Characteristics of registered studies for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): a systematic review

Ming Yang,Ya-xi Shang,Zi-yu Tian,Min Xiong,Chun-li Lu,Jiang Yue,Zhang Yao,Zhang Ying-ying,Jin Xin-yan,Jin Qiu-bai,Zhang Ying-ying,Willcox Merlin L.,Liu Jian-ping 한국한의학연구원 2020 Integrative Medicine Research Vol.9 No.3

Background: The World Health Organization characterized the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a pandemic on March 11th. Many clinical trials on COVID-19 have been registered, and we aim to review the study characteristics and provide guidance for future trials to avoid duplicated effort. Methods: Studies on COVID-19 registered before March 3rd, 2020 on eight registry platforms worldwide were searched and the data of design, participants, interventions, and outcomes were extracted and analyzed. Results: Three hundred and ninety-three studies were identified and 380 (96.7%) were from mainland China, while 3 in Japan, 3 in France, 2 in the US, and 3 were international collaborative studies. Two hundred and sixty-six (67.7%) aimed at therapeutic effect, others were for prevention, diagnosis, prognosis, etc. Two hundred and two studies (51.4%) were randomized controlled trials. Two third of therapeutic studies tested Western medicines including antiviral drugs (17.7%), stem cell and cord blood therapy (10.2%), chloroquine and derivatives (8.3%), 16 (6.0%) on Chinese medicines, and 73 (27.4%) on integrated therapy of Western and Chinese medicines. Thirty-one studies among 266 therapeutic studies (11.7%) used mortality as primary outcome, while the most designed secondary outcomes were symptoms and signs (47.0%). Half of the studies (45.5%) had not started recruiting till March 3rd. Conclusion: Inappropriate outcome setting, delayed recruitment and insufficient numbers of new cases in China implied many studies may fail to complete. Strategies and protocols of the studies with robust and rapid data sharing are warranted for emergency public health events, helping the timely evidence-based decision-making.

Two kinds of behavior of fruit peel coagulant in treating low carbon source wastewaters

Ying Fu,Qinghe Yue,Shuyuan Luo,Xi Tian,Jiewen Zheng,Yanting Yang 대한환경공학회 2023 Environmental Engineering Research Vol.28 No.4

Based on present serious phenomenon of insufficient carbon source in municipal sewage in China, the two kinds of effect of hybrid-fruit-peel (HFP) coagulant (coagulation and external carbon source (ECS)) on treating low carbon source wastewater was studied, mainly compared with that of sodium acetate (NaAc). The feasibility of HFP as an ECS was researched, and then its coagulation behavior, sludge properties, nitrogen removal were studied mainly with aeration mode and sequencing batch reactor (SBR), respectively. The results showed the ration of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) to chemical oxygen demand (COD) released from HFP was 0.67−0.76, within the scope of easily biodegradable. Within a short aeration time, HFP posed obvious coagulation behavior. HFP sludge gave larger extracellular polymer (EPS) and lower dehydrogenase activity (DHA) than NaAc. For HFP, much larger size sludge flocs appeared, the connection among the flocs became closer, and the biofacies and number of microorganisms (Opercularia Coaractata, Nematode, Vorticella, etc.) increased significantly. HFP can be used as an excellent ECS for low carbon source wastewater, and probably also have the ability of slow-releasing carbon, and can be applied to municipal sewage or other wastewaters with insufficient carbon source.

SARSEvaluation of CRISPR-Based Assays for Rapid Detection of SARS-CoV-2: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Pei-Ying Huang,Xin Yin,Yue-Ting Huang,Qi-Qing Ye,Si-Qing Chen,Xun-Jie Cao,Tian-Ao Xie,Xu-Guang Guo 연세대학교의과대학 2022 Yonsei medical journal Vol.63 No.5

Purpose: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the pathogen of coronavirus disease 2019. Diagnosticmethods based on the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) have been developed to detect SARSCoV-2 rapidly. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis were performed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of CRISPR fordetecting SARS-CoV-2 infection. Materials and Methods: Studies published before August 2021 were retrieved from four databases, using the keywords “SARS-CoV-2”and “CRISPR.” Data were collected from these publications, and the sensitivity, specificity, negative likelihood ratio (NLR), positivelikelihood ratio (PLR), and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) were calculated. The summary receiver operating characteristic curve wasplotted for analysis with MetaDiSc 1.4. The Stata 15.0 software was used to draw Deeks’ funnel plots to evaluate publication bias. Results: We performed a pooled analysis of 38 independent studies shown in 30 publications. The reference standard was reversetranscription-quantitative PCR. The results indicated that the sensitivity of CRISPR-based methods for diagnosis was 0.94 (95% CI0.93–0.95), the specificity was 0.98 (95% CI 0.97–0.99), the PLR was 34.03 (95% CI 20.81–55.66), the NLR was 0.08 (95% CI 0.06–0.10), and the DOR was 575.74 (95% CI 382.36–866.95). The area under the curve was 0.9894. Conclusion: Studies indicate that a diagnostic method based on CRISPR has high sensitivity and specificity. Therefore, this wouldbe a potential diagnostic tool to improve the accuracy of SARS-CoV-2 detection.

