanog homeobox (NANOG), sex determining region Y-box (SOX) 2, SOX17, forkhead box protein A2 (FOXA2), alpha fetoprotein (AFP) and albumin (ALB) were detected by real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Confocal laser microscopy was used to photograph the three-dimension (3D) structure of organs. The expression of sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) in HLC was analyzed by Western blot and immunofluorescence. HepG2.2.15 cells were used to extract HBV virus particles to infect hepatic organoid. The relative expression of HBV pregenome RNA (pgRNA) in cells was detected by RT-qPCR. The expressions of hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in cytoplasm were observed under confocal laser microscopy. A total of 0.5 μmol/L entecavir and 0.5 μmol/L lamivudine were used to treat the infected cells respectively. The relative expression of HBV pgRNA in infected and uninfected cells was detected by RT-qPCR. Independent sample t test and one-way analysis of variance were used for statistical analysis. Results:Within 21 days of iPSC differentiation, the mRNA expressions of NANOG and SOX2 in stem cells markers decreased ( F=158.90 and 8.31, respectivley; P<0.001 and P=0.002, respectively), while the mRNA expressions of SOX17 and FOXA2 in the endoderm increased first and then decreased ( F=37.23 and 82.57, respectively, both P<0.001). In the later stage of differentiation, the mRNA expressions of AFP and ALB in liver cells increased ( F=4.65 and 34.64, respectively, P=0.012 and P<0.001, respectively), and all differences were statistically significant. NTCP was highly expressed in differentiated cells detected by Western blot and fluorescence microscopy, the protein expression level was 0.803±0.099. Confocal laser microscopy confirmed that the differentiated cells expressed ALB and presented spherical structure in ICC. The expression of HBV pgRNA and the immunostaining of HBsAg and HBcAg confirmed that HBV successfully infected hepatic organoid. Three days after the application of entecavir and lamivudine, the HBV pgRNA level decreased significantly both in entecavir group (0.665±0.220) and lamivudine group (0.503±0.117) compared to the uninfected cells (3.347±0.454), and the differences were both statistically significant ( t=10.53 and 12.72, respectively, both P<0.001). Conclusions:HLC display hepatic specific genes ALB and NTCP. Hepatic organoids constructed with iPSC and ICC have human liver function and can be infected by HBV. Entecavir and lamivudine could effectively inhibit the replication of HBV in hepatic organoids.

High-throughput transcriptional profiling of perturbations by Panax ginseng saponins and Panax notoginseng saponins using TCM-seq / 药物分析学报

Panax ginseng(PG)and Panax notoginseng(PN)are highly valuable Chinese medicines(CM).Although both CMs have similar active constituents,their clinical applications are clearly different.Over the past decade,RNA sequencing(RNA-seq)analysis has been employed to investigate the molecular mechanisms of extracts or monomers.However,owing to the limited number of samples in standard RNA-seq,few studies have systematically compared the effects of PG and PN spanning multiple conditions at the transcriptomic level.Here,we developed an approach that simultaneously profiles transcriptome changes for multiplexed samples using RNA-seq(TCM-seq),a high-throughput,low-cost workflow to molecularly evaluate CM perturbations.A species-mixing experiment was conducted to illustrate the accuracy of sample multiplexing in TCM-seq.Transcriptomes from repeated samples were used to verify the robustness of TCM-seq.We then focused on the primary active components,Panax notoginseng sa-ponins(PNS)and Panax ginseng saponins(PGS)extracted from PN and PG,respectively.We also char-acterized the transcriptome changes of 10 cell lines,treated with four different doses of PNS and PGS,using TCM-seq to compare the differences in their perturbing effects on genes,functional pathways,gene modules,and molecular networks.The results of transcriptional data analysis showed that the tran-scriptional patterns of various cell lines were significantly distinct.PGS exhibited a stronger regulatory effect on genes involved in cardiovascular disease,whereas PNS resulted in a greater coagulation effect on vascular endothelial cells.This study proposes a paradigm to comprehensively explore the differences in mechanisms of action between CMs based on transcriptome readouts.

