Objective : To analyze the epidemiological characteristics and spatial clustering of brucellosis in Shanxi Province from 2019 to 2023, so as to provide a reference for formulating prevention and control measures of brucellosis. Methods: The case data of brucellosis in Shanxi Province from 2019 to 2023 were collected through the Infectious Disease Surveillance System of the Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System. The seasonal distribution, population distribution, and region distribution of brucellosis cases were described. Spatial autocorrelation analysis was applied to explore the spatial clustering characteristics of brucellosis. Results: A total of 21 241 human brucellosis cases were reported in Shanxi Province from 2019 to 2023, with an average annual reported incidence of 11.87/100 000, showing an upward trend (P<0.05). The peak incidence period was from March to August, with 14 163 cases reported cumulatively, accounting for 66.68% of the total. There were 16 336 male cases and 4 905 female cases, with a male-to-female ratio of 3.33:1. The high-incidence age group was 40-<70 years, with 15 675 cases accounting for 73.80%. The majority of patients were farmers, with 17 926 cases accounting for 84.39%. Spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that there was spatial clustering in the incidence of brucellosis from 2019 to 2023 (all Moran's I>0, P<0.05). The high-high clustering areas were mainly Datong City, and Shuozhou City in northern Shanxi, and Linfen City in the southern Shanxi. The low-low clustering areas were mainly Taiyuan City and Yangquan City in central Shanxi, and Changzhi City and Jincheng City in southeastern Shanxi. Conclusions From 2019 to 2023, the reported incidence of brucellosis in Shanxi Province showed an upward trend. The incidence peaked from March to August, and males, middle-aged and elderly people and farmers were the high-risk groups. There was spatial clustering and the high-high clustering areas gradually expanded from northern Shanxi to southern Shanxi.

In different stages of schizophrenia (SZ), alterations in gray matter volume (GMV) of patients are normally regulated by various pathological mechanisms. Instead of analyzing stage-specific changes, this study employed a multivariate structural covariance model and sliding-window approach to investigate the illness duration-related developmental trajectory of GMV in SZ. The trajectory is defined as a sequence of brain regions activated by illness duration, represented as a sparsely directed matrix. By applying this approach to structural magnetic resonance imaging data from 145 patients with SZ, we observed a continuous developmental trajectory of GMV from cortical to subcortical regions, with an average change occurring every 0.208 years, covering a time window of 20.176 years. The starting points were widely distributed across all networks, except for the ventral attention network. These findings provide insights into the neuropathological mechanism of SZ with a neuroprogressive model and facilitate the development of process for aided diagnosis and intervention with the starting points.
Humans ; Schizophrenia/pathology* ; Gray Matter/pathology* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Disease Progression ; Male ; Female ; Brain/pathology* ; Cerebral Cortex/pathology* ; Adult

Humans ; Consanguinity ; Exome Sequencing ; Mutation/genetics* ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Ciliary Motility Disorders ; Axonemal Dyneins/genetics*

OBJECTIVE To investigate the ameliorative effects and mechanism of Sanwei ganlu on hepatic fibrosis in rats. METHODS The rats were randomly divided into normal group， model group， silibinin group （positive control， 50 mg/kg）， and Sanwei ganlu low-dose， medium-dose， and high-dose groups （80， 250， 800 mg/kg）. Except for normal group， hepatic fibrosis rat models were established by intraperitoneal injection of CCl4 in the other groups of rats. Starting from the 6th week of modeling administration， they were given normal saline or corresponding drugs intragastrically at the same time. At the end of the ninth-week experiment， liver and spleen indexes of rats were calculated； the pathological structure and fibrosis changes of liver tissue were observed by HE， Masson and Sirus Red staining. The contents of alanine transaminase （ALT）， aspartate transaminase （AST）， procollagen type Ⅲ （PC Ⅲ）， collagen type Ⅳ （COL-Ⅳ）， interleukin-6 （IL-6）， tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） and IL-1β in serum， and hyaluronic acid （HA） and laminin （LN） in liver tissue were all detected. RESULTS Compared with the model group， the liver injury and collagen fiber deposition of rats were improved to different extents in Sanwei ganlu groups and silibinin group； the contents of ALT， AST， PC Ⅲ， COL-Ⅳ， IL-6， TNF-α and IL-1β in serum as well as the contents of HA and LN in liver tissue significantly decreased （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. CONCLUSIONS Sanwei ganlu can alleviate the progression of hepatic fibrosis in rats， possibly by inhibiting the synthesis of collagen fiber， reducing transaminase content， down-regulating the levels of HA， LN， PC Ⅲ and COL-Ⅳ， and reducing the inflammatory response.

