Objective: To explore the clinical manifestations, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and treatment of granulomatous cheilitis complications after treatment in patients with upper lip venous malformations, as well as to provide a reference for their clinical diagnosis and treatment. Methods: This report provides details on the clinical manifestations, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and treatment of a case of granulomatous cheilitis after the treatment of upper lip venous malformation, and then analyzes granulomatous cheilitis alongside the related literature. The patient, a 30-year old male, was first seen in the dermatology department of another hospital with bright red spots on his lips, diagnosed with allergic dermatitis and received symptomatic treatment, and the erythema did not improve. He was diagnosed with ‘cavernous hemangioma’ and was treated with polydocanol and bleomycin injections. The bright red spots on his lips improved, but the swelling worsened for more than half a year. He then sought treatment at the oral mucosal department of our hospital. At the time of consultation, the swelling of the upper lip and perilabial skin was obvious, and there was a red patch on the right side of the upper lip, that was congested with blood. The upper lip was tough, with hard nodules, unclear borders, and poor mobility. Pathological examination showed epithelial hyperplasia of the upper lip mucosa, surface hyperkeratosis, subepithelial fibrous tissue hyperplasia, and chronic inflammation of the mucosa and minor salivary glands. Focal histiocyte, lymphocyte, and plasma cell infiltration was seen in the submucosal layer, with granulomatous inflammatory manifestations. Based on the patient's medical history, clinical manifestations, and histopathological manifestations, the diagnosis of granulomatous cheilitis was made. Tretinoin 0.3 mL (40 mg/mL, 1 mL/vial) was injected into the deep layer of the mucosa of the right and left upper lips for local block treatment. Prednisone acetate tablets (10 mg/Qd) were taken orally, and after 1 week of follow-up, the symptoms improved, so the original treatment was continued. After 2 weeks of follow-up, the swelling of the lips improved significantly, and the oral prednisone acetate tablets were adjusted to 5 mg/Qd. After 4 weeks of follow-up, the shape of the lips was largely back to normal, and the color and suppleness of the lips had improved significantly. The local block treatment and oral medication were stopped, and the patient was instructed to apply the topical tretinoin ointment Bid on the upper lip. Results: The patient had a follow-up visit 8 weeks later, at which their lip color, shape, and texture remained normal, and the patient was instructed to stop the medication and follow up. A review of the literature suggests that the etiology of granulomatous cheilitis is unknown and that it is associated with genetic predisposition, odontogenic infections, allergic factors, microbial infections, and immunological factors. It needs to be clinically differentiated from diseases such as lip venous malformations, lip angioneurotic oedema, Crohn's disease, and tuberculosis. At present, the clinical treatment of granulomatous cheilitis is still based on local glucocorticoid block therapy or a combination of oral glucocorticoid drugs. In this case, the area of erythema on the lips decreased in size, but swelling occurred and continued to worsen after polydocanol and bleomycin injection treatment. Pre-existing venous malformation should be considered as a complication associated with injectable drugs that can produce granulomatous cheilitis. Conclusion The injection-based treatment of lip venous malformation may be complicated by granulomatous cheilitis, and in the process of clinical diagnosis and treatment, it is necessary to be aware to the existence of drug-related factors in the occurrence and development of granulomatous diseases.

Objective: To investigate the predictive value of EZH2 expression for malignant transformation in oral leukoplakia (OLK) and to provide a reference for clinical practice. Methods: This study was approved by the institutional ethics committee, and informed consent was obtained from all participants. A total of 114 patients diagnosed with OLK by pathological examination and treated at our hospital between November 2020 and July 2022 were initially enrolled. After excluding those with incomplete data or follow-up, 105 participants were included in the final analysis, comprising 14 in the high EZH2 expression group and 91 in the low EZH2 expression group. Histopathological examination of oral mucosa and immunohistochemical detection of EZH2 protein expression were performed. The follow-up period was 30 months; participants were followed until malignant transformation occurred or until the end of follow-up, at which point they were withdrawn from the study. The exposure factor was the level of EZH2 protein expression, and the outcome was the malignant transformation rate of OLK. Differences in EZH2 expression levels and transformation outcomes were analyzed. Results: There were no statistically significant differences between the high and low EZH2 expression groups in terms of age, sex, history of systemic disease, lifestyle habits, psychological status, diet, and sleep conditions (P > 0.05). Lesions in the high EZH2 expression group were mainly located on the ventral tongue, while in the low EZH2 expression group, they were more commonly found on the dorsal tongue and buccal mucosa. The malignant transformation rate was 28.6% (4/14) in the high expression group and 8.8% (8/91) in the low expression group; these differences were not statistically significant (P=0.053). In univariate Cox regression analysis, the risk of malignant transformation in the high EZH2 expression group was 3.647 times that of the low EZH2 expression group (HR = 3.647, 95% CI: 1.097-12.120, P<0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that over the 30-month follow-up period, the cancer-free survival rate in the high EZH2 expression group was 19.8% lower than in the low expression group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). In multivariate Cox regression analysis, only moderate and severe epithelial dysplasia were identified as independent risk factors for malignant transformation. The risk of malignant transformation in the moderate and severe dysplasia groups was 10.695 and 13.623 times higher, respectively, than in the mild dysplasia group (HR = 10.695, 95% CI: 2.270-50.396, P<0.05; HR=13.623, 95% CI: 1.918-96.774, P<0.05). EZH2 high expression was not an independent risk factor in the multivariate model (HR= 2.528, 95% CI: 0.752-8.500, P = 0.134). Conclusion High EZH2 protein expression is a risk factor for the malignant transformation of OLK but does not have independent predictive value.

