Clinical and virological features of asymptomatic and mild symptomatic patients with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron infection at Shanghai Fangcang shelter hospital.

Objective: The objective of this study is to evaluate and compare clinical and virological characteristics of asymptomatic and mild symptomatic patients of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Omicron BA.2.2 variant infection and identify risk factors associated with the prolonged viral negative conversion duration.

Recurrent hyperkalemia in patients with chronic kidney disease and hepatitis C treated with direct antiviral agents.

Background: Sofosbuvir is the keystone of direct antiviral agents for the chronic hepatitis C (CHC). The safety of sofosbuvir in patients with stage 4-5 chronic kidney disease (CKD) needs further observation in real world.

Case Presentation: Thirty-three patients with stage 5 CKD and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection from 2 hemodialysis centers accepted sofosbuvir based treatment as we reported previously.

Computed Tomography-guided Cryoablation for Adrenal Pheochromocytoma: Safety and Clinical Effectiveness.

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and clinical effectiveness of computed tomography (CT)-guided cryoablation for adrenal pheochromocytoma (AP).

Materials And Methods: From July 2015 to October 2018, we observed 8 patients that underwent CT-guided cryoablation for AP. The blood pressure and pulse before treatment did not exceed 150/90 mm Hg and 90 times/min, respectively.

Elevated interleukin-35 suppresses liver inflammation by regulation of T helper 17 cells in acute hepatitis B virus infection.

Interleukin (IL)-35 is a responsive anti-inflammatory cytokine implicated in different diseases processes. It has been reported that elevated IL-35 contributed to immunosuppression in chronic hepatitis by modulation of T helper 17 (Th17) and regulatory T cells. However, the role of IL-35 in acute hepatitis B (AHB) was still not completely elucidated.

Alcohol consumption analysis among patients with liver disease in China.

Background: Alcohol consumption has been observed to be a contributing factor in liver damage. However, very few studies have tried to decipher the correlation between patients with liver disease and alcohol consumption. Therefore, this study was planned to determine the prevalence of alcohol consumption among patients with liver disease, and to evaluate the risk factors, liver diseases, and chronic medical conditions associated with alcohol drinking.

Interferon-α-Enhanced CD100/Plexin-B1/B2 Interactions Promote Natural Killer Cell Functions in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection.

Background: CD100, also known as Sema4D, is an immune semaphorin constitutively expressed on natural killer (NK) cells and T cells. As an immune activation molecule, CD100 has important immunoregulatory effects on NK functions by enhancing the interactions between NK cells and target cells. The aim of this study was to investigate whether hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection affects CD100 expression, and whether interferon-α treatment enhances NK killing activity to facilitate HCV clearance CD100.

Role and regulation of autophagy and apoptosis by nitric oxide in hepatic stellate cells during acute liver failure.

Background & Aims: We previously found that hepatic stellate cell activation induced by autophagy maintains the liver architecture to prevent collapse during acute liver failure. Nitric oxide has shown to induce hepatic stellate cell apoptosis. Whether and how nitric oxide is involved in acute liver failure and autophagy remains unclear.

SVR Rates of HCV-infected population under PEG-IFN-α/R treatment in Northwest China.

Background: Chronic HCV Patients taking PEG-IFN-α/R from different ethnic groups have different probabilities of reaching a sustained viral response (SVR). There are many influence factors, such as HCV genotype, IL-28B single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP), Fibrosis 4 index (FIB-4), and aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) score. But the baseline factors in relation to treatment outcome was still not much clear.

Notch Signaling Contributes to Liver Inflammation by Regulation of Interleukin-22-Producing Cells in Hepatitis B Virus Infection.

The mechanism of hepatitis B virus (HBV) induced liver inflammation is not fully elucidated. Notch signaling augmented interleukin (IL)-22 secretion in CD4 T cells, and Notch-IL-22 axis fine-tuned inflammatory response. We previously demonstrated a proinflammatory role of IL-22 in HBV infection.

