BACKGROUND: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) poses a major global health challenge, often foreshadowing poor patient outcomes. The C-reactive protein to albumin ratio (CAR) serves as a pivotal biomarker, demonstrating a strong correlation with adverse outcomes in cardiovascular disease (CVD). This study sought to examine the correlation between CAR and the risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in patients with CKD stages 3-5. METHODS: This study utilized data of CKD patients from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 1999 to 2010, with follow-up to December 31, 2019. The optimal CAR cutoff value was identified utilizing the method of maximally selected rank statistics. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression model, restricted cubic splines (RCS) model, and subgroup analysis were employed to assess the association between CAR and mortality among CKD patients. RESULTS: During a median (with interquartile range) follow-up period of 115 (112,117) months among 2,841 CKD individuals, 1,893 deaths were observed, including 692 deaths due to CVD events. Based on the RCS analysis, a non-linear correlation was observed between CAR and mortality. Using 0.3 as the optimal CAR cutoff value, the cohort was divided into high and low groups. In the fully adjusted model, CKD patients with high CAR values exhibited an elevated risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 1.53, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.28-1.83, P < 0.001) and cardiovascular mortality (HR 1.48, 95% CI 1.08-2.02, P = 0.014). Compared to the population aged >65 years (HR 1.32, 95% CI 0.99-1.76, P = 0.064), the risk of cardiovascular mortality was significantly higher in those aged ≤65 years (HR 2.19, 95% CI 1.18-4.09, P = 0.014) with elevated CAR levels. CONCLUSIONS A notable correlation exists between the elevation of CAR and increased all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, suggesting its potential as an independent indicator for evaluating the prognosis of patients with CKD stages 3-5.
Humans ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic/epidemiology* ; Cardiovascular Diseases/blood* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; C-Reactive Protein/metabolism* ; Aged ; Biomarkers/blood* ; Nutrition Surveys ; Adult ; United States/epidemiology* ; Serum Albumin/analysis*

Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors(SGLT2i)offer numerous benefits for patients with type 2 diabetes.These benefits include lowering blood pressure and glucose levels, regulating blood lipids, improving arteriosclerosis and endothelial function, reducing urinary protein and decreasing uric acid levels.Additionally, SGLT2i has shown positive outcomes in reducing the risk of kidney failure and cardiovascular adverse events in non-diabetic patients.Recent studies have also discovered that SGLT2i has anti-aging effects, which can potentially delay aging and improve age-related diseases.This article provides a comprehensive review of the potential mechanisms of SGLT2i in anti-aging, offering valuable insights for anti-aging strategies and the prevention of aging-related diseases.

Objective:To analyze the effect of comprehensive rehabilitation intervention on the physical functioning of frail elderly persons.Methods:A total of 318 frail elderly persons were randomly divided into a control group ( n=164) and an observation group ( n=154) to test different interventions. Propensity score matching was used to balance the baseline information between the two groups 1∶1. A total of 200 cases were successfully matched, with 100 cases in each group. Both groups received drug treatment and routine nursing, while the observation group was additionally provided with comprehensive rehabilitation. Before and after 4 weeks of the treatment, both groups were evaluated using visual analogue scale (VAS) scoring for their perception of pain intensity, hand grip strength, gait speed, 6-minute walking distance (6MWD), 5 sit-up time, and the timed up and go test (TUGT). Results:There were no significant differences between the groups in any of the measurements before the experiment. Afterward, all of the outcome measures except gait speed were significantly better among the experimental group than among the controls, on average.Conclusions:Comprehensive rehabilitation can relieve pain, improve the walking, handgrip strength and exercise endurance of the frail elderly.

