[Application of micro-computed tomography (µCT)in quantifying xylem vessels of broadleaved trees]. / 计算机显微断层扫描技术(µCT)åœ¨é‡åŒ–é˜”å¶æ ‘ç§å¯¼ç®¡ä¸­çš„åº”ç”¨.

Quantitative analysis of vessel characteristics at the cellular scale is of great significance for understan-ding plant adaptation strategies to environment. The direct grinding combined with stereo-microscope imaging is one of the main approaches to examine the anatomical structure of xylem (conifer tracheid and hardwood vessel) wood structure, which inevitably damages xylem cells, hindering the accurate understanding of anatomical structures. In this study, we applied X-ray micro-computed tomography (µCT) and stereo-microscope technology to quantitatively measure the diameter and area of vessels of seven Canadian broadleaved tree species (Acer saccharum, Betula papyrifera, Fraxinus americana, Ostrya virginiana, Populus grandidentata, Quercus rubra, and Carya cordiformis). We fitted the results by linear model and tested the feasibility of µCT technology in quantifying the vessel size of broadleaved species. We found that the results of the two methods for measuring vessel size were highly similar (R2=0.98). The goodness of fit of the vessel diameter results measured by the two methods for the ring-porous wood species (C. cordiformis, R2=0.98; F. americana, R2=0.96; Q. rubra, R2=0.99) was higher than that of the diffuse-porous wood species (B. papyrifera, R2=0.88; O. virginiana, R2=0.73; A. saccharum, R2=0.68; P. grandiden-tata, R2=0.88). The goodness of fit of small vessels (diameter≤200 µm, R2=0.94) measured by the two methods was higher than that of large vessels (diameter>200 µm, R2=0.92). Thus, the µCT technique provided a new non-destructive detection method for quantifying xylem vessels of broadleaved tree species.

Comparison of the protective effects of chitosan oligosaccharides and chitin oligosaccharide on apoptosis, inflammation and oxidative stress.

Chitin degradation products, especially chitosan oligosaccharides (COSs), are highly valued in various industrial fields, such as food, medicine, cosmetics and agriculture, for their rich resources and high cost-effectiveness. However, little is known about the impact of acetylation on COS cellular bioactivity. The present study aimed to compare the differential effects of COS and highly N-acetylated COS (NACOS), known as chitin oligosaccharide, on H2O2-induced cell stress. MTT assay showed that pretreatment with NACOS and COS markedly inhibited H2O2-induced RAW264.7 cell death in a concentration-dependent manner. Flow cytometry indicated that NACOS and COS exerted an anti-apoptosis effect on H2O2-induced oxidative damage in RAW264.7 cells. NACOS and COS treatment ameliorated H2O2-induced RAW264.7 cell cycle arrest. Western blotting revealed that the anti-oxidation effects of NACOS and COS were mediated by suppressing expression of proteins involved in H2O2-induced apoptosis, including Bax, Bcl-2 and cleaved PARP. Furthermore, the antagonist effects of NACOS were greater than those of COS, suggesting that acetylation was essential for the protective effects of COS.

Jeotgalibacillus haloalkalitolerans sp. nov., a novel alkalitolerant and halotolerant bacterium, isolated from the confluence of the Fenhe River and the Yellow River.

A Gram-stain positive, aerobic, alkalitolerant and halotolerant bacterium, designated HH7-29 T, was isolated from the confluence of the Fenhe River and the Yellow River in Shanxi Province, PR China. Growth occurred at pH 6.0-12.0 (optimum, pH 8.0-8.5) and 15-40℃ (optimum, 32℃) with 0.5-24% NaCl (optimum, 2-9%). The predominant fatty acids (> 10.0%) were iso-C15:0 and anteiso-C15:0. The major menaquinones were MK-7 and MK-8. The polar lipids were phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol and two unidentified phospholipids. Phylogenetic analyses based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that strain HH7-29 T was a member of the genus Jeotgalibacillus, exhibiting high sequence similarity to the 16S rRNA gene sequences of Jeotgalibacillus alkaliphilus JC303T (98.4%), Jeotgalibacillus salarius ASL-1 T (98.1%) and Jeotgalibacillus alimentarius YKJ-13 T (98.1%). The genomic DNA G + C content was 43.0%. Gene annotation showed that strain HH7-29 T had lower protein isoelectric points (pIs) and possessed genes related to ion transport and organic osmoprotectant uptake, implying its potential tolerance to salt and alkali. The average nucleotide identity, digital DNA-DNA hybridization values, amino acid identity values, and percentage of conserved proteins values between strain HH7-29 T and its related species were 71.1-83.8%, 19.5-27.4%, 66.5-88.4% and 59.8-76.6%, respectively. Based on the analyses of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic, phylogenetic and genomic features, strain HH7-29 T represents a novel species of the genus Jeotgalibacillus, for which the name Jeotgalibacillus haloalkalitolerans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is HH7-29 T (= KCTC 43417 T = MCCC 1K07541T).

