Objective:To investigate the preliminary efficacy of 3D printed individualized genioglossus advancement (GA) for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in adults with micrognathia.Methods:The OSA patients with retropalatal and retroglossal collapses due to micrognathia underwent 3D printed individualized GA combined with Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty(UPPP) in Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University. Clinical data including pre-and post-operative polysomnography (PSG), cephalometric measurements of genioglossus advancement, patient-reported symptom and surgical complications were collected. A comparison of pre-and post-operative data was conducted using paired t-tests. Results:Nineteen OSA patients with micrognathia successfully underwent 3D printed individualized GA combined with UPPP, and achieved an actual mean genioglossus advancement distance of (9.0±1.4) mm compared to the planned distance of (9.4±1.0) mm preoperatively ( t=0.81, P=0.427). Among the 14 patients followed up for more than 6 months, the mean AHI reduced by 60.4% at 6 months postoperatively, with 5 cases (5/14) cured and 5 cases (5/14) showing significant improvement, resulting in an overall surgical response rate of 10/14. All patients expressed satisfaction with their postoperative facial appearance, with 13 cases perceiving an improvement in attractiveness. Two patients reported temporary genial numbness, and one patient experienced temporary mandibular occlusal asthenia. Conclusion:The 3D printed individualized GA combined with UPPP effectively reduces AHI in adult OSA patients with micrognathia, accompanied by a low incidence of surgical complications and high patient satisfaction regarding postoperative facial appearance.

Objective:To explore the pathogenesis of flunarizine-induced parkinsonism from gut-brain axis perspective.Methods:Thirty male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into control group and flunarizine group ( n=15). Mice in the control group were given 0.1 mL 50% polyethylene glycol 400+50% saline by gavage once/d for 2 weeks, while mice in the flunarizine group were given 6 mg/mL flunarizine+50% polyethylene glycol 400+50% saline by gavage at a daily dose of 30 mg/kg for 2 weeks. Body mass was recorded 1, 3, 5, 7, 10 and 14 d after drug administration, and motor function was assessed by rotarod test 14 d after drug administration; 16s RNA sequencing was performed in the feces to observe the intestinal flora; intestinal transit function was detected by Evans blue by gavage; and then, the mice were sacrificed and homogenate or frozen sections (brain and intestinal tissues) were prepared; dopamine-ergic neuron expression was detected by Western blotting; RT-qPCR was applied to detect the expressions of inflammatory factors in the substantia nigra, and immunofluorescent staining was used to detect the expressions of ZO-1 and Claudin-5 in the intestinal epithelial tissues. Results:Compared with the control group, the flunarizine group had lower body mass ratio 1, 3, 5, 7, 10 and 14 d after drug administration (ratio to body mass before drug administration). Compared with the control group, the flunarizine group had significantly shortened residence time in rod rotating and lower rotational speed when falling ( P<0.05). Compared with the control group, the flunarizine group had decreased tyrosine hydroxylase protein in the substantia nigra without significant difference ( P>0.05). Compared with the control group, the flunarizine group had significantly increased interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α in the substantia nigra (1.00±0.00 vs. 2.79±0.83; 1.00±0.00 vs. 3.39±1.37), significantly lower intestinal Evans blue propulsion rate (80.67%±4.51% vs. 50.67%±6.03%), and statistically decreased ZO-1 and Claudin-5 expressions in the colonic epithelial tissues (27.01±1.41 vs. 16.32±2.83; 37.00±2.80 vs. 24.52±2.12, P<0.05). Totally, 576 microorganisms were noted in both control group and flunarizine group, 744 in the control group alone, and 634 in the flunarizine group alone. The intestinal flora β diversity indices in the 2 groups were significantly different based on weighted Unifrac-principle coordinates analysis (PCoA, PCoA1: 39.88%; PCoA2: 30.69%). Compared with the control group, the microbial colony structure of mice in flunarizine group was dominated by phylum thick-walled bacteria and phylum warty microbacteria, and by families Muribaculaceae, Lachnospiraceae and Akkermansiaceae. Compared with the control group, the flunarizine group had significantly decreased relative abundance of Ackermannia spp. and Lactobacillus spp. in the intestinal flora ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Flunarizine may contribute to the pathogenesis of DIP by causing structural disturbances in the intestinal flora and inducing neuroinflammation based on the gut-brain axis.

