Neurodegenerative diseases are a group of disorders characterized by progressive loss of certain populations of neurons, which eventually lead to dysfunction. These diseases include Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Immune pathway dysregulation is one of the common features of neurodegeneration. Recently, there is growing interest in the specific role of T helper Th 17 cells and Interleukin-17A (IL-17A), the most important cytokine of Th 17 cells, in the pathogenesis of the central nervous system (CNS) of neurodegenerative diseases. In the present study, we summarized current knowledge about the function of Th17/IL-17A, the physiology of Th17/IL-17A in diseases, and the contribution of Th17/IL-17A in AD, PD, and ALS. We also update the findings on IL-17A-targeting drugs as potentially immunomodulatory therapeutic agents for neurodegenerative diseases. Although the specific mechanism of Th17/IL-17A in this group of diseases is still controversial, uncovering the molecular pathways of Th17/IL-17A in neurodegeneration allows the identification of suitable targets to modulate these cellular processes. Therapeutics targeting IL-17A might represent potentially novel anti-neurodegeneration drugs.

Background: A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to compare the safety and efficacy of vacuum-assisted sheaths and conventional sheaths in minimally invasive percutaneous nephrolithotomy (MPCNL) in the treatment of nephrolithiasis. Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, EBSCO, and Cochrane Library databases (updated March 2021) were used to search for studies assessing the effect of vacuum-assisted sheaths in patients who underwent MPCNL. The search strategy and study selection processes were implemented in accordance with the PRISMA statement. Result: Three randomized controlled trials and two case-controlled trials that satisfied the inclusion criteria were enrolled in this meta-analysis. Overall, the stone-free rate (SFR) in patients who underwent vacuum-assisted sheaths was significantly higher than that in patients who underwent conventional sheaths (RR 1.23, 95% CI 1.04, 1.46, P = 0.02), with significant heterogeneity among the studies (I² = 72%, P = 0.03). In terms of the outcome of complications, vacuum-assisted sheath could bring a benefit to the postoperative infection rate (RR 0.48, 95% CI 0.33, 0.70, P < 0.00001) with insignificant heterogeneity among the studies (I² = 0%, P = 0.68). There was no significant difference in the blood transfusion rate (RR 0.35, 95% CI 0.07, 1.73, P = 0.17), with significant heterogeneity (I² = 66%, P = 0.35). Three studies contained operative time data, and the results indicated that the vacuum-assisted sheath led to a shorter operative time (MD = − 15.74; 95% CI − 1944, − 12.04, P < 0.00001) with insignificant heterogeneity (I² = 0%, P = 0.91). Conclusion: The application of a vacuum-assisted sheath in MPCNL improves the safety and efficiency compared to the conventional sheath. A vacuum-assisted sheath significantly increases the SFR while reducing operative time and postoperative infection.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a multisystem disorder, but its relationship with kidney injury remains controversial. This study aimed to evaluate MAFLD effects on ...

Objectives: The efficacy of updated health policy in improving the generalization of Helicobacter pylori screening and eradication in southwest China was assessed in a longitudinal analysis of multiple cross-sectional studies from an institution.Methods: In the periods 2009–2010, 2013–2014, and 2019–2021, 8,365, 16,914, and 18,281 urban observations from health check-ups at West China Hospital were analyzed, respectively. The ¹⁴C-urea or ¹³C-urea breath test was consistently used for H. pylori detection. The protocol has been reported elsewhere (PROSPERO Registration number: CRD42019120764).Results: The overall prevalence of H. pylori dramatically decreased from 53.1% to 30.7% over the past decade (OR = 0.39, 95% CI 0.37–0.41), with a similar decline in all sex-specific and age-specific subgroups. The age-specific prevalence consistently increased before 40 years of age and always peaked at 50–59 years. Longitudinal clearance increased along with aging, and prevalence dropped to 22.6%, 25.1%, and 23.6% in the 40–49, 50–59, and 60–69 years initial age groups, respectively.Conclusion: The generalization of H. pylori screening and eradication could greatly contribute to the control of H. pylori infection among urban health check-up populations and lower gastric cancer incidence.

Purpose: The current research is aimed at analyzing the relationship between kidney stone (KS) and abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) and the relationship between KS components and AAC. Methods: This is a retrospective, case–control study. Kidney stone formers (KSFs) were treated at the Department of Urology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University for urological calculus disease from January 2014 to January 2020. Matched non-stone formers (non-SFs) were drawn from the same hospital for routine health examination from January 2018 to February 2019. Research-related information was collected and reviewed retrospectively from the hospital’s computerized records. AAC were evaluated using available results of computed tomography imaging and abdominal vascular ultrasound. The relationships of AAC between KSFs and non-SFs were compared. The composition of renal calculi was analyzed by Fourier-transform infrared spectrophotometer. KSFs were divided into AAC groups and non-AAC based on AAC. The relationship of the composition of renal calculi between AAC and non-AAC were compared. The independent-sample t test, the chi-squared test and binary logistics regression were performed. Results: Altogether, 4516 people were included, with 1027 KSFs and 3489 non-SFs. There were no significant differences in the laboratory parameters between KSFs and non-SFs. The association between the presence of AAC and KS was significant in multivariable model 2 [adjusting hypertension, diabetes mellitus, fasting blood glucose, uric acid, serum triglyceride (TG), serum calcium, and urine pH] (OR 5.756, 95% CI 4.616–7.177, p < 0.001). The result of KSFs showed that calcium oxalate calculi (CaOx) was significantly associated with AAC in multivariable model 3 (adjusting age, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, drinking history, smoking history, and TG) (OR 1.351, 95% CI 1.002–1.822, p = 0.048). Conclusions: The current study pioneered the revelation of the relationship between CaOx and AAC. Through an elimination of the confounding factors, the study demonstrated that KS and AAC were connected.

Prior studies have yielded mixed findings concerning the association between apolipoprotein E(APOE)-ε4 and serum lipids in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and healthy individuals. Some studies suggested a relationship between APOEε4 and serum lipids in patients with AD and healthy individuals, whereas others proposed that the APOEε4 allele affects lipids only in patients with AD. Our study aimed to investigate whether APOE alleles have a distinct impact on lipids in AD. We conducted a comprehensive search of the PubMed and Embase databases for all related studies that investigate APOE and serum lipids of AD from the inception to 30 May 2022. Elevated total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels were found in APOEε4 allele carriers compared with non-carriers. No significant differences were found for high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and triglyceride (TG) levels in APOEε4 allele carriers compared to non-carriers. Notably, elevated TC and LDL levels showed considerable heterogeneity between patients with AD and healthy controls. A network meta-analysis did not find a distinct effect of carrying one or two APOEε4 alleles on lipid profiles. Higher TC and LDL levels were found in APOEε4 allele carriers compared with non-carriers, and the difference was more significant in patients with AD than in healthy controls.