Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 at the Huanan Seafood Market.

SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19, emerged in December 2019. Its origins remain uncertain. It has been reported that a number of the early human cases had a history of contact with the Huanan Seafood Market. Here we present the results of surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 within the market. From January 1st 2020, after closure of the market, 923 samples were collected from the environment. From 18th January, 457 samples were collected from 18 species of animals, comprising of unsold contents of refrigerators and freezers, swabs from stray animals, and the contents of a fish tank. Using RT-qPCR, SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 73 environmental samples, but none of the animal samples. Three live viruses were successfully isolated. The viruses from the market shared nucleotide identity of 99.99% to 100% with the human isolate HCoV-19/Wuhan/IVDC-HB-01/2019. SARS-CoV-2 lineage A (8782T and 28144C) was found in an environmental sample. RNA-seq analysis of SARS-CoV-2 positive and negative environmental samples showed an abundance of different vertebrate genera at the market. In summary, this study provides information about the distribution and prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in the Huanan Seafood Market during the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak.

DNA methylation role in subgenome expression dominance of Juglans regia and its wild relative J. mandshurica.

Subgenome expression dominance plays a crucial role in the environmental adaptation of polyploids. However, the epigenetic molecular mechanism underlying this process has not been thoroughly investigated, particularly in perennial woody plants. Persian walnut (Juglans regia) and its wild relative, Manchurian walnut (Juglans mandshurica), are woody plants of great economic importance and are both paleopolyploids that have undergone whole-genome duplication events. In this study, we explored the characteristics of subgenome expression dominance in these 2 Juglans species and examined its epigenetic basis. We divided their genomes into dominant subgenome (DS) and submissive subgenome (SS) and found that the DS-specific genes might play critical roles in biotic stress response or pathogen defense. We comprehensively elucidated the characteristics of biased gene expression, asymmetric DNA methylation, transposable elements (TEs), and alternative splicing (AS) events of homoeologous gene pairs between subgenomes. The results showed that biased expression genes (BEGs) in 2 Juglans species were mainly related to external stimuli response, while non-BEGs were related to complexes that might be involved in signal transduction. DS genes had higher expression and more AS events while having less DNA methylation and TEs than homoeologous genes from the SS in the 2 Juglans species. Further studies showed that DNA methylation might contribute to the biased expression of gene pairs by modifying LTR/TIR/nonTIR TEs and improving the AS efficiency of corresponding precursor mRNAs in a particular context. Our study contributes to understanding the epigenetic basis of subgenome expression dominance and the environmental adaptation of perennial woody plants.

A retrospective study revealing complex viral diversity and a substantial burden of HPV infection in SARS-CoV-2 positive individuals, Sierra Leone.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the critical role of sequencing technology in disease control and outbreak response. However, resource limitations and challenging environments often impede such efforts in low and middle-income countries. This study aimed to investigate the spectrum of viral co-infections, particularly with human viral pathogens, in SARS-CoV-2 positive individuals in Sierra Leone using metagenomic sequencing, evaluating the feasibility of utilizing this technology for epidemiological and evolutionary surveillance of pathogens related to public health in low-income environments. METHODS: We retrospectively collected and analyzed 98 nasopharyngeal swab specimens from SARS-CoV-2 positive individuals in Sierra Leone. Samples were pre-processed locally and transferred to China via FTA cards for metagenomic sequencing, which was performed using the Novaseq platform. The study focused on the identification of nasopharyngeal viruses co-infecting with SARS-CoV-2, with a deeper analysis of significant human viral pathogens such as HPV. RESULTS: The study identified 22 viral taxa from 20 families, including 4 human viruses. Notably, 19.4% of samples showed HPV co-infection with 34 distinct types, predominantly beta and gamma HPVs. Multiple HPV types were found in individual samples, indicating a high complexity of viral co-infections. CONCLUSIONS: The identification of a wide range of co-infecting viruses, particularly multiple HPV genotypes, highlights the complexity of viral interactions and their potential implications for public health. These findings enhance our understanding of viral co-infections and provide valuable insights for public health interventions in Sierra Leone. Further research is needed to explore the clinical significance of these findings and their impact on disease outcomes.

