Publications by authors named "Wei-jie Zhang"

Article Synopsis
  • Bitterness is sensed through bitter taste receptors that are primarily found in the tongue, but also throughout the respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, reproductive, and nervous systems.
  • Recent research indicates these receptors play a key role in regulating essential physiological processes and are significant in disease treatment strategies.
  • The paper reviews the structure, classification, and signaling pathways of bitter taste receptors, as well as their connection to various diseases and the potential of bitter taste receptor agonists for future research.
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Three polysaccharides, PTC, PTH, and PTB, were extracted from Pinellia ternata using three different extraction conditions: room temperature water, hot water, and 2 % NaCO solution. PTC and PTH were composed of rhamnose, glucose, galactose, mannose, glucuronic acid, galacturonic acid, and arabinose, which combine to form complex structures. PTB was composed solely of glucose and rhamnose.

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Introduction: Many challenges remain for long-term survival of renal allografts. Once-daily sirolimus (SRL) combined with low-dose extended-release tacrolimus (LER-TAC) may improve medication adherence and reduce the potential nephrotoxicity of calcineurin inhibitors (CNI) compared with standard immunosuppression regimens, thus potentially improving long-term graft survival.

Methods: This retrospective, observational, single-center, propensity score matching (PSM) study compared conversion to SRL combined with low-dose ER-TAC and mycophenolic acid (MPA) combined with standard-dose TAC in kidney transplant recipients.

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Article Synopsis
  • ABO-incompatible (ABO-i) kidney transplants are increasingly successful due to better immunosuppressive treatments, but they carry risks like complications and rejection.
  • A case study describes a recipient with blood type O who received a kidney from a type B donor and initially succeeded after a desensitization process, but later experienced multiple rejection episodes due to a parvovirus B19 infection.
  • The conclusion stresses that while desensitization and immunosuppressants are necessary, they can lead to serious infections that might trigger acute rejection and ultimately result in transplant failure.
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  • IVIG has been used for over 40 years for various medical purposes, including kidney transplantation, treating antibody-mediated rejection, and preventing certain infectious diseases.
  • It works through complex and diverse mechanisms that may combine to enhance its effectiveness, but can also lead to serious adverse effects.
  • This review aims to summarize the mechanisms of action, clinical uses, potential risks, and preventative strategies for IVIG and hyperimmune globulin treatments.
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Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6), an almost exclusively cytoplasmic enzyme, plays an essential role in many biological processes and exerts its deacetylation-dependent/independent effects on a variety of target molecules, which has contributed to the flourishing growth of relatively isoform-specific enzyme inhibitors. Renal transplantation (RT) is one of the alternatively preferred treatments and the most cost-effective treatment approaches for the great majority of patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). HDAC6 expression and activity have recently been shown to be increased in kidney disease in a number of studies.

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Cajaninstilbene acid (CSA), longistylin A (LLA), and longistylin C (LLC) are three characteristic stilbenes isolated from pigeon pea. The objective of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial activity of these stilbenes against Staphylococcus aureus and even methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and test the possibility of inhibiting biofilm formation. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) of these stilbenes were evaluated.

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Four new stilbenes (1-4) and one new flavonoid (5), named cajanines D-H, together with three known stilbenes (6-8) were isolated from the leaves of Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp. (pigeon pea).

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  • Lymph node metastasis in breast cancer leads to worse outcomes, and the study utilizes mass spectrometry-based proteomics to identify proteins linked to this phenomenon.
  • The research involved analyzing proteins in breast cancer cell lines and patient serum samples, revealing significant differences in protein expression associated with lymph node metastasis.
  • Four specific proteins—CTGF, EphA2, S100A4, and PRDX2—show promise as potential biomarkers for diagnosing and treating breast cancer related to lymph node metastasis.
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The extract of the whole plant of L. yielded four new sesquiterpenes including a novel skeleton (claroguaiane A, ), two guaianolides (claroguaianes B-C, ), and one eudesmanolide (claroeudesmane A, ), together with three known sesquiterpenoids (). The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis especially 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy and HRESIMS data.

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The extract of the whole plant of Carpesium abrotanoides L. yielded five new sesquiterpenes including four eudesmanes (1-4) and one eremophilane (5). The new compounds were characterized by spectroscopic analysis especially 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy and HRESIMS data.

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Background: Functional constipation (FC) in children affects their growth, development and quality of life. L-pipecolic acid (L-PA) was decreased in FC children based on gut microbiome and serum metabolomic. In this study, loperamide-induced constipation in mice was used to evaluate the effects of L-PA on constipated mice.

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It is difficult to distinguish between HO and DO due to their very similar properties. Triphenylimidazole derivatives with carboxyl groups () show intramolecular charge transfer that responds to polarities and pH of solvents. Here, a series of with very high photoluminescence quantum yields (73-98%) were synthesized to distinguish DO from HO by the method of wavelength-changeable fluorescence.

