Analysis of genetic characteristics associated with reduced bedaquiline susceptibility in multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Bedaquiline (BDQ) has shown efficacy in shortening treatment duration and enhancing treatment success rates for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), thereby prompting widespread adoption. However, resistance to BDQ has emerged. This study aimed to identify genetic characteristics associated with decreased susceptibility to BDQ, using a public database to aid in the detection of resistant strains.

Acquired drug resistance during the turnaround time for drug susceptibility testing impacts outcome of tuberculosis.

Background: The impacts of acquired resistance to first-line drugs other than rifampicin during turnaround time (TAT) for drug susceptibility testing (DST) on tuberculosis (TB) treatment are unclear.

Method: We performed a prospective cohort study to test acquired resistance to isoniazid, ethambutol and pyrazinamide during TAT for DST as risk factors for prolonged time to sputum culture conversion (SCC) and treatment failure in China. Participants included had a baseline DST result for a Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) isolate collected at TB diagnosis and a follow-up DST result for a Mtb isolate collected upon baseline DST results availability.

Risk Factors for Testicular Atrophy in Children With Testicular Torsion Following Emergent Orchiopexy.

To analyze the risk factors for testicular atrophy (TA) in children with testicular torsion (TT) following emergent orchiopexy. Clinical data of patients with TT undergoing orchiopexy were retrospectively reviewed, including age at surgery, affected side, delayed surgery (12-24 h and more than 24 h), echogenicity of testicular parenchyma on ultrasonography (ETPU), testicular blood flow on Color Doppler ultrasonography (CDUS), surgical findings (intraoperative blood supply, the degree of torsion, and surgical approaches), and follow-up. The primary outcome was the rate of TA after orchiopexy.

Drug Exposure and Minimum Inhibitory Concentration Predict Pulmonary Tuberculosis Treatment Response.

Background: Prospective studies correlating pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) indices to clinical responses are urgently needed. This study aimed to find clinically relevant PK/PD thresholds that can be used for treatment optimization.

Methods: Pharmacokinetic sampling and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) measurements were performed for patients with culture-confirmed tuberculosis (TB).

Estimating daily evapotranspiration in the agricultural-pastoral ecotone in Northwest China: A comparative analysis of the Complementary Relationship, WRF-CLM4.0, and WRF-Noah methods.

Accurate estimation of evapotranspiration (ET) over regional scale is essential for ecohydrological research, agricultural production, and water resources management. However, few studies have been done to estimate regional ET in data lacking, highly heterogeneous arid areas such as the Agricultural-Pastoral Ecotone in Northwest China (APENC). In this study, we compared three actual ET-estimation methods driven by Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model in a semi-arid region.

Improved treatment outcome of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis with the use of a rapid molecular test to detect drug resistance in China.

Objectives: Numerous studies investigate the advantages of rapid molecular drug susceptibility testing (DST) in comparison to phenotypic DST, but the clinical impact on treating multi/extensively drug resistant TB(M/XDR-TB) is less studied. Therefore, we examined how molecular DST testing may improve MDR-TB treatment management and outcome in Chinese settings.

Methods: We performed a comparative study of patient cohorts before and after the implementation of molecular DST diagnosis with Genotype MTBDRsl/MTBDRplus assay in two Chinese hospitals.

Anatomy and management of upper moiety vascular variation in children with duplex kidney.

Purpose: To describe the upper pole vascular anatomy of duplex kidney and provide our experience with laparoscopic upper pole partial nephrectomy (LUPPN).

Methods: A retrospective study was performed among patients with duplex kidney who underwent computed tomography angiography at one single institution, some of whom were subsequently treated with LUPPN. According to imaging results and intraoperative findings, the arterial supply to the upper moiety of a duplex system was classified based on number and branching pattern.

Detecting urban commercial patterns using a latent semantic information model: A case study of spatial-temporal evolution in Guangzhou, China.

