Objective: To analyze the epidemiological characteristics and influencing factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) in Zhejiang Province from 2019 to 2023, so as to provide the reference for strengthening SFTS prevention and control. Methods: Data on laboratory-confirmed SFTS cases in Zhejiang Province from 2019 to 2023 were collected through the Infectious Disease Reporting Information System of Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System. Meteorological data, geographic environment and socioeconomic factors during the same period were collected from the fifth-generation European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, Geospatial Data Cloud, and Zhejiang Statistical Yearbook, respectively. Descriptive epidemiological methods were used to analyze the epidemiological characteristics of SFTS from 2019 to 2023, and a Bayesian spatio-temporal model was constructed to analyze the influencing factors of SFTS incidence. Results: A total of 578 SFTS cases were reported in Zhejiang Province from 2019 to 2023, with an annual average incidence of 0.23/105. The peak period was from May to July, accounting for 52.60%. There were 309 males and 269 females, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.15∶1. The cases were mainly aged 50-<80 years, farmers, and in rural areas, accounting for 82.53%, 77.34%, and 75.43%, respectively. Taizhou City and Shaoxing City reported more SFTS cases, while Shaoxing City and Zhoushan City had higher annual average incidences of SFTS. The Bayesian spatio-temporal interaction model showed good goodness of fit. The results showed that mean temperature (RR=1.626, 95%CI: 1.111-2.378) and mean wind speed (RR=1.814, 95%CI: 1.321-2.492) were positively correlated with SFTS risk, while altitude (RR=0.432, 95%CI: 0.230-0.829) and population density (RR=0.443, 95%CI: 0.207-0.964) were negatively correlated with SFTS risk. Conclusions SFTS in Zhejiang Province peaks from May to July. Middle-aged and elderly people and farmers are high-risk populations. Taizhou City, Shaoxing City, and Zhoushan City are high-incidence areas. Mean temperature, mean wind speed, altitude, and population density can all affect the risk of SFTS incidence.

Objective To investigate occupational exposure levels of lead, arsenic and cadmium in the lead smelting plant of Hunan Shui Kou Shan Nonferrous Metals Group Co. Ltd., analyze their effects on health of employees, and compare the applicability of different occupational health risk assessment methods, and to provide a basis for prevention and control of occupational exposure risks in enterprises. Methods According to systematic sampling method, 380 employees with lead, arsenic and cadmium exposure (exposure group) and 100 non-exposure employees (non-exposure group) were selected from 2022 to 2024 for on-site investigation of occupational health [concentration time-weighted average (C_TWA)] and physical examination. The risk was evaluated by qualitative assessment method, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) inhalation risk assessment method, and the Singapore Ministry of Manpower (MOM) semi-quantitative method. The consistency was analyzed by the Kappa test. Results C_TWA values of lead, arsenic, and cadmium in all positions were lower than the occupational exposure limit (OEL). The levels of blood lead, urine arsenic, and urine cadmium, as well as the prevalence of multiple systems in the exposure group were significantly higher than those in the non-exposure group (P<0.05). The proportions of chronic lead, arsenic, and cadmium poisoning were increasing year by year in the exposure group (P<0.05). The qualitative assessment method mainly indicated low and medium risk, while the EPA and MOM methods mainly indicated medium and high risk, with good agreement between the two methods (Kappa=0.676, P<0.05). Conclusion Although the enterprise meets the C_TWA standards, there are still occupational health risks of lead, arsenic, and cadmium. The EPA inhalation risk assessment method is more applicable.

