Cohabiting with ulcerative colitis patients decreases differences of gut microbiome between healthy individuals and the patients

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC), which is characterized by chronic relapsing inflammation of the colon, results from a complex interaction of factors involving the host, environment, and microbiome. The present study aimed to investigate the gut microbial composition and metabolic variations in patients with UC and their spouses. Materials and Methods: Fecal samples were collected from 13 healthy spouses and couples with UC. 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and metagenomics sequencing were used to analyze gut microbiota composition, pathways, gene expression, and enzyme activity, followed by the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes. Results: We found that the microbiome diversity of couples with UC decreased, especially that of UC patients. Bacterial composition, such as Firmicutes, was altered between UC patients and healthy controls, but was not significantly different between UC patients and their spouses. This has also been observed in pathways, such as metabolism, genetic information processing, organismal systems, and human diseases. However, the genes and enzymes of spouses with UC were not significantly different from those of healthy individuals. Furthermore, the presence of Faecalibacterium correlated with oxidative phosphorylation, starch and sucrose metabolism, amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism, and the bacterial secretion system, showed a marked decline in the UC group compared with their spouses, but did not vary between healthy couples. Conclusion: Our study revealed that cohabitation with UC patients decreased differences in the gut microbiome between healthy individuals and patients. Not only was the composition and diversity of the microbiota diminished, but active pathways also showed some decline. Furthermore, Firmicutes, Faecalibacterium, and the four related pathways may be associated with the pathological state of the host rather than with human behavior.

Sensing antibody functions with a novel CCR8-responsive engineered cell

Human chemokine receptor 8 (CCR8) is a promising drug target for immunotherapy of cancer and autoimmune diseases. Monoclonal antibody-based CCR8 targeted treatment shows significant inhibition in tumor growth. The inhibition of CCR8 results in the improvement of antitumor immunity and patient survival rates by regulating tumor-resident regulatory T cells. Recently monoclonal antibody drug development targeting CCR8 has become a research hotspot, which also promotes the advancement of antibody evaluation methods. Therefore, we constructed a novel engineered customized cell line HEK293-cAMP-biosensor-CCR8 combined with CCR8 and a cAMP-biosensor reporter. It can be used for the detection of anti-CCR8 antibody functions like specificity and biological activity, in addition to the detection of antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity and antibody-dependent-cellular-phagocytosis. We obtained a new CCR8 mAb 22H9 and successfully verified its biological activities with HEK293-cAMP-biosensor-CCR8. Our reporter cell line has high sensitivity and specificity, and also offers a rapid kinetic detection platform for evaluating anti-CCR8 antibody functions.

Nicotine aggravates pancreatic fibrosis in mice with chronic pancreatitis via mitochondrial calcium uniporter

INTRODUCTION

This study aimed to investigate the effects of nicotine on the activation of pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) and pancreatic fibrosis in chronic pancreatitis (CP), along with its underlying molecular mechanisms.

METHODS

This was an in vivo and in vitro study. In vitro, PSCs were cultured to study the effects of nicotine on their activation and oxidative stress. Transcriptome sequencing was performed to identify potential signaling pathways involved in nicotine action. And the impact of nicotine on mitochondrial Ca2+ levels and Ca2+ transport-related proteins in PSCs was analyzed. The changes in nicotine effects were observed after the knockdown of the mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) in PSCs. In vivo experiments were conducted using a mouse model of CP to assess the effects of nicotine on pancreatic fibrosis and oxidative stress in mice. The alterations in nicotine effects were observed after treatment with the MCU inhibitor Ru360.

RESULTS

In vitro experiments demonstrated that nicotine promoted PSCs activation, characterized by increased cell proliferation, elevated α-SMA and collagen expression. Nicotine also increased the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cellular malondialdehyde (MDA), exacerbating oxidative stress damage. Transcriptome sequencing revealed that nicotine may exert its effects through the calcium signaling pathway, and it was verified that nicotine elevated mitochondrial Ca2+ levels and upregulated MCU expression. Knockdown of MCU reversed the effects of nicotine on mitochondrial calcium homeostasis, improved mitochondrial oxidative stress damage and structural dysfunction, thereby alleviating the activation of PSCs. In vivo validation experiments showed that nicotine significantly aggravated pancreatic fibrosis in CP mice, promoted PSCs activation, exacerbated pancreatic tissue oxidative stress, and increased MCU expression. However, treatment with Ru360 significantly mitigated these effects.

