Enhancing diagnostic accuracy for iron deficiency in pregnant women through mean reticulocyte volume.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Women are more prone to iron deficiency (ID) anemia when pregnant. The diagnostic use of mean reticulocyte volume (MRV) in identifying ID anemia during pregnancy has not been thoroughly investigated. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of MRV in diagnosing ID in pregnant women. METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN: Firstly, MRV of 20 healthy female volunteers (healthy group) was measured on specific days for one month. Subsequently, clinical data from 724 pregnant women were thoroughly examined. These women were divided into two groups: 282 with ID (research group) and 442 without ID (control group). Parameters such as MRV, reticulocyte hemoglobin equivalent (RHE), red blood cell volume distribution width-standard deviation (RDW-SD), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), hematocrit (HCT), reticulocyte count (RET), MRV/MCV ratio, and serum ferritin (SF) were analyzed and compared. RESULTS: MRV remained consistent over a period of one month for 20 healthy individuals. In addition, there were significant differences in MRV, RHE, RDW-SD, MCV, MCH, MCHC, HCT, RET, and MRV/MCV between the research group and control group. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed that the areas under the curve (AUCs) for these measures were as follow: 0.840, 0.837, 0.676, 0.654, 0.639, 0.602, 0.571, 0.550, and 0.816, respectively. Ultimately, there was a substantial disparity in MRV prior to and following therapy with oral iron treatments. CONCLUSIONS: In healthy women, MRV remains stable and is a reliable ID marker, which can be used to assess oral iron treatment effectiveness during pregnancy.

Diagnosis and prognostic value of circDLGAP4 in acute ischemic stroke and its correlation with outcomes.

Rationale and aims: Circular RNAs are a subclass of noncoding RNAs in mammalian cells and highly expressed in the central nervous system. Although their physiological functions are not yet completely defined, they are thought to promise as stroke biomarkers because of their stability in peripheral blood.Sample Size Estimate: 222 participants. Methods and design: The plasma of patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) (n = 111) and non-stroke controls (n = 111) from November 2017 to February 2019 were enrolled in our research. The expression of circDLGAP4 in plasma was evaluated using real-time PCR. Study outcomes: In patients with AIS, circDLGAP4 was significantly decreased in comparison with non-stroke controls. The CircDLGAP4 level had a significant AUC of 0.7896 with 91.72% sensitivity and 64.83% specificity in diagnosing AIS. Furthermore, the circDLGAP4 level was related to smoking history and previous transient ischemic attack/stroke/myocardial infarction in all samples. The change rate in circDLGAP4 within the first 7 days showed an AUC curve of 0.960 in predicting an stroke outcome. Conclusion: circDLGAP4 could serve as biomarker for AIS diagnosis and prediction of stroke outcomes.

Beneficial effects of monounsaturated fatty acid-rich blended oils with an appropriate polyunsaturated/saturated fatty acid ratio and a low n-6/n-3 fatty acid ratio on the health of rats.

BACKGROUND: The effects of dietary fat on health are influenced by its fatty acid profile. We aimed to determine the effects of monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA)-rich blended oils (BO) containing a balance of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and with a low n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio on the health of rats fed normal or high-fat diets. The BO was obtained by mixing red palm oil, rice bran oil (RO), tea seed oil and flaxseed oil in appropriate proportions. RESULTS: BO consumption reduced the serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), insulin (INS), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1 (IL-1), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), malondialdehyde (MDA), lipid peroxide (LPO) and oxidized LDL (ox-LDL) concentrations and the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR); it increased the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) concentrations, and the bone mineral density (BMD) versus control oil-containing normal and high-fat diets. BO also reduced the triglyceride (TG), hs-CRP, MDA, ox-LDL and reactive oxygen species (ROS) concentrations; and increased the serum HDL-C and SOD, and BMD versus RO-containing high-fat diets. Finally, BO reduced the glucose (GLU) and INS, and HOMA-IR; it increased HDL-C, SOD, femoral weight and BMD versus RO-containing normal diets. CONCLUSION: BOs with an appropriate fatty acid profile have beneficial effects on the glucolipid metabolism, inflammation, oxidative stress and bone quality of rats when included in both normal and high-fat diets. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Diagnostic Utility of CD64 and CD38 Biomarkers for the Differential Diagnosis of Infections.

