Study of electronic and optical properties of CdI2 modulated by electric field: a first-principles study.

We found that an out-of-plane vertical electric field of 1.0 V/Ang helps to maintain the thermodynamic and kinetic stability of monolayer CdI2.The results indicated that the electric field modulates monolayer CdI2 to produce the Mexican-hat electronic state and the giant Stark effect of the vertical electric field on monolayer CdI2 originates from electric field lifting its conduction band. The results based on HSE06 + SOC calculations show that electric field induces strong spin polarization, leading to significant energy level splitting and spin flipping in the valence band. Based on GW0 + BSE, the electric field broadens effective optical response range of monolayer CdI2, the new peak in the optical absorption spectrum under electric field indicates that electric field helps to diminish excitonic effect of monolayer CdI2.

Treatment outcomes and prognostic factors of patients with adult Langerhans cell histiocytosis.

Adult Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) remains poorly defined. We retrospectively studied 266 newly diagnosed LCH patients to understand the clinical presentation, treatment, and prognosis of adult LCH. The median age at diagnosis was 32 years (range, 18-79 years). At the time of diagnosis, 40 patients had single lesions within a single system, 18 patients had single pulmonary LCH, 26 patients had multiple lesions within a single system (SS-m), and 182 patients had multisystem disease (MS). The most common organ involved in MS patients was the bone (69.8%), followed by the pituitary (61.5%) and lung (61.0%). BRAFV600E , BRAF deletion, and MAP2K1 mutation were detected in 38.8%, 25.4%, and 19.4% patients, respectively. BRAF deletion was found more common in patients with MS LCH compared to single-system LCH (38.5% vs 7.1%, p = .004), also in patients with liver involvement (69.2% vs 14.3%, p < .001). The estimated 3-year overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) rates were 94.4% and 54.7%, respectively, in SS-m and MS LCH. Multivariate Cox regression showed that involvement of the liver or spleen at baseline predicted poor EFS and receiving cytarabine-based therapy as a first-line treatment and age older than 30 years at diagnosis predicted favorable EFS. The involvement of risk organs and age older than 50 years predicted poor OS, and receiving cytarabine-based therapy predicted favorable OS. Therefore, BRAF deletion was correlated with MS LCH, particularly those with liver involvement. Liver or spleen involvement at baseline indicates a poor prognosis, and a cytarabine-based regimen could be considered as first-line treatment for adult LCH patients.

An MMP-based risk score strongly distinguishes prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma after resection.

Aim: To first explore the prognostic value of MMP11 and MMP15 in hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: MMP11/MMP15 expression was immunohistochemically detected and correlated with clinicopathologic variables and survival and confirmed in publicly available databases. An MMP-based risk score (MMPRS) was established. Results: Tumoral MMP11/MMP15 expression was higher and univariately associated with crucial clinicopathologic parameters, overall survival and disease-free survival in all patients and/or many subsets. Multivariately, MMP11/MMP15 expression remained significant. Their overexpression and prognostic value were confirmed in the Ualcan and Kaplan-Meier plotter databases. Critically, the novel MMPRS integrating MMP11, MMP15 and tumor-node-metastasis stage identified subgroups with the best and worst prognoses, with much higher predictive power. Conclusion: MMP11 and MMP15 served as prognosticators in hepatocellular carcinoma. MMPRS might work more accurately.

MMP11 and MMP15, involved in cancer dissemination, were found to have important biological functions in several cancers. However, their prognostic value in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unknown. In the present study, it was found that MMP11 and MMP15 were overexpressed and predictive of the outcome of HCC. Moreover, the novel MMP-based risk score integrating MMP11, MMP15 and tumor­node­metastasis stage had much higher prognostic power. MMP11, MMP15 and especially the MMP-based risk score were identified as promising indicators of prognosis in HCC.

Pulmonary manifestations of Erdheim-Chester disease: clinical characteristics, outcomes and comparison with Langerhans cell histiocytosis.

Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) is a rare form of non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis that typically affects many organs, including the lung and pleura. However, there are few studies concerning pulmonary involvement in ECD patients, as well as the difference of pulmonary involvement between ECD and Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH). We performed a retrospective study of 54 ECD patients, and compared the pulmonary manifestations with those of adult LCH patients in our centre. The median age of diagnosis of the 54 ECD patients was 48 years (range 9-66 years). Chest computed tomography (CT) scans revealed lung involvement in 49 (91%) patients and pleural involvement in 34 (63%). Thirty-three (61%) patients had interstitial lung disease (ILD) with varying degrees of interlobular septal thickening, micronodules, and ground-glass opacities. ECD and LCH patients with pulmonary involvement showed significant differences in smoking status (P < 0·001), respiratory symptoms (P = 0·001) such as cough and pneumothorax (P < 0·001), and radiological findings, including cysts (P < 0·001), opacities (P < 0·001), and pleural thickening (P < 0·001). With a median follow-up duration of 24 months (range, 1-84 months), the estimated three-year overall survival (OS) of this entire ECD cohort was 90·2%. Patients with ILD tended to have worse progression-free survival (PFS) than those with no ILD (P = 0·29).

Analysis of reflux as the aetiology of laryngeal dysplasia progression through a matched case-control study.

OBJECTIVES: Laryngeal dysplasia (LD) is a precancerous lesion of the larynx. In this study, the laryngeal tissue of patients with laryngeal dysplasia was taken as the research object, and the aetiology of reflux was analysed. METHOD: Patients with laryngeal dysplasia after surgery were selected as our subjects. The levels of pepsin, enterokinase and bilirubin in laryngeal tissue samples of the two groups were detected by immunohistochemical method. RESULTS: The OR values (95% CI) of pepsin, enterokinase and bilirubin were 0.67 (0.19-2.36), 0.80 (0.22-2.98) and 1.33 (0.30-5.96), respectively, in the univariate analysis. Besides, in the multivariate analysis, the OR values (95% CI) of pepsin, enterokinase and bilirubin were 0.57 (0.14-2.30), 0.73 (0.18-2.92) and 1.40 (0.30-6.53), respectively. CONCLUSION: Larger sample size should be applied to prospective studies on whether reflux is a risk factor for laryngeal cancer.

Diagnostic Utility of Interferon-Gamma Release Assay in Tuberculous Lymphadenitis.

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of T-SPOT.TB for tuberculous lymphadenitis. Methods Suspected tuberculous lymphadenitis patients between September 2010 and September 2018 who had both peripheral blood T-SPOT.TB test and lymph node biopsy were retrospectively enrolled in this study. The cutoff value of T-SPOT.TB test for peripheral blood was set as 24 spot forming cell (SFC)/10 6 periphreral blood monocyte cell (PBMC) according to the instruction of testing kits. The gold standard for diagnosis of TBL was the combination of microbiology results, histopathology results and patient's response to anti-TB treatment. Diagnostic efficacy of T-SPOT.TB was evaluated, including sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, predictive values, and likelihood ratio. Results Among 91 patients who met the inclusion criteria, we excluded 8 cases with incomplete clinical information and 6 cases who lost to follow-up. According to the gold standard, there were 37 cases of true TBL (9 confirmed TBL and 28 probable TBL), 30 cases of non-TBL, and 10 cases of clinically indeterminate diagnosis who were excluded from the final analyses. The T-SPOT.TB tests yielded 43 cases of positive response and 24 cases of negative response. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), positive likelihood ratio (PLR) and negative likelihood ratio (NLR) of peripheral blood T-SPOT.TB for diagnosing TBL were 89.2%, 66.7%, 79.1%, 76.7%, 83.3%, 2.68 and 0.16, respectively. The number of SFCs of T-SPOT.TB in TBL patients [432(134-1264)/10 6 PBMCs] was higher than that in non-TBL patients [0 (0-30) /10 6PBMCs] with a significant difference (Z=-5.306, P <0.001).Conclusion T-SPOT.TB is a rapid and simple diagnostic test for TBL with a high sensitivity and negative predictive value.

