EIF4A3-Induced Circ_0059914 Promoted Angiogenesis and EMT of Glioma via the miR-1249/VEGFA Pathway.

Gliomas are common brain tumors. Despite extensive research, the 5-year survival rate of glioma remains low. Many studies have reported that circular RNAs (circRNAs) play a role in promoting the malignant progression of glioma; however, the role of circ_0059914 in this process remains unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the function and underlying mechanism of circ_0059914 in glioma. Western blotting and qRT-PCR were used to determine the levels of circ_0059914, miR-1249, VEGFA, N-cadherin, vimentin, Snail, and EIF4A3. EDU and colony formation assays were conducted to evaluate cell proliferation. Transwell assays were used to explore cell migration and invasion and tube formation assays were used to analyze angiogenesis. RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) and dual-luciferase reporter assays were used to explore the relationship between EIF4A3, circ_0059914, miR-1249, and VEGFA. A xenograft tumor assay was performed to determine the role of circ_0059914 in vivo. Circ_0059914 expression was upregulated in gliomas. Knockdown of gliomal circ_0059914 expression reduced the proliferation, migration, invasion, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), angiogenesis, and growth of glioma cells in vivo. Circ_0059914 sponged miR-1249, and miR-1249 inhibition reversed the circ_0059914 knockdown-mediated effects in glioma cells. VEGFA was found to be a target gene of miR1249; overexpression of VEGFA reversed the effect of miR-1249 up-regulation in glioma. Finally, EIF4A3 increased the expression of circ_0059914. EIF4A3-induced circ_0059914 expression plays a role in promoting glioma via the miR-1249/VEGFA axis.

Comparison of the clinical effects of lamina replantation and screw fixation after laminectomy in the treatment of intraspinal tumours.

INTRODUCTION: Intraspinal tumours are common diseases in neurosurgery and spinal surgery. Due to the fact that most of them are benign tumours, surgical resection is usually effective, and it is also the main treatment for these tumours. To maintain the stability of the spine and to reduce the incidence of kyphosis, pedicle screw fixation is required after traditional laminectomy, but there are many complications. In recent years, tumour resection and laminectomy have become increasingly favoured by clinicians. However, the comparison of the clinical effects of lamina complex replantation and pedicle screw fixation after laminectomy in the treatment of intraspinal tumours is still unknown. This paper systematically compared the two methods from many aspects and discussed their advantages and disadvantages to obtain better clinical guidance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, a retrospective analysis was conducted to select 58 patients who underwent posterior approach tumour resection in the spinal surgery department of our hospital from January 2017 to January 2020. Among them, 32 patients underwent tumour resection and laminoplasty, and 26 patients underwent tumour resection and screw internal fixation. The age, sex, body mass index (BMI), smoking status, duration of symptoms, operation time, length of hospital stay, postoperative complications, amount of bleeding and other data were summarized, calculated and compared. RESULTS: 1. The age, sex, BMI, smoking status and symptom duration of the two groups were compared. The abovementioned results were not statistically significant. 2. The operation time, hospital stay, postoperative complications, intraoperative bleeding and adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) were counted and compared between the two groups. There was no significant difference in hospital stay or intraoperative bleeding between the two groups; in addition, the operation time, postoperative complications and incidence of ASD were statistically significant. 3. The visual analog scale (VAS) score, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) score of thoracic and lumbar spines and Neck Disability Index (NDI) score of cervical spine patients in the two groups were counted, and the preoperative and postoperative data, as well as their changes, were counted and compared between groups and within groups. There was no statistical significance between the two groups; moreover, the postoperative scores were all significantly lower than preoperative in the group. 4. According to the spinal cord function ASIA grade, the preoperative, final follow-up and change values of the two groups were counted, and intragroup and intergroup comparisons were made. There was no significant difference between the two groups; in addition, the scores of the final follow-up were significantly higher than preoperative in the group. 5. The spinal mobility was measured and recorded before the operation and at the final follow-up. There was no significant difference between preoperative and postoperative cervical mobility, and there was no statistical significance observed; furthermore, the range of flexion, extension, rotation and lateral bending of the thoracic and lumbar spines in the screw fixation group was significantly lower than that in the lamina replantation group. CONCLUSIONS: Lamina replantation can be used as splendid methods for the treatment of Intraspinal tumour. Lamina replantation can reduce the operation time, as well as reduce the occurrence of postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leakage, iatrogenic spinal stenosis, posterior soft tissue adhesion and ASD. These complications are reduced in comparison to the other mode of management and better preserve the mobility of the spine.

