Aberrant methylation of DACT1 and DACT2 are associated with tumor progression and poor prognosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The DACT (Dishevelled-associated antagonist of ß-catenin) family of scaffold proteins may play important roles in tumorigenesis. However, the epigenetic changes of DACT1, 2, 3 and their effect on esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) have not been investigated so far. The aim of this study was to investigate the promoter methylation and expression of DACT family, in order to elucidate more information on the role of DACT with regard to the progression and prognosis of ESCC. METHODS: MSP and BGS methods were respectively applied to examine the methylation status of DACT; RT-PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemistry methods were respectively used to determine the mRNA and protein expression of DACT; MTT, Colony-formation and Wound-healing assay were performed to assess the effect of DACT1 and DACT2 on proliferation and migration of esophageal cancer cells. RESULTS: Frequent reduced expression of DACT1, DACT2 and DACT3 were found in esophageal cancer cell lines and the expression levels of DACT1 and DACT2 were reversed by 5-Aza-Dc. Decreased mRNA and protein expression of DACT1 and DACT2 were observed in ESCC tumor tissues and were associated with the methylation status of transcription start site (TSS) region. The hypermethylation of CpG islands (CGI) shore region in DACT1 was observed both in tumor and corresponding adjacent tissues but wasn't related to the transcriptional inhibition of DACT1. The methylation status of TSS region in DACT1 and DACT2 and the protein expression of DACT2 were independently associated with ESCC patients' prognosis. CONCLUSIONS: The TSS region hypermethylation may be one of the main mechanisms for reduced expression of DACT1 and DACT2 in ESCC. The simultaneous methylation of DACT1 and DACT2 may play important roles in progression of ESCC and may serve as prognostic methylation biomarkers for ESCC patients.

The transport mechanism of monocarboxylate transporter on spinosin in Caco-2 cells.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine the uptake mechanism of spinosin (SPI) by the monocarboxylic acid transporters (MCTs) in Caco-2 cells. METHODS: The Caco-2 cells were pretreated with various monocarboxylic acids, and the uptake of spinosin from Caco-2 cells was measured by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). KEY FINDINGS: Preloading of various monocarboxylic acids enhanced the uptake of SPI, especially salicylic acid (a substrate of MCTs) had a 23.4 times increase in SPI uptake, indicating that the monocarboxylic acid transporters had an efflux effect on SPI uptake and salicylic acid had a strong inhibition on SPI efflux in Caco-2 cells. At the same time, the uptake of SPI through Caco-2 cells was Na(+)- and temperature-dependent, pretreatment without Na(+) significantly increased the uptake of SPI by 1.85 times and incubated at low temperature (4 °C) SPI uptake increased 20% than that of 37 °C. Furthermore, SPI was transported mainly via a carrier-mediated transport: [Vmax = 5.364 µg/mg protein, Km = 657.0 µg/mL]. CONCLUSION: The uptake of spinosin (SPI) in Caco-2 cells was mainly regulated by the monocarboxylic acid transporters along with Salicylic acid.

[Preparation of Human Serum Albumin Micro/Nanotubes].

In this research, protein micro/nanotubes were fabricated by alternate layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly of human serum albumin (HSA) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) into polycarbonate (PC) membranes. The experimental conditions of pH values, ionic strength, the depositions cycles and the diameter of porous membrane were discussed. The morphology and composition of tubes were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The results show that pH and ionic strength of the solution are the key factors that influence the effect of assembly. Micro/nanotubes with good opening hollow tubular structure were obtained when pH 7.4 HSA solution and pH 10.3 PEI solution without NaCl were used in synthesis procedure. The outer diameter of tube was dependent on the PC template, thus the micro/nanotubes size was controlled by the wall thickness, which can be adjusted by the number of layers of the HSA and PEI deposited along the pore walls. To avoid the thin wall being damaged in dissolving the template and vacuum drying, the PEI/HSA bilayer number should not be less than 3. The polar solvent N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) can dissolve PC template to release the micro/nanotubes.

Right ventricular volume and function by three-dimensional echocardiography: results of the echocardiographic measurements in normal Chinese adults (EMINCA) II.

