Proteomic analysis of serum extracellular vesicles from biliary tract infection patients to identify novel biomarkers

Biliary tract infection (BTI), a commonly occurring abdominal disease, despite being extensively studied for its initiation and underlying mechanisms, continues to pose a challenge in the quest for identifying specific diagnostic biomarkers. Extracellular vesicles (EVs), which emanate from diverse cell types, serve as minute biological entities that mirror unique physiological or pathological conditions. Despite their potential, there has been a relatively restricted exploration of EV-oriented methodologies for diagnosing BTI. To uncover potent protein biomarkers for BTI patients, we applied a label-free quantitative proteomic method known for its unbiased and high-throughput nature. Furthermore, 192 differentially expressed proteins surfaced within EVs isolated from individuals afflicted with BTI. Subsequent GO and KEGG analyses pinpointed Carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1) and Crumbs homolog 3 (CRB3) as noteworthy biomarkers. Validation via data analysis of plasma-derived EV samples confirmed their specificity to BTI. Our study leveraged an unbiased proteomic tool to unveil CEACAM1 and CRB3 as promising protein biomarkers in serum EVs, presenting potential avenues for the advancement of diagnostic systems for BTI detection.

Artificial intelligence-aided diagnostic imaging: A state-of-the-art technique in precancerous screening

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Chromoendoscopy with the use of indigo carmine (IC) dye is a crucial endoscopic technique to identify gastrointestinal neoplasms. However, its performance is limited by the endoscopist's skill, and no standards are available for lesion identification. Thus, we developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model to replace chromoendoscopy.

METHODS

This pilot study assessed the feasibility of our novel AI model in the conversion of white-light images (WLI) into virtual IC-dyed images based on a generative adversarial network. The predictions of our AI model were evaluated against the assessments of five endoscopic experts who were blinded to the purpose of this study with a staining quality rating from 1 (unacceptable) to 4 (excellent).

RESULTS

The AI model successfully transformed the WLI of polyps with different morphologies and different types of lesions in the gastrointestinal tract into virtual IC-dyed images. The quality ratings of the real IC-dyed and AI images did not significantly differ concerning surface structure (AI vs IC: 3.08 vs 3.00), lesion border (3.04 vs 2.98), and overall contrast (3.14 vs 3.02) from 10 sets of images (10 AI images and 10 real IC-dyed images). Although the score depended significantly on the evaluator, the staining methods (AI or real IC) and evaluators had no significant interaction (P > 0.05) with each other.

CONCLUSION

Our results demonstrated the feasibility of employing AI model's virtual IC staining, increasing the possibility of being employed in daily practice. This novel technology may facilitate gastrointestinal lesion identification in the future.

Electroencephalogram pattern predicting neurological outcomes of children with seizures secondary to abusive head trauma

BACKGROUND

The clinical presentations of abusive head trauma can abruptly worsen, so the occurrence of seizures and changes of EEG can be variable according to patients' conditions. Since the changes of EEG background waves reflect the cortical function of children, we aimed to find out whether the timing of EEG background, epileptiform discharges and seizure patterns were associated with the outcomes of patients with AHT.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Using seizure type and acute stage electroencephalographic (EEG) characteristics to assess adverse neurological outcomes in children with seizures secondary to abusive head trauma (AHT). Children who were hospitalized with AHT at a tertiary referral hospital from October 2000 to April 2010 were evaluated retrospectively. A total of 50 children below 6 years of age admitted due to AHT were included. KOSCHI outcome scale was used to evaluate the primary outcome and neurological impairment was used as secondary outcome after 6 months discharge.

RESULTS

Children with apnea, cardiac arrest, reverse blood flow and skull fracture in clinic had a higher mortality rate even in the no-seizure group (3/5 [60%] vs. 3/45 [6.7%], odds ratio [OR] = 11; 95% CI = 2.3-52; p = 0.025). Seizure occurrence reduced mostly at the second day after admission in seizure groups; but children with persistent seizures for 1 week showed poor neurological outcomes. The occurrence of initial seizure was frequency associated with younger age; focal seizure, diffuse cortical dysfunction in acute-stage EEG, and low Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score were significantly related to poor outcomes after 6 months. Diffuse cortical dysfunction was also associated with motor, speech, and cognitive dysfunction.

CONCLUSIONS

Diffuse cortical dysfunction in acute-stage EEG combined with low GCS score and focal seizure may related to poor outcomes and neurological dysfunctions in children with AHT.

