Objective To investigate the clinical indicators which can predict esophageal varices in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC).Methods A total of 351 patients with PBC from the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University from January 2013 to December 2016 were retrospectively analyzed, including 173 patients with esophageal varices and 178 patients without varicose veins.The alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), γ-glutamyl transpeptadase (γ-GT), total bilirubin (TBil), albumin (Alb), prothrombin time (PT), platelet (PLT), AST to ALT ratio (AAR), fibrosis index based on the 4 fator (FIB-4), AST to PLT ratio index (APRI) and Mayo scores were compared between two groups.Group t test or rank sum test was used to compare the two groups.Relation between the indicators mentioned above and esophageal varices were tested by univariate analysis.Multivariate unconditional Logistic regression was used to screen these indicators to independently predict esophageal varices in PBC patients.Results Age, PT, TBil, AAR, FIB-4, APRI and Mayo scores of PBC patients with esophageal varices were all higher than those of patients without esophageal varices ([60.3±10.6] years old vs [51.9±10.9] years old, [13.31±3.12] s vs [11.17±2.42] s, 28.06 [18.05, 60.06] mmol/L vs 15.39 [10.64, 33.63] μmol/L, 1.69±0.91 vs 1.23±0.95, 6.18 [4.05,9.16] vs 1.80 [1.10,2.74], 1.95 [1.12,3.08] vs 0.69 [0.38,1.57], 6.45±1.52 vs4.62±1.53, respectively).Whereas ALT, γ-GT, Alb and PLT levels were all lower than those without varicose veins (36.60 [19.88, 74.28] U/L vs 59.32 [23.58, 132.70] U/L, 71.00 [38.36, 165.38] U/L vs 125.00 [37.50, 336.21] U/L, [29.78±6.33] g/L vs [39.51±25.16] g/L, [103.43±52.84]×109/L vs [234.44±90.40]×109/L, respectively).The differences were all statistically significant (t=-7.25, t=-7.18, Z=-5.823, t=-4.60, Z=-8.427, Z=-12.661, t=-11.25, Z=-3.218, Z=2.987, t=4.94, t=16.63, respectively;all P<0.01).Multivariate unconditional logistic regression analysis showed that PLT<149×109/L (OR=0.966, 95% CI: 0.957-0.974), PT>11.95 s (OR=0.705, 95%CI: 0.569-0.874), TBil>17.19 μmol/L (OR=0.99, 95%CI: 0.982-0.999), FIB-4>3.02 (OR=0.868, 95% CI: 0.807-0.932) and Mayo score>4.88 (OR=6.053, 95%CI: 2.388-15.342) were independent clinical indicators for the prediction of esophageal varicose veins.Conclusions PLT, PT, TBil, FIB-4, and Mayo scores can be used as predictors of esophageal varices in patients with PBC.

OBJECTIVESTo study the status of cochlear mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and to determine the location of mtDNA deletion in aged mice.

METHODSWe detected cochlear mtDNA in 2, 7 - 10 and 17 - 19 month old mice by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and DNA sequencing.

RESULTSmtDNA3867bp deletions were found in the cochleae of aged mice. The deletion occurred within nt9103-nt12970 and were flanked by 15 base pair direct repeats. Comparing the incidence of mtDNA3867bp deletions, 17 - 19 month old mice (7/8) were significantly higher than 7 - 10 month old mice (4/16). The deletion was not observed in 2 month old mice (0/7). The ratio of deleted mtDNA/total mtDNA in 17 - 19 month old mice was higher than in 7 - 10 month old mice (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONCochlear mtDNA 3867bp deletion in aged mice may be related to presbycusis.

Aging ; genetics ; Animals ; Base Sequence ; Cochlea ; metabolism ; DNA, Mitochondrial ; analysis ; genetics ; Mice ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Oxidative Phosphorylation ; Presbycusis ; etiology ; Sequence Deletion

OBJECTIVESTo investigate the tissue specificity of reactive oxygen species (ROS) damage to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and to determine whether cochlear mtDNA is a sensitive target for ROS damage.

