BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common cardiac arrhythmia in the elderly. This study aimed to evaluate urban-rural disparities in its prevalence and management in elderly Chinese. METHODS: Consecutive participants aged ≥ 65 years attending outpatient clinics were enrolled for AF screening using handheld single-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) from April 2017 to December 2022. Each ECG rhythm strip was reviewed from the research team. AF or uninterpretable single-lead ECGs were referred for 12-lead ECG. Primary study outcome comparison was between rural and urban areas for the prevalence of AF. The Student's t-test was used to compare mean values of clinical characteristics between rural and urban participants, while the Pearson's chi-square test was used to compare between-group proportions. Multivariate stepwise logistic regression analysis was performed to estimate the association between AF and various patient characteristics. RESULTS: The 29,166 study participants included 13,253 men (45.4%) and had a mean age of 72.2 years. The 7073 rural participants differed significantly (P ≤ 0.02) from the 22,093 urban participants in several major characteristics, such as older age, greater body mass index, and so on. The overall prevalence of AF was 4.6% (n = 1347). AF was more prevalent in 7073 rural participants than 22,093 urban participants (5.6% vs. 4.3%, P < 0.01), before and after adjustment for age, body mass index, blood pressure, pulse rate, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption and prior medical history. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified overweight/obesity (OR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.17-1.54) in urban areas and cigarette smoking (OR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.20-2.17) and alcohol consumption (OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.04-1.93) in rural areas as specific risk factors for prevalent AF. In patients with known AF in urban areas (n = 781) and rural areas (n = 338), 60.6% and 45.9%, respectively, received AF treatment (P < 0.01), and only 22.4% and 17.2%, respectively, received anticoagulation therapy (P = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS In China, there are urban-rural disparities in AF in the elderly, with a higher prevalence and worse management in rural areas than urban areas. Our study findings provide insight for health policymakers to consider urban-rural disparity in the prevention and treatment of AF.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.11909/j.issn.1671-5411.2017.08.005.].

Glutamine provides carbon and nitrogen to support the proliferation of cancer cells. However, the precise reason why cancer cells are particularly dependent on glutamine remains unclear. In this study, we report that glutamine modulates the tumor suppressor F-box and WD repeat domain-containing 7 (FBW7) to promote cancer cell proliferation and survival. Specifically, lysine 604 (K604) in the sixth of the 7 substrate-recruiting WD repeats of FBW7 undergoes glutaminylation (Gln-K604) by glutaminyl tRNA synthetase. Gln-K604 inhibits SCFFBW7-mediated degradation of c-Myc and Mcl-1, enhances glutamine utilization, and stimulates nucleotide and DNA biosynthesis through the activation of c-Myc. Additionally, Gln-K604 promotes resistance to apoptosis by activating Mcl-1. In contrast, SIRT1 deglutaminylates Gln-K604, thereby reversing its effects. Cancer cells lacking Gln-K604 exhibit overexpression of c-Myc and Mcl-1 and display resistance to chemotherapy-induced apoptosis. Silencing both c-MYC and MCL-1 in these cells sensitizes them to chemotherapy. These findings indicate that the glutamine-mediated signal via Gln-K604 is a key driver of cancer progression and suggest potential strategies for targeted cancer therapies based on varying Gln-K604 status.
Glutamine/metabolism* ; Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein/genetics* ; Humans ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc/genetics* ; Cell Proliferation ; Signal Transduction ; Neoplasms/pathology* ; F-Box-WD Repeat-Containing Protein 7/genetics* ; Cell Survival ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Apoptosis

