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BackgroundThe strategy of using fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) for refractory ulcerative colitis (UC) remains unclear if single FMT failed to induce remission. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a designed step-up FMT strategy for the steroid-dependent UC.MethodsFifteen patients with steroid-dependent UC were enrolled, and treated with step-up FMT strategy. Follow-up clinical data was collected for a minimum of 3 months. Fecal microbiota composition before and post FMT of patients and related donors were analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing.ResultsEight of fourteen (57.1 %) patients achieved clinical improvement and were able to discontinue steroids following step-up FMT. One patient was lost to follow-up. Among the 8 patients who responded, five (35.7 %) received one FMT therapy, one (7.1 %) received two FMTs, and two (14.2 %) received two FMTs plus a scheduled course of steroids. Four (28.6 %) of the 8 patients who responded maintained long-term remission during follow-up (3–18 months). Six patients (42.9 %) failed to meet the criteria of clinical improvement and maintained steroid dependence, though three experienced transient or partial improvement. Microbiota analysis showed that FMT altered the composition greatly, and a microbiota composition highly similar to that of the donor emerged in the patients with successful treatment. No severe adverse events occurred during treatment and follow-up.ConclusionsStep-up FMT strategy shows promise as a therapeutic strategy for patients with steroid-dependent UC, likely due to the successful restructuring of gut microbial composition.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, Number NCT01790061Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12967-015-0646-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Key Points Murine stress erythroid progenitors develop through a series of progenitors that express CD34, CD133, Kit, and Sca1. Human stress erythroid progenitors can be expanded using the same culture system and are predisposed to express γ-globin.

Background and study aims: Placement of a tube through the anus into the cecum has not yet been established as a method of administering whole-colonic treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety, feasibility, and value of transendoscopic enteral tubing (TET) for fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) through the colon. Patients and methods: A prospective observational study was performed of FMT using a new colonic TET technique. Under endoscopic guidance, a TET tube was affixed to the cecum with clips. The safety, value, and satisfaction with the FMT by TET were evaluated. Results: A total of 54 patients underwent TET. The success rate of the TET procedure was 100 % (54/54). Duration of the TET procedures was 14.8 ± 5.8 min. During the TET tube retention period, 98.1 % (53/54) of patients were satisfied with TET. The retention time for whole-colon delivery of the fecal microbiota suspension was 12.4 ± 2.3 days. In 88.4 % (49/54) of cases, no discomfort was reported during injection through the TET tube of the microbiota suspension. No adverse events were see in patients who required tube extubation after FMT. Conclusions: Colonic TET is a novel, safe, convenient, and reliable procedure for FMT that results in a high degree of patient satisfaction.

The ancient Chinese medical literature, as well as our prior clinical experience, suggests that fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) could treat the inflammatory mass. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of multiple fresh FMTs for Crohn’s disease (CD) complicated with intraabdominal inflammatory mass. The "one-hour FMT protocol" was followed in all patients. Twenty-five patients were diagnosed with CD and related inflammatory mass by CT or MRI. All patients received the initial FMT followed by repeated FMTs every 3 months. The primary endpoint was clinical response (improvement and remission) and sustained clinical remission at 12 months. Secondary endpoints were improvement in size of phegmon/abscess based upon cross-sectional imaging and safety of FMT. 68.0% (17/25) and 52.0% (13/25) of patients achieved clinical response and clinical remission at 3 months post the initial FMT, respectively. The proportion of patients at 6 months, 12 months and 18 months achieving sustained clinical remission with sequential FMTs was 48.0% (12/25), 32.0% (8/25) and 22.7% (5/22), respectively. 9.5% (2/21) of patients achieved radiological healing and 71.4% (15/21) achieved radiological improvement. No severe adverse events related to FMT were observed. This pragmatic study suggested that sequential fresh FMTs might be a promising, safe and effective therapy to induce and maintain clinical remission in CD with intraabdominal inflammatory mass.

Introduction The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of telerehabilitation for patients after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) compared with face-to-face rehabilitation. Methods Medline, SCOPUS, Google Scholar, EMBASE, Springer, Science Direct, and Cochrane databases were searched electronically. Relevant journals and references of studies included were hand-searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding the efficacy of telerehabilitation on functional recovery in patients after TKA. Two reviewers independently performed data extraction and quality assessment. Data were analysed using RevMan 5.3 software and Stata 12.0 software. Results Four RCTs involving 442 patients were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, compared with face-to-face rehabilitation, telerehabilitation could achieve comparable pain relief (mean difference = 0.52; 95% confidence interval (CI) = -0.20 to 1.24; p = 0.16) and better Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index improvement (mean difference = 1.13; 95% CI = 0.23 to 2.02; p = 0.014). In addition, telerehabilitation treatment resulted in a significantly higher extension range ( p < 0.00001) and quadriceps strength ( p = 0.0002) than face-to-face rehabilitation. Discussion Telerehabilitation should be recommended for patients after TKA because of its comparable pain control and better improvement of functional recovery as compared to face-to-face rehabilitation.

N6‐methyladenosine (m6A) mRNA methylation has emerged as an important player in many biological processes by regulating gene expression. However, its roles in intestinal stem cell (ISC) homeostasis remain largely unknown. Here, we report that YTHDF1, an m6A reader, is highly expressed in ISCs and its expression is upregulated by Wnt signaling at the translational level. Whereas YTHDF1 is dispensable for normal intestinal development in mice, genetic ablation of Ythdf1 dramatically blocks Wnt‐driven regeneration and tumorigenesis with reduced ISC stemness. Mechanistically, YTHDF1 facilitates the translation of Wnt signaling effectors including TCF7L2/TCF4, while this process is enhanced during Wnt activation to augment β‐catenin activity. Targeting YTHDF1 in ISCs of established tumors leads to tumor shrinkage and prolonged survival. Collectively, our studies unveil YTHDF1 as an amplifier of Wnt/β‐catenin signaling at the translational level, which is required for the maintenance of ISCs during regeneration and tumorigenesis.