Ischemic stroke (IS) is a globally life-threatening disease. Presently, few therapeutic medicines are available for treating IS, and rt-PA is the only drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US. In fact, many agents showing excellent neuroprotection but no blood flow-improving activity in animals have not achieved ideal clinical efficacy, while thrombolytic drugs only improving blood flow without neuroprotection have limited their wider application. To address these challenges and meet the huge unmet clinical need, we have designed and identified a novel compound AAPB with dual effects of neuroprotection and cerebral blood flow improvement. AAPB significantly reduced cerebral infarction and neural function deficit in tMCAO rats, pMCAO rats, and IS rhesus monkeys, as well as displayed exceptional safety profiles and excellent pharmacokinetic properties in rats and dogs. AAPB has now entered phase I of clinical trials fighting IS in China.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly aggressive malignancy predominantly managed via chemotherapy. Our clinical sample analysis revealed a significant correlation between elevated CD24 expression in TNBC tumor cells and patient survival rates. We developed a novel antibody-drug conjugate (ADC), named HN03, consisting of an antibody with engineered cysteines for site-specific conjugation with a low toxic nitric oxide (NO) precursor as its payload through a novel Pt(IV)-mediated bioorthogonal self-cleavable linker. HN03 specifically targets tumor cells expressing high levels of CD24, concurrently generating cisplatin and releasing NO upon activation. HN03 also exhibited potent in vitro and in vivo antitumor activity. It significantly reduced tumor growth at various doses, prevented tumor metastasis, with markedly lower toxicity than traditional chemotherapy agents. We found that a key mechanism of its action involved inducing apoptosis and endoplasmic reticulum stress, substantially decreasing the number of M2-type macrophages. Overall, HN03 stands out as a promising therapeutic option for TNBC, offering a targeted treatment with reduced side effects and the potential for improved outcomes. Furthermore, using Pt(IV) in the linker and an NO precursor as the payload enhances the versatility of the Antibody-NO donor Conjugate (ANC), offering new avenues for the design of the next generation of ADCs.

[Purpose]To analyze the diagnostic yield of quantitative fecal immunochemical test(FIT)at different cut-offs in colorectal cancer(CRC)screening.[Methods]The sequential screening method was adapted in Jiashan CRC screening program for local residents aged 40～74 years old,which included a quantitative FIT and high-risk factor questionnaire for primary screening and subsequent colonoscopy for the diagnostic screening.Subjects who participated in quantitative FIT were included in this study between September,2021 and August,2023.The positive predictive values(PPVs)for colorectal neoplasms were calculated at the cut-offs of 100,120,140,160,180 and 200 ng/mL of FIT.The Cochran-Armitage trend test was performed to compare the trend of PPVs at different cut-offs.The effects of different starting age and FIT cut-offs on requirement of colonoscopy and advanced neoplasia detection were assessed.[Results]A total of 58 256 individuals completed the quantitative FIT,and 3 106 had fecal hemoglobin concentrations＞100 ng/mL,among whom 2 186 underwent colonoscopic examination with a compliance rate of 70.38％.The colonoscopy detected 588 cases of non-advanced adenomas and 355 cases of advanced neoplasms(AN),in-cluding 30 cases of CRC and 325 cases of advanced adenomas.Progressively increasing the cut-off showed a decrease in PPVs of non-advanced adenomas and an increase of AN.The ratio of the rate of reduced requirement of colonoscopy to the missed rate of the progressive lesions was the smallest when the screening start age was 45 years old and the positive FIT threshold was set at 100 ng/mL.[Conclusion]There were significant differences in the diagnostic yield at different cut-offs of FIT.Increasing the cut-offs of FIT will elevate PPVs for the advanced neoplasms.

