Finite element model establishment and stress analysis of lumbar-sacral intervertebral disc in ankylosing spondylitis / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic inflammatory disease with chronic rheumatic immunity.Soft tissue ossification and fusion and spinal stiffness can cause biomechanical changes. OBJECTIVE:To reconstruct the lumbar-sacral intervertebral disc in ankylosing spondylitis patients with lumbar kyphosis by finite element analysis,and to study the range of motion of each segment of T11-S1 and the biomechanical characteristics of annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus. METHODS:The imaging data were obtained from an ankylosing spondylitis patient with lumbar kyphosis.The original CT image data of continuously scanned spine were imported into Mimics 21.0 in DICOM format,and T11-S1 was reconstructed respectively.The established model was imported into 3-Matic software in the format of"Stl"to reconstruct the intervertebral disc,and the fibrous intervertebral disc model was obtained.The improved model was further imported into Hypermesh software,and the vertebra,nucleus pulposus,annulus fibrosus and ligament were mesh-divided.After the material properties were given,the model was imported into ABAQUS software to observe the range of motion of each vertebral body in seven different working conditions of T11-S1,and analyze the biomechanical characteristics of each segment of annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The range of motion of L1 vertebrae was higher than that of other vertebrae under six different working conditions:extension,forward flexion,rotation(left and right),and lateral flexion(left and right).The maximum range of motion was 2.18° during L1 vertebral flexion,and the minimum range of motion was 0.12° during L5 vertebral extension.(2)The annular fiber flexion at L2-L3 segments was greater than the extension(P<0.05),and the annular fiber flexion at L3-L4 and L4-L5 segments was less than the extension(P<0.05).The left rotation of L1-L2 annular fibers was greater than the right rotation(P<0.05).The left flexion of the annulus was greater than the right flexion in L1-L2,L2-L3,L3-L4,L4-L5 and L5-S1 segments(P<0.05).(3)The nucleus pulposus stresses of T11-L12,L1-L2,L2-L3,L3-L4 and L4-L5 segments in forward flexion were greater than in extension(P<0.05).The left rotation of T12-L1 and L3-L4 segments was smaller than the right rotation(P<0.05),and that of T11-T12,L1-L2,and L2-L3 segments was larger than the right rotation(P<0.05).The left flexion was larger than the right flexion in the T11-S1 segment.(4)It is concluded that in ankylosing spondylitis patients with lumbar kyphosis,the minimum range of motion of the vertebral body is located at the L5 vertebral body in extension.To prevent fractures,it is recommended to avoid exercise in the extension position.During the onset of lumbar kyphosis in patients with ankylosing spondylitis,the maximum stress of the annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus is located in the L1-L2 segment,which is fixed and will not alter with the change of body position.The late surgical treatment and correction of deformity should focus on releasing the pressure of the annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus in this segment to avoid the rupture of the annulus fibrosus and the injury of the nucleus pulposus.

Pulsed electromagnetic fields inhibit knee cartilage degeneration in aged rats / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:Pulsed electromagnetic fields,as an important physical therapy,are exactly effective in the treatment of osteoarthritis,but the mechanism has not been fully clarified. OBJECTIVE:To observe the effect of pulsed electromagnetic field on the degeneration of knee joint cartilage in aged rats. METHODS:Eight 6-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats were selected as the young group and were subjected to normal diet with no treatment.Sixteen 22-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into old group(n=8)and pulsed electromagnetic field group(n=8).The rats in the pulsed electromagnetic field group were subjected to a pulsed electromagnetic field intervention,once a day,5 days per week for continuous 8 weeks.The rats in the old group were given no treatment.All rats were anesthetized and executed after 8 weeks for the detection of relevant indexes. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the young group,serum type Ⅱ collagen C-terminal peptide level was increased in the old group(P<0.05);compared with the old group,serum type Ⅱ collagen C-terminal peptide level was decreased in the pulsed electromagnetic field group(P<0.05).Micro-CT showed that the bone volume fraction,bone mineral density,and number of bone trabeculae decreased(P<0.05)and the trabecular separation increased(P<0.05)in the tibia of rats in the aged group compared with the young group;and the bone volume fraction,bone density,and number of trabeculae increased(P<0.05)and the trabecular separation decreased(P<0.05)in the tibia of rats in the pulsed electromagnetic field group compared with the aged group.The tibial plateau Safranin O-fast green staining showed that the articular cartilage structure of rats in the aged group was disorganized,and the number of chondrocytes was obviously reduced,and the tidal line could not be distinguished.The above results were improved in the pulsed electromagnetic field group.RT-qPCR and western blot assay showed that the mRNA and protein expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase 1,matrix metalloproteinase 13,P53 and P21 in the articular cartilage and subchondral bone of rats were elevated in the aged group compared with the young group(P<0.05)and decreased in the pulsed electromagnetic field group compared with the old group(P<0.05).To conclude,pulsed electromagnetic fields may improve osteoarthritis in aged rats by inhibiting chondrocyte senescence,alleviating articular cartilage degradation and inhibiting subchondral bone osteoporosis through suppressing the expression of P53/P21.

