Effect of postoperative exercise training on physical function and quality of life of lung cancer patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative rehabilitation programs consisting of exercise training are considered effective for unselected lung cancer patients. However, whether postoperative exercise is beneficial to lung cancer patients comorbid with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease remains unknown. METHODS: Eighty-four patients diagnosed with both lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were randomized into the exercise group and control group. Both groups were given standard postoperative rehabilitation for 1 week. After that, oxygen therapy (if needed) and nebulization were given to the control group, while patients in the exercise group started to participate in exercise programs on the basis of receiving oxygen therapy and nebulization as in the control group. The exercise programs consisted of 24 training sessions. RESULTS: In both groups, the functional status and the results of the pulmonary function test decreased from baseline to the endpoint. However, after surgery and the intervention program, both the maximal oxygen consumption in the cardiopulmonary exercise test and walking distance in the 6-minute walk test in the exercise group were significantly better than those in the control group [15.5 (±1.4) mL/kg/min vs 13.1 (±1.3) mL/kg/min, P = 0.016; 437.4 (±48.6) m vs 381.7 (±40.5) m, P = 0.040]. Force vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in the first second in the exercise group were better than those in the control group, but the differences were not statistically significant [1798.1 (±298.9) mL vs 1664.0 (±329.7) mL, P = 0.254; 1155.7 (±174.3) mL vs 967.4 (±219.4) mL, P = 0.497]. The decline in the standard score of the QLQ-C30 (V3.0) was smaller in the exercise group, but the difference did not meet a statistically significant level [61.7 (±5.7) vs 58.4 (±9.3), P = 0.318]. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that a short-term postoperative exercise training program can facilitate the recovery of functional capacity in lung cancer patients with comorbidities of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Phomopamide A, a cyclic pentadepsipeptide with α-glucosidase inhibition activity from the endophytic fungus Diaporthe sp.

An undescribed cytotoxic cyclopeptide named phomopamide A (1) was isolated from Diaporthe sp., which is an endophytic fungus from Artemisia argyi. Phomopamide A (1) featured an pentadepsipeptide skeleton and composed of two Phe, one Val, one Leu, and one 2-hydroxyoctanoic acid units. The structure of this new compound was fully characterised on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis. Moreover, phomopamide A was evaluated for in vitro cyctotoxic and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. As a result, phomopaminde A exhibited no cytotoxic activity against four tumour cell lines, while it showed a potent α-glucosidase inhibition effect with IC50 value of 62.35 µM.

[Application of Precision Nursing Based on Multidisciplinary Collaboration Model in Older Patients Undergoing Thoracoscopic Surgery for Lung Cancer].

Objective: To examine the application effect of precision nursing strategies based on multidisciplinary collaboration model in older patients undergoing thoracoscopic surgery for lung cancer. Methods: A total of 100 patients who were admitted to our hospital for thoracoscopic surgery for lung cancer between July 2022 and March 2023 were prospectively enrolled for the study. They were assigned, with a random number table, to two groups, a control group receiving routine nursing care and an experimental group receiving nursing care based on multidisciplinary collaborative precision nursing strategies. Their lung function, anxiety and depression scores, and quality of life were assessed at three points of time, including upon admission, one week after surgery, and one month after surgery, and comparison was made between the two groups. Results: There were significant differences in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) at the three time points ( F=156.787, P<0.001) and the ratio of FEV1 to forced vital capacity (FVC) (FEV1/FVC%) at the three time points ( F=25.587, P<0.001) between two groups. There were significant difference between the findings for FEV1, FEV1/FVC%, FVC, and maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV) indexes at 1 week and those at 1 month after surgery in the experimental group ( P<0.05). After the surgery, the pulmonary function of the experimental group was better than that of the control group. The anxiety and depression scores of the experimental group were lower than those of the control group, with the difference being statistically significant ( P<0.05), which suggested that the experimental group showed improvement in anxiety and depression in comparison with the control group. Regarding the quality of life, there were significant differences between the two groups in the scores for the functional dimension ( F=109.798, P<0.001), the symptom dimension ( F=106.936, P<0.001), other items ( F=78.798, P<0.001), and overall health dimensions ( F=174.307, P<0.001). At 1 week and 1 month after surgery, the experimental group had higher scores for the functional dimension and lower scores for the symptom dimension than the control group did, with the differences being statistically significant ( P<0.05). The overall health status of the experimental group was better than that of the control group. Conclusion: Precision nursing strategies based on multidisciplinary collaboration model can effectively help improve the lung function, the mood, and the quality of life of patients in the short term, showing considerable promise for wide clinical application.

