OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effectiveness of single-balloon and double-balloon enteroscopy in diagnosing pediatric small bowel diseases and assess the diagnostic efficacy of computed tomography enterography (CTE) for small bowel diseases using enteroscopy as the reference standard. METHODS: Clinical data from 576 children who underwent enteroscopy at Hunan Children's Hospital between January 2017 and December 2023 were retrospectively collected. The children were categorized based on enteroscopy type into the single-balloon enteroscopy (SBE) group (n=457) and double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) group (n=119), and the clinical data were compared between the two groups. The sensitivity and specificity of CTE for diagnosing small bowel diseases were evaluated using enteroscopy results as the standard. RESULTS: Among the 576 children, small bowel lesions were detected by enteroscopy in 274 children (47.6%).There was no significant difference in lesion detection rates or complication rates between the SBE and DBE groups (P>0.05), but the DBE group had deeper insertion, longer procedure time, and higher complete small bowel examination rate (P<0.05). The complication rate during enteroscopy was 4.3% (25/576), with 18 cases (3.1%) of mild complications and 7 cases (1.2%) of severe complications, which improved with symptomatic treatment, surgical, or endoscopic intervention. Among the 412 children who underwent CTE, the sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing small bowel diseases were 44.4% and 71.3%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS SBE and DBE have similar diagnostic efficacy for pediatric small bowel diseases, but DBE is preferred for suspected deep small bowel lesions and comprehensive small bowel examination. Enteroscopy in children demonstrates relatively good overall safety. CTE demonstrates relatively low sensitivity but comparatively high specificity for diagnosing small bowel diseases.
Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome ; Double-Balloon Enteroscopy/statistics & numerical data* ; Single-Balloon Enteroscopy/statistics & numerical data* ; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Child ; Operative Time ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed/statistics & numerical data* ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Intestine, Small/surgery* ; Intestinal Diseases/surgery*

Objective:This study aimed to examine the association between malnutrition diagnosed by the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition(GLIM)criteria and clinical outcomes in surgical patients,as well as to assess its prognostic impact on postoperative adverse clinical outcomes.Methods:Electronic databases,including PubMed,Embase,Web of Science,CINAHL,Scopus,The Cochrane Library,Clinical Trials,CNKI,Wanfang Data Knowledge Service Platform,and the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database,were systematically searched.Relevant cohort studies utilizing GLIM criteria to preoperatively diagnose malnutrition in surgical inpatients were included.The exposed group comprised surgical patients diagnosed with preoperative malnutrition using GLIM criteria,while the control group consisted of surgically treated patients without malnutrition as per GLIM criteria.Literature quality was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale(NOS),and meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.4 software.Results:Fourteen literatures were included,with a total sample size of 10,045 patients.Meta-analysis revealed that the malnourished group had a higher incidence of postoperative complications compared to the non-malnourished group[risk ratio(RR)=1.81,95%CI:1.66～1.98),P<0.00001].Additionally,the incidence of severe complications was significantly higher in GLIM-diagnosed malnourished patients.The malnourished group exhibited poorer overall survival[hazard ratio(HR)=1.90,95%CI:1.55～2.34,P<0.00001]and disease-free survival[HR=2.25,95%CI:1.02～4.93,P=0.04]compared to the non-malnourished group.Conclusion:GLIM-diagnosed malnutrition is significantly associated with adverse clinical outcomes in surgical patients,increasing postoperative complication rates and reducing overall and disease-free survival.The GLIM criteria demonstrate value in predicting adverse clinical outcomes in this population.Further high-quality studies are warranted to validate these findings.

