Effect of different catheter pathways on wounds after minimally invasive radical prostatectomy: A meta-analysis.

Prostate cancer is one of the most common malignancies worldwide and the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths in men. With the rapidly increasing surgical rate of minimally invasive radical prostatectomy, there is still controversy about how to use a urinary catheter post-operatively. Thus, we attempted to compare the post-operative wound-related outcomes through a meta-analysis of urethral catheterisation (UC) versus suprapubic catheterisation (SPC) after minimally invasive radical prostatectomy. As of August 2023, the authors conducted systematic searches in databases such as PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane Library. The authors reviewed the relevant literature separately to determine comparisons between SPC and UC treatment after radical prostatectomy. A total of 395 subjects were enrolled in the five trials, met the eligibility criteria and were included in the meta-analysis. Data collection and analysis revealed significant differences in catheter bother to patients for surgical trauma (MD, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.48, 1.48 p = 0.0001), with SPC causing less catheter bother to patients post-operatively; post-operative catheter-related problems (OR, 3.3; 95% CI, 0.03, 326.1 p = 0.61), the POD1 of the post-operative period (MD, - 0.09; 95% CI, -0.75, 0.94 p = 0.83) and the POD3 of the post-operative period (MD, -0.49; 95% CI, -0.99, 0.01 p = 0.06); there was no statistically significant difference in wound pain. Compared with UC, SPC patients had less post-operative catheter distress. Thus, SPC is more beneficial in reducing post-operative wound discomfort in patients. The validity of the results remains to be tested in more and better studies.

KRT6A expedites bladder cancer progression, regulated by miR-31-5p.

Bladder cancer is one of the most severe life-threatening illnesses worldwide. To contribute to a solution to this public health issue, here, we sought to identify a novel biomarker for the early diagnosis of bladder tumors. We conducted RNA sequence analysis utilizing samples from tumorous tissue and adjacent healthy tissue in bladder cancer patients and found that KRT6A was upregulated in bladder tumor tissues, suggesting that it might be a candidate for involvement in bladder tumorigenesis. Accordingly, we performed a series of experiments to further verify the role of KRT6A in bladder tumor progression. Our results revealed that KRT6A promoted bladder tumor cell viability, proliferation, and adhesion, while diminishing bladder tumor cell apoptosis. We also focused on the role of epigenetics in bladder tumors and verified that KRT6A was a miR-31-5p target gene, and its positive effect on bladder tumor progression was relieved by miR-31-5p. Overall, this study sheds new light regarding a novel oncogenic regulatory axis, KRT6A/miR-31-5p, which is related to bladder tumor growth.

Use of alkaline extraction to quantify sulfate concentration in oxidized mine tailings.

An alkaline extraction method has been developed for the determination of total sulfate in mine tailings containing secondary sulfate minerals formed by the oxidation of primary sulfides. Oxidized tailings were extracted with a 0.3 M NaOH solution at a liquid/solid ratio of 30 at room temperature for 16 h. The sulfate concentration in the extracts was determined by ion chromatography (IC). The coefficient of variation for sulfate determinations ranged from 1.9 to 3.2% for five tailings samples collected at two tailings impoundments. Mineralogical analysis of the tailings by scanning electron microscopy/X-ray energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM/EDS) demonstrated that the extraction of sulfate was complete, with the exception of extremely insoluble barite. The proposed method is simple, yields an accurate yet rapid measurement of sulfate, and involves a safer laboratory operation than conventional methods that make use of strong HCl acid solutions. Moreover, this method allows the specific measurement of sulfate in the extract, whereas conventional methods are generally limited to the measurement of total S by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) due to the interference of chloride with sulfate in IC.

Reactivity of oxidized sulfidic mine tailings during lime treatment.

Lime amendment is a common method for neutralizing the accumulated acidity and sequestering metals in oxidized mine tailings. This study assessed the reactivity of sulfide oxidation products during lime treatment of tailings samples from the Kam Kotia mine site in Timmins, Ontario. The contributions of several alkalinity consumption mechanisms to the lime requirements were compared. Methods involved lime treatment tests, multiple water extractions, sequential extractions, analytical scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray diffractometry. The majority of the alkalinity consumption was due to the reaction of water-insoluble Fe-oxyhydroxysulfate minerals (including K-jarosite, Na-jarosite, H-jarosite, and schwertmannite) with lime to form Fe-oxyhydroxides (including goethite) and gypsum. The cation exchange capacity of the oxidized tailings contributed a minor proportion to the alkalinity consumption. Measurements of water-soluble acidity underestimated lime requirements by more than 50% on average.