Protective Role of TRPC3 Gene Polymorphism (rs10518289) in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Hypopnea Syndrome Among Hypertensive Patients.

BACKGROUND Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) presents a significant health concern, particularly among individuals with essential hypertension (EH). Understanding the genetic underpinnings of this association is crucial for effective management and intervention. We investigated the relationship between TRPC3 gene polymorphisms and susceptibility to OSAHS in patients with EH. MATERIAL AND METHODS We enrolled 373 patients with EH hospitalized at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University between April 2015 and November 2017. Patients were categorized into EH (n=74) and EH+OSAHS (n=299) groups according to the apnea-hypopnea index. Sequenom detection technology was used for TRPC3 gene single-nucleotide polymorphism genotyping, including genotypes at rs953691, rs10518289, rs2292232, rs4995894, rs951974, and rs4292355. RESULTS Sex, smoking history, alcohol history, hypertension duration, fasting blood glucose, urea, creatinine, total cholesterol, HDL-C, LDL-C, glycosylated hemoglobin, 24-h mean systolic BP, and 24-h mean diastolic BP were not significantly different between the 2 groups (P>0.05); however, age, BMI, triglyceride levels differed significantly (P<0.05). No significant difference was detected in distribution frequency of polymorphisms of TRPC3 gene between the 2 groups (P>0.05), while genotype, dominant genotype, and recessive genotype at rs10518289 and alleles at rs4292355 differed significantly (P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed age, BMI, and CG+GG genotypes at rs10518289 were risk factors for OSAHS in patients with EH. Interaction between TRPC3 (rs10518289) and obesity was not a risk of OSAHS with EH (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS CC genotype of rs10518289 in the TRPC3 gene could be a protective genetic marker of OSAHS, and CG+GG genotype may be a risk genetic marker of OSAHS with EH.

Meta-analysis of the Correlation between Helicobacter Pylori Infection and the risk of Colorectal Neoplasia.

Objective: To study the association of H. pylori infection with colorectal adenomas. Methods: Web searches of PubMed, Embase, and Scopus databases for randomized controlled trials, class-experimental studies, and cohort studies on the association between H. pylori and colorectal adenomas were performed from May 2000 to May 2023. Literature was screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, data were extracted and evaluated for quality, and statistical analyses were performed using RevMan 5.2 software. Results: A total of 15 studies were included, and meta-analysis showed a statistically significant difference between colorectal neoplastic polyp cases in the H. pylori-positive and H. pylori-negative groups [OR=1.80, 95%CI: (1.31, 2.47), P < .01, I2 = 95%]. Analysis based on subgroups of different H. pylori detection methods showed that the correlation between H. pylori infection and colorectal polyp incidence is not affected by their detection methods, with serological detection subgroup: [OR=0.13, 95%CI: (0.05, 0.21), P < .01, I2 = 88%], and non-serological detection subgroup: [OR=0.13, 95%CI: (0.04, 0.22), P < .01, I2 = 95%]. Subgroup analysis of pathological types showed that H. pylori infection is not significantly associated with the development of non-neoplastic polyps [OR=1.47, 95%CI: 0.98-2.22, P = .06], whereas it is correlated with the development of neoplastic polyps [95%CI: 1.69-3.22, P < .01]. In the subgroup analysis of geographic differences in the population, H. pylori infection was correlated with the development of colorectal polyps in different geographic populations (P < .01). Conclusion: H. pylori infection is a risk factor for colorectal polyp neoplasia, its infection is associated with colorectal neoplasia, and the correlation is not affected by the different methods of H. pylori detection and the different geographic regions of the population.

Impact of Visceral Fat Area on Intraoperative Complexity and Surgical Approach Decision for Robot-Assisted Partial Nephrectomy: A Comparative Analysis with BMI.