Objective To evaluate the predictive ability and clinical application value of artificial intelligence (AI) systems in the benign and malignant differentiation and pathological type of pulmonary nodules, and to summarize clinical application experience. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of patients with pulmonary nodules admitted to the Department of Thoracic Surgery, Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, from February 2016 to February 2025. Firstly, pulmonary nodules were divided into benign and non-benign groups, and the discriminative abilities of AI systems and clinicians were compared. Subsequently, lung nodules reported as precursor glandular lesions (PGL), microinvasive adenocarcinoma (MIA), and invasive adenocarcinoma (IAC) in postoperative pathological results were analyzed, comparing the efficacy of AI systems and clinicians in predicting the pathological type of pulmonary nodules. Results In the analysis of benign/non-benign pulmonary nodules, clinical data from a total of 638 patients with pulmonary nodules were included, of which there were 257 males (10 patients and 1 patient of double and triple primary lesions, respectively) and 381 females (18 patients and 1 patient of double and triple primary lesions, respectively), with a median age of 55.0 (47.0, 61.0) years. Different lesions in the same patient were analyzed as independent samples. Univariate analysis of the two groups of variables showed that, except for nodule location, the differences in the remaining variables were statistically significant (P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, nodule type (subsolid pulmonary nodule), average density, spicule sign, and vascular convergence sign were independent influencing factors for non-benign pulmonary nodules, among which age, nodule type (subsolid pulmonary nodule), spicule sign, and vascular convergence sign were positively correlated with non-benign pulmonary nodules, while average density was negatively correlated with the occurrence of non-benign pulmonary nodules. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of the malignancy risk value given by the AI system in predicting non-benign pulmonary nodules was 0.811, slightly lower than the 0.898 predicted by clinicians. In the PGL/MIA/IAC analysis, clinical data from a total of 411 patients with pulmonary nodules were included, of which there were 149 males (8 patients of double primary lesions) and 262 females (17 patients of double primary lesions), with a median age of 56.0 (50.0, 61.0) years. Different lesions in the same patient were analyzed as independent samples. Univariate analysis results showed that, except for gender, nodule location, and vascular convergence sign, the differences in the remaining variables among the three groups of PGL, MIA, and IAC patients were statistically significant (P<0.05). Multinomial multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the differences between the parameters in the PGL group and the MIA group were not statistically significant (P>0.05), and the maximum diameter and average density of the nodules were statistically different between the PGL and IAC groups (P<0.05), and were positively correlated with the occurrence of IAC as independent risk factors. The average AUC value, accuracy, recall rate, and F1 score of the AI system in predicting lung nodule pathological type were 0.807, 74.3%, 73.2%, and 68.5%, respectively, all better than the clinical physicians’ prediction of lung nodule pathological type indicators (0.782, 70.9%, 66.2%, and 63.7% respectively). The AUC value of the AI system in predicting IAC was 0.853, and the sensitivity, specificity, and optimal cutoff value were 0.643, 0.943, and 50.0%, respectively. Conclusion This AI system has demonstrated high clinical value in predicting the benign and malignant nature and pathological type of lung nodules, especially in predicting lung nodule pathological type, its ability has surpassed that of clinical physicians. With the optimization of algorithms and the adequate integration of multimodal data, it can better assist clinical physicians in formulating individualized diagnostic and treatment plans for patients with lung nodules.

ObjectiveTo analyze the protective effect of different types of influenza vaccines (InfV) against influenza A among the individuals aged between 3‒17 years old, and to provide a scientific basis for the prevention and control of influenza in the future. MethodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted to collect data on the incidence and InfV vaccination of the individuals aged between 3‒17 years during the influenza epidemic season from 2022 to 2023. Vaccine effectiveness (VE) was calculated, and a log-binomial regression model was used to calculate the corrected VE. ResultsThe incidence rate of influenza in InfV vaccinated and un-vaccinated groups was 7.32% (1 937/ 26 446) and 9.65% (4 421/45 837), respectively. After adjusting for age and gender factors, the unadjusted VE (95%CI) was 54.57% (52.24%‒56.78%). The unadjusted VE (95%CI) was 53.66% (50.36%‒56.74%) for males and 55.60% (52.24%‒58.72%) for females, respectively. The unadjusted VE (95%CI) for the age group of 3‒ years, 6‒ years, 9‒ years, 12‒ years, and 15‒17 years were 64.08% (60.89%‒67.01%), 57.40% (53.71%‒60.80%), 57.77% (52.49%‒62.47%), 24.36% (9.49%‒36.79%), and 24.09% (-17.59%‒51.00%), respectively. The unadjusted VE (95%CI) for quadrivalent split-virion inactivated influenza vaccine, trivalent split-virion inactivated influenza vaccine, trivalent subunit influenza vaccine, and trivalent live attenuated influenza vaccine were 53.84% (51.32%‒56.24%), 62.17% (56.28%‒67.26%), 79.83% (69.94%‒86.46%), and 31.59% (19.07%‒42.18%), respectively. ConclusionThe InfV used during the 2022‒2023 influenza season had a good protective effect against influenza A among the individuals aged between 3‒17 years old, especially in those aged between 3‒11 years old.

