Publications by authors named "Le Kang"

Purpose: This retrospective cohort study aims to compare short-term complication rates between patients receiving open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) for associated versus elementary acetabular fractures, with a secondary objective of identifying independent risk factors for adverse outcomes.

Methods: The American College of Surgeons (ACS) National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database was queried using current procedural terminology (CPT) codes to identify patients that underwent ORIF for associated acetabular (CPT 27228) or elementary acetabular fractures (CPT 27226, 27227) from 2010 to 2021. Propensity score matching was employed to account for baseline differences and the short-term complication rates were compared between the cohorts.

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Neutrophil elastase (NE) has been reported to be a pro-inflammatory stimulus for macrophages. The aim of the present study was to determine the impact of NE exposure on the human macrophage proteome and evaluate its impact on pro-inflammatory signals. Human blood monocytes from healthy volunteers were differentiated to macrophages and then exposed to either 500 nM of NE or control vehicle for 2 h in triplicate.

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  • * Over 8 weeks, participants' mental health was assessed and compared to a treatment-as-usual group, revealing significant short-term improvements in depression symptoms shortly after the intervention.
  • * While the UPLIFT group showed a notable reduction in depression symptoms (PHQ-9 scores) immediately post-treatment, changes in anxiety symptoms (GAD-7 scores) were not statistically confirmed, suggesting future research is needed.
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Background: Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] is an independent risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. The relationship between Lp(a) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in the context of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels remains controversial due to conflicting results from previous studies.

Objectives: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to clarify the association between Lp(a) and risk of MACE across different hs-CRP levels in both primary and secondary prevention settings.

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  • Obesity is a significant risk factor for kidney cancer, with recent research confirming the mechanisms linking them and highlighting the complicated "obesity paradox" regarding cancer survival outcomes.
  • A comprehensive review of the latest literature shows that new evidence supports obesity as a key factor in kidney cancer's development, emphasizing the role of perirenal fat in the disease's progression.
  • The findings suggest that the increase in kidney cancer cases corresponds with rising obesity rates and explore various mechanisms, including abnormal hormone levels and inflammation, contributing to obesity's impact on kidney cancer.
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We employed an interrupted time series analysis to assess the impact of changing electronic medical records, concurrent with a Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection (CAUTI) Taskforce, on CAUTI rates. We found that rates increased in most ICUs before returning to baseline. These findings suggest that a multi-faceted approach may reduce CAUTI rates.

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Objective: To determine and compare the intraoperative durability of 4 major surgical glove brands.

Design Setting And Participants: This study is a randomized open-label clinical trial in which surgical gloves from 4 manufacturers are randomized to 5 surgical subspecialty study groups: (1) orthopedic surgery, (2) neurosurgery, (3) colorectal surgery, (4) trauma or acute general surgery, and (5) cardiac and plastic surgeries. The study was divided into 10 periods, with a cross-over design, and was conducted at a tertiary care academic medical center.

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  • Stomata are crucial for photosynthesis and water management in plants, and two proteins, StEPF2 and StEPFL9, have opposing effects on stomatal density in transgenic potato plants.
  • Transgenic lines were created, showing that E2 plants (overexpressing StEPF2) had fewer stomata, while ST plants (overexpressing StEPFL9) had an abundance and performed better in growth and biomass under well-watered conditions.
  • However, under water-limited conditions, E2 plants excelled with better water-use efficiency and higher yields, indicating that these proteins could be vital for breeding potatoes that can thrive amid climate change.
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Background: Entomopathogenic fungal infection-induced dysbiosis of host microbiota offers a window into understanding the complex interactions between pathogenic fungi and host symbionts. Such insights are critical for enhancing the efficacy of mycoinsecticides. However, the utilization of these interactions in pest control remains largely unexplored.

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  • Chinese Baijiu is a well-known alcoholic drink from China, and this study focuses on the interactions between key microorganisms during its fermentation at different temperatures.
  • Results showed that one microorganism significantly reduced the growth and lactic acid production of another when the temperature was above 15 °C, while the first microorganism did not affect the growth of a third microorganism involved in ethanol production.
  • A detailed analysis revealed that key enzymes for sugar metabolism and lactic acid production were less active in the presence of the dominant microorganism, highlighting its inhibitory role and offering insights for optimizing Baijiu fermentation processes.
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Venous graft decay (VGD) occurs in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), and ischemia-reperfusion oxidative stress injury during the operation is involved in VGD. To explore the cellular phenotypic changes during this process, a stable oxidative stress model of human saphenous vein endothelial cells (HSVECs) is constructed. Through proteomics and cell experiments, it is found that the expression of BCL2L13 is upregulated during oxidative stress of HSVECs, and BCL2L13 regulated mitophagy through receptor-mediated interaction with LC3 and plays a role in cell protection.