BACKGROUND Optimizing surgical approaches for robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) is vital for better patient outcomes. This retrospective study aimed to examine how visceral fat area (VFA) and body mass index (BMI) correlate with intraoperative complexities, thereby guiding the selection of surgical techniques for RAPN. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study analyzed the medical records of 213 Chinese patients diagnosed with a range of benign and malignant renal neoplasms and treated with RAPN in 2020. Visceral fat area was quantified using computed tomography (CT) scans taken at the umbilical level. Various perioperative indicators, such as demographic details, clinicopathological parameters, operation time, estimated blood loss (EBL), warm ischemic time (WIT), and intraoperative complications, were assessed. RESULTS For the retroperitoneal approach, patients with either visceral obesity or general obesity had longer operation times (P<0.001 and P=0.004) and had a tendency for higher EBL (P=0.003 and P=0.001) compared to non-obese patients. In the transperitoneal approach, those with visceral obesity had significantly longer operation times (P=0.008) than their non-viscerally obese counterparts; however, general obesity showed no impact on operation time (P=0.251). Estimated blood loss was higher for patients with visceral obesity (P=0.004), but no significant difference was noted among those with general obesity (P=0.980). CONCLUSIONS VFA appears to offer predictive advantages over BMI in assessing intraoperative complexities for transperitoneal RAPN. When used in conjunction with BMI, it could serve as a valuable tool in selecting the most appropriate surgical approach for RAPN.

Characteristics of soil microbial communities in farmland with different comprehensive fertility levels in the Panxi area, Sichuan, China.

Soil bacterial communities are intricately linked to ecosystem functioning, and understanding how communities assemble in response to environmental change is ecologically significant. Little is known about the assembly processes of bacteria communities across agro-ecosystems, particularly with regard to their environmental adaptation. To gain further insights into the microbial community characteristics of agro-ecosystems soil in the Panxi area of Sichuan Province and explore the key environmental factors driving the assembly process of the microbial community, this study conducted field sampling in major farmland areas of Panxi area and used Illumina MiSeq high-throughput sequencing technology to conduct bacterial sequencing. Soil organic matter (SOM), alkali-hydrolyzed nitrogen (AN), available phosphorus (AP), available potassium (AK) and other environmental factors were determined. The membership function method and principal component analysis method were used to evaluate the fertility of the soil. The results revealed minimal differences in alpha diversity index among samples with different comprehensive fertility indices, while NMDS analysis showed that community differences between species were mainly reflected in high fertility and low fertility (R: 0.068, p: 0.011). Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria and Actinobacteria were the main types of microbial communities, accounting for more than 60% of the relative abundance. Proteobacteria accounted for a higher proportion in the high fertility samples, while Acidobacteria and Actinobacteria accounted for a higher proportion in the middle and low fertility samples. Both the neutral theoretical model and zero model analysis showed that the microbial communities in tobacco-planting soil with different comprehensive fertility indices presented a random assembly process. With the increase in environmental distance difference, the diversity of the microbial community in medium and low-fertility soil also increased, but there was no significant change in high-fertility soil. Redundancy analysis showed that pH and SOM were the key factors affecting microbial community composition. The results of this study can provide a theoretical reference for the study of environmental factors and microbial communities in tobacco-growing soil.

Coordinated Priming of NKG2D Pathway by IL-15 Enhanced Functional Properties of Cytotoxic CD4+CD28- T Cells Expanded in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic autoimmune disorder, and numerous aberrations of T cell responses have been reported and were implicated in its pathophysiology. Recently, CD4-positive T cells with cytotoxic potential were shown to be involved in autoimmune disease progression and tissue damage. However, the effector functions of this cell type and their potential molecular mechanisms in SLE patients remain to be elucidated. In this study, we find that cytotoxic CD4+CD28- T cells are expanded in SLE patients with flow cytometry analysis, and the percentage of CD4+CD28- T cells positively correlates with the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/ACR Damage Index (SDI). Furthermore, our study suggests that interleukin-15 (IL-15) promotes the expansion, proliferation, and cytotoxic function of CD4+CD28- T cells in SLE patients through activation of the Janus kinase3-STAT5 pathway. Further study indicates that IL-15 not only mediates the upregulation of NKG2D, but also cooperates with the NKG2D pathway to regulate the activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) pathway. Together, our study demonstrated that proinflammatory and cytolytic CD4+CD28- T cells expand in SLE patients. The pathogenic potential of these CD4+CD28- T cells is driven by the coupling of the IL-15/IL-15R signaling pathway and the NKG2D/DAP10 signaling pathway, which may open new avenues for therapeutic intervention to prevent SLE progression.

