Objective:To explore the possibility of using a inferior gluteal artery perforator flap (IGAPF) for breast reconstruction in the patient who did not have suitable donor site in back and abdomen.Methods:In November 2024, a 25-year-old unmarried and childless woman with right breast cancer received immediate right breast reconstruction by a right free IGAPF after modified right mastectomy in the Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University. The locations of perforators were confirmed by both Multi-detector computed tomography angiography (MDCTA) and portable Doppler blood flow detector before surgery. The IGAPF was designed to take the inferior gluteal wrinkle as the lower edge, the axis of the flap was parallel to the inferior gluteal wrinkle, and the width of the flap was estimated where the incision could be directly closed. The size of right IGAPF was 6.0 cm×19.0 cm. Sharp dissection was performed between the sarcolemma and muscle fibres of gluteus, then the perforators were dissected along the direction of muscle fibres of gluteus. The vascular pedicle was kept at about 8.0 cm in length. The diameter of artery was about 2.0 mm and that for the veins was about 1.5 mm. End-to-end anastomoses with the right thoracodorsal artery and vein were successfully carried out. The donor site was directly closed, and it was hidden in the inferior gluteal wrinkle. Postoperative outpatient clinical review was made.Results:Pathological examination reported: an invasive carcinoma of right breast, axillary lymph node metastasis (2/10). The patient recovered well and the flap survived without any complication, i.e. ischemic necrosis, infection and haematoma. The patient was off-bed at 3 days and discharged at 13 days after surgery. At the 40 days of postoperative follow-up, the patient achieved a good recovery and the lower limb activity was not affected by the surgery. The patient was satisfied with the reconstructed breast and donor site recovery. The patient followed with scheduled chemotherapy and subsequent radiotherapy. The volume of reconstructed breast was smaller than the other breast, of which the patient was fully informed before the surgery.Conclusion:A free IGAPF provides an alternative donor sites for achieving a breast reconstruction due to the reliable pedicle vessels and invisible donor scars.

Objective:To establish a model for the combined detection of serum copeptin and inflammatory markers in acute stroke (AS), and to explore the value of copeptin and inflammatory marker detection in the clinical diagnosis and prognosis assessment of AS.Methods:A total of 75 patients were diagnosed with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) [46 males, age (64.1±11.7) years] and 45 patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) [28 males, age (61.0±13.9) years] who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine through the emergency department from January 1 to July 31, 2024, were included as the observation group. Meanwhile, 60 healthy individuals [39 males, age (64.4±8.2) years] were selected as the control group (HC). The differences in serum copeptin levels and inflammatory markers among different groups were compared. ROC curves were drawn to analyze the value of copeptin and inflammatory markers in the clinical diagnosis and prognosis assessment of AIS. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to draw survival curves to analyze the in-hospital survival rates of patients in different groups. Cox regression analysis was conducted to identify the risk factors affecting the prognosis of AIS patients.Results:The level of copeptin was significantly elevated in AS, with the results showing ICH>AIS>HC ( H=100.11, P<0.001). Copeptin demonstrated the highest efficacy in the early diagnosis of AIS and ICH (AUC=0.893, sensitivity 89.3%, specificity 75.0%; AUC=0.986, sensitivity 95.6%, specificity 93.3%) and the assessment of prognosis (AUC=0.997, sensitivity 100%, specificity 96.8%; AUC=0.907, sensitivity 86.7%, specificity 86.7%), outperforming other single indicators. The combined detection of copeptin with the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the systemic immune-inflammation index (SIIRI) was the best combination for the early diagnosis of AIS and ICH (AUC=0.937, sensitivity 77.3%, specificity 98.3%; AUC=0.989, sensitivity 95.6%, specificity 95.0%) and for the assessment of prognosis (AUC=0.996, sensitivity 100%, specificity 96.8%; AUC=0.944, sensitivity 86.7%, specificity 90.0%). Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that AIS patients in the low-value group of copeptin and NLR had a higher survival rate during hospitalization than those in the high-value group ( HR 54.46, 7.608, P<0.01, respectively), and ICH patients in the low-value group of copeptin, SIIRI, SIRI, and SII had a higher survival rate during hospitalization than those in the high-value group ( HR 12.67, 7.923, 3.567, 5.925, P<0.05); Cox regression showed that copeptin, NLR, NIHSS, and mRS were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of patients with AIS ( HR 1.421, 1.368, 1.158, and 1.188, respectively, P<0.05), copeptin and SIIRI were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of ICH ( HR 1.308, 1.113, P<0.05), and GCS was a protective factor affecting ICH prognosis ( HR=0.741, P<0.05). Conclusion:Copeptin and inflammatory indicators can reflect the severity of different subtypes of stroke. The single or combined detection shows good value in the clinical application of AS. The combination of copeptin-NLR and copeptin-SIIRI is respectively the best comprehensive biomarker combination for the early diagnosis and prognosis assessment of AIS and ICH.

Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are the primary fibrogenic cells in the liver, and their activation plays a crucial role in the development and progression of hepatic fibrosis. Here, we report that retinoid X receptor-alpha (RXRα), a unique member of the nuclear receptor superfamily, is a key modulator of HSC activation and liver fibrosis. RXRα exerts its effects by modulating calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase β (CaMKKβ)-mediated activation of AMP-activated protein kinase-alpha (AMPKα). In addition, we demonstrate that K-80003, which binds RXRα by a unique mechanism, effectively suppresses HSC activation, proliferation, and migration, thereby inhibiting liver fibrosis in the CCl₄ and amylin liver NASH (AMLN) diet animal models. The effect is mediated by AMPKα activation, promoting mitophagy in HSCs. Mechanistically, K-80003 activates AMPKα by inducing RXRα to form condensates with CaMKKβ and AMPKα via a two-phase process. The formation of RXRα condensates is driven by its N-terminal intrinsic disorder region and requires phosphorylation by CaMKKβ. Our results reveal a crucial role of RXRα in liver fibrosis regulation through modulating mitochondrial activities in HSCs. Furthermore, they suggest that K-80003 and related RXRα modulators hold promise as therapeutic agents for fibrosis-related diseases.

Objective:To explore the possibility of using a inferior gluteal artery perforator flap (IGAPF) for breast reconstruction in the patient who did not have suitable donor site in back and abdomen.Methods:In November 2024, a 25-year-old unmarried and childless woman with right breast cancer received immediate right breast reconstruction by a right free IGAPF after modified right mastectomy in the Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University. The locations of perforators were confirmed by both Multi-detector computed tomography angiography (MDCTA) and portable Doppler blood flow detector before surgery. The IGAPF was designed to take the inferior gluteal wrinkle as the lower edge, the axis of the flap was parallel to the inferior gluteal wrinkle, and the width of the flap was estimated where the incision could be directly closed. The size of right IGAPF was 6.0 cm×19.0 cm. Sharp dissection was performed between the sarcolemma and muscle fibres of gluteus, then the perforators were dissected along the direction of muscle fibres of gluteus. The vascular pedicle was kept at about 8.0 cm in length. The diameter of artery was about 2.0 mm and that for the veins was about 1.5 mm. End-to-end anastomoses with the right thoracodorsal artery and vein were successfully carried out. The donor site was directly closed, and it was hidden in the inferior gluteal wrinkle. Postoperative outpatient clinical review was made.Results:Pathological examination reported: an invasive carcinoma of right breast, axillary lymph node metastasis (2/10). The patient recovered well and the flap survived without any complication, i.e. ischemic necrosis, infection and haematoma. The patient was off-bed at 3 days and discharged at 13 days after surgery. At the 40 days of postoperative follow-up, the patient achieved a good recovery and the lower limb activity was not affected by the surgery. The patient was satisfied with the reconstructed breast and donor site recovery. The patient followed with scheduled chemotherapy and subsequent radiotherapy. The volume of reconstructed breast was smaller than the other breast, of which the patient was fully informed before the surgery.Conclusion:A free IGAPF provides an alternative donor sites for achieving a breast reconstruction due to the reliable pedicle vessels and invisible donor scars.

