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Jiaxin Cao,1,2 Huimin Zhang,1,2 Zhien He,2 Zhongwan Piao,1 Xianchun Zong,1 Baolin Sun1,2 1College of Life Science and Technology, Mudanjiang Normal University, Mudanjiang, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Life Science and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Baolin Sun; Zhongwan Piao, Email sunb@ustc.edu.cn; jwcpzw@126.comBackground: Staphylococcus aureus is a highly successful pathogen that can cause various infectious diseases, from relatively mild skin infections to life-threatening severe systemic diseases. The widespread pathogenicity of S. aureus is mainly due to its ability to produce many virulence factors that help destroy various host cells, causing disease. Our primary goal in this study was to explore the genes of highly virulent strains, to identify genes closely associated with high virulence, and to provide ideas for the treatment of infection by highly virulent clinical strains.Results: This study collected 221 clinical strains from The First Affiliated Hospital Of The University of Science and Technology of China (USTC); their hemolytic abilities were tested. Eight isolates were selected based on their highly hemolytic ability and tested their hemolytic activity again; their phenotypes and gene sequences were also explored. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) showed six plasmids (pN315, pNE131, pSJH901, pSJH101, SAP106B, and MSSA476), eight antibiotic resistance genes [blaR1, blaI, blaZ, mecA, erm(C), erm(T), tet(38), and fosB-Saur] and seventy-two virulence related genes. Three highly virulent strains, namely X21111206, 21092239, and 21112607, were found according the Galleria mellonella infection model. Therefore, we selected 10 representative virulence genes for qRT-PCR: psmα, psmβ, hlgA, hlgB, hlgC, hla, clfA, clfB, spa, and sak. Among them, the expression levels of psmα and psmβ, the three isolates, were significantly higher than the positive control NCTC8325.Conclusion: Significant differences appear in the expression of virulence genes in the highly virulent strains, particularly the psmα and psmβ, It may be that the high expression of psm gene is the cause of the high virulence of Staphylococcus aureus. We can reduce the pathogenicity of Staphylococcus aureus by inhibiting the expression of psm gene, which may provide a strong basis for psm as a new target for clinical treatment of S. aureus infection.Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, virulence factors, qRT-PCR, next-generation sequencing, psm

Huimin Zhang,1 Jiaxin Cao,1 Zhien He,2,3 Xianchun Zong,1 Baolin Sun2,3 1College of Life Science and Technology, Mudanjiang Normal University, Mudanjiang, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 3School of Life Science and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Baolin Sun, Email sunb@ustc.edu.cnPurpose: This study aimed to investigate the molecular characteristics, antimicrobial resistance and hemolytic phenotype of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from Anhui, China.Results: From August 2021 to January 2022, 214 S. aureus isolates were collected from the Anhui Provincial Hospital. This study identified 117 methicillin-resistant S. aureus and 97 methicillin-sensitive S. aureus isolates, and the detection rate of methicillin-resistant isolates was 1.8-fold higher than the average isolates reported in China (53.9% vs 30.5%). S. aureus isolates share identity at five or more of the seven MLST-based housekeeping loci, referred to as the clonal complex (CC). Forty ST types were found in 214 clinical S. aureus isolates, with the most extensive distribution of ST59 and ST6697 typing numbers and higher CC5 detection rates than any other clonal group. (The ST typing is the result of the MLST typing website query.) To detect the virulence of ST types of S. aureus, hemolysis experiments were performed on 214 clinical isolates, and it was concluded that ST59 had a relatively robust hemolytic capacity.Conclusion: Anhui S. aureus isolates have unique molecular and antibiotic resistance profiles. The antibiotic resistance profile may be related to the random use of antibiotics.Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, epidemiological analysis, multilocus sequence typing, phenotype, hemolytic