Will Sofosbuvir/Ledipasvir (Harvoni) Be Cost-Effective and Affordable for Chinese Patients Infected with Hepatitis C Virus? An Economic Analysis Using Real-World Data.

Background: Little is known on the cost-effectiveness of novel regimens for hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared with standard-of-care with pegylated interferon (pegIFN) and ribavirin (RBV) therapy in developing countries. We evaluated cost-effectiveness of sofosbuvir/ledipasvir for 12 weeks compared with a 48-week pegIFN-RBV regimen in Chinese patients with genotype 1b HCV infection by economic regions.

Methods: A decision analytic Markov model was developed to estimate quality-adjusted-life-years, lifetime cost of HCV infection and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs).

The Efficacy of Add-on Telbivudine Versus Switching to Pegylated Interferon Alfa-2a in Chronic Hepatitis B Patients With Poor Responses to Adefovir.

Background: There are limited options for chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients who have poor responses to adefovir (ADV).

Objectives: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of adding on telbivudine (LdT) or switching to pegylated interferon alfa-2a (PEG-IFN-α2a) as alternative rescue therapies for patients with poor responses to the initial ADV treatments.

Patients And Methods: Ninety-seven CHB patients with HBV DNA > 2 log10 copies/mL 48 weeks after ADV monotherapy were included in this study.

Kinetics and Immunodominance of Virus-Specific T Cell Responses During Hantaan Virus Infection.

Immunodominant T cell responses are important for protection against virus challenge. However, studies screening for the immunodominant T cell responses and following their kinetics in acute Hantaan virus (HTNV) infection are very limited. Herein, the HTNV nucleocapsid protein-specific T cell responses were longitudinally screened in 15 patients with acute HTNV infection, eight of whom had a particularly severe hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).

Role of A20 in interferon-α-mediated functional restoration of myeloid dendritic cells in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a global health problem characterized by a high rate of chronic infection, which may in part be due to a defect in myeloid dendritic cells (mDCs). This defect appears to be remedied by treatment with interferon-α (IFN-α) -based antiviral therapies; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying mDC dysfunction in HCV infection and restoration by IFN-α treatment are unclear. The ubiquitin-editing protein A20 plays a crucial role in controlling the maturation, cytokine production and immunostimulatory function of mDCs.

Involvement of the Akt/NF-κB pathways in the HTNV-mediated increase of IL-6, CCL5, ICAM-1, and VCAM-1 in HUVECs.

Background: Hantaan virus (HTNV) infection causes a severe form of HFRS(hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome)in Asia. Although HTNV has been isolated for nearly forty years, the pathogenesis of HFRS is still unknown, and little is known regarding the signaling pathway that is activated by the virus.

Methodology/principal Findings: Cardamonin was selected as a NF-κB inhibitor, and indirect immunofluorescence assays were used to detect the effect of cardamonin on HTNV-infected HUVECs.

Hantaan virus infection induces CXCL10 expression through TLR3, RIG-I, and MDA-5 pathways correlated with the disease severity.

Hantaan virus (HTNV) is a major agent causing hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). Although the pathogenesis of HFRS is unclear, some reports have suggested that the abundant production of proinflammatory cytokines and uncontrolled inflammatory responses may contribute to the development of HFRS. CXCL10 is one of these cytokines and is found to be involved in the pathogenesis of many virus infectious diseases.

Role of Nogo‑A in the regulation of hepatocellular carcinoma SMMC‑7721 cell apoptosis.

Nogo-A has been identified as an inhibitor of neurite outgrowth specific to the central nervous system. However, little is known about the role of Nogo-A in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common primary malignant tumor with a high mortality rate. This study aimed to investigate the role of endogenous Nogo-A in human liver cancer cells.

Elevated plasma soluble Sema4D/CD100 levels are associated with disease severity in patients of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.

