Objective: To investigate the characteristics of malignant tumor incidence and mortality in cancer registration areas of Zhejiang Province in 2021. Methods: Based on the 2021 cancer registration data from 22 national cancer registries in Zhejiang Province, the crude incidence, crude mortality, and cumulative rate for 0 to 74 years were calculated. Age standardized was performed using the age composition of the standard population from the Fifth National Population Census in 2000 and Segi's world standard population. The incidence and mortality characteristics of malignant tumor in different genders, urban/rural areas and ages were described. The order of crude incidence and mortality of malignant tumor were analyzed. Results: In 2021, there were 116 639 new malignant tumor cases in Zhejiang Province. The crude, Chinese population standardized, and world population-standardized incidences were 530.93/100 000, 304.83/100 000, and 288.20/100 000, respectively. The cumulative incidence for 0 to 74 years was 31.92%. There were 40 475 death cases. The crude, Chinese population-standardized, and world population-standardized mortalities were 184.24/100 000, 79.40/100 000, and 78.97/100 000, respectively. The cumulative mortality for 0 to 74 years was 8.37%. The Chinese population-standardized incidence for males and females were 286.34/100 000 and 323.45/100 000, respectively, and the Chinese population-standardized mortality were 106.25/100 000 and 54.17/100 000, respectively. The Chinese population-standardized incidence for urban and rural were 316.85/100 000 and 285.11/100 000, respectively, and the Chinese population-standardized mortality were 75.59/100 000 and 85.48/100 000, respectively. The crude incidence and crude mortality of malignant tumor both increased with age, peaking in the groups aged 80-<80 and ≥85 years at 1 845.06/100 000 and 1 656.88/100 000, respectively. The top ten malignant tumors with the highest crude incidence were, in descending order: lung cancer, thyroid cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, cervical cancer, lymphoma, and brain tumors. These accounted for 80.34% of all new malignant tumor cases. The top ten malignant tumors with the highest crude mortality were, in descending order: lung cancer, liver cancer, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, esophageal cancer, lymphoma, and gallbladder cancer. These accounted for 82.26% of all malignant tumor deaths. Conclusions In 2021, the cancer registration areas of Zhejiang Province were characterized by a relatively high malignant tumor incidence and a comparatively low mortality compared to national data. Males and the elderly emerged as key populations for targeted prevention and control. It is recommended to enhance screening, early diagnosis, and early treatment for lung cancer, thyroid cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, and gastric cancer malignancies.

Objective To investigate the high-risk factors associated with acute postoperative hypertension (APH) following laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy(LSG) in obese patients and to establish a predictive model. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on clinical data and laboratory parameters of obese patients who underwent LSG at Department of Metabolic Surgery in our hospital from August 2021 to December 2023. Logistic-LASSO regression analysis was used to identify independent risk factors for APH. A nomogram predictive model was developed based on these factors. The predictive performance and clinical utility of the model were assessed using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, Bootstrap resampling, calibration curve, Hosmer-Lemeshow (H-L) test, decision curve analysis (DCA), and clinical impact curve (CIC). Results The incidence of APH was 55.90%. Body mass index (BMI), platelet count, globulin, uric acid, sodium, fibrinogen, fasting blood glucose, and preoperative diastolic pressure had potential predictive value. Among them, BMI (OR=1.066, 95% CI: 1.003-1.137, P=0.046), platelet count (OR=0.994, 95% CI: 0.998-0.999, P=0.027), fibrinogen (OR=1.943, 95% CI: 1.128-3.479, P=0.02), and preoperative diastolic blood pressure (OR=0.953, 95% CI: 0.918-0.985, P = 0.006) were identified as independent high-risk factors. The area under the curve (AUC) of the nomogram was 0.783 (95% CI: 0.711-0.855), with a sensitivity of 0.817 and a specificity of 0.689. The AUC based on Bootstrap resampling was 0.776 (95% CI: 0.702-0.849). The H-L test yielded P>0.05, and the calibration curve showed good model fit. Both DCA and CIC demonstrated favorable screening efficiency. Conclusions BMI, platelet count, fibrinogen, and preoperative diastolic blood pressure are independent high-risk factors for APH following LSG. The developed nomogram model exhibits good predictive performance and clinical applicability, providing a valuable tool for early screening and prevention of APH in LSG patients.

Apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1(APE 1)is a multifunctional protein that plays important roles in DNA repair and regulation of gene expression.Because APE 1 is overexpressed in various cancers,it can serve as a cancer biomarker for aiding clinical diagnosis,guiding therapy,and monitoring prognosis.On this basis,a label-free fluorescent probe was designed based on the primer exchange reaction(PER)strategy for highly sensitive detection of APE 1 activity.In the absence of APE 1,the structure of catalytic hairpin(HP)was stable and could not form G-quadruplex.Therefore,the background fluorescence of this sensing system was very low due to the dissociation of thioflavin T(ThT).In the presence of APE 1,the apurinic/apyrimidinic(AP)site of HP was cleaved by APE 1 and a short nucleic acid fragment that acted as a primer to initiate PER was generated.After PER reaction,a large number of G-quadruplex were produced,which could specifically bind with ThT and resulted in significant increase of fluorescence signal.The combination of low background design of HP and PER amplification made this biosensor had high sensitivity with a detection limit(3σ)of 0.0008 U/mL.Furthermore,the primer sequence was directly generated by the cleavage of APE 1 without additional addition,which not only increased the specificity of the reaction,but also simplified the experiment procedure.Moreover,the use of label-free fluorescence signal reduced the cost of the experiment,and realized rapid detection of APE 1.Finally,this sensor was used to detect APE 1 in human serum samples with spiked recoveries of 91%-104%,proving great potential in study of biological enzyme.

Objective To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of Mycoplasma pneumoniae(MP)infection among pediatric inpatients with respiratory tract infections(RTIs)at Children's Hospital of Hebei Province,providing evidence for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on 79 546 children hospitalized for RTIs between January 2016 and February 2024.Nasopharyngeal aspirates or deep sputum samples were collected,and polymerase chain reaction(PCR)was used to detect nucleic acids of 13 respiratory pathogens,including MP and adenovirus.The epidemiological trends across different years,seasons,genders,and age groups were analyzed.Results Among the 79 546 enrolled cases(male:47 437,59.6%;female:32 109,40.4%),the MP-positive rate was 17.7%(14 106/79 546),peaking in 2023(28.8%)and reaching the lowest in 2021(7.0%).Except for the period from July 2020 to March 2021 with exceptionally low MP positivity,epidemic peaks consistently occurred between August and February or March of the following year.Seasonal analysis revealed significantly higher MP positivity in autumn and winter compared to spring(P<0.001).Female children exhibited a higher MP-positive rate(20.1%,6444/32 109)than males(16.2%,7662/47 437)(P<0.001).The MP-positive rate increased with age:infancy(3.2%,849/26 741),toddlerhood(9.3%,1935/20 763),preschool(21.2%,3918/18 448),and school-age(54.5%,7404/13 594)(P<0.001).Co-infections with other respiratory pathogens were observed in 37.3%(5264/14 106)of MP-positive cases,with human rhinovirus(HRV)being the most frequent co-pathogen(43.3%,2279/5264 of mixed infections).Conclusion MP is a major pathogen of RTIs in hospitalized children at Children's Hospital of Hebei Province.Infections occur year-round but predominantly in autumn,with higher susceptibility in females and school-age children.Targeted preventive measures should be implemented during peak seasons to mitigate transmission risks.

