[Multicenter evaluation of the diagnostic efficacy of jaundice color card for neonatal hyperbilirubinemia].

Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic efficacy and practicality of the Jaundice color card (JCard) as a screening tool for neonatal jaundice. Methods: Following the standards for reporting of diagnostic accuracy studies (STARD) statement, a multicenter prospective study was conducted in 9 hospitals in China from October 2019 to September 2021. A total of 845 newborns who were admitted to the hospital or outpatient department for liver function testing due to their own diseases. The inclusion criteria were a gestational age of ≥35 weeks, a birth weight of ≥2 000 g, and an age of ≤28 days. The neonate's parents used the JCard to measure jaundice at the neonate's cheek. Within 2 hours of the JCard measurement, transcutaneous bilirubin (TcB) was measured with a JH20-1B device and total serum bilirubin (TSB) was detected. The Pearson's correlation analysis, Bland-Altman plots and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were used for statistic analysis. Results: Out of the 854 newborns, 445 were male and 409 were female; 46 were born at 35-36 weeks of gestational age and 808 were born at ≥37 weeks of gestational age. Additionally, 432 cases were aged 0-3 days, 236 cases were aged 4-7 days, and 186 cases were aged 8-28 days. The TSB level was (227.4±89.6) µmol/L, with a range of 23.7-717.0 µmol/L. The JCard level was (221.4±77.0) µmol/L and the TcB level was (252.5±76.0) µmol/L. Both the JCard and TcB values showed good correlation (r=0.77 and 0.80, respectively) and agreements (96.0% (820/854) and 95.2% (813/854) of samples fell within the 95% limits of agreement, respectively) with TSB. The JCard value of 12 had a sensitivity of 0.93 and specificity of 0.75 for identifying a TSB ≥205.2 µmol/L, and a sensitivity of 1.00 and specificity of 0.35 for identifying a TSB ≥342.0 µmol/L. The TcB value of 205.2 µmol/L had a sensitivity of 0.97 and specificity of 0.60 for identifying TSB levels of 205.2 µmol/L, and a sensitivity of 1.00 and specificity of 0.26 for identifying TSB levels of 342.0 µmol/L. The areas under the ROC curve (AUC) of JCard for identifying TSB levels of 153.9, 205.2, 256.5, and 342.0 µmol/L were 0.96, 0.92, 0.83, and 0.83, respectively. The AUC of TcB were 0.94, 0.91, 0.86, and 0.87, respectively. There were both no significant differences between the AUC of JCard and TcB in identifying TSB levels of 153.9 and 205.2 µmol/L (both P>0.05). However, the AUC of JCard were both lower than those of TcB in identifying TSB levels of 256.5 and 342.0 µmol/L (both P<0.05). Conclusions: JCard can be used to classify different levels of bilirubin, but its diagnostic efficacy decreases with increasing bilirubin levels. When TSB level are ≤205.2 µmol/L, its diagnostic efficacy is equivalent to that of the JH20-1B. To prevent the misdiagnosis of severe jaundice, it is recommended that parents use a low JCard score, such as 12, to identify severe hyperbilirubinemia (TSB ≥342.0 µmol/L).

Analysis of risk factors for complications following transurethral resection of the prostate.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigates the risk factors for complications following transurethral resection of the prostate and provides a reference for reducing postoperative complications. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 322 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia who underwent transurethral resection of the prostate from April 2015 to January 2022. Among them, 214 patients had complete clinical and follow-up data. Clinical and follow-up data were collected, and both univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors influencing the occurrence of postoperation transurethral resection of the prostate complications. RESULTS: The incidence of complications after transurethral resection of the prostate was 19.16% (41/214). Among them, the incidence of Grade I-II complications was 14.96% (32/214), and Grade III-IV complications were 4.2% (9/214). The preoperative Quality of Life score (p<0.001) was identified as an independent risk factor for the occurrence of Grade I-II complications after transurethral resection of the prostate. The International Prostate Symptom Score (p=0.006) was identified as an independent risk factor for the occurrence of Grade III-IV complications after transurethral resection of the prostate. CONCLUSIONS: The preoperative Quality of Life score is an independent risk factor for the occurrence of Grade I-II complications after transurethral resection of the prostate. The International Prostate Symptom Score is an independent risk factor for the occurrence of Grade III-IV complications after transurethral resection of the prostate.

[The effect of Ba Duan Jin on the balance of community-dwelling older adults: a cluster randomized control trial].

