Research progress in RNA interference against the infection of mosquito-borne viruses.

Mosquito-borne diseases have become an important public health issue of global concern because of their high incidence and transmission rate. As a vector for mosquito-borne diseases, studying the interaction mechanism between mosquitoes and mosquito-borne viruses will help control mosquito-borne diseases. The impaired innate immunity and immune barriers evasion caused by mosquito-borne viruses in mosquitoes pose a potential risk for the persistent infection of the virus in mosquitoes and the outbreak of mosquito-borne diseases. The RNA interference (RNAi) pathway, as a powerful antiviral defense barrier in mosquitoes, can inhibit viral replication and transmission by producing a variety of small RNAs to degrade viral RNA. In this review, we summarize the related studies on the innate immune mechanism against mosquito- borne virus infection in mosquitoes about small interfering RNA (siRNA), microRNA (miRNA), and Piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA), aiming to provide a theoretical reference for the prevention and control of mosquito-borne diseases.

[Analysis of the changes in aortic root dimension in patients with anterior cerebral infarction].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the relationship between aortic root dimension (ARD) and anterior circulation infarction (ACI) by measuring ARD of ACI patients. METHODS: The ARD of 110 ACI patients (56 men and 54 women) were measured with 2-dimensional ultrasonography during ventricular systole. 66 control subjects (32 men and 34 women) without the clinical signs of cerebral infarction or organic heart disease and cardiac insufficiency were selected after carrying out detailed case history inquiring, physical examination, CT or MRI and ultrasonic examination. RESULTS: ARD in men and women was respectively (29.80 +/- 2.35) mm and (28.88 +/- 3.06) mm in the ACI group. While it was (27.64 +/- 1.70) mm and (26.98 +/- 1.60) mm respectively in the control subjects. ARD in men and women was significantly higher in the ACI group as compared with the control subjects (P < 0.01). Logistic regression analysis indicated that the odds ratio (confidence interval) associated with ARD was 1.630 (1.205 - 2.204) in men and 1.494 (1.098 - 2.033) in women for ACI. CONCLUSIONS: There is a close relationship between ARD and ACI. ARD is an important risk factor of ACI.

Improved survival ratios correlate with myeloid dendritic cell restoration in acute-on-chronic liver failure patients receiving methylprednisolone therapy.

Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a severe life-threatening complication. Liver transplantation is the only available therapeutic option; however, several limitations have restricted its use in patients. The use of corticosteroids as an optional therapy for ACLF has received a great deal of interest. The rationale behind its use is the possible role of the immune system in initiating and perpetuating hepatic damage. In order to assess the relationship between myeloid dendritic cells (mDCs) and the efficacy of methylprednisolone (MP) treatment for hepatitis B virus (HBV)-associated ACLF patients, we recruited 30 HBV-associated ACLF patients who had received MP treatment at 10-day intervals; 26 patients received conservative medical (CM) management as a control. The functionality of DC subsets was lower in these ACLF patients compared with healthy subjects. In addition, compared with survivors, dead/transplanted patients had lower functional mDC in both groups. Furthermore, a decreased numbers of mDC at baseline was associated with high mortality of ACLF patients. Importantly, MP treatment resulted in a significant decrease in 28-day mortality, and all MP patients exhibited an initial rapid decrease in circulating mDC numbers within 10 days of MP treatment. Subsequently, MP survivors displayed a continuous increase in mDC numbers accompanied by a decrease in total bilirubin levels by more than 30%. However, MP dead/transplanted patients lacked these sequential responses compared with survivors. This evidence suggests strongly that the higher mDC numbers at baseline and the recovery of mDC number at the end of treatment may represent a prognostic marker for favorable response to corticosteroid treatment in ACLF patients.