Severe acne is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder characterized by widespread inflammatory lesions including nodules, cysts and potential scarring. Here we perform the first genome-wide association study of severe acne in a Chinese Han population comprising 1,056 cases and 1,056 controls using the Illumina HumanOmniZhongHua-8 BeadChip. In an independent cohort of 1,860 cases and 3,660 controls of Chinese Han, we replicate 101 SNPs of which 3 showed consistent association. We identify two new susceptibility loci at 11p11.2 (DDB2, rs747650, P combined ¼ 4.41 Â 10 À 9 and rs1060573, P combined ¼ 1.28 Â 10 À 8 ) and 1q24.2 (SELL, rs7531806, P combined ¼ 1.20 Â 10 À 8 ) that are involved in androgen metabolism, inflammation processes and scar formation in severe acne. These results point to new genetic susceptibility factors and suggest several new biological pathways related to severe acne.

The objective of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) and to assess the invariance of its items with respect to several patient parameters via Rasch analysis. Data were aggregated from 9,845 patients with various skin diseases across 9 hospitals in different regions of China. The response structure, local independence, and reliability of the DLQI scale were analysed in a partial credit model, and differential item functioning (DIF) across region, disease, sex, and age were assessed with a Mantel-Haenszel procedure. Although acceptable scale reliability (Person Separation Index=2.3) was obtained, several problems were revealed, including disordered response thresholds, misfitting items, DIF by geogra-phical region and disease, and mis-targeting patients with mild impairment regarding health-related quality of life (HRQL). In conclusion, the DLQI provides inadequate information on patients' impairments in HRQL, and the application of the DLQI in Chinese patients with skin disease is limited.

Genetic manipulations have enabled the mouse to be widely used as an animal model for investigating the mechanisms of human atherosclerotic disease. However, there is no standard method for quantifying atherosclerotic lesions among different laboratories. The present study introduces a thorough and precise quantitative assessment of atherosclerotic lesions in mice. In the present study, 6‑week‑old apoE‑/‑ mice were fed either a chow diet or a high‑fat diet (HFD) for 12 weeks. Plasma lipid levels were measured every four weeks. Aortic atherosclerotic lesions were quantified and analyzed using an image analysis system. The aortic tree was isolated and stained with Oil Red O to measure the gross lesion area. The heart was removed and divided into sequential cross sections, which were then assessed for microscopic intimal lesions in the aortic root as follows: (1) Elastic van Gieson staining was performed to determine the area of the atherosclerotic lesion; (2) cross sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin for histological analysis; and (3) cross sections were stained with Oil Red O and immunohistochemical staining for quantitative analysis of the cellular components within the lesions. ApoE‑/‑ mice fed with either the chow diet or HFD developed severe atherosclerosis in the aortic root, however, there were few lesions in the remainder of the aortic tree. Compared with the control group, the HFD apoE‑/‑ mice had increased plasma lipid levels and increases in the gross lesion area in the aortic tree, the microscopic lesion area in the aortic root and the number of macrophages, vascular smooth muscle cells and neutral lipids present within the lesions. HFD feeding in the apoE‑/‑ mice accelerated the development of atherosclerosis. The quantitative method described in the present study may be used to assist in future investigations of atherosclerosis in mice.

ADIPOQ gene polymorphisms have been indicated to be associated with hypertension; however, published studies have reported inconsistent results. Eligible studies were retrieved by searching the PubMed, Embase and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases. The case group consisted of patients with hypertension, and the control group consisted of subjects with normal blood pressure. Based on eleven published articles, involving 4837 cases and 5618 controls, the pooled results from rs2241766 polymorphism showed increased risk in the allelic model (G VS T: OR = 1.16, 95%CI = 1.06–1.27), recessive model (GG VS GT + TT: OR = 1.34, 95%CI = 1.10–1.63), dominant model (GG + GT VS TT: OR = 1.15, 95%CI = 1.02–1.30) and homozygote model (GG VS TT: OR = 1.38, 95%CI = 1.21–1.69). In addition, rs266729 polymorphism showed increased risk for hypertension in the recessive model (GG VS GC + CC: OR = 1.43, 95%CI = 1.02–2.01). In the Caucasian subgroup, rs1501299 polymorphism showed decreased risk of hypertension in the allelic model (T VS G: OR = 0.75, 95%CI = 0.58–0.97), dominant model (TT + TG VS GG: OR = 0.83, 95%CI = 0.71–0.98) and heterozygote model (TG VS GG: OR = 0.82, 95%CI = 0.68–0.99). The rs2241766 polymorphism was associated with a significant increase in hypertension risk based on our analysis. Moreover, an increased risk of rs266729 in hypertension patients was also detected. Our meta-analysis suggests that the rs1501299 polymorphism may play a protective role in hypertension in Caucasian subgroup; however, this finding requires further study.

