Background: Although dozens of studies have investigated the relationship between the content of serum cystatin C (Cys-C) and diabetic nephropathy (DN), the results are still controversial. Hence, This study aims to explore the accuracy of serum Cys-C for diagnosing DN by meta-analysis. Methods: The studies about serum Cys-C diagnosing DN were searched from six online databases from inception to September 22, 2020. The data were processed by Stata 15.0 statistic software. The corresponding diagnostic effect sizes, such as sensitivity and specificity, were obtained. We drew a summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve. We assess the risk of literature bias was following the QUADAS-2 guidelines. Results: Twenty-six published studies were identified. The results showed a pooled sensitivity of 0.86 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.82–0.90), specificity of 0.89 (95%CI: 0.85–0.92), positive likelihood ratio of 7.59 (95%CI: 5.66–10.19), negative likelihood ratio of 0.16 (95%CI: 0.12–0.21), and diagnostic odds ratio of 48.03 (95%CI: 30.64–75.29). The area under the SROC curve was given a value of 0.94 (95%CI: 0.91–0.96). Conclusion: Serum cystatin C has an excellent diagnostic value with good sensitivity and specificity for diabetic nephropathy.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a progressive condition that can lead to chronic renal failure (CRF), affecting 8%–16% of adults globally and imposing a significant burden on healthcare systems. Renal fibrosis is a key pathological hallmark of CKD progression and is linked to poor prognosis. Multiple signaling pathways, including WNT/β-catenin.Aberrant activation of WNT/β-catenin is implicated in renal fibrosis. The roles of renal macrophages and fibroblasts are pivotal in fibrosis progression and prognosis.

Objective. We investigated the relationships between interleukin‐ (IL‐) 1β and IL‐1 receptor antagonist (IL‐1Ra) gene polymorphism and plasma levels in patients with diabetic nephropathy (DN). Methods. The genotype and allele frequency distribution of IL‐1β and IL‐1Ra in 61 patients with DN and 48 healthy controls (HCs) were determined by kompetitive allele‐specific PCR (KASP), and the plasma concentrations of IL‐1β and IL‐1Ra in DN patients and HCs were measured by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Results. Significant differences were detected in the distribution of IL‐1β (−511C/T) genotype and allele frequencies between the DN and HC groups (P < 0.05), with the T genotype being more frequent in DN patients than HCs (OR = 2.84, 95% CI: 1.489–5.416). The IL‐1β (+3953C/T) and IL‐1Ra (+8006C/T) genotypes and allele frequencies were not significantly different between the two groups (P > 0.05). The plasma IL‐1β level was significantly higher (P < 0.01), while the plasma IL‐1Ra concentration was significantly lower in the DN group than the HC group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the plasma IL‐1β level was significantly different between IL‐1β (−511C/T) locus variants (P < 0.05). Conclusion. The IL‐1β (−511C/T) gene polymorphism was significantly associated with DN risk in the population of northern Guangxi, China, and the T allele maybe responsible for genetic susceptibility to DN.

Microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) onset is affected by genetic predisposition. Autophagy plays a certain role in antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis developing. A key factor in autophagy regulating, the genetic polymorphism of MTOR gene is essential. The objective was to explore the associations between MTOR gene polymorphism and MPA susceptibility in a Guangxi population of China. A sum of 208 MPA cases and 209 healthy volunteers from Guangxi in this case-control study, four important single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci of MTOR gene including rs3806317, rs1064261, rs1883965 and rs2295080 were examined. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction combined with high-throughput sequencing was performed. Subgroup analysis was evaluated by gender and ethnicity. Linkage disequilibrium and haplotype analysis were tested. Multi-SNPs interaction among mTOR signaling pathway was assessed. For rs2295080, homozygous mutant GG genotype was associated with a decreased susceptibility of MPA in recessive model (OR = 0.38, 95%CI: 0.14-1.00, p = 0.040), particularly in the subgroup of female (OR = 0.16, 95%CI: 0.03-0.74, p = 0.006) and Han population (OR = 0.32, 95%CI: 0.10-1.00, p = 0.034). Individual carrying G allele was linked with decreasing MPA susceptibility in Han population of Guangxi (OR = 0.65, 95%CI: 0.44-0.97, p = 0.036). In haplotype analysis, the haplotype AAT was correlated with increasing susceptibility of MPA (OR = 1.347, 95%CI: 1.004-1.807, p = 0.046). Moreover, in the multi-SNPs interaction analysis, the six-locus model was identified as the best interaction model (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that rs2295080 polymorphism of MTOR gene may be associated with MPA susceptibility in a Guangxi population of China and G allele might be an important protective factor.

Objectives: Exposure to light at night (LAN) can disturb circadian endocrine and metabolic rhythms. Hyperuricemia (HUA) is an early-onset metabolic disorder. However, it is still not clear whether LAN exposure increases the prevalence of HUA. Material and Methods: The authors used...

Microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) is an autoimmune disease, characterized by ANCA in blood and necrotizing inflammation of small and medium-sized vessels, one of the three clinical phenotypes of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV). Autophagy has been confirmed to be involved in the pathogenesis of AAV. AKT1 is one of the autophagy-regulated proteins. Its single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are associated with multiple immune-related diseases, but there are rarely studies in AAV. The incidence rate of AAV has a notable geographic difference, and MPA is predominant in China. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between AKT1 SNP and MPA risk. Genotypes of 8 loci in AKT1 were evaluated by multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and high-throughput sequencing in 416 people, including 208 MPA patients and 208 healthy volunteers from Guangxi in China. Additionally, data of 387 healthy volunteers from China were obtained from the 1000Genomes Project on public database. Differences were observed between the loci (rs2498786, rs2494752, and rs5811155) genotypes in AKT1 and MPA risk (P = 7.0 × 10^–4, P = 3.0 × 10^–4, and P = 5.9 × 10^–5, respectively). A negative association was detected in the Dominant model (P = 1.2 × 10^–3, P = 2.0 × 10^–4 and P = 3.6 × 10^–5, respectively). A haplotype (G-G-T) was associated with MPA risk negatively (P = 7.0 × 10^–4). This study suggests that alleles (rs2498786 G, rs2494752 G and rs5811155 insT) are protective factors for MPA and alleles (rs2494752 G and rs5811155 insT) for MPO-ANCA in patients with MPA. There is a haplotype (G-G-T), which is a protective factor for MPA. It suggests that the role of AKT1 in MPA/AAV needs further study to provide more intervention targets for MPA/AAV.