PANoptosis-related molecular clustering and prognostic signature associated with the immune landscape and therapy response in breast cancer.

Breast cancer (BC) remains one of the most pervasive and complex malignancies. PANoptosis represents a recently identified cellular mechanism leading to programmed cell death. However, the prognostic implications and influence on the immune microenvironment of BC pertaining to PANoptosis-related genes (PRGs) remain significantly understudied. We conducted differential expression analysis to identify prognostic-Related PRGs by the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases. Next, we identified the PANoptosis-related molecular subtype using the consensus clustering analysis, and constructed and validated the PANoptosis-related prognostic signature using LASSO and Cox regression analyses. ROC curves were employed to assess the performance of the signatures. Furthermore, drug sensitivity between low- and high-risk group were analysis. Finally, we conducted RT-qPCR to assess the gene expression levels involved in this signature. We categorized BC patients into 2 distinct molecular clusters based on PRGs and identified differentially expressed genes associated with prognosis. Subsequently, BC patients were then divided into 2 gene clusters. The identified PRGs molecular clusters and gene clusters demonstrated association with patient survival, immune system functions, and biological processes and pathways of BC. A prognostic signature comprising 5 genes was established, and BC patients were classified into low- and high-risk groups based on the risk scores. The ROC curves demonstrated that those in the low-risk category exhibited notably extended survival compared to the high-risk group. A nomogram model for patient survival was constructed based on the risk score in conjunction with other clinical features. High-risk group had higher tumor burden mutation, CSC index and lower StomalScore, ImmuneScore, and ESTIMATEScore. Subsequently, we established a correlation between the risk score and drug sensitivity among BC patients. Finally, qRT-PCR results showed that the expression of CXCL1, PIGR, and TNFRSF14 significantly decreased, while CXCL13 and NKAIN were significantly increased in BC tissues. We have developed a molecular clustering and prognostic signature based on PANoptosis to improve the prediction of BC prognosis. This discovery has the potential to not only assist in assessing overall patient prognosis but also to deepen our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of PANoptosis in BC pathogenesis.

Global, regional, and national burden of gallbladder and biliary diseases from 1990 to 2019.

BACKGROUND: Gallbladder and biliary diseases (GABDs) are a major public health issue. AIM: To analysis the cause-specific incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability (YLDs) and its temporal trends of GABDs at the global, regional, and national level. Data on GABD were available from the Global Burden of Disease study 2019. METHODS: The estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) was used to quantify temporal trend in GABD age-standardized incidence rates (ASIRs), age-standardized prevalence rate (ASPR), and age-standardized YLD rate (ASYR) by region, sex. We analyzed the relationship between the GABD burden and country development level using the human development index (HDI). RESULTS: In 2019, the incident cases of GABD were 52003772, with an ASIR of 63432/100000 population. Globally, the number of incident cases and ASIR of GABD increased 97% and 58.9% between 1990 and 2019. Although, the ASPR and ASYR decreased from 1990 to 2019, the number of prevalent and YLDs cases increased. The highest ASIR was observed in Italy, and the highest ASPR and ASYR was observed in United Kingdom. The highest burden of GABD was found in low-SDI region, and the burden in female was significantly higher than males. A generally negative correlation (ρ = -0.24, P < 0.05) of GABD with the EAPC and human development index (HDI) (in 2021) were observed for ASIR. What's more, no correlation in ASPR (ρ = -0.06, P = 0.39) and ASYR (ρ = -0.07, P = 0.36) of GABD with the EAPC and HDI (in 2021) were observed, respectively. CONCLUSION: GABD remain a major global public health challenge; however, the burden of GABD varies geographically. Globally, the number of incident cases and ASIR of GABD increased between 1990 and 2019. The results of our study provide insight into the global disease burden of GABD and may assist policymakers in formulating effective policies to mitigate modifiable risk factors.

