Int J Med Sci
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The paper displayed the pathological changes and relationships of the modified Mankin score, tidemark roughness and calcified cartilage (CC) thickness by extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) (0.25 mJ/ mm2 with 800 impulses) on different positions of the medial and lateral rat knee OA joint. After the experiments, the articular cartilage was assessed using histomorphometry, image analysis and statistical method. In the micro-CT analysis, ESWT on medial groups were better than lateral groups in the trabecular volume and trabecular number. ⋯ In terms of the relationship of tidemark roughness with CC thickness, the medial and Sham groups showed a significant negative correlation (r = -0.788, P = 0.022). Additionally, the Euclidean distance derived from 3D scatter plot analysis was an indicator of chondropathic conditions, exhibiting a strong correlation with OA stage in the articular cartilage of the femur (r = 0.911, P < 0.001) and tibia (r = 0.890, P < 0.001) after ESWT. Principle component analysis (PCA) further demonstrated that ESWT applied to medial locations had a better outcome than treatment at lateral locations for knee OA by comparing with Sham and OA groups, and CC thickness was the most important factor affecting hyaline cartilage repair after ESWT.
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Hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and coronary artery disease are common comorbidities and dangerous factors for infection and serious COVID-19. Polymorphisms in genes associated with comorbidities may help observe susceptibility and disease severity variation. However, specific genetic factors and the extent to which they can explain variation in susceptibility of severity are unclear. ⋯ The key genes IL6 and AGT are involved in regulating immune response, cytokine activity, and viral infection. Therefore, RAAS inhibitors, AGT antisense nucleotides, cytokine inhibitors, vitamin D, fenofibrate, and vaccines regulating non-immune and immune factors could be potential strategies to prevent and cure COVID-19. The study provides a basis for further investigation of genes and pathways with predictive value for the risk of infection and prognosis and could help guide drug and vaccine development to improve treatment efficacy and the development of personalised treatments, especially for COVID-19 individuals with common comorbidities.
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Oral cancer is the eighth greatest generally diagnosed cancer amongst males worldwide and the fourth most generally malignancy amongst Taiwanese males. The pro-inflammatory adipocytokine visfatin promotes tumor growth. Elevated plasma visfatin levels have been identified in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), although the biological mechanisms underlying the involvement of visfatin in the pathogenesis of OSCC are not well understood. ⋯ We also examined the associations between these visfatin genotypes and OSCC histopathological prognostic factors (pathological stage, tumor status, lymph node status, and metastasis). We found that compared with subjects with the CC genotype of SNP rs11977021, those with the CT+TT genotype were less likely to progress OSCC. In addition, an association was found between the rs4730153 variant and lymph node metastasis in the OSCC cohort.
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Background & Aims: Correlations between serum viral markers and intrahepatic cccDNA in patients undergoing long-term nucleos(t)ide analogues (NAs) treatment haven't been fully explored. In this study, we evaluate the correlation between intrahepatic cccDNA and other serum viral markers and intrahepatic HBV DNA in HBeAg positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients during 60-month treatment with NAs. Methods: Fifty-four HBeAg positive CHB patients received long-term NAs treatment were included in this study. ⋯ Multivariate regression analysis showed that only the decreased HBV DNA plus RNA was positively associated with cccDNA decline (β=0.172, P =0.006). Changes of HBV DNA plus RNA (r=0.525, P=0.001) was better correlated with cccDNA decline as compared to HBV RNA (r=0.384, P=0.008), HBV DNA (r=0.431, P=0.003), and HBsAg (r=0.342, P=0.029). Conclusions: Serum HBV DNA plus RNA better correlated with intrahepatic cccDNA than other viral makers before and during NAs treatment in HBeAg positive CHB patients.
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Among geriatric diseases, cerebrovascular disease ranks fourth according to the Causes of Death Statistics in 2019, Korea, and is the most common cause of acquired disorders in adults. Daehwang-Hwanglyoun-Sasim-Tang (DHST), a herbal prescription consisting of two herbal medicines, Rhei Rhizoma and Coptidis Rhizoma, has been reported to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anticancer effects. This study was conducted to confirm the anti-inflammatory mechanism of DHST treatment in ischemic brain injury and to confirm the role of DHST in cognitive function improvement. ⋯ In the 50 mL/kg DHST (H-DHST) group, the expression of apoptosis-related proteins was reduced and neuronal damage was suppressed in the hippocampal CA1 region. However, cognitive improvement was observed in the H-DHST group that was attributable to anti-inflammatory and antiapoptotic pathways. In the 5 mL/kg DHST group, no significant effect was observed compared with the control group.