Dexamethasone treatment is associated with a higher HBsAg sero-clearance rate in HBeAg-positive patients with hepatitis B flares.

Purpose: Short-term dexamethasone has been used in patients with chronic hepatitis B flares to reduce inflammation in the liver. We aim to identify the potential population that may benefit from dexamethasone treatment.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted involving 856 hospitalized hepatitis B e antigen-positive patients with chronic hepatitis B flares.

Global trends in the application of nanopore sequencing technology in the detection of infectious disease pathogens: a bibliometric analysis from 2014 to 2024.

Purpose: This study aimed to comprehensively analyze the global landscape, trends, and research focus of nanopore sequencing technology in the field of pathogenic microorganism diagnosis using bibliometric analysis.

Methods: Literature published between January 2014, and December 2024, was retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. A cross-sectional bibliometric analysis was conducted using VOSviewer, CiteSpace, Origin 2024, and R software to extract and evaluate metrics.

Novel and simplified model for the precise identification of concurrent bacterial infections in patients aged 60 years and older with acute-on-chronic liver diseases: a nationwide, multicentre, prospective cohort study.

Objective: We aimed to develop an effective model to identify the risk of concurrent bacterial infections in older patients with acute-on-chronic liver disease (AoCLD).

Methods: Data from 809 individuals aged 60-80 sourced from the CATCH-LIFE cohort were analyzed. Participants were randomly assigned to training and internal validation groups at a ratio of 7:3.

Anti-HBc IgM associates with acute flare and HBeAg/HBsAg loss in chronic hepatitis B patients with acute exacerbation.

Acute exacerbation (AE) is common for patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The aim of the study is to investigate the values of hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) IgM in CHB-AE. Patients were screened from a prospective sub-cohort, 419 CHB patients with AE were enrolled and divided into groups according to antiviral treatment history, treatment naïve, withdrawal above or within 6 months, and on-treatment.

Human cytomegalovirus reactivation in cirrhosis patients with acute decompensation.

Background/aims: The role of reactivation of Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) in determining outcomes of cirrhotic patients with acute decompensation (AD) is unknown. We aimed to investigate HCMV incidence and potential correlation with hepatic outcomes in AD patients.

Methods: Two prospective multicentre cohorts with AD patients were investigated.

Commensal bacteria education history calibrates the naivety and activation threshold of adaptive antiviral immune system.

Exhaustion of the immune system's ability to adapt to novelty suggests that the changes it undergoes might be a consequence of an evolutionary unpredictable antigenic exposure over a lifetime. Thus, we raise the question of whether a naive immune system can manage new antigens better than an educated immune system. Here, by employing the naive immune system of germ-free (GF) mice without a history of microbial exposure, we compared their adaptive immune responses with those of the conventional (Conv) mice upon new viral infection.

A novel model for identifying infections in patients with acute-on-chronic liver disease (AoCLD): A nationwide, multicenter, prospective cohort study.

Background And Aims: To establish an early and quick model for diagnosing infections in patients with acute-on-chronic liver disease (AoCLD).

Approach: This study analyzed 3,949 patients from two multicenter prospective cohorts of the Chinese Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure (CATCH-LIFE) study. The dataset was randomly divided into training and validation cohorts in a 7:3 ratio.

Evidence-based incorporation of key parameters into MELD score for acute-on-chronic liver failure.

Background: The model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score is widely used for the prognostication in end-stage liver disease but has limited performance in acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). In this study, we identified additional predictive parameters and reformed the MELD score to predict ACLF more accurately.

Methods: A meta-analysis was performed on relevant studies to identify the predictive factors of 28-day/90-day outcomes of ACLF, which were validated in two large prospective cohorts.

The gut-reproductive axis: Bridging microbiota balances to reproductive health and fetal development.

The gut microbiota is a highly complex microbial community residing in the digestive tract of humans and animals, closely linked to host health. Dysbiosis within the gut microbiota has been associated with various diseases. Moreover, it interacts with the female reproductive system's microbiota, influencing maternal reproductive homeostasis.

An IGHG1 variant exhibits polarized prevalence and confers enhanced IgG1 antibody responses against life-threatening organisms.

Evolutionary pressures sculpt population genetics, whereas immune adaptation fortifies humans against life-threatening organisms. How the evolution of selective genetic variation in adaptive immune receptors orchestrates the adaptation of human populations to contextual perturbations remains elusive. Here, we show that the G396R coding variant within the human immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) heavy chain presents a concentrated prevalence in Southeast Asian populations.

Understanding the mechanisms and treatments of long COVID to address future public health risks.

