Efficacy of Xuanbai Chengqi decoction combined with western medicine in treating AECOPD with phlegm-heat obstructing lung syndrome: a clinical study.

Objective: To explore the efficacy of Xuanbai Chengqi Decoction combined with conventional Western medicine in the treatment of AECOPD patients with phlegm-heat obstructing the lung syndrome.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 166 patients with this syndrome admitted to our hospital between December 2023 and March 2024. Patients were divided into a study group (Xuanbai Chengqi Decoction + conventional Western medicine treatment, 83 cases) and a control group (conventional Western medicine treatment, 83 cases).

Infection of Anterolateral Thigh Free Flap With Multiple Digestive Tract Bacteria Involvement After Excision of Auricular Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Objective: The authors present a case of an infected anterolateral thigh flap repairing the defect after auricular squamous cell carcinoma surgery.

Methods: A 59-year-old male with squamous cell carcinoma in the right auricle was admitted to the hospital. After extended excision of the tumor, the defect was repaired with anterolateral thigh free flap.

Perinatal exposure to ambient fine particle air pollution and risk of childhood ewing sarcoma in a population-based case-control study in California (1988-2015).

Background: Incidence of childhood Ewing sarcoma, a rare cancer affecting bones and soft tissues, is increasing. Environmental exposures during the perinatal period, like air pollution, may play a role. We examined exposure to perinatal ambient fine particulate matter (PM) and childhood Ewing sarcoma risk in a case-control linkage study nested within a California birth cohort.

Zanamivir alleviates ethanol intoxication through activating catalase.

Objectives: Acute alcohol intoxication is characterized as high morbidity and mortality. To explore new chemicals to relieve ethanol intoxication, we tried to explore the activators of catalase (CAT), an enzyme responsible for oxidization of ethanol into acetaldehyde to accelerate ethanol removal.

Methods: We identified zanamivir, an antiviral agent, activated CAT in vitro after screening of clinical chemicals.

The impact of Indigenous American-like ancestry on risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Hispanic/Latino children.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common childhood cancer, with Hispanic/Latino children having a higher incidence of ALL than other racial/ethnic groups. Genetic variants, particularly ones found enriched in Indigenous American (IA)-like ancestry and inherited by Hispanics/Latinos, may contribute to this disparity. In this study, we characterized the impact of IA-like ancestry on overall ALL risk and the frequency and effect size of known risk alleles in a large cohort of self-reported Hispanic/Latino individuals.

Prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from contaminated water and risk of childhood cancer in California, 2000-2015.

Background: Few studies have investigated associations between per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and childhood cancers. Detectable levels of PFAS in California water districts were reported in the Third Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule for 2013-2015.

Methods: Geocoded residences at birth were linked to corresponding water district boundaries for 10,220 California-born children (aged 0-15 years) diagnosed with cancers (2000-2015) and 29,974 healthy controls.

Biocompatible dually reinforced gellan gum hydrogels with selective antibacterial activity.

The poor mechanics and functionality of natural-polymer hydrogels from gellan gum (GG) prohibit their practical application, despite the intrinsic thermo-reversible gelation nature, structural and quality consistency, biocompatibility, biodegradability and sustainability of microbial fermentation-produced GG. Herein, a dual-reinforcing strategy, i.e.

Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Key Pathways and Genes Involved in Lodging Resistance of Upland Cotton.

Lodging resistance is one of the most important traits of machine-picked cotton. Lodging directly affects the cotton yield, quality and mechanical harvesting effect. However, there are only a few reports on the lodging resistance of cotton.

Influence of TNF-α Inhibitors on Gut Microbiota and Immune Modulation in Treating Ankylosing Spondylitis: Insights into Therapeutic Mechanisms and Clinical Implications.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the impact of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors on the gut microbiota in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and investigate the potential therapeutic benefits of microbial modulation. Given the role of gut microbiota in immune regulation and its association with autoimmune conditions like AS, this research seeks to identify microbial targets that could enhance treatment outcomes.

Methods: Patients with AS undergoing TNF inhibitor therapy and healthy controls were recruited for this study.

Structure-based design and disulfide stapling of interfacial cyclic peptidic inhibitors from thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) receptor to competitively target TSLP.

Human thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine located at the top of inflammatory cascade that makes it a promising therapeutic target in allergic asthma. The cell surface receptor of TSLP is a heterodimer consisting of a TSLP receptor (TSLPR) and an interleukin-17 receptor α (IL-7Rα). The TSLPR subunit should be first added to the free TSLP to form a TSLPR/TSLP pre-complex, which further recruits the IL-7Rα subunit to obtain the final TSLPR/IL-7Rα/TSLP complex.

Exogenous melatonin promotes salt tolerance in smooth bromegrass seedlings: physiological, transcriptomic, and metabolomic evidence.