Objective To establish a stable,reliable,and clinically relevant porcine model of endotoxin-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS).Methods Ten 8-month-old male Bama minipigs were deeply sedated,followed by invasive mechanical ventilation and electrocardiographic monitoring.Lipopolysaccharide(LPS)was intravenously pumped at 600 μg/(kg·h)for 3 hours,then maintained at 15 μg/(kg·h)thereafter.Dynamic monitoring was performed at five time points after LPS injection(LPS 0,1,3,5,and 8 h),including arterial blood gas analysis and chest computed tomography(CT)scans.Pathological examination of lung tissues obtained via bronchoscopic biopsy(HE staining and transmission electron microscopy)was conducted.These indicators were comprehensively used to evaluate the success of the animal model.Results At 5 hours after LPS administration,8 minipigs developed symptoms such as skin cyanosis,elevated body temperature,and respiratory distress.The oxygenation index decreased to<300 mmHg.Chest CT scans showed diffuse pulmonary infiltrates.Histopathology revealed alveolar edema and hyaline membrane formation.Transmission electron microscopy demonstrated disruption of pulmonary blood-air barrier,depletion of lamellar bodies in type Ⅱ pneumocytes,inflammatory cell infiltration,and exudation of plasma proteins and fibrin.Compared with LPS 0 h,at LPS 8 h,the oxygenation index and arterial blood pH were significantly decreased(P<0.001),while blood lactic acid and serum potassium were significantly increased(P<0.05);serum calcium and base excess were significantly decreased(P<0.05),and the lung injury score based on HE-stained lung sections was significantly increased(P<0.01).Conclusion The porcine ARDS model established by continuous LPS injection can dynamically simulate the pathophysiological characteristics and typical pathological manifestations of clinical septic ARDS,making it an effective tool to study the pathogenesis,prevention,and treatment strategies of septic ARDS.

ObjectiveOur recent study has demonstrated that extracellular acidification promotes lipid accumulation in macrophages via the activation of acid sensing ion channel 1 (ASIC1), but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study aims to explore the effect of extracellular acidification on macrophage lipophagy and the underlying mechanism. MethodsRAW264.7 macrophages were incubated with 25 mg/Lox-LDL in a pH 6.5 culture medium for 24 h to build macrophage-derived foam cell models induced by extracellular acidification. Then, RAW264.7 macrophages were cultured in the acidic medium of pH 6.5 with or without PcTx-1 (ASIC1 specific blocker, 10 μg/L) or Nec-1 (RIP1 specific inhibitor, 20 μmol/L) for 24 h, intracellular lipid accumulation was observed by oil red O staining. The expressions of total ASIC1, plasma membrane ASIC1, RIP1, p-RIP1 Ser166, TFEB, p-TFEB Ser142, LC3 and p62 were measured by Western blot. The co-localization of lipids (indicated by Bodipy) with LC3II (autophagosomes) and LAMP1 (lysosomes) was analyzed by a confocal laser scanning microscopy, respectively. Morphological changes of lipophagy in the cells were observed by using transmission electron microscopy. ABCA1-mediated cholesterol efflux was determined by cholesterol fluorescence kits. ResultsCompared with pH 7.4+ox-LDL group, the intracellular lipid accumulation in the pH 6.5+ox-LDL group was significantly increased. Meanwhile, the expressions of plasma membrane ASIC1, p-RIP1 Ser166, p-TFEB Ser142, and p62 proteins were elevated significantly, while LC3II protein level and LC3II/LC3I ratio were decreased. Accordingly, compared with pH 7.4+ox-LDL group, the macrophage lipophagy of the pH 6.5+ox-LDL group was inhibited as indicated by the decreased localization of lipid droplets with LC3 and LAMP1, a decrease in the number of lipophagosomes as well as an increase in lipid droplets. Furthermore, ATP binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1)-dependent cholesterol efflux from the macrophages of pH 6.5+ox-LDL group reduced dramatically. However, these above effects of extracellular acidification on RAW264.7 macrophages were abolished by PcTx-1 and Nec-1, respectively. ConclusionThese findings suggest extracellular acidification promotes the phosphorylation of TFEB at Ser142 via activating ASIC1/RIP1 pathway, thereby impeding lipophagy in RAW 264.7 macrophages, and that ASIC1 may be a new potential target for preventing aberrant lipid accumulation diseases including atherosclerosis.

