Pneumatic tube transport-induced pseudohyperkalemia in patients with extreme leukocytosis: a retrospective study from a single medical center.

BACKGROUND: Pseudohyperkalemia (falsely elevated serum potassium) must be distinguished from true hyperkalemia to avoid unnecessary treatment. Some case reports suggest that pneumatic tube transportation may increase the risk of pseudohyperkalemia, but comprehensive research on the topic is lacking. Here, we aimed to assess the association between WBC levels, pneumatic tube transport, and pseudohyperkalemia prevalence. METHODS: We analyzed 1188 samples collected from 240 patients between 2019 and 2022. Samples with elevated WBC counts (≥ 100 × 103/µL) and potassium levels were included in this study. The method of specimen transportation was documented. RESULTS: Pseudohyperkalemia was observed (7/390) in specimens transported using pneumatic tubes. No pseudohyperkalemia was identified with manually transported specimens (0/132). Every increase in WBC count by 100 × 103/µL in the specimens multiplied the odds ratio of pseudohyperkalemia by 3.75 when delivered with pneumatic tube. The prevalence of pseudohyperkalemia increased as WBC count increased, especially at WBC counts greater than 200 × 103/µL. CONCLUSION: Pneumatic tube transport poses a risk for pseudohyperkalemia in patients with extreme leukocytosis. Physicians should anticipate odd potassium levels when interpreting blood test results. Redrawing of blood samples, manual specimen transportation, or point-of-care testing are suggested to prevent further misdiagnosis.

Blood Pressure and Cardiovascular Risk in Women With Breast Cancer: The Pathways Heart Study.

Background: Hypertension is an important contributor to cardiovascular disease (CVD) in breast cancer (BC) survivors; however, research on blood pressure (BP) and CVD outcomes in BC survivors is limited. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to better characterize the association between BP and CVD in a large, longitudinal cohort of BC patients. Methods: Women with invasive BC diagnosed from 2005 to 2013 at Kaiser Permanente Northern California were matched 1:5 to women without BC. Patient data were obtained from electronic health records. Multivariable Cox regression and penalized spline models were used to explore the linear and nonlinear relationship of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) on CVD outcomes. Results: BC cases (n = 12,713) and controls (n = 55,886) had median follow-up of 9.6 years (IQR: 5.0-11.9 years). Women with BC had a mean age of 60.6 years; 64.8% were non-Hispanic White. For ischemic heart disease (IHD), every 10 mmHg increase in SBP and DBP was associated with 1.23 (95% CI: 1.14-1.33) and 1.10 (95% CI: 0.98-1.24) risk, respectively, in women with BC. For stroke, every 10 mmHg increase in SBP and DBP was associated with a 1.45 (95% CI: 1.34-1.58) and 1.91 (95% CI: 1.68-2.18) risk, respectively. A U-shaped relationship was observed between heart failure/cardiomyopathy and BP. The associations between BP and risk of IHD, stroke, and any primary CVD were not statistically different comparing women with BC to controls, but risks varied by BC status for heart failure/cardiomyopathy (P for interaction = 0.01). Conclusions: Women with and without BC showed similar risks for IHD, stroke, and any primary CVD suggesting similar BP targets should be pursued regardless of BC survivorship status.

Insight into the mechanism of solution organic fractions on soot oxidation activity enhancement.

The particulate matter and soluble organic fraction emitted by diesel engine are hazardous to environment and human health. Exploring the effect mechanism of soluble organic fraction on soot oxidation is beneficial for reducing the emissions. In this study, the effects of four different types of soluble organic fractions on the soot oxidation activity and physicochemical properties are investigated. The results show that the attachment of oxygen-containing soluble organic fractions enhances the soot oxidation and reduces the peak characteristic temperature. However, the low volatility soluble organic fractions without oxygen element inhibit soot oxidation. Additionally, the high volatility soluble organic fractions without oxygen element elicit limited effects on soot oxidation. the contents of aliphatic C-H functional groups, carbonyl CO functional groups, and carboxylic acid O-CO functional groups significantly increase after adding oxygen-containing soluble organic fractions, while the limited increase in functional groups is observed in soluble organic fractions without oxygen element. Solid soluble organic fractions adhere to soot particles in the form of small particles, leading a reduction in the initial particle size distribution, while liquid soluble organic fractions exhibit block and chain shapes around the soot particles, which makes the initial particle size distribution increasing. Moreover, the attachment of all soluble organic fractions disrupts the surface order of soot particle, leading to a decrease in soot graphitization. This study is beneficial for revealing the interaction mechanism between soot and soluble organic fractions.

