1.Molecular mechanisms and diagnostic value of seminal plasma exosomal miR-26a-5p targeting PTEN in idiopathic teratozoospermia
Chunhui LIU ; Ruipeng WU ; Zhiqiang WANG ; Wensheng SHAN ; Shaojun LI
The Journal of Practical Medicine 2025;41(20):3256-3266
Objective This study aims to elucidate the functional mechanism through which seminal plasma exosomal miR-26a-5p and its target genes contribute to idiopathic teratozoospermia,with emphasis on their regulatory pathways in sperm morphogenesis defects,thereby establishing a theoretical foundation for novel diagnostic markers and targeted therapies.Methods A case-control study design was adopted,enrolling 154 male subjects(84 in the teratozoospermia group[TZS]and 70 in the normal control group[NC]).Seminal plasma exosomes were isolated to screen differentially expressed miRNAs,followed by prediction and analysis of target genes and signaling pathways.Dual-luciferase reporter gene assays were employed to validate the direct binding of miR-26a-5p to PTEN.Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot were used to measure miRNA and protein expression levels.Spearman correlation analysis evaluated relationships between miR-26a-5p,PTEN,and sperm morphological parameters,while ROC curve analysis assessed diagnostic efficacy.Results Seminal plasma exosomal miRNA sequencing identified 11 differentially expressed miRNAs,with miR-26a-5p significantly upregulated in the TZS group(P<0.05)and negatively correlated with the percentage of normal sperm morphology in TZS(r=-0.762,P<0.05).PTEN was confirmed as a direct target of miR-26a-5p,with its expression significantly reduced in the TZS group(P<0.05)and positively correlated with normal sperm morphology(r=0.821,P<0.05).A negative correlation was observed between miR-26a-5p and PTEN(r=-0.878,P<0.05).Dual-luciferase assays demonstrated that miR-26a-5p specifically inhibited PTEN 3'UTR activity(45%reduction in luciferase activity,P<0.05).Functional enrichment analysis revealed that the miR-26a-5p-PTEN axis exacerbates oxidative stress,DNA damage,and abnormal spermatocyte division by regulating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR,p53,Wnt/β-catenin,and NF-κB pathways.ROC analysis showed diagnostic efficacy for teratozoospermia with AUCROC values of 0.785(sensitivity 78.9%,specificity 71.3%)for miR-26a-5p and 0.754(sensitivity 73.3%,specificity 75.1%)for PTEN.Conclusions miR-26a-5p suppresses PTEN through targeted inhibition,activating PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathways while impairing DNA repair functions.This cascade leads to accumulated oxidative stress and sperm morphological abnormalities.The combined pattern of elevated seminal plasma exosomal miR-26a-5p expression and reduced PTEN levels demonstrates diagnostic potential for idiopathic teratozoospermia,with its molecular mechanism providing a theoretical foundation for biomarker development.Targeted silencing of miR-26a-5p,either alone or in combination with AKT/mTOR inhibitors and antioxidant therapy,may represent a novel strategy for improving sperm morphology.
