Objectives: To elucidate the potential mechanisms of electroacupuncture (EA) in restoring detrusor-bladder neck dyssynergia (DBND) following suprasacral spinal cord injury (SSCI). Methods: A total of 52 specific pathogen-free (SPF) grade famale Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats (10 – 12 weeks, 250 – 280 g) were randomly assigned to either a sham group (n = 12) or a spinal cord injury model group (n = 40). In the model group, DBND was induced through Hassan Shaker spinal cord transection at T10 level, with 24 rats meeting inclusion criteria and subsequently randomized into DBND group (n = 12) and EA intervention group (DBND + EA group, n = 12). After spinal shock recovery (day 19 after modeling), DBND + EA group received EA treatment at Ciliao (BL32), Zhongji (RN3), and Sanyinjiao (SP6) acupoints for 20 min per session at 10/50 Hz frequencies, once daily for 10 d. Sham and DBND groups received anesthesia only without EA intervention. On day 29 post-modeling, all rats underwent urodynamic assessments, followed by hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, tandem mass tag (TMT) proteomics, and Western blot (WB) analysis of detrusor and bladder neck tissues. Differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were defined as proteins with P < 0.05, unique peptides ≥ 2, and fold change > 1.2 or < 0.83. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis was performed using KOBAS 3.0 (P < 0.01), and protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were analyzed using Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/Proteins (STRING) 11.5 and Cytoscape 3.9.1. Results: Compared with sham group, DBND group showed significantly elevated leak point pressure (LPP) and maximum cystometric capacity (MCC) (both P < 0.01). EA treatment significantly reduced both LPP and MCC compared with DBND group (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05, respectively). HE staining revealed that EA reduced detrusor fibrosis and improved bladder neck inflammation. TMT proteomics identified 30 overlapping DEPs in detrusor and 59 overlapping DEPs in bladder neck when comparing DBND + EA/DBND groups with sham group. In detrusor tissue, KEGG analysis revealed 10 significantly enriched pathways (P < 0.01), including mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway. PPI analysis showed 22 of 30 DEPs were interconnected. In bladder neck tissue, 14 pathways were significantly enriched (P < 0.01), including relaxin signaling pathway, with 51 of 59 DEPs showing interconnections. Both TMT and WB validations demonstrated that compared with sham controls, DBND rats exhibited upregulated collagen type IV alpha 2 chain (Col4a2) and downregulated guanine nucleotide-binding protein G(z) subunit alpha (Gnaz) in detrusor tissue, while EA treatment normalized both proteins (both P < 0.05). In bladder neck tissue, DBND rats showed decreased expression of smoothelin (Smtn) and calcium-activated potassium channel subunit beta-1 (Kcnmb1) compared with sham controls (both P < 0.01), which were both upregulated following EA treatment (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05, respectively). Conclusion EA restores detrusor-bladder neck coordination in DBND through dual-target mechanisms. In detrusor tissue, EA modulates contraction via extracellular matrix remodeling, cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) signaling pathway regulation, and enhanced adenosine triphosphate (ATP) biosynthesis mediated by neurotransmitters. In bladder neck tissue, EA promotes relaxation by maintaining contractile phenotypes, reducing fibrosis, suppressing smooth muscle excitation, and regulating presynaptic neurotransmitter release. These findings provide mechanistic insights into EA's therapeutic role in managing DBND.