CONCLUSIONS

This study confirms that nicotine upregulates the expression of MCU, leading to mitochondrial calcium overload and exacerbating oxidative stress in PSCs, and ultimately promoting PSCs activation and exacerbating pancreatic fibrosis in CP.

Indole-3-acetic acid alleviates DSS-induced colitis by promoting the production of R-equol from Bifidobacterium pseudolongum

BACKGROUND

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by immune-mediated, chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract. The occurrence of IBD is driven by the complex interactions of multiple factors. The objective of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic effects of IAA in colitis.

METHOD

C57/BL6 mice were administered 2.5% DSS in drinking water to induce colitis. IAA, Bifidobacterium pseudolongum, and R-equol were administered by oral gavage and fed a regular diet. The Disease Activity Index was used to evaluate disease activity. The degree of colitis was evaluated using histological morphology, RNA, and inflammation marker proteins. CD45+ CD4+ FOXP3+ Treg and CD45+ CD4+ IL17A+ Th17 cells were detected by flow cytometry. Analysis of the gut microbiome in fecal content was performed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Gut microbiome metabolites were analyzed using Untargeted Metabolomics.

RESULT

In our study, we found IAA alleviates DSS-induced colitis in mice by altering the gut microbiome. The abundance of Bifidobacterium pseudolongum significantly increased in the IAA treatment group. Bifidobacterium pseudolongum ATCC25526 alleviates DSS-induced colitis by increasing the ratio of Foxp3+T cells in colon tissue. R-equol alleviates DSS-induced colitis by increasing Foxp3+T cells, which may be the mechanism by which ATCC25526 alleviates DSS-induced colitis in mice.

CONCLUSION

Our study demonstrates that IAA, an indole derivative, alleviates DSS-induced colitis by promoting the production of Equol from Bifidobacterium pseudolongum, which provides new insights into gut homeostasis regulated by indole metabolites other than the classic AHR pathway.

The applications of miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography in the diagnosis and treatment of colorectal submucosal lesions

Objectives

To evaluate the efficacy of miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography for the diagnosis and adjuvant treatment of patients with colorectal submucosal lesions.

METHODS

The retrospective study was conducted at the Beijing Chao-Yang Hospital, Capital Medical University, China, and comprised data from January 1, 2016, to July 31, 2021, related to patients of either gender with colorectal submucosal lesions who underwent miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography. The findings were compared with biopsy specimens and clinical diagnoses. Diagnostic features of miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography were assessed along with its accuracy. Data was analysed using R 4.1.2.

RESULTS

Of the 237 patients, 121(51.1%) were female and 116(48.9%) were male. The overall mean age was 55.6±12.9 years. Miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography successfully imaged all 237(100%) colorectal submucosal lesions, and 188(79.3%) had consistent results compared to histopathological findings. The majority of lesions were <10mm 102(43.4%) or 10-19mm 84(35.7%) in size. Those detected with high echogenicity were 126(53.2%) and those with low/low-medium echogenicity were 83(35.0%). Tumour size 10-19mm and uneven echo quality significantly increased the accuracy of miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography (p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Miniprobe endoscopic ultrasonography was able to provide precise information about the size, layer of origin, echogenicity and border of colorectal submucosal lesions, and had a high accuracy in the differential diagnosis of such lesions.

