Intramyocardial Hemorrhage Leads to Higher MACE Rate by Increasing Myocardial Infarction Volume in Patients with STEMI.

Background and Aims: Whether IMH can directly cause persistent myocardial necrosis after reperfusion therapy in STEMI patients is still unclear. We conducted a prospective study to compare the cardiovascular parameters in patients with STEMI with and without IMH to explore the potential correlations between IMH and poor outcomes. Methods and Results: We prospectively enrolled 65 consecutive patients with newly diagnosed STEMI admitted to the CCU of the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University between April 2019 and November 2021, all of whom underwent primary PCI. Of these, 38 (58.5%) and 27 (41.5%) patients were in the IMH-absent and IMH-present groups, respectively. At a mean time of 5-7 days after reperfusion therapy, the volume of MI measured using LGE sequence was larger in STEMI patients with IMH than in patients without IMH (34.2 ± 12.7 cm3 vs 21.1 ± 13.1 cm3, P<0.001). HsTNT levels were significantly higher in the IMH-present group than in the IMH-absent [2500.0 (1681.5-4307.0) pg/mL vs 1710.0 (203.0-3363.5) pg/mL, P=0.021] group during hospitalization. The LVEF measured using CMR in the IMH-present group was lower than that in the IMH-absent group (30.7 ± 9.8% vs 42.3 ± 11.0%, P < 0.001). The rate of MACE at 12 months in IMH-present group was significantly higher than in the IMH-absent group (9/27 VS 2/38, P = 0.012). Conclusion: IMH can lead to further expansion of MI volumes in patients with STEMI, resulting in lower LVEF and higher MACE rate in the post-discharge follow-up.

Zang Siwei Qingfei Mixture Alleviates Inflammatory Response to Attenuate Acute Lung Injury by the ACE2/NF-κB Signaling Pathway in Mice.

BACKGROUND: Acute lung injury (ALI) is a serious lung disease characterized by acute and severe inflammation. Upregulation of ACE2 and inhibition of the NF-κB signaling pathway attenuate LPS-induced ALI. OBJECTIVE: To explore whether Zang Siwei Qingfei Mixture inhibits the development of ALI through the ACE2/NF-κB signaling pathway. METHODS: Alveolar type II epithelial cells (AEC II) were identified by immunofluorescence staining and flow cytometry. C57BL/6J mice were treated with LPS to establish an ALI model. Cell viability was assessed using CCK8 assays. The levels of ACE, ACE2, p-p38/p38, p- ERK1/2/ERK1/2, p-JNK/JNK, p-IκBα/IκB-α, p-NF-κBp65 were analyzed by Western blotting. ELISA was applied to detect the levels of TNF-a, IL-6, AGT, and Ang1-7. HE staining was used to observe lung injury. The mRNA expression of ACE, ACE2, and Mas was measured by RTqPCR. RESULTS: AEC II cells were successfully isolated. Treatment with Zang Siwei Qingfei mixture resulted in a decrease in ACE, p-p38/p38, p-ERK1/2/ERK1/2, p-JNK/JNK, p-IκBα/IκB-α, p- NF-κBp65 levels, while increasing ACE2 levels. Zang Siwei Qingfei mixture also led to a reduction in TNF-α, IL6, and AGT levels, while increasing Ang1-7 level. Histological analysis showed that Zang Siwei Qingfei Mixture treatment improved the alveolar structure of ALI mice and reduced inflammatory infiltration. The pretreatment with MLN-4760, an ACE2 inhibitor, resulted in opposite effects compared to Zang Siwei Qingfei Mixture treatment. CONCLUSION: Zang Siwei Qingfei mixture attenuates ALI by regulating the ACE2/NF-κB signaling pathway in mice. This study provides a theoretical foundation for the development of improved ALI treatments.

SRplot: A free online platform for data visualization and graphing.