Objective To screen the influencing factors of hepatitis C cirrhosis patients progressing to hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)using commonly used laboratory testing indicators,establish a prediction model using these indicators and validate them.Methods A total of 231 patients with hepatitis C cirrhosis and 179 patients with hepatitis C HCC hospitalized at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University between June 2020 and May 2023 were enrolled as the training set,and 105 patients with hepatitis C cirrhosis and 86 patients with hepatitis C HCC hospitalized between June 2023 and February 2024 were enrolled as the validation set.The routine laboratory test indexes of the study subjects in the two groups within the training set were compared,and logistic regression analysis was applied to screen the independent predictors of hepatocellular carcinoma occurrence.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to construct the curve model and validate the model.Results The age,male ratio,ALT,AST,AFP,WBC,NEU,MO,PLT,MPV,PDW,Fbg,NLR and PLR levels of the HCC group were higher than those of the cirrhosis group in the training set(H=-9.07～-2.19),while the levels of INR and LMR were lower than those of the cirrhosis group(H=-4.49,-2.65),and the differences were significant(all P＜0.05).The differences in TP,eGFR,LY and AST/ALT values between the two groups of patients were not significant(H=-1.46～-0.15,all P＞0.05).Multifactorial Logistic regression analysis showed that age(OR=1.048,95％CI:1.023～1.074),Male(OR=1.467,95％CI:1.413～1.765),AST(OR=1.010,95％CI:1.002～1.019),NEU(OR=1.186,95％CI:1.018～1.382)and Fbg(OR=2.245,95％CI:1.639～3.076)were independent risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma patients(all P＜0.05),and these five independent risk factors were used to construct the HCC column-line graph prediction model,with the AUC for the training set and the validation set AUC(95％Cl)were 0.813(0.771～0.854)and 0.712(0.639～0.784),respectively,and the Hosmer-Lemeshow test showed a good fit of the model with P=0.650 for the training set and P=0.310 for the validation set.Conclusion The prediction model of HCC based on age,gender,AST,NEU and Fbg can have good predictive efficacy and clinical application value.

Objective To explore the correlation between the expression of long non-coding RNA(lncRNA)brain ischemia-related factor(BIRF)and focally amplified lncRNA on chromosome 1(lncRNA FAL1)in serum and the degree of white matter lesions(WML)in patients with cerebral small vessel disease(CSVD).Methods From June 2021 to June 2023,102 CSVD patients admitted to Affiliated Hospital of Chengde Medical University were collected,and these patients were grouped into WML group(n=72)and non WML group(n=30)based on WML diagnostic criteria.According to the Fazekas score,the WML group was further grouped into mild WML group(n=24),moderate WML group(n=36)and severe WML group(n=12).Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR)was applied to detect the levels of lncRNA BIRF and lncRNA FAL1 in serum.Pearson correlation was applied to analyze the correlation between serum lncRNA BIRF and lncRNA FAL1 levels.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was applied to analyze the diagnostic value of serum lncRNA BIRF and lncRNA FAL1 levels for severe WML in CSVD patients.Results The age(70.50±5.86 years),history of hypertension(Yes/No,43/29),history of diabetes(Yes/No,45/27),IL-33(68.35±6.80 pg/ml),IL-18(97.78±9.65 ng/L),ubiquitin carboxyl terminal hydrolase L1(UCH-L1)(0.29±0.10 μg/L)and lncRNA BIRF level(2.45±0.30)of patients in the WML group were higher than those in the non WML group(67.10±5.76 years,11/19,9/21,62.48±6.13 pg/ml,92.56±9.37 ng/L,0.24±0.06 μg/L,1.02±0.11),while the expression of serum lncRNA FAL1(0.52±0.10)was lower than that in the non WML group(1.04±0.15),with significant differences(t=2.683,4.518,8.978,4.085,2.510,2.550,25.346,20.500,all P<0.05).The serum lncRNA BIRF levels of CSVD patients in the mild,moderate and severe WML groups(2.23±0.23,2.47±0.31,2.82±0.42)were increased sequentially,while the expression of serum lncRNA FAL1(0.60±0.15,0.51±0.09,0.40±0.04)was decreased sequentially,with significant differences(F=14.913,13.899,all P<0.05).Pearson correlation analysis,the serum levels of lncRNA BIRF and lncRNA FAL1 in patients with WML were negatively correlated(r=-0.603,P<0.001),serum lncRNA BIRF was positively correlated with Fazekas score in WML patients(r=0.483,P<0.001),but serum lncRNA FAL1 was negatively correlated with Fazekas score(r=-0.507,P<0.001).The AUCs of serum lncRNA BIRF and lncRNA FAL1 levels alone and both combination for predicting severe WML in CSVD patients were 0.756(0.641～0.850),0.839(0.733～0.915)and 0.892(0.796～0.953),respectively,and the combination of the two was superior to the detection of serum lncRNA BIRF alone(Z=2.111,P=0.035).Conclusion The serum lncRNA BIRF level is increased and lncRNA FAL1 is reduced in patients with CSVD and WML,and both are related to the degree of WML in CSVD patients.

