Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA
-
Recent studies suggested that the gray-white matter ratio (GWR) determined from brain computed tomography (CT) scans may be a reliable predictor of poor neurological outcomes. The aim of study was to evaluate the association between the GWR and the outcomes in adult comatose cardiac arrest (CA) survivors in Chinese. ⋯ Low GWRs which were obtained from brain CT scans in comatose CA patients after restoration of spontaneous circulation were associated with poor neurological outcomes. GWR from brain CT can be a useful parameter for prognostic prediction aiding to an optimal clinical decision process in comatose CA survivors.
-
Osteoporosis is one of the bone-metabolic diseases associated with decreased bone renewal and bone mineral density. β-aminoisobutyric acid (BAIBA), a natural thymine catabolite, can reduce inflammation in skeletal muscle and alleviate hepatic endoplasmic reticulum stress. However, the roles of BAIBA in osteoblast proliferation and differentiation remain largely unknown. ⋯ Our results provide the first evidence that BAIBA stimulates proliferation and differentiation of osteoprogenitor cells via activation of NAD(P)H oxidase/ROS signaling.
-
DNA methylation is the most extensively studied epigenetic modification which had been suspected to be involved in the progress of gestational diabetes mellitus(GDM). It is vital to investigate the expression profile and methylation profile in the GDM adipose tissue samples to learn more about the relationship between the two profiles. ⋯ We found that antigen processing and presentation pathway and immune-related genes were closely associated with gestational diabetes mellitus in the visceral omental adipose tissue of Chinese pregnant women, based on the integration analysis of expression and methylation profiles. These results may be valuable for the prognostic biomarkers and future therapeutic targets.
-
One of the most important emerging carbapenem-resistant bacteria is Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae). The present study aimed to investigate the antibiotic susceptibility pattern of K. pneumoniae isolates and detection of carbapenemase producing K. pneumoniae obtained from Iranian hospitalized patients. ⋯ This is the first identification of blaNDM-1 and blaOXA-48-like in K. pneumoniae in Southwestern Iran and the highest reported prevalence of blaNDM in this bacterium from Iran. Since carbapenem-resistant isolates containing New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1 (NDM-1) were almost resistant to all the tested antibiotics, the resistance due to this gene may be increased in the near future as a potential health threat.
-
The incidence of hepatoblastoma is not well known in Taiwan. The goal of this study was to investigate the incidence rates of hepatoblastoma by age and sex. ⋯ Only 27 patients aged ≥ 15 years with hepatoblastoma were identified in this study, the existence of adult hepatoblastoma still requires novel molecular tools to elucidate. The association between the upward trend of hepatoblastoma incidence in boys and increased survival of prematurity in Taiwan warrants further investigations.