Objective　To assess the diagnostic efficacy of the cell-free Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA testing (CF-TB) in tuberculous pleurisy. Methods　A total of 71 patients diagnosed with tuberculous pleurisy and 35 patients with non-tuberculous pleurisy were selected from the Fifth People's Hospital of Wuxi between January to December 2022. The standard pleural puncture was conducted to collect pleural effusion, which was then utilized for Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture, GeneXpert Mycobacterium tuberculosis/rifampicin resistance (GeneXpert MTB/RIF), CF-TB, and adenosine deaminase (ADA) testing. Blood samples were subjected to tuberculosis infection T-cell spotting test (T-SPOT.TB) assay. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC) was applied to obtain the optimal cut-off value for pleural fluid CF-TB and to compare the diagnostic performance of CF-TB with other methods. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 22.0 software, with statistical significance defined as P<0.05. Results　The ROC curve analysis determined that the optimal cycle threshold (Ct) value for diagnosing tuberculous pleurisy using CF-TB in pleural fluid was 38.489, with a sensitivity of 91.5% and specificity of 97.1%. In comparison, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of T-SPOT.TB and pleural fluid ADA in diagnosing tuberculous pleurisy were 86.0%, 71.4%, 86.0%, 71.4%, 81.1%, and 55.0%, 91.4%, 92.9%, 50.8%, 67.0%, respectively, all of which were lower than the diagnostic efficiency of CF-TB. Furthermore, the specificity of pleural fluid CF-TB in diagnosing tuberculous pleurisy (97.1%) was not significantly different from GeneXpert MTB/RIF (100%) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture (100%), but its sensitivity (91.5%) was significantly higher than both GeneXpert MTB/RIF (19.7%) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture (28.2%), with a statistically significant difference (P<0.001). Conclusions　Compared to the conventional gold standard for diagnosing tuberculous pleurisy, CF-TB exhibits a higher sensitivity and its specificity is superior to that of tuberculosis immunological test. Consequently, CF-TB can serve as a valuable complement to other traditional detection methods in aiding the diagnosis of tuberculous pleurisy.

Objective:To explore the diagnosis and treatment of enterovesical fistula.Methods:The clinical data of 12 patients with enterovesical fistula at the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from Jan 2012 to Dec 2021 were retrospectively analyzed.Results:There were 5 cases of rectovesical fistula, 4 cases of sigmoid colovesical fistula, 1 case of cecovesical fistula, and 2 cases of ileovesical fistula , with 1 female patient having concurrent vaginal vesical fistula . CT was carried out in 6 cases, enteroscopy in 5 cases, cystoscopy in 6 cases, cystography in 3 cases, and enterography in 2 cases. Eleven cases underwent surgical treatment, 1 case did not. Five cases underwent more than two operations, 1 case still had enterovesical fistula and died after ileostomy, 2 cases improved after enterotomy. One case underwent bowel resection and bladder repair and 3 cases underwent bowel resection and anastomosis combined with partial or total cystectomy, 4 cases underwent bowel resection, bladder repair, transverse colon or ileostomy. One died, 1 case still had enterovesical fistula and 10 cases were cured. There were no recurrence on follow-up.Conclusions:Enterovesical fistula is often secondary to intestinal tumors, and its clinical manifestations are mostly fecaluria and urinary tract infections. CT, cystoscopy, cystography and enterography are important diagnostic methods. Surgical treatment is the choice of therapy.

Objective:To explore the necessity of salvage surgery after endoscopic resection of early rectal cancer.Methods:The clinical data of 62 patients who underwent salvage surgery for early rectal cancer at the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from Jan 2012 to Dec 2021 were retrospectively analyzed.Results:Six cases (10%) had residual tumors, 8 cases (13%) had lymph node metastasis and one case (2%) had cancer nodules; The operation time was (178±82) mins; 1 case (2%) developed anastomotic lerakage, which was cured; 2 cases (3%) developed intestinal obstruction, of which 1 case (2%) relieved on conservative management and 1 case (2%) underwent reoperation.Conclusion:It is necessary to perform salvage surgery for early rectal cancer patients with residual caner and risk factors of lymph node metastasis after endoscopic therapy.

In order to improve the salt tolerance of banana NHX genes, we cloned a MaNHX5 gene from Musa acuminata L. AAA group and predicted the key salt-tolerant amino acid sites and mutant protein structure changes of MaNHX5 by using bioinformatics tools. The 276-position serine (S) of MaNHX5 protein was successfully mutated to aspartic acid (D) by site-directed mutagenesis, and the AXT3 salt-sensitive mutant yeast was used for a functional complementation test. The results showed that after the mutated MaNHX5 gene was transferred to AXT3 salt-sensitive mutant yeast, the salt tolerance of the mutant yeast was significantly improved under 200 mmol/L NaCl treatment. It is hypothesized that Ser276 of MaNHX5 protein plays an important role in the transport of Na⁺ across the tonoplast.
Amino Acids/metabolism* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; Musa/metabolism* ; Plant Proteins/metabolism* ; Plants, Genetically Modified ; Saccharomyces cerevisiae/metabolism*