Research advances in the use of pigeon animal robots / 中国实验动物学报

Pigeons show flocking and homing behaviors,which require characteristics including long-distance weight-bearing and continuous flight,with excellent navigation and spatial cognitive abilities.Pigeons have been widely used in animal robot research in recent years.Pigeon robots achieve motor behavior control by applying neural information intervention to specific neural targets in the pigeon's brain.This review summarizes research progress in pigeon robots based on the sensory system,motivation and emotional system or cortex and midbrain motor area respectively,according to the distribution of hierarchical multi-level neural regulatory targets in the pigeon's brain,with the aim of providing reference and guidance for further applied research into the use of pigeon robots in space perception,reconnaissance,and anti-terrorism search and rescue.

Study on the Risk Prediction Models of Overweight and Obesity in Medical Students / 中国卫生统计

Objective To construct logistic regression,random forest and SVM models to predict the influencing factors of overweight and obesity in medical students,and the prediction performance of the three models was compared,so as to obtain the optimal model for the risk assessment of overweight and obesity.Methods Participants included 1 866 medical students from a city in Hebei Province from May to December 2020.The relevant data of overweight and obesity screening were collected through self-test questionnaire;three models of logistic regression,random forest and SVM are constructed by python.Results The test set showed that the accuracy of logistic regression,random forest and SVM models were 96.26%,98.66%and 98.13%respectively;the specificity were 99.77%,100%and 99.00%,respectively;and the AUC were 0.88,0.99 and 0.88 respectively.Random forest is the optimal prediction model;according to the random forest model results,subjective well-being,negative events and students'economic status are more than 10%of weight in the model.Conclusion Subjective well-being,negative events and students'economic status are the main factors affecting the incidence of overweight and obesity in medical students;the prediction performance of random forest model was better than logistic regression model and SVM model.

Application of skin temperature monitoring in early warning of radiodermatitis risks during postoperative radiotherapy for female breast cancer / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Objective:To analyze the correlation between the skin temperature changes in the radiation area and the occurrence of radiodermatitis during postoperative radiotherapy for female breast cancer and to explore the application value of skin temperature monitoring in the early warning of radiodermatitis risks.Methods:A total of 103 patients who received three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy after radical mastectomy in the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University were continuously enrolled from May to November, 2022 in this study. Their skin temperature in the radiation area and radiodermatitis were recorded weekly. The relationships between relative skin temperature differences and different grades of radiodermatitis were determined. The optimal cut-off values for grade ≥ radiodermatitis were calculated, and the predictive effect was evaluated using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Furthermore, the radiodermatitis risks under different skin temperatures were compared using binary logistic regression.Results:There was a positive correlation between the skin temperature in the radiation field and the grade of radiodermatitis. The optimal cut-off values for the average relative skin temperature difference of the chest wall (under 40 Gy/20 fractions), the maximum relative skin temperature difference of the chest wall (under 40 Gy/20 fractions), and the relative skin temperature difference of the supraclavicular block (under 30 Gy/15 fractions) were 0.45℃, 0.55℃, 0.15℃, respectively. The patients were divided into low- and high-risk groups based on the optimal cut-off values (0.45℃, 0.55℃, and 0.15℃). Binary logistic regression result showed that the risks of grade ≥ 2 radiodermatitis in the high-risk group were 5.71, 4.29, and 5.15 times those in the low-risk group, respectively ( OR = 5.71, 95% CI 1.81-17.99, P = 0.003; OR = 4.29, 95% CI 1.65-11.12, P = 0.003; OR = 5.15, 95% CI 2.16-12.31, P < 0.001). Conclusions:Skin temperature monitoring using medical infrared thermometers can be used to effectively predict the occurrence of grade ≥ 2 radiodermatitis. The skin temperature changes in the radiotherapy area should be closely observed. The risk of grade ≥ 2 radiodermatitis will increase when the mean and maximum relative temperature differences of the chest wall increase by 0.45℃ and 0.55℃, respectively under 40 Gy/20 fractions of radiotherapy or when the relative temperature differences of the supraclavicular block increases by 0.15℃ under 30 Gy/15 fractions of radiotherapy.

