ObjectiveTo understand the epidemiological distribution and gene evolutionary variation of influenza A (H3N2) viruses in Fengxian District, Shanghai, in the surveillance year of 2023, and to provide a reference basis for influenza prevention and control. MethodsThe prevalence of influenza virus in Fengxian District in the 2023 influenza surveillance year (April 2023‒March 2024) was analyzed. The hemagglutinin (HA) gene, neuraminidase (NA) gene, and amino acid sequences of 75 strains of H3N2 influenza viruses were compared with the vaccine reference strain for similarity matching and phylogenetic evolutionary analysis, in addition to an analysis of gene characterization and variation. ResultsIn Fengxian District, there was a mixed epidemic of H3N2 and H1N1 in the spring of 2023, with H3N2 being the predominant subtype in the second half of the year, and Victoria B becoming the predominant subtype in the spring of 2024. A total of 75 influenza strains of H3N2 with HA and NA genes were distributed in the 3C.2a1b.2a.2a.2a.3a.1 and B.4 branches, with overall similarity to the reference strain of the 2024 vaccine higher than that of the reference strain of the 2022 and 2023 vaccine. Compared with the 2023 vaccine reference strain, three antigenic sites and one receptor binding site were changed in HA, with three glycosylation sites reduced and two glycosylation sites added; where as in NA seven antigenic sites and the 222nd resistance site changed with two glycosylation sites reduced. ConclusionThe risk of antigenic variation and drug resistance of H3N2 in this region is high, and it is necessary to strengthen the publicity and education on the 2024 influenza vaccine and long-term monitoring of influenza virus prevalence and variation levels.

Sesquiterpenes are natural terpenes containing 15 carbon atoms. They are widely used in the perfume, pharmaceutical, and biofuel industries due to their remarkable biological activities. The traditional production of sesquiterpenes relies on chemical synthesis or plant extraction, which has the disadvantages of low yields and waste of resources. The construction of microbial cell factories for the efficient synthesis of sesquiterpenes by means of synthetic biology provides a new option. In recent years, with the development of metabolic engineering and synthetic biology, the heterologous synthesis of a variety of sesquiterpenes has been successfully achieved by metabolic engineering of the oleaginous yeast, Yarrowia lipolytica. In this paper, we review the research progress in the heterologous synthesis of different sesquiterpenes by Y. lipolytica, discuss the synthetic biology strategies commonly used in this field, and make an outlook on the research directions and engineering approaches to further enhance the sesquiterpene yield in this host. This paper provides a reference for strategies such as synergistic optimization of synthetic biology and metabolic engineering, enhanced precursors, and opens up new directions for the application of synthetic biology in green chemistry and sustainable production.
Yarrowia/genetics* ; Sesquiterpenes/metabolism* ; Metabolic Engineering/methods* ; Synthetic Biology/methods*

Objective:To investigate the differences in resting-state functional connectivity (FC) between patients with vestibular migraine (VM) and migraine without aura (MwoA) in order to infer the possible neuroimaging mechanisms of VM.Methods:Thirty VM patients admitted to the Department of Neurology of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University from December 2019 to December 2022 were selected as the experimental group (EG) (6 males and 24 females, with mean age of 38.3 years) and 26 MwoA patients as the control group (7 males and 19 females, mean age 35.5 years). General demographic and clinical data such as gender, age, year of education, course of disease and frequency of attacks were collected for all the patients, as well as data of Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA), Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), headache Visual Arialogue Scale (VAS), Headache Impact Test 6 (HIT-6) and Migraine Disability Assessment Questionnaire (MIDAS). VM patients were also assessed by Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), dizziness VAS and Vestibular Disorders Activities of Daily Living (VADL) scales. All patients underwent resting-sate functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) scans. Bilateral parietal opercular cortex 2 (OP2) and primary visual cortex (V1) were used as regions of interests (ROIs). Differences in FC between ROIs and other brain regions were calculated between the two groups. In view of the brain regions with significant differences, z-values of FC were extracted for each subject in the EG, and Pearson partial correlation analysis was conducted between z-values of FC and clinical characteristics of patients, P<0.05 was considered to have significant correlation. SPSS 22.0 was used for statistical analysis. Results:There was no significant difference in gender, age, years of education, course of disease, frequency of attack and scores of MoCA, HAMA and HAMD between the two groups ( P>0.05). Headache VAS, HIT-6 and MIDAS scores in VM patients were significantly lower than those in MwoA patients ( P<0.05). Compared with MwoA patients, the FC between left OP2 and bilateral precuneus and left thalamus was significantly increased in VM patients, and the FC between right OP2 and left thalamus and right anterior cingulate gyrus were significantly increased ( P<0.05, False Discovery Rate correction). Correlation analysis showed that the FC between left OP2 and left precuneus was positively correlated with DHI score in VM patients ( P=0.007, r=0.480), and the FC between right OP2 and left thalamus was positively correlated with the disease course in VM patients ( P=0.015, r=0.439). Conclusions:The pathogenesis of VM may be related to the altered FC of vestibular, pain and visual-motor networks, abnormalities of these neural pathways may be important imaging biomarkers of VM pathogenesis.

