Dry eye disease (DED) is a prevalent and intractable ocular disease induced by a variety of causes. Elevated sphingomyelin (SM) levels and pro-inflammatory cytokines were detected on the ocular surface of DED patients, particularly in the meibomian glands. Sphingomyelin synthase 2 (SMS2), one of the proteins involved in SM synthesis, would light a novel way of developing a DED therapy strategy. Herein, we report the design and optimization of a series of novel thiophene carboxamide derivatives to afford 14l with an improved highly potent inhibitory activity on SM synthesis (IC_{50, SMS2} = 28 nmol/L). Moreover, 14l exhibited a notable protective effect of anti-inflammation and anti-apoptosis on human corneal epithelial cells (HCEC) under TNF-α-hyperosmotic stress conditions in vitro, with an acceptable ocular specific distribution (corneas and meibomian glands) and pharmacokinetics (PK) profiles (t _{1/2, cornea} = 1.11 h; t _{1/2, meibomian glands} = 4.32 h) in rats. Furthermore, 14l alleviated the dry eye symptoms including corneal fluorescein staining scores and tear secretion in a dose-dependent manner in mice. Mechanically, 14l reduced the mRNA expression of Tnf-α, Il-1β and Mmp-9 in corneas, as well as the proportion of very long chain SM in meibomian glands. Our findings provide a new strategy for DED therapy based on selective SMS2 inhibitors.

Objective:To explore the role of mechanical hemodynamic support (MHS) in mapping and catheter ablation of patients with hemodynamically unstable ventricular tachycardia (VT), report single-center experience in a cohort of consecutive patients receiving VT ablation during MHS therapy, and provide evidence-based medical evidence for clinical practice.Methods:This was a retrospective cohort study. Patients with hemodynamically unstable VT who underwent catheter ablation with MHS at Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University between August 2021 and December 2023 were included. Patients were divided into rescue group and preventive group according to the purpose of treatment. Their demographic data, periprocedural details, and clinical outcomes were collected and analyzed.Results:A total of 15 patients with hemodynamically unstable VT were included (8 patients in the rescue group and 7 patients in the preventive group). The acute procedure was successful in all patients. One patient in the rescue group had surgical left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation, remaining 14 patients received extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) for circulation support. ECMO decannulation was performed in 12 patients due to clinical and hemodynamic stability, of which 6 patients were decannulation immediately after surgery and the remaining patients were decannulation at 2.0 (2.5) d after surgery. Two patients in the rescue group died during the index admission due to refractory heart failure and cerebral hemorrhage. During a median follow-up of 30 d (1 d to 12 months), one patient with LVAD had one episode of ventricular fibrillation at 6 months after discharge, and no further episodes of ventricular fibrillation and/or VT occurred after treatment with antiarrhythmic drugs. No malignant ventricular arrhythmia occurred in the remaining 12 patients who were followed up.Conclusions:MHS contributes to the successful completion of mapping and catheter ablation in patients with hemodynamically unstable VT, providing desirable hemodynamic status for emergency and elective conditions.

Background::Oral anti-coagulants (OAC) are the intervention for the prevention of stroke, which consistently improve clinical outcomes and survival among patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). The main purpose of this study is to identify problems in OAC utilization among hospitalized patients with AF in China.Methods::Using data from the Improving Care for Cardiovascular Disease in China-Atrial Fibrillation (CCC-AF) registry, guideline-recommended OAC use in eligible patients was assessed.Results::A total of 52,530 patients with non-valvular AF were enrolled from February 2015 to December 2019, of whom 38,203 were at a high risk of stroke, 9717 were at a moderate risk, and 4610 were at a low risk. On admission, only 20.0% (6075/30,420) of patients with a diagnosed AF and a high risk of stroke were taking OAC. The use of pre-hospital OAC on admission was associated with a lower risk of new-onset ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack among the diagnosed AF population (adjusted odds ratio: 0.54, 95% confidence interval: 0.43–0.68; P <0.001). At discharge, the prescription rate of OAC was 45.2% (16,757/37,087) in eligible patients with high stroke risk and 60.7% (2778/4578) in eligible patients with low stroke risk. OAC utilization in patients with high stroke risk on admission or at discharge both increased largely over time (all P <0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that OAC utilization at discharge was positively associated with in-hospital rhythm control strategies, including catheter ablation (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 11.63, 95% confidence interval [CI] 10.04–13.47; P <0.001), electronic cardioversion (adjusted OR 2.41, 95% CI 1.65–3.51; P <0.001), and anti-arrhythmic drug use (adjusted OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.38–1.53; P <0.001). Conclusions::In hospitals participated in the CCC-AF project, >70% of AF patients were at a high risk of stroke. Although poor performance on guideline-recommended OAC use was found in this study, over time the CCC-AF project has made progress in stroke prevention in the Chinese AF population.Registration::ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02309398.

