Background::Findings on the association of genetic factors and colorectal cancer (CRC) survival are limited and inconsistent, and revealing the mechanism underlying their prognostic roles is of great importance. This study aimed to explore the relationship between functional genetic variations and the prognosis of CRC and further reveal the possible mechanism.Methods::We first systematically performed expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) analysis using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset. Then, the Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to filter out the survival-related eQTL target genes of CRC patients in two public datasets (TCGA and GSE39582 dataset from the Gene Expression Omnibus database). The seven most potentially functional eQTL single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with six survival-related eQTL target genes were genotyped in 907 Chinese CRC patients with clinical prognosis data. The regulatory mechanism of the survival-related SNP was further confirmed by functional experiments.Results::The rs71630754 regulating the expression of endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 ( ERAP1) was significantly associated with the prognosis of CRC (additive model, hazard ratio [HR]: 1.43, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.08-1.88, P = 0.012). The results of dual-luciferase reporter assay and electrophoretic mobility shift assay showed that the A allele of the rs71630754 could increase the binding of transcription factor 3 (TCF3) and subsequently reduce the expression of ERAP1. The results of bioinformatic analysis showed that lower expression of ERAP1 could affect the tumor immune microenvironment and was significantly associated with severe survival outcomes. Conclusion::The rs71630754 could influence the prognosis of CRC patients by regulating the expression of the immune-related gene ERAP1. Trial Registration::No. NCT00454519 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/)

Reducing lactate accumulation has always been a goal of the mammalian cell biotechnology industry. When animal cells are cultured in vitro, the accumulation of lactate is mainly the combined result of two metabolic pathways. On one hand, glucose generates lactate under the function of lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA); on the other hand, lactate can be oxidized to pyruvate by LDHB or LDHC and re-enter the TCA cycle. This study comprehensively evaluated the effects of LDH manipulation on the growth, metabolism and human adenovirus (HAdV) production of human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK-293) cells, providing a theoretical basis for engineering the lactate metabolism in mammalian cells. By knocking out ldha gene and overexpression of ldhb and ldhc genes, the metabolic efficiency of HEK-293 cells was effectively improved, and HAdV production was significantly increased. Compared with the control cell, LDH manipulation promoted cell growth, reduced the accumulation of lactate and ammonia, significantly enhanced the efficiency of substrate and energy metabolism of cells, and significantly increased the HAdV production capacity of HEK-293 cells. Among these LDH manipulation measures, ldhc gene overexpression performed the best, with the maximum cell density increased by about 38.7%. The yield of lactate to glucose and ammonia to glutamine decreased by 33.8% and 63.3%, respectively; and HAdV titer increased by at least 16 times. In addition, the ATP production rate, ATP/O₂ ratio, ATP/ADP ratio and NADH content of the modified cell lines were increased to varying degrees, and the energy metabolic efficiency was significantly improved.
Animals ; Humans ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase/genetics* ; Lactic Acid ; Adenoviruses, Human ; Ammonia ; HEK293 Cells ; Glucose/metabolism* ; Adenosine Triphosphate/metabolism* ; Kidney/metabolism* ; Mammals/metabolism*

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli（ETEC）infection can induce watery diarrhea，leading to dehydration，electrolyte disturbance，and even death in severe cases. Recombinant B subunit/inactivated whole-cell cholera（rBS/WC）vaccine is effective in preventing ETEC infectious diarrhea. On the basis of the latest evidence on etiology and epidemiology of ETEC，as well as the effectiveness，safety，and health economics of rBS/WC vaccine，National Clinical Research Center for Child Health（The Children’s Hospital，Zhejiang University School of Medicine）and Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention invited experts to develop expert consensus on rBS/WC vaccine in prevention of ETEC infectious diarrhea. It aims to provide the clinicians and vaccination professionals with guidelines on using rBS/WC vaccine to reduce the incidence of ETEC infectious diarrhea.

ObjectiveTo explore the pharmacodynamic effects of total flavonoids of Paeonia suffruticosa flower （TFPFs） on rats with hyperuricemia and provide scientific data support for the research and development of therapeutic drugs for hyperuricemia. MethodThe hyperuricemia model was induced by adenine combined with ethambutol in rats. The rats were randomly divided into a blank control group， a model group， two positive control groups （allopurinol at 42 mg·kg^-1 and Tongfengshu tablets at 600 mg·kg^-1）， and high-， medium-， and low-dose TFPFs groups （260， 130， and 65 mg·kg^-1）. The general conditions of rats were observed and recorded， and the body weight was recorded once every 5 days. The 24-hour urine volume， water intake， uric acid （UA）， and urinary protein of rats were determined after the last administration. The kidney index was calculated. The pathological changes in thymus and spleen tissues of rats were observed by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining. The serum activities of UA， creatinine （Cr）， blood urea nitrogen （BUN）， malondialdehyde （MDA）， superoxide dismutase （SOD）， and total antioxidant capacity （T-AOC） of rats were determined. The xanthine oxidase （XOD） and adenosine deaminase （ADA） activities in the liver were detected. The content of uric acid transporter 1 （URAT1）， organic anion transporter 1 （OAT1）， and glucose transporter 9 （GLUT9） in the kidney was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. ResultCompared with the results in the model group， TFPFs could improve the mental state of rats， increase the body weight（P<0.01）， promote UA excretion（P<0.01）， reduce the content of urinary protein（P<0.05）， relieve renal glomerular atrophy， renal tubular epithelial cell status， and urate crystal deposition in renal tubules， dwindle 24-hour urine volume， water intake， kidney index（P<0.05）， serum levels of UA， Cr， BUN， and MDA（P<0.05，P<0.01）， inhibit the activities of XOD（P<0.05） and ADA（P<0.05，P<0.01）in the liver， diminish the expression of GLUT9 in the renal homogenate（P<0.05）， and increase serum SOD and T-AOC activities as well as OAT1 expression（P<0.01） in the kidney. The pathological changes of thymus and spleen were improved. ConclusionTFPFs possess a protective effect on the kidney of rats with hyperuricemia， which is achieved by promoting uric acid excretion， inhibiting oxidation and the activity of key enzymes in uric acid synthesis， and regulating the expression of uric acid transporters.

Background::Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD) is an extremely lethal malignancy. Identification of the functional genes and genetic variants related to PAAD prognosis is important and challenging. Previously identified prognostic genes from several expression profile analyses were inconsistent. The regulatory genetic variants that affect PAAD prognosis were largely unknown.Methods::Firstly, a meta-analysis was performed with seven published datasets to systematically explore the candidate prognostic genes for PAAD. Next, to identify the regulatory variants for those candidate genes, expression quantitative trait loci analysis was implemented with PAAD data resources from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Then, a two-stage association study in a total of 893 PAAD patients was conducted to interrogate the regulatory variants and find the prognostic locus. Finally, a series of biochemical experiments and phenotype assays were carried out to demonstrate the biological function of variation and genes in PAAD progression process.Results::A total of 128 genes were identified associated with the PAAD prognosis in the meta-analysis. Fourteen regulatory loci in 12 of the 128 genes were discovered, among which, only rs4887783, the functional variant in the promoter of Ring Finger and WD Repeat Domain 3 ( RFWD3), presented significant association with PAAD prognosis in both stages of the population study. Dual-luciferase reporter and electrophoretic mobility shift assays demonstrated that rs4887783-G allele, which predicts the worse prognosis, enhanced the binding of transcript factor REST, thus elevating RFWD3 expression. Further phenotypic assays revealed that excess expression of RFWD3 promoted tumor cell migration without affecting their proliferation rate. RFWD3 was highly expressed in PAAD and might orchestrate the genes in the DNA repair process. Conclusions::RFWD3 and its regulatory variant are novel genetic factors for PAAD prognosis.

Hypoxemia is a common complication of pneumonia, asthma, and bronchopulmonary dysplasia in children.Rapid identification of hypoxemia is of great significance for the disposal and management of critical children.Pulse oximetry is recognized by the World Health Organization as the best way to monitor hypoxemia in children, and it can monitor pulse oxygen saturation noninvasively and continuously.Based on the related literature at home and abroad, combined with the clinical needs of pediatrics, the " Expert consensus on clinical application of pulse oximetry in children" is formulated to improve the understanding of pediatricians and nurses on the application in pediatric clinical practice, principle, operation techniques, and limitations of pulse oximetry.

Objective:To study the clinical features of children with Prader-Willi syndrome(PWS).Methods:Eighteen cases of PWS were collected from July 2016 to November 2018 in Shenzhen Maternal and Child Healthcare Hospital, Southern Medical University.The clinical data of children with PWS were analyzed retrospectively.Results:There were 12 males and 6 females in 18 cases with PWS.The diagnosis age ranged from 25 days to 9.5 years old [(3.09±3.02) years old]. Among them, 11 cases were in infancy (≤3 years old) and 7 cases after infancy (>3 years old). The main clinical features of infants with PWS were 11 cases of gonadal dysplasia (100.0%), 11 cases of psychomotor retardation (100.0%), 10 cases of hypotonia (90.1%), 6 cases of feeding difficulty and weak cry (54.5%). After infancy the main clinical features included 7 cases of psychomotor retardation (100.0%), 5 cases of hyperphagia(71.4%), 5 cases of obesity (71.4%), 5 cases of abnormal behavior problems (71.4%) and 4 cases of visual problems (57.1%). The clinical features of all patients throughout the developmental stage were as follows: decreased fetal movement, hypoplasia, neonatal hypotonia, weak cry, feeding difficulty, psychomotor delay, hyperphagia, obesity, abnormal behavior problems, and so on.Conclusions:The clinical features of PWS vary with age.The main clinical features in the infancy are hypotonia, weak cry, difficulty feeding and gonadal dysplasia.After infancy, there are hyperphagia, obesity, behavior and visual problems.And psychomotor retardation is present in the whole developmental stage of children with PWS.Early diagnosis and treatment are important for improving the prognosis of PWS.

Objective:To explore the influencing factors of fatigue after stent implantation in patients with airway stenosis.Methods:Totally 104 patients with airway stenosis hospitalized in a hospital from July 2016 to June 2019 were selected, and all the patients were planned to received stent implantation. The patients were evaluated with Identity-Consequence Fatigue Scale (ICFS) postoperatively, and divided into the fatigue group and the non-fatigue group according to the evaluate results. The data of the two groups were consulted, and their gender, age, primary tumor, combined underlying disease, postoperative physical activity, pathological staging, history of radical surgery before stenting, preoperative radiotherapy and chemotherapy, degree of stenosis, type of stenosis, infiltration juga, stent placement site, and re-intervention after stenting were analyzed. Univariate and Logistic regression analysis were performed over the above influencing factors.Results:All the 104 patients with airway stenosis completed postoperative fatigue evaluation. The total score of ICFS was (82.16±8.07) . The scores of postoperative fatigue, attention, vitality, energy, daily activities and the total score were higher than those before operation, and the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.01) . Among the 104 patients with airway stenosis, 28 developed postoperative fatigue, with an incidence of 26.92%. Univariate and multivariate Logistic analysis revealed that postoperative physical activity, pathological staging, infiltrating and re-intervention after stenting were the main influencing factors to fatigue after stent implantation in patients with airway stenosis ( P<0.05) . Conclusions:Patients with airway stenosis have a high incidence of fatigue after stent implantation, which is affected by many factors. Effective intervention measures should be formulated according to the risk factors in order to reduce the incidence of postoperative fatigue.

Colorectal cancer is a global public health issue which possesses serious challenge. The incidence of colorectal cancer in developed countries and regions stands in the forefront worldwide, and has been rising sharply in some of the developing countries. It is unanimously recognized that the occurrence of colorectal cancer is closely related to environmental factors as diet and lifestyle, genetic factors, and gene-environment interactions of the people. Since there have been many studies on the influencing factors of colorectal cancer, the current review aims at providing evidence on colorectal cancer prevention by evaluating the relationships between the influencing factors and colorectal cancer, based on the published literatures. Environmental risk factors revealed by previous epidemiological studies facilitate the population-based prevention programs against colorectal cancer. The developments of sequencing and omics technologies provide more chances to illustrate the genetic susceptibility of colorectal cancer. With both, we are able to construct more accurate risk prediction models and subsequently developing personalized intervention plans to achieve the ultimate goal of reducing the burden of colorectal cancer.

To prepare polyclonal antibody (PcAb) against Escherichia coli filamentous thermosensitive protein Z (Ec-FtsZ), the artificially synthesized gene fragment coding Ec-FtsZ was subcloned into pET-22b(+) plasmid, and Ec-FtsZ protein was expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3) cell under an optimal bacterial expression condition. Then Ec-FtsZ protein was purified by HisTrap affinity chromatography, and the GTPase (Guanosine triphosphatase) activity of purified Ec-FtsZ protein was further analyzed by malachite green assay. Subsequently, the purified Ec-FtsZ protein was used to immunize rat subcutaneously for preparation of anti-Ec-FtsZ PcAb. The results of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Western blotting analysis and immunofluorescence assay showed that the titer of PcAb was 1:256 000, and PcAb exhibited a perfect antigenic specificity against purified and endogenous Ec-FtsZ protein. All these data indicated that the anti-Ec-FtsZ PcAb is successfully prepared, which can be used for further cellular function study and biochemical analysis of Ec-FtsZ protein in vivo.
Animals ; Antibodies ; Antibody Specificity ; Bacterial Proteins ; Blotting, Western ; Cytoskeletal Proteins ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Escherichia coli ; Plasmids ; Rats