Objective To analyze the antimicrobial susceptibility,molecular types,serotypes,virulence factors and resistance mechanisms of Streptococcus agalactiae(S.agalactiae)isolated from pregnant women with ad-vanced maternal age in Tangshan City,and provide basic data for the treatment,prevention and control of S.aga-lactiae infection.Methods 42 strains of S.agalactiae isolated from pregnant women with advanced maternal age in North China University of Science and Technology Affiliated Hospital as well as Tangshan Maternal and Child Health Hospital were collected.Detection of antimicrobial susceptibility and whole genome sequencing of 13 antimi-crobial agents were performed.Results The percentage of tetracycline,erythromycin,levofloxacin,and chloram-phenicol concurrently resistant strains was 7.1％,35.7％of the strains presented multidrug resistance to erythro-mycin,clindamycin,and levofloxacin.The carriage rates of resistance genes ermB and tetM were 66.7％and 47.6％,respectively.29 strains(69.0％)exhibited mutations in both gyrA and parC fluoroquinolone resistance determi-nants.42 strains of S.agalactiae belonged to 4 serotypes,namely ⅠB(35.7％),Ⅲ(33.3％),Ⅴ(26.2％),andⅠA(4.8％);and 11 sequence types(STs),with the highest proportion being ST10(35.7％)and ST19(31.0％);as well as 6 clonal complexes(CCs),among which CC19(42.9％)and CC12(35.7％)had the highest proportion.All S.agalactiae carried virulence factor-encoding genes of cfb,cylE,and pavA.Conclusion The molecular types and serotypes of S.agalactiae carried by pregnant women with advanced maternal age in Tangshan City pre-sent polymorphism,with obvious multidrug resistance,and carry multiple types of drug resistance genes and viru-lence genes.

Objective To monitor the susceptibility of clinical isolates to antimicrobial agents in tertiary hospitals in major regions of China in 2022.Methods Clinical isolates from 58 hospitals in China were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using a unified protocol based on disc diffusion method or automated testing systems.Results were interpreted using the 2022 Clinical &Laboratory Standards Institute(CLSI)breakpoints.Results A total of 318 013 clinical isolates were collected from January 1,2022 to December 31,2022,of which 29.5％were gram-positive and 70.5％were gram-negative.The prevalence of methicillin-resistant strains in Staphylococcus aureus,Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species(excluding Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus schleiferi)was 28.3％,76.7％and 77.9％,respectively.Overall,94.0％of MRSA strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 90.8％of MRSE strains were susceptible to rifampicin.No vancomycin-resistant strains were found.Enterococcus faecalis showed significantly lower resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents tested than Enterococcus faecium.A few vancomycin-resistant strains were identified in both E.faecalis and E.faecium.The prevalence of penicillin-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae was 94.2％in the isolates from children and 95.7％in the isolates from adults.The resistance rate to carbapenems was lower than 13.1％in most Enterobacterales species except for Klebsiella,21.7％-23.1％of which were resistant to carbapenems.Most Enterobacterales isolates were highly susceptible to tigecycline,colistin and polymyxin B,with resistance rates ranging from 0.1％to 13.3％.The prevalence of meropenem-resistant strains decreased from 23.5％in 2019 to 18.0％in 2022 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa,and decreased from 79.0％in 2019 to 72.5％in 2022 in Acinetobacter baumannii.Conclusions The resistance of clinical isolates to the commonly used antimicrobial agents is still increasing in tertiary hospitals.However,the prevalence of important carbapenem-resistant organisms such as carbapenem-resistant K.pneumoniae,P.aeruginosa,and A.baumannii showed a downward trend in recent years.This finding suggests that the strategy of combining antimicrobial resistance surveillance with multidisciplinary concerted action works well in curbing the spread of resistant bacteria.

