Despite therapy with potent antiviral agents, chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients remain at high risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). While metabolites have been rediscovered as active drivers of biological processes including carcinogenesis, the specific metabolites modulating HCC risk in CHB patients are largely unknown. Here, we demonstrate that baseline plasma from CHB patients who later developed HCC during follow-up exhibits growth-promoting properties in a case-control design nested within a large-scale, prospective cohort. Metabolomics analysis reveals a reduction in long-chain acylcarnitines (LCACs) in the baseline plasma of patients with HCC development. LCACs preferentially inhibit the proliferation of HCC cells in vitro at a physiological concentration and prevent the occurrence of HCC in vivo without hepatorenal toxicity. Uptake and metabolism of circulating LCACs increase the intracellular level of acetyl coenzyme A, which upregulates histone H3 Lys14 acetylation at the promoter region of KLF6 gene and thereby activates KLF6/p21 pathway. Indeed, blocking LCAC metabolism attenuates the difference in KLF6/p21 expression induced by baseline plasma of HCC/non-HCC patients. The deficiency of circulating LCACs represents a driver of HCC in CHB patients with viral control. These insights provide a promising direction for developing therapeutic strategies to reduce HCC risk further in the antiviral era.

Peritoneal fibrosis(PF)is an important reason that restricts long-term treatment of peritoneal dialysis(PD).Based on the theory of collateral disease,PF is considered to be an abdominal collateral disease,with dampness as the main pathogenic factor,and collateral qi deficiency and stagnation,toxicity and blood stasis as the core pathogenesis.The peritoneum is chronically exposed to an inflammatory microenvironment induced by non-biocompatible peritoneal dialysis fluid,reflecting the pathogenic mechanism of dampness-induced pathology.The resultant pathological processes,including damage of peritoneal mesothelial cells,accumulation of inflammatory mediators and metabolic products,and angiogenesis—elucidate the scientific connotation of dampness impairing collaterals and inducing deficiency,toxicity,and stasis.On this basis,the treatment principles of invigorating qi,detoxifying,resolving stasis and unblocking collaterals were proposed,and the Qixue Huazheng prescription was formed with Astragalus as the main ingredient and Centella asiatica and Ligusticum wallichii as the compatibility,which provides a reference for the prevention and treatment of PD-relat-ed PF by traditional Chinese medicine.

Objective To establish a stable,reliable,and clinically relevant porcine model of endotoxin-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS).Methods Ten 8-month-old male Bama minipigs were deeply sedated,followed by invasive mechanical ventilation and electrocardiographic monitoring.Lipopolysaccharide(LPS)was intravenously pumped at 600 μg/(kg·h)for 3 hours,then maintained at 15 μg/(kg·h)thereafter.Dynamic monitoring was performed at five time points after LPS injection(LPS 0,1,3,5,and 8 h),including arterial blood gas analysis and chest computed tomography(CT)scans.Pathological examination of lung tissues obtained via bronchoscopic biopsy(HE staining and transmission electron microscopy)was conducted.These indicators were comprehensively used to evaluate the success of the animal model.Results At 5 hours after LPS administration,8 minipigs developed symptoms such as skin cyanosis,elevated body temperature,and respiratory distress.The oxygenation index decreased to<300 mmHg.Chest CT scans showed diffuse pulmonary infiltrates.Histopathology revealed alveolar edema and hyaline membrane formation.Transmission electron microscopy demonstrated disruption of pulmonary blood-air barrier,depletion of lamellar bodies in type Ⅱ pneumocytes,inflammatory cell infiltration,and exudation of plasma proteins and fibrin.Compared with LPS 0 h,at LPS 8 h,the oxygenation index and arterial blood pH were significantly decreased(P<0.001),while blood lactic acid and serum potassium were significantly increased(P<0.05);serum calcium and base excess were significantly decreased(P<0.05),and the lung injury score based on HE-stained lung sections was significantly increased(P<0.01).Conclusion The porcine ARDS model established by continuous LPS injection can dynamically simulate the pathophysiological characteristics and typical pathological manifestations of clinical septic ARDS,making it an effective tool to study the pathogenesis,prevention,and treatment strategies of septic ARDS.

Peritoneal fibrosis(PF)is an important reason that restricts long-term treatment of peritoneal dialysis(PD).Based on the theory of collateral disease,PF is considered to be an abdominal collateral disease,with dampness as the main pathogenic factor,and collateral qi deficiency and stagnation,toxicity and blood stasis as the core pathogenesis.The peritoneum is chronically exposed to an inflammatory microenvironment induced by non-biocompatible peritoneal dialysis fluid,reflecting the pathogenic mechanism of dampness-induced pathology.The resultant pathological processes,including damage of peritoneal mesothelial cells,accumulation of inflammatory mediators and metabolic products,and angiogenesis—elucidate the scientific connotation of dampness impairing collaterals and inducing deficiency,toxicity,and stasis.On this basis,the treatment principles of invigorating qi,detoxifying,resolving stasis and unblocking collaterals were proposed,and the Qixue Huazheng prescription was formed with Astragalus as the main ingredient and Centella asiatica and Ligusticum wallichii as the compatibility,which provides a reference for the prevention and treatment of PD-relat-ed PF by traditional Chinese medicine.