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) pretreatment of "biaoben acupoint combination" on cardiomyocyte mitochondrial fission in the rats with myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) and explore its mechanism. METHODS: Fifty male SD rats were randomly divided into a sham-operation group, a model group, an EA pretreatment group, an EA pretreatment + Compound C group and an EA pretreatment+ML385 group, 10 rats in each group. In the EA pretreatment, the EA pretreatment + Compound C group and the EA pretreatment+ML385 group, EA was delivered at bilateral "Neiguan" (PC6), "Zusanli" (ST36) and "Guanyuan" (CV4) for 20 min, with continuous wave and 2 Hz of frequency, 1 mA of current, once daily for consecutive 7 days. On day 8, in the EA pretreatment + Compound C group and the EA pretreatment+ML385 group, 30 min before model preparation, the intraperitoneal injection with Compound C (0.3 mg/kg) and ML385 (30 mg/kg) was administered respectively. Except in the sham-operation group, the ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery was performed to prepare MIRI rat model in the rest groups. In the sham-operation group, the thread was not ligated. After modeling, the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the ischemic area was measured by flow cytometry, superoxide dismutase (SOD) was detected using xanthine oxidase method, and malondialdelyde (MDA) was detected using thiobarbituric acid (TBA) chromatometry. The morphology of myocardial tissue in the ischemic area was observed with HE staining, and the mitochondria ultrastructure of cardiomyocytes observed under transmission electron microscopy. Using immunofluorescence analysis, the positive expression of mitochondrial fission factor (MFF), mitochondrial fission 1 protein antibody (Fis1) and dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) was detected; and with immunohistochemical method used, the protein expression of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), nuclear factor E2-associated factor2 (Nrf2) and Drp1 in the ischemic area was detected. RESULTS: Compared with the sham-operation group, the content of ROS and MDA in the myocardial tissue of the ischemic area, and the positive expression of MFF, Fis1 and Drp1 increased in the model group (P<0.01); the content of SOD and the protein expression of AMRK and Nrf2 decreased (P<0.01), and the protein expression of Drp1 elevated (P<0.01). Compared with the model group, the content of ROS and MDA in the myocardial tissue of the ischemic area, and the positive expression of MFF, Fis1 and Drp1 were dropped in the EA pretreatment group (P<0.01); the content of SOD and the protein expression of AMRK and Nrf2 rose (P<0.01), and the protein expression of Drp1 declined (P<0.01); and in the EA pretreatment+Compound C group and the EA pretreatment+ML385 group, the positive expression of MFF, Fis1 and Drp1, and the protein expression of Drp1 were all reduced (P<0.01). When compared with the EA pretreatment + Compound C group and the EA pretreatment+ML385 group, the content of ROS and MDA in the myocardial tissue of the ischemic area, and the positive expression of MFF, Fis1 and Drp1 were dropped in the EA pretreatment group (P<0.01); the content of SOD and the protein expression of AMRK and Nrf2 rose (P<0.01, P<0.05), and the protein expression of Drp1 decreased (P<0.05). In comparison with the model group, the EA pretreatment+Compound C group and the EA pretreatment+ML385 group, the cardiac muscle fiber rupture, cell swelling and mitochondrial disorders were obviously alleviated in the EA pretreatment group. The morphological changes were similar among the model group, the EA pretreatment+Compound C group and the EA pretreatment+ML385 group. CONCLUSION Electroacupuncture pretreatment of "biaoben acupoint combination" attenuates myocardial injury in MIRI rats, probably through promoting the phosphorylation of AMPK and Nrf2, inhibiting the excessive mitochondrial fission induced by Drp1, and reducing mitochondrial dysfunction caused by mitochondrial fragmentation and vacuolation.
