Background China is the world's largest producer and consumer of cobalt. Skin exposure to excess cobalt can cause symptoms such as contact dermatitis. At present, there are few studies on skin contact of cobalt and its compounds. Objective To investigate the skin contact characteristics of cobalt and its compounds. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in February 2024 involving 70 workers from a hard metal tool manufacturing company and the workers were divided into four groups according to their job positions: powder mixing, sintering, automatic pressing, and grinding processing. General demographic information was collected through questionnaires. Workplace air samples were collected using personal samplers, and cobalt concentrations in workplace air were measured by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Skin samples were collected from the workers' foreheads using cotton swabs, and urine samples were collected within 30 min after the end of their shift. Urine specific gravity was measured immediately after collection, and disqualified samples were discarded. Cobalt concentrations in the swab extracts and urine were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Statistical analysis was performed using Kruskal-Wallis test for multiple group comparisons, Mann-WhitneyU test for pairwise comparisons, Chi-square test for categorical variables, and Spearman's rank correlation analysis to examine the correlations among air, dermal, and urinary cobalt levels. Results The 8 h time-weighted average (TWA) cobalt concentration was (2.30±2.15) μg·m⁻³ (\begin{document}$ \bar{x}\pm s $\end{document}). The median skin exposure level was 53.8 ng·cm⁻², with a range of 4.25 ng·cm⁻² to 1090.2 ng·cm⁻². The median urinary cobalt level was 3.74 µg·L⁻¹, with a range of 0.83 to 382.9 µg·L⁻¹. Statistically significant differences in TWA cobalt concentration, skin exposure levels, and urinary cobalt levels were found between different work positions (H=9.012, P=0.029; H=16.348, P＜0.001; H=11.078, P=0.011). A positive correlation was observed between skin exposure levels and urinary cobalt levels (r=0.537, P＜0.01). Conclusion Skin contact may be one of the main sources of cobalt levels in urine. Therefore, it is essential for workers to improve skin protection and hygiene practices.

Objective To investigate the expression level of tetratricopeptide repeat protein 9A in tumors and its association with the patients'prognosis and immune infiltration.Methods TTC9A expression in different tumor tissues and its association with prognosis,DNA methylation,tumor mutation burden(TMB),and microsatellite instability(MSI)were analyzed based on data from TCGA and GTEx.TIMER and xCell were used to analyze the relationship between TTC9A expression and immune infiltration.Western blotting and RT-qPCR were used to detect the expression of TTC9A in 4 types of cancer cell lines.Results TTC9A expressions were significantly increased in many tumors and down-regulated in a few cancer types(P<0.05).Western blotting and RT-qPCR showed that TTC9A expressions were elevated in lung,colon and liver cancer cells but decreased in bladder cancer cells.In head and neck squamous cell carcinoma,renal clear cell carcinoma,renal papillary cell carcinoma,low-grade glioma,malignant mesothelioma,and endometrial carcinoma tumors,a high expression of TTC9A was strongly correlated with better overall survival(OS),disease-specific survival(DSS),and progression-free interval(PFI)(P<0.05),but was correlated with worse OS,DSS,and PFI in lung adenocarcinoma,pancreatic adenocarcinoma,adrenal carcinoma,and rectal adenocarcinoma(P<0.05).TTC9A hypermethylation was associated with a more favorable prognosis of glioblastoma multiforme,low-grade glioma,uveal melanoma,and ovarian plasmacytoid cystadenocarcinoma(P<0.05)but with poor prognosis of squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix and intracervical adenocarcinoma,squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck,squamous cell carcinoma of the lungs,adrenal carcinoma,and endometrial carcinoma(P<0.05).In most of the cancer types,TTC9A was significantly correlated with the level of immune cell infiltration(P<0.05).Conclusion TTC9A can be used as a prognostic marker for a variety of cancers and is strongly associated with TBM,MSI and immune cell infiltration.

