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Abstract Introduction Alveolar echinococcosis (AE), caused by the larval forms of Echinococcus multilocularis, is a zoonotic disease affecting the liver, lungs, lymph nodes, kidneys, brain, bones, thyroid, and other organs. Diagnosing AE in a non-endemic area is usually challenging. With the rapid development and increasing application of sequencing techniques in recent years, metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) has become a powerful tool for diagnosing rare infectious diseases. Case Presentation A 45-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital for the presence of pulmonary shadows for more than 3 months. The lung computed tomography (CT) at a local hospital revealed scattered solid and quasi-circular nodules in the left upper lobe, left lower lobe, right middle lobe, and right lower lobe. The largest nodule was located in the dorsal part of the right lung, measuring 2.0 × 1.7 × 1.5 cm. Moreover, abdominal CT revealed one space-occupying lesion each in the left and right lobes. The pathological analysis of the lung biopsy specimen revealed infiltration of lymphocytes, plasma cells, and eosinophils in the alveolar wall and interstitial area. No pathogenic bacteria were observed in the sputum smear and culture tests. There were no parasite eggs in the stool. The mNGS of the lung puncture tissue revealed 6156 sequence reads matching E. multilocularis; thus, the condition was diagnosed as AE. Albendazole 400 mg was administered twice daily, and the patient was stable during follow-up. Conclusion This case emphasizes the role of mNGS in diagnosing AE. As a novel, sensitive, and accurate diagnostic method, mNGS could be an attractive approach for facilitating early diagnosis and prompt treatment of infectious diseases, especially when the infection was caused by rare pathogens.

Abstract Background Paclitaxel, a tubulin-binding agent, is a Food and Drug Administration-approved first-line drug for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), for both squamous and non-squamous cell lung carcinoma, with paclitaxel/carboplatin + bevacizumab a common chemotherapy regimen for stage IV non-squamous NSCLC; however, primary or acquired resistance to paclitaxel is gradually increasing, leading to treatment failure. Methods Our results show that Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 3 (RAC3) is overexpressed in cultured paclitaxel-resistant cells and that RAC3 expression levels are negatively correlated with sensitivity of lung adenocarcinoma cells to paclitaxel. Pulsatilla saponin D could inhibit RAC3 expression, and we hypothesize that it may block paclitaxel resistance. Further, we found that treatment with paclitaxel combined with Pulsatilla saponin D, can overcome lung adenocarcinoma cell resistance to paclitaxel alone in cell culture and mouse xenograft models.

Abstract Background Overactive bladder is defined as “urgency, with or without urge incontinence, usually with frequency and nocturia”. Electroacupuncture may be a safe and an effective alternative therapy for overactive bladder, but the evidence is limited. Methods We will conduct a three-arm, non-inferiority, multi-centre randomized controlled clinical trial. A total of 420 patients with moderate and severe overactive bladder will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: the electroacupuncture group (N = 140), sham electroacupuncture group (N = 140), and solifenacin group (N = 140). The primary outcome will be the change in the overactive bladder symptom score from baseline to the end of the 12-week treatment. The secondary outcomes will include the proportion of participants with a decrease in the overactive bladder symptom score ≥ 3 at weeks 4, 8, 12, 20, and 32; the change in average 24 h values of urination, nocturnal urination, urgency incontinence and urgency episodes from baseline to weeks 4, 8, 12, 20 and 32, and so forth. The adverse events will be recorded. Statistical analysis will include covariance analysis, nonparametric tests and descriptive statistics. Discussion This study will answer the question of whether electroacupuncture is effective and non-inferior to solifenacin for improving the symptoms of overactive bladder patients. Trial registration Chinese clinical trial registry ( ChiCTR1800019928 ).

Abstract Background Multidrug resistance-associated protein 4 (MRP4) is a member of the C subfamily of the ABC family of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters. MRP4 regulates ATP-dependent efflux of various organic anionic substrates and bile acids out of cells. Since Clonorchis sinensis lives in host’s bile duct, accumulation of bile juice can be toxic to the worm’s tissues and cells. Therefore, C. sinensis needs bile transporters to reduce accumulation of bile acids within its body. Results We cloned MRP4 (CsMRP4) from C. sinensis and obtained a cDNA encoding an open reading frame of 1469 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that CsMRP4 belonged to the MRP/SUR/CFTR subfamily. A tertiary structure of CsMRP4 was generated by homology modeling based on multiple structures of MRP1 and P-glycoprotein. CsMRP4 had two membrane-spanning domains (MSD1 & 2) and two nucleotide-binding domains (NBD1 & 2) as common structural folds. Docking simulation with nine bile acids showed that CsMRP4 transports bile acids through the inner cavity. Moreover, it was found that CsMRP4 mRNA was more abundant in the metacercariae than in the adults. Mouse immune serum, generated against the CsMRP4-NBD1 (24.9 kDa) fragment, localized CsMRP4 mainly in mesenchymal tissues and oral and ventral suckers of the metacercariae and the adults. Conclusions Our findings shed new light on MRPs and their homologs and provide a platform for further structural and functional investigations on the bile transporters and parasites’ survival.