2.Clinical efficacy of vericiguat in combination with"Quadruple Therapy"for patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction in real-world settings
Lin CHEN ; Baochuan WU ; Shaojun WU ; Yi WANG ; Yibei FU ; Xiaoli LIU ; Rong GU
The Journal of Practical Medicine 2025;41(9):1379-1386
Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of vericiguat combined with the new"Quadruple Therapy"for treating heart failure with reduced ejection fraction(HFrEF)and to explore its impact on left ventricular reverse remodeling(LVRR)in patients with different baseline characteristics.Methods A total of 87 patients with chronic heart failure treated with vericiguat at the Department of Cardiology,Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital from June 2022 to March 2024,were consecutively enrolled as the observation group.These patients were matched at 1:1 by age,sex,and left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF)with 87 patients who received the standard quadruple therapy without vericiguat as the control group.Propensity score matching was used to further balance confounding factors,resulting in 64 patients in each group for final analysis.Changes in echocardiographic parameters,liver and kidney function,electrolyte levels,and blood pressure were analyzed at baseline and during the 6-month follow-up to assess the efficacy and safety of vericiguat.The primary efficacy endpoint was the occurrence of LVRR.Subgroup analyses were conducted based on baseline characteristics such as age and sex.Interaction analysis was utilized to evaluate the heterogeneity of vericiguat's efficacy.Results After 6 months of treatment,the vericiguat group showed significant improvements in cardiac structure and function compared to the control group.The left ventricular end-diastolic diameter was significantly reduced[-0.43(-1.00,-0.10)mm vs.-0.22(-0.53,0.02)mm,P=0.002],and the LVEF was significantly increased[8.45%(1.40%,16.50%)vs.2.75%(0,11.00%),P=0.002].The percentage of patients in the vericiguat group who achieved LVRR was significantly larger than in the control group(46.4%vs.27.4%,P=0.011).Multivariate logistic regression revealed that the combination of vericiguat was an independent predictor of LVRR(Model 2:OR=2.54,95%CI:1.29~5.01,P=0.007).The reverse remodeling effect remained consistent across different subgroups and was not significantly influenced by specific baseline characteristics(Pinteraction>0.05).Vericiguat did not affect blood pressure,liver and kidney function,or electrolyte levels,achieving satisfactory safety,despite its significantly higher incidence of gastrointestinal reactions(16.1%vs.5.7%,P<0.001).Conclusion The addition of vericiguat to the quadruple therapy significantly improves cardiac function and promotes left ventricular reverse remodeling in HFrEF patients while maintaining a favorable safety profile.
3.Analysis of infection status and genetic evolution of B2L and F1L genes in epidemic orf virus isolates from primary goat and sheep-producing areas in Anhui Province from 2021 to 2023
Liujun ZHANG ; Jiale CHEN ; Xing FENG ; Weizhen CHEN ; Yafei DENG ; Bo WANG ; Guolin ZUO ; Shaojun HE ; Honglei XIN ; Deyi LIU
Chinese Journal of Zoonoses 2025;41(7):697-703
This study was aimed at investigating the infection status of orf virus(ORFV)and the genetic evolution characteristics of epidemic ORFV isolates from Anhui province.A total of 303 clinical samples collected from major meat sheep breeding cities in An-hui during 2021-2023 were subjected to ORFV detection with fluorescence quantitative PCR(qPCR).The full-length B2L and F1L genes of ORFV in the positive samples were amplified through conventional PCR and sequenced.Genetic evolution analysis of the B2L and F1L genes was conducted after sequencing.The qPCR results indicated a total ORFV positivity rate in the clinical samples of 48.8%(148/303).Multiple sequence comparisons indicated that the B2L genes of 56 sample isolates shared 96.7%-100.0%DNA and 97.4%-100.0%amino acid sequence identity.Moreover,the F2L genes of 56 sample isolates shared 95.1%-100.0%DNA and 95.0%-100.0%amino acid sequence identity.The genetic evolution tree constructed with the B2L gene DNA sequences indicated sample iso-lates and 21 reference strains located in subgroup 1,and 26 sheep-derived sample isolates and 17 reference strains located in sub-group 2.Among them,the goat-derived sample isolate FY-TYA was located in the same sub-branch as the human-derived reference strain Gansu,whereas the goat-derived sample isolate FY-XQC was located in the same sub-branch as the reference strains China Vaccine and OV-HLJ-04.The genetic evolution tree constructed with the F1L gene DNA sequences showed,the goat sample isolates FY-XQA and FY-XQC were located in the same sub-branch as the sheep-derived reference strain Xinjiang.ORFV infection was rela-tively widespread in the major meat sheep breeding areas of Anhui province,and the DNA and amino acid sequences of the B2L and F1L genes of current circulating ORFV isolates showed different degrees of genetic variation,among which F1L gene had a high de-gree of variation.Furthermore,some goat-derived sample isolates were closely related to human,vaccine,and sheep-derived refer-ence strains.These results may serve as a reference for the prevention and control of ORFV infection in Anhui province.
