Objective:To explore the microbiological and disease distribution characteristics of multidrug-resistant bacteria in patients hospitalized in a critical care rehabilitation ward, and to analyze the risk factors leading to multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.Methods:Microbiology screening data describing 679 patients admitted to a critical care rehabilitation ward were retrospectively analyzed to divide the subjects into a multidrug-resistant group (positive for multidrug-resistant bacterial infections, n=166) and a non-multidrug-resistant group (negative for multidrug-resistant bacterial infections, n=513). The risk factors were then analyzed using logistic regression. Results:Among 369 strains of multidrug-resistant bacteria observed, 329 were gram-negative bacteria (89.2%), mainly Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli. They were distributed in sputum (56.9%) and mid-epidemic urine (28.2%) specimens. Patients whose primary disease was hemorrhagic or ischemic cerebrovascular disease accounted for 40.96% and 23.49% of the multidrug-resistant bacterial infections, respectively. Logistic regression analysis showed that albumin level, dependence on mechanical ventilation, central venous cannulation, or an indwelling urinary catheter or cystostomy tube were significant independent predictors of such infections.Conclusion:The multidrug-resistant bacterial infections of patients admitted to the critically ill rehabilitation unit are mainly caused by gram-negative bacteria. Their occurrence is closely related to low albumin levels and mechanical ventilation, as well as to bearing an indwelling central venous catheter, a urinary catheter or a cystostomy catheter.

Objective:This study aimed to clarify the clinical characteristics of children infected with rhinovirus in the context of the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and to explore the impact of recent COVID-19 infection history on their clinical features.Methods:Clinical data and laboratory test result of 286 children diagnosed with rhinovirus infection at Hangzhou Children′s Hospital from July 2022 to October 2023 were collected. A retrospective survey was conducted to determine whether all study participants had a history of COVID-19 infection within the 6 months prior to hospitalization.Results:Among the 286 children with rhinovirus infection, 180 (62.94%) had simple rhinovirus infection, while 106 (37.06%) had co-infections with other pathogens; Among the 180 rhinovirus simplex-positive children, 56.67% had wheezing symptoms; among them, 15 cases (15/180, 8.33%) were diagnosed with acute asthma attacks; 7 cases (7/180, 3.88%) were diagnosed with severe pneumonia. Based on whether the children had a history of COVID-19 infection in the 6 months prior to hospitalization, they were divided into a group with previous COVID-19 infection and a group without previous COVID-19 infection. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of gender, age of onset, peak fever, incidence of wheezing, incidence of pneumonia, proportion of severe pneumonia, proportion of severe asthma attacks, duration of fever, time to relief of wheezing, length of stay, white blood cell count, eosinophil count, C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, immunoglobulin E, oxygen therapy requirements, and use of intravenous steroids ( P>0.05). Conclusions:A history of COVID-19 infection in the past 6 months does not exacerbate the clinical symptoms of children with rhinovirus infection, nor does it increase the incidence of wheezing.

The risk of patient infection inevitably increases with the use of more invasive operations in the intensive care unit(ICU),including endotracheal tubes,indwelling catheter,central venous catheter,etc.The preparation of antibacterial coatings is an effective way to solve such infections.Antibacterial coatings,such as silver nanoparticles coating,zinc oxide coating,methyl blue coating,antimicrobial peptides coating,and nano titanium dioxide(TiO2)coating,can effectively prevent the formation of biofilms on the surface of implant materials.As a photocatalyst,TiO2 has excellent photocatalytic and antibacterial activity,non-toxic and biocompatible properties,strong physical and chemical stability,and long-lasting antibacterial properties,which makes it high value for research.This review summarizes the bactericidal mechanism and clinical application of TiO2,offering valuable reference for clinical practice.

