Objective To study the relationship between APOBEC3G mRNA level in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and serum hepatitis C viral RNA level in patients with chronic hepatitis C infection. Methods TaqMan real-time fluorescence relative quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to quantify APOBEC3G mRNA levels in PBMC from 49 patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and 31 healthy subjects. The relationship between APOBEC3G mRNA level and hepatitis C virus (HCV) viral load was analyzed. SPSS11. 0 statistics software was used for t test and regression analysis. Results APOBEC3G mRNA level in CHC patients [(1.5×10-5±1.9×10-5 ) copy/mL] was significantly lower than that [( 5. 2 × 10-5 ± 5. 5 × 10-5 ) copy/mL] in the healthy control subjects (t=-3.005, P＜0.01). While APOBEC3G mRNA level was not related with HCV viral loads (r=-0.082, P＞0.05). Conclusion HCV has an inhibitive effect on APOBEC3G expression, whereas APOBEC3G doesn't affect HCV replication directly in vivo.

Objective To study the factors influencing epidemiological characteristics and virulence of Enterovirus 71 (EV71) in Guangdong province from 2008 to 2010. Methods RNA was extracted from collected samples or cultured virus , then reversing transcription into cDNA. We amplified full-length EV71-VP1 using poly-merase chain reaction technology , then conducted sequence alignment and established phylogenetic tree with MEGA software (version 5.0) to confirm the genotype of EV71. The association between severity of clinical symp-toms and sex, age, viral genotype and VP1 variation was also analyzed using Logistic regression. Results The genotype of the predominant epidemical strain was C4a in Guangdong from 2008 to 2010. However , this subtype had already differentiated into 4 subgroups (C4a1- C4a4). There was no correlation between clinical syndrome and sex or viral genotype; the severity of symptoms was negatively correlated with age: before 4 years old, varia-tion A289T can easily lead to severe cases, increasing the risk of infection (P<0.05, OR = 2.360, 95%CI:1.163~ 4.659). Conclusion The main epidemical EV71 strain is C4a1 in Guangdong province. The emerging differen-tiation and simultaneous prevalence should merit attention to strengthen relevant surveillance; and the protection of the susceptible population should be reinforced during EV71 prevalence.

Objective To analyze the characteristics of laboratory test resuits of dengue fever(DF)patients in Guangzhou area.Methods Routine tests were performed in the patients admission to hospital. Serology examination was performed in the patients in acute phase or recovery phase.The clinieal symptoms and teatures were analyzed and positive numbers and positivity ratios were calculated.Results The clinical symptoms of the dengue fever were typieal,with the features of fever,headache,myalgia and rash.The leukopenia rate was 76.0%,and the thromboeytopenia rate was 62.6%.The levels of ALT increased in 56.7%patients,and the levels of AST increased in 84.0%patients.Hypopotassemia was found in 46.1%patients.Dengue virus antibody IgM(DF-IgM)was detected positive from the first day to the 16th day of the onset,and the positive rate was 85.9% on the 8th day.Virus loads were positive by fluorescence real-time PCR in seven acute serum samples(within 3 days of the onset)of 51 cases whose DE-IgM were negative all the time, and the results was 105 -106 copies/ml(＜103 copies/ml means negative).Conclusions Clinical manifestations of this DF epidemic were typical including fever,headache,myalgia and skin rash.Most of the patients had decreased leukocyte and thrombocyte obviously.Liver damage was common but kidney damage was seldom.Halt of the patients got hypopotassemia.DF-IgM appeared in very early and persisted for a long time.The detection of DF-IgM within 7 days of the onset was helpful for diagnosis as early as possible.Viral load detected by real-time PCR could be another indicator of early pathogen diagnosis which provides complementation for antibody detection.

