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Zhifeng Chen,1– 4,* Yulin Shang,5,* Binaya Wasti,6 Yanru Ou,1– 4 Subo Gong,7 Xudong Xiang,8 Ruoyun Ouyang1– 4 1Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 2Research Unit of Respiratory Disease, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 3Clinical Medical Research Center for Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine in Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 4Diagnosis and Treatment Center of Respiratory Disease in Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 5Ophthalmology and Otorhinolaryngology, Zigui Country Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Yichang, Hubei, 443600, People’s Republic of China; 6B & C Medical College, Teaching Hospital and Research Center, Birtamode, 57204, Nepal; 7Department of Geriatrics, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 8Department of Emergency, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Ruoyun Ouyang, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, 139 Middle Renmin Road, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China, Email ouyangruoyun@csu.edu.cnObjective: In the real clinical world, both surgery and medication are used to treat pulmonary aspergillosis (PA), but the prognosis of different treatments is unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the diagnosis and treatment, follow-up results and prognostic factors of PA patients in the real world, so as to deepen our understanding of PA and improve the prognosis of PA patients.Materials and Methods: Eligible patients with pathologically diagnosed PA (n = 125) were retrospectively enrolled and followed up. Further comparisons and subgroup analyses were performed between patients receiving surgical and nonsurgical treatments. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to investigate the factors associated with treatment failure.Results: A total of 125 patients with PA were included in the study. Of these, 49 (39.2%) received surgical treatment (25 of whom also received postoperative antifungal therapy), while 76 (60.8%) received antifungal therapy alone. The median age was 59 years (46.5– 67 years). Compared with the nonsurgical group, the surgical group had lower inflammatory cell counts and less inflammatory response, and higher hemoglobin and albumin levels. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that white blood cell (WBC) levels > 9.5× 109/L and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels > 8 mg/L were independent predictors linked to treatment failure.Conclusion: PA patients with severe inflammation and poor general health are usually treated with antifungal drugs only. Risk factors including elevated WBC levels and high CRP levels can help identify PA patients who may have a less favorable response to treatment at an early stage. It should be noted that increasing the dose and duration of antifungal therapy may improve patient prognosis.Keywords: pulmonary aspergillosis, antifungal treatment, surgery, treatment failure, prognosis

By using a homemade research device for phase equilibrium, the equilibrium solubility of the alkali nitrates (NaNO3/KNO3/RbNO3/CsNO3) in the mixed solvent glycerol [HOCH2CH(OH)CH2OH] + H2O in the mass fraction range of glycerol (0.0 to 1.0) at 35 and 45 °C was measured. Moreover, the density and refractive index of the saturated solutions of NaNO3/KNO3/RbNO3/CsNO3 + mixed solvent glycerol + H2O were determined. The experimental results showed that, in all systems, with the increase of mass fraction of glycerol, the solubility of the salts and the density of the solution decreased, while the refractive index increased gradually. The solubility, refractive index, and density data were fitted by a four-parameter empirical equation.

Zhifeng Chen,1– 4 Yulin Shang,5 Yanru Ou,1– 4 Li Zhou,1– 4 Ting Liu,1– 4 Subo Gong,6 Xudong Xiang,7 Yating Peng,1– 4 Ruoyun Ouyang1– 4 1Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 2Research Unit of Respiratory Disease, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 3Clinical Medical Research Center for Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine in Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 4Diagnosis and Treatment Center of Respiratory Disease, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 5Ophthalmology and Otorhinolaryngology, Zigui Country Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Yichang, Hubei, 443600, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Geriatrics, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Emergency, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yating Peng; Ruoyun Ouyang, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University 139 Middle Renmin Road, Changsha, Hunan, 410011, People’s Republic of China, Email pengyating2011@csu.edu.cn; ouyangruoyun@csu.edu.cnBackground: OSA can cause cognitive impairment (CI). The aim of this study was to investigate whether miR-20a-5p in exosomes derived from bEnd3 cells with IH mediates intercellular crosstalk and induces CI through hippocampal neuronal cell pyroptosis.Materials and Methods: BEnd3-derived exosomes were isolated from the normal oxygen control group (NC-EXOS) and IH group (IH-EXOS). In vitro, exosomes were cocultured with HT22 cells. Meanwhile, in vivo, exosomes were injected into mice via the caudal vein. The spatial memory ability of mice was tested by MWM method to evaluate the effect of exosomes on the cognitive function of mice. Adults diagnosed with OSA underwent the MoCA and ESS tests to assess cognitive function and daytime sleepiness. Spearman’s rank correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between miR-20a-5p and candidate proteins and clinical parameters. Transfection using small interfering RNAs, miRNA mimics, and plasmids to evaluate the role of miR-20a-5p and its target genes. Dual luciferase reporter gene assay was used to confirm the binding of miR-20a-5p to its target gene.Results: IH could cause pyroptosis and inflammation in bEnd3 cells, and promote the expression of miR-20a-5p. Isolated IH-EXOS induced increased pyroptosis and activation of inflammatory response in vitro and in vivo, accompanied by increased expression of miR-20a-5p. In addition, IH-EXOS led to decreased learning and memory ability in mice. Interestingly, AHI was higher and MoCA scores were lower in severe OSA compared to healthy comparisons. In addition, miR-20a-5p and GSDMD were positively correlated with AHI but negatively correlated with MoCA in severe OSA. IH-induced exosomes were rich in miR-20a-5p, and these exosomes were found to deliver miR-20a-5p to HT22 cells, playing a key role in the induction of OSA-CI by directly targeting MFN2.Conclusion: Exosome miR-20a-5p from IH-stimulated bEnd3 cells can promote OSA-CI by increasing HT22 cells pyroptosis through its target MFN2.Keywords: exosome, OSA, cognitive impairment, miR-20a-5p, MFN2, GSDMD