Diabetes is a prevalent disease among the elderly population.Among the antidiabetic drugs, Metformin is the most commonly used, and has been found to have unique anti-aging effects through nutritional sensing regulation, maintenance of protein homeostasis, protection of mitochondrial function, alteration of intercellular communication, and telomere protection, among other mechanisms.The results of studies have shown that Metformin has significant anti-aging potential, thereby necessitating a thorough analysis and summary of its molecular mechanism and research progress in this regard.

Small interfering RNA-based RNA interference(RNAi)is an emerging treatment which has attracted more and more attention from both academia and industry. Studies on clinical translation of siRNA are popular in biomedical field, where safe and efficient carriers are necessary. As novel drug/gene vectors, dendrimers are widely used in siRNA delivery due to their unique and precise structure, multiple terminal groups and nano-sized chemophysical properties. Here, we present an overall view of current studies on dendrimer-based siRNA delivery systems, with the aim to provide an understanding of future siRNA therapeutics which could be used in clinic.

In comparison with the traditional two-dimensional tumor cell culture, the three-dimensional tumor spheroid culture can not only provide with an in vivo-like growth environment for tumor cells, but also maintain maximum cell activities. Therefore, the three-dimensional tumor spheroid culture is widely used in oncology research. In particular, the three-dimensional tumor cells retain the material and structural basis of the microenvironment of tumor in vivo, which is closer to the actual physiological environment, allowing it to be an ideal in vitro model for evaluating the tumor treatment response and drug resistance in tumors. This review summarizes the mechanisms of drug resistance in three-dimensional tumor cells, especially those induced by the morphology and microenvironment of three-dimensional tumor spheres, and puts forward the problems existing in the current three-dimensional tumor cells model, as well as the future development direction.

Objective To compare the short-term clinical effects of totally thoracoscopic surgery and traditional open-heart sugery in the treatment of esophageal cancer. Methods 64 patients with middle thoracic esophageal cancer admitted in our hospital from June 2013 to June 2016 were selected. Among them, 32 patients underwent totally thoracoscopic surgery were identified as totally thoracoscopic group and the remaining 32 patients underwent traditional open-heart surgery were identified as control group. We compared various surgical indicators of patients in the two groups. Results In the totally thoracoscopic group, the duration of operation was(123. 8±25. 1) min, the amount of blood loss during surgery was (172. 1±30. 3) mL, the retention time of chest drainage tube was (3. 1±1. 1) d and the duration of hospitalization was (15. 6±2. 7) d. Compared with the control group, these indicators showed significant difference(P＜0. 05). The incidence of postoperative complications in the totally thoracoscopic group was 9. 3％, which was significantly lower than that in the control group(31. 3％)(P＜0. 05). The pain severity of totally thoracoscopic group reduced significantly than the control group(P＜0. 05). Conclusion Compared with the traditional open-heart surgery, totally thoracoscopic surgery for esophageal cancer has advantages of less bleeding, less trauma, few complications and less pain, which is worthy of promoting and using widely in clinic.