Junlong Guo,1,2 Lulu Yang,1,2 Yan Xu,1,2 Chenxi Zhang,1,2 Xian Luo,1,2 Shuai Liu,1– 3 Lihua Yao,4 Hanping Bai,4 Xiaofen Zong,4 Jihui Zhang,5 Zhongchun Liu,4 Bin Zhang1,2 1Department of Psychiatry, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2Guangdong Mental Health Center, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Psychiatry, The Third People’s Hospital of Qinghai Province, Xining, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Psychiatry, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China; 5Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Bin ZhangDepartment of Psychiatry, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, 1838 Guangzhou Avenue North, Guangzhou, 510515, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-20-62786731Email zhang73bin@hotmail.comZhongchun LiuDepartment of Psychiatry, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, 238 Jiefang Road, Wuhan, 430060, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail zcliu6@whu.edu.cnIntroduction: The prevalence rate and related factors of insomnia remained unknown after the COVID-19 epidemic had been under control. Therefore, we conducted this survey to investigate the prevalence rate and related factors of insomnia symptoms in the Chinese general public after the COVID-19 had been initially control.Methods: An online survey was conducted among Chinese citizens through the JD Health APP. The questionnaire was used for collecting demographic data and self-designed questions related to the COVID-19 outbreak. Insomnia Severity Index, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Somatic Symptom Scale-8 and Impact of Events Scale-Revised were used for measuring psychological symptoms. To examine the associations of sociodemographic and psychological factors with insomnia symptoms, a binary logistic regression was used.Results: In total, there were 14,894 eligible participants, and 4601 (30.9%) participants were found to have insomnia symptoms. The regression model revealed that a higher risk of insomnia symptoms was associated with being over the age of 40 years, having history of psychiatric disorders, smoking, having infected friends or colleagues, having depressive or somatic symptoms, experiencing psychological distress and feeling estranged from family members. Meanwhile a lower risk of insomnia symptoms was associated with being female, having closer family relationships, not feeling alienated from others and being satisfied with the available information.Conclusion: In our study, 30.9% of the participants in the general public reported insomnia symptoms after the COVID-19 epidemic had been initially controlled. When providing precise interventions for insomnia, extra attention should be paid to the individuals who are male, elderly and smokers, and those with psychiatric disorder history, with infected friends or colleagues, with psychological symptoms and with poor social support.Keywords: insomnia symptoms, prevalence, COVID-19, under control, general public, China

Lu JJ, Xu Y, Zhao Z, et al. Onco Targets Ther. 2017;10:3579–3589. At the authors request, the Editor and Publisher of OncoTargets and Therapy wish to retract the published article. The authors raised concerns after discovering the duplication of cell migration and invasion images in Figures 1 and 2. Specifically, Figure 1E, A2780, Migration, Normal appears to have been duplicated with Figure 1E, A2780, Migration pLVX-Con. Figure 1E, SK-OV-3, Invasion, Normal appears to have been duplicated with Figure 2C, SK-OV-3, Invasion, pLVX-Con+, pLVX-ILK-, Emodin-. The authors provided original data and requested to retract the article. All the authors agreed that the retraction was necessary for reasons of scientific accuracy. The Editor agreed with this decision. Our decision-making was informed by our policy on publishing ethics and integrity and the COPE guidelines on retraction. The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as “Retracted”.

Xiaolin Li,1,2,* Sixuan Liu,1,* Lisi Ma,1 Xuan Chen,1 Huaiyu Weng,1 Run Huang,1 Yang Yu,2 Xiangyun Zong1 1Department of Breast Surgery, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Shanghai Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, People’s Republic of China; 2Institute of Cancer and Basic Medicine, Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Science (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Hangzhou 310022, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xiangyun ZongDepartment of Breast Surgery, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 21 24058549Email tigerzong@msn.comPurpose: The predictive value of anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) for ovarian dysfunction postchemotherapy is controversial. This study aimed to evaluate the value of serum AMH levels clinically and theoretically.Patients, Animals, and Methods: We detected the serum estradiol, follicular stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), and AMH levels in 144 premenopausal women with breast cancer receiving cyclophosphamide-based chemotherapy. The hormone levels before and postchemotherapy were compared; the correlations among the hormones and amenorrhea and menstrual recovery were analyzed. In addition, the serum AMH levels were detected randomly in 177 normal healthy women and 36 normal female C57BL/6J mice of different ages; meanwhile, the status of ovarian follicles was also examined. Furthermore, 72 Balb/c nude mice with breast cancer were randomly assigned to three groups that received different doses of cyclophosphamide (CTX) (control, 100 mg/kg, and 200 mg/kg), and the alterations in serum AMH levels and ovarian follicles were recorded and analyzed.Results: Chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea was associated with prechemotherapy AMH levels, E2 levels, and FSH levels (P < 0.0001). The recovery of menstruation was associated with prechemotherapy AMH levels (P < 0.0001), but not with E2 and FSH levels (P > 0.05). In patients with breast cancer treated with chemotherapy, the serum AMH levels did not differ significantly between the pre- and post-chemotherapy periods in patients aged < 35 years (P > 0.05), whereas a dramatic reduction was detected in patients aged > 35 years (P < 0.0001). In healthy women, the serum AMH levels declined sharply after 35 years of age (P < 0.0001) and remained relatively stable at a younger age. Similar results were obtained in experiments using normal mice. The cancer-bearing mice exposed to 200 mg/kg CTX exhibited a significant decline in AMH levels and a remarkable decrease in the number of primordial and growing follicles (P < 0.0001).Conclusion: Our results indicate that AMH is an efficient marker for predicting postchemotherapy ovarian function exclusively in premenopausal female patients with breast cancer aged > 35 years.Keywords: anti-Müllerian hormone, ovarian function, cyclophosphamide, breast cancer

