[Heavy Metal Content and Risk Assessment of Sediments and Soils in the Juma River Basin].

The sediment and soil in the Juma River channel pose a risk of pollution to the downstream ecological environment of Beijing and Xiong'an New Area. To address this issue, sediments and soil samples were collected along the river from the source to the Zhangfang outlet. The samples were further divided into three types:main stream sediment (29 samples), riverbank soil (27 samples), and farmland soil (26 samples). Enrichment factor analysis and the potential ecological risk index were employed to investigate the ecological risk. The results showed that the average concentrations of Cd, Hg, Pb, Zn, and Cu in the river sediment and soil in the study area were higher than those in the Baiyangdian Lake sediment and the surface soil of Hebei Province, whereas the concentrations of As, Cr, and Ni were relatively lower. The ranking of heavy metal pollution levels from high to low were Cd > Hg > Pb > Zn > Cu > Cr > Ni > As. The comprehensive ecological risk index showed that farmland soil and riverbank soil were mainly at a slight risk, followed by a moderate risk. The potential ecological risk of the main stream sediment was mainly moderate, severe, and extremely severe, accounting for 35.5%, 24.1%, and 24.1%, respectively, and the main contributing factors of the risk were Cd and Hg. The results of multivariate statistical analysis indicated that the main pollution sources of Cd, Pb, Zn, and Cu were industrial and mining activities. Cr, Ni, and As were mainly controlled by the weathering of the parent rock, and As was also influenced by agricultural activities. Hg was controlled by composite pollution sources such as industrial and mining activities, parent rock weathering, and atmospheric dust fall. Overall, the risk of heavy metal in the soil of the research area was generally at a slight level. However, there was a significant enrichment of Cd and other heavy metal in the sediment of the Taiyu-Sigezhuang-Pengtou River. This river section should be the focus of environmental monitoring, river dredging, and governance.

FNDC5/Irisin protects neurons through Caspase3 and Bax pathways.

Irisin is a glycosylated protein formed from the hydrolysis of fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FNDC5). Recent studies have demonstrated that FNDC5/Irisin is involved in the regulation of glucose and lipid metabolism, it can inhibit inflammation and have neuroprotective effects. However, the effect and mechanism of FNDC5/Irisin on motor neuron-like cell lines (NSC-34) have not been reported. In this study, we used lipopolysaccharide to construct cellular oxidative stress injury models and investigated the potential roles of FNDC5/Irisin on neurons by different cellular and molecular pathways. Taken together, our findings showed that FNDC5/Irisin can protect neurons, and this effect might be associated with Caspase3 and Bax pathways. These results laid the foundation for neuronal protection and clinical translation of FNDC5/Irisin therapy.

Prevalence and factors associated with frailty and pre-frailty in the older adults in China: a national cross-sectional study.

Objective: Frailty increases poor clinical outcomes in older adults, the aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and factors associated with frailty and pre-frailty in older adults in China. Research design and methods: Data were obtained from the Sample Survey of the Aged Population in Urban and Rural China in 2015, which was a cross-sectional study involving a nationally representative sample of older adults aged 60 years or older from 31 provinces/autonomous regions/municipalities in mainland China. The frailty index (FI) based on 33 potential deficits was used to classify individuals as robust (FI < 0.12), pre-frail (FI ≧0.12 and <0.25) and frail (FI ≥0.25). Results: A total of 208,386 older people were included in the study, and the age-sex standardised prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty among older adults in China was 9.5% (95% CI 9.4-9.7) and 46.1% (45.9-46.3) respectively. The prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty was higher in female than in male older adults, higher in rural than in urban older adults, and higher in northern China than in southern China. The multinomial analysis revealed similar risk factors for frailty and pre-frailty, including increased age, being female, living in a rural area, low educational attainment, poor marital status, living alone, difficult financial status, poor access to medical reimbursement, and living in northern China. Conclusion: Frailty and pre-frailty are very common among older adults in China and differ significantly between southern and northern China, men and women, and rural and urban areas. Appropriate public health prevention strategies should be developed based on identified risk factors in frail and pre-frail populations. The management of frailty and pre-frailty should be optimised according to regional and gender differences in prevalence and associated factors, such as strengthening the integrated management of chronic diseases, increasing reimbursement rates for medical costs, and focusing on vulnerable groups such as the disabled, economically disadvantaged, living alone and those with low literacy levels, in order to reduce the burden of frailty among older adults in China.

Prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty and related factors in older adults with cardio-cerebral vascular disease in China: a national cross-sectional study.

Objective: Frailty increases adverse clinical outcomes in older patients with cardio-cerebral vascular disease (CCVD). The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty in older adults with CCVD in China and the factors associated with it. Research design and methods: In this cross-sectional study, we used data from the fourth Sample Survey of Aged Population in Urban and Rural China. We used the frailty index for frailty and pre-frailty assessment, and the diagnosis of CCVD in older adults was self-reported. Results: A total of 53,668 older patients with CCVD were enrolled in the study. The age-standardized prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty in older patients with CCVD was 22.6% (95% CI 22.3-23.0%) and 60.1% (95% CI 59.7-60.5%). Multinomial logistic regression analyses showed that being female, increasing age, rural residence, illiteracy, widowhood, ethnic minority, living alone, no health screening during the last year, hospitalization during the last year, difficult financial status, comorbid chronic conditions, and disability in activities of daily living were associated with frailty and pre-frailty in older patients with CCVD. Conclusion: CCVD is strongly associated with frailty and pre-frailty in older Chinese people, and assessment of frailty should become routine in the management of older CCVD patients. Appropriate public health prevention strategies should be developed based on identified risk factors for frailty in older CCVD patients, which can help prevent, ameliorate or reverse the development of frailty in CCVD in the older population.

Elevated neutrophil-related immune-inflammatory biomarkers in acute anterior choroidal artery territory infarction with early progression.

OBJECTIVE: The anterior choroidal artery territory (AChA) infarction has a high rate of progression and poor functional prognosis. The aim of the study is to search for fast and convenient biomarkers to forecast the early progression of acute AChA infarction. METHODS: We respectively collected 51 acute AChA infarction patients, and compared the laboratorial index between early progressive and non-progressive acute AChA infarction patients. The receiver-operating characteristics curve (ROC) analysis was used to determine the discriminant efficacy of indicators that had statistical significance. RESULTS: The white blood cell, neutrophil, monocyte, white blood cell to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, neutrophil to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (NHR), monocyte to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, monocyte to lymphocyte ratio, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and hypersensitive C-reaction protein in acute AChA infarction are significantly higher than healthy controls (P < 0.05). The NHR (P = 0.020) and NLR (P = 0.006) are remarkably higher in acute AChA infarction patients with early progression than non-progression. The area under the ROC curve of NHR, NLR, the combine of NHR and NLR are 0.689 (P = 0.011), 0.723 (P = 0.003), 0.751 (P < 0.001), respectively. But there are no significant differences in efficiency between NHR and NLR and their combined marker in predicting progression (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: NHR and NLR may be significant predictors of early progressive patients with acute AChA infarction, and the combination of NHR and NLR could be a preferable prognostic marker for AChA infarction with early progressive course in acute stage.

Epidemiological status and associated factors of frailty and pre-frailty in older adults with asthma in China: A national cross-sectional study.

Objective: There are few studies on the prevalence and factors associated with frailty and pre-frailty in older adults with asthma worldwide. The aim of this study was to examine the epidemiological status and factors associated with frailty and pre-frailty in older adults with asthma in China. Research design and methods: Data were obtained from the Sample Survey of Aged Population in Urban and Rural China in 2015, a nationwide cross-sectional survey covering 224,142 older people aged 60 years or older in 31 provinces/autonomous regions/municipalities in mainland China. We performed frailty and pre-frailty assessments using the frailty index, and the diagnosis of asthma in the older adults was self-reported based on the history of the physician's diagnosis. Results: Nine thousand four hundred sixteen older adults with asthma were included in the study. The age-sex standardized prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty in Chinese older adults with asthma was 35.8% (95% CI 34.8%-36.7%) and 54.5% (95% CI 53.5%-55.5%). Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that increased age, female, illiteracy, living alone, poor economic status, ADL disability, comorbid chronic diseases, previous hospitalization in the past year, and residence in northern China were associated with frailty and pre-frailty in older adults with asthma. Conclusion: The prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty in Chinese older adults with asthma is very high, and assessment of frailty should become routine in the management of older adults with asthma. Appropriate public health prevention strategies based on identified risk factors for frailty in older adults with asthma should be developed to reduce the burden of frailty in Chinese older adults with asthma.

