BACKGROUND:Intervertebral disc degeneration is an important cause of low back pain.At present,there are many modeling methods for disc degeneration in China and abroad,but there is not a model for low back pain due to disc degeneration. OBJECTIVE:To compare the effect of mechanical puncture combined with tumor necrosis factor α and complete Freund's adjuvant with a conventional disc mechanical puncture alone. METHODS:A total of 18 male adult Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into 3 groups,with 6 animals in each group.No treatment was given in the blank group.Animal models of intervertebral disc degeneration were made in the L4-5 segments of rats in the control using conventional mechanical puncture.In the experimental group,on the basis of mechanical puncture,tumor necrosis factor α+complete Freund's adjuvant was injected into the L4-5 intervertebral discs using a microinjector to establish a model of disc degeneration induced by mechanical puncture combined with inflammatory factors.Four weeks after surgery,the pain threshold of rats was measured by the hot plate method for assessing the perception of heat injury in rats with intervertebral disc degeneration.MRI examination was performed to observe the disc degeneration in each group.ELISA was used to detect the levels of serum tumor necrosis factor α,interleukin 1β,interleukin 6 and prostaglandin E2.Hematoxylin-eosin and Safranin O-fast green staining were used to observe the morphological changes of the disc. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:In terms of pain,the behavioral pain threshold of the experimental group was continuously decreased,and the levels of serum inflammatory factors were significantly higher compared with the control group.In terms of morphology,the MRI results showed that the L4-5 nucleus pulposus signal completely disappeared in the experimental group.Histopathological results showed that in the control group,the nucleus pulposus was intact,more notochord cells were visible,and some fiber rings were ruptured,while in the experimental group,there are fewer notochord cells and the structure of the nucleus pulposus and fibrous ring is disturbed,with the boundary disappearing.To conclude,mechanical puncture combined with tumor necrosis factor alpha and complete Freund's adjuvant can successfully establish a discogenic low back pain model in rats.This operation is simple and economical to achieve obvious disc degeneration and low back pain,with greatly shortened molding cycle.This model can be used as a reference for studying discogenic low back pain models.

Radiotherapy is a first-line treatment for a variety of malignant tumors by inducing DNA damage to kill tumor cells. However, tumor cells have different sensitivities to radiotherapy, ultimately leading to different therapeutic effects. Histone acetylation, regulated by histone acetyltransferase (HAT) and histone deacetylase (HDAC), is involved in the regulation of cell radiation sensitivity by influencing DNA damage repair. The main mechanisms are recruiting DNA repair related proteins and mediating chromatin dynamic changes. In this article, the role of histone acetylation modification in tumor radiotherapy was reviewed, aming to provide the basis for the radiotherapy sensitization strategy based on histone acetylation.

