MiR-103a targeting Piezo1 is involved in acute myocardial infarction through regulating endothelium function

Background: Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is commonly known as the heart attack. The molecular events involved in the development of AMI remain unclear. This study was to investigate the expression of miR-103a in patients with high blood pressure (HBP) and AMI patients with and without HBP, as well as its effect on endothelial cell functions. Methods: MiR-103a expression in plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was measured by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The regulatory effect of miR-103a on Piezo1 gene was identified by a luciferase reporter system. The role of miR-103a in endothelial cells was evaluated by the capillary tube formation ability and cell viability of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Results: The plasma miR-103a concentration was significantly elevated in patients with HBP alone, AMI alone, and comorbidity of AMI and HBP. The miR-103a expression in PBMCs in patients with AMI and HBP was significantly higher than the one in healthy controls (p < 0.05), however miR-103a expression in PBMCs was not significantly different among patients with HBP alone, patients with AMI alone, and healthy controls. MiR-103a targeted Piezo1 and inhibited Piezo1 protein expression, which subsequently reduced capillary tube formation ability and cell viability of HUVECs. Conclusions: MiR-103a might be a potential biomarker of myocardium infarction and could be used as an index for the diagnosis of AMI. It may be involved in the development of HBP and onset of AMI through regulating the Piezo1 expression.

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correction to: Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Instruments for measuring patient health education competence among nursing personnel: protocol for a COSMIN-based systematic review

Introduction Health education, as a crucial strategic measure of disease prevention and control in the 21st century, has become an important part of healthcare. As the main deliverers of patient health education, nursing personnel’s patient health education competence (PHEC) has received much attention. Instruments for assessing the PHEC of nursing personnel have been developed internationally, but there is a lack of systematic reviews and evaluations of the psychometric properties of these instruments. To effectively select appropriate PHEC assessment instruments in specific contexts, a systematic and comprehensive review and evaluation of these measurement instruments are needed. The goal of this systematic review is to systematically evaluate the psychometric properties of existing PHEC instruments.Methods and analysis In this study, eight databases will be searched between 1 March 2023 and 31 2023 to retrieve studies that include instrument(s) measuring the PHEC of nursing personnel. Two researchers will independently perform literature screening, data extraction and literature evaluation. In case of disagreement, a third researcher will be involved in the resolution. The measurement properties of PHEC assessment instruments will be systematically reviewed based on the consensus-based standards for the selection of health measurement instruments (COMSIN) methodology and guideline.Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval is not applicable for this study. We will share the findings from the study at national and/or international conferences and in a peer-reviewed journal in the fields of health education and/or patient education.PROSPERO registration number CRD42023393293

Anxiety and depression levels of the general population during the rapid progressing stage in the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak: a cross-sectional online investigation in China

Objective The outbreak of COVID-19 has major impacts on the psychological health of the public. This study aimed to investigate the anxiety and depression levels of the general population during the rapid progressing stage of COVID-19 pandemic in China and to explore the associated factors.Design and setting A cross-sectional online survey.Participants 2651 Chinese people.Measures The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to measure their psychological health. A structured questionnaire collected possible associated factors, including sociodemographic characteristics, health information, contact history-related information, experience and perceptions, knowledge and education and adopted precautions. Multiple linear regression was conducted to explore the factors associated with anxiety and depression.Results The mean score of anxiety and depression was 4.35 and 4.38, respectively. The rates of people with anxiety and depressive symptoms (with >7 score in the subscale) were 14.15% and 17.35%, respectively. Participants without political party membership, with contact history of COVID-19, going out or gathering, taking Chinese medicine herbs, being unsatisfied with current precautions, perceiving higher risks of infection, lower knowledge and poorer health presented higher anxiety and depression levels. Moreover, those who were females, married, lived alone and wore mask were more anxious; whereas people who were younger, experienced public health crisis, did not take precautions (regular work-rest, exercise) had higher depression level.Conclusions During the rapid progressing stage of COVID-19 pandemic in China, one-seventh and one-sixth respondents presented anxiety and depression symptoms, respectively. The risk factors for anxiety and depression included the following: without political party membership, with contact history of COVID-19, going out or gathering, wearing masks, taking Chinese medicine herbs, being unsatisfied with current precautions, perceiving higher susceptibility, lower knowledge and poorer health status. Extensive information and psychological support should be provided to improve the mental health of the general population

Influencing factors and significance of organic and inorganic nitrogen isotopic compositions in lacustrine sedimentary rocks

