Cognitive impairment experienced by Chinese breast cancer survivors.

To identify cognitive function in Chinese breast cancer survivors. Research questions were: is cognitive function was associated with breast cancer and/or chemotherapy treatment and/or psychological functioning:? and did women with breast cancer experience more cognitive and psychological issues than age-matched women without cancer? Breast cancer survivors with chemotherapy (n = 106, mean age = 50.2 ± 9.5), breast cancer survivors without chemotherapy (n = 100, mean age = 50.5 ± 10.0) and matched healthy controls (n = 96, mean age = 47.9 ± 9.1) completed a battery of cognitive and psychosocial functioning. Demographic characteristics were also collected. The Perceived Cognitive Impairment score for cancer groups was significantly higher than for the healthy group (p = 0.04), but not between the cancer groups. Processing speed was significantly slower in the cancer groups than in the healthy group (both p < 0.001), but not between the cancer groups. Age, living status and education were significantly associated with the FACT-Cog (all p < 0.05). The correlations between the FACT-Cog score and BSI score were strong (r = 0.60 p < 0.01), and between the HADS anxiety and depression scales were strong (r = 0.53 and 0.50, p < 0.01) but correlations were weaker between performance based cognitive tests and measures of psychological functioning. Breast cancer groups indicated more cognitive impairment and reduced psychological functioning compared to the healthy group. However, there was no differences between the breast cancer groups. Chinese breast cancer survivors experienced excess cognitive impairment not associated with usual ageing. Assessment and intervention to address cognitive impairment should be made available to breast cancer survivors.

Correlation of serum albumin level on postoperative day 2 with hospital length of stay in patients undergoing emergency surgery for perforated peptic ulcer.

BACKGROUND: Perforated peptic ulcer (PPU) is a common emergency surgical condition and a significant cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. While advances in surgical techniques have improved outcomes for patients with PPU, many factors still affect postoperative hospital stay and overall prognosis. One potential factor is the serum albumin (SA) level, a widely utilized marker of nutritional status that has been associated with length of stay and complications in various surgical procedures. AIM: To clarify the correlation of SA level on postoperative day 2 with hospital length of stay (HLOS) in patients undergoing emergency surgery for perforated peptic ulcer (PPU). METHODS: We retrospectively collected and analyzed clinical baseline data, including blood routine and SA levels, of patients who underwent emergency PPU surgery and postoperative treatment at the Lingnan Hospital, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between December 2012 and September 2021. Patients were grouped according to HLOS with 7 d as the cut-off value, and relevant indicators were analyzed using SPSS 26.0. RESULTS: Of the 37 patients undergoing emergency surgery for PPU referred to our department, 33 had gastric and 4 had duodenal ulcer perforation. The median HLOS was 10 d. There were 8 patients in the ≤ 7-d group (median HLOS: 7 d) and 29 patients in the > 7-d group (median HLOS: 10 d). The ≤ 7-d group had markedly higher SA on postoperative day 2 than the > 7-d group (37.7 g/L vs 32.6g/L; P < 0.05). The SA level on postoperative day 2 was a protective factor for patients with HLOS > 7 d (Odds ratio = 0.629, P = 0.015). The cut-off of SA on postoperative day 2 was 30.6g/L, with an area under the curve of 0.86 and a negative predictive value of 100% for the prediction of HLOS ≤ 7 d. CONCLUSION: The SA level on postoperative day 2 was associated with the HLOS in patients undergoing emergency surgery for PPU. The pre- and post-operative albumin levels should be monitored, and infusion of human SA should be considered in a timely manner.

Protective effects and regulatory mechanisms of Shen-shuai-yi recipe on renal fibrosis in unilateral ureteral obstruction-induced mice.

