Objective:To investigate the relationship between the outcome of skin injury and urinary arsenic methylation metabolism levels in people exposed to arsenic through drinking water.Methods:Using cluster sampling method, permanent residents from drinking-water-borne endemic arsenic poisoning areas in Bayannur City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region were selected as survey subjects in 2004 (before water improvement). In 2017 (after water improvement), 74 survey subjects from 2004 were tracked and followed up. Urine samples were collected from survey subjects and high-performance liquid chromatography inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was used to detect the levels of arsenic methylation metabolites in urine. According to the "Diagnosis of Endemic Arsenic Poisoning" (WS/T 211-2015), the clinical grading (normal, suspicious, mild, moderate and severe) of skin injury of the survey subjects and the outcome of 2017 (improved, unchanged, aggravated) were assessed. A database was established and SPSS 25.0 software was used for statistical analysis.Results:The clinical grading ratios of skin injuries among survey subjects in 2004 and 2017 were compared, the differences were statistically significant (normal, suspicious, mild, moderate and severe: 38, 18, 4, 14 cases in 2004 and 27, 31, 3, 13 cases in 2017, χ 2 = 53.02, P < 0.001). Compared with 2004, in 2017, the levels of total arsenic (tAs), inorganic arsenic (iAs), monomethylarsenic (MMA), dimethylarsenic (DMA), percentage of inorganic arsenic (iAs%), and ratio of monomethylarsenic to dimethylarsenic (MMA/DMA) in the urine of survey subjects were low, and the differences were statistically significant ( Z = - 8.24, - 9.07, - 7.81, - 8.04, - 8.24, - 3.56, P < 0.001). The levels of dimethylarsenic percentage (DMA%), monomethylation rate (PMI) and dimethylation rate (SMI) were higher, and the differences were statistically significant ( Z = - 6.39, - 8.24, - 3.52, P < 0.001). In 2004, patients with different clinical grading of skin injuries had different outcomes in 2017 (χ 2 = 30.80, P < 0.001). There were statistically significant differences in tAs, iAs, MMA and DMA variation in urine among skin injury patients with different outcomes ( H = 10.62, 9.35, 8.80, 9.13, P < 0.05). Conclusions:Improving water can significantly reduce the levels of tAs, iAs, MMA, and DMA in the urine of arsenic exposed individuals. The outcome of skin injury in individuals exposed to arsenic through drinking water is related to the variation of urinary arsenic methylation metabolites tAs, iAs, MMA, and DMA.

Objective:To investigate the arsenic metabolism pattern and possible influencing factors in the population in drinking-water-borne endemic arsenic poisoning (drinking-water-borne arsenic poisoning for short) areas.Methods:In December 2004, a cluster sampling method was used to select arsenic poisoning population (arsenic poisoning group) and healthy population (control group) in drinking-water-borne arsenic poisoning area of Bayannur City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region as the survey subjects. A questionnaire survey was conducted. Arsenic content in drinking water at home of survey subjects, the levels of urinary arsenic and its metabolites, including [trivalent arsenic (As Ⅲ), inorganic arsenic (iAs), monomethylarsenic acid (pentavalent, MMA V), dimethylarsenic acid (pentavalent, DMA V), total arsenic (tAs), percentage of inorganic arsenic (iAs%), percentage of monomethylarsenic acid (MMA%), percentage of dimethylarsenic acid (DMA%), primary methylation index (PMI), secondary methylation index (SMI)] were tested using high performance liquid chromatography-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry; nail arsenic and nail selenium levels were tested using atomic fluorescence spectrometer. The influencing factors of arsenic metabolism pattern were analyzed by multiple linear regression. Results:A total of 536 survey subjects were included, including 155 individuals in the arsenic poisoning group and 381 in the control group. The water arsenic level ranged from 0.0 to 825.7 μg/L. Compared with the control group, there was no significant difference in the distribution of gender, education level and dental fluorosis in the arsenic poisoning group ( P > 0.05), but there were significant differences in the distribution of age, marital status, smoking, drinking and water arsenic ( P < 0.05). Compared with the control group, the levels of urinary As Ⅲ, iAs, MMA V, DMA V, tAs, MMA%, MMA/DMA and nail arsenic in the arsenic poisoning group were higher ( P < 0.05), while the levels of urinary DMA%, SMI and nail selenium were lower ( P < 0.05); but there was no statistically significant difference in the levels of urinary iAs% and PMI ( P > 0.05). Gender, education level, depth of wells, water arsenic, total number of wells and nail arsenic were the influencing factors of urinary As Ⅲ (β = - 19.82, - 23.83, 0.61, 0.21, 7.26, 2.98, P < 0.05). Age, depth of wells, water arsenic and nail arsenic were the influencing factors of urinary tAs (β = 3.18, 3.25, 1.31, 15.59, P < 0.05). Gender, education level, depth of wells, water arsenic, total number of wells and nail arsenic were the influencing factors of urinary iAs (β = - 20.47, - 25.90, 0.64, 0.25, 7.87, 3.11, P < 0.05). Age, gender, education level, water arsenic and nail arsenic were the influencing factors of urinary MMA V (β = 0.52, - 17.07, - 21.84, 0.22, 2.77, P < 0.05). Age, depth of wells, water arsenic and nail arsenic were the influencing factors of urinary DMA V (β = 2.35, 2.47, 0.85, 9.22, P < 0.05). Conclusions:Compared with healthy individuals, there are differences in arsenic metabolism pattern among individuals with drinking-water-borne arsenic poisoning. Age, gender, education level, depth of wells, water arsenic, total number of wells and nail arsenic may be influencing factors of different arsenic metabolism patterns.