BACKGROUND: In China, lung cancer remains the cancer with the highest incidence and mortality rate. Among early-stage lung adenocarcinomas (LUAD), the micropapillary (MPP) component is prevalent and typically exhibits high aggressiveness, significantly correlating with early metastasis, lymphatic infiltration, and reduced five-year survival rates. Therefore, the study is to explore the similarities and differences between MPP and non-micropapillary (non-MPP) components in malignant pulmonary nodules characterized by GGOs in early-stage LUAD, identify unique mutational features of the MPP component and analyze the relationship between the ZNF469 gene, a member of the zinc-finger protein family, and the prognosis of early-stage LUAD, as well as its correlation with immune infiltration. METHODS: A total of 31 malignant pulmonary nodules of LUAD were collected and dissected into paired MPP and non-MPP components using microdissection. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed on the components of early-stage malignant pulmonary nodules. Mutational signatures analysis was conducted using R packages such as maftools, Nonnegative Matrix Factorization (NMF), and Sigminer to unveil the genomic mutational characteristics unique to MPP components in invasive LUAD compared to other tumor tissues. Furthermore, we explored the expression of the ZNF469 gene in LUAD using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to investigate its potential association with the prognosis. We also investigated gene interaction networks and signaling pathways related to ZNF469 in LUAD using the GeneMANIA database and conducted Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis. Lastly, we analyzed the correlation between ZNF469 gene expression and levels of immune cell infiltration in LUAD using the TIMER and TISIDB databases. RESULTS: MPP components exhibited a higher number of genomic variations, particularly the 13th COSMIC (Catalogue of Somatic Mutations in Cancer) mutational signature characterized by the activity of the cytidine deaminase APOBEC family, which was unique to MPP components compared to non-MPP components in tumor tissues. This suggests the potential involvement of APOBEC in the progression of MPP components in early-stage LUAD. Additionally, MPP samples with high similarity to APOBEC signature displayed a higher tumor mutational burden (TMB), indicating that these patients may be more likely to benefit from immunotherapy. The expression of ZNF469 was significantly upregulated in LUAD compared to normal tissue, and was associated with poor prognosis in LUAD patients (P<0.05). Gene interaction network analysis and GO/KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that COL6A1, COL1A1, COL1A2, TGFB2, MMP2, COL8A2 and C2CD4C interacted with ZNF469 and were mainly involved in encoding collagen proteins and participating in the constitution of extracellular matrix. ZNF469 expression was positively correlated with immune cell infiltration in LUAD (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS The study has unveiled distinctive mutational signatures in the MPP components of early-stage invasive LUAD in the Asian population. Furthermore, we have identified that the elevated expression of mutated ZNF469 impacts the prognosis and immune infiltration in LUAD, suggesting its potential as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in LUAD.
Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/genetics* ; Adenocarcinoma of Lung/genetics* ; China ; Prognosis ; Transcription Factors

In this study, alkali-soluble polysaccharide was extracted from Poria residue, and the structure of alkali-soluble polysaccharide was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The physical morphology of alkali-soluble polysaccharide and ethyl cellulose (EC) was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the focus on angle of repose, bulk density, tapped density, Carr index, interparticle porosity, cohesion index, Hausner ratio, etc. The physical fingerprints were drawn, and the powder properties were evaluated by multivariate analysis. Diclofenac sodium extended-release tablets were prepared by direct compression method using alkali-soluble polysaccharide and EC as insoluble backbone materials to evaluate the basic properties of the extended-release tablets, investigate the in vitro drug release behavior and study the release mechanism. The results showed that alkali-soluble polysaccharide is a semi-crystalline polymer with smooth lamellar structure, and its stacking and compressibility are stronger than EC. The in vitro release experiments showed that the slow release performance of alkali-soluble polysaccharide is stronger than EC, and the release behavior of the prepared slow release tablets is in accordance with the Higuchi model. The pore structure is formed inside the tablets during the release process, and the release mode is pore diffusion release. The results of this study are of great significance for the development of new slow-release materials and the rational use of resources.

