Accelerated biological aging mediated associations of ammonium, sulfate in fine particulate matter with liver cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND: Although both air pollution and aging are related to the development of liver cirrhosis, the role of biological aging in association of the mixture of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and its constituents with liver cirrhosis was unknown. METHODS: This case-control retrospective study included 100 liver cirrhosis patients and 100 control subjects matched by age and sex. The concentrations of PM2.5 and its constituents were estimated for patients using machine-learning methods. The clinical biomarkers were used to calculate biological age using the Klemera-Doubalmethod (KDM) algorithms. Individual associations of PM2.5 and its constituents or biological age with liver cirrhosis were analyzed by generalized linear models. WQS and BKMR were applied to analyze association of mixture of PM2.5 and its constituents with liver cirrhosis. The mediation effect of biological age on associations of PM2.5 and its constituents with liver cirrhosis was further explored. RESULTS: we found that each 1-unit increment in NH4+, NO3-, SO42- and biological age were related to 3.618-fold (95%CI: 1.896, 6.904), 1.880-fold (95%CI: 1.319, 2.680), 2.955-fold (95%CI: 1.656, 5.272) and 1.244-fold (95%CI: 1.093, 1.414) increased liver cirrhosis. Both WQS and BKMR models showed that the mixture of PM2.5 and its constituents was related to increased liver cirrhosis. Furthermore, the mediated proportion of biological age on associations of NH4+ and SO42- with liver cirrhosis were 14.7 % and 14.6 %, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Biological aging may partly explain the exposure to PM2.5 and its constituents in association with increased risk for liver cirrhosis, implying that delaying the aging process may be a key step for preventing PM2.5-related liver cirrhosis risk.

Clinical manifestation, lifestyle, and treatment patterns of chronic erosive gastritis: A multicenter real-world study in China.

BACKGROUND: Although chronic erosive gastritis (CEG) is common, its clinical characteristics have not been fully elucidated. The lack of consensus regarding its treatment has resulted in varied treatment regimens. AIM: To explore the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and short-term outcomes in CEG patients in China. METHODS: We recruited patients with chronic non-atrophic or mild-to-moderate atrophic gastritis with erosion based on endoscopy and pathology. Patients and treating physicians completed a questionnaire regarding history, endoscopic findings, and treatment plans as well as a follow-up questionnaire to investigate changes in symptoms after 4 wk of treatment. RESULTS: Three thousand five hundred sixty-three patients from 42 centers across 24 cities in China were included. Epigastric pain (68.0%), abdominal distension (62.6%), and postprandial fullness (47.5%) were the most common presenting symptoms. Gastritis was classified as chronic non-atrophic in 69.9% of patients. Among those with erosive lesions, 72.1% of patients had lesions in the antrum, 51.0% had multiple lesions, and 67.3% had superficial flat lesions. In patients with epigastric pain, the combination of a mucosal protective agent (MPA) and proton pump inhibitor was more effective. For those with postprandial fullness, acid regurgitation, early satiety, or nausea, a MPA appeared more promising. CONCLUSION: CEG is a multifactorial disease which is common in Asian patients and has non-specific symptoms. Gastroscopy may play a major role in its detection and diagnosis. Treatment should be individualized based on symptom profile.

Nanocarrier-mediated PiggyBac transposon system for preparation of CAR-NK cells / 中国肿瘤生物治疗杂志

@#Objective: To explore the gene transduction method of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) mediated by novel cationic polymer nanocarrier mPEG-P (Asp-AED-g-HFB) (PAEF) and PigyBac transposon system to modify natural killer (NK) cells, providing a new strategy for immunotherapy of cancer cells. Methods: PAEF/DNA (transposase+transposon) complex were prepared. The particle size distribution and surface potential of PAEF/DNA complexes were measured with Nano-ZSE Dynamic Light Scattering System (Malvern Instruments). The DNA encapsulation rate, release and stability of PAEF were evaluated by DNA gel electrophoresis, and then by combiningwithparticlesizeandsurfacepotentialtodeterminethepreferentialN/PratiotoenterNKcells.Thecell cytotoxicity of PAEF/DNA complexes under different N/P ratios was analyzed by CCK-8 cytotoxicity test. Transduction efficiency of NK cells was evaluated by Fluorescence microscopy and Flow cytometry, and the feasibility of PAEF gene transfection vectors was assessed. Results: PAEF could encapsulate DNA to form nano-complexes with the diameter of 100-150 nm, which was suitable to mediate DNA entering into cells. PAEF could completely encapsulate DNA with N/P ratio of 20. In the presence of reducing agent dithiothreitol (DTT), PAEF had a good ability to release DNA. NK-92 cells transfected with PAEF/DNA complex, which was formed at the N/P ratio of 80, attained a significantly higher cell viability than cells of lipofectamine transfection group [(72.50±3.9)% vs (64.03±1.8)%, P<0.05]; Fluorescence microscopic observation showed more fluorescence and higher fluorescence intensity in cells of PAEF/DNA group; Flow cytometry showed the highest transfection efficiency of 83.4%. Conclusions: Nanocarrier PAEF can encapsulate DNA well by electrostatic adsorption, and has good biocompatibility and high efficiency for gene transduction. It provides a good experimental basis for adoptive immunotherapy.

Specific cytotioxicity of EGFRvⅢ oriented chimeric antigen receptor-engineered T cells on EGFRvⅢ+ glioma U87 cells and the transplanted tumor in nude mice / 中国肿瘤生物治疗杂志

@#[Abstract] Objective:To prepare the third generation CAR-T cells targeting EGFRvⅢ (EGFRvⅢCAR-T) and to detect its specific killing effect against EGFRvⅢ+ U87 cells in vitro and in vivo. Methods: Human CD3+ T cells were transfected with lentiviral EGFRv Ⅲ/3CAR, which was generated by calcium phosphate co-precipitation of three plasmids. The expression of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR in T cells was detected by Western blotting and flow cytometry. In vitro killing effect of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cells on EGFRvⅢ+ U87 cells was detected by 51Cr release assay. The secretion of cytokine IFN-γ of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cells was detected by ELISA. Nude mouse xenograft model was constructed to detect the in vivo cytotoxicity of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cells on xenograft tumor. Results: The EGFRvⅢ/3CAR lentivirus was successfully packaged with an average titer of 5×106 TU/ml. Western blotting showed that a protein band of approximate 58 000 molecular weight was observed in EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cells but absent in untransfected T cells. Flow cytometry indicated the average transduction efficiency of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR was 52.3%. 51Cr release assay showed that the specific killing effect of EGFRvⅢ/ 3CAR-T cells was positively correlated with E/T ratio (E∶T=4∶1, 8∶1, 16∶1, 32∶1). ELISA showed that cytokine IFN-γ secretion was (1 836±148.2) pg/ml, which was significantly different from that of NTT and GFP+ T cells (P<0.01). The specific killing activity of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cells and IFN-γ secretion were both dependent on the expression level of EGFRvⅢ in U87 cells. The tumor growth monitoring results showed that the tumor volume of EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cell group was significantly different from that of GFP+ T cell group and PBS group around 3 weeks after injection (P<0.01). Conclusion: EGFRvⅢ/3CAR-T cells demonstrated specific antitumor effectagainstEGFRvⅢ+U87cellsbothinvitro and in vivo, providing basis for immunotherapyofgliomainfuture clinical use.