AIM: To compare the renoprotective effects of angiotensinⅡtypeⅠreceptor antagonist (AT 1RA) with that of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) and to investigate their influences on intrarenal renin-angiotensin system. METHODS: Experimental nephrotic syndrome model was induced in SD rats with repeated peritoneal injections of puromycin. Twenty-eight rats were randomly divided into four groups: normal control, nephrotic control, ACEI-treated and AT 1RA-treated group. Serum, urine and renal tissue were collected for study 12 weeks later. RESULTS: The urine protein was less and renal function was better in both treated groups. The glomerular and interstitial injury indexes of both ACEI and AT 1RA treated rats were lower than that of nephrotic control rats and had no significant difference between the two treated groups. The renal local ACE activity and angiotensinⅡ of nephrotic control group were significantly higher than that of normal control group and the two treated group(P

Objective:To apply digital analysis to quantify hyperechogenicity of substantia nigra, and explore its clinical value for diagnosis of Parkinson′s disease (PD).Methods:The cross-sectional study included 652 PD patients (PD group) and 99 healthy controls (healthy control group) from November 2017 to October 2020 in Tongji Hospital of Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology. All subjects underwent transcranial sonography. The diagnostic accuracy of substantia nigra hyperechogenicity using digital analysis was compared with that in a manual measurement in PD. Furthermore, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was applied to explore its diagnosis value in PD.Results:There were 482 subjects including 400 in the PD group and 82 in the healthy control group, whose quantified results of substantia nigra hyperechogenicity could be used for analysis. The ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve of the quantified larger substantia nigra hyperechoic region detection for diagnosing PD was 0.858 (95% CI 0.805-0.910), the sensitivity was 87.8%, and the specificity was 73.2%, consistent with that of doctors (area under the curve: 0.884). Further more, among these PD patients, there was no correlation between larger substantia nigra hyperechogenicity and age, age of onset, course of disease, non-motor symptoms, and motor symptoms (all P>0.05). Conclusions:Digital analysis was used to quantify the changes in substantia nigra hyperechogenicity in this seudy. The results showed that diagnostic accuracy for PD based on digital analysis was consistent with that of experienced clinicians.

Objective:To analyze the risk factors of fatal outcome in patients with severe COVID-19.Methods:The clinical characteristics of 107 patients with severe COVID-19 admitted in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from February 12 to March 12, 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. During the hospitalization 49 patients died (fatal group) and 58 patients survived (survival group). The clinical characteristics, baseline laboratory findings were analyzed using R and Python statistical software. The risk factors of fatal outcome in patients with severe COVID-19 were analyzed with multivariate logistic regression.Results:Univariate analysis showed that the two groups had statistically significant differences in age, clinical classification, dry cough, dyspnea and laboratory test indicators ( P<0.05 or <0.01). The random forest model was used to rank the significance of the statistically significant variables in the univariate analysis, and the selected variables were included in the binary logistic regression model. After stepwise regression analysis, the patient’s clinical type, age, neutrophil count, and the proportion of CD3 cells are independent risk factors for death in severe COVID-19 patients. Dry cough is an independent protective factor for the death of severe COVID-19 patients. Conclusion:COVID-19 patients with fatal outcome are more likely to have suppressed immune function, secondary infection and inflammatory factor storm. These factors may work together in severe patients, leading to intractable hypoxemia and multiple organ dysfunction and resulting in fatal outcome of patients. The study indicates that timely intervention and treatment measures against above factors may be effective to save the lives of patients with severe COVID-19.