Purpose: Identification of infection type in patients with fever is particularly important in the emergency departments (EDs) of hospitals. This study was designed to evaluate the performance of two biomarkers, the modified neutrophil CD64 (nCD64) index and CD38 presence on T cells, using flow cytometry. Methods: A total of 305 potentially infected patients with fever were admitted to the ED of Zhongda Hospital (Nanjing, China) between March 2021 and August 2021. This study included three groups of patients: bacterial (N = 180), viral (N = 30) , and uninfected (N = 65) based on their final diagnostic outcomes and clinical records. Results: The expression level of traditional/modified nCD64 was significantly increased in the bacterial infection group, especially in case of patients infected with Gram-negative bacteria. The most prevalent species were Staphylococcus spp. and Escherichia coli. In contrast, CD3+CD38+ cell percentages were elevated in patients with viral infections, which were mostly caused by Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus. CD38 expression is age dependent, and higher percentages of CD3+CD38+ cells were observed in children with viral infections. For the prediction of bacterial infections, the area under the curve (AUC) of modified nCD64 (AUC: 0.800) was significantly higher than that of C-reactive protein and heparin-binding protein but slightly lower than that of traditional nCD64 (AUC: 0.831). The AUC, specificity, and sensitivity values for the prediction of viral infections using CD3+CD38+ cells percentages in children were 0.899 (0.785-1.000), 96.2%, and 85.9%, respectively. Conclusion: nCD64 levels and CD3+CD38+ cell percentage are potential biomarkers that facilitate identification of patients with bacterial and viral infections.

A comparative study of the effects of palm olein, cocoa butter and extra virgin olive oil on lipid profile, including low-density lipoprotein subfractions in young healthy Chinese people.

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of palm olein (POL), cocoa butter (CB) and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) on the lipid profile and low-density lipoprotein subfractions in a young, healthy Chinese population. After screening, 72 subjects were randomly assigned to three groups, and an 18-week randomized crossover trial was conducted. The first phase was a 2-week run-in period, followed by three phases of the 4-week experimental periods with a 2-week washout period between experimental periods. Three groups of subjects alternately consumed a Chinese diet enriched with the different test oils. The various indices of subjects were collected before and after each experimental period. Sixty-seven subjects completed the study, and there were no significant differences in conventional indices amongst the three groups at the beginning of the three experimental periods (p > .05). Each test oil accounted for approximately 40% of total fat intake and approximately 11.3% of the total energy supply. After controlling for dietary interventions, only the serum triglyceride level of the POL-Diet was significantly lower than that of the EVOO-Diet (p = .034), and most indices did not significantly differ amongst the three test oil diets (p > .05). POL, CB and EVOO have almost identical effects on serum lipids.

Effects of palm olein and olive oil on serum lipids in a Chinese population: a randomized, double-blind, cross-over trial.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: As the most widely produced edible vegetable oil, palm oil is known as to contain a high level of saturated fatty acid, which was thought to adversely affect serum lipid profiles. However, recent studies have shown no influence or benefits of palm oil on serum lipids. The potential nutritional value of palm oil is attributed to the high mono-unsaturation at the crucial sn2-position of the oil's triacylglycerols, as with the so-called 'healthy' olive oil (OO). The aim of this study was to further test this hypothesis and evaluate the effects of consuming palm olein versus olive oil on serum lipid profiles in a Chinese population. METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN: In total, 120 participants were recruited from a spinnery in Yixing city and randomly divided into two groups (palm olein or olive oil) to conduct a 2×2 crossover trial for 2 months' intervention with 2-week washout periods. Each participant was provided 48 g of test oil per day. At the end of each period, anthropometry, and blood lipid indices were measured to determine the effects of palm olein and olive oil. RESULTS: Palm olein and olive oil consumption had no significantly different effect on BMI, on serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triacylglycerol (TG), Apo B, fasting glucose, or insulin concentrations (all p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In a dietary crossover trial, palm olein and olive oil had no recognisably different effects on body fatness or blood lipids in a healthy Chinese population.

Wogonin inhibits the proliferation of myelodysplastic syndrome cells through the induction of cell cycle arrest and apoptosis.

