Objective:To investigate the clinical, cytomorphology, immunocytochemical and molecular features of metastatic melanoma in serosal cavity effusion.Methods:Cytological specimens of 14 patients with melanoma in the chest and abdomen were collected from 2017 to 2023, at the Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China. SOX10, S-100 protein, PRAME, BRAF V600E, HMB45, and Melan A were detected by immunocytochemical methods. Fourteen cases were tested for routine antibody combinations, including Claudin4, HEG1, Calretinin, CD68, etc. Four of the patients had biopsy or surgical samples of metastatic solid lesions of primary sites, and further next-generation sequencing (NGS) or amplification refractory mutation system (ARMS)-PCR molecular test was performed. In addition, 30 cases of serosal effusion samples were collected as control groups (10 cases of benign mesothelial cell reactive hyperplasia, 10 cases of mesothelioma, and 10 cases of metastatic lung adenocarcinoma).Results:Among the 14 cases of melanoma, there were 7 males and 7 females, with ages ranging from 35 to 86 years, and an average age of 57 years, there 10 cases aged ≥50 years. The tumor cells in the serosal effusion varied in morphology and degree of atypia. SOX10 was positive in all 14 cases (14/14), S-100 protein was positive in 10 cases (10/14), PRAME was positive in 12 cases (12/14), BRAF V600E was positive in 10 cases (10/14), HMB45 was positive in 12 cases (12/14), and Melan A was positive in 13 cases (13/14). In 4 patients with histological correlation, the cytological and histological expression of SOX10, BRAF V600E, and PRAME was positive in all 4 cases (4/4); S-100 protein was positive in 2 cases (2/4); and HMB45 and Melan A were positive in 3 cases (3/4). Using NGS or ARMS-PCR, missense mutations of BRAF V600E were detected in all 4 patients; TERT promoter mutations was detected in 1 case; and CDKN2A terminating mutations and MSI1 deletion mutations were detected in the other case. SOX10, S-100, HMB45, Melan A, PRAME and BRAF V600E were all negative in 30 control samples of serosal cavity effusion.Conclusion:By observing the morphology of tumor cells, immunocytochemical test of several combination markers, especially the expression of SOX10, BRAF V600E and PRAME, can help to improve the positive diagnosis rate of melanoma in serous cavity effusion.

Objective To monitor the susceptibility of clinical isolates to antimicrobial agents in tertiary hospitals in major regions of China in 2022.Methods Clinical isolates from 58 hospitals in China were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using a unified protocol based on disc diffusion method or automated testing systems.Results were interpreted using the 2022 Clinical &Laboratory Standards Institute(CLSI)breakpoints.Results A total of 318 013 clinical isolates were collected from January 1,2022 to December 31,2022,of which 29.5％were gram-positive and 70.5％were gram-negative.The prevalence of methicillin-resistant strains in Staphylococcus aureus,Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species(excluding Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus schleiferi)was 28.3％,76.7％and 77.9％,respectively.Overall,94.0％of MRSA strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 90.8％of MRSE strains were susceptible to rifampicin.No vancomycin-resistant strains were found.Enterococcus faecalis showed significantly lower resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents tested than Enterococcus faecium.A few vancomycin-resistant strains were identified in both E.faecalis and E.faecium.The prevalence of penicillin-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae was 94.2％in the isolates from children and 95.7％in the isolates from adults.The resistance rate to carbapenems was lower than 13.1％in most Enterobacterales species except for Klebsiella,21.7％-23.1％of which were resistant to carbapenems.Most Enterobacterales isolates were highly susceptible to tigecycline,colistin and polymyxin B,with resistance rates ranging from 0.1％to 13.3％.The prevalence of meropenem-resistant strains decreased from 23.5％in 2019 to 18.0％in 2022 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa,and decreased from 79.0％in 2019 to 72.5％in 2022 in Acinetobacter baumannii.Conclusions The resistance of clinical isolates to the commonly used antimicrobial agents is still increasing in tertiary hospitals.However,the prevalence of important carbapenem-resistant organisms such as carbapenem-resistant K.pneumoniae,P.aeruginosa,and A.baumannii showed a downward trend in recent years.This finding suggests that the strategy of combining antimicrobial resistance surveillance with multidisciplinary concerted action works well in curbing the spread of resistant bacteria.