Causal relationship between branched-chain amino acids and peripheral atherosclerosis： a Mendelian randomization study / 上海预防医学

ObjectiveWe conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization （MR） study to assess the causal relationship between circulating isoleucine， leucine and valine levels and the risk of peripheral atherosclerosis. MethodsBased on the large-scale genome-wide association study （GWAS） database， single nucleotide polymorphisms （SNPs） closely related to the circulating levels of isoleucine， leucine and valine were identified as instrumental variables （IVs）. Two-sample MR analysis applying the inverse variance weighted （IVW） method and the weighted median estimator （WME） method were performed to estimate the causal relationship between the risk of peripheral atherosclerosis and the exposure with more than three SNPs that were available as IVs. The pleiotropy was evaluated by using the MR-Egger regression and MR-PRESSO method， and the leave-one-out method was used in sensitivity analysis. ResultsFour， one and one SNPs were identified as IVs for circulating isoleucine， leucine and valine levels， respectively. For isoleucine， the IVW model demonstrated there was no evidence of heterogeneity among the IVs （P=0.715）， and there was a significant causal relationship between the increase of circulating isoleucine level and a higher risk of peripheral atherosclerosis risk. Per every 1 elevated standard deviation （SD） of circulating isoleucine level resulted in increasing 31% of peripheral atherosclerosis risk （OR=1.31， 95%CI： 1.07‒1.61）. Similarly， the OR（95%CI） was 1.33 （1.04‒1.71） in the WME model. The MR-Egger regression and MR-PRESSO analysis indicated no evidence of pleiotropy in IVs （all P>0.05）. The result of the leave-one-out sensitivity analysis was stable. The Wald ratio model displayed that the causal relationship between circulating leucine and valine levels and the risk of peripheral atherosclerosis was not statistically significant. The OR （95%CI） for leucine and valine was 1.13 （0.78‒1.63） and 1.11 （0.82‒1.50）， respectively. ConclusionThere is a significant causal relationship between the increase of circulating isoleucine level and a higher peripheral atherosclerosis risk. The causal relationships between circulating leucine and valine levels and the risk of peripheral atherosclerosis need to be further confirmed in future studies.

Identification and expression analysis of flavonoid O-methyltransferases gene family in Artemisia argyi / 药学学报

italic>Artemisia argyi (A. argyi) is a Chinese herbal medicine in China. The main active components are volatile oils, flavonoids, and other compounds, which have various pharmacological activities. Methoxylated flavonoids are the main active ingredients in A. argyi. Flavonoid O-methyltransferase (FOMT) is a key enzyme in the O-methylation of flavonoids. In order to further understand the function and characteristics of FOMT proteins, this paper carried out the whole genome mining and identification of FOMT genes in A. argyi and performed phylogenetic, chromosomal localization, gene sequence characterization, subcellular localization prediction, protein structure, gene structure analysis, and expression pattern analysis. The results showed that a total of 83 FOMT genes were identified in the genome of A. argyi. The phylogenetic tree shows that FOMT genes are divided into two subgroups, CCoAOMT (caffeoyl CoA O-methyltransferase) subfamily (32 genes) and COMT (caffeic acid O-methyltransferase) subfamily (51 genes). Gene sequence analysis showed that the number of amino acids encoded by FOMT was 70-734 aa, the molecular weight was 25 296.55-34 241.3 Da, and the isoelectric point was 4.51-9.99. Compared with 32 members of the CCoAOMT subfamily, nearly 1/3 of the 51 members of the COMT subfamily were hydrophobic proteins and 2/3 were hydrophilic proteins. Subcellular localization prediction showed that more than 80% of CCoAOMT subfamily members were located in the cytoplasm, and 96% of COMT subfamily members were located in the chloroplast. COMT subfamily members have more motifs than CCoAOMT subfamily members. The N-terminal motifs of COMT subfamily proteins are relatively variable, while the C-terminal motifs are relatively conserved. Expression pattern analysis showed that CCoAOMT subfamily members were mainly expressed in roots, while COMT members were mainly expressed in leaves. Some FOMTs showed the tissue expression specificity by real-time quantitative PCR analysis, especially in leaves. In this study, we identified and analyzed the FOMT gene family in A. argyi, and provided a theoretical basis for further research on the function of FOMTs and the biosynthesis of methylated flavonoids in A. argyi.

