Age-associated declined function of endothelial progenitor cells and its correlation with plasma IL-18 or IL-23 concentrations in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

Background: ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) persists to be prevalent in the elderly with a dismal prognosis. The capacity of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) is reduced with aging. Nevertheless, the influence of aging on the functionality of EPCs in STEMI is not fully understood.

Association Between Ultra-Processed Food Consumption and Leucocyte Telomere Length: A cross-sectional study of UK Biobank.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association between consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and leucocyte telomere length (LTL).

Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized data from the UK Biobank, including a total of 64,690 participants. LTL was measured using Q-PCR with natural logarithmic conversion and Z-score normalization.

The association of sleep duration and leukocyte telomere length in middle-aged and young-old adults: A cross-sectional study of UK Biobank.

Background: The relationships between sleep duration and aging-associated diseases are intricate. Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is a biomarker of aging, while the association of sleep duration and LTL is unclear.

Methods: The 310,091 study participants from UK Biobank were enrolled in this cross-sectional study.

Mannan-binding lectin exacerbates the severity of psoriasis by promoting plasmacytoid dendritic cell differentiation via the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3-interferon regulatory factor 8 axis.

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease mediated by host immune responses. Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC) and interferon (IFN)-α secreted by pDC are involved in the initiation of psoriasis. Mannan-binding lectin (MBL), a vital component of the complement pathway, plays a critical role in innate immune defense and the inflammatory response.

Analysis of posttraumatic stress disorder in children with road traffic injury in Wenzhou, China.

Objective: Road traffic accidents are the leading health threat to children and cause significant long-term mental health problems. This study aimed to characterize posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children suffering from road traffic injuries (RTIs) in Wenzhou, China.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of 537 children (aged 1 to 13 years old) with RTIs.

Treponemal antibody in CSF and cellular immunity in peripheral blood of syphilitic patients with persisting positive rapid plasma regain.

The ratio of patients with RPR constant positive more than 2 years despite receiving standard syphilis treatment has been reported to be 11.54%~31.3%.

A correlation study of the expression of resistin and glycometabolism in muscle tissue after traumatic brain injury in rats.

Objective: To investigate the expression pattern of resistin (RSTN) in skeletal muscle tissue and its influence on glycometabolism in rats with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Methods: Seventy-eight SD rats were randomly divided into traumatic group (n=36), RSTN group (n=36) and sham operation group (n=6). Fluid percussion TBI model was developed in traumatic and RSTN groups and the latter received additional 1 mg RSTN antibody treatment for each rat.

Activation of coagulation, anti-coagulation, fibrinolysis and the complement system in patients with urticaria.

Background: Recently released studies indicate that activation of blood coagulation may be involved in causing urticaria.

Objective: To evaluate whether or not anticoagulation, fibrinolysis and the complement system are also involved in the pathogenesis of urticaria.

Methods: Coagulant factors, anticoagulant factors, fibrinolytic markers and complement components were analysed in patients with acute urticaria (AU) and chronic urticaria (CU).

An important role of matrix metalloproteinase-8 in angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo.

Aims: Growing evidence suggests a close association of plaque angiogenesis with atherosclerotic plaque formation and progression, and an important role of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) in angiogenesis and atherosclerosis. We attempted to investigate the functional involvements of MMP8 in angiogenesis.

Methods And Results: Knockdown of MMP8 in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HuVECs) with MMP-8 shRNA lentivirus resulted in a decrease in in vitro capillary-like network formation, cell proliferation and migration, and impaired its capacity of in vivo angiogenesis.

Functional involvements of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 in smooth muscle differentiation from stem cells in vitro and in vivo.

To investigate the functional involvements of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNPA1) in smooth muscle cell (SMC) differentiation from stem cells, embryonic stem cells were cultivated on collagen IV-coated plates to allow for SMC differentiation. We found that hnRNPA1 gene and protein expression was upregulated significantly during differentiation and coexpressed with SMC differentiation markers in the stem cell-derived SMCs as well as embryonic SMCs of 12.5 days of mouse embryos.

Functional role of matrix metalloproteinase-8 in stem/progenitor cell migration and their recruitment into atherosclerotic lesions.

Rationale: Accumulating evidence indicates that stem/progenitor cells (SPCs) represent an important source of cells in atheromas and contribute to lesion formation and progression.

Objective: We investigated whether matrix metalloproteinase-8 (MMP8) played a role in SPC migration and their recruitment into atheromas.

Methods And Results: We found that SPCs in atheromas expressed MMP8 and that MMP8 knockout significantly reduced SPC numbers in atherosclerotic lesions in apolipoprotein E (ApoE)-deficient mice fed a Western diet.

ERCC1 polymorphisms and risk of adult glioma in a Chinese population: a hospital-based case-control study.

To examine the associations of two polymorphisms in excision repair cross-complementing rodent repair deficiency complementation group 1 (ERCC1) gene, C8092A (rs3212986) and T19007C (rs11615), with the risk of adult glioma, we performed a hospital-based case-control study with 257 new cases of glioma and 278 controls in Wenzhou, China. Results showed that polymorphisms C8092A and T19007C in ERCC1 gene were not associated with the risk of glioma in a Chinese population. Further studies in Chinese populations with larger sample sizes are still warranted.