Identification of m6A-related lncRNAs LINC02471 and DOCK9-DT as potential biomarkers for thyroid cancer.

Thyroid cancer (THCA) is the most common endocrine malignancy worldwide and has been rising at the fastest rate in recent years. Long-stranded non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and N6-methyladenosine (m6A) have been associated with immunotherapy efficacy and cancer prognosis. However, how m6A-associated lncRNAs (mrlncRNAs) affect the prognosis of patients with thyroid cancer is unclear. Therefore, this study utilized The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to provide thyroid cancer-related transcriptomic data and related clinical data. The R program was used to identify m6A-related lncRNAs, and a risk model consisting of two lncRNAs (LINC02471 and DOCK9-DT) was obtained using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression analysis. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and transient subject operating characteristics (ROC) were used for analysis. The results showed a substantial association between immune cell infiltration and risk scores. Independent analyses confirmed that the expression of LINC02471 and DOCK9-DT was significantly higher in thyroid cancer tissues than in normal tissues, suggesting that they may be useful biomarkers for thyroid cancer.

MCM10, a potential diagnostic, immunological, and prognostic biomarker in pan-cancer.

Microchromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins are a number of nuclear proteins with significant roles in the development of cancer by influencing the process of cellular DNA replication. Of the MCM protein family, MCM10 is a crucial member that maintains the stability and extension of DNA replication forks during DNA replication and is significantly overexpressed in a variety of cancer tissues, regulating the biological behaviour of cancer cells. But little is understood about MCM10's functional role and regulatory mechanisms in a range of malignancies. We investigate the impact of MCM10 in human cancers by analyzing data from databases like the Gene Expression Profiling Interaction Analysis (GEPIA2), Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), among others. Possible relationships between MCM10 and clinical staging, diagnosis, prognosis, Mutation burden (TMB), microsatellite instability (MSI), immunological checkpoints, DNA methylation, and tumor stemness were identified. The findings demonstrated that MCM10 expression was elevated in the majority of cancer types and was connected to tumor dryness, immunocytic infiltration, immunological checkpoints, TMB and MSI. Functional enrichment analysis in multiple tumors also identified possible pathways of MCM10 involvement in tumorigenesis. We also discovered promising MCM10-targeting chemotherapeutic drugs. In conclusion, MCM10 may be a desirable pan-cancer biomarker and offer fresh perspectives on cancer therapy.

MicroRNAs in the Regulation of RIG-I-like Receptor Signaling Pathway: Possible Strategy for Viral Infection and Cancer.

The retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I)-like receptors (RLRs) play a crucial role as pattern-recognition receptors within the innate immune system. These receptors, present in various cell and tissue types, serve as essential sensors for viral infections, enhancing the immune system's capacity to combat infections through the induction of type I interferons (IFN-I) and inflammatory cytokines. RLRs are involved in a variety of physiological and pathological processes, including viral infections, autoimmune disorders, and cancer. An increasing body of research has examined the possibility of RLRs or microRNAs as therapeutic targets for antiviral infections and malignancies, despite the fact that few studies have focused on the regulatory function of microRNAs on RLR signaling. Consequently, our main emphasis in this review is on elucidating the role of microRNAs in modulating the signaling pathways of RLRs in the context of cancer and viral infections. The aim is to establish a robust knowledge base that can serve as a basis for future comprehensive investigations into the interplay between microRNAs and RIG-I, while also facilitating the advancement of therapeutic drug development.

Molecular mechanisms underlying the anticancer property of Dendrobium in various systems of the human body: A review.

