Objective:To investigate the impact of small extracellular vesicles(sEVs) derived from perirenal adipose cells on the biological behavior of renal tubular epithelial cells under diabetic conditions and the underlying molecular mechanisms.Methods:Primary perirenal adipose cells were extracted from db/m and db/db mice for in vitro culture. The culture supernatant was collected and sEVs(NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo, DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo) were extracted by ultracentrifugation. The sEVs were incubated with human renal tubular epithelial cell line(HK-2) to observe changes in their proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT) levels. The protein composition of sEVs was analyzed using mass spectrometry to explore the molecular mechanisms. Results:CCK8 results showed that the proliferation level of HK-2 cells after DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention did not change significantly compared with the two control groups(Ctrl group and NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention group). Western Blot(WB) results indicated that there were no significant changes in apoptosis levels(Bcl-2, Cleaved-caspase 3, Caspase 3) and autophagy levels(p62, LC3BⅠ, LC3BⅡ) in the DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention group compared with the two control groups. WB and immunofluorescence results demonstrated that DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention upregulated the expression levels of mesenchymal cell marker proteins(Vimentin, α-SMA, Snail2) and downregulated the expression level of epithelial cell marker protein ZO-1 in HK-2 cells compared with the two control groups. Mass spectrometry analysis of sEVs revealed that the differential proteins between DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo and NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo were enriched in EMT-related pathways. Among them, the enrichment of thrombospondin(THBS1) in DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo might be involved in the regulation of EMT in HK-2 cells. Conclusion:Under diabetic conditions, sEVs secreted by PRAT-derived adipocytes promote the upregulation of EMT in renal tubular epithelial cells, a process that may be mediated by the enrichment of THBS1 in sEVs.

Objective To explore the prognostic value of the coronary angiography-derived index of microcirculatory resistance(caIMR)for major adverse cardiovascular events(MACE)in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction(STEMI)after primary percutaneous coronary intervention(PCI).Methods Between September 2019 and March 2022,541 patients diagnosed with STEMI at the Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University were enrolled.The caIMR was calculated using the FlashAngio system(Suzhou Rainmed Medical Technology Co.,Ltd.).The patients were divided into MACE and non-MACE groups according to the occurrence of MACE during hospitalization or follow-up,with MACE defined as all-cause mortality,heart failure readmission,and unplanned revascularization.COX regression analysis,receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curves,and Kaplan-Meier survival curves were used to evaluate the prognostic value of caIMR for STEMI patients after primary PCI.Results During the 1-year follow-up,61 patients(11.28％)experienced MACE.The patients in the MACE group had higher caIMR values than those in the non-MACE group.Multivariate COX analysis showed that caIMR was an independent risk factor for MACE.ROC curve analysis showed that caIMR predicted MACE with an area under the curve of 0.688,and the optimal cutoff value was 25.3 U.caIMR significantly increased the discriminant and reclassification indexes when added to a model with clinical risk factors.The patients were further divided into a low caIMR group(caIMR＜25 U,n=377)and a high caIMR group(caIMR ≥25 U,n=164).Kaplan-Meier curve showed that patients with caIMR≥25 U had a worse prognosis.Conclusions caIMR is an independent risk factor for poor prognosis after PCI in patients with STEMI,and patients with caIMR≥25 U had a worse prognosis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the value of Improved Mayo Endoscopic Score (IMES) for evaluation of treatment efficacy for active ulcerative colitis (UC). METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and endoscopic data of 103 patients diagnosed with active UC in Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital from January, 2015 to December, 2020. The severity of endoscopic lesions was determined by Mayo Endoscopic Score and the Ulcerative Colitis Endoscopic Index of Severity (UCEIS), and the area of the endoscopic lesions was evaluated based on the Montreal classification system. The IMES was established by combining the MES with the Montreal classification. RESULTS: Univariate analysis suggested that young patients (<40 years old), patients with extensive disease type (E3), patients with high endoscopic scores (MES=3, UCEIS>4, and IMES>4), and patients receiving advanced drug therapy (with systemic hormones, immunosuppressants, immunomodulators, and biological agents, etc.) had lower clinical and endoscopic remission rates. COX survival analysis showed that IMES≤4 was an independent risk factor for clinical and endoscopic remission. ROC curve indicated that the predictive value of IMSE≤4 for clinical and endoscopic remission (AUC=0.7793 and 0.7095, respectively; P<0.01) was better than that of Montreal (AUC=0.7357 and 0.6847, respectively; P<0.01), MES=2 (AUC=0.6671 and 0.5929, respectively; P<0.01), and UCEIS≤4 (AUC=0.6823 and 0.6459, respectively; P<0.01); IMES=5 had a better predictive value for patients with active UC undergoing colectomy tham E3 and MES=3. CONCLUSION IMES has good value in evaluating treatment efficacy for active UC.
Humans ; Adult ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; Retrospective Studies ; Endoscopy ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; Treatment Outcome

