Objective:To investigate the role of ezrin-radixin-moesin-binding phosphoprotein 50 (EBP50) in renal tubular epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in diabetic nephropathy (DN).Methods:Renal tissue specimens from 24 DN patients (DN group) confirmed by medical history, clinical laboratory tests, and pathological diagnosis at the Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University and 15 adjacent normal renal tissues (control group) from 2018 to 2023 were collected. Immunohistochemical staining was performed to detect the expression of EBP50, E-cadherin, and Vimentin proteins. Additionally, 10 healthy volunteers were enrolled as a normal group, and fasting blood glucose, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, and 24 h urinary protein levels were compared between DN patients and the normal group.Results:Fasting blood glucose, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, and 24 h urinary protein levels were significantly higher in the DN group than in the normal group (all P<0.01). Periodic acid-schiff (PAS) staining revealed significant thickening of the glomerular basement membrane, increased extracellular matrix, vacuolar degeneration of renal tubules, and elevated extracellular matrix in the renal interstitium in the DN group. Immunohistochemistry showed higher expression of EBP50 and E-cadherin proteins in the control group than in the DN group (all P<0.01), while Vimentin expression was lower in the control group ( P<0.01). Conclusions:EBP50 is involved in the EMT process of renal tubules in DN and is associated with tubular injury.

Aim To investigate the therapeutic effects of a newly developed Tadalafil tablet on pulmonary fi-brosis induced by paraquat(PQ)in rats,as well as its impact on histone acetylation levels in epithelial cells.Methods SD rats were randomly divided into four groups:the control group(control),the model group(PQ),the Tadalafil new tablet treatment group(N-Tad,1 mg·kg-1),and the positive control drug treatment group(Cialis,5 mg·kg-1).The model group and treatment group rats were intraperitoneally injected with PQ(30 mg·kg-1).Two hours after the initial treatment,the rats in the treatment group re-ceived N-Tad or Cialis via gavage,while the control and model groups were administered an equal volume of physiological saline by gavage once daily for 28 days.The weight gain rate and lung tissue index for each group of rats were calculated.Additionally,the effects of N-Tad treatment on lung tissue structural damage and collagen deposition in rats with PQ-in-duced pulmonary fibrosis were observed using HE stai-ning,Masson trichrome staining,and immunohisto-chemical techniques.By employing the Western blot technique,the effects of Tadalafil intervention on the expression of the epithelial marker E-cadherin(E-Cad),the stromal marker fibronectin(Fn),and the histone acetylation marker acetylated histones(Ac-his-tones)in A549 cells were observed.Results Com-pared to the control group,rats with PQ-induced pul-monary fibrosis exhibited a significant decrease in the rate of body weight growth,an increase in lung tissue index(P＜0.05),and a notable increase in the expression and distribution of the fibrosis marker alpha-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA)in lung tissue.The structure of the lung tissue was disrupted,accompanied by the deposition of interstitial collagen fibers.Both N-Tad and Cialis treatments could significantly enhance the rate of weight gain,decrease the lung tissue index,inhibit the expression of α-SMA,and reduce the depo-sition of interstitial collagen in the lung tissue of rats with pulmonary fibrosis.Notably,low-dose N-Tad treatment was comparable to high-dose Cialis treat-ment.At the cellular level,Tadalafil significantly in-hibited the high expression of Fn induced by transfor-ming growth factor beta 1(TGF-β1)in A549 cells.It also upregulated the expression of E-cadherin and sig-nificantly increased the levels of acetylated histones(P＜0.05).Conclusions N-Tad promotes histone acetylation in alveolar epithelial cells,significantly in-hibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition,increases E-cadherin expression,and improves lung tissue structur-al damage and collagen deposition caused by PQ.Ad-ditionally,it offers the advantage of a lower effective dose compared to Cialis,providing a new option for the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis.