Xuan Zong, Jia-Xin Yang, Ying Zhang, Dong-Yan Cao, Keng Shen Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Jia-Xin YangDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, No. 1 Shuaifuyuan, Dongcheng District, Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 10 6915 4022Fax +86 10 6915 5635Email yangjiaxin_2017@163.comPurpose: This study aimed to analyze the clinicopathological features, treatment, and feto-maternal outcomes of pregnancy complicated by malignant ovarian germ cell tumors (MOGCTs), to increase the awareness on this condition.Patients and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients diagnosed with MOGCTs during pregnancy, who were treated and followed-up at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from January 2000 to December 2017. The demographic characteristics, pathological features, treatment and prognosis were analyzed.Results: The histological subtypes varied in 14 patients (dysgerminoma, n=1; immature teratoma, n=4; yolk sac tumor, n=6; and mixed germ cell tumors, n=3). Ten (71.4%) patients, including three who opted for conservative therapy until childbirth, one who only received salvage chemotherapy during pregnancy, and six who underwent cystectomy or unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy during pregnancy, desired fetal preservation. After undergoing surgery, four patients chose surveillance instead of timely adjuvant chemotherapy. Eight patients delivered their babies, and the preterm delivery rate was 50.0%. One newborn died of premature birth. The median follow-up period was 44 (range: 13 to 86) months. During the current study period, 12 patients had survived and did not report any diseases. However, two died due to disease progression.Conclusion: Pregnant women with MOGCTs had favorable outcomes. However, when a malignant tumor is suspected, surgery cannot be avoided. Thus, instead of timely postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy, close surveillance may be an acceptable alternative for pregnant women with low-risk MOGCTs.Keywords: pregnancy, germ cell tumor, expectant management, retrospective studies

Ke Ma,1 Hongxiu Zhang,2 Guohui Wei,1 Zhenfei Dong,1 Haijun Zhao,1 Xiaochun Han,1 Xiaobin Song,1 Huiling Zhang,1 Xin Zong,1 Zulqarnain Baloch,3 Shijun Wang1 1Shandong Co-Innovation Center of Classic TCM formula, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong 250355, People’s Republic of China; 2Institute of Virology, Jinan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Jinan 250021, People’s Republic of China; 3College of Veterinary Medicine, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, People’s Republic of China Introduction: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a recurrent, devastating mental disorder, which affects >350 million people worldwide, and exerts substantial public health and financial costs to society. Thus, there is a significant need to discover innovative therapeutics to treat depression efficiently. Stress-induced dysfunction in the subtype of neuronal cells and the change of synaptic plasticity and structural plasticity of nucleus accumbens (NAc) are implicated in depression symptomology. However, the molecular and epigenetic mechanisms and stresses to the NAc pathological changes in depression remain elusive. Materials and methods: In this study, treatment group mice were treated continually with the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) until expression of depression-like behaviors were found. Depression was confirmed with sucrose preference, novelty-suppressed feeding, forced swimming, and tail suspension tests. We applied high-throughput RNA sequencing to assess microRNA expression and transcriptional profiles in the NAc tissue from depression-like behaviors mice and control mice. The regulatory network of miRNAs/mRNAs was constructed based on the high-throughput RNA sequence and bioinformatics software predictions. Results: A total of 17 miRNAs and 10 mRNAs were significantly upregulated in the NAc of CUMS-induced mice with depression-like behaviors, and 12 miRNAs and 29 mRNAs were downregulated. A series of bioinformatics analyses showed that these altered miRNAs predicted target mRNA and differentially expressed mRNAs were significantly enriched in the MAPK signaling pathway, GABAergic synapse, dopaminergic synapse, cytokine–cytokine receptor interaction, axon guidance, regulation of autophagy, and so on. Furthermore, dual luciferase report assay and qRT-PCR results validated the miRNA/mRNA regulatory network. Conclusion: The deteriorations of GABAergic synapses, dopaminergic synapses, neurotransmitter synthesis, as well as autophagy-associated apoptotic pathway are associated with the molecular pathological mechanism of CUMS-induced depression. Keywords: stress, depression, nucleus accumbens, miRNA, mRNA