Multiple insights into lignin-mediated cadmium detoxification in rice (Oryza sativa).

Cadmium (Cd) is readily absorbed by rice and enters the food chain, posing a health risk to humans. A better understanding of the mechanisms of Cd-induced responses in rice will help in developing solutions to reduce Cd uptake in rice. Therefore, this research attempted to reveal the detoxification mechanisms of rice in response to Cd through physiological, transcriptomic and molecular approaches. The results showed that Cd stress restricted rice growth, led to Cd accumulation and H2O2 production, and resulted cell death. Transcriptomic sequencing revealed glutathione and phenylpropanoid were the major metabolic pathways under Cd stress. Physiological studies showed that antioxidant enzyme activities, glutathione and lignin contents were significantly increased under Cd stress. In response to Cd stress, q-PCR results showed that genes related to lignin and glutathione biosynthesis were upregulated, whereas metal transporter genes were downregulated. Further pot experiment with rice cultivars with increased and decreased lignin content confirmed the causal relationship between increased lignin and reduced Cd in rice. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of lignin-mediated detoxification mechanism in rice under Cd stress and explains the function of lignin in production of low-Cd rice to ensure human health and food safety.

Aal-circRNA-407 regulates ovarian development of Aedes albopictus, a major arbovirus vector, via the miR-9a-5p/Foxl axis.

Aedes albopictus shows a rapid global expansion and dramatic vectorial capacity for various arboviruses, thus posing a severe threat to global health. Although many noncoding RNAs have been confirmed to play functional roles in various biological processes in Ae. albopictus, the roles of circRNA remain a mystery. In the present study, we first performed high-throughput circRNA sequencing in Ae. albopictus. Then, we identified a cysteine desulfurase (CsdA) superfamily gene-originated circRNA, named aal-circRNA-407, which was the third most abundant circRNA in adult females and displayed a fat body highly expressed manifestation and blood feeding-dependent onset. SiRNA-mediated knockdown of circRNA-407 resulted in a decrease in the number of developing follicles and a reduction in follicle size post blood meal. Furthermore, we demonstrated that circRNA-407 can act as a sponge of aal-miR-9a-5p to promote the expression of its target gene Foxl and eventually regulate ovarian development. Our study is the first to report a functional circRNA in mosquitoes, expanding our current understanding of important biological roles in mosquitoes and providing an alternative genetic strategy for mosquito control.

Multisystem immune-related adverse events due to toripalimab: Two cases-based review.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have significantly improved the survival of patients with advanced tumors. However, immune-related adverse events (irAEs) caused by ICIs, especially high-grade irAEs, are of growing concern. High-grade multisystem irAEs due to toripalimab, a programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) inhibitor, have been rarely reported. Two patients with malignant metastatic tumors were treated with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy. However, both patients developed high-grade multisystem irAEs based on myocarditis, with chest discomfort and malaise as the main clinical manifestation. Both patients had an elevation of cardiac enzymes, abnormal electrocardiography and left ventricular wall motion. Patient 2 was also diagnosed with organizing pneumonia. Immunotherapy was suspended. High-dose intravenous methylprednisolone was immediately initiated. The patients' symptoms were significantly relieved in a short period of time. Immunosuppressants were discontinued at the 6th month follow-up in patient 1 without relapse. However, patient 2 was lost to follow up due to financial reasons. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report regarding ICI-associated myocarditis-pneumonia due to toripalimab, indicating the significance of early recognition and management of high-grade multisystem irAEs in clinical practice.

Effects of Biocontrol Agents Application on Soil Bacterial Community and the Quality of Tobacco.

