This study explores whether the current external quality assessment (EQA) level and acceptable bias for basic semen analysis in China are clinically useful. We collected data of semen EQA from Andrology laboratories in the Hunan Province (China) in 2022 and searched for data in the published literature from January 2000 to December 2023 in China. On the basis of these data, we analyzed the coefficients of variation and acceptable biases of different quality control materials for basic semen analysis through robust statistics. We compared these findings with quality specifications based on biological variation from optimal, desirable, and minimum levels of bias to seek a unified and more suitable semen EQA bias evaluation standard for China's national conditions. Different sources of semen quality control material exhibited considerable variation in acceptable biases among laboratories, ranging from 8.2% to 56.9%. A total of 50.0% of the laboratories met the minimum quality specifications for progressive motility (PR), whereas 100.0% and 75.0% of laboratories met only the minimum quality specifications for sperm concentration and total motility (nonprogressive [NP] + PR), respectively. The Z value for sperm concentration and PR+NP was equivalent to the desirable performance specification, whereas the Z value for PR was equivalent only to the minimum performance specification. This study highlights the feasibility of operating external quality assessment schemes for basic semen analysis using quality specifications based on biological variation. These specifications should be unified among external quality control (EQC) centers based on biological variation.
Semen Analysis/standards* ; Humans ; China ; Male ; Quality Control ; Sperm Motility ; Sperm Count/standards*

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) rs1801133 and γ-glutamyl hydrolase (GGH) rs11545078 gene polymorphisms on plasma concentrations and toxicity following high-dose methotrexate (MTX) therapy in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). METHODS: Children with ALL treated at the Xuzhou Children's Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University from January 2021 to April 2024 were selected for this study. Genotypes of MTHFR rs1801133 and GGH rs11545078 were determined using multiplex polymerase chain reaction. MTX plasma concentrations were measured by enzyme-multiplied immunoassay technique, and toxicity was graded according to the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 5.0. The relationships between MTHFR rs1801133 and GGH rs11545078 genotypes and both MTX plasma concentrations and associated toxicities were analyzed. RESULTS: In the low-risk ALL group, the MTHFR rs1801133 genotype was associated with increased MTX plasma concentrations at 72 hours (P<0.05). In the intermediate- to high-risk group, the MTHFR rs1801133 genotype was associated with increased MTX plasma concentrations at 48 hours (P<0.05), and the GGH rs11545078 genotype was associated with increased MTX plasma concentrations at 48 hours (P<0.05). In the intermediate- to high-risk group, the MTHFR rs1801133 genotype was associated with the occurrence of reduced hemoglobin (P<0.05), and the GGH rs11545078 genotype was associated with the occurrence of thrombocytopenia (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Detection of MTHFR rs1801133 and GGH rs11545078 genotypes can be used to predict increased MTX plasma concentrations and the occurrence of toxic reactions in high-dose MTX treatment of ALL, enabling timely interventions to enhance safety.
Humans ; Methotrexate/toxicity* ; Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2)/genetics* ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/blood* ; Male ; Female ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; gamma-Glutamyl Hydrolase/genetics* ; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic/adverse effects* ; Infant ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Adolescent ; Genotype ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

Enamel demineralization, the formation of white spot lesions, is a common issue in clinical orthodontic treatment. The appearance of white spot lesions not only affects the texture and health of dental hard tissues but also impacts the health and aesthetics of teeth after orthodontic treatment. The prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of white spot lesions that occur throughout the orthodontic treatment process involve multiple dental specialties. This expert consensus will focus on providing guiding opinions on the management and prevention of white spot lesions during orthodontic treatment, advocating for proactive prevention, early detection, timely treatment, scientific follow-up, and multidisciplinary management of white spot lesions throughout the orthodontic process, thereby maintaining the dental health of patients during orthodontic treatment.
Humans ; Consensus ; Dental Caries/etiology* ; Dental Enamel/pathology* ; Tooth Demineralization/etiology* ; Tooth Remineralization

