Morphological, immunohistochemical, and genetic analyses of epithelioid gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

Epithelioid gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are rare and may be confused with other tumors with epithelioid morphology. Therefore, herein, we collected 12 epithelioid GIST samples and summarized their morphological and immunohistochemical characteristics. Through genetic testing, we explored the correlation between morphology and gene mutations. The results showed that eight tumors showed focal or diffuse myxoid stromal changes with less cohesively arranged rhabdoid tumor cells; among these, five showed platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha gene (PDGFRA) mutations. Signet ring cells with sclerosing stroma and receptor tyrosine kinase type III gene (KIT) mutations were present in two cases, which might be a KIT mutation-associated growth pattern in epithelioid GISTs. Succinate dehydrogenase gene (SDH) mutations were detected in three cases. Simultaneously, PDGFRA mutations were detected in two cases, and the Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog gene (KRAS) mutation was detected in another case. SDH-subunit B (SDHB) expression was partially weak and strongly diffuse in two cases with concurrent PDGFRA and SDHD mutations, respectively. The coexistence of PDGFRA and SDHD mutations may have affected SDHB expression. Altogether, we concluded that PDGFRA mutations may play an important role in co-mutant GIST pathogenesis.

In vivo efficacy studies of novel quinazoline derivatives as irreversible dual EGFR/HER2 inhibitors, in lung cancer xenografts (NCI-H1975) mice models.

Lung cancer is the most common cancer and leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The first-generation reversible, ATP-competitive inhibitors gefetinib and elotinib showed good clinical responses in lung adenocarcinoma tumors (NSCLC). But almost all patients developed resistance to these inhibitors over time. Such resistance of EGFR inhibitors was frequently linked to the acquired L858R and T790M point mutations in the kinase domain of EGFR. To overcome these resistance problems, the second and the third generation inhibitors have been discovered. FDA approved afatinib, the second generation irreversible inhibitor and osimitinib, the third generation irreversible EGFR inhibitors for the treatments of NSCLC. We identified new covalent quinazoline inhibitors (E)-N-(4-(3-chloro-4-fluorophenylamino)-7-(2-ethoxyethoxy)quinazolin-6-yl)-4-(dimethylamino)but-2-enamide (6d) and (E)-N-(4-(3-chloro-4-(pyridin-2-ylmethoxy)phenylamino)-7-(2-ethoxyethoxy)quinazolin-6-yl)-4-(dimethyl-amino)but-2-enamide (6h) that exhibited potent EGFR kinase inhibitory activities on L858R and T790M mutations. The compound 6 h showed selectivity similar to AZD9291 (osimertinib) in mutated and wild type tumor cell lines. In vitro cell assay 6d and 6h were better than afatinib and osimertinib. In vivo antitumor efficacy studies of these compounds were done in NCI-H1975 mice xenografts.

Overexpression of LINC00261 inhibits non-small cell lung cancer cells progression by interacting with miR-522-3p and suppressing Wnt signaling.

Long noncoding RNA LINC00261 has been experimentally validated to function as a tumor suppressor in several cancers, but its pathological role and functional mechanism in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are largely unclear. In this study, LINC00261 was delineated in NSCLC to be significantly downregulated in cancer tissues compared with corresponding adjacent normal tissues. Low expression of LINC00261 predicted worse survival for patients with NSCLC. Overexpression of LINC00261 in NSCLC cell lines inhibited cell proliferation and invasion, meanwhile promoted apoptosis. Subcellular fractionation assay showed that LINC00261 existed mainly in the cytoplasm of NSCLC A549 cells and luciferase assay validated its direct interaction with miR-522-3p. Overexpression of miR-522-3p significantly ameliorated suppressive effects of LINC00261 on proliferation and invasion of NSCLC cells. Besides, miR-522-3p was found to be able to directly combine with the 3'-untranslated region of SFRP2, which was generally regarded as a suppressor of Wnt signaling. Further quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and Western blot experiments showed that LINC00261 upregulation potentiated the expression of SFRP2 and inhibited Wnt signaling pathway, which could both be reversely modulated by miR-522-3p. Taken together, our study demonstrated that LINC00261 suppressed NSCLC cells progression via sponging miR-522-3p and inhibiting Wnt signaling. These results supported us to better understand the pathogenic mechanism of NSCLC and revealed a potential molecular target for this fatal disease.