Three-dimensional (3D) echocardiography is an emerging technique for assessing right ventricular (RV) volume and function, but 3D-RV normal values from a large Chinese population are still lacking. The aim of the present study was to establish normal values of 3D-RV volume and function in healthy Chinese volunteers. A total of 1117 Han Chinese volunteers from 28 laboratories in 20 provinces of China were enrolled, and 3D-RV images of 747 volunteers with optimal image quality were ultimately analyzed by a core laboratory. Both vendor-dependent and vendor-independent software platforms were used to analyze the 3D-RV images. We found that men had larger RV volumes than women did in the whole population, even after indexing to body surface area, and older individuals had smaller RV volumes. The normal RV volume was significantly smaller than that recommended by the American Society of Echocardiography/European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging guidelines in both sexes. There were significant differences in 3D-RV measurements between the two vendor ultrasound systems and the different software platforms. The echocardiographic measurements in normal Chinese adults II study revealed normal 3D-RV volume and function in a large Chinese population, and there were significant differences between the sexes, ages, races, and vendor groups. Thus, normal 3D-RV values should be stratified by sex, age, race, and vendor.

Clinical value of multiband mucosectomy for the treatment of squamous intraepithelial neoplasia of the esophagus.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: To evaluate the clinical value of multiband mucosectomy (MBM) for the treatment of squamous intraepithelial neoplasia of the esophagus. METHODS: A total of 51 lesions located at esophagus from 43 patients were treated with MBM, among which 11 were diagnosed as middle-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, 25 as high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, and 15 as early esophageal cancer pathologically. Primary end-points were the rate of complete endoscopic resection and the mean operation time; the second end-points were the postoperative local recurrence rate and acute plus early complications. The histopathological results were compared between pre-MBM biopsy and MBM specimens. All patients were followed up endoscopically. RESULTS: A total of 52 MBM procedures with 180 resections were performed in 43 patients. The complete endoscopic resection was achieved in 92.3% (95% confidence interval [CI] 81.8-96.9%). The sizes of the lesions ranged from 10 × 8 mm to 25 × 23 mm. The mean operation time is 37 ± 5 min. The operative acute bleeding complication was 7.6% (95% CI 3-18.1%); no perforations occurred. Early complications consisted of delayed bleeding (one patient 1.9%; 95% CI 0.3-10.1%) and slight esophageal stenosis (one patient). The histopathological diagnosis of 26 cases (51%) was consistent between biopsy and MBM samples, while 20 lesions exhibited higher grade dysplasia. The local recurrence rate was 6.9% (3/43) at 1 year, 9.3% (4/43) at 2 years, and 9.3% at 2.5 years. No death occurred during follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: MBM is a safe and effective technique for the treatment of early esophageal cancer and precancerous lesions.

[Study on interaction of L-homocysteine modified gold nanoparticles with bovine serum albumin by fluorescence spectroscopy].

The interaction of L-homocysteine (Cys) modified gold nanoparticles with bovine serum albumin (BSA) was studied by fluorescence quenching spectroscopy and synchronous fluorescence spectra. The binding constant and binding sites of L-homocysteine modified gold nanoparticles to BSA were calculated, respectively, according to the double logarithm regression curve. Fluorescence quenching of BSA by L-homocysteine modified gold nanoparticles was observed, indicating that the quenching mechanism is static quenching. In addition, the thermodynamic data show that the key interaction force is hydrophobic interaction. Finally, the synchronous fluorescence spectra show that the conformation of BSA and the microenvironment of the tryptophan have not obviously changed.

[Progress in combination of gel electrophoresis and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for trace elements determination in proteins].

Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) has become a very efficient and sensitive trace, ultratrace, and surface analytical technique for the in situ study of the concentration and distribution of the elements in life sciences with high spatial resolution. It is being used more and more frequently in biological, medical materials and protein research, which will lead to a better understanding of physiology and pathology process in cells and tissues. The present review mainly introduces the strategies of combination of gel electrophoresis (GE) with LA-ICP-MS for the quantification of trace elements in proteins, including the proteins separation, elements detection and calibration methods. The paper emphasizes the basic conditions of the proteins separation, focusing on the stability of proteins during GE and the treatment methods of staining and drying of the gel to enable successful detection of the elements by LA-ICP-MS. In addition, the application of GE-LA-ICP-MS in phosphoproteins, selenoproteins and metal-binding proteins is introduced in detail. The prospects and challenge for this technique are discussed as well for further study.