Acupuncture combined with moxibustion mitigates spinal cord injury-induced motor dysfunction in mice by NLRP3-IL-18 signaling pathway inhibition.

BACKGROUND: Spinal cord injury (SCI), which reportedly induces severe motor dysfunction, imposes a significant social and financial burden on affected individuals, families, communities, and nations. Acupuncture combined with moxibustion (AM) therapy has been widely used for motor dysfunction treatment, but the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. In this work, we aimed to determine whether AM therapy could alleviate motor impairment post-SCI and, if so, the potential mechanism. METHODS: A SCI model was established in mice through impact methods. AM treatment was performed in SCI model mice at Dazhui (GV14) and Jiaji points (T7-T12), Mingmen (GV4), Zusanli (ST36), and Ciliao (BL32) on both sides for 30 min once per day for 28 days. The Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan score was used to assess motor function in mice. A series of experiments including astrocytes activation detected by immunofluorescence, the roles of NOD-like receptor pyrin domain-containing-3 (NLRP3)-IL-18 signaling pathway with the application of astrocyte-specific NLRP3 knockout mice, and western blot were performed to explore the specific mechanism of AM treatment in SCI. RESULTS: Our data indicated that mice with SCI exposure exhibited motor dysfunction, a significant decrease of neuronal cells, a remarkable activation of astrocytes and microglia, an increase of IL-6, TNF-α, IL-18 expression, and an elevation of IL-18 colocalized with astrocytes, while astrocytes-specific NLRP3 knockout heavily reversed these changes. Besides, AM treatment simulated the neuroprotective effects of astrocyte-specific NLRP3 knockout, whereas an activator of NLRP3 nigericin partially reversed the AM neuroprotective effects. CONCLUSION: AM treatment mitigates SCI-induced motor dysfunction in mice; this protective mechanism may be related to the NLRP3-IL18 signaling pathway inhibition in astrocytes.

High-precision nanosecond detection of a gas absorption spectrum based on optical frequency comb time-frequency mapping.

There is an increasing demand for high-precision gas absorption spectroscopy in basic research and industrial applications, such as gas tracking and leak warning. In this Letter, a novel, to the best of our knowledge, high-precision and real-time gas detection method is proposed. A femtosecond optical frequency comb is used as the light source, and a broadening pulse containing a range of oscillation frequencies is formed after passing through a dispersive element and a Mach-Zehnder interferometer. Four absorption lines of H13C14N gas cells are measured at five different concentrations within a single pulse period. A single scan detection time of only 5 ns is obtained along with a coherence averaging accuracy of 0.0055 nm. High-precision and ultrafast detection of the gas absorption spectrum is accomplished while overcoming complexities related to the acquisition system and light source that are encountered in existing methods.

Relationship between spinocranial angle and clinical outcomes after laminoplasty in patients with ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament.