Purpose To investigate the difference of resting-state functional connectivity density(FCD)between chronic primary insomnia patients and healthy controls via resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging(rs-fMRI).Materials and Methods All rs-fMRI data of 35 patients with chronic primary insomnia from Xidian Group Hospital and Xi'an Encephalopathy Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine,and 35 healthy controls were prospectively collected from August 2020 to December 2021.The voxel-wise FCD approach was applied to explore the differences of whole-brain functional networks between chronic primary insomnia patients and healthy controls.The relationships between FCD value and Pittsburgh sleep quality index,self-rating scale of sleep,insomnia severity index,self-rating anxiety scale and self-rating depression scale in primary insomnia patients were investigated,respectively.Results Compared with healthy controls,the decreased FCD values were showed in the right insula,bilateral anterior cingulate gyrus,left orbitofrontal middle gyrus,left dorsolateral superior frontal gyrus,right medial superior frontal gyrus and bilateral thalamus(t<-5.271,Padjust<0.05),while the increased FCD values showed in the right superior temporal gyrus,bilateral middle temporal gyrus,bilateral precuneus and left posterior cingulate gyrus(t>4.379,Padjust<0.05)in the chronic primary insomnia patients group.The FCD values of bilateral thalamus(r=-0.620,P<0.001;r=-0.562,P<0.005)and right insula(r=-0.651,P<0.001)were negatively correlated with insomnia severity index in the chronic primary insomnia patients group,respectively.Conclusion The extensive functional connectivity abnormalities are observed in primary insomnia patients via FCD analysis.These findings explain the neural mechanisms of underlying emotional regulation and cognitive impairment in chronic insomnia from the perspective of functional integration and functional separation.

Objective:To evaluate the predictive value of prognostic nutritional index (PNI) for survival after radical resection in patients with distal cholangiocarcinoma.Methods:The clinical data of 160 patients with distal cholangiocarcinoma undergoing radical pancreatoduodenectomy in Beijing Chaoyang Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University from September 2011 to March 2022 were retrospectively analyzed, including 97 males and 63 females, aged (65.58±9.22) years old. The optimal cut-off value of PNI for predicting postoperative survival was 42.275 determined by the receiver operating characteristic curve. Patients were divided into the low PNI group ( n=79, PNI<42.275) and high PNI group ( n=81, PNI≥42.275). The survival status of patients were followed up by outpatient clinic or telephone review. Survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method and the log-rank test. Factors with P<0.1 in the univariate analysis were included in the Cox proportional hazards model for multivariate analysis to screen the prognostic factors. Results:There were statistically significant differences in the preoperative albumin, total bilirubin, lymphocytes counts between the two group (all P<0.05). The postoperative median survival time of the low PNI group was 17 months, with cumulative 1, 3 and 5-year survival rates of 62.0%, 25.0% and 16.2%, respectively. The postoperative median survival time of the high PNI group was 23 months, with cumulative 1, 3 and 5-year survival rates of 84.0%, 46.4% and 40.4%, respectively. There was a significant difference between the two groups ( P<0.001). PNI score<42.275 ( HR=1.040, 95% CI: 1.011-1.071, P=0.008), CA19-9>37 U/ml ( HR=1.620, 95% CI: 1.046-2.509, P=0.031), venous invasion ( HR=1.809, 95% CI: 1.013-3.230, P=0.045), lymph node metastasis ( HR=1.956, 95% CI: 1.300-2.969, P=0.001), tumor diameter >2 cm ( HR=1.534, 95% CI: 1.011-2.328, P=0.044), without postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy ( HR=2.828, 95% CI: 1.291-6.195, P=0.009) had a greater risk of poor survival after radical resection. Conclusion:PNI score could be an influencing factor and serve as a predicting tool for the survival after radical resection in patients with distal cholangiocarci-noma.

Hepatitis B virus core protein (HBc) has become a hot spot in drug carrier protein research due to its natural particle self-assembly ability and ease of modification. The truncation of the C-terminal polyarginine domain (CTD, aa 151-183) of HBc does not affect the self-assembly of the particles. However, it does affect the internal and external charges of the particles, which may subsequently affect drug encapsulation. Thus, the truncated C-terminal polyarginine domain (CTD) of HBc and the inserted RGD peptide were selected to construct and express three HBc variants (RH) encapsulated with ICG (RH/ICG) with different C-terminal lengths to compare the stability and drug activity of their nanoformulations. RH160/ICG was found to have a great advantages in encapsulation efficiency and biological imaging. Compared with other HBc variants, RH160/ICG significantly improved encapsulation efficiency, up to 32.77%±1.23%. Cytotoxicity and hemolysis assays further demonstrated the good biocompatibility of RH160/ICG. Cell uptake and in vivo imaging experiments in mice showed that RH160/ICG could efficiently deliver ICG in tumor cells and tumor sites with good imaging effect. This research provides a new direction for further expanding the diagnosis and treatment application of ICG and development of HBc-based nanoparticle drug carrier platform.
Animals ; Hepatitis B/drug therapy* ; Hepatitis B Core Antigens ; Indocyanine Green/chemistry* ; Mice ; Nanoparticles/chemistry* ; Viral Core Proteins

