ObjectiveTo investigate the expression level of angiopoietin-like protein 2 (ANGPTL2) in pancreatic cancer patients with or without diabetes and the clinical value of ANGPTL2 as a prognostic marker in patients with pancreatic cancer. MethodsSerum samples were collected from 125 pancreatic cancer patients who were treated in The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital, and Wuming Hospital of Guangxi Medical University from January 2015 to January 2018, among whom 64 had pancreatic cancer alone and 61 had pancreatic cancer and diabetes, and 66 individuals who underwent physical examination were enrolled as control group. ELISA was used to measure the serum level of ANGPTL2, and the association of the expression level of ANGPTL2 with clinical indices, survival, and prognosis was analyzed. A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison of normally distributed continuous data between three groups, and the Bonferroni test was used for comparison between two groups. The independent-samples Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for comparison of continuous data with skewed distribution between three groups and the one-way ANOVA analysis was used for comparison between two groups. The chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. Spearman correlation analysis was also performed to investigate correlation. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to plot survival curves, and the log-rank test was used for comparison of survival rate. The Cox risk model was used to perform univariate and multivariate analyses to determine independent risk factors for the prognosis of pancreatic cancer. ResultsThe pancreatic cancer+diabetes group had a significantly higher serum concentration of ANGPTL2 than the pancreatic cancer group and the control group ［7.79 (7.12-8.17) ng/ml vs 5.74 (508-6.40) ng/ml and 3.72 (3.25-4.16) ng/ml, χ2=126.367, P＜0.001］. Serum ANGPTL2 concentration was positively correlated with carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) (r=0.560 and 0.731, both P＜0.001). The univariate analysis showed that tumor size, distant organ metastasis, degree of tumor differentiation， CEA, ANGPTL2, and HbA1c were closely associated with the long-term survival of pancreatic cancer patients, and the multivariate analysis showed that tumor size (HR=2.657,P=0.005), distant organ metastasis (HR=5.000,P=0.014), degree of tumor differentiation (HR=2.466,P=0.004), CEA(HR=1.110,P＜0.001) and ANGPTL2(HR=1.901,P=0.001) were independent risk factors for the prognosis of pancreatic cancer patients. For all pancreatic cancer patients, the high ANGPTL2 expression group had a significantly lower 2-year survival rate than the low ANGPTL2 expression group (8.51% vs 25.81%, χ2=5.651, P=0.017). For the pancreatic cancer patients with diabetes, the high ANGPTL2 expression group had a significantly lower 2-year survival rate than the low ANGPTL2 expression group (2.20% vs 32.70%, χ2=24.895, P＜0.001).ConclusionANGPTL2 can be used as an effective clinical index to evaluate the prognosis of pancreatic cancer patients, especially those with diabetes.

ObjectiveTo investigate the expression of L1 cell adhesion molecule (L1CAM) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGFβ1) in pancreatic cancer tissue and their association with the prognosis of pancreatic cancer. MethodsHistological specimens were collected from 125 patients with pancreatic cancer who underwent surgical resection in The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital, and Wuming Hospital of Guangxi Medical University from January 2015 to January 2018. Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the expression of L1CAM and TGFβ1 in all specimens, and the association of the expression of L1CAM and TGFβ1 with clinical indices, survival, and prognosis was analyzed. The t-test was used for comparison of continuous data between two groups, and the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between two groups; the Cox proportional-hazards regression model was used to investigate the influencing factors for the survival of patients with pancreatic cancer; the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate the survival of patients with different expression levels of L1CAM and TGFβ1. ResultsThe high protein expression rate of L1CAM in pancreatic cancer tissue was significantly higher than that in adjacent tissue (75.20% vs 20.00%, χ2=76.352, P＜0.001). The high protein expression rate of TGFβ1 in pancreatic cancer tissue was significantly higher than that in adjacent tissue (8160% vs 23.20%, χ2=85.461, P＜0.001). The protein expression of L1CAM was positively correlated with that of TGFβ1 in pancreatic cancer (r=0.492, P＜0.001). The protein expression of L1CAM and TGFβ1 were associated with tumor size, degree of tumor differentiation, TNM stage, lymph node metastasis, intravascular tumor thrombus, and perineural invasion (all P＜0.05). The patients with high protein expression of L1CAM or TGFβ1 had a significantly lower overall survival rate than those with low expression (χ2=54661 and 39597, both P＜0.001). ConclusionL1CAM and TGFβ1 proteins are highly expressed in pancreatic cancer tissue and may be associated with poor prognosis by promoting lymphatic metastasis and hematogenous metastasis. L1CAM and TGFβ1 proteins play an important role in the development, progression, and metastasis of pancreatic cancer.

