激光联合复方血栓通胶囊治疗糖尿病视网膜病变合并黄斑水肿的疗效观察

目的:分析糖尿病视网膜病变合并黄斑水肿联合采用激光与复方血栓通胶囊治疗的临床疗效。方法:选取我院2017年1月—2019年1月收治的200例糖尿病视网膜病变合并黄斑水肿患者为研究对象,随机分为两组。对照组单独行激光治疗,观察组于对照组基础上联合复方血栓通胶囊治疗,对比两组临床疗效、治疗前后IL-6(白介素-6)、VEGF(血管内皮生长因子)、NOS(血清一氧化氮合成酶)水平变化情况。结果:对照组总有效率(68.00%,68/100)较观察组总有效率(98.00%,98/100)更高(P<0.05);与对照组对比,观察组治疗后NOS水平更高,IL-6、VEGF水平更低(P<0.05)。结论:糖尿病视网膜病变合并黄斑水肿联合采用激光与复方血栓通胶囊治疗的临床疗效显著,值得推广。     

The tragic fate of group 3 innate lymphoid cells during HIV-1 infection

HIV-1 infection usually leads to systemic chronic inflammation that is associated with gut microbial translocation. The recently defined group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3s) are critical for maintenance of intestinal barrier function; however, it is not clear whether and how HIV-1 infection influences the function of these cells. In this issue of the JCI, Zhang and colleagues present compelling evidence that the survival and function of ILC3s are dramatically impaired by HIV-1 infection. The authors provide evidence that HIV-1 infection induces persistent activation of plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and production of type I IFNs, which together increase expression of death receptor CD95 on ILC3s and thereby promote subsequent ILC3 apoptosis. Together, these results identify a mechanism that explains the impaired intestinal barrier function that results from chronic HIV-1 infection and shed light on the role of pDCs in HIV-1 immunopathogenesis and therapy.     

Assessment of toxicity using dehydrogenases activity and mathematical modeling

Dehydrogenase activity is frequently used to assess the general condition of microorganisms in soil and activated sludge. Many studies have investigated the inhibition of dehydrogenase activity by various compounds, including heavy metal ions. However, the time after which the measurements are carried out is often chosen arbitrarily. Thus, it can be difficult to estimate how the toxic effects of compounds vary during the reaction and when the maximum of the effect would be reached. Hence, the aim of this study was to create simple and useful mathematical model describing changes in dehydrogenase activity during exposure to substances that inactivate enzymes. Our model is based on the Lagergrens pseudo-first-order equation, the rate of chemical reactions, enzyme activity, and inactivation and was created to describe short-term changes in dehydrogenase activity. The main assumption of our model is that toxic substances cause irreversible inactivation of enzyme units. The model is able to predict the maximum direct toxic effect (MDTE) and the time to reach this maximum (T_MDTE). In order to validate our model, we present two examples: inactivation of dehydrogenase in microorganisms in soil and activated sludge. The model was applied successfully for cadmium and copper ions. Our results indicate that the predicted MDTE and T_MDTE are more appropriate than EC₅₀ and IC₅₀ for toxicity assessments, except for long exposure times.     

HIFα Regulates Developmental Myelination Independent of Autocrine Wnt Signaling

The developing CNS is exposed to physiological hypoxia, under which hypoxia-inducible factor α (HIFα) is stabilized and plays a crucial role in regulating neural development. The cellular and molecular mechanisms of HIFα in developmental myelination remain incompletely understood. A previous concept proposes that HIFα regulates CNS developmental myelination by activating the autocrine Wnt/β-catenin signaling in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). Here, by analyzing a battery of genetic mice of both sexes, we presented in vivo evidence supporting an alternative understanding of oligodendroglial HIFα-regulated developmental myelination. At the cellular level, we found that HIFα was required for developmental myelination by transiently controlling upstream OPC differentiation but not downstream oligodendrocyte maturation and that HIFα dysregulation in OPCs but not oligodendrocytes disturbed normal developmental myelination. We demonstrated that HIFα played a minor, if any, role in regulating canonical Wnt signaling in the oligodendroglial lineage or in the CNS. At the molecular level, blocking autocrine Wnt signaling did not affect HIFα-regulated OPC differentiation and myelination. We further identified HIFα–Sox9 regulatory axis as an underlying molecular mechanism in HIFα-regulated OPC differentiation. Our findings support a concept shift in our mechanistic understanding of HIFα-regulated CNS myelination from the previous Wnt-dependent view to a Wnt-independent one and unveil a previously unappreciated HIFα–Sox9 pathway in regulating OPC differentiation.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Promoting disturbed developmental myelination is a promising option in treating diffuse white matter injury, previously called periventricular leukomalacia, a major form of brain injury affecting premature infants. In the developing CNS, hypoxia-inducible factor α (HIFα) is a key regulator that adapts neural cells to physiological and pathologic hypoxic cues. The role and mechanism of HIFα in oligodendroglial myelination, which is severely disturbed in preterm infants affected with diffuse white matter injury, is incompletely understood. Our findings presented here represent a concept shift in our mechanistic understanding of HIFα-regulated developmental myelination and suggest the potential of intervening with an oligodendroglial HIFα-mediated signaling pathway to mitigate disturbed myelination in premature white matter injury.     

