Objective: To investigate the regional differences in the incidence of urothelial carcinoma among kidney transplant recipients between northern and southern China，so as to provide reference for early diagnosis of this disease. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted across multiple databases，including CNKI，Wanfang，CBM，and PubMed，using the keywords “kidney transplantation” and “tumor” to collect clinical data from qualified kidney transplant centers.The latest and most complete literature data published by 17 transplant centers in northern China and 14 in southern China were included.Statistical analyses were performed to compare the incidence of post-transplant urothelial carcinoma and non-urothelial malignancies. Results: A total of 37 475 kidney transplant recipients were included，among whom 837 (2.23%) developed post-transplant malignancies，including urothelial carcinoma (366/837，43.73%)，non-urothelial carcinoma (444/837，53.05%)，and malignancies with unspecified pathology (27/837，3.23%).The incidence of malignancies was significantly higher in northern China than in southern China [(2.82±1.39)% vs. (1.67±0.83)%，P=0.011]，with a particularly pronounced difference in the incidence of urothelial carcinoma [(1.68±1.12)% vs. (0.32±0.32)%，P<0.001].No significant difference was observed in the incidence of non-urothelial carcinoma between the two regions [(1.11±0.56)% vs. (1.35±0.65)%，P=0.279].Additionally，female transplant recipients exhibited a higher incidence of malignancies than males in both regions (southern China：2.38% vs. 1.80%; northern China：8.93% vs. 2.52%). Conclusion: The incidence of urothelial carcinoma following kidney transplantation is significantly higher in northern China than in southern China，underscoring the importance of implementing regular tumor screening for kidney transplant recipients，particularly for female patients in northern China，to facilitate early diagnosis and timely intervention.

Infertility is a common reproductive disorder affecting millions of couples worldwide. It is estimated that male factors account for about 30%-50% of infertility cases, and some studies have found that the concentration of male sperm gradually decreases over time, a trend that suggests the importance of male fertility. Many factors contribute to the decline of male fertility, among which environmental factors have received widespread attention. After reaching adulthood, spermatogonial stem cells will continue to produce sperm, but these cells exist outside the blood testicular barrier, which makes them highly sensitive to environmental conditions such as air pollution, tobacco smoke, radiation, and heavy metals. It is reported that exposure to these adverse environmental factors not only causes oxidative stress and DNA damage to germ cells, but also leads to abnormal epigenetic modification of sperm DNA, thereby causing a series of diseases. This article reviewed the abnormal methylation changes in DNA associated with exposure to environmental pollutants during spermatogenesis and how these changes affect the quantity, quality, and function of spermatozoa.

BACKGROUND: Meningeal metastasis (MM) is a form of malignant metastasis where tumor cells spread from the primary site to the pia mater, dura mater, arachnoid, subarachnoid space, and other cerebrospinal fluid compartments. Lung cancer is one of the most common malignant tumor types with MM. MM not only signifies that the lung cancer has progressed to an advanced stage but also leads to a range of severe clinical symptoms due to meningeal involvement. Currently, the risk factors associated with the development of MM are not fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to investigate the risk factors for MM in patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) who underwent non-surgical interventions, in order to identify LUAD patients at high risk for MM. METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed the clinical data of patients diagnosed with LUAD at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2020 to July 2024. Missing data were imputed using multiple imputation methods, and risk factors were identified through LASSO, univariate, and multivariate Logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: A total of 170 patients with LUAD were included in this study and divided into two groups: 87 patients with MM and 83 patients without MM. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses revealed that younger age at diagnosis (P=0.004), presence of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) L858R gene mutation (P=0.008), and concurrent liver metastasis at baseline (P=0.004) were independent risk factors for developing MM in LUAD patients who did not undergo surgical intervention. Conversely, higher baseline globulin levels (P=0.039) and the presence of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene mutation (P=0.040) were associated with a reduced risk of MM development. CONCLUSIONS Age at diagnosis, EGFR L858R mutation status, ALK gene mutation status, concurrent liver metastasis, globulin levels at baseline were significantly associated with the risk of developing MM in patients with LUAD patients who did not undergo surgical intervention. For patients diagnosed at a younger age, carrying the EGFR L858R mutation, or presenting with baseline liver metastasis, early implementation of tertiary prevention strategies for MM is crucial. Regular monitoring of MM status should be conducted in these high-risk groups.
Humans ; Male ; Adenocarcinoma of Lung/therapy* ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Risk Factors ; Lung Neoplasms/therapy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Aged ; Meningeal Neoplasms/genetics* ; Adult