Objective:To investigate the clinical, skeletal muscle pathological, and genetic characteristics of fatal infantile hypertonic myofibrillar myopathy (FIHMM).Methods:The clinical manifestations, laboratory assessments data and gene sequencing results of 10 patients diagnosed with FIHMM in Shenzhen Children′s Hospital from February 2017 to April 2021 were retrospectively analyzed.Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of both musculoskeletal system and the brain, and electromyogram (EMG) were performed in 3 cases, while muscle biopsy was performed in 2 cases.Results:Among these 10 cases, 1 case was from Northeast China and 1 case from East China, while the rest 8 cases were from South China.Eight of the 10 patients were male, and the other 2 cases were female.They were all born normal and not related to each other.The age of onset varied from 2 to 12 months.The main clinical manifestations for all the patients were progressive rigidity of the rectus abdominis (8 cases), neck muscles (7 cases), rectus abdominis (2 cases) and intercostal muscles (1 case), resulting in respiratory failure.Mildly to moderately elevated serum creatine kinase level was detected (436-5 804 IU/L) (reference range: 24-229 IU/L). Complex repetitive discharges can be seen in the EMG, without any myotonic potential.Muscle fiber degeneration, necrosis, and vacuolar degeneration were noted in the histopathological examination of the vastus lateralis and rectus abdominis.An abnormal red granular deposit was observed in a portion of the field of the modified Gomory Trichrome staining.Immunohistochemistry showed substantial deposition of desmin.Under the electron microscopy, the sarcomere structure of the muscle fibers was seriously disordered, with the destruction of Z-bands and the presence of granular deposits.The whole-exome sequencing identified the same homozygous variation c. 3G>A, p.Met1? of CRYAB gene in all the patients, but heterozygous variation in their parents. Conclusions:Axial muscles involvement, such as rectus abdominis rigidity, is the main clinical characteristic of FIHMM.c.3G>A, p.Met1? mutation in the CRYAB gene is a hotspot mutation in Chinese children.

Lymphatic vessels are essential for tissue fluid homeostasis, immune cell trafficking, and intestinal lipid absorption. The lymphatics have long been recognized to serve as conduits for distant tumor dissemination. However, recent findings suggest that the regional lymphatic vasculature also shapes the immune microenvironment of the tumor mass and potentiates immunotherapy. This review discusses the role of lymphatic vessels in tumor metastasis and tumor immunity.

This special feature contains three review articles that summarize recent advances pertaining to tumor immunobiology. Normalization of antitumor immunity through checkpoint inhibitors has achieved significant clinical success and benefited many cancer patients. However, not all cancer patients respond to these treatments, and among the responders, some may develop resistance and others may suffer autoimmunity that requires intervention. Tumor immunotherapy holds promise for further improving the survival of cancer patients, but deeper understanding of immunological networks that regulate anti- and pro-tumor immunity is needed. The review papers collected in this issue cover a few topics that may stimulate future interest in the relevant research field.
Humans ; Immunotherapy, Adoptive/methods* ; Lymphatic Vessels/physiology* ; MicroRNAs/physiology* ; Neoplasms/therapy* ; Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/immunology* ; T-Lymphocytes/immunology*

Objective: To study the clinical features of dengue cases infected with hepatotropic virus and Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Xishuangbanna, and to provide evidences to set up effective treatment programs for the dengue patients infected with the other diseases for hospitals. Methods: The clinical characteristics of dengue cases infected hepatotropic virus and Mycobacterium tuberculosis were analyzed retrospectively on their symptoms and biochemical parameters from the People′s Hospital and the Infectious Disease Hospital of Xishuangbanna Prefecture in 2013 and 2015. Results: The clinical characteristics of dengue cases infected with hepatotropic virus were typical, and inclued low incidence of urinary abnormalities, coagulation disorders and high-lactate dehydrogenase. Dengue cases infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis had high incidence of shock, high-hematocrit, renal function and coagulation abnormalities, which suggested a trend of more serious illness than other groups obviously. Conclusions The rate of severe disease was higher in dengue cases infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis than those infected with hepatotropic virus, which suggests that the dengue cases infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis should be treated timely to reduce the severity of the diseases in the hospital.

Gene therapy represents a promising treatment for the Alzheimer׳s disease (AD). However, gene delivery specific to brain lesions through systemic administration remains big challenge. In our previous work, we have developed an siRNA nanocomplex able to be specifically delivered to the amyloid plaques through surface modification with both CGN peptide for the blood-brain barrier (BBB) penetration and QSH peptide for -amyloid binding. But, whether the as-designed nanocomplex could indeed improve the gene accumulation in the impaired neuron cells and ameliorate AD-associated symptoms remains further study. Herein, we prepared the nanocomplexes with an siRNA against -site amyloid precursor protein-cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1), the rate-limiting enzyme of A production, as the therapeutic siRNA of AD. The nanocomplexes exhibited high distribution in the A deposits-enriched hippocampus, especially in the neurons near the amyloid plaques after intravenous administration. In APP/PS1 transgenic mice, the nanocomplexes down-regulated BACE1 in both mRNA and protein levels, as well as A and amyloid plaques to the level of wild-type mice. Moreover, the nanocomplexes significantly increased the level of synaptophysin and rescued memory loss of the AD transgenic mice without hematological or histological toxicity. Taken together, this work presented direct evidences that the design of precise gene delivery to the AD lesions markedly improves the therapeutic outcome.

Lymphatic vessels are essential for tissue fluid homeostasis, immune cell trafficking, and intestinal lipid absorption. The lymphatics have long been recognized to serve as conduits for distant tumor dissemination. However, recent findings suggest that the regional lymphatic vasculature also shapes the immune microenvironment of the tumor mass and potentiates immunotherapy. This review discusses the role of lymphatic vessels in tumor metastasis and tumor immunity.