Renal fibrosis (RF) is a common pathological feature of chronic kidney disease (CKD), which remains a major public health problem. As now, there is still lack of chemical or biological drugs to reverse RF. Shen-shuai-yi Recipe (SSYR) is a classical Chinese herbal formula for the treatment of CKD. However, the effects and mechanisms of SSYR in treating RF are still not clear. In this study, the active constituents SSYR for treating RF were explored by UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS. Bioinformatics analyses were employed to analyze the key pharmacological targets and the core active constituents of SSYR in the treatment of RF. In experimental validation, vehicle or SSYR at doses of 2.12 g/kg/d and 4.25 g/kg/d were given by orally to unilateral ureteric obstruction (UUO) mice. 13 days after treatment, we detected the severity of renal fibrosis, extracellular collagen deposition and pre-fibrotic signaling pathways. Bioinformatics analysis suggested that signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) was the core target and lenticin, luteolin-7-O-rutinoside, hesperidin, kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside, and 3,5,6,7,8,3',4'-heptamethoxyflavone were the key constituents in SSYR for treating RF. SSYR significantly reduced the expressions of fibronectin (FN), α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), collagen-I and alleviated renal interstitial collagen deposition in UUO kidneys. In mechanism, SSYR potently blocked the phosphorylation of STAT3 and Smad3 and suppressed the expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). Collectively, SSYR can ameliorate RF via inhibiting the phosphorylation of STAT3 and its downstream and reducing the collagen deposition, suggesting that SSYR can be developed as a novel medicine for treating RF.

Inflammatory and Nutritional Status Influences Outcomes of Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy.

INTRODUCTION: The potential association between severe postoperative complications (SPC) and the oncological outcomes of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients according to the different Naples Prognostic Score (NPS) of the inflammatory nutritional status after minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) is unclear. METHODS: Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) between with or without SPC (Clavien-Dindo grade ≥ III) in low NPS status (NPS = 0 or 1) and high NPS status (NPS = 2 or 3 or 4) patients. Cox multivariable analysis was carried out to analyze the various independent factors of OS and DFS, and a nomogram based on SPC was established. RESULTS: A total of 20.7% (125/604) ESCC patients developed SPC after MIE. Patients with SPC exhibited poor 5-year OS and DFS compared to those without SPC (all P < 0.001). Further analysis revealed that SPC significantly reduced OS and DFS in patients with high NPS status (all P < 0.001) but had little effect on the prognosis of patients with low NPS status (all P > 0.05). Multivariable Cox analysis revealed that SPC could be an independent influence indicator for OS and DFS in patients with high NPS status. Therefore, a novel nomogram combining SPC and tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) staging has been developed, which was found to be relatively more accurate in predicting OS and DFS than TNM staging alone. CONCLUSION: Severe complications can adversely affect the long-term oncological outcome of ESCC patients with high systemic inflammatory response and malnutrition after MIE.

Clinicopathological features analysis of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis after kidney transplantation / 器官移植

Objective To investigate the clinicopathological features of recurrent and de novo focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) after kidney transplantation. Methods Thirty-four recipients pathologically diagnosed with FSGS by renal allograft biopsy were enrolled in this clinical trial. According to the detection of primary diseases of renal allografts and circulating permeability factors, 34 recipients were divided into the recurrent FSGS group (n=12) and de novo FSGS group (n=22). The differences of clinical indexes and the degree of pathological injury of renal allografts were compared between two groups. Results There was no significant difference in the mesangial hyperplasia score, glomerulosclerosis rate, renal tubular atrophy score, interstitial fibrosis score and podocyte proliferation rate between two groups (all P > 0.05). In the recurrent FSGS group, segmental glomerulosclerosis rate of the recipients was 0.10 (0.08, 0.27), lower than 0.19 (0.13, 0.33) in the de novo FSGS group (P < 0.05). No significant difference was found in the incidence of antibody-mediated rejection, drug-induced renal tubular injury and BK virus infection between two groups (all P > 0.05). The incidence of T cell-mediated rejection in the recurrent FSGS group was 17%, lower than 55% in the de novo FSGS group (P < 0.05). Immunohistochemical staining showed that the infiltrating inflammatory cells in the renal allografts were mainly T lymphocytes. The positive rates of C4d deposition in peripheral capillaries between the recurrent and de novo FSGS groups were 33% (4/12) and 32% (7/22), with no significant difference (P > 0.05). Immunofluorescence results revealed IgM deposition in the segmental glomerulosclerosis area of renal allografts in most cases. Electron microscopy showed extensive fusion or segmental distribution of podocytes in the glomerulus of renal allografts. Conclusions The degree of renal functional injury and the incidence of T cell-mediated rejection in the recurrent FSGS group are lower than those in the de novo FSGS group. Comprehensive analysis of preoperative and postoperative clinical manifestations, laboratory testing and pathological examination of kidney transplant recipients contribute to early diagnosis and treatment of recurrent and de novo FSGS.

