Background The generation of advanced glycosylation end products (AGEs) is one of the most important characteristics in diabetes mellitus (DM).Its role in diabetic eye disease is still unclear.Objective This study was to investigate the changes of AGE levels in human cataractous lens in diabetic patients and further explore the relationship of lens AGEs with early diabetic retinopathy (DR).Methods This study protocol was approved by Ethic Committee of He Eye Hospital.A cases controlled clinical study was carried out.Forty human nuclei were obtained from 40 cataract patients during the phacoemulcification in He Eye Hospital from August to December 2014,with the nuclear hardness of Ⅲ-Ⅳ grades (Emery grading).The eyes were divided into non-DM (NDM) group and DM group,and the DM group was further divided into non-DR (NDR) group,non-proliferative DR (NPDR) group and proliferative DR (PDR) group.Lens AGE level was quantitatively detected by ELISA.Results The content of pentosidine was (31.90±5.00),(35.83±4.22) and (38.59±5.11)pg/ml,and that of carboxymethyl lysine (CML) was (18.82±3.84),(19.65±2.12) and (23.77±4.73) μg/L,and that of imidazolone was (13.12±2.71),(14.48±2.01) and (15.37 ±2.74) pg/ml in the NDR group,NPDR group and PDR group,respectively,which was significantly higher than (27.69 ± 1.53) pg/ml,(11.36 ±1.47) μg/L and (10.21 ± 0.54) pg/ml in the NDM group (all at P＜0.01).The contents of pentosidine and CML in the lens were significantly higher in the PDR group than those in the NDR group (all at P＜0.05);while there was no significant differences in the pentosidine content in the lens among the NDR group,NPDR group and PDR group (all at P＞0.05).The positive correlations were found between CML content and pentosidine content (r =0.623,P =0.000),between CML content and imidazolone content (r =0.717,P =0.000) as well as between pentosidine content and imidazolone content (r=0.669,P =0.000).Conclusions The levels of pentosidine,CML and imidazolone in cataractous lens are obviously elevated in the DM patients.The levels of pentosidine and CML in the lens are gradually raised as the aggravation of DR.AGEs might be a potential maker for the assessment of diabetes.

Objective:To analyze the radiotherapy-related factors affecting the survival of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients complicated with malignant pleural effusion (MPE)(MPE-NSCLC).Methods:From 2007 to 2019, 256 patients pathologically diagnosed with MPE-NSCLC received primary treatment. Among them, 117 cases were enrolled in this study. All patients were divided into two groups according to the radiation dose (<63 Gy and≥63 Gy). Propensity score matching (PSM) was performed to further adjust the confounding factors (Calipers value=0.1). The impact of radiotherapy-related factors on the overall survival (OS) was analyzed by Kaplan—Meier method, log-rank test and Cox’s regression model. Results:Primary tumor radiotherapy significantly prolonged the OS ( P<0.001). The radiation dose escalation (36.0-44.1 Gy, 45.0-62.1 Gy, 63.0-71.1 Gy) of primary tumor significantly prolonged the OS ( P<0.001). The corresponding median OS were 5, 13 and 18 months, respectively. Before the PSM, univariate analysis suggested that radiation dose ≥63 Gy, gross tumor volume (GTV)<157.7 cm 3 and stations of metastatic lymph node (S-mlN)≤5 were significantly associated with better OS (all P<0.05) and T 4N 3 was significantly associated with worse OS ( P=0.018). After the PSM, univariate analysis indicated that radiation dose ≥63 Gy was significantly associated with better OS ( P=0.013) and S-mlN ≤5 had a tendency to prolong the OS ( P=0.098). Prior to the PSM, multivariate analysis showed that radiation dose ≥63 Gy was an independent favorable factor of OS ( HR=0.566, 95% CI 0.368-0.871, P=0.010) and GTV<157.7 cm 3 had a tendency to prolong the OS ( HR=0.679, 95% CI 0.450-1.024, P=0.065). After the PSM, multivariate analysis revealed that radiation dose ≥63 Gy was still an independent favorable factor of OS ( HR=0.547, 95% CI 0.333~0.899, P=0.017). No ≥grade 4 radiation toxicity occurred. The incidence rates of grade 3 radiation esophagitis and pneumonitis were 9.4% and 5.1%, respectively. Conclusion:For MPE-NSCLC, radiotherapy dose of primary tumor may play a key role in improving OS on the basis of controllable MPE.