Graphics are widely used to provide summarization of complex data in scientific publications. Although there are many tools available for drawing graphics, their use is limited by programming skills, costs, and platform specificities. Here, we presented a freely accessible easy-to-use web server named SRplot that integrated more than a hundred of commonly used data visualization and graphing functions together. It can be run easily using all Web browsers and there are no strong requirements on the computing power of users' machines. With a user-friendly graphical interface, users can simply paste the contents of the input file into the text box according to the defined file format. Modification operations can be easily performed, and graphs can be generated in real-time. The resulting graphs can be easily downloaded in bitmap (PNG or TIFF) or vector (PDF or SVG) format in publication quality. The website is updated promptly and continuously. Functions in SRplot have been improved, optimized and updated depend on feedback and suggestions from users. The graphs prepared with SRplot have been featured in more than five hundred peer-reviewed publications. The SRplot web server is now freely available at http://www.bioinformatics.com.cn/SRplot.

Correction: Luan et al. Identification of Critical Genes for Ovine Horn Development Based on Transcriptome during the Embryonic Period. Biology 2023, 12, 591.

In the original publication [1], there were mistakes in the order of the references, which were as follows: [...].

Identification of Critical Genes for Ovine Horn Development Based on Transcriptome during the Embryonic Period.

Horns, also known as headgear, are a unique structure of ruminants. As ruminants are globally distributed, the study of horn formation is critical not only for increasing our understanding of natural and sexual selection but also for the breeding of polled sheep breeds to facilitate modern sheep farming. Despite this, a significant number of the underlying genetic pathways in sheep horn remain unclear. In this study, to clarify the gene expression profile of horn buds and investigate the key genes in horn bud formation, RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) technology was utilized to investigate differential gene expression in the horn buds and adjacent forehead skin of Altay sheep fetuses. There were only 68 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified, consisting of 58 up-regulated genes and 10 down-regulated genes. RXFP2 was differentially up-regulated in the horn buds and had the highest significance (p-value = 7.42 × 10-14). In addition, 32 DEGs were horn-related genes identified in previous studies, such as RXFP2, FOXL2, SFRP4, SFRP2, KRT1, KRT10, WNT7B, and WNT3. Further, Gene Ontology (GO) analysis showed that the DEGs were mainly enriched with regard to growth, development, and cell differentiation. Pathway analysis revealed that the Wnt signaling pathway may be responsible for horn development. Further, through combining the protein-protein interaction networks of the DEGs, it was found that the top five hub genes, namely, ACAN, SFRP2, SFRP4, WNT3, and WNT7B, were also associated with horn development. Our results suggest that only a few key genes, including RXFP2, are involved in bud formation. This study not only validates the expression of candidate genes identified at the transcriptome level in previous studies but also provides new possible marker genes for horn development, which may promote our understanding of the genetic mechanisms of horn formation.

Impacts of ainuovirine-based and efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapies on the lipid profile of HIV/AIDS patients in southern China: a real-world study.

Background: The newly approved third-generation oral anti-HIV-1 drug, ainuovirine (ANV), was used in combination with nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) in our study, and its effects on the lipid profile of antiretroviral-experienced HIV/AIDS patients are unclear. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the effects of antiretroviral agents on the lipid profile in patients with HIV/AIDS. Methods: We conducted a real-world prospective study involving treatment-naive and treatment-experienced adult participants living with HIV-1 infection provided with ANV- or efavirenz (EFV)-based regimens. The primary endpoint was the proportion of participants with an HIV-1 RNA level of <50 copies/mL at week 24 of treatment. Secondary endpoints included the change from baseline in CD4+ T-cell count and lipid profile. Results: A total of 60 treatment-naive and 47 treatment-experienced participants received an ANV-based regimen, while 88 treatment-naive and 47 treatment-experienced participants receiving an EFV-based regimen were, respectively, matched as controls. At week 24 following treatment, the proportion of participants with an HIV-1 RNA level of <50 copies/mL and the mean changes of CD4+ T-cell counts from baseline were significantly higher in naive-ANV group than those in naive-EFV group (p < 0.01). Compared with the EFV group, both naive and experienced ANV groups exhibited a favorable lipid profile, including constant changes in total cholesterol and triglycerides, a significant decrease in LDL-cholesterol (p < 0.0001), and a dramatic increase in HDL-cholesterol (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The efficacy of ANV was non-inferior to EFV when combined with two NRTIs. Patients receiving ANV-based regimens had a decreased prevalence of dyslipidemia.

Quantitative Analysis of Berberidis Cortex via Quantitative Analysis of Multicomponents by Single Marker (QAMS) Combined with Fingerprint and Chemometrics Methods.