Artemisia argyi (A. argyi), a plant with a longstanding history as a raw material for traditional medicine and functional diets in Asia, has been used traditionally to bathe and soak feet for its disinfectant and itch-relieving properties. Despite its widespread use, scientific evidence validating the antifungal efficacy of A. argyi water extract (AAWE) against dermatophytes, particularly Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, and Microsporum gypseum, remains limited. This study aimed to substantiate the scientific basis of the folkloric use of A. argyi by evaluating the antifungal effects and the underlying molecular mechanisms of its active subfraction against dermatophytes. The results indicated that AAWE exhibited excellent antifungal effects against the three aforementioned dermatophyte species. The subfraction AAWE6, isolated using D101 macroporous resin, emerged as the most potent subfraction. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of AAWE6 against T. rubrum, M. gypseum, and T. mentagrophytes were 312.5, 312.5, and 625 μg·mL^-1, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) results and assays of enzymes linked to cell wall integrity and cell membrane function indicated that AAWE6 could penetrate the external protective barrier of T. rubrum, creating breaches ("small holes"), and disrupt the internal mitochondrial structure ("granary"). Furthermore, transcriptome data, quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR), and biochemical assays corroborated the severe disruption of mitochondrial function, evidenced by inhibited tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and energy metabolism. Additionally, chemical characterization and molecular docking analyses identified flavonoids, primarily eupatilin (131.16 ± 4.52 mg·g^-1) and jaceosidin (4.17 ± 0.18 mg·g^-1), as the active components of AAWE6. In conclusion, the subfraction AAWE6 from A. argyi exerts antifungal effects against dermatophytes by disrupting mitochondrial morphology and function. This research validates the traditional use of A. argyi and provides scientific support for its anti-dermatophytic applications, as recognized in the Chinese patent (No. ZL202111161301.9).
Antifungal Agents/chemistry* ; Arthrodermataceae ; Artemisia/chemistry* ; Molecular Docking Simulation ; Mitochondria ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of qualitative and quantitative fecal immunochemical tests (FIT) in identifying colorectal cancer, so as to provide insights into perfecting screening strategies for colorectal cancer. Methods: Participants in the Colorectal Cancer Screening Program for Key Populations in Zhejiang Province from May 2020 to December 2021 were recruited, and their demographic information, lifestyle and disease history were collected through a questionnaire survey. Qualitative or quantitative FIT along with a questionnaire-based risk assessment were employed as the initial screening tests. Individuals who were positive in any FIT or had high-risk assessment results were required to attend a subsequent colonoscopy examination. The positive rate, detection rate of colorectal cancer, positive predictive value and number of colonoscopies required were compared between qualitative and quantitative FITs, and stratified analyses by gender and age were conducted. Results: Totally 4 099 769 participants were included. The qualitative FIT group included 3 574 917 individuals, yielding a positive rate of 11.35%, a detection rate of 1.19%, a positive predictive value of 0.48% and 83.84 colonoscopies required to detect one cancer case. The quantitative FIT group involved 524 852 individuals, yielding a positive rate of 6.70%, a detection rate of 2.31%, a positive predictive value of 1.01% and 43.23 colonoscopies required to detect one cancer case. The quantitative FIT group showed significantly higher detection rate of colorectal cancer, higher positive predictive value and less number of colonoscopies required compared to the qualitative FIT group (all P<0.05). The same results were obtained after stratification by gender and age. Conclusion Compared to qualitative FIT, quantitative FIT improves the detection of colorectal cancer and reduces the workload of colonoscopy examinations, making it more suitable for colorectal cancer screening in large-scale populations.

Important forensic diagnostic indicators of sudden death in coronary atherosclerotic heart dis-ease,such as acute or chronic myocardial ischemic changes,sometimes make it difficult to locate the ischemic site due to the short death process,the lack of tissue reaction time.In some cases,the de-ceased died of sudden death on the first-episode,resulting in difficulty for medical examiners to make an accurate diagnosis.However,clinical studies on coronary instability plaque revealed the key role of coronary spasm and thrombosis caused by their lesions in sudden coronary death process.This paper mainly summarizes the pathological characteristics of unstable coronary plaque based on clinical medi-cal research,including plaque rupture,plaque erosion and calcified nodules,as well as the influencing factors leading to plaque instability,and briefly describes the research progress and technique of the atherosclerotic plaques,in order to improve the study on the mechanism of sudden coronary death and improve the accuracy of the forensic diagnosis of sudden coronary death by diagnosing different patho-logic states of coronary atherosclerotic plaques.

