Pulmonary endometriosis (PEM) is a rare disease with diverse clinical manifestations, most commonly presenting as hemoptysis, while patients presenting solely with pulmonary nodules are less common. Here, we report three female patients (aged 32, 19, and 46 years, respectively). One patient sought medical attention due to hemoptysis during menstruation, while the other two had no obvious symptoms and were found to have pulmonary nodules during routine physical examinations. Two patients had a history of cesarean section, and one had a history of miscarriage. Pathologically, one patient of PEM showed extensive hemorrhage in the alveolar spaces, with fragmented endometrial glandular epithelium observed within the hemorrhagic foci. The other two patients exhibited proliferative endometrial glands and stroma, surrounded by old hemorrhage. Immunohistochemistry revealed that the endometrial glands and stroma in all three patients were positive for estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and vimentin, with CD10 positivity in the endometrial stroma. All three patients were definitively diagnosed as PEM by pathology and underwent thoracoscopic pulmonary wedge resection. Follow-up periods were 18, 31, and 49 months, respectively, with no recurrence observed in any of the patients.

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligatory intracellular parasite which infects a variety of warm-blooded animals and causes toxoplasmosis. Toxoplasmosis seriously endangers human health and animal husbandry production. As one of the effective gene editing tools, the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated proteins (Cas) system has been widely used for knockout of genes in T. gondii. This review summarizes the applications of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology in vaccines against single- and double-gene deletion strains of T. gondii, so as to provide insights into development of toxoplasmosis vaccines.

Objective A serum proteomic approach was used to explore the targets of action of Peitu Qingxin Granules(composed of Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae,Forsythiae Fructus,Imperatae Rhizoma,Pseudostellariae Radix,etc.)in the treatment of atopic dermatitis.Methods Five patients with atopic dermatitis were selected and treated with Peitu Qingxin Granules for 12 weeks,and five healthy volunteers were used as controls.The clinical core evaluation indexes of atopic dermatitis patients after treatment,including Eczema Area and Severity Index/Scoring Atopic Dermatitis(EASI/SCORAD),Pruritus Score,Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure(POEM),and quality of life index,were assessed.Serum samples were examined using data-independent acquisition-mass spectrometry(DIA-MS)technology,and serum differential proteins between atopic dermatitis patients and healthy people,as well as serum differential proteins in atopic dermatitis patients before and after treatment with Peitu Qingxin Granules were screened according to P＜0.05 and Fold Change>1.2.GO function enrichment analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were performed on the differential proteins.Results(1)Compared with the pre-treatment period,the clinical core evaluation indexes of patients with atopic dermatitis,including the EASI/SCORAD,Pruritus Score,POEM,and quality-of-life index,were significantly improved after treatment,and the differences were all statistically significant(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).(2)A total of 28 differential proteins were analyzed in the healthy control group and atopic dermatitis group,of which 12 proteins expressions were increased and 16 proteins were decreased,including ALAD(δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydrogenase),LTA4H(leukotriene A-4 hydrolase),CA1(carbonic anhydrase 1),F11(coagulation factor XI),and LCP1(lymphocyte cytoplasmic protein 1),etc..The main signaling pathways involved are PI3K-AKT signaling pathway,lipids and atherosclerosis,ECM-receptor interaction,platelet activation,NF-κB signaling pathway,and neutrophil extracellular trap formation.(3)A total of 12 different proteins were analyzed in atopic dermatitis patients before and after treatment with Peitu Qingxin Granules,of which 8 proteins were increased and 4 proteins were decreased,including ALAD,FGA(fibrinogen α-chain),IGHV3-64D,and IGHV3-38.They were mainly involved in signaling pathways such as lipids and atherosclerosis,complement pathway,Staphylococcus aureus infection,NF-κB signaling pathway,fluid shear stress and atherosclerosis.(4)The expressions of three protein targets including ALAD,FGA and IGHV3-64D,were significantly down-regulated in patients with atopic dermatitis and significantly up-regulated after treatment with Peitu Qingxin Granules.Conclusion The differentially expressed proteins ALAD,FGA and IGHV3-64D may be the action targets of Peitu Qingxin Granules in the treatment of atopic dermatitis,which lays the foundation for further experimental validation.

