Trends in prevalence and risk factors of childhood asthma in Fuzhou, a city in Southeastern China.

UNLABELLED: Abstract Objective: The prevalence of asthma in children age 0-14 years in Fuzhou, a city in Southeast China, was 1.57% in 1990 and 3.28% in 2000. The aim of this study was to investigate the asthma prevalence and risk factors in children in the same city in 2010. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study with a two-stage, clustered, stratified random sample design. Parents of 12235 children 0-14 years of age in Fuzhou were surveyed using a questionnaire. Children with history and/or symptoms of asthma were then interviewed by pediatricians in a nearby clinic to confirm the diagnosis of asthma, and a second questionnaire listing reported risk factors of asthma was completed by the parents in the clinic. RESULTS: About 11738 questionnaires were completed with a response rate of 95.9%. Among the responders, 648 children had history and/or symptoms of asthma but only 485 (4.13%) were confirmed with asthma. The prevalence was 1.83%, 7.64% and 6.27% in the age groups of 0-1 years, 3-4 years and 13-14 years, respectively. The most significant (binary logistic regression test) factors associated with asthma were presence of atopic or allergic diseases (OR=21.5, 95% CI: 12-38.5), family history of allergy or asthma (OR=29.4, 95% CI: 12.6-68.6), use of at least one course of antibiotics in the first year of life (OR=7.61, 95% CI: 3.4-17.06), supplementary protein feedings before 6 months (OR=1.90, 95% CI: 1.23-2.95). Natural ventilation at home (versus frequent use of air-conditioning) appeared to be a protective factor (OR = 0.5, 95% CI: 0.3-0.8). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of asthma in childhood has increased significantly during the past 20 years in Fuzhou.

[Application and evaluation of comfort nursing in caries treatment using light-cured resin].

PURPOSE: This study was carried out to evaluate the value of comfort nursing in light curing resin-treated dental caries by means of patient satisfaction survey. METHODS: One hundred and twenty-eight cariogenic patients, who were treated from January 2017 to December 2017 in Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, were enrolled and randomly assigned as experimental group and control group, respectively(n=64). Cariogenic lesions were treated with light-cured resin, patients in the control group received conventional four-handed operation nursing, while patients in the experimental group received modified comfortable nursing throughout the entire treatment course. The self-designed satisfaction questionnaires were issued, and the patients were required to fill them out after the treatment and nursing were definitely completed. The designed questionnaire was divided into two major parts, including nursing care and nursing operation, which was further subdivided into 10 detailed scoring items. The satisfaction survey of nursing was analyzed between two groups statistically to evaluate the effort of comfort nursing using SPSS 19.0 software package. RESULTS: No significant differences in the treatment environment was observed between the two groups(P＞0.05), while upgraded satisfaction were observed in patients from the experimental group compared to those from the control group on the aspects of nursing care, namely, appearance, service attitude, explanation and health knowledge promotion(P＜0.05). Among the five scoring standards of nursing operation, which was consist of timely initiative nursing, position nursing, eye nursing, effective nursing and nursing procedures, the satisfaction scores from the experimental group were significantly higher than those from the control group(P＜0.05). The total collected data demonstrated that the overall satisfaction of the experimental group was significantly improved compared to that of the control group (94% vs 75%, P＜0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Comfort nursing not only strengthens the professionalism of oral operation, but also improves the patient's experience, facilitating to promote the harmony between doctors and patients.

A Large-Scale, Exome-Wide Association Study of Han Chinese Women Identifies Three Novel Loci Predisposing to Breast Cancer.

Genome-wide association studies have identified more than 90 susceptibility loci for breast cancer. However, the missing heritability is evident, and the contributions of coding variants to breast cancer susceptibility have not yet been systematically evaluated. Here, we present a large-scale whole-exome association study for breast cancer consisting of 24,162 individuals (10,055 cases and 14,107 controls). In addition to replicating known susceptibility loci (e.g., ESR1, FGFR2, and TOX3), we identify two novel missense variants in C21orf58 (rs13047478, Pmeta = 4.52 × 10-8) and ZNF526 (rs3810151, Pmeta = 7.60 × 10-9) and one new noncoding variant at 7q21.11 (P < 5 × 10-8). C21orf58 and ZNF526 possessed functional roles in the control of breast cancer cell growth, and the two coding variants were found to be the eQTL for several nearby genes. rs13047478 was significantly (P < 5.00 × 10-8) associated with the expression of genes MCM3AP and YBEY in breast mammary tissues. rs3810151 was found to be significantly associated with the expression of genes PAFAH1B3 (P = 8.39 × 10-8) and CNFN (P = 3.77 × 10-4) in human blood samples. C21orf58 and ZNF526, together with these eQTL genes, were differentially expressed in breast tumors versus normal breast. Our study reveals additional loci and novel genes for genetic predisposition to breast cancer and highlights a polygenic basis of disease development.Significance: Large-scale genetic screening identifies novel missense variants and a noncoding variant as predisposing factors for breast cancer. Cancer Res; 78(11); 3087-97. ©2018 AACR.

Role of moesin in renal fibrosis.

BACKGROUND: Renal fibrosis is the final common pathway of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Moesin is a member of Ezrin/Radixin/Moesin (ERM) protein family but its role in renal fibrosis is not clear. METHOD: Human proximal tubular cells (HK-2) were stimulated with or without TGF-ß1. Moesin and downstream target genes were examined by real-time PCR and western blot. Phosphorylation of moesin and related signaling pathway was investigated as well. Rat model of unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) was established and renal moesin was examined by immunohistochemistry. Moesin in HK-2 cells were knocked down by siRNA and change of downstream genes in transfected HK-2 cells was studied. All animal experiments were reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee for animal care of Ruijin Hospital. RESULT: HK-2 cells stimulated with TGF-ß1 showed up-regulated level of α-SMA and down-regulated level of E-Cadherin as well as elevated mRNA and protein level of moesin. In rat model of UUO, renal moesin expression increased in accordance with severity of tubulointerestital fibrosis in the kidneys with ureteral ligation while the contralateral kidneys were normal. Further study showed that TGF-ß1 could induce phosphorylation of moesin which depended on Erk signaling pathway and Erk inhibitor PD98059 could block moesin phosphorylation. Effects of TGF-ß1 on moesin phosphorylation was prior to its activation to total moesin. RNA silencing studies showed that knocking down of moesin could attenuate decrease of E-Cadherin induced by TGF-ß1. CONCLUSION: We find that moesin might be involved in renal fibrosis and its effects could be related to interacting with E-Cadherin.