Objective:To investigate the effects of apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele on β-amyloid (Aβ) deposition in subcortical structures and functional connectivity (FC) between brain regions in patients with Alzheimer′s disease (AD). Methods:Forty-three patients with probable mild/moderate AD were prospectively enrolled from the First Medical Centre, Chinese PLA General Hospital between January 2023 and October 2023, including 23 APOE ε4+ patients (12 males and 11 females, age (74.8±8.4) years), 20 APOE ε4- patients (14 males and 6 females, age (77.6±8.9) years) and 20 normal cognitive volunteers (NC) (15 males and 5 females, age (75.3±6.2) years). All subjects underwent 11C-Pittsburgh compound B (PIB) PET/MR brain imaging. The differences of gray matter volume (GMV) in subcortical structures (hippocampus, amygdala) among the three groups were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance and least significant difference (LSD) t test. Independent-sample t test and Pearson correlation analysis were used to analyze difference in Aβ deposition between APOE ε4+ patients and APOE ε4- patients, and the correlation between subcortical structure and brain FC. Results:The GMV of bilateral amygdala between NC group and APOE ε4+ gene carrier group, and between APOE ε4+ and APOE ε4- gene carrier groups were significantly different ( F=6.43, P=0.002; P values: 0.002, 0.003). Significant difference of GMV was observed in the bilateral hippocampus among three groups ( F=5.34, P=0.030). Abnormal PIB uptake was detected in both the hippocampus and amygdala of both APOE ε4+ and APOE ε4- gene carrier groups, with a more pronounced effect observed in the APOE ε4+ group ( t values: 3.14, 2.19, P values: 0.032, 0.009). Taking the hippocampus as the seed point, there was no obvious abnormality in the whole brain connectivity map among APOE ε4+, APOE ε4- carriers and NC groups. With the amygdala as the seed point, the whole brain connectivity in the APOE ε4+ gene carrier group was significantly reduced, and the connectivity between the amygdala and the cingulate gyrus, parietal lobe and temporal lobe was significantly reduced in the APOE ε4+ gene carrier group compared with NC group, while the connectivity between the amygdala and the whole brain was not significantly reduced in the APOE ε4- gene carrier group. Aβ deposition in amygdala was positively correlated with FC coefficients of frontal brain regions, gyrus rectus, right middle occipital gyrus and left temporal lobe ( r values: 0.56-0.70, all P<0.05). Conclusion:APOE influences GMV and Aβ deposition of hippocampus and amygdala, and FC of amygdala, and may be involved in the pathological mechanism of cognitive impairment.

Objective:To establish a rapid pipeline for whole genome sequencing of Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) by combining imbricated multiplex-PCR amplification and Illumina high-throughput sequencing platform.Methods:The primary reference sequences of CHIKV were downloaded from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database, covering all genotypes of CHIKV. After multiple alignments using the Mafft software and phylogenetic analysis, the 20 CHIKV references were selected for primer design. The Primal Scheme tool and Geneious Prime software were used to design, evaluate and optimize the primer panel. Finally, seven CHIKV-positive samples were involved in the validation of the primer panel.Results:All the amplicons of the designed panel were generated successfully. The consensuses generated from the mapping results could cover 100.00% of the coding region of the CHIKV genome when the Ct-value of the sample was less than 33, as the percentage would decrease to 99.38% when the Ct-value reached 35. The mapping percentage could be increased by 5.70%-25.43% when using the stepwise correction mapping strategy.Conclusion:The multiplex-PCR amplification method for CHIKV whole genome sequencing is relatively simple and convenient, which only requires two tubes of PCR amplification and performs well on CHIKV-positive clinical samples with different concentration levels of virus.

Objective:To establish a rapid pipeline for whole genome sequencing of Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) by combining imbricated multiplex-PCR amplification and Illumina high-throughput sequencing platform.Methods:The primary reference sequences of CHIKV were downloaded from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database, covering all genotypes of CHIKV. After multiple alignments using the Mafft software and phylogenetic analysis, the 20 CHIKV references were selected for primer design. The Primal Scheme tool and Geneious Prime software were used to design, evaluate and optimize the primer panel. Finally, seven CHIKV-positive samples were involved in the validation of the primer panel.Results:All the amplicons of the designed panel were generated successfully. The consensuses generated from the mapping results could cover 100.00% of the coding region of the CHIKV genome when the Ct-value of the sample was less than 33, as the percentage would decrease to 99.38% when the Ct-value reached 35. The mapping percentage could be increased by 5.70%-25.43% when using the stepwise correction mapping strategy.Conclusion:The multiplex-PCR amplification method for CHIKV whole genome sequencing is relatively simple and convenient, which only requires two tubes of PCR amplification and performs well on CHIKV-positive clinical samples with different concentration levels of virus.

