Search

Background Little is known about the link between the monocyte to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (MHR) and frequent premature ventricular complexes (PVCs). This investigation aimed to evaluate the link between the MHR and frequent PVCs in patients, as well as their outcomes, using the axis, burden, coupling interval–ventricular tachycardia (ABC-VT) risk score (ARS). Methods Two hundred patients with frequent PVCs and 70 controls were retrospectively enrolled, and their general data were gathered. The MHR and ARS were calculated. Then, patients developing frequent PVCs were classified into a medium−/high-risk subgroup and a low-risk subgroup according to ARS. The results were evaluated employing comparative statistical analyses, Spearman’s correlation, logistic regression analyses, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Results The MHR in the controls was obviously lower than that in the frequent PVC group. In addition, the MHR was the lowest in the control group and highest in the medium−/high-risk subgroup, with that of the low-risk subgroup falling in the middle. Spearman’s correlation analyses showed that the MHR was positively correlated with the ARS (ρ = 0.307, P P Conclusions The MHR is positively and independently correlated with frequent PVCs and can be used as a practical, cost-saving and simple biomarker of inflammation owing to its value in predicting frequent PVCs. In addition, the MHR is crucial to risk stratification and prognosis, which may give it clinical value in the prevention and management of frequent PVCs.

Objectives. Believed to be a result of metabolic syndrome and unhealthy lifestyle, the incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a serious public health problem. Among the high-income male population, metabolic syndrome and unhealthy lifestyle are particularly prominent. Therefore, we conducted a survey on 375 high-income male subjects, expecting to understand the risk factors and related factors for morbidity of NAFLD among the high-income male population being physically examined in Shanghai. Methods. A cross-sectional study was applied to 375 high-income male subjects (including 190 patients with NAFLD and 185 non-NAFLD subjects) who were examined in the special needs clinic at Huadong Hospital affiliated to Fudan University. In combination with medical history, physical examination, and laboratory test results and by use of a self-made NAFLD health questionnaire, the basic data of the research objects were collected and the obtained data were subject to a correlation analysis. Results. This study investigated 375 high-income males, and the morbidity rate of NAFLD was 50.67%. The NAFLD group was higher than the non-NAFLD group in terms of body weight, BMI, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure ( P < 0.05 ). Hypertension (OR = 2.944), diabetes (OR = 7.278), and hyperuricemia (OR = 1.922) are the risk factors for NAFLD; compared with no metabolic diseases, one (OR = 1.848), two (OR = 2.417), and three metabolic diseases (OR = 14.788) are risk factors for the development of NAFLD. Compared with the non-NAFLD group, the NAFLD group had a higher level of WBC, RBC, Hb, PLT, FPG, HbA1c, ALT, AST, GGT, ALP, TP, and UA ( P < 0.05 ). There was a statistically significant difference in the intake of supper and staple foods between the NAFLD group and the non-NAFLD group, and the highly greasy diet was a risk factor for NAFLD (OR = 2.173) as opposed to the nongreasy diet. Conclusion. High-income male population is a high-risk group of NAFLD. Most of the patients with NAFLD have abnormal biochemical indicators as opposed to the healthy population and are more likely to be complicated with other chronic diseases or abnormal health status. And the occurrence of hypertension, diabetes, and hyperuricemia is the risk factor for the development of NAFLD. At the same time, the number of metabolic diseases complicated is also a risk factor for NAFLD as compared with the absence of complications with such metabolic diseases. Compared with a diet that is not greasy, the fact that high-income male NAFLD patients have a very greasy diet increases the risk of NAFLD.

Anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) is a biomarker for the assessment of female fertility. The accurate measurement of the concentration of AMH is relevant for the success of assisted reproductive therapies and diagnosis of clinical cases. In this study, we show that cytokines such as fetal liver tyrosine kinase 3 ligand (Flt3L), CC subtype chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20), granulocyte–macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and β2-microglobulin (β2M) significantly enhance the immune response against AMH. Two anti-AMH monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) with high affinity were selected by biolayer interferometry (BLI) technology for application in a fully automated magnetic chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA). This robust and rapid assay can efficiently detect AMH in the range of 0.125~20 ng mL−1 with a detection limit of 0.099 ng mL−1. This immunoassay showed high specificity with no cross-reaction with structurally related proteins and some of the other members of the TGF-β super family, such as inhibin A, activin A, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone. The average recovery rates of three different batches were 100.19%, 102.72%, and 103.59%, respectively, with coefficients of variation of less than 12%. The developed assay was applied in the detection of AMH in 69 serum samples from randomly selected patients. Our data showed a high correlation with those obtained using commercially available ELISA kits (correlation coefficient, 0.9831). Hence, we suggest that this immunoassay could find application in the development of POCT for the diagnosis of AMH in clinical samples.

Background: In the discovery of DNA intercalators, β-carbolines compose one member of the most interesting alkaloid family and are of clinical importance. In the efforts, N-(3-benzyloxycarbonyl-β-carboline-1-yl)ethyl-Ser-Ala-OBzl (BCESA) was designed as a nano-scaled DNA intercalator without Dox-like toxicity. Methods: Based on the structural analysis and CDOCKER energy comparison, BCESA was rationally designed as such a nano-scaled intercalator. The anti-tumor activity, the toxicity and the tumor targeting action of BCESA were evaluated on mouse models. Results: The in vitro proliferation of cancer cells, but not non-cancer cells, was effectively inhibited by BCESA. On S180 mouse model BCESA dose-dependently slowed the tumor growth, and 0.01 μmol/kg/day was found as a minimal effective dose. Both BCESA and its moiety were found in the tumor tissue, but not in the organs and the blood, of S180 mice. Conclusion: BCESA should be a nano-scaled intercalator capable of targeting tumor tissue to release anti-tumoral β-carboline-3-carboxylic acid and its 1-methyl derivative, while Ser-Ala-OBzl is a simple and desirable carrier.

The human gut microbiome can modulate metabolic health and affect insulin resistance, and it may play an important role in the etiology of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Here, we compared the gut microbial composition of 43 GDM patients and 81 healthy pregnant women via whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing of their fecal samples, collected at 21–29 weeks, to explore associations between GDM and the composition of microbial taxonomic units and functional genes. A metagenome-wide association study identified 154 837 genes, which clustered into 129 metagenome linkage groups (MLGs) for species description, with significant relative abundance differences between the 2 cohorts. Parabacteroides distasonis, Klebsiella variicola, etc., were enriched in GDM patients, whereas Methanobrevibacter smithii, Alistipes spp., Bifidobacterium spp., and Eubacterium spp. were enriched in controls. The ratios of the gross abundances of GDM-enriched MLGs to control-enriched MLGs were positively correlated with blood glucose levels. A random forest model shows that fecal MLGs have excellent discriminatory power to predict GDM status. Our study discovered novel relationships between the gut microbiome and GDM status and suggests that changes in microbial composition may potentially be used to identify individuals at risk for GDM.

BACKGROUND Colorectal adenocarcinoma is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the world. The stage of the disease is related to the survival of the patient, and in early phases surgery is the main modality of treatment. The main aim of modern medicinal chemistry is to synthesize small molecules via drug designing, especially by targeting tumor cells. MATERIAL AND METHODS A new series of 19 compounds containing benzothiazole and thiazole were designed. Molecular docking studies were performed on the designed series of molecules. Compounds showing good binding affinity towards the EGFR receptor were selected for synthetic studies. Characterization of the synthesized compounds was done by FTIR, 1HNMR, Mass and C, H, N, analysis. RESULTS The anticancer evaluation of the synthesized compounds was done at NIC, USA at a single dose against colon cancer cell lines HCT 116, HCT15, and HC 29. The active compounds were further evaluated for the 5-dose testing. Compounds were designed by using docking analysis. To ascertain the interaction of EGFR tyrosine kinase binding, energy calculation was used. CONCLUSIONS The results of the present study indicate that the designed compounds show good activity against colon cancer cell lines, which may be further studied to design new potential molecules.