Design, synthesis of orally bioavailable novel anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor diphenylaminopyrimidine analogs and efficacy study on NCI-H2228 xenografts mice model.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is an attractive therapeutic target for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Within our ALK drug discovery program, we identified novel deuterated 2,4-diarylamino pyrimidine compounds as potent ALK inhibitors. The compound 11 showed better in vitro activity and in vivo efficacy with good pharmacokinetic profile. In vivo efficacy of compound 11 was better than standard drug ceritinib in NCI-H2228 xenograft mice model.

Discovery of new quinazoline derivatives as irreversible dual EGFR/HER2 inhibitors and their anticancer activities - Part 1.

Overexpression of EGFR and HER2 are observed in many breast, ovarian, colon and prostate cancers. The second and third generation irreversible EGFR/HER2 dual kinase inhibitors became popular after the approval of Afatinib by FDA to overcome the mutation related problem. To find efficacious drug candidates, a series of novel quinazoline derivatives were designed, synthesized and evaluated as dual EGFR/HER2 tyrosine kinase (TK) inhibitors. Selected twenty four compounds were reported here with significant inhibitory activities against EGFR/HER2 tyrosine kinases. Several compounds showed nanomolar IC50 values. In vitro studies of quinazoline derivatives were done on NCI-H1975, HCC827, A431, MDA MB-453 cell lines. The compounds 1a, 1d and 1v were found more potent compared to standard drug afatinib. In vivo efficacy study of 1d on nude mice NCI-H1975 tumour xenograft model was discussed.

Preparation and Comparative Study of Microporous and Mesoporous Carbon Nanofibers as Supercapacitor Electrodes.

Microporous carbon nanofibers (Mi-CNFs) and mesoporous carbon nanofibers (Me-CNFs) with high surface area were prepared by electrospinning resol resin/PVP/TEOS/F127 ethanol solution, followed by curing, carbonization and pickling process. TEOS was responsible for structural stability and producing micropores, while F127 for forming mesopores. Mi-CNFs showed high specific surface area of 1841 m2 g-1, while Me-CNFs possessed both high specific surface area of 1674 m2 g-1 and mesoporosity of 64%. The electrochemical test revealed that Mi-CNFs had higher capacitance (276 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1) and Me-CNFs possessed higher capacitance retention (71%, 150 F g-1 at 30 A g-1).

Factors associated with stigma attitude towards people living with HIV among general individuals in Heilongjiang, Northeast China.

BACKGROUND: HIV-related stigma always is major obstacles to an effective HIV response worldwide. The effect of HIV-related stigma on HIV prevention and treatment is particularly serious in China. This study was to examine stigma attitude towards people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) among general individuals in Heilongjiang Province, Northeast China and the factors associated with stigma attitude, including socio-demographic factors and HIV/AIDS Knowledge. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was carried out in Heilongjiang Province, China. A total of 4050 general individuals with age 15-69 years in four villages in rural areas and two communities in urban areas were drawn using stratified cluster sampling. Standardized questionnaire interviews were administered. Univariate and multivariate log-binomial regression were performed to assess factors affecting stigma attitude towards PLWHA. RESULTS: The proportions of participants holding stigma attitude towards PLWHA were 49.6% among rural respondents and 37.0% among urban respondents (P < 0.001). Multivariate log binomial regression analysis among both rural participants (RR = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.87-0.91, P < 0.001) and urban participants (RR = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.87-0.91, P < 0.001) showed that greater knowledge of HIV transmission misconceptions was significantly associated with lower stigma attitude towards people living with HIV. And among urban participants, higher education level (high school vs. primary school or less: RR = 0.73, 95%CI: 0.62-0.87, P < 0.001; middle school vs. primary school or less: RR = 0.83, 95%CI: 0.71-0.97, P = 0.018) were also significantly associated with lower stigma attitude towards PLWHA. CONCLUSIONS: The level of stigma attitude towards PLWHA is higher in rural areas than in urban areas in Heilongjiang. Meanwhile, individuals who better were aware of HIV/AIDS transmission misconceptions may hold lower stigma attitude toward PLWHA whether among rural or urban residents.

