[The role and responsibility of clinical neuroscience in brain-computer interface clinical research].

Brain-computer interface (BCI) constructs the direct communication between human brain and external devices, which has been extensively applied in clinical research of the diagnosis and treatment of nervous system diseases, and plays a crucial role in functional evaluation, communication control, reconstruction, rehabilitation training, and neural regulation. This paper summarizes the different forms of BCI technology, the progress of clinical research on BCI for neurological diseases, and the importance of developing appropriate clinical trial standards and ethical norms. Further emphasis is placed on the interpretation of the scope of BCI clinical research in neurological diseases, the ethical principles of BCI clinical research in neurological diseases, and the key points of BCI clinical research implementation and management summarized in the Chinese expert Consensus on the implementation and management of BCI clinical research in Neurological diseases. Finally, the role and responsibility of clinical neuroscience in BCI clinical trials are put forward, emphasizing interdisciplinary cooperation in clinical research to better promote the clinical transformation of BCI technology.

[Association between heavy metal mixed exposure and neonatal birth weight in pregnancy].

The impact of prenatal exposure to a mixture of heavy metals on birth weight in newborns has been a topic of ongoing interest. In this study, 258 mothers and infants from the New Hampshire Birth Cohort Study (NHBCS) were selected as the study subjects, and the concentrations of seven heavy metals in the placenta, including Aluminum (Al), Cobalt (Co), Chromium (Cr), Nickel (Ni), Plumbum (Pb), Selenium (Se) and Arsenic (As) were collected. And the birth weight of newborns, the relevant covariates of mothers and newborns were collected. Three analytical methods, Weighted Quantile Sum (WQS) regression, Quantile g-computation (QGC) and Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) were employed. After adjusting for maternal gestational age, pre-pregnancy BMI, smoking status, education level, parity, gestational age and newborn gender, the combined three methods showed that the total effect of mixed exposure of seven heavy metals on birth weight was negative. Specifically, the WQS analysis revealed that Se had the greatest impact on birth weight, followed by Al. The QGC results showed that the heavy metal associated with the reduction of birth weight was mainly Se and Al in female and male infants, respectively. The BKMR analysis demonstrated a negative combined effect of the seven heavy metals on birth weight in both male and female infants, with Se having the highest posterior inclusion probabilities (PIPs) for female infants (0.45), and Al having the highest PIPs for male infants (0.64) after stratification by gender. In summary, mixed exposure to heavy metals during pregnancy was associated with a decrease in newborn birth weight. Furthermore, there are gender effects with Se and Al associated with decreased birth weight in female and male infants, respectively. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the development of public health policies aimed at preventing adverse pregnancy outcomes and improving the health of newborns.

[Effects of one-stop hybrid operation on the risk and prognosis of brain arteriovenous malformations with posterior feeding artery].