Background: The aims of this study were to identify the relationship between the spinocranial angle (SCA) and clinical outcomes and to explore whether the SCA is a suitable indicator to predict clinical outcomes for patients with ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL). Methods: Sixty-five patients with cervical OPLL who underwent laminoplasty with at least 24 months of follow-up were selected for the current study and were divided into two groups according to whether the SCA was greater than or less than the mean preoperative SCA. Sagittal alignment changes were compared between the groups. The Pearson correlation coefficient was applied to assess the relationship among sagittal parameters. Univariate and multiple linear regression analyses were applied to identify the relationship between the recovery rate (RR) and radiological parameters. Results: Patients were classified into two groups based on the mean value of preoperative SCA (85.1°). SCA was negatively correlated with T1 slope (T1s) and cervical lordosis (CL) and positively correlated with the C2-7 sagittal vertical axis (cSVA) (p < 0.001). Patients with lower SCA had larger T1s and CL preoperatively and at the follow-up (T1s: p < 0.001; CL: p < 0.001) and showed greater loss of cervical lordosis after laminoplasty (p < 0.001). However, no significant differences in the incidence of kyphosis, Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) or RR were noted between the two groups. Although Pre-SCA, Pre-CL, F/U-CL and Pre-T1sCL were significantly associated with RR, these indicators were not associated with RR in the multivariate regression analysis. Conclusion: Patients with lower SCA tended to have higher T1s and CL before surgery and greater loss of cervical lordosis at the follow-up visit but still maintained a greater lordosis angle. Although preoperative SCA is significantly related to RR, the relationship is not sufficient to indicate that preoperative SCA can be used to predict clinical outcomes. Therefore, further research is needed to confirm the impact of SCA on clinical outcomes for OPLL.

Extradural glomus tumor of the thoracic spine: case report and review of the literature.

Glomus tumors are rare lesions that can arise anywhere along the spinal axis. Only 12 cases have been reported. We report a case of a patient with a rare glomangioma of the thoracic spine. Following a review of the 12 previous cases is a discussion of spinal glomus tumors, including clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment. A single, recent case arising from the extradural space of the thoracic spine is described, followed by a literature review of spinal glomus tumors. Including our case, 13 cases of glomus tumors have been reported. The mean age at the time of diagnosis was 44.6 years (range, 22-73 years) and the male-to-female (M:F) ratio was 1.17:1. The lesion was located in the cervical spine in 1 patient, the thoracic spine in 7 patients, the lumbar spine in 4 patients, and the sacrum in 1 patient. All the tumors were benign. However, there was 1 report of local recurrence because of incomplete removal. There were no malignant transformations, metastases, or deaths reported, with a mean follow-up of 20.09±28.43 months(range, 2-90 months). Spinal glomus tumors are rare, and the preoperative diagnosis is difficult. An overwhelming majority of glomus tumors are benign and are cured by simple local excision. Patients undergoing complete resection have an excellent long-term prognosis.

An Aptamer-Based Antagonist against the Receptor for Advanced Glycation End-Products (RAGE) Blocks Development of Colorectal Cancer.

Tumor angiogenesis plays a crucial role in colorectal cancer development. Dysregulation of the receptor for the advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) transmembrane signaling mediates inflammation, resulting in various cancers. However, the mechanism of the RAGE signaling pathway in modulating development of colorectal cancer has not been explored. In this study, an aptamer-based RAGE antagonist (Apt-RAGE) was used to inhibit interaction between RAGE and S100B, thus blocking downstream NFκB-mediated signal transduction. In vitro results showed that Apt-RAGE effectively inhibited S100B-dependent and S100B-independent RAGE/NFκB activation in colorectal HCT116 cancer cells, thus decreasing proliferation and migration of cells. Notably, expression and secretion of VEGF-A were inhibited, implying that Apt-RAGE can be used as an antiangiogenesis agent in tumor therapy. Moreover, Apt-RAGE inhibited tumor growth and microvasculature formation in colorectal tumor-bearing mice. Inhibition of angiogenesis by Apt-RAGE was positively correlated with suppression of the RAGE/NFκB/VEGF-A signaling. The findings of this study show that Apt-RAGE antagonist is a potential therapeutic agent for treatment of colorectal cancer.

Ultrasonic thyroid nodule detection method based on U-Net network.

