Analysis of risk factors for severe illness caused by coronavirus disease 2019 in Fuzhou city / 解放军医学杂志

Objective To analyze the risk factors for severe illness caused by coronavirus disease 2019 in Fuzhou city.Methods The data of 4081 confirmed cases with current address in Fuzhou was collected from China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention from January 1 to June 30,2023.The epidemiological data of those cases was investigated such as the demographic characteristics,clinical manifestations and past medical history,etc.The risk factors of severe cases were analyzed by using the logistic regression.Results 4081 confirmed cases had been reported including 671 severe cases and 3410 non-severe cases.The demographic characteristics of severe cases,such as the proportion of male,age and current address in community were higher than that of non-severe cases,vaccination rate was lower than non-severe cases(59.02%vs.80.12%),the differences are statistically significant(P＜0.001).The clinical manifestations such as interval time between onset and visit(P=0.001),fever(P=0.002),difficulty in breathing/shortness of breath(P=0.001)were the factors related to severe illness.The past medical histories such as history of chronic lung disease,history of heart cerebrovascular disease of severe cases,were higher than that of non-severe cases(P＜0.001).Multivariate logistic regression showed that the male,the higher age,current address in community,no vaccination,the longer interval time between onset and visit,fever,difficulty in breathing/shortness of breath,the history of chronic lung disease,the history of heart cerebrovascular disease raised the risk of becoming severe cases.The healing time for severe cases was longer than that for non-severe cases(P＜0.001).Conclusion Sex,age,current address,vaccination,interval time between onset and visit,fever,difficulty in breathing/shortness of breath,history of chronic lung disease,and history of heart cerebrovascular disease are the influencing factors for severe illness.

Clinical characteristics and prognosis of primary aldosteronism associated with subclinical Cushing syndrome / 中华内科杂志

Objective:To analyze the clinical characteristics and prognosis of patients with primary aldosteronism (PA) associated with subclinical Cushing syndrome (SCS).Methods:This retrospective cohort study was conducted at the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University in China. Patients with PA were included between January 2014 and December 2022. According to the results of 1-mg overnight dexamethasone suppression test, the patients were divided into the PA group and PA associated with SCS (PA/SCS) group. The demographic information, hormone levels, and follow-up results were analyzed. Independent sample t-test, chi-square test and Mann-Whitney U test were used for data comparison. Results:A total of 489 PA patients were enrolled in this study, of which 109 had PA/SCS (22.3%). Patients with SCS were on average older (54.4±10.7 vs . 47.4±11.0, P<0.001); had a larger proportion of women (69.7%, 76/109 vs . 57.4%, 218/380; P=0.020); and a longer duration of hypertension [96 (36, 180) vs . 60 (12, 120) months, P=0.001] than patients without SCS. There were 215 and 51 patients in the PA group and PA/SCS group, who completed adrenalectomy and follow-up, respectively. The remission rate of autonomous cortisol secretion in the PA/SCS group was 85.3% (29/34). There was no significant difference in the remission rate of autonomous aldosterone secretion among patients between the PA/SCS and PA group (94.1%, 48/51 vs. 94.4%, 203/215; P=1.000), while the clinical remission rate in the PA/SCS group was lower than that in the PA group (39.2%, 20/51 vs. 61.9%, 133/215; P=0.003). Conclusions:SCS is common in PA patients (22.3%), and the clinical remission rate is low. Screening using the 1-mg overnight dexamethasone suppression test is recommended for all patients with PA.

Research progress of breast-feeding in infants with congenital heart disease / 中国儿童保健杂志

Breastfeeding is the best natural food for infants. In infants with congenital heart disease(CHD), breast milk can reduce the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis, feeding intolerance and growth failure, and improve the overall prognosis. However, there are many obstacles to breastfeeding in infants with CHD as well as lack of related domestic research. This study mainly focuses on breastfeeding status, influencing factors, assessment, implementation and solutions for the infants with CHD, and proposed the future research recommendations on clinical practices, in order to provide reference for the breastfeeding management of infants with CHD in China.