Objective To investigate the expression level of tetratricopeptide repeat protein 9A in tumors and its association with the patients'prognosis and immune infiltration.Methods TTC9A expression in different tumor tissues and its association with prognosis,DNA methylation,tumor mutation burden(TMB),and microsatellite instability(MSI)were analyzed based on data from TCGA and GTEx.TIMER and xCell were used to analyze the relationship between TTC9A expression and immune infiltration.Western blotting and RT-qPCR were used to detect the expression of TTC9A in 4 types of cancer cell lines.Results TTC9A expressions were significantly increased in many tumors and down-regulated in a few cancer types(P<0.05).Western blotting and RT-qPCR showed that TTC9A expressions were elevated in lung,colon and liver cancer cells but decreased in bladder cancer cells.In head and neck squamous cell carcinoma,renal clear cell carcinoma,renal papillary cell carcinoma,low-grade glioma,malignant mesothelioma,and endometrial carcinoma tumors,a high expression of TTC9A was strongly correlated with better overall survival(OS),disease-specific survival(DSS),and progression-free interval(PFI)(P<0.05),but was correlated with worse OS,DSS,and PFI in lung adenocarcinoma,pancreatic adenocarcinoma,adrenal carcinoma,and rectal adenocarcinoma(P<0.05).TTC9A hypermethylation was associated with a more favorable prognosis of glioblastoma multiforme,low-grade glioma,uveal melanoma,and ovarian plasmacytoid cystadenocarcinoma(P<0.05)but with poor prognosis of squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix and intracervical adenocarcinoma,squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck,squamous cell carcinoma of the lungs,adrenal carcinoma,and endometrial carcinoma(P<0.05).In most of the cancer types,TTC9A was significantly correlated with the level of immune cell infiltration(P<0.05).Conclusion TTC9A can be used as a prognostic marker for a variety of cancers and is strongly associated with TBM,MSI and immune cell infiltration.

Objective:To investigate the curative effect of transvaginal sacrospinous ligamentopexy combined with traditional per-vaginam surgery in the treatment of moderate and severe pelvic organ prolapse.Methods:A total of 125 patients with moderate to severe pelvic organ prolapse admitted to the Third People′s Hospital of Yancheng from June 2021 to May 2023 were retrospectively selected as the study objects. They were divided into two groups according to the surgical methods. The observation group (73 cases) received transvaginal sacrospinous ligamentopexy combined with traditional per-vaginam surgery, and the control group (52 cases) received traditional Yin surgery. The primary outcome was anatomic cure rate between the two groups, and the secondary outcome was surgical index, quality of life and recurrence.Results:There were significant differences in the anatomical cure rate [78.1%(57/73) vs 61.5%(32/52)] and postoperative hospital stay between the observation group and the control group at 6 months after surgery (all P<0.05). There was no significant difference in operation time, amount of blood loss and pain degree 24 h after operation between the two groups ( P>0.05). There was no significant difference in Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory-Short Form 20 (PFDI-20) scores between the two groups before operation ( P>0.05). PFDI-20 scores in both groups were lower than those before surgery 6 months after surgery, and PFDI-20 scores in the observation group were lower than those in the control group, with statistical significance ( P<0.05). After follow-up, 3 cases (8.3%) recurred in the observation group and 6 cases (13.3%) in the control group. There was no statistical significance in the recurrence rate between the two groups ( P>0.05). Conclusions:Transvaginal sacrospinous ligamentopexy combined with traditional per-vaginam surgery can effectively treat moderate and severe pelvic organ prolapse, improve the quality of life of patients, and have a good long-term effect.