Pro54DB: a database for experimentally verified sigma-54 promoters.

Summary: In prokaryotes, the σ54 promoters are unique regulatory elements and have attracted much attention because they are in charge of the transcription of carbon and nitrogen-related genes and participate in numerous ancillary processes and environmental responses. All findings on σ54 promoters are favorable for a better understanding of their regulatory mechanisms in gene transcription and an accurate discovery of genes missed by the wet experimental evidences. In order to provide an up-to-date, interactive and extensible database for σ54 promoter, a free and easy accessed database called Pro54DB (σ54 promoter database) was built to collect information of σ54 promoter. In the current version, it has stored 210 experimental-confirmed σ54 promoters with 297 regulated genes in 43 species manually extracted from 133 publications, which is helpful for researchers in fields of bioinformatics and molecular biology. Availability and Implementation: Pro54DB is freely available on the web at http://lin.uestc.edu.cn/database/pro54db with all major browsers supported. Contacts: greatchen@ncst.edu.cn or hlin@uestc.edu.cn

Safety and fertility outcomes after the conservative treatment of endometrioid borderline ovarian tumours.

BACKGROUND: Because of the rarity of endometrioid borderline ovarian tumours (EBOTs), there is a paucity of data concerning the natural history and prognosis of this condition. Thus, the objective of our study was to establish the feasibility of fertility preservation in young women with EBOTs, as well as their oncological and reproductive outcomes. METHODS: Consecutive patients with EBOTs, treated at a tertiary referral centre during a span of 22 years, were retrospectively analysed. Recurrence-free interval, as well as its association with the type of surgery and with other clinical and pathological features, was assessed using the Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards methods. RESULTS: Of the 59 patients studied, the median follow-up time was 30 months (range, 6-177 months). Nine (15.3%) patients developed 13 recurrences 6-137 months after the initial surgeries, including three patients (5.1%; n = 3/59) who developed six invasive recurrences 8, 18 and 68 months after their initial surgeries. Conservative surgery showed a tendency towards a high recurrence rate (17.2% versus 13.3%); however, this difference was not significant (p = 0.45). The 5-year recurrence-free survival rate was significantly higher in the oophorectomy group than in the cystectomy group (p = 0.001). Cox regression analysis showed that none of the variables assessed were associated with an increased hazard ratio for recurrence, except for a younger age at diagnosis (p = 0.021). Of 20 patients who attempted to conceive, three pregnancies among two patients (10.0%) resulted in two live births. CONCLUSIONS: Conservative surgery with unilateral adnexectomy can be proposed for young women with EBOTs with fertility desire; however, the reproductive result is not satisfactory. In addition, careful evaluations of the endometria should be offered during the initial surgery and follow-up period. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Retrospectively registered.

High nuclear Survivin expression as a poor prognostic marker in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Survivin, one of the key regulators of mitosis and apoptosis, has long been well recognized to play important biological roles in many neoplasms, including pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). However, its prognostic value in PDAC remains controversial. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Nuclear expression of Survivin was detected, using tissue microarray-based immunohistochemistry, in paired-tumor and nontumor samples from 306 patients with radically resected PDAC. The staining H scores were further correlated with clinicopathologic features and disease-specific survival (DSS). RESULTS: Nuclear Survivin expression was much higher in tumor than in nontumor tissues (P < 0.001). No significant association between tumoral Survivin expression and clinicopathologic variables was found. For prognosis, high Survivin expression was associated with shortened DSS in all eligible patients and four subgroups, that is, male and nondiabetic patients as well as those with head-located and G1-2 tumors, shown by univariate analyses. In addition, a statistically marginal significance was revealed in eight subgroups. For the entire cohort and two subgroups, nuclear Survivin expression was also multivariate identified as an independent predictor for DSS. For patients with G1-2 tumors, it was the single prognostic marker. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest an association between high nuclear Survivin expression and poor prognosis in PDAC. However, further confirmation might be necessary.

