BACKGROUND: Research has indicated that the disease burden of alopecia areata (AA) in China exceeds the global average. Therefore, accurate and updated epidemiological information is crucial for policymakers. In this study, we aimed to comprehensively assess the disease burden of AA in China. METHODS: The following four key indicators were utilized: the prevalence of cases; disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs); the age-standardized prevalence rate (ASPR); and the age-standardized DALY rate (ASDR) of AA according to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study 2021. We analyzed the epidemiological burden of AA in China during 2021, examined changes between 1990 and 2021, and performed a Bayesian age-period-cohort analysis to predict trends over the course of the next decade (2022-2030). Additionally, a Gaussian process regression model was applied to estimate the relationship between the gross domestic product (GDP) and the ASPR and ASDR of AA at the provincial level between 1992 and 2021. RESULTS: In 2021, the estimated number of patients with AA in China was approximately 3.49 million (95% uncertainty interval [UI], 3.37-3.62 million); of these patients, 1.20 million (95% UI, 1.16-1.25 million) were male and 2.29 million (95% UI, 2.20-2.37 million) were female. This large number of patients with AA resulted in a total of 114,431.25 DALYs (95% UI, 74,780.27-160,318.96 DALYs). Additionally, the ASPR and ASDR were 224.61 per 100,000 population (95% UI, 216.73-232.65 per 100,000 population) and 7.41 per 100,000 population (95% UI, 4.85-10.44 per 100,000 population), respectively; both of these rates were higher than the global averages. The most affected demographic groups were young and female individuals 25-39 years of age. Slight regional disparities were observed, with the northern and central regions of China bearing comparatively higher burdens. Between 1990 and 2021, the health loss and disease burden caused by AA in China remained relatively stable. The ASPR and ASDR of AA increased with the GDP when the annual GDP was less than 2 trillion Chinese yuan; however, a downward trend was observed as the GDP surpassed 2 trillion Chinese yuan. A slight upward trend in the disease burden of AA in China is predicted to occur over the next decade. CONCLUSIONS AA continues to be a public health concern in China that shows no signs of declining. Targeted efforts for young individuals and females are necessary because they experience a disproportionately high burden of AA.
Humans ; China/epidemiology* ; Alopecia Areata/epidemiology* ; Global Burden of Disease ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; Disability-Adjusted Life Years ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Adolescent ; Young Adult ; Bayes Theorem ; Child ; Quality-Adjusted Life Years ; Child, Preschool

In this study, araucarene diterpenes, characterized by a pimarene skeleton with a variably oxidized side chain at C-13, were investigated. A total of 16 araucarene diterpenoids and their derivatives were isolated from the woods of Agathis dammara, including 11 previously unreported compounds: dammaradione (1), dammarones D-G (2, 5, 14, 15), dammaric acids B-F (8-12), and dammarol (16). The structures of these new compounds were elucidated using high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectroscopy (HR-ESI-MS) and one-dimensional/two-dimensional (1D/2D) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), while their absolute configurations were determined through the electronic circular dichroism (ECD) exciton chirality method and Snatzke's method. The hypoglycemic activity of all isolated compounds was evaluated using a transgenic zebrafish model, and a structure-activity relationship (SAR) analysis was conducted. Araucarone (3) and dammaric acid C (9), serving as representative compounds, demonstrated significant hypoglycemic effects on zebrafish. The primary mechanism involves the promotion of pancreatic β cell regeneration and glucose uptake. Specifically, these compounds enhance the differentiation of pancreatic endocrine precursor cells (PEP cells) into β cells in zebrafish.
Zebrafish ; Animals ; Diterpenes/isolation & purification* ; Insulin-Secreting Cells/cytology* ; Glucose/metabolism* ; Hypoglycemic Agents/isolation & purification* ; Molecular Structure ; Structure-Activity Relationship ; Plant Extracts/pharmacology* ; Regeneration/drug effects*