432A perspective on light-based bioprinting of DNA hydrogels for advanced bone regeneration: Implication for bone organoids.

Light-based three-dimensional (3D) printing of hydrogels has been widely adopted for accelerating bone regeneration. However, the design principles of traditional hydrogels do not take into consideration the biomimetic regulation of multiple stages throughout the bone healing, and the hydrogels made cannot effectively induce sufficient osteogenesis, which in turn greatly limits their capacity in guiding bone regeneration. The recent progress achieved in DNA hydrogel, which is based on synthetic biology, could facilitate the innovation of the current strategy due to its advantages, such as resistance to enzymatic degradation, programmability, structural controllability, and mechanical properties. However, 3D printing of DNA hydrogel is not well defined and appears to have a few distinct early forms. In this article, a perspective on the early development of 3D printing of DNA hydrogels is presented, and a potential implication of the hydrogel-based bone organoids built-up for bone regeneration is proposed.

Advances in the study of the m6A methyltransferase METTL3 promoting bladder cancer progression via AFF4/NF-κB/MYC signaling network / 现代泌尿外科杂志

Bladder cancer (BCa) is one of the most common cancers in urology,whose pathogenesis is still unclear. Methyltransferase-like 3(METTL3) is the most important part of N6-methyladenosine methyltransferase complex (m6A MTC),which mediates the methylation of mRNA to regulate the stability and translation process of mRNA. Researches have shown that METTL3 can promote BCa development via AFF4/NF-κB/MYC signaling network,which involves many kinds of signaling molecules. In addition,METTL3 can affect the expressions of AFF4,NF-κB and MYC,so as to affect their downstream signaling pathways and finally promote the malignant progression of tumor.

Study of a fetus with confined placental mosaicism for trisomy 2 in conjunct with fetal uniparental disomy and a literature review / 中华医学遗传学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To carry out genetic analysis for a fetus with confined placental mosaicism (CPM) for trisomy 2 (T2) in conjunct with fetal uniparental disomy (UPD).@*METHODS@#Amniocentesis and chromosomal karyotyping was carried out for a pregnant woman with a high risk for chromosome 2 anomalies indicated by non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT). Single nucleotide polymorphism array (SNP-array) and trio-whole exome sequencing (Trio-WES) were carried out. Ultrasonography was used to closely monitor the fetal growth. Multifocal sampling of the placenta was performed after delivery for copy number variation sequencing (CNV-seq).@*RESULTS@#The fetus was found to have a normal chromosomal karyotype. SNP-array has revealed multiple regions with loss of heterozygosity (LOH) on chromosome 2. Trio-WES confirmed the presence of maternal UPD for chromosome 2. Ultrasonography has revealed intrauterine growth restriction and oligohydramnios. Intrauterine fetal demise had occurred at 23+4 weeks of gestation. Pathological examination had failed to find salient visceral abnormality. The placenta was proved to contain complete T2 by CNV-seq.@*CONCLUSION@#T2 CPM can cause false positive result for NIPT and may be complicated with fetal UPD, leading to adverse obstetric outcomes such as intrauterine growth restriction, oligohydramnios and intrauterine fetal demise.

Effects of neutrophil DNA methylation on periodontitis and research progress in bioinformatics / 国际生物医学工程杂志

Periodontitis is a chronic infectious disease leading to periodontal connective tissue destruction and alveolar bone resorption, which is widely prevalent and seriously endangers the oral and systemic health of a wide range of patients. The host immune inflammatory response plays a major role in the tissue destruction of periodontitis. Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs), as one of the important immune cell components in periodontal tissues, can trigger the host immune inflammatory response through the release of pro-inflammatory factors, which in turn leads to periodontitis. DNA methylation can influence the function of immune cells by regulating gene expression. Bioinformatics technology can provide new ideas for the treatment of periodontitis by analyzing the gene expression profiles and DNA methylation data of periodontal tissues from public databases of periodontitis patients and healthy populations, uncovering key DNA methylation genes of PMNs, and elucidating the influence of these genes on the pathological progression of periodontitis.

Correlation between food-specific IgG antibodies and phenotypes of chronic spontaneous urticaria / 中华皮肤科杂志

Objective:To investigate the correlation between food-specific IgG (sIgG) antibodies and phenotypes of chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) .Methods:Serum samples were collected from outpatients with active CSU, symptomatic dermographism (SD) , or acute urticaria (AU) , and healthy controls from 5 third-grade class-A hospitals such as the First Hospital of China Medical University between April 2014 and March 2015. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was conducted to detect serum levels of 90 food-sIgG antibodies and total IgE, Western blot analysis to detect levels of 20 allergen-specific IgE antibodies, and chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay to detect levels of anti-thyroid peroxidase IgG antibodies and anti-thyroglobulin IgG antibodies. Comparisons of normally distributed quantitative data between two groups and among several groups were performed by t test and one-way analysis of variance, respectively; comparisons of non-normally distributed quantitative data between two groups were performed by Mann-Whitney U test; for comparisons of proportions, chi-square test and Fisher′s exact test were used. Results:A total of 248 patients with CSU, 22 with SD, 15 with AU and 13 healthy controls were recruited. The cut-off level for sIgG positivity was 100 U/ml (at least 2+) , and the positive rate of food-sIgG antibodies was slightly higher in the patients with CSU (176/248, 70.97%) , SD (15/22, 68.18%) and AU (11/15) than in the healthy controls (7/13; χ2 = 1.80, P = 0.615) . Among the 248 CSU patients, the proportion of patients with family history of allergic diseases was significantly higher in the sIgG-positive group (71/176, 40.34%) than in the sIgG-negative group (19/72, 26.39%; χ2 = 4.30, P = 0.042) , while no significant difference was observed in the 1-day urticaria activity score (UASday) between the two groups ( Z = 0.18, P = 0.859) . Totally, 177 CSU patients completed 12- to 40-week treatment; their condition could be completely controlled by second-generation H1-antihistamines, and there was no significant difference in the required dosage of second-generation H1-antihistamines between the sIgG-positive group (128 cases) and sIgG-negative group (49 cases; Z = -1.06, P = 0.298) . Conclusions:The prevalence of family history of allergic diseases was relatively high in food-sIgG-positive patients with CSU. However, food-sIgG could not be used as an indicator to reflect the disease activity of CSU and treatment response.

One case of Neonatal Diabetes Mellitus caused by ABCC8 gene mutation and literature review / 中国综合临床

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics and gene sequencing results of NDM, so as to provide evidence for clinical diagnosis and treatment .Methods:Clinical data of 1 child diagnosed with NDM in Hebei People's Hospital in January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed, and DNA gene sequencing was performed in the peripheral blood of the child, and relevant literatures were reviewed.Results:The child was born with a weight of 2.2kg. On the second day after birth, blood glucose significantly increased and insulin and C-peptide levels decreased. After 14 days of insulin treatment, hyperglycemia was still present, which was consistent with the diagnosis of NDM. Genetic testing indicated that there were missense mutations of newborn compound heterozygote in ABCC8 gene: c. 752G > A (p.G251E), c. 772A > G (p.R258G). The mutation of c. 772A > G in ABCC8 gene had not been reported before, and sulfonylureas were effective for the treatment of the child.Conclusion:NDM is a rare monogenic genetic disease with a lack of specificity in clinical manifestations. For children diagnosed or suspected of NDM, genetic testing should be actively carried out, which is of great significance for clinical diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.

Fucoidan-functionalized activated platelet-hitchhiking micelles simultaneously track tumor cells and remodel the immunosuppressive microenvironment for efficient metastatic cancer treatment

Tumor metastasis is responsible for most mortality in cancer patients, and remains a challenge in clinical cancer treatment. Platelets can be recruited and activated by tumor cells, then adhere to circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and assist tumor cells extravasate in distant organs. Therefore, nanoparticles specially hitchhiking on activated platelets are considered to have excellent targeting ability for primary tumor, CTCs and metastasis in distant organs. However, the activated tumor-homing platelets will release transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), which promotes tumor metastasis and forms immunosuppressive microenvironment. Therefore, a multitalent strategy is needed to balance the accurate tumor tracking and alleviate the immunosuppressive signals. In this study, a fucoidan-functionalized micelle (FD/DOX) was constructed, which could efficiently adhere to activated platelets through P-selectin. Compared with the micelle without P-selectin targeting effect, FD/DOX had increased distribution in both tumor tissue and metastasis niche, and exhibited excellent anti-tumor and anti-metastasis efficacy on 4T1 spontaneous metastasis model. In addition, due to the contribution of fucoidan, FD/DOX treatment was confirmed to inhibit the expression of TGF-β, thereby stimulating anti-tumor immune response and reversing the immunosuppressive microenvironment. The fucoidan-functionalized activated platelets-hitchhiking micelle was promising for the metastatic cancer treatment.

Prospective study of apatinib combined with chemoradiotherapy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma / 中华放射肿瘤学杂志

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy and safety of apatinib in combination with chemoradiotherapy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).Methods:37 patients orally received apatinib at 250 mg/d during concurrent chemoradiotherapy until completion of radiotherapy, complete remission assessed by imaging examination, the onset of unacceptable toxicity or death. Baseline characteristics, objective response rates (ORR) and adverse events were assessed in all enrolled patients with complete baseline and safety data. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were calculated by Kaplan-Meier method. Prognostic factors were statistically identified using Cox regression models.Results:The ORR was 85%(95% CI: 72%-98%). The median PFS was 17.9 months and the 2-year OS rate was 62%(95% CI: 48%-80%). Ineffective short-term efficacy ( HR=0.035, 995% CI: 0.02-0.652, P=0.025) was an independent risk factor for poor OS. In addition, ineffective short-term efficacy ( HR=0.104, 95% CI: 0.017-0.633, P=0.014) and lymphocytopenia ( HR=17.539, 95% CI: 2.040-150.779, P=0.009) were independent risk factors for poor PFS. Common adverse events (>60%) included lymphocytopenia (76%), leukopenia (68%) and irradiation-induced mucosal injury (65%). The most common treatment-associated grade 3 adverse event was lymphopenia (49%). Conclusions:Apatinib combined with chemoradiotherapy yield significant anti-tumor activity for HNSCC with controllable toxicity. For patients with advanced HNSCC, short-term efficacy and lymphocytopenia may be potential predictors for clinical efficacy of apatinib combined with chemoradiotherapy.

Genetic analysis of a case of infant spinal muscular atrophy type 1c / 中国综合临床

Objective:To summarize the genetic characteristics of a case of spinal muscular atrophy type 1c.Methods:The case data of a child with spinal muscular atrophy type 1c was retrospectively analyzed, and the genetic analysis and literature review were carried out.Results:The patient, male, started at the age of 2 months, and showed gross motor development backwardness and low muscular tension. Multiplex connection probe amplification technique showed that the child had homozygous deletion mutation in exon 7-8 of SMN1 gene, and there was duplicate mutation in exon 7-8 of SMN2 gene. The number of copies of exon 7/8 was 3/3. His father was a heterozygous deletion carrier of SMN1 gene, and there was homozygous mutation in exon 8 of SMN2 gene. The number of copies of exon 7/8 was 2/3. His mother did not find abnormal exons of SMN1 gene, and the number of copies of exon 7/8 of SMN2 gene was 1/1.Conclusion:Spinal muscular atrophy lacks specific manifestations in the early stage, and the diagnosis mainly depends on genetic testing. Clinicians need to be vigilant, strengthen the early understanding of the disease, and improve the prognosis.

