Factors affecting meibomian gland area loss in symptomatic adults.

AIM: To characterize the distribution of meibomian gland (MG) area loss (MGL) and its relationship with demographic characteristics, mites, and symptoms. METHODS: This retrospective observational study included patients who visited the Dry Eye Clinic of Shenzhen Eye Hospital between June 2020 and August 2021. General patient characteristics, ocular symptoms, Demodex test results of the eyelid edges, and the results of a comprehensive ocular surface analysis were collected. MGL was analyzed using Image J software. RESULTS: This study enrolled 1204 outpatients aged 20-80 (40.70±13.44)y, including 357 males (29.65%) and 847 females (70.35%). The patients were classified into mild (n=155; 12.87%), moderate (n=795; 66.03%), severe (n=206; 17.11%), and extremely severe (n=48; 3.99%) MGL groups. MGL was significantly larger in female than in male (P=0.006). The degree of MGL also significantly differed in age (P<0.001) and the more numbers of mites with severity (P<0.001). Multivariate disordered multinomial logistic regression analysis identified that female sex, older age, secretory symptoms, and a large number of mites were risk factors for MGL (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Patients with MGL are more likely to be older, female, more numbers of mites, and increased secretion.

Perception and response of skeleton to mechanical stress.

Mechanical stress stands as a fundamental factor in the intricate processes governing the growth, development, morphological shaping, and maintenance of skeletal mass. The profound influence of stress in shaping the skeletal framework prompts the assertion that stress essentially births the skeleton. Despite this acknowledgment, the mechanisms by which the skeleton perceives and responds to mechanical stress remain enigmatic. In this comprehensive review, our scrutiny focuses on the structural composition and characteristics of sclerotin, leading us to posit that it serves as the primary structure within the skeleton responsible for bearing and perceiving mechanical stress. Furthermore, we propose that osteocytes within the sclerotin emerge as the principal mechanical-sensitive cells, finely attuned to perceive mechanical stress. And a detailed analysis was conducted on the possible transmission pathways of mechanical stress from the extracellular matrix to the nucleus.

Expression of ATP-Binding Cassette Transporter A1 (ABCA1) in Eyelid Tissues and Meibomian Gland Epithelial Cells.

Purpose: To validate the adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) expression and distribution in human eyelid tissues and meibomian gland epithelial cells. Methods: Meibomian gland tissues from human eyelids were isolated by collagenase A digestion and cultured in defined keratinocyte serum-free medium (DKSFM). Infrared imaging was used to analyze the general morphology of meibomian glands. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining and Oil Red O staining were used to observe the morphological structure and lipid secretion in the human meibomian gland tissues. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and immunostaining were used to detect the mRNA and protein expression and cytolocalization of ABCA1 in the meibomian gland tissues and cultured cells. Results: The degree of loss of human meibomian gland tissue was related to age. Meibomian gland lipid metabolism was also associated with age. Additionally, human meibomian gland tissues express ABCA1 mRNA and protein; glandular epithelial cells express more ABCA1 mRNA and protein than acinar cells, and their expression in acinar cells decreases with differentiation. Furthermore, the expression of ABCA1 was downregulated in abnormal meibomian gland tissues. ABCA1 was mainly localized on the cell membrane in primary human meibomian gland epithelial cells (pHMGECs), whereas it was localized in the cytoplasm of immortalized human meibomian gland epithelial cells (iHMGECs). The mRNA and protein levels of ABCA1 in pHMGECs were higher than those in iHMGECs. Conclusions: Meibomian gland tissues of the human eyelid degenerate with age. ABCA1 expression in acinar cells decreases after differentiation and plays an important role in meibomian gland metabolism.

Retrospective Study of Effects of Preoperative BMI on Early Outcomes in Recipients After Kidney Transplant.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this retrospective study was to establish the effect of the preoperative body mass index (BMI) on early outcomes of recipients after a kidney transplant, including liver and kidney function and fasting blood glucose recovery. METHODS: Our analytical cohort were patients who had undergone a kidney transplant at The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC [2016-2019]. The BMI classifications were underweight (<18.5 kg/m2), normal weight (18.5-23.9 kg/m2), and overweight or obese (≥24 kg/m2). A χ2 test was conducted to compare differences between the patients in the different BMI groups. RESULTS: We enrolled 831 recipients in the study. The percentage of patients with normal serum creatinine and normal urea nitrogen in the BMI ≥24 group was lower at different periods after surgery (P<0.05). The percentage of patients with normal uric acid in the normal weight group was higher on day 1 and the first week after surgery (P < 0.001). In the first and second weeks postsurgery, the percentage of patients with aspartate transaminase/alanine aminotransaminase in the BMI ≥24 group was lower (P < .005). In the first week postsurgery, the percentage of patients with normal albumin/globulin in the normal weight group was higher (P < .05). No statistically significant difference among the 3 groups was found in the incidence of hyperglycemia (P > .05). CONCLUSIONS: The patients who were overweight or obese preoperatively had poorer renal and liver functions postoperatively. Targeted interventions to control or mitigate rates of overweight or obesity preoperatively should be identified.

Relationships between soil respiration and hyperspectral vegetation indexes and crop characteristics under different warming and straw application modes.

Examining the relationship between seasonal variations in soil respiration and abiotic factors and vegetation indexes is crucial for modeling soil respiration using upscaled remote sensing satellite data. A field experiment including control (CK), warming (WA), straw application (SA), and warming and straw application (WASA) treatments was performed in a winter wheat-soybean rotation cropland on the north shore of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Soil respiration, abiotic factors, crop hyperspectral vegetation indexes, leaf area index (LAI), and chlorophyll content (represented as the SPAD value) were measured during the 2018-2020 rotation growing seasons. The results indicated that the mean annual soil respiration was 2.27 ± 0.04, 3.08 ± 0.06, 3.64 ± 0.08, and 3.95 ± 0.20 µmol m-2 s-1 in the CK, WA, SA, and WASA plots, respectively, during the 2-year experimental period. Soil respiration was significantly (P < 0.05) correlated with soil temperature, soil moisture, hyperspectral vegetation indexes, LAI, and SPAD value in all plots. Models that included temperature, moisture, hyperspectral vegetation indexes, LAI, and SPAD value explained 50.5-74.7% of the seasonal variation in soil respiration in the CK, WA, SA, and WASA plots during the 2-year experimental period. A model including the seasonal mean NDVI, DVI, EVI, PRI, and LAI explained 72.4% of the interseasonal and intertreatment variations in seasonal mean soil respiration in the different plots across the four different crop-growing seasons. Our study indicated the potential applicability of hyperspectral vegetation indexes, LAI, and SPAD value to the estimation of soil respiration at a regional scale.