Dendrobium, which belongs to the family of Orchidaceae, is a highly valuable traditional Chinese medicine commonly used in China. It exerts pharmacological activities such as antitumor and hypoglycemia effects, and its main components are alkaloids, polysaccharides, and terpenoids, among others. In recent years, research on the clinical application of Dendrobium in antitumor therapy has gained increasing attention. Accumulating evidence suggests that the active components of Dendrobium possess significant inhibitory effects on the viability of cancer cells as evident from in vivo and in vitro experiments, which indicates that Dendrobium exerts significant anticancer effect in treating and preventing cancer development, inhibiting the underlying potential molecular mechanisms, including suppression of cancer cell growth and proliferation, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), apoptosis induction, tumor angiogenesis, and reinforcement of cisplatin (DDP) -induced apoptosis. We herein present a review that summarizes the research progress of the application of Dendrobium in cancer therapy and its molecular mechanisms. This review describes the positive aspects of the active ingredients of Dendrobium in the treatment of cancers in various systems of the human body, their inhibitory effects on tumor survival and tumor microenvironment, and their potential mechanisms. Additionally, this review proposes future application prospects of Dendrobium in cancer therapy to promote further research and future extensive clinical applications of Dendrobium in cancer therapy.

IRX1 ameliorates sepsis-induced acute kidney injury in mice by promoting CXCL14.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis-induced acute kidney injury is a general critical complication having high relevance to kidney inflammation. In spite of advances in clinical and critical care, the specific and effective therapies for acute kidney injury are still insufficient. The present study aimed to investigate the protective effect of Iroquois homeobox genes (IRX) on sepsis-induced kidney dysfunction in mice. METHODS: In order to gain insight into sepsis-related actions in acute kidney injury, the cecal puncture-induced kidney injury animal model was established. The hematoxylin and eosin staining was used to measure the pathology of kidney tissues. The kidney function-related biomarkers, including neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin, creatinine, kidney injury molecule-1, blood urea nitrogen, and inflammatory cytokines, which included tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin 1ß (IL-1ß), IL-6, and monocyte chemotactic protein 1, were detected by automated biochemical analyzer or their corresponding test kits. The protein expression was measured using Western blot analysis, and the apoptotic rate of kidney tissue was measured by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling assay. RESULTS: The present study revealed the protective ability of IRX1 in sepsis-induced acute kidney injury. This study also determined the potential mechanism of IRX1 on sepsis-induced inflammatory response and cell apoptosis. Finally, it highlighted that IRX1 exerted a protective influence on CLP-induced acute kidney injury by suppressing the activation of chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 14 (CXCL14). CONCLUSION: To conclude, the results suggest that overexpression of IRX1 could promote survival rate and suppress the CLP-induced apoptosis, inflammatory response, and kidney dysfunction through the activation of CXCL14. IRX1 and CXCL14 are essential to elucidate the mechanism of acute kidney injury. These findings may help to identify the promising targets for clinical sepsis therapy.

Economic burden of maintenance hemodialysis patients' families in Nanchong and its influencing factors.

BACKGROUND: Maintenance hemodialysis is the main therapy for clinical treatment of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The aim of this study was to analyze the current status of the economic burden levied on families with members who are maintenance hemodialysis patients in Nanchong, and the related influencing factors. METHODS: A total of 111 patients with ESRD who were admitted to our hospital from April 2018 to April 2020 and treated with maintenance hemodialysis were selected as research subjects. A questionnaire survey was adopted as a data collection and interview method to observe the economic burden of families with a member who was a maintenance hemodialysis patient. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the independent risk factors that affect this economic burden. RESULTS: The direct economic burden, indirect economic burden, and average annual total economic burden (the sum of the direct economic burden and indirect economic burden of hemodialysis patients) of patients in the resident medical insurance group were significantly higher than those in the employee medical insurance group, resident medical insurance + poverty relief group, and employee medical insurance + poverty relief group (P<0.05). The analysis of the unconditional multifactor logistic regression model showed that age, occupation, monthly family income, and medical insurance type were independent risk factors that affected the average annual total economic burden of patients with maintenance hemodialysis (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Various medical insurance systems can effectively reduce the economic burden of hemodialysis patients, but patients must still bear significant financial hardship. It is necessary to further improve the medical insurance for patients with hemodialysis and increase management efforts to popularize the poverty relief policy.

A meta-analysis of clinical efficacy and quality of life of cognitive-behavioral therapy in acute coronary syndrome patients with anxiety and depression.

