BACKGROUNDMutations of transthyretin (TTR) cause the most common type of autosomal-dominant hereditary systemic amyloidosis, which occurs worldwide. To date, more and more mutations in the TTR gene have been reported. Some variations in the clinical presentation are often observed in patients with the same mutation or the patients in the same family. The purpose of this study was to find out the clinicopathologic and genetic features of Chinese patients with hereditary TTR amyloidosis.

METHODSClinical and necessary examination materials were collected from nine patients of eight families with hereditary TTR amyloidosis at Peking University First Hospital from January 2007 to November 2014. Sural nerve biopsies were taken for eight patients and skin biopsies were taken in the calf/upper arm for two patients, for light and electron microscopy examination. The TTR genes from the nine patients were analyzed.

RESULTSThe onset age varied from 23 to 68 years. The main manifestations were paresthesia, proximal and/or distal weakness, autonomic dysfunction, cardiomyopathy, vitreous opacity, hearing loss, and glossohypertrophia. Nerve biopsy demonstrated severe loss of myelinated fibers in seven cases and amyloid deposits in three. One patient had skin amyloid deposits which were revealed from electron microscopic examination. Genetic analysis showed six kinds of mutations of TTR gene, including Val30Met, Phe33Leu, Ala36Pro, Val30Ala, Phe33Val, and Glu42Gly in exon 2.

CONCLUSIONSSince the pathological examinations of sural nerve were negative for amyloid deposition in most patients, the screening for TTR mutations should be performed in all the adult patients, who are clinically suspected with hereditary TTR amyloidosis.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Amyloid Neuropathies, Familial ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; genetics ; Pedigree ; Prealbumin ; genetics

BACKGROUNDThe concept of minimally invasive techniques is to make every effort to reduce tissue damage. Certainly, reducing skin incision is an important part of these techniques. This study aimed to investigate the clinical feasibility of Mast Quadrant-assisted modified transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) with a small single posterior median incision.

METHODSDuring the period of March 2011 to March 2012, 34 patients with single-segment degenerative lumbar disease underwent the minimally invasive modified TLIF assisted by Mast Quadrant with a small single posterior median incision (single incision group). The cases in this group were compared to 37 patients with single-segment degenerative lumbar disease in the double incision group. The perioperative conditions of patients in these two groups were statistically analyzed and compared. The Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores, Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores, and sacrospinalis muscle damage evaluation indicators before operation and 3, 12 months postoperation were compared.

RESULTSA total of 31 and 35 cases in the single incision and double incision groups, respectively, completed at least 12 months of systemic follow-up. The differences in perioperative conditions between the two groups were not statistically significant. The incision length of the single incision group was significantly shorter than that of the double incision group (P < 0.01). The ODI and VAS scores of patients in both groups improved significantly at 3 and 12 months postoperation. However, these two indicators at 3 and 12 months postoperation and the sacrospinalis muscle damage evaluation indicators at 3 months postoperation did not differ significantly between the two groups (P ≥ 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSMast Quadrant-assisted modified TLIF with a small single posterior median incision has excellent clinical feasibility compared to minimally invasive TLIF with a double paramedian incision.

Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures ; methods ; Spinal Fusion ; methods ; Treatment Outcome

Objective To investigate a diabetic retinopathy ( DR ) detection algorithm based on transfer learning in small sample dataset. Methods Total of 4465 fundus color photographs taken by Gaoyao People ' s Hospital was used as the full dataset. The model training strategies using fixed pre-trained parameters and fine-tuning pre-trained parameters were used as the transfer learning group to compare with the non-transfer learning strategy that randomly initializes parameters. These three training strategies were applied to the training of three deep learning networks:ResNet50,Inception V3 and NASNet. In addition,a small dataset randomly extracted from the full dataset was used to study the impact of the reduction of training data on different strategies. The accuracy and training time of the diagnostic model were used to analyze the performance of different training strategies. Results The best results in different network architectures were chosen. The accuracy of the model obtained by fine-tuning pre-training parameters strategy was 90. 9％,which was higher than the strategy of fixed pre-training parameters (88. 1％) and the strategy of randomly initializing parameters ( 88. 4％) . The training time for fixed pre-training parameters was 10 minutes,less than the strategy of fine-tuning pre-training parameters ( 16 hours ) and the strategy of randomly initializing parameters (24 hours). After the training data was reduced,the accuracy of the model obtained by the strategy of randomly initializing parameters decreased by 8. 6％ on average,while the accuracy of the transfer learning group decreased by 2. 5％ on average. Conclusions The proposed automated and novel DR detection algorithm based on fine-tune and NASNet structure maintains high accuracy in small sample dataset,is found to be robust,and effective for the preliminary diagnosis of DR.

