ObjectiveTo establish a mouse model of basilar artery dolichoectasia （BAD） and explore the mechanism of modified Tongqiao Huoxuetang （JTQHX） in regulating BAD via phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt） pathway. MethodSixty C57/BL6 female mice were randomized into sham operation （injected with 10 U·mL^-1 inactivate elastase）， model， atorvastatin calcium tablets （2.6 mg·kg·d^-1）， and low- and high-dose （crude drug 3.4， 17 g·kg^-1·d^-1， respectively） JTQHX groups. The mouse model of BAD was established by injection with 10 U·mL^-1 elastase. After 14 days of modeling， the sham operation group and model group were administrated with equal volumes of pure water by gavage， and other groups with corresponding drugs for 2 months. The levels of interleukin-6 （IL-6） and calpain （LpA） in the serum were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. Verhoeff 's Van Gieson （EVG） staining was employed to observe the pathological changes of blood vessels. Terminal-deoxynucleotidyl transferase mediated nick end labeling （TUNEL） was employed to examine the apoptosis rate of vascular smooth muscle cells （VSMCs）. Image Pro Plus was used to observe and calculate the curvature index， elongation length， percentage increase in vessel diameter， and curvature angle of the basilar artery vessels in mice. Western blot was employed to determine the expression levels of PI3K and Akt in the vascular tissue. ResultCompared with the sham operation group， the model group showed lowered IL-6 level （P<0.01）， no significant change in LpA level， increased apoptosis of VSMCs （P<0.01）， and increased curvature index， elongation length， percentage increase in vessel diameter， and curvature angle （P<0.01）. Furthermore， the modeling up-regulated the protein levels of PI3K and Akt in blood vessels （P<0.01） and aggravated the destruction of the inner elastic layer， atrophy of the muscular layer， and hyaline changes in the connective tissue of the medial membrane of the basilar artery wall. Compared with the model group， 2 months of treatment with JTQHX elevated the IL-6 level （P<0.01）， reduced the apoptosis of VSMCs （P<0.01）， decreased the curvature index， elongation length， percentage increase in vessel diameter， and curvature angle （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and down-regulated the protein levels of PI3K and Akt in blood vessels （P<0.01）. In addition， the treatment alleviated the destruction of the inner elastic layer， atrophy of the muscular layer， and hyaline changes in the connective tissue of the medial membrane of the basilar artery wall. ConclusionJTQHX inhibits the elongation， expansion， and curvature of basilar artery vessels and alleviates the pathological changes by reducing the apoptosis of VSMCs and down-regulating the expression of PI3K/Akt pathway.

It has been proposed by Basic Questions On Proper Therapies for Different Diseases Geographically （《素问·异法方宜论篇》） that "wei （痿） diseases should be treated by Daoyin （导引）". Furthermore， it is clarified that the indications of Daoyin are those conditions related to spleen and dampness caused by dampness pathogen， excessive food intake and less exercise， and mainly manifested as heavy limbs， fatigue and flaccidity， which is similar to the metabolic imbalance in the early stage of glucose or lipid metabolism disorder in modern medicine. Based on modern clinical and basic research evidence， Daoyin can inhibit the response of inflammation， alleviate oxidative stress， regulate intestinal microbiota， and modulate gene expression to improve metabolic abnormalities， and this will provide ideas for researches on the indications of Daoyin.

Objective This study aimed to identify differentially methylated genes (DMGs) associated with natural killer cells in patients with autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT),focusing on the influence of varying water iodine exposure levels. Methods Participants were divided into categories based on median water iodine (MWI) concentrations:iodine-fortified areas (IFA,MWI<10 μg/L),iodine-adequate areas (IAA,40 ≤ MWI ≤ 100μg/L),and iodine-excessive areas (IEA,MWI>300 μg/L). A total of 176 matched AIT cases and controls were recruited and divided into 89,40,and 47 pairs for IFA,IAA,and IEA,respectively. DMGs were identified using 850K BeadChip analysis for 10/10 paired samples. Validation of DNA methylation and mRNA expression levels of the DMGs was conducted using MethylTarget? and QRT-PCR for 176/176 paired samples. Results KLRC1,KLRC3,and SH2D1B were identified as significant DMGs. Validation revealed that KLRC1 was hypomethylated and highly expressed,whereas KLRC3 was hypermethylated and highly expressed in individuals with AIT. Furthermore,KLRC1 was hypomethylated and highly expressed in both IFA and IEA. Conclusion The DNA methylation status of KLRC1 and KLRC3 may play crucial roles in AIT pathogenesis. Additionally,DNA methylation of KLRC1 seems to be influenced by different iodine concentrations in water.

