Tropane alkaloids (TAs) are a class of anticholinergic drugs widely used in clinical practice and mainly extracted from plant, among which Atopa belladonna is the main commercial drug source. It is of great industrial value to obtain TAs in large quantities by plant metabolic engineering. In TAs pathway, cytochrome oxidase CYP82M3 catalyze the synthesis of tropinone and then tropinone reductase I (TRI) compete with TRII for tropinone to form tropine leading to the TAs synthesis (drainage). In this study, based on the "increasing flow and drainage" metabolic engineering strategy, two genes, namely HnCYP82M3 and DsTRI from Hyoscyamus niger and Datura stramonium, respectively, were overexpressed in the hair roots of A. belladonna, with a view to promote the TAs accumulation. The HnCYP82M3 gene was cloned from the root of H. niger, and it encoded amino acid with 91.7% sequence identity with AbCYP82M3 from A. belladonna. Overexpression of HnCYP82M3 alone did not affect the content of TAs in hair roots of A. belladonna, indicating that CYP82M3 was not a key enzyme in TAs biosynthesis. Simultaneous overexpression of HnCYP82M3 and DsTRI greatly promoted the accumulation of the three TAs, and the contents of hyoscyamine, anisodamine and scopolamine were 4.97 times, 2.83 times and 2.19 times that of the control, respectively, and the increase amplitude was greater than that of single overexpression of DsTRI. This study showed that the "increasing flow and drainage" strategy of enzyme genes co-expression at branch points was a promising metabolic engineering method to effectively improve the biosynthesis of TAs in A. belladonna, and laid a theoretical and technical foundation for the large-scale industrial acquisition of TAs.

BACKGROUND:Distal tibial tuberosity-high tibial osteotomy is a surgical treatment for knee osteoarthritis,but there is still a lack of clinical studies on its effect on ankle joints. OBJECTIVE:To observe the effects of distal tibial tuberosity-high tibial osteotomy on ankle angle on coronal plane of the radiography of the full length of lower limb in weight loading. METHODS:Data of 40 patients(41 knees)with distal tibial tuberosity-high tibial osteotomy from March 2021 to March 2022 were retrospectively analyzed,including 31 females and 9 males,20 left knees and 21 right knees,aged 49-75 years,mean(63.44±6.57)years.The radiographic data of the full length of the lower limb in weight loading were collected before,week 2 and week 48 postoperatively.Hip-knee-ankle angle,talar tilt angle,tilt angle of the ankle,tibiocrural angle,and tibial articular surface angle were measured before and after surgery. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Hip-knee-ankle angle improved from(-6.24±3.69)° before operation to(2.59±3.49)° week 2 postoperatively and(2.15±3.49)° week 48 postoperatively.The tilt angle of the ankle changed from(-7.90±3.11)° before operation to(-2.51±2.59)° week 2 postoperatively and(-2.46±2.42)° week 48 postoperatively,with statistically significant difference(P<0.001).(2)There was no significant difference in talar tilt angle,tibiocrural angle,and tibial articular surface angle before and week 2 postoperatively.(3)No significant difference in the angle changes was detected between week 2 and week 48 postoperatively.(4)It is indicated that distal tibial tuberosity-high tibial osteotomy can not only correct genu varus but also improve ankle angle.This result remains stable after 48 weeks of weight-bearing activities.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of budesonide combined with pulmonary surfactant(PS)in the treatment of meconium aspiration syndrome(MAS)in neonates.Methods PubMed,Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials(Central),Embase,Web of Science,SinoMed,VIP,WanFang Data and CNKI databases were electronically searched to collect randomized controlled trials(RCTs)of budesonide combined with PS in the treatment of neonatal MAS from inception to September 2,2023.Two researchers independently screened literature,extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies,meta-analyses were performed by using the RevMan 5.4 software.Results A total of 6 RCTs involving 544 patients were included.The results of meta-analysis showed that compared with PS group,budesonide combined with PS group had higher overall effective rate(RR=1.29,95％CI 1.17 to 1.41,P＜0.001),shorter