Objective To establish animal models by implanting Gynemesh polypropylene mesh and Mersilene tape into the abdominal walls of rats,followed by conducting mechanical experiments and performing HE staining on abdominal wall tissues at 30 and 90 days post-implantation,respectively,in order to evaluate the biomechanical properties and histocompatibility of the two types of meshes.Methods The Gynemesh mesh and Mersilene tape were implanted into the abdominal wall of adult female rats(n=10)using W6977M polyester non-absorbable sutures and V-Loc absorbable sutures.The rats were randomly assigned to either a 30-day group or a 90-day group(n=5 per group)based on different experimental time points.Mechanical tests were conducted at these time points to evaluate the ultimate load required for avulsion of the meshes from the abdominal wall.Following the mechanical experiments,the tissues surrounding the meshes were harvested for hematoxylin and eosin(HE)staining.The inflammatory response,neovascularization,and fibroblast proliferation in the tissues were scored to compare the histocompatibility of the two types of meshes.Results(1)In the 30-day group,the ultimate load values were as follows:Gynemesh+6977(14.96±2.22)N,Gynemesh+V-Loc(12.73±1.11)N,Mersilene+6977(10.65±0.91)N,and Mersilene+V-Loc(8.70±1.18)N.No statistically significant difference was observed in the ultimate load between the Gynemesh+6977 and Gynemesh+V-Loc groups(P=0.12),whereas statistically significant differences were noted among the other groups(P<0.05).(2)In the 90-day group,the ultimate load values were as follows:Gynemesh+6977(18.97±0.59)N,Gynemesh+V-Loc(18.18±0.54)N,Mersilene+6977(13.87±0.67)N,and Mersilene+V-Loc(10.41±0.73)N.No statistically significant difference was observed in the ultimate load between the Gynemesh+6977 and Gynemesh+V-Loc groups(P=0.06),while statistically significant differences were noted among the other groups(P<0.05).(3)The ultimate load at 90 days for each group was significantly greater than that at 30 days,with statistically significant differences observed across all groups(P<0.05).(4)In the 30-day group,Gynemesh exhibited a lower inflammatory response compared to Mersilene tape(2.0±0.69 vs.3.10±0.71,P<0.05),with no statistically significant differences in neovascular-ization or fibroblast proliferation(2.37±0.61 vs.2.40±0.62,P=0.84;2.43±0.73 vs.2.63±0.67,P=0.27).In the 90-day group,Gynemesh demonstrated a lower inflammatory response score(1.10±0.66 vs.2.00±0.74,P<0.05),reduced fibroblast proliferation(2.87±0.68 vs.3.27±0.67,P<0.05),and no significant difference in neovascular proliferation(2.20±0.55 vs.2.13±0.68,P=0.68)compared to Mersilene tape.(5)The inflam-matory response for both mesh types was higher in the 30-day group compared to the 90-day group(Gynemesh group:2.0±0.69 vs.1.10±0.66,P<0.05;Mersilene group:3.13±0.73 vs.2.0±0.74,P<0.05).Additionally,the degree of fibroblast proliferation was lower in the 30-day group than in the 90-day group(Gynemesh group:2.43±0.73 vs.2.87±0.68,P<0.05;Mersilene group:2.63±0.67 vs.3.27±0.69,P<0.05).However,there was no statistically significant difference in neovascularization proliferation between the two groups(Gynemesh group:2.53±0.74 vs.2.47±0.74,P=0.81;Mersilene group:2.40±0.62 vs.2.13±0.68,P=0.12).Conclusion Compared with Mersilene tape,Gynemesh polypropylene mesh exhibits superior tensile strength and enhanced biocompatibility.

Objective:To analyze the clinical and ultrasonographic characteristics of papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC)and explore their correlation with cervical lymph node metastasis(CLNM),thereby constructing a nomogram pre-diction model for assessing the risk of CLNM in PTC.Methods:A total of 553 patients(corresponding to 553 nod-ules)with papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC),confirmed by postoperative pathology,who underwent ultrasonography and had complete clinical data at the Second Hospital of Shandong University between December 2019 and December 2022,were included.228 patients(228 nodules)hadcervical lymph node metastasis,and 325 patients(325 nodules)were without cervical lymph node metastasis.All patients were categorized into metastasis and non-metastasis groups based on the presence or absence of cervical lymph node metastasis.These groups were then randomly di-vided into training and validation sets in a 7:3 ratio.Differences in clinical and ultrasonographic characteristics between the two groups were compared,and a nomogram was constructed.Results:Univariate analysis revealed statistically significant differences between the metastasis group and the non-metastasis group in terms of age,presence of Hashimoto's thyroiditis,multifocality,taller-than-wide shape,calcification,capsular contact,and blood flow(P<0.05).Logistic regression analysis in the training set indicated that age,presence of Hashimoto's thyroiditis,multifocality,taller-than-wide shape,calcification,and blood flow were associated with lymph node metastasis in papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC)(P<0.05).These indicators were incorporated into a nomogram model,which demonstrated high predictive performance,good calibration,and significant clinical utility in both the training and validation sets.Conclu-sion:The nomogram prediction model,constructed based on clinical and ultrasonographic features,effectively predicts the risk of cervical lymph node metastasis(CLNM)in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC).Patients who were older,had concomitant Hashimoto's thyroiditis,or exhibited a nodule aspect ratio≥1 were less likely to have concurrent CLNM.Conversely,patients presenting with multiple nodules,nodules with microcalcifications,or nodules demonstrating central or rich/peripheral vascularity were more likely to have concurrent CLNM.

