[Analysis of the HIV antibody screening results among the preoperative examination patients in Beijing Tongren Hospital from 2008 to 2018].

Objective: To understand the HIV antibody screening results among the preoperative examination patients in Beijing Tongren Hospital from 2008 to 2018. Methods: A retrospective analysis of the HIV antibody screening data of thepreoperative examination patients from 2008 to 2018 in Beijing Tongren Hospital was performed with software SPSS19.0. Trend chi-square was used to analyze the positive rate, age, marital status, household registration and so on. Results: Among the 750 013 clinical patients, 428 (0.057%) cases were screened anti-HIV positive and 370(0.049%) cases were confirmed anti-HIV positive when detected with western blotting.Most of the HIV-infectedindividuals were non-Beijing nationality, accounting for 60.27%.Among the 370 HIV-infected patients, there were 334 males (90.27%) and 36 females (9.73%). The age was distributed mainly between 20-40 years old (62.43%), secondly between 40-60 years old (28.65%).361 (97.57%)HIV-infected cases were transmitted by the sex and the MSM men increased from 2008 to 2018 (trend χ²=7.307, P=0.007). There were 22 cases (5.95%) with HBsAg positive, 11 cases (2.97%) with anti-HCV positive. Among the 159 HIV-positive patients (42.97%) companied with syphilis specific antibody positive, there were 64 cases (17.30%) with TRUST tests positive. Additionally, 178 (48.11%) HIV-infected patientsfirst visited doctors because of ocular disease in the hospital; secondly, 71 (19.19%) HIV-infected patientsfirst visited the dermatology. Conclusions: The number of HIV-infected patientsmarkedly increased from 2008 to 2018. The sexual transmission is still the main pathway for HIV infection, particularly homosexual transmission. Moreover, the results indicate that it is necessary to detect HIV antibody for the ocular disease patients.

Effects of fasting and feeding on the fast-start swimming performance of southern catfish Silurus meridionalis.

This study investigated the effects of fasting and feeding on the fast-start escape swimming performance of juvenile southern catfish Silurus meridionalis, a sit-and-wait forager that encounters extreme fasting and famine frequently during its lifespan. Ten to 30 days of fasting resulted in no significant change in most of the variables measured in the fast-start response except a 20-30% decrease in the escape distance during the first 120 ms (D120ms ) relative to the control group (48 h after feeding). The ratio of the single-bend (SB) response (lower energetic expenditure) to the double-bend (DB) response increased significantly from 0% in the control group to 75 and 82·5% in the 20 and 30 day fasting groups, respectively. Satiated feeding (25% of body mass) resulted in a significantly lower (36·6%) maximum linear velocity (Vmax ) and a significantly lower (43·3%) D120ms than in non-fed fish (control group, 48 h after feeding). Half-satiated feeding (12·5% of body mass), however, showed no significant effects on any of the measured variables of the fast-start response relative to control fish. It is suggested that the increase in the ratio of SB:DB responses with fasting in S. meridionalis may reflect a trade-off between energy conservation and maintaining high Vmax , while variables of fast-start performance were more sensitive to feeding than fasting might be an adaptive strategy to their foraging mode and food availability in their habitat.

An interspecific comparison between morphology and swimming performance in cyprinids.

Flow regimes are believed to be of major evolutionary significance in fish. The flow regimes inhabited by cyprinids vary extensively from still flow regimes to riptide flow regimes. To test (i) whether flow-driven swimming performance and relevant morphological differentiation are present among fish species and (ii) whether evolutionary shifts between high-flow and low-flow habitats in cyprinids are associated with evolutionary trade-offs in locomotor performance, we obtained data on both steady and unsteady swimming performance and external body shape for 19 species of cyprinids that typically occur in different flow regimes (still, intermediate and riptide). We also measured the routine energy expenditure (RMR) and maximum metabolic rate (MMR) and calculated the optimal swimming speed. Our results showed that fish species from riptide groups tend to have a higher critical swimming speed (Ucrit ), maximum linear velocity (Vmax ) and fineness ratio (FR) than fish from the other two groups. However, there was no correlation between the reconstructed changes in the steady and unsteady swimming performance of the 19 species. According to the phylogenetically independent contrast (PIC) method, the Ucrit was actively correlated with the MMR. These results indicated that selection will favour both higher steady and unsteady swimming performance and a more streamlined body shape in environments with high water velocities. The results suggested that steady swimming performance was more sensitive to the flow regime and that for this reason, changes in body shape resulted more from selective pressure on steady swimming performance than on unsteady swimming performance. No evolutionary trade-off was observed between steady and unsteady swimming performance, although Ucrit and MMR were found to have coevolved. However, a further analysis within each typically occurring habitat group suggested that the trade-off that may exist between steady and unsteady swimming performance may be concealed by the effect of habitat.

