Evaluating the diagnostic and therapeutic significance of KL-6 in patients with interstitial lung diseases.

Background: This study aimed to assess the diagnostic value of Krebs von den Lungen-6 (KL-6), Surfactant protein-A (SP-A), SP-D and molecular matrixmetalloproteinase-7 (MMP-7) in discriminating patients with interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) from disease control subjects.

Methods: Serum levels of KL-6, SP-A, SP-D and MMP-7 were measured in both the ILD and non-ILD (NILD) groups. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was conducted to evaluate the diagnostic potential of these markers and laboratory indices.

Detection of serum human neutrophil lipocalin is an effective biomarker for the diagnosis and monitoring of children with bacterial infection.

Background: The study aimed to investigate the diagnostic efficiency of human neutrophil lipocalin (HNL) in bacterial infections in children.

Methods: This study included 49 pediatric patients with bacterial infections, 37 patients with viral infections, 30 patients with autoimmune diseases (AID) and 41 healthy controls (HCs). HNL, procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cell (WBC) and neutrophil counts were detected in the initial diagnosis and the following days.

Comparison of the Performance of 24 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Antibody Assays in the Diagnosis of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Patients.

Background: The accurate detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the key to control Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19). The performance of different antibody detection methods for diagnosis of COVID-19 is inconclusive.

Methods: Between 16 February and 28 February 2020, 384 confirmed COVID-19 patients and 142 healthy controls were recruited.

Combination of HLA-DR on -Specific Cells and Tuberculosis Antigen/Phytohemagglutinin Ratio for Discriminating Active Tuberculosis From Latent Tuberculosis Infection.

Background: Novel approaches for tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis, especially for distinguishing active TB (ATB) from latent TB infection (LTBI), are urgently warranted. The present study aims to determine whether the combination of HLA-DR on (MTB)-specific cells and TB antigen/phytohemagglutinin (TBAg/PHA) ratio could facilitate MTB infection status discrimination.

Methods: Between June 2020 and June 2021, participants with ATB and LTBI were recruited from Tongji Hospital (Qiaokou cohort) and Sino-French New City Hospital (Caidian cohort), respectively.

HLA-DR Expression Level in CD8 T Cells Correlates With the Severity of Children With Acute Infectious Mononucleosis.

Background: This study aimed to assess the host immune signatures associated with EBV infection and its clinical value in indicating the severity of children with acute infectious mononucleosis (IM).

Methods: Twenty-eight pediatric patients with IM aged 3-8 years were enrolled. The immune phenotypes and cytokine secretion capability of T cells were detected.

Clinical value of tumor-associated antigens and autoantibody panel combination detection in the early diagnostic of lung cancer.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the efficiency of combining tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) and autoantibodies in the diagnosis of lung cancer.

Methods: The serum levels of TAAs and seven autoantibodies (7-AABs) were detected from patients with lung cancer, benign lung disease and healthy controls. The performance of a new panel by combing TAAs and 7-AABs was evaluated for the early diagnosis of lung cancer.

TIM-3 regulates the NETs-mediated dendritic cell activation in myeloperoxidase-ANCA-associated vasculitis.

Objectives: T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (TIM-3) has been reported as an important regulatory molecule on T cells and plays a pivotal role in autoimmune diseases, but the impact on dendritic cells (DCs) is poorly explored. The formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) is considered as strongly implicated in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, such as in myeloperoxidase-antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody associated vasculitis (MPO-AAV). This study thus aimed to investigate the potential regulation roles of TIM-3 in the regulation of NETs-mediated DC activation in MPO-AAV.

Evaluation of the Automated Indirect Immunofluorescence Test for Antinuclear Antibodies.

The performance of the automated indirect immunofluorescence system was compared with the manual method for detection of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) from 354 clinical serum samples. We compared the results (negative or positive), ANA patterns, and titers for the two methods. The coincidence rates for ANA positive and negative samples were 93.

Combination of lymphocyte number and function in evaluating host immunity.

