2.Research progress on hereditary endocrine and metabolic diseases associated with sensorineural hearing loss.
Fang CHEN ; Qinying ZHANG ; Qiujing ZHANG ; Qiuju WANG
Journal of Clinical Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery 2024;38(1):63-69
Hereditary endocrine and metabolic diseases , caused by genetic factors, exhibit complex and diverse symptoms, including the possibility of concurrent sensorineural deafness. Currently, there is a limited clinical understanding of hereditary endocrine and metabolic diseases that manifest with deafness, the pathogenesis remains unclear,and there is a lack of effective diagnostic and treatment methods. This article summarizes the research progress of hereditary endocrine and metabolic diseases complicated with deafness from the pathogenesis, clinical phenotype, diagnosis and treatment. Understanding the current research progress and integrating genetic analysis into clinical practice are crucial for accurate diagnosis and treatment, evaluating clinical efficacy, and providing effective genetic counseling for these diseases.
Humans
;
Deafness/genetics*
;
Hearing Loss, Sensorineural/diagnosis*
;
Phenotype
;
Metabolic Diseases/genetics*
;
Genetic Counseling
3.Promotion effect of FGF23 on osteopenia in congenital scoliosis through FGFr3/TNAP/OPN pathway.
Hongqi ZHANG ; Gang XIANG ; Jiong LI ; Sihan HE ; Yunjia WANG ; Ang DENG ; Yuxiang WANG ; Chaofeng GUO
Chinese Medical Journal 2023;136(12):1468-1477
BACKGROUND:
Congenital scoliosis (CS) is a complex spinal malformation of unknown etiology with abnormal bone metabolism. Fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23), secreted by osteoblasts and osteocytes, can inhibit bone formation and mineralization. This research aims to investigate the relationship between CS and FGF23.
METHODS:
We collected peripheral blood from two pairs of identical twins for methylation sequencing of the target region. FGF23 mRNA levels in the peripheral blood of CS patients and age-matched controls were measured. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were conducted to evaluate the specificity and sensitivity of FGF23. The expression levels of FGF23 and its downstream factors fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFr3)/tissue non-specific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP)/osteopontin (OPN) in primary osteoblasts from CS patients (CS-Ob) and controls (CT-Ob) were detected. In addition, the osteogenic abilities of FGF23-knockdown or FGF23-overexpressing Ob were examined.
RESULTS:
DNA methylation of the FGF23 gene in CS patients was decreased compared to that of their identical twins, accompanied by increased mRNA levels. CS patients had increased peripheral blood FGF23 mRNA levels and decreased computed tomography (CT) values compared with controls. The FGF23 mRNA levels were negatively correlated with the CT value of the spine, and ROCs of FGF23 mRNA levels showed high sensitivity and specificity for CS. Additionally, significantly increased levels of FGF23, FGFr3, OPN, impaired osteogenic mineralization and lower TNAP levels were observed in CS-Ob. Moreover, FGF23 overexpression in CT-Ob increased FGFr3 and OPN levels and decreased TNAP levels, while FGF23 knockdown induced downregulation of FGFr3 and OPN but upregulation of TNAP in CS-Ob. Mineralization of CS-Ob was rescued after FGF23 knockdown.
CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggested increased peripheral blood FGF23 levels, decreased bone mineral density in CS patients, and a good predictive ability of CS by peripheral blood FGF23 levels. FGF23 may contribute to osteopenia in CS patients through FGFr3/TNAP / OPN pathway.
Humans
;
Osteopontin/genetics*
;
Alkaline Phosphatase/metabolism*
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Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 3/metabolism*
;
Scoliosis/genetics*
;
Osteoblasts/metabolism*
;
Calcinosis
;
RNA, Messenger/metabolism*
;
Bone Diseases, Metabolic/metabolism*
;
Fibroblast Growth Factors/genetics*
4.Research progress on the role and clinical significance of DNA methylation in early nutritional programming.