The mechanism of modified Gan Cao Fu Zi Decoction in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis based on network pharmacology and experimental validation / 药学学报

We used network pharmacology to predict the mechanism in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) via modified Gan Cao Fu Zi Decoction (GCFZ), and validated the results of the analysis and explored the pharmacodynamic effects of GCFZ through animal experiments. Firstly, TCMID, SymMap, HERB, STITCH and GEO databases were utilized to obtain the target genes of GCFZ for the treatment of RA, which yielded a total of 1 250 differentially expressed genes for RA, 534 genes for GCFZ targets and 83 intersecting genes. Then functional enrichment analysis of the intersecting genes was performed through GO and KEGG databases, and the results revealed that GCFZ and its active ingredients mainly functioned through cytokine pathways, where chemokine signaling pathway and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathway were enriched with a high number of genes. Cytoscape 3.8.0 software was used to construct the drug-target-disease network and screen key proteins, which included TNF, C-X-C chemokine ligand 8 (CXCL8), C-X-C chemokine ligand 10 (CXCL10), C-C chemokine ligand 5 (CCL5), C-X-C chemokine ligand 2 (CXCL2) and C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCR4). The molecular docking technology was used to confirm the binding ability of the main active ingredients of GCFZ to the core proteins. Additionally, the therapeutic effects of GCFZ in low (4 g·kg-1), medium (8 g·kg-1) and high (16 g·kg-1) dose groups were investigated by constructing the collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) rat model. X-ray imaging approach, HE staining and Safranin O-Fast Green staining showed that GCFZ treatment significantly improved bone destruction, synovial hyperplasia and cartilage damage in CIA rats, while immunofluorescence results showed that GCFZ treatment could regulate the expression of TNF, CXCL8 and CCL5. In summary, our results indicate that GCFZ contains a variety of small molecule pharmacodynamic substances, which can exert therapeutic effects via multiple targets and pathways, and obviously reduce the symptoms of arthritis in CIA rats. This animal experiment of our research was approved by the Experimental Animal Management and Ethics Committee of Bengbu Medical College.

Prevalence and influential factors of smoking in urban and rural residents in Shaoxing City / 上海预防医学

ObjectiveTo examine the prevalence and influencing factors of smoking in urban and rural residents in Shaoxing City for providing evidences to effective tobacco control. MethodsWith stratified multistage random sampling， we conducted a face-to-face survey among 4 063 residents aged 15‒69 years in the city. A face-to-face questionnaire survey was used to collect information on smoking among urban and rural residents. ResultsAmong the 4 063 valid respondents， the rate of current smoking was 22.69%， the current smoking rate of rural residents was 24.85% and the rate of urban residents was 20.48%. The results of unconditional multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the following were the protective factors of smoking among urban and rural residents： having health literacy， suffering the chronic disease， being female， with poor self-evaluated health status， being a personnel of organizations/institutions， students， farmers， workers and other staffs of enterprises （P<0.05）. ConclusionHealth literacy， gender， occupation， age， self-evaluation of health status and chronic diseases are the main influencing factors of current smoking behavior among urban and rural residents. Improving residents’ health literacy through health education can effectively affect residents’ smoking behavior.

Effect of screen time on sleep in preschool children in Haikou City / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To understand the impact of screen time on duration and quality of sleep, so as to provide scientific basis for the development of interventions.@*Methods@#A total of 3 584 preschool children in Haikou City were selected by stratified sampling method from March to June in 2022, and the Children s Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) and self designed questionnaire were used.@*Results@#The average sleep duration of preschool children was (10.41±0.98)h/d, the rate of sleep deprivation was 28.71 %, and the report rate of sleep problems was 50.47%. The average sleep duration in general as well as on weekdays and weekends decreased by age ( F=21.00, 29.53, 3.26, P ＜0.05), and insufficient sleep duration rate significantly varied by age groups ( χ 2=29.85, P ＜ 0.01 ). The average screen time was (1.15±0.37)h/d, and the screen exposure rate was 55.39%. The total sleep problems ( 52.14 %), poor bedtime habits (43.02%), daytime sleepiness (67.10%), irregular sleep duration (53.05%), and abnormal sleep latency ( 24.99 %) were all higher than those in the non exposed group (48.41%, 39.59%, 63.29%, 48.91%, 19.57 %) ( χ 2= 4.94 , 4.31, 5.69 , 6.08, 14.85, P <0.05). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that age and weekend average screen time were negatively associated with sleep duration ( β =-0.01, -0.06), weekday and weekend average outdoor activity duration were positively correlated with sleep duration ( β =0.08, 0.08) ( P <0.05).@*Conclusion@#Screen exposure to preschool children s sleep time,sleep quality was closely related. Parents should cultivate good sleep habits of preschool children, and limit children s screen time to maximize outdoor activities, so as to ensure healthy development of children.

