Search

Inflammation is an important factor in Alzheimer's disease (AD). An NMR measurement in plasma, glycoprotein acetyls (GlycA), captures the overall level of protein production and glycosylation implicated in systemic inflammation. With its additional advantage of reducing biological variability, GlycA might be useful in monitoring the relationship between peripheral inflammation and brain changes relevant to AD. However, the associations between GlycA and these brain changes have not been fully evaluated. Here, we performed Spearman's correlation analyses to evaluate these associations cross-sectionally and determined whether GlycA can inform AD-relevant longitudinal measurements among participants in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (n = 1506), with additional linear models and stratification analyses to evaluate the influences of sex or diagnosis status and confirm findings from Spearman's correlation analyses. We found that GlycA was elevated in AD patients compared to cognitively normal participants. GlycA correlated negatively with multiple concurrent regional brain volumes in females diagnosed with late mild cognitive impairment (LMCI) or AD. Baseline GlycA level was associated with executive function decline at 3-9 year follow-up in participants diagnosed with LMCI at baseline, with similar but not identical trends observed in the future decline of memory and entorhinal cortex volume. Results here indicated that GlycA is an inflammatory biomarker relevant to AD pathogenesis and that the stage of LMCI might be relevant to inflammation-related intervention.

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) represents a significant post-cardiac surgery complication, particularly prevalent among individuals with pre-existing renal dysfunction. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is frequently accompanied by persistent, low-grade inflammation, which is known to exacerbate systemic stress responses during surgical procedures. This study hypothesizes that these inflammatory responses might influence the incidence and severity of postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI), potentially serving as a protective mechanism by preconditioning the kidney to stress. Methods: This retrospective study enrolled patients with preoperative renal dysfunction (eGFR between 15 and 60 ml/min/1.73 m²) who underwent cardiac surgery between January 2020 and December 2022. Preoperative inflammatory biomarkers were evaluated. The primary outcome was the incidence of postoperative AKI, as defined by the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) criteria. Multivariate regression models and sensitivity analyses were conducted to ascertain the relationship between inflammatory biomarkers and AKI. Restricted cubic spines (RCS) was conducted to explore nonlinear associations between inflammatory biomarkers and AKI. Results: AKI occurred in 53.4% (392/734) of patients, accompanied by significant mortality and length of hospital stay increases in cases of AKI (P < 0.005). After full adjustment of confounders, neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio (OR = 0.28), systemic inflammation response index (OR = 0.70), systemic immune inflammation index (OR = 0.69), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (OR = 0.70), monocyte/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (OR = 0.53), neutrophil/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (OR = 0.43) demonstrated an inverse association with AKI. Sensitivity analyses revealed that patients in the highest quartile of these biomarkers exhibited a significantly lower prevalence of AKI compared to those in the lowest quartile (p for trend < 0.05). The RCS analysis suggested an "Inverted U-shaped" association of both LnNPAR and LnSIRI with AKI. Conclusions: This study identified an inverse association between preoperative inflammatory biomarkers and postoperative AKI in patients with preoperative renal dysfunction. The findings implied that preoperative inflammation may play a protective role against postoperative AKI in this patient population undergoing cardiac surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Acute kidney injury (AKI) represents a significant post-cardiac surgery complication, particularly prevalent among individuals with pre-existing renal dysfunction. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is frequently accompanied by persistent, low-grade inflammation, which is known to exacerbate systemic stress responses during surgical procedures. This study hypothesizes that these inflammatory responses might influence the incidence and severity of postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI), potentially serving as a protective mechanism by preconditioning the kidney to stress. Methods This retrospective study enrolled patients with preoperative renal dysfunction (eGFR between 15 and 60 ml/min/1.73 m²) who underwent cardiac surgery between January 2020 and December 2022. Preoperative inflammatory biomarkers were evaluated. The primary outcome was the incidence of postoperative AKI, as defined by the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) criteria. Multivariate regression models and sensitivity analyses were conducted to ascertain the relationship between inflammatory biomarkers and AKI. Restricted cubic spines (RCS) was conducted to explore nonlinear associations between inflammatory biomarkers and AKI. Results AKI occurred in 53.4% (392/734) of patients, accompanied by significant mortality and length of hospital stay increases in cases of AKI (P

Abstract Inflammation is an important factor in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). An NMR measurement in plasma, glycoprotein acetyls (GlycA), captures the overall level of protein production and glycosylation implicated in systemic inflammation. With its additional advantage of reducing biological variability, GlycA might be useful in monitoring the relationship between peripheral inflammation and brain changes relevant to AD. However, the associations between GlycA and these brain changes have not been fully evaluated. Here, we performed Spearman’s correlation analyses to evaluate these associations cross-sectionally and determined whether GlycA can inform AD-relevant longitudinal measurements among participants in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (n = 1506), with additional linear models and stratification analyses to evaluate the influences of sex or diagnosis status and confirm findings from Spearman’s correlation analyses. We found that GlycA was elevated in AD patients compared to cognitively normal participants. GlycA correlated negatively with multiple concurrent regional brain volumes in females diagnosed with late mild cognitive impairment (LMCI) or AD. Baseline GlycA level was associated with executive function decline at 3–9 year follow-up in participants diagnosed with LMCI at baseline, with similar but not identical trends observed in the future decline of memory and entorhinal cortex volume. Results here indicated that GlycA is an inflammatory biomarker relevant to AD pathogenesis and that the stage of LMCI might be relevant to inflammation-related intervention.

Abstract Global challenges in ovarian cancer underscore the need for cost-effective screening. This study aims to assess the role of pretreatment Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR), Lymphocyte-to-Monocyte-Ratio (LMR), Platelet-to-Lymphocyte Ratio (PLR), and CA-125 in distinguishing benign and malignant ovarian tumors, while also constructing nomogram models for distinguish benign and malignant ovarian tumor using inflammatory biomarkers and CA-125. This is a retrospective study of 206 ovarian tumor patients. We conducted bivariate analysis to compare mean values of CA-125, LMR, NLR, and PLR with histopathology results. Multiple regression logistic analysis was then employed to establish predictive models for malignancy. NLR, PLR, and CA-125 exhibited statistically higher levels in malignant ovarian tumors compared to benign ones (5.56 ± 4.8 vs. 2.9 ± 2.58, 278.12 ± 165.2 vs. 180.64 ± 89.95, 537.2 ± 1621.47 vs. 110.08 ± 393.05, respectively), while lower LMR was associated with malignant tumors compared to benign (3.2 ± 1.6 vs. 4.24 ± 1.78, p = 0.0001). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that both PLR and CA125 emerged as independent risk factors for malignancy in ovarian tumors (P(z) 0.03 and 0.01, respectively). Utilizing the outcomes of multiple regression logistic analysis, a nomogram was constructed to enhance malignancy prediction in ovarian tumors. In conclusion, our study emphasizes the significance of NLR, PLR, CA-125, and LMR in diagnosing ovarian tumors. PLR and CA-125 emerged as independent risk factors for distinguishing between benign and malignant tumors. The nomogram model offers a practical way to enhance diagnostic precision.

Runzhi Wang,1 Rong Zhao,2 Zhongguo Liang,1 Kaihua Chen,1 Xiaodong Zhu1,3– 6 1Department of Radiation Oncology, Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Radiation, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region People’s Hospital, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous Region, 010020, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Oncology, Wuming Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, 530199, People’s Republic of China; 4Key Laboratory of Early Prevention and Treatment for Regional High Frequency Tumor (Guangxi Medical University), Ministry of Education, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 5Guangxi Clinical Medicine Research Center of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 6Guangxi Key Laboratory of Early Prevention and Treatment for Regional High Frequency Tumor, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xiaodong Zhu, Department of Radiation Oncology, Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital, 71 He-Di Road, Nanning, 530021, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 15778028340, Email zhuxdonggxmu@126.comPurpose: To evaluate the prognostic significance of platelet distribution width-to-lymphocyte ratio (PDWLR) in patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC). Moreover, a nomogram based on PDWLR was built and validated to predict the overall survival (OS) of this population.Patients and Methods: All LA-NPC patients who were diagnosed and treated between January 2015 and December 2017 at Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital were included. Cox regression analyses were performed to assess PDWLR and clinical features that might affect OS to screen for independent predictors. The independent predictors and important clinical variables were used to build and validate a nomogram for predicting OS. Then, the capability of the model was estimated by discrimination, calibration and clinical usefulness. Risk stratification was conducted using the nomogram-calculated risk score, and the comparison of survival in the high-risk group and the low-risk group was through Kaplan–Meier method.Results: This study included 746 LA-NPC patients. Multivariate Cox analysis suggested that age (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.81, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.18– 2.78, P = 0.007), gender (HR: 2.03, 95% CI: 1.12– 3.68, P = 0.019), pre-treatment plasma Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) DNA (HR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.01– 2.39, P = 0.047), PDWLR (HR: 2.61, 95% CI: 1.67– 4.09, P < 0.001) were independent predictors of OS. Compared to the 8th edition TNM staging system, the nomogram based on the above four factors and important clinical variables (T stage and N stage) demonstrated better predictive performance. Moreover, the model had the ability to identify individuals at high risk.Conclusion: PDWLR was a promising negative predictor for patients with LA-NPC. The nomogram based on PDWLR demonstrated better predictive performance than the current staging system.Keywords: nomogram, platelet distribution width-to-lymphocyte ratio, inflammatory biomarker, locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma, overall survival