Objective:To analyze the genotype distribution and hematological characteristics of children with thalassemia in Chongqing.Methods:A total of 207 children with thalassemia admitted to Chongqing University Three Gorges Hospital from January 2021 to October 2022 were selected as the research objects.The genotype distribution and hematological characteristics were retrospectively analyzed.Results:207 cases of thalassemia were confirmed from 482 samples by gene detection,the detection rate was 42.95％,α-thalassemia accounted for 17.63％(85/482),β-thalassemia accounted for 24.27％(117/482),and compound αβ thalassemia accounted for 1.04％(5/482).A total of 5 gene mutation types of α-thalassaemia were detected in this study,which constituted 6 genotypes,αα/-SEA was the most common one,followed by αα/-α7.A total of 8 gene mutation types of β-thalassemia were detected,which constituted 9 genotypes,the top three were CD17/N,CD654/N and CD41-42/N.The highest detection rate was found in the patients aged 0-3 years(57％),and the degree of anemia was mainly mild(88.41％).97.58％of the patients were MCV＜80 fl,98.55％were MCH＜28 pg,60.87％were MCHC＜320 g/L,and 71.50％were RDW-SD＜37％.The MCV and MCH of β-thalassemia group were lower than that of α-thalassemia group,and the MCHC was higher than that of α-thalassemia group(P＜0.05),but RDW-SD was not significantly different between the two groups(P＞0.05).There were no significant differences in MCV,MCH,MCHC and RDW-SD between β+/βN and β0/βN groups(P＞0.05).The MCV and RDW-SD of--/αα thalassemia group were lower than that in-α/αα thalassemia group,the differences were statistically significant(P＜0.05),but MCH and MCHC were not significantly different between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion:The genotypes of children with thalassemia in Chongqing are diverse and heterogeneous,and the majority of them are mild anemia.There are differences in haematological indexes among different genotypes of thalassemia.

Objective:To explore the application value of simultaneous monitoring of voriconazole(VRCZ)and voriconazole N-oxide(VNO)in efficacy and safety of VRCZ in the prevention and treatment of fungal infections in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT)patients before engraftment(i.e.,days+1 to+30 after transplantation).Methods:The influencing factors of VRCZ,VNO concentration and MR(CVNO/CVRCz)and the difference of VRCZ in the prevention and treatment of fungal infection and liver and kidney injury were analyzed.The receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC)was used to analyze the differences(the corresponding to the maximum of the Youden index on the curve was set as the cut-off value)to confirm the critical value.Results:The factors affecting VRCZ concentration(CVRCZ),VNO concentration(CVNO)and MR were patient weight,VRCZ daily dose,and transplantation type(all P＜0.05).CVRCZ and CVNO in the effective group were higher than those in the ineffective group(P＜0.001),the opposite of MR(P＜0.001);the liver and renal injury group had lower MR than the normal group(P＜0.05).ROC showed that CVRCZ,CVNO and MR had important value in predicting VRCZ in the prevention and treatment of invasive fungal infections in allo-HSCT patients before engraftment,and their cutoff of concentrations were 0.95 μg/ml,1.35 μg/ml and 1.645,respectively(AUC:0.9677,0.7634,0.9564).CVRCZ and MR can assist in indicating liver[cutoff values:0.65 μg/ml,1.96(AUC:0.5971,0.6663)]and renal injury[cutoff values:0.95 μg/ml,1.705(AUC:0.6039,0.6164)].Conclusion:The great value of simultaneous monitoring of VRCZ,VNO and MR can predict in the efficacy and safety of VRCZ in allo-HSCT patients before engraftment.The prediction accuracy of CVRCZ was higher than that of MR,followed by that of CVNO.Increased CVRCZ and decreased MR increase the risk of liver and kidney injury.

