OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association of NUF2 expression with tumor prognosis and its regulatory role in tumor microenvironment. METHODS: We analyzed NUF2 expression, its prognostic value, and is immune-related functions across different cancer types using datasets from the Human Protein Atlas (HPA), TCGA, GTEx, CCLE, and TIMER. RT-qPCR, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry were used to detect NUF2 expression in liver cancer cell lines and tissue and blood samples from patients with liver cancer. GO, KEGG, and GSEA analyses were conducted to explore the molecular mechanisms of NUF2 and its related genes, and a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network for NUF2 in liver cancer was constructed. RESULTS: NUF2 expression was upregulated in the tumor tissues of 27 cancers and was associated with clinical stages in several cancers. High NUF2 expressions were correlated with poor overall survival, disease-specific survival, progression-free survival, and disease-free survival of cancer patients. NUF2 expression levels were positively correlated with tumor mutational burden, microsatellite instability, infiltrating immune cells, immune cell marker genes and immune checkpoint genes in different cancers. RT-qPCR, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry confirmed that NUF2 expression was upregulated in liver cancer cell lines and tumor tissues and blood samples of liver cancer patients, and was decreased significantly after operation. GO, KEGG and GSEA analyses indicated that NUF2 was involved in chromosome segregation and cell cycle and was associated with glycine, serine and threonine metabolism. CONCLUSIONS NUF2 expression is upregulated in 27 cancers and is associated with clinical stage and poor prognosis in some malignancies. NUF2 expression is closely correlated with immune cell infiltration in different cancers, suggesting its potential value for predicting immunotherapy response in these cancers.
Humans ; Prognosis ; Immunotherapy ; Tumor Microenvironment ; Liver Neoplasms/metabolism* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Neoplasms/genetics* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Biomarkers, Tumor/genetics*

Apical microsurgery is accurate and minimally invasive, produces few complications, and has a success rate of more than 90%. However, due to the lack of awareness and understanding of apical microsurgery by dental general practitioners and even endodontists, many clinical problems remain to be overcome. The consensus has gathered well-known domestic experts to hold a series of special discussions and reached the consensus. This document specifies the indications, contraindications, preoperative preparations, operational procedures, complication prevention measures, and efficacy evaluation of apical microsurgery and is applicable to dentists who perform apical microsurgery after systematic training.
Microsurgery/standards* ; Humans ; Apicoectomy ; Contraindications, Procedure ; Tooth Apex/diagnostic imaging* ; Postoperative Complications/prevention & control* ; Consensus ; Treatment Outcome

Objective:To evaluate the diagnostic value of thromboelastogram (TEG) parameters for cognitive impairment in patients with recurrent ischemic stroke (RIS), and construct a nomograph model.Methods:The clinical data of 75 patients with RIS and treated in the Yiwu Central Hospital from June 2020 to June 2022 were retrospectively summarized. Multivariate Logistic regression model was used to screen the risk factors of cognitive impairment in RIS patients. R software was used to establish a nomogram model, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the predictive value of TEG index and nomogram on cognitive impairment in RIS patients.Results:The results of multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score on admission, stroke interval, change in clotting time 48 h after admission and 48 h before discharge (ΔR) and change in maximum clot intensity (ΔMA) were the risk factors for cognitive impairment 3 months after RIS ( P<0.05). Age, ΔR and ΔMA were the risk factors for cognitive impairment 12 months after the onset of RIS ( P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) predicted by the nomogram for cognitive impairment 3 and 12 months after the onset of RIS was higher than that of the patients with ΔR and ΔMA ( P<0.01). Conclusions:Detection of TEG parameters, especially ΔR and ΔMA, establishment of nomogram model have good practical value for guiding clinical rapid identification of high-risk patients with cognitive impairment.

Chemical cleaning and disinfection are crucial steps for eliminating infection in root canal treatment.However,irrigant selection or irrigation procedures are far from clear.The vapor lock effect in the apical region has yet to be solved,impeding irrigation efficacy and resulting in residual infections and compromised treatment outcomes.Additionally,ambiguous clinical indications for root canal medication and non-standardized dressing protocols must be clarified.Inappropriate intracanal medication may present side effects and jeopardize the therapeutic outcomes.Indeed,clinicians have been aware of these concerns for years.Based on the current evidence of studies,this article reviews the properties of various irrigants and intracanal medicaments and elucidates their effectiveness and interactions.The evolution of different kinetic irrigation methods,their effects,limitations,the paradigm shift,current indications,and effective operational procedures regarding intracanal medication are also discussed.This expert consensus aims to establish the clinical operation guidelines for root canal irrigation and a position statement on intracanal medication,thus facilitating a better understanding of infection control,standardizing clinical practice,and ultimately improving the success of endodontic therapy.

Objective To investigate the characteristics of mismatch negativity(MMN)in patients with total deafness of sudden hearing loss with different prognosis,and to assess whether MMN is associated with the progno-sis of sudden hearing loss patients.Methods Fifty-one cases of sudden hearing loss with unilateral total deafness were selected for pure tone audiometry(PTA)and auditory MMN examination before treatment,and 26 subjects with mornal hearing were included as the normal group.After routine treatment for 10 days according to the guide-lines for sudden hearing loss,PT A examination was performed to determine their recovery status,and they were di-vided into ineffective group and effective group according to prognosis.The characteristics of MMN latency and am-plitude in the effective group and the ineffective group were observed and compared with the normal control group.Results The MMN waveform was elicited normally in 51 patients with sudden hearing loss and 26 cases in the nor-mal group,of which 29 were in effective group and 22 were in ineffective group.There were significant statistical differences in MMN latency between the patients group and the normal group(P＜0.05).Anova showed no signifi-cant difference in MMN latency between the invalid group and the effective group(P＞0.05),and there was no sig-nificant difference in amplitude among the three groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion The MMN latency of sudden hear-ing loss patients was signifanty shortened.There were no differences in MMN latency and amplitude between the in-effective group and the effective group.