Ezetimibe ketone protects against renal ischemia-reperfusion injury and attenuates oxidative stress via activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway.

Recently, ezetimibe (EZM) has been suggested to be a potent Nrf2 activator that is important for preventing oxidative stress. Interestingly, we found that its metabolite ezetimibe ketone (EZM-K) also has antioxidant effects. Thus, we investigated the role of EZM-K in preventing renal ischemia‒reperfusion injury (RIRI). Cultured NRK-52E cells were subjected to simulated IR with or without EZM-K. Rats were used to simulate in vivo experiments. EZM-K alleviated H2O2-induced apoptosis and reactive oxygen species (ROS) and upregulated Nrf2 and HO-1 levels in NRK-52E cells. A HO-1 and a Nrf2 inhibitor reversed the protective effects of EZM-K. In the rat RIRI model, pretreatment with EZM-K activated the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway, suppressed tubular injury and inflammation, and improved renal function. EZM-K significantly prevented renal injury caused by ischemia‒reperfusion via the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling axis both in vivo and in vitro. The other metabolite of EZM, ezetimibe glucuronide (EZM-G) had no protective effects against ROS in RIRI. EZM-G also had no antioxidant effects and could not activate Nrf2/HO-1 signal pathway. Our findings also indicated the therapeutic potential of EZM-K in preventing RIRI.

Silencing LINC00491 inhibits prostate cancer development through the miR-384/TRIM44 axis.

Accumulating evidence has demonstrated the key role of long noncoding (lnc)RNAs in tumorigenesis. Prostate cancer (PCa) is a cancer with high mortality that requires further exploration of the underlying molecular mechanisms. In the present study, we aimed to discover novel potential biomarkers for diagnosing PCa and targeting treatment. Overexpression of the lncRNA, LINC00491, was verified in PCa tumor tissues and cell lines using the real-time polymerase chain reaction. Cell proliferation and invasion were then analyzed via the Cell Counting Kit-8, colony formation, and transwell assays in vitro, and tumor growth in vivo. The interaction of miR-384 with LINC00491, as well as TRIM44, was investigated via bioinformatics analyses, subcellular fractionation, luciferase reporter gene assays, radioimmunoprecipitation, pull-down, and western blot analyses. LINC00491 was overexpressed in PCa tissues and cell lines. LINC00491 knockdown resulted in impaired cell proliferation and invasion in vitro and decreased tumor growth in vivo. Moreover, LINC00491 acted as a sponge for miR-384 and its downstream target, TRIM44. Additionally, miR-384 expression was downregulated in PCa tissues and cell lines, and its expression was negatively correlated with LINC00491. A miR-384 inhibitor restored the inhibitory effects of LINC00491 silencing on PCa cell proliferation and invasion. LINC00491 is a tumor promoter in PCa via enhancing TRIM44 expression by sponging miR-384 to facilitate the development of PCa. LINC00491 plays a significant role in PCa and could serve as both a biomarker for early diagnosis and a novel treatment target.

A rapid and highly sensitive multiple detection of human adenovirus type 3, type 7 and respiratory syncytial virus by recombinase-aided reverse transcription PCR.

BACKGROUND: Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been widely used for many pathogen detection. However, PCR technology still suffers from long detection time and insufficient sensitivity. Recombinase-aided amplification (RAA) is a powerful nucleic acid detection tool with high sensitivity and amplification efficiency, but its complex probes and inability of multiplex detection hinder the further application of this technology. METHODS: In this study, we developed and validated the multiplex reverse transcription recombinase-aided PCR (multiplex RT-RAP) assay for human adenovirus 3 (HADV3), human adenovirus 7 (HADV7), and human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) within 1 h with Human RNaseP protein as a reference gene to monitor the whole process. RESULTS: Using recombinant plasmids, the sensitivity of multiplex RT-RAP for the detection of HADV3, HADV7, and HRSV was 18, 3, and 18 copies per reaction, respectively. The multiplex RT-RAP showed no cross-reactivity with other respiratory viruses, demonstrating its good specificity. A total of 252 clinical specimens were tested by multiplex RT-RAP and the results were found to be consistent with those of corresponding RT-qPCR assays. After testing serial dilutions of selected positive specimens, the detection sensitivity of multiplex RT-RAP was two to eightfold higher than that of corresponding RT-qPCR. CONCLUSION: We conclude the multiplex RT-RAP is a robust, rapid, highly sensitive, and specific assay with the potential to be used in the screening of clinical samples with low viral load.

