Endotoxins are common exogenous pyrogens. Excessive endotoxins in medical devices and injections can lead to serious consequences such as sepsis, septic shock, and even death. Therefore, endotoxin detection plays a crucial role in medical, pharmaceutical, and food sectors. The wide application of Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) has led to a sharp decline in the number of horseshoe crabs. Moreover, the LAL assay has limitations such as interbatch variations and difficulty in quantification. The recombinant factor C (rFC) assay is stable between batches, highly sensitive, and capable of quantitation, and thus it can be used as an alternative for the LAL assay. However, the high cost and complex procedures involved in producing recombinant factor C have limited the widespread application of this method. In order to simplify the preparation and reduce the production cost of recombinant factor C, this study focuses on the production of recombinant factor C based on the baculovirus expression system. Multiple measures such as a high-yield and anti-apoptotic vector qBac-IIIG, the optimal signal peptide, and the optimized codon were used to reach the goal of endotoxin detection with cell supernatant. This method simplifies the steps of protein purification. The sensitivity of the supernatant reached 0.05 EU/mL in a 1-L fermentation system, and 500 000 detecting reactions can be supported per liter of fermentation broth. This study increases the yield and activity of recombinant factor C, simplifies the procedures of protein purification, and reduces the cost, laying a foundation for the promotion and application of recombinant factor C in endotoxin detection.
Animals ; Recombinant Proteins/genetics* ; Horseshoe Crabs/chemistry* ; Baculoviridae/metabolism* ; Endotoxins/analysis* ; Protein C/biosynthesis* ; Genetic Vectors/genetics* ; Arthropod Proteins/genetics* ; Enzyme Precursors ; Serine Endopeptidases

Objective:To investigate the impact of body mass index (BMI) on delayed extubation of patients with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection (ATAAD).Methods:A total of 400 ATAAD patients who were admitted to our hospital from October 2021 to October 2023 and underwent surgical treatment were selected as the research objects. According to BMI, they were divided into obese group (BMI≥28 kg/m 2, 119 cases) and non-obese group (BMI<28 kg/m 2, 281 cases). The differences of preoperative clinical characteristics, intraoperative and postoperative data between the two groups were compared. Starting from transferring to the ICU and ending with the first successful extubation, The risk factors of postoperative invasive mechanical ventilation time ≥ 48 h in ATAAD patients were analyzed, and the predictive efficacy of related factors for postoperative invasive mechanical ventilation time ≥ 48 h in ATAAD patients was evaluated. Results:Compared with the non-obese group, the proportion of hypertension, diabetes, admission heart rate, admission systolic blood pressure, admission diastolic blood pressure and preoperative white blood cell count in the obese group were significantly increased, and the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05). The cardiopulmonary bypass time, aortic cross-clamp time, operation time, red blood cell transfusion volume, invasive mechanical ventilation time, secondary operation rate and total hospitalization cost in the obese group were significantly higher than those in the non-obese group, and the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05). Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that BMI, cardiopulmonary bypass time, ascending aortic cross-clamp time, operation time, age, hypertension, and red blood cell transfusion were related factors for postoperative invasive mechanical ventilation time ≥48 h in ATAAD patients ( P<0.05). Logistic multivariate regression analysis showed that increased BMI ( OR=1.213, P<0.05) and increased age ( OR=1.020, P<0.05) were independent risk predictors of postoperative invasive mechanical ventilation time≥48 h in ATAAD patients. Receiver operating characteristic curve ( ROC) analysis showed that the area under the ROC curve ( AUC) of BMI for predicting the duration of postoperative invasive mechanical ventilation in ATAAD patients≥48 h was 0.682 ( P<0.05), and the best predictive cut-off value was 25.64 kg/m 2. Conclusion:BMI≥28kg/m 2 increases the difficulty of surgery and the duration of invasive mechanical ventilation in ATAAD patients. BMI has a high predictive value for the duration of invasive mechanical ventilation in ATAAD patients after surgery ≥48 h, and effective intervention measures can be formulated to improve the treatment effect of patients.

Objective:To evaluate the clinical efficacy of C-type endoscopic submucosal dissection (C-ESD) for rectal neuroendocrine tumors (NEN).Methods:The retrospective analysis was performed on data of 55 patients who underwent ESD for rectal NEN at the Department of Endoscopy in Quanzhou First Hospital from January 2018 to July 2021. Patients were divided into the C-ESD group ( n=28) and the conventional ESD group ( n=27). The dissection time, the dissection speed, the number of submucosal injections, the enbloc resection rate, the curative resection rate and the rate of postoperative complications of the two groups were compared. Results:There were no statistically significant differences in basic information between the two groups ( P>0.05). The dissection time was 13.8±4.2 min in the C-ESD group and 19.9±3.9 min in the conventional ESD group with statistically significant difference ( t=5.649, P<0.001). The dissection speed in the C-ESD group was 0.08±0.04 cm 2/min, which was faster than 0.06±0.04 cm 2/min in the conventional ESD group ( t=2.218, P=0.031). The number of submucosal injections in the C-ESD group was less than that in the conventional ESD group [2 (1, 2) VS 3 (2, 3), Z=-8.701, P<0.001]. The lesions were enbloc resected in both groups. The curative resection rate in the C-ESD group was 100.0% (28/28) and 88.9% (24/27) in the conventional ESD group with statistically significant difference ( P=0.011). There were 7 cases of postoperative complications in the conventional ESD group, including 1 delayed bleeding, 5 delayed perforation and 1 muscularis propria injury, while no postoperative complications occurred in the C-ESD group ( P=0.004). Conclusion:C-ESD is a safe and effective treatment strategy for colorectal NEN, which can shorten the dissection time, improve the dissection speed, reduce the number of submucosal injections, improve the curative resection rate, and reduce complications.