Objective: To explore the effect of the combination of posterior circulation embolization and micro-resection on the risk and prognosis in patients with brain arteriovenous malformations (bAVMs) supplied by posterior circulation in a one-stop hybrid operation setting. Methods: Patients with bAVMs supplied by posterior circulation who received surgical treatment in Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, were enrolled from January 2016 to December 2019 from a prospective, multicentral cohort (NCT03209804). The patients were divided into the posterior circulation embolization group and the non-posterior circulation embolization group. Propensity score matching (PSM) (1∶1) was performed according to the baseline information, the morphology of bAVMs, vascular architecture, and Spetzler-Martin grade of brain lesions. The primary endpoint was the deterioration of neurological function. The secondary endpoints were perioperative complications. The differences in surgical risk and clinical prognosis between the two groups were compared. Results: Five hundred and forty-five patients were enrolled in the cohort, and 38.3% met the included criteria (n=209 cases), with 42 cases in the posterior circulation embolization group and 167 cases in the non-posterior circulation embolization group. Depending on whether the patients were posterior circulation embolized, 39 patients in the posterior circulation embolization group and 39 patients in the non-posterior circulation embolization group were finally included after performing PSM. There were 50 males and 28 females, aged 5-58 (30±13) years. The exacerbation rate of neurological dysfunction in the posterior circulation embolization group was higher than that in the non-posterior circulation embolization group three months after surgery, however there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups [15.4% (6/39) vs 2.6% (1/39), P=0.107]. The intraoperative blood loss in the embolization group was significantly less than that in the non-embolization group [650 (500, 1 500) ml vs 1 200 (800, 2 000) ml, P=0.002]. There was no significant difference in microsurgery time between the two groups [437 (374, 521) min vs 424 (359, 601) min, P=0.865]. Likewise, there were no statistically significant differences in the incidence of postoperative complications and aggravation of neurological dysfunction, including postoperative bAVMs residual [5.1%(2/39) vs 7.7%(3/39), P=1.000], hemorrhagic complications [5.1%(2/39) vs 0(0), P=0.494], postoperative ischemic complications [10.3%(4/39) vs 5.1%(2/39), P=0.675], neurological dysfunction at discharge (17.9% vs 15.4%, P=0.755), and one-year neurological dysfunction [5.1%(2/39) vs 2.6%(1/39), P=1.000]. Conclusions: Posterior circulation embolization of bAVMs in a one-stop hybrid operation can effectively reduce intraoperative bleeding and surgical risk. Embolization of the feeding artery has no significant impact on the perioperative complications and neurological outcomes.

[Risk factors of recurrence or metastasis in patients with medullary thyroid carcinoma].

Objective: To analyze the risk factors of recurrence or metastasis of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) and the influencing factors of disease-free survival (DFS). Methods: The clinicopathological data of MTC patients who visited Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital and underwent surgery from August 2014 to August 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into recurrence or metastasis group and no recurrence or metastasis group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the risk factors for recurrence or metastasis. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Cox regression analysis were used to determine the risk factors of DFS. Results: A total of 158 MTC patients were enrolled in final analysis, including 83 females and 75 males, with a median age of 52 (19-74) years. There were 146 cases of sporadic MTC (92.4%) and 12 cases of familial MTC (7.6%), respectively. Bilateral thyroid lesions presented in 33 cases (20.9%) and multiple lesions presented in 57 cases (36.1%), respectively. The median follow-up time was 59.7 (10.0-93.0) months and the median DFS was 55.5 (0-92.9) months. Presence of multifocality, the largest tumor size>2 cm, T3/4, N1b, clinical stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ, lymph node metastasis ratio (LNR)>0.3, preoperative calcitonin>2 000 ng/L, postoperative calcitonin>40 ng/L and no biochemical cure were significantly correlated with the recurrence or metastasis and DFS of MTC (all P<0.05). Clinical stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ (OR=36.57, 95%CI: 1.33-1 006.98, P=0.033), the largest tumor size>2 cm (OR=5.81, 95%CI: 1.01-33.33, P=0.049), multifocality (OR=3.64, 95%CI: 1.03-12.88, P=0.045) and postoperative calcitonin>40 ng/L (OR=15.03, 95%CI: 1.39-162.61, P=0.026) were independent risk factors of recurrence or metastasis. Clinical stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ (HR=19.39, 95%CI:1.40-268.19, P=0.027), the largest tumor size>2 cm (HR=3.64, 95%CI: 1.02-13.02, P=0.047) and postoperative calcitonin>40 ng/L (HR=10.68, 95%CI: 1.34-84.95, P=0.025) were influencing factors for DFS (all P<0.05). Conclusion: The larger tumor size, advanced clinical stage and higher postoperative calcitonin at the initial treatment of MTC are risk factors for recurrence or metastasis and influencing factors for DFS.

[Correlation between dyslipidemia and the risk of papillary thyroid carcinoma].

