OBJECTIVE: To investigate the protective effects of total saponins from Panax japonicus (TSPJ) against high-fat dietinduced testicular Sertoli cell junction damage in mice. METHODS: Forty male C57BL/6J mice were randomized into normal diet group, high-fat diet group, and low-dose (25 mg/kg) and high-dose (75 mg/kg) TSPJ treatment groups (n=10). The mice in the normal diet group were fed a normal diet, while the mice in the other groups were fed a high-fat diet. After TSPJ treatment via intragastric administration for 5 months, the testes and epididymis of the mice were collected for measurement of weight, testicular and epididymal indices and sperm parameters. HE staining was used for histological evaluation of the testicular tissues and measurement of seminiferous tubule diameter and seminiferous epithelium height. The expression levels of ZO-1, occludin, claudin11, N-cadherin, E-cadherin and β-catenin in Sertoli cells were detected with Western blot, and the localization and expression levels of ZO-1 and β-catenin in the testicular tissues were detected with immunofluorescence assay. The protein expressions of LC3B, p-AKT and p-mTOR in testicular Sertoli cells were detected using double immunofluorescence assay. RESULTS: Treatment with TSPJ significantly improved high-fat diet-induced testicular dysfunction by reducing body weight (P < 0.001), increasing testicular and epididymal indices (P < 0.05), and improving sperm concentration and sperm viability (P < 0.05). TSPJ ameliorated testicular pathologies and increased seminiferous epithelium height of the mice with high-fat diet feeding (P < 0.05) without affecting the seminiferous tubule diameter. TSPJ significantly increased the expression levels of ZO-1, occludin, N-cadherin, E-cadherin and β-catenin (P < 0.05) but did not affect claudin11 expression in the testicular tissues. Immunofluorescence assay showed that TSPJ significantly increased ZO-1 and β-catenin expression in the testicular tissues (P < 0.001), downregulated LC3B expression and upregulated p-AKT and p-mTOR expressions in testicular Sertoli cells. CONCLUSION TSPJ alleviates high-fat diet-induced damages of testicular Sertoli cell junctions and spermatogenesis possibly by activating the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway and inhibiting autophagy of testicular Sertoli cells.
Male ; Animals ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Testis ; Sertoli Cells ; beta Catenin ; Diet, High-Fat ; Occludin ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt ; Seeds ; Cadherins ; Intercellular Junctions

Objective:To investigate the value of pulse oxygen saturation (SpO 2) monitoring in predicting children with moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Methods:It was a retrospective study involving 341 children with snoring during nighttime sleep who had visited the Children′s Hospital of Soochow University from June 2017 to November 2020 and monitored for polysomnography (PSG) and SpO 2.The SpO 2 parameters mainly included oxygen desaturation index (ODI), oxygen desaturation index ≥3% (ODI3), oxygen desaturation index ≥4% (ODI4), mean pulse blood oxygen saturation (MSpO 2), lowest pulse blood oxygen saturation (LSpO 2), cumulative time spent with blood oxygen saturation below 95%, 92% and 90%(T95, T92 and T90). According to obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea index (OAHI), patients were divided into the snoring and mild OSA group (OAHI≤5 times/h) and moderate-to-severe OSA group (OAHI>5 times/h). Differences in SpO 2 parameters were compared between groups using the Chi- square test and Mann- Whitney U test. Spearman correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between SpO 2 parameters and OAHI in all children.The SpO 2 parameters were included in the Logistic regression model.Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the diagnostic efficiency of SpO 2 parameters on moderate-to-severe OSA. Results:A total of 341 patients were recruited, including 206 male and 135 female patients with the mean age, body mass index (BMI) and OAHI of 6.0 (4.0, 7.5) years, 16.2 (15.1, 18.0) kg/m 2 and 0.6 (0.1, 3.0) times /h, respectively.There were 283(83.0%) and 58 (17.0%) patients in the snoring and mild OSA group and moderate-to-severe OSA group.The ODI3[0.7 (0.3, 1.4) times/h vs.7.7 (4.4, 12.8) times/h], ODI4[0.4 (0.1, 0.8) times/h vs.5.3 (2.7, 9.1) times/h], T95[1.4 (0.3, 5.3) min vs.13.7 (7.0, 33.5) min], T92[0.1 (0, 0.5) min vs.1.8 (0.9, 6.0) min] and T90[0 (0, 0.1) min vs.0.6 (0.2, 2.2) min] were significantly lower in the snoring and mild OSA group than those of moderate-to-severe group, while LSpO 2[91.0 (89.0, 93.0)% vs.86.5 (82.0, 88.0)%] and MSpO 2[ 97.0 (97.0, 98.0)% vs.96.0 (96.0, 97.0)%] were significantly higher(all P<0.001). All SpO 2 parameters were significantly correlated with OAHI (all P<0.001), and the correlation coefficient between ODI3 and OAHI was 0.660.ODI3 was an independent predictor of moderate-to-severe OSA ( OR=3.117, 95% CI: 1.635-5.945, P=0.001). The area under the ROC curve of ODI3 in predicting the moderate-to-severe OSA was 0.957, and the cut-off value of 3.45 times/h and specificity of 95.4%.MSpO 2 was an independent predictor of moderate-to-severe OSA ( OR=2.917, 95% CI: 1.589-5.354, P=0.001). Conclusions:ODI3 can be used to predict the moderate-to-severe OSA in children.