Objective To evaluate the predictive value of a combined model based on clinical and radiomics features for the invasiveness of lung adenocarcinoma manifesting as ground glass nodule(GGN).Methods Clinical data of patients with GGN-type lung adenocarcinoma who underwent chest CT and were confirmed by surgical pathology at some hospital from January to December 2019 were analyzed retrospectively,and the extraction of imaging histological features was performed using Python-based open resource Pyradiomics.A clinical model was constructed based on independent risk factors obtained from univariate and multivariate analyses,a radiomics model was built using the screened radiomics features,and a combined model was established with the predictive values of the clinical models and radiomics scores(Radscore).The predictive performance of the three models in the training and test sets was assessed using ROC curves,the statistical significance of the differences in the ROC curves of the three models for predicting GGN-type lung adenocarcinoma was assessed using the Delong test,and the net benefits of the models were analyzed using clinical decision curves.Results Logistic multifactor analysis showed that age(P=0.020 2)and vascular characteristics(P=0.002 2)were the independent predictors of the degree of the invasiveness of lung adenocarcinoma.The AUCs of the radiomics model,clinical model and combined model were 0.876,0.867 and 0.904 on the training set,and 0.828,0.828 and 0.864 on the test set,respectively.The difference between the ROC curves of the combined model and the clinical and radiomics models was not statistically significant(P>0.05)on the test set.Clinical decision curves showed a higher clinical benefit when using the combined model to predict the invasiveness under most conditions of threshold probability.Conclusion The combined model based on clinical and radiomics features enhances the predictive performance for the invasiveness of GGN-type lung adenocarcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy and safety of oral administration of Buxue Yimu Pills (BYP, ), ferrous sulfate (FS), and the combination of BYP and FS on gynecological anemia, and investigate the mechanisms using network pharmacology. METHODS: A randomized, controlled, multi-center clinical trial was conducted. Totally 150 patients with hemoglobin of 70-110 g/L due to gynecological conditions were recruited and randomized (using the block randomization method) into Buxue Yimu Pills group (24 g/d), oral iron group (FS Tablets, 0.9 g/d), and combined treatment group (BYP, 24 g/d plus FS Tablets, 0.9 g/d), 50 patients in each group. At the enrollment and 4-week treatment, complete blood count, serum iron indexes were evaluated. Adverse events, liver and renal functions, as well as blood coagulation were observed. Network pharmacology was conducted to identify the active ingredients and explore the potential mechanisms of BYP. RESULTS: Ten (20%) and 7 (14%) participants discontinued the therapy due to gastrointestinal symptoms in oral iron and combination treatment groups. All 3 groups showed elevated hemoglobin. The patients in the iron group exhibited typically elevated in serum iron and ferritin and decreased in total iron-binding capacity. No change in iron indexes was observed in BYP group. The patients in the combination treatment group neither showed significant changes in serum ferritin nor total iron-binding capacity. No significant adverse reactions were observed in the BYP group. The network pharmacology identified 27 bioactive compounds and 145 targets of BYP on gynecological anemia. Biological processes and pathways including regulation of inflammation, hormone, angiogenesis and hemostasis, response to decreased oxygen levels, effects on myeloma cell, and response to metal ions were identified. CONCLUSION BYP contributes to the practical improvement on gynecological anemia potentially through multi-target mechanisms and optimized iron re-distribution. (Trial registration: No. NCT03232554).
Humans ; Anemia/drug therapy* ; Anemia, Iron-Deficiency/drug therapy* ; Ferritins/therapeutic use* ; Hemoglobins ; Iron/therapeutic use* ; Network Pharmacology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal

OBJECTIVES: To develop a new Chinese medicine (CM)-based drug and to evaluate its safety and effect for suppressing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: A putative ARDS-suppressing drug Keguan-1 was first developed and then evaluated by a randomized, controlled two-arm trial. The two arms of the trial consist of a control therapy (alpha interferon inhalation, 50 µg twice daily; and lopinavir/ritonavir, 400 and 100 mg twice daily, respectively) and a testing therapy (control therapy plus Keguan-1 19.4 g twice daily) by random number table at 1:1 ratio with 24 cases each group. After 2-week treatment, adverse events, time to fever resolution, ARDS development, and lung injury on newly diagnosed COVID-19 patients were assessed. RESULTS: An analysis of the data from the first 30 participants showed that the control arm and the testing arm did not exhibit any significant differences in terms of adverse events. Based on this result, the study was expanded to include a total of 48 participants (24 cases each arm). The results show that compared with the control arm, the testing arm exhibited a significant improvement in time to fever resolution (P=0.035), and a significant reduction in the development of ARDS (P=0.048). CONCLUSIONS Keguan-1-based integrative therapy was safe and superior to the standard therapy in suppressing the development of ARDS in COVID-19 patients. (Trial registration No. NCT04251871 at www.clinicaltrials.gov ).
Administration, Inhalation ; Adult ; China ; Coronavirus Infections ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; mortality ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Drug Administration Schedule ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Integrative Medicine ; Interferon-alpha ; administration & dosage ; Lopinavir ; administration & dosage ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; mortality ; Risk Assessment ; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; mortality ; Severity of Illness Index ; Survival Rate

