Application of MFI-5 in severe complications and unfavorable outcomes after radical resection of colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Frailty is considered a characteristic manifestation of physiological decline in multiple organ systems, which significantly increases the vulnerability of elderly individuals with colorectal cancer (CRC) and is associated with a poor prognosis. While studies have demonstrated that the 11-factor Modified Frailty Index (mFI-11) can effectively predict adverse outcomes following radical resection of CRC, there is a lack of research on the applicability of the 5-factor Modified Frailty Index (mFI-5) within this patient population. METHODS: In this retrospective analysis, we examined a cohort of CRC patients aged 65 years and above who had undergone radical resection. For each patient, we calculated their mFI-5 score, considering a score of ≥ 2 as an indication of frailty. We conducted univariate and multivariate analyses to assess the association between the mFI-5 and adverse outcomes as well as postoperative complications. RESULTS: Patients with an mFI-5 score ≥ 2 exhibited a significantly higher incidence of serious postoperative complications (53% vs. 30%; P = 0.001) and experienced a longer hospital stay [19.00 (15.00-24.50) vs. 17.00 (14.00-20.00); P < 0.05]. Notably, an mFI-5 score greater than 2 emerged as an independent risk factor for severe postoperative complications (odds ratio: 2.297; 95% confidence interval: 1.216 to 4.339; P = 0.01). Furthermore, the mFI-5 score displayed predictive capabilities for severe postoperative complications with an area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.629 (95% confidence interval: 0.551 to 0.707; P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The mFI-5 demonstrates a high level of sensitivity in predicting serious complications, prolonged hospital stays, and mortality following radical resection of colorectal carcinoma. As a practical clinical assessment tool, the mFI-5 enables the identification of high-risk patients and facilitates preoperative optimization.

MicroRNA-490-3p inhibits colorectal cancer metastasis by targeting TGFßR1.

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignances worldwide. Metastasis is responsible for the rapid recurrence and poor prognosis of CRC. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of CRC metastasis remains largely unclear. In this study we purposed to investigate the expression and biological functions of miR-490-3p in CRC metastasis, as well as to identify its downstream target genes and influenced pathway. METHODS: The expression level of miR-490-3p in CRC cell lines, CRC adjacent normal tissues, non-metastasis and metastasis tissues were assessed by quantitative real-time PCR. Patient survivals were follow-up up to 7 years. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function study on cell migration and invasion abilities were carried out by transfection of miR-490-3p mimics or inhibitors respectively. The molecular targets of miR-490-3p were computationally identified and experimentally verified by dual-luciferase reporter assay and western blot. Functional rescue was also conducted to confirm miR-490-3p inhibits CRC metastasis by targeting TGF-ß signaling pathway. RESULTS: miR-490-3p expression was persistently downregulated during CRC malignant progression, as well as in CRC cell lines. Artificially overexpression miR-490-3p in CRC cell lines inhibited cell migration and invasion abilities while knockdown miR-490-3p expression caused the reverse effects. TGFßR1 and MMP2/9 were the downstream targets of miR-490-3p in CRC. Inhibition of TGFßR1 could partially recover the tumor suppression effect of miR-490-3p. CONCLUSION: miR-490-3p is downregulated during CRC malignant progression. miR-490-3p represses CRC cell migration and invasion abilities, partially by targeting to the TGF-ß signaling pathway. Taken together, miR-490-3p is acting as a tumor suppressor in CRC.

Study of KRAS-Related miRNA Expression in Colorectal Cancer.

Introduction: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common digestive system tumors and seriously threatens the lives of patients. The choice of treatment options and the prognosis of CRC patients are closely related to the KRAS genotype. Notably, microRNAs (miRNAs) have great application value in the diagnosis and treatment of CRC. Methods: The current study used qRT-PCR to analyze the expression of KRAS-targeting miRNAs and determine the correlation between miRNA expression and KRAS gene expression among patients with varying genotypes. The effect of the KRAS gene on the prognosis of patients with cancer was determined. Results: Eighty-two differentially expressed miRNAs were identified between CRC tumor and normal tissues: 58 dysregulated miRNAs were identified in patients with KRAS mutations, and 62 aberrantly expressed miRNAs were detected in patients with wild-type KRAS. Thirteen miRNAs were abnormally expressed in KRAS-mutant patients compared with KRAS wild-type patients. Some miRNAs not only acted as biomarkers for CRC but also indicated the genotype of KRAS. Conclusion: This finding is very important for patients who must choose from clinical treatment options based on KRAS results. Thus, the abnormal expression of miRNAs has great application potential for the selection of chemotherapy regimens for patients with cancer. The relationship between differential miRNA expression and the KRAS genotype is very important for studying related mechanisms in CRC.

Diagnostic Value of Combining miRNAs, CEA Measurement and the FOBT in Colorectal Cancer Screening.