Objective:To investigate the predictive value of differential distribution of peripheral lymphocyte subsets before and after the first 131I treatment on the therapeutic response to 131I treatment in patients with papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). Methods:A retrospective study was conducted on 46 PTC patients (16 males, 30 females, age 20-77 years) who underwent total thyroidectomy and received 131I treatment between January 2021 and August 2021 in First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University. Peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets (T, B, CD4 + T, CD8 + T, natural killer (NK), helper T (Th)1, Th2, Th17, and regulatory T (Treg) cells) were measured 1-2 d before and 30 d after 131I treatment. Based on serological and imaging evidence, therapeutic response at 6-12 months post- 131I therapy was categorized as either excellent response (ER) or non-excellent response (NER). Differences of preablative stimulated thyroglobulin (psTg) and clinical baseline characteristics between two groups were assessed by using independent-sample t test, paired t test, or Mann-Whitney U test. Predictive value of lymphocyte subsets before and after 131I treatment for therapeutic response was assessed through logistic regression analysis, ROC curve analysis, and decision curve analysis (DCA). Results:In ER group ( n=33) and NER group ( n=13), most lymphocyte subsets showed different degrees of reduction 30 d after 131I treatment compared to before 131I treatment, such as T, B, CD4 + T and Th1 cells in ER group, as well as T, B, CD4 + T, Th1, Th2, Th17, and Treg cells in NER group ( t values: 2.41-9.57, all P<0.05). Before 131I treatment, NER group had significantly higher levels of psTg, Th2, Th17, and Treg cells compared to the ER group ( t values: from -3.32 to -2.48, U=29.00, all P<0.05). After 131I treatment, most of lymphocyte subsets in NER group (T, B, CD4 + T, CD8 + T, Th1 and Treg cells) showed higher trend than those in ER group but without statistical significances ( t values: from -1.12 to -0.06, all P>0.05). Th2 cells before 131I treatment (odds ratio ( OR)=25.00, 95% CI: 1.36-459.10, P=0.030) was identified as a risk factor for NER. ROC curve analysis indicated that AUCs of psTg and Th2 cells for predicting therapeutic response were 0.932 and 0.790, respectively, which was 0.958 for the combined psTg and Th2 cells. DCA showed that within the threshold probability range of 10%-60%, the curves for psTg, Th2 cells, and the combined psTg and Th2 cells were all higher than the extreme curve, suggesting good effect. Conclusions:Most lymphocyte subsets decrease to varying degrees, and NER group shows a significant decrease 30 d after 131I treatment. Th2 cells may be a risk factor for poor response to 131I treatment, providing a certain value in predicting the therapeutic response to 131I treatment.

In recent years, infectious pathogens have received sustained attention because of their serious impact on the world′s health and socio-economic infrastructure. The existing common detection methods lack a certain sensitivity and specificity, the process is tedious, and they rely on more expensive auxiliary instruments and equipment. On the other hand, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats associated protein (CRISPR/Cas) has been widely used in the monitoring of infectious diseases due to its high specificity, sensitivity, and rapid programmable characteristics, and has shown important potential significance in the research of new biosensors in nucleic acid detection. This paper describes the functional mechanism of Cas protein commonly used in CRISPR/Cas system, summarizes the latest research progress of new biosensor technology based on CRISPR/Cas system in the field of infectious disease detection, and looks forward to the technical problems to be solved and the future development direction. With more research advancement, more types of biosensing platforms based on CRISPR/Cas system are expected to be developed, paving the way for the application of POCT in the field of rapid pathogen detection.