This study aims to investigate the effect of Huaier aqueous extract on the growth and metastasis of human non-small cell lung cancer NCI-H1299 cells and its underlying mechanisms. MTT assay was used to detect the effect of Huaier aqueous extract on the proliferation of NCI-H1299 cells. Flow cytometry was used to examine the effect of Huaier aqueous extract on the apoptosis, cell cycle, and ROS level of NCI-H1299 cells. Wound healing assay was used to evaluate the effect of Huaier aqueous extract on the migration ability of NCI-H1299 cells. Western blot was used to detect the levels of proteins involving apoptosis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT), and MAPK signaling pathway in NCI-H1299 cells exposed to Huaier aqueous extract. The results showed that Huaier aqueous extract inhibited the proliferation of NCI-H1299 cells, and induced cell-cycle arrest at the phase S. Huaier aqueous extract promoted the apoptosis of NCI-H1299 cells by down-regulating the expression of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2. Moreover, Huaier aqueous extract increased ROS level and induced ferroptosis in NCI-H1299 cells. EMT played a critical role in cancer metastasis. Huaier aqueous extract reduced the migration ability of NCI-H1299 cells by inhibiting EMT of NCI-H1299 cells. In addition, this study revealed that Huaier aqueous extract inhibited MAPK signaling pathway in human non-small cell lung cancer NCI-H1299 cells, which may be one of Huaier's mechanisms in inhibiting growth and metastasis of NCI-H1299 cells. This study provides a new theoretical basis for the clinical treatment of lung cancer with Huaier, and important reference significance for further studies on the anti-tumor mechanisms of Huaier.
Apoptosis ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Complex Mixtures ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; Trametes

Objective: To investigate the efficacy of massage combined with microwave therapy in treating Children's bronchial pneumonia with syndrome of deficiency of lung-spleen Qi. Methods: Two hundred forty-four bronchial pneumonia Children were selected in our hospital and randomly divided into the control group and the observation group with 122 cases in each group referring to random number table. The control group was administered with the routine treatment. Based on the control group, the observation group received the massage and microwave therapy. The course was 2 week for both groups. The syndrome scores of traditional Chinese medicine were performed before and after treatment, and the disappearance of gasping, antipyretic, disappearance of moist rale in the lungs, and absorption time of chest X-ray were observed and recorded. the flow cytometry was used to detect peripheral blood levels of CD4⁺ and CD8⁺, and serum levels of IL-6 and IL-8 were detected by ELISA. The clinical effect rate was evaluated. Results: The total effective rate was 97.5% (118/121) in the observation group and 91.7% (110/120) in the control group,with statistically significant differences (χ²=4.406, P=0.044). After treatment, the scores of cough, phlegm, shortness of breath, pale face, fatigue, spontaneous perspiration, poor appetite in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (t value were 10.008, 11.529, 11.778, 12.043, 11.309, 10.128, 11.008, P<0.01), and elapsed time of gasping, antifebrile time, disappear time of lung moist crackles, absorption time were significantly earlier than the control group (t value were 15.121, 10.099, 18.441, 14.310, P<0.01). After 2 week’ treatment, the scores of symptoms of deficiency of lung-spleen Qi in the observation group were significantly lower than those of control group (P<0.01). Compared with the control group, the duration of wheezing and antipyretic, duration of lung dampness and chest X-ray absorption in the observation group were significantly decreased (P<0.05). The total effective rate of the observation group was 97.52%, which was significantly higher than the control group 92.67% (P<0.05). After 2 week treatment, the CD4⁺ (41.03% ± 4.55% vs. 33.52% ± 3.95%, t=14.011) in the observation group was significantly higher, CD8⁺ (22.71% ± 2.83% vs. 26.65% ± 3.05%, t=10.061) was significantly lower than the control group, serum levels of IL-6 (28.13 ± 3.63 ng/L vs. 40.09 ± 4.61 ng/L, t=14.890) and IL-8 (21.41 ± 2.75 ng/L vs. 29.05 ± 3.61 ng/L, t=11.439) were significantly lower than the control group (P<0.01). Conclusions Massage combined with microwave therapy for the Children's bronchial pneumonia with deficiency of lung-spleen Qi syndrome can promote the improvement of symptoms, enhance the efficacy, increase the immune function and reduce inflammation level.