Acute-on-chronic liver failure （ACLF） refers to severe liver dysfunction that occurs on the basis of chronic liver diseases， and it is characterized by rapid disease progression， poor prognosis， and high mortality rate. In recent years， inflammatory markers have become a research hotspot due to their significant role in assessing the prognosis of ACLF. This article reviews the advances in the application of inflammatory markers in assessing the prognosis of ACLF， such as systemic immune inflammatory index， lymphocyte-white blood cell ratio， neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio， and C-reactive protein， and discusses their clinical value and future research directions， in order to provide a theoretical basis for the early intervention and prognosis management of ACLF patients.

Objective: To investigate the expression changes of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 3(CDKN3) indifferent tumors and its effect on tumor staging, prognosis and immunotherapy. Methods: The expression characteristics of CDKN3 in different cancers using data from TCGA, CCLE, ICGC, and GTEx databases were evaluated. The GEPIA2 platform and Kaplan-Meier analysis were utilized to assess the effect of CDKN3 on tumor pathological staging and survival prognosis. The TIMER platform was employed to explore the influence of CDKN3 on the tumor immune microenvironment and immunotherapy. Its effect on immune checkpoint and key immunotherapeutic predictors using bioinformatics methods was explored. The GeneMANIA tool was used to construct the protein-protein interaction(PPI) network of CDKN3. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG) and Gene Onotology(GO) enrichment analyses were conducted to explore the biological processes and signaling pathways associated with CDKN3. The effect of CDKN3 on HepG2 cell proliferation, invasion, migration, and apoptosis was validated through transfection with CDKN3 siRNA. Results: CDKN3 was found to be widely overexpressed in tumors. High expression of CDKN3 was often associated with advanced pathological staging and poor survival prognosis. CDKN3 expression was negatively correlated with most immune checkpoints and positively correlated with tumor mutation burden(TMB), microsatellite instability(MSI), and mismatch repair(MMR) genes. CDKN3 was associated with cell cycle, cellular senescence, and the p53 signaling pathway. Furthermore, EdU staining, JC-1 staining, Transwell, and Wound Healing assays confirmed that CDKN3 promoted HCC cell proliferation, invasion, and migration while inhibiting apoptosis. Conclusion Abnormal expression of CDKN3 is closely related to tumor staging, prognosis, and immune microenvironment characteristics, making it a potential prognostic marker and immunotherapy adjuvant target in cancer.

Background/Aims: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor, and circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abnormally expressed in CRC. However, the function and underlying mechanism of circRNA pinin (circ-PNN; hsa_circ_0101802) in CRC remain unclear. Methods: Exosomes were isolated from the plasma of CRC patients and identified by transmission electron microscopy and Western blotting. The RNA expression levels of circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and fibroblast growth factor 13 (FGF13) were measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Cell proliferation was detected by Cell Counting K-8, colony formation, and 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine assays. Cell apoptosis was assessed by flow cytometry. The expression of apoptosis and metastasis-related proteins was evaluated by Western blotting. The associations among circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and FGF13 were confirmed by dual-luciferase report assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay. A xenograft model was used to verify the function of circ-PNN in tumor formation in vivo. Results: circ-PNN expression was upregulated in plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients. The expression of circ-PNN and FGF13 was upregulated, while miR-1225-5p expression was downregulated in CRC cells incubated with plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients.Tumor-derived exosomes promoted the proliferation, migration, and invasion but inhibited apoptosis of CRC cells. Moreover, the addition of tumor-derived exosomes partly reversed the inhibitory effect of circ-PNN knockdown on CRC tumor progression in vitro and in vivo. Thus, circ-PNN acts as a sponge for miR-1225-5p to regulate FGF13 expression. Conclusions Tumor-derived exosomal circ-PNN promoted CRC progression through the regulation of the miR-1225-5p/FGF13 pathway, providing a potential therapeutic target for CRC.