Objective: To investigate the correlation between dyslipidemia and the risk of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Methods: A case-control study was conducted. PTC patients diagnosed by pathology in Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital from April 2014 to August 2019 were enrolled as the experimental group, and healthy controls in the physical examination center at the same time were also enrolled as the control group. The demographic data and blood lipid parameters of the subjects were collected. Multivariate logistic analyses were used to assess the correlation between dyslipidemia and the risk of PTC. Results: A total of 2 000 cases of PTC were enrolled, with a mean age of (42±12) years, including 1 419 females (71.0%) and 581 males (29.0%). There were 4 524 cases in the control group, with a mean age of (42±9) years, including 3 311 females (73.2%) and 1 213 males (26.8%). There was no statistically difference in age and gender between the two groups (both P>0.05). Compared with the control group, triglyceride (TG) [(1.7±1.1) vs (1.4±1.0) mmol/L, P<0.001] and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) [(2.9±0.8) vs (2.8±0.7) mmol/L, P=0.015] increased in peripheral blood of PTC patients, while high-density lipoprotein (HDL) [(1.3±0.4) vs (1.4±0.3) mmol/L, P<0.001] decreased, but the difference was not statistically significant in total cholesterol (TC) [(4.9±1.0) vs (4.9±0.8) mmol/L, P=0.172]. After adjusting for age and gender, increase of TC (OR=1.20, 95%CI: 1.06-1.34, P=0.003), TG (OR=1.73, 95%CI: 1.55-1.94, P<0.001), LDL (OR=1.21, 95%CI: 1.08-1.36, P=0.001), LDL/HDL (OR=1.77, 95%CI: 1.56-2.02, P<0.001) and decrease of HDL (OR=3.15, 95%CI: 2.78-3.58, P<0.001) were the related factors of PTC. Conclusions: Compared with the control group, patients with PTC have higher level of TG and LDL and lower level of HDL. Dyslipidemia is an important factor related to the risk of PTC.

[Clinical trials considerations for patients with immune-tolerant phase chronic hepatitis B].

Most patients with early stage chronic hepatitis B virus infection are in the immune-tolerant phase. Therefore, previously been generally believed that there is no disease progression or liver injury-related events, and poor antiviral efficacy in patients with immune-tolerant phase. With that in mind, antiviral therapy is generally not recommended in current domestic and foreign guidelines. However, more and more studies have shown that patients in the immune-tolerant phase may develop liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma without treatment, so clinical treatment is urgently needed. Currently, drugs based on nucleocapsid inhibitor, immune modulation, and other novel mechanisms for viral replication are being developed to reduce hepatitis B surface antigen, which offers the possibility to achieve viral suppression or even functional cure in these patients. This paper mainly reviews and discusses the latest research progress, population characteristics, treatment needs, and design strategies of clinical trials of new drug for immune-tolerant phase population.

Robust Twin Pairs of Weyl Fermions in Ferromagnetic Oxides.

The ferromagnetic Weyl semimetals with inversion symmetry usually possess odd pairs of Weyl fermions. Here, we present an inversion eigenvalue argument to dictate the existence of even pairs of ferromagnetic Weyl fermions. We show, by a combination of first-principles calculations and symmetry analyses, that this exotic topological feature can be verified in ferromagnetic oxides in different space groups. In particular, a realistic candidate, i.e., hollandite RbCr_{4}O_{8} with a high Curie temperature (∼295 K), hosts intriguing twin pairs of Weyl fermions, which are robustly stable against perturbations. Moreover, our effective model and symmetry analysis show that the twin pairs of Weyl fermions originate from a mirrored nodal ring pair. The nontrivial surface states and Fermi arcs of RbCr_{4}O_{8} are clearly visible, further revealing the topological features. This work strengthens the understanding of the parity analysis in exploring ferromagnetic topological materials with unconventional fermionic excitations.

A menopause survey of women with benign breast disease history in northwest China.