Integration of proteomics and metabolomics analysis investigate mechanism of As-induced immune injury in rat spleen.

Arsenic (As) is a widespread metalloid and human carcinogen found in the natural environment, and multiple toxic effects have been shown to be associated with As exposure. As can be accumulated in the spleen, the largest peripheral lymphatic organ, and long-term exposure to As can lead to splenic injury. In this study, a Sprague-Dawley (SD) rat model of As-poisoned was established, aiming to explore the molecular mechanism of As-induced immune injury through the combined analysis of proteomics and metabolomics of rats' spleen. After feeding the rats with As diet (50 mg/kg) for 90 days, the spleen tissue of the rats in the As-poisoned group was damaged, the level of As was significantly higher than that of the control group (P < 0.001), and the level of inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) was decreased (P < 0.01). Proteomics and metabolomics results showed that a total of 134 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) (P < 0.05 and fold change > 1.2) and 182 differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) (VIP >1 and P < 0.05) were identified in the spleens of the As poisoned group compared to the control group (As/Ctrl). The proteomic results highlight the role of hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF), natural killer cell mediated cytotoxicity, and ribosomes. The major pathways of metabolic disruption included arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism and folate single-carbon pool. The integrated analysis of these two omics suggested that Hmox1, Stat3, arachidonic acid, phosphatidylcholine and leukotriene B4 may play key roles in the mechanism of immune injury to the spleen by As exposure. The results indicate that As exposure can cause spleen damage in rats. Through proteomic and metabolomic analysis, the key proteins and metabolites and their associated mechanisms were obtained, which provided a basis for further understanding of the molecular mechanism of spleen immune damage caused by As exposure.

Microvascular disease and its association with dementia in patients with type 2 diabetes: A nationwide cohort study in Taiwan.

AIM: To assess the likelihood of dementia in individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D), distinguishing between those with and without microvascular diseases. METHODS: Leveraging the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan, we identified individuals newly diagnosed with T2D from 1 January 2009 through 31 December 2014. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models were used to compare the risk of outcomes. RESULTS: Individuals with microvascular disease had a significantly higher risk of all-cause dementia (adjusted hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] 1.13 [1.09, 1.17]) compared with matched individuals without microvascular disease. In addition, individuals with diabetic kidney disease and diabetic neuropathy were associated with a significantly increased risk of Alzheimer's disease (1.16 [1.02, 1.32] and 1.14 [1.03, 1.27]), vascular dementia (1.21 [1.06, 1.38] and 1.14 [1.02, 1.28]) and other dementia (1.11 [1.04, 1.19] and 1.10 [1.04, 1.16]), respectively, compared with those without microvascular disease. CONCLUSIONS: This nationwide cohort study showed that patients with T2D and microvascular disease, particularly diabetic kidney disease and diabetic neuropathy, were associated with a significantly higher risk of Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, other dementia and all-cause dementia than those without microvascular disease.

