Discrimination between benign and malignant gallbladder lesions on enhanced CT imaging using radiomics

BACKGROUND

Gallbladder cancer is a rare but aggressive malignancy that is often diagnosed at an advanced stage and is associated with poor outcomes.

PURPOSE

To develop a radiomics model to discriminate between benign and malignant gallbladder lesions using enhanced computed tomography (CT) imaging.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

All patients had a preoperative contrast-enhanced CT scan, which was independently analyzed by two radiologists. Regions of interest were manually delineated on portal venous phase images, and radiomics features were extracted. Feature selection was performed using mRMR and LASSO methods. The patients were randomly divided into training and test groups at a ratio of 7:3. Clinical and radiomics parameters were identified in the training group, three models were constructed, and the models' prediction accuracy and ability were evaluated using AUC and calibration curves.

RESULTS

In the training group, the AUCs of the clinical model and radiomics model were 0.914 and 0.968, and that of the nomogram model was 0.980, respectively. There were statistically significant differences in diagnostic accuracy between nomograms and radiomics features (P <0.05). There was no significant difference in diagnostic accuracy between the nomograms and clinical features (P >0.05) or between the clinical features and radiomics features (P >0.05). In the testing group, the AUC of the clinical model and radiomics model were 0.904 and 0.941, and that of the nomogram model was 0.948, respectively. There was no significant difference in diagnostic accuracy between the three groups (P >0.05).

CONCLUSION

It was suggested that radiomics analysis using enhanced CT imaging can effectively discriminate between benign and malignant gallbladder lesions.

Expression of regional brain amyloid-β deposition with [18F]Flutemetamol in Centiloid scale -a multi-site study

PURPOSE

The Centiloid project helps calibrate the quantitative amyloid-β (Aβ) load into a unified Centiloid (CL) scale that allows data comparison across multi-site. How the smaller regional amyloid converted into CL has not been attempted. We first aimed to express regional Aβ deposition in CL using [18F]Flutemetamol and evaluate regional Aβ deposition in CL with that in standardized uptake value ratio (SUVr). Second, we aimed to determine the presence or absence of focal Aβ deposition by measuring regional CL in equivocal cases showing negative global CL.

METHODS

Following the Centiloid project pipeline, Level-1 replication, Level-2 calibration, and quality control were completed to generate corresponding Centiloid conversion equations to convert SUVr into Centiloid at regional levels. In equivocal cases, the regional CL was compared with visual inspection to evaluate regional Aβ positivity.

RESULTS

14 out of 16 regional conversions from [18F]Flutemetamol SUVr to Centiloid successfully passed the quality control, showing good reliability and relative variance, especially precuneus/posterior cingulate and prefrontal regions with good stability for Centiloid scaling. The absence of focal Aβ deposition could be detected by measuring regional CL, showing a high agreement rate with visual inspection. The regional Aβ positivity in the bilateral anterior cingulate cortex was most prevalent in equivocal cases.

CONCLUSION

The expression of regional brain Aβ deposition in CL with [18F]Flutemetamol has been attempted in this study. Equivocal cases had focal Aβ deposition that can be detected by measuring regional CL.

Human immunodeficiency virus-associated dementia complex with positive 14-3-3 protein in cerebrospinal fluid: A case report

BACKGROUND

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated dementia (HAD) is a subcortical form of dementia characterized by memory deficits and psychomotor slowing. However, HAD often presents with symptoms similar to those of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), particularly in patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).

CASE SUMMARY

We report the case of a 54-year-old male who exhibited cognitive dysfunction and secondary behavioral changes following HIV infection and suspected prion exposure. The patient was diagnosed with HIV during hospitalization and his cerebrospinal fluid tested positive for 14-3-3 proteins. His electroencephalogram showed a borderline-abnormal periodic triphasic wave pattern. Contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging revealed moderate encephalatrophy and demyelination. Initially, symptomatic treatment and administration of amantadine were pursued for presumed CJD, but the patient's condition continued to deteriorate. By contrast, the patient's condition improved following anti-HIV therapy. This individual is also the only patient with this prognosis to have survived over 4 years. Thus, the diagnosis was revised to HAD.

CONCLUSION

In the diagnostic process of rapidly progressive dementia, it is crucial to rule out as many potential causes as possible and to consider an autopsy to diminish diagnostic uncertainty. The 14-3-3 protein should not be regarded as the definitive marker for CJD. Comprehensive laboratory screening for infectious diseases is essential to enhance diagnostic precision, especially in AIDS patients with potential CJD. Ultimately, a trial of diagnostic treatment may be considered when additional testing is not feasible.

Prediction of pathological activity in Crohn's disease based on dual-energy CT enterography

PURPOSE

To explore the feasibility of predicting the pathological activity of Crohn's disease (CD) based on dual-energy CT enterography (DECTE).

METHODS

The clinical, endoscopic, imaging and pathological data of 55 patients with CD scanned by DECTE were retrospectively analyzed; the pathological results were used as a reference standard to classify the diseased bowel segments into active and inactive phases. The normalized iodine concentration (NIC), energy-spectrum curve slope K, dual energy index (DEI), fat fraction (FF) of the arterial phases and venous phases were compared. To assess the parameters' predictive ability, receiver-operating characteristic curves were used. The Delong test was used to compare the differences between the diagnostic efficiency of each parameter.

RESULTS

A total of 84 intestinal segments were included in the study, including 54 active intestinal segments and 30 inactive intestinal segments. The NIC, energy-spectrum curve slope K and DEI were significantly different between active and inactive bowel segments in the arterial and venous phases (P < 0.05), while FF were not significantly different (P > 0.05). The largest area under the curve (AUC) of NIC, energy-spectrum curve slope K and DEI were higher in arterial phase than in venous phase. For identifying the intestinal activity of CD, the maximum AUC of NIC in arterial phase was 0.908, with a sensitivity of 0.833 and a specificity of 0.800, and the DEI in arterial phase had the highest sensitivity (0.944).

CONCLUSION

The NIC, energy-spectrum curve slope K and DEI can effectively distinguish the active and inactive phases of the intestinal segments of CD patients and provide good assistance for determining further treatment.

Ensure the accuracy and consistency of biochemical analyzer test results: Chemometrics for instrument and inter-instrument item comparison in Chinese hospital laboratory

Biochemical analyzers are vital instruments that utilize the principle of photoelectric colorimetry to quantify a specific chemical composition in body fluids. This analysis provides critical data for the diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and overall health status of various diseases in clinical practice. However, the performance of a biochemical analyzer can vary significantly between different brands or over time within the same brand. Therefore, it is imperative to regularly assess the performance of the analyzer to ensure consistent results for longitudinal studies and to maintain day-to-day data consistency. Additionally, when multiple analyzers are utilized, it is necessary to evaluate the performance of each instrument to ensure accurate results across multiple platforms. In this study, we developed and verified an experimental evaluation scheme for the analytical performance of the instrument, chemometrics for biochemical analyzers, utilizing national reference materials and patient sera as the experimental subjects. We evaluated the performance of the optical system, temperature control system, sample-adding system, and detection system to confirm the feasibility of this scheme. We also compared the analytical performance of different brands of biochemical analyzers for routine biochemical tests, such as liver function, kidney function, ion, blood lipids, blood glucose, and myocardial enzyme spectrum. Using the AU 5400 as a control and the ADVIA 2400 as the comparison system, the relative variation in inter-instrument comparison data was found to be acceptable at the clinical medicine decision level. In conclusion, the performance of a biochemical analyzer can vary significantly between different brands or over time within the same brand. Regular evaluations are necessary to ensure accurate and consistent results across different analyzers. This study provides a feasible scheme for evaluating the analytical performance of biochemical analyzers that can be used to ensure the accuracy and consistency of the results of different brands of automatic chemical analyzers in the laboratory.

[Clinical application effect of pedunculated rectus abdominis muscle combined with bilateral ureters for repairing refractory bladder-vaginal stump fistula through external vesical drainage]

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and safety of pedunculated rectus abdominis combined with bilateral ureteral extravestheter drainage in the treatment of refractory bladder-vaginal stump fistula. Methods: The clinical data of 8 cases of the refractory bladder-vaginal stump fistula were admitted to the Second Hospital of Hebei Medical University and Henan Cancer Hospital and underwent the clinical treatment of bladder-vaginal stump from December 2019 to December 2022 were collected. The reason of refractory bladder-vaginal stump fistula was analyzed, the operation manner of pedunculated rectus abdominis combined with peduncle and bilateral ureter for the treatment of bladder-vaginal stump through extrabladder drainage was explored. The operation time, bleeding volume and clinical effect were record. Results: The median operation time of 8 patients was 150 minutes(120~180 min), and the median blood loss was 400 ml(200~600 ml). During the perioperative period, there were 2 cases of incision infection, delayed healing by debridement and dressing, 2 cases of incision rupture and suture wound healing after reoperation, and 2 cases of urinary tract infection were cured by anti-infection. When followed up for 6 months, 8 cases of vesicovaginal stump fistula were cured. Conclusion: Bilateral ureteral external drainage of the rectus abdominis muscle, has a practical effect in the treatment of refractory bladder-vaginal stump fistula, which can be one of the clinical repairing treatment.

Integrated analysis of comorbidity, pregnant outcomes, and amniotic fluid cytogenetics of fetuses with persistent left superior vena cava

BACKGROUND

Persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is the most common venous system variant. The clinical characteristics and amniotic fluid cytogenetics of fetuses with PLSVC remain to be further explored.

AIM

To develop reliable prenatal diagnostic recommendations through integrated analysis of the clinical characteristics of fetuses with PLSVC.

METHODS

Cases of PLSVC diagnosed using prenatal ultrasonography between September 2019 and November 2022 were retrospectively studied. The clinical characteristics of the pregnant women, ultrasonic imaging information, gestational age at diagnosis, pregnancy outcomes, and amniocentesis results were summarized and analyzed using categorical statistics and the chi-square test or Fisher's exact test.

RESULTS

Of the 97 cases diagnosed by prenatal ultrasound, 49 (50.5%) had isolated PLSVC and 48 (49.5%) had other structural abnormalities. The differences in pregnancy outcomes and amniocentesis conditions between the two groups were statistically significant (P < 0.05). No significant differences were identified between the two groups in terms of advanced maternal age and gestational age (P > 0.05). According to the results of the classification statistics, the most common intracardiac abnormality was a ventricular septal defect and the most common extracardiac abnormality was a single umbilical artery. In the subgroup analysis, the concurrent combination of intra- and extracardiac structural abnormalities was a risk factor for adverse pregnancy outcomes (odds ratio > 1, P < 0.05). Additionally, all abnormal cytogenetic findings on amniocentesis were observed in the comorbidity group. One case was diagnosed with 21-trisomy and six cases was diagnosed with chromosome segment duplication.

