Objective:To examine the impact of berberine on polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in mice, and to investigate the effects of berberine on the intestinal flora and the intestinal flora on PCOS.Methods:A mouse model of PCOS was established by administering dehydroepiandrosterone in combination with high fat diet, and the mouse model was given a berberine treatment. The study consisted of a blank control group (C group), a PCOS model group (M group) and a berberine treatment group (T group). During the experiment, the mice were closely monitored through timed body weight measurements and estrous cycle monitoring; intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test and insulin tolerance test were done. Upon completion of the pharmacological intervention, the wet weights of liver, ovary and fat deposits of mice were assessed and subjected to HE staining to confirm the success of PCOS modeling and the efficacy of berberine. Additionally, fecal samples were analyzed for intestinal flora through 16S rRNA analysis.Results:The PCOS model was established successfully, berberine alleviated the disturbance of estrous cycle in mice, and significantly alleviated fat accumulation and metabolic abnormalities of glucose in mice. The cross-sectional area of fat pad cells in T group was (2 858±146) μm2, which was significantly lower than that in M group [(9 518±347) μm2], and the difference was statistically significant ( P<0.001). The blood glucose levels in T group were significantly lower than those in M group ( P<0.05). The composition and structure of intestinal flora in mice of M group with PCOS (compared with C group) and in mice of T group after berberine intervention (compared with M group) were significantly altered. However, alpha diversity did not change significantly among three groups ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Berberine could alleviate PCOS by intervening in the alterations of gut microbiota.

Objective:To compare the application differences of disposable drainage double tube laryngeal mask airway (LMA) in gynecological general anesthesia surgery with patients weighing 50-70 kg, and to explore the selection criteria for LMA size suitable for gynecological general anesthesia patients.Methods:A total of 300 patients who underwent general anesthesia gynecological surgery at the Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University from May to November 2023 were selected as the study subjects, weighing 50-70 kg. They were randomly divided into group A (No. 3 laryngeal mask group) and group B (No. 4 laryngeal mask group) according to a random number table method, with 150 patients in each group. Comparisons were made between two groups of patients in terms of the success rate of one tube placement, final tube placement failure rate, tube placement time, fiberoptic bronchoscopy positioning level, airway pressure, mean arterial pressure, heart rate, and postoperative pharyngeal complications (sore throat, hoarseness, dryness, bleeding, etc.) after laryngeal mask insertion.Results:There was a statistically significant difference in the success rate and catheterization time between the two groups of patients (all P<0.05), while there was no statistically significant difference in the final catheterization failure rate, post catheterization airway pressure, mean arterial pressure (MAP), and heart rate (all P>0.05). The proportion of grade 1 fiberoptic bronchoscopy localization in group A (14%, 21/150) was lower than that in group B (26.67%, 40/150), while the proportion and average grade of grade 3 and 4 were higher than those in group B, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The total number of postoperative pharyngeal complications in group A was less than that in group B, with statistically significant differences in sore throat and bleeding ( P<0.05), but no statistically significant differences in dry hair, hoarseness, and other discomforts (all P>0.05). Conclusions:In gynecological general anesthesia surgery for patients weighing 50-70 kg, using a No. 3 laryngeal mask is easier to insert than a No. 4 laryngeal mask, with better alignment of the laryngeal mask airway and glottis, and fewer postoperative pharyngeal complications. Therefore, selecting a No. 3 laryngeal mask based on gender criteria is more suitable.