Recent Advances and Applications in Paper-Based Devices for Point-of-Care Testing.

Point-of-care testing (POCT), as a portable and user-friendly technology, can obtain accurate test results immediately at the sampling point. Nowadays, microfluidic paper-based analysis devices (µPads) have attracted the eye of the public and accelerated the development of POCT. A variety of detection methods are combined with µPads to realize precise, rapid and sensitive POCT. This article mainly introduced the development of electrochemistry and optical detection methods on µPads for POCT and their applications on disease analysis, environmental monitoring and food control in the past 5 years. Finally, the challenges and future development prospects of µPads for POCT were discussed.

Meta-Analysis of Clinical Efficacy and Safety of Tripterygium wilfordii Polyglycosides Tablets in the Treatment of Chronic Kidney Disease.

OBJECTIVE: Tripterygium wilfordii polyglycosides tablet (TGt) is an oral preparation extracted from plant Tripterygium wilfordii. It has the effects of anti-inflammation and inhibition of cellular and humoral immunity. However, many reports of adverse reactions caused by TGt have limited its application. In this paper, the clinical efficacy and safety of TGt in the treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) were verified by data mining and analysis, so as to provide theoretical data support for the application and development of TGt. METHODS: A computer search of the following databases was conducted: PubMed, Web of Science, CBM, VIP, Wanfang Data, and CNKI. The search time limit is from the establishment of the database to September 2020. We searched for clinical randomized controlled trials of TGt in the treatment of CKD. The main types of CKD involved are nephrotic syndrome (NS), primary nephrotic syndrome (PNS), refractory nephrotic syndrome (RNS), and IgA nephropathy (IgAN). RevMan 5.2 and Stata 12.0 software were used to evaluate the literature quality and analyze the data. Finally, GRADEpro software was used to evaluate the quality of evidence. RESULTS: According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 75 articles with a total of 6418 subjects were included. The results of the meta-analysis showed that TGt could reduce 24-hour urinary protein, increase serum albumin, improve clinical efficacy, and reduce disease recurrence rate in patients (P < 0.05) with CKD compared with adrenocortical hormones or immunosuppressants. TGt could significantly reduce the level of serum creatinine (Scr) in patients with CKD (P < 0.05), but it was not significant in reducing the level of blood urea nitrogen (P > 0.05). In terms of safety evaluation, in patients with CKD, it could significantly reduce the incidence of gastrointestinal adverse reactions and neurogenic dizziness and headache (P < 0.05). However, in terms of adverse reactions such as liver injury, respiratory infection, and leukopenia, TGt was as harmful as corticosteroids or immunosuppressants (P < 0.05). The quality of the evidence was evaluated with GRADEpro software, and the results showed that TGt was strongly recommended for the treatment of CKD. CONCLUSION: TGt has certain efficacy in the treatment of CKD and has fewer side effects in certain types of diseases. The effect of TGt combined with other drugs is better than that of single use. This paper also has some limitations. Due to the limited number of the included studies, with all being from China, there may be methodological differences. Therefore, more high-quality literature data from different countries are needed.

Deep learning applied to two-dimensional color Doppler flow imaging ultrasound images significantly improves diagnostic performance in the classification of breast masses: a multicenter study.