Objective:To establish a model for the combined detection of serum copeptin and inflammatory markers in acute stroke (AS), and to explore the value of copeptin and inflammatory marker detection in the clinical diagnosis and prognosis assessment of AS.Methods:A total of 75 patients were diagnosed with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) [46 males, age (64.1±11.7) years] and 45 patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) [28 males, age (61.0±13.9) years] who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine through the emergency department from January 1 to July 31, 2024, were included as the observation group. Meanwhile, 60 healthy individuals [39 males, age (64.4±8.2) years] were selected as the control group (HC). The differences in serum copeptin levels and inflammatory markers among different groups were compared. ROC curves were drawn to analyze the value of copeptin and inflammatory markers in the clinical diagnosis and prognosis assessment of AIS. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to draw survival curves to analyze the in-hospital survival rates of patients in different groups. Cox regression analysis was conducted to identify the risk factors affecting the prognosis of AIS patients.Results:The level of copeptin was significantly elevated in AS, with the results showing ICH>AIS>HC ( H=100.11, P<0.001). Copeptin demonstrated the highest efficacy in the early diagnosis of AIS and ICH (AUC=0.893, sensitivity 89.3%, specificity 75.0%; AUC=0.986, sensitivity 95.6%, specificity 93.3%) and the assessment of prognosis (AUC=0.997, sensitivity 100%, specificity 96.8%; AUC=0.907, sensitivity 86.7%, specificity 86.7%), outperforming other single indicators. The combined detection of copeptin with the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the systemic immune-inflammation index (SIIRI) was the best combination for the early diagnosis of AIS and ICH (AUC=0.937, sensitivity 77.3%, specificity 98.3%; AUC=0.989, sensitivity 95.6%, specificity 95.0%) and for the assessment of prognosis (AUC=0.996, sensitivity 100%, specificity 96.8%; AUC=0.944, sensitivity 86.7%, specificity 90.0%). Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that AIS patients in the low-value group of copeptin and NLR had a higher survival rate during hospitalization than those in the high-value group ( HR 54.46, 7.608, P<0.01, respectively), and ICH patients in the low-value group of copeptin, SIIRI, SIRI, and SII had a higher survival rate during hospitalization than those in the high-value group ( HR 12.67, 7.923, 3.567, 5.925, P<0.05); Cox regression showed that copeptin, NLR, NIHSS, and mRS were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of patients with AIS ( HR 1.421, 1.368, 1.158, and 1.188, respectively, P<0.05), copeptin and SIIRI were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of ICH ( HR 1.308, 1.113, P<0.05), and GCS was a protective factor affecting ICH prognosis ( HR=0.741, P<0.05). Conclusion:Copeptin and inflammatory indicators can reflect the severity of different subtypes of stroke. The single or combined detection shows good value in the clinical application of AS. The combination of copeptin-NLR and copeptin-SIIRI is respectively the best comprehensive biomarker combination for the early diagnosis and prognosis assessment of AIS and ICH.

Patient-Reported Outcomes (PRO) is a subjective outcome measure based on the concept of"patient-centered",in which patients report their own health status,functional status,treatment feelings and other information,which is an effective supplement to traditional objective outcome indicators. Different from the traditional objective outcomes that can be directly observed,PRO studies a kind of unobservable and abstract characteristics (such as intelligence,pain,quality of life,etc.),so it needs to be guided by corresponding measurement theories to achieve accurate and stable measurement of relevant outcomes. At present,there are many international studies on the measurement theory of PRO,among which the international organization COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) has the most detailed and systematic research on the theory,which constructs a theoretical system based on the consensus of COSMIN according to the existing theories in the medical field. It aims to systematically introduce the theoretical system,hoping to provide references for the basic theoretical research of PRO in China.

Patient-Reported Outcomes (PRO) is a subjective outcome measure based on the concept of"patient-centered",in which patients report their own health status,functional status,treatment feelings and other information,which is an effective supplement to traditional objective outcome indicators. Different from the traditional objective outcomes that can be directly observed,PRO studies a kind of unobservable and abstract characteristics (such as intelligence,pain,quality of life,etc.),so it needs to be guided by corresponding measurement theories to achieve accurate and stable measurement of relevant outcomes. At present,there are many international studies on the measurement theory of PRO,among which the international organization COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) has the most detailed and systematic research on the theory,which constructs a theoretical system based on the consensus of COSMIN according to the existing theories in the medical field. It aims to systematically introduce the theoretical system,hoping to provide references for the basic theoretical research of PRO in China.