In this study, to evaluate the effect of different biocontrol agents (BCAs) on the soil bacterial community, we investigated the effects of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, synthetic bacterial community (Aspergillus niger:Bacillus subtilis:Bacillus licheniformis:Streptomyces microflavus = 3:3:3:1, SynCom), and BCAs combined with lime-nitrogen on soil bacterial community by utilizing 16S rRNA sequencing technology. The sequencing shows that BCAs application can improve the value of Shannon and Sobs index of bacterial community during tobacco rosette and vigorous growing period. With the growth of tobacco, the effect of BCAs on the composition and difference of soil bacterial community structure becomes more and more obvious. In terms of average relative richness, the top six phyla of soil bacterial community are Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi, Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and Bacteroidetes. Bacillus amyloliquefaciens application can increase the relative richness of Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes. And the combination between BCAs and lime-nitrogen can increase the relative richness of Gemmatimonadetes and Bacteroidetes. The SynCom also can increase the relative richness of Bacteroidetes, whereas it decreases the relative richness of Acidobacteria. Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and Bacteroidetes showing an extremely significant correlation with pH and exchangeable magnesium (EMg). BCAs application can improve the tobacco yield, effective leaves, and reducing sugar content that also has extremely significant positive correlation with pH and EMg. In conclusion, the results of our field experiments clearly show that BCAs application can significantly affect the soil pH and EMg by changing most of the dominant soil bacterial species. The richness of Bacteroidetes can serve as an indicator of the changes in soil pH and EMg caused by BCAs application.

Preoperative Prediction Value of Pelvic Lymph Node Metastasis of Endometrial Cancer: Combining of ADC Value and Radiomics Features of the Primary Lesion and Clinical Parameters.

Objective: To investigate the value of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value of endometrial cancer (EC) primary lesion and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) three-dimensional (3D) radiomics features combined with clinical parameters for preoperative prediction of pelvic lymph node metastasis (PLNM). Methods: A total of 136 patients with EC confirmed by postoperative pathology were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed. Patients were randomly divided into training set (n = 95) and test set (n = 41) at a ratio of 7 : 3. Radiomics features based on T2WI, DWI, and contrast-enhanced T1WI (CE-T1WI) sequence were extracted and screened, and then radiomics score (Rads-score) was calculated. Clinical parameters and ADC value of EC primary lesion were measured and collected, and their correlation with PLNM was analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to assess the diagnostic efficacy of the model. A nomogram for PLNM was created based on the multivariate logistic regression model. Results: The ADC value of the EC primary lesion showed inverse correlation with PLNM, while CA125 and Rads-score were positively associated with PLNM. A predictive model was proposed based on ADC value, Rads-score, CA125, and MR-reported pelvic lymph node status (PLNS) for PLNM in EC. The area under the curve (AUC) of the model is 0.940; the sensitivity and specificity (87.1% and 90.6%) of the model were significantly higher than that of the MRI morphological signs. Conclusion: A combination of ADC value, MRI 3D radiomics features of the EC primary lesion, and clinical parameters generated a prediction model for PLNM in EC and had a good diagnostic performance; it was a useful supplement to MR-reported PLNS based on MRI morphological signs.

[Application of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in the treatment of persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn]. / 体外膜肺氧合技术在持续肺动脉高压新生儿救治中的临床应用.

OBJECTIVES: To study the clinical value of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) in the treatment of persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical data of 11 neonates with PPHN who were treated with ECMO in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Zhongshan People's Hospital from January 2015 to December 2021, involving the neonates' general information, clinical diagnosis, laboratory results, duration of ECMO treatment, complications during ECMO treatment, length of hospital stay, and outcome. RESULTS: Of the 11 neonates, 10 (91%) had successful weaning from ECMO, and 8 (73%) survived. For the 11 neonates, the mean duration of ECMO treatment was (81±50) hours (range: 26 to 185 hours), the mean duration of ventilator use was (198±105) hours (range: 57 to 392 hours), and the mean length of hospital stay was (22±15) days (range: 2 to 49 days). The oxygenation index and blood lactate level were significantly improved after 24 hours of ECMO treatment among the 11 neonates (P<0.05). Ten neonates had significantly reduced pulmonary artery pressure after 24 hours of ECMO treatment (P<0.05). One neonate had a progressive increase in the pulmonary artery pressure during EMCO treatment, succumbing to death. This neonate was diagnosed with alveolar capillary dysplasia based on the histopathological findings of the lung tissue and whole-exome sequencing results. Among the 11 children, 5 had intracranial hemorrhage, 1 had disseminated intravascular coagulation, 1 had gastric hemorrhage, 2 had pulmonary hemorrhage, 1 had renal insufficiency, and 3 had bleeding at the puncture site during ECMO treatment. CONCLUSIONS: ECMO is effective for the treatment of PPHN, however, the high incidence of complications of ECMO treatment suggests that it is important to carefully assess the indications and timing of ECMO treatment and improve the management of ECMO, which can improve the weaning rate and survival rate.