This study aimed to address the limitations of current diagnostic methods for well leg compartment syndrome(WLCS),including invasiveness,high costs,and insufficient accuracy,by proposing a solution based on electrical impedance tomography(EIT)technology.The electrical response characteristics of the human calf muscle to changes in compartment pressure using EIT were investigated,aiming to visualize the effects of pressure variations on the electrical properties within the compartment and to provide technical support for early non-invasive detection of WLCS.EIT sensors were placed on the right calf of the experimental subjects,with pressure applied externally to the right thigh.Measurements were conducted in two phases:pre-pressure(pre)and post-pressure(post).Pre-pressure,the conductivity distribution image σpre was measured when the calf was placed horizontally.Post-pressure,the calf was raised at an angle of approximately 30°,and pressures of 0,40,80,and 120 mmHg were applied to the right thigh,and the corresponding conductivity distribution images σP=0,σP=40,σP=80,andσP=120were recorded.To quantitatively analyze the pressure effects on the compartment response,paired sample t-test was used to assess the spatial-mean conductivity((σ))from the EIT reconstructed images.Compared to the horizontal position of the right calf,raising the calf at approximately 30° resulted in a significant increase in the spatial-mean conductivity(σ)of the M1 compartment.Furthermore,when pressure was applied to the right thigh while the calf remained at a 30° angle,the spatial-mean conductivity of the M1 compartment σM1 showed an increasing trend with rising pressure.The results indicated that as compartment pressure increased,the volume of extracellular fluid and ion concentration significantly increased,leading to an increase in conductivity,which reflected ischemia and hypoxia in muscle tissue and the related pathophysiological changes.EIT,due to its high sensitivity to conductivity changes,offered a potential effective diagnostic method for non-invasively monitoring the onset and progression of muscle compartment syndrome.

Objective:To explore the acupoint selection law of acupuncture and moxibustion in the treatment of broca aphasia after stroke.Methods:RCT articles about acupuncture and moxibustion treatment for broca aphasia after stroke were retrieved from CNKI, VIP, Wanfang Data, China Medical Journal Full-text Database, SinoMed, PubMed, Web of Science and Embase database from the establishment of the databases to May 31, 2024. Excel 2021, SPSS Statistics 27.0, SPSS Modeler 18.0 and Cytoscape 3.9.1 software were used to analyze the frequency of acupoint, clustering, association rules and core co-occurrence network.Results:A total of 87 articles were included, involving 100 acupuncture and moxibustion prescriptions and 101 acupoints/acupoint area, involving 6 types, including Lianquan (CV 23) (35 times), Jinjin (EX-HN12) (35 times) and Yuye (EX-HN13) (34 times). The selected acupoints were mainly distributed in the head, face, neck and lower limbs, and the meridians were mainly Governor Vessel and Conception Vessel; the specific acupoints were mainly original acupoints, followed by collaterals acupoints, and scalp acupuncture was used most frequently in special acupuncture (88 times). According to the clustering analysis of high-frequency acupoints/acupoint area, there were five effective groups, such as "Jinjin (EX-HN12)-Yuye (EX-HN13)-Lianquan (CV 23)-Baihui (GV 20)-Yamen (GV 15)". The core co-occurrence network analysis showed that the acupoints used most frequently were Lianquan (CV 23) and Jinjin (EX-HN12), and the highest correlation between the two acupoints was Jinjin (EX-HN12)-Yuye (EX-HN13).Conclusions:Acupuncture and moxibustion for the treatment of broca aphasia after stroke is often based on "awakening the brain as the outline, benefiting the marrow as the foundation, and resuscitation". Under the guidance of the theory of Zang-fu meridians and collaterals, through dredging the meridians and collaterals, tonifying the brain and opening and closing the sound, the recovery of language function can be achieved.

ObjectiveBody fluid stains left at crime scenes are frequently trace amounts, while the identification of body fluids through real time fluorogenic quantitative technique often necessitates the repeated detection within the limited sample, as multiple miRNA markers are the basis for the identification. Based on the goal of both the throughput and efficiency improvement of miRNA analysis in trace samples, a duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system was designed to accurately quantify two miRNAs simultaneously, and the system should be further verified by actual sample for the body fluid identification. MethodsThe duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR system of miR-451a to miR-21-5p was established with specially designed primers and probes, and the concentrations of the primers and probes were both optimized. The specificity, sensitivity and reproducibility of the system were validated, while its capability for body fluid identification was assessed using the miR-451a to miR-21-5p ratio. ResultsThe optimized assay system exhibited excellent specificity and repeatability, with coefficients of variation consistently below 8% for both intra- and inter-batch variability. The amplification efficiency of miR-451a and miR-21-5p reached 71.77% and 74.81%, respectively, with high and relatively consistent results. By utilizing this duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system, a total of 58 body fluid samples were analyzed, exhibiting a discrimination rate of 100% between blood and non-blood samples, as well as between peripheral blood and menstrual blood samples. Moreover, the results, obtained from single real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system and duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system, showed no statistically significant difference with randomly selected blood samples (n=20). Compared to previous single real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system, the sensitivity of duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system exhibited remarkable improvement. A minimum input of only 0.1 ng total RNA was sufficient for accurate detection of peripheral blood and menstrual blood samples, while saliva, semen, and vaginal secretion required only 1 ng total RNA for precise identification purposes. Additionally, the duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system successfully differentiated between different types of body fluids in simulated samples under natural outdoor conditions. ConclusionThe duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system effectively reduced both the time and material costs by half compared to the single system, especially suitable for the examination of body fluid stains left at crime scenes, solving the contradiction between the trace amount and the multiple sample volumes demand of repeated real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR. The duplex real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay successfully distinguished blood and other body fluid, as well as peripheral blood and menstrual blood samples, which maintains an equivalent capability for body fluid identification with half sample, time and reagent consumption. This system provides an efficient tool for identifying suspicious body fluids, as well as a foundation for more multiplexed real time fluorogenic quantitative PCR assay system research.

