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BACKGROUND AND AIM The new definition for metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), formerly named non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), would undoubtedly have significant influence on diagnosis, epidemiology, and new drug research. We investigated the prevalence and risk factors of MAFLD among people living with HIV (PLWH). METHODS In this cross-sectional study, transient elastography was performed in PLWH without significant alcohol intake and hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus infection. NAFLD was diagnosed as controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) ≥ 248 dB/m by transient elastography, and MAFLD was defined according to the 2020 international consensus. Advanced fibrosis was defined as liver stiffness measurement (LSM) ≥ 10 kPa. RESULTS Among the 361 PLWH enrolled, the prevalence of NAFLD and MAFLD were 37.67% and 34.90%, respectively. Compared with the non-MAFLD group, the prevalence of elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level (44.44% vs 16.17%, P

OBJECTIVES The aim was to determine the effectiveness of the serum cryptococcal antigen (CrAg) test in the diagnosis of concurrent cryptococcal meningitis (CM) and as a predictor of mortality in HIV-infected patients. METHODS In this retrospective study, all HIV-infected patients admitted to Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center from 1 January 2014 to 31 August 2016 were screened for serum CrAg using the latex agglutination test. Serum CrAg-positive patients underwent lumbar puncture to confirm CM prior to the initiation of appropriate antifungal therapy and were followed up for at least 6 months. RESULTS One hundred and four (7.1%) of the total of 1474 HIV-infected patients screened were serum CrAg-positive. CM was diagnosed in the majority of serum CrAg-positive patients (71.3%; 67 of 94) and was confirmed in all (46 of 46) of the patients with headache or coma and in 43.8% (21 of 48) of patients without neurological symptoms. CrAg titres ≥ 1:1024 showed a sensitivity of 82.5% and a specificity of 86.7% for the diagnosis of concurrent CM (P

Regulatory T cell can protect against severe forms of coronaviral infections attributable to host inflammatory responses. But its role in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 is still unclear. In this study, frequencies of total and multiple subsets of lymphocytes in peripheral blood of COVID-19 patients and discharged individuals were analyzed using a multicolor flow cytometry assay. Plasma concentration of IL-10 was measured using a microsphere-based immunoassay kit. Comparing to healthy controls, the frequencies of total lymphocytes and T cells decreased significantly in both acutely infected COVID-19 patients and discharged individuals. The frequencies of total lymphocytes correlated negatively with the frequencies of CD3−CD56+ NK cells. The frequencies of regulatory CD8+CD25+ T cells correlated with CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios positively, while the frequencies of regulatory CD4+CD25+CD127− T cells correlated negatively with CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios. Ratios of CD4+/CD8+ T cells increased significantly in patients beyond age of 45 years. And accordingly, the frequencies of regulatory CD8+CD25+ T cells were also found significantly increased in these patients. Collectively, the results suggest that regulatory CD4+ and CD8+ T cells may play distinct roles in the pathogenesis of COVID-19. Moreover, the data indicate that NK cells might contribute to the COVID-19 associated lymphopenia.

Objectives The aim of the study was to determine the seroprevalence and epidemiological features of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among patients newly diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in China. Methods Two thousand and forty patients newly diagnosed with HIV/AIDS from 10 provinces in China were selected during 2009 to 2010. Serum samples obtained from each individual were screened for HBV and HCV serum markers [HBV surface antigen (HBsAg), HBV surface antibody (HBsAb), HBV envelope antigen (HBeAg), HBV envelope antibody (HBeAb), HBV core antibody (HBcAb) and HCV antibody (HCVAb)]; liver function tests were also performed. Demographics and medical histories were collected. Results Of the 2040 patients, 741 (36.3%) were positive for at least one HBV and HCV serum marker; 300 (14.71%) were HCVAb positive, and 248 (12.16%) were isolated HCVAb positive; 222 (10.9%) were positive for HBsAg; 19 (0.93%) were positive for both HBsAg and HCVAb. The highest prevalence of HBsAg positivity was found in Guangxi (15.31%), followed by Guangdong (15.19%) and Shanghai (14.36%). The highest prevalence of HCVAb positivity was found in Xinjiang (43.18%), followed by Henan (39.06%) and Yunnan (27.36%). The proportion of patients with abnormal liver function in patients positive for HCVAb and/or HBsAg was significantly higher than that in those who were negative for both HCVAb and HBsAg (P