Effect of graded motor imagery combined with repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on upper limb function of stroke patients / 中国康复理论与实践

ObjectiveTo explore the effects of graded motor imagery (GMI) combined with repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on upper limb function and activities of daily living of stroke patients. MethodsFrom June, 2022 to February, 2023, 45 stroke patients from Xuzhou Rehabilitation Hospital and Xuzhou Central Hospital were recruited and divided into control group (n = 15), GMI group (n = 15) and combined group (n = 15) randomly. All the groups received conventional rehabilitation, in addition, GMI group received GMI and the combined group received GMI and rTMS, for four weeks. They were assessed with Fugl-Meyer Assessment-Upper Extremities (FMA-UE), Action Research Arm Test (ARAT), modified Barthel Index (MBI) and Hong Kong version of Functional Test for the Hemiplegic Upper Extremity (FTHUE-HK) before and after treatment. ResultsThe scores of FMA-UE, ARAT and MBI, and grades of FTHUE-HK improved in all the groups after treatment (|t| > 9.681, P < 0.001), and all these indexes were the best in the combined group (F > 13.241, P < 0.001). ConclusionGMI combined with rTMS can further improve the motor function of upper limbs and activities of daily living of stroke patients.

Related factors of treatment zone diameter after Paragon CRT orthokeratology / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

AIM:To explore the influence factors of the treatment zone diameter(TZD)and its correlation with axial length growth(ALG)after Paragon CRT orthokeratology.METHODS: Retrospective clinical study. The data of 226 myopic patients(226 eyes)wearing Paragon CRT orthokeratology from April 2020 to September 2022 were collect. The correlated factors of TZD after wearing lens for 1mo, and the relationship between the overlapping treatment zone/ pupil area ratio and the ALG after wearing lens for 1a were analyzed.RESULTS: After wearing lens for 1mo, the TZD was negatively correlated with central corneal thickness(CCT)and positively correlated with the flat corneal eccentricity. After wearing lens for 1a, the ALG of the small TZD group(0.25±0.18mm)was significantly smaller than that of the large TZD group(0.34±0.24mm, P=0.002), and the ALG of the small area ratio group(0.24±0.19mm)was significantly smaller than that of the large area ratio group(0.35±0.23mm,P&#x003C;0.001). Age and overlapping treatment zone area/pupil area ratio were significantly associated with the ALG in multivariate linear regression(all P&#x003C;0.05).CONCLUSION: The wearers with thicker CCT and smaller flat corneal eccentricity usually had smaller TZD, and both the TZD and the overlapping treatment zone area/pupil area ratio were correlated with the ALG.

PAFR/Stat3 axis maintains the symbiotic ecosystem between tumor and stroma to facilitate tumor malignancy

Stroma surrounding the tumor cells plays crucial roles for tumor progression. However, little is known about the factors that maintain the symbiosis between stroma and tumor cells. In this study, we found that the transcriptional regulator-signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) was frequently activated in cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), which was a potent facilitator of tumor malignancy, and formed forward feedback loop with platelet-activating factor receptor (PAFR) both in CAFs and tumor cells. Importantly, PAFR/Stat3 axis connected intercellular signaling crosstalk between CAFs and cancer cells and drove mutual transcriptional programming of these two types of cells. Two central Stat3-related cytokine signaling molecules-interleukin 6 (IL-6) and IL-11 played the critical role in the process of PAFR/Stat3 axis-mediated communication between tumor and CAFs. Pharmacological inhibition of PAFR and Stat3 activities effectively reduced tumor progression using CAFs/tumor co-culture xenograft model. Our study reveals that PAFR/Stat3 axis enhances the interaction between tumor and its associated stroma and suggests that targeting this axis can be an effective therapeutic strategy against tumor malignancy.

