ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide on vascular endothelial injury in hypertension and its molecular mechanism. MethodsC57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into saline group （Saline） and hypertension group （Ang Ⅱ， which were infused with Ang Ⅱ via subcutaneously implanted osmotic pumps）， and supplemented daily with nicotinamide mononucleotide （300 mg/kg）， a precursor of NAD⁺. Blood pressure， endothelial relaxation function and pulse wave velocity were measured after 4 weeks. Wound healing assay and adhesion assay were used to evaluate the function of endothelial cells in vitro. mtROS levels were detected by immunofluorescence staining. RT-PCR was used to detect the mRNA expression of mtDNA， SIRT3 and isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 （IDH2）. 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine levels were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The protein expression levels of p-eNOS， eNOS， SIRT3 and IDH2 were detected by Western blot. ResultsNMN supplementation reduced blood pressure （P<0.001） and improved endothelial function and arterial stiffness （P<0.001） in hypertensive mice. In vitro， NMN improved endothelial function in AngII-stimulated endothelial cells （P<0.05） and attenuated mitochondrial oxidative stress levels （P<0.001）. Mechanistically， NMN elevated SIRT3 activity （P<0.001）， which subsequently enhanced IDH activity （P<0.001） and reduced oxidative stress levels in endothelial cells. Conversely， knockdown of IDH2 would reverse the effect of SIRT3 in improving endothelial function （P<0.001）. ConclusionNAD⁺ lowers blood pressure and enhances vascular function in hypertension by reducing the level of oxidative stress in endothelial cells through activation of the SIRT3/IDH2 signal pathway.

Objective To investigate the effect of miR-130a targeting phosphase and tensin homology deleted on chromosome ten(PTEN)/phosphoinositide 3 kinase(PI3K)/protein kinase B(AKT)pathway on renal tissuecell apoptosis in diabetic kidney disease(DKD)rats.Methods The DKD rat model was constructed by feeding high-sugar and high-fat diet combined with intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin(STZ).72 rats were divided into normal control group(NC),DKD model group(DKD),miR-130a agonist negative control group(NC agomir),and miR-130a agonist group(miR-130a agomir),miR-130a agomir+ PTEN overexpression negative control group(miR-130a agomir+pcDNA),and miR-130a agomir+ PCDNA-PTEN overexpression group(miR-130a Agomir + PCDNA-PTEN),with12 rats in each group.Urinary microalbumin kit was used to detect 24 h urine albumin(UAlb).Fasting blood glucose(FBG),serum creatinine(Scr)and blood urea nitrogen(BUN)were detected by automatic biochemical analyzer.Pathological changes of renal tissue were detected by HE staining.The levels of serum IL-6 and TNF-α were detected by ELISA.The apoptosis of renal tissue was detected by TUNEL staining.The expression of miR-130a was detected by qRT-PCR,and the expression of B-cell lymphoma-2-associated X protein(Bax),B-cell lymphoma-2(Bcl-2)and PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway were detected by Western blot.Dual luciferase reporter gene experiment was used to verify the targeting relationship between miR-130a and PTEN.Results Compared with DKD and NC agomir groups,24 h UAlb,FPG,Scr,BUN,IL-6,TNF-α,renal cell apoptosis rate,Bax protein expression and PTEN protein expression in miR-130a agomir group were decreased(P＜0.05).The expressions of miR-130a,Bcl-2,p-Akt/AKT protein were increased(P＜0.05).Compared with miR-130a agomir group,24 h UAlb,FPG,Scr,BUN,IL-6,TNF-α,renal cell apoptosis rate,Bax protein expression and PTEN protein expression were increased in miR-130a agomir+pcDNA-PTEN group(P＜0.05).The expression of Bcl-2,p-Akt/AKT protein decreased(P＜0.05).Conclusion Overexpression of miR-130a may inhibit renal cell apoptosis in DKD rats by down-regulating PTEN to activate PI3K/AKT pathway.

