Objective To investigate the diagnostic value and biological features of protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist Ⅱ (PIVKA-Ⅱ) and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Methods Serum samples of 72 patients with HCC (HCC group), 54 patients with hepatitis B cirrhosis (cirrhosis group) and 30 patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) without cirrhosis (CHB group) were tested with the PIVKA-Ⅱ and AFP detection kits.Diagnostic efficacies of PIVKA-Ⅱ and AFP were evaluated by receiver-operating characteristic curve (ROC).The cut-off value of PIVKA-Ⅱ for diagnose HCC was also determined.Sensitivities and specificities of PIVKA-Ⅱ and AFP were compared.Results The medians of PIVKA-Ⅱ levels in HCC group, cirrhosis group and CHB group were 14.36, 11.21, and 329.88 mAU/mL, respectively.The serum PIVKA-Ⅱ level in the HCC group was significantly higher than that in cirrhosis group (U=342.50, P<0.01).And serum PIVKA-Ⅱ level in cirrhosis group was also higher than that in CHB group (U=481.50,P>0.05).The serum PIVKA-Ⅱ levels in patients with BCLC stage A, B, C in HCC group were 22.13, 345.46, and 13 057.72 mAU/mL, respectively.After comparison of stage A and C with stage B, the differences were both statistically significant (stage A to B: U=119.0, P<0.01;stage B to C: U=158.0, P<0.01).The sensitivity and specificity of PIVKA-Ⅱ with a cut-off value of 30.01 mAU/mL by means of Youden index were 0.750 and 1.000, respectively.When combined PIVKA-Ⅱ with AFP, the sensitivity and specificity were 0.800 and 0.964, respectively.The area under the curve (AUC) was highest (AUC=0.930, 95%CI: 0.852-0.974), and significantly higher than that using PIVKA-Ⅱ alone (AUC=0.892, 95%CI: 0.834-0.950,x2=21.43,P<0.01).Conclusions The diagnostic value of serum PIVKA-Ⅱ is superior to AFP.Combined with AFP, serum PIVKA-Ⅱ can improve the detection rate of HCC, and has advantages during the development of HCC and can be used to monitor the condition of HCC patients.

Objective To evaluate the changes and significance of lymphocyte subsets in the recipients with acute rejection after liver transplantation. Methods The recipients presenting with acute rejection after liver transplantation were assigned into the rejection group (n=17), and their counterparts with stable liver function were allocated into the control group (n=17) according to the ratio of 1∶1 by propensity score matching method. The incidence of acute rejection after liver transplantation was analyzed, and the concentration of tacrolimus in the recipients was compared between two groups. The absolute value and proportion of lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood were compared between two groups. The diagnostic value of lymphocyte subsets for acute rejection after liver transplantation was assessed by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The absolute value and proportion of lymphocyte subsets in the rejection group were compared before and after treatment. Results Among 17 recipients in the rejection group, 4 cases developed acute rejection within postoperative 28 d, and 13 cases had acute rejection within postoperative 29-180 d. No significant difference was noted in the tacrolimus concentration between two groups (P=0.295). Compared with the control group, the proportions of peripheral blood T cells, CD4⁺T cells, B cells and natural killer (NK) T cells were significantly increased in the rejection group (all P < 0.05). The elevated proportion of NKT cells in the early stage after liver transplantation was an independent risk factor for acute rejection following liver transplantation[odds ratio (OR) 1.774, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.059-2.971, P=0.029]. ROC curve analysis showed that the area under curve (AUC) of CD4⁺T cells, B cells and NKT cells was 0.76, 0.73 and 0.77, respectively. The AUC of combined use of CD4⁺T cells, B cells and NKT cells was 0.89, with a cut-off value of 0.69, sensitivity of 0.706 and specificity of 0.941. After corresponding treatment, all recipients were gradually recovered, and liver functions were eventually restored to normal in the rejection group. After treatment, the proportion of T cells, CD4⁺T cells, CD8⁺T cells and NK cells was significantly decreased (all P < 0.05). Conclusions The elevated proportion of NKT cells indicates an increased risk of acute rejection after liver transplantation. Combined use of CD4⁺T cells, B cells and NKT cells may deliver early detection and diagnosis of acute rejection after liver transplantation.

Objective To explore the application of serum signal transducers and activators of transduction 3(STAT3)and SMAD4 expression levels in the early diagnosis and clinical staging of primary glaucoma patients.Methods 86 patients with primary glaucoma admitted to Cangzhou Eye Hospital from August 2021 to May 2023 were selected as the study group,according to the clinical symptoms and visual examination results of the research group,they were divided into mild injury stage(n=30),moderate injury stage(n=34)and severe injury stage(n=22).Another 86 healthy individuals who underwent physical examinations in Cangzhou Eye Hospital during the same period were collected as the control group.Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)was applied to detect the expression levels of serum STAT3 and SMAD4.Multivariate Logistic regression was applied to analyze the relevant factors affecting clinical staging of primary glaucoma,receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was applied to analyze the diagnostic value of serum STAT3 and SMAD4 in patients with moderate/severe primary glaucoma injury.Results The expression levels of serum STAT3(13.96±3.45 ng/ml)and SMAD4(11.23±2.85 ng/ml)in the study group were obviously higher than those in the control group(9.83±1.72 ng/ml,7.78±1.95 ng/ml),the differences were statistically significant(F=13.085,17.513,all P＜0.05).The expression levels of serum STAT3(11.88±2.52 ng/ml,13.85±3.51 ng/ml,16.96±4.63 ng/ml)and SMAD4(9.15±1.95 ng/ml,11.23±2.83 ng/ml,14.08±4.12 ng/ml)in patients with primary glaucoma in mild,moderate and severe injury groups were gradually increased,the differences were statistically significant(F=13.085,17.513,all P＜0.05).There was a statistically obvious difference in intraocular pressure among patients with mild,moderate(24.21±5.03 mmHg,28.16±6.31 mmHg,32.26±7.57mmHg),and severe injuries(F=10.577.P＜0.05).serum STAT3[OR(95%CI)=2.728(1.409～5.281)],SMAD4[OR(95%CI)=2.849(1.507～5.387)],and intraocular pressure[OR(95%CI)=2.435(1.094～5.417)]were risk factors affecting clinical staging of primary glaucoma(all P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of the combined diagnosis of serum STAT3 and SMAD4 for moderate/severe injury in patients with primary glaucoma was 0.963(95%CI:0.899～0.992),which was superior to their respective individual diagnoses(Z =2.558,1.961;P=0.010,0.049),their sensitivity and specificity were 96.43%and 83.33%,respectively.Conclusion The higher the expression levels of STAT3 and SMAD4 in serum,the more severe the clinical symptoms in patients.The combined detection of the two has good diagnostic value for patients with moderate/severe injury.

Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is one of the main causes of death and disability in adults, which has brought a heavy burden to society and families. The intertwined process of thrombosis and thrombus inflammation plays a key role in the pathogenesis of AIS. The latest studies find that C-type lectin-like receptor 2 (CLEC-2) may play an important role in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in mice by promoting thrombus inflammation, and its level is related to the progression of AIS and prognoses of patients with AIS. The author reviews the physiological and pathological effects of CLEC-2 and its related research progress in AIS, with a view to provide new research evidences for the occurrence and development of AIS and related treatments.