BACKGROUND: The current deep learning diagnosis of breast masses is mainly reflected by the diagnosis of benign and malignant lesions. In China, breast masses are divided into four categories according to the treatment method: inflammatory masses, adenosis, benign tumors, and malignant tumors. These categorizations are important for guiding clinical treatment. In this study, we aimed to develop a convolutional neural network (CNN) for classification of these four breast mass types using ultrasound (US) images. METHODS: Taking breast biopsy or pathological examinations as the reference standard, CNNs were used to establish models for the four-way classification of 3623 breast cancer patients from 13 centers. The patients were randomly divided into training and test groups (n = 1810 vs. n = 1813). Separate models were created for two-dimensional (2D) images only, 2D and color Doppler flow imaging (2D-CDFI), and 2D-CDFI and pulsed wave Doppler (2D-CDFI-PW) images. The performance of these three models was compared using sensitivity, specificity, area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), positive (PPV) and negative predictive values (NPV), positive (LR+) and negative likelihood ratios (LR-), and the performance of the 2D model was further compared between masses of different sizes with above statistical indicators, between images from different hospitals with AUC, and with the performance of 37 radiologists. RESULTS: The accuracies of the 2D, 2D-CDFI, and 2D-CDFI-PW models on the test set were 87.9%, 89.2%, and 88.7%, respectively. The AUCs for classification of benign tumors, malignant tumors, inflammatory masses, and adenosis were 0.90, 0.91, 0.90, and 0.89, respectively (95% confidence intervals [CIs], 0.87-0.91, 0.89-0.92, 0.87-0.91, and 0.86-0.90). The 2D-CDFI model showed better accuracy (89.2%) on the test set than the 2D (87.9%) and 2D-CDFI-PW (88.7%) models. The 2D model showed accuracy of 81.7% on breast masses ≤1 cm and 82.3% on breast masses >1 cm; there was a significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.001). The accuracy of the CNN classifications for the test set (89.2%) was significantly higher than that of all the radiologists (30%). CONCLUSIONS: The CNN may have high accuracy for classification of US images of breast masses and perform significantly better than human radiologists. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chictr.org, ChiCTR1900021375; http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=33139.

[Preliminary study of vulvar and vaginal intraepithelial neoplasias].

OBJECTIVE: To detect the clinical features of vulvar and vaginal intraepithelial neoplasias (VIN and VAIN, respectively). METHODS: Total 148 women were performed vulvar or vaginal coloposcopy-directed biopsy pathology tests, from Sep. 2004 to Dec. 2007. RESULTS: Among 148 women, vulvar or vaginal histologic results were vulvar cancer for 1, VIN or VAIN 2, 3 for 23, VIN or VAIN for 16, condyloma for 61, vulvitis and vaginitis for 47. Eighty-five percent (33/39) women with VIN or VAIN 2, 3 were more than 30 years old. Compared to women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), women with VIN or VAIN were older. The rate of high-risk HPV DNA in women with vulvar or vaginal lesions was 84% (84/100). VAIN occurred mainly in the upper vagina (90%, 69/75). VIN or VAIN often accompanied or followed CIN or cervical cancer (79%, 31/39), and VIN or VAIN 2, 3 often accompanied or followed CIN 2, 3 or cervical cancer (70%, 16/23). CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that women with high-risk HPV infection are at risk of developing VIN or VAIN 2, 3. The vulva and vagina should be carefully inspected by colposcopic examination at the time of colposcopy for any abnormal findings.

[Analysis of diagnosis and treatment of vaginal intraepithelial neoplasia and correlation to cervical intraepithelial neoplasia].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the diagnosis and therapy of vaginal intraepithelial neoplasia (VAIN) and correlation to cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). METHODS: The clinical and pathological data about age, liquid-based cytology, human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA test, colposcopy, histology types and treatment in 35 patients with VAIN were reviewed to investigate the diagnosis and therapy of VAIN and correlation to CIN. RESULTS: Mean age at presentation was 43.9 years. The percentage of VAINI, VAINII and VAINIII were 52% (18/35), 34% (12/35) and 14% (5/35), respectively. 8% (1/13) of patients were younger than 40 years developed VAINIII, while 18% (4/22) patients were elder than 40 years. There were 83% (29/35) cases were diagnosed from 2007 to June 2008. 69% (24/35) or 17% (6/35) cases had the history of CIN or cervical cancer, respectively. VAINII-III accounted for 3/9, 53% (8/15) and 4/6 of CINI, CINII-III and cervical cancer, respectively. There were 87% (13/15) positive high risk HPV infection in VAINI, while 100% in VAINII and VAINIII. There were 97% (33/34) cases with abnormality for liquid-based cytology and 86% (30/35) cases of lesions were located in the upper 1/3 vagina. Among 19 cases received therapy, 14 cases (74%) were treated by surgery, 2 cases (11%) by brachytherapy, 3 cases (16%) used drug on the surface of vagina and the lesions were shown recovery in 9 cases followed up. CONCLUSION: The clinical characteristics of VAIN are similar to CIN and the principles of diagnosis and treatment are also the same as that of CIN.