Stem cell treatment may enhance erectile dysfunction (ED) in individuals with cavernous nerve injury (CNI). Nevertheless, no investigations have directly ascertained the implications of varying amounts of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (HUC-MSCs) on ED. We compare the efficacy of three various doses of HUC-MSCs as a therapeutic strategy for ED. Sprague-Dawley rats (total = 175) were randomly allocated into five groups. A total of 35 rats underwent sham surgery and 140 rats endured bilateral CNI and were treated with vehicles or doses of HUC-MSCs (1 × 10 6 cells, 5 × 10 6 cells, and 1 × 10 7 cells in 0.1 ml, respectively). Penile tissues were harvested for histological analysis on 1 day, 3 days, 7 days, 14 days, 28 days, 60 days, and 90 days postsurgery. It was found that varying dosages of HUC-MSCs enhanced the erectile function of rats with bilateral CNI and ED. Moreover, there was no significant disparity in the effectiveness of various dosages of HUC-MSCs. However, the expression of endothelial markers (rat endothelial cell antigen-1 [RECA-1] and endothelial nitric oxide synthase [eNOS]), smooth muscle markers (alpha smooth muscle actin [α-SMA] and desmin), and neural markers (neurofilament [RECA-1] and neurogenic nitric oxide synthase [nNOS]) increased significantly with prolonged treatment time. Masson's staining demonstrated an increased in the smooth muscle cell (SMC)/collagen ratio. Significant changes were detected in the microstructures of various types of cells. In vivo imaging system (IVIS) analysis showed that at the 1 st day, the HUC-MSCs implanted moved to the site of damage. Additionally, the oxidative stress levels were dramatically reduced in the penises of rats administered with HUC-MSCs.
Male ; Animals ; Erectile Dysfunction/metabolism* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation/methods* ; Rats ; Penis/pathology* ; Humans ; Disease Models, Animal ; Umbilical Cord/cytology* ; Peripheral Nerve Injuries/complications* ; Mesenchymal Stem Cells ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III/metabolism* ; Actins/metabolism* ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I/metabolism*

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the clinical application effect of low-field infant MRI. METHODS: Using literature review, expert consultation, and two rounds of Delphi to determine the evaluation index system. Then retrospectively analyze and compare the data of low-field infant MRI and high-field MRI from January 2023 to December 2024. RESULTS: There is a certain gap between low-field infant MRI and high-field MRI in terms of signal-to-noise ratio, image uniformity, software system reliability, scanning time, user interface friendliness and image result consistency. However, there was no difference in terms of spatial resolution and image quality. The noise, hardware system reliability, mean time between failure and the rate of examination completed without sedation are better than that of high-field MRI. CONCLUSION Low-field infant MRI meets needs of clinical diagnostic and has stable performance. It can be used as a routine screening tool for brain diseases near the bed.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods* ; Humans ; Infant ; Retrospective Studies ; Signal-To-Noise Ratio ; Reproducibility of Results ; Brain Diseases/diagnostic imaging* ; Brain/diagnostic imaging* ; Software

Objective:To determine incidence of seasonal influenza virus infection in the community and to analyze the factors influencing seasonal influenza virus infection.Methods:This study recruited residents aged 6-59 years to build a cohort in 15 villages/streets in Macheng city in November 2019. Meanwhile, a cross-sectional baseline survey was conducted immediately to collect sera, information on demographics and child protection knowledge, behaviors, as well as attitudes using a questionnaire from the participants enrolled in the cohort (i.e., before the influenza epidemic season). In July 2020, a cross-sectional follow-up survey was conducted to collect sera once again (i.e., after the influenza season). Paired sera from the two cross-sectional surveys were tested for influenza virus-specific antibodies by hemagglutination inhibition (HI) test or micro-neutralization (MN) test using a circulating representative strain of each subtype/lineage of influenza virus as the test antigen. The infections with influenza virus subtype/lineage was confirmed if there was a four-fold or more increase in titers of antibodies against circulating representative strain of the subtype/lineage of influenza virus. Factors influencing infection with influenza A (H3N2) and B/Victoria viruses were analyzed using univariable and multivariable logistic regression.Results:In November 2019, 800 study participants were enrolled in the cohort, including 340 children aged 6-17 years and 460 adults aged 18-59 years; 605 study participants (including 224 children and 381 adults) were followed up in July 2020 and their paired sera were obtained before and after the influenza season. 