Circulating Th2 cell reduction and Th1/Th2 imbalance are correlated with primary Sjogren's syndrome-associated interstitial lung disease.

OBJECTIVE: Primary Sjogren's syndrome (pSS) is a heterogeneous chronic autoimmune disorder characterized by lymphocyte infiltration of the exocrine glands and the involvement and dysfunction of multiple organs and tissues. Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is the most common type of respiratory system damage. This study ascertained the factors related to ILD in patients with pSS (pSS-ILD), such as altered levels of circulating lymphocyte subtypes. METHODS: Eighty healthy controls and 142 patients diagnosed with pSS were included. The pSS patients were classified into groups with pSS-ILD or pSS without ILD (pSS-non-ILD). Baseline clinical and laboratory data were collected for all subjects, including the levels of lymphocytes measured by modified flow cytometry. RESULTS: The pSS-ILD patients were older, had higher ESSDAI scores, had higher positivity rates for anti-SSB and anti-Ro52 antibodies, and had more frequent symptoms of respiratory system involvement than pSS-non-ILD patients. pSS-ILD patients had the lowest Th2 cell counts among the three groups. Although the absolute numbers of Treg and NK cells were lower in pSS patients with and without ILD than in the healthy controls, there was no significant difference between the two pSS groups. The Th1/Th2 ratio was significantly higher in patients with ILD than in patients without ILD. Further analysis showed that older age (OR=1.084), lower Th2 count (OR=0.947), higher Th1/Th2 ratio (OR=1.021), and positivity for anti-SSB (OR=3.620) and anti-Ro52 (OR=5.184) antibodies were associated with the occurrence of ILD in patients with pSS. CONCLUSION: Decreased circulating Th2 cells and an elevated Th1/Th2 ratio may be the immunological mechanism underlying the development of ILD in pSS patients.

Clinical Value of Pepsinogen in the Screening, Prevention, and Diagnosis of Gastric Cancer.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the levels of serum pepsinogen (PG) in patients with gastric cancer (GC), patients with atrophic gastritis (AG), and healthy donors. Also, we explored the clinical value of PG detection for the diagnosis and treatment of GC. METHODS: The PG level in peripheral blood from patients and heathy donors was determined using an Abbott automatic chemiluminescence instrument. The study included 117 patients with GC confirmed by gastroscopy and histopathology, of whom 13 patients had cancer at stage I, 47 at stage II, 41 at stage III, and 16 at stage IV. The AG group included 122 patients, and the control group had 120 healthy donors. The relationship between serum PG levels and the occurrence and development of GC, as well as the evaluation of the clinical value of diagnostic tests based on serum PG detection, were investigated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. RESULTS: Pepsinogen I (PGI) levels gradually decreased from the control group, the AG group, and the GC group. PGI exhibited high diagnostic value for GC (area under the curve [AUC], 0.834; cutoff, 51.2 ng/mL, sensitivity, 81.7%; specificity, 68.4%), PGII (AUC, 0.587; cutoff value, 13.05 ng/mL; sensitivity, 65.8%; specificity, 53.8%), and PGR (AUC, 0.752; cutoff, 5.65; sensitivity, 54.2%; specificity, 87.2%). The occurrence of GC was negatively correlated with serum levels of PGI (B = -0.054; OR = 0.947; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.925-0.970; P <.001) and PGR (B = -0.420; OR = 0.657; 95% CI, 0.499-0.864; P = .003). CONCLUSIONS: The combined detection of PGI, PGII, and PGR has important clinical value for the screening, prevention, and diagnosis of GC and could allow for earlier detection, diagnosis, and treatment of GC.

Increases in tumor markers are associated with primary Sjögren's syndrome-associated interstitial lung disease.

AIMS: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is the most common type of pulmonary involvement of extraglandular complication in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS), but the diagnosis of pSS-associated ILD (pSS-ILD) is still challenging. This study aimed to investigate the levels of serum tumor markers in pSS patients with or without ILD (pSS-non-ILD) and explore its diagnostic value for pSS-ILD. METHODS: A total of 168 pSS-ILD patients and age- and sex-matched 538 pSS-non-ILD were recruited. The levels of peripheral tumor markers, including carbohydrate antigen (CA)153, CA125, CA19-9, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), ß-human chorionic gonadotropin, alpha fetoprotein, CA724, and complexed prostate specific antigen, the clinical manifestations, and general laboratory indicators were measured and collected. RESULTS: Compared with pSS-non-ILD, pSS-ILD patients had higher levels of disease activity indicators, such as EULAR Sjögren's syndrome disease activity index, ESR, and CRP, and elevated serum levels of tumor markers: NSE, CEA, CA125, and CA153. The serum levels of CA153 [odds ratio (OR) = 4.521, 95% confidence interval (CI) = [1.871, 10.928)] and CEA [OR = 2.879, 95% CI = (1.305, 6.353)] were significantly correlated with the onset of SS-ILD. CA153 was the only tumor marker with area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) over 0.7 [AUC = 0.743, 95% CI = (0.70, 0.79)]. CONCLUSION: Tumor markers increased in serum of pSS-ILD patients. Higher CA153 levels are significantly correlated to the increased risk of ILD in patients with pSS and may be directly involved in the pathogenesis of pSS-ILD. Serum CA153 had the best diagnostic value in those tumor markers for pSS-ILD without malignancy.

[A mobile sensor for remote detection of natural gas leakage].

The detection of natural gas pipeline leak becomes a significant issue for body security, environmental protection and security of state property. However, the leak detection is difficult, because of the pipeline's covering many areas, operating conditions and complicated environment. A mobile sensor for remote detection of natural gas leakage based on scanning wavelength differential absorption spectroscopy (SWDAS) is introduced. The improved soft threshold wavelet denoising was proposed by analyzing the characteristics of reflection spectrum. And the results showed that the signal to noise ratio (SNR) was increased three times. When light intensity is 530 nA, the minimum remote sensitivity will be 80 ppm x m. A widely used SWDAS can make quantitative remote sensing of natural gas leak and locate the leak source precisely in a faster, safer and more intelligent way.