Objective To monitor the susceptibility of clinical isolates to antimicrobial agents in tertiary hospitals in major regions of China in 2022.Methods Clinical isolates from 58 hospitals in China were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using a unified protocol based on disc diffusion method or automated testing systems.Results were interpreted using the 2022 Clinical &Laboratory Standards Institute(CLSI)breakpoints.Results A total of 318 013 clinical isolates were collected from January 1,2022 to December 31,2022,of which 29.5％were gram-positive and 70.5％were gram-negative.The prevalence of methicillin-resistant strains in Staphylococcus aureus,Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species(excluding Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus schleiferi)was 28.3％,76.7％and 77.9％,respectively.Overall,94.0％of MRSA strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 90.8％of MRSE strains were susceptible to rifampicin.No vancomycin-resistant strains were found.Enterococcus faecalis showed significantly lower resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents tested than Enterococcus faecium.A few vancomycin-resistant strains were identified in both E.faecalis and E.faecium.The prevalence of penicillin-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae was 94.2％in the isolates from children and 95.7％in the isolates from adults.The resistance rate to carbapenems was lower than 13.1％in most Enterobacterales species except for Klebsiella,21.7％-23.1％of which were resistant to carbapenems.Most Enterobacterales isolates were highly susceptible to tigecycline,colistin and polymyxin B,with resistance rates ranging from 0.1％to 13.3％.The prevalence of meropenem-resistant strains decreased from 23.5％in 2019 to 18.0％in 2022 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa,and decreased from 79.0％in 2019 to 72.5％in 2022 in Acinetobacter baumannii.Conclusions The resistance of clinical isolates to the commonly used antimicrobial agents is still increasing in tertiary hospitals.However,the prevalence of important carbapenem-resistant organisms such as carbapenem-resistant K.pneumoniae,P.aeruginosa,and A.baumannii showed a downward trend in recent years.This finding suggests that the strategy of combining antimicrobial resistance surveillance with multidisciplinary concerted action works well in curbing the spread of resistant bacteria.

Recent studies have demonstrated that bitter taste receptors are distributed not only in oral cavity but also in non-gustatory systems,such as the respiratory,digestive,reproductive and cardiovascular systems.The physiological role of bitter taste receptors is to recognize bitter substances or bacterial secretions,to trigger the immune response and to maintain the internal environmental homeosta-sis.In addition,oral bitter taste receptors are expressed not only in taste buds,perceiving bitter taste,but also in many other parts of periodontal tissues,which is the potential treatment target for oral infectious diseases.This review summarized the expression and distri-bution of oral bitter taste receptors which was off the taste buds and their roles in regulating oral inflammation and oral bacteria,dis-cussed the effects of genetic polymorphism of bitter taste receptor 38 subtype(TAS2R38)on innate immunity and its relationship with the susceptibility of dental caries and periodontal,aimed to provide novel ideas for the better prevention and treatment of dental caries and periodontal diseases.

Aim To explore the effect of artesunate (ART) on the function of breast cancer cells during the progression of breast cancer and the possible mechanism of action. Methods MCF-7 (30 μmol • L-

Dead heart is an important trait of pith-decayed Scutellariae Radix. The purpose of this study was to clarify the scientific connotation of the dead heart using multi-omics. Metabolomics and transcriptomics combined with multivariate statistical analysis such as principal component analysis(PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis(PLS-DA) were used to systematically compare the differences in chemical composition and gene expression among phloem, outer xylem and near-dead xylem of pith-decayed Scutella-riae Radix. The results revealed significant differences in the contents of flavonoid glycosides and aglycones among the three parts. Compared with phloem and outer xylem, near-dead xylem had markedly lowered content of flavonoid glycosides(including baicalin, norwogonin-7-O-β-D-glucuronide, oroxylin A-7-O-β-D-glucuronide, and wogonoside) while markedly increased content of aglycones(including 3,5,7,2',6'-pentahydroxy dihydroflavone, baicalin, wogonin, and oroxylin A). The differentially expressed genes were mainly concentrated in KEGG pathways such as phenylpropanoid metabolism, flavonoid biosynthesis, ABC transporter, and plant MAPK signal transduction pathway. This study systematically elucidated the material basis of the dead heart of pith-decayed Scutellariae Radix with multiple growing years. Specifically, the content of flavonoid aglycones was significantly increased in the near-dead xylem, and the gene expression of metabolic pathways such as flavonoid glycoside hydrolysis, interxylary cork development and programmed apoptosis was significantly up-regulated. This study provided a theoretical basis for guiding the high-quality production of pith-decayed Scutellariae Radix.
Drugs, Chinese Herbal/chemistry* ; Scutellaria baicalensis/chemistry* ; Glucuronides ; Multiomics ; Flavonoids/chemistry*

