Objective To compare the blood high mobility group box-1 (HMGB-l) versus N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) for assessment of cardiac dysfunction in the patients with severe sepsis.Methods Ninety-eight patients of both sexes,aged 18-75 yr,were divided into 3 groups according to left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF):non-cardiac dysfunction group (LVEF ≥ 50 ％,n =43),mild cardiac dysfunction group (30％ ≤ LVEF ＜ 50％,n =41),and severe cardiac dysfunction group (LVEF ＜ 30％,n =14).Acute physiology and chronic health evaluation Ⅱ (APACHE Ⅱ) score was performed.Venous blood samples were obtained for determination of the concentrations of HMGB-1 and NT-proBNP.Days of hospitalization and the survival rates within 28 days after admission to hospital were recorded.Pearson correlation between blood HMGB-l,NT-proBNP concentrations and LVEF was analyzed.Results Compared with non-cardiac dysfunction group,LVEF was significantly decreased,APACHE Ⅱ score and blood HMGB-1 and NT-proBNP concentrations were increased,days of hospitalization were prolonged,and the survival rates were decreased in mild and severe cardiac dysfunction groups,and the changes in the parameters mentioned above were more obvious in severe cardiac dysfunction group.The correlation coefficient between blood HMGB-1 concentration and LVEF was -0.639 and between blood NT-proBNP concentration and LVEF was-0.521,showing significant difference.Conclusion Blood HMGB-1 concentration provides higher reliability than blood NT-proBNP concentration in assessing the degree of cardiac dysfunction in the patients with severe sepsis.

Objective:To investigate the classification of patients with gout, and further analyze their clinical features.Methods:Outpatients with gout were enrolled from January 2018 to July 2019 in Depart-ment of Rheumatology, Zhongshan Hospital. Subjects were classified into four groups according to their 24-hour urinaryexcretion and fractional excretion of urate. Clinical features of different groups were analyzed using one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Kruskal-Wallis H test, or χ2 test. Results:Finally, 378 subjects were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Among them, 186(49.2%) were renal underexcretion type, 100(26.5%) were combined type, 57(15.1%) were renal overload type, 35(9.3%) were the normal type. Renal underexcretion type was the main subtype in any age-stratified groups. With aging, the proportion of combined type decreased, while the normal type increased. Participants in the combined type were the youngest [(42±14) years of age] with the highest estimated glomerular filtration rate [(94±18) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2], while their serum urate levels were the highest [(554±104) μmol/L]. Subjects in the normal type were the oldest [(60±15) years of age] with the lowest estimated glomerular filtration rate [(71±19) mL·min -1·1.73 m -2], however, their serum urate concentrations were the lowest [(427±118) μmol/L], The difference was statistically significant (age, F=13.98; estimated glomerular filtration rate, F=16.11; urate, F=17.14; P<0.01). Prevalence of urolithiasis were similar among the four groups ( χ2 =2.00, P>0.05). Conclusion:The renal underexcretion type is the main type of gout. Young patients are more likely to suffer from combined type with the highest serum urate levels and the best renal function.

Objective To observe the response of left ventricular (LV)function and structure to chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH)early stage in New Zealand white rabbits by echocardiography.Methods The New Zealand white rabbits were placed in the CIH chamber and exposed to hypoxia for 8 weeks (6 hours/day,6 days/week).The flow of nitrogen and oxygen were regulated into the customized chambers by the gas control delivery system.The fraction of inspired oxygen was changed from 21 % to 8% for 25 s of every 1 70 s.LV structure and function was assessed by echocardiography at CIH 0,1 ,2,4,6,8 weeks and histopathology was done by HE staining simultaneously.Results ①LV structural variables:compared with 0 week,LV posterior wall and interventricular septum thickness thickened at 6 week.LV end diastolic increased at 8 week (P < 0.05 ).② LV systolic function variables:compared with 0 week,LV ejection fraction increased at 2 week and 4 week,decreased at 6 week and 8 week,but it was higher than 0 week (P < 0.05).Isovolumic contraction time (IVCT)decreased at 1 week,2 week,4 week (P <0.05 ).③LV diastolic function variables:compared with 0 week,Peak velocity of early diastolic period increased at 2 week and 4 week,decreased at 6 week and 8 week with E/A>1 .Isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT)decreased at 1 week and 2 week,but increased at 8 week (P < 0.05 ).④ The myocardial pathology showed that myocardial fibers disordered slightly,cardiomyocytes swelled,nuclei increased and intracellular edema when exposed to CIH for 2 week and 4 week.Vacuolar degeneration,edema and congestion were found in intercellular substance at 6 week and 8 week.Conclusions ① LV systolic and diastolic function compensation started at CIH early stage then LV structure abnormality advent later.②IVCT and IVRT are sensitive indicators of LV systolic and diastolic function compensation.