The present study aimed to assess the effects of the flavonoid, wogonin, and its underlying mechanism on myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) in SKM-1 cells. In the present study, wogonin inhibited the cell proliferation of SKM­1 cells in a dose­ and time­dependent manner, with the concentration required to yield a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 212.1 µmol/l at 24 h, and 43.4 µmol/l at 72 h. Furthermore, wogonin induced cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase and induced the apoptosis of the SKM­1 cells, which possibly accounted for the antiproliferative effects of wogonin. Notably, the data in the present study revealed that wogonin upregulated the expression of p21Cip1 and p27Kip1, and downregulated the expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin­dependent kinase 4, causing a G0/G1 phase arrest, halting cell cycle progression, and inducing apoptosis in the MDS cells, which was mediated by the mitochondrial pathway through a modulation of the ratio of Bcl­2 to Bax. Therefore, the present study suggests that wogonin may be a logical therapeutic target in the treatment of MDS.

Electrochemical biosensor based on functional composite nanofibers for detection of K-ras gene via multiple signal amplification strategy.

An electrochemical biosensor based on functional composite nanofibers for hybridization detection of specific K-ras gene that is highly associated with colorectal cancer via multiple signal amplification strategy has been developed. The carboxylated multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) doped nylon 6 (PA6) composite nanofibers (MWCNTs-PA6) was prepared using electrospinning, which served as the nanosized backbone for thionine (TH) electropolymerization. The functional composite nanofibers [MWCNTs-PA6-PTH, where PTH is poly(thionine)] used as supporting scaffolds for single-stranded DNA1 (ssDNA1) immobilization can dramatically increase the amount of DNA attachment and the hybridization sensitivity. Through the hybridization reaction, a sandwich format of ssDNA1/K-ras gene/gold nanoparticle-labeled ssDNA2 (AuNPs-ssDNA2) was fabricated, and the AuNPs offered excellent electrochemical signal transduction. The signal amplification was further implemented by forming network-like thiocyanuric acid/gold nanoparticles (TA/AuNPs). A significant sensitivity enhancement was obtained; the detection limit was down to 30fM, and the discriminations were up to 54.3 and 51.9% between the K-ras gene and the one-base mismatched sequences including G/C and A/T mismatched bases, respectively. The amenability of this method to the analyses of K-ras gene from the SW480 colorectal cancer cell lysates was demonstrated. The results are basically consistent with those of the K-ras Kit (HRM: high-resolution melt). The method holds promise for the diagnosis and management of cancer.

Effects of the n-6/n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids ratio on postprandial metabolism in hypertriacylglycerolemia patients.

BACKGROUND: Atherosclerosis is a postprandial phenomenon. The balanced n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio contributing to the prevention of atherosclerosis has been well shown, but the effect of the ratio on postprandial metabolism has not been fully investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the n-6/n-3 PUFAs ratio on postprandial metabolism in hypertriacylglycerolemia patients, comparing them to healthy controls. METHODS: Test meals with 0.97 (high n-3) and 8.80 (low n-3) n-6/n-3 PUFAs ratio were administered in a randomized crossover design to 8 healthy and 8 hypertriacylglycerolemia subjects. Blood samples were collected for 8 hours after meals to measure triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), HDL, ApoA, ApoB, glucose, insulin, inflammatory makers including tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), endothelial function including nitric oxide (NO) and endothelin-1 (ET-1). RESULTS: According to repeated-measures ANOVA, the postprandial response of lipid, glucose, insulin, inflammation and endothelial function were not significantly different between meals. The postprandial TG and NO response were significantly different between healthy control (HC) and hypertriglyceridemia group (HTG) after both meals (P < 0.01). After both meals maximal change and iAUC for TG was all higher in HTG group than HC group, the difference was significant after low n-3 meal but not after high n-3 meal. The concentration of glucose, insulin, IL-6, TNFα and ET-1 at each time point was higher and NO was lower in HTG group, but the maximal change and iAUC had no significant difference except for iAUC of insulin, IL-6 and diAUC of NO after low n-3 meal. CONCLUSIONS: The ratio of n-6 and n-3 maybe do not acutely influence the postprandial metabolism, inflammatory response and endothelial function, but the low n-3 meal can strengthen the difference between HTG and HC group.