Introduction: Vaccine-induced immunity against COVID-19 generates antibody and lymphocyte responses. However, variability in antibody titers has been observed after vaccination, and the determinants of a better response should be studied. The main objective of this investigation was to analyze the inflammatory biomarker response induced in healthcare workers vaccinated with BNT162b2, and its association with anti-Spike (a SARS-CoV-2 antigen) antibodies measured throughout a 1-year follow-up. Methods: Anti-spike antibodies and 92 biomarkers were analyzed in serum, along with socio-demographic and clinical variables collected by interview or exploration. Results: In our study, four biomarkers (ADA, IL-17C, CCL25 and CD8α) increased their expression after the first vaccine dose; and 8 others (uPA, IL-18R1, ENRAGE, CASP-8, MCP-2, TNFβ, CD5 and CXCL10) decreased their expression. Age, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol consumption, and prevalent diseases were associated with some of these biomarkers. Furthermore, higher baseline levels of T-cell surface glycoprotein CD6 and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) were associated with lower mean antibody titers at follow-up, while levels of monocyte chemotactic protein 2 (MCP-2) had a positive association with antibody levels. Age and BMI were positively related to baseline levels of MCP-2 (b=0.02, 95%CI 0.00-0.04, p=0.036) and HGF (b=0.03, 95%CI 0.00-0.06, p=0.039), respectively. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that primary BNT162b2 vaccination had a positive effect on the levels of several biomarkers related to T cell function, and a negative one on some others related to cancer or inflammatory processes. In addition, a higher level of MCP-2 and lower levels of HGF and CD6 were found to be associated with higher anti-Spike antibody titer following vaccination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cough, fever and tiredness are upper respiratory symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The emergence of the Delta variant, a significantly mutated and highly transmissible form of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, initiated a fresh global wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The timely and accurate clinical outcome prediction is vital for improving the management of patients with COVID-19 and identifying those who may be severely ill. In this retrospective observational study, a comparison of signs and symptoms and laboratory values was conducted between survivors and non-survivors of the second wave of COVID-19. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2-positive cases between June, 2021 and January, 2022 were confirmed using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Medical records were reviewed and collected until patient discharge/mortality. The levels of inflammatory biomarkers, symptoms and comorbidities of the patients were assessed. Analyses were performed using SPSS version 20.0. Of the 200 patients with COVID-19, 112 were male and 88 were female. Non-survivors outnumbered survivors, with the most common symptoms being sputum production, coughing, and hemoptysis (P≤0.01). Chronic kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were the most common co-occurring conditions among the non-survivors. On the day of admission, interleukin (IL)-6 OR=1.003 (1.000-1.007), C-reactive protein OR=1.038 (1.016-1.059) and lactate dehydrogenase OR=1.004 (1.001-1.006) levels were measured; however, the most significant predictor of morality were the D-dimer levels OR=1.016 (1.002-1.059). Serum ferritin and D-dimer levels were considerably higher in non-survivors than in survivors, while IL-6, C-reactive protein and lactate dehydrogenase levels were significantly higher in survivors at the time of admission. On day 3 of admission, serum ferritin, D-dimer, and IL-6 levels were higher in non-survivors than in the survivors of COVID-19. The following factors continued to be significant predictors of mortality among COVID-19 patients with binary logistic regression: Age, sputum, haemoptysis, cough and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Logistic regression analysis revealed that chronic kidney disease was not statistically significant. Understanding the variations in inflammatory profiles is crucial for devising personalized treatment strategies and improving clinical outcomes in the ongoing battle against COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundInflammation plays a crucial role in cerebrovascular disease (CVD) progression. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is an important inflammatory marker, though its diagnostic role in CVD is still under investigation. This study evaluates the relationship between NLR and short-term all-cause mortality in patients with CVD admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU).MethodsWe conducted a retrospective study using data from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC-IV) (v2.2) database, including 4,327 adult ICU-admitted CVD patients. NLR values at admission were analyzed alongside various mortality variables. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models and Kaplan–Meier (K-M) survival curves assessed the relationship between NLR and short-term all-cause mortality. Predictive power, sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve (AUC) of NLR for short-term mortality were investigated using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis. Additionally, restricted cubic spline (RCS) curves and subgroup analyses were conducted.ResultsAmong the 4,327 patients, 3,600 survived (survival group) and 727 died (non-survival group) within 28 days of admission (mortality rate: 16.8%). A multivariate Cox regression analysis identified NLR as an independent predictor of 28-day all-cause mortality (hazard ratio: 1.013; 95% confidence interval: 1.0086–1.0188; p

Ying Jiang,1,&ast; Chuankai Lin,1,&ast; Min Xu,2,&ast; Taiwen Zhu,1 Xuhong Li,1 Wei Wang1 1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430071, People’s Republic of China; 2Medical and Nursing School, Wuhan Railway Vocational College of Technology, Wuhan, 430205, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Wei Wang, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430071, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 15071128246, Email wangwei1069@163.comIntroduction: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a respiratory disorder characterized by chronic intermittent hypoxia and fragmented sleep, leading to inflammatory response and oxidative stress. However, the differences in immune inflammatory response in OSA patients with different severity remain unclear.Purpose: This study aims to examine the differences in peripheral blood immune cells and their risk factors in OSA patients.Patients and Methods: A total of 277 snoring patients from the Sleep Respiratory Disorder Monitoring Center of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University were recruited in this study. According to the diagnosis and severity criteria of OSA, the included patients were further divided into simple snoring, mild, moderate, and severe groups. Peripheral blood immune cell counts including white blood cells, neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, basophils, red blood cells, platelets, and polysomnography indicators were collected from the patients.Results: Compared with simple snoring patients, the OSA patients had increased circular monocyte and basophil count levels. In addition, correlation analysis results indicated that monocyte count was positively associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), smoking, apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), the longest apnea duration, and Oxygen desaturation index (ODI), and negatively correlated with average SpO2 in snoring patients. Finally, multiple linear regression analysis revealed that AHI, COPD, smoking, and maximum heart rate were independent predictors of monocyte count.Conclusion: OSA patients had a significant increase in their peripheral blood monocyte count. AHI, COPD, smoking, and maximum heart rate were risk factors for increased peripheral blood monocyte count in OSA patients. These findings suggest that peripheral blood monocytes can be considered an inflammatory biomarker of OSA.Keywords: obstructive sleep apnea, peripheral blood cell count, monocytes, polysomnography, inflammatory biomarker

Background Inflammatory biomarkers, such as the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), serve as valuable prognostic indicators in various cancers. This multicenter, retrospective cohort study assessed the treatment outcomes of lenvatinib in 71 patients with radioactive iodine (RAI)-refractory thyroid cancer, considering the baseline inflammatory biomarkers. Methods This study retrospectively included patients from five tertiary hospitals in Korea whose complete blood counts were available before lenvatinib treatment. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated based on the median value of inflammatory biomarkers. Results No significant differences in baseline characteristics were observed among patients grouped according to the inflammatory biomarkers, except for older patients with a higher-than-median NLR (≥2) compared to their counterparts with a lower NLR (P= 0.01). Patients with a higher-than-median NLR had significantly shorter PFS (P=0.02) and OS (P=0.017) than those with a lower NLR. In multivariate analysis, a higher-than-median NLR was significantly associated with poor OS (hazard ratio, 3.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.24 to 7.29; P=0.015). However, neither the LMR nor the PLR was associated with PFS. A higher-than-median LMR (≥3.9) was significantly associated with prolonged OS compared to a lower LMR (P=0.036). In contrast, a higher-than-median PLR (≥142.1) was associated with shorter OS compared to a lower PLR (P=0.039). Conclusion Baseline inflammatory biomarkers can serve as predictive indicators of PFS and OS in patients with RAI-refractory thyroid cancer treated with lenvatinib.

