Xueping Zhu

• MD. Ph.D
• Soochow University

Congenital heart block (CHB) is the most high-risk and prognosis-poor phenotype of neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE). This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics of NLE patients complicated by CHB. This was a multi-center retrospective study. Data were retrospectively collected from NLE patients diagnosed between January 1, 2011,...

Neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devastating intestinal disease that primarily affects preterm infants. Unfortunately, no specific treatment for NEC is currently available, making it crucial to further investigate its underlying mechanisms. In this study, we aimed to identify the key target gene, CHI3L1, which was significantly upregul...

Objective Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a life-threatening condition in premature infants, where timely diagnosis and intervention are crucial. This study investigated the potential of serum CYP3A4 as an early predictive biomarker for NEC and developed a predictive model incorporating CYP3A4. Methods Bioinformatics analyses were performed to...

Introduction Ophthalmopathy induced by cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is most common in immunodeficient patients without other congenital infections. This paper reports a clinical case of retinitis due to congenital CMV infection in a preterm infant and reviews the relevant literature. Case presentation A 2-day-old female infant at 36 ⁺² gestatio...

Background Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a common chronic respiratory disease in preterm infants, and its incidence has gradually increased with advances in medical technology. BPD is associated with multiple complications, significantly impacting the quality of life of affected infants and imposing substantial economic burdens on families an...

Background Neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) represents a severe gastrointestinal condition characterized by a high mortality rate, with a paucity of reliable prognostic biomarkers. The presence of an acidic pH, indicative of systemic acidosis and intestinal ischemia, has potential as a predictor of adverse outcomes. However, the relationshi...

Objectives The onset and progression of atopic dermatitis (AD) are closely linked to autoimmune status. While AD has been observed in children with neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE), its relationship with perinatal factors remains unclear. This study aimed to identify early-life risk factors for the development of AD in children with NLE within th...

Aim This review aims to summarize the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical features, management, prognosis and regression of Neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) with a view to providing directions for standardized diagnosis, treatment and further research. Methods We conducted a comprehensive literature review of NLE. NLE-related peer-reviewed pape...

Background Hypocomplementemia, defined as a complement C3 or C4 level below the normal lower limit, is strongly associated with an unfavorable prognosis in patients with autoimmune diseases. This study aimed to explore the clinical features and outcomes of patients with neonatal systemic lupus erythematosus (NLE) with hypocomplementemia. Methods T...

Congenital heart block (CHB) in patients with neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) is usually irreversible. Our study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics and prognostic follow-up results of patients with NLE presenting with CHB and to provide a reference for the clinical treatment and management of such patients. Six patients with NLE a...

Background: Neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a fatal disease in early life characterized by an inflammatory response or even necrosis of the bowel wall. NEC is one of the leading causes of preterm infant mortality. The pathogenesis of NEC is intricate and involves mitochondrial damage to intestinal cells and infiltration of immune cells...

Background Early identification of infants with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) at risk of surgery is essential for an effective treatment. This study aims to clarify the risk factors of surgical NEC and establish a prediction model by machine learning algorithm. Methods Infants with NEC were split into two groups based on whether they had surgery...

Introduction Hematogenous infections caused by Bordetella pertussis are rare. This study aimed to increase clinicians’ knowledge of B. pertussis bacteremia. Methods We described a case of an infant with B. pertussis bacteremia, searched and reviewed for B. pertussis bacteremia-related literatures published in the PubMed database between 1946 to 20...

This study investigated the correlation between quantitative echocardiographic characteristics within 3 days of birth and necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and its severity in preterm infants. A retrospective study was conducted on 168 preterm infants with a gestational age of < 34 weeks. Patients were categorized into NEC and non-NEC groups. Clinica...

Introduction There are few reports of severe hematological involvement in children with neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) treated with exchange transfusion. In this case report, we present a female patient with NLE admitted to the Children's Hospital of Soochow University. The main clinical manifestations were pancytopenia and congenital heart blo...

There are considerable researches on risk factors for necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), focusing primarily on the entire course before onset. However, fewer studies address risk factors within the brief period before NEC occurrence. The current study aims to retrospectively analyze the clinical data of NEC patients while focusing on relevant risk fa...