Objective To explore the application value of telepathological consultation in helping grassroots hospitals.Methods 578 cases of intraoperative telepathology consultation were reviewed,and the accuracy and the timely rate of diagnosis were calculated.The systematic distribution,benign and malignant distribution,and the distribution difference in different primary hospitals were analyzed,so as to evaluate the popularization value of the intraoperative telepathology consultation.Results The accuracy rate of 578 cases of intraoperative telepathology consultation was 99.83％.The timely rate of consultation in 30min was 96.02％,and most reports could be diagnosed in 2 to 5 mins.The source of tissues involved in consultation were thyroid,breast,ovary/fallopian tube and lung.In all cases,24.39％ of the malignant tumors were found.Among the diseases of different systems,the proportion of malignant tumors is the highest in breast diseases,followed by lung,thyroid and ovary.Among the four hospitals with most of the consultations,the rate of malignant tumor in Renmin Hospital of Jianli County was the highest,followed by Renmin Hospital of Yingshan County,Renmin Hospital of Xiaochang County,and Fifth Division Hospital of Xinjiang.Conclusion Intraoperative telepathology consultation can provide accurate and timely expert consultation for grassmots hospitals,avoid the "second operations" of the patients,improve the access of medical treatment for people living in relatively remote areas,solve the shortage of pathologists at the grassroots hospitals,and improve the level of doctors' diagnosis and treatment at the grassroots hospitals,which is worth popularizing and applying in Pathology Department of the grassroots hospitals.

OBJECTIVE: To provide prenatal diagnosis, pedigree analysis and genetic counseling for a pregnant woman who had given birth to a child featuring global developmental delay. METHODS: A pregnant woman who underwent prenatal diagnosis at the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University in August 2021 was selected as the study subject. Peripheral blood samples were collected from the woman, her husband and child, in addition with amniotic fluid sample during mid-pregnancy. Genetic variants were detected by G-banded karyotyping analysis and copy number variation sequencing (CNV-seq). Pathogenicity of the variant was predicted based on the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). Candidate variant was traced in the pedigree to assess the recurrence risk. RESULTS: The karyotypes of the pregnant woman, her fetus, and affected child were 46,XX,ins(18)(p11.2q21q22), 46,X?,rec(18)dup(18)(q21q22)ins(18)(p11.2q21q22)mat and 46,XY,rec(18)del(18)(q21q22)ins(18)(p11.2q21q22)mat, respectively. Her husband was found to have a normal karyotype. CNV-seq has revealed a 19.73 Mb duplication at 18q21.2-q22.3 in the fetus and a 19.77 Mb deletion at 18q21.2-q22.3 in her child. The duplication and deletion fragments were identical to the insertional fragment in the pregnant woman. Based on the ACMG guidelines, the duplication and deletion fragments were both predicted to be pathogenic. CONCLUSION The intrachromosomal insertion of 18q21.2-q22.3 carried by the pregnant woman had probably given rise to the 18q21.2-q22.3 duplication and deletion in the two offspring. Above finding has provided a basis for genetic counseling for this pedigree.
Child ; Female ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; DNA Copy Number Variations ; East Asian People ; Pedigree ; Prenatal Diagnosis/methods* ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 18/genetics* ; Male ; Fetus ; INDEL Mutation