ObjectiveTo analyze the pharmacodynamic material basis of Hippophae Folium in the treatment of hyperlipidemia by network pharmacology and experimental verification. MethodThe hyperlipidemic HepG2 cell model induced by oleic and palmitic acid （molar ratio 2∶1） was established. The optimal concentration of Hippophae Folium containing serum was determined by cell counting kit （CCK）-8 method. The cells were intervened by the medicated serum， and oil red O staining was used to determine the success of the model. The contents of total cholesterol （TC） and triglyceride （TG） were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. The possible mechanism of action was analyzed by network pharmacology， and molecular docking was performed to detect the binding ability of the potential targets. ResultCCK-8 assay showed that 10% medicated serum was the optimal concentration for cell growth. Oil red O staining proved that the hyperlipidemic cell model induced by oleic and palmitic acid has been built. After treatment with medicated serum， the contents of TG and TC decreased， indicating that Hippophae Folium had a good therapeutic effect on hyperlipidemia. Network pharmacology revealed that the core targets of Hippophae Folium in the treatment of hyperlipidemia were albumin （ALB）， peroxisome proliferative activated receptor γ （PPARγ） and matrix metalloprotein（MMP）-9， involving 755 biological processes， 73 molecular functions and 3 cellular components. By Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） analysis， it was found PPAR， hypoxia inducible factor（HIF）-1， AMP-activated protein kinase（AMPK） and other signal pathways were involved in the treatment of hyperlipidemia by Hippophae Folium. ConclusionHippophae Folium containing serum （10%） could reduce lipid accumulation and intracellular TG and TC levels in hyperlipidemic cell model， and its mechanism of action might be realized by activating PPAR signal pathway.

Early distinction of bipolar disorder (BD) from major depressive disorder (MDD) is difficult since no tools are available to estimate the risk of BD. In this study, we aimed to develop and validate a model of oxidative stress injury for predicting BD. Data were collected from 1252 BD and 1359 MDD patients, including 64 MDD patients identified as converting to BD from 2009 through 2018. 30 variables from a randomly-selected subsample of 1827 (70%) patients were used to develop the model, including age, sex, oxidative stress markers (uric acid, bilirubin, albumin, and prealbumin), sex hormones, cytokines, thyroid and liver function, and glycolipid metabolism. Univariate analyses and the Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator were applied for data dimension reduction and variable selection. Multivariable logistic regression was used to construct a model for predicting bipolar disorder by oxidative stress biomarkers (BIOS) on a nomogram. Internal validation was assessed in the remaining 784 patients (30%), and independent external validation was done with data from 3797 matched patients from five other hospitals in China. 10 predictors, mainly oxidative stress markers, were shown on the nomogram. The BIOS model showed good discrimination in the training sample, with an AUC of 75.1% (95% CI: 72.9%-77.3%), sensitivity of 0.66, and specificity of 0.73. The discrimination was good both in internal validation (AUC 72.1%, 68.6%-75.6%) and external validation (AUC 65.7%, 63.9%-67.5%). In this study, we developed a nomogram centered on oxidative stress injury, which could help in the individualized prediction of BD. For better real-world practice, a set of measurements, especially on oxidative stress markers, should be emphasized using big data in psychiatry.
Biomarkers/metabolism* ; Bipolar Disorder/metabolism* ; Depressive Disorder, Major/diagnosis* ; Early Diagnosis ; Humans ; Oxidative Stress

Objective:To study the clinicopathological, immunophenotypic and molecular genetic characteristics of nodular fasciitis (NF) in unusual sites.Methods:A total of 50 cases of NF diagnosed between January 2015 and January 2021 were reviewed in the Department of Pathology, Henan Provincial People′s Hospital, and the clinical and pathologic data were analyzed. Among them, 14 cases from unusual sites were included in this study. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining was used to detect the expression of related proteins, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was used to detect the breakage of the USP6 gene.Results:There were seven males and seven females in the 14 NF respectively. The lesions were located in the extremities, perineum, breast, wrist joints, the gap between lumbar vertebra 4/5, and in eight cases there was involvement of unusual tissues (six cases in skeletal muscle, one case in nerve root, and one case was intravascular). The tumor boundary was unclear with infiltrating growth. Spindle-shaped myofibroblasts were arranged in bundles or chaotically, with mild pleomorphic, small nucleoli and various mitotic figures. The tumor stroma showed collagenization to myxoid degeneration with erythrocyte extravasation and infiltration of inflammatory cells. IHC staining showed that the spindle cells expressed SMA focally or partially, and p16 diffusely and strongly. FISH showed that 12 of 14 cases had USP6 gene breakage, and two of them occurred in the intrathoracic skeletal muscle with the red signal amplification of USP6 gene.Conclusions:NF in unusual sites shows similar clinicopathological and genetic characteristics to classic NF, but the tumor mostly has infiltrating borders, non-specific and strong expression of p16, and USP6 red signal amplification. The pathological diagnosis of NF in rare sites should be highly vigilant.