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of a 6-month Ba Duan Jin exercise program in improving the balance of community-dwelling older adults. Methods: A two arms, parallel-group, cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted in 1 028 community residents aged 60-80 years in 40 communities in 5 provinces of China. Participants in the intervention group (20 communities, 523 people) received Ba Duan Jin exercise 5 days/week, 1 hour/day for 6 months, and three times of falls prevention health education, and the control group (20 communities, 505 people) received falls prevention health education same as the intervention group. The Berg balance scale (BBS) score was the leading outcome indicator, and the secondary outcome indicators included the length of time of standing on one foot (with eyes open and closed), standing in a tandem stance (with eyes open and closed), the closed circle test, and the timed up to test. Results: A total of 1 028 participants were included in the final analysis, including 731 women (71.11%) and 297 men (28.89%), and the age was (69.87±5.67) years. After the 3-month intervention, compared with the baseline data, the BBS score of the intervention group was significantly higher than the control group by 3.05 (95%CI: 2.23-3.88) points (P<0.001). After the 6-month intervention, compared with the baseline data, the BBS score of the intervention group was significantly higher than the control group by 4.70 (95%CI: 4.03-5.37) points (P<0.001). Ba Duan Jin showed significant improvement (P<0.05) in all secondary outcomes after 6 months of exercise in the intervention group compared with the control group. Conclusions: This study showed that Ba Duan Jin exercise can improve balance in community-dwelling older adults aged 60-80. The longer the exercise time, the better the improvement.

[Scoping review of progress in cohort studies of autism spectrum disorder].

Objective: To understand the status of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) cohort studies and explore the feasibility of constructing ASD disease-specific cohorts based on real-world data (RWD). Methods: ASD cohort studies published by December 2022 were collected by literature retrieval from major Chinese and English databases. And the characteristics of the cohort were summarized. Results: A total of 1 702 ASD cohort studies were included, and only 60 (3.53%) were from China. A total of 163 ASD-related cohorts were screened, of which 55.83% were birth cohorts, 28.22% were ASD-specific cohorts, and 4.91% were ASD high-risk cohorts. Most cohorts used RWD such as hospital registries or conducted community-based field surveys to obtain participant information and identified patients with ASD by scales or clinical diagnoses. The contents of the studies included ASD incidence and prognostic risk factors, ASD comorbidity patterns and the impact of ASD on self-health and their offspring's health. Conclusions: ASD cohort studies in developed countries have been in the advanced stage, while the Chinese studies are still in their infancy. RWD provides the data basis for ASD-specific cohort construction and offers new opportunities for research, but work such as case validation is still needed to ensure the scientific nature of cohort construction.

Comparison of anal function and quality of life after conformal sphincter preservation operation and intersphincteric resection of very low rectal cancer: a multicenter, retrospective, case-control analysis.

PURPOSE: Conformal sphincter preservation operation (CSPO) is a sphincter preservation operation for very low rectal cancers. Compared to intersphincteric resection (ISR), CSPO retains more dentate line and distal rectal wall, and also avoids damaging the nerves in the intersphincteric space. This study aimed to compare the postoperative anal function and quality of life between the CSPO and ISR. METHOD: Patients with low rectal cancer undergoing CSPO (n = 117) and ISR (n = 66) were included from Changhai and Huashan Hospital, respectively, between 2011 and 2020. A visual analog scale (range 0-10) was utilized to evaluate satisfaction with anal function and quality of life. The anal function was evaluated with Wexner scores and low anterior resection syndrome (LARS) score. Quality of life was evaluated with the EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-CR38. RESULTS: The CSPO group had more male patients (65.8% vs. 50%, p = 0.042), more preoperative chemoradiotherapy (33.3% vs. 10.6%, p < 0.001), lower tumor position (3.45 ± 1.13 vs. 4.24 ± 0.86 cm, p < 0.001), and more postoperative chemotherapy (65% vs. 13.6%, p < 0.001) compared to the ISR group. In addition, CSPO patients had shorter postoperative stay (6.63 ± 2.53 vs. 7.85 ± 4.73 days, p = 0.003) and comparable stoma reversal rates within 1 year after surgery (92.16% vs. 96.97%, p = 0.318). Multivariable analysis showed that CSPO significantly contributed to higher satisfaction with anal function (beta = 1.752, 95% CI 0.776-2.728) and with quality of life (beta = 1.219, 95% CI 0.374-2.064), but not to Wexner, LARS score, or EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-CR38. CONCLUSION: CSPO improved the satisfaction with anal function and quality of life but utilized more preoperative chemoradiotherapy. CSPO may be an alternative choice for patients with very low rectal cancers in better physical health and with higher requirements for anal function and quality of life.