Objectives:To observe the clinical characteristics of familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) in Chinese population and explore the suitable diagnostic criteria of FCS in China.Methods:We screened 6856 patients with triglyceride ≥10 mmol/L from 9 hospitals in China between January 2010 and December 2023.The overall clinical information was collected and FCS-related gene testing was performed in 102 patients with high suspicion of FCS.Demographic characteristics were analyzed and FCS diagnosis was drafted.The FDA FCS diagnostic criteria was used to verify the FCS patients diagnosed in this study.At the same time,the prevalence of FCS patients with fasting triglyceride ≥10 mmol/L was explored in some of the above hospitals.Results:In this study,the diagnostic criteria for FCS in Chinese population were drafted based on European and American diagnostic criteria and Chinese clinical practice:(1) Fasting triglyceride ≥ 10 mmol/L after standard lipid-lowering treatment;(2) With one of the below-listed conditions:positive detection of FCS related genes;family history of hypertriglyceridemia pancreatitis (HTGP);history of pancreatitis in adolescence or adult HTGP;history of repeated hospitalization with unexplained abdominal pain.According to this criteria,60 were preliminarily diagnosed with FCS from the 102 patients enrolled.Their average age was (43.0±8.6) years old,male accounted for 70％,average triglyceride was (20.0±15.0) mmol/L.FCS related gene mutations were detected in 6 patients,all were lipoprotein lipase gene mutations.According to the American FCS diagnostic criteria,among the 60 FCS patients diagnosed in this study,the proportion of patients with "possible FCS" was 98.3％ (59/60),and the proportion of patients with "confirmed FCS" was 70.0％ (42/60).According to the diagnostic criteria of FCS patients in this study,the prevalence of FCS patients with TG ≥10 mmol/L is about 0.5％ (33/6722).Conclusions:The clinical and genetic characteristics of Chinese patients with FCS are consistent with those of European and American patients.The diagnostic criteria for FCS drafted in this study can be further verified and promoted in Chinese population.

Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are major outer membrane components of Gram-negative bacteria. Unlike most Gram-negative bacteria, Acinetobacter baumannii can still survive and acquire polymyxin resistance after complete loss of LPS. Previous studies of LPS-deficient Acinetobacter baumannii mostly focused on LPS-deficient strains induced by polymyxin, whose background was complex and unstable. To investigate LPS loss-mediated polymyxin resistant-Acinetobacter baumannii, this study constructed a stable and clear background LPS-deficient strain by knocking out lpxC gene in Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 19606 with CIRSPR/Cas9, and then studied the phenotypic changes of the lpxC-deficient strain including morphology, growth rate, antibiotic susceptibility, virulence, membrane permeability, and membrane potential. Animal experiments were approved by the Animal Care and Welfare Committee Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology, CAMS and PUMC (approval number: IMB-20240119D₉). The results indicated that the lpxC gene of Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 19606 was successfully knocked out. After losing the lpxC, the strain underwent the morphological change from rod-shaped to spherical. Furthermore, it leads to reduced growth rate, enhanced membrane permeability, decreased membrane potential, lower virulence, and increased antibiotic susceptibility to β-lactams, quinolones, aminoglycosides, macrolides, glycopeptides. The lpxC deletion results in significant changes in membrane homeostasis and adaptability of Acinetobacter baumannii. Understanding the phenotypic changes of colistin-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii mediated by LPS loss is useful for exploring the resistance mechanism of Acinetobacter baumannii and developing new therapeutic strategies.

Objectives:To observe the clinical characteristics of familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) in Chinese population and explore the suitable diagnostic criteria of FCS in China.Methods:We screened 6856 patients with triglyceride ≥10 mmol/L from 9 hospitals in China between January 2010 and December 2023.The overall clinical information was collected and FCS-related gene testing was performed in 102 patients with high suspicion of FCS.Demographic characteristics were analyzed and FCS diagnosis was drafted.The FDA FCS diagnostic criteria was used to verify the FCS patients diagnosed in this study.At the same time,the prevalence of FCS patients with fasting triglyceride ≥10 mmol/L was explored in some of the above hospitals.Results:In this study,the diagnostic criteria for FCS in Chinese population were drafted based on European and American diagnostic criteria and Chinese clinical practice:(1) Fasting triglyceride ≥ 10 mmol/L after standard lipid-lowering treatment;(2) With one of the below-listed conditions:positive detection of FCS related genes;family history of hypertriglyceridemia pancreatitis (HTGP);history of pancreatitis in adolescence or adult HTGP;history of repeated hospitalization with unexplained abdominal pain.According to this criteria,60 were preliminarily diagnosed with FCS from the 102 patients enrolled.Their average age was (43.0±8.6) years old,male accounted for 70％,average triglyceride was (20.0±15.0) mmol/L.FCS related gene mutations were detected in 6 patients,all were lipoprotein lipase gene mutations.According to the American FCS diagnostic criteria,among the 60 FCS patients diagnosed in this study,the proportion of patients with "possible FCS" was 98.3％ (59/60),and the proportion of patients with "confirmed FCS" was 70.0％ (42/60).According to the diagnostic criteria of FCS patients in this study,the prevalence of FCS patients with TG ≥10 mmol/L is about 0.5％ (33/6722).Conclusions:The clinical and genetic characteristics of Chinese patients with FCS are consistent with those of European and American patients.The diagnostic criteria for FCS drafted in this study can be further verified and promoted in Chinese population.