BACKGROUND:There are many treatment methods for knee osteoarthritis,among which electroacupuncture,as an important non-drug treatment,is effective in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis,but its exact mechanism is not clear. OBJECTIVE:Effect of electroacupuncture on the expression of p53 and P21 in articular cartilage and subchondral bone of aged rats with knee osteoarthritis. METHODS:Eight 6-month-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were included in the young group and sixteen 24-month-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into old group(n=8)and electroacupuncture group(n=8).The rats in the electroacupuncture group received electroacupuncture stimulation once a day,5 days a week,for 8 continuous weeks,and the other two groups did not do any treatment.Eight weeks later,the level of type Ⅱ collagen C-terminal peptide in peripheral blood was detected by ELISA,the morphology of left knee cartilage and subchondral bone was observed by safranin O-fast green staining,the degree of knee cartilage degeneration was evaluated by modified Mankin's score,the microstructure of left knee cartilage and subchondral bone was detected by micro-CT,and the expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase 13,P53,P21 Mrna and protein were detected by RT-PCR and western blot respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the young group,the level of C-terminal peptide of type Ⅱ collagen in the peripheral blood was increased in the old group(P<0.05).The micro-CT results showed that the bone volume fraction,bone mineral density and the number of bone trabeculae were decreased in the old group compared with the young group(P<0.05),while the trabecular separation increased(P<0.05).Safranin O-fast green staining showed that in the old group,the surface layer of cartilage was uneven with fissures,the morphology of chondrocytes was irregular and stained unevenly,the boundary between the cartilage and subchondral bone was blurred,and the matrix loss was serious.The Mankin's score was higher in the old group than the young group(P<0.05).The expression of matrix metalloproteinase 13,P53,P21 at Mrna and protein levels increased in the old group compared with the young group(P<0.05).Compared with the old group,electroacupuncture decreased the level of C-terminal peptide of type Ⅱ collagen(P<0.05),increased the bone volume fraction,bone mineral density and the number of bone trabeculae(P<0.05),and decreased the trabecular separation(P<0.05).Safranin O-fast green staining showed that in the electroacupuncture group,the surface of cartilage was smooth and red staining was uniform,and the cell morphology and structure were between the young group and the old group.Following electroacupuncture treatment,the Mankin's score(P<0.05),matrix metalloproteinase 13 and P21 Mrna expression(P<0.05),and matrix metalloproteinase 13 and P53 protein expression decreased(P<0.05),while there was a decreasing trend of P53 Mrna and P21 protein expression,but with no statistical significance(P>0.05).To conclude,electroacupuncture may delay articular cartilage degeneration and subchondral osteoporosis in aged rats by inhibiting the expression of P53 and P21,so as to protect joints and delay joint aging.

Objective To construct a prediction model for post-neoadjuvant therapy recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph node(RLN LN)status via clinical and CT image data in esophageal cancer patients pre-neoadjuvant therapy.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on 403 patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer who received neoadjuvant therapy and radical resection for esophageal cancer.All patients were divided into a training cohort(n=270)and a validation cohort(n=133)randomly according to a 2:1 ratio.Clinical and imaging features associated with positive RLN LN pathology were selected by univariate analysis.Multivariate logistic stepwise regression model was used to construct the prediction model.The prediction ability of the model was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve.Results The basic model included neoadjuvant therapy and RLN LN short diameter,with an area under the curve(AUC)of 0.7(training cohort)and 0.65(validation cohort).The final prediction model included neoadjuvant therapy,human albumin,platelet count,largest lymph node enhancement characteristics,whether the largest lymph node was in the recurrent laryngeal region,and RLN LN short diameter,with AUC of 0.83[95％confidence interval(CI)0.768-0.899]and 0.76(95％CI 0.645-0.887)for the training and validation cohorts,respectively.Conclusion The model based on clinical data and imaging features pre-neoadjuvant therapy for esophageal cancer can assist in clinically predicting the post-neoadjuvant therapy RLN LN status.