Aspect Ratio Dependence of Heat Transfer in a Cylindrical Rayleigh-Bénard Cell.

While the heat transfer and the flow dynamics in a cylindrical Rayleigh-Bénard (RB) cell are rather independent of the aspect ratio Γ (diameter/height) for large Γ, a small-Γ cell considerably stabilizes the flow and thus affects the heat transfer. Here, we first theoretically and numerically show that the critical Rayleigh number for the onset of convection at given Γ follows Ra_{c,Γ}∼Ra_{c,∞}(1+CΓ^{-2})^{2}, with C≲1.49 for Oberbeck-Boussinesq (OB) conditions. We then show that, in a broad aspect ratio range (1/32)≤Γ≤32, the rescaling Ra→Ra_{ℓ}≡Ra[Γ^{2}/(C+Γ^{2})]^{3/2} collapses various OB numerical and almost-OB experimental heat transport data Nu(Ra,Γ). Our findings predict the Γ dependence of the onset of the ultimate regime Ra_{u,Γ}∼[Γ^{2}/(C+Γ^{2})]^{-3/2} in the OB case. This prediction is consistent with almost-OB experimental results (which only exist for Γ=1, 1/2, and 1/3) for the transition in OB RB convection and explains why, in small-Γ cells, much larger Ra (namely, by a factor Γ^{-3}) must be achieved to observe the ultimate regime.

The value of cystatin C in predicting perioperative and long-term prognosis of renal transplantation.

This study aimed to evaluate the value of cystatin C (Cys C) in predicting the perioperative and long-term prognosis of renal transplantation (RT). The clinical data of 198 RT recipients were collected. Blood samples were obtained daily until 7 d after transplantation and then discharge day to determine the serum levels of Cys C. The receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and the area under the curve (AUC) were used to determine the diagnostic accuracy of Cys C for delayed graft function (DGF). The presence of shrunken pore syndrome (SPS) with a cystatin C-based estimate of glomerular filtration rate less than 70% of a creatinine-based estimate, was also evaluated as a prognostic factor for the development of DGF. The serum Cys C levels of patients with DGF were higher than those of the non-DGF group. Cys C showed a higher AUC (0.928) in the ROC analysis than did sCr (0.862). Compared to the non-SPS group, there were more patients diagnosed with SPS in the DGF group (p < .05). The follow-up data showed that patients diagnosed with SPS had higher levels of sCr and Cys C compared to other patients, suggesting a poor long-term prognosis. Our findings suggest that Cys C is a sensitive indicator of renal function during the perioperative period. Cys C at a concentration of 4.9 mg/L had the highest sum of sensitivity and specificity for prediction of DGF, with a sensitivity of 0.889 and a specificity of 0.8. SPS is associated with the development of DGF and the poor long-term prognosis of RT.

Metformin exerts an antitumor effect by inhibiting bladder cancer cell migration and growth, and promoting apoptosis through the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway.