Efficacy and safety of KL-A167 in previously treated recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a multicenter, single-arm, phase 2 study.

Background: KL-A167 is a fully humanized monoclonal antibody targeting programmed cell death-ligand 1. This phase 2 study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of KL-A167 in Chinese patients with previously treated recurrent or metastatic (R/M) nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Methods: This was a multicentre, single-arm, phase 2 study of KL-A167 in R/M NPC (KL167-2-05-CTP) (NCT03848286), conducted at 42 hospitals across the People's Republic of China. Eligible patients had histologically confirmed non-keratinising R/M NPC, and had failed at least two lines of chemotherapy. Patients received KL-A167 900mg intravenously once every 2 weeks until confirmed disease progression, intolerable toxicity, or withdrawal of informed consent. The primary endpoint was objective response rate (ORR) assessed by the independent review committee (IRC) according to RECIST v1.1. Findings: Between Feb 26th, 2019 and Jan 13th, 2021, 153 patients were treated. Totally, 132 patients entered full analysis set (FAS) and were evaluated for the efficacy. As of data cutoff date on Jul 13th, 2021, the median follow-up time was 21.7 months (95%CI 19.8-22.5). For FAS population, the IRC-assessed ORR was 26.5% (95%CI 19.2-34.9%), and disease control rate (DCR) was 56.8% (95%CI 47.9-65.4%). Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 2.8 months (95%CI 1.5-4.1) . Median duration of response was 12.4 months (95%CI 6.8-16.5), and median overall survival (OS) was 16.2 months (95%CI 13.4-21.3). When using the cutoff of 1000 copies/ml, 5000 copies/ml and 10,000 copies/ml for plasma EBV DNA titer, baseline low plasma EBV DNA was consistently related with better DCR, PFS and OS. Dynamic change of plasma EBV DNA was significantly associated with ORR and PFS. Among 153 patients, treatment related-adverse events (TRAEs) occurred in 73.2% of patients, and grade ≥3 TRAEs were in 15.0% of patients. No TRAE leading to death was reported. Conclusion: In this study, KL-A167 showed promising efficacy and an acceptable safety profile in patients with previously treated R/M NPC. Baseline plasma EBV DNA copy number might be a potentially useful prognostic biomarker for KL-A167 treatment, and post-treatment EBV DNA decrease might be correlated with better response to KL-A167. Funding: Sichuan Kelun-Biotech Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd., China National Major Project for New Drug Innovation (2017ZX09304015).

Dynamic changes in gene expression during follicle development and the efficacy of four timed AI protocols in non-suckling female yaks (Bos grunniens).

The objectives of the study were to investigate changes in the mRNA expression levels of five genes during antral follicle development and to assess the efficacy of four timed-artificial insemination (TAI) protocols in female yaks (Bos grunniens). RT-qPCR analysis revealed that expression levels were greater for follicle-stimulating hormone receptor and bone morphogenic protein 15 in the small follicle, luteinizing hormone receptor, and kit ligand in the large follicle, and growth differentiation factor 9 in the medium follicle (p < 0.05). Non-suckling yaks were treated as a 7-d CIDR, and PGF2α + eCG at CIDR withdrawal and TAI with frozen yak semen at 56-58 h after PGF2α (PPe-7d); either a 7-d CIDR (PPG-7d) or a 5-d CIDR (PPG-5d), and PGF2α at CIDR withdrawal and TAI + GnRH at 70-72 h after PGF2α; and GnRH treatment on Day 0, followed by PGF2α on Day 7 and TAI + GnRH on Day 9 (GPG-7d). The results showed that the pregnancy rate (P/AI) was greater in PPG-5d than in GPG-7d (p < 0.05), but the P/AI was not different among the other TAI protocols. In conclusion, the expression levels of these genes in follicles are dynamically changed during antral follicle development in yaks. The PPG-5d protocol achieved a greater P/AI.

