Heterogeneous Nitrogen Supply With High Frequency and Ramet Damage Increases the Benefits of Clonal Integration in Invasive Hydrocotyle vulgaris.

Nitrogen (N) deposition significantly affects the growth and the function of invasive clonal plants. However, the effects of heterogeneous N supply with different frequencies on the growth and the potential contribution of clonal integration in invasion plants are still unclear, especially in the complex environment considering ramet damage. To address this question, apical and basal ramets of the clonal invader Hydrocotyle vulgaris were connected or disconnected, N was added to the basal ramets with a high frequency, a low frequency, or no supply, and the total N quantity was the same for the different frequency. Furthermore, 8 aphids were placed on the apical ramets, and 30% of each leaf was cut off to cause damage. The connection between ramets significantly increased the biomass, total carbon (C), and total N of the basal and apical ramets. Higher frequency N supply significantly increased the biomass, total C, and total N of the basal ramets and the entire clonal fragment biomass. The damage had no significant effect on the growth of basal and apical ramets. Especially, under the high N frequency and ramet damage condition, the connection between ramets more significantly increased the biomass, total C, and total N of the apical ramets and the entire clonal fragment biomass. In addition, the uptake rates of 15 NH 4 + and 15 NO 3 - in H. vulgaris had no significant difference, and N supply increased the uptake rates of 15 NH 4 + and 15 NO 3 - of the basal ramets. Our results suggest that both higher frequency N supply and clonal integration are beneficial to the growth of H. vulgaris. Moreover, the heterogeneous N supply with high frequency and ramet damage increases the benefits of clonal integration in H. vulgaris. These findings improve our understanding of the response of clonal invader H. vulgaris to nitrogen deposition and ramet damage.

Cdc42 functions as a regulatory node for tumour-derived microvesicle biogenesis.

Tumour-derived microvesicles (MVs) serve as critical mediators of cell-to-cell communication in the tumour microenvironment. So far, the underlying mechanisms of MV biogenesis, especially how key tumorigenesis signals such as abnormal EGF signalling regulates MV release, remain unclear. Here, we set out to establish reliable readouts for MV biogenesis and then explore the molecular mechanisms that regulate MV generation. We found that Rho family small G protein Cdc42 is a convergent node of multiple regulatory signals that occur in MV biogenesis. The binding of activated GTP-bound Cdc42 and its downstream effector, Ras GTPase-activating-like protein 1 (IQGAP1), is required for MV shedding. Activated Cdc42 maintains sustained EGF signalling by inhibiting the internalization of cell surface receptors, including EGFR and the VEGF oligomer, VEGF90K, and then facilitates MV release. Subsequently, we further demonstrated that blocking these signalling pathways using the corresponding mutants effectively reduced MV shedding and significantly inhibited MV-promoted in vivo tumour angiogenesis. These findings reveal a complex regulation of MV shedding by tumour cells, shedding light on the regulatory mechanism of MV biogenesis, and potentially contributing to strategies that target MVs in cancer therapy.

DaHuangWan targets EGF signaling to inhibit the proliferation of hepatoma cells.

DaHuangWan (DHW) is a traditional herbal medicine used by Mongolian to treat liver cancer for many years. Clinical application of the drug has been shown to help control tumor progression, prolong survival and improve quality of life. However, the underlying mechanisms and side effects of this drug remain unclear, which greatly limits the clinical application and further optimization of DHW. In this study, we found that DHW inhibits the proliferation of hepatoma cells by modulating the epithelial growth factor (EGF) signaling pathway. Berberine and Costunolide are the main active ingredients in DHW. Interestingly, the combination of Berberine and Costunolide has a dramatic synergistic effect on inhibiting the proliferation of hepatoma cells. Neither Berberine nor Costunolide directly block EGFR phosphorylation. Berberine promotes endocytosis of activated EGFR, while as Costunolide increases ubiquitination of EGFR and reduces EGFR recycling to cell membrane distribution, thereby inhibiting EGF signaling. Berberine and Costunolide target two different steps in regulating the EGF signaling, which explains the synergistic anti-cancer effect of DHW. Since Berberine and Costunolide do not directly target EGFR phosphorylation, DHW could be a supplementary medicine to tyrosine kinase inhibitors in cancer therapy.

