2021年 · 第04卷第02期

Life may have first arisen on Earth billions of years ago in the form of viruses, which have had a significant influence on the evolution of all living creatures, including human beings. Some scientists believe that up to 8% of the human genome is derived from viruses, which are simple, primitive organisms with a variety of different shapes and sizes.^[1]Countless undiscovered viruses can exist within the human body and co-evolve with human beings.^[2]Some are pathogenic, but most do not harm humans. The human body is such a complex organism system that it can host bacteria, fungi, and viruses; humans can also engage in high-level thinking and create civilizations. In contrast, viruses are such simple organisms that they consist solely of genetic material (DNA or RNA) and a protective protein capsid, and as such are often overlooked. Both viruses and humans evolve to adapt to changes in their environment. Sometimes they are in conflict with each other, while sometimes they coexist peacefully. However, new conflicts between viruses and humans always arise, which begs the question of who will win: humans or viruses?

The aim of this work was to measure the antibacterial activity (against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus [S. aureus]) of the ethyl acetate part of Abrus cantoniensis and assess their potential as medicines.

The experiment was divided into four groups: negative control group [with Mueller-Hinton broth (MHB)], positive control group (with 75% ethanol), blank group (with MHB) and test group (with the ethyl acetate part of Abrus cantoniensis). The antibacterial activities of the extracts were evaluated by the Oxford cup assay and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). Time-kill curve experiments, scanning electron microscopy, the content of DNA, RNA and protein were used to study the antibacterial mechanism of the ethyl acetate extract part on the growth and viability of S. aureus. The study procedures were approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee of Xi’an Jiaotong University (approval No. XJTULAC2016-412) on January 22, 2016.

The ethyl acetate part of Abrus cantoniensis extract exhibited the highest inhibitory activity against the growth of S. aureus with an inhibition zone diameter of 16.4 mm and MIC value of 0.5 μg/mL. The general activity range of the ethyl acetate part, determined using a time-killing curve, was found to be 0.5 μg/mL to 40 μg/mL (MIC to 80 × MIC). Changes in the scanning electron microscopy images and of DNA, RNA and proteins of S. aureus indicated possible mechanisms of the inhibitory activity of the ethyl acetate part.

The ethyl acetate part of Abrus cantoniensis damaged bacterial cell structures, which results in protoplasm leakage, and eventually bacterial cell death.

Emetine, an isoquinoline alkaloid that is enriched at high concentrations in the lung, has shown potent in vitro activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The aim of this study was to better understand the effectiveness of low-dose emetine for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

In this real-world study, 63 patients with mild or common COVID-19 were recruited from Wuhan Fangcang Shelter Hospital and five COVID-19-designated hospitals in Anhui Province, China from February to March 2020. Thirty-nine patients from Wuhan Fangcang Shelter Hospital were assigned to a pragmatic randomized controlled clinical trial, and 24 patients from the 5 COVID-19-designated hospitals in Anhui Province underwent a real-world study. The medication course of emetine was less than 10 days. The main symptoms and adverse reactions of all patients were observed and recorded. The primary outcome measure was the time required for a negative SARS-CoV-2 RNA result or the negative result rate on day 10. Secondary outcomes included axillary temperature, transcutaneous oxygen saturation, and respiratory frequency recovery. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University on February 20, 2019 (approval No. PJ2020-03-19) and was registered with the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry on February 20, 2019 (registration number: ChiCTR2000030022).

The oxygen saturation values were higher in the treatment group than in the control group on the first day after enrollment for patients treated at Fangcang Shelter Hospital. The axillary body temperature, respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation among patients in Fangcang Shelter Hospital were related to the time effect but not to the intervention measures. The respiratory rate and oxygen saturation of patients in the Anhui designated hospitals were related to the intervention measures but not to the time effect. The axillary body temperature of patients in Anhui designated hospitals was related to the time effect but not to the intervention measures.

Our preliminary study shows that low-dose emetine combined with basic conventional antiviral drugs improves clinical symptoms in patients with mild and common COVID-19 without apparent adverse effects, suggesting that moderately increased doses of emetine may have good potential for treatment and prevention of COVID-19.

Serum tumor markers are seldom considered as diagnostic biomarkers for breast cancer because they lack good sensitivity or specificity. This study aimed to evaluate whether a combination of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and the serum tumor markers carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), cancer antigen (CA)125, and CA15-3 might improve their diagnostic performance.

We performed a retrospective case-control study of patients with breast cancer or benign breast diseases (BBD) and healthy female donors (HDs) who underwent preoperative CTC detection and serum tumor marker tests between December 2017 and November 2018. CTC detection and serum tumor marker test results were collected from 177 breast cancer patients, 64 patients with BBD, and 20 HDs. Correlations between CTC, CEA, CA125, or CA15-3 and participants’ clinical characteristics were then analyzed. The diagnostic performances of CTC, CEA, CA125, and CA15-3 were estimated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, China (approval No. [2018] kuaishendi(75)) on May 24, 2018.

