Objective:To investigate the reference intervals of serum uric acid levels in normal-weight children and analyze the factors influencing these levels.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, clinical data were collected from 7 910 normal-weight children, aged 1 month to 15 years, who underwent health check-ups at the Children′s Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine between August 2013 and August 2023. Data included sex, age, pubertal signs, blood pressure, and serum uric acid levels. The participants were categorized into 4 age groups: 1-<12 months, 1-<6 years, 6-<11 years, and 11-<16 years, and were further analyzed by sex. The P5 and P95 percentiles of uric acid values were defined as the lower and upper limits of the reference interval, respectively. Correlation analysis and partial correlation analysis were used to assess the relationship between uric acid and other variables such as age, body mass index Z value, and Tanner stage. Multivariate linear regression was used to compare uric acid levels across gender and age groups, respectively. Results:Among the 7 910 children, the distribution across age groups was as follows: 562 (317 boys) in 1-<12 months, 4 120 (2 366 boys) in 1-<6 years, 2 357 (1 432 boys) in 6-<11 years, and 871 (536 boys) in 11-<16 years, the uric acid levels in boys were significantly higher than those in girls ( P<0.05). Uric acid levels exhibited a positive correlation with age ( r=0.47 , 0.20, both P<0.001), and a weak positive correlation with BMI Z-scores(both r=0.11, P<0.001). Among participants aged 6-<11 years and 11-<16 years, uric acid levels in boys were positively correlated with Tanner stage ( r=0.10, 0.27, both P<0.05), but no significant correlation was observed in girls (all P>0.05). The uric acid levels were significantly higher in boys than in girls in the 1-<12 months, 1-<6 years and 11-<16 years age groups (all P<0.05), but no significant gender difference was found in the 6-<11 years groups ( P>0.05). Uric acid levels exhibited statistically significant variations among age groups ( P<0.001). The reference intervals of uric acid values were as follows in 1-<12 months age group, 157-335 μmol/L for boys and 160-315 μmol/L for girls; in 1-<6 years age group, 180-359 μmol/L for boys and 180-355 μmol/L for girls; in 6-<11 years group, 190-375 μmol/L; in 11-<16 years age group, 237-480 μmol/L for boys and 218-410 μmol/L for girls. Conclusions:Reference intervals for uric acid varying significantly across different pediatric age groups. Sex, and pubertal development status are closely related to uric acid levels.

Vaccination is a crucial strategy for the prevention and control of infectious diseases. Virus-like particles (VLPs), composed of structural proteins, have garnered significant attention as a novel type of vaccine due to their excellent safety and immunogenicity. However, similar to most vaccine antigens, VLPs exhibit insufficient thermal stability, which not only restricts the widespread application of vaccines but also increases the risk of vaccine inactivation. This study aims to enhance the stability and shelf life of VLPs derived from type A foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) by employing vacuum freeze-drying technology. The optimal lyoprotectant formulation was determined through single-factor and combinatorial screening. Subsequently, the correlation between the immunogenicity of the freeze-dried vaccine and the content of FMDV VLPs was evaluated via a mouse model. The stability of FMDV VLPs before and after freeze-drying was further assessed by storing them at 4, 25, and 37 ℃ for varying time periods. Results indicated that the lyoprotectant formulation No.1, composed of 7.5% trehalose, 0.1% Tween 80, 50 mmol/L glycine, 1% sodium glutamate, and 3% polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), effectively preserved the content of FMDV VLPs during the vacuum freeze-drying process. The immunization trial in mice revealed that the levels of specific antibodies, immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1), interleukin-4 (IL-4), and neutralizing antibodies induced by freeze-dried FMDV VLPs were comparable to those induced by non-freeze-dried FMDV VLPs. The heat treatment results showed that the storage periods of freeze-dried FMDV VLPs at 4, 25, and 37 ℃ were significantly longer than those of non-freeze-dried FMDV VLPs. In conclusion, the selected lyoprotectant formulation effectively improved the stability of FMDV VLPs vaccines. This study provides valuable insights for enhancing the stability of novel subunit vaccines.
Freeze Drying/methods* ; Animals ; Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus/immunology* ; Mice ; Vaccines, Virus-Like Particle/chemistry* ; Foot-and-Mouth Disease/immunology* ; Vacuum ; Drug Stability ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Viral Vaccines/immunology*