Apoptotic Effects of psiRNA-STAT3 on 4T1 Breast Cancer Cells in Vitro

Zhou, Yue,Tian, Lin,Zhang, Ying-Chao,Guo, Bao-Feng,Zhou, Qing-Wei Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.16

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a Lipofectamine2000 (Life2000) Transfection Reagent transfected psiRNA-STAT3 plasmid on 4T1 breast cancer cells. Materials and Methods: MTT was used to detect the cell proliferation of breast cancer 4T1 cells at different periods (0h, 6h, 8h, 10h); the cell cycle was assessed by flow cytometry; variation of apoptosis and mitochondrial membrane potential was observed under a fluorescence microscope; immunohistochemical staining was used to determine the expression of caspase-3 and cyclin-D1 protein. Results: An obvious effect of inhibition to 4T1 cancer cells could be observed at 8h after the psiRNA-STAT3 was transfected. Typical alterations of apoptotic morphological features were visible in the psiRNA-STAT3 treatment group. Mitochondrial membrane potential decreased significantly, the number of cells was increased in G0/G1 phase, and the number of cells was decreased in S phase, and the data were statistically significant (p<0.05), compared with the Scramble and Mock groups. Expression of caspase-3 protein was increased significantly, while that of cyclin D1 was significantly decreased. Conclusions: Life2000 transfected psiRNA-STAT3 plasmid can inhibit 4T1 tumor cell proliferation and promote apoptosis of 4T1 tumor cells, which process depends on the regulation of expression of cyclin D1 and caspase-3 protein.

Association of TNF-α-308 and -238 Polymorphisms with Risk of Cervical Cancer: A Meta-analysis

Pan, Feng,Tian, Jing,Ji, Chu-Shu,He, Yi-Fu,Han, Xing-Hua,Wang, Yong,Du, Jian-Ping,Jiang, Feng-Shou,Zhang, Ying,Pan, Yue-Yin,Hu, Bing Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.11

Published data on the associations between tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-${\alpha}$) promoter -308G>A and -238G>A polymorphisms and cervical cancer risk are inconclusive. To derive a more precise estimation of the relationship, a meta-analysis was performed. Data were collected from MEDLINE and PubMed databases. Crude odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated in a fixed/random effect model. 13 separate studies including 3294 cases and 3468 controls were involved in the meta-analysis. We found no association between TNF-${\alpha}$-308G>A polymorphism and cervical cancer in overall population. In subgroup analysis, significantly elevated risks were found in Caucasian population (A vs. G: OR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.00-2.03; AA vs. GG: OR = 2.09, 95% CI = 1.34-3.25; Recessive model: OR = 2.09, 95% CI = 1.35-3.25) and African population (GA vs. GG: OR = 1.53, 95% CI = 1.02-2.30). An association of TNF-${\alpha}$-238G>A polymorphism with cervical cancer was found (A vs. G: OR = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.47-0.78; GA vs. GG: OR = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.45-0.77; Dominant model: OR = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.46-0.77). When stratified by ethnicity, similar association was observed in Caucasian population (A vs. G: OR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.46-0.84; GA vs. GG: OR = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.43-0.82; Dominant model: OR = 0.60, 95% CI = 0.44-0.83). In summary, this meta-analysis suggests that TNF-${\alpha}$-238A allele significantly decreased the cervical cancer risk, and the TNF-${\alpha}$-308G>A polymorphism is associated with the susceptibility to cervical cancer in Caucasian and African population.

The Pattern of Natural Regeneration by Canopy Gap Size in the Mixed Broadleaved-Korean Pine Forest of Xiaoxing`an Mountains, China

Guang Ze Jin,Yue Ying Tian,Feng Xia Zhao,Ji Hong Kim 한국임학회 2007 한국산림과학회지 Vol.96 No.2

Edaphovirga cremea gen. nov., sp. nov., isolated from the rhizospheric soil of Codonopsis clematidea

Jin-Yan Xue,Meng-Yue Zhang,Yu Zhang,Juan Cheng,Li-Cheng Liu,Ying-Ying Wu,Tian-Yuan Zhang,Yi-xuan Zhang 한국미생물학회 2019 The journal of microbiology Vol.57 No.5

A Gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic, non-motile, nonspore- forming, coccoid or rod-shaped and creamy-pigmented bacterium, designated SYP-B2100T, was isolated from the rhizospheric soil of Codonopsis clematidea in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. The optimal growth occurred at 28°C, pH 5.0, in the absence of NaCl. The cells tested positive in catalase and methyl red tests but negative in oxidase, urease, gelatinase, milk coagulation, and peptonisation, H2S production, nitrate reduction, and Voges-Proskauer tests. The major isoprenoid quinone was ubiquinone-8 (Q-8). The major cellular fatty acids were C16:0 and summed feature 8. The polar lipids consisted of diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, and phosphatidylglycerol. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain SYP-B2100T was the most similar to that of Rahnella inusitata DSM 30078T (96.9%) within the family Enterobacteriaceae. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain SYP-B2100T was 50.3 mol%. The combined data from the phylogenetic, morphological, physiological, biochemical, and chemotaxonomic analyses presented in this study support the conclusion that strain SYP-B2100T represents a novel species of a new genus, for which the name Edaphovirga cremea gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed; the type strain is SYPB2100T (= CGMCC 1.5857T = DSM 105170T = KCTC 62024T).

