Objective Based on the radiomics features extracted from the unenhanced CT images of the lower abdomen, a variety of machine learning models were constructed to explore their application value in the assessment of split renal function. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the unenhanced CT images from 240 single kidneys in patients with clinically suspected renal dysfunction. Based on the results of single-photon emission computed tomography renal dynamic imaging, the cases were classified into the normal glomerular filtration rate group (n=118) and the decreased glomerular filtration rate group (n=122). The region of interest was outlined on the unenhanced CT images and the radiomics features were extracted. The features were selected by correlation analysis and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator, and the machine learning models were constructed based on the algorithms of decision tree, support vector machine, random forest, logistic regression, and extreme gradient boosting. Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity were calculated to compare the performance of different models. Results Sixteen radiomics features were selected for constructing the machine learning models. The support vector machine model showed relatively high performance for the assessment of split renal function on the test set, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve value of 0.883 (95% confidence interval: 0.804-0.961), an accuracy of 0.778, a sensitivity of 0.811, and a specificity of 0.743. Conclusion The machine learning models constructed based on unenhanced CT radiomics can be used to preliminarily assess split renal function, which provides an innovative, convenient, and safe method for clinical diagnosis and has positive significance for treatment.

Objective:To investigate the risk factors and their warning effectiveness for postoperative intestinal barrier dysfunction (IBD) in patients with severe traumatic brain injury (sTBI).Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted to analyze the clinical data of 101 patients with sTBI admitted to Wuxi Branch of Zhongda Hospital Affiliated to Southeast University from May 2020 to February 2023, including 63 males and 38 females, aged 21-81 years [(53.4±14.2)years]. All the patients underwent emergency surgery. The patients were divided into IBD group ( n=67) and non-IBD group ( n=34) according to whether or not they had IBD after surgery. The gender, age, basic diseases (hypertension and diabetes), types of intracranial hematoma (subdural, epidural, and intracerebral hematoma), preoperative Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), cerebral hernia, intraoperative initial intracranial pressure (iICP), operation time, removal of bone flap, treatment time in ICU, initiation time of enteral nutrition, and use of broad-spectrum antibiotics were recorded in the two groups. Univariate and multivariate binary Logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess the correlations between above-mentioned indicators and incidence of postoperative IBD in sTBI patients and determine the independent risk factors for sTBI. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and area under the curve (AUC) were used to evaluate the warning effectiveness of each risk factor for IBD. Results:The results of the univariate analysis showed that preoperative GCS, cerebral hernia, intraoperative iICP, removal of bone flap, treatment time in ICU, initiation time of enteral nutrition, and use of broad-spectrum antibiotics were significantly correlated with the incidence of IBD in sTBI patients ( P<0.05 or 0.01), while there were no correlations of IBD with gender, age, basic diseases, types of intracranial hematoma and operation time ( P>0.05). The results of the multivariate binary Logistic regression analysis showed that preoperative GCS≤5 points ( OR=2.49, 95% CI 1.17, 5.32, P<0.05), intraoperative iICP>23 mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa)( OR=1.20, 95% CI 1.03, 1.39, P<0.05), and initiation time of enteral nutrition>24 hours ( OR=10.03, 95% CI 1.26, 80.21, P<0.05) were highly correlated with postoperative IBD in sTBI patients. The results of the ROC curve analysis showed that intraoperative iICP had the highest warning value (AUC=0.91, 95% CI 0.85, 0.96), followed by preoperative GCS (AUC=0.88, 95% CI 0.82, 0.95), and initiation time of enteral nutrition had the lowest warning value (AUC=0.78, 95% CI 0.69, 0.87). Conclusions:Preoperative GCS≤5 points, intraoperative iICP>23 mmHg, and initiation time of enteral nutrition>24 hours are independent risk factors for postoperative IBD in sTBI patients. The warning value of intraoperative iICP ranks the highest for postoperative IBD in sTBI patients, followed by preoperative GCS, with initiation time of enteral nutrition having the lowest warning value.