Objective : To investigate the effect of riboflavin on inactivation of pathogens under different light time conditions． Methods : Plasma containing vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) was divided into 4 groups，and the final concentrations of riboflavin were 50，100，150 μmol / L and 0 μmol / L was used as the control group．The growth titers at 10，15，20 and 25 min were observed．The control group was treated with no light．The growth titers of VSV culture before and after inactivation were calculated by Reed-Muench method，and the effect of different concentrations of riboflavin on the inactivation effect was evaluated by log reduction factor after inactivation. Results : Under the condition of no light，the addition of riboflavin had no pathogen inactivation effect．With the increase of light time from 15 min to 25 min，the inactivation effect of VSV in the non-riboflavin group increased．When the light was less than 15 min，there was no significant difference in the inactivation effect of 50 to 150 μmol / L riboflavin VSV．When the light duration was 15 to 25 min，the inactivation effect of VSV was enhanced after the addition of riboflavin，but there was no difference between different concentrations of riboflavin groups． Conclusion The inactivation effect of riboflavin pathogen within 25 min is better with the increase of light time，and has little influence on riboflavin concentration.

Objective:To analyze the outcome of vaginal trial labor of pregnant women with low-lying placenta detected by translabial ultrasonography, and to explore the influencing factors of vaginal trial delivery and the risk factors of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH).Methods:A total of 80 pregnant women who were diagnosed by translabial ultrasonography with low-lying placenta and underwent vaginal trial delivery in Women′s Hospital, School of Medicine Zhejiang University were collected. Based on the distance of placenta lower edge to cervical internal os (IOD) 1 cm, and the general characteristics and pregnancy outcomes of pregnant women with IOD≤1 cm and 1-2 cm were compared and the related factors of PPH were analyzed by binary logistic regression analysis.Results:Among the 80 pregnant women with low-lying placenta, 41 cases with IOD≤1 cm and 39 cases with IOD 1-2 cm, respectively. The rate of cesarean section in the two groups were 15% (6/41) and 15% (6/39), respectively. The birth weight of newborns were (3 334±360) and (3 460±365) g, respectively. PPH rates were 24% (10/41) and 26% (10/39), respectively, and the differences were not statistically significant (all P>0.05). Among the 80 pregnant women with low-lying placenta, 60 cases did not have PPH, and 20 cases did. The rates of placenta manual removal were 2% (1/60) and 20% (4/20), respectively. The birth weight of newborns were (3 330±368) and (3 591±284) g, respectively. The differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Binary logistic regression analysis suggested that placenta manual removal was a risk factor for PPH in pregnant women with low-lying placenta ( OR=30.448, P=0.029). Conclusions:The results of vaginal trial labor in women with IOD≤1 cm and 1-2 cm are comparable, and vaginal trial labor could be attempted in those without contraindications of vaginal delivery. The main adverse complication of vaginal trial labor is PPH, and those with placenta manual removal need to make corresponding plans.

From 2018 to 2019, 3 453 cases of high-risk population were screened by the Cancer Screening Program in Urban China (CanSPUC) in Hebei Province, with the age of (53.94±8.00). 147 and 686 cases of breast cancer positive and suspicious positive patients were found, with the positive rate and suspicious positive rate of 4.26% and 19.87% respectively. The suspicious positive rate of 45-49 years old age group was the highest (28.32%), and the positive rate of over 70 years old age group was the highest (7.32%). The positive detection rate of mammography combined with ultrasound was 5.16%, which was higher than that of ultrasound alone (2.46%) (χ2=30.28, P<0.001) or mammography alone (3.06%) (χ2=14.56, P<0.001).

From 2018 to 2019, 3 453 cases of high-risk population were screened by the Cancer Screening Program in Urban China (CanSPUC) in Hebei Province, with the age of (53.94±8.00). 147 and 686 cases of breast cancer positive and suspicious positive patients were found, with the positive rate and suspicious positive rate of 4.26% and 19.87% respectively. The suspicious positive rate of 45-49 years old age group was the highest (28.32%), and the positive rate of over 70 years old age group was the highest (7.32%). The positive detection rate of mammography combined with ultrasound was 5.16%, which was higher than that of ultrasound alone (2.46%) (χ2=30.28, P<0.001) or mammography alone (3.06%) (χ2=14.56, P<0.001).

