OBJECTIVE: To investigate the curative effects and side effects of hirudin in treating immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) with hematuria and minimal proteinuria in a short-term. METHODS: Two hundred and sixty-two histologically confirmed cases of IgAN with hematuria and minimal proteinuria from 1998 to 2007 were randomly divided into hirudin-treated group (peroral administration of Maixuekang capsules) and dipyridamole-treated group (peroral administration of dipyridamole). In the two groups, contrast analysis of conformation and counts of erythrocytes in urine, urine protein quantitation in 24 hours, levels of serum creatinine (Scr) and creatinine clearance rate (Ccr), blood lipid, five items of blood clotting and side effects was performed. RESULTS: After six-month treatment, the anisotrophy rate and the counts of erythrocytes in urine, and the urine protein quantitation in 24 hours in hirudin-treated group were decreased distinctly as compared with pre-treatment (P<0.01) and dipyridamole-treated group (P<0.05). On the other hand, Ccr was increased obviously in hirudin-treated group as compared with pre-treatment and dipyridamole-treated group (P<0.01). The blood lipid was also ameliorated in hirudin-treated group, but there was no significant difference. The anticoagulation effect of hirudin was better than dipyridamole (P<0.01). Efficacy assessment showed that the total response rate, complete remission rate and predominance remission rate in hirudin-treated group were higher than those in dipyridamole-treated group. Few side effects were found in both groups, and the rate of adverse reaction in gastrointestinal tract was lower in hirudin-treated group as compared with that in dipyridamole-treated group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Compared with dipyridamole, hirudin has superiority in kidney protection and decreasing the anisotrophy rate, counts of erythrocytes in urine and the urine protein.

Objective To explore the influence of albumin-activated renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs)on peritubular capillaries in co-culture system and its potential mechanism. Methods Endocytosis of TRITC labeled bovine scrum albumin (TRITC-BSA) by HKC was detected by laser scanning confocal fluorescence microscope. HKC or HKC transfected with cubilin (endocytic receptor of albumin) siRNA or pre-treated with rotenone was incubated with albumin(20 g/L) for 24 h respectively. Fluorescence probe technique and spectrometry were applied for determination of intracellular superoxide anion O2-and H2O2 in supematant. Then, the albumin-aetivated-HKC, pretreated-HKC with cubilin siRNA or rotenone, was cultured with HUVEC for 24 h in co-culture system respectively. HUVEC proliferation was determined by MTT and cellular apoptosis was analyzed by flow cytometry. Tabular morphogenesis of endothelial cells was examinedby microscopy. Results TRITC-BSA uptake was obviously lower in HKC transfected with cubilin siRNA. Intracellular generation of O2-and H2O2 in culture supernatant was increased in dose-and time-dependent manner after stimulating with albumin. The levels of O2-and H2O2 were suppressed by cubilin siRNA and rotenone. In co-culture system, albumin-activated-HKC induced endothelial cells apoptosis and inhibited their capillary tubular morphogenesis. Pretreatment of HKC with cubilin siRNA or rotenone could suppress endothelial cells apoptosis and promote capillary tubular morphogenesis. Conclusions There may be a crosstalk between RTECs and peritubular microvascular endothelial cells in renal proteinurie diseases. The generation of ROS by albumin-activated RTECs may play an important role in this process.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect and safety of endoscopic injection of cyanoacrylate in the treatment of esophageal and gastric variceal bleeding (EGVB) in children. MethodsThe clinical data of 35 children with acute EGVB who were treated with endoscopic injection of cyanoacrylate in Children′s Hospital of Baoji Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital from August 2010 to August 2015 were analyzed retrospectively. The emergency response rate, rebleeding rate, and incidence of complications after the treatment were analyzed statistically. ResultsThirty-five patients received 46 times of endoscopic injection of cyanoacrylate in total. The response rate to the initial injection was 95.6% (44/46). The volume of cyanoacrylate injected was 0.2-0.6 ml, with a mean volume of 0.4±0.2 ml. The emergency hemostasis rate was 93.4% (43/46), the rebleeding rate was 11.4% (4/35), and the cycle for 4 patients with the recurrence of bleeding to be cured was 1.2-23.0 months (mean 121±10.9 months). One patient experienced abdominal pain, and no patients experienced ectopic embolism. Two patients died after injection. ConclusionFrequent, small-volume endoscopic injection of cyanoacrylate is an effective and convenient therapeutic method for EGVB in children, has few complications, and holds promise for clinical application.

