Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) family members are specific endoplasmic reticulum proteins associated with inflammation, obesity, and cancer. In HIV infection, the role of PDI family A, member 4 (PDIA4), is unclear. This study aimed to clarify the association between plasma PDIA4 levels and inflammation in people living with HIV (PLWH). In this study, 287 PLWH and 74 healthy participants were enrolled. The plasma PDIA4 values, demographic data, laboratory data, and other inflammatory markers were recorded. The association between PDIA4 level and inflammatory extent was analyzed using logistic regression and Spearman rank-order correlations. Other results were analyzed using Student's t-test or chi-square test. In PLWH, the PDIA4 levels were positively associated with the inflammatory markers, interleukin 6 (r = 0.209, p = 0.001), and tumor necrosis factor-α (r = 0.162, p = 0.01) levels, but not with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels. Moreover, the plasma PDIA4 level of PLWH decreased after anti-viral treatment (p = 0.0001). Plasma PDIA4 levels are closely associated with inflammation in PLWH and have a positive correlation with the viral load during anti-viral therapy.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma accounts for approximately 90% of primary liver cancers and hepatitis virus was believed to have the potential for altering the pathogenesis of arteriosclerosis. However, the influence of the hepatitis virus on coronary artery disease or cerebral vascular disease remains unclear. This study used the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database to clarify the virus-associated risk of coronary artery disease and cerebral vascular disease in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: A total of 188,039 HCC individuals, age 20 years or older, were enrolled from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database between 2000 and 2017 for cohort analysis. A total of 109,348 with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, 37,506 with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, 34,110 without HBV or HCV, and 7075 with both HBV and HCV were recorded. Statistically, propensity score matched by sex, age, and index year at a ratio of 15:5:5:1 and a sensitivity test using multivariable Cox regression were used. Results: The risk of coronary artery disease in the HCV-related HCC group was 1.516-fold (95% CI: 1.328–2.034, p < 0.001) higher than in the HBV-related HCC group, followed by the HBV/HCV-related HCC group and the non-B/C HCC group; the cerebral vascular disease risk in the HCV-related HCC group was 1.467-fold higher than in the HBV-related HCC group (95% CI: 1.335 to 1.786, p < 0.001), followed by the HBV/HCV-related HCC group and the non-B/C HCC group. Conclusion: Hepatitis C virus infection was found to have a higher risk of developing coronary artery disease or cerebral vascular disease in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. For patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, our findings warrant the importance in preventing artherosclerotic disease in the setting of hepatitis C virus infection.

Objective: To highlight the clinical characteristics of primary biliary cholangitis on the basis of gender in terms of the extent of liver injury and extra-liver autoimmune expressions. Methods: The retrospective study was conducted at the Tri-Service General Hospital, Taiwan, and comprised data of patients aged >20 years diagnosed with primary biliary cholangitis between January 2000 and December 2018. Patients in the control group were randomly selected from the health examination centre. Liver injury manifestations and susceptibilities were analysed along gender lines. The gene expression microarray data from the National Centre for Biotechnology Information Gene Expression Omnibus database was also used to explore the relationship between autoimmune-induced inflammation and androgen response expression. Statistical analysis was done using Graph-Pad Prism 7.0. Results: Of the 75 cases, 63(84%) were females with a mean age of 64.6±1.78 years, and 12(16%%) were males with a mean age of 46.6±5.6 years. Of the 66 controls, 55(83.3%) were females with a mean age of 51.67 years, and 11(16.6%) were males with a mean age of 45.9 years. There were no significant differences in terms of liver profiles related to gender in the control group (p>0.05). Among the cases, male patients showed fewer extrahepatic autoimmune disorders and more severe liver injuries before or after ursodeoxycholic acid treatment (p<0.05). There was a positive correlation between androgen receptor response and the extent of systemic inflammation (p<0.05). Conclusion: The association between androgen receptor responses and inflammation was linked to gender-related hepatic injuries, --Ciontinue

Bile acids are carcinogens causing mutations leading to colorectal cancer (CRC). Higher total bile acid concentrations in the serum of patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), compared to healthy controls, have been reported in previous studies. However, the association between PBC and the risk for CRC remains controversial. We investigated the association between PBC and the development of colonic polyps leading to CRC overall in this study. The study enrolled 1,936,512 individuals from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database spanning 2000 to 2017 for cohort analysis. Individuals assigned to ICD-9-CM and ICD-10-CM codes representing PBC were incorporated. A 1:4 control cohort was randomly selected. After adjusting for CRC risk factors using Cox regression analysis, we calculated the hazard ratios for developing colon polyps and CRC in PBC patients compared to the general population. Within the study cohort, consisting of 2024 individuals meeting the inclusion criteria, 199 patients developed colon polyps or CRC. In contrast, among the 8096 individuals in the comparison cohort, 650 cases of colon polyps or CRC were observed during the 17-year-follow-up period. According to Cox regression analysis, the adjusted hazard ratio indicated that the risk was 1.678 times higher in the PBC group compared to the comparison group. This population-based retrospective cohort study identified a 1.68-fold increased risk of colon polyps and CRC in patients with PBC, suggesting a potential association with colonic neoplasia. Further research is warranted to evaluate the role of endoscopic surveillance in patients with PBC.