An [illustrative] update on pediatric emergency medicine ultrasound: part 1 - trauma and thoracic applications.

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) plays an essential role in emergency medicine, providing a range of diagnostic and procedural modalities. It does not involve any ionizing radiation and can improve procedural accuracy and safety. The role of POCUS in the care of pediatric patients differs somewhat from that of adult patients, as there are a range of conditions specific to infants and children. The technical background of pediatric POCUS and its current applications for trauma and thoracic scanning are reviewed and illustrated in this first article of this series.

Viral infection and spread are inhibited by the polyubiquitination and downregulation of TRPV2 channel by the interferon-stimulated gene TRIM21.

Interferon (IFN) contributes to the host's antiviral response by inducing IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). However, their functional targets and the mechanism of action remain elusive. Here, we report that one such ISG, TRIM21, interacts with and degrades the TRPV2 channel in myeloid cells, reducing its expression and providing host protection against viral infections. Moreover, viral infection upregulates TRIM21 in paracrine and autocrine manners, downregulating TRPV2 in neighboring cells to prevent viral spread to uninfected cells. Consistently, the Trim21-/- mice are more susceptible to HSV-1 and VSV infection than the Trim21+/+ littermates, in which viral susceptibility is rescued by inhibition or deletion of TRPV2. Mechanistically, TRIM21 catalyzes the K48-linked ubiquitination of TRPV2 at Lys295. TRPV2K295R is resistant to viral-infection-induced TRIM21-dependent ubiquitination and degradation, promoting viral infection more profoundly than wild-type TRPV2 when reconstituted into Lyz2-Cre;Trpv2fl/fl myeloid cells. These findings characterize targeting the TRIM21-TRPV2 axis as a conducive strategy to control viral spread to bystander cells.

Application of Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in Evaluation the Activity of Crohn's Disease.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The dynamic assessment of disease activity during the follow-up of patients with Crohn's disease (CD) remains a significant challenge. In this study, we aimed to identify the role of dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (DCE-US) in the evaluation of activity of CD. METHODS: In the retrospective study, patients diagnosed with CD in our hospital were included. All the diagnoses were confirmed by clinical symptoms and ileocolonoscopical results. All patients underwent intestinal ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) examinations within 1 week of the ileocolonoscopy examinations. Acuson Sequoia (Siemens Healthineers, Mountain View, CA, USA) and Resona R9 Elite (Mindray Medical Systems, China) with curved array and Line array transducers were used. The CEUS examination was performed with SonoVue (Bracco SpA, Milan, Italy). DCE-US analysis was performed by UltraOffice (version: 0.3-2010, Mindray Medical Systems, China) software. Two regions of interest (ROIs) were set in the anterior section of the infected bowel wall and its surrounding normal bowel wall 2 cm distant from the inflamed area. Time-intensity curves (TICs) were generated and quantitative perfusion parameters were obtained after curve fittings. The Simple Endoscopic Score for Crohn's disease (SES-CD) was regarded as the reference standard to evaluate the activity of CD. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analyses were used to determine the diagnostic efficiency of DCE-US quantitative parameters. RESULTS: From March 2023 to November 2023, 52 CD patients were included. According to SES-CD score, all patients were divided into active group with the SES-CD score > 5 (n = 39) and inactive group SES-CD score < 5 (n = 13). Most of the active CD patients showed bowel wall thickness (BWT) > 4.2 mm (97.4%, 38/39) or mesenteric fat hypertrophy (MFH) on intestinal ultrasound (US) scan (69.2%, 27/39). Color Doppler signal of the bowel wall mostly showed spotty or short striped blood flow signal in active CD patients (56.4%, 22/39). According to CEUS enhancement patterns, most active CD patients showed a complete hyperenhancement of the entire intestinal wall (61.5%, 24/39). The TICs of active CD showed an earlier enhancement, higher peak intensity, and faster decline. Among all CEUS quantitative parameters, amplitude-derived parameters peak enhancement (PE), wash-in area under the curve (WiAUC), wash-in rate (WiR), wash-in perfusion index (WiPI), and wash-out rate (WoR) were significantly higher in active CD than in inactive CD (p < 0.05). The combined AUROC of intestinal ultrasound features and DCE-US quantitative perfusion parameters in the diagnosis of active CD was 0.987, with 97.4% sensitivity, 100% specificity, and 98.1% accuracy. CONCLUSIONS: DCE-US with quantitative perfusion parameters is a potential useful noninvasive imaging method to evaluate the activity of Crohn's disease.