Zixiang Pang,* Yangqin Ou,* Jiawei Liang, Shengbin Huang, Jiayi Chen, Shengsheng Huang, Qian Wei, Yuzhen Liu, Hongyuan Qin, Yuanming Chen Department Orthopedics Ward 3 (Spine and Osteopathy Surgery), Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yuanming Chen, Department of Spinal Orthopedics, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, No. 166, University East Road, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13087712603, Email rkyygk@163.comObjective: The objective of this study aimed to investigate the risk factors for poor wound healing (PWH) after posterior lumbar spinal fusion. Currently, there is limited research on the application of machine learning in analyzing PWH after spinal surgery. Thus, our primary aim is to using machine learning identify these risk factors and construct a clinical risk prediction model.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 2516 patients who underwent posterior lumbar spinal fusion at Guangxi Medical University’s Second Affiliated Hospital between August 2021 and August 2023. The data was divided into test and validation groups in a 7:3 ratio. In the test group, logistic regression analysis, support vector machine (SVM), random forest (RF), decision tree (DT), XGboost, Naïve Bayes (NB), k-Nearest Neighbor (KNN), and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) were used to identify specific variables. The top six models from the eight machine learning models with the highest area under curve (AUC) values were selected and used to construct a dynamic nomograms model. Model performance was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and calibration curves. The model’s internal performance was then verified in the validation group using ROC and calibration curves.Results: Data from 2516 patients were collected, with 411 eligible cases selected. By combining logistic regression analysis with six machine learning algorithms, this study identified six predictors associated with PWH: subcutaneous lumbar spine index(SLSI), albumin, postoperative glucose, cerebrospinal fluid leakage(CSFL), neutrophil (NEU), and C-reactive protein(CRP). These predictors were used to develop a prediction model, visually represented through a nomogram. The AUC value in the test group was 0.981, and the C-index of the model was 0.986 (95% CI 0.966– 0.995), indicating excellent predictive capability. Calibration curve analysis showed good consistency between nomogram-predicted values and actual measurements.Conclusion: SLSI, albumin, postoperative glucose, CSFL, NEU and CRP were identified as significant risk factors for PWH after posterior lumbar spinal fusion. The developed prediction model exhibited excellent predictive accuracy and usefulness.Keywords: poor wound healing, posterior lumbar spinal fusion, machine learning, dynamic prediction model

