Objective To observe the value of deep progressive reconstruction(DPR)algorithm for reconstructing whole-body 18 F-FDG PET images.Methods Totally 67 patients who underwent whole-body 18 F-FDG PET/CT were retrospectively enrolled.PET data of 30 s,60 s,90 s and 120 s per bed in equipment list were reconstructed using ordered subset expectation maximization(OSEM)and DPR algorithms,respectively.Finally 7 groups of reconstructed images were obtained,including OSEM_30,OSEM_60 and OSEM_120,also DPR_30,DPR_60,DPR_90 and DPR_120 groups.The subjective scores,also objective evaluation indexes,i.e.the maximum and mean standard uptake values(SUV)of lesions and livers,namely SUVmax and SUVmean,were compared,and target-to-background ratio(TBR),signal-to-noise ratio(SNR),contrast-to-noise ratio(CNR)and coefficient of liver variation(CVliver)were calculated.Taken results based in OSEM_120 group as references,Bland-Altman plot was drawn to explore the consistency of SUV of lesions and livers obtained based on DPR_30,DPR_60 and DPR_90 groups with those in OSEM_120 group.Results Under the same acquisition time,subjective scores,SUVmax and SUVmean of lesions,TBR,SNR,CNR and CVliver in DPR_30,DPR_60 and DPR_120 groups were superior to those in corresponding OSEM_30,OSEM_60 and OSEM_120 groups(all P＜0.001).Compared with OSEM_120 group,subjective scores and SNR decreased but TBR and CVliver increased in DPR_30 group,while subjective and objective evaluation results in DPR_60 group and DPR_90 group increased(all P＜0.05)or being not significantly different from those in OSEM_120 group(all P＞0.05).No significant difference of liver SUV mean was found among 7 groups(P=0.955).SUVmax and SUVmean of lesions and livers obtained based on DPR_30,DPR_60 and DPR_90 groups were in good agreement with those oibtained based on OSEM_120 group.Conclusion Using DPR algorithm to reconstruct whole-body 18 F-FDG PET image could shorten acquisition time under the premise of ensuring image quality.

Objective To observe the value of deep progressive reconstruction(DPR)algorithm for reconstructing whole-body 18 F-FDG PET images.Methods Totally 67 patients who underwent whole-body 18 F-FDG PET/CT were retrospectively enrolled.PET data of 30 s,60 s,90 s and 120 s per bed in equipment list were reconstructed using ordered subset expectation maximization(OSEM)and DPR algorithms,respectively.Finally 7 groups of reconstructed images were obtained,including OSEM_30,OSEM_60 and OSEM_120,also DPR_30,DPR_60,DPR_90 and DPR_120 groups.The subjective scores,also objective evaluation indexes,i.e.the maximum and mean standard uptake values(SUV)of lesions and livers,namely SUVmax and SUVmean,were compared,and target-to-background ratio(TBR),signal-to-noise ratio(SNR),contrast-to-noise ratio(CNR)and coefficient of liver variation(CVliver)were calculated.Taken results based in OSEM_120 group as references,Bland-Altman plot was drawn to explore the consistency of SUV of lesions and livers obtained based on DPR_30,DPR_60 and DPR_90 groups with those in OSEM_120 group.Results Under the same acquisition time,subjective scores,SUVmax and SUVmean of lesions,TBR,SNR,CNR and CVliver in DPR_30,DPR_60 and DPR_120 groups were superior to those in corresponding OSEM_30,OSEM_60 and OSEM_120 groups(all P＜0.001).Compared with OSEM_120 group,subjective scores and SNR decreased but TBR and CVliver increased in DPR_30 group,while subjective and objective evaluation results in DPR_60 group and DPR_90 group increased(all P＜0.05)or being not significantly different from those in OSEM_120 group(all P＞0.05).No significant difference of liver SUV mean was found among 7 groups(P=0.955).SUVmax and SUVmean of lesions and livers obtained based on DPR_30,DPR_60 and DPR_90 groups were in good agreement with those oibtained based on OSEM_120 group.Conclusion Using DPR algorithm to reconstruct whole-body 18 F-FDG PET image could shorten acquisition time under the premise of ensuring image quality.