BACKGROUND: Our study aims to evaluate the clinical efficacy and quality of life of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for patients who have acute coronary syndrome (ACS) with anxiety and depression. METHODS: The databases of PubMed, Cochrane, and Web of science, as well as China journal full-text database, Wanfang database, and Weipu database, were systematically searched from the establishment of the database to February 29, 2020. The total effective rate of qualitative data was evaluated with a relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI), and the quantitative data was evaluated with a standard mean difference (SMD) and 95% CI. Randomized controlled clinical trials of CBT for ACS were included. The RevMan5.3 and R3.5.1 software was used to analyze. RESULTS: A total of 11 papers, including 1,259 patients, were included, including 639 patients in the CBT group and 620 in the control group. One article reported the total effective rate after three months of treatment with an RR of 1.48 (95% CI: 1.07, 2.06). A total of 3 articles reported the incidence of cardiovascular adverse events using the fixed effects model (I2 =41%), and the incidence of cardiovascular adverse events in the CBT group was 0.39 times lower than that in the control group (95% CI: 0.2, 0.77). A total of 11 articles reported the score of depression using the random effects model (I2 =93%), and the score of depression in the CBT group was significantly lower than that in the control group, with an SMD of -0.99 (95% CI: -1.44, -0.54). The score of anxiety was reported in 8 pieces of literature, and the randomized effect model estimated that the score of anxiety in the CBT group was significantly lower than that in the control group, with an SMD of -1.47 (95% CI: -1.98, -0.96). There was significant heterogeneity in the quality of life score, but it was not found that the quality of life score in the CBT group was significantly higher than that in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: After CBT intervention, ACS patients with anxiety and depression can significantly reduce the incidence of cardiovascular adverse events and significantly reduce scores of depression and anxiety, but they have not been found to have an advantage in improving quality of life.

Mangiferin Relieves Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Injury by Up-Regulating miR-181a via Targeting PTEN in ATDC5 Cells.

BACKGROUND: Mangiferin (MF) was reported to possess anti-inflammatory activity. This investigation tried to probe into the underlying mechanism of MF in osteoarthritis. METHODS: ATDC5 cells were pretreated with series concentrations of MF (0.1, 1, 5, 10, 15, 20 µM) for 2 h and then were exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (5 µg/ml) for 12 h to construct the inflammatory injury model. The cell viability, productions of pro-inflammatory cytokines and enzymes were respectively measured by employing CCK-8 assay, western blot, ELISA, and quantitative reverse-transcription (qRT)-PCR. miR-181a expression was altered by employing cell transfection. Dichloro-dihydro-fluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA) method was employed for detection of reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. Dual luciferase activity assay was conducted for analyzing the relationship between miR-181a and PTEN. The underlying mechanism was determined by employing western blot. RESULTS: High doses of MF treatment (15 and 20 µM) noticeably induced inflammatory injury exhibiting as increased the productions of pro-inflammatory cytokines, enzymes and ROS, activated NF-κB pathway and deactivated PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway in ATDC5 cells. Besides, MF treatment notably remitted LPS-induced inflammatory injury through deactivation of NF-κB pathway and activation of PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway. PTEN was a target of miR-181a. Inhibition of miR-181a remarkably reversed MF-triggered impacts on ATDC5 cells. CONCLUSION: MF attenuated LPS-induced inflammatory damage through miR-181a/PTEN axis and thereby inhibiting NF-κB pathway and activating PI3K/AKT pathway.

Oligotrophy is Helpful for the Isolation of Bioactive Actinomycetes.