Novel tools are necessary to explore proteins related to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. In this work, proteomic and glycoproteomic technology were employed to examine plasma samples from HIV-positive patients. Through comparative proteome analysis of normal and HIV-positive plasma samples, 19 differentially expressed protein spots related to 12 non-redundant proteins were identified by ESI-ion trap MS. Among these, the 130-kDa isoform of α-1-antitrypsin was found to be decreased in HIV-positive patients while another variant with a molecular weight of 40 kDa was increased. SWISS-2-D-PAGE reference gel and protein sequence comparisons of the 40-kDa protein showed homology with α-1-antitrypsin minus the N-terminus, and its identity was further confirmed by 1-D Western blotting and glycoproteomic analysis. In all, our results showed that proteomics and glycoproteomics are powerful tools for discovering proteins related to HIV infection. Furthermore, this 40-kDa variant of α-1-antitrypsin found in the plasma of HIV-positive individuals may prove to be a potentially useful biomarker for anti-HIV research according to bioinformatics analysis.

Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) have become a major cause of morbidity and mortality among people with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), however, little is known about the clinical features and prognosis of IFI in AIDS in China. This study aimed to characterise the clinical features and prognosis of IFI in AIDS patients in China. We retrospectively reviewed the records of all HIV-infected patients at a Chinese university hospital between December 2004 and May 2006. We identified 35 patients with IFI. IFIs included thrush, oesophageal candidiasis, fungal pneumonia, cryptococcosis, penicilliosis and fungaemia, 44.4% of IFIs occurred in the digestive tract, 71.8% of IFIs occurred in patients with CD4(+)T-lymphocyte counts

Tensile specimens of 1×6×25 mm in gauge dimension were cut from the surface and centre of 12.7 mm thick 2090 Al-Li alloy plate, which were solution treated at 550 °C for 30 min, peak-aged at 190 °C for 18 h, or reversion-treated at 275 °C for 2 min. The flow stress of the centre layer was higher than that of the surface layer, regardless of the heat treatments. The textures of the surface and centre layers were approximated by the {001} and {011} orientations, respectively. The solution-treated specimens gave rise to extensive serrations in their flow curves at a strain rate of 2×10-4 s-1. The serration amplitude was drastically reduced after the specimens were peak-aged or reversion-treated. However, for the peak-aged alloy, the surface-layer specimens underwent complex, serrated flows, whereas the flow curve of the centre-layer specimen was almost devoid of serration. The serration, especially fine-type serration in the peak-aged and reversion-treated specimens tended to disappear with increasing strain rate. The tensile behavior was explained in terms of the texture and strain rate. Gefugeeffekt auf das Zick-Zack-Fliesen der 2090 Al-Li Legierung Zugproben mit einer Effektivlange von 1×6×25 mm wurden von der Oberflache und der Mitte einer 12,7 mm dicken Al-Li-Platte hergestellt. Die Platte wurde bei 550 °C fur 30 min losungsbehandelt, bei 190 °C fur 18 h gehartet und bei 275 °C fur 2 min reversionsbehandelt. Die Fliesspannung der Proben aus dem mittleren Bereich der Platte war - unabhangig von der Warmebehandlung – stets hoher als bei den Proben, die aus dem oberflachennahen Bereich der Platte hergestellt wurden. Das Gefuge der Oberflachen- und Mittelschichten wurde durch eine {001} bzw. {011} Orientierung angenahert. Die Losungsbehandlung fuhrte bei den Proben bei einer Dehnrate von 2·10-4 s-1 zu einem ausgepragtem Zick-Zack-Verlauf der Flieskurve. Die Amplitude des Zick-Zack-Verlaufs konnte durch Hartung oder Reversion deutlich reduziert werden. Jedoch zeigte sich bei den geharteten Proben aus der Oberflachenschicht ein komplizierter Zick-Zack-Verlauf, wohingegen die Proben aus der Mittelschicht praktisch keinen Zick-Zack-Verlauf aufwiesen. Der Zick-Zack-Verlauf - inbesondere die enge Ausbildung bei geharteten und reversionsbehandelten Proben – konnte durch eine Erhohung der Dehnrate deutlich reduziert werden. Das Zugverhalten wurde im Kontext des Gefuges und der Dehnrate diskutiert.