Accurate monitoring of host immunity is hampered by the flaws of conventional tests. The relationship between lymphocyte number and function is unknown. The function of lymphocytes was analyzed based on IFN-γ secretion assay.

Evaluation of the automated indirect immunofluorescence test for anti-dsDNA antibodies.

Background: Anti-dsDNA antibody is a specific antibody in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Indirect immunofluorescence test (IIFT) is a highly specific method in detecting anti-dsDNA antibody. The application of automated system has gained better consistency than manual operation.

The Use of TB-Specific Antigen/Phytohemagglutinin Ratio for Diagnosis and Treatment Monitoring of Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis.

Extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) has become more common in recent years; however, the diagnosis of EPTB remains a challenge. In this study, we analyzed the performance of the ratio of TB-specific antigen (TBAg) to phytohemagglutinin (PHA) (TBAg/PHA ratio) in T-SPOT.TB (T-SPOT) assay for diagnosis and treatment monitoring of EPTB.

Use of TBAg/PHA ratio in distinguishing tuberculoma from cancer in solitary pulmonary nodule or mass.

Introduction: Differentiation of tuberculoma from cancer in solitary pulmonary nodule or mass still remains a major challenge in diagnostic laboratories.

Objectives: The objective of this study is to determine the performance of T-SPOT.TB assay in discriminating these 2 diseases.

The source of Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific IFN-γ production in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of TB patients.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb)-specific IFN-γ secretion plays important roles in anti-tuberculosis (TB) immunity. Mtb-specific IFN-γ response can be induced in HIV/TB co-infected patients with a low CD4 lymphocyte count; this suggests that the source of Mtb-specific IFN-γ production is not limited in CD4(+) T lymphocytes. Currently, the major sources of Mtb-specific IFN-γ production and the function and phenotype of Mtb-specific IFN-γ-producing cells still remain unclear.

TIGIT expression levels on human NK cells correlate with functional heterogeneity among healthy individuals.

Human NK cells display extensive phenotypic and functional heterogeneity among healthy individuals, but the mechanism responsible for this variation is still largely unknown. Here, we show that a novel immune receptor, T-cell immunoglobulin and ITIM domain (TIGIT), is expressed preferentially on human NK cells but shows wide variation in its expression levels among healthy individuals. We found that the TIGIT expression level is related to the phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of NK cells, and that NK cells from healthy individuals can be divided into three categories according to TIGIT expression.

Tim-3 pathway affects NK cell impairment in patients with active tuberculosis.

Active tuberculosis (TB) patients show impaired NK cell function, and the underlying mechanism remains largely unknown. In this study, we confirmed the decrease in activation, cytokine secretion, and degranulation potential of NK cells in active TB patients. We further investigated whether coinhibitory receptor Tim-3 was involved with impairment of NK cells.

Clinical evaluation of the signal-to-cutoff ratios of hepatitis C virus antibody screening tests used in China.

The clinical diagnosis of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is important to direct an accurate course of therapy. Previous studies have reported a correlation between the signal-to-cutoff (S/CO) ratios of the anti-HCV screening test and confirm HCV infections for American anti-HCV screening kits as well as for those in China. It is currently unknown whether clinical laboratories use the same threshold S/CO ratios under routine conditions and if these values are acceptable for the analysis of Chinese samples.

Development of an economic and efficient strategy to detect HBsAg: application of "gray-zones" in ELISA and combined use of several detection assays.

Background: ELISA and CMIA are commonly used for detection of HBsAg. However, few investigations have been performed to evaluate their value in clinical practice, especially when jointly used. A reasonable and economic HBsAg testing algorithm is in great need.

Mutation analysis of IgVH gene in B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

The variable heavy chain region (VH) genes of 3 untreated patients with B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) were cloned and analyzed. The VH family used was VH3-11, VH3-72 and VH3-33. More than 2% difference from the corresponding germline gene was detected in all the 3 obtained potential functional genes (average 16.