CONCLUSION

Examination for other structural abnormalities is strongly recommended when PLSVC is diagnosed. Poorer pregnancy outcomes and increased amniocentesis were observed in PLSVC cases with other structural abnormalities. Amniotic fluid cytogenetics of fetuses is recommended for PLSVC with other structural abnormalities.

Rheinheimera oceanensis sp. nov., a novel member of the genus Rheinheimera, isolated from the West Pacific Ocean

Two Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, non-motile and short-rod-shaped bacteria, designated as strains GL-53T and GL-15-2-5, were isolated from the seamount area of the West Pacific Ocean and identified using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The growth of strains GL-53ᵀ and GL-15-2-5 occurred at pH 5.5-10.0, 4-40 °C (optimum at 28 °C) and 0-10.0 % NaCl concentrations (optimum at 0-5.0 %). On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, strains GL-53ᵀ and GL-15-2-5 exhibited the highest similarity to Rheinheimera lutimaris YQF-2T (98.4 %), followed by Rheinheimera pacifica KMM 1406T (98.1 %), Rheinheimera nanhaiensis E407-8T (97.4 %), Rheinheimera aestuarii H29T (97.4 %), Rheinheimera hassiensis E48T (97.2 %) and Rheinheimera aquimaris SW-353T (97.2 %). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the isolates were affiliated with the genus Rheinheimera and represented an independent lineage. The major fatty acids were summed feature 3 (C16 : 1  ω7c and/or C16 : 1  ω6c), C16 : 0 and summed feature 8 (C18 : 1  ω7c and/or C18 : 1  ω6c). The sole isoprenoid quinone was ubiquinone 8. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, one unidentified aminophospholipid (and one unidentified glycolipid. The DNA G+C content was 48.5 mol%. The average nucleotide identity, average amino acid identity and in silico DNA-DNA hybridization values among the genomes of strain GL-53ᵀ and the related strains in the genus Rheinheimera were 75.5-90.1 %, 67.5-93.9 % and 21.4-41.4 %, respectively. Based on their phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and genotypic properties, the two strains were identified as representing a novel species of the genus Rheinheimera, for which the name Rheinheimera oceanensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is GL-53T (=KCTC 82651T=MCCC M20598T).

Identification and validation of a m7G-related lncRNA signature for predicting the prognosis and therapy response in hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND

N7-methylguanosine (m7G) is one of the most common RNA posttranscriptional modifications; however, its potential role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unknown. We developed a prediction signature based on m7G-related long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) to predict HCC prognosis and provide a reference for immunotherapy and chemotherapy.

METHODS

RNA-seq data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and relevant clinical data were used. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were conducted to identify m7G-related lncRNAs with prognostic value to build a predictive signature. We evaluated the prognostic value and clinical relevance of this signature and explored the correlation between the predictive signature and the chemotherapy treatment response of HCC. Moreover, an in vitro study to validate the function of CASC19 was performed.

RESULTS

Six m7G-related lncRNAs were identified to create a signature. This signature was considered an independent risk factor for the prognosis of patients with HCC. TIDE analyses showed that the high-risk group might be more sensitive to immunotherapy. ssGSEA indicated that the predictive signature was strongly related to the immune activities of HCC. HCC in high-risk patients was more sensitive to the common chemotherapy drugs bleomycin, doxorubicin, gemcitabine, and lenalidomide. In vitro knockdown of CASC19 inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC cells.

CONCLUSION

We established a 6 m7G-related lncRNA signature that may assist in predicting the prognosis and response to chemotherapy and immunotherapy of HCC.

Is There Re-staging Surgery Necessity for Borderline Ovarian Tumors

OBJECTIVE

This study assessed the necessity of surgical re-staging in women with borderline ovarian tumors (BOTs) and evaluated the impact of complete surgical staging, lymphadenectomy, and omentectomy on disease recurrence and survival.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients with BOTs. A total of 901 patients were eligible for inclusion in the study, and we evaluated some of the variables and clinical/surgical characteristics of the cases. The effects of the type of surgical procedure, surgical staging, and complete or incomplete staging on recurrence were calculated. The rates of disease-free survival, overall survival, and recurrence were compared according to complete surgical staging. A Cox regression analysis was performed to identify potential prognostic factors, and survival curves were constructed using the Kaplan-Meier method.

RESULTS

The overall recurrence rate was 13.9%, and recurrence was comparable between the complete surgical staging group and the incomplete groups (P>0.05). The performance of complete surgical staging did not show an effect on long-term survival, and complete surgical staging, omentectomy, and lymphadenectomy had no effect on recurrence. In multivariate analyses, only radical surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy were risk factors for the recurrence of BOTs. Furthermore, we found that omentectomy led to a relatively low recurrence rate in patients with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage > I (P=0.022).

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that complete surgical staging should be considered a standard treatment for patients with advanced stage BOTs but not for those at FIGO stage I. It might be safe to reduce the scope of surgical procedures in patients with early-stage BOTs. However, it is not necessary to perform re-staging operations for BOTs with a macroscopically normal extra-ovarian appearance.

Meta-analysis of gender differences in transition prevalence among individuals at clinical high risk of psychosis

Gender differences have been found in several areas of individuals at clinical-high risk for psychosis(CHR). Therefore the risk of transition to psychosis may differ between male and female CHR, but previous work has not systematically reviewed and analyzed gender differences in conversion rates.We performed a meta-analysis according to PRISMA guidelines including all studies that assessed CHR with reliable instruments and provided data on the transition from male CHR and female CHR to psychosis to understand the conversion rate conversion in male and female CHR. Seventy-nine article were identified.A total of 1250 out of 5770 in the male CHR individuals, and 832 out of 4468 in the female CHR individuals translated to psychotic disorders. Transition prevalence were 19.4%(95%CI:14.2-25.8%)at 1 year, 20.6% at 2 year (95%CI:17.1-24.8%),24.3% at 3 years (95%CI:21.5-27.4%),26.3% at 4 years or older (95%CI:20.9-32.5%) and 22.3% at all (95%CI:20.0-24.8%) in male CHR and 17.7% (95%CI:12.6-24.4%) at 1 years, 17.5% (95%CI:14.2-21.4%) at 2 year, 19.9%(95%CI:17.3-0.228%) at 3 years,and 0.267 (95%CI:22.1-31.9%) at 4 years or older follow-up,20.4% at all (95%CI:18.1-22.9%) in female CHR. There were differences between the two groups in the overall conversion, the 2-year, and the 3-year follow up transition prevalence, which were higher in men CHR than in female CHR. Future research characterizing male versus female CHR is needed with the expectation that interventions will be developed that are tailored to the respective gender, further reducing the rate of conversion to CHR.

[On-line Measurement of Trace Elements in PM2.5 in Winter in Urban Taiyuan, China: Levels and Source Apportionment]

In order to better identify the sources of PM_2.5 in Taiyuan, hourly concentrations of 13 trace elements (K, Ca, Ba, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cu, Ni, Zn, As, Se, Pb, and Sr) in PM_2.5 were monitored at an urban site in Taiyuan from January 1 to 29, 2022. The pollution characteristics of trace elements were analyzed and sources were apportioned using positive matrix factorization (PMF). The results showed that the average concentration of 13 total trace elements was (3901.6±2611.2) ng·m^-3, which accounted for (7.1±7.7)% of PM_2.5. The three dominant elements were Fe[(1319.5±1003.5 ng·m^-3)], Ca[(1181.0±1241.6 ng·m^-3)], and K[(883.3±357.3 ng·m^-3)]. The average concentrations of Cr(Ⅵ) (4.6 ng·m^-3) and As (11.2 ng·m^-3) exceeded the guideline values of the Chinese National Ambient Air Quality Standard (GB 3095-2012) and the World Health Organization. Fugitive dust, vehicle emissions, industry, stainless-steel production, biomass burning and waste incineration, residential coal combustion, and industrial coal combustion were identified by the PMF model, which accounted for 45.5%, 1.4%, 15.8%, 23.7%, 5.5%, and 8.1%, respectively, of the total elements.Compared with those during the stages of pollution development and dissipation, the contributions of industrial coal combustion, residential coal combustion, and biomass burning and waste incineration to the total elements during the pollution maintenance stage of the PM_2.5 pollution episode increased significantly, contributing 11.8%, 7.1%, and 28.1%, respectively, of the total elements. These results could provide scientific references for the refined source apportionment of PM_2.5 in other areas.

Significance of expression of Toll-like receptors in colonic mucosal tissue of patients with inflammatory bowel disease

BACKGROUND

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are type I transmembrane proteins that are widely expressed in intestinal mucosal tissues, suggesting that they may be involved in inflammatory bowel disease. The present study was conducted to investigate the correlation of the expression of TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 in the colonic mucosa of patients with inflammatory bowel disease with altered bacterial flora and serum immunoglobulins.

AIM

To investigate the relationship of the expression of TLRs in colonic mucosal tissues of patients with inflammatory bowel disease with altered bacterial flora and serum immunoglobulins.

METHODS

A total of 139 patients with inflammatory bowel disease admitted to our hospital from June 2020 to June 2022 were selected as a study group, including 61 patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and 78 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), and 46 healthy volunteers were recruited as a control group. Bacterial flora alteration, serum immunoglobulins [(immunoglobulin (Ig)G, IgM, and IgA], and mRNA and protein expression of TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 were compared between the two groups, and their correlation was assessed by Pearson analysis. The levels of TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 mRNA and protein in colonic mucosal tissues of CD and UC patients in different disease states were also compared. The diagnostic value of each index for CD and UC was analyzed by ROC analysis.

RESULTS

Compared with the control group, the levels of bifidobacterium, lactobacillus, anaplasma, and TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 mRNA and protein expression were significantly increased and those of enterococci, IgG, IgM, and IgA were significantly decreased in the study group (P < 0.05). TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 mRNA expression in intestinal mucosal tissue was negatively correlated with altered flora and serum immunoglobulins in the study group. TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 mRNA and protein levels differed significantly among different morbidity states of UC and CD (mild < moderate < severe). The performance of combined diagnosis of TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 mRNA in colonic mucosal tissues of CD and UC patients was better than that of either of alone (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

High expression of TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 in colonic mucosal tissues of patients with inflammatory bowel disease is significantly correlated with altered flora and serum immunoglobulins, and the combined assay is diagnostically effective in inflammatory bowel disease.

Membranihabitans maritimus sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from deep seawater

A Gram-stain-negative, non-motile, rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated C281^T, was isolated from seawater sampled at the Marshallese seamount chain. Results of 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed that strain C281^T was most closely related to Membranihabitans marinus CZ-AZ5^T with 92.7 % sequence similarity. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the new isolate represented a novel species by forming a distinctive lineage within the family Saprospiraceae. The DNA G+C content of strain C281^T was 38.4 mol%. The genome sizes of strain C281^T and the reference strain M. marinus CZ-AZ5^T were 5 962 917 and 5 395 999 bp, respectively. The average nucleotide identity and in silico DNA-DNA hybridization values between strains C281^T and M. marinus CZ-AZ5^T were found to be low (69.3 and 17.6 %, respectively). Different functional genes were found in the genome of strain C281^T, such as CZC CBA, polysaccharide utilization loci and linear azol(in)e-containing peptide cluster coding genes. The NaCl range for growth was 0.5-15.0 %. Positive results were obtained for hydrolysis of Tween 60 and urease. MK-7 was the sole respiratory quinone. The major fatty acids were C_16 : 1  ω6c and/or C_16 : 1  ω7c, iso-C_15 : 0 and iso-C_15 : 1 F. The major polar lipids of strain C281^T were phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, two unidentified lipids and five unidentified glycolipids. On the basis of its taxonomic characteristics, the isolate represents a novel species of the genus Membranihabitans, for which the name Membranihabitans maritimus sp. nov. (type strain C281^T=KCTC 92171^T=MCCC M27001^T) is proposed.

[A prospective study on the development and application verification of the quantitative evaluation software for three-dimensional morphology of pathological scars based on photo modeling technology]

Objective: To develop a quantitative evaluation software for three-dimensional morphology of pathological scars based on photo modeling technology, and to verify its accuracy and feasibility in clinical application. Methods: The method of prospective observational study was adopted. From April 2019 to January 2022, 59 patients with pathological scars (totally 107 scars) who met the inclusion criteria were admitted to the First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, including 27 males and 32 females, aged 33 (26, 44) years. Based on photo modeling technology, a software for measuring three-dimensional morphological parameters of pathological scars was developed with functions of collecting patients' basic information, and scar photography, three-dimensional reconstruction, browsing the models, and generating reports. This software and the clinical routine methods (vernier calipers, color Doppler ultrasonic diagnostic equipment, and elastomeric impression water injection method measurement) were used to measure the longest length, maximum thickness, and volume of scars, respectively. For scars with successful modelling, the number, distribution of scars, number of patients, and the longest length, maximum thickness, and volume of scars measured by both the software and clinical routine methods were collected. For scars with failed modelling, the number, distribution, type of scars, and the number of patients were collected. The correlation and consistency of the software and clinical routine methods in measuring the longest length, maximum thickness, and volume of scars were analyzed by unital linear regression analysis and the Bland-Altman method, respectively, and the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs), mean absolute error (MAE), and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) were calculated. Results: A total of 102 scars from 54 patients were successfully modeled, which located in the chest (43 scars), in the shoulder and back (27 scars), in the limb (12 scars), in the face and neck (9 scars), in the auricle (6 scars), and in the abdomen (5 scars). The longest length, maximum thickness, and volume measured by the software and clinical routine methods were 3.61 (2.13, 5.19) and 3.53 (2.02, 5.11) cm, 0.45 (0.28, 0.70) and 0.43 (0.24, 0.72) cm, 1.17 (0.43, 3.57) and 0.96 (0.36, 3.26) mL. The 5 hypertrophic scars and auricular keloids from 5 patients were unsuccessfully modeled. The longest length, maximum thickness, and volume measured by the software and clinical routine methods showed obvious linear correlation (with r values of 0.985, 0.917, and 0.998, P<0.05). The ICCs of the longest length, maximum thickness, and volume of scars measured by the software and clinical routine methods were 0.993, 0.958, and 0.999 (with 95% confidence intervals of 0.989-0.995, 0.938-0.971, and 0.998-0.999, respectively). The longest length, maximum thickness, and volume of scars measured by the software and clinical routine methods had good consistency. The Bland-Altman method showed that 3.92% (4/102), 7.84% (8/102), and 8.82% (9/102) of the scars with the longest length, maximum thickness, and volume respectively were outside the 95% consistency limit. Within the 95% consistency limit, 2.04% (2/98) scars had the longest length error of more than 0.5 cm, 1.06% (1/94) scars had the maximum thickness error of more than 0.2 cm, and 2.15% (2/93) scars had the volume error of more than 0.5 mL. The MAE and MAPE of the longest length, maximum thickness, and volume of scars measured by the software and clinical routine methods were 0.21 cm, 0.10 cm, 0.24 mL, and 5.75%, 21.21%, 24.80%, respectively. Conclusions: The quantitative evaluation software for three-dimensional morphology of pathological scars based on photo modeling technology can realize the three-dimensional modeling and measurement of morphological parameters of most pathological scars. Its measurement results were in good consistency with those of clinical routine methods, and the errors were acceptable in clinic. This software can be used as an auxiliary method for clinical diagnosis and treatment of pathological scars.

Corrigendum: Distribution of corneal geometric landmarks and relationship between their distances and biomechanical parameters in the development of keratoconus

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2021.766163.].

Choroidal thickness, myopia, and myopia control interventions in children: a Meta-analysis and systemic review

AIM

To investigate changes of choroidal thickness (ChT) in children with myopia and the effect of current myopia control interventions on ChT.

METHODS

Major literature databases were searched for studies relevant to myopia in children. All studies used swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) or enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) to measure the ChT value. The weighted mean difference (WMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were pooled to evaluate ChT in myopia children.

RESULTS

A total of 11 eligible articles, including 1693 myopic and 1132 non-myopic eyes, were included in the first Meta-analysis. The sub-foveal choroidal thickness (SFCT; WMD=-40.06, 95%CI, -59.36 to -20.75, P<0.001) and ChT at other sectors were significantly thinner in myopic eyes compared with the non-myopic eyes. The Meta-analysis revealed that the ChT decreased horizontally from the temporal sector toward the nasal sector in the pediatric myopia population. Another 11 studies reporting the effect of myopia control interventions were included in the second Meta-analysis for the relationship between myopia control treatments and ChT. SFCT significantly increased after orthokeratology (OK) treatment and OK combined with 0.01% atropine (OKA) treatment (WMD=19.47, 95%CI, 15.96 to 22.98, P<0.001; WMD=21.81, 95%CI, 12.92 to 29.70, P<0.001, respectively). The forest plots showed that SFCT changed little in myopic children receiving 0.01% atropine (P=0.30). Furthermore, the Meta-analysis showed that OK treatment had a stronger effect on the value of SFCT in myopic children as compared with 0.01% atropine (WMD=9.86; 95%CI, -0.21 to 19.93, P=0.05). There is no difference between the treatment with OK and OKA treatment in ChT in myopic children (P=0.37).

CONCLUSION

The ChT in myopic eyes is thinner than that in non-myopic eyes in pediatric population. Myopia control interventions including OK and OKA lead to ChT thickening, but other treatments such as 0.01% atropine did not show an increase in ChT.

[Clinical manifestations of 1 015 cases of herpes simplex virus keratitis]

Objective: To explore the demographic distribution, clinical signs, and clinical types of herpes simplex virus keratitis (HSK). Methods: Retrospective case series. The data of 1 015 cases of HSK (1 054 eyes) diagnosed in Beijing Tongren Eye Center, Beijing Tongren Hospital of Capital Medical University from January 2010 to June 2019 were collected. The patients included 613 males and 402 females, and the age was 47.43±16.79 years. Information of the patients such as age, sex, the season of onset, eye laterality, and clinical signs was assessed. Slit-lamp microscopy and corneal fluorescein staining were used to locate the anatomical position of lesions. HSK was classified into epithelial type, neurotrophic type, stromal type, endothelial type, and mixed type. The distribution data was compared by the Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. Results: There were 41 children (≤14 years old; 4.04%), 338 youth (15-44 years old; 33.30%), 374 middle-aged (45-59 years old; 36.85%), and 262 elderly (≥60 years old; 25.81%) patients. The type was epithelial in 246 cases (24.24%), neurotrophic in 27 cases (2.66%), stromal in 372 cases (36.65%), endothelial in 274 cases (26.99%), and mixed in 96 cases (9.46%). There was statistically significant difference in clinical typing among the different age groups (χ²=30.197, P=0.003). Epithelial HSK was found in 141 males (57.32%) and 105 females (42.68%), neurotrophic HSK in 16 males (59.26%) and 11 females (40.74%), stromal HSK in 226 males (60.75%) and 146 females (39.25%), endothelial HSK in 171 males (62.41%) and 103 females (37.59%), and mixed HSK in 59 males (61.46%) and 37 females (38.54%). There was no statistically significant difference in clinical classification of keratitis between genders (χ²=1.519, P=0.823). Among the cases of mixed type, there were 21 cases of epithelial-stromal type (21.88%), 30 cases of epithelial-endothelial type (31.25%), 37 cases of stromal-endothelial type (38.54%), 1 case of epithelial-neurotrophic type (1.04%), and 7 cases of neurotrophic-stromal type (7.29%). Conclusions: HSK occurs mainly in middle-aged and young adults, but rarely in children. The proportion of males is higher than that of females. The proportion of stromal HSK is highest, and 9.46% of patients present mixed HSK.

[Clinical value of a differentiation prediction model for invasive lung adenocarcinoma]

Objective: To investigate the value of predicting the degree of differentiation of pulmonary invasive adenocarcinoma (IAC) based on CT image radiomics model and the expression difference of immunohistochemical factors between different degrees of differentiation of lesions. Methods: The clinicopathological data of patients with pulmonary IAC confirmed by surgical pathology in the Affiliated Huai'an First People's Hospital to Nanjing Medical University from December 2017 to September 2018 were collected. High-throughput feature acquisition was performed for all outlined regions of interest, and prediction models were constructed after dimensionality reduction by the minimum absolute shrinkage operator. Receiver operating characteristic curve was used to assess the predictive efficacy of clinical characteristic model, radiomics model and individualized prediction model combined with both to identify the degree of pulmonary IAC differentiation, and immunohistochemical expressions of Ki-67, NapsinA and TTF-1 were compared between groups with different degrees of IAC differentiation using rank sum test. Results: A total of 396 high-throughput features were extracted from all IAC lesions, and 10 features with high generalization ability and correlation with the degree of IAC differentiation were screened. The mean radiomics score of poorly differentiated IAC in the training group (1.206) was higher than that of patients with high and medium differentiation (0.969, P=0.001), and the mean radiomics score of poorly differentiated IAC in the test group (1.545) was higher than that of patients with high and medium differentiation (-0.815, P<0.001). The differences in gender (P<0.001), pleural stretch sign (P=0.005), and burr sign (P=0.033) were statistically significant between patients in the well and poorly differentiated IAC groups. Multifactorial logistic regression analysis showed that gender and pleural stretch sign were related to the degree of IAC differentiation (P<0.05). The clinical feature model consisted of age, gender, pleural stretch sign, burr sign, tumor vessel sign, and vacuolar sign, and the individualized prediction model consisted of gender, pleural stretch sign, and radiomic score, and was represented by a nomogram. The Akaike information standard values of the radiomics model, clinical feature model and individualized prediction model were 54.756, 82.214 and 53.282, respectively. The individualized prediction model was most effective in identifying the degree of differentiation of pulmonary IAC, and the area under the curves (AUC) of the individualized prediction model in the training group and the test group were 0.92 (95% CI: 0.86-0.99) and 0.88 (95% CI: 0.74-1.00, respectively). The AUCs of the radiomics group model for predicting the degree of differentiation of pulmonary IAC in the training group and the test group were 0.91 (95% CI: 0.83-0.98) and 0.87 (95% CI: 0.72-1.00), respectively. The AUCs of the clinical characteristics model for predicting the degree of differentiation of pulmonary IACs in the training and test groups were 0.75 (95% CI: 0.63-0.86) and 0.76 (95% CI: 0.59-0.94), respectively. The expression level of Ki-67 in poorly differentiated IAC was higher than that in well-differentiated IAC (P<0.001). The expression levels of NapsinA, TTF-1 in poorly differentiated IAC were higher than those in well-differentiated IAC (P<0.05). Conclusions: Individualized prediction model consisted of gender, pleural stretch sign and radiomics score can discriminate the differentiation degree of IAC with the best performance in comparison with clinical feature model and radiomics model. Ki-67, NapsinA and TTF-1 express differently in different degrees of differentiation of IAC.

[Role and mechanism of Vγ4 T cells in impaired wound healing of rapamycin-induced full-thickness skin defects in mice]

Objective: To investigate the role and mechanism of Vγ4 T cells in impaired wound healing of rapamycin-induced full-thickness skin defects in mice. Methods: The experimental research methods were applied. Eighty-six C57BL/6J male mice (hereinafter briefly referred to as wild-type mice) aged 8-12 weeks were selected for the following experiments. Vγ4 T cells were isolated from axillary lymph nodes of five wild-type mice for the following experiments. Intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin for 42 mice was performed to establish rapamycin-treated mice model for the following experiments. Eighteen wild-type mice were divided into normal control group without any treatment, trauma only group, and trauma+CC chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20) inhibitor group according to the random number table (the same grouping method below), with 6 mice in each group. The full-thickness skin defect wound was made on the back of mice in the latter two groups (the same wound model below), and mice in trauma+CCL20 inhibitor group were continuously injected subcutaneously with CCL20 inhibitor at the wound edge for 3 days after injury. Another 6 rapamycin-treated mice were used to establish wound model as rapamycin+trauma group. On post injury day (PID) 3, the epidermal cells of the skin tissue around the wound of each trauma mice were extracted by enzyme digestion, and the percentage of Vγ4 T cells in the epidermal cells was detected by flow cytometry. In normal control group, the epidermal cells of the normal skin tissue in the back of mice were taken at the appropriate time point for detection as above. Five wild-type mice were used to establish wound models. On PID 3, the epidermal cells were extracted from the skin tissue around the wound. The cell populations were divided into Vγ4 T cells, Vγ3 T cells, and γδ negative cells by fluorescence-activated cell sorter, which were set as Vγ4 T cell group, Vγ3 T cell group, and γδ negative cell group (with cells in each group being mixed with B16 mouse melanoma cells), respectively. B16 mouse melanoma cells were used as melanoma cell control group. The expression of interleukin-22 (IL-22) mRNA in cells of each group was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), with the number of samples being 6. Thirty rapamycin-treated mice were used to establish wound models, which were divided into Vγ4 T cell only group and Vγ4 T cell+IL-22 inhibitor group performed with corresponding injections and rapamycin control group injected with phosphate buffer solution (PBS) immediately after injury, with 10 mice in each group. Another 10 wild-type mice were taken to establish wound models and injected with PBS as wild-type control group. Mice in each group were injected continuously for 6 days. The percentage of wound area of mice in the four groups was calculated on PID 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 after injection on the same day. Six wild-type mice and 6 rapamycin-treated mice were taken respectively to establish wound models as wild-type group and rapamycin group. On PID 3, the mRNA and protein expressions of IL-22 and CCL20 in the peri-wound epidermis tissue of mice in the two groups were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively. The Vγ4 T cells were divided into normal control group without any treatment and rapamycin-treated rapamycin group. After being cultured for 24 hours, the mRNA and protein expressions of IL-22 of cells in the two groups were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively, with the number of samples being 6. Data were statistically analyzed with independent sample t test, analysis of variance for repeated measurement, one-way analysis of variance, Bonferroni method, Kruskal-Wallis H test, and Wilcoxon rank sum test. Results: The percentage of Vγ4 T cells in the epidermal cells of the skin tissue around the wound of mice in trauma only group on PID 3 was 0.66% (0.52%, 0.81%), which was significantly higher than 0.09% (0.04%, 0.14%) in the epidermal cells of the normal skin tissue of mice in normal control group (Z=4.31, P<0.01). The percentages of Vγ4 T cells in the epidermal cells of the skin tissue around the wound of mice in rapamycin+trauma group and trauma+CCL20 inhibitor group on PID 3 were 0.25% (0.16%, 0.37%) and 0.24% (0.17%, 0.35%), respectively, which were significantly lower than that in trauma only group (with Z values of 2.27 and 2.25, respectively, P<0.05). The mRNA expression level of IL-22 of cells in Vγ4 T cell group was significantly higher than that in Vγ3 T cell group, γδ negative cell group, and melanoma cell control group (with Z values of 2.96, 2.45, and 3.41, respectively, P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared with that in wild-type control group, the percentage of wound area of mice in rapamycin control group increased significantly on PID 1-6 (P<0.01), the percentage of wound area of mice in Vγ4 T cell+IL-22 inhibitor group increased significantly on PID 1 and PID 3-6 (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared with that in rapamycin control group, the percentage of wound area of mice in Vγ4 T cell only group decreased significantly on PID 1-6 (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Compared with that in Vγ4 T cell only group, the percentage of wound area of mice in Vγ4 T cell+IL-22 inhibitor group increased significantly on PID 3-6 (P<0.05 or P<0.01). On PID 3, compared with those in wild-type group, the expression levels of IL-22 protein and mRNA (with t values of -7.82 and -5.04, respectively, P<0.01) and CCL20 protein and mRNA (with t values of -7.12 and -5.73, respectively, P<0.01) were decreased significantly in the peri-wound epidermis tissue of mice in rapamycin group. After being cultured for 24 hours, the expression levels of IL-22 protein and mRNA in Vγ4 T cells in rapamycin group were significantly lower than those in normal control group (with t values of -7.75 and -6.04, respectively, P<0.01). Conclusions: In mice with full-thickness skin defects, rapamycin may impair the CCL20 chemotactic system by inhibiting the expression of CCL20, leading to a decrease in the recruitment of Vγ4 T cells to the epidermis, and at the same time inhibit the secretion of IL-22 by Vγ4 T cells, thereby slowing the wound healing rate.

[Application of three risk assessment methods to noise risk assessment in an automobile foundry enterprise]

Objective: To explore the applicability of three different kinds of noise occupational health risk assessment methods to the occupational health risk assessment of noise exposed positions in an automobile foundry enterprise. Methods: In July 2020, the occupational-health risk assessment of noise-exposed positions was conducted by using the Guidelines for risk management of occupational noise hazard (guideline method) , the International Commission on Mining and Metals Guidelines for Occupational Health Risk Assessment (ICMM) method and the Occupational-health risk index method (index method) respectively, and the results were analyzed and compared. Results: Through the occupational health field investigation, the noise exposure level of the enterprise's main workstations was between 80.3 and 94.8 dB (A) , among which the noise of the posts of shaking-sand, cleaning and modeling was greater than 85 dB (A) ; The noise risk of each position was evaluated by the three methods, and the adjustment risk level was between 2 and 5 assessed using the guideline method, between 2 and 3 assessed using the index method, and 5 evaluated using the ICMM model. Conclusion: Each of the three risk assessment methods has its own advantages and disadvantages. The ICMM model has a large difference in value assignment, and values in the results are larger than expected. The evaluation results of the guideline method and the index method are consistent in some positions, there is certain subjectivity in the evaluation using the index method, and the guideline method is more objective.

Thiosulfatihalobacter marinus gen. nov. sp. nov., a novel member of the family Roseobacteraceae, isolated from the West Pacific Ocean

Two strains (GL-11-2T and ZH2-Y79) were isolated from the seawater collected from the West Pacific Ocean and the East China Sea, respectively. Cells were Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic, non-motile and rod-shaped. Cells grew in the medium containing 0.5–7.5 % NaCl (w/v, optimum, 1.0–3.0 %), at pH 6.0–8.0 (optimum, pH 6.5–7.0) and at 4–40 °C (optimum, 30 °C). H2S production occurred in marine broth supplemented with sodium thiosulphate. The almost-complete 16S rRNA gene sequences of the two isolates were identical, and exhibited the highest similarity to Pseudoruegeria aquimaris JCM 13603T (97.5 %), followed by Ruegeria conchae TW15T (97.2%), Shimia aestuarii DSM 15283T (97.1 %) and Ruegeria lacuscaerulensis ITI-1157T (97.0 %). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the isolates were affiliated with the family Roseobacteraceae and represented an independent lineage. The sole isoprenoid quinone was ubiquinone 10. The principal fatty acids were summed feature 8 (C18 : 1  ω7c and/or C18 : 1  ω6c) and cyclo-C19 : 0  ω8c. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine and diphosphatidylglycerol. The DNA G+C content was 62.3 mol%. The orthologous average nucleotide identity, in silico DNA–DNA hybridization and average amino acid identity values among the genomes of strain GL-11-2T and the reference strains were 73.2–79.0, 20.3–22.5 and 66.0–80.8 %, respectively. Strains GL-11-2ᵀ and ZH2-Y79 possessed complete metabolic pathways for thiosulphate oxidation, dissimilatory nitrate reduction and denitrification. Phylogenetic distinctiveness, chemotaxonomic differences and phenotypic properties revealed that the isolates represent a novel genus and species of the family Roseobacteraceae , belonging to the class Alphaproteobacteria , for which the name Thiosulfatihalobacter marinus gen. nov., sp. nov. (type strain, GL-11–2T=KCTC 82723T=MCCC M20691T) is proposed.

Increased serum adenosine deaminase activity in patients with adult-onset Still's disease

Background

Adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) is a systemic inflammatory disease of unknown etiology, lacking specific diagnosis and disease activity evaluation indicators. This study will analyze the activity and clinical significance of Adenosine deaminase (ADA) in AOSD patients.

Methods

Totally 53 AOSD patients, 60 patients with other autoimmune diseases including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), sjogren syndrome (SS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), as well as 60 healthy subjects were included in this study. AOSD activity was determined by Pouchot score. We analyzed the correlation between ADA activity and clinical parameters. In addition, the correlation between ADA activity and disease activity score was also analyzed.