Objective: To describe the current status and trends in the treatment of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) among very preterm infants (VPI) admitted to the neonatal intensive care units (NICU) of the Chinese Neonatal Network (CHNN) from 2019 to 2021, and to compare the differences in PDA treatment among these units. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study based on the CHNN VPI cohort, all of 22 525 VPI (gestational age<32 weeks) admitted to 79 tertiary NICU within 3 days of age from 2019 to 2021 were included. The overall PDA treatment rates were calculated, as well as the rates of infants with different gestational ages (≤26, 27-28, 29-31 weeks), and pharmacological and surgical treatments were described. PDA was defined as those diagnosed by echocardiography during hospitalization. The PDA treatment rate was defined as the number of VPI who had received medication treatment and (or) surgical ligation of PDA divided by the number of all VPI. Logistic regression was used to investigate the changes in PDA treatment rates over the 3 years and the differences between gestational age groups. A multivariate Logistic regression model was constructed to compute the standardized ratio (SR) of PDA treatment across different units, to compare the rates after adjusting for population characteristics. Results: A total of 22 525 VPI were included in the study, with a gestational age of 30.0 (28.6, 31.0) weeks and birth weight of 1 310 (1 100, 1 540) g; 56.0% (12 615) of them were male. PDA was diagnosed by echocardiography in 49.7% (11 186/22 525) of all VPI, and the overall PDA treatment rate was 16.8% (3 795/22 525). Of 3 762 VPI who received medication treatment, the main first-line medication used was ibuprofen (93.4% (3 515/3 762)) and the postnatal day of first medication treatment was 6 (4, 10) days of age; 59.3% (2 231/3 762) of the VPI had been weaned from invasive respiratory support during the first medication treatment, and 82.2% (3 092/3 762) of the infants received only one course of medication treatment. A total of 143 VPI underwent surgery, which was conducted on 32 (22, 46) days of age. Over the 3 years from 2019 to 2021, there was no significant change in the PDA treatment rate in these VPI (P=0.650). The PDA treatment rate decreased with increasing gestational age (P<0.001). The PDA treatment rates for VPI with gestational age ≤26, 27-28, and 29-31 weeks were 39.6% (688/1 737), 25.9% (1 319/5 098), and 11.4% (1 788/15 690), respectively. There were 61 units having a total number of VPI≥100 cases, and their rates of PDA treatment were 0 (0/116)-47.4% (376/793). After adjusting for population characteristics, the range of standardized ratios for PDA treatment in the 61 units was 0 (95%CI 0-0.3) to 3.4 (95%CI 3.1-3.8). Conclusions: From 2019 to 2021, compared to the peers in developed countries, VPI in CHNN NICU had a different PDA treatment rate; specifically, the VPI with small birth gestational age had a lower treatment rate, while the VPI with large birth gestational age had a higher rate. There are significant differences in PDA treatment rates among different units.
Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Humans ; Female ; Ductus Arteriosus, Patent/drug therapy* ; Infant, Premature ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Ibuprofen/therapeutic use* ; Infant, Very Low Birth Weight ; Persistent Fetal Circulation Syndrome ; Infant, Premature, Diseases/therapy*

Objective:Patients are breathing freely during adjuvant proton pencil beam radiotherapy after breast conserving surgery. Fluctuation of the thorax may affect the position of the end of the proton beam flow, which needs to be precisely evaluated on a millimeter scale.Methods:For 20 patients with breast cancer treated with proton radiotherapy after breast conserving surgery, PET-CT scan was performed approximately 10 min after the end of proton radiotherapy. The images of PET-CT were processed for ROI determination and sampling line (profile) extraction on a Raystation RV workstation to calculate the actual difference between the predicted and real radioactivity from the same spatial location as obtained by PET acquisition R50. Then, the differences in the spatial location between the actual process of proton irradiation and the planned process were obtained. Depth difference values for each pair of sampling lines were presented. Results:For 20 patients with breast cancer with a median follow-up of 22 months (range 12 - 46 months), all patients survived at the last follow-up, and no radiation pneumonitis was observed during the follow-up period. Among the verification results of 21 cases, the depth difference of evenly distributed was (-0.75±1.89) mm in the primary field and (-0.82±2.06) mm in the secondary field; The depth difference of sequential treatment was (1.81±1.87) mm in the primary field and (1.32±1.74) mm in the secondary field; The depth difference of synchronous addition in the primary field was (-1.47±1.44) mm, and the depth difference in the secondary field was (-1.48±2.11) mm.Conclusion:The results of off-line PET-CT in vivo biological verification show that the accuracy of the dose boundary cut-off was within 3 mm in breast cancer patients, which meets the clinical and physician requirement for the precision in breast cancer treatment.

Gastrectomy ; Humans ; Lymph Node Excision ; Lymph Nodes ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Retrospective Studies ; Stomach Neoplasms/surgery*