Identification and expression analysis of cellulose synthase family genes in Aquilaria sinensis / 药学学报

Cellulose synthase (CesA), one of the key enzymes in the biosynthesis of cellulose in plants, plays an important role in plant growth and plant resistance. In this study, a total of 21 AsCesA genes from Aquilaria sinensis were systematically identified and the physico-chemical characteristics were analyzed based on genome database and bioinformatical methods. The phylogenetic tree was constructed and the gene location on chromosome, cis-acting elements in the 2 000 basepairs upstream regulatory regions and conservative motifs were analyzed. The AsCesA proteins were mainly located on the plasma membrane. The number of amino acids of the proteins ranged from 390 to 1 261. The isoelectric point distributed from 5.67 to 8.86. All of the 21 AsCesA proteins possessed the transmembrane domains, the number of which was from 6 to 8. The genes were classified into 3 groups according to the phylogenetic relationship. Obvious differences were observed in motif composition in genes from different groups. However, motif2, motif6, motif7 and motif10 were observed in all of AsCesA proteins. Analysis of cis-acting elements indicated that AsCesA genes family has cis-acting elements related to plant hormones, abiotic stresses, and biological processes. Seven AsCesA genes with differential expression were selected according to the calli transcriptome data induced by NaCl at different times and their expression levels under different abiotic stresses were analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR. The results indicated that salt, low temperature, drought, and heavy metal stresses could affect the expression level of AsCesA genes, and the abundance of AsCesA1, AsCesA3 and AsCesA20 showed a significant change, implying their potential important roles to the abiotic stresses. The accumulation pattern of cellulose content under different abiotic stresses was similar to the expression trend of AsCesA genes. Our results provide valuable insights into the role of cellulose synthase in A.sinensis in plant defense.

Specific DNA barcodes screening, germplasm resource identification, and genetic diversity analysis of Platycodon grandiflorum / 药学学报

Platycodonis Radix is the dry root of Platycodon grandiflorum of Campanulaceae, which has a variety of pharmacological effects and is a commonly used bulk Chinese medicine. In this study, the chloroplast genome sequences of six P. grandiflorum from different producing areas has been sequenced with Illumina HiSeq X Ten platform. The specific DNA barcodes were screened, and the germplasm resources and genetic diversity were analyzed according to the specific barcodes. The total length of the chloroplast genome of 6 P. grandiflorum samples was 172 260-172 275 bp, and all chloroplast genomes showed a typical circular tetrad structure and encoded 141 genes. The comparative genomics analysis and results of amplification efficiency demonstrated that trnG-UCC and ndhG_ndhF were the potential specific DNA barcodes for identification the germplasm resources of P. grandiflorum. A total of 305 P. grandiflorum samples were collected from 15 production areas in 9 provinces, for which the fragments of trnG-UCC and ndhG_ndhF were amplificated and the sequences were analyzed. The results showed that trnG-UCC and ndhG_ndhF have 5 and 11 mutation sites, respectively, and 5 and 7 haplotypes were identified, respectively. The combined analysis of the two sequences formed 13 haplotypes (named Hap1-Hap13), and Hap4 is the main genotype, followed by Hap1. The unique haplotypes possessed by the three producing areas can be used as DNA molecular tags in this area to distinguish from the germplasm resources of P. grandiflorum from other areas. The haplotype diversity, nucleotide diversity and genetic distance were 0.94, 4.79×10-3 and 0.000 0-0.020 3, respectively, suggesting that the genetic diversity was abundant and intraspecific kinship was relatively close. This study laid a foundation for the identification of P. grandiflorum, the protection and utilization of germplasm resources, and molecular breeding.

The SingHealth Perioperative and Anesthesia Subject Area Registry (PASAR), a large-scale perioperative data mart and registry / 대한마취과학회지

Background@#To enhance perioperative outcomes, a perioperative registry that integrates high-quality real-world data throughout the perioperative period is essential. Singapore General Hospital established the Perioperative and Anesthesia Subject Area Registry (PASAR) to unify data from the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative stages. This study presents the methodology employed to create this database. @*Methods@#Since 2016, data from surgical patients have been collected from the hospital electronic medical record systems, de-identified, and stored securely in compliance with privacy and data protection laws. As a representative sample, data from initiation in 2016 to December 2022 were collected. @*Results@#As of December 2022, PASAR data comprise 26 tables, encompassing 153,312 patient admissions and 168,977 operation sessions. For this period, the median age of the patients was 60.0 years, sex distribution was balanced, and the majority were Chinese. Hypertension and cardiovascular comorbidities were also prevalent. Information including operation type and time, intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay, and 30-day and 1-year mortality rates were collected. Emergency surgeries resulted in longer ICU stays, but shorter operation times than elective surgeries. @*Conclusions@#The PASAR provides a comprehensive and automated approach to gathering high-quality perioperative patient data.