Objective:To report the results of national surveillance on the distribution and antimicrobial resistance profile of clinical bacterial isolates from bloodstream infections in China in 2021.Methods:The clinical bacterial strains isolated from blood culture from member hospitals of Blood Bacterial Resistant Investigation Collaborative System (BRICS) were collected during January 2021 to December 2021. Antibiotic susceptibility tests were conducted by agar dilution or broth dilution methods recommended by Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). WHONET 5.6 was used to analyze data.Results:During the study period, 11 013 bacterial strains were collected from 51 hospitals, of which 2 782 (25.3%) were Gram-positive bacteria and 8 231 (74.7%) were Gram-negative bacteria. The top 10 bacterial species were Escherichia coli (37.6%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (18.9%), Staphylococcus aureus (9.8%), coagulase-negative Staphylococci (6.3%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (3.6%), Enterococcus faecium (3.6%), Acinetobacter baumannii (2.8%), Enterococcus faecalis (2.7%), Enterobacter cloacae (2.5%) and Klebsiella spp (2.1%). The prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus aureus were 25.3% and 76.8%, respectively. No glycopeptide- and daptomycin-resistant Staphylococci was detected; more than 95.0% of Staphylococcus aureus were sensitive to ceftobiprole. No vancomycin-resistant Enterococci strains were detected. The rates of extended spectrum B-lactamase (ESBL)-producing isolated in Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis were 49.6%, 25.5% and 39.0%, respectively. The prevalence rates of carbapenem-resistance in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae were 2.2% and 15.8%, respectively; 7.9% of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae was resistant to ceftazidime/avibactam combination. Ceftobiprole demonstrated excellent activity against non-ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Aztreonam/avibactam was highly active against carbapenem-resistant Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. The prevalence rate of carbapenem-resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii was 60.0%, while polymyxin and tigecycline showed good activity against Acinetobacter baumannii (5.5% and 4.5%). The prevalence of carbapenem-resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa was 18.9%. Conclusions:The BRICS surveillance results in 2021 shows that the main pathogens of blood stream infection in China are gram-negative bacteria, in which Escherichia coli is the most common. The MRSA incidence shows a further decreasing trend in China and the overall prevalence of vancomycin-resistant Enterococci is low. The prevalence of Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae is still on a high level, but the trend is downwards.

Objective:To build the performance appraisal index system for scientific research teams in tertiary public hospitals, so as to stimulate creative vitality of scientific researchers and improve high quality construction of research teams.Methods:Combined with literature review and hospital management practice, the performance appraisal index system of hospital scientific research team was initially constructed by using the structure-process-result model.From July to December 2021, the performance appraisal indexes and their weights were determined through two rounds of expert consultation and analytic hierarchy process. The index system was used to evaluate the performance of the National Clinical Medical Research Center for Geriatrics.Results:A scientific research team performance appraisal index system has taken shape, comprising four level-1 indexes, 12 level-2 indexes and 47 level-3 indexes. The weights of the level-1 indexes of scientific and technological innovation, operation management, sustainable development and satisfaction evaluation were 0.407, 0.223, 0.223 and 0.147 respectively. The corresponding level-2 indexes with the highest weights were scientific research output(0.302), management cooperation(0.268), talent training(0.356) and assessment of department satisfaction(1.000). The index judgment matrix passed the consistency test( CR value<0.1), and the weight consistency was good. Applying this index system to evaluate the performance of the National Clinical Medical Research Center for Geriatrics, the total score was 73.40, and the scores of scientific and technological innovation, operation management, sustainable development and satisfaction evaluation indicators were 29.74, 16.14, 14.34 and 13.18, respectively. Conclusions:The performance appraisal index system of scientific research teams constructed in this study is feasible, which can be used as an important tool for building scientific research teams in the hospital.