[The predictive values of platelet mitochondrial mass and quantity during the perioperative period in elderly patients on the occurrence of postoperative delirium]

Objective: To investigate the changes of platelet mitochondrial mass and quantity during perioperative period in elderly patients, and assess their predictive values on the occurrence of postoperative delirium (POD). Methods: In this prospective study, 162 elderly patients scheduled for abdominal surgery under general anesthesia were enrolled from November 2021 to January 2022 in Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School. Among them, 20 patients [10 males, 10 females, aged (71.4±6.8) years] developed POD within 3 days after surgery (POD group), and another 20 patients[12 males, 8 females, aged (67.7±5.3) years] who did not develope POD were selected as controls (control group) using propensity score matching method. Blood samples were collected preoperatively, at the end of surgery and on the first postoperative day. Platelets were extracted and mitochondrial mass was detected with flow cytometry. Transmission electron microscopy was used to determine mitochondrial quantity. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn to analyze the value of mitochondrial mass and quantity in predicting the occurrence of POD. Results: The mean fluorescence intensities of platelet mitochondrial mass were 193±46, 236±61, 264±53 preoperatively, at the end of surgery and on the first postoperative day in the POD group, respectively. The corresponding values were 209±61, 191±67 and 201±56 in the control group. The platelet mitochondrial mass of patients in the POD group was significantly increased on the first postoperative day compared to preoperative levels (P<0.001). In contrast, there was no significant difference in the control group (P=0.410). Patients in the POD group had higher platelet mitochondrial mass than patients in the control group on the first postoperative day(P=0.002). Meanwhile, platelets from patients in the POD group showed significantly higher number of mitochondria than platelets from patients in the control group [3 (2, 4) vs 2 (1, 2), P<0.001]. According to the ROC curve of platelet on the first postoperative day, at a mitochondrial mass cut-off value of>275.35, the sensitivity, specificity and area under the ROC curve to detect the occurrence of POD were 55%, 90% and 0.800 (95%CI: 0.666-0.934, P<0.001). At a mitochondrial quantity cut-off value of>2, the sensitivity, specificity and area under the ROC curve to detect the occurrence of POD were 53%, 78% and 0.680 (95%CI: 0.584-0.776, P<0.001). Conclusions: Patients who developed POD show higher platelet mitochondrial mass after surgery compared to preoperative levels. The mitochondrial mass of platelets on the first postoperative day has good predictive value on the occurrence of POD.

Development and validation of a nomogram predictive model for colorectal adenoma with low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia using routine laboratory tests: A single-center case-control study in China

Background

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in the world and has a high mortality rate. Colorectal adenoma (CRA) is precancerous lesions of CRC. The purpose of the present study was to construct a nomogram predictive model for CRA with low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (LGIN) in order to identify high-risk individuals, facilitating early diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately reducing the incidence of CRC.

Methods

We conducted a single-center case-control study. Based on the results of colonoscopy and pathology, 320 participants were divided into the CRA group and the control group, the demographic and laboratory test data were collected. A development cohort (n = 223) was used for identifying the risk factors for CRA with LGIN and to develop a predictive model, followed by an internal validation. An independent validation cohort (n = 97) was used for external validation. Receiver operating characteristic curve, calibration plot and decision curve analysis were used to evaluate discrimination ability, accuracy and clinical practicability of the model.

Results

Four predictors, namely sex, age, albumin and monocyte count, were included in the predictive model. In the development cohort, internal validation and external validation cohort, the area under the curve (AUC) of this risk predictive model were 0.946 (95%CI: 0.919-0.973), 0.909 (95 % CI: 0.869-0.940) and 0.928 (95%CI: 0.876-0.980), respectively, which demonstrated the model had a good discrimination ability. The calibration plots showed a good agreement and the decision curve analysis (DCA) suggested the predictive model had a high clinical net benefit.

Conclusion

The nomogram model exhibited good performance in predicting CRA with LGIN, which can aid in the early detection of high-risk patients, improve early treatment, and ultimately reduce the incidence of CRC.

