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We enrolled and reviewed 26 medical records of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with intracranial hemorrhage (cases) and 104 randomly matched records of SLE without intracranial hemorrhage (controls) out of 6653 admitted patients at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 1994 to 2012, to analyze the clinical characteristics and risk factors of intracranial hemorrhage in SLE. The incidence of SLE with intracranial hemorrhage was only 0.39% within the last 18 years at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. However, the in-hospital fatality rate was quite high (23.1%). Headache was the most common symptom (53.5%) in SLE patients with intracranial hemorrhage. The anatomical localization of the hemorrhages in the brain was predominantly located in the cerebrum. Intracranial hemorrhage could happen in either stable or active SLE patients. SLE patients with intracranial hemorrhage presented other neuropsychiatric syndromes defined by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) in 1999, thrombocytopenia and antiphospholipid syndrome more frequently than controls. Thrombocytopenia was the independent risk factor for intracranial hemorrhage coexisting with SLE (OR = 3.687, 95% CI 1.510–9.001, p = 0.004). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epigenetic mutations caused by pollutants are possibly linked to many diseases. Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is one of the most representative air pollutants and has aroused wide concern because of its strong carcinogenicity. The reproductive toxicity induced by BaP has been identified, but little is known about the characteristics of the methylation changes induced by BaP. In this study, a methylated DNA immunoprecipitation sequencing method was used to detect the methylation of sperm DNA of rats exposed to BaP. Compared with the respective genes in normal rats, there were 3227 hypomethylated genes and 828 hypermethylated genes after BaP exposure. Gene ontology enrichment analysis reported that differentially methylated genes (DMGs) were enriched in the localization, single-multicellular organism process and plasma membrane. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis showed that the DMGs were significantly enriched in the Ras signalling pathway, Rap1 signalling pathway, pancreatic secretion and neuroactive ligand–receptor interaction. DisGeNET disease spectrum analysis showed that DMGs were associated with infertility and certain genetic diseases. Further research needs to be done to explore whether these abnormal methylation are transgenerational. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Management of high-grade T1 (formerly T1G3) bladder cancer continues to be controversial. Should patients with T1G3 bladder cancer have an immediate radical cystectomy or should they receive intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guérin preserving bladder? Gemcitabine and cisplatin (GC) adjuvant chemotherapy may help to strike a balance between intravesical and early cystectomy. For purposes of this study, we continue to refer high-grade T1 lesion as "T1G3."Objective: To evaluate the characteristics and the long-term outcome of GC adjuvant chemotherapy in T1G3 bladder cancer after transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT).Materials and Methods: We, retrospectively, reviewed 48 patients who were newly diagnosed with T1G3 bladder cancer between January 2009 and December 2012. A total of 48 patients received 4 cycles of GC adjuvant chemotherapy after TURBT. One month after 4 cycles of GC adjuvant chemotherapy, response was evaluated by re-TURBT. Median follow-up was 59.5 (range: 18-70) months, all patients have been observed for more than 3 years. Salvage cystectomy was recommended for patients with persistent disease and for tumor progression after initial complete response.Result: Complete response was achieved in 44 (91.7%) patients. Of complete responders, 5 patients experienced recurrence and 5 patients showed progression. The progression rate and disease-specific survival rate were 10.4% and 91.7% at 3 years, respectively. More than 80% of survivors preserved their bladder. Kaplan-Meier curves showed that concomitant carcinoma in situ (CIS) was the only factor that had an influence on progression-free survival (P = 0.022) and disease-specific survival (P = 0.017). Concomitant CIS was the prognostic factor for progression rate and disease-specific survival rate at 3 years (P = 0.008 and P = 0.035).Conclusion: GC adjuvant chemotherapy is a safe conservative treatment for T1G3 bladder cancer, but effective is really a phase II study. Patients with T1G3 bladder cancer with concomitant CIS should be treated more aggressively because of the high risk of progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]