Objective: To investigate the value of serum hepcidin in assessment of liver inflammation activity among patients with chronic hepatitis B ( CHB ), so as to provide insights into the assessment of liver inflammation activity among CHB patients. Methods: A total of 79 CHB patients who were admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University were selected as the experimental group, while 40 healthy volunteers were randomly sampled as controls. Subjects'demographic data, liver function tests and iron metabolism parameters were collected from medical records, and serum hepcidin was measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay ( ELISA ). In addition, ultrasound-guided liver biopsy was performed in CHB patients, and mild and moderate-to-severe CHB were classified according to liver inflammation activity and degree of liver fibrosis. Serum hepcidin levels were compared between the experimental and control groups and between patients with mild and moderate-to-severe CHB. The value of serum hepcidin in assessment of liver inflammation activity was examined among CHB patients using the receiver operating characteristic ( ROC ) curve analysis. Results: Subjects in the experimental group included 54 men ( 68.35% ) and had a mean age of ( 39.06±10.67 ) years, while the controls included 24 men (60.00%) and had a mean age of ( 42.43±11.44 ) years. Lower hepcidin levels were measured in the experimental group than in the control group [( 11.70±5.64 ) vs. ( 17.82±3.63 ) μg/L; P<0.05 ]. There were 54 patients with mild CHB ( 68.35% ) and 25 cases with moderate-to-severe CHB ( 31.65% ), and lower hepcidin levels were detected in patients with moderate-to-severe CHB than in those with mild CHB [ ( 6.92±2.21 ) vs. ( 13.95±5.36 ) μg/L; P<0.05 ]. The area under the ROC curve, optimal cut-off, sensitivity and specificity of serum hepcidin were 0.903 ( P<0.05 ), 10.365 μg/L, 100.0% and 72.2% for assessment of moderate-to-severe CHB, respectively. Conclusion Serum hepcidin is feasible to evaluate the liver inflammatory activity among patients with CHB.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between serum ferritin (SF) level and liver damage in the acute stage of dengue fever.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted to analyze 171 cases diagnosed with dengue fever as dengue fever group and 130 healthy patients as control group in Hangzhou 3A grade hospital from July to December 2017. Clinical data, SF and liver function related indicators were collected from both groups: alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBIL) to analyze the correlation between liver damage and SF in patients with dengue fever.Results:ALT, AST, and SF levels were significantly higher in the dengue fever group than those in the healthy control group ( Z = 11.553, 15.054 and 15.163, P < 0.001). SF levels were higher in the dengue fever combined with liver damage group than those without the liver damage group ( z = 6.930, P < 0.001). However, there was no statistically significant differences in age, gender, peak body temperature, and history of liver disease ( P > 0.05). In addition, Spearman’s correlation analysis showed that SF was positively correlated with ALT, AST, and TBIL ( r = 0.464, 0.531 and 0.315, P < 0.001). Among dengue patients with different SF levels, there were significant difference in ALT, AST levels and incidence of liver damage ( H = 14.240 and 17.584, χ2 = 49.547, P < 0.001). Patients with higher SF levels had higher ALT, AST levels and incidence of liver damage. Binary logistic regression analysis showed that hyperferritinemia (SF≥500 ng/ml) was the risk factor for dengue fever combined with liver damage ( OR = 8.120, P < 0.001). Furthermore, ROC curve analysis showed that the AUC for SF to judge dengue fever combined liver damage was 0.846 (95% CI: 0.785-0.908), and the sensitivity and specificity when the SF cut-off value was 1 506 ng/ml were 74.8% and 83.3%. Conclusion:There is a certain correlation between the SF level and the degree of liver damage in acute stage of dengue fever patients, and hyperferritinemia is a risk factor for dengue fever combined with liver damage.

Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) has been emerged as a major breakthrough in tumor immunotherapy, but its unique mechanism of action has also led to a number of immune-related adverse events (irAE). Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is one of the rarest irAEs. This paper reports a case of advanced malignant liver tumor-induced T1DM who received second-line anti-PD-1 therapy and showed initial symptoms of hyperosmolar coma and hyperglycemia. In addition, the relevant literature at home and abroad was collected and reviewed, and the clinical characteristics of T1DM induced by anti-PD-1 therapy were summarized with a view to achieve early detection, diagnosis and treatment.

