MiR-146a relieves kidney injury in mice with systemic lupus erythematosus through regulating NF-κB pathway.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of micro ribonucleic acid (miRNA)-146a on kidney injury in mice with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and to investigate its possible mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 45 female MRL/lpr mice were randomly divided into control group, miR-146a mimic group and miR-146a inhibitor group. Urine protein level was measured every 2 weeks. Meanwhile, the levels of serum anti-dsdeoxyribonucleic acid (anti-dsDNA), anti-ssDNA, antinuclear antibody (ANA) and anti-chromatin were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). At 2 weeks after drug treatment, the effects of miR-146a mimic and inhibitor on kidney tissues of MRL/lpr mice were detected and analyzed by gene chip and gene set enrichment analysis, respectively. The mice were executed at the age of 24 weeks, and the blood samples were collected. Subsequently, the level of blood urea nitrogen (BUN) was measured using the BUN analyzer. After that, kidney tissues were taken, and the effect of drug treatment on the morphology of kidney tissues was detected via hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. Moreover, the effects of drug treatment on the mRNA levels of inflammatory factors and the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway in kidney tissues were detected via quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blotting, respectively. RESULTS: MiR-146a mimic significantly reduced urine protein in a time-dependent manner, which also significantly reduced BUN level at 24 weeks. The results of HE staining showed that both glomerular injury and renal vascular injury in miR-146a mimic group were significantly alleviated. In miR-146a mimic group, serum autoantibodies of anti-dsDNA, anti-ssDNA, anti-chromatin and ANA decreased significantly. However, the survival time of mice was significantly prolonged. High-throughput gene expression chip technique elucidated that in miR-146a mimic group, the expression of positive regulatory gene of NF-κB showed a decreasing trend. However, the expression of negative regulatory gene of NF-κB showed an increasing trend. MiR-146a mimic remarkably down-regulated the expression levels of RELA, IRAK1, interleukin-1B (IL1B) and IL-10 in kidney tissues. Furthermore, the results of Western blotting showed that miR-146a mimic inhibited both the classical and non-classical NF-κB signaling pathways. CONCLUSIONS: MiR-146a reduces SLE-induced kidney injury in MRL/lpr mice through regulating classical and non-classical NF-κB signaling pathways.

The impact of short daily hemodialysis on anemia and the quality of life in Chinese patients

Anemia is a frequent complication in hemodialysis patients. Compared to conventional hemodialysis (CHD), short daily hemodialysis (sDHD) has been reported to be effective in many countries except China. The aim of the present study was to determine whether sDHD could improve anemia and quality of life (QOL) for Chinese outpatients with end-stage renal disease. Twenty-seven patients (16 males/11 females) were converted from CHD to sDHD. All laboratory values were measured before conversion (baseline), at 3 months after conversion (sDHD1), and at 6 months after conversion (sDHD2). The patient's QOL was evaluated at baseline and 6 months after conversion using the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36). Hemoglobin concentration increased significantly from 107.4±7.9 g/L at baseline to 114.4±6.8 g/L (P<0.05) at sDHD1, and 118.3±8.4 g/L (P<0.001) at sDHD2 (Student paired t-test). However, the dose requirement for erythropoietin decreased from 6847.8±1057.3 U/week at baseline to 5869.6±1094.6 U/week (P<0.05) at sDHD2. Weekly stdKt/V increased significantly from 2.05±0.13 at baseline to 2.73±0.20 (P<0.001) at sDHD1, and 2.84±0.26 (P<0.001) at sDHD2. C-reactive protein decreased from baseline to sDHD1 and sDHD2, but without statistically significant differences. Physical and mental health survey scores increased in the 6 months following conversion to sDHD. sDHD may increase hemoglobin levels, decrease exogenous erythropoietin dose requirements, and improve QOL in Chinese hemodialysis patients compared to CHD. A possible mechanism for improvement of clinical outcomes may be optimized management of uremia associated with the higher efficiency of sDHD.

Acute hepatitis C infection with unclear route of transmission / Infección aguda de hepatitis C sin vía clara de trasmisión

A 43-year old man acquired acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection with unclear route of transmission. There were no known sexual or other risk factors for HCV acquisition. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed that the case was infected with identical genotype 1b strain. After symptomatic treatment for three weeks, the HCV was spontaneously cleared and liver function recovered.

Un hombre de 43 anos adquirió la infección del virus de la hepatitis aguda tipo C (VHC) por una via de trasmisión incierta. No habia ningún factor de riesgo sexual u otro conocido para la adquisición del VHC. El análisis filogenético confirmó que el caso se infectó con una cepa 1b de genotipo idéntico. Tras del tratamiento sintomático por tres semanas, el VHC se eliminó espontáneamente y lafunción del higado fue recuperada.