Objective: Several COVID-19 patients have overlapping comorbidities. The independent role of each component contributing to the risk of COVID-19 is unknown, and how some non-cardiometabolic comorbidities affect the risk of COVID-19 remains unclear. Methods: A retrospective follow-up design was adopted. A total of 1,160 laboratory-confirmed patients were enrolled from nine provinces in China. Data on comorbidities were obtained from the patients' medical records. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratio ( Results: Overall, 158 (13.6%) patients were diagnosed with severe illness and 32 (2.7%) had unfavorable outcomes. Hypertension (2.87, 1.30-6.32), type 2 diabetes (T2DM) (3.57, 2.32-5.49), cardiovascular disease (CVD) (3.78, 1.81-7.89), fatty liver disease (7.53, 1.96-28.96), hyperlipidemia (2.15, 1.26-3.67), other lung diseases (6.00, 3.01-11.96), and electrolyte imbalance (10.40, 3.00-26.10) were independently linked to increased odds of being severely ill. T2DM (6.07, 2.89-12.75), CVD (8.47, 6.03-11.89), and electrolyte imbalance (19.44, 11.47-32.96) were also strong predictors of unfavorable outcomes. Women with comorbidities were more likely to have severe disease on admission (5.46, 3.25-9.19), while men with comorbidities were more likely to have unfavorable treatment outcomes (6.58, 1.46-29.64) within two weeks. Conclusion Besides hypertension, diabetes, and CVD, fatty liver disease, hyperlipidemia, other lung diseases, and electrolyte imbalance were independent risk factors for COVID-19 severity and poor treatment outcome. Women with comorbidities were more likely to have severe disease, while men with comorbidities were more likely to have unfavorable treatment outcomes.
Adult ; Aged ; COVID-19/virology* ; China/epidemiology* ; Comorbidity ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Severity of Illness Index ; Treatment Outcome

Phellodendri Chinensis Cortex is perennial deciduous arbors, herbaceous medicinal plants are perennial. It is a rational disposition of Chinese materia medica planting colonies by inter cropping of Phellodendri Chinensis Cortex and herbaceous medicinal plants, based on their different plant height. According to the different demand of sunlight in density and periodicity, the heliophilous and shade-requiring plants, perennial arbors and herbaceous, short and long-term growth plants were intercropping in this kind of the ecological planting pattern. It can efficiently enhance the ecological, economic and social benefits by making full use of nutrients and land sources, as well as increasing the biodiversity in Chinese materia medica planting areas.
Agriculture ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; Feasibility Studies ; Materia Medica ; Plants, Medicinal

Objective: To revised the Taiwan version successful aging inventory (SAI), and verify its reliability and validity in urban elderly in mainland China. Methods: SAI was adjusted by culture and revised by pre-test to form a formal questionnaire. A sample of 600 elderly people in Guangzhou was chosen for a face-to-face questionnaire survey through convenient sampling. Half of the sample (n=300) was randomly selected for exploratory factor analysis, and the other was used to confirm the structural validity of SAI. Results: Exploratory factor analysis extracted six common factors, including health autonomy, economic security, life adaptation, society and relative relationship, study and family. The cumulative contribution rate of six common factors was 65.366%. The fitting indexes of confirmatory factor analysis were χ²/df=1.861, CFI=0.930, IFI=0.930, TLI=0.923, GFI=0.823, RMSEA=0.054, RMR=0.073. There were significant ceiling effects in the four dimensions of health autonomy, economic security, life adaptation, and family. The internal consistency coefficient (Cronbach's α) of SAI was 0.930, and the test-retest reliability was 0.943. An average score of SAI ≥ 3.95 points was considered successful aging. Conclusion Reliability and validity of SAI are good, which can be used to measure the successful aging status of Chinese elders and track the effectiveness of health promotion measures.

Objective: To build a comprehensive evaluation system for printable and online materials, and provide reference for the compilation and selection of patient education materials. Methods: Taking Suitability Assessment of Materials (SAM) as frame and combined Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT) and CDC Clear Communication Index, we screened indicator of the evaluation system preliminary and all of them have been adjusted with the language habits and social and cultural characteristics of our country. By Delphi method, 15 experts in related fields were selected to conduct 2 rounds of expert consultation to establish the final indicator system. The weights of the different indicators were also analyzed by Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Results: The indicator system of printable and online patient education materials was consisted of 7 first-level indicators,28 second-level indicators,84 third-level indicators. The positive coefficients and the authority coefficients of the experts were 100% and 0.87 of the two rounds. The coordination factors of the experts in second-level and third-level were respectively 0.362 and 0.255 for the second round. The top three indicators of the first-level indicators were content (0.271 5), behavioral suggestion (0.190 4), and language expression (0.190 4); the highest-level index weight was scientific content (0.095 7), and the lowest was the use of commonly numbers, correct interpretation of numbers and units′ meaning (0.007 0). Conclusion The comprehensive evaluation system for printable and online materials is scientific, comprehensive and easy to operate. It can provide reference for medical worker to prepare and select printable and online materials.