4.Molecular mechanisms and diagnostic value of seminal plasma exosomal miR-26a-5p targeting PTEN in idiopathic teratozoospermia
Chunhui LIU ; Ruipeng WU ; Zhiqiang WANG ; Wensheng SHAN ; Shaojun LI
The Journal of Practical Medicine 2025;41(20):3256-3266
Objective This study aims to elucidate the functional mechanism through which seminal plasma exosomal miR-26a-5p and its target genes contribute to idiopathic teratozoospermia,with emphasis on their regulatory pathways in sperm morphogenesis defects,thereby establishing a theoretical foundation for novel diagnostic markers and targeted therapies.Methods A case-control study design was adopted,enrolling 154 male subjects(84 in the teratozoospermia group[TZS]and 70 in the normal control group[NC]).Seminal plasma exosomes were isolated to screen differentially expressed miRNAs,followed by prediction and analysis of target genes and signaling pathways.Dual-luciferase reporter gene assays were employed to validate the direct binding of miR-26a-5p to PTEN.Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot were used to measure miRNA and protein expression levels.Spearman correlation analysis evaluated relationships between miR-26a-5p,PTEN,and sperm morphological parameters,while ROC curve analysis assessed diagnostic efficacy.Results Seminal plasma exosomal miRNA sequencing identified 11 differentially expressed miRNAs,with miR-26a-5p significantly upregulated in the TZS group(P<0.05)and negatively correlated with the percentage of normal sperm morphology in TZS(r=-0.762,P<0.05).PTEN was confirmed as a direct target of miR-26a-5p,with its expression significantly reduced in the TZS group(P<0.05)and positively correlated with normal sperm morphology(r=0.821,P<0.05).A negative correlation was observed between miR-26a-5p and PTEN(r=-0.878,P<0.05).Dual-luciferase assays demonstrated that miR-26a-5p specifically inhibited PTEN 3'UTR activity(45%reduction in luciferase activity,P<0.05).Functional enrichment analysis revealed that the miR-26a-5p-PTEN axis exacerbates oxidative stress,DNA damage,and abnormal spermatocyte division by regulating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR,p53,Wnt/β-catenin,and NF-κB pathways.ROC analysis showed diagnostic efficacy for teratozoospermia with AUCROC values of 0.785(sensitivity 78.9%,specificity 71.3%)for miR-26a-5p and 0.754(sensitivity 73.3%,specificity 75.1%)for PTEN.Conclusions miR-26a-5p suppresses PTEN through targeted inhibition,activating PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathways while impairing DNA repair functions.This cascade leads to accumulated oxidative stress and sperm morphological abnormalities.The combined pattern of elevated seminal plasma exosomal miR-26a-5p expression and reduced PTEN levels demonstrates diagnostic potential for idiopathic teratozoospermia,with its molecular mechanism providing a theoretical foundation for biomarker development.Targeted silencing of miR-26a-5p,either alone or in combination with AKT/mTOR inhibitors and antioxidant therapy,may represent a novel strategy for improving sperm morphology.