Rodent-Proof Wall: An Efficient Physical Method for Controlling Rodents and its Efficiency Statistics.

Rodent damage poses a significant threat to crops, human life, and health. Compared to chemical rodent control, such as placing poisonous baits, it is more economical and environmentally friendly to use physical methods, such as building a rodent-proof wall. This study introduces a method of physically controlling harmful rodents and four methods of calculating the effect of rodents control. To understand the controlling effect of the rodent-proof wall, an investigation was conducted on the Dongting Lake beach and corresponding farmland in the embankment in April and July 2012. Our findings illustrated that the density of the reed vole Microtus fortis in the farmland with rodent-proof walls was 0.52%, significantly lower than that in the farmland without rodent-proof walls (1.76%) after artificial trapping and drug extermination (χ2 = 3.900, P = 0.048). The density of M. fortis that had migrated into the farmland in dikes with a rodent-proof wall decreased by 98.53%, significantly higher than the decrease of density in dikes without a rodent-proof wall (86.61%) (χ2 = 11.060, P = 0.01). The results demonstrated the effectiveness of rodent-proof wall control. Therefore, building a rodent-proof wall should be advocated and vigorously promoted to prevent the migration of rodents into the Dongting Lake area and similar environments, as they cause harm.

High Engraftment and Metastatic Rates in Orthotopic Xenograft Models of Gastric Cancer via Direct Implantation of Tumor Cell Suspensions.

Although the implantation of intact tumor fragments is a common practice to generate orthotopic xenografts to study tumor invasion and metastasis, the direct implantation of tumor cell suspensions is necessary when prior manipulations of tumor cells are required. However, the establishment of orthotopic xenografts using tumor cell suspensions is not mature, and a comparative study directly comparing their engraftment and metastatic capabilities is lacking. It is unclear whether tumor fragments are superior to cell suspensions for successful engraftment and metastasis. In this study, we employed three GC cell lines with varying metastatic capacities to stably express firefly luciferase for monitoring tumor progression in real time. We successfully minimized the risk of cell leakage during the orthotopic injection of tumor cell suspensions without Corning Matrigel by systematically optimizing the surgical procedure, injection volume, and needle size options. Comparable high engraftment and metastatic rates between these two methods were demonstrated using MKN-45 cells with a strong metastatic ability. Importantly, our approach can adjust the rate of tumor progression flexibly and cuts the experimental timeline from 10-12 weeks (for tumor fragments) to 4-5 weeks. Collectively, we provided a highly reproducible procedure with a shortened experimental timeline and low cost for establishing orthotopic GC xenografts via the direct implantation of tumor cell suspensions.

Synthesis of organic-solvent-soluble cellulose and preparation of fluorescent polyurethanes for the detection and removal of Hg+ ions.

Modifying cellulose to obtain materials with favorable processing properties and functions is highly significant, especially, for the detection and removal of heavy metal ions. In this study, fluorescent cellulose-based polyurethane (PU) films containing naphthalimide fluorophore were synthesized and could use for the convenient detection and removal of Hg+ ions. Firstly, the microcrystalline cellulose was treated with SOCl2 to convert some -OH groups into -Cl. Simultaneously, a naphthalimide derivative (NAN) with -NH- groups was synthesized. Subsequently, a fluorescent cellulose-based probe (Cel-NAN) was prepared by utilizing the substitution reaction between -Cl on cellulose and -NH- on NAN. Finally, two cellulose-based fluorescent PU films (Cel-NAN-PU1 and Cel-NAN-PU2) were successfully synthesized by reacting the unreacted -OH groups on Cel-NAN with PEG-1000 and HDI/IPDI. These as-prepared PU films could serve as portable fluorescence test papers to Hg+ ions in aqueous solutions. Upon contact with Hg+ ions, the fluorescence was quenched, acting as a "turn-off" probe. Simultaneously, these films could serve as adsorbents for the removal of Hg+ ions from aqueous systems. Cel-NAN-PU1 film exhibited a removal efficiency over 80 % and an adsorption capacity of 8.4 mg·cm-2 for Hg+. These cellulose-based fluorescent PU films possess promising potential in the field of mercury pollution control.