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  • Renal ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) occurs during kidney transplantation, and the study investigates the role of mitophagy and immune microenvironment (IME) in IRI.
  • Researchers analyzed mitophagy-associated IME genes using various biological databases and performed validations in human kidney cells and mouse models to determine their impact on IRI prognosis.
  • The study identifies several key genes and immune cells linked to IRI and successfully constructs a prediction model for IRI outcomes based on these factors, confirming its reliability through experimental validation.
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: Aiming at understanding whether there are cases of near-tolerance among long-term surviving kidney transplant recipients in our center, or even operant tolerance can be attempted based on their immune status, we analyzed changes of immune cell subsets and cytokines in various groups, and evaluated immune status of long-term survival recipients. : A real-world, observational, retrospective cohort study was conducted in our hospital. Twenty-eight long-term recipients were selected as study subjects, 15 recent postoperative stable recipients, and 15 healthy subjects as controls.

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Article Synopsis
  • Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common problem in older men, and different treatments can have different results, so more research is needed to understand them better.
  • This study looked at two treatments for BPH: transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) and plasmakinetic enucleation of the prostate (PKEP), comparing how well they work and their side effects.
  • Results showed that PKEP had fewer complications and shorter hospital stays compared to TURP, and it also resulted in better quality of life scores for patients at follow-up.
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To investigate nitrate and nitrite content in fresh vegetables, 264 samples were randomly collected in the farmers' markets in Shanghai, Southeast China. The results indicate that 25.0% of the fresh vegetables were critically or more contaminated by nitrate [>1440 mg/kg FW (Fresh weight)].

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Two new phenolic glycosides ( and ), one known analogue (), along with a new diterpene glucoside () were obtained from ethanolic extract of the stems of R. Br. The structures of these isolated compounds were identified by extensive analysis of HRESIMS and NMR spectroscopic data.

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Background: This study aims to analyze the correlation between ARHGAP4 in the expression and clinical characteristics of colorectal cancer (CRC), and the influence of ARHGAP4 expression on the prognosis of CRC, and to evaluate whether ARHGAP4 is a potential prognostic oncotarget for CRC.

Methods: ARHGAP4 was identified using the Gene Expression Omnibus database through weighted gene coexpression network analysis. Using the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis to perform and analyze the expression and prognosis of ARHGAP4 in CRC.

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Two new withaphysalin-type withanolides (18-O-ethylwithaphysalin R and 5-O-ethylphysaminimin C, and ), along with twelve known withanolides (-), were purified and identified from L. The chemical structures of these new isolates were elucidated through analyzing spectroscopic and HRESIMS data. All the obtained metabolites were appraised for their potential antiproliferative activity against the human breast cancer cell line MCF-7.

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Background: Given that airway obstruction in asthma is not always fully reversible, reduced bronchodilator reversibility (BDR) may be a special asthma phenotype.

Objective: To explore the characteristics of BDR phenotypes (defined using two BDR criteria) and their associations with asthma exacerbations (AEs).

Methods: After baseline assessments, all patients were classified into BDR or BDR phenotypes.

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Background: There should be a heightened index of suspicion for Parvovirus B19 (PVB19)-related anemia in organ transplant recipients. Thus far, there is no consensus or recommendation for clinical routine monitoring methods of PVB19 recipients to allow tailoring of immunosuppression.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study to evaluate the utility of the function (represented by the abilities to secrete IFN-γ) and numbers of lymphocyte subsets in monitoring PVB19 infections in renal recipients posttransplant.

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Objective: This study investigated the composition of pathogenic microorganisms, clinical features, and therapeutic strategies of infective artery rupture of renal allografts in recipients receiving deceased donor (DD) kidneys.

Methods: We retrospectively studied the clinical data of the DD kidney transplant recipients with donor-associated infection at Tongji Hospital, Wuhan, China from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018, related recipients and corresponding donors. We collected the entire results of pathogenic microorganisms cultured from these related ruptured kidneys and then analyzed their distribution and differences.

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has been recorded as a folk medicine traditionally used for treatment of a variety of symptoms. However, the phytochemical and pharmacological investigations of this plant are still scarce. A novel phenolic glycoside named Euryachincoside (ECS) was isolated by chromatographic separation from and its chemical structure was identified by analysis of HRMS and NMR data.

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Background: Many drugs for anti-tumour have been developed, nevertheless, seeking new anticancer drug is the focus of ongoing investigation. Withanolides have been reported to possess potent antiproliferative activity. Literature findings revealed that a diversity of withanolides were obtained from , however, the antitumor activity of these bioactive compounds is still unclear.

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