Objective To establish a high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS)method for the simultaneous determination of seven vitamin Bs(VBs)in rat plasma.Methods The plasma samples were pretreated using the protein precipitation method.The chromatographic separation was achieved using an Agilent ZORBAX SB-Aq column(2.1 mm×150 mm,3.5 μm),with a mobile phase composed of 0.01%formic acid(A)and methanol(B)in a gradient elution mode.The flow rate was set at 0.3 mL·min-1 and the column temperature was maintained at 30℃.Mass spectrometric detection was performed using positive ion mode in multiple reaction monitoring.2,4,5,6-Deuteronicotinamide was used as the internal standard.Results Methodological validation results showed that the lowest limits of quantitation(LOQs)for the seven VBs ranged from 7.5 to 300 ng/mL,while the highest LOQs ranged from 1 000 to 20 000 ng·mL-1.Within a certain concentration range,all compounds showed a good linearity(r2>0.992 2).The accuracies ranged from 86.0%to 117.6%,and both intra-and inter-batch precision were less than 20%.Additionally,all analytes demonstrated extraction recoveries greater than 86.1%.No significant matrix effects were observed,and the stability was good.The established validation method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetics study of single intragastric administration of VB solution in SD rats.Conclusion The analytical method established in this study is simple,rapid,sensitive,and exclusive for the simultaneous determination of VB in real plasma samples.This LC-MS/MS method provides a new analytical tool for further exploring the physiological and pathological effects of VB.

Objective:To evaluate the prognostic value of sepsis-induced coagulopathy (SIC) in patients with sepsis.Methods:From January 2019 to December 2021, patients with sepsis admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of our hospital were retrospectively classified into the SIC group and non-SIC group according to SIC diagnostic criteria. The baseline clinical data, severity score, total length of hospital stay, length of ICU stay and 28-day survival were compared between the two groups. Kaplan-Meier was used to compare the 28-day survival of patients with sepsis between the two groups. Cox proportional hazard regression model was employed to analyze the risk factors of prognosis in patients with sepsis.Results:Totally 274 patients with sepsis were included in the analysis, including 139 patients in the SIC group and 135 patients in the non-SIC group. The two groups were compared in the perspectives of the Platelet count (PLT), prothrombin time (PT) , procalcitonin (PCT), D dimer, hematocrit, red blood cell distribution width, hemoglobin, acute kidney injury (AKI), the use of continuous renal replacement treatment (CRRT), the use of vasoactive drugs, sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHEⅡ) score were compared between the two groups and the difference were statistically different (all P<0.05). Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the 28-day mortality rate in the SIC group was significantly higher than that in the non-SIC group (32.4% vs. 14.1%, P<0.05). COX proportional hazard model showed that SIC score ( HR= 2.17, 95% CI: 1.15-3.91, P<0.05), APACHEⅡ score ( HR= 1.13, 95% CI: 1.09-1.17, P<0.05) and the use of vasoactive drugs ( HR=3.66, 95% CI: 1.53-8.75, P<0.05) were independent influencing factors for 28-day death in patients with sepsis. Conclusions:Patients with sepsis and SIC have more severe disease and increased mortality risk. SIC score exhibits good clinical value in predicting the prognosis of patients with sepsis.

Objective:To study the relationship between endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) and apoptotic protein and myocardial pathological changes in rats after endostar combined with low-dose X-ray irradiation.Methods:Forty SD rats were evenly divided into four groups: control group (intraperitoneal injection of equal volume physiological saline, once per day, 14 d), endostar group (intraperitoneal injection of endostar 6 mg/kg, once per day, 14 d), irradiation group (15 Gy divided into 3 times X-ray irradiation) and combination group (intraperitoneal injection of endostar after irradiation at the same dose and time as the endostar group). At 1 and 6 months after treatment, myocardial tissues of rats were prepared for HE staining and Masson staining to observe the myocardial histological changes. TUNEL assay was used to detect myocardial cell apoptosis, and ImageJ software was utilized to calculate myocardial collagen volume fraction (CVF). The expression levels of ERS and apoptotic protein glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78), protein kinase-like endoplasmic reticulum kinases (PERK), CCAAT/enhancer binding protein homologous protein (CHOP) and cysteine-containing aspartate-specific protease-12 (Caspase-12) were detected by Western blot. One-way ANOVA was conducted using GraphPad Prism 8.0.1 software, and comparison between two groups was conducted using t-test. Results:At 6 months after treatment, the myocardial interstitium in the irradiation and combination groups was widened, showing strip-like or reticular fibrosis changes, and the myocardial interstitium had diffuse collagen fiber deposition. Compared with the control group, CVF was increased significantly (both P<0.01). At 1 and 6 months after treatment, the apoptotic index of myocardial cells in the combination group was significantly higher than that in the control group ( P<0.05, <0.001). At 1 and 6 months after treatment, the expression levels of GRP78 protein in the irradiation and combination groups were increased (all P<0.01), and the expression levels of PERK and CHOP proteins in the combination group were increased compared to those in the control group (both P<0.05). At 6 months after treatment, the expression levels of PERK and CHOP proteins in the irradiation group were increased compared to those in the control group (both P<0.05). Compared with the control group, Caspase-12 expression levels at 1 and 6 months after treatment were increased in the endostar, irradiation and combination groups (all P<0.05). Conclusions:The expression levels of ERS and apoptotic proteins are related to cardiac injury caused by irradiation in rats. After low-dose X-ray combined with endostar treatment, ERS is aggravated and myocardial apoptosis is increased.