Objective:To compare the genetic spectrums of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients with different prognosis after postoperative radiotherapy and to screen the genetic variants associated with radiotherapy resistance.Methods:A total of 32 ESCC patients who received radical surgery and postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy in Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University from January 2015 to December 2019 were selected as the study objects. According to whether there was any recurrence in the radiation field within 1 year, they were divided into a recurrence group (radiotherapy resistance group, n=16) and a stable group (radiotherapy sensitive group, n=16). Genomic DNA was extracted from patients and high-throughput sequencing was performed using whole exome sequencing (WES) technology. Biological information analysis software Trimmomatic, BWA and Picard were used to process the data and the alignment files were obtained by GATK comparison, then Vardict software was used to screen out various genetic variants from the sequencing data. The disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were estimated by Kaplan-Meier method. Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to analyze the independent risk factors of DFS and OS of ESCC patients. Results:After quality control of the sample data, 26 patients were finally included in this study for follow-up analysis, 13 in each of the recurrence and stable groups. The median tumor mutation burden of non-silent tumors in the whole group was 0.95 mutations/Mb. The substitution types of mutant bases were mainly C>T conversion, followed by C>G transmutation. The genetic variants with the highest frequency were single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (75.1%), deletion mutation (13.7%) and insertion mutation (10.5%). The number of tumor-specific mutations in the recurrence group was slightly higher than that in the stable group (median mutation number was 36 and 34, respectively), and the top ten gene profiles of mutation frequency were significantly different between the two groups. In the recurrence group, 392 unique mutated genes were detected, and the top five were MUC19, NPIPA5, EPPK1, FLG and FOXG1. In the stable group, 192 unique mutation genes were detected, and the top five were TCHH, WNK1, AIM1L, COL6A5 and DPCR1. The median DFS and OS were 15.0 months (95% CI: 10.1 months-not reached) and 26.2 months (95% CI: 19.8 months-not reached) in the recurrence group respectively, and no recurrence or metastasis occurred in the stable group. Univariate analysis showed that GRIK2 ( χ2=6.81, P=0.009), MUC4 ( χ2=4.25, P=0.039), MUC5B ( χ2=4.03, P=0.045), PRRG1 ( χ2=5.15, P=0.023) gene mutations, 3p deletion ( χ2=4.16, P=0.041) and 14q deletion ( χ2=7.09, P=0.008) were correlated with DFS. FLG ( χ2=6.41, P=0.011), NPIPA5 ( χ2=4.57, P=0.033), PKD1L2 ( χ2=6.41, P=0.011), FOXG1 ( χ2=4.57, P=0.033) gene mutations, 3p deletion ( χ2=3.88, P=0.049), 14q deletion ( χ2=5.66, P=0.017) and 18p deletion ( χ2=3.85, P=0.050) were associated with OS. Multivariate analysis showed that 14q deletion ( HR=3.65, 95% CI: 1.18-11.32, P=0.025) was an independent risk factor for DFS of ESCC patients with postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy, and FLG ( HR=8.94, 95% CI: 1.52-52.74, P=0.016), NPIPA5 ( HR=6.36, 95% CI: 1.23-33.03, P=0.028) gene mutation and 14q deletion ( HR=3.82, 95% CI: 1.18-12.31, P=0.025) were independent risk factors for OS of ESCC patients with postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy. Conclusion:The WES results suggest that the types and rates of gene mutations of the ESCC patients with postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy in the recurrence and stable groups are basically the same, but the mutation spectrum of the two groups is significantly different. FLG, NPIPA5 gene mutations and 14q deletion can be used as molecular markers to predict the prognosis of ESCC patients treated with postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy.

Objective:To evaluate the acute effects of different foot-strike patterns of running on knee cartilage in amateur marathon runners using the T 2* mapping technique. Methods:From November 2021 to February 2022, 29 amateur marathon runners were recruited in Hangzhou. The gait analysis was performed to determine their landing patterns, then the runners were divided into the fore-foot strike (FFS) group (11 cases) and the rear-foot strike (RFS) group (18 cases). The MRI of the knee joint of the dominant leg was performed before and 30 min after running, and the volume, thickness, and T 2* value of each division of knee cartilage were measured. Independent samples t-tests were used to compare the differences in baseline data before running between the groups, and paired samples t-tests were used to compare the differences before and after running within the groups. Results:The difference in knee cartilage volume and thickness between the FFS and RFS groups before running was not statistically significant ( P>0.05), and the T 2* value of the femur medial posterior in the RFS group was higher than that of the FFS group ( t=-2.47, P=0.020). Compared with pre-running, cartilage thickness of the tibia lateral posterior decreased in the FFS group after running ( t=-2.96, P=0.016), and cartilage thickness of the tibia lateral posterior and patella lateral central decreased in the RFS group ( t=-3.25, -3.02, P=0.004, 0.007). Cartilage volume of the tibia lateral posterior decreased in the FFS group after running ( t=-2.58, P=0.030), and the cartilage volume of the patella lateral central decreased in the RFS group ( t=-2.74, P=0.013). The differences in T 2* values of cartilage in each region before and after running were not statistically significant in the FFS group ( P>0.05), whereas in the RFS group, the cartilage T 2* values in the femur medial posterior, femoral trochanter central, femoral trochanter lateral, femur lateral central, tibia lateral anterior, tibia medial posterior, tibia medial central, and tibia medial anterior decreased ( P<0.05). Conclusions:After running, FFS showed changes in morphology and biochemical composition only in some subregions of tibial cartilage, whereas most of the femoral cartilage, patellar cartilage, and tibial cartilage regions were altered by RFS. The RFS pattern introduces greater acute changes in cartilage in the knee joint.

