A novel LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous analysis of selected fat-soluble vitamins in serum obtained from pediatric patients with pneumonia.

Several observational studies have reported associations between low levels of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D and E) and the incidence of pneumonia. Whether infection affects or negatively regulates serum vitamin levels remains controversial. Our aims were to develop and validate a simple-pretreatment and fast method to determine the serum levels of selected fat-soluble vitamins, namely vitamin A (retinol), vitamin D (25-OH-D, 25-OH-D, and 3-epi-25-OH-D), and vitamin E (α-tocopherol), in children suffering from pneumonia during the acute phase and after inflammatory marker recovery.

Metabolomic analysis reveals potential biomarkers and the underlying pathogenesis involved in pneumonia.

Although previous studies have reported the use of metabolomics for infectious diseases, little is known about the potential function of plasma metabolites in children infected with (MP). Here, a combination of liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry and random forest-based classification model was used to provide a broader range of applications in MP diagnosis. In the training cohort, plasma from 63 MP pneumonia children (MPPs), 37 healthy controls (HC) and 29 infectious disease controls (IDC) was collected.

Improving long-term stability of retinol in dried blood spots and quantification of its levels via a novel LC-MS/MS method.

Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is a major micronutrient deficiency in children. Although plasma and serum retinol levels are proposed as the key indicators of VAD, collecting and transporting plasma and serum are difficult and inconvenient in field studies. Dried blood spot (DBS) retinol has been used as an alternative to plasma retinol in several epidemiological and clinical studies.

A novel LC-MS/MS assay for vitamin B, B and B determination in dried blood spots and its application in children.

Thiamin, riboflavin and pyridoxal phosphate (PLP) concentrations are useful indices for evaluating vitamin B, B and B status. Several HPLC assays have been developed for determining thiamin, riboflavin and PLP in biological matrix. However, no existing LC-MS/MS methods can be used to quantify thiamin, riboflavin and PLP in dried blood spots (DBSs), which are often used as a sampling/storage vessel for blood from infants and children.

Integrative analysis of microRNA and mRNA expression profiles in fetal rat model with anorectal malformation.

Background: Anorectal malformations (ARMs) are the most common congenital malformation of the gut, and regulated by multiple signal transduction pathways. The microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles and their biologial functions in anorectal malformations (ARMs) remain unclear. The aim of our study was to evaluate miRNA and mRNA expression profiles in the ARM rats.

The midterm outcomes of 1-stage versus 3-stage laparoscopic-assisted anorectoplasty in anorectal malformations with rectoprostatic fistula and rectobulbar fistula: A retrospective cohort study.

The aim of this study was to compare the midterm outcomes of 1-stage and 3-stage surgical procedures to treat anorectal malformations (ARMs) with rectoprostatic and rectobulbar fistula using laparoscopic-assisted anorectoplasty (LAARP).A total of 56 patients with ARMs and rectoprostatic and rectobulbar fistula who underwent LAARP from January 2011 to May 2014 in our institution were included in the study. They were divided into 2 groups according to the stage of procedure.

[Vitamin D level in children with bloodstream infection].

Objective: To investigate the difference in serum 25(OH)D level between children with bloodstream infection and healthy children.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted among 60 children with bloodstream infection who were hospitalized between January 2010 and December 2013 and had positive results of two blood cultures. Meanwhile, 60 aged-matched healthy children who underwent physical examination during the same period of time were enrolled as the healthy control group.

Plasma MASP-1 concentration and its relationship to recovery from coronary artery lesion in children with Kawasaki disease.

Background: This study investigated prognostic factors for early recovery of coronary artery lesion (CAL) in children with Kawasaki disease (KD).

Methods: Patients hospitalized for KD were enrolled less than 2 wk from the onset of illness and divided into two groups: KD with CAL and KD without CAL. The CAL group was further divided into two subgroups according to the degree of CAL: mild (n = 31) and moderate/severe (n = 6) and further divided into two subgroups according to the age: younger than 1 y (n = 9) and older than 1 y (n = 28).

Early decreased plasma levels of factor B and C5a are important biomarkers in children with Kawasaki disease.

Background: The mechanisms underpinning Kawasaki disease (KD) are incompletely understood. There is an unmet need for specific biomarkers for the early diagnosis of KD.