Age-dependent loss of skeletal muscle mass and function is a feature of sarcopenia, and increases the risk of many aging-related metabolic diseases. Here, we report phenotypic and single-nucleus transcriptomic analyses of non-human primate skeletal muscle aging. A higher transcriptional fluctuation was observed in myonuclei relative to other interstitial cell types, indicating a higher susceptibility of skeletal muscle fiber to aging. We found a downregulation of FOXO3 in aged primate skeletal muscle, and identified FOXO3 as a hub transcription factor maintaining skeletal muscle homeostasis. Through the establishment of a complementary experimental pipeline based on a human pluripotent stem cell-derived myotube model, we revealed that silence of FOXO3 accelerates human myotube senescence, whereas genetic activation of endogenous FOXO3 alleviates human myotube aging. Altogether, based on a combination of monkey skeletal muscle and human myotube aging research models, we unraveled the pivotal role of the FOXO3 in safeguarding primate skeletal muscle from aging, providing a comprehensive resource for the development of clinical diagnosis and targeted therapeutic interventions against human skeletal muscle aging and the onset of sarcopenia along with aging-related disorders.
Animals ; Humans ; Sarcopenia/metabolism* ; Forkhead Box Protein O3/metabolism* ; Muscle, Skeletal/metabolism* ; Aging/metabolism* ; Primates/metabolism*

Background::Previous studies have revealed that diabetes mellitus (DM) promotes disease progress of gastric cancer (GC). This study aimed to further investigating whether DM advanced lymph nodes (LNs) metastasis in GC.Methods::The clinicopathologic data of GC patients with >15 examined LN (ELN) between October 2004 and December 2019 from a prospectively maintained database were included. The observational outcomes included the number (N3b status) and anatomical distribution (N3 stations) of metastatic LN (MLN).Results::A total of 2142 eligible patients were included in the study between October 2004 and December 2019. N3 stations metastasis (26.8% in DM vs. 19.3% in non-DM, P = 0.026) and N3b status (18.8% in DM vs. 12.8% in non-DM, P = 0.039) were more advanced in the DM group, and multivariate logistic regression analyses confirmed that DM was an independent factor of developing N3 stations metastasis (odds ratio [OR] = 1.771, P= 0.011) and N3b status (OR= 1.752, P= 0.028). Also, multivariate analyses determined DM was independently associated with more MLN (β = 1.424, P = 0.047). The preponderance of N3 stations metastasis (DM vs. non-DM, T1-2: 2.2% vs. 4.9%, T3: 29.0% vs. 20.3%, T4a: 38.9% vs. 25.8%, T4b: 50.0% vs. 36.6%; ELN16-29: 8.6% vs. 10.4%, ELN30-44: 27.9% vs. 20.5%, ELN ≥ 45: 37.7% vs. 25.3%), N3b status (DM vs. non-DM, T1-2: 0% vs. 1.7%, T3: 16.1% vs. 5.1%, T4a: 27.8% vs. 19.1%, T4b: 44.0% vs. 28.0%; ELN16-29: 8.6% vs. 7.9%, ELN30-44: 18.0% vs. 11.8%, ELN ≥ 45: 26.4% vs. 17.3%), and the number of MLN (DM vs. non-DM, T1-2: 0.4 vs. 1.1, T3: 8.6 vs. 5.2, T4a: 9.7 vs. 8.6, T4b: 17.0 vs. 12.8; ELN16-29: 3.6 vs. 4.6, ELN30-44: 5.8 vs. 5.5, ELN ≥ 45: 12.0 vs. 7.7) of DM group increased with the advancement of primary tumor depth stage and raising of ELN. Conclusions::DM was an independent risk factor for promoting LN metastasis. The preponderance of LN involvement in the DM group was aggravated with the advancement of tumor depth.

Objective:Network pharmacology was used to investigate the mechanism of the Sargassum treating thyroid nodule. Methods:The main active ingredients of Sargassum and the targets of active ingredients were obtained by TCMSP, and thyroid nodule disease targets were obtained through GeneCards and OMIM. The STRING database and Cytoscape 3.2.1 software were used to construct the active ingredients-disease-targets network and protein interaction network (PPI). The GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analysis of the targets were analyzed by using R version 4.0.0 software. Results:Two active ingredients were screened from Sargassum and 59 targets were related to thyroid nodule. Biological function analysis showed that the targets of Sargassum included DNA-binding transcription activator activity, RNA polymerase Ⅱ-specific, ubiquitin-like protein ligase binding. Sargassum played an important role in treating thyroid nodule by the gene targets such as RELA, CASP3, IL6, CASP9, EGFR, VEGFA and other targets mediating the signaling pathways such as PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection and other pathways. Conclusion:The potential multi-target and multi-pathway network mechanism of Sargassum in the treatment of thyroid nodule provided theoretical basis for further research.