Relationship between the UPLC Fingerprints of Citrus reticulata "Chachi" Leaves and Their Antioxidant Activities.

Citrus reticulata "Chachi" (CRC) leaves contain abundant flavonoids, indicating that they possess good nutritional/pharmacological research and development potential. This study aims to explore chemical antioxidant quality markers based on the spectrum-effect relationship and quality control strategy of CRC leaves. The ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) system was used to establish chromatographic fingerprints of Citrus reticulata "Chachi" leaves. Simultaneously, they were evaluated by using similarity analysis (SA), hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), and principal component analysis (PCA). Afterwards, the DPPH assay was adopted to study the antioxidant effects. The spectrum-effect relationship between UPLC fingerprints and DPPH radical-scavenging activities was studied with grey relational analysis (GRA). Analysis results indicated that there were twenty-one common peaks of fourteen batches of CRC leaves which were from different regions of Guangdong province, and their similarities ranged from 0.648 to 0.997. HCA results showed that fourteen batches of samples of CRC leaves could be divided into six classes at Euclidean distance of 5. The results from GRA showed that tangeretin and hesperidin were the main flavonoids responsible for the antioxidant activity in CRC leaves. In conclusion, this research established a chromatographic analysis method suitable for CRC leaves and demonstrated that chromatographic fingerprints analysis combined with the antioxidant activity could be used to evaluate the material basis of CRC leaves and may provide a reference to establish a quality standard.

Clinical features of Guillain-Barré syndrome with anti-neurofascin 155 antibody.

OBJECTIVE: Anti-neurofascin 155 (NF155) antibody has been discovered in chronic demyelinating conditions. However, the positive rate and clinical description were insufficient in acute demyelinating conditions, such as Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). This study aimed to explore the positive rate of anti-NF155 antibody in GBS patients and determine whether there were unique clinical characteristics in these patients. MATERIALS & METHODS: Serum anti-NF155 antibody was detected from 94 GBS patients and 50 sex- and age-matched healthy controls using cell-based assay and tissue-based assay with immunostaining of mouse teased sciatic nerve fibers. Clinical characteristics, laboratory data, and electrophysiology examinations were retrospectively collected. RESULTS: Seven of 94 (7.45%) GBS patients were positive for anti-NF155 antibody, and the main IgG subclass was IgG1. Compared with anti-NF155 antibody-negative GBS patients, anti-NF155 antibody-positive GBS patients had a higher GBS disability score at nadirs (p = .010), higher modified Erasmus GBS outcome score (p = .022), higher rate of abnormal compound motor action potential (CMAP) amplitude (p = .002), higher frequency of prolonged F-wave latency (p < .001), lower frequency of abnormal sensory conduction velocity (p < .001) and sensory nerve action potential amplitude (p < .001), more axonal type (p = .040), and poorer therapeutic effect (p = .017). CONCLUSIONS: Anti-NF155 antibody exists in a small portion of GBS patients. Anti-NF155 antibody-positive GBS patients possibly have a more severe clinical course, less sensory nerves involved, higher proportion of axonal type, poorer therapeutic effect, and worse prognosis, but the pathogenicity of the anti-NF155 antibody in GBS needs further study.

A study on the prevalence and related factors of frailty and pre-frailty in the older population with hypertension in China: A national cross-sectional study.