Objective:To explore the diagnostic value of detection of serum gastrin-17 (G-17), soluble B7-H3 (sB7-H3), and Dickkopf-1 (DKK1) in early gastric cancer (EGC) .Methods:A total of 95 patients with EGC admitted to the Hospital of 81st Group Army of the Chinese People's Liberation Army from April 2021 to April 2023 were selected as the EGC group, 95 gastritis patients as the gastritis group, and 95 healthy individuals as the control group. The serum levels of G-17, sB7-H3, and DKK1 were compared among the three groups of subjects, and serum G-17, sB7-H3 and DKK1 levels of patients with different pathological characteristics in EGC group were also compared. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to analyze the diagnostic value of serum G-17, sB7-H3, and DKK1 levels for EGC. Multivariate logistic regression was applied to analyze the risk factors of EGC.Results:The proportions of Helicobacter pylori infection in the control group, gastritis group, and EGC group were 20.00% (19/95), 35.79% (34/95), and 61.05% (58/95), respectively, with a statistically significant difference ( χ2=34.26, P<0.001). The serum G-17 levels were (6.98±0.55), (8.39±0.95), and (9.46±1.38) pmol/L, respectively, with a statistically significant difference ( F=141.82, P<0.001). The levels of sB7-H3 were (18.86±1.64), (20.34±2.16), (22.44±2.62) ng/ml, respectively, with a statistically significant difference ( F=64.86, P<0.001). The levels of DKK1 were (12.87±1.96), (14.75±2.09), (6.93±2.24) ng/ml, respectively, with a statistically significant difference ( F=88.95, P<0.001). Pairwise comparison showed that the proportion of Helicobacter pylori infection in the control group, gastritis group and EGC group increased in turn, and the levels of serum G-17, sB7-H3 and DKK1 increased in turn (all P<0.05). There were no significant difference in age and gender between EGC patients with different serum G-17, sB7-H3 and DKK1 levels (all P>0.05), and there were statistically significant differences in tumor diameter ( χ2=5.74, P=0.017; χ2=4.98, P=0.026; χ2=5.74, P=0.017), tumor invasion ( χ2=10.94, P=0.001; χ2=16.16, P<0.001; χ2=21.16, P<0.001), lymph node metastasis ( χ2=6.75, P=0.009; χ2=10.68, P=0.001; χ2=4.74, P=0.029) and differentiation type ( χ2=7.00, P=0.008; χ2=4.26, P=0.039; χ2=27.18, P<0.001). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of G-17, sB7-H3 and DKK1 in the diagnosis of EGC was 0.825, 0.763 and 0.785, respectively. The AUC of the combined detection of the three indicators was 0.933, which was better than that of the three separate tests ( Z=3.22, P=0.001; Z=4.94, P<0.001; Z=4.53, P<0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the levels of G-17 ( OR=3.82, 95% CI: 1.73-8.44, P<0.001), sB7-H3 ( OR=3.96, 95% CI: 1.75-8.96, P<0.001), DKK1 ( OR=3.85, 95% CI: 1.77-8.41, P<0.001) were the independent risk factors of EGC. Conclusion:Serum G-17, sB7-H3, and DKK1 have certain auxiliary diagnostic value of three indexes for EGC, and the combined detection value is higher.