To promote the development of extracellular vesicles of herbal medicine especially the establishment of standardization, led by the National Expert Committee on Research and Application of Chinese Herbal Vesicles, research experts in the field of herbal medicine and extracellular vesicles were invited nationwide with the support of the Expert Committee on Research and Application of Chinese Herbal Vesicles, Professional Committee on Extracellular Vesicle Research and Application, Chinese Society of Research Hospitals and the Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Chinese Herbal Vesicles. Based on the collation of relevant literature, we have adopted the Delphi method, the consensus meeting method combined with the nominal group method to form a discussion draft of "Consensus statement on research and application of Chinese herbal medicine derived extracellular vesicles-like particles (2023)". The first draft was discussed in online and offline meetings on October 12, 14, November 2, 2022 and April and May 2023 on the current status of research, nomenclature, isolation methods, quality standards and research applications of extracellular vesicles of Chinese herbal medicines, and 13 consensus opinions were finally formed. At the Third Academic Conference on Research and Application of Chinese Herbal Vesicles, held on May 26, 2023, Kewei Zhao, convenor of the consensus, presented and read the consensus to the experts of the Expert Committee on Research and Application of Chinese Herbal Vesicles. The consensus highlights the characteristics and advantages of Chinese medicine, inherits the essence, and keeps the righteousness and innovation, aiming to provide a reference for colleagues engaged in research and application of Chinese herbal vesicles at home and abroad, decode the mystery behind Chinese herbal vesicles together, establish a safe, effective and controllable accurate Chinese herbal vesicle prevention and treatment system, and build a bridge for Chinese medicine to the world.

【Objective】 To establish the internal quality control standard of leukocyte-depleted suspended red blood cell volume in our center, so as to guide the preparation of components, strengthen the internal quality control and improve the quality of blood preparations. 【Methods】 A total of 1 523 bags of whole blood collected using two manufacturers′ leukocyte-depleted blood bags from March to August 2023 at our center were extracted. The blood before and after filtration were weighed, and the volume of whole blood collected, the volume of filtration loss and the product volume based on the formula and measured specific gravity were calculated. According to the data distribution characteristics, the reference range of leukocyte-depleted suspended red blood cell volume was determined, and the differences of whole blood collection volume, filtration loss capacity and product capacity between the two manufacturers were analyzed. The quality control data of leukocyte-depleted red blood cells over the past year with the difference between another 100 bags of these cells and the reference interval were compared, and the effectiveness of reference interval was validated. 【Results】 The median whole blood collection volume in the sample size was 402.0 mL, with a median filtration loss of 42.4 mL, and an average volume of leukocyte-depleted suspended red blood cells at 322.5 mL. The whole blood collection volume (A: median 404.4 mL; B: median 397.7 mL, P<0.01) and the volume of leukocyte-depleted suspended red blood cell products (A: mean 331.4 mL; B: mean 312.0 mL, P<0.01) using manufacturer A′s leukocyte-depleted blood bag were both higher, with a lower filtration loss capacity (A: median 39.5 mL; B: median 46.6 mL, P<0.01). The standard deviation of the volume of leukocyte-depleted suspended red blood cell was 19.6, and the reference interval was 284.1-360.9 mL. The validation samples and quality control sampling data showed no difference from the interval samples (P>0.05). 【Conclusion】 According to the actual situation of our center, the volume standard of leukocyte-depleted suspended red blood cells in our center is determined to be 284.1-360.9 mL.

Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are major outer membrane components of Gram-negative bacteria. Unlike most Gram-negative bacteria, Acinetobacter baumannii can still survive and acquire polymyxin resistance after complete loss of LPS. Previous studies of LPS-deficient Acinetobacter baumannii mostly focused on LPS-deficient strains induced by polymyxin, whose background was complex and unstable. To investigate LPS loss-mediated polymyxin resistant-Acinetobacter baumannii, this study constructed a stable and clear background LPS-deficient strain by knocking out lpxC gene in Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 19606 with CIRSPR/Cas9, and then studied the phenotypic changes of the lpxC-deficient strain including morphology, growth rate, antibiotic susceptibility, virulence, membrane permeability, and membrane potential. Animal experiments were approved by the Animal Care and Welfare Committee Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology, CAMS and PUMC (approval number: IMB-20240119D₉). The results indicated that the lpxC gene of Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 19606 was successfully knocked out. After losing the lpxC, the strain underwent the morphological change from rod-shaped to spherical. Furthermore, it leads to reduced growth rate, enhanced membrane permeability, decreased membrane potential, lower virulence, and increased antibiotic susceptibility to β-lactams, quinolones, aminoglycosides, macrolides, glycopeptides. The lpxC deletion results in significant changes in membrane homeostasis and adaptability of Acinetobacter baumannii. Understanding the phenotypic changes of colistin-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii mediated by LPS loss is useful for exploring the resistance mechanism of Acinetobacter baumannii and developing new therapeutic strategies.

