OBJECTIVES: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and hypertension are common metabolic disorders, both closely associated with insulin resistance (IR), suggesting potential shared pathological mechanisms. This study aims to investigate the mediating role of IR in the relationship between hypertension and NAFLD, and to evaluate the applicability and modeling value of various IR surrogate indices in predicting NAFLD risk. METHODS: A total of 280 976 individuals who underwent health examinations at the Health Management Center of the Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University between August 2017 and December 2021 were included. NAFLD was diagnosed based on abdominal ultrasound findings, and hypertension was defined according to the criteria of the Chinese Guidelines for the Management of Hypertension. Demographic information, anthropometric indices, and biochemical parameters were collected, and multiple IR surrogate indices were constructed, including the triglyceride-glucose index (TyG) and its derivatives, as well as the metabolic score for insulin resistance (METS-IR). Group comparisons were performed between hypertensive and non-hypertensive participants, as well as between NAFLD and non-NAFLD participants. Pearson correlation analysis was applied to assess the associations of metabolic parameters and IR indices with NAFLD. Furthermore, mediation models were constructed to explore the mediating role of IR in the "hypertension-NAFLD" relationship. Finally, parametric models and machine learning algorithms were compared to evaluate their predictive performance and value in assessing NAFLD risk in this population. RESULTS: The prevalence of NAFLD was significantly higher in hypertensive individuals than in non-hypertensive participants (63.61% vs 33.79%, P<0.001), accompanied by elevated IR levels and adverse metabolic features. Correlation analysis and variable importance rankings across multiple models consistently identified TyG-waist circumference (TyG-WC) and METS-IR as the IR indices most strongly associated with NAFLD. In mediation analysis, the TyG-WC pathway explained 32.03% of the total effect, and the METS-IR pathway explained 17.02%. Interaction analysis showed that hypertension status may attenuate the mediating effect of IR (all interaction estimates were negative). In prediction model comparisons, the simplified model incorporating sex, age, WC, TyG-WC, and METS-IR demonstrated good performance in the test set. Logistic regression and its regularized form (LASSO regression) achieved an accuracy of 0.83, receiver operating characteristic (ROC)-area under the curve (AUC) of 0.91, and a Brier score of 0.12, comparable to ensemble models (random forest and XGBoost), with consistently stable performance across different algorithms. CONCLUSIONS IR plays a significant mediating role in the association between hypertension and NAFLD, with TyG-WC identified as a key indicator showing strong mechanistic relevance and predictive value. Risk prediction models based on IR surrogate indices demonstrate advantages in simplicity and interpretability, providing empirical support for the early screening and individualized prevention of NAFLD in the general population.
Humans ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/complications* ; Insulin Resistance ; Hypertension/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Risk Factors ; Adult ; Machine Learning ; Triglycerides/blood*