Effect of coronary microvascular dysfunction on cardiac mechanical indices in patients with non-obstructive coronary artery disease / 中华超声影像学杂志

Objective:To investigate the effect and relationship of coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) on cardiac mechanical indices in patients with non-obstructive coronary artery disease(NOCAD) in the resting state.Methods:This study was a single-center retrospective study. Seventy-nine NOCAD patients who hospitalized in Qilu Hospital of Shandong University from July 2017 to March 2022 were recruited. All patients underwent conventional echocardiography examination and the examination of coronary flow velocity reserved by transthoracic Doppler echocardiography (TTDE-CFVR). Based on the results of TTDE-CFVR, patients were divided into CMD group (CFVR<2.5, 32 cases) and a control group (CFVR≥2.5, 47 cases). Clinical data, routine echocardiographic parameters, regional mechanical indices including regional myocardial work index(RWI) and regional longitudinal strain(RLS), global mechanical indices including left ventricular global longitudinal strain(GLS), global longitudinal strain in the endocardial layer(GLS-endo), global longitudinal strain in the epicardial layer(GLS-epi), left ventricular global work index(GWI), global contractive work(GCW), global waste work(GWW), global work efficiency(GWE) were compared between two groups. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors of CMD. ROC curve was used to construct a prediction model for CMD.Results:There was no significant difference in sex ratio, BMI, smoking history, diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia between CMD group and control group. Age was significantly higher in the CMD group than in the control group. RWI, GWI, GCW, GWE and the absolute values of RLS, GLS, GLS-endo and GLS-epi were significantly lower in the CMD group than in the control group. Logistic regression analysis showed that the decrease of absolute value of GLS was an independent risk factor for the CMD( OR=1.335, 95% CI=1.041-1.713, P=0.023). ROC curve showed that myocardial strain-related indexes had a good decrease value for the CMD. Conclusions:For patients with NOCAD, the presence of CMD is associated with the decrease of left ventricular regional and global systolic function.

Podocyte RNF166 deficiency alleviates diabetic nephropathy by mitigating mitochondria impairment and apoptosis via regulation of CYLD signal.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a major cause of renal failure in diabetic patients. RING-finger protein 166 (RNF166), composed of an N-terminal RING domain and C-terminal ubiquitin interaction motif, plays a critical role in mediating various cellular processes. However, its potential in DN has not been investigated. In the present study, we found that DN patients exhibited significantly increased expression of RNF166 in renal tissues compared with the normal individuals, and abundant RNF166 was detected in podocytes. We then showed that podocyte-conditional RNF166 knockout (RNF166cKO) markedly reduced blood glucose levels and ameliorated renal dysfunction in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic mice. Additionally, abnormal histological changes and podocyte injury were observed in STZ-induced diabetic mice, while being markedly ameliorated by RNF166cKO. Furthermore, podocyte-specific RNF166 deficiency considerably mitigated apoptosis and mitochondrial impairments in glomeruli podocytes of STZ-challenged mice through suppressing Caspase-3 cleavage and improving mitochondrial fission-associated molecules. In vitro studies further confirmed that high glucose (HG) induced mitochondrial dysfunction, along with enhanced releases of Cyto-c from mitochondria and elevated expression of cleaved Caspase-9, contributing to intrinsic apoptosis in podocytes. Intriguingly, these effects triggered by HG were dramatically ameliorated by RNF166 knockout. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that RNF166 directly interacted with cylindromatosis (CYLD), and negatively regulated CYLD expression. Notably, RNF166 knockout-attenuated mitochondrial damage and apoptosis were mainly through CYLD in podocytes upon HG stimulation. Together, all these findings provided new insights into the novel effects of RNF166 on maintaining mitochondrial function and apoptosis in podocytes during DN progression both in vivo and in vitro through interacting with CYLD, indicating that RNF166/CYLD may be an innovative therapeutic target for developing effective strategy against DN development.

Efficacy of a cooling gel containing calcium-based antimicrobial peptide compounds combined with desonide cream in the treatment of atopic dermatitis in children: a randomized, double-blind controlled clinical study / 中华皮肤科杂志