Objective:To investigate the distribution characteristics of skeletal muscle mass and strength in the older adults over 65 years old in 18 longevity areas in China.Methods:The subjects were selected from the Healthy Aging and Biomarkers Cohort Study conducted in 18 longevity areas of China. A total of 4 662 older adults over 65 years old from a cross- sectional survey in 2021 were included in the study. The information about their sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle, nutrient intake and other factors were collected through questionnaire surveys and physical examinations. Grip strength was measured by using professional electronic grip dynamometer. Total skeletal muscle mass (TSM) was measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis, and TSM was adjusted by height squared and BMI to obtain TSM Ht2 and TSM BMI. The proportion of individuals with low muscle mass and strength was determined according to the recommended method by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS). Descriptive analysis was conducted on the population and regional distribution characteristics of people with different muscle mass and grip strength. A generalized additive model was used to analyze the age-related trends of muscle mass and grip strength. Results:The age of 4 662 study subjects was (82.69±10.54) years, men accounted for 46.85% (2 184 cases) and Han Chinese accounted for 96.27% (4 488 cases). The M( Q1, Q3) of TSM, TSM Ht2 and TSM BMI in men were 23.30 (20.50, 26.20) kg, 9.02 (8.13, 9.89) kg/m 2, and 1.01 (0.90, 1.13) kg·(kg/m 2) -1, respectively, which were all higher than those in women [TSM: 18.20 (15.70, 20.70) kg, TSM Ht2: 8.18 (7.42, 9.07) kg/m 2 and TSM BMI: 0.79 (0.69, 0.90) kg·(kg/m 2) -1], the differences were significant (all P<0.001). The grip strength of men [ M( Q1, Q3): 24.50 (17.80, 30.80) kg] was higher than that of women [ M( Q1, Q3): 15.60 (11.10, 19.90) kg], the difference was significant ( P<0.001). Southern elderly men had lower TSM and TSM Ht2 compared with northern elderly men (all P<0.001), while there was no significant regional difference in TSM BMI ( P>0.05). Southern elderly women had higher TSM Ht2 and TSM BMI compared with northern elderly women (all P<0.001), while there was no significant regional difference in TSM ( P>0.05). Furthermore, according to the method recommended by AWGS, the elderly with low muscle mass and grip strength were characterized by older age, illiteracy, being unmarried/divorced/widowed, poor chewing ability, impaired activity of daily living and living in southern region. Conclusion:There were population and regional differences in muscle mass and grip strength in the older adults over 65 years in 18 longevity areas of China, and these differences showed decreasing trends with age.

Objective:To develop a prediction tool for 6-year incident risk of frailty among Chinese older adults aged 65 years or above.Methods:Data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey from 2002 to 2018 was used, including 13 676 older adults aged 65 years or above who were free of frailty at baseline. Key predictors of frailty were identified via the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method, and were thereafter used to predict the incident frailty based on the Cox proportional hazards regression model. The model was internally validated by 2 000 Bootstrap resamples and evaluated for the performance of discrimination and calibration using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and calibration curve, respectively. The net benefit of the developed prediction tool was evaluated by decision-curve analysis.Results:The M( Q1, Q3) age and follow-up time of the participants were 81.0 (71.0, 90.0) years and 6.0 (4.1, 9.2) years, respectively. A total of 4 126 older persons (30.2%) were recorded with frailty incidents during the follow-up, with the corresponding incidence density of 41.8/1 000 person-years. A total of 15 key predictors of frailty were selected by LASSO, namely, age, sex, race, education years, meat consumption, tea drinking, performing housework, raising domestic animals, playing cards or mahjong, and baseline status of visual function, activities of the daily living score, instrumental activities of the daily living score, hypertension, heart disease, and self-rated health. The prediction model was internally validated with an AUC of 0.802, with the max Youden's index of 0.467 at a risk threshold of 19.0%. The calibration curve showed high consistency between predicted probabilities and observed proportions of frailty events. The decision curve indicated that higher net benefits could be obtained via the prediction model than did strategies based on intervention in all or none participants for any risk threshold less than 59%, and the model-based net benefit was estimated to be 0.10 at a risk threshold of 19.0%. Conclusions:The herein developed 6-year incident risk prediction model of frailty, based on easily accessible questionnaires and physical examination variables, has good predictive performance. It has application potential in identifying populations at high risk of incident frailty.

Objective To investigate the effect of peripheral blood bile acids on the cognitive function of schizophrenia patients.Methods Targeted metabolomics was adopted to analyze the total level of primary and secondary serum bile acid metabolites collected from 23 schizophrenia patients and 23 health control individuals.The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery(MCCB)was adopted to evaluate the subjects'cognitive function in five dimensions.Results We found that the schizophrenia patients had impaired cognitive functions in multiple dimensions including speed of processing,working memory,reasoning and problem solving,and visual learning.Compared with the health control group,serum levels of cholic acid(CA)and chenodeoxycholic acid(CDCA)were significantly lower in patients with schizophrenia,while serum level of glycocholic acid(GCA)was significantly higher,and the ratio of deoxycholic acid(DCA)to CA was higher(3.04 vs.1.16).Speed of processing,working memory,reasoning and problem solving,and visual learning abilities were significantly negatively correlated with serum levels of multiple primary bile acids including taurocholic acid(TCA),GCA,glycochenodeoxycholic acid(GCDCA)and taurochenodeoxycholic acid(TCDCA),after adjustments of age,sex,and body mass index.Conclusion The bile acid profile of schizophrenia patients is obvious,and the decrease in neuroprotective bile acids(namely,CA and CDCA)and the up-regulation of cytotoxic bile acid(i.e.,GCA)may impair the cognitive function of schizophrenia patients.

