Evaluation of Th2 and Th17 Immunity-Related Factors as Indicators of Brucellosis

ObjectiveBrucellosis is a common bacterial zoonotic infection, and greater than half a million new cases are diagnosed annually. This study investigates the expression of Th2 and Th17 immunity-related factors (Th2-LCR lncRNA, IL-25, TRAF3IP2, and IL-17RB) in different stages of Brucella infections.Material and MethodsIn total, 99 brucellosis patients were divided into three groups (acute = first infection before treatment, relapse = before treatment, and treated = after treatment for 6–8 weeks with doxycycline and rifampin). Thirty-three healthy volunteers represented the control group. Gene expression levels were assessed by quantitative amplification in reference to the 18S rRNA gene and statistically evaluated.ResultsNo significant differences in the expression of these genes were observed between the control group and patients after completion of antibiotic treatment. Compared to these two groups, only Th2-LCR lncRNA and TRAF3IP2 were significantly more highly expressed in the acute group. Th2-LCR lncRNA was also significantly elevated in the relapse group. TRAF3IP2 expression was additionally significantly increased in the acute group compared to the relapse group.ConclusionIL-25 and IL-17RB failed to differentiate between the infected and noninfected groups. TRAF3IP2 and Th2-LCR lncRNA might be good indicators of brucellosis during the acute phase, but the expression levels varied strongly among patients. To verify the suitability of these factors as an indicator for brucellosis, acute infection or relapse should be investigated in further studies on larger cohorts with well-defined inclusion criteria.

Investigation on Risk Stratification and the Prognostic Value of hs-TnT Combined with MMP-2 in Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome

Objective. The aim of this study was at investigating the risk stratification and prognostic value of hypersensitive troponin T (hs-TnT) combined with matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Methods. 80 patients with coronary syndrome admitted to our hospital from January 2019 to January 2020 and 40 healthy people (control group) in the same period were selected. According to different types of diseases, the patients were divided into an acute group ( n = 40 ) and stable group ( n = 40 ). Besides, they all were monitored by the hs-TnT value, serum MMP-2, and coronary angiography at admission and the comparative analysis was carried out. The patients in both groups were followed up for 30 days, and the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events in the patients during this period was recorded. Results. Compared with those in the control group, the MMP-2 and hs-TnT levels in the acute group and the stable group were significantly higher and the MMP-2 and hs-TnT levels in the acute group were significantly higher than those in the stable group, with statistically significant differences ( P < 0.05 ). The 30-day follow-up results showed that the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events in the acute group was significantly higher than that in the stable group, with statistically significant differences ( P < 0.05 ). The hs-TnT and MMP-2 levels in the acute myocardial infarction (AMI) group were significantly higher than those in the unstable angina pectoris (UAP) group, with statistically significant differences ( P < 0.01 ). The hs-TnT and MMP-2 levels in the non-single-vessel group were significantly higher than those in the single-vessel group, with statistically significant differences ( P < 0.01 ). Conclusion. The hs-TnT and MMP-2 high expression levels are closely associated with myocardial injury, and they can effectively predict the severity of patients’ disease. In addition, the hs-TnT and MMP-2 elevated levels can be considered as an important index to judge the short-term treatment efficacy and the risk stratification of early ACS, playing an important role in clinical treatment and rehabilitation in the later stage.

Critical Period After Stroke Study (CPASS): A phase II clinical trial testing an optimal time for motor recovery after stroke in humans

Restoration of human brain function after injury is a signal challenge for translational neuroscience. Rodent stroke recovery studies identify an optimal or sensitive period for intensive motor training after stroke: near-full recovery is attained if task-specific motor training occurs during this sensitive window. We extended these findings to adult humans with stroke in a randomized controlled trial applying the essential elements of rodent motor training paradigms to humans. Stroke patients were adaptively randomized to begin 20 extra hours of self-selected, task-specific motor therapy at ≤30 d (acute), 2 to 3 mo (subacute), or ≥6 mo (chronic) after stroke, compared with controls receiving standard motor rehabilitation. Upper extremity (UE) impairment assessed by the Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) was measured at up to five time points. The primary outcome measure was ARAT recovery over 1 y after stroke. By 1 y we found significantly increased UE motor function in the subacute group compared with controls (ARAT difference = +6.87 ± 2.63,P= 0.009). The acute group compared with controls showed smaller but significant improvement (ARAT difference = +5.25 ± 2.59 points,P= 0.043). The chronic group showed no significant improvement compared with controls (ARAT = +2.41 ± 2.25,P= 0.29). Thus task-specific motor intervention was most effective within the first 2 to 3 mo after stroke. The similarity to rodent model treatment outcomes suggests that other rodent findings may be translatable to human brain recovery. These results provide empirical evidence of a sensitive period for motor recovery in humans.