Purpose/Significance To understand the current status and influencing factors of residents'utilization and dissemination of online dietary health information in the Yangtze River Delta region,so as to provide theoretical references for strengthening education on online dietary health information,and eliminating misinformation related to online dietary health.Method/Process The purposive sam-pling method is used to investigate residents in the Yangtze River Delta region,and the data is analyzed by descriptive analysis,inde-pendent sample t-tests,and multiple linear regression analysis.Result/Conclusion The dissemination of online dietary health informa-tion presents interactive characteristics of interpersonal communication and online communication.WeChat and Sina Weibo are the main sources of dietary health information.In addition to information screening,information search,systematic information processing,demand degree,information sharing intention and information concern motivation have significant and positive effects on the public's willingness to receive information.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between food-specific IgG (sIgG) antibodies and phenotypes of chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) .Methods:Serum samples were collected from outpatients with active CSU, symptomatic dermographism (SD) , or acute urticaria (AU) , and healthy controls from 5 third-grade class-A hospitals such as the First Hospital of China Medical University between April 2014 and March 2015. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was conducted to detect serum levels of 90 food-sIgG antibodies and total IgE, Western blot analysis to detect levels of 20 allergen-specific IgE antibodies, and chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay to detect levels of anti-thyroid peroxidase IgG antibodies and anti-thyroglobulin IgG antibodies. Comparisons of normally distributed quantitative data between two groups and among several groups were performed by t test and one-way analysis of variance, respectively; comparisons of non-normally distributed quantitative data between two groups were performed by Mann-Whitney U test; for comparisons of proportions, chi-square test and Fisher′s exact test were used. Results:A total of 248 patients with CSU, 22 with SD, 15 with AU and 13 healthy controls were recruited. The cut-off level for sIgG positivity was 100 U/ml (at least 2+) , and the positive rate of food-sIgG antibodies was slightly higher in the patients with CSU (176/248, 70.97%) , SD (15/22, 68.18%) and AU (11/15) than in the healthy controls (7/13; χ2 = 1.80, P = 0.615) . Among the 248 CSU patients, the proportion of patients with family history of allergic diseases was significantly higher in the sIgG-positive group (71/176, 40.34%) than in the sIgG-negative group (19/72, 26.39%; χ2 = 4.30, P = 0.042) , while no significant difference was observed in the 1-day urticaria activity score (UASday) between the two groups ( Z = 0.18, P = 0.859) . Totally, 177 CSU patients completed 12- to 40-week treatment; their condition could be completely controlled by second-generation H1-antihistamines, and there was no significant difference in the required dosage of second-generation H1-antihistamines between the sIgG-positive group (128 cases) and sIgG-negative group (49 cases; Z = -1.06, P = 0.298) . Conclusions:The prevalence of family history of allergic diseases was relatively high in food-sIgG-positive patients with CSU. However, food-sIgG could not be used as an indicator to reflect the disease activity of CSU and treatment response.

ObjectiveTo clone coumarate-3-hydroxylase gene （C3H） from Angelica sinensis， and analyze the correlation between its bioinformatics， expression patterns and content of ferulic acid， and to explore the functions of ASC3H. MethodReal-time polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to clone the full-length cDNA of ASC3H based on the transcriptome dataset of A. sinensis， and the bioinformatics analysis of the gene sequence was carried out. Real-time PCR and high performance liquid chromatography （HPLC） were used to determine relative expression of ASC3H and content of ferulic acid in different root tissues of A. sinensis （periderm， cortex and stele）. ResultThe open reading frame （ORF） of ASC3H （GenBank accession number： MN2550298） was 1 530 bp， encoding 509 amino acids， with a theoretical molecular weight of 57.86 kDa and an isoelectric point of 8.36. It was a hydrophilic protein that was located in the chloroplast with multiple phosphorylation sites and a transmembrane region， and contained a conserved domain CGYDWPKGYGPIINVW_P450 （383-399 aa） in cytochrome P450. Multiple amino acid sequence alignment analysis showed that ASC3H had high similarity with C3H from other plants， especially Ammi majus in Umbelliferae. The Real-time PCR revealed that ASC3H had different expressions in periderm， cortex and stele tissues of A. sinensis roots. It was found from HPLC that the cortex tissues had the highest content of ferulic acid， and the stele tissues had the lowest. ConclusionASC3H was successfully cloned from A. sinensis， and its sequence characteristics were understood more clearly， suggesting that ASC3H might be involved in the ferulic acid biosynthesis pathway of A. sinensis. This paper provided a basis for further studying the functions of the gene and exploring the biosynthesis and regulation mechanism of ferulic acid in A. sinensis， while laying the foundation for the genetic improvement of A. sinensis．