Long-term outcomes of pelvic exenterations for gynecological malignancies: a single-center retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Recently, with the advancement of medical technology, the postoperative morbidity of pelvic exenteration (PE) has gradually decreased, and it has become a curative treatment option for some patients with recurrent gynecological malignancies. However, more evidence is still needed to support its efficacy. This study aimed to explore the safety and long-term survival outcome of PE and the feasibility of umbilical single-port laparoscopic PE for gynecologic malignancies in a single medical center in China. PATIENTS AND METHODS: PE for gynecological cancers except for ovarian cancer conducted by a single surgical team in Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between July 2014 and December 2019 were included and the data were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: Forty-one cases were included and median age at diagnosis was 53 years. Cervical cancer accounted for 87.8% of all cases, and most of them received prior treatment (95.1%). Sixteen procedures were performed in 2016 and before, and 25 after 2016. Three anterior PE were performed by umbilical single-site laparoscopy. The median operation time was 460 min, and the median estimated blood loss was 600 ml. There was no perioperative death. The years of the operations was significantly associated with the length of the operation time (P = 0.0018). The overall morbidity was 52.4%, while the severe complications rate was 19.0%. The most common complication was pelvic and abdominal infection. The years of surgery was also significantly associated with the occurrence of severe complication (P = 0.040). The median follow-up time was 55.8 months. The median disease-free survival (DFS) was 17.9 months, and the median overall survival (OS) was 25.3 months. The 5-year DFS was 28.5%, and the 5-year OS was 30.8%. CONCLUSION: PE is safe for patient who is selected by a multi-disciplinary treatment, and can be a curative treatment for some patients. PE demands a high level of experience from the surgical team. Umbilical single-port laparoscopy was a technically feasible approach for APE, meriting further investigation.

Alteromonas arenosi sp. nov., a novel bioflocculant-producing bacterium, isolated from intertidal sand.

A novel Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic and bioflocculant-producing bacterium, designated as ASW11-36T, was isolated from an intertidal sand collected from coastal areas of Qingdao, PR China. Growth occurred at 15-40 °C (optimum, 30 °C), pH 7.0-9.0 (optimum, pH 7.5) and with 1.5-7.0% (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 2.5-3.0%). In the whole-cell fatty acid pattern prevailed C16:0 and summed feature 3 (C16:1 ω7c and/or C16:1 ω6c). The major isoprenoid quinone was determined to be Q-8 and the major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) and phosphatidylglycerol (PG), one unidentified aminolipid (AL), one unidentified glycolipid (GL), and two lipids (L1, L2). Based on the phylogenetic analyses of 16S rRNA gene sequences and 618 single-copy orthologous clusters, strain ASW11-36T could represent a novel member of the genus Alteromonas and was closely related to Alteromonas flava P0211T (98.4%) and Alteromonas facilis P0213T (98.3%). The pairwise average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values of the ASW11-36T genome assembly against the closely related species genomes were 71.8% and 21.7%, respectively, that clearly lower than the proposed thresholds for species. Based on phenotypic, phylogenetic, and chemotaxonomic analyses, strain ASW11-36T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Alteromonas, for which the name Alteromonas arenosi sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is ASW11-36T (= KCTC 82496T = MCCC 1K05585T). In addition, the strain yielded 65% of flocculating efficiency in kaolin suspension with CaCl2 addition. The draft genome of ASW11-36T shared abundant putative CAZy family related genes, especially involved in the biosynthesis of exopolysaccharides, implying its potential environmental and biological applications.

Hepatic steatosis using ultrasound-derived fat fraction: First technical and clinical evaluation.