Objective:To explore the safety and efficacy of intraosseous regional administration (IORA) of vancomycin for preventing infection in primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA).Methods:A total of 124 patients with knee osteoarthritis undergoing TKA between February 2024 and May 2024 at nine hospitals were enrolled. Preoperative infection prophylaxis involved either IORA (0.5 g vancomycin administered via intraosseous regional infusion before incision) or intravenous infusion (1 g vancomycin via peripheral vein). The IORA group included 15 males and 47 females with a median age of 66.5 years (range, 60.0-70.0 years), while the intravenous group included 14 males and 48 females with a median age of 66.0 years (range, 61.8-70.3 years) years. Intraoperative samples were collected including fat and synovium tissues after incision, before prosthesis placement, and after tourniquet release; distal femoral cancellous bone during femoral osteotomy; proximal tibial cancellous bone during tibial osteotomy; proximal intercondylar cancellous bone before prosthesis placement; and peripheral blood from non-infused arms at surgery initiation and after tourniquet release. Vancomycin concentrations were measured using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Vital sign changes were recorded from admission to 5~10 minutes post-IORA (IORA group) or post-incision (intravenous group). Follow-ups were conducted on postoperative day 1 and 3, and at 1 and 3 months, to document complications including IORA-related adverse events, periprosthetic joint infections, surgical site infections, red man syndrome, acute kidney injury, deep vein thrombosis and so on.Results:Vancomycin concentrations in bone, fat, and synovial tissue samples were significantly higher in the IORA group than in the intravenous group ( P<0.05), while vancomycin concentrations in blood samples were significantly lower in the IORA group than in the intravenous group ( P<0.05). Only 7.3%(41/558) of tissue samples in the IORA group had vancomycin concentrations below 2.0 μg/g (the minimum inhibitory concentration of vancomycin against coagulase-negative staphylococcus), compared to 59.3%(331/558) in the intravenous group (χ 2=11.285, P<0.001). In the intravenous group, 16.9%(21/124) of blood samples had vancomycin concentrations exceeding 15.0 mg/L (the threshold associated with a significantly increased risk of nephrotoxicity), while all concentrations in the IORA group were below this threshold, the difference was statistically significant (χ 2=22.943, P<0.001). There were no statistically significant difference ( P>0.05) in vital signs changes before and after vancomycin administration between the two groups. Two patients in the intravenous group experienced incision exudate, while no other related complications occurred in either group. Conclusions:Compared to the traditional intravenous infusion of 1 g vancomycin, intraosseous injection of a low dose (0.5 g) of vancomycin achieves higher local tissue concentrations in the knee joint with a lower incidence of adverse reactions and is safe for infection prophylaxis. Despite guidelines not recommending the routine use of vancomycin for preventing infection after primary TKA, intraosseous injection of 0.5 g vancomycin may be considered intraoperatively for primary TKA in the following scenarios: patients in medical institutions with a high prevalence of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, patients with potential preoperative MRSA colonization, or patients with cephalosporin allergy.

