POEMS syndrome is a rare condition associated with plasma cell disorders， and it often involves multiple systems and has diverse clinical manifestations. This article reports two cases of POEMS syndrome with hepatosplenomegaly as the initial manifestation. During the course of the disease， the patients presented with lower limb weakness， hepatosplenomegaly， lymph node enlargement， ascites， hypothyroidism， positive M protein， and skin hyperpigmentation， and ¹⁸F-FDG PET-CT imaging revealed bone lesions mainly characterized by osteolytic changes and plasma cell tumors. There was an increase in the serum level of vascular endothelial growth factor. The patients were finally diagnosed with POEMS syndrome， and the symptoms were relieved after immunomodulatory treatment.

Viral hepatitis is one of the serious infectious diseases affecting the health of Chinese residents. The World Health Organization (WHO) has set the goal of eliminating the threat of viral hepatitis by 2030 as a global public health goal. However, in the prevention and control of viral hepatitis C, due to the etiological characteristics of the hepatitis C virus and the particularity of the natural history of HCV infection, there has been no breakthrough in the research of hepatitis C vaccine. The specificity of the HCV infection population, alongside the fact that the majority of those infected with HCV remain asymptomatic, presents numerous challenges in controlling and preventing hepatitis C. This article provides a comprehensive review of the virology, epidemiology, and current prevention and control challenges faced in the management of hepatitis C.

This article introduced TCM master Zhang Zhen's experience of using theory of"one body with two wings,regulating qi movement"in the treatment of thyroid nodules.The onset of thyroid nodules is due to liver depression and qi stagnation,and the booster of the onset is spleen and kidney dysfunction.The main pathogenesis is liver depression and qi stagnation,spleen deficiency and phlegm coagulation,kidney deficiency and blood stasis.The disease is located in the liver,spleen,and kidney.The general principle for treating thyroid nodules is to regulate the liver to regulate"the body",while the key points for treating thyroid nodules are to supplement the spleen and kidneys to supplement"the two wings".The combination of promoting blood circulation and dispersing nodules is the target for treating thyroid nodules.The clinical treatment of thyroid nodules with Shutiao Xiaohe Decoction has a significant therapeutic effect.

Tic disorder is a common neuropsychiatric disorder in children and one of the common serious chronic diseases that endanger children's health.According to YE Tianshi's theory of"yang transforms into internal wind",water fails to nourish wood(kidney yin deficiency can not nourish liver wood),spleen deficiency and liver hyperactivity,wood stagnation and intense fire cause internal wind,and leading to frenetic stirring of tendons.Insect drugs are considered to be"pathogenic wind"in terms of pathogenic factors,and the pain wanders unsteadily.They have the effects of tonifying the kidney and supplementing essence,calming the liver and suppressing wind,resolving phlegm and relieving spasm,dispelling wind and purging heat,dredging collaterals and removing blood stasis,which exert certain effects in treating children with tic disorder.Modern pharmacological studies have shown that insect drugs can treat children with tic disorders from multiple perspectives such as anti-convulsion,regulation of neurotransmitters,inhibition of neuroinflammation,and regulation of immunity.Based on the theory of"yang transforms into internal wind",this paper analyzes the application of insect drugs in the treatment of children with tic disorder,which can provide theoretical reference for the prevention and treatment of tic disorder by traditional Chinese medicine.

Humans ; Asthma/drug therapy* ; Biological Therapy

Neutrophils play an important role in infectious diseases by clearing pathogens in the early stages of the disease and damaging the surrounding tissues along with the disease progress. Low-density neutrophils (LDNs) are a crucial and distinct subpopulation of neutrophils. They are a mixture of activated and degranulated normal mature neutrophils and a considerable number of immature neutrophils prematurely released from the bone marrow. Additionally, they may be involved in the occurrence and development of diseases through the changes in phagocytosis, the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), the enhancement of the ability to produce neutrophils extracellular traps and immunosuppression. We summarizes the role of LDNs in the pathogenesis and their correlation with the severity of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), AIDS, and tuberculosis.
Humans ; Neutrophils ; COVID-19/pathology* ; Phagocytosis ; Extracellular Traps ; Communicable Diseases ; Reactive Oxygen Species

HBeAg seroconversion refers to the disappearance of HBeAg and the appearance of anti-HBe in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients with positive HBeAg in the past. HBeAg seroconversion marks the reductions in viral replication, immune tolerance, and liver inflammation and is an important monitoring indicator for evaluating disease conditions and the effect of CHB antiviral therapy, and it also indicates the endpoint of satisfactory treatment. Exploring the influencing factors for HBeAg seroconversion is of great significance to the selection of treatment regimens and the prognostic evaluation of CHB patients. This article mainly elaborates on the association of HBV with HBeAg seroconversion in CHB patients from the aspects of virological factors, host genetic factors, drug factors, and immunological factors.