Objective:To investigate the status of medical care seeking delay and diagnosis delay of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients in Tongzhou District and Changping District of Beijing, analyze the related factors and put forward suggestions for early detection and scientific management of PTB patients.Methods:A retrospective epidemiological survey was conducted to collect the incidence data of PTB registered in Tongzhou and Changping from January 1 to December 31, 2021 by using the Chinese Tuberculosis Information Management System, and telephone interview were used for information supplement. Multivariate logistic regression model and decision tree model were used to analyze the influencing factors of medical care seeking delay and diagnosis delay of PTB patients.Results:In 2021, the medical care seeking delay time M( Q1, Q3) in the PTB patients in Tongzhou and Changping was 11 (5, 26) days, with a delay rate of 41.71%. Results from multivariate logistic regression model analysis revealed that factors influencing the medical care seeking delay included regular health check-up ( OR=0.033, 95% CI: 0.008-0.147), coughing for less than 2 weeks or showing any symptom of PTB before medical care seeking ( OR=0.378, 95% CI: 0.215-0.665), showing other symptoms before medical care seeking( OR=2.791, 95% CI: 1.710-4.555), no work or school in medical care seeking ( OR=2.990, 95% CI: 1.419-6.298). The diagnosis delay time M( Q1, Q3) in the PTB patients was 8 (0, 18) days, with a delay rate of 35.20%. Multivariate logistic regression model analysis revealed that the factors influencing the diagnosis delay of PTB included being diagnosed at a specialized tuberculosis hospital ( OR=0.426, 95% CI: 0.236-0.767) or a tuberculosis prevention and control institution ( OR=1.843, 95% CI: 1.061-3.202) and being traced as a source of infection ( OR=2.632, 95% CI: 1.062-6.521). The overall performance of the multivariate logistic regression model was comparable to that of the decision tree model, with the decision tree model exhibiting higher sensitivity but lower specificity. Conclusions:The medical care seeking delay rate and diagnosis delay rate of tuberculosis in Tongzhou and Changping were at low levels in 2021. However, it is still necessary to strengthen the health education and active screening, improve the public awareness of PTB prevention and control, and further improve the level of medical services and medical access to reduce the medical care seeking delay and diagnosis delay of PTB patients.