Aim To establish human U87-MG glioma model in nude mice brain and to observe the characteristics of the tumor growth. Methods Human U87-MG glioma cells were cultured in vitro. 5 μL of cell suspension containing 3.0 ×1010·L-1, 4.0×1010·L-1and 5.0×1010·L-1respectively was inocula-ted into the right caudate nucleus of 18 male nude mice brain un-der the guidance of stereotaxic apparatus, separately, whereas another 6 nude mice as the control group, were inoculated into the same volume of Hanks solution. The moving and survival state of rats with gliomas were observed. The examinations of the tumors formation, volumes, metastasis and histopathology were performed and the obtained brain samples were stained with HE and immunohistochemistry. Results All the tested rats of dif-ferent inoculation doses developed brain tumors without extracra-nial metastasis. The mean survival time of three groups was (46.50 ± 3.27) d,(38.50 ± 3.28) d and (30.67 ± 3.51) d,respectively. The tumors showed the similar morphological fea-tures and immunophenotype to human glioma. There was positive expression of GFAP and S-100 in the tumors. Conclusions The orthotopic implantation model of human U87-MG glioma, by in-oculating quantitative U87-MG cells stereotaxically into the brains of the nude mice, is successfully established with 100 yield of intracranial tumor and no extracranial growth extension. It resembles the histopathological and morphological features of human glioma,which can be used as a reliable animal model for the study of the tumorigenesis, pathogenesis, biological charac-teristics and therapy of glioma.

In recent years, group B streptococcus (GBS) has become an important pathogen that causes infections in many neonatal organs, including the brain, lung, and eye (Ballard et al., 2016). A series of studies performed on GBS infections in western countries have revealed that GBS is one of the primary pathogens implicated in perinatal infection, and GBS infections are a major cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality in the United States (Decheva et al., 2013). In China, GBS is mainly found by screens for adult urogenital tract and perinatal infections, and neonatal GBS infections have been rarely reported. The incidence rate of early-onset neonatal GBS disease is thought to be lower in China than in western countries; however, this data is controversial since it also reflects the clinical interest in GBS (Dabrowska-Szponar and Galinski, 2001).
Adult ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use* ; China/epidemiology* ; Drug Resistance ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Mothers ; Parity ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious/diagnosis* ; Risk Factors ; Streptococcal Infections/drug therapy* ; Streptococcus agalactiae

BACKGROUND: Groundwater is believed to possess many beneficial effects due to its natural source of various minerals. In this study, we examined the effects of natural Jeju groundwater S1 (Samdasoo(TM)), S2 and S3 pumped up from different locations of Jeju Island, Korea, along with local tap water, on body weight gain, serum lipids and lipoproteins, and liver histopathology in high-fat diet-induced hyperlipidemic rats. MATERIALS/METHODS: Rats were randomly and equally divided into 6 groups. Different water samples were supplied to the hyperlipidemic rats as their daily drinking water and the widely-used anti-hyperlipidemic drug simvastatin was used as a positive control. Body weight, serum lipids and lipoproteins were measured weekly. Liver weight, liver index and liver histopathology were examined after the execution of the rats. RESULTS: After drinking Jeju groundwaters for two months, S2 but not S3 significantly reduced weight growth and serum triglycerides levels and increased high density lipoprotein-C (HDL-C) without affecting total cholesterol or LDL-C. S1 and particularly S2 significantly reduced the severity of liver hypertrophy and steatosis. All Groundwaters had much higher contents of vanadium (S3>S2>S1>>tap water) whereas S1 and S2 but not S3 markedly blocked autoxidation of ferrous ions. CONCLUSION: Jeju Groundwater S1 and particularly S2 exhibit protective effects against hyperlipidemia and fatty liver and hypothesize that the beneficial effect of Jeju Groundwaters may be contributed from blockade of autoxidation of ferrous ions rather than their high contents of vanadium.
Animals ; Body Weight ; Cholesterol ; Drinking ; Drinking Water ; Fatty Liver ; Groundwater* ; Hyperlipidemias ; Hypertrophy ; Ions ; Korea ; Lipid Metabolism* ; Lipoproteins ; Liver ; Minerals ; Rats* ; Simvastatin ; Triglycerides ; Vanadium ; Water