Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) acts as an oncogene in liver cancer, yet its roles and in-depth molecular mechanisms within the liver cancer immune microenvironment remain mostly undefined. Here, we demonstrated that disruption of tumor-intrinsic PRMT5 enhances CD8⁺ T-cell-mediated antitumor immunity both in vivo and in vitro. Further experiments verified that this effect is achieved through downregulation of the inhibitory immune checkpoint molecule, fibrinogen-like protein 1 (FGL1). Mechanistically, PRMT5 catalyzed symmetric dimethylation of transcription factor 12 (TCF12) at arginine 554 (R554), prompting the binding of TCF12 to FGL1 promoter region, which transcriptionally activated FGL1 in tumor cells. Methylation deficiency at TCF12-R554 residue downregulated FGL1 expression, which promoted CD8⁺ T-cell-mediated antitumor immunity. Notably, combining the PRMT5 methyltransferase inhibitor GSK591 with PD-L1 blockade efficiently inhibited liver cancer growth and improved overall survival in mice. Collectively, our findings reveal the immunosuppressive role and mechanism of PRMT5 in liver cancer and highlight that targeting PRMT5 could boost checkpoint immunotherapy efficacy.

Myocardial fibrosis is a serious cause of heart failure and even sudden cardiac death. However, the mechanisms underlying myocardial ischemia-induced cardiac fibrosis remain unclear. Here, we identified that the expression of sterile alpha and TIR motif containing 1 (SARM1), was increased significantly in the ischemic cardiomyopathy patients, dilated cardiomyopathy patients (GSE116250) and fibrotic heart tissues of mice. Additionally, inhibition or knockdown of SARM1 can improve myocardial fibrosis and cardiac function of myocardial infarction (MI) mice. Moreover, SARM1 fibroblasts-specific knock-in mice had increased deposition of extracellular matrix and impaired cardiac function. Mechanically, elevated expression of SARM1 promotes the deposition of extracellular matrix by directly modulating P4HA1. Notably, by using the Click-iT reaction, we identified that the increased expression of ZDHHC17 promotes the palmitoylation levels of SARM1, thereby accelerating the fibrosis process. Based on the fibrosis-promoting effect of SARM1, we screened several drugs with anti-myocardial fibrosis activity. In conclusion, we have unveiled that palmitoylated SARM1 targeting P4HA1 promotes collagen deposition and myocardial fibrosis. Inhibition of SARM1 is a potential strategy for the treatment of myocardial fibrosis. The sites where SARM1 interacts with P4HA1 and the palmitoylation modification sites of SARM1 may be the active targets for anti-fibrosis drugs.

Temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJ-OA) is a common disease often accompanied by pain, seriously affecting physical and mental health of patients. Abnormal innervation at the osteochondral junction has been considered as a predominant origin of arthralgia, while the specific mechanism mediating pain remains unclear. To investigate the underlying mechanism of TMJ-OA pain, an abnormal joint loading model was used to induce TMJ-OA pain. We found that during the development of TMJ-OA, the increased innervation of sympathetic nerve of subchondral bone precedes that of sensory nerves. Furthermore, these two types of nerves are spatially closely associated. Additionally, it was discovered that activation of sympathetic neural signals promotes osteoarthritic pain in mice, whereas blocking these signals effectively alleviates pain. In vitro experiments also confirmed that norepinephrine released by sympathetic neurons promotes the activation and axonal growth of sensory neurons. Moreover, we also discovered that through releasing norepinephrine, regional sympathetic nerves of subchondral bone were found to regulate growth and activation of local sensory nerves synergistically with other pain regulators. This study identified the role of regional sympathetic nerves in mediating pain in TMJ-OA. It sheds light on a new mechanism of abnormal innervation at the osteochondral junction and the regional crosstalk between peripheral nerves, providing a potential target for treating TMJ-OA pain.
Animals ; Osteoarthritis/physiopathology* ; Mice ; Sympathetic Nervous System/physiopathology* ; Temporomandibular Joint Disorders/physiopathology* ; Arthralgia ; Sensory Receptor Cells ; Disease Models, Animal ; Norepinephrine ; Male ; Temporomandibular Joint/physiopathology* ; Pain Measurement

Enamel demineralization, the formation of white spot lesions, is a common issue in clinical orthodontic treatment. The appearance of white spot lesions not only affects the texture and health of dental hard tissues but also impacts the health and aesthetics of teeth after orthodontic treatment. The prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of white spot lesions that occur throughout the orthodontic treatment process involve multiple dental specialties. This expert consensus will focus on providing guiding opinions on the management and prevention of white spot lesions during orthodontic treatment, advocating for proactive prevention, early detection, timely treatment, scientific follow-up, and multidisciplinary management of white spot lesions throughout the orthodontic process, thereby maintaining the dental health of patients during orthodontic treatment.
Humans ; Consensus ; Dental Caries/etiology* ; Dental Enamel/pathology* ; Tooth Demineralization/etiology* ; Tooth Remineralization

