Gut microbial communities are likely remodeled in tandem with accumulated physiological decline during aging, yet there is limited understanding of gut microbiome variation in advanced age. Here, we performed a metagenomics-based enterotype analysis in a geographically homogeneous cohort of 367 enrolled Chinese individuals between the ages of 60 and 94 years, with the goal of characterizing the gut microbiome of elderly individuals and identifying factors linked to enterotype variations. In addition to two adult-like enterotypes dominated by Bacteroides (ET-Bacteroides) and Prevotella (ET-Prevotella), we identified a novel enterotype dominated by Escherichia (ET-Escherichia), whose prevalence increased in advanced age. Our data demonstrated that age explained more of the variance in the gut microbiome than previously identified factors such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) or diet. We characterized the distinct taxonomic and functional profiles of ET-Escherichia, and found the strongest cohesion and highest robustness of the microbial co-occurrence network in this enterotype, as well as the lowest species diversity. In addition, we carried out a series of correlation analyses and co-abundance network analyses, which showed that several factors were likely linked to the overabundance of Escherichia members, including advanced age, vegetable intake, and fruit intake. Overall, our data revealed an enterotype variation characterized by Escherichia enrichment in the elderly population. Considering the different age distribution of each enterotype, these findings provide new insights into the changes that occur in the gut microbiome with age and highlight the importance of microbiome-based stratification of elderly individuals.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Bacteroides ; China ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/microbiology* ; Escherichia coli/classification* ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome/genetics* ; Metagenomics ; East Asian People

In order to understand the prevalence and genetic variation of H9N2 subtype avian influ-enza virus in Shandong,a total 492 tracheal and lung tissue samples collected from chicken farms with respiratory symptoms in partial areas in Shandong were detected by H9 subtype AIV real-time RT-PCR,and the positive samples were inoculated with chicken embryos for two generations.Whole genome sequences of the positive strains by applying Illumina Miaseq platform,and genetic evolution and mutation at positions associating with viral pathogenicity and transmissibility were analyzed.The results showed that there were 72 samples were positive for H9 subtype AIV among the 492 samples,with a positive rate of 14.63％.Thirty-four strains of H9 subtype AIV were ob-tained from the positive samples after passing through chicken embryo,meanwhile,the 34 isolates were all H9N2 subtype AIV by whole genome sequencing analysis.By analyzing the evolutionary tree of HA and NA genes,HA and NA genes of the 34 H9N2 AIV strains belonged to Y280-like branch and F/98-like branch,respectively.Meanwhile,based on above branches,there were obvious time node subbranch,which one was"isolates before 2013",another one was"isolates after 2013".The HA cleavage sites of thirty-four H9N2 strains were all 325PSRSSR↓GLF333,which met the se-quence characteristics of the lowly pathogenic avian influenza virus,and the HA receptor binding site 226 amino acid was leucine,which had the characteristics of blinding to a-2,6 mammalian sialic acid receptors.Among the internal amino acid sites that are key to mammalian adaptation,all strains had an I368V mutation in the PB1 gene that enhanced viral transmissibility in mammals and the PB2 genes of some strains were mutated to enhance the mammalian adaptation of I292 V and A588 V.The above results illustrated that the H9N2 subtype AIV gene segments in Shandong have different degrees of recombination and gene variation,so it is necessary to strengthen the monito-ring of virus variation.