Objective:To investigate the reference intervals of serum uric acid levels in normal-weight children and analyze the factors influencing these levels.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, clinical data were collected from 7 910 normal-weight children, aged 1 month to 15 years, who underwent health check-ups at the Children′s Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine between August 2013 and August 2023. Data included sex, age, pubertal signs, blood pressure, and serum uric acid levels. The participants were categorized into 4 age groups: 1-<12 months, 1-<6 years, 6-<11 years, and 11-<16 years, and were further analyzed by sex. The P5 and P95 percentiles of uric acid values were defined as the lower and upper limits of the reference interval, respectively. Correlation analysis and partial correlation analysis were used to assess the relationship between uric acid and other variables such as age, body mass index Z value, and Tanner stage. Multivariate linear regression was used to compare uric acid levels across gender and age groups, respectively. Results:Among the 7 910 children, the distribution across age groups was as follows: 562 (317 boys) in 1-<12 months, 4 120 (2 366 boys) in 1-<6 years, 2 357 (1 432 boys) in 6-<11 years, and 871 (536 boys) in 11-<16 years, the uric acid levels in boys were significantly higher than those in girls ( P<0.05). Uric acid levels exhibited a positive correlation with age ( r=0.47 , 0.20, both P<0.001), and a weak positive correlation with BMI Z-scores(both r=0.11, P<0.001). Among participants aged 6-<11 years and 11-<16 years, uric acid levels in boys were positively correlated with Tanner stage ( r=0.10, 0.27, both P<0.05), but no significant correlation was observed in girls (all P>0.05). The uric acid levels were significantly higher in boys than in girls in the 1-<12 months, 1-<6 years and 11-<16 years age groups (all P<0.05), but no significant gender difference was found in the 6-<11 years groups ( P>0.05). Uric acid levels exhibited statistically significant variations among age groups ( P<0.001). The reference intervals of uric acid values were as follows in 1-<12 months age group, 157-335 μmol/L for boys and 160-315 μmol/L for girls; in 1-<6 years age group, 180-359 μmol/L for boys and 180-355 μmol/L for girls; in 6-<11 years group, 190-375 μmol/L; in 11-<16 years age group, 237-480 μmol/L for boys and 218-410 μmol/L for girls. Conclusions:Reference intervals for uric acid varying significantly across different pediatric age groups. Sex, and pubertal development status are closely related to uric acid levels.

Ubiquitination and deubiquitination are common post-translational modifications of proteins. As the largest family of deubiquitinating enzymes, ubiquitin-specific proteases (USPs) play critical roles in various physiological and pathological processes. Dysregulation of their functions results in a series of physiological damages and pathological alterations, ultimately contributing to the occurrence and progression of malignant tumors, including pancreatic cancer. Currently, research on the functional mechanisms of deubiquitinating enzymes in pancreatic cancer is still limited. This review focused on the research progress of USPs family in the occurrence and development of pancreatic cancer, to elucidate their impacts on the malignant biological behaviors of pancreatic cancer and its underlying mechanisms. The therapeutic potential of USPs inhibitors in pancreatic cancer were also discussed.

Objective:To explore the effect of the isolated organ laparoscopic simulation training teaching mode in laparoscopic partial nephrectomy training.Methods:A 39-hour in vitro organ laparoscopic simulation training for 12 urologists who had previously participated in laparoscopic basic technique training but had not independently completed laparoscopic partial nephrectomy in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. The training was conducted twice a week for 3 months from April to June 2022. Five modules, namely ultrasonic knife separation training, ultrasonic knife cutting training, vascularization training, blunt separation training, and partial nephrectomy and wound closure training, were used to provide targeted training for the decomposition of laparoscopic partial nephrectomy, and each training item was assessed and scored according to the scoring rules. At the same time, a questionnaire was used to find out the level of confidence of the 12 physicians in completing the operation and each step in the procedure, so as to assess the changes in the operational skills and psychological quality of the physicians before and after training using paired t-tests or Wilcoxon paired rank sum tests. Results:After the training, the assessment scores of operations in all surgeons were significantly improved. The training scores of ultrasonic knife separation training, ultrasonic knife cutting training, blood vessel nudity training, blunt separation training, and partial nephrectomy and traumatic suture improved from (8.5±0.3), (6.9±0.3), (4.2±0.4), (6.6±0.4), and (5.6±0.7) to (9.8±0.2), (9.6±0.3), (9.3±0.2), (9.4±0.3), and (9.8±0.2), respectively( P<0.05). The average operation time for the partial renal excision and traumatic suture training improved from (47.5±5.8) minutes to (21.6±5.1) minutes( t=18.72, P<0.001). At the same time, self-confidence in completing the operation was also significantly improved from 2(1, 3) before the training to 4(4, 4) after the training ( Z=-3.002, P =0.003). Conclusions:After laparoscopic simulation training with isolated organs, physicians with no previous experience in partial nephrectomy can become proficient in all steps of the procedure, complete the resection of the renal tumor and suturing of the wound within 30 minutes, and gain confidence in the operation of all steps of partial nephrectomy.