The phytochemical and pharmacological profile of taraxasterol.

Taraxasterol is one of the bioactive triterpenoids found in dandelion, a member of the family Asteraceae. In the animal or cellular models of several ailments, including liver damage, gastritis, colitis, arthritis, pneumonia, tumors, and immune system diseases, taraxasterol has been shown to have significant preventive and therapeutic effects. This review aims to evaluate the current state of research and provide an overview of the possible applications of taraxasterol in various diseases. The reported phytochemical properties and pharmacological actions of taraxasterol, including anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, and anti-carcinogenic properties, and its potential molecular mechanisms in developing these diseases are highlighted. Finally, we further explored whether taraxasterol has protective effects on neuronal death in neurodegenerative diseases. In addition, more animal and clinical studies are also required on the metabolism, bioavailability, and safety of taraxasterol to support its applications in pharmaceuticals and medicine.

The prognostic value of machine learning techniques versus cox regression model for head and neck cancer.

BACKGROUND: Accurate prognostic prediction for head and neck cancer (HNC) is important for the improvement of clinical management. We aimed to compare the prognostic value of various machine learning techniques (MLTs) and statistical Cox regression model for different types of HNC. METHODS: Clinical data of HNC patients were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database from 1974 to 2016. The prediction performance of five ML models, including random forest (RF), gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT), support vector machine (SVM), neural network (NN) and deep learning (DL), were compared with the statistical Cox regression model by estimating the concordance index (C-index), integrated Brier score (IBS), time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the area under the curve (AUC). RESULTS: Our results showed that the RF model outperformed all other models in prognostic prediction for all tumor sites of HNC, particularly for major salivary gland cancer (MSGC, C-index: 88.730 ± 0.8700, IBS: 7.680 ± 0.4800), oral cavity cancer (OCC, C-index: 84.250 ± 0.6700, IBS: 11.480 ± 0.3300) and oropharyngeal cancer (OPC, C-index: 82.510 ± 0.5400, IBS: 10.120 ± 0.1400). Meanwhile, we analyzed the importance of each clinical variable in the RF model, in which age and tumor size presented the strongest positive prognostic effects. Additionally, similar results can be observed in the internal (6th edition of the AJCC TNM staging system cohort) and external validations (the TCGA HNC cohort). CONCLUSIONS: The RF model is a promising prognostic prediction tool for HNC patients, regardless of the anatomic subsites.

Association between Cervical Lymph Node Metastasis and the Incidence of Radiation-Induced Hypothyroidism in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: It is controversial and unclear how N-stage would increase the risk of incidence of hypothyroidism (HT) for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) after radiotherapy. Our study aimed to explore the correlation between cervical lymph node metastasis and the incidence of HT in NPC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 206 patients with NPC treated at the Cancer Hospital of University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and their clinical information were retrospectively collected. A series of univariate logistic regression models were performed to explore the association of clinical and lymph node indices with the development of HT. Significant features in univariate analysis were then used to construct three prediction models, for HT prediction using multivariate logistic regression based on Bayesian information criterion. Prediction performance of those models was measured by area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) using 10-fold cross-validation. RESULTS: A total of 111 patients developed HT, and the incidence of HT in N 2-3 and N 0-1 patients was 58.82% and 44.29%, respectively. Compared to Model 1 (consisted of pretreatment TSH concentration, thyroid volume, and N-stage) whose AUCs were 0.801 and 0.766 in training and validation sets, with N-stage be replaced by shortest distance from thyroid, Model 2 achieved more stable AUCs of 0.824 and 0.801. While with numbers of positive lymph nodes in Level IIb additionally added, Model 3 improved its AUCs to 0.841 and 0.813. CONCLUSION: The shortest distance between the lymph nodes and thyroid gland and the number of lymph nodes in IIb are better predictors of radiation-induced HT than the N-stage.

[Study on the Benefit of Postoperative Exercise Rehabilitation in Patients with 
Lung Cancer Complicated with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease].

