The results showed that the pathological damage to intestinal mucosa and the intestinal tissue injury score in the CLP + emodin group were significantly reduced compared to those of the CLP group, and the differences were more obvious at 24 h compared with 12 h. DAO activity and the L/M ratio in the emodin pre-treatment group decreased significantly at 24 h compared with the CLP groups. The protein and mRNA levels of the TJ proteins claudin-3, ZO-1 and occludin in the emodin pre-treatment groups at 12 and 24 h were increased, while occludin mRNA level was found to be decreased compared with the CLP groups. The present study suggested that emodin may significantly reduce the damage to the intestinal epithelial barrier in sepsis, inhibit intestinal barrier permeability and protect intestinal barrier integrity. Emodin may protect intestinal barrier integrity by elevating expression levels of the TJ proteins claudin-3, ZO-1 and occludin in CLP rats. Copyright © Li et al.Patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-sensitive mutations generally have a significantly higher objective response rate (ORR) and longer progression-free survival (PFS) after EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) treatment. However, the efficacy of EGFR-TKIs in the case of uncommon EGFR mutations has remained elusive. In the present study, the characteristics of uncommon EGFR mutations and EGFR-TKI treatments were compared in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) from different ethnic groups. A total of 2,984 patients with pathologically confirmed NSCLC encountered between February 2012 to February 2017 at the Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University (Urumqi, China) were enrolled in the present study. The Amplification Refractory Mutation System was adopted to determine EGFR gene expression, compare the ethnic differences in EGFR mutations between Xinjiang Uygur and Han people, analyze the distribution of uncommon mutation types and evaluate the link between clinicopaividuals regarding the efficacy of EGFR-TKI treatment and the survival time of patients with uncommon EGFR mutations, second-line EGFR-TKIs had a lower ORR and DCR while had a longer mPFS. All of these could provide a basis for the exploration of different regimens for patients with different types of uncommon mutations. Copyright © Zhang et al.The condition 3-methylglutaconic aciduria (3-MGA) with deafness, encephalopathy and Leigh-like (MEGDEL) syndrome, also known as 3-MGA IV, is one of a group of five rare metabolic disorders characterized by mitochondrial dysfunction, resulting in a series of phenotypic abnormalities. It is a rare, recessive inherited disorder with a limited number of cases reported worldwide; hence, it is important to study each case to understand its genetic complexity. An impaired activity of serine active site-containing protein 1 (SERAC1), caused by mutations, leads to defects in phosphatidylglycerol remodelling, which is important for mitochondrial function and intracellular cholesterol trafficking. In the present study, the patients (two male siblings of consanguineous Turkish parents) were analysed, whose multisystem dysfunctions, including an elevated 3-MGA concentration in early age, hearing loss and Leigh-like syndrome as determined by MRI, were consistent with MEGDEL syndrome. A novel mutation in the SERAC1 gene, in the upstream lipase domain, c.1015G>C (p.Gly339Arg) mutation located on exon 10 of the SERAC1, was identified and predicted to cause protein dysfunction. Furthermore, the results pointed towards a possible association between this mutation and the severity of MEGDEL syndrome. Copyright © Alagoz et al.Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels are closely associated with diabetes-related erectile dysfunction (DMED). Mitochondrial ATP synthase serves a key role in ATP production. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between F1-ATP synthase and DMED in vivo and in vitro. The F1-ATP synthase expression levels in corpus cavernosum tissues from rats with DMED were examined. F1-ATP synthase expression was found to be lower in corpus cavernosum tissues from rats with DMED compared with healthy controls, suggesting a role for ATP synthase under high glucose conditions. In addition, the present study also demonstrated that hyperglycemia could downregulate F1-ATP synthase expression in rat corpus cavernosum smooth muscle cells (CCSMCs) in vitro. see more The overexpression of F1-ATP synthase in CCSMCs influenced the phenotypic CCSMC transformation, upregulated eNOS expression, increased cGMP levels and reduced CCSMC apoptosis under high glucose in vitro. In conclusion, the present study indicates that the upregulation of mitochondrial ATP synthase expression may improve CCSMC function, suggesting that mitochondrial ATP synthase could serve as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of DMED. Copyright © Xu et al.The purpose of the present study was to compare the effectiveness of the transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS), endoscopic options, medications and mainstay combination therapies for patients with cirrhosis who have had at least one episode of variceal haemorrhage. The PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Web of Science databases, as well as the reference lists of relevant articles, were searched to identify eligible studies. P-scores, that were based solely on the point estimates and standard errors of the network estimates, were performed to rank all treatments, on a scale from 0 (worst) to 1 (best). The odds ratio (OR) was determined to assess effects on mortality, treatment failure and bleeding from gastroesophageal ulcers. A total of 43 randomized controlled trials comprising 3,787 adult patients were included. In total, 26 (61%) trials adopted concealed randomization, while most studies did not specify blinding. The drug combination of nadolol and isosorbide mononitrate (ISMN) ranked first for lowering risks of overall mortality (P-score=0.8162), mortality due to liver failure (P-score=0.7536) and bleeding from gastroesophageal ulcers (P-score=0.7536). This combination was determined to be superior to endoscopic sclerotherapy (ES) alone (OR=0.63, 95% CI 0.42-0.94) and TIPS alone in reducing overall mortality (OR=0.62, 95% CI 0.40-0.96). ES was more likely to increase treatment failure compared with TIPS, endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL), ES plus EVL, EVL plus nadolol/propranolol plus ISMN and nadolol/propranolol plus ISMN. In conclusion, the present network meta-analysis suggested that for a decreased mortality due to variceal rebleeding in patients with cirrhosis, nadolol plus ISMN may be a preferable choice, while ES is associated with a higher risk of unfavourable treatment outcomes. Further well-controlled studies are required to further elucidate the appropriate treatment options. Copyright © Kong et al.