Clinical Utility of Haptoglobin in Combination with CEA, NSE and CYFRA21-1 for Diagnosis of Lung Cancer

Wang, Bing,He, Yu-Jie,Tian, Ying-Xing,Yang, Rui-Ning,Zhu, Yue-Rong,Qiu, Hong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.22

Purpose: To investigate the clinical value in lung cancer of a combination of four serum tumor markers, haptoglobin (Hp), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), neuron specific enolase (NSE) as well as the cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA21-1). Materials and Methods: Serum Hp (with immune-turbidimetric method), CEA, NSE, CYFRA21-1 (with chemiluminescence method) level were assessed in 193 patients with lung cancer, 87 patients with benign lung disease and 150 healthy controls. Differences of expression were compared among groups, and joint effects of these tumor markers for the diagnosis of lung cancer were analyzed. Results: Serum tumor marker levels in patients with lung cancer were obviously higher than those with benign lung disease and normal controls (p<0.01). The sensitivities of Hp, CEA, NSE and CYFRA21-1 were 43.5%, 40.9%, 23.3% and 41.5%, with specificities of 90.7%, 99.2%, 97.9% and 97.9%. Four tumor markers combined together could produce a positive detection rate of 85.0%, significantly higher than that of any single test. With squamous carcinomas, the positive detection rates with Hp and CYFRA21-1 were higher than that of other markers. In the adenocarcinoma case, the positive detection rate of CEA was higher than that of other markers. For small cell carcinomas, the positive detection rate of NSE was highest. The area under receiver operating characteristic curve ($AUC^{ROC}$) of Hp in squamous carcinoma (0.805) was higher than in adenocarcinoma (0.664) and small cell carcinoma (0.665). Conclusions: Hp can be used as a new serum tumor marker for lung cancer. Combination detection of Hp, CEA, NSE and CYFRA21-1 could significantly improve the sensitivity and specificity in diagnosis of lung cancer, and could be useful for pathological typing.

The Pattern of Seed Rain in the Broadleaved-Korean Pine Mixed Forest of Xiaoxing`an Mountains, China

Guang Ze Jin,Xing Ci Xie,Yue Ying Tian,Ji Hong Kim 한국임학회 2006 한국산림과학회지 Vol.95 No.5

<i>Chd7</i> Is Critical for Early T-Cell Development and Thymus Organogenesis in Zebrafish

Liu, Zhi-Zhi,Wang, Zi-Long,Choi, Tae-Ik,Huang, Wen-Ting,Wang, Han-Tsing,Han, Ying-Ying,Zhu, Lou-Yin,Kim, Hyun-Taek,Choi, Jung-Hwa,Lee, Jin-Soo,Kim, Hyung-Goo,Zhao, Jian,Chen, Yue,Lu, Zhuo,Tian, Xiao-L Elsevier 2018 The American journal of pathology Vol.188 No.4

<P>Coloboma, heart defect, atresia choanae, retarded growth and development, genital hypoplasia, ear anomalies/deafness (CHARGE) syndrome is a congenital disorder affecting multiple organs and mainly caused by mutations in CHD7, a gene encoding a chromatin-remodeling protein. Immunodeficiency and reduced T cells have been noted in CHARGE syndrome. However, the mechanisms underlying T lymphopenia are largely unexplored. Herein, we observed dramatic decrease of T cells in both chd7knockdown and knockout zebrafish embryos. Unexpectedly, hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells and, particularly, lymphoid progenitor cells were increased peripherally in nonthymic areas in chd7-deficient embryos, unlikely to contribute to the T-cell decrease. Further analysis demonstrated that both the organogenesis and homing function of the thymus were seriously impaired. Chd7 might regulate thymus organogenesis through modulating the development of both neural crest cell-derived mesenchyme and pharyngeal endoderm-derived thymic epithelial cells. The expression of faxn1, a central regulator of thymic epithelium, was remarkably down-regulated in the pharyngeal region in chd7-deficient embryos. Moreover, the T-cell reduction in chd7-deficient embryos was partially rescued by overexpressingfoxnl, suggesting that restoring thymic epithelium may be a potential therapeutic strategy for treating immunodeficiency in CHARGE syndrome. Collectively, the results indicated that chd7 was critical for thymic development and T-lymphopenia in CHARGE syndrome may be mainly attributed to the defects of thymic organogenesis. The current finding may benefit the diagnosis and therapy of T lymphopenia and immunodeficiency in CHARGE syndrome.</P>