Objective:To clarify the relationship between interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10 gene polymorphisms and autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD).Methods:Literature search was conducted through databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, CNKI, Embase, Wanfang Database and VIP.com, and domestic and foreign literatures related to IL-6, IL-10 gene polymorphisms and AITD were included in the study. The time limit was from the self-built of the databases to July 2021. Meta-analysis was performed with STATA 16.0 software, the odds ratio ( OR) and 95% confidence interval ( CI) were used as effect indicators, random-effect or fixed-effect model was selected according to the heterogeneity results, and the source of heterogeneity was explored through subgroup analysis. Publication bias was assessed using funnel plots and Egger's test. Results:Finally, 19 literatures were included, all in English. There were 12 studies on IL-6 genes and 11 studies on IL-10 genes, including 4 studies on both IL-6 and IL-10 genes. In the whole population, the loci associated with AITD were IL-6 -174 G/C site (GG vs CC + GC: OR =1.94, 95% CI = 1.01 - 3.76), IL-6 -572 G/C site (GG + GC vs CC: OR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.29 - 0.84; GG vs CC + GC: OR = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.60 - 0.96; GG + CC vs GC: OR = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.49 - 0.81), IL-10 -819 T/C site (TT + TC vs CC: OR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.01 - 3.34; T vs C: OR = 1.59, 95% CI = 1.00 - 2.51), and IL-10 -1 082 A/G site (AA + AG vs GG: OR = 0.77, 95% CI = 0.64 - 0.92; AA vs GG + AG: OR = 2.03, 95% CI = 1.16 - 3.58; A vs G: OR = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.61 - 0.94). The results of subgroup analysis showed that in Asian population, the loci associated with AITD were IL-6 -174 G/C site (GG vs CC + GC: OR = 4.61, 95% CI = 1.11 - 19.23; G vs C: OR = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.44 - 0.97); IL-6 -572 G/C site (GG vs CC + GC: OR = 0.64, 95% CI = 0.41 - 0.99; GG + CC vs GC: OR = 0.60, 95% CI = 0.38 - 0.94); IL-10 -819 T/C site (TT + TC vs CC: OR = 2.51, 95% CI = 1.48 - 4.25; T vs C: OR = 1.91, 95% CI = 1.05 - 3.46); and IL-10 -1 082 A/G site (AA + AG vs GG: OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.52 - 0.84; AA vs GG + AG: OR = 2.83, 95% CI = 1.54 - 5.21; A vs G: OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.53 - 0.82). Conclusion:IL-6 -174 G/C, IL-6 -572 G/C, IL-10 -819 T/C and IL-10 -1 082 A/G polymorphisms are associated with the susceptibility to AITD, especially in Asians.

Antioxidant enzymes fused with cell-penetrating peptides could enter cells and protect cells from irradiation damage. However, the unselective transmembrane ability of cell-penetrating peptide may also bring antioxidant enzymes into tumor cells, thus protecting tumor cells and consequently reducing the efficacy of radiotherapy. There are active matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 or MMP-9 in most tumor cellular microenvironments. Therefore, a fusion protein containing an MMP-2/9 cleavable substrate peptide X, a cell-penetrating peptide R9, a glutathione S-transferase (GST), and a human Cu, Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1), was designed and named GST-SOD1-X-R9. In the tumor microenvironment, GST-SOD1-X-R9 would lose its cell-penetrating peptide and could not enter tumor cells due to the cleavage of substrate X by active MMP-2/9, thereby achieving selected entering normal cells. The complete nucleotide sequence of SOD1-X-R9 was synthesized and inserted into the prokaryotic expression vector pGEX-4T-1. The pGEX4T-1-SOD1-X-R9 recombinant plasmid was obtained, and soluble expression of the fusion protein was achieved. GST-SOD1-X-R9 was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation and GST affinity chromatography. The molecular weight of the fusion protein was approximately 47 kDa, consistent with the theoretical value. The SOD and GST activities were 2 954 U/mg and 328 U/mg, respectively. Stability test suggested that almost no change in either SOD activity or GST activity of GST-SOD1-X-R9 was observed under physiological conditions. The fusion protein could be partially digested by collagenase Ⅳ in solution. Subsequently, the effect of MMP-2/9 activity on transmembrane ability of the fusion protein was tested using 2D and 3D cultured HepG2 cells. Little extracellular MMP-2 activity of HepG2 cells was observed under 2D culture condition. While under the 3D culture model, the size and the MMP-2 activity of the HepG2 tumor spheroid increased daily. GST-SOD1-R9 proteins showed the same transmembrane efficiency in 2D cultured HepG2 cells, but the transmembrane efficiency of GST-SOD1-X-R9 in 3D cultured HepG2 spheres was reduced remarkably. This study provided a basis for further investigating the selectively protective effect of GST-SOD1-X-R9 against oxidative damage in normal cells.
Ammonium Sulfate ; Antioxidants ; Cell-Penetrating Peptides/pharmacology* ; Endopeptidases ; Glutathione Transferase/metabolism* ; Humans ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 2/genetics* ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9/genetics* ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins ; Recombinant Proteins ; Superoxide Dismutase/metabolism* ; Superoxide Dismutase-1