Background: Sepsis is one of the leading causes of death. Treatment attempts targeting the immune response regularly fail in clinical trials. As HCMV latency can modulate the immune response and changes the immune cell composition, we hypothesized that HCMV serostatus affects mortality in sepsis patients. Methods: We determined the HCMV serostatus (i.e., latency) of 410 prospectively enrolled patients of the multicenter SepsisDataNet.NRW study. Patients were recruited according to the SEPSIS-3 criteria and clinical data were recorded in an observational approach. We quantified 13 cytokines at Days 1, 4, and 8 after enrollment. Proteomics data were analyzed from the plasma samples of 171 patients. Results: The 30-day mortality was higher in HCMV-seropositive patients than in seronegative sepsis patients (38% vs. 25%, respectively; p = 0.008; HR, 1.656; 95% CI 1.135–2.417). This effect was observed independent of age (p = 0.010; HR, 1.673; 95% CI 1.131–2.477). The predictive value on the outcome of the increased concentrations of IL-6 was present only in the seropositive cohort (30-day mortality, 63% vs. 24%; HR 3.250; 95% CI 2.075–5.090; p < 0.001) with no significant differences in serum concentrations of IL-6 between the two groups. Procalcitonin and IL-10 exhibited the same behavior and were predictive of the outcome only in HCMV-seropositive patients. Conclusion: We suggest that the predictive value of inflammation-associated biomarkers should be re-evaluated with regard to the HCMV serostatus. Targeting HCMV latency might open a new approach to selecting suitable patients for individualized treatment in sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Inflammatory biomarkers, such as the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), serve as valuable prognostic indicators in various cancers. This multicenter, retrospective cohort study assessed the treatment outcomes of lenvatinib in 71 patients with radioactive iodine (RAI)-refractory thyroid cancer, considering the baseline inflammatory biomarkers. Methods: This study retrospectively included patients from five tertiary hospitals in Korea whose complete blood counts were available before lenvatinib treatment. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated based on the median value of inflammatory biomarkers. Results: No significant differences in baseline characteristics were observed among patients grouped according to the inflammatory biomarkers, except for older patients with a higher-than-median NLR (=2) compared to their counterparts with a lower NLR (P= 0.01). Patients with a higher-than-median NLR had significantly shorter PFS (P=0.02) and OS (P=0.017) than those with a lower NLR. In multivariate analysis, a higher-than-median NLR was significantly associated with poor OS (hazard ratio, 3.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.24 to 7.29; P=0.015). However, neither the LMR nor the PLR was associated with PFS. A higher-than-median LMR (≥3.9) was significantly associated with prolonged OS compared to a lower LMR (P≥0.036). In contrast, a higher-than-median PLR (≥142.1) was associated with shorter OS compared to a lower PLR (P=0.039). Conclusion: Baseline inflammatory biomarkers can serve as predictive indicators of PFS and OS in patients with RAI-refractory thyroid cancer treated with lenvatinib. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Earlier studies showed a negative correlation between life's simple 7 (LS7) and high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein (hs‐CRP), but no association has been found between life's essential 8 (LE8), an improved version of LS7, and hs‐CRP. Hypothesis: This study investigated the association between LE8 and hs‐CRP utilizing data from the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey. Methods: A total of 7229 adults were incorporated in our study. LE8 was scored according to American Heart Association guidelines, and LE8 was divided into health behaviors and health factors. Serum samples of the participants were used to measure hs‐CRP. To investigate the association between LE8 and hs‐CRP, weighted linear regression, and restricted cubic spline were utilized. Results: Among 7229 participants, the average age was 48.03 ± 16.88 years, 3689 (51.2%) were females and the median hs‐CRP was 1.92 (0.81−4.49) mg/L. In adjusted weighted linear regression, a negative correlation was observed between the LE8 score and hs‐CRP. Compared with the low LE8 score, the moderate LE8 score β was −0.533 (−0.646 to −0.420), and the high LE8 score β was −1.237 (−1.376 to −1.097). Health behaviors and health factors were also negatively associated with hs‐CRP. In stratified analyses, the negative correlation between LE8 and hs‐CRP remained consistent across subgroups. Conclusion: There was a negative correlation between LE8 as well as its sub‐indicator scores and hs‐CRP. Maintaining a positive LE8 score may be conducive to lowering the level of hs‐CRP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IntroductionVaccine-induced immunity against COVID-19 generates antibody and lymphocyte responses. However, variability in antibody titers has been observed after vaccination, and the determinants of a better response should be studied. The main objective of this investigation was to analyze the inflammatory biomarker response induced in healthcare workers vaccinated with BNT162b2, and its association with anti-Spike (a SARS-CoV-2 antigen) antibodies measured throughout a 1-year follow-up.MethodsAnti-spike antibodies and 92 biomarkers were analyzed in serum, along with socio-demographic and clinical variables collected by interview or exploration.ResultsIn our study, four biomarkers (ADA, IL-17C, CCL25 and CD8α) increased their expression after the first vaccine dose; and 8 others (uPA, IL-18R1, EN-RAGE, CASP-8, MCP-2, TNFβ, CD5 and CXCL10) decreased their expression. Age, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol consumption, and prevalent diseases were associated with some of these biomarkers. Furthermore, higher baseline levels of T-cell surface glycoprotein CD6 and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) were associated with lower mean antibody titers at follow-up, while levels of monocyte chemotactic protein 2 (MCP-2) had a positive association with antibody levels. Age and BMI were positively related to baseline levels of MCP-2 (β=0.02, 95%CI 0.00-0.04, p=0.036) and HGF (β=0.03, 95%CI 0.00-0.06, p=0.039), respectively.ConclusionOur findings indicate that primary BNT162b2 vaccination had a positive effect on the levels of several biomarkers related to T cell function, and a negative one on some others related to cancer or inflammatory processes. In addition, a higher level of MCP-2 and lower levels of HGF and CD6 were found to be associated with higher anti-Spike antibody titer following vaccination.

BackgroundSepsis is a life-threatening condition that requires rapid assessment to reduce mortality. This study investigates the relationship between the Neutrophil-to-Monocyte/Lymphocyte Ratio (NMLR) upon ICU admission and 28-day mortality in sepsis patients.MethodsA retrospective analysis was performed using clinical data from sepsis patients in the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV). Multivariate logistic regression, sensitivity analyses, and Restricted Cubic Spline (RCS) models were employed to explore the relationship between ICU admission NMLR and 28-day mortality. Kaplan–Meier method and inverse probability weighting (IPW) were used to adjust for confounders and estimate survival outcomes. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve evaluating the predictive value of NLMR for 28-day mortality in ICU sepsis patients. Subgroup analyses considered factors like age, sex, race, comorbidities, and disease severity.ResultsIn total, 8,710 patients were included. Increased NMLR was associated with higher 28-day all-cause mortality, confirmed by multiple logistic regression models. In Model 3, after adjusting for confounders, each standard deviation increase in NMLR was associated with a 1.5% increase in 28-day mortality risk. Kaplan–Meier and IPW survival analyses showed higher 28-day all-cause mortality in patients with elevated NMLR levels at ICU admission compared to those with lower levels (p

Aims: This study analyzed the effectiveness of methylprednisolone in improving jaundice, bilirubin levels, liver function tests, and inflammatory biomarkers in infants with cholestasis. Methods: The randomized, actively controlled, parallel‐group trial (ISRCTN45080388 registry) was conducted from November 2022 to May 2023 in Dr. Soetomo General Academic Hospital, Surabaya, Indonesia, on infants with cholestasis. The ethics committee of Dr. Soetomo General Academic Hospital, Surabaya approved the study protocol. Infants 14 days to 3 months old, with cholestasis followed by acholic stool, dark urine, and hepatomegaly were included in the trial. Participants were randomly assigned to methylprednisolone 2 mg/kg/day twice daily or to placebo twice daily for two weeks. Ursodeoxycholic acid (10 mg/kg) was administered to all patients thrice daily. Clinical examination and laboratory measurements (direct and total bilirubin, Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), Alanine transaminase (ALT), Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and inflammatory biomarker) were performed at baseline and after 2‐week treatment. Measurement of inflammatory biomarkers (IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IFN-γ, TGF-β, and ANCA) was performed using enzyme-linked immunoassays. Data distribution was checked for normality. Analysis was carried out using SPSS ver. 21 with p significant