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) affects 45%-63% of lung cancer patients worldwide. Lung cancer patients complicated with COPD have decreased cardiopulmonary function and increased perioperative risk, and their postoperative exercise endurance and lung function are significantly lower than those with conventional lung cancer. Previous studies have shown that postoperative exercise training can improve the exercise endurance of unselected lung cancer patients, but it is unclear whether lung cancer patients with COPD can also benefit from postoperative exercise training. This study intends to explore the effects of postoperative exercise training on exercise endurance, daily activity and lung function of lung cancer patients with COPD. METHODS: Seventy-four patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) complicated with COPD who underwent pneumonectomy in the lung cancer center of West China Hospital of Sichuan University from August 5, 2020 to August 25, 2021 were prospectively analyzed. They were randomly divided into exercise group and control group; The patients in the two groups received routine postoperative rehabilitation in the first week after operation, and the control group was given routine nursing from the second week. On this basis, the exercise group received postoperative exercise rehabilitation training for two weeks. Baseline evaluation was performed 3 days before operation and endpoint evaluation was performed 3 weeks after operation. RESULTS: The exercise endurance, daily activity and pulmonary function test results of the two groups decreased from baseline to the end point. However, after the operation and intervention program, the maximum oxygen consumption of Cardiopulmonary Exercise Test and the walking distance of 6-Minute Walking Test in the exercise group were significantly better than those in the control group [(13.09±1.46) mL/kg/min vs (11.89±1.38) mL/kg/min, P=0.033; (297±46) m vs (243±43) m, P=0.041]. The average number of we-chat steps in the exercise group was also significantly better than that in the control group (4,381±397 vs 3,478±342, P=0.035). Forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) in the exercise group were better than those in the control group, but the difference did not reach a statistically significant level [(1.76±0.19) L vs (1.60±0.28) L, P=0.084; (1.01±0.17) L vs (0.96±0.21) L, P=0.467]. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative exercise rehabilitation training can improve exercise endurance and daily activity ability of patients with lung cancer complicated with COPD and promote postoperative rehabilitation.

2-Pyrones from endophytic fungus Diaporthe foeniculina BZM-15.

Foeniculins A-C (1-3) together with a pair of enantiomers (±)-foeniculin D (4) were isolated from endophytic fungus Diaporthe foeniculina BZM-15. Their structures including absolute configurations were unambiguously established by extensive interpretation of the NMR and HR-ESI-MS data, ECD measurements powered by molecular calculations, as well as Mo2(OAc)4 mediated CD methodology. The cytotoxic activity assay disclosed that these compounds didn't show any noticeable cytotoxic activity.[Formula: see text].

Research progress of radiation-induced hypothyroidism in head and neck cancer.

This paper reviews the factors related to hypothyroidism after radiotherapy in patients with head and neck cancer to facilitate the prevention of radiation-induced hypothyroidism and reduce its incidence. Hypothyroidism is a common complication after radiotherapy in patients with head and neck cancer, wherein the higher the radiation dose to the thyroid and pituitary gland, the higher the incidence of hypothyroidism. With prolonged follow-up time, the incidence of hypothyroidism gradually increases. Intensity modulated radiotherapy should limit the dose to the thyroid, which would reduce the incidence of hypothyroidism. In addition, the risk factors for hypothyroidism include small thyroid volume size, female sex, and previous neck surgery. The incidence of radiation-induced hypothyroidism in head and neck cancer is related to the radiation dose, radiotherapy technique, thyroid volume, sex, and age. A prospective, large sample and long-term follow-up study should be carried out to establish a model of normal tissue complications that are likely to be related to radiation-induced hypothyroidism.

A polypyrrole-polydimethylsiloxane sponge-based compressible capacitance sensor with molecular recognition for point-of-care immunoassay.