Objective:In recent years,the prevalence of diabetic nephropathy(DN)has increased significantly.An increasing number of studies have shown that lymphocyte-associated inflammatory responses play a role in DN.This study aims to investigate the relationship between lymphocytes and DN in patients with autoimmune diabetes. Methods:The clinical data of 226 patients with Type 1 diabetes(T1D)and 79 patients with latent autoimmune diabetes in adults(LADA)were retrospectively studied and stratified according to the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio(ACR).Risk factors associated with DN were analyzed using correlation analysis and logistic regression. Results:In T1D and LADA patients,systolic blood pressure(SBP),uric acid duration,and diabetes duration in patients with normoalbuminuria were lower or shorter than those in patients with macroalbuminuria(P＜0.05).The lymphocyte count of T1D patients was significantly higher than that in LADA patients(P＜0.05),while the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio(NLR)of T1D patients was significantly lower than that in LADA patients(P＜0.05).The lymphocyte count in the T1D patients with normoalbuminuria was lower than that those with macroalbuminuria(P＜0.05).The NLR was lower in the T1D patients with macroalbuminuria than those with microalbuminuria and normoproteinuria(all P＜0.01).Based on logistic regression analysis,lymphocytes were independently associated with DN in T1D after adjusting for various known risk factors such as course of disease,age,gender,dyslipidemia,hypertension,and smoking status.Analysis of the receiver operating characteristic curve of subjects predicting lymphocytes in normoalbuminuria showed that the area under the curve was 0.601(95% CI 0.510 to 0.693,P=0.039),and when the cutoff value of lymphocytes was 2.332,the sensitivity was 37.0%,and the specificity was 82.5%. Conclusion:Lymphocyte counts in autoimmune diabetic patients are closely associated with DN,suggesting that lymphocyte-mediated inflammation may be involved in the pathogenesis of DN in autoimmune diabetic patients.This study provides a possible perspective for using lymphocytes as a potential biomarker for the early identification of individuals at risk for DN and potential therapeutic targets for DN.

Objective: To investigate the effect of Porphyromonas gingivallis ( Pg) infection of esophageal cancer cells on the polarization of tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) and functional changes. Methods: The secretion of tumor⁃related cytokines in the supernatant of Pg infected and uninfected esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) cells was detected by ELISA. A co⁃culture model of ESCC cells and macrophages in vitro was established ,and the changes of TAMs surface markers were detected by qPCR , cellular immunofluorescence and flow cytometry. Cytokines secreted by TAMs after co⁃culture were detected by ELISA. ESCC cells were cultured using conditioned medium of co⁃cultured TAMs , and the effects of TAMs on the proliferation , migration and invasion of esophageal cancer cells were evaluated by CCK⁃8 , Wound⁃healing assay and Transwell assay. Results: The expression quantity of IL⁃6 and IL⁃10 of Pg⁃infected ESCC cells increased (P < 0. 01) . The contents of CD163 and CD206 on the surface of TAMs co⁃cultured with Pg⁃infected ESCC cells increased (P < 0. 001) . The cytokines IL⁃6 and IL⁃10 secreted by TAMs co⁃cultured with Pg⁃infected ESCC cells relatively increased (P < 0. 01) . TAMs co⁃cultured with Pginfected ESCC cells were able to enhance ESCC cells proliferation , migration and invasion (all P < 0. 05) . Conclusion Pg infection of ESCC cells can induce the secretion of cytokines , remodel TAMs to polarize toward the M2type immunosuppressive phenotype , thereby promoting the malignant biological behavior of ESCC cells. This study provides data support for the etiology of esophageal cancer and potential target molecules for clinical immunotherapy targeting TAMs.

Objective:To study the expression and clinical significance of teratocarcinoma-derived growth factor 1 (Cripto-1) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)in cervical cancer (CC)cancer tissues.Methods:From January 2012 to May 2017, 152 patients with CC in the 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College were selected as CC group, and 40 patients with uterine fibroids as control group. The quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression of Cripto-1 and mTOR in 152 cases of CC tissues and 40 cases of normal cervical tissues. The expression difference between the two and their relationship with pathological features and prognosis were statistically analyzed.Results:The relative expression of Cripto-1 and mTOR in CC tissues was significantly higher than that in normal cervical tissues ( P<0.05). There was a significant positive correlation between Cripto-1 and mTOR expression in CC tissues ( r=0.634, P<0.05). The expression of Cripto-1 and mTOR protein in CC tissues were associated with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage and tumor grade ( P<0.05), but not with age, pathological type, depth of invasion and lymph node metastasis ( P>0.05). The 3-year overall survival (OS) rate of patients with high Cripto-1 expression was not significantly different from that of patients with low Cripto-1 expression ( P>0.05), while the 3-year OS of high mTOR expression group was significantly lower than that of low mTOR expression group (χ 2=5.808, P=0.016). Conclusions:The expression of Cripto-1 and mTOR is increased in CC tissues.Both of them are related to FIGO stage and tumor grade, which may become a new molecular marker for diagnosis, treatment and evaluation of CC.