Methods: Eighty-five KD patients suffering from acute-phase and subacute-phase KD, 40 healthy children, and 40 febrile children comprised the study cohort.

Hydrogen sulfide upregulates heme oxygenase-1 expression in rats with volume overload-induced heart failure.

The present study investigated the role of hydrogen sulfide (HS), a novel gaseous transmitter, in chronic heart failure (CHF) induced by left-to-right shunt, leading to volume overload. Thirty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups: the shunt group, the sham group, the shunt + sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) group and the sham + NaHS group. CHF was induced in the rats by abdominal aorta-inferior vena cava shunt operation.

[Clinical research of Bordetella pertussis infection in infants with prolonged cough].

Objective: To explore the prevalence of Bordetella pertussis (B. pertussis) infection in unvaccinated or incomplete vaccinated infants with cough for a prolonged duration.

Methods: The serum samples and nasopharyngeal secretions were collected from 176 patients with cough for a prolonged duration ( ≥ 2 weeks) from 2011 to 2012 at Children's Hospital Affiliated to Capital Institute of Pediatrics.

Hydrogen sulfide suppresses the expression of MMP-8, MMP-13, and TIMP-1 in left ventricles of rats with cardiac volume overload.

Aim: To study the effects of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) on the left ventricular expression of MMP-8, MMP-13, and TIMP-1 in a rat model of congenital heart disease.

Methods: Male SD rats underwent abdominal aorta-inferior vena cava shunt operation. H2S donor NaHS (56 μmol·kg(-1)·d(-1), ip) was injected from the next day for 8 weeks.

[Survey of pertussis infection in infants aged under 3 months with persistent cough].

Objective: To explore the prevalence of pertussis in hospitalized infants aged under 3 months with persistent cough.

Methods: The nasopharyngeal secretions and serum samples were collected from hospitalized infants aged under 3 months with cough for over 2 weeks from January 2011 to January 2012. The samples of nasopharyngeal secretion were suctioned and collected.

[A pathogen analysis within 174 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease in the summer of 2009].

Objective: To analyze the pathogen and characteristics of the serum types of enterovirus of hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) in the summer, 2009.

Methods: Both throat swab and herpes fluids were taken respectively from 174 children with HFMD in the outpatient infection during April to September, 2009. Anti-Cox A16 and anti-EV71 IgMs in the serum were detected with ELISA.

[Detection and analysis of the enterovirus infection within 159 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease by a real-time reverse transcription-PCR assay].

Objective: To reveal the enterovirus infection within children suffering hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) in the Capital Institute of Pediatrics from Aprial to August, 2009, for the sake of clinical diagnosis and treatment.

Methods: Both throat swab and vesicle fluid were taken respectively from 159 children with HFMD. And RNA were extracted from each sample followed with real-time fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR kits with three reagents: universal enterovirus primer, Coxsackievirus A16 (CA16) primer and enterovirus 71 (EV71) primer.

[Clinical study on cross-infection of mycoplasma pneumoniae and other viruses in children].

Objective: To investigate the clinical cross infections of mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) and other viruses in children, providing a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of respiratory disease.

Methods: Serum specimens of the children hospitalized with fever, respiratory symptom besides positive results of MP-Ab IgM detection were collected. And several common viruses popular in children were investigated within the specimens collected by ELISA kits or indirect immunofluorescence.

C1q and anti-C1q antibody levels are correlated with disease severity in Chinese pediatric systemic lupus erythematosus.

The aim of this study was to measure the level of serum complement lq(Clq) and anti-C1q antibodies (ClqAb) in pediatric systemic lupus erythematosus (PSLE), and then analyze the correlation between the levels of serum Clq and ClqAb with disease activity and kidney damage. We investigated 90 PSLE patients, including 43 patients in active stage and 47 patients in remission. Our results showed that the level of serum Clq of PSLE patients was significantly lower than the level of healthy children and children with other rheumatic diseases.

[Relation between acute respiratory infection and enterovirus in children in Beijing area].

Objective: To probe into the relation between acute respiratory infection and enterovirus (EV), season, age and sex of children in Beijing area.

Methods: Nasopharyngeal secretion samples from 402 inpatient children with acute respiratory infection (ARI) were obtained, and EV RNA was detected by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The distribution of month, age and sex among the children positive for EV were analyzed.