Analysis of clinical and pathological characteristics in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated with renal damage / 中华肾脏病杂志

It was a retrospective study. The patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) who underwent renal biopsy in the Department of Nephrology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from 2015 to 2021 were enrolled to analyze the pathological and clinical manifestations of kidney. There were 483 patients enrolled, including 136 patients who had no history of diabetes mellitus, newly diagnosed as T2DM according to an oral glucose tolerance test. The age was (52.80±13.13) years old. There were 337 males (69.77%). Based on the renal biopsy, the patients were classified as diabetic kidney disease (DKD, 22.15%, 107/483), DKD+non-diabetic kidney disease (NDKD)(6.63%, 32/483), and NDKD (71.22%, 344/483). Membranous nephropathy was the most common pathology in patients with NDKD (40.41%, 139/344) and DKD+NDKD (34.38%, 11/32). In the 136 newly diagnosed T2DM patients, there were 3 patients (2.21%) with DKD, 2 patients (1.47%) with DKD+NDKD, and 131 patients with NDKD (96.32%). The proportions of DKD in patients with diabetes history ≤3 months, 3-12 months, 1-5 years, 5-10 years and ≥10 years were 10.53% (6/57), 25.00% (16/64), 26.53% (26/98), 41.56% (32/77) and 47.06% (24/51), respectively. The proportions of DKD+NDKD in patients with diabetes history ≤3 months, 3-12 months, 1-5 years, 5-10 years and ≥10 years were 3.51% (2/57), 3.13% (2/64), 10.20% (10/98), 9.09% (7/77) and 17.65% (9/51), respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis results showed that, the duration of diabetes history ( OR=1.130, 95% CI 1.057-1.208, P<0.001), diabetes retinopathy ( OR=12.185, 95% CI 5.331-27.849, P<0.001), urinary red blood cell count ( OR=0.987, 95% CI 0.974-0.999, P=0.039), glycosylated hemoglobin ( OR=1.482, 95% CI 1.119-1.961, P=0.006) as well as hemoglobin ( OR=0.973, 95% CI 0.957-0.990, P=0.001) were independently correlated with DKD. The proportions of DKD and DKD+NDKD increase with the prolongation of diabetes history. Membranous nephropathy is the most common pathology in NDKD and DKD+NDKD patients. Even in patients newly diagnosed with T2DM, it is necessary to screen for DKD. The duration of diabetes history, diabetes retinopathy, urinary red blood cell count, glycosylated hemoglobin and hemoglobin may be used to identify DKD from NDKD.

Laparoscopic surgery contributes to a decrease in short-term complications in surgical ulcerative colitis patients during 2008–2017: a multicenter retrospective study in China

Background/Aims@#The aim of this study was to analyze the chronological changes in postoperative complications in surgical ulcerative colitis patients over the past decade in China and to investigate the potential parameters that contributed to the changes. @*Methods@#Ulcerative colitis patients who underwent surgery during 2008–2017 were retrospectively enrolled from 13 hospitals in China. Postoperative complications were compared among different operation years. Risk factors for complications were identified by logistic regression analysis. @*Results@#A total of 446 surgical ulcerative colitis patients were analyzed. Fewer short-term complications (24.8% vs. 41.0%, P=0.001) and more laparoscopic surgeries (66.4% vs. 25.0%, P<0.001) were found among patients who received surgery during 2014–2017 than 2008–2013. Logistic regression suggested that independent protective factors against short-term complications were a higher preoperative body mass index (odds ratio [OR], 0.870; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.785–0.964; P=0.008), laparoscopic surgery (OR, 0.391; 95% CI, 0.217–0.705; P=0.002) and elective surgery (OR, 0.213; 95% CI, 0.067–0.675; P=0.009). The chronological decrease in short-term complications was associated with an increase in laparoscopic surgery. @*Conclusions@#Our data revealed a downward trend of short-term postoperative complications among surgical ulcerative colitis patients in China during the past decade, which may be due to the promotion of minimally invasive techniques among Chinese surgeons.