Results

This study showed that the activity of ADA in AOSD patients was significantly higher than that of healthy controls, SLE, SS and RA patient groups (p < 0.0001). The ADA activity of AOSD patients decreased significantly after systemic treatment (p < 0.0001). Correlation analysis showed that ADA activity was positively correlated with ALT(r = 0.54, p < 0.0001), AST (r = 0.82, p < 0.0001) and serum ferritin (r = 0.67, p < 0.001). ADA activity was negatively correlated with white blood cell (r = − 0.42, p = 0.002) and platelet counts (r = − 0.44, p = 0.001). We also found a significant positive correlation between the activity of ADA and Pouchot score in AOSD patients (r = 0.51, p = 0.001). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that ADA activity had a sensitivity of 93.3%, and a specificity of 83% for the diagnosis of AOSD, with an area under the curve of 0.93.

Conclusion

This study showed that serum ADA activity can be used as a potential biomarker for AOSD diagnosis and disease activity assessment.

A Potential Screening Index of Corneal Biomechanics in Healthy Subjects, Forme Fruste Keratoconus Patients and Clinical Keratoconus Patients

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the validity of corneal elastic modulus (E) calculated from corneal visualization Scheimpflug technology (Corvis ST) in diagnosing keratoconus (KC) and forme fruste keratoconus (FFKC).

Methods: Fifty KC patients (50 eyes), 36 FFKC patients (36 eyes, the eyes were without morphological abnormality, while the contralateral eye was diagnosed as clinical keratoconus), and 50 healthy patients (50 eyes) were enrolled and underwent Corvis measurements. We calculated E according to the relation between airpuff force and corneal apical displacement. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were used to identify the predictive accuracy of the E and other dynamic corneal response (DCR) parameters. Besides, we used backpropagation (BP) neural network to establish the keratoconus diagnosis model.

Results: 1) There was significant difference between KC and healthy subjects in the following DCR parameters: the first/second applanation time (A1T/A2T), velocity at first/second applanation (A1V/A2V), the highest concavity time (HCT), peak distance (PD), deformation amplitude (DA), Ambrosio relational thickness to the horizontal profile (ARTh). 2) A1T and E were smaller in FFKC and KC compared with healthy subjects. 3) ROC analysis showed that E (AUC = 0.746) was more accurate than other DCR parameters in detecting FFKC (AUC of these DCR parameters was not more than 0.719). 4) Keratoconus diagnosis model by BP neural network showed a more accurate diagnostic efficiency of 92.5%. The ROC analysis showed that the predicted value (AUC = 0.877) of BP neural network model was more sensitive in the detection FFKC than the Corvis built-in parameters CBI (AUC = 0.610, p = 0.041) and TBI (AUC = 0.659, p = 0.034).

Conclusion: Corneal elastic modulus was found to have improved predictability in detecting FFKC patients from healthy subjects and may be used as an additional parameter for the diagnosis of keratoconus.

Distribution of Corneal Geometric Landmarks and Relationship Between Their Distances and Biomechanical Parameters in the Development of Keratoconus

Purpose: To analyze the changes in coordinates and distances among three typical geometric landmarks of the cornea, namely, the thinnest point (TP), maximum curvature (Kmax), and corneal apex (AP) during the development of keratoconus, and explore the potential relationship between these changes and the abnormalities of corneal biomechanics. Methods: Normal eyes (n = 127), clinical keratoconic eyes (CKC, n = 290), and the eyes of forme fruste keratoconus (FFKC, n = 85) were included; among them, the CKC group was classified into four grades based on the Topographic Keratoconus Classification (TKC) provided by Pentacam. A total of 38 Corvis ST output parameters and three distance parameters of three typical landmarks (D_Kmax-AP, D_TP-AP, and D_Kmax-TP) based on Pentacam were included. The differences of parameters among the abovementioned six groups (Normal, FFKC, and CKC stage I to CKC stage IV) were analyzed. Spearman's rank correlation test was performed to choose several dynamic corneal response (DCR) parameters that could best reflect the changes of corneal biomechanical characteristics during the progression of the disease, and the Pearson's or Spearman's correlation test was conducted to determine the association between the three distances and the selected DCR parameters in each grade. In addition, by flipping the X coordinate of the left eye on the vertical axis to reflect the direction of the right eye, the coordinates of TP and Kmax in different developmental grades were highlighted. Results: From CKC stage II, the three geometric landmark distances commenced to correlate with the corneal DCR parameters (CBI, SPA1, IR, DA Ratio 2, ARTh, MIR, Radius, Pachy, and DA Ratio 1), which could better represent the changes of biomechanical properties from normal cornea to keratoconus. From normal cornea to CKC stage IV, the coordinates of Kmax were gradually tended to the inferior temporal region from dispersion, while TP was always concentrated in the inferior temporal region. Although D_Kmax-AP, D_Kmax-TP, and D_TP-AP all showed a gradual decreasing trend with the progress of the disease, the first two did not change significantly, and only D_TP-AP significantly approached AP in the later stage of disease development. In addition, from the FFKC group, the corresponding values of D_Kmax-TP in each disease development group were smaller than D_Kmax-AP. Conclusions: In the later stage of keratoconus, the relationship between the three typical landmark distance parameters and DCR parameters is stronger, and even the weakening of corneal biomechanical properties may be accompanied by the merger of typical landmark positions.

Characterization of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from mink in China, 2011-2020

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains are potential pathogens that cause respiratory diseases in minks, and caused serious economic loss to mink breeding industry. In this study, we identified antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes in 125 P. aeruginosa isolates from mink in China from 2011 to 2020. The results showed at least one mutation in the gyrA (Thr83Val or Asp87Gly) and parC (Ser87 Leu) genes as well as single mutations in 56 isolates. At least 4-fold reductions in the fluoroquinolone minimum inhibitory concentration values were found when tested in the presence of PAβN in 23 isolates, while 44 isolates were positive for the extended spectrum β-lactamases and 15 antibiotic resistance genes were identified in this population with a prevalence between 1-32%, including qnrA, CTX-M-1G, ermB and C, cmlA, flor, catl, intl1, tetA, B, C, and D as well as sul1, 2, and 3 genes. Interestingly, one isolate carried ten resistance genes. Five virulence genes were detected, where exoS and algD were the most frequently detected (76.8%), which were followed by plcH (76%), lasB (73.6%), and pilB (31.2%). The isolates carrying the antibiotic resistance or virulence genes were genetically variable, suggesting a horizontal spread through the population. Hence, this study provides novel and important data on the resistance and pathogenicity of P. aeruginosa in farmed mink infections. These data provide important insights into the mechanism of fluoroquinolone resistance in P. aeruginosa, highlighting its usefulness in the treatment and control of P. aeruginosa infections in minks.

Luteirhabdus pelagi gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel member of the family Flavobacteriaceae, isolated from the West Pacific Ocean

A Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, and yellow-pigmented bacterium, designated A3-108^T, was isolated from seawater of the West Pacific Ocean. Cells were non-motile and rod-shaped, with carotenoid-type pigments. Strain A3-108^T grew at pH 6.0–8.5 (optimum 6.5) and 15–40 °C (optimum 28 °C), in the presence of 0.5–10% (w/v) NaCl (optimum 1.0%). It possessed the ability to produce H₂S. Based on the 16S rRNA gene analysis, strain A3-108^T exhibited highest similarity with Aureisphaera salina A6D-50^T (90.6%). Phylogenetic analysis shown that strain A3-108^T affiliated with members of the family Flavobacteriaceae and represented an independent lineage. The principal fatty acids were iso-C_15:0, iso-C_17:0 3-OH, iso-C_15:1 G, and summed feature 3 (C_16:1ω7c and/or C_16:1ω6c). The sole isoprenoid quinone was MK-6. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine, one unidentified aminophospholipid, one unidentified aminolipid and one unidentified lipid. The ANIb, in silico DDH and AAI values among the genomes of strain A3-108^T and three reference strains were 67.3–71.1%, 18.7–22.1%, and 58.8–71.4%, respectively. The G + C content was 41.0%. Distinctness of the phylogenetic position as well as differentiating chemotaxonomic and other phenotypic traits revealed that strain A3-108^T represented a novel genus and species of the family Flavobacteriaceae, for which the name Luteirhabdus pelagi gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed (type strain, A3-108^T = CGMCC 1.18821^T = KCTC 82563^T).

[The characteristics and change of aeroallergens in children from 2015 to 2020 in a hospital of pediatric in Beijing]

Objective: To analyze the characteristics of clinical distribution and change of aeroallergens in children with allergic diseases from 2015 to 2020. Methods: Children who visited Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated Children's Hospital, suspected of allergic diseases and received serum aeroallergens specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) test were retrospectively enrolled (1 to 14 years old). sIgE was detected by Phadia1000 system with radioallergosorbent test fluorescent enzyme-linked immunoassay. The characteristics and change of the aeroallergens among the 6 years was analyzed. Enumeration data were expressed by percentage and categorical variables were compared by the independent samples t-test and Pearson χ² test. Results: In total 4 608 tests (4 575 patients) of children were enrolled, the average age was (5.4±2.9) years old, with the median age of 5.0 years old. 3 176 were boys (68.9%), and 1 432 were girls (31.1%). 4 294 children were from the north of China (93.2%), 295 children were from the south of China (6.4%), and 19 children were from unknown regions (0.4%). In total the most common aeroallergen was mold mixture (1 956/4 457 tests, 43.9%) and Alternaria alternata (276/630 tests, 43.8%), followed by Artemisia (300/889 tests, 33.7%), Humulus scandens (12/38 tests, 31.6%) and grass mixture (909/2 874 tests, 31.6%). Among the 6 years, mold, grass pollen and tree pollen sensitization increased, and mold [38/130 (29.2%) vs 1 574/3 233 (48.7%)], grass pollen [11/77 (14.3%) vs 1 069/3 072 (34.8%)] increased significantly (χ² was 18.953 and 49.559, respectively, P=0.000). Positive rate of tree pollen increased [1/10 (10.0%) vs 516/2 122 (24.3%)], but did not have statistical significance (χ²=1.111, P=0.292). Dust mite [36/146 (24.7%) vs 321/1 408 (22.8%)] and hair of pets [7/33 (21.2%) vs 321/1 408 (17.1%)] sensitization didn't change greatly (χ² =0.258, P =0.611; χ² =0.379, P =0.538). In 2015, the most common aeroallergens was mold (38/130, 29.2%), followed by dust mite (36/146, 24.7%), while in 2020, the most common aeroallergens was still mold (1 574/3 233, 48.7%), with grass pollen (1 069/3 072, 34.8%) and tree pollen (516/2 122, 24.3%) ranked after. Conclusion: Mold might be the most common aeroallergens in allergic children in Beijing area. With time went on, dust mite was gradually exceeded by grass pollen and tree pollen.