Aim To explore the impact of ablation termination on the maintenance of sinus rhythm in long-stand-ing persistent atrial fibrillation(LSPAF)by"Stepwise"ablation strategy.Methods This study involved 260 LSPAF patients who underwent"Stepwise"ablation strategy and clinical characteristics were collected.According to the ablation procedure,the patients were divided into ablation termination group and cardioversion group.The prognostic value of con-version to atrial flutter(AFL)and ablation termination was analyzed using subgroup analysis,followed up for 1 year to ex-plore their impact on prognosis.Results Overall,103(39.6％)cases of LSPAF were terminated by ablation.Compared to the cardioversion group,the courses of atrial fibrillation and left atrial diameter were lower in the ablation ter-mination group(all P＜0.05).At 1 year of follow-up,45(17.3％)patients had experienced recurrence,with no statis-tical difference in the proportion of recurrence between the two groups(all P＞0.05).Compared to preoperative,left atri-al diameter was significantly lower after 1 year regardless of recurrence.In subgroup analysis,conversion to AFL and ab-lation termination was associated with the maintenance of long-term sinus rhythm(all P＜0.05).On multivariable Cox re-gression,the courses of atrial fibrillation,body mass index,left atrial diameter and fasting blood glucose were independent risk factors for recurrence.Conclusions 39.6％of LSPAF recovered sinus rhythm during the"Stepwise"ablation process,but there was no correlation with long-term sinus rhythm maintenance.Termination of ablation after conversion to AFL during ablation has a predictive effect on the maintenance of long-term sinus rhythm.

The feasibility and safety of intracardiac echocardiography (ICE)-guided catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) using a minimal/zero-fluoroscopy approach have recently been reported. This approach helps to reduce ionizing radiation exposure and orthopedic complications resulting from using lead aprons. The objectives of this planned prospective, multicenter randomized controlled trial (RCT) (paroxysmal AF (PAF)-ICE trial; ChiCTR2000033624) are to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ICE-guided minimal-fluoroscopy ablation in patients with PAF and the impact on occupational hazards among lab staff.Patients will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to 2 groups: minimal fluoroscopy group ( n = 216) and traditional approach group ( n = 216). In the minimal fluoroscopy group, an ICE catheter will be used for geometry/anatomic construction, transseptal puncture, catheter tracking, and effusion monitoring. Pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) will be performed using an open-irrigated radiofrequency SmartTouch Surround Flow or SmartTouch catheter (Biosense Webster, Diamond Bar, California, USA), and confirmed by a multipolar Lasso or PentaRay catheter (Biosense Webster). In the traditional approach group, an ICE catheter will not be used. Transseptal puncture will be performed under fluoroscopic guidance, with all geometries constructed by mapping the catheters. The primary efficacy endpoint is freedom from AF recurrence (without antiarrhythmic medications) at 12 months after ablation. Other endpoints include duration of lead apron use, measures of intra-procedural efficiency, and peri-procedural complications. This RCT will evaluate the efficacy and safety of ICE-guided minimal-fluoroscopy ablation in patients with PAF, also evaluate the benefits to lab staff (regarding reducing occupational hazards) related to this "minimal/zero-fluoroscopy" and "leadless" mode.