Penta-acetyl geniposide induces apoptosis of fibroblast-like synoviocytes from adjuvant-induced arthritis rats in vitro, associated with inhibition of NF-κB activation.

BACKGROUND: Approaches promoting fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS) apoptosis are considered as a meaningful strategy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment. We have previously reported the anti-arthritic effect of penta-acetyl geniposide ((Ac)5GP, an active derivative of geniposide) on adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) rats in vivo. The present study aimed to investigate the pro-apoptotic effect of (Ac)5GP on AIA FLS in vitro and the underlying molecular mechanisms. METHODS: Rat AIA was induced by complete Freund's adjuvant, and FLS were primary-cultured from synovial tissues. AIA FLS were treated with (Ac)5GP (50, 100 and 200 µM) for 48 h and cell proliferation and apoptosis were respectively examined. The involvement of apoptosis-related proteins (Bax, Bcl-2 and caspase 3) and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling pathway was checked. RESULTS: (Ac)5GP inhibited the viability of AIA FLS and reduced the percentage of Ki67-positive cells in AIA FLS. Particularly, (Ac)5GP promoted AIA FLS apoptosis in vitro by inducing apoptotic nuclear morphology, facilitating DNA ladder formation and increasing percentages of both early and late apoptotic cells. (Ac)5GP treatment on AIA FLS decreased Bcl-2 protein level whereas increased the levels of Bax and caspase 3 proteins. Moreover, (Ac)5GP reduced the degradation and phosphorylation of IκBα, down-regulated NF-κB p65 protein level in nucleus and inhibited NF-κB p65 nuclear translocation. CONCLUSIONS: (Ac)5GP had a potent pro-apoptotic effect on AIA FLS in vitro, which is associated with regulating apoptosis-related proteins and inhibiting NF-κB activation.

[Quenching effect of gold nanoparticles for fluorescein sodium].

The spectroscopic characteristic of interaction of fluorescein sodium and gold nanoparticles with different sizes was investigated via UV-Vis and fluorescence spectrophotometry. It was shown that fluorescein sodium adsorbed respectively onto the different sized gold nanoparticle surface suffers different extent of quenching of their fluorescence. The quenching efficiency is different for different sized gold nanoparticles. It was found that smaller gold nanoparticles are more efficient quenchers due to their larger surface areas. The quenching mechanism was discussed. It was a dynamic quenching.

[Use of high-risk human papillomavirus DNA testing to deal with atypical squamous cells undetermined significance and low squamous intraepithelial lesion].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the role of high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing in improvement of recognition of cervical intraepithelial lesions (CIN) 2, 3 or cervical cancer confirmed by biopsy in women with abnormal cervical cytology including atypical squamous cells undetermined significance (ASC-US) and low squamous intraepithelial lesion (LSIL). METHODS: Total 940 patients with abnormal cervical liquid-based cytology including ASC-US and LSIL were included in this study. Hybrid capture II assay was applied in the high-risk HPV detection. The cervical pathologic diagnoses were obtained under colposcopy guided biopsy. RESULTS: Of the 940 cases, 497 were ASC-US, and 443 LSIL. With pathological diagnosis of cervical biopsy, 417 cases were chronic inflammation, 315 condyloma, 124 CIN 1, 65 CIN 2, 19 CIN 3 or cervical cancer. The positive rate of high-risk HPV DNA in groups of ASC-US and LSIL were 59.6% and 84.9%, respectively. In each group of abnormal cytology, detection rates of CIN 2, 3 or cervical cancer in patients with positive HPV DNA were 8.8% and 14.1%, respectively, which were higher than those with negative HPV DNA (0.2% and 6.0%, P < 0.05). In group of ASC-US, high-risk HPV DNA test had a negative predictive value of 99.5%; detection rates of CIN 2, 3 or cervical cancer in patients with HPV DNA virus load 1-9.99 and > or = 10 was 1.6% and 10.7%, respectively. CONCLUSION: High-risk HPV DNA test were helpful to improve the detection rates of CIN 2, 3 or cervical cancer in patients with ASC-US.