Berberidis Cortex is rich in alkaloids, and many of them have antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and hypoglycemic activities. However, few research studies have focused on the quantitative analysis of multiple components from Berberidis Cortex. In this study, a new quality evaluation strategy for Berberidis Cortex was developed and validated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), which involved single marker, fingerprint, and stoichiometric methods. Using berberine hydrochloride as an internal reference, the relative correction factors of palmatine hydrochloride, magnoline, and jatrorrhizine hydrochloride were 2.4537, 0.9783, and 1.0035, respectively, and their durabilities were also well performed. In addition, both methods mentioned above were used to compare the mass fractions of four isoquinoline alkaloids in ten batches of Berberidis Cortex from different origins. These results indicated that the approach applied in this study was accurate and feasible. The fingerprints of these ten batches of Berberidis Cortex were established, and eleven components were identified with the similarity greater than 0.993. Both cluster and principal component analysis were carried out based on the peak area of these components, the results demonstrated that these ten batches of Berberidis Cortex were divided into two groups and the distribution of the medicinal material was basically consistent. Therefore, quantitative analysis of multicomponents by single marker (QAMS) can be widely used in the quality control of Berberidis Cortex as theoretical basis.

Astragaloside IV ameliorates pulmonary vascular remodeling in hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension by restraining the T follicular helper cell response and expanding T follicular regulatory cell response.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a progressive disorder lacking a validated and effective therapy which characterized by elevated pulmonary arterial pressure, vascular remodeling and eventual death. FDA approved sildenafil is being used as a first-line drug for PH, however, neither survival rates nor quality of life have been improved because of side effects and patient noncompliance. Thus, the exploration of novel therapeutic drugs is urgently needed. Astragaloside IV (ASIV) exhibits a protective effect on HPH, but its mechanisms of action is unclear. HYPOTHESIS: CD4+T cell subsets, Tfh and Tfr cells, may contribute to the development of chronic hypoxia-induced PH (HPH). We hypothesized that ASIV could effectively ameliorates pulmonary vascular remodeling of HPH by restraining the Tfh cell response and expanding Tfr cell response. METHODS AND RESULTS: HPH mice model was established by exposure to chronic hypoxia for 21 days. Mice were randomly assigned to six groups: NaCl group, model group, SN group (100 mg/kg of sildenafil), low-dose group (20 mg/kg of ASIV), medium-dose group (40 mg/kg of ASIV) and high-dose group (80 mg/kg of ASIV). Primary culture and identification of distal pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) in mice were established. Here, we demonstrated that ASIV treatment could significantly ameliorate the increase of mean PAP, RV/ (LV+S) ratio and PAMT in HPH mice. ASIV inhibited Tfh cell differentiation and IL-21 production, but promoted Tfr cell differentiation and TGF-ß, IL-10 production. Chronic hypoxia promoted germinal center B cell responses, which inhibited by ASIV. ASIV regulated Tfh and Tfr cell differentiation by inhibiting the phosphorylation of mTOR signaling pathway, and the effect of ASIV-H was better than that observed in the SN group. ASIV inhibited the proliferation, migration and adhesion of PASMCs in vitro. Moreover, ASIV significantly downregulated the protein level of RhoA and upregulated the protein level of p27 in PASMCs under hypoxic condition. CONCLUSION: Collectively, ASIV may regulate Tfh and Tfr cell responses to subsequently repress pulmonary vascular remodeling and hypoxic pulmonary hypertension.

Elevated Risk of Venous Thromboembolism in People Living with HIV.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has been generally considered as a highly adaptive and rapidly evolving virus. It still constitutes a major public health problem all over the world despite an effective outcome in the prevention and reversal of the development and prognosis by using antiretroviral therapy. The salient question lies in the more frequent emergence of a series of comorbidities along with the prolongation of the life, which deeply affects the survival in such group. Venous thromboembolism (VTE) has been recognized to be the third most common cardiovascular condition within people living with HIV (PWH). In terms of its mechanism of action, the occurrence of VTE is quite multifactorial and complex in HIV. Prior exploration concerning the etiology of VTE in PWH identifies general, disease-specific, and miscellaneous factors for explaining its occurrence and development. VTE has constituted an important role in PWH and may increase its all-cause mortality. Therefore, it is quite necessary to understand VTE from the following aspects of epidemiology, pathophysiology, molecular mechanisms, and therapeutic interventions so as to balance the risks and benefits of anticoagulation and optimize corresponding treatment.