Objective:To delineate the clinical characteristics and outcomes associated with severe cardiac toxicity during the preconditioning phase of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) in patients with aplastic anemia (AA).Methods:This retrospective case series study included 31 patients with severe AA who underwent allo-HSCT and were diagnosed with severe cardiac toxicity at the Hematology Department of Peking University People′s Hospital from August 2012 to June 2022. The clinical manifestations of severe cardiac toxicity observed during the preconditioning process were assessed. Patient survival was assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method.Results:In this cohort of 31 patients, the median follow-up period was 9 days (range: 4-365 days). Severe cardiac toxicity manifested within 6 days after the initial cyclophosphamide (Cy) administration. Twenty patients died within 30 days of initiating Cy preconditioning, of which 16 patients died due to severe cardiac toxicity within 25 days. Patients whose cardiac function improved within 30 days post-preconditioning showed a median survival duration of 222 days ( n=11). Troponin I (TNI) levels in patients who died within 30 days of initiating Cy preconditioning began increasing on day 5 post-Cy, peaking sharply by day 9 after a notable rise on day 8. B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels in patients who died within 30 days of initiating Cy preconditioning started to rise from day 1, stabilized between days 2 and 5, and then doubled daily from days 6 to 8, remaining elevated thereafter. Notably, the initial increases in BNP and TNI correlated with electrocardiogram (ECG) signs of low voltage and T-wave inversion in 83.87% of cases ( n=26). Most patients ( n=28, 90.32%) were administered corticosteroid therapy. In those with restored cardiac function, the ejection fraction returned to >50% within 30 days of initiating Cy preconditioning. Conclusions:Patients with severe cardiac toxicity during the preconditioning phase of allo-HSCT typically exhibit early, sustained, and marked elevations in myocardial damage markers, including BNP and TNI, accompanied by ECG abnormalities following Cy administration, with BNP often increasing first. These indicators are associated with rapid disease progression and high mortality. Prompt initiation of treatment upon clinical diagnosis is critical for improving survival outcomes.

The Qa-1 in mice is homologous to human leukocyte antigen E(HLA-E), and both of them belong to the non-classical major histocompatibility complex I b(MHC-I b) molecules. Qa-1 is capable of presenting self or exogenous antigen peptides to interact with two distinct receptors, namely T cell receptor (TCR) and natural killer cell group 2 member A (or C) (NKG2A/C), thus playing an important role in immune response and regulation. Qa-1-restricted regulatory CD8⁺ T cell (CD8⁺ Treg) is one of the most studied CD8⁺ Treg subgroups, which can maintain immune homeostasis and autoimmune tolerance by exerting immunosuppressive effects. Consequently, Qa-1-restricted CD8⁺Treg cells are closely associated with the occurrence and development of various clinical diseases, such as tumors, infections, autoimmune diseases, and transplant rejections. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the phenotypic characteristics, functional effects, regulatory mechanisms of Qa-1-restricted CD8⁺ Treg cells, as well as the latest research progresses of Qa-1-restricted CD8⁺ Treg cells involved in the pathogenesis of infectious diseases.
Humans ; Animals ; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory/immunology* ; Histocompatibility Antigens Class I/immunology* ; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/immunology* ; Communicable Diseases/immunology*

White-matter tracts play a pivotal role in transmitting sensory and motor information, facilitating interhemispheric communication and integrating different brain regions. Meanwhile, sensorimotor disturbance is a common symptom in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). However, the role of aberrant sensorimotor white-matter system in MDD remains largely unknown. Herein, we investigated the topological structure alterations of white-matter morphological brain networks in 233 MDD patients versus 257 matched healthy controls (HCs) from the DIRECT consortium. White-matter networks were derived from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data by combining voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and three-dimensional discrete wavelet transform (3D-DWT) approaches. Support vector machine (SVM) analysis was performed to discriminate MDD patients from HCs. The results indicated that the network topological changes in node degree, node efficiency, and node betweenness were mainly located in the sensorimotor superficial white-matter system in MDD. Using network nodal topological properties as classification features, the SVM model could effectively distinguish MDD patients from HCs. These findings provide new evidence to highlight the importance of the sensorimotor system in brain mechanisms underlying MDD from a new perspective of white-matter morphological network.
Humans ; Depressive Disorder, Major/pathology* ; White Matter/pathology* ; Male ; Female ; Support Vector Machine ; Adult ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Middle Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; Sensorimotor Cortex ; Brain

