OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinical features and prognosis of children with non-Down-syndrome-related acute megakaryoblastic leukemia (non-DS-AMKL). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical data of 17 children with non-DS-AMKL who were admitted to Children's Hospital of The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2013 to December 2023, and their clinical features, treatment, and prognosis were summarized. RESULTS: Among the 17 children with non-DS-AMKL, there were 8 boys and 9 girls. Fourteen patients had an onset age of less than 36 months, with a median age of 21 months (range:13-145 months). Immunophenotyping results showed that 16 children were positive for CD61 and 13 were positive for CD41. The karyotype analysis was performed on 16 children, with normal karyotype in 6 children and abnormal karyotype in 9 children, among whom 5 had complex karyotype and 1 had no mitotic figure. Detected fusion genes included EVI1, NUP98-KDM5A, KDM5A-MIS18BP1, C22orf34-BRD1, WT1, and MLL-AF9. Genetic alterations included TET2, D7S486 deletion (suggesting 7q-), CSF1R deletion, and PIM1. All 17 children received chemotherapy, among whom 16 (94%) achieved complete remission after one course of induction therapy, and 1 child underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) and remained alive and disease-free. Of all children, 7 experienced recurrence, among whom 1 child received HSCT and died of graft-versus-host disease. At the last follow-up, six patients remained alive and disease-free. CONCLUSIONS Non-DS-AMKL primarily occurs in children between 1 and 3 years of age. The patients with this disorder have a high incidence rate of chromosomal abnormalities, with complex karyotypes in most patients. Some patients harbor fusion genes or gene mutations. Although the initial remission rate is high, the long-term survival rate remains low.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Leukemia, Megakaryoblastic, Acute/etiology* ; Child, Preschool ; Infant ; Child ; Retrospective Studies ; Prognosis ; Down Syndrome/complications*

OBJECTIVE: To explore the neuroprotective effects of Xuefu Zhuyu Decoction (XFZYD) based on in vivo and metabolomics experiments. METHODS: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) was induced via a controlled cortical impact (CCI) method. Thirty rats were randomly divided into 3 groups (10 for each): sham, CCI and XFZYD groups (9 g/kg). The administration was performed by intragastric administration for 3 days. Neurological functions tests, histology staining, coagulation and haemorheology assays, and Western blot were examined. Untargeted metabolomics was employed to identify metabolites. The key metabolite was validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunofluorescence. RESULTS: XFZYD significantly alleviated neurological dysfunction in CCI model rats (P<0.01) but had no impact on coagulation function. As evidenced by Evans blue and IgG staining, XFZYD effectively prevented blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption (P<0.05, P<0.01). Moreover, XFZYD not only increased the expression of collagen IV, occludin and zona occludens 1 but also decreased matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), which protected BBB integrity (all P<0.05). Nine potential metabolites were identified, and all of them were reversed by XFZYD. Adenosine was the most significantly altered metabolite related to BBB repair. XFZYD significantly reduced the level of equilibrative nucleoside transporter 2 (ENT2) and increased adenosine (P<0.01), which may improve BBB integrity. CONCLUSIONS XFZYD ameliorates BBB disruption after TBI by decreasing the levels of MMP-9 and COX-2. Through further exploration via metabolomics, we found that XFZYD may exert a protective effect on BBB by regulating adenosine metabolism via ENT2.
