Therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography in a patient with asplenia-type heterotaxy syndrome: A case report.

Background: Asplenia-type heterotaxy syndrome (HS) is rare and refers to visceral malposition and dysmorphism. It is associated with a high infant mortality rate due to cardiac anomalies, and related digestive endoscopic interventions are poorly understood. With the improved long-term prognosis of these individuals after modern cardiac surgery, intra-abdominal anomalies have become increasingly significant.

Endoscopic polidocanol foam sclerobanding for the treatment of Grade II-III internal hemorrhoids: The focus of clinical practice.

We have read the article by Qu with great interest, as it presents an integration of endoscopic polidocanol foam sclerotherapy with rubber band ligation in patients with Grade II-III internal hemorrhoids. The authors conducted a prospective, multicenter, randomized study to evaluate the long-term symptomatic and endoscopic efficacy of this combined intervention. In this discussion, we focus on the procedural steps of this combined strategy and suggest potential avenues for future research.

Acupuncture in treating obesity combined with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trials.

Background: and purpose: Most type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients are accompanied by overweight or obesity, and it is difficult to concurrently solve these two issues with conventional treatment regimens without experiencing adverse effects. While clinical practice demonstrates that acupuncture is beneficial in treating obesity combined with T2DM, there is a lack of evidence-based medicine to support this claim. The study aims to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture in treating obesity combined with T2DM.

Atorvastatin reduces IOP in ocular hypertension and suppresses ECM in trabecular meshwork perhaps via FGD4.

To explore the role of atorvastatin in regulating intraocular pressure (IOP) in glaucoma , and to investigate its related molecular pathway , an ocular hypertension model was generated by intravitreal injection of an adenoviral vector encoding transforming growth factor (TGF)‑β2 in the right eye of BALB/cJ mice, while the left was treated with an empty control adenovirus. To determine its anti‑intraocular hypertension role, these induced hyper‑IOP mice were gavaged with atorvastatin (20 mg/kg/day). Furthermore, extracellular matrix (ECM) factors were examined in the primary human trabecular meshwork (HTM) cells followed atorvastatin (0~200 µM) treatment .

The NAM/ATAF1/2/CUC2 transcription factor PpNAC.A59 enhances PpERF.A16 expression to promote ethylene biosynthesis during peach fruit ripening.

Peach is a typical climacteric fruit that releases ethylene during fruit ripening. Several studies have been conducted on the transcriptional regulation of ethylene biosynthesis in peach fruit. Herein, an ethylene response factor, PpERF.

Aorto-esophageal fistula caused by fishbone ingestion: a case report on staged endovascular and endoscopic treatment.

Background: Aorto-esophageal fistula (AEF) caused by foreign bodies ingestion is a rare but devastating disorder. Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) has become a widely accepted intervention for treating aorto-esophageal fistulas. As for post-TEVAR esophageal defect, secondary esophagectomy has been the recommended choice for most of the AEFs, but there is no general consensus with regard to the need of secondary surgeries for patients in the absence of clear signs of reinfection or bleeding.

A simple and quick method to detect adulterated sesame oil using 3D fluorescence spectra.

Adulterated sesame oil seriously damages the interests of consumers and the health of market. In this paper, a simple, fast and real-time model for identifying adulterated sesame oil (ASO) was proposed by combining 3D fluorescence spectra with wavelet moments (WMs). First, noise and data volume of the experimental data were reduced by wavelet multiresolution decomposition (WMRSD), which improved the stability and real-time of the model.

The relationship between elevated serum uric acid and arterial stiffness in a healthy population.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the relationship between serum uric acid and arterial stiffness in a healthy population.

Methods: Among the 979 participants, baPWV was non-invasively measured, the circulating levels of uric acid were tested, and the uric acid polymorphisms (rs2231142 and rs11722228) were genotyped. Then, the Mendelian randomization method was employed to test the relationship between serum uric acid and arterial stiffness in a healthy population.

Risk factors for distal migration of biliary plastic stents and related duodenal injury.

Background: The risk factors of duodenal injury from distal migrated biliary plastic stents remain uncertain. The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors of distal migration and its related duodenal injury in patients who underwent placement of a single biliary plastic stent for biliary strictures.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed all patients with biliary strictures who underwent endoscopic placement of a single biliary plastic stent from January 2006 to October 2017.

New antireflux plastic stent for patients with distal malignant biliary obstruction.

Background: Endoscopic biliary stenting is a well-established palliative treatment for patients with unresectable distal malignant biliary obstruction (MBO). However, the main problem with stent placement is the relatively short duration of stent patency. Although self-expanding metal stents (SEMSs) have a longer patency period than plastic stents (PSs), the higher costs limit the wide use of SEMSs.