[Advances in tumor regression patterns and safe distance of distal resection margin after neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer].

Neoadjuvant therapy has been widely applied in the treatment of rectal cancer, which can shrink tumor size, lower tumor staging and improve the prognosis. It has been the standard preoperative treatment for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer. The efficacy of neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer patients varies between individuals, and the results of tumor regression are obviously different. Some patients with good tumor regression even achieve pathological complete response (pCR). Tumor regression is of great significance for the selection of surgical regimes and the determination of distal resection margin. However, few studies focus on tumor regression patterns. Controversies on the safe distance of distal resection margin after neoadjuvant treatment still exist. Therefore, based on the current research progress, this review summarized the main tumor regression patterns after neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer, and classified them into three types: tumor shrinkage, tumor fragmentation, and mucin pool formation. And macroscopic regression and microscopic regression of tumors were compared to describe the phenomenon of non-synchronous regression. Then, the safety of non-surgical treatment for patients with clinical complete response (cCR) was analyzed to elaborate the necessity of surgical treatment. Finally, the review studied the safe surgical resection range to explore the safe distance of distal resection margin.

The association between sociodemographic status and COPD and asthma mortality, DALY and YLD in southern China, 2005-2015.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the disease burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma in southern China. METHOD: We calculated the mortality, disability-adjusted life-years (DALY), years lived with disability (YLD) and years of life lost (YLL) for COPD and asthma in Guangdong province between 2005 and 2015. We examined the significance of trends of mortality, DALY, YLD and YLL rates for COPD and asthma with the Cochran-Armitage trend test. We also analyzed their association with sociodemographic factors by negative binomial models. RESULT: The age-standardized mortality, DALY, YLD and YLL rates of COPD and asthma decreased significantly in Guangdong, except for an increase of 11.3% in the age-standardized YLD rate of COPD between 2005 and 2015 (all P < 0.05). Compared with females, the respective adjusted mortality rate ratio of males was 2.11 for COPD, and 0.74 for asthma. Compared with other regions, the richest region, Pearl River Delta, had the lowest mortality, DALY, YLD and YLL rate ratios (RR) of COPD and asthma (all P < 0.05). COPD and asthma mortality, DALY, YLD and YLL rates increased substantially with age. Specifically, when compared with the 25-49 years age group, the respective adjusted DALY RR of asthma was 1.91, 2.02 and 22.21 for 0-24, 50-74 and ≥75 years age group; the respective adjusted YLD RR was 2.27, 1.33 and 7.17 for 0-24, 50-74 and ≥75 years age group. CONCLUSIONS: Disease burden of COPD and asthma decreased in Guangdong province in southern China between 2005 and 2015; however, a disproportionate burden of COPD and asthma in terms of age, sex and regions was observed. The relatively high disease burden and high rate of impaired public health from the less developed regions highlight the need for focused policy making to address the problem.

Isatuximab plus atezolizumab in patients with advanced solid tumors: results from a phase I/II, open-label, multicenter study.

BACKGROUND: The anti-CD38 antibody isatuximab is approved for the treatment of relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, but there are no data on its efficacy in solid tumors. This phase I/II study (NCT03637764) assessed the safety and activity of isatuximab plus atezolizumab (Isa + Atezo), an anti-programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibody, in patients with immunotherapy-naive solid tumors: epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), glioblastoma (GBM), hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Phase I assessed safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and the recommended phase II dose (RP2D) of isatuximab 10 mg/kg intravenously (i.v.) every week for 3 weeks followed by once every 3 weeks + atezolizumab 1200 mg i.v. every 3 weeks. Phase II used a Simon's two-stage design to assess the overall response rate or progression-free survival rate at 6 months (GBM cohort). Interim analysis was carried out at 6 months following first dose of the last enrolled patient in each cohort. Pharmacodynamic biomarkers were tested for CD38, PD-L1, tumor-infiltrating immune cells, and FOXP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) in the tumor microenvironment (TME). RESULTS: Overall, 107 patients were treated (EOC, n = 18; GBM, n = 33; HCC, n = 27; SCCHN, n = 29). In phase I, Isa + Atezo showed an acceptable safety profile, no dose-limiting toxicities were observed, and RP2D was confirmed. Most patients experienced ≥1 treatment-emergent adverse event (TEAE), with ≤48.5% being grade ≥3. The most frequent TEAE was infusion reactions. The study did not continue to stage 2 based on prespecified targets. Tumor-infiltrating CD38+ immune cells were reduced and almost cleared after treatment. Isa + Atezo did not significantly modulate Tregs or PD-L1 expression in the TME. CONCLUSIONS: Isa + Atezo had acceptable safety and tolerability. Clinical pharmacodynamic evaluation revealed efficient target engagement of isatuximab via treatment-mediated reduction of CD38+ immune cells in the TME. Based on clinical data, CD38 inhibition does not improve responsiveness to PD-L1 blockade in these patients.