Objective: To explore the prevalence and factors associated with frailty and pre-frailty in elderly Chinese patients with hypertension. Background: In China, there have been few national studies into the prevalence and factors associated with frailty and pre-frailty in elderly patients with hypertension. Methods: Through the 4th Sample Survey of Aged Population in Urban and Rural China (SSAPUR) in 2015, the situation of hypertension subjects aged 60 years or older in 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in mainland China was obtained. And the frailty index was constructed based on 33 potential defects, elderly hypertensive patients are classified as robust, frailty, and pre-frailty. Results: A total of 76,801 elderly patients with hypertension were enrolled in the study. The age-sex standardized prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty in hypertensive elderly in China was 16.1% (95%CI 15.8-16.3%), 58.1% (95%CI 57.7-58.4%). There were significant geographical differences in the prevalence of frailty and pre-frailty in elderly hypertensive patients. Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that poor economic status, activities of daily living disability, and comorbid chronic diseases were related to frailty and pre-frailty. Conclusion: Frailty and pre-frailty are very common in elderly Chinese patients with hypertension and have similar risk factors. Prevention strategies should be developed to stop or delay the onset of frailty by targeting established risk factors in the pre-frailty population of elderly hypertension. It is also crucial to optimize the management of frailty in elderly Chinese patients with hypertension.

Serum irisin levels in patients with myasthenia gravis.

OBJECTIVE: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disorder whose main symptoms are muscle weakness and fatigue. Irisin is a novel skeletal muscle-derived myokine participating in several physiological and pathological processes. The initial objective of the project was to explore serum levels of irisin in patients with MG, as well as its correlation with disease severity. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated serum levels of irisin in 77 MG patients and 57 healthy controls (HCs) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Further, clinical parameters were measured properly. RESULTS: Serum irisin levels were significantly elevated in MG patients compared with HCs (p < 0.001). Furthermore, serum irisin levels were associated with the myasthenia gravis activities of daily living score in ocular myasthenia gravis (OMG) patients (r = 0.476, p = 0.004), but there was no relationship to be considered of any relevant value in generalized myasthenia gravis (GMG) patients. Acetylcholine receptor antibody-positive MG patients had higher serum irisin levels compared with HCs. Thymoma, endotracheal intubation, or intensive care unit treatments subsequently were not found to have effect on serum levels of irisin, but tendencies of increase were observed in negative ones. CONCLUSIONS: Serum irisin levels were elevated in patients with MG, suggesting its possible involvement in MG. And irisin is expected to be a signal to evaluate the activities of daily living of OMG patients, while its effect needs further study.

Irisin levels in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with multiple sclerosis and the expression and distribution of irisin in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.

Irisin is a novel hormone-like myokine that plays an important role in central nervous system (CNS) diseases, such as cerebral ischaemia and Alzheimer's disease. However, irisin is rarely investigated in multiple sclerosis (MS), a typical inflammatory demyelinating disease of the CNS, and in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a typical model of MS. We determined the levels of irisin in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid in patients with MS. The expression and histological distribution of irisin were determined in EAE. Serum irisin levels in patients with MS and in EAE mice were increased, and the levels of FNDC5/irisin mRNA were decreased in the spinal cord and brain regardless of the onset, peak or chronic phase of EAE. Immunofluorescence staining showed co-localization of irisin and neurones. The levels of irisin fluctuated with disease progression in MS and EAE. Irisin may be involved in the pathological process of MS/EAE.

Multi-Level Analyses of Genome-Wide Association Study to Reveal Significant Risk Genes and Pathways in Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder.