Clinical Performance of APTIMA Human Papillomavirus (HPV) 16 18/45 mRNA Genotyping Testing for the Detection of Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia 3 (CIN3) or Cancer in a Select Group of Chinese Women.

HPV type was evaluated in a select group of Chinese women that were positive with hybrid capture, and correlations were performed between the pathology found, the type of virus and a semiquantitation from the hybrid capture results. Totally 394 referred high-risk-HPV-positive women evaluated by Hybrid Capture 2 (HC-2) assay were enrolled. Before colposcopy, cervical specimens were collected from all participants and suspended into PreservCytcollection medium (Hologic Inc., Marlborough, MA), and tested with the APTIMA HPV16 18/45 mRNA assay. Colposcopy and diagnostic biopsies were done on all participants. Viral load was assessed by HC2 assay. Totally 55 women were diagnosed as CIN 3 plus cancer (≥CIN3), and the prevalence of HPV16/18/45 was 65.5 % (95 % confidence interval [CI], 52.9-78.0 %) among these ≥CIN3 women. Compared with the group with positive HC2 but negative HPV16/18/45, the odds ratio (OR) to identify ≥CIN3 was 6.3 (95 % CI, 3.2-12.3) for HPV16 and 3.2 (95 % CI, 1.4-7.2) for HPV18/45. When using ≥CIN3 as an endpoint, the sensitivity and specificity was 65.5 % (95 % CI, 52.9-78.0 %) and 72.0 % (95 % CI, 67.2-76.8 %). In the case of HPV16/18/45 negative, no high HPV load had a statistically significant increased risk for the prevalence of ≥CIN3. HPV16, 18 and 45 infection is a major cause for ≥CIN3 in Chinese women. Women with positive HPV16/18/45 should be referred to colposcopy immediately. HPV load was not suitable for the further triaged of the HPV16/18/45 negative cases.

Aberrant CpG Island Shore Region Methylation of CAV1 Is Associated with Tumor Progression and Poor Prognosis in Gastric Cardia Adenocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Caveolin-1 (CAV1) is a multifunctional scaffolding protein and plays an important role in tumorigenesis. However, the epigenetic changes of CAV1 in gastric cardia adenocarcinoma (GCA) have not been investigated so far. The purpose of this study was to clarify the contribution of critical CpG sites in CAV1 to progression/prognosis of GCA and to further elucidate the effect of critical CpG sites on the ectopic expression of ß-catenin in GCA. METHODS: Methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) and bisulfite genomic sequencing (BGS) methods were, respectively, applied to examine the methylation status of CAV1. RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry methods were used to determine the mRNA and protein expression of CAV1 and ß-catenin. RESULTS: Decreased mRNA and protein expression of CAV1 were observed in GCA tumor tissues and were associated with hypermethylation of CpG island shore and transcription start site (TSS) regions in CAV1. Hypermethylation of the other two regions within CpG islands in CAV1 was observed both in tumor and corresponding adjacent tissues but was not related to the transcriptional inhibition of CAV1. The methylation status of CpG island shore region in CAV1 was associated with the ectopic expression of ß-catenin and was independently associated with survival in GCA patients. CONCLUSIONS: Hypermethylation of CpG island shore and TSS regions is cancer specific and is closely associated with reduced expression of CAV1. The CpG island shore methylation of CAV1 may play an important role in progression of GCA and may serve as a prognostic methylation biomarker for GCA patients.

Mechanical characterization of cervical squamous carcinoma cells by atomic force microscopy at nanoscale.

