Objective To evaluate the associations between carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAb) detected from any respiratory specimens within 0-7 days after lung transplantation and all-cause mortality at 30-day, 90-day and 1-year post-transplantation. Methods Recipients undergoing lung transplantation at Lung Transplant Center of Wuxi People’s Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2022 were retrospectively enrolled. Patients were divided into the CRAb-positive group (n=126) and CRAb-negative group (n=299) according to culture results of respiratory samples collected within postoperative days 0-7. Baseline characteristics were compared between the two groups. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression models were performed to identify risk factors for 30-day mortality and analyse the correlation of CRAb detection with 30-day, 90-day and 1-year all-cause mortality. Sensitivity analyses and subgroup analyses were subsequently conducted. Results Compared with the CRAb-negative group, recipients in the CRAb-positive group presented higher ratios of preoperative invasive mechanical ventilation and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a higher CRAb-positive rate in donor pharyngeal swabs, and elevated proportions of bilateral lung transplantation, Shell-shaped incision, peri-operative ECMO application. Moreover, the CRAb-positive group had longer pulmonary cold-ischemia time, intensive care unit stay duration and operation time (all P<0.05). Multivariate Cox regression demonstrated that positive CRAb isolation from respiratory samples within postoperative days 0-7 and preoperative coronary stent implantation were independently associated with 30-day mortality (all P<0.001). The CRAb-positive group exhibited significantly higher mortality risks at 30 days, 90 days and 1 year after surgery (all P<0.001). After adjusting for confounders, early CRAb detection remained an independent predictor of elevated mortality (all P<0.05). Consistent results were obtained when stratifying cases by detection timing (0-3 days vs. 4-7 days), excluding patients with co-detection of other multidrug-resistant bacteria, and applying inverse probability of treatment weighting, and the direction of association remained consistent. Conclusions CRAb detected from respiratory specimens within postoperative days 0-7 is independently correlated with increased 30-day, 90-day and 1-year all-cause mortality among lung-transplant recipients. Early CRAb detection may serve for risk stratification. Nevertheless, such finding does not confirm that CRAb infection directly causes death, and the conclusion cannot be generalized to deaths occurring within the initial postoperative 7-day period.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the analgesic effect and potential mechanism of punicalagin on neuropathic pain （NP） rats based on the hypoxia-inducible factor-1α （HIF-1α）/nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat and pyrin domain-containing receptor 3 （NLRP3） signaling pathway. METHODS Male SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation group （18 rats） and modeling group （72 rats）. NP rat model was established by chronic constriction injury （CCI） of sciatic nerve. The successfully modeled rats were divided into NP group， 2-methoxyestradiol group （HIF-1α antagonist 10 mg/kg）， punicalagin group （300 mg/kg）， and punicalagin+dimethyloxaloglycine group （punicalagin 300 mg/kg+HIF-1α agonist 175 mg/kg）， with 18 rats in each group. Rats in each group were injected intraperitoneally and/or intragastrically with the corresponding solution or 1% dimethyl sulfoxide/normal saline， once a day， for 14 consecutive days. After the last administration， the mechanical withdrawal threshold （MWT）， thermal withdrawal latency （TWL）， the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β） and IL-6 in spinal cord tissue were detected； the morphological changes in the spinal dorsal horn were observed. Apoptosis rate of spinal dorsal horn neurons， the co-localization of NLRP3/ionized calcium binding adapter molecule 1 （Iba-1） （calculated by the number of NLRP3+/Iba-1+ cells） and the protein expressions of HIF-1α， NLRP3， apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD （ASC） and caspase-1 in spinal cord tissue were detected. RESULTS Compared with the sham operation group， neurofibril in spinal dorsal horn of rats in NP group was thickened and wound into knots， and vacuolar degeneration containing silver granules was observed； the MWT and TWL were reduced or shortened； the levels of TNF-α， IL-1β and IL-6 in spinal cord tissue， the apoptosis rate of spinal dorsal horn neurons， the number of NLRP3+/Iba-1+ cells， and protein expressions of HIF-1α， NLRP3， ASC and caspase-1 were significantly increased or up-regulated （P＜0.05）. Compared with the NP group， the above indexes were significantly improved in the 2-methoxyestradiol group and punicalagin group （P＜0.05）， while dimethyloxaloglycine could significantly reverse the improvement effect of punicalagin on the above indexes （P＜0.05）. CONCLUSIONS Punicalagin can relieve pain in NP rats， and its analgesic effect may be achieved by inhibiting HIF-1α/NLRP3 signaling pathway and blocking the activation of ma0o4e@163.com NLRP3 inflammasome in spinal dorsal horn microglia.