Objective To investigate the correlation between the expression of long non-coding ribonucleic acid growth arrest specific 5(lncRNA GAS5),phospholysine phosphohistidine inorganic pyrophosphate phos-phatase(LHPP)and epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT)in cancer tissues of patients with non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC)and its clinical significance.Methods Cancer tissues and adjacent tissues of 90 patients with NSCLC who underwent surgical resection in the First Hospital Affiliated to Hebei North College from June 2018 to January 2020 were collected.The expressions of lncRNA GAS5,LHPP and EMT-associated pro-teins[E-calmodulin(E-Cad),N-calmodulin(N-Cad),and vimentin(VIM)]were detected by real-time fluores-cence quantitative polymerase chain reaction.The relationship between lncRNA GAS5 and LHPP mRNA and clinicopathological features in cancer tissues of NSCLC patients was analyzed,and the correlation between ln-cRNA GAS5 and LHPP mRNA and EMT-associated proteins expression in cancer tissues of NSCLC patients was analyzed by Pearson correlation.Kaplan-Meier method was used to plot the survival curves of NSCLC pa-tients with different lncRNA GAS5 and LHPP mRNA expressions,and multivariate Cox regression was used to analyze the prognostic factors of NSCLC patients.Results The expressions of lncRNA GAS5,LHPP mR-NA and E-Cad mRNA in cancer tissues of NSCLC patients were lower than those in adjacent tissues,while the expressions of N-Cad mRNA and VIM mRNA were higher than those in adjacent tissues,with statistical sig-nificance(P＜0.05).Pearson correlation analysis showed that lncRNA GAS5 in cancer tissues of NSCLC pa-tients was positively correlated with E-Cad mRNA expression(r=0.724,P＜0.001),and negatively correla-ted with N-Cad mRNA and VIM mRNA expression(r=-0.699,-0.689).P＜0.001);lncRNA GAS5 was positively correlated with LHPP mRNA expression(r=0.651,P＜0.001).The mRNA expressions of ln-cRNA GAS5 and LHPP in cancer tissues of NSCLC patients with different degrees of differentiation,tumor TNM stage and lymph node metastasis were significantly different(P＜0.05).Kaplan-Meier survival curve a-nalysis showed that the 3-year overall survival rate in the lncRNA GAS5 high expression group[68.18％(30/44)]was higher than that in the lncRNA GAS5 low expression group[36.96％(17/46)].The 3-year overall survival rate in the high LHPP mRNA expression group[67.39％(31/46)]was higher than that in the lowLHPP mRNA expression group[36.36％(16/44)],and the difference was statistically significant(x2=10.274,10.322,P＜0.05).Low differentiation,TNM stage Ⅲ and lymph node metastasis were independent risk factors for death in NSCLC patients,and lncRNA GAS5≥1.32 and LHPP mRNA≥1.12 were independ-ent protective factors(P＜0.05).Conclusion The low expression of lncRNA GAS5 and LHPP mRNA in cancer tissues of patients with NSCLC is related to EMT-associated proteins expression,differentiation de-gree,tumor TNM stage,lymph node metastasis and prognosis,and may become a new target for the diagnosis and treatment of NSCLC.

