Predictive value of Vitamin D levels in pregnant women on gestational length and neonatal weight in China: a population-based retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D deficiency, a common occurrence among pregnant women, is an emerging public health concern worldwide. According to research, prenatal vitamin D deficiency is associated with various complications. This study assessed the vitamin D status of pregnant women in Yanbian, Jilin Province, as well as the correlation and predictive value of their vitamin D levels in relation to gestational length (weeks) and fetal weight, aiming to provide a basis for clinical diagnosis and treatment. METHODS: We conducted a population-based retrospective study involving 510 pregnant women from August 2019 to October 2022. Blood samples were collected at 16-20 weeks of gestation for the detection of serum vitamin D levels. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 28.0 and R 4.1.0 software. Multifactorial logistic regression analysis was employed to establish whether each variable was a risk factor for deliveries at ≤ 38 gestational weeks and low fetal weight. These results were used to construct a risk prediction model, and the model's predictive efficacy was evaluated. Results or differences with p < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Multifactorial logistic regression analysis revealed that vitamin D ≤ 14.7 ng/mL(OR: 1.611; 95% CI: 1.120-2.318; P = 0.010), Bone Mineral Density (BMD) T-value ≤-1(OR: 1.540; 95%CI: 1.067-2.223; P = 0.021), and gestational hypertension(OR: 7.173; 95% CI: 1.482-34.724; P = 0.014) were the independent risk factors for deliveries at ≤ 38 gestational weeks. Additionally, vitamin D ≤ 14.7 ng/mL(OR: 1.610; 95%CI: 1.123-2.307; P = 0.009), BMD T-value ≤ -1(OR: 1.560; 95%CI: 1.085-2.243; P = 0.016), and gestational hypertension(OR: 4.262; 95% CI: 1.058-17.167; P = 0.041) were the independent risk factors for low fetal weight (< 3400 g). CONCLUSION: This study revealed that low vitamin D levels are an independent risk factor for a short gestational length and low fetal weight. Prenatal low BMD T-value and comorbid hypertensive disorders were also found to increase the risk of a short gestational length and low fetal weight.

Advanced detection of cervical cancer biomarkers using engineered filamentous phage nanofibers.

Cervical cancer is a major global health concern, characterized by its high incidence and mortality rates. The detection of tumor markers is crucial for managing cancer, making treatment decisions, and monitoring disease progression. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PDL-1) are key targets in cervical cancer therapy and valuable biomarkers in predicting treatment response and prognosis. In this study, we found that combining the measurement of VEGF and soluble PDL-1 can be used for diagnosing and evaluating the progression of cervical cancer. To explore a more convenient approach for detecting and assessing cervical cancer, we designed and prepared an engineered fd bacteriophage, a human-safe viral nanofiber, equipped with two peptides targeting VEGF and PD-L1. The dual-display phage nanofiber specifically recognizes and binds to both proteins. Utilizing this nanofiber as a novel capture agent, we developed a new enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. This method shows significantly enhanced detection sensitivity compared to conventional ELISA methods, which use either anti-VEGF or anti-PD-L1 antibodies as capture agents. Therefore, the phage dual-display nanofiber presents significant potential in detecting cancer markers, evaluating medication efficacy, and advancing immunotherapy drug development. KEY POINTS: • The combined measurement of VEGF and soluble Programmed Death-Ligand 1(sPD-L1) demonstrates an additive effect in the diagnosis of cervical cancer. Fd phage nanofibers have been ingeniously engineered to display peptides that bind to VEGF and PD-L1, enabling the simultaneous detection of both proteins within a single assay • Genetically engineered phage nanofibers, adorned with two distinct peptides, can be utilized for the diagnosis and prognosis of cancer and can be mass-produced cost-effectively through bacterial infections • Employing dual-display fd phage nanofibers as capture probes, the phage ELISA method exhibited significantly enhanced detection sensitivity compared to traditional sandwich ELISA. Furthermore, phage ELISA facilitates the detection of a single protein or the simultaneous detection of multiple proteins, rendering them powerful tools for protein analysis and diagnosis across various fields, including cancer research.