25.3% (153/605) of the participants were confirmed to be infected with at least one subtype/lineage of seasonal influenza virus by HI and MN tests. The overall incidence of influenza viruses of all subtypes/lineages in children was 44.2% (95% CI: 37.6%-50.8%) which was significantly higher than the incidence of 14.1% in adults (95% CI: 10.7%-17.7%). Children had the highest incidence of influenza A (H3N2) virus infection, followed by B/Victoria. MN or HI antibody titers in A (H3N2)[ OR=0.88 (95% CI: 0.84-0.93)] and B/Victoria[ OR=0.97 (95% CI: 0.95-0.99)] before the influenza season were significantly associated with whether children were infected with that subtype/lineage of influenza virus. Conclusions:The residents aged 6-59 years in Macheng city had a substantial incidence of seasonal influenza virus infection during the influenza season from winter 2019 to spring 2020. Notably, almost half of children aged 6-17 years have been infected with seasonal influenza virus. Higher titers of HI/MN antibodies against seasonal influenza virus before the influenza season would be likely to reduce the risk of infection with influenza A (H3N2) and B/Victoria.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate a new noninvasive diagnostic model for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) based on features of tongue images. METHODS: Healthy controls and volunteers confirmed to have NAFLD by liver ultrasound were recruited from China-Japan Friendship Hospital between September 2018 and May 2019, then the anthropometric indexes and sampled tongue images were measured. The tongue images were labeled by features, based on a brief protocol, without knowing any other clinical data, after a series of corrections and data cleaning. The algorithm was trained on images using labels and several anthropometric indexes for inputs, utilizing machine learning technology. Finally, a logistic regression algorithm and a decision tree model were constructed as 2 diagnostic models for NAFLD. RESULTS: A total of 720 subjects were enrolled in this study, including 432 patients with NAFLD and 288 healthy volunteers. Of them, 482 were randomly allocated into the training set and 238 into the validation set. The diagnostic model based on logistic regression exhibited excellent performance: in validation set, it achieved an accuracy of 86.98%, sensitivity of 91.43%, and specificity of 80.61%; with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.93 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.68-0.98]. The decision tree model achieved an accuracy of 81.09%, sensitivity of 91.43%, and specificity of 66.33%; with an AUC of 0.89 (95% CI 0.66-0.92) in validation set. CONCLUSIONS The features of tongue images were associated with NAFLD. Both the 2 diagnostic models, which would be convenient, noninvasive, lightweight, rapid, and inexpensive technical references for early screening, can accurately distinguish NAFLD and are worth further study.
Humans ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/diagnostic imaging* ; Ultrasonography ; Anthropometry ; Algorithms ; China

Objective:To investigate the incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients with esophageal cancer (EC).Methods:The retrospective cohort study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 8 458 EC patients who were admitted to Sichuan Cancer Hospital from January 2017 to December 2021 were collected. There were 6 923 males and 1 535 females, aged (64±9)years. There were 3 187 patients undergoing surgical treatment, and 5 271 cases undergoing non-surgical treatment. Observation indicators: (1) incidence of VTE in EC patients; (2) treatment and outcomes of patients with VTE. Measurement data with normal distribution were represented as Mean± SD, and comparison between groups was analyzed using the t test. Measurement data with skewed distribution were represented as M(range), and comparison between groups was analyzed using the nonparameter rank sum test. Count data were expressed as absolute numbers or percentages, and comparison between groups was analyzed using the chi-square test or Fisher exact probability. Comparison of ordinal data was analyzed using the nonparameter rank sum test. Results:(1) Incidence of VTE in EC patients. Of 8 458 EC patients, 175 cases developed VTE, with an incidence rate of 2.069%(175/8 458). Among 175 VTE patients, there were 164 cases of deep venous thrombosis (DVT), 4 cases of pulmonary embolism (PE), 7 cases of DVT and PE. There were 59 surgical patients and 116 non-surgical patients. There was no significant difference in thrombus type between surgical and non-surgical EC patients with VTE ( χ2=1.95, P>0.05). Of 3 187 surgical patients, the incidence of VTE was 1.851%(59/3 187), including an incidence of 0.157%(5/3 187) of PE. PE accounted for 8.475%(5/59) of surgical patients with VTE. Of 5 271 non-surgical patients, the incidence of VTE was 2.201%(116/5 271), including an incidence of 0.114%(6/5 271) of PE. PE accounted for 5.172%(6/116) of non-surgical patients with VTE. There was no significant difference in the incidence of VTE or PE between surgical patients and non-surgical patients ( χ2=1.20, 0.05, P>0.05). (2) Treatment and outcomes of patients with VTE. Among 175 EC patients with VTE, 163 cases underwent drug treatment, and 12 cases did not receive treatment. Among 163 cases with drug therapy, 158 cases underwent anticoagulant therapy, 5 cases were treated with thrombolysis. All the 163 patients were improved and discharged from hospital. Conclusions:The incidence of VTE in patients with EC is relatively low, as 2.069%. There is no significant difference in the incidence of VTE or thrombus type between surgical EC patients and non-surgical EC patients.