Novel screening model of obstructive sleep apnea for snorers with suspected NAFLD undergoing liver sonography

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Given the increased incidence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) among patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), noninvasive screening methods are urgently needed to screen for OSA risk in these patients when conducting an office-based assessment of hepatic steatosis. Therefore, we investigated the controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) and hepatic steatosis index (HSI) in patients with and without OSA and developed screening models to detect OSA.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of all adult snorers with suspected NAFLD undergoing liver sonography between June 2017 and June 2020. Records encompassed CAP and HSI data as well as data collected during in-hospital full-night polysomnography. The multivariate logistic regression models were constructed to explore the predictors of OSA risk. Furthermore, model validation was performed based on the medical records corresponding to the July 2020-June 2021 period.

RESULTS

A total of 59 patients were included: 81.4% (48/59) were men, and the mean body mass index (BMI) was 26.4 kg/m². Among the patients, 62.7% (37/59) and 74.6% (44/59) (detected by the HSI and CAP, respectively) had NAFLD, and 78% (46/59) were diagnosed with OSA on the basis of polysomnography. Three screening models based on multivariate analysis were established. The model combining male sex, a BMI of > 24.8, and an HSI of > 38.3 screened for OSA risk the most accurately, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.81 (sensitivity: 78%; specificity: 85%; and positive and negative predictive values: 95% and 52%, respectively) in the modeling cohort. An accuracy of 70.0% was achieved in the validation group.

CONCLUSIONS

The combination screening models proposed herein provide a convenient, noninvasive, and rapid screening tool for OSA risk and can be employed while patients receive routine hepatic check-ups. These models can assist physicians in identifying at-risk OSA patients and thus facilitate earlier detection and timely treatment initiation.

Intestinal fatty acid-binding protein is a biomarker for diagnosis of biliary tract infection

Background and Aim

Biliary tract infection (BTI) is an inflammatory disease and commonly associated with bacteremia. Delays in diagnosis or treatment of BTI cause high morbidity and mortality. However, an early diagnosis depends on appropriate clinical investigations. Appropriate biomarkers are urgently needed to improve the BTI diagnostic rate. We hypothesized that intestinal fatty acid‐binding protein (I‐FABP) might be a potential biomarker for BTI diagnosis.

Methods

We examined data from subjects aged ≥18 years diagnosed with BTI, including cholangitis and cholecystitis, whose blood samples were adequate for I‐FABP and zonulin assessment. We also collected blood samples from healthy volunteers as the control group. We excluded subjects in both groups who received steroids, antibiotics, or probiotics within 1 month before hospital admission (BTI cohort) or participation in this research (controls). The main study endpoint was to compare the diagnostic ability of I‐FABP to detect BTI in comparison with high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein (hs‐CRP) and zonulin.

Results

The study collected the data of 51 patients with BTI and 35 healthy subjects. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) area under the curve (AUC) for I‐FABP was 0.884 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.814–0.954), numerically higher than that for hs‐CRP (0.880; 0.785–0.976) and zonulin (0.570; 0.444–0.697). We estimated that the optimal cutoff value of I‐FABP was 2.1 ng/mL (sensitivity: 0.804; specificity: 0.829) for the diagnosis of BTI.

Conclusions

In summary, this study suggests that I‐FABP may be a potential alternative biomarker to hs‐CRP for diagnosing BTI. Further research should verify the use of I‐FABP as a marker for BTI diagnosis, but also for other inflammatory diseases.

P–522 Cervical secretion methylation profile is associated with the success of frozen-thawed embryo transfer - a proof-of-concept study

Study question

Is cervical secretion gene methylation profile different between receptive and non-receptive endometrium and associated with implantation outcome in frozen-embryo transfer (FET) cycle?

Summary answer

The combination of candidate genes methylation profiles obtained from cervical secretion showed significant associations with pregnancy outcomes.

What is known already

Implantation failure remains a black box in reproductive medicine, and the exact mechanism of how endometrial receptivity is regulated is still unknown. Epigenetic modifications play a role in the gene expression pattern and may alter the endometrial receptivity in the human endometrium. Cervical secretion containing various implantation-related cytokines, and the gene methylation change can be used as a non-invasive molecular source that reflects the endometrium condition.

Study design, size, duration

In this retrospective case-control study, sixty-two women who entered the FET cycle (30 pregnant and 32 non-pregnant women) were enrolled.

Participants/materials, setting, methods

Cervical secretion was collected before embryo transfer from women enrolled in multicenter university-affiliated reproductive units. The DNA methylation status of six candidate genes was measured using quantitative methylation-specific PCR (qMSP). The correlation between methylation change and the pregnancy outcome was analyzed.

