Changes of serum IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-α levels in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and their clinical value.

The levels of serum IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and their value in clinical practice were studied. A total of 68 patients with active SLE treated in our hospital between March 2015 and January 2018 were enrolled into the active SLE group, and they were divided into three groups according to the mild, moderate, and heavy active periods, and also divided into two groups according to the positive and negative anti dsDNA. A total of 60 healthy individuals in the same period were included in the control group (con group). The levels of serum IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α in all participants were detected via an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and the correlation of these values with SLE activity was analyzed. The independent prognostic factors were analyzed through multivariate logistic regression. It was found that the levels of serum IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α in the SLE groups were all higher than those in the control group; the levels of the inflammatory markers in the severe active SLE group were higher than those in the mild and moderate active SLE groups, and the levels in the moderate active SLE group were higher than those in the mild active SLE group. Additionally, the anti dsDNA positive group showed much higher levels of these than the anti dsDNA negative group. Pearson correlation analysis revealed a positive correlation between anti dsDNA antibody and IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α levels. The multivariate logistic regression results, the mean course of disease and IL-10 were independent prognostic factors of SLE. The abnormal secretion of peripheral blood cytokines in SLE patients can affect the prognosis of the disease. Monitoring serum cytokines is helpful to understand the activity and prognosis of patients with lupus and guide clinical treatment.

Endohedral Metallofullerene as Molecular High Spin Qubit: Diverse Rabi Cycles in Gd2@C79N.

An anisotropic high-spin qubit with long coherence time could scale the quantum system up. It has been proposed that Grover's algorithm can be implemented in such systems. Dimetallic aza[80]fullerenes M2@C79N (M = Y or Gd) possess an unpaired electron located between two metal ions, offering an opportunity to manipulate spin(s) protected in the cage for quantum information processing. Herein, we report the crystallographic determination of Gd2@C79N for the first time. This molecular magnet with a collective high-spin ground state (S = 15/2) generated by strong magnetic coupling (JGd-Rad = 350 ± 20 cm-1) has been unambiguously validated by magnetic susceptibility experiments. Gd2@C79N has quantum coherence and diverse Rabi cycles, allowing arbitrary superposition state manipulation between each adjacent level. The phase memory time reaches 5 µs at 5 K by dynamic decoupling. This molecule fulfills the requirements of Grover's searching algorithm proposed by Leuenberger and Loss.