Objective:To screen and analyze the prognostic protein biomarkers of DLBCL, and to explore their value in the prognostic evaluation.Methods:163 cases of confirmed DLBCLs from January 2011 to December 2016 were collected with their clinical, pathological and follow-up data, which were all from our hospital. The expression of protein markers were tested using immunohistochemical staining (IHC) . The immune phenotypes independent of the International Prognostic Index (IPI) that affect overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of DLBCL were explored by COX regression model, and the effect of their co-expression on the prognosis were also analyzed.Result:BCL6 negative (PFS: HR=1.652, 95% CI 1.030-2.649, P=0.037) , P53 positive (OS: HR=1.842, 95% CI 1.008-3.367, P=0.047) , and BCL2 strong positive expressions (S+) (OS: HR=2.102, 95% CI 1.249-3.537, P=0.005; PFS: HR=2.126, 95% CI 1.312-3.443, P=0.002) are adverse prognostic factors of DLBCL that are independent of IPI. BCL6 - (PFS: HR=2.042, 95% CI 1.021-4.081, P=0.043) , P53 + (OS: HR=3.069, 95% CI 1.244-7.569, P=0.015) and BCL2 S+ (OS: HR=2.433, 95% CI 1.165-5.082, P=0.018; PFS: HR=3.209, 95% CI 1.606-6.410, P=0.001) are adverse prognostic factors in the group of age≤60-year-old; in the group of IPI score 0-2, cases with BCL6 - (OS: HR=2.467, 95% CI 1.322-4.604, P=0.005; PFS: HR=2.248, 95% CI 1.275-3.965, P=0.005) and BCL2 S+ (PFS: HR=2.045, 95% CI 1.119-3.735, P=0.020) have worse prognosis. The co-expression of BCL6 - and BCL2 S+ has significant influence on prognosis of DLBCL ( P=0.005 and P<0.001) , in which BCL6 +/non-BCL2 S+ ( n=86) has the best prognosis[3-year-OS (71.6±4.9) %, 3-year-PFS (67.0±5.1) %], and BCL6 -/BCL2 S+ ( n=10) has the worst prognosis[3-year-OS (20.0±12.6) %, 3-year-PFS (10.0±9.5) %]; the co-expression of BCL6 - and P53 + has no significant influence on prognosis ( P=0.061 and P=0.089) , however, those cases with BCL6 +/P53 - ( n=98) often get better prognosis[3-year-OS (70.6±4.7) %, 3-year-PFS (64.6±4.9) %] than others; the co-expression of P53 + and BCL2 S+ has significant influence on prognosis of DLBCL ( P<0.001 and P<0.001) , and P53 +/BCL2 S+ ( n=5) has the worst prognosis (3-year-OS and 3-year-PFS are both 0) ; BCL2 S+ cases get shorter OS and PFS, regardless of the expression of BCL6 and P53. Conclusion:The expression and co-expression of BCL6 negative, P53 positive and BCL2 S+ have certain value in the prognostic evaluation of DLBCL, especially in the group of age≤60-year-old and IPI score 0-2.

Objective:To summarize the clinical and pathological features of intravascular NK and T cell lymphoma for better understanding of such disease to reduce misdiagnosis and miss-diagnosis.Methods:Clinical and pathological features were analyzed retrospectively in one case of intravascular peripheral T-cell lymphoma, not otherwise specified (IVPTCL, NOS) , with literatures review.Results:The case presented in this study was a 66-year-old man. PET/CT scan showed multiple lymph nodes enlargement throughout the body. Normal lymph node structure could not be observed by tissue biopsy, while lymph follicles were partially disrupted. High-power light microscope revealed a large number of blood vessels with diffuse proliferation and dilation, where atypical lymphoid cell mass was restricted in the lumen and partially infiltrated the large blood vessel wall. These tumor cells were medium to large with moderate cytoplasm. The nucleus was irregular, single or multiple nucleoli could be seen, chromatin was condensed, some were empty and bright, and mitotic figures could be seen. Immunohistochemical staining showed that the neoplastic cells were positive for expression of CD3, CD43, CD8, GrB, TIA-1 and perforin. EBER in situ hybridization result was negative. Polymerase chain reaction test identified a clonal gene rearrangement of T-cell receptor γ. The patient was treated with CHOP in combination with chidamide, but died of infection and cardiopulmonary failure within 2 months. 56 cases of intravascular NK/T cell lymphoma with definite classification were collected from relevant literatures, including 47 cases with nasal type of extranodal NK/T cell lymphoma (27 were male and 20 were female) , 8 cases with anaplastic large cell lymphoma (3 males and 5 females) , and only one case with de nova IVPTCL, NOS in brain. We report the second case of IVPTCL,NOS, and notably originated from lymph node for the first time.Conclusions:Intravascular NK/T cell lymphoma is a highly aggressive disease with no effective treatment at present. Involvement of Lymph node has rarely been reported, and further studies on more cases are necessary.