The fetal brain developmental changes of water diffusivity and perfusion has not been extensively explored.To evaluate the fetal brain developmental changes of water diffusivity and perfusion using intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI).Prospective.Seventy-nine normal singleton fetuses were scanned without sedation of healthy pregnant women.5 T MRI/TPure diffusion coefficient (D), pseudodiffusion coefficient (D*), and perfusion fraction (f) values were calculated in the frontal (FWM), temporal (TWM), parietal (PWM), and occipital white matter (OWM) as well as cerebellar hemisphere (CH), basal ganglia region (BGR), thalamus (TH), and pons using an IVIM model.One-way analysis of variable (ANOVA) followed by Bonferroni post-hoc multiple comparison was employed to reveal the difference of IVIM parameters among the investigated brain regions. The linear and the nonlinear polynomial regression analyses were utilized to reveal the correlation between gestational age (GA) and IVIM parameters.There were significant differences in both D (F(7,623) = 96.64, P = 0.000) and f values (F(7,623) = 2.361, P = 0.0219), but not D* values among the varied brain regions. D values from TWM (rIVIM-DWI parameters may indicate fetal brain developmental alterations but the conclusion is far from reached due to the not as high-powered correlation between IVIM parameters and GA.2 Technical Efficacy Stage: 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2019;50:899-909.

Few studies have explored the relationship between dietary patterns and the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Evidence from non-Western areas is particularly lacking. In the present study, we aimed to examine the associations between dietary patterns and the risk of GDM in a Chinese population. A total of 3063 pregnant Chinese women from an ongoing prospective cohort study were included. Data on dietary intake were collected using a FFQ at 24–27 weeks of gestation. GDM was diagnosed using a 75 g, 2 h oral glucose tolerance test. Dietary patterns were determined by principal components factor analysis. A log-binomial regression model was used to examine the associations between dietary pattern and the risk of GDM. The analysis identified four dietary patterns: vegetable pattern; protein-rich pattern; prudent pattern; sweets and seafood pattern. Multivariate analysis showed that the highest tertile of the vegetable pattern was associated with a decreased risk of GDM (relative risk (RR) 0·79, 95 % CI 0·64, 0·97), compared with the lowest tertile, whereas the highest tertile of the sweets and seafood pattern was associated with an increased risk of GDM (RR 1·23, 95 % CI 1·02, 1·49). No significant association was found for either the protein-rich or the prudent pattern. The protective effect of a high vegetable pattern score was more evident among women who had a family history of diabetes (P for interaction = 0·022). These findings suggest that the vegetable pattern was associated with a decreased risk of GDM, while the sweets and seafood pattern was associated with an increased risk of GDM. These findings may be useful in dietary counselling during pregnancy.

Objective The relationship between dietary patterns and gestational weight gain (GWG) in different pregnancy stages has rarely been reported among the Asian population. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between dietary patterns and GWG in Chinese pregnant women. Methods Participants were women from the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study who completed a validated food frequency questionnaire at 24 to 27 wk gestation (N = 5733). Dietary patterns were generated by cluster analysis. Maternal prepregnancy weight was self-reported; weights during pregnancy were extracted from medical records. Regression analyses were performed to test the associations between dietary patterns and total GWG and GWG rates (linear regression), and the adequacy of GWG (logistic regression). Results According to food consumption frequency, six dietary patterns were generated: “richer in cereals,” “richer in vegetables,” “richer in meats,” “richer in fruits,” “richer in fish, beans, nuts, and yogurt,” and “richer in milk and milk powder.” Compared with women following the richer in cereals pattern, those who followed the richer in fruits pattern had a significantly higher GWG (β = 0.592; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.166–1.018) and total rate of GWG; those who followed the richer in fish, beans, nuts, and yogurt” pattern had a greater GWG rate in the second trimester, and also had a decreased risk for inadequate GWG (odds ratio, 0.797; 95% CI, 0.638–0.997). Conclusion Consuming a variety of foods and frequent consumption of fruits during pregnancy contributes to a more rapid increase in GWG among pregnant women in China. Findings may be useful in pregnancy weight monitoring.