The feasibility and safety of intracardiac echocardiography (ICE)-guided catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) using a minimal/zero-fluoroscopy approach have recently been reported. This approach helps to reduce ionizing radiation exposure and orthopedic complications resulting from using lead aprons. The objectives of this planned prospective, multicenter randomized controlled trial (RCT) (paroxysmal AF (PAF)-ICE trial; ChiCTR2000033624) are to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ICE-guided minimal-fluoroscopy ablation in patients with PAF and the impact on occupational hazards among lab staff.Patients will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to 2 groups: minimal fluoroscopy group ( n = 216) and traditional approach group ( n = 216). In the minimal fluoroscopy group, an ICE catheter will be used for geometry/anatomic construction, transseptal puncture, catheter tracking, and effusion monitoring. Pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) will be performed using an open-irrigated radiofrequency SmartTouch Surround Flow or SmartTouch catheter (Biosense Webster, Diamond Bar, California, USA), and confirmed by a multipolar Lasso or PentaRay catheter (Biosense Webster). In the traditional approach group, an ICE catheter will not be used. Transseptal puncture will be performed under fluoroscopic guidance, with all geometries constructed by mapping the catheters. The primary efficacy endpoint is freedom from AF recurrence (without antiarrhythmic medications) at 12 months after ablation. Other endpoints include duration of lead apron use, measures of intra-procedural efficiency, and peri-procedural complications. This RCT will evaluate the efficacy and safety of ICE-guided minimal-fluoroscopy ablation in patients with PAF, also evaluate the benefits to lab staff (regarding reducing occupational hazards) related to this "minimal/zero-fluoroscopy" and "leadless" mode.

Objective To study the changes of immune function of endotoxin tolerant dendritic cell (ETDC) and to observe its effect on sepsis in mouse model.Methods ETDC were prepared by pretreated bone marrow dendritic cells derived from BALB/c mice with lipopolysaccharide stimulation.The cells were collected and the expressions of surface markers including major histocompatibility complex ( MHC)Ⅱ, CD86 and CD11c were detected by flow cytometry.The proliferation rate of T lymphocytes was evaluated by cell counting kit-8 and the concentrations of cytokines in the supernatant were detected by enzyme linked immuno sorbent assay.Afterwards, 36 mice were randomly assigned into 4 groups.The blank control group did not receive any treatment, the sham-operated group underwent simple incision suture, the sepsis group and ETDC reinfusion group underwent cecal ligation and puncture to establish sepsis.Before sepsis model establishment, 0.9% sodium chloride solution or suspension of ETDC and 0.9%sodium chloride were reinfused by tail vein.The serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin(IL)-6 and IL-10, and the proportion of help T cell ( Th) 17/regulatory T cell ( Treg) in spleen of each group were detected.The pathological manifestations of liver, kidney and ileum in each group were observed.T test and χ2 test were used for comparisons between groups.Results The results of flow cytometry showed that MHCⅡ, CD86 and CD11c of ETDC were 70.4%, 43.1%, and 73.1%, respectively, which were significantly lower than those of mature dendritic cell (mDC) (96.1%, 89.5%, and 84.6%, respectively) (χ2 ＝56.47, 83.78, and 23.29, respectively, all P＜0.01).The concentrations of IL-10, TNF-αand IL-6 in the supernatant of ETDC were (978.04 ±56.70), (980.34 ±111.96) and (12 743.03 ±865.81) ng/L, respectively, and those of mDC were (741.35 ±99.23), (1 703.11 ±117.00) and (19 052.28 ±1 145.84) ng/L, respectively.The differences were all statistically significant (t＝5.073, 10.93, and 10.76, respectively, all P＜0.01).The proliferation rates of T lymphocytes co-cultured with ETDC in 1∶5 and 1∶10 ratio group were (676.95 ±85.99)%and (514.00 ±106.39)%, respectively, which were lower than those of the mDC group (956.25 ±127.12)%and (772.07 ±214.08)%, respectively.The pathological injuries of liver, kidney and ileum in ETDC treatment group were significantly lighter than those in sepsis group.Serum ALT and AST levels in the ETDC reinfusion group were (299.71 ±36.91) and (690.39 ±154.92) U/L, respectively, and TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-10 were (0.067 ±0.005), (0.428 ±0.051) and (0.058 ±0.005) ng/L, respectively.Serum ALT and AST levels in the sepsis group were (620.67 ±69.27) and (1 430.17 ±134.05) U/L, respectively, and TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-10 were (0.085 ±0.007), (0.774 ±0.088) and (0.036 ±0.005) ng/L, respectively.The differences were all statistically significant (t＝11.60, 10.96, 5.991, 8.657, and 8.04, respectively, all P ＜0.01).The proportion of Treg/Th17 in the ETDC reinfusion group was 23.4%, and that in the sepsis group was 60.8%(χ2 ＝28.69, P＜0.01).Conclusion The reinfusion of ETDC has a protective effect on sepsis in mouse model, which may play a negative immune regulatory role by regulating the differentiation of T cells.