Mitochondria are dynamic organelles that continuously divide and fuse. In recent years, in addition to the studies related to mitochondrial metabolism, the unique dynamics of mitochondria have gradually attracted researchers' attention. A growing body of research has revealed that mitochondrial dynamics are related to the biological behavior of tumor cells. Mitochondrial fission proteins (mitochondrial fission protein 1, FIS1) mediate the assembly of mitochondrial fission complexes and participate in the execution of mitochondrial fission. They are important proteins in the process of mitochondrial fusion and fission. However, few studies have revealed the expression and role of FIS1 in human cervical cancer. In this study, the expression level of FIS1 in human cervical cancer tissues and paracancer tissues were compared. The results showed that the level of FIS1 mRNA in human cervical cancer tissues was significantly lower than that in paracancer tissues (P<0. 01). Further KEGG pathway and GO Term-BP pathway analysis showed that the differential genes are mainly related to mitochondrial biological functions. Subsequently, HeLa cells with overexpressed FIS1 were investigated for their proliferation, migration, mitochondrial fission and ROS levels. The experimental results showed that FIS1 overexpression decreased HeLa cell proliferation and migration ability, enhanced mitochondrial fission and higher ROS levels. In conclusion, the expression of FIS1 in human cervical cancer cells was attenuated, while overexpression of FIS1 resulted in a series of abnormal biological functions in human cervical cancer cells. Further studies can be carried out to investigate the role of FIS1 in the treatment of human cervical cancer.

Objective: To investigate the willingness to use three types of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and its associated factors among MSM in Chengdu. Methods: A total of 793 MSM were recruited through Chengdu Tongle Health Consultation Service Centre between November 2021 to January 2022. Data were collected, including demographic characteristics, sexual behaviors in the last six months, PrEP-related stigma, HIV anticipated stigma, MSM internalized stigma, and willingness to use three types of PrEP. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were conducted to investigate the associated factors of willingness in using the three types of PrEP. Results: Among 793 participants, willingness to take on-demand PrEP was higher (68.3%). Higher education and multiple sexual partners increased the willingness to use oral PrEP, higher education [compared with junior high school or below, high school or technical secondary school (aOR=2.43, 95%CI: 1.13-5.21), junior college (aOR=2.67, 95%CI: 1.27-5.61), bachelor degree (aOR=3.21, 95%CI: 1.52-6.74), master degree or above (aOR=3.77, 95%CI: 1.54-9.26)], multiple sexual partners (aOR=1.54, 95%CI: 1.12-2.11) were positively associated with daily oral PrEP. HIV anticipated stigma was positively associated with the willingness in using all three types of PrEP: daily oral PrEP (aOR=1.07, 95%CI: 1.02-1.12), on-demand PrEP (aOR=1.09, 95%CI: 1.03-1.15), and injectable PrEP every 8 week (aOR=1.06, 95%CI: 1.01-1.11). Conclusions: The overall willingness in using PrEP in MSM in Chengdu is relatively high, and the promotion of PrEP is highly feasible. In the future, we should continue to promote publicity and education on HIV and PrEP-related knowledge in this population, improve the cognitive level, and guide MSM to establish the correct motivation for PrEP use.
Male ; Humans ; Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis ; Homosexuality, Male ; Sexual and Gender Minorities ; Sexual Behavior ; HIV Infections/prevention & control*