Healthcare professionals should be aware that genital mycoplasma infections are common in clinical practice, which are mainly caused by Mycoplasma hominis (Mh), Ureaplasma urealyticum (UU) and Mycoplasma genitalium (Mg). Mh and UU can colonize the urogenital tract of healthy individuals and are associated with bacterial vaginosis, urethritis, pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility and preterm birth; while Mg may cause urethritis, cervicitis, endometritis and pelvic inflammatory disease, bringing more threat to reproductive health in women. Mh and UU can be detected by culture on special media, while isolating Mg and subtyping UU require molecular biological techniques. Currently, there are no unified guidelines for the screening and treatment of genital mycoplasmas infections worldwide. The article reviews the progress of screening, diagnosis and treatment strategies for mycoplasma infections in female genital tract, aiming to provide a reference for clinical management of this conditon.

The dental operative microscope has been widely employed in the field of dentistry, particularly in endodontics and operative dentistry, resulting in significant advancements in the effectiveness of root canal therapy, endodontic surgery, and dental restoration. However, the improper use of this microscope continues to be common in clinical settings, primarily due to operators' insufficient understanding and proficiency in both the features and established operating procedures of this equipment. In October 2019, Professor Jingping Liang, Vice Chairman of the Society of Cariology and Endodontology, Chinese Stomatological Association, organized a consensus meeting with Chinese experts in endodontics and operative dentistry. The objective of this meeting was to establish a standard operation procedure for the dental operative microscope. Subsequently, a consensus was reached and officially issued. Over the span of about four years, the content of this consensus has been further developed and improved through practical experience.
Humans ; Dentistry, Operative ; Consensus ; Endodontics ; Root Canal Therapy ; Dental Care

Digital guided therapy (DGT) has been advocated as a contemporary computer-aided technique for treating endodontic diseases in recent decades. The concept of DGT for endodontic diseases is categorized into static guided endodontics (SGE), necessitating a meticulously designed template, and dynamic guided endodontics (DGE), which utilizes an optical triangulation tracking system. Based on cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images superimposed with or without oral scan (OS) data, a virtual template is crafted through software and subsequently translated into a 3-dimensional (3D) printing for SGE, while the system guides the drilling path with a real-time navigation in DGE. DGT was reported to resolve a series of challenging endodontic cases, including teeth with pulp obliteration, teeth with anatomical abnormalities, teeth requiring retreatment, posterior teeth needing endodontic microsurgery, and tooth autotransplantation. Case reports and basic researches all demonstrate that DGT stand as a precise, time-saving, and minimally invasive approach in contrast to conventional freehand method. This expert consensus mainly introduces the case selection, general workflow, evaluation, and impact factor of DGT, which could provide an alternative working strategy in endodontic treatment.
Humans ; Consensus ; Endodontics/methods* ; Tooth ; Printing, Three-Dimensional ; Dental Care ; Cone-Beam Computed Tomography ; Root Canal Therapy

Previous studies suggest that the reduction of SMAD3 (mothers against decapentaplegic homolog 3) has a great impact on tumor development, but its exact pathological function remains unclear. In this study, we found that the protein level of SMAD3 was greatly reduced in human-grade IV glioblastoma tissues, in which LAMP2A (lysosome-associated membrane protein type 2A) was significantly up-regulated. LAMP2A is a key rate-limiting protein of chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA), a lysosome pathway of protein degradation that is activated in glioma. We carefully analyzed the amino-acid sequence of SMAD3 and found that it contained a pentapeptide motif biochemically related to KFERQ, which has been proposed to be a targeting sequence for CMA. In vitro, we confirmed that SMAD3 was degraded in either serum-free or KFERQ motif deleted condition, which was regulated by LAMP2A and interacted with HSC70 (heat shock cognate 71 kDa protein). Using isolated lysosomes, amino-acid residues 75 and 128 of SMAD3 were found to be of importance for this process, which affected the CMA pathway in which SMAD3 was involved. Similarly, down-regulating SMAD3 or up-regulating LAMP2A in cultured glioma cells enhanced their proliferation and invasion. Taken together, these results suggest that excessive activation of CMA regulates glioma cell growth by promoting the degradation of SMAD3. Therefore, targeting the SMAD3-LAMP2A-mediated CMA-lysosome pathway may be a promising approach in anti-cancer therapy.

Regenerative endodontic procedures (REPs) is a biologic-based treatment modality for immature permanent teeth diagnosed with pulp necrosis. The ultimate objective of REPs is to regenerate the pulp-dentin complex, extend the tooth longevity and restore the normal function. Scientific evidence has demonstrated the efficacy of REPs in promotion of root development through case reports, case series, cohort studies, and randomized controlled studies. However, variations in clinical protocols for REPs exist due to the empirical nature of the original protocols and rapid advancements in the research field of regenerative endodontics. The heterogeneity in protocols may cause confusion among dental practitioners, thus guidelines and considerations of REPs should be explicated. This expert consensus mainly discusses the biological foundation, the available clinical protocols and current status of REPs in treating immature teeth with pulp necrosis, as well as the main complications of this treatment, aiming at refining the clinical management of REPs in accordance with the progress of basic researches and clinical studies, suggesting REPs may become a more consistently evidence-based option in dental treatment.
Humans ; Consensus ; Regenerative Endodontics ; Dental Pulp Necrosis/therapy* ; Dentists ; Professional Role ; Dental Care