Objective The aim of the present study is to measure multi-directional strain in patients with hyperuricemia through 3-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography (3D-STE) in order to investigate the left ventricular function early changes and clinical application value of 3D-STE. Methods 3-dimension dynamic images of left ventricular full volume in Apical 4-chamber heart view was collected and stored. 3-dimensional specke-tracking technology was applied to measure and compare the left ventricular multi-directional strain of patients with hyperuricemia and healthy controls in order to evaluate the left ventricular systolic function. Results A total of 24 healthy controls and 38 patients with hyperuricemia were included into the study. Among them,patients with hyperuricemia were divided into simple hyperuricemia group(n=12), hyperuricemia complicated with hyperlipidemia group (n=16)and hyperuricemia complicated with both hyper-tension and hyperlipidemia group (n=10). The circumferential strain [(-18.8±4.4)% vs (-25.9±6.4)%, t=-3.48, P=0.001] and area strain [(-31.2±3.9)% vs (-36.8±7.1)%, t=-2.55, P=0.018] of patients with simple hyper-uricemia significantly decreased compared with healthy controls. Besides, the circumferential strain [(-19.9 ± 5.8)% vs (-25.9 ±6.4)%, t=-3.02, P=0.002], longitudinal strain [(-12.6 ±3.3)% vs (-14.4 ±2.5)%, t=-1.95, P=0.038] and area strain [(-29.9±6.6)% vs (-25.9±6.4)%, t=-3.15, P=0.001] of patients with hyperuricemia complicated with hyperlipidemia significantly decreased compared with healthy controls. Conclusion Myo-cardial strain of patients with hyperuricemia complicated with hyperlipidemia or not is both decreased, indicating a decline in left ventricular systolic function.

Objective:To explore the effect of the method "four-step posture gargle" on the prevention of oral mucositis (OM) in patients with blood tumor after chemotherapy.Methods:A total of 90 cases with malignant hematological diseases who were treated with chemotherapy in the department of hematologic oncology from January 2018 to June 2019 were selected by convenient sampling method. The control group used "drum gargle", and the test group used "four-step posture gargle". Oral evaluation was conducted on the days of using chemotherapy day, 3d, 7d, 14d and 21d after chemotherapy. The differences of OM occurrence days, OM grading, OM healing time, oral pH value and chemotherapy delay days were compared between the two groups.Results:No significant difference was found between the two groups in OM days and the number of patients with delayed chemotherapy ( P >0.05). After chemotherapy, the oral pH value of the test group was 6.53±0.64, higher than that of the control group (6.01±0.57). The healing time of OM in the test group was (6.76±1.82) d, shorter than that of the control group (8.87±3.06) d, which were with statistically differences ( t value was 4.047 and 3.978, P <0.05). Group level 0, Ⅰ, Ⅱ, Ⅲ, Ⅳ OM cases respectively, 6, 8, 8, 17, 6 cases were lower than the control group of 10, 11, 12, 10, 2 cases, with statistically significant differences ( χ 2 value was 8.000-27.000, P < 0.05). Conclusions:"Four-step body position gargle method" provides a new method of oral care for patients with hematological tumor. The method can effectively reduce the occurrence of oral mucositis, reducing disease-related complications, improving treatment continuity.

Sepsis presents challenges in clinical treatment due to its high incidence,difficult treatment,and high fatality rate.The intestine has long been considered the"motor"of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome(MODS).Intestinal dysfunction is one of the common complications of sepsis,which is often neglected due to its hidden occurrence and poor clinical efficacy,leading to poor prognosis.Therefore,it is of great significance to explore the pathogenesis and treatment of intestinal dysfunction in sepsis.As an effective supplement for the clinical treatment of intestinal dysfunction in sepsis,Traditional Chinese medicine has been paid more and more attention by clinicians.This article summarizes the research progress on the pathogenesis of sepsis-induced intestinal dysfunction and the clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM),aiming to provide more ideas and references for the clinical treatment of sepsis.

