RESUMEN
Objectives: Long-acting bronchodilators are important treatments for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and adequate medication adherence decreases COPD exacerbations, especially in reducing the hazard of influenza infection. Therefore, the study aim was to evaluate adherence of long-acting bronchodilator treatment and the risk of influenza in patients with COPD. Methods: This retrospective nested case-control study included patients with newly diagnosed COPD from 2012 to 2018. Cases with influenza infection were defined and matched to 2 randomly selected controls. The influenza infection date was the index date. Conditional logistic regressions were used to estimate odds ratios of influenza from proportion of days covered (PDC) of long-acting bronchodilators measured in one year before the index date. Adherence was divided into high adherence (PDC ≥80 %) and low adherence (PDC <80 %). Results: This population-based study included 6,073 patients in the case group and 12,146 in the control group. High PDC of long-acting bronchodilators in COPD was associated with a 0.811-fold (95 % confidence interval: 0.754-0.883, P < 0.001) decreased influenza risk, where 906 (14.92 %) high PDC in case and 2,130 (17.54 %) in control. Low PDC without influenza vaccination in COPD patients is associated with increased influenza risk, regardless of exposure period. Conclusion: In Taiwan, COPD patients with high PDC were associate with lower COPD exacerbation. Different long-acting bronchodilator exposure or dose need to be further investigated in COPD patients.
RESUMEN
Gynecologic tract melanoma is a malignant tumor with poor prognosis. Because of the low survival rate and the lack of a standard treatment protocol related to this condition, the investigation of the mechanisms underlying melanoma progression is crucial to achieve advancements in the relevant gynecological surgery and treatment. Mitochondrial transfer between adjacent cells in the tumor microenvironment regulates tumor progression. This study investigated the effects of endothelial mitochondria on the growth of melanoma cells and the activation of specific signal transduction pathways following mitochondrial transplantation. Mitochondria were isolated from endothelial cells (ECs) and transplanted into B16F10 melanoma cells, resulting in the upregulation of proteins associated with tumor growth. Furthermore, enhanced antioxidation and mitochondrial homeostasis mediated by the Sirt1-PGC-1α-Nrf2-HO-1 pathway were observed, along with the inhibition of apoptotic protein caspase-3. Finally, the transplantation of endothelial mitochondria into B16F10 cells promoted tumor growth and increased M2-type macrophages through Nrf2/HO-1-mediated pathways in a xenograft animal model. In summary, the introduction of exogenous mitochondria from ECs into melanoma cells promoted tumor growth, indicating the role of mitochondrial transfer by stromal cells in modulating a tumor's phenotype. These results provide valuable insights into the role of mitochondrial transfer and provide potential targets for gynecological melanoma treatment.