Objective:To study the distribution of pathogenic microorganisms in the ocular fluid of patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and infectious uveitis.Methods:It was a retrospective case analysis. From June 2018 to December 2019, 31 AIDS patients with infectious uveitis who were hospitalized or outpatient at Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center were included in the study. Among them, there were 30 males and 1 female; the average age was 38.51±11.17 years. There were 20 cases of panuveitis, 10 cases of posterior uveitis, and 1 case of infectious endophthalmitis. Serum CD4 +T lymphocyte count (CD4 +TC) were 0 - 239/μl during the same period. The second-generation gene sequencing technology was used to detect the collected intraocular fluid. Among 31 specimens, aqueous humor and vitreous humor were 27 and 4 respectively. Results:Among 31 specimens, 18 samples (58.1%, 18/31) of cytomegalovirus (CMV) were detected; varicella-zoster virus (VZV) were detected in 5 samples (16.1%, 5/31); Epstein-Barr virus were detected in 9 samples (29.0%, 9/31); human beta herpes virus type 6 (HHV6) were detected in 3 samples (9.7%, 3/31), human papillary molluscum virus (HPV), human polyoma virus, type G hepatitis virus were separately detected in 1 sample (3.2%, 1/31), all coexisting with other microorganisms. Parvovirus were detedcted in 8 samples (25.8%, 8/31); treponema pallidum were detedcted in 5 samples (16.1%, 5/31); toxoplasma gondii and Harmon coccidia were detedcted in 1 sample (3.2%, 1/31); synitelium Polycarpum were detedcted in 1 sample (3.2%, 1/31); mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, fungi, and microbacteria coexist were detedcted in 1 sample (3.2%, 1/31). Among the 18 CMV specimens, the number of gene sequences was more than 1059 (50.0%), and 104-1055 (27.7%). Among the 5 specimens of VZV, the number of gene sequences was>1044 (80.0%). In one specimen, the mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, fungi, and microbacteria coexist, and the number of gene sequences were all <100. The number of gene sequences of HHV6, HPV, human polyoma virus, type G virus, and parvovirus in all specimens was small. Among 31 specimens, 15 (48.4%) of pathogenic microorganisms were detected at least 2 species.Conclusions:CMV and VZV are the main pathogenic microorganisms of infective uveitis in patients with serum CD4 +TC <100/μl; treponema pallidum, toxoplasma gondii or other protozoa, mycobacterium tuberculosis, and fungi cause more infectious uveitis which are common in AIDS patients with serum CD4 +TC >100/μl. The coexistence of two or more microorganisms can be detected in the intraocular fluid of AIDS patients with infectious uveitis.

It has been reported that ACE2 is the main host cell receptor of 2019-nCoV and plays a crucial role in the entry of virus into the cell to cause the final infection. To investigate the potential route of 2019-nCov infection on the mucosa of oral cavity, bulk RNA-seq profiles from two public databases including The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Functional Annotation of The Mammalian Genome Cap Analysis of Gene Expression (FANTOM5 CAGE) dataset were collected. RNA-seq profiling data of 13 organ types with para-carcinoma normal tissues from TCGA and 14 organ types with normal tissues from FANTOM5 CAGE were analyzed in order to explore and validate the expression of ACE2 on the mucosa of oral cavity. Further, single-cell transcriptomes from an independent data generated in-house were used to identify and confirm the ACE2-expressing cell composition and proportion in oral cavity. The results demonstrated that the ACE2 expressed on the mucosa of oral cavity. Interestingly, this receptor was highly enriched in epithelial cells of tongue. Preliminarily, those findings have explained the basic mechanism that the oral cavity is a potentially high risk for 2019-nCoV infectious susceptibility and provided a piece of evidence for the future prevention strategy in dental clinical practice as well as daily life.