Objective:To explore the feasibility and accuracy of three-dimensional (3D) modeling methods based on ultrasound imaging data for normal and abnormal fetal cardiac structures, and to construct a methodology system for 3D printing of fetal heart based on ultrasound.Methods:A total of 93 fetuses examined in Tangdu Hospital of Air Force Military Medical University from January to December 2019 were selected. Fetal echocardiography was obtained using spatio-temporal image correlation (STIC). Ninety-three hearts were 3D modeled by blood flow modeling, blood pool modeling and cavity modeling, and printed by stereolithography technique. The data measured on the 3D digital models and 3D printed solid models were compared with the corresponding fetal echocardiographic images respectively in order to evaluate the accuracy of the modeling methods.Results:The fetal cardiac blood flow models based on Doppler flow image data showed the malformation and trend of small blood vessels. The fetal cardiac structure models printed based on blood pool modeling displayed the malformation of heart and large blood vessels. Models printed based on cavity modeling method accurately displayed valve and structural defects.For 83 normal fetal hearts, the long diameters of left and right ventricles measured on echocardiography [(15.3±1.9)mm, (13.2±1.9)mm] were compared with those measured on digital models [(15.1±1.9)mm, (12.9±1.9)mm] and 3D printed models[(15.1±1.9)mm, (13.0±1.9)mm], respectively, and there were no significant differences between any two groups of them ( P>0.05). Bland-Altman showed good consistency for all measurements within and between operators. Conclusions:The three modeling methods, including blood flow modeling, blood pool modeling and cavity modeling, have their own advantages in displaying different types of fetal heart malformations. Appropriate modeling methods should be selected for 3D modeling and printing to make up for the limitations of single modeling method. The consistency between measurements on 3D models and those on echocardiography is high, and the repeatability between operators is good.

There are a large number of natural microbial communities in nature. Different populations inside the consortia expand the performance boundary of a single microbial population through communication and division of labor, reducing the overall metabolic burden and increasing the environmental adaptability. Based on engineering principles, synthetic biology designs or modifies basic functional components, gene circuits, and chassis cells to purposefully reprogram the operational processes of the living cells, achieving rich and controllable biological functions. Introducing this engineering design principle to obtain structurally well-defined synthetic microbial communities can provide ideas for theoretical studies and shed light on versatile applications. This review discussed recent progresses on synthetic microbial consortia with regard to design principles, construction methods and applications, and prospected future perspectives.
Microbial Consortia/genetics* ; Synthetic Biology ; Microbiota ; Models, Theoretical

OBJECTIVE：To know about the research status of health utility value obtained by mapping method in pharmacoeconomic evaluation ，and to provide reference for bibliometric study in pharmacoeconomic evaluation . METHODS ： Using“Mapping method ”“Health utility value ”“Cost-utility”“Utility point system ”as Chinese and English keywords ，retrieved from CNKI ，Wanfang database ，PubMed，Medline，Ebsco，Ovid and Wiley database ，empirical journal documents published from the inception to Dec. 31st，2018 about using mapping method to obtain health utility value were collected. The bibliometrics was used to statistically analyze basic information of included literature ，the construction and test of the model ，the type of the best model and so on. RESULTS ：The 124 included documents were all published in English journal. In the construction and testing of the mapping model ，the most frequently used econometric methods ，performance evaluation indicators and model testing methods were ordinary least squares （OLS），mean absolute error （MAE）and residual normality test ，application frequency of which were 97 times（31.60％），89 times（24.93％）and 62 times（21.09％）. There are 117 articles that define the best mapping model ，of which 101 articles（86.32％）have the best direct mapping effect. Most of the non-utility measurement scales adopted specific scales （92 articles，77.97％），and a few literatures adopted the universal scale （26 articles，22.03％）. The most utility measurement scales were 3-level European 5-dimensional health scale （79 articles，66.95％）. CONCLUSIONS ：The domestic empirical researches that use the mapping method to obtain health utility values need to be developed yet. A series of mapping models successfully developed by foreign scholars not only provide the feasibility of using non-utility measurement scales for cost-utility analysis ，but also provide more ideas for China to choose the corresponding econometric methods ，evaluation indicators and mapping methods in the empirical research of the mapping method in the future.