A rapid and highly effective approach for SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid daily testing in more than four thousand single-tube samples.

BACKGROUND: Presently, the global spread of COVID-19 is still going on, with more than 0.6 million new cases confirmed per day (as of November 20, 2021). However, since China entered a post-epidemic phase in mid-March 2020, the daily number of new domestic infections in the Chinese mainland has been maintained at almost zero or single digits, which was attributed to a series of effective measures for COVID-19 prevention and control adopted by the Chinese government. Among these measures, SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid testing holds key role for the timely confirmation and isolation of the infections to prevent further transmission. METHODS: Referring to the national policy requirements, since April 30, 2020, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University has conducted SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid testing in its PCR laboratory for patients and social workers, as well as for environmental monitoring and employee screening. As of mid-November 2020, the daily amount of single-tube samples for nucleic acid testing rose above 4,000. RESULTS: In this article, a rapid and highly effective approach for SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid daily testing is presented, allowing five technicians to complete nucleic acid testing in 6,500 single-tube samples in one day with a high level of quality. Using this approach, since the samples entered the PCR laboratory, all testing results were reported in 2.5-3 h with satisfactory quality control and precise reporting criterion as prerequisites. CONCLUSION: This testing approach provides a referable workflow for other testing institutions and is expected to play an important role in COVID-19 prevention and control.

Serum vitamin D level is related to disease progression in primary biliary cholangitis.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: A nonskeletal role of vitamin D in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) patients is not yet clear. The purpose of this study is to investigate the serum vitamin D level in patients with PBC and to explore whether serum vitamin D level is related to disease progression. METHODS: The serum levels of 25(OH)D3 were measured in 185 PBC patients and 141 healthy controls. The association with vitamin D levels and disease progression, particularly natural course, was assessed. RESULTS: Serum vitamin D levels were measured in 185 patients with PBC. The mean level of vitamin D in advanced stage patients was lower than that in early stage patients (9.15 ± 5.33 ng/ml vs. 13.68 ± 6.33 ng/ml, p = .000). In the follow-up patients, the vitamin D level in the taken calcitriol patients showed an upward trend, while the un-taken calcitriol patients was opposite. Besides, vitamin D levels were correlated with the changes of bilirubin, albumin (ALB) and APRI (p<.05). PBC patients with vitamin D deficiency had higher bilirubin levels and lower ALB levels (p<.05). Moreover, there were differences in serum vitamin D levels between taken calcitriol patients and un-taken calcitriol patients (p = .027). CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in PBC patients. The decrease of vitamin D levels may indicate disease progression in PBC. PBC patients need to be regularly measured for serum vitamin D level and take appropriate vitamin D supplementation.

Subcutaneous administration of infliximab-attenuated silica-induced lung fibrosis.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the influence of the anti-tumor necrosis factor-α infliximab (IFX) in the case of rats with silicosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Forty-eight Wistar rats were randomly divided into 3 groups. The study group (N = 16) - silicosis was induced by intratracheal instillation of 50 mg silica on day 1, and IFX was subcutaneously administered at a dose of 15 mg/kg of body weight from day 2 to day 6, the vehicle group (N = 16) - silica used as the study group but without IFX, the sham group (N = 16) - 1 ml of saline was intratracheal-used. Eight rats in each group were euthanized on day 7 and on day 14, respectively. Lung tissue sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin or Masson's trichromedye. The nuclear factor-κB p65 (NF-κB p65) positioning in the lung tissues were determined by immunohistochemical staining. Levels of tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in rat serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were measured with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. The inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) mRNA in the lung tissues was measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, as well as inhibitor protein-κB (I-κB) and NF-κB p65 expression were measured quantitatively by western blotting. RESULTS: Silica installation increased the lung tissues inflammation reaction, oxidative stress and pulmonary fibrosis. Infliximab treatment significantly improved silica-induced lung pathological changes (inflammatory cells, collagen deposition), decreased the TNF-α inhibited NF-κB signaling (I-κB, NF-κB p65) as well as oxidant status (iNOS). CONCLUSIONS: Infliximab may improve silica-induced pulmonary inflammation by decreasing the TNF-α, inhibiting NF-κB signaling (I-κB, NF-κB p65) as well as oxidant status (iNOS), which suggest that IFX has potential role in the treatment of silica-induced lung damage. Int J Occup Med Environ Health 2018;31(4):503-515.