[Clinical research progress and implications of therapeutic vaccines for cervical cancer and precancerous lesions: a qualitative systematic review].

Objective: To systematically summarize and analyze the clinical research progress of therapeutic vaccines for cervical cancer or precancerous lesions. Methods: English databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane library, Proquest, and ClinicalTrails.gov) and Chinese databases (SinoMed, CNKI, WanFang, and VIP Database) were systematically searched to collect literature on therapeutic vaccines for cervical cancer or precancerous lesions from inception to February 18, 2021. After screening, we evaluated the risk of bias of included studies, and combed the basic information of the literature, research designs, information of vaccines, study patients, outcome indicators and so on, qualitatively summarized the clinical research progress. Results: A total of 71 studies were included in this systematic review, including 14 random controlled trials, 15 quasi-random controlled trials, 4 cohort studies, 1 case-control study, 34 case series studies and 3 case reports. The study patients included women aged 15~79 with cervical cancer or precancerous lesions in 18 countries from 1989 to 2021. On the one hand, there were 40 studies on therapeutic vaccines for cervical precancerous lesions (22 867 participants), involving 21 kinds of vaccines in 6 categories. Results showed 3 marketed vaccines (Cervarix, Gardasil, Gardasil 9) as adjuvant immunotherapies were significant effective in preventing the recurrence of precancerous lesions compared with the conization only. In addition, MVA E2 vaccine had been in phase Ⅲ clinical trials as a specific therapeutic vaccine, with relative literature showing it could eliminate most high-grade precancerous lesions. Therapeutic vaccines for precancerous lesions all showed good safety. On the other hand, there were 31 studies on therapeutic vaccines for cervical cancer (781 participants), involving 19 kinds of vaccines in 7categories, with none had been marketed. 25 studies were with no control group, showing the vaccines could effectively eliminate solid tumors, prevent recurrence, and prolong the median survival time. However, the vaccines effectiveness couldn't be statistically calculated due to the lack of a control group. As for the safety of therapeutic vaccines for cervical cancer, 9 studies showed that patients experienced serious adverse events after treatments, where 7 studies reported that serious adverse events occurred in patients couldn't be ruled out as the results of therapeutic vaccines. Conclusions: The literature review shows that the literature evidence for the therapeutic vaccines for cervical precancerous lesions is relatively mature compared with the therapeutic vaccines for cervical cancer. The four kinds of vaccines on the market are all therapeutic vaccines for precancerous lesions, but they are generally used as vaginal infection treatments or adjuvant immunotherapies for cervical precancerous lesions, not used for the specific treatments of cervical precancerous lesions. Other specific therapeutic vaccines are in the early stage of clinical trials, mainly phase Ⅰ/Ⅱ clinical trials with small sample size. The effectiveness and safety data are limited, and further research is still needed.

[A prospective cohort study on the clinical value of pelvic peritoneal reconstruction in laparoscopic anterior resection for middle and low rectal cancer].