The effectiveness and safety of cervus and cucumis polypeptide injection in promoting fracture healing after bone fracture surgeries: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Bone fractures are a common occurrence, and, according to clinical investigations, approximately 5% to 10% of patients with fractures will suffer from delayed healing or even non-healing. The high efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine in promoting fracture healing has been fully verified over a long history of diagnosis and treatment. Traditional Chinese medicine has a long history of applying Chinese herbs to treat fractures. Cervus and cucumis polypeptide injection has been widely used to promote fracture healing after fracture surgery in clinic, but its efficacy and safety are controversial. For the above reasons, the purpose of this study is to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of cervus and cucumis polypeptide injection in promoting fracture healing after bone fracture surgeries and to provide a theoretical basis for the selection of appropriate treatment measures for delayed healing of patients with fractures. METHODS: A total of 8 databases were searched, including the non-Chinese-language databases PubMed, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase and the Chinese databases Chongqing VIP Chinese Journal Service Platform (VIP), Wanfang Data Knowledge Service Platform (Wanfang Data), SinoMed and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). The databases were queried for publicly released randomized controlled trials of the effectiveness and safety of Cervus and Cucumis polypeptide injection for fracture healing after surgical treatment, and no language restrictions were imposed. The software Review Manager 5.3 was used to evaluate the quality of the selected documents, and Stata 12.0 software was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: This review will be to assess the efficacy and safety of cervus and cucumis polypeptide injection in promoting fracture healing after bone fracture surgeries. CONCLUSION: Our study will use systematic evaluation to objectively evaluate the efficacy and safety of cervus and cucumis polypeptide injection in promoting fracture healing after fracture surgery. It will provide theoretical basis for guiding clinical practice and benefit more patients. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study is a systematic review that does not require ethical approval and meets the requirements of protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis. At the same time, this study does not involve the recruitment of patients. All data are from published academic papers. PROTOCOL AND REGISTRATION: A protocol had been registered for this systematic review and meta-analysis in PROSPERO. (registration number: CRD42019120965).

Ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy for diagnosing thyroid nodules:a meta analysis / 重庆医学

Objective To evaluate the value of ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy(US-CNB) in diagnosing malignant and benign thyroid nodule by meta-analysis.Methods A computer-based online retrieval on the accurate tests of US-CNB for diagnosing thyroid nodule was conducted in PubMed,Cochrane Library (Issue 5,2016),EMbase,CBM,CNKI,VIP,Wangfang Data databases.The retrieval time limit was from the database establishment to June 8,2016.The quality of included articles was assessed by using the quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies (QUADAS).The puncture success rate,diagnosis sensitivity (Sen),specificity (Spe),positive likelihood ratio (+LR),negative likelihood ratio (-LR),diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and area under the curve (AUC) of summary receiver operating characteristic curve (SROC) were served as the outcome indicators.The included data were performed the statistical analysis by using STATA12.0 and Meta-Disc 1.4 softwares.Results A total of 29 diagnostic accuracy trials were finally included,involving 4 213 patients with 4 391 thyroid nodules.The meta-analysis results suggested that the US-CNB puncture success rate was 98.7 ％ [95％ CI (98.3 ％,99.0 ％)];Sen of US-CNB for diagnosing thyroid nodule was 0.94 [95％CI(0.93,0.95)],Spe=0.98[95 ％CI(0.98,0.99)],+LR=33.96[95％CI(20.31,56.78)],-LR=0.06[95％CI(0.04,0.10)],DOR=581.44[95 ％CI(335.08,1 007.87)],and the AUC of SROC was 0.99.Conclusion The current evidences indicate that UG-CNB has high diagnostic accuracy in benign and malignant thyroid nodules,and is worth promotion and application in clinic.