Comparison of Ultrasound Features of Primary Metastatic Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma and Recurrent/Persistent Metastatic Cervical Lymph Nodes.

Objective To explore the ultrasound features and levels of cervical lymph node metastases in primary and recurrent/persistent papillary thyroid cancer (PTC).Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 2181 patients who underwent cervical lymph nodes dissection for PTC from January 1st 2015 to January 1st 2016.Totally 418 PTC patients (with 622 lymph nodes) who met the inclusion criteria entered the final analysis.Patients who had not received any prior thyroid treatment (surgery with or without radioactive iodine) were categorized as the primary group (352 patients with 527 metastatic lymph nodes),and patients who had received prior treatment (thyroidectomy with or without radioactive iodine) for PTC were categorized as recurrent/persistent group (66 patients with 95 metastatic lymph nodes).Pathological results from lymph node dissections were used as the gold standards by means of level-to-level analysis.Results The mean of the minimum axis diameter of the lymph nodes in the primary group was (6.7±3.6)mm,and that of the recurrent/persistent group was (6.6±3.1)mm (U=0.180,P=0.857).The proportion of metastasis in the central area of primary group was 40.0%,which was significantly higher than that in the recurrent/persistent group (12.6%);the proportion of metastasis in the lateral area was 60.6% in the primary group,which was significantly lower than that in the recurrent/persistent group (87.4%)(χ2=26.288,P<0.001).In lateral metastatic lymph nodes,Ⅲ level was the most common place in both groups.Level Ⅴ metastatic lymph was rare in both primary group and recurrent/persistent group.Calcifications (63.1% vs. 48.2%;χ2=7.207,P=0.007) and peripheral vascularity (81.1% vs. 59.4%;χ2= 16.147, P<0.001) were more common in the recurrent/persistent group.The round shape,absence of an echogenic hilum,hyperechogenicity,and cystic aspects were not significantly different between these two groups (all P>0.05).Conclusions Primary metastatic lymph nodes often occur in the central area of lymph nodes,while lateral metastatic lymph nodes are more common in recurrent/persistent PTC.For metastatic lymph nodes,calcifications and peripheral vascularity are more common in recurrent/persistent PTC.

Evaluation of clinicopathologic characteristics and the BRAF V600E mutation in Erdheim-Chester disease among Chinese adults.

Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) is a rare form of histiocytosis with a broad, non-specific clinical spectrum. Here, we retrospectively evaluated the clinical and pathologic characteristics, presence of the BRAF V600E mutation, treatment options, and outcomes of Chinese patients diagnosed with ECD at our center. Patients diagnosed with ECD between January 2010 and April 2015 at Peking Union Medical College Hospital were included for study. We evaluated baseline characteristics, reviewed histological material, and tested for the presence of the BRAF V600E mutation using immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Sixteen patients were diagnosed with ECD. Median disease duration (from the first symptom to diagnosis) was 22.5 months (range, 3-100 months). The main sites of involvement included bone (93.8 %), cardiovascular region (43.8 %), skin (31.3 %), central nervous system (25 %), and "hairy kidney" (25 %). The BRAF V600E mutation was detected in 68.8 % patients using PCR and 50 % patients with immunohistochemistry. Three patients could not be diagnosed using histological analysis owing to similarities with Rosai-Dorfman disease, and diagnosis in these cases was confirmed based on the BRAF V600E mutation status. Ten patients (62.5 %) received IFN-α as first-line treatment. Thirteen patients (81.3 %) were still alive at median follow-up of 14.5 months. ECD remains a largely overlooked disease, and increased recognition by clinicians and pathologists is necessary for effective diagnosis and treatment. The presence of the BRAF V600E mutation may facilitate discrimination of ECD from other non-Langerhans cell histiocytoses.

