ABSTRACT. Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common birth abnormality, but the etiology of CHD is unknown. ISL1 may play a fundamental role in cardiac morphogenesis, and mutations of this gene could cause CHD. To evaluate whether genetic variations of ISL1 are associated with CHD in Chinese Han people, polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment-length polymorphism and SNaPshot were used to examine 9 polymorphisms of ISL1 in 233 patients with CHD as well as 288 healthy controls. We found that one SNP (rs1017) in ISL1 was significantly associated with simple CHD. Genetic variation of ISL1 was confirmed to be associated with the risk of CHD. ISL1 is related to the atrial septal defect group and the ventricular septal defect group, and the genotypes were associated with the occurrence of CHD in the dominant mode of inheritance. We concluded that rs1017 contributed to the risk of CHD in Chinese Han people, and ISL1 may be involved in the formation and development of the heart.

Tumour necrotic factor receptor‐2 (TNFR2) has been to be cardiac‐protective and is expressed in cardiac progenitor cells. Our goal is to define the mechanism for TNFR2‐mediated cardiac stem cell activation and differentiation. By employing a protocol of in vitro cardiac stem cell (CSC) differentiation from human inducible pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC), we show that expression of TNFR2 precedes expression of CSC markers followed by expression of mature cardiomyocyte proteins. Activation of TNFR2 by a specific agonist promotes whereas inhibition of TNFR2 by neutralizing antibody diminishes hiPSC‐based CSC differentiation. Interestingly, pluripotent cell factor RNA‐binding protein Lin28 enhances TNFR2 protein expression in early CSC activation by directly binding to a conserved Lin28‐motif within the 3'UTR of Tnfr2 mRNA. Furthermore, inhibition of Lin28 blunts TNFR2 expression and TNFR2‐dependent CSC activation and differentiation. Our study demonstrates a critical role of Lin28‐TNFR2 axis in CSC activation and survival, providing a novel strategy to enhance stem cell‐based therapy for the ischaemic heart diseases.

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Many therapies are effective in treating varicoceles, including dilation of the pampiniform plexus in males. The most common method of treatment is varicocelectomy. We aimed to assess an alternative technique (microsurgical spermatic [distal end]-superficial or inferior epigastric vein anastomosis) that preserves the normal blood flow pattern for varicocele treatment. We retrospectively analyzed 27 men with varicocele between October 2019 and July 2020. All patients underwent microsurgical spermatic (distal end)-superficial or inferior epigastric vein anastomosis. The prognosis was reviewed retrospectively with an additional survey conducted 3 months after surgery. The mean ± standard deviation of the age was 26.1 ± 7.3 years in patients with microsurgical spermatic (distal end)-superficial or inferior epigastric vein anastomosis. The maximum diameter of the varicocele vein, perineal pain score, sperm density, and forward movement of sperm improved over 3 months after surgery. Microsurgical spermatic (distal end)-superficial or inferior epigastric vein anastomosis is a safe and efficient surgical treatment for varicoceles.