Podophyllotoxin is an aryl naphthalene lignan-like secondary metabolite, which is widely existed in plants of the Podophyllum. It exhibits a broad spectrum of antitumor activity and holds significant clinical value as a medicinal natural product of plant origin. This review discusses podophyllotoxin from three aspects: plant distribution, biosynthesis and pharmacological effects. Distribution of podophyllotoxin in nature: Podophyllotoxin and its analogues are mainly found in 12 genera of three families, which are Berberidaceae, Linaceae and Cupressaceae, respectively. They are mostly distributed in East Asia and North America, especially in China, which is not only the diversity center of the Podophyllum, but also the distribution center. Among all these plants, the genera Dysosma and Sinopodophyllum are the focus of the relevant research. Biosynthesis of podophyllotoxin: In order to take the alleviation of the pressure of podophyllotoxin that is in short supply of natural resources, and to protect its existing resources, the biosynthesis of podophyllotoxin, especially synthetic biology, has gradually become a new direction of current research. Compared with chemical synthesis which has the shortcoming of low synthesis efficiency, high production cost and cumbersome steps, biosynthesis has a variety of advantages. It’s not limited by resources, easy to cultivate on a large scale and has fast production speed, low production cost and simple genetic manipulation, so there is a broader prospect for the exact purpose of biosynthetic development. The biosynthesis of podophyllotoxin is divided into four steps in general, including the synthesis of coniferyl alcohol, the synthesis of matairesinol, the synthesis of deoxypodophyllotoxin and the synthesis of podophyllotoxin. It requires various enzymes catalyzed during the synthesis process, such as pinoresinol-lariciresinol reductase(PLR), secoisolariciresinol dehydrogenase(SDH) and others. At present, by means of synthetic biology, heterologous production of natural drugs in microbial cell factories, the synthesis of the intermediate coniferyl alcohol has been achieved in Escherichia coli with an increased yield of (124.9±5.1)mg·L−1, and the concentration of (-)-pluviatolide was elevated to 137 mg·L−1. In addition, p-coumaric acid in Saccharomyces cerevisiae was obtained to 71.71 mg·L−1, and in a tobacco plant production chassis, highly purified (-)-deoxypodophyllotoxin was increased to 0.71 mg·g−1 (dry weight) after chromatographic separation. Overall, the utilization of biosynthesis can significantly increase the yield of podophyllotoxin and improve the research and production efficiency of anti-tumor drugs greatly, which brings a more effective strategy for the treatment of related diseases. The pharmacological activity of podophyllotoxin: Podophyllotoxin and its analogues have strong cytotoxicity and they exert good inhibitory effects on the proliferation of multifarious tumor cells, viruses and bacteria. So they are widely applied to the clinical treatment of various types of tumors, such as colorectal cancer, lung cancer, cervical cancer, hemangioma, breast cancer, esophageal cancer, etc. The molecular mechanism of its cancer treatment is mainly in the G1, G2/M to block the cell cycle to make drugs work. Meanwhile, podophyllotoxin has relatively significant toxic side effects and drawbacks that can’t be ignored as a drug with superior therapeutic effect on specific diseases, which tends to increase the risk of bone marrow suppression, chromosomal aberrations and so forth. In conclusion, this literature sums up the distribution of podophyll plants in China, making review of the biosynthetic steps, applications, and biological research of podophyllotoxin, and outlines the pharmacological activity of podophyllotoxin. It aims to set the foundation for the reasonable application of podophyllotoxin resources, the efficient synthesis of podophyllotoxin, and the development of Podophyllum drugs which are highly effective and low toxic. At the same time, this paper gives full play to the clinical medicinal value of podophyllotoxin, which has important influence and far-reaching significance in the treatment of malignant diseases, and promotes the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine.

Objective:The preliminary results was reported regarding the treatment of mesenteric torsion by mesenteric fixation in the last decade, especially preventing recurrence of mesenteric torsion by mesenteric fan-shaped fixation.Methods:We selected 12 patients who received emergency operation in Chongqing Hospital of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine from December 2010 to March 2022. All of them were made a definite diagnose of mesenteric torsion by the preoperative CT scan or exploratory laparotomy. The recurrence of mesenteric torsion will be prevented by taking the operation of mesenteric fan-shaped fixation. This technique is suitable for the patient who is suffering total mesenteric torsion, but enteric necrosis is excluded affirmatively. The operation is consists of the following progress: (1) Exploratory laparotomy to check for necrosis of the bowel and for lesions other than torsion. (2) Mesenteric torsion derotation.(3) Mesenteric linear fixation; the right posterior lower border of the small mesentery (terminal ileal mesentery) is intermittently sutured to the posterior peritoneum of the right lower quadrant to increase the width of the base of the small mesentery. (4) Mesenteric fan-shaped fixation, which is fan-shaped to the lower left and fixed in the posterior peritoneum, shortening the length of the mesentery and further increasing the width of the mesentery and posterior peritoneal fixation.Results:A total of 12 patients with mesenteric torsion were treated by operation for 15 times in all. Among them, 3 cases received resection of most small bowel were performed without recurrence; 3 patients received only derotation for a total of 4 times, 2 cases recurred, 1 of them recurred twice; 4 cases underwent derotation and mesenteric linear fixation,and 1 case recurred. Four patients with derotation and mesenteric fan-shaped fixation recovered well without recurrence.Conclusion:Mesenteric fan-shaped fixation may be an effective operative type to reduce or avoid postoperative recurrence of mesenteric torsion.