Fei Wang,1,2 Chun Yue Yan,3 Yuan Qin,4 Zheng Ming Wang,1 Dan Liu,1 Ying He,1 Ming Yang,2 Li Wen,1 Dong Zhang1 1Department of Radiology, XinQiao Hospital of Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400037, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Medical Imaging, Luzhou People’s Hospital, Luzhou, 646000, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Emergency Medicine, Luzhou People’s Hospital, Luzhou, 646000, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Radiology, Chongqing University Three Gorges Hospital, Chongqing, 404031, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Dong Zhang, Department of Radiology, Xin Qiao Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400037, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-23-68774676, Email hszhangd@tmmu.edu.cnBackground: Currently, it is still confused whether preoperative aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio (APRI) and gamma-glutamyl transferase-to-platelet ratio (GPR) can predict microvascular invasion (MVI) in solitary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We aimed to develop and validate a machine-learning integration model for predicting MVI using APRI, GPR and gadoxetic acid disodium (Gd-EOB-DTPA) enhanced MRI.Methods: A total of 314 patients from XinQiao Hospital of Army Medical University were divided chronologically into training set (n = 220) and internal validation set (n = 94), and recurrence-free survival was determined to follow up after surgery. Seventy-three patients from Chongqing University Three Gorges Hospital and Luzhou People’s Hospital served as external validation set. Overall, 387 patients with solitary HCC were analyzed as whole dataset set. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator, tenfold cross-validation and multivariate logistic regression were used to gradually filter features. Six machine-learning models and an ensemble of the all models (ENS) were built. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and decision curve analysis were used to evaluate model’s performance.Results: APRI, GPR, HBPratio3 ([liver SI‒tumor SI]/liver SI), PLT, peritumoral enhancement, non-smooth margin and peritumoral hypointensity were independent risk factors for MVI. Six machine-learning models showed good performance for predicting MVI in training set (AUCs range, 0.793– 0.875), internal validation set (0.715– 0.832), external validation set (0.636– 0.746) and whole dataset set (0.756– 0.850). The ENS achieved the highest AUCs (0.879 vs 0.858 vs 0.839 vs 0.851) in four cohorts with excellent calibration and more net benefit. Subgroup analysis indicated that ENS obtained excellent AUCs (0.900 vs 0.809 vs 0.865 vs 0.908) in HCC > 5cm, ≤ 5cm, ≤ 3cm and ≤ 2cm cohorts. Kaplan‒Meier survival curves indicated that ENS achieved excellent stratification for MVI status.Conclusion: The APRI and GPR may be new potential biomarkers for predicting MVI of HCC. The ENS achieved optimal performance for predicting MVI in different sizes HCC and may aid in the individualized selection of surgical procedures.Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma, microvascular invasion, inflammatory biomarker, magnetic resonance imaging, machine learning

Abstract We assessed whether the impact of cabotegravir plus rilpivirine on inflammation reduction differs from that of oral antiretrovirals, using real-world data. Inflammatory biomarkers and lipid profiles were followed from baseline to 8 months after switching. Seventy-eight participants were analyzed. The CD4/CD8 ratio and C-reactive protein did not change. There were transient decreases in CD8 and CD4 counts in the group that switched from the dolutegravir-based regimen, but not in the tenofovir alafenamide-based regimen group. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol increased, resulting in a decrease in the total-cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio, whereas there was no significant change in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol.

Aims: C‐reactive protein (CRP) is used to determine the effect of antibiotic treatment on sepsis in neonates/infants. We aimed to develop pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic (PKPD) model of meropenem and CRP in neonates/infants and evaluate its predictive performance of CRP dynamics. Methods: Data from neonates/infants treated with meropenem in 3 previous studies were analysed. To the previously developed meropenem PK models, the addition of turnover, transit or effect compartment, delay differential equation PD models of CRP as a function of meropenem concentration or its cumulative area under the curve (AUC) were evaluated. The percentage of neonates/infants (P0.1, P0.2) in whom the ratio of the fifth day CRP to its peak value was predicted with an error of <0.1 (<0.2) was calculated. Results: A total of 60 meropenem treatment episodes (median [range] gestational age 27.6 [22.6–40.9] weeks, postnatal age 13 [2–89] days) with a total of 351 CRP concentrations (maximum value 65.5 [13–358.4] mg/L) were included. Turnover model of CRP as a function of meropenem cumulative AUC provided the best fit and included CRP at the start of treatment, use of prior antibiotics, study and causative agent Staphylococcus aureus or enterococci as covariates. Using meropenem population predictions and data available at 0, 24, 48, 72 h after the start of treatment, P0.1 (P0.2) was 36.4, 36.4, 60.6 and 66.7% (70.0, 66.7, 72.7 and 78.7%), respectively. Conclusion: The developed PKPD model of meropenem and CRP as a function of meropenem cumulative AUC incorporating several patient characteristics predicts CRP dynamics with an error of <0.2 in most neonates/infants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The measurement of fecal inflammatory biomarkers among individuals presenting to care with diarrhea could improve the identification of bacterial diarrheal episodes that would benefit from antibiotic therapy. We reviewed prior literature in this area and describe our proposed methods to evaluate 4 biomarkers in the Enterics for Global Health (EFGH) Shigella surveillance study. Methods We systematically reviewed studies since 1970 from PubMed and Embase that assessed the diagnostic characteristics of inflammatory biomarkers to identify bacterial diarrhea episodes. We extracted sensitivity and specificity and summarized the evidence by biomarker and diarrhea etiology. In EFGH, we propose using commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to test for myeloperoxidase, calprotectin, lipocalin-2, and hemoglobin in stored whole stool samples collected within 24 hours of enrollment from participants in the Bangladesh, Kenya, Malawi, Pakistan, Peru, and The Gambia sites. We will develop clinical prediction scores that incorporate the inflammatory biomarkers and evaluate their ability to identify Shigella and other bacterial etiologies of diarrhea as determined by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Results Forty-nine studies that assessed fecal leukocytes (n = 39), red blood cells (n = 26), lactoferrin (n = 13), calprotectin (n = 8), and myeloperoxidase (n = 1) were included in the systematic review. Sensitivities were high for identifying Shigella , moderate for identifying any bacteria, and comparable across biomarkers. Specificities varied depending on the outcomes assessed. Prior studies were generally small, identified red and white blood cells by microscopy, and used insensitive gold standard diagnostics, such as conventional bacteriological culture for pathogen detection. Conclusions Our evaluation of inflammatory biomarkers to distinguish diarrhea etiologies as determined by qPCR will provide an important addition to the prior literature, which was likely biased by the limited sensitivity of the gold standard diagnostics used. We will determine whether point-of-care biomarker tests could be a viable strategy to inform treatment decision making and increase appropriate targeting of antibiotic treatment to bacterial diarrhea episodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we explored the effects of ultrafine particle (UFP) peak exposure on inflammatory biomarkers and blood lipids using two novel metrics—the intensity of peaks and the frequency of peaks. We used data previously collected by the Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure and Health project from participants in the Greater Boston Area. The UFP exposure data were time-activity-adjusted hourly average concentration, estimated using land use regression models based on mobile-monitored ambient concentrations. The outcome data included C-reactive protein, interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha receptor 2 (TNF-RII), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), triglycerides and total cholesterol. For each health indicator, multivariate regression models were used to assess their associations with UFP peaks (N = 364–411). After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, smoking status and education level, an increase in UFP peak exposure was significantly (p < 0.05) associated with an increase in TNF-RII and a decrease in HDL and triglycerides. Increases in UFP peaks were also significantly associated with increased IL-6 and decreased total cholesterol, while the same associations were not significant when annual average exposure was used. Our work suggests that analysis using peak exposure metrics could reveal more details about the effect of environmental exposures than the annual average metric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gold-platinum alloy nanoparticles (AuPtNP) were electrochemically deposited on the surface of indium-tin-oxide (ITO) modified with (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES), after optimizing deposition conditions for the electroplating solution and number of deposition cycles. Different part ratios of Au/Pt used were 4/0, 3/1, 2/2, 1/3 and 0/4 (AuNP, Au3Pt1, Au2Pt2, Au1Pt3 and PtNP, respectively) in preparation of 1 mM solutions. FE-SEM, EDAX and XRD surface characterization techniques were used to confirm the presence of deposited AuPt alloy nanoparticles on the modified ITO surface. Electrochemical methods (CV, DPV and EIS) were used to investigate the electrochemical properties of prepared electrodes in the presence of ferri/ferrocyanide redox couple, which indicated the following increasing order of electrocatalytic peak current: Au

Abstract Background Sepsis is an important public health issue, and it is urgent to develop valuable indicators to predict the prognosis of sepsis. Our study aims to assess the predictive value of ICU admission (Neutrophil + Monocyte)/lymphocyte ratio (NMLR) on the 30-day mortality of sepsis patients. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted in septic patients, and the data were collected from Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV). Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were conducted to investigate the relation between ICU admission NMLR and 30-day mortality. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) was performed to determine the optimum cut-off value of ICU admission NMLR. Survival outcomes of the two groups with different ICU admission NMLR levels were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared by the log-rank test. Results Finally, 7292 patients were recruited in the study, of which 1601 died within 30 days of discharge. The non-survival group had higher ICU admission NMLR values than patients in the survival group (12.24 [6.44–23.67] vs. 8.71 [4.81–16.26], P