Marsdenia tenacissima injection induces the apoptosis of prostate cancer by regulating the AKT/GSK3β/STAT3 signaling axis / 中国天然药物

Marsdenia tenacissima injection, a standard Marsdenia tenacissima extract (MTE), has been approved as an adjuvant therapeutic agent for various cancers. Our previous study showed that MTE inhibited the proliferation and metastasis of prostate cancer (PCa) cells. However, the underlying mechanisms and active ingredients of MTE against PCa were not completely understood. This study revealed that MTE induced significant decreases in cell viability and clonal growth in PCa cells. In addition, MTE induced the apoptosis of DU145 cells by reducing the mitochondrial membrane potential and increasing the expression of Cleaved Caspase 3/7, Cyt c, and Bax. In vivo, DU145 xenografted NOD-SCID mice treated with MTE showed significantly decreased tumor size. TUNEL staining and Western blot confirmed the pro-apoptotic effects of MTE. Network pharmacology analysis collected 196 ingredients of MTE linked to 655 potential targets, and 709 PCa-associated targets were retrieved, from which 149 overlapped targets were screened out. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that the HIF-1, PI3K-AKT, and ErbB signaling pathways were closely related to tumor apoptosis. Western blot results confirmed that MTE increased the expression of p-AKTSer473 and p-GSK3βSer9, and decreased the expression of p-STAT3Tyr705in vitro and in vivo. A total of 13 compounds in MTE were identified by HPLC-CAD-QTOF-MS/MS and UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS. Molecular docking analysis indicated that six compounds may interact with AKT, GSK3β, and STAT3. In conclusion, MTE induces the endogenous mitochondrial apoptosis of PCa by regulating the AKT/GSK3β/STAT3 signaling axis, resulting in inhibition of PCa growth in vitro and in vivo.

PPAR-γ activation promotes xenogenic bioroot regeneration by attenuating the xenograft induced-oxidative stress / 国际口腔科学杂志·英文版

Xenogenic organ transplantation has been considered the most promising strategy in providing possible substitutes with the physiological function of the failing organs as well as solving the problem of insufficient donor sources. However, the xenograft, suffered from immune rejection and ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI), causes massive reactive oxygen species (ROS) expression and the subsequent cell apoptosis, leading to the xenograft failure. Our previous study found a positive role of PPAR-γ in anti-inflammation through its immunomodulation effects, which inspires us to apply PPAR-γ agonist rosiglitazone (RSG) to address survival issue of xenograft with the potential to eliminate the excessive ROS. In this study, xenogenic bioroot was constructed by wrapping the dental follicle cells (DFC) with porcine extracellular matrix (pECM). The hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced DFC was pretreated with RSG to observe its protection on the damaged biological function. Immunoflourescence staining and transmission electron microscope were used to detect the intracellular ROS level. SD rat orthotopic transplantation model and superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) knockout mice subcutaneous transplantation model were applied to explore the regenerative outcome of the xenograft. It showed that RSG pretreatment significantly reduced the adverse effects of H2O2 on DFC with decreased intracellular ROS expression and alleviated mitochondrial damage. In vivo results confirmed RSG administration substantially enhanced the host's antioxidant capacity with reduced osteoclasts formation and increased periodontal ligament-like tissue regeneration efficiency, maximumly maintaining the xenograft function. We considered that RSG preconditioning could preserve the biological properties of the transplanted stem cells under oxidative stress (OS) microenvironment and promote organ regeneration by attenuating the inflammatory reaction and OS injury.

Correlation of serum immunoglobulins levels with disease severity and nutritional indexes in elderly patients with heart failure / 中国医师进修杂志