Background/Aims: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor, and circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abnormally expressed in CRC. However, the function and underlying mechanism of circRNA pinin (circ-PNN; hsa_circ_0101802) in CRC remain unclear. Methods: Exosomes were isolated from the plasma of CRC patients and identified by transmission electron microscopy and Western blotting. The RNA expression levels of circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and fibroblast growth factor 13 (FGF13) were measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Cell proliferation was detected by Cell Counting K-8, colony formation, and 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine assays. Cell apoptosis was assessed by flow cytometry. The expression of apoptosis and metastasis-related proteins was evaluated by Western blotting. The associations among circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and FGF13 were confirmed by dual-luciferase report assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay. A xenograft model was used to verify the function of circ-PNN in tumor formation in vivo. Results: circ-PNN expression was upregulated in plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients. The expression of circ-PNN and FGF13 was upregulated, while miR-1225-5p expression was downregulated in CRC cells incubated with plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients.Tumor-derived exosomes promoted the proliferation, migration, and invasion but inhibited apoptosis of CRC cells. Moreover, the addition of tumor-derived exosomes partly reversed the inhibitory effect of circ-PNN knockdown on CRC tumor progression in vitro and in vivo. Thus, circ-PNN acts as a sponge for miR-1225-5p to regulate FGF13 expression. Conclusions Tumor-derived exosomal circ-PNN promoted CRC progression through the regulation of the miR-1225-5p/FGF13 pathway, providing a potential therapeutic target for CRC.

Background/Aims: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor, and circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abnormally expressed in CRC. However, the function and underlying mechanism of circRNA pinin (circ-PNN; hsa_circ_0101802) in CRC remain unclear. Methods: Exosomes were isolated from the plasma of CRC patients and identified by transmission electron microscopy and Western blotting. The RNA expression levels of circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and fibroblast growth factor 13 (FGF13) were measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Cell proliferation was detected by Cell Counting K-8, colony formation, and 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine assays. Cell apoptosis was assessed by flow cytometry. The expression of apoptosis and metastasis-related proteins was evaluated by Western blotting. The associations among circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and FGF13 were confirmed by dual-luciferase report assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay. A xenograft model was used to verify the function of circ-PNN in tumor formation in vivo. Results: circ-PNN expression was upregulated in plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients. The expression of circ-PNN and FGF13 was upregulated, while miR-1225-5p expression was downregulated in CRC cells incubated with plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients.Tumor-derived exosomes promoted the proliferation, migration, and invasion but inhibited apoptosis of CRC cells. Moreover, the addition of tumor-derived exosomes partly reversed the inhibitory effect of circ-PNN knockdown on CRC tumor progression in vitro and in vivo. Thus, circ-PNN acts as a sponge for miR-1225-5p to regulate FGF13 expression. Conclusions Tumor-derived exosomal circ-PNN promoted CRC progression through the regulation of the miR-1225-5p/FGF13 pathway, providing a potential therapeutic target for CRC.

Background/Aims: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor, and circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abnormally expressed in CRC. However, the function and underlying mechanism of circRNA pinin (circ-PNN; hsa_circ_0101802) in CRC remain unclear. Methods: Exosomes were isolated from the plasma of CRC patients and identified by transmission electron microscopy and Western blotting. The RNA expression levels of circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and fibroblast growth factor 13 (FGF13) were measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Cell proliferation was detected by Cell Counting K-8, colony formation, and 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine assays. Cell apoptosis was assessed by flow cytometry. The expression of apoptosis and metastasis-related proteins was evaluated by Western blotting. The associations among circ-PNN, miR-1225-5p, and FGF13 were confirmed by dual-luciferase report assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay. A xenograft model was used to verify the function of circ-PNN in tumor formation in vivo. Results: circ-PNN expression was upregulated in plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients. The expression of circ-PNN and FGF13 was upregulated, while miR-1225-5p expression was downregulated in CRC cells incubated with plasmic exosomes derived from CRC patients.Tumor-derived exosomes promoted the proliferation, migration, and invasion but inhibited apoptosis of CRC cells. Moreover, the addition of tumor-derived exosomes partly reversed the inhibitory effect of circ-PNN knockdown on CRC tumor progression in vitro and in vivo. Thus, circ-PNN acts as a sponge for miR-1225-5p to regulate FGF13 expression. Conclusions Tumor-derived exosomal circ-PNN promoted CRC progression through the regulation of the miR-1225-5p/FGF13 pathway, providing a potential therapeutic target for CRC.