BACKGROUND:Nano-zirconium dioxide has good application potential in the field of bone tissue repair.Studying the effect of nano-zirconium dioxide on osteogenic differentiation will help to promote the clinical application of nano-zirconium dioxide in the treatment of bone defects. OBJECTIVE:To explore the effect of nano-zirconium dioxide on the osteogenic differentiation of ectomesenchymal stem cells in the nasal mucosa. METHODS:Ectomesenchymal stem cells derived from rat nasal mucosa were isolated and cultured,and the biotoxicity of nano-zirconium dioxide to the cells was detected by CCK-8 assay.The biosafety concentration was selected according to the cytotoxicity,and the cells were randomly divided into a control group,a nano-zirconium dioxide group,and a nano-hydroxyapatite group.Osteogenic differentiation of cells was directionally induced in each group.On day 7 of induced differentiation,alkaline phosphatase staining was performed.qRT-PCR and western blot assay were used to detect the expression of early osteogenic markers(Runx2 and Osx).On day 21 of induced differentiation,alizarin red staining was conducted.qRT-PCR and western blot assay were utilized to determine the expression levels of late osteogenic markers(OPN and OCN). RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The median lethal concentration of nano-zirconium dioxide on ectomesenchymal stem cells in nasal mucosa was 0.6 mg/mL.In the experiment,the mass concentration of 200 μg/mL was selected for intervention.Zirconium dioxide had no significant effect on the proliferation of the cells.(2)Compared with the control group,the alkaline phosphatase staining of the cells in the nano-zirconium dioxide group was more obvious and the level of cell mineralization was higher,but there was no significant difference compared with the nano-hydroxyapatite.(3)Compared with the control group,the expression of bone-related genes and proteins increased significantly,but there was no significant difference compared with nano-hydroxyapatite.(4)The results show that nano-zirconium dioxide has good biological safety and can promote the osteogenic differentiation of ectomesenchymal stem cells in the nasal mucosa.This promoting effect is equivalent to that of nano-hydroxyapatite.

Objective:To investigate the influence and mechanism of stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1) in microglia/macrophages M1 activation after cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury.Methods:(1) Animal experiment: 20 male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into sham-operated (Sham) group, middle cerebral artery occlusion and reperfusion (MCAO/R) group, MCAO/R+si-Ctrl group, and MCAO/R+si-STIM1 group ( n=5); MCAO/R models were established in mice of the latter 3 groups; empty vector control virus and STIM1 gene knockout lentivirus were transfected into mice in the MCAO/R+si-Ctrl group and MCAO/R+si-STIM1 group. The transfection efficiency of STIM1 and the expression of microglia/macrophages M1 activation marker cluster of differentiation 86 (CD86) in each group were observed. (2) Cell experiment: primary microglia were divided into Ctrl group, oxygen-glucose deprivation/re-oxygenation (OGD/R) group, OGD/R+si-Ctrl group, OGD/R+si-STIM1 group, OGD/R+solvent group, and OGD/R+4-phenylbutyric acid (4-PBA) group; OGD/R models were established in the later 5 groups; empty vector control virus and STIM1 gene knockout lentivirus were transfected into mice in the OGD/R+si-Ctrl group and OGD/R+si-STIM1 group; cells in the OGD/R+4-PBA group were pre-treated with 1 mmol/L 4-PBA for 1 h at 24 h before OGD/R modelling to inhibit endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS), and cells in the OGD/R+solvent group were pre-treated with 0.5% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) for 1 h at the same time. Reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), ELISA, Western blotting and other methods were used to detect the levels of CD86, tumour necrosis factor-α ( TNF-α) mRNA, interleukin (IL)-1β, and ERS-related proteins (transcription factor C/EBP homologous protein [CHOP], activated transcription factor 4 [ATF4]) in these cells. Results:(1) Animal experiment: the STIM1 expression in MCAO/R+si-STIM1 group was significantly lower than that in Sham group, MACO/R group and MCAO/R+si-Ctrl group ( P<0.05); as compared with that in the MACO/R group and MCAO/R+si-Ctrl group, the number of microglia/macrophages co-expressing CD86 and Iba-1 around the ischemic foci of mice in the MCAO/R+si-STIM1 group was significantly decreased ( P<0.05). (2) Cell experiment: as compared with those in the OGD/R group and OGD/R+si-Ctrl group, the expression levels of STIM1, CD86, and TNF-α mRNA, and supernatant IL-1β content in the OGD/R+si-STIM1 group were significantly decreased ( P<0.05); as compared with those in the OGD/R group and OGD/R+si-CTRL group, the ATF4 and CHOP expression levels in OGD/R+si-STIM1 group were significantly decreased ( P<0.05); as compared with those in the OGD/R group and OGD/R+solvent group, the CD86 level, TNF-α mRNA expression level and IL-1β content in the OGD/R+4-PBA group were significantly decreased ( P<0.05). Conclusion:STIM1 affects microglia/macrophages M1 activation after ischemia-reperfusion injury by regulating ERS level.