Abstract Objective With the global population aging rapidly, understanding the factors influencing health outcomes in older adults is crucial. This study explores the longitudinal causal relationship between self-perceptions of aging and frailty and examines whether subjective cognitive decline mediated the associations. Methods The Brief-Aging Perceptions Questionnaire(B-APQ), the Frailty Phenotype Assessment Scale, and the Subjective Cognitive Decline Questionnaire were used to survey 619 community-dwelling older adults in Xinxiang, Henan, China, from March to October 2021 and from March to October 2023, respectively. A cross-lagged model was employed to analyze the potential mediating roles of subjective cognitive decline, controlling for confounders including age, gender, income, employment status, and education. Results (1) The cross-lagged model analysis revealed a bidirectional causal relationship between self-perceptions of aging and frailty (P 0.05). (2) The longitudinal mediation analysis indicated that T1 self-perceptions of aging had an indirect effect on T2 frailty through subjective cognitive decline (indirect effect = 0.011). Concurrently, T1 frailty also indirectly influenced T2 self-perceptions of aging via subjective cognitive decline (indirect effect = 0.010), with all effects demonstrating statistical significance (P

Abstract Background The global nursing shortage, driven by high turnover rates, significantly impacts healthcare quality. Workplace psychological violence severely affects nurses' mental health and job satisfaction, leading to increased turnover. Despite extensive research on workplace violence, the specific impact of psychological violence on nurses' turnover intentions remains insufficiently explored. This study investigates the mediating role of job satisfaction in the relationship between workplace psychological violence and nurses' turnover intentions. Methods A workplace psychological violence scale, a job satisfaction scale, and a turnover intention questionnaire were utilized to survey 206 clinical nurses in a tertiary-level hospital in Guangzhou City. The study employed a convenience sampling method. Statistical analyses included correlation, mediation analyses., descriptive statistics, multivariate linear hierarchical regression analyses, Pearson correlation analyses, and structural equation models. Results Clinical nurses reported a workplace psychological violence score of 0.97 ± 0.79, job satisfaction of 3.16 ± 0.58, and turnover intention of 2.22 ± 0.92. Workplace psychological violence was negatively correlated with job satisfaction (r = -0.516, P

Abstract Background Self-perceptions of aging (SPA) are important psychosocial factors that lead to a wide range of outcomes including dementia. However, the relationships between positive SPA and motoric cognitive risk syndrome (MCR) which is a predementia syndrome are still unknown. This study aimed to reveal the associations of positive control and aging awareness of SPA with the risk of MCR and its components. Methods A cross-sectional design was conducted among 1137 Chinese community-dwelling older adults. Positive control and aging awareness were defined by two dimensions of SPA (Positive control and Timeline chronic). MCR was determined according to definition. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the associations. Results The overall prevalence of MCR was 11.5% (mean age = 71.62 ± 5.22). After adjusting for depression, anxiety, and cognitive function, positive control was associated with reduced risk of MCR (OR = 0.624, 95% CI 0.402–0.969, P = 0.036), subjective cognitive complaints (SCC) (OR = 0.687, 95% CI 0.492–0.959, P = 0.027), and gait speed (GS) (OR = 0.377, 95% CI 0.197–0.720, P = 0.003), respectively. Aging awareness was merely related to increased risk of MCR (OR = 1.386, 95% CI 1.062–1.810, P = 0.016). Conclusions This study highlights the crucial associations of positive control and aging awareness with MCR and its components. Our results emphasize that positive belief in control and adaptive aging awareness might be promising targets for preventing MCR.

Abstract Neural tumors can generally be divided into central nervous system tumors and peripheral nervous tumors. Because this type of tumor is located in the nerve, even benign tumors are often difficult to remove by surgery. In addition, the majority of neural tumors are malignant, and it is particular the same for the central nervous system tumors. Even treated with the means such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, they are also difficult to completely cure. In recent years, an increasingly number of studies have focused on the use of mRNA to treat tumors, representing an emerging gene therapy. The use of mRNA can use the expression of some functional proteins for the treatment of genetic disorders or tissue repair, and it can also be applied to immunotherapy through the expression of antigens, antibodies or receptors. Therefore, although these therapies are not fully-fledged enough, they have a broad research prospect. In addition, there are many ways to treat tumors using mRNA vaccines and exosomes carrying mRNA, which have drawn much attention. In this study, we reviewed the current research on the role of mRNA in the development, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of neural tumors, and examine the future research prospects of mRNA in neural tumors and the opportunities and challenges that will arise in the future application of clinical treatment.