Associations between Plant-Based Dietary Patterns and Sensory Impairments among Chinese Older Adults: Based on the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the plant-based dietary index and vision impairment (VI), hearing impairment (HI), and dual sensory impairment (DSI) among Chinese aged 65 and older. METHODS: Based on the 2018 data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS), a cross-sectional study was conducted on 14,859 samples. The assessment of dietary quality utilized the plant-based diet index (PDI), healthy plant-based diet index (hPDI), and unhealthy plant-based diet index (uPDI). Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the associations between PDIs and sensory impairments. Additionally, restricted cubic spline analysis was utilized to investigate the nonlinear association between PDIs and sensory impairments. RESULTS: Participants in the highest quintile of PDI exhibited reduced prevalence of VI (OR 0.78, 95% CI: 0.67-0.90, ptrend <0.001), HI (OR 0.83, 95% CI: 0.70-0.99, ptrend <0.001), and DSI (OR 0.62, 95% CI: 0.51-0.77, ptrend <0.001) relative to those in the lowest quintile. Moreover, individuals who ranked in the highest quintile for hPDI exhibited a 25% reduced risk of VI disease. Conversely, those in the highest quintile of uPDI were associated with increased prevalence of VI (OR 1.37, 95% CI: 1.17-1.61, ptrend <0.001), HI (OR 1.36, 95% CI: 1.12-1.65, ptrend <0.001), and DSI (OR 1.56, 95% CI: 1.25-1.95, ptrend <0.001). The relationship between PDIs increasing by every 10 units and sensory impairments showed similar patterns. Notably, hPDI demonstrated a nonlinear relationship with HI (pfor nonlinearity = 0.001), while the others exhibited linear associations. CONCLUSION: The increase in PDI and hPDI correlates with a reduced prevalence of one or more sensory impairments. Conversely, an increase in uPDI is associated with an elevated prevalence of multiple sensory impairments. Our study findings emphasize the significance of plant-based food quality, advocating for adherence to a plant-based dietary pattern while reducing the intake of less healthy plant foods and animal-based products.

Identification of the RRM1 gene family in rice (Oryza sativa) and its response to rice blast.

To better understand RNA-binding proteins in rice, a comprehensive investigation was conducted on the RRM1 gene family of rice. It encompassed genome-wide identification and exploration of its role in rice blast resistance. The physicochemical properties of the rice OsRRM1 gene family were analyzed. There genes were also analyzed for their conserved domains, motifs, location information, gene structure, phylogenetic trees, collinearity, and cis-acting elements. Furthermore, alterations in the expression patterns of selected OsRRM1 genes were assessed using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). A total of 212 members of the OsRRM1 gene family were identified, which were dispersed across 12 chromosomes. These genes all exhibit multiple exons and introns, all of which encompass the conserved RRM1 domain and share analogous motifs. This observation suggests a high degree of conservation within the encoded sequence domain of these genes. Phylogenetic analysis revealed the existence of five subfamilies within the OsRRM1 gene family. Furthermore, investigation of the promoter region identified cis-regulatory elements that are involved in nucleic acid binding and interaction with multiple transcription factors. By employing GO and KEGG analyses, four RRM1 genes were tentatively identified as crucial contributors to plant immunity, while the RRM1 gene family was also found to have a significant involvement in the complex of alternative splicing. The qRT-PCR results revealed distinct temporal changes in the expression patterns of OsRRM1 genes following rice blast infection. Additionally, gene expression analysis indicates that the majority of OsRRM1 genes exhibited constitutive expressions. These findings enrich our understanding of the OsRRM1 gene family. They also provide a foundation for further research on immune mechanisms rice and the management of rice blast.

Application of Proteomics and Machine Learning Methods to Study the Pathogenesis of Diabetic Nephropathy and Screen Urinary Biomarkers.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) has become the main cause of end-stage renal disease worldwide, causing significant health problems. Early diagnosis of the disease is quite inadequate. To screen urine biomarkers of DN and explore its potential mechanism, this study collected urine from 87 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (which will be classified into normal albuminuria, microalbuminuria, and macroalbuminuria groups) and 38 healthy subjects. Twelve individuals from each group were then randomly selected as the screening cohort for proteomics analysis and the rest as the validation cohort. The results showed that humoral immune response, complement activation, complement and coagulation cascades, renin-angiotensin system, and cell adhesion molecules were closely related to the progression of DN. Five overlapping proteins (KLK1, CSPG4, PLAU, SERPINA3, and ALB) were identified as potential biomarkers by machine learning methods. Among them, KLK1 and CSPG4 were positively correlated with the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR), and SERPINA3 was negatively correlated with the UACR, which were validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). This study provides new insights into disease mechanisms and biomarkers for early diagnosis of DN.

Cook and Move for Your Life, an eHealth intervention for women with breast cancer.