Objective:To analyze the main causes of death of residents in arsenic poisoning areas of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, providing a scientific basis for preventing and controlling the long-term effects of arsenic poisoning and ensuring the health of residents.Methods:The data on the causes of death among residents in arsenic poisoning areas of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region from 2016 to 2021 were collected from the population death information registration management system and the population information system of various league and city statistical bureaus in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Residents were divided into exposed and non exposed groups based on whether they drank high arsenic water. SPSS 25.0 software was used to statistically analyze the crude mortality rate (CDR), standardized mortality rate (SMR), disease-specific mortality rate, proportion of causes of death, and order of causes of death.Results:Over the past 6 years, there was a total of 9 583 deaths, with an average annual CDR of 633.12/100 000 and an average annual SMR of 446.65/100 000. The CDR of each year showed a decreasing trend over time (χ 2 = 1 058.86, P < 0.001). Male CDR was higher than female CDR (χ 2 = 325.04, P < 0.001). Heart diseases and malignant tumors were the main causes of death for residents in arsenic poisoning areas, with proportions of 25.00% (2 396/9 583) and 18.86% (1 807/9 583), respectively. The top three leading causes of malignant tumor death were lung cancer, liver cancer and gastric cancer. Among residents who died from various diseases and malignant tumors, the SMR of the exposed group was higher than that of the non exposed group (χ 2 = 147.08, 26.26, P < 0.001). Conclusions:The main causes of death of residents in arsenic poisoning areas in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region are heart diseases and malignant tumors, with lung cancer, liver cancer, and gastric cancer being the top three leading causes of death for malignant tumors. Although the arsenic poisoning areas in the entire region have basically achieved water improvement, the long-term effects of chronic arsenic exposure still exist.