BACKGROUND: To observe and explore the effect of metformin on the migration and proliferation of bladder cancer T24 and 5637 cells in vitro. METHODS: Bladder cancer T24 and 5637 cell lines were cultured in vitro, and were divided into group A (blank control group) and group B (metformin group: 5, 10, 15, and 20 mmol/L); both groups were plated on 6-well plates at the same time. Culture in 24-well plates was used for wound healing assays and in 96-well plates for Transwell migration and invasion, and Cell Counting Kit-8 proliferation experiments. We observed and detected the cell migration and proliferation ability of each group at 48 h, and calculated the cell migration area and survival rate. Flow cytometry was used to detect cell apoptosis in the groups. The apoptosis-related proteins, cleaved-caspase 3, cleaved-PARP, and the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway member proteins PI3K, phosphorylated (p)-PI3K, AKT, p-AKT, mTOR, and p-mTOR were detected using western blotting. RESULTS: After 48 h of treatment with different concentrations of metformin, the cell migration and proliferation capabilities were significantly lower than those in the blank control group. The proliferation and migration abilities of T24 and 5637 cells decreased in a metformin concentration-dependent manner (P < 0.05). The apoptosis rate under different concentrations of metformin, as detected by flow cytometry, showed a significantly higher rate in the metformin group than in the control group (P < 0.05). Compared with that in the control group, the level of cleaved-caspase 3 and cleaved-PARP protein in the metformin group was increased in each treatment group, and the levels of p-mTOR, p-AKT, and p-PI3K decreased significantly compared with those in the control group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Metformin inhibited bladder cancer T24 and 5637 cell migration and proliferation, and induced their apoptosis. The mechanism might involve inhibition of the activation of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

Apolipoprotein C1 stimulates the malignant process of renal cell carcinoma via the Wnt3a signaling.

BACKGROUND: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a clinically common tumor in the urinary system, showing an upward trend of both incidence and mortality. Apolipoprotein C1 (APOC1) has been identified as a vital regulator in tumor progression. This study aims to uncover the biological function of APOC1 in RCC process and the underlying mechanism. METHODS: Differential levels of APOC1 in RCC samples and normal tissues in a downloaded TCGA profile and clinical samples collected in our center were detected by quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR). The prognostic value of APOC1 in RCC was assessed by depicting Kaplan-Meier survival curves. After intervening APOC1 level by transfection of sh-APOC1 or oe-APOC1, changes in phenotypes of RCC cells were examined through CCK-8, colony formation, Transwell assay and flow cytometry. Subsequently, protein levels of EMT-related genes influenced by APOC1 were determined by Western blot. The involvement of the Wnt3a signaling in APOC1-regulated malignant process of RCC was then examined through a series of rescue experiments. Finally, a RCC xenograft model was generated in nude mice, aiming to further clarify the in vivo function of APOC1 in RCC process. RESULTS: APOC1 was upregulated in RCC samples. Notably, its level was correlated to overall survival of RCC patients, displaying a certain prognostic value. APOC1 was able to stimulate proliferative, migratory and invasive abilities in RCC cells. The Wnt3a signaling was identified to be involved in APOC1-mediated RCC process. Notably, Wnt3a was able to reverse the regulatory effects of APOC1 on RCC cell phenotypes. In vivo knockdown of APOC1 in xenografted nude mice slowed down the growth of RCC. CONCLUSIONS: APOC1 stimulates the malignant process of RCC via targeting the Wnt3a signaling.

Risk factors associated with postoperative complications after liver cancer resection surgery in western China.

OBJECTIVES: Postoperative complications increase the workload of nursing staff as well as the financial and mental distress suffered by patients. The objective of this study is to identify clinical factors associated with postoperative complications after liver cancer resection surgery. METHODS: Data from liver cancer resections occurring between January 1st, 2019 to December 31st, 2019 was collected from the Department of Liver Surgery in West China Hospital of Sichuan University. The Kruskal-Wallis test and logistic regression were used to perform single-factor analysis. Stepwise logistic regression was used for multivariate analysis. Models were established using R 4.0.2 software. RESULTS: Based on data collected from 593 cases, the single-factor analysis determined that there were statistically significant differences in BMI, incision type, incision length, duration, incision range, and bleeding between cases that experienced complications within 30 days after surgery and those did not. Stepwise logistic regression models based on Kruskal-Wallis test and single-factor logistic regression determined that BMI, incision length, and duration were the primary factors causing complications after liver resection. The adjust OR of overweight patients and patients with obesity (stage 1) compared to low weight patients were 0.12 (95% CI:0.02-0.72) with p = 0.043 and 0.18 (95% CI:0.03-1.00) with p = 0.04, respectively. An increase of 1 cm in incision length increased the relative risk by 13%, while an increase of 10 min in surgical duration increased the relative risk by 15%. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of postoperative complications after liver resection can be significantly reduced by controlling factors such as bleeding, incision length, and duration of the surgery.