Objective To investigate the mechanism of the interaction between miR-9-5p and tissue metalloproteinase inhibitor 2(TIMP2)on autophagy and apoptosis in multiple myeloma(MM)cells.Methods Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR(qRT-PCR)was used to detect expression levels of miR-9-5p and TIMP2 in bone marrow samples of 9 patients with newly diagnosed MM and 9 patients with recurrent MM.The correlation of expression levels between the two were analyzed.U266 cells were divided into the miR-control group,the miR-9-5p group,the pcDNA3.1 group,the pcDNA3.1-TIMP2 group,the miR-9-5p+pcDNA3.1 group,and the miR-9-5p+pcDNA3.1-TIMP2 group.The effects of overexpressed miR-9-5p and TIMP2 on autophagy and apoptosis in U266 cells were detected by flow cytometry,immunofluorescence staining and Western blot experiments.The dual luciferase report experiment verified the interaction between miR-9-5p and TIMP2.Results Compared with newly diagnosed MM patients,the expression level of miR-9-5p was increased and the expression level of TIMP2 was decreased in patients with recurrent MM.The expression levels of miR-9-5p and TIMP2 were negatively correlated(P<0.05).Compared with the miR-control group,the miR-9-5p group showed a decrease in the expression level of MAP1LC3B-Ⅱ,an increase in expression levels of MAP1LC3B-Ⅰ and SQSTM1,and a decrease in cell apoptosis rate(P<0.05).Compared with the pcDNA3.1 group,the expression level of MAP1LC3B-Ⅱ was increased in the pcDNA3.1-TIMP2 group,while the expression levels of MAP1LC3B-Ⅰ and SQSTM1 were decreased,and the apoptosis rate of cells increased(P<0.05).Bioinformatics and dual luciferase reporter experiments confirmed that TIMP2 was the target gene of miR-9-5p.Conclusion miR-9-5p inhibits autophagy and apoptosis in MM cells by targeting TIMP2,thereby promoting the occurrence and development of MM.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy of 99Tc m-pyrophosphate (PYP) SPECT imaging for the differential diagnosis of transthyretin-related cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR-CA) and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Methods:Data of patients who were definitively diagnosed with ATTR-CA (35 patients (28 males, 7 females); age 62.5(58.6, 64.3) years) or HCM (14 patients (13 males, 1 female); age 60.5(57.3, 68.7) years) by extracardiac biopsy and echocardiography in the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University between June 2020 and March 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent planar and SPECT imaging 1 h after injection of 370-720 MBq 99Tc m-PYP. Visual scoring was performed (0-1 was negative, 2-3 was positive), and heart-to-contralateral lung uptake ratio (H/CL) was calculated based on planar images. The χ2 test was used to compare the difference in visual scores between ATTR-CA and HCM groups, and the diagnostic efficacy of the visual score was calculated. The H/CL differences between ATTR and HCM groups were compared with Mann-Whitney U test, and the ROC curve was used to analyze the efficacy of H/CL for the differential diagnosis of ATTR-CA and HCM. Results:There were 34 patients with visual scores≥2 and 1 patient with visual score<2 in the ATTR-CA group, 6 patients with visual scores =2 and 8 patients with visual scores <2 in HCM group, and there were significant differences between the 2 groups ( χ2=16.20, P<0.001). The diagnostic sensitivity of the visual score was 97.1%(34/35), and the specificity was 8/14. The H/CL in the ATTR-CA group was significantly higher than that in the HCM group (2.08(1.97, 2.20) vs 1.26 (1.17, 1.35), z=-5.09, P<0.001). The ROC curve analysis suggested that the optimal cut-off value was 1.45 (AUC: 0.980, 95% CI: 0.946-1.000; P<0.001); the sensitivity of H/CL differential diagnosis between HCM and ATTR-CA was 97.1%(34/35), and the specificity was 14/14. Conclusion:99Tc m-PYP SPECT imaging is useful in differentiation of ATTR-CA and HCM, and the optimal cut-off value of H/CL for differential diagnosis of these 2 diseases is 1.45.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) combined with spinal fractures with thoracic and lumbar fracture as the most common type shows characteristics of unstable fracture, high incidence of nerve injury, high mortality and high disability rate. The diagnosis may be missed because it is mostly caused by low-energy injury, when spinal rigidity and osteoporosis have a great impact on the accuracy of imaging examination. At the same time, the treatment choices are controversial, with no relevant specifications. Non-operative treatments can easily lead to bone nonunion, pseudoarthrosis and delayed nerve injury, while surgeries may be failed due to internal fixation failure. At present, there are no evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of AS combined with thoracic and lumbar fracture. In this context, the Spinal Trauma Academic Group of Orthopedics Branch of Chinese Medical Doctor Association organized experts to formulate the Clinical guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of adult ankylosing spondylitis combined with thoracolumbar fracture ( version 2023) by following the principles of evidence-based medicine and systematically review related literatures. Ten recommendations on the diagnosis, imaging evaluation, classification and treatment of AS combined with thoracic and lumbar fracture were put forward, aiming to standardize the clinical diagnosis and treatment of such disorder.

Parvalbumin interneurons belong to the major types of GABAergic interneurons. Although the distribution and pathological alterations of parvalbumin interneuron somata have been widely studied, the distribution and vulnerability of the neurites and fibers extending from parvalbumin interneurons have not been detailly interrogated. Through the Cre recombinase-reporter system, we visualized parvalbumin-positive fibers and thoroughly investigated their spatial distribution in the mouse brain. We found that parvalbumin fibers are widely distributed in the brain with specific morphological characteristics in different regions, among which the cortex and thalamus exhibited the most intense parvalbumin signals. In regions such as the striatum and optic tract, even long-range thick parvalbumin projections were detected. Furthermore, in mouse models of temporal lobe epilepsy and Parkinson's disease, parvalbumin fibers suffered both massive and subtle morphological alterations. Our study provides an overview of parvalbumin fibers in the brain and emphasizes the potential pathological implications of parvalbumin fiber alterations.
Mice ; Animals ; Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe/pathology* ; Parvalbumins/metabolism* ; Parkinson Disease/pathology* ; Neurons/metabolism* ; Interneurons/physiology* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Brain/pathology*

Background: The efficacy of ustekinumab (UST) in the treatment of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been affirmed abroad, but its efficacy and safety have not been reported in China due to its short term of use. Aims: To analyze the clinical efficacy and safety of UST in the treatment of IBD. Methods: The clinical data of IBD patients treated with UST from November 2020 to June 2022 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University were analyzed retrospectively. Results: A total of 46 patients with IBD treated with UST were enrolled, including 41 patients with Crohn’s disease (CD) and 5 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). At the 8

