A Systematic Approach to Reduce Blood Transfusions in Acute Type A Aortic Dissection Surgery.

This study aimed to summarize our experience using a systematic approach to reduce blood transfusions in acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) surgery.From August 2016 to June 2020, 326 patients underwent ATAAD surgery in our center employing a systematic approach, which primarily included the following: Liu's aortic root repair technique, Liu's aortic arch inclusion technique with a frozen elephant trunk, moderate-to-mild hypothermia circulatory arrest, and application of centrifugal pump in cardiopulmonary bypass circuit. Patients were divided into two groups based on whether they had blood product transfusion during their hospital stay: transfusion group and transfusion-free group.

Associations between bone mineral density and abdominal aortic calcification: Results of a nationwide survey.

Background And Aims: Vascular calcification has been linked to bone mineral density (BMD). This study aimed to investigate the association between BMD and abdominal aortic calcification (AAC).

Methods And Results: Data from the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were utilized.

Effects of percutaneous closure of atrial septal defects via the right internal jugular vein.

Background: Percutaneous atrial septal defect (ASD) closure is the preferred treatment for patients with suitable ASD anatomy. The safety and effectiveness of transcatheter closure have been established. However, reports on transesophageal echocardiography (TEE)-guided percutaneous closure of ASD via the right internal jugular vein (RIJV) are limited.

Biomaterials-mediated targeted therapeutics of myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Reperfusion therapy is widely used to treat acute myocardial infarction. However, its efficacy is limited by myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI), which occurs paradoxically due to the reperfusion therapy and contributes to the high mortality rate of acute myocardial infarction. Systemic administration of drugs, such as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents, to reduce MIRI is often ineffective due to the inadequate release at the pathological sites.

Case report: Successful treatment of mediastinal unicentric castleman disease using cardiopulmonary bypass.

Unicentric Castleman disease (UCD) is a rare, benign lymphoproliferative disorder. Mediastinal UCD has tumors with no clear boundaries that are highly vascularized. Resection surgery results in bleeding, leading to further challenges.

Hydrogen sulfide: A new therapeutic target in vascular diseases.

Hydrogen sulfide (HS) is one of most important gas transmitters. HS modulates many physiological and pathological processes such as inflammation, oxidative stress and cell apoptosis that play a critical role in vascular function. Recently, solid evidence show that HS is closely associated to various vascular diseases.

Uncovering the Underlying Mechanisms of Ketamine as a Novel Antidepressant.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a devastating psychiatric disorder which exacts enormous personal and social-economic burdens. Ketamine, an -methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) antagonist, has been discovered to exert rapid and sustained antidepressant-like actions on MDD patients and animal models. However, the dissociation and psychotomimetic propensities of ketamine have limited its use for psychiatric indications.

GABAergic System Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a series of neurodevelopmental diseases characterized by two hallmark symptoms, social communication deficits and repetitive behaviors. Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is one of the most important inhibitory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system (CNS). GABAergic inhibitory neurotransmission is critical for the regulation of brain rhythm and spontaneous neuronal activities during neurodevelopment.

Filamentous Bacteriophage-A Powerful Carrier for Glioma Therapy.

Glioma is a life-threatening malignant tumor. Resistance to traditional treatments and tumor recurrence present major challenges in treating and managing this disease, consequently, new therapeutic strategies must be developed. Crossing the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is another challenge for most drug vectors and therapy medications.

Circular RNA Foxo3 in cardiac ischemia-reperfusion injury in heart transplantation: A new regulator and target.

Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury occurring in heart transplantation (HT) remains as a leading cause of transplant heart graft failure. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play important roles in gene regulation and diseases. However, the impact of circRNAs on I/R injury during HT remains unknown.

A New Aortic Arch Inclusion Technique with Frozen Elephant Trunk for Aortic Arch Aneurysm Treatment.

Various surgical techniques have been proposed for treating aortic arch aneurysm (AAA); however, the optimal treatment has not been well defined. This study introduces a new aortic arch inclusion technique with frozen elephant trunk (FET) for AAA treatment.A retrospective analysis was performed among 22 patients for AAA surgical treatment between March 2010 and March 2019.