BACKGROUND: Nucleolar protein 6 (NOL6) is a nucleolar RNA-associated protein that is highly conserved between species. It has been proved to be associated with the prognosis of liver cancer. However, the underlying mechanism has not been fully established. This study aimed to assess the relationship between NOL6 and liver cancer prognosis. METHODS: We constructed an NOL6-short hairpin RNA (shRNA)-expressing lentivirus. Through viral transfection, cell growth assay and fluorescence-activated cell sorting, we evaluated the effect of shRNA-mediated NOL6 knockdown on the proliferation, colony formation, and apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. The relationship between NOL6 expression and HCC patient survival has been established through bioinformatics analysis. We also explored the downstream molecular regulatory network of NOL6 in HCC by performing an Ingenuity Pathway Analysis in the database. RESULTS: Increased NOL6 expression was detected in HCC cells compared to normal controls; HCC patients with high NOL6 expression had poorer prognoses than those with low expression. NOL6 knockdown inhibited HCC cell proliferation, apoptosis, and colony formation. Also, MAPK8, CEBPA, and FOSL1 were selected as potential downstream genes of NOL6. CONCLUSIONS NOL6 up-regulates HCC cell proliferation and affects downstream expression of related genes. Moreover, NOL6 is considered to be associated with poor prognosis in HCC patients.
Apoptosis/genetics* ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/genetics* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation/genetics* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/genetics* ; Nuclear Proteins ; Prognosis

Objective:To observe the effect of Chinese herbal compound Siwu decoction (SW) on radiation injury of zebra fish blood system, and to clarify whether zebra fish is a suitable model for this study. Methods:Totally 72 of 4-month-old adult male zebra fish ( Danio Rerio) with body weight ranging from 0.14 to 0.20 g were used in all the experiments, where 36 zebra fish were taken to observe the hemodynamic changes after radiation, and the other 36 zebra fish were used to study the intervention effect of Siwu decoction on the blood injury after radiation. Zebra fish was irradiated with 20 Gy of 60Co gamma-rays at a dose rate of 97.33 cGy/min. For the hemodynamic study, the peripheral blood and whole kidney marrow cells (WKMCs)of irradiated zebra fish and non irradiated control were collected on days 7, 14 and 30 after irradiation, respectively, and the cell number was detected by flow cytometry. For the Siwu decoction treatment, 36 zebra fish were randomly divided into non-irradiation group, irradiation group, SW2 000 group ( Siwu decoction was diluted by 2 000-fold) and SW5 000 group ( Siwu decoction was diluted by 5 000-fold). Siwu decoction was given on the second day after irradiation. Then the peripheral blood and WKM cells of zebra fish were collected at 7 d after irradiation for further analysis. Results:After irradiation, the dynamic of blood development of zebra fish were obviously changed with the most blood cell ablation at 7 d post-irradiation. The total number of peripheral blood cells and WKM cells decreased by 26% and 52%( t=4.535, 28.987, P<0.05), the number of myeloid monocytes, lymphocytes, and red blood cells in the WKM decreased by 46%, 79% and 33%( t=18.457, 66.900, 9.872, P<0.05), and the number of precursor cells decreased by 49% ( P>0.05). The numbers of these blood cells were partly recovered at 14 d after irradiation and returned to the normal level at 30 d after irradiation. In comparison with irradiation alone group, the numbers of WKM cells, myeloid monocytes, progenitor cells, lymphocytes and red blood cells increased by 57%, 125%, 81% and 35%, respectively ( t=12.128, 21.594, 15.473, 4.594, P<0.05), and peripheral red cells did not increase significantly in the SW5 000 group after irradiation. However, SW2 000 had no significant influence on radiation injury of zebra fish blood cells ( P>0.05). Conclusions:Radiation injury of the blood system of zebra fish could be recovered at a month after irradiation, and this radiation damage could be partly intervened by Siwu decoction at a suitable concentration, which provides a reference for the study of blood system regulation of traditional Chinese medicine.