Kinesin family member 23 (KIF23) contributes to the progression of bladder cancer cells in vitro and in vivo.

The aim of our study was to detect the expression of KIF23 in human bladder cancer tissues and to assess the potential role of KIF23 in bladder cancer progression. The expression of KIF23 and the correlation with bladder cancer patients were explored using the TCGA database. Additionally, IHC assays were also performed to detect KIF23 expression in 95 bladder cancer tissues and corresponding non-tumor tissues collected in our hospital. Colony formation, MTT, and flow cytometry (FCM) assays were performed to detect its effects on bladder cancer cell proliferation and apoptosis, respectively. An animal model was developed to found the effects of KIF23 on tumor growth in mice. Data showed that the KIF23 expression was upregulated in human bladder cancer tissues. The expression of KIF23 was correlated with the prognosis and clinicopathological features, including T stage (p=0.022) and recurrence (p=0.020), of bladder cancer patients. KIF23 depletion inhibited the proliferation of bladder cancer cells, stimulated apoptosis, and suppressed tumor growth in mice. We demonstrated the involvement of KIF23 in bladder cancer progression and provided a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of bladder cancer.

Overexpression of Capns1 Predicts Poor Prognosis and Correlates with Tumor Progression in Renal Cell Carcinoma.

INTRODUCTION: Calpain small subunit 1 (Capns1) has shown its correlation with the metastasis and invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. However, the expression and function of Capns1 in human renal cell carcinoma (RCC) have not been clarified. This study aimed to examine the expression of Capns1 in RCC tissues and cell lines and to assess its role performed in RCC. METHODS: Capns1 expression was evaluated in 75 pairs of RCC and matched adjacent non-tumor tissues by immunohistochemistry. The prognostic value of Capns1 in RCC was assessed by Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses. The action of Capns1 in the proliferation, adhesion, migration, and invasion of RCC cells and the effects on matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) 2 and 9 expression were evaluated after Capns1 silence. RESULTS: Capns1 expression was significantly higher in RCC tissues compared with the adjacent non-tumor tissues. Multivariate analysis showed that Capns1 overexpression was an independent poor prognostic marker in RCC. The silencing of Capns1 prohibited cell adhesion and impaired the migration and invasion ability of 786-O cells in vitro. Furthermore, Capns1 silence reduced MMP2 and MMP9 expression. CONCLUSION: Capns1 overexpression predicts poor prognosis and correlates with tumor progression in RCC. Capns1 expression might serve a prognostic marker and therapeutic target for RCC.

Association of outdoor air pollution with the medical expense of ischemic stroke: The case study of an industrial city in western China.

Ischemic stroke, the most frequent cause of severe disability, imposes a significant mental and economic burden on patients and their families. There is increasing evidence to indicate that air pollution contributes to the risk of ischemic stroke. This study aimed to examine the correlation between air pollution and the expense imposed by an ischemic stroke. Data were obtained from hospitals and environmental monitoring stations in an industry city, Longspring, in western China. We used a generalized additive model to estimate the associations between the two factors, measured during 2015-2017. Counter-intuitively, the medical expenses arising from ischemia were negatively associated with the level of air pollution. The corresponding ER for per interquartile range increase of PM2.5, PM10, SO2 , and NO2 in lag10 was -0.17% (95% confidence interval (95% CI -0.31%, -0.03%), -0.11% (95% CI -0.2%, -0.02%), -1.04% (95% CI -1.92%, -0.17%) and -0.44% (95% CI -0.66%, -0.22%), respectively (p < 0.05). Subgroups based on gender, age, and season were considered in the analysis. The results indicated that pollutants had significant effects on ischaemia's medical expenses, which were stronger for older people, patients who survived, and warm seasons. This study is the first step in optimizing medical resources, which are essential for policymaking and service planning.

A circulating exosomal microRNA panel as a novel biomarker for monitoring post-transplant renal graft function.