hospital stay(MD=-6.35,95％CI-9.25 to-3.46,P＜0.001)and shorter time of oxygen inhalation(MD=-1.61,95％CI-2.23 to-0.98,P＜0.001),shorter the duration of ventilator use(MD=-26.46,95％CI-35.98 to-16.95,P＜0.001),improved the blood gas analysis indexes at each time after treatment(P＜0.05);In terms of safety,the incidence of total complications and adverse reactions in budesonide combined with PS group was significantly lower(RR=0.35,95％CI 0.25 to 0.47,P＜0.001).Subgroup analysis showed that the incidence of persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn(PPHN)in the budesonide combined with PS group was decreased(RR=0.38,95％CI 0.19 to 0.74,P=0.004),and the incidence of pneumorrhagia was decreased(RR=0.26,95％CI 0.10 to 0.69,P=0.007),and the difference was statistically significant;the incidence of heart failure and sepsis was not statistically significant compared with the PS group(P＞0.05).Conclusion Current evidence shows that budesonide combined with PS in the treatment of neonatal meconium aspiration syndrome can improve the symptoms and signs of MAS children,improve the blood gas analysis index,accelerate disease rehabilitation,shorten the course of the disease,can help reduce the risk of complications and PPHN,pneumorrhagia,and doesn't increase the incidence of heart failure,sepsis.Due to the limited quantity of the included studies,more high-quality and large-sample RCTs are needed to further validate the above conclusions.

Objective:To evaluate the cardiac morphological and functional parameters of patients with persistent atrial fibrillation (per-AF) and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) using two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) and real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT-3DE), and to explore their predictive value for the occurrence and progression of atrial fibrillation.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted on 30 per-AF patients (per-AF group), 30 PAF patients (PAF group) and 25 non-AF subjects (control group) who underwent echocardiography at Wuhan University People′s Hospital from May 2022 to May 2023. The left/right atrial longitudinal strain of reservoir, conduct and contraction (LASr/RASr, LAScd/RAScd, LASct/RASct), and calculated left atrial stiffness (LASI) were assessed by 2D-STE. Three-dimensional left and right atrial maximum volume index (LAVImax/RAVImax), minimum volume index (LAVImin/RAVImin) and emptying fraction (LAEF/RAEF) were obtained by RT-3DE. Then, patients with atrial fibrillation were divided into the normal LAVI group and enlarged LAVI group, and the differences of atrial strain among each group were compared. ROC curve was used to evaluate the overall diagnostic efficiency and cutoff values of ultrasonic parameters in patients with normal volume of atrial fibrillation. Finally, a multivariate Logistic regression model was established to identify the ultrasonic parameters associated with the occurrence and progression of different types of atrial fibrillation.Results:①Structurally, LAD, RAD and RAVImin in control, PAF and per-AF groups increased gradually, while LAEF and RAEF decreased gradually (all P<0.05). ②In terms of strain, LASr in control, PAF and per-AF groups decreased gradually (all P<0.05); Compared with the control group, LAScd, RASr and RAScd in PAF and per-AF groups were significantly decreased, and LASct and RASct in PAF group were significantly decreased (all P<0.05). ③Compared with the normal LAVI group, the LASr, LAScd and LASct in the enlarged LAVI group were significantly decreased, while LASI was significantly increased (all P<0.05); Compared with control group, the left and right atrial strain parameters in LAVI normal group were decreased, and LASI was increased (all P<0.05). The atrial strain parameter ROC was constructed in all subjects with normal left atrial volume, and RASr was the most sensitive indicator.④Multi-factor Logistic regression analysis showed that LAVImin and RASr were the influence factors of PAF ( OR=1.521, 0.907; 95% CI=1.173-1.972, 0.825-0.998; P=0.002, 0.044), LASr was the influence factor of pre-AF ( OR=0.858, 95% CI=0.802-0.917, P<0.001). Conclusions:2D-STE and RT-3DE can be used to evaluate the structural and functional changes of both atria, especially LAVImin, LASr and RASr, which have certain predictive value for the occurrence and progression of atrial fibrillation.