Background: Hantaan virus (HTNV) could cause a severe lethal hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) in humans. Despite a limited understanding of the pathogenesis of HFRS, the importance of host-related immune responses in the pathogenesis of HFRS has been widely recognized. CD100/Sema4D has been demonstrated to play an important role in physiological and pathological immune responses, but the functional role of CD100 in infectious diseases has only been inadequately reported.

Kinetics of Th17 cytokines during telbivudine therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B.

Th17 cells and the secreting cytokines play an important role in the immune response and inflammation that is induced by hepatitis B virus (HBV). However, it remains not fully elucidated how the antiviral agents affect Th17 cytokines and signal pathway. Telbivudine therapy has been proved to inhibit HBV replication effectively and to improve clinical outcome of chronic hepatitis B (CHB).

HLA-A2 and B35 restricted hantaan virus nucleoprotein CD8+ T-cell epitope-specific immune response correlates with milder disease in hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.

Background: Hantaan virus (HTNV) infection in humans is a serious public health concern in Asia. A potent T cell activation peptide vaccine from HTNV structure protein represents a promising immunotherapy for disease control. However, the T cell epitopes of the HTNV restricted by the HLA alleles and the role of epitope-specific T cell response after HTNV infection remain largely unexplored.

Inhibition of connective tissue growth factor suppresses hepatic stellate cell activation in vitro and prevents liver fibrosis in vivo.

Activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSC) represents a critical event in fibrosis, and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) plays a profibrotic activity and a key factor in the pathogenesis of tissue fibrosis. The current study aimed to determine whether lentivirus-mediated short hairpin RNA (shRNA)-targeted CTGF downregulates the CTGF expression and furthermore whether it suppresses the activation and proliferation of HSC in vitro and prevents liver fibrosis in vivo. HSC-T6 cells were treated with recombinant lentivirus carrying CTGF siRNA.

Telbivudine plus adefovir therapy for chronic hepatitis B patients with virological breakthrough or genotypic resistance to telbivudine.

Background/aim: There is very limited experience in the management of telbivudine (LdT)-associated virological breakthrough (VBT) and resistance in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients, and the guideline recommendations are primitively based on the general principles of rescue therapy to nucleos(t)ide analog resistance. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of the addition of adefovir (ADV) in hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive CHB patients with VBT or resistance to LdT.

Methods: Thirty-seven CHB patients with confirmed VBT and 31 patients with genotypic resistance to LdT were enrolled and thereafter treated with a combination of LdT and ADV for 12 months.

Thrombocytopenia as a predictor of severe acute kidney injury in patients with Hantaan virus infections.

Background: Hematological abnormalities often occur several days before kidney injury in patients with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). We aimed to investigate the prevalence and prognostic value of the early hematological markers in patients with HFRS caused by Hantaan virus (HTNV) infection.

Methods: In a retrospective cohort study, we analyzed the case records of 112 patients with acute HTNV infection and evaluated the hematological markers for early prediction and risk stratification of HFRS patients with acute kidney injury (AKI).

Sustained high level of serum VEGF at convalescent stage contributes to the renal recovery after HTNV infection in patients with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.

To investigate the role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the increased permeability of vascular endothelial cells after Hantaan virus (HTNV) infection in humans, the concentration of VEGF in serum from HTNV infected patients was quantified with sandwich ELISA. Generally, the level of serum VEGF in patients was elevated to 607.0 (542.

The genetic polymorphisms of HLA are strongly correlated with the disease severity after Hantaan virus infection in the Chinese Han population.

The polymorphism of human leukocyte antigen (HLA), which is a genetic factor that influences the progression of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) after Hantaan virus (HTNV) infection, was incompletely understood. In this case-control study, 76 HFRS patients and 370 healthy controls of the Chinese Han population were typed for the HLA-A, -B, and -DRB1 loci. The general variation at the HLA-DRB1 locus was associated with the onset of HFRS (P < 0.