Objective:To explore the effects of Liuwei Dihuang Wan on the behaviors and Toll-like receptor 4/nuclear factor kappa-B(TLR4/NF-κB) signal transduction pathway of amyloid β-precursor protein/presenilin-1(APP/PS1) double transgenic mice.Methods:Forty 3-month-old female APP/PS1 mice were randomly divided into model group, low-dose group(0.59 g/kg), medium-dose group(1.18 g/kg), high-dose group(2.36 g/kg)of Liuwei Dihuang Wan(gavaged according to grouped doses), and ibuprofen group(0.04 g/kg, gavage) using a random number table method, with 8 mice in each group.Eight 3-month-old wild-type female C57BL/6 mice with matched body weight were used as the control group.The mice in control group and model group were given an equal volume of 0.9% sodium chloride solution by gavage.The gavage administration was twice a day for a continuous period of 3 months.Morris water maze test was used to detect the learning and memory abilities of mice. ELISA was used to detect the serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β(IL-1β) and immunohistochemistry was used to detect the levels of amyloid β-protein (Aβ), glial fibrillary acidic protein(GFAP) and NF-κB in hippocampal tissue.Western blot was used to detect the expression levels of TLR4, myeloid differentiation primary response gene 88(MyD88), and phosphorylated NF-κB(p-NF-κB) proteins in hippocampal tissue.The SPSS 20.0 software was used for data analysis. Multiple group comparisons were conducted by repeated measure ANOVA or one-way ANOVA.Results:The results of repeated measure ANOVA showed that as for the escape latency of the 6 groups of mice, the interaction effect between time and group was significant ( Finteraction=117.219, P<0.001). The escape latencies of mice in the 6 groups on the 5th day were all lower than those on the 1st day (all P<0.05). The escape latencies of mice in the ibuprofen group and the medium-dose and high-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan were lower than that in the model group from 1st day to 5th day(all P<0.05). On the 3rd to 5th day, the escape latencies of mice in the medium-dose and high-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan were lower than those in the low-dose group of Liuwei Dihuang Wan (all P<0.05). There were statistically significant differences in the percentage of residence time in the platform quadrant and the numbers of crossing platform among the 6 groups of mice ( F=5.451, 4.824, both P<0.05). The percentage of residence time in the platform quadrant (50.77±5.49)%, (54.39±5.71)%, (51.98±6.12)%), and the numbers of crossing platform((5.9±1.1) times, (6.0±1.3) times, (5.1±0.8) times) in the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan and the ibuprofen group were all higher than those in the model group ((27.32±3.22)%, (2.2±1.0) times )(all P<0.05). The immunohistochemical results showed that there were statistically significant differences in the integrated optical density values of Aβ, GFAP and NF-κB in the hippocampal tissues of 6 groups of mice ( F=57.52, 45.37, 79.10, all P<0.05). The integrated optical density values of Aβ, GFAP and NF-κB in the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan and the ibuprofen group were all lower than those in the model group (all P<0.05). And the integrated optical density values of Aβ, GFAP, and NF-κB in the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan were all lower than those in the low-dose group of Liuwei Dihuang Wan (all P<0.05). There were statistically significant differences in the levels of serum TNF-α and IL-1β detected by ELISA ( F=3.996, 6.395, both P<0.05) and the proteins levels of TLR4, MyD88, and p-NF-κB in hippocampal tissue detected by Western blot among the 6 groups( F=15.710, 3.522, 4.119, all P<0.05). The serum TNF-α and IL-1β levels in the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan and ibuprofen group were all lower than those in the model group (all P<0.05). The serum TNF-α ((18.90±2.33) ng/L, (21.56±2.49) ng/L) and IL-1β ((5.88±0.80) ng/L, (6.75±0.83) ng/L) levels in the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan were lower than those in the low-dose group ((30.77±2.89) ng/L, (9.11±1.27) ng/L) (all P<0.05). The protein expression levels of TLR4, MyD88, and p-NF-κB in the hippocampus of the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan and ibuprofen group were lower than those of the model group (all P<0.05). The protein expression levels of TLR4 ((0.254±0.091), (0.318±0.122)), MyD88 ((0.229±0.077), (0.386±0.119)), and p-NF-κB ((0.412±0.188), (0.358±0.119)) in the hippocampus of the high-dose and medium-dose groups of Liuwei Dihuang Wan were lower than those of the low-dose group ((0.617±0.172), (0.672±0.166), (0.799±0.227)) (all P<0.05). Conclusion:Liuwei Dihuang Wan can significantly alleviate learning and memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease model mice, possibly by inhibiting TLR4/NF-κB signal pathway, reducing TNF-α and IL-1β expression, thereby alleviate central immune inflammatory response and exert anti Alzheimer's disease effects.

Objective:To explore the significance of next-generation sequencing to detect gene mutations for diagnosis of patients with unexplained pancytopenia.Methods:The next-generation sequencing was used to detect 32 common hematological tumor gene mutations in 113 patients with unexplained pancytopenia in Huazhong University of Science and Technology Union Shenzhen Hospital from February 2016 to February 2019.Results:The next-generation sequencing results showed that of the 32 genes tested in 113 patients, 69 mutations occurred in 25 genes. Among them, 105 patients (92.9%) carried at least 1 gene mutation, and the median number of mutations was 2 (1-5). Fifty-one patients were diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), and the related mutant genes were detected; 62 patients were diagnosed with atypical aplastic anemia or cytopenia of unknown significance. The total effective rate of treatment for 113 patients was 65.5% (74/113).Conclusion:The next-generation sequencing helps to diagnose patients with unexplained pancytopenia, and provides targeted strategies for finding new treatments and prolonging the overall survival of patients.

