Potassium sodium hydrogen citrate intervention on gut microbiota and clinical features in uric acid stone patients.

The high recurrence rate of renal uric acid stone (UAS) poses a significant challenge for urologists, and potassium sodium hydrogen citrate (PSHC) has been proven to be an effective oral dissolution drug. However, no studies have investigated the impact of PSHC on gut microbiota and its metabolites during stone dissolution therapy. We prospectively recruited 37 UAS patients and 40 healthy subjects, of which 12 patients completed a 3-month pharmacological intervention. Fasting vein blood was extracted and mid-stream urine was retained for biochemical testing. Fecal samples were collected for 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene sequencing and short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) content determination. UAS patients exhibited comorbidities such as obesity, hypertension, gout, and dyslipidemia. The richness and diversity of the gut microbiota were significantly decreased in UAS patients, Bacteroides and Fusobacterium were dominant genera while Subdoligranulum and Bifidobacterium were poorly enriched. After PSHC intervention, there was a significant reduction in stone size accompanied by decreased serum uric acid and increased urinary pH levels. The abundance of pathogenic bacterium Fusobacterium was significantly downregulated following the intervention, whereas there was an upregulation observed in SCFA-producing bacteria Lachnoclostridium and Parasutterella, leading to a significant elevation in butyric acid content. Functions related to fatty acid synthesis and amino acid metabolism within the microbiota showed upregulation following PSHC intervention. The correlation analysis revealed a positive association between stone pathogenic bacteria abundance and clinical factors for stone formation, while a negative correlation with SCFAs contents. Our preliminary study revealed that alterations in gut microbiota and metabolites were the crucial physiological adaptation to PSHC intervention. Targeted regulation of microbiota and SCFA holds promise for enhancing drug therapy efficacy and preventing stone recurrence. KEY POINTS: • Bacteroides and Fusobacterium were identified as dominant genera for UAS patients • After PSHC intervention, Fusobacterium decreased and butyric acid content increased • The microbiota increased capacity for fatty acid synthesis after PSHC intervention.

Resistive index of prostatic capsular arteries as a predictor of prostate cancer in patients undergoing initial prostate biopsy.

To evaluate the value of resistive index (RI) of prostatic capsular arteries in diagnosis and evaluation of prostate cancer (PCa) in Chinese patients undergoing initial prostate biopsy. A total of 532 consecutive patients undergoing prostate biopsy were enrolled in this study. RI was measured on the largest transverse section of prostate for each individual. The predictive value of RI was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. PCa was identified in 217 (40.79%) patients. RI was 0.69 ± 0.08 and 0.8 ± 0.08 for patients without and with PCa (p < 0.01). On logistic regression RI was significantly associated with PCa (p < 0.01). Using ROC analysis RI outperformed tPSA in prediction of PCa in all patients [area under ROC curve (AUC) = 0.83, 0.78, respectively]. With the cutoff value of 0.73, RI discriminated PCa from non-PCa patients with 81.9% sensitivity, 75.9% specificity and 77.63% diagnostic accuracy. Furthermore, The AUC for RI in the discrimination of PCa from non-PCa patients in a subset with PSA of 4 to 10 ng/ml, high grade from non-high grade PCa patients and advanced from localized PCa patients was 0.70, 0.77 and 0.80, higher than other parameters (p < 0.05). RI is proved a practicable parameter in identifying patients at risk for PCa and predicting the grade and stage of PCa before initial prostate biopsy. The value of RI should be further explored in the future.