Objective:To establish a predictive model of lateral lymph node metastasis in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC), and further to compare the diagnostic efficiency of this model with the suspected abnormal lymph node thyroglobulin in fine-needle aspirate fluid (FNA-Tg) for lateral lymph node metastasis.Methods:The preoperative clinical and ultrasonographic data of 110 patients (257 lymph nodes) who underwent PTC cervical lymph node dissection were retrospectively analyzed. According to the postoperative pathological results, they were divided into lateral lymph node metastasis and non-metastasis group. Regression analysis was used to screen out independent risk factors affecting lateral lymph node metastasis and establish a predictive model. The ROC curve was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy and the best diagnostic cut-off point.Results:Prediction model: Logit( P)=-2.987+ 2.189(S/L ratio of lymph nodes)+ 1.748(hilum absent)+ 2.030(hyperechoic)+ 1.849(vascular abnormalities). The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and AUC of the prediction model in the diagnosis of lateral lymph node metastasis were 92.1%, 83.9%, 87.9% and 0.929, respectively. The Homser-Lemeshow goodness of fit test showed that the Logistic model has a good fitting effect. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and AUC of FNA-Tg in the diagnosis of lateral lymph node metastasis were 87.4%, 95.4%, 90.3% and 0.968, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and AUC of the combined diagnosis of the predictive model and FNA-Tg were 92.9%, 96.9%, 94.2% and 0.989, respectively. Conclusions:The model has a good predictive value for PTC cervical lymph node metastasis. Combined with FNA-Tg, it can improve its diagnostic efficiency and provide more valuable information for the decision-making of clinical surgical procedures.

Objective: To evaluate the correlation between ultrasound features of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and lymph node metastasis by preoperative ultrasound elemental observation of thyroid nodules. Methods: Three hundred and seventy-six patients who underwent primary thyroid surgery and confirmed by ultrasound and pathological data as single-focal PTC from Jannary to December 2017 in Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital of Zhejiang Univbersity College of Medicine were retrospectively analyzed. According to the presence or absence of lymph node metastasis, they were divided into central and lateral lymph node metastasis group and non-metastasis group. Independent risk factors for central lymph node metastasis (CLNM) and lateral lymph node metastasis (LLNM) were analyzed by χ² test and multivariate Logistic regression. Results: Multivariate analysis showed that the posterior margin of the cancer was <0.25 cm from the posterior wall of the thyroid gland as an independent risk factor for CLNM (P=0.025). Compared with the tumor volume ≤0.38 cm³, the cancer volume >0.38 cm³ (P=0.000), was more prone to CLNM. And multivariate analysis showed that the anterior margin of the cancer was <0.17 cm (P=0.006) from the anterior thyroid capsule and the inner wall of the foci was <0.26 cm (P=0.014) as independent risk factors for LLNM. Compared with the maximum diameter of the tumor lesion ≤1 cm, the maximum diameter >2 cm (P=0.001) group was more prone to LLNM. Compared with the tumor volume ≤0.38 cm³, the tumor volume >0.38 cm³ (P=0.000) was more prone to LLNM. Conclusions The larger volume of single focal PTC carcinoma and the closer to the posterior thyroid capsule are independent risk factors for CLNM. The larger volume and diameter of single focal PTC, and the closer to the anterior and medial wall capsule are independent risk factors for LLNM.

Objective To explore whether PPARαtransgenic mice are more sensitive animal models in the evalua-tion of toxicity of PPARαagonists.Methods Twenty-eight 8-week old PPARαtransgenic mice (Tg) and 28 C57BL/6J mice (WT) with half males and half females were randomly divided into high dose group (400 mg/kg of clofibrate), low dose group (30 mg/kg of clofibrate) and solvent control group (10%sodium carboxymethyl cellulose ).The time of gavage administration lasted 28 days.The blood biochemistry , organ coefficient and pathological changes of the heart , liver, kid-neyweretestedafterthedrugadministration.Thegrowthofmicewasalsorecorded.Results ①Bloodbiochemistry:Com-pared with the WT male administration group , in the Tg male administration group , the levels of blood creatinine ( CREA) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were markedly increased (P<0.01, P<0.05).② Organ coefficient: Compared with the Tg control group, the kidney coefficients of Tg administration group were significantly increased (P<0.01,P<0.05).③Histopathology:Compared with the WT administration group , the pathological damages of liver and kidney were more serious in the Tg administration group .Conclusions Compared with C57BL/6J mouse, PPARαtransgenic mice are more sensitive in evaluation of hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity of PPARαagonists .It is a new animal model .