Development of Clinical practice guidelines: procedure and standard / 中华胃肠外科杂志

In the last decade, the development of clinical practice guidelines in China has grown rapidly. However, with regards to the guidelines that have been established in the past, few were of high quality and in line with international standards. The main reason for this was that many clinical experts were not familiar with the procedures and rules of clinical guidelines before established, which lowered the quality seriously. Clinical practice guidelines are based on a clinical problem that is distilled into populations, interventions, comparison and outcome (PICO). After comprehensive systematic review, recommendations are made through evidence grading and strength of recommendation system. In addition, other issues should be noted such as pros and cons of the recommendation for specific population, preferences and values of the population, cost-effectiveness, and the health care system. A high-quality guideline requires multidimensional thinking (from clinicians, patients and policy makers), the implementation of a standard procedure (to ensure guidelines scientifically sound, honest and transparent), as well as the collaboration of multiple organizations (including experts, methodologists and policy makers).

Research progress of gut microbiota in the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer / 中华消化外科杂志

Colorectal cancer is a common malignancy of the digestive tract, and the gut microbiota is closely related to the occurrence and development of colorectal cancer. The intestinal florae mainly change the host intestinal immune environment and affect the function of the intes-tinal barrier by releasing toxins and producing metabolites to participate the occurrence and deve-lopment of colon cancer. The intestinal florae can be used as biomarkers for early screening and prognosis prediction for colorectal cancer. In addition, the intestinal florae can affect the efficacy of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and immunotherapy for colorectal cancer. The authors review the research progress of gut microbiota in occurrence and development, screening, prognosis prediction and treatment of colorectal cancer, and discuss the application prospects of gut microbiota in the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer.

Water-Tree Resistant Characteristics of Crosslinker-Modified-SiO2/XLPE Nanocomposites.

Trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) as a photoactive crosslinker is grafted onto hydrophobic nanosilica surface through click chemical reactions of mercapto double bonds to prepare the functionalized nanoparticles (TMPTA-s-SiO2), which are used to develop TMPTA-s-SiO2/XLPE nanocomposites with improvements in mechanical strength and electrical resistance. The expedited aging experiments of water-tree growth are performed with a water-knife electrode and analyzed in consistence with the mechanical performances evaluated by means of dynamic thermo-mechanical analysis (DMA) and tensile stress-strain characteristics. Due to the dense cross-linking network of polyethylene molecular chains formed on the TMPTA-modified surfaces of SiO2 nanofillers, TMPTA-s-SiO2 nanofillers are chemically introduced into XLPE matrix to acquire higher crosslinking degree and connection strength in the amorphous regions between polyethylene lamellae, accounting for the higher water-tree resistance and ameliorated mechanical performances, compared with pure XLPE and neat-SiO2/XLPE nanocomposite. Hydrophilic TMPTA molecules grafted on the nano-SiO2 surface can inhibit the condensation of water molecules into water micro-beads at insulation defects, thus attenuating the damage of water micro-beads to polyethylene configurations under alternating electric fields and thus restricting water-tree growth in amorphous regions. The intensified interfaces between TMPTA-s-SiO2 nanofillers and XLPE matrix limit the segment motions of polyethylene molecular chains and resist the diffusion of water molecules in XLPE amorphous regions, which further contributes to the excellent water-tree resistance of TMPTA-s-SiO2/XLPE nanocomposites.

Comparison of main chemical composition of Plantago asiatica L. and P. depressa Willd. seed extracts and their anti-obesity effects in high-fat diet-induced obese mice.