A highly compressible and all-solid-state polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) sponge-based flexible capacitance sensor modified with polypyrrole (PPy) was designed as the signal readout for the sensitive immunoassay of prostate-specific antigen (PSA). This system mainly consisted of a compressible capacitance sensor, immunoreaction protocol and gas delivery channel. The capacitance sensor was connected to a single microplate by a syringe, whereas the immunoreaction was carried out in the microplate. The conjugated catalase with the detection antibody via biotin-streptavidin interaction could trigger gas generation to cause a pressure change, thus resulting in the increase in the capacitance of the PPy-PDMS sponge observed with an LCR-6100 digital bridge capacitance meter. By coupling with the capacitance sensor, the capacitance change could be monitored in real time to achieve portable detection of PSA. Under the optimal conditions, the compressible supercapacitor PPy-PDMS sponge showed great electrochemical performance and remained stable under compressive strains. The capacitance increased with increasing target PSA concentration within a dynamic working range of 0.1-50 ng mL-1 at a detection limit of 57 pg mL-1. Moreover, acceptable reproducibility, precision and high specificity were obtained from PSA analysis, and were in good accordance with the commercial PSA ELISA kit.

Hematological Indexes Can Be Used to Predict the Incidence of Hypothyroidism in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients after Radiotherapy.

BACKGROUND: This study explored the relationship between thyroid-associated antibodies, immune cells, and hypothyroidism to establish a predictive model for the incidence of hypothyroidism in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) after radiotherapy. METHODS: A total of 170 patients with NPC treated at the Cancer Hospital of University of Chinese Academy of Sciences between January 2015 and August 2018 were included. The complete blood count, biochemical, coagulation function, immune cells, and thyroid-associated antibodies tested before radiotherapy were evaluated. A logistic regression model was performed to elucidate which hematological indexes were related to hypothyroidism development. A predictive model for the incidence of hypothyroidism was established. Internal verification of the multifactor model was performed using the tenfold cross-validation method. RESULTS: The univariate analysis showed that immune cells had no statistically significant differences among the patients with and without hypothyroidism. Sex, N-stage, antithyroid peroxidase antibody (TPO-Ab), antithyroglobulin antibody (TG-Ab), thyroglobulin (TG), and fibrinogen (Fb) were associated with hypothyroidism. Males and early N-stage were protective factors of thyroid function, whereas increases in TPO-Ab, TG-Ab, TG, and Fb counts were associated with an increased rate of hypothyroidism incidence. The multivariate analysis showed that TPO-Ab, TG-Ab, TG, and Fb were independent predictors of hypothyroidism. The comprehensive effect of the significant model, including TPO-Ab, TG-Ab, TG, and Fb counts, represented the optimal method of predicting the incidence of radiation-induced hypothyroidism (AUC = 0.796). Tenfold cross-validation methods were applied for internal validation. The AUCs of the training and testing sets were 0.792 and 0.798, respectively. CONCLUSION: A model combining TPO-Ab, TG-Ab, TG, and Fb can be used to screen populations at a high risk of developing hypothyroidism after radiotherapy.

Circulating Tumor Cells and Fibronectin 1 in the Prognosis of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is highly endemic in Southeast China. Circulating tumor cell is an important biomarker in the prognosis of variety kinds of cancers. Overexpression of fibronectin 1 was observed in variety kinds of malignancies and may contribute to progress and metastasis of the cancers. The current study was aimed to investigate phenotypes of circulating tumor cell in nasopharyngeal carcinoma blood and fibronectin 1 expression in the circulating tumor cell, and their clinical application in predicting nasopharyngeal carcinoma prognosis. METHODS: Blood samples were obtained from nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients before and after treatment. CanPatrol circulating tumor cell enrichment and RNA in situ hybridization were applied to identify circulating tumor cell and its phenotypes. Fibronectin 1 messenger RNA expression in the cells of circulating tumors was examined by messenger RNA-in situ hybridization. RESULTS: Circulating tumor cell was not associated with tumor characteristics or lymph node metastasis. Patients with >9 circulating tumor cells or >5 mesenchymal phenotype circulating tumor cell per 5-mL blood had poorer progression-free survival (P < .05). Multivariable analysis demonstrated that 2 or more mesenchymal phenotype circulating tumor cells with high fibronectin 1 messenger RNA expression predicted shorter progression-free survival (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Circulating tumor cells with high-level fibronectin 1 expression was associated with poor survival in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma and could be an independent prognostic factor for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Thyroid V50 is a risk factor for hypothyroidism in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the risk factors of radiation-induced thyroid dysfunction, then combined the clinical factors and optimum thyroid dosimetric parameters to predict the incidence rate of hypothyroidism (HT) and to guide individualized treatment. METHODS: A total of 206 patients with histologically proven nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treated at the Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences between January 2015 and August 2018 were included. Dose-volume histogram (DVH) data, including mean dose, absolute volume, V20, V25, V30, V35, V40, V45, V50, V55, and V60 were extracted and used as dosimetric parameters. A logistic regression analysis model was built to identify predictors related to HT occurring within 2 years. RESULTS: Sex, N stage, thyroid volume, mean thyroid dose, and thyroid V20 and V50 were significantly different between patients with and without HT. Logistic regression analysis showed that N stage, thyroid volume, and thyroid V50 were independent predictors of HT. The radiosensitivity of the thyroid decreased as the thyroid volume increased. Patients with N stage > 1 had significantly higher HT incidence (37.38%) than patients with N stage ≤1 (13.11%). The incidence of HT was 54.55% in patients with thyroid V50 > 24% and was 34.15% in patients with thyroid V50 ≤ 24%. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of HT is significantly associated with N stage, thyroid volume, and thyroid V50. More attention should be paid to patients with NPC with thyroid volume ≤ 12.82 cm3 and advanced N stage disease.