Objective Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) is a serious complication in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). This study aimed to analyze the potential risk factors for CIN in patients undergoing PCI. Methods Patients with ACS who underwent PCI treatment from January 2017 to January 2020 were selected. The patients’ characteristics and medical information were collected and compared. Results A total of 1331 patients undergoing PCI were included. The incidence of CIN was 15.33%. Logistic regression analyses showed that a left ventricular ejection fraction ≤45% (odds ratio [OR] 4.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.10–7.36), serum creatinine levels ≤60 μmol/L (OR 3.03, 95% CI 1.21–5.57), age ≥65 years (OR 2.75, 95% CI 1.32–4.60), log N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide levels ≥2.5 pg/mL (OR 2.31, 95% CI 1.18–5.13), uric acid levels ≥350 μmol/L (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.04–5.30), emergency percutaneous intervention (OR 1.35, 95% CI 0.34–3.12), and triglyceride levels ≤1.30 mmol/L (OR 1.10, 95% CI 0.01–2.27) were independent risk factors for CIN in patients who underwent PCI. Conclusions Early prevention is required to reduce the occurrence of CIN in patients who undergo PCI and have risk factors for CIN.

Colla corii asini hydrolysates (ACCH) and ginkgo biloba extracts (EGb) possess more potent antioxidant effects when used in combination than when used alone. The mixture of ACCH and EGb at a dose ratio of 20:4(w:w) showed the highest radical scavenging activity with IC 50 of 0.17 ± 0.01, 0.43 ± 0.02 and 1.52 ± 0.07 mg/ml against DPPH, ABTS and HO · free radicals, respectively. Furthermore, the inhibition of breast cancer cells MCF‐7 and MDA‐MB‐231 proliferation increased when these cell lines were treated with a combination of ACCH and EGb for 72 hr, with IC 50 of 4.32 ± 0.12 mg/ml and 0.39 ± 0.01 mg/ml, respectively. The findings indicated that the mixtures of ACCH and EGb could be used to prevent and treat some diseases caused by the excessive free radicals, especially cancer. Therefore, the mixtures of ACCH and EGb might serve as a natural source of desirable antioxidant and anticancer agents for the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries.

Background and Objectives: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease whose impact on health is not only limited to the skin, but is also associated with multiple comorbidities. Early screening for comorbidities along with appropriate treatment plans can provide a positive prognosis for patients. This study aimed to summarize the knowledge structure in the field of psoriasis comorbidities and further explore its research hotspots and trends through bibliometrics. Materials and Methods: A search was conducted in the core collection of the Web of Science for literature on comorbidities of psoriasis from 2004 to 2022. VOSviewer and CiteSpace software were used for collaborative network analysis, co-citation analysis of references, and keyword co-occurrence analysis on these publications. Results: A total of 1803 papers written by 6741 authors from 81 countries was included. The publications have shown a progressive increase since 2004. The United States and Europe were at the forefront of this field. The most prolific institution was the University of California, and the most productive author was A. Armstrong. Research has focused on “psoriatic arthritis”, “metabolic syndrome”, “cardiovascular disease”, “psychosomatic disease”, “inflammatory bowel disease”, “prevalence”, “quality of life”, and “risk factor” in the past 18 years. Keywords such as “biologics” and “systemic inflammation”, have been widely used recently, suggesting current research hotspots and trends. Conclusions: Over the past 18 years, tremendous progress has been made in research on psoriasis comorbidity. However, collaborations among countries, institutions, and investigators are inadequate, and the study of the mechanisms of interaction between psoriasis and comorbidities and management of comorbidities is insufficient. The treatment of comorbidities with biologic agents, screening of comorbidities, and multidisciplinary co-management are predicted to be the focus of future research.

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