INTRODUCTION: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common illnesses that seriously threatens human health; many papers have reported that microRNAs (miRNAs) are promising biomarkers for cancer detection. However, miRNAs have not been used in clinical practice even though they are superior to the currently used screening tools, such as the fecal occult blood test (FOBT) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) measurement. METHODS: In this study, we focused on the usefulness of a panel of miRNAs and the combination of miRNAs with the FOBT and CEA measurement, the currently used general diagnosis methods, to improve the accuracy of CRC diagnosis. RESULTS: The results showed that the miRNA panel has great potential value as a diagnostic biomarker with high specificity and sensitivity, and further analysis demonstrated that the miRNA panel had higher sensitivity and specificity than the FOBT and CEA measurement, even when these methods were combined. More importantly, although the miRNA panel is superior to the FOBT and CEA measurement, it cannot replace them. CONCLUSIONS: In this research, we investigated whether complementarity exists between the miRNA panel and the FOBT and CEA measurement for CRC diagnosis. Interestingly, the results indicated that the FOBT and CEA measurement could improve the positivity rate of the miRNA panel as a biomarker and vice versa.

Metal Organic Frameworks Modified Proton Exchange Membranes for Fuel Cells.

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) have received considerable interest due to their low operating temperature and high energy conversion rate. However, their practical implement suffers from significant performance challenge. In particular, proton exchange membrane (PEM) as the core component of PEMFCs, have shown a strong correlation between its properties (e.g., proton conductivity, dimensional stability) and the performance of fuel cells. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as porous inorganic-organic hybrid materials have attracted extensive attention in gas storage, gas separation and reaction catalysis. Recently, the MOFs-modified PEMs have shown outstanding performance, which have great merit in commercial application. This manuscript presents an overview of the recent progress in the modification of PEMs with MOFs, with a special focus on the modification mechanism of MOFs on the properties of composite membranes. The characteristics of different types of MOFs in modified application were summarized.

Recent Developments in the Flame-Retardant System of Epoxy Resin.

With the increasing emphasis on environmental protection, the development of flame retardants for epoxy resin (EP) has tended to be non-toxic, efficient, multifunctional and systematic. Currently reported flame retardants have been capable of providing flame retardancy, heat resistance and thermal stability to EP. However, many aspects still need to be further improved. This paper reviews the development of EPs in halogen-free flame retardants, focusing on phosphorus flame retardants, carbon-based materials, silicon flame retardants, inorganic nanofillers, and metal-containing compounds. These flame retardants can be used on their own or in combination to achieve the desired results. The effects of these flame retardants on the thermal stability and flame retardancy of EPs were discussed. Despite the great progress on flame retardants for EP in recent years, further improvement of EP is needed to obtain numerous eco-friendly high-performance materials.

Miscibility behavior of ethylene/vinyl acetate and C5 petroleum resin by FTIR imaging.

FTIR microscopic imaging was used to investigate the miscibility behavior of ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) and C5 petroleum resin. Images with an area of 500 x 500 microm(2) were collected in the reflection mode. The miscibility was characterized by probing the spatial distribution of the carbonyl group (C=O) of EVA in the whole images. It was found that a 1:1 hot-melt mixture of EVA and C5 resin showed a good miscibility behavior. For two different EVA copolymers, one with 18% vinyl acetate (VAc) content showed a better miscibility behavior than that with 28% VAc content. Our results demonstrated that this method allowed a direct, convenient and nondestructive visualization. This developed technique promises to become a powerful tool for studying the miscibility behavior of composite materials.

miR-145 suppresses colorectal cancer cell migration and invasion by targeting an ETS-related gene.

MicroRNA-45 (miR-145) has been demonstrated to be downregulated in various cancer types including colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the function of miR­145 in CRC has not been clearly elucidated. In this study, we examined miR-145 expression by quantitative real­time PCR (qRT­PCR) in CRC cell lines as well as tumors and corresponding normal mucosa, and the results were correlated to the clinicopathological parameters. In addition, using computational algorithms we investigated putative miR­145 targets. The role of miR­145 was further examined in studies in vitro. In our study miR­145 was significantly decreased in CRC tissues and cell lines compared with non­cancerous colorectal mucosa, especially lymph node or distance metastasis cases. Based on computational algorithms, we assumed that ERG was directly modulated by miR­145 in colorectal cancer cells. For the first time, we demonstrated that ERG was highly expressed in CRC tissues compared with normal ones by qRT­PCR. The inverse correlation between the expression of miR­145 and ERG was observed in CRC tissues. Dual­Luciferase assays demonstrated the direct interaction between miR­145 and 3'­UTR of ERG mRNA. Ectopic expression of miR­145 suppressed the proliferation and invasion ability of colorectal cancer cells, while ERG knockdown partially restored the tumor suppressive effect of miR­145. These results suggested that miR­145 might act as a tumor suppressor during the process of CRC malignant transformation by interacting with ERG.