Paclitaxel(PTX)is a first-line chemotherapy drug for breast cancer,but its resistance issues significantly impact clinical treatment efficacy.Fucosylation,especially core fucosylation,is closely related to tumor chemoresistance,resulting in poor chemotherapy responses and poor prognosis in patients.In this study,we investigated the effect and mechanism of the fucosylation inhibitor 2-fluorofucose(2-F-Fuc)on the chemosensitivity of paclitaxel-resistant breast cancer MCF-7/PTX cells.The drug resistanceindex(RI)of MCF-7/PTX cells was 8.49 by MTT assays.Western blotting,real-time PCR,enzyme-linked immu-nosorbent assay(ELISA)and Lens Culinaris Agglutinin(LCA)lectin imprinting showed that compared with MCF-7 cells,the expression of FUT8,MDR1and core fucosylation in MCF-7/PTX cells was high.Western blotting showed that 2-F-Fuc had a significant inhibitory effect on the growth of MCF-7/PTX cells,and the expression levels of FUT8 and MDR1 were significantly down-regulated after 2-F-Fuc treatment,and the down-regulation was more pronounced in the PTX and 2-F-Fuc combination group(P＜0.05).Compared to the control,expression of PCNA in MCF-7/PTX cells in the PTX and the 2-F-Fuc group were down-regulated,and the apoptosis-related proteins,such as cleaved caspase-3 and Bax/Bcl-2 were in-creased.The level of p-PI3K and p-AKT were down-regulated,and the changes in the combination of 2-F-Fuc and PTX were more robust(P＜0.05).The above results showed that the core fucosylation level of MCF-7/PTX cells was significantly increased,and 2-F-Fuc could reduce the core fucosylation level of MCF-7/PTX cells by inhibiting the expression of FUT8,and enhance the sensitivity of drug-resistant cells to PTX,which may correlate with the downregulation of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway proteins.

Aim To investigate the therapeutic effects of a newly developed Tadalafil tablet on pulmonary fi-brosis induced by paraquat(PQ)in rats,as well as its impact on histone acetylation levels in epithelial cells.Methods SD rats were randomly divided into four groups:the control group(control),the model group(PQ),the Tadalafil new tablet treatment group(N-Tad,1 mg·kg-1),and the positive control drug treatment group(Cialis,5 mg·kg-1).The model group and treatment group rats were intraperitoneally injected with PQ(30 mg·kg-1).Two hours after the initial treatment,the rats in the treatment group re-ceived N-Tad or Cialis via gavage,while the control and model groups were administered an equal volume of physiological saline by gavage once daily for 28 days.The weight gain rate and lung tissue index for each group of rats were calculated.Additionally,the effects of N-Tad treatment on lung tissue structural damage and collagen deposition in rats with PQ-in-duced pulmonary fibrosis were observed using HE stai-ning,Masson trichrome staining,and immunohisto-chemical techniques.By employing the Western blot technique,the effects of Tadalafil intervention on the expression of the epithelial marker E-cadherin(E-Cad),the stromal marker fibronectin(Fn),and the histone acetylation marker acetylated histones(Ac-his-tones)in A549 cells were observed.Results Com-pared to the control group,rats with PQ-induced pul-monary fibrosis exhibited a significant decrease in the rate of body weight growth,an increase in lung tissue index(P＜0.05),and a notable increase in the expression and distribution of the fibrosis marker alpha-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA)in lung tissue.The structure of the lung tissue was disrupted,accompanied by the deposition of interstitial collagen fibers.Both N-Tad and Cialis treatments could significantly enhance the rate of weight gain,decrease the lung tissue index,inhibit the expression of α-SMA,and reduce the depo-sition of interstitial collagen in the lung tissue of rats with pulmonary fibrosis.Notably,low-dose N-Tad treatment was comparable to high-dose Cialis treat-ment.At the cellular level,Tadalafil significantly in-hibited the high expression of Fn induced by transfor-ming growth factor beta 1(TGF-β1)in A549 cells.It also upregulated the expression of E-cadherin and sig-nificantly increased the levels of acetylated histones(P＜0.05).Conclusions N-Tad promotes histone acetylation in alveolar epithelial cells,significantly in-hibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition,increases E-cadherin expression,and improves lung tissue structur-al damage and collagen deposition caused by PQ.Ad-ditionally,it offers the advantage of a lower effective dose compared to Cialis,providing a new option for the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis.