Purpose: We aimed to investigate whether obtaining a higher level of education was causally associated with lower breast cancer risk and to identify the causal mechanism linking them. Methods: The main data analysis used publicly available summary-level data from 2 large genome-wide association study consortia. Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis used 65 genetic variants derived from the Social Science Genetic Association Consortium as instrumental variables for years of schooling. The outcomes from the Breast Cancer Association Consortium (BCAC) were the overall breast cancer risk (122,977 cases/105,974 controls in women) and the two subtypes: estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer and ER-negative breast cancer. Fixed and random effects inverse variance weighted methods were used to estimate the causal effects, along with other additional MR methods for sensitivity analyses. Results: Results showed that each additional standard deviation of 4.2 years of education was causally associated with a 27% lower risk of ER-negative breast cancer (odds ratio, 0.73; 95% confidence interval, 0.64–0.84; p-value < 0.001). This finding was consistent with the results of the sensitivity analyses. Physical activities can help improve the protective effect of education against breast cancer, with relatively large mediation proportions. Education increases the risk of ER-positive breast cancer due to alterations in high-density lipoprotein level, triglyceride level, height, waist-to-hip ratio, body mass index, and smoking status, with relative medium mediation proportions. Other mediators including low-density lipoprotein, hip circumference, number of cigarettes smoked per day, time spent performing light physical activity, and performing vigorous physical activity for > 10 minutes explain a small part of the causal effect of education on the risk of developing breast cancer, and their mediation proportion is approximately 1%. Conclusion A low level of education is a causal risk factor in the development of breast cancer as it is associated with poor lipid profile, obesity, smoking, and types of physical activity.

【Objective】 To clone the full-length of human kidney and brain protein (KIBRA) coding sequence in eukaryotic expression vector and provide a model for studying the biological function of KIBRA in breast cancer cells. 【Methods】 Total RNA of human breast cancer cell line MCF7 was extracted. After reverse transcription, the full length of KIBRA (NM_001161661.2) coding region was amplified by PCR, and cloned into eukaryotic expression vector pCMV-Blank. After identification, it was defined officially as pCMV-KIBRA. Then it was transfected into MCF7 cells, and the expression of KIBRA was detected by real-time PCR and Western blotting after 48 hours. The primary, secondary and tertiary structures and post-transcriptional modification sites of KIBRA were analyzed with bioinformatics software. 【Results】 Bacterial PCR, double enzyme digestion and DNA sequencing results showed that the correct sequence of KIBRA was inserted into the vector pCMV-KIBRA. The mRNA and protein expressions of KIBRA were significantly increased in MCF7 cells transfected with pCMV-KIBRA. Bioinformatics analysis showed that KIBRA was composed of 1119 amino acids. There were 52 phosphorylation sites, 1 acetylation site and 5 ubiquitination sites, and the protein structure was mainly α-helix and random coil. 【Conclusion】 The eukaryotic expression vector of full-length of human KIBRA coding sequence was successfully constructed and overexpressed in breast cancer cell line MCF7, which can lay a foundation for studying the biological function of KIBRA in breast cancer.

Objective: To construct influenza B virus Vero cell adapted strain by genetic recombination technology by using the influenza B virus Vero cell adapted strain as the parent strain. Methods: The chick embryo and Vero cell were co-infected with influenza virus Vero cell adapted strain B/Malaysia/2506/2004 Va (Bv) and the vaccine strain B/massachusetts/2/2012 (BX-51B) recommended by WHO. The reassortants were screened with the anti-Bv serum. Plaque-purified reassortants were used to screen for Vero cell-adapted influenza B virus strains containing the surface antigen of the epidemic strain. Results: A Vero cell-adapted influenza B virus strain was obtained with successive passage in Vero cells. The hemagglutination inhibition test and the one-way immunogold agar diffusion test both showed that the reassortant virus was homologous to NYMC BX-51B, and sequence analysis result showed that the reassortment virus has the same HA and NA gene with the vaccine strain. Conclusion B/Malaysia/2506/2004Va (Bv) can be used as a parent strain to prepare Vero cell vaccine against influenza B virus.