Objective:To investigate the effects of anemoside B4 on apoptosis of retinal cells in diabetic rats.Methods:Sixty Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized into three groups: the normal control(control), diabetic rats(DM)and diabetic rats treated with Anemoside B4(B4)groups(n=20, each group). Rats in the DM and B4 groups were rendered diabetic with an intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin(STZ, 60 mg/kg). After 3 days of successful modeling, rats in the B4 group were intraperitoneally injected with anemoside B4(5 mg/kg), twice/day, for 8 weeks, while rats in the control and DM groups were injected with an equivalent volume of normal saline.After 8 weeks of anemoside B4 and normal saline injection, rats were sacrificed and retinas were harvested for examination.Paraffin sections of retina were stained with the hematoxylin-eosin(H-E)method for morphological evaluation.Protein levels of Bax and Bcl-2 were detected by using Western blot.The expression of caspase-3 mRNA was detected with quantitative PCR.Results:H-E staining results showed the control group had intact retinal structure and clear morphological features, whereas disordered retinal structure, thinner layers, and sparse and disorganized cells were seen in the DM group.However, retinal structure and morphology were improved after treatment with anemoside B4.Compared with the control group, the protein expression of Bcl-2 was lower( t=57.81, P<0.01), the protein expression of Bax was higher( t=10.47, P<0.01), and the Bcl-2/Bax ratio was lower( t=23.98, P<0.01)in the DM group.Compared with the DM group, the protein expression of Bcl-2 was higher( t=41.07, P<0.01), the protein expression of Bax was lower( t=6.811, P<0.01), and the Bcl-2/Bax ratio was higher( t=14.70, P<0.01)in the B4 group.Caspase-3 mRNA expression was higher in the DM group than in the control group( t=7.916, P<0.01), but was lower in the B4 group compared with the DM group( t=6.221, P<0.01). Conclusions:Anemoside B4 can inhibit the apoptosis of retinal cells by up-regulating Bcl-2 expression and down-regulating Bax and caspase-3 expression in diabetic rats.

Objective: To investigate the effect of "工" type adhesive tape fixation method on tracheal tube fixation in children′s adenoids and tonsils surgery. Methods: Eighty children who underwent selective adenoids and tonsils surgery from January to June 2019 in Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University were selected. The children were divided into control group and experimental group by random digits table method with 40 cases each. The tracheal tube of control group was fixed by traditional double-adhesive tape fixation method, and the tracheal tube of experimental group was fixed by "工" type adhesive tape fixation method. The distance between tracheal tube and right corner of mouth at the time of tracheal tube fixation, mouth opener insertion and the end of surgery by a soft ruler were recorded as an index of tracheal tube displacement. The detubation and skin damage were also recorded. Results: The displacement distances of tracheal tube from tracheal tube fixation to mouth opener insertion and from tracheal tube fixation to the end of surgery in experimental group were significantly smaller than those in control group: (0.38 ± 0.16) cm vs. (0.74 ± 0.25) cm and (0.51 ± 0.20) cm vs. (1.69 ± 0.51) cm, and there were statistical differences (t = 7.67 and 13.62, P<0.05). There was no statistical difference in the incidence of detubation between 2 groups (P>0.05). The pressure ulcers did not occur in 2 groups; there was no statistical difference in the incidence of breakage between 2 groups (P>0.05); the incidences of redness and total skin damage in experimental group were significantly lower than those in control group: 20.0% (8/40) vs. 55.0% (22/40) and 20.0% (8/40) vs. 62.5% (25/40), and there were statistical differences (χ² = 13.07 and 14.90, P<0.01). Conclusions The "工" type adhesive tape fixation method is used for the fixation of tracheal tube in adenoids and tonsils surgery in children, which is easy to operate and fixes firmly, and can effectively reduce the displacement of tracheal tube and reduce the degree of skin damage. It is worthy of clinical application.

The ticks feed large amount of blood from their hosts and transmit pathogens to the victims. The salivary gland plays an important role in the blood feeding. When the female ticks are near engorgement, the salivary gland gradually loses its functions and begins to rapidly degenerate. In this study, data-independent acquisition quantitative proteomics was used to study changes in the phosphorylation modification of proteins during salivary gland degeneration in Haemaphysalis longicornis. In this quantitative study, 400 phosphorylated proteins and 850 phosphorylation modification sites were identified. Trough RNA interference experiments, we found that among the proteins with changes in phosphorylation, apoptosis-promoting Hippo protein played a role in salivary gland degeneration.