Background Tea, a common beverage, has been suggested to exhibit a number of health benefits. However, one of its active ingredients, caffeine, has been associated with preterm birth and low birthweight. We investigated whether tea consumption during early pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of preterm birth and abnormal foetal growth. Methods A total of 8775 pregnant women were included from the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study. Tea consumption (type, frequency and strength) during their first trimester and social and demographic factors were obtained via questionnaires administered during pregnancy. Information on birth outcomes and complications during pregnancy was obtained from hospital medical records. Results Overall habitual tea drinking (≥1 serving/week) prevalence among pregnant women was low, at 16%. After adjustment for potential confounding factors (e.g. maternal age, educational level, monthly income) tea drinking during early pregnancy was not associated with an increased risk of preterm birth, small or large for gestational age (p>0.05). Conclusions We did not identify a consistent association between frequency of tea consumption or tea strength and adverse birth outcomes among Chinese pregnant women with low tea consumption. Our findings suggest that occasional tea drinking during pregnancy is not associated with increased risk of preterm birth or abnormal foetal growth. Given the high overall number of annual births in China, our findings have important public health

This study aimed to examine the reproducibility and validity of a new food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) used in a birth cohort study to estimate the usual consumption frequencies of foods during pregnancy. The reference measure was the average of three inconsecutive 24 h diet recalls (24 HR) administrated between two FFQs, and the reproducibility was measured by repeating the first FFQ (FFQ1) approximately eight weeks later (FFQ2). A total of 210 pregnant women from the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study (BIGCS) with full data were included in the analysis. The Spearman’s correlation coefficients of FFQ1 and FFQ2 ranged from 0.33 to 0.71. The intraclass correlation coefficients of the two FFQs ranged from 0.22 to 0.71. The Spearman’s correlation coefficients of the 24 HR and FFQ2 ranged from 0.23 to 0.62. Cross-classification analysis showed 65.1% of participants were classified into same and contiguous quintiles, while only 3.2% were misclassified into the distant quintiles. Bland-Altman methods showed good agreement for most food groups across the range of frequencies between FFQ1 and FFQ2. Our findings indicated that the reproducibility and validity of the FFQ used in BIGCS for assessing the usual consumption frequencies of foods during pregnancy were acceptable.

The chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) has been widely used in diagnosis and prognosis of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, there is no current consensus on the impact of CXCR4 on CRC patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prognostic and clinicopathological importance of CXCR4 in CRC patients. Databases, such as PubMed, Cochrane library, CBM and EMBASE updated to 2014 were searched to include eligible articles. We analysed correlations between CXCR4 expression and clinicopathological features and overall survival (OS). A total of 1, 055 CRC patients from twelve studies were included in the study. The pooled odds ratios (ORs) which indicated CXCR4 expression was likely to be associated with TNM stage (OR=0.43, CI=0.34-0.55, P

To evaluate the recurrence of common bile duct stones and risk factors for recurrence following routine endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST) versus small-incision endoscopic sphincterotomy plus endoscopic papillary balloon dilation (EST-EPBD). Three hundred patients who were hospitalized between June 2007 and June 2008 with common bile duct stones >10 mm in diameter were randomly assigned to the EST or EST-EPBD group. We compared the short-term (≤3 years) and long-term (>3 years) recurrence of ductal stones in the two groups over a 72-month follow-up period. Potential risk factors were evaluated using a logistic regression analysis. A total of 291 patients completed the study. The short-term recurrence rate in the EST group was not significantly higher than that in the EST-EPBD group (P > 0.05). The long-term recurrence rate for the EST group was significantly higher than that for the EST-EPBD group (P