Pressure-Based Bioassay Perceived by a Flexible Pressure Sensor with Synergistic Enhancement of the Photothermal Effect.

An effective signal amplification strategy based on temperature-amplification synergistic pressure was designed for the sensitive detection of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) by using a noncontact point-of-care testing (POCT) aptasensor with a flexible pressure sensor based on a poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS)-modified sponge (PEDOT:PSS-sponge). In the biological recognition system, target analyte triggered the release of platinum nanoparticle-labeled complementary DNA (Pt-cDNA) from CEA aptamer-conjugated magnetic beads. On the basis of the unique characteristics of platinum nanoparticles (e.g., catalytic ability for H2O2 decomposition, peroxidase-like catalytic activity, and photothermal characteristics), the platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs) could not only catalyze hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to produce a large amount of oxygen (O2) but could also assist the oxidation of 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) to a photothermal agent ox-TMB with the increasing temperature. Under 808 nm near-infrared (NIR) laser irradiation, an increase in the pressure and temperature occurred simultaneously in the closed detection cell. Meanwhile, the increasing temperature could be helpful for further increasing the pressure. The flexible pressure sensor was compressed in a closed system to cause a decrease in contact resistance, thereby establishing a correlation between the concentration and the resistance-readable analysis. Under optimum conditions, the dynamic detection range of this detection strategy for target CEA was between 0.2 and 80 ng mL-1, and the limit of detection (LOD) was 0.15 ng mL-1. Overall, the signal amplification strategy of temperature coordination provides possibilities for the future development of sensitive and portable POCT protocols.

Erastin decreases radioresistance of NSCLC cells partially by inducing GPX4-mediated ferroptosis.

The aim of the present study was to examine whether erastin influences radioresistance in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells and produce a preliminary investigation into its mechanism of action. The radioresistant subtype of NSCLC cells, A549-R and H460-R, were induced by high-dose hypofractionated irradiation. Erastin was used to treat the radioresistant cells and radiosensitivity was examined by colony formation assays. Cell death was determined after the cells were treated with erastin, irradiation (IR) or erastin together with IR. The expression of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) expression in the parental cells and radioresistance cells was detected by western blotting. GPX4 expression in the radioresistance cells was subsequently inhibited, radiosensitivity and cell death was measured, and erastin enhanced radiosensitivity in A549-R and H460-R cells. Erastin and IR exhibited a combined effect on killing cells, as co-treatment with erastin and IR demonstrated a higher effect on killing cells compared with erastin or IR alone. GPX4 expression was inhibited by erastin in the radioresistant cells. Inhibiting GPX4 expression also radiosensitized NSCLC cells to radiation in the radioresistant cell lines. Erastin-induced and GPX4-inhibition-induced cell death could partially be rescued by deferoxamine, but not Z-VAD-FMK and olaparib, which indicated that erastin and GPX4-inhibition induced ferroptosis in the radioresistant cells. Erastin decreased radioresistance of NSCLC cells partially by inducing GPX4-mediated ferroptosis.

