Clinical and immunologic features in severe and moderate forms of Coronavirus Disease 2019

BackgroundSince late December, 2019, an outbreak of pneumonia cases caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, and continued to spread throughout China and across the globe. To date, few data on immunologic features of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been reported. MethodsIn this single-centre retrospective study, a total of 21 patients with pneumonia who were laboratory-confirmed to be infected with SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan Tongji hospital were included from Dec 19, 2019 to Jan 27, 2020. The immunologic characteristics as well as their clinical, laboratory, radiological features were compared between 11 severe cases and 10 moderate cases. ResultsOf the 21 patients with COVID-19, only 4 (19%) had a history of exposure to the Huanan seafood market. 7 (33.3%) patients had underlying conditions. The average age of severe and moderate cases was 63.9 and 51.4 years, 10 (90.9%) severe cases and 7 (70.0%) moderate cases were male. Common clinical manifestations including fever (100%, 100%), cough (70%, 90%), fatigue (100%, 70%) and myalgia (50%, 30%) in severe cases and moderate cases. PaO2/FiO2 ratio was significantly lower in severe cases (122.9) than moderate cases (366.2). Lymphocyte counts were significantly lower in severe cases (0.7 x 10{square}/L) than moderate cases (1.1 x 10{square}/L). Alanine aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase levels, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and ferritin were significantly higher in severe cases (41.4 U/L, 567.2 U/L, 135.2 mg/L and 1734.4 ug/L) than moderate cases (17.6 U/L, 234.4 U/L, 51.4 mg/L and 880.2 ug /L). IL-2R, TNF- and IL-10 concentrations on admission were significantly higher in severe cases (1202.4 pg/mL, 10.9 pg/mL and 10.9 pg/mL) than moderate cases (441.7 pg/mL, 7.5 pg/mL and 6.6 pg/mL). Absolute number of total T lymphocytes, CD4+T cells and CD8+T cells decreased in nearly all the patients, and were significantly lower in severe cases (332.5, 185.6 and 124.3 x 106/L) than moderate cases (676.5, 359.2 and 272.0 x 106/L). The expressions of IFN-{gamma} by CD4+T cells tended to be lower in severe cases (14.6%) than moderate cases (23.6%). ConclusionThe SARS-CoV-2 infection may affect primarily T lymphocytes, particularly CD4+T cells, resulting in significant decrease in number as well as IFN-{gamma} production, which may be associated with disease severity. Together with clinical characteristics, early immunologic indicators including diminished T lymphocytes and elevated cytokines may serve as potential markers for prognosis in COVID-19.

Identification and clinical significance of corynebacterium from abscess in granulomatous mastitis / 中华内分泌外科杂志

Objective:To make the early clinical antibiotic regimen by finding out the infection of corynebacterium in the pus of patients with granulomatous mastitis in the early stage.Methods:A total of 42 patients who were diagnosed and treated in the Breast Center of Guangdong Maternal and Child Health Hospital from Jun. 2016 to Mar. 2017 with complete follow-up data were retrospectively analyzed. PCR method was used to detect corynebacterium in the patients’ pus. Patients in the positive group were treated with antibiotics alone, antibiotics + hormones and hormones alone, while patients in the negative group were treated with antibiotics + hormones and hormones alone. The postoperative recurrence rate and cure rate of different groups of patients were observed.Results:The antibiotic regimen for granulomatous mastitis in patients with corynebacterium infection included a combination of short-acting levofloxacin and azithromycin and long-acting anti-mycobacterium drugs. Among the 42 patients in the subgroup, 21 patients were confirmed positive for corynebacterium by PCR detection of pus, and the postoperative recurrence rate was 23.5%. There was a statistically significant difference between the antibiotic group, the antibiotic + hormone group and the hormone group in treatment of granulomatous mastitis infected with corynebacterium ( χ2=5.494, P=0.036) . PCR detection shouwed corynebacterium negative in 21 cases, and postoperative recurrence rate of 16.7%. No statistically significant difference in efficacy was found between antibiotic + hormone group and hormone only group for GM patients without bacterial infection ( χ2=1.129, P=0.719) . Conclusion:Early detection of corynebacterium infection in GM patients is significant for clinical guidance of the application of lipophilic antibiotics.

Effect of Yuganlong Capsule Combined with Entecavir in Treatment of 30 Cases of Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B Cirrhosis / 医药导报

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of Yuganlong capsule combined with entecavir in treatment of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B cirrhosis. Methods A total of 57 cases of patients with chronic hepatitis B cirrhosis were randomly divided into treatment group(30 cases given entecavir) and control group(27 cases treated with Yuganlong capsule combined with entecavir).Fibroscan values,hepatic fibrosis indexes(HA,LN,C-Ⅳ,PC-Ⅲ),liver function index(ALT,AST,GGT,T-BiL),and ultrasonic imaging index(inner diameters of portal vein,thickness of spleen) were detected. Results Before treatment, all indicatorshad no significant differences between the two groups(P>0.05).After 96 weeks of treatment,the Fibroscan value,HA, LN,C-Ⅳ,ALT,AST and portal vein diameter were significantly reduced in the treatment group as compared with those before treatment(all P<0.05),and there were significant differences between the treatment group and the control group after the treatment (all P<0.05). Conclusion The effect of Yuganlong capsule combined with entecavir in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B liver cirrhosis is better than that of using entecavir alone to improve liver function and liver fibrosis.

