OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical and genetic characteristics of a Chinese pedigree affected with Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) due to a truncating variant of ALPK3 gene. METHODS: A 44-year-old male admitted to Taizhou Hospital of Zhejiang Province on December 29, 2018 was selected as the study subject. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was carried out, and candidate variant was interpreted by following the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). For ALPK3 was considered an autosomal recessive gene, the WES results was considered insufficient to explain his phenotype. In April 2023, the proband's WES data were re-analyzed using updated annotation pipelines, and peripheral blood samples were collected from his first-degree relatives (mother and brother) for Sanger sequencing validation. Conservation analysis and protein structural modeling were performed to assess the impact of the variant. Clinical evaluation and genetic counseling were provided to the proband's family members. Relevant literature on ALPK3tv-induced HCM patients were searched in Wanfang Data Knowledge Service Platform, CNKI, and PubMed database using "ALPK3" and "hypertrophic cardiomyopathy" as keywords. Clinical characteristics of HCM patients with heterozygous ALPK3tv variants were summarized and compared with the clinical characteristics of HCM patients with positive sarcomere-associated gene variants (SARC+). This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Taizhou Hospital of Zhejiang Province Affiliated to Wenzhou Medical University (Ethics No.: K20230314). RESULTS: The proband was a 44-year-old male who was transferred to our institution on December 29, 2018 due to "chest tightness and pain for 6 months, exacerbated for 2 days". Emergency coronary angiography was performed, which led to a preliminary diagnosis of "acute coronary syndrome", and the patient was admitted to the Cardiology Department for treatment. Based on electrocardiogram and echocardiogram findings, the diagnosis was revised as HCM. The patient's condition has stabilized post-coronary angiography, and he was discharged with improved condition. On January 2019, WES was conducted to determine the etiology of the proband's HCM. WES results identified a novel heterozygous c.2156dupC (p.Pro720ThrfsTer53) truncating variant in the ALPK3 gene. At that time, the inheritance pattern could not explain the phenotype. In 2022, a literature indicated that heterozygous ALPK3tv could lead to autosomal dominant HCM. Consequently, in April 2023, the proband's whole-exome data were re-annotated, revealing changes in the transcript and protein versions, with the updated site annotated as ALPK3 (NM_020778.5): c.1550dupC (p.Pro518ThrfsTer53). Sanger sequencing confirmed that the proband's mother and brother also carried this variant. The mother exhibited obstructive HCM, while the brother showed no related phenotype. Bioinformatics analysis demonstrated conservation of this site across multiple species, and the variant has resulted in the loss of a protein domain. Based on ACMG guidelines, the variant was classified as likely pathogenic. Literature review and Bayesian calculation further elevated the pathogenicity rating, indicating that this variant was the cause of HCM in the patient. Literature study revealed distinctions between HCM caused by this variant type and SARC+ HCM. The age of onset among heterozygous ALPK3tv patients was delayed by approximately 10 years compared to SARC+ patients. Both forms of HCM exhibited a male predominance, which was particularly marked in individuals with ALPK3tv. Electrocardiographic left ventricular hypertrophy was more prevalent in heterozygous ALPK3tv patients than in SARC+ patients. The incidence of apical or concentric hypertrophy patterns was higher in heterozygous ALPK3tv patients compared to asymmetric septal hypertrophy, which predominated in SARC+ patients. ALPK3tv patients exhibited lower penetrance and later onset compared to SARC+ patients. A positive correlation between left ventricular wall thickness and age was noted in female patients only. CONCLUSION In this pedigree, the proband has presented with HCM, characterized by echocardiographic evidence of apical left ventricular hypertrophy without significant outflow tract obstruction or extracardiac phenotypes. Although his mother and brother had carried the same heterozygous ALPK3 (NM_020778.5) c.1550dupC (p.Pro518ThrfsTer53), the mother exhibited severe obstructive HCM, while the brother was asymptomatic, suggesting incomplete or age-dependent penetrance within the family. This study has enriched the evidence for the pathogenicity of ALPK3tv among Chinese HCM pedigrees and underscored the importance of periodic literature reviews and genetic re-analysis for unresolved genetic testing results.
Humans ; Male ; Pedigree ; Adult ; Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic/genetics* ; Heterozygote ; Asian People/genetics* ; Exome Sequencing ; Mutation ; China ; Female ; East Asian People

