Background: High-mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1) is a chromatin-binding protein involved in arthritis, ischemia, sepsis, atherosclerosis, neurodegenerative disorders, meningitis, and cancer. HMGB1 exhibits dual roles in cancer, acting as either a tumor suppressor or oncoprotein depending on context. Objective: This research aimed to elucidate HMGB1’s functional significance in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC). Methods: We overexpressed HMGB1 in cSCC cell lines using recombinant adenovirus and examined its effects on cell proliferation, colony formation, and cell migration. Results: Immunohistochemical analysis revealed elevated HMGB1 expression levels in cSCC tissue relative to normal epidermis. To assess the influence of HMGB1, we employed recombinant adenoviruses expressing HMGB1 to transduce SCC cell lines (SCC12 and SCC13). Enhanced HMGB1 expression significantly promoted cellular proliferation and colony formation capacity.Notably, HMGB1 overexpression elevated the levels of proliferation regulators, including P63, SOX2, CDK4 and CDK6. Furthermore, HMGB1 overexpression substantially enhanced tumor invasiveness, accompanied by upregulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) biomarkers. Mechanistically, overexpression of HMGB1 enhanced transforming growth factor-β signaling by increasing phosphorylation of SMAD2/3, the key mediators of EMT. Conclusion These data imply that HMGB1 acts as a tumor-promoting factor in cSCC.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the detection specificity for clinical samples and the detection capability for standard substances of five commercially available multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) nucleic acid detection kits (hereinafter referred to as the kits) for respiratory pathogens, and to provide a reference for selecting appropriate detection kits for multi-pathogen nucleic acid testing of respiratory infections. MethodsA total of 60 respiratory pathogen-positive clinical samples with known redults were selected and tested using the five kits (labeled as A, B, C, D, and E). The detection rates and Kappa coefficients were calculated to evaluate the consistency between the results from these kits and those from single-pathogen PCR kits. According to the limit of detection (LOD) provided by the kits, standard substances of respiratory pathogens (including 12 types such as influenza virus, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, and Bordetella pertussis) were diluted to four concentrations (250, 500, 1 000, and 2 000 copies·mL⁻¹). All five kits were used for detection to evaluate their respective detection capabilities. ResultsCompared with the results from single-pathogen PCR kits, the five tested kits demonstrated good consistency (all Kappa >0.80). Among them, Kit A had the highest detection rate (100.00%), followed by Kits C and E (98.33%), and then Kits B and D (95.00%). All five kits showed a relatively low false negative rate (FNR) for samples with a cycle threshold (Ct) value ≤35 (≤2.38%). However, for samples with Ct values>35, the FNR increased accordingly(average FNR=6.67%, P=0.029). Kit C exhibited the highest detection sensitivity for the tested standard substances (average LOD: 458.33 copies·mL⁻¹), followed by Kit D, then Kits A/E, and finally Kit B. ConclusionThe five multiplex PCR kits showed good consistency with single-pathogen detection results, but each had its own performance emphasis. Kit A, with the highest detection rate and high throughput, is suitable for targeted viral screening. Kit B, covering the broadest pathogen spectrum (including fungi/bacteria), is suitable for comprehensive respiratory pathogen screening. Kits C, D and E, are applicable for rapid detection. It is important to note that the detection efficacy of all kits decreases for low viral load samples with Ct values >35. In practical application, selection should be based on specific screening objectives, throughput requirements, and sample types.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of Toxoplasma gondii infection on copper metabolism in the kidneys of mice. MethodsA total of 80 7-8-week-old C57BL/6 female mice were randomly divided into four groups of 20 mice in each group after one week of adaptation， including Control group， Cu group， TgCtwh6 group and Cu+TgCtwh6 group. Mice that were not infected and fed with normal diet and water were used as the Control group； Mice fed with 1 g/kg of copper chloride processing diet and 0.1% copper chloride water for 60 consecutive days were used as Cu group； Mice infected with 25-30 TgCtwh6 cysts （one of the predominant genotype Chinese 1 in China） fed with normal diet and water were used as the TgCtwh6 group； mice infected with 25-30 TgCtwh6 cysts and fed with a processed diet containing 1 g/kg of copper chloride and water with 0.1% copper chloride for 60 consecutive days were used as the Cu+TgCtwh6 group. ICP-MS was used to determine the changes in copper content in kidney tissues. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining was used to observe the pathological changes of mouse kidney tissue. The number of apoptotic cells was observed by PI staining. Western blot was used to detect the protein expression levels of glutathione peroxidase 4 （GPX4） and superoxide dismutase （SOD1， SOD2）. RT-qPCR was used to detect the mRNA expression of cuproptosis-related genes. ResultsPathological manifestations such as inflammatory cell infiltration in the Cu group and TgCtwh6 group were seen under the microscope， and the inflammatory infiltrating cells of the renal interstitial were reduced in the Cu+TgCtwh6 group， and the pathological manifestations

ObjectiveHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) represents 90% of all primary liver cancers. The main risk factors associated with HCC include viral hepatitis (B and/or C), alcohol abuse, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), which progressively advance to liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and ultimately evolve into HCC. Surgical resection represents the most effective treatment for HCC, while recent advances in immunotherapy, including immune checkpoint inhibitors and adoptive cell therapies, have provided improved treatment prospects for patients with unresectable HCC. However, the complex metabolic heterogeneity of HCC limits the therapeutic efficacy. Metabolic intermediates acyl-CoA not only provide energy and substrates for numerous biochemical reactions but also serve as donors for protein lysine acylation, a major class of post-translational modification (PTM). Therefore, a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying protein lysine acylation and hepatocarcinogenesis is urgently needed. MethodsThe levels of protein lysine acylation and silence information regulator 5 (SIRT5) expression levels in clinical HCC samples were analyzed by Western blot. Quantitative malonylome and succinylome of HCC samples were analyzed by antibody-based affinity enrichment coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. The proliferation of HCC cells was analyzed with Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assays, the apoptosis was quantified by Annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide (PI) staining coupled with flow cytometry, and the ability of cells to migrate was assayed by Transwell assays. The enzymatic activity of glutathione S-transferase Mu 1 (GSTM1) was quantified. Transgenic mice with hepatic overexpression of SIRT5 were constructed using CRISPR-Cas9, and primary hepatocarcinogenesis was induced by administration of diethylnitrosamine. ResultsWestern blot analysis indicated that the expression level of SIRT5 was elevated in clinical samples from HCC patients, and the levels of lysine malonylation, glutarylation, and succinylation were significantly reduced in HCC tissues. Knockout of SIRT5 in MHCC-97H and MHCC-97L hepatoma cells suppressed cell proliferation, and increased the percentage of apoptotic cells significantly. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses of the differentially malonylome and succinylome of HCC samples revealed significant enrichment in two major classes of biological processes: core energy metabolism (e.g., glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, tricarboxylic acid metabolic process, fatty acid beta oxidation) and detoxification and oxidative stress response (e.g., response to toxic substance, chemical carcinogenesis, reactive oxygen species (ROS)). SIRT5 removes malonylation from lysine residues in GSTM1 and restores its detoxification activity, which is crucial for the survival of hepatocytes under stressed conditions. More importantly, in vivo experiment indicated that hepatic-specific overexpression of SIRT5 in mice accelerated diethylnitrosamine-induced liver fibrosis and hepatocarcinogenesis, indicating the critical role of SIRT5 in HCC progression. ConclusionThis study highlights the previously unrecognized SIRT5-GSTM1 axis as a key regulator in hepatocarcinogenesis, and suggests a potential target for the treatment of patients with HCC.