Objective:To assess the effects of recombinant human endostatin (rh-ES) on radiation-induced myocardial fibrosis.Methods:Totally 40 SD rats were randomly divided into 4 groups, including A group as normal control, B group receiving rh-ES with a dosage of 6 mg·kg -1·d -1, in traperitoneal injection, for 14 consecutive days, C group with local heart irradiation delivered to the precordial region of rats in five fractions with a dose of 25 Gy, D group receiving rh-ES as the same as B group and local heart irradiation as C group. At 1 and 3 months after irradiation, five rats were killed under anesthesia. Mason staining was used to observe myocardial injury and fibrosis. Western blotting was used to detect the expression of TGF-β1, CTGF and COL-I in myocardium. Results:Masson staining showed that no obvious myocardial fibrosis was found in group B at 1 month and 3 months after irradiation, while collagen fibers were distributed in myocardium in groups C and D. One month after irradiation, the result of semi-quantitative analysis showed that the CVF in group A was (5.20 ±0.75)%, which was significantly lower than that in group C (10.12 ±2.17)% ( t=4.74、4.93, P<0.01) and the CVF in group D (10.32 ±1.36), and the CVF of group C was similar to that of group D ( P<0.01). Three months after irradiation, CVF in group C (13.17±2.67)% was still higher than that in group A (5.23 ±1.32)% ( t=4.49, P<0.01), but lower than that in group D (16.92 ±3.58)% ( t=3.19, P<0.05). One month after irradiation, the expression of TGF-β1 in group A was 0.441 ±0.063, lower than that in group C (0.817 ±0.079, t=5.81, P<0.01). Three months after irradiation, the expression of TGF-β1 in group A was 0.501 ±0.110, lower than that in group C (0.832 ±0.150, t=4.19, P<0.01), and the expression of TGF-β1 in group D was 1.403 ±0.133, which was significantly higher than that in group C ( t=7.24, P<0.01). Conclusions:Radiation can cause the formation of myocardial fibrosis, and recombinant human endostatin may aggravate the formation of late radiation fibrosis.

Objective:To retrospectively analyze the clinical efficacy and safety of three-dimensional radiotherapy for the primary tumors in patients with stage Ⅳ non-small cell lung cancer complicated with malignant pleural effusion (MPE-NSCLC).Methods:A total of 198 patients who were initially pathologically diagnosed with MPE-NSCLC from January 2007 to April 2018 were enrolled and divided into the untreated group ( n=45), drug group ( n=57) and radiotherapy group ( n=96), respectively. The short-term efficacy, overall survival (OS) and adverse events in the drug and radiotherapy groups were analyzed. The OS rate was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test. Clinical prognosis was evaluated by multivariate Cox′s regression model. Results:In the radiotherapy group, the objective response rate and non-response rate was 54% and 46%, significantly better than 25% and 75% in the drug group ( P=0.007). In the radiotherapy group, the 1-, 2-, 3-, 5-year OS and median survival was 47%, 18%, 6%, 1% and 12 months, remarkably higher than 15%, 3%, 2%, 0% and 5 months in the drug group, respectively (all P<0.001). Multivariate Cox′s regression analysis showed that radiotherapy for the primary tumors was an independent prognostic factor to prolong the OS ( P<0.001). Radiotherapy at a dose of ≥63 Gy and 4-6 cycles of chemotherapy tended to prolong the OS ( P=0.063 and 0.071). The OS of patients with EGFR mutation receiving radiotherapy combined with molecular target therapy was significantly better than that of those with unknown EGFR status treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy ( P=0.007). Addition of radiotherapy for the primary tumors did not significantly increase the incidence of adverse events ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Addition of three-dimensional radiotherapy for the primary tumors in MPE-NSCLC patients may prolong the OS and yield tolerable adverse events.