Objective:To evaluate short-term clinical efficacy and safety of a cooling gel containing calcium-based antimicrobial peptide compounds (CAPCS cooling gel) combined with desonide cream in the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) in children.Methods:From November 2019 to September 2020, a randomized, double-blind controlled clinical trial was conducted in 60 children with AD enrolled from Department of Dermatology and Venereology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University. The 60 patients were randomly and equally divided into 2 groups: test group treated with topical desonide cream in the morning and evening as well as topical CAPCS cooling gel at noon during the first 3 days of treatment, followed by topical CAPCS cooling gel in the morning, at midday and in the evening for 11 days; control group treated with topical desonide cream in the morning and evening as well as topical CAPCS-free placebo gel at noon during the first 3 days of treatment, followed by topical CAPCS-free placebo gel in the morning, at midday and in the evening for 11 days. The treatment lasted 2 weeks. Finally, 56 AD patients completed the follow-up, and 28 in each group were included into the following analysis. Clinical indices, such as eczema area and severity index (EASI) , visual analogue scale (VAS) , investigator′s global assessment (IGA) and dermatology life quality index (DLQI) , were recorded before, 7 ± 3 days and 14 ± 3 days after the treatment, so were adverse reactions.Results:After 1-week treatment, 1 patient in the test group and 1 in the control group showed response to the treatment, with the response rate being 3.57% in both groups; after 2-week treatment, 12 patients in the test group and 2 in the control group showed response to the treatment, with response rates being 42.86% and 7.14% respectively; there were significant differences in the treatment outcomes between the two groups after 1- and 2-week treatment ( Z = -4.318, -5.474, respectively, both P < 0.05) . There was no significant difference in the EASI, VAS, IGA or DLQI score between the two groups before treatment (all P > 0.05) ; nonparametric Friedman test showed a significant difference in the changing trend of the EASI score over time between the two groups ( χ2 = 45.720, P < 0.05) . Two-way repeated measurement analysis of variance showed a significant difference in the VAS score ( F = 10.738, P = 0.002) , but no significant difference in IGA or DLQI score between the test group and control group after 1-week treatment ( F = 0.066, 0.804, P = 0.135, 0.374, respectively) ; after 2-week treatment, there were significant differences in the VAS, IGA and DLQI score between the 2 groups ( F = 67.313, 38.949, 51.503, respectively, all P < 0.001) . During the clinical study period, 1 adverse event occurred in the test group and control group each, which manifested as tingling or irritating sensation at the topically treated sites, and there was no significant difference in the incidence rate of adverse events between the two groups ( P > 0.05) . Conclusion:Short-term topical application of CAPCS cooling gel combined with desonide cream is effective for the treatment of AD in children, and does not increase the incidence of adverse reactions compared with the placebo.

Advances in research on family resilience in cancer patients / 中国实用护理杂志

To summarize the correlation study of family resilience, family resilience factors study, theoretical model and application study of family resilience, family resilience assessment tools in cancer patients, and prospect future research on family resilience in cancer patients. This study aims to provide reference for future research directions on family resilience in cancer patients.

Cytogenetic and molecular genetic analysis of Klinefelter syndrome in a fetus of Duchenne muscular dystrophy family / 中华围产医学杂志

A 44-year-old pregnant woman (G5P3) who had delivered two children with DMD was admitted and underwent prenatal diagnosis at Peking Union Medical College Hospital in 2019. (1) The karyotype of the fetus in 2019 was 47,XXY. The fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) result showed a nucish(CSPX×2, CSPY×1)[100] and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) suggested sex chromosome abnormality. Based on the above results, the fetus was diagnosed with Klinefelter syndrome. Fetal short tandem repeat (STR) linkage analysis and Sanger sequencing indicated a heterozygous mutation of c.9543delG(p.Trp3181CysfsTer2). (2) Sanger sequencing of the proband found a novel frameshift mutation of c.9543delG(p.Trp3181CysfsTer2 ) in exon 65 of the DMD gene. (3) The male fetus performing prenatal diagnosis in 2008 was found to have the same maternal gene markers as the proband with the same genotype. While the genotype of the fetus in 2009 obtained a different maternal gene marker from the proband and did not detect the same DMD gene mutation. This fetus was delivered at full term and was good during follow-up. (4) The elder brother and cousin of the proband had the same frameshift mutation in exon 65 of the DMD gene as the proband. The mother of the proband was a heterozygous carrier of the mutation.

The ACE2 expression of maternal-fetal interface and fetal organs indicates potential risk of vertical transmission of SARS-COV-2

Recent studies have demonstrated that SARS-CoV-2 cell entry depends on both ACE2 and TMPRSS2 genes (DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.052), but our current work only focus on ACE2, which is insufficient to support the conclusion of this paper. So the authors have withdrawn their manuscript whilst they perform additional experiments and analysis to test some of their conclusions further. Therefore, the authors do not wish this work to be cited as reference for the project.