Even though mutations in LMNA have been reported in patients with typical dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and atrioventricular block (AVB) previously, the purpose of this study was to disclose this novel genetic abnormality in one Chinese family with the atypical phenotype of progressive AVB followed by DCM with normal QRS interval. Genome-wide linkage analysis mapped the AVB gene in this family to a marker at chromosome 1q21.2, where the LMNA gene was located. Direct DNA sequence analysis revealed a heterozygous G to A transition at nucleotide 244 in exon 1 of LMNA, which resulted in an E82K mutation. The E82K mutation co-segregated with all affected individuals in the family, and was not present in 200 normal controls. Further clinical evaluation of mutation carriers showed that 5 of 6 AVB patients exhibited mild DCM with a late onset of age in the fourth and fifth decades. Ejection fractions were documented in 5 patients with DCM, but 4 showed a normal value of [Symbol: see text]50%. Echocardiography showed that atrial dilatation occurred earlier than ventricular dilatation in the patients. This study suggests that progressive AVB with normal QRS interval and accompanying DCM at later stages may represent a distinct type of DCM. The molecular mechanism by which the E82K mutation causes AVB as the prominent phenotype in DCM may be a focus of future studies.

Objective:To compare the eradication rate and incidence of adverse reactions between cefuroxime-containing and amoxicillin-containing bismuth quadruple regimen in the treatment of Helicobacter pylori ( H. pylori), and to evaluate the efficacy and safety of cefuroxime in the H. pylori infection patients with positive penicillin skin test results. Methods:From December 2020 to December 2021, a total of 498 patients who received initial H. pylori eradication treatment at the H. pylori Specialized Outpatient Clinic of the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University were selected to participate in this prospective cohort study. According to the history of penicillin allergy or positive penicillin skin test results, the patients were divided into amoxicillin group and cefuroxime group. A total of 394 patients were included in the amoxicillin group, and the treatment regimen was esomeprazole 20 mg, bismuth 220 mg, amoxicillin 1 g and clarithromycin 500 mg orally twice a day. A total of 104 patients were included in the cefuroxime group, and the treatment regimen was esomeprazole 20 mg, bismuth 220 mg, cefuroxime 500 mg and clarithromycin 500 mg orally twice a day. The treatment period was 14 days. 13C-urea breath test was conducted during 4 to 8 weeks after the treatment. The eradication rates of the 2 groups were compared by intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis and per-protocol (PP) analysis. The incidence of adverse reactions was compared between the 2 groups. Chi-square test was used for statistical analysis. Results:The results of ITT analysis and PP analysis indicated that the eradication rates of amoxicillin group were 84.3% (332/394, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 80.6% to 87.6%) and 90.5% (332/367, 95% CI 87.2% to 93.3%), respectively, and the eradication rates of cefuroxime group were 62.5% (65/104, 95% CI 52.7% to 71.7%) and 69.1% (65/94, 95% CI 58.8% to 78.7%), respectively. The eradication rates of amoxicillin group in ITT and PP analysis were both higher than those of cefuroxime group, and the differences were statistically significant ( χ2=24.11 and 28.44, both P<0.001). The incidence of adverse reactions of amoxicillin group and cefuroxime group was 10.9% (43/394) and 14.4% (15/104), respectively, and there was no significant difference ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Cefuroxime and clarithromycin containing bismuth quadruplex regimen failed to achieve a satisfactory eradication rate in patients with H. pylori infection and penicillin allergy.

Objective:To develop an R script that can efficiently and accurately filter genome-wide association studies (GWASs) from the GWAS Catalog Website.Methods:The selection principles of GWASs were established based on previous studies. The process of manual filtering in the GWAS Catalog was abstracted as standard algorithms. The R script (gwasfilter.R) was written by two programmers and tested many times.Results:It takes six steps for gwasfilter.R to filter GWASs. There are five main self-defined functions among this R script. GWASs can be filtered based on "whether the GWAS has been replicated" "sample size" "ethnicity of the study population" and other conditions. It takes no more than 1 second for this script to filter GWASs of a single trait.Conclusions:This R script (gwasfilter.R) is user-friendly and provides an efficient and standard process to filter GWASs flexibly. The source code is available at github ( https://github.com/lab319/gwas_filter).