Factors associating with disability of non-specific low back pain in different subgroups: A hierarchical linear regression analysis

This study aimed to explore factors associating with disability, which means physical impairment affecting a person’s mobility, capacity, stamina, or agility, of non-specific low back pain (NSLBP) of the acute and non-acute groups. Two hundred thirty-five patients with NSLBP of less than 8 weeks’ duration as acute groups (n = 124) and more than 8 weeks’ duration as non-acute group (n = 111) were recruited. It was collected data on pain intensity, disability and psychosocial factors, including pain catastrophising, fear of movement and pain self-efficacy. Disability was measured Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was performed to analyse factors associating with disability of the acute and non-acute groups. The Result was that explanatory power increased with each additional variable of the order of demographic characteristics, pain intensity and psychosocial factors for both groups. Pain intensity, pain catastrophising and pain self-efficacy had significant explanatory power, with pain self-efficacy having the most significant association on the acute group. Only pain self-efficacy having the most significant association on disability of the non-acute group. In conclusion, the factors associating with disability differed depending on the duration of the disease, and pain self-efficacy might be one of the factors associating with disability of patients with NSLBP.

The Effect of Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed) on Kinetic activity and histology of Livers and Kidneys in Albino Mice

Pseudoephedrine (PSE) or (Sudafed) is one of the sympathomimetic group of drugs (ephedrine, PSE and amphetamines) which effects cardiovascular system, respiratory system, and gastrointestinal tract. However, only little researches had supported its effect on solid abdominal organs. This study aims to investigate the effects of different doses of Sudafed in the liver and kidney of albino mice. The current study included 18 albino mice grouped into 2 groups: control (3 mice), and acute group (15 mice). The acute group was further subdivided into 5 subgroups, each subgroup of 3mice wasgiven a lonely intaperitonial injection of 0.3ml of the following conc. (500mg/kg, 250mg/kg, 125mg/kg, 62.52mg/kg, and 31.24mg/kg) for 24hrs. After the mentioned period, the mice of all subgroups were sacrificed and the livers and kidneys were removed, processed, sectioned and stained for histological analysis. Results of liver analysis using 500mg/Kg Sudafed intraperitoneallyshowed mild ballooning degeneration of hepatocytes and central vein congestion, while lower doses (250mg/Kg – 31.42mg/Kg) revealed less prominent effect or no significant pathological changes.Moreover, sections from the kidney with the 500mg/Kg Sudafed intraperitoneally showed mild hydropic swelling of tubular epithelium with congestion of intertubular blood vessels and relatively healthy glomeruli. Lower doses revealed no significant pathological changes. Conclusion: The present study demonstrated various pathological effects of PSE on kinetic activity, and histology of Livers and Kidneys of albino mice.

Association Between Abundance of Haemophilus in the Gut Microbiota and Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Increasing evidence indicates an interaction between dysbiosis of the microbiota and the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. However, limited information is available on the specific microbial communities associated with symptoms of schizophrenia. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate gut microbiota dysbiosis and its relationship with psychopathologies in schizophrenia. We recruited 126 participants and divided them into three groups according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, criteria—acute group (patients with acute schizophrenia), remission group (patients with schizophrenia in remission), and control group (healthy controls). Psychotic symptoms were evaluated using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Microbiota compositions, diversity and community structure were evaluated using 16S rRNA sequencing. Pearson's correlation analysis was used to evaluate the association between bacterial taxa and psychotic symptoms. The beta-diversity of microbiota composition in the acute group was distinct from that in the remission and control groups (PC1 = 21.11% vs. PC2 = 12.86%, P = 0.021). Furthermore, Pearson's correlation analysis revealed that abundance of Haemophilus was positively correlated with negative psychiatric symptoms (r = 0.303, P = 0.021), while abundance of Coprococcus was negatively correlated with negative psychiatric symptoms (r = −0.285, P = 0.025). Moreover, abundance of Haemophilus was positively correlated with cognition (r = 0.428, P = 0.009), excitement (r = 0.266, P = 0.037), and depression (r = 0.295, P = 0.020). The study findings suggest that alterations in certain gut microbiota may interfere with psychological symptoms in schizophrenia. Our results provide evidence that may help in the development of therapeutic strategies using microbial-based targets. The data that support the findings of this study have been deposited in the NCBI (https://submit.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/) with accession number SUB9453991.

Elevation of Neutrophil CEACAM1 Associated with Multiple Inflammatory Mediators was Related to Different Disease Progression in Ischemic Stroke Patients

Background Tissue damage, expecially blood-brain barrier (BBB) injury caused by inflammatory factor storm and stroke-associated infection (SAI) during cerebral stroke is an important factor affecting the prognosis of patients. We aim to analyze the level of carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1) together with the multiple inflammatory mediators at different stages of ischemic stroke (IS), as well as to investigate the role of CEACAM1 and the potential underlying mechanism in IS in the meanwhile. Methods The frequency of CEACAM1 positive neutrophils, neutrophil viability and levels of intracellular cytokines were detected by flow cytometry. The plasma CEACAM1, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), matrix metalloproteinases-9 (MMP-9), interleukin-10 (IL-10) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) were measured by ELISA. Results Compared with the normal control, the percentage of CEACAM1 positive neutrophils in the peripheral blood in the IS patients showed significant elevation, and a significant increase was also noticed in the content of plasma CEACAM1 at the subacute stage. There was a positive correlation between CEACAM1 expression rate in the neutrophils and plasma CEACAM1 and IL-10 content in the subacute group. Compared with the acute group and healthy control group, there was an instinct elevation in the level of plasma MMP-9 in the subacute group. The plasma NGAL in the subacute and stable groups was significantly higher than that of the normal control. Conclusion Our data showed that there was rapid elevation of CEACAM1 in the neutrophils at the acute stage of cerebral IS. We speculated that CEACAM1 may serve as an inhibitory regulator involved in the progression of focal cerebral ischemia. Moreover, the elevation of serum NGAL at the acute and stable stages may involve in the BBB injury mediated by MMP-9.

