Acute kidney injury in traumatic brain injury intensive care unit patients.

Background: The exact definition of Acute kidney injury (AKI) for patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) is unknown.

Aim: To compare the power of the "Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss of kidney function, and End-stage kidney disease" (RIFLE), Acute Kidney Injury Network (AKIN), Creatinine kinetics (CK), and Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) to determine AKI incidence/stage and their association with the in-hospital mortality rate of patients with TBI.

Methods: This retrospective study collected the data of patients admitted to the intensive care unit for neurotrauma from 2001 to 2012, and 1648 patients were included.

Clinical diagnosis of severe COVID-19: A derivation and validation of a prediction rule.

Background: The widespread coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has led to high morbidity and mortality. Therefore, early risk identification of critically ill patients remains crucial.

Aim: To develop predictive rules at the time of admission to identify COVID-19 patients who might require intensive care unit (ICU) care.

Virus load and virus shedding of SARS-CoV-2 and their impact on patient outcomes.

Background: Understanding a virus shedding patterns in body fluids/secretions is important to determine the samples to be used for diagnosis and to formulate infection control measures.

Aim: To investigate the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) shedding patterns and its risk factors.

Methods: All laboratory-confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 patients with complete medical records admitted to the Shenzhen Third People's Hospital from January 28, 2020 to March 8, 2020 were included.

Long-term chemogenetic activation of M1 glutamatergic neurons attenuates the behavioral and cognitive deficits caused by intracerebral hemorrhage.

Acute spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a life-threatening disease. It is often accompanied by severe neurological sequelae largely caused by the loss of integrity of the neural circuits. However, these neurological sequelae have few strong medical interventions.

Association between fibroblast growth factor 21 and bone mineral density in adults.

Purpose: Animal-based studies have reported a decrease in bone mass resulting from high level of fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). However, the correlation between plasma FGF21 levels and bone mineral density (BMD) is paradoxical in previous human-based studies, and the associations between FGF21 gene polymorphisms and BMD haven't been reported yet. Therefore, here, we evaluated plasma FGF21 levels with sufficient study samples, and performed genetic association test to reveal the physiological and genetic role of FGF21 on BMD in adults.

Rhein lysinate protects renal function in diabetic nephropathy of KK/HlJ mice.

The purpose of the present study was to assess the protective effects of rhein lysinate (RHL) in a KK/HlJ mouse model of diabetic nephropathy (DN) and to explore its mechanism of action. A total of 4 groups were established: C57BL/J control, the KK/HlJ model and 25 and 50 mg/kg/day RHL-treated KK/HlJ groups. The KK/HlJ mouse model of DN was established by streptozotocin injection, followed by maintenance on a specific diet.

Therapeutic effects of conditioned medium from bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells on epithelial-mesenchymal transition in A549 cells.

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a chronic lung disease. The transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)/Smad3 signaling pathway plays an important role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis. Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have been shown to be a modulator of the molecular aspects of the fibrosis pathway.

Oxidative stress promotes myocardial fibrosis by upregulating K3.1 channel expression in AGT-REN double transgenic hypertensive mice.

The intermediate-conductance Ca-activated K (K3.1) channels play a pivotal role in the cardiac fibroblast proliferation and inflammatory reaction during the progression of myocardial fibrosis. However, the relationship between K3.

Therapeutic effects of topical 5-aminolevulinic acid photodynamic therapy.

Objective: To evaluate the therapeutic effects of combined 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) on genital warts and the safety.

Methods: One hundred ten patients with genital warts who were treated in our hospital from June 2013 to October 2014 were selected. The warts and affected parts were disinfected with benzalkonium bromide solution, and the warts were covered with absorbent cotton that had already been added freshly prepared 20% ALA solution, packaged and fixed.

Protective role of ACE2-Ang-(1-7)-Mas in myocardial fibrosis by downregulating K3.1 channel via ERK1/2 pathway.

The intermediate-conductance Ca-activated K (K3.1) channel plays a vital role in myocardial fibrosis induced by angiotensin (Ang) II. However, as the antagonists of Ang II, the effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)-angiotensin-(1-7)-Mas axis on K3.

Effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells on the autophagic activity of alveolar macrophages in a rat model of silicosis.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) on the expression of the autophagy-associated proteins, microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC-3) and autophagy-related gene Beclin-1 (Beclin-1), in alveolar macrophages (AMs) in a rat model of silicosis. Furthermore, the study investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of BMSC treatment. A population of 60 adult female Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were allocated at random into three groups, namely the control, model and BMSC treatment groups (n=20 per group).