Objective:To explore the severe complications, such as blindness, brain infarction and even death caused by cosmetic autologous fat filler injection and their underlying mechanisms.Methods:From May 2022 to October 2023, 64 male New Zealand rabbits were selected in the clinical laboratory of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine and divided into 8 groups with 8 rabbits in each group. They were divided into grinding fat group, fat granule group, fat lipid group and normal saline group, and each group was further divided into 0.2 ml group and 0.4 ml group. Fat was cut from the rabbit groin, then chopped or treated with collagenase I, and centrifuged to separate fat lipids and fat particles, as well as other tissues. The rabbit facial artery was exposed along the incision below the mandibular angle, and 0.2 or 0.4 ml of chopped fat, fat particles, and lipids were retrogradely injected into the facial artery in each group, and then the incision was closed under the microscope. Ophthalmic and neurological symptoms were observed and recorded after surgery, and visual electrophysiology and fundus microscopy were performed to verify visual acuity and fundus artery obstruction.Results:Two weeks after surgery, the incidence of ophthalmic symptoms in the 0.2 ml injection group was 100% in the grinding fat group, 62.5% in the fat granule group, 0 in the lipid group and 0 in the normal saline group. The complication rates of 0.4 ml embolic injection were 100%, 87.50%, 12.5% and 0, respectively. The incidence of neurological symptoms was 62.5%, 25.0%, 0 and 0, respectively. Mortality rates were 37.5%, 12.5%, 0 and 0 after injection of 0.2 ml, and 100%, 50%, 0 and 0 after injection of 0.4 ml, respectively.Conclusions:Animal models have shown that grinding adipose tissue without collagenase I treatment is more likely to cause serious complications, simple lipid entry into blood vessels does not block relevant arteries, and fat volume is positively correlated with the incidence of postoperative complications.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the improvement mechanism of caudatin on liver injury of rats. METHODS SD rats were randomly divided into blank group， model group， caudatin low-dose and high-dose groups （25， 50 mg/kg）， with 6 rats in each group. Diethylnitrosamine （DEN） was injected intraperitoneally three times per week for eight weeks to establish liver injury model of rats. At 5th week of modeling， the rats received relevant medicine or 0.5% sodium carboxymethylcellulose intragastrically for 4 weeks. The levels of liver function indexes [alanine transaminase （ALT）， aspartate transaminase （AST）， total protein （TP） and total bilirubin （TBI）] and inflammatory factors [interleukin （IL-6）， tumor necrosis factor α （TNF-α）， IL-1β] in serum were detected； the histopathological morphological changes of rat liver were observed； the positive protein expressions of nuclear factor κB （NF-κB） and 78 kDa glucose regulatory protein （Grp78） in liver tissue were also determined； the expressions of endoplasmic reticulum stress-related protein Grp78， C/EBP homologous protein （CHOP）， activating transcription factor 6 （ATF6） and inositol requiring enzyme 1α （IRE1α） and the level of protein kinase R-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase robertluoyi@126.com （PERK） in liver tissue were detected. RESULTS Compared with blank group， serum levels of ALT， AST， TBI， IL-6， TNF-α and IL-1β and positive expressions of NF-κB and Grp78 in liver tissue as well as protein expressions of Grp78， CHOP， ATF6 and IRE1α， PERK protein phosphorylation level were all increased significantly in model group （P＜0.05）， while the serum level of TP was decreased significantly （P＜0.05）. The disordered structure of liver lobule， swollen liver cells， unclear intercellular boundary were observed and accompanied by inflammatory cell infiltration. Compared with model group， most of the above indexes were significantly reversed in caudatin groups （P＜0.05）； the structure of hepatic lobule was relatively complete and clear， the cells were arranged orderly， and the infiltration of inflammatory cells was also reduced. CONCLUSIONS Caudatin has a significant improvement effect against DEN-induced liver injury in rats， the mechanism of which may be associated with inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum stress and inflammatory reaction.

Objective:To analyze the feasibility of fluorescence staining in the detection of Demodex mites. Methods:A single-center split-face study was conducted, and patients with clinically diagnosed rosacea or seborrheic dermatitis were enrolled from the Department of Dermatology, Southern University of Science and Technology Hospital from October 2020 to June 2021. Samples were obtained from the patients′ cheeks by using the squeeze-adhesion method, and Demodex mites were detected by fluorescence staining and direct microscopic examination separately. The detection rate, number of detected Demodex mites, and time for reading slides were compared between the above two detection methods, and the detection rate and number of detected Demodex mites were further compared between the fluorescence staining and standardized skin surface biopsy (SSSB). Chi-square test was used to compare enumeration data, and paired t-test for measurement data. Results:A total of 433 volunteers aged 28.3 ± 3.5 years were enrolled, including 185 males and 248 females. The performance of fluorescence staining was compared with that of direct microscopic examination in 338 pairs of samples obtained by the squeeze-adhesion method, and compared with that of SSSB in 95 pairs of samples obtained by the squeeze-adhesion method. The detection rate of Demodex mites by fluorescence staining was significantly higher (34.0%, 115/338) than that by direct microscopic examination (31.4%, 106/338; McNemar test, P = 0.004) ; among 118 positive samples, the number of detected Demodex mites by fluorescence staining ([8.0 ± 3.3]/cm 2) was also significantly higher than that by direct microscopic examination ([5.5 ± 2.9]/cm 2, t = 9.21, P < 0.001) ; the time for reading slides undergoing fluorescence staining was significantly shorter (8.3 ± 1.2 minutes) than that undergoing direct microscopic examination (17.3 ± 2.5 minutes, t = 38.44, P < 0.001) ; there was favorable consistency in fluorescence staining results between two clinical laboratorians (kappa value = 0.935, P < 0.001). The detection rate of Demodex mites by fluorescence staining (34.7%, 33/95) was higher than that by SSSB (33.7%, 32/95; McNemar test, P < 0.001) ; among 35 positive samples, the number of detected Demodex mites by fluorescence staining was also significantly higher ([11.4 ± 4.2]/cm 2) than that by SSSB ([9.8 ± 4.8]/cm 2; t = 4.77, P < 0.001) . Conclusion:Compared with direct microscopic examination and SSSB, fluorescence staining was more sensitive in the detection of Demodex mites, with better consistency between different observers and shorter time for reading slides.