Objective:To investigate the current status of endoscopic treatment for gastroesophageal varices in portal hypertension in China, and to provide supporting data and reference for the development of endoscopic treatment.Methods:In this study, initiated by the Liver Health Consortium in China (CHESS), a questionnaire was designed and distributed online to investigate the basic condition of endoscopic treatment for gastroesophageal varices in portal hypertension in 2022 in China. Questions included annual number and indication of endoscopic procedures, adherence to guideline for preventing esophagogastric variceal bleeding (EGVB), management and timing of emergent EGVB, management of gastric and isolated varices, and improvement of endoscopic treatment. Proportions of hospitals concerning therapeutic choices to all participant hospitals were calculated. Guideline adherence between secondary and tertiary hospitals were compared by using Chi-square test.Results:A total of 836 hospitals from 31 provinces (anotomous regions and municipalities) participated in the survey. According to the survey, the control of acute EGVB (49.3%, 412/836) and the prevention of recurrent bleeding (38.3%, 320/836) were major indications of endoscopic treatment. For primary [non-selective β-blocker (NSBB) or endoscopic therapies] and secondary prophylaxis (NSBB and endoscopic therapies) of EGVB, adherence to domestic guideline was 72.5% (606/836) and 39.2% (328/836), respectively. There were significant differences in the adherence between secondary and tertiary hospitals in primary prophylaxis of EGVB [71.0% (495/697) VS 79.9% (111/139), χ2=4.11, P=0.033] and secondary prophylaxis of EGVB [41.6% (290/697) VS 27.3% (38/139), χ2=9.31, P=0.002]. A total of 78.2% (654/836) hospitals preferred endoscopic therapies treating acute EGVB, and endoscopic therapy was more likely to be the first choice for treating acute EGVB in tertiary hospitals (82.6%, 576/697) than secondary hospitals [56.1% (78/139), χ2=46.33, P<0.001]. The optimal timing was usually within 12 hours (48.5%, 317/654) and 12-24 hours (36.9%, 241/654) after the bleeding. Regarding the management of gastroesophageal varices type 2 and isolated gastric varices type 1, most hospitals used cyanoacrylate injection in combination with sclerotherapy [48.2% (403/836) and 29.9% (250/836), respectively], but substantial proportions of hospitals preferred clip-assisted therapies [12.4% (104/836) and 26.4% (221/836), respectively]. Improving the skills of endoscopic doctors (84.2%, 704/836), and enhancing the precision of pre-procedure evaluation and quality of multidisciplinary team (78.9%, 660/836) were considered urgent needs in the development of endoscopic treatment. Conclusion:A variety of endoscopic treatments for gastroesophageal varices in portal hypertension are implemented nationwide. Participant hospitals are active to perform emergent endoscopy for acute EGVB, but are inadequate in following recommendations regarding primary and secondary prophylaxis of EGVB. Moreover, the selection of endoscopic procedures for gastric varices differs greatly among hospitals.

Objective To investigate the mechanism of action of the long non-coding RNA(lncRNA)taurine up-regulating factor 1(TUG1)with high glucose(HG)-induced cellular pyroptosisin microglial cell.Methods Mouse BV2 cells were cultured and divided into normal control(NC),HG,lentiviral empty vector(sh-Con),TUG1 lentiviral gene silencing vector(sh-TUG1),HG+sh-Con and HG+sh-TUG1 group.RT-PCR was used to detect the expression and transfection efficiency of TUG1 mRNA.Nucleotide-binding oligomerized structural domain-like receptor protein 3(NLRP3),cysteoaspartate protease-1(Caspase-1),and ghrelin D(GSDMD),IL-18,IL-1β mRNA and protein expression were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot.Results TUG1 mRNA expression was higher in HG group than in NC group(P＜0.05).After transfection,a lot of green fluorescence appeared in sh-TUG1 and sh-Con group,while no green fluorescence was observed in NC group.The expression of TUG1 mRNA was lower in sh-TUG1 group than in NC group(P＜0.05).Accordingly,the recombinant lentivirus successfully infected BV2 cell.The expressions of the mRNA and protein of NLRP3,Caspase-1,GSDMD,IL-18 and L-1β were higher in HG,HG+sh-Con groups than in NC group(P＜0.05).The expressions of the mRNA and protein of NLRP3,Caspase-1,GSDMD and IL-18 and L-1β were lower in HG+shTUG1 group than in HG,HG+sh-Con groups(P＜0.05).Conclusions TUG1 is involved in high glucose induced pyroptosis in microglia and leads to inflammatory response.Silencing TUG1 can inhibit the pathological reaction.