ObjectiveTo explore the differences in clinical characteristics between patients with HBsAg(+) and HBsAg(-)/HBcAb(+) primary hepatic carcinoma (PHC) treated by hepatectomy. MethodsForty-three HBsAg(+) and 18 HBsAg(-)/HBcAb(+) patients who underwent liver resection against PHC from October 2009 to November 2014 in Guangzhou 8th People′s Hospital were selected for the study. The clinical data of the subjects, including sex, age, histological differentiation, intravascular tumor thrombi, and hepatic cirrhosis, were compared, using t test for continuous data, chi-square test for categorical data, and Mann-Whitney U test for non-parametric data. ResultsNo significant differences existed between patients with HBsAg(+) and HBsAg(-)/HBcAb(+) PHC in terms of the age of onset (50.77±12.93 years vs 54.28±9.89 years, t=-1.031, P＞0.05), the incidence of cholangiocarcinoma (2.3% vs 167%, χ2=2.24, P＞0.05), the incidence of hepatic cirrhosis (62.8% vs 44.4%, χ2=1.746, P＞0.05), alpha-fetoprotein level (3638±7869 ng/ml vs 3577±9628 ng/ml, t=0.026, P＞0.05), histological differentiation (Z=-1.085, P＞0.05), and the rate of intravascular tumor thrombi (34.9% vs 22.2%, χ2=0.949, P＞0.05). ConclusionThere are no significant differences in the age of onset and progression of disease between patients with HBsAg(+) and HBsAg(-)/HBcAb(+) PHC treated by hepatectomy. However, given the possibility of occult hepatitis B virus infection, it is necessary to monitor hepatic carcinoma even post HBsAg seroconversion

Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a severe syndrome of liver diseases commonly seen in clinical practice and can lead to severe disorders and decompensation of liver synthesis, metabolism, detoxification, and biotransformation, as well as multiple organ failure and an extremely high short-term mortality rate. Infection can induce or aggravate the condition of ACLF and is an independent influencing factor for patient prognosis. This article describes the mechanism and characteristics of ACLF with infection, summarizes the common types and clinical features of infection, reviews the recommended anti-infective regimens, and emphasizes the importance of early prophylactic treatment. ACLF patients with infection tend to have critical conditions, and early diagnosis and empirical anti-infective treatment is the key to successful treatment.

Objective: To clarify the predictive power of PBMCs miR-122, as well as other clinical factors, for response to IFNα therapy in chronic HCV infected patients. Methods: A total of 40 patients chronically infected with HCV genotype 1b were enrolled. All the patients received pegylated interferon alpha (PEG-IFN α) in combination with ribavirin for 48 weeks. To perform the analyses, the patients were compared in terms of achieving sustained virological response (SVR) or not (NSVR) at 24th week after antiviral treatment. Results: SVR rate was 72.5% (29/40) and NSVR rate was 27.5% (11/40). SVR group experienced significantly lower HCV viral load, total bilirubin (TBIL), alpha fetal protein (AFP), fibroscan and laminin (LN) compared with NSVR group before treatment (P<0.05). PBMCs miR-122 expression level was also lower in SVR group than that in SNVR group, although the difference was not statistically significant (P>0.05). and there was no significant change of miR-122 level from baseline to the last available measurement between SVR group and NSVR group. However, no significant association was found between baseline PBMCs miR-122 and HCV viral load, body mass index (BMI), alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), degree of liver fibrosis, respectively. Conclusions Our result suggest that PBMCs miR-122 level is not an efficient biomarker to predict response to IFN alpha therapy in chronic HCV patients. However, baseline HCV viral load, TBIL, AFP and fibroscan may serve as predictive factors.

ObjectiveTo investigate the efficacy and safety of elbasvir/grazoprevir in patients with genotype 1 hepatitis C in the real world. MethodsA total of 35 patients with hepatitis C who received elbasvir/grazoprevir treatment in Guangzhou Eighth People’s Hospital, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Guangdong General Hospital from August 2018 to March 2019 were enrolled, treated for 12 weeks, and then followed up for 12 weeks after drug withdrawal. The patients were observed in terms of sustained virologic response at week 12 after drug withdrawal (SVR12), biochemical response, and incidence rate of adverse events during treatment and follow-up. The Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed continuous data between groups, and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for further comparison between two groups; the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. A logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the risk factors for virologic response in patients with hepatitis C. ResultsAmong the 35 patients with HCV infection, 97.1% (34/35) had genotype 1b HCV and 2.9% (1/35) had genotype 1a HCV; of all patients, 28 (80%) were non-cirrhotic patients with chronic hepatitis C and 7 (20%) had compensated liver cirrhosis. At the end of treatment, the virologic response rate of 100% (28/28) and SVR12 was 94.74% (18/19). In addition, age, sex, baseline HCV RNA load, previous treatment history, presence or absence of liver cirrhosis, renal function, and presence or absence of other diseases did not affect the treatment outcome (all P＞0.05). There were significant changes in the levels of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, and albumin from baseline to the end of 12-week treatment (Z=-7.131, -6.797, -3.060, and -2.875, all P＜0.05). No patient experienced drug withdrawal during treatment. ConclusionThis study confirms that elbasvir/grazoprevir has good efficacy and safety in the treatment of hepatitis C in domestic real-world studies.