Objective To investigate the characteristics and feasibility of genipin-crosslinked amniotic membrane(AM) as bio-scaffold.Methods Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) were isolated from fresh umbilical cord and cultured by adherent method.The expressions of PE-CD34,PE-CD45,PE-CD90,FITC-105 and FITC-Oct-4,the markers of hUCMSCs,were detected by flow cytometry.Alizarin red and oil red O staining were performed to identify the cells after adipogenesis and osteogenesis induction on the third-generation cells.Human AMs were treated at 37 ℃ and 45 ℃ by 0.5％ and 1％ genipin solution for 24,36 and 48 hours respectively,and the mechanical properties of AM in each group were measured and compared.The hUCMSCs were divided into only hUCMSCs culture group,fresh AM group,crosslinked AM group,gelatin group and crosslinked AM+gelatin group,and the cells were cultured in the corresponding medium.The content of hydroxyproline among the groups was detected with hydroxyproline kit,and proliferation of the cells (absorbance) was assayed by MTT method to evaluate the biological compatibility of crosslinked AM.Results The maximum tensile displacement of the crosslinked-AM by 0.5％ and 1％ genipin was (8.31±0.43)mm and (4.49±0.37)mm respectively,and those after crosslinked with 0.5％ genipin under the 37 ℃ and 45 ℃ for 24 hours was (9.89±1.09)mm and (5.39±0.59)mm,respectively,showing a significant difference between them (t =6.389,P＜0.05).The maximum tensile displacement of the crosslinked-AM was gradually decreased as the lapse of crosslinking time,and an insignificant difference was found among 24,36 and 48 hours after 0.5％ genipin treatment under the 37 ℃ (P＞0.05).The loading force of the crosslinked-AM was significantly higher in the 1％ genipin treated group than that in the 0.5％ genipin treated group (P＜0.05),and the loading force of the AM was significantly increased in 45 ℃,0.5％ genipin,24 hours crosslinked group compared with the 37 ℃,0.5％ genipin,24 hours crosslinked group (t =5.528,P＜0.05).The content of hydroxyproline in the AM was (1.28±0.36),(2.03 ±0.49) and (2.11 ±0.10) mg/g in the 1％ genipin crosslinked AM group,0.5％ genipin crosslinked AM group and fresh AM group,respectively,and the content of hydroxyproline in the AM in the 1％ genipin group was significantly lower than that in the 0.5％ genipin group in the fresh AM group (both at P＜0.05).The proliferative values of the hUCMSCs were significantly lower in the only hUCMSCs culture group,fresh AM group and gelatin group were significantly reduced in comparison with the crosslinked AM group and crosslinked AM+gelatin group (all at P＜0.05).There was no significant difference in the proliferative values of the hUCMSCs between crosslinked AM group and crosslinked AM+gelatin group (P＞0.05).Conclusions Different crosslinked temprature,crosslinking period and concentration of genipin impact the mechanical properties of AM.Crosslinked AM with genipin is feasible as a carrier scaffold of artificial cornea because of less tissue toxicity and better plasticity.

Even though mutations in LMNA have been reported in patients with typical dilated cardio-myopathy(DCM)and atrioventricular block(AVB)previously,the purpose of this study was to disclose this novel genetic abnormality in one Chinese family with the atypical phenotype of progressive AVB followed by DCM with normal QRS interval.Genome-wide linkage analysis mapped the AVB gene in this family to a marker at chromosome 1q21.2,where the LMNA gene was located.Direct DNA sequence analysis revealed a heterozygous G to A transition at nucleotide 244 in exon 1 of LMNA,which resulted in an E82K mutation.The E82K mutation co-segregated with all affected individuals in the family,and was not present in 200 normal controls.Further clinical evaluation of mutation carriers showed that 5 of 6 AVB patients exhibited mild DCM with a late onset of age in the fourth and fifth decades.Ejection fractions were documented in 5 patients with DCM,but 4 showed a normal value of ≥50%.Echocardiography showed that atrial dilatation occurred earlier than ventricular dilatation in the patients.This study suggests that progressive AVB with normal QRS interval and accompanying DCM at later stages may represent a distinct type of DCM.The molecular mechanism by which the E82K mutation causes AVB as the prominent phenotype in DCM may be a focus of future studies.

SIRT6 belongs to the conserved NAD⁺-dependent deacetylase superfamily and mediates multiple biological and pathological processes. Targeting SIRT6 by allosteric modulators represents a novel direction for therapeutics, which can overcome the selectivity problem caused by the structural similarity of orthosteric sites among deacetylases. Here, developing a reversed allosteric strategy AlloReverse, we identified a cryptic allosteric site, Pocket Z, which was only induced by the bi-directional allosteric signal triggered upon orthosteric binding of NAD⁺. Based on Pocket Z, we discovered an SIRT6 allosteric inhibitor named JYQ-42. JYQ-42 selectively targets SIRT6 among other histone deacetylases and effectively inhibits SIRT6 deacetylation, with an IC₅₀ of 2.33 μmol/L. JYQ-42 significantly suppresses SIRT6-mediated cancer cell migration and pro-inflammatory cytokine production. JYQ-42, to our knowledge, is the most potent and selective allosteric SIRT6 inhibitor. This study provides a novel strategy for allosteric drug design and will help in the challenging development of therapeutic agents that can selectively bind SIRT6.