Nomograms of Combining MRI Multisequences Radiomics and Clinical Factors for Differentiating High-Grade From Low-Grade Serous Ovarian Carcinoma.

Objective: To compare the performance of clinical factors, FS-T2WI, DWI, T1WI+C based radiomics and a combined clinic-radiomics model in predicting the type of serous ovarian carcinomas (SOCs). Methods: In this retrospective analysis, 138 SOC patients were confirmed by histology. Significant clinical factors (P < 0.05, and with the area under the curve (AUC) > 0.7) was retained to establish a clinical model. The radiomics model included FS-T2WI, DWI, and T1WI+C, and also, a multisequence model was established. A total of 1,316 radiomics features of each sequence were extracted; the univariate and multivariate logistic regressions, cross-validations were performed to reduce valueless features and then radiomics signatures were developed. Nomogram models using clinical factors, combined with radiomics features, were developed in the training cohort. The predictive performance was validated by receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis and decision curve analysis (DCA). A stratified analysis was conducted to compare the differences between the combined radiomics model and the clinical model in identifying low- and high-grade SOC. Results: The AUC of the clinical model and multisequence radiomics model in the training and validation cohorts was 0.90 and 0.89, 0.91 and 0.86, respectively. By incorporating clinical factors and multi-radiomics signature, the AUC of the radiomic-clinical nomogram in the training and validation cohorts was 0.98 and 0.95. The model comparison results show that the AUC of the combined model is higher than that of the uncombined models (P= 0.05, 0.002). Conclusion: The nomogram models of clinical factors combined with MRI multisequence radiomics signatures can help identifying low- and high-grade SOCs and a provide a more comprehensive, effective method to evaluate preoperative risk stratification for SOCs.

A Nomogram Combining MRI Multisequence Radiomics and Clinical Factors for Predicting Recurrence of High-Grade Serous Ovarian Carcinoma.

Objective: To develop a combined nomogram based on preoperative multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (mMRI) and clinical information for predicting recurrence in patients with high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC). Methods: This retrospective study enrolled 141 patients with clinicopathologically confirmed HGSOC, including 65 patients with recurrence and 76 without recurrence. Radiomics features were extracted from the mMRI images (FS-T2WI, DWI, and T1WI+C). L1 regularization-based least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression was performed to select radiomics features. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to build the classification models. A nomogram was established by incorporating clinical risk factors and radiomics Radscores. The area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristics, accuracy, and calibration curves were assessed to evaluate the performance of classification models and nomograms in discriminating recurrence. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate the associations between the Radscore or clinical factors and disease-free survival (DFS). Results: One clinical factor and seven radiomics signatures were ultimately selected to establish the predictive model for this study. The AUCs for identifying recurrence in the training and validation cohorts were 0.76 (0.68, 0.84) and 0.67 (0.53, 0.81) with the clinical model, 0.78 (0.71, 0.86) and 0.74 (0.61, 0.86) with the multiradiomics model, and 0.83 (0.77, 0.90) and 0.78 (0.65, 0.90) with the combined nomogram, respectively. The DFS was significantly shorter in the high-risk group than in the low-risk group. Conclusion: By incorporating radiomics Radscores and clinical factors, we created a radiomics nomogram to preoperatively identify patients with HGSOC who have a high risk of recurrence, which may serve as a potential tool to guide personalized treatment.

Unraveling Ultrasonic Stress Response of Nanovesicles by the Mechanochromism of Self-Assembled Polydiacetylene.

