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Aim: To investigate the linkage of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) gene polymorphisms with the pathogenesis of knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods: This meta‐analysis study systematically retrieved relevant studies from PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Central, Wanfang Data, CNKI, and SinoMed up to November 2020. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to estimate the association between MMP gene polymorphisms and OA. Results: A total of nine case–control studies comprising 1719 knee OA patients and 1904 controls were included in this meta‐analysis. The results revealed that MMP‐1‐1607 (rs1799750) 1G/2G polymorphism was not significantly associated with knee OA risk in four genetic models (OR (95% CI): allele model: 0.89 (0.57, 1.40), p =.615); dominant mode: 0.82 (0.47, 1.44), p =.486; recessive model: 0.88 (0.49, 1.57), p =.659; homozygote model: 0.79 (0.34, 1.82), p =.576. The association was significant for dominant model of MMP‐3 C/T: 1.54 (1.10–2.15), p =.013, especially in Asian ethnicity (1.63 (1.11, 2.39), p =.013). Variants of MMP‐13 C/T polymorphism were associated with increased risk of knee OA development based on dominant model: 1.56 (1.19, 2.06), p =.001 and homozygote model: 2.12 (1.44, 3.13), p <.001, and there were significant associations between MMP‐13 C/T polymorphism and knee OA risk in Asian ethnicity under different genetic models (all p >.05). Conclusions: Present evidence suggested that the gene polymorphisms of MMP‐1‐1607 1G/2G may not be associated with the risk of OA. But, the dominant model of MMP‐3 and MMP‐13 polymorphisms in Asian ethnicity was significantly correlated with knee OA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the extensive application of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs), their impacts on calcium homeostasis have aroused extensive attention from scholars. However, there are still some controversies in relevant reports. Therefore, a systematic review was performed followed by a meta-analysis to explore whether TiO2 NPs could induce the imbalance in calcium homeostasis in vivo and in vitro through Revman5.4 and Stata15.0 in this research. Fourteen studies were included through detailed database retrieval and literature screening. Results indicated that the calcium levels were significantly increased and the activity of Ca2+-ATPase was significantly decreased by TiO2 NPs in vivo and in vitro. Subgroup analysis of the studies in vivo showed that TiO2 NPs exposure caused a significant increase in calcium levels in rats, exposure to large-sized TiO2 NPs (>10 nm) and long-term (>30 days) exposure could significantly increase calcium levels, and the activity of Ca2+-ATPase showed a concentration-dependent downward trend. Subgroup analysis of the studies in vitro revealed that intracellular calcium levels increased significantly in animal cells, exposure to small-sized TiO2 NPs (≤10 nm) and high concentration (>10 μg/mL) exposure could induce a significant increase in Ca2+ concentration, and the activity of Ca2+-ATPase also showed a concentration-dependent downward trend. This research showed that the physicochemical properties of TiO2 NPs and the experimental scheme could affect calcium homeostasis [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nano-titanium dioxide (nano-TiO2) is widely used in many aspects of human life. However, there are still inconsistent conclusions about the effects of nano-TiO2 exposure on autophagy. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis were used to reveal whether nano-TiO2 induces dysregulation of autophagy. The results showed that LC3 II, Beclin-1 protein, and LC3 II/LC3 I protein ratio were significantly increased, but p62 protein was insignificantly changed. Subgroup analyses showed that p62 and Beclin-1 protein were increased significantly when the treatment time of nano-TiO2 was >24 h. Nano-TiO2 can induce dysregulation of autophagy and cause stagnation of autophagy after prolonged exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Recent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging studies have provided strong evidence of abnormal regional spontaneous brain activities among anxiety-disordered patients. However, the evidence has been divergent and inconclusive. Therefore, it is necessary to perform a meta-analysis identifying a common pattern of altered regional spontaneous brain activity for anxiety disorders.Method: Corresponding research of anxiety disorders, namely, whole-brain rs-fMRI studies that measured differences in regional homogeneity, amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations, or fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations, were analyzed in this study. Overall, seven studies with 235 anxiety-disordered patients and 241 healthy controls were ultimately included in the meta-analysis. The meta-analysis was processed by seed-based d mapping.Results: Compared with healthy controls, patients with anxiety disorders showed significantly decreased regional spontaneous brain activities in the right putamen, the right orbital inferior frontal gyrus, and the right temporal pole. No increases in regional spontaneous brain activities were detected in patients relative to the controls.Limitation: Limited number of available studies, only Asian samples, and insufficient information of sample characteristics.Conclusion: The present study suggests that anxiety disorders are associated with aberrant regional brain activity in areas connected with emotion processing, which extends our understanding of anxiety disorders' pathophysiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]