Main results and the role of chance

The candidate genes were selected from that associated with implantation with literature review and the original genome-wide DNA methylation data from NCBI GEO DataSets (GSE90060) which processed using bioinformatics analysis. Six candidate genes whose CpG-level methylation analysis with β-value statistically higher in receptive endometrium than in a pre-receptive endometrium were selected. All six candidate genes showed different degrees of correlation with the pregnancy outcomes. Among them, PRKAG2 methylation changes showed the highest correlation with the pregnancy outcome. A logistic regression model was used to evaluate the performance of a single gene or a combination of genes for implantation prediction. The results showed a statistically significant association between the methylation status of a combination of genes (PRKAG2, KRS1, HAND2) and the pregnancy outcome (p = 0.008), resulting in an optimal AUC of 0.7 (95% CI: 0.57 - 0.81) for implantation prediction.

Limitations, reasons for caution

The results obtained from a relatively small cohort size. A larger study and further comprehensive methylome investigations are warranted.

Wider implications of the findings: This study is the first proof-of-concept study that cervical secretion methylation profile is associated with implantation outcome in a FET cycle, and showed potential as a non-invasive method for implantation prediction.

Trial registration number

non applicable

[A man with erythematosquamous plaques]

A 43-year-old male visited our dermatology department with a skin eruption diagnosed as psoriasis. It began 1 month after starting peg-interferon-α-1a therapy for multiple sclerosis. Peg-interferon is known to be able to induce psoriasis, as well as other medication, while the pathophysiology remains unclear.

[Analysis of the compliance and effectiveness of the allergen specific immunotherapy in patients with allergic rhinitis]

Objective:To investigate the effectiveness and compliance of the 2 year specific immunotherapy in patients with allergic rhinitis. Method:Two hundred and sixty-two patients of allergic rhinitis were treated with SLIT for 2 years. The symptom questionnaire about effectiveness and compliance were obtained 2 years after SLIT. The patient satisfaction was also investigated. Result:Sixty patients had complete compliance and 202 patients had poor compliance. Of the 142 children, 40 (28%) cases had complete compliance, and of the 118 adult patients, 20 cases (17%) had complete compliance. There was obvious difference between the two (P<0.05). Comparing of before and after treatment, total medication score, total nasal symptom score and every symptom score decreased obviously (P<0.05). Two years after treatment, the total effective rate was 63%,there was significant difference between the children group and the adult group (P<0.05). Conclusion:There are a lot of factors affecting the treatment compliance of sublingual immunotherapy, such as patients, family, health care workers and social support, etc. In the course of treatment, a series of strategies can be adopted to improve the treatment compliance. SLIT is an effective method for the treatment of allergic rhinitis, and the treatment effect of children is better.

[One case in which papillary thyroid carcinoma and papillary carcinoma occur on the same side]

thyroid carcinoma is a common tumor in the endocrine system. There are four common types of thyroid carcinoma: papillary carcinoma; follicular cancer; medullary carcinoma; undifferentiated carcinoma. Thyroid papillary carcinoma is derived from follicular epithelial cells, which is different from that of medullary thyroid carcinoma. If both occur in the same side of the thyroid gland, this is very rare. In this paper we report a case in which papillary thyroid carcinoma and papillary carcinoma occurr on the same side.

Live imaging of Toll-like receptor 2 response in cerebral ischaemia reveals a role of olfactory bulb microglia as modulators of inflammation

Activation of microglial cells in response to ischaemic injury, inflammatory and/or immune stimuli is associated with the marked induction of Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2). At present, little is known about the spatial and temporal sequence of events, micro-regional specificities and the potential long term role of the TLR2 response to brain injuries. To investigate microglial activation/TLR2 response in real time, we generated a transgenic mouse model bearing the dual reporter system luciferase/green fluorescent protein under transcriptional control of a murine TLR2 promoter. In this model, transcriptional activation of TLR2 was visualized in the brains of live animals using biophotonic/bioluminescence molecular imaging and a high resolution/sensitivity charged coupled device camera. It was found that TLR2 induction/microglial activation has a marked chronic component after ischaemic injury and may last several months after the initial attack. The pro-inflammatory response was not restricted to the site of ischaemic injury but was also evident in the olfactory bulb. A significant TLR2 response was first seen in the olfactory bulb 6 h after stroke and several hours before the increase in photon emission over the site of infarction. This sequence of events was further confirmed by immunohistochemistry. A similar early TLR2 response from olfactory bulb microglia was observed in the brain's immune response to pathogens. We therefore propose that, owing to their unique situation, receiving and translating numerous inputs from the brain as well as from the environment, olfactory bulb microglia may serve as sensors and/or modulators of brain inflammation.