The force response of nanosized vesicles shows substantial applications in drug delivery, cancer therapies, and so on. Conventional methods in mechanical studies on vesicles rely on a camera and an optical microscope, which can hardly work for nanosized particles. Herein, we use self-assembled polydiacetylene (PDA) as a chromic mechanoresponsive group to study the responsiveness of nanovesicles under sonication. The sonication-induced deformation of the PDA backbone and reduction in its conjugation length leads to a color transition from blue to red. Three internal and external factors, including greater shear stress, lower polymerization degree, and higher viscosity of the continue phase, have been found to promote the mechanochromism of the vesicles. These results, for the first time, reveal that the force response of vesicles depends on the actual capillary number (correlated with the three explored factors), even at the nanoscale level, which opens a new avenue to mechanical modulation of nanovesicles for the development of vesicle-based bio- and nanotechniques.

A Preliminary Exploration Using Imaging Methods to Predict the Possibility of the Recurrence of Serous Ovarian Cancer in Patients Undergoing Total Resection.

Background: The purpose of our research was to explore the value of preoperative CT and MRI examinations and clinical indicators in the prediction of recurrence of ovarian serous carcinoma in patients who underwent satisfactory staging surgery. Procedure: Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria were installed to screen all patients collected and the eligible patients were divided into two groups. The CT and MRI features and some clinical characteristics of two groups were analyzed, in addition, the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value in tumor solid region was measured. Univariate analysis was used in this study. Results: There were 78 patients with histologically proven ovarian serous carcinoma. According to the strict inclusion and exclusion criteria, we retained 29 patients (recurrence group: 11 patients, no recurrence group: 18 patients). For the peritoneal implantation metastasis in CT or MRI images and Ki67 proliferation index (Ki67 PI), the differences between two cohorts were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The rate of peritoneal metastasis in the recurrence cohort (10/11, 91%) was higher than that in the no recurrence cohort (7/18, 39%). Patients with high Ki67 PI expression had lower recurrence risk than those with low Ki67 PI expression, HR=0.172 (95%CI: 0.050-0.589, P=0.005), and patients without peritoneal planting had lower recurrence risk than those with it, HR=9.373 (95%CI: 1.194-73.551, P=0.033). For FIGO III patients, ipsilateral fallopian tube involvement was statistically significant between the two groups (P < 0.05). The differences in the other preoperative imaging characteristics of ovarian serous cancer, including the volume; capsule of the mass; main components; ADC value; cystic change; bleeding; degree of enhancement of the mainly solid region in 3 periods; and range of tumor involvement in the ovary, uterus, bladder, bowel, and pelvic wall, were not statistically significant. In addition, the differences in the other clinical indicators (i.e., age, FIGO stage) between the two cohorts were not statistically significant. Conclusions: In CT and MRI examinations before surgery, peritoneal implantation metastasis was suggestive of the possibility of the recurrence of serous ovarian carcinoma in the near future. In addition to that, ipsilateral fallopian tube involvement and Ki67 PI may also indicate the possibility of recurrence (the former was only applicable to FIGO III patients).

The predictive value of conventional MRI combined with radiomics in the immediate ablation rate of HIFU treatment for uterine fibroids.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the predictive value of conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) combined with radiomics in determining the nonperfused volume ratio (NPVR) following high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) ablation for uterine fibroids. METHODS AND MATERIALS: A total of 216 symptomatic uterine fibroids in 216 women were subjected to HIFU ablation from October 2015 to March 2020. Baseline clinical and MR parameters acquired before and after HIFU ablation were analyzed, and the NPVR was calculated accordingly. Radiomics features were extracted using A.K. software on T2-weighted imaging (T2WI). The minimum redundancy and maximum relevancy (mRMR) method were used to refine the selected radiomics features. Then, multiple linear regression models, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, and Spearman's rank correlation and Bland-Altman analyses were conducted. RESULTS: Conventional MRI combined with radiomics revealed the signal intensity on T2WI (X9), enhancement degree on T1-weighted imaging (T1WI) (X11), uterine fibroid location (X4), wavelet_glszm_SizeZoneNonUniformity first order (X12) and wavelet_HHH_firstorder_Skewness (X13) negatively affected the NPVR. The resulting regression equation was NPVR = 104.030 - 11.886 × X9 - 5.459 × X11 - 2.776 × X4 - 0.20 × X12 - 16.913 × X13. The adjusted R2 values of the conventional MRI model and combined model were 0.385 and 0.408, respectively, and the two fitted models were statistically significant (p < 0.05). No significant differences were observed between the predicted NPVR value [81 (71, 91) %] of the combined model and the actual NPVR value [89 (77, 97) %] (p > 0.05). In addition, the predicted NPVR was correlated with the actual NPVR (r = 0.655, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The efficiency of the combined model was better than that of the conventional MRI model in predicting the NPVR following HIFU ablation for uterine fibroids. Radiomics is an important supplemental modality to conventional MRI.

