Objective·To explore the effect of double homeobox(DUX)protein on the differentiation potential of mouse embryonic stem cells(mESCs)into extraembryonic endoderm(XEN)and the possible mechanism of its action.Methods·Overexpression of DUX cell lines in mESCs was achieved by using a lentiviral system.The proportion of 2-cell-like cells(2CLCs)before and after DUX overexpression was detected by flow cytometry,and the expression of 2-cell stage-specific genes,Dux,zinc finger and SCAN domain containing 4c(Zscan4c),zinc finger protein 352(Zfp352)and murine endogenous retrovirus-L polymerase(MERVL-pol),were detected by real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR).RT-qPCR assay was used to detect the expression of pluripotency factors,nanog homeobox(Nanog),kruppel-like transcription factor 4(Klf4),sex determining region Y-box 2(Sox2),and octamer-binding transcription factor 4(Oct4),in pluripotent state,as well as the expression of signature genes for different germ layers in the differentiated state[endodermal:GATA binding protein 4(Gata4),GATA binding protein 6(Gata6),and sex determining region Y-box 17(Sox17);ectodermal:Nestin and tubulin beta 3 class Ⅲ(Tubb3);mesodermal:heart and neural crest derivatives expressed 1(Hand1),myogenic differentiation 1(Myod1),and kinase insert domain protein receptor(Flk1)].Public RNA sequencing(RNA-seq)data were mined to further clarify the effect of DUX on the differentiation of mESCs into extraembryonic endoderm.Functional and pathway enrichment analyses of differentially expressed genes were performed using Gene Ontology(GO),Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG),and gene set enrichment analysis(GSEA)to identify the signaling pathways regulated by DUX.Additionally,an in-depth analysis of existing chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing(ChIP-seq)data was conducted to explore the potential target genes of DUX.Results·Molecular biology experiments showed that overexpression of DUX could effectively maintain the pluripotency of mESCs,which was consistent with the analysis of public RNA-seq data.Differential gene analysis revealed that endodermal genes were specifically upregulated.After differentiation assay of mESCs,RT-qPCR assay experiments showed that mRNA expression of the XEN marker genes(Gata4,Gata6,Sox17)was significantly upregulated(P<0.001).In contrast,there was no specific change in mesodermal and ectodermal genes.GSEA enrichment analysis indicated that DUX might activate the retinoid metabolism signaling pathway,and the analysis of the ChIP-seq data further revealed the presence of a large number of known retinoic acid receptor motif in DUX-bound peaks,which could activate downstream target genes related to the development of the XEN.Conclusion·DUX has a strong correlation with the retinoic acid signaling pathway and it is predicted to activate the retinoic acid signaling pathway,which could promote the tendency of mESCs toward XEN differentiation.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and activity of Crohn′s disease (CD), and explore the diagnostic value of RDW for CD activity.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted. Clinical data of CD patients treated continuously at the Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University from November 2012 to October 2014 (CD group) were collected, including the first results of routine hematological examinations and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels after admission. Routine hematological examination results were also collected from healthy peoples undergoing regular health check-ups at the same time, who served as the normal control group. CD patients were divided into remission, mild activity, and moderate-severe activity groups based on the Crohn′s disease activity index (CDAI). The levels of routine hematological indicators including RDW and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were compared between the CD group and the normal control group, as well as among different subgroups of CD patients. The correlations between RDW, PLR and CD activity or CRP were analyzed, and the diagnostic value of RDW for CD activity was evaluated by using ROC curve. Logistic univariate and multivariate regressions were performed to analyze the influencing factors of the activity of CD. Logistic regression equation was constructed to calculate the diagnostic efficacy of the influencing factors.Results:A total of 303 CD patients (216 males, 87 females; mean age 28.6 ± 11.7 years) were assigned to CD group and 293 healthy peoples (190 males, 103 females; mean age 30.1 ± 12.3 years) were assigned to normal control group. There was no significant differences in age and gender between the two