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The present study aimed to screen for differentially expressed extracellular microRNAs (miRNAs) during the development of acute pancreatitis (AP) and validate the miRNA expression in the plasma of patients with AP. The culture medium of taurolithocholic acid‑3 sulfate‑treated rat pancreatic acinar AR42J cells was collected to extract total RNA for miRNA microarray analysis. Compared with the miRNA test results of the AP rats in the GEO databases, the differentially expressed extracellular miRNAs were screened. The TargetScan, miRanda, and PicTar programs were used for target gene prediction of the identified miRNAs, and gene ontology‑biological processes (GO‑BP) functional annotation was performed. Finally, the results from the combined microarray analyses (in vitro cell line and in vivo rat samples) were validated using plasma samples from patients with mild and moderately severe AP by reverse transcription‑polymerase chain reaction. The results demonstrated that extracellular miR‑24 was differentially expressed by microarray and bioinformatics analysis in both the cell line and the animal model of AP. Bioinformatics prediction analysis revealed that downstream target genes of miR‑24 included Vav2, Syk, Lhcgr, Slc9a3r1, Cacnb1, Cacna1b, Bcl10, and Fgd3. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that the main GO‑BP predicted functional presentations were positive regulation of calcium‑mediated signaling, activation of c‑Jun N‑terminal kinase activity, calcium ion transport, regulation of Rho protein signal transduction, negative regulation of the protein kinase B signaling cascade, and the T cell receptor signaling pathway. Validation analysis for the plasma miR‑24 expression in humans revealed a significant upregulation of miR‑24 in the plasma samples of AP patients compared with the healthy controls, while no significant difference was observed in the miR‑24 expression between the mild and the moderately severe AP groups. The present study confirmed the high expression of miR‑24 in peripheral blood during AP, suggesting that miR‑24 might have an intercellular communication role contributing to the AP‑associated distant organ injury.

Objectives: This study investigates the clinical features and pulmonary functions of COVID-19 pneumonia survivors at 3 or 6 months after diagnosis in the Heilongjiang Province, China.Methods: Forty-six patients with COVID-19 pneumonia diagnosed since February 2020 were enrolled in this study for follow-up in July 2020. These patients were categorized into three groups: Group A (n=24) and Group B (n=11) who were diagnosed with moderate or severe pneumonia and followed up at three months after diagnosis; Group C (n=11) who were diagnosed with severe pneumonia and followed up at six months after diagnosis. Data on pulmonary function, arterial blood gas analysis, chest CT, blood test, antibody test, and health-related quality of life during hospitalization and at the follow-up visits were collected and analyzed. Results: Abnormal PO2 (A-a) was more prevalent in severe cases (Group B and C) than in moderate cases (Group A). Pulmonary dysfunction was common in this cohort. Abnormal CT scores of severe cases (Group B and C) were significantly higher than that of moderate cases (Group A). During the follow-up, lung abnormalities gradually resolved in the first 3 months (Group A and B), however, further resolution was not significant from 3 months to 6 months (Group B and C). Conclusion: Although pulmonary interstitial changes due to COVID-19 pneumonia gradually reverse over time, pulmonary dysfunction is common and appears to persist at least up to 6 months in patients recovered from COVID-19 pneumonia.

Background Sepsis typically results in enhanced coagulation system activation and microthrombus formation. Microparticle (MP) production promotes coagulation and enhances pro-coagulation. This study investigated how circulating MP levels and tissue factor-bearing MP (TF+-MP) activity caused coagulation in patients with septic disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Methods Thirty patients with septic DIC and 30 healthy controls were studied from December 2017 to March 2019. Patient blood samples were collected at enrolment (day 1) and on days 3 and 5; DIC scores and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores were recorded. TF+-MP activity was measured using TF-dependent factor Xa generation experiments. Circulating MP concentrations were determined by MP capture assay. Clotting factor activity, antithrombin level, soluble thrombomodulin, and serum tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) concentrations were measured. Results Patients with septic DIC had lower circulating MP levels than healthy control patients. Circulating MP levels in patients with septic DIC were positively correlated with DIC scores and negatively correlated with coagulation factors, but TF+-MP activity did not correlate with clotting factor levels and TFPI. Conclusions In patients with septic DIC, circulating MP levels are important in promoting coagulation activation and increasing clotting factor consumption. TF+-MP activity may not be the main form of active TF.