Lung cancer is one of the most common malignancies with the highest incidence rate and mortality rate worldwide, and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for about 85%. Only 5% NSCLC patients are anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangement positive NSCLC, but the prognosis of these patients is poor, and treatment is urgent. Ensartinib (X-396), a next-generation ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitor (ALK-TKI), has shown greater potency on inhibiting ALK activity and controlling brain metastases than crizotinib, which is indicated for the treatment of crizotinib-resistant, ALK-positive NSCLC patients. Several phase I to III clinical trials included both healthy volunteers and NSCLC patients have been conducted both in China and abroad. In this review, we briefly summarized the results of these trials, and preliminary efficacy, safety, pharmacology and pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics of ensartinib were discussed.

Objective:To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of partial superficial parotidectomy with V-shaped incision by comparing with the Blair incision and hairline N-shaped incision.Methods:From January 2015 to January 2016, 60 patients (47 males and 13 females, with an age range of 25- 63 years) required for superficial partial parotid gland resection were randomly divided into three groups: V-shaped incision (VI) group, Blair incision (BI) group and hairline N-shaped incision (NI) group, with 20 cases in each group.Intraoperative, postoperative and follow-up indexes were compared between three groups. Operative time and drainage volume in the surgery of tumors at different sites in VI group were compared. SPSS18.0 software was used for statistic analysis.Results:There were no statistically significant differences among the three groups in operative time, drainage volume, postoperative hospital stay, periauricular numbness, fistulas, pain score, facial palsy, and scar score at the 3rd month after surgery ( P>0.05). For appearance satisfaction score at the 6th month after surgery, VI group was better than BI group or NI group, with significant differences(VI group vs. BI group: 9.00[8.00, 9.00] vs. 5.00[4.00, 5.25], χ 2=6.629, P<0.001; VI group vs. NI group: 9.00[8.00, 9.00] vs. 7.00[6.00, 8.00], χ 2=2.942, P=0.010; BI group vs. NI group: 5.00[4.00, 5.25] vs. 7.00[6.00, 8.00], χ 2=-3.687, P=0.001). For tumors located in the front, upper and middle of parotid gland, there were no statistically significant differences in operative time and drainage volume between the three groups ( P>0.05). For tumors located at the lower part of parotid gland, the difference in operative time between the three groups was statistically significant ( F=7.278, P=0.01). With pairwise comparison, operative time in VI group was longer than that in BI group or NI group, but there was no significant difference between BI group and NI group (VI group vs. BI group: (181.00±22.89) min vs. (132.50±9.01) min, t=3.694, P=0.004; VI group vs. NI group:(181.00±22.89) min vs. (149.00±15.94) min, t=2.585, P=0.025; BIgroup vs. NI group, (132.50±9.01) min vs. (149.00±15.94) min, t=1.257, P=0.235). For tumors located at the lower part of parotid gland, the differences in intraoperative drainage volume were not statistically significant between three groups ( P>0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in operative time and drainage volume in the surgery of tumors at different sites in VI group ( P>0.05). Conclusions:By use of V-shaped incision for the surgery of benign parotid gland tumors, the operation time of tumors located only in the lower part of the parotid gland will be prolonged. For tumors in different sites without increasing surgical complications, this modality can get good cosmetic effect.

Objective To evaluate the analytical performance of a novel HBV DNA assay based on automated DNA extraction and real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR .Methods Analytic verification studies.Accuracy and lower limit of detection were assessed by determining a panel of HBV standard plasma of WHO.HBV standard plasma (genotype A, B, C and D) at 6 different concentrations were measured 18 times to evaluate precision and reproducibility .Pseudo-viral particles at high HBV DNA concentration were serially diluted to assess linear range .One hundred and forty-four clinical specimens were quantified for HBV DNA so as to evaluate the correlation between the new test and COBAS ? system. Results Quantification of HBV standard plasma showed acceptable accuracy , with each deviation between observed and expected values within ±0.35 lg IU/ml (-0.17-0.32 lg IU/ml).Intra-assay coefficients of variation ( CV) for genotype A , B, C and D were 3.87% -6.32%, 0.45% -14.68%, 0.16% -8.36% and 0.64%-13.01%respectively, and the inter-assay CV were 5.67%-9.69%, 1.28%-15.68%, 0.36%-9.05%and 1.69%-13.65%, separately.Linearity assessment exhibited an excellent dynamic range of linear quantification from 20 to 1.0 ×1010 IU/ml ( r =0.998, P <0.001 ) .And the satisfactory results obtained at 3 levels of HBV DNA concentration (10, 20, 50 IU/ml, respectively) confirmed the claimed lower limit of detection with 5/5 detectable rate at 20 IU/ml.Furthermore, good correspondence was observed between the new HBV DNA assay and the COBAS ? system with 100% ( 144/144 ) qualitative coincidence and significant correlation based on 104 positive data ( r=0.984, P<0.000 1).Conclusions The novel fully-automated real-time PCR assay displayed good analytical and clinical performance for highly sensitive detection of HBV DNA.It was well suited for monitoring antiviral responses as well as drug resistance according to current clinical practice guidelines for the management of chronic HBV infection .