The global, regional, and national burden of appendicitis in 204 countries and territories, 1990-2019: a systematic analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

BACKGROUND: Appendicitis is the most common abdominal surgical emergency worldwide, and its burden has been changing. We report the level and trends of appendicitis prevalence, and incidence; and years lived with disability (YLD) in 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2019, based on data from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019. METHODS: The numbers and age-standardized prevalence, incidence, and YLD rates per 100,000 population of appendicitis were estimated across regions and countries by age, sex, and sociodemographic index (SDI). All the estimates were reported with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs). RESULTS: Globally, the age-standardized prevalence and incidence rates of appendicitis in 2019 were 8.7 (95% UI 6.9 to 11.0) and 229.9 (95% UI 180.9 to 291.0) per 100,000 population, with increases of 20.8% (95% UI 18.9 to 23.0%) and 20.5% (95% UI 18.7 to 22.8%) from 1990 to 2019, respectively. Additionally, the age-standardized YLDs rate was 2.7 (95% UI 1.8 to 3.9) in 2019, with an increase of 20.4% (95% UI 16.2 to 25.1%) from 1990 to 2019. In 2019, the age-standardized prevalence, incidence, and YLD rates peaked in the 15-to-19-year age groups in both male and female individuals. However, no statistically significant differences were observed between the male and female individuals in all groups. Ethiopia, India, and Nigeria showed the largest increases in the age-standardized prevalence rate between 1990 and 2019. Generally, positive associations were found between the age-standardized YLD rates and SDI at the regional and national levels. CONCLUSIONS: Appendicitis remains a major public health challenge globally. Increasing awareness of appendicitis and its risk factors and the importance of early diagnosis and treatment is warranted to reduce its the burden.

Incidence trends of acute viral hepatitis caused by four viral etiologies between 1990 and 2019 at the global, regional and national levels.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis is a major public health challenge and a leading cause of death worldwide. We aimed to study the cause-specific incidence and temporal trends of acute viral hepatitis (AVH). METHODS: Data on AVH etiologies were available from the Global Burden of Disease study 2019. Estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) was used to quantify temporal trend in AVH age-standardized incidence rates (ASIRs) by region, sex and aetiology. RESULTS: From 1990 to 2019, the global incidence of AVH increased by 8.02%, from 244 350 063 in 1990 to 263 951 645 in 2019, with an average decreasing ASIR of 0.52% (95% CI -0.58% to -0.45%) annually. The ASIR of AVH due to hepatitis B virus (HBV) decreased, while those of hepatitis A (HAV), hepatitis C (HCV) and hepatitis E (HEV) remained stable, with EAPCs (95% CI) of -1.47 (-1.58 to -1.36), 0 (-0.09 to 0.09), -0.35 (-0.83 to -0.13), and -0.16 (-0.41 to 0.09) respectively. Although the number of new AVH cases increased in the low sociodemographic index (SDI), low-middle SDI regions, the ASIRs decreased in all five SDI regions. Globally, HAV and HBV are the leading causes of acute hepatitis. The EAPC is significantly associated with a baseline ASIR of less than 5500 per 100 000 population (ρ = -0.44), and with the 2019 human development index (HDI) (ρ = 0.16) for AVH. CONCLUSIONS: Although the ASIR of AVH showed a generally decreasing trend, the burden of AVH remains a major public health challenge globally. The findings may be helpful for policymakers in establishing appropriate policies to reduce the viral hepatitis burden.

The burden of primary liver cancer caused by specific etiologies from 1990 to 2019 at the global, regional, and national levels.

BACKGROUND: Liver cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide. We aimed to report the burden of liver cancer at the global, regional, and national levels in 204 countries from 1990 to 2019, stratified by etiology, sex, age, and sociodemographic index (SDI). METHODS: Data of mortality, incidence, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) of liver cancer and its etiology were available from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) Study 2019. The trends in the liver cancer burden were assessed by the annual percentage change. All estimates are presented as numbers and age-standardized rates (ASRs) per 100,000 population, with uncertainty intervals (UIs). RESULTS: Globally, 484,577 (95% UI 444,091-525,798) mortalities, 534,364 (486,550-588,639) incident cases, and 12,528,422 (11,400,671-13,687,675) disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) due to liver cancer occurred in 2019. The ASRs were 5.95 (5.44-6.44), 6.51 (5.95-7.16), and 151.08 (137.53-164.8) per 100,000 population for the mortalities, incidences, and DALYs, respectively. From 1990 to 2019, the numbers increased, whereas the ASRs decreased. Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C are the major causes of liver cancer mortality. The liver cancer mortality in 2019 increased with age, peaking at 65-69 and 70-74 age group in males and females, respectively, and the number was higher in males than in females. Generally, there were nonlinear associations between the ASR and SDIs values at the regional and national levels. China had the highest numbers of mortalities, incident cases, and DALYs, whereas Mongolia has the highest ASR in 2019. CONCLUSION: Liver cancer remains a major public health issue worldwide, but etiological and geographical variations exist. It is necessary to increase awareness of the population regarding liver cancer, its etiologies and the importance of early detection, and diagnosis and treatment.

