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Background: Several inflammatory indicators have been reported to have predictive value in many types of malignant cancer. This research was aimed to explore the ability of the monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) to predict prognosis in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) who subjected to curative hepatectomy. Methods: This retrospective analysis included 196 patients with ICC who underwent curative hepatectomy between May 2018 and April 2023. The predictive abilities of the preoperative MLR in assessing overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) in those patients were compared with other inflammation-based scores, including monocyte-to-white ratio, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, neutrophil-to-white ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-white ratio, and systemic immune-inflammation index, as well as tumor markers, like carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19 − 9 (CA19-9). Results: The area under the time-dependent receiver operating characteristic curve indicated that the preoperative MLR had higher predictive efficiency in contrast with other inflammation-based scores and tumor markers in assessing OS and DFS. Stratifying patients according to the optimal cut-off value for the preoperative MLR, the data showed that both OS and DFS in the high MLR group were significantly worse than those in the low MLR group (p < 0.05 for all). Univariable and multivariable Cox analyses revealed that the preoperative MLR was an independent risk factor for OS and DFS in patients with ICC. In addition to predicting OS in patients with high CEA levels and predicting DFS in patients with high CA19-9 levels, patients with different CEA and CA19-9 levels were divided into completely different OS and DFS subgroups based on the risk stratification of the preoperative MLR. Conclusions: Our results demonstrated that the preoperative MLR was a good prognosis indicator to predict DFS and OS following curative hepatectomy in patients with ICC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intra-uterine growth restriction (IUGR) and fetal overgrowth increase risks to postnatal health. Maternal nutrition is the major intrauterine environmental factor that alters fetal weight. However, the mechanisms underlying the effects of maternal nutrition on fetal development are not entirely clear. We developed a pig model, and using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ), we investigated alterations in the placental proteome of gilts on a normal-energy-intake (Con) and high-energy-intake (HE) diet. Results: In the Con group, heavy and light fetuses were found at the tubal and cervical ends of the uterus respectively at 90 d of gestation. Moreover, the heavy fetuses had a higher glucose concentration than the light fetuses. However, a higher uniformity was noted in the HE group. Placental promoters between these two positions indicated that 78 and 50 differentially expressed proteins were detected in the Con and HE groups respectively. In the Con group, these proteins were involved in lipid metabolism (HADHA, AACS, CAD), nutrient transport (GLUT, SLC27A1), and energy metabolism (NDUFV1, NDUFV2, ATP5C1). However, in the HE group they mainly participated in transcriptional and translational regulation, and intracellular vesicular transport. Conclusions: Our findings revealed that maternal nutrition may alter birth weight mainly through the modulation of placental lipid and energy metabolism, which also provides a possible mechanism to explain the higher uniformity of fetal weight in gilts fed a HE diet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies suggested that supplementation of lactating sows with ß-hydroxy-ß-methylbutyrate (HMB) could improve the performance of weaning pigs, but there were little information in the muscle fiber type transformation of the offspring and the subsequent performance in pigs from weaning through finishing in response to maternal HMB consumption. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of supplementing lactating sows with HMB on skeletal muscle fiber type transformation and growth of the offspring during d 28 and 180 after birth. A total of 20 sows according to their body weight were divided into the control (CON, n = 10) or HMB groups (HMB, n = 10). Sows in the HMB group were supplemented with ß-hydroxy-ß-methylbutyrate calcium (HMB-Ca) 2 g/kg feed during d 1 to 27 of lactation. After weaning, 48 mixed sex piglets were blocked by sow treatment and fed standard diets for post-weaning, growing, finishing periods. Growth performance was recorded during d 28 to 180 after birth. Pigs were slaughtered on d 28 (n = 6/treatment) and 180 (n = 6/treatment) postnatal, and the longissimus dorsi (LD) was collected, respectively. Results: The HMB-fed sows during lactation showed increased HMB concentration (P < 0.05) in milk and LD of weaning piglets (P < 0.05). In addition, offsprings in HMB group had a higher finishing BW and lean percentage than did pigs in CON group (P < 0.05), meanwhile, compared with pigs from sows fed the CON diet, pigs from sows fed HMB diet showed higher type II muscle fiber cross-sectional area (CSA), elevated myosin heavy chain (MyHC) IIb and Sox6 mRNA, and fast-MyHC protein levels in LD (P < 0.05). Conclusions: HMB supplemented to sow diets throughout lactation increases the levels of HMB in maternal milk and skeletal muscle of pigs during d 28 after birth and promotes subsequent performance of pigs between d 28 and 180 of age by enhancing glycolytic muscle fiber transformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Periparturient mastitis is the most prevalent disease affecting lactating animals. However, it has long been relied on antibiotics to deal with mastitis, leading to a potential threat to food safety. This study was aimed to investigate the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in mammary glands of sows around parturition when mastitis and oxidative stress usually occur, and evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of docosahexenoic acid (DHA) in porcine mammary epithelial cells (PMEC) challenged by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Methods: Mammary tissues and blood samples were collected from seven pregnant sows at different reproductive stages. Primarily cultured PMEC at passage 4 were assigned to four treatments: basal