Objective To investigate the effects of different sterilization methods on the quality of Astragali Radix decoction pieces by comparing the properties,odor,fingerprint,sterilization effect,extract and active component contents of Astragali Radix decoction pieces,and to further optimize the best sterilization process parameters of Astragali Radix decoction pieces.Methods The effects of moist heat sterilization,irradiation sterilization and dry heat sterilization on the quality of Astragali Radix decoction pieces were compared,and the best sterilization method was selected.Based on this,taking the content of astragaloside IV,the content of isoflavone glucoside,the total content of the two and the sterilization rate as the assessment indicators,taking the sterilization temperature,sterilization time and material thickness as the assessment factors,on the basis of the single-factor test,the response surface method was used to optimize the optimal dry heat sterilization process of Astragali Radix decoction pieces.Results The dry heat sterilization method was selected to sterilize Astragali Radix decoction pieces.The best process for dry heat sterilization was as follows:the sterilization temperature of 113℃,sterilization time of 5.1 h,and the material thickness of 19 mm.Conclusion Considering the sterilization effect,the influence on the content of active ingredients,operability and cost,selecting dry heat sterilization is the best sterilization method for Astragali Radix decoction pieces,and the optimal sterilization process is stable and feasible,with good repeatability,which can provide scientific basis for its industrial production application.

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a common complication and an independent risk factor for death in patients with liver cirrhosis. Brain lactate level is associated with the progression and severity of HE, and research on brain lactate level may help to further explain the pathogenesis of HE. This article summarizes the metabolic process of brain lactate, the association between brain lactate level and HE, and the potential therapeutic targets for HE and provides a reference for clinicians to further systematically evaluate the progression, treatment outcome, and prognosis of patients with HE, in order to reduce the medical burden of patients and improve the prognosis of patients with HE.

Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune disease，which is usually mediated by antibodies to acetylcholine receptors at the neuromuscular junction. It is commonly treated with cholinesterase inhibitors such as pyridostigmine bromide. Although cardiovascular events with the drug are rare，it is very important to early recognize disease changes and be alert to potential cardiovascular events in patients with myasthenia gravis. Therefore，we report a case of an elderly female patient with myasthenia gravis developing acute myocardial infarction and then sudden cardiac death following anticholinesterase therapy，and discuss the possible causes of adverse cardiovascular events based on this case.

Objective:To identify the classification characteristics and quality of life (QOL) of breast cancer (BC) patients during chemotherapy, so as to provide basis for improving the sleep and QOL of this group.Methods:A cross-sectional investigation was completed among 421 BC patients in 5 tertiary hospitals in Shanghai, Wuhan, Tangshan and Nanning in 1-12 months of 2016 using validated instruments including self-made general information questionnaire, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast (FACT-B).Results:Four latent class of patients were identified through latent profile analysis (LPA), named by badly worse sleep quality(SQ) (C1, n=23), medium-SQ with difficulty to fall asleep (C2, n=127), medium-SQ with worse sleeping process (C3, n=30), none sleep disorders (C4, n=241). Total points of SQ among C1-C4 had significant difference ( χ2 value was 309.28, P<0.05). Age, BMI, job status, whether had surgery and course of chemotherapy between classes had statistically significant differences ( χ2 values were 9.57-25.28, all P<0.05). It had significant difference between C2 and C3, C2 and C4, C3 and C1, C3 and C4 on QOL ( χ2 values were 5.96-52.73, all P<0.05). Conclusion:SQ of BC patients during chemotherapy has heterogeneity among population. Different features of SQ of BC patients have different performance on QOL. Health professionals should keep an eye on patients with features of older age, high BMI, in job status, already received surgery and during early-stage chemotherapy, provide personal nursing intervention to improve SQ and QOL.