Comparison of the treatment efficacy of umbilical mesenchymal stem cell transplantation via renal subcapsular and parenchymal routes in AKI-CKD mice.

BACKGROUND: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have emerged as a promising cell-based therapy for acute kidney injury (AKI). However, the optimal route of MSC transplantation remains controversial, and there have been no comparisons of the therapeutic benefits of MSC administration through different delivery routes. METHODS: In this study, we encapsulated MSCs into a collagen matrix to help achieve local MSC retention in the kidney and assessed the survival of MSCs in vitro and in vivo. After transplanting collagen matrix-encapsulated-MSCs (Col-MSCs) under the renal capsule or into the parenchyma using the same cell dose and suspension volume in an ischemia/reperfusion injury model, we evaluated the treatment efficacy of two local transplantation routes at different stages of AKI. RESULTS: We found that Col-MSCs could be retained in the kidney for at least 14 days. Both local MSC therapies could reduce tubular injury, promote the proliferation of renal tubular epithelial cells on Day 3 and alleviate renal fibrosis on Day 14 and 28. MSC transplantation via the subcapsular route exerts better therapeutic effects for renal functional and structural recovery after AKI than MSC administration via the parenchymal route. CONCLUSIONS: Subcapsular MSC transplantation may be an ideal route of MSC delivery for AKI treatment, and collagen I can provide a superior microenvironment for cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions to stabilize the retention rate of MSCs in the kidney.

Association Between Environmental and Socioeconomic Risk Factors and Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The association between environmental and socioeconomic risk factors and the occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are still inconclusive. A meta-analysis was conducted to address this issue. METHODS: We systematically searched the databases including PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar and collected the related risk factors of HCC before March 6, 2020. Statistical analysis was performed on the odds ratio (OR) value and 95% CI of the correlation between environmental and socioeconomic factors and HCC. Begg's rank correlation test, Egger's linear regression test, and the funnel plot were employed for identification of the publication bias. RESULTS: Out of 42 studies, a total of 57,892 participants were included. Environmental and socioeconomic risk factors including ever educated (illiteracy); race (Black, Hispanic, and Asian); medium and low incomes; occupations (farmer and labor); passive smoking; place of residence (rural); blood aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) adduct level; exposure of pesticide, etc., were statistically increased with the occurrence of HCC (P < 0.05) and OR values and 95% CIs were 1.37 (1.00, 1.89), 2.42 (1.10-5.31), 1.90 (0.87-4.17), 5.36 (0.72-40.14), 1.48 (1.11, 1.96), 1.74 (1.00-3.03), 1.49 (1.06-2.08), 1.52 (1.07-2.18), 1.43 (0.27, 7.51), 1.46 (1.09, 1.96), 2.58 (1.67-3.97), and 1.52 (0.95-2.42), respectively. We found 6-9, 9-12, and ≥12 years of education that statistically reduced the risk of the occurrence of HCC (P < 0.05) and OR values and 95% CIs were 0.70 (0.58, 0.86), 0.52 (0.40, 0.68), and 0.37 (0.23, 0.59), respectively. No significant associations (P > 0.05) were observed between race (Hispanic and Asian), passive smoking, marital status, place of birth, place of residence, and HCC. In stratified analysis, exposure of pesticide was statistically significant (P < 0.05), while race of black was on the contrary. CONCLUSION: Environmental and socioeconomic risk factors have great impacts on the incidence rate of HCC. Improving national education and income levels can significantly reduce the risk of HCC. PROSPERO REGISTRATION: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier: CRD42020151710.

Mycobacterium bovis induces mitophagy to suppress host xenophagy for its intracellular survival.