LncRNA TP73-AS1 promotes the development of Epstein-Barr virus associated gastric cancer by recruiting PRC2 complex to regulate WIF1 methylation

BACKGROUND

Epstein-Barr virus associated gastric cancer (EBVaGC) become a growing health problem. TP73-AS1 showed high expression in EBVaGC cells. However, the function role and underlying mechanism of TP73-AS1 need further exploration.

METHODS

The expressions of TP73-AS1, WIF1, EZH2, β-catenin and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins were detected using qRT-PCR and Western blotting. Cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion were measured by CCK-8, colony formation, flow cytometry, wound healing and transwell assays, respectively. WIF1 promoter methylation was analyzed by MS-PCR (MSP). RNA immunoprecipitation assay (RIP) and Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay (ChIP) measured the interactions of TP73-AS1/EZH2 and EZH2/WIF1. Subcutaneous tumor growth was monitored in nude mice and immunohistochemistry (IHC) detected proliferation marker Ki-67 expression.

RESULTS

TP73-AS1 was increased while WIF1 was decreased in EBVaGC cells. Silencing of TP73-AS1 or overexpression of WIF1 repressed the growth and migration while promoted apoptosis of EBVaGC cells. Knockdown of WIF1 reversed the anticancer effect of TP73-AS1 silencing. TP73-AS1 promoted the binding of EZH2 to the WIF1 promoter by directly binding to EZH2, and thus inhibiting the expression of WIF1 by enhancing H3K27me3 level of WIF1 promoter. Moreover, TP73-AS1 activated Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and promoted EMT by down-regulating WIF1. TP73-AS1 silencing inhibited the progression of EBVaGC in nude mice by epigenetically regulating WIF1.

CONCLUSION

TP73-AS1 regulated the promoter methylation of WIF1 by recruiting PRC2 complex to WIF1 promoter region, thereby promoting the progression of EBVaGC. These observations provided a novel theoretical basis to investigate more effective therapies of EBVaGC.

Comparative analysis of the morphological and biomechanical properties of normal cornea and keratoconus at different stages

Purpose

To compare the morphological and biomechanical properties of normal cornea and keratoconus at different stages.

Methods

A total of 408 patients (517 eyes) with keratoconus were included in this study. According to the Topographic Keratoconus (TKC) grading method, keratoconus was divided into stage I (TKC = 1, 130 eyes), stage II (TKC = 1–2, 2, 164 eyes), stage III (TKC = 2–3, 3, 125 eyes) and stage IV (TKC = 3–4, 4, 98 eyes). A total of 158 normal subjects (158 eyes) were recruited as the normal group. The corneal morphological parameters and biomechanical parameters were obtained with Scheimpflug tomography (Pentacam) and corneal visualization Scheimpflug technology (Corvis ST), and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were drawn.

Results

Each corneal morphological and most biomechanical parameters of the keratoconic eyes were significantly different from those of the normal eyes in this study (p < 0.001). ROC curve demonstrated that most parameters in this study showed high efficiency in diagnosing keratoconus (the area under the ROC (AUC) was > 0.9), with the Belin-Ambrósio deviation (BAD-D) and Tomographic and Biomechanical Index (TBI) showing higher efficiency. The efficiency of BAD-D and TBI was high in differentiating keratoconus at different stages (AUC > 0.963). The comparison of ROC curves of keratoconus at different stages did not reveal statistically significant differences for TBI.

Conclusion

BAD-D and TBI can effectively diagnose stage I keratoconus. Moreover, the efficiency of TBI is the same in diagnosing keratoconus at all stages, while the diagnostic efficiency of other parameters increases with the increase in keratoconus stages.

[Clinical and imaging characteristics of patients with primary cardiac angiosarcoma]

Objective: To investigate the clinical, cardiac imaging characteristics and prognosis of patients with primary cardiac angiosarcoma. Methods: The clinical data of 14 patients hospitalized with primary cardiac angiosarcoma from January 2001 to December 2017 in Peking Union Medical College Hospital were collected and analyzed. Metastatic cardiac angiosarcoma was not included in this study. Patients were followed up post discharge per telephone call or clinical visit. Results: Of the 14 patients, 8 were males and 6 were females, average age was 48 years. The main clinical symptoms were shortness of breath (8/14), hemoptysis (6/14), fever (5/14), chest pain (4/14) and cough (3/14). Imaging examinations showed that the tumors of 8 patients were located in the right heart and 6 in the pericardial cavity. Tumors in the right heart often infiltrate the atrial wall and cause pericardial effusion (7/8). Tumors in the pericardium were characterized by recurrent bloody pericardial effusion (6/6), prone to progressive constrictive pericarditis (3/6), pericardial fluid cytology was often negative (6/6). MRI showed heterogeneous high signal intensity (cauliflower aspect) on T2-weighted image and heterogeneous enhancement with a"sunray" aspect at the perfusion study. At the time of diagnosis, 8 patients developed lung or adrenal metastasis (8/14). The median survival was only 305 days. Conclusions: Primary cardiac angiosarcoma is a rare disease with non-specific clinical manifestation and poor prognosis. Imaging examinations may help diagnosis. The high invasiveness and the easy-to-metastasis feature of the tumor contribute to the poor prognosis of cardiac angiosarcoma.

Comparison of the morphological and biomechanical characteristics of keratoconus, forme fruste keratoconus, and normal corneas

Purpose: To explore the feasibility of corneal morphological and biomechanical parameters for keratoconus and forme fruste keratoconus diagnosis.Methods: This case-control study included a total of 517 eyes from 408 keratoconus patients (KC group), 83 eyes from 83 forme fruste keratoconus patients (FFKC group), and 158 eyes from 158 patients with normal corneas (NL group). All subjects underwent routine ophthalmologic examinations. Pentacam and Corneal Visualization Scheimpflug Technology (Corvis ST) were used to obtain corneal morphological and biomechanical parameters. Differences between groups were compared using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.Results: ROC analysis showed that all corneal morphological parameters and most biomechanical parameters distinguished KC from NL, with an area under the curve (AUC) greater than 0.80, of which Belin-Ambrósio enhanced ectasia total deviation index (BAD-D) and tomographic and biomechanical index (TBI) were most efficient. The AUC for distinguishing KC from NL of the BAD-D was 0.989 and the TBI was 0.993, which were not statistically significant (DeLong et al., P= .232). The BAD-D cut-off point of 1.595 provided 95.9% sensitivity for distinguishing KC from NL with 100% specificity. The TBI cut-off point of 0.515 provided 96.7% sensitivity for distinguishing KC from NL with 100% specificity. The ability of other parameters to distinguish KC from NL was lower than that of BAD and TBI. Except for central astigmatism from the anterior corneal surface (AstigF), the AUC that distinguished FFKC from NL was 0.862. The AstigF cut-off point of 4.65 provided 73.5% sensitivity for distinguishing FFKC from NL with 99.3% specificity. Other parameters distinguished FFKC from NL with low efficiency. Among them, the AUC for distinguishing FFKC from NL of the TBI was 0.722, whose cut-off point of 0.273 provided 55.4% sensitivity for distinguishing KC from NL with 79.7% specificity.Conclusion: BAD-D and TBI have the highest efficiency, sensitivity, and specificity for distinguishing KC from NL. Except for AstigF, other corneal morphological and biomechanical parameters have a relatively low ability to distinguish FFKC from NL.

Prediction efficacy of feature classification of solitary pulmonary nodules based on CT radiomics

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationship between CT radiomic features, pathological classification of pulmonary nodules, and evaluate the prediction effect of different stratified progressive radiomic models on the pathological classification of pulmonary nodules.

METHODS

Altogether, 189 patients pathologically confirmed with pulmonary nodules from July 2017 to August 2019 who had complete data were enrolled, including 71 patients with benign nodules, 51 with malignant non-invasive nodules, and 67 with invasive nodules. Three CT radiomic models were established respectively. Model 1 classified benign and malignant nodules (including malignant non-invasive and invasive nodules). Model 2 classified malignant non-invasive and invasive nodules. Model 3 classified benign, malignant non-invasive, and invasive nodules. High-throughput feature collection was carried out for all delineated regions of interest (ROIs), and the best models were established by screening features and classifiers using intelligent methods. ROC curves and areas under the curve (AUCs) were used to evaluate the prediction efficacy of the models by calculating the sensitivity, specificity, accuracies, positive predictive values, and negative predictive values.

RESULTS

Through Models 1, 2, and 3, we screened out 20, 2, and 20 radiomic features, respectively, and plotted the ROC curves. In the test group, the AUC values were 0.85, 0.89, and 0.84, respectively; the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 79.66 %, 70.42 %, 84.59 %, and 81.74 % and 67.57％ for Model 1, 88.06 %, 74.51 %, 82.2 %, 81.94 %, and 82.61 % for Model 2, and 71.34 %, 85.05 %, 70.37 %, 83.2 %, and 76.3 % for Model 3.

CONCLUSION

The radiomic feature models based on CT images could well reflect the differences between benign nodules, malignant non-invasive nodules, and invasive nodules, and assist in their classification.

[Probability of premature mortality caused by four major non-communicable diseases and its impact on life expectancy in Wuxi, 2008-2018]

Objective: To analyze the trend of premature death of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Wuxi from 2008 to 2018 and evaluate the influence of premature mortality probability caused by four main NCDs on life expectancy. Methods: Based on the mortality data collected by Wuxi Mortality Registration System and the population data collected by Wuxi Public Security Bureau during 2008-2018, this study analyzes the trend of the probability of premature death on malignant tumors, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes. The impact on life expectancy was analyzed by using the methods of abridged life table, Joinpoint regression, and life expectancy contribution decomposition. Results: From 2008 to 2018, the total probability of premature death of four main NCDs in Wuxi were declined consistently from 11.25% to 9.25% (AAPC = -2.0%, 95%CI: -2.6--1.5), higher in female (from 7.74% to 5.91%) than that in male (from 14.49% to 12.51%). The Wuxi resident's life expectancy increased by 1.86 years (from 78.66 to 80.52 years), in males and 1.26 years (from 83.85 to 85.11 years) in females, respectively. The decline of premature death of malignant tumors, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and chronic respiratory system diseases had a positive contribution to life expectancy, which contributed 0.34 years (23.90%), 0.15 years (10.50%), and 0.03 years (2.36%) to the life expectancy growth, respectively. Among which, premature death of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases in men aged 40-55y had a negative contribution to life expectancy (-0.04 years). The probability of premature death of males with diabetes was on the rise (AAPC = 7.1%, 95%CI: 2.8-11.6), which negatively contributed to life expectancy for both males and females, reducing life expectancy by 0.03 years (-2.14%) in Wuxi. Conclusion: The premature death probability of four main NCDs in Wuxi declined consistently from 2008 to 2018, which played a positive role in the growth of life expectancy. Compared with females, males had a higher premature death probability and a slower rate of decline. More intervention and health management of premature male death on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and diabetes should be conducted to improve life expectancy further.