Reliability of 4D flow cardiac MRI for measuring hemodynamic parameters of left ventricle / 中国医学影像技术

Objective To observe the reliability of regional 4D flow and whole heart 4D flow cardiac MRI(CMRI)for measuring hemodynamic parameters of left ventricle.Methods Heart ultrasonography and CMRI were prospectively obtained in 31 healthy subjects.Hemodynamic parameters of left ventricle were measured using heart ultrasound,3-chamber 4D flow CMRI(based on inflow and outflow channel of left ventricle)and whole heart 4D flow CMRI,respectively.Intra-class correlation coefficient(ICC)was performed to evaluate the consistencies of the measured left ventricle hemodynamic parameters among the above 3 methods.Results Good consistencies of peak systolic velocity in aortic supravalvular/subvalvular,E peak diastolic velocity of mitral valve,supravalvular/subvalvular aortic pressure and aortic valve pressure gradient(all ICC＞0.75),while moderate consistency of A peak diastolic velocity of mitral valve(ICC=0.718)were found between heart ultrasound and 3-chamber 4D flow CMRI.Good consistencies of peak systolic velocity in aortic supravalvular/subvalvular,A peak diastolic velocity of mitral valve and supravalvular/subvalvular aortic pressure(all ICC＞0.75),while moderate consistencies of E peak diastolic velocity of mitral valve and aortic valve pressure gradient(ICC=0.600,0.628)were found between heart ultrasound and whole heart 4D flow CMRI.Meanwhile,good consistencies of the above parameters were found between 3-chamber 4D flow CMRI and whole heart 4D flow CMRI(all ICC＞0.75).Conclusion Measuring left ventricular hemodynamic parameters using local regional 4D flow and whole heart 4D flow CMRI were reliable,with good consistency with cardiac ultrasound.

Analysis of dental clinic and dental chair distribution in Sichuan / 华西口腔医学杂志

OBJECTIVES@#To thoroughly understand the current dental chair equipment status of dental clinics in Sichuan Province and provide a reference for administrative departments.@*METHODS@#Data were collected from a health administrative department and a regional social development yearbook. The number of existing dental clinics and dental chairs in Sichuan Province was investigated.@*RESULTS@#In Sichuan Province, 7 103 dental clinics were determined to be equipped with 21 760 dental chairs. The Gini coefficients of per capita dental clinics in the province were 0.50, 0.22, and 0.06, and the Gini coefficients of per capita dental chairs were 0.68, 0.31, and 0.15; these coefficients had the same distribution as that reflected by the Lorenz curve. In consideration of geographic distribution, the Theil index for the distribution of dental clinics and dental chairs among cities and states were 0.690 7 and 0.822 3, respectively. The overall Theil index va-lues for the distribution of dental clinics and dental chairs in the province were 0.902 4 and 1.079 4, respectively. The difference in the distribution of dental clinics and dental chairs among cities and states in the province contributed 0.765 4 and 0.761 8 to the total difference, respectively.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The allocation of oral health resources in Sichuan Pro-vince is relatively equitable in terms of population and economic distribution but uneven in geographical distribution.