In this study, we used next-generation sequencing methods to screen 300 individuals for BRCA1 and BRCA2. A novel mutation (c.849dupT) in BRCA2 was identified in a female patient and her unaffected brothers. This mutation leads to the truncation of BRCA2 functional domains. Moreover, BRCA2 mRNA expression levels in mutation carriers are significantly reduced compared to noncarriers. Immunofluorescence and western blot assays showed that this mutation resulted in reduced BRCA2 protein expression. Thus, we identified a novel mutation that damaged the function and expression of BRCA2 in a family with breast cancer history. The pedigree analysis suggested that this mutation is strongly associated with familial breast cancer. Genetic counsellors suggest that mutation carriers in this family undergo routine screening for breast cancer, as well as other malignancies, such as prostate and ovarian cancer. The effects of this BRCA2 mutation on drug resistance should be taken into consideration during treatment.
Blotting, Western ; BRCA2 Protein ; Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Drug Resistance ; Female ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Genes, BRCA2 ; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Nonsense Mediated mRNA Decay* ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; Pedigree ; Prostate ; RNA, Messenger ; Siblings

Objective To study the effect of Golgi protein 73(GP73) on inflammation, and to reveal the effect of GP73 on tumorigenesis and metastasis.Methods The transcriptional activity of NF-κB and the expression of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-αwith GP73 overexpression or knockdown were detected to illuminate the role of GP73 in inflammation.According to the TCGA database, the correlation between the transcriptional activity of GP73 and the expression of NF-κB, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-αwas analyzed to determine the role of GP73 in tumor inflammation.Results Correlative analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between the expression of GP73 with NF-κB, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α.The transcriptional activity of NF-κB was upregulated by GP73 overexpression, but downregulated by GP73 knockdown.The expression of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-αwas upregulated by GP73 overexpression.Ammonium pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate ( PDTC ) was in-volved in inflammation reaction induced by GP73.Conclusion GP73 is possibly involved in inflammation and promotes tu-morigenesis and metastasis.

OBJECTIVE:To provide reference for promoting the rational use of national essential medicines in antibiotics. METHODS:The use of national essential drugs in antibiotics in 3 second-level general hospitals from Chongming area of Shanghai from 2011 to 2013 were statistically analyzed. RESULTS:The sales amount of antibiotics was in an increasing trend,with an aver-age growth rate of 28.16%;while the proportion of sales amount accounted for the total sales amount of drugs were still relatively low,with an average growth rate of 2.16%. The proportion of total sales amount of top 3 antibiotics from 2011 to 2013 accounted for the total sales amount of drugs were respectively 87.92%,93.60% and 95.54%,with an increasing trend;while compared with 2011,the DDDs of national essential medicines in antibiotics was decreased a little during 2012-2013;the top 2 DDDs were Cefuroxime axetil tablets and Amoxicillin capsules,the top 1 sales amount was Cefuroxime sodium for injection. Varieties with the sales amount/ DDDs close to 1 were relatively less,indicating that the sales amount of drugs and the number of drug use was not synchronous. CONCLUSIONS:There are still some problems in the utilization of national essential medicines in antibiotics. It needs to be continuously improved in the related work to further improve medication rationality and economy,and progressively re-alize the institutionalized and normalized antibiotics in clinical use management.