We tested the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of an online diet and physical activity program for women with early-stage breast cancer who had completed surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy (ongoing endocrine therapy allowed). Participants with low fruit and vegetable (F/V) consumption and/or low moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels were randomized to one of two doses - low (one Zoom group session) or high (12 Zoom group sessions) - of an online lifestyle program with the goal of improving F/V intake and MVPA. All participants received eHealth communications (text messages, study website access), a Fitbit, and a WiFi-enabled scale. Primary objectives evaluated feasibility. Secondary objectives compared the 6-month change in F/V intake and MVPA between the two dose groups. Seventy-four women (mean age = 58.4 years; 87% non-Hispanic White; mean time since diagnosis = 4.6 years) were accrued. Among women in the low dose group, 94% attended the single session; among women in the high dose group, 84% attended at least 8 of the 12 sessions. Retention at 6 months was 93%. High relative to low dose participants consumed 1.5 more servings/day of F/V at 6 months (P = 0.007) but MVPA levels did not differ between groups. We successfully implemented an online lifestyle program for early-stage breast cancer survivors. The high dose intervention demonstrated preliminary efficacy in improving F/V consumption in early-stage breast cancer survivors. Future trials can test the intervention in a larger and more diverse population of breast cancer survivors.

Increased risks of retinal vascular occlusion in patients with migraine and the protective effects of migraine treatment: a population-based retrospective cohort study.

Associations between migraine and retinal vascular occlusion have been reported, but there is no large-scale and comprehensive study. Therefore, we aimed to determine risks of retinal vascular occlusion in patients with migraine. Using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database from 2009 to 2020, we enrolled 628,760 patients with migraine and 628,760 matched individuals without migraine. Study outcomes were diagnoses of retinal vascular occlusion, including retinal artery occlusion (RAO) and retinal vein occlusion (RVO). Adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) of retinal vascular occlusion related to migraine was estimated. The cumulative incidences of subsequent retinal vascular occlusion, RAO, and RVO were significantly higher in migraine patients compared with controls (0.31% vs. 0.21%; 0.09% vs. 0.05%; 0.22% vs. 0.17%; all p < 0.001). The hazards of retinal vascular occlusion, RAO, and RVO were significantly greater in the migraine group (aHR, 1.69 [95% CI, 1.57, 1.83], 2.13 [95% CI, 1.84, 2.48] and 1.53 [95% CI, 1.40, 1.68], respectively). Risks of retinal vascular occlusion were significantly higher in migraine both with aura (MA) and without aura (MO) (aHR, 1.77 [95% CI, 1.58, 1.98], and 1.92 [95% CI, 1.64, 2.25]). Among patients with migraine, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, propranolol, and flunarizine significantly reduce their risks of retinal vascular occlusion (aHR, 0.19 [95% CI, 0.16, 0.22], 0.73 [95% CI, 0.62, 0.86], 0.84 [95% CI, 0.76, 0.93]). Migraine, MA and MO are independently associated with higher risks of retinal vascular occlusion, RAO, and RVO.

Latent Semantic and Disentangled Attention.

Sequential learning using transformer has achieved state-of-the-art performance in natural language tasks and many others. The key to this success is the multi-head self attention which encodes and gathers the features from individual tokens of an input sequence. The mapping or decoding is performed to produce an output sequence via cross attention. There are threefold weaknesses by using such an attention framework. First, since the attention would mix up the features of different tokens in input and output sequences, it is likely that redundant information exists in sequence data representation. Second, the patterns of attention weights among different heads tend to be similar. The model capacity is bounded. Third, the robustness in an encoder-decoder network against the model uncertainty is disregarded. To handle these weaknesses, this paper presents a Bayesian semantic and disentangled mask attention to learn latent disentanglement in multi-head attention where the redundant features in transformer are compensated with the latent topic information. The attention weights are filtered by a mask which is optimized through semantic clustering. This attention mechanism is implemented according to Bayesian learning for clustered disentanglement. The experiments on machine translation and speech recognition show the merit of Bayesian clustered disentanglement for mask attention.

Association between gut microbiota and common overlapping gastrointestinal disorders: a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization study.