Background Escherichia coli is the most common gram-negative pathogen to cause neonatal infections. Contemporary virulence characterization and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) data of neonatal E. coli isolates in China are limited. Methods A total of 159 E. coli strains isolated from neonates were collected and classified into invasive and non-inva...

Objective This study aimed to predict the bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in preterm infants with a gestational age(GA) < 32 weeks utilizing clinical data, serum mediator complex subunit 1 (MED1), and serum peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1alpha (PGC-1α). Methods This prospective observational study enrolled 70 preter...

Neonatal systemic lupus erythematosus (NLE) is an acquired autoimmune disease. The presence of effusions, such as pleural effusion and pericardial effusion, is rare. The present study helped investigate the clinical characteristics and progression of children with NLE combined with effusions. Clinical data of patients diagnosed with NLE were retros...

Introduction Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) refer to monogenetic diseases characterized by defective glycosylation of proteins or lipids causing multi-organ disorders. Here, we investigate the clinical features and genetic variants of SSR4-CDG and conduct a preliminary investigation of its pathogenesis. Methods We retrospectively repo...

Cutaneous and cardiac involvement in neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) has been extensively studied; however, gastrointestinal system involvement (GSI) remains unexplored. This study aimed to investigate the clinical features of GSI in patients with NLE with a particular focus on feeding intolerance (FI) and diarrhea. We conducted a retrospective...

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is one of the diseases in neonates, with a high morbidity and mortality rate, especially in preterm infants. This review aimed to briefly introduce the latest epidemiology, susceptibility factors, and clinical diagnosis and presentation of NEC. We also organized new prevention strategies by risk factors according to...

The effect of MDANP effects on ER stress signalling not well known or elucidated. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress plays a critical role in necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) pathogenesis through the PERK-eIF2ɑ-QRICH1 axis. The present study aimed to explore the protective effects of MDANP in NEC development. Firstly, a function screening was designe...

Feeding Difficulties can be caused by many chromosomal and monogenic diseases，such as ZMIZ1 mutation and 1q21.1 Microdeletion. These genetic alterations share similar phenotypic features. Now we present clinical data on a male newborn admitted to the Children’s Hospital of Soochow University who is diagnosed with both a 1q21.1 microdeletion and ZMI...

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a severe gastrointestinal disorder occurring in newborns, with a mortality rate ranging from 20 % to 30 %. The existing therapeutic approaches for NEC are limited in their effectiveness. Various factors contribute to the development of NEC, including disruption of barrier function, dysregulation of the intestinal...

Introduction: Neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) is a rare autoimmune disease that causes transient impairment of multi-organ functions and is mainly caused by maternally transmitted antibodies. Objective: This study aims to investigate the clinical features of infants with NLE, focusing on the presence of neurological and endocrinological invol...

Objective We aimed to use molecular biomarkers and clinical data and echocardiograms that were collected during admission to predict bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in preterm infants with gestational age ≤32 weeks. Methods Eighty-two patients (40 with BPD, BPD group and 42 healthy as controls, non-BPD group) admitted to the Department of Neonato...

In view of the devastating impact of neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) on newborns, the research on its intervention is particularly important. Although exosomes from human amniotic fluid stem cells (AFSC) and human breast milk (HBM) can protect against NEC, their mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we intend to compare the intervention effects...

Damage associated with lymphoma-associated hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (LA-HLH) to the central nervous system (CNS) is not uncommon. However, the combination with brain damage resembling acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) is rarely reported. Herein, we introduce the diagnosis and treatment of a case of ANE associated with LA-HLH in our h...

The aim of the present case study was to identify the genetic cause of a patient with a clinical presentation of tubular aggregate myopathy (TAM)/Stormorken syndrome (STRMK) and review the published clinical data of patients with TAM/STRMK. A child with thrombocytopenia and hyperCKemia at the Children's Hospital of Soochow University were recruited...

Objectives Escherichia coli is a common pathogen causing invasive bacterial infections in neonates. In recent years, clinical antimicrobial susceptibility testing has demonstrated an increased rate of drug-resistant E. coli infections. This study aimed to analyse the resistance characteristics of E. coli against common antimicrobial agents, and per...

Background: Neonatal bacterial meningitis is a severe infectious disease with a high rate of death and neurological complications. Early clinical signs and outcomes are different between preterm and full-term neonates, and little is known about their combined predictors. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the clinical characteristics and predic...