[Preliminary study on the protective effect of glycosyltransferase Colgalt2 gene deletion on acetaminophen-induced liver injury]

Objective: To investigate the protective effect of Colgalt2 gene deletion on acute liver injury induced by acetaminophen (APAP) in mice. Methods: Colgalt2(+/+) wild-type control mice and Colgalt2(-/-) mice (all C57BL/6J strains) were selected as the research subject. APAP solution was injected intraperitoneally to establish a mouse model of acute liver injury. The mouse were divided into four groups: Colgalt2(+/+) wild-type control group, Colgalt2(+/+) wild-type drug group (APAP 500 mg/kg), Colgalt2(-/-) control group, and Colgalt2(-/-) drug group (APAP 500 mg/kg). The survival rate was measured to plot survival curve. Liver function was evaluated by detecting serum ALT and AST levels. Liver histopathological changes were observed by HE staining to evaluate the condition of liver injury. Western blot was used to detect protein c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)-related liver injury. Results: Compared with Colgalt2(+/+) mice, the survival rate was significantly increased after giving APAP to Colgalt2(-/-) mice (86.7% vs. 40%), and liver cell necrosis and inflammatory cell infiltrates of Colgalt2(+/+) mice were milder. Serum ALT, and AST level was significantly decreased [ALT: (5 291.9 ± 1 016.34) U/L vs. (1 616.9 ± 330.65) U/L, P = 0.000; AST: (4 978.0 ± 1 028.43) U/L vs. (1 851.0 ± 437.55) U/L, P = 0.000]. The expression level of JNK was significantly decreased in liver tissue. Conclusion: Colgalt2 gene deletion has a protective effect on acute liver injury induced by acetaminophen (APAP) in mice. Therefore, Colgalt2 may be a potential therapeutic option for acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity.

[Folic acid supplementation before and during pregnancy and the risk of preeclampsia]

Objective: To investigate the relationship between folic acid supplementation and the risk of preeclampsia (PE). Methods: A total of 9 048 pregnant women were selected from the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University in Taiyuan from March 2012 to September 2016. Among them, 882 pregnant women with PE were divided into case group, and 8 166 pregnant women without PE were divided into control group. Information on demographic characteristics, folic acid supplementation, maternal complications, and other factors were collected by face-to-face interviews after child birth in the hospital. Unconditional logistic regression analyses were used to investigate the relationship between folic acid supplementation and the risk of PE and the effects of pre-pregnancy BMI on the relationship of folic acid supplementation with the risk of PE. Results: Compared with nonusers, folic acid supplement users had reduced risk of PE (OR=0.79, 95%CI: 0.64-0.96). Folic acid supplementation before and during pregnancy were negatively related with the risk of PE (OR=0.63, 95%CI: 0.49-0.81). Pregnant women who used folic acid tablets only or used both folic acid tablets and multivitamin containing folic acid had reduced risk of PE (OR=0.81, 95%CI: 0.66-0.99; OR=0.64, 95%CI: 0.49-0.85). No significant relationship was observed in the multivitamin group. Supplemental folic acid doses of <400, 400, and >400 μg/d were related with reduced risk of PE (OR=0.62, 95%CI: 0.42-0.91; OR=0.81, 95%CI: 0.66-0.99; OR=0.68, 95%CI: 0.49-0.94). After stratified by pre-pregnancy BMI, pregnant women who used folic acid supplementation, those with pre-pregnancy BMI<24.0 kg/m(2) had reduced risk of PE (OR=0.75, 95%CI: 0.59-0.96). However, no significant relationship was observed in women with pre-pregnancy BMI≥24.0 kg/m(2). Conclusions: Folic acid supplementation before and during pregnancy were related with reduced risk of PE. Pre-pregnancy BMI might affect the relationship between folic acid supplementation and the risk of PE. Appropriate folic acid supplementation should be recommend for women with different pre-pregnancy BMI.

Muricauda maritima sp. nov., Muricauda aequoris sp. nov. and Muricauda oceanensis sp. nov., three marine bacteria isolated from seawater

Three Gram-stain-negative, non-motile, rod-shaped strains, designated 72T, NH166T and 40DY170T, were isolated from seawater samples of the West Pacific Ocean, South China Sea and West Pacific Ocean, respectively. The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity results revealed that strains 72Tand NH166T were most closely related to Muricauda antarctica Ar-22T, Muricauda taeanensis JCM 17757T, Muricauda beolgyonensis KCTC 23501T, Muricauda lutimaris KCTC 22173T and Muricauda hadalis MT-229T with 97.2–98.0% sequence similarity. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis also indicated that strain 40DY170T was most closely related to Muricauda ruestringensis DSM 13258T, Muricauda aquimarina JCM 11811T, Muricauda lutimaris KCTC 22173T and Muricauda oceani 501str8T with 97.6–98.1% sequence similarity. The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values among strains 72T, NH166T and 40DY170T were 96.5–99.2%. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that three new isolates represented three novel species by forming two distinctive lineages within the genus Muricauda . The DNA G+C contents of strain 72T, NH166T and 40DY170T were 43.4, 43.4 and 42.4 mol%, respectively. The average nucleotide identity and in silico DNA–DNA hybridization values between strains 72T, NH166T, 40DY170T and the reference strains were 76.5–93.5% and 19.2–53.5%, respectively. The sole respiratory quinone in all strains was menaquinone-6. Their major fatty acids were iso-C17:0 3-OH, iso-C15:0 and iso-C15 : 1 G. The major polar lipids of strains 72T and NH166T were phosphatidylethanolamine, one unidentified aminolipid and two unidentified lipids. The major polar lipids of strain 40DY170T were phosphatidylglycerol, one unidentified phospholipid, one unidentified aminolipid and two unidentified lipids. On the basis of their distinct taxonomic characteristics, the three isolates represent three novel species of the genus Muricauda , for which the names Muricauda maritima sp. nov. (type strain 72T=KCTC 62229T=MCCC 1K03350T), Muricauda aequoris sp. nov. (NH166T=KCTC 62228T=MCCC 1K03449T) and Muricauda oceanensis sp. nov. (40DY170T=KCTC 72200T=MCCC 1K03569T) are proposed.

Transcriptome analysis reveals mechanism of early ripening in Kyoho grape with hydrogen peroxide treatment

Background

In a previous study, the early ripening of Kyoho grape following H₂O₂ treatment was explored at the physiological level, but the mechanism by which H₂O₂ promotes ripening at the molecular level is unclear. To reveal the molecular mechanism, RNA-sequencing analysis was conducted on the different developmental stages of Kyoho berry treated with H₂O₂.

Results

In the comparison of treatment and control groups, 406 genes were up-regulated and 683 were down-regulated. Time course sequencing (TCseq) analysis showed that the expression patterns of most of the genes were similar between the treatment and control, except for some genes related to chlorophyll binding and photosynthesis. Differential expression analysis and the weighted gene co-expression network were used to screen significantly differentially expressed genes and hub genes associated with oxidative stress (heat shock protein, HSP), cell wall deacetylation (GDSL esterase/lipase, GDSL), cell wall degradation (xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/ hydrolase, XTH), and photosynthesis (chlorophyll a-b binding protein, CAB1). Gene expression was verified with RT-qPCR, and the results were largely consistent with those of RNA sequencing.

Conclusions

The RNA-sequencing analysis indicated that H₂O₂ treatment promoted the early ripening of Kyoho berry by affecting the expression levels of HSP, GDSL, XTH, and CAB1 and- photosynthesis- pathways.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-020-07180-y.

Huoxue Huatan Decoction Ameliorates Myocardial Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Hyperlipidemic Rats via PGC-1α-PPARα and PGC-1α-NRF1-mtTFA Pathways

Objective

The aim of this study was to eluc\idate the preventive and therapeutic effects and the underlying mechanisms of Huoxue Huatan Decoction (HXHT) on myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in hyperlipidemic rats.

Methods

An I/R model was established in hyperlipidemic Wistar rats. After 4–8 weeks of HXHT treatment, the physical signs of rats were observed. Lipid metabolism, myocardial enzyme spectrum, cardiac function, myocardial histomorphology, and mitochondrial biosynthesis were investigated by a biochemical method, ultrasonography, electron microscopy, pathological examination, real-time PCR, and Western blot.

Results

HXHT can affect lipid metabolism at different time points and significantly reduce the levels of cholesterol (CHO), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipid-cholesterol (HDL-C), and low-density lipid-cholesterol (LDL-C) in hyperlipidemic rats (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); it can significantly reduce the levels of creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), reduce the myocardial infarct size and myocardial ischemic area, and improve cardiac function. The results of myocardial histomorphology showed that HXHT could protect myocardial cells, relieve swelling, reduce the number of cardiac lipid droplets, and improve myocardial mitochondrial function. HXHT could significantly increase the levels of total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) and succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), increase CuZn-superoxide dismutase (CuZn-SOD) and glutathione-peroxidase (GSH-Px) levels, and decrease the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) (P < 0.05); it could increase the mRNA and protein expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator 1 alpha (PGC-1α), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα), nuclear respiratory factor 1 (NRF1), and mitochondrial transcription factor A (mtTFA) (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), and increase the synthesis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) (P < 0.01).

Conclusion

HXHT can reduce myocardial I/R injury in hyperlipidemic rats. The protective mechanisms may involve a reduction in blood lipids, enhancement of PGC-1α–PPARα pathway activity, and, subsequently, an increase in fatty acid β-oxidation, which may provide the required input for mitochondrial energy metabolism. HXHT can additionally enhance PGC-1α–NRF1–mtTFA pathway activity and, subsequently, increase the antioxidant capacity, promote mtDNA synthesis, and reduce mitochondrial damage. The two pathways use PGC-1α as the intersection point to protect mitochondrial structure and function, reduce I/R-induced injury, and improve cardiac function.

Biomechanical Effects of Two Forms of PGF2α on Ex-vivo Rabbit Cornea

PURPOSE

To investigate the biomechanical effects of two synthetic prostaglandin F2α analogues (PGF2α), namely Travoprost and Tafluprost, on the ex-vivo rabbit cornea.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Ninety-six eyes of 48 Japanese white rabbits were divided into 3 equal groups randomly; the Travoprost treated group (Tra), the Tafluprost treated group (Taf) and the control group (Co). Eyes in Tra and Taf groups were preserved in storage medium for 10 days with 1:10 Travoprost and Tafluprost diluents, respectively; while the Co eyes were preserved in a similar but PGF2α-free medium. Twenty-four corneas of each group were tested under inflation conditions with up to 30 mmHg posterior pressure. The pressure-deformation data obtained experimentally were used in an inverse analysis process to derive the stress-strain behavior of the tissue, using which the tangent modulus, a direct measure of the tissue's material stiffness, was calculated. The remaining eight specimens of each group were analyzed using electron microscopy for fibril diameter and interfibrillar spacing.