BACKGROUND: Nowadays, the pharmacological effects of Plantaginis semen was getting more and more attention because of the great effect of treating diuresis, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and hyperglycemia. According to the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Plantaginis semen is the seed of Plantago asiatica L. or P. depressa Willd. This was verified by examining chemical composition differences in a preliminary experiment, predicting their differences in pharmacology. PURPOSE: In this study, we aimed to compared the the differences in main components and anti-obesity effects of Plantago asiatica L. seed extract (PASE) and P. depressa Willd. seed extract (PDSE). STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) analysis was used to characterize and compare the differences chemical constituents of PASE and PDSE. The difference therapeutic effects between PASE and PDSE on obesity and associated metabolic disorders was investigated by high-fat (HF) diet induced mice model. RESULTS: The fingerprint of Plantaginis semen were established by screening and identified 15 main components, including iridoids, phenethanol glycosides, flavonoids, guanidines, and fatty acids. Pentahydroxy flavanone was observed only in PDSE but not in PASE. The quantitative analysis results indicated that the main bioactive components in PASE were geniposidic acid and acteoside; their concentrations were three times higher in PASE than in PDSE. In anti-obesity effects, the result show the levels of fasting blood glucose were improved in both PASE and PDSE when compared with the HF group, while the PASE is show a significant effect then the PDSE group and improved the glucose tolerance but not in PDSE. The results also displayed that the Plantaginis semen did not modify food intake or body weight but decreased abdominal white/brown adipocyte size, serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), hepatic TG and TC, fecal TG and TC concentrations when compared with the HF group. Among these indicators, serum TG, liver TG, fecal TC and TG levels were significantly improved in PASE compared with PDSE. The results indicated that PASE treatment more effectively improved lipid and glucose metabolism in HF diet-induced obese mice than did PDSE. CONCLUSION: As Plantaginis semen sources, P. asiatica L. seeds demonstrated more bioactive components and favorable metabolic disorder treatment outcomes than did P. depressa Willd. seeds.

Donor-specific antibodies, glomerulitis, and human leukocyte antigen B eplet mismatch are risk factors for peritubular capillary C4d deposition in renal allografts / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#The complement system plays an important role in the immune response to transplantation, and the diagnostic significance of peritubular capillary (PTC) C4d deposition (C4d+) in grafts is controversial. The study aimed to fully investigate the risk factors for PTC C4d+ and analyze its significance in biopsy pathology of kidney transplantation.@*METHODS@#This retrospective study included 124 cases of kidney transplant with graft biopsy and donor-specific antibody (DSA) testing from January 2017 to December 2019 in a single center. The effects of recipient pathological indicators, eplet mismatch (MM), and DSAs on PTC C4d+ were examined using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses.@*RESULTS@#In total, 35/124 (28%) were PTC C4d+, including 21 with antibody-mediated rejection (AMR), eight with renal tubular injury, three with T cell-mediated rejection, one with glomerular disease, and two others. Univariate analysis revealed that DSAs (P < 0.001), glomerulitis (P < 0.001), peritubular capillaritis (P < 0.001), and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) B eplet MM (P = 0.010) were the influencing factors of PTC C4d+. According to multivariate analysis, DSAs (odds ratio [OR]: 9.608, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.742-33.668, P < 0.001), glomerulitis (OR: 3.581, 95%CI: 1.246-10.289, P = 0.018), and HLA B eplet MM (OR: 1.166, 95%CI: 1.005-1.353, P = 0.042) were the independent risk factors for PTC C4d+. In receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, the area under the curve was increased to 0.831 for predicting PTC C4d+ when considering glomerulitis, DSAs, and HLA B eplet MM. The proportions of HLA I DSAs and PTC C4d+ in active antibody-mediated rejection were 12/17 and 15/17, respectively; the proportions of HLA class II DSAs and PTC C4d+ in chronic AMR were 8/12 and 7/12, respectively. Furthermore, the higher the PTC C4d+ score was, the more serious the urinary occult blood and proteinuria of recipients at the time of biopsy.@*CONCLUSIONS@#PTC C4d+ was mainly observed in AMR cases. DSAs, glomerulitis, and HLA B eplet MM are the independent risk factors for PTC C4d+.

The microbiome in inflammatory bowel diseases: from pathogenesis to therapy

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has become a global disease with accelerating incidence worldwide in the 21st century while its accurate etiology remains unclear. In the past decade, gut microbiota dysbiosis has consistently been associated with IBD. Although many IBD-associated dysbiosis have not been proven to be a cause or an effect of IBD, it is often hypothesized that at least some of alteration in microbiome is protective or causative. In this article, we selectively reviewed the hypothesis supported by both association studies in human and pathogenesis studies in biological models. Specifically, we reviewed the potential protective bacterial pathways and species against IBD, as well as the potential causative bacterial pathways and species of IBD. We also reviewed the potential roles of some members of mycobiome and virome in IBD. Lastly, we covered the current status of therapeutic approaches targeting microbiome, which is a promising strategy to alleviate and cure this inflammatory disease.

High-quality genome assembly and transcriptome of Ancherythroculter nigrocauda, an endemic Chinese cyprinid species.