Objective:To observe the correlation between serum immunoglobulins levels with the disease severity and nutritional indexes in elderly patients with heart failure.Methods:The clinical data of 53 elderly patients with heart failure (observation group) from October 2020 to January 2022 in the Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University Medical College were retrospectively analyzed, and 53 cases of health examination at the same time were selected as the control group. The disease severity was assessed by a 6-minute walk test (6MWT), and nutritional status was assessed by nutritional index. The serum levels of IgA, IgM and IgG were measured by PUZS-300 fully automated biochemical analyzer; the serum nutrient indexes were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay, including total protein, albumin and proalbumin. Pearson method was used for correlation test; the value of IgA, IgM and IgG in predicting disease severity in elderly patients with heart failure was analyzed by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.Results:The IgA, IgM and IgG in observed group were significantly higher than those in control group: (4.31 ± 1.50) g/L vs. (1.63 ± 0.71) g/L, (18.50 ± 3.93) g/L vs. (11.33 ± 1.12) g/L and (4.58 ± 1.26) g/L vs. (1.96 ± 0.36) g/L, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.01). The 6MWT result showed that 23 cases were with mild status, 18 cases moderate, and 12 cases severe. The IgA, IgM and IgG in moderate and severe patients were significantly higher than those in mild patients: (4.34 ± 0.78) and (6.38 ± 0.91) g/L vs. (3.23 ± 0.94) g/L, (18.90 ± 2.09) and (23.81 ± 2.78) g/L vs. (15.44 ± 2.03) g/L, (4.77 ± 0.56) and (6.47 ± 0.34) g/L vs. (3.45 ± 0.44) g/L, the indexes in severe patients were significantly higher than those in moderate patients, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis result showed that IgA, IgM and IgG were positively correlated with disease severity in elderly patients with heart failure ( r = 0.801, 0.830 and 0.925; P<0.01). The nutritional index result showed that malnutrition was in 25 cases, and normal nutrition in 28 cases. The IgA, IgM and IgG in patients with malnutrition were significantly higher than those in patients with normal nutrition: (4.89 ± 0.80) g/L vs. (1.98 ± 0.69) g/L, (19.45 ± 2.01) g/L vs. (12.01 ± 1.28) g/L and (4.88 ± 0.59) g/L vs. (2.01 ± 0.47) g/L, the nutritional index, total protein, albumin and proalbumin were significantly lower than those in patients with normal nutrition: (49.44 ± 6.98) scores vs. (58.34 ± 8.12) scores, (62.87 ± 5.20) g/L vs. (66.74 ± 4.54) g/L, (33.21 ± 2.64) g/L vs. (39.12 ± 3.11) g/L and (185.55 ± 16.72) mg/L vs. (196.33 ± 18.90) mg/L, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.01 or <0.05). Pearson correlation analysis result showed that the IgA and IgM were negatively correlated with nutritional index, total protein, albumin and proalbumin in elderly patients with heart failure (IgA: r = - 0.456, - 0.353, -0.620 and -0.281; IgM: r = -0.445, -0.327, -0.611 and -0.321; P<0.01 or <0.05); IgG was negatively correlated with nutritional index, total protein and albumin ( r = - 0.425, - 0.359 and - 0.646; P<0.01), and it had no correlation with proalbumin ( P>0.05). ROC curve analysis result showed that the areas under the curve of IgA, IgM and IgG in predicting disease severity in elderly patients with heart failure were 0.891, 0.943 and 0.838, sensitivity of 76.70%, 90.00% and 73.33%, and specificity of 87.00%, 87.00% and 100.00%. Conclusions:The serum levels of IgA, IgM and IgG increased significantly in elderly patients with heart failure, who were also with abnormal immune function and decreased nutritional status. The serum levels of IgA, IgM and IgG correlate with disease severity and nutritional indexes.

Research progress and future prospect of hernia and abdominal wall surgery in China / 中华消化外科杂志

In recent years, due to the increasing population of ageing and obesity, the incidence rate of hernia is increasing year by year, which has become a social problem that needs to be focused. Although starting late, the hernia and abdominal wall surgery has developed rapidly in recent years in China, and many remarkable achievements have been made. The development of hernia and abdominal wall surgery is inseparable from the progress of medical technology, the continuous innovation of materials, the improvement of perioperative management concept and the improvement of registration and follow-up system. The authors investigate the relevant research at home and abroad in recent years, and summarize and prospect the materials science, the daytime surgery and the registration and follow-up system, in order to provide reference for the future development of hernia and abdominal wall surgery.

Epidemiological characteristics of children with severe sepsis in multi-center PICU in Shandong province from 2018 to 2021 / 中国小儿急救医学

Objective:To investigate the epidemiological characteristics, treatment and prognosis of pediatric severe sepsis in PICU in Shandong Province from 2018 to 2021, in order to provide a scientific basis for the prevention and treatment of severe sepsis in children.Methods:A multicenter retrospective observational study was conducted at PICUs from 19 hospitals in Shandong Province.Patients aged>28 days and ≤18 years, diagnosed with severe sepsis or septic shock who admitted to these PICUs during January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2021 were enrolled.Results:(1)From 2018 to 2021, the total number of hospitalized children and the number of children with severe sepsis admitted to the PICU showed an overall downward trend, with the most significant decrease in 2020.(2)During the study period, among the hospitalized children in PICU, the prevalence rate of children with severe sepsis fluctuated from 1.95% to 2.37%, and the median age fluctuated from 1.29 to 2.00 years old, more males than females.(3)Median pediatric sequential organ failure assessment score fluctuated between 5 and 6 at 24 hours after admission.(4)The most common primary infection site was the respiratory system, followed by the digestive system.(5)Since 2020, the propotion of children receiving fluid resuscitation, blood purification, mechanical ventilation, and glucocorticoid therapy has decreased significantly.(6)The median length of PICU stay was 9.22 to 11.51 days.(7)The median PICU costs decreased significantly from 41 075 yuan in 2018 to 30 972 yuan in 2021.(8)In-hospital mortality showed an overall decreased trend, reaching a maximum of 17.61% in 2019 and a minimum of 12.77% in 2020.Conclusion:From 2018 to 2021, there was no significant change in the incidence of pediatric severe sepsis in PICUs in Shandong province while the overall in-hospital mortality rate and the PICU costs showed a reduced trend.