Zhiwei Long,1,2,&ast; Qiyuan Zeng,2,&ast; Yonger Ou,1,&ast; Yuelin Liu,2,3 Jieying Hu,1 Ya Wang,1,3 Yan Wang1 1State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Health, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Clinical Medicine, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Critical Care Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University; Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory and Health; Medical Center for Respiratory Medicine; State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yan Wang; Ya Wang, Email 345406739@qq.com; wangya811710@163.comPurpose: Elevated red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and decreased hematocrit (HCT) levels are associated with poor prognosis in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients, but their significance in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD) remains uncertain. The RDW/HCT ratio may offer a more comprehensive assessment compared to individual markers, potentially enhancing prognostic accuracy. Furthermore, the utility of RDW/HCT in improving traditional ICU scoring systems remains unexplored.Patients and Methods: The optimal RDW/HCT ratio cutoff was identified via ROC curve analysis, guiding classification into high and low ratio groups. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, Kaplan-Meier survival curves, and propensity score matching (PSM) were performed to evaluate the association between RDW/HCT ratio and 28-day all-cause mortality. The predictive value of RDW/HCT ratio compared to traditional ICU scoring systems was assessed using the area under the curve (AUC). Additionally, the eICU database was utilized to validate the robustness of the association between RDW/HCT and mortality in patients with AECOPD.Results: 624 patients were included, with 361 in the low RDW/HCT ratio group and 263 in the high ratio group. PSM yielded 145 matched pairs of patients with balanced baseline characteristics. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that patients with RDW/HCT ratio ≥ 0.473 had significantly higher 28-day all-cause mortality compared to those with RDW/HCT ratio < 0.473 (p < 0.001). Combining RDW/HCT ratio with SOFA score improved the diagnostic accuracy significantly (p=0.029).Conclusion: The RDW/HCT ratio is an independent predictor of 28-day all-cause mortality in AECOPD patients in the ICU. It can be used for a preliminary assessment before a systematic evaluation of the patient, indicating its potential value in early assessment of disease severity. In a comprehensive evaluation, combining the RDW/HCT ratio with the SOFA score can further enhance predictive accuracy.Keywords: red blood cell distribution width, hematocrit, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, intensive care unit, prognosis

Yurong Ou, Ningqi Wu, Lishan Shu, Yang Zhao, Yunfang Bao, Qiong Wu Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical University, Bengbu, Anhui, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Qiong Wu, Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical University, 287, Changhuai Road, Bengbu, Anhui Province, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-18607490054, Email wuqiong@bbmc.edu.cnBackground: Existing research shows inducing ferroptosis can improve the effectiveness of tumor treatment. Glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) is a ferroptosis inhibitor. Solute carrier family 7, membrane 11 (SLC7A11) plays a key role in glutathione homeostasis, which is important for protecting cells from oxidative stress. β-catenin is the key protein the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. The purpose of this study was to investigate the expression of SLC7A11 and GPX4 in colorectal cancer (CRC) and their relationship with β-catenin and to analyze the association of these two factors with several clinicopathological features and patient survival.Methods: This study retrospectively collected paraffin-embedded tissue samples from 120 CRC patients, who received surgical resection between 2017 and 2018. We examined the patterns of expression of SLC7A11, GPX4 and β-catenin by using immunohistochemistry. Analyzing the relationships between SLC7A11, GPX4, β-catenin and clinical pathological parameters and their relationships with overall survival (OS).Results: Expression of SLC7A11 and GPX4 were high expression in 60.83% and 64.17% among the patients, respectively, and were higher than those in normal tissue. SLC7A11, GPX4 and β-catenin were positively correlated with each other (P< 0.05). Expression of SLC7A11 and GPX4 significantly correlates with tumor stage and lymph node metastasis (P < 0.05). The β-catenin was related to lymph node metastasis, TNM stage and tumor grade. Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that patient’s OS in the SLC7A11 and GPX4 were reduced (P< 0.05). Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that SLC7A11 and GPX4 were independent risk factors for CRC prognosis.Conclusion: SLC7A11 and GPX4 overexpression is associated with β-catenin and poor prognosis and may be important for predicting CRC invasion, metastasis, and prognosis.Keywords: colorectal cancer, SLC7A11, GPX4, β-catenin, prognosis