Soil salinization, which severely limits crop yield and quality, has become a global environmental and resource issue. Melatonin plays an important role in plant responses to salt stress. Smooth bromegrass is an important forage with excellent feed value and is widely grown in northern and north-west China for pasture and sand binding.

Disparities in Colorectal Cancer Screening Before and After the Onset of the COVID Pandemic.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening is underutilized among those with lower socioeconomic status and in racial and ethnic minoritized populations who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID.

Objective: To compare disparities in CRC screening before and after the onset of the COVID pandemic among privately insured individuals.

Design: Retrospective cohort study using deidentified claims data from the USA between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2022.

The Influence of DNA Repair Genes and Prenatal Tobacco Exposure on Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Gene-Environment Interaction Study.

Background: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common type of cancer among children. Tobacco exposure during gestation has been investigated as a potential risk factor, but its role remains undefined. Given tobacco's toxicologic profile as a DNA-damaging agent, we examined the impact of DNA repair gene variability as a source of vulnerability to tobacco exposure risk for ALL.

Using a Bayesian analytic approach to identify county-level ecological factors associated with survival among individuals with early-onset colorectal cancer.

Background: In the United States (US), incidence of early age of onset colorectal cancer (EOCRC, diagnosed <50 years of age) has been increasing. Using a Bayesian analytic approach, we evaluated the association between county-level ecological factors and survival among individuals with EOCRC and identified hotspot and coldspot counties with unexplained low and high survival, respectively.

Methods: Principal component (PC) analysis was used to reduce dimensionality of 36 county-level social, behavioral, and preventive factors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

Long-Term Outcomes of Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen-PET Imaging of Recurrent Prostate Cancer.

Importance: Although prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography (PSMA-PET) has shown improved sensitivity and specificity compared with conventional imaging for the detection of biochemical recurrent (BCR) prostate cancer, the long-term outcomes of a widespread shift in imaging are unknown.

Objective: To estimate long-term outcomes of integrating PSMA-PET into the staging pathway for recurrent prostate cancer.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This decision analytic modeling study simulated outcomes for patients with BCR following initial definitive local therapy.

Association between reduced hemoglobin-to-red cell distribution width ratio and elevated cardiovascular mortality in patients with diabetes: Insights from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Study, 1999-2018.

Objective: The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between the hemoglobin-to-red blood cell distribution width ratio (HRR) and cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related mortality in people who have diabetes.

Methods: Data derived from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), between the years 1999 to 2018, were meticulously analyzed. Mortality data, encompassing events until December 31, 2019, were systematically collected.

USPSTF Colorectal Cancer Screening Recommendation and Uptake for Individuals Aged 45 to 49 Years.

Importance: In May 2021, the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued a grade B recommendation encouraging colorectal cancer (CRC) screening among average-risk individuals aged 45 to 49 years. The patterns of screening uptake and possible socioeconomic disparities in screening in this age group remain unknown.

Objective: To evaluate changes in CRC screening uptake among average-risk individuals aged 45 to 49 years after the USPSTF recommendation was issued in 2021.

Prognostic assessment value of immune escape-related genes in patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

This study explores the prognostic value of immune escape-related genes in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. Using TARGET_AML and GSE37642 datasets, we identified CEP55, DNAJC13, and EMC2 as significant prognostic indicators, with high transcript abundance correlating with poor outcomes. Consensus clustering divided patients into two groups, with Cluster 1 showing worse prognosis.

Associations Between Prostate Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Genomic Testing, and Treatment for Localized Prostate Cancer.

Introduction: Although prostate MRI and tissue-based gene expression (genomic) tests improve staging and estimates of prostate cancer prognosis, their association with the intensity of treatment patients receive is not well understood.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study of Medicare beneficiaries diagnosed with clinically localized prostate cancer in 2013 through 2017 in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. The primary study outcome was the receipt of treatment intensification in the first 12 months after diagnosis (defined as the addition of androgen deprivation therapy among patients receiving radiation or pelvic lymphadenectomy among those undergoing radical prostatectomy).

Patterns of Physical Therapy Referral and Subsequent Attendance Among Childhood Cancer Survivors with Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy at a Regional Childhood Cancer Survivorship Clinic.

Objectives: Childhood cancer survivors are at risk for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). Physical therapy (PT) improves CIPN symptoms, but little is known about survivors' PT utilization. We described characteristics of survivors with ≥ grade 2 CIPN, investigated PT referral and attendance, and described characteristics of survivors who attended and did not attend PT.

SHP-1 mediates cigarette smoke extract-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transformation and inflammation in 16HBE cells.

Src-homology region 2 domain-containing phosphatase 1 (SHP-1) is considered an anti-inflammatory factor, but its role in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains unknown. Herein, overexpression of SHP-1 was utilized to explore the functions of SHP-1 in COPD models established by stimulating 16HBE cells with cigarette smoke extracts (CSE) . SHP-1 was downregulated in both COPD patients and CES-treated 16HBE cells.