Objectives: The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of menopause syndrome (MPS) and the present treatment status for menopause symptoms in women with benign breast disease history, compared with those without breast problems, and to analyze the affecting factors of medical visits and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) application for menopause symptoms. Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted by face-to-face interview with a general sample of 8500 Chinese women aged 45-55 years from 162 villages and towns of Gansu province, China. Results: The MPS prevalence in the Benign breast disease history group was 76.60%, and was not statistically different from that of the Control group. Few of the participants had medical visits or had undergone treatment. The Benign breast disease history group was more informed of the treatment options available and more likely to start HRT. Conclusions: Most women with benign breast disease history experienced menopausal symptoms when experiencing reproductive senescence, they had more knowledge about menopause syndrome and more positive to the therapeutic than whom without breast problems.

[Functional lateralization of major Chinese language cortex for presurgical evaluation in neurosurgery].

Objective: To investigate the functional lateralization of major Chinese language cortex in patients with cerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in dominant hemispheric via functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Methods: Nine right-handed normal volunteers and fourteen patients with cerebral AVM in dominant hemisphere diagnosed in Beijing Tiantan Hospital between December 2017 and June 2018 were included. Three language tasks (semantic judgment, word reading, and listening comprehension) were applied to activate language areas. Lateralization index (LI) was used to show the dominant hemisphere. Results: In the control group, right-sided lateralization of BOLD signal activations was observed in 0/27 (0%) of the language tasks. While in the AVM patients, right-sided lateralization of BOLD signal activations was observed in 8/42 (19%) language tasks. The difference was statistically significant (χ(2)=5.73, P=0.019). Conclusions: The dominant hemisphere of different language tasks may be different in patients with cerebral lesions. Compared with normal controls, patients with cerebral AVM in dominant hemispheric are more likely to have right-sided lateralization of language cortex.

Controllable dissociation of H2O on a CeO2(111) surface.

Splitting water on metal oxide surfaces plays a key role in surface catalytic reactions. Continuously tuning the molecular/dissociative states of H2O can be expected to achieve controllable catalysis. In this work, we propose a promising method to split water on a CeO2(111) surface and uncover the dissociation mechanism. According to first-principles calculations, we demonstrate that tensile strain facilitates water dissociation on the CeO2(111) surface due to the enhancement of hybridization between the 4f states of surface Ce and the 2p states of the dissociated H2O. More importantly, strain-induced water dissociation could also apply to other metal oxide surfaces, such as PaO2(111), ThO2(111), and CaO(100). It is proposed that different behaviors of the oxygen 2p band center shift for molecular and dissociative H2O are responsible for tensile strain-induced water dissociation on metal oxide surfaces. The results indicate that Ag(111) or Au(111) can serve as substrates to realize water dissociation on ultra-thin CeO2(111) films. Our studies provide an effective approach for tuning the surface reactions of metal oxide surfaces by modulating lattice parameters.

[Paired comparative study of risk factors related to aneurysm rupture during hospitalization].

Objective: Aneurysm rupture during in-hospital period contributes to the exceedingly high morbidity and mortality of inpatients with untreated aneurysm. However, risk factors for aneurysm rupture during hospitalization were scarcely focused in previous reports. The aim of this study was to investigate the risk factors of aneurysm rupture during hospitalization and to propose clinical strategies improving prognosis. Methods: Patients with intracranial aneurysm (lA) rupture during hospitalization were identified in our prospective cohort of consecutive patients admitted to Beijing Tiantan Hospital between Jan 2014 to Dec 2017. The ruptured cases were randomly paired with control cases without rupture during hospitalization (controlling age and gender) in a proportion of 1∶2 from the cohort. An observational comparative study was conducted between the two groups. Results: Tevelve cases with IAs rupture during hospitalization were identified among 4 429 cases with IAs. Twenty-four control cases were matched for gender (male∶female=5∶7) and age distribution. A history of pre-hospital aneurysm rupture was indicated as a risk factor for IA rupture during hospitalization (OR=8.333, 95% CI 1.480-46.936, P=0.011). The irregular shape (OR=10.133, 95% CI 1.941-52.902, P=0.005)and an inflow angle<60°(OR=41.800, 95% CI 4.311-405.335, P=0.000)were morphologic factors associated with IA rupture of inpatients. Conclusions: A history of pre-hospital IA rupture, IAs with irregular shape and an inflow angle <60° were risk factors associated with IAs rupture of inpatients. Unfavorable outcomes were observed in cases with IA rupture during hospitalization. A one-stage hybrid surgical strategy combining diagnosis, evaluation and intervention could reduce the length of preoperative stay, as well as the rupture risk of inpatients with IAs.