Objective:To explore the effects of neutrophilic granule protein (NGP) on the expression of lipocalin 2 (LCN2) in inflammatory macrophages and its mechanism.Methods:NGP-high-expressed RAW264.7 cells (NGP/RAW cells) and negative control RAW264.7 cells (NC/RAW cells) were cultured in vitro. Primary peritoneal macrophages of NGP-high-expressed mice and wild-type C57BL/6 mice were extracted, then cultured in vitro. The cell inflammatory model was established by stimulating with 10 mg/L lipopolysaccharide (LPS, LPS group), and the phosphate buffer solution (PBS) control group was set up. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the level of LCN2 in different types of cells. The protein expression of phosphorylated signal transduction and activator of transcription 1 (p-STAT1) was detected with Western blotting. Other NGP/RAW cells and NC/RAW cells were treated with 10 mg/L LPS, 5 mg/L STAT1 pathway inhibitor (fludarabine)+10 mg/L LPS, respectively. The PBS control group was set up. ELISA was used to detect the level of LCN2. Results:In different types of cells, the levels of LCN2 were increased significantly after LPS stimulation in the LPS group as compared with those in the PBS control group, and peaked at 24 hours (μmol/L: 25.61±1.02 vs. 0.46±0.02 in NC/RAW cells, 74.51±2.14 vs. 0.25±0.04 in NGP/RAW cells, 10.13±0.22 vs. 0.01±0.01 in primary macrophages of wild-type C57BL/6 mice, 28.35±0.61 vs. 0.08±0.01 in primary macrophages of NGP-high-expressed mice, all P < 0.05), indicating that the expression of LCN2 in macrophages altered during inflammation reaction. The level of LCN2 in NGP/RAW cells was found significantly increased at different time points after LPS stimulation comparing with that in NC/RAW cells (μmol/L: 8.32±0.22 vs. 3.12±0.11 at 6 hours, 23.12±0.86 vs. 8.12±0.32 at 12 hours, 74.51±2.14 vs. 25.61±1.02 at 24 hours, all P < 0.05), along with the expression of p-STAT1 was significantly up-regulated. The level of LCN2 in the primary macrophages of NGP-high-expressed mice was also significantly increased at 24 hours after LPS stimulation comparing with that in the primary macrophages of wild-type C57BL/6 mice (μmol/L: 28.35±0.61 vs. 10.13±0.22, P < 0.05). However, after pretreated with STAT1 pathway inhibitors, the production of LCN2 in NGP/RAW cells was decreased significantly comparing with that in the LPS group (μmol/L: 6.81±0.19 vs. 22.54±0.58, P < 0.05). But the inhibitors had no significant effect on LCN2 production in NC/RAW cells showing no significant difference as compared with LPS group (μmol/L: 8.04±0.20 vs. 7.86±0.15, P > 0.05), indicating that NGP could up-regulate the expression of LCN2 in macrophages stimulated by LPS by promoting STAT1 activation. Conclusion:NGP could positively regulate LCN2 expression in inflammatory macrophages by activating STAT1 pathway.

Objective:To investigate the positive rate and isolate Bordetella pertussis in children with suspected whooping cough and their close family members in Zhejiang Province, and further explore the susceptibility and resistant mechanism of Bordetella pertussis to antibiotics. Methods:A total of 273 nasopharynx swabs specimens from children with suspected whooping cough in Hangzhou Children′s Hospital from May 2022 to October 2022 were collected. The strains were isolated and cultured using charcoal select agar plate. Pertussis target genes were detected by RT-PCR. E-test method was used to detect the sensitivity of Bordetella pertussis strains to different antibiotics. The mechanism of resistance of Bordetella pertussis to macrolides was analyzed by whole genome sequencing. The phylogenetic analysis of isolated strains was based on core genome multilocus sequence typing(cgMLST). Results:Among 273 clinical samples of children with suspected pertussis and their close family members, 168 samples were positive by fluorescence quantitative PCR, accounting for 61.54%, and 30 pertussis strains were successfully isolated with a positive rate of 10.98%. In addition, among the 143 samples of close family members, 54.55% (78/143) samples were positive by RT-PCR and 9.79% (14/143) samples were positive by culture, suggesting that the close family member are important in family transmission of pertussis. Besides, most of the positive samples were from mothers. The results of E-test showed that 96.67%(29/30) strains showed high resistance to azithromycin with MIC value>256 mg/L, and the resistant mechanism of azithromycin was A2047G mutation in 23S rRNA. The phylogenetic analysis based on the cgMSLT showed that the isolated strains were clustered into two new different clades.Conclusions:The positive rate of Bordetella pertussis in close family members is at a high level and the mother may be the main source of infection, which is of great significance for monitoring and laboratory detection of suspected children′s family members. Bordetella pertussis shows high resistance to macrolides in Zhejiang Province, so monitoring of the antimicrobial resistance should be further strengthened to provide theoretical basis for clinical treatment and drug guidance.