Acta Physiologica Sinica 2023;75(3):403-412
Early life nutritional environment is not only associated with the growth and development of children, but also affects the health of adults. Numerous epidemiological and animal studies suggest that early nutritional programming is an important physiological and pathological mechanism. DNA methylation is one of the important mechanisms of nutritional programming, which is catalyzed by DNA methyltransferase, a specific base of DNA covalently binds to a methyl group, to regulate gene expression. In this review, we summarize the role of DNA methylation in the "abnormal developmental planning" of key metabolic organs caused by excessive nutrition in early life, resulting in long-term obesity and metabolic disorders in the offspring, and explore the clinical significance of regulating DNA methylation levels through dietary interventions to prevent or reverse the occurrence of metabolic disorders in the early stage in a "deprogramming" manner.
Humans
;
Animals
;
Female
;
DNA Methylation
;
Epigenesis, Genetic
;
Clinical Relevance
;
Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena
;
Metabolic Diseases
6.Application of live biotherapeutic products and perspective in the treatment of inherited metabolic disease.
Zhaowei CHEN ; Min GUO ; Huajun ZHENG
Chinese Journal of Biotechnology 2023;39(4):1290-1303
Live biotherapeutic products (LBPs) refer to the living bacteria derived from human body intestinal gut or in nature that can be used to treat the human disease. However, the naturally screened living bacteria have some disadvantages, such as deficient therapeutic effect and great divergence, which fall short of the personalized diagnosis and treatment needs. In recent years, with the development of synthetic biology, researchers have designed and constructed several engineered strains that can respond to external complex environmental signals, which speeded up the process of development and application of LBPs. Recombinant LBPs modified by gene editing can have therapeutic effect on specific diseases. Inherited metabolic disease is a type of disease that causes a series of clinical symptoms due to the genetic defect of some enzymes in the body, which may cause abnormal metabolism the corresponding metabolites. Therefore, the use of synthetic biology to design LBPs targeting specific defective enzymes will be promising for the treatment of inherited metabolic defects in the future. This review summarizes the clinic applications of LBPs and its potential for the treatment of inherited metabolic defects.
Humans
;
Bacteria/genetics*
;
Gene Editing
;
Metabolic Diseases/therapy*
7.A descriptive analysis of hyperlipidemia in adult twins in China.
Ke MIAO ; Wei Hua CAO ; Jun LYU ; Can Qing YU ; Sheng Feng WANG ; Tao HUANG ; Dian Jian Yi SUN ; Chun Xiao LIAO ; Yuan Jie PANG ; Zeng Chang PANG ; Min YU ; Hua WANG ; Xian Ping WU ; Zhong DONG ; Fan WU ; Guo Hong JIANG ; Xiao Jie WANG ; Yu LIU ; Jian DENG ; Lin LU ; Wen Jing GAO ; Li Ming LI
Chinese Journal of Epidemiology 2023;44(4):544-551
Objective: To describe the distribution characteristics of hyperlipidemia in adult twins in the Chinese National Twin Registry (CNTR) and explore the effect of genetic and environmental factors on hyperlipidemia. Methods: Twins recruited from the CNTR in 11 project areas across China were included in the study. A total of 69 130 (34 565 pairs) of adult twins with complete information on hyperlipidemia were selected for analysis. The random effect model was used to characterize the population and regional distribution of hyperlipidemia among twins. The concordance rates of hyperlipidemia were calculated in monozygotic twins (MZ) and dizygotic twins (DZ), respectively, to estimate the heritability. Results: The age of all participants was (34.2±12.4) years. This study's prevalence of hyperlipidemia was 1.3% (895/69 130). Twin pairs who were men, older, living in urban areas, married,had junior college degree or above, overweight, obese, insufficient physical activity, current smokers, ex-smokers, current drinkers, and ex-drinkers had a higher prevalence of hyperlipidemia (P<0.05). In within-pair analysis, the concordance rate of hyperlipidemia was 29.1% (118/405) in MZ and 18.1% (57/315) in DZ, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Stratified by gender, age, and region, the concordance rate of hyperlipidemia in MZ was still higher than that in DZ. Further, in within-same-sex twin pair analyses, the heritability of hyperlipidemia was 13.04% (95%CI: 2.61%-23.47%) in the northern group and 18.59% (95%CI: 4.43%-32.74%) in the female group, respectively. Conclusions: Adult twins were included in this study and were found to have a lower prevalence of hyperlipidemia than in the general population study, with population and regional differences. Genetic factors influence hyperlipidemia, but the genetic effect may vary with gender and area.