OBJECTIVES: To explore the technical and clinical evaluation of ultrasound-derived fat fraction (UDFF) measurement in adult patients in whom fatty liver was suspected. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this prospective study, 41 participants were initially enrolled in our hospital between October 2022 and December 2022 and received UDFF assessment using Siemens ACUSON Sequoia system equipped with DAX transducer. UDFF measurement was performed three times to obtain UDFF values from each imaging location (V hepatic segment and VIII hepatic segment) per participant, and the depth (skin-to-capsule distance) was automatically measured. The echogenicity of liver tissue in B mode ultrasound (BMUS) was compared to the normal kidney tissue, and fatty liver was graded as mild (Grade 1), moderate (Grade 2), and severe (Grade 3). The median of the acquired overall median UDFF values was used for statistical analysis. All ultrasound examinations were performed by one of two radiologists (with 20 and 10 years of liver ultrasound imaging experience). RESULTS: Finally, UDFF measurement was successfully performed on 38 participants to obtain valid values, including 21 men with a median age of 40.0 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 23.0 - 58.5) and 17 women with a median age of 60.0 years (IQR: 29.5 - 67.0). Fatty liver was diagnosed by BMUS features in 47.4% (18/38) participants. Among all participants, the median UDFF value was 7.0% (IQR: 4.0 - 15.6). A significant difference in UDFF values was found between participants with fatty liver and without fatty liver (U = 7.0, P < 0.001), and UDFF values elevated as the grade of the fatty liver increased (P < 0.001). The median UDFF values from the three UDFF measurements obtained during each ultrasound examination showed excellent agreement (ICC = 0.882 [95% confidence interval: 0.833 - 0.919]). The Spearman correlation of UDFF values in different depths was moderate, with a rs value of 0.546 (P < 0.001). No significant differences in UDFF values were found between V hepatic segment and VIII hepatic segment (U = 684.5, P = 0.697). CONCLUSIONS: UDFF provides a novel non-invasive imaging tool for hepatic steatosis assessment with excellent feasibility.

Model-based hypothesis tests for the causal mediation of semi-competing risks.

Analyzing the causal mediation of semi-competing risks has become important in medical research. Semi-competing risks refers to a scenario wherein an intermediate event may be censored by a primary event but not vice versa. Causal mediation analyses decompose the effect of an exposure on the primary outcome into an indirect (mediation) effect: an effect mediated through a mediator, and a direct effect: an effect not through the mediator. Here we proposed a model-based testing procedure to examine the indirect effect of the exposure on the primary event through the intermediate event. Under the counterfactual outcome framework, we defined a causal mediation effect using counting process. To assess statistical evidence for the mediation effect, we proposed two tests: an intersection-union test (IUT) and a weighted log-rank test (WLR). The test statistic was developed from a semi-parametric estimator of the mediation effect using a Cox proportional hazards model for the primary event and a series of logistic regression models for the intermediate event. We built a connection between the IUT and WLR. Asymptotic properties of the two tests were derived, and the IUT was determined to be a size [Formula: see text] test and statistically more powerful than the WLR. In numerical simulations, both the model-based IUT and WLR can properly adjust for confounding covariates, and the Type I error rates of the proposed methods are well protected, with the IUT being more powerful than the WLR. Our methods demonstrate the strongly significant effects of hepatitis B or C on the risk of liver cancer mediated through liver cirrhosis incidence in a prospective cohort study. The proposed method is also applicable to surrogate endpoint analyses in clinical trials.

Preoperative ultrasound radiomics for predicting clinically relevant postoperative pancreatic fistula after pancreatectomy.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the efficacy of the radiomics model based on preoperative B-mode ultrasound (BMUS) and shear wave elastography (SWE) for predicting the occurrence of clinically relevant-postoperative pancreatic fistula (CR-POPF). METHODS: Patients who were scheduled to undergo pancreatectomy were prospectively enrolled and received ultrasound assessment within one week before surgery. The risk factors of POPF (grades B and grades C) were analyzed. Preoperative BMUS images, SWE values of pancreatic lesions and surrounding parenchyma were used to build preoperative prediction radiomics models. Radiomic signatures were extracted and constructed using a minimal Redundancy Maximal Relevance (mRMR) algorithm and an L1 penalized logistic regression. A combined model was built using multivariate regression which incorporated radiomics signatures and clinical data. RESULTS: From January 2020 to November 2021, a total of 147 patients (85 distal pancreatectomies and 62 pancreaticoduodenectomies) were enrolled. During the three-week follow-up after pancreatectomy, the incidence rates of grade B/C POPF were 28.6% (42/147). Radiomic signatures constructed from BMUS of pancreas parenchymal regions (panRS) achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.75, accuracy of 68.7%, sensitivity of 85.7 %, and specificity of 61.9 % in preoperative noninvasive prediction of CR-POPF. The AUC of the radiomics model increased to 0.81 when panRS was used for the prediction of CR-POPF after pancreaticoduodenectomy. CONCLUSIONS: Radiomics model based on ultrasound images was potentially useful for predicting CR-POPF. Patients with high-risk factors should be closely monitored when postoperation.