Differential Expression Profile of microRNAs and Tight Junction in the Lung Tissues of Rat With Mitomycin-C-Induced Pulmonary Veno-Occlusive Disease.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) is characterized by increased pulmonary vascular resistance. Currently, there is a lack of effective treatment. It is of great significance to explore molecular targets for treatment. This study investigated the differential expression profile of miRNAs and tight junction in the lung tissues of rats with mitomycin-C (MMC)-induced PVOD. METHODS: A total of 14 rats were divided into the control group and he PVOD group. We measured mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) and right ventricular hypertrophy index (RVHI). Pathological changes including those in lung tissues, pulmonary venules, and capillary were detected by H&E and orcein staining. Western blot was used to detect GCN2, ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-5 expression. We analyzed the miRNAs profile in the rat lung tissues by high-throughput sequencing. The top differentially expressed miRNAs were validated by using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: There were severe pulmonary artery hypertrophy/hyperplasia, thickening, and occlusion in the small pulmonary veins, pulmonary edema, and dilated capillaries in MMC-induced rats with PVOD. In addition, mPAP and RVHI were significantly increased (P < 0.05). The expression of GCN2 was significantly decreased (P < 0.05). A total of 106 differentially expressed miRNAs were identified. According to the fold changes, the top ten upregulated miRNAs were miRNA-543-3p, miRNA-802-5p, miRNA-493-3p, miRNA-539-3p, miRNA-495, miRNA-380-5p, miRNA-214-5p, miRNA-539-5p, miRNA-190a-3p, and miRNA-431. The top 10 downregulated miRNAs were miRNA-201-3p, miRNA-141-3p, miRNA-1912-3p, miRNA-500-5p, miRNA-3585-5p, miRNA-448-3p, miRNA-509-5p, miRNA-3585-3p, miRNA-449c-5p, and miRNA-509-3p. RT-PCR confirmed that miRNA-214-5p was upregulated, while miRNA-141-3p was downregulated (P < 0.05). Functional analysis showed various signaling pathways and metabolic processes, such as fatty acid biosynthesis, tight junction, and the mTOR signaling pathway. In addition, the expression of the tight junction-related protein of ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-5 was significantly decreased in rats with PVOD (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: miRNAs may be involved in the pathogenesis of PVOD. Furthermore, ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-5 verification confirmed that the tight junction may be involved in the development of the disease.

Triglyceride/High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Ratio is Associated with the Mortality of COVID-19: A Retrospective Study in China.

BACKGROUND: Triglyceride to high density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (TG/HDL-c) is crucial when researching metabolic and vascular diseases, and its involvement in COVID-19 was sparsely elaborated on. The purpose of the study was to explore the inflammatory associations between the TG/HDL-c ratio and COVID-19 prognosis. METHODS: A total of 262 COVID-19 patients consisting of 244 survivors and 18 non-survivors were retrospectively investigated. The clinical features and baseline hematological parameters were recorded and analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was used to explore the role of TG/HDL-c in predicting the mortality of COVID-19, the Spearman's rank correlation coefficients were used to measure the correlation between TG/HDL-c and inflammatory indicators, and the Kaplan-Meier (KM) curve was used to estimate the survival of COVID-19 patients with high and low TG/HDL-c ratio. Logistic regression analyses were performed to investigate the role of TG/HDL-c ratio on mortality of COVID-19 with no underlying diseases. RESULTS: Compared with the survivors, the non-survivors of COVID-19 had significantly higher levels of white blood cells (4.7 vs 13.0 × 109/L; P < 0.001), neutrophils (3.0 vs 11.6 × 109/L; P < 0.001), C-reactive proteins (15.7 vs 76.7 mg/L; P < 0.001) and TG/HDL-c ratio (1.4 vs 2.5; P = 0.001). The ROC curve [area under the curve (AUC), 0.731; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.609-0.853; P = 0.001] suggested that the TG/HDL-c ratio could predict the mortality of COVID-19. The TG/HDL-c ratio was positively correlated with white blood cells (r = 0.255, P < 0.001), neutrophils (r = 0.243, P < 0.001) and C-reactive proteins (r = 0.170, P < 0.006). Patients with high TG/HDL-c ratio showed a worse survival compared with those with low TG/HDL-c ratio (Log rank P = 0.003). Moreover, TG/HDL-c ratio was an independent factor in predicting the mortality of COVID-19 patients with no underlying diseases. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that TG/HDL-c ratio might potentially be a predictive marker for mortality in COVID-19 patients.