The genus Tetrastigma belongs to the Vitaceae family and contains over 100 species. This paper reviewed folk uses, chemical constituents, pharmacological activities, and clinical applications of the medicinal plants in the genus Tetrastigma. In addition, the paper also discussed the current problems for the further studies. Up to now, more than 240 compounds were reported from the genus Tetrastigma, covering 74 flavonoids, 14 terpenoids, 19 steroids, 21 phenylpropanoids, 14 alkaloids and others constituents. Among them, flavonoids are the major and the characteristic chemical constituents in this genus. Modern pharmacological studies and clinical practice showed that the extracts and chemical constituents of Tetrastigma species possessed wide pharmacological activities including antitumor, antioxidative, hepatoprotective, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic activities. The information summarized in this paper provides valuable clues for new drug discovery and an incentive to expand the research of genus Tetrastigma.

Background::The study aimed to describe the aortic valve morphology in Chinese patients underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) for symptomatic severe aortic stenosis (AS), and the impact of sizing strategies and related procedural outcomes.Methods::Patients with severe AS who underwent TAVR were consecutively enrolled from 2012 to 2019. The anatomy and morphology of the aortic root were assessed. "Downsize" strategy was preformed when patients had complex morphology. The clinical outcomes of patients who performed downsize strategy were compared with those received annular sizing strategy. The primary outcome was device success rate, and secondary outcomes included Valve Academic Research Consortium-3 clinical outcomes variables based on 1-year follow-up.Results::A total of 293 patients were enrolled. Among them, 95 patients (32.4%) had bicuspid aortic valve. The calcium volume (Hounsfield Unit-850) of aortic root was 449.90 (243.15-782.15) mm 3. Calcium is distributed mostly on the leaflet level. Downsize strategy was performed in 204 patients (69.6%). Compared with the patients who performed annular sizing strategy, those received downsize strategy achieved a similar device success rate (82.0% [73] vs. 83.3% [170], P= 0.79). Aortic valve gradients (downsize strategy group vs. annular sizing group, 11.28 mmHg vs. 11.88 mmHg, P = 0.64) and percentages of patients with moderate or severe paravalvular regurgitation 2.0% (4/204) vs. 4.5% (4/89), P = 0.21) were similar in the two groups at 30 days after TAVR. These echocardiographic results were sustainable for one year. Conclusions::Chinese TAVR patients have more prevalent bicuspid morphology and large calcium volume of aortic root. Calcium is distributed mostly on the leaflet level. Compare with annular sizing strategy, downsize strategy provided a non-inferior device success rate and transcatheter heart valve hemodynamic performance in self-expanding TAVR procedure.

It is known that LINC01018 and CDK6 are associated with the occurrence, progression and recurrence of malignant tumor. Our preliminary data showed that the expression of LINC01018 was down-regulated and that of CDK6 was up-regulated, which were related with the malignancy grade. Bioinformatics suggested that E2F1 binding site exist in the CDK6 promoter region, and LINC01018 might interact with E2F1. Thus we speculate that the expression of LINC01018 in malignant tumor is decreased. The interaction between LINC01018 and E2F1 activates E2F1, promotes the transcription activation of CDK6, and affects tumor proliferation, invasion and metastasis. All these are expected to reveal the effect and mechanisms of LINC01018 in the development and regulation of malignant tumor, and provide new ideas and evidences for its treatment.

OBJECTIVE: To report the clinical manifestation and genetic characteristics of a child with Thiamine metabolism dysfunction syndrome 5. METHODS: Clinical data and genetic results were collected and analyzed. Peripheral blood samples of the child and their parents were collected for whole exome sequencing, and the functional effect of the variants on the TPK1 enzyme activity was verified by an in vitro assay. RESULTS: A four-year-old boy presented with preschool onset of ataxia were characterized. High-throughput sequencing identified a novel homozygous variant of TPK1 gene c.382G>A (p.Leu128Phe). His father and mother were both found carrying the variant. The variant protein showed a 30.9% reduction in TPK1 enzyme activity compared with the wildtype. CONCLUSION A novel pathogenic variant has been identified in a boy with thiamine metabolic dysfunction syndrome type 5.
Child, Preschool ; Genetic Testing ; Homozygote ; Humans ; Male ; Mutation ; Thiamine ; Whole Exome Sequencing