Hepatic fibrosis is a pathological process in which the liver is subjected to various acute and chronic injuries for a long time, resulting in activation of hepatic stellate cells, the imbalance between the production and degradation of extracellular matrix, and the deposition of extracellular matrix in the liver, and it is jointly controlled by multiple cellular signal transduction pathways and a series of cellular information molecular networks. If there is no effective treatment, with the progression of the disease, liver fibrous nodules will form, destroy normal liver structure and function, and finally develop into liver cirrhosis, the decline of liver function, and even liver cancer. This article summarizes the research advances in the signaling pathways, receptors, and non-coding RNAs involved in liver fibrosis and the corresponding anti-hepatic fibrosis drugs/molecules.

Objective: Evidence supports the efficacy of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA)-based risk scores in cardiovascular risk stratification of patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD). We aimed to compare two CCTAbased risk score algorithms, Leiden and Confirm scores, in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and suspected CAD. Materials and Methods: This single-center prospective cohort study consecutively included 1241 DM patients (54.1% male, 60.2 ± 10.4 years) referred for CCTA for suspected CAD in 2015–2017. Leiden and Confirm scores were calculated and stratified as < 5 (reference), 5–20, and > 20 for Leiden and < 14.3 (reference), 14.3–19.5, and > 19.5 for Confirm. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were defined as the composite outcomes of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and unstable angina requiring hospitalization. The Cox model and Kaplan–Meier method were used to evaluate the effect size of the risk scores on MACE. The area under the curve (AUC) at the median follow-up time was also compared between score algorithms. Results: During a median follow-up of 31 months (interquartile range, 27.6–37.3 months), 131 of MACE were recorded, including 17 cardiovascular deaths, 28 nonfatal MIs, 64 unstable anginas requiring hospitalization, and 22 strokes. An incremental incidence of MACE was observed in both Leiden and Confirm scores, with an increase in the scores (log-rank p < 0.001). In the multivariable analysis, compared with Leiden score < 5, the hazard ratios for Leiden scores of 5–20 and > 20 were 2.37 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.53–3.69; p < 0.001) and 4.39 (95% CI: 2.40–8.01; p < 0.001), respectively, while the Confirm score did not demonstrate a statistically significant association with the risk of MACE. The Leiden score showed a greater AUC of 0.840 compared to 0.777 for the Confirm score (p < 0.001). Conclusion CCTA-based risk score algorithms could be used as reliable cardiovascular risk predictors in patients with DM and suspected CAD, among which the Leiden score outperformed the Confirm score in predicting MACE.

Understanding the regulatory networks for germ cell fate specification is necessary to developing strategies for improving the efficiency of germ cell production in vitro. In this study, we developed a coupled screening strategy that took advantage of an arrayed bi-molecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) platform for protein-protein interaction screens and epiblast-like cell (EpiLC)-induction assays using reporter mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). Investigation of candidate interaction partners of core human pluripotent factors OCT4, NANOG, KLF4 and SOX2 in EpiLC differentiation assays identified novel primordial germ cell (PGC)-inducing factors including BEN-domain (BEND/Bend) family members. Through RNA-seq, ChIP-seq, and ATAC-seq analyses, we showed that Bend5 worked together with Bend4 and helped mark chromatin boundaries to promote EpiLC induction in vitro. Our findings suggest that BEND/Bend proteins represent a new family of transcriptional modulators and chromatin boundary factors that participate in gene expression regulation during early germline development.
Animals ; Cell Differentiation/genetics* ; Chromatin/metabolism* ; Embryonic Stem Cells ; Germ Cells/metabolism* ; Germ Layers/metabolism* ; Mice