Down-regulation of miR-192 protects against rat ischemia-reperfusion injury after myocardial infarction.

Since this article has been suspected of research misconduct and the corresponding authors did not respond to our request to prove originality of data and figures, "Down-regulation of miR-192 protects against rat ischemia-reperfusion injury after myocardial infarction, by J. Dong, Y. Zhao, X.-K. He, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2018; 22 (18): 6109-6118-DOI: 10.26355/eurrev_201809_15950-PMID: 30280798" has been withdrawn. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. https://www.europeanreview.org/article/15950.

Down-regulation of miR-192 protects against rat ischemia-reperfusion injury after myocardial infarction.

OBJECTIVE: DJ-1-phosphate and tension homology deleted on chromosome ten/phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B (PTEN/PI3K/AKT) signaling pathway plays a role in the regulation of ischemic reperfusion (I-R) injury. Bioinformatics analysis demonstrated that there is a complementary binding site between microRNA-192 (miR-192) and the 3'-UTR of DJ-1 mRNA. This study investigated the role of miR-192 in regulating DJ-1-PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway and myocardial I-R injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS: miR-122 and DJ-1 mRNA expressions in myocardial tissue were detected by Real-time PCR (RT-PCR). DJ-1, PTEN, and phosphorylated AKT (p-AKT) protein expressions were tested by Western blot. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) content was measured by flow cytometry. Malondialdehyde (MDA) content and superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme activity were detected by the kits. I-R treatment was performed at 72 h after transfection. Cell apoptosis was evaluated with flow cytometry. RESULTS: Compared with sham group, miR-192, PTEN expressions and MDA content were significantly increased (p<0.05), while DJ-1, p-AKT levels and SOD activities were significantly reduced (p<0.05) in myocardial tissue of I-R group. Compared with control, I-R treatment significantly up-regulated miR-192 level, significantly decreased DJ-1 and p-AKT proteins, significantly elevated PTEN expression, and significantly induced apoptosis and ROS production in H9C2 cells (p<0.05). Transfection of miR-192 inhibitor significantly enhanced DJ-1 level, declined PTEN expression, elevated p-AKT level, and restrained apoptosis, ROS production and MDA content, and promoted SOD activity in H9C2 cells under I-R condition. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of miR-192 increased significantly, while the expression of DJ-1 reduced obviously during I-R injury after myocardial infarction. Down-regulation of miR-192 markedly enhanced DJ-1 expression and PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway activity, inhibited cell apoptosis and ROS generation, and reduced I-R injury in cardiomyocytes.

Silibinin alleviates inflammation and induces apoptosis in human rheumatoid arthritis fibroblast-like synoviocytes and has a therapeutic effect on arthritis in rats.

Silibinin, a natural polyphenolic flavonoid, possesses anti-oxidant, anti-inflammation and anti-cancer properties. The present study was designed to investigate the effects of silibinin on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pathogenesis-related cells and collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) and further explore the potential underlying mechanisms. Our results showed that silibinin suppressed cell viability and increased the percentage of apoptotic RA-fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS). Furthermore, the production of inflammatory cytokines in RA-FLS and a CIA rat model was effectively inhibited by silibinin. Silibinin also induced macrophage M2 polarization in RAW264.7 cells. We further demonstrated that silibinin inhibits Th17 cell differentiation in vitro. The nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway was suppressed in RA-FLS. In addition, Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) was decreased after silibinin treatment, and RA-FLS transfection with a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) of SIRT1 enhanced silibinin-induced apoptosis. Autophagy was markedly decreased in a dose-dependent manner following silibinin treatment. These findings indicate that silibinin inhibited inflammation by inhibiting the NF-κB pathway, and SIRT1 may participate in silibinin-induced apoptosis. Silibinin also inhibited autophagy in RA-FLS. Thus, silibinin may be a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of RA.

Interventional endoscopic treatment of upper gastrointestinal bleeding--when, how, and how often.

Acute upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is still associated with high mortality. Reducing the rebleeding rate is the major challenge in therapeutic endoscopy. The following article describes the indications, techniques and limitations of endoscopic treatment of upper GI bleeding. Endoscopic techniques such as endoscopic sclerotherapy (EIS), endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL), cyanoacrylate obliteration, argon plasma coagulation (APC), and the application of hemoclip are described and compared concerning their efficacy. The pros and cons of "second-look" endoscopy are discussed.