Objective:To determine the types of genetic variants in six Chinese pedigrees affected with Marfan syndrome (MFS) and analyze their clinical characteristics and molecular pathogenesis.Methods:Six MFS pedigrees presented at the Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group) between 2017 and 2022 were selected as the study subjects. Clinical data of pedigrees were retrospectively analyzed. Peripheral blood samples were collected from the probands and their family members for the extraction of genomic DNA. Whole exome sequencing (WES) was carried out. Candidate variants of the FBN1 gene were verified by Sanger sequencing. Based on the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), pathogenicity of the candidate variants was assessed. AlphaFold3 and PyMOL software were used for homology modeling of the FBN1 protein and analysis of its three-dimensional structure and amino acid sequence conservation. This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group) (Ethics No. 20231002). Results:Cardiovascular system abnormalities were noted in all pedigrees, ocular abnormalities were present in pedigrees 2 and 5, skeletal system abnormalities were presented in pedigrees 1, and 4 to 6. FBN1 gene mutations were identified in all pedigrees, including c. 1957_1958dupGT (p.Asp654fs), c. 5014T>A (p.Cys1672Ser), c. 8135delC (p.Pro2712fs), c. 2302G>T (p.Glu768*), c. 3473A>G (p.Glu1158Gly) and c. 6169C>T (p.Arg2057*), with each involving a different exon. Four variants were rated as pathogenic, one as likely pathogenic, and one as variant of uncertain significance. Among these, c. 5014T>A (p.Cys1672Ser), c. 1957_1958dupGT (p.Asp654fs), c. 8135delC (p.Pro2712fs), and c. 2302G>T (p.Glu768*) were unreported previously. Bioinformatic analysis with SIFT and PolyPhen-2 predicted that the c. 5014T>A (p.Cys1672Ser) and c. 3473A>G (p.Glu1158Gly) variants were deleterious. Protein homologous sequence alignment analysis revealed that the four novel mutation sites are highly conserved across various species. Homology modeling of the FBN1 protein three-dimensional structure indicated that the six variant sites in the amino acid sequence are all close to hydrogen bonds and may alter the secondary and tertiary structures to varying degrees, thereby confirmed the relationship between the variants and MFS. Conclusion:Four novel variants of the FBN1 gene have been discovered in this study, which has enriched the mutational and phenotypic spectrum of MFS and provided a basis for disease diagnosis and genetic counseling.

Objective:To determine the types of genetic variants in six Chinese pedigrees affected with Marfan syndrome (MFS) and analyze their clinical characteristics and molecular pathogenesis.Methods:Six MFS pedigrees presented at the Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group) between 2017 and 2022 were selected as the study subjects. Clinical data of pedigrees were retrospectively analyzed. Peripheral blood samples were collected from the probands and their family members for the extraction of genomic DNA. Whole exome sequencing (WES) was carried out. Candidate variants of the FBN1 gene were verified by Sanger sequencing. Based on the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), pathogenicity of the candidate variants was assessed. AlphaFold3 and PyMOL software were used for homology modeling of the FBN1 protein and analysis of its three-dimensional structure and amino acid sequence conservation. This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group) (Ethics No. 20231002). Results:Cardiovascular system abnormalities were noted in all pedigrees, ocular abnormalities were present in pedigrees 2 and 5, skeletal system abnormalities were presented in pedigrees 1, and 4 to 6. FBN1 gene mutations were identified in all pedigrees, including c. 1957_1958dupGT (p.Asp654fs), c. 5014T>A (p.Cys1672Ser), c. 8135delC (p.Pro2712fs), c. 2302G>T (p.Glu768*), c. 3473A>G (p.Glu1158Gly) and c. 6169C>T (p.Arg2057*), with each involving a different exon. Four variants were rated as pathogenic, one as likely pathogenic, and one as variant of uncertain significance. Among these, c. 5014T>A (p.Cys1672Ser), c. 1957_1958dupGT (p.Asp654fs), c. 8135delC (p.Pro2712fs), and c. 2302G>T (p.Glu768*) were unreported previously. Bioinformatic analysis with SIFT and PolyPhen-2 predicted that the c. 5014T>A (p.Cys1672Ser) and c. 3473A>G (p.Glu1158Gly) variants were deleterious. Protein homologous sequence alignment analysis revealed that the four novel mutation sites are highly conserved across various species. Homology modeling of the FBN1 protein three-dimensional structure indicated that the six variant sites in the amino acid sequence are all close to hydrogen bonds and may alter the secondary and tertiary structures to varying degrees, thereby confirmed the relationship between the variants and MFS. Conclusion:Four novel variants of the FBN1 gene have been discovered in this study, which has enriched the mutational and phenotypic spectrum of MFS and provided a basis for disease diagnosis and genetic counseling.