Objective To establish animal models by implanting Gynemesh polypropylene mesh and Mersilene tape into the abdominal walls of rats,followed by conducting mechanical experiments and performing HE staining on abdominal wall tissues at 30 and 90 days post-implantation,respectively,in order to evaluate the biomechanical properties and histocompatibility of the two types of meshes.Methods The Gynemesh mesh and Mersilene tape were implanted into the abdominal wall of adult female rats(n=10)using W6977M polyester non-absorbable sutures and V-Loc absorbable sutures.The rats were randomly assigned to either a 30-day group or a 90-day group(n=5 per group)based on different experimental time points.Mechanical tests were conducted at these time points to evaluate the ultimate load required for avulsion of the meshes from the abdominal wall.Following the mechanical experiments,the tissues surrounding the meshes were harvested for hematoxylin and eosin(HE)staining.The inflammatory response,neovascularization,and fibroblast proliferation in the tissues were scored to compare the histocompatibility of the two types of meshes.Results(1)In the 30-day group,the ultimate load values were as follows:Gynemesh+6977(14.96±2.22)N,Gynemesh+V-Loc(12.73±1.11)N,Mersilene+6977(10.65±0.91)N,and Mersilene+V-Loc(8.70±1.18)N.No statistically significant difference was observed in the ultimate load between the Gynemesh+6977 and Gynemesh+V-Loc groups(P=0.12),whereas statistically significant differences were noted among the other groups(P<0.05).(2)In the 90-day group,the ultimate load values were as follows:Gynemesh+6977(18.97±0.59)N,Gynemesh+V-Loc(18.18±0.54)N,Mersilene+6977(13.87±0.67)N,and Mersilene+V-Loc(10.41±0.73)N.No statistically significant difference was observed in the ultimate load between the Gynemesh+6977 and Gynemesh+V-Loc groups(P=0.06),while statistically significant differences were noted among the other groups(P<0.05).(3)The ultimate load at 90 days for each group was significantly greater than that at 30 days,with statistically significant differences observed across all groups(P<0.05).(4)In the 30-day group,Gynemesh exhibited a lower inflammatory response compared to Mersilene tape(2.0±0.69 vs.3.10±0.71,P<0.05),with no statistically significant differences in neovascular-ization or fibroblast proliferation(2.37±0.61 vs.2.40±0.62,P=0.84;2.43±0.73 vs.2.63±0.67,P=0.27).In the 90-day group,Gynemesh demonstrated a lower inflammatory response score(1.10±0.66 vs.2.00±0.74,P<0.05),reduced fibroblast proliferation(2.87±0.68 vs.3.27±0.67,P<0.05),and no significant difference in neovascular proliferation(2.20±0.55 vs.2.13±0.68,P=0.68)compared to Mersilene tape.(5)The inflam-matory response for both mesh types was higher in the 30-day group compared to the 90-day group(Gynemesh group:2.0±0.69 vs.1.10±0.66,P<0.05;Mersilene group:3.13±0.73 vs.2.0±0.74,P<0.05).Additionally,the degree of fibroblast proliferation was lower in the 30-day group than in the 90-day group(Gynemesh group:2.43±0.73 vs.2.87±0.68,P<0.05;Mersilene group:2.63±0.67 vs.3.27±0.69,P<0.05).However,there was no statistically significant difference in neovascularization proliferation between the two groups(Gynemesh group:2.53±0.74 vs.2.47±0.74,P=0.81;Mersilene group:2.40±0.62 vs.2.13±0.68,P=0.12).Conclusion Compared with Mersilene tape,Gynemesh polypropylene mesh exhibits superior tensile strength and enhanced biocompatibility.