ObjectiveTo investigate the mechanism of gamma-chain (γC) cytokines in regulating the expression of T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain-containing molecule 3 (TIM-3) in CD8+ T cells of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. MethodsA total of 23 CHB patients who attended Tangdu Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, from January to May, 2017, were enrolled. Peripheral blood was collected from all patients, and Ficoll density gradient centrifugation was used to isolate peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). PBMCs were stimulated with interleukin-7 (IL-7), interleukin-15 (IL-15), and interleukin-21, respectively, and then anti-γC antibody and/or anti-IL-7Rα, anti-IL-2Rβ, and anti-IL-21R were added to the culture solution. After 96 hours of culture, flow cytometry was used to measure the expression of TIM-3, interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-10 (IL-10), and interferon-γ (IFNγ) and the phosphorylation level of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) in CD8+ T cells. A one-way analysis of variance and the least significant difference t-test were used for comparison of continuous data. ResultsThe CD8+ T cells stimulated by IL-7 and IL-15 had a significantly higher percentage of TIM-3-positive CD8+ T cells than those without stimulation (t=9.966 and 9074, P＜0.05), as well as significantly higher expression levels of IL-2, IL-10, and IFN-γ and phosphorylation levels of STAT-5 and STAT-1 (all P＜0.05). Stimulation with anti-IL-7Rα and anti-γC antibody significantly reduced the elevated expression levels of TIM-3, IL-2, and IL-10 in the IL-7 stimulation group (t=5.537, 6.224, and 4.500, P＜0.05). Stimulation with anti-IL-2Rβ alone or in combination with anti-γC antibody significantly reduced the expression levels of TIM-3 and IL-2 and the phosphorylation level of STAT-1 in the IL-15 stimulation group (P ＜0.05). ConclusionIL-7 and IL-15 can upregulate the expression of TIM-3 in CD8+ T cells of CHB patients, possibly via the γC receptor-mediated STAT-cytokine signaling pathway.

Objective: To understand the longitudinal changes of refractive errors in adolescent myopia screening in the suburb of Shanghai, and to provide reference for targeted measures of myopia prevention and intervention. Methods: By using the cluster sampling method, 1 346 students were selected from two primary schools in a town in the suburb of Shanghai. Physical development indicators and refractive examination parameters of non ciliary muscle paralysis, and uncorrected visual acuity in 2017 and 2020 were collected from the Shanghai adolescent refractive development file. Longitudinal change of spherical equivalent (SE) refractive were assessed. A linear regression model was used to examine the relationship between the rate of SE change with characteristics of the students. Results: The average annual incidence of myopia was 16.36%, and the SE degrees of the left and right eyes of myopia students decreased by 225 degrees for three years. Girls (right eye Z=-4.33; left eye Z=-3.75, P<0.01), newly-onset myopia and persistent myopia (right eye Z=634.45; left eye Z=638.85, P<0.01) was a key for the rapid progress of refractive power. Conclusion The proportion of students with severe low vision is relatively high, and the apparent shifts toward more hyperopia in myopia students call for effective prevention and control programs based on changes in refractive to slow the progression of adolescent myopia.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can cause acute respiratory distress syndrome, hypercoagulability, hypertension, and multiorgan dysfunction. Effective antivirals with safe clinical profile are urgently needed to improve the overall prognosis. In an analysis of a randomly collected cohort of 124 patients with COVID-19, we found that hypercoagulability as indicated by elevated concentrations of D-dimers was associated with disease severity. By virtual screening of a U.S. FDA approved drug library, we identified an anticoagulation agent dipyridamole (DIP) , which suppressed SARS-CoV-2 replication . In a proof-of-concept trial involving 31 patients with COVID-19, DIP supplementation was associated with significantly decreased concentrations of D-dimers ( < 0.05), increased lymphocyte and platelet recovery in the circulation, and markedly improved clinical outcomes in comparison to the control patients. In particular, all 8 of the DIP-treated severely ill patients showed remarkable improvement: 7 patients (87.5%) achieved clinical cure and were discharged from the hospitals while the remaining 1 patient (12.5%) was in clinical remission.