Objective:To investigate the protective effect of adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector-mediated heme oxygenase-1 ( HO-1) gene overexpression on retinitis pigmentosa (RP) models in rats. Methods:Eighty healthy male SD rats were selected and randomized into the blank control group, RP model group, AAV-GFP group and AAV-HO-1-GFP group, with 20 rats in each group.The RP model was established via tail vein injection of 1% sodium iodate solution at the dose of 50 mg/kg.Rats in the RP model group, AAV-GFP group and AAV-HO-1-GFP group were subretinally injected with normal saline, AAV-GFP virus and AAV-HO-1-GFP virus according to grouping.Rats in the blank control group were administrated with subretinal injection of equal volume of normal saline.The eyeballs of rats were enucleated on 14th day after molding.The retinal structure and thickness were detected by hematoxylin-eosin staining; apoptosis in retinal tissue was detected by TUNEL assay; the expression levels of cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase 3 (caspase 3), B-lymphoma-2 (bcl-2) and HO-1 protein in rats retina was identified by Western blot.The use and care of the animals complied with the Statement of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO). The study protocol was approved by an Ethics Committee of The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University (No.202188).Results:Hematoxylin-eosin staining results showed normal retinal structure in the blank control group, obvious retinal structure damage with thinned and wavy outer nuclear layer in the RP model group and AAV-GFP group, and mild retinal structure damage with slightly thinned outer nuclear layer in the AAV-HO-1-GFP group.Compared with the blank control group, the outer nuclear layer was significantly thinner in the RP model group and AAV-GFP group (both at P<0.05). Relative expression level of HO-1 protein in the RP model group, AAV-GFP group, and AAV-HO-1-GFP group was 0.76±0.21, 0.76±0.16, 0.92±0.05, respectively, which were all significantly higher than 0.48±0.25 in the blank control group (all at P<0.05). The relative expression level of HO-1 protein in the AAV-HO-1-GFP group was significantly higher than that in the RP model group and the AAV-GFP group (both at P<0.05). There were significant differences in apoptosis rate, the relative expression levels of bcl-2 and caspase 3 protein among the four groups ( F=1 596.333, 1 043.806, 364.331; all at P<0.01). The apoptosis rate and the relative expression level of caspase 3 were significantly higher, and the relative expression level of bcl-2 was lower in the RP model group and AAV-GFP group than those in the AAV-HO-1-GFP group (all at P<0.05). Conclusions:AAV-mediated overexpression of HO-1 gene can protect the retina of RP rats.

Ambystoma mexicanum/immunology* ; Amputation ; Animals ; Biomarkers/metabolism* ; Blastomeres/immunology* ; Cell Lineage/immunology* ; Connective Tissue Cells/immunology* ; Epithelial Cells/immunology* ; Forelimb ; Gene Expression ; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ; Humans ; Immunity ; Peroxiredoxins/immunology* ; Regeneration/immunology* ; Regenerative Medicine/methods* ; Single-Cell Analysis/methods*

Aging increases the risk of various diseases. The main goal of aging research is to find therapies that attenuate aging and alleviate aging-related diseases. In this study, we screened a natural product library for geroprotective compounds using Werner syndrome (WS) human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs), a premature aging model that we recently established. Ten candidate compounds were identified and quercetin was investigated in detail due to its leading effects. Mechanistic studies revealed that quercetin alleviated senescence via the enhancement of cell proliferation and restoration of heterochromatin architecture in WS hMSCs. RNA-sequencing analysis revealed the transcriptional commonalities and differences in the geroprotective effects by quercetin and Vitamin C. Besides WS hMSCs, quercetin also attenuated cellular senescence in Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS) and physiological-aging hMSCs. Taken together, our study identifies quercetin as a geroprotective agent against accelerated and natural aging in hMSCs, providing a potential therapeutic intervention for treating age-associated disorders.