Abstract Background Evidence has proved that high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were risk factors for cardiovascular comorbidities. The alterations of NLR and PLR following obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) treatment were under studied and thus should be investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the changes of inflammatory biomarkers including NLR and PLR in severe OSA patients after surgical interventions of the upper airway, and their relationships with improvements in polysomnographic (PSG) parameters. Methods This retrospective cohort study included 563 consecutive severe OSA patients at a tertiary academic medical center who received OSA surgery, as well as underwent pre- and post-operative polysomnographic (PSG) examinations and blood tests. The changes of major PSG estimates, NLR, and PLR before and at least 3 months after OSA surgery were analyzed using paired t-tests with subgroup analyses. Pearson’s correlations were performed to discover which PSG parameter contributed to the improvement of the values. Results After OSA surgery, the major PSG estimates, NLR and PLR dropped significantly in the overall population. In those with a higher preoperative NLR (pre-operative NLR≧3) and PLR (pre-operative PLR≧150), the mean (SD) difference of NLR (− 0.8 [1.6], 95% CI − 1.5 to − 0.2) and PLR (− 41.6 [40], 95% CI − 52.8 to − 30.5) were even more substantial. The changes of the “apnea, longest (r = 0.298, P = .037)” and “hypopnea, longest (r = 0.321, P = .026)” were found significantly related to the improvement of PLR. Conclusion NLR and PLR did significantly drop in severe OSA patients following OSA surgery, and this could be related to the alterations of sleep indices. The findings could possess clinical importance for severe OSA patients after OSA surgeries in reducing possible OSA-associated cardiovascular comorbidities.

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a disease highly associated with abnormal regulation of T and B cells. The underlying pathophysiology of inflammatory pathways has critical implications for the diagnosis and management of CRS. Soluble CD40-ligand (sCD40L) is a cleaved form of CD40L present in plasma which functions the same way as CD40L, which has been observed as an inflammatory biomarker in many diseases. CD40L-positive cells control B-cell maturation, proliferation, apoptosis, and antibody production by binding to its receptor CD40 on B-cells. And our results show for the first time that patients with CRS have lower serum sCD40L levels compared to healthy subjects and that decreased sCD40L levels in patients correlate with increased CD40L-positive cell counts in the sinonasal mucosa. In addition, eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (eCRS) patients tend to exhibit more CD40L-positive cells in the sinonasal mucosa compared to non-eCRS patients. This supports the notion that local blockade of CD40/CD40L may suppress pathogenic T/B cell responses and reduce tissue inflammation. Significantly, sCD40L and CD40L may be involved in the development and progression of CRS by impairing peripheral blood B-cell function and enhancing the local inflammatory response in the sinonasal mucosa.

Background: Sepsis is one of the leading causes of death. Treatment attempts targeting the immune response regularly fail in clinical trials. As HCMV latency can modulate the immune response and changes the immune cell composition, we hypothesized that HCMV serostatus affects mortality in sepsis patients. Methods: We determined the HCMV serostatus (i.e., latency) of 410 prospectively enrolled patients of the multicenter SepsisDataNet.NRW study. Patients were recruited according to the SEPSIS-3 criteria and clinical data were recorded in an observational approach. We quantified 13 cytokines at Days 1, 4, and 8 after enrollment. Proteomics data were analyzed from the plasma samples of 171 patients. Results: The 30-day mortality was higher in HCMV-seropositive patients than in seronegative sepsis patients (38% vs. 25%, respectively; p = 0.008; HR, 1.656; 95% CI 1.135–2.417). This effect was observed independent of age (p = 0.010; HR, 1.673; 95% CI 1.131–2.477). The predictive value on the outcome of the increased concentrations of IL-6 was present only in the seropositive cohort (30-day mortality, 63% vs. 24%; HR 3.250; 95% CI 2.075–5.090; p < 0.001) with no significant differences in serum concentrations of IL-6 between the two groups. Procalcitonin and IL-10 exhibited the same behavior and were predictive of the outcome only in HCMV-seropositive patients. Conclusion: We suggest that the predictive value of inflammation-associated biomarkers should be re-evaluated with regard to the HCMV serostatus. Targeting HCMV latency might open a new approach to selecting suitable patients for individualized treatment in sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sepsis is an important public health issue, and it is urgent to develop valuable indicators to predict the prognosis of sepsis. Our study aims to assess the predictive value of ICU admission (Neutrophil + Monocyte)/lymphocyte ratio (NMLR) on the 30-day mortality of sepsis patients. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted in septic patients, and the data were collected from Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV). Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were conducted to investigate the relation between ICU admission NMLR and 30-day mortality. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) was performed to determine the optimum cut-off value of ICU admission NMLR. Survival outcomes of the two groups with different ICU admission NMLR levels were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared by the log-rank test. Results: Finally, 7292 patients were recruited in the study, of which 1601 died within 30 days of discharge. The non-survival group had higher ICU admission NMLR values than patients in the survival group (12.24 [6.44–23.67] vs. 8.71 [4.81–16.26], P < 0.001). Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that ICU admission NMLR was an independent prognostic predictor on 30-day mortality (Univariate: P < 0.001; multivariate: P = 0.011). The RCS model demonstrated the upturn and non-linear relationship between ICU admission NMLR and 30-day mortality (Nonlinearity: P = 0.0124). According to the KM curve analysis,30-day survival was worse in the higher ICU admission NMLR group than that in the lower ICU admission NMLR group (Log rank test, P < 0.0001). Conclusion: The elevated ICU admission NMLR level is an independent risk factor for high 30-day mortality in patients with sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PurposeNeutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), markers-lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), and platelet to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have potential roles as prognostic biomarkers in various cancers. The study was evaluated to investigate the predictive value of the peripheral inflammatory biomarkers in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) before radioiodine therapy to the response of clinical outcomes.MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed the patients diagnosed with PTC at the Second Hospital of Shandong University between September 2018 and January 2020. Patients were divided into low and high inflammatory biomarker groups based on median values. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC) and logistic regression were used to explore the potential risk factors.ResultsA total of 692 patients were enrolled, which included 197 (28.4%) males and 495 (71.6%) females. The median values of NLR, LMR and PLR of these patients were 1.7 (range 0.3–5.7), 7.1 (range 1.1–23.4) and 137.6 (range 27.6–497.5), respectively, and the mean values were 1.95 ± 0.82, 7.4 ± 2.5 and 148.7 ± 54.8, respectively. Compared to the lower PLR group, the higher group was significantly associated with gender, tumor size, N stage and thyroglobulin level (P

