The Impact of Reduced Skeletal Muscle Mass on Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis.

Although several studies have suggested a possible association between sarcopenia and knee osteoarthritis (OA) in the elderly, there remains no definitive evidence. Recently, however, the serum creatinine/cystatin C ratio (sarcopenia index: SI) was reported to correlate with skeletal muscle mass. The present retrospective study therefore investigated the impact of reduced skeletal muscle mass on advanced knee OA using SI. In 55 individuals scheduled for knee osteotomy or knee arthroplasty, correlations between SI and patient-reported outcomes such as the Knee Society Score (KSS), Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), and Oxford Knee Score (OKS) were explored. Significant associations were found between SI and the KSS functional activity score (ß=0.37; p=0.022), KOOS subscale for activities of daily living (ß=0.42; p=0.0096), and OKS (ß=0.42; p=0.0095). This study underscores the role of reduced muscle mass in functional outcomes and introduces SI as a valuable marker for assessing muscle loss in knee OA patients.

Size-based isolation of circulating tumor cells in lung cancer patients using a microcavity array system.

BACKGROUND: Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM)-based enumeration of circulating tumor cells (CTC) has prognostic value in patients with solid tumors, such as advanced breast, colon, and prostate cancer. However, poor sensitivity has been reported for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). To address this problem, we developed a microcavity array (MCA) system integrated with a miniaturized device for CTC isolation without relying on EpCAM expression. Here, we report the results of a clinical study on CTCs of advanced lung cancer patients in which we compared the MCA system with the CellSearch system, which employs the conventional EpCAM-based method. METHODS: Paired peripheral blood samples were collected from 43 metastatic lung cancer patients to enumerate CTCs using the CellSearch system according to the manufacturer's protocol and the MCA system by immunolabeling and cytomorphological analysis. The presence of CTCs was assessed blindly and independently by both systems. RESULTS: CTCs were detected in 17 of 22 NSCLC patients using the MCA system versus 7 of 22 patients using the CellSearch system. On the other hand, CTCs were detected in 20 of 21 small cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients using the MCA system versus 12 of 21 patients using the CellSearch system. Significantly more CTCs in NSCLC patients were detected by the MCA system (median 13, range 0-291 cells/7.5 mL) than by the CellSearch system (median 0, range 0-37 cells/7.5 ml) demonstrating statistical superiority (p = 0.0015). Statistical significance was not reached in SCLC though the trend favoring the MCA system over the CellSearch system was observed (p = 0.2888). The MCA system also isolated CTC clusters from patients who had been identified as CTC negative using the CellSearch system. CONCLUSIONS: The MCA system has a potential to isolate significantly more CTCs and CTC clusters in advanced lung cancer patients compared to the CellSearch system.

Microcavity array system for size-based enrichment of circulating tumor cells from the blood of patients with small-cell lung cancer.

In this study, we present a method for efficient enrichment of small-sized circulating tumor cells (CTCs) such as those found in the blood of small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients using a microcavity array (MCA) system. To enrich CTCs from whole blood, a microfabricated nickel filter with a rectangular MCA (10(4) cavities/filter) was integrated with a miniaturized device, allowing for the isolation of tumor cells based on differences in size and deformability between tumor and blood cells. The shape and porosity of the MCA were optimized to efficiently capture small tumor cells on the microcavities under low flow resistance conditions, while allowing other blood cells to effectively pass through. Under optimized conditions, approximately 80% of SCLC (NCI-H69 and NCI-H82) cells spiked in 1 mL of whole blood were successfully recovered. In clinical samples, CTCs were detectable in 16 of 16 SCLC patients. In addition, the number of leukocytes captured on the rectangular MCA was significantly lower than that on the circular MCA (p < 0.001), suggesting that the use of the rectangular MCA diminishes a considerable number of carryover leukocytes. Therefore, our system has potential as a tool for the detection of CTCs in small cell-type tumors and detailed molecular analyses of CTCs.

Functionalization of a plasmonic Au/TiO2 photocatalyst with an Ag co-catalyst for quantitative reduction of nitrobenzene to aniline in 2-propanol suspensions under irradiation of visible light.

A functionalized plasmonic Au/TiO2 photocatalyst with an Ag co-catalyst was successfully prepared by the combination of two types of photodeposition methods, and it quantitatively converted nitrobenzene and 2-propanol to aniline and acetone under irradiation of visible light.