It is necessary to develop new methods for the isolation of unknown actinomycetes from soils. To evaluate the effects of oligotrophic medium on the isolation of soil actinomycetes and develop a new isolation method, the Gause's synthetic medium was diluted to one tenth the recommended concentration in the present study. Soil dilution plate technique was used to isolate actinomycetes from the soil samples. Oligotrophy decreased actinomycete and streptomycete counts, as well as the number of antagonistic actinomycete species. Oligotrophy also decreased the number of actinomycete species in five samples. Some actinomycete species were cultured only on the oligotrophic medium, whereas other species could not be cultured. Oligotrophy decreased actinomycete counts more significantly for soils with organic matter content >40 g/kg. We used 16S rRNA sequence analysis to identify 22 actinomycete species that were only cultured on the oligotrophic medium. Oligotrophic medium was helpful for the isolation of Streptomyces spp., Micromonospora spp. and Streptosporangium spp. Slightly more than 80 % of the identified actinomycete species were biologically active. Therefore, we could draw a conclusion that oligotrophic medium could be helpful for the discovery of new antibiotic producers and the exploitation and utilization of new, biologically active compounds.

Heterotopic cesarean scar pregnancy: diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis.

Heterotopic cesarean scar pregnancy is a rare, life-threatening form of ectopic pregnancy. To provide information regarding the clinical manifestations, diagnosis, management, and prognosis of this condition, we reviewed all cases reported in the English literature. All literature on heterotopic cesarean scar pregnancy was retrieved by searching the PubMed database and tracking references of the relevant literature. Full texts were reviewed, and clinical manifestations, diagnostic methods, and the relationship between the treatment and prognosis were summarized. A total of 14 patients with heterotopic cesarean scar pregnancies were identified, including 6 spontaneous pregnancies and 8 following in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer. Gestational ages at diagnosis ranged from 5 weeks to 8 weeks 4 days. Only 5 cases presented with vaginal bleeding, and the others were asymptomatic. All 14 cases were diagnosed by transvaginal sonography. One patient with no future fertility requirements underwent pregnancy termination by methotrexate. Of the remaining 13 patients who desired to preserve their intrauterine gestations, 10 were treated by sonographically guided selective embryo reduction in situ (by embryo aspiration, drug injection, or both); 2 underwent laparoscopic and hysteroscopic excision of the ectopic pregnancy masses; and 1 was treated by expectant management. All operations were successful and maintained a living intrauterine gestation. Twelve cases resulted in live births by cesarean delivery (3 at term and 9 preterm). One patient underwent pregnancy termination at 12 weeks because of a fetal malformation confirmed by sonography. The possibility of heterotopic cesarean scar pregnancy after cesarean delivery should be considered, especially when pregnancy follows assisted reproductive technology. Transvaginal sonography is an important tool for diagnosis and management. Despite the many options, the best treatment for this condition remains unclear. Selective embryo reduction in situ with sonographic guidance is the main treatment modality and can result in a successful intrauterine gestation, albeit at high risk.

[Denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography for screening antithrombin III gene mutation and polymorphisms in patients with cerebral venous thrombosis].

OBJECTIVE: To identify antithrombin III (AT-III) gene mutation and polymorphisms in pregnant women and parturients with cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) using denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC). METHODS: The genomic DNA was extracted from the blood samples of 50 pregnant women and parturients with CVT and 52 matched healthy women for molecular analysis using a PCR/DHPLC assay followed by DNA sequence analysis. Ten primer pairs were designed for amplifying the AT- III promoter region and exons 1-6 including the exon/intron boundaries. A rapid screening assay based on DHPLC was established to screen the mutation and polymorphisms of AT- III gene. RESULTS: Six abnormal peaks were detected in 40 of the patients by DHPLC. Direct DNA sequencing was performed on representative samples detected by DHPLC profiling. One pathogenic heterozygous G13328A missense mutation in exon 6, and a novel silent mutation in exon 4+243 G>A were identified. Six single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) sites were found, including 4 previously reported ones in the SNP library and two were novel SNP sites. An abnormal peak was detected in the control group by DHPLC. CONCLUSION: DHPLC allows automated and rapid high-throughput detection of AT- III gene mutation and polymorphisms in the clinical setting and prenatal diagnosis. Our findings suggested that AT- III gene mutation, as well as its polymorphisms, contributes to the occurrence of CVT in pregnant women and parturients.