Sema3C Signaling is an Alternative Activator of the Canonical WNT Pathway in Glioblastoma

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Wnt signaling maintains normal and cancer stem cells. The Wnt pathway is frequently dysregulated in many cancers, underscoring it as a therapeutic target. Although Wnt inhibitors appear promising in many preclinical studies, they have failed uniformly in clinical trials. Molecular mechanisms of resistance are poorly defined. Further dissection of the precise mechanisms of Wnt pathway activation in specific tumor types is needed to develop new Wnt pathway inhibitors with less toxicity. Here, we identify an alternative activator of the Wnt pathway that may mediate resistance to upstream Wnt inhibition in glioblastoma.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Glioma stem-like cells (GSCs) were enriched in defined media. GSCs were transduced with lentiviruses to knockdown or overexpress Sema3C or Wnt pathway components. Cell viability, proliferation, apoptosis, and self-renewal were assessed. Expression of Sema3C and Wnt pathway components were assessed in GSCs, mouse models of GBM, and human glioblastoma by qPCR, Western blot, and/or immunostaining. Beta-catenin subcellular localization was assessed by cell fractionation and immunofluorescence. GSC-derived orthotopic models of GBM were used to assess the impact of genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of Sema3C or Wnt pathway components alone or in combination on tumor growth and animal survival.

RESULTS

The axonal guidance protein Sema3C promotes the tumorigenicity of GSCs through binding its NRP/PlxnD1 receptor complex leading to Rac1 activation. Sema3C signaling directs beta-catenin nuclear accumulation in a Rac1-dependent process, leading to transactivation of Wnt target genes. Sema3C-driven Wnt signaling occurred despite suppression of Wnt ligand secretion, suggesting that Sema3C may drive canonical Wnt signaling independent of Wnt ligand binding. In human glioblastoma, Sema3C expression and Wnt pathway activation were highly concordant. In a mouse model of glioblastoma, combined depletion of Sema3C and beta-catenin partner TCF1 extended animal survival more than single target inhibition alone.

CONCLUSION

Sema3C signaling may represent an alternative mechanism of WNT pathway activation even when WNT ligand-receptor interaction is inhibited. Since Sema3C is overexpressed in >85% glioblastoma and is used to maintain GSCs but not normal neural progenitor cells, this pathway may represent a major mechanism of Wnt pathway activation and resistance to upstream Wnt pathway inhibitors in GSCs. Our data provide a therapeutic strategy to achieve clinically significant Wnt pathway inhibition in GSCs potentially without the toxicity of currently available WNT inhibitors.

[Distribution and reference intervals of daytime intraocular pressure in the eye health screening population of Handan]

Objective: To describe the distribution and establish reference intervals (RI) of daytime intraocular pressure (IOP) in the eye health screening population of Handan. Methods: This cross-sectional study included subjects who participated in eye health screening at the Physical Examination Center of Handan First Hospital from May 2021 to June 2022. A complete general and ocular examination was performed, including measurements of visual acuity and IOP (using Goldmann tonometry), slit lamp microscopy, fundus photography, and anterior and posterior segment optical coherence tomography. Subjects with factors that could cause significant changes in IOP or affect the accuracy of IOP measurement, or with an inability to measure IOP were excluded. Simple random sampling was used to select participants, who were grouped by gender and age (18 to <30, 30 to <40, 40 to <50, 50 to <60, 60 to <70, and ≥70 years). Central corneal thickness and IOP at 8 to 11 o'clock in one eye of each participant were recorded. The independent sample t test and ANOVA were used for statistical analysis, and the RI of IOP values was calculated by x¯±1.96s. Results: A total of 9 310 subjects had their IOP measured, and 3 491 participants (3 491 eyes) were randomly selected from 7 886 healthy subjects. The age of the participants was (47.74±14.47) years old, ranging from 18 to 90 years old. There were 1 694 males and 1 797 females. The central corneal thickness of all participants was (525.56±49.39) μm. The daytime IOP of all participants was (15.40±2.54) mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa), and the RI was 10.42 to 20.39 mmHg. The IOP was (15.49±2.58) mmHg for males and (15.29±2.49) mmHg for females, and the gender difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The RI of daytime IOP values was 10.43 to 20.54 mmHg for males and 10.41 to 20.18 mmHg for females. There were significant differences in daytime IOP [(15.13±2.58), (15.33±2.53), (15.49±2.50), (15.53±2.55), (15.39±2.62), and (15.28±2.52) mmHg] among 6 age groups (P<0.05). Conclusions: The distribution of daytime IOP in different gender and age groups in the eye health screening population of Handan and the RIs derived from the distribution were roughly the same as the international normal IOP RI (10 to 21 mmHg). It is recommended to refer to the RI of daytime IOP values of different genders and ages for clinical decision.