Accurate and effective biomarkers for continuous monitoring of graft function are needed after kidney transplantation. The aim of this study was to establish a circulating exosomal miRNA panel as non-invasive biomarker for kidney transplant recipients. Plasma exosomes of 58 kidney transplant recipients and 27 healthy controls were extracted by gel exclusion chromatography and characterized by transmission electron microscopy, nanoparticle tracking analysis and Western blotting. Post-transplant renal graft function was evaluated by estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to determine the expression of exosomal microRNAs (miRNAs). Exosomal miR-21, miR-210 and miR-4639 showed negative correlations with eGFR in the training set and were selected for further analysis. In the validation set, miR-21, miR-210 and miR-4639 showed the capability to discriminate between subjects with chronic allograft dysfunction (eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 ) and those with normal graft function (eGFR > 90 mL/min/1.73 m2 ). Three-miRNA panel exhibited higher accuracy compared with individual miRNAs or double indicators. One-year follow-up revealed a stable recovery of allograft function in subjects with low calculated score from three-miRNA panel (below the optimal cut-off value). In conclusion, a unique circulating exosomal miRNA panel was identified as an effective biomarker for monitoring post-transplant renal graft function in this study.

Novel One-Step Single-Tube Nested Quantitative Real-Time PCR Assay for Highly Sensitive Detection of SARS-CoV-2.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a public health emergency. The reverse transcriptase real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) test is currently considered as the gold standard in the laboratory for the etiological detection of COVID-19. However, qRT-PCR results could be false-negative due to the inadequate sensitivity of qRT-PCR. In this study, we have developed and evaluated a novel one-step single-tube nested quantitative real-time PCR (OSN-qRT-PCR) assay for the highly sensitive detection of SARS-CoV-2 targeting the ORF1ab and N genes. The sensitivity of the OSN-qRT-PCR assay was 1 copy/reaction and 10-fold higher than that of the commercial qRT-PCR kit (10 copies/reaction). The clinical performance of the OSN-qRT-PCR assay was evaluated using 181 clinical samples. Among them, 14 qRT-PCR-negative samples (7 had no repetitive results and 7 had no cycle threshold (CT) values) were detected by OSN-qRT-PCR. Moreover, the 7 qRT-PCR-positives in the qRT-PCR gray zone (CT values of ORF1ab ranged from 37.48 to 39.07, and CT values of N ranged from 37.34 to 38.75) were out of the gray zone and thus were deemed to be positive by OSN-qRT-PCR, indicating that the positivity of these samples is confirmative. Compared to the qRT-PCR kit, the OSN-qRT-PCR assay revealed higher sensitivity and specificity, showing better suitability to clinical applications for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in patients with low viral load.

Comparison of third-generation sequencing approaches to identify viral pathogens under public health emergency conditions.

The capability of high-throughput sequencing (HTS) for detection of known and unknown viruses timely makes it a powerful tool for public health emergency response. Third-generation sequencing (TGS) offers advantages in speed and length of detection over second-generation sequencing (SGS). Here, we presented the end-to-end workflows for both Oxford Nanopore MinION and Pacbio Sequel on a viral disease emergency event, along with Ion Torrent PGM as a reference. A specific pipeline for comparative analysis on viral genomes recovered by each platform was assembled, given the high errors of base-calling for TGS platforms. All the three platforms successfully identified and recovered at least 85% Norovirus GII genomes. Oxford Nanopore MinION spent the least sample-to-answer turnaround time with relatively low but enough accuracy for taxonomy classification. Pacbio Sequel recovered the most accurate viral genome, while spending the longest time. Overall, Nanopore metagenomics can rapidly characterize viruses, and Pacbio Sequel can accurately recover viruses. This study provides a framework for designing the appropriate experiments that are likely to lead to accurate and rapid virus emergency response.