Objective To investigate T cell subtypes and their functions in liver immune microenvironments among patients with alveolar echinococcosis (AE) using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). Methods Four AE patients that were admitted to Qinghai Provincial People’s Hospital in 2023 for hepatic surgery for the first time were enrolled, and liver specimens were sampled 1 cm (peri-lesion, PL group) and > 5 cm from AE lesions (distal lesion, DL group) among each patient. Finally, a total of eight liver specimens were sampled from four AE patients for scRNA-seq analysis. Genome and transcriptome data of liver specimens were processed using the software Cell Ranger and R package. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and their biological functions were analyzed using gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis, and the primary intercellular communication patterns and interaction mechanisms were identified among T cell subtypes in liver specimens using the CellChat package. In addition, the developmental stages of T cells were subjected to trajectory analysis with the monocle package to investigate the expression of genes associated with cell growth and tumor transformation, and to predict the developmental trajectories of T cells. Results All four AE patients were female, with a mean age of (25.00 ± 9.06) years, and there were three cases from Jiuzhi County, Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture and one case from Chengduo County, Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province. The viability of single-cell samples from eight liver specimens was 90.41% to 96.33%, and a total of 81 763 cells were analyzed, with 19 cell types annotated. Of these cell types, 13 were immune cells (87.60%), and T cells (33.13%), neutrophils (15.40%), and natural killer cells (11.92%) were the three most common cell types. Re-clustering of 27 752 T cells and proliferative T cells identified 10 distinct T cell subtypes, with CD8⁺ cytotoxic T cells (23.43%), CD8⁺ naive T cells (12.80%), and CD4⁺ effector memory T cells (17.73%) as dominant cell types. The proportions of T helper 2 (Th2) cells (5.19% vs. 3.63%; χ² = 38.35, P < 0.01) and CD4⁺ effector memory T cells (21.59% vs. 13.67%; χ² = 244.70, P < 0.01) were significantly higher in liver specimens in the PL group than in the DL group, and the proportion of CD4⁺ helper T cells was significantly lower in the PL group than in the DL group (7.50% vs. 14.75%; χ² = 330.52, P < 0.01). KEGG pathway analysis revealed that Th2 cells were significantly enriched in cell apoptosis and multiple cancer-associated pathways, and CD4⁺ effector memory T cells were significantly enriched in the regulation of cytokines and chronic inflammation, while CD4⁺ helper T cells were significantly enriched in immune responses regulation. Trajectory analysis of T cells showed that CD4⁺ helper T cells were at an earlier developmental stage relative to Th2 cells and CD4⁺ effector memory T cells, and the expression of inhibitor of DNA binding 3 (ID3), thioredoxin interacting protein (TXNIP), Bcl2-associated athanogene 3 (BAG3) and heat shock protein family B (small) member 1 (HSPB1) genes appeared a tendency towards a decline over time. Conclusions CD4⁺ effector memory T cells and CD8⁺ cytotoxic T cells are primary interacting cells in the liver specimens of AE patients. Reduced expression of Th2 cells and CD4⁺ helper T cells contributes to an inhibitory immune microenvironment, which promotes immune evasion by Echinococcus multilocularis, and Th2 cells are significantly enriched in multiple cancer-associated pathways, which may be linked to the invasive growth of E. multilocularis.

Objective To investigate the cell composition and the transcriptional characteristics in microenvironments of hepatic tissues in mice at late stage of Echinococcus multilocularis infection at a single-cell level. Methods Peri-lesion and paired distal hepatic specimens were collected from two BALB/c mice (6 to 8 weeks old) infected with E. multilocularis for single-cell RNA sequencing. The Seurat package in the R software was employed for quality control of data, multi-sample integration and correction of batch effects, and uniform manifold approximation and projection (UMAP) algorithm was used for cell clustering. Cell types were annotated using classical marker genes. Differentially expressed genes were screened in each cell type through differential gene expression analysis, and the biological roles of cells were predicted using Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses. Results A total of 43 710 cells from peri-lesion and distal hepatic tissues of E. multilocularis-infected mice were analyzed, and were classified into 11 cell types, including neutrophils, T cells, macrophages, granulocyte-monocyte progenitor cells, B cells, plasma cells, basophils, hepatic stellate cells, endothelial cells, hepatocytes, and platelets. T cells were the largest population of immune cells in the microenvironment of hepatic tissues, including five CD4⁺ T cell subsets, two CD8⁺ T cell subsets and phosphoantigen-reactive γδT cells. The proportions of CD4⁺ helper T cells and cytotoxic CD4⁺ T cells decreased and the proportion of T helper 2 (Th2) cells increased in peri-lesion tissues relative to distal hepatic tissues. In addition, the differentially expressed genes in Th2 cells were associated with negative regulation of the immune system, and the highly expressed genes in cytotoxic CD4⁺ T cells correlated with activation of the immune system. Conclusions Single-cell RNA sequencing deciphers the cell composition and distribution in microenvironments of hepatic tissues from mice infected with E. multilocularis, and the increased proportion of Th2 cells in peri-lesion hepatic tissues may be associated with formation of immunosuppressive microenvironments.