Objective:To explore the safety and efficacy of intraosseous regional administration (IORA) of vancomycin for preventing infection in primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA).Methods:A total of 124 patients with knee osteoarthritis undergoing TKA between February 2024 and May 2024 at nine hospitals were enrolled. Preoperative infection prophylaxis involved either IORA (0.5 g vancomycin administered via intraosseous regional infusion before incision) or intravenous infusion (1 g vancomycin via peripheral vein). The IORA group included 15 males and 47 females with a median age of 66.5 years (range, 60.0-70.0 years), while the intravenous group included 14 males and 48 females with a median age of 66.0 years (range, 61.8-70.3 years) years. Intraoperative samples were collected including fat and synovium tissues after incision, before prosthesis placement, and after tourniquet release; distal femoral cancellous bone during femoral osteotomy; proximal tibial cancellous bone during tibial osteotomy; proximal intercondylar cancellous bone before prosthesis placement; and peripheral blood from non-infused arms at surgery initiation and after tourniquet release. Vancomycin concentrations were measured using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Vital sign changes were recorded from admission to 5~10 minutes post-IORA (IORA group) or post-incision (intravenous group). Follow-ups were conducted on postoperative day 1 and 3, and at 1 and 3 months, to document complications including IORA-related adverse events, periprosthetic joint infections, surgical site infections, red man syndrome, acute kidney injury, deep vein thrombosis and so on.Results:Vancomycin concentrations in bone, fat, and synovial tissue samples were significantly higher in the IORA group than in the intravenous group ( P<0.05), while vancomycin concentrations in blood samples were significantly lower in the IORA group than in the intravenous group ( P<0.05). Only 7.3%(41/558) of tissue samples in the IORA group had vancomycin concentrations below 2.0 μg/g (the minimum inhibitory concentration of vancomycin against coagulase-negative staphylococcus), compared to 59.3%(331/558) in the intravenous group (χ 2=11.285, P<0.001). In the intravenous group, 16.9%(21/124) of blood samples had vancomycin concentrations exceeding 15.0 mg/L (the threshold associated with a significantly increased risk of nephrotoxicity), while all concentrations in the IORA group were below this threshold, the difference was statistically significant (χ 2=22.943, P<0.001). There were no statistically significant difference ( P>0.05) in vital signs changes before and after vancomycin administration between the two groups. Two patients in the intravenous group experienced incision exudate, while no other related complications occurred in either group. Conclusions:Compared to the traditional intravenous infusion of 1 g vancomycin, intraosseous injection of a low dose (0.5 g) of vancomycin achieves higher local tissue concentrations in the knee joint with a lower incidence of adverse reactions and is safe for infection prophylaxis. Despite guidelines not recommending the routine use of vancomycin for preventing infection after primary TKA, intraosseous injection of 0.5 g vancomycin may be considered intraoperatively for primary TKA in the following scenarios: patients in medical institutions with a high prevalence of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, patients with potential preoperative MRSA colonization, or patients with cephalosporin allergy.

[Purpose]To analyze the diagnostic yield of quantitative fecal immunochemical test(FIT)at different cut-offs in colorectal cancer(CRC)screening.[Methods]The sequential screening method was adapted in Jiashan CRC screening program for local residents aged 40～74 years old,which included a quantitative FIT and high-risk factor questionnaire for primary screening and subsequent colonoscopy for the diagnostic screening.Subjects who participated in quantitative FIT were included in this study between September,2021 and August,2023.The positive predictive values(PPVs)for colorectal neoplasms were calculated at the cut-offs of 100,120,140,160,180 and 200 ng/mL of FIT.The Cochran-Armitage trend test was performed to compare the trend of PPVs at different cut-offs.The effects of different starting age and FIT cut-offs on requirement of colonoscopy and advanced neoplasia detection were assessed.[Results]A total of 58 256 individuals completed the quantitative FIT,and 3 106 had fecal hemoglobin concentrations＞100 ng/mL,among whom 2 186 underwent colonoscopic examination with a compliance rate of 70.38％.The colonoscopy detected 588 cases of non-advanced adenomas and 355 cases of advanced neoplasms(AN),in-cluding 30 cases of CRC and 325 cases of advanced adenomas.Progressively increasing the cut-off showed a decrease in PPVs of non-advanced adenomas and an increase of AN.The ratio of the rate of reduced requirement of colonoscopy to the missed rate of the progressive lesions was the smallest when the screening start age was 45 years old and the positive FIT threshold was set at 100 ng/mL.[Conclusion]There were significant differences in the diagnostic yield at different cut-offs of FIT.Increasing the cut-offs of FIT will elevate PPVs for the advanced neoplasms.

Objective:To investigate the role of hyaluronic acid-mediated motion receptor(HMMR)in the malignant progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma(ESCC)cells and its potential molecular mechanisms.Methods:8 samples of ESCC tissues and adjacent paracancerous tissues surgically removed at the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University between January 2018 and December 2020,as well as ESCC cells KYSE-30 and KYSE-150,were collected.Western blotting(WB)and immunohistochemistry(IHC)were used to detect the expression of HMMR in ESCC tissues.RNA interference was used to knock down HMMR expression in KYSE-30 and KYSE-150 cells,and qPCR and WB were used to detect the knockdown effect.The effects of HMMR knockdown on the proliferation and invasion abilities of ESCC cells were detected by CCK-8 assay and Transwell assay,respectively.4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide(4NQO)was used to induce carcinogenesis in mice and establish an ESCC model.H-E staining was used to observe the morphological changes of esophagus,and IHC was used to analyze the expressions of HMMR,FAM83D(family with sequence similarity 83 member D),E-cadherin and N-cadherin in tissues of different degrees of carcinogenesis in mice.Results:The expression level of HMMR in human ESCC tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent paracancerous tissues(all P<0.05).After HMMR knockdown,the proliferation and invasion abilities of KYSE-30 and KYSE-150 cells were significantly reduced(P<0.05 or P<0.01),and the expression level of FAM83D also decreased(all P<0.01).In nude mouse tumor experiment,the body weight of mice in the 4NQO group was lower than that of the control group(all P<0.05).The results of IHC staining showed that HMMR was highly expressed in tumor tissues(P<0.05),and the expression of HMMR in high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia(HGIN)tissues was significantly higher than that in low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia(LGIN)tissues(P<0.001).HMMR was positively correlated with the expressions of FAM83D and N-cadherin(r=0.724,0.870,all P<0.001),and negatively correlated with the expression of E-cadherin(r=-0.714,P<0.001).Conclusion:HMMR is highly expressed in ESCC tissues and may promote the progression of ESCC by up-regulating FAM83D expression.

Objective:To explore the application value of real-time shear wave elastography(SWE)and ultrafast pulse wave velocity(UFPWV)techniques in assessing carotid artery stiffness of patients with gouty arthritis(GA).Methods:A total of 80 GA patients admitted to the First People's Hospital of Yibin from August 2022 to July 2023 were selected as GA group.Among of them,24 cases combined with bone erosion who were confirmed by imaging examination,and 56 cases did not combine with bone erosion.In addition,a total of 40 healthy individuals,who underwent physical examinations in our hospital during the same period,were selected as the healthy control group.SWE and UFPWV were used to detect the maximum,minimum and mean values of Young's modulus values of the vessel wall of common carotid artery,and the pulse wave velocity at the beginning of systole(PWVBS)and pulse wave velocity at the end of systole(PWVES)of the vessel wall of common carotid artery of all subjects,and to assess the hardness of circumferential and longitudinal vessel wall of common carotid artery of them.The differences in Young's modulus values,PWVBS and PWVES between two groups were compared.And then,the correlations between bone erosion and Young's modulus values,PWVBS,PWVES of GA patients were further analyzed.Results:The maximum,minimum,mean values,PWVBS and PWVES in the GA group were respectively(78.80±12.38)kPa,(57.83±7.42)kPa,(67.67±8.38)kPa,(7.06±0.59)m/s and(9.50±0.63)m/s,which were significantly higher than those in the healthy control group(t=11.066,8.216,11.751,14.159,19.118,P＜0.05).The maximum,minimum,mean values,PWVBS and PWVES of GA patients with bone erosion were respectively(82.95±6.37)kPa,(59.59±5.29)kPa,(72.18±7.62)kPa,(7.37±0.43)m/s,(10.43±0.47)m/s,which were significantly higher than those[(77.01±5.32)kPa,(57.08±4.73)kPa,(65.73±4.54)kPa,(6.92±0.39)m/s and(9.10±0.41)m/s]of GA patients without bone erosion,the differences were significant(t=4.309,2.099,4.699,4.586,12.720,P＜0.05).Spearman correlation analysis showed that there was significant correlations between maximum,minimum,mean values,PWVBS,PWVES and the combined bone erosion in GA patients(r=0.602,0.421,0.682,0.647,0.732,P＜0.05).Conclusion:SWE and UFPEV techniques can evaluate the hardness of vascular wall of GA patients,and the hardness of circumferential and longitudinal vessel wall of common carotid artery of GA patient is higher than that of healthy person,and the hardness of circumferential and longitudinal vessel wall of common carotid artery of GA patient with bone erosion is higher.