Grazing limits natural biological controls of woody encroachment in Inner Mongolia Steppe.

Woody encroachment in grasslands has become increasingly problematic globally. Grazing by domestic animals can facilitate woody encroachment by reducing competition from herbaceous plants and fire frequency. Herbivorous insects and parasitic plants can each exert forces that result in the natural biological control of encroaching woody plants through reducing seeding of their host woody plants. However, the interplay of grazing and dynamics of herbivorous insects or parasitic plants, and its effects on the potential biological control of woody encroachment in grasslands remains unclear. We investigated the flower and pod damage by herbivorous insects, and the infection rates of a parasitic plant on the shrub Caragana microphylla, which is currently encroaching in Inner Mongolia Steppe, under different grazing management treatments (33-year non-grazed, 7-year non-grazed, currently grazed). Our results showed that Caragana biomass was highest at the currently grazed site, and lowest at the 33-year non-grazed site. Herbaceous plant biomass followed the opposite pattern, suggesting that grazing is indeed facilitating the encroachment of Caragana plants in Inner Mongolia Steppe. Grazing also reduced the abundance of herbivorous insects per Caragana flower, numbers of flowers and pods damaged by insect herbivores, and the infection rates of the parasitic plant on Caragana plants. Our results suggest that grazing may facilitate woody encroachment in grasslands not only through canonical mechanisms (e.g. competitive release via feeding on grasses, reductions in fires, etc.), but also by limiting natural biological controls of woody plants (herbivorous insects and parasitic plants). Thus, management efforts must focus on preventing overgrazing to better protect grassland ecosystems from woody encroachment.

[AFLP and HPLC Fingerprints Analysis of Codonopsis Species from Original Areas and the Same Planting Base].

Objective: To investigate the influence of environment on the genetic structure and chemical ingredients of different Codonopsis species. Methods: Amplified fragment length polymorphism( AFLP) molecular markers were used to analyze the genetic polymorphism of Codonopsis species from 24 different populations,and high performance liquid chromatography( HPLC) fingerprints were performed to analyze the chemical ingredients of 10 batches of Codonopsis roots. Results: According to species classification,the 24 populations were categorized into three groups by UPGMA cluster method. The samples of Codonopsis pilosula var. modesta introduced from Wenxian( Gansu Province) and Jiuzhaigou County( Sichuan Province) were clustered into Group Ⅰ. The Codonopsis tangshen population introduced from Banqiao( Hubei Province) was clustered into Group Ⅱ. The populations from Codonopsis pilosula introduced to Shanxi Province GAP base,and the wild and cultured populations of Codonopsis pilosula collected from Shanxi Province were into Group Ⅲ. The similarity of HPLC fingerprints among three Codonopsis species introduced into the same environment was over 0. 8. Conclusion: Genetic differences of three Codonopsis species from original areas and Codonopsis species introduced into Shanxi Province were caused by their inter-species genetic characteristic. Meanwhile, the similarities of genetic backgrounds in Codonopsis species were related to geographic space, and chemical ingredients of Codonopsis were easily influenced by the cultivation environment.

[Study on HPLC specific chromatograms of Lu Dangshen].

In this paper, the RP-HPLC specific chromatography was adopted, with DIKMA-C18 (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 µm) as the chromatographic column, with a gradient elution compose of acetonitrile and 0.1% phosphoric acid at flow rate of 0.8 mL · min(-1), the detection wavelength was 220 nm. The difference of the HPLC specific chromatograms between the Lu Dangshen and other different base sources and different producing area of Codonopsis Radix was compared, involved in the similarities and differences of the number and the relative peak area of characteristic peaks in the HPLC specific chromatograms. The HPLC specific chromatograms of Lu Dangshen was established and the relative retention times of seven peaks was determined, and the peaks of codonopyrrolidium B, syringin, lobetyolin, tangshenoside I and atractylenoide III were identified; The HPLC specific chromatograms of Lu Dangshen provided a method for scientific evaluation and effective control the quality of Lu Dangshen from Shanxi famous-region.