Objective To explore the risk factors of aspiration during hospitalization in patients with ischemic stroke (IS) and establish a predictive model. Methods Based on the case-control design, clinical materials of 316 IS patients treated in the Department of Neurology of Suzhou Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University from March 2022 to October 2023 were retrospectively collected. According to incidence of aspiration during hospitalization, the patients were divided into case group with 89 cases (aspiration occurred during hospitalization) and control group with 227 cases (no aspiration occurred during hospitalization). Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses were performed in both groups to screen out the risk factors of aspiration during hospitalization in IS patients. R software was used to extract 70 % of the data from the two groups as the training set (establishing a Nomogram model), and the remaining 30 % data was used as test set. Value of predictive model was evaluated by area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, calibration curve, and decision curve. Results There were significant differences in the terms of age, the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, number of lesions, homocysteine (Hcy) level, spontaneous cough, and grading of Wada drinking water test between the case group and the control group (P < 0.05). Multivariate Logistic analysis showed that large age (OR=2.201, 95 %CI, 1.254 to 3.865), high NIHSS score (OR=4.816, 95 %CI, 1.652 to 14.041), multiple lesions (OR=2.649, 95 %CI, 1.249 to 5.613), high level of Hcy (OR=1.501, 95 %CI, 1.044 to 2.158), weakened or absent spontaneous cough (OR=3.384, 95 %CI, 1.639 to 6.987), and high grading of Wada drinking water test (OR=2.878, 95 %CI, 1.422 to 5.783) were the risk factors of aspiration during hospitalization in IS patients (P < 0.05). In the training set, the AUC of the Nomogram model for predicting aspiration during hospitalization in IS patients was 0.872 (95 %CI, 0.827 to 0.919), and was 0.859 (95 %CI, 0.807 to 0.904) in the test set. The calibration curve analysis showed that P value was 0.869 in the training set and 0.898 in the test set. The decision curve analysis for both the training set and test set showed that the Nomogram model was of good clinical applicability. Conclusion The risk of aspiration during hospitalization in IS patients is related to large age, high NIHSS score, multiple lesions, high level of Hcy, weakened or absent spontaneous cough, and high grading of Wada drinking water test. The Nomogram predictive model established on these factors can effectively evaluate the risk of aspiration during hospitalization in IS patients.

Objective To investigate the impact of the Shared Medical Appointment (SMA) model on blood glucose levels and self-management behaviors in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Methods A total of 87 pregnant women diagnosed with GDM at the Obstetrics and Gynecology and Endocrinology Outpatient Departments of the Affiliated Suqian Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University from October 2021 to October 2022 were enrolled and divided into treatment group (n=44) and control group (n=43). The treatment group received SMA-based GDM management, while the control group underwent routine outpatient follow-up. Baseline data, flash glucose monitoring (FGM)-related indicators before and after treatment, and self-management behavior scale scores were compared between the two groups. Results No statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups in age, body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), fasting blood glucose (FBG), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cr), uric acid (UA), triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) (P>0.05). After treatment, the time in range (TIR) of glucose was higher in the treatment group than that in the control group, while mean amplitude of glycemic excursions (MAGE), standard deviation of blood glucose (SDBG), coefficient of variation (CV), and mean blood glucose (MBG) were lower in the treatment group (P < 0.05). Within the treatment group, post-treatment TIR was higher, and MAGE, CV, SDBG, and MBG were lower than pre-treatment levels (P < 0.05). In the control group, post-treatment TIR was higher, and SDBG and MBG were lower than pre-treatment levels (P < 0.05). After treatment, the total score and scores for dietary management, exercise management, medication management, and blood glucose monitoring management in the self-management behavior scale were significantly higher in the treatment group than in the control group (P < 0.05). In the treatment group, post-treatment scores for all self-management behaviors were higher than pre-treatment levels, while post-treatment total scores and scores for medication management and blood glucose monitoring management in the control group were higher than pre-treatment levels (P < 0.05). Conclusion SMA management model can comprehensively improve blood glucose levels and enhance self-management behavior capabilities in GDM patients.