Objective·To investigate the expression of miR-146a in peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis(RA)and its correlation with inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)and interleukin-6(IL-6).Methods·A total of 30 active RA patients who received medical treatment and 30 healthy controls who underwent physical examinations at the People's Hospital of Longhua,Shenzhen from August 2019 to July 2021 were selected.Peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMCs)and CD4+T lymphocytes were isolated from venous blood extracted from RA patients and healthy controls,respectively.Quantitative real-time PCR(qPCR)was used to detect the expression of miR-146a in peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes,and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)was used to detect the levels of TNF-α and IL-6.After transfection of the peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes of RA patients with miR-146a mimic,the expression of miR-146a,TNF-α and IL-6 was detected again.The correlations between miR-146a expression and TNF-α and IL-6 expression in RA patients,both before and after transfection,were analyzed by using Pearson correlation coefficient.Results·Before transfection with miR-146a mimic,the expression levels of miR-146a,TNF-α and IL-6 in peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes of RA patients were significantly higher than those of healthy controls(all P＜0.001).After transfection,the expression of miR-146a in peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes of RA patients was significantly higher,and the expression of TNF-α and IL-6 was significantly lower(all P＜0.001).The results of Pearson correlation analysis showed that the expression of miR-146a in peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes of RA patients,both before and after transfection,was positively correlated with the expression of TNF-α and IL-6,respectively(r=0.959,P＜0.001;r=0.916,P＜0.001;r=0.971,P＜0.001;r=0.861,P＜0.001).Conclusion·miR-146a can regulate the levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in peripheral blood CD4+T lymphocytes of RA patients,indicating that miR-146a may play a role in the pathogenesis of RA.

Objective To investigate the clinical value of auditory brainstem response(ABR)wave Ⅰ latency and 1 000 Hz acoustic immittance in the assessment of middle ear function in infants.Methods A total of 74 infants who were born within 6 months of age from 2020 to 2021 were selected,with a total of 148 ears.According to the click ABR(hereinafter referred to as ABR)threshold,they were divided into mild group(56 ears),moderate group(14 ears)and normal group(78 ears).The ABR wave Ⅰ latency and 1 000 Hz acoustic immittance results were ana-lyzed respectively.Results The Kappa values between ABR wave Ⅰ latency and 1 000 Hz tympanometry in infants of mild and moderate groups were 0.708 and 0.650,respectively.There was no significant difference in the detec-tion rate of middle ear function abnormality(P＞0.05)in infants with mild and moderate threshold impairment within 6 months of age.The paried Chi-square test showed a significant difference between the ABR wave Ⅰ latency and 1 000 Hz acoustic immittance in infants with normal threshold at 6 month of age(P＜0.05),with a Kappa val-ue of 0.297.Conclusion The middle ear function could be evaluated by ABR wave Ⅰ latency or 1 000 Hz acoustic immittance in 6-month-old infants with mild or moderate abnormality.For infants with normal ABR threshold,1 000 Hz acoustic immittance and the latency of ABR wave Ⅰ need to be cross-verified.