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy and safety of hypomethylating agents (HMA) in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) .Methods:A total of 409 MDS patients from 45 hospitals in Zhejiang province who received at least four consecutive cycles of HMA monotherapy as initial therapy were enrolled to evaluate the efficacy and safety of HMA. Mann-Whitney U or Chi-square tests were used to compare the differences in the clinical data. Logistic regression and Cox regression were used to analyze the factors affecting efficacy and survival. Kaplan-Meier was used for survival analysis. Results:Patients received HMA treatment for a median of 6 cycles (range, 4-25 cycles) . The complete remission (CR) rate was 33.98% and the overall response rate (ORR) was 77.02%. Multivariate analysis revealed that complex karyotype ( P=0.02, OR=0.39, 95% CI 0.18-0.84) was an independent favorable factor for CR rate. TP53 mutation ( P=0.02, OR=0.22, 95% CI 0.06-0.77) was a predictive factor for a higher ORR. The median OS for the HMA-treated patients was 25.67 (95% CI 21.14-30.19) months. HMA response ( P=0.036, HR=0.47, 95% CI 0.23-0.95) was an independent favorable prognostic factor, whereas complex karyotype ( P=0.024, HR=2.14, 95% CI 1.10-4.15) , leukemia transformation ( P<0.001, HR=2.839, 95% CI 1.64-4.92) , and TP53 mutation ( P=0.012, HR=2.19, 95% CI 1.19-4.07) were independent adverse prognostic factors. There was no significant difference in efficacy and survival between the reduced and standard doses of HMA. The CR rate and ORR of MDS patients treated with decitabine and azacitidine were not significantly different. The median OS of patients treated with decitabine was longer compared with that of patients treated with azacitidine (29.53 months vs 20.17 months, P=0.007) . The incidence of bone marrow suppression and pneumonia in the decitabine group was higher compared with that in the azacitidine group. Conclusion:Continuous and regular use of appropriate doses of hypomethylating agents may benefit MDS patients to the greatest extent if it is tolerated.

Objective:To analyze the disease burden of kidney cancer, bladder cancer and prostate cancer and attributed risk factors in China from 1990 to 2019, and provide reference for the development of comprehensive prevention and control strategies.Methods:Based on the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 platform, we collected the crude and age-standardized incidence rate, age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR), and disability-adjusted life year (DALY) of kidney cancer, bladder cancer and prostate cancer in China from 1990 to 2019. By using the log-linear regression model, trends were analyzed for overall and risk-attributable disease burden by calculating the average annual percentage change (AAPC).Results:From 1990 to 2019, the crude incidence rates of kidney cancer, bladder cancer and prostate cancer showed increasing trends in China, with an AAPC of 5.4% (95% CI: 4.9% - 5.9%), 4.1% (95% CI: 3.9% - 4.2%) and 5.6% (95% CI: 5.3% - 6.0%) (all P<0.001), respectively. Similar trends were found in age-standardized incidence rates with smaller AAPCs. For kidney cancer, the ASMR and age-standardized DALY rate significantly increased, with AAPC of 2.2% (95% CI: 1.5%-2.8%) and 1.5% (95% CI: 1.2%-1.9%) (all P<0.001), while the ASMR of bladder cancer and prostate cancer decreased gradually, with AAPC of -0.6% (95% CI: -0.7% - -0.5%) ( P<0.001) and -0.2% (95% CI: -0.3% - -0.1%) ( P=0.002). The age-standardized DALY rate of bladder cancer and prostate cancer decreased gradually, with AAPC of -0.6% (95% CI: -0.8% - -0.4%) ( P<0.001) and -0.2% (95% CI: -0.3% - -0.1%) ( P=0.002). Smoking was responsible for 48.2% of bladder cancer, 18.8% of kidney cancer and 9.8% of prostate cancer in total DALY. The age-standardized DALY rate of kidney cancer caused by smoking and high BMI showed an increasing trend, with AAPC of 3.0% (95% CI: 2.8%-3.2%) and 4.9% (95% CI: 4.7%-5.0%) (all P<0.001), and smoking-attributed age-standardized DALY rates of bladder cancer and prostate cancer decreased gradually with AAPC of -0.4% (95% CI: -0.6% - -0.2%) ( P<0.001) and -0.3% (95% CI: -0.4% - -0.1%) ( P=0.001). Conclusions:In the past 30 years, the disease burden of kidney cancer, bladder cancer and prostate cancer in China increased gradually, while the deaths and DALY of bladder cancer and prostate cancer decreased slightly. We should continue to strengthen the primary prevention strategies for smoking, obesity and other risk factors, and explore the appropriate screening tests and population-based screening strategies.