BACKGROUND: Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system and it is understandable that environmental and genetic factors underlie the etiology of NMOSD. However, the susceptibility genes and associated pathways of NMOSD patients who are AQP4-Ab positive and negative have not been elucidated. METHODS: Secondary analysis from a NMOSD Genome-wide association study (GWAS) dataset originally published in 2018 (215 NMOSD cases and 1244 controls) was conducted to identify potential susceptibility genes and associated pathways in AQP4-positive and negative NMOSD patients, respectively (132 AQP4-positive and 83 AQP4-negative). RESULTS: In AQP4-positive NMOSD cases, five shared risk genes were obtained at chromosome 6 in AQP4-positive NMOSD cases by using more stringent p-Values in both methods (p < 0.05/16,532), comprising CFB, EHMT2, HLA-DQA1, MSH5, and SLC44A4. Fifty potential susceptibility gene sets were determined and 12 significant KEGG pathways were identified. Sixty-seven biological process pathways, 32 cellular-component pathways, and 29 molecular-function pathways with a p-Value of <0.05 were obtained from the GO annotations of the 128 pathways identified. In the AQP4 negative NMOSD group, no significant genes were obtained by using more stringent p-Values in both methods (p < 0.05/16,485). The 22 potential susceptibility gene sets were determined. There were no shared potential susceptibility genes between the AQP4-positive and negative groups, furthermore, four significant KEGG pathways were also identified. Of the GO annotations of the 165 pathways identified, 99 biological process pathways, 37 cellular-component pathways, and 29 molecular-function pathways with a p-Value of <0.05 were obtained. CONCLUSION: The potential molecular mechanism underlying NMOSD may be related to proteins encoded by these novel genes in complements, antigen presentation, and immune regulation. The new results may represent an improved comprehension of the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying NMOSD.

The prevalence of anti-neurofascin-155 antibodies in patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.

Anti-neurofascin-155 (NF155) antibodies have been observed in two cases with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD). This study investigated the prevalence of anti-NF155 antibodies in patients with NMOSD and the clinical features of anti-NF155 antibody-positive patients. Sera from 129 patients with NMOSD were screened with anti-NF155 antibodies by cell-based assay (CBA) and re-examined using immunostaining of teased mouse sciatic nerve fibres. Fifty-six patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and 50 healthy controls (HC) were also enrolled for detecting anti-NF155 antibodies. A total of 12.40% (16 of 129) of patients with NMOSD were positive for anti-NF155 antibodies confirmed by both CBA and immunostaining. Immunoglobulin (Ig) G1 was the predominant subclass. However, none of 56 MS patients or 50 HC were positive for anti-NF155 antibodies. Anti-NF155 antibody-positive NMOSD patients had a higher proportion of co-existing with autoimmune diseases (p < 0.001) and higher positive rates of serum non-organ-specific autoantibodies, including anti-SSA antibodies (p < 0.001), anti-SSB antibodies (p = 0.008), anti-Ro-52 antibodies (p < 0.001) and rheumatoid factor (p < 0.001). Five anti-NF155 antibody-positive NMOSD patients who took part in the nerve conduction study showed mildly abnormal results. Differences in some nerve conduction study parameters were observed between anti-NF155 antibody-positive and negative patients. Anti-NF155 antibodies occurred in a small proportion of NMOSD patients. Anti-NF155 antibody-positive NMOSD patients tended to co-exist with autoimmune diseases.

Elevated cerebrospinal fluid ß2-microglobulin levels in patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) ß2-microglobulin (ß2-MG) levels elevated in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). We examined the levels of ß2-MG in serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from 46 patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD), in serum from 21 healthy controls (HC), in CSF from 25 disease controls with non-inflammatory neurological diseases (NIND) with normal CSF results. CSF ß2-MG levels were significantly higher in patients with NMOSD than controls and with weak association with the number of white blood cells, protein and lactate levels in CSF. CSF ß2-MG is thus one more, non-specific indicator of inflammation in NMOSD.

Comparisons Between Infectious and Autoimmune Encephalitis: Clinical Signs, Biochemistry, Blood Counts, and Imaging Findings.

