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Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the benefits of thymosin alpha-1 (Tα1) in anti-virus, immunological enhancement and anti-inflammation. However, it is controversial about the efficacy and safety of entecavir (ETV) plus Tα1 combination therapy versus ETV monotherapy in cirrhotic patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection.Methods: The systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) were performed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ETV plus Tα1 combination therapy versus ETV monotherapy in HBV-related patients with cirrhosis. We performed a systematic literature search via PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Science and Technology Journals Database (VIP), and Chinese Biological Medicine database (CBM). Relative risk (RR) and standardized mean difference (SMD) with a fixed- or random- effect model were calculated. Heterogeneity was assessed through a Cochrane Q-test and I2 values.Results: Seven RCTs involving 1144 subjects were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis. Compared with ETV monotherapy, ETV plus Tα1 combination therapy led to a higher complete response (RR = 1.18; 95% CI, 1.07-1.30). In post treatment for 24 weeks, the HBV DNA undetectable rate and HBeAg loss rate were higher in ETV plus Tα1 group than in ETV alone group (RR = 1.91; 95% CI, 1.56-2.35; RR = 2.05; 95% CI, 1.62-2.60). However, after 48 and 52 weeks of treatment, there was no significant difference between the combination therapy and ETV monotherapy (RR = 1.07; 95% CI, 0.96-1.18; RR = 1.17; 95% CI, 0.89-1.55). At week 52 of treatment, the HBsAg loss rate of ETV plus Tα1 group was no significance with that of ETV alone group (RR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.15-7.26). In comparison with ETV alone, the some biochemical parameters and liver fibrosis were obviously improved by ETV plus Tα1, and there was significant heterogeneity. In addition, the number of adverse events was significantly reduced by ETV plus Tα1, compared to ETV alone (RR = 0.48; 95% CI, 0.24-0.95).Conclusions: ETV plus Tα1 might lead to a higher clinical response and a lower comprehensive adverse reaction rate in HBV-related patients with cirrhosis, compared to ETV alone. However, the whole patients included in this meta-analysis were from Chinese mainland, so that more worldwide RCTs with a larger sample size are needed to verify the current findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To analyze the prevalence, genotype distribution and hematological characteristics of α,β-thalassaemia carriers in Huizhou area of Guangdong Province., Methods: 10 809 carriers of simple β-thalassaemia and 1 757 carriers of α,β-thalassaemia were enrolled as our study cohort. The hematological parameters were detected by automated blood cell counters and automatic capillary electrophoresis. Suspension array technology, gap-polymerase chain reaction (gap-PCR) and PCR-reverse dot blot were used for the genotyping of thalassaemia carriers., Results: The prevalence of α,β-thalassaemia in Huizhou area of Guangdong Province was 1.99%. A total of 62 genotypes were detected, and the most prevalent genotype was -- SEA / αα , β CD41-42 / β N (19.29%), the next was -- SEA / αα , β IVS-II-654 / β N (16.73%). Significant differences in mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) were found between different genotype groups for simple β-thalassaemia and α,β-thalassaemia. Violin plots showed that carriers with co-inheritance of β-thalassaemia and mild α-thalassaemia expressed the lightest anemia, and carriers with co-inheritance of β-thalassaemia and hemoglobin H (Hb H) disease expressed the most severe anemia., Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of α,β-thalassaemia in Huizhou area of Guangdong Province. Because of the lack of specific hematological makers for diagnosis of α,β-thalassaemia, it is necessary to distinguish it from simple β-thalassaemia by genotyping of α- and β-thalassaemia in order to correctly guide genetic counseling and prenatal disgnosis.

Aim: To assess the efficacy and safety of combined directly acting antivirals (DAAs) for the treatment of Chinese chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients in a real-world setting., Methods: Hospitalized CHC patients who were treated with DAAs at Peking University First Hospital between January 2015 and December 2016 were enrolled. Samples and clinical data were collected at 0 wk, 2 wk, 4 wk, 8 wk, 12 wk, or 24 wk during DAAs treatment and at 4 wk, 12 wk, and 24 wk after the end of treatment., Results: Fifty-four patients who underwent DAAs treatment were included in our study, of whom 83.3% (45/54) achieved rapid virological response at 2 wk after treatment initiation (RVR 2) and 94.4% (51/54) achieved sustained virological response at 24 wk after the end of treatment (SVR 24). Serum creatinine and uric acid levels at the end of treatment were significantly increased compared with baseline levels (83.6 ± 17.9 vs 88.8 ± 19.4, P 01 < 0.001; 320.8 ± 76.3 vs 354.5 ± 87.6, P 01 < 0.001), and no significant improvements were observed at 24w after the end of treatment (83.6 ± 17.9 vs 86.8 ± 19.1, P 02 = 0.039; 320.8 ± 76.3 vs 345.9 ± 89.4, P 02 = 0.001). The total frequency of adverse events (AEs) during treatment was 33.3% (18/54), with major AEs being fatigue (16.7%), headache (7.4%), anorexia (7.4%), and insomnia (5.6%)., Conclusion: Though based in a small cohort of patients, the abnormal changes in renal function indices and relative high frequency of AEs during combined DAAs treatment should be taken as a note of caution., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that no conflict of interest exists.