Background: The main functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) include functional dyspepsia (FD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which often present overlapping symptoms with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), posing a challenge for clinical diagnosis and treatment. The gut microbiota is closely associated with FGIDs and GERD, although the causal relationship has not been fully elucidated. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the potential causal relationship using bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. Materials and methods: The genetic data of the 211 gut microbiota were obtained from the MiBioGen consortium (N = 14,306, from phylum to genus level) and species level of gut microbiota were acquired from the Dutch Microbiome Project (N = 7,738). For FD and IBS, we utilized the FinnGen consortium, whereas, for GERD data analysis, we obtained the IEU OpenGWAS project. The inverse-variance weighted (IVW) method was used as the primary method to calculate causal effect values. Sensitivity analyses were also performed to confirm the robustness of the primary findings of the MR analyses. Moreover, a reverse MR analysis was conducted to assess the likelihood of reverse causality. Results: Combining the results of the preliminary and sensitivity analyses, we identified that 8 gut microbial taxa were associated with FD. Genus Lachnospiraceae NK4A136 group (p = 3.63 × 10-3) and genus Terrisporobacter (p = 1.13 × 10-3) were strongly associated with FD. At the same time, we found that 8 gut microbial taxa were associated with IBS. Family Prevotellaceae (p = 2.44 × 10-3) and species Clostridium leptum (p = 7.68 × 10-3) display a robust correlation with IBS. In addition, 5 gut microbial taxa were associated with GERD using the IVW approach. In the reverse MR analysis, 2 gut microbial taxa were found to be associated with FD, 5 gut microbial taxa were found to be associated with IBS, and 21 gut microbial taxa were found to be associated with GERD. Conclusion: The study reveals the potential causal effects of specific microbial taxa on FD, IBS, and GERD and may offer novel insights into the diagnosis and treatment of these conditions.

[Changes and influence factors of soil matrix infiltration in Chinese fir plantations with different stand ages in northern Guangxi]. / æ¡‚åŒ—åœ°åŒºä¸åŒæž—é¾„æ‰æœ¨äººå·¥æž—åœŸå£¤åŸºè´¨å ¥æ¸—å˜åŒ–åŠå½±å“å› ç´ .

Soil matrix infiltration is an important pathway for plantations to obtain water, which affects ecological benefits and water conservation function of plantations. The changes of soil matrix infiltration and its influencing factors in different growth stages of Chinese fir plantations remain unclear. We measured soil matrix infiltration process using a tension infiltrometer in Chinese fir plantations (5, 8, 11, and 15 years old) of Beijiang River Forest Farm in Rongshui, Guangxi, and analyzed soil basic physicochemical properties to identify the dominant factors influencing soil matrix infiltration. The results showed that initial infiltration rate, stable infiltration rate, and cumulative infiltration increased with stand ages. The ranges of different stand ages were 141-180 mm·h-1, 109-150 mm·h-1, and 188-251 mm, respectively. The initial infiltration rate, stable infiltration rate, and cumulative infiltration were significantly positively correlated with soil capillary porosity, soil organic matter, soil water stable macroaggregate, sand content, and clay content, while negatively correlated with soil bulk density and silt content. Early thinning had a positive effect on soil matrix infiltration, but thinning measures after 11 years did not enhance soil matrix infiltration further. Philip model was optimal for describing soil matrix infiltration process in this region. In conclusion, soil matrix infiltration capacity of Chinese fir plantations gradually increased from young to middle-aged stands, but matrix infiltration capacity tended to stabilize after 11 years old. Silt content and water stable macroaggregate were the dominant factors influencing matrix infiltration.

Distinct microbial nitrogen cycling processes in the deepest part of the ocean.

The Mariana Trench (MT) is the deepest part of the ocean on Earth. Previous studies have described the microbial community structures and functional potential in the seawater and surface sediment of MT. Still, the metabolic features and adaptation strategies of the microorganisms involved in nitrogen cycling processes are poorly understood. In this study, comparative metagenomic approaches were used to study microbial nitrogen cycling in three MT habitats, including hadal seawater [9,600-10,500 m below sea level (mbsl)], surface sediments [0-46 cm below seafloor (cmbsf) at a water depth between 7,143 and 8,638 mbsl], and deep sediments (200-306 cmbsf at a water depth of 8,300 mbsl). We identified five new nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) lineages that had adapted to the oligotrophic MT slope sediment, via their CO2 fixation capability through the reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) or Calvin-Benson-Bassham (CBB) cycle; an anammox bacterium might perform aerobic respiration and utilize sedimentary carbohydrates for energy generation because it contains genes encoding type A cytochrome c oxidase and complete glycolysis pathway. In seawater, abundant alkane-oxidizing Ketobacter species can fix inert N2 released from other denitrifying and/or anammox bacteria. This study further expands our understanding of microbial life in the largely unexplored deepest part of the ocean. IMPORTANCE: The metabolic features and adaptation strategies of the nitrogen cycling microorganisms in the deepest part of the ocean are largely unknown. This study revealed that anammox bacteria might perform aerobic respiration in response to nutrient limitation or O2 fluctuations in the Mariana Trench sediments. Meanwhile, an abundant alkane-oxidizing Ketobacter species could fix N2 in hadal seawater. This study provides new insights into the roles of hadal microorganisms in global nitrogen biogeochemical cycles. It substantially expands our understanding of the microbial life in the largely unexplored deepest part of the ocean.

