Circular RNA circSLC7A11 contributes to progression and stemness of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma via sponging miR-877-5p from LASP1.

Background: Laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) belongs to tumors of head and neck. Circular RNA circSLC7A11 functions as oncogenes in various tumors. However, the role of circSLC7A11 in LSCC remains largely unknown. Here, we aimed to clarify the circSLC7A11 function in LSCC. Methods: Relevance between circSLC7A11 expressions and LSCC clinicopathological was checked using chi-square. Relevance between circSLC7A11 expressions and LSCC patients' survival time was validated using Kaplan-Meier analysis. CircSLC7A11 expressions in LSCC tissues and cells were determined using quantitative real-time PCR. CircSLC7A11 functions in LSCC were examined by Cell Counting Kit-8, EdU analysis, Western blot, flow cytometry, sphere formation assay, and Transwell analysis. Meanwhile, circSLC7A11 mechanism in LSCC was determined using dual-luciferase reporter analysis, RNA pull-down, RNA Immunoprecipitation. Results: CircSLC7A11 was highly expressed in LSCC, and high circSLC7A11 expressions were interrelated to the TNM stage. Also, LSCC patients with high circSLC7A11 owned shorter overall survival. Functional studies revealed that circSLC7A11 knockdown reduced LSCC cell proliferation, migration, invasion, stemness characteristics, and enhanced cell apoptosis. Mechanistic study data corroborated that circSLC7A11 targeted miR-877-5p, miR-877-5p targeted LASP1. LASP1 was negatively interrelated to miR-877-5p and was positively interrelated to circSLC7A11 in LSCC tissues. Also, circSLC7A11 knockdown reduced the LASP1 levels, and miR-877-5p inhibitor co-transfection reversed this reduction. Rescue assays further demonstrated that circSLC7A11 accelerated LSCC through miR-877-5p/LASP1. Conclusion: CircSLC7A11 exerted oncogenic functions in LSCC by miR-877-5p/LASP1, hinting that circSLC7A11 was a novel biomarker for LSCC.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of laryngeal cancer with whole organ serial immunohistochemical sections.

Three-dimensional (3D) image reconstruction of tumors based on serial histological sectioning is one of the most powerful methods for accurate high-resolution visualization of tumor structures. However, 3D histological reconstruction of whole tumor has not yet been achieved. We established a high-resolution 3D model of molecular marked whole laryngeal cancer by optimizing the currently available techniques. A series of 5,388 HE stained or immunohistochemically stained whole light microscopic images (200 ×) were acquired (15.61 TB).The data set of block-face images (96.2 GB) was also captured. Direct volume rendering of serial 6.25 × light microscopy images did not demonstrate the major characteristics of the laryngeal cancer as expected. Based on fusion of two datasets, the accurate boundary of laryngeal tumor bulk was visualized in an anatomically realistic context. In the regions of interest, micro tumor structure, budding, cell proliferation and tumor lymph vessels were well represented in 3D after segmentation, which highlighted the advantages of 3D reconstruction of light microscopy images. In conclusion, generating 3D digital histopathological images of a whole solid tumor based on current technology is feasible. However, data mining strategy should be developed for complete utilization of the large amount of data generated.

[Research advances on mechanism and lesion location of vertical nystagmus].

Vertical nystagmus is a vertical nystagmus caused by structural abnormalities and/or dysfunction of the central vestibular system and observed in situ in the center of the eyeball. There are two kinds of nystagmus （UBN） and downbeat nystagmus （DBN） according to the direction of nystagmus. The diagnosis of UBN is mainly made by naked eye or electronystagmography/viewer. It is a common neuro-ophthalmologic sign in the field of vestibular medicine. In this paper, the mechanism of vertical nystagmus formation and the location of lesions were briefly introduced, in order to provide help for the diagnosis and treatment of Vertigo.

A glimpse into the psychological status of E.N.T inpatients in China: A cross-sectional survey of three hospitals in different regions.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether E.N.T inpatients have a higher prevalence of mental illness than the general population and whether certain diseases are more likely to be associated with mental illness than other diseases. METHODS: This cross-sectional survey was conducted in the E.N.T departments of three hospitals in different cities in China. The psychological status of all consecutive adult inpatients was assessed within 1-2 days following hospital admission using the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90), Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) and Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). Inpatients from the general surgery and pneumology departments at the same hospital were enrolled and surveyed as control groups. RESULTS: The 439 patients enrolled in the final analysis accounted for 88.0% of all E.N.T inpatients during the study period. Of these patients, 16.4% were in an anxious state and 79.5% were in a depressive state. The overall anxiety (41.7 ± 9.7) and depression (55.9 ± 29.2) scores were much higher than Chinese norm (29.8 ± 10.0 and 33.5 ± 8.6, respectively), and significant differences were observed (t = 20.89, P < 0.01 and t = 13.12, P < 0.01, respectively). Although 18.7% of the E.N.T patients were psychiatric distress, these patients scored lower on the SCL-90 than the Chinese norm. Furthermore, the patients in the E.N.T department had a higher prevalence of anxiety and depression than those in the general surgery department but a similar prevalence to those in the respiratory department. CONCLUSION: Psychological distress, particularly anxiety and depression, are widespread in patients with otolaryngological diseases. Therefore, the identification and treatment of co-occurring psychiatric disorders in this high risk and clinically challenging group of patients are urgent in China.

MicroRNA-106b regulates the tumor suppressor RUNX3 in laryngeal carcinoma cells.

Our study focuses on a set of laryngeal tumors that show reduced RUNX3 expression in the absence of transcriptional silencing of tumor suppressor gene RUNX3 by aberrant methylation of CpG islands. We report that the loss of expression of RUNX3 correlates with up-regulation of miR-106b in human laryngeal carcinoma tissue. The downregulation of RUNX3 is mediated by miR-106b through binding of its 3'UTR. Moreover, miR-106b can promote the proliferation and invasion of laryngeal carcinoma cells by directly targeting RUNX3, and RUXN3 knockdown can abolish this phenotype. These results shed a new insight into the mechanism of miRNA regulation in laryngeal carcinoma.

[Study of the level of adiponectin in obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome patients].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the change of fasting serum adiponectin in obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) patients. METHOD: Forty males with OSAHS and forty age-matched male normal controls were included in the study. Subjects in OSAHS group were divided into two sub-groups according to body mass index (BMI): obese OSAHS group (BMI > or =25, n=26) and non-obese group OSAHS (BMI <25, n=14). All subjects underwent an overnight sleep study. The serum adiponectin levels were measured by ELISA. RESULT: (1) Except for BMI,compared with control subjects, levels of fasting adiponectin level were significantly lower in OSAHS subjects (P < 0.05). (2) In obese OSAHS sub-group, serum adiponectin level was negatively correlated with BMI and AHI. However, serum adiponectin level was positively correlated with the minimum oxygen saturation. There were similar correlations between serum adiponectin level and sleep parameters in non-obese OSAHS sub-group. CONCLUSION: Despite age and BMI, fasting adiponectin level was significantly lower in OSAHS patients than that in control subjects. And fasting adiponectin level was correlated with BMI, AHI and the minimum oxygen saturation. OSAHS is one of the main reasons of the decreased adiponectin.