Objective:To observe any effect of exercise preconditioning on the levels of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the brain tissue of rats after induced cerebral ischemia and reperfusion, and how it might promote angiogenesis.Methods:Thirty-six male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into a sham-operation group, a model group and an exercise preconditioning group, each of 12. After adaptive running training for 3 days, the exercise preconditioning group ran daily for 30 minutes at 15m/min for 14 days, while the other two groups did not exercise. Middle cerebral artery occlusion and reperfusion were then induced in the model and exercise preconditioning groups using the modified Zea-Longa suture method. Rats in the sham-operation group were only cut open to expose the right carotid artery. Right after the modeling, and again 24 hours later neurological deficit was evaluated using the Zea-Longa score and modified neurological severity scoring (mNSS). Infarct sizes were measured using 2, 3, 5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining. Any morphological changes were noted using hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, and the expression of CD31 protein, hypoxia-inducible factor-1α and vascular endothelial growth factor in the ischemic cerebral cortex were quantified immunohistochemically.Results:Right after the modelling, compared with the sham-operation group, the average Zea-Longa scores of the model and exercise groups had increased significantly, but were not significantly different from each other. Twenty-four hours later the average Zea-Longa score, mNSS score and relative cerebral infarction area of the model group had increased significantly compared with the sham-operation group, while the exercise preconditioning group′s averages had decreased significantly. The HE staining showed that compared with the sham-operation group, pathological changes such as loose tissue, reduced number of nerve cells, nucleolysis, and vacuolization of the cerebral cortex on the ischemic side were found in the model group. Compared with the model group, the pathological changes in the exercise preconditioning group were less serious. The levels of CD31 protein, HIF-1α and VEGF in the ischemic cerebral cortexes of the model group had by then increased significantly. But compared with the model group, those levels had increased more in the exercise preconditioning group.Conclusion:Exercise preconditioning can effectively promote angiogenesis after cerebral ischemia and reduce chronic injury. That may be related to the activation of the HIF-1α and/or VEGF signaling pathways.

Objective:To investigate the clinicopathological characteristics of rashes in monkeypox patients through a series of skin biopsies, and examine their pathological features and the most effective tests.Methods:Patients with monkeypox virus infection admitted to Beijing Ditan Hospital from June to August 2023 were identified. Among them, 24 patients underwent skin biopsies for clinical pathological study that were included in this study. Clinical information, rash pictures, and nucleic acid test results were analyzed using histopathology, immunohistochemistry, RNAscope ? hybridization and electron microscopy. Results:All 24 patients were male, including 14 patients with concurrent human immunodeficiency virus infection. Their average age was (32.3±5.4) years. The nucleic acid test confirmed monkeypox virus infection. The clinical feature of monkeypox rashes was solitary rather than clustered distribution, with rashes occurring in similar phase, distinguishing it from herpesvirus. The rashes in these patients were mostly scattered, with an average of (13.0±11.8) rashes, and most commonly present in the perineum, face, limbs, and trunk. The three main pathological features of these rashes were ballooning degeneration of the epidermal spinous cell layer, the characteristic intra-cytoplasmic Guarnieri′s bodies and significant infiltration of inflammatory cells in whole dermal layer. Immunohistochemistry, RNAscope ? hybridization, and electron microscopy can all effectively detect the monkeypox virus. Electron microscopy showed viral replication in various types of skin cells. Conclusions:The study describes the pathological features of monkeypox virus rashes. Pathological examination of skin biopsy samples is helpful to diagnose these rashes. The study suggests that the monkeypox virus has a unique epitheliotropic affinity and can infect various types of cells in the skin.