Objective:To investigate the changes of brain microstructure in active Crohn's disease (CD) patients with or without anxiety by diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI), and to explore the relationship between brain microstructure and anxiety in patients with CD.Methods:Thirty-seven patients with CD who were treated in Changzhou Second People's Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University from January 2022 to January 2023 were included as the CD group, and 20 healthy subjects were included as the healthy control group during the same period. All subjects were assessed with hospital anxiety and depression scale-anxiety (HADS-A) before magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) scan. According to the HADS-A score, CD patients were divided into the CD group with anxiety (16 cases) and the CD group without anxiety (21 cases). After MRI scan, DKI parameters were obtained by DKE software. One-way analysis of variance was used to compare DKI parameters between the two groups of CD patients and the healthy control group. Pearson correlation was used to analyze the correlation between DKI parameters in different brain areas and psychological scale scores in the two groups of CD patients.Results:The axial diffusion kurtosis(AK)values in the right insula, the left superior temporal gyrus, the right thalamus, the left middle temporal gyrus, the right inferior temporal gyrus, the left lingual gyrus and the right anterior cuneus were significantly different among the three groups ( F=3.060-9.627, all P<0.05).There were significant differences in the radial diffusion kurtosis(RK) values in the right cerebellar region 6 and the left hippocampus among the three groups ( F=4.124, 3.536, 4.200, all P<0.05). Further multiple comparison results showed that the AK values of the right insula (0.701±0.028)( P=0.019), the left superior temporal gyrus (0.764±0.016)( P=0.002) and the right thalamus (0.728±0.016)( P=0.001) in the CD group without anxiety were lower than those of the healthy control group(0.726±0.010, 0.780±0.015, 0.771±0.082), and the RK value of the right cerebellar region 6 ( P=0.021) was lower than that of the healthy control group. The AK values of the right insula ( P=0.023), the left superior temporal gyrus ( P=0.015), the right thalamus ( P=0.031), the left middle temporal gyrus ( P=0.006), the right inferior temporal gyrus ( P=0.001) and the left lingual gyrus ( P=0.007) in the CD group with anxiety were lower than those in the healthy control group. The RK values of right cerebellar region 6 ( P=0.012) and left hippocampus ( P=0.004) were lower than those of healthy control group. The AK values of the right insula ( P=0.002) and the right anterior cuneus ( P=0.017) in the group with anxiety were lower than those in the CD group without anxiety. In the CD group with anxiety, the AK value of the right insula was correlated with erythrocyte sedimentation rate(ESR)( r=-0.47, P=0.048), HADS-A score ( r=-0.68, P=0.002), SES-CD( r=-0.84, P<0.001) and duration of disease ( r=-0.61, P=0.008) were negatively correlated. AK values in the left superior temporal gyrus with anxiety CD group were negatively correlated with HADS-A score ( r=-0.51, P=0.030) and SES-CD score ( r=-0.48, P=0.046). Conclusion:The microstructure of some brain regions was damaged in CD patients with or without anxiety, which was manifested as decreased RK and AK values in DKI parameter values, which may be related to the anxiety state in active CD patients.