Objective:To analyze the clinical and pathological features of adolescent- onset primary nephrotic syndrome (PNS) in children (10 years≤age≤18 years), so as to explore the renal biopsy indications in adolescent-onset PNS.Methods:It was a single-center retrospective observational study. The clinical and pathological data of adolescent-onset PNS (age≥10 years) who underwent renal biopsy in Children's Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University from December 2004 to June 2022 were analyzed retrospectively.Results:A total of 110 children were included in the study, including 76 males (69.1%) and 34 females (30.9%), with the onset age ranging from 10 years to 14 years and 9 months. Forty-nine cases (44.5%) were accompanied by hematuria, including 14 cases (12.7%) of gross hematuria and 35 cases (31.8%) of microscopic hematuria. Twenty-five cases (22.7%) had hypertension, 19 cases (17.3%) had renal insufficiency, and 4 cases (3.6%) had low complement C3 at the onset. Fifty-two cases (47.3%) were steroid sensitive nephrotic syndrome and 58 cases (52.7%) were steroid resistant nephrotic syndrome. Biopsy results showed that minimal change disease(MCD) was the most common histopathological subtype (47.3%, 52 case), followed by focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) in 22 cases (20.0%), IgA nephropathy (IgAN) in 17 cases (15.5%), membranous nephropathy (MN) in 7 cases (6.4%), mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis in 5 cases (4.5%), IgM nephropathy in 4 cases (3.6%), membranous proliferative glomerulonephritis in 2 cases (1.8%), and C1q nephropathy in 1 case (0.9%). Among 44 children with simple type nephrotic syndrome, the pathological type was mainly MCD (77.3%), and 66 children with nephritic type nephrotic syndrome were mostly non-MCD (72.7%), such as IgAN, FSGS, MN, etc. If there are two or more clinical manifestations of persistent hematuria, hypertension, renal insufficiency or low C3 levels, the proportion of non-MCD would further increase to 92.0%(23/25). The pathological type of patient with gross hematuria or low C3-emia was non-MCD. The frequency of hematuria (69.0% vs. 17.3%, χ2=29.619, P<0.001), hypertension (31.0% vs. 13.5%, χ2=4.821, P=0.028) and renal insufficiency (24.1% vs. 9.6%, χ2=4.047, P=0.044) in non-MCD group was significantly higher than those in MCD group. Conclusions:If the clinical manifestation of PNS in adolescent over 10 years old is simple type nephrotic syndrome, the histopathological lesion is mostly MCD, and most of them are steroid sensitive. It is recommended to give hormone treatment first, and then perform renal biopsy if steroid resistance occurs; If the clinical manifestation is nephritic type nephrotic syndrome, the histopathological lesion is mostly non-MCD, especially those with gross hematuria or low C3-emia, or those have two or more clinical manifestations of persistent hematuria, hypertension, renal insufficiency and hypocomplement C3-emia, a kidney biopsy should be performed at onset.

Objective:To investigate the clinical manifestations, pathological characteristics, treatment and prognosis of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis (AAV) in 13 children.Methods:The clinical and pathological data of 13 cases of AAV in children′s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from June 2000 to December 2021 were retrospectively analyzed.Results:Among the 13 cases, 12 cases were diagnosed with microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) and 1 case was granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), including 10 females and 3 males. The onset age ranged from 3 years and 11 months to 13 years and 10 months. The most frequently involved organ was the kidney (12 cases, 92.3%), followed by respiratory system (7 cases, 53.8%), skin (5 cases, 38.5%), digestive system (4 cases, 30.8%), nervous system (4 cases, 30.8%) and cardiovascular system (3 cases, 23.1%). There were 10 cases with orthotic anemia, 7 cases with positive antinuclear antibody, and 3 cases with mildly decreased complement C3. Among the 12 children with renal impairment, 9 cases were accompanied by abnormal renal function at the beginning of the disease. Renal biopsy was classified according to the Berden as follows: sclerotic in 5 cases, crescentic 3 cases, focal in 2 cases and mixed in 2 cases. All children were treated with glucocorticoid combined with immunosuppressant. During the follow-up time from 8 months to 128 months, 4 cases acquired complete remission, 8 cases achieved partial remission and 1 case recurred after complete remission, and 7 cases progressed to chronic kidney disease stage 5. Three children with complete remission underwent repeated renal biopsy, including 2 cases of mixed type and 1 case of crescent type initially, and all changed to focal type.Conclusions:AAV in children occurs mainly in school-age female, and most of AAV in children is MPA. The clinical manifestations are various. Most of them have renal damage and anemia, and lung damage is also common. Patients with skin purpura onset may be misdiagnosed as Henoch-Schonlein purpura, and AAV with ANA positive or complement reduction should exclude systemic lupus erythematosus. Once the renal function is abnormal in AAV, especially estimated glomerular filtration rate<60 ml·min -1·(1.73 m 2) -1 and the pathological classification is sclerotic type or crescent type, it is difficult to reverse even after active treatment. Early diagnosis and treatment are very important for AAV.