Objective:To construct a chain mediating model based on two mediating variables of positive psychological capital and general self-efficacy, so as to explore the impact mechanism of social support on posttraumatic growth in thyroid cancer patients.Methods:From March to December 2023, convenience sampling was used to select 270 postoperative patients with thyroid cancer from the Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital as participants. The patients were surveyed using the General Information Questionnaire, Post Traumatic Growth Inventory, Social Support Rating Scale, Positive Psychological Questionnaire, and General Self-efficacy Scale. Spearman correlation was used to analyze the correlation between social support, positive psychological capital, general self-efficacy, and posttraumatic growth in thyroid cancer patients. SPSS PROCESS program was used to test for the chain mediating effect.Results:A total of 270 questionnaires were distributed, and 257 questionnaires were collected. After excluding questionnaires with missing items exceeding 10% and regular responses, 246 valid questionnaires were collected, with a valid response rate of 91.11% (246/270). Spearman correlation showed that there was positive correlations between social support, positive psychological capital, general self-efficacy, and posttraumatic growth in patients ( P<0.01). Mediating effect analysis showed that social support directly and positively predicted posttraumatic growth in thyroid cancer [ β=0.403, 95% CI (0.258, 0.547) ], and also affected patients' posttraumatic growth through three indirect pathways, namely social support → positive psychological capital → posttraumatic growth, with an effect value of 0.083 [95% CI (0.002, 0.173) ], accounting for 13.63% of the total effect, and social support → general self-efficacy → posttraumatic growth, with an effect value of 0.099 [95% CI (0.040, 0.166) ], accounting for 16.26% of the total effect, and social support → positive psychological capital → general self-efficacy → posttraumatic growth, with an effect value of 0.025 [95% CI (0.005, 0.051) ], accounting for 4.11% of the total effect. The total indirect effect accounted for 33.83% of the total effect. Conclusions:Social support can not only directly affect the post-traumatic growth of thyroid cancer patients, but also indirectly affect post-traumatic growth through the mediating effect of positive psychological capital and general self-efficacy.

Objective:To further investigate the safety and efficacy of Belimumab in the treatment of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).Methods:All SLE patients treated with Belimumab from May 1, 2020 to February 1, 2022 in Peking Union Medical College Hospital were retrospectively collected and analyzed. The clinical manifestations, the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index 2000 (SLEDAI-2000) score, and laboratory test such as levels of anti-dsDNA antibody, the medication before and after Belimumab treatment, adverse events were collected. Normally distributed data were tested using the t-test, otherwise the Wilcoxon paired signed rank test was used. Results:A total of 81 patients were enrolled in this study. The use of belimumab could significantly decrease the SLEDAI-2000 score [10.00(7.75, 12.00) vs. 4.00(3.75, 6.00), Z=-5.38, P<0.001], ESR of SLE patients [19.50(12.75, 32.25) mm/1 h vs. 14.00(7.75, 20.25) mm/1 h, Z=-3.71, P=0.003], anti-dsDNA titer detected by CLIFT [300.00 (117.00, 864.00) vs. 183.00(100.00, 471.00), Z=-4.15, P=0.001], meanwhile, increase the complement C3 [0.78 (0.62, 0.97)g/L vs. 0.69 (0.55, 0.84)g/L, Z=-4.68, P<0.001], and the complement C4 [0.12 (0.08, 0.19)g/L vs. 0.10 (0.05, 0.14)g/L, Z=-4.78, P<0.001]. We also observed that with the use of Belimumab, the dosage of Glucocorticoids decreased significantly, which were [10.00(7.50, 22.50) mg vs. 7.50(5.00, 10.00) mg, Z=-4.90, P<0.001]. In addition, the antibody of IgG, IgA and IgM decreased significantly. Only one patient stopped the administration of Belimumab due to the low level of immunoglobulin. Conclusion:Belimumab can alleviate disease activity of patients with SLE and help in safely tapering the daily dose of glucocorticoid with good safety.

Uveal melanoma (UM) poses a significant lethality, with approximately 50% of those developing metastases surviving less than one year. In the progression of UM, vasculogenic mimicry (VM) induced by hypoxia plays a pivotal role, which also partially explains the resistance of UM to anti-angiogenic therapies. Nevertheless, the crucial molecular mechanisms underlying VM in the progression of UM remain unclear. We identified ubiquitin conjugating enzyme E2 G2 (UBE2G2) as a critical suppressor through transcriptomic sequencing and metastasis correlation screening. In UM, hypoxia-induced VM and metastasis are markedly exacerbated by UBE2G2 knockdown and significantly alleviated by its overexpression. Mechanistically, UBE2G2 directly binds to galectin 3 binding protein (LGALS3BP) and forms a complex with the E3 ubiquitin ligase tripartite motif containing 38 (TRIM38), facilitating ubiquitination-mediated degradation of LGALS3BP at the K104 residue. Furthermore, UBE2G2 inhibits oncogenic phenotypes by inactivating intracellular PI3K/AKT signaling and reprogramming the tumor microenvironment. Therefore, targeting intercellular and intracellular molecular mechanisms of the hypoxia-UBE2G2-LGALS3BP axis may contribute to developing various therapeutic strategies for UM.