Purpose: Increasing evidence has shown an association of surgical technique, particularly anastomotic configuration, with postoperative recurrence of CD. This pilot study aimed to evaluate short-term outcomes of isoperistaltic side-to-side anastomosis (ISSA) employed on Crohn disease (CD) patients. Methods: Data were retrieved from a prospectively maintained database. Postoperatively, all patients were followed up with close endoscopic (ileocolonoscopy) surveillance. Results: From January 2017 to May 2021, 30 patients diagnosed with CD who underwent ISSA were compared with 45 CD patients who underwent antiperistaltic side-to-side anastomosis (ASSA). The 2 groups were comparable in baseline demographics and clinical characteristics. No significant differences were observed between groups regarding postoperative safety issues, including anastomotic leak, abdominal/pelvic abscess, length of hospital stay, readmission rate within 30 days, etc. At postoperative 24th month, reduced endoscopic recurrence was observed in the ISSA group compared with that in the ASSA group (18 of 24, 75.0%, vs. 36 of 38, 94.7%; P = 0.024). Regarding surgical recurrence, there was 0% in the ISSA group vs. 4.4% (2 of 45) in the ASSA group (P = 0.510). Conclusion In this study, we aimed to explore the influence of ISSA on postoperative recurrence in CD patients, and the preliminary results show that ISSA was technically safe and feasible, and appears to be effective in reducing postoperative recurrence in CD patients. However, our conclusion was underpowered due to small sample size and inadequate followup. We proposed ISSA be considered as another alternative option in the toolbox of inflammatory bowel disease surgeons when performing anastomosis on CD patients.

Objective:To explore the serum tenascin-C levels in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and its impact on the long-term prognosis.Methods:One hundred and thirteen STEMI patients who were admitted to the Department of Cardiology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University and successfully underwent emergency PCI from June 2015 to June 2016 were included in this prospective study. The serum tenascin-C levels were measured during hospitalization, and the patients were divided into tenascin-C ≥ 120 μg/L group and tenascin-C<120 μg/L group according to the serum tenascin-C level. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were observed during the 5 years follow up in all patients. According to the incidence of MACE, the patients were divided into MACE group and non-MACE group, and the predictive factors of MACE were analyzed. Continuous variables were presented as the mean±standard deviation and compared with the Student′s t-test. Categorical variables were presented as percentages and compared with the Chi-square test or Fisher′s exact test. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the value of serum tenascin-C level in predicting MACE in STEMI patients. Kaplan Meier survival analysis was used to compare the incidence of MACE between two groups. Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to analyze the risk factors of MACE during the 5 years follow up.Results:The serum tenascin-C levels in the STEMI patients increased on the first day after the onset of disease (46.5±24.8 μg/L), peaked on the third day (97.5±41.2 μg/L), and then gradually decreased. All patients were followed up for 5 years. There were 37 cases of MACE, including 4 cases of cardiac death (3.5%), 14 cases of heart failure (12.4%), 14 cases of recurrent myocardial infarction or revascularization (12.4%), and 5 cases of stroke (4.4%). For prediction of MACE, the area under the curve of the serum TN-C level was 0.953 (95% CI 0.918-0.988, P<0.05), which was thus a valuable biomarker in predicting MACE for STEMI patients. The incidence of MACE in the group of tenascin-C≥120 μg/L group was higher than that in the group of tenascin-C<120 μg/L group (86.4% [19/22] vs 19.8% [18/91]), and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that the difference was statistically significant ( P<0.05). Cox proportional hazards model analysis showed that serum tenascin-C level was an independent predictor of MACE for STEMI patients during the 5 years follow-up ( HR=1.007, 95% CI 1.001-1.012, P<0.05). In addition, other variables including high sensitivity C-reactive protein ( HR=1.028, 95% CI 1.007-1.049, P<0.05), and cardiac troponin Ⅰ ( HR=1.004, 95% CI 1.000-1.008, P<0.05) were also found to be the independent predictors of MACE. Conclusions:The serum tenascin-C levels in STEMI patients increased significantly during the acute disease phase. Detecting the serum tenascin-C levels is valuable for predicting MACE in STEMI patients, and serum tenascin-C is an independent predictor of MACE in STEMI patients during the long-term follow-up period after acute myocardial infarction.

Motor imagery (MI) is an important paradigm of driving brain computer interface (BCI). However, MI is not easy to control or acquire, and the performance of MI-BCI depends heavily on the performance of the subjects' MI. Therefore, the correct execution of MI mental activities, ability evaluation and improvement methods play important and even critical roles in the improvement and application of MI-BCI system's performance. However, in the research and development of MI-BCI, the existing researches mainly focus on the decoding algorithm of MI, but do not pay enough attention to the above three aspects of MI mental activities. In this paper, these problems of MI-BCI are discussed in detail, and it is pointed out that the subjects tend to use visual motor imagery as kinesthetic motor imagery. In the future, we need to develop some objective, quantitatively visualized MI ability evaluation methods, and develop some effective and less time-consumption training methods to improve MI ability. It is also necessary to solve the differences and commonness of MI problems between and within individuals and MI-BCI illiteracy to a certain extent.
Algorithms ; Brain-Computer Interfaces ; Electroencephalography ; Humans ; Imagery, Psychotherapy ; Imagination