D-dimer levels is associated with severe COVID-19 infections: A meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: The ongoing pandemic of COVID-19 caused by the novel coronavirus Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an emerging, rapidly evolving situation. Excluded typical manifestation of pneumonia and acute respiratory symptoms, COVID-19 patients also have abnormal D-dimer concentration in the serum, but the results are controversial. METHOD: A meta-analysis first aims to explored the connection between D-dimer concentration and COVID-19 patients. RESULTS: Our results found a significant relationship between D-dimer and COVID-19, with a pooled OR of 1.90 (95% CI: 1.32-2.48; P < .001). The pooled data were calculated with the REM as a high heterogeneity within the studies. The sensitivity analysis results showed that the WMD ranged from 1.69 (95% CI: 1.15 to 2.23) to 2.06 (95% CI: 1.51 to 2.62) and there was no publication bias. CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis showed that the severity of patients with COVID-19 significance related to D-dimer concentrations. Meanwhile, the severe COVID-19 patients tend to have a higher concentration of D-dimer when compared with non-severe patients. REVIEW CRITERIA: We used MASH word and searched the online database and followed the inclusion and exclusion standard. The detailed information can be found in the text. MESSAGE FOR THE CLINIC: Our meta-analysis showed that the severity of patients with COVID-19 significance related to D-dimer concentrations. This may be helpful for the clinic COVID-19 patients.

Adaptive single replica multiple state transition interface sampling.

The multiple state transition path sampling method allows sampling of rare transitions between many metastable states, but has the drawback that switching between qualitatively different pathways is difficult. Combination with replica exchange transition interface sampling can in principle alleviate this problem, but requires a large number of simultaneous replicas. Here we remove these drawbacks by introducing a single replica sampling algorithm that samples only one interface at a time, while efficiently walking through the entire path space using a Wang-Landau approach or, alternatively, a fixed bias. We illustrate the method on several model systems: a particle diffusing in a simple 2D potential, isomerization in a small Lennard Jones cluster, and isomerization of the alanine dipeptide in explicit water.

Global morbidity and mortality of lower respiratory infections: A population -based study.

BACKGROUND: This study provides a comprehensive, comparative and updated estimates of temporal patterns of lower respiratory infections (LRIs) globally over the past three decades. METHODS: The data on morbidity and mortality of patients with LRIs at the global, regional and national levels were retrieved from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 study. RESULTS: Globally, the incident cases of LRIs increased from 414,342,866 [95% uncertainty interval (UI):383,529,625 to 449, 086,938]in 1990 to 488,902,504(95% UI: 457,572,987 to 522,635,542)in 2019 with the age standardized incidence rate (ASIR) decreased from 8,276/100,000 persons (95% UI: 7,727 to 8,892) to 6,295/100,000 persons (95% UI: 5,887 to 6,737) between 1990 and 2019. Number of LRIs deaths were 2,493,200 (95% UI: 2,268,184 to 2,736,184) in 2019, a decrease of 24.9% (95% UI: -34.4 to -15.4) in the past 30 years. Meanwhile, the age-standardized death rate (ASDR) declined also from 67/100,000 persons (95% UI: 61 to 73) in 1990 to 34/100,000 persons (95% UI: 31 to 38) in 2019. Moreover, the numbers and age-standardized rates per 100,000 persons of morbidity and mortality varied widely by age, sex, Socio-Demographic Index (SDI) quintiles, and geographical locations in 2019. CONCLUSION: LRIs remain a major public health concern . Some differences in age, sex, SDI quintiles, and geographical locations contribute to LRIs-related global health policy development and health system resource optimization.

Multiple state transition interface sampling of alanine dipeptide in explicit solvent.

We have applied the recently developed multiple state transition interface sampling approach to alanine dipeptide in explicit water. We extract the rate constant matrix for configurational changes between each pair of metastable states. The results are comparable with values from previous literature and show that the method is applicable to biomolecular systems.

[Study on the expression and the role of macrophage migration inhibitory factor in the brain of neonatal rats with hypoxia-ischemia brain damage].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the expression of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), phosphorylated extracellular signal regulated kinases 1/2 (pERK1/2), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) in brain and the correlations with cerebral edema after hypoxia-ischemia brain damage (HIBD). METHODS: 144 seven-day-old SD rats were randomly dividend into three groups that was the sham operation group, HIBD group and intervention group with anti-MIF. Each group were executed in 1 h, 6 h, 12 h and 24 h, 3 d, and 7 d. The expression of MIF, MMP-9 protein in the right cerebral cortex was detected with immunohistochemistry methods, the relative content of pERK1/2 was detected with Western blot and the water content of brain was evaluated with dry-wet method. RESULTS: Comparing with the sham group the expression of MIF in the HIBD group began to increase on 1 h, and peaked on 24 h (P < 0.05), and MMP-9 began to express on 6 h, and also peaked on 24 h (P < 0.05), while pERK1/2 expressed rapidly to peak on 1 h, and quickly decreased on 6 h, and began to increase on 12 h and reached the peak again on 24 h (P < 0.05). Being treated with hypoxia-ischemia, the water content of brain began to increase on 6 h and peaked on 3 d (P < 0.05). And comparing with HIBD group, the expressions of MIF, pERK1/2, MMP-9 and the water contents were decreased obviously in the anti-MIF group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The increased expression of MIF in the neonatal rats with hypoxia-ischemia brain damage maybe via activing the ERK1/2 ways to induce MMP-9 expressand leading to cerebral edema.

The photodissociation mechanisms of acrylonitrile: Ab initio calculations on reaction channels and surface intersections.

The dissociations of CH(2)CHCN into CH(2)CH+CN and CH(2)C+HCN in the S(0), T(1), and (1)pi(2)pi(C[triple bond]N) ( *) (definitions of pi orbitals can refer to computational details) states, have been explored at the complete active space self-consistent field level of theory employing the Dunning correlation consistent triple-zeta basis set. The lowest energy points of the surface crossing seams have been searched. Two conical intersections, from (1)pi(C[triple bond]N)pi(1) ( *) to (1)pi(2)pi(1) ( *) (CI(1)) and from (1)pi(2)pi(1) ( *) to S(0) (CI(2)), and one intersystem crossing point (T(1)/S(0)) have been located. The energies of all critical points have been recomputed with the multiconfigurational second-order perturbation method. At each conical intersection, derivative coupling and unscaled gradient difference vectors have been analyzed to determine the relaxation channels that the molecule may evolve in after nonradiative decay. Once the molecule is photoexcited to the (1)pi(2)pi(1) ( *) or (1)pi(C[triple bond]N)pi(1) ( *) state, it would relax along the similar pathway: funneling through CI(1) and then CI(2), and finally populate the ground state. Our results show that upon 193 nm photoexcitation, the most probable reaction channel is the ground-state HCN elimination following radiationless decays from excited states through surface crossings, which consists with experimental results J. Chem. Phys. 108, 5784 (1998). The investigated dissociation channels on the (1)pi(2)pi(C[triple bond]N) ( *) surface, which are inaccessible upon 193 nm photoexcitation, may provide information for reactions induced by higher energy excitations.