Background: This study aimed to analyze the clinical data of neonatal deaths in a tertiary children’s hospital in east China by investigating the causes and differences among neonatal deaths over the past ten years. By estimating the levels and trends of neonatal deaths, the treatment level could be improved, and preventive measures could be taken...

Background: This study aimed to analyze the clinical data of neonatal deaths in a tertiary children’s hospital in east China by investigating the causes and differences among neonatal deaths over the past ten years. By estimating the levels and trends of neonatal deaths, the treatment level could be improved, and preventive measures could be taken...

Purpose Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a common and severe complication in preterm infants. Vitamin D (VitD) has been reported to protect against BPD; however, its role in the mitochondria-mediated and MEK1/2-ERK1/2 pathways has not yet been reported. Methods We first performed in vivo studies using neonatal C57BL/6 mice in which we induced B...

Background: Coronary heart disease (CHD) is one of the most common causes of death and disease burden in the world. Current fish oil aiming to prevent and treat CHD have shown a large variety of effects with low levels of evidence. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of fish oil for protection against CHD, we conducted a systematic review and me...

Rationale: Kawasaki Disease (KD) is a self-limiting and acute systemic vasculitis of childhood that leads to coronary artery abnormality in about 25% of untreated cases. KD is extremely rare in neonates. The purpose of this paper is to explore the clinical features and diagnosis and treatment of Neonatal Kawasaki Disease for early identification....

Background: To investigate the characteristics and risk factors for extrauterine growth retardation (EUGR) in very-low-birth-weight infants (VLBWIs). Methods: The medical records of 137 VLBWIs admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit between June 2015 and December 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were divided into EUGR (n = 9...

To evaluate the efficacy of fish oil for protection against coronary heart disease (CHD), we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the use of fish oil for protection against CHD. We retrieved relevant articles published from January 1966 to January 2020 by searching the PubMed, EMBASE, Coc...

Background: To investigate the pathogenesis and clinical characteristics of Oculocutaneous albinism type 2 (OCA2), a genetic condition in the etiology of Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). Case presentation: A retrospective study of one case presented with poor response to stimuli, difficult feeding, poor crying, with yellow hair and white skin. We perfo...

Objective: To identify postnatal risk factors for bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) development in preterm infants with gestational age ≤32 weeks. Methods: Seventy-two preterm infants(30 with BPD and 42 non-BPD controls) admitted in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the Children's Hospital of Soochow University during 2017 were enrolled in...

Background: Kawasaki Disease (KD) is a self-limiting and acute systemic vasculitis of childhood that leads to coronary artery abnormality in about 25% of untreated cases. KD is extremely rare in neonates. The purpose of this paper is to explore the clinical features and diagnosis and treatment of Neonatal Kawasaki Disease (NKD) for early identifica...

Neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a serious gastrointestinal disease with high death rate in premature infants. Fish oil (FO) and its constituents have been shown to ameliorate intestinal inflammation and mucosal damage. However, the underlying mechanism of action is not known. In the present study, we divided Sprague-Dawley rats into thr...

Background: Cholestasis is a common but serious clinical condition in preterm neonates. The current management for preterm neonatal cholestasis has limitations. The aim of this study was to determine effects of Bifidobacterium supplementation on the prevention and alleviation of cholestasis in preterm infants with very low birth weight. Methods:...

Aims: To model the parenteral nutrition-associated liver disease (PNALD) in rat normal hepatocytes BRL and investigate the role of endoplasmic reticulum stress- (ERS-) related IRE1α signal in the process of PNALD. Methods: The BRL cells were treated with different concentrations of soybean oil emulsion (SO) to induce hepatocyte fatty degeneratio...

Purpose: To explore the lung function of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in premature infants to guide clinical prevention, early diagnosis and treatment. Methods: Thirty infants with BPD at 4–36 months of corrected gestational age were enrolled and divided into mild BPD and moderate and severe BPD groups. Thirty full-term healthy infants, and 30...

This study aimed to investigate the characteristics and risk factors for extrauterine growth retardation (EUGR) in very-low-birth-weight infants (VLBWIs). The medical records of 137 VLBWIs admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit between June 2015 and December 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were divided into EUGR (n = 92) and...