The risk of herpes zoster is positively associated with obesity, especially morbid obesity.

This study aimed to investigate the association between obesity and herpes zoster (HZ) occurrence. This study used data covering 2 million people in Taiwan in 2000, which were obtained from the National Health Insurance Research Database. The cohort study observed aged 20-100 years with obesity from 2000 to 2017 (tracking to 2018). Obesity was indicated by the presence of two or more outpatient diagnoses or at least one admission record. And, obesity was categorized into non-morbid obesity and morbid obesity. Patients with HZ before the index date were excluded. The obesity cohort and control cohort were matched 1:1 according to age, sex, comorbidities, and index year. There were 18,855 patients in both the obesity and control cohorts. The obesity cohort [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 1.09] had a higher risk of HZ than the control cohort. Further analysis, the morbid obesity group (aHR 1.47), had a significantly higher risk of HZ than the non-morbid obesity group. Among the patients without any comorbidities, the patients with obesity had a significantly higher risk of developing HZ than the patients without obesity (aHR 1.18). Obese patients are at a higher risk of HZ development, especially in the patients with morbid obesity. Weight reduction is critical for preventing the onset of chronic diseases and decreasing the risk of HZ in patients with obesity.

LncRNAs as nodes for the cross-talk between autophagy and Wnt signaling in pancreatic cancer drug resistance.

Pancreatic cancer is a malignancy with high mortality. In addition to the few symptoms until the disease reaches an advanced stage, the high fatality rate is attributed to its rapid development, drug resistance and lack of appropriate treatment. In the selection and research of therapeutic drugs, gemcitabine is the first-line drug for pancreatic cancer. Solving the problem of gemcitabine resistance in pancreatic cancer will contribute to the progress of pancreatic cancer treatment. Long non coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which are RNA transcripts longer than 200 nucleotides, play vital roles in cellular physiological metabolic activities. Currently, our group and others have found that some lncRNAs are aberrantly expressed in pancreatic cancer cells, which can regulate the process of cancer through autophagy and Wnt/ß-catenin pathways simultaneously and affect the sensitivity of cancer cells to therapeutic drugs. This review presents an overview of the recent evidence concerning the node of lncRNA for the cross-talk between autophagy and Wnt/ß-catenin signaling in pancreatic cancer, together with the practicability of lncRNAs and the core regulatory factors as targets in therapeutic resistance.

Effect of spectacle correction on hyperopic children.

Background: Hyperopia is a significant refractive error in children, often leading to vision impairment. This study aimed to investigate whether partial or full spectacle correction is benefit for hyperopia in preschool-aged children. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on hyperopic children visited to teaching medical center outpatient clinic between October 2011 and October 2018, and were categorized into three groups: full correction, overcorrection, and undercorrection. The study was approved by the institutional ethical committee of Tri-Service General Hospital. Results: Following a minimum of one-year follow-up period, no statistically significant differences were observed in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) among children receiving full, over, or under spectacle correction. Notably, the overcorrection group exhibited a significant reduction in spherical equivalent (SE) compared to both the full and under correction groups, indicating a better SE with spectacle overcorrection. Conclusions: Spectacle overcorrection may offer potential benefits for enhancing SE in preschool children with hyperopia. Nevertheless, further investigation through randomized controlled trials is warranted to establish the validity of this approach and its impact on visual outcomes in this hyperopic pediatric population.

