Longitudinal variation of serum PCSK9 in ulcerative colitis: association with disease activity, T helper 1/2/17 cells, and clinical response of tumor necrosis factor inhibitor.

Aims: Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) modulates CD4 T cell differentiation and inflammatory response, the latter ones mediate ulcerative colitis (UC) initiation. This study intended to explore the correlation of serum PCSK9 with disease activity, T helper (h)1/Th2/Th17 cells, and clinical response of tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) in UC patients.

Methods: In 65 UC patients underwent TNFi treatment, serum PCSK9 was evaluated at baseline (W0), week (W)2, W6, and W12 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays; meanwhile, Th1/Th2/Th17 cells were determined at W0 by flow cytometry.

Effects of severe obstructive sleep apnea on functional prognosis in the acute phase of ischemic stroke and quantitative electroencephalographic markers.

Objective: To investigate the effect of severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) on functional prognosis in the acute phase and quantitative electroencephalography (EEG) markers during sleep in ischemic stroke patients.

Methods: This study included 125 mild-to-moderate acute ischemic stroke patients with OSA who underwent polysomnography (PSG) within one week of stroke onset between January 2015 and June 2020. Patients were grouped according to their apnea-hypopnea index ( View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Circ_0001421 facilitates glycolysis and lung cancer development by regulating miR-4677-3p/CDCA3.

Background: Lung cancer (LC) is a malignant tumor originating in the bronchial mucosa or gland of the lung. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are proved to be key regulators of tumor progression. However, the regulatory effect of circ_0001421 on lung cancer tumorigenesis remains unclear.

Upregulated expression of ROCK1 promotes cell proliferation by functioning as a target of miR-335-5p in non-small cell lung cancer.

Lung cancer is regarded as one of the dominant causes in cancer patients among men and women all over the world. Rho-associated coiled-coil forming protein kinase l (ROCK1) is characterized as pivotal downstream effectors of the small GTPase RhoA and reported to participate in tumor metastasis. miR-335-5p acts as tumor suppressor microRNA and is identified to be downregulated in tumor tissues.

Efficacy of continuous positive airway pressure treatment in treating obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome associated with carotid arteriosclerosis.

Sleep apnea negatively impacts patients' ability to oxygenate the bloodstream during sleep and has far-reaching, deleterious effects. The present study sought to assess the correlation between obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS), carotid atherosclerosis, and blood pressure variability (BPV), and to evaluate the therapeutic effects of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). Patients with OSAHS were classified as mild, moderate, or severe according to their condition and compared with healthy control participants.

Cloning, expression, and analysis of a cDNA coding for the Dermatophagoides farinae group 21 (Der f 21) allergen.

Domestic mite species like Dermatophagoides farinae induce allergies in people worldwide. Here, the cDNA coding for group 21 allergen of Dermatophagoides farinae (Hughes; Acari: Pyroglyphidae) from China was cloned, sequenced, and expressed in E. coli to aid in the development of diagnostic and treatment options for domestic mite hypersensitivity.

Suppression of EGFR-STAT3 signaling inhibits tumorigenesis in a lung cancer cell line.

Overactive epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling often underlies the rapid expansion of cancerous tissue. EGFR signaling is mediated by transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 3, or STAT3. This study sought to investigate the effects of altered EGFR/STAT3 signal transduction on lung cancer cells in vitro.

Effects of the recombinant allergen rDer f 2 on neuro-endocrino-immune network in asthmatic mice.

Severe and life-threatening side effects can occur in patients receiving allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT), and recombinant allergens made from cDNA have been used in clinical trials for ten years and appear promising for SIT. The aim of this study is to explore the effects of the recombinant allergen Der f 2 (the group 2 allergen from Dermatophagoides farinae) on the neuro-endocrino-immune network in asthmatic mice. Twenty-eight mice were divided into four groups - A, B, C and D.

HMGB1 and RAGE levels in induced sputum correlate with asthma severity and neutrophil percentage.

Previous work indicated that high mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) protein may be involved in neutrophilic asthma. Here, we sought to investigate the correlation between HMGB1 and one of its receptors, receptor for advanced glycosylation end products (RAGE), with the severity of bronchial asthma. Compared to the control group (30 healthy individuals), patients in the asthma group (n=72) exhibited a higher percentage of neutrophils and higher HMGB1 and RAGE levels in induced sputum samples (P<0.

[Effect of Bizhongxiao decoction on proteomics of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in patients with rheumatoid arthritis].

Objective: To probe in the possible acting mechanism of Bizhongxiao Decoction (BZXD) for treatment of early active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by way of observing the two-dimensional gel electrophoresis map of proteins in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of healthy persons and RA patients (intervened or un-intervened with BZXD), analyzing the differential proteins and seeking out the RA associated proteins.

Methods: Eighteen patients with early active RA were randomized into the BZXD group and the methotrexate (MTX) group, nine in each group, they were treated with BZXD (contained 15 Chinese herbs, as Herba Hedyotis diffusae, Herba Sarcandrae glabrae, Radix Salviae miltiorrhizae, Caulis Trachelosperi, Rhizoma Drynariae, Semen Coicis, etc.) and MTX combined with nimesulide Tablets respectively, three months as a treatment course, and their blood samples were collected for observation.