Ancherythroculter nigrocauda is a cyprinid fish endemic of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in China, where it is an important aquaculture and commercial species. It is also a threatened species as a result of overfishing, dam construction and water pollution. In this study, a chromosome-level genome assembly of A. nigrocauda is reported and built using PacBio sequencing and the Hi-C technology. The 1.04-Gb sequenced genome of A. nigrocauda contained 2,403 contigs, with an N50 length of 3.12 Mb. Then, 1,297 contigs, which represented 54.0% of all contigs and 97.2% of the whole content of the genome nucleotide base, were assembled into 24 chromosomes. Combined with transcriptome data from 10 tissues, 27,042 (78.5%) genes were functionally annotated out of 34,414 predicted protein-coding genes. Interestingly, high expression of many positively selected genes and expanded gene families in the brain suggested that these genes might play important roles in brain development in A. nigrocauda. Finally, we found tissue-specific expression of 10,732 genes. Functional analyses showed that they were mainly composed of genes related to (a) environmental information processing, (b) the circulatory system, and (c) development, suggesting they might be important for adaptation to different environments and for development of A. nigrocauda. The high-quality genome obtained in this study not only provides a valuable genomic resource for future studies of A. nigrocauda populations and conservation, but is also an important resource for further functional genomics studies of fishes.

LMP2-DC Vaccine Elicits Specific EBV-LMP2 Response to Effectively Improve Immunotherapy in Patients with Nasopharyngeal Cancer / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

Objective@#To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a vaccine based on latent membrane protein 2 (LMP2) modified dendritic cells (DCs) that boosts specific responses of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) to LMP2 before and after intradermal injection in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).@*Methods@#DCs were derived from peripheral blood monocytes of patients with NPC. We prepared LMP2-DCs infected by recombinant adenovirus vector expressing LMP2 (rAd-LMP2). NPC patients were immunized with 2 × 10 @*Results@#We demonstrated that DCs derived from monocytes displayed typical DC morphologies; the expression of LMP2 in the LMP2-DCs vaccine was confirmed by immunocytochemical assay. Twenty-nine patients with NPC were enrolled in this clinical trial. The LMP2-DCs vaccine was well tolerated in all of the patients. Boosted responses to LMP2 peptide sub-pools were observed in 18 of the 29 patients with NPC. The follow-up data of 29 immunized patients from April, 2010 to April 2015 indicated a five-year survival rate of 94.4% in responders and 45.5% in non-responders.@*Conclusion@#In this pilot study, we demonstrated that the LMP2-DCs vaccine is safe and effective in patients with NPC. Specific CTLs responses to LMP2 play a certain role in controlling and preventing the recurrence and metastasis of NPC, which warrants further clinical testing.

Successful Invasions of Short Internally Deleted Elements (SIDEs) and Its Partner CR1 in Lepidoptera Insects.

Although DNA transposons often generated internal deleted derivatives such as miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements, short internally deleted elements (SIDEs) derived from nonlong terminal-repeat retrotransposons are rare. Here, we found a novel SIDE, named Persaeus, that originated from the chicken repeat 1 (CR1) retrotransposon Zenon and it has been found widespread in Lepidoptera insects. Our findings suggested that Persaeus and the partner Zenon have experienced a transposition burst in their host genomes and the copy number of Persaeus and Zenon in assayed genomes are significantly correlated. Accordingly, the activity though age analysis indicated that the replication wave of Persaeus coincided with that of Zenon. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that Persaeus may have evolved at least four times independently, and that it has been vertically transferred into its host genomes. Together, our results provide new insights into the evolution dynamics of SIDEs and its partner non-LTRs.