Objective: To investigate the safety and efficacy of pelvic peritoneal reconstruction and its effect on anal function in laparoscopy-assisted anterior resection of low and middle rectal cancer. Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted. Consecutive patients with low and middle rectal cancer who underwent laparoscopy-assisted transabdominal anterior resection at Naval Military Medical University Changhai Hospital from February 2020 to February 2021 were enrolled. Inclusion criteria: (1) the distance from tumor to the anal verge ≤10 cm; (2) laparoscopy-assisted transabdominal anterior resection of rectal cancer; (3) complete clinical data; (4) rectal adenocarcinoma diagnosed by postoperative pathology. Exclusion criteria: (1) emergency surgery; (2) patients with a history of anal dysfunction or anal surgery; (3) preoperative diagnosis of distant (liver, lung) metastasis; (4) intestinal obstruction; (5) conversion to open surgery for various reasons. The pelvic floor was reconstructed using SXMD1B405 (Stratafix helical PGA-PCL, Ethicon). The first needle was sutured from the left anterior wall of the neorectum to the right. Insertion of the needle was continued to suture the root of the sigmoid mesentery while the Hemo-lok was used to fix the suture. The second needle was started from the beginning of the first needle, after 3-4 needles, a drainage tube was inserted through the left lower abdominal trocar to the presacral space. Then, the left peritoneal incision of the descending colon was sutured, after which Hemo-lok fixation was performed. The operative time, perioperative complications, postoperative Wexner anal function score and low anterior resection syndrome (LARS) score were compared between the study group and the control group. Three to six months after the operation, pelvic MRI was performed to observe and compare the pelvic floor anatomical structure of the two groups. Results: A total of 230 patients were enrolled, including 58 who underwent pelvic floor peritoneum reconstruction as the study group and 172 who did not undergo pelvic floor peritoneum reconstruction as the control group. There were no significant differences in general data between the two groups (all P>0.05). The operation time of the study group was longer than that of control group [(177.5±33.0) minutes vs. (148.7±45.5) minutes, P<0.001]. There was no significant difference in the incidence of perioperative complications (including anastomotic leakage, anastomotic bleeding, postoperative pneumonia, urinary tract infection, deep vein thrombosis, and intestinal obstruction) between the two groups (all P>0.05). Eight cases had anastomotic leakage, of whom 2 cases (3.4%) in the study group were discharged after conservative treatment, 5 cases (2.9%) of other 6 cases (3.5%) in the control group were discharged after the secondary surgical treatment. The Wexner score and LARS score were 3.1±2.8 and 23.0 (16.0-28.0) in the study group, which were lower than those in the control group [4.7±3.4 and 27.0 (18.0-32.0)], and the differences were statistically significant (t=-3.018, P=0.003 and Z=-2.257, P=0.024). Severe LARS was 16.5% (7/45) in study group and 35.5% (50/141) in control group, and the difference was no significant differences (Z=4.373, P=0.373). Pelvic MRI examination 3 to 6 months after surgery showed that the incidence of intestinal accumulation in the pelvic floor was 9.1% (3/33) in study group and 46.4% (64/138) in control group (χ(2)=15.537, P<0.001). Conclusion: Pelvic peritoneal reconstruction using stratafix in laparoscopic anterior resection of middle and low rectal cancer is safe and feasible, which may reduce the probability of the secondary operation in patients with anastomotic leakage and significantly improve postoperative anal function.

[Methodology progress and challenges on assessing the appropriateness of real-world data].

From the perspective of data users, ensuring the relevance and reliability of big data in healthcare and medicine via assessments on data appropriateness is a prerequisite for generating high-quality real-world evidence, which could guarantee good representativeness and generalizability of real-world studies. This review summarized the quality dimensions, definitions, evaluation indexes and calculating methods of assessment on the appropriateness of real-world data (RWD) according to guidance from different countries and international organizations, as well as exploring the opportunities and challenges for better assessing RWD appropriateness.

5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine may regulate the inflammatory response of human odontoblast-like cells through the NF-κB pathway.