This study aims to investigate the effect and mechanism of hydnocarpin(HC) in treating triple negative breast cancer(TNBC). Cell counting kit-8(CCK-8), xCELLigence real-time cellular analysis(RTCA), and colony formation assay were employed to determine the effects of HC on the proliferation of two TNBC cell lines: MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-436. The effects of HC on the migration and invasion of TNBC cells were detected by high-content analysis, wound-healing assay, and Transwell assay. The changes in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT) and the expression of invasion-and migration-associated proteins [E-cadherin, vimentin, Snail, matrix metalloproteinase-2(MMP-2), and MMP-9] were detected by Western blot. Western blot and RT-qPCR were employed to determine the protein and mRNA levels of Yes-associated protein(YAP) and downstream targets(CTGF and Cyr61). TNBC cells were transfected with Flag-YAP for the overexpression of YAP, and the role of YAP as a key target for HC to inhibit TNBC malignant progression was examined by CCK-8 assay, Transwell assay, and wound-healing assay. The pathway of HC-induced YAP degradation was detected by the co-treatment of proteasome inhibitor with HC and ubiquitination assay. The binding of HC to YAP and the E3 ubiquitin ligase Ccr4-not transcription complex subunit 4(CNOT4) was detected by microscale thermophoresis(MST) assay and drug affinity responsive target stability(DARTS) assay. The results showed that HC significantly inhibited the proliferation, colony formation, invasion, and EMT of TNBC cells. HC down-regulated the protein and mRNA levels of CTGF and Cyr61. HC down-regulated the total protein level of YAP, while it had no effect on the mRNA level of YAP. The overexpression of YAP antagonized the inhibitory effects of HC on the proliferation, migration, and invasion of TNBC cells. HC promoted the degradation of YAP through the proteasome pathway and up-regulated the ubiquitination level of YAP. The results of MST and DARTS demonstrated direct binding between HC, YAP, and CNOT4. The above results indicated that HC inhibited the malignant progression of TNBC via CNOT4-mediated degradation and ubiquitination of YAP.
Humans ; Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms/metabolism* ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 2/metabolism* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Cell Movement ; Ubiquitination ; RNA, Messenger/metabolism* ; Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition ; Transcription Factors/metabolism*

Objective: To understand the current status of diagnosis and treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) /small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) among hematologists, oncologists, and lymphoma physicians from hospitals of different levels in China. Methods: This multicenter questionnaire survey was conducted from March 2021 to July 2021 and included 1,000 eligible physicians. A combination of face-to-face interviews and online questionnaire surveys was used. A standardized questionnaire regarding the composition of patients treated for CLL/SLL, disease diagnosis and prognosis evaluation, concomitant diseases, organ function evaluation, treatment selection, and Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor was used. Results: ①The interviewed physicians stated that the proportion of male patients treated for CLL/SLL is higher than that of females, and the age is mainly concentrated in 61-70 years old. ②Most of the interviewed physicians conducted tests, such as bone marrow biopsies and immunohistochemistry, for patient diagnosis, in addition to the blood test. ③Only 13.7% of the interviewed physicians fully grasped the initial treatment indications recommended by the existing guidelines. ④In terms of cognition of high-risk prognostic factors, physicians' knowledge of unmutated immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable and 11q- is far inferior to that of TP53 mutation and complex karyotype, which are two high-risk prognostic factors, and only 17.1% of the interviewed physicians fully mastered CLL International Prognostic Index scoring system. ⑤Among the first-line treatment strategy, BTK inhibitors are used for different types of patients, and physicians have formed a certain understanding that BTK inhibitors should be preferentially used in patients with high-risk factors and elderly patients, but the actual use of BTK inhibitors in different types of patients is not high (31.6%-46.0%). ⑥BTK inhibitors at a reduced dose in actual clinical treatment were used by 69.0% of the physicians, and 66.8% of the physicians had interrupted the BTK inhibitor for >12 days in actual clinical treatment. The use of BTK inhibitors is reduced or interrupted mainly because of adverse reactions, such as atrial fibrillation, severe bone marrow suppression, hemorrhage, and pulmonary infection, as well as patients' payment capacity and effective disease progression control. ⑦Some differences were found in the perceptions and behaviors of hematologists and oncologists regarding the prognostic assessment of CLL/SLL, the choice of treatment options, the clinical use of BTK inhibitors, etc. Conclusion: At present, a gap remains between the diagnosis and treatment of CLL/SLL among Chinese physicians compared with the recommendations in the guidelines regarding the diagnostic criteria, treatment indications, prognosis assessment, accompanying disease assessment, treatment strategy selection, and rational BTK inhibitor use, especially the proportion of dose reduction or BTK inhibitor discontinuation due to high adverse events.
Female ; Humans ; Male ; Aged ; Middle Aged ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Prognosis ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Immunohistochemistry ; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains/therapeutic use*