Detection of Pulmonary Hypertension by Combining Echocardiography and Chest Radiography.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: In pulmonary hypertension (PH) patients, chest radiographs often show an increase in the diameter of the right descending pulmonary artery (RDPA). The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether a combination of echocardiography and chest radiography for detecting PH is more accurate than echocardiography alone. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between 2013 and 2019, a total of 1301 patients were included in this study. Among them, 1030 patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) were used to establish a linear regression model by combining echocardiographic and chest radiographic variables, and 136 CHD patients and 135 non-CHD patients were used to compare the accuracy between a new model and the 2015 ESC/ERS guidelines for right heart catheterization recommendation. The chest radiographic diameter of the RDPA, and the echocardiography-measured tricuspid regurgitation pressure gradient and the main pulmonary artery diameter were assessed. RESULTS: The TG-RDPA composite index correlated more strongly than either the TG or RDPA (r = 0.741 vs 0.709 or 0.544; both p value <0.001). The TG-RDPA composite index was more accurate in detecting PH than the ESC/ERS 2015 guidelines (overall accuracy: 83.8% vs 77.1%; missed diagnoses rate: 12.0% vs 22.5%). The overall accuracy of the main pulmonary artery-RDPA composite index (r = 0.599, p value <0.001) was 84.1% compared to overall accuracy of 77.1% using the ESC/ERS 2015 guidelines. CONCLUSION: A combination of echocardiography and chest X-ray may be a more accurate way to detect PH and an alternative method for suspected PH patients without tricuspid regurgitation velocity.

Automated Diagnosis of COVID-19 Using Deep Supervised Autoencoder With Multi-View Features From CT Images.

Accurate and rapid diagnosis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from chest CT scans is of great importance and urgency during the worldwide outbreak. However, radiologists have to distinguish COVID-19 pneumonia from other pneumonia in a large number of CT scans, which is tedious and inefficient. Thus, it is urgently and clinically needed to develop an efficient and accurate diagnostic tool to help radiologists to fulfill the difficult task. In this study, we proposed a deep supervised autoencoder (DSAE) framework to automatically identify COVID-19 using multi-view features extracted from CT images. To fully explore features characterizing CT images from different frequency domains, DSAE was proposed to learn the latent representation by multi-task learning. The proposal was designed to both encode valuable information from different frequency features and construct a compact class structure for separability. To achieve this, we designed a multi-task loss function, which consists of a supervised loss and a reconstruction loss. Our proposed method was evaluated on a newly collected dataset of 787 subjects including COVID-19 pneumonia patients, other pneumonia patients, and normal subjects without abnormal CT findings. Extensive experimental results demonstrated that our proposed method achieved encouraging diagnostic performance and may have potential clinical application for the diagnosis of COVID-19.

Performance of D-dimer to lymphocyte ratio in predicting the mortality of COVID-19 patients.

Background: Nowadays, there is still no effective treatment developed for COVID-19, and early identification and supportive therapies are essential in reducing the morbidity and mortality of COVID-19. This is the first study to evaluate D-dimer to lymphocyte ratio (DLR) as a prognostic utility in patients with COVID-19. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 611 patients and separated them into groups of survivors and non-survivors. The area under the curve (AUC) of various predictors integrated into the prognosis of COVID-19 was compared using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. In order to ascertain the interaction between DLR and survival in COVID-19 patients, the Kaplan-Meier (KM) curve was chosen. Results: Age (OR = 1.053; 95% CI, 1.022-1.086; P = 0.001), NLR (OR = 1.045; 95% CI, 1.001-1.091; P = 0.046), CRP (OR = 1.010; 95% CI, 1.005-1.016; P < 0.001), PT (OR = 1.184; 95% CI, 1.018-1.377; P = 0.029), and DLR (OR = 1.048; 95% CI, 1.018-1.078; P = 0.001) were the independent risk factors related with the mortality of COVID-19. DLR had the highest predictive value for COVID-19 mortality with the AUC of 0.924. Patients' survival was lower when compared to those with lower DLR (Log Rank P <0.001). Conclusion: DLR might indicate a risk factor in the mortality of patients with COVID-19.