Objective To investigate the effect of ethanolic extract of Cichorium glandulosum Boiss.et Huet.on fecal bile acid profiles in high-fat-diet-induced obese mice.Methods Twenty-four 6-week-old C57 BL/6 male mice were divided randomly into normal,model,drug-administration,and metformin groups.Mice in the normal group were fed a regular diet and mice in the other three groups were given high-fat diets.The drug-administration group was gavaged with 10 mL/kg ethanol extract of Cichorium glandulosum Boiss.et Huet.daily,and the metformin group was gavaged with 10 mL/kg metformin daily.After 10 weeks,livers were collected to measure hepatic total triglycerides(TG),total cholesterol(TC),low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol(LDL-C),and high-density lipoprotein(HDL)-C.Feces were collected and analyzed.Results Body weight(P＜0.0001),liver TG(P＜0.05),and TC(P＞0.05)were all significantly higher in model mice compared with normal mice,while LDL-C(P＞0.05)and HDL-C(P＜0.001)were significantly lower,indicating abnormal weight gain and lipid metabolism.Alcoholic extract of Cichorium glandulosum Boiss.et Huet.significantly reduced body weight(P＜0.0001),liver TG(P＜0.0001),serum TG(P＜0.05),TC(P＜0.01),and LDL-C(P＜0.05)in mice.Methodsological validation showed that the current method could accurately quantify 52 bile acids in feces.Analysis of the concentration of each type of bile acid revealed that alcoholic extract of Cichorium glandulosum Boiss.et Huet.significantly increased the secondary/primary bile acid ratio(P＜0.05).Multivariate analysis showed that the bile acid metabolic pattern was significantly altered in all groups.Eight differential bile acids were screened in the drug-administration group relative to the model group using variable importance of projection＞1 and P＜0.05.A search of the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes database revealed that the differential bile acids were mainly involved in the secondary bile acid biosynthesis pathway.Correlation analysis showed that four differential bile acids,deoxycholic acid(r,=0.6445,P＜0.001),isolithocholic acid(r,=0.5879,P＜0.01),3β-deoxycholic acid(r,=0.6649,P＜0.001),and ω-rhamnoglutaric acid(rs=0.5387,P＜0.01),in feces were strongly positively correlated with body weight.Conclusions Cichorium glandulosum Boiss.et Huet.alcoholic extract may play a role in weight reduction and amelioration of dyslipidemia by modulating secondary bile acid biosynthesis and altering fecal bile acid metabolic profiles.

Inducing the degradation of KRAS represents a novel strategy to combat cancers with KRAS mutation. In this study, we identify ubiquitin-specific protease 2 (USP2) as a novel deubiquitinating enzyme of KRAS in multiple myeloma (MM). Specifically, we demonstrate that gambogic acid (GA) forms a covalent bond with the cysteine 284 residue of USP2 through an allosteric pocket, inhibiting its deubiquitinating activity. Inactivation or knockdown of USP2 leads to the degradation of KRAS, resulting in the suppression of MM cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Conversely, overexpressing USP2 stabilizes KRAS and partially abrogates GA-induced apoptosis in MM cells. Furthermore, elevated USP2 levels may be associated with poorer prognoses in MM patients. These findings highlight the potential of the USP2/KRAS axis as a therapeutic target in MM, suggesting that strategically inducing KRAS degradation via USP2 inhibition could be a promising approach for treating cancers with KRAS mutations.