An integrated healthcare enterprise information portal and healthcare information system framework

The paper presents an integrated, distributed Healthcare Enterprise Information Portal (HEIP) and Hospital Information Systems (HIS) framework over wireless/wired infrastructure at National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH). A single sign-on solution for the hospital customer relationship management (CRM) in HEIP has been established. The outcomes of the newly developed Outpatient Information Systems (OIS) in HIS are discussed. The future HEIP blueprints with CRM oriented features: e-Learning, Remote Consultation and Diagnosis (RCD), as well as on-Line Vaccination Services are addressed. Finally, the integrated HEIP and HIS architectures based on the middleware technologies are proposed along with the feasible approaches. The preliminary performance of multi-media, time-based data exchanges over the wireless HEIP side is collected to evaluate the efficiency of the architecture.

Phosphorylation of serines 635 and 645 of human Rad17 is cell cycle regulated and is required for G(1)/S checkpoint activation in response to DNA damage

ATR [ataxia-telangiectasia-mutated (ATM)- and Rad3-related] is a protein kinase required for both DNA damage-induced cell cycle checkpoint responses and the DNA replication checkpoint that prevents mitosis before the completion of DNA synthesis. Although ATM and ATR kinases share many substrates, the different phenotypes of ATM- and ATR-deficient mice indicate that these kinases are not functionally redundant. Here we demonstrate that ATR but not ATM phosphorylates the human Rad17 (hRad17) checkpoint protein on Ser(635) and Ser(645) in vitro. In undamaged synchronized human cells, these two sites were phosphorylated in late G(1), S, and G(2)/M, but not in early-mid G(1). Treatment of cells with genotoxic stress induced phosphorylation of hRad17 in cells in early-mid G(1). Expression of kinase-inactive ATR resulted in reduced phosphorylation of these residues, but these same serine residues were phosphorylated in ionizing radiation (IR)-treated ATM-deficient human cell lines. IR-induced phosphorylation of hRad17 was also observed in ATM-deficient tissues, but induction of Ser(645) was not optimal. Expression of a hRad17 mutant, with both serine residues changed to alanine, abolished IR-induced activation of the G(1)/S checkpoint in MCF-7 cells. These results suggest ATR and hRad17 are essential components of a DNA damage response pathway in mammalian cells.

Functional link between ataxia-telangiectasia and Nijmegen breakage syndrome gene products

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) and Nijmegen breakage syndrome (NBS) are recessive genetic disorders with susceptibility to cancer and similar cellular phenotypes. The protein product of the gene responsible for A-T, designated ATM, is a member of a family of kinases characterized by a carboxy-terminal phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-like domain. The NBS1 protein is specifically mutated in patients with Nijmegen breakage syndrome and forms a complex with the DNA repair proteins Rad50 and Mrel1. Here we show that phosphorylation of NBS1, induced by ionizing radiation, requires catalytically active ATM. Complexes containing ATM and NBS1 exist in vivo in both untreated cells and cells treated with ionizing radiation. We have identified two residues of NBS1, Ser 278 and Ser 343 that are phosphorylated in vitro by ATM and whose modification in vivo is essential for the cellular response to DNA damage. This response includes S-phase checkpoint activation, formation of the NBS1/Mrel1/Rad50 nuclear foci and rescue of hypersensitivity to ionizing radiation. Together, these results demonstrate a biochemical link between cell-cycle checkpoints activated by DNA damage and DNA repair in two genetic diseases with overlapping phenotypes.

Expression of the dominant-negative regulator Id4 is induced during adipocyte differentiation

Expression of the Id4 gene was investigated during differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes into mature adipocytes. Id4 is a member of a family encoding non-DNA binding helix-loop-helix proteins proposed to inhibit the activity of basic HLH (bHLH) proteins important in many developmental processes. We show here that Id4 expression is low in confluent preadipocytes and rapidly induced by treatment with the combination of hormones which causes differentiation into mature adipocytes. Id4 expression is also induced by treatment with individual hormones, especially dexamathasone. Id4 mRNA can be detected in mouse and human adipose tissue. Genes encoding E-proteins (bHLH proteins known to interact with and be regulated by Id proteins) are expressed and regulated during differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells. These data suggest that the Id4 transcriptional regulator is playing a role in adipose cell differentiation and suggest that DNA-binding HLH proteins may also be important in regulation of differentiation of these cells.