[Clinical analysis of hereditary coagulation factor â ¤ deficiency].

Objective: To analyze the clinical characteristics of hereditary coagulation factor Ⅴ deficiency (FⅤD) and to improve the diagnosis and treatment ability of hereditary FⅤD. Methods: A total of 17 patients with hereditary FⅤD admitted to the Department of Hematology, Peking University People's Hospital from February 2013 to January 2018 were selected, and their clinical characteristics, laboratory examination, treatment and prognosis were retrospectively analyzed. Results: There were 9 males and 8 females patients with FⅤD, the median age was 36 (1-72 ) years. The median age of men was 39 (1-72)years, and the median age of women was 33 (8-56)years. There was no significant difference between them (P=0.793). The median prothrombin time(PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time(APTT) values were 21.0(13.0-39.6) s and 54.6(38.2-121.2) s, and the median level of plasma FⅤ was 8.2% (0.9%-39%). Thirteen cases (13/17) were mild, 3 cases (3/17) were moderate, and only 1 case (1/17) was severe according to the FⅤ level. Five cases (5/17) had bleeding, including 3 cases with skin ecchymosis, 1 case with vaginal bleeding, and 1 case with gastrointestinal bleeding. According to the severity of bleeding, 1 case (1/17) had severe bleeding, and the other 4 cases (4/17) were mild bleeding. Conclusions: Patients with hereditary FⅤD either have or do not have bleeding symptoms, with prolonged PT and APTT and decreased plasma of FⅤ activity. There is no need for treatment for those without bleeding symptoms. Fresh frozen plasma is the first choice for patients who have bleeding, and the overall prognosis is good.

Emergence of topological nodal loops in alkaline-earth hexaborides XB6 (X = Ca, Sr, and Ba) under pressure.

Based on first-principles calculations, we report that external pressure can induce a topological phase transition in alkaline-earth hexaborides, XB6 (X = Ca, Sr, and Ba). It was revealed that XB6 are transformed from trivial semiconductors to topological node-line semimetals under moderate pressure when the spin-orbit coupling (SOC) is ignored. The band inversion between the B p-orbitals at the X point is responsible for the formation of node-line semimetals. Three node-line rings around the X point are protected by the combination of the time-reversal and spatial inversion symmetries, and drumhead surface bands are obtained in the interiors of the projected node-line rings. When the SOC is included, tiny gaps (<4.8 meV) open at the crossing lines and the XB6 become strong topological insulators with Z2 indices (1 : 111). As the SOC-induced gap opening is negligible, our findings thus suggest ideal real systems for experimental exploration of the fundamental physics of topological node-line semimetals.

[Next generation sequencing technology for susceptible gene screening in familial non-medullary thyroid carcinoma].