Hypoxemia is a common pathological state characterized by low oxygen saturation in the blood. This condition compromises mucosal barrier integrity particularly in the gut and oral cavity. However, the mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear. This study used periodontitis as a model to investigate the role of platelet activation in oral mucosal immunopathology under hypoxic conditions. Hypoxia upregulated methyltransferase-like protein 4 (METTL4) expression in platelets, resulting in N⁶-methyladenine modification of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). This modification impaired mitochondrial transcriptional factor A-dependent cytosolic mtDNA degradation, leading to cytosolic mtDNA accumulation. Excess cytosolic mt-DNA aberrantly activated the cGAS-STING pathway in platelets. This resulted in excessive platelet activation and neutrophil extracellular trap formation that ultimately exacerbated periodontitis. Targeting platelet METTL4 and its downstream pathways offers a potential strategy for managing oral mucosa immunopathology. Further research is needed to examine its broader implications for mucosal inflammation under hypoxic conditions.
DNA, Mitochondrial/metabolism* ; Mouth Mucosa/pathology* ; Hypoxia/immunology* ; Methyltransferases/metabolism* ; Blood Platelets/metabolism* ; Animals ; Periodontitis/immunology* ; Humans ; Platelet Activation ; Mice

Objective To analyse the causal relationship between obstructive sleep apnea(OSA)and atrial fibrillation(AF)by Mendelian randomization(MR)method,and to explore the role of inflammatory factors,immune cells,blood metabolites and circulating proteins in it.Methods In this study,MR analysis was used to investigate the causal link between OSA and AF.Inverse variance weighting(IVW),MR-Egger and other methods were used for sensitivity analysis.Additionally,the study also explored the effects of 91 inflammatory factors,731 immune cells,1 400 blood metabolites and 4 907 circulating proteins on AF.Results MR analysis revealed a significant causal relationship between OSA and AF(OR=1.078,P＜0.05).Conversely,reverse MR analysis did not find causal relationship between AF and OSA(P＞0.05).Further analysis revealed that 5 inflammatory factors,19 immune cells,15 blood metabolites and 67 circulating proteins were risk factors for AF.Among them,OSA was the risk factor for one inflammatory factor,one blood metabolite and 12 circulating proteins.There was no significant causal association between OSA and 19 immune cells.Conclusion This study demonstrates that OSA increases the risk of AF.Meanwhile,it is found that inflammatory factors,immune cells,blood metabolites and circulating proteins have potential impacts on the pathogenesis of AF.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy and safety of a combination of programmed death receptor 1 (PD-1) inhibitor and multi-target tyrosine kinase inhibitor anlotinib in second-line treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).Methods:A prospective randomized controlled study was conducted. Using the random number table method, 118 NSCLC patients who were admitted to Shaanxi Provincial Cancer Hospital from June 2021 to June 2023 were randomly divided into the control group and the observation group, with 59 patients in each group. The observation group was treated with PD-1 inhibitor combined with anlotinib, while the control group was treated with PD-1 inhibitor. There were 36 males and 23 females in the observation group, with an age of (56±5) years; there were 34 males and 25 females in the control group, with an age of (56±5) years. There was no statistically significant difference in general clinicopathological data between the two groups (all P > 0.05). The short-term clinical efficacy [objective response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR)], tumor-related factor levels [vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2), tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase (TIMP), and tumor necrosis factor β1 (TNF-β1)], inflammatory status [plasma fibrinogen-to-albumin ratio (FAR)], lung function [forced vital capacity (FVC) and peak expiratory flow (PEF)] before and after treatment, the European Organization for Research and Treatment on Cancer (EORTC) core questionnaire for quality of life assessment (QLQ-C30) score, and occurrence of adverse reactions were compared between two groups of patients. Results:The ORR and DCR of the observation group were 33.90% (20/59) and 69.49% (41/59), respectively; the ORR and DCR of the control group were 10.17% (6/59) and 44.07% (26/59), respectively; the comparison of ORR and DCR between the two groups showed statistically significant differences ( χ2 values were 9.67 and 7.77, both P < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the levels of tumor-related factors between the observation group and the control group before treatment (all P > 0.05); after 4 cycles of treatment, the levels of VEGF and MMP-2 in the observation group were lower than those in the control group, while the levels of TIMP and TNF-β1 were higher than those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.001). The FAR of the observation group and the control group before treatment were (0.15±0.06) g/L and (0.16±0.06) g/L, respectively, with no statistically significant difference ( t = 0.90, P = 0.367); after 4 cycles of treatment, the FAR were (0.07±0.01) g/L and (0.11±0.04) g/L, respectively, with statistically significant difference ( t = 7.45, P < 0.001). Before treatment, there was no statistically significant difference in FVC and PEF between the observation group and the control group (both P > 0.05); after 4 cycles of treatment, the FVC and PEF in the observation group were higher than those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (both P < 0.001). There were no statistically significant differences in the EORTC QLQ-C30 scores of functional dimension, symptom dimension and global health status/quality of life dimension between the observation group and the control group before treatment (all P > 0.05); after 4 cycles of treatment, the scores of functional dimension and global health status/quality of life dimension in the observation group were higher than those in the control group, while the symptom dimension score was lower than that in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.001). The incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group was 6.78% (4/59), while in the control group it was 10.17% (6/59), and the difference was not statistically significant ( P = 0.741). Conclusions:The combination of PD-1 inhibitor and anlotinib in second-line treatment of NSCLC has good clinical efficacy, it can reduce the inflammatory response, improve the lung function and quality of life, and has good safety.