Computed Tomography Image under Convolutional Neural Network Deep Learning Algorithm in Pulmonary Nodule Detection and Lung Function Examination.

The objective of this study was to perform segmentation and extraction of CT images of pulmonary nodules based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs). The Mask-RCNN algorithm model is a typical end-to-end image segmentation model, which uses the R-FCN structure for nodule detection. The effect of applying the two algorithm models to the computed tomography (CT) diagnosis of pulmonary nodules was analyzed, and different indexes of pulmonary nodule CT images in lung function examination after algorithm optimization were compared. A total of 56 patients diagnosed with pulmonary nodules by surgery or puncture were taken as the research objects. Based on the Mask-RCNN algorithm, a model for CT image segmentation processing of pulmonary nodules was proposed. Subsequently, the 3D Faster-RCNN model was used to label the nodules in the pulmonary nodules. The experimental results showed that the trained Mask-RCNN algorithm model can effectively complete the segmentation task of lung CT images, but there was a little jitter at the boundary. The speed of R-FCN algorithm for nodular detection was 0.172 seconds/picture, and the accuracy was 88.9%. CT scans were performed on the 56 patients based on a deep learning algorithm. The results showed that 30 cases of malignant pulmonary nodules were confirmed, and the diagnostic accuracy was 93.75%. There were 22 benign lesions, the diagnostic accuracy was 91.67%, and the overall diagnostic accuracy was 92.85%. This study effectively improved the diagnostic efficiency of CT images of pulmonary nodules, and the accuracy of CT images in the diagnosis of pulmonary nodules was analyzed and evaluated. It provided theoretical support for the follow-up diagnosis of pulmonary nodules and the treatment of lung cancer. It also significantly improved the diagnostic effect and detection efficiency of pulmonary nodules.

Association between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease with the susceptibility and outcome of COVID-19: A retrospective study.

This study aims to evaluate the effect of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) on the susceptibility and consequences of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We retrospectively collected data from 218 adult COVID-19 patients who showed no evidence of excessive alcohol consumption and underwent abdominal ultrasound examinations. Of these patients, 39.4% patients had been diagnosed with NAFLD, which indicates a much higher prevalence of NAFLD than that reported in the general population. Significantly elevated white blood cell count (p = 0.008), alanine aminotransferase (p = 0.000), aspartate aminotransferase (p = 0.006) and C reactive protein (p = 0.012) were found in the patients with NAFLD. These patients also had significantly higher proportions of hypertension (p = 0.006) and diabetes (p = 0.049) than the non-NAFLD cases. No significant differences existed in the severity, mortality, viral shedding time and length of hospital stay between patients with or without NAFLD in the sample population. However, subgroup analyses found that in patients with normal body mass index (BMI), NAFLD sufferers were more likely to experience a severe event (30.0% vs 11.5%, p = 0.021). Kaplan-Meier curve (log-rank p = 0.017) and Cox regression (HR = 3.26, 95% CI: 1.17-9.04, p = 0.023) analyses confirmed that before and after adjusting for gender, age and comorbidities, NAFLD patients with normal BMI had a higher incidence of suffering severe events. People with NAFLD may have a higher proportion of COVID-19. NAFLD may be correlated with the severity of COVID-19 patients in the normal BMI group.

The Differences and Changes of Semi-Quantitative and Quantitative CT Features of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pneumonia in Patients With or Without Smoking History.