Xuan Zong,1 Jia-Xin Yang,1 Ying Zhang,1 Dong-Yan Cao,1 Keng Shen,1 Yan You,2 Li-Na Guo2 1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Pathology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China Abstract: 46, XY pure gonadal dysgenesis (PGD) is characterized as a female phenotype with strip-like gonads, which has a high tendency to develop into gonadal tumors. Somatic-type malignancies of germ cell tumors (SMs of GCTs) refer to the presence of malignant non-germ cell histologies admixed with GCTs, which are usually chemoresistant and indicate poor prognosis. This case report aimed to analyze the special histological type of GCTs and the importance of salvage surgery in the treatment of refractory GCTs. We report a unique case of gonadal yolk sac tumor (YST) transformed into SMs in a patient with 46, XY PGD. This 18-year-old woman underwent laparoscopic pelvic tumor resection, considered her first surgery, 2 years ago, and pathology revealed YST with initial alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level measuring >3,000 ng/mL. She underwent seven cycles of chemotherapy, and the AFP level decreased to within a normal range after the second cycle. However, a computed tomography scan after the seventh cycle revealed abdominal and pelvic metastases, and vaginal bleeding was continuously observed. Laparoscopic exploration and laparotomy with tumor subtotal resection were performed. A pathology report showed SMs (sarcoma) derived from YST. Whole exome sequencing demonstrated that the main somatic mutation was a non-synonymous mutation of KRAS (c.182A>G), and this result did not show any indications for targeted drugs. She received three cycles of PEI (cisplatin, etoposide, and ifosfamide) chemotherapy but showed no response. She refused to undergo further treatment and has been alive with the disease for 7 months. This suggests that SMs may be one of the reasons for chemoresistance of refractory GCTs, and salvage surgery may be one of the most effective treatments for this patient. Targeted therapy may be a new choice for chemoresistant GCTs, but drug selection must be based on gene sequencing, and its efficacy still needs to be verified by further study. Keywords: disorder of sex development, germ cell tumor, somatic-type malignancy, salvage surgery

Jingjing Lu,1,2,* Ying Xu,1,* Zhe Zhao,1 Xiaoning Ke,2 Xuan Wei,1 Jia Kang,1 Xuan Zong,1 Hongluan Mao,1 Peishu Liu1 1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Shandong, 2Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Handan Central Hospital, Handan, People’s Republic of China *These authors contributed equally to this work Objective: Although our previous studies have confirmed that 1, 3, 8-trihydroxy-6-methylanthraquinone (emodin) inhibits migration and invasion in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) cells, the underlying molecular mechanism remains unknown. Here, the aim was to investigate the effects of emodin on EOC cells and to study further the mechanism underlying this process, both in vitro and in vivo.Materials and methods: Cell proliferation was evaluated by the methylthiazolyl tetrazolium assay. Cell migration and invasion abilities were tested using the transwell assay. The expression of integrin-linked kinase (ILK) and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT)-associated factors were measured with western blotting.Results: Exogenous ILK enhanced the proliferation, migration and invasion properties of A2780 and SK-OV-3 cells. After treatment with emodin, the survival rate of cells was gradually reduced, including those of SK-OV-3/pLVX-ILK and A2780/pLVX-ILK cells, with increasing emodin concentrations. The migration and invasion abilities of A2780 and SK-OV-3 cells were effectively increased by the transfection of pLVX-ILK, which could be abrogated by following this with 48 hours of emodin treatment. Treatment with emodin significantly downregulated the expression of ILK and EMT-related proteins. So, emodin suppressed proliferation, migration and invasion in ovarian cancer cells by downregulating ILK in vitro. SK-OV-3/pLVX-Con and SK-OV-3/pLVX-ILK cells were used to generate xenografts in nude mice. Tumors grew more rapidly in the SK-OV-3/pLVX-ILK group compared with the control group, and this could be significantly inhibited by emodin. Also, the expression of E-cadherin was downregulated, while the expression of Slug, MMP-9 and Vimentin were upregulated in the SK-OV-3/pLVX-ILK group, and this could be reversed by following treatment with emodin. Emodin did not demonstrate target toxicity on hepatocytes, nephrocytes and cardiomyocytes.Conclusion: Emodin suppresses proliferation, migration and invasion in ovarian cancer by targeting ILK. Keywords: emodin, ILK, epithelial ovarian cancer, epithelial–mesenchymal transition, Slug, xenografts in nude mice

The present study aimed to compare the competitive advantage of two chickpea nodulating rhizobia strains (an indigenous strain Mesorhizobium muleiense CCBAU 83963T and an introduced strain Mesorhizobium ciceri USDA 3378) in different soils originated from new chickpea cultivation areas of China. The results showed that USDA 3378 had a significant competitive advantage in nodulation, with nodulation occupation rates ranging from 84·6% to 100% in all the sampled soils. According to the efficiency of symbiosis under single inoculation, chickpea plants inoculated with USDA 3378 showed better symbiotic performance based on the plant dry weight, leaf chlorophyll content and nodule numbers. The chickpea plants inoculated with USDA 3378 formed nodules about 2 days earlier than those inoculated with CCBAU 83963T. The higher growth in media and the stronger adsorption on chickpea roots of USDA 3378 when mixed with CCBAU 83963T may explain why USDA 3378 shows a competitive advantage. The results from this study will contribute towards the development of effective chickpea rhizobial inoculants for soil conditioning and more environmentally friendly production of chickpeas in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]