J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr
July 2025
Objectives: Cholestasis in infancy poses a complex clinical conundrum for pediatric hepatologists, warranting timely diagnosis, especially for genetic diseases. This study aims to create machine learning (ML)-based prediction models, referred to as Jaundice Diagnosis Easy for Baby (JADE-B), to identify the subjects prone to genetic causes of cholestasis.
Methods: We retrieved patient data from the Integrated Medical Database at a university-affiliated tertiary medical center from 2006 to 2018.
Background: The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Next-generation sequencing technologies are essential for exploring the gut microbiome. While recent advancements in full-length 16S (FL16S) rRNA sequencing offer better taxonomic resolution, whether they establish stronger associations with the risk of MASLD remains to be determined.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Microbiol Immunol Infect
February 2025
Background: Severe community-acquired pneumonia was associated with high morbidity and mortality in children. However, species-level microbiome of lower airway was sparse, and we used shotgun metagenomic next-generation sequencing to explore microbial signatures.
Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study to recruit children under 18 who required admission to an intensive care unit for community-acquired pneumonia between December 2019 and February 2022.
Background & Aims: The gut microbiome plays an important role in liver diseases, but its specific impact on biliary atresia (BA) remains to be explored. We aimed to investigate the microbial signature in the early life of patients with BA and to analyze its influence on long-term outcomes.
Methods: Fecal samples (n = 42) were collected from infants with BA before and after Kasai portoenterostomy (KPE).
Cell Mol Gastroenterol Hepatol
February 2024
Background & Aims: A long immune-tolerant (IT) phase lasting for decades and delayed HBeAg seroconversion (HBe-SC) in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) increase the risk of liver diseases. Early entry into the immune-active (IA) phase and HBe-SC confers a favorable clinical outcome with an unknown mechanism. We aimed to identify factor(s) triggering IA entry and HBe-SC in the natural history of CHB.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a highly malignant cancer of the bile duct, which has a five-year survival rate less than 5% due to a high metastasis rate and lack of therapeutic options. Although omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) have been shown to inhibit the proliferation of CCA cells, the effects on CCA metastasis have not been previously reported. In this study, we first assessed the proliferation, migration and invasion effects of n-3 PUFA-based fish oil on human CCA cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPLoS One
September 2017
MicroRNAs (miRs) are mRNA-regulatory molecules that fine-tune gene expression and modulate both processes of development and tumorigenesis. Our previous studies identified progranulin A (GrnA) as a growth factor which induces zebrafish hepatic outgrowth through MET signaling. We also found that miR-145 is one of potential fine-tuning regulators of GrnA involved in embryonic hepatic outgrowth.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMaltooligosyltrehalose synthase (MTSase) is a key enzyme in the synthesis of trehalose. Computer simulations using AutoDock and NAMD were employed to assess the substrate-binding and selectivity-related residues of MTSase. We introduced mutations at residues D411, D610, and R614 to determine the substrate-binding residues of Sulfolobus solfataricus ATCC 35092 MTSase, and introduced mutations at residues P402, A406, and V426 to investigate the enzyme's selectivity-related residues.
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