Objective:To evaluate the effect of dexmedetomidine on the quality of recovery from anesthesia in elderly patients undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) with propofol anesthesia.Methods:Sixty patients of both sexes, aged>65 yr, weighing 45-80 kg, of American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status Ⅰor Ⅱ, scheduled for elective ECT with propofol anesthesia, were assigned into 2 groups ( n=30 each) using a random number table method: control group (group C) and dexmedetomidine group (group D). Dexmedetomidine was intravenously infused in a dose of 0.2 μg/kg (in normal saline 10 ml) over 10 min starting from onset of anesthesia induction in group D, while normal saline 10 ml was given instead in group C. Propofol 1.0-1.5 mg/kg was intravenously injected slowly.Succinylcholine 0.7 mg/kg was intravenously injected after the eyelash reflex disappeared, and oxygen was delivered via a mask to assist artificial ventilation.The mask was removed when the muscle twitching disappeared during depolarization, treatment was performed with an ETC apparatus, and electroencephalogram was monitored.The electrical stimulus intensity was set according to the age of the patient during ECT treatment, and the initial intensity was set at 0.5 times the age of the patient. When the postictal suppression index was less than 80%, a higher level of stimulus intensity was used in the next ECT treatment (the difference between adjacent intensity levels was 25.2 mc, which was 5% of the total stimulus intensity). After the end of ECT procedure, participants were manually ventilated with a mask, and the patients were transferred to postanesthesia care unit when the spontaneous breathing was completely restored.The time to recovery of spontaneous breathing and emergence time were recorded.The development of adverse cardiovascular events, nausea and vomiting, respiratory depression, headache, drowsiness, agitation and delirium during recovery from anesthesia was also recorded. Results:Compared with group C, the incidence of agitation, delirium, hypertension and tachycardia during recovery from anesthesia was significantly decreased, and no significant change was found in the other variables in group D ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Dexmedetomidine can improve the quality of recovery from anesthesia in elderly patients undergoing ECT under propofol anesthesia.

Purpose: Combining targeted agents with adjuvant chemotherapy prolongs survival in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer patients, but also increases the risk of adverse effects. The updated results of 3 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were reported in 2019. Given the lack of adequate head-to-head pairwise assessment for anti-HER2 agents, network meta-analysis facilitates obtaining more precise inference for evidence-based therapy. Methods: RCTs comparing at least 2 anti-HER2 regimens in an adjuvant setting for HER2-positive early-stage breast cancer (EBC) were included. Hazard ratios for overall survival (OS) and disease free survival (DFS), with respective 95% confidence intervals were pooled for assessment of efficacy. A Bayesian statistical model was used, and odds ratios (ORs) for adverse events (AEs) were used to pool effect sizes. Results: We demonstrated that 1-year trastuzumab plus chemotherapy had increased efficacy compared to shorter or longer treatment duration. The OR of cardiac events gradually increased from 6 months to 1 and 2-year trastuzumab arms, relative to chemotherapy only.Compared to trastuzumab plus chemotherapy, dual HER2-targeting therapies increased DFS, especially for hormone receptor negative patients. Dual anti-HER2 blockade regimens revealed an increased probability of gastrointestinal reactions. As a second agent, pertuzumab showed significantly higher DFS and OS. Conclusion We conclude that 1-year adjuvant trastuzumab should remain as the standard treatment for HER2-positive EBC patients, as it has greater efficacy and a manageable proportion of AEs. Clinical efficacy can be increased for hormone receptor-negative tumors by including a second HER2-targeted agent to the treatment regimen. For hormone receptorpositive cases with basal disease, it is acceptable to reduce the risk of cardiotoxicity by shortening the duration of trastuzumab.