Aim To investigate the protective effect of berberine(BBR)on mice with unilateral ureteral obstr-uction(UUO)and explore its mechanism.Methods C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into the sham group,UUO group,and BBR treatment groups(50,100 and 200 mg·kg-1),with eight mice in each group.Except the sham group,the other groups were subjected to left ureteral ligation to establish the UUO model.Af-ter modeling,the mice in the sham and UUO groups were fed normal saline,and the mice in the BBR treat-ment groups were fed(50,100,200)mg·kg-1 BBR by gavage for 14 days,respectively.Biochemical analy-zer was employed to detect the levels of serum creati-nine(Scr)and blood urea nitrogen(BUN).HE,Mas-son,TUNEL and immunohistochemical staining were used to observe the pathological changes of renal tis-sue.ELISA was employed to detect the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in renal tissue homogenate.Western blot was used to detect the protein levels of NF-κB p65,TGF-β1 and CTGF in mouse kidney.Re-sults Compared with the UUO group,the levels of Scr and BUN in the BBR group were significantly reduced.Renal injury and interstitial fibrosis were alleviated.The expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines decreased in kidney.The expression of NF-κB p65,TGF-β1 and CTGF decreased.All results showed some degree of dose dependence.Conclusion Berberine has a sig-nificant protective effect on unilateral ureteral obstruc-tion mice,and the mechanism may be that BBR has the potential to inhibit NF-κB p65/TGF-β1/CTGF signa-ling pathway,thus reducing renal inflammation and fi-brosis.

