腓骨近端截骨术与胫骨高位截骨术治疗内侧间室性膝关节骨关节炎的比较研究

目的:对比内侧间室性膝关节骨关节炎(KOA)患者应用腓骨近端截骨术与胫骨高位截骨术治疗的疗效。方法:选取2016年11月到2017年12月在我院接受治疗的内侧间室性KOA患者32例,采用随机数字表法将所有患者分为腓骨近端截骨组与胫骨高位截骨组各16例,比较两组患者的手术时间、住院时间、术中出血量和住院费用,比较两组患者术前、术后3个月、术后6个月的美国特种外科医院膝关节评分(HSS)、美国膝关节协会评分(KSS)、视觉模拟疼痛评分(VAS)和股胫角(FTA),比较两组患者术后出现的并发症的发生率。结果:腓骨近端截骨组患者的手术时间、住院时间短于胫骨高位截骨组,术中出血量和住院费用均显著少于胫骨高位截骨组(P0.05);术后3个月、术后6个月两组患者的HSS评分、KSS评分均明显高于术前,VAS评分、FTA均明显低于术前(P0.05);术前、术后3个月、术后6个月两组患者的HSS评分、KSS评分、VAS评分、FTA比较均无统计学差异(P0.05);两组患者的并发症发生率比较无统计学差异(P0.05)。结论:腓骨近端截骨术和胫骨高位截骨术均可有效治疗内侧间室性KOA,改善患者的膝关节功能和疼痛感,纠正内翻畸形,但腓骨近端截骨术手术时间和住院时间更短,术中出血量和住院费用更少。     

Application of next-generation sequencing to screen for pathogenic mutations in 123 unrelated Chinese patients with Marfan syndrome or a related disease

Marfan syndrome(MFS) is a systemic connective tissue disease principally affecting the ocular, skeletal and cardiovascular systems. This autosomal dominant disorder carries a prevalence of 1:3,000 to 1:5,000. This study aims to define the mutational spectrum of MFS related genes in Chinese patients and to establish genotype-phenotype correlations in MFS. Panel-based targeted next-generation sequencing was used to analyze the FBN1, TGFBR1 and TGFBR2 genes in 123 unrelated Chinese individuals with MFS or a related disease. Genotype-phenotype correlation analyses were performed in mutation-positive patients. The results showed that 97 cases/families(78.9%; 97/123) harbor at least one(likely) pathogenic mutation, most of which were in FBN1; four patients had TGFBR1/2 mutations; and one patient harbored a SMAD3 mutation. Three patients had two FBN1 mutations, and all patients showed classical MFS phenotypes. Patients with a dominant negative-FBN1 mutation had a higher prevalence of ectopia lentis(EL). Patients carrying a haploinsufficiency-FBN1 mutation tended to have aortic dissection without EL. This study extends the spectrum of genetic backgrounds of MFS and enriches our knowledge of genotype-phenotype correlations.     

Vildagliptin improves high glucose‐induced endothelial mitochondrial dysfunction via inhibiting mitochondrial fission

The dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitor vildagliptin (VLD), a widely used anti‐diabetic drug, exerts favourable effects on vascular endothelium in diabetes. We determined for the first time the improving effects of VLD on mitochondrial dysfunction in diabetic mice and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) cultured under hyperglycaemic conditions, and further explored the mechanism behind the anti‐diabetic activity. Mitochondrial ROS (mtROS) production was detected by fluorescent microscope and flow cytometry. Mitochondrial DNA damage and ATP synthesis were analysed by real time PCR and ATPlite assay, respectively. Mitochondrial network stained with MitoTracker Red to identify mitochondrial fragmentation was visualized under confocal microscopy. The expression levels of dynamin‐related proteins (Drp1 and Fis1) were determined by immunoblotting. We found that VLD significantly reduced mtROS production and mitochondrial DNA damage, but enhanced ATP synthesis in endothelium under diabetic conditions. Moreover, VLD reduced the expression of Drp1 and Fis1, blocked Drp1 translocation into mitochondria, and blunted mitochondrial fragmentation induced by hyperglycaemia. As a result, mitochondrial dysfunction was alleviated and mitochondrial morphology was restored by VLD. Additionally, VLD promoted the phosphorylation of AMPK and its target acetyl‐CoA carboxylase in the setting of high glucose, and AMPK activation led to a decreased expression and activation of Drp1. In conclusion, VLD improves endothelial mitochondrial dysfunction in diabetes, possibly through inhibiting Drp1‐mediated mitochondrial fission in an AMPK‐dependent manner.     

MiR‐140 modulates the inflammatory responses of Mycobacterium tuberculosis‐infected macrophages by targeting TRAF6