Increased Serum Levels of Hepcidin and Ferritin Are Associated with Severity of COVID-19.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to assess the diagnostic utility of iron homeostasis determinations for prediction of severity of COVID-19. MATERIAL AND METHODS This was a retrospective study enrolling a total of 50 patients diagnosed with the novel coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) from February 27, 2020 to March 30, 2020, including a severe group (12 patients) and a mild group (38 patients). For the control group, 50 healthy people were examined during the same period. We compared clinical laboratory data and iron homeostasis biomarkers among the 3 groups. ROC curve analysis was used to assess diagnoses. RESULTS Patients diagnosed with severe COVID-19 had higher hepcidin and serum ferritin levels than in other groups (p<0.001). A combination test of hepcidin and serum ferritin provided the best specificity and sensitivity in the prognosis of COVID-19 severity. Logistic regression analysis showed hepcidin and serum ferritin independently contributed to the severity of COVID-19. Hepcidin and serum ferritin tandem testing predicted COVID-19 severity with 94.6% specificity, while hepcidin and serum ferritin parallel testing had a sensitivity of 95.7%. CONCLUSIONS Iron homeostasis had a robust association with the occurrence of severe COVID-19. Iron homeostasis determinations were specific and sensitive for the early prediction of disease severity in COVID-19 patients and thus have clinical utility.

A case control study on the prevalence of enterovirus in children samples and its association with diarrhea.

Some serotypes of enterovirus (EV) may lead to transient and symptomatic gastrointestinal infections while others are commensal residents of the human gut. To determine whether certain EV types are more often associated with diarrhea, we conducted a preliminary study on the prevalence of EV serotypes and common diarrhea viruses in fecal samples of diarrhea children and healthy controls. EV was tested with one step nest polymerase chain reaction and typed by direct sequencing while common causative diarrhea viruses rotavirus (RV), norovirus (NoV), adenovirus (AdV), bocavirus (HBoV), and astrovirus (AstV) were screened with multiplex PCR assays. Human Rhinovirus (HRV) and human EVs that were present in both groups were further quantified and their odds ratios (OR) were calculated. Enteric pathogens were detected in 89 (32.6%) of 273 children with diarrhea and included human EVs (51, 18.68%), HRV (32, 11.72%), RV (38, 13.92%), AdV (24, 8.79%), NoVGII (16, 8.79%), HBoV (8, 2.93%) and AstV (3, 1.09%). Potential enteric pathogens were found in 25 (6.93%) of 361 healthy controls and included human EV (59, 16.34%), HRV (8, 2.22%), RV (1, 0.28%), NoVGII (5, 1.39%), AstV (2, 0.55%), AdV (16, 4.43%) and HBoV (1, 0.28%). In addition, EV71, echovirus 3,9,14,25 and coxsackievirus A14 existed in healthy controls only, while HRV, echovirus11,18, coxsackievirus A2,4,6 and B2,4 were found in both patients and healthy controls. OR assessment confirmed a strong association of HRV (P < 0.001) and a weak one for echovirus 11 and coxsackievirus A6 with diarrhea (P > 0.05). Our results indicate the diversity of EV serotypes in diarrhea and healthy control groups varies, and the potential etiological role of HRV in diarrhea.

Knockdown of NSD2 Suppresses Renal Cell Carcinoma Metastasis by Inhibiting Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition.

Background: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for around 85% of all primary kidney neoplasms, which is one of top 10 common cancers worldwide. Nuclear receptor suppressor of variegation, enhancer of zeste, and trithorax (SET) domain-containing 2 (NSD2), belonging to NSD protein family, functions as an oncogene in the pathogenesis of multiple cancers. Methods: GEO database was used to analyze the expression of NSD2 mRNA in renal cancer. Furthermore, NSD2 protein level in clear cell RCC (ccRCC) tissues was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Knockdown efficiency of different siRNAs was evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and western blot analysis. The biological role and molecular mechanism of NSD2 in RCC metastasis were investigated via a series of functional experiments. Results: NSD2 mRNA was massively amplified in several types of renal cancer, especially in metastatic ccRCC. The expression level of NSD2 protein was elevated in ccRCC tissues, but not correlated with pathological grading. The migratory and invasive properties were significantly repressed in NSD2-silenced RCC cells, concurrent with an increase of E-cadherin expression and a decrease of N-cadherin and Vimentin expression. Conclusion: Down-regulation of NSD2 could potently suppress cell migration and invasion through inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), indicating that NSD2 may be a potential therapeutic target for metastatic RCC.