OBJECTIVE: Infectious encephalitis (IE) and autoimmune encephalitis (AE) are symptomatically similar in clinic, however essentially different in pathogenesis. Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify specific features to distinguish the two types of encephalitis for early effective diagnosis and treatments through a comparative analysis. METHODS: Fifty-nine IE patients and 36 AE patients were enrolled. The patients with IE were divided into viral encephalitis (VE) and bacterial encephalitis (BE) according to the pathogens in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Patients with AE were categorized by with or without neural autoantibodies (NAAb). We further divided patients with NAAb into those with neural cell-surface antibodies (NSAbs) or intracellular antibodies (Abs). Clinical features, laboratory data, and imaging findings were compared between AE, IE, and subgroups. RESULTS: Memory deficits, involuntary movement, and seizures were relatively more commonly presenting symptoms in AE patients (p < 0.05). The positive rate of Pandy test was higher in IE patients (p = 0.007). Decreased leukocyte, erythrocyte, and platelet counts in blood were found in IE patients (p < 0.05). Lower serum calcium level was found in VE compared to BE (p = 0.027). Meanwhile, higher serum calcium level was found in patients with NSAbs compared with intracellular Abs (p = 0.034). However, higher levels of LDH in CSF were found in patients with intracellular Abs (p = 0.009). In magnetic resonance imaging, hippocampus lesions were more commonly present in patients with AE (p = 0.042). Compared with AE patients, more IE patients displayed the background electroencephalogram rhythm of slow-frequency delta (p = 0.013). CONCLUSION: Involuntary movement and memory deficits were more specifically present in AE patients. CSF Pandy, blood routine test and hippocampus lesions detections were potential markers for distinguishing AE and IE. Further, CSF LDH, and serum calcium levels were potentially useful to distinguish subgroups of encephalitis.

Increased serum IL-36γ levels are associated with disease severity in myasthenia gravis patients.

BACKGROUND: Interleukin 36 (IL-36), as a gradually recognized cytokine, is involved in the occurrence and evolution of autoimmune diseases. Nevertheless, the relationship between myasthenia gravis (MG) and IL-36 is rarely reported. METHODS: We evaluated the serum levels of IL-36 (IL-36α, IL-36ß and IL-36γ) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Further, clinical parameters in 97 MG patients and 49 healthy controls (HCs) were carefully measured. RESULTS: Serum IL-36γ levels were significantly elevated in the MG patients compared with the HCs (p < 0.0001). Compared to those in remission, patients in the acute phase exhibited higher levels of IL-36α and IL-36γ (p = 0.038 and p = 0.011, respectively). Furthermore, patients with generalized MG (GMG) exhibited markedly higher serum IL-36γ levels than those with ocular MG (OMG) (p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: The serum levels of IL-36γ in patients with MG were increased and positively correlated with disease severity and may thus have potential as a serological MG marker.

A barrier-to-autointegration factor promotes white spot syndrome virus infection in a crustacean Cherax quadricarinatus.

Barrier-to-autointegration factor (BAF) is a highly conserved DNA binding protein that participates in a variety of biological processes such as transcription, epigenetic regulation and antiviral immunity in vertebrates. However, the function of BAF is poorly understood in crustaceans. In this study, we identified a barrier-to-autointegration factor (CqBAF) from red claw crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus, which was responsive to white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) infection. The full-length cDNA sequence of CqBAF was 544 bp, including an open reading frame of 273 bp encoding 90 amino acids, a 107 bp of 5'-Untranslated Regions (5'-UTR) and a 164 bp of 3'-UTR. Gene expression analysis showed that CqBAF was distributed in all tissues examined with the highest expression in the crayfish haematopietic tissue (Hpt), which protein expression was also significantly up-regulated by WSSV infection in Hpt cells. Furthermore, the transcripts of both an immediate early gene IE1 and a late envelope protein gene VP28 of WSSV were clearly reduced in Hpt cells after gene silencing of CqBAF. Importantly, the promoter activity of two immediate early genes of WSSV, including WSV051 and IE1, was strongly enhanced by the increased phosphorylation of CqBAF, which also facilitated the accumulation of CqBAF protein in the cytoplasm of Sf9 cells. Taken together, these data suggest that CqBAF is likely to increase the replication of WSSV by promoting the transcription of viral immediate early genes, probably regulated by phosphorylation of CqBAF, which sheds new light on the molecular mechanism of WSSV infection.

Increased cerebrospinal fluid YKL-40 levels are associated with disease severity of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.