Objective: To investigate the effect and mechanism of renal fibrosis after macrophage depletion in C3-deficient unilateral ureteral obstruction mice. Methods: Renal interstitial fibrosis model was established by unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) in male C3-deficient mice and age-matched C57BL/6 WT mice (8-12 weeks of age). Mice were randomly divided into 4 groups, including sham operation in wild type group (WT/sham) (n=18), UUO operation in wild type group (WT/UUO) (n=18), sham operation in C3-deficient group (C3KO/sham) (n=18), and UUO operation in C3-deficient group (C3KO/UUO) (n=18). The expression of complement C3 was detected by immunohistochemical staining and renal interstitial macrophages were assessed by immunofluorescence staining. Tubulointerstitial fibrosis was observed by both HE staining and Masson staining after 14 days of UUO. Collagen accumulation and score of tubulointerstitial injury were obtained. Wild type and C3-deficient UUO mice were treated by liposome clodronate in early or late stage respectively and then interstitially infiltrated macrophages and renal fibrosis were analysed. Mice were sacrificed randomly at 3,7,14 days after UUO and obstructed kidneys were collected. Macrophage phenotype was detected by double-labeling immunofluorescence with F4/80 and iNOS for the M1, F4/80 and CD206 for the M2 macrophage subpopulation. iNOS, Arg-1 and CD206 were also detected by western blot. Results: C3 deficient mice exhibited attenuated renal fibrosis, reduced collagen accumulation and tubulointerstitial injury score compared with WT mice (P<0.01). Meanwhile, macrophage depletion in early or late stage of UUO reduced renal fibrosis in WT mice, but had no effect on C3-deficient UUO mice. Decreased accumulation of M1 macrophages and expression of iNOS, increased accumulation of M2 macrophages and expression of Arg-1, CD206 were found in C3 deficient mice compared with WT mice in early stage of UUO (P<0.01). Conclusion Renal fibrosis is not reduced after depletion of macrophages in C3 deficient UUO mice due to the altered macrophage polarization.

Objective To observe the effects of bone marrow?derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSC) on glomerular podocyte injured by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the expression of related protein. Methods Podocytes are divided into control group, BMSC group, LPS group and LPS plus BMSC group. After 24 hours of intervention, observing each experimental group podocyte form under inverted phase contrast microscope;detecting the expressions of mRNA and protein of nephrin, CD2AP, synaptopodin, and TRPC6 by RT?PCR and Western?blot. Results Compared with control group, expressions of nephrin, CD2AP, and synaptopodin in LPS group decreased (P<0.05) while that of TRPC6 increased (P<0.05); compared with LPS group, expressions of nephrin, CD2AP, and synaptopodin in LPS+MSC group increased (P<0.05) while that of TRPC6 decreased (P<0.05). Conclusion BMSC may relieve LPS?induced podocyte injury.

Objective To investigate the protective effect of crocin on oxidative stress cell model of PC 12 cell and the effect of crocin on PI3K/Akt signal pathway,as well as further explore the mechanism of protective effect on model cells.Methods Cells were divided into control group,model group,crocin group and VE group.The cell survival rate was detected by MTT method,and the expression of mRNA and protein of PI3K/Akt were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot.Results With the crocin concentration in 0.625 μM and 5 μM,the cell survival rate increased in a dose-dependent manner.The average optical density rate of PI3K and Akt mRNA were 0.435±0.044 and 0.375 ± 0.034,and the PI3K and Akt protein were 0.378± 0.038 and 0.386± 0.043 of crocin group.Compared with the model group,the expression levels of PI3K/Akt increased in crocin group (P＜0.05).Conclusion These results indicate that the antioxidant and antiapoptosis effects of crocin are induced via increasing expression of PI3K and pAkt.

Four female patients( aged 17,14,25,and 20,respectively)with systemic lupus erythematosus( cases 1 and 2 were complicated with type IV lupus nephritis ) received high-dose methylprednisolone pulse therapy,which included an IV infusion of methylprednisolone 0. 5 g daily for 3 days,and then instead of prednisone 1-2 mg·kg-1 ·d-1 orally. Five to eighteen days after administration, the four patients developed the symptoms of mental disorders,such as exciting,garrulous,anxiety,mania, hardly fall asleep,even delusion of persecution and suicidal tendency. The four patients returned to normal completely after 19 days to 2. 5 months by decreasing the dosage of the steroid gradually and the treatment with sedatives and antipsychotic drugs.

Four female patients( aged 17,14,25,and 20,respectively)with systemic lupus erythematosus( cases 1 and 2 were complicated with type IV lupus nephritis ) received high-dose methylprednisolone pulse therapy,which included an IV infusion of methylprednisolone 0. 5 g daily for 3 days,and then instead of prednisone 1-2 mg·kg-1 ·d-1 orally. Five to eighteen days after administration, the four patients developed the symptoms of mental disorders,such as exciting,garrulous,anxiety,mania, hardly fall asleep,even delusion of persecution and suicidal tendency. The four patients returned to normal completely after 19 days to 2. 5 months by decreasing the dosage of the steroid gradually and the treatment with sedatives and antipsychotic drugs.