Objective To predict the constitutive parameters of a superelastic model of plantar soft tissues based on random forest(RF)and backpropagation(BP)neural network algorithms to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the method for obtaining constitutive parameters.Methods First,a finite element model for a spherical indentation experiment of plantar soft tissues was established,and the spherical indentation experiment process was simulated to obtain a dataset of nonlinear displacement and indentation force,divided into training and testing sets.The established RF and BP neural network(BPNN)models were trained separately.The constitutive parameters of plantar soft tissues were predicted using experimental data.Finally,the mean square error(MSE)and coefficient of determination(R2)were introduced to evaluate the accuracy of the model prediction,and the effectiveness of the model was verified by comparison with the experimental curves.Results Combining the RF and BPNN models with finite element simulation was an effective and accurate method for determining the superelastic constitutive parameters of plantar soft tissues.After training,the MSE of the RF model reached 1.370 2×10-3,and R2 was 0.982 9,whereas the MSE of the BPNN model reached 4.858 1×10-5,and R2 was 0.999 3.The inverse-determined constitutive parameters of the plantar soft tissues suitable for simulation were obtained.The calculated response curves for the two predicted sets of constitutive parameters were in good agreement with the experimental curves.Conclusions The prediction accuracy for the superelastic constitutive parameters of plantar soft tissues based on an artificial intelligence algorithm model is high,and the relevant research results can be applied to study other mechanical properties of plantar soft tissues.This study provides a new method for obtaining the constitutive parameters of plantar soft tissues and helps to quickly diagnose clinical problems,such as plantar soft tissue lesions.

Abstract： Objective　To analyze the epidemic situation and risk factors of schistosomiasis in Hubei Province from 2015 to 2022, and to provide a scientific basis for the goal of all schistosomiasis-endemic counties in the province reaching the elimination standard by 2030. Methods　According to the requirements of the National Schistosomiasis Surveillance Plan (2014 edition) and National Schistosomiasis Surveillance Plan (2020 edition), the snail situation and the risk of wild fecal transmission, along with regional distribution in schistosomiasis endemic areas in Hubei Province from 2015 to 2022 were analyzed and the risk was rated. Results　From 2015 to 2022, a total of 60 203 risk monitoring environments per time was carried out, with 10 223 460 frames of snails inspected, capturing 2 344 094 snails, among which 1 357 479 live snails, and an average density ranging from 0.07-0.29 snails/0.11 m2. In 2015 and 2017, 11 and 3 schistosomiasis-infected snails were detected respectively, corresponding to 3 and 2 positive snail environments. The proportion of wild feces distribution environment in the total monitoring environment showed a downward trend, with cow dung accounting for the highest proportion (69.27%). A total of 19 549 wild feces were collected, of which 78 were positive for schistosomiasis. Since 2018, only one positive cow dung was found in 2019, and none in other years. From 2015 to 2020, the density of live snails and the proportion of wild feces in the monitoring environment in each risk monitoring county (city, district) had significantly reduced, with areas of higher snail density such as Gongan County, Yangxin County with higher density of live snails decreasing to below 1 per 0.11 m2 from 2017. Among the 60 203 risk monitoring environments, 53 were identified as GradeⅠrisk (not detected since 2020), 1 999 as GradeⅡrisk, and 58 030 as GradeⅢrisk. Conclusions　From 2015 to 2022, the overall schistosomiasis epidemic in Hubei Province showed a downward trend. However, the risk of schistosomiasis transmission still exists in some areas. In the future, we should continue to strengthen the epidemic monitoring in key areas, improve the sensitivity and level of monitoring, and prevent the rebound of the epidemic.