Objective: To assess CT features of COVID-19 patients with different smoking status using quantitative and semi-quantitative technologies and to investigate changes of CT features in different disease states between the two groups. Methods: 30 COVID-19 patients with current smoking status (29 men, 1 woman) admitted in our database were enrolled as smoking group and 56 COVID-19 patients without smoking history (24 men, 32 women) admitted during the same period were enrolled as a control group. Twenty-seven smoking cases and 55 control cases reached recovery standard and were discharged. Initial and follow-up CT during hospitalization and follow-up CT after discharge were acquired. Thirty quantitative features, including the ratio of infection volume and visual-assessed interstitial changes score including total score, score of ground glass opacity, consolidation, septal thickening, reticulation and honeycombing sign, were analyzed. Results: Initial CT images of the smoking group showed higher scores of septal thickening [4.5 (0-5) vs. 0 (0-4), p = 0.001] and reticulation [0 (0-5.25) vs 0 (0-0), p = 0.001] as well as higher total score [7 (5-12.25) vs. 6 (5-7), p = 0.008] with statistical significance than in the control group. The score of reticulation was higher in the smoking group than in the control group when discharged [0.89 (0-0) vs. 0.09 (0-0), p = 0.02]. The score of septal thickening tended to be higher in the smoking group than the control group [4 (0-4) vs. 0 (0-4), p = 0.007] after being discharged. Quantitative CT features including infection ratio of whole lung and left lung as well as infection ratio within HU (-750, -300) and within HU (-300, 49) were higher in the control group of initial CT with statistical differences. The infection ratio of whole lung and left lung, infection ratio within HU (-750), and within HU (-750, -300) were higher in the control group with statistical differences when discharged. This trend turned adverse after discharge and the values of quantitative features were generally higher in the smoking group than in the control group without statistical differences. Conclusions: Patients with a history of smoking presented more severe interstitial manifestations and more residual lesion after being discharged. More support should be given for COVID-19 patients with a smoking history during hospitalization and after discharge.

LncRNA KCNQ1OT1 activated by c-Myc promotes cell proliferation via interacting with FUS to stabilize MAP3K1 in acute promyelocytic leukemia.

Uncontrolled proliferation is the hallmark of cancer cells. Previous studies mainly focused on the role of protein-coding genes in cancer cell proliferation. Emerging evidence showed that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) also play critical roles in cancer cell proliferation and growth. LncRNA KCNQ1OT1 is found to contribute to carcinogenesis, but its role in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is unclear. In this study, by analyzing data from Gene Expression Omnibus, The Cancer Genome Atlas database and our clinical samples, we found that KCNQ1OT1 was selectively highly expressed in APL. Functional assays demonstrated that knockdown of KCNQ1OT1 reduced APL cell proliferation and increased apoptosis. Further evidence showed that KCNQ1OT1 was mainly located in the cytoplasm of APL patient-derived NB4 cells and APL patient bone marrow samples. Mechanistically, KCNQ1OT1 bound to RNA binding protein FUS, and silencing either KCNQ1OT1 or FUS reduced the expression level and stability of MAP3K1 mRNA. Whereas KCNQ1OT1 and FUS did not affect each other. Importantly, knockdown of MAP3K1 impaired APL cell proliferation. Finally, c-Myc transactivated KCNQ1OT1 in APL cells through binding to its promoter while knockdown of c-Myc decreased KCNQ1OT1 expression. Our results not only revealed that c-Myc transactivated KCNQ1OT1 and upregulated KCNQ1OT1 promoted APL cell proliferation, but also demonstrated that KCNQ1OT1 bound to FUS to synergistically stabilize MAP3K1 mRNA, thus facilitating APL cell proliferation. This study established a previously unidentified role of KCNQ1OT1 in the development of APL, and KCNQ1OT1 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for APL.

The Role of High-Density Lipoprotein in COVID-19.

The current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has become a global challenge. Managing a large number of acutely ill patients in a short time, whilst reducing the fatality rate and dealing with complications, brings unique difficulties. The most striking pathophysiological features of patients with severe COVID-19 are dysregulated immune responses and abnormal coagulation function, which can result in multiple-organ failure and death. Normally metabolized high-density lipoprotein (HDL) performs several functions, including reverse cholesterol transport, direct binding to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to neutralize LPS activity, regulation of inflammatory response, anti-thrombotic effects, antioxidant, and anti-apoptotic properties. Clinical data shows that significantly decreased HDL levels in patients with COVID-19 are correlated with both disease severity and mortality. However, the role of HDL in COVID-19 and its specific mechanism remain unclear. In this analysis, we review current evidence mainly in the following areas: firstly, the pathophysiological characteristics of COVID-19, secondly, the pleiotropic properties of HDL, thirdly, the changes and clinical significance of HDL in COVID-19, and fourthly the prospect of HDL-targeting therapy in COVID-19 to clarify the role of HDL in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 and discuss the potential of HDL therapy in COVID-19.