Objective:To investigate the expression characteristics of mucin 5B (MUC5B) protein and programmed cell death factor 4 (PDCD4) protein in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), and to construct a nomogram model for prognosis prediction.Methods:Clinical data of 100 patients who underwent radical surgical resection and were diagnosed as ICC by postoperative pathology from September 2009 to September 2020 in the Third Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University were retrospectively selected, including 46 males and 54 females, aged (56.9±12.2) years old. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of MUC5B and PDCD4 protein in 100 cases of ICC and corresponding adjacent tissues respectively, and the relationship between them and clinicopathological factors of ICC patients was analyzed. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis were performed to analyze the influencing factors on postoperative prognosis of ICC patients. The nomogram model was constructed using rms package and performed internal verification.Results:The positive expression rate of MUC5B protein in ICC was 76.0% (76/100), which was higher than that in para-cancer tissues 27.0%(27/100), and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=11.33, P=0.015). While the positive expression rate of PDCD4 protein in ICC was 21.0%(21/100), which was lower than that in normal tissues 73.0% (73/100), and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=15.57, P=0.007). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that ICC patients with carbohydrate antigen 19-9>37 kU/L, tumor length>5 cm, tumor TNM stage Ⅱ/Ⅲ, tumor medium/low differentiation, MUC5B positive expression, and PDCD4 negative expression had a high risk of short survival after resection (all P<0.05). The nomogram model was constructed based on the above indicators, and the C-index was 0.801. The postoperative survival calibration curve showed that the high predictive survival fit of the nomogram model, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.862. Conclusions:Positive expression of MUC5B protein and negative expression of PDCD4 protein in ICC tissue suggest poor prognosis of ICC patients. The nomogram model constructed on the basis of MUC5B and PDCD4 protein is well distinguished and has ideal predictive efficacy.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the accuracy of prosthesis size selection in Naton robot-assisted medial unicondyle knee arthroplasty by comparing the actual prosthesis size used during operation and the preoperative planning. METHODS: The clinical data of 100 patients (110 knees) who underwent Naton robot-assisted medial unicondylar knee arthroplasty between June 2023 and July 2024 was retrospectively analyzed, including 47 knees on left side and 63 knees on right side. There were 37 males (40 knees) and 63 females (70 knees) with a mean age of 65.4 years (range, 59-71 years). Body mass index was 22.2-28.6 kg/m ² (mean, 25.4 kg/m ²). The disease duration ranged from 1 to 8 years (mean, 3.4 years). Preoperative planning was performed by Naton robotic surgical system based on lower limb CT data. The final prosthesis size after osteotomy was recorded and compared with the preoperative plan to analyse whether it was consistent with the preoperative plan, as well as the situation of knee flexion and extension gaps (<0.5 mm, >2.0 mm) corresponding to the different models of prostheses. RESULTS: During operation, 5 patients (5 knees) were treated with traditional UKA due to mechanical arm failure, software obstacles, significant bone amputation bias, or loose reference frame, and were excluded from the final analysis. The remaining 95 patients (105 knees) successfully received Naton robot-assisted surgery, and no related complications occurred. The prosthesis size was consistent with the preoperative plan in 101 knees (96.2%) on the femur side, 100 knees (95.2%) on the tibia side, and 97 knees (92.4%) on both femur and tibia sides. The prosthesis size was inconsistent in 3 cases (2.86%) on the femur side alone, 4 cases (3.81%) on the tibial side alone, and 1 case (0.95%) on both femur and tibial sides. Among the prostheses with different models, the flexion and extension gaps were less than 0.5 mm in 3 knees, the flexion gap was less than 0.5 mm and the extension gap was more than 2.0 mm in 3 knees, and the flexion gap was more than 2.0 mm and the extension gap was less than 0.5 mm in 2 knees. CONCLUSION The accuracy of prosthesis size selection for Naton robot-assisted medial unicondylar knee arthroplasty is relatively high.
Humans ; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee/instrumentation* ; Female ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Knee Prosthesis ; Retrospective Studies ; Robotic Surgical Procedures/methods* ; Prosthesis Design ; Knee Joint/surgery* ; Osteoarthritis, Knee/surgery* ; Range of Motion, Articular

Objective To investigate the value of optical trocar insertion technique in establishing pneumoperitoneum in patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery after previous abdominal surgery. Methods A total of 29 patients, with a history of abdominal surgery, who planned to undergo laparoscopic liver surgery were enrolled and randomly divided into optical trocar insertion group and open approach group. The independent samples t -test was used for comparison of normally distributed continuous data between groups, and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed continuous data between groups; the Fisher's exact test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups; the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of ranked data between groups. Results There were no procedure-related complications in either group. Compared with the open approach group, the optical trocar insertion group had a significantly shorter time required to establish pneumoperitoneum [35.00 (21.00-46.00) seconds vs 180.00 (152.50-252.50) seconds, U =0, P < 0.001] and a significantly smaller incision length [1.10(1.00-1.20) cm vs 2.80(2.45-3.00) cm, U =0, P < 0.001]. Conclusion Both optical trocar insertion and open approach for establishing pneumoperitoneum is relatively safe in patients undergoing laparoscopic liver surgery after previous abdominal surgery, while optical trocar insertion has the advantages of high efficiency and minimal invasiveness in establishing pneumoperitoneum.