medium (control), basal medium with LPS (10 μg/mL) (LPS treatment), basal medium with LPS (10 μg/mL) and DHA (100 or 200 μM) (LPS + DHA treatments), and cell samples were harvested after 24 h incubation. The measurements included oxidative stress markers in blood samples and gene expression in mammary tissues and PMEC samples. Results: Serum α-tocopherol concentration was lower at parturition than at day 90 of gestation and day 28 post parturition, while serum malondialdehyde concentration was higher at day 28 post parturition than at day 90 of gestation. Higher interleukin (IL)-1β mRNA abundance while lower LPS binding protein mRNA abundance in mammary tissues were observed at day 90 of gestation compared with that at parturition and at day 28 and 35 post parturition. Mammary tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α mRNA abundance were lower at parturition than at day 90 of gestation and day 28 and 35 post parturition, whereas mammary IL-8 mRNA abundance were lower at parturition than at day 35 post parturition. In the PMEC experiment, compared with the control, increased mRNA abundances of Toll-like receptor (TLR)-4 downstream target, myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88), IL-6 and IL-8 were observed in LPS treatment, whereas DHA appeared to decrease mRNA abundances of MyD88, IL-6 and IL-8 induced by LPS. Conclusions: The down-regulated expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in mammary tissues and aggravated systemic oxidative stress at parturition suggest that sows are in a vulnerable status during periparturient period. DHA appears to attenuate inflammatory responses in LPS-challenged PMEC through modulation of TLR4 signalling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of maternal high fat intake on intestinal development and transcriptional profile. Methods: Eight gilts with similar age and body weight were randomly allocated into 2 groups receiving the control and high fat diets (HF diet) from d 30 to 90 of gestation, with 4 gilts each group and one gilt each pen. At d 90 of gestation, two fetuses each gilt were removed by cesarean section. Intestinal samples were collected for analysis of morphology, enzyme activities and transcriptional profile. Results: The results showed that feeding HF diet markedly increased the fetal weight and lactase activity, also tended to increase intestinal morphology. Porcine Oligo Microarray analysis indicated that feeding HF diet inhibited 64 % of genes (39 genes down-regulated while 22 genes up-regulated),which were related to immune response, cancer and metabolism, also markedly modified 33 signal pathways such as antigen processing and presentation, intestinal immune network for IgA production, Jak-STAT and TGF-ß signaling transductions, pathways in colorectal cancer and glycerolipid metabolism. Conclusion: Collectively, it could be concluded that maternal high fat intake was able to increase fetal weight and lactase activity, however, it altered the intestinal immune response, signal transduction and metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Highly cross-linked polyethylene (HXLPE) has been reported as an effective material for decreasing polyethylene wear and osteolysis in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Because no single study to date has been large enough to definitively determine the benefit of HXLPE in TKA, we conducted a meta-analysis to pool the results from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs to make such a determination. Methods: Potential candidate articles were identified by searching the Cochrane Library, Medline (1966-2015.10), PubMed (1966-2015.10), Embase (1980-2015.10), ScienceDirect (1985-2015.10), and other databases. "Gray studies" were identified from the included articles' reference lists. Pooled data were analyzed using RevMan 5.1. Results: Three RCTs and three non-RCTs were included in the meta-analysis. There were no significant differences between the groups in the total number of reoperations (P = 0.11), reoperations for prosthesis loosening (P = 0.08), radiolucent line (P = 0.20), osteolysis (P = 0.38), prosthesis loosening (P=0.10), and mechanical failures related to the tibial polyethylene (P= 1.00). Similarly, no significant differences between the two groups were found in postoperative total knee score (P = 0.18) or functional score (P = 0.23). Conclusions: The meta-analysis showed that compared with conventional polyethylene, HXLPE did not improve the clinical and radiographic outcomes in mid-term follow-up after TKA. Additional high-quality multicenter prospective RCTs with good design, large study populations and long-term follow-up will be necessary to further clarify the effect of HXLPE in TKA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a severe micro vascular complication accompanying diabetes mellitus that affects millions of people worldwide. End stage renal disease occurs in nearly half of all DN patients, resulting in large medical costs and lost productivity. The course of DN progression is complicated, and effective and safe therapeutic strategies are desired. While the complex nature of DN renders medicines with a single therapeutic target less efficacious, Chinese medicine, with its holistic view targeting the whole system of the patient, has exhibited efficacy for DN management. This review aims to describe the experimental evidence for Chinese medicines in DN management, with an emphasis on the underlying mechanisms, and to discuss the combined use of herbs and drugs in DN treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our previous studies have demonstrated the critical roles of calcium-stimulated adenylyl cyclase 1 (AC1) in the central nervous system in chronic pain. In the present study, we examined the analgesic effects of NB001, a selective inhibitor of AC1, on animal models of ankle joint arthritis and knee joint arthritis induced by complete Freund's adjuvant injection. NB001 treatment had no effect on joint edema, stiffness, and joint destruction. Furthermore, the treatment failed to attenuate the disease progression of arthritis. However, NB001 treatment (3 mg/kg) significantly weakened joint pain-related behavior in the mouse models of ankle joint arthritis and knee joint arthritis. Results indicated that NB001 exhibited an analgesic effect on the animal models of arthritis but was not caused by anti-inflammatory activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]