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effects of point-moxibustion with Zhuang medicinal thread on differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG), tissue morphology, and the expression of Fc epsilon RI (FcεRI) pathway proteins spleen tyrosine kinase (Syk) and membrane spanning 4-domain A2 (MS4A2) in rat model of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), and to explore the potential mechanism by which this therapy alleviates pain sensitization. METHODS: Thirty-nine male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into a control group, a model group, and a moxibustion group, with 13 rats in each group. The PHN model was established in the model and moxibustion groups by intraperitoneal injection of resiniferatoxin. In the moxibustion group, bilateral L₄-L₆ "Jiaji" (EX-B2) points were treated with point-moxibustion with Zhuang medicinal thread from day 7 post-modeling, with two cones per acupoint per session, every other day for a total of 10 sessions. Mechanical withdrawal threshold (MWT) and thermal withdrawal latency (TWL) were measured at 1 day before modeling and on days 1, 4, 7, 13, 19, and 25 after modeling. After intervention, HE staining was used to observe DRG morphology. RNA sequencing was performed to analyze DEGs in DRG and conduct bioinformatics analysis. The expression of Syk and MS4A2 mRNA and proteins in the FcεRI pathway in DRG was detected by quantitative PCR and Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the model group exhibited decreased MWT (P<0.05) and increased TWL (P<0.05); histopathological analysis revealed neuronal atrophy, nuclear displacement, and intracellular vacuoles, with a slightly loose arrangement; the RNA-Seq identified 3,207 DEGs (1,997 upregulated and 1,210 downregulated); the mRNA and protein expression levels of Syk and MS4A2 were significantly increased (P<0.01). Compared with the model group, the moxibustion group showed increased MWT (P<0.05) and decreased TWL (P<0.05), with relatively normal neuronal morphology; the RNA-Seq identified 426 DEGs (250 upregulated and 176 downregulated); the mRNA and protein expression levels of Syk and MS4A2 were significantly decreased (P<0.05). Venn diagram analysis identified 156 DEGs that showed a reversal in expression trends after treatment, including Syk and MS4A2, which are associated with pain sensitization. KEGG pathway analysis indicated that these DEGs were primarily enriched in the FcεRI pathway. CONCLUSION Point-moxibustion with Zhuang medicinal thread could alleviate pain sensitization in PHN rats, possibly by inhibiting the FcεRI signaling pathway and downregulating the expression of Syk and MS4A2.
Animals ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Male ; Rats ; Moxibustion ; Neuralgia, Postherpetic/physiopathology* ; Syk Kinase/metabolism* ; Acupuncture Points ; Humans ; Ganglia, Spinal/metabolism* ; Signal Transduction

Objective: To investigate the sleep quality in patients with burning mouth syndrome (BMS) and its influencing factors, providing a basis for developing sleep intervention measures to reduce the impact of BMS symptoms. Methods: This study was reviewed and approved by the Medical Ethics Committee, and informed consent was obtained from patients. A total of 150 patients with BMS and 150 healthy volunteers were enrolled as subjects in this study. The Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) was used to assess the sleep quality of patients with BMS. Visual analog scale (VAS) was used to assess the degree of oral mucosal pain, generalized anxiety disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7) was used to assess the frequency of anxiety symptoms, and the patient health questionnaire depression questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to assess the frequency of depression symptoms. Univariate analysis was performed to identify potential influencing factors affecting sleep quality in patients with BMS, and multiple linear regression analysis was employed to determine independent risk factors. Results: The PSQI score for patients with BMS was 7.61 ± 4.29, which was significantly higher than that of healthy controls (P = 0.016). In the PSQI subscale analysis, patients with BMS exhibited increased sleep latency, decreased sleep duration, and lower sleep efficiency compared to healthy controls (P<0.05). Patients with BMS and comorbid sleep difficulties had significantly higher scores on GAD-7 and PHQ-9 compared to the patients with BMS without sleep difficulties (P<0.001), but there was no significant difference in pain VAS scores between the two (P = 0.068). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that longer disease duration (>6 months), the presence of systemic concomitant symptoms (such as headache and mental stress), and higher depression scores were identified as independent risk factors affecting sleep quality in patients with BMS. Conclusion For patients with BMS, long course of illness, presence of headaches, high mental stress, and depressive symptoms may be independent factors affecting their sleep quality.

