[Clinical analysis of 86 cases of acute fatty liver of pregnancy].

Objective: To investigate the clinical characteristics and maternal and fetal prognosis of pregnant women with acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP). Methods: The clinical data of 86 AFLP pregnant women admitted to the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University from September 2017 to August 2022 were collected, and their general data, clinical characteristics, laboratory tests and maternal and fetal outcomes were retrospectively analyzed. Results: (1) General information: the age of the 86 pregnant women with AFLP was (30.8±5.4) years, and the body mass index was (21.0±2.5) kg/m2. There were 50 primiparas (58.1%, 50/86) and 36 multiparas (41.9%, 36/86). There were 64 singleton pregnancies (74.4%, 64/86) and 22 twin pregnancies (25.6%, 22/86). (2) Clinical characteristics: the main complaints of AFLP pregnant women were gastrointestinal symptoms, including epigastric pain (68.6%, 59/86), nausea (47.7%, 41/86), anorexia (46.5%, 40/86), vomiting (39.5%, 34/86). The main non-gastrointestinal symptoms were jaundice of skin and/or scleral (54.7%, 47/86), edema (38.4%, 33/86), fatigue (19.8%, 17/86), bleeding tendency (16.3%, 14/86), polydipsia or polyuria (14.0%, 12/86), skin itching (8.1%, 7/86), and 17.4% (15/86) AFLP pregnant women had no obvious symptoms. (3) Laboratory tests: the incidence of liver and kidney dysfunction and abnormal coagulation function in AFLP pregnant women was high, and the levels of blood ammonia, lactate dehydrogenase and lactic acid were increased, and the levels of hemoglobin, platelet and albumin decreased. However, only 24 cases (27.9%, 24/86) of AFLP pregnant women showed fatty liver by imageology examination. (4) Pregnancy outcomes: ① AFLP pregnant women had a high incidence of pregnancy complications, mainly including renal insufficiency (95.3%, 82/86), preterm birth (46.5%, 40/86), hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (30.2%, 26/86), gestational diabetes mellitus (36.0%, 31/86), fetal distress (24.4%, 21/86), pulmonary infection (23.3%, 20/86), disseminated intravascular coagulation (16.3%, 14/86), multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (16.3%, 14/86), hepatic encephalopathy (9.3%, 8/86), and intrauterine fetal death (2.3%, 2/86). ② Treatment and outcome of AFLP pregnant women: the intensive care unit transfer rate of AFLP pregnant women was 66.3% (57/86). 82 cases were improved and discharged after treatment, 2 cases were transferred to other hospitals for follow-up treatment, and 2 cases (2.3%, 2/86) died. ③ Neonatal outcomes: except for 2 cases of intrauterine death, a total of 106 neonates were delivered, including 39 cases (36.8%, 39/106) of neonatal asphyxia, 63 cases (59.4%, 63/106) of neonatal intensive care unit admission, and 3 cases (2.8%, 3/106) of neonatal death. Conclusions: AFLP is a severe obstetric complication, which is harmful to mother and fetus. In the process of clinical diagnosis and treatment, attention should be paid to the clinical manifestations and laboratory tests of pregnant women, early diagnosis and active treatment, so as to improve maternal and fetal outcomes.

Local tunneling spectroscopy as a signature of the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov state in s- and d-wave superconductors.

The Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) states for two-dimensional s- and d-wave superconductors (s- and d-SCs) are self-consistently studied under an in-plane magnetic field. While the stripe solution of the order parameter is found to have lower free energy in s-SCs, a square lattice solution appears to be energetically more favorable in the case of d-SCs. At certain symmetric sites, we find that the features in the local density of states (LDOS) can be ascribed to two types of bound states. We also show that the LDOS maps for d-SCs exhibit bias-energy-dependent checkerboard patterns. These characteristics can serve as signatures of the FFLO states.

Symmetry theorems on the forward and backward scattering Mueller matrices for light scattering from a nonspherical dielectric scatterer.

The symmetry theorems on the complete forward and backward scattering Mueller matrices for light scattering from a single dielectric scatterer (as opposed to an ensemble of scatterers) are systematically and thoroughly analyzed. Symmetry operations considered include discrete rotations about the incident direction and mirror planes not coinciding with the scattering plane. For forward scattering we find sixteen different symmetry shapes (not including the totally asymmetric one), which may be classified into five symmetry classes, with identical reductions in the forward scattering matrices for all symmetry shapes that fall into the same symmetry class. For backward scattering we find only four different symmetry shapes, which may be classified into only two symmetry classes. The forward scattering symmetry theorems also lead to a symmetry theorem on the total extinction cross section. Based on the conclusions of this work it should be possible to design quick and nondestructive methods for the identification of certain small objects, when suitable partial information about the objects to be identified is already available. A promising practical example is given.

Mueller matrix calculations for dielectric cubes: comparison with experiments.

A new resolvent kernel method is presented for solving the problem of electromagnetic scattering from irregular homogeneous particles. This method has an advantage over other methods in that an integrodifferential equation with a simple initial condition is solved to give a resolvent kernel matrix for a complete range of refractive indices for a fixed particle size. This matrix can then be used to calculate both near and far fields for any incident wave. Results are presented for a homogeneous cube in random orientation and compared with microwave analog measurements.

[Electron microscopic observation of the sporogonic stage of Plasmodium gallinaceum after five antimalarials].

Ultrastructural changes in Plasmodium gallinaceum oocysts and sporozoites were studies after 5 antimalarials (pyrimethamine, primaquine, artemisinine, 5-p-fluorobenzoxyl-primaquine citrate and nitroquine) were administered to Aedes albopictus. Obvious disfigurement, such as abnormal vacuoles of various sizes in the cytoplasma, thickened oocyst capsules and damaged sporozoite pellical membranes were found in many oocysts and sporozoites in the mosquitoes. When the grade of infection of sporozoites in the salivary glands of the 5 different groups of mosquitoes were compared with the control, the rank test (Hc = 271) showed a very significant variance (P less than 0.01).

Cellular proteins specifically bind to the 5'-noncoding region of hepatitis C virus RNA.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA contains a highly conserved 5'-noncoding region (5'NCR) which may be important in viral multiplication. To study the possible mechanisms of the cellular proteins involved in HCV replication and pathogenesis, a gel mobility shift assay and competition analysis were performed with the HCV 5'NCR. Two specific complexes were formed between the 341-nucleotide RNA of the HCV 5'NCR and proteins of mammalian cells. The specific RNA-protein complexes were maintained in the region of the 5'NCR from nucleotides 131 to 253. Nevertheless, the slower migrating RNA-protein complex failed to form when a polypyrimidine tract sequence (191-UCCUUUCUU-199) in the stem-loop III structure of HCV 5'NCR was changed to 191-UCCUUUggU-199. A uv cross-linking assay further identified two cellular proteins, p87 and p120, that specifically bound to the stem-loop III structure. Mutations at the polypyrimidine tract sequence inhibited the binding of p87, but maintained the ability of the mutant HCV RNA to interact with p120. Translation competition assay demonstrated that the 5'NCR from nt 131 to 253 within the stem-loop III structure is important for the translation of HCV core protein. In addition, p120 and unidentified cellular proteins are likely to be involved in the translation of HCV polyprotein, whereas p87 may play important roles in HCV multiplication other than translation.