AIM: To study the protective effect and mechanism of swimming on kidney of diabetic mice. METHODS: The mice were randomly divided into normal control group, normal swimming group, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) mice model group, diabetic swimming group and metformin group. T2DM model was established by streptozotocin (STZ) method. The mice in normal swimming group and diabetic swimming group were given swimming exercise (1 h a day), and the metformin group were given metformin (200 mg/kg) by gavage once a day for 7 weeks. Fasting blood glucose and serum insulin were measured and insulin resistance index was calculated. The contents of uric acid, urea and creatinine in serum were determined. The ratio of renal mass to body mass was calculated, and the pathological changes of renal tissues were observed. The relative expressions of autophagy related proteins LC3 and P62 in renal tissues were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with normal control group, insulin resistance index and renal mass/body mass ratio in model group were significantly increased. Serum uric acid, urea and creatinine levels increased, and glomerular pathological changes were obvious. LC3II/LC3I ratio decreased significantly. The expression of P62 was significantly increased. Compared with model group, insulin resistance index and renal mass/body mass ratio in diabetic swimming group were significantly decreased. The contents of serum uric acid, urea and creatinine decreased, and the pathological changes of glomerular were alleviated. LC3II/LC3I ratio increased significantly. The expression of P62 decreased significantly (P even <0.05). CONCLUSION: Swimming protects the kidney injury of T2DM mice, and its mechanism may be related to promoting the autophagy process of renal tissue.

Objective To analyze risk factors and antimicrobial use for hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP)due to multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs)in an intensive care unit(ICU),so as to perform risk assessment and guide antimicrobial use.Methods From January 2012 to December 2013,HAP patients were conducted retrospective co-hort study,risk factors for MDRO-HAP and rationality of antimicrobial use were analyzed.Results A total of 110 cases of HAP occurred in ICU,63 cases (57.27%)were MDR-HAP.Logistic regression analysis revealed that re-cent hospital stay ≥5 days (OR=19.94),transference from other hospitals (OR =19.33),infection type of late-onset HAP (OR=7.98),and antimicrobial use in recent 90 days (OR =3.42)were independent risk factors for MDR-HAP.Initial empirical anti-infective treatment revealed that there were no significant difference in timing of antimicrobial administration within 24 hours after clinical diagnosis was confirmed,and rationality of antimicrobial selection between MDR-HAP group and non-MDR-HAP group (both P >0.05);The isolation rate of pathogens in MDR-HAP group was lower than non-MDR-HAP group (73.02% vs 91 .49% P <0.05 ).Targeted antimicrobial therapy revealed that there were no significant difference in selection,dosage,and frequency of antimicrobial use be-tween two groups(all P >0.05 );the rationality rate of therapy course in MDR-HAP group was higher than no-MDR-HAP group,but rationality rate of combination use of antimicrobial agents was slightly lower than the latter (both P < 0.05 ).Conclusion Patients in ICU should be conducted risk factor assessment,and according prevention and control measures should be formulated,so as to reduce the occurrence of MDR-HAP,health care workers should standardized the initial empirical anti-infective treatment.

Objective To evaluate the effect of plan-do-check-act (PDCA)cycle method in improving disinfection efficacy of object surface in intensive care unit (ICU).Methods On the basis of management of healthcare-associat-ed infection (HAI)and prevention of multidrug-resistant organisms,disinfection efficacy of object surface in an ICU was intervened,data about surface object specimens taken before,during,and after intervention,HAI in patients, as well as detection of MDROs were collected.Results The total qualified rate of specimens taken before,during, and after intervention was 58.24%,76.74%,and 88.71 %,respectively,there was an increased tendency,the difference was significant (χ2 =17.41 ,P =0.009);the incidence of HAI was 3.72%,2.42%,and 1 .78%,respec-tively,there was a decreased tendency(χ2 =6.03,P =0.039),case infection rate was 4.36%,2.75%,and 2.37%respectively,there was a decreased tendency (χ2 = 7.24,P = 0.046 );detection rate of MDROs was 34.03%, 27.45%,and 14.05%,respectively,there was a decreased tendency (χ2 =33.84,P =0.007),the percentage of pa-tients who were detected MDROs and HAI caused by MDROs showed a decreased tendency(χ2 =6.14,6.02,both P<0.05).Conclusion The implementation of PDCA cycle can effectively improve disinfectant efficacy of ICU object surface,and reduce the incidence of MDRO HAI.