Objective:To investigate the activation patterns of the default mode network (DMN), executive central network (ECN), salience network (SN), and frontoparietal network (FPN) in depressed patients under psychosocial stress processing, and the gender differences.Methods:A prospective study was conducted to collect clinical data, behavior data, and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data under psychosocial stress tasks from first-episode, unmedicated depressed patients (depression group,124 cases) who visited the outpatient department of the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University from July 2017 to September 2019, including 48 males, aged ( M ( Q1, Q3)) 25 (21, 28) years, and 76 females, aged 26(19, 31) years. At the same period, behavioral data and fMRI data under psychosocial stress tasks were prospectively collected from healthy controls (control group,243 cases) from universities and communities in Changsha, including 106 males, aged 21(19, 21) years, and 137 females, aged 21(20, 21) years. Independent component analysis was used to detect the DMN, ECN, SN, and FPN activation values in each group under psychosocial stress tasks. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to detect the between-group differences in the activation values of the networks of interest. Results:Compared with the healthy control group, the depression group exhibited significantly reduced activation of the SN under stress tasks (activation value: 0.01±0.01vs 0.03±0.01; F=6.50, P=0.011). The brain activation pattern of the FPN showed a significant diagnostic and gender interaction effect ( F=4.30, P=0.039). Simple effect analysis revealed that only the female depression group exhibited significantly reduced negative activation of the FPN under stress tasks compared with the corresponding gender healthy control group (activation value:-0.42±0.06 vs -0.62±0.05; PBonferroni-corrected=0.015, 95%CI=0.038-0.352). Conclusion:Depressed patients exhibit gender-consistent and gender-specific brain network activity patterns during stress processing.

Background::Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a severe and acute cardiovascular syndrome with high mortality among patients with autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases (AIIRDs). Accurate prediction and timely intervention play a pivotal role in enhancing survival rates. However, there is a notable scarcity of practical early prediction and risk assessment systems of PE in patients with AIIRD.Methods::In the training cohort, 60 AIIRD with PE cases and 180 age-, gender-, and disease-matched AIIRD non-PE cases were identified from 7254 AIIRD cases in Tongji Hospital from 2014 to 2022. Univariable logistic regression (LR) and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) were used to select the clinical features for further training with machine learning (ML) methods, including random forest (RF), support vector machines (SVM), neural network (NN), logistic regression (LR), gradient boosted decision tree (GBDT), classification and regression trees (CART), and C5.0 models. The performances of these models were subsequently validated using a multicenter validation cohort.Results::In the training cohort, 24 and 13 clinical features were selected by univariable LR and LASSO strategies, respectively. The five ML models (RF, SVM, NN, LR, and GBDT) showed promising performances, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) of 0.962-1.000 in the training cohort and 0.969-0.999 in the validation cohort. CART and C5.0 models achieved AUCs of 0.850 and 0.932, respectively, in the training cohort. Using D-dimer as a pre-screening index, the refined C5.0 model achieved an AUC exceeding 0.948 in the training cohort and an AUC above 0.925 in the validation cohort. These results markedly outperformed the use of D-dimer levels alone.Conclusion::ML-based models are proven to be precise for predicting the onset of PE in patients with AIIRD exhibiting clinical suspicion of PE.Trial Registration::Chictr.org.cn: ChiCTR2200059599.