Objective: To screen genes related to familial non-medullary thyroid carcinoma (FNMTC) using next-generation sequencing (NGS). Methods: A panel of NGS was designed and sequencing was performed for DNA samples extracted from peripheral blood leukocytes of FNMTC patients and sporadic non-medullary thyroid carcinoma (SNMTC) cases, respectively, and gene mutations were screened. In addition, the clinicopathological characteristics, including tumor size, extension of surgery, lymph node metastasis and extra-thyroidal extension, were compared between patients with or without mutations. Results: In 63 NMTC samples, 45 mutations were detected on 13 genes. 37 germline mutations were detected in 47 FNMTC patients, while 8 germline mutations were detected in 16 SNMTC patients. In 8 FNMTC family lineages, the same mutations were carried by FNMTC patients from the same pedigree. The number of carriers of mutations was 29 in the 47 FNMTC patients and 6 in the 16 SNMTC patients, with a non-significant difference (P= 0.092). Among the FNMTC patients, there were 22 patients with central lymph node metastasis in the 29 mutation-positive patients, significantly more than 7 in the 16 mutation-negative cases (P= 0.031). As for the parentage, there were 3 patients with central lymph node involvement among the 7 patients of parent generation, while all the 9 patients of offspring generation had central lymph node metastasis (P=0.019). Conclusions: This panel of NGS can be used to screen mutant susceptibility gene of FNMTC patients, and the findings may be helpful for early detection of FNMTC patients and predicting the disease risk to familial members of FNMTC patients.

[The clinical characteristics of 346 patients with IgG4-related disease].

Objective: To analyze the clinical characteristics of IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD)so as to improve the understanding of IgG4-RD in China. Methods: IgG4-RD patients were recruited from Peking Union Medical College Hospital between January 2011 and January 2016. All patients were followed-up for more than 6 months. The demographic characteristics, symptoms, organ involvements, laboratory examinations and treatment efficacy were evaluated and analyzed. Results: A total of 346 patients were finally enrolled, including 230 males (66.5%) and 116 females (33.5%). The mean age of disease onset was (53.8±14.2) years old. The mostly common involved organs were lymph nodes (56.4%) and submandibular glands (52.6%). Other affected organs and manifestations included: swelling of the lacrimal glands (46.5%), autoimmune pancreatitis (38.4%), pulmonary involvement (28.0%), sclerosing cholangitis (25.4%), naso-sinusitis (23.4%), parotid gland swelling (21.7%), retroperitoneal fibrosis (19.9%), large arteries involvement (9.5%), kidney involvement (obstructive nephropathy caused by retroperitoneal fibrosis was excluded) (6.9%), skin lesions (6.4%). Rare features consisted of thyroid glands, pituitary glands, gastrointestinal tract, pachymeningitis, pericardium, sclerosing mediastinitis and orchitis. The majority of patients had multi-organ involvement, such as 74.3% patients with 3 and more, 18.2% and 7.5% patients with 2 and single organ involvement respectively. The average IgG4-RD responder index (IgG4-RD RI) was 13.21±5.70. History of allergy was found in 172 (49.7%) patients. As to the laboratory tests, elevated serum IgG4 levels were confirmed in 285 (94.1%) patients, which was positively correlated with IgG4-RD RI. There were 33.5% patients receiving monotherapy of glucocorticoid, 52.6% treated with glucocorticoids combined with immunosuppressive agents, 4.9% patients with immunosuppressant only, and 9.0% patients with mild disease not receiving medication. The majority (336, 97.1%) patients improved the above regimens. Conclusion: IgG4-RD is a systemic fibro-inflammatory disease with multiple organ involvement. The mostly common involved organs include lymph node, submandibular glands, and pancreas. Glucocorticoids and immunosuppressive agents were effective for IgG4-RD.

[Safety analysis of carotid endarterectomy without shunting in carotid artery stenosis patients with contralateral carotid occlusion].

Objective: To investigate the safety of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) without shunting in carotid artery stenosis (CAS) patients with contralateral carotid occlusion (CAO) under the protection of monitoring of cerebral blood oxygen saturation. Methods: A total of 71 patients with CAS was enrolled in our research during 2013 to 2016. They were divided into two groups which were group A: 20 CAS patients with contralateral CAO, and group B: 51 CAS patients without contralateral CAO. All patients were given CEA without shunting during operation.One and 6 months following up was carried to observe the incidence of newly hemorrhage and infarction on operation side and adverse cardiac events. Results: There was none adverse cardiac event and newly infarction. But there was 1 (5.00%) newly hemorrhage in group A during the 1 month following up. None adverse event was found in group B. During the 3 months following up, none adverse event was found in group A and 3 (5.88%) newly infarction patients were found in group B. However, there was no significant difference between group A and group B. Conclusion: CEA without shunting in CAS patients with contralateral carotid occlusion under the protection of monitoring of cerebral blood oxygen saturation is an efficient and safe way to improve the patients, living quality.