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of overexpression of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) MEG3 on the proliferation and invasion of glioblastoma U251 cells by suppressing the expression of hypoxia inducible factor 1 METHODS: The expression of lncRNA MEG3 and HIF1 RESULTS: The expression of MEG3 was significantly lower and HIF1 CONCLUSIONS MEG3 overexpression inhibits the proliferation and invasion of U251 cells through suppressing the expression of HIF1
Apoptosis ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Movement/genetics* ; Cell Proliferation/genetics* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Glioblastoma/genetics* ; Humans ; MicroRNAs ; RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics*

Objective:To verify the determination method of iodine in serum by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and to evaluate the consistency between ICP-MS and As 3+-Ce 4+ catalytic spectrophotometry in determination of serum iodine. Methods:Serum iodine concentration was determined by ICP-MS, 187Re was used as an internal standard, and ralated parameters were optimized. Eighty-eight serum samples were simultaneously determined by ICP-MS and As 3+-Ce 4+ catalytic spectrophotometry, and the evaluation indexes included determination range of standard curve, detection limit, precision, accuracy. In addition, we also evaluated the consistency of the two methods through inter-group correlation analysis, intra-group correlation coefficient analysis, Passing-Bablok regression and Bland-Altman analysis. Results:The linear range of ICP-MS standard curve was 0 - 300 μg/L. There was a good linear correlation between iodine concentration value and iodine response value, and the correlation coefficient range was 0.999 8 to 0.999 9. The detection limit of the ICP-MS method was 1.96 μg/L. The relative standard deviation ( RSD) ranged from 0.2% to 1.4% and from 0.4% to 1.8% for intra and inter-batch precision tests of serum samples. The recovery rate ranged from 90.44% to 108.71%. The correlation analysis of 88 serum samples showed that there was a good correlation between the two methods ( r = 0.934, P < 0.05), and the intra-class correlation coefficient was 0.932. The results of Passing-Bablok regression showed that there was no significant difference between the two methods ( P > 0.05). Bland-Altman diagram suggested that the results of the two methods were consistent. Conclusions:ICP-MS method has low detection limit, high precision and accuracy. ICP-MS method is simple, rapid, easy and suitable for determination of iodine in large quantities of serum samples. The results of the two methods for determining serum iodine are consistent.

Objective:To investigate the incidence, clinical characteristics and risk factors for hip fractures in patients within two years after stroke onset.Methods:A total of 332 persons with first-onset stroke from the neurology department of our hospital between 1 June 2013 and 31 December 2014 were recruited and were divided into the hip fracture group and the non-hip fracture group.Clinical characteristics were recorded.Vision was tested as normal or impaired.Patients were accessed by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale(NIHSS), Behavioral Inattention Test, Baking Tray Task, Mini-Mental State Examination(MMSE), Birgitta Lindmark(BL)motor assessment scale, Berg Balance Scale(BBS), Timed Up & Go(TUG)Scale, and Stops Walking When Talking(SWWT)Scale.The clinic characteristics and risk factors for hip fractures were compared between the two groups after a 2-year follow-up.The accuracy of risk factors for fracture prediction was assessed by the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values.Results:Of 332 patients with stroke, 16 cases fractured their hips within two years after stroke onset, which corresponded to an incidence of 33‰/year(95% CI: 15‰/year-50‰/year). The 2-year mortality rate was 44%(95% CI: 25%-60%)and 48%(95% CI: 42%-54%)in patients with and without hip fractures respectively( χ2=0.036, P=0.724). The mean survival time for patients with and without hip fracture was 2.72 years(95% CI: 1.45-2.79)and 2.21 years(95% CI: 1.48-2.34)respectively.The proportions of patients with previous fractures history( χ2=16.780, P=0.041)and impaired vision( χ2=11.210, P=0.027), MMSE scale score( U=14.220, P=0.031), TUG ≥ 15 s( χ2=18.560, P=0.000)were higher, and SWWT( χ2=20.340, P=0.000)was lower in the hip fracture group than in the non-hip fracture group.The negative predictive values of previous fractures history, impaired vision, TUG and SWWT were higher than their positive predictive value.The specificities of previous fractures history, impaired vision, and SWWT were higher than their sensitivities.And the sensitivity of TUG was higher than its specificity. Conclusions:Hip fractures after stroke are common in elderly patients.Fractures often occur during daytime at home in daily activities.The previous fractures history, visual and cognitive dysfunction and impaired functional mobility are risk factors for hip fractures.We should take measures to prevent falls according to the relevant factors.Among the test scales, the timed up & go(TUG)scale could much more accurately identify patients at high risk for hip fractures.