T Cell Subsets and the Expression of Related MicroRNAs in Patients with Recurrent Early Pregnancy Loss.

This study explored the role of T cell subsets and the expression of related microRNAs in patients with recurrent early pregnancy loss (EPL). Fifty patients with EPL loss between May 2018 and May 2021 were randomly selected as the EPL group, and 50 pregnant women with normal pregnancies or normal delivery outcomes were randomly selected as the control group. The expression levels of T cell subset-related markers and T cell subset-related miRNAs, in addition to the frequencies of T cell subsets, in peripheral blood of the two groups were analyzed. In terms of T cell-related markers, the results showed that the expression levels of the transcriptional regulator TBX-21 (T-bet) and interferon regulatory factor 4 (IRF4) were significantly upregulated in peripheral blood of the patients in the EPL group (P < 0.05), whereas the expression levels of GATA binding protein 3 (GATA3) and glucocorticoid-induced tumor necrosis factor receptor (GITR) were significantly downregulated (P < 0.05). In the EPL group, the expression of mir-106b, mir-93, and mir-25 was upregulated (1.51 ± 0.129, 1.43 ± 0.132, and 1.73 ± 0.156, respectively) in regulatory T (Treg) cell-related T cell subsets, whereas the expression of miR-146a and miR-155 was downregulated (P < 0.05). The frequencies of Treg and exhausted T cells in the EPL group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The cell frequencies of T helper 17 (Th17) cells and exhausted Treg cells in the EPL group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). In conclusion, immune cells and associated miRNA profiles can be used as prognostic biomarkers for the treatment of human reproductive disorders, such as EPL.

The construction and application of an ultrasound and anatomical cross-sectional database of structural malformations of the fetal heart.

OBJECTIVES: Establish a fetal heart anatomical cross-sectional database that correlates with screening transverse ultrasound images suggested by international professional organizations to detect congenital heart defects. METHODS: Fetuses with suspected congenital heart defects identified using the following cardiac image sequences obtained from transverse slices beginning from the upper abdomen and ending in the upper thorax were the subjects of this study: (1) four-chamber view, (2) left ventricular outflow tract view, (3) three-vessel right ventricular outflow tract view, and (4) the three-vessel tracheal view. A database of digital two-dimensional images of the transverse sweep was created for fetuses with confirmed congenital heart defects. In addition, using four-dimensional ultrasound spatial-temporal image correlation, selected transverse ultrasound images were acquired as part of the database. Ultrasound-detected congenital heart defects were confirmed postnatally from pathological specimens of the heart and lungs using a cross-sectional technique that mirrored the ultrasound images described above. When anatomical specimens were not available, prenatal ultrasound-detected congenital heart defects were confirmed using postnatal echocardiography and/or following surgery. RESULTS: The four screening views described in the Methods section identified 160 fetuses that comprised the database. Forty-five datasets consisted of both ultrasound and anatomical cross-sectional images. Thirteen percent (6/45) only had abnormalities of the four-chamber view (eg, endocardial cushion defects). Twenty-four percent (11/45) had abnormalities of the four-chamber view as well as right and left outflow tracts (eg, complex malformations). Of these, 10 of 11 had an abnormal tracheal view. Sixteen percent (7/45) had an abnormal four-chamber view and abnormal right outflow tract (eg, pulmonary stenosis). Thirty-three percent (15/45) had a normal four-chamber view but had abnormal right and left outflow tracts as well as an abnormal tracheal view (eg, tetralogy of Fallot, D-transposition of the great arteries). CONCLUSIONS: Combining both ultrasound and anatomical imaging may be of assistance in training imagers to recognize cardiovascular pathology when performing the screening examination of the fetal heart.

[Applications of laparoscopic ultrasound in gynecological surgery].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the application value of laparoscopic ultrasonography (LUS) in gynecological surgery. METHODS: Retrospective analyses were performed for 52 cases undergoing LUS during laparoscopic extirpation/excision of gynecological tumors. Aloka 7.5-MHz laparoscopic probe was used to detect the residual lesions during laparoscopic operations. The findings of LUS were compared with those of preoperative transvaginal ultrasound and postoperative pathohistological examinations. RESULTS: Preoperative diagnoses were corrected by LUS in 9 cases. And 34 residual lesions located by LUS were successfully removed. CONCLUSION: With a high detection rate and diagnostic accuracy rate in the diagnosis of gynecologic disease, LUS can locate invisible lesions during laparoscopic operations and provide guidance for radical tumor removal. It is a safe and valuable assistance for gynecologic surgery.