Background: We performed a meta-analysis to investigate the association of the systemic inflammation response index (SIRI) with long-term survival outcomes in patients with gastrointestinal malignancy. Methods: PubMed, Web of Science and Embase were searched for relevant studies evaluating the prognostic significance of the SIRI in gastrointestinal malignancies until May 2023. Results: 30 studies with 10,091 patients were included. The pooled results identified that patients in the high SIRI group had a worse overall survival and disease-free survival, which was observed across various tumor types, tumor stages and primary treatments. Conclusion: An elevated SIRI is negatively associated with worse survival outcomes of gastrointestinal malignancy patients and can be used as a risk stratification index for gastrointestinal malignancies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Plant-based diets, particularly when rich in healthy plant foods, have been associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. However, the impact of plant-based diets that distinguish between healthy and unhealthy plant foods on cardiometabolic biomarkers remains unclear. Methods: Dietary information was collected by two 24-h recalls among 34,785 adults from a nationwide cross-sectional study. Plasma levels of insulin, C-peptide, glucose, C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cell (WBC) count, triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured. Linear regression was used to evaluate the percentage difference in plasma marker concentrations by three plant-based diet indices, namely the overall plant-based diet index (PDI), the healthful PDI (hPDI), and the unhealthful PDI (uPDI). Results: Greater hPDI-adherence scores (comparing extreme quartiles) were associated with lower levels of insulin, Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), TG/HDL-C ratio, CRP, WBC count, and TG, and higher levels of HDL-C, with the percentage differences of – 14.55, – 15.72, – 11.57, – 14.95, – 5.26, – 7.10, and 5.01, respectively (all Ptrend ≤ 0.001). Conversely, uPDI was associated with higher levels of insulin, C-peptide, HOMA-IR, TG/HDL-C ratio, CRP, WBC count, and TG, but lower HDL-C, with the percentage differences of 13.71, 14.00, 14.10, 10.43, 3.32, 8.00, and – 4.98 (all Ptrend ≤ 0.001), respectively. Overall PDI was only associated with lower levels of CRP and WBC count (all Ptrend ≤ 0.001). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that hPDI may have positive, whereas uPDI may have negative impacts on multiple cardiometabolic risk markers, and underscore the need to consider the quality of plant foods in future PDI studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute cholecystitis is a gallbladder inflammation, and the Tokyo Guidelines 2018 (TG18) can be used to predict its presence and severity with high sensitivity and specificity. However, TG18 grading require the collection of excessive parameters. Monocyte distribution width (MDW) is a parameter used to detect sepsis early. Therefore, we investigated the correlation between MDW and cholecystitis severity. We conducted a retrospective study of patients with cholecystitis admitted to our hospital from November 1, 2020, to August 31, 2021. The primary outcome was severe cholecystitis analyzed as a composite of intensive care unit (ICU) admission and mortality. The secondary outcomes were length of hospital stay, ICU stay, and TG18 grade. A total of 331 patients with cholecystitis were enrolled in this study. The average MDWs for TG18 grades 1, 2, and 3 were 20.21 ± 3.99, 20.34 ± 3.68, and 25.77 ± 6.61, respectively. For patients with severe cholecystitis, the average MDW was 25.42 ± 6.83. Using the Youden J statistic, we set a cutoff MDW of 21.6. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that patients with an MDW≥21.6 had a higher risk of severe cholecystitis (odds ratio=4.94; 95 % CI, 1.71–14.21; p=0.003). The Cox model revealed that patients with an MDW≥21.6 were more likely to have a prolonged hospital stay. MDW is a reliable indicator of severe cholecystitis and prolonged length of stay. Additional MDW testing and a complete blood count may provide simple information for predicting severe cholecystitis early. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The objective of this multicenter, retrospective cohort study was to evaluate the ability of inflammatory biomarkers representing the host immune system to predict outcomes in 70 patients with progressive radioactive iodine (RAI)-refractory thyroid cancer who were treated with sorafenib. Method: Patients were divided into low and high inflammatory biomarker groups based on median values. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were assessed based on the lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR). Results: The median LMR, NLR, and PLR values were 3.4, 2.2, and 140.1, respectively. No significant differences were observed in baseline characteristics of high and low LMR, NLR and PLR groups. Median PFS values were 6.6 and 19.5 months in the low and high LMR groups, respectively (P < 0.001). Compared with the high NLR and PLR groups, PFS was significantly prolonged in the low NLR and PLR groups (P = 0.003 and P = 0.041 respectively). In the multivariate analysis, low LMR and high NLR were associated with poor PFS after adjusting for multiple confounding factors including age, sex, pathology, disease-related symptoms, serum thyroglobulin level, lung-only metastasis, cumulative RAI dose, time from diagnosis, and longer diameter of the target lesion (hazard ratio, HR = 2.42; 95% confidence interval, CI 1.25–4.71; P = 0.009, and HR = 2.09; CI, 1.06–4.14; P = 0.033, respectively). High LMR, low NLR, and low PLR were significantly associated with prolonged OS (P = 0.011, P = 0.023, and P = 0.007, respectively). Patients with at least one risk factors for inflammatory biomarkers presented a significantly lower PFS (HR 2.29; CI, 1.36–3.84; P = 0.003) and OS (HR 2.95; CI, 1.49–5.81; P = 0.006) than patients without any risk factor. Conclusion: Baseline inflammatory biomarkers successfully predicted PFS and OS in patients with progressive RAI-refractory thyroid cancer treated with sorafenib. These prognostic biomarkers might help arrive at appropriate clinical decisions regarding the use of sorafenib. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evidence has proved that high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were risk factors for cardiovascular comorbidities. The alterations of NLR and PLR following obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) treatment were under studied and thus should be investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the changes of inflammatory biomarkers including NLR and PLR in severe OSA patients after surgical interventions of the upper airway, and their relationships with improvements in polysomnographic (PSG) parameters. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 563 consecutive severe OSA patients at a tertiary academic medical center who received OSA surgery, as well as underwent pre- and post-operative polysomnographic (PSG) examinations and blood tests. The changes of major PSG estimates, NLR, and PLR before and at least 3 months after OSA surgery were analyzed using paired t-tests with subgroup analyses. Pearson's correlations were performed to discover which PSG parameter contributed to the improvement of the values. Results: After OSA surgery, the major PSG estimates, NLR and PLR dropped significantly in the overall population. In those with a higher preoperative NLR (pre-operative NLR≧3) and PLR (pre-operative PLR≧150), the mean (SD) difference of NLR (− 0.8 [1.6], 95% CI − 1.5 to − 0.2) and PLR (− 41.6 [40], 95% CI − 52.8 to − 30.5) were even more substantial. The changes of the "apnea, longest (r = 0.298, P =.037)" and "hypopnea, longest (r = 0.321, P =.026)" were found significantly related to the improvement of PLR. Conclusion: NLR and PLR did significantly drop in severe OSA patients following OSA surgery, and this could be related to the alterations of sleep indices. The findings could possess clinical importance for severe OSA patients after OSA surgeries in reducing possible OSA-associated cardiovascular comorbidities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have reported inconsistent associations between low-carbohydrate diets (LCD) and plasma lipid profile. Also, there is little evidence on the role of the quality and food sources of macronutrients in LCD in cardiometabolic health. We investigated the cross-sectional associations between LCD and plasma cardiometabolic risk markers in a nationwide representative sample of the US population. Diet was measured through two 24-h recalls. Overall, healthy (emphasising unsaturated fat, plant protein and less low-quality carbohydrates) and unhealthy (emphasising saturated fat, animal protein and less high-quality carbohydrate) LCD scores were developed according to the percentage of energy as total and subtypes of carbohydrate, protein and fat. Linear regression was used to estimate the percentage difference of plasma marker concentrations by LCD scores. A total of 34 785 participants aged 18–85 years were included. After adjusting for covariates including BMI, healthy LCD was associated with lower levels of insulin, homoeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), C-reactive protein (CRP) and TAG, and higher levels of HDL-cholesterol, with the percentage differences (comparing extreme quartile of LCD score) of −5·91, −6·16, −9·13, −9·71 and 7·60 (all P trend < 0·001), respectively. Conversely, unhealthy LCD was associated with higher levels of insulin, HOMA-IR, CRP and LDL-cholesterol (all P trend < 0·001). Our results suggest that healthy LCD may have positive, whereas unhealthy LCD may have negative impacts on CRP and metabolic and lipid profiles. These findings underscore the need to carefully consider the quality and subtypes of macronutrients in future LCD studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There have been studies of associations between disease of periodontal tissues and disorders affecting the entire body for instance cardiovascular diseases, stroke, asthma, low preterm birth weight, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. An inflammatory biomarker, plasma Homocysteine, has been identified as a factor that increases the chances for developing cardiovascular diseases. Previous studies have implied that there may be an analogous correlation between the levels of plasma- Homocysteine and chronic generalized periodontitis patients in otherwise systemically stable people. The aim behind this study is to determine the levels of plasma-Homocysteine in patients with chronic generalized periodontitis before and after non-surgical periodontal therapy. Materials and Methods: 36 patients were selected from outpatient department of Periodontology, divided into 2 groups, Group A entailing of 18 healthy control individuals, and Group B comprising of subjects with chronic generalized periodontitis which is further subdivided into Group B1 which includes chronic generalized periodontitis patients at baseline, and Group B2, chronic generalized periodontitis patients 6 months after scaling and root planning. Clinical parameters recorded and blood samples of all the group subjects were collected for analyzing the levels of plasma Homocysteine. Results: The outcome showed significant differences in the mean plasma Homocysteine levels across the 3 research groups. Levels of plasma Homocysteine were significantly higher in Group BI, which declined after the scaling but not to the levels found among healthy individuals. Conclusion: The result indicates an early detection of periodontitis by analyzing levels of this biomarker. Also, non-surgical periodontal therapy may supplement traditional plasma Homocysteine lowering therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Whole world experienced COVID-19 pandemic with more than 155 million cases and >3.4 million deaths. Vasculitis and immune system activation plays a critical role in pathogenesis, especially in severely ill and non-survivors COVID-19 patients. Aims and Objectives: The aim of the study was to establish the role of hematological indices and inflammatory biomarker as predictors of mortality among non-survivor and survivor COVID-19 cases at the time of admission. Materials and Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at a dedicated COVID-19 referral hospital from July 2020 to August 2020, among 300 real time-polymerase chain reaction confirmed COVID-19 cases. Demographic, clinical, comorbidity, laboratory investigation, and outcome data were collected from patient’s medical record. Outcome variables – discharged (survived) or death (non-survived) were considered for comparison of various hematological indices and inflammatory biomarkers. Data are represented as median, IQR (Q1-Q3) and difference between median and proportions were calculated by Mann–Whitney U-test and χ² test. A predictive power of laboratory parameters between survivors and non-survivors was evaluated using receiver operant curve (ROC) analysis and area under the ROC curve (AUC). Results: The median age of non-survivors was significantly higher than survivors. Hypertension was significantly associated with non-survivors. Hematological parameters such as total leukocyte count, absolute neutrophil count, Neutrophil: Lymphocyte ratio were significantly increased with lymphocytopenia (P=0.001), and Inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), lactate dehydrogenase, D-dimer, ferritin, procalcitonin, and NT-Pro BNP, all were significantly increased in non-survivors patients (P=0.001). CRP and neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) showed “Good” predictive value for mortality with cutoff value of 74.0 mg/l (AUC=0.841, Sensitivity=80.4%, Specificity=73.0%) and 5.65 (AUC=0.805, Sensitivity=76.1%, Specificity=73.0%), respectively. Pro-BNP showed “Fair” predictive value for mortality with cutoff value of 330.5 pg/ml (AUC=0.726, Sensitivity=73.9%, Specificity=58.2%). Conclusion: We suggest that CRP, NLR, and Pro-BNP can be used as a screening tool to predict mortality in COVID-19 patients for timely intervention to save valuable life, especially when sensitivity toward severity of COVID-19 among medical health professionals and general public is on decline.