OBJECTIVE To explore the effects of Citrus medica before and after being steamed on blood metabolism and dryness indexes in rats. METHODS Twenty-four SD rats were randomly divided into blank group， C. medica group （2.4 g/kg）， processed C. medica group （2.4 g/kg）， Citrus aurantium group （positive control， 1.2 g/kg）， with 6 rats in each group. After 5 weeks of continuous administration， the body weight， food intake， water intake and urine volume were observed dynamically. The content of aquaporin 3 （AQP3） in serum was detected. The metabolic profile of rat serum samples was analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Principal component analysis （PCA） and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA） were used to screen differential metabolites， and screened differential metabolites were mapped to the KEGG database for pathway analysis. RESULTS The body weight of rats in each group increased slowly； the food intake and water intake of processed C. medica group tended to be higher than those in C. medica group and C. aurantium group， but there was no significant difference among those groups （P＞0.05）. On the 21st day of administration， compared with C. aurantium group， the urine volume of processed C. medica group was significantly increased （P＜0.05）， the serum AQP3 content of processed C. medica group was significantly decreased （P＜0.05）， and were close to those of blank group. According to the metabonomic study， C. medica mainly affected the lipids metabolism， and processed C. medica mainly affected the amino acid metabolism. The differential metabolites pathway between C. medica and processed C. medica involved the metabolism of cysteine and methionine， metabolism of glycine， serine and threonine， and metabolism of taurine and hypotaurine. CONCLUSIONS Processed C. medica might relieve the dryness of C. medica by affecting adenosine phosphate-protein kinase A. The content of AQP3 in serum can be used as the 52 evaluation index for the dryness of C. medica before and after processing. The effects of C. medica and processed C. medica on endogenous metabolites in rat serum are quite different，especially in the aspect of lipid metabolism.

The glymphatic system, as "waste" clearance pathway in the brain, plays a critical role in maintaining the homeostasis of the brain cell microenvironment. It has been found that changes in the glymphatic system are common in many neurological diseases. MRI is currently the only technology that can achieve human glymphatic imaging, and has the advantages of high soft tissue resolution and sensitivity to tracers. Quantitative MRI can objectively evaluate the changes of inflow and outflow of glymphatic system. Therefore, in this review, we introduce the application of quantitative MRI technology in the glymphatic system in detail, aiming to provide help for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases related to glymphatic system.

ObjectiveTo explore the anhedonia level and its relationship with cognitive function in patients with first-episode psychosis， and to analyze the influencing factors of cognitive function. MethodsA total of 143 first-episode psychiatric patients who met the diagnostic criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders， fifth edition （DSM-5） in the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University from December 2016 to March 2019 were selected. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale （PANSS） was used to evaluate the patient’s psychiatric symptoms， in which N2 （emotional withdrawal） and N4 （passive/apathetic social withdrawal） were used to assess the anhedonia level， and patients whose （N2+N4） scores beyond 4 were classified into anhedonia group， and those with （N2+N4） scores less than or equal to 4 were classified into non-anhedonia group. Hamilton Depression Scale-24 item （HAMD-24） was used to measure the depressive symptoms， and the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery （MCCB） was used to detect cognitive function. Then the clinical symptoms and cognitive function of two groups were compared， and the influencing factors of cognitive function were screened by multiple linear regression analysis. ResultsThe negative symptom score， general pathological symptom score and total score of PANSS in anhedonia group were significantly higher than those of non-anhedonia group， with statistical difference （P<0.05）. The score of working memory in adolescent subgroup， the scores of information processing speed， attention/alertness and vocabulary learning in adult subgroup of anhedonia group were lower than those of non-anhedonia group， with statistical difference （P<0.05）. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the anhedonia score and the duration of untreated psychosis were the influencing factors of working memory in adolescent subgroup （P<0.05）. ConclusionPatients with high levels of anhedonia suffer more severe mental symptoms and cognitive impairment， moreover， anhedonia is one of the influencing factors of working memory in adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of microRNA-146a (miR-146a) with clinical features of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: In 126 patients with RA and 102 matched healthy controls, SNPs of miR-146a rs2910164 locus were determined with a high-resolution melting method. The association of such polymorphisms with disease activity score in 28 joints (DAS28) and clinical features of RA was assessed. RESULTS: The distribution of SNPs of miR-146a rs2910164 among RA patients did not differ from that of the control group. No significant association was found between miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphism with DAS28. However, RA patients with a GG genotype had a greater chance to develop extra-articular manifestations (P<0.01). CONCLUSION Polymorphisms of miR-146a rs2910164 locus is not an independent risk factor for RA, though its GG genotype may be associated with extra-articular manifestations of RA.
Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; genetics ; Case-Control Studies ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Humans ; MicroRNAs ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide