Objective To investigate the impact of calcification on differential diagnosis of thyroid nodule using shear wave elastography (SWE). Methods One hundred and forty-six patients with thyroid nodules were prospectively enrolled in the study. Ultrasound observations included nodule size, boundary, shape, envelope, internal echotexture, posterior acoustic enhancement, and the relationship with surrounding tissue. According to the presence of internal calciifcation, patients were divided into calciifcation group (groupⅠ) and no calciifcation group (groupⅡ). Real-time shear wave elastography (young′s modulus value) were taken in both groups. Taking surgical pathologic results as the gold standard, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of SWE in diagnosis of benign and malignant thyroid nodule were drawn for two groups respectively. Results In groupⅠ, 25 cases were benign and 38 cases were malignant. The malignant incidence was 60%. Among them the rate of malignant nodules in microcalcification group was 92%(24/26). The incidence of malignant nodules in coarse calcification group was 38%(14/37). The area under the curve (AUC) of SWE in groupⅠwas 0.564. In groupⅡ, 67 cases were benign and malignant had 16 cases. Using 30.43 kPa as the diagnostic point of young′s modulus value, the sensitivity, speciifcity, accuracy and AUC were 93.2%, 81.2%, 84.8%and 0.824. Conclusion In no calciifcation group, SWE is more meaningful in the differential diagnosis of benign and malignant thyroid nodules.

Objective To make contrast analysis of sleeve lobectomy and wedge resection in lung cancer treatment by observing the clinical curative effect.Methods 100 patients with lung cancer using random table method, all the patients were divided into the observation group ( 50 cases, treated with sleeve resection ) , control group (50 cases,treated with wedge resection),follow-up after treatment lasted respectively for 3 years.Results In the two groups,anastomotic fistula incidence and mortality rates of the observation group were 4%,6%;6% and 8% in the control group,there were no statistical difference (χ2 =0.00,0.00,all P>0.05);the positive rate of stump cancer cell bronchial in the observation group was 4%,it was obviously less than 16% in the control group,and the differ-ence was obvious (χ2 =4.00,P<0.05) .The anastomotic scar tissue hyperplasia and recurrence rate of the observa-tion group during the follow-up period were 2%,2%;which were lower than 16%,18% of the control group (χ2 =4.40,7.11,all P<0.05).The 1,3 year survival rates of the observation group were 92%,64%,which were higher than 62%and 42%of the control group (χ2 =12.70,4.86,all P<0.05).Conclusion Taking sleeve resection for bronchogenic carcinoma can effectively control the positive rate of bronchial stump with cancer cells,inhibit anasto-motic scar tissue hyperplasia,reduce the recurrence rate,and the curative effect is very good,which is worth of clinical application.

Objective:Summarize and analyze the clinical features of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)-related colitis.Methods:From January 2019 to September 2020, the clinical data of 8 patients with ICI-related colitis from Peking Union Medical College Hospital were retrospectively collected and including the onset of ICI-related colitis, clinical symptoms, endoscopic and pathological findings, treatment, comorbidities and resuming of ICI. Independent sample t test was used for statistical analysis. Results:Eight patients were all male, and the median age (range) was 66 years old (55 to 74 years old), 7 cases were diagnosed with stage Ⅳ lung cancer and 1 case was diagnosed with stage Ⅲc pyelo-carcinoma. Among 8 patients, 4 cases of ICI-related colitis occurred during combination of anti-programmed death-1 (PD-1) treatment and chemotherapy, 2 cases occurred during anti-PD-1 monotherapy after combination of anti-PD-1 treatment and chemotherapy, and 2 cases occurred after anti-PD-1 monotherapy. The median time (range) was 44 d (27 to 128 d) from initial anti-PD-1 treatment to the onset of ICI-related colitis and the median time (range) was 8 d (6 to 35 d) from last anti-PD-1 treatment to onset of ICI-related colitis. The ICI efficacy of 4 patients had partial response, 2 patients had stable disease, 1 patient had disease progression, and 1 patient′s condition was not assessed. All 8 patients had moderate to severe extensive colitis. The main clinical manifestation was diarrhea (5/8), 3 patients accompanied by abdominal pain. The endoscopic findings were diffuse mucosal erosion, accompanied by ulcer in 2 patients. The main pathologic findings were cryptitis or crypt abscess, accompanied by apoptosis in 2 patients. Eight patients were all treated with glucocorticoids, among them 2 patients were further treated with biologics, due to the insufficient efficacy of glucocorticoid treatment, 4 patients had opportunistic infections. The initial prednisone dose for patients with opportunistic infections and patients without opportunistic infections was (85.00±52.60) and (60.00±23.09) mg, respectively. The prednisone treatment course was (8.75±4.03) and (7.50±3.11) weeks, respectively, and the differences were not statistically significant (both P>0.05). The colitis relapsed in all 3 patients after resuming of ICI. Conclusions:ICI-related colitis had corresponding ICI treatment history and clinical, endoscopic, and histopathological features. Glucocorticoid is the main treatment, and it is prone to relapse after resuming of ICI.

Objective To explore the effect of knowledge,attitudes,and practices (KAP) health education model on the self-care skill among cancer patients with peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC),and to implement the effective health education methods.Methods Totals of 66 cases of cancer patients with PICC were randomly divided into control group(n =35 ) and the experimental group (n =31 ).The control group received routine health education whlie the experimental group received KAP health education regarding strengthened self-care knowledge of PICC,establishment in self care attitude or belief,promotion in self care practice.Before and after intervention,we apply the Exercise of Self-care Agency Scale (ESCA) to asses the extent to which individuals take action toward their health care.Results After intervention,experimental group was higher than the control group significantly in ESCA total score [ ( 117.07 ± 13.75 ) vs ( 101.14 ± 11.56) ],self care skills [ (31.52 ± 3.67 ) vs (26.74 ± 3.46) ],self care responsibility [ (22.39 ± 3.89 ) vs ( 16.03 ±2.80) ],self-concept [ ( 23.39 ± 3.36 ) vs ( 18.83 ± 3.43 ) ],and the difference was statistically significant (t=-3.717,-5.242,-7.685,-5.434,respectively;P＜0.05).Conclusions KAP health education model appears effective in improving the self-care agency among cancer patients with PICC.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a multifactorial disease in which inflammation plays a central role.This study aimed to investigate the association of inflammatory markers such as the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR),the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) score with in-hospital mortality of elderly patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in an attempt to explore the prognostic value of these indices for elderly AMI patients.One thousand consecutive CAD patients were divided into two groups based on age 60.The laboratory and clinical characteristics were assessed retrospectively by reviewing the medical records.The NLR and GRACE score were calculated.In the elderly (≥60 years),patients with non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) had significantly higher NLR than did those with unstable angina (UA) and stable angina pectoris (SAP) (P＜0.01).The NLR was considerably elevated in older AMI patients compared with their younger counterparts (＜60 years) (P＜0.05).In elderly AMI patients,the NLR was considerably higher in the high-risk group than in both the low-risk and medium-risk groups based on the GRACE score (P＜0.05 and P＜0.01,respectively),and the NLR was positively correlated with the GRACE score (r=0.322,P＜0.001).Either the NLR level or the GRACE score was significantly higher in the death group than in the surviving group (P＜0.05).By curve receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC) analysis,the optimal cut-off levels of 9.41 for NLR and 174 for GRACE score predicted in-hospital death [ROC area under the curve (AUC) 0.771 and 0.787,respectively,P＜0.001].It was concluded that an elevated NLR is a potential predictor of in-hospital mortality in elderly patients with AMI.

Aim To evaluate the effects of salvianolic acid B ( Sal B ) on bone metabolism and its potential mechanism in high fat diet ( HFD) mice.Methods Thirty C57BL/6J male mice were divided into three groups with 10 mice each, namely normal , HFD and HFD+Sal B.HFD and HFD+Sal B mice were treated with HFD, and HFD+Sal B group mice were also with Sal B (125 mg· kg -1· d-1).After 12 weeks' treat-ment, femurs were harvested .The effects of Sal B on biomechanical strength were evaluated by biomechani-cal tests, and the effects of Sal B on bone microstruc-ture were evaluated by Safranin O/fast green staining and hematoxylin and eosin staining .The expression of nuclear factor-kappa B ( NF-κB)-p65 and NADPH ox-idase 4 ( Nox4 ) and cathepsin K in femurs was deter-mined by immunohistochemical staining . Results Maximum load and elastic load significantly decreased ,and the trabeculae became thinner and irregular in the femurs of HFD mice , while Sal B treatment could re-verse the descending biomechanical strength and the disorganized femurs bone micro-structures in HFD mice.In addition, the expressions of Nox4, NF-κB-p65 and cathepsin Kmarkedly increased in HFD mice , and Sal B possessed the ability to down-regulate the ex-pression of Nox4, NF-κB-p65, and cathepsin K in the femurs triggered by HFD .Conclusions Sal B treat-ment improves bone metabolism via regulating Nox 4/NF-κB/cathepsin K signaling pathway in HFD mice . The findings contribute to the understanding and exten-sion of the applications of Salvia miltiorrhiza and its constituents on osteoporosis .