AIM: To explore the role of DNA methylation in the innate immunity of the dental pulp, this study investigated the effect of 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (AZA) on lipoteichoic acid (LTA)-induced cytokine production and related intracellular signalling pathways in human odontoblast-like cells (hOBs). METHODOLOGY: hOBs were cultured and differentiated from human dental pulp tissue, and the odontoblastic phenotype of the cells was detected using immunofluorescence, qRT-PCR and Western blotting. hOBs were pretreated with AZA and then stimulated with 10 µg mL-1 LTA. The levels of 42 cytokines related to immunity and inflammation were examined using a cytokine antibody array and verified using qRT-PCR and ELISA. The effect of AZA on the LTA-induced NF-κB and MAPK signalling pathways was explored using Western blotting. The cells were treated with the specific NF-κB inhibitor PDTC and MAPK inhibitors (the ERK inhibitor U0126, the p38 inhibitor SB203580, and the JNK inhibitor SP600125) to further confirm the role of the signalling pathways in LTA-treated hOBs. DNA immunoprecipitation-PCR was used to examine the dynamic methylation status of the gene promoters of myeloid differentiation primary response 88 (MyD88) and tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) in the LTA-induced hOBs. Statistical analyses of the differences between two groups were performed using Student's t-test. One-way analysis of variance (anova) or repeated-measures anova with a post hoc Dunnett's test was used to assess the differences between multiple sets of data. P < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. RESULTS: The odontoblastic markers were significantly higher in hOBs than those in human dental pulp cells (hDPCs) (P < 0.05). According to the cytokine antibody array results, hOBs pretreated with AZA had significantly increased production of several inflammatory cytokines (P < 0.05), in which the expression levels of IL-6 and IL-8 were the most dramatically increased upon LTA stimulation (P < 0.01). Furthermore, AZA resulted in the significant upregulation of p-IKKα/ß, p-IκBα, p-p65, p-p38 and p-ERK in LTA-stimulated hOBs (P < 0.01). Treatment with the NF-κB pathway inhibitor suppressed both IL-6 and IL-8 expression (P < 0.05), whereas inhibitors of the MAPK pathway (SB203580 and SP600125) did not. In LTA-treated hOBs, AZA significantly increased the expression levels of TRAF6 and MyD88 (P < 0.05). AZA induced MyD88 promoter hypomethylation but did not affect TRAF6 methylation. CONCLUSION: AZA regulated the LTA-induced inflammatory response through the NF-κB signal pathway in hOBs. This study highlights the important role of DNA methylation in the immunity defence of odontoblasts during the dental pulp immunity response to caries.

[Application of a new solid adsorbent tube for the determination of three kinds of epoxy eompounds in air].

Objective: To develop a new solid sorbent tube for simultaneously capturing ethylene oxide (EO) , propylene oxide (PO) and epichlorohydrin (ECH) in air, and establish a complete set of method. Methods: In June 2018, EO, PO and ECH in air were captured by the new solid sorbent tube filled with carbon aerogel adsorbent, desorbed with solution of 5% (V/V) methanol-methylene chloride, separated through capillary chromatographic column, and then analyzed by gas chromatography-flame ionization detector. Results: The linear ranges of EO, PO and ECH were 0.24-960.00, 0.60-2384.00 and 0.12-472.40 mg/L respectively, and the related coefficients were between 0.99995-0.99997. The relative standard deviations (RSD) within the group were 1.66%-4.09%, 1.36%-4.43%, and 1.99%-5.65%, respectively, and the RSD between the group were 2.69%-4.95%, 2.77%-5.30%, and 3.27%-6.67%, respectively. The average desorption efficiencies were 88.25%-94.50%, 98.17%-98.60%, and 97.79%-101.04%, respectively. The samples could be stored at 4 ℃ refrigerator for at least 27 days. Conclusion: The newly developed solid sorbent tube filled with carbon aerogel adsorbent and its complete set of gas chromatography method could be used for sampling and quantitative detection of EO, PO and ECH in workplace air.

Retrospective study of the functional and oncological outcomes of conformal sphincter preservation operation in the treatment of very low rectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Conformal sphincter preservation operation (CSPO) is a new surgical procedure for very low rectal cancers (within 4-5 cm from the anal verge). CSPO preserves more of the dentate line and distal rectal wall and also avoids injuring nerves in the intersphincteric space, resulting in satisfactory anal function after resection. The aim of this study was to analyze the short-term surgical results and long-term oncological and functional outcomes of CSPO. METHODS: Consecutive patients with very low rectal cancer, who had CSPO between January 2011 and October 2018 at Changhai Hospital, Shanghai were included. Patient demographics, clinicopathological features, oncological outcomes and anal function were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 102 patients (67 men) with a mean age of 56.9 ± 10.8 years were included. The median distance of the tumor from the anal verge was 3 (IQR, 3-4) cm. Thirty-five patients received neoadjuvant chemoradiation (nCRT). The median distal resection margin (DRM) was 0.5 (IQR, 0.3-0.8) cm. One patient had a positive DRM. All circumferential margins were negative. There was no perioperative mortality. The postoperative complication rate was 19.6%. The median duration of follow-up was 28 (IQR, 12-45.5) months. The local recurrence rate was 2% and distant metastasis rate was 10.8%. The 3-year overall survival and disease-free survival rates were 100% and 83.9%, respectively. The mean Wexner incontinence and low anterior resection syndrome scores 12 months after ileostomy reversal were 5.9 ± 4.3, and 29.2 ± 6.9, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with very low rectal cancers, fecal continence can be preserved with CSPO without compromising oncological results.