Comprehensive nitrogen biogeochemical cycle has been reconstructed for representative lacustrine organic-rich sedimentary rock in China, namely the Triassic Yanchang Formation (YF, 199–230 Ma) in Ordos and the Cretaceous Qingshankou Formation (QF, 86–92 Ma) in Songliao basins, by evaluating the organic and inorganic nitrogen isotopic compositions rather than only organic or bulk nitrogen isotopic compositions. The results indicate that the nitrogen isotope values of bulk rock (δ15Nbulk) in the non-metamorphic stage are significantly different from that of kerogen, which challenge the conceptual framework of sedimentary nitrogen isotope interpretation. The δ15Nbulk from the YF and QF were lower than their respective the nitrogen isotope values of kerogen (δ15Nker), with offsets up to ∼5.1‰, which have the inverse relationship for the metamorphosed rock. Thermal evolution did not significantly modify the δ15N of bulk rock and kerogen. The δ15N of sediments from the YF (δ15Nbulk, 1.6‰–5.6‰) were lower than that of rock from the QF (δ15Nbulk, 10.2‰–15.3‰). The nitrogen isotope values of silicate incorporated nitrogen (δ15Nsil) were slightly lower than those of the δ15Nker in the YF and obviously lower for the QF. The fact that different nitrogen cycles occur in the YF and QF due to the different depositional redox conditions leads to different isotopic results. The YF water environment dominated by oxic conditions is not conducive to the occurrence of denitrification and anammox, and no abundant N2 loss leads to the relatively light δ15Nbulk. In the stratified water for the QF, redox transition zone promotes denitrification and anammox, resulting in the heavy δ15Nbulk of rock and promotes the DNRA, resulting in heavy δ15Nker and low δ15Nsil

Application of whey protein isolate fibrils in encapsulation and protection of β-carotene

beta-Carotene (BC) exhibits several bioactive properties, but its application is restrained due to the unstability and low biological availability. In this study, protein fibrils were prepared from whey protein isolate fibrils (WPIF), which were used as carriers to protect and deliver BC. With the extension of heating time, the molecular weight of WPI decreased gradually. WPI was hydrolyzed into peptides which self-assembled into WPIF, resulting in significant changes in secondary structure, zeta-potential, viscosity and, antioxidant capacity. The main interactions between WPIF and BC were hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interaction. The encapsulation efficiency of WPIF24 was increased from 76.55% to 92.11% compared to that of untreated WPI. Moreover, the simulated gastrointestinal release showed that the cumulative release of BC encapsulated by WPIF24 reached the maximum in the simulated intestine. Therefore, WPIF could be a potential delivery system for water-insoluble bioactive compounds with enhanced encapsulation efficiency and protection effect

ZRSR1 co-operates with ZRSR2 in regulating splicing of U12-type introns in murine hematopoietic cells

Recurrent loss-of-function mutations of spliceosome gene, ZRSR2, occur in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Mutation/loss of ZRSR2 in human myeloid cells primarily causes impaired splicing of the U12-type introns. In order to further investigate the role of this splice factor in RNA splicing and hematopoietic development, we generated mice lacking ZRSR2. Unexpectedly, Zrsr2-deficient mice developed normal hematopoiesis with no abnormalities in myeloid differentiation evident in either young or ≥1-year old knockout mice. Repopulation ability of Zrsr2-deficient hematopoietic stem cells was also unaffected in both competitive and non-competitive reconstitution assays. Myeloid progenitors lacking ZRSR2 exhibited mis-splicing of U12-type introns, however, this phenotype was moderate compared to the ZRSR2-deficient human cells. Our investigations revealed that a closely related homolog, Zrsr1, expressed in the murine hematopoietic cells, but not in human cells contributes to splicing of U12-type introns. Depletion of Zrsr1 in Zrsr2 KO myeloid cells exacerbated retention of the U12-type introns, thus highlighting a collective role of ZRSR1 and ZRSR2 in murine U12-spliceosome. We also demonstrate that aberrant retention of U12-type introns of MAPK9 and MAPK14 leads to their reduced protein expression. Overall, our findings highlight that both ZRSR1 and ZRSR2 are functional components of the murine U12-spliceosome, and depletion of both proteins is required to accurately model ZRSR2-mutant MDS in mice.Ministry of Education (MOE)Ministry of Health (MOH)National Medical Research Council (NMRC)National Research Foundation (NRF)Published versionThis work was funded by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the Singapore Ministry of Health’s National Medical Research Council (NMRC) under its Singapore Translational Research (STaR) Investigator Award to HPK (NMRC/STaR/0021/2014), the NMRC Center Grant awarded to the National University Cancer Institute of Singapore (NMRC/CG/012/2013) and the National Research Foundation Singapore and the Singapore Ministry of Education under its Research Centers of Excellence initiatives. This research is also supported by the RNA Biology Center at the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, NUS, as part of funding under the Singapore Ministry of Education’s Tier 3 grants, grant number MOE2014-T3-1-006. We thank the Melamed Family for their generous support