Natural antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are promising candidates for the development of a new generation of antimicrobials to combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens. They have found extensive applications in the fields of medicine, food, and agriculture. However, efficiently screening AMPs from natural sources poses several challenges, including low efficiency and high antibiotic resistance. This review focuses on the action mechanisms of AMPs, both through membrane and non-membrane routes. We thoroughly examine various highly efficient AMP screening methods, including whole-bacterial adsorption binding, cell membrane chromatography (CMC), phospholipid membrane chromatography binding, membrane-mediated capillary electrophoresis (CE), colorimetric assays, thin layer chromatography (TLC), fluorescence-based screening, genetic sequencing-based analysis, computational mining of AMP databases, and virtual screening methods. Additionally, we discuss potential developmental applications for enhancing the efficiency of AMP discovery. This review provides a comprehensive framework for identifying AMPs within complex natural product systems.

The clinical data of 160 elderly patients with upper urinary tract stones who underwent flexible ureteroscopic lithotripsy (FURL) in Beijing Hospital from May 2021 to November 2022 were retrospectively analyzed, including 80 patients with ambulatory surgery (study group) and 80 patients with the traditional surgery (control group). The efficacy and safety were compared between two groups. There were no significant differences in the rate of complete stone removal (91.3% (73/80) vs. 90.0% (72/80), P>0.05), operation time (60.0 (41.0, 90.0)min vs.61.0(50.0, 96.5)min, P>0.05), and incidence of postoperative systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) (8.8% (7/80) vs.12.5% (10/80), P>0.05) between two groups, while the postoperative length of hospital stay (5.0 (5.0, 6.0)h vs. 18.0 (16.2, 30.0)h, P<0.05) was shorter and the medical expenses ((20 696.7±4 645.5)Yuan vs. (31 030.8±6 275.1)Yuan, P<0.05) was less in the study group than those in the control group. The study indicates that the day surgery mode of flexible ureteroscopic lithotripsy has advantages of faster recovery and less cost over the traditional surgery mode for elderly patients.

ObjectiveTo investigate the application value of liver/spleen CT value （CT_L/S）， controlled attenuation parameter （CAP）， and magnetic resonance imaging-proton density fat fraction （MRI-PDFF） in chronic hepatitis B （CHB） patients with hepatic steatosis. MethodsA retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 213 CHB patients who underwent liver CT， CAP， and MRI-PDFF examinations in Affiliated Hospital of Yan’an University from October 2018 to December 2022. According to MRI-PDFF， the 213 patients were divided into CHB group with 111 patients （MRI-PDFF<5%） and CHB+hepatic steatosis group with 102 patients （MRI-PDFF≥5%）， among whom there were 69 patients with mild hepatic steatosis and 33 patients with moderate to severe hepatic steatosis. 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 Bland-Altman plot was used to evaluate the consistency in MRI-PDFF measurement between two physicians. The Spearman’s correlation coefficient was used to analyze the correlation between CT_L/S and MRI-PDFF and between CAP and MRI-PDFF. The receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve was plotted and the area under the ROC curve （AUC） was calculated to investigate the value of CT_L/S and CAP in the diagnosis of different degrees of hepatic steatosis， and the DeLong test was used to compare the AUCs of the two radiological examinations. ResultsMRI-PDFF had relatively high repeatability and stability in CHB patients. There is a significant negative correlation between CT_L/S and MRI-PDFF （r=-0.800， P<0.001） and a significant positive correlation between CAP and MRI-PDFF （r=0.692， P<0.001）. Both CT_L/S and CAP had a relatively high accuracy in the diagnosis of hepatic steatosis in CHB patients， with an AUC of 0.951 and 0.902， respectively， and CT_L/S had a better accuracy than CAP （P<0.05）. In the diagnosis of mild and moderate-to-severe hepatic steatosis， CT_L/S had an AUC of 0.921 and 0.895， respectively， and CAP had an AUC of 0.859 and 0.825， respectively， suggesting that CT_L/S had a slightly higher diagnostic efficiency than CAP. ConclusionMRI-PDFF has high repeatability and stability in CHB patients， and CT_L/S and CAP have a high diagnostic value for different degrees of hepatic steatosis in CHB patients.