5.Analysis of infection status and genetic evolution of B2L and F1L genes in epidemic orf virus isolates from primary goat and sheep-producing areas in Anhui Province from 2021 to 2023
Liujun ZHANG ; Jiale CHEN ; Xing FENG ; Weizhen CHEN ; Yafei DENG ; Bo WANG ; Guolin ZUO ; Shaojun HE ; Honglei XIN ; Deyi LIU
Chinese Journal of Zoonoses 2025;41(7):697-703
This study was aimed at investigating the infection status of orf virus(ORFV)and the genetic evolution characteristics of epidemic ORFV isolates from Anhui province.A total of 303 clinical samples collected from major meat sheep breeding cities in An-hui during 2021-2023 were subjected to ORFV detection with fluorescence quantitative PCR(qPCR).The full-length B2L and F1L genes of ORFV in the positive samples were amplified through conventional PCR and sequenced.Genetic evolution analysis of the B2L and F1L genes was conducted after sequencing.The qPCR results indicated a total ORFV positivity rate in the clinical samples of 48.8%(148/303).Multiple sequence comparisons indicated that the B2L genes of 56 sample isolates shared 96.7%-100.0%DNA and 97.4%-100.0%amino acid sequence identity.Moreover,the F2L genes of 56 sample isolates shared 95.1%-100.0%DNA and 95.0%-100.0%amino acid sequence identity.The genetic evolution tree constructed with the B2L gene DNA sequences indicated sample iso-lates and 21 reference strains located in subgroup 1,and 26 sheep-derived sample isolates and 17 reference strains located in sub-group 2.Among them,the goat-derived sample isolate FY-TYA was located in the same sub-branch as the human-derived reference strain Gansu,whereas the goat-derived sample isolate FY-XQC was located in the same sub-branch as the reference strains China Vaccine and OV-HLJ-04.The genetic evolution tree constructed with the F1L gene DNA sequences showed,the goat sample isolates FY-XQA and FY-XQC were located in the same sub-branch as the sheep-derived reference strain Xinjiang.ORFV infection was rela-tively widespread in the major meat sheep breeding areas of Anhui province,and the DNA and amino acid sequences of the B2L and F1L genes of current circulating ORFV isolates showed different degrees of genetic variation,among which F1L gene had a high de-gree of variation.Furthermore,some goat-derived sample isolates were closely related to human,vaccine,and sheep-derived refer-ence strains.These results may serve as a reference for the prevention and control of ORFV infection in Anhui province.
6.Robotic-assisted resection of a rectal mass with situs inversus totalis using the Da Vinci system:a case report and literature review
Shaojun YIN ; Hailong YANG ; Guixian WANG ; Zhen LI ; Weitang YUAN ; Kunkun XIA
Chinese Journal of General Surgery 2025;34(4):778-786
Background and Aims:Complete situs inversus(SIT)is a rare congenital abnormality of organ mirror-image arrangement,presenting certain challenges for abdominal surgical procedures.The Da Vinci robotic system,with its high-definition 3D vision and flexible operation,holds potential for application in patients with anatomical variations.This report presents the diagnosis and treatment process of a patient with rectal mass and SIT who underwent robotic-assisted surgery.Additionally,relevant literature is reviewed to provide insights for individualized surgical strategies in patients with complex anatomical variations and to promote the further clinical application of robotic-assisted surgery systems.Methods:A case from the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University is reported,in which a patient with rectal mass and SIT successfully underwent lesion resection using the Da Vinci robotic system with an unconventional"five-port"technique.A systematic literature review was also conducted(including 35 case reports),to summarize the surgical characteristics of colorectal procedures in SIT patients and the advantages of robotic system application.Results:The patient was a 74-year-old male who presented with rectal bleeding.Imaging confirmed the diagnosis of SIT,and colonoscopy revealed a large polypoid mass with ulceration at the apex,located 13-18 cm from the anal verge.The patient subsequently underwent Da Vinci robotic-assisted resection of the rectal lesion.The robotic system effectively overcame the challenges posed by mirror-image anatomy,enabling complete excision of the lesion.The operation lasted 183 minutes,with intraoperative blood loss of less than 20 mL.Postoperative pathology confirmed a villous tubular adenoma with high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia.The patient had an uneventful recovery,and no recurrence was observed during the 9-month follow-up.Literature analysis demonstrated that the robotic system,through magnified 3D visualization,flexible instrument articulation,and tremor filtration,significantly improves surgical precision in patients with anatomical anomalies.Conclusion:The Da Vinci robotic system effectively addresses the challenges of anatomical variations related to SIT in low rectal surgery.Its stability and precision offer a new technical option for tumor resection under complex anatomical conditions,demonstrating clinical value for widespread application.
