[Clinical application of whole exome sequencing in monogenic hereditary disorders in critically ill newborns].

Objective: To explore the value and significance of the clinical application of whole exome sequencing (WES) in monogenic hereditary disorders in critically ill newborns.

Methods: The critically ill newborns in the neonatal intensive care unit with suspected hereditary diseases or unclear clinical diagnosis from June 2016 to December 2018 were enrolled. The whole blood samples from both newborns and parents were collected for WES.

[A clinical study of growth and metabolism of small for gestational age infants].

Objective: To study the differences in growth and metabolism between small for gestational age (SGA) infants and appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants.

Methods: A total of 1 370 preterm infants were enrolled in this study. According to the association between gestational age and birth weight, they were divided into SGA group with 675 infants and AGA group with 695 infants.

Upregulation of miR-181a suppresses the formation of glioblastoma stem cells by targeting the Notch2 oncogene and correlates with good prognosis in patients with glioblastoma multiforme.

Glioblastoma stem-like cells (GSCs) are responsible for the initiation and progression of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), and microRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in this disease. However, the mechanisms underlying the role of miRNAs in the stemness of GSCs have not been completely elucidated. We previously showed that miR-181a is downregulated in GBM and may predict prognosis in patients with this disease.

The correlation of microRNA-181a and target genes with poor prognosis of glioblastoma patients.

To investigate the expression and clinical significance of miR-181a and its target genes in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the expression levels of miR-181a and three target genes in human normal brain tissues and GBM were analyzed in silico using gene microarray, gene ontology, KEGG pathway and hierarchical clustering analysis followed by validation with quantitative RT-PCR. Our results show that miR-181a is down-regulated in GBM patients. The three target genes, ANGPT2, ARHGAP18 and LAMC1, are negatively correlated with the expression of miR-181a.

[Nutrition status of premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit and risk factors of extrauterine growth retardation].

Objective: To study the nutrition status of premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and risk factors of extrauterine growth retardation (EUGR).

Methods: The clinical data of 110 premature infants who were admitted to the NICU from August 2007 to September 2008 were retrospectively reviewed. The possible factors influencing the nutrition status were analyzed.

[Effects of triiodothyronine on the learning and memory behaviors in neonatal mice following excitotoxic brain damage].

Objective: Some research has shown that learning and memory function impairments in rats with hypothyroidism are associated with triiodothyronine (T3) deficiency in neurons. This study aimed to investigate the effects of L-T3 administration on learning and memory behaviors in neonatal mice with excitotoxic brain damage.

Methods: Seventy-one 5-day-old ICR neonatal mice were randomly assigned to five groups: controls that received intracerebral and intraperitoneal injections of phosphate buffered saline (PBS) (n=14); a group that received intracerebral injections of ibotenic acid (IA) and intraperitoneal injection of PBS (n=14); 3 groups that received intracerebral injections of IA and intraperitoneal injection of L-T3 at 0.

[Neurobehavioral function of neonatal mice following excitotoxic brain damage].

Objective: To assess the changes of neurobehavioral function in a neonatal mouse model of excitotoxic brain damage.

Methods: Fifty-five 5-day-old ICR neonatal mice were randomly assigned to three groups: blank (no intravenous) control (n=20), saline control (n=20) and excitotoxic brain damage model (ibotenic acid treatment, n=15). Behavioral function was evaluated by the surface righting reflex test (postnatal days 6-10), the swimming test (postnatal days 8-12) and the Y-maze discrimination learning test (postnatal days 33-34).