Inverse consistent non-rigid image registration based on robust point set matching.

BACKGROUND: Robust point matching (RPM) has been extensively used in non-rigid registration of images to robustly register two sets of image points. However, except for the location at control points, RPM cannot estimate the consistent correspondence between two images because RPM is a unidirectional image matching approach. Therefore, it is an important issue to make an improvement in image registration based on RPM. METHODS: In our work, a consistent image registration approach based on the point sets matching is proposed to incorporate the property of inverse consistency and improve registration accuracy. Instead of only estimating the forward transformation between the source point sets and the target point sets in state-of-the-art RPM algorithms, the forward and backward transformations between two point sets are estimated concurrently in our algorithm. The inverse consistency constraints are introduced to the cost function of RPM and the fuzzy correspondences between two point sets are estimated based on both the forward and backward transformations simultaneously. A modified consistent landmark thin-plate spline registration is discussed in detail to find the forward and backward transformations during the optimization of RPM. The similarity of image content is also incorporated into point matching in order to improve image matching. RESULTS: Synthetic data sets, medical images are employed to demonstrate and validate the performance of our approach. The inverse consistent errors of our algorithm are smaller than RPM. Especially, the topology of transformations is preserved well for our algorithm for the large deformation between point sets. Moreover, the distance errors of our algorithm are similar to that of RPM, and they maintain a downward trend as whole, which demonstrates the convergence of our algorithm. The registration errors for image registrations are evaluated also. Again, our algorithm achieves the lower registration errors in same iteration number. The determinant of the Jacobian matrix of the deformation field is used to analyse the smoothness of the forward and backward transformations. The forward and backward transformations estimated by our algorithm are smooth for small deformation. For registration of lung slices and individual brain slices, large or small determinant of the Jacobian matrix of the deformation fields are observed. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate the improvement of the proposed algorithm in bi-directional image registration and the decrease of the inverse consistent errors of the forward and the reverse transformations between two images.

Therapeutic experience with primary liposarcoma from the sigmoid mesocolon accompanied with well-differentiated liposarcomas in the pelvis.

Multifocal liposarcoma with different histological types is rare, especially that originating from the mesentery. We herein report a case of primary myxoid liposarcoma from the sigmoid mesocolon that was accompanied with well-differentiated liposarcomas in the pelvis. The location, the fat signal and the relationship with adjacent organs of the liposarcomas were well shown in the axial, coronal and sagittal dimensions of MRI, giving a comprehensive and specific image before surgery. To alleviate the patient's symptoms and mental stress, a laparotomy was performed. The tumors were all completely excised with macroscopic free margins. The final histopathological report showed that the tumor in the sigmoid mesocolon was a pure myxoid liposarcoma, while the pelvic tumors were spindle cell liposarcomas, a special type of well-differentiated liposarcoma. According to the AJCC staging system, they were all stage IIB. No further adjuvant therapy was performed. Close follow-up after the surgery has been performed, and the patient has remained healthy without any evidence of recurrence or metastasis for 17 months after the surgery.