Abstract Background Chronic inflammation has been described in people living with HIV (PLHIV) receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) despite viral suppression. Inflammation associated non-communicable diseases, including atherosclerosis, are becoming recognized complication of HIV infection. We studied the effect of pitavastatin on atherosclerotic-associated inflammatory biomarkers in PLHIV receiving ART. Methods A randomized, double-blind, crossover study was conducted in HIV-infected persons with dyslipidemia and receiving atazanavir/ritonavir (ATV/r) to evaluate the effect of 2 mg/day pitavastatin treatment versus placebo. High-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP), cytokines, and cellular markers in PLHIV receiving 12 weeks of pitavastatin or placebo were investigated. Results A total of 24 HIV-infected individuals with a median (interquartile range) age of 46 (41–54) years were recruited, and the median CD4 T cell count was 662 (559-827) cells/mm3. The median duration of ATV/r use was 36 (24–48) months. Significant change in levels of basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF) between pitavastatin treatment and placebo at week 12 from baseline was observed (27.1 vs. 20.5 pg/mL; p=0.023). However, there were no significant changes from baseline of hs-CRP and other plasma cytokine levels at week 12 of pitavastatin or placebo. Regarding cellular markers, percentages of HLA-DR+CD38-CD4+ T cells and PD1+CD4+ T cells significantly decreased from baseline in PLHIV receiving pitavastatin for 12 weeks, as compared to placebo (− 0.27 vs. 0.02%; p=0.049 and − 0.23 vs. 0.23%; p=0.022, respectively). Conclusions Pitavastatin treatment increases basic FGF levels, and lowers HLA-DR+CD38-CD4+ T cells, and PD1+CD4+ T cells. Further study on the effects of pitavastatin on preventing cardiovascular diseases in PLHIV should be pursued.

Yuxuan Xu,&ast; Zhihui Lin,&ast; Chenxi Zhu,&ast; Dongyan Song, Bosen Wu, Kangting Ji, Jin Li Department of Cardiology, Key Laboratory of Panvascular Diseases of Wenzhou, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325027, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Kangting Ji; Jin Li, Department of Cardiology, Key Laboratory of Panvascular Diseases of Wenzhou, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Xueyuanxi Road, No. 109, Wenzhou, 325027, People’s Republic of China, Tel/Fax +86-577-85676627, Email jikt@wmu.edu.cn; lijin1982@wzhealth.comObjective: The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between all-cause mortality and the neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio (NPAR) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF).Methods: We obtained clinical information from patients with AF from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care-IV version 2.0 (MIMIC-IV) database and the Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University (WMU). The clinical endpoints were all-cause death measured at 30-day, 90-day, and one-year intervals. For endpoints associated with the NPAR, logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and area under the curve (AUC) were developed to compare the ability of different inflammatory biomarkers to predict 90-day mortality in patients with AF.Results: Higher NPAR was associated with a higher risk of 30-day (OR 2.08, 95% CI 1.58– 2.75), 90-day (OR 2.07, 95% CI 1.61– 2.67), and one-year mortality (OR 1.60, 95% CI 1.26– 2.04) in patients with AF in 2813 patients from MIMIC-IV. The predictive performance of NPAR (AUC = 0.609) for 90-day mortality was better than that of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) (AUC = 0.565, P < 0.001), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) (AUC = 0.528, P < 0.001). When NPAR and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) were combined, the AUC increased from 0.609 to 0.674 (P < 0.001). Higher NPAR was associated with a higher risk of 30-day mortality (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.02– 6.30) and 90-day mortality (OR 2.76, 95% CI 1.09– 7.01) in 283 patients from WMU.Conclusion: An increased 30-day, 90-day, and one-year mortality risk among patients with AF were linked to a higher NPAR in MIMIC-IV. NPAR was thought to be a good predictor of 90-day all-cause mortality. Higher NPAR was associated with a higher risk of 30-day and 90-day mortality in WMU.Keywords: atrial fibrillation, neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio, mortality, inflammatory biomarker

Introduction: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease with high mortality. The pathophysiology of SFTS remains unclear. Hence, the identification of inflammatory biomarkers for SFTS is crucial for the timely management and prevention of disease severity. Methods: A total of 256 patients with SFTS were divided into a survivor group and a non-survivor group. Classical inflammatory biomarkers such as ferritin, procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), and white blood cells were investigated for their association with viral load and the clinical significance for predicting the mortality of patients with SFTS. Results: Serum ferritin and PCT showed a positive association with viral load. Ferritin and PCT levels in non-survivors were significantly higher than those in survivors at 7-9 days from symptom onset. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) values of ferritin and PCT for predicting the fatal outcome of SFTS were 0.9057 and 0.8058, respectively. However, the CRP levels and WBC counts exhibited a weak association with viral load. The AUC value of CRP for predicting mortality was more than 0.7 at 13-15 days from symptom onset. Discussion: Ferritin and PCT levels, especially ferritin, could be potential inflammatory biomarkers for predicting the prognosis of patients with SFTS in its early stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate performance of a feline-specific ELISA for the measurement of alpha-1-acid glycoprotein (AGP) and to establish a reference interval (RI). Methods: Surplus serum samples with low (~200 µg/ml), medium (~450 µg/ml) and high (~745 and 930 µg/ml) AGP concentrations were used to assess the intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation (CVs). The quality goal for bioanalytical method validation was a CV of <20%. Linearity was assessed by serial dilution of a sample with a high AGP concentration. Spike recovery was evaluated by mixing samples with low, medium and high AGP concentrations at different ratios. To establish the RI, residual serum samples from 51 healthy adult cats that were presented for health examinations or blood donation between August 2020 and June 2021 were included. Results: The intra-assay CV was 8.5%, 4.3% and 4.0%, and the inter-assay CV was 18.8%, 15.5% and 11.5% for serum samples with low, medium and high AGP concentrations, respectively. Excellent linearity (R2 = 0.98) was demonstrated for AGP concentrations ranging between 251.6 and 954.4 µg/ml. Average recovery was 95.0–99.7%. The right-sided RI for AGP was 328 µg/ml (90% confidence interval 300–354). Age had a statistically significant impact (increasing values with older age, P = 0.0026), but sex did not (P = 0.44), on AGP concentrations. Conclusions and relevance: The ELISA was accurate and showed acceptable precision with the modification of dilution used in this study. AGP concentrations in this population appeared to increase with increasing age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Accumulating evidence suggests that alterations in inflammatory biomarkers are important in depression. However, previous meta-analyses disagree on these associations, and errors in data extraction may account for these discrepancies. Methods: PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Library were searched from database inception to 14 January 2020. Meta-analyses of observational studies examining the association between depression and levels of tumor necrosis factor- α (TNF- α), interleukin 1- β (IL-1 β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and C-reactive protein (CRP) were eligible. Errors were classified as follows: incorrect sample sizes, incorrectly used standard deviation, incorrect participant inclusion, calculation error, or analysis with insufficient data. We determined their impact on the results after correction thereof. Results: Errors were noted in 14 of the 15 meta-analyses included. Across 521 primary studies, 118 (22.6%) showed the following errors: incorrect sample sizes (20 studies, 16.9%), incorrect use of standard deviation (35 studies, 29.7%), incorrect participant inclusion (7 studies, 5.9%), calculation errors (33 studies, 28.0%), and analysis with insufficient data (23 studies, 19.5%). After correcting these errors, 11 (29.7%) out of 37 pooled effect sizes changed by a magnitude of more than 0.1, ranging from 0.11 to 1.15. The updated meta-analyses showed that elevated levels of TNF- α , IL-6, CRP, but not IL-1 β , are associated with depression. Conclusions: These findings show that data extraction errors in meta-analyses can impact findings. Efforts to reduce such errors are important in studies of the association between depression and peripheral inflammatory biomarkers, for which high heterogeneity and conflicting results have been continuously reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infection with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a significant issue that affects gastrointestinal health on a global scale. It has been related to several severe side effects, including gastritis, peptic ulcers, and stomach cancer. Identifying reliable biomarkers for early detection and monitoring of H. pylori infections is crucial for improving patient outcomes. Our study aimed to analyze laboratory variables as potential biomarkers for detecting and evaluating H. pylori infections. To achieve this, we conducted retrospective research using information from 500 patients with and without H—pylori infection. C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), vitamin D3 levels, alanine transaminase (ALT), and aspartate transaminase (AST) were among the laboratory variables we gathered and examined. Descriptive statistics and correlation analyses were used in our study. The findings of our study imply that CRP and IL-6 levels show potential as markers of the inflammatory response brought on by H. pylori infection. Additionally, we found that vitamin D3 deficiency may influence how infected patients' immune systems react to this pathogen. However, none of the characteristics under research or the TNF-alpha levels we found were significantly correlated with H. pylori infection. The conclusions drawn from our study offer important information on potential biomarkers for identifying and keeping track of H. pylori infections. We can ultimately improve patient outcomes and lessen the burden of sickness this pathogen brings by enhancing the detection and evaluation of H. pylori infections. More research is required to confirm.

