Search

Introduction: The study aims to confirm the association of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with serum angiotensin II (AngII), kallikrein1 (KLK1), and ACE/KLK1 polymorphisms.Materials and Methods: Serum AngII/KLK1 levels and ACE and KLK1 genotypes were determined in 208 patients with AMI and 216 normal controls. Binary logistic regression was used for data analysis.Results: The differences in serum AngII levels were statistically significant between the groups. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, high serum levels of AngII and KLK1 significantly increased the risk of AMI. The individuals with ACE DD and KLK1 GG genotypes significantly increased the risk of AMI compared with those harboring the ACE II and KLK1 AA genotypes (OR = 8.77, 95% CI = 1.74-44.16).Conclusions: (1) Increasing the serum levels of AngII increased the risk of AMI. (2) The risk of AMI increased significantly when the serum levels of AngII and KLK1 simultaneously increased. (3) Individuals with the combined genotypes of ACE DD and KLK1 GG showed significantly increased risk of AMI compared with those with the combined genotypes of ACE II and KLK1 AA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have generated considerable excitement as a novel class of immunotherapeutic agents due to their remarkable efficacy in treating various types of cancer. However, the widespread use of ICIs has brought about a number of safety concerns, especially the development of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). These serious complications could result in treatment discontinuation and even life-threatening consequences, making it critical to identify high-risk groups and predictive markers of irAEs before initiating therapy. To this end, the current article examines several potential predictive markers of irAEs in important organs affected by ICIs. While retrospective studies have yielded some promising results, limitations such as small sample sizes, variable patient populations, and specific cancer types and ICIs studied make it difficult to generalize the findings. Therefore, prospective cohort studies and real-world investigations are needed to validate the potential of different biomarkers in predicting irAEs risk. Overall, identifying predictive markers of irAEs is a crucial step towards improving patient safety and enhancing the management of irAEs. With ongoing research efforts, it is hoped that more accurate and reliable biomarkers will be identified and incorporated into clinical practice to guide treatment decisions and prevent the development of irAEs in susceptible patients., Competing Interests: Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interest exists., (© The author(s).)

Distant metastasis continues to be a fatal threat to quality of life in patients with small cell lung caner (SCLC). The purpose of this work is to analyze the expressions of chemokine receptor four (CXCR4), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), transforming growth factor-b1 (TGF-β1), N-cadherin and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in small cell lung caner (SCLC), and to explore their correlations with the prognosis and metastasis. Sixty-five consecutive patients with stage I-III SCLC who received operation in our hospital from Jan 2003 to Oct 2009 were retrospectively analyzed. The expression of CXCR4 was found significantly correlated with bone metastasis (P = 0.004), and were marginally correlated with brain metastasis (P = 0.068) and lymph node metastasis (P = 0.085). The expression of MMP-9 was significantly associated with pathological staging (P = 0.048). Univariate analysis suggested surgical approach, clinical stage, lymph node metastasis were significantly associated with OS and PFS (P < 0.05), high expression of CXCR4 was significantly correlated with worse OS (P = 0.004) and PFS (P = 0.005). Multivariate analysis suggested surgical approach, TGF-β1, CXCR4 and lymph node metastasis were independent prognostic factor for PFS. In conclusion, High expression of CXCR4, MMP-9, TGF-β1 and VEGF were found in SCLC. High expression of MMP-9 was significantly associated with pathological staging, and high expression of CXCR4 was correlated with bone metastasis and also might correlate with brain metastasis. CXCR4 were independent prognostic factor for survival in SCLC and expanded samples should be further explored in the future.

Objective: To explore the expressions of CXC chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and examine their correlations with metastasis and prognosis in small cell lung cancer (SCLC)., Methods: Immunohistochemistry was employed to detect the expressions of CXCR4 and MMP-9 in the tissue samples from 65 SCLC patients treated in Cancer Institute and Hospital Attached to Tianjin Medical University from January 2003 to October 2009. And their correlations with metastasis and prognosis were analyzed by Chi-square test and Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression., Results: The positive expression rates of CXCR4 and MMP-9 were 100.0% (65/65) and 87.7% (57/65) in SCLC tissues respectively. Significant difference of the expression rate of CXCR4 was found between patients undergoing bone metastasis or not (P = 0.004). But the differences were not significant between brain metastasis or not (P = 0.068) and lymph node metastasis or not (P = 0.085). A high expression rate of MMP-9 was significantly associated with pathological staging (P = 0.048). But the difference between lymph node metastasis or not was not significant (P = 0.085). Univariate analysis suggested that a high expression rate of CXCR4 was significantly correlated with the disease-free survival (DFS) of SCLC patients (P = 0.005). But a high expression rate of MMP-9 was not associated with DFS (P = 0.341). Multivariate analysis suggested that a high expression rate of CXCR4 was an independent prognostic factor for DFS in SCLC., Conclusions: The elevated levels of CXCR4 and MMP-9 are found in SCLC tissues. And the expression rate of CXCR4 may be correlated with bone metastasis, but the correlation is not notable for MMP-9. The expression rate of CXCR4 is an independent prognostic factor for DFS in SCLC.