p-Hydroxybenzoic Acid Ameliorates Colitis by Improving the Mucosal Barrier in a Gut Microbiota-Dependent Manner

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic intestinal inflammatory disease characterized by intestinal inflammatory cell infiltration and intestinal mucosal damage. The mechanism by which diet contributes to the pathogenesis of IBD remains largely unknown. In this study, we explored the therapeutic effect of p-hydroxybenzoic acid (HA), a phenolic acid mainly derived from dietary polyphenols in the gut, on DSS-induced colitis. HA intervention effectively relieved the dextran sulfate sodium salt (DSS)-induced colitis, reduced inflammation, and enhanced mucosal barrier function, as evidenced by an increment of goblet cell numbers and MUC2. These effects were largely dependent on the gut microbiota (GM), as antibiotics treatment substantially attenuated the improvement of colitis by HA. On the other hand, transplantation of GM from colitis mice treated with HA significantly reduced the colitis induced by DSS. Our study demonstrates that HA ameliorates DSS-induced colitis by improving the mucosal barrier in a GM-dependent manner. This study provides new dietary choices for the prevention and treatment of IBD.

Effectiveness of a novel traction device in endoscopic submucosal dissection for colorectal lesions

BACKGROUND

Among all types of superficial gastrointestinal (GI) neoplasms, colorectal lesions are recognized as one of the most difficult locations to operate, due to the limited operation space, physiological bends, poor visualization of the submucosal dissection plane sheltered by colorectal crinkle wall, and the thin intestinal mucosa layer which is easy to perforation. The purpose of this prospective study is to evaluate the feasibility, efficacy, and safety of a novel endoscopic traction technique in assisting the endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) procedure in colorectal lesions.

METHOD

A total of 117 patients with colonic lesions who underwent endoscopic treatment were enrolled between August 2020 and January 2021 at the endoscopic center of Beijing Chao-yang Hospital of Capital Medical University. Based on whether traction device was used during the operation, 60 and 57 patients were assigned to the conventional ESD group and clips and rubber band triangle traction-assisted ESD group (CRT-ESD, in which three clips and a rubber band were used to form an elastic triangular traction device), respectively. The total procedure time (TPT), submucosal dissection time (SDT), submucosal dissection speed (SDS), and rate of adverse events of the two groups were analyzed.

RESULTS

After excluding patients who did not undergo treatment (conventional ESD, 1; CRT-ESD, 4), 112 patients were included in the study (conventional ESD, 59; CRT-ESD, 53). The baseline characteristics of the patients were well balanced between the two groups. The TPT (58.71 ± 26.22 min vs 33.58 ± 9.88 min, p < 0.001) and SDT (49.24 ± 23.75 min vs 26.34 ± 8.75 min, p < 0.001) were significantly different between the conventional ESD group and CRT-ESD group. The CRT-ESD group had significantly higher SDS than that of the traditional ESD group (0.54 ± 0.42 cm2/min vs 0.89 ± 0.40 cm2/min, p < 0.001). There were 4 (6.8%) cases of perforation in the traditional ESD group, and no perforation occurred in traction-assisted ESD.

CONCLUSIONS

Compared with traditional ESD, CRT-ESD with clip and rubber band is both safer and more effective in the treatment of colorectal lesions.

Antioxidant Mitoquinone Alleviates Chronic Pancreatitis via Anti-Fibrotic and Antioxidant Effects

Background

Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a long-term inflammatory disease of the pancreas that can be caused by various pathogenic factors. Oxidative stress (OS), which is associated with several pancreatic diseases, can induce pancreatic stellate cell (PSC) activation, leading to pancreatic fibrosis. Given the inefficacy of existing treatments for CP, in this study, our objective was to evaluate the therapeutic effect of the antioxidant, mitoquinone (MitoQ).