Mitophagy is a selective autophagy mechanism for eliminating damaged mitochondria and plays a crucial role in the immune evasion of some viruses and bacteria. Here, we report that Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis) utilizes host mitophagy to suppress host xenophagy to enhance its intracellular survival. M. bovis is the causative agent of animal tuberculosis and human tuberculosis. In the current study, we show that M. bovis induces mitophagy in macrophages, and the induction of mitophagy is impaired by PINK1 knockdown, indicating the PINK1-PRKN/Parkin pathway is involved in the mitophagy induced by M. bovis. Moreover, the survival of M. bovis in macrophages and the lung bacterial burden of mice are restricted by the inhibition of mitophagy and are enhanced by the induction of mitophagy. Confocal microscopy analysis reveals that induction of mitophagy suppresses host xenophagy by competitive utilization of p-TBK1. Overall, our results suggest that induction of mitophagy enhances M. bovis growth while inhibition of mitophagy improves growth restriction. The findings provide a new insight for understanding the intracellular survival mechanism of M. bovis in the host.Abbreviations: BMDM: mouse bone marrow-derived macrophage; BNIP3: BCL2/adenovirus E1B interacting protein 3; BNIP3L/NIX: BCL2/adenovirus E1B interacting protein 3-like; BCL2L13: BCL2-like 13 (apoptosis facilitator); CCCP: carbonyl cyanide m-cholorophenyl hydrazone; FUNDC1: FUN14 domain-containing 1; FKBP8: FKBP506 binding protein 8; HCV: hepatitis C virus; HBV: hepatitis B virus; IFN: interferon; L. monocytogenes: Listeria monocytogenes; M. bovis: Mycobacterium bovis; Mtb: Mycobacterium tuberculosis; Mdivi-1: mitochondrial division inhibitor 1; PINK1: PTEN-induced putative kinase 1; TBK1: TANK-binding kinase 1; TUFM: Tu translation elongation factor, mitochondrial; TEM: transmission electron microscopy.

The Value of MRI Findings Combined With Texture Analysis in the Differential Diagnosis of Primary Ovarian Granulosa Cell Tumors and Ovarian Thecoma-Fibrothecoma.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore the value of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and texture analysis (TA) in the differential diagnosis of ovarian granulosa cell tumors (OGCTs) and thecoma-fibrothecoma (OTCA-FTCA). METHODS: The preoperative MRI data of 32 patients with OTCA-FTCA and 14 patients with OGCTs, confirmed by pathological examination between June 2013 and August 2020, were retrospectively analyzed. The texture data of three-dimensional MRI scans based on T2-weighted imaging and clinical and conventional MRI features were analyzed and compared between tumor types. The Mann-Whitney U-test, χ 2 test/Fisher exact test, and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to identify differences between the OTCA-FTCA and OGCTs groups. A regression model was established by using binary logistic regression analysis, and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was carried out to evaluate diagnostic efficiency. RESULTS: A multivariate analysis of the imaging-based features combined with TA revealed that intratumoral hemorrhage (OR = 0.037), log-sigma-20mm-3D_glszm_SmallAreaEmphasis (OR = 4.40), and log-sigma-2-0mm-3D_glszm_SmallAreaHighGrayLevelEmphasis (OR = 1.034) were independent features for discriminating between OGCTs and OTCA-FTCA (P < 0.05). An imaging-based diagnosis model, TA-based model, and combination model were established. The areas under the curve of the three models in predicting OGCTs and OTCA-FTCA were 0.935, 0.944, and 0.969, respectively; the sensitivities were 93.75, 93.75, and 96.87%, respectively; and the specificities were 85.71, 92.86, and 92.86%, respectively. The DeLong test indicated that the combination model had the highest predictive efficiency (P < 0.05), with no significant difference among the three models in differentiating between OGCTs and OTCA-FTCA (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Compared with OTCA-FTCA, intratumoral hemorrhage may be characteristic MR imaging features with OGCTs. Texture features can reflect the microheterogeneity of OGCTs and OTCA-FTCA. MRI signs and texture features can help differentiate between OGCTs and OTCA-FTCA and provide a more comprehensive and accurate basis for clinical treatment.