Novel inflammatory cytokines (IL-36, 37, 38) in the aqueous humor from patients with chronic primary angle closure glaucoma.

Glaucoma eventually leads to optic nerve damage and vision loss without medical intervention. More than 50% of glaucoma caused blindness are attributed to primary angle closure glaucoma, particularly in Asians. It is reported that immune inflammation is involved in the progress of glaucoma.

[Finite element analysis of the influence of anchorage number and location on Bankart repair strength of shoulder joint].

Objective: To study the influence of the number and position of anchor nails on the Bankart repair by the finite element analysis.

Methods: The 3D CT data of shoulder joints including normal adult volunteers were imported into Mimics 10.0 and Geomagic 2012 software to reconstruct the related tissues, and then meshed in Hypermesh 13.

Increased serum levels of macrophage migration inhibitory factor in autism spectrum disorders.

Objective: Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) has been suggested as a pivotal regulator of innate immunity and inflammatory. The aim of this study was to measure serum circulating levels of MIF in relation to the degree of the severity of autism spectrum disorders (ASD).

Methods: One hundred and two Chinese children with ASD and same their age-sex matched typical development children were included.

Diffusion Tensor Imaging Detects Microstructural Differences of Visual Pathway in Patients With Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma and Ocular Hypertension.

Ocular hypertension (OHT), the common situation in adult patients in the outpatients, occurs ∼5% worldwide. However, there are still some practical problems in differentiation of OHT with early primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) using current standard methods. Application of high resolution diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) enables us to the differentiate axonal architecture of visual pathway between POAG and OHT subjects.

Phylogenetic analysis of protein sequences based on a novel k-mer natural vector method.

Based on the k-mer model for protein sequence, a novel k-mer natural vector method is proposed to characterize the features of k-mers in a protein sequence, in which the numbers and distributions of k-mers are considered. It is proved that the relationship between a protein sequence and its k-mer natural vector is one-to-one. Phylogenetic analysis of protein sequences therefore can be easily performed without requiring evolutionary models or human intervention.

Favorable response to pemetrexed, cisplatin and bevacizumab in invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma: A case report and literature review.

Invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma (IMA) was formerly referred to as mucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma. The lack of effective chemotherapy and comprehensive treatment for this type of tumor poses a great challenge in clinical practice. We herein report the case of a male patient with IMA who was treated with a combination of pemetrexed (500 mg/m), cisplatin (75 mg/m) and bevacizumab (15 mg/kg) as first-line chemotherapy.

The Protective Effects of Terpinen-4-ol on LPS-Induced Acute Lung Injury via Activating PPAR-γ.

Terpinen-4-ol, the major constituent of tea tree oil, has been reported to have anti-inflammatory effect. However, whether terpinen-4-ol could attenuate LPS-induced inflammation in lung tissues remains unclear. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the protective effects of terpinen-4-ol on LPS-induced acute lung injury (ALI) in mice.

[Pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics correlation of protocatechuic aldehyde and hydroxysafflor yellow A alone or their combination use in rats with hyperlipidemia].

To study the pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics correlation of protocatechuic aldehyde and hydroxysafflor yellow A alone or their combination use in rats with hyperlipidemia. In this study, the hyperlipidemia model was established by intravenous injection of protocatechuic aldehyde (20 mg•kg⁻¹) and hydroxysafflor yellow A (12 mg•kg⁻¹). The HPLC-DAD method was applied to determine the plasma concentration of protocatechuic aldehyde and hydroxysafflor yellow A at different time points and draw the drug effect-time curve.

Host Pore-Forming Protein Complex Neutralizes the Acidification of Endocytic Organelles to Counteract Intracellular Pathogens.

Many intracellular pathogens invade cells via endocytic organelles and have adapted to the drop in pH along the endocytic pathway. However, the strategy by which the host cell counteracts this pathogen adaptation remains unclear. βγ-CAT is an aerolysin-like pore-forming protein and trefoil factor complex in the frog Bombina maxima.

Effects of Danhong Injection (丹红注射液) and its main components on anticoagulation and fibrinolysis in cultured vein endothelial cells.

Objective: To observe the effects of Danhong Injection (丹红注射液) and its main components, including daiclzein and hydroxysafflor yellow A (HSYA), on the anticoagulation, fibrinolysis, anti-apoptosis in hypoxia model of vein endothelial cells (VECs).

Methods: VECs were prepared and were put in a hypoxia environment, which consisted of mixed gas of 95% N and 5% CO mixed gas, when reached confluent culture. Five groups used different treatments, including normal control group, hypoxia group, daiclzein group, HSYA group and Danhong Injection group.