To investigate the nanoscale mechanical properties of exfoliated cervical epithelial cells from patients to further reveal the pathogenesis of cervical cancer and help early diagnose. Exfoliated cells were collected from nine patients with chronic cervicitis or CIN1(control group), 30 patients with CIN2-3 (CIN 2-3 group), and 13 patients with cervical cancer (cervical cancer group). Stiffness of the cells was determined by atomic force microscope (AFM). Expression of P16INK4A was studied by immunocytochemistry. Environmental scanning electron microscopy was performed to observe the surface microtopography of the exfoliated cells. Young's modulus was measured for cells exfoliated from control and patients with CIN 2-3 and cervical cancer by AFM. The results showed that with increasing cervical lesions, the Young's modulus of the exfoliated cervical cells increased (P < 0.05). The modulus of the exfoliated cells was significantly decreased in the three patients 1 year after the surgery compared with the value before the surgery. Expression of P16INK4A in the exfoliated cells had not been statistically significant. Squamous cells from cervical cancer group had dense and disordered microvilli without clear microridges compare to other groups. The Young's modulus is increased from the control group, to CIN2-3 and cervical cancer groups, suggesting that the stiffness of cervical epithelial cells increases gradually with increasing cervical lesions. The changes in the mechanical properties of the exfoliated cells occur earlier than the changes in cell morphology. Therefore, analysis of mechanical properties of the exfoliated cells may be used to aid early diagnosis of the cancer.

Creation of the Chinese visible human data set.

The United States Visible Human Project (VHP) created a digital image data set of complete human male (data acquisition finished in November 1994) and female (data acquisition finished in December 1995) cadavers in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), and anatomical (anatomic serial section) modes. VHP aroused worldwide enthusiasm for Visible Human Research (VHR), and the data set is being used in a variety of research and educational domains. The Visible Korean Human (VKH) male was produced in March 2001. To accelerate worldwide VHR and to promote virtual anatomy as a revolutionary break with conventional anatomy, more visible human data sets representative of different populations of the world are in demand. The Chinese Visible Human (CVH) male (created in October 2002) and female (created in February 2003) project achieved greater integrity of images, easier blood vessel identification, and were free of organic lesion (unlike the other visible human projects). We performed data acquisition, three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction, and visualization with improved technology to create CVH male and female. CVH is the first volumetric data representing a complete normal adult human male and female of an Asian population. This article presents the history of Chinese Visible Human cadavers and the methods and technology used to produce the data set.

Does human papillomavirus infection do harm to in-vitro fertilization outcomes and subsequent pregnancy outcomes?

BACKGROUND: Some studies suggested that human papillomavirus (HPV) infection could reduce the clinical pregnancy rate and double the spontaneous abortion rate compared with non-infected women after in-vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET). But some other studies showed there was no difference between HPV infected and non-infected groups of ART outcomes. The role of HPV infection in infertile women undergoing IVF treatments has been a controversial issue which this article attempts to investigate. METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of 3880 infertile women undergoing IVF treatment at Peking University Third hospital reproductive medical center in 2008. Patients with abnormal thin-layer preparation cytologic test (TCT) results who underwent fresh cycle embryo transfer were divided into an HPV positive group (n = 56) and an HPV negative group (n = 56). The clinical parameters were compared (using Student's t-test and chi-squared test). Univariate and multivariate analyses were taken to see if HPV infection affects the clinical pregnancy rate. RESULTS: Of the 3880 cases 157 had TCT abnormality (4.0%). Of the 149 patients who had HPV test results, 112 women (81.2%) received a fresh cycle embryo transfer. Each group had 56 cases. The patients were of similar age and BMI, basic hormone levels, and infertile factors were similar. The gonadotropin use, oocyte retrieval number, clinical pregnancy rate, abortion rate and newborn condition were all similar between groups. Analyses showed neither HPV infection nor HPV hybrid capture (HC) II results affected clinical pregnancy rate after IVF treatments, but the FSH level did. CONCLUSION: HPV positivity did not appear to impact assisted reproductive technology (ART) success. "Extensive treatment" for HPV before IVF was not recommended because treatment time will increase age and reduce ovarian function, which will lead to inferior IVF outcomes.