Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for AIDS Prevention among College Students in China: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a serious worldwide public health problem and has become the focus of prevention and control in China, while the student population is the key population for AIDS prevention. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on college students' AIDS-related cognitions, attitudes, and behaviors, and to find programmatic strategies for AIDS prevention in terms of changing college students' cognitions and behaviors. METHODS: In a cluster randomized controlled trial, 233 undergraduate students were assigned to the CBT group (CBT-based intervention, n=92), the TAU group (treatment as usual, n=72), and the CON group (no intervention, n=59). AIDS-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of participants were assessed at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and follow-up. RESULTS: After one month of the study, AIDS-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors improved in both the TAU and CBT groups, while there were no significant changes in the CON group. The intervention effect was more significant and sustainable in the CBT group compared to the TAU group. CONCLUSIONS: The application of CBT in AIDS prevention among college students is feasible, acceptable, and effective. CBT can increase the level of knowledge about AIDS, improve AIDS-related attitudes, and increase willingness to use condoms. CBT is expected to replace traditional health education as an innovative tool for AIDS prevention because of its long-lasting and efficacious nature.

Correction: Liu et al. Exogenous H2S Attenuates Hypertension by Regulating Renin Exocytosis under Hyperglycaemic and Hyperlipidaemic Conditions. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 1690.

In the original publication [...].

Hydrogen sulfide regulates SERCA2a SUMOylation by S-Sulfhydration of SENP1 to ameliorate cardiac systole-diastole function in diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a serious complication of diabetes mellitus that eventually progresses to heart failure. The sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum calcium ATPase 2a (SERCA2a), an important calcium pump in cardiomyocytes, is closely related to myocardial systolic-diastolic function. In mammalian cells, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), as a second messenger, antioxidant, and sulfurizing agent, is involved in diverse biological processes. Despite the importance of H2S for protection against DCM, the mechanisms remain poorly understood. The aim of the present study was to determine whether H2S regulates intracellular calcium homeostasis by acting on SERCA2a to reduce cardiomyocyte apoptosis during DCM. Db/db mice were injected with NaHS for 18 weeks. Neonatal rat cardiomyocytes (NRCMs) were treated with high glucose, palmitate, oleate, and NaHS for 48 h. Compared to the NaHS-treated groups, in vivo and in vitro type 2 diabetic models both showed reduced intracellular H2S content, reduced cystathionine γ-lyase (CSE) expression, impaired cardiac function, decreased SERCA2a expression and decreased SERCA2a activity, reduced SUMOylation of SERCA2a, increased sentrin-specific protease 1 (SENP1) expression, and disruption of calcium homeostasis leading to activation of the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway. Compared to the NaHS-treated type 2 diabetes cellular model, overexpression of SENP1 C683A reduced the S-sulfhydration of SENP1, reduced the SUMOylation of SERCA2a, reduced the increased expression and activity of SERCA2a, and induced mitochondrial apoptosis in cardiomyocytes. These results suggested that exogenous H2S elevates SENP1 S-sulfhydration to increase SERCA2a SUMOylation, improve myocardial systolic-diastolic function, and decrease cardiomyocyte apoptosis in DCM.

Exogenous H2S Attenuates Hypertension by Regulating Renin Exocytosis under Hyperglycaemic and Hyperlipidaemic Conditions.

Obesity, along with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), is a major contributor to hypertension. The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system is involved in the occurrence of diabetes and hypertension. However, the mechanism by which obesity is related to T2DM induced hypertension is unclear. In this study, we observed that blood pressure and serum renin content were increased in patients with diabetes and hypertension. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S), as an endogenous bioactive molecule, has been shown to be a vasodilator. Db/db mice, characterized by obesity and T2DM, and juxtaglomerular (JG) cells, which line the afferent arterioles at the entrance of the glomeruli to produce renin, treated with glucose, palmitic acid (PA) and oleic acid (OA), were used as animal and cellular models. NaHS, the H2S donor, was administered to db/db mice through intraperitoneal injection. NaHS significantly alleviated blood pressure in db/db mice, decreased the renin content in the serum of db/db mice and reduced renin secretion from JG cells. NaHS modulated renin release via cAMP and soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptors (SNAREs), including synaptosome-associated protein 23 (SNAP23) and vesicle-associated membrane protein 2 (VAMP2), which mediate renin exocytosis. Furthermore, NaHS increased the levels of autophagy-related proteins and colocalization with EGFP-LC3 puncta with renin-containing granules and VAMP2 to consume excessive renin to maintain intracellular homeostasis. Therefore, exogenous H2S attenuates renin release and promotes renin-vesicular autophagy to relieve diabetes-induced hypertension.

Research on the Necessity of AIDS Intervention for College Students Based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

BACKGROUND: Despite abundant research on AIDS prevention and intervention, many residual factors influence the actual impact of the intervention at a population level. Misconceptions held by subjects lead to patterns of behavior, which do not reflect levels of cognition. METHODS: Cognition and behavioral patterns relating to HIV were investigated without intervention in freshmen before and after a two-year study period. A total of 461 freshmen studying at the university in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, were enrolled in September 2019. Data management and analysis were performed by SPSS 25.0 software. RESULTS: Throughout the two years' study, no significant changes in the cognitive level regarding AIDS were found while the frequency of sexual behavior increased significantly. A trend of inconsistency between cognition and behavior was identified. CONCLUSION: During a two-year period without intervention, it was found that the sexual behavior of university students gradually increased, perceptions regarding AIDS-related subjects were incomplete and awareness of HIV infection risk was still weak. A phenomenon described as the separation of knowledge from behavior was detected. Misconceptions that influenced behavioral patterns were identified as critical factors. Therefore, we propose that cognitive behavioral therapy may change the actual impact of AIDS prevention interventions.

Exogenous H2 S prevents the nuclear translocation of PDC-E1 and inhibits vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation in the diabetic state.

Hydrogen sulphide (H2 S) inhibits vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation induced by hyperglycaemia and hyperlipidaemia; however, the mechanisms are unclear. Here, we observed lower H2 S levels and higher expression of the proliferation-related proteins PCNA and cyclin D1 in db/db mouse aortae and vascular smooth muscle cells treated with 40 mmol/L glucose and 500 µmol/L palmitate, whereas exogenous H2 S decreased PCNA and cyclin D1 expression. The nuclear translocation of mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase complex-E1 (PDC-E1) was significantly increased in VSMCs treated with high glucose and palmitate, and it increased the level of acetyl-CoA and histone acetylation (H3K9Ac). Exogenous H2 S inhibited PDC-E1 translocation from the mitochondria to the nucleus because PDC-E1 was modified by S-sulfhydration. In addition, PDC-E1 was mutated at Cys101. Overexpression of PDC-E1 mutated at Cys101 increased histone acetylation (H3K9Ac) and VSMC proliferation. Based on these findings, H2 S regulated PDC-E1 S-sulfhydration at Cys101 to prevent its translocation from the mitochondria to the nucleus and to inhibit VSMC proliferation under diabetic conditions.