Knowledge and awareness of nicotine, nicotine replacement therapy, and electronic cigarettes among general practitioners with a special interest in respiratory medicine in China.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the knowledge and awareness of nicotine, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), and electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) among general practitioners with a special interest (GPwSIs) in respiratory medicine. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from October 2021 to February 2022. Knowledge and awareness were compared among smokers and non-smokers, as well as different age and gender groups. Results: The study consisted of 102 GPwSIs from 21 cities in Sichuan Province, China. Most respondents would recommend NRT for long-term use. Only a few believed that e-cigarettes are an effective means of smoking cessation and 71.6% would not recommend e-cigarettes as a substitute for cigarettes to their patients. Additionally, the majority did not regularly provide extensive help to assist patients in quitting smoking and needed smoking cessation counseling training. Conclusion: GPwSIs in respiratory medicine in China could have a relatively low level of knowledge and awareness regarding nicotine, NRT, and e-cigarettes. The study highlights the need for smoking cessation training among GPwSIs to improve their knowledge and provide better assistance to patients who want to quit smoking.

Upregulation of cGMP-dependent Protein Kinase (PRKG1) in the Development of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the molecular regulatory mechanisms underlying fibroblast differentiation and dysfunction in the development of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) in an effort to identify candidate therapeutic targets for AIS. METHODS: The GSE110359 dataset, obtained from the bone marrow stromal cells of 12 AIS patients and five healthy controls, was retrieved from the GEO database. The data were preprocessed and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. KEGG pathway and Gene Ontology (GO)-Biological Process (BP) enrichment analyses were performed to identify the function of the DEGs. A protein-protein interaction (PPI) and a microRNA-transcription factor (TF)-target co-regulatory network were constructed to identify hub genes in the development of AIS. In addition, hub DEGs were evaluated by quantitative PCR (qPCR) and immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: A total of 188 DEGs including 100 up-regulated and 88 down-regulated genes were obtained. The up-regulated DEGs were related to "p53 signaling pathway", "FoxO signaling pathway", and "cGMP-PKG signaling pathway" terms, while the down-regulated DEGs were significantly enriched in seven terms including "protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum". The key up-regulated genes, PRKG1, CCNG2, and KAT2B, and the key down-regulated genes, MAP2K1 and DUSP6, were identified by the PPI and miRNA-TF-Target regulatory network analyses. mRNA expression patterns for PRKG1, DUSP6, and KAT2B were successfully verified by qPCR. In addition, PRKG1 protein levels were found to be elevated during the immunohistochemical analysis. CONCLUSION: Increased expression of PRKG1 in AIS patients might be an attractive therapeutic target for AIS. However, further gain or loss-of-function studies should be conducted.

Identification of the relationships between sagittal plane and coronal plane curvature in guppy models.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between sagittal plane and coronal plane curvatures in guppies by investigating the curvature angles of sagittal and sagittal-coronal guppies. METHODS: After mating between 1000 spinal curvature guppies, 124 guppies (3-month old) were screened from progenies for the present study. Photos of all fishes were taken and the sagittal and coronal angles were calculated via angle measure tool of Photoshop 12.0 software. All data were analyzed by SPSS 11.0. RESULTS: In sagittal and sagittal-coronal curvature guppies, there was a significant linear correlation between sagittal angles and coronal angles. In 48 sagittal-coronal curvatures, their sagittal angles were above 40°, meanwhile, in 76 sagittal guppies, their sagittal angles were mostly below 40°. CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicated that the occurrence of coronal curvature might be later than sagittal curvature and could be influenced by other factors. Sagittal angles 40° might be involved in the onset of coronal curvature.

There may be a same mechanism of the left-right handedness and left-right convex curve pattern of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

The mechanism of the left-right handedness and pathogenesis of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is still unclear. We speculated that the pathogenesis of AIS may different from the mechanism of the laterality of convex curve pattern in AIS patients. This laterality may have correlation with the right dominance of handedness. The location and gravity of heart and aorta may determine the trend of lateral flexion and axial rotation of normal spine, which may be the reason of both left-right handedness and left-right convex curve pattern of AIS.