Analysis of influencing factors and predictive parameter of acute kidney injury in sepsis shock patients / 中国实用内科杂志

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influencing factors in patients with septic shock and the predictive value of related parameters for AKI.METHODS: Totally 256 patients with septic shock treated in our hospital from January 2015 to December 2018 were collected.The patients were divided into acute kidney injury(AKI)group and non-AKI group.The miRNA-125,IL-6,neutrophil gelatinase associated lipocalin(NGAL)and tumor necrosis factor-a(TNF-a)were compared between two groups.Multi-factor Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the variables in predicting the incidence rate.The patients in AKI group were divided into mild-AKI group(AKI stage 1-2)and severe AKI group(AKI stage 3).The factors were statistically compared between two groups.RESULTS: The levels of miRNA-125 and NGAL in AKI group were significantly higher than those in non-AKI group.The creatinine(OR 1.03,95%CI 0.88-1.36),glomerular filtration rate(OR1.23,95% CI 0.75-2.01),miRNA-125(OR 1.56,95% CI 1.02-2.10)and NGAL(OR 1.32,95%CI 0.83-1.67)were associated with AKI(P<0.05).The levels of miRNA-125,NGAL and TNF-a in severe AKI group were significantly higher than those in mild and moderate AKI group(P<0.05).The area under curve of miRNA-125 was 0.80(95%CI 0.75-0.83),the best cut-off value was 32.1,and the sensitivity and specificity were 81.5% and 76.2%.CONCLUSION: The creatinine,glomerular filtration rate and the level of miRNA-125 and NGAL were independently associated with AKI.The level of miRNA-125 can predict the incidence of AKI.

Genome-wide identification and evolution of TC1/Mariner in the silkworm (Bombyx mori) genome.

TC1/Mariner transposons belong to class II transposable elements (TEs) that use DNA-mediated "cut and paste" mechanism to transpose, and they have been identified in almost all organisms. Although silkworm (Bombyx mori) has a large amount of TC1/Mariner elements, the genome wide information of this superfamily in the silkworm is unknown. In this study, we have identified 2670 TC1/Mariner (Bmmar) elements in the silkworm genome. All the TEs were classified into 22 families by means of fgclust, a tool of repetitive sequence classification, seven of which was first reported in this study. Phylogenetic and structure analyses based on the catalytic domain (DDxD/E) of transposase sequences indicated that all members of TC1/Mariner were grouped into five subgroups: Mariner, Tc1, maT, DD40D and DD41D/E. Of these five subgroups, maT rather than Mariner possessed most members of TC1/Mariner (51.23%) in the silkworm genome. In particular, phylogenetic analysis and structure analysis revealed that Bmmar15 (DD40D) formed a new basal subgroup of TC1/Mariner element in insects, which was referred to as bmori. Furthermore, we concluded that DD40D appeared to intermediate between mariner and Tc1. Finally, we estimated the insertion time for each copy of TC1/Mariner in the silkworm and found that most of members were dramatically amplified during a period from 0 to 1 mya. Moreover, the detailed functional data analysis showed that Bmmar1, Bmmar6 and Bmmar9 had EST evidence and intact transposases. These implied that TC1/Mariner might have potential transpositional activity. In conclusion, this study provides some new insights into the landscape, origin and evolution of TC1/Mariner in the insect genomes.

Unexpected invasion of miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements in viral genomes.

BACKGROUND: Transposable elements (TEs) are common and often present with high copy numbers in cellular genomes. Unlike in cellular organisms, TEs were previously thought to be either rare or absent in viruses. Almost all reported TEs display only one or two copies per viral genome. In addition, the discovery of pandoraviruses with genomes up to 2.5-Mb emphasizes the need for biologists to rethink the fundamental nature of the relationship between viruses and cellular life. RESULTS: Herein, we performed the first comprehensive analysis of miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements (MITEs) in the 5170 viral genomes for which sequences are currently available. Four hundred and fifty one copies of ten miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements (MITEs) were found and each MITE had reached relatively large copy numbers (some up to 90) in viruses. Eight MITEs belonging to two DNA superfamilies (hobo/Activator/Tam3 and Chapaev-Mirage-CACTA) were for the first time identified in viruses, further expanding the organismal range of these two superfamilies. TEs may play important roles in shaping the evolution of pandoravirus genomes, which were here found to be very rich in MITEs. We also show that putative autonomous partners of seven MITEs are present in the genomes of viral hosts, suggesting that viruses may borrow the transpositional machinery of their cellular hosts' autonomous elements to spread MITEs and colonize their own genomes. The presence of seven similar MITEs in viral hosts, suggesting horizontal transfers (HTs) as the major mechanism for MITEs propagation. CONCLUSIONS: Our discovery highlights that TEs contribute to shape genome evolution of pandoraviruses. We concluded that as for cellular organisms, TEs are part of the pandoraviruses' diverse mobilome.