7.A real-world study of radiotherapy sequential immunotherapy for stage III non-small cell lung cancer
Congxiu HUANG ; Shaojun WANG ; Yu LIN ; Xiaoge SUN ; Zhilong YU ; Hao YANG ; Zhanbiao HE
Chinese Journal of Radiation Oncology 2025;34(1):57-64
Objective:To evaluate the effects of sequential immunotherapy with radiotherapy on survival time and immune function in patients with unresectable stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in a real-world study.Methods:Data of 84 patients with unresectable stage III NSCLC who were treated at the Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University from January 2021 to December 2022 (retrospective cohort) and from January 2023 to December 2023 (prospective cohort) were collected. The patients were divided into the combination group ( n=40) and radiotherapy group ( n=44) based on whether they received sequential immunotherapy or not. The progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) between two groups were compared using standardized mortality ratio weighting (SMRW). Univariate Cox proportional hazards model, multivariate regression analysis, multi-model comparison of propensity score matching and subgroup analysis were emploed to analyze the robustness of clinical efficacy between two groups. E-value analysis was used to analyze the sensitivity of unmeasured confounding factors in observational studies. Additionally, the percentage of CD4 +T cells, CD8 +T cells and natural killer (NK) cells, and CD4 +/CD8 + T cell ratio before and after treatment between two groups were compared using analysis of covariance. Results:Among 84 patients, 77 (92%) cases were male and 7 (8%) were female. Among them, 42 (50%) were aged 65 years or older. The variables showed high homogeneity after SMRW, with a standardized mean difference of less than 0.1. In the combination group, the median PFS [17.0 months vs. 7.0 months, HR=0.260, 95% CI: 0.130-0.490, P<0.001] and OS [not reached vs. 24.0 months, HR=0.210, 95% CI: 0.070-0.590, P=0.002] were significantly longer compared to that in the radiotherapy group, with statistically significant differences. The study results were confirmed by robustness and sensitivity analyses. After treatment, patients in the combination group showed a statistically significant increase in the percentage of CD4 + T cells and NK cells, and CD4 +/CD8 + T cell ratio, as well as a decrease in the percentage of CD8 + T cells compared to those in the radiotherapy group (all P<0.05). Conclusions:Sequential immunotherapy following radiotherapy can significantly improve survival and prognosis of unresectable stage III NSCLC patients. The survival benefit is even greater when combined with chemotherapy. The main mechanism of the survival benefit may be the improvement of anti-tumor immune function.
8.Clinical efficacy of vericiguat in combination with"Quadruple Therapy"for patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction in real-world settings
Lin CHEN ; Baochuan WU ; Shaojun WU ; Yi WANG ; Yibei FU ; Xiaoli LIU ; Rong GU
The Journal of Practical Medicine 2025;41(9):1379-1386
Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of vericiguat combined with the new"Quadruple Therapy"for treating heart failure with reduced ejection fraction(HFrEF)and to explore its impact on left ventricular reverse remodeling(LVRR)in patients with different baseline characteristics.Methods A total of 87 patients with chronic heart failure treated with vericiguat at the Department of Cardiology,Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital from June 2022 to March 2024,were consecutively enrolled as the observation group.These patients were matched at 1:1 by age,sex,and left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF)with 87 patients who received the standard quadruple therapy without vericiguat as the control group.Propensity score matching was used to further balance confounding factors,resulting in 64 patients in each group for final analysis.Changes in echocardiographic parameters,liver and kidney function,electrolyte levels,and blood pressure were analyzed at baseline and during the 6-month follow-up to assess the efficacy and safety of vericiguat.The primary efficacy endpoint was the occurrence of LVRR.Subgroup analyses were conducted based on baseline characteristics such as age and sex.Interaction analysis was utilized to evaluate the heterogeneity of vericiguat's efficacy.Results After 6 months of treatment,the vericiguat group showed significant improvements in cardiac structure and function compared to the control group.The left ventricular end-diastolic diameter was significantly reduced[-0.43(-1.00,-0.10)mm vs.-0.22(-0.53,0.02)mm,P=0.002],and the LVEF was significantly increased[8.45%(1.40%,16.50%)vs.2.75%(0,11.00%),P=0.002].The percentage of patients in the vericiguat group who achieved LVRR was significantly larger than in the control group(46.4%vs.27.4%,P=0.011).Multivariate logistic regression revealed that the combination of vericiguat was an independent predictor of LVRR(Model 2:OR=2.54,95%CI:1.29~5.01,P=0.007).The reverse remodeling effect remained consistent across different subgroups and was not significantly influenced by specific baseline characteristics(Pinteraction>0.05).Vericiguat did not affect blood pressure,liver and kidney function,or electrolyte levels,achieving satisfactory safety,despite its significantly higher incidence of gastrointestinal reactions(16.1%vs.5.7%,P<0.001).Conclusion The addition of vericiguat to the quadruple therapy significantly improves cardiac function and promotes left ventricular reverse remodeling in HFrEF patients while maintaining a favorable safety profile.
