Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) and osteoporosis (OP) are two very common metabolic diseases. A growing body of experimental evidence supports a pathophysiological link between MAFLD and OP. MAFLD is often associated with the development of OP. Rutaecarpine (RUT) is one of the main active components of Chinese medicine Euodiae Fructus. Our previous studies have demonstrated that RUT has lipid-lowering, anti-inflammatory and anti-atherosclerotic effects, and can improve the OP of rats. However, whether RUT can improve both fatty liver and OP symptoms of MAFLD mice at the same time remains to be investigated. In this study, we used C57BL/6 mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 4 months to construct a MAFLD model, and gave the mice a low dose (5 mg·kg^-1) and a high dose (15 mg·kg^-1) of RUT by gavage for 4 weeks. The effects of RUT on liver steatosis and bone metabolism were then evaluated at the end of the experiment [this experiment was approved by the Experimental Animal Ethics Committee of Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (approval number: IMB-20190124D₃03)]. The results showed that RUT treatment significantly reduced hepatic steatosis and lipid accumulation, and significantly reduced bone loss and promoted bone formation. In summary, this study shows that RUT has an effect of improving fatty liver and OP in MAFLD mice.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the genetic causal relationship of leukocyte telomere length (LTL) with prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis by two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR). METHODS: Using LTL as the exposure factor and prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis as outcome factors, we mined the Database of Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS). Then, we analyzed the causal relationship of LTL with prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis by Mendelian randomization using inverse variance weighting (IVW) as the main method and weighted median and MR-Egger regression as auxiliary methods, determined the horizontal multiplicity by MR-Egger intercept test, and conducted sensitivity analysis using the leaving-one-out method. RESULTS: A total of 121 related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in this study. IVW showed LTL to be a risk factor for prostatitis (OR = 1.383, 95% CI: 1.044－1.832, P = 0.024), and for orchitis and epididymitis as well (OR = 1.770, 95% CI: 1.275－2.456, P = 0.000 6). CONCLUSION Genetic evidence from Mendelian randomized analysis indicates that shortening of LTL reduces the risk of prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis.
Humans ; Male ; Mendelian Randomization Analysis ; Epididymitis/genetics* ; Prostatitis/genetics* ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Leukocytes ; Orchitis/genetics* ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Telomere ; Risk Factors

Probiotics play a crucial role in colon cancer treatment by metabolizing prebiotics to generate short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Colon cancer patients are frequently propositioned to supplement with probiotics to enhance the conversion and utilization of prebiotics. Nevertheless, the delivery and colonization of probiotics is hindered by the harsh conditions of gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Here, we devised a straightforward yet potent modified prebiotic-based "shield" (Gelatin-Inulin, GI), employing dietary inulin and natural polymer gelatin crosslinked via hydrogen bonding for enveloping Lactobacillus reuteri (Lr) to formulate synbiotic hydrogel capsules (Lr@Gl). The GI "shield" serves as a dynamic barrier, augmenting the resistance of Lr to gastric acid and facilitating its bioactivity and adherence in the GIT, synergizing with Lr to elicit an anti-tumor effect. Simultaneously, Lr@GI demonstrates anti-tumor effects by depleting glutathione to release reactive oxygen species, accompanied by the activation of NLRP3 (NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3), and the induction M1 macrophage polarization. Furthermore, Lr@GI can not only promote the recovery of intestinal barrier but also regulate intestinal flora, promoting the production of SCFAs and further exerting anti-tumor effect. Crucially, Lr@GI also potentiates the anti-tumor effect of 5-Fluorouracil. The construction and synergistic anti-tumor mechanism of synbiotic hydrogel capsules system provide valuable insights for gut microbial tumor therapy.

Septic cardiomyopathy(SIC)is an organ dysfunction frequently observed in sepsis and characterized by high mortality and poor prognosis.Understanding the complex pathogenesis of SIC and developing effective therapeutic tools are critical issues that require attention.Previous studies have demonstrated the significant role of mitochondrial dysfunction in the development of SIC.In the presence of SIC,and the mitochondrial dysfunction that result,the aberrant regulation of the mitochondrial quality control system(MQC)can exacerbate cardiomyocyte injury.Recent studies have demonstrated that the MQC maintains the dynamics of mitochondrial homeostasis through its regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis,fusion/fission,and autophagy.This article provides an overview of the role of MQC in SIC pathogenesis,reviews the latest studies in the field,and analyzes MQC's potential as a therapeutic target.

Objective To investigate the risk factors for bronchopulmonary dysplasia(BPD)in twin preterm infants with a gestational age of<34 weeks,and to provide a basis for early identification of BPD in twin preterm infants in clinical practice.Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the twin preterm infants with a gestational age of<34 weeks who were admitted to 22 hospitals nationwide from January 2018 to December 2020.According to their conditions,they were divided into group A(both twins had BPD),group B(only one twin had BPD),and group C(neither twin had BPD).The risk factors for BPD in twin preterm infants were analyzed.Further analysis was conducted on group B to investigate the postnatal risk factors for BPD within twins.Results A total of 904 pairs of twins with a gestational age of<34 weeks were included in this study.The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that compared with group C,birth weight discordance of>25%between the twins was an independent risk factor for BPD in one of the twins(OR=3.370,95%CI:1.500-7.568,P<0.05),and high gestational age at birth was a protective factor against BPD(P<0.05).The conditional logistic regression analysis of group B showed that small-for-gestational-age(SGA)birth was an independent risk factor for BPD in individual twins(OR=5.017,95%CI:1.040-24.190,P<0.05).Conclusions The development of BPD in twin preterm infants is associated with gestational age,birth weight discordance between the twins,and SGA birth.