Proprotein Convertase Subtilisin/Kexin 9 (PCSK9) inhibitor has become a new drug for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Recent studies have shown that the mechanism of PCSK9 in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is very complex, which is closely related to the increase of plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level, apoptosis, autophagy, inflammation, foam cell formation and vascular smooth muscle cell calcification, which will help us better understand the " multiple effects" of PCSK9 inhibitors. This review aims to analyze the research status of PCSK9 in molecular structure, cell function and cardiovascular disease treatment, which will further consolidate the success of new treatment strategies for atherosclerosis.

Objective:The study aimed to investigate the association between lesion location and post-stroke depression (PSD) in acute ischemic stroke patients.Methods:In this case-control study, acute ischemic stroke patients were recruited from the Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital of the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), between September 2020 and June 2021. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) criteria, the patients were divided into the PSD and non-PSD groups. The 24-item Hamilton Rating Scale (HAMD) was used to evaluate the severity of depression. The Student′s t-test, Mann-Whitney test, and Chi-square test were used to compare the clinical baseline characteristics of PSD and non-PSD groups. Voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) was applied to investigate the association between lesion location and depression occurrence and severity. Results:A total of 70 and 173 patients were admitted to the PSD and non-PSD groups, respectively. The mean age of patients was 59 years (23-86). There were 153 males and 90 females. Univariate analysis showed a significant difference only in Hamilton Anxiety ( P=0.025) and Depression ( P<0.001) scores between the PSD and non-PSD groups. VLSM analysis identified clusters within the anterior cingulate gyrus ( Z=-3.05, P<0.001), left hippocampus ( Z=-3.15, P<0.001), and left lingual lobe ( Z=-3.08, P<0.001) where lesions were significantly associated with PSD. Additionally, the severity of PSD was associated with damage in the anterior cingulate gyrus ( Z=-3.64, P<0.001), left hippocampus ( Z=-3.51, P<0.001), left lingual lobe ( Z=-4.18, P<0.001), and pericalcarine cortex ( Z=-3.65, P<0.001). Conclusion:VLSM demonstrated that lesion location could be used to predict the occurrence of PSD in patients with acute ischemic stroke.

Objective:To detect the levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and nitric oxide (NO) in the serum of patients with early diabetic retinopathy (DR) and to explore their value in the treatment of DR.Methods:Fifty-nine patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus from March 2019 to June 2020 in the Yulin Second Hospital were collected and divided into the non-diabetic retinopathy (NDR) group (32 cases) and background stage diabetic retinopathy (BDR) group (27 cases) according to the DR grading criteria, and 29 healthy subjects were enrolled in the healthy control (HC) group. Serum VEGF levels were measured by a double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and serum NO levels were measured by the nitrate reductase method (one-step method). Pearson analysis was used to correlate serum VEGF with NO levels in each group, and a logistic regression model was used to analyze the risk factors for DR.Results:Compared with the HC group, the differences in serum VEGF and NO levels of patients in the BDR group were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). The serum VEGF and NO levels were positively correlated in all groups (all P < 0.01). Duration of diabetes, smoking, glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), serum VEGF, and NO levels were high risk factors for DR. Conclusions:Serum VEGF and NO levels may be potential pathological mechanisms for the development of microvascular complications in patients with type 2 diabetes, and the interaction may induce or accelerate the progression of DR. This study is expected to provide a new idea of complementary or combined treatment in the treatment of DR.

Alstrom syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive multi-organ syndrome caused by variations in ALMS1 gene. We explore the underlying genetic cause in one case of Alstrom syndrome who manifasted childhood obesity, hyperinsulinemia, and acanthosis using the whole-exome sequencing, to improve clinicians′ awareness of the disease. The proband presented with obesity, acanthosis, hyperinsulinemia, and fatty liver in childhood, but without typical manifestations of Alstrom syndrome, such as retinal degeneration, hearing impairment and cardiomyopathty. Whole-exome sequencing revealed that the proband carried a complex heterozygous ALMS1 mutation, including c. 1A>T(p.M1? ) and c. 8971G>C, p. D2991H. Family verification found that his father wass heterozygous for the c. 1A>T mutation, his mother was heterozygous for the c. 8971G>C mutation, and the sister′s ALMS1 gene detection and clinical phenotype were normal, which was consistent with the autosomal recessive inheritance pattern. Through bioinformatics analysis, the new mutations c. 1A>T and c. 8971G>C in the ALMS1 gene were identified as deleterious mutations. In this study, a single case of Alstrom syndrome was reported with childhood obesity, acanthosis nigricans, and hyperinsulinemia as the main manifestations, and two new ALMSl gene mutations were discovered, which expanded the phenotype and pathogenic mutation spectrum of Alstrom syndrome.