The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19), triggered by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), has seen numerous individuals undergo and recover from it, drawing extensive attention to their health conditions. Extensive studies indicate that even after surpassing the acute phase of infection, patients continue to experience persistent symptoms such as fatigue, pain, depression, weakening, and anosmia. COVID-19 appears not to have concluded but rather to persist long-term in certain individuals, termed as "long COVID.

Expression and clinical significance of interleukin-6 pathway in cholangiocarcinoma.

Background: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a typical inflammation-induced malignancy, and elevated serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels have been reported to be linked to the onset and progression of CCA. We aim to investigate the potential prognostic value of the IL-6 pathway for CCA.

Methods: We detected the expressions of IL-6, IL-6R, glycoprotein (gp130), C-reactive protein (CRP), Janus kinase 2 (JAK2), and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) in CCA tissue microarray using multiplex immunofluorescence.

sTREM-1 as promising prognostic biomarker for acute-on-chronic liver failure and mortality in patients with acute decompensation of cirrhosis.

Background: Acute decompensation (AD) of cirrhosis is associated with high short-term mortality, mainly due to the development of acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). Thus, there is a need for biomarkers for early and accurate identification of AD patients with high risk of development of ACLF and mortality. Soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (sTREM-1) is released from activated innate immune cells and correlated with various inflammatory processes.

Association of AST/ALT ratio with 90-day outcomes in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic liver disease: a prospective multicenter cohort study in China.

Background And Aim: A high aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase (AST/ALT) ratio is associated with liver injury in liver disease; however, no data exist regarding its relationship with 90-day prognosis in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic liver disease.

Methods: In this study, 3,758 participants (955 with advanced fibrosis and 2,803 with cirrhosis) from the CATCH-LIFE cohort in China were included. The relationships between different AST/ALT ratios and the risk of adverse 90-day outcomes (death or liver transplantation) were determined in patients with cirrhosis or hepatitis B virus (HBV)-associated advanced fibrosis, respectively.

The clinical courses of HBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure and a multi-state model to predict disease evolution.

Background And Aims: Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a highly dynamic syndrome. The objective of this study was to delineate the clinical course of patients with HBV-ACLF and to develop a model to estimate the temporal evolution of disease severity.

Methods: We enrolled eligible patients from 2 large, multicenter prospective cohorts.

Longitudinal and Lateral Control Strategies for Automatic Lane Change to Avoid Collision in Vehicle High-Speed Driving.

The vehicle particle model was built to compare and analyze the effectiveness of three different collision avoidance methods. The results show that during vehicle high-speed emergency collision avoidance, lane change collision avoidance requires a smaller longitudinal distance than braking collision avoidance and is closer to that with a combination of lane change and braking collision avoidance. Based on the above, a double-layer control strategy is proposed to avoid collision when vehicles change lanes at high speed.

New Algorithm Rules Out Acute-on-chronic Liver Failure Development within 28 Days from Acute Decompensation of Cirrhosis.

Background And Aims: Approximately 10% of patients with acute decompensated (AD) cirrhosis develop acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) within 28 days. Such cases have high mortality and are difficult to predict. Therefore, we aimed to establish and validate an algorithm to identify these patients on hospitalization.

A novel prognostic nomogram for older patients with acute-on-chronic liver diseases (AoCLD): a nationwide, multicentre, prospective cohort study.

Background: the incidence of acute-on-chronic liver disease (AoCLD) is increasing.

Objective: to investigate the clinical features and risk factors of AoCLD and construct an effective prognostic nomogram model for older patients with AoCLD.

Methods: data from 3,970 patients included in the CATCH-LIFE study were used, including 2,600 and 1,370 patients in the training and validation sets, respectively.

The development of a cSMART-based integrated model for hepatocellular carcinoma diagnosis.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) generally arises from a background of liver cirrhosis (LC). Patients with cirrhosis and suspected HCC are recommended to undergo serum biomarker tests and imaging diagnostic evaluation. However, the performance of routine diagnostic methods in detecting early HCC remains unpromising.

Prognosis prediction performs better in patients with non-cirrhosis hepatitis B virus-related acute-on-chronic liver failure than those with cirrhosis.

Background: The accurate prediction of the outcome of hepatitis B virus-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF) is impeded by population heterogeneity. The study aimed to assess the impact of underlying cirrhosis on the performance of clinical prediction models (CPMs).

Methods: Using data from two multicenter, prospective cohorts of patients with HBV-ACLF, the discrimination, calibration, and clinical benefit were assessed for CPMs predicting 28-day and 90-day outcomes in patients with cirrhosis and those without, respectively.