B7-H3 is an immune checkpoint molecule overexpressed on the surface of a variety of tumors, and is is an ideal target for tumor immunotherapy. In this study, nitrolated T cell epitope designed in the early stage of the laboratory was used to construct an epitope vaccine that can target immune checkpoint B7-H3. The vaccine can significantly inhibit tumor growth in the CT26 colon cancer model, and has a significant synergistic effect with the PD-L1 protein vaccine. B7-H3 vaccine can increase the proportion of CD4+ T cells in splenic T lymphocytes and the proportion of CD8+ T cells in tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes, while reducing the proportion of suppressor Treg cells in tumor-infiltrating CD4+ T lymphocytes, which effectively improves tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment. Research results suggest that the B7-H3 epitope vaccine can be used as an effective tumor vaccine candidate molecule.

Objective:To investigate the bacterial composition and antimicrobial resistance profile of clinical isolates from bloodstream infections in China.Methods:The clinical bacterial strains isolated from blood culture were collected during January 2020 to December 2020 in member hospitals of Blood Bacterial Resistant Investigation Collaborative System (BRICS). Antibiotic susceptibility tests were conducted by agar dilution or broth dilution methods recommended by Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute(CLSI, USA). WHONET 5.6 was used to analyze data.Results:During the study period, 10 043 bacterial strains were collected from 54 hospitals, of which 2 664 (26.5%) were Gram-positive bacteria and 7 379 (73.5%) were Gram-negative bacteria. The top 10 bacterial species were Escherichia coli (38.6%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (18.4%), Staphylococcus aureus (9.9%), coagulase-negative Staphylococci (7.5%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (3.9%), Enterococcus faecium (3.3%), Enterobacter cloacae (2.8%), Enterococcus faecalis (2.6%), Acinetobacter baumannii (2.4%) and Klebsiella spp (1.8%). The prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus aureus were 27.6% and 74.4%, respectively. No glycopeptide- and daptomycin-resistant Staphylococci were detected. More than 95% of Staphylococcus aureus were sensitive to rifampicin and SMZco. No vancomycin-resistant Enterococci strains were detected. Extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) producing Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis were 48.4%, 23.6% and 36.1%, respectively. The prevalence rates of carbapenem-resistance in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae were 2.3% and 16.1%, respectively; 9.6% of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains were resistant to ceftazidime/avibactam combination. The prevalence rate of carbapenem-resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii was 60.0%, while polymyxin and tigecycline showed good activity against Acinetobacter baumannii. The prevalence rate of carbapenem-resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was 23.2%. Conclusions:The surveillance results in 2020 showed that the main pathogens of bloodstream infection in China were gram-negative bacteria, while Escherichia coli was the most common pathogen, and ESBL-producing strains declined while carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae kept on high level. The proportion and the prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa were on the rise slowly. On the other side, the MRSA incidence got lower in China, while the overall prevalence of vancomycin-resistant Enterococci was low.

Objective:To explore the prolonged therapeutic regimen for patients with plaque psoriasis, who showed a positive response to 4-week treatment with tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream, but were not completely cured.Methods:A multicenter, randomized, open-labelled, parallel-controlled clinical study was conducted. A total of 232 patients with plaque psoriasis were collected, who showed a positive response to previous 4-week treatment with 0.05%/0.05% tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream, but were not completely cured with the psoriasis area and severity index[PASI] improvement rate being 50%-90%. At week 5, they were randomly and equally divided into 2 groups: test group receiving treatment with 0.05%/0.05% tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream once a day, and control group receiving a sequential regimen of 0.05% tazarotene gel on weekdays once a day followed by 0.05%/0.05% tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream on weekends once a day. After 2-and 4-week prolonged treatment, the efficacy and safety of the 2 therapeutic regimens were evaluated and compared. Measurement data were compared between 2 groups by using covariance analysis or t test, and enumeration data were compared by using chi-square test. Results:From the 5th to the 8th week, 200 out of the 232 patients completed the treatment. Data collected from 110 patients in the test group and 112 in the control group were enrolled into the full analysis set, and those from both 113 patients in the test group and control group were enrolled into safety analysis set. After consecutive 6-and 8-week treatment, the decline rates of the PASI score were 73.05% ± 16.69% and 78.46% ± 15.40% respectively in the test group, which were significantly higher than those in the control group (66.73% ± 21.77%, 67.02% ± 34.19%, respectively, both P < 0.05) . After 6-week treatment, the proportion of subjects who achieved PASI90 was significantly higher in the test group (14 cases, 12.7%) than in the control group (5 cases, 4.5%, χ2=4.842, P=0.028) ; After 8-week treatment, the proportions of subjects who achieved PASI75 and PASI90 (61.8%, 23.6%, respectively) were significantly higher in the test group than in the control group (48.2%, 12.5%, respectively, both P < 0.05) . During the consecutive 8-week treatment, there was no significant difference in the incidence rate of adverse reactions between the test group (15.0%) and control group (23.9%, χ2=2.822, P=0.093) . Conclusion:For patients who showed a positive response to 4-week treatment with 0.05%/0.05% tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream, but were not completely cured, the continuous use of 0.05%/0.05% tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream for 4 weeks is a superior therapeutic regimen compared with the sequential regimen of 0.05% tazarotene gel followed by 0.05%/0.05% tazarotene/betamethasone dipropionate cream.