Effect of polypeptide 2B1 on condition of dampness pattern in rats in terms of traditional Chinese medicine.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated how polypeptide 2B1 is involved in regulating and governing dampness in rat models with dampness pattern defined in terms of Traditional Chinese Medicine. METHODS: We randomly divided 48 SPF 10-week-old male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats into a normal group, normal + Aristolochic acid I (AA-I) for 5 min group, normal + AA-I for 60 min group, dampness pattern group (DS-Group), dampness pattern + AA-I for 5 min group, and dampness pattern + AA-I for 60 min group. Groups were then treated accordingly. We took out the lung, stomach, liver, spleen, kidney, large intestine, and small intestine tissues to detect gene and protein expression of organic anion transporter polypeptide 2B1 (OATP2B1). RESULTS: Gene expression of OATP2B1 in spleen, kidney, and small intestine of rats with dampness pattern was lower than that in normal rats (P < 0.05). The gene expressions of OATP2B1 in liver, stomach, large intestine, and small intestine were lower than that in control rats at different time points after being stimulated by AA-I (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: There is coordination among multiple viscera in handling the condition of dampness, and the mechanism underlying the action may rely on regulating the expression of OATP2B1.

[Corrigendum] Epigallocatechin­3­gallate inhibits nicotine­induced migration and invasion by the suppression of angiogenesis and epithelial­mesenchymal transition in non­small cell lung cancer cells.

Subsequently to the publication of the above paper, the authors have drawn to the attention of the Editorial Office that a pair of the data panels showing the results of wound­healing assay experiments (in Fig. 1A) and Transwell invasion assays (in Fig. 1B) on p. 2975 were inadvertently featured incorrectly in this figure. Specifically, in Fig. 1A, the 'nicotine + 25 µM EGCG / 0 h' data panel was erroneously copied across to represent the 'nicotine + 0 µM EGCG / 0 h' image, whereas in Fig. 1B, the representative invasion image for the 'nicotine + 10  µM  EGCG' experiment was also incorrectly placed. The authors were able to re­examine their original data files, and realize how the errors were made during the assembly of this figure. The revised version of Fig. 1, showing the correct data for the 'nicotine + 0 µM EGCG / 0 h' in Fig. 1A and the 'nicotine + 10  µM  EGCG' experiment in Fig. 1B, is shown on the next page. Note that the errors made in assembling this figure did not affect the overall conclusions reported in the paper. The authors are grateful to the Editor of Oncology Reports for allowing them the opportunity to publish this Corrigendum, and all the authors agree with its publication. They also apologize to the readership for any inconvenience caused. [Oncology Reports 33: 2972­2980, 2015; DOI: 10.3892/or.2015.3889].

Long-Term Outcomes and Prognosis Factors in Patients With Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies Based on Myositis-Specific Autoantibodies: A Single Cohort Study.

OBJECTIVE: This study was undertaken to investigate the long-term survival rates and prognostic factors in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) based on myositis-specific antibody (MSA) stratification. METHODS: Exactly 628 patients with an IIM were included. Kaplan-Meier survival curves, univariate, and multivariate Cox regression were used to analyze the outcomes and risk factors. RESULTS: The cumulative 1-, 5-, and 10-year survival rates for IIM patients overall were 91.4%, 82.8%, and 75.6%, respectively. The survival rate in the MSA subset was significantly different (P < 0.001). The 1- and 10-year survival rates in the anti-melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (anti-MDA-5)-positive subgroup were 79.5% and 58.5%, respectively, which were the lowest among all subgroups. The 10-year survival rate of anti-signal recognition particle (anti-SRP)-positive patients was the highest (96.4%). Independent risk factors that impacted the long-term prognosis for IIM patients included rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (RP-ILD), malignancy, and elevated serum ferritin levels (hazard ratio [HR] 17.47, 20.36, and 9.15, respectively, P < 0.01), whereas disease duration was a protective factor (HR 0.27, P = 0.003). Among these subsets, the strongest independent risk factor for death in the anti-MDA-5-positive subgroup was RP-ILD (HR 3.4, P = 0.017). Malignancy was an independent risk factor in the anti-aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase antibody-positive, anti-transcription intermediary factor 1γ-positive, and MSA-negative subgroups (HR 46.69, 6.65, and 4.48, respectively; P < 0.001). RP-ILD was also a risk factor in the prognosis of individuals in the MSA-negative subgroup (HR 72.28, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Despite favorable overall survival in patients with IIM, the anti-MDA-5-positive subgroup had the highest mortality rate among all MSA subgroups, highlighting the distinctive prognosis for patients with different MSAs. RP-ILD and malignancy are the most common causes of death in IIM patients.