Impact of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Tumor Size on Sonazoid Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Enhancement Features.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the work described here was to evaluate the impact of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tumor size on Sonazoid contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) enhancement features, especially in tumors with diameters ≤30 mm and <10 mm. METHODS: In this retrospective study, we included patients with histopathologically confirmed HCC lesions and divided them into three groups on the basis of tumor size. All patients underwent Sonazoid-enhanced CEUS examinations before surgery. B-mode ultrasound (BMUS) features and CEUS enhancement patterns were evaluated according to current World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology Guidelines criteria. The χ2- and Student t-tests were used to compare differences between groups. RESULTS: We included 132 patients with histopathologically confirmed HCC lesions from November 2020 to September 2022. On the basis of tumor size, patients were divided into group 1 (<10 mm, n = 5), group 2 (10-30 mm, n = 54) and group 3 (>30 mm, n = 73). On BMUS, most HCCs appeared heterogeneous but predominantly hypo-echoic (61.4%, 81/132) with ill-defined margins and irregular shapes. Meanwhile, iso-echoic features were more common in small HCCs ≤30 mm (15.3%, 9/59), but a mixed hyper- and hypo-echoic appearance was more common in HCCs >30 mm (17.8%, 13/73) (p = 0.003). On Sonazoid-enhanced CEUS, all HCCs presented arterial phase hyperenhancement (APHE) (100.0%, 132/132). Most HCCs >30 mm exhibited heterogeneous hyperenhancement (86.3%, 63/73), whereas nearly one-third of small HCCs ≤30 mm exhibited homogeneous hyperenhancement (35.6%, 21/59) (p = 0.003). In the portal venous phase, there was a significantly higher proportion of washout in HCCs >30 mm (84.9%, 62/73) than in small HCCs ≤30 mm (64.4%, 38/59) (p = 0.006). During the Kupffer phase, 11 additional hypo-enhanced lesions (mean size: 14.1 ± 4.1 mm, iso-echoic on BMUS), which were also suspected to be HCC lesions, were detected in 5 patients with small HCCs ≤30 mm and 4 patients with HCCs >30 mm. All 5 cases of HCCs <10 mm exhibited APHE and late washout (>60 s). The majority (3/5, 60%) exhibited washout in the portal venous phase (70, 74 and 75 s), one case did so in the late phase (125 s) and another in the Kupffer phase (420 s). CONCLUSION: Tumor size had a significant impact on the washout features of HCC lesions on Sonazoid-enhanced CEUS. Small HCC lesions ≤30 mm had a higher proportion of relatively late washout in comparison to larger lesions. Sonazoid-enhanced CEUS might be helpful in the detection and characterization of HCC lesions <10 mm.

Review on Pediatric Malignant Focal Liver Lesions with Imaging Evaluation: Part I.

Malignant focal liver lesions (FLLs) are commonly reported in adults but rarely seen in the pediatric population. Due to the rarity, the understanding of these diseases is still very limited. In children, most malignant FLLs are congenital. It is very important to choose appropriate imaging examination concerning various factors. This paper will outline common pediatric malignant FLLs, including hepatoblastoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, and cholangiocarcinoma and discuss them against the background of the latest knowledge on comparable/similar tumors in adults. Medical imaging features are of vital importance for the non-invasive diagnosis and follow-up of treatment of FLLs in pediatric patients. The use of CEUS in pediatric patients for characterizing those FLLs that remain indeterminate on conventional B mode ultrasounds may be an effective option in the future and has great potential to be integrated into imaging algorithms without the risk of exposure to ionizing radiation.

Review on Pediatric Malignant Focal Liver Lesions with Imaging Evaluation: Part II.

Malignant focal liver lesions (FLLs) represent various kinds of epithelial and mesenchymal tumors. In pediatric patients, the understanding of pediatric liver diseases and associated imaging manifestations is essential for making accurate diagnosis and differential diagnosis. This paper will discuss the latest knowledge of the common pediatric malignant FLLs, including undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, epithelioid hemangioendothelioma, angiosarcoma, and malignant rhabdoid tumor. Medical imaging features are not only helpful for clinical diagnosis, but can also be useful in the evaluation and follow-up of pre- and post-treatment. The future perspectives of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) enhancement patterns of FLLs in pediatric patients are also mentioned.