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Tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs) have been shown to promote immunosuppression and tumor progression, and a high TAN frequency predicts poor prognosis in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Dysregulation of CREB-binding protein (CBP)/P300 function has been observed with multiple cancer types. The bromodomain (BRD) of CBP/P300 has been shown to regulate its activity.

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In a phase 1 study (NCT04000165), we established proof of concept for activating pyruvate kinase (PK) in sickle cell disease (SCD) as a viable antisickling therapy. AG-348 (mitapivat), a PK activator, increased adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and decreased 2,3-diphosphoglycerate levels while patients were on treatment, in line with the mechanism of the drug. We noted that the increased hemoglobin (Hb) persisted for 4 weeks after stopping AG-348 until the end of study (EOS).

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Objective: Previous studies have suggested that irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is strongly associated with psychiatric disorders. However, it is unclear whether this association is causal, concomitant, or accidental. Thus, we performed Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to evaluate the causal effects of several psychiatric disorders on IBS.

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Background: Although the emerging NGS-based assays, metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) and targeted next-generation sequencing (tNGS), have been extensively utilized for the identification of pathogens in pulmonary infections, there have been limited studies systematically evaluating differences in the efficacy of mNGS and multiplex PCR-based tNGS in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) specimens.

Methods: In this study, 85 suspected infectious BALF specimens were collected. Parallel mNGS and tNGS workflows to each sample were performed; then, we comparatively compared their consistency in detecting pathogens.

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Aims: Finerenone has been approved for treating diabetic kidney disease (DKD) with reducing cardiorenal risk. Real-world data on finerenone treatment for the management of DKD are presently lacking. This study aimed to investigate the effect of finerenone on the renal parameters of the Chinese DKD population in the real-world medical setting for the first time, especially in combination with renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASi) and sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i).

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Locusts exhibit phenotypic plasticity in response to population density changes, with distinct phenotypes in the solitary and gregarious phases. In the past decade, many studies have revealed the molecular mechanisms underlying phase changes, which include the change of body coloration, pheromones, behavior, flight, fecundity, immunity, and aging. Our understanding of the molecular mechanisms related to these phenotypic differences has expanded in breadth and depth with the decoding of the locust genome, involving transcriptional, post-transcriptional, translational, and epigenetic regulation.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The paper introduces a new design method for x-ray active optics that relies on deterministic modulation instead of traditional measurement feedback.
  • - It features an experimental validation using an x-ray mirror that undergoes localized thermal elastic deformation to support the new design approach.
  • - Results show that this innovative active optics system could achieve greater accuracy than conventional surface shape measurement tools.
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Background: Pancreatic fibrosis is the main pathological feature of chronic pancreatitis. There is a lack of medications that effectively alleviate or reverse pancreatic fibrosis and thus cure chronic pancreatitis.

Methods: We screened drugs that could alleviate pancreatic fibrosis from 80 traditional Chinese medicine monomers and verified their efficacy and mechanisms.

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Background: Mitigating attrition is a key component to reduce selection bias in longitudinal randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Few studies of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) allow for the examination of long-term retention. This analysis explores the relationship between attrition, baseline measures, and condition assigned for a RCT involving ENDS differing in nicotine delivery over a 24-week intervention period.

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Insects and their gut bacteria form a tight and beneficial relationship, especially in utilization of host nutrients. The red turpentine beetle (RTB), a destructive and invasive pine pest, employs mutualistic microbes to facilitate its invasion success. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the utilization of nutrients remains unknown.

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Background: Gleditsiae Sinensis Fructus (GSF) is commonly used in traditional medicine to treat respiratory diseases such as bronchial asthma. However, there is a lack of research on the chemical composition of GSF and the pharmacological substance and mechanism of action for GSF in treating bronchial asthma.

Purpose: The chemical constituents of GSF were analyzed using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS).

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Sex pheromones play a crucial role in mate location and reproductive success. Insects face challenges in finding mates in low-density environments. The population dynamics of locusts vary greatly, ranging from solitary individuals to high-density swarms, leading to multiple-trait divergence between solitary and gregarious phases.

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