METHODS10 Cu/ZnSOD gene (Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase gene, Sod1) knockout mice and 16 wild-type mice were analyzed by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

RESULTSThree deletions were detected in various tissues of Sod1 knockout mice. MtDNA3867bp and mtDNA3726bp deletions were the most visible, and mtDNA4236bp deletion was barely detected in these tissues. There were obvious differences in the ratio of deleted mtDNA/total mtDNA in different tissue. Deleted mtDNA was most abundant in the liver and kidney and less in cochlea, heart and brain. The lowest was in spleen and skin. The ratio in various tissues was 3 - 20 times in Sod1 knockout mice over wild-type mice. In cochlea, the ratio was about 15.

CONCLUSIONSWithout the protection of Sod1, ROS can lead to mtDNA deletions in various tissues with significant tissue specificity. Cochlear mtDNA is a sensitive target for ROS damage.

Animals ; Base Sequence ; Brain ; metabolism ; Cochlea ; metabolism ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; DNA, Mitochondrial ; chemistry ; genetics ; Kidney ; metabolism ; Liver ; metabolism ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred Strains ; Mice, Knockout ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Myocardium ; metabolism ; RNA, Ribosomal ; genetics ; Sequence Deletion ; Skin ; metabolism ; Spleen ; metabolism ; Superoxide Dismutase ; genetics

Objective:To evaluate the methodological quality and reporting quality of clinical practice guidelines or consensuses in the field of Chinese pancreatic diseases from 2016 to 2021, and provide reference for formulating clinical practice guidelines and consensuses in this field.Methods:VIP, Wanfang , CNKI and CBM databases were searched for articles published from January 2016 to March 2021. The main index terms were " pancreas" , " guideline" , " consensus" , and the supplementary index terms were " pancreatitis" , " pancreatic cancer" , " pancreatic head cancer" . Two researchers independently selected the literature. The appraisal of guidelines for research and evaluation (AGREE-China) was utilized to assess the methodological quality of the guidelines or consensuses, and the reporting items for practice guidelines in healthcare (RIGHT) tool was used to assess the reporting quality.Results:A total of 14 literature were included, including 7 literature on pancreatic cancer, 3 literature on acute pancreatitis, 1 literature on chronic pancreatitis and 3 literature on others. The results of the assessment by the AGREE-China tool showed that there were no document with a total score greater than or equal to 60.0 points, two with 40.0 to 59.9 points, eleven with 20.0 to 39.9 points, and one with less than 20.0 points. Among the results of RIGHT list, basic information was reported the highest(72.62%) and funding and declaration was the lowest(0).Conclusions:The methodological and reporting quality of the guidelines or consensuses on pancreatic disease in China from 2016 to 2021 are generally not high. In the process of developing domestic guidelines or consensuses on pancreatic diseases, the guideline developer should refer to AGREE-China and RIGHT to improve the quality of clinical practice guidelines or consensuses.

Objective: To investigate the prognostic factors of primary liver cancer treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) combined with radiofrequency ablation (RFA), and then to establish a prognostic model. Methods: Clinicopathological and follow-up data of 145 patients who underwent TACE combined with RFA from January 2010 to December 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate and multivariate survival analyses were performed using the Cox proportional hazards model, and the prognostic model was established. Results: The 1, 2, and 3-year survival rates were 92.6%, 81.4% and 66.2%, respectively. The 3-year recurrence and metastasis rate was 64.8%.Multivariate analysis showed that female cases and higher serum albumin levels were the protective factors for the 3-year overall and relapse-free survival of patients(P<0.05 for all). High levels of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), total bilirubin (TBIL), portal vein thrombosis and higher Child Pugh stages were the independent risk factors for the 3-year overall survival(P<0.05 for all). High levels of AFP, TBIL, portal vein thrombosis and advanced stages of BCLC staging (B and C) were the independent risk factors for tumor recurrence and metastasis(P<0.05 for all). The predictive model established based on the multivariate analysis showed good sensitivity and specificity. The area under ROC curve were higher than 0.90. Conclusions The prognosis of liver cancer patients treated with TACE combined with RFA is affected by various clinicopathological factors. The systematic evaluation of the relevant factors before treatment may help to select proper patients and improve prognosis.