Animals ; Electroacupuncture ; Male ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Myocardial Reperfusion Injury/physiopathology* ; Myocytes, Cardiac/cytology* ; Rats ; Acupuncture Points ; Mitochondrial Dynamics ; Humans ; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism* ; NF-E2-Related Factor 2/genetics* ; Superoxide Dismutase/metabolism*

Rice is the world's largest food crop, and its yield and quality are directly related to food security and human health. Grain size, as one of the important factors determining the rice yield, has been widely concerned by breeders and researchers for a long time. To decipher the regulatory mechanism of rice grain size, we obtained a multi-tiller, dwarf, and small-grain mutant htd1 by ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) mutation from the Japonica rice cultivar 'Zhonghua 11' ('ZH11'). Genetic analysis indicated that the phenotype of htd1 was controlled by a single recessive gene. Using the mutation site map (Mutmap) method, we identified the candidate gene OsHTD1, which encoded a carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase involved in the biosynthesis of strigolactone (SL). The SL content in htd1 was significantly lower than that in 'ZH11'. Cytological analysis showed that the grain size of the mutant decreased due to the reductions in the length and width of glume cells. The function of htd1 was further verified by the CRISPR/cas9 gene editing technology. The plants with the gene knockout exhibited similar grain size to the mutant. In addition, gene expression analysis showed that the expression levels of multiple grain size-related genes in the mutant changed significantly, suggesting that HTD1 may interact with other genes regulating grain size. This study provides a new theoretical basis for research on the regulatory mechanism of rice grain size and potential genetic resources for breeding the rice cultivars with high yields.
Oryza/growth & development* ; Mutation ; Edible Grain/growth & development* ; Alleles ; Plant Proteins/genetics* ; Dioxygenases/genetics* ; Lactones/metabolism* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; Genes, Plant ; Gene Editing ; CRISPR-Cas Systems ; Phenotype

Objective:To analyze the role of interleukin-33(IL-33)in the occurrence and development of glioma and its related mechanism by bioinformatics technology,and to validate it through histopathological experiments,and to discuss the possibility of IL-33 as an auxiliary marker for the diagnosis and treatment of brain glioma.Methods:The glioblastoma multiforme/lower grade glioma(GBMLGG)case data were downloaded from the UCSC XENA database,including data of 689 glioma samples,5 paracancerous samples,and 1 152 normal brain tissue samples;Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze the difference in the expression of IL-33 mRNA between the GBMLGG samples and the normal brain tissues;according to the expression level of IL-33 in GBMLGG tissue,the tumor samples were divided into IL-33 low expression group and IL-33 high expression group;the Human Protein Atlas(HPA)was used to validate the difference in the protein expression of IL-33 in the GBMLGG samples;the R language DESeq2(v.1.36.0)package was used to screen the differentially expressed genes(DEGs)in the GBMLGG tumor case samples;Gene Ontology(GO)functional enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)signaling pathway enrichment analysis were used to perform pathway analysis on the DEGs;Gene Set Enrichment Analysis(GSEA)was used to discuss the pathways significantly enriched by IL-33 in the GBMLGG tissues;GSVA package was used to analyze the immune infiltration in the GBMLGG samples;survival package and survminer package were used to analyze the effect of IL-33 expression level on the survival of the patients in different clinical subgroups of GBMLGG;univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to analyze the relationship between IL-33 expression and the clinicopathological characteristics of the GBMLGG patients;the GBMLGG and control tissue samples were collected;immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the expression levels of IL-33 and its receptor suppression of tumorigenicity 2(ST2)in the GBMLGG and normal brain tissue samples.Results:The expression levels of IL-33 mRNA and protein in the GBMLGG tissues were significantly increased compared with those in normal brain tissues;there were 634 DEGs in total between the IL-33 low and high expression groups,including 283 up-regulated DEGs and 351 down-regulated DEGs;the GO functional enrichment analysis and KEGG signaling pathway enrichment analysis results showed that the DEGs were associated with biological behaviors such as activation of the classical pathway of complement,immunoglobulin complex formation,and mediated immunoglobulin receptor binding;in the course of GBMLGG development,high expression of IL-33 could degrade valine,leucine,and isoleucine,induce limonene and pinene degradation,promote propanoate metabolism,and simultaneously activate the Leishmania infection pathway,NOD-like receptor signaling pathway,and allograft rejection pathway;the infiltration levels of dendritic cell(DC)and mast cell in the IL-33 high expression group were higher than those in IL-33 low expression group;the infiltration levels of eosinophil,helper T cell,and central memory T cell(Tcm)were lower than those in IL-33 low expression group;the expression level of IL-33 was positively