Objective To explore the application effect of prone position ventilation combined with veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO) in the treatment of severe primary graft dysfunction (PGD) after lung transplantation. Methods The clinical data of 75 lung transplant recipients who developed severe PGD after lung transplantation and were treated with VV-ECMO from January 2021 to June 2024 at Wuxi People's Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University were collected. The patients with severe graft dysfunction after lung transplantation were divided into VV-ECMO group (control group, 45 cases) and prone position ventilation combined with VV-ECMO group (treatment group, 30 cases). The general data of the two groups of patients were compared, including the donors' clinical data (age, gender and oxygenation index, etc) and the recipients' clinical data [gender, age and body mass index (BMI), etc]. Cox regression analysis was used to analyze the influencing factors of the recipients' 30-day, 90-day and 180-day survival after surgery. The survival curves of the two groups of recipients were drawn using Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test. Results The intensive care unit (ICU) stay time, ECMO application time and ventilator use time of control group were longer than those of treatment group. The proportion of male recipients and the BMI of control group were lower than those of treatment group. The 30-day, 90-day and 180-day survival of control group was worse than that of treatment group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The univariate Cox regression analysis of the recipients' 30-day survival after surgery showed that the recipients' BMI, history of diabetes, enlargement of the right atrium and right ventricle, intraoperative blood transfusion volume and intraoperative red blood cell transfusion volume were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the history of diabetes and enlargement of the right atrium and right ventricle were risk factors affecting the 30-day survival of lung transplant recipients (all P<0.05). The univariate Cox regression analysis of the recipients' 90-day survival after surgery showed that the recipients' BMI, history of diabetes, enlargement of the right atrium and right ventricle, intraoperative blood transfusion volume, intraoperative red blood cell transfusion volume and group variable were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the history of diabetes, enlargement of the right atrium and right ventricle and group variable were risk factors affecting the 90-day survival of lung transplant recipients (all P<0.05). The univariate Cox regression analysis of the recipients' 180-day survival after surgery showed that the recipients' BMI, history of diabetes, right atrium and right ventricle enlargement, intraoperative blood transfusion volume, intraoperative red blood cell transfusion volume and group variable were statistically significant (all P<0.05). The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the history of diabetes, enlargement of the right atrium and right ventricle and group variable were risk factors affecting the 180-day survival of lung transplant recipients (all P<0.05). The 30-day, 90-day and 180-day survival rates of control group were lower, and the differences between the two groups were statistically significant (all P<0.05), with a median survival time of 100 days in control group. Conclusions In the clinical treatment of severe PGD after lung transplantation, prone position ventilation combined with VV-ECMO may shorten ECMO application time, invasive ventilation time and ICU stay time, and improve the short-term prognosis of lung transplantation.

Objective:To investigate the possible mechanism of treadmill exercise(TR)in improving cognitive function of rats with chronic unpredictable mild stress(CUMS)by detecting pathological changes and the expression of sigma-1 receptor(SIR),endoplasmic reticulum stress-related proteins in hippocampus.Methods:30 SD rats were ran-domly allocated into control group(n=10),CUMS group(n=10)and CUMS exercise group(CUMS+TR,n=10).Subsequently,depressive model was established in rats of CUMS group and CUMS+TR group,meanwhile,CUMS+TR group rats were subjected to 4 weeks of moderate intensity treadmill exercise(20 m/min).After the CUMS and tread-mill exercise,the eight-arm radial maze test(RAM)was carried out to evaluate the learning-memory functions.Subse-quently,the pathological changes of neurons in the hippocampus of rats were measured by HE staining,the protein expression of the GRP78,IRE1,XBP1,CHOP,caspase-3 and SIR in the hippocampus were measured by Western blot.Results:Compared with the control group,the time of finishing the eight-arm radial maze prolonged and the num-ber of total memory errors increased(P＜0.05)in the RAM of the CUMS group rats.The morphology and structure of neurons in the hippocampus of CUMS group rats showed obvious pathological changes,the protein expression levels of GRP78,IRE1,XBP1,CHOP and caspase-3 significantly increased and SIR protein expression decreased(P＜0.05)in hippocampus in the CUMS group compared with the control group rats.4-week treadmill exercise significantly im-prove the learning and memory ability and pathological changes of neurons in hippocampus of CUMS+TR group rats.Compared with CUMS group rats,the protein expression levels of GRP78,IRE1,XBP1,CHOP and caspase-3 signifi-cantly decreased,the SIR expression in hippocampus significantly increased in the CUMS+TR group rats(P＜0.05).Conclusion:Treadmill exercise can improve cognitive impairment in CUMS rats,and its mechanism may be related to the up-regulation of SIR expression and the inhibition of ERS-mediated apoptosis pathway in hippocampus.