Operating strategies for inter-basin water transfer-supply reservoirs play an important role in assisting in the decision-making process of effectively transferring and supplying water. This article presents a bi-level optimization model for determining operating strategies for inter-basin water transfer-supply reservoirs. The bi-level model avoids...

Parenteral nutrition-associated liver disease (PNALD) is a severe ailment associated with long-term parenteral nutrition. Soybean oil-based lipid emulsions (SOLE) are thought to promote PNALD development, whereas fish oil-based lipid emulsions (FOLE) are thought to protect against PNALD. This study aimed to investigate the effects of SOLE and FOLE...

We aim to determine risk factors and clinical outcomes for bowel perforation in premature infants with NEC. We analyzed clinical data of 57 cases of premature infants with NEC at our NICU between January 2010 and December 2012. Based on the presence of bowel perforation, we divided these infants into two groups: perforated NEC group ( n = 10 ) an...

Answer: Isolation and identification of primary hepatocytes showed in Supplementary Figure 1A,B,C,D, and lipid emulsion cytotoxicity on hepatocytes using an MTT assay showed in Supplementary Figure 2A and B.

Objective. To use a rabbit model of parenteral nutrition-associated liver disease (PNALD) to study changes of the endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) marker glucose regulatory protein 94 (GRP94) and determine its role in the pathogenesis of PNALD. Methods. A rabbit PNALD model total parenteral nutrition (TPN) group was established. A corresponding c...

Objective: Parenteral nutrition in infants with gastrointestinal disorders can be lifesaving, but it is also associated with parenteral nutrition–associated liver disease. We investigated the effects of incorporating ω-3 fish oil in a parenteral nutrition mixture on signs of parenteral nutrition–associated liver disease and explored the mechanism i...

The aim of this study was to use functional magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD-fMRI) to investigate the activated region associated with visceral pain in the brains of infant rats in a model of IBS. Sixteen newborn rats were randomized into an IBS model group and a control group. Those in the IBS group were separated from their mothers and were mecha...

This paper presents an assessment framework that analyses the impacts of climate change on the water diversion strategies of a water transfer project in China. A water diversion strategy consists of high and low water levels as well as related diversion flows in four operating periods: pre-flood, flood, post-flood and non-flood periods. The optimal...

To determine the prevalence and risk factors of IBS in children 8–13 years of age in Suzhou city, a cross-sectional study was conducted on children in grades 1 through 6 in public elementary schools in three districts of Suzhou. A multistage stratified random-sampling survey was conducted in a primary investigation using standardized questionnaires...

Hyperlactatemia upon admission is a documented risk factor for mortality in critically ill adult patients. However, the predictive significance of a single lactate measurement at admission for mortality in the general population of critically ill children remains uncertain. This study evaluated the predictive value of blood lactate levels at admiss...

Interbasin water-transfer projects are constructed to solve regional water-shortage problems. This study attempts to develop a set of water-diversion strategies to assist in the decision-making process of effectively diverting the water. The reservoir operation rule curves are improved by considering water-diversion rule curves that consist of hydr...

After the construction and operation of the Three Gorges and Gezhouba dams, their impacts on hydrologic alterations in the middle and lower reach of Yangtze River are under high attention worldwide, of which the balance between the human and environmental flow requirements is one of the most important issues. This study uses an optimization model f...

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the most common serious pulmonary morbidity in premature infants. The score for neonatal acute physiology (SNAP) is a physiologic severity index for neonatal intensive care and correlates well with neonatal mortality and clinical outcomes. The prognostic value of the SNAP score for BPD in preterm infants remains...

The obvious decline in stream flow to the Biliu River reservoir over the period 1990–2005 has raised increasing concerns. Climate change and human activities, which mainly include land use changes, hydraulic constructions and artificial water consumption, are considered to be the most likely reasons for the decline in stream flow. This study centre...

The aim of the present paper is to study an infinite horizon optimal control problem in which the controlled state dynamics is governed by a stochastic delay evolution equation in Hilbert spaces. The existence and uniqueness of the optimal control are obtained by means of associated infinite horizon backward stochastic differential equations withou...

Background: Urinary interleukin-18 (uIL-18) and cystatin C (uCysC) are biomarkers of acute kidney injury (AKI). We hypothesized that in non-AKI neonates, the level of uIL-18 and uCysC would be higher in those with sepsis compared to those without sepsis. The aims of this study were to determine the association between urinary biomarkers and sepsis...