Factors associated with willingness to participate in free HIV test among general residents in Heilongjiang, Northeast China.

BACKGROUND: The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is spreading from high-risk groups, such as men who have sex with men (MSM) and sex workers, to the general population in China. This study examined the willingness of general residents in Heilongjiang, Northeast China, to participate in free HIV testing in the nearest health care setting, and the factors that may affect participation, including demographic characteristics, HIV-related knowledge, and stigma. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Heilongjiang Province. All residents aged 15-69 years in two communities in urban areas (September 2007) and four villages in rural areas (April 2008) were recruited using stratified cluster sampling. A total of 4050 residents were interviewed using an anonymous questionnaire. Univariate and multivariate log-binomial regression were used to analyze factors affecting willingness to undergo HIV testing. RESULTS: The proportions of participants who were willing to participate in free HIV testing was 73.0% in urban residents and 78.8% in rural residents. Multivariate regression analysis among urban participants showed that greater knowledge of HIV transmission misconceptions (relative risk (RR) = 1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00-1.04, P = 0.021) and the awareness that an apparently healthy person can be an HIV carrier (RR = 1.12, 95%CI: 1.03-1.21, P = 0.007) was significantly associated with greater willingness to participate in free HIV testing. Among rural participants, greater knowledge of HIV transmission modes (RR = 1.03, 95%CI: 1.01-1.06 P = 0.001) and the awareness that an apparently healthy person can be an HIV carrier (RR = 1.07; 95%CI: 1.01-1.13 P = 0.019) was significantly associated with greater willingness to participate. CONCLUSIONS: The overall level of willingness to accept free HIV testing is high, and is higher in rural residents than in urban residents in Heilongjiang. knowledge of HIV transmission misconceptions and that an apparently healthy person can be a carrier for HIV were associated with willingness to accept free HIV testing among urban residents, while knowledge of HIV transmission modes and that an apparently healthy person can be a carrier for HIV were associated with willingness to accept free HIV testing among rural residents.

[Morphologic changes of fallopian tubal epithelium in ovarian serous tumors].

OBJECTIVES: To study the morphologic changes of fallopian tubal epithelium in patients with ovarian serous epithelial tumors and to explore the relationship between the tubal epithelial changes and tumorigenesis of serous ovarian carcinoma. METHODS: The fallopian tubes in 79 cases of high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma, 12 cases of low-grade serous ovarian carcinoma, 16 cases of serous borderline ovarian tumor and 11 cases of non-ovarian benign tumors were serially examined under light microscope. Immunohistochemical study with EnVision method was used to detect the expression of p53 and bcl-2 protein in the fallopian tubal epithelium in all cases. The occurrences of secretory cell outgrowth (SCOUT), p53 signature, serous tubal intraepithelial carcinoma (STIC) and serous invasive carcinoma were analyzed. RESULTS: SCOUT in tubal epithelium was observed in 60.8% (48/79) of the high-grade serous carcinoma group, 4/12 of the low-grade serous carcinoma group, 3/16 of the serous borderline tumor group and 2/11 of the non-ovarian benign tumor group (P = 0.001). P53 signature, STIC and serous invasive carcinoma occurred only in the fallopian tubal epithelium of patients with high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma, with the positive rates being 29.1% (23/79), 15.2% (12/79) and 44.3% (35/79), respectively. Of the 23 cases with p53 signature, 17 cases had solitary lesion and 6 cases involved more than two sites. A total of 33 p53 signature positive foci were found, with 22 foci located at fimbria and 11 at ampulla. Bcl-2 expression was demonstrated in 90.9% of those foci (30/33). Of the 12 patients with STIC, 7 cases were solitary and 5 cases involved more than two sites. A total of 18 STIC foci were found, with 16 foci located at fimbria and 2 at ampulla. All of them were positive for bcl-2. CONCLUSIONS: SCOUT is found in fallopian tubal epithelium in patients with serous ovarian epithelial tumors, especially high-grade serious carcinoma. On the other hand, p53 signature, STIC and invasive serous carcinoma of tubal epithelium are observed only in patients with high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma, with a predilection of fimbrial involvement. Correlation exists between SCOUT, p53 signature, STIC and high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas. Bcl-2 and p53 immunostaining is helpful for demonstrating such lesions.