An Addition of U0126 Protecting Heart Grafts From Prolonged Cold Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Heart Transplantation: A New Preservation Strategy.

Background: Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is the major cause of primary graft dysfunction in organ transplantation. The mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathway plays a crucial role in cell physiological and pathological processes including IRI. This study aims to investigate whether inhibition of ERK signaling with U0126 can prevent prolonged cold IRI in heart transplantation.

The role of miR-711 in cardiac cells in response to oxidative stress and its biogenesis: a study on H9C2 cells.

Background: Oxidative stress results in cell apoptosis/death and plays a detrimental role in disease development and progression. Stressors alter the miRNA expression profile and miRNAs play a role in the cell response to stress. We previously showed that miR-711 is significantly over-expressed in extended cold ischemia reperfusion injured hearts in heart transplant.

Plk2 Regulated by miR-128 Induces Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Cardiac Cells.

Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury occurs during cardiac surgery and is the major factor leading to heart dysfunction and heart failure. Our previous study showed that gene and microRNA expression profiles are altered in heart grafts with extended I/R injury. In this study, we, for the first time, demonstrated that I/R injury upregulates the expression of Polo-like kinase 2 (Plk2) but decreases miR-128 expression in heart cells both in vitro and in vivo.

A New Aortic Root Reinforcement Technique for Acute Type A Aortic Dissection Surgery.

Reinforcing the dissected and fragile aortic root is critical in acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) surgery. This study introduces our new aortic root reinforcement technique and reports our early operative results and midterm follow-up results.A retrospective analysis study was performed on 235 patients (aged 53.

Supplementing preservation solution with mitochondria-targeted H S donor AP39 protects cardiac grafts from prolonged cold ischemia-reperfusion injury in heart transplantation.

Heart transplant has been accepted as the standard treatment for end-stage heart failure. Because of its susceptibility to ischemia-reperfusion injury, the heart can be preserved for only 4 to 6 hours in cold static preservation solutions. Prolonged ischemia time is adversely associated with primary graft function and long-term survival.

Role of Leptin in Mood Disorder and Neurodegenerative Disease.

The critical regulatory role of leptin in the neuroendocrine system has been widely reported. Significantly, leptin can improve learning and memory, affect hippocampal synaptic plasticity, exert neuroprotective efficacy and reduce the risk of several neuropsychiatric diseases. In terms of depression, leptin could modulate the levels of neurotransmitters, neurotrophic factors and reverse the dysfunction in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA).

A New Aortic Arch Inclusion Technique With Frozen Elephant Trunk for Type A Aortic Dissection.

Objective: Our aims were to describe a new surgical technique for the treatment of type A aortic dissection (TAAD) and to report the operative outcomes of 154 patients.

Summary Background Data: Surgical treatment of TAAD is complicated and carries a high mortality risk. To lower this risk, we developed a simplified procedure in which a stent graft was implanted as frozen elephant trunk (FET), and the proximally trimmed vascular graft was sutured from the inside of the aortic arch using the inclusion technique under moderate hypothermic circulatory arrest and antegrade selective cerebral perfusion.

A Vaginal Stillbirth after Aortic Surgery of Type B Aortic Dissection in a Pregnant Woman.

Acute aortic dissection occurring during pregnancy poses great danger to both the mother and fetus. Cesareans are usually performed before or after the aortic repair depending on the conditions of the mother and fetus. Here we report our experience in treating a 32-week pregnant woman with a type B aortic dissection, whose baby had died before admission.

Berberine Reduces Uremia-Associated Intestinal Mucosal Barrier Damage.

Berberine is one of the main active constituents of Rhizoma coptidis, a traditional Chinese medicine, and has long been used for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders. The present study was designed to investigate the effects of berberine on the intestinal mucosal barrier damage in a rat uremia model induced by the 5/6 kidney resection. Beginning at postoperative week 4, the uremia rats were treated with daily 150 mg/kg berberine by oral gavage for 6 weeks.

Aberrant origin of left subclavian artery from the pulmonary artery and right aortic arch in an aortopulmonary window.

Aortopulmonary window (APW) is a rare congenital anomaly that occurs in 0.2-0.6% of congenital heart diseases.