MicroRNA-330-5p promotes the development of osteosarcoma by regulating SPRY2.

OBJECTIVE: MicroRNA is an endogenous, non-coding small RNA that has a significant role in regulating organisms and pathology. Previous studies have demonstrated that microRNA-330-5p was a cancer-promoting gene. However, the role of microRNA-330-5p in osteosarcoma (OS) has not been reported. The aim of this work was to explore the characteristics of microRNA-330-5p expression in OS, and to further study its expression in OS and its relationship with clinicopathological parameters and prognosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Quantitative Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) was performed to investigate the expression of microRNA-330-5p in 48 pairs of OS tissues and paracancer tissues, and to analyze the relationship between the expression of microRNA-330-5p and OS clinical indicators and patient prognosis. Meanwhile, qRT-PCR was performed to verify the microRNA-330-5p expression in OS cells. In addition, the microRNA-330-5p knockdown expression model was constructed using lentivirus in OS cell lines U2OS and MG63. The effects of microRNA-330-5p on the biological function of OS cells were analyzed by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) and transwell experiments. The potential mechanism was explored by Western blot. RESULTS: In this paper, qRT-PCR results showed that the expression of microRNA-330-5p in OS was higher than that in paracancer tissues, and the difference was statistically significant. Compared with microRNA-330-5p low expression group, patients with high expression of microRNA -330-5p had a higher prevalence of distant metastasis and a lower overall survival rate. In vitro experiment showed that the proliferation, invasion and metastasis abilities of the cells in the microRNA-330-5p silencing group were markedly decreased compared with the negative control group (NC group). Western blot results demonstrated that microRNA-330-5p inhibitor can activate SPRY2 and regulate the expression of key proteins, such as p-Smad2, p-Smad3, TGF-ß1, MMP9 and Vimentin in the TGF-ß1/Smad signaling pathway. It was found that there was a mutual regulation between microRNA-330-5p and SPRY2, which promoted the malignant progression of OS. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of microRNA-330-5p was markedly increased in OS, which was associated with distant metastasis and poor prognosis. Furthermore, we found that microRNA-330-5p may promote the vicious progression of OS by inter-modulating SPRY2 and the TGF-ß1/Smad signaling pathways.

MiRNA-7b-5p attenuates the progression of osteoporosis by inhibiting adipose differentiation of hMSCs via regulating IRS2.

OBJECTIVE: To elucidate whether microRNA-7b-5p (miRNA-7b-5p) could inhibit adipose differentiation of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) through regulating IRS2, thereby alleviating the progression of osteoporosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Expression levels of miRNA-7b-5p and IRS2 in hMSCs at different stages of adipogenic differentiation and osteogenic differentiation were detected by quantitative Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot. After transfection of miRNA-7b-5p mimic or pcDNA-IRS2 in hMSCs, lipid droplet formation in cells was observed by oil red O staining. Expressions of C/EBPα and PPARγ were detected by qRT-PCR and Western blot. The potential target gene of miRNA-7b-5p was predicted by bioinformatics and verified by dual-luciferase reporter gene assay. Finally, expressions of IRS2 in hMSCs transfected with miRNA-7b-5p-NC, miRNA-7b-5p mimic or co-transfected with miRNA-7b-5p mimic and pcDNA-IRS2 were examined. RESULTS: Expressions of miRNA-7b-5p and IRS2 gradually decreased with the prolongation of adipogenic differentiation, but increased during osteogenic differentiation of hMSCs. Transfection of miRNA-7b-5p mimic reduced oil red O staining after adipogenic differentiation and downregulated mRNA and protein levels of C/EBPα and PPARγ. Transfection of pcDNA-IRS2 increased oil red O staining after osteogenic differentiation and upregulated mRNA and protein levels of C/EBPα and PPARγ. Dual-luciferase reporter gene results showed that miRNA-7b-5p could bind to IRS2. Overexpression of IRS2 reversed the downregulated mRNA and protein levels of adipogenic-related genes C/EBPα and PPARγ due to the overexpression of miRNA-7b-5p. CONCLUSIONS: MiRNA-7b-5p inhibits the adipogenic differentiation of hMSCs through IRS2, thus alleviating the development of osteoporosis.