Plastic surgery for giant metastatic endometrioid adenocarcinoma in the abdominal wall: A case report and review of literature.

BACKGROUND: Endometrial cancer (EC) is a common gynecological malignancy, but metastasis to the abdominal wall is extremely rare. Therefore, an appropriate treatment approach for large metastatic lesions with infection remains a great challenge. CASE SUMMARY: We report the case of a 65-year-old woman who developed abdominal metastasis of endometrioid adenocarcinoma, as defined by International Obstetrics and Gynecology stage II, in which the lesion was complicated by infection. A right hemicolectomy was performed for colon metastasis in relation to her initial gynecological cancer 3 years ago. When admitted to our department, a complete resection of the giant abdominal wall lesion was performed, and a Bard composite mesh was used to reconstruct the abdominal wall. A local flap was used to close the resultant large defect in the external covering of the abdomen. The patient underwent chemotherapy following cytoreductive surgery. Pathology revealed metastasis of EC, and molecular subtyping showed copy number high of TP53 mutation, implying a poor prognosis. CONCLUSION: When EC patients develop giant abdominal wall metastasis, a plastic surgeon should be included before contemplating resection of tumors.

Enhancing conversion of polysulfides via porous carbon nanofiber interlayer with dual-active sites for lithium-sulfur batteries.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are promising candidates for next-generation energy storage. However, the notorious lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) shuttle effect and torpid redox kinetics hinder their practical application. Enhancing phase conversion efficiency and limiting the dissolution of LiPSs are critical for stabilizing Li-S batteries. Herein, sulfiphilic defective TiO2 nanoparticles (D-TiO2) were integrated into the lithiophilic N-doped porous carbon nanofiber membrane (D-TiO2@NPCNF) to construct interlayer for catalyzing the conversion of LiPSs. The D-TiO2@NPCNF provides hierarchical porous structure and large specific surface area, and the formed 3D conductive network accelerates the transport of electrons and ions. The dual-active sites (N and D-TiO2) enhance the interface conversion and chemisorption ability of LiPSs via forming "Li-N and Ti-S" bonds. Due to the structural advantage of the D-TiO2@NPCNF, the Li-S batteries exhibit excellent cycling stability (only 0.049% decay per cycle in 800cycles at 1.0C) and impressive specific capacity (608 mAh g-1 at 3.0C). This work is expected to deepen the comprehension of complex interphase conversion processes of LiPSs and provide novel ideas for the design of new interlayer materials.

[Clinicopathologic features and immunophenotypes of CD117-negative gastrointestinal stromal tumor].

OBJECTIVE: To study the immunophenotype and c-kit or platelet derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRA) gene mutations in CD117-negative gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). METHODS: Ten cases of GISTs with typical histologic features but no CD117 expression were retrieved from the archival of Department of Pathology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, China. The cases were further evaluated for the presence of c-kit exons 9, 11, 13 and 17 mutations and PDGFRA exons 12 and 18 mutations. DNA was extracted from the paraffin-embedded tumor tissue. The PCR products were sequenced directly for the mutations. An immunohistochemical study for CD117, CD34, smooth muscle actin, desmin, S-100 protein, WT-1 and DOG-1 was also performed. RESULTS: Eight of the 10 cases had the mutation tests completed. C-kit mutation in exon 9 was detected in only one case. Amongst the 10 cases studied, CD34 was expressed in 9 cases. Smooth muscle actin was focally positive in 2 cases. None of them expressed desmin or S-100 protein. DOG-1 and WT-1 were diffusely positive in 5 and 4 cases, respectively. In addition, DOG1 was diffusely but weakly positive in 1 case and focally expressed in 2 cases. Three cases were focally positive for WT-1. CONCLUSION: Pathologic diagnosis of CD117-negative GISTs can be facilitated with the application of a panel of immunohistochemical markers, including DOG-1 and WT-1.