Efficacy and safety of Omalizumab for the treatment of pediatric allergic asthma: a retrospective multicenter real-world study in China / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective:To assess the clinical effectiveness and safety of Omalizumab for treating pediatric allergic asthma in real world in China.Methods:The clinical data of children aged 6 to 11 years with allergic asthma who received Omalizumab treatment in 17 hospitals in China between July 6, 2018 and September 30, 2020 were retrospectively analyzed.Such information as the demographic characteristics, allergic history, family history, total immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels, specific IgE levels, skin prick test, exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) levels, eosinophil (EOS) counts, and comorbidities at baseline were collected.Descriptive analysis of the Omalizumab treatment mode was made, and the difference in the first dose, injection frequency and course of treatment between the Omalizumab treatment mode and the mode recommended in the instruction was investigated.Global Evaluation of Treatment Effectiveness (GETE) analysis was made after Omalizumab treatment.The moderate-to-severe asthma exacerbation rate, inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) dose, lung functions were compared before and after Omalizumab treatment.Changes in the Childhood Asthma Control Test (C-ACT) and Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ) results from baseline to 4, 8, 12, 16, 24, and 52 weeks after Omalizumab treatment were studied.The commodity improvement was assessed.The adverse event (AE) and serious adverse event (SAE) were analyzed for the evaluation of Omalizumab treatment safety.The difference in the annual rate of moderate-to-severe asthma exacerbation and ICS reduction was investigated by using t test.The significance level was set to 0.05.Other parameters were all subject to descriptive analysis.A total of 200 allergic asthma patients were enrolled, including 75.5% ( n=151) males and 24.5% ( n=49) females.The patients aged (8.20±1.81) years. Results:The median total IgE level of the 200 patients was 513.5 (24.4-11 600.0) IU/mL.Their median treatment time with Omalizumab was 112 (1-666) days.Their first dose of Omalizumab was 300 (150-600) mg.Of the 200 cases, 114 cases (57.0%) followed the first Omalizumab dosage recommended in the instruction.After 4-6 months of Omalizumab treatment, 88.5% of the patients enrolled ( n=117) responded to Omalizumab.After 4 weeks of treatment with Omalizumab, asthma was well-controlled, with an increased C-ACT score [from (22.70±3.70) points to (18.90±3.74) points at baseline]. Four-six months after Omalizumab administration, the annual rate of moderate-to-severe asthma exacerbation had a reduction of (2.00±5.68) per patient year( t=4.702 5, P<0.001), the median ICS daily dose was lowered [0 (0-240) μg vs. 160 (50-4 000) μg at baseline] ( P<0.001), the PAQLQ score was improved [(154.90±8.57) points vs. (122.80±27.15) points at baseline], and the forced expiratory volume in one second % predicted (FEV 1%pred) was increased [(92.80±10.50)% vs. (89.70±18.17)% at baseline]. In patients with available evaluations for comorbidities, including allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis or eczema, urticaria, allergic conjunctivitis and sinusitis, 92.8%-100.0% showed improved symptoms.A total of 124 AE were reported in 58 (29.0%) of the 200 patients, and the annual incidence was 0(0-15.1) per patient year.In 53 patients who suffered AE, 44 patients (83.0%) and 9 patients (17.0%) reported mild and moderate AE, respectively.No severe AE were observed in patients.The annual incidence of SAE was 0(0-1.9) per patient year.Most common drug-related AE were abdominal pain (2 patients, 1.0%) and fever (2 patients, 1.0%). No patient withdrew Omalizumab due to AE. Conclusions:Omalizumab shows good effectiveness and safety for the treatment of asthma in children.It can reduce the moderate-to-severe asthma exacerbation rate, reduce the ICS dose, improve asthma control levels, and improve lung functions and quality of life of patients.