Glioma, the most common intrinsic tumor of the central nervous system, is characterized by its high incidence and poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) and low-grade glioma (LGG) to explore prognostic factors of different grades of gliomas. Single-cell transcriptome sequencing data of gliomas were collected from the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), which included a total of 29 097 cell samples from three datasets. For the analysis of human gliomas of different grades, 21 071 cells were obtained by filtering, and 70 genes were screened from differentially expressed genes by gene ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis, from which the gene DLL3 was focused by reviewing the literature. The TCGA-based gene expression profiling interactive analysis (GEPIA) database was used to explore the survival curves of genes in LGG and GBM, and the gene expression profiling interactive analysis and tumor immune estimation resource (TIMER) database was used to study the expression of key genes in gliomas of different grades, predicting biomarkers that were closely related to immunotherapy. The cBioPortal database was used to explore the relationship between DLL3 expression and 25 immune checkpoints. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) further identified pathways associated with central genes. Finally, the efficacy of biomarkers in prognosis and prediction was validated in the Chinese glioma genome atlas (CGGA). These results demonstrated that prognostic genes are associated with tumor proliferation and progression. Analysis of biological information and survival suggested that these genes might serve as a promising prognostic biomarker and as new targets for selecting therapeutic strategies.
Humans ; Biomarkers ; Brain Neoplasms/pathology* ; Gene Expression Profiling/methods* ; Glioblastoma/pathology* ; Glioma/pathology* ; Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; Membrane Proteins/genetics* ; Prognosis ; Transcriptome ; Tumor Microenvironment/genetics* ; Biomarkers, Tumor

Retinoblastoma (RB) is the most common intraocular malignant tumor in infants and young children. The key causative factors in the progression of RB remain unclear. Therefore, identifying genes closely associated with RB progression may provide important clues for disease diagnosis and gene therapy. However, tumor tissues have strong cellular heterogeneity. There may be significant differences in cell function and gene expression among cells in different pathological states. In this study, we downloaded single-cell transcriptome sequencing data of RB tumors and adjacent tissues from the GEO public database. Subsequently, we analyzed RB tumor transcriptional profiles with different disease duration at the single-cell level and identified cell groups and gene sets potentially associated with RB progression. The results showed that the tumor tissue and the adjacent tissues had overall consistency in the single-cell transcriptional map, but there were obvious differences in the distribution proportions of G1 phase cells, G2 phase cells, and microglia cells of cone precursors in RB tumor and the adjacent tissues. Furthermore, the role of three cell populations in the progression of RB tumors was emphatically analyzed. We found that in the early stage of RB tumors, cone precursor cells proliferated abnormally in G1 phase. With the progression of RB tumors, the proportion of cone precursor cells in G2 phase increased significantly. Meanwhile, the results of differential analysis of microglial populations during RB progression showed that the key genes mainly involved in immune response include RPL23, B2M, and HLA superfamily genes. This study provides new perspectives and data resources for the research of RB pathogenesis and progress.
Child ; Infant ; Humans ; Child, Preschool ; Retinoblastoma/pathology* ; Transcriptome ; Retinal Neoplasms/pathology*

OBJECTIVE To study the efficacy of sinapine thiocyanate dissoluble microneedle （ST-DMN） for acupoint administration against bronchial asthma （BA）. METHODS The network pharmacology and molecular docking techniques were used to screen the core targets of sinapine thiocyanate （ST） against BA， and the pharmacodynamics of the top 3 core targets was studied. Firstly， ST-DMN was prepared （drug loading of ST was 1 mg/tablet）； secondly， 30 rats were divided into blank control group， model control group， blank microneedle group， Sinapine powder plaster group （positive control group） and ST-DMN group. Except for the blank control group， rats of other groups were sensitized with 10% ovalbumin （containing aluminum hydroxide adjuvant） and nebulized with 1% ovalbumin to induce the BA model. After modeling， blank control group did not receive any intervention； normal saline was applied to the Feishu acupoint and Dazhui acupoint of the rats in the model control group， while the blank microneedle group， Sinapine powder plaster group and ST-DMN group were given blank microneedle， Sinapis alba powder （plaster， 1.5 g） and ST-DMN （3 tablets at 2 acupoints） at same acupoint， once a day， for 28 consecutive days. After administration， the general symptoms were observed and the body mass of the rats was measured.pathological changes of lung tissues in rats was observed； the levels of prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase 2 （PTGS2）， GNYL matrix metalloproteinase-9 （MMP-9） and interleukin-2 （IL-2）in serum， bronchoalveolar lavage fluid （BALF） and lung tissues were determined. RESULTS Results of network pharmacology and molecular docking showed that the key targets of ST against BA were identified as PTGS2， MMP-9， IL-2， epidermal growth factor receptor， heat shock protein90AA1， etc. Pharmacodynamic experiments showed that compared with model control group， relieved cough， restored hair color， sensitive behavior， stable respiration and increased body weight were all found in ST-DMN group； the histopathological changes as the structure of lung tissue， infiltration of alveolar epithelial cells and pulmonary interstitial inflammatory cells were improved to different extent； the levels of PTGS2， MMP-9 and IL-2 in serum， BALF and lung tissue were significantly reduced （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. CONCLUSIONS The anti-BA effect of ST-DMN acupoint administration is good， the mechanism of which may be associated with decreasing the levels of PTGS2， MMP-9 and IL-2 in serum， BALF and lung tissue.