Sickle cell nephropathy: A review of novel biomarkers and their potential roles in early detection of renal involvement

Whether the underlying mutations are homozygous, heterozygous, or co-inherited with other hemoglobinopathies, sickle cell disease is known to afflict the kidneys, leading to the clinical entity known as sickle cell nephropathy (SCN). Although common, SCN remains diagnostically elusive. Conventional studies performed in the context of renal disorders often fail to detect early stage SCN. This makes the quest for early diagnosis and treatment more challenging, and it increases the burden of chronic kidney disease-related morbidity among patients. Novel diagnostic tools have been employed to overcome this limitation. In this study, we discuss various biomarkers of SCN, including those employed in clinical practice and others recently identified in experimental settings, such as markers of vascular injury, endothelial dysfunction, tubulo-glomerular damage, and oxidative stress. These include kidney injury molecule-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, N-acetyl-B-D-glucosaminidase, ceruloplasmin, orosomucoid, nephrin, and cation channels, among others. Furthermore, we explore the potential of novel biomarkers for refining diagnostic and therapeutic approaches and describe some obstacles that still need to be overcome. We highlight the importance of a collaborative approach to standardize the use of promising new biomarkers. Finally, we outline the limitations of conventional markers of renal damage as extensions of the pathogenic process occurring at the level of the organ and its functional subunits, with a discussion of the expected pattern of clinical and biochemical progression among patients with SCN.     

Special issue “The advance of solid tumor research in China”: Multi-omics analysis based on 1311 clear cell renal cell carcinoma samples identifies a glycolysis signature associated with prognosis and treatment response

In clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), glycolysis is enhanced mainly because of the increased expression of key enzymes in glycolysis. Hence, the discovery of new molecular biomarkers for glycolysis may help guide and establish a precise system of diagnosis and treatment for ccRCC. Expression profiles of 1079 tumor samples of ccRCC patients (including 311 patients treated with everolimus or nivolumab) were downloaded from public databases. Proteomic profiles of 232 ccRCC samples were obtained from Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center (FUSCC). Biological changes, tumor microenvironment and prognostic differences were explored between samples with various glycolysis characteristics. There were significant differences in CD8⁺ effector T cells, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and pan-fibroblast TGFb between the Low and High glyScore groups. The tumor mutation burden of the Low glyScore group was lower than that of the High glyScore group. And higher glyScore was significantly associated with worse overall survival (OS) in 768 ccRCC patients (P < .0001). External validation in FUSCC cohort also indicated that glyScore was of strong ability for predicting OS (P < .05). GlyScore may serve as a biomarker for predicting everolimus response in ccRCC patients due to its significant associations with progression-free survival (PFS). And glyScore may also predict overall survival in patients treated with nivolumab. We calculated the glyScore in ccRCC and the defined glyScore was of strong ability for predicting OS. In addition, glyScore may also serve as a biomarker for predicting PFS in patients treated with everolimus and could predict OS in patients treated with nivolumab.     

凶险性前置胎盘合并胎盘植入"一站式"杂交手术配合

目的探讨"一站式"杂交手术救治凶险性前置胎盘患者的应用价值及重要性。 方法对多学科合作行杂交手术救治凶险性前置胎盘合并胎盘植入患者的病例进行回顾性分析，总结"一站式"杂交手术多学科医护合作和护理配合要点。 结果经过多学科默契配合下的"一站式"杂交手术以及"L"型护理配合模式，手术顺利完成，术后无并发症发生，产妇于术后第4天出院。 结论凶险性前置胎盘患者病情危重、手术难度大，通过多学科讨论会、辐射防护、安全转运、医护默契配合以及根据潜在并发症采取预见性的护理措施是"一站式"杂交手术成功的要点。     

荔枝草治疗急性咽炎有效部位筛选＊

目的 筛选荔枝草治疗急性咽炎的有效部位，研究治疗急性咽炎的作用机制，为荔枝草资源的药食两用开发提供理论依据。方法 通过二甲苯致小鼠耳肿胀试验筛选荔枝草抗炎有效部位，采用氨水刺激喉部法建立大鼠急性咽炎模型，通过行为学观察、ELISA双抗夹心检测、病理形态学观察和咽部组织蛋白表达研究乙酸乙酯部位对大鼠急性咽炎的治疗效果。结果 荔枝草乙酸乙酯提取物对二甲苯致小鼠耳肿胀有明显的抑制作用，氨水刺激建立的急性咽炎模型符合急性咽炎动物模型特征，乙酸乙酯部位提取物可显著改善急性咽炎大鼠的咽部病理形态学表现。不同剂量治疗组大鼠血清及咽部组织中IL-1β、IL-6及TNF-α炎性因子数量均下降，高剂量组下降最为明显。荔枝草乙酸乙酯提取物可明显增加大鼠咽部组织IκBα蛋白表达，降低NF-κBp65蛋白表达。结论 荔枝草乙酸乙酯部位提取物对急性咽炎具有治疗作用，可能与抑制咽部炎症病理改变的发生，能调节血液中炎症因子、抑制NF-κB表达和IκBα解离有关。     

菊花总黄酮含药血清对干眼细胞模型AR、NF-κB磷酸化蛋白及TGF-β1表达的影响＊

目的 观察菊花总黄酮在体外条件下对泪腺上皮细胞中雄激素受体（Androgen Receptor，AR）的调控作用及对下游的核因子κB（Nuclear Factor kappa B，NF-κB）、转化生长因子-β1（transforming growth factor-beta1，TGF-β1）的表达影响。方法 以过氧化氢（H₂O₂）诱导泪腺上皮细胞凋亡，建立细胞模型，设立无雄激素培养空白对照组、含雄激素培养对照组、无雄激素培养黄酮治疗组。以MTT法摸索含药血清最佳干预加入量；免疫印迹实验（Western Blot）以及实时荧光定量PCR法（Quantitative Real-Time PCR，qPCR）检测泪腺上皮细胞中AR、NF-κB及TGF-β1的表达情况；并应用雄激素受体阻断剂氟他胺进行AR阻断后再次检测上述指标 。结果 MTT法检测后计算得出含药血清干预细胞的最终浓度为13.2%；无雄激素培养黄酮治疗组及含雄激素培养对照组中AR、NF-κB及TGF-β1的表达增强，与空白对照组对比有显著差异（P<0.01）；无雄激素培养黄酮治疗组中NF-κB表达量比含雄激素培养对照组表达量低，两者间的差异有统计学意义。氟他胺及含药血清干预后，无雄激素培养黄酮治疗组及含雄激素培养对照组中AR及NF-κB的表达未见提高，无统计学意义。结论 菊花总黄酮对泪腺上皮细胞可能存在拟雄激素效应，从而使AR、NF-κB表达增加，并通过上调TGF-β1的表达，可能起到在泪腺局部的抗炎作用。