The rapid development of point-of-care testing (POCT) in clinical laboratories has brought challenges to the unified management in the hospital. There are many problems, such as how to ensure the ability and qualification of POCT operators, how to improve the quality management awareness of human, machines, materials, methods and environment in the process of POCT in clinical laboratories, how to help the clinical laboratories in the hospital to carry out POCT comparison, and how to strengthen the information construction of POCT in the hospital. Thus, this article reviews the practice and experience of POCT management in our hospital on POCT quality assurance and the problems existing in POCT in clinical departments, proposes suggestions and solutions to strengthen the unified management of POCT in clinical laboratories and establish POCT quality management documents and to improve quality awareness. We hope to provide references for hospital administrators, medical departments, nursing departments, quality control departments and other functional departments on the quality management of POCT in the hospital, and find helpful answers to the puzzles of clinical laboratory in POCT, so as to make joint efforts to standardize the quality management of POCT in the hospital to ensure the accuracy of testing results.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the status and influencing factors of the health literacy(HL) of college students in a comprehensive university. METHODS: A total of 3 360 students from in a comprehensive university of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps was selected using multi-stage stratified cluster random sampling method. The HL level of college students was investigated and evaluated with self-edited Xinjiang Construction Corps College Students Health Literacy Questionnaire. RESULTS: The HL level of college students was 17.1%. The HL level of medical students was higher than that of non-medical students(35.4% vs 10.0%, P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis results showed that among the medical students in grade three or four, those with medium and excellent academic achievement, and Han nationality had a positive effect on their HL level(P<0.01). Among the non-medical students, female and medicine related optional courses had a positive effect on their HL level(P<0.05). Students in the sophomore year had a negative effect on their HL level(P<0.05). CONCLUSION: There is a big difference in the level of HL between medical students and non-medical students. Medical college students and non-medical college students have different factors affecting HL, medical education is related to improving HL.

Background and purpose: Natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL) is a scarce subtype of malignant lymphoma, and it has heterogeneous clinical manifestation and treatment effect. Currently, no precise risk stratification is used to guide prognosis. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic impact of pre-treatment peripheral blood absolute monocyte count (AMC) and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in patients with primary nasal NKTCL, and provide more precise information for better risk stratification to select appropriate treatment and improve survival. Methods: Clinical data of 132 patients newly diagnosed with primary nasal NKTCL was collected in the Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital from Jan. 2008 to Dec. 2013. The relationship between AMC and PLR in pre-treatment peripheral blood and 5-year overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of patients was analyzed retrospectively. Independent prognostic factors of patients were determined by univariate analysis and Cox regression analysis. Results: Pre-treatment peripheral blood AMC and PLR play important roles in the prognosis stratification of patients with primary nasal NKTCL. The prognosis in patients of AMC<0.5×109/L were higher than those of AMC≥0.5×109/L, The prognosis in patients of PLR<150 were higher than those of PLR≥150 (P<0.05). Based on the four independent risk factors of staging, ECOG scoring, AMC and PLR, we tried to establish a new prognostic model, dividing all patients into three different risk groups and found that the 5-year OS and PFS of three groups had significant statistical differences. Conclusion: Peripheral blood AMC and PLR were significantly correlated with the prognosis of patients with primary nasal NKTCL. The new prognostic patterns based on the four independent risk factors, such as staging, ECOG scoring, AMC and PLR may be more convenient and more economical than IPI (International Prognostic Index, IPI) and KPI (Korean Prognostic Index, KPI).

Objective To establish a distraction osteogenesis SD rat model for exploring the effect of total flavonoids from Rhizoma Drynariae on the quality of rat bone formation in the process of distraction osteogenesis from the perspective of tomography.Methods Twenty-four rats were randomly divided into experimental group and control group after successful modeling,and were respectively given intragastric administration with total flavonoids from Rhizoma Drynariae(in dose of 77.125 mg/kg) and saline for 8 weeks.Seven days after operation,the tibias of all the rats were given distraction at the speed of 0.2 mm for 20 days.Eight weeks after the operation,X-ray examination for all the rats was performed,and then the rats were killed for obtaining the tibia samples for Micro-CT scanning.The differences of X-ray Lane-Sandhu scores,the bone mineral density and bone mineral content were compared between the two groups.Results The X-ray Lane-Sandhu scores,the bone mineral density and bone mineral contents showed by Micro-CT scanning in the experimental group were higher than those in the control group,and the differences were statistically significant (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion The total flavonoids from Rhizoma Drynariae can improve the quality of bone formation in the process of distraction osteogenesis in rats.