Jiayun Jiang,1 Hui Zhang,1 Jiejuan Lai,1 Shiyu Zhang,1 Yanjiao Ou,1 Yu Fu,2,&ast; Leida Zhang1,&ast; 1Institute of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 2Medical Research Institute, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Leida Zhang, Institute of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), No. 30, Gaotanyan Street, Shapingba District, Chongqing, 400038, People’s Republic of China, Email 2518569931@qq.com Yu Fu, Medical Research Institute, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southwest University, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, People’s Republic of China, Email fuyu2020@swu.edu.cnPurpose: To compare the efficacy and safety of transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) plus lenvatinib and tislelizumab (TACE-Len-T) versus TACE plus lenvatinib (TACE-Len) as the first-line treatment for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (uHCC).Patients and Methods: This retrospective study included 136 uHCC patients treated with TACE-Len-T or TACE-Len from January 1, 2021, to June 30, 2023. Clinical outcomes including overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), tumor response and adverse events (AEs) were compared between the two groups. The risk factors affecting OS and PFS were also analyzed.Results: The median OS and PFS of the TACE-Len-T group were significantly longer than those of the TACE-Len group (Median OS: not reached vs 13.8 months, P< 0.001; Median PFS: 13.0 months vs 2.7 months, P< 0.001). The best overall objective response rate (ORR) was also better with TACE-Len-T treatment (ORR: 72.1% vs 29.4%, P< 0.001), and the disease control rate (DCR) significantly increased in the TACE-Len-T group (88.2% vs 48.5%, P< 0.001). Multivariate analyses revealed that TACE-Len treatment, tumor number > 3, and cTACE were independent risk factors for OS, whereas TACE-Len treatment was the only independent risk factor for PFS. The frequency and severity of AEs in the TACE-Len-T group were comparable to those in the TACE-Len group (any grade: 92.6% vs 91.2%, P=0.753; grade 3 or 4: 33.8% vs 32.3%, P=0.855).Conclusion: TACE-Len-T treatment significantly improved OS, PFS, ORR, and DCR over TACE-Len treatment, with a manageable safety profile in uHCC.Keywords: unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma, transarterial chemoembolization, lenvatinib, tislelizumab, immunotherapy

Wenbin Wang,1 Lin Liu,2 Weida Qiu,1 Chaolei Chen,1 Yuqing Huang,1 Anping Cai,1 Zhiqiang Nie,1 Yanqiu Ou,1 Yicheng Zhu,1 Yingqing Feng1 1Department of Cardiology, Hypertension Research Laboratory, Guangdong Cardiovascular Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, ChinaCorrespondence: Yingqing Feng; Yicheng Zhu, Department of Cardiology, Hypertension Research Laboratory, Guangdong Cardiovascular Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, No. 106, Zhongshan 2nd Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, 510080, People’s Republic of China, Email fengyingqing@gdph.org.cn; zhuyicheng@gdph.org.cnIntroduction: Traditional clinical risk factors are insufficient to estimate the residual risk of large-vessel ischemic stroke. Non-targeted lipidomic techniques provide an opportunity to evaluate these risks.Methods: Plasma samples were collected from 113 hypertensive individuals, including 55 individuals at high risk of ischemic stroke and 58 matched individuals, in a prospective nested case-control cohort. To identify dysregulated lipid metabolites, we conducted multivariate and univariate analyses. A classifier based on a cross-validated procedure was employed to select the optimal combination of lipid species and their ratios.Results: We identified 23 dysregulated lipid species in patients with and without ischemic stroke, including 16 (69.6%) up-regulated and 7 (30.4%) down-regulated lipid species. Through internal cross-validation, the optimal combination of two lipid features (phosphatidylcholine 34:2 and triglyceride 18:1/18:1/22:1 / phosphatidylcholine 34:2, referred to as ischemic stroke-related 2 lipid features - IS2LP) was selected, leading to a more precise prediction probability for ischemic stroke within 3.9 years. In the comparison of different risk factors, the traditional risk score, the IS2LP risk score, and the combination of the traditional risk score with IS2LP yield AUC values of 0.613(95% CI:0.509– 0.717), 0.833(95% CI:0.755– 0.911), and 0.843(95% CI:0.777– 0.916), respectively. The combination of the traditional risk score and IS2LP exhibited significantly improved discriminative performance, with an integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) of 0.31 (p< 0.001) and a continuous net reclassification improvement (NRI) of 1.06 (p < 0.001) compared to the traditional risk score.Conclusion: We identified new lipidomic biomarkers associated with the futural event of large-vessel ischemic stroke. These lipid species could serve as potential blood biomarkers for assessing the residual risk of ischemic stroke in hypertensive individuals.Keywords: hypertension, lipidomics, ischemic stroke, risk factors