Factors Affecting Disability With Nonspecific Low Back Pain in Different Subgroups: A Hierarchical Linear Regression Analysis

Purpose: To systematically explore how disability is influenced with layers (demographic level, pain level and psychosocial factors) in nonspecific low back pain (NSLBP) in different subgroups.Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that compared two different subgroups in NSLBP at two hospitals. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was performed to analyse factors affecting disability in different groups (overall group, acute group and subacute/chronic group).Results: In the overall group (n = 235), explanatory power increased with each additional variable in the order of demographic characteristics, pain intensity and psychosocial factors. Pain intensity (ß = 0.219), Pain Catastrophising Scale (PCS) (ß = 0.175) and Pain Self-Efficiency Questionnaire (PSEQ) (ß = −0.370) were significantly associated with disability. In the acute group (n = 65), explanatory power improved with each additional variable for the disability in the order of demographic characteristics, pain intensity and psychosocial factors. Ultimately, pain intensity and PSEQ had significant explanatory power, with pain having the most influence. However, in the subacute/chronic group (n = 170), explanatory power increased with each additional variable in the order of demographic characteristics, pain intensity and psychosocial factors and all, including psychosocial factors, had a strong impact, with self-efficacy having the most substantial impact on disability.Conclusion: Depending on the duration of the disease, the factors affecting the disability differed, with pain having more influence than psychosocial factors in the acute phase and psychosocial factors having more influence in the chronic phase.

Association of Chronic Immune-Mediated Diarrhea and Colitis With Favorable Cancer Response

Background: Immune-mediated diarrhea and colitis (IMDC) is a common immune-related adverse effect related to immune checkpoint inhibitors. We aimed to identify risk factors for chronic IMDC and its prognostic value in cancer outcomes. Methods: We retrospectively collected data on patients with a diagnosis of IMDC between January 2018 and October 2019 and grouped them based on disease duration into acute (≤3 months) and chronic (>3 months) categories. A logistic regression model and the Kaplan-Meier method with log-rank tests were used for biostatistical analysis. Results: In our sample of 88 patients, 43 were in the chronic group and 45 were in the acute group. Genitourinary cancer and melanoma accounted for 70% of malignancies. PD-1/L1 monotherapy (52%) was the more frequently used regimen. We showed that chronic IMDC was associated with proton pump inhibitor use (odds ratio [OR], 3.96; P=.026), long duration of IMDC symptoms (OR, 1.05; P<.001) and hospitalization (OR, 1.07; P=.043), a histologic feature of chronic active colitis (OR, 4.8; P=.025) or microscopic colitis (OR, 5.0; P=.045), and delayed introduction of selective immunosuppressive therapy (infliximab/vedolizumab; OR, 1.06; P=.047). Chronic IMDC also reflected a better cancer response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (30% vs 51%; P=.002) and was accompanied by improved overall survival (P=.035). Similarly, higher doses of selective immunosuppressive therapy were associated with better overall survival (P=.018). Conclusions: Chronic IMDC can develop among patients with a more aggressive disease course and chronic features on colon histology. It likely reflects a prolonged immune checkpoint inhibitor effect and is associated with better cancer outcome and overall survival.

Pilot assessment of the effect of negative pressure wound therapy on microperfusion of chronic and acute wounds

BACKGROUND: Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has been established over years for treatment of chronic and complex wounds. OBJECTIVE: Aim of this study was to investigate the effect NPWT on the microperfusion. METHODS: Prospective single centre analysis of patients treated with NPWT due to acute (ACUTE) wounds after fasciotomy or patients with chronic wounds (CHRONIC) due to a chronic limb threatening ischemia was performed. NPWT was conducted through a three days sequence with a negative pressure of –120 mmHg. Before after and during the entire period of therapy the microperfusion was assessed (O2C™, LEA Medizintechnik). RESULTS: Comparison of the perfusion values of 28 patients (CHRONIC/ACUTE 5/23, women/men 8/20) before and after the NPWT sequence showed a non-significant improvement in the CHRONIC group (supine position: p = 0.144, elevated position p = 0.068) and a significant decrease in the ACUTE group (supine position p = 0.012, elevated position p = 0.034). This effect could also been demonstrated during the NPWT over time (CHRONIC: supine position: p = 0.320, elevated position: p = 0.053, ACUTE: supine position: p = 0.021, elevated position: p = 0.012). CONCLUSION: Microperfusion measurements showed alterations and differences in wound bed perfusion of acute and chronic wounds; acute wounds tended to a decrease of blood flow, whereas this effect was not seen in chronic wounds in peripheral artery disease.