There was limited evidence revealing the association of Chinese maternal dietary patterns with fetal growth. We aimed to examine the relationship of maternal dietary patterns during pregnancy to neonatal birth weight and birth weight for gestational age in a Chinese population. A total of 6954 mother-child pairs were included from the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study. Maternal diet during pregnancy was assessed using a self-administered food frequency questionnaire. Cluster analysis was used to identify dietary patterns. The following six dietary patterns were identified: "Cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups" (n 1026, 14.8%), "Dairy" (n 1020, 14.7%), "Fruits, nuts, and Cantonese desserts" (n 799, 11.5%), "Meats" (n 1066, 15.3%), "Vegetables" (n 1383, 19.9%), and "Varied" (n 1224, 17.6%). The mean neonatal birth weight Z scores of women in the above patterns were 0.02, 0.07, 0.20, 0.01, 0.06, and 0.14, respectively. Women in the "Fruits, nuts, and Cantonese desserts" and "Varied" groups had significantly heavier infants compared with those in the "Cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups" group. Compared with women in the "Cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups" group, those in the "Varied" group had marginally significantly lower odds of having a small-for-gestational age (SGA) infant after adjustment for other confounders (OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.57, 1.04, p = 0.08). These findings suggest that compared to a traditional Cantonese diet high in cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups, a diet high in fruits, nuts, and Cantonese desserts might be associated with a higher birth weight, while a varied diet might be associated with a greater birth weight and also a decreased risk of having a SGA baby.

Proteins of the BCL-2 family regulate clonal selection and survival of lymphocytes, and are frequently overexpressed in lymphomas. Navitoclax is a targeted high-affinity small molecule that inhibits the anti-apoptotic activity of BCL-2 and BCL-XL. We aimed to assess the safety and antitumour activity of navitoclax in patients with lymphoid tumours, and establish the drug's pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles.In this phase 1 dose-escalation study, patients (aged ≥18 years) with relapsed or refractory lymphoid malignancies were enrolled and treated at seven sites in the USA between November, 2006, and November, 2009. A modified Fibonacci 3+3 design was used to assign patients to receive oral navitoclax once daily by one of two dosing schedules: intermittently for the first 14 days of a 21-day cycle (14/21) at doses of 10, 20, 40, 80, 110, 160, 225, 315, or 440 mg/day; or continuously for 21 days of a 21-day cycle (21/21) at doses of 200, 275, 325, or 425 mg/day. Study endpoints were safety, maximum tolerated dose, pharmacokinetic profile, pharmacodynamic effects on platelets and T cells, and antitumour activity. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT00406809.55 patients were enrolled (median age 59 years, IQR 51-67), 38 to receive the 14/21 dosing schedule, and 17 to receive the 21/21 dosing schedule. Common toxic effects included grade 1 or 2 anaemia (41 patients), infection (39), diarrhoea (31), nausea (29), and fatigue (21); and grade 3 or 4 thrombocytopenia (29), lymphocytopenia (18), and neutropenia (18). On the intermittent 14/21 schedule, dose-limiting toxic effects were hospital admissions for bronchitis (one) and pleural effusion (one), grade 3 increase in aminotransferases (one), grade 4 thrombocytopenia (one), and grade 3 cardiac arrhythmia (one). To reduce platelet nadir associated with intermittent 14/21 dosing, we assessed a 150 mg/day lead-in dose followed by a continuous 21/21 dosing schedule. On the 21/21 dosing schedule, two patients did not complete the first cycle and were excluded from assessment of dose-limiting toxic effects; dose-limiting toxic effects were grade 4 thrombocytopenia (one), grade 3 increase in aminotransferases (one), and grade 3 gastrointestinal bleeding (one). Navitoclax showed a pharmacodynamic effect on circulating platelets and T cells. Clinical responses occurred across the range of doses and in several tumour types. Ten of 46 patients with assessable disease had a partial response, and these responders had median progression-free survival of 455 days (IQR 40-218).Navitoclax has a novel mechanism of peripheral thrombocytopenia and T-cell lymphopenia, attributable to high-affinity inhibition of BCL-XL and BCL-2, respectively. On the basis of these findings, a 150 mg 7-day lead-in dose followed by a 325 mg dose administered on a continuous 21/21 dosing schedule was selected for phase 2 study.Abbott Laboratories, Genentech, and National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health.