Objective:To investigate the possible mechanism of treadmill exercise(TR)in improving cognitive function of rats with chronic unpredictable mild stress(CUMS)by detecting pathological changes and the expression of sigma-1 receptor(SIR),endoplasmic reticulum stress-related proteins in hippocampus.Methods:30 SD rats were ran-domly allocated into control group(n=10),CUMS group(n=10)and CUMS exercise group(CUMS+TR,n=10).Subsequently,depressive model was established in rats of CUMS group and CUMS+TR group,meanwhile,CUMS+TR group rats were subjected to 4 weeks of moderate intensity treadmill exercise(20 m/min).After the CUMS and tread-mill exercise,the eight-arm radial maze test(RAM)was carried out to evaluate the learning-memory functions.Subse-quently,the pathological changes of neurons in the hippocampus of rats were measured by HE staining,the protein expression of the GRP78,IRE1,XBP1,CHOP,caspase-3 and SIR in the hippocampus were measured by Western blot.Results:Compared with the control group,the time of finishing the eight-arm radial maze prolonged and the num-ber of total memory errors increased(P＜0.05)in the RAM of the CUMS group rats.The morphology and structure of neurons in the hippocampus of CUMS group rats showed obvious pathological changes,the protein expression levels of GRP78,IRE1,XBP1,CHOP and caspase-3 significantly increased and SIR protein expression decreased(P＜0.05)in hippocampus in the CUMS group compared with the control group rats.4-week treadmill exercise significantly im-prove the learning and memory ability and pathological changes of neurons in hippocampus of CUMS+TR group rats.Compared with CUMS group rats,the protein expression levels of GRP78,IRE1,XBP1,CHOP and caspase-3 signifi-cantly decreased,the SIR expression in hippocampus significantly increased in the CUMS+TR group rats(P＜0.05).Conclusion:Treadmill exercise can improve cognitive impairment in CUMS rats,and its mechanism may be related to the up-regulation of SIR expression and the inhibition of ERS-mediated apoptosis pathway in hippocampus.

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy of hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether-mediated photodynamic therapy (HMME-PDT) in the treatment of adult patients with port-wine stains (PWS) in China, and to analyze factors influencing the efficacy.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted on the data from 265 adult patients with PWS who underwent HMME-PDT at the Department of Dermatology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University from February 2017 to October 2023. Patients were intravenously injected with hemoporfin at doses of 5 - 6.5 mg/kg, followed by irradiation with a 532-nm green light-emitting diode at the energy density of 100 - 130 J/cm 2 (power density, 85 - 100 mW/cm 2) for 19 - 25 minutes. Treatments were conducted every 2 - 6 months. The treatment response in the treated area was observed after each treatment, and the clinical efficacy was assessed at least two months after the last treatment. Chi-square test was used to analyze the differences in efficacy between groups. Results:Among the 265 adult patients with PWS, the male to female ratio was 90∶175, the patients' age ranged from 18 to 56 years (26.48 ± 6.88 years), and they underwent 1 to 8 treatment sessions (2.67 ± 1.33 sessions). After treatment, 102 (38.4%) patients achieved complete remission, 74 (27.9%) achieved marked improvement, 59 (22.2%) had moderate improvement, and 30 (11.3%) showed no response, resulting in an overall response rate of 88.7%. Among 146 patients without hypertrophic lesions, 69 (47.3%) achieved complete remission, with a response rate of 92.5%; among 102 with slightly thickened lesions, 32 (31.4%) achieved complete remission, with a response rate of 87.3%; among 17 with markedly thickened lesions, only 1 achieved complete remission, and 11 achieved marked improvement. Among 50 patients who received more than 3 treatment sessions, 28 (56%) had complete remission, with a response rate of 100%; among 45 who received only one session of treatment, 5 (11.1%) achieved complete remission, with a response rate of 68.9%. Among 232 patients without soft tissue hyperplasia, 95 (40.9%) achieved complete remission, with a response rate of 88.8%; among 33 with soft tissue hyperplasia, 7 (21.2%) achieved complete remission, with a response rate of 87.9%. The therapeutic effects significantly differed among patients with different lesion thicknesses, among those with different treatment sessions, as well as between patients with soft tissue hyperplasia and those without (all P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in the therapeutic effect among patients of different genders, different ages, with different lesion colors, as well as between patients with nodules and those without, and between patients with treatment history and those without (all P > 0.05). During and after the treatment, patients experienced varying degrees of swelling, burning sensation, pain, and itching, all of which could be relieved by common treatment; scars occurred in 10 (3.8%) patients, and were managed by symptomatic treatment; no systemic adverse reactions, such as drug allergies or impairment of liver and kidney function, were observed during the treatment. Conclusions:HMME-PDT is safe and effective in the treatment of adult patient with PWS. The therapeutic effect of HMME-PDT was associated with lesion thickening and soft tissue hyperplasia, and increased with the increase in treatment sessions.