CTC, CEA, and CA15-3 were able to distinguish breast cancer patients from controls (BBD+HDs) (P<0.0001, P=0.0006, and P=0.0086, respectively). CTCs were associated with tumor size (P=0.0275) and lymph node involvement (P=0.0373), while CA15-3 was correlated with cancer stage (P=0.01) and lymph node involvement (P=0.001). The AUCs of CTCs, CEA, CA125, and CA15-3 were 0.845, 0.623, 0.477, and 0.58, respectively. CA125, with AUC<0.5, was not considered a biomarker for breast cancer. CEA and CA15-3 had low sensitivities (<10%) but high specificities (>98%). Combination with CTC improved the diagnostic performances of CEA and CA15-3 for breast cancer. CTC_CA15-3 had better diagnostic performance than CTC_CEA, with an AUC of 0.874, a sensitivity of 0.757, and a specificity of 0.905.

CTCs, CEA, and CA15-3 are potential diagnostic biomarkers for breast cancer. The diagnostic performance of CEA and CA15-3 may be improved by combination with CTCs.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) releases growth factors upon activation, which in turn accelerates healing and regeneration of the target tissue. However, PRP composition may vary according to the patient’s demographics, and wider applications of PRP warrant product standardization. The current study aimed to examine variables influencing the platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF-BB) concentration in PRP.

This observational study was conducted in the Department of Pathology and Dentistry at Swami Rama Himalayan University, a tertiary care hospital in northern India from December 2016 to November 2017. PRP was prepared from 40 mL of whole blood from 35 individuals (22 women, 13 men). Platelet counts, platelet indices (platelet distribution width, mean platelet volume) and PDGF-BB levels were measured, and platelet yield, platelet dose, and growth factor dose in PRP were also calculated. All parameters were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient. The association between PDGF-BB and PRP platelet count was evaluated using logistic regression. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Swami Rama Himalayan University (SRHU/HIMS/ETHICS/2016/103) on September 7, 2016.

The mean platelet count, PDGF-BB concentration, platelet yield, platelet dose, and growth factor dose in PRP were 1317×10⁹/L, 30±9.89ng/mL, 71.62±28.34%, 6.5±3.5×10⁹, and 159.62±52.39ng/mL, respectively. Linear regression analysis indicated that PRP platelet counts were a good predictor for PGDF-BB (P<0.05; adjusted R²=0.96. PRP platelet count was significantly positively correlated with PDGF-BB concentration (r=0.74, P<0.001), platelet yield (r=0.80, P<0.001), platelet dose (r=1, P<0.001), and growth factor dose (r=0.74, P<0.001).

PRP has wide clinical applications associated with its healing and regenerative properties, and both the quality and quantity of PRP thus need to be standardized as per the requirements. Evaluating variables affecting PRP will thus aid pathologists and clinical practitioners.

To identify risk factors for anastomotic leakage after gastrectomy in patients with Siewert type II/III adenocarcinoma (AEG) of the esophagogastric junction.

This was a retrospective case-control study of 903 patients with Siewert type II/III AEG treated from January 2012 to January 2015 at the Shanxi Cancer Hospital in China. All patients underwent gastrectomy, and their clinical characteristics were analyzed to identify associations with anastomotic leakage. Independent risk factors were identified by binary logistic regression. The 2-year disease-free survival was calculated and compared between patients with anastomotic leakage and control patients. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Shanxi Medical University (approval No. 2014-09-39) on September 19, 2014.

Out of the 903 patients were included in the study, 80 (8.86%, 80/903) experienced anastomotic leakage. The mortality rate attributed to anastomotic leakage was 8.75% (7/80). Logistic regression analysis revealed that preoperative hypoalbuminemia (odds ratio (OR)=3.249, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.569-6.725, P=0.002), type of reconstruction (OR=1.795, 95% CI: 1.026-3.142, P=0.040), and combined organ resection (OR=1.807, 95% CI: 1.069-3.055, P=0.027) were independent risk factors for anastomotic leakage.

Preoperative hypoalbuminemia, type of reconstruction, and combined organ resection were identified as risk factors for anastomotic leakage in patients undergoing gastrectomy for Siewert type II/III AEG.

At the request of the authors,Journal of Bio-X Researchis retracting the original article titled "The mechanisms of colorectal cancer cell mesenchymal-epithelial transition induced by hepatocyte exosome-derived miR-203a-3p" (DOI: 10.1097/JBR.0000000000000013)^[1]due to the issue of copyright ownership.

The authors state that an error was made during the assembly ofFigure 3Fin the initial submission version of the paper "CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutation of asparagine-linked glycosylation 13 transcript variant 1 causes epilepsy in mice" (DOI: 10.1097/JBR.0000000000000059).^[1]The labels of data from the Alg13^-5ntand wild type (WT) mice above western blot bands inFigure 3Fappear incorrectly in the published version. In addition, there is a spelling error inFigure 3E. Please see the correctFigure 3E and Fhere.