Abnormal histone modifications, mainly including abnormal histone methylation and acetylation, play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of B-cell lymphoma. Recent studies have shown that abnormal histone modifications can promote the development of lymphoma by creating a tumor supportive immune microenvironment to promote tumor proliferation and immune escape. Therefore, drugs targeting histone modification gene abnormalities are currently a hot field of B-cell lymphoma. This article reviews the immune microenvironment of B-cell lymphoma, histone modification abnormalities targeting the immune microenvironment, immunomicrobial alterations, and advances in related targeted therapeutic agents.

Objective:To investigate the effect and mechanism of miR-217 targeted regulation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 2(ERK2)expression on activity and immune escape of non-small cell lung cancer cells(NSCLC).Methods:qRT-PCR was used to detect expression levels of miR-217 and ERK2 mRNA in NSCLC tissues,adjacent tissues,and HLF-1,A549 and HCC827 cell lines.Analyzed prognosis and survival status of NSCLC patients with different miR-217 expression level.Bioinformatics and dual luciferase gene reporting experiments were used to analyze the targeting relationship between miR-217 and ERK2.Cultivated NSCLC A549 cells and divided them into NC group,miR-217 inhibitor group,miR-217 mimic group,miR-217 mimic+ERK2 NC group and miR-217 mimic+ERK2 group.Except for the NC group without any treatment,all other groups were transfected with corresponding plasmids to analyze the proliferation activity and immune escape status of A549 cells in each group,and clarified the mechanism of action.Results:Compared with adjacent tissues,expression of miR-217 in NSCLC tissue was decreased,while expression of ERK2 mRNA was increased(P<0.05).Compared with human normal lung fibroblast HLF-1 cell lines,expression of miR-217 in NSCLC cell lines A549 and HCC827 were decreased,while expression of ERK2 mRNA was increased(P<0.05).Analysis of the relationship be-tween miR-217 and prognosis of NSCLC patients based on Kaplan-Meier Plotter database showed that low expression of miR-217 was associated with poor prognosis of patients(HR=0.90,P=0.033).Dual fluorescein reporter genes showed matching sequences between the 3'UTR regions of miR-217 and ERK2.miR-217 mimic fragment could inhibit ERK2-WT signal,but had no effect on ERK2-MUT.Compared with NC group,cell proliferation activity,PD-L1 and PD-L2 mRNA expression levels of miR-217 inhibitor group were in-creased,while CD8+T cell activity was decreased,and cell proliferation activity,PD-L1 and PD-L2 mRNA expression levels of miR-217 mimic group were decreased,while CD8+T cell activity was increased(P<0.05).Compared with miR-217 mimic group,cell pro-liferation activity,CD8+T cell activity,PD-L1 and PD-L2 mRNA expression levels of miR-217 mimic+ERK2 NC group had no signifi-cant changes(P>0.05),cell proliferation activity,PD-L1 and PD-L2 mRNA expression levels of miR-217 mimic+ERK2 group were increased,while CD8+T cell activity was decreased(P<0.05).Conclusion:Overexpression of miR-217 can reduce the activity of NSCLC cell A549,inhibit the expression of PD-L1,activate CD8+T cells in tumor microenvironment,and then inhibit immune es-cape,which may play a role by targeting ERK2.

To understand the distribution of ticks in the Wuwei Region,enrich tick species data,and provide a basis for the prevention of tick-borne diseases,tick were collected using flagging and tick-picking methods during the highest activity period from April to September in 2021 and 2022 in the mountainous areas of Wuwei City.The ticks were identified based on morpho-logical and molecular biological characteristics,and characteristic sequences were obtained.A systematic evolutionary tree was constructed using the neighbor-joining method in MEGA 11.0 software.In total,7 342 ticks collected in Wuwei,which be-longed to 5 species from 4 genera with in the Ixodidae family,which included Dermacentor nuttalli,Hyalomma asiaticum,Ixodes canisuga,Haemaphysalis longicornis and Haema-physalis danieli.Ticks of the same species clustered together into the same branch of an evolutionary tree.In the Wuwei Re-gion,five common tick species are found across various habi-tats,with each habitat featuring different distributions of tick species and populations.The Dermacentor nuttalli is the dom-inant tick species in this area.