Objective To preliminarily investigate the association between changes in intestinal microbiota and oral microbiota of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT)patients and early gastrointestinal acute graft versus host disease(aGVHD),and try to explore potentially effective biomarkers and provide theoretical basis for early prediction and intervention of gastrointestinal aGVHD.Methods Ten acute leukemia patients who developed gastrointestinal aGVHD within 1 month after receiving allo-HSCT in Department of Hematology of Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital from September 2021 to June 2023 were enrolled,and their fecal samples and saliva samples before and after the aGVHD were collected.16S rRNA sequencing analysis was applied for the differential changes in intestinal and oral microbiota before and after the development of early gastrointestinal aGVHD.Results ① A decrease in Bacteroides spp.and an increase in Enterococcus spp.and Enterobacteriaceae spp.in the intestinal microbiota were positively correlated with the occurrence of early upper gastrointestinal aGVHD(P＜0.05),whereas no significant difference was observed in the overall microbial diversity of the oral microbiota(P＞0.05).② LEfSe analysis of the intestinal microbiota before and after gastrointestinal aGVHD revealed an increase in Klebsiella spp.and Enterococcus spp.and a decrease in Escherichia coli;In the oral microbiota,LEfSe analysis revealed 10 microbial markers with significant difference,of which Gamma proteobacteria was the most significant.③ The difference in β-diversity of the intestinal microbiota was significant(P=0.03),whereas there was no significant difference in the α-and β-diversity of the oral microbiota.Conclusion Significant differences are found in intestinal microbiota before and after the occurrence of early gastrointestinal aGVHD in patients after Allo-HSCT,and the occurrence may have a correlation with the chang in oral microbiota.

Objective To analyze the predictive value of cone beam computed tomography(CBCT)in styloid process syndrome(SPS)via logistic regression combined with receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on imaging data of 186 patients who underwent styloid CBCT.Among them,65 patients were clinically diagnosed with SPS(patient group),while 121 constituted the healthy controls(control group).The styloid length,inclination angle,and anteversion angle were measured,respectively.Logistic regression analysis was employed,and ROC curves were plotted to calculate sensitivity,specificity,and Youden index,the diagnostic cut-off values for SPS was obtained.Results In the control group,the styloid length was(29.66±7.22)mm,inclination angle was(22.34±3.05)°,and anteversion angle was(31.01±4.13)°.In the patient group,the styloid length was(40.30±8.65)mm,inclination angle was(21.86±3.74)°,and anteversion angle was(35.88±6.37)°.Logistic regression analysis revealed that styloid length and anteversion angle were risk factors for diagnosing SPS(P＜0.05),while inclination angle was not a risk factor for diagno-sing SPS(P＞0.05).ROC curve analysis demonstrated that diagnosing SPS,the area under the curve(AUC),sensitivity,specificity,and optimal cut-off value for styloid length were 0.868,92.3％,69.7％,and 31.23 mm,respectively;and for anteversion angle were 0.765,63.1％,89.3％,and 35.15°,respectively.Conclusion CBCT measurements of styloid length,inclination angle,and antever-sion angle suggest that a styloid length exceeding 31.23 mm and an styloid anteversion angle greater than 35.15° may indicate a higher likelihood of SPS.CBCT is a convenient,cost-effective,and safe diagnostic tool with positive clinical implications.