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Objective To study the clinical characteristics and prognosis of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) in children. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical data of 12 children with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated ANE who were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Qingdao Women and Children's Hospital from December 18 to 29, 2022. The children were divided into two groups based on outcomes: death group (7 cases) and survival group (5 cases). The clinical manifestations and auxiliary examination results were compared between the two groups. Results The median age of the 12 patients was 30 months, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:1. All patients presented with persistent high fever, with a median highest body temperature of 41 °C . The median time from fever onset to seizure or consciousness disturbance was 18 hours. The death group had a higher proportion of neurogenic shock, coagulation dysfunction, as well as elevated lactate, D-dimer, interleukin-6, interleukin--8, and interleukin-10 levels compared to the survival group (P<0.05). Conclusions Children with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated with ANE commonly present with persistent high fever, rapidly progressing disease, and have a high likelihood of developing consciousness disorders and multiorgan dysfunction within a short period. The occurrence of neurogenic shock, coagulation dysfunction, and significantly elevated cytokine levels suggests an increased risk of mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To provides the clinical and genetic characteristics of a series of Chinese patients with X‐linked juvenile retinoschisis (XLRS) through multimodal imaging and next‐generation sequencing. Methods: Thirty patients (60 eyes) from 29 unrelated families of Chinese origin with XLRS were screened using multigene panel testing, and underwent a complete clinical evaluation. All variants identified in this study and reported in the Human Gene Mutation Database were analysed. Results: Twenty‐five distinct variants in the retinoschisin gene were identified, of which eight were novel, and one was de novo. Missense mutations were the most prevalent type, and mutation hot spot was localized in the discoidin domain. The mean Snellen best‐corrected visual acuity was 0.28 ± 0.17. Of all eyes presenting with schisis, 92.86% had lamellar schisis and 62.5% had peripheral schisis. Schisis changes mostly involved inner and outer nuclear layers. X‐linked juvenile retinoschisis (XLRS) patients had a high incidence of complications, and peripheral schisis was a risk factor for it. No obvious genotype–phenotype association was observed. Conclusion: This study provides comprehensive analyses of the genetic and clinical characteristics of XLRS in a cohort of Chinese patients. The fourth de novo mutation in RS1 was identified. And we show that XLRS has a wide spectrum of clinical characteristics; hence, molecular diagnosis is crucial for its diagnosis, differential diagnosis and genetic counselling. Peripheral schisis is a risk factor for the high incidence of complications, and no clear genotype–phenotype correlations were found. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of CaO content on phase evolution, sintering behaviour and densification process of Al2O3-MgO-CaO refractories were investigated. The addition of CaO decreased the initial sintering temperature of Al2O3-MgO refractory from 1300 to 1100°C associated with a reinforcement of grain-grain bonding and significant grain growth of calcium dialuminate (CA2) from 1100 to 1200°C. Calcium hexaluminate (CA6) grains with typical planar structures were formed, and the bulk density decreased with the addition of 8% CaO after firing at 1600°C because of the stabilised existence of the CA2. Meanwhile, the relative density increased because of the resorption of porosity in the initial sintering stage and the promotion of grain growth at high temperatures, indicating that the lightweight, as well as the densification, of the Al2O3-MgO refractory was effectively improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To study the clinical characteristics and prognosis of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) in children ., Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical data of 12 children with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated ANE who were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Qingdao Women and Children's Hospital from December 18 to 29, 2022. The children were divided into two groups based on outcomes: death group (7 cases) and survival group (5 cases). The clinical manifestations and auxiliary examination results were compared between the two groups., Results: The median age of the 12 patients was 30 months, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:1. All patients presented with persistent high fever, with a median highest body temperature of 41℃. The median time from fever onset to seizure or consciousness disturbance was 18 hours. The death group had a higher proportion of neurogenic shock, coagulation dysfunction, as well as elevated lactate, D-dimer, interleukin-6, interleukin--8, and interleukin-10 levels compared to the survival group ( P <0.05)., Conclusions: Children with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated with ANE commonly present with persistent high fever, rapidly progressing disease, and have a high likelihood of developing consciousness disorders and multiorgan dysfunction within a short period. The occurrence of neurogenic shock, coagulation dysfunction, and significantly elevated cytokine levels suggests an increased risk of mortality.

β-Elemene, a compound extracted from Chinese herb Curcuma wenyujin , has been demonstrated with antitumor effects in various cancers, including glioblastoma (GBM), a primary brain tumor with high morbidity and mortality. In this study, we reported a bisamino derivative of β-Elemene, 2, 2'-((1R, 3R, 4S)-4-methyl-4-vinylcyclohexane-1, 3-diyl) bis(prop-2-en-1-amine) (compound 1), displayed a better anti-GBM effect than β-Elemene with lower concentration. GBM cell lines (C6 and U87) were treated with compound 1 and subsequently analyzed by several assays. Compound 1 significantly inhibited the migration of C6 and U87 cells based on wound healing assay, transwell assay and inverted migration assay. Furthermore, colony formation assay, immunostaining and flow cytometry assays revealed that compound 1 significantly inhibited the proliferation of GBM cells. In addition, compound 1 induced the apoptosis of GBM cells. Mechanistically, we found Yes-associated protein (YAP) was down-regulated in compound 1-treated GBM cells, and the overexpression of YAP partially rescued the anti-GBM effects of compound 1. Finally, compound 1 suppresses the GBM growth in xenograft model through inactivation YAP signaling. Taken together, these results reveal that a novel derivative of β-Elemene, compound 1, exhibits more potent anti-GBM activity than β-Elemene through inactivating YAP signaling pathway, which will provide novel strategies for the treatment of GBM., Competing Interests: None., (AJCR Copyright © 2022.)