Objective:To retrospectively compare the clinical efficacy of two PDE3 inhibitors, oplinone and Milrinone, in order to evaluate which drug has better effects on the improvement of cardiac function, protection of renal function and adverse effects of arrhythmia.Methods:A total of 41 neonates with congenital heart disease after biventricular treatment under cardiopulmonary bypass in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Soochow University Children's Hospital during 2018-2022 were collected. The experimental group was divided into two groups: Oprilinone(25 cases) and Milinone(16 cases). A retrospective study was conducted on the incidence of renal function, cardiac function improvement and arrhythmia in the children.Results:On the first day after operation, EF in both groups decreased significantly compared with that before operation( P<0.01); On day 4 after surgery, EF in the oprilinone group was significantly higher than that on day 1 after surgery( P<0.01), Milrinone group was slightly higher than that on day 1 after surgery( P<0.05), and EF in oprilinone group was significantly higher than that in Milinone group during the same period( P<0.01); EF in Milinone group continued to increase on day 7 compared with day 4( P<0.01), but there was no significant difference between the two groups. Long-term follow-up showed that there was no significant difference in EF value in the oprilinone intervention group on day 7 after surgery( P<0.05), and the long-term EF in Milinone group was higher than that at 7 days after surgery( P<0.05). The creatinine level in the oprinone intervention group continued to decrease on the 4th and 7th day after surgery( P<0.01; P<0.05); The creatinine level of Milinone group on day 4 after surgery was significantly lower than that on day 1 after surgery( P<0.01), the decrease was not significant on the 7th day after surgery compared with the 4th day after surgery; The creatinine level in the oprilinone group was lower than that in the Milrinone group on day 7 after surgery( P<0.05). The rate of arrhythmia in children was slightly decreased in the intervention group of olplinone. There was no change in the Milinone group. Conclusion:Oplinone improved cardiac function better than Milrinone, and the recovery time to normal cardiac function was shorter. In terms of renal function protection, oplinone was stronger than Milrinone, and the protective effect of oplinone on kidney lasted longer. No significant abnormalities were found with respect to adverse reactions, such as the incidence of arrhythmia.

Background Cell therapy remains the most promising approach against ischemic heart injury. However, poor survival of engrafted cells in ischemic sites diminishes its therapeutic efficacy. Follistatin-like 1 (Fstl1) is documented as a novel pro-survival cardiokine for cardiomyocytes, and it is protective during ischemic heart injury. In the present study, we characterize the potential of Fstl1 as an effective strategy to enhance hypoxia resistance of donor cells and optimize stem cell-based therapy. Methods Murine bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were expanded in monolayer culture and characterized by flow cytometry. MSCs were subjected to hypoxia to mimic cardiac ischemic environment. Expression of Fstl1 was monitored 0, 24, and 48 h following hypoxia. Constitutive expression of Fstl1 in MSCs was achieved by lentivirus-mediated Fstl1 overexpression. Genetically modified MSCs were further collected for cell death and proliferation assay following 48 h of hypoxic treatment. Acute myocardial infarction (MI) model was created by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery, while control MSCs (MSCs-mCherry) or Fstl1-overexpressing MSCs (MSCs-Fstl1) were injected into the peri-infarct zone simultaneously. Subsequently, retention of the donor cells was evaluated on post-therapy 1, 3, & 7 days. Finally, myocardial function, infarct size, inflammation, and neovascularization of the infarcted hearts were calculated thereafter. Results Expression of Fstl1 in hypoxic MSCs declines dramatically in a time-dependent manner. In vitro study further demonstrated that Fstl1 promotes survival and proliferation of hypoxic MSCs. Moreover, Fstl1 significantly prolongs MSC survival/retention after implantation. Finally, transplantation with Fstl1-overexpressing MSCs significantly improves post-MI cardiac function by limiting scar formation, reducing inflammatory response, and enhancing neovascularization. Conclusions Our results suggest Fstl1 is an intrinsic cardiokine promoting survival and proliferation of MSCs, thereby optimizing their engraftment and therapeutic efficacy during cell therapy.

Combination of different therapeutic strategies to treat cancer has attracted tremendous attention in recent years. Herein, the authors develop polydopamine (PDA) nanoparticles with polyethylene glycol (PEG) modification as a multifunctional nanocarrier for coloading photosensitizer chlorine6 (Ce6) and curcumin (Cur) for combined photodynamic therapy (PDT) and radiotherapy (RT) of cancer. PEGylated PDA nanoparticles (PDA‐PEG) exhibit well water soluble and biocompatible in different physiological solutions and cause no obvious toxicity to cancer cells. In this nanoparticle, the loaded Ce6 can trigger the generation of single oxygen under near‐infrared laser irradiation for PDT, while the loaded Cur can act as an excellent radiosensitizer under X‐ray irradiation for enhanced external RT. As demonstrated by in vitro and in vivo therapeutic efficiency, combined PDT and RT based on PDA‐PEG/Cur/Ce6 nanoparticles exhibits significant inhibition the growth of cancer cells, revealing perfect performance in cancer treatment. Therefore, the study not only presents a polymer‐based theranostic platform for cancer treatment but also demonstrates the potential applications of combined RT and PDT for the future clinic cancer therapy.