Objective:To investigate the viral molecular mutations of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) and host adaptability in Suzhou City.Methods:The throat swab specimens from nine local cases and six imported cases with 2019-nCoV viral nucleic acid test positive in Suzhou City were sequenced for the whole genome of the virus, and the Wuhan-Hu-1 strain was used as the reference sequence for alignment and analysis. The phylogenetic tree of the viral whole genome sequence was constructed by MEGA 7.0 software.Results:According to the Chinese typing method, Nextstrain typing method, Pangolin classification method and Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) typing method, the 15 2019-nCoV genome sequences could be divided into seven types, six types, eight types and five subtypes, respectively. Compared with Wuhan-Hu-1 strain, the median number of amino acid sequence mutation sites based on nucleotide translation was three (ranging from 0 to 12). D614G mutation of spike protein was identified from all six imported viral strains, which could enhance the transmissibility. No Alpha, Beta, or Gamma mutants, which also could enhance the transmissibility, was found in the genomic sequences of the imported cases. The median number of nucleotide mutation sites in 15 sequences was eight (ranging from three to 23).Conclusions:2019-nCoV is constantly mutating, and a variety of evolutionary lineages/genotypes have been derived. All imported viruses in Suzhou City carry mutations that can increase infectivity.

Using the genetic code extension technology, the immunogenic amino acid, p-nitrophenylalanine, was introduced into the universal T cell epitope and then fused with the fragment of the extracellular region of the immune checkpoint molecular CD47(19-140)to construct a vaccine targeting CD47. The CD47-NitraTh vaccine elicited high titer antibody in BALB/c mice, significantly inhibited CT26 colon cancer cells growth, and increased the ratio of spleen CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells. Meanwhile, it promoted the polarization of naï ve T cells to Th1 cells. Notably, CD47-NitraTh not only increased the proportion of tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes but also reduced the proportion of Treg cells in tumour tissues, which means that CD47-NitraTh vaccine can remodel the tumour immunosuppressive microenvironment. The results of this study suggested that CD47-NitraTh can be used as an effective tumour vaccine candidate.

Objective To investigate the effect of treatment with endostatin combined with siRNA targeting VEGF on rats with collagen-induced arthritis (CIA).Methods Two mg/ml bovinetype Ⅱ collagen was injected into the rat footpad to build up the animal model of CIA.The experimental animal models were treated with endostatin combined with siRNA targeting VEGF 18 days later after immunization and the treatment ended 32 day later.The efficacy was evaluated by the weight,foot and ankle volume of rats.The levels of VEGF in plasma were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).The VEGF distribution within synovial tissue was detected and examined by immunohistochemical technique.The pathological changes of CIA were evaluated by the pathological changes of the biopsied ankle joints.Student's t test was used to evaluate the experimental data.Results The ELISA test showed that comparing with the model group (17.5±0.3),the endostatin group (15.7±0.3) ng/L and the endostatin combined siRNA targeting VEGF group (14.7±0.5) ng/L showed a significant efficacy in the treatment of CIA in rats (P＜0.05).The endostatin group (135±27) and the endostatin combined siRNA targeting VEGF group (126±71) were different in the number of VEGF in plasma and the VEGF distribution within synovial tissue (P＜0.05),the symptoms of arthritis in these rats were reduced than the model group.Conclusion Endostatin combined siRNA targeting VEGF has good therapeutic effect on rats with CIA.