Int J Med Sci
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Measurement of body circumferences (BCs) is widely used as an anthropometric tool to assess body composition and health risk in obese individuals. In this preliminary work we evaluated the association of several BCs with Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA)-measured lean mass as well as leg press test scores with an aim at exploring the potential of BCs as predictor of body composition and muscle strength. A total of 34 female participants aged 47.3±7.6 y who were obese (BMI, 30.4-43.7 kg/m2) were recruited. ⋯ Multiple regression analysis yielded statistically significant predictive models (Pc < 0.05 for all; adjusted R2 ranging 0.123 - 0.504; standard error of the estimate ranging 4.0% - 11% of the mean measured value) for all body composition as well as leg press outcomes. The current findings show that BCs represent a simple, suitable anthropometric measurement with a potential to predict several lean mass components as well as lower limbs strength in obese females. The proposed predictors need to be validated in a larger sample of participants and in obese males.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of outcomes in intrauterine insemination, in vitro fertilisation and intracytoplasmic sperm injection in men with and without varicocele.
Objectives: To investigate the differences in clinical pregnancy, miscarriage, and live birth rates when male partners were diagnosed with a varicocele and to compare these outcomes to those without and study the outcomes based on the grade of varicocele. Methods: The retrospective study was based on a cohort of consecutive infertile couples undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) at the Reproductive Center of Shandong Provincial Hospital affiliated to the Shandong University during the period between January 2017 and December 2018. A total of 4203 couples comprised of men with and without varicocele undergoing the first ART cycle (1501 intrauterine inseminations (IUI), 1623 in vitro fertilisations (IVF) and 1079 intracytoplasmic sperm injections (ICSI)) were included. ⋯ In IVF, ORs for live birth where men were diagnosed with grades 1 or 2 varicocele were also lower than those for men with grade 3,whereas a higher miscarriage rate was found when men had grades 1 or 2 varicocele than when men had grade 3. However, for ICSI, no significant outcomes were found in grades 1, 2 or 3 varicocele versus the no varicocele group. Conclusions: The increasing grade of varicocele was negatively associated with sperm parameters and can alter the outcome of further IUI/IVF.
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Background: Adenine exhibits potential anticancer activity against several types of malignancies. However, whether adenine has anticancer effects on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells is incompletely explored. Methods: Human HCC cell lines HepG2 and SK-Hep-1 (p53-wild type) and Hep3B (p53-deficient) were used as cell model. ⋯ Inhibition of AMPK activation or knockdown of AMPK restored the decreased cell growth of HepG2 and SK-Hep-1 cells in response to adenine. Conclusions: These findings reveal that adenine reduces the cell growth of HepG2 and SK-Hep-1 but not Hep3B cells, attributing to the AMPK/p53-mediated S phase arrest and apoptosis. It suggests that adenine has anticancer potential against p53-wild type HCC cells and may be beneficial as an adjuvant for HCC treatment.
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Basal-like breast cancer is among the most aggressive cancers and there is still no effective targeted treatment. In order to identify new therapeutic targets, we performed mRNA-Seq on eight breast cancer cell lines. Among the genes overexpressed in basal-like tumors, we focused on the RhoA and RhoB genes, which encode small GTPases known to play a role in the actin cytoskeleton, allowing cells to migrate. qRT-PCR and Western blotting were used for expression studies. ⋯ Rho proteins are involved in the formation of stress fibers, a conformation of the actin cytoskeleton found in migrating cells: inhibition of RhoA expression decreased the formation of these fibers. BRCA1, a gene frequently inactivated in basal-like tumors, appears to play a role in the differential expression of RhoA and RhoB in these tumors, as the restoration of BRCA1 expression in a BRCA1-mutated basal-like cell line decreased expression of RhoA and increased expression of RhoB, resulting in reduced migratory capacity. These results suggest Rho proteins as potential therapeutic targets for basal-like and BRCA1-mutated breast cancer, as migration and acquisition of mesenchymal properties are key functional pathways in these tumors with high metastatic potential.
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Background: Data on acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with myocardial infarction (MI) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) after cardiac arrest are scarce. The prevalence of AKI, as classified by the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) criteria; and its possible association with 30-day mortality were assessed. Methods: Data on 6387 patients with MI, 342 (5.3%) with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest or arrest immediately after admission before PCI, were retrospectively analyzed. ⋯ The adjusted OR for AKI KDIGO stages 1/2 and stage 3 were 3.68; 95% CI 1.53 to 8.32; p=0.002 and 29.10; 95% CI 8.31 to 101.88; p<0.0001, respectively. Conclusion: In patients resuscitated after MI undergoing PCI, AKI had a deleterious impact on the prognosis. A graded increase in the severity of AKI according to the KDIGO definition was associated with a progressively increased risk of 30-day mortality.