Objective To investigate the genotypes of interleukin (IL) 28B polymorphism and the effect of IL28B genotypes on the responses to therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC).Methods A total of 74 patients with CHC were prospectively treated with pegylated interferon α (PEG-IFN α) in combination with ribavirin (RBV) for 48 or 72 weeks.After finishing the therapy,the patients were followed up for 24 weeks and the therapeutic effect was evaluated with rapid virological response (RVR) and sustained virological response (SVR).The IL28B rs8099917,rs12979860 and rs12980275 were identified by sequencing the PCR products amplified from the genome DNA of each participate.The IL28 B genotypes in CHC patients were analyzed and the effect of singlenucleotide polymorphism (SNP) on responses to therapy was assessed.Result rs8099917 TT,TG,GG were 63(85.1％),11(14.9％),0(0％),respectively.rs12979860 CC,CT,TT were 60 (81.1％),14 (18.9％),0 (0％),respectively.rs12980275 AA,AG,GG were 57 (77.0％),17 (23.0％),0 (0％),respectively.In patients infected with HCV genotype-1,only rs12979860 was associated with SVR rate,and the proportion of rs12979860 CC in SVR group was significantly higher than that in non-SVR group (88.4％ vs 58.3％,P ＜ 0.05).In patients infected with HCV non genotype-1,none of the three SNPs was associated with RVR or SVR (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions The majority of the patients with CHC carry IL28B genotype rs8099917 TT,rs12979860 CC and rs12980275 AA in Guangdong.The genotypes of IL28 B(rs12979860) is closely related to the effect of PEG-IFN α/RBV therapy,and it might be an important predictive factor for SVR before treatment in patients with CHC.

Objective To analyze the differences in the PDCD1 gene copy number of hepatocellular carcinoma and paracancerous tissues in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after HBV infection.Methods Analysis PDCD1 gene copy number of 27 paraffin embedded specimens of hepatocellular carcinoma tissues and para carcinoma tissues of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma after resection by Taqman real-time PCR.Results The gene copy number of PDCD1 of hepatocellular carcinoma tissue and paracancerous tissue had no significant difference (P ＞ 0.05) ; the gene copy number of PDCD1 and preoperative AFP levels of hepatocellular carcinoma and paracancerous tissues had no significant correlation (P ＞ 0.05).Gene copy number of PDCD1 of hepatocellular carcinoma and paracancerous tissues had no significant correlation with tissue tumor malignant degree (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions PD-1 plays a role in the escape response of tumor immunity,but the PDCD1 gene copy number variation of hepatocellular carcinoma and paracancerous tissues is not a factor in carcinogenesis and development of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) with liver injury and to provide evidence for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:The clinical data of 107 cases of COVID-19 with liver injury admitted to Guangzhou Eighth People′s Hospital from January 20, 2020 to February 17, 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. SPSS 20 was used for statistical analysis. Comparison of data between the two groups was performed by Mann-Whitney U test, and P<0.05 was statistically significant. Results:The proportion of COVID-19 patients with liver injury was 38.5%. Among the 107 patients, 53 were males and 54 were females, with a median age of 57 years. Among the 52 cases with basic diseases, 20(38.5%) cases had chronic liver diseases(including fatty liver and viral hepatitis). Patients had clinical manifestations of fever (86.0%), cough (92.5%), nausea and vomiting (29.0%), and diarrhea (21.5%). All the indexes of liver function were abnormal in different degree, 31.8% of patients had the total bilirubin (TB) increased, while 60.7% and 63.6% of patients had alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) increased respectively. The serum albumin (ALB), prealbumin (PAB), cholinesterase (CHE), prothrombin activity (PTA) decreased in 86.9%, 88.8%, 17.8% and 7.5% of patients, respectively. The level of TB, ALT, AST was higher in patients with severe or critical disease than in patients with light or common disease( Z=-2.3089, P=0.037; Z=-2.611, P=0.009; Z=-3.298, P=0.001), while ALB, PAB, CHE, PTA decreased more significantly( Z=5.527, P=0.000; Z=-2.324, P=0.020; Z=-3.119, P=0.002). Compared with the patients without basic chronic liver disease, the transaminase of the patients with basic chronic liver disease increased more significantly ( Z=-2.218, P=0.027; Z=-1.982, P=0.047). The TB level of patients treated with LPV/r was significantly higher than that of patients without LPV/r ( Z=-3.079, P=0.002). Conclusions:Liver injury is one of the common complications of COVID-19. Patients in severe or critical condition and with basic chronic liver diseases have severe liver injury. We should pay more attention to the liver injury effect of drugs.