Objective:To summarize the clinical characteristics of elderly patients with stage Ⅰ diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and analyze the factors associated with prognosis.Methods:A case series study was conducted by retrospectively collecting clinical data from patients aged over 60 years with newly diagnosed stage Ⅰ DLBCL across 20 medical centers in Jiangsu Province, China, between June 2010 and April 2023. The involved site, classification and treatment plan were summarized. The primary endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Statistical analyses were performed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and Cox regression model.Results:The study included 255 patients with a median age of 69 years, of whom 130 (51.0%) were male, 66 (25.9%) were aged ≥75 years and 26 (10.1%) had a high Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) score of ≥2. Extranodal involvement was observed in 163 (63.9%) patients, with the stomach (37.4%, 61/163), intestine (19.0%, 31/163), testes (11.0%, 18/163), and breast (7.4%, 12/163) being the most frequently affected sites. The non-germinal center B-cell (non-GCB) subtype was prevalent in 63.7% of patients (142/223), with no significant difference between the nodal and extranodal groups ( P=0.681). Furthermore, 73.9% (184/249) and 11.7% (29/249) of patients received the R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone) and R-miniCHOP regimen, respectively. The overall 3-year PFS rate was 81.5%, and the 3-year OS rate was 85.6%. Patients aged ≥75 years ( HR=2.910, 95% CI 1.565-5.408, P=0.001) and/or with a CCI score ≥2 ( HR=2.324, 95% CI 1.141-4.732, P=0.020) had a significantly poorer PFS. Incorporating age ≥75 years and CCI score ≥2 into the stage-modified international prognostic index (sm-IPI) can better stratify the prognosis of elderly patients with stage Ⅰ DLBCL. The 3-year PFS rate was 48.7% in the high-risk group versus 85.7% in the low-risk group ( P<0.001). Conclusions:Our findings show that the elderly patients with stage Ⅰ DLBCL were predominantly characterized by extranodal involvement (particularly in the stomach and intestinal tract) and non-GCB subtype. Age ≥75 years and CCI ≥2 were identified as independent prognostic factors. The newly established sm-IPI-75-CCI incorporating these factors demonstrated superior prognostic discrimination compared to conventional risk assessment systems.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the association between body mass index (BMI) and mortality based on the 10-year population-based multicenter prospective study. METHODS: A general population-based multicenter prospective study was conducted at four sites in rural China between 2013 and 2023. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models and restricted cubic spline analyses were used to assess the association between BMI and mortality. Stratified analyses were performed based on the individual characteristics of the participants. RESULTS: Overall, 19,107 participants with a sum of 163,095 person-years were included and 1,910 participants died. The underweight (< 18.5 kg/m ²) presented an increase in all-cause mortality (adjusted hazards ratio [ aHR] = 2.00, 95% confidence interval [ CI]: 1.66-2.41), while overweight (≥ 24.0 to < 28.0 kg/m ²) and obesity (≥ 28.0 kg/m ²) presented a decrease with an aHR of 0.61 (95% CI: 0.52-0.73) and 0.51 (95% CI: 0.37-0.70), respectively. Overweight ( aHR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.67-0.86) and mild obesity ( aHR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.59-0.87) had a positive impact on mortality in people older than 60 years. All-cause mortality decreased rapidly until reaching a BMI of 25.7 kg/m ² ( aHR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.92-0.98) and increased slightly above that value, indicating a U-shaped association. The beneficial impact of being overweight on mortality was robust in most subgroups and sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION This study provides additional evidence that overweight and mild obesity may be inversely related to the risk of death in individuals older than 60 years. Therefore, it is essential to consider age differences when formulating health and weight management strategies.