T3、T4期结直肠癌淋巴结转移危险因素分析

目的探讨T3、T4期结直肠癌患者淋巴结转移危险因素,为临床诊疗提供参考。方法回顾性分析2008年1月至2017年12月在空军军医大学西京消化病医院行结直肠癌根治术的1112例T3、T4期结直肠癌患者的临床病理资料,分析淋巴结转移状态与临床病理因素及肿瘤标志物的相关性,应用logistic多因素回归法分析淋巴结转移的相关危险因素。结果单因素分析结果显示,性别、年龄、肿瘤部位分层的结直肠癌患者间淋巴结转移率差异均无统计学意义(均P>0.05),淋巴结转移率在不同肿瘤长径[<5 cm和≥5 cm分别为37.75%(211/559)、52.26%(289/553),χ^2=23.666,P<0.01]、大体类型[浸润、溃疡、蕈伞、隆起分别为37.04%(20/54)、47.52%(432/909)、34.33%(23/67)、69.51%(57/82),χ^2=13.787,P=0.003]、分化程度[高、中、低分化分别为34.11%(102/299)、49.00%(317/647)、48.80%(81/166),χ^2=19.771,P<0.01]、错配修复缺陷(dMMR)[是和否分别为26.34%(64/243)、50.17%(436/869),χ^2=43.996,P<0.01]、神经侵犯[是和否分别为48.17%(421/874)、33.20%(79/238),χ^2=16.954,P<0.01]、脉管侵犯[是和否分别为79.16%(338/427)、23.65%(162/685),χ^2=327.493,P<0.01]以及术前癌胚抗原(CEA)[阳性(≥5 mg/ml)和阴性(<5 mg/ml)分别为52.87%(249/471)、39.16%(251/641),χ^2=20.162,P<0.01]和CA199[阳性(≥35 U/ml)和阴性(<35 U/ml)分别为59.33%(124/209)、41.64%(376/903),χ^2=21.465,P<0.01]分层患者间差异均有统计学意义。logistic多因素回归分析显示,脉管侵犯和术前CA199阳性是T3、T4期结直肠癌患者淋巴结转移独立危险因素(OR=13.006,95%CI 9.329~17.276,P<0.01;OR=2.194,95%CI 1.513~3.181,P<0.01),dMMR阳性是淋巴结转移的保护性因素(OR=0.279,95%CI 0.190~0.411,P<0.01)。结论脉管侵犯是T3、T4期结直肠癌患者淋巴结转移的主要危险因素。术前肿瘤标志物CA199的检测可以作为预测T3、T4期结直肠癌患者淋巴结转移状态的指标,一定程度上可为诊疗方案的制订提供参考。     

Knowledge and Usage of Emergency Contraceptives Among University Students in Ghana

Contraceptive use is an important strategy for the prevention of unwanted pregnancy and avoidance of induced abortion. Of all the contraception methods, emergency contraceptive (EC) offers the last chance to achieve this. However, few studies have documented the use of EC among young people in Ghana. This study explored knowledge and usage of EC as well as the factors associated with it among University of Cape Coast students. Data were obtained on the knowledge and usage of ECs among University of Cape Coast students in 2013. Logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the association between students’ socio-demographic characteristics and EC knowledge and use. More male students (72 %) than females (59 %) were sexually active. Fifty-seven percent of the respondents had ever heard of EC and 36 % had ever used EC. Although males were more likely to be sexually active, females were more likely to have knowledge of EC use compared to males. The study underscores the need to increase awareness regarding EC among University students in order to offer them the opportunity that EC provides if other forms of contraceptives are missed.