Resveratrol attenuates neuronal autophagy and inflammatory injury by inhibiting the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway in experimental traumatic brain injury.

Previous research has demonstrated that traumatic brain injury (TBI) activates autophagy and a neuroinflammatory cascade that contributes to substantial neuronal damage and behavioral impairment, and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) is an important mediator of this cascade. In the present study, we investigated the hypothesis that resveratrol (RV), a natural polyphenolic compound with potent multifaceted properties, alleviates brain damage mediated by TLR4 following TBI. Adult male Sprague Dawley rats, subjected to controlled cortical impact (CCI) injury, were intraperitoneally injected with RV (100 mg/kg, daily for 3 days) after the onset of TBI.

Remote ischemic precondition prevents radial artery endothelial dysfunction induced by ischemia and reperfusion based on a cyclooxygenase-2-dependent mechanism.

Ischemic preconditioning (IPC) and remote ischemic precondition (RIPC) are resistance to ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. They have common protective mechanism. Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 participate in the mechanism of IPC.

Neuroprotective effects of brilliant blue G on the brain following traumatic brain injury in rats.

The P2X7 inhibitor, brilliant blue G (BBG), has been reported as a neuroprotective drug against a variety of disorders, including neuropathic pain and brain ischemia. Currently, no studies have examined the potential for BBG to provide neuroprotection in animal models of TBI. The aim of the present study was to investigate the neuroprotective effect of BBG on TBI and to determine the underlying mechanisms.

Neuronic autophagy contributes to p-connexin 43 degradation in hippocampal astrocytes following traumatic brain injury in rats.

Connexins, gap junction proteins, have short half‑lives of only a few hours; therefore, degradation of these proteins can rapidly modulate their function. Autophagy is a type of degradation pathway that has been implicated in several diseases and was reported to be induced following traumatic brain injury (TBI). The aim of the present study was to investigate the involvement of neuronic autophagy in proteolysis of phosphorylated connexin 43 (p‑Cx43) in hippocampal astrocytes following TBI in rats.

Synergy of Taxol and rhein lysinate associated with the downregulation of ERK activation in lung carcinoma cells.

In previous studies we observed that rhein lysinate (RHL), a salt of rhein and lysine that is easily dissolved in water, inhibited the growth of tumor cells in breast cancer, ovarian cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma and cervical cancer. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of RHL on H460 and A549 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells using a combination of RHL and Taxol. A 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used to determine the growth inhibition effect of the drugs in the H460 and A549 cells.

Cytochrome c release in acute myocardial infarction predicts poor prognosis and myocardial reperfusion on contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging.

Background: Myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) can trigger no-flow, resulting in myocardial necrosis and apoptosis, even a poor prognosis. Cytochrome c can induce an apoptotic process. The aim of our study was to assess the relationship between systemic cytochrome c levels and the occurrence of no-reflow in STEMI.

Dysregulated renin-angiotensin system contributes to acute lung injury caused by hind-limb ischemia-reperfusion in mice.

The mechanism of acute lung injury (ALI) following limb ischemia-reperfusion (LIR) is not yet clear. We speculate that the unbalanced expression of angiotensin-converting enzymes (ACE and ACE2) and angiotensins [Ang II and Ang-(1-7)] in the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) is a major cause of ALI. To prove this hypothesis, pathological changes, lung edema, and permeability of wild-type mice at different time points within 12 h of reperfusion after 2 h of hind-limb ischemia were first detected by morphological method, measurements of wet-to-dry weight ratio, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid.

Therapeutic effect of exogenous bone marrow‑derived mesenchymal stem cell transplantation on silicosis via paracrine mechanisms in rats.

Silicosis is a well-known occupational disease, characterized by epithelial injury, fibroblast proliferation, expansion of the lung matrix and dyspnea. At present, no effective treatment methods for silicosis have been identified. The present study aimed to investigate the protective potential of exogenous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) transplantation on experimental silica-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats and analyze the underlying paracrine mechanisms associated with its therapeutic effects.

Effects of chemical combinations on the parthenogenetic activation of mouse oocytes.

The aim of this study was to identify an optimal method for the parthenogenetic activation of mouse oocytes. Ethanol (EH), strontium chloride (SrCl) and ionomycin calcium salt were each combined with cytochalasin B to induce the parthenogenetic activation of CD-1 mouse oocytes. Among the EH combination groups, the blastocyst formation and hatching rates of the group that was activated with EH and CB for 5 min were significantly higher compared with those of the groups that were activated for 7 and 10 min (P<0.