Kaibo Hu,1,2,&ast; Yanghuan Ou,1,&ast; Leyang Xiao,1,2,&ast; Ruonan Gu,1,2 Fei He,1,2 Jie Peng,1,2 Yuan Shu,1,2 Ting Li,1,2 Liang Hao1 1Department of Orthopedics, Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330006, People’s Republic of China; 2The Second Clinical Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330006, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Liang Hao, Tel +86 136 0700 8562, Email ndefy07018@ncu.edu.cnBackground: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a major cause of human disability. Despite receiving treatment, patients with the middle and late stage of OA have poor survival outcomes. Therefore, within the framework of predictive, preventive, and personalized medicine (PPPM/3PM), early personalized diagnosis of OA is particularly prominent. PPPM aims to accurately identify disease by integrating multiple omic techniques; however, the efficiency of currently available methods and biomarkers in predicting and diagnosing OA should be improved. Disulfidptosis, a novel programmed cell death mechanism and appeared in particular metabolic status, plays a mysterious characteristic in the occurrence and development of OA, which warrants further investigation.Methods: In this study, we integrated three public datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, including 26 OA samples and 20 normal samples. Via a series of bioinformatic analysis and machine learning, we identified the diagnostic biomarkers and several subtypes of OA. Moreover, the expression of these biomarkers were verified in our in-house cohort and the single cell dataset.Results: Three significant regulators of disulfidptosis (NCKAP1, OXSM, and SLC3A2) were identified through differential expression analysis and machine learning. And a nomogram constructed based on these three regulators exhibited ideal efficiency in predicting early- and late-stage OA. Furthermore, based on the expression of three regulators, we identified two disulfidptosis-related subtypes of OA with different infiltration of immune cells and personalized expression level of immune checkpoints. Notably, the expression of the three regulators was demonstrated in a single-cell RNA profile and verified in the synovial tissue in our in-house cohort including 6 OA patients and 6 normal people. Finally, an efficient disulfidptosis-mediated diagnostic model was constructed for OA, with the AUC value of 97.6923% in the training set and 93.3333% and 100% in two validation sets.Conclusion: Overall, with regard to PPPM, this study provided novel insights into the role of disulfidptosis regulators in the personalized diagnosis and treatment of OA.Keywords: osteoarthritis, disulfidptosis, perspective of predictive, preventive and personalized medicine, immune microenvironment, diagnostic model

Xiaoping Mu,1 Chengqiang Yu,1 Seong Woong Kim,2 Yufu Ou,1 Jianxun Wei,1 Karsten Schöller3 1Department of Spine Surgery, The People’s Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Guangxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Neurosurgery, Justus-Liebig-University, Giessen, Hessen, Germany; 3Clinic for Spinal Surgery, Schoen Clinic Hamburg Eilbek, Hamburg, GermanyCorrespondence: Xiaoping Mu; Jianxun Wei Email muxbin1991@hotmail.com; jxwei1972@163.comPurpose: The main aim of this retrospective study was to analyze lumbopelvic sagittal parameters among the three different types of Modic changes (MCs). Furthermore, correlations between the sizes of MCs and the number of involved lumbar levels with lumbopelvic parameters are investigated.Methods: A total of 263 adult subjects with MCs at a single institution from September 2015 to October 2020 who underwent lumbar x-ray examinations and magnetic resonance imaging were included in this retrospective study. Types of MCs, sizes of MCs, lumbar levels involved by MCs as well as lumbopelvic sagittal parameters from each subject were evaluated by two authors.Results: Lumbar lordosis (LL), sacral slope (SS), and pelvic incidence (PI) in subjects with MC grade 1 were significantly smaller than in those with MC grade 2 and grade 3 (p< 0.05). Lumbopelvic sagittal parameters decreased significantly as the sizes aggravated (p< 0.01). Triple lumbar levels with MCs showed a significant increase in PI-LL (p< 0.05) and decrease in LL (p< 0.01), SS (p< 0.01), and PI (p< 0.01) when compared to MCs at single and double lumbar levels.Conclusion: MC grade 1, severe MCs, and lumbar multi-segmental MCs were significantly linked to lumbar sagittal imbalance.Keywords: Modic changes, sagittal balance, lumbopelvic parameter, pelvic incidence, lumbar lordosis, sacral slope