Objective:To investigate the spectrum of pathogenic agents in pediatric patients with acute respiratory infections (ARI) during the outbreak of coronavirus infectious diseases 2019 (COVID-19).Methods:Three groups of children were enrolled into the prospective study during January 20 to February 20, 2020 from Capital Institute of Pediatrics, including children in the exposed group with ARI and epidemiological history associated with COVID-19 from whom both pharyngeal and nasopharyngeal swabs were collected, children in the ARI group without COVID-19 associated epidemiological history and children in the screening group for hospital admission, with neither COVID-19 associated epidemiological history nor ARI. Only nasopharyngeal swabs were collected in the ARI group and screening group. Each group is expected to include at least 30 cases. All specimens were tested for 2019-nCoV nucleic acid by two diagnostic kits from different manufacturers. All nasopharyngeal swabs were tested for multiple respiratory pathogens, whilst the results from the ARI group were compared with that in the correspondence periods of 2019 and 2018 used by t or χ 2 test. Results:A total of 244 children were enrolled into three groups, including 139 males and 105 females, the age was (5±4) years. The test of 2019-nCoV nucleic acid were negative in all children, and high positive rates of pathogens were detected in exposed (69.4%, 25/36) and ARI (55.3%, 73/132) groups, with the highest positive rate for mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) (19.4%, 7/36 and 17.4%, 23/132, respectively), followed by human metapneumovirus (hMPV) (16.7%, 6/36 and 9.8%, 13/132, respectively). The positive rate (11.8%, 9/76) of pathogens in the screening group was low. In the same period of 2019, the positive rate of pathogens was 83.7% (77/92), with the highest rates for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) A (29.3%, 27/92), followed by influenza virus (Flu) A (H1N1) (19.6%, 18/92) and adenovirus (ADV) (14.1%, 13/92), which showed significant difference with the positive rates of the three viruses in 2020 (RSV A: χ 2=27.346, P<0.01; FluA (H1N1): χ 2=28.083, P<0.01; ADV: χ 2=7.848, P=0.005) . In 2018, the positive rate of pathogens was 61.0% (50/82), with the highest rate for human bocavirus (HBoV) (13.4%, 11/82) and followed by ADV (11.0%, 9/82), and significant difference was shown in the positive rate of HBoV with that in 2020 (χ 2=6.776, P=0.009). Conclusions:The infection rate of 2019-nCoV is low among children in Beijing with no family clustering or no close contact, even with epidemiological history. The spectrum of pathogens of ARI in children during the research period is quite different from that in the previous years when the viral infections were dominant. MP is the highest positively detected one among the main pathogens during the outbreak of COVID-19 in Beijing where there is no main outbreak area.

Objective To investigate the prevalence and associated risk factors for pterygium among people aged 50 years and above in Funing County,Jiangsu Province.Methods A cluster random sampling method was performed,the subjects aged 50 years or above were randomly selected from 30 survey sites in Funing County,Jiangsu Province.Questionnaires,visual acuity tests,the examinations of eye surface,anterior segment,fundus examinations were conducted.Pterygium was diagnosed and graded clinically by slit lamp examination.The risk factors were acquired from questionnaires and analyzed by the multivariate logistic regression analysis.This study protocol was approved by Ethic Committee of Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University (NO.2010-05).Written informed consent was obtained from each subject prior to entering study cohort.Results A total of 6 145 persons aged 50 years and above were enumerated,and actually 5 947 (96.8％) participants were examined.Among them,1 950 cases were diagnosed as pterygium in either eye and 1 228 cases were diagnosed as pterygium in binoculus,which was equivalent to the 32.79％ [95％ confidence interval(CI):31.60％-33.98％] of pterygium in either eye and 20.65％ (95％ CI:19.62％-21.68％) in bilateral pterygium.Among 2467 male subjects,838 were diagnosed as pterygium (33.97％,95％ CI:32.10％-35.84％).Among 3480 female subjects,1 112 were diagnosed as pterygium (31.95％,95％ CI:30.40％-33.51％).There was no significant difference in the prevalence of pterygium between genders (P =0.135).Multivariate Logistic analysis showed that,older age (50 ～ ＜60 years:odds ratio [OR] =1.00;60 ～ ＜70 years:OR=1.54,P＜0.001;70 ～ ＜80 years,OR=1.83,P＜0.001;≥80 years:OR=1.99,P＜0.001),low educational level (no education:OR =1.00;＜primary:OR =0.87,P =0.031;primary education:OR =0.72,P =0.002;≥ secondary education:OR =0.63,P =0.002),farmer occupations (OR =1.34,P =0.020),and long outdoor work time (OR =1.13,P =0.026) were independent risk factors for pterygium.Gender,marriage,income,hypertension,diabetes,smoking and alcohol use history were not associated with pterygium (all at P＞0.05).Conclusions The prevalence of pterygium in Funing County is 32.79％ in people aged 50 years and above.The high prevalence of pterygium may be associated with older age,low education level and long outdoor work time.