Methods: The clinical data of 26 patients diagnosed with irreducible atlantoaxial dislocation complicated by atlantodental bony obstruction were analyzed retrospectively. All patients underwent anterior retropharyngeal atlantodentoplasty, followed by posterior occipitocervical fusion. Details including surgical duration and blood loss volume were recorded. Radiographic data such as the anterior atlantodental interval, O–C2 angle, space available for the cord, clivus–canal angle, and cervical medullary angle, and clinical data including the Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) score were assessed. The fusion time of the grafted bone and the development of complications were examined. Results: In patients undergoing anterior retropharyngeal atlantodentoplasty, the surgical duration and blood loss volume were 120.1±16.4 minutes and 100.6±33.5 mL, respectively. The anterior atlantodental interval decreased significantly after the surgery (p <0.001). The O–C2 angle, space available for the cord, clivus–canal angle, and cervical medullary angle increased significantly after the surgery (p <0.001). The JOA score during the latest follow-up significantly increased compared with that before the surgery (p <0.001). The improvement rate of the JOA score was 80.8%±18.1%. The fusion time of the grafted bone was 3–8 months, with an average of 5.7±1.5 months. In total, 11 patients presented with postoperative dysphagia and three with irritating cough. However, none of them exhibited other major complications. Conclusions Anterior retropharyngeal atlantodentoplasty can anatomically reduce the atlantoaxial joint with a satisfactory clinical outcome in patients with irreducible atlantoaxial dislocation with atlantodental bony obstruction.

This research investigated the contamination level,distribution of drug-resistant strains,and molecular epidemiologi-cal characteristics of Campylobacter,and further explored transmission pathways and prevention strategies.Cecum,chicken carcass,chicken product,and environmental samples,as well as swabs from workers'hands,were collected from a slaughterhouse in a large broiler group in the Jiaodong area between August 2023 and July 2024.Quantitative contamination assessment of Campylobacter in chicken carcasses and chicken products was performed.After microbial mass spectrometry identification,the representative strains of different links were selected for drug resistance testing and whole genome sequencing(WGS).On the basis of the sequencing results,the resistance genes,virulence genes,multilocus sequence typing(MLST),and phylogenetic characteristics of representative strains were analyzed.Homology comparisons were performed between isolates and strains from patients with diarrhea in the NCBI database.A total of 297 Campylobacter strains were isolated from 806 samples,and the overall detection rate was 36.85%.The detection rate of Campylobacter was highest in the evisceration process(47.33%),followed by the cutting process(35.64%).Overall,the Campylo-bacter detection rate first increased,then decreased,and subsequently increased.Drug sensitivity testing revealed that 90 isolates were resistant to nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin,and 94.97%of isolates were resistant to tetracycline.WGS showed that both Campylo-bacter jejuni(C.jejuni)and Campylobacter coli(C.coli)carried many drug resistance and virulence genes.ST-14176 of C.jejuni was isolated for the first time herein.The predominant ST-8261 strain of C.jejuni and ST-860,ST-829,and ST-1586 strains of C.coli are known to cause human diarrhea.LOS expression genes associated with Guillain-Barré syndrome(GBS)were detected in both C.jejuni isolates from the slaughter chain and patients with GBS.Some strains exhibited close genetic relatedness to human-derived Campylo-bacter strains from the NCBI database.The detection rate of Campylobacter in the slaughterhouse first increased,then decreased,and subsequently increased,and the quantitative contamination level of each link was similar to the detection rate.Quantitative analysis of chicken carcasses/products revealed that the average bacterial load was highest in eviscerated carcasses(102.80 cfu/g),and the high-est amount of Campylobacter in chicken products reached 451.80 cfu/g.Abundant drug resistance genes and virulence genes were iden-tified,and the drug resistance genes were highly correlated with the drug resistance rate.Therefore,surveillance intensity and control measures for Campylobacter in slaughter processes should be strengthened.

With the continuous rise in the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and the prolongation of life expectancy of patients living with the disease, improving the quality of life of patients has become an important management goal. Sexual life, as a basic physiological need in human survival, is also a key component of the quality of life for CVD patients. However, due to the impact of the disease, sexual health issues are common among CVD patients and have adverse effects on their quality of life, mental health, and marital relationships, which should be addressed promptly. This article reviews the definitions related to sexual health, the current research on sexual health in CVD patients, research tools related to sexual health, influencing factors of sexual health in CVD patients, and sexual health interventions, aiming to provide a reference for clinical research in this area.