OBJECTIVE: Aiming at the time consuming processing of existing thyroid nodule detection and difficulty in feature extraction, U-Net-based thyroid nodule detection is proposed to perform computed aided diagnosis. METHOD: This paper proposes a mark-guided ultrasound deep network segmentation model of thyroid nodules. By comparing with VGG19, Inception V3, DenseNet 161, segmentation accuracy, segmentation edge and network operation time, it is found that the algorithm in this paper has relative advantages. RESULTS: U-Net network-based ultrasound thyroid nodules segmented the nodule area overlapped with the manually depicted nodule area close to 100%, the segmentation accuracy rate was as high as 0.9785, and the U-Net segmentation result was closer to the manually depicted nodule. The accuracy of U-Net segmentation of the thyroid is about 3% higher than the other three networks. CONCLUSION: The segmentation of nodules based on U-Net proposed in this paper significantly improves the segmentation accuracy of thyroid nodules with a small training data set, and provides a comprehensive reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment.

Treatment of simple bone cysts of the humerus by intramedullary nailing and steroid injection.

BACKGROUND: Simple bone cysts (SBCs) are common benign lytic bone lesions in children. This study focused on exploring a clinical treatment method, minimally invasive intramedullary decompression and drainage with elastic stable intramedullary nailing (ESIN) combined with intralesional injections of steroids, and evaluated its effectiveness, complications and morbidity through functional and radiographic outcomes. METHODS: The postoperative recovery of 18 children who suffered from SBCs of humerus was evaluated (mean follow-up, 40 months) from January 2009 to December 2016. These patients (11 males, 7 females; 8 in the left, 10 in the right; mean age, 10.9 years old) were treated with minimally invasive intramedullary decompression and drainage with ESIN combined with intralesional injections of steroids. The diagnosis was based on not only pre-operative typical medical images (X-rays/CT/MRI) but also surgical findings and pathological diagnosis. Radiological and functional outcomes were evaluated according to Capanna and Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) score. The interclass differences were analyzed by t-test. RESULTS: According to Capanna and MSTS criteria, after treatment, 14 patients made full recoveries which was presented by all the cysts filled with bone tissue, and 4 patients made partially recoveries, which were presented by cystic spaces partially filled with low density bone. All the cysts responded to treatment method, and there was no cyst recurrence. All except 2 patients had good functional results. One of the two patients had irritation of the end of the nail and one patient had a valgus deformity. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment for SBCs of humerus by minimally invasive intramedullary decompression and drainage with ESIN combined with intralesional injections of steroids is safe, effective and convenient. The clinical effect is satisfactory and worth popularizing.

Confirmed value of shear wave elastography for ultrasound characterization of breast masses using a conservative approach in Chinese women: a large-size prospective multicenter trial.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the value of shear wave elastography (SWE) for characterization of breast masses in a Chinese population. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Two thousand two hundred seventy-three women consented to be prospectively enrolled for the characterization of breast masses with ultrasound and SWE. Breast masses were known from symptoms, palpability, and/or previous imaging screening with mammography and/or ultrasound. Correlation of SWE qualitative and quantitative features with malignancy risk and impact on diagnostic performance of combining SWE features were assessed, and the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) scoring was calculated using histopathology as reference. RESULTS: Data of 2,262 masses (median size: 13 mm; range: 1.3-50) from 2,262 patients (median age: 43 years; range: 18-91) were investigated, of which 752 (33.3%) were malignant. Sensitivity and specificity of BI-RADS diagnosis were 97.5% (733/752) and 54.8% (827/1,510), respectively. By logistic regression, the combination of maximum elasticity (E max) measurements with BI-RADS assessments increased the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve from 0.908 (95% CI: 0.896-0.920) to 0.954 (95% CI: 0.944-0.962). Using E max of 30 kPa or lower to selectively downgrade BI-RADS 4a masses to follow-up, and E max of 160 kPa or higher to selectively upgrade BI-RADS 3 lesions to biopsy, specificity significantly increased from 54.8% (827/1,510) to 66.1% (998/1,510) (P<0.001) while sensitivity decreased nonsignificantly from 97.5% (733/752) to 96.9% (729/752) (P=0.2891). Positive predictive value for biopsy recommendation increased from 51.7% (733/1,417) to 58.7% (729/1,241) (P<0.001). CONCLUSION: Adding SWE maximum stiffness to BI-RADS 3 and BI-RADS 4a breast masses in a Chinese population increased significantly the specificity of breast ultrasonography, without significant change in sensitivity.