Objective:To investigate the clinical effect of proper management of inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery (IPDA) in laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD).Methods:This is a retrospective case series study. The clinical and pathological data of 70 patients who received LPD due to pancreatic head tumors, periampullary tumors, or distal common bile duct tumors in the Pancreatic Center of the Second Clinical College of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine from January to December 2022 were retrospectively collected. There were 47 males(67.1%) and 23 females(32.9%),aged (59.9±12.8)years(range:13 to 87 years).The procedure of IPDA exposure was as follows:a middle approach was utilized to expose the right half of superior mesenteric artery(SMA) and its right branches between the SMA and superior mesenteric vein(SMV) in superior colonic region. In the subcolonic region,SMA trunk exposure via dissection along the jejunal artery from feet to head and identification the association between IPDA and jejunal artery were prior to IPDA root ligation and dissection. The safety and efficacy of intraoperative IPDA handling were assessed based on surgical videos. Follow-up was carried out in outpatient clinic or by telephone, and outpatient follow-up was conducted once every 1 to 3 months after surgery.Results:The percentage of total LPD was 98.6%(69/70),with all patients achieving R0 resection. Nine cases(12.9%) were involved in combined vascular resection and reconstruction,with 1 case (1.4%) requiring additional upper abdominal incision for vascular and gastrointestinal reconstruction,while the remaining eight cases (11.4%) were completed laparoscopically. The operative time was (432.7±115.4)minutes(range:282 to 727 minutes), and the blood loss was (140.0±125.7)ml(range:20 to 800 ml). Only two patients(2.9%) received fresh frozen plasma transfusion,with an average volume of 650 ml. Reliable ligation and safe handling of the IPDA were achieved in 91.4%(64/70) of cases, with 8.6%(6/70) suffering from IPDA injury-related bleeding. No one was converted to opened surgery. Pathologically,the mean tumor size was (3.3±1.6)cm (range:1 to 7 cm),and the mean number of harvested lymph nodes was 17.0±7.3(range:0 to 46). Lymph node metastasis was observed in 13 cases (18.6%). Five cases (13.2%) developed grade B pancreatic fistula,while no grade C pancreatic fistula occurred. Other complications included bile leakage in one case(1.4%),delayed gastric emptying in two cases(2.9%), lymphatic leakage in 2 cases(2.9%),intra-abdominal infection in 9 cases(12.9%),and fat liquefaction of surgical incision in 1 case(1.4%). Two cases(2.9%) experienced postoperative intra-abdominal bleeding,one due to mesangial bleeding of lesser curvature of the stomach and the other due to oozing from the hepatic arterial sheath. These bleeding events were not concerned with IPDA. The average length of postoperative hospital stay was (15.2±4.6)days(range:9 to 28 days).Conclusion:Proper intraoperative management of IPDA in LPD might reduce IPDA-related bleeding during and after surgery and improve the safety of LPD.

Objective:To investigate the clinical effect of proper management of inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery (IPDA) in laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD).Methods:This is a retrospective case series study. The clinical and pathological data of 70 patients who received LPD due to pancreatic head tumors, periampullary tumors, or distal common bile duct tumors in the Pancreatic Center of the Second Clinical College of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine from January to December 2022 were retrospectively collected. There were 47 males(67.1%) and 23 females(32.9%),aged (59.9±12.8)years(range:13 to 87 years).The procedure of IPDA exposure was as follows:a middle approach was utilized to expose the right half of superior mesenteric artery(SMA) and its right branches between the SMA and superior mesenteric vein(SMV) in superior colonic