Objective: To investigate psychological and behavioral responses and the prevalence of acute stress disorder (ASD) among the injured from a serious road traffic accident. Methods: The injured persons at ages of 7 years and older from a serious road traffic accident were enrolled, and individuals with severe injury were exclude. Participants' gender, age, educational level, marital status, injury severity, family member's injury and death during the accident and psychological and behavioral status were collected. The prevalence of ASD was estimated using a semi-structured interview and the ASD Scale, and the factors affecting the development of ASD were identified using a multivariable logistic regression model. Results: A total of 132 survivors participated in psychological crisis assessment, including 82 men (62.12%) and 50 women (37.88%) and with a mean age of (46.50±18.57) years. There were 6 participants without obvious trauma (4.54%), 113 with mild injury (85.61%) and 13 with moderate injury (9.85%), and there were 6 participants with death of their family members during this accident. Insomnia, anxiety, flashback and fear were predominant psychological and behavioral responses, with prevalence rates of 42.42%, 35.58%, 26.52% and 23.48%, respectively. The prevalence of ASD was 30.30% among participants, and a higher rate of ASD was detected among women than among men (52.00% vs. 17.07%; χ2=17.940, P<0.001). The detection of ASD was higher among participants with death of their family members than among those without death of their family members (83.33% vs. 26.98%; χ2=8.370, P=0.004), and a higher detection rate of ASD was seen among participants with moderate injury (61.54%; χ2=6.786, P=0.034). Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed a higher risk of ASD among females (OR=7.764, 95%CI: 3.187-18.915) and those with a high educational level (high school/technical secondary school, OR=6.896, 95%CI: 1.030-46.152; diploma and above, OR=71.583, 95%CI: 4.145-1 236.270). Conclusions Insomnia and anxiety are predominant psychological and behavioral responses following serious road traffic accidents, and women and individuals with a high educational level present a high risk of ASD, which requires to be given timely psychological crisis interventions.

Osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF) can lead to lower back pain and may be even accompanied by scoliosis, neurological dysfunction and other complications, which will affect the daily activities and life quality of patients. Vertebral augmentation is an effective treatment method for OVCF, but it cannot correct unbalance of bone metabolism or improve the osteoporotic status, causing complications like lower back pain, limited spinal activities and vertebral refracture. The post-operative systematic and standardized rehabilitation treatments can improve curative effect and therapeutic efficacy of anti-osteoporosis, reduce risk of vertebral refracture, increase patient compliance and improve quality of life. Since there still lack relevant clinical treatment guidelines for postoperative rehabilitation treatments following vertebral augmentation for OVCF, the current treatments are varied with uneven therapeutic effect. In order to standardize the postoperative rehabilitation treatment, the Spine Trauma Group of the Orthopedic Branch of Chinese Medical Doctor Association organized relevant experts to refer to relevant literature and develop the "Guideline for postoperative rehabilitation treatment following vertebral augmentation for osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (2022 version)" based on the clinical guidelines published by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) as well as on the principles of scientificity, practicality and advancement. The guideline provided evidence-based recommendations on 10 important issues related to postoperative rehabilitation treatments of OVCF.

【Objective】 To compare the clinical effects and screw placement accuracy for treating lumbar disc herniation between robot-assisted minimal invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (RA-MIS-TLIF) and minimal invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF). 【Methods】 We retrospectively recruited 69 patients with single segment lumbar disc herniation treated between January 2018 and August 2019 at Honghui Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University. There were cases of 33 RA-MIS-TLIF (RA group) and 36 MIS-TLIF (MIS-TLIF group). Subsequently, the patients’ baseline characteristics were collected, including age, gender, body mass index, complication with diabetes, duration of symptoms, operated segment, and follow-up time. We also collected perioperative parameters such as operation time, intraoperative blood loss, intraoperative fluoroscopy frequency, screw placement accuracy, wound drainage, hospitalization duration, postoperative complicatins, and fusion rate. Lower back pain, lower extremity pain visual analogue score (VAS), and lumbar Japanese Orthopaedic Association Scores (JOA) were obtained preoperatively, postoperative 3 days/6 months/12 months, and the last follow-up. 【Results】 All the procedures were successfully completed and the follow-up time was 14.82±1.83 (RA group) and 15.11±1.62 (MIS-TLIF group) months, without significant difference (P>0.05). Compared with MIS-TLIF group, RA group had less intraoperative blood loss [(116.67±18.48) min vs. (128.06±22.53) min], fluoroscopy frequency [(12.42±2.28) vs. (15.67±2.46)], screw placement accuracy (93.18% vs. 84.03%), postoperative drainage [(73.03±23.52) mL vs. (88.33±28.54) mL], and shorter hospitalization stay [(6.45±1.52)d vs. (7.69±1.85) d] (all P<0.05). However, operation time did not significantly differ (P>0.05). The VAS of lower back pain and lower extremity pain, and lumbar JOA were significantly improved after the operation (P<0.001). At the same time point, there was no significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05). Meanwhile, fusion rate and incidence of complications did not significantly differ between the two groups (P>0.05). 【Conclusion】 Both robot-assisted MIS-TLIF and MIS-TLIF can achieve excellent clinical effects in treating single-segment lumbar disc herniation. However, the former can improve the accuracy of screw placement and reduce intraoperative blood loss, fluoroscopy frequency, postoperative drainage and hospitalization time, which indicates a promising application.