Humans ; Body Mass Index ; China/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Rural Population/statistics & numerical data* ; Aged ; Follow-Up Studies ; Adult ; Mortality ; Cause of Death ; Obesity/mortality* ; Overweight/mortality*

Kv1.3,a voltage-gated potassium channel,is highly expressed in T lymphocytes,the nervous system,and vascular smooth muscle cells.It plays a critical role in membrane excitability and electrical signal transduction,serving as an important target for studying T-cell function and providing a promising direction for developing therapeutics against autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.Therefore,the de-velopment of specific inhibitors of Kv1.3 channel has emerged as a novel therapeutic strategy for these disorders.In this study,we isolated and purified a novel Kv1.3-inhibitory peptide toxin,LmKTx13,from the venom of the scorpion Lychas mucronatus using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chroma-tography(RP-HPLC).LmKTx13 consists of 38 amino acid residues,including six cysteines that form three disulfide bonds.Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings revealed that LmKTx13 potently inhibited Kv1.3 with an IC50 of 7.92±3.0 nmol/L.Selectivity analysis showed that 2 μmol/L LmKTx13 also in-hibited Kv1.2 and Kv1.7,but exhibited no significant effects on other potassium channel subtypes or voltage-gated sodium channels.Further investigation into the mechanism demonstrated that LmKTx13 acts as a pore-blocking inhibitor of Kv1.3.By analyzing the effects of LmKTx13 on Kv1.3 channel gating ki-netics and performing sequence alignment of the pore regions of Kv1.3 and Kv1.5,we constructed site-directed mutants and identified the pore region of Kv1.3 as the critical binding site for LmKTx13.Key residues involved in the interaction included T425,G427,and H451.In summary,we discovered a no-vel pore-blocking Kv1.3 inhibitor,LmKTx13,from L.mucronatus venom,which exhibits high affinity and selectivity for Kv1.3.These findings highlight its potential as a potential lead molecule for developing Kv1.3-targeted therapeutics.

With the rapid development of generative artificial intelligence(GAI)technologies,their widespread application in academic research and writing is continuously expanding the boundaries of sci-entific inquiry.However,this trend has also raised a series of ethical and regulatory challenges,inclu-ding issues related to authorship,content authenticity,citation accuracy,and accountability.In light of the growing involvement of AI in generating academic content,establishing an open,controllable,and trustworthy ethical governance framework has become a key task for safeguarding research integrity and maintaining trust within the academic community.This expert consensus outlines ethical requirements across key stages of AI-assisted academic writing-including topic selection,data management,citation practices,and authorship attribution.It aims to clarify the boundaries and ethical obligations surrounding AI use in academic writing,ensuring that technological tools enhance efficiency without compromising in-tegrity.The goal is to provide guidance and institutional support for building a responsible and sustainable research ecosystem.

Since the outbreak of novel coronavirus pneumonia(COVID-19)in December 2019,SARS-CoV-2,which is constantly mutating,has brought unprecedented challenges to the field of solid organ transplantation.However,kidney transplant recipients(KTRs)are at high risk of developing severe disease after SARS-CoV-2 infection due to years of immunosuppressants and a variety of complications.This article aims to review the latest diagnosis and treatment progress of kidney transplantation under the current new epidemiological background,so as to provide reference for the subsequent management of KTRs under the new epidemiological background.

Objective:To investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of venetoclax(VEN)in combination with hypomethylating agent(HMA)in the treatment of patients with high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes(MDS).Methods:A total of 30 patients with high-risk MDS who received the combination of VEN and HMA from March 2019 to November 2022 were included.The overall response rate(ORR),modified overall response rate(mORR),overall survival(OS),progression-free survival(PFS),and adverse events of all included patients were evaluated.Results:Among the 30 high-risk MDS patients treated with VEN combined with HMA regimen,24 cases achieved complete response(CR)/marrow complete response(mCR),2 cases achieved partial response(PR),the ORR was 24/30,the median OS was 28.1 months,and the median PFS was 28.1 months.In addition,patients who achieved complete remission/marrow complete remission after treatment had a significantly longer OS than those who did not.Moreover,12 patients were treated with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT).There were grade 3 or higher hematologic adverse events including thrombocytopenia(14 cases),neutropenia(14 cases),febrile neutropenia(10 cases)and anemia(7 cases)as well as gastrointestinal adverse events of any grade,such as vomiting(7 cases),diarrhea(5 cases),and constipation(4 cases).Conclusion:VEN in combination with HMA is an effective and safe treatment option in patients with high-risk MDS.This regimen combined with allo-HSCT can improve the prognosis of these patients.Continuous attention to the monitoring and management of adverse events is essential for the patients'safety in this combination therapy.