Methods

First, in vivo, we established a CP mouse model via the repeated injection of cerulein. Mice in the MitoQ group simultaneously received MitoQ daily. After 4 weeks of cerulein injection, pancreatic tissues from mice were evaluated by morphological changes and the expression of fibrosis markers. Further, OS in the collected pancreatic tissue samples was evaluated by determining the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) as well as the expression levels and activities of antioxidants. Furthermore, in vitro, the effect of MitoQ on human PSCs (hPSCs) was evaluated based on PSC activation markers and fibrotic phenotypes, and OS in these treated hPSCs was evaluated by measuring reactive oxygen species (ROS), MDA, and antioxidant levels.

Results

In vivo, MitoQ alleviated pancreatic fibrosis and inhibited OS in the cerulein-induced murine CP model. In vitro, it inhibited PSC activation as well as the subsequent development of the profibrogenic phenotypes by balancing out the levels of free radicals and the intracellular antioxidant system.

Conclusion

MitoQ is a potential candidate for CP treatment.

[The research progress of clinical features and pathogenesis of acute acquired concomitant esotropia]

Acute acquired concomitant esotropia (AACE) is a special type of esotropia that occurs suddenly and is accompanied by diplopia. In recent years, the number of patients with this eye disease has increased significantly. With differences in age and refractive status, children and adults have their own characteristics in terms of AACE classification, refractive status, eye position, and binocular visual function. However, the pathogenesis of AACE is still unclear. This article explores the pathogenesis and risk factors of AACE, including refractive error, convergence spasm, extraocular muscle, and visual cortex, that may be involved. The authors recommend that AACE, which is not related to intracranial and systemic diseases, should be classified according to the dominant mechanism of the disease.

Association between Ultra-Processed Food Consumption and Frailty in American Elder People: Evidence from a Cross-Sectional Study

OBJECTIVES

Our study aims to explore the association between ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and frailty in participants with different body mass indexes (BMIs).

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Data were collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2000 and 2001-2002.

PARTICIPANTS

We analyzed data from 2,329 participants.

MEASUREMENTS

Dietary data were obtained using 24-h dietary recall method. Frail status was assessed by modified Fried frailty phenotype. The association between the grams, energy, and energy proportion of UPFs and the risk of pre-frailty/frailty was estimated using logistic regression analysis, and odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Participants were categorized into underweight-normal weight (BMI <25 kg/m2), overweight (25 kg/m2 ≤ BMI < 30 kg/m2), and obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) groups. The multiplicative interaction between BMIs and UPFs on pre-frailty/frailty was assessed using the logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

We analyzed data from 2,329 participants, and 2,267 (97.77%) of whom consumed UPFs. There were 1,063 participants in pre-frailty or frailty group and 1,266 participants in non-frailty group. In underweight-normal weight participants, every 100 kcal increase in energy of UPFs intake was associated with increased 0.08 times of pre-frailty or frailty risk (OR: 1.08, 95%CI: 1.00-1.16, P = 0.045), and every 10% increase in energy proportion of UPFs intake was correlated with a 0.02-fold increase in pre-frailty or frailty risk (OR: 1.02, 95%CI: 1.00-1.03, P = 0.018). Similar results were found in overweight participants, with OR of 1.06 (95%CI: 1.01-1.10) and 1.01 (95%CI: 1.00-1.02) for energy and energy proportion, respectively (both P < 0.05). This association was not found in obesity participants.

CONCLUSION

The energy and energy proportion of UPFs intake was positively associated with the frailty risk in underweight-normal weight and overweight people, indicating that population with BMI less than 30 kg/m2 should pay more attention to reasonable diet and balanced source of energy intake.

Toward Clinically Applicable 3-Dimensional Tooth Segmentation via Deep Learning

Digital dentistry plays a pivotal role in dental health care. A critical step in many digital dental systems is to accurately delineate individual teeth and the gingiva in the 3-dimension intraoral scanned mesh data. However, previous state-of-the-art methods are either time-consuming or error prone, hence hindering their clinical applicability. This article presents an accurate, efficient, and fully automated deep learning model trained on a data set of 4,000 intraoral scanned data annotated by experienced human experts. On a holdout data set of 200 scans, our model achieves a per-face accuracy, average-area accuracy, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 96.94%, 98.26%, and 0.9991, respectively, significantly outperforming the state-of-the-art baselines. In addition, our model takes only about 24 s to generate segmentation outputs, as opposed to >5 min by the baseline and 15 min by human experts. A clinical performance test of 500 patients with malocclusion and/or abnormal teeth shows that 96.9% of the segmentations are satisfactory for clinical applications, 2.9% automatically trigger alarms for human improvement, and only 0.2% of them need rework. Our research demonstrates the potential for deep learning to improve the efficacy and efficiency of dental treatment and digital dentistry.

