Endobronchial Ultrasound-Guided Iodine-125 Radioactive Seed Implantation as a Novel Therapy for Mediastinal Tumors.

Objective: This study aims to test the treatment effect of endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS)-guided interstitial iodine-125 (125I) seed implantation for mediastinal lymph node metastasis or advanced mediastinal lung cancer. Materials and Methods: The patients with mediastinal lymph node metastasis or advanced mediastinal lung cancer, who had undergone surgery for resection of primary lesions and repeated chemotherapy or external radiotherapy, were selected and scheduled to undergo EBUS-guided 125I seed implantation from December 2015 to May 2017. Forty patients were included into this study. Clinical data of these patients were collected and the short-term effects were observed. Then, the feasibility for treating mediastinal tumors was retrospectively analyzed. The follow-up period ranged within 1-6 months. Results: The procedure was successfully completed, and all patients well tolerated the procedure without any major complications. The response evaluation criteria in solid tumors were utilized to test the treatment effect, and the overall response rates (complete remission + partial remission) at postoperative 2, 4, and 6 months were 65.00% (13/20), 80.00% (16/20), and 85.0% (17/20), respectively. All patients of this study survived throughout the follow-up period. Conclusions: This experience revealed that EBUS-guided 125I radioactive seed implantation is effective and safe, and is a prospective approach for treating patients with mediastinal lymph node metastasis or advanced mediastinal lung cancer.

Redetermination of 2,4'-methyl-ene-diphenol.

In the previous determination [Finn & Musti (1950 ▶). J. Soc. Chem. Ind. (London), 69, S849] of the title compound, C(13)H(12)O(2), the three-dimensional coordinates and displacement parameters were not reported. This redetermination at room temperature reveals that the dihedral angle between the benzene rings is 79.73 (6)°. In the crystal, inter-molecular O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds between adjacent mol-ecules result in two-dimensional wave-like supra-molecular motifs parallel to the ab plane.

[Comparative studies on the difference between Ascaris lumbricoides and Ascaris suum].

There has been continued controversy on the taxonomy of Ascaris lumbricoides Linnaeus, 1758 from humans and Ascaris suum Goeze, 1782 from pigs. This article reviews a range of comparative studies related to host susceptibility, morphology, karyotype, immunology and biochemistry, as well as molecular genetics in recent years.

[The second stage larvae of Ascaris lumbricoides].

OBJECTIVE: To induce the apoptosis of human alveolar epithelial cells (A549) by the extraction of the second stage larvae of Ascaris lumbricoides and investigate the extraction concentration and inducing time related to the apoptosis. METHODS: Following to the results of Microculture Tetrazolium Test (MTT), five concentrations of the extraction of the second stage larvae were chosen to induce the apoptosis of A549 cells. Meanwhile, control groups without the inducement were set up. For each group, observation was made at five time points since the start of inducement, to assess the existence of apoptosis and percentage of cells showing characteristics of apoptosis. HE stain and diphenylamine reaction methods were used to assess the cell apoptosis. Agarose gel electrophoresis of DNA and flow cytometry were also employed to confirm the apoptosis for some groups. RESULTS: Observations indicated that the apoptosis ratio of A549 cells induced by the extraction at different concentrations were significantly higher than that of the control cells (P < 0.05). At most time points of observation, the apoptosis ratio increased with the increase of concentration, indicating a positive correlation between them. For each concentration group, the apoptosis ratio increased as the inducing time prolonged until a peak appeared at 5 h of the inducement. CONCLUSION: The extraction of the second stage larvae of Ascaris lumbricoides can induce apoptosis of human alveolar epithelial cells in vitro with a concentration-dependent pattern. With regard to the relationship of apoptosis to the time of inducement, two trends were revealed and the relationship also influenced by the concentration of the larvae extraction.