Objective To investigate the effect of fixation of posterior malleolar fractures of Haraguchi type Ⅱ on ankle function in trimalleolar fractures.Methods A total of 118 patients with trimalleolar fractures accompanied with posterior malleolar fractures of Haraguchi type Ⅱ who treated by surgery were selected as the study subjects,and divided into the fixation group(57 cases)and the non-fixation group(61 cases)based on whether the posterior malleolus was fixed during the operation.The operation related indicators,American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society(AOFAS)ankle-hindfoot score,and the excellent and good rate of ankle function recovery were compared between the two groups.Results There was no significant difference in the operation time,intraoperative blood loss,hospital stay,fracture healing time,complete weight-bearing time or postoperative joint flatness between the two groups(P<0.05).At the end of the follow-up,the pain score and total score of the AOFAS ankle-hindfoot scale in the fixation group were higher than those in the non-fixation group,with statistically significant differences(P<0.05);and the excellent and good rate of ankle function recovery in the fixation group was higher than that in the non-fixation group,with statistically significant difference(P<0.05).Conclusion Surgical treatment for the trimalleolar fractures accompanied with posterior malleolar fractures of Haraguchi type Ⅱ can achieve satisfactory clinical outcome,and the fixation of posterior malleolar fractures of Haraguchi type Ⅱ can effectively reduce postoperative joint pain and improve ankle function.

Objective:To construct a prognostic nomogram based on epithelial-stromal interaction protein 1(EPSTI1)and predict the pro-gnosis of clear cell renal cell carcinoma(ccRCC).Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed from January 2012 to December 2015 at The First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University,on 221 patients with ccRCC who underwent surgical treatment in our center and 533 patients with ccRCC in The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)database.Immunohistochemical(IHC)staining was performed on adjacent nor-mal and cancerous tissues to analyze the expression level of EPSTI1 and its correlation with clinicopathological characteristics.Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was performed for the overall survival(OS)and disease-free survival(DFS)of patients with high and low EPSTI1 expression levels.Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to analyze the prognostic factors for OS,and a nomogram model was constructed and verified.Results:The IHC scores and mRNA expression levels of EPSTI1 were significantly higher in ccRCC tissues than in normal tissues(all P<0.001).EPSTI1 was expressed at higher levels in cancer tissues at higher T stages(P=0.036,P=0.006).The EPSTI1 protein expression level was related to the maximum tumor diameter and TNM stage(P=0.002,P=0.032,respectively).The OS and DFS were higher in the low-EPSTI1-expression group than the high-EPSTI1-expression group(P=0.046,P=0.003,P=0.001).Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses showed that a high EPSTI1 protein expression level,WHO/ISUP grade,and AJCC/TNM stage were independent risk factors for poor prognosis(P=0.009,P=0.039,P<0.001).The prognostic nomogram model constructed based on the above variables was su-perior to the AJCC/TNM stage in predicting the 5-year OS,and the calibration curve showed that the predicted value of the model was con-sistent with the actual value.Conclusions:The nomographic model based on EPSTI1,AJCC/TNM staging and WHO/ISUP staging has a strong predictive ability for the prognosis of renal clear cell carcinoma.

Hypertension is a risk factor for a variety of cardiovascular diseases, which is an important public health problem in the world today. MiRNAs are a class of highly conserved non-coding small RNAs. In recent years, studies have found that miRNAs are involved in the occurrence and development of hypertension through a variety of ways, causing damage to the important target organs of hypertension, such as heart, brain and kidney. This article reviews the research progress of miRNA in hypertension in recent years, in order to clarify its role in the process of hypertension and target organ damage, and provide ideas for exploring new therapeutic targets of hypertension.

The process of semen collection plays a key role in the quality of semen specimens. However, the association between semen collection time and semen quality is still unclear. In this study, ejaculates by masturbation from 746 subfertile men or healthy men who underwent semen analysis were examined. The median (interquartile range) semen collection time for all participants was 7.0 (5.0-11.0) min, and the median time taken for semen collection was lower in healthy men than that in subfertile men (6.0 min vs 7.0 min). An increase in the time required to produce semen samples was associated with poorer semen quality. Among those undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART), the miscarriage rate was positively correlated with the semen collection time. After adjusting for confounders, the highest quartile (Q4) of collection time was negatively associated with semen volume and sperm concentration. A longer time to produce semen samples (Q3 and Q4) was negatively correlated with progressive and total sperm motility. In addition, there was a significant negative linear association between the semen collection time and the sperm morphology. Higher risks of asthenozoospermia (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 2.06, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.31-3.25, P = 0.002) and teratozoospermia (adjusted OR = 1.98, 95% CI: 1.10-3.55, P = 0.02) were observed in Q3 than those in Q1. Our results indicate that a higher risk of abnormal semen parameter values was associated with an increase in time for semen collection, which may be related to male fertility through its association with semen quality.
Male ; Humans ; Semen Analysis ; Semen ; Sperm Motility ; Sperm Count ; Asthenozoospermia ; Spermatozoa