Changes of High-Purity Insoluble Fiber from Soybean Dregs (Okara) after Being Fermented by Colonic Flora and Its Adsorption Capacity

In order to explore the changes and properties of high-purity insoluble dietary fiber from okara (HPIDF) after entering the colon and be fermented by colonic flora, fermented high-purity insoluble dietary fiber (F-HPIDF) was obtained by simulated fermentation in vitro by HPIDF and colonic flora from C57BL/6 mice. For exploring the differences of HPIDF and F-HPIDF, the changes of structure (SEM. FTIR, XRD, particle size, specific surface area, monosaccharide composition) and adsorption properties (water, oil, heavy metal irons, harmful substances) of HPIDF/F-HPIDF were explored. The results showed that F-HPIDF had a higher water-holding capacity (19.17 g/g), water-swelling capacity (24.83 mL/g), heavy metals-adsorption capacity (Cd²⁺: 1.82 μmol/g; Pb²⁺: 1.91 μmol/g; Zn²⁺: 1.30 μmol/g; Cu²⁺: 0.68 μmol/g), and harmful substances-adsorption capacity (GAC: 0.23 g/g; CAC: 14.80 mg/g; SCAC: 0.49 g/g) than HPIDF due to the changes of structure caused by fermentation. In addition, with the fermentation of HPIDF, some beneficial substances were produced, which might be potential intestinal prebiotics. The study of F-HPIDF strengthens the speculation that HPIDF may have potential bioactivities after entering the colon, which proved that okara-HPIDF may have potential functionality.

Nicotine facilitates pancreatic fibrosis by promoting activation of pancreatic stellate cells via α7nAChR-mediated JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in rats

AIM

Smoking has been considered as a risk factor of chronic pancreatitis (CP), but the potential mechanism is still unknown. The major pathological feature of CP is pancreatic fibrosis, whose major functional cells are pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs). Nicotine is the major component of cigarette smoke, our recent study suggested that nicotine has the potential to facilitate pancreatic fibrosis in CP. This study was aimed to analyze the function and mechanism of nicotine on PSCs and pancreatic fibrosis in rats.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In vivo, a rat CP model was induced by intraperitoneal injection of 20 % L-arginine hydrochloride (200 mg/100 g) at 1 h intervals twice per week, nicotine was injected subcutaneously at a dose of 1 mg/kg body weight per day. After four weeks, the pancreatic tissue was collected for H&E, Masson and immunohistochemical staining. In vitro, primary rPSCs were isolated from rats and treated with nicotine (0.1 μM and 1 μM). The proliferation、apoptosis、α-SMA expression、extracellular matrix (ECM) metabolism and α7nAChR-mediated JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway of rPSCs were detected by CCK-8 assay、flow cytometry、real-time Q-PCR and western blotting analysis. The α7nAChR antagonist α-bungarotoxin (α-BTX) was used to perform inhibition experiments.

KEY FINDINGS

Nicotine increased pancreatic damage, collagen deposition and activation of PSCs in the CP rat model. In rPSCs, the proliferation, α-SMA expression and ECM formation were significantly promoted by nicotine in a dose-dependent manner. Meanwhile, the apoptosis of rPSCs was significantly reduced after nicotine treatment. Moreover, nicotine also activated the α7nAChR-mediated JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in rPSCs. These effects of nicotine on rPSCs were blocked by α-BTX.

SIGNIFICANCE

Our finding in this research suggests that nicotine facilitates pancreatic fibrosis by promoting activation of pancreatic stellate cells via α7nAChR-mediated JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in rats, partly revealing the mechanism of smoking on chronic pancreatitis.