ObjectiveTo investigate the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases and their influencing factors in community-based schizophrenia patients in Shanghai, and to provide a scientific basis for the early identification and prevention of cardiovascular disease in this population. MethodsBased on the Shanghai community cohort with severe mental disorders in 2022, a total of 3 954 community-based schizophrenia patients were identified and included in this study through a stratified cluster sampling method. Basic information and relevant clinical data (including metabolic index data) were collected through questionnaire survey, physical examination and laboratory testing. Univariate analyses were performed using the chi-square tests, and multivariate logistic regression analyses were employed to identify influencing factors of comorbid cardiovascular diseases. ResultsA total of 3 954 community-based schizophrenia patients were included, of which a total of 1 237 (31.28%) patients had comorbid cardiovascular diseases. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that age 60 years old or above (OR=5.524, 95%CI: 3.716‒8.214), smoking behavior (OR=1.328, 95%CI: 1.042‒1.692), overweight (OR=1.900, 95%CI: 1.046‒3.451) or obesity (OR=2.678, 95%CI: 1.439‒4.985), elevated blood pressure (OR=1.546, 95%CI: 1.294‒1.846), abnormal fasting blood glucose (OR=1.552, 95%CI: 1.322‒1.823) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol abnormalities (OR=1.283, 95%CI: 1.025‒1.606) were positively associated with the risk of comorbid cardiovascular diseases in patients with schizophrenia, while educational attainment of college/bachelor’s degree or above (OR=0.640, 95%CI: 0.450‒0.910) and being unmarried (OR=0.552, 95%CI: 0.457‒0.667) were negatively associated with the risk of cardiovascular diseases comorbidity. ConclusionAdvanced age, unhealthy behaviors and lifestyles, as well as abnormalities in blood pressure, blood glucose, and blood lipids, could all increase the risk of comorbid cardiovascular diseases in community schizophrenia patients. It is suggested to strengthen the monitoring and management of these risk factors in this population in the future, so as to achieve early detection, early diagnosis and early intervention of cardiovascular diseases.

ObjectiveTo improve the quality and service performance of community visual health services in Shanghai, and to establish a set of reasonable and effective evaluation index system for community visual health services. MethodsCentered on the national and Shanghai-based visual health policies and based on the current status and development trends of community visual health service program in Shanghai, the candidate indicators were formed through literature review and expert interviews, firstly. The framework of an evaluation index system was formulated through qualitative research successively, which was further revised and perfected using the Delphi method. Coefficient weights were calculated using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), culminating in the establishment of the community visual health evaluation index system, lastly. ResultsA total of 22 visual health experts from district-level center for disease control, hospital ophthalmology and leaders in charging of visual health service in community health centers participated in the Delphi questionnaire survey, with a questionnaire recovery rate of 100% and an expert authority coefficient of 0.86, indicating high credibility. After a round of correspondence to experts’ importance ratings and discussions, a comprehensive evaluation index system comprising 3 primary indicators, 12 secondary indicators, and 47 tertiary indicators, along with 5 additional indicators, was finalized. ConclusionAn index system tailored to effective evaluation for community visual health initiatives was drawn up in this study, which can promote the capacity building in community eye health services, facilitating the high-quality development of visual health courses, and enhancing residents’ eye health.

Objective:To investigate the current state of oral health knowledge,attitude and practice(KAP)of plateau military personnels and to analyze the disease condition,aiming to explore new strategies for enhancing oral health.Methods:A question-naire was developed to survey 500 individuals at high altitudes(≥3 000 m)and 500 at low altitudes(≤1 000 m)regarding their oral health KAP,with 100 subjects randomly selected from each group for oral examinations.Logistic regression analysis was ap-plied to examine the correlation between KAP and disease status.Based on these findings,a survey of the oral health needs of mili-tary personnels was conducted in conjunction with their KAP.And an innovative training system,"Perception-Comprehension-Inte-gration"(PCI),was established to improve the competencies of primary healthcare providers,with its effectiveness being evaluated.Results:The high altitude group had significantly lower rates of overall oral health awareness(53.61％),positive attitude(55.00％)and positive practice(40.29％)compared with the low altitude group(P＜0.05);the incidence in high altitude group experiencing dental caries(73％),wedge-shaped defects(34％),pericoronitis(16％),gingival bleeding(74％),dental calculus(81％)and cheilitis(37％)were significantly higher than those in the low altitude group(P＜0.05).There was a significant nega-tive correlation between KAP scores and disease prevalence.The subjects in both groups showed a substantial demand(exceeding 70％)for oral health.The innovative PCI training system has markedly strengthened the health personnel's compre-hensive preventive and health care capabilities.Conclu-sion:The oral health status of plateau military personnels is in dire need of enhancement.And the PCI training sys-tem is poised to serve as a novel approach to tackling this critical concern.