The carbapenemases have recently emerged as molecules implicated in one of the most feared bacterial resistance mechanisms because of their ability to hydrolyze virtually all lactamase agents and their highly mobile genes. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of carbapenemase and antimicrobial susceptibilities of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from burn patients in Chongqing, China. Antimicrobial susceptibility of 111 isolates was determined by the disc agar diffusion test and the agar dilution method. Random Amplification of Polymorphic DNA polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed 111 P. aeruginosa 42 genotypes. Carbapenemase genes were amplified by polymerase chain reaction and the sequence verified by blast. Ninety-three of 111 (83.8%) isolates were resistant to imipenem; all of them had developed multidrug resistance and exhibited higher resistant rates compared with the imipenem-susceptible Pseudomonas. Ciprofloxacin was the most effective antipseudomonal agent. Thirty-three of the isolates were identified to contain the metallo-β-lactamase blaIMP-4 gene and belong to different Random Amplification of Polymorphic DNA polymerase chain reactiongenotypes. In conclusion, the high prevalence of multidrug resistance (94.6%) and the production of blaIMP-4 genes in P. aeruginosa isolates in burn patients highlight the necessity of considering these issues in burn hospitals.

Background: Dental erosion has been investigated in developed and developing countries and the prevalence varies considerably in different countries, geographic locations, and age groups. With the lifestyle of the Chinese people changing significantly over the decades, dental erosion has begun to receive more attention. However, the information about dental erosion in China is scarce. The purpose of this study was to explore the prevalence of dental erosion and associated risk factors in 12-13-year-old school children in Guangzhou, Southern China., Methods: This cross-sectional survey was performed by two trained, calibrated examiners. A stratified random sample of 12-13-year-old children (774 boys and 725 girls) from 10 schools was examined for dental erosion using the diagnostic criteria of Eccles and the index of O'Sullivan was applied to record the distribution, severity, and amount of the lesions. Data on the socio-economic status, health behaviours, and general health involved in the etiology of dental erosion were obtained from a self-completed questionnaire. The analyses were performed using SPSS software., Results: At least one tooth surface with signs of erosion was found in 416 children (27.3%). The most frequently affected teeth were the central incisors (upper central incisors, 16.3% and 15.9%; lower central incisors, 17.4% and 14.8%). The most frequently affected surface was the incisal or occlusal edge (43.2%). The loss of enamel contour was present in 54.6% of the tooth surfaces with erosion. Of the affected tooth surfaces, 69.3% had greater than one-half of the tooth surface was affected. The results from logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the children who were female, consumed carbonated drinks once a week or more, and those whose mothers were educated to the primary level tended to have more dental erosion., Conclusions: Dental erosion in 12-13-year-old Chinese school children is becoming a significant problem. A strategy of offering preventive care, including more campaigns promoting a healthier lifestyle for those at risk of dental erosion should be conducted in Chinese children and their parents.

Background: The oxidative modification of low-density lipoprotein in the artery wall is currently believed to be central to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Paraoxonase (PON1), an enzyme located on high-density lipoprotein (HDL), can prevent low-density lipoprotein (LDL) from oxidation at a certain extent. Recent studies show two other members of paraoxonase gene family, PON2 and PON3, possess antioxidant properties similar to PON1. The aim of the present study was to explore the role of PON gene cluster on coronary heart disease (CHD) in Chinese Han women., Methods: Seven polymorphisms including PON1 -107C > T, -162G > A, -831G > A, R160G, Q192R, PON2 S311C, and PON3 -133C > A were genotyped in 184 female patients with CHD and 239 female controls. The plasma PON1 activity toward phenylacetate was determined in 50 cases and 50 controls randomly selected., Results: The plasma PON1 activities were significantly lower in cases than in controls. Individual SNP analysis showed that cases had significantly higher frequencies of PON1 -107T, -831G and PON2 311S alleles than controls. The genotype distributions of -107C > T were also significantly different between two groups. The odds ratios for the development of CHD were 1.66 for -107TC carriers and 2.0 for -107TT carriers, compared with -107CC carriers. Haplotype analyses showed that the distributions of haplotypes comprised of PON1 -107C > T and PON2 S311C were significantly different between cases and controls, with cases having higher frequency of T-S haplotype (44.8% vs. 36.3%, P = 0.013). The T-S haplotype remained significantly associated with CHD after adjusting environmental risk factors (P = 0.0069)., Conclusions: This association study suggested that lower plasma PON1 activity increased the risk of CHD in Chinese women, which may be mediated by the higher frequency of -107T allele in cases. Haplotype analyses indicated that there might be some synergistic effects between the PON1 -107C > T and PON2 S311C polymorphisms.