Comparison of ultrasonic features between anaplastic thyroid carcinoma and papillary thyroid carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the difference of the ultrasonic features between anaplastic thyroid carcinoma and papillary thyroid carcinoma. METHODS: The ultrasound data of 7 patients with histopathologically confirmed anaplastic thyroid carcinomas who were treated in PUMC Hospital from April 2001 to June 2014 were retrospectively studied. In addition, 21 sex-and age-matched patients with histopathologically confirmed papillary thyroid carcinomas during the same period were enrolled as the control group. The pathologic results were regarded as the gold standard. The ultrasonic features of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma and papillary thyroid carcinoma were analyzed and compared. RESULTS: Patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma were predominantly females (5/7,71.4%), with an average age of (64.9 ± 11.3) years. Large mass [(5.17 ± 1.26) cm vs. (1.85 ± 1.89)cm, P<0.001], anteroposterior-to-transverse diameter ratio less than 1(100.0% vs. 47.6%, P ＝ 0.03), and punctuate calcification (100.0% vs. 52.4%, P ＝ 0.03) were more frequently associated with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma than with papillary thyroid carcinoma. No significant difference was observed between the two groups in the shape, margin, cystic change, echogenicity, echotexture,vascularity,and envelope (all P>0.05). CONCLUSION: In elderly women with common malignant features on ultrasound, the thyroid nodules with a maximum diameter greater than 5 cm,anteroposterior-to-transverse diameter ratio less than 1,and microcalcifications are highly likely to be anaplastic thyroid carcinoma.

BRAFV600E mutation does not predict lymph node metastases and recurrence in Chinese papillary thyroid microcarcinoma patients.

OBJECT: Previous studies suggest BRAFV600E mutation is a marker for poor prognosis in papillary thyroid cancer, however, its ability to further risk stratify papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) remains controversial. We aimed to explore the association between BRAFV600E mutation and the clinicopathological features and recurrence in Chinese PTMC patients. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 2094 PTMC patients who underwent surgery and had a valid BRAFV600E mutation test result. Among them, 1292 patients had complete follow-up data. The mutation incidence was determined. Moreover, the clinicopathological characteristics, disease-free survival (DFS), and response to therapy distribution were compared between the mutation and non-mutation groups. RESULTS: BRAFV600E mutation was observed in 90.6 % of all patients and 89.2 % of patients with complete follow-up data. No significant difference was observed in lymph node metastases (LNM) number categories between the mutation and non-mutation groups among all patients (P = 0.329) and 1292 patients (P = 0.408). Neither the 3-year DFS (97.9 % vs. 98.0 %, P = 0.832) nor the response to therapy distribution (P > 0.05) indicated a significant difference between the mutation and non-mutation groups. The 3-year DFS differs among patients having different LNM number categories (99.8 % vs. 98.5 % vs. 77.3 %, P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that high-volume (over 5) LNM (Total thyroidectomy (TT): OR = 4.000, 95 % CI 2.390-6.694, P < 0.001; Unilateral thyroidectomy (UT): OR = 4.183, 95 % CI 1.565-11.190, P = 0.004), rather than BRAFV600E mutation (P > 0.05), was an independent risk factor of response to therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggested that BRAFV600E mutation could not accurately predict LNM or the recurrence of Chinese PTMC patients. Moreover, high-volume LNM is significantly associated with PTMC prognosis.