Objective: To explore the application of up-conversing phosphor technology (UPT) to detect pathogenic organisms in the air. Methods: The performance of UPT was verified with Staphylococcus aureus, Yersinia pestis and Escherichia coli O157 as simulated strains, including stability, specificity, sensitivity and response time tests; Air particle sampler is used to collect air samples in the field microenvironment test chamber, and UPT is used for detection. At the same time, compared with the traditional culture method, the practicability of UPT is verified. Results: The coefficient of variation in laboratory was 9.62% and 8.02% when the concentration of 10⁷ CFU/ml and 10⁸ CFU/ml were detected by UPT. The results were less than the allowable target, and the detection system had good stability. The specificity of UPT was verified by Staphylococcus aureus. The results showed that no non-Staphylococcus aureus was detected, and the positive detection rate of different kinds of Staphylococcus aureus was 100%. The specificity of the detection system was good. The sensitivity of UPT for detecting Staphylococcus aureus was 10⁴ CFU/ml. Detection sensitivity of Yersinia pestis ≥10³ CFU/ml; The detection sensitivity of Escherichia coli O157 is ≥10³ CFU/ml, and the response time of UPT to bacteria is within 15 min (all 10 min 15 s). The detection results of bacteria contentration in the air of the on-site microenvironment test cabin by UPT showed that when the concentration of Escherichia coli O157 in the air reached above 10⁴ CFU/m³, the detection results of UPT were positive, and with the increase of air concentration, the numerical concentration measured by UPT showed an upward trend, which was positively correlated with the concentration of bacteria in the air. Conclusion: UPT may be feasible as a rapid method to evaluate the species and contentration of pathogenic organisms in the air.
Humans ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Technology

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the incidence of extrauterine growth retardation (EUGR) and its risk factors in very preterm infants (VPIs) during hospitalization in China. METHODS: A prospective multicenter study was performed on the medical data of 2 514 VPIs who were hospitalized in the department of neonatology in 28 hospitals from 7 areas of China between September 2019 and December 2020. According to the presence or absence of EUGR based on the evaluation of body weight at the corrected gestational age of 36 weeks or at discharge, the VPIs were classified to two groups: EUGR group (n=1 189) and non-EUGR (n=1 325). The clinical features were compared between the two groups, and the incidence of EUGR and risk factors for EUGR were examined. RESULTS: The incidence of EUGR was 47.30% (1 189/2 514) evaluated by weight. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that higher weight growth velocity after regaining birth weight and higher cumulative calorie intake during the first week of hospitalization were protective factors against EUGR (P<0.05), while small-for-gestational-age birth, prolonged time to the initiation of total enteral feeding, prolonged cumulative fasting time, lower breast milk intake before starting human milk fortifiers, prolonged time to the initiation of full fortified feeding, and moderate-to-severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia were risk factors for EUGR (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS It is crucial to reduce the incidence of EUGR by achieving total enteral feeding as early as possible, strengthening breastfeeding, increasing calorie intake in the first week after birth, improving the velocity of weight gain, and preventing moderate-severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia in VPIs.
Female ; Fetal Growth Retardation ; Gestational Age ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Infant, Very Low Birth Weight ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Factors