Adult
;
Female
;
Humans
;
Male
;
Middle Aged
;
Young Adult
;
China/epidemiology*
;
Diseases in Twins/genetics*
;
Hyperlipidemias/genetics*
;
Metabolic Diseases
;
Twins, Dizygotic
;
Twins, Monozygotic/genetics*
9.Research progress of the regulatory role of autophagy in metabolic liver diseases.
Yu Xian LI ; Feng REN ; Yu CHEN
Chinese Journal of Hepatology 2023;31(1):105-108
Autophagy is one of several hepatic metabolic processes in which starved cells are supplied with glucose, free fatty acids, and amino acids to produce energy and synthesize new macromolecules. Moreover, it regulates the quantity and quality of mitochondria and other organelles. As the liver is a vital metabolic organ, specific forms of autophagy are necessary for maintaining liver homeostasis. Protein, fat, and sugar are the three primary nutrients that can be altered by different metabolic liver diseases. Drugs that have an effect on autophagy can either promote or inhibit autophagy, and as a result, it can either increase or inhibit the three major nutritional metabolisms that are affected by liver disease. Thus, this opens up a novel therapeutic option for liver disease.
Humans
;
Liver/metabolism*
;
Liver Diseases
;
Autophagy
;
Metabolic Diseases
;
Mitochondria
10.Impaired autophagy activity-induced abnormal differentiation of bone marrow stem cells is related to adolescent idiopathic scoliosis osteopenia.
Hongqi ZHANG ; Guanteng YANG ; Jiong LI ; Lige XIAO ; Chaofeng GUO ; Yuxiang WANG
Chinese Medical Journal 2023;136(17):2077-2085
BACKGROUND:
Osteopenia has been well documented in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). Bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) are a crucial regulator of bone homeostasis. Our previous study revealed a decreased osteogenic ability of BMSCs in AIS-related osteopenia, but the underlying mechanism of this phenomenon remains unclear.
METHODS:
A total of 22 AIS patients and 18 age-matched controls were recruited for this study. Anthropometry and bone mass were measured in all participants. Bone marrow blood was collected for BMSC isolation and culture. Osteogenic and adipogenic induction were performed to observe the differences in the differentiation of BMSCs between the AIS-related osteopenia group and the control group. Furthermore, a total RNA was extracted from isolated BMSCs to perform RNA sequencing and subsequent analysis.
RESULTS:
A lower osteogenic capacity and increased adipogenic capacity of BMSCs in AIS-related osteopenia were revealed. Differences in mRNA expression levels between the AIS-related osteopenia group and the control group were identified, including differences in the expression of LRRC17 , DCLK1 , PCDH7 , TSPAN5 , NHSL2 , and CPT1B . Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses revealed several biological processes involved in the regulation of autophagy and mitophagy. The Western blotting results of autophagy markers in BMSCs suggested impaired autophagic activity in BMSCs in the AIS-related osteopenia group.
CONCLUSION
Our study revealed that BMSCs from AIS-related osteopenia patients have lower autophagic activity, which may be related to the lower osteogenic capacity and higher adipogenic capacity of BMSCs and consequently lead to the lower bone mass in AIS patients.
Humans
;
Adolescent
;
Scoliosis/genetics*
;
Cell Differentiation/physiology*
;
Osteogenesis/genetics*
;
Bone Diseases, Metabolic/genetics*
;
Kyphosis
;
Autophagy/genetics*
;
Bone Marrow Cells
;
Cells, Cultured
;
Doublecortin-Like Kinases

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