Objective This study aimed to evaluate the effects of in-utero exposure to HIV and ART on pregnancy outcome and early growth of children.Methods This cohort study enrolled 802 HIV-infected pregnant women between October 2009 and May 2018 in Guangzhou, China. The women were assigned to receive combination ART (cART) or mono/dual ART or no treatment. The primary outcomes were the combined endpoints of any adverse pregnancy outcome [including ectopic pregnancy, spontaneous abortion, stillbirth, preterm birth, small for gestational age (SGA)] and adverse early growth outcome (including infant death, HIV infection of mother-to-child transmission, and underweight, wasting and stunting of infants at 4 weeks of age).Results Adverse pregnancy outcomes occurred in 202 (35.1%) of all enrolled HIV-infected women, and 121 (31.3%) of all infants exhibited adverse effects on early growth at 4 weeks of age. The rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes, spontaneous abortion, ectopic pregnancy, stillbirth, infant death and perinatal HIV infection were higher among women not receiving ART, compared to those treated with cART or mono/dual ART (P < 0.05). However, women treated with cART had a higher rate of SGA, compared to untreated women (P < 0.05). No differences in early infant growth were observed among the different treatment regimens.Conclusion Our findings underscore the essentiality of prioritizing HIV-positive pregnant women for ART, as even mono/dual ART available in resource-limited countries could improve pregnancy outcomes and infant survival.
Objective To explore the interactions between pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and age on offspring neuropsychological development from 1 to 24 months in China.Methods In this birth cohort study, a total of 2,253 mother-child pairs were enrolled in Tianjin, China, between July 2015 and May 2018. The China Developmental Scale for Children was used to assess developmental quotient (DQ) of children aged from 1 to 24 months.Results Mixed-models analysis revealed significant age × pre-pregnancy BMI interactions for total DQ and five neurobehavioral domains (gross motor, fine motor, adaptive, language, and social; P < 0.001). Age × pre-pregnancy BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 was associated with a negative effect on total DQ and five neurobehavioral domains, as compared to pre-pregnancy BMI < 25 kg/m2 (P < 0.01). Multiple comparisons showed pre-pregnancy BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 of mothers had a positive effect on child total DQ at the age of 1 month but a negative effect at 24 months (P < 0.05).Conclusions This study supported the age × pre-pregnancy BMI interaction on offspring neuropsychological development. It also revealed a short-term positive impact of high pre-pregnancy BMI on neuropsychological development at 1 month of age, but a long-term negative effect (from 1 to 24 months).
Objective This study aimed to explore the potential effects of terahertz (THz) waves on primary cultured neurons from 4 rat brain regions (hippocampus, cerebral cortex, cerebellum, and brainstem) and 3 kinds of neuron-like cells (MN9D, PC12, and HT22 cells) under nonthermal conditions.Methods THz waves with an output power of 50 (0.16 THz) and 10 (0.17 THz) mW with exposure times of 6 and 60 min were used in this study. Analysis of temperature change, neurite growth, cell membrane roughness, micromorphology, neurotransmitters and synaptic-related proteins (SYN and PSD95) was used to evaluate the potential effects.Results Temperature increase caused by the THz wave was negligible. THz waves induced significant neurotransmitter changes in primary hippocampal, cerebellar, and brainstem neurons and in MN9D and PC12 cells. THz wave downregulated SYN expression in primary hippocampal neurons and downregulated PSD95 expression in primary cortical neurons. Conclusion Different types of cells responded differently after THz wave exposure, and primary hippocampal and cortical neurons and MN9D cells were relatively sensitive to the THz waves. The biological effects were positively correlated with the exposure time of the THz waves.
Objective To further explore associated effects of Lactobacillus plantarum dy-1 (LFBE) on obesity and lipid metabolism at the gene expression level, the expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) was investigated in the liver of high-fat diet (HFD) induced obese rats.Methods Three groups of animal models were established. Changes in miRNA expression in the liver of each group were analyzed by microarray and RT-qPCR, complemented by bioinformatics. Palmitate-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cells were used as a model to validate the test.Results LFBE treatment groups and HFD groups were observed to be distinctly different with respect to rates of increase in body weight and body fat percentage and triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) levels in serum and liver. In addition, the LFBE group showed upregulation of ten miRNAs and downregulation of five miRNAs in the liver. Downregulation of miR-34a and miR-212 was observed in the livers of the LFBE group. Gene ontology and kyoto encyelopedia of geues and genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis showed that possible target genes of the deregulated miRNAs were significantly enriched in the adrenergic and HIF-1 signaling pathways.Conclusion These results demonstrate that LFBE might regulate the expression of miRNAs in order to inhibit obesity and fatty liver.
Haff disease is a type of human rhabdomyolysis characterized by the sudden onset of unexplained muscular rigidity and an elevated serum creatine kinase level within 24 h after consuming cooked aquatic products. Here, we reviewed a previous study on Haff disease and summarized the clinical manifestations, epidemiological characteristics, and etiological data to confirm the incidence and global epidemiology of the disease and identify the most common seafood vectors. Future directions for Haff disease study will include further prospective etiological studies and the development of prevention and control strategies.
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