[Clinicopathologic features and prognostic factors of endometrial stromal sarcoma: a study of 55 cases].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinicopathologic features and the prognostic factors of endometrial stromal sarcoma (ESS). METHODS: 55 cases of endometrial stromal sarcoma were reviewed and categorized into 3 pathologic types based on the related literatures, i.e., low grade endometrial stromal sarcoma (LGESS), undifferentiated endometrial sarcoma with nuclear uniformity (UES-U) and undifferentiated endometrial sarcoma with nuclear pleomorphism (UES-P). Meanwhile, the pathologic features were reviewed, including fibroid, myoid, mucoid, and epithelioid differentiation and mitotic index. Clinical and follow-up data were collected. RESULTS: In endometrial stromal sarcoma, two or three pathologic types co-existed in one case, including 12.8% (5/39) of LGESS, 5/9 of UES-U, and 5/7 of UES-P. Mitotic index varied in different regions of one tumor from rare to high. Multi-differentiation was also commonly seen in ESS. The numbers of cases in LGESS, UES-U and UES-P were 39, 9 and 7, with recurrence rate of 51.6% (16/31), 5/6 and 2/3, respectively. There was no death case in LGESS, and 2 cases were died in UES-U and UES-P, respectively. In the 2 death cases of UES-U, both had focus of UES-P. There was a significant difference in the recurrence rate between cases with different mitotic index (≥ 10/10 HPF and < 10/10 HPF, P = 0.009), especially in LGESS group. All death cases had high mitotic index (> 30/10 HPF). CONCLUSIONS: It is a common phenomenon in ESS that two or three pathologic types may exist in one case, especially in UES-U and UES-P. And multi-differentiation is also commonly seen in ESS. So adequate pathologic sampling is important for pathologists to make a correct diagnosis of ESS in daily work. The recurrence rates are significantly higher in cases with high mitotic index, especially in LGESS. In addition, the presence of UES-P and high mitotic index may increase the risk of death in the patients.

ZnO-assisted synthesis of lignin-based ultra-fine microporous carbon nanofibers for supercapacitors.

Reducing the material size could be an effective approach to enhance the electrochemical performance of porous carbons for supercapacitors. In this work, ultra-fine porous carbon nanofibers are prepared by electrospinning using lignin/ polyvinylpyrrolidone as carbon precursor and zinc nitrate hexahydrate (ZNH) as an additive, followed by pre-oxidation, carbonization, and pickling processes. Assisted by the ZnO template, the pyrolytic product of ZNH, abundant micropores are yielded, leading to the formation of microporous carbon nanofibers with specific surface area (SSA) up to 1363 m2 g-1. The average diameter of the lignin-based ultra-fine porous carbon nanofibers (LUPCFs) is effectively controlled from 209 to 83 nm through adjusting the ZNH content. With good flexibility and self-standing nature, the LUPCFs could be directly cut into electrodes for use in supercapacitors. High accessible surface, enriched surface N/O groups, and reduced fiber diameters endow the LUPCFs-based electrodes with an excellent specific capacitance of 289 F g-1. The reduction of fiber diameters remarkably improves the rate performance of the LUPCFs and leads to a low relaxation time constant of 0.37 s. The high specific capacitance of 162 F g-1 is maintained when the current density is increased from 0.1 to 20 A g-1. Besides, the fabricated LUPCFs show exceptional cycling stability in symmetrical supercapacitors, manifesting a promising application prospect in the next generation of supercapacitors.