Objective:To evaluate the shoulder arthroscopic treatment of avulsion fracture of humeral greater tuberosity with double-row suture bridge.Methods:Retrospectively analyzed were the 13 avulsion fractures of humeral greater tuberosity which had been treated by shoulder arthroscopic double-row suture bridge at Bone and Joint Department, Guangzhou Liwan District Orthopedic Hospital from March, 2018 to March, 2020. There were 6 males and 7 females, with an average ages of 52.3 years (from 35 to 69 years). According to the Mutch classification, all the fractures of humeral greater tuberosity were attributed to the avulsion type. Of them, 3 were simple avulsion fractures of humeral greater tuberosity and 10 were complicated with shoulder anterior dislocation which was reduced manually before operation. There were 3 obsolete avulsion fractures of humeral greater tuberosity. Regular clinic and X-ray follow-ups were carried out. At the final follow-up, the pain, range of motion (ROM) and stability of the shoulder joint were assessed using visual analogue scale (VAS), American shoulder elbow scores (ASES), and Korean shoulder scores (KSS).Results:All the patients were followed up for an average of 12.3 months (from 10 to 16 months) postoperatively. No infection or shoulder instability was observed. At the final follow-up, the abduction and elevation averaged 164.6° (from 135° to 180°), the lateral external rotation 62.7° (from 40° to 80°), the internal rotation touch back test T10 level (from L2 to T6), the VAS 0.65 (from 0 to 2.5), the ASES 90.5 (from 78 to 100), and the KSS 91.5 (from 84 to 100).Conclusion:Shoulder arthroscopic treatment of avulsion fracture of humeral greater tuberosity with double-row suture bridge is minimally invasive and allows for repair of combined injury, leading to quick postoperative recovery.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a kind of malignant tumor with high incidence and mortality in the digestive system. The aim of this study is to explore the function of lnc-ABCA12-3 in the development of ESCC and its unique mechanisms. RT-PCR was applied to detect gene transcription levels in tissues or cell lines like TE-1, EC9706, and HEEC cells. Western blot was conducted to identify protein expression levels of mitochondrial apoptosis and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)uclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) signaling pathway. CCK-8 and EdU assays were carried out to measure cell proliferation, and cell apoptosis was examined by flow cytometry. ELISA was used for checking the changes in glycolysis-related indicators.Lnc-ABCA12-3 was highly expressed in ESCC tissues and cells, which preferred it to be a candidate target. The TE-1 and EC9706 cells proliferation and glycolysis were obviously inhibited with the downregulation of lnc-ABCA12-3, while apoptosis was promoted. TLR4 activator could largely reverse the apoptosis acceleration and relieved the proliferation and glycolysis suppression caused by lnc-ABCA12-3 downregulation. Moreover, the effect of lnc-ABCA12-3 on ESCC cells was actualized by activating the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway under the mediation of exosome. Taken together, the lnc-ABCA12-3 could promote the proliferation and glycolysis of ESCC, while repressing its apoptosis probably by regulating the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway under the mediation of exosome.

The many-banded krait, Bungarus multicinctus, has been recorded as the animal resource of JinQianBaiHuaShe in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Characterization of its venoms classified chief phyla of modern animal neurotoxins. However, the evolutionary origin and diversification of its neurotoxins as well as biosynthesis of its active compounds remain largely unknown due to the lack of its high-quality genome. Here, we present the 1.58 Gbp genome of B. multicinctus assembled into 18 chromosomes with contig/scaffold N50 of 7.53 Mbp/149.8 Mbp. Major bungarotoxin-coding genes were clustered within genome by family and found to be associated with ancient local duplications. The truncation of glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor in the 3'-terminal of a LY6E paralog released modern three-finger toxins (3FTxs) from membrane tethering before the Colubroidea divergence. Subsequent expansion and mutations diversified and recruited these 3FTxs. After the cobra/krait divergence, the modern unit-B of β-bungarotoxin emerged with an extra cysteine residue. A subsequent point substitution in unit-A enabled the β-bungarotoxin covalent linkage. The B. multicinctus gene expression, chromatin topological organization, and histone modification characteristics were featured by transcriptome, proteome, chromatin conformation capture sequencing, and ChIP-seq. The results highlighted that venom production was under a sophisticated regulation. Our findings provide new insights into snake neurotoxin research, meanwhile will facilitate antivenom development, toxin-driven drug discovery and the quality control of JinQianBaiHuaShe.