With rapid economic growth since the 21st century, cities in China have experienced considerable economic and social reconstruction. Driven by rapid industrialization, urban spatial structures are undergoing evolution and change. Therefore, this paper analyzes the processes and mechanisms associated with the evolution of the commercial spatial structure in Guangzhou after the financial crisis in 2008 based on both theoretical and empirical analyses.

Multi-center evaluation of GenoType MTBDRsl line probe assay for rapid detection of pre-XDR and XDR Mycobacterium tuberculosis in China.

Objectives: The implementation of rapid and reliable drug susceptibilities diagnosis is fundamental for effective treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis(MDR-TB). The present study aimed to assess the diagnostic performance of the 2nd-version GenoType MTBDRsl kit as well as the impact of its implementation on the turnaround time in a multi-center Chinese study.

Methods: Totally 353 MDR-TB patient specimens were consecutively tested.

Retrospective analysis to determine outcomes of patients with bilateral Wilms tumor undergoing nephron sparing surgery: 15-year tertiary single-institution experience.

Purpose: To describe our clinical experience with nephron sparing surgery (NSS) for bilateral Wilms tumor and evaluate the outcomes of patients treated at one of the largest pediatric medical centers in China.

Methods: Medical records of children with bilateral Wilms tumor undergoing NSS in the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University during a 15-year period were retrospectively analyzed. Data collected were composed of age at surgery, tumor response, tumor rupture during resection, final pathologic margins, use of radiation therapy, pathology reports, renal function, and patient survival.

Diagnosis and treatment of urethral prolapse in children: 16 years' experience with 89 Chinese girls.

Objective: To review our experience and results in the diagnosis and treatment of urethral prolapse (UP) in Chinese girls.

Patients And Methods: We conducted a retrospective chart review of 89 consecutive girls (aged <16 years) with UP and without other complications, who received treatment for UP from January 1999 to January 2015 (a study period of 16 years) at the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, China. Data analysed included: age, symptoms, clinical findings, predisposing factors, management, and outcomes.

Dual-Channel Cosine Function Based ITD Estimation for Robust Speech Separation.

In speech separation tasks, many separation methods have the limitation that the microphones are closely spaced, which means that these methods are unprevailing for phase wrap-around. In this paper, we present a novel speech separation scheme by using two microphones that does not have this restriction. The technique utilizes the estimation of interaural time difference (ITD) statistics and binary time-frequency mask for the separation of mixed speech sources.

Characterizing Two Inter-specific Bin Maps for the Exploration of the QTLs/Genes that Confer Three Soybean Evolutionary Traits.

Annual wild soybean (Glycine soja Sieb. and Zucc.), the wild progenitor of the cultivated soybean [Glycine max (L.

A 22-year retrospective study: educational update and new referral pattern of age at orchidopexy.

Objectives: To determine the current age at orchidopexy in China and whether changing targets have altered practice, as research suggesting progressive deterioration in an undescended testis (UDT) has led to the reduction in the target age for orchidopexy to 6-12 months but it is still unknown whether changing targets have altered practice.

Patients And Methods: The demographics of orchidopexies performed in the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University between 1993 and 2014 were reviewed. A survey of the general publics' awareness of UDT and survey of primary healthcare practitioners' current opinion on age at orchidopexy and referral patterns were performed.

A allele of SNP12 in estrogen receptor 1 was a risk factor for cryptorchidism in Asians: a systematic review with meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis.

Objective: Some studies have been carried out to evaluate the association between SNP12 in estrogen receptor 1 and cryptorchidism, but the results remain inconsistent. We carried out a meta-analysis to explore the association between this polymorphism and cryptorchidism risk.

Methods: All eligible studies were searched in PubMed, Web of Science, Embase and Cochrane Library.

Association between SNP12 in estrogen receptor α gene and hypospadias: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

To investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphism 12 in estrogen receptor α gene and hypospadias, four databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase and Cochrane Library) were electronically searched by 2nd November 2015. Finally, four studies were included for our meta-analysis, involving 1379 cases and 1648 controls. A quality assessment was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale of case-control study.

