Retinol binding protein 4 correlates with and is an early predictor of carotid atherosclerosis in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients

The association of retinol binding protein 4 （RBP4） with atherosclerosis of the carotid artery in type 2 diabetes mellitus （T2DM） remains undefined. We aimed to investigate the correlation of RBP4 expression with atherosclerosis of the carotid artery in T2DM. A total of 1,076 subjects were investigated for intima-media thickness of the bilateral common carotid arteries, and they were divided into three groups： in group Ⅰ, patients had normal neck vascular ultra- sound, in group Ⅱ, intimal carotid artery media thickness was equal to or more than 1 mm, and in group Ⅲ, carotid artery plaque was present. Height, weight, blood pressure （BP）, fasting plasma glucose （FPG）, hemoglobin Alc （HbA1c）, total cholesterol （TC）, triglyceride （TG）, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol （LDL-C）, high-density lipopro- tein cholesterol （HDL-C）, apolipoprotein A-1 （apoA-1）, apolipoprotein B （apoB） and lipoprotein （a） [Lp（a）] were determined by routine laboratory methods. RBP4 and high sensitivity C reactive protein （HsCRP） were measured by an enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay, and insulin concentration was measured by an electrochemiluminescence sandwich immunoassay. Duration of diabetes, waist and BP, FPG, HbAlc, TG, TC, LDL-C, APOB, Lp（a）, HsCRP, RBP4 and homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance index （HOMA-IR） were significantly lower in group I than in the other two groups （P〈0.01, P〈0.01）. Plasma levels of HbAlc, RBP4, LDL-C, TC, HOMA-IR, HsCRP and Lp（a）, waist and BP were significantly increased in group III than in group II （P〈0.01）. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that there were seven factors associated with the occurrence of carotid artery atherosclero- sis and its risks in descending order were： high LDL-C, high waist, high HsCRP, duration of diabetes, high HOMA-IR, HbAlc and high RBP4. Our finding supported that RBP4 was positively correlated with carotid atherosclerosis in patients with T2DM and could be used as an early predictor of cardiovascular disease.

Analysis and Management of Adverse Drug Reactions after Injection of Amphotericin B in AIDS Patients with Fungal Infection

Objective: To understand the condition of adverse drug reactions and the treatment procedures of amphotericin B for injection in patients with AIDS complicated with fungal infection. Methods: For the research object, a retrospective analysis of adverse reactions of amphotericin B injection in 121 patients of AIDS complicated with fungal infection was reported in our hospital from October 2017 to June 2021 to observe the adverse drug reactions of patients after treatment with amphotericin B for injection, 87 cases with general degree (regarded as the general group) and 34 cases with serious degree (regarded as the serious group), and analyze the general data, medication and course of disease of the two groups for symptomatic treatment. Results: Adverse reactions such as hypokalemia, abnormal liver function, renal impairment, leucopenia and drug fever were more common in the two groups, and there were also many adverse reactions such as bone marrow suppression, rash, anemia, thrombocytopenia, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, dizziness, pruritus, angina pectoris, vertigo, abdominal pain and diarrhea. The rates of leukopenia and drug fever in general group were significantly lower than those in severe group (P < 0.05);in the dose of amphotericin B used, the rate of using 25 mg and more than 25 mg in the general group was significantly lower than that in the severe group (P < 0.05). After symptomatic treat-ment, most patients have improved, and a few are unknown or have not improved. Con-clusion: Amphotericin B for injection has great side effects and will cause different degrees of adverse drug reactions. The dose of amphotericin B for clinical treatment should be ad-justed and disposed according to the adverse reactions to avoid serious consequences.

Responses and sensitivity of N, P and mobile carbohydrates of dominant species to increased water, N and P availability in semi- arid grasslands in northern China

Aims We aimed to improve the understanding of the carbon and nutri-ent physiological responses and adaptation of semi-arid grassland plants to environmental changes.Methods We investigated plant leaf non-structural carbohydrate(NSC=solu-ble sugars+starch),nitrogen(N)and phosphorus(P)levels in an Inner Mongolian semi-arid grassland community treated with water,N and P additions for 8 years.Two dominant grasses(Agropyron cris-tatum(L.)Gaertn.,Stipa krylovii Roshev.)and two forbs(Artemisia frigida Willd.,Potentilla bifurca L.)were analyzed.Important Findings Water addition decreased plant leaf N and P concentrations,whereas N and P addition increased them,indicating that the semi-arid grassland studied suffers from a shortage of N and P sup-ply.Both N and P addition decreased the levels of soluble sugars,starch and thus also NSC in plant leaves,which may be attributed to(i)increased carbohydrate consumption associated with a higher growth rate,and(ii)a dilution effect of greater plant size under N and P addition.Water addition tended to increase the leaf NSC levels both in the grasses(+9.2%)and forbs(+0.6%only),which may be a result of increased photosynthesis of plants with increased water availability.Under conditions of ambient and increased water supply in the present study,N addition resulted in an N/P ratio of>16 in the grasses but a significantly lower N/P ratio of<11 in the forb species.This finding implies that growth of the two grass spe-cies will be limited mainly by P availability but the forbs will still be mainly limited by N supply if N deposition,alone or in combination with summer precipitation,continues to increase as predicted in Inner Mongolia.

Enhanced Anticancer Cells Effects of Optimized Suspension Stable As2O3-Loaded Poly（lactic-co-glycolic acid） Nanocapsules

This study is to prepare a nanosuspension based on poly（lactic-co-glycolic acid） （PLGA） for delivery, controlled release and enhanced anti-solid tumor effects of As2O3. As2O3-1oaded PLGA nanocapsules （As2O3-PLGANCs） were prepared by double emulsion-solvent evaporation method and were optimized by univariate analysis in combination with orthogonal experimental according to several factors. The optimized As2O3-PLGA NCs presented suitable physical stability, favorable size of （200.2± 10.6） nm （PDI=0.117 ±0.008）, spherical shape, and high encapsulation efficiency （92.48%± 2.14%）. The in vitro suspension stability of the NCs was excellent. The release of As2O3 from the NCs showed pH responsive release characteristics. The NCs can be efficiently taken up by SMMC-7721 cell and showed excellent antitumor efficacy against SMMC-7721 cell line. Then, As2O3-PLGA NCs could be considered as a promising formulation for the pH dependent release of As2O3 in cancer cells and enhance the anti-solid tumor effects of As2O3.