Animals ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Blood-Brain Barrier/metabolism* ; Brain Injuries, Traumatic/metabolism* ; Adenosine/metabolism* ; Male ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rats

Objective:To evaluate the values of 18F-PI-2620 PET/CT brain imaging with SUV ratio (SUVR) in the assessment of tau protein deposition in the brain of patients with different cognitive disorders and its correlation with cognition. Methods:This was a cross-sectional study. From December 2019 to November 2022, a total of 67 subjects including 54 patients with Alzheimer′s disease (AD; 21 males, 33 females, age (68.6±7.8) years), 7 patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI; 1 male, 6 females, age (63.1±11.2) years) and 6 healthy controls (HC; 4 males, 2 females, age (69.0±5.8) years) were enrolled retrospectively in Renji Hospital. All participants were examined by 18F-PI-2620 PET/CT. SUVRs of brain regions were obtained, including frontal lobe, temporal lobe, occipital lobe, parietal lobe, insular lobe, whole brain, as well as 10 independent brain ROIs (amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex, cingulate gyrus, superior occipital gyrus, superior parietal gyrus, inferior angular gyrus, precuneus, inferior temporal gyrus, entorhinal cortex and parahippocampal gyrus), with inferior cerebellum cortex as the reference region. All participants were estimated by cognitive scales(mini-mental state examination (MMSE) and Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA)). One-way analysis of variance and the least significant difference t test were used to compare the differences of SUVR in each brain region among HC, MCI and AD groups. ROC curve analysis was used to determine the optimal cut-off values of SUVR in each brain region for the differential diagnosis of AD-MCI and AD-HC. Pearson correlation analysis was employed to examine the correlations of SUVR with cognitive scale scores. Results:The SUVR of whole brain was 1.40±0.31 in AD group, 1.08±0.19 in MCI group, and 1.01±0.12 in HC group. SUVR analysis in the whole brain and each brain region could distinguish AD from HC, AD from MCI ( F values: 1.76-10.09, t values: 2.98-7.47, all P<0.05), but could not distinguish HC from MCI ( t values: 0.17-1.53, all P>0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the best cut-off value of SUVR was 1.18 for whole brain (AUC=0.89), 1.13 for amygdala (AUC=0.94) and 1.26 for parahippocampal gyrus (AUC=0.94) for differential diagnosis of AD and HC, which was 1.06 for whole brain (AUC=0.82), 1.18 for amygdala (AUC=0.88) and 1.28 (AUC=0.88) for infratemporal gyrus to differential diagnosis of AD and MCI. SUVRs of the whole brain, frontal, occipital, parietal, temporal and insula were significantly negatively correlated with MMSE and MoCA cognitive scale scores ( r values: from -0.64 to -0.40, all P<0.05). Conclusions:SUVR quantitative analysis in 18F-PI-2620 PET imaging can assist the differential diagnosis of AD and HC, AD and MCI. The SUVRs of whole brain and five lobes show negative correlations with MMSE and MoCA scores.

Objective:To assess the diagnostic efficiency of 18F-FDG PET for Alzheimer′s disease (AD) in patients with memory impairment. Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on 96 patients (40 males, 56 females, age: 69.0(62.8, 74.0) years) initially diagnosed with memory impairment in Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University between August 2019 and September 2023. The amyloid-tau-neurodegeneration (ATN) criteria, based on 18F-AV45+ 18F-PI-2620 PET/CT+ MRI imaging results, were used as the diagnostic standard for AD. Visual analysis (temporoparietal or posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) hypometabolism) and semi-quantitative analysis methods (PET-SCORE and NeuroQ software analysis (SUV ratio, SUVR)) were applied to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of 18F-FDG PET imaging for AD. Diagnostic efficiencies of visual assessment and semi-quantitative parameters