groups (both P>0.05), indicating comparability. Among the CD patients, 109 were in remission group, 106 in mild activity group, and 88 in moderate-severe activity group. There was no significant differences in age and gender among the three subgroups (all P>0.05), indicating comparability. Compared with the normal control group, RDW (15.26% ± 2.51% vs. 13.10% ± 1.13%, P<0.001), PLR (245.09 ± 158.69 vs. 119.07 ± 36.52, P<0.001), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) [3.22 (2.06, 4.75) vs. 1.76 (1.39, 2.32), P<0.001], white blood cell count [ (7.68 ± 3.30) ×10 9/L vs. (6.52 ± 1.68) × 10 9/L, P<0.001] and platelet count [ (320.69 ± 116.10) × 10 12/L vs. (230.10 ± 51.08) × 10 12/L, P<0.001] were significantly higher in the CD group, while hemoglobin [ (112.8 ± 21.0) g/L vs. (137.1 ± 13.5) g/L, P<0.001] and platelet distribution width (PDW) [ (10.70 ± 1.91) fl vs. (11.89 ± 1.75) fl, P<0.001] were significantly lower. Compared with patients in remission group, the patients in mild activity group had higher RDW and platelet count, and lower hemoglobin (all P<0.05). Compared with the patients in remission and mild activity groups, the patients in moderate-severe activity group had higher RDW, PLR and NLR, and lower hemoglobin (all P<0.05). Correlation analysis showed the positive correlations between RDW, PLR and CD activity ( r = 0.423, P<0.001; r = 0.295, P<0.001), and RDW was positively correlated with CRP ( r = 0.438, P<0.001). The cut-off value of RDW for predicting CD activity was 13.85%, while the area under curve (AUC) was 0.723 (95% CI: 0.664-0.782, P<0.001), sensitivity was 0.784 and specificity was 0.550. Logistic multivariable regression analysis showed that RDW ( OR = 1.532, 95% CI: 1.291-1.818, P<0.001) and PLR ( OR = 1.003, 95% CI: 1.001-1.006, P = 0.013) were independent risk factors. The combination of RDW and PLR in diagnosing CD activity yielded an AUC of 0.730 (95% CI: 0.673-0.787, P<0.001), sensitivity of 0.407, and specificity of 0.927. Conclusions:CD patients with high RDW have more severe activity. RDW is a simple and practical indicator for diagnosing the activity of CD.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and activity of Crohn′s disease (CD), and explore the diagnostic value of RDW for CD activity.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted. Clinical data of CD patients treated continuously at the Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University from November 2012 to October 2014 (CD group) were collected, including the first results of routine hematological examinations and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels after admission. Routine hematological examination results were also collected from healthy peoples undergoing regular health check-ups at the same time, who served as the normal control group. CD patients were divided into remission, mild activity, and moderate-severe activity groups based on the Crohn′s disease activity index (CDAI). The levels of routine hematological indicators including RDW and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were compared between the CD group and the normal control group, as well as among different subgroups of CD patients. The correlations between RDW, PLR and CD activity or CRP were analyzed, and the diagnostic value of RDW for CD activity was evaluated by using ROC curve. Logistic univariate and multivariate regressions were performed to analyze the influencing factors of the activity of CD. Logistic regression equation was constructed to calculate the diagnostic efficacy of the influencing factors.Results:A total of 303 CD patients (216 males, 87 females; mean age 28.6 ± 11.7 years) were assigned to CD group and 293 healthy peoples (190 males, 103 females; mean age 30.1 ± 12.3 years) were assigned to normal control group. There was no significant differences in age and gender between the two groups (both P>0.05), indicating comparability. Among the CD patients, 109 were in remission group, 106 in mild activity group, and 88 in moderate-severe activity group. There was no significant differences in age and gender among the three subgroups (all P>0.05), indicating comparability. Compared with the normal control group, RDW (15.26% ± 2.51% vs. 13.10% ± 1.13%, P<0.001), PLR (245.09 ± 158.69 vs. 119.07 ± 36.52, P<0.001), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) [3.22 (2.06, 4.75) vs. 1.76 (1.39, 2.32), P<0.001], white blood cell count [ (7.68 ± 3.30) ×10 9/L vs. (6.52 ± 1.68) × 10 9/L, P<0.001] and platelet count [ (320.69 ± 116.10) × 10 12/L vs. (230.10 ± 51.08) × 10 12/L, P<0.001] were significantly higher in the CD group, while hemoglobin [ (112.8 ± 21.0) g/L vs. (137.1 ± 13.5) g/L, P<0.001] and platelet