IL-17 contributes to autoimmune hepatitis / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

The role of interleukin-17 (IL-17) in autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) was investigated. A mouse model of experimental autoimmune hepatitis was established, and the syngeneic S-100 antigen emulsified in complete Freud's adjuvant was injected intraperitoneally into adult male C57BL/6 mice. The IL-17 expression in serum and the livers of the mice models was detected by using ELISA and immunohistochemistry, respectively. IL-17 neutralizing antibody was used to study the biological effect of IL-17 in the experimental AIH. IL-17 neutralizing antibody in vivo administration alleviated the hepatic inflammation and ALT level in the AIH model. IL-17 in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of AIH patients was measured by using real-time PCR method. The results showed that IL-17 level was significantly up-regulated in AIH patients and mice models. It was concluded that IL-17 contributed to the development of AIH and might be a potential therapeutic target of AIH.

Differential gene expression profiles in acute hepatic failure model in mice infected with MHV-3 virus intervened by anti-hepatic failure compound / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

Differential gene expression profiles in Balb/cJ mouse model of acute hepatic failure infected with MHV-3 virus intervened by anti-hepatic failure compound (AHFC) and the changes of cytokines regulated by genes were investigated. The Balb/cj mice were divided into AHFC-intervened group and control group randomly. Acute hepatic failure model of Balb/cJ mice infected with MHV-3 virus was established. The survival rate in the two groups was observed. It was found that the survival rate in the AHFC-intervened group and control group was 90% and 50% respectively 48 h after intraperitoneal injection of MHV-3 (P<0.05). Before and after the experiment, the cytokines in peripheral blood of the survival mice were determined, and RNA was extracted from survival mouse liver tissue for the analysis of the differential gene expression by a 36 kb mouse oligonucleotide DNA array. In all the genes of microarray there were 332 genes expressed differently in the two groups, in which 234 genes were up-regulated and 78 genes down-regulated. Through clustering analysis, the differential expression of immune related genes, including TNF receptor superfamily, Kctd9, Bcl-2, Fgl2, IL-8, IL-6, IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha etc. might be related with the curative effectiveness of AHFC. It was suggested that AHFC can balance the immune state of mouse model of acute hepatic failure infected with MHV-3 virus mainly through regulating the expression of immune related genes, decrease the immune damage and inhibit liver cell apoptosis of mouse acute hepatic failure model obviously so as to increase the survival rate of mouse models of acute hepatic failure.

The expression of FasL and ICAM-1 on the HEVs in the hypertrophic tonsils / 临床耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the expression of FasL and ICAM-1 on the HEVs in the hypertrophic tonsils and its clinical significance.@*METHOD@#Under the light microscopy, HE and immunohistochemistry methods were used to show the morphology of HEVs, the number of T, B lymphocytes, the expression intensity of FasL and ICAM-1 in 17 patients with the idiopathic tonsillar hypertrophy (ITH) and in 20 patients with the chronic hypertrophic tonsillitis (CHT).@*RESULT@#The expression intensity of ICAM-1 on the tonsillar HEVs in ITH group was significantly lower than that in CTH group (P < 0.05), but the intensity of FasL in ITH group was significantly higher than that in CHT group (P < 0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#FasL and ICAM-1 expression in the tonsillar HEVs contribute to the CHT and ITH. The former mainly makes IHT developed, and the latter promotes the process of the inflammation.

Differential Gene Expression Profiles in Acute Hepatic Failure Model in Mice Infected with MHV-3 Virus Intervened by Anti-hepatic Failure Compound / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

Differential gene expression profiles in Balb/cJ mouse model of acute hepatic failure in- fected with MHV-3 virus intervened by anti-hepatic failure compound (AHFC) and the changes of cytokines regulated by genes were investigated. The Balb/cj mice were divided into AHFC-intervened group and control group randomly. Acute hepatic failure model of Balb/cJ mice infected with MHV-3 virus was established. The survival rate in the two groups was observed. It was found that the survival rate in the AHFC-intervened group and control group was 90% and 50% re- spectively 48 h after intrapefitoneal injection of MHV-3 (P<0.05). Before and after the experiment, the cytokines in peripheral blood of the survival mice were determined, and RNA was extracted from survival mouse liver tissue for the analysis of the differential gene expression by a 36 kb mouse oli- gonuleotide DNA array. In all the genes of microarray there were 332 genes expressed differently in the two groups, in which 234 genes were up-regulated and 78 genes down-regulated. Through clustering analysis, the differential expression of immune related genes, including TNF receptor superfamily, Kctd9, Bcl-2, Fg12, IL-8, IL-6, IFN-γ, TNF-α etc. might be related with the curative effectiveness of AHFC. It was suggested that AHFC can balance the immune state of mouse model of acute hepatic failure infected with MHV-3 virus mainly through regulating the expression of immune related genes, decrease the immune damage and inhibit liver cell apoptosis of mouse acute hepatic failure model obviously so as to increase the survival rate of mouse models of acute hepatic failure.