region. In the subcolonic region,SMA trunk exposure via dissection along the jejunal artery from feet to head and identification the association between IPDA and jejunal artery were prior to IPDA root ligation and dissection. The safety and efficacy of intraoperative IPDA handling were assessed based on surgical videos. Follow-up was carried out in outpatient clinic or by telephone, and outpatient follow-up was conducted once every 1 to 3 months after surgery.Results:The percentage of total LPD was 98.6%(69/70),with all patients achieving R0 resection. Nine cases(12.9%) were involved in combined vascular resection and reconstruction,with 1 case (1.4%) requiring additional upper abdominal incision for vascular and gastrointestinal reconstruction,while the remaining eight cases (11.4%) were completed laparoscopically. The operative time was (432.7±115.4)minutes(range:282 to 727 minutes), and the blood loss was (140.0±125.7)ml(range:20 to 800 ml). Only two patients(2.9%) received fresh frozen plasma transfusion,with an average volume of 650 ml. Reliable ligation and safe handling of the IPDA were achieved in 91.4%(64/70) of cases, with 8.6%(6/70) suffering from IPDA injury-related bleeding. No one was converted to opened surgery. Pathologically,the mean tumor size was (3.3±1.6)cm (range:1 to 7 cm),and the mean number of harvested lymph nodes was 17.0±7.3(range:0 to 46). Lymph node metastasis was observed in 13 cases (18.6%). Five cases (13.2%) developed grade B pancreatic fistula,while no grade C pancreatic fistula occurred. Other complications included bile leakage in one case(1.4%),delayed gastric emptying in two cases(2.9%), lymphatic leakage in 2 cases(2.9%),intra-abdominal infection in 9 cases(12.9%),and fat liquefaction of surgical incision in 1 case(1.4%). Two cases(2.9%) experienced postoperative intra-abdominal bleeding,one due to mesangial bleeding of lesser curvature of the stomach and the other due to oozing from the hepatic arterial sheath. These bleeding events were not concerned with IPDA. The average length of postoperative hospital stay was (15.2±4.6)days(range:9 to 28 days).Conclusion:Proper intraoperative management of IPDA in LPD might reduce IPDA-related bleeding during and after surgery and improve the safety of LPD.

Background::Heterotaxy (HTX) is a thoracoabdominal organ anomaly syndrome and commonly accompanied by congenital heart disease (CHD). The aim of this study was to analyze rare copy number variations (CNVs) in a HTX/CHD cohort and to examine the potential mechanisms contributing to HTX/CHD.Methods::Chromosome microarray analysis was used to identify rare CNVs in a cohort of 120 unrelated HTX/CHD patients, and available samples from parents were used to confirm the inheritance pattern. Potential candidate genes in CNVs region were prioritized via the DECIPHER database, and PNPLA4 was identified as the leading candidate gene. To validate, we generated PNPLA4-overexpressing human induced pluripotent stem cell lines as well as pnpla4-overexpressing zebrafish model, followed by a series of transcriptomic, biochemical and cellular analyses. Results::Seventeen rare CNVs were identified in 15 of the 120 HTX/CHD patients (12.5%). Xp22.31 duplication was one of the inherited CNVs identified in this HTX/CHD cohort, and PNPLA4 in the Xp22.31 was a candidate gene associated with HTX/CHD. PNPLA4 is expressed in the lateral plate mesoderm, which is known to be critical for left/right embryonic patterning as well as cardiomyocyte differentiation, and in the neural crest cell lineage. Through a series of in vivo and in vitro analyses at the molecular and cellular levels, we revealed that the biological function of PNPLA4 is importantly involved in the primary cilia formation and function via its regulation of energy metabolism and mitochondria-mediated ATP production. Conclusions::Our findings demonstrated a significant association between CNVs and HTX/CHD. Our data strongly suggested that an increased genetic dose of PNPLA4 due to Xp22.31 duplication is a disease-causing risk factor for HTX/CHD.