Objective To understand the epidemic status of alveolar echinococcosis in Tibetan children in south Qinghai Province. Methods The imageology and serology methods were applied to investigate the epidemic status of alveolar echinococ?cosis of elementary school students in Yushu and Guoluo prefectures. Results Totally 19 629 children were investigated by the portable B ultrasound and 221 children were diagnosed as alveolar echinococcosis with the morbidity of 1.13%. Totally 9 888 were investigated by the indirect ELISA,and the positive rate of serum tests was 12.59%(190/9 888). The total morbidity of al?veolar echinococcosis of children in Yushu Prefecture was 0.42%(31/7 454)and it was 1.57%(190/12 175)in Guoluo Prefec?ture and there was a significant difference between them(χ2=53.42,P<0.005). The sero?positive rates of children in Yushu and Guoluo were 4.26%(302/7 081)and 18.56%(1 835/9 888),respectively(χ2 =765.77,P<0.005). The counties with the highest prevalence of alveolar echinococcosis in children were Dari County (4.31%,106/2 461) and Banma County (1.92%,26/1 351)of Guoluo Prefecture ,and Chengduo County(1.11%,18/1 612)of Yushu Prefecture. The total morbid?ity rates of alveolar echinococcosis of male and female children were 0.91%(91/9 954)and 1.34%(130/12 175)respective?ly(χ2=7.35,P<0.005). The total sero?positive rates of alveolar echinococcosis of male and female children were 12.10%(1 037/8 568)and 13.09%(1 100/8 406)respectively(χ2=3.63,P>0.05). The total morbidity of alveolar echinococcosis of children in different age groups was from 1.00%to 1.13%,and there was no significant difference among the age groups(χ2=2.73,P>0.05). The P1a type,P1b type and P2 type accounted for 67.76%(145/214),10.75%(23/214)and 16.36%(35/214)respectively among the alveolar echinococcosis patients. The diameters of nidus of 87.38%(187/214)patients were less than 5 cm,and 2.80%(6/214)were more than 10 cm. Conclusions The epidemic status of alveolar echinococcosis of Tibetan children in south Qinghai Province is serious,but most of the patients were at early stage of the disease. The screening work of al?veolar echinococcosis should be strengthened in Tibetan children,so as to perform the early diagnosis and treatment.

OBJECTIVE: To search the features and the treatment of vascular compressive syndrome caused by the facial, acoustic nerves. METHOD: Ten cases of vascular compressive syndrome caused by the facial, acoustic nerves were included in the group,which were treated by microvascular decompression(MVD). Besides, the microanatomic relationship between the nerve and their adjacent vessel at the root exit zone (REZ) were observed under microscope or nasoendoscopy in MVD. RESULT: Tinnitus, vertigo and facial spasm disappeared after MVD in 7 cases (70%), improved in 2 cases (20%), and relapse in 1 case (10%). All cases were found out vessels compressing at the root zone of the facial nerve and the auditory nerve. CONCLUSION The Clinical features of vascular compressive syndrome caused by the facial, acoustic nerves are facial spasm, tinnitus, and vertigo, for which microvascular decompression has a positive therapeutic effect as long as the diagnosis is correct.
Adult ; Cochlear Nerve ; Decompression, Surgical ; Facial Nerve ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Microsurgery ; Middle Aged ; Nerve Compression Syndromes ; diagnosis ; physiopathology ; surgery