Association of tea and coffee consumption and biliary tract cancer risk: The Biliary Tract Cancers Pooling Project.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Tea and coffee are widely consumed beverages worldwide. We evaluated their association with biliary tract cancer (BTC) incidence. APPROACH AND RESULTS: We pooled data from 15 studies in the Biliary Tract Cancers Pooling Project to evaluate associations between tea and coffee consumption and biliary tract cancer development. We categorized participants as nondrinkers (0 cup/day), moderate drinkers (>0 and <3 cups/day), and heavy drinkers (≥3 cups/day). We estimated multivariable HRs and 95% CIs using Cox models. During 29,911,744 person-years of follow-up, 851 gallbladder, 588 intrahepatic bile duct, 753 extrahepatic bile duct, and 458 ampulla of Vater cancer cases were diagnosed. Individuals who drank tea showed a statistically significantly lower incidence rate of gallbladder cancer (GBC) relative to tea nondrinkers (HR=0.77; 95% CI, 0.64-0.91), and intrahepatic bile duct cancer (IHBDC) had an inverse association (HR=0.81; 95% CI, 0.66-1.00). However, no associations were observed for extrahepatic bile duct cancer (EHBDC) or ampulla of Vater cancer (AVC). In contrast, coffee consumption was positively associated with GBC, with a higher incidence rate for individuals consuming more coffee (HR<3 cups/day =1.29; 95% CI, 1.01-1.66; HR≥3 cups/day =1.49; 95% CI, 1.11-1.99, Ptrend=0.01) relative to coffee nondrinkers. However, there was no association between coffee consumption and GBC when restricted to coffee drinkers. There was little evidence of associations between coffee consumption and other biliary tract cancers. CONCLUSIONS: Tea consumption was associated with a lower incidence of GBC and possibly IHBDC. Further research is warranted to replicate the observed positive association between coffee and GBC.

Effects of arsenic exposure on blood trace element levels in rats and sex differences.

Arsenic (As) is a widespread environmental metalloid and human carcinogen, and its exposure is associated with a wide range of toxic effects, leading to serious health hazards. As poisoning is a complex systemic multi-organ and multi-system damage disease. In this study, a rat model of As poisoning was established to investigate the levels of trace elements in the blood of rats and sex differences in the effect of As on every trace elements in rat blood. Twenty 6-week-old SD (Sprague Dawley) rats were randomly divided into the control group and the As-exposed group. After 3 months, the contents of 19 elements including As in the blood were detected in these two groups by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). As levels in the blood of As-exposed rats were significantly higher than those in the control group, with increased levels of Rb, Sr, Cs and Ce, and decreased levels of Pd. As showed a significant positive correlation with Rb. There were significant sex differences in blood Se, Pd, Eu, Dy, Ho, and Au levels in the As-exposed group. The results showed that As exposure can lead to an increase of As content in blood and an imbalance of some elements. There were sex differences in the concentration and the correlation between elements of some elements. Elemental imbalances may affect the toxic effects of As and play a synergistic or antagonistic role in As toxicity.

Progranulin Facilitates Corneal Repair Through Dual Mechanisms of Inflammation Suppression and Regeneration Promotion.

The cornea serves as a vital protective barrier for the eye; however, it is prone to injury and damage that can disrupt corneal epithelium and nerves, triggering inflammation. Therefore, understanding the biological effects and molecular mechanisms involved in corneal wound healing and identifying drugs targeting these pathways is crucial for researchers in this field. This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic potential of progranulin (PGRN) in treating corneal injuries. Our findings demonstrated that PGRN significantly enhanced corneal wound repair by accelerating corneal re-epithelialization and re-innervation. In vitro experiments with cultured epithelial cells and trigeminal ganglion cells further revealed that PGRN stimulated corneal epithelial cell proliferation and promoted axon growth in trigeminal ganglion cells. Through RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis and other experimental techniques, we discovered that PGRN exerted its healing effects modulating Wnt signaling pathway, which played a critical role in repairing epithelial cells and promoting axon regeneration in trigeminal neurons. Importantly, our study highlighted the anti-inflammatory properties of PGRN by inhibiting the NF-κB signaling pathway, leading to decreased infiltration of macrophages. In conclusion, our findings underscored the potential of PGRN in facilitating corneal wound healing by promoting corneal epithelial cell proliferation, trigeminal ganglion cell axon regeneration, and suppressing ocular inflammation. These results suggest that PGRN could potentially expedite the healing process and improve visual outcomes in patients with corneal injuries.