[Summary] This retrospective analysis showed that the level of apolipoprotein E was significantly higher in diabetic nephropathy group compared with normal albuminuria group [50.4 (40.8,65.9) vs 46.2 (38.6,56.8)mg/L,P＜0.01].Difference in urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR) among the groups based on the tertile of apolipoprotein E were significant (P＜ 0.01).Multiple linear regression analysis demonstrated that apolipoprotein E was independently associated with ACR (β =0.14,P＜0.05).

Objective To investigate the relationship between serum uric acid ( SUA) concentration and urinary albumin excretion rate ( UAER) and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitua (T2DM). Methods The clinical data of 372 patients with T2DM. including 184 males and 188 females, were collected. The correlations between SUA and the other clinical indexes were analysed by Pearson method, and multiple regression analysis was employed to examine the effects of various factors on UAER and CIMT. Results SUA concentration was higher in males than in females with T2DM (P <0. 01). and was positively correlated with UAER both in males and females with T2DM, even after adjustment for the creatinine clearance (r = 0.24, P < 0.01 for males; r = 0. 29, P < 0.01 for females). Positive correlation was found between SUA concentration and CIMT in females (r =0. 29, P < 0. 01). Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that SUA concentration was an independent determinant of UAER for males as well as females (β=0.16, P<0.05 for males; β=0. 20, P < 0. 05 for females), and was also an independent determinant of CIMT for females (β =0.16, P <0.05). Conclusion SUA plays an important role in the progression of diabetic nephropathy and cardiovascular diseases in patients with T2DM. SUA control may provide a novel approach for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy and vascular complications.

To investigate the effects and the mechanism of visfatin on MIN6 cell signaling pathway and apoptosis induced by palmitate.Human recombinant visfatin promotes protein kinase B (Akt) and extracellularsignal regulating kinase (ERK)1/2 phosphorylation in dose-and time-dependent manner,and prevents MIN6 cell from apoptosis induced by palmitate (P<0.05 or P<0.01).The activation of Akt and ERK1/2 signaling pathway may be one of the molecular mechanisms of visfatin.

Objective To analyze the data from Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) to understand more about it, and provide reference to researchers using this database.Methods 19414 mutations which have definite relevant phenotypes from OMIM were obtained, then these mutations with three databases (1000 Genome Project,GO-ESP,ExAC) which record the mutation frequency in different population were compared.Results Most of the phenotype-related mutations from OMIM are rare mutations whose mutation frequency is less than 1%:18866 in 1000 Genome Project, 18981 in GO-ESP, 18979 in ExAC.The number of mutation whose frequency is more than 1% is 548433435 in 1000 Genome Project, GO-ESP, ExAC, respectively.And there are 320 mutations whose frequency is more than 1% in all databases.In all phenotypes, there are 127 polymorphism phenotypes, 584 susceptibility phenotypes, while in 320 ( 1.6%) phenotypes with common mutations, there are 62 polymorphism phenotypes, 88 susceptibility phenotypes and occupies 48.8%, 15.1%, respectively.Conclusion Approximately 97.5% mutations in OMIM are rare mutations.Polymorphism and susceptibility enrich in common mutations, especially in the mutation whose frequency is more than 10%.

Objective To observe if fluoxetine has a potency to inhibit the progression of Lewis lung cancer by combining the fluoxetine and cisplatin to treat the mice bearing Lewis lung cancer with depression .Methods We devel-oped a mouse model of Lewis lung cancer with depression which was intervened with cisplatin and fluoxetine , and the indi-cators related to cancer and depression were tested .Social interaction test was used to measure the behavioral changes of the depressed model mice .The serum cortisol and IL-6, BDNF mRNA in the hippocampus , and NF-κB and VEGF in the tumor tissue were selected for investigation and comparison .Results The mice which were induced by social defeat exhib-ited social avoidance behavior in the social interaction test .The cortisol and IL-6 level in both combination groups was de-creased compared with that in the model group (P<0.05), and the cortisol and BDNF mRNA in the combination group in-creased signifuicantly ( P <0.05 ) .There were no statistically significant differences in the tumor weight , NF-κB and VEGF in tumor tissues between the single and combination groups (P>0.05).Conclusions Fluoxetine has antidepres-sant effect by decreasing the high level of serum cortisol and promoting the BDNF mRNA expression in the hippocampus . However , fluoxetine is not found to have the potency to inhibit the expression of NF -κB related with the progression of tumor.

Objective To compare the clinical outcomes of dilator-kyphoplasty (DKP) and balloonkyphoplasty (BKP) in treatment of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures. Methods From May 2007 to March 2009, 23 cases with 26 vertebrae were treated with DKP, while 29 cases with 29 vertebrae were treated with BKP procedures. The operating time, bleeding volume and injecting volume of cement were recorded during operation. The distribution of cement, the restoration of vertebral height and Cobb angle were observed. The patients' visual analogue scales (VAS) score and Oswestry disability index (ODI) score were evaluated after operation. Results There were no differences in operative time, bleeding volume of every vertebrae and cement injected volume between these two groups (P＞0.05). The vertebral height, Cobb angle, VAS and ODI scores were significantly improved than those of pre-operation in these two groups (P＜0.05). The height of the anterior vertebrae and Cobb angle in DKP groups were restored significantly than those in BKP groups (P＜ 0.05). There were 1 case (1 vertebra, 3.8%) underwent cement leakage in DKP groups and 5 cases (5 vertebrae, 17.2%) in BKP groups. Conclusion DKP and BKP were effective in the treatment of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures. The height of the anterior vertebrae and Cobb angle in DKP groups were restored significantly than those in BKP groups.