Objective:To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (SOF/VEL) with or without ribavirin in the treatment of patients diagnosed with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and chronic kidney disease (CKD).Methods:From June 2018 to May 2022, a total of 75 patients with CHC and CKD, and treated with SOF/VEL±ribavirin at the Kunming Third People′s Hospital were enrolled in this study. The basic information of patients were collected. Assessments of renal function, liver function, virologic response rate and adverse events were conducted at baseline, four weeks and 12 weeks of treatment and 12 weeks after treatment withdrawal. Wilcoxon rank sum test and Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test were used for statistical analysis.Results:Among the 75 patients, 51 cases(68.0%) were classified as CKD stage 2, 12 cases (16.0%) as CKD stage 3, four cases (5.3%) as CKD stage 4, eight cases (10.7%) as CKD stage 5. Additionally, 26 cases (34.7%) were classified as HCV type 3a, while 37 cases (49.3%) were classified as type 3b. Among the patients, 51 cases (68.0%) had cirrhosis, including 15(20.0%) compensated cirrhosis and 36(48.0%) decompensated cirrhosis. Twelve weeks after treatment withdrawal, there was a statistically significant improvement in the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) compared to baseline (81.76(60.94, 94.34) mL/(min·1.73 m 2) vs 70.99(52.86, 82.38) mL/(min·1.73 m 2), Z=8.12, P=0.040). From baseline to 12 weeks after treatment withdrawal, eGFR of patients with CKD stage 2 and stage 3 were both gradually increased, with statistical significance ( H=8.91 and 8.03, respectively, both P<0.05). For CKD stage 2 patients, eGFR increased from 78.82(70.98, 84.80) mL/(min·1.73 m 2) to 86.94 (75.91, 96.01) mL/(min·1.73 m 2), while CKD stage 3 patients had an increased from 51.24 (45.92, 53.37) mL/(min·1.73 m 2) to 64.58 (44.54, 74.34) mL/(min·1.73 m 2). Renal function was improved to CKD stage 1 in 21 patients (28.0%). Compared to baseline, CKD stage 2 patients exhibited a decrease of aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index 12 weeks after treatment withdrawal, and alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels were also significantly improved with statistical significance ( Z=8.03, 21.57 and 43.74, respectively, all P<0.05). The rate of sustained virological response (SVR)12 at 12 weeks after treatment withdrawal was 98.7%(74/75). Among these cases, 51 patients in CKD stage 2, 11 patients in CKD stage 3, 12 patients in CKD stage 4 and stage 5 reached SVR12. Adverse events occurred in 32 patients (42.7%), including 18 cases of mild hemolytic anemia, four cases of skin itching, three cases of rash, two cases of chest tightness, and five cases of fatigue. Conclusions:SOF/VEL with or without ribavirin for the treatment of patients with CHC and CKD has good effectiveness and safety. The renal function, liver function and liver fibrosis degree have been improved after antiviral treatment.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification is the most abundant RNA modification in eukaryotes and is widely involved in the regulation of RNA nuclear export, splicing, translation and degradation. Increasing evidence shows that m6A methylation modification of circular RNA (circRNA) has great potential in metabolism, immunity and benign and malignant diseases. Here, we review the research status of circRNA m6A methylation modification in physiological processes, malignant tumors and oral diseases. It has been shown that m6A methylation can regulate circRNA by regulating circRNA translation, promoting circRNA nuclear output, and promoting circRNA degradation; M6A-modified circRNA plays a regulatory role in immunity, the reproductive system, myogenesis and development, and malignant tumors; and the M6A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes the occurrence of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) through m6A modification mediated by YTHDF1. The high expression of METTL14 can effectively reduce the proliferation, migration and invasion of OSCC. There is little research on circRNA m6A methylation modification in the oral cavity, which is limited to preliminary research in ameloblastoma and oral implant bone absorption. It has broad research prospects in the treatment of major oral diseases (such as potential oral malignant diseases and OSCC).