9.Risk factors for recurrent intracerebral hemorrhage
Xinyue YANG ; Shuhan LIU ; Shaojun WANG
International Journal of Cerebrovascular Diseases 2025;33(1):52-58
Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is the second common subtype of stroke, characterized by high incidence, high mortality and high disability rates. The recurrent ICH not only brings physical pain to patients, but also increases the burden on families and society. In recent years, researches on the risk factors for recurrent ICH have been increasing day by day. This article reviews the risk factors for recurrent ICH from the perspectives of clinical features, biomarkers, and imaging characteristics, in order to provide a basis for the secondary prevention of ICH.
10.Robotic-assisted resection of a rectal mass with situs inversus totalis using the Da Vinci system:a case report and literature review
Shaojun YIN ; Hailong YANG ; Guixian WANG ; Zhen LI ; Weitang YUAN ; Kunkun XIA
Chinese Journal of General Surgery 2025;34(4):778-786
Background and Aims:Complete situs inversus(SIT)is a rare congenital abnormality of organ mirror-image arrangement,presenting certain challenges for abdominal surgical procedures.The Da Vinci robotic system,with its high-definition 3D vision and flexible operation,holds potential for application in patients with anatomical variations.This report presents the diagnosis and treatment process of a patient with rectal mass and SIT who underwent robotic-assisted surgery.Additionally,relevant literature is reviewed to provide insights for individualized surgical strategies in patients with complex anatomical variations and to promote the further clinical application of robotic-assisted surgery systems.Methods:A case from the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University is reported,in which a patient with rectal mass and SIT successfully underwent lesion resection using the Da Vinci robotic system with an unconventional"five-port"technique.A systematic literature review was also conducted(including 35 case reports),to summarize the surgical characteristics of colorectal procedures in SIT patients and the advantages of robotic system application.Results:The patient was a 74-year-old male who presented with rectal bleeding.Imaging confirmed the diagnosis of SIT,and colonoscopy revealed a large polypoid mass with ulceration at the apex,located 13-18 cm from the anal verge.The patient subsequently underwent Da Vinci robotic-assisted resection of the rectal lesion.The robotic system effectively overcame the challenges posed by mirror-image anatomy,enabling complete excision of the lesion.The operation lasted 183 minutes,with intraoperative blood loss of less than 20 mL.Postoperative pathology confirmed a villous tubular adenoma with high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia.The patient had an uneventful recovery,and no recurrence was observed during the 9-month follow-up.Literature analysis demonstrated that the robotic system,through magnified 3D visualization,flexible instrument articulation,and tremor filtration,significantly improves surgical precision in patients with anatomical anomalies.Conclusion:The Da Vinci robotic system effectively addresses the challenges of anatomical variations related to SIT in low rectal surgery.Its stability and precision offer a new technical option for tumor resection under complex anatomical conditions,demonstrating clinical value for widespread application.

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