ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the clinical features of macrolide-resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia and its treatment regimens in children.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The samples of throat swab or bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were collected from 136 children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to detect 2063/2064 A:G mutation in 23S rRNA, and according to such results, the children were divided into drug-resistance group with 81 children and sensitive group with 55 children. The two groups were compared in terms of age composition, respiratory symptoms, extrapulmonary complications, laboratory markers, imaging changes, treatment regimens, and length of hospital stay.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the sensitive group, the drug-resistance group had significantly longer duration of pyrexia and severe fever, a significantly higher percentage of children with reduced blood oxygen saturation, and significantly higher levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) (P<0.05). The conventional azithromycin treatment had a good clinical effect in the sensitive group, while corticosteroid therapy was usually needed in the drug-resistance group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Macrolide-resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection cannot be identified based on a single clinical feature, but prolonged duration of pyrexia and severe fever, reduced blood oxygen saturation, and increased ALT and LDH can suggest the presence of this disease. Azithromycin combined with glucocorticoids may be a good treatment regimen for children with macrolide-resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia.</p>
ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of vitamin D on the expression of chemokine regulated on activation, normal T cells expressed and secreted (RANTES) in the lung tissue of asthmatic rats, and the role of vitamin D in the control of asthmatic airway inflammation and the synergistic action of hormones.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Forty female Wistar rats were randomly and equally divided into normal control, asthma, vitamin D intervention, budesonide intervention, and budesonide+vitamin D intervention groups. Hematoxylin and eosin staining was used to observe pathological changes in the lung tissue. Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the protein expression of RANTES in lung tissue. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to measure the level of RANTES in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Real-time quantitative PCR was used to measure the mRNA expression of RANTES.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The asthma group showed the most significant pathological changes in the lung tissue, including inflammatory cell infiltration, bronchial stenosis and distortion and smooth muscle rupture, while the intervention groups showed fewer pathological changes. Of the intervention groups, the budesonide intervention group showed fewer pathological changes than the vitamin D intervention group, and the budesonide+vitamin D intervention group showed the mildest pathological changes, which were similar to those observed in the normal control group. Protein expression of RANTES in the lung tissue and BALF was significantly higher in the asthma group than in the normal control group (P<0.05), while it was lower in the intervention groups than in the asthma group, exhibiting significant differences between each intervention group and the asthma group (P<0.05) (except the difference in protein expression of RANTES in BALF between the vitamin D intervention and asthma groups). The budesonide+vitamin D intervention group showed less protein expression of RANTES in the lung tissue and BALF than both the budesonide intervention and vitamin D intervention groups (P<0.05). The mRNA expression of RANTES was significantly higher in the asthma group than in the normal control group (P<0.05), while it was significantly lower in three intervention groups than in the asthma group (P<0.05), however no significant difference was found between the intervention groups in this regard. The budesonide+vitamin D intervention group showed the lowest level of RANTES mRNA, with no significant difference from the normal control group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The mRNA and protein expression of RANTES in BALF and lung tissue increases significantly in asthmatic rats. Vitamin D intervention can decrease the expression of RANTES, suggesting that vitamin D can reduce airway inflammation by regulating the expression of RANTES. Vitamin D can be used together with budesonide to further decrease the mRNA and protein expression of RANTES.</p>