distribution width (PDW) [ (10.70 ± 1.91) fl vs. (11.89 ± 1.75) fl, P<0.001] were significantly lower. Compared with patients in remission group, the patients in mild activity group had higher RDW and platelet count, and lower hemoglobin (all P<0.05). Compared with the patients in remission and mild activity groups, the patients in moderate-severe activity group had higher RDW, PLR and NLR, and lower hemoglobin (all P<0.05). Correlation analysis showed the positive correlations between RDW, PLR and CD activity ( r = 0.423, P<0.001; r = 0.295, P<0.001), and RDW was positively correlated with CRP ( r = 0.438, P<0.001). The cut-off value of RDW for predicting CD activity was 13.85%, while the area under curve (AUC) was 0.723 (95% CI: 0.664-0.782, P<0.001), sensitivity was 0.784 and specificity was 0.550. Logistic multivariable regression analysis showed that RDW ( OR = 1.532, 95% CI: 1.291-1.818, P<0.001) and PLR ( OR = 1.003, 95% CI: 1.001-1.006, P = 0.013) were independent risk factors. The combination of RDW and PLR in diagnosing CD activity yielded an AUC of 0.730 (95% CI: 0.673-0.787, P<0.001), sensitivity of 0.407, and specificity of 0.927. Conclusions:CD patients with high RDW have more severe activity. RDW is a simple and practical indicator for diagnosing the activity of CD.

Objective:To study the different factors affecting platelet production post transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) isolated from different sources in order to explore novel options for treating platelet depletion following HSCs transplantation.Methods:HSCs and their downstream derivatives including myeloid and lymphoid cells (i.e., collective of mononuclear cells (MNCs)), were isolated from E14.5 fetal liver (FL) and bone marrow (BM) of 8-week-old mice by Ficoll separation technique. These cells were subsequently transplanted into the tibia bone marrow cavity of recipient mice post lethal myeloablative treatment in order to construct the FL-MNCs and BM-MNCs transplantation mouse model. Routine blood indices were examined in these recipient mice. The chimeric rate of donor cells in recipient peripheral blood cells were determined by flow cytometry. Different groups of cells involved in platelet reconstruction were analyzed. CD41 +megakaryocytes were sorted from fetal liver or bone marrow using magnetic beads, which were then induced to differentiate into platelets in an in vitro assay . Quantitative RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of platelet-related genes in CD41 +megakaryocytes from the two sources. Results:Both the FL-MNCs and the BM-MNCs transplantation groups resumed normal hematopoiesis at the 4th week after transplantation, and the blood cells of the recipient mice were largely replaced by the donor cells. Compared with the mice transplanted with BM-MNCs, the platelet level of mice transplanted with FL-MNCs recovered faster and were maintained at a higher level. At week 4, the PLT level of the FL-MNCs group was (1.45±0.37)×10 12/L, and of the BM-MNCs group was (1.22±0.24)×10 12/L, P<0.05. The FL-MNCs contain a higher proportion of hematopoietic stem cells (Lin -Sca-1 +c-Kit +)(7.60%±1.40%) compared to the BM-MNCs (1.10%±0.46%), P<0.01; the proportion of the megakaryocyte progenitor cells (Lin -Sca-1 -c-Kit +CD41 +CD150 +) and mature megakaryocyte cells (CD41 +CD42b +), also differ significantly between the FL-MNCs (3.05%±0.22%, 1.60%±0.06%, respectively) and the BM-MNCs (0.15%±0.02%, 0.87%±0.11%, respectively) groups, both P<0.01. In vitro functional studies showed that FL-MNCs-CD41 +megakaryocytes could produce proplatelet-like cells more quickly after induction, with proplatelet-like cells formation on day 3 and significant platelet-like particle formation on day 5, in contrast to bone marrow-derived BM-MNCs-CD41 +megakaryocytes that failed to form proplatelet-like cell on day 5. In addition, FL-MNCs-CD41 +cells expressed higher levels of platelet-related genes, Mpl (3.25-fold), Fog1 (3-fold), and Gata1 (1.5-fold) ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Compared with the BM-MNCs group, the FL-MNCs transplantation group appears to have a more efficient platelet implantation effect in the HSCs transplantation recipient in vivo , as well as a higher platelet differentiation rate in vitro. This might be related to a higher proportion of megakaryocytes and higher expression levels of genes such as Mpl, Fog1, and Gata1 that could be important for platelet formation in FL-MNCs-CD41 +cells. Further exploration of the specific functions of these genes and the characteristics of the different proportions of the donor cells will provide valuable clues for the future treatment of platelets reconstitution after HSCs transplantation clinically.