RUNX3 is down-regulated in glioma by Myc-regulated miR-4295.

MicroRNAs are increasingly reported as tumour suppressors that regulate gene expression after transcription. Our results demonstrated that miR-4295 is overexpression in glioma tissues and its level is significantly correlated with clinical stage. We also found that miR-4295 inhibited the cell G0/G1 arrest and apoptosis leading to promoted cell proliferation and activity. The murine modelling study revealed that female nude mice injected with U87/anti-miR-4295 exhibit subcutaneous tumours in the right groin. Compared with anti-NC, the tumour volume was significantly decreased in anti-miR-4295 treatment group. Furthermore, we confirmed miR-4295 mediates the expression of RUNX3 by targeting its 3'untranslation region. In addition, N-myc protein also could bind to the promoter of pri-miR-4295 and inhibit the expression of RUNX3 in glioma cells. These results validate a pathogenetic role of a miR-4295 in gliomas and establish a potentially regulatory and signalling pathway involving N-myc/miR-4295/RUNX3 in gliomas.

Predictive and Prognostic Roles of Abnormal Expression of Tissue miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-222 in Glioma.

Glioma is the most prevalent primary brain tumors in adults. In addition to the high incidence and mortality rate, the 5-year survival rate of glioma is also extremely low. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), as a class of small non-coding RNAs, may play an important role in carcinogenesis. It was also proposed that miRNAs might also be associated with glioma diagnosis and prognosis. In this study, we aimed at investigating the predictive and prognostic values of miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-222 in glioma and, hopefully, to provide some evidence for novel therapy of glioma. Tissue specimens were obtained from tumor tissue and adjacent non-tumor tissue. RNA was extracted and qRT-PCR was performed with U6 being the internal control. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed, and the area under the ROC curves (AUC) was calculated to evaluate the significance of candidate miRNAs in distinguishing glioma tumor tissues and adjacent normal tissues. Survival curves of Kaplan-Meier method were constructed for both high expression group and low expression group, and the difference between curves was evaluated by log-rank test. All the statistical analyses were performed using Stata version 12.0 software, and graphs were generated by GraphPad Prism 5.0. The significance of miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-222 expression level in distinguishing glioma tumor from adjacent non-tumor tissues was further validated. Combination of miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-22 was significantly superior compared to the clinical standard of using these miRNAs alone. A clear demarcation was shown by survival analysis between patients with high miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-222 expression and patients with poor prognosis. Similarly, panel of these miRNAs could play a better prognostic role in glioma. In this study, we confirmed the significance of miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-222 in distinguishing glioma tumor from adjacent non-tumor tissues. Higher expressions of miR-125b and miR-222 have also been proved to be associated with glioma. Furthermore, glioma patients with higher miR-125b, miR-221, and miR-222 expression were manifested to have poorer prognostic status, which might be attributed to their attenuated sensitivity to chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

[Repair of the soft tissue defects of the anterior foot and the ankle with the reversed sural neurocutaneous flap].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the operative method and effect of the reversed sural neurocutaneous flap in repairing soft tissue defects of the anterior foot and the ankle. METHODS: From March 1999 to November 2004, 19 cases (17 male, 2 female) of soft tissue defects of the anterior foot and the ankle were repaired with the reversed sural neurocutaneous flaps. The flap sizes range from 18 cm x 9 cm to 30 cm x 18 cm. RESULTS: All flaps survived well, while 1 flap had distal partial necrosis and healed after dressing change. The follow-up from 6 months to 2 years showed that all flaps were satisfactory. CONCLUSION: Sural neurocutaneous flap is easy to get and to survive. It is an effective method to repair the soft tissue defects of the anterior foot and the ankle.