Yunchao Ou, Xiaoli Jiang, Huiwen Guan Department of Dermatology, The Central Hospital of Wuhan, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei Province, 430000, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xiaoli JiangDepartment of Dermatology, The Central Hospital of Wuhan, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, No. 16, Gusoushu Road, Jianhan District, Wuhan, Hubei Province, 430000, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail huiwenguan@qq.comBackground: Studies investigated the associations between four Vitamin D receptor (VDR) common variations and interactions of gene-environment factors and atopic dermatitis (AD) in Chinese population are few.Methods: In this case–control study, 400 AD patients and 400 controls were genotyped for the FokI, TaqI, BsmI and ApalI variations of VDR genes by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. The associations between VDR genes and AD were assessed by univariate and multivariate logistic regression. The interactions between VDR genes and some risk factors were also explored using cross-over analysis. The corresponding odds ratio (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were also calculated.Results: The FoKI rs2228570 polymorphism was significantly associated with an increased risk of atopic dermatitis in the co-dominant model (OR=2.93, 95% CI: 1.78– 4.82. P=0.000), recessive model (OR=2.67, 95% CI: 1.68– 4.26, P=0.000) and dominant model (OR=1.38, 95% CI: 1.04– 1.84, P=0.028), and allele model. No significant associations were found among TaqI, BsmI and ApalI polymorphism and AD. The C-A-T-C and C-G-T-T haplotypes significantly increased the risk of atopic dermatitis. For rs2228570, the increased effects were more evident in the subgroups of age ≤ 8-month, cow milk and mixed, and keeping pet. Interactions between rs2228570 gene polymorphism and family history, age > 8, and keeping pet increased the AD risk. The rs2228570 C allele decreased the relative mRNA expression.Conclusion: The FokI rs2228570 C allele of VDR gene could be a risk candidate gene for AD. Interactions between FokI polymorphism and family history and some behaviors may increase the risk of AD.Keywords: vitamin D receptor gene, atopic dermatitis, case–control, interaction

Kagome metal ScV6Sn6 has been a subject of interest due to the emergence of a first-order structural phase transition with intriguing charge density wave behavior below the transition temperature Tc ∼ 92 K. To explore the thermoelectric properties and provide experimental insights into the nature of the phase transition, we have carried out a combined study by means of the electrical resistivity, Seebeck coefficient, and thermal conductivity measurements on single crystalline ScV6Sn6. Pronounced features near Tc have been characterized by all measured physical quantities. In particular, the Seebeck coefficient exhibits a marked reduction as lowering temperature across Tc, attributed to an imbalance of the contribution from different type of carriers induced by the structural phase transition. From the examination of the electronic and lattice thermal conductivities, we obtained a confirmation that the observed enhancement at Tc is essentially caused by the change of the lattice thermal conductivity, demonstrating the primary importance of lattice distortions for the heat transport of ScV6Sn6. In addition, the lattice thermal conductivity above Tc was found to increase monotonically with temperature. We associated the peculiar phenomenon with lattice fluctuations, highlighting the essence of structural instability in the kagome lattice ScV6Sn6. These results add to the knowledge about the thermal transport properties in kagome materials with a hexagonal HfFe6Ge6-type structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ye Zhang,1,* Bin He,1 Jinqiu Zhao,2,* Muzi Zhang,1 Qinsong Ren,1 Wei Zhang,1 Shuai Xu,1 Zhengxue Quan,1 Yunsheng Ou1 1Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Bin He Email binheing@163.comBackground: Serious pain commonly occurs after posterior spinal surgery. This study aims to evaluate the effect of preemptive and multimodal analgesia using celebrex, pregabalin and ropivacaine on pain control after this surgery.Methods: Ninety-three patients undergoing posterior spinal surgery were enrolled in this prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. All patients were treated with patient- controlled analgesia (PCA, intravenous tramadol hydrochloride and flurbiprofen) as required. They were randomized to combination analgesia intervention (oral celebrex, pregabalin and subcutaneous infiltration of ropivacaine), ropivacaine intervention (only subcutaneous infiltration of ropivacaine), and control intervention (placebo). We compared postoperative visual analog scale (VAS) scores and PCA dose among the three groups.Results: The VAS scores were significantly lower in the combination analgesia group than in the control group at 0 h, 2 h, 12 h, 24 h, 3 d, 5 d, 7 d and 14 d after posterior spinal surgery, while combination analgesia was also superior to ropivacaine in terms of VAS scores at 24 h and 14 d postoperatively. The combination analgesia group was also associated with significantly reduced PCA consumption compared with the control group, but there was no statistical difference in PCA consumption between the ropivacaine group and control group.Conclusion: Combination analgesia using celebrex, pregabalin and ropivacaine is effective and safe to alleviate pain after posterior spinal surgery.Clinical Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry No. ChiCTR2000031236.Keywords: preemptive analgesia, multimodal analgesia, pain control, posterior spinal surgery, randomized trial