Objective To compare the differences in lower limb force line between degenerative medial meniscus injuries and lateral meniscus injuries and investigate their correlation.Methods A total of 90 patients who underwent arthroscopic treatment for meniscal injuries between March 2019 and March 2022 were enrolled in the study.They were 45 males and 45 females,at a median age of 52 years(ranging from 40 to 59 years).Of these patients,47 had medial meniscus injuries,while 43 had lateral meniscus injuries.The hip-knee-ankle(HKA)angle was measured on full-length films,and the differences were compared between the 2 groups.Results There were no significant differences in terms of gender,age,lower limb laterality,body mass index,site of injury,and type of injury between the medial meniscus injury group and the lateral meniscus injury group.Statistical difference was observed in the mean HKA angle,with a value of(177.20±2.46)° in the medial meniscus injury group and of(181.05±3.13)° in the lateral meniscus injury group(P＜0.01).Conclusion There is a significant difference in HKA angle between medial meniscus injury group and the lateral meniscus injury group.A correlation is found between lower limb alignment and degenerative meniscus injury.

The genus jujube(Ziziphus jujuba Mill.)within the Rhamnaceae family encompasses numerous varieties,such as Ziziphus jujuba Mill.var.jujuba,Ziziphus jujuba var.inermis,and var.spinosa,etc.Among these,the jujube fructus has the most abundant cultivated variants across the country,including Ziziphus jujuba cv.Hamidazao and Ziziphus jujuba cv.Huanghetanzao.Jujube plants are rich in variety and are used for both medicinal and food purposes.Polysaccharides,one of the main active ingredients of jujube,are important medicinal components that contribute to its efficacy.Jujube polysaccharides have been found to promote hematopoiesis,exhibit antioxidant and anti-tumor activities,repair liver damage,regulate the immune system,and provide anti-inflammatory effects.By comprehensively summarizing and analyzing the literature on jujube polysaccharides from different varieties and origins,this paper reviews the potential mechanisms of action of jujube polysaccharides in exerting biological activities.It also summarizes the primary structural features,such as relative molecular mass,monosaccharide composition,glycosidic linkage,and the substituent modifications of jujube polysaccharides by sulfation,phosphorylation,carboxymethylation,selenization,and acetylation.This review aims to provide a reference for the research and development of jujube in the fields of innovative polysaccharide drugs and functional foods.

Objective:To analyze the clinic effects of arthroscopic partial trapeziectomy and suture button suspensionplasty in the treatment of first carpometacarpal joint (CMCJ) Eaton stage II/III arthrosis.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted on a total of 15 cases (16 hands) of patients including 5 males (1 bilateral) and 10 females with CMCJ stage II/III arthrosis who underwent surgical treatment at the first affiliated hospital of Shenzhen university from January 2020 to June 2022, with mean age of 56.7±6.4 years (range, 46-75 years). The duration from pain to treatment was 7.8±3.2 months (range, 4-14 months). X-ray showed narrowing of CMCJ with osteophytes and distal radial subluxation. All the patients were treated with arthroscopic partial trapeziectomy and suture button suspensionplasty. The preoperative and last postoperative follow-up radiographs, visual analogue scale (VAS), thumb's Kapandji scores, disabilies of the arm, shoulder, and hand (DASH) scores, grip and pinch strength and time to return to work were compared.Results:All cases were followed up for 19.6±6.3 months (range, 11-36 months). The postoperative X-ray showed all the CMCJs were reduced with a normal height of first metacarpal. The mean time for patients to return to their daily activities was 18.69±3.70 d and the mean time to return to work was 24.63±4.91 d. The average VAS score decreased from 6.56±1.15 preoperatively to 1.00 (0.75, 1.25). The preoperative Kapandji's score was 8.00±0.82 and the postoperative Kapandji's score was 8.00 (7.25, 9.00). The average DASH values improved from 24.06±3.19 to 4.00 (3.00, 5.00). The were significant differences except for Kapandji score ( Z=-4.905, P<0.001; Z=-0.121, P=0.905; Z=-4.846, P<0.001). The mean grip and pinch strength showed improvement from an average of 16.4 (14.13, 18.68) kg and 1.70±0.35 kg to 26.14±3.27 kg and 3.58±0.91 kg with significant difference ( Z=-4.617, P<0.001; t=-7.669, P<0.001). Conclusion:Arthroscopic partial trapeziectomy and suture button suspensionplasty is a minimally invasive surgery for the treatment of first CMCJ Eaton stage II/III arthrosis. By this technique, the patients' existing instability and pain problems can be solved.