[Clinical significance and distribution of BRCA genes mutation in sporadic high grade serous ovarian cancer].

Objective: To investigate the mutations of BRCA genes in sporadic high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) and study its clinical significance. Methods: Sixty-eight patients between January 2015 and January 2016 from the Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University were collected who were based on pathological diagnosis of ovarian cancer and had no reported family history, and all patients firstly hospitalized were untreated in other hospitals before. (1) The BRCA genes were detected by next-generation sequencing (NGS) method. (2) The serum tumor markers included carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), CA(125), CA(199), and human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) were detected by the chemiluminescence methods, and their correlation was analyzed by Pearson linear correlation. Descriptive statistics and comparisons were performed using two-tailed t-tests, Pearson's chi square test, Fisher's exact tests or logistic regression analysis as appropriate to research the clinicopathologic features associated with BRCA mutations, including age, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage, platinum-based chemotherapy sensitivity, distant metastases, serum tumor markers (STM) . Results: (1) Fifteen cases (22%, 15/68) BRCA mutations were identified (BRCA1: 11 cases; BRCA2: 4 cases), and four novel mutations were observed. (2) The levels of CEA, CA(199), and HE4 were lower in BRCA mutations compared to that in control group, while no significant differences were found (P>0.05), but the level of CA(125) was much higher in BRCA mutation group than that in controls (t=-3.536, P=0.003). Further linear regression analysis found that there was a significant linear correlation between CA(125) and HE4 group (r=0.494, P<0.01), and the same correlation as CEA and CA(199) group (r=0.897, P<0.01). (3) Single factor analysis showed that no significant differences were observed in onset age, FIGO stage, distant metastasis, and STM between BRCA(+) and BRCA(-) group (P>0.05), while significant differences were found in CA(125) and sensitivity to platinum-based chemotherapy between the patients with BRCA mutation and wild type (P<0.05). The multiple factors analysis showed that the high level of CA(125) was a independent risk factor of BRCA mutations in sporadic HGSOC (P=0.007). Conclusion: The combination of CA(125) with BRCA have great clinical significance, the mutation of BRCA gene could guild the clinical chemotherapy regiments.

[Association between single nucleotide polymorphism of BARD1 gene and BRCA1 gene mutation in epithelial ovarian cancer].

Objective: To investigate the relationship between single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of BARD1 gene and BRCA1 gene in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Methods: Nineteen EOC patients with BRCA1 gene mutation and 50 EOC cases without BRCA1 gene mutation between January 2016 and October 2016 were collected, and all EOC were diagnosed by pathological method. BARD1 gene variants were detected by next generation sequencing (NGS). The SNP of BARD1 gene was analyzed by Pearson linear correlation. Logistic regression analysis was used to research the clinicopathologic features and BRCA1 gene mutation associated with BARD1 gene SNP. Pearson's chi-square test was used to analyze the association between BARD1 gene Val507Met, Arg378Ser and Pro24Ser with different clinicopathologic features and BRCA1 gene mutation risk. Results: (1) Eight BARD1 gene variants were found in 69 ovarian cancer patients, in which Val507Met, Arg378Ser and Pro24Ser were common variants, and the rate of mutation were all 54% (37/69). (2) There was a significant linear correlation among Val507Met, Arg378Ser and Pro24Ser (all P<0.01). (3) Obvious differences were found in Val507Met, Arg378Ser and Pro24Ser of BARD1 gene between BRCA1(+) and BRCA1(-) (all P<0.05) . (4) No differences were found between BARD1 gene Val507Met, Arg378Ser and Pro24Ser and the clinicopathologic features (all P>0.05), while obvious differences were found in BRCA1 gene mutation compared to the controls group. The risk of BRCA1 mutation in Val507Met and Arg378Ser were more evident in subjects with negative family history, positive menopause history, negative tubal ligation, onset age (≤60 years old) and sensitivity to platinum-based chemotherapy in EOC (all P<0.05), while Pro24Ser was only more evident in positive menopause history of EOC (P<0.05). Conclusions: BARD1 Val507Met, Arg378Ser and Pro24Ser are the common genotypes, which are associated with BRCA1 mutation in EOC. The family history, menopause history, tubal ligation, onset age and sensitivity to platinum-based chemotherapy have effects on BARD1 SNP in the risk of BRCA1 gene mutation.