[Long-term exposure to PM2.5 from automobile exhaust results in reproductive dysfunction in male rats].

Objective: To explore the effects of long-term exposure to particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) from automobile exhaust on the reproductive function of Sprague Dawley (SD) rats.

Genetic variation frequencies in Wilms' tumor: A meta-analysis and systematic review.

Over the last few decades, numerous biomarkers in Wilms' tumor have been confirmed and shown variations in prevalence. Most of these studies were based on small sample sizes. We carried out a meta-analysis of the research published from 1992 to 2015 to obtain more precise and comprehensive outcomes for genetic tests.

[Testicular teratoma in children: Analysis of 64 cases].

Objective: To improve the diagnosis and treatment of testicular teratoma in children by analysis of clinical data.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data about 64 cases of testicular teratoma treated in the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from 1995 to 2014.

Results: Sixty-one of the cases presented painless scrotal mass with a sense of bearing down and the other 3 cases were confirmed because of empty scrotum diagnosed as cryptorchidism.

New Technique for the Treatment of Buried Penis in Children.

Objective: To present our treatment experience of buried penis, which has no consensus therapeutic technique for all cases of buried penis, by using a new technique for the repair of this condition, in which the approach is through the ventral penile root.

Materials And Methods: We performed a retrospective review of 153 patients (median age: 6.5 years) who underwent repair of a buried penis between March 2005 and March 2013.

Testicular yolk sac tumors in children: a review of 61 patients over 19 years.

Background: To describe 19 years of clinical experience managing pediatric patients with testicular yolk sac tumors at the Chongqing Medical University Affiliated Children's Hospital.

Methods: This study involved a retrospective review of the records of 61 pediatric patients who presented with testicular yolk sac tumor at our institution between 1995 and 2014.

Results: All patients presented with a painless scrotal mass.

Potential spermatogenesis recovery with bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in an azoospermic rat model.

Non-obstructive azoospermia is the most challenging type of male infertility. Stem cell based therapy provides the potential to enhance the recovery of spermatogenesis following cancer therapy. Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) possess the potential to differentiate or trans-differentiate into multi-lineage cells, secrete paracrine factors to recruit the resident stem cells to participate in tissue regeneration, or fuse with the local cells in the affected region.

HIF-1α expression correlates with cellular apoptosis, angiogenesis and clinical prognosis in rectal carcinoma.

Regional hypoxia caused by accelerated cell proliferation and overgrowth is an important characteristic of neoplasm. Hypoxia can cause a series of changes in gene transcription and protein expression, thereby not only inducing tumor cell resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy but also promoting tumor invasion and metastasis. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between HIF-1α expression and cellular apoptosis, angiogenesis and clinical prognosis in rectal carcinoma.

A meta-analysis on the association between PPAR-γ Pro12Ala polymorphism and polycystic ovary syndrome.

Purpose: To investigate the influence of the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ) Pro12Ala polymorphism on the susceptibility of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and body mass index (BMI), fast insulin levels, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in PCOS patients.

Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, MEDLINE and CENTRAL databases were searched to identify eligible studies. We then conducted a meta-analysis to examine the association between Pro12Ala polymorphism and PCOS.

Ultrasound microbubble-mediated delivery of the siRNAs targeting MDR1 reduces drug resistance of yolk sac carcinoma L2 cells.

Background: MDR1 gene encoding P-glycoprotein is an ATP-dependent drug efflux transporter and related to drug resistance of yolk sac carcinoma. Ultrasound microbubble-mediated delivery has been used as a novel and effective gene delivery method. We hypothesize that small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting MDR1 gene (siMDR1) delivery with microbubble and ultrasound can down-regulate MDR1 expression and improve responsiveness to chemotherapeutic drugs for yolk sac carcinoma in vitro.