[Invasive properties of papillary thyroid cancer with concurrent BRAF(V600E) mutation and rearranged during transfection proto-oncogene protein expression].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the aggressive properties of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) with concurrent BRAF(V600E) mutation and rearranged during transfection (RET) proto-oncogene protein expression. METHODS: Fifty pathologically confirmed PTC patients who had received thyroidectomy were enrolled in this study. BRAF(V600E) mutation was detected by real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), while RET protein expression was measured by immunohistochemical SP method. Clinical and pathological features were compared between the concurrent BRAF(V600E) mutation and RET protein expression group (n=24) and BRAF(V600E) mutation or RET protein expression alone group (n=19). Seven patients were ruled out from the final analysis due to the absence of either BRAF(V600E) mutation or RET protein expression. RESULTS: Of these 50 patients, BRAF(V600E) mutation and RET protein expression were detected in 38 patients (76%) and 28 patients (56%), respectively. Concurrent BRAF(V600E) mutation and RET expression was detected in 24 patients (48%). Compared with the concurrent BRAF(V600E) mutation and RET protein expression group, the BRAF(V600E) mutation or RET protein expression alone group had relatively poorer tissue differentiation and higher prognostic score (P=0.011, P=0.022). CONCLUSION: PTC patients with concurrent BRAF(V600E) mutation and RET expression present poorer differentiation, more highly aggressive variant in carcinoma tissues, and higher cancer-related mortality risk.

[Invasiveness of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma with BRAF mutation].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the invasiveness of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma(PTMC)with BRAF mutation. METHODS: Totally 99 patients with PTMC with BRAF mutation were enrolled in this study, meanwhile another 97 patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) (tumor size>1 cm)with BRAF mutation were included as controls. The clinicopathologic factors including extrathyroidal invasion, multifocality, and distant metastasis were analyzed. RESULTS: The rates of extrathyroidal invasion and nodal metastasis in PTMC group were as high as 16.10% and 71.74%, respectively. In the PTMC group and PTC group,the extrathyroidal invasion rate was 16.10% and 39.18%, cervical lymph node metastasis rate was 71.74% and 91.75%, and distant metastasis rate was 1.01% and 9.28%, respectively. In the PTMC subgroups with tumor sizes ≤0.3 cm, 0.3-0.6 cm, and 0.6-1.0 cm, the cervical lymph node invasion rate was 60.00%, 72.50%, and 73.81%, the extrathyroidal invasion rate was 10.00%, 9.09%, and 24.44%, and the multifocality rate was 60.00%, 38.64%, and 57.78%, respectively. Univariate analysis showed that the tumor size was not significantly correlated with multifocality (Χ (2)=3.752, P=0.153), cervical lymph node metastasis (Χ (2) = 0.780,P = 0.677), extrathyroidal invasion (Χ (2) = 4.182, P = 0.124), and distant metastasis (Χ (2)=1.212, P = 0.545). While the BRAF group and PTC group were not significantly different in multifocality (Χ (2) = 1.742, P=0.187), they were significantly different in terms of extrathyroidal invasion (Χ (2) = 13.000, P = 0.000), nodal involvement (Χ (2) = 12.819, P = 0.000), and distant metastasis (Χ (2) = 5.316, P = 0.021). Multivariate analysis showed that nodal metastasis was independently associated with size>1 cm (P=0.001) and extrathyroidal invasion (P=0.003). CONCLUSIONS: BRAF mutant PTMC manifests relative high extrathyroidal involvement and nodal metastasis, and the similar multifocality as BRAF mutant PTC. Radioactive iodine should be considered in PTMC with the presence of BRAF mutation combined with extrathyroidal invasion or nodal metastasis.

[Invasive capacity of differentiated thyroid carcinoma in pediatric and adolescent patients].

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the invasion features of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) in pediatric and adolescent patients. METHODS: The clinical data of 32 DTC cases (≤18 years old) were retrospectively analyzed for the invasive capacity of DTC in terms of age and gender. RESULTS: Bilateral (P=0.023), multifoci (P=0.037), and extrathyroid invasions (P=0.041) were more often in patients younger than 12 years old. CONCLUSION: DTC in pediatric and adolescent patients tend to have a more aggressive pattern, especially in patients younger than 12 years.