Objective:To investigate the current situation of occupational exposure to noise among noise workers in an automobile manufacturing enterprise in Tianjin, understand the impact of noise on workers＇ nervous system and hearing, and assess the risk of hearing loss among noise workers.Methods:In May 2021, 3516 workers in an automobile manufacturing enterprise were investigated by using a self-made questionnaire＂Noise Workers Questionnaire＂ and cluster sampling method. The occupational noise hygiene survey and occupational hazards detection were carried out in their workplaces. They were divided into noise exposure group and non-noise exposure group according to whether they were exposed to noise or not. The general characteristics, hearing and nervous system symptoms of the two groups of workers were compared, and the risk of hearing loss was assessed.Results:There were 758 workers in the noise exposure group, aged (26±5) years old, with a working age of 3.0 (2.0, 6.0) years exposed to noise. 2758 workers in the non-noise exposure group, aged (25±6) years old, with a working age of 2.0 (1.0, 4.0) years. There were statistically significant differences in the distribution of workers＇education level, working age and memory loss between the two groups (χ 2=37.98, 38.70, 5.20, P<0.05). The workers in the noise exposure group showed a decreasing trend of insomnia, dreaminess, sweating and fatigue with the increase of working age (χ 2trend=6.16, 7.99, P<0.05). The risk classification of binaural high-frequency hearing loss for workers in all noise positions until the age of 50 and 60 was negligible, the risk of occupational noise deafness was low for workers in stamping and welding noise positions until the age of 60. Conclusion:The occupational noise exposed to automobile manufacturing workers may cause certain harm to their nervous and auditory systems. Noise protection measures should be taken to reduce the risk of hearing loss and occupational noise deafness.

Objective:To investigate the current situation of occupational exposure to noise among noise workers in an automobile manufacturing enterprise in Tianjin, understand the impact of noise on workers＇ nervous system and hearing, and assess the risk of hearing loss among noise workers.Methods:In May 2021, 3516 workers in an automobile manufacturing enterprise were investigated by using a self-made questionnaire＂Noise Workers Questionnaire＂ and cluster sampling method. The occupational noise hygiene survey and occupational hazards detection were carried out in their workplaces. They were divided into noise exposure group and non-noise exposure group according to whether they were exposed to noise or not. The general characteristics, hearing and nervous system symptoms of the two groups of workers were compared, and the risk of hearing loss was assessed.Results:There were 758 workers in the noise exposure group, aged (26±5) years old, with a working age of 3.0 (2.0, 6.0) years exposed to noise. 2758 workers in the non-noise exposure group, aged (25±6) years old, with a working age of 2.0 (1.0, 4.0) years. There were statistically significant differences in the distribution of workers＇education level, working age and memory loss between the two groups (χ 2=37.98, 38.70, 5.20, P<0.05). The workers in the noise exposure group showed a decreasing trend of insomnia, dreaminess, sweating and fatigue with the increase of working age (χ 2trend=6.16, 7.99, P<0.05). The risk classification of binaural high-frequency hearing loss for workers in all noise positions until the age of 50 and 60 was negligible, the risk of occupational noise deafness was low for workers in stamping and welding noise positions until the age of 60. Conclusion:The occupational noise exposed to automobile manufacturing workers may cause certain harm to their nervous and auditory systems. Noise protection measures should be taken to reduce the risk of hearing loss and occupational noise deafness.

