Functionalized Periodic Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles for Inhibiting the Progression of Atherosclerosis by Targeting Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol.

Atherosclerotic disease is a substantial global burden, and existing treatments, such as statins, are recommended to lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels and inhibit the progression of atherosclerosis. However, side effects, including gastrointestinal unease, potential harm to the liver, and discomfort in the muscles, might be observed. In this study, we propose a novel method using periodic mesoporous silica nanoparticles (PMS) to create heparin-modified PMS (PMS-HP) with excellent biocompatibility, enabling selective removal of LDL-C from the blood.

The Differences of Quantitative Flow Ratio in Coronary Artery Stenosis with or without Atrial Fibrillation.

Quantitative flow ratio (QFR) is a new method for the assessment of the extent of coronary artery stenosis. But it may be obscured by the cardiac remodeling and abnormal blood flow of the coronary artery when encountering atrial fibrillation (AF). The present study aimed to examine the impact of these changed structures and blood flow of coronary arteries on QFR results in AF patients.

Assisted biomimetic electrostimulation therapy can improve the clinical pregnancy rate of patients with abnormal endometrial receptivity undergoing frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycles.

This study aimed to explore whether assisted biomimetic electrostimulation (BES) therapy can improve clinical outcomes in patients with abnormal endometrial receptivity undergoing frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET) cycles. We retrospectively collected data from 132 patients who underwent FET cycles and divided them into the BES ( = 86) and non-BES (NBES) groups ( = 46). The clinical pregnancy rate (55.

Cardioprotective effect of silicon-built restraint device (ASD), for left ventricular remodeling in rat heart failure model.

This study aims to evaluate the feasibility and cardio-protective effects of biocompatible silicon-built restraint device (ASD) in the rat's heart failure (HF) model. The performance and compliance characteristics of the ASD device were assessed in vitro by adopting a pneumatic drive and ball burst test. Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were divided into four groups (n = 6); control, HF, HF + CSD, and HF + ASD groups, respectively.

Antithrombotic Therapy With Ticagrelor in Atrial Fibrillation Subjects After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

Warfarin, along with aspirin and clopidogrel, has long been recommended for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) who are undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention with a drug-eluting stent (PCI-DES). However, this triple therapy has been known to increase the risk of bleeding complications. Meanwhile, there is no evidence from prospective trials on the use of ticagrelor in a dual therapy.

A High Triglyceride-Glucose Index Is Associated With Contrast-Induced Acute Kidney Injury in Chinese Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Background And Objectives: Triglyceride-glucose (TyG) is an emerging vital indicator of insulin resistance and is associated with increased risk of T2DM and cardiovascular events. We aimed to explore the TyG index and contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) in patients with type 2 diabetes who underwent coronary angiology.

Methods: This study enrolled 928 patients with suspected coronary artery disease who underwent coronary angiology or percutaneous coronary intervention in Zhongda hospital.

Therapeutic approach for global myocardial injury using bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells by cardiac support device in rats.

Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have been considered a promising therapeutic approach to cardiovascular disease. This study intends to compare the effect of BMSCs through a standard active cardiac support device (ASD) and intravenous injection on global myocardial injury induced by isoproterenol. BMSCs were cultured in vitro, and the transplanted cells were labeled with a fluorescent dye CM-Dil.

Therapeutic advances in cardiac targeted drug delivery: from theory to practice.

The most commonly used administration methods in clinics and life are oral administration, intravenous injection, and other systemic administration methods. Targeted administration must be an essential long-term development direction due to the limited availability and a high incidence of systemic side effects. Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death all over the world.

Do We Need to Distinguish Thrombolysis and Nonthrombolysis Patients When Applying Stroke-Associated Pneumonia Predicting Scores? An External Validation from a 2-Center Database.

BACKGROUND Due to the lack of validation for predictive scoring of stroke-associated pneumonia in both thrombolysis- and nonthrombolysis-treated ischemic stroke (IS) patients, this study aimed to evaluate 4 scoring methods in the 2 subgroups. MATERIAL AND METHODS The CerebroVascular Database Project database included data from patients with cerebral IS that were admitted in 2 hospitals from February 2016 to January 2018. A total of 138 thrombolysis-treated and 138 nonthrombolysis-treated IS patients were enrolled.

MSCs Contribute to the Conversion of Ly6C Monocytes into Ly6C Subsets under AMI.

Background: Ly6C monocytes are inflammatory cells that accumulate in an infarcted myocardium, and Ly6C monocytes are believed to be reparative and curb myocardial remodeling. NR4A1 is a novel target for modulating the inflammatory phenotype of monocytes during atherogenesis.

Objectives: We aimed to investigate whether MSCs can contribute to the heterogeneity of Ly6C monocytes differentiated into Ly6C monocytes and whether this regulation is related to nuclear receptor NR4A1.

LncRNA-LUNAR1 Levels Are Closely Related to Coronary Collaterals in Patients with Chronic Total Coronary Occlusion.