OBJECTIVETo explore the feasibility of intraperitoneal injection of isoproterenol (ISO) to induce cardiac remodeling in FVB/N mice.

METHODSForty-eight FVB/N mice were divided into back subcutaneous saline group (subcutaneous saline group), intraperitoneal saline group, back subcutaneous ISO group (subcutaneous ISO group), and intraperitoneal ISO group according to the route of administration of saline or ISO. ISO (30 μg/g body weight/day) was given to the subcutaneous ISO group and the intraperitoneal ISO group, twice daily with an interval of 12 hours, for 14 consecutive days. The subcutaneous saline group and the intraperitoneal saline group were injected with an equal volume of saline. The left ventricular end-diastolic posterior wall thickness was measured by echocardiography, and the ratio of heart weight to tibia length was determined. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was used to determine the myocardial fiber diameter. Picric-sirius red staining was used to determine the myocardial collagen deposition area. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to measure the mRNA expression of collagen I.

RESULTSCompared with the subcutaneous ISO, subcutaneous saline, and intraperitoneal saline groups, the intraperitoneal ISO group had increased sizes of the cardiac cavity and the heart. Compared with the subcutaneous saline and intraperitoneal saline groups, the subcutaneous ISO group showed no significant changes in the gross morphology of the cardiac cavity and the heart. The intraperitoneal ISO group showed significant increases in the ratio of heart weight to tibia length, myocardial fiber diameter, left ventricular end-diastolic posterior wall thickness, myocardial collagen area percentage, and the mRNA expression of collagen I compared with the subcutaneous ISO, subcutaneous saline, and intraperitoneal saline groups (P<0.01). There were no significant differences in the above five indices between the subcutaneous ISO group and the subcutaneous saline and intraperitoneal saline groups (P>0.05). No significant difference in the mortality rate was found between the subcutaneous ISO and intraperitoneal ISO groups (P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONSIntraperitoneal injection of ISO can induce cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis in FVB/N mice.

Animals ; Atrial Remodeling ; drug effects ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Collagen ; metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; Humans ; Injections, Intraperitoneal ; Isoproterenol ; administration & dosage ; Male ; Mice ; Myocardium ; metabolism ; pathology

This paper discussed the use of glucocorticoids in amniotic fluid embolism treatment by analyzing the pathophysiological basis of amniotic fluid embolism and the pharmacological effects of glucocorticoids,and expounded the viewpoints and controversial issues supporting the application of glucocorticoids in amniotic fluid embolism.The conclusion is that there is no evidence to support the conventional use of glucocorticoids in the treatment of amniotic fluid embolism,although there is theoretical basis.It is controversial to use or not use large doses of glucocorticoids.

Objective:To investigate the present situation of unintended pregnancy within two years postpartum and its influencing factors in China.Methods:Participants who delivered a live birth at 60 hospitals in 15 provinces in the eastern, central and western regions of China during July 2015 to June 2016 were interviewed by using structured questionnaire. Information on occurrence of unintended pregnancy within 2 years after delivery, postpartum contraceptive use, sexual resumption, breastfeeding, and women′s socio-demographic characteristics, and so on, were collected. Life-table analysis, cluster log-rank tests and a 2-level Cox regression model were used for data analysis.Results:A total of 18 045 postpartum women were investigated. The cumulative 1- and 2-year unintended pregnancy rates after delivery were 5.3% (95% CI: 4.5%－6.1%) and 13.1% (95% CI: 11.3%－14.8%), respectively. Cox regression model analysis showed that the risk of unintended pregnancy within 2 years postpartum were increased in younger women, ethnic minorities, women with abortion history, and those who had a vaginal delivery with short lactation time and late postpartum contraceptive initiation (all P<0.01). The risk of postpartum unintended pregnancy was not associated with geographic regions and hospitals where women gave a birth (all P>0.05). Conclusions:In China, the risk of unintended pregnancy within 2 years after delivery is relatively high. Service institutions and service providers should improve the quality of postpartum family planning services, promote the use of high effect contraceptive methods, and educate women to use a method at the time of their sexual resumption or even before.