Analysis of factors affecting the accuracy of colposcopic diagnosis of cervical lesions: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Cervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women. However, in developing countries, the primary focus for cervical cancer prevention and control remains on the timely detection and treatment of precancerous lesions. This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of colposcopic diagnosis of cervical intraepithelial lesions and analyze the factors influencing its accuracy. Methods: This study collected data from 512 eligible patients who visited the gynecology outpatient clinic of the Second Hospital of Jilin University from January 2022 to August 2023. The final diagnosis was based on the highest grade observed in both biopsy pathology and postoperative pathology. A self-controlled, retrospective analysis was conducted to evaluate the accuracy of colposcopic diagnosis. Univariate analysis was used to assess the impact of factors such as menopausal status, duration of menopause, high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) genotypes, and transformation zone (TZ) types on the accuracy of colposcopic diagnosis of cervical lesions. Result: The overall colposcopy diagnostic concordance rate was 78.71%. The concordance rates between the premenopausal and postmenopausal groups differed significantly (χ 2 = 75.450, p < 0.05). The HPV16/18 positive group and the non 16/18 HR-HPV positive group also showed a significant difference in concordance rates (χ 2 = 5.890, p < 0.05). There were significant differences in concordance rates between TZ2 and TZ3 (χ 2 = 10.585, p < 0.05), as well as between TZ1 and TZ3 (χ 2 = 14.607, p < 0.05). Conclusion: Factors such as menopausal status, duration of menopause, HR-HPV genotypes, and TZ types influence the accuracy of colposcopic diagnosis. Therefore, a comprehensive evaluation incorporating these factors should be performed in clinical practice to enhance diagnostic accuracy.

miRNA-612 suppresses ovarian cancer cell tumorigenicity by downregulating NOB1.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play crucial roles in cancer progression. Our previous study demonstrated that NIN1/RPN12 binding protein 1 homolog (NOB1) was a functional regulator in the progression of ovarian cancer (OC). However, the role of miRNA-612 (miR-612) in OC has not been elucidated. In this study, we aimed to investigate the regulatory mechanism of NOB1 targeting miRNA, miR-612, in OC tumorigenicity. The miR-612 expression was down-regulated in OC patient tissues and four OC cell lines (Caov3, A2780, SKOV3 and OVCAR3). The miR-612 level was negatively correlated with NOB1 expression, and dual-luciferase reporter assay indicated that miR-612 suppressed NOB1 expression by targeting the 3'UTR of NOB1 transcript. Up-regulation of miR-612 mediated by lentiviral transduction suppressed cell proliferation, colony formation, migration, invasion, and induced apoptosis in OC cell lines. In addition, miR-612 overexpression inhibited tumor growth of OC in vivo by sequestering NOB1 expression. In conclusion, our results suggested that miR-612 directly targeted NOB1 to suppress OC progression. Therefore, the miR-612-NOB1 axis could serve as therapeutic targets for OC.

Stochastic evolutionary voluntary public goods game with punishment in a Quasi-birth-and-death process.

Traditional replication dynamic model and the corresponding concept of evolutionary stable strategy (ESS) only takes into account whether the system can return to the equilibrium after being subjected to a small disturbance. In the real world, due to continuous noise, the ESS of the system may not be stochastically stable. In this paper, a model of voluntary public goods game with punishment is studied in a stochastic situation. Unlike the existing model, we describe the evolutionary process of strategies in the population as a generalized quasi-birth-and-death process. And we investigate the stochastic stable equilibrium (SSE) instead. By numerical experiments, we get all possible SSEs of the system for any combination of parameters, and investigate the influence of parameters on the probabilities of the system to select different equilibriums. It is found that in the stochastic situation, the introduction of the punishment and non-participation strategies can change the evolutionary dynamics of the system and equilibrium of the game. There is a large range of parameters that the system selects the cooperative states as its SSE with a high probability. This result provides us an insight and control method for the evolution of cooperation in the public goods game in stochastic situations.