Stimulated by retinoic acid gene 8 (STRA8) is specifically expressed in mammalian germ cells before their transition from mitosis to meiosis. STRA8 expression is observed only in the postnatal testis. Single nucleotide polymorphisms but no mutations were identified in the coding or proximal promoter region of STRA8 in some gonadal dysgenesis patients. Studies on the teratocarcinoma cells and embryonic stem cells (ESC) transfected with STRA8-EGFP, a fusion construct harboring the promoter and coding region of the enhanced green fluorescence protein, have shown that the STRA8-EGFP positive cells may undergo meiosis, develop into sperm and generate live offspring mice. STRA8-EGFP positive cells derived from the bone marrow are able to differentiate into spermatogenic cells, but arrest in the premeiotic stage, and those from the adult mouse testis, when cultured in ESC culture conditions, may acquire ESC properties, pluripotency and redifferentiation capacity and act as a new stem cell source for tissue regeneration. The presence of oocytes renewed in postnatal mouse ovaries calls in question the absence of STRA8 in postnatal mouse ovaries.
Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing ; Animals ; Biomarkers ; metabolism ; Cells, Cultured ; Female ; Germ Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Mice ; Oocytes ; metabolism ; Proteins ; metabolism ; Testis ; cytology ; metabolism

To identify adulterants from medicinal plants of Bletilla H. G. Reichenbach, the suitable candidate DNA barcoding of Bletilla was evaluated. In this study, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA, the LFY homologous gene intron 2 and chloroplast ycfl gene were amplified and sequenced from forty-one samples. The intra-specific and inter-specific divergences of Bletilla were calculated, and the identification efficiency was assessed using Barcoding Gap, NJ tree by K2P distance and BLAST1 method. The result showed the intra-specific divergence of nrDNA ITS and ycJfl (0.022-0.106 and 0.017-0.106) were obviously higher than the inter-specific divergence (0-0.012 and 0-0.015), and four species of Bletilla were also accurately distinguished in NJ trees. Whereas, there was no Barcoding Gap on LFY homologous gene intron 2, thus it cannot effectively identify species of Bletilla. Using NJ tree of nrDNA ITS and ycfl gene, powdery medicine and the adulterants of Bletilla were successfully unidentified. In conclusion, nrDNA ITS and ycfl can be used as a potential DNA barcoding to identify the medicinal plants in Bletilla and its adulterants. There were only three basic differences on nrDNA ITS between "Jujing baiji" and Bletilla striata of Lu'an in Anhui province, and two basic differences in ycfl. Based on morphological and molecular data, "Jujing baiji" could be recognized as the species of Bletilla striata.
Base Sequence ; DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic ; DNA, Plant ; genetics ; DNA, Ribosomal Spacer ; genetics ; Orchidaceae ; classification ; Plants, Medicinal ; classification

Stra8 (stimulated by retinoic acid gene 8) is a specific expression gene in mammalian germ cells' transition from mitosis to meiosis. Stra8 expresses in an anterior to posterior wave from embryonic days 12.5 to 16.5 in germ cells of XX gonads in mice. Meiosis germ cells are observed 1 day after Stra8 expression, which begins in the testis after birth and triggers meiosis entry. Germ cell sex determination is directed by a difference in the timing of entry into meiosis in embryonic gonads. The position of retinoic acid production and CYP26b1 expression that metabolizes RA to an inactive form regulates Stra8 expression. Although cytoplasmic protein Stra8 is necessary for the entry of germ cells into meiotic prophase, the function of the protein remains unknown.
Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing ; Animals ; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System ; metabolism ; Female ; Gene Expression ; Germ Cells ; cytology ; physiology ; Male ; Meiosis ; Mice ; Proteins ; genetics ; physiology ; Retinoic Acid 4-Hydroxylase ; Spermatogenesis ; genetics ; Tretinoin ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo construct the KbvR gene of LuxR family deletion mutant and complementation strains from Klebsiella pneumoniae NTUH-K2044 and analyze the effect of KbvR on bacterial growth, biofilm formation and capsular synthesis.

METHODSA KbvR gene deletion mutant strain was constructed using the suicide vector pKO3-Km, and the gene fragment including KbvR coding region, promoter area and transcription termination area were amplified and cloned into pGEM-T-easy plasmid to construct KbvR complementation strain. The growth curves of the wild-type strain, KbvR gene deletion mutant strain and complementation strain were observed to assess the effect of KbvR on bacterial growth. Crystal violet staining method was used to measure the effect of KbvR on biofilm formation; the effect of KbvR on capsular synthesis was detected using string test, centrifugal test and RT-PCR.

RESULTSThe KbvR deletion mutant and complementation strains were constructed successfully. KbvR gene did not affect the growth of the bacteria, but biofilm formation and capsular synthesis were attenuated in KbvR deletion mutant strain.

CONCLUSIONAs a transcription factor of the LuxR family orphans of the quorum sensing system, KbvR positively regulates bacterial biofilm formation by affecting capsular synthesis.