OBJECTIVES: To explore and analyze the epidemic features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Hunan Province from January 21, 2020 to March 14, 2020, as well as to investigate the COVID-19 epidemics in each city of Hunan Province. METHODS: The epidemic data was obtained from the official website of Hunan Province's Health Commission. The data of each city of Hunan Province was analyzed separately. Spatial distribution of cumulative confirmed COVID-19 patients and the cumulative occurrence rate was drawn by ArcGIS software for each city in Hunan Province. Some regional indexes were also compared with that in the whole country. RESULTS: The first patient was diagnosed in January 21, sustained patient growth reached its plateau in around February 17. Up to March 14, the cumulative confirmed COVID-19 patients stopped at 1 018. The cumulative occurrence rate of COVID-19 patients was 0.48 per 0.1 million person. The number of cumulative severe patients was 150 and the number of cumulative dead patients was 4. The mortality rate (0.39%) and the cure rate (99.6%) in Hunan Province was significantly lower and higher respectively than the corresponding average rate in the whole country (0.90% and 96.2%, Hubei excluded). The first 3 cities in numbers of the confirmed patients were Changsha, Yueyang, and Shaoyang. While sorted by the cumulative occurrence rate, the first 3 cities in incidence were Changsha, Yueyang, and Zhuzhou. CONCLUSIONS The epidemic of COVID-19 spread out smoothly in Hunan Province. The cities in Hunan Province implement anti-disease strategies based on specific situations on their own and keep the epidemic in the range of controllable.
Betacoronavirus ; China ; epidemiology ; Cities ; epidemiology ; Coronavirus Infections ; epidemiology ; mortality ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; epidemiology ; mortality

Objective: To assess the risk factors associated with nosocomial infection in patients with non-surgical basal ganglia intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) in the acute phase to provide evidence for prevention and intervention of nosocomial infections. Methods: Clinical data of 224 patients with non-surgical basal ganglia ICH from January 2014 to December 2018 in the Shenzhen People′s Hospital were analyzed. Patients were divided into 2 groups based on the presence or absence of infection. Clinical data between the two groups were compared including gender, age, past medical history, bleeding volume, hematoma growth rate, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, GCS, NIHSS, WBC, RBC, FBI, PLT, CR, BUN, GLU, CRP, UA, CHOL, TG, LDL, HCY. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis and the area under the ROC curve were performed on meaningful variables (P<0.05) to determine the early independent predictors of risk factors for nosocomial infections. ResuIts: Nosocomial infection occurred in 47 of 224 patients, with an infection rate of 20.98%. Compared with infected group, non-infected group had a higher value of age [(63.91 ± 12.37) years vs. (58.66 ± 12.37) years, P=0.010], bleeding volume [(10.33 ± 7.94) ml vs. (7.61 ± 6.58) ml, P=0.034], hematoma growth rate [(7.34 ± 9.17) ml/h vs. (4.33 ± 6.77) ml/h, P=0.040], systolic blood pressure [(177.94 ± 25.28) mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) vs. (164.85 ± 22.34) mmHg, P=0.001], NIHSS score [(7.89 ± 4.92) scores vs. (4.84 ± 4.59) scores, P<0.01], WBC [(9.50 ± 3.23) × 10⁹/L vs. (8.25 ± 2.28) × 10⁹/L, P=0.015], FBI [(3.44 ± 0.95) g/L vs. (3.03 ± 0.63) g/L, P=0.007], BUN [(7.01 ± 5.84) mmol/L vs. (4.95 ± 1.93) mmol/L, P=0.021], GLU [(7.27 ± 2.84) mmol/L vs. (5.96 ± 1.75), P=0.004] and CRP [(11.94 ± 21.4) mg/L vs. (4.39 ± 6.41) mg/L, P=0.021]. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that systolic blood pressure (OR=1.021, 95% CI 1.005 -1.037, P=0.012), NIHSS score (OR=1.143, 95% CI 1.056 - 1.237, P=0.001), BUN (OR=1.174, 95% CI 1.025 - 1.344, P=0.020), CRP (OR=1.063, 95% CI 1.016 - 1.112, P=0.008) and age (OR=1.053, 95%CI 1.019 -1.089, P=0.002) was an independent risk factor for nosocomial infection in non-surgical basal ganglia ICH patients in the acute phase. The Area Under Curve (AUC) of the above independent risk factors was calculated, and the results showed that systolic blood pressure (AUC=0.653, 95% CI 0.564 -0.741, P=0.001), NIHSS score (AUC=0.679, 95% CI 0.592 - 0.767, P=0.000), BUN (AUC=0.617, 95% CI 0.526 - 0.708, P=0.014), CRP (AUC=0.691, 95% CI 0.614 - 0.768, P=0.000) and age (AUC=0.643, 95% CI 0.557 - 0.728, P=0.003) had an early predictive value for the occurrence of nosocomial infection in non-operative basal ganglia ICH patients in the acute stage. Conclusions The occurrence of nosocomial infections has identifiable and early predictive risk factors in patients with non-surgical basal ganglia ICH during acute phase. Therefore, controllable risk factors need to be controlled to reduce the incidence of nosocomial infections.

Objective: To explore the role of serum microRNA (miRNAs) levels in the detection of pneumoconiosis, and to establish a combined application model of multiple serums miRNAs for pneumoconiosis diagnosis. Methods: 152 cases were selected in the case group and the control group respectively. The TaqMan Low Density Array method was used to screen out the candidate miRNAs for early screening of pneumoconiosis, and RT-qPCR was used to verify. According to the area under the curve (AUC) , the sensitivity and specificity of the candidate indicators were investigated. The logistic regression model was established by the two-class logistic regression model. Results: The expression of 7 candidate miRNAs in the serum of pneumoconiosis patients was significantly different (P<0.05) . The receiver operating curve (ROC) of the above 7 miRNAs was analyzed, miRNA-21, miRNA-200c, miRNA-16, miRNA-206, miRNA-155, miRNA-29a had statistical significance, and their ROC-AUC is 0.629~0.932. Logistic regression model was: logitP=13.769+0.536×miRNA-21-0.878×miRNA-200C-0.012×miRNA-16-0.111×miRNA-206+0.117×miRNA-155-1.192×miRNA-29a. Conclusion Multiple serum miRNAs combined application models may be used for the diagnosis of pneumoconiosis patients.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate occupational stress and its influencing factors in workers of electronic manufacturing.METHODS: The judgment sampling method was used to select 2 251 workers as study subjects. The Simple Occupational Stress Questionnaire and the Effort-Reward Imbalance( ERI) Questionnaire were used to investigate job demand-control(JDC) and ERI occupational stress respectively. RESULTS: Among the 2 251 workers,the prevalence rates of high occupational stress in JDC and ERI models were 56. 4% and 10. 1%,respectively. The positive rate of JDC occupational stress was higher than that of ERI( P < 0. 01). The multivariate logistic analysis indicated that workers with assembly line had higher risk of JDC and ERI occupational stress than workers without assembly line( P < 0. 05). Workers with labor dispatching had higher risk of JDC and ERI occupational stress than workers with long-term contract( P < 0. 05). Workers exposed to occupational hazards had higher risk of JDC and ERI occupational stress than workers not exposed to occupational hazards( P < 0. 05). Workers with disease had higher risk of JDC and ERI occupational stress than healthy workers( P < 0. 05). CONCLUSION: JDC is the main occupational stress model in workers of electronics manufacturing factory. The main influencing factors are assembly line,labor dispatching,weekly work time,exposure to occupational hazards and illness.