BACKGROUND: Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) is a severe immune-mediated inflammatory central nervous system (CNS) syndrome. YKL-40, as a new inflammatory marker, has been studied in many autoimmunity and CNS diseases. Our aim of this study was to investigate cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum YKL-40 levels in patients with NMOSD and their association with disease severity. METHODS: We measured CSF and serum YKL-40 levels in 29 patients with NMOSD and 21 age- and sex-matched controls. We analyzed the associations between CSF YKL-40 levels and the clinical variables of NMOSD. RESULTS: Compared to controls, patients with NMOSD had significantly higher CSF YKL-40 levels. Moreover, CSF YKL-40 levels were positively correlated with the Expanded Disability Status Scale scores. CONCLUSIONS: YKL-40 could be a NMOSD severity biomarker and a potential target for NMOSD treatment.

Correlation between serum levels of endothelin-1 and disease severity in patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.

AIMS: Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) are aquaporin-4 antibody-mediated diseases of the central nervous system. Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is an inflammatory cytokine released by vascular endothelial cells and activated astrocytes. Previous studies have reported the aberrant expressions of cytokines/chemokines in patients diagnosed with NMOSD. However, the serum levels of ET-1 in NMOSD patients remain unknown. The purpose of this study was to measure the serum levels of ET-1 and other immune-related cytokines/chemokines in patients with NMOSD, and to investigate the correlation between serum ET-1 levels and clinical characteristics of NMOSD. METHODS: Thirty-eight patients with NMOSD and twenty-eight healthy controls (HCs) were recruited in this study. The serum concentrations of ET-1 and other cytokines/chemokines were measured, and their correlations to the clinical features of patients with NMOSD were analyzed. RESULTS: The serum levels of ET-1 in patients with NMOSD were significantly higher than those in HCs (P =  0.0001). The serum concentrations of ET-1 were positively correlated with the Expanded Disability Status Scale score (r = 0.428, P = 0.0183). High-dose intravenous methylprednisolone treatment significantly reduced the levels of ET-1 and interleukin (IL)-6 in blood, but significantly increased the serum concentrations of IL-10 in NMOSD patients. No correlations were found between serum ET-1 levels and the concentrations of other cytokines/chemokines in these patients. CONCLUSION: ET-1 and IL-6 might exert pro-inflammatory effects in the pathogenesis of NMOSD, whereas IL-10 played an anti-inflammatory role in this process. ET-1 might be a potential biomarker for predicting the severity of NMOSD. However, the serum levels of ET-1 were not correlated with the changes of other cytokines/chemokines in patients with NMOSD. The involvement of ET-1 in the development of NMOSD needs to be further studied.

Different clinical characteristics of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis with and without connective tissue disorders: a single-center retrospective study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Autoimmune longitudinal extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) is often combined with connective tissue disorders (CTD). The purpose of this study was to compare the clinical characteristics of autoimmune LETM with and without CTD. METHODS: Ninety-two patients diagnosed with autoimmune LETM were enrolled from our clinical database and divided into two groups depending on whether they had a concomitant diagnosis of CTD. Differences in clinical, serological, and imaging characteristics between the two groups were evaluated and compared. RESULTS: Fifty-nine LETM patients without CTD and 33 LETM patients with CTD were included. LETM patients with CTD had higher Kurtzke Expanded Disability Status Scale at nadir and more severe sensory dysfunction (p < 0.05) than those without CTD. It was also found that LETM patients with CTD, compared with those without CTD, had elevated levels of immune inflammation markers such as IgG, IgA, and globulins (p < 0.05). These abovementioned characteristics were more prominent in patients with aquaporin-4 antibodies (AQP4-ab) than in those without them. In addition, the most common type of CTD in LETM was Sjögren syndrome (SS), which was usually diagnosed at the time of LETM or later. CONCLUSION: LETM patients with CTD, especially those with AQP4-ab, had greater sensory dysfunction and higher levels of inflammatory markers than did LETM patients without CTD. Multicenter cooperation and long-term follow-up are necessary to further study the inherent implications and prognosis of the disease.