MicroRNA-494-3p Promotes Cell Growth, Migration, and Invasion of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma by Targeting Sox7.

BACKGROUND: There is mounting evidence that microRNAs play an important role in nasopharyngeal carcinoma, which is widely prevalent in South China and is the most prevalent metastatic cancer among head and neck cancers. Recently, it has been shown that miR-494 is involved in the progression and prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. However, little is known about the function and mechanism of miR-494-3p in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the effects of miR-494-3p on the migration and invasion of nasopharyngeal carcinoma and to further explore the underlying mechanisms of these processes. METHODS: The expression levels of miR-494-3p and Sox7 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma specimens and nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell lines were measured using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Luciferase reporter assay, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, and Western blotting were used to confirm whether Sox7 was a direct target of miR-494-3p. Additionally, the roles of miR-494-3p and Sox7 on cell proliferation, migration, and invasion of nasopharyngeal carcinoma were analyzed by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, wound healing assay, and Boyden chamber assay, respectively. RESULTS: Our study demonstrated that miR-494-3p was commonly upregulated in nasopharyngeal carcinoma specimens and nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell lines compared with nontumor nasopharyngeal epithelial tissue or nasopharyngeal cells (NP69). Moreover, miR-494-3p negatively regulated Sox7 at the posttranscriptional level by binding to a specific site in the Sox7 3'-untranslated region. In addition, synthetic miR-494-3p mimics significantly promoted proliferation, migration, and invasion of S18 and S26 nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells, while a synthetic miR-494-3p inhibitor resulted in suppressed nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell migration and invasion. CONCLUSION: miR-494-3p promotes nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell growth, migration, and invasion by directly targeting Sox7. Our results suggest that miR-494-3p might be a potential therapeutic target for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

High-Risk Factors for Suppurative Mastitis in Lactating Women.

BACKGROUND Acute mastitis is a common disease occurring in postpartum lactating women. This study aimed to identify the high-risk factors for suppurative mastitis (SM) in women who were breastfeeding. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 262 non-SM patients and 63 SM patients admitted to the Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery of Liaocheng People's Hospital were retrospectively enrolled in this study. The high-risk factors for SM during lactation were determined by assessing admission time after acute mastitis, galactostasis, primipara or pluripara, nipple injuries, antibiotic treatment course, and diabetes. RESULTS The incidence of SM in patients with admission time greater than 72 h after occurrence of acute mastitis was significantly higher than that in patients whose admission time was less than 72 h (p<0.0001). Patients with galactostasis were more prone to develop SM compared to patients without galactostasis (p<0.0001), and the incidence of SM in primiparous patients was significantly higher than that in pluriparous patients (p=0.003). The incidence rate of SM was significantly higher in patients with diabetes than in patients without diabetes (p=0.002). Patients with nipple injuries were more prone to suffer from SM relative to the patients without nipple injuries (p<0.0001). However, there was no significant difference in the incidence of SM according to the antibiotic treatment course (p=0.134). CONCLUSIONS SM during lactation was closely associated with admission time after the occurrence of acute mastitis, galactostasis, primipara, diabetes, and nipple injuries.

Enhanced expression of SETDB1 possesses prognostic value and promotes cell proliferation, migration and invasion in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

SETDB1, an H3K9­specific histone methyltransferase, has been described as a repressed transcription marker which triggers tumorigenesis of many types of human cancer. However, there are few studies elucidating the relationship between SETDB1 and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. In the present study, we confirmed that SETDB1 exhibited higher expression levels in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) tissues and cell lines, compared to these levels in non­tumor tissues and a normal human nasopharyngeal epithelial cell line. Kaplan­Meier analysis showed that higher SETDB1 expression indicated an unfavorable prognosis for NPC patients, making it an independent prognostic factor for NPC in the COX proportional hazards model. In vitro functional studies revealed that upregulation of SETDB1 expression in CNE1 cells promoted cell proliferation, possibly through cell cycle G1/S phase transition. Moreover, it also enhanced cell migration and invasion ability. Downregulation of SETDB1 expression in 5­8F cells resulted in the opposite response. Overall, the findings indicated that increased expression of SETDB1 may predict poor overall survival and the malignant phenotype of NPC.