were compared by χ2 test. Additionally, Pearson correlation analysis was performed to examine the relationship between results of PET-SCORE and cognitive scales. Results:Of the 96 patients initially diagnosed with memory impairment, 61 were clinically diagnosed with AD, while 35 were non-AD patients. Visual assessment of temporoparietal hypometabolism showed the highest sensitivity (91.80%, 56/61), which was significantly different from the sensitivities of PET-SCORE (40.98%(25/61); χ2=29.03, P<0.001) and visual assessment of PCC hypometabolism (77.05%(47/61); χ2=5.82, P=0.016). While semi-quantitative assessment using PET-SCORE demonstrated the highest specificity (100%, 35/35), which was significantly different from the specificities of visual assessment methods (temporoparietal hypometabolism: 17.14%(6/35), χ2=27.03, P<0.001; PCC hypometabolism: 54.29%(19/35), χ2=14.06, P<0.001). PET-SCORE exhibited statistically significant correlations with Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), and Activities of Daily Living (ADL) scores ( r values: -0.38, -0.36, 0.31, all P<0.01). Conclusions:Among patients initially diagnosed with memory impairment, visual assessment in 18F-FDG PET imaging analysis demonstrates higher sensitivity, while semi-quantitative analysis using PET-SCORE exhibits higher specificity. PET-SCORE shows statistically significant correlation with the severity of cognitive decline.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between morphological typing and monoclonality of bone marrow plasma cells,and explore the diagnostic value of plasma cell morphological typing for high-risk smoldering multiple myeloma(HR-SMM).Methods:The correlation between the morphological characteristics and the monoclonality of bone marrow plasma cells was analyzed in 84 patients with HR-SMM who treated in our hospital.The consistency of morphologically abnormal bone marrow plasma cells with serum free light chain(sFLC)ratio,next-generation sequencing(NGS)detection results,and its correlation with monoclonal plasma cells detected by flow cytometry(FCM)were further verified.The immunoglobulin types and levels of non-involved immunoglobulins in serum of the patients were detected,and the distribution of plasma cell clusters in patients with different disease was observed.Results:The mean percentage of mature plasma cells were decreased successively in the order of reactive plasmacytosis(RP)group,monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance(MGUS)group,smoldering multiple myeloma(SMM)group,HR-SMM group and multiple myeloma(MM)group;while the mean percentage of immature,primitive,reticular and flaming plasma cells were increased successively in the order of RP group,MGUS group,SMM group,and HR-SMM group,and the difference between any two groups was statistically significant(P＜0.05).The average proportion of abnormal plasma cells in the bone marrow of HR-SMM patients was 96.2％of the total plasma cells.The proportion of abnormal plasma cells were in good agreement with the sFLC ratio and the results of NGS detection in HR-SMM patients(kappa=0.879 and kappa=0.891,both＞0.75),and showed good correlation with the monoclonal plasma cells with immunophenotype of CD45-/CD38+/CD138+/CD56+/CD19-(γ=0.825).The levels of non-involved immunoglobulin in IgG,IgA and IgM type HR-SMM patients were all decreased by more than 25％compared with the normal reference range,and the differences were statistically significant(P＜0.05).There was no significant difference in the distribution ratio of plasma cell clusters among different disease groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion:In HR-SMM patients,the immature,primitive,reticular and flaming plasma cells in bone marrow are considered as abnormal plasma cells,and they are correlated with monoclonal plasma cells.The proportion of abnormal plasma cells in total plasma cells of bone marrow and the reduction extent of non-involved immunoglobulin level in patients have certain reference value for the diagnosis of HR-SMM.

Objective:To investigate the effect of pre-treatment plasma Epstein-Barr virus(EBV)DNA copy number on the clinical features and prognosis of patients with adult secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis(sHLH).Methods:The clinical characteristics,survival rate,and prognostic factors of 171 patients with adult sHLH treated at Jiangsu Province Hospital from June 2017 to January 2022 were retrospectively analyzed in this study.Patients were divided into three groups,including the EBV DNA-negative group(＜5.0 × 102 copies/ml),lower EBV-DNA loads group(5.0 × 102-8.51 × 104 copies/ml),and higher EBV-DNA loads group(＞8.51 × 104 copies/ml),according to pre-treatment plasma EBV-DNA copy number.Cox regression model was established for screening prognostic factors.Adult sHLH survival prediction model was constructed and realized through the nomogram based on EBV-DNA load after adjusted the factors affecting survival of etiology and treatment strategy.Concordance index(C-index)and calibration curves were calculated to verify model predictive and discriminatory capacity.Results:Among 171 adult sHLH patients,84 patients were not infected with EBV(EBV DNA-negative group),and 87 with EBV(EBV DNA-positive group,48 lower EBV-DNA loads group and 39 higher EBV-DNA loads group).Consistent elevations in the levels of liver enzymes(ALT and AST),LDH,TG,β2-microglobulin and ferritin across the increasing of EBV-DNA load(all P＜0.05),while the levels of fibrinogen decrease(P＜0.001).The median follow-up time was 52 days(range 20-230 days),and 123 patients died.The overall survival(OS)rate of patients in EBV DNA-positive group was lower than that in EBV DNA-negative group(median OS:40 days vs 118 days,P＜0.001).Higher EBV-DNA loads had worse OS(median OS:24 days vs 45 days vs 118 days,P＜0.0001 for trend)compared to lower EBV-DNA loads and EBV DNA-negative group.Multivariate Cox analysis revealed that higher EBV-DNA loads(P=0.005),fibrinogen≤ 1.5 g/L(P=0.012),ferritin(P=0.041),associated lymphoma(P=0.002),and anti-tumor based strategy(P=0.001)were independent prognostic factors for OS.The C-indexes of 30 day,90 days,365 days survival rate were all greater than 0.8 of the nomogram model and calibration curves provided credibility to their predictive capability.Subgroup analysis showed that patients with higher EBV-DNA loads had a significantly worse prognosis in adult sHLH who were women,ferritin＞5 000 μg/L,β2-microglobulin＞7.4 mmol/L and regardless of age,etiologies,HScore points.Conclusion:The EBV-DNA load is a strong and independent predictor for survival in patients with sHLH.The prognostic nomogram based on EBV-DNA loads was dependable and provides a visual tool for evaluating the survival of adult sHLH.

Objective To cultivate glioblastoma U87 stem-like cells(SLCs)and to detect the level of stemness bio-markers,mitochondrial respiratory capacity and the capacity of in vivo tumorigenesis.Methods B-27,growth factors EGF and bFGF was added into DMEM/F-12 culture in serum-free stem cell culture medium for U87 SLCs.Suspended culture of U87 SLCs was suspended using the neuro-sphere formation assay,while adherent culture of U87 SLCs was achieved by coating Matrigel matrix on the culture surface.The mRNA and protein level of stemness biomarkers in culture were detected using real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot.The proportion of CD133+cells in culture was detected by flow cytometry.The changes of cell oxygen consumption rate were detected by Seahorse cell metabo-lism analysis.Cell tumorigenesis ability was verified by subcutaneous tumor transplantation in animals.Results U87 SLCs in stem cell culture medium would grow into typical sphere morphology within one week,and the spheres would continue to grow as the culture process prolongs.At the appropriate concentration of adhesive,U87 SLCs adhered to and grow well in stem cell culture medium.The mRNA transcription of stemness biomarkers such as CD133,nes-tin,OLIG2,CD44,CD15,and integrin α6(ITGA6)was significantly increased as found in both culture methods,and the protein levels of CD133 and nestin were also increased under both methods(P＜0.05).U87 SLCs showed higher mitochondrial reserve respiratory capacity(P＜0.05).U87 SLCs could form larger subcutaneous tumors with fewer inoculated cells(P＜0.05),and grew faster in vivo with stronger tumorigenic ability.Conclusions U87 SLCs have typical stemness characteristics and may function as tumor cell model with higher stemness properties.