Objective To investigate the effect of chemokine CXC ligand 9(CXCL9)on cognitive function impairment in patients with breast cancer brain metastases undergoing whole-brain radiotherapy(WBRT)using bioinformatics methods.Methods The mRNA of breast cancer brain metastases datasets GSE43837 and GSE12276 and Alzheimer's disease(AD)dataset GSE161199 were screened and downloaded from GEO database.Limma method and Venn diagrams were used to identify common differentially expressed genes(DEGs),and protein-protein interaction and functional prediction through GeneMANIA website assays were performed.A total of 42 patients with breast cancer brain metastases who first visited the Department of Radiotherapy at the First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University from January 2021 to January 2023 were selected.Patients were divided into normal cognitive function group and cognitive function impairment group based on cognitive status.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)was employed to detect serum CXCL9 levels one week before and three months after radiotherapy.The mini-mental state examination(MMSE)was used to assess patients'cognitive function.Results The DEGs from datasets GSE43837 and GSE12276 included PKP1,POLDIP2,SPAG5,ALDOC,PTPRZ1,PKIA,TLCD1,CPE,PMP22 and CXCL9.The DEGs from GSE161199 included RPS16,CD79A,LYPD3,RPL28,HBG2,RPL23AP7,TRNR,CXCL9.Venn diagram showed that CXCL9 was a common DEG between breast cancer brain metastasis and AD.Functional enrichment analysis indicated that CXCL9 was involved in cellular responses to chemokines,negative regulation of immune system processes,negative regulation of vascular morphogenesis,Toll-like receptor signaling pathway,nucleotide oligomerization domain(NOD)-like receptor signaling pathway,and JAK-STAT signaling pathway.Before radiotherapy,patients with cognitive function impairment and normal cognitive function accounted for 61.9%and 38.1%,respectively,with a statistically significant difference in MMSE scores[(24.53±2.19)vs.(28.89±1.36),P＜0.01].Compared with normal cognitive function group,patients with cognitive function impairment had a significantly increased number of brain metastases and significantly lower Karnofsky performance status(KPS)scores and serum CXCL9 levels(P＜0.05).Three months after radiotherapy,patients with cognitive function impairment and normal cognitive function accounted for 47.6%and 52.4%,respectively,with a statistically significant difference in MMSE scores[(25.16±1.98)vs.(28.18±1.08),P＜0.01].Compared with normal cognitive function group,patients with cognitive function impairment had significantly lower CXCL9 levels(P=0.003).In patients with normal cognitive function,CXCL9 levels were remarkably lower after radiotherapy compared to those before radiotherapy(P=0.009).Conclusions Patients with cognitive function impairment had significantly lower CXCL9 levels than those with normal cognitive function,and whole-brain radiotherapy may be related to a certain degree of reduction in CXCL9 levels.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy and safety of chidamide in the maintenance therapy for patients with T-cell lymphoma (TCL).Methods:A prospective, single-arm clinical study was conducted. A total of 53 TCL patients who achieved partial remission (PR) and above after first-line induction chemotherapy in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Military Medical University from May 2018 to July 2020 were included, among which 28 cases underwent autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation after induction chemotherapy, and then received maintenance therapy with chidamide initiating 30 to 45 days after transplantation (the transplantation group); 25 cases began to receive maintenance therapy with chidamide about 30 days after 6 to 8 courses of first-line induction chemotherapy (non-transplantation group). Chidamide usage was listed as follows: oral, 20-30 mg per time, 2 times per week, at intervals of not less than 3 d and the therapy was maintained for 2 years or until disease progression or intolerance. The main study endpoint was the 2-year recurrence rate, and the secondary study endpoints included the 1-year recurrence rate, the 1- and 2-year progression free survival (PFS) rate, the 1- and 2-year overall survival (OS) rate, and the safety of maintenance therapy.Results:The median follow-up was 13.5 months (range 5 to 51 months). After 6 to 8 courses of first-line induction chemotherapy in 53 patients with TCL, complete remission (CR) was achieved in 29 (54.7%) cases and PR in 24 (45.3%) cases. The proportion of patients aged ≤ 60 years and those achieving CR before maintenance treatment in the transplantation group was higher than that in non-transplantation group (both P < 0.05). During maintenance therapy, the best remission reached CR in 84.9% (45/53) of patients; CR rates during maintenance therapy were 89.3% (25/28) and 80.0% (20/25), respectively in the transplantation and non-transplantation groups; and PR rates were 10.7% (3/28), and 20.0% (5/25) ( χ2 = 0.31, P = 0.577). Among the 53 patients with TCL, 21 cases had recurrence with a 1-year recurrence rate of 26.4% (14/53) and a 2-year recurrence rate of 39.6% (21/53). The 2-year recurrence rates were 42.9% (12/28) and 36.0% (9/25), respectively in the transplantation and non-transplantation groups, and the difference was not statistically significant ( χ2 = 0.26, P = 0.610). The 1-year recurrence rates of patients receiving chidamide maintenance therapy with different international prognostic index (IPI) scores and whether achieving CR before maintenance therapy or not showed statistically significant differences (all P < 0.05); the 2-year recurrence rates of patients receiving chidamide maintenance therapy with different IPI scores, bone involvement or not and whether achieving CR before maintenance therapy or not showed statistically significant differences (all P < 0.05). The 1-year PFS and OS rates were 80.7% and 88.6%, and the 2-year PFS and OS rates were 61.1% and 71.9% in 53 patients. The 1-year PFS rates of patients in the transplantation and non-transplantation groups were 81.1% and 80.2% ( P = 0.774), and the 1-year OS rates were 89.3% and 87.4%, respectively ( P = 0.736). The 2-year PFS rates were 60.4% and 61.3% ( P = 0.440), and the 2-year OS rates were 72.7% and 70.6% ( P = 0.510). No patient discontinued chidamide maintenance therapy due to adverse drug reactions during maintenance therapy; ≥ grade 3 adverse drug reactions included neutropenia (9 cases, 23.1%), anemia (7 cases, 17.9%), thrombocytopenia (6 cases, 16.2%) and electhrolyte disturbance (1 case, 5.3%). The chidamide dosage was adjusted to 20 mg per time due to leucopenia in 7 patients and thrombocytopenia in 3 patients. Conclusions:Maintenance therapy with chidamide can reduce recurrence rate and prolong survival time of TCL patients, and it has a favorable safety.

Peripheral T-cell lymphoma(PTCL)is a group of hematological malignant tumors with high heterogeneity.At present,CHOP(cyclophosphamide,vincristine,prednisone,doxorubicin)or CHOP-like regimens are usually used for first-line treatment,but the remission rate is low,and the prognosis is poor.It is urgent to improve the traditional chemotherapy regimens to improve the efficacy onthe basis of tradtional che-motherapeutic regimen.Recent studies have found that the epigenetic alterations are crucial in the pathogene-sis of PTCL,and more and more new epigenetic targeted drugs have shown good effects and safety in the monotherapy and combination therapy of PTCL,which provide a new strategy for the precise diagnosis and treatment of PTCL.This article reviews the latest progress in epigenetic changes of PTCL and the prospects of targeted drug therapy applications,in order to provide reference for improving the clinical prognosis of the patients with PTCL.