Silencing of ER-resident oxidoreductase PDIA3 inhibits malignant biological behaviors of multidrug-resistant gastric cancer

Glycosylation is a common posttranslational modification of proteins, which plays a role in the malignant transformation, growth, progression, chemoresistance, and immune response of tumors. Disulfide isomerase family A3 (PDIA3) specifically acts on newly synthesized glycoproteins to promote the correct folding of sugar chains. Studies have shown that PDIA3 participates in multidrug-resistant gastric cancer (MDR-GC). In this study, we performed western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry to identify PDIA3 expression. Cell proliferation was assessed by CCK-8 assay. Transwell assays were used to detect the migration and invasion abilities of cells. Immunoprecipitation coupled to mass spectrometry (IP-MS) analysis was employed to identify PDIA3-interacting proteins and the associated pathways in MDR-GC cells. Glycoprotein interactions and translocation were detected by immunofluorescence assay. The results showed that PDIA3 knockdown significantly inhibited the proliferation, invasion, and migration abilities of MDR-GC cells. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis of the IP-MS results showed that PDIA3 was closely associated with focal adhesion pathways in MDR-GC cells. Additionally, important components of focal adhesion pathways, including fibronectin-1 (FN1) and integrin α5 (ITGA5), were identified as pivotal PDIA3-binding glycoproteins. Knockdown of PDIA3 altered the cellular locations of FN1 and ITGA5, leading to abnormal accumulation. In conclusion, our results suggest that knockdown of PDIA3 inhibited the malignant behaviors of MDR-GC cells and influenced the translocation of FN1 and ITGA5.

Horizons on the Therapy of Biliary Tract Cancers: A State-of-the-art Review

Biliary tract cancers (BTCs) comprise a group of heterogeneous poor prognosis cancers with increasing incidence recent years. The combination chemotherapy with cisplatin and gemcitabine is the first-line therapy for advanced BTC. There remains no accepted standard treatment in the second-line setting. Nowadays, more and more novel treatment strategies have entered development, with some encouraging results being seen. Here, we review the current treatment status and clinical characteristics of BTC, the role of immunotherapy in BTC as well as the design of clinical trials for oncology drugs for BTC which aim to focus on the future profiles of clinical care and resolution of BTC.

Phosphatase and Tensin Homolog in Non-neoplastic Digestive Disease: More Than Just Tumor Suppressor

The Phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) gene is one of the most important tumor suppressor genes, which acts through its unique protein phosphatase and lipid phosphatase activity. PTEN protein is widely distributed and exhibits complex biological functions and regulatory modes. It is involved in the regulation of cell morphology, proliferation, differentiation, adhesion, and migration through a variety of signaling pathways. The role of PTEN in malignant tumors of the digestive system is well documented. Recent studies have indicated that PTEN may be closely related to many other benign processes in digestive organs. Emerging evidence suggests that PTEN is a potential therapeutic target in the context of several non-neoplastic diseases of the digestive tract. The recent discovery of PTEN isoforms is expected to help unravel more biological effects of PTEN in non-neoplastic digestive diseases.

Insights into the role of ERp57 in cancer

Endoplasmic reticulum resident protein 57 (ERp57) has a molecular weight of 57 kDa, belongs to the protein disulfide-isomerase (PDI) family, and is primarily located in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). ERp57 functions in the quality control of nascent synthesized glycoproteins, participates in major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecule assembly, regulates immune responses, maintains immunogenic cell death (ICD), regulates the unfolded protein response (UPR), functions as a 1,25-dihydroxy vitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3) receptor, regulates the NF-κB and STAT3 pathways, and participates in DNA repair processes and cytoskeletal remodeling. Recent studies have reported ERp57 overexpression in various human cancers, and altered expression and aberrant functionality of ERp57 are associated with cancer growth and progression and changes in the chemosensitivity of cancers. ERp57 may become a potential biomarker and therapeutic target to combat cancer development and chemoresistance. Here, we summarize the available knowledge of the role of ERp57 in cancer and the underlying mechanisms.