Evaluation of ventricular systolic function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis using two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography / 中华超声影像学杂志

Objective To evaluate the left ventricular and right ventricular systolic function by two‐dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography ( 2D‐STE) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis ( RA ) . Methods Fifty five patients with RA and 50 healthy subjects were received echocardiography . 2D‐STE were applied for all the subjects to obtain left ventricular global longitudinal strain ( LVGLS) and right ventricular global longitudinal strain ( RVGLS) .Tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion ( TAPSE) and the change ratio of right ventricular area ( RVACR) were measured by echocardiography . The anti‐cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies ( anti‐CCP‐II) ,rheumatoid factor ( RF) ,C‐reactive protein ( CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate ( ESR) were detected in both group . The LVGLS and RVGLS in RA group were used to conduce correlation analysis with the level of anti‐CCP‐II ,RF ,CRP , ESR and the duration of disease . Results There was a significant decrease in RVGLS and LVGLS in RA group compared with control group( P 0 .05) . The anti‐CCP‐II ,RF ,CRP and ESR in RA group increased significantly compared with control group ( P < 0 .001 ) . The result of correlation analysis showed there was no correlation between RVGLS ,LVGLS and anti‐CCP‐II ,RF ,CRP ,ESR in RA group . However ,RVGLS and LVGLS were negatively correlated with the duration of disease . Conclusions LVGLS and RVGLS in RA patients were lower than those in healthy people ,strain decreases with the extension of disease duration ,2D‐STE may be an efficacious assessment to assess left ventricular and right ventricular systolic function in patients w ith RA .

Clinical value of combined detection of GP73,AFP-L3 and TGFβ1 in early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma / 国际检验医学杂志

Objective To investigate the clinical value of the combined detection of Golgi protein 73 (GP73),alpha-fetoprotein variant-L3 (AFP-L3)and transforming growth factorβ1(TGFβ1)in the early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Meth-ods 48 cases of healthy control,42 cases of hepatitis B,50 cases of posthepatitic cirrhosis and 58 cases of HCC were selected and detected GP73,AFP-L3 and TGFβ1.The detection results were compared among 4 groups.Results (1)The levels of GP73,AFP-L3 and TGFβ1 had statistical differences among 4 groups(P <0.05 );(2 )The positive rate of the 3-marker combined detection reached 96.55%,which was higher than that of the 2-marker combined detection and the single marker detection.Conclusion (1) GP73,AFP-L3 and TGFβ1 may be used as the serum indicators for the early diagnosis of HCC;(2)Compared with the traditional HCC marker AFP,AFP-L3 has relatively high sensitivity and specificity and has the important role in the differential diagnosis of benign and malignant diseases of the liver,which is considered as a better serum marker in the HCC diagnosis;(3)The 3-indicator combined detection can significantly improve the positive detection rate of HCC and has better application value.

Ultrasound biomicroscopy imaging of aortic atherosclerotic in the LDL-R gene knock-out mouse / 中华超声影像学杂志

Objective To detect the atherosclerotic progression in low density lipoprotein receptor (LDL-R) gene knock-out mouse by ultrasound biomicroscopy(UBM) technique,and to monitor the intima media thickness (IMT) and changes in plague of aortic wall.Methods 10 male LDL-R gene knock-out mice of 16 weeks age and 10 LDL-R gene knock-out mice of 24 weeks age were in the experimental group,and 10 male C57BL/6 mice of 16 and 24 weeks age were in the control group.The shapes of their aortic roots,ascending aorta,aortic arch and CCA were detected by UBM,and the IMT at aortic root view and carotid artery bifurcation were measured,then the data were compared with histopathology of the corresponding vascular segments.Results The difference between the IMT of aortic root and carotid artery bifurcation of the 16 week old LDL-R mice and the control group of the same age had no statistical significance.The difference between the IMT of carotid artery bifurcation of the 24-week-old LDL R mice and the control group of the same age had no statistical significance.The IMT of aortic root thickened compared with control group of the same age(P ＜0.01).Conclusions The UBM technique can be used to detect the atherosclerotic progression in LDL-R gene knock-out mouse.