Objective:To explore the clinical and genetic etiology of a Chinese pedigree affected with type 2 Long QT syndrome (LQTS).Methods:A pedigree with type 2 LQTS presented at Fuwai Central China Cardiovascular Hospital on August 23, 2019 was selected as the study subject. Peripheral blood samples were collected from the proband and her parents. Following extraction of genomic DNA, whole exome sequencing (WES) was carried out for the proband, and candidate variant was screened through functional annotation and protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis. Sanger sequencing was conducted to verify the pathogenicity of candidate variant. This study was approved by Medical Ethics Committee of the Fuwai Central China Cardiovascular Hospital (Ethics No. 2019-15).Results:WES revealed that the proband has harbored a missense variant of the KCNH2 gene, namely c. 1478A>G (p.Tyr493Cys), which was confirmed by Sanger sequencing to have inherited from her father. Based on the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), the variant was classified as likely pathogenic (PM2_supporting+ PM5+ PP3+ PP4). Conclusion:The KCNH2 gene c. 1478A>G (p.Tyr493Cys) variant probably underlay the type 2 LQTS in this pedigree.

Objective To explore the clinical characteristics of patients with heart failure(HF)treated with lyophilized Yiqifumai injection based on real-world data,providing evidence for the rational and standardized use of Yiqifumai injection.Methods Hospitalized HF patients from 81 hospitals across China were included in this study between April and November 2023.We collected demographics information[sex,age,New York Heart Association(NYHA)functional classification],length of hospital stay,duration of medication use,and biomarkers such as N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP),left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF),and left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(LVEDD).Clinical features of HF patients treated with Yiqifumai injection were analyzed,and comparisons were made among different HF subtypes.Results A total of 457 HF patients were included:96 with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction(HFrEF),70 with HF with mildly reduced ejection fraction(HFmrEF),and 291 with HF with preserved ejection fraction(HFpEF).The majority of HFpEF type and HFrEF type patients were classified as NYHA class Ⅲ[48.1％(140/291)and 54.2％(52/96),respectively],while most HFmrEF type patients were classified as class Ⅳ[41.4％(29/70)].The longest average hospital stay was recorded in HFmrEF type patients[(9.30±3.02)days],while the shortest was recorded in HFrEF type patients[(8.77±3.11)days].The shortest average medication duration was found in the HFrEF type[(8.54±2.95)days],while the longest was observed in HFpEF type patients[(8.82±2.82)days].Serum NT-proBNP levels were significantly decreased post-treatment in all three types[ng/L:HFrEF was 2 435.00(1 169.25,5 607.75)vs.5 334.00(2 077.33,9 108.88),HFmrEF type was 2 313.25(598.09,6 224.67)vs.4 559.21(1 325.75,8 922.75),HFpEF type was 824.00(169.46,2298.75)vs.1 265.00(215.00,3 458.80),all P<0.05],with the most pronounced decrease observed in the HFrEF type.LVEF was significantly improved in the HFrEF type[0.340(0.290,0.378)vs.0.336(0.280,0.360),P<0.05],while no significant changes were noted in the HFmrEF type and HFpEF type.No significant differences in LVEDD were found before and after treatment in any type(all P>0.05).Conclusion In the real-world setting,the advantages of Yiqifumai injection in treating HFrEF are more pronounced,while further evidence from evidence-based medicine is needed to support its use in other types of heart failure.

Objective To analyze the development trajectory and predictors of endocrine therapy associated arthralgia in breast cancer patients.Methods From January 2022 to July 2022,breast cancer patients in the breast medicine department or outpatients of a tertiary cancer hospital in Hunan Province were selected as respondents using a convenience sampling method.A baseline survey was conducted using the General Information Questionnaire,the Symptom Assessment Scale for Patients Treated with Endocrine Therapy for Breast Cancer,and the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale within 1 week prior to patient treatment.The Symptom Assessment Scale for Patients Treated with Endocrine Therapy for Breast Cancer was used to assess patients'arthralgia levels at 3,6,and 9 months after treatment,and data were analyzed using growth mixed model,univariate analysis of variance,and multiple logistic regression.Results A total of 418 breast cancer patients completed the follow-up,with 235 cases(56.22%)developing arthralgia.3 potential categories of arthralgia develop-ment trajectories were identified:high level-slowly increasing group(11.48%),low level-slowly increasing group(44.74%),and asymptomatic group(43.78%).The results of multifactorial analysis showed that anxiety,history of bone and joint disease,sleep duration,place of residence,monthly household income,and frequency of exercise were predictors of potential categories for the development of trajectory of arthralgia levels associated with endocrine therapy in breast cancer patients(P<0.05).Conclusion Arthralgia levels associated with endocrine therapy in breast cancer patients exhibit different trajec-tories,and clinical staff should emphasize the assessment and intervention of pain levels in patients with the anxiety,a history of bone and joint disease,poor sleep,poor finances,living in urban areas,and low frequency of exercise.