[Association between the time of sedentary behaviors and risk of type 2 diabetes].

Objective: To explore the relationship between the time of sedentary behaviors and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among rural adults in Henan Province. Methods: A total of 1 227 adults from Houzhai village in Zhengzhou City and Qiaomiao village in Jiaozuo City in Henan Province were randomly selected to participate in the survey; each of them finished a questionnaire and accepted physical examination and test of biochemical indicators. The participants were divided into case and control groups according to whether suffering from T2DM. A Pearson linear correlation and linear regression model analysis were used to investigate the relevance between the time of sedentary behaviors and fasting plasma glucose (FPG); meanwhile, a multi factor logistic regression model was used to analyze the relationship between the time of sedentary behaviors and T2DM. Results: The average FPG level among the participants was (5.4±2.5) mmol/L, and the average time of sedentary behaviors was (234.5±156.5) min per day. The prevalence rate of T2DM in subgroups whose time of sedentary behaviors were separately 0-<2.5, 2.5-<4.5, 4.5-<6.5 and ≥6.5 h/day were 15.8% (72/457), 19.3% (73/379), 16.7% (35/210) and 20.4% (37/181), respectively. There was a linear regression relationship between the time of sedentary behaviors(x) and FPG(y), the regression equation was: y=5.081+0.001x (t=3.01, P=0.003). Logistic regression model analysis showed that participants whose time of sedentary behaviors ≥6.5 h/day had significantly higher risk of T2DM than those whose time of sedentary behaviors between 0-2.4 h/day (OR=1.77, 95%CI: 1.11-2.81) after age and gender adjusted. However, the associations only exist in males and adults ≥50 years old according to sex and age stratification. It showed that participants with sedentary time ≥6.5 h/day had significantly higher risk of T2DM than those with sedentary time between 0-<2.5 h/d, with the corresponding OR (95%CI) at 2.34 (1.21-4.52) and 2.22 (1.19-4.16), respectively. Conclusion: The prolonged sedentary time is a risk factor of type 2 diabetes. After stratification by gender and age, the correlation only found in males and adults aged ≥50 years old.

Quasi-One-Dimensional Metal-Insulator Transitions in Compound Semiconductor Surfaces.

Existing examples of Peierls-type 1D systems on surfaces involve depositing metallic overlayers on semiconducting substrates, in particular, at step edges. Here we propose a new class of Peierls system on the (101[over ¯]0) surface of metal-anion wurtzite semiconductors. When the anions are bonded to hydrogen or lithium atoms, we obtain rows of threefold coordinated metal atoms that act as one-atom-wide metallic structures. First-principles calculations show that the surface is metallic, and below a certain critical temperature the surface will condense to a semiconducting state. The idea of surface scaffolding is introduced in which the rows are constrained to move along simple up-down and/or sideways displacements, mirroring the paradigm envisioned in Peierls's description. We predict that this type of insulating state should be visible in the partially hydrogenated (101[over ¯]0) surface of many wurtzite compounds.