Cushing′s syndrome refers to a group of disorders caused by excessive secretion of adrenal glucocorticoid due to various underlying etiologies. Among these, ACTH-dependent Cushing′s syndrome, in which the source of ACTH-secretion remains unclear for extended periods, poses significant challenges in clinical management. This article presents a patient with ACTH-dependent Cushing′s syndrome where the ACTH-secreting source could not be definitively localized from our hospital. Additionally, the article reviews recent advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of such cases, both domestically and internationally, with the aim of enhancing clinicians′ understanding and improving the management of this condition.

Cushing′s syndrome refers to a group of disorders caused by excessive secretion of adrenal glucocorticoid due to various underlying etiologies. Among these, ACTH-dependent Cushing′s syndrome, in which the source of ACTH-secretion remains unclear for extended periods, poses significant challenges in clinical management. This article presents a patient with ACTH-dependent Cushing′s syndrome where the ACTH-secreting source could not be definitively localized from our hospital. Additionally, the article reviews recent advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of such cases, both domestically and internationally, with the aim of enhancing clinicians′ understanding and improving the management of this condition.

Objective:To investigate the impact of small extracellular vesicles(sEVs) derived from perirenal adipose cells on the biological behavior of renal tubular epithelial cells under diabetic conditions and the underlying molecular mechanisms.Methods:Primary perirenal adipose cells were extracted from db/m and db/db mice for in vitro culture. The culture supernatant was collected and sEVs(NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo, DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo) were extracted by ultracentrifugation. The sEVs were incubated with human renal tubular epithelial cell line(HK-2) to observe changes in their proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT) levels. The protein composition of sEVs was analyzed using mass spectrometry to explore the molecular mechanisms. Results:CCK8 results showed that the proliferation level of HK-2 cells after DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention did not change significantly compared with the two control groups(Ctrl group and NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention group). Western Blot(WB) results indicated that there were no significant changes in apoptosis levels(Bcl-2, Cleaved-caspase 3, Caspase 3) and autophagy levels(p62, LC3BⅠ, LC3BⅡ) in the DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention group compared with the two control groups. WB and immunofluorescence results demonstrated that DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo intervention upregulated the expression levels of mesenchymal cell marker proteins(Vimentin, α-SMA, Snail2) and downregulated the expression level of epithelial cell marker protein ZO-1 in HK-2 cells compared with the two control groups. Mass spectrometry analysis of sEVs revealed that the differential proteins between DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo and NDM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo were enriched in EMT-related pathways. Among them, the enrichment of thrombospondin(THBS1) in DM-sEVs PRAT-Adipo might be involved in the regulation of EMT in HK-2 cells. Conclusion:Under diabetic conditions, sEVs secreted by PRAT-derived adipocytes promote the upregulation of EMT in renal tubular epithelial cells, a process that may be mediated by the enrichment of THBS1 in sEVs.

Objective::The optimal percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) technique for bifurcation lesions remains controversial, especially considering the variability of the side branch (SB). A provisional stenting technique is currently recommended in most cases. This meta-analysis aimed to compare outcomes of different bifurcation PCI strategies, clarifying their scope of application.Methods::Randomized controlled trials comparing PCI strategies for coronary bifurcation lesions were systematically retrieved from PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and EBSCO literature databases without limitations on published date or language. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) were stipulated as main outcomes. Secondary outcomes of interest were all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, target lesion revascularization (TLR), target vessel revascularization, myocardial infarction (MI), and stent thrombosis. Both pooled analysis and sub-group analysis were performed.Results::Twenty-three randomized controlled trials with 6380 participants were included. Eighteen studies compared the provisional strategy with 2-stent approaches. No significant difference in MACEs (relative risk (RR), 1.16; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.90-1.48; I 2 = 62%) was found between 1-stent and 2-stent techniques. However, when SB lesion length was used as the separation condition, the 2-stent strategy was associated with fewer MACEs (RR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.46-2.41; I 2 = 70%), TLRs (RR, 2.13; 95% CI, 1.50-3.02; I 2 = 59%), and MIs (RR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.19-3.95; I 2 = 52%) than the provisional strategy in those where SB lesions measured >10 mm long. Conclusions::In the current work, there was no significant difference between 1-stent and 2-stent techniques in terms of MACEs or secondary outcomes. However, 2-stent approaches have clinical advantages over the provisional strategy in bifurcation when the SB lesion length is >10 mm due to fewer cases of TLR and MI.

Objective::The optimal percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) technique for bifurcation lesions remains controversial, especially considering the variability of the side branch (SB). A provisional stenting technique is currently recommended in most cases. This meta-analysis aimed to compare outcomes of different bifurcation PCI strategies, clarifying their scope of application.Methods::Randomized controlled trials comparing PCI strategies for coronary bifurcation lesions were systematically retrieved from PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and EBSCO literature databases without limitations on published date or language. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) were stipulated as main outcomes. Secondary outcomes of interest were all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, target lesion revascularization (TLR), target vessel revascularization, myocardial infarction (MI), and stent thrombosis. Both pooled analysis and sub-group analysis were performed.Results::Twenty-three randomized controlled trials with 6380 participants were included. Eighteen studies compared the provisional strategy with 2-stent approaches. No significant difference in MACEs (relative risk (RR), 1.16; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.90-1.48; I 2 = 62%) was found between 1-stent and 2-stent techniques. However, when SB lesion length was used as the separation condition, the 2-stent strategy was associated with fewer MACEs (RR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.46-2.41; I 2 = 70%), TLRs (RR, 2.13; 95% CI, 1.50-3.02; I 2 = 59%), and MIs (RR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.19-3.95; I 2 = 52%) than the provisional strategy in those where SB lesions measured >10 mm long. Conclusions::In the current work, there was no significant difference between 1-stent and 2-stent techniques in terms of MACEs or secondary outcomes. However, 2-stent approaches have clinical advantages over the provisional strategy in bifurcation when the SB lesion length is >10 mm due to fewer cases of TLR and MI.