Objective:To investigate the clinicopathological features of colorectal adenocarcinoma with enteroblastic differentiation (CAED).Methods:Eight cases of CAED diagnosed at the Department of Pathology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, China from January 2017 to August 2023 were collected. The histopathological, immunohistochemical, molecular and prognostic features of 8 CAED cases were analyzed. The relevant studies were also reviewed.Results:Among the eight patients, there were six males and two females, with an average age of 58 years (range: 29-77 years, median age: 61.5 years). Preoperative serum alpha-fetoprotein levels were elevated in five patients (14.0-286.6 μg/L). Four tumors were located in the colon, and four tumors in the rectum. Two patients were clinically staged as advanced stage (stage Ⅳ), and distant metastasis occurred at the initial diagnosis (one case had liver metastasis, and the other had lung, bone and multiple lymph nodes metastases). Six patients were clinically staged as locally-advanced stage (Stage Ⅱ-Ⅲ). Three of them developed distant metastases after surgery (one case had liver metastasis, one case had lung metastasis, and one case had peritoneal metastasis). Additionally, two patients died at 9 months and 24 months after surgery, respectively. The tumors were composed of various proportions of adenocarcinoma components with enteroblastic differentiation (30%-100%) and classical tubular adenocarcinoma components. The component with enteroblastic differentiation exhibited morphology similar to embryonic intestinal epithelium: cuboidal or columnar tumor cells arranged in tubular, papillary, cribriform, or solid nest patterns, with clear cytoplasm. Immunohistochemical studies showed that tumor cells expressed at least one oncofetal protein (SALL4, Glypican-3, and AFP). In addition, focal squamous differentiation was observed in 3 cases (3/8). Compared to the primary tumor, both CAED and squamous differentiation components were increased in the metastatic tumors. Based on the sequencing results of KRAS, NRAS and BRAF of the primary and/or metastatic tumors, 5 cases were wild-type, while KRAS exon 2 (G13D) mutations were identified in 2 cases.Conclusions:CAED is a rare colorectal malignancy with a dismal prognosis. Accurate pathological diagnosis is prognostically valuable. The histological features of enteroblastic differentiation, elevated serum AFP levels, and the expression of oncofetal proteins play an important role in the tumor diagnosis.

Objective:To investigate the changes of left ventricular systolic function in patients after pacing in differ-ent sites of right ventricle.Methods:The clinical data of 95 patients requiring right ventricular pacing who were ad-mitted to our hospital from February 2018 to May 2020 were collected.According to pacing site,they were divided into right ventricular apex pacing(RVAP)group(n=47)and right ventricular outflow tract septal pacing(RVSP)group(n=48).The pacing threshold,perception threshold,electrode impedance,left ventricular end-diastolic volume(LVEDV),left ventricular end-systolic volume(LVESV),stroke volume(SV),left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF)were compared between the two groups.According to incidence of cardiac insufficiency on one year after pacing,patients were divided into cardiac insufficiency group(n=18)and normal cardiac function group(n=77).Influencing factors of cardiac insufficiency in patients requiring right ventricular pacing were analyzed.Results:Compared with one week after pacing,on one year after pacing,perception threshold[(11.51±1.21)mV vs.(12.11±0.81)mV]significantly increased in RVAP group,P=0.004.Compared with RVAP group on one year after pacing,there were significant rise in LVESV[(25.32±7.63)ml vs.(29.77±12.36)ml],LVEDV[(58.30±15.71)ml vs.(68.33±25.31)ml],SV[(31.36±10.73)ml vs.(41.29±16.15)ml],and significant reductions in LVEF[(60.55±8.76)％vs.(54.10±6.44)％]and proportion of cardiac insufficiency(27.66％vs.10.42％)in RVSP group,P＜0.05 or＜0.01.Non-conditional multivariate Logistic regression model analysis indicated that LVEF was inde-pendent protective factor for cardiac insufficiency in patients requiring right ventricular pacing(OR=0.854,P=0.003),while RVAP and age ≥60 years were its independent risk factors(OR=9.041,4.145,P=0.003,0.024).Conclusion:Compared with right ventricular apex pacing,right ventricular outflow tract septal pacing can significantly improve stroke volume,and incidence rate of cardiac insufficiency significantly reduces.

Due to the long pathological process of Alzheimer disease(AD),this paper begins with the time-line of classical pathological events in AD and uses anomalous microglia activation as a starting point to elucidate the role of abnormal lipid metabolism in the pathological process of AD.This includes its influence on microglial pathology and its interactions with the two primary nodes of AD,namely,Amyloid-β and the microtubule-associated protein tau.Using this as a foundation,the paper briefly describes the effects of abnormal lipid metabolism caused by short-term and long-term high-fat diets on the pathological progression of AD and its potential mechanisms,aiming to provide a reference framework for the early intervention of AD.