Expression Profile and Clinical Significance of Cytokines and Chemokines in Patients with Epstein-Barr Virus-Associated Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the cytokine/chemokine profile in patients with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-related hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), and assess the prognostic value of survival.@*METHODS@#Serum levels of thirty-eight cytokines/chemokines were measured by multiple cytokine assay kit in EBV-related HLH patients, EBV-infected patients, and controls. The expression profile of cytokines/chemokines was compared among groups. The changes of cytokine/chemokine expression in active and remission stage of EBV-related HLH patients were also compared, and the prognostic values for survival were evaluated.@*RESULTS@#Serum levels of interferon-α2 (IFN-α2), interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-7 in EBV-related HLH patients were 33.67(23.23-68.78) pg/ml, (74.95±25.53) pg/ml, and 35.35(19.50-63.55) pg/ml, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in EBV-infected patients［IFN-α2: 16.07(9.87-29.63); IL-6: 55.91±20.29; IL-7: 20.40(13.35-31.40)］ and controls ［IFN-α2: 11.02(4.67-21.25); IL-6:42.64±13.41; IL-7: 16.95(14.95-33.78)］(all P<0.05). Serum levels of IL-8, IL-9, and marcophage-derived chemokine (MDC) in EBV-related HLH patients were 11.00(7.50-15.27) pg/ml, 81.30(40.79-111.0) pg/ml, and (512.6±128.7) pg/ml, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in controls ［IL-8: 6.80(5.56-8.38); IL-9: 41.30(29.82-67.91); MDC: 384.1±156.6］(all P<0.05), but there was no remarkable differences compared with EBV-infected patients (P>0.05). Serum IFN-α2, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, and MDC in survival and death groups of EBV-related HLH patients were analyzed by receiver operating characteristic curve with area under curve of 0.781, 0.778, 0.633, 0.805, 0.562, and 0.657, respectively (P=0.019, 0.021, 0.269, 0.015, 0.607, and 0.190). IFN-α2, IL-6, and IL-8 had good predictive effect on survival. Serum level of IFN-α2, IL-6, and MDC of EBV-related HLH patients in remission stage were significantly lower than those in active stage (P<0.05), while IL-7, IL-8, and IL-9 were not different (P>0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#IFN-α2, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, and MDC may take part in the pathogenesis of EBV-related HLH.

Application value of CT and MRI radiomics based on machine-learning method in diagnosing pancreatic cancer / 中华胰腺病杂志

Objective:To investigate the application value of CT and MRI imageomics based on machine learning method in the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.Methods:The clinical data of 62 patients with surgically resected and pathologically confirmed pancreatic cancer, who underwent enhanced CT scan, MRI plain or enhanced scan in Shanghai General Hospital between January 2014 and December 2021 were collected. According to the chronological order of surgery, 49 patients from January 2014 to December 2020 were enrolled in the training set and 13 patients from January 2021 to December 2021 were enrolled in the validation set. 3D-slicer 4.8.1 software was used to draw the region of interest in each layer of CT and MRI images for cancerous and paracancerous tissue segment. Image features were extracted by Python and the optimal feature set from the training set data was obtained by using Lasso regression model. The machine learning decision tree model was constructed. The receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC) curve was drawn, and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated to evaluate the value of these three kinds of imageomics models in the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.Results:The 1 767 CT features and 1 674 MRI features were obtained from enhanced CT scan, MRI plain scan and enhanced MRI scan, respectively. For the differential diagnosis model of cancerous tissue and paracancerous tissue, the enhanced CT scan data model obtained the optimal feature set involving 6 features, the MRI plain scan model obtained the optimal feature set involving 16 features, and the enhanced MRI scan model obtained the optimal feature set involving 15 features. The diagnostic model based on enhanced CT scan had an AUC of 0.98 in the training set and 1 in the verification group. The AUC of the MRI plain scan and enhanced MRI scan models in both the training set and the validation set was 1. The specificity and sensitivity of machine learning decision tree model based on the three kinds of imageomics models in the diagnosis of cancerous tissue and paracancerous tissue were 100%. For the differential diagnosis model of splenic artery wrapping, the enhanced CT scan model didn′t obtain the optimal features and had no diagnostic efficacy. The MRI plain scan model and enhanced MRI scan model obtained the optimal feature set involving 5 and 4 features, respectively. The AUC of the MRI plain scan model in the training set and the validation set were 0.862 and 0.750, respectively, with diagnostic sensitivity of 93.8% and 50.0%, and specificity of 78.6% and 100%, respectively. The AUC of the enhanced MRI scan model in the training set and the validation set were 0.950 and 0.861, respectively, with diagnostic sensitivity of 90.0% and 93.6%, and specificity of 100% and 78.6%, respectively.Conclusions:Based on the radiomics of CT enhanced, MRI plain scan and enhanced MRI scan, the machine learning diagnostic model has an accuracy of more than 90% in differentiating pancreatic cancer from paracancerous tissue. For the differentiation of splenic artery wrapping in pancreatic cancer, the diagnostic model based on enhanced MRI scan haS the best diagnostic efficiency.