Inflammation has an important predictive role for long-term health. This is also true when looking at the specific population of trauma survivors with PTSD. There are emerging findings showing that PTSD is related to reduced somatic health as well as evidence linking inflammation with disease outcomes in this group, such as heart diseases and early mortality, regardless of age, gender or conventional risk factors. The effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for PTSD symptom severity has been demonstrated by several previous studies. In contrast, literature is scarce, yet, whether inflammation improves over the course of treatment for PTSD. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether not only PTSD symptoms, but also inflammation changes over the course of psychological treatment. Twenty-nine PTSD patients were followed while attending an outpatient clinic receiving cognitive behavioral therapy. Inflammation, determined by the C-reactive protein (CRP) assessed via the dried blood spot (DBS) technique, and symptom severity, surveyed by the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL) were measured at 5 points before trauma-focused therapy, as well as after four, eight and twelve weeks of intervention; furthermore, a 10-month follow-up assessment was conducted. Results revealed significant improvements of PTSD symptom severity during investigation, but no significant changes in the inflammatory biomarker (CRP). Results in terms of improvement in PTSD symptom severity are in line with prior findings. The results obtained for inflammation may suggest that risk factors for somatic health consequences in PTSD patients remain despite successful psychological treatment. Further longitudinal studies are needed to fully understand the relationship between inflammation and therapeutic outcome and to develop interventions normalizing inflammation in PTSD patients.

In this article, we explored the effects of ultrafine particle (UFP) peak exposure on inflammatory biomarkers and blood lipids using two novel metrics—the intensity of peaks and the frequency of peaks. We used data previously collected by the Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure and Health project from participants in the Greater Boston Area. The UFP exposure data were time-activity-adjusted hourly average concentration, estimated using land use regression models based on mobile-monitored ambient concentrations. The outcome data included C-reactive protein, interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha receptor 2 (TNF-RII), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), triglycerides and total cholesterol. For each health indicator, multivariate regression models were used to assess their associations with UFP peaks (N = 364–411). After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, smoking status and education level, an increase in UFP peak exposure was significantly (p < 0.05) associated with an increase in TNF-RII and a decrease in HDL and triglycerides. Increases in UFP peaks were also significantly associated with increased IL-6 and decreased total cholesterol, while the same associations were not significant when annual average exposure was used. Our work suggests that analysis using peak exposure metrics could reveal more details about the effect of environmental exposures than the annual average metric.

Carlos Cifuentes-González,1 Pilar Uribe-Reina,1 Juliana Reyes-Guanes,1 Juliana Muñoz-Ortiz,1 Paula Tatiana Muñoz-Vargas,1 William Rojas-Carabali,1 Dora Victoria Nova-Florián,1 Ana Sofía De-Los-Ríos,1 Rubén Dario Mantilla-Hernández,2 Alejandra de-la-Torre1 1Neuroscience Research Group (NEUROS), Neurovitae Center, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia; 2Fundación Para la Investigación En Dermatología y Reumatología (FUNINDERMA), Bogotá, ColombiaCorrespondence: Alejandra de-la-Torre, Neuroscience Research Group (NEUROS), Neurovitae Center, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Carrera 24 # 63C 69, Bogotá, Colombia, Tel +2970200 ext. 3320, Email alejadelatorre@yahoo.comPurpose: Ocular involvement is frequent in autoimmune diseases and even can be the first manifestation. There are multiple descriptions in the literature around the world regarding this topic. However, we evidenced a lack of studies analyzing the relationship between the ocular manifestations and systemic biomarkers, especially in Latinamerica. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the relationship between the positivity of inflammatory biomarkers and the ocular manifestations in a Colombian cohort of rheumatological patients.Patients and Methods: We conducted an observational, descriptive, non-comparative cross-sectional study in a rheumatology center, in Bogotá, Colombia, from 2013 to 2019. We calculated a sample size of 797 patients to assess the prevalence of ocular manifestations and inflammatory biomarkers. We performed univariate analyses for categorical and continuous variables and bivariate analyses using the Chi-square and Fisher’s exact test for categorical variables.Results: Women represented 84% of the population, and the mean age was 54.61± 15.64 years. Of 797 patients, 21.45% reported one or more ophthalmological diagnoses, being keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) the most common (15.93%), followed by uveitis, and cataract (1.38%, each one). Regarding ophthalmological symptoms, 35% presented at least one, being dry eye sensation (DE) the most common (30.86%), followed by ocular pain (2.76%), red eye, and decreased visual acuity (2.63%, each one). The antibodies or inflammatory biomarkers most frequently found were antinuclear antibodies (ANAs) (35.3%), C-reactive protein (28.7%), and rheumatoid factor (27.9%). We found statistical associations between consumption of complement 3, anti-CCP, anti-RO, and anti-LA antibodies with ocular manifestations such as photophobia, DE, conjunctivitis, KCS, uveitis, retinal vasculitis, and maculopathy.Conclusion: Ocular manifestations are frequently found in patients with positive antibodies and inflammatory biomarkers. Our results suggest antibodies and inflammatory molecules could be biomarkers for ocular manifestations in patients with rheumatological diseases. This study provides the basis for future longitudinal studies.Keywords: antibodies, inflammatory biomarker, rheumatological disease, ocular manifestations, ophthalmology, autoimmune diseases

Whole world experienced COVID-19 pandemic with more than 155 million cases and >3.4 million deaths. Vasculitis and immune system activation plays a critical role in pathogenesis, especially in severely ill and non-survivors COVID-19 patients. Aims and Objectives: The aim of the study was to establish the role of hematological indices and inflammatory biomarker as predictors of mortality among non-survivor and survivor COVID-19 cases at the time of admission. Materials and Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at a dedicated COVID-19 referral hospital from July 2020 to August 2020, among 300 real time-polymerase chain reaction confirmed COVID-19 cases. Demographic, clinical, comorbidity, laboratory investigation, and outcome data were collected from patient's medical record. Outcome variables -- discharged (survived) or death (non-survived) were considered for comparison of various hematological indices and inflammatory biomarkers. Data are represented as median, IQR (Q1-Q3) and difference between median and proportions were calculated by Mann--Whitney U-test and χ² test. A predictive power of laboratory parameters between survivors and non-survivors was evaluated using receiver operant curve (ROC) analysis and area under the ROC curve (AUC). Results: The median age of non-survivors was significantly higher than survivors. Hypertension was significantly associated with non-survivors. Hematological parameters such as total leukocyte count, absolute neutrophil count, Neutrophil: Lymphocyte ratio were significantly increased with lymphocytopenia (P=0.001), and Inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), lactate dehydrogenase, D-dimer, ferritin, procalcitonin, and NT-Pro BNP, all were significantly increased in non-survivors patients (P=0.001). CRP and neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) showed "Good" predictive value for mortality with cutoff value of 74.0 mg/l (AUC=0.841, Sensitivity=80.4%, Specificity=73.0%) and 5.65 (AUC=0.805, Sensitivity=76.1%, Specificity=73.0%), respectively. Pro-BNP showed "Fair" predictive value for mortality with cutoff value of 330.5 pg/ml (AUC=0.726, Sensitivity=73.9%, Specificity=58.2%). Conclusion: We suggest that CRP, NLR, and Pro-BNP can be used as a screening tool to predict mortality in COVID-19 patients for timely intervention to save valuable life, especially when sensitivity toward severity of COVID-19 among medical health professionals and general public is on decline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]