Regular gastroscopy and colonoscopy during the evaluation of urachal cancer: do we really need them?

PURPOSE: Urachal cancer is similar to gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma in histology, and gastroscopy/colonoscopy is often administered during perioperative evaluation. However, gastroscopy and colonoscopy have corresponding disadvantages. This study discusses whether gastroscopy/colonoscopy is truly necessary for patients with urachal cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 166 bladder adenocarcinoma cases diagnosed at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center were retrospectively reviewed and divided into two groups (urachal cancer and nonurachal cancer), and perioperative evaluations were retrieved. RESULTS: There were 78 patients with urachal cancer, the median age was 48 years, and 59 were male. Perioperative gastroscopy/colonoscopy revealed 5 intestinal polyps and 1 adenoma during these evaluations, and no primary gastrointestinal cancer was found. Meanwhile, preoperative imaging evaluation did not detect significant gastrointestinal lesions. For 88 patients with nonurachal cancer, including primary bladder adenocarcinoma and metastatic tumors from gastrointestinal cancer, the median age was 56 years, and 64 were male. Preoperative imaging evaluation demonstrated 36 cases of gastrointestinal lesions, and 32 were confirmed by gastroscopy/colonoscopy; the other 4 were negative. Another 4 cases of colon cancer were detected by regular colonoscopy for suspected primary bladder adenocarcinoma. In all, 35 cases of colon cancer and 1 case of gastric cancer were identified by endoscopic examination. The diagnostic consistency of imaging and gastrointestinal endoscopy was favorable (P < 0.001), and the negative predictive value and diagnostic efficiency of imaging were 96.9% and 94.6%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The vast majority of gastrointestinal cancer cases can be identified by assessment of the patient's clinical symptoms, meticulous physical examination, and imaging evaluation. We recommend that gastroscopy/colonoscopy only be applied to patients with urachal cancer when the above examinations are positive.

Optimal interval timing between transurethral resection of bladder tumors and Bacillus Calmette-Guerin perfusion.

OBJECTIVE: There is no consensus regarding the best interval time between transurethral resection of a bladder tumor and Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) perfusion. This study was to explore whether the interval time has an impact on the prognosis and adverse effects. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical data of patients who received BCG intravesical perfusion at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center (SYSUCC) from September 2015 to October 2021. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and progression-free survival were the primary endpoints. Cox regression was used to explore independent predictors. The association between interval time and adverse effect grade was detected by logistic regression. Propensity score matching (PSM) was performed. RESULTS: A total of 403 patients were enrolled, the median interval time was 24 days (6-163 days), and the follow-up was 28 months (7-82 months). Eighty-eight (20.9%) patients relapsed, and 40 patients (10.0%) suffered progression. The multivariate Cox regression analysis confirmed that interval time was an independent predictor of RFS (p = 0.017). Notably, when the interval time was less than or equal to 26 days, there was a trend toward better RFS, PSM resulted in 65 matched pairs in each group, and Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that there was a significant difference in RFS between groups (p = 0.009). The logistic regression analysis showed that there was no correlation between interval time and adverse effects and their grades (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: We considered that the first BCG perfusion could be performed within 2-4 weeks after surgery.

Biomechanical evaluation of a novel atlas polyaxial transverse connecting screw system, an in vitro human cadaveric study.

PURPOSE: To introduce a novel transverse connecting screw system, and to evaluate the biomechanical stability of the novel screw system using human cadaveric specimens. METHODS: Six fresh-frozen cadaveric upper cervical spines were used in our study. Every specimen was tested under 5 conditions: intact group; unstable group; C1 to C2 screw rod system group; C1 to C2 + crosslink system group; atlas polyaxial transverse connecting screw (APTCS) system. RESULTS: Compared with the intact state, C1 to C2 screw rod system, C1 to C2 + CL system and APTCS showed statistically decrease range of motion in all directions except for the unstable group under posterior extension direction (P < .05). APTCS group has the least range of motion in all directions (P < .001). CONCLUSION: The APTCS system was able to restore stability to the atlantoaxial joint. APTCS system has the advantages of easy installation, convenient bone grafting, and strong biomechanical strength.