Objective To study the effect of carboxyamidotriazole-orotate(CTO)on the proliferation and fatty acid anabolism regulation of human pancreatic cancer cells.Methods Human pancreatic cancer cell lines AsPC-1,AsPC-1/GEM(AR),PANC-1 and MiaPaCa-2 were used as the study subjects;cell survival rate was detected by sulfo-nylrhodamine B(SRB);the mRNA level of key genes for fatty acid synthesis was detected by qPCR;the protein level of the AMPK/ACC pathway was detected by Western blot;intracellular lipid metabolites were examined by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry(LC-MS).Results Comparing to control group,CTO significantly de-creased the cell viability of AsPC-1,AR,PANC-1,and MiaPaCa-2(P＜0.05).CTO down-regulated the mRNA level of key fatty acid synthesis genes(P＜0.05).CTO significantly reduced the protein expression of AMPK,ACC and c-Myc(P＜0.05),while increasing the protein expression of p-AMPK and p-ACC(P＜0.05).CTO decreased lipid metabolite content in AR cells(P＜0.05).Conclusions CTO attenuates cellular fatty acid anabolism by inhibition of oncogene c-Myc expression and AMPK/ACC pathway,down-regulates the expression of fatty acid synthesis-related genes,and then inhibits proliferation of the human pancreatic cancer cell lines AsPC-1,AR,PANC-1 and MiaPaCa-2.

Objective To analyze the influencing factors for catheter-associated infection(CAI)in chemotherapy treated patients after indwelling peripherally inserted central catheter(PICC)based on a random forest model.Methods 400 tumor patients who received chemotherapy and PICC were selected and divided into the training set(n=300)and the test set(n=100)in a 3∶1 ratio through computer-generated random number.Patients in the training set were subdivided into the non-infection group and the infection group based on the occurrence of infec-tion.Clinical data from two groups of patients were compared.Influencing factors for the occurrence of CAI after PICC were analyzed with multivariate logistic regression model and the integrated classification algorithm of random forest model,and the predictive performance of the two methods was compared.Results Among 300 chemotherapy treated patients in the training set,32 cases(10.67％)experienced CAI.Compared with the non-infection group,patients in the infection group had more single punctures for catheterization,longer PICC retention time,larger pro-portion of catheter movement,larger proportion of complication with diabetes,higher frequency of dressing chan-ges,lower white blood cell count and immune function(all P＜0.05).PICC retention time,catheter movement,complication with diabetes,dressing change frequency,white blood cell(WBC)and immune function were inde-pendent influencing factors for CAI after PICC(all P＜0.05).The random forest model showed that ranking by the importance of different influencing factors was as following:PICC retention time,catheter movement,complication with diabetes,WBC,dressing change frequency and immune function.The integrated classification algorithm of random forest model for predicting the occurrence of CAI in chemotherapy treated patients showed that the area un-der the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve(AUC)was 0.872,which had better prediction performance compared with the logistic regression model(AUC=0.791).Conclusion PICC retention time,catheter movement,complicated with diabetes,dressing change frequency,WBC level and immune function are independent influencing factors for CAI in chemotherapy treated patients.The integrated classification algorithm of random forest model can be used to predict CAI in chemotherapy treated patients,and its prediction performance is better than that of the logistic regression model.

Purpose: Gastric cancer (GC) is the second most lethal cancer globally and is associated with poor prognosis. Fatty acid-binding proteins (FABPs) can regulate biological properties of carcinoma cells. FABP5 is overexpressed in many types of cancers; however, the role and mechanisms of action of FABP5 in GC remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the clinical and biological functions of FABP5 in GC. Materials and Methods: We assessed FABP5 expression using immunohistochemical analysis in 79 patients with GC and evaluated its biological functions following in vitro and in vivo ectopic expression. FABP5 targets relevant to GC progression were determined using RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). Results: Elevated FABP5 expression was closely associated with poor outcomes, and ectopic expression of FABP5 promoted proliferation, invasion, migration, and carcinogenicity of GC cells, thus suggesting its potential tumor-promoting role in GC. Additionally, RNA-seq analysis indicated that FABP5 activates immune-related pathways, including cytokinecytokine receptor interaction pathways, interleukin-17 signaling, and tumor necrosis factor signaling, suggesting an important rationale for the possible development of therapies that combine FABP5-targeted drugs with immunotherapeutics. Conclusions These findings highlight the biological mechanisms and clinical implications of FABP5 in GC and suggest its potential as an adverse prognostic factor and/or therapeutic target.