A new quinoline based probe with large Stokes shift and high sensitivity for formaldehyde and its bioimaging applications.

As a common reactive metabolite in living organisms, abnormal levels of formaldehyde may cause diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, it is important to develop a sensitive and efficient method to understand the role of formaldehyde in physiology and pathology. Herein, a new fluorescent probe 4-phenyl-2-(trifluoromethyl) quinolin-7-hydrazino (QH-FA) was prepared for the detection of formaldehyde in near-total aqueous media with hydrazine as the reaction site and quinoline derivatives as the fluorophore. After reacting with formaldehyde, the hydrazine group formed methylenehydrazine and the fluorescence was significantly enhanced (223-fold) with large Stokes shift of 140 nm. Furthermore, the response of QH-FA to formaldehyde could be finished with in only 10 min with good selectivity, and can distinguish formaldehyde from other aldehydes. More remarkably, the estimated limit of detection of QH-FA is 8.1 nM, which is superior to those of previously reported formaldehyde fluorescent probes. At the end, we detected formaldehyde in cells and zebrafish using QH-FA in a near-total aqueous system and obtained fluorescence images by confocal microscopy.

Facile synthesis of non-modified yellow emission silicon quantum dots and their visualization of hydrogen sulfide in living cells and onion tissues.

Yellow fluorescent silicon quantum dots (y-SiQDs) with 22.2% fluorescence quantum yield were synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method using 3-glycidoxypropyl triethoxysilane (GOTS) and m-aminophenol. The excitation wavelength is 550 nm with an emission wavelength of 574 nm, which effectively avoids the interference of biological autofluorescence. Notably, the synthesis approach does not require any post-modification and the y-SiQDs can be directly used for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) quantification due to static quenching. It exhibits high sensitivity and excellent selectivity for H2S with a 0.2-10 µM (R2 = 0.9953) linear range and detection limit of 54 nM. y-SiQDs have excellent stability and biocompatibility and can be used for H2S imaging in living cells and onion tissues.

Diagnosis, Genetics, and Management of 24 Patients With Cardiac Paragangliomas: Experience From a Single Center.

Context: Paragangliomas located within the pericardium represent a rare yet challenging clinical situation. Objective: The current analysis aimed to describe the clinical characteristics of cardiac paragangliomas, with emphasis on the diagnostic approach, genetic background, and multidisciplinary management. Methods: Twenty-four patients diagnosed with cardiac paraganglioma (PGL) in Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing, China, between 2003 and 2021 were identified. Clinical data was collected from medical record. Genetic screening and succinate dehydrogenase subunit B immunohistochemistry were performed in 22 patients. Results: The median age at diagnosis was 38 years (range 11-51 years), 8 patients (33%) were females, and 4 (17%) had familial history. Hypertension and/or symptoms related to catecholamine secretion were present in 22 (92%) patients. Excess levels of catecholamines and/or metanephrines were detected in 22 (96%) of the 23 patients who have completed biochemical testing. Cardiac PGLs were localized with 131I-metaiodobenzylguanidine scintigraphy in 11/22 (50%), and 99mTc-hydrazinonicotinyl-tyr3-octreotide scintigraphy in 24/24 (100%) patients. Genetic testing identified germline SDHx mutations in 13/22 (59%) patients, while immunohistochemistry revealed succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) deficiency in tumors from 17/22 (77%) patients. All patients were managed by a multidisciplinary team through medical preparation, surgery, and follow-up. Twenty-three patients received surgical treatment and perioperative death occurred in 2 cases. Overall, 21 patients were alive at follow-up (median 7.0 years, range 0.6-18 years). Local recurrence or metastasis developed in 3 patients, all of whom had SDH-deficient tumors. Conclusion: Cardiac PGLs can be diagnosed based on clinical manifestations, biochemical tests, and appropriate imaging studies. Genetic screening, multidisciplinary approach, and long-term follow-up are crucial in the management of this disease.