Coronary collaterals can effectively improve myocardial blood supply to the area of CTO (chronic total coronary occlusion) and can, thus, reduce infarct size. LUNAR1(leukemia-induced noncoding activator RNA-1) is a specific LncRNA regulated by Notch signaling that not only can enhance the expression of IGFR-1 but also can promote angiogenesis and cell survival. Here, we investigated the relationship between LncRNA-LUNAR1 levels in peripheral plasma and the formation of coronary collaterals.

ANGPTL2 regulates autophagy through the MEK/ERK/Nrf-1 pathway and affects the progression of renal fibrosis in diabetic nephropathy.

Background: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the most important microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus. The present study aims to explore whether angiopoietin-like protein 2 (ANGPTL2) can promote renal tissue fibrosis in DN.

Materials And Methods: Models includes diabetic SD rats induced by streptozotocin (STZ) and high glucose (HG)-stimulated HK-2 cells.

Porous Hydrogel-Encapsulated Photonic Barcodes for Multiplex Detection of Cardiovascular Biomarkers.

Early detection of cardiac troponin I (cTnI), B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), and myoglobin (Myo) is essential for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and heart failure (HF). We designed a porous hydrogel-encapsulated photonic crystal (PhC) barcode-based suspension array for multiple cardiovascular marker detection. The hybrid hydrogel was composed of polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) and gelatin, resulting in a porous and hydrophilic scaffold which ensured stability of the PhC in aqueous solutions.

Inverse opal substrate-loaded mesenchymal stem cells contribute to decreased myocardial remodeling after transplantation into acute myocardial infarction mice.

Background: The two-dimensional incubation method is now the most commonly method for mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) production. however, gene expression and secretion of growth factors are relatively low; thus, the transplanted cells cannot be effectively utilized for potential clinical applications after acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Objectives: We aimed to investigate whether our newly made substrates of inverse opal with specific surface microstructures for MSC culturing can increase the viability of the cells and can contributes to decreased myocardial remodeling after transplanted to AMI mice.

Risk factors of acute kidney injury after acute myocardial infarction.

Objectives: To study the risk factors for acute kidney injury (AKI) in-patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Methods: A total of 1371 cases of adult in-patients with AMI in the First People's Hospital of Changzhou from January 2008 to December 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. Based on the occurrence of AKI diagnosed according to the 2012 KDIGO AKI criteria, they were divided into AKI group and non-AKI group and further into conservative treatment groups, coronary angiography (CAG) groups, and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) groups based on the timing of AKI occurrence, respectively.

Associations of dysnatremias with mortality in chronic kidney disease.

Background: Hyponatremia and hypernatremia are associated with death in the general population and those with chronic kidney disease (CKD). We studied the associations between dysnatremias, all-cause mortality and causes of death in a large cohort of Stage 3 and 4 CKD patients.

Methods: We included 45 333 patients with Stage 3 and 4 CKDs followed in a large healthcare system.

Photoluminescent Mesoporous Silicon Nanoparticles with siCCR2 Improve the Effects of Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Transplantation after Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Background: Despite the benefits of mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) transplantation in cardiac tissue, detailed in vivo observations have shown that MSCs only survive for a brief period after transplantation due to harsh microenvironmental conditions, including ischemia, inflammation and anoikis, in the infarcted myocardium. Thus, new strategies are needed to enhance MSC survival and inhibit cardiac remodeling. Studies have now demonstrated that chemokine [C-C motif] ligand 2 (CCL2) and its cognate receptor C-C chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) promote excessive Ly6C(high) inflammatory monocyte infiltration at the infarct in response to ischemic myocardial injury.

Inhibiting the mobilization of Ly6C(high) monocytes after acute myocardial infarction enhances the efficiency of mesenchymal stromal cell transplantation and curbs myocardial remodeling.

Background: Ischemia related inflammation is the most critical factor for the survival of transplanted mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), and strategies for controlling excessive inflammation after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) are essential and necessary for cell transplantation therapy. Our present study tested the effect of decreased Ly6C(high) monocytes on mouse MSCs transplantation after AMI.

Methods: BALB/c AMI mice were treated systemically with a CCR2 antagonist (RS 504393, 2 mg/kg, subcutaneously) or normal saline (control group).

MiR-130b plays an oncogenic role by repressing PTEN expression in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells.

Background: Esophageal carcinoma is one of the most common malignancies with high cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNAs that regulate a wide variety of cellular processes, and also play an important role in the development and progression of cancers. In a previous microarray study, we demonstrated that miR-130b was upregulated in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) tissues.

Insulin-like growth factor-1 and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-3 concentrations in children with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) concentrations in children with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) and to compare the results according to disease severity and duration.

Methods: Fifty-one children with OSAHS underwent polysomnography and were classified as having mild, moderate, or severe disease. All children underwent bilateral tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy or adenoidectomy.

MiR-361-5p acts as a tumor suppressor in prostate cancer by targeting signal transducer and activator of transcription-6(STAT6).

Castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), whose pathogenesis is known to be regulated by microRNAs (miRNAs), has a poor prognosis. In our present study, we found that the expression of miR-361-5p in CRPC was lower than in androgen-dependent prostate cancer (ADPC), indicating that miR-361-5p may play an important role in the progression of ADPC to CRPC. The role of miR-361-5p in prostate cancer (PCa) has not been evaluated until date.