Innovative strategies for the discovery of new drugs against alopecia areata: taking aim at the immune system.

Introduction: The autoimmune hair loss condition alopecia areata (AA) exacts a substantial psychological and socioeconomic toll on patients. Biotechnology companies, dermatology clinics, and research institutions are dedicated to understanding AA pathogenesis and developing new therapeutic approaches. Despite recent efforts, many knowledge gaps persist, and multiple treatment development avenues remain unexplored.

The efficacy and safety of tacrolimus and entecavir combination therapy in the treatment of hepatitis B virus-associated glomerulonephritis: a multi-center, placebo controlled, and single-blind randomized trial.

Background: The proteinuria remission in hepatitis B virus-associated glomerulonephritis (HBV-GN) patients with massive proteinuria treated with antiviral therapy was low. Tacrolimus (TAC) is effective in primary nephropathy and can inhibit HBV infection by inhibiting HBV binding to sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide on liver cells. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of TAC combined with ETV compared with entecavir (ETV) monotherapy in HBV-GN.

NFAT inhibitor 11R-VIVIT ameliorates mouse renal fibrosis after ischemia-reperfusion-induced acute kidney injury.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) with maladaptive tubular repair leads to renal fibrosis and progresses to chronic kidney disease (CKD). At present, there is no curative drug to interrupt AKI-to-CKD progression. The nuclear factor of the activated T cell (NFAT) family was initially identified as a transcription factor expressed in most immune cells and involved in the transcription of cytokine genes and other genes critical for the immune response.

The Krüppel-like factor 15-NFATc1 axis ameliorates podocyte injury: a novel rationale for using glucocorticoids in proteinuria diseases.

Podocyte injury and loss contribute to proteinuria, glomerulosclerosis and eventually kidney failure. Recent studies have demonstrated that the loss of Kruppel-like factor 15 (KLF15) in podocytes increases the susceptibility to injury; however, the mechanism underlying the protective effects on podocyte injury remains incompletely understood. Herein, we showed that KLF15 ameliorates podocyte injury through suppressing NFAT signaling and the salutary effects of the synthetic glucocorticoid dexamethasone in podocyte were partially mediated by the KLF15-NFATc1 axis.

Effects of Niaoduqing Particles () on Delaying Progression of Renal Dysfunction: A Post-trial, Open-Label, Follow-up Study.

Objective: To follow up the participants of the randomized clinical trial "Efficacy and Safety of Niaoduqing Particles () for Delaying Moderate-to-Severe Renal Dysfunction", and assess the long-term effects of Niaoduqing Particles on delaying the progression of renal dysfunction.

Methods: Participants, who had previously been randomly assigned to receive Niaoduqing Particles or placebo for 24 weeks (146 cases in each group), were invited to follow-up and all were administered Niaoduqing Particles 5 g thrice daily and 10 g before bedtime for 24 weeks. The primary endpoints were changes in baseline serum creatinine (Scr) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) after completion of the open-label treatment period.

Efficacy and Safety of Niaoduqing Particles for Delaying Moderate-to-severe Renal Dysfunction: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Multicenter Clinical Study.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) with moderate-to-severe renal dysfunction usually exhibits an irreversible course, and available treatments for delaying the progression to end-stage renal disease are limited. This study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of the traditional Chinese medicine, Niaoduqing particles, for delaying renal dysfunction in patients with stage 3b-4 CKD.

Methods: The present study was a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter clinical trial.

N-acetylgalactosamine exposure of serum IgA1 was associated with glomerulosclerosis and tubular atrophy/interstitial fibrosis of IgA nephropathy patients.

Aim: Immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common glomerulonephritis with various histological and clinical phenotypes. N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) exposure plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of IgAN. The aim of the current study is to investigate whether GalNAc exposure of serum IgA1 was associated with clinical and pathological manifestation of IgAN.

[Cardiovascular risk profile in systemic lupus erythematosus: a cross-sectional study of 879 patients].

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and estimate the associated risk factors for CVD.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 879 SLE patients treated in our hospital between March, 2006 and March, 2011. The demographic data and the clinical data including SLE duration, therapeutic regimen, renal pathological data, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI), and associated biochemical parameters were analyzed.

Use of arterial conduit for arterial revascularization during liver and multivisceral transplantation.

Background: At present, revascularization is still one of the most critical technologies in orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). Hepatic artery (HA) variations occur frequently in both donors and recipients. Moreover, there are always some pathological changes in the recipient hepatic artery.

[Risk factors of hypertension in IgA nephropathy].

Objective: To explore the risk factors of hypertension in patients with IgA nephropathy in South China.

Methods: The clinical and renal pathological data of 280 primary IgA nephropathy patients diagnosed by biopsy were analyzed to extinguish the risk factors of hypertension.

Results: A total of 96 patients were suffered with hypertension (34.

[Efficacy and safety of coupled plasma filtration adsorption combined with continuous veno-venous hemofiltration for multiple organ dysfunction syndrome patients with acute liver failure].

Objective: To evaluate efficacy and safety of coupled plasma filtration adsorption (CPFA) combined with continuous veno-venous hemofiltration (CVVH) for the treatment of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) patients with acute liver failure (ALF), and to evaluate the effect of CPFA plus CVVF on inflammatory mediators in these patients.

Methods: A total of 38 cases of 11 MODS patients with ALF (male 6, female 5) were treated with CPFA plus CVVH, and the following clinical indicators including changes in mean arterial pressure (MAP), oxygen index (PaO(2)/FiO(2)), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), IL-6, IL-8, biochemical parameters of liver and kidney function, parameters of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) score, and acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) score were determined before and after the treatment. The degree of improvement in clinical symptoms, feasibility, tolerance toward CPFA plus CVVH, therapy-related adverse reactions and security were simultaneously evaluated.