Recent Advancements in Intestinal Microbiota Analyses: A Review for Non-Microbiologists.

Microbial constituents naturally inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract may influence the homeostasis of the gut environment. The presence or overabundance of some bacterial taxa has been reported to be associated with complex diseases, and the metabolites of certain bacteria may contribute to diverse disorders by influencing signaling pathways. Therefore, the study of gut microbial population has emerged as a crucial field and a new potential area of clinical significance. Advances in the methods of microbiota analysis have shed light upon the details including species diversity, microfloral activities as well as the entire gut microbiota. Nevertheless, comprehensive reviews on this subject are still limited. For elucidating the appropriate selection strategy of the methods to address a particular research question, we comprehensively reviewed the continuously improving technologies, classical to newly developed, and dissected their relative advantages and drawbacks. In addition, aiming at the rapidly advancing next-generation sequencing, we enumerated the improvements in mainstream platforms and made the horizontal and vertical comparison among them. Additionally, we demonstrated the four main -omics methods, which may provide further mechanistic insights into the role of microbiota, to propel phylotyping analysis to functional analysis.

Diagnostic power of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging for the presence of lymph node metastasis: A meta-analysis.

Present work was designed to quantitatively evaluate the performance of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) in the diagnosis of the presence of metastasis in lymph nodes (LNs). Eligible studies were identified from systematical PubMed and EMBASE searches. Data were extracted. Meta-analyses were performed to generate pooled sensitivity and specificity on the basis of per-node, per-lesion and per-patient, respectively. Fourteen publications (2458 LNs, 404 lesions and 334 patients) were eligible. Per-node basis demonstrated the pooled sensitivity and specificity was 0.82 (P<0.0001) and 0.90 (P<0.0001), respectively. Per-lesion basis illustrated the pooled sensitivity and specificity was 0.73 (P=0.0036) and 0.85 (P<0.0001), respectively. Per-patient basis indicated the pooled sensitivity and specificity was 0.67 (P=0.0909) and 0.86 (P<0.0001), respectively. In conclusion, DWI has rather a negative predictive value for the diagnosis of LN metastasis presence. The difference of the mean apparent diffusion coefficients between benign and malignant LNs is not yet stable. Therefore, the DWI technique has to be further improved.

Oxidative stress-mediated cytotoxicity and metabolism of T-2 toxin and deoxynivalenol in animals and humans: an update.

Trichothecenes are a large family of structurally related toxins mainly produced by Fusarium genus. Among the trichothecenes, T-2 toxin and deoxynivalenol (DON) cause the most concern due to their wide distribution and highly toxic nature. Trichothecenes are known for their inhibitory effect on eukaryotic protein synthesis, and oxidative stress is one of their most important underlying toxic mechanisms. They are able to generate free radicals, including reactive oxygen species, which induce lipid peroxidation leading to changes in membrane integrity, cellular redox signaling, and in the antioxidant status of the cells. The mitogen-activated protein kinases signaling pathway is induced by oxidative stress, which also induces caspase-mediated cellular apoptosis pathways. Several new metabolites and novel metabolic pathways of T-2 toxin have been discovered very recently. In human cell lines, HT-2 and neosolaniol (NEO) are the major metabolites of T-2 toxin. Hydroxylation on C-7 and C-9 are two novel metabolic pathways of T-2 toxin in rats. The metabolizing enzymes CYP3A22, CYP3A29, and CYP3A46 in pigs, as well as the enzymes CYP1A5 and CYP3A37 in chickens, are able to catalyze T-2 toxin and HT-2 toxin to form the C-3'-OH metabolites. Similarly to carboxylesterase, CYP3A29 possesses the hydrolytic ability in pigs to convert T-2 toxin to NEO. T-2 toxin is able to down- or upregulate cytochrome P-450 enzymes in different species. The metabolism of DON in humans is region-dependent. Free DON and DON-glucuronide are considered to be the biomarkers for humans. The masked mycotoxin DON-3-ß-D-glucoside can be hydrolyzed to free DON in the body. This review will provide useful information on the progress of oxidative stress as well as on the metabolism and the metabolizing enzymes of T-2 toxin and DON. Moreover, the literature will throw light on the blind spots of metabolism and toxicological studies in trichothecenes that have to be explored in the future.

[Primary culture of mammary epithelial cells derived from human breast hypertrophy].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the primary culture of mammary epithelial cells derived from human breast hypertrophy. METHODS: Mammary epithelial cells of human breast hypertrophy were isolated and cultured by the collagenase digestion method. The morphology observation and identification of the cultured cells were performed by inverted microscope observation, HE staining and cytokeratin immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: Most of the cultured cells were pebbles-like or polygon under the inverted microscopy. Some had irregular form. They had typical island-like appearance during multiplication with close connection between the cells. The HE staining results showed the cytoplasm was stained pink or lilac, the nucleus was stained bluish violet and was round or oval in shape, with clearly visible chromosomes in dark blue. The cytokeratin immunohistochemical staining demonstrated the tissue-specific expression of cytokeratin 18 in epithelial cells by the cytoplasm stained claybank. CONCLUSION: High purity of primary mammary epithelial cells derived from human breast hypertrophy can be obtained by the collagenase digestion method and conditioned medium.

[Reduction mammaplasty with central gland pedicle based on Würinger's horizontal septum].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the method and efficacy of reduction mammaplasty with central gland pedicle based on Würinger' s horizontal septum in the treatment of female breast hypertrophy. METHODS: From Mar. 2009 to Sept. 2011, a series of 21 consecutive patients with mild and moderate hypermastia underwent reduction mammaplasty with central gland pedicle. Only the mammary gland located at cranial portion of septum was resected and the mammary gland located at caudal portion of septum was preserved. RESULTS: In our series, the mean resection weight per breast was (327.8 +/- 148.6) g, the mean nipple-to clavicle midpoint was 20.0 cm (range, 18.0-22.0 cm) and the mean nipple-to-sternal-notch distance was 21.0 cm (range, 19.5-22.5 cm) postoperatively. Nipple was moved upward 6.5 cm on average (range, 4.0-10.0 cm). There was no hematoma and nipple-areolar complex (NAC) necrosis. Minimal wound dehiscence occurred in one case and healed by dressing change. 17 cases were followed up for 3 months to 2 years. Satisfactory breast shape was achieved with good NAC sensibility. CONCLUSIONS: The reduction mammaplasty with central gland pedicle based on Würinger' s horizontal septum is a safe and reliable technique for mild and moderate hypermastia. Satisfactory breast contour, as well as NAC viability and sensibility, could be achieved with lower occurrence of hematoma or seroma.

[Correction of mild and moderate breast ptosis with glandular flap combined with dermal flap suspension].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the therapeutic effect of glandular flap combined with dermal flap suspension for correction of mild and moderate breast ptosis. METHODS: The dermal flap was formed according to the breast ptosis and dissection was performed between the skin and gland. The superior-lateral gland was partially resected or cut vertically only to form the lateral glandular flap. Then the glandular flap was rotated medially and fixed to shrink the glandular base area. Then the breast was up-positioned and fixed with dermal flap to remodel the breast shape. RESULTS: From Mar. 2006 to Mar. 2010, 46 cases were treated with satisfactory result. There was no severe complication, except for 2 cases of unilateral hematoma. 40 cases were followed up for 6 months to 4 years with good breast shape. No secondary ptosis, breast flatten and NAC sensation disorder was happened. CONCLUSIONS: Glandular flap combined with dermal flap suspension is a good method for mild and moderate breast ptosis with reliable long-term results. The breasts have busty appearance and good projection with inconspicuous scar.