Objective:To explore the possibility of CD 4+ T cells and CD 4+ /CD 8+ ratio in peripheral blood to predict the survival of patients with stage Ⅳ non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and to establish a Nomogram prediction model. Methods:The influence of CD 4+ T cells and CD 4+ /CD 8+ ratio on the clinical factors and survival of 682 patients pathologically diagnosed with stage Ⅳ NSCLC with no history of cancer treatment was retrospectively analyzed and the Nomogram prediction model was established. Combined with the changes of immune cells levels in 110 patients after treatment, the prognostic and predictive values of CD 4+ T cells and CD 4+ /CD 8+ ratio were verified. Countable data were analyzed by t-test. The survival rate was calculated by Kaplan-Meier method, log-rank test or univariate analysis. The multivariate analysis was performed by Cox regression model. Results:Univariate analysis demonstrated that CD 4+ > 43.15% before treatment significantly prolonged the survival. By multivariate analysis of Cox regression model, CD 4+ >43.15% was an independent prognostic factor to prolong survival for stage Ⅳ NSCLC. The Nomogram model was established and verified that the predicted and actual overall survivals were highly consistent. Further analysis showed that 43.15% as the critical value of CD 4+ T cell level significantly prolonged survival when CD 4+ expressed at a high-level before treatment, after treatment, before and after treatment, or combined with CD 4+ /CD 8+ >1.65. Conclusions:The baseline level of CD 4+ T cells before treatment in peripheral blood is an independent prognostic factor for stage Ⅳ NSCLC. The CD 4+ /CD 8+ ratio before treatment has limited value in predicting the prognosis.

Objective:To analyze the mediastinal displacement of target volume in the postoperative radiotherapy (PORT) process for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and the value of mid-term evaluation.Methods:For 100 patients with postoperativeN 2 stage NSCLC, R 1-2 and any N staging, bone anatomy was utilized to measure the change of the first and second CT localization on the same level. Statistical analysis were performed using the WilCoxon, Kruskal-Wallis and χ2 tests. The cut-off values were calculated with the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results:Among the included patients, in the PORT process, the mediastinal displacement in the x (front and rear), Y (left and right) and Z (upper and lower) directions were 0.04-0.53 cm, 0.00-0.84 cm and 0.00-1.27 cm, respectively, and the order of mediastinal displacement distance wasz > Y> X,respectively. According to the ROC curve calculation, the cut-off values were 0.263, 0.352 and 0.405, respectively, which were greater than the cut-off values in 25 cases (25%), 30 cases (30%) and 30 cases (30%), respectively. There was significant difference in the three-dimensionalmediastinal displacement ( P=0.007, <0.001 and<0.001). The mediastinal displacement in thex, Y and Z directions had no statistical significance regarding resection site ( P=0.355, 0.239 and 0.256) and operation mode ( P=0.241, 0.110 and 0.064). Comparative analysis of modified whole group mediastinal shift> and cut-off values, medium-simulation (m-S) and the originally planned radiotherapy shown that there was no significant difference in the incidence of radiation esophagitis (RE) and radiation pneumonitis in PORT patients (all P>0.05); however, the incidence of ≥grade 3 RE in the modified plan after m-S was significantly lower than that in the originally planned PORT patients, which were 0 and 7%, respectively ( P<0.001). Conclusions:Mediastinal displacement exists in the PORT process of N 2 or/and R 1-2 cases after radical operation of NSCLC, and obvious movement occurs in 20%-30% of patients. Relocating and modifying the target volume and radiotherapy plan in the middle of the PORT process is beneficial to quality assurance and quality control.

Objective:To investigate the implication of micro RNA-21(miR-21) in Endostar combined with X-ray irradiation of cardiac fibroblasts (CF).Methods:Rat CFs were used in this experiment and been divided into the blank control group, 10 Gy X-ray irradiation group, Endostar group, 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar group, 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar+ NC mimic group (negative control 1), 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar+ miR-21 mimic group, 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar+ NC inhibitor group (negative control 2) and 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar+ miR-21 inhibitor group. The proliferation of CF was determined by Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay. The expression level of Collagen Ⅰ protein was analyzed by Western blot. The expression levels of Collagen Ⅰ and miR-21 mRNA were assayed by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (q-PCR).Results:In the 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar+ miR-21 mimic group, the CF proliferation, Collagen Ⅰ and miR-21 mRNA were increased significantly compared with those in the blank control group, 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar group, and negative control group 1 (all P<0.05). In the 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar+ miR-21 inhibitor group, the CF proliferation and expression levels of Collagen Ⅰ mRNA were decreased significantly compared with those in the blank control group, 10 Gy X-ray+ Endostar group and negative control group 2(all P<0.05). Conclusions:The CF proliferation and Collagen Ⅰ expression are increased when the expression level of miR-21 gene is simulated. When inhibiting the expression of miR-21 gene, the CF proliferation and Collagen Ⅰ expression are reduced.