This study aimed to examine miR‐140 expression in clinical samples from tuberculosis (TB) patients and to explore the molecular mechanisms of miR‐140 in host‐bacterial interactions during Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M tb) infections. The miR‐140 expression and relevant mRNA expression were detected by quantitative real‐time PCR (qRT‐PCR); the protein expression levels were analysed by ELISA and western blot; M tb survival was measured by colony formation unit assay; potential interactions between miR‐140 and the 3′ untranslated region (UTR) of tumour necrosis factor receptor‐associated factor 6 (TRAF6) was confirmed by luciferase reporter assay. MiR‐140 was up‐regulated in the human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from TB patients and in THP‐1 and U937 cells with M tb infection. Overexpression of miR‐140 promoted M tb survival; on the other hand, miR‐140 knockdown attenuated M tb survival. The pro‐inflammatory cytokines including interleukin 6, tumour necrosis‐α, interleukin‐1β and interferon‐γ were enhanced by M tb infection in THP‐1 and U937 cells. MiR‐140 overexpression reduced these pro‐inflammatory cytokines levels in THP‐1 and U937 cells with M tb infection; while knockdown of miR‐140 exerted the opposite actions. TRAF6 was identified to be a downstream target of miR‐140 and was negatively modulated by miR‐140. TRAF6 overexpression increased the pro‐inflammatory cytokines levels and partially restored the suppressive effects of miR‐140 overexpression on pro‐inflammatory cytokines levels in THP‐1 and U937 cells with M tb infection. In conclusion, our results implied that miR‐140 promoted M tb survival and reduced the pro‐inflammatory cytokines levels in macrophages with M tb infection partially via modulating TRAF6 expression.     

Establishment of wheat-Thinopyrum ponticum translocation lines with resistance to Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici Ug99

<正>Stem rust, caused by Puccinia graminis Pers.:Pers. f. sp. tritici Eriks. E. Henn. (Pgt), is a destructive wheat disease and has the potential to cause significant yield losses (Olivera et al., 2015;Soko et al., 2018). The emergence of Pgt race TTKSK, virulent to the widely deployed stem rust resistance gene Sr31 and originally named as isolate Pgt-Ug99 (Pretorius et al., 2000), emphasized     

Preliminary report of knockdown resistance in Culex pipiens pallens and Aedes koreicus from Korea

Pyrethroid insecticides have been effective and powerful for controlling mosquitoes. However, abuse of these insecticides increases the number of resistant mosquitoes. In this study, Culex pipiens pallens and Aedes koreicus were collected from an artificial reservoir in the vicinity of a populated area in Korea, which is also a migratory bird catchment area. To monitor resistance to pyrethroid insecticides in mosquitoes, genomic DNA from the collected mosquitoes was sequenced for the kdr mutation in the voltage‐gated sodium channel (VGSC) gene. As a result, three samples with homozygous resistance (17.6%) and one with heterozygous resistance (5.9%) were found among 17 Cx. pipiens pallens specimens. One of the samples had a unique sequence at the amplified VGSC region. Of the 15 Ae. koreicus, no insecticide resistant individuals were found. In Korea, this is the first report of kdr genetic traits in Ae. koreicus and Cx. pipiens pallens and of a unique VGSC allele in Cx. pipiens pallens. Further investigation is needed to monitor the kdr resistance of these species in Korea and to determine how the unique sequence found in Cx. pipiens pallens is related to insecticide resistance.     

Effects of sodium glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors on serum uric acid in type 2 diabetes mellitus: A systematic review with an indirect comparison meta-analysis

To describe the effects of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors on serum uric acid (SUA) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). PubMed, EMBASE, and CENTRAL were searched for randomized controlled trials of SGLT2 inhibitors in patients with T2DM up to Aug 10, 2017, without language or date restrictions. Thirty-one studies totaling 13,650 patients were included. SGLT2 inhibitors significantly decreased SUA levels compared with placebo, canagliflozin WMD –37.02?μmol/L, 95% CI [–38.41, –35.63], dapagliflozin WMD –38.05?μmol/L, 95% CI [–44.47, –31.62], empagliflozin WMD –42.07?μmol/L, 95% CI [–46.27, –37.86]. The drug class effect of SUA reduction suggesting SGLT2 inhibitors might be beneficial for diabetic patients with hyperuricemia.     

Big‐sized trees overrule remaining trees' attributes and species richness as determinants of aboveground biomass in tropical forests

Large‐diameter, tall‐stature, and big‐crown trees are the main stand structures of forests, generally contributing a large fraction of aboveground biomass, and hence play an important role in climate change mitigation strategies. Here, we hypothesized that the effects of large‐diameter, tall‐stature, and big‐crown trees overrule the effects of species richness and remaining trees attributes on aboveground biomass in tropical forests (i.e., we term the “big‐sized trees hypothesis”). Specifically, we assessed the importance of: (a) the “top 1% big‐sized trees effect” relative to species richness; (b) the “99% remaining trees effect” relative to species richness; and (c) the “top 1% big‐sized trees effect” relative to the “99% remaining trees effect” and species richness on aboveground biomass. Using environmental factor and forest inventory datasets from 712 tropical forest plots in Hainan Island of southern China, we tested several structural equation models for disentangling the relative effects of big‐sized trees, remaining trees attributes, and species richness on aboveground biomass, while considering for the full (indirect effects only) and partial (direct and indirect effects) mediation effects of climatic and soil conditions, as well as interactions between species richness and trees attributes. We found that top 1% big‐sized trees attributes strongly increased aboveground biomass (i.e., explained 55%–70% of the accounted variation) compared to species richness (2%–18%) and 99% remaining trees attributes (6%–10%). In addition, species richness increased aboveground biomass indirectly via increasing big‐sized trees but via decreasing remaining trees. Hence, we show that the “big‐sized trees effect” overrides the effects of remaining trees attributes and species richness on aboveground biomass in tropical forests. This study also indicates that big‐sized trees may be more susceptible to atmospheric drought. We argue that the effects of big‐sized trees on species richness and aboveground biomass should be tested for better understanding of the ecological mechanisms underlying forest functioning.