RESULTS

Although the central corneal thickness increased significantly in the three groups after storage (p < .01), it was similar in all groups both before (p = .598) and after storage (p = .181). After treatment with Travoprost and Tafluprost, the corneas exhibited lower tangent modulus (by 29.2% and 29.8%, respectively, at 6 kPa stress) and larger stromal interfibril spacing (by 21.9% and 23.6%) compared with the control group. There was no significant change in fibril diameter with either Travoprost or Tafluprost treatment (p = .769).

CONCLUSIONS

The results demonstrated significant reductions in tangent modulus and increases in interfibrillar spacing, which were of similar magnitudes, with the application of two different forms of PGF2α.

Analysis on Risk Factors of Depressive Symptoms in Occupational Noise-induced Hearing Loss Patients: A Cross-sectional Study

Objective

The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk factors of depressive symptoms in occupational noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) patients.

Methods

A total of 106 patients were divided into depressive symptoms (ONHLPD) and without depressive symptoms (non-ONHLPD) according to the Self-rating Depression Scale. Questionnaires and laboratory data were collected and analyzed. Data were analyzed with independent t-test, Wilcoxon test, Pearson correlation analysis and multiple linear regression models.

Results

The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 53.8% in occupational NIHL patients. In ONHLPD, duration of the hearing loss, level of serum cortisol, scores of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Tinnitus Handicap Inventory were all significantly higher than those of non-ONHLPD.

Conclusion

The prevalence of depressive symptoms was relatively high in occupational NIHL patients. Duration of the hearing loss, sleep quality and tinnitus severity were the risk factors for occupational NHIL patients with depressive symptoms.

A transition of ω-Fe3C → ω'-Fe3C → θ'-Fe3C in Fe-C martensite

Carbon steel is strong primarily because of carbides with the most well-known one being θ-Fe₃C type cementite. However, the formation mechanism of cementite remains unclear. In this study, a new metastable carbide formation mechanism was proposed as ω-Fe₃C → ω′-Fe₃C → θ′-Fe₃C based on the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observation. Results shown that in quenched high-carbon binary alloys, hexagonal ω-Fe₃C fine particles are distributed in the martensite twinning boundary alone, while two metastable carbides (ω′ and θ′) coexist in the quenched pearlite. These two carbides both possess orthorhombic crystal structure with different lattice parameters (a_θ′ = a_ω′ = a_ω = \documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$\sqrt{2}$$\end{document}2a_α-Fe = 4.033 Å, b_θ′ = 2 × b_ω′ = 2 × c_ω = \documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$\sqrt{3}$$\end{document}3a_α-Fe = 4.94 Å, and c_θ′ = c_ω′ = \documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$\sqrt{3}$$\end{document}3a_ω = 6.986 Å for a_α-Fe = 2.852 Å). The θ′ unit cell can be constructed simply by merging two ω′ unit cells together along its b_ω′ axis. Thus, the θ′ unit cell contains 12 Fe atoms and 4 C atoms, which in turn matches the composition and atomic number of the θ-Fe₃C cementite unit cell. The proposed theory in combination with experimental results gives a new insight into the carbide formation mechanism in Fe-C martensite.

Cdc42 subcellular relocation in response to VEGF/NRP1 engagement is associated with the poor prognosis of colorectal cancer

Microscopic indications of malignancy and hallmark molecules of cancer are pivotal to determining cancer patient prognosis and subsequent medical intervention. Here, we found that compared to apical expression of Cdc42, which indicated that basal expression of Cdc42 occurred at the migrating cell front, glandular basal expression of Cdc42 (cell division cycle 42) in tissues indicated poorer prognoses for colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. The current study shows that activated Cdc42 was rapidly recruited to the migrating CRC cell front after VEGF stimulation through engagement of membrane-anchored neuropilin-1 (NRP1). When VEGF signalling was blocked with NRP1 knockdown or ATWLPPR (A7R, antagonist of VEGF/NRP1 interaction), Cdc42 activation and relocation to the cell front was attenuated, and filopodia and invadopodia formation was inhibited. The VEGF/NRP1 axis regulates directional migration, invasion, and metastasis through Cdc42 activation and relocation resulting from actin filament polymerisation of the extensions of membrane protrusions. Collectively, the immuno-micromorphological pattern of subcellular Cdc42 at the cell front indicated aggressive behaviours and predicted poor prognosis in CRC patients. Disruption of the intra- and extracellular interactions of the VEGF/NRP1 axis or Cdc42 relocation could be performed in clinical practice because it might inhibit cancer cell motility and metastasis.

[Heavy Metal Contents in Animal Manure in China and the Related Soil Accumulation Risks]

The environmental risks posed by heavy metals (HMs) in animal manure are increasing because of the use of trace metals as additives in feedstuffs. Manure samples were collected, and published literature was reviewed in this study to systematically analyze the HMs content in animal manure and compare the results to different sources of animal manures. Results show that the distribution of HMs content in animal manure was skewed. The ranges were between not detected (ND)-147 mg·kg^-1 for Cd, ND-1919 mg·kg^-1 for Pb, 0.003-2278 mg·kg^-1 for Cr, ND-978 mg·kg^-1 for As, ND-103 mg·kg^-1 for Hg, ND-1747 mg·kg^-1 for Cu, ND-11547 mg·kg^-1 for Zn, and 1.22-1140 mg·kg^-1 for Ni. The means (medians) of those elements were 2.31(0.72) mg·kg^-1, 13.5(8.96) mg·kg^-1, 36.3(12.0) mg·kg^-1, 14.0(3.52) mg·kg^-1, 0.97(0.07) mg·kg^-1, 282(115) mg·kg^-1, 656(366) mg·kg^-1, and 21.8 (13.1) mg·kg^-1 for Cd, Pb, Cr, As, Hg, Cu, Zn, and Ni, respectively. Means were significantly higher (1-13 times) than the medians. According to maximum limits of Cd, Pb, Cr, As, and Hg for organic fertilizers NY 525-2012, about 12.3% (for Cd), 2.58% (for Pb), 2.76% (for Cr), 20.6% (for As), and 3.69% (for Hg) of the data were above the limits. According to the composting regulations of Germany, about 53.9% (for Cu), 45.7% (for Zn), and 0.59% (for Ni) exceeded the maximum limits. The heavy metal contents in animal manure of different regions differs significantly. As and Cd contents in animal manure in the Shandong Province tend to be higher with their average values at 1.7 times and 10.1 times of the mean contents for national scale, respectively; the heavy metal contents in eastern China tend to be higher. Cd and As contents in animal manure tend to be higher in Northeast and Eastern China, while Cu and Zn contents were higher in Eastern and South China. After comparing HMs content in different sources of manures, we found that Cd, As, Hg, Cu, Zn, and Ni mean contents in pig manure were 1.0-3.0 times, 1.8-6.8 times, 1.1-15.8 times, 4.9-17.5 times, 2.7-12.0 times, and 1.7-2.1 times that of cattle manure, sheep manure, and poultry manure. The Pb content in poultry manure was the highest, with the mean being 2.8, 2.5, and 2.2 times higher than pig manure, cattle manure, and sheep manure, respectively. When recycling animal manure into the crop field, the accumulation rates for Cd were under 0.02 mg·(kg·a)^-1 in over 90% of the circumstances and the accumulation rates for Pb were all below 0.15 mg·(kg·a)^-1. When applying poultry manure, Cr in soil is easily accumulated with the maximum accumulation rate of 0.28 mg·(kg·a)^-1.

Comparison of the clinical application value of mo-targeted X-ray, color doppler ultrasound and MRI in preoperative comprehensive evaluation of breast cancer

Objective

To investigate the clinical application value of the Mo-targeted X-ray examination, color Doppler ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnosis and preoperative comprehensive evaluation of breast cancer.

Methods

Among 170 breast cancer patients, they underwent Mo-targeted X-ray examination, color Doppler ultrasound and MRI before surgery to evaluate the lesions in breast, axillary lymph nodes and the availability of breast-conserving surgery.

Results

The detection rates using color Doppler ultrasound examination and MRI were higher than that in the Mo-targeted X-ray examination, which were 90%, 94% and 82%, respectively (P < 0.01 or 0.05). With the result of pathological examination as the golden criteria, we found that specificities of Mo-targeted X-ray examination, color Doppler ultrasound examination and MRI in evaluating the metastasis in axillary lymph nodes were similar (85.11%, 77.66% and 79.79%; P > 0.05). Before surgery, the sensitivities and accuracies of the color Doppler ultrasound examination and MRI were higher than those using the Mo-targeted X-ray examination, which were 73.21%, 82.14%, and 28.57%, 76.00%, 80.67% and 64.00% (P < 0.01 or 0.05). Before surgery, the accuracy rate of MRI in evaluating the breast-conserving surgery was higher than those of Mo-targeted X-ray examination and color Doppler ultrasound (92.00%, 83.33% and 84.67%; P < 0.05).

Conclusion

Combined application of Mo-targeted X-ray examination, color Doppler ultrasound and MRI shows a higher accuracy in diagnosis of breast cancer and evaluation of axillary lymph node metastasis, which is conducive to the selection of surgical methods.

Cooperation between galanin and insulin in facilitating glucose transporter 4 translocation in adipose cells of diabetic rats

The glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) translocation is a vital link of insulin-induced glucose uptake in adipose tissue and skeletal muscle. It is an important topic in anti-diabetic research to explore novel agents to facilitate the role of insulin. The aim of this study was to verify the hypothesis that neuropeptide galanin may enhance insulin-induced GLUT4 translocation to increase glucose uptake in adipose tissue of type 2 diabetic models. Insulin and/or galanin were injected respectively or cooperatively into type 2 diabetic rats once a day for fifteen days. The results showed that administration of galanin significantly enhanced insulin-induced GLUT4 and vesicle-associated membrane protein 2 (VAMP2) translocation, Akt phosphorylation and glucose uptake, but not GLUT4 mRNA and protein expression levels in adipose cells. The beneficial roles of galanin on insulin-induced events may be blocked by MK-2206, an Akt inhibitor, indicating that the Akt phosphorylation is essential for promoting impact of galanin on the insulin-induced events. These results suggest that galanin may benefit insulin-induced GLUT4 and VAMP2 translocation, and subsequent glucose uptake via the activated Akt-VAMP2-GLUT4 pathway in adipose cells. These findings deepen our understanding of the anti-diabetic effect of galanin and its mechanism.