correlated with the infiltration of γδT cell(Tgd),helperT cell,macrophage,eosinophil,Tcm,and effector memory T cell(Tem)(P＜0.05);it was negatively correlated with the infiltration levels of DC,natural killer cell(NK),CD8+T cell,and CD56bright NK cell(P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in the overall survival(OS),disease-specific survival(DSS),and disease-free interval(DFI)of the GBMLGG patients between IL-33 high expression group and IL-33 low expression group(P＞0.05);the clinical subgroup analysis results showed that the expression level of IL-33 in oligodendrocytoma tissues was lower than those in astrocytoma and oligoastrocytoma tissues,and the expression level of IL-33 in glioblastoma tissues was higher than that in oligodendroglioma tissues.World Health Organization(WHO)stage and age were risk factors affecting the prognosis of the GBMLGG patients,and IDH mutation and primary treatment effect were protective factors affecting the prognosis;The immunohistochemical staining results showed that compared with normal brain tissues,the expression levels of IL-33 and its receptor ST2 proteins in the malignant glioma tissues were significantly increased(P＜0.05),and their expression levels were positively correlated in both normal brain tissues and malignant glioma tissues(P＜0.05).Conclusion:The expression level of IL-33 in the glioma tissue is significantly increased,and high expression of IL-33 may be a potential factor for poor prognosis in the glioma patients.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy of azacitidine combined with CAG regimen in the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients who are not suitable for intensive chemotherapy.Methods:A retrospective case-series study was conducted. A total of 67 AML patients with newly diagnosed elderly, treatment-related secondary and myelodysplastic syndromes or myeloproliterative neoplasms primary transformation who were not suitable for intensive chemotherapy were selected from Heze Municipal Hospital from January 2020 to December 2023. Azacitidine combined with CAG regimen was given for treatment, and the efficacy and adverse reactions of the patients were observed.Results:Among the 67 patients, there were 32 females and 35 males with the median age [ M ( Q1, Q3)] of 68 (65, 72) years old. There were 40 cases in the high-risk group, 13 cases in the medium-risk group, and 14 cases in the low-risk group. After 1 course of treatment with azacitidine combined with CAG regimen, the overall response rate (ORR) was 38.8% (26/67), with a complete remission (CR) rate of 20.9% (14/67), a complete remission rate with incomplete recovery of blood cell count (CRi) of 11.9% (8/67), and a partial remission (PR) rate of 6.0% (4/67). After 4 courses of treatment, the ORR was 59.7% (40/67), with a CR rate of 56.7% (38/67) and a CRi rate of 3.0% (2/67). There were no PR patients. All patients in the low-risk and medium risk groups achieved at least CRi, while the ORR in the high-risk group was 40.0% (16/40). There was a statistically significant difference in efficacy between different risk groups ( P < 0.001). The patient had mild adverse reactions, mainly pain and grade 1-2 hematological adverse reactions. Conclusions:AML patients who are intolerant to intensive chometherapy are effectively treated with azacitidine combined with CAG regimen, and the adverse reactions are mild.

Ornithine transcarbamylase(OTC)is a member of the transcarbamylase protein family,commonly found in the mitochondrial matrix of living organisms.It generally functions in a trimeric form and can catalyze the production of L-ornithine to L-citrulline.OTC is mainly expressed in the liver and intestines of mammals,playing an important role in the urea cycle and amino acid homeostasis.This article introduces the research progress of OTC genes,proteins,physiological functions,the impact of OTC deficiency on body health,and the diagnosis and treatment of OTC deficiency.

The NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, a high-molecular-weight protein complex in the cytoplasm, is composed of three core components: the sensor protein NLRP3, the adaptor protein apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase-recruitment domain (ASC) and the effector protein caspase-1. It plays a critical role in regulating host immune and inflammatory responses. Studies have shown that the NLRP3 inflammasome has increasingly become a focal point in tumor molecular biology field. A growing body of evidence indicates that the increased expression and activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is closely associated with the pathogenesis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and the tumor microenvironment (TME). It may promote tumor proliferation, invasion, migration, and other biological behaviors through various regulatory mechanisms while influencing tumor immune evasion and therapy resistance, which holds promise as a prognostic biomarker for patients. This review explores the current effect and mechanism of the NLRP3 inflammasome and its signaling pathways in head and neck cancer, providing insights into clinical targeted drug development and molecular immunotherapy.
Humans ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/genetics* ; Inflammasomes/metabolism* ; Head and Neck Neoplasms/pathology* ; Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck/metabolism* ; Tumor Microenvironment ; Signal Transduction ; Animals