Objective:As a newly emerging thing, the construction and operation management of research wards are still being explored. According to the previous practice, this study summarized and shared the key points of a demonstration research ward in Beijing, and provided a reference for the development of domestic research wards.Methods:Focusing on improving the efficiency and quality of clinical research, this article summarizes and shares the experience of research ward construction. In addition, this study explores how to maintain the high-quality sustainable development of research wards from the aspects of improving core competence, system construction, and talent training.Results:Professional teams, innovative operation modes, as well as intelligence and informatization could improve the quality of clinical research. Besides, the improvement of core competence, talent training, and policy support ensure sustainable development of research wards.Conclusions:As clinical research platforms, the development paths of research wards need to be clarified further. The standardized construction and sustainable development of research wards can effectively improve clinical research capability and promote the transformation of scientific achievements.

Objective To investigate and evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the Chimney technique in mitral valve reoperation. Methods The clinical data of mitral valve reoperation patients who underwent Chimney surgery in Wuhan Asia Heart Hospital from 2019 to 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Results A total of 26 patients were collected, including 7 males and 19 females, aged 27-67 (53.46±11.18) years. All patients had previous mitral valve surgery, including 23 mitral valve replacements and 3 mitral valve repairs. All patients received Chimney technique using the ideal artificial sized mitral valve, and 1 patient died of neurological complications in hospital. The cardiopulmonary bypass time and the aortic cross-clamping time were 231.11±77.05 min and 148.50±52.70 min, respectively. The mean diameter of the implanted mitral valve prosthesis was 29.08±0.68 mm, which was statistically different from pre-replacement valve prosthesis size of 26.69±0.77 mm (P＜0.001). The mean transvalvular pressure gradient of the prosthetic mitral valve measured on postoperative echocardiography was 14.77±5.34 mm Hg, which was statistically different from preoperative value of 20.92±9.83 mm Hg (P=0.005). Conclusion The Chimney technique is safe and effective for reoperation in patients with small mitral annuli, which can not only reduce the risk of reoperation, but also obtain larger prosthetic valve implants with good hemodynamic characteristics and clinical outcomes.

Objective To investigate and evaluate the safety and efficacy of the aortic-mitral annular enlargement technique (double annular enlargement) in patients with small-size valve prostheses after prior valve surgery. Methods The clinical data of patients who underwent double valve annular enlargement in Wuhan Asia Heart Hospital from April 2020 to April 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Results A total of 30 patients were collected, including 2 males and 28 females aged 9-78 (52.71±3.53) years. All patients had previous heart valve surgery, including 1 patient receiving the third heart surgery. All patients were operated on successfully and there were no postoperative in-hospital deaths. There was no postoperative bleeding which needed a secondary open-chest hemostasis, and one patient underwent permanent pacemaker implantation due to postoperative sick sinus syndrome. The mean diameter of the implanted prosthetic aortic valve was 24.23±1.60 mm, which was significantly larger than that of the preoperative aortic valve (21.03±1.90 mm, P＜0.001). The mean diameter of the implanted prosthetic mitral valve was 28.33±1.21 mm, which was significantly larger than that of the preoperative mitral valve (25.43±0.84 mm, P＜0.001). The mean peak gradient difference across the prosthetic aortic valve on postoperative echocardiography was 18.17±6.44 mm Hg, which was significantly lower than that of the preoperative aortic valve (82.57±24.48 mm Hg, P＜0.001). The mean peak gradient difference of the postoperative prosthetic mitral valve was 12.73±5.45 mm Hg, which was significantly lower than that of the preoperative mitral valve (19.43±8.97 mm Hg, P=0.003). Conclusion The double annular enlargement technique is safe and effective for reoperation in patients with a history of valve surgery with a small aortic root to obtain both a larger size prosthetic valve for a larger orifice area and stability of the mitral-aortic valve union, resulting in good postoperative hemodynamic characteristics and clinical outcomes.

Tumor-specific neoantigens have attracted much attention since they can be used as biomarkers to predict therapeutic effects of immune checkpoint blockade therapy and as potential targets for cancer immunotherapy. In this study, we developed a comprehensive tumor-specific neoantigen database (TSNAdb v1.0), based on pan-cancer immunogenomic analyses of somatic mutation data and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) allele information for 16 tumor types with 7748 tumor samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and The Cancer Immunome Atlas (TCIA). We predicted binding affinities between mutant/wild-type peptides and HLA class I molecules by NetMHCpan v2.8/v4.0, and presented detailed information of 3,707,562/1,146,961 potential neoantigens generated by somatic mutations of all tumor samples. Moreover, we employed recurrent mutations in combination with highly frequent HLA alleles to predict potential shared neoantigens across tumor patients, which would facilitate the discovery of putative targets for neoantigen